The Drowned Cities (Ship Breaker #2)(90)

“I want the 999s shut down.”

Tool bared his fangs. “Send a strike team.”

“Ah. Yes,” Stern said. “Actually, I’ve sent three. The Army of God has been good enough to return my soldiers to me, but without their hands or feet. We know where the guns are, generally. We think there are two. But they’re determined to protect them.”

“You want me to go,” Tool said. It wasn’t a question. It was obvious.

“For starters, yes. Lead a strike team.”

“What makes you think I can succeed where your soldiers have failed?”

“Come, now. We’re both professionals.”

The Colonel came closer to Tool, squatting so they could speak closely. Tool measured the distance between them, but Stern remained just out of reach.

“I do what I can with the clay I have,” the Colonel said. “But this is very rough clay. Children? Farmers from the jungles? We can mold them, but they are weak material. Fired by war, to be sure, and clever enough, but they are small and they have fought on only one battlefield in their entire lives. We both know that nothing in the Drowned Cities compares to you. I am at war, and you are one of the finest war machines that mankind has ever devised.” He leaned forward. “I propose an alliance between us; I want your expertise to bolster my patriotic effort.”

“And for myself?”

“Let’s be honest, half-man. You need a patron. Alone and independent as you are, it’s only a matter of time before a cleanup squad catches wind of you and puts you down for good. You need protection as much as I need a war leader.”

“I’ve had enough of patrons.”

“Don’t misunderstand me. I propose to hire you, proper. You will forge my war effort into something more than this wasteful detente. Something that can cleanse the Drowned Cities. With your help, I smash the Army of God, and Taylor’s Wolves and all the rest of the traitors. I can cleanse this place, and rebuild.”

“And then?”

Glenn Stern smiled. “And then, we march. We reunite this country. Make it stand tall once again. We march from sea to shining sea.”

“The savior and his war beast,” Tool said. “The obedient pet.”

“My strong right fist,” Stern replied. “My brother in arms.”

“Let the girl go.”

The Colonel glanced over at Mahlia. “Why would you want her to leave? This friend of yours? This girl who you feel some loyalty to? I think it better if we keep her as an honored guest.”

“A hostage.”

“I am not a fool, augment. As soon as you are released, you are dangerous. I do not pretend to know why you work on this girl’s behalf, but I am more than happy to have leverage in our bargaining. Her life is, without question, the cost of your good behavior.”

The building shook with another explosion. Dust rained down.

The Colonel looked up at the ceiling with a grimace. “General Sachs seems to have decided that he’d rather see me dead than preserve the capitol building.”

He looked at Tool. “You see the sorts of barbarians I fight? They care nothing for this place or what it once was. They care nothing for its history. I seek to rebuild, and all they seek to do is to tear down and scavenge.”

“I’ve spent time in your arenas,” Tool said dryly. “Your patriotic talk rings hollow.”

Stern grinned, unapologetic. “I didn’t know you had value then. By the time I discovered what you truly were, you were effecting a rather daring escape. Now I know. And now I offer you a bargain.”

Tool looked over at Mahlia. She lay bloodied and bruised, almost lifeless. Stern waited. Tool could feel his eagerness. All Tool’s life, men like Stern had found a use for him. The half-man was, as his name implied, useful. Something men sought to wield, again and again.

Another explosion echoed down from above. Stern didn’t move, waiting.

“Don’t bother,” Mahlia croaked suddenly, breaking Tool’s thoughts. “He’ll just kill us later.”

Stern frowned. “Be quiet, castoff. This is a discussion for adults.”

“He’ll just kill me when you’re dead,” she said. “He’ll use us up, just like they use everyone up.”

“Not so different from any other leader,” Tool said. “Generals are in the habit of using up all the people around them. It’s their job. It’s what they do best.”

Stern nodded seriously. “We’ve both walked those paths.”

“I never turned children to war,” Tool said.

“Only because you fought on the side of wealth,” Stern retorted. “You think I want to fight with children? This was not my preference. The Army of God started the practice. Or else it was the Revolution Riders, or perhaps it was the Blackwater Alliance. It’s hard to remember where these things began, but I assure you, it was not my choice. But I’ll be damned if I’ll let our effort die because I failed to use every tool at my disposal. And any general worth his rank would do the same. If all you are given is a rock, you still must strike with it.”

“I thought you were a colonel.”

“Don’t split hairs with me. If you don’t like the ugly cast of this war, then help me end it. With your help, the war ends, and the children go back to innocence and toys. What say you? I offer you an honorable fight, and a rank that befits your considerable skill, and your friend lives in safety. With me, you are no longer a fugitive, but the commander of an army. What say you to that?”