Copula Chronicles: The Complete Collection: Origin, Descend, Ascend, Legacy

by Venessa Kimball

  I was speechless as Michael continued to talk. “ Taking over a body, devouring it, possessing it, using it for a purpose, then eliminating it. It has been done for centuries, hidden, camouflaged among mainstream society as multiple mental disorders and even demonic possession.”

  I snickered sarcastically, “So, you have been devoured, taken, one of their pawns now. How does it feel to be a pawn, Michael?”

  Unexpectedly, my legs gave out from under me and I fell to my knees. I tried to stand on my own and run, but I couldn’t move a single muscle.

  Michael walked around to stand before me, and then squatted down by my side. “You misunderstand, Sam. So naïve. That is what got you into this.”

  He leaned closer to me and yelled, “They do not own me. I am one of them now! But I still own you!”

  He sat back on his heels and composed himself. “You are still my pawn. You had two tag-alongs, Ezra Kahn and Nathaniel Sera.”

  A sinister smirk formed on his face and his eyes shifted for a split second to a deep, dark, murky black. Once I blinked, they returned to their steel blue.

  Without fully knowing, I could sense he wanted me to go after them, hunt them. “I won’t kill them. That—that— wo—won’t—” I couldn’t feel my mouth all of a sudden. The numbness began to crawl over my body from head to toe. My vision changed from a wide view of everything around me to tunnel vision. I still had my wits about me though; I hadn’t lost that yet. I heard Michael’s voice say, “Look at me,” but his mouth didn’t move. He’s was in my fucking head again!

  Feeling like a puppet on a string, my head lolled backward. I looked directly at Michael now. Before my eyes, his body slowly disintegrated like sand in the wind. There were no physical remains of him. I heard Michael’s voice inside of my head all of a sudden. “The plan was for you to take Kahn’s girl, end that strong-willed, bull-headed little bitch of a guardian. You didn’t do that, did you?”

  He paused for a moment, and then continued, “You were the bait but you failed. Now, those two are the bait. They have been in contact with her and she is coming here. Unfortunately for her, she won’t be able to protect them here, nor there after I’m done with her. Well, I mean you. Just as I led you to end Anna Gershon, an heir to the Onoch legacy, I will lead you to end Jesca Gershon Kahn and everyone in her wake.”

  ***

  As quickly as I plunged into Corinna’s mind, I am yanked out by Michael’s presence in mine.

  My body begins to move on its own accord. I look at the backs of Ezra and Nate about fifty yards in front of me. They are moving at a steady pace when they abruptly come to a halt. My body reacts on its own, crouching low to the ground. Michael, he is controlling me. Ezra begins to talk, but I can’t make out his words from this distance. He looks back at Nate with shock in his eyes; he has seen something. His movement leaves room for me to see what has brought them to a halt––a little girl.

  CHAPTER 13: ON MY MARK

  Jesca

  When I let go of Corinna’s hand, I stumble backward into the side table, knocking over the lamp and breaking the connection between us. I ignore the lamp crashing to the ground and grab hold of the table. The vertigo is so intense, I pinch my eyes closed, hoping for the spin to stop but it only makes it worse as my legs give out beneath me. Xander catches me before I fall. “Jesca! Hey, stay with me.”

  I grab hold of his forearms to steady myself. The spinning subsides quickly and I open my eyes to see Corinna sitting on the bed behind Xander, her breathing labored and her eyes dilated and filled with fear. Xander gently turns my face to his. I ask him urgently, “Did you see?”

  He nods with haste. “I saw Sam—saw Michael. We need to go now!”

  He turns away from me and pulls Corinna from the bed with one arm around her waist. He looks at me. “I need you to take hold of her. We need to find Sebastian and the others. If Michael is attempting an ambush, we need to warn the others and come up with some kind of plan.”

  Xander saw everything, which means he saw how Michael Sanderson has been using and manipulating Sam. I rush to the other side of Corinna and wrap my arm around her waist. Her head lolls onto my shoulder.

  She whispers listlessly, “Jes. Please try and save him.”

  I don’t answer her, but rather look to Xander to see if he heard her request. He did. He is shaking his head, struggling with the new truth about Sam being controlled for years by Michael Sanderson. “He was being used all this time, Xander. It wasn’t him.”

  Xander looks down, tugs on Corinna, and growls angrily, “Not now, Jes!” Xander jerks the door open and we sprint down the hall with Corinna in tow. Her weight is nothing as we move rapidly, focused on finding Sebastian and the others. I get an image of a laboratory; all of them are working alongside each other, hovering over a worktable as Caleb types into the nearby computer. I stop mid-stride. “They are in a workroom of some kind. Computer, work table.”

  Xander repositions Corinna under his arm to get a better grip and says, “It has to be the lab. This way!”

  The lab had to have been on the other side of the facility with the number of hallways, twist, and turns we took. Without warning, Xander pulls Corinna and me to the left and we burst into the lab. Sebastian and Daniel are upon us immediately, helping pull Corinna out of our arms. Sebastian yells, “Balthazar, go get Monica and the team!”

  He looks at Xander and me. “What happened?”

  Xander and I take turns relaying the events from the moment he found Corinna to the moment we entered the lab. I expect them to have a million questions, but they don’t. Sebastian, Caleb and Daniel are silent.

  I begin to tell them about my premonition, the mounds, when I hear familiar voices approaching, it’s the team with Balthazar. Sebastian, Caleb and Daniel leave Xander and me standing there and head back over to the worktable. Caleb sits and pulls an object the size of a phone off a cord attached to the computer; it must be one of the devices. He speaks to Sebastian, who is leaning over him looking at the screen. “I just need to configure the other devices with this code and then we will be ready.”

  I chime in, “Ready. That means ready to go?”

  Caleb looks up at me and nods. “Yes.”

  Just then, I hear Isabel crying. I turn to see her kneeling in front of the chair Corinna is sitting in, arms wrapped around her sister’s frail body.

  Elicia comes up behind me and turns me around, pulling me to her. Her body is shaking as she cries in my arms. Nick has his hands on her shoulders, trying to console her as he looks at me warily. I have never seen Nick look so serious, and I think his solemn look hits me the hardest.

  I draw him into Elicia’s and my embrace. “Hey, It’s gonna be okay.” I don’t see his face, but I can hear the deep panting; he is trying not to break. My voice gives a little and quivers hearing him fight against falling apart. “You just keep everyone straight here, all right?”

  Before my voice loses its strength, I stop talking and just hold them. Xander’s hand comes to rest on my back. “They are ready for us.”

  I’m thankful Nick pulls Elicia into his arms after I release them. I don’t look at their faces as I turn away and walk toward Caleb, who’s attaching something to Sebastian.

  “What are you doing?” I ask Caleb and Sebastian.

  Sebastian looks up at me. “I’m going with you and Xander.”

  “What? No!”

  He glares at me. “Excuse me, but Ezra is like a son to me. Above all, I was the one that started all of this. I need to finish it.”

  Balthazar and Daniel approach Xander and me, with a device each. Balthazar begins fastening a device to Xander first. “How does it work?” Xander asks.

  Balthazar holds up the device for us to see. The screen illuminates blue and a whole bunch of numbers scroll along the top and bottom of the device. Balthazar points to the top of the screen. “This is
the calibration for the location of the black hole in the Andromeda galaxy.”

  Then he points at the bottom of the screen. “This is the calibration for the location of Earth, within our own galaxy; your final destination.”

  Curious about the wavy lines in the middle, I ask, “The wavy lines?”

  Daniel tugs on the device fastened to my belt loop to make sure it is secure. “The wavy lines show that the device is pairing with your Copula.”

  Xander asks, “How does it connect with the device?”

  Caleb and Sebastian walk over to us. Caleb hands Xander and me each a set of cables attached to what looks like peel and stick electrodes. “These will attach to your skin on either side of the nape of your neck.”

  Balthazar points to a small button on the top of the device. “When you press this button, the device will send a brief electric current directly to your Copula. The current will then pair with the Copula and create enough energy and force to open the wormhole here at location A and traverse you to location B.”

  I look down at Daniel. He is still securing my device, but very quiet. Too quiet for my liking. Balthazar rises after securing Xander’s and speaks with determination to everyone in the room. “We need to evacuate and split up.”

  Sebastian nods as he peels the backing of his electrodes off. He shows the backing to us, then where to place it on his neck while he talks to Daniel. “You need to split up the team. Have them take different routes. Head back to the place we discussed. “He looks at Caleb. “ Take Eve, Emalia and Marcus. Balthazar, take the rest of the team. You know where to meet.”

  Eve rushes to Caleb, holding Emalia and Marcus in her arms. Balthazar pulls Marcus into his arms and holds him close, pinching his eyes closed. Tenderly he places a kiss on Marcus’s forehead, and then hands him to Siobhan carefully. It is rare occasion to see tears in Siobhan’s eyes; today is one of those occasions.

  Eve is crying softly as Caleb holds her and Emalia close, stroking her hair and hushing her. Caleb looks up at Sebastian. “See you at home.”

  Home? Are they talking about Marietta? I feel my chest tighten as I look down at Daniel. I want to confirm where my heart knows they are going, but I don’t for fear that those not meant to hear our thoughts will discover it.

  Daniel rises and looks down at me. I say in a low voice, “Home?”

  Daniel doesn’t nod in agreement or shake his head in denial. He simply says, “Home.”

  I close my eyes and the image of the Etowah mounds appear. Opening them quickly, I look at Daniel, “I had a vision.”

  He puts his hands on my shoulders and squeezes gently. “I know.”

  He pulls me into an embrace and says in a cracking voice, “Before you leave, be ready to seal the veil.”

  I try to pull back from him to see his face, ask him why I am the one to seal it and how, but he holds me to him tighter. “The others will help you. Whatever you do, don’t let Michael Sanderson come back here. If he does, he will bring hell with him.”

  I am both stunned and frightened by his prophetic words and weaken under his hold. I wrap my arms tightly around his waist, needing his presence to tame my growing fear.

  “See you soon, Jesca,” Daniel says. He quickly turns away from me, not looking back as he walks toward the rest of the team.

  Caleb and Balthazar are already speaking to the team as Balthazar says, “We don’t know when Michael relayed that message to Sam. They could be upon us right now. We need to pack up and get out of here.”

  Monica pulls rank and starts herding the team. “Get to your rooms, get your things, meet back here in five minutes. Luke, I will get the caravan ready. Are you on the transportation out of Japan?”

  Luke nods. “I’m on it.”

  Before he leaves, Balthazar strides back to Sebastian and embraces him. Words are exchanged, but I don’t hear them. I look over at my team now, memorizing their eyes, their faces, the presence they hold in my heart. Each of them so different, distinct, and individual, yet we all hold a similar purpose. It makes me think of the ant farm. Shit! The ant farm!

  I turn to Sebastian and Xander. “I need to do something before I leave.”

  Everyone is yelling after me, but I ignore them as I rush through the door moving as fast as I can to my room. The entire time, running from one hallway through another, the memory of Ezra and me and those damn ants run through my head. When I get to my room, I throw open the door and stride to the table. Carefully, I pick up the ant farm, tuck it under my arm and run back to the lab. Elicia and Nick are lingering by the doorway. I slow to a walk as I approach them and pull the ant farm from under my arm. “Where is Angela?” I honestly don’t know what makes me choose her, but it feels right.

  Angela comes into sight, exiting the door. “I’m here.”

  I tug on her hand and place the ant farm in it. Carefully, she grasps it with her hands, cradling it close to her chest.

  I start to explain, “It is something that—”

  Angela interrupts me, “I know. I will keep them until you come home.”

  Ang and I have never been super close, but in this moment, when she says that she will keep them until I come home, the very words I promised Ezra, I don’t think I could feel any closer to her then right now.

  Her voice trembles, “Love you, Jes.”

  I wrap my arm around her neck and hold her close. “Love you, Ang.”

  Not wanting to prolong the goodbye, I quickly release her and head back into the lab. Xander is standing in front of Daniel, who is putting electrodes on either side of the nape of Xander’s neck.

  Sebastian motions for me to come over to them. “Ready?”

  I quickly walk over and nod. “Yeah.”

  I connect the cables to the device and start to peel off the backs of the electrodes. I place one on each side of the back of my neck. They feel cold and sticky at first, then warm to my skin’s temperature.

  Daniel tosses hooded sweaters at Sebastian, Xander, then me. “Put these on. It will keep the cables, electrodes, and device protected and out of plain sight.”

  Caleb gives Sebastian a small backpack. “This has three devices coded for Earth as the final destination and extra electrodes and cables.”

  Three additional devices. One for Ezra and one for Nate. The last must be for Sam.

  Daniel says, “Okay, all three of you need to hold on to each other.”

  Sebastian, Xander and I look at one another for a moment. “You mean like hold hands?”

  Caleb snickers, “Holding hands won’t keep you together when you pass through the event horizon. You’ll be torn apart, maybe torn to—”

  We look at him stoically. I fail to see how him talking about us being torn up is helpful. Caleb must see it too, because he clears his throat and takes on a serious tone, nudging Sebastian and Xander. “You two need to huddle and interlock your arms; the less space there is between you, the better.”

  Daniel interrupts, “Less chance of being pulled apart.”

  I look at Daniel and raise my eyebrows at his comment, failing again to calm us. “Nice try, but not any better.”

  Xander comes up behind me, wraps his arms around my abdomen and pulls me against his body. “Interlock your arms around my forearms.”

  Caleb nods. “Yes, that will work. Sebastian wrap your arms around Xander and Jesca the best you can.”

  Sebastian links his arm through Xander’s arm and wraps his other arm around the front of me, clasping the bicep of Xander’s other arm. Once he feels his hold is secure he says, “Got it.”

  Daniel says, “You will be coming back to this exact location. Just be on guard. We can’t guarantee what you will be landing in the middle of.”

  Monica comes to the doorway. “Caleb, everyone is ready to go. Balthazar is ready to load the transports and two piloted jets are ready to go at a nearby, un
disclosed landing strip.”

  Sebastian asks eagerly, “And Caleb, Eve, and my grandchildren?”

  Monica looks at Sebastian. “Caleb, Eve, Emalia and Marcus will be traveling via jet from an alternate landing strip.

  Sebastian looks at Caleb and nods. “Right then. Let’s get going.”

  Caleb walks up to his father and pulls him into a firm embrace. Sebastian pats him on the back firmly. Caleb lingers then breaks away. He and Daniel move slowly toward the door, heads cast down. Monica, Caleb and Daniel don’t turn to look at us and they disappear beyond the doorway.

  I look at Sebastian, then Xander. “Whatever happens, don’t let go.”

  We all huddle in tighter as we hover our thumbs over the trigger on the device that will open the wormhole. Sebastian says, “On my mark.”

  CHAPTER 14: GUIDE

  Ezra

  When Nate’s and my thoughts to Jesca and Xander don’t get a response, Nate rises and starts circling the small opening we are in. “Jesca! Xander!”

  I no longer hear the wheezing in his breath, but he still has the panicked look of a deer in headlights from the whole experience. I shake my head. “They’re gone.”

  Nate stops walking, breathes out deeply, closes his eyes and pinches the bridge of his nose. After a moment, he walks over to me and extends his hand. “Thank you.”

  I grab hold of his hand and he pulls me up. I nod at him. “Not necessary, Nate.” I’m about to let go of his hand when Nate tightens his grip.

  “No, it is necessary, Ezra, thank you.”

  I grip his forearm with my other hand. “You’re welcome.”

  I look around to get my bearings. We are surrounded by trees in a small meadow-like area. “We need to keep moving. A moving target is a target that stays alive. Plus, we need to find water. We won’t be able to go much longer without it.”

  Nate asks, “How long have we been here?”

  It could be a matter of hours, but it feels like days to my taxed body. “I’m not sure.” I find a trail leading out of the open meadow we are in and start to follow the path. “Here, this way.”