Ordained (The Immortal Archives)

by Devon Ashley

  Abby had scanned the chamber over and over again. The only weapon seemed to be in Athena’s hand. One lousy sword. She thought of telling off the statue, to let her know how helpful she’d been providing her with the tools necessary to fight off one of the most deadly demons ever, but even Abby wasn’t looking to tick off a goddess.

  She grabbed for the sword in Athena’s hand. Specks of stone flicked off and fell to the floor once Athena’s firm grip finally relented. The markings on the wall told Abby to place her hand on the recessed handprint (which also depicted the lines on her palm). Her hand tickled as the stone liquefied and molded to her skin. The wall dissolved and created a doorway that rippled like rings on water. The invisible barrier was ice cold and thick like jell-o. She had to push herself through with force.

  The walkthrough led her to a cavernous lair, lit throughout with torches. Once through, the magical entrance disappeared behind her. No recessed handprint offered a way back, as it was strictly one way. The fires fluttered and gave an eerie glow to the weapons and markings across the walls. Chiseled into the rocks were glory pictures of the Goddess Eris, as well as multiple deaths of ancient Abby; grisly depictions of stabbings, beheadings and burnings. She looked exactly like present day Abby.

  “So you knew it was me the moment you saw me,” she alleged, seeing nothing but knowing he was there somewhere.

  A familiar voice belted across the lair, but it wasn’t Jayden’s. “When you weren’t one of the primary ten, I thought for sure you were dead. Then I came to find you had actually been preparing for this battle for two hundred years.”

  “I’m sure you’ve been planning far longer.” She turned away from the hideous pictures. After a moment of silence, she added, “What? Suddenly you’re shy?”

  From the shadows emerged her old advisor, Nathaniel, sword in hand. “You’re one to talk. I was beginning to wonder if you’d even show.”

  Abby slowly walked toward him, her weapon behind her back.

  “Afraid to show your true self? Or do you even have one?”

  “I’m whatever I need to be,” Morphus said matter-of-factly.

  Abby huffed. “Nathaniel? Really? You wanna be a man I showed no conscience or remorse over slaughtering even as a child?”

  “Perhaps this, then.” Morphus dissolved into a million little pieces and came back together as Noel.

  Abby felt the sword behind her back transform. Managing to keep a straight face, she felt the shape of the new object. It was a wooden stake. What the hell?, she thought. Dumbfounded, Abby walked towards the wall for another sword, one similar to what Morphus was holding. “You’re not Noel. Looking like him won’t change that.”

  “We’ll see.” Noel jumped toward Abby. She quickly threw the wooden stake aside and grabbed a sword from the wall. Just like Noel, his ability was similar to hers, matching every kick and punch. How he knew Noel’s most effective moves eluded her. But then she remembered. Noel had touched Jayden as he thrust him against the wall – twice! For those split seconds, Morphus was able to absorb some of his energy, abilities or memories. But which ones? Had he held on long enough to learn of her condition?

  Aw, crap! Abby had also thrown Jayden to the wall at one point. Not to harm, but to intimidate. And he had latched onto her! Did he hold on long enough to absorb some of her energy as well? How many of her secrets did he learn that day?

  No wonder he infiltrated the Order. He most likely got a hand on every person at some point.

  After a tiresome battle, Noel wrapped his arms around and pinned her. Abby smacked the back of her head into his forehead and pushed off, tumbling across the room. Momentarily stunned, Noel grabbed a trident off the wall and threw it toward Abby where she stopped. The trident struck the wall before her, missing her face by inches. She focused in on the wall beside Noel. The hanging tridents began to shake. One by one, they flew off the wall and torpedoed towards him. He jumped, ducked and tumbled to avoid them.

  “Alright, I’ll play.” Noel transformed again. This time the pieces formed another familiar being: Eraticus. He was a monster greater than ten feet high and five feet wide. The imitation was immaculate. He was just as Abby remembered, with raw skin, three foot horns atop his head and razor-sharp claws on his hooves. Even the ragged scar left by Abby lined the left side of his face. An exact replica of her memory.

  The wooden stake cast aside on the floor changed into a gold sword. She recognized this weapon…the Gold Sword of Amantee. After fifteen decades of searching, she and Noel finally found it on a Turkish ship in the frozen seas of the northern Atlantic Ocean. After she lost to Eraticus, she became obsessed with learning how to kill him, determined to end his reign over her fellow hunters. It was then she learned a weapon had been forged by a blacksmith named Amantee and blessed by a god to destroy Eraticus. Before it could be given to a hunter, it was stolen and lost in the unforgiving seas.

  A sense of revelation came over Abby. She slyly headed towards the gold sword, to the weapon given by Athena.

  Eraticus kneeled on all four hooves and charged. Each step reverberated, pulsated through the ground and shook chips off the rocky walls. She tumbled quickly for the sword, grasping it just as Eraticus pinned her against the wall between his horns. Saliva dripped from his bare fangs as he snorted hot, stale air on her face. His lower left arm swung back, his face filled with rage. Their eyes met and locked in a hateful glare. In this instant, Abby angled the gold sword and thrust it into his chest. He squealed in pain and retreated, pulling himself from the blood soaked sword.

  She missed his heart, the one location she had to hit to kill him. Blood dripped from his side as he dissolved once more. He reappeared as a Sorcerer, draped in midnight robes with long silver hair and matching beard. Though armed with a wand and new appearance, his previous injury still remained and hindered him slightly.

  Disappointedly, Abby’s sword transformed into a wand. “Oh, that’s helpful,” she mumbled, subtly discarding it behind a stone pillar as she passed.

  The Sorcerer flung his arm in her direction. An invisible wall of air engulfed her and sent her flying across the room into a rock wall. Abby cried out in pain as she pierced her left side on the sharp rocks. She roughly pushed herself off the peak and fell to the floor. Sharp pains pulsated through the wound. She put pressure against the hole, but the blood seeped right through her fingers.

  The Sorcerer floated effortlessly across the floor, a devious smile upon his face. Huddled against the cavern wall, Abby used all her might to thrust her right hand towards Morphus in the ‘stop’ position. Her eyes flashed white, and the wind rushed and bounced the Sorcerer back, knocking his composure off balance. Abby closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. The wind in the room began to swirl, continually picking up speed until it lifted the Sorcerer up and away in the whirlwind. He tried to cast a spell in her direction but was unable to aim. Rocks around her burst into pieces with each misfire. Too weak to continue, Abby reluctantly released the magical hold. The wind and Sorcerer slowed to stillness.

  Abby moaned and cried as she tried to stand, the hole in her side leaking profusely now. In an instant the Sorcerer waved his wand at Abby. She became listless, trance-like. He placed his hands on her head and smiled. Memories flashed fast-forward in her mind. The intensity of the images made her eyes burn, made her head rush. Internally she screamed NO! Her head began to twitch, first slow, then quick. The images began to slow and the Sorcerer dug in deeper with his talon-tipped fingers. Painfully, Abby broke the hold and pushed the Sorcerer away. The intense dizziness faded.

  “Impressive,” he said, continuing to float about, keeping a ready eye on Abby. “No one’s ever been able to do that before. But too little, too late. Never in all my centuries have I seen this. Not only is your greatest fear your biggest weakness, but your greatest fear…” He cut himself off as he transformed into a million pieces. “…is yourself.”

  Abby stared in disbelief at the sight before her. She found herself looking directly in
to what she saw everyday in the mirror. Morphus was Abby down to the tiniest detail, including the matching tank top and pants. Even the wounds they both received to their left side were similar. Abby noticed the matching quartz and bay leaf amulet around her neck and wondered if it worked the way hers did.

  The only difference was the cold, black eyes staring back at her.

  Abby could feel the burn within her chest growl. It was eager to join the newly created twin just a few feet away.

  Morphus waved his hand and a pair of tridents were lifted by the wind and placed softly in her hands. She paced before Abby, taunting her. Abby eyed the wand. It had transformed into the wooden stake again, but was unfortunately out of reach. On the upside, it seemed Morphus hadn’t noticed the constantly changing weapon across the room. Weakened from blood loss, Abby opted to save her energy and not use the wind to call herself a pair of tridents. Instead, she pretended to pace as well, allowing her route to lead her to a nearby pair.

  “Poor little huntress,” Morphus said sarcastically. “You’ve been given so many gifts and you’ve never been able to balance them properly. Too afraid you’ll inherit your father’s evil powers and succumb to them. Betcha’ no one would love ya then. Not Noel, not Emily, not Valerie. Oh, wait,” she laughed psychotically, “I already killed her. It was only a matter of time before she figured out I was around.”

  Abby didn’t recognize herself in those cold eyes. Every facial feature she expressed was wicked.

  She wet her lips in anticipation. “Guess I should have taken the time to read her mind before I flung her off the cliff. Would have learned sooner about the witchcraft you picked up.” Morphus combined the tridents in her left hand, so the right could turn fire-red. A fireball formed atop her hand and she rolled it back and forth playfully, as if performing a disappearing coin trick. “You’ve inherited a few more powers since last time. Athena’s doing, no doubt. Spoiling her precious warrior with the most extreme of gifts.”

  Abby slyly paced her way toward the stake.

  “But I have to admit,” Morphus continued, “this one is my favorite. It’s a shame you don’t use it more often.” Morphus threw the fireball at Abby. She threw her hand up and closed it, bringing the fingertips together into a tight fist. The fireball extinguished itself.

  “Doesn’t mean I don’t know how to defend against them,” she retorted.

  “Pity.”

  The two huntresses jumped for one another. Morphus’ fighting instincts were comparable to Abby’s, which led to an exhausting battle that appeared mirror-image. It was easy to anticipate one another’s moves and strategies. Both were weakened, but continued to exchange kicks and punches.

  The two girls thrust each trident into the other’s chest. Both stumbled, spit up blood and stared coldly into the other’s eyes. They backed away as each removed the trident from her chest.

  Both were willing to disarm in order to acclimate to the new injury.

  “I’ve figured out your game plan,” Morphus said, eyeing the wooden stake across the room. “Seems Athena figured out my weakness after all. And if that weapon transforms into the weapon that’ll destroy whatever form I’m presently taking, then it’ll destroy you too.”

  Abby burst into a fit of heinous laughter. She couldn’t help it. She was woozy from the blood loss and still trying to acclimate her body to it.

  “I think you’re missing the bigger picture here,” she said, creating a huge square with her hands. Singing tauntingly, she added, “My god is better than your god.”

  “No!” the black-eyed female cried out. The sudden burst of anger and breath bent Abby’s double over in pain.

  “No? Open your eyes. Athena has totally rigged this fight. Take a look around. Your god supplied you with a room full of weapons, but not one of which can kill me.” Abby motioned to her wound. “Hurt me, yes. Kill me, no. Only that stake over there can finish me off. And without my death, you’ll never get out of this prison. And the only way to keep that stake is to remain a vampire yourself, which leaves you just as vulnerable. And sure, you could choose another vampire to take form, but you won’t. Athena made sure I became the most extraordinary vampire of all. No one can fight me but me, ensuring the most balanced fight ever. True equals. She has forced your immortal, ever-changing ass down to my level. So, I’ll say it again.” She sang again in a teasing fashion, “My god is better than your god.”

  Morphus screamed and rushed for the wooden stake. As did Abby. They reached it within nanoseconds of each other. Their determination was undeniable, but their efforts were weak. Their wounds caused them to wince and hunch over. Their flesh kept ripping. They tugged back and forth on the stake, awkwardly kicking, punching and tumbling, but neither was successful at claiming the weapon. One bad tumble into the wall sent the stake flying out of both their hands.

  The tumble also knocked the sachet loose from Abby’s pocket. The eyes on Abby’s double widened in joy as she used the wind to blow it to her. Her hand turned fire-red, and soon after, the sachet sparked. Abby did nothing as Morphus stepped back and threw it to the ground before her.

  The room filled with smoke, confusing Morphus. Abby laughed, hidden within the safety of the smoke, continually moving around.

  “You didn’t really think I’d perform the containment spell on you again, did you? My former self may have had to rely on it, but she and Athena made damn sure it was an effort of last resort this time.”

  “That spell is the only way you can ensure your immortality,” the fake Abby spat.

  Abby continued moving about the smoke. She may have appeared to be taunting her opponent, but in fact, she used the time to search for the lost weapon. The brown cloud of dust around her closely resembled the color of the ground, and made it difficult to see where the floor began and ended.

  “True, but it also ensures your immortality,” Abby said, trying to buy herself more time. “Whether I bind you to this dimension or you me, a loophole in the contract will let us continue this fight for an eternity. Let’s end the vicious cycle already.”

  Morphus jumped her from behind. Fingers gripped her neck and burned deep into her flesh. With the same tactic in mind, Abby twisted and shoved her right hand upon Morphus’ heart.

  Abby felt a sudden rush of rage flow through her body. For once in agreement, neither her good nor evil side wanted to die this night. Her enemy recoiled as she stared into a matching pair of black eyes. The burn radiated down Abby’s arm and her hand turned the strongest shade of fire-red she had ever seen – even more amazing since her vision was practically colorless at this moment. She felt her handprint burn through the cotton tank and into the flesh on Morphus’ chest. A powerful blow sent them flying across the room in opposite directions.

  The smoke was slow to dissipate. Neither Abby seemed to move, both burned and smudged from the explosion. The counterfeit Abby spit up blood and her heart pulsated up and down with each painful breath.

  Across the room, Abby suffered from her own injuries. She’d never felt a burn this excruciating before. The dizziness and illness was overwhelming. She prepared herself for the end – there was no going back.

  Using the painful heaves across the cavern as a guide, Abby slowly dragged her dead-weight body across the floor. A thick blood smear was left in her wake. As she collected the stake along the way, she was finally able to examine it. The stake was not laced with the lipid. It was actually a cleverly disguised tranquilizer gun, with an open tip and trigger top. She heard swishing when she shook it and assumed the liquid inside was the lipid phosphatidylserine.

  Morphus struggled more and more as Abby neared, but was unable to roll herself off her back. Her double pushed away with all her might, but was helpless as Abby towered over her. Abby pierced the wooden stake into the center of the charred handprint and slammed her hand down on the flat, blunt end. The stake popped and the liquid plunged into the heart.

  The fake Abby gurgled and froze. Bulging out in pain, the veins travelin
g away from the heart and out to the body thickened and turned a light shade of gray. The body gasped for air, first quickly, then slowly. For several minutes, Abby watched the effects of the lipid on her helpless opponent. The raspy sound was deafening and the sight chilling to watch. With eyes wide open, the head of her identical twin rolled lifelessly to the floor and blood drained from her mouth.

  Morphus’ body slowly dried out, mummified-like. The bones disintegrated into nothingness and left nothing but a fine powder on the floor. The wooden stake was all that remained.

  Unable to hold herself up any longer, Abby succumbed to the floor, next to the very spot her enemy departed from. She struggled to breathe but her pain was lessening now. A glorious numbness traveled the length of her body and removed the pain. The calmness caused the burn within her chest to withdraw and her green, color-viewing eyes to return to normal.

  Her eyes squinted, blinded by the sight above her. From the heavens, a stream of warm light surrounded her. She wanted nothing more than for the light to take her and put her out of misery. Abby couldn’t fight it anymore; a final breath released her lungs. Her last thought was of Noel, holding her in a tight embrace with her head resting in the crook of his neck, as she surrendered to unconsciousness. Her body became translucent and she faded away, leaving nothing more than a pool of blood across the floor.

  Chapter Forty

  The arena dim. Hours had passed since Abby and Jayden dissipated. Hunters and advisors lined the outskirts of the arena, armed with their favored weapons, knowing full well the winner of the battle would return to that same spot. Many paced back and forth, eager yet frightened of what was to come. Only the slightest whispers were heard, as if any sound would call the terror forward.

  For some reason, the children had been called upon to fight, to throw themselves into the path of danger. One of the little girls resembled Abby and crouched in a shadowed corner, rocking herself backwards and forwards, unsure of her surroundings or what her purpose here was.