The Agrista (Between the Lines Book 1) (13 page)

  The sound of the beast’s teeth scraping together caused Marie to vocally shudder. It was surprisingly fast for such a large creature, relentlessly striking at them like a snake. They had no time to recover between the attacks, and just barely escaped by the skin of their teeth every time. Their only hope was to run.

  The sand swallowed their footsteps, making it impossible to build up speed or gain an advantage. Marie fought the urge to throw a look over her shoulder, knowing it would only slow them down or paralyze her completely. Each stride sent jolts of pain racing up her legs. Each inhalation felt like swallowing razor blades. Her body was quickly reaching the limit of exhaustion.

  She knew she couldn’t run for much longer, and if Alex was forced to carry her, they wouldn’t stand a chance. She had to come up with something fast. Even
if
Marie knew how to fight, the creature had a vast advantage over her because of its enormity. Her only hope was to use her necklace.

  She mindlessly ran her fingers over the weapon delicately draped over the hollow of her throat. Alex was right. She was glad she had it. Still, she was hesitant to use it. Alex was just as capable of reaching over and yanking one of the beads off himself, but he hadn’t. There had to be a reason.

  I’m thinking too much,
she huffed.
I have no other choice!
She stopped dead in her tracks and swung her body around to face the monster.

  The creature stopped chasing them the second they stopped running, its confusion mirroring Alex’s. It watched Marie with a sinister expression as it grasped for the meaning behind her actions. He loved it when his prey went limp, for it meant he could take his time.

  Marie’s trembling fingers struggled to pull a bead from her necklace, but it wouldn’t budge. She clumsily scrolled her fingers over each finding, meeting with failure every time. Alex had told her the beads didn’t come off easily, but he failed to mention that it was damn near impossible.

  The monster eventually grew bored and didn’t hesitate to attack again. She narrowly dodged his halfhearted strike, staggering backward until she slammed into Alex’s sweaty chest.

  “This thing is useless!” Marie yelped as Alex pulled her away.

  Alex reached around Marie from behind and easily ripped a handful of beads from her necklace, throwing them in the creature’s general direction. If he’d had more time, he would’ve aimed for the creature’s mouth, but he couldn’t afford to lose a second.

  He grabbed Marie’s wrist and dragged her behind him, running as fast as his legs would take him. Such force might dislocate her shoulder, but at least she’d still be alive. If they didn’t take the creature out soon, the commotion would draw even more unwanted attention. Alex was surprised it hadn’t already.

  “This is your plan? Running?” Marie was shocked by her own words. She’d always been a
big
fan of running away.

  “Of course not! I’m trying to keep us alive until I can think of a better one!”

  Marie looked back to see the monster quickly gaining on them. The explosives had only served as a mild inconvenience, which came as no surprise. Losing an appendage had barely fazed it, other than giving it a nice afternoon snack.

  Her first plan had failed miserably, but she was determined not to die today. Explosives seemed futile, but her necklace had one other feature. Defense. Surely, the flash would at least buy them a little time. What they truly needed was a
plan,
but a little time was all they could hope for at this point, and the only thing she could think of.

  Marie squeezed the sides of a silver hoop together, emitting a shrill pitch as the air stirred. The grating warble became tangible as iridescence rippled out in a show of light, fading when the note abruptly snapped off. The next thing she knew, she was soaring through the air in Alex’s arms as he leapt away.

  She looked back just in time to catch sight of Fallon standing on Cayden’s shoulders, bloodlust evident in her wild gaze. Marie cringed in anticipation as she watched Fallon raise her sword for the fatal blow. She knew she should look away, but her eyes were inadvertently drawn to the action.

  Fallon’s angular sword –
Silver
, as she lovingly called it – separated into five blades as it sliced through the air, each facet protruding at a thirty degree angle. The blades melted into the creature’s flesh, burning through dense cords of muscle and bone, slicing clean through in a circular motion until each blade returned to the hilt and coalesced into one thick sword.

  The creature’s head rolled down its chest and plummeted into the sand. With no life to hold it upright, its body buckled at the knees and fell forward. A bloody maelstrom of granular heat sent debris shooting out in all directions, marinating the four of them in bloody sand, a pungent baste that was sure to bait the creature’s brethren.

  “You idiot!” Cayden yanked Fallon back by her ponytail before she could lunge at Marie. “What in Lucidus’ name were you thinking?” She wrung her hands.

  “What did
I
do?” Marie slunk behind Alex.

  “You set off the damn flash!”

  “If I hadn’t, we would’ve gotten caught!”

  “The Anthro Pophagos are blind, you idiot! All you did was blind
us,
” Fallon snarled.

  “I didn’t know that!”

  “It’s my fault. I didn’t properly educate her on our enemy.” Alex interjected.

  “Great. You’re
both
idiots!”

  “It doesn’t matter whose fault it is!” yelled Cayden. “Any minute now, this spot will be swarming with hundreds of beasts just like that one, drawn to the scent of blood! We don’t have time to discuss this!” Cayden shoved Fallon forward. “We can’t do anything if we’re dead, so for the time being, our mission has changed to getting out of here.” Everyone dutifully trailed behind as Cayden sprinted forward. “We’ll soon approach the border to the North. DO NOT, under any circumstances, cross it. It’s imperative that the
second
we stop, we activate our locator bracelets. We must remain tethered to one spot for a minimum of ten seconds for Raeph to transport us back to the ship. We get
one
shot at this.” No one looked back as the ground began to shudder with seismic tremors. They knew
exactly
what was causing it.

 
Everyone lined up alongside Cayden when he came to an abrupt stop. The land before them was bathed in shadow, defining the border to the North in strong contrast. A susurrus of dark whispers swirled around Marie, baiting her to the other side and tempting her to give in to the dark feeling writhing through her body. The hollow words slithered over her skin, leaving a trail of goose bumps as she stiffened.

  No one was immune to the pull of the Nocté Bellatores. That knowledge wasn’t in the books passed down through generations, because no one that had been to the North had lived to tell it. The darkness forced its way into their hearts, carving through blood as it illuminated secrets buried deep. It called to them, assuaging their fears with promises of a better tomorrow.

  Marie’s eyes fluttered open as a fetid stench slammed into her, snapping her out of it. She turned her back on one danger only to face another. Hundreds of Anthro Pophagos erupted from the landscape like a sea of mines, their carnal hunger evident in the tortured cacophony of desperate screams.

  She turned to her companions for comfort, but they’d vanished one by one right before her. Their sudden absence seized her breaths until she found herself on her knees, gasping for air. The Bellatores pull grew stronger with her vulnerable positioning, and even more alluring at the sight of titans rushing in like an angry tidal wave, corralling her into the darkness.

  “Oh god! The bracelet!” Her heart pumped so hard she could feel the surge of blood rushing over her eyes, leaving her dizzy and unfocused. “Please! Help me!” she rasped as she clawed the opal gem.

  There was nothing to do now but wait.

  “Ten, nine, eight,” Marie began to countdown out loud, “seven, six, five…” She slowed her speech, forcing a sense of calm into her voice. She didn’t want to arrive at zero and panic when nothing happened. “Four, three, two…” She struggled to keep her stance as the land croaked and shuddered beneath her. “One, zer-” Her words were cut short when something wrapped around her from behind, ripping the air from her lungs.

 
Did I really get caught at the last second? How cruel.
A sharp pain cut into her side, causing her to jerk forward and cradle her abdomen. Each exhalation felt like a breath of fire as panic trampled her nerves, pouring over her like acid rain.

  A painful pressure built up behind her eyes, trapped and screaming to get out as it prickled her eyelids.
I’m going to die.
Black invaded the corners of her vision as she wept softly to herself. Her biggest regret was that she hadn’t gone out with more dignity.

BAGGAGE

 
T
he soft echo of familiar voices tickled Marie’s ears as she teetered on the brink of consciousness.
Did I die and go to heaven?
No. She wouldn’t have picked this as her destination. The voices clamored over her and descended upon her like a hammer, growing indistinct amidst the blaring chaos.

  Imprisoned in a state of shock, she was mildly aware of what was going on around her, but felt reluctant to immerse herself in reality just yet. Someone was stripping away her armor, leaving her vulnerable and exposed. She chose to remain stagnant, lost in the gloaming as she watched from a distance.

  “Marie?” Alex shook her gently, but she wasn’t responding. “Marie!”

  “Relax, brother. She’s simply unconscious,” Cayden reassured him with a gentle hand on his shoulder.

“She should’ve stayed on the damn ship,” Raeph tried to mask his concern for Marie with grumpiness.

  “She could’ve died,” Alex mumbled incoherently. “
I
could’ve
died! I should’ve activated her bracelet before mine. So foolish!”   

  “Calm down! She’s
alive
, Alex,” Cayden reminded him, forcing his gaze.

  “We have bigger problems than his neuroticism.” Raeph was one to talk. He might hide it better, but he was just as protective of the feisty little wench.

  “Mm?” Cayden casually strode to the front of the ship.

  “When someone’s transported back onto the ship, it records the data and shows a log,” Raeph spoke in hushed tones. “Marie’s information doesn’t add up. According to the data, that little scrap of a woman weighs over two-hundred pounds, and her body temperature is rapidly fluctuating. At first, I thought it was an error, but my Isabel doesn’t make mistakes,” Raeph fondly patted the ship.

  Cayden gave Raeph a curious look as he casually settled into the chair beside him. He softly rested his hand on the hilt of his sword, signaling Fallon to be on high alert. She pressed her back to the wall, mindlessly tracing the contours of her dagger through the supple leather of her belt.

  “I had the ship run a scan for all possible life forms, but it only reported back the five of us. Obviously, the intruder is using…”

  “Magic,” Cayden whispered.

  “I can put up a Mahömasén shield, but that requires an enormous amount of energy. Unless we want to be stranded here, I can only keep it going for about a minute,” Raeph shot Cayden an apologetic look.

  “I understand.” Cayden slowly stood.

  “Say the word, Boss.” Raeph spun in his chair and shot Fallon a playful look. It was far too easy to push her buttons, and he couldn’t resist.

  “Hey,
I’m
your boss!” Fallon growled.

  Raeph had known Fallon just shy of two decades. She was a handful of years older than him, but vastly less mature when they’d met. They didn’t exactly hit it off at first. They were both extremely strong-willed and set in their ways, creating constant sparks of conflict. They fought like dogs until they survived their first battle together, bonding them for life.

  The silent understanding between them served as a constant solace when they lost their brothers to the hell of war, drawing them closer. They’d been shaped into soldiers together, and both were aware that life didn’t really start until the bittersweet moment when a person takes their first life. The rush that follows is as frightening and invigorating as a babe’s first breath.

  They’d shared many wild nights and suffered the consequences together, even taking to one another’s bed on rare occasion. Fallon greatly outranked Raeph solely due to her pedigree, and while he always heeded her commands, he struggled to think of her as his superior. He’d seen her at her most vulnerable, and it compromised her authority every time he looked at her.

  “That’s true, but he’s
your
boss,” Raeph jerked his head toward Cayden, who turned away to hide his smile.

  “Now,
now
, children.” That was Cayden’s signal. If he was with anyone other than Raeph or Fallon, they wouldn’t have noticed the subtle lilt in his words.

  Raeph casually propped his elbow on the control board and speedily entered a string of numbers, initiating the Mahömasén shield. Alex and Cayden stiffened as a silent countdown began. The dramatic shift of atmosphere was only evident to the Umbra.

  Mahömasén pulled every muscle in their bodies painfully tight, coiled like tensed springs and beating hot against their skin. Their primitive nature was trapped like a caged animal, throwing its body against the bars as it cried out for freedom. It was more excruciating than humans could even begin to fathom, but the Umbra were a proud species and would never admit to such a weakness.

 
Cayden slowly swept his eyes over the room. Nothing looked out of place. Even without magic, the intruder was doing a fine job of staying hidden. In one fluid motion, he closed the distance between he and Fallon and drew his lips back in a primal reflex, placing them near her ear.

  “We have approximately forty-five seconds left. You search here while I search the back,” the corner of Fallon’s mouth twisted up into a devilish smirk as Cayden whispered the command. “Be subtle.”

  Cayden moseyed past her and made a beeline for the engine room. As much as Fallon loved to defy orders – especially from Cayden, who had no right to give them to her – she took her duties seriously and had no intention of failing another mission today. She skirted the perimeter with the slow aplomb of a soldier, trying not to appear too conspicuous while her pupils frantically darted around the room like bees trapped in a jar.

  Alex knew something was wrong. He’d have to be a fool not to. He gathered Marie in his arms and pulled her close to his chest. The heat of her skin burned him through the fine cloth of her shirt, inciting a visceral need to protect her, even if it meant laying down his own life and subjecting himself to an eternity of purgatory.

 
Only fifteen seconds left!
A protruding vein pulsed in Fallon’s forehead as she visually stripped the room down to its bones. Alex noticed the slightest discrepancy in the outline of her shadow when she turned away, but gave no indication of any change in his thoughts.

  “Fallon.” She whipped around, regarding him with roiling irritation. “Nice ass,” he spit the words out as if they left a bad taste in his mouth. Such foul talk was disrespectful in the presence of women.

  Alex’s saccharine words were nothing more than a double entendre. The clever bastard was telling her that their uninvited guest was right behind her, mocking her all the while. Rejection dripped from his tone like honey and burned like acid. She was never genuinely interested in Alex. She only wanted to get under Marie’s skin. That’s what sisters do, after all. Still, she hated losing.

   Fallon suddenly shot down to the ground. Crouching low, she brought the stranger to his knees in a backward sweep kick that caught him behind the ankles. He awkwardly parried, slamming his palms down onto her shoulders as he attempted to put her in a sleeper hold, but he was too weak to pull it off.

  She jerked her head back and butted him in the face. His wails accompanied an audible crack as torrents of blood poured down his face. Fallon seized his sudden vulnerability and twisted her body around, pinning him to the wall with her knee pressed against his chest. The boy never stood a chance.

 
“It’s you!” Fallon snarled. “Traitor!” She jumped to her feet and dragged him up the wall by his collar.

  “He’s just a kid! Let him go!” Marie awoke to see Fallon throttling a little boy.

  “Mariella!” Marie had to practically peel Alex off of her to get a clear shot of Fallon.

  Cayden emerged from the hall, unsure
what
to expect. He expelled a breath of relief as he watched their shouting match escalate with dark amusement. The intruder was none other than Cerin, Marie’s eldest brother who’d initiated this witch hunt. There had been talk amongst the slaves of a royal hiding out on Anthros, and they’d just assumed it was Laylia. He was glad to see they hadn’t nearly died for nothing, after all. Better yet, Cerin’s presence meant that they didn’t have to set foot on Anthros again anytime soon.

  “Fallon,” Cayden sighed. “Let him go.” He knew full well she wasn’t going to comply. Fallon was as stubborn as a Dooble, and she was a thousand times worse when she was angry.

  “You betrayed Aruzhan!” Fallon practically foamed at the mouth as she dug her knee into his chest, cutting out his voice.

  “Let him go! He’s just a kid!” Marie screamed in protest.

  Marie clasped Alex’s shoulders and attempted to pull herself up, immediately going limp in his arms. Her vision squiggled around the edges, sending out droves of floaters and disorienting her. All the chaos made her weak, and Fallon was often at the root of it.

  “How is he supposed to answer you if he can’t breathe?” Cayden quirked a thick, gray brow.

 
Relief flooded Cerin as Fallon withdrew her knee and the pressure on his chest abated. He could breathe again. He suddenly lunged forward, attempting to duck out in the small space allotted by her wide stance. Fallon clamped her legs shut and kneed him in the face, pinioning him to the wall with sheer intimidation alone.

  “You know better than to try that with Fallon, Cerin,” said Alex.

  “Cerin?
He’s
the one we’re looking for?” Marie had expected him to be a lot older.

  “The one and only. I didn’t know you cared so much, sis.” Cerin flashed Fallon a toothy, artificial grin.

  “You smug little bastard!” Cayden caught Fallon mid-lunge.

  “Let the man explain himself!” Cayden tightened his grip upon seeing Fallon tense, readying herself to spring. Cerin flew past them and ducked behind Raeph.

  “You’re only making this harder on yourself,” Raeph flashed a humorless smile, ignoring the desperation in Cerin’s eyes.

  “
You’re
against me too? We’re practically brothers! How many nights have we dominated at Dolus while throwing back a few?”

  “Gambling and booze does
not
make us brothers,” Raeph sharply looked away. In truth, he had considered Cerin a friend, and it made his betrayal sting that much more. He felt the same as Fallon: guilty until proven innocent.

  “Gambling? Booze? He’s just a child!” Marie said, appalled.

  “Actually, he’s the oldest one here,” Raeph smirked upon seeing Cerin’s scowl, knowing he was touching on a sensitive subject.

  “Right, like I’m going to fall for that,” Marie rolled her eyes.

  “It’s true, unfortunately,” Cerin sighed, sinking into a nearby chair.

  The serious look on Alex’s face relinquished any doubt she had. Fallon and Raeph might mess with her, but
he
wouldn’t lie. She didn’t understand it, but she could accept it, for it was far from the strangest thing she’d seen since she’d come here.

  Cerin stood proudly at 4’8”. With a wide stance and puffed out chest, he exuberated a big attitude, despite the fact that he weighed less than a hundred pounds. Black and red tattoo sleeves of mysterious hieroglyphics stretched the entire length of his willowy arms, in stark contrast to his nearly translucent pale skin.

  A thick, silver hoop accentuated his full lips, curled up into a charismatic smile to reveal utterly flawless teeth. The golden stubble of his close-cropped hair complimented his uniquely pale green eyes, as deep and treacherous as a raging emerald sea.

  “You look confused. Why don’t I explain?” Raeph turned to Marie and grinned wickedly. “Cerin spent his entire life whoring himself out to whoever put food in his stomach and a roof over his head. Drinking, smoking, and experimenting with whatever and whoever stood before him,” he tousled the top of Cerin’s head, taunting him further.

  “You’re one to talk, Raeph.” Cerin grumbled, slapping his hand away.

  “Hey, I’m no stranger to a good time, but moderation is key. Needless to say, Cerin here didn’t age well. By the time he hit his fifties, his looks had faded and his charm just wasn’t enough anymore.”

  “Bah! It’s not me. It’s the younger generations. They’ve no class! No damn appreciation for the finer things in life,” Cerin sulked.

  “Now, now. Even the elderly have their place in society,” Raeph slapped Cerin on the back in mock comfort.

  “Just not in young maidens’ beds,” Fallon smirked.

  “You’re not so far off from my age yourself, Fallon.”

  “Watch it, runt,” she warned as all the amusement drained from her face. Apparently, Fallon wasn’t totally immune to the insecurities of women.

  “Despite his startling lack of work ethic, Cerin’s actually a brilliant chemist. Unfortunately, he’s always thought with the wrong head,” Alex added sourly.

  “Ah yes, back to the story,” Raeph flashed his dimples in a menacing grin.

  “Enough! You’re having
way
too much fun telling it,” Cerin scowled. “Basically, I created a concoction that made people look significantly younger. I played with it, went a
little
overboard, used myself as the initial test subject, and now I’m permanently ten years old. End of story. Now, who is this stranger I’m explaining myself to?” he asked grouchily.