“Og’s blood, his chest!” Hovarth said.
Jack looked down and found out that the worst development was still ongoing. His cybernetic implant was getting bigger. Jack gasped as circuits spread out across his torso like fungus growing up a tree. The crowd shrank back in fear. His condition was deteriorating before their very eyes.
“Just let it happen,” Khalix said to Jack. “These people have turned their backs on you. You’re not one of them anymore. Your own father doesn’t even want you. Mine does. Stop fighting me. Give in to the transformation. Do it now, while they’re distracted. Do it before it’s too late!”
Jack couldn’t speak. He couldn’t even breathe.
Is this it?
Jack wondered. Was he turning into Revile now? The crowd of villagers trembled at what was happening to him. Their fear was contagious. Jack’s body was changing faster than ever before, and he could feel himself slowly slipping away. It really wasn’t just his body anymore. Khalix had proven that point. Jack was a shared resource now, and he was losing control. He scanned the crowd for friendly faces once again. Nothing. He was all alone, tied to a rock, and surrounded by people who wanted to kill him. His only options were to join with Khalix and escape, or stay and die. Really, he was dead either way. The only question was how many other people had to suffer as a result of his decision.
“How do we kill him?” Hovarth asked Smart. “Can we still kill him?”
“Of course we can,” Smart replied. “Clarkston just isn’t trying hard enough. As I said, he’s emotionally attached to Jack. He can’t help himself.” Smart looked at Skerren. “We need someone who will swing the sword with all his heart.”
Hovarth looked at his sword-wielding protégé. “I
believe you’re right, Jonas. Skerren. You know what needs to be done.” Hovarth didn’t say the order out loud. He didn’t have to. Skerren knew what he meant, just as well as Jack did. Skerren walked up the steps to the pillar Jack was tied to and drew out a sword. Before he struck, he leaned in close to get a good look at Jack’s mechanical implant.
“You’re turning,” Skerren said. “You know you are. This is the only way for you to fight the Rüstov now. Revile is the key to their victory. If you want to kill a snake, you have to cut off its head. Unfortunately, that’s you.”
“It’s a good death, lad,” Hovarth called out. “A noble sacrifice. Legend gave his life to save us from the monster inside you. You can finish what he started. You can still be a hero.”
“A
dead
hero,” Khalix told Jack.
“He’s not a hero at all,” Smart said. “Legend sacrificed himself willingly. Jack has clung to life and pushed us to the brink of destruction. You should go to your grave knowing that you will be remembered as a selfish coward, Jack. I’ll see to that.”
“You hear that?” Khalix said. “No one here is going
to honor your sacrifice. Don’t throw your life away. Save yourself. Save us, and together we’ll make these people pay!”
Jack hung his head. His despair was growing even faster than his infection. He didn’t know what to do. Who was right? Who was wrong? He honestly couldn’t say. He didn’t know if he was a hero, a villain, a Rüstov, a Noteworthy, or a weapon. He only knew that no matter what anyone said about him, he didn’t want to make the people of Empire City pay like Khalix was suggesting. He wanted to save them. Even people like Noteworthy and the Varagog Villagers, who were clamoring for Skerren to cut him in half, deserved better than the Rüstov. The way Jack saw it, everyone who wanted him dead was broken. At their core, they were all victims, just like he was. They had all had their families ripped apart by the Rüstov. Jack wanted to save them from any more pain, but he couldn’t even save himself. He wasn’t going to give in to Khalix. He knew that much. The only other option was to die like Legend. To make the noble sacrifice. Jack didn’t want to die, but he didn’t know how else to stop the Rüstov from winning. All his doubts and fears about the future
had come flooding back. During the Rüstov air strike, he didn’t have time to think; he had just acted. During the battle he had gotten lost in the moment, but the moment had passed. Now it was just him and Skerren.
Skerren pressed the tip of a sword against the red crystal in Jack’s chest. It rested neatly in the groove he had cut into it earlier, back in Hero Square.
“I’m sorry, Jack. We all have to make sacrifices.”
“Yeah,” Jack said. “Some of us more than others.”
Khalix was pleading with Jack to give in to the infection and let him take over. Jack tuned him out.
Skerren closed his eyes and got ready to plunge in the sword. “I’ll make it quick.”
He wasn’t quick enough.
Before Skerren could run Jack through, the sun came up. The first light of a new day shot across the horizon, and the world went white with blinding brilliance; Skerren froze in place. It wasn’t the new dawn that filled the square with light. It was Stendeval, and he wasn’t alone. Allegra, Blue, Roka, Midknight, Zhi, and Lorem Ipsum were all with him. They materialized in the air above the obelisk and dropped down all around Jack. Allegra and the others
took up positions at the base of the stone pillar, guarding Jack against the crowd. Stendeval raised a hand, and red energy particles pushed the residents of Varagog back with considerable force.
Jack shuddered and let out a deep breath of air when he realized what was happening. He continued to breathe heavily for a few seconds as his friends rushed to his side. He couldn’t form a sentence. He was saved . . . for the moment, at least.
“What treachery is this?” Hovarth asked, his body locked in an awkward stance. “I can’t move.”
Stendeval swooped in next to Hovarth. “And you won’t. Not until after we’re gone. If I can’t talk any sense into you, I’m afraid we’ll have to do things the hard way.” Hovarth’s men brandished their weapons, ready to charge. Stendeval shook a finger at Hovarth. “Don’t give them an order they’ll live to regret following. I can do much more than this, as you well know. However much energy I waste fighting your people instead of the Rüstov is entirely up to you.”
Hovarth’s eye twitched with anger. “Hold,” he told his men. Hovarth’s army reluctantly lowered their weapons.
“Allegra,” Stendeval said. “Get Jack down from there if you would.”
“Right,” Allegra said, stretching herself around to the back of the pillar. “Let’s get these off you.”
“Stop!” Smart shouted. “Stop right there, or I’ll have Commander Knight shredded immediately. All it takes is one phone call.”
“Allegra, wait,” Jack blurted out. “He still has Jazen.”
Allegra froze in place, but Midknight reached in and cut Jack free himself. “Nice try, Smart, but that’s a phone call you can’t make in Varagog. No tech works here.”
Smart scowled and put his phone away. Jack was relieved that Jazen was still safe, but just like with him, it was only for now. How long could he realistically hope that safety would last?
“You’re putting us all at risk by letting him live,” Noteworthy said.
“How can you do this?” Smart asked. “We’ve seen his future! Why are you still supporting him?”
“Both sides in this war need Jack’s power to win,” Stendeval said. “Through him, we have a chance to turn the Rüstov’s greatest weapon against them.”
“Or we can simply take that weapon out of their hands,” Smart replied. “Stop acting like a child, Stendeval. If you’re not ready to make the hard decisions, then let the adults take charge. We’re out of time! We can’t save Jack any more than we could save any other infected person. We have to think of ourselves!”
“What if Jack could save everyone?” Allegra asked.
Jack looked at Allegra. “What? Allegra, I can’t—”
“What if Jack’s powers could take control of the Rüstov?” Allegra continued. “He just needs a chance. He could wipe out their fleet. He could bring the infected back.”
“If he could do that, he would have saved himself already,” Hovarth said. “He’s powerless against them. Look at him, he’s beaten and he knows it! Why can’t you see that?”
All eyes turned to Jack. He knew what his friends wanted to hear. They were all waiting for him to tell Hovarth he was wrong, but he couldn’t bring himself to say so. He didn’t know what to say until he stepped down from the obelisk and saw something flying through the air. Jack looked up and his stomach dropped. Rüstov
Para-Soldiers lined the walls of the buildings all around.
“Look out!” Jack shouted as one of the falling objects landed right behind Stendeval and exploded. The blast sent them both flying through the air. Stendeval’s head slammed hard against the stone pillar that Jack had just been tied to. He fell down unconscious as more bombs were thrown down by the Rüstov. The cobblestone plaza erupted with fiery explosions as geysers of flame and rock shot up all around. Rüstov Para-Soldiers descended on the square, repelling down the sides of the buildings and pouring in through the alleyways.
Suddenly free to move, Hovarth swung at Jack with his battle-ax. “Jack, run!” Blue shouted, jumping out in front of him. He locked onto Hovarth and tried to push him back. Jack went to run, but there was nowhere to go. More Para-Soldiers came in from every direction, throwing bombs and swinging weapons. They were all wearing fresh hosts with little to no technological decay on their bodies. Just like Jack, they were all still more human than they were machine, but unlike him, their parasites were in total control. The sight of innocent people being used as puppets by the Rüstov gave Jack the chills. They still looked
like the people they once were, but Jack knew they were lost. They were Rüstov soldiers now. That was his future. That was how everyone saw him. The more his infection grew, the easier it was for him to understand why.
The Rüstov blitz was as perfectly executed as it was overwhelming. The people of Varagog ran for their lives, and those who stayed to fight were either killed or taken by the Rüstov. Jack couldn’t help but feel responsible for the body count, but the most crushing blow had yet to be delivered. When it came down, Allegra was standing in the same place she always stood, right in between Jack and any danger. She was struggling with Skerren, who no doubt deeply regretted those extra few seconds he had taken before stabbing Jack through his power core.
Allegra pushed Skerren back and stepped toward him. She was focused on the threat directly in front of her. The threat to Jack. She didn’t see Hovarth mortally wound a Rüstov Para-Soldier two steps behind her. The Rüstov abandoned its host and went for Allegra. Jack saw the whole thing. He felt like he was watching it in slow motion and he still wasn’t fast enough to stop the bug from crawling up Allegra’s leg and into the small of her
back. She gagged and clawed at her back, trying to pull out the parasite. It was too late.
“Allegra!” Jack screamed. She locked eyes with him and froze in place. He watched with tears streaming down his face as the infection took root in her heart. A Rüstov mark appeared around Allegra’s eye, and circuits swam through her liquid metal skin. Skerren backed away from her as she transformed in front of him.
“You!” he shouted at Jack. “This is your fault! They came here for you!”
At that moment there was no hole on Earth deep enough for Jack to crawl into. There was no place low enough to hide. Jack’s heart shattered as what was once Allegra reached for him with the knifelike fingers of an enemy. Roka grabbed Jack and ran in the other direction, but there was nowhere for them to go. The Rüstov had taken the square. Jack cursed his stupidity. Their attack shouldn’t have come as a surprise to him. He’d known the Rüstov were in the city. He should’ve known they’d be headed after him.
“You knew they were coming,” Jack said under his breath. “Didn’t you, Khalix?”
Khalix’s arrogant snicker bounced around Jack’s head. “Let’s just say I wasn’t entirely honest when I said there was only one way out of this.” A Rüstov ship flying high enough to avoid Varagog’s effect on modern technology passed overhead and dropped down a series of cables. The Para-Soldiers on the ground, Allegra included, rigged the cables together with steel nets and herded Jack and his friends inside. The ground troops waved up at the ship, and the net rose into the air carrying Jack, Stendeval, Blue, Roka, and scores of Varagog Villagers. Once the net cleared Varagog airspace, it lit up with electricity, stunning Jack and his friends into submission.
They were now officially prisoners of war.
The Darkest Hour
The next several minutes were a blur to Jack. The net continued to shock him and his friends at random intervals, keeping them off balance, disoriented, and powerless. Jack figured the electric current was intended more for his friends than it was for him. He couldn’t have done anything to sabotage the Rüstov technology holding them, with or without the electroshocks. Jack could feel Khalix’s power amping up as they pulled away from the city. The Rüstov prince was elated, and the pain in Jack’s head was growing.
The Rüstov ship flew over Wrekzaw Isle and dropped
the net. Jack and his friends hit the hard, uneven terrain with a painful
thud
. They had landed in a small clearing, surrounded by Para-Soldiers on all sides. Before anyone could muster the strength to stand, they were accosted by the Rüstov and forced into holding pens. Jack was being grabbed at and pushed from every direction by Rüstov hands. He didn’t put up much of a fight as they herded him along. He couldn’t take his eyes off Allegra or, rather, what had
been
Allegra. She was busy processing the prisoners alongside her fellow Rüstov. By the time Jack realized what was going on, it was too late to do anything about it. He, Stendeval, and Roka had been separated from the others and loaded onto a small ship. An iron door shut behind them, screeching as its metal frame scraped into place. They weren’t tied up, but Stendeval was still unconscious, and Jack and Roka were in no condition to fight. Jack heard the engines ignite, and the ship shot into the sky.
The force of the ship’s sudden liftoff knocked Jack and Roka to the floor. They were in complete darkness, save for a small porthole window on the door. Jack struggled to his feet and looked out as the ship sailed up through the clouds. He could see that the bulk of the Rüstov
Armada had gathered around Wrekzaw Isle and the Imagine Nation, completing the enemy’s blockade. It was a scary sight, especially since the wall of ships was made up entirely of Shardwings and midsize fighters. Jack didn’t see a single dreadnought among them, which meant the Rüstov’s real firepower was still being held in reserve. Jack, Stendeval, and Roka were taken up to the very edge of the atmosphere, where the Rüstov dreadnoughts and super-dreadnoughts were all lying in wait.