Sphinx Transformed (The Sphinx Warriors Series Book 3)
Page 26
The Wraith dropped like a stone alerting the second creature of her presence. The second Wraith shrieked and rushed at her, its hands reaching for her with wicked claws ready to tear her to shreds she was sure. With a quick flick of her hand, the second dagger shot through the air striking true and sinking to the hilt into the Wraith’s throat. Clutching at its throat, the Wraith gurgled and sank to the ground twitching at her feet and breathing its last breath.
Alexandria stared transfixed at the dead creature for a moment, but then her focus snapped back into place when she heard the distant shrieking of the hunting Wraith. She feared the pack was increasing in size as their hunger for her Life Power drove them into a frenzy. With very little time left, she spun around to the only water source the Dimension had. Shifting the bag forward on her shoulder, she pulled out the box of vials.
Carefully placing the box on the edge of the trough, she opened the lid. One after another, she pulled out the slim cylindrical glass vials of clear anti-gene fluid and snapped off the top with her bare hand. After upending each one, she dropped the empty vials into the water. From her estimates, not only would the water be contaminated for several hours, but the anti-gene would sink into the stone of the trough and be present for weeks guaranteeing the demise of the genetically altered Wraith.
However, one creature would be stronger than the rest and needed the direct dosage. Two vials were left and she loaded one into the injector, the other she wrapped in a section of fabric she had ripped from the bottom hem of her shirt. Stuffing the extra vial in her pocket, she hoped the wad of fabric would keep it from getting broken. Hopefully, she wouldn’t need the second vial and the first one would work, but just in case she had the back up. Making sure the injector was ready to go, she secured the cap on the needle and slid it into the back of her waistband pulling the bottom of her t-shirt up and over, covering any visible evidence of its presence.
Goal one complete, the time had come for her to retrieve the Fifth Page. Alexandria started to jog over to the far hallway but froze when the eerily familiar voice echoed around her.
“Alexandria…a…a. We know you are here…here…here…”
Her breath caught in her throat and panic hit her square in the chest. Turin. It was him. The half Sphinx, half Wraith who had tortured her for days, violated her body, destroyed her mind. She couldn’t move, couldn’t focus, only felt the blood drain from her face and the shaking spread throughout her body.
“Alexandria…a…a. You are one of us…us…us.”
Closing her eyes tightly, she tried to block his evil voice and focused on her Sphinx. Taking the image of the child of the past dying by her hands, she shoved the memory right in her inner Sphinx’s sensitive face. The feline reared its head back and an infuriated snarl rose from Alexandria’s throat.
With the overlay of her inner Sphinx near the surface, Alexandria was able to break the temporary spell Turin had on herpsychological only but still effective. Spinning away from the sound of Turin’s and the other Wraith’s approach she sprinted to the next hallway, and in a blinding streak, zigzagged through the catacomb like tunnels again outwitting her pursuers for several minutes.
Down through broken cracks in the massive stones, across vast open cavern like rooms, and back up winding stone stairs, Alexandria finally made it back to the level where she needed to be. The level where she had been stretched out on a stone platform and injected, tortured, and cut to pieces over and over again.
Arriving in the torture room, she skidded to a halt and almost hit the floor when she saw the platform. She became light-headed from the smells of old blood, both hers and other Wraith who had been tortured here. Shaking her head violently to clear her vision, she approached the freestanding display case. Inside the display, glowing in the dim light was the ancient document which could help save her people and her world. The parchment was indeed old and delicate with many Power Signatures scrolled on it including her silver moon eclipsing the gold sun.
She didn’t have time to be delicate about retrieving the page. Curling her hand into a fist, she brought it down sharply on the glass. Splinters exploded everywhere and dug into her skin. Ignoring the discomfort, she reached in picking up the parchment. Her heart fell when she saw the damage that had occurred to the ancient scroll. Only half of the Fifth Page was intact, the rest missing. “Fuck,” she whispered but there was nothing to be done at this point. Rolling it quickly she inserted the parchment into the gold tube shaped holder and inserted the old cork into the end which had been lying next to the ancient page in the display.
Slipping the Fifth Page into the side pocket of her fatigue pants, Alexandria started to run towards the far exit, but at least five or six Wraith blocked her way. They grinned at her with their sharp teeth-filled jaws and drool ran out of their mouths. Her heart pounding, she spun away and sprinted to the alternate exit but immediately slid to a stop in the middle of the floor. Turin, his new abomination, and several more Wraith blocked her way from escape in that direction as well.
Inside she was quaking, but on the outside, she maintained a calm even her Sphinx didn’t feel. “Turin,” she greeted him and was pleased to hear her voice was fairly level.
Turin bowed his head just slightly and pinned her with his one good solid black soulless eye. The other was covered in a patch from the damage Jacob had done earlier to him. He was almost as gray skinned as the other Wraith now and bone thin. From experience though, she knew those hands had hidden strength. Strength that could tear her apart.
Turin smiled at her and he hissed, “Alexandria. I told you, you would come back to us. It was inevitable. I must say, though, I’m disappointed you destroyed all the hard work I put into you.”
Slowly he moved over to where she stood but she didn’t back away, didn’t flinch an inch. She couldn’t. Her ultimate goal needed to get closer within her striking distance. Her ultimate goal was the genetically enhanced Wraith with her DNA, and only Turin could make the creature follow him closer.
The creature looked at her with undisguised interest and the sight of the Wraith truly chilled her to the bone. Instead of the usual elongated jaw, the upper jaw was pushed in but the lower jaw stuck out. Because of the disjointed alignment the Wraith had literally chewed into its own upper lip and was oozing blood and infected pus. The skin was still gray but cracked and dry and the eyes were soulless but with a depth of devious intelligence. Getting the beast near her and not having her natural disgust and hatred of the creature set her off, so she could inject it with the anti-gene, was going to be almost impossible. But she had no choice.
To control her mounting need to destroy or run, she wasn’t sure which, Alexandria thought of her strong Warrior and the kind loving glances he gave her. She thought of the care and gentleness of Joshua’s touches and his deep voice when he whispered passionate secrets to her. Even though he wasn’t with her physically, the connection they shared gave her strength.
Turin finally stopped his advance just outside her reach. Of course, he wouldn’t risk himself. The fact he had come this close surprised her but he would need to gloat, to be able to watch her be tortured or die at the hand of his new protégé would be too much of a temptation for him.
Sighing deeply he said in a bored tone, “Oh, well. Your conversion back can’t be helped. No matter, though, you’ll still make an excellent mate for Andrius. We can revert you back from being mated to whatever Sphinx male you rutted with.”
Alexandria wanted to lash out at him and the lurid term he had used. Joshua was beyond extraordinary in the lovemaking he had given to her and the way he had treated her as if she was the most important thing in the world to him. She didn’t dare make a threatening move, though. The mutated Wraith was an arm’s distance away from her and its claws were even sharper and more dangerous than the others.
“Mmmmm. Mine.” The Wraith called Andrius hissed. The creature reached out putting its clawed hand on her chest. Alexandria wanted to run, wanted to call out to
Joshua, but she couldn’t. Standing there letting the Wraith touch her was the hardest thing she had ever done, but the action gave her time.
Closing her eyes, she blocked out everything and let her energy flow outward just enough so she could see beyond her physical eyes. Her Power reached to the floor, the walls, and towards the ceiling searching for her escape. Just when she had given up, she found the gap in the stones. The location couldn’t be better and she rejoiced just a bit. Above her and slightly to the right was a gap just big enough for her to fit through and she was sure her Sphinx abilities would allow her to jump high enough to pull up and through.
Even though she had only allowed a small amount of her Power to release, so the Wraith surrounding her wouldn’t detect it, the mutation before her must have been more sensitive. Andrius grabbed her by the throat, his nails digging in deeply. Pain streaked through her and the pressure he suddenly placed on her neck cut off her air supply. She grabbed his wrist trying to pull out of his grip, but the creature was beyond strong. Without oxygen and the blood pooling in her head, the world started to get fuzzy. The panic which had been at a low level spiked rapidly, and Alexandria finally realized she was even in more over her head than her headstrong inner Sphinx had allowed her to estimate.
Andrius leaned in and sniffed at her. Mucus and drool dripped from his malformed mouth and his other hand attempted to paw at her breasts. If not for the vest, Alexandria figured she would have had gouges running the length of her chest by now.
“Yumm. Much Power in her. Mine.”
The smell of the Wraith’s breath made her gag but the worst of his abuse was yet to come. Andrius reached up under the vest and her t-shirt digging his claws into her stomach.
The scream was torn from Alexandria’s already raw throat and she expected to be gutted right then and there. Instead Andrius toyed with her, reaching into her system and pulling Life Power from her. She fought and struggled against the creature to no avail, and couldn’t even reflex her Sword because her Power was being ripped from her. Closing her eyes, she thought of Joshua, the Warrior she loved with all her heart and the Warrior who would die without her if she perished like this. At the hand of a hated creature they had fought against all their lives.
She couldn’t fail. No! Deep inside her inner Sphinx fought back and rose closer to the surface. Focus Alexandria. Fight, damn it, she demanded of herself. Her eyes snapped open and she was more determined than ever. Her next goal was right there trying to suck her dry and all she had to do was reach to her lower back.
Weak but still with enough strength to raise her arm, she reached behind her back and pulled the auto injector out from her waistband. With the help of her Sphinx, she was lightning-fast and flicked the cap off the needle, spun the syringe around so the dripping needle was aimed effectively, and then with her remaining strength plunged the needle deep in the Wraith’s neck. The instant the needle was in, she pressed the injector button and the anti-gene shot home.
Andrius screeched in agony, throwing Alexandria to the side and pulling the needle out. The creature held a hand to the side of its neck suddenly unsteady. Weaving precariously, the mutated creature tried to get to her but fell to its knees, a sickening gurgling coming from its mouth. Alexandria slowly got to her feet just watching in horrific fascination while the creature continued to fight against the hold of the anti-gene. For a moment, the Wraith just froze there staring at her with its empty black eyes and then in slow motion toppled to the ground.
“Nooo!” Turin rushed to his now dead creation. There was nothing for him to do but grab his hair and roar in fury. He turned his hateful glare towards her and pointing a long thin finger at her screamed, “Destroy her!”
Those were her key words for action. Flexing down at the knees she fired what Power she had left to her Sphinx and utilizing her feline strength jumped upward. The leap had to have been a new record for her but she made the distance just enough to get a handhold on the edges of the gap in the ceiling. Gritting her teeth she pulled with all her might until her upper body was through the opening. A small outcropping of rock near her was enough to grab onto and pull the rest of the way into the upper level.
Exhausted and out of breath, Alexandria rolled away from the opening and onto her back on what was now the floor for her. Her heart felt like it was pounding right out of her chest and her muscles were shaking with weakness. Lack of Life Power and loss of blood was making her weak.
“Don’t let her get away or you’ll all pay!” Turin screeched and cursed from below. She didn’t think the Wraith would be able to get through the small gap but she didn’t want to wait around to find out. She needed to get the hell out of the stronghold. Her mission was done and she had to get back and face the music from Joshua and her brother.
Rolling over and standing up she was a bit unsteady on her feet, but she lurched ahead anyway. As she unsteadily ran across the open area, Alexandria also reached out to find Life Power. There really wasn’t much in the desolate dimension but there were traces here and there in the stone. Just enough to bolster her energy level to get her going. Her speed slowly picked up and eventually she was near a sprint.
Down hallways, across cave-like rooms, through gaps with sharp stone which further tore at her protection and exposed skin, she pushed on. Occasionally she surprised unsuspecting Wraith searching for her and she utilized daggers and throwing stars with extreme efficiency bringing them down with barely a thought. On and on she went through the catacomb stronghold, keeping Joshua in the forefront of her mind, a beacon of hope and love to get her safely home.
When she almost got to the point of not knowing if she would actually find her way out, the stairs she needed loomed before her. Pushing herself to the max of her speed, she flew down the last long hallway, shot up the debris-filled stairs, and slammed the outer door open with an explosion of her Power. Alexandria dove out of the door expecting to be home free, instead she was confronted with Turin and a wall of the few Wraith he could assemble to stop her and the one hope of escape was no longer there. The Gate was closed to her forever.
The despair was crushing and tore her up from the inside out. She couldn’t stop the sob which escaped and the hope of ever being with Joshua again slipped through her fingers like the sand under her feet. She had been successful at destroying the mutated Wraith and the super creature which had her ability of opening the Gate, but in the end she had failed. Her family would never have the Fifth Page of Seven to find a way to destroy the Gate and she had effectively doomed Joshua to dying from the dionic energy, which would build in him without her healing touch.
Turin smiled evilly capturing her attention. “Oh, yes, my sweet Alexandria. I’ve changed my mind. We’ll start again and make you what you were. My evil temptress and Gate master.”
“Never!” She screamed at him. “You’ll never have me again. I’ll die first.” As quickly as she could Alexandria reflexed her Element to Power Sword with what little Life Power she had left. Her entire body shook from head to toe and she didn’t know how long she could last, but she would go down fighting. There was no way in hell she would let Turin mutate her again and would make sure she died here and now to prevent any chance of him getting a hold of her.
With dark intent, Turin sneered at her.
“So be it then.”
Spreading out his arms, he then violently closed them in front causing the sand to fly up around them and beat against Alexandria’s already battered body.
“Destroy her!” Was the last thing he shouted before the Wraith attacked.
Using every skill she had learned from Hunter in training when she was young and all the dirty tricks in her training while under Turin’s command, she fought against the Wraith. Her Sword sang true slicing and beheading many an evil creature. She spun and sliced overhead, across, down, killing or causing major damage to the Wraith around her. Her energy spiked with the presence of her feline just below the surface moving with her in the deadly dance.
Alexandria knew she was a mess with her hair tangled, her clothes ripped to shreds, and blood dripping down her arms and legs to pool at her feet. Her breathing was ragged and she could barely stand on her feet, but she still growled at all of them. If she had to die, she was going down with honor like a Sphinx should.
Circling in the center of the Wraith ring glaring at each and every one, she finally snarled, “Come and get me, you bastards.”
With tremendous screeching, the remaining Wraith jumped on her, their vicious claws raking at her skin and then her fur as the Sphinx feline took over her physical form. Alexandria’s battle cry and then her roar could be heard throughout the stronghold area. She fought strongly until she was subdued from the lack of blood and Life Power. Right before she blacked out, she reached through the Joined Link to Joshua one more time. She knew he wouldn’t be able to hear her, but she needed to call out anyway. Fading fast, she sent to him, Joshua please forgive me. I will love you always!
Chapter Fifteen
All he wanted to do was stay in his bed and remain in the depths of slumber not surfacing for days, but some asshole kept shaking him and yelling his name. Day after day he had had to forego sleep and fight the damn Wraith. Couldn’t they just leave him be for a few hours?