Inferno (Talon #5)(91)
He gave a dark chuckle. “You don’t want to know.”
Not enough, then. I slumped against Ember, feeling a peaceful resignation creep over me. So, this was it. After everything we’d been through, all the narrow scrapes and traps and close calls, our time had finally run out. I would die in an explosion of my own making, along with Talon’s army of vessels that were meant to take over the world.
All in all, not a bad way to go, I mused, feeling the heat from the dragon beside me, the warmth of her against my back. At least my death would mean something. There was a moment of regret, where I wished Ember could have seen the end of this war. But at least, for the dragons and humans that came after us, the world would be a little safer.
“Just out of curiosity,” Ember asked, “what will happen when this place explodes? Will it reach all the way up here?”
In the corner, Mist raised her head. “The explosion itself won’t reach us,” she replied, “but the fires will shoot up the elevator shaft and bring the entire thing down. Not even a dragon could survive that fall. We could fly, but that would mean leaving the humans, and I know you’re not going to do that.”
“You could go, Mist.” Ember gave the other dragon a nod of understanding. “Riley is waiting for you, isn’t he? No need for all of us to die here.”
“No.” Mist shook her head and looked away with a sigh. “I wouldn’t be able to face him if I left you now. It seems his disturbing sense of loyalty has rubbed off on me. So…” A faint smile crossed her face, as if she couldn’t believe herself. “I guess we’re all going down together.”
My earpiece suddenly sputtered, and Wes’s voice crackled in my ear.
“St. George? Are you there? Can you hear me?”
I straightened, causing Ember to draw back slightly, and sat up, putting a hand to my ear. “I’m here, Wes.”
“Bloody hell, where the fuck have you been?” the hacker spat at me. “I’ve been trying to contact you for over thirty minutes. What the hell happened in there?”
“They were waiting for us,” I told him. “They must’ve jammed all communications on the last floor. We just got out a couple minutes ago.”
“Dammit,” Wes muttered. “I knew this was a trap, I just knew it. Damn it all to hell, Riley, why do you never listen to anything I tell you?” He gave a sigh that sounded more weary than angry. “So, the mission was a bloody catastrophe, is what you’re saying. You didn’t get the explosives planted.”
I took a deep breath. “The mission was a success. We found the stasis chamber with the Adult vessels and planted all the explosives, as planned. Give the signal to retreat, Wes. It’s going to blow in…” I glanced at my watch, and closed my eyes. “Fifty-eight seconds.”
“Shit,” Wes breathed. “Right, sending the signal now… Wait, where’s your team, St. George? Are you bloody still in there?”
“We’ll be fine,” I said wearily. “Sebastian out.” And, ignoring his horrified protests, took the mic and earpiece out and let them fall.
For a moment, the four of us sat there in silence, lost in our own thoughts as the final seconds ticked away. At my back, Ember pressed close, slipping her arms around me, and I curled my fingers over hers. Tristan leaned against the wall, his blue eyes dark and far away, and I wondered what was going through his head. As for me, I had no regrets. This was a good death, saving the world. You really couldn’t ask for a better one.
Then Ember jumped to her feet, eyes blazing green in the darkness of the box. “Dammit,” she growled. “I am not dying here. Everyone, get up! We’re getting out of this place, all of us, right now!”
RILEY
A flare streaked across my vision, cutting a bright orange path across the sky.
I leaped to my feet, watching as another followed, then another, arcing through the sky and leaving trails of smoke behind them.
Damn, that’s the retreat signal. They did it!
Shifting immediately, I launched myself off the cliff and flew as fast as I could toward the laboratory. As I drew close, I saw that most everyone was in full retreat, falling back to the front gate. I saw soldiers helping the wounded across the field, while hatchlings and dragonells covered their escape, engaging or intercepting the vessels that still pursued. Lieutenant Ward staggered toward the gate with a half-burned soldier leaning on him, still shouting orders to his men. And overhead, a very bloody, angry Eastern dragon swirled back and forth, keeping the rest of the clones busy while our forces escaped.
“Jade!” I swooped to meet her, dodging the end of a long thrashing tail. She coiled around to face me, dropping the carcass of a vessel as she did. Her scales were streaked with red, deep puncture wounds covering her body, and she held one foreleg tight against her stomach. “St. George and the others,” I panted, rearing back and beating my wings to hover in front of her. “Do you know if they got out?”
She shook her head. “I haven’t seen them. But we cannot look for them now. Our job is to make sure everyone else gets away safely.”
“Dammit, I know that! I just…” I gritted my teeth, glancing toward the laboratory, where several men and women in white coats were fleeing through the front doors. “I hope they got out in time,” I muttered.