left.
“Eat your muck swiftly,” the Mother ordered, gesturing to the empty seat next to her. A pair of bowls had been set out, the pleasant aroma of maple oatmeal steaming out of each. “We’ll leave as soon as you finish. I want to reach this city by midday.”
“That’s not possible,” Jordan said, sliding onto the bench next to her. He picked up his spoon and stirred the oatmeal. Maybe it wasn't smart to contradict her, but the words were already out, so he forged ahead. “It took us two days to get there last time out.”
“Just because you have not done it doesn’t mean it isn’t possible. I will teach you to blur over long distances. This ability is like a muscle and will get stronger through use,” she explained, crinkling her nose as he took his first bite. He still found it odd that she survived solely on meat. He was as much a carnivore as any man, but one needed chocolate and coffee too.
“What about Bridget?” he asked, nodding towards the petite brunette. “She can’t blur.”
“She will ride your shadow,” the Mother explained, as if that settled the matter.
Bridget paled and he could guess why. Liz had already learned that trick, but Bridget seemed slower on the uptake. Not that she wasn’t intelligent, but whatever gave them their power was harder for her to use. It was the same for him. Blair picked up all this shaping crap with ease, yet for Jordan it took concentrated effort to do things that Blair considered simple.
“I’m ready,” Jordan said, dropping his spoon in the empty bowl. No sense putting it off. They had work to be about.
“Very well,” the Mother said, rising lithely from her seat. Bridget stood as well, hefting her black nylon pack.
She glanced at Liz and her eyes hardened with determination. Then she turned back to Jordan. Her whole body began to tremble, and a moment later she flowed into the shadows. Into his shadow, to be more specific.
Jordan hefted his own pack, feeling more than a little uncomfortable that Bridget and her pack had vanished so completely. He rose from the bench and followed the Mother as she made her way up the northern corridor towards the surface. The Mother glided into a run, swift but not quite a sprint. Was this the pace she planned to set for the whole trip? It had that feel. Could he maintain it?
Of course he could. He was a god-damn killing machine. He could run for days as a human. Now? Jordan pushed himself, bouncing past the Mother and into the lead. The Mother shifted, suddenly nine and a half feet of silver fur. She bounded off the wall, retaking the lead. He matched her shift, his shirt and pants shredded by the move. Damn it.
Try as he might, he couldn’t catch her. She shot a grin over her shoulder. It was alarmingly childlike for a woman who’d lived forever as a goddess. They burst from the tunnel into the bright morning light, blazingly hot but pleasant nonetheless. They loped southwest, heading back the direction they’d just recently come. Jordan didn’t know what to expect, but if nothing else, this trip would be interesting.
Chapter 10- Irakesh
Irakesh snapped awake, blinking rapidly as his eyes adjusted. Dim splashes of ruby and emerald danced on the walls, cast by the gems powering the rejuvenator that had carried him into this new age. The entire structure vibrated as the crystal became a thick viscous liquid that pushed him up through the top. It hardened underneath him, leaving him atop it’s warm surface.
He dropped lightly to his feet as his gaze darted frantically around the secondary rejuvenation chamber. There were six other rejuvenators, none of the gems active. The silver door was sealed, the Ark glyph on its surface dark. Odd. That should have been lit, even if faintly. Had the Ark run out of power? That couldn’t be or he’d have never awakened.
Perhaps he’d been detected and Isis had locked down the chamber. If that were the case he’d be dead in minutes, assuming he could evade
“Eat your muck swiftly,” the Mother ordered, gesturing to the empty seat next to her. A pair of bowls had been set out, the pleasant aroma of maple oatmeal steaming out of each. “We’ll leave as soon as you finish. I want to reach this city by midday.”
“That’s not possible,” Jordan said, sliding onto the bench next to her. He picked up his spoon and stirred the oatmeal. Maybe it wasn't smart to contradict her, but the words were already out, so he forged ahead. “It took us two days to get there last time out.”
“Just because you have not done it doesn’t mean it isn’t possible. I will teach you to blur over long distances. This ability is like a muscle and will get stronger through use,” she explained, crinkling her nose as he took his first bite. He still found it odd that she survived solely on meat. He was as much a carnivore as any man, but one needed chocolate and coffee too.
“What about Bridget?” he asked, nodding towards the petite brunette. “She can’t blur.”
“She will ride your shadow,” the Mother explained, as if that settled the matter.
Bridget paled and he could guess why. Liz had already learned that trick, but Bridget seemed slower on the uptake. Not that she wasn’t intelligent, but whatever gave them their power was harder for her to use. It was the same for him. Blair picked up all this shaping crap with ease, yet for Jordan it took concentrated effort to do things that Blair considered simple.
“I’m ready,” Jordan said, dropping his spoon in the empty bowl. No sense putting it off. They had work to be about.
“Very well,” the Mother said, rising lithely from her seat. Bridget stood as well, hefting her black nylon pack.
She glanced at Liz and her eyes hardened with determination. Then she turned back to Jordan. Her whole body began to tremble, and a moment later she flowed into the shadows. Into his shadow, to be more specific.
Jordan hefted his own pack, feeling more than a little uncomfortable that Bridget and her pack had vanished so completely. He rose from the bench and followed the Mother as she made her way up the northern corridor towards the surface. The Mother glided into a run, swift but not quite a sprint. Was this the pace she planned to set for the whole trip? It had that feel. Could he maintain it?
Of course he could. He was a god-damn killing machine. He could run for days as a human. Now? Jordan pushed himself, bouncing past the Mother and into the lead. The Mother shifted, suddenly nine and a half feet of silver fur. She bounded off the wall, retaking the lead. He matched her shift, his shirt and pants shredded by the move. Damn it.
Try as he might, he couldn’t catch her. She shot a grin over her shoulder. It was alarmingly childlike for a woman who’d lived forever as a goddess. They burst from the tunnel into the bright morning light, blazingly hot but pleasant nonetheless. They loped southwest, heading back the direction they’d just recently come. Jordan didn’t know what to expect, but if nothing else, this trip would be interesting.
Chapter 10- Irakesh
Irakesh snapped awake, blinking rapidly as his eyes adjusted. Dim splashes of ruby and emerald danced on the walls, cast by the gems powering the rejuvenator that had carried him into this new age. The entire structure vibrated as the crystal became a thick viscous liquid that pushed him up through the top. It hardened underneath him, leaving him atop it’s warm surface.
He dropped lightly to his feet as his gaze darted frantically around the secondary rejuvenation chamber. There were six other rejuvenators, none of the gems active. The silver door was sealed, the Ark glyph on its surface dark. Odd. That should have been lit, even if faintly. Had the Ark run out of power? That couldn’t be or he’d have never awakened.
Perhaps he’d been detected and Isis had locked down the chamber. If that were the case he’d be dead in minutes, assuming he could evade
Similar Books
