“Is this really what you want, father?” Dex meets his eyes hollowly. “To force us to accept your rule? To take away our will?”
“My will is yours!” Zonax thunders, “This is what we...” he is cut short as the sound of two gun-shots boom through the air and two bullets hit him square in the chest. I gape in horror as blood dribbles from the two perfect holes in his black tunic. Jason and Darren burst into the clearing, each armed with a handgun pointing straight at Zonax. From their positions I am fairly sure that it was Darren who shot the Venite leader. Zonax lifts his gaze from his bleeding torso to face them and a malevolent glimmer flickers in his green eyes.
“No!” I yell, knowing exactly what he is doing and powerless to stop it. I watch, aghast, as he exerts his mind control over my friends, no doubt silently ordering them to turn their weapons on themselves, just as he did with Tom. No-one makes a sound, all of us stunned into silence and then Jason cocks his head to one side, raising his eyebrow arrogantly.
“Now, what on earth makes you think I would do that?” he drawls, firing another two shots straight into Zonax’s chest.
Hope burgeons in my heart spreading through my body like wildfire and I turn to Dex to find him smiling triumphantly at me. He did this. He compelled them just as Amarox did me. They are immune to Zonax’s mind control. Zonax slumps to the ground, but before Darren and Jason can take another step toward him, they are grabbed from behind by four of Zonax’s men who wrestle the guns from their hands. I take only a moment to wonder why the Venite soldiers haven’t simply used their own abilities to kill my brave friends and then I race toward the mêlée.
Darren and Jason are not going down without a fight and the soldiers are preoccupied by their struggling. Launching myself to the ground I slide past them and scoop up Darren’s abandoned gun. I hurtle back towards Zonax ignoring Dex’s yell of caution. An enormous Venite guard steps in front of me but I side-step him easily. I have always been fast, my natural talents still there, beneath the wasted years of not practicing. Sadly, I am not fast enough. A second Venite soldier leaps out at me, grabbing me just below my waist and bringing me crashing to the ground. I hit my head hard against a boulder and my vision blurs, but I kick back at him, releasing his grip on my legs. Ignoring the wave of nausea that sweeps over me, feeling the blood trickling down my temple, I quickly cover the remaining distance.
It all happens in only a few heart-stopping seconds and then time seems to stand still as I bring the gun up to the kneeling Zonax’s temple.
Chapter 35
Nobody moves. Nobody says a word. Zonax is badly injured and I wedge the barrel of the gun deeper into his skull, anger and hatred coursing through me. This nightmare ends now.
“Rachel,” Dex’s voice breaks the silence, the only sound in the world that could get through to me. My eyes flicker to meet his, my whole body trembling. “Don’t.” He shakes his head sadly. Out of the corner of my eyes I see a tall, regal-looking raven-haired woman step into the encampment. She stands perfectly still, her eagle eyes trained on the scene unfolding before her. She could only be Dex’s mother, Loraya. “Don’t,” Dex repeats, his eyes pleading with me to spare his father's life.
“He’ll kill us,” I say, my voice hard and unyielding. These monsters invaded our planet and murdered us without a second thought. They will kill us all if I don’t do this. And then, unbidden, every memory I have of Dex invades my consciousness all at once. Every word, every touch. Every sacrifice he has made that has led us to this moment. His love for me is so strong that he turned against his own kind, against his people, his beliefs, even his own family. His father is a tyrant, but he is still his father and Dex doesn’t want him to die. I can see it in his eyes. As I watch, torn between two worlds, the man I love slowly gets to his feet, his whole body rigid, his jaw clenched. He stands up straight and tall but makes no move towards me. This is my choice, I realize, Dex is letting me decide.
Zonax is struggling for breath and I am not sure if he will be able to heal himself given the amount of blood he is losing. I could probably just stand here and watch him die without even having to pull the trigger.
I sway slightly, my head injury is still bleeding profusely and I realize I might just pass out first. Loraya is still watching, making no move to intervene, even though her husband is dying at my feet. Her eyes never leave my face and I find it disconcerting. Darren and Jason are nodding, encouraging me to do it – to end Zonax’s life. Mankind will triumph, Earth will prevail. We will live and other planets will never have to go through what we have. Billions will be spared and I will lose the only man I have ever loved.
If I kill his father, Dex will never look at me the way he does now, with love and acceptance. I have lived without him before but it was a half-life, a shadow life. An empty desolate solitude that ate away at my very soul. A pitiful, mewling sound distracts me and to my astonishment, Voka is crying. Dex’s strong, fiery sister is sobbing into her chest, tears running down her face and soaking the ABC T-shirt. She looks frail and vulnerable, but she’s not, I remind myself. She is deadly and she has extraordinary abilities.
I have to make a choice. Die with Dex or live without him. Closing my eyes, knowing full well the consequence of what I am about to do, I bend down and whisper in Zonax’s ear. Whether it is because of my words or whether he is just too weak to control them any longer, I will never know, but his control over his children is lifted. Amarox gets to his feet, but, like Dex, he stands still. I don’t know if he wants to stop me, but he would never make it in time. I could pull the trigger in the space of a heartbeat. Voka hasn’t moved, she is still on her knees, her head drooping on her chest.
“Voka,” I call and I hear my friends' horrified gasps behind me. Voka gets tremulously to her feet, eyeing the gun in my hand. When she reaches us I drop it to my side, praying for forgiveness for what I have just done. “Heal your father.” I meet her astonished green eyes and then I drop the gun in the dirt at my feet and turn to join my people, my friends.
I stand alongside Darren, Jason and Kimberley who I pulled along with me. She is shaking her head, trying to shake off the last vestiges of Zonax’s control. They do not offer any sort of rebuke or question my motives or my madness at letting Zonax live. We will die here, but at least it will be together. I take Darren and Kimberley’s hands and I watch as Jason takes her other. He smiles ruefully at me over her head and I purse my lips, tears filling my eyes. Silently Kate emerges from the trees with Noah, coming to stand on Darren’s other side, and he puts his arm around her trembling shoulders. The tears spill over as I smile reassuringly at the terrified boy but there is no use in hiding any longer. Venon has conquered earth. Noah will die, if not today, then tomorrow. This is my family, I think fondly. These people are as much a part of me as any brothers or sisters could be. We stand proud and tall, united, as we wait for the inevitable.
Zonax’s body glows as Voka’s healing powers work and then she sits back on her haunches as he rises to his feet. Amarox steps forward, drawing her away, determinedly ignoring their father. The two siblings follow Dex as he walks towards us, an intense, fanatical expression on his beautiful face. He doesn’t stop until he is right in front of me, blocking out the terrible view of his father.
“I love you,” he says, every word weighed down with emotion.
“I love you too,” I smile through my tears.
Dex turns and positions himself in front of me. Amarox moves to stand before Jason and Kimberley and Voka faces her father with Noah, Kate and Darren behind her. She turns and smiles down at Noah, ruffling his hair before facing forward again. They are a part of our family too, I realize. And they are prepared to die with us.
Zonax draws himself up to his full height towering above the Venite soldiers who have spread out behind him. I can hear the shouts of the army, but they are surrounded by soldiers wielding fire-balls in their hands and are powerless to do anything. It is almost surreal as I watch Zonax’s eyes glow brighter and br
ighter, the black storm gathering above him. We do not run or scream, standing perfectly still, relishing our last moments together. Kimberley squeezes my hand and I drop my head on her shoulder, wishing things could have been different.
My hair is warm and sticky with blood, but for the first time it doesn’t bother me. The pain is a reminder – of life – of being so fragilely human. I wouldn’t want it any other way. The storm intensifies, roaring in the sky; the ultimate weapon. Zonax’s face gives nothing away, but his gaze seems to be focused on his children, his eyes searching their faces for the answers he will never have. He raises his arms above his head and I drop Darren and Kimberley’s hands needing to touch Dex. I stretch out my arms, clasping both of his hands in my own and he squeezes them back tightly.
“Enough!” The voice cuts through the howl of the storm. I peek over Dex’s shoulder and see Loraya striding across the compound towards her husband. He turns to face her his eyes still glowing. “That is enough,” she meets his gaze unflinchingly, her eyes flashing.
“Loraya, these earthlings need to die. Earth will be ours, just as we planned.”
“I will not lose my children,” she snarls.
“They defied me!”
“And they will be punished,” she promises, “but I will not watch them die.” Heaving a sigh Zonax faces our three protectors, his eyes magnetic.
“No!” Loraya hisses and Zonax breaks eye contact. “You will not compel them again. I will not allow it.” Zonax snarls, his lip curling. “Rachel,” Loraya turns to me, her finger beckoning. Her shrewd eyes bore into my own daring me to defy her summons. She is not compelling me, but she is laying down a challenge. I do not want to leave my friends, to be alone, but I take a deep breath and step past Dex. Of course he will not let me go alone. He takes my hand and together we walk toward the King and Queen of Venon.
Zonax’s hateful grimace is unbearable so I keep my eyes fixed on Loraya – the lesser of two evils.
“This girl spared your life,” Loraya informs her husband, as though he wasn’t present at the time. “And I believe,” she continues, “that she did it for our son.” She raises her eyebrows at Dex and he nods proudly.
“I love her, mother.”
“Well, she loves you back if her sacrifice is anything to go by,” she remarks drily, but I am sure I glimpse a ghost of a smile cross her stern features. My head is swimming again, worse than before and I am struggling to make sense of their words.
“She is human,” Zonax sneers, as if the very word is below him. “We will conquer this planet.”
“At what cost?” Loraya counters. “Are you prepared to lose your heir?” she jerks her head in Amarox’s direction and Zonax hesitates for the first time, as though the thought hadn’t occurred to him. “What good are all the planets in the universe if Venon has no-one to rule them?” Loraya lets the words hang in the air and I sneak a glance back at Amarox, the Venon heir to the throne. I hadn’t even known, or given it any thought.
Zonax scowls darkly, surveying the scene around him. I hold my breath, not daring to move a muscle. The silence stretches on; Zonax’s face morphing through a variety of expressions as he considers all the options. Eventually he nods meaningfully at his wife.
“Planet Earth will be spared.” His words resound across the empty space. Feeling like a puppet whose strings have been cut, my head swims with relief and dizziness. Dex’s face looms before me, his mouth forming my name, but all I can hear is the blood pounding in my head and then everything goes black.
I wake slowly, my eyes flickering in the bright light, unaccustomed to the fluorescence. My mouth is dry and parched and I clear my throat painfully.
“Rachel!” Dex is at my side in a second, concern etched on his face. He takes my hands and lifts them to his lips, kissing them gently. “You’re okay,” he mumbles, but his voice is strange, as if he doesn’t believe the words himself. I close my eyes again, focusing on my body, trying to establish the extent of my injuries. “I’m sorry, Rachel,” he sounds hollow and anguished and I swallow again, too afraid to ask what is wrong with me.
“Where’s Voka?” I murmur, wondering why she hasn’t healed me. I must be dying, why else would Dex be so distraught? Zonax probably denied it, denied his superior race using their gifts on a pitiful human girl.
“She’s here,” Dex confirms my fears.
“What’s wrong with me?” I ask, opening my eyes again. They are slowly adjusting to the light and I make out a white ceiling.
“There’s nothing wrong with you, Rachel.”
“I’m... I’m not dying?”
“No,” his voice is raised in denial. “You’re fine. You’re going to be absolutely fine.” I nod, frowning in confusion as I slowly try and sit up.
“Then why are you...” I trail off as I take in the room my eyes widening in horror. “Oh my God,” I gasp, my hand shooting to my chest. “Oh no, no, noooo!” I scream, the sound reverberating over and over around the metal room. I’m in a god-damned space-ship.
Chapter 36
“Rachel!” Dex pins me down by my shoulders. “Calm down,” he stares into my eyes and even his weak use of quintessence calms me enough that I stop trying to fight him. The circular room is disorienting – the walls all silver with no windows, giving the impression that we are encapsulated within a steel bubble. I glance down at the floor; it is black and looks like it is made of a hard, seamless synthetic rubber. The bed that I am lying on looks much like a normal one except that it is circular, like the room. The black linen is close to cotton, but has a slight silky texture and there are no pillows. I give a start as I notice Loraya standing just behind Dex, an unfathomable expression on her face.
“Where are we?” I ask Dex, ignoring his mother, who intimidates me.
“We’re still on Earth; we’re back in New York,” Dex answers, but his tone suggests that there is more to it than that.
“But?” I ask the obvious question and he sighs.
“But we’re leaving shortly. We’re going back to Venon.”
I lick my lips nervously. “When you say we...”
“I mean we. Me and my family. And you.”
“For how long?” I ask and he understands the deeper meaning in my question.
“We’re not coming back, Rachel. Ever.”
Loraya gives a satisfied smile and sweeps out of the room, not uttering a word. I close my eyes recalling how convinced I was that I would follow Dex anywhere, but now that the reality has arrived, I’m no longer sure. I’m human – I belong on Earth. If I leave I will never know what became of us, how many survived, how many are left. I will never see my friends again. I will be alone in a world which has a set of values so different to my own. How will I ever accept their way of life and how will they ever accept mine?
And yet... I will have Dex. I open my eyes to find him staring at me intently.
“It’s all true,” he admits, “everything you are thinking is true.”
“Do I have to go?”
“No,” he answers, turning his attention to the metal floor at his feet, “but the alternative is not something I’d like to consider.”
“What do you mean?” A slim door, the same silver as the walls, slides opens at that moment and Amarox stalks in his face set in an angry snarl.
“They want to see you,” he barks at Dex. Dex looks torn, but then he nods dejectedly, squeezing my hands briefly.
“I’ll be right back,” he promises, kissing my forehead. He leaves the room, his footsteps making no sound on the synthetic floor.
“What’s going on?” I ask Amarox who is staring at me disconcertingly.
“My father is raging,” he rolls his eyes, “he hasn’t stopped reprimanding us since we left the mountains. You’re lucky you’ve been asleep for a while,” he adds.
“How long?”
“Three days,” he shrugs and I sit bolt upright in the bed.
“Three days? How... what do you mean, three days?”
“He kept you under for a while; didn’t want you to have to deal with the fall-out, I guess.”
“Who kept me under?”
“Dex. Right after he let Voka heal you he asked me to make you sleep. You didn’t miss anything. We traveled back here, to New York. Your friends are here too, they’re outside clamoring to see you and demanding proof that we haven’t secretly killed you off,” he narrows his eyes. “And my father's temper is still barely under control – it’s been raining constantly for three days.”
“Is he going to punish you?” I ask, wondering why Amarox is so calm. “You and Dex and Voka?” After everything, after the viciousness I witnessed, I don’t believe for a second that Zonax has just changed his mind.
“I’m sure he will,” Amarox smiles acceptingly, “but he’s biding his time. When he’s ready to mete out his punishment we’ll know all about it.”
“That’s disgusting,” I shake my head. “It’s sick.” The thought that Zonax will take revenge on his children sometime in the future for their actions is beyond me. He is sadistic and evil and awful.
“He’s our King.” I am surprised by the venom in Amarox’s voice. It still irks me that the Venites can read my mind so easily. That is something else I have to look forward to – complete and utter lack of privacy. My thoughts will never again be completely my own.
“But he’s your father,” I counter stubbornly.
“And that is why Venon conquered your pathetic little planet without so much as breaking a sweat,” he sneers, “because your world is ruled by weak leaders. My father is ruthless, yes, but he has achieved greatness, power that you could never comprehend. And he has never been beaten. He has never failed.”
“He failed here,” I growl, my anger spilling out of me.
“Did he?” Amarox raises his brow and brings me up short. “How are you so sure of that, Rachel? How do you know what his plan is? You think that this is over?” he sounds disbelieving and sarcastic. “Think again. Never underestimate Zonax or it might be the last thing you ever do.”
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