His head spun. Everything dimmed and he stumbled. Arms caught and cradled his body, refusing to let him fall. Set back on his feet, he looked to the men he had damned. Now, his life was in their hands.
Join me and end this divided existence, he commanded.
En masse, they kneeled and accepted his dominion. Weaves extended in vibrant crimson threads, binding each of the Vanquished to his soul. No longer separate, they forged into one being, making him as strong as the blade singing in his fist.
***
Stretched out on the floor, barely clinging to consciousness, Alexis hurt in places she hadn’t known existed. Broiling in lava had ravaged her body and carved a canyon in her soul. Memories of Reign kept her sane. His barely there smile and beautiful eyes. The way he looked the first time she’d seen him sprawled on her sofa. She hadn’t appreciated the moment then. If she could just hold on to that slice of time, maybe she’d survive this hell.
Grunting and the echoes of flesh hitting flesh gave her a reason to force her eyes open. A battle unfolded somewhere within the dense fog bank a few yards away, but all Alexis could see was the delight on Nephythys’s face. The excitement etched on her features sickened Alexis. She couldn’t let her win. But how to defeat the goddess when Alexis had nothing to bargain with.
Except her life.
She didn’t belong in this realm. She’d never prayed to these gods. If she died, Duat was not her hell. Possibly, a different hell awaited her. At least she wouldn’t be here, used as a tool to bind Reign to Nephythys. She wanted him to have a life…and find love. He deserved that much after spending an eternity with a blue-haired witch.
Alexis pushed herself into a seated position. Patches of burned skin on her arms cracked and flaked away, leaving angry blotches. The healing prepared her for another round of torture. Not. Today.
She panned the room, taking in the avid spectators while searching for a final glimpse of Reign. A hint of crimson is all she caught as she scanned the dense, churning cloud. And Roman? Both must be inside.
Favoring her left side, she struggled to her feet. Nephythys’s gaze landed on her. Her lips curled into a sneer.
“Ready to have my foot up your ass, Nephythys?” Goading worked in high school, why not here? “You and me, bitch. Right here. Right now.” Nephythys flinched as if the words had landed a body blow.
“No,” came from the woman pinned to the floor. Her golden armor had vanished, leaving her dressed in a simple brown sheath. Alexis wanted to help her but had no help to give. She ignored the woman and focused on dying.
“You challenge me!” Energy pooled in Nephythys’s palms. Her hair blazed along with her eyes and her gown billowed from an unseen force.
Being a martyr wasn’t on Alexis’s bucket list. If only she could get one solid punch in and knock the heifer back a few feet. Then she would die with a smile. A burst of adrenaline made her heart speed, her blood rush, and the hairs on her limbs stand at attention. Balanced on the balls of her feet, Alexis took a steadying breath. Her hands curled into tight fists.
Wait for it. Wait. For. It.
Nephythys hurled a ball of energy. Alexis feinted left, but the energy tracked her movement. She dove right and hit the ground hard, rolled and staggered to her feet.
“Alexis, look out!” Someone shouted.
She leaned in time to avoid a direct hit, but the glancing blow tore through her side. Agony burrowed through her and wiped coherent thought from her brain. She collapsed next to the woman, their faces inches apart. Heat leeched out of her, turning every part of her body cold. Guessing at the injury was better than actually seeing her insides ventilated. And lying here dying didn’t feel like victory. But she was done. She had nothing left.
The woman’s gaze darted to Alexis’s cleavage. Her kohl-lined eyes widened.
Alexis dreaded the damage she would find, but she had to see. A slight tilt of her head brought her face to face with her grandmother’s bracelet. Peeking from the glove nestled between her breasts, its ruby eyes twinkled. The woman chanted in a strange language. Low and rhythmic, the words washed over Alexis.
It moved! In front of her startled eyes, the small jeweled head lifted. Bobbing and weaving, it mesmerized Alexis.
Nephythys’s rustling skirts snapped her out of the trance. “You will have plenty of time to lie down and die. Now, you will stand and face your punishment.”
“Alexis, we don’t have much time. My vis’Ra is fading quickly. I can’t help you. The bracelet. It is all you need to defeat them.” The words rushed from the woman.
Mrs. Kelly’s speech on the golf course returned to her.
The woman glanced over Alexis’s shoulder. “She nears. Trust the Serpent. It won’t lead you astray.”
A force gripped Alexis and dragged her from the floor. Hovering, every nerve screamed in excruciating pain as she rotated and faced her executioner.
Nephythys stood a few feet away. The flames in her hair danced with unabridged mayhem in tune with the energy crackling in the palms of her hands.
Too close to miss, Alexis thought and prepared for the end. Warmth coiled in her cleavage and snaked up her chest. Her heart hiccuped, then steadied into a heavy beat. Her muscles relaxed, bones straightened, flesh and skin knit together. The torment stopped and strength returned in a sweet rush.
The power in Nephythys’s hands sputtered and faded, but the astonishment on her face remained. A gasp circled the room followed by cries of dismay. She wanted to glance down and see what caused the panicked look on the goddess’s face, but couldn’t take her eyes off her nemesis.
The sensation continued around her neck. A force took control of her arm and extended her hand. The delicate golden head snaked over her shoulder. As it twined around her arm, the body elongated and thickened. Gone was the dainty piece of jewelry she coveted. Now the size of a cobra, it reared back and turned toward the woman. Fangs dropped from its peeled back lips. The three men holding her stepped away.
“You gave this human an Anu-Ra!” Aten held the staff in front of him like a weapon.
“Step away, Aten.” The woman climbed to her feet.
“How many times must you be punished before you obey, Nu?” Aten growled.
“Does the moon obey the tide? Does the sun follow the flower? You command obedience from the one who created you?” Her voice vibrated and though low, the words echoed in the chamber. “You overstep your station.”
“My station is leader of this Pantheon. Granting humans power is forbidden.”
“Then punish me.” Nu grinned and her gaze swept the room. “I await all of your judgments.”
“My vis’Ra is gone!” A god cried.
“As is mine.” Whispers echoed. Alexis looked up at the gallery filled with deities. Where once eternal youth and beauty dwelled, haggard, wizened faces leered. Without access to their vis’Ra, they withered. Now—they were mortal—and destructible.
The Serpent flattened against her skin, becoming an intricate tattoo rather than a piece of jewelry, as if it knew her intention.
Nephythys stared, her eyes wide in her wrinkled, sallow face. Her hair had flamed out, leaving listless blue coils. Alexis almost pitied the frightened elderly goddess. However, ‘but’ always follows ‘almost’. She almost pitied Nephythys . . . but putting the bitch in her place was too tempting to resist.
Alexis’s hands curled into tight fists. She stepped into the punch, pivoting at the right moment and delivered a right hook to the goddess’s jaw. The resounding crunch satisfied a multitude of wrongs, though not all.
Nephythys stumbled. Wobbled. But, she didn’t go down. Her appearance was another lie. Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth. She wiped it clean with the back of her hand and launched into Alexis with a barrage of wild punches.
You fight like a girl, Alexis thought, jabbing between blocking Nephythys’s ineffectual punches. One lucky blow connected with Alexis’s temple. She weaved and came back with a right cross, left hook combo. Nephythys’s head b
obbled. Alexis danced back, grateful for the secret sparing lessons from Thomas.
A kick to Alexis’s stomach did more than knock the wind out of her. She landed on her back and skidded across the floor. Nephythys plopped her butt on Alexis’s stomach. She grabbed two handfuls of hair and beat Alexis’s head into the marble.
Alexis bucked and rolled, but Nephythys clung to her. Her fist connected with a glancing blow to Alexis’s cheek and jaw. Alexis blocked the next punch with her forearm. Nephythys grabbed Alexis’s arm and clawed at the image of the Serpent. The tattoo didn’t budge.
Alexis wrapped her hand in Nephythys’s hair and dragged the goddess to the side. Nephythys’s claws dug into Alexis’s scalp and grabbed a fistful of hair. As Alexis pulled, so did Nephythys. Hair snapped and yanked free from the scalps of both women. Having survived a few catfights, Alexis gritted her teeth through the pain.
Nephythys shrieked. The high pitched, girly cry ended when Alexis plugged her mouth with a fist, loosening several teeth.
Alexis hauled Nephythys up by her hair. “Stay. Away. From. Reign!” She accentuated each word with her fist meeting flesh.
“No,” Nephythys gurgled and spit a mouthful of blood onto the marble.
Alexis shoved her away. “You pathetic…Ugh! I can’t even call you a woman! Why would you want a man that clearly doesn’t want you?”
“You know nothing. He loved me once and he will again. And he gave me his word.”
“It’s true, Alexis. He did give his word. And once given it cannot be broken,” the woman said.
“Of his own free will, he agreed to stay with me. He gave his word and I will not allow him to break it.” Nephythys chuckled.
“You are gonna pay for everything you’ve done.” Alexis grabbed Nephythys by the throat and shook her.
“You stupid ape. I am a god!” Nephythys shrieked.
Alexis cocked her arm, ready to pummel Nephythys again. A soft hand on her shoulder stopped her. The tattoo flexed and her muscle suddenly weakened. Nephythys slipped from her numb fingers. “What!” She whipped around.
The woman who helped her sidled between her and Nephythys. “You're not a killer and she is needed here.”
The Serpent twisted around her arm, hummed at the nearness of the woman. Wary, Alexis backed away. “Who are you?” She demanded.
“She birthed them. Like a beast in a field, they crawled out of her,” Nephythys spat. Bloody and disheveled, the goddess had fallen on hard times.
With new appreciation, Alexis studied the woman and found no resemblance between her and her sons. Their mother’s tan skin and cinnamon-hued eyes were the complete opposite of their coloring.
The woman’s spine stiffened and she glowered at Nephythys. “I proudly bore two beautiful children who I left so they would be safe from this cesspool.”
Alexis muttered a curse. “You two can fight later. Answer my question, who are—” A ribbon of smoke wormed its way around her waist and dragged her backward into the dark recesses of the churning cloud.
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
Reign opened his eyes. Flat on his back, SET’s inky smoke blanketed him. But now, he could see through the acrid smoke to the entity within. He breathed the evil in and didn’t choke on the foulness. It entered his nose and mouth, filled his lungs on one long draw that lasted forever.
“W-what are you doing?”
SET’s voice echoed in Reign’s head.
“Killing you.” Accepting this much malevolence had to tip his soul back into the abyss. Yet as he continued to pull SET into him, his soul attenuated the weight. The burden settled around him.
“You can’t kill evil, boy.”
“Let’s see if I can prove you wrong.” Reign continued to draw him in.
SET retreated and tried to retrieve what Reign had taken in. But Reign held on. He wouldn’t return what he’d swallowed. He leaped to his feet and entered the heart of the dark.
A storm raged at the center of the mass. Wind tore at his skin. His sword deflected bolts of lightning aimed at his heart. No matter how many forms SET took, today the god would die.
A scream froze him. It dwindled to a muffled cry that had no direction. Dread pumped through his veins. He stilled. Listening, he caught a soft groan and spun in that direction. The smoke parted.
Alexis.
Her body bobbed like a piece of driftwood in a raging sea. His vision tunneled and pinpointed her split lip and the bruise coloring her cheeks. His hand tightened on the handle of the blade until his fist ached. Whoever touched her would feel its edge.
Behind her, the lightning gathered into a form. Reign hurled his blade. The sword tumbled, handle over tip and embedded in the center of the mass. The burst of light and following concussion wave burned away the smoke holding her captive. Reign dashed beneath Alexis and caught her before she fell.
His weapon returned to his hand, humming. He spotted Roman a few feet away, his sword still glowing as he raised it. Across the room, SET—once more in the form of a man—slumped against a wall. Chest heaving, limbs trembling, the god had lost his aura of invincibility. Yet his eyes blazed. You have taken what was mine. Soon, I will take what is yours.
SET’s thoughts echoed between Reign’s ears. The malevolent muck, the part of SET Reign consumed, throbbed within him. His arms tightened around Alexis.
“I know how to kill you.” Certainty settled in Reign’s bones adding weight to his words. “Touch her and die.”
Your confidence is misplaced—
“Is it?” Reign inhaled a sharp breath. SET’s essence stirred inside his lungs. A bit of it escaped from his mouth and nose, curling in the air.
Indecision and fear swiped the arrogance from the god’s features, and Reign didn’t hide his smile.
SET exploded again. This time his smoky form streamed past Reign. Nephythys screeched as SET smothered her. When the smoke cleared, they were gone.
Nu rushed over and kneeled opposite him. She touched the strange tattoo on Alexis’s arm. The one-dimensional Serpent came alive, separated from her skin and slithered from Alexis to her new host.
The animal grew from a few inches long, to five feet of coiled menace. Nu nuzzled both jeweled heads. “Hello, Tirrika. I’ve missed you so.” The Serpent glowed and shared the aura with Nu.
Nu stood and faced the gallery of gods still gathered. The words she spoke were strangely melodic, but the room trembled with each syllable. Gods scattered, climbing over each other to escape.
“We have to leave. Once, I could blanket the entire island and nullify their vis’Ra. Now, as soon as they leave the grounds, their Godhoods will return, as will their quest for vengeance.”
A light enveloped and transported them to a bedroom. Dark blue marble dotted with jewels created a starry night pattern. Large soft cushions were next to him but he was reluctant to let Alexis go. Nu crouched next to them and placed her hand on Alexis’s shoulder. The ruby and emerald eyes of the Serpent sparkled and light passed through Nu to Alexis.
The point of a blade lifted Reign’s chin and pressed against his throat. Roman stood over him. His face was devoid of emotion, but his eyes were eerily bright.
The light bleeding from the edge of the sword sizzled Reign’s skin. He wouldn’t fight Roman. Not again. Reign couldn’t take from his brother what he sought to gain for himself, life with the woman he loved. Gently, he lowered Alexis to a cushion. If he was to die, it wouldn’t be on his knees. He started to rise, but Roman pressed the blade into his neck.
Roman’s gaze shifted from Reign to Alexis. “You love her?”
“With everything I have.” Before he existed. With Alexis, he lived.
“As I love my wife who you would’ve made a widow. You sacrificed me! And like a lamb to the slaughter I went, because I trusted you!” The room shook.
The blade seemed to ignite Reign’s blood. He didn’t budge. Retribution demanded he accept this final judgment. Though, he did turn his head a notch so his last vision would be
of Alexis.
“Roman! I command you to cease!” Nu said.
“Who are you to order me?” he snarled.
“She’s…your m-mother.” Alexis croaked weakly.
Both men pivoted.
Time stretched. In the heat of the battle, Reign didn’t have the luxury of staring at the woman. Now he tried to absorb everything about her and burn it into his memory. The mural hadn’t lied and his father’s memory was accurate. Her skin was the color of the sun the moment before it sets. Her hair brushed her shoulders in auburn waves. And her eyes, they were chocolate, rich and mysterious, yet welcoming. His father always said he took after him with their fair skin and blue eyes.
“You are not our Mother.” Roman glared at Nu, and the tip of the sword still dug into Reign’s neck.
“Open your eyes, brother, and remember the mural in our father’s home.” Reign tried to share his thoughts with Roman, recreate the bond they once had, but the merging of their minds couldn’t breach Roman’s hatred.
Seconds ticked by while Roman studied the goddess in their midst. His struggle was portrayed on his shifting features. He shook his head. “I don't believe it.”
Her shoulders slumped, then quickly stiffened. “Your belief matters not. I will not allow you to harm each other.” Nu raised her hand and moved Roman yards away. He raged against the restraints, and nearly broke free. With a wave of Nu’s hand, he disappeared.
“Where have you sent him?” Reign demanded.
“I returned him to RockGate. I pray time will cool his anger, though he has every right to hate you.”
Though she was correct, Reign squared his shoulders. “I did what I had to.”
“I understand your motives. I can’t say I wouldn’t have done the same for your father. But Dear Ra, I have given up too much to see you at each other’s throats.” Her eyes watered and her form flickered.
Reign swallowed the lump in his throat. He could guess the answer, still, he had to ask. “What did you give up?”
Nu’s eyes darkened and despair glazed over her face before she turned away, wiping her eyes. Suddenly, she stumbled and sank to the floor.
Everlasting (Descendants of Ra: Book 2) Page 35
