With defiant anger, “I damn you! For every human you have killed. For every innocent child that you have tortured. For my son, I damn you!”
Suddenly from each of his palms, Steven sent alternating orbs of pure energy into Novacek. With each burst, the form of Novacek screamed out as the bolts electrocuted him. Enlil seemed to be trying to change form, trying to find one that was impervious to the effects, but the pulses were like a reset button that prevented him from doing so. With each burst, instead of growing weaker, Steven grew stronger, the raging storm supplying him with an ever growing, limitless power.
Steven continued to pummel Novacek though he lay still and lifeless. Steven felt no pity for him even as his last breath exited him.
And yet, Steven continued to assault him. He knew not how to let his rage die, to bring it to an end. It was Ashlyn, as she awoke within the bubble that told Steven to stop, fearing she might lose him.
Steven lowered his large arms. Facing his hands toward the ground, he sent the hastening stream of pulsing orbs into the desert floor. The sand beneath him began to crystalize and glow. Suddenly, Steven sent a last, massive pulse into Novacek and like a lightning rod; it drew all the energy Steven had sent into the ground unto Novacek.
Steven, in the blink of an eye, put up a shield, protecting Ashlyn and himself from the ensuing eruption.
Like a small atomic blast, the desert floor below Novacek exploded. The city even though more than a kilometer away was completely engulfed in the dust and raining debris.
Through the haze of dust, he saw Ashlyn, ten meters behind him, lying upon the ground.
A laugh drew his attention. His surprise could not have been more evident, as in turning round; he spotted Enlil, still in Novacek’s form rising from the bottom of a seventy-foot wide, blast crater. How he had survived, Steven had no idea.
Steven began to move toward him, his sword again at the ready.
Novacek began to transform—disappearing.
“Ok, so tell me, how did he turn invisible?”
Steven thought for a moment, “I don’t think he did—I think he just became something so small, it looked like he disappeared.”
“So, this isn’t going to be easy,” said Ash.
“It’s smoke and mirrors—little tricks like that one that make him appear stronger and more powerful than he is.”
Novacek suddenly appeared behind them. “I wonder how it is that you received your Gift? It can only be given to those who are—ah, I understand. You are— pure Anunnaki.”
Enlil’s eyes shifted to Ashlyn. His desire for an Anunnaki female clearly evident. “That explains much.” His eyes shifted back to Steven. “I should have realized humans could not be trusted. They created your whore, hiding her from me.
Let me ask you, Tin Man, do you like being Anunnaki? Is it not, god-like? If you will give your whore to me, I will spare your lives. I will let you rule at my side, giving you all the Anunnaki that I have created. They will obey you as they do me. In exchange, I will spare all the humans here. You can even have them as your slaves. I have no taste for them anymore. They are withered and dying. Take them—they are yours.”
“Serpent, your tyranny has come to an end.
You will never leave this world. You will never build your army to attack Heaven. We’ve made sure that none of your pure Anunnaki will be permitted to see the Keeper.
“Then let us finish this now, rusty one!” said Enlil.
“I made a vow, serpent! I will kill you. And I will make it as painful for you as you have made it for your victims!” snarled Steven.
“Steven, be patient! He’s goading you. We’ve got to work together to have a chance of defeating him!” Enlil then shifted into a Griffin. He had the head and wings of an eagle and the body of a lion.
His wings fanned out and beat at the air. With an eagle’s screech, he pointed his head at the sky and lifted himself aloft. To Steven, his wings looked too small for his weight and his cumbersome flight bore it out. Steven hoped he could use it to his advantage. Soaring high, the Griffin then made a large sweeping turn, coming back round to face them.
Steven shifted his feet into an attack posture and hefted the bronze sword high into the air, ready to take a swing.
Enlil started to dive. Steven moved, the ear-piercing screech of metal making Ashlyn wince, “A little oil wouldn’t have hurt, would it?”
Ash changed back into the tiger and bounded off so she’d be away from the sweeping arc of Talos’ sword. As the Griffin closed the distance, his mouth opened wide and he took a massively, large inhalation of air. As he exhaled, fire erupted in a great and mighty stream from his mouth. Blinded, Steven took his best guess and swung his sword. After Enlil passed, Steven squeakily turned to see the results. He’d missed, but—Ashlyn’s saber-toothed tiger was landing awkwardly upon the ground. Rolling once, she regained her footing. Steven peered upwards and saw that the Griffin’s right wing was badly shred and as a result, his flight was heavily labored. Her attack had hurt him.
Only as Ash bounded toward Steven, did he see that her right side was badly burned, her fur smoldering. “Ash, are you all right? You’ve taken a lot the last couple of weeks!”
“I’m fine.”
Steven wasn’t sure if he believed her but when he turned to check on Enlil, he saw that he was setting down a few hundred meters away. Even from this distance, his shrieks of pain filled the air.
“He’s letting his wing repair!”
“The Keeper had said we must not fight him strength against strength,” Ash reminded. “He has too much experience.”
“So he did! Let’s try this.”
“A dragon?”
“They are bigger, stronger, faster,” said Steven.
As Ashlyn transformed, Steven couldn’t help but chuckle. “Can’t hide from mother nature can you?”
Ash looked down to see that her female dragon had a very large set of breasts. “Guess not, but then again, I have no idea of what a female dragon is supposed to look like?”
“I like your version. I wonder how dragons do it? Could be interesting! Gives a whole new meaning to getting some tail!”
Ashlyn gave him a smack with her spiked tail. “That’s all the tail you’re getting!”
As their wings beat at the air, carrying them aloft, Steven took a large inhalation of breath. As he’d hoped, when he exhaled strongly, it caught fire and shot forth. “I don’t know how it works Ash but it does.”
Ash followed his lead and lit the ground ablaze.
“He’s lifting off Ash, let’s go!”
The Griffin had risen into the air, his wing not yet fully repaired. His flight still unsteady.
Like a fighter in a strafing run, Steven lined up for the attack, swooping down upon him. As Steven took in a bellyful of air, Enlil spun, flying backwards. It exposed his deadly claws, and though Steven engulfed him in flame, Enlil grasped at the air.
Steven turned round, expecting to see Enlil in flames, but what he saw was Ashlyn caught within his four claws.
Ash was struggling to free herself, but each movement only made his claws gouge deeper. Her spiked tail flailed, striking him with blows that seemed to intrigue him.
As his viciously, burning eyes locked upon Steven, he inserted the hook of his beak beneath her neck, piercing her deeply.
“Steven!” Ash screamed.
Enlil then ran the hook downward, slicing her open, down to her stomach, expelling her entrails. Blood gushed into the air like red rain. In a move purely designed to show his supremacy over them, Enlil began tearing Ashlyn’s organs apart with his beak.
A loud blood-curdling shriek from Ashlyn told of the damage he was doing.
“Noooooo!” Steven roared, as he swooped toward them.
As Steven closed the distance, Enlil released her, letting her plummet toward the ground far below.
Steven dove hard, hoping to catch her. Ash, craning her head upwards, “I will love you forever-” Even as her
eyes glazed into a dead stare, with her dying breath she whispered into his mind, “Behind you!”
Steven looked over his right wing to see Enlil descending upon him. They spun, their bodies tangling, their claws locking.
As Steven tumbled round, he caught sight of Ashlyn, her body in the midst of reverting to her human form. She hit the ground, slowly transforming into nothing more than a lump of torn, human flesh.
Thrashing wildly, Steven’s surging adrenaline allowed him to break one claw free. Running a talon down the griffin’s chest, he made a deep gash. Enlil cried out, releasing him.
Capturing the air, Steven glided down to Ashlyn’s side, where he then changed back into his own form. Tears flooded down his face as he knelt at her side and wiped the loose strands of hair from her delicate face. Her skin, smooth and soft, seemed to have already begun to cool. Her broken and shred body had taken too much for even a god to bear.
The griffin, hovering in the air above him, beat his wings haughtily in victory.
Steven looked up at him, his eyes red and filled with tears. He gave a strained, defiant scream that drained him of the will to live. With Ashlyn’s death, his heart was ripped from him. Even vengeance seemed unimportant. He had lost all that he held dear.
“See insolent human, you know not real power!” Enlil descended, landing in front of him.
Steven raised Ashlyn into his arms, holding her to his chest. He could feel her blood flowing down his legs.
“Let me end this now. I will make your death quick, if not painless.”
A spark of hatred found its way to the surface from the dark depths of Steven’s crushed heart, “The next time we meet Enlil, you have my promise that I will rip your heart out with my bare hands!”
Steven changed into the dragon, and with a flap of his large wings, he lifted off the ground. The Griffin pounced, his swiping claw missing Steven by only centimeters. As Steven flew off, carrying Ashlyn’s dead body in his arms, he turned to see the Griffin giving chase, but its bulky form and injured chest made flight cumbersome and he knew that he would not be caught.
An hour later, back at the wall, Steven landed and once again took his human form. “Keeper, I know I gave orders not to allow us in, but-”
Chapter 21
“You may enter, Lord Steven. I have seen that which has befallen you,” said the Keeper. Even as Steven entered the wall, he could feel his own life force ebbing away.
Steven carried Ashlyn down the path that led to the tree. As he gently set her down at the edge of the stream, his legs grew weak, and he collapsed beside her, his tears streaming. He laid his head on her shoulder and took her hand in his.
“I am sorry, Lord Steven.”
“Is there anything that can be done to help her? Anything?”
“I know of nothing that can be done. I wish there were.”
Scooping up handfuls of water from the stream, Steven washed off Ashlyn’s blood-spattered face. Her death desolated his soul and filled his heart with tormented anguish. “Soon, we will be reunited even if it is in death.” Steven kissed her lips and held her tight.
Strangely, an obscure, anonymous poem Renee had once read to him now came to mind. It seemed somehow, prophetic. He repeated it softly to himself.
“As her playful spirit renewed my soul,
so did her gentle touch renew my youth.
As her sensual smile inspired my love,
so did her beauty inspire my heart.
And so it has always been
that for treasures of such value,
nations have gone to war
and men have found the poet within themselves.
The poet within me,
had once sung to the heavens in praise of her,
but alas, the anger of the warrior within me now reigns
as I mourn her meaningless death, and pursue vengeance.
And yet, hiding within the warriors shadow,
my saddened poet prays, waiting for the day
when destiny will arise and take me to her.
Waiting for the day when I will sing again.”
“Lord Steven?”
“Yes?”
“Your words hold much beauty and deep meaning, but I must ask, are you injured as well? Your life force is fading?”
“No, I’m not injured. But it is true, that I am dying. With her death, my life has also ended.”
“I feel your pain, Lord Steven. Let me help.”
The Keeper induced Steven into a deep slumber so he could heal.
In Steven’s dreams, they were together again—“I am forever yours, my lord.”
“Yes, forever!” The two of them soared on the winds of their love. It was wondrous and they’d never been happier. The playground of the gods was theirs for the taking.
Steven awoke slowly and for the briefest instant—he forgot about the tragedy. He turned over, expecting to see Ashlyn’s radiant smile, but there beside him was the brutal reality. Her lifeless, shredded corpse lay as before. It was a nightmare from which he would never awaken.
“Steven, I saw that you needed rest—but, I do not understand why your life force is still fading.”
“You misunderstood the meaning behind my words. To live, I need more than rest—I need Ashlyn. Ashlyn and I are connected on a molecular level. We are each a resonant amplifier of the other’s life force. Without her, my life force will die. I will die. I have only a matter of days left to live.”
“I am sorry.”
“Keeper? How do you feel about revenge?”
“The Anunnaki believe that revenge is wrong. They believe that killing is wrong, except for in the most extreme of circumstances, where no other choice exists. However—the words in the poem you spoke have given me much to consider. It touched my heart and for the first time, I think I can understand the depth of your loss.”
“But, do you understand revenge?”
“I do now.”
“And, how do you feel about it?”
“As I heard you say to Enlil—I wish to tear his heart out with my own hands.”
“You heard me say that?”
“Yes, I witnessed the battle.”
Steven stroked Ashlyn’s cool skin with the back of his hand, “If only I still had, Avenger.” Steven said softly to himself.
“Why?”
“Because, we had a machine aboard her that could regenerate cells. I don’t know—it might have possibly saved her.”
“How does it work?”
“I’m not a scientist; I only know that it studies the patterns within living cells. It finds the genetic encoding in healthy DNA and uses it to replicate more of the undamaged living tissue, replacing that which is dead.”
“It could bring people back to life?”
“There were times where it was said to have—yes.”
“Lord Steven, I have a regenerative device inside the wall that has given me my ability to last through the ages.”
“Would it work on her?” said Steven, his elation daring to hope.
“I do not know? I have no record of it having ever been tried on another life form. You need not ask though, I would like to try.”
“Thank you. Tell me what to do.”
“Carry her into the wall.”
The interior of the wall was beautiful and it was many times larger than Steven had suspected. It looked more like an advanced factory, housing vast amounts of equipment. An armada of miniature machines clinked and clacked everywhere, scurrying about the floor, walls and ceiling, performing a variety of unknown tasks. Steven assumed most of them were dedicated to doing repairs and maintenance.
“To your left is another room. Take her there.”
As Steven neared the door to the next room, it slid aside. Inside—a dozen, large, glass tubes filled with a blue, effervescent liquid, bubbled. “Is that you, Keeper?”
“It is.”
“You’re beautiful.”
“I prefer, handsome!”
Oth
er than the deeply resonant, authoritative voice the Keeper used, it was the first gender specific comment Steven could remember hearing the Keeper make.
“Lay her on the table to the left of my containment tubes.”
After gently lying her down, Steven stepped back. A hum from above drew his attention. A device was swiveling round. It lowered, hovering just inches above Ashlyn. It began to emit a white light and move down the length of her body. “What is it doing?”
“At the moment, it is scanning her molecular patterns, DNA as you call it. It will determine if there is enough intact structure in her living tissue to regenerate her original patterns.”
“How long will it take?”
The light stopped.
“It is done. The spark of life yet remains within her. I have enough pieces of her original pattern to initiate the process. I am having a chamber prepared for her in the next room. You must place her inside it.”
“She will live?”
“She is dead as you understand death and indeed her wounds are extensive. Nevertheless, the Gifts have helped slow the loss of the spark of life in her cellular structure. To answer your question, I am unsure. I hope so.”
“How long before we know?”
“I do not know. I have nothing to use as a comparison.”
“Can I help?”
“For Ashlyn, it will be like being reborn. She will need care. Her skin will be shedding its dead and damaged cells for new ones.”
“Do you know if her memories will be intact?”
“If she survives, there are small pathways inside her brain—where the spark of memory is yet strong.”
Steven remembered a term paper Renee had written back at the Academy on microtubules,—the place where quantum mechanics create the conscious mind—and the place where the soul, in theory, resides. He felt encouraged. He felt hope.
“Lord Steven—Enlil has just left Hades.”
“He left the planet? For where?”
“I suspect that he is gathering his forces that are scattered on the other worlds in this system, to bring them against you.”
EARTH'S LAST WAR (CHILDREN OF DESTINY Book 1) Page 37