Marked for Vengeance (32 page)

She then
wondered why her defective, angelic vessel was able to even make it there. Perhaps
her love for Isaac prevailed when her imperfect body could not. His life was so
invaluable to her and to the world that it drove her forward and through the
chaos. Her desire for him had been the source of her torture as a human for so
long and yet at the core of it, ended up being what saved their lives.

And how was it,
that she was the only third life-timer -- her assumed reason for her flaws in
the first place. Were there no seconds, or any other thirds like her? Every
time she was created it was with a group of others. Perhaps the perils of life
as a human did a lot of the work for the beasts. Maybe their Marked had passed,
and their ethereal souls weren’t reassigned to a new vessel before the summoning.

“We do apologize,
however, for the gateways being located in inconvenient places. In order for
your now angelic bodies – or any celestial entity – to pass through, we had to
create them somewhere untouched by human hands. While you all did a marvelous
job getting here, your skills and concentration need to be perfected if we
expect to achieve success. Running from these beasts is a lot less demanding
than meeting them in battle, so along with your Warriors, we will begin our
training tomorrow.

His face
brightened, hopefully indicating that the somber part of their meeting was
over. “The bodies that you are in now are your heavenly vessels. When this is
over, either by victory or defeat, we will ascend to the place we’ve prepared
for you. This place here was created only for our temporary stay. This
dimension will not last forever.

While the others
seemed pleased with this information, Alyx had mixed emotions over both of
these revelations. She had already taken a liking to the island and was sad
that it wasn’t a permanent fixture. Also, this ‘place’ that they had prepared
for their angelic bodies, would it be somewhere that Isaac would one day go
once his human days came to an end? Were angels and humans allowed to be
together in the afterlife? She certainly wasn’t going to ask, but felt a sense
of anxiety over it nevertheless. This short amount of time they had left would
seem but a speck of dust in time to the eternity that her and Isaac would
possibly spend apart. She was now more determined than ever to reach out to him
and make the most of their time here.

“Along with your
draws to your Marked being severed, you have probably noticed that you do not
tire or need sleep. Your hunger, thirst, and many of your human needs have vanished.
The way you look now will be how you stay forever. You will age no more.

What?!
How in the
world could she be
that
different from the other Protectors? Alyx knew
she was flawed, but this elevated her distress to a new level. She felt as
though she could eat a giant hamburger and could use a nice, relaxing bath to
rest – something that was apparently supposed to no longer be needed.

“We’ve decided
not to announce anything further until our gathering with the humans tonight,
where we will discuss our future plans in greater detail. We will introduce you
to them and give a brief tutorial on their gifts, one of which has some
extremely valuable information about our enemy. Until then, please continue to
get acquainted with one another and with your new living quarters. Our camp is
on the hill to the North where we descended from earlier. We have a large tent
set up for you to share. Each of you has an assigned chest that you will share
with your new Marked and has changes of clothes. Please know that during any
gathering with the humans, we require you to be dressed in the robes that are
provided for you. We wear black, the humans wear purple.”

Prolificent’s
eyes narrowed as he scanned the circle. “Please remember,” he said, his harsh
tenor causing her soul to tremble, “no human contact except during assigned
gathering times.

Seemingly
gratified by this limitation, Christineth smirked and cut her eyes over at Alyx
for a slice of a second.

“Diamort will now
bring this meeting to a close. I must return to the camp for some preparations.
I look forward to working with each of you.”

He turned to his
counterpart with a stiff bow. “You may continue,” he said and exited the circle
between Natalia and Serena.

“Are there any
questions you have about where we are or anything you may need?” Diamort asked.

Alyx already
determined that she liked him better – he seemed more approachable. His
pleasant expressions weren’t as forced. What she couldn’t determine was if he was
Prolificent’s equal or if he was his subordinate. Either way, Prolificent
appeared in charge.

“And let’s keep
the specific questions about our training and the Warriors for tonight.” 

A dainty arm on
the other side of Willow rose in the air. “I have a question,” Serena said in a
wispy French accent.

At first glance,
it seemed inconceivable that either she or Natalia could have made it there
untouched if you went by stature alone, but as Cindra already mentioned, there
was more to this girl than her petite appearance. Her green eyes brimmed with fire,
shaming the mousy brown color of her hair. “Is there anything else you can tell
us about the island?”

The other
Protectors mumbled amongst themselves, nodding in agreement. It was something
that everyone wanted to know.

 “Yes, my child,
what an excellent question indeed. Where you are is on an unnamed island, still
on Earth no doubt, but in a different dimension than where you all were living.
More will be discussed on that tonight as well as why it was created. I
can
tell you, however, that both Prolificent and I are invisible to the human eye
in traditional human realms. For us to work with humans, a place such as this
had to be created.”

Nobody wanted to
push his limited explanation any further and smiled appreciatively in response.

He scanned though
the faces around the circle. “If there aren’t any further questions, I also need
to retire to my tent.”

His statement
wasn’t obliged, so he bowed his head in the same manner as Prolificent and
turned to leave.

The others stood
in silence for a scant moment and broke into their cliques, chatting excitedly.
Some theorized about the island and what the Elders were preparing for, and
some speculated about the Warriors and what they would be like. Alyx noticed
though, that nobody appeared interested in her.

“Want to go
check out the camp?” Cindra asked.

Alyx flashed an
appreciative smile. “Let’s go make history.”

With Willow trailing
in their wake, they headed for the green incline to the North. While they
walked, she peered longingly down the hill at the human camp. Her hopes of
reconciliation with Isaac were now squashed. Perhaps the Elders knew that was
all the punishment she would need, and it would be plenty. Even though her
contact with him wasn’t completely forbidden anymore, it was still complicated
by who she was and the rules they placed upon them. Something she would need to
work hard at not to resent.

Her duties as a
Protector were far from over, and while Isaac occupied a huge part of her heart
that she couldn’t ignore, he also shared it with her love of the human race
that they were all destined to avenge. But maybe somehow in the near future,
fate would pull through for her again and a chance meeting was in the works of
the divine, gifting her and Isaac with more tender moments within what she
feared was mere days before they might be separated for eternity.

While the other
Protectors had the relief of their ties being severed from their humans, Alyx’s
remained to both comfort and torture her soul, which was torn between who she
was and what she wanted to be – the human she was inside. Her outer shell felt strong
and youthful like an angel, but her desires and needs were still mostly human.
She wasn’t sure why this was or what any of this meant, but knew that it was
something she would have to hide from the others somehow, and was something she
definitely
couldn’t disregard.

END OF BOOK ONE

EPILOGUE:

A Twisted Agreement

Earlier that morning…

“I need you to
do something, if you have the guts,” a menacing voice echoed through the empty
parlor of his uncle’s study. Like the other times before, he couldn’t make out
a figure but felt his overwhelming, dark presence as it surrounded him.

He knelt with
his head bowed. “I do, your Worthiness. What are your wishes?”

“You are to make
sure someone doesn’t survive,” the voice rumbled, growing louder, “and that his
contributions to this cause against us are wiped from the Earth.”

“You want me to
kill?
”

“Not just anyone
– the one who holds the answers to our demise. He will be the one they call a Prophet.”

The kneeling man
peered through the darkness. “I can handle that, your Grace,” he snickered.

“Do not be so
sure of yourself, for I am
not!
” the voice snarled, the power within it
forcing his head back down.

His chin jutted
forward, and his eyes pooled. “I do not mean to anger you. I only want to please
you.”

“You will please
me when you have completed this task. If he makes it through the gateway, make
sure you dispose of him – and anyone else that threatens our survival – and I
will give you what I promised.”

The kneeling man
trembled. “M-more than one person?”

The darkness
whirled around his head, the deep voice at the cusp of his ear. “If you don’t
want to take the offer, I can leave you be and give it to someone more worthy,”
it said in a patronizing tone. “You will then be left on your own like everyone
else.”

“No, your
Grace!” he pled. “I just wasn’t prepared for that, but I will make you proud. I
will do whatever you ask and serve you valiantly.”

“Good, my son,
and there is one more thing. You must give them all false information that will
ensure their demise. I trust that you will keep in mind our previous
conversations and use that to your benefit. Do you understand that
instruction?”

“Yes.”

“When all is
done, you will receive what I promised. You will be taken soon so make your
preparations.”

 He fell to the
floor and his cheek rested against the marble flooring, his arms stretching out
in reverence. “Thank you, my Liege. Thank you.”

And with that,
the dark presence left him.

He sprung to his
feet to scan over the ceiling-high shelves for the small, wooden box. Within it
laid an ancient artifact, perfect for the job. He had seen it many times, but his
uncle never allowed him to touch it despite his longing. He spotted it halfway
up the shelf behind his uncle’s walnut writing desk, next to a replica of King
Tut’s bust, and wheeled the ladder toward it.

He steadily
climbed the rungs, each step an ascent into his destiny -- to make good on the
deal he had made to ensure his soul’s survival. As he cradled the box in his
hands, it felt heavier than he remembered. He wasn’t sure if it was because he
hadn’t held it in awhile or because of the burden that it now carried.

His fingertips
traced the intricate carvings along the top of the box, which read “Krosos, the
Island of Crete. 1800 BCE”, and he unlatched the gold hook on the front. The
blue, velvet lining caressed the golden dagger whose blade reflected the wicked
sneer stretching across his face. The artifact appeared exactly as he
remembered. Intricate detailing of tiny gold beads wrapped around the end of
its Onyx handle, and dents speckled along the blade’s entire eight inches of soft
gold, their existence suggesting its prior use. Taking lives was its specialty.

He carefully
lifted the dagger from of the box and slipped it into the pocket of his baggy jeans
to conceal it from the nosey, infantile house workers. “Now all I have to do is
be patient,” he surmised and began formulating a plan as he awaited his capture.

Sampling of
TETHERED
BY FATE,

The gripping
sequel to
Marked for Vengeance

Available Now