Ouroboros 2: Before

by Odette C. Bell

  Anger was one such thing.

  Sure enough, after a single moment of hesitation, the man pressed forward, his boots lodging into the muck covering the pipe, and sending foul-scented lumps of sludge splashing upward. He lunged forward, twisting hard to the side as he did, his fist aimed at Carson’s chest.

  ‘What are you doing?’ Harya shrieked.

  Before she could say anything more, the man twisted, pivoted on his hip, and landed a solid kick against the metal door, sending it slamming shut.

  Though Carson could hear the handle rattle, after several seconds it became apparent the door was locked and Harya and Nida were trapped on the other side.

  Trapped.

  Shit.

  Carson doubled back as the man lunged his way again.

  The guy moved quickly, smoothly, and with devastating efficiency considering how rudimentary and heavy his armor must be.

  Still, Carson managed to stay out of his way.

  Just.

  ‘What the hell are you doing?’ Carson spat, ducking to the side as the guy aimed a punch at Carson’s head.

  The guy did not answer. Instead, he kept attacking relentlessly.

  All too soon reality caught up with Carson.

  This had been a trap.

  He’d led Nida into a trap.

  Before that thought could rip through any last scrap of confidence he held, the man finally landed a blow. It was glancing, but Carson felt it as the guy’s armored fist connected with the side of Carson’s jaw.

  Though it was solid, and sent a jolt slamming through Carson’s neck and back, it did not force him backward.

  Instead, Carson finally went on the offensive.

  He locked his feet into the ground, for the first time not caring about the centimeters of gunk covering the pipe.

  Instead, he used it to his advantage.

  Whilst Carson’s own armor was sophisticated enough to allow the wearer to see even when something obscured his helmet, the guy before him was pretty much right out of the dark ages.

  So Carson kicked. He lodged his boot deep into the muck before him, and with a swipe of his foot, he sent a whole chunk of the outrageous-smelling stuff right at the guy’s head.

  Carson’s aim was perfect, and the muck struck the man’s helmet, covering it with a wet slap.

  As the man drew a hand up to clear his helmet, Carson acted.

  He darted forward, hunching over as he did and pushing out with his shoulder.

  He rammed into the man, wrapping an arm automatically around the guy’s middle. Then Carson pivoted on his hip, twisting to the side as he used the man’s own weight and momentum against him.

  Though the guy fought, Carson managed to flip him onto the floor.

  But the fight wasn’t over yet, evidenced by the fact the man almost immediately struck out with his foot, catching Carson on the leg.

  The blow was a hard one, and Carson was lucky not to stumble back. Instead, he reversed his momentum and flung himself forward.

  Right on top of the guy.

  Though the man was heavier, considering his armor, Carson had an edge.

  Okay, he had several edges. He had his own armor, the entity’s device, a pulse gun from the future, and a scanner that could tell him every weakness this man had.

  But that wasn’t the edge Carson now used.

  He relied on the simple fact the man’s armor was old.

  As the guy struggled, Carson grabbed hold of the guy’s helmet, forced it forward, then let go and slammed it hard into the unyielding floor of the pipe.

  Unlike Academy armor, there would be no proper cushioning within that man’s helmet. In fact, judging by the design and the fact the Vexians all seemed to be a violent bunch, Carson could bet there was not so much as padding within the helmet.

  Which meant that every time Carson grabbed up the helmet and slammed it down, the guy inside would be getting a pounding.

  Sure enough, the man’s struggling began to slow.

  But it was the lull before the storm.

  With a burst of strength and speed, he flung Carson off.

  Swearing, Carson rolled, then scrabbled to his feet just as the man lashed out with his leg.

  Though Carson didn’t want to have to resort to using his armor, gun, or the device, he was rapidly running out of options.

  Plus, even though he could still hear the door handle rattling, and hoped Nida was on the other side industriously trying to get through, he still had to get to her as quickly as he could.

  He had to get to her, he reaffirmed to himself.

  The man plunged forward, the quick and violent moves of his legs disturbing whole chunks of muck and sending them flying around in an arc.

  He balled his fist and moved towards Carson.

  Carson could have fallen back; he could have rolled; he could have ducked to the side. He could have done any number of defensive maneuvers.

  He didn’t.

  Instead, he shot forward.

  Right at the guy.

  As he did, he commanded his armor with a single thought.

  One of the bands of armor around his wrists suddenly shot up and covered his hand.

  Then he slammed that hand into the man’s helmet.

  There was a resounding crack, and the guy was flung backwards. His body struck the ground and slid several meters through the brown goo before coming to a rest.

  Immediately Carson told his armor to recede, and in an instant the plating covering his hand disappeared.

  In fact, the whole thing had happened so quickly, Carson was confident the man would never know what hit him.

  Letting out a sharp breath, Carson walked forward. Though the man was clearly down, Carson did not let his guard drop. Instead, he stepped forward slowly and carefully, surveying the man as he did for any sign of movement.

  Just as Carson reached the guy, the man’s foot twitched.

  ‘Stay down,’ Carson warned with a growl.

  Then he walked backwards, reached the door, and, without use of the key, simply tugged the handle right off—allowing his armor to reform over his hand for one brief second.

  Immediately Harya spilled through the open door, followed one second later by Nida.

  Automatically his eyes drew wide as he saw Nida, and he had to fight the urge to run forward and scoop her up in his arms.

  She was alive.

  He’d walked her into a trap, but thankfully she was still fine.

  He let out the breath trapped in his chest, sent a prayer of thanks to any force that would listen, and finally turned on his foot to face the man.

  There was an enormous crack over the guy’s helmet, with numerous hairline fractures running out from it like branches from a river delta.

  Carson had struck it with all his force. Okay, not with all his force—if Carson had brought the full power of his armor to bear against that man’s helmet, he would have shattered it and the head inside.

  Still, despite the fact Carson had not intended to kill the man, he had intended to knock the guy out. Yet the guy was clearly conscious as he twitched again and moved to sit up.

  ‘Don’t,’ Carson warned again.

  Before he could walk over and loom over the man threateningly, Harya ran up, fell to her knees, and hooked her arm behind the guy’s shoulder. ‘Sister,’ she said, her voice shaking badly.

  . . . .

  Sister?

  Sure enough, after a short pause, what Carson had thought was a man turned out to be a woman as she reached up and pulled her damaged helmet off her head.

  Long, lustrous white hair cascaded over her shoulders.

  If Harya was pretty by human standards, then this woman was categorically stunning.

  The woman narrowed her eyes and glared at him.

  Though Carson was thrown by the fact she was female—considering the draconian laws of this planet—he recovered quickly.

  In the future, it didn’t matter if you were a woman or a man—if you could
hold a plasma gun and find the trigger, then you could fight.

  Yet he instinctively knew that wasn’t the case in this place and in this time.

  To confirm that, the woman snarled at him. ‘Surprised I’m female?’ she challenged.

  Carson shook his head. ‘Surprised you lost?’ he countered quickly.

  The woman laughed. But it wasn’t what you could term a friendly chuckle; she sounded and looked as though she wanted to kill him.

  ‘Cara, why did you attack them? I told you they were here to help,’ Harya said passionately as she kept an arm hooked behind her sister’s back.

  ‘Because you have no idea who these people are, and you can’t just invite them back to the resistance cell without knowing for certain they aren’t spies,’ Cara said through locked teeth.

  . . . .

  She had a point. Not, of course, that Carson was going to admit that out loud. Still, he had to agree with Cara on that one; Harya was clearly too trusting. All Carson had done was save her from a varg, and now she appeared to trust him with her life and all the secrets of this elusive resistance.

  Yet, where Harya was clearly naive, Cara was not.

  She now pushed herself to her feet with her sister’s help, but almost immediately took a step back and stood on her own. She squared off her shoulders, rounded her jaw, and narrowed her eyes. ‘You can have me, but you won’t get the rest of the resistance. I’ve been tortured before, boy, and I can be tortured again. But no matter what you do, I will not name names.’

  Boy?

  . . . .

  Though he didn’t know much about Vexian biology, he could guess he was technically older than this woman. By barely a few years, granted, but that still meant he wasn’t a boy.

  Realizing he couldn’t allow himself to be put off by her, he cleared his throat. ‘We aren’t after you; we’re here to join you,’ he growled.

  ‘Join us?’ Cara laughed harshly. ‘I am no fool; I know you are not who you pretend to be. Whilst my sister can be easily fooled, I’ve earned my wisdom through blood and sweat. And I know when I face a liar. You are not here to join us,’ she snarled, her eyes flashing with passion and warning.

  Carson actually had to swallow, but it was a small move, and he hid it with a snarl of his own. ‘I saved your sister from a varg, and you reason that means I’m a spy,’ he began.

  ‘I reason you are a spy because you have technology I have never seen,’ Cara warned.

  Carson stopped.

  Had she seen his armor?

  Probably not, but she’d most definitely felt it; her damaged helmet was testament enough to the fact he was equipped with something extraordinary the woman was not used to.

  Carson quickly realized how serious this situation was.

  He needed to get into the city, and if Harya and Cara were his way in, then he had to be careful how he handled them. Still, he couldn’t afford to put Nida in any more danger.

  Clamping down on his teeth and feeling a kick of nerves scoot quickly through his gut, he shook his head and took a menacing step forward. ‘We’re here to help,’ she said one last time, making each word as firm as he could.

  He also stared directly into Cara’s stunning eyes.

  The woman did not look away, and she did not blink. Instead, she held his gaze with such unwavering focus, Carson had to admit no one had ever looked at him like that before.

  Carson was suddenly and rather inappropriately reminded of the fact he liked strong women.

  Women with fire, with action in their hearts.

  Cara pressed her teeth flat into her lips. ‘I don’t believe you,’ she said simply.

  ‘Sister, please,’ Harya began, ‘they saved me.’

  ‘You are a fool, Harya, and you are too trusting. We know nothing of this man and his whore.’

  Carson bristled at that, but not nearly as much as Nida.

  In fact, for the first time in the conversation, she stepped forward. With the strangest of gazes, she assessed Cara. ‘You have no option. Take us to the resistance. You cannot keep us in this pipe, and neither can you let us leave; while you disabled the defenses to allow us to enter, you will not be able to disable them again to let us out.’

  Cara snarled. ‘You won’t be leaving—’ she began, her tone thick with menace.

  ‘Stop,’ Nida demanded.

  While Cara’s tone rang with warning, Nida’s absolutely boomed with authority.

  Age old, ancient authority in fact.

  He could hear the entity’s force powering through her voice, and the effect of it sent a cold shiver down his back. It also made Cara and Harya freeze.

  ‘You need us,’ Nida continued. ‘You over-estimate your abilities—you tried to dispatch us, but you cannot. You can, however, try to trust us,’ her tone lowered, evened out, and in an instant became calm and trusting.

  It also became mesmerizing.

  Or maybe she did.

  As she stood there reasoning with Cara, Nida had such a presence to her. Carson couldn’t help but stare and be silently awed by it.

  Cara shook her head, but immediately Nida put up a hand. Again it was a commanding move. As once again it seemed laced with the energy and force of the entity.

  . . . .

  Which was bad.

  Though the entity might be able to get through to Cara and gain her trust, it would come at an incredible cost.

  Every time the entity took control of Nida, it opened itself up to further corruption.

  And Carson couldn’t stomach the thought of anymore objects being sucked towards Nida in a murderous, fatal vortex.

  ‘I’ve got this,’ he suddenly spat, drawing alongside Nida and placing a hand on her shoulder.

  He could feel her vibrating under his touch. This incredible, invisible energy moved through her, and it brought with it an unnerving heat that sank deep and fast into his hand, up his arm, and right into his chest.

  Still, he didn’t pull his hand back.

  He would keep it there until the entity stopped controlling her.

  ‘Please,’ he now said, staring up sharply into Cara’s eyes.

  ‘Help?’ Cara questioned.

  ‘Stop it, Cara,’ Harya said suddenly. She also lunged forward, twisted Cara around, and stared into her sister’s eyes. ‘I might be too trusting, but you’re too suspicious. I trust these people,’ she said slowly. ‘Plus, he could have killed you,’ Harya’s tone dropped as she shot a confused look Carson’s way. ‘Trust me. I saw his power when he defeated the varg. But he didn’t kill you,’ she pointed out through a swallow.

  ‘That doesn’t mean anything,’ Cara replied coldly, sending Carson a stony and calculating look.

  Again, Carson couldn’t help but agree with Cara. If their roles were reversed, and he was in her position, he would not trust a word he said.

  After all, he was a spy, just not from the government.

  He was from the future, and his only intention was to use the resistance to get into the city.

  Cara could not guess that though, but it was clear she knew something was up as she surveyed him through a narrowed gaze. ‘Tell me, spy, what would you do in my position?’ she perceptively asked.

  Ask me tips about combat, he suddenly thought, but wasn’t dumb enough to say it. Though it was a neat one-liner, a woman like Cara would take it as an excuse to launch an attack.

  ‘Look,’ he began, realizing he had to convince her soon or face the prospect of the entity intervening.

  By now it was clear the entity trusted Cara and Harya and the resistance too probably—or at least enough to use them to enter the city.

  It had stopped Carson outside when he had been ready to leave Harya.

  And right now it seemed intent on convincing Cara to trust them.

  Still, if that wouldn’t work, Carson knew what he had to do.

  His plasma gun.

  Even with Cara’s armor, he’d be able to get off a clear shot. And at a lower setting, he would be guarant
eed it would knock her out and scramble her memories.

  Then he could continue through these tunnels.

  . . . .

  As he considered that possibility, it was as if Nida read his mind. She quickly put a hand out and settled it neatly on his arm.

  Her skin still vibrated.

  It was such an incredible sensation. It felt human—felt warm and tangible—yet at the same time it was as if her flesh had been replaced by a viscous liquid that lapped against his flesh.

  Shuddering, he tried to ignore it.

  He also forced himself to think—desperately hard—of what he could say to convince Cara.

  He could try threatening her with the fact they had seen her face and would know she was a traitor, but he knew that would likely only enrage her further.

  He could appeal to her sense of curiosity, promising to reveal the secrets of his technology only if she took him to the rest of the resistance. Yet, once again, he knew that would not work.

  She was simply too smart. Usually an admirable quality, right now it was tearing him apart.

  ‘I am not going to trust you just because you beat me in a fight, boy,’ Cara spat, ‘and I’m not going to trust you just because you’ve proven you’re stronger. And there is no way—absolutely no way—that I am going to take you to the rest of the resistance.’

  Nida twitched at his side, gasping with pain.

  She clutched a hand to her chest.

  She was still wearing the long black gloves she’d found in the farmhouse.

  They were made of a thick fabric, yet he now swore he could see blue light peeking through the tight weave.

  It was going to happen again.

  The entity was going to lose control.

  No.

  No.

  Not here, not now.

  She stumbled forward, and he reached out to steady her.

  ‘Nida,’ he screamed, falling to his knees beside her, not noticing that he’d just used her real name.

  For a brief moment she looked up at him. Her eyes were wide with pain, and all the blood had drained from her cheeks leaving a sickly pale hue.