Mystique's Journey

by Daniel A. Jones

  “I thought you already knew how to use it? You do so many different things.”

  “I know just a few simple phases or spells. Most of the things I do are abilities like yours. Every member of my race is born with the knowledge of the phrase used to summon them. I purchased a phrase that will allow me to take control of a human’s action for a short time. It’s strong enough for me to be able to affect humans on the other side of the barrier. It cost me all the energy I’d collected over twenty of your years, or roughly four souls.”

  “Wait a minute. That means it takes you roughly five years to collect the same energy that you get from killing one person?” Mystique was a bit amazed at the realization. “No wonder you are so willing to help me kill people.”

  “I told you before, everything I choose to do, I do to gain power and improve my survivability. Now you begin to understand the value placed on knowledge of the language of power. Three words cost me twenty years of work and that was just how to speak them properly. The knowledge of how to write it is even more valuable.”

  “You mentioned the ancient. You’re hoping to learn something you can trade for your freedom,” Mystique observed, proud of herself for figuring out Shektee’s true goal.

  “I wish, but once you are in the service of an ancient, the only way to end it is to die. I hope to serve it for a very long time. My goal is to gain favor from it that could keep me alive when it would normally kill me, or it may reward me with a new ability or enchanted item. The ancient we are serving is very wise and generous. I believe he will give me a suitable reward.”

  “I get it. I’ll try to come up with a way to find out who created the ward.” The conversation had touched on a topic Mystique really didn’t want to think about. She had no intention of being anyone or any thing’s servant.

  “I’m going back up on the roof to get some sleep. Why don’t you go practice feeding on people without killing them, and if you can keep them from remembering what happened that would be helpful.”

  “Very well. I will return shortly,” Shektee said before transforming into her winged version and flying off, eager for the chance to feed, even if she couldn’t kill her prey.

  ***

  The next morning Mystique woke stiff and sore from sleeping on the cold roof. Shektee was sitting nearby with her back to some piece of machinery. Mystique slowly stood up and stretched. She realized she’d gotten used to the comfort of a nice bed. They were going to have to find someplace better today she decided.

  “How did it go last night?”

  “I fed well and as requested no one died and none will remember what happened,” Shektee replied as she stood up.

  “What are we going to do today?”

  “I was thinking that you could change your appearance to look like you did on the ship and rent a hotel room. You could use the mind control trick to get the desk clerk to check us in without checking our identification. I’ll play the part of your younger sister.”

  “If you think that is best. Will you be allowing me to feed again like I did last night?” Shektee asked hoping the answer was yes.

  “Sure. Nobody’s dead and no alarms are going off, so I don’t think even Angelica would be able to deny you the right to eat. I don’t think she’d be happy, but she wouldn’t stop you. As long as we aren’t doing something else, you should be able to hunt for at least a few hours every night,” Mystique replied, guessing that Shektee would be pleased with the answer; from the smile on her face, she was.

  “I figure we stay in the hotel a week or so and let people forget about us. Then we can go talk to a few of the prostitutes to find their handler. The first guys who were guarding me thought I was going to be one of their prostitutes, so Lenny must be connected to them in some way,” Mystique explained as she collected her stuff and got ready to climb down.

  “How do you plan to choose the hotel we will stay at?” Shektee asked, walking up beside Mystique.

  “I’m not sure. Got any suggestions?”

  “Yes. Bruce seems resourceful and loyal to you. I think we should get his help. You clearly do not know how to proceed and I know even less. I am very confident that we can easily kill anyone on this planet, but that won’t help us disappear or find the humans we are after. Bruce has proven to be a knowledgeable human. I think he could be of assistance.”

  “True, but I made his mom a promise that I would leave him alone.”

  “Will I didn’t, and his assistance may save the lives of a few innocent humans. I really do not care how many humans we kill but Angelica will. How about I ask for his help and if he refuses than we’ll have to figure it out ourselves?” Shektee suggested.

  Mystique wanted time to think so instead of answering she flipped over the ledge and started climbing down. She took her time, carefully dropping from ledge to ledge. She was in no hurry to reach the ground and continue the conversation. She knew she cared about Bruce, she remembered that she had feelings for him, but without Angelica she just couldn’t bring them to life. When she finally reached the ground, she decided she would ask him. She knew she might regret it in the future, but for now he could be a big help.

  They walked out of the alley onto one of the main roads heading into the city. It was close to six and the road was filled with morning traffic. They turned left, away from the spaceport, back toward the entertainment district. Shektee took a long look at Cathleen’s before following Mystique. Most of the vehicles heading into the city were small delivery trucks and vans. A large number of the drivers honked or whistled at Shektee as they passed.

  Mystique checked the time and figured Bruce wouldn’t be awake yet. She led Shektee into a small diner, where she took a seat in a booth. When the waitress arrived, Mystique ordered them both a meat lover’s omelet and tea. The diner was almost full with only a few of the booths empty.

  Shektee sat back and felt for the emotional energy in the room. The activity level was high but emotionally most of the people were calm, so the energy level was pretty low. She would not be able to siphon off much energy. She did notice a few of the men were feeling a little aroused. She made eye contact with one of them, which was difficult since he wasn’t looking at her face.

  The man and his friend walked over to their table and sat down. Mystique was about to kidney punch the guy who sat next to her when Shektee tapped her on the shin. A quick glance told her that Shektee wanted her to be nice. Mystique had flashes of memories involving her mother and her visitors. These men wanted one thing and she would kill them before she gave it to them.

  “Morning, ladies. I hope you don’t mind us joining you? My name’s Ed and this here’s Frank.”

  “We don’t mind at all having a couple of big, rugged men sitting with us to keep the riffraff away. Are you two heading to work?” Shektee asked in a sweet, inviting voice that made Mystique want to vomit.

  “Nah. We work the night shift. We just stopped in for a quick bite before heading home. I haven’t seen you two in here before. I would’ve remembered beautiful women like you,” Ed said, trying to be charming.

  “We just stopped in for a bite to eat and a phone. Do you have a phone I could have?” Shektee replied, adding a little magical charm to the request. Mystique heard the change in her voice and looked up to pay more attention to what was going on. Shektee was looking from one man to the other, making sure they were both under her control.

  “Here. Take mine,” Ed replied, pulling his phone out; but before he could hand it to Shektee, Frank slapped it away and offered her his phone instead.

  Shektee grabbed the offered phone before looking at Ed and saying, “I guess Frank wants me more, so you’ll just have to kill him if you want me.”

  It was Mystique’s turn to kick Shektee in the shin. Shektee looked at her and gave an exasperated sigh, putting a hand on Ed’s arm before he attacked his friend. “On second thought, I think it would be better if the two of you kissed and made up. Now run along home. Practice on each other everything you
want to do with me,” Shektee instructed in the same compellingly sexy voice.

  Ed and Frank climbed out of the booth and practically ran from the diner. Mystique stared at Shektee, trying to figure out why she’d done as she had to the two men. They were annoying, but there was no reason for her to play with them. “Why’d you do that?” she finally asked.

  “Amusement. And we needed a phone to contact Bruce,” Shektee explained as she started to eat her omelet. She found the taste interesting and enjoyable. “What do you care? You were going to kill Frank for sitting next to you.”

  “I was just wondering why you would waste the energy,” Mystique told her as she went back to eating her own omelet.

  “Manipulating humans like that and then siphoning the emotional energy they create is how I’ve fed for centuries. It’s habit now and I’m learning to see the humor in twisting their emotions,” Shektee explained.

  “Okay. Just try not to cause a commotion everywhere we go. We’re trying not to be noticed,” Mystique scolded Shektee as she took the phone.

  The two finished their breakfast in silence. Mystique sent Bruce a text message asking him to call her at this number. She’d decided it would be best for her to ask Bruce for help. The phone was sitting on the table so they would both know when it rang. Mystique was sipping her tea when it finally did. She set down her cup and picked up the phone. The display showed an unknown caller identity. Mystique answered, hoping it was Bruce.

  “Mystique?” Bruce asked, unsure what was going on.

  “Yes. I would like your help. I understand and will not be upset with you if you refuse, but you might save a few innocent lives.”

  “What, yeah, I’ll help. What kind of trouble are you in? Where are you?” Bruce started to ramble, then stopped abruptly. He really wanted answers but realized Mystique wasn’t going to tell him anything until she was ready, and then she was only going to tell him part of the story. Asking her a bunch of questions was only going to annoy her.

  “Shektee will meet you in your dorm room after class. She’s your dinner date and will bring you to me,” Mystique instructed.

  “Okay. Should I bring anything?” Bruce asked, not thrilled about having to be alone with Shektee; she gave him the creeps.

  “Your computer and try not to upset Shektee because she’s not as forgiving as I am,” Mystique suggested before ending the connection.

  “Now what?” Shektee asked, bored with sitting around. The closeness of so much prey and the temptation to feed was starting to wear on her.

  “I’m not sure. We should hide and wait until it’s time to meet Bruce, but I don’t feel like hiding. I know what you want to do but there’re too many witnesses,” Mystique replied before finishing her tea. “For now let’s just walk around and see what we can find. Later we’ll go meet Bruce.”

  ***

  The girls spent the day wandering the streets of the entertainment district. Mystique was trying not to be noticed so she found herself having to dodge other pedestrians. Shektee, on the other hand, was getting a lot of attention. Every guy who walked by and some of the women stared at her, fantasizing about her. She enjoyed the attention and smiled at those giving off the most lustful energy.

  Mystique stopped at a few clothing stores to buy Shektee some outfits of her own. On a whim they went into an adult fetish store and Shektee found she liked most of the outfits she saw. Mystique had guessed she’d like the slutty look and this was the perfect place for them to pick her up something to wear. They’d decided to have Shektee pose as a prostitute and see who showed up. Mystique’s mother had told her about pimps, and she figured at least one would show up to take ownership of Shektee.

  Shektee’d suggested Mystique pick up a few outfits of her own but Mystique got upset at the thought of looking like a prostitute. Shektee didn’t push the issue but decided to talk to Mystique about it later. The fact that Mystique didn’t buy anything just allowed Shektee to buy more. When it came time to pay, she learned a valuable lesson about money.

  Shektee knew about money and understood how it worked, but she wasn’t sure of its value. In her society the strong tended to take what they wanted, and trade only happened between those close to the same power level. Mystique had explained that the police would help weaker humans, so you needed to purchase items or risk being hunted by the police. Shektee wasn’t really worried about being hunted by any human but Mystique didn’t want the extra attention. Shektee was starting to understand why Mystique used her obfuscate ability so much; it was part of her personality. Mystique simply didn’t want anyone to notice her.

  They were using the money Mystique had kept in her room and it wasn’t going to last long. Money had two forms from what Shektee could tell: one was a small computer chip; the other a collection of coins, some metal while others were plastic. Mystique explained that the plastic coins had amounts stamped on them to let everyone know how much they were worth. A small electronic chip imbedded in the plastic coins was used to stop counterfeiters. Mystique was not sure but she’d heard the punishment for counterfeiting was death or life in prison. The metal coins were made of gold and silver and their valve was determined by their weight. Mystique had started with a few gold coins and a handful of silver. All of the gold was gone and only a few of the silver remained. Mystique was hoping to get some money from Bruce.

  The computer chip was used as identification. It had the person’s medical, education, financial, and criminal history in its memory. A special computer code was required to change any of the information on the chip and only authorized people who were allowed access to the code. Mystique had one of the chips, but she told Shektee that people could track its use. They were going to have to try and find someone to forge one for Shektee and a new one for Mystique. Mystique didn’t know how to get in touch with Names, the man who’d forged her first chip, and she wasn’t sure if he was working for Lenny and the Irishman or not. They were going to have to do without for now and see what came up.

  They were in the middle of crossing Bernard Street when Shektee stopped. She stood very still with her head slightly cocked, as if listening for something. Mystique had to pull her out of the path of the oncoming traffic that showed no signs of slowing down. After a few minutes, Shektee regained her senses.

  “Daemon is no longer on this plane of existence. He is on my home plane.”

  “That means the ship they’re on has jumped. It’s just you and me now. Daemon would never know if you killed me and went off hunting on your own,” Mystique half-joked, wondering if that was what Shektee would do.

  “Tempting, but you’ve proven to be too useful to kill without a reason,” Shektee replied with a mischievous smile. She didn’t add that the ancient would know and probably punish her; no need volunteer any information Mystique could use against her.

  “So, are you ready—” Mystique stopped midsentence as a man in a business suit walked up to them. He was in his late twenties, with brown hair and brown eyes. The look he was giving her irritated Mystique. He was a few inches taller than she was and was a little overweight. Over all, he wasn’t a bad-looking guy.

  “Afternoon, ladies. I was wondering if you wanted to entertain at a party in my apartment,” he asked with a smile.

  “Sure. It’s going to cost you a hundred credits for me. My sister doesn’t entertain,” Shektee said before Mystique could say anything.

  “No problem. She’s a little young for me anyway.”

  “So what’s your name, party boy?” Shektee asked as she slid up next to the man and hugged his arm.

  “You can call me John,” John replied as he started walking them to a car. At the car, John opened the front passenger door for Shektee and the rear door for Mystique. He closed the doors once they were in and settled. Running around the car, John climbed in behind the wheel and sped off.

  Mystique started to feel tired and relaxed back into the seat. She hadn’t realized how much walking they’d done and now that she was sitting d
own she felt the soreness in her feet. Shektee leaned her head back on the rest, assuming the drug in the air was meant to render them unconscious. Shektee played the victim and hoped Mystique would also play along.

  Mystique realized she was being drugged too late to stop the effects. John had been watching her more closely than Shektee, since Shektee seemed to have succumbed to the drug. He tapped a button with his foot, causing a pane of armored glass to slide up from the front seat separating Mystique from her target. Even in her drugged condition, Mystique was able to throw only one of her spikes into John’s neck before the glass was fully in place. Unfortunately, Mystique was already weakened by the poison so the spike didn’t penetrate deeply. John ignored the sudden pain as he focused on shooting Shektee with the auto injector he’d pulled from under his seat. Shektee fumbled her arms, acting like she was trying to fend him off, and allowed him to inject her.

  Mystique felt the adrenaline rush clearing away the effects of the drug. She couldn’t believe Shektee had allowed this man to kidnap them. Mystique skipped right over anger and became enraged. She pulled both of her fighting knives and started slicing and stabbing at first the glass divider then the car seat. She was determined to escape.

  John watched through the rearview mirror as Mystique went berserk, tearing apart his backseat. He was going to have to replace the seat area. He had girls struggle to get free before, but this one was crazy. He was going to have to electrocute her if she didn’t calm down. He hated to waste such a nice piece of meat but at least the electric shock would tenderize her a bit. John was about to hit the button when he felt a sharp pain under his jaw.