Daughter of Ra

by M. Sasinowski

  Alyssa glared at the woman.

  “I have her blood sample,” Korzo said.

  “Very well, let us see how special she really is,” Nephthys said.

  Alyssa’s glance darted between them. “What do you mean?”

  Korzo moved the vial to a glass cabinet and injected fluid from another tube into her blood. He inserted the sample into a device and activated it, scrutinizing the data for several moments.

  He turned to Nephthys. “It is as you suspected.”

  Nephthys drew closer, her eyes gleaming. “You are certain?”

  “The DNA sequences remain stable,” he replied. “Her blood is resistant to the modified strain.”

  “Modified strain?” Alyssa cried. “You altered the virus!” She remembered the woman in the Cairo hospital. “That’s why the cure didn’t work on her.” She paused. “But she had ancient genes. She shouldn’t have been infected in the first place.”

  “Dr. Korzo’s modifications circumvented the genetic markers that provide immunity to it,” Nephthys replied.

  “Why would you want to do that?” Alyssa glared at her. “And why is my blood resistant?”

  Nephthys remained silent.

  Alyssa stared at Korzo. “Tell me!”

  Nephthys ignored her and turned to Korzo. “We need to ensure the latest modification still has the desired effect on others,” she said. “Bring her friend,” she ordered the guards, who left the room.

  “Desired effect? You mean kill people.” A cold wash swept through Alyssa.

  Korzo glanced at Nephthys. His face tightened, drawing his brows together. “George Renley’s daughter may be too valuable. May I suggest an alternate—”

  Nephthys silenced him with a look. He kept her gaze for several moments, then cast his eyes down.

  “As you wish,” he said.

  “No!” Alyssa cried. “You can’t—”

  The door swung open, and the guards led Tasha into the room. Her arms were bound behind her back.

  “Alyssa!” Tasha lunged for her, but the guards hauled her back and secured her into restraints on a second table.

  “Please don’t do this,” Alyssa pleaded with Nephthys. “I’ll do anything you want.”

  “Don’t do what?” Tasha bucked in the restraints. “What are you going to do?” She stared at Alyssa. “What are they going to do?”

  “Get away from her!” Alyssa’s cry mixed with Tasha’s screams as Korzo attached vital sign monitors to her body.

  “When will you know the results?” Nephthys asked.

  “We will have confirmation of the effect in thirty minutes,” Korzo replied, shifting uncomfortably.

  “Report to me when you are finished.” She eyed Alyssa. “You may wish to convey any final words to your friend,” she said before leaving.

  Alyssa stared at Korzo, every muscle in her body taut with despair. “I beg you, don’t do this.”

  Korzo ignored her and moved to a cabinet, drawing his lips into a tight line.

  “Do you think this is what your son would want?”

  Korzo’s expression shifted. He removed his glasses, his face sagging. “It’s too late now. I have made my choice.” He pulled open a drawer.

  “It’s never too late,” Alyssa said.

  Korzo paused. His eyes shifted to the guard at the door as his hand hovered over the drawer. He swallowed and lifted a syringe. He approached Tasha.

  “Don’t!” Alyssa cried.

  Yuri ignored their duet of obscenities and injected Tasha’s arm. Her body tensed. A few seconds later, the lights on the display flared red, and Tasha’s body lifted up in a backbreaking arc, spittle flowing from her lips as her limbs contorted into a full-blown seizure.

  Alyssa screamed.

  “She’s having an adverse reaction to the anesthetic,” Korzo barked. He turned to the guard. “Get the crash cart from lab three!”

  The guard hesitated. “Nephthys told me to stay—”

  “We need her alive for the experiment!”

  The guard’s face twisted, betraying his internal battle.

  “Now!” Korzo yelled. “Before it’s too late!”

  The guard shot Korzo a final look and stormed out.

  Before the door fell shut, Korzo rushed to a drawer and pulled out another syringe. He injected Tasha’s arm and grasped her head between his palms. A moment later her body sagged. He moved to Alyssa and loosened her restrains.

  She lunged for his neck. “You bastard!” she snarled, squeezing her hands around his throat.

  “Stop…” he groaned. “There isn’t time.”

  “What did you do to her?”

  “She will… be fine… I induced a chemical seizure… to distract the guard… get him to leave,” he spat between gasping breaths.

  Alyssa looked at Tasha. Her eyes fluttered open.

  “Alyssa?” she breathed.

  Alyssa released Korzo and rushed to Tasha. She pulled her into a tight hug then freed her from the table.

  Korzo scurried to a computer terminal.

  “There isn’t much time,” he said. “I forced a reboot of the surveillance system, but it will be online in one minute.” He took off his ID badge and held it out. “At the end of the corridor. There is an emergency exit into a tunnel that will lead you outside.”

  “Why?” Alyssa asked.

  “I have my reasons,” he replied.

  “What about you? Are you going to be—?”

  “You have to go, now!” Korzo helped Tasha off the table and pushed them to the door. “I will try to distract them for as long as I can.”

  “Thank you,” Alyssa breathed then hooked an arm under Tasha and rushed out.

  They staggered to the end of the corridor. Alyssa waved Korzo’s badge at the panel next to the door, and the electrical lock released. They slipped into the tunnel.

  She blinked, her eyes adjusting to the dimly lit passageway, shored up by massive wooden beams.

  That’ll have to do!

  They raced ahead. Alyssa spotted a faint point ahead of them, growing larger as they tore through the shaft.

  “I see the exit!” she called out. “We’re almost there!”

  They flew out onto a rocky plateau, panting. Alyssa pointed to a ridge. “Head for the trees!” Her heart pounded in her ears as they raced across the rough terrain. They hit the rocky slope leading to the trees at full speed, scampering up.

  The commotion behind them forced her to slow and risk a quick glance back. A dozen armed men swarmed out of the tunnel and raced across the plateau in pursuit.

  Tasha shot past her. “Eyes front!” she yelled.

  Alyssa was back to full speed in an instant.

  A moment later the sound of helicopter blades spinning up reached her ears. Its spotlight flared up and swept the sloping rocks.

  Tasha scrambled up the last few yards. “Get to the trees! We’ll lose them in the forest!”

  A gunshot rang out.

  “Stop!” a voice commanded.

  “Keep moving!” Tasha called out. She had cleared the edge and dashed for the trees.

  “Stop or he dies!”

  Alyssa stopped in her tracks and swung around. Yuri Korzo knelt on the ground, his hands laced behind his head. One of the guards loomed over him, a pistol pointed at his temple.

  “Keep going!” Alyssa called to Tasha. “They want me.”

  Alyssa lifted her arms. A moment later Tasha slid down and appeared beside her.

  “No, Tasha!” Alyssa cried. “Why…?”

  A rueful expression crossed Tasha’s face. “And let you have all the fun by yourself?”

  The spotlight from the chopper lit them up, blinding Alyssa. The men rushed up the slope and surrounded them.

  “On your knees, now!” one of them barked, pushing her down. Alyssa’s heartbeat throbbed in her throat as the rough rocks bit into her skin. She raised her arms, eyes growing wet, vision blurring.

  One of the men shoved Korzo forward.


  “Don’t hurt him,” Alyssa cried. “I’ll do what you—”

  The explosion rang out into the night, tearing across the sky. Alyssa’s eyes shot up to the chopper. Fire spewed from its cabin, leaving a spiral of smoke as it spun like an amusement park ride. It plunged into the rocks, exploding in a fireball. An instant later the sound of automatic gunfire erupted. The men surrounding them dropped to the ground.

  “Get down!” Tasha screamed. She dove on top of Alyssa, driving her into the ground.

  Alyssa stared as five figures emerged from the forest, firing at the men surrounding them. The surprise didn’t last long. Nephthys’s men fell into an organized retreat, pulling Korzo with them.

  The group of newcomers reached Alyssa and Tasha. Their black outfits blended into the night, the wraith-like look completed by headgear and tinted visors.

  “Come with us, now!” one of them ordered, his voice muffled through the helmet.

  Three other figures stepped in front of Alyssa and Tasha, forming a shield with their bodies. One of them took a hit and recoiled, but continued firing, keeping his position.

  Body armor.

  They pulled back next to a rock, retreating to the tree line beyond. Without warning, shots in ragged bursts peppered them from the side. Stone fragments from the rocks ricocheted and whizzed by Alyssa. They dropped to the ground. A group of Nephthys’s men had reached the top of the plateau and pinned them down with gunfire, cutting off their retreat into the forest.

  They flattened against the rocky outcrop, taking what little cover it provided. The two groups of Nephthys’s men advanced on their position.

  The man next to her flicked a wide bracelet on his left forearm. Alyssa stared at the holographic display that appeared above it. He selected a triangular symbol.

  “Stay down,” he said.

  “Who are you?” Alyssa asked.

  Instead of his answer, a faint whooshing noise reached her ears. A few seconds later it grew louder, heading right for them. She lifted her head to the source. Her mouth fell open when she spotted a delta-shaped jet hovering about sixty feet off the ground. A moment later, heavy automatic gunfire blazed from beneath its wings, blasting into Nephthys’s men.

  The organized retreat she witnessed earlier erupted into chaos as their attackers fell back, seeking out what cover they could find.

  The man pushed Alyssa to her feet. “Get up!”

  Five ropes fell to the ground. He clipped into one and pulled Alyssa to him by her waist, grasping the rope with his other hand.

  “My name is Dharr,” he said. “Hold tight.”

  Alyssa threw her arms around him an instant before they lifted off amid the gunfire. She saw Tasha clinging to another rescuer as the plane ascended sharply, reeling them in.

  The wind whipped into her, chilling her to the bone. She tightened her grip, then she was inside the plane, and the floor beneath her slid shut.

  Alyssa stared at the interior of the spacious cabin as their five rescuers unclipped from the lines.

  “You can let go now,” Dharr said.

  Alyssa released him and took a step back. “Who are you?”

  Dharr moved to the side of the plane and secured his rifle to the wall, among a dozen others. He turned around then unbuckled his helmet and lifted it off his head.

  Alyssa’s jaw dropped.

  Completely hairless, bronze scales covered his face, his irises two green emeralds with thin vertical pupils. A prominent jaw curved gracefully around his neck.

  In a daze, Alyssa shifted her eyes to the figure next to him, the tight black outfit hugging the slender curves of her body. She took off her helmet and shook out a dazzling set of cascading champagne curls. When the girl lifted her head, Alyssa stared into the most striking feline eyes. Her irises were a caramel brown, rimmed with a thin line of gold.

  Alyssa’s gaze swept through the other three as each of them removed their helmets. A second girl with scaly, reptilian skin rubbed her right shoulder where the bullet had struck her armor. In contrast with Dharr’s dark and rough-textured scales, hers were smooth and shimmered in a rainbow of colors, reflecting the light in the cabin. The last two looked like twins, with canine features and strong jowls. Their matching, boyish grins sparkled from their chestnut eyes, set deep into shaggy, bearded faces.

  Alyssa’s head spun. “You’re… you’re all…” words failed her.

  “Rathadi,” Dharr said.

  “Hybrids,” Alyssa whispered.

  “Well, not all…” Alyssa froze at the sound of the voice behind her. She whipped around—and stared at Paul, standing at the bulkhead.

  Alyssa’s knees buckled. “H-how?” she stammered.

  He moved to her, and she collapsed into him, burying her head in his shoulder. She felt the shudder of his relief, matched by her own.

  “I thought I lost you…” she whispered between sobs, holding him tight. Without thinking, she grasped his head in her hands and pulled his mouth to hers. She kissed him, hungrily, blissfully oblivious to the others around them.

  Paul froze when her mouth pressed against his, then his lips parted, and he returned her kiss. His hands cradled her back as hers wrapped around his neck. She felt as if the outside had faded away, and the universe had shrunk to just the two of them.

  After an eternity, she let go, savoring the tingling on her lips and the taste of his sweet breath that remained in her mouth.

  “They saved my life,” Paul said. “Pulled me out of the water.”

  Alyssa faced Dharr. She moved to him wordlessly and put her arms around him. Her throat unwilling to produce a sound, she hugged him, not in the terrified death grip from a few moments ago, but with all the gratitude and relief that she was able to convey.

  “We have been following the Society for years,” Dharr said when she stepped back. “Since the death of William Drake’s father, they have become unpredictable.”

  Alyssa shook her head. “So, while they have been looking for you for decades, you were right under their noses.”

  “Following the events in Cairo four months ago, we increased our surveillance.” He chuckled. “I have to admit, we did not anticipate something quite as spectacular as the explosion you caused—”

  “Or having to play fishermen in the Atlantic Ocean,” said the girl with the lizard skin, smirking. Her eyes sparkled with a stunning deep amber.

  “We were able to follow your trail here.” Dharr said. “Though I am afraid your contact at the airport may have suffered a bit of a scare, but time did not allow for subtleties.”

  “Maansa?” Alyssa asked. “Is he okay?”

  “Yes,” Dharr said. “He will be fine.”

  Alyssa looked at each of them in turn. “I have so many questions.”

  “There will be time for all of them,” Dharr replied. “It has been a long day for all. We should get some rest. We have much to discuss when we land.”

  A part of Alyssa wanted to argue, but she felt the adrenaline ebb out of her body. Her legs barely managed to keep her upright.

  “Where are we going?”

  “Hong Kong,” Dharr replied.

  “Hong Kong? But—”

  “Rest now.” Dharr lifted his hand. “We will talk again soon.” He turned and exited the cabin, followed by the others.

  Alyssa glanced at Tasha, who stood in the corner of the cabin, hands tucked behind her elbows, eyes distant. Alyssa reached out and wrapped her arms around the other girl. Tasha stood still for a moment, then she relaxed and returned the embrace.

  “You could have left me down there, but you didn’t,” Alyssa whispered. “Even though you knew what they were going to do to you.” Her voice broke. “I don’t care that you shot me.”

  A shiver went through Tasha’s body, and she sagged against Alyssa. When she let go, Tasha’s eyes were wet.

  Paul stared at them, a quizzical expression on his face.

  “Well, things between you two sure have warmed up since last… Wait—” he said
as he processed Alyssa’s last words—“she shot you, too?”

  Alyssa took his hand and nestled into a seat. She drew him next to her and rested her head against his shoulder. She remembered the taste of his lips, and melting into him at the touch of his hands on her back. Her body and mind drained, she ached with exhaustion, but for the first time in weeks, she felt safe.

  Yuri howled as Nephthys’s guards twisted his arms behind his back and wrenched him to her chamber. They pushed him to his knees in front of her.

  Nephthys rose out of her chair. She lifted the thin scepter from the table and approached him.

  “Leave us,” she said. The guards nodded and obeyed.

  She loomed over Yuri, studying him. Finally, she spoke.

  “You did well.” She reached down.

  Yuri accepted her hand and shuffled to his feet. “You are risking a great deal by allowing her to leave,” he said.

  “The reward will be worth the risk,” she said. “The virus?”

  “Renley’s daughter will remain free of any symptoms for twenty-four hours,” Yuri replied. “The virus will lay dormant in everyone she infects until it activates.” He hesitated before asking the question, “And the mind directive? Was the procedure successful?”

  Nephthys sank into her chair and leaned back. “Alyssa Morgan will do as I wish, when I wish it,” she said.

  16 Over the South China Sea

  Alyssa lazed in the spacious seat, enveloped in a vibrant duet of muffled jet noise and resonant snoring. Paul stirred beside her, and his head drooped on her shoulder. His chest rose and fell rhythmically, his features softer in sleep, the worry lines in his forehead all but melted. Her fingers tingled when she moved a strand of hair from his face, and he shifted again, mumbling in his dream.

  This is not a dream. We are both alive. Saved by Hybrids… Rathadi.

  The five Rathadi had been holed up in the front cabin for most of the flight. Alyssa had been champing at the bit to pepper them with more questions, but beyond giving their names, Dharr had made it clear that they were going to debrief her, and get her story, after they had arrived at their home.

  A Hybrid home… There are others.