“You!” Riss hissed. “You’ve escaped too many times from me.”
Agent X eyed her with a spark of surprise. Quickly, his expression returned to normal.
Riss lost interest in him. Her entire world focused on Dukas. She was going to have her vengeance. As she prepared to jump, lieutenant in a gray uniform appeared next to him, then two marines dragged Pace outside. The lieutenant put the end of the electric baton to Pace’s neck.
“One move and this boy will die,” Dukas warned in that detestable cold tone. “Finally, someone who can shed some light on Pembroke’s decisions. So far this kid and More were of little help.”
Pace looked terrible. The manacles with the draining pattern were dangerous for people as young as him. The chest wound didn’t help either. Still, he smiled at her. That’s the spirit, Pace. Keep it up.
“You’re still afraid of me, Dukas?” Riss yelled loud enough for everyone to hear. “Good, it’s time to sink my teeth in your carcass.”
Dukas’ jaw clenched despite his attempt to regain control. The history between them has been violent and painful. But it’d end today.
“Beat her up so badly she won’t be able to lift a finger, Agent X.”
A milky sheet of a mist sprawled on the ground. Marines began withdrawing from it. They had no experience with lieutenant Mist’s Gift. Swirls of white rose until they reached people waists. Panic surged in the eyes of the gathered.
Then, three figures emerged in the middle of the yard blanked by the liquid-like mist. As the mist streamed down the identities of the three became known.
“Here he is,” Agent X said with a dose of excitement and concern. “I knew, I’d gone too easy on him.”
“That’s captain Pembroke, commander Kinson, and lieutenant Mist,’ lieutenant in the gray uniform announced. “They’re enemies of the Government and the Navy.”
“You came to your own execution,” Agent X said, while Dukas couldn’t find words.
Captain Pembroke spread his hands and said, “I hope you booked us the first row.”
“This the end of your career in the Navy! You’re stripped—” Dukas started.
Riss’ fist buried deep inside his face. He howled as the impetus of the punch sent him flying.
The fight began.
Chapter 30
Pace
Wait a minute. Captain told him a different plan. Pace supposed to be taken to Ines and reunite with her. Not his. Pace wouldn’t be able to get to her…
A blast of the air pressed him into the floor and where stood doctor Dukas now was Riss, breathing heavily.
“I’d take them down, but the timing… sorry.”
Pace nodded, eyeing warily the electric baton. As if evoked by his thoughts, lieutenant had taken a swing at him, but the baton never landed on Pace’s head. Out of the milky carpet came lieutenant Mist and grabbed the weapon.
“Siber, long time no see,” Mist said as the tendrils of a mist snaked down from his dreadlocks. Couldn’t lieutenant come up with a more original name?
Pace glanced back at Riss, but she was already gone. There was commotion inside. Then his head spun and both lieutenants weren’t there as well. The sounds of fighting came from all over the places. Pace saw Ed and John, and from time to time Purp’s silhouette flitted between the swirls of the mist that boiled like the sea, but in the slow motion. He itched to join the fight.
“Hey!” Toggy said with a smile. Shit. Even he was here.
“Where have you been all this time?”
Toggy and Raba disappeared on the day of the arrival and everyone except captain had been freaking out what could happen to these two. His timely return was suspicious as hell.
“Stupid story,” Toggy admitted. “Captain gave me a mission to take the old geezer to a small village at one of the lakes in the north. On my way back, I kind of lost my way.”
Pace snorted. He couldn’t expect anything else from Toggy.
“Any idea how to take these off?”
“These are nasty. Reserved for the most formidable pirates. Why are you wearing them?” Toggy asked with a jolt of shock.
“I must be formidable. Isn’t that obvious?”
“Pace…” Toggy muttered. “We need the key, or they’ll drain you completely. It’s a security measure to ensure that whoever escapes…”
“I get it. Just go find something to open it.”
The two marines that had brought Pace here, left him when Riss attacked doctor Dukas. With them went the key.
Toggy looked around but the mist thickened.
“There should be a copy inside. Don’t move, I’ll be back in the minute.”
“Just don’t get lost.”
The mist was a very strange thing. It skewed the perception of time and space. When Toggy returned a few minutes later, he looked even worse than Pace. His left eye was completely swollen, clothes shredded to pieces and a dozen wounds all over his body told quite a tale.
“What had happened?”
“Someone let the prisoners out. If not the virus, then I wouldn’t make it, Pace. I could die, Pace. Do you understand me?”
“Sure. Do you have the key?”
“No.”
“What?”
“Don’t worry, kid. I prepared a solution that will dissolve the manacles,” doctor More limped out of the building. He collected some bruises and cuts, but apart from them, he looked fine. Without further talk, doctor approach Pace. His wobbly fingers gripped a little glass vial with a bright green substance. Pace had a bad feeling about this.
“Won’t it cause damage to my wrists, too.”
Doctor kneeled beside him, ignoring the question.
“Don’t move, kiddo. If I spill even a drop on your skin, it’ll poison you so quickly that you won’t have time to say ‘goodbye’.”
Pace froze, though inside him he screamed to doctor to not do it. When the liquid had touched the metal, nothing happened, and he sighed with a mixture of relief and disappointment. It didn’t work.
“It isn’t working,” Toggy noted.
“Shut your trap, orange-head,” doctor grumbled.
BOOM.
A shockwave swept them as easily as it cleared the mists. In the epicenter of the clash, Agent X and captain Pembroke crossed their forearms. Both men looked rough. Around them, the ground was smashed and looked as if dozen fuel tanks had exploded during their fight.
It’s taken a few moments for him to realize that the green liquid was all over him now.
“Doctor,” Pace whispered in a dead-serious tone. “Doctor.”
But doctor was knocked out, so was Toggy. The substance should kill him within a second. But he breathed. It really didn’t work. That fucking old geezer is useless. The manacles were in one piece. The green liquid was a dud. Pace sighed with relief and watched the fight of Agent X and captain.
Chapter 31
Ines
Ines gasped with ease as the dreadful feeling from Pace ceased suddenly and a surge of energy filled it. Pace was finally safe. It reminded her of the draining pattern on the floors of King’s Valley. Was he arrested or what? How could anything else drain energy off him? These questions must remain unanswered. Pace was far away from King’s Valley. Presumably, days of travel.
And she could no longer wait for him. It was time for her to take the matter of the escape in her hands. Kimberlton has paid her a visit and each time his behavior has carried a substantial change. Somewhere in the process he’d dropped that soulless ‘subject zero’ and called her by her name. The tests he’s taken her to have changed their nature, too. He has asked more personal questions, often with a sexual context, though he has never proposed anything overt. He definitely was attracted to her in the way Marus and other men were, but why didn’t he make a move?
She was ready to have sex with him if it led to her reunion with Pace. He’d understand… well, he didn’t need to know.
The glass sheet hissed opening her cell. It was time to leave this
place. Ines has inquired about the other prisoners and while most of them sounded useless, a few could be very handy. As Kimberlton wasn’t walking in, it meant she should step outside. The scientists have always maintained a healthy distance from her.
A lone man awaited her. She didn’t know him. No one else except Kimberlton has come to her in the last two weeks. Apparently, doctor Dukas left King’s Valley right after the conversation with her. Kimberlton didn’t know details. The fact that he revealed it to her was startling in itself.
While he looked similar to Kimberlton in regard to the white facial hair and clothes, his eyes were harder.
“My name is professor Gidd.”
“Where is Kimberlton?”
“He had an urgent meeting with doctor Mab Quark. I wouldn’t count on his return. He failed as a scientist. Our minds should remain pure, free from emotional taint. Now, test subject zero, I need to fix everything that Kimberlton has corrupted.”
Ines shuddered as an indescribable feeling of something ghastly crawled upon her. They were going to do a bad thing to her. They would torture her unless she could outsmart this one. Ines quelled her fear and stepped forth. Then without a warning, she let the robe drop revealing her naked body.
Professor Gidd’s face reddened despite the purity of his mind. As his mouth gaped, Ines kicked him right in the balls. The professor gasped; a drool dropped on the floor creating tiny puddles of saliva. To be sure, Ines punched his face. It was quite a painful blow, but necessary.
She grabbed a lanyard with a card, went to the door then retraced her steps. When the man would wake up, he’ll alarm the guards. She dragged him to her cell, where she put a blanket on him. Satisfied with the outcome, she locked the glass door and strode toward the exit. She had a rough idea of this floor. Kimberlton has taken her through many corridors, he shouldn’t. He had explained where the other prisoners and the weapons were kept. But even if she released everyone, it might not be enough. He warned her to not try to break out on her own. She wouldn’t find her way back to the port without him.
This meant she needed to find him first. But how? Who was this doctor Mab Quark? Ines considered asking someone from personnel, but the chance was that they would alarm the facility. Opening cells would make a ruckus but understanding the nature of this place made her adamant in the resolve to free everyone. People weren’t some test subjects, they were humans.
She reached the end of the side corridor. The door in front of her led to the main artery. There were many kinds of people. Not everyone looked like Kimberlton or professor Gidd. Some men and women wore black suits or white flowing robes or silky coats. But none of them looked a thing like her. The personnel would know she was escapee the second she stepped in the main hall.
Ines needed proper clothes. She turned around. The rows of the white doors on both sides had golden engraved codes, but no further information about what was behind them. Kimberlton had never mentioned them, and she now wondered why.
If I must I’ll open every door to find something suitable to wear.
She tried the first door, but the room was empty and seemed to be not yet finished. A strong chemical odor wafted in the air. She closed the door, confused of its purpose. The second room was of the same size and was packed with plain robes like the one she was wearing now.
“Meh, there must be something better than this.”
Ines continued until she encountered a door that resisted her pull. She had to pry it open with all her strength. Behind was an old, red-bricked staircase. It looked extremely out of place. How could they forget about the place like this? She also noticed that the door lacked a golden code. It was just a plain white door. Maybe it was a way out? She had to take a chance. She closed the door behind her. It tested her resolve when the door grated stubbornly back, but she couldn’t leave such obvious clues as to where she disappeared.
Now, she must decide which way to go. She had only two directions. Up or down. Where can this Mab Quark reside? Bottom or top? If he was some kind of boss here, then he’ll claim the top of the building. At least it was what Hakima had done in the Inherited City. Top then.
*
Ines
The stairs were endless.
She has wanted to scream and each time she has come to a door, Ines considered opening it, only to grasp a strange sensation inside her that pushed her up. An instinct that didn’t belong to her. It was Pace’s supernatural trait. Their bond has evolved since the first moment. She has been dreaming of him. Dreams that left her crotch wet and discolored. If there was a god, it possessed the cruelest sense of justice. Whatever bound her and Pace, exposed their souls to each other. Some could say it was love. But Ines knew love and it went deeper than that. The worst were moments when she almost smelled him, almost felt him, as if Pace’s phantom presence accompanied her. That state was infuriating. Her sexual energy has built up to an insane level and each time she has sensed Pace, her body demanded her to ride him.
I must stop thinking of Pace. Luckily, the last door appeared. Her thighs burned, her naked feet stung, and she felt dizzy. Was it really a good idea to go to the top? Don’t even second guess, yourself! She warned herself. Ines took a deep breath and pulled a handle. Because of her previous experience, she expected the door to oppose her.
She went flying and landed hard on her butt.
“Ouch.”
At the second try the door, still, opened without a sliver of resistance.
A sweet-salted breeze drifted into the small stairway and filled Ines’ lungs with exaltation. She stood up and strode into the room… or rather a palace chamber. This place was enormous. Intricately decorated columns stood by the walls and in the middle was a fountain… and a throne.
What was this place? The architecture. The style. The splendor. Everything was so different from the rest of this weird facility. The exhilarating air came from the fountain. As she crossed the distance, a grunt froze her in place.
“Interesting,” a faintly familiar voice said. “It looks like you exhibit more powers than we initially expected.”
Ines looked around in search of the source, and it looked that the voice came from the throne ahead. What now? Should she backtrack and leave this floor? What about Kimberlton? As she struggled with the decision the man descended from the throne. He wore an exquisite red leather coat made from the skin of an animal she’d never seen. The high collar was golden flames as were the sleeves. Half of his hair was black, while the other side was red as his coat. He possessed a face that rivaled Marus’ handsomeness, though this man wasn’t as tall as her ex-husband, something told her, his body was superior to Marus. The way this man moved, efficient but with tremendous ease. Oh, I remember now, she thought. That’s the man from the beginning when I accidentally killed that stupid guy. Didn’t they call him lord or something? Surely, they did.
“Are you Mab Quark?” she asked slowly backtracking her steps. He wasn’t the one she has been looking for.
His face contorted in a grimace of rage, then it dissipated, changed into a sea of calmness.
“I’m Lord Red,” he told her. “Mab Quark resides at the other end of the spectrum in this complex. The very bottom, in the Lowest Caves.” He made a step toward her.
Oh, crap. The bottom then. Thank you, Pace. Your instinct sucks ass.
She drew back. Ines remembered the harshness, almost inhuman tone of his voice. He didn’t show the slightest whit of compassion after she’d killed his employee. He couldn’t be trusted despite the tranquil mask. A sea of anger boiled behind it. Ines felt it radiate from him.
“So, you hoped to save Kimberlton. Odd. Taking into account your Soul Entanglement with someone else. How can you defeat the nature of the entanglement? Why are you so stubborn? I could elevate you from a mere test subject to a special agent. With your face… and body. You could achieve much. But you must kneel before me. You must tell me everything.”
This man was nuts.
His face couldn’t quite f
ind a balance. One second he had glared at her with murder in his eyes, then only hungry gaze reminded. Did she attract him, too? It worked on Kimberlton and Gidd.
Only when he has smiled, she felt a tremor that made her muscles limp. He possessed a dangerously tasty face. If not the bond with Pace. She wouldn’t be able to refuse him. So, this was how men reacted to my beauty. It was terrifying.
“What is he going to do to him?”
Lord Red’s teeth gritted.
“You will show respect!” he hissed. “You have a chance to join the ranks of the Government, but this attitude must end now”
Ines was taken aback. Did he truly hope she would join the organization that stood behind the tragedy of her homeland and ran cruel experiments on people without regard for their feelings and wellbeing? This man was insane.
“Forget it,” she growled back.
Lord Red’s fist clenched; his distorted face struggled to keep it together. Did she go too far? I think it’s time to leave.
But the time for that already passed. Lord Red removed a device from the coat’s inner pocket. It made no sense until he put it on his hand. It was a rigid fingerless glove with holes and studded with rubies. What was wrong with this man? Lord Red, red hair, red coat and now rubies. Bizarre that he didn’t have red eyes.
“I’ll show you one of the fruits of the Ouroboros project. A condensed power of fire. Though it was extracted from the Forbidden Gift, instead of a Gift of higher level, it still is impressive.”
A ball of fire materialized between Lord Red's hands. As he drew them apart the ball expanded until it blazed like a miniature sun.
“Now, burn,” Lord Red’s arm pointed at her and the ball of fire shot toward Ines. So… this is the end? Me, dying in the fucking flames? Hell, no!
The fire filled her field of vision and she needed a couple of seconds to understand she was engulfed by the destructive power. Despite the seething storm around Ines, no heat reached her yet.
Bonded by the Sea Page 16
