snarls as it lurches toward me. Someone has stabbed clean through one of its eyes, leaving nothing but a ruined socket and blood dripping down the side of its face. Shreds of blue fabric hang from its fangs.
I lift an arm to rest my gun against, then aim straight at the creature’s neck cuff. I fire three times in rapid succession.
They all strike true—once, twice, thrice. The cuff shatters, leaving its neck exposed. I shoot again, but the Ghost darts away from my line of fire and breaks into a low, jolting sprint.
I push Nana Yagerri out of the way and crouch. My muscles tense. The Ghost draws frighteningly close.
At the last instant, I break into a run, aiming headlong at it. Its mouth opens wide—it lunges at me. I leap up and kick off exactly against its open jaw, then twist in midair. I land squarely on its upper back, then whirl around and wrap my arm tightly around its neck.
It lets out a bloodcurdling scream, then thrashes in an attempt to throw me off.
No time—I have to move fast. Already my grip is slipping. I bring my drawn sword down hard on the back of its neck, burying the weapon so deep in its throat that the blade comes out the other side. Somewhere from the alleys, Nana Yagerri screams.
I still haven’t severed the Ghost’s main artery, though. The creature twists around in fury and tries to claw me off its back. I duck, avoiding its poisonous nails, then yank out a dagger and saw it across its throat as hard as I can.
The skin breaks with a sickening rip, and then I feel the blade cut the vein. Blood gushes in a torrent onto the ground.
The Ghost lets out a hoarse, choked cry, stumbles, and collapses. I leap off its back and land nimbly beside it. I don’t bother watching it in its death throes—I instantly run toward where Nana Yagerri’s voice had come from.
When I turn the corner, I freeze. She’s struggling against the grip of two Karensan soldiers who have already found her. One of them hits her hard across the face. She cries out, blood on her mouth, and stumbles backward. Her eyes meet mine in panic.
I have no time to stop them. Even as I lift my gun, the other soldier is already slashing out with his sword. He shoves the blade through the old woman’s back. It cuts through her fragile body as easily as a needle.
Nana Yagerri’s eyes go wide. She collapses forward as the soldier shakes her off his sword.
And all I can think of is the night I’d run with my mother, trying to ignore the sounds of others getting cut down behind us by Federation troops. All I can remember is my mother lying on the ground, weeping and holding my hand, telling me everything was going to be okay even as she dripped blood along the ground.
I’m attacking before I even realize it. My gun swings up at the first soldier—I shoot him straight between his ribs. He grunts and falls. As for the soldier who’d killed Nana Yagerri, I grab him by his hair before he can even think to swing his sword at me. I yank his head back, then cut him as I just cut the Ghost.
He grabs at his torn throat, his eyes wide with terror at the sight of my face, before crumpling in a heap.
All I can spare Nana Yagerri is a wave of grief. She had taught me how to sign, had given me back the gift of communication. Now she’s gone.
There are so many Federation soldiers nearby, swarming through so many streets. Everyone will die here tonight. I clench my teeth. And yet, I have to keep fighting. We don’t have a choice.
My mother.
Where could she have gone? My eyes scan the darkening shanties, now lit with flaming shacks. If she’d run from our home, then which way—
I haven’t finished my thought yet when an arrow comes slicing through the air and embeds itself in the ground at my boots.
I draw both my blades and whirl in the direction it came from. My eyes go up to the roofs.
And there I see my mother crouching, armed with a crossbow and a dagger, her eyes ferocious in the twilight. She gives me a grim nod.
Mara will fall tonight, and the Federation will sweep over the land. But right now, I can’t help staring up at her in awe. This is