Chapter 11 #3
“Cease!” Steen spouted, narrowing his eyes as he glared at Klar then turned his attention to Cassia. “Your request has been honored. Klar, have the guards take David to our medical facilities and please escort the others to the hybrids’ quarters.”
Klar’s mouth twisted, his nostrils flaring. “Very well. Do as the king ordered.”
“The king,” she muttered under her breath.
“Come with me,” Klar demanded, storming out of the room.
Before I left, I watched as Steen faltered, slumping against the back of a chair.
Storming toward him, I fought with every ounce of my being to keep from snapping his neck in two.
“You may have thought you were making a deal to save your people, but you were wrong. You signed their death warrant.” As I took long strides out of the room, I could hear what sounded like agonizing moans.
This was the time for the man to repent. There would be retaliation and I was the man to make certain that happened.
We followed him out of the main complex and into the street, our destination a modern-looking building near the center of town. Cassia stopped short, glancing in the opposite direction.
“The warehouse.” My whisper was for her ears only.
She nodded. “If the hybrids aren’t housed in the warehouse, then what or who is?”
“We will find out. Trust me.”
“You are here. What are you looking for?” Klar stood in the foyer, glaring into my eyes alone. We would spar one day. Of that I had no doubt.
“Signs of sickness,” Cassia answered, confronting Klar. “What do you know about the disease?”
“What I know doesn’t matter but if they have the disease, they need to be eliminated immediately.
What you will find out is that there is nothing that can stop these monsters short of death.
They respond to nothing but violence, feeding off one another as they murder our people,” Klar snickered. “But you will learn the hard way.”
“Why weren’t we told?” Brexin asked, an incredulous look on his face.
“It wasn’t my place to tell our people they could die by members of their own kind.” Klar’s answer was laced with scorn.
“Steen lied to all of us,” Brexin stated with disgust.
“Let’s go room by room,” I suggested.
“I will wait outside.” Klar left without saying another word.
“Let’s get this over with,” Cassia breathed.
We went room by room, detecting almost nothing until we reached the subjects in what could only be described as a glorified basement, one capable of being locked from the outside.
What we found was not only horrific, but a clear indication that Steen knew all along what could happen.
Six of the hybrids, creatures we could barely identify as human or Galerian were already shackled to their beds, writhing in pain.
I could hear their bones and muscles creaking, continuing in their transformation even as the disease attacked their bloodstream.
“What in the hell?” Brexin’s voice echoed in the dingy space. “The change is deplorable and moves faster than anything I’ve ever witnessed before. I saw them as they were brought in two days ago. They were very human in appearance.”
“That’s because of the DNA splicing,” Cassia said quietly.
“Similar to what you’ve seen before?” I wasn’t certain I wanted to know the answer.
Brexin shook his head. “You don’t understand, Erik.
The hybrids are already stronger and faster than our people.
The horrific changes were mostly in their minds, other than lesions and skin discoloration, much like what you noticed with David.
Take a look at them. They are continuing to morph, but they are truly… monsters.”
“Steen’s dirty little secret.” As Cassia approached, there was no sign of recognition, only the understanding that a presence stood in front of them, an enemy to their survival.
Snarls and growls, more animal in nature than human became a collective cry, every beast struggling to get to her. And what did they crave?
Flesh and bone.
* * *
Cassia
Beasts. Monsters. Predators.
There was little else that these poor beings could be called.
This wasn’t about transformation into a genetically perfect half human.
This was about destroying all humanity. “The genetic work must have significantly increased the gestation period. At this rate, they won’t last two more days.
” I was horrified, shaking to my very core.
“Look at their eyes,” Brexin whispered, dragging me further away from them.
“I can still see cognitive function. They are terrified,” I managed, blinking away tears. How could this happen?
“Do you believe you can help them?” Erik asked.
I’d sensed his increasing anger, making him more volatile than before.
The last thing we needed to do was make the wrong decision.
“We have little time. If there’s any way to stop this progression and if the fire didn’t destroy the reports detailing the experiments, I might be able to develop some sort of an inoculation, at least slowing the disease. ”
“A lot of if’s and maybe’s,” Brexin said quietly.
“If not, they will all turn into murderous creatures and no one will be safe,” Erik answered.
Brexin exhaled, the sound reeking of despair. “Then we go to the compound with or without Steen’s blessing.”
“Agreed,” Erik snarled as he inched closer to the hybrids. “We will find a way to help you.”
I knew his promise was one he needed to say, but one I didn’t believe would hold any credence.
“You mentioned you were inoculated before leaving Earth. Is it possible that Dr. Forrester knew about this disease?” Erik asked.
“But I’m human,” I insisted, trying to put the pieces together.
“What if you weren’t meant to remain entirely human?” Brexin asked, the question haunting.
“That can’t be the case. You said it yourself, Brexin, there are very few females here,” Erik huffed.
“There would only need to be a few to start a new lineage.” I heard my words but couldn’t buy the answer.
We were all missing something. With Dr. Forrester still being on Earth, he had no real control.
A shocking thought popped into my mind. What if he was already here?
I struggled to remember the last time I’d seen him, and it hadn’t been on the day of the flight.
“Brexin, do you always know when the shuttles arrive from Earth?” I asked eagerly, even though I had a feeling I already knew the answer.
“There’s no way we could, not with the various storms wreaking havoc on the atmosphere. Case in point. My guess is we’re going to have a torrential thunderstorm today.”
“Fucking fantastic. That will make the return trip treacherous.” Erik guided us out of the room. “We can’t do anything for these creatures until we have some answers.”
“You’re right. Let’s go before it’s too late.” As I locked eyes with Erik, I was astounded by the light of love filtering into them, but there was more and I knew…
It was already too late.
We continued to hear their malevolent wailing as we headed down the stairs. Other hybrids were out of their rooms, searching for answers. By the time we made it to the second floor, soldiers had already overtaken the facility, storming throughout.
“Steen,” Brexin hissed. “He’s afraid of them.”
“As he should be,” I said, biting back a moan.
“Will they all become sick?” Erik asked, shoving two guards aside then grabbing his weapon.
I placed my hand on his, begging him with my eyes to be careful. We had no idea what we were ultimately facing.
“There was no rhyme or reason on my planet before. One member of the family fell to the disease while the others were fine. That’s what baffled our doctors.” Brexin held us back as another group of soldiers rushed up the stairs. “Steen planned this.”
The weight of two civilizations seemed firmly planted on my shoulders, leaving me questioning my abilities. I sensed Erik’s terror, fear that he would lose control. We were pushed and shoved as the soldiers continued their rampage, locking down every creature no matter their cries of abuse.
We weaved our way through to the exit, my heart racing by the time we were outside.
The sky had quickly darkened, creating ominous shadows dancing down from the taller buildings.
And in the middle of the street stood Steen, holding court as if this had been a plan all along.
Without thinking, I raced toward him, villainous rage swarming into my system.
“How dare you! You’ve known what was going to happen all along.
What were you waiting for, confirmation when David began to change, becoming sicker by the minute?
Why choose him as my mate?” A guard rushed forward to push me away until Steen merely shook his head.
I could swear there was a gleam in his eyes.
I could feel Klar’s presence behind me, his heavy breathing.
“Careful, my king,” Klar said under his breath.
“The time for being careful is over, Klar. There are few options left. What we all feared is happening and there’s nothing we can do to stop them.
” Steen’s body faltered, his face flushing.
“I selected David for your mate for the very same reason I also selected Erik. Because they are or were still mostly human, capable of producing children with you. My hope was that the Galerian DNA would survive, producing children with our lineage.”
“And why is that so important? You have children on Galerius. Why didn’t you simply make a deal with your buddy on Earth to contact your planet and bring you home?” Erik’s bitter words were like a shot between the eyes.
Steen reared back his shoulders, prepared to throw a punch.
“Go ahead, King. Take your best shot,” Erik laughed.