"Jessica13, my sensors detect incoming mechs," Mini alerted her. "I would suggest you climb in and prepare for hostilities."
She didn't hesitate or even think about it before she scrambled in through the hatch. The heavy footsteps of assault mechs approached. The Minato wouldn't have much of a chance against them, but it was still better than they would have without it.
Three mechs came into view and she froze and grasped the controls of the Minato tightly. The adrenaline surged in her body and made her blood pump faster than before. They were big mechs, altered Lancers with heavier armor and likely more firepower to the assault rifles they carried. A hasty scan of the surrounding area showed no obvious terrain advantages. She could always outrun them, but that would leave the rest of her team to the mercy of the enemy.
Windchime's suggestion that she save herself rang in her ears, but she shook her head. She wouldn’t leave anyone behind, not if she could help it.
The mechs came to a halt in front of the rebels, who stood stiff and silent, not sure what they should do next. The Lancers, all painted dark-blue, formed up around them, although it didn’t seem to be a containment formation. It looked more like they intended to attack.
Jessica13 could see why they would choose to do so. They were in the middle of a fight for the city and intruders wouldn’t be treated lightly.
She looked around and tried to find a way through the group. Maybe she could distract them or persuade them to pursue her and leave her team alone. While she considered the odds—none of which seemed to be in her favor—the mech in the center stopped moving. The hatch opened and a head emerged.
Dumbfounded, she stared and gave herself a moment to confirm who she was looking at. The short growth of hair and a beard were a little off-putting, but she couldn’t mistake Hammerhand’s movements and his demeanor was unmistakable as he pulled himself out of the mech.
"I think I'd know that Minato anywhere," he rumbled and a broad, uncharacteristic grin played across his face.
She pulled the hatch of the Minato open and exited as well, sprinted to the man, and all but tackled him in a hug. "Hammerhand! I didn't know if you'd made it out alive. The Prophet said there was a trap but he had no way to know if you and the Knights managed to escape or not."
"It’s good to know that bastard made it out alive." He chuckled and after a few awkward seconds, chose to return the hug stiffly. "I assume he's the one we have to thank for the mess of alarms we hear? I initially thought they had been triggered by our escape from prison but realized after a while that there must be some kind of external threat."
"I think it’s him," Jessica13 replied and finally released the man. "He did have an attack planned, so it can’t be anything else. What happened—no, there'll be time for that later. Where are the others? The other Knights? Windchime and Tinker?"
She received her answer from the way his expression dimmed almost instantly.
"Windchime is organizing the rest of the Knights and prisoners who have thrown in on our side. Tinker… Tinker didn't make it."
A hard, painful lump settled in her throat. She had thought she'd made her peace with losing the Knights when the Prophet delivered the news of what happened, but the thought of the group without the old man felt incomplete somehow. They were missing a vital piece.
And she could tell that Hammerhand felt the same way.
She cleared her throat, although it did little to dislodge the lump that had appeared there. "We need to keep moving. There’s time…time to think about…" She cleared her throat again and nodded firmly. "We need to reach the central control facility of the city and open the access to the cavern for the Prophet's arrival."
"How does he plan to attack the city itself?"
"We found a way to neutralize the artillery defending it, so the plan is an all-out frontal assault. But it won't work if the cavern isn't open. Can you help us?"
Hammerhand turned as a mixed group approached them. Knights, either on foot or piloting the same dark-blue Lancers he had been in, had been joined by the Auburn rebels who had survived the battle as well as a group of men who looked like the dangerous kind. These were led by a man with a large scar across the side of his face.
"I think we can," the Knights’ leader replied with a small, manic grin.
Chapter Seventy-Six
Ten Minutes before Hammerhand Broke out of Prison
There were few things in the world that were worse than waiting for something to happen or for things to fall into place. Patience was a virtue, or so the old writings went, and the Prophet sometimes wondered if the only thing that made it a virtue was the fact that it was so difficult to do.
Night had fallen a few hours before and the sky was full of clouds that partially obfuscated the light of the moon and stars. It still wasn't quite as dark he would have preferred, as the full moon traced the grasslands here and there with a dull blue light, but it would have to be enough.
He turned to look toward the open plain where they had set the salvaged blimp. Until now, their main focus had been to make sure no one could see what they were doing and to a large extent, they’d been able to use the landscape to their advantage. They wouldn’t have to charge into the teeth of the massive artillery shells, which changed the odds of success considerably.
"The time has come," he said, pushed up from where he had laid prone, and jogged to his
