Citadel

Subscribe to our newsletter for title recommendations, giveaways, and discounts reserved only for subscribers. Join here. C. M. Alongi CITADEL Copyright © 2023 by Christina AlongiE-book published in 2023 by Blackstone PublishingCover design by Alenka Vdovič LinaschkeAll rights reserved. This book or any portionthereof may not be reproduced or used in any mannerwhatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotationsin a book review.he characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidentaland not intended by the author.Trade e-book ISBN 979-8-200-83644-4Library e-book ISBN 979-8-200-83643-7Fiction / Science Fiction / GeneralBlackstone Publishing31 Mistletoe Rd.Ashland, OR 97520www.BlackstonePublishing.com AUTHOR’S NOTE Citadel is a sexist, classist, ableist society. This is a problem for Olivia for a number of reasons, one of the biggest being that she does not ever get a proper diagnosis. Words like “autism,” “sensory overload,” and “ADHD” don’t exist in Citadel’s vocabulary. I’ve done my best to portray Olivia as a nonverbal autistic—with a possible side of ADHD—in this novel, which takes place in a world that doesn’t have the words for her. And while I have worked with, have lived with, and am related to people on the spectrum and/or with ADHD—and of course ran this manuscript through an extensive community of sensitivity readers who share a similar diagnosis—I myself am neurotypical. Neurodiversity is still taboo in our society, and my hope is that seeing more of it in media will help dismantle that stigma in real life. But such good intentions mean nothing if we miss the mark. As such, if you are autistic or have ADHD, then I encourage you to reach out after you read this book, either on social media or through the “Contact Me” page on my website (www.cmalongi.com). Reviews aren’t just for other readers; they also let authors know what they got right or what they did wrong, and I’m eager to hear what you think. The autistic community is more disabled by physical, social, and cultural barriers than by any actual disability or neurodiversity. As such, I encourage you to volunteer or donate to organizations that work to change that, such as Autistic Self Advocacy Network, Autistics for Autistics, and the Autistic Women & Nonbinary Network. Do not donate to Autism Speaks. Fuck those guys. Enjoy the book. —C PROLOGUE Of course, the first time Elias set foot in the Flooded Forest, everything went to shit. It started out well enough. People went in and out of the forest all the time. Hunters, fishermen, and foragers had to get food they couldn’t grow at home. The iron miners made several trips to the iron bog in the spring and summer. Granted, that was less than a day’s walk from the town. Where it was safe. And where no demons had been spotted in generations. Elias was going much, much deeper. And rather than trying to avoid demons, he and the other soldiers were actively hunting them. “I regret every decision I’ve ever made in life,” he muttered, trudging through the darkness behind his commanding officer and other soldiers. The weight of his basket dug into his shoulder with leather teeth. “Why?” asked Matthew. “We get to be heroes. Go into the deep, dark wood, hunt a few demons, bring the bodies back home. Women love that kind of story.” “My woman’s already been in the woods. She’s not going to be impressed.” “Oh, right, I always forget you’re dating the silver frea—” Elias punched him in the arm. Matthew chuckled, rubbing the spot. The two had been friends for years, asking each other for dating advice and competing over grades. They even looked alike: spiky dark hair, tan skin, tall, with the only major difference being the freckles on Elias’s face. “Seriously, it’s fine,” Matthew said. “Most of these hunts don’t work, anyway. Demons are cowards. And they may be unholy abominations, but at the end of the day, they’re just animals, and animals hide from men.” Elias really hoped he was right. They continued to march. Despite the name, the Flooded Forest was not currently flooded, as it was low tide. The blue trees of the forest were each as wide as a house, far enough apart that five men could walk abreast, and Elias felt naked in such an open space. From the safety of Citadel, the forest had seemed like a dense, dark land filled with dangers and strange plants. But once in the forest, there was so much space: no bushes or shrubs or even grass on the ground, no lower branches for him to climb, just the massive trunks of the trees. The biweekly sweeping tides didn’t allow for anything else. The light of the planet’s rings and two dull moons poked through the leaves in slivers. The branches far above their heads intertwined with their neighbors in the other trees, and the leaves grew thick, plunging the forest floor into near-total darkness and forcing the soldiers to use lanterns. Caws and croaks of the night creatures surrounded them, but that was just background noise. What made everyone tense was the howls. First one would start, then another, and another, until it was impossible to tell how many there were or how close. It’s bad enough the demons are killing our hunters and gatherers. Do they have to be so damn noisy, too? The group had a dozen soldiers, including the commanding officers, Lieutenant Ward and Ensign Copper, alon g with Sergeant Benson. The sergeant whistled sharply, glaring at Elias and Matthew. “Hurry up, ladies. This isn’t the time to lag behind.” The two hurried to the tail of the group. Elias’s foot hit a large rock, and he would’ve hit the ground nose first if Matthew hadn’t caught him. He cursed, tapping his foot to make sure he hadn’t broken any toes. “Why the fuck are we doing this at night?” “Because that’s when demons are awake?” Matthew replied. “Just a few