The Praegressus Project: Part One

by Aaron Hodges

  Something lodged in Susan’s throat as images of the laboratory flashed through her mind. Bending in two, she gasped, struggling for breath as her stomach swirled. Over the sounds of her distress, she could hear the Chead laughing again.

  Finally managing to swallow her nausea, Susan straightened and shook her head. The old Chead only grinned in response, and then moved across to the kitchen bench. A pan sat on an old gas burner, and removing the lid, the Chead revealed the contents – a haunch of white meat that might have come from a turkey.

  “We only consume… raw meat when the rage is upon us,” lifting the pan, she carried it across and offered it to Susan, “Most times, cooked is preferable. We are not animals.”

  Susan stared at the turkey leg, her stomach rumbling, suddenly ravenous. She glanced one last time at the old Chead, and then snatched up the leg.

  The Chead cackled as she tore into the meat. She moved past Susan and returned to her seat on the couch. Swallowing, Susan paused for breath, and then took another bite. As she ate, she studied the Chead. Back in the facility, she had been terrifying. Susan had watched those wrinkled hands crush the life from a woman as easily as she would swat a fly. Yet now the Chead was calm, almost kind. And sniffing, Susan realised the old Chead was the source of the sweet scent filling the cabin.

  “Who…” she frowned, struggling to form the words, “Are… you?”

  “Your speech will return, eventually,” a smile spread across the wrinkled face, “And I am Talisa.”

  Susan shivered, her thoughts whirring. Frowning, she tried to find the words for her next question. “Where… did you… come from?”

  “The wild,” the Chead replied.

  That’s impossible, Susan thought, but the words would not come. But seeing the look on Susan’s face, the Chead continued.

  “The humans hunt us, when we change,” she whispered, “But they are slow and weak, and many of us escape. Our scent draws us together, and over the years we have gathered. When I first woke, I wandered alone for a time, until I found a new family.”

  Finishing the meat, Susan tossed the bone on the floor. She still stood in the middle of the room. The sweet scent lingered drifted in her nostrils, seeming to call to her, and without thinking she moved across and sat beside the old woman.

  “How… long?” she croaked.

  The wrinkles around the woman’s eyes crinkled with sadness. “I was a woman grown… when I changed. But time passes differently for us,” she looked at her arms, “I have only lived a few years, with my new children. Already my time draws near.”

  “No…” Susan whispered, her heart twisting with a strange sadness.

  The woman smiled. “I will not pass before my task is done.”

  At her words, Susan found her eyes drawn back to the storage container, and the stocks of virus frozen inside. The cabin must have a generator – she could hear it whirring somewhere outside. She opened her mouth, but the words would not come, and she shook her head.

  “Hecate was a blessing, when he came to us,” the old Chead continued, “He must be rewarded for leading us to your home.”

  Remembering the hunger in Hecate’s eyes, Susan shivered. “How… how could he… have found you?”

  Susan shivered as the old woman reached out a hand and stroked her cheek. “He followed our scent, as so many others had before him. My pack and I found a haven, and over the years our numbers swelled, as others were drawn across to plains to our home.”

  Fear turned the blood in Susan’s veins to ice. “How… many?”

  A soft laughter came from the old woman’s throat. Standing, she offered her hand. “Come, let me show you.”

  Somewhere in Susan’s mind, a voice screamed for her to run, but her body acted as if by a will of its own and took the woman’s hand. She rose to her feet and allowed the Chead to lead her to the door. The hinges squealed as they moved outside. The dark of night greeted her. Not a single star shone in the sky, and she blinked, expecting to be blind.

  Instead, as she stared into the gloom, the world came into perfect focus. Open plains stretched out around the cottage, and in the distance the dark shadows of the mountains rose into the sky. But her eyes were quickly drawn back to the fields. Shadows moved through the grass, shifting closer. She shuddered, and again the voice shouted for her to flee. But with the iron grip on her hand, there was nowhere to go, and she stood and watched as the Chead gathered around them. There were hundreds of them.

  She shuddered as Talisa turned to face her.

  “Welcome home.”

  CHAPTER 22

  “What are you doing out of bed, young man?”

  Sam looked around at the woman standing in the doorway, and tried not to roll his eyes. Eve had shown him nothing but kindness – stitching up his leg and changing his bandages each day – but her motherly care was beginning to grate.

  It was understandable, of course. Eve was over seventy years old, and had seen more than her fair share of wounds. She said his wound might take months to fully heal, and Mira’s might be even longer. But then, she had never treated anyone with wings before. Ashley’s wound had only taken weeks to heal, and neither Sam or Mira were anywhere near the state she’d been in.

  “I’m fine, doc,” he forced a grin. He stood on one foot and waved his wounded leg in the air. “See?”

  Eve tisked and shook her head. Moving across the room, she grabbed him by the ankle. He squawked as she lifted his leg and touched a finger to his bandages. “Oh really?” she raised an eyebrow, “Doesn’t look fine to me. You’ve broken another stitch.”

  “Sorry, doc,” Sam said sheepishly, and the woman rolled her eyes.

  “You need bedrest, young man. So does that girl, come to mention it. Where’s she got to this time?”

  Sam shrugged, but he couldn’t keep the smile from his face. If he was a difficult patient, Mira was an impossible one. Despite Eve’s best efforts, the girl came and went from the infirmary as she pleased. Even posting a guard in the hallway hadn’t helped – Mira could move as silent as a mouse when she wanted too, and seemed to take great joy in scaring those on watch half to death.

  “She’s in the living room with Jasmine,” Sam’s heart lurched as Ashley’s voice came from the doorway.

  He looked up, the breath catching in his throat. Ashley looked back at him, her amber eyes unreadable, her wings tucked away behind her. She stared at him for a moment before turning to Eve.

  “I’ll make sure he gets back in bed, Eve,” she said, “Promise.”

  Eve nodded and flashed him another look. “Yes, maybe he’ll listen to his girlfriend,” she said observantly.

  “We’re not,” Ashley and Sam said together, but the woman was already gone.

  Sam’s cheeks flushed as he looked back at Ashley. He hadn’t seen her in over a week, not since she had fled the infirmary talking about blood on her hands.

  “It’s good to see you,” Sam said cautiously.

  Their eyes met, but for a long moment, Ashley said nothing. Then she was crossing the room, her soft white wings and arms stretching out to embrace him. Sam gasped as she kissed him, taken aback by the sudden change. He staggered back, and he moaned as his injured leg took his weight.

  He fell heavily against the bed and pushed Ashley back, still struggling with the pain. Her face paled and she pressed a hand to her lips. “Sorry, I didn’t mean–”

  Sam shook his head and forced a smile. “It’s okay,” he straightened on the bed and frowned up at her, “Not that I’m complaining… but what’s gotten into you, Ash?”

  A smile tugged at Ashley’s lips and she climbed up onto the bed. Lying down beside him, she reached out and pulled him into her arms.

  “I’ve been so afraid, Sam. Afraid of letting you all down, of being captured, of dying. Afraid of loving you,” she kissed him again, softly now, “I don’t want to be afraid anymore.”

  Her hands stroked his cheek, and he pulled her to him. Their lips met, and Ashley seeme
d to melt in his arms. She felt so small, so fragile, and yet as she pressed herself against him, Sam could feel her strength. She had been through the furnace, but here she was still, alive, ready to face her fears.

  His hands slid down her back, exploring the curves of her wings, feeling her feathers trembling at his touch. Slowly his fingers venture further down, raising goosebumps across her skin. Their lips parted, and then she was kissing his neck, and her hands were sliding beneath his shirt, lighting fires wherever they touched.

  Sam moaned as she climbed on top of him. An ache came from his leg, but then she was tugging off her top, and the pain was forgotten. Sitting up, Sam kissed her, tasting her soft skin beneath his lips. Her hands tugged at his shirt, tearing it off. He jumped as her teeth nipped his neck, but he only pulled her tighter. His heart raced as her breasts pressed against his naked chest.

  A gasp tore from Ashley’s throat, and then her hands were on his chest, pushing him down. He lay back on his pillow and stared up at her, feasting on the sight of her naked body. Her pale skin glowed in the incandescent light, a stark contrast to his own. Her white wings extended out to either side of her. Desire burned in his chest and he reached for her again.

  Smiling, Ashley caught him by the wrists and pinned him to the bed. She arched an eyebrow and kissed him on the nose. A tremble went through him, but as Ashley pulled back, he caught a strange look in her eyes.

  “What is it?” he whispered.

  The smile fell from Ashley’s lips as she released him. She looked down, one finger playing with the hairs on his chest. “Sam… I have to go away for a while.”

  Sam frowned. “What?”

  Ashley sighed. “No one here wants to admit it, Sam, but Mike is gone. I can see it in their faces. He should have made contact by now, but he hasn’t. We’re going to have to see the professor ourselves, if we want to fix what we did.”

  “What we did?”

  She looked away then, and he could feel her trembling. “Halt used me, Sam. He used me to get to you. If any other kids die in their vile experiments, it will be my fault as much as yours. We have to stop them, before they hurt anyone else.”

  Sam reached out and brushed the scarlet curls from Ashley’s face. “It doesn’t have to be you, Ash.”

  A smile tugged at Ashley’s lips. She leaned down and kissed him again. “Well, it can’t be you. Someone went and got himself shot,” the smile faded and she grew serious again, “They need me, Sam. I’m the only one who knows the university. And I need to fix things.”

  Tendrils of fire wrapped their way around Sam’s heart. A tremor went through him, and he felt a deep terror rise in his chest – not for himself, but for the girl he had come to love, who he had sacrificed everything to protect. But now it was her turn to put her life on the line, and there was nothing he could do to stop her.

  Opening his arms, he hugged Ashley to him. He closed his eyes, trying to keep the tears from flowing. They lay like that for a long time, wrapped in each other’s embrace, until Sam was sure Ashley must have fallen asleep. Yet when he leaned forward and kissed her forehead, she stirred. She lifted her head, and her golden eyes blinked down at him. A smile spread across her face, and leaning forward, she kissed him back.

  “Let’s not waste the time we have,” she whispered in his ear.

  CHAPTER 23

  Another day passed before Chris finally admitted to himself that Liz was right. They couldn’t sit still any longer, waiting to see whether the Texan would return. He could no longer ignore the fact that something had obviously gone wrong. It was clear in the faces of the men who guarded the house, in the hardening of their brows and the falseness to their smiles.

  Which could only mean one thing.

  “He’s been taken, hasn’t he?” Chris said, standing in the doorway to the living room.

  His grandmother looked up from the kitchen table. Their eyes met, and he saw a wave of weariness sweep across her face. His shoulders fell, and shaking his head he stepped into the room. Until that moment, he had still clung to the hope he was missing something, that there was some explanation for the Texan’s continued absence.

  A paltry lunch had been set on the table, and he moved across and took the seat beside his grandmother. Taking a slice of bread, he made himself a peanut butter jelly sandwich, and struggled to hide the trembling of his hands.

  “We can’t know,” Maria whispered as he finished.

  Taking a bite of his sandwich, Chris considered her words. In his mouth, the food tasted like dust, and his stomach recoiled, but he knew he needed the sustenance. He had hardly slept or eaten since his conversation with Liz.

  “He was meant to be back by now,” Chris said after a moment, “Or if he couldn’t return, he would have found a way to make contract.”

  His grandmother bowed her head, and Chris knew he was right. He shook his head, wondering what their next move should be. A part of him longed to flee, to take his grandmother and the others and vanish. They could find a place in the country, somewhere deep in the mountain forests, and never be seen again.

  But even as he considered it, Richard’s face drifted through his mind, and Chris knew they couldn’t do it. They had to fight, to make Richard’s sacrifice worth something.

  That meant taking the fight to the government.

  The night before he had toyed with the idea of revealing themselves. He had even discussed it with Sam. They both liked the idea of throwing a spanner in the government’s works, but ultimately Chris feared it would be pointless. It was true, the government would struggle to explain how their fugitives had grown wings. But Chris feared it would never come to that. They had already revealed themselves in Independence Square, and while the news continued to report rumours, there was no substance to the stories.

  He feared the women who had died in the square had given their lives for nothing.

  That only left their original plan – to go to the university themselves and speak with the professor Ashley had mentioned. Without Artemis, he was their only hope of proving there was a link between the Chead and the government. It wasn’t much to cling too – especially now the Texan had vanished after contacting the man – but it was all they had.

  “So what now, Chris?” he looked up as Liz entered the dining room.

  He sighed as their eyes met. The others followed behind her – Ashley and Jasmine and Sam and Mira. The former two were still recovering from their injuries, but he could see the fire burning in Jasmine’s eyes. The edge seemed to have gone from her grief, but her anger burned on. He knew she desired retribution – he just hoped it would not consume her again.

  Beside her, Ashley looked wary, but her eyes no longer held the terror as before. His gaze lingered on her face, wondering if she was up to what would come next. They would need her help if they were going to reach the professor.

  Feeling their eyes on him, Chris turned his thoughts back to Liz’s question. He gripped the tabletop as the weight of responsibility fell across his shoulders. Clenching his teeth, he glanced at his grandmother, searching her eyes for guidance.

  But he knew it wasn’t up to her, not now. What Jasmine had said all those days ago was truth – this was their fight now.

  He sucked in a breath and nodded to himself. “I think it’s time we paid the professor a visit of our own.”

  Turning, he watched the others for their reaction. They were closer than blood now, and he knew them better than even his closest friends from his old life.

  Jasmine was the easiest to read. Grinning, she took her seat at the table and nodded. Liz joined her, the fire in her eyes almost as fierce as Jasmine’s. Both had grown up in the rural communities – both had lived under the threat of the Chead for their entire lives. Knowing it had been the government behind their terror was all the reason they required to go along with his plan.

  But it was Ashley they really needed. He watched her closely. She stood staring out the kitchen window, her amber eyes distant. He could sens
e the war taking place within her – between the brave girl he had known back in the facility, and the one who had frozen in Independence Square. Chris held his breath, and waited to see which would win.

  Finally Ashley nodded and took her seat. Sam and Mira quickly followed her, though a shadow hung over Sam’s face as he looked around the table. Neither he nor Mira would be able to come – not with their injuries. With the wound in her shoulder, Mira still couldn’t fly, and both would be worse than useless if it came to a fight.

  Sam reached across the table and gripped Ashley by the wrist. “You don’t have to go, Ash,” he said softly.

  Ashley returned a sad smile. “I do, Sam,” she looked back at Chris, “If I stay, it’ll just be three.”

  “We don’t even know there will be a fight,” Chris replied, though he didn’t believe the words, “And if there is, we’ve faced worse odds.”

  “And lost more than a few,” Ashley countered. She shrugged off Sam’s hand and smiled, and for a second Chris caught a glimpse of the girl he’d known before their escape. “No, you need me. Otherwise who will keep you from getting distracted by all those college girls, Chris.”

  Chris raised an eyebrow and Liz chuckled. “He’d better not,” she grinned.

  “Who said anything about visiting him at the university?” Chris ignored their jibes.

  Ashley smiled. “If Mike really has been caught, they’ll be watching the professor. If we go to his house, or meet him somewhere else, we’ll stick out like a sore thumb,” she ticked the options off her hand as she spoke, “But on campus, we’ll just be like any other student.”

  “You think we can sneak into one of his classes?” Liz asked.

  “We won’t even have to sneak,” Ashley grinned, “Once we’re on campus, they don’t check student ID’s for individual lectures. And the classes are usually big enough no one will notice a few extra seats. We can walk right in and talk to him at the end of the lecture.”

  Silence fell around the table. Chris studied his hands, turning the plan over in his head, searching for holes. He bit his lip. Surely there had to be a less risky way of approaching the professor. If they were spotted, they could end up trapped in the lecture theatre. But as the silence stretched out, nothing else came to him.