Kyrie Eleison…
Meteorites crashed in Jane’s path. It didn’t slow her down. She was walking on fire and falling stars. Dexter was so transfixed by her that he could see nothing else. Not even the fish the size of a skyscraper moving beneath the water, coming to swallow her up and draw all of the Andromeda serum doubles into his belly along with her.
Jane stopped at the pinnacle of the ice where it thrust above the sea in the shape of a fishhook. She bowed her head, committing her spirit to the memory of the Eternal.
The fish moved. For a moment, Dexter paused, believing that this would really happen. No one was coming to save her. He was terrified, angry and famished with longing all in the same moment. Why should he have to lose her now when they had only barely begun their lives together?
The fish yawned, toying with her. It was taking its time.
“Stop!”
Every ear that heard it froze. Salvation had come unlooked for from another place.
Leaf Manson topped the hill-rise above them, coming from the great glass tower where all the Records of the Order were kept. On his shoulders, he carried a lamb whose fleece was so bright it outshone the sun.
“Jane, hang tight. The Calvary’s coming for you.” Leaf came to a stop, holding the lamb high above his head. Derek, Harrison, and Joseph came to his right hand. Timlin, Matthews, and Kendra came to his left. Behind him on either side, Jane saw Lindsey and Ivy and two other people, an African American male and a young Caucasian female with black hair. She tilted her head to the side wondering what sort of curiosity this was that she witnessed.
Before she could make sense of what was happening, Joseph and Harrison crossed two brass rods high above their heads. They must be some kind of detonation mechanism.
A red steam rose from the ground.
“All those who are thirsty for the justice of leaving this machine behind, take a good breath. For only the blood-serum can save you out of the jaws of perdition!” Joseph shouted into a loudspeaker. The walls of kingdom come shook. Jane felt her heart leap to her throat and dance on her tongue.
Could it really be that simple? A little creature trapped somewhere in the heart of this darkness had held the secret to jubilation all this time? All she had to do was breathe it in?
Jane felt like laughing at it and crying all at once. It was just too good to be true. Her friend’s last attempt to save her.
She looked up. Her friends cheered on for her, beckoned to her. Whatever they were saying, she knew that they knew of something sweet she hadn’t yet tasted. She took a deep breath. The gaseous serum smelled like incense and tasted like fine wine. Jane closed her eyes.
Foul breath choked out the life of this moment. Death and life danced in the air. The choirs of the unsung dead poured their heart into their concert, making sure that the Universe heard them one last time. Jane’s whole body trembled as if overtaken by dark possession. She screamed, losing her nerve but holding her will.
The Fish, at last, had enough of games. He twisted into a torpedo and shot from the deep, jaws widespread. Its magnetic body spiraled in a cyclone shape. From every cleft of the rock, doubles of the enhanced were dragged, tooth and nail, into the spinning blades. They were devoured like blades of grass, reminding all that there was always some greater evil in the world to contend with.
Dexter went numb. Without feeling, he ran to catch up with Jane. The teeth shot out, closing around her like prison bars. A shot rang out overhead. Sparks and faint smoke sank like a firecracker to the teeth. Jane shrieked.
Dexter was too late. The Fish’s teeth oozed the concrete-like spit and human bone paste they had created from gnawing the nations. They closed about Jane, tongue beating around the teeth and shooting acid from the seams, sparks flying, the volcanic rock turned to magma in the nuclear waste.
The unthinkable happened then. The Fish made a whining groan like a sick bull calf. It stood up, the size of the Empire State building, its bowels turning to white hot cigarette ashes in the wake of the blood serum’s infusion. To this creature that generated death of metaphysical brain function and photo-acoustics, this life-generating elixir was poison.
Slowly, like the petals of a dead rose, the Fish’s body fell away. It stripped like a banana peel, falling to either side, crashing into the water and tearing ice away from the shore.
Jane appeared in thin air. She was curled up in a cannonball shape. The power of the blood infusion must have detonated on the Fish’s tongue. Even for all the fire cooking in the belly of the whale, Jane was unscathed. There wasn’t even any smoke on her.
Dexter took off running at the speed of a stallion, fueled by his need to catch her as she fell. The pier tore away from him. He leaped before he was ready, sliding over the face of the semi-frozen deep, arms outstretched like a linebacker prepared to catch a football.
Dexter caught Jane. They hit the frigid water with the impact of an off-roading car. Dexter was dizzy with impact. He was certain that the debris of the organic-android whale would overtake them.
“Hey, buddy! I’ve got you.” Jessop Riveaulx had escaped the Rings and their free for all against all odds. He spoke in the air pockets that opened as the water’s shifted away from electron volts. Using his shark enhancements, the eldest of the Altered Children got to the couple in time to pluck them out of the debris’ way.
“No worries, guys. Uncle Joey’s gonna hook you up. This sheep thing is a miracle. Who would have thought it was real life? But then, I mean, look at your source material talking.” Jessop hauled them up onto the debris. Dexter scrambled, rolling Jane over. She coughed, eyes wide.
“I’m still here.” Jane looked at the sky. The spirits of the unsung dead were gone now. Perhaps they had found peace, at last.
Dexter dropped to his knees and laid down protectively on top of her. Whatever came next would have to come. Nothing could be worse than what he’d already faced. The thought of losing her had been his ultimate test. He’d passed. He was complete.
“Come on, guys. We’re not quite out of the woods yet.” Jessop patted Dexter’s shoulders. The heat of the Fish’s death had started an avalanche in the surrounding mountains. They’d be crushed if they didn’t get a move on.
Jessop tried to haul them away, but he was bloodied and maimed from the blood bath behind him. He was running out of ideas. The water bubbled and evaporated. They’d be plunging into chasms before long.
Two large shapes collided with the water just as Jessop was starting to lose his nerve. Derek and Leaf emerged, gasping, struggling.
“Nice save, hot shot!” Dexter reached out, clapping a hand on Leaf’s shoulder. This was the second time in their short shared history that the young Sergeant had saved his life.
“You’re gonna need a backpack leash for this chick if you do end up hitched to her, man. I’ve seen some guys fall for some real heartbreakers, but this trumps everything I’ve ever seen before in my life!” Leaf slapped Dexter on the back, smoke billowing from his lips.
“Yeah, no arguments there.” Dexter hauled Jane to sitting. She blinked, still stunned.
Derek leaned over his shoulder, frowning at the landslide.
“Well, I’ve got my caffeine quaking mojo back, gang. Let’s see if I can buy us some time.” Derek closed his eyes and extended his hands. The mountains were falling to his palms and the energy that emitted from them. He cupped them in upturned hands, cradling them like and infant as he eased their ground-ward coasting.
“Where are the others? Did they make it?” Jane was able to speak at last.
Everyone grew quiet.
“Everybody’s scattered to the four winds, but we think the release of this gas will make us all revive in Washington. In the meantime, Timlin forced Matthews to use his code passkeys to leak all of the Order’s secrets onto the World Wide Web. So I guess you could say he finally redeemed himself somewhat.” Leaf clutched his torn bicep, clenching his teeth. Jane studied his eyes. There was something they weren’t telling her
e.
“What about Lucien and Kiara?” Jane knew the answer to her question before she asked it.
“They succeeded. Who’s to say what will become of them, too? If they breathe in this cure, they might be salvaged out of all of this. Leona got her revenge too. She and Dante destroyed themselves on Poseidon’s shoulders, thus killing Dante. It brought the rest of kingdom come down on the Gates. Now all that is left of the Order is what we remember about it.” Jessop drew his knees up to his chin.
Jane leaned back and nodded. She wasn’t surprised. They’d been steadfast to the end. There’s no way they would have backed out of it. Before that, all the way back at Leona’s island of dolls, she’d seen that ending coming from a mile off. Still, that didn’t mean it hurt less.
“Who knows…” Jane closed her eyes. She felt herself letting go again. Whatever came next would be the ultimate cost to all of this struggle. Before she realized that she’d made peace with her fate, she was drifting comatose again. It was the first time her mind had been truly quiet since the day she’d died.
*****
Chapter 23
Jane Lewis woke up in a hospital. For a moment, she thought she was that 17-year-old kid again that had wrecked her dad’s motorcycle trying to save her stupid brother from the thug life.
She laid staring at the roof. This wasn’t Caddo Vitality. Caddo Vitality smelled of Louisiana’s cypress trees and humidity. This felt different. So did she.
Jane sat up and looked around. Something was wrong with this entire picture. Her limbs felt light as paper and yet quartz solid. She was whole. That was what felt wrong. It had been such a long time since she’d been complete that she’d forgotten the sense of it.
She looked around at all the furnishings and at all the people. Her dad was alive! He was sleeping in a wheelchair not far from her. Dexter lay in a bed beside her. Ivy was here, passed out on a little couch. Outside, she could see the looming towers of Times Square. It was snowing in sheets.
“Hey. It’s been a while, stranger.” Lindsey was standing at the foot of her bed, holding a clipboard and dressed once more in a scrub.
“Lindsey? What?” Jane shook her head. Had all of that been a twisted dream?
“I know, right? It’s impossible to believe that you’ve come back. Back from being Andromeda. Back from the dead.” Lindsey touched Jane’s hand. She gasped and looked at her, horrified. So it wasn’t a dream?
“So am I? I am…How long have I been?” Jane looked around, in a sudden frenzy.
“It’s alright, Jane. The world’s a very different place than last you left it. Which was only about two months ago? No one really expected you to ever stir, but then you came up from a coma and fell into a sound sleep pattern last night.” Lindsey stifled a giggle. Jane’s hair was standing on end.
“So, like, so Leona really is gone? And everyone and that crime ring that she created is like history?” Jane looked at her hands and felt them. She was back. What was more, she was back in America. In New York City, visiting on peaceful terms this time.
“Well, yes and no. Yes, the Fultons are out of the picture. But the world has totally altered its course of social existence in the fallout. FYI, they impeached that rat Matthews. There’s an election going on now for a leader committee. Our old buddies Leaf and Derek are number one on the list…” Lindsey started chattering about things. Jane wasn’t noticing. A sharp volt of electricity started in her spine.
“Ah, what? I feel weird?” Jane stood up in bed.
“Jane, take it easy okay? There’s no way to break this gently to you but that last serum, the blood serum—the special additive it needed in order to work was made out of a golden eagle’s DNA anomalies. It’s weird, the Kelley team under their new think-tank The Boothe Medical Counterterrorism Initiative are looking into it, but they’re kinda slowed down by all the law changes going down on the pharmaceutical industry… Anyway, we’ve noticed a strange malformation of your spinal cord that we’re going to have to do some tests.” Lindsey stepped back as the EKG’s and IV systems smashed against either wall. Vincent woke up. Ivy sprung up, hair standing on end. Dexter sat up in bed.
Jane stood in the center of her bed, jaw dropped. A massive set of bleached white and peacock tip patterned eagle’s wings had deployed from tightly wound pinions in her spine. They sprawled along the edges of the bed and dusted little shapes in the frosty windows.
The EKG flickered and shot sparks. Dexter gaped and smiled. Ivy groaned, hitting her knees. Vincent stood up. Lindsey covered her mouth.
Jane cleared her throat. Finally, she smiled.
“Well, don’t look so shocked, right? Come on, guys. I’ve always been your guardian angel.”
THE END
(of Book 5 & The Series)
*****
WOW…that’s it!! I can’t believe it’s over! But it’ll live on in our hearts…sigh.
In all seriousness, thank you for reading what has been my first series. I really hope you liked it and want to read something more. If so, try out my take on the dystopian genre: The Rising Dawn Trilogy. You can GET IT ON AMAZON!
*****
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One More Thing…
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About Doug McGovern
Doug McGovern is a sick-minded individual who lives in Upstate New York with his surprisingly normal wife, Nancy (also an author with books on Amazon) and their three awesome kids.
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*****
Table of Contents
Contents
The Good Death
Special Offer!
Rights & Disclaimer
Dedication
Lazarus Suspended
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Epilogue
Andromeda Act
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Pandora Man
Prologue
Chapter 1
Cha
pter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Parthenon Unleashed
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Poseidon Gates
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
One More Thing
About Doug McGovern
The Good Death Box Set: A Hard SciFi Science Fiction Series Page 56
