The Soul Eaters (The Thin Hex Line Book 1)

by Gwyndolyn Russell

  Another blink. It was a wolf. Blinked again. Armor.

  Reynolds pushed her glasses up to rub the bottom of her palm into her eye. Was she dreaming? Something must have been in the air. Maybe it was that ardrizian ale she drank last night.

  She gasped at what she had done, pulled her glove off and pulled a new one on.

  "Just leave it." She said. "As long as it's not in our way."

  "G-good call." Michael pulled himself back towards the printer. "What is that thing?"

  "Hopefully it'll be here for a while. I've never seen anything like it. Nor have I read about it."

  "Why is it here?"

  She stared at the creature for a good moment. It made her think of her time as an intern. An old man was admitted into the hospital, and his closest relative was actually just an old dog. A good hunting dog back in the day and it sat next to its master till the end, even long after he had passed away. She saw or rather felt the way Fenris was staring at Jackal. A sense of no understanding of the situation, just wanting its master to be okay.

  "It's concerned about Jack."

  Michael said nothing. He had no idea why it would care. There's no way it was kept a secret for this long on the ship. He never heard Jackal mention anything like it.

  Both focused on fixing Jackal's leg. Michael helped gather all the broken pieces and handed each one to Reynolds. He also handled the vacuum to clean up the little blobs of blood that floated from the cuts. They fitted the rods in place with screws. Glued the pieces back together with a special substance that would promote the growth of bones.

  After half an hour, his leg was stitched back up. A specially made cast had been printed out and fitted in place. It was lightweight, designed like a spider web. He was not even going to know he had one on.

  Reynolds let Michael handle the rest while she cleaned herself. All the while Fenris stood in the doorway, an unmoving statue. When it saw that Jackal was tucked under a blanket, it slowly approached for a closer look.

  "He's just sleeping." Michael said.

  Fenris looked to him, then down to Jackal.

  "Mjolnir said he was caught in a fight." Reynolds dried her hands with a towel. "Do you happen to know?"

  Maybe it understood them. Maybe it didn't. If dogs could form an understanding of humans, then surely this strange, ethereal creature could, too.

  Its head lowered, shoulders dropped. A claw pointed to its chest.

  Reynolds studied the creature. Each move it made. The way it breathed and how the lights on its armor faded in and out in tandem.

  Whatever it was, the creature was fascinating. A new discovery. Something that had not found its way into any book she studied, or paper she read. She could not remember anything of similarity. The same armor design, the same posture. She imagined what its skeleton looked like, the way the muscles attached and wrapped.

  She leaned in closer, wanting to touch it. It took all her willpower to keep her fingers from its metallic surface. The metal was scratched and dented. It showed signs of healing. Metal that could regrow like flesh. These were scars! The metal was layered on itself with elegant curves, points, and twists. Where the pieces joined up, flesh, no, black muscle sinew surfaced, attaching the pieces together.

  Her self-control waned. She touched the soft flesh. Something sharp as a scalpel got her finger. She pulled back with the smallest gasp. Blood pooled at the tip of her finger, pooled into little bubbles that floated away from her.

  Confused and a little frightened, she pulled away from the creature so she could stop the bleeding.

  Fenris turned to her and followed her.

  "It's fine. It's fine!" She said waving it off. "It's just a prick."

  "What happened?" Michael stood on her other side.

  "I touched it. Must have been a sharp edge."

  Fenris' head tilted side to side. With a raise of its arm, all the individual layers of the armor stood up nearly straight. Both leaned in close to see.

  "Sharp as a knife." Reynolds stated. "Oh, I need to study you."

  Its head tilted once more as it lowered its arm.

  Reynolds walked around the creature, looking it over. As she did so, it shifted from its humanoid figure to its wolf figure. That was the most interesting part. Could it control it? How did it do it? A thousand questions raced through her mind.

  Fenris hovered in place, watching her as she came around.

  "Dr. Reynolds, how is-" Reaper stopped mid-sentence as he pulled himself into the room.

  Everyone turned to look at him.

  He stared at them in confusion.

  "I see you met Fenris." He scratched his cheek.

  "Fenris?" Reynolds perked up. So it had a name and what a wonderful name it had. "Like the great wolf deity?"

  "A wolf deity?"

  "Yes. Ancient Norwegian mythos. Thousands of years ago, a tale was written about a wolf, son of one of the gods, who was feared by all the other gods due to its growing strength."

  "Interesting. So you study ancient history as well as biology?"

  "Only when I'm bored." She sighed. "It's come from that ship, hasn't it?"

  "Yeah. Fauriei was letting him hitch a ride. Something hit them. He protected them."

  "Wonderful! What of the others?"

  "Fauriei was the only survivor. We were attacked. How's Jackal?"

  "He's going to be asleep for a while still, but he's fine. He won't be walking on that leg for a couple of weeks."

  "Fenris, did you get hurt, too?" Reaper asked.

  With only silence from the creature, Reaper sighed.

  "He has been watching Jackal since he came in." Michael stated.

  "Must feel bad for what happened." Reaper proposed.

  "What do you mean?"

  "Fenris stepped on him. I think."

  Their eyes widened.

  Fenris' head lowered.

  "One of those monsters almost got a hold of him. Fenris fought it off, but Jackal was stuck beneath them."

  "He's lucky that's all he came away with." Michael looked back to Jackal, who was still asleep.

  "So, it has sympathy." Reynolds touched her lip. “Does it speak?”

  Reaper shrugged.

  “Well, you must stay with me, Fenris!” She grinned, showing off pearly white teeth.

  “There’s gonna be time. Fauriei asked us to take him where he needs to go.” Reaper stepped out the door. “Please tell me when he wakes up.”

  Reaper left. Fenris watched him go, then followed him. Skirting right passed Reynolds, who tried to stop it. The creature reached up to touch his shoulder, but stopped itself.

  Halting, he turned around. Arms crossed over his chest, his eyes narrowed. “I’m a human, man, not a fleebeeron. However, you and Fauriei talk, it ain’t working with me. Can you speak? Write?”

  The creature stood there like an imposing statue. Its head tilted, the lights on the armor concentrated on one side of its face. Its jaw lowered, twitched as if it were trying to speak.

  Reaper waited patiently, a blink transforming the creature into a wolf, sitting there and looking him in the eye. The crimson cracks in place of its eyes seemed to swirl with fire.

  Darkness stretched out like wings, slowly enveloping Reaper in frost. He could feel each breath travel through his chest. He could feel the wolf’s like an aftershock. Each breath brought them closer, sinking into each wave.

  He could not pull his eyes away. Shake the incoming shadows. He was stuck in place.

  The wolf shook its head, a grumble turned whine. Its eyes shut.

  The darkness retracted. A wave of light from the ceiling crashed down over him, washing away the mud of shadow.

  “What?” Reaper blinked. Lightheaded, he floated backward.

  Fenris pulled its head away, giving an audible huff.

  He swore he heard it speak, but the sound was incomprehensible.

  The creature gestured its claws towards itself.

  He rubbed the side of his face. He should hav
e eaten breakfast. Maybe that was why he was feeling sick. He grabbed a bar angled at the edge of the wall that met the ceiling.

  Reaper watched it, that strange feeling of their breathing patterns slowly syncing hung in his chest. He was at a loss for words.

  Fenris stared at him with a blank expression, if it could even make facial expressions. Reaper got the sense of confusion from it. It didn't understand why he looked at it so strangely.

  "Did you say something?"

  No answer.

  "Can you write?"

  No answer.

  The nausea softened, yet Reaper's mind raced with blurry thoughts. He wondered if he should head back to the doctor. Maybe something else was on that ship.

  "Fauriei is in her room resting." Reaper said. Maybe the creature wanted to know about her.

  It shook its head, pointed at him.

  "I know she wants you to stay---"

  Fenris brushed passed him, careful not to touch. It pulled itself down the hall a few meters before stopping. It looked back to him.

  The wolf wanted to be followed. Reaper entertained the idea, hoping it could take his mind off the sickness. He followed Fenris through the ship to the bridge. How it knew the way Reaper was unsure.

  Fenris helped itself inside. Those still sitting at their consoles turned, at first to greet Reaper, but at the sight of Fenris freaked out. One screamed, a few gasped, the others stared wide eyed.

  Reaper raised a hand.

  "It's all right. He's with us."

  "What the fuck is it?!" Willis choked.

  Reaper shot a glare at him. "Have you forgotten your manners?"

  "Sorry, Captain." He sat back down.

  "I think I'm going to be sick." A woman covered her mouth.

  Fenris did not show any emotion to their disgusting reactions. It was focused on scanning the room.

  "Sit down! All of you!" Reaper snapped.

  "There is no excuse to forget your training! You will treat Fenris with the same respect as any other species!"

  Everyone quieted down and looked back to their consoles. Reaper watched them all for a good minute, a scowl permanent on his face.

  Fenris pushed itself over to Irzazee, who leaned away from its shifting form. He watched the creature, assuring it wouldn't press anything vital.

  After a moment, Fenris placed a paw on the console which activated the holographic map in the center of the room. The map shimmered blue, zooming out just enough to show the Syndicate's location in their current solar system.

  Four planets of similar size, rotated around a brilliant white star, only slightly bigger.

  Fenris pushed from the console to the captain's chair. It looked to Reaper to assure he was still watching. Then it gestured at the hologram, the motions of its hand zooming out further to show the crab nebula. Then it zoomed into a system on the other side of the nebula. A large system with two stars trapped in a dance of death. Twelve planets were visible on the map, spinning around the two stars. They spun at different speeds and different extremes from one another, always narrowly missing one another. One large planet showed it was mostly water with two continents that wrapped like a saddle over the northern axis.

  Fenris pointed to that planet.

  Reaper took his seat, a foot tucked under a bar.

  "That's where you need to go?"

  Fenris nodded.

  "That entire system could blow up at any moment." Irzazee stated. "I do not recommend venturing there."

  "I don't think the ship could handle that kind of force. We have standard stabilizers, those planets will rip the hull apart." Willis added.

  "What's so important there?" Reaper figured his question would go unanswered.

  Fenris shook its head. It did not want to say. It raised a hand in a short wave.

  "How will you get out of there?"

  It shook its head again.

  "You're going to stay there?"

  It nodded.

  "Why do you need to be there? It's dangerous. In a system like that, you won't see the end come."

  Fenris' head lowered. It shrugged, letting its furry cloak drape over its shoulders. It no longer looked to Reaper. The lines of lights in place of its eyes were concentrated on the floor. It pointed to the planet once more, then to itself. Gave a nod. Pushed itself out of the bridge.

  Reaper sighed, pressing his palm to his face.

  "So…" Willis chimed in. "What was that?"

  "That's where he needs to go." Reaper answered.

  "And it?"

  "Not the slightest clue. I don't think it can talk. Fauriei can understand it, but I ain't got a clue."

  "Great. We have some sort of monster onboard that we know absolutely nothing about! Can't imagine this will go well."

  "Fauriei said he is trustworthy. It protected her."

  "Say that to Jackal."

  "Shut up." Reaper snapped.

  "Sorry, sir."

  The nausea was fading now that Fenris was not in the room. Where could the creature have gone? To Fauriei maybe?

  Reaper sighed, resting his chin in his hand. He hoped it would be worth the risk. He was a man of his word, and though he was tempted to decline the charity, he would take Fenris there and forget all about it.

  ELEVEN

  I woke up in confusion. It took a good minute for the memories to come back. I barely remembered getting off that ship. My vision had gone black and all I could see were random shapes and colors flashing around. My body ached like I had been in a train wreck. I could faintly remember some sort of dog dragging me by the arm from a void of darkness.

  The darkness…. I thought I had been freed of it, but it must have latched onto me like a jellyfish. It followed me all the way from its home and joined me in my mind. I dreamed of it while I slept. It surrounded me. Swallowed me whole. I was in an ocean, sinking like an anchor to the bottom. I held my breath as long as I could, but the bottom never came. It suspended me in the endless expanse of space. The darkness reached out to me. Called my name. Its whisper like a song that lured me in. My heart was ready to explode, my body unable to move from the weight of gravity pulling me down.

  I was dying. The warmth drained from my body as the darkness touched my skin. Liquid ice wrapped around me like wild growing vines. It dug into my skin, roots that took hold and planted tiny, monstrous seeds. I scratched and scratched to dig into my skin and get the seeds out. I yanked on the roots and vines. They ripped from my skin. More vines came. I ripped them all away. I scratched until I bled. Then I scratched some more.

  They were like an endless stream of maggots, the seeds, wriggling open just barely out of reach of my nails.

  I couldn't hold my breath any longer. My lungs were ready to burst. I screamed. Bubbles spewed from my mouth, wrapped around my head.

  The roots burrowed upwards across my neck. They took my throat. I scratched the painful itch, my throat clogged.

  It was then, as my nails sunk into my neck to rip out the vines, that I saw red lights. Dotting the shape of an enormous figure. They breathed, faded in and out like a waterfall denying gravity. I was like a child, looking up to this mass of shadows enveloping me in a cradle of black wings.

  A single claw poked from the darkness above. Reached for me. I froze. I couldn't peel my eyes away. I couldn't shut them!

  I tried to breathe, but when I did, I must have breathed the vines and seeds in. They blocked any air from getting in. I scratched harder at my throat, blood muddying my vision. I gasped for air in vain.

  I was stuck alone, chained by roots, suffocating in the darkness of my own making. Was this the fate I deserved? Payment for all the sins and crimes I committed? All the people I killed? That creature….

  That creature was me! The monster that I am! I could see myself in the darkness. My own finger reflecting back at me.

  NO!

  NO!

  NO!

  This couldn't be real! This was just a dream! This was fake! My psyche was getting the better of
me. I am no monster! Where else could I have gone? I had no one. No other reason. I chose to enlist, but everything after was an order. I followed directions. My superiors made me do it. I would not have chosen war! I would have killed no one otherwise! Hurt so many people.

  This was all a poor excuse….

  I kept telling myself over and over again that I followed orders. I was a good soldier. I continue to be so. I chose this life. This life of loneliness, weapons, and death. I surrounded myself in darkness and chaos. To listen to the white noise drown out the cacophony of blood-curdling screams of the victims picked out by those above me.

  Maybe I actually enjoyed it. Maybe this was my destiny….

  This creature... this other version of me…. I could feel its eyes piercing through me. My soul looking back at me. I watched the lights fade in and out. Felt my lungs contract in time with it. Despite the roots pumping through my neck and lungs, I could feel my chest heave up with the lights, then down as they faded.

  I focused on that. Breathing. Breathing the darkness in. Breathing the darkness out. The cold came in with each pull. Warmth pushed it out.

  Liam….

  The shadows sang to me.

  Liam….

  Come to me....

  Its howl shivered my bones. Flooded my soul.

  I reached out to the claw that still poked from the dark.

  I touched it.

  I woke up abruptly, washed in the warm, bright light. I stared wide eyed up at the ceiling where the light hung. There was something comforting about it. Embraced by the light. If I could hug it back, I would have clung on as if my life depended on it.

  I looked to my arms. The rest of my body. Those roots were gone, but I still felt the itch. My fingers could still trace where the roots had been. Just under my skin itched like crazy. No matter how much I scrubbed my nails on my arms, the itch persisted. My chest ached, heart pricked by thousands of needles.

  Reynolds came over to me from somewhere else in the room. Her smile, that of an angel's. She glowed with a ring of light all around her figure.

  "Liam! Welcome back to the world of the living!" She squeezed my hand.