Last Dragon Standing (Heartstrikers #5)(66)
She glanced pointedly at David, who was busy schmoozing with the heads of two European clans. The senator smiled when he saw her looking and took his government-issued phone out of his pocket, wiggling it at her before sliding it back into place.
“The president of the US has preauthorized a nuclear strike and designated Senator Heartstriker as the man on the ground,” Emily continued. “I don’t intend to use it because I’d like to avoid having all of our forces and what remains of the DFZ vaporized, but it’s good to know we’ve got an ace in our pocket.”
“Would it even work, though?” Julius asked nervously, glancing up at the Leviathan. “Can you nuke something that big without destroying everything you’re fighting to save?”
“We can damn well try,” the general said grimly. “But if we have to launch a nuclear strike, we’ve already lost, so it’s a moot point.”
“It won’t come to that,” Julius assured her. “Marci’s plan will work.”
“It’d better,” Emily grumbled. “Because all our other options are just different flavors of defeat.”
Another soldier came up to them as she finished, an older woman wearing a bright-orange vest that read LOGISTICS and carrying a heavily armored metal box the size of a picnic basket. Emily grinned when she saw it, clearing the table so the soldier could set the box down. The woman was still saluting when Emily popped the locks and threw the box open, revealing an array of complicated-looking military gadgetry packed inside custom-cut black foam.
“Here,” the general said, grabbing what looked like the world’s most expensive black plastic headband and holding it out to Julius. “Put this on.”
“What is it?” Julius asked, taking it from her.
“Coms rig,” she replied, grabbing a second one to place over her own head. “It’s got a full AR interface, a camera, a phone, and an old-fashioned radio, just in case things go really south. There’s also GPS, though with the Leviathan blocking the satellites, that’s probably useless.” She pointed at the satellite pictures that showed nothing but a wall of black above the entire northern border of the Midwestern US. “It’s also got military-grade mana-contacts that are better than anything on the civilian market, so it should work in your dragon form as well as your human one. Just make sure at least one side stays in contact with your skin at all times, and you’ll have full AR sound and capability.”
That sounded extremely useful, but… “Why are you giving it to me?”
“Because you’re in charge,” Emily said, looking at him as if she couldn’t understand how that was a question. “I overheard your dragon powwow. It’s clear you’re the one the others are looking to as the leader of this assault.”
“That’s only because Amelia told them I was running things!” Julius said quickly, putting up his hands. “I’m not—”
“It doesn’t matter how you came to be in charge,” the general said brusquely. “You are, and to be frank, I’m delighted. Despite the bad blood between us, you’ve been extraordinarily fair and reliable. Those are rare qualities in a dragon, and priceless traits in an ally.”
Julius was glad to hear it. He knew the others didn’t share his sentiment, but the UN general was a good ally for them as well. Dragons were powerful but, as he’d recently discovered, not nearly as numerous as he’d been led to believe. If they were going to keep his promise and hold out until Marci was done, they needed all the help they could get.
“I’m always ready to make an ally,” Julius said. “I’ve already told the others not to attack any of your planes, even by ‘accident,’ but I need you to make sure your soldiers do the same. If a dragon gets shot down, I can’t guarantee this won’t dissolve into a brawl.”
“Don’t worry,” Emily said. “My people aren’t stupid enough to pick a fight with this many dragons. So long as no one claws a jet out of the sky, we shouldn’t have any problems.”
She shot a sideways look at Fading Smoke as she said that, and Julius winced. “I’m picking up that you two have history,” he said quietly. “Is that going to be an issue?”
“That depends on how much stock you’re putting in Arkniss,” Emily said, her mechanical eyes whirring as she refocused on Julius. “I know saying a dragon is untrustworthy is like saying the sky is blue, but Arkniss is special. A decade ago, my superiors in Copenhagen made a deal with him for safe access to airspace over the Mediterranean. He invited us to his fortress under the Rock of Gibraltar, signed the treaty, and then betrayed us before the ink was dry. All of my subordinates died, and I was taken captive and tortured for four months before Raven got me out.” She looked down at the scrap-metal hands Raven had rigged up for her with a sigh. “Bastard cost me my last real limb.”
“I’m sorry,” Julius said, horrified.
The general shrugged. “Price of being a dragon slayer. Point is, Fading Smoke is not someone I trust with my soldiers. Normally, that wouldn’t even need to be said, but since we’re enemies of an enemy together, I feel it would compromise mission integrity if I didn’t warn you.”
“I’ll make sure he’s positioned as far from you as possible,” Julius promised. “Thank you for telling me.”