Destiny

by Jason A. Cheek

  At Quintillius’ snort of assent, Lar studied the Scourge attack clawing at their wavering shield wall. Although the Centuria had driven the Tuonellians back once, the enemy had struck back with renewed fury. The battle lines were buckling at three ranks deep from the press of the enemy and every second that went by more of the nafda were being released from stasis. For now, it had been only Scourge, but what happened when the first demon was set free?

  “What do we have to lose Centurion?” As if Lar’s words were the trigger, blue energy exploded from the center of their defensive formation as the Gorgonian Priestess stasis crystal blasted apart.

  ***

  Location Earth / Megan Driscoll:

  As Sergeant First Class Driscoll watched Decanus Sestius Natalinus push his way to the front line to discuss the new tactical situation with his commander, she tried to get a read on how these Minotaurs thought. When the Centurion’s massive head swiveled around to face her, Megan met the bull’s measured look head-on as his intelligent eyes studied her intently.

  The Minotaur Commander looked like something right out of a superhero comic book with his flaring white cloak, ornate breastplate, red-crested helmet and blue-glowing fist blades. Even compared to the non-commissioned officers like Decanus Sestius Natalinus who she’d befriended, the Commander’s presence was larger than life. He radiated authority and brutal competency in his every movement. Just as they seemed to be coming to a decision, Megan heard Lance Corporal Jordan’s accusatory voice hiss in her ear.

  “What in the hell do you think you’re doing?”

  Whipping around angrily, Megan shoved Dion back hard as she overrode his words. “You want to check that attitude, Lance Corporal?”

  For a second Megan wasn’t sure if he was going to snap out of it, but training took over as Dion got his emotions back under control. Holding up his hands apologetically he lowered his voice.

  “Look, Sergeant, no disrespect intended, but …” Glancing around warily, Dion spoke in a rush of words. “What the fuck is going on? Everyone is freaking. Out of nowhere you just start speaking these aliens language. Now you’re following these primitives orders and …“

  “Alien language, what the hell are you talking about? They’re freaking speaking Latin.”

  “Latin …” Megan could see Dion struggling with the concept as his mouth gaped open in surprise. “You speak Latin?”

  Seeing the pissed off look on her face Dion’s voice died away as Private Rodriguez suddenly piped up. “Excuse me, Sergeant First Class Driscoll, do mean ‘Latin’ like what the priests speak at my church on Sundays?”

  Glancing around Megan silently swore as she saw the crazy looks that some of the jarheads were sending her way. They all probably thought she was somehow being mentally manipulated by these creatures. She’d have to nip this in the bud and quick. She couldn’t have her soldiers second guessing her every order if they were going make it out of this alive. Speaking loud enough to be heard, Megan addressed the new Marines she’d taken under her command during this emergency.

  “First off, these Minotaurs speak Latin and so do I.” She saw several of the scientists’ heads jerk up at her words as they suddenly realized the truth of what she was saying. Immediately several furious debates broke out as Megan continued her impromptu speech. “Secondly, for anyone else who’s wondering why we are following these primitives lead I’ll make this as simple as I can or you. If these primitives weren’t protecting us, we would all be dead by now.”

  Seeing the chagrined faces around her, Megan repeated that once more for emphasis. “That’s right, we would all be dead if it weren’t for these ‘primitives’ good will towards us.” She paused for a moment to let that sink into their meat-heads.

  “For those of you who are throwing out that ‘primitive’ word so easily. Did any of you notice that these ‘primitives’ are wearing liquid metal gauntlets that can slice through these monsters with one hit? Gauntlets, might I add, that are being charged with some type of power source that I’ve never seen before. Our assault rifles with armor piercing rounds can barely even scratch these things!”

  Seeing the sudden understanding in the eyes of the men and women under her command, Megan wrapped up her little speech. “Luckily one of their sergeants is willing to work with me on getting us out of this pit and back to the surface. Where I hope the rest of the battalion will be able to help us fight these creatures and destroy them. So, unless you speak Latin and can help translate, I need you to shut the fuck up and follow orders. Is that understood?”

  The chorus of “Hoorah!” was mostly drowned out by the battle, but Megan could sense the sudden shift in moral. Having a weapon suddenly jam in the middle of combat was enough to make any soldier freak out, but having your weapons be completely useless against monsters straight out of a horror movie was another matter altogether. The utter desperation of their situation had been given a sliver of hope. It was even visible in their body language as she pointed at the crystal behind her.

  “Now we’re just holding out until this crystal pops their priestess before we get the hell out of here. Until then, I want you to keep these guys patched up. Rodriguez, I want you on the radio with Command. Give them an update on the current situation and-.“ Megan’s words were cut off by an explosion of blue energy that rippled through the air in a visible wave of energy as she was suddenly blasted off her feet.

  Slamming her hands over her ears, Megan rolled back and forth on the ground in agony. All around her, a pulsating strobe light lit up the darkness as an undulating blaring shriek filled the air. Through the piercing pain, Megan saw the pitched battle brought to a screeching halt as Human, Minotaur and monster alike dropped to their knees from the overwhelming sound. A part of her mind equated the terrible noise to the warning siren that would always blow on Saturday mornings when she was growing up as a child, only a hundred times worse. The pain was so intense that it felt like her teeth were going to burst from their roots from the intensity.

  Hands still covering her ears Megan pushed herself to her knees with her elbows searching for the source, when her eyes were drawn to the rippling blue lightning crackling behind her in a towering column of pure energy as her mouth fell open incredulously. At the center of the rippling electricity was the Minotaur’s priestess. She’d momentarily forgotten the priestess wasn’t a cow, but another mythological creature from out of legend.

  Megan’s mind immediately labeled the creature a Gorgon as snippets of Greek mythology and modern day movies began running through her mind in a convoluted mess of Hollywood magic and superstition as she stared wide-eyed at the humanoid creature stretched out before her. A part of her mind was terrified that she was staring straight at the extremely feminine and beautiful face, but even if she’d wanted to, Megan couldn’t have torn her eyes away from the breathtaking sight.

  It wasn’t the crackling energy rippling around the snake-woman’s body or the fact that she was hovering several feet off the ground with her arms arched over her head. It wasn’t even the radiant colors of the thick serpentine coils that made up the lower half of her body. What held Megan’s gaze was the selfless plea of holy supplication frozen on the human-like face. For that split-second, the pain in her head seemed to lessen as the ethereal beautify hit Megan in her heart and soul. The utter humility and acceptance transcended the bounds of race, culture and even religion in its universal humaneness.

  As Megan watched in awe, the snake-woman’s body convulsed before her eyes as the crackling energy and blaring sound disappeared in an explosive wave that washed over the entire chamber. There was a screeching hiss of electricity as the metal halide lighting towers died in showers of burning sparks.

  Spots swarmed across Megan’s vision as her eyes struggled to adjust to the sudden darkness. A thin beam of light still shined in through the small opening high above in the ceiling at the far end of the chamber, but the long drill shaft did little to spread the light out around the immense cavern. Holding
her aching head, Megan looked around numbly trying to make sense of what happened to the power, when a soft soprano spoke weakly in front of her in a shivering voice.

  “Akhras, gratias ago tibi quoniam audisti vocem meam.” (Akhras, I give thanks to you for hearing my plea.)

  The loud thud of a body hitting the ground seemed to jumpstart Megan into action. Pulling out her mag-light Megan tried to find out what had happened to the priestess only to discover her batteries were completely dead when she pressed the switch. Putting the mag-light back into her pouch, Megan pulled a glow stick from a pocket in her uniform, snapping the plastic tube one handed. The light was much weaker than the mag-light, but it was better than nothing. Crawling towards where she’d heard the voice Megan shook the stick in her hand to get the chemicals mixing faster as she began calling out orders.

  “Private Rodriguez, get on the horn with HQ and find out what the fuck is going on now.” As Rodriguez began fumbling with his equipment, Megan called out to Dion. “Lance Corporal Jordan, give me a quick inventory of what munitions we have left. Lance Corporal Porter, I want you to get the wounded ready to move out.”

  If the Minotaurs believed this priestess was so important that they were willing to defend her with their lives, then maybe she’d better make sure her holiness actually survived whatever had just happened. Behind her in the pit, two blue blades suddenly glowed to life as a deep bellow shattered the eerie silence.

  “Super ungulas tuas ponam, reformabit testudinem!” (On your hooves, reform the shield wall!) Across the clearing blue glows began flaring in the darkness as more and more bulls took up the call as nightmarish screeching cries began howling out in the darkness across the pit. “Reformabit testudinem! Reformabit testudinem!” (Reform the shield wall! Reform the shield wall!)

  Sweeping her arm in front of her in an arc, Megan’s hand brushed a scaly coil. Hurriedly she pulled herself up to the unmoving body searching for any signs of life. Seeing the rise and fall of the priestess’ chest in the weak light made Megan breathe a sigh of relief, but the icy cold skin beneath her gloved hand gave her a new concern. Megan didn’t need to know snake-woman physiology to recognize the danger. First aid one-o'-one listed icy cold skin to the touch as a primary symptom of hyperthermia, which was life-threatening for humans and probably even worse for a theoretically cold-blooded creature like a snake-woman.

  Doing the only thing she could think to do, Megan began shrugging out of her gear quickly removing her uniform’s outer jacket. Using it as a makeshift blanket, Megan wrapped the priestess’s upper body as she pulled the snake-woman to her chest. There was no thought as to the oddness of her actions. Combat training made a Marine insensitive to the sex of a comrade in need on the battlefield. At least to a point. Men or women were expected to assist the wounded as needed. If it required stripping down to use your body heat to help a comrade, then that’s what you did. It was the same as carrying an unconscious battle buddy to safety or patching a bleeding wound. No thought was given to skin or body fluids.

  Using a combination of her own body heat and friction, Megan tried to warm the priestess’s as Rodriguez’s voice called out urgently. “Sergeant First Class Driscoll, none of my equipment has power. Everything’s dead!”

  “What do you mean everything’s dead, Rodriguez?”

  “Sarge, anything that requires power. My radio, my night vision scope, even my fucking mag-light, it’s all dead!”

  As glow sticks began lighting up the darkness around Megan, she did a run-through of her gear. Nothing was showing a charge; even her five-eleven Tactical Field Ops watch was dead. Quickly Megan cycled a round through her M4. Catching the casing one-handed she breathed a sigh of relief. At least, their weapons were still working, so whatever was happening only seemed to be affecting electronics.

  A groan of pain brought Megan’s eyes back to the priestess lying in her lap as the snake-woman mumbled weakly tossing and turning. “Debemus relinquere locum istum simul.” (We must leave this place at once.) Unsure of what more to do, Megan looked anxiously around for one of the Minotaurs as the words became more urgent. “Debemus relinquere locum … daemones venire!” (We must go … the demons come!)

  Megan froze as she translated the priestess’s last words, her thoughts churning at hyper-speed. On the one side, her logical mind wanted to dismiss the warning as primitive superstition, but on the other hand … A cold shiver went down her spine. On the other hand, she was sitting in the middle of a dark pit holding a naked snake-woman, while around her Minotaurs battled nightmarish monsters in the dark around her. The reality of it all boggled the mind.

  Unsure of what to do next Megan anxiously looked around for her Minotaur friend, when she heard Dion's voice speak up behind her. “What the hell did that thing say, Megan, something about demons?”

  “Shut your mouth Dion, that’s the how rumors get started. “ Megan’s voice died away as the priestess’s slit-like golden eyes weakly slid open to meet her gaze. Even though the look of rapture was gone, the snake-woman still exuded an aura of peace and serenity. For a long moment, nothing happened as the inhuman eyes intently studied her face, when suddenly a slit in the center of priestess’s forehead slowly opened revealing a third eye.

  “Oh shit!”

  Megan heard Dion’s swear as he quickly backed out of the snake-woman’s line of sight, while the Marines around her shifted their weapons nervously in their hands. Not breaking her gaze with the priestess, Megan held up an open palm to her soldiers behind her silently ordering them to stand fast as she studied the murky blue orb.

  Although the third eye was freaky to look at in a human-like face, the orb itself reminded her of a parietal eye. The only striking difference was that there was an eyelid, something she’d never heard of before. On reptiles and fish, the third eye was associated with the pineal gland and was used in regulating circadian rhythmicity and hormone production for thermoregulation. Megan had the distinct impression the snake-woman used hers for much more than just body regulation as the priestess’s long red hair began crawling up her arms with a life of their own.

  “Sergeant Driscoll!”

  No looking away from those golden orbs, Megan whipped her palm out again behind her back. “I said to hold your position, Lance Corporal!”

  “What the fuck Meg-?”

  “I ordered everyone to hold their fucking positions and keep back.” Megan snapped angrily cutting Dion off in midsentence. “What part of that didn’t you understand, Lance Corporal Jordan?”

  Before Megan could say more the priestess’s hair touched the bare skin of her arms making her jump from the contact. Her emotions were a confused whirlwind as the thick strands continued creeping higher and higher up her body. The smooth articulated appendages felt nothing at all like the hair they resembled. As they reached her face, Megan heard a shocked bellow behind her as a jolt suddenly ran through her mind.

 

  “Per Akras sanctum acutam, Ipsa nos infirmi fuerimus quia!” (By Akras holy sickle, she is too weak for that!)

  Megan’s head throbbed as the feminine voice began to chant, mentally filling her mind.

 

  Again and again, the words reverberated in Megan’s head. It felt as if her entire life were flowing from her like an open book as the golden slit-eyes grew to encompass her entire vision. Just as Megan thought her mind was going to break the chant changed as the flow of information reversed directions.

 

  Images of a strange world and alien creatures filled Megan’s mind as the words reverberated through her head. At first, it felt like she was drowning in a flood of information, but slowly the intensity of the mental presence began to fade until it slipped away entirely. Coming back to her senses, Megan felt the feelers slip away from her face as High Priestess Britomartis went limp in her arms.

  “What the fuck did that thing do to her? Look
at me … I said to look at me motherfucker! What the hell did that thing do to her?” Looking around disoriented Megan saw her squad squaring off against the Minotaurs with Lance Corporal Jordan at their lead. “Get the fuck back furface or I’m gonna light your ass up!”

  As her mind began to clear, Megan instantly recognized Lar, the legionnaire sergeant that had saved her life. Her mind shortening the Minotaur’s name without even realizing the change in her thoughts. Somehow she knew Lar was trying to reach the priestess in her lap, but every time he tried to approach Dion was there, getting into his face and screaming insults. The warning signs were all there, like two sides of the same coin.

  Flaring nostrils, dilated pupils, the lowered horns, Megan could clearly see the signs that the bulls were struggling to hold in their rage just like her own people, but like always her shit talking Ex was blind to the danger. There was going to be bloodshed if she couldn’t get everyone to calm the fuck down.

  “Lance Corporal Jordan, stand down and let the sergeant through!”

  “What the fuck!” Backing away from the legionnaire, Dion hurriedly looked back and forth between her and the Minotaurs nervously gripping his assault rifle with both hands. “Is that you Megan?”

  “What do you mean, is that me?”

  “When that fucking creature touched you that freaky eye started glowing all blue and stuff and then your eyes rolled up into your head. I … I thought-“

  “Well, you thought wrong.”

  Misunderstanding the Lance Corporal’s body language, the Minotaurs started forward as Dion spun around with his assault rifle first like a madman. “I said to get the fuck back, furface!”

  “And I said to stand the fuck down, Lance Corporal!”

  As Dion swung around wildly to face her, Megan saw the whites of his eyes. He was in full freak-out mode.