by Ann Bakshis
“What do you want with us?”
The Arliss places a hand on my shoulder, causing me to wince. I’d forgotten about being shot, but with his touch the pain from my wound radiates down my arm. He lifts up my sleeve revealing the bullet hole, which surprisingly isn’t bleeding, though it isn’t healed either. He examines my other arm to discover a second bullet wound; this one also is neither bleeding nor healed.
“Lover, you’re hurt,” he says as he caresses the wound.
“Why aren’t I bleeding?” I ask, unnerved. “I bled when you tortured me the last time I was here.”
“Wounds sustained in the natural world will never bleed here because of the alteration in time. Your injury is technically frozen in place, but when you do go back it will start to bleed again like all wounds. Now, if you’re hurt here then, yes, you will bleed, but your wounds won’t travel back with you when you return home,” he says.
“Then, how was I brought back if there wasn’t anything left of me after the blast in Lymont?”
“You’d already been marked for me, so it was easy to guide your soul from the ether. I simply reconstructed your form,” he replies. “Once the mark has been placed, it’s only a matter of time before you find yourself in the Fomorian Plateau.”
“Marked? How and by whom?”
“I’m entitled to keep some secrets, Sara,” he says, reaching out with his other hand to brush my cheek.
“Don’t touch me,” I utter.
“I can do whatever I want to you. You gave yourself to me, remember? I own you.”
“You tricked me,” I say angrily.
“I would never do such a thing,” he says, pretending to be offended. “Besides, I’m not the one you should be upset with. It wasn’t my idea to bring you here in the first place, but I’m ever so grateful to the person who chose you.” He wraps his hands around my neck and tilts my head. “And now for the final act of making you mine,” he says before biting me.
I should feel pain, but all I feel is lust and desire. He practically shoves his tongue down my throat as I try to fight him off while I work on regaining control over my senses, but it only causes him to squeeze my throat harder. I close my eyes as his hands begin to wander over my body before finally removing my clothes. He tosses me onto the bed, strips, and penetrates me with such force I feel like I’ll split in two. I finally give in and howl with pleasure as he caresses every inch of my body. My mind fills with thoughts of death and destruction, which urges me to beg for more. I can’t stop myself from succumbing to the Arliss over and over again. He fills me up, making whole what was once empty… a desolation I didn’t know existed. My fingernails sink into his back, drawing blood, which causes him to scream in delight. I finally hit a peak so mind-blowing I shriek before collapsing into exhaustion.
“There, now, that’s better,” the Arliss says.
I sense my personality changing, becoming warped, destructive, and lustful. I try to push those feelings aside, but it only makes them surge. I’m no longer Sara but an Arliss slave, programmed to be whatever he asks me to be.
“What do you want with us?” I ask again as I try to catch my breath.
“You’ll know when the time is right,” he replies. “But for now, relax; just don’t go past the wall. That’s beyond my boundaries.” He kisses me, puts his clothes back on, and heads towards the door.
“I want to see Cody,” I say before he leaves.
“He’ll be up in a little while, but you need some rest. You have a big day ahead of you.”
I want to protest, but my eyelids are too heavy to keep open.
The screaming is what wakes me, and thankfully it’s not mine. I wrap the sheet around my body as I get out of bed and go to the open window, pushing the curtains aside in order to see out. Night has set in; thousands of stars sparkle overhead. The water in the lake laps gently against the quiet shore as another scream rises from a group of boulders on the right, a pale light shining from a vast opening between the boulders. I slip away from the window, dress, and head down the stairs. No one else is around as I exit the building and head towards the boulders. Cries of pain float along the cool air as I slowly climb up the rocks. When I reach the top, I have to quickly drop my head so the Arliss doesn’t see me through the opening. The light below is being generated by hundreds of candles. I glimpse Tennison strapped to a metal table in the conversion room as the Arliss paces around him, slashing his body with a sharp blade every few moments.
“You disappoint me,” the Arliss says as he continues his trek around the room. “I had such hopes for you, but now I’ve had to resort to other means.”
“Leave the kid alone,” Tennison moans as blood trickles down his arms, legs, and torso.
“Why? He obviously wants to be here and, besides, you shouldn’t have lured him away from Demos. He’d still be alive if you’d stayed in Virtus like you were supposed to,” the Arliss hisses.
“I didn’t know Cody was following me.”
“It’s a good thing he did, otherwise Sara would’ve wound up back here empty-handed, and I wouldn’t have liked that.”
“Why did you turn her?” Tennison asks as his muscles spasm.
“I was asked to,” the Arliss responds with a slight laugh.
“By whom?”
“You don’t need to know that,” the Arliss says. “But I will tell you this: without this particular person, I wouldn’t have gotten as far as I did. They’ve been masterful at bringing me my subjects. There’s only been a handful who have refused me, but no one will miss them.”
“What did you do to those who refused your horrendous proposition?”
“The same thing I’m going to do to you shortly… that is, if you live.” The Arliss leans over Tennison, blocking his face from my view. “Feed you to the wolves.”
“Go ahead; at least I’ll finally be free from you,” Tennison says sternly, a blood-curdling scream following.
As the Arliss moves out of the way I notice that Tennison’s left wrist has a deep gash across it, and blood is pouring from the wound.
“Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some planning to do,” the Arliss says before exiting through a doorway.
I wait until he’s out of sight before climbing down and entering the conversion room. Tennison’s whimpers fill the air, but as soon as he notices me he becomes quiet.
“What do you want?” he asks as his body shakes and beads of sweat dot his face.
“Was Cody right? Did you blow up Virtus?”
“What does it matter if I did?”
“It matters to Cody.”
“Yes, all right? I did it,” Tennison says through gritted teeth. “Satisfied?”
“Why’d you do it?”
“To stop him.”
“The Arliss?”
“No, Keegan.”
My voice catches in my throat and it takes me a few moments before I can squeak it out. “As in my husband Keegan?”
“The very same,” Tennison says weakly as he struggles to stay conscious. The wound is so deep and he’s lost so much blood there’s nothing I can do for him now.
“Why? What was he going to do?”
“He already did it.”
“Did what?” I ask, my voice rising with irritation.
Tennison rolls his head to the side as his eyes fill with tears. “Turn you.”
“Keegan didn’t turn me—the Arliss did,” I say angrily.
“I know you were listening… when the Arliss said… your change was requested. Who… do you think… requested it?” Tennison asks, his voice starting to fail. “It was supposed to be Keegan… who came to the compound that day… not Wavern. I thought… that if I destroyed… everything, Keegan… would be lost among the rubble… buried forever. No one was… supposed to… survive.”
“But that means he knows the Arliss and that’s not possible. He’d have to have died at some point in his life for that to happen, and as far as I know he never has.”
“L
ook closer, Sara. Keegan isn’t who you think he is.”
“His red eyes,” I mutter.
“What?” Tennison asks, fighting to stay alive.
“Keegan’s eyes turned red the other night. He tried to convince me I was imagining it, but I know what I saw.”
“Are you sure… they were red?”
I nod.
“The followers of the Arliss… don’t have red eyes,” Tennison says, panicking. “Nothing about their physical features changes… only their senses.” Tennison’s breathing becomes labored. “Get out of there, Sara,” Tennison says as his eyes widen. “Don’t trust anyone. Get as far away from Demos and the compounds… as you can.” His lungs rattle as he takes his last breath.
“It’s a shame Tennison had to die,” Haron says behind me. I hadn’t even heard her enter.
“Which time?” I ask sarcastically.
“Both,” she answers softly.
“How’d he die the first time?”
Haron approaches the table and places a hand on Tennison’s arm. “The same way you did, only in the Ulun Territory. He slipped out of the compound undetected during a rotation change. No one knew he was gone until he entered the hatch into the decon chamber the following morning.”
“And someone dropped a nuke on him?” I ask.
She nods.
“Didn’t they see the bomb fall like they did when I died? Didn’t anyone question his miraculous return?”
“Yes and, from my understanding, when those who died in the Virtus explosion arrived on the plateau they explained that Demmer and Andra had the entire compound cover up the incident. Tennison was thoroughly examined when he returned and nothing inconsistent was found, so the matter was dropped.”
“Did he ever say why he left?”
“He told me upon his arrival that he’d been forced to leave… to flee the compound for his own safety. But it was utter nonsense. Tennison was the compound leader, so he was in charge of everyone in Virtus. There couldn’t have been a single person dumb enough to make that man leave the safety of that compound. It had to be another reason.”
“If he hated the Arliss so much, why’d he agree to help him?” I ask.
“I don’t know. I guess that piece of information died with him.”
“The Arliss said I was marked before I died. Was Tennison?”
“Yes, but I don’t know by whom or how, so don’t ask me.”
“Tennison believes it was Keegan. Do you think that’s possible?”
“Anything is possible if Keegan is involved. I’ve never cared for that man, even when he was a child. I don’t care who his grandfather was, they should’ve allowed me to punish him for the hell he imposed on the other children.”
“Who was his grandfather?”
“Some big war hero. He got trapped in the Aslu Territory when the bombs fell, but managed to save hundreds of lives by forcing them to climb the Kai Mountains to safety on the other side. He wound up dying of radiation poisoning like all the others, but this was well after his daughter was born—Keegan’s mother.”
“I thought the bombs were dropped in both territories and the valley between the mountains. How could anything have been safer on the other side?”
“Bombs were dropped on both sides, but far fewer were launched into the Ulun Territory than into Aslu. Right after the war, there were a few rumors floating around that the Comhar used the Arliss as an excuse to eradicate the world of the Levo. That quickly died down when Myr took over the governing body, considering she’s of Levo heritage.”
“How’d you wind up here?” I ask, wanting to change the topic.
“I followed the stream from the ether. I didn’t want to die… I wasn’t ready for it, but who is? I’d seen others floating in that direction, so I followed, hoping it would lead to salvation. And it did,” she says, pointing to the opening over our head. “Now, I’ll need to take care of the body. This is something you won’t want to see.”
I leave the conversion room, horrified by the idea that Keegan could be involved with what happened to me. Is that why I ran into Lymont? Because I found out what, or who, he really is? If only I could remember. But that still doesn’t explain who launched the nuke. It had to have been Andra, but again I have to wonder why and, more importantly, how. Myr said the satellites no longer detected the existence of bombs anywhere in the world, so how was one launched at me the other day? Or even Tennison several years ago, for that matter? I’m making myself sick the more I think about it, so when I’m back in the room I remove my clothes as they’re still damp from the lake, get under the sheet, and try to put it all behind me.
Ear-splitting howls bring me around and I realize it’s the same sound a Mulgrim makes. Could that be what lies on the other side of the wall? But they’re originally from the Kai Mountains, so how are they moving between our world and the plateau? Is there another way in?
Another howl shatters the quiet, this one causing my eyes to fly open. When they focus I spot Cody sitting beside me on the edge of my bed looking distraught. The sheet I had wrapped myself in when I went to sleep has slipped off, exposing me. I should be embarrassed since Cody is sitting right there, but for some reason I’m not. Being in the Fomorian Plateau has made me bolder, as did the Arliss turning me into whatever I am now.
Fucking Keegan! I’ll need to repay him for this when I get back.
“What’s wrong?” I ask casually.
“Is this where you went after the bomb fell on Lymont? Were you actually killed in the blast? Were those your body parts we found?” Cody asks quickly, eyes averted.
I slide over to him, sit up, and lean against his back with one of my arms draped over his shoulder. “What makes you ask?”
He raises his left hand and shows me the spider tattoo that is now imprinted into his skin. “He gave this to you, didn’t he?”
“Yes… to all your questions,” I reply, pressing my face into his shoulder.
“Did you promise him anything to secure your return?”
“Yes. I gave him my devotion, loyalty, and apparently my body,” I say seductively. Normally I wouldn’t be acting like this, especially towards Cody. But in any case this is now who I am, so I’m going to have to figure out a way to control this new lusty nature of mine, especially when I get home. “What did you promise?”
“I’d rather not say.”
“You can tell me, Cody. I won’t tell anyone,” I say, wrapping my legs tightly around his waist.
If I’m like this in the Fomorian Plateau, what will I be like when I return to my world? I have a hard time believing this is what Keegan wanted for me. He’s jealous of Grimm, and I haven’t even slept with the guy. How’s Keegan going to react when he realizes this is what he asked the Arliss to do to me? I need to find a way to get my life back, and quickly before I make too many mistakes… especially if they’re irreversible.
But how?
Cody grows increasingly uncomfortable with my forwardness, but I don’t back down. He reluctantly places a hand on my thigh and begins to caress it almost absentmindedly.
“Tell me,” I whisper in his ear, which causes him to shiver.
“I promised him my soul,” Cody finally blurts out.
“Well, that’s not so bad,” I say, relaxing my hold around his waist. “At least you’ll be alive.”
“No, Sara, I won’t be!” he shouts as tears fill his eyes. “The Arliss is going to take possession of my body, making it his. I’ll cease to exist.”
“And that scares you,” I say rather coolly.
What the fuck is wrong with me? Why am I acting so heartless about his situation? Is that another trait of being an Arliss slave?
“Yes, of course,” he says, jumping to his feet. “Sara, of all people I thought you would be just as upset about this as I am, but you’re acting like it’s no big deal. This is my life we’re talking about. How can you be so cold?”
“If it’s so terrible, why did you make such a promise?” I sna
p.
“So I could survive… for at least the time being.”
“Then don’t blame me for your mistake,” I say angrily. “At least you had a choice in this. I didn’t.”
“Excuse me? How exactly is this a choice?”
“You didn’t have to take the stream into the lake when you died. You could’ve continued on in the ether until your existence ended. No one dragged you here,” I say as I wrap the sheet around myself as I’m now the one uncomfortable, wishing he would leave.
“But you came here of your own accord,” Cody says, puzzled. “It was your decision to run out of the compound. You knew a bomb would fall… one always does.”
“I wish everyone would stop reminding me about that,” I grumble.
“Well, we wouldn’t have to keep bringing it up if you’d admit the truth about it,” he says heatedly.
“Fine!” I shout, jumping off the bed, still wrapped in the sheet. “I wanted to die… to get away from everything and everyone. Death was the only option for me. I couldn’t continue living in a world like that anymore.”
“Why?”
His question forces me to look inward once more. I try to pull the memory that’s lurking in the back of my mind. When it finally hits, I sink to the floor. My mouth hangs open and tears stream down my face.
“Oh, my God,” I mumble. “I remember now. Andra caught me in her office, the one she has in her apartment. Something had been bothering me about why she’d refused to take in survivors from Virtus. Her reasoning didn’t make any sense, so I went digging around in her files while she was in the control center early that morning, just before I was supposed to go on duty.”
“What did she say was the reason?” Cody asks, kneeling in front of me and placing his hands on my arms.
“She didn’t want to deal with any more fallout victims, especially those who weren’t from a pure bloodline.”
“So, she didn’t want to take in any more Levo refugees basically.”
“I wasn’t sure, so that’s why I went through her files. I didn’t find anything at first, but then I came across a roster of the residents still living in the abandonment home. It was logical for her to have it since that’s how they recruit, but something was off about it. A line had been scratched through the names of those who’d already been moved into the compounds as well as the dates of their transfer. I had to read through the list twice just to make sure I was seeing it accurately,” I say, my gaze wandering. “I’d been the last of the Comhar line to be removed from the home. Once I was gone, only Levo children were left, so I dug further into the file. Only, there wasn’t anything left to find.”