The Children of Zion

Chapter Thirty Four

D.R. Hurley

Thirty Four

A thunderous crash ripped through the darkness of night, followed by an almighty creak of twisting wood as the Hand of Slarr banked suddenly to avoid another explosion.

Nikita tumbled out of her bunk and onto the hard surface of the ship's deck, brutally jolted from a restless slumber. A cry of pain escaped her mouth upon landing, but she managed to scramble back to her feet just before another explosion rocked the ship again. The world around shuddered violently, and brought fear into her heart.

Her large ears pricked at the distinct sound of a klaxon wailing, a signal to all those aboard of immediate danger. Nikita quickly reached for her blade then left the cabin, stumbling into the narrow corridor outside. She made her way topside to find out what was happening.

The path was difficult, due to the constant swaying of the vessel. She clung tightly to a handrail of thick rope fastened to the wall, but was still thrown against the vessel's sides. What in Slarr's name had happened?

The journey so far had run smoothly, except for the rather lengthy delay yesterday when the ship had to refuel, they had made good time. Now she regretted her decision to rest before their arrival in the capital, but pushed such needless thoughts to the back of her mind.

A chill wind rustled her fur as it howled furiously down the corridor, much to her surprise. She gripped the rope handrail tighter and continued on. It wasn't long before she found the source.

A gaping hole was torn out of the vessel. It must have been at least ten paces across, for a whole cabin had been removed from the hull, leaving nothing but the blackened sky in its place. The wind blew hardest of all now, but she moved on regardless, peering out into the void of night as she drew level with the hole.

Below her was Altrad, the capital of Trian. The distinct mass of clustered buildings made it obvious to distinguish, even amongst darkness. But the gloom was peppered with orange light and Nikita found herself gawking in horror as many of its buildings burned fiercely in the dark.

She edged closer to the hole, hoping to look further out, but a sudden a blur of wood shot up from below and startled her, causing the doe to fall again.

It was another airship, much smaller than the one she rode on. It buzzed past at a great pace followed by several others. A feeling of dread swelled up from the pit of her stomach as she realised, they were too late. The Empire was here.

She pulled herself back to her feet, then continued the path up towards the main deck with a renewed purpose, finding a staircase at the end of the corridor. She climbed up to the growing sounds of battle ringing above.

The doe stepped out onto the deck, and was greeted by a scene of total chaos. Everywhere she looked Trian soldiers fought desperately with Cowdonian invaders in a sea of carnage.

Troops dressed in grey leapt bravely across the void of air, landing onto the gigantic vessel's deck, ready to fight. Their transport ships flew dangerously close to ensure the men had a chance of surviving; the pilots must have been crazy!

At first the soldiers were few in number, but more were coming in. The defending ship's crew sent blasts of green energy screaming into the hulls of approaching ships, bringing some of them down. But more arrived in their place. Several more drew close enough for the crews to board.

A group of soldiers leapt bravely across the open air and made it to the deck where the fighting began. More Empire soldiers arrived, and the clash of steel against steel grew louder with every second.