CHAPTER 58
"I am not a bloody cat. The name is Catherine. Get it?"
"Okay, fine, I get it," Tom said slowly before dropping his hands as if dejected.
Catherine felt like screaming at him or yanking those mockeries out of his eyes. Well, that would not help anyone, especially since she needed his help.
"I think the elevator would be better," she hissed before walking towards the door.
"Of course," Tom laughed. "But are we not supposed to plan or think things through? What if he is being held hostage or worse. What are we going to do?"
"Listen to me," Catherine turned her attention to him, "We should focus on looking for Damian. That should be our priority."
I
The walk through the tunnel finally ended as the man taking the lead finally took the left turn, bringing him in front of a gate, small to allow two people abreast, yet crowded with bright blinking lights. The broad shoulder man had instructed him earlier, to take off his air pipe, as the air within the tunnel was refined and freed from the toxin in the environment. It was true that Damian hated the fact of being kidnapped again, but the idea was one he had welcomed with open arms. One thing about breathing naturally is that it makes everything natural. It had a way of keeping at bay that psychological phobia of the apocalypse. And there was the smell of coziness and the sense of living for another day. How he wished he had lived old enough to behold the beauty of the world from the very beginning. Aaron had shown him about the hanging towers of Bel Haven, the lush green and the vitality that once held the earth with its charm. There had
Turns out the game was a game of rugby but played with the amplifier to keep the ball from falling off their rim. Unlike ruby, the game had a single ring post, dancing in the sky about some distance from where Damian stood. If that had been the issue, Damian would not have complained, he would have played the game with all delights and zeal. This was different, however, a description of dining and playing with death. Across the stadium, men and women, children and creatures, were cheering in delight, screaming and shooting their hands in the air. Night had befallen them, yet the screams and shouts kept the world alight, making it look as if the sun was high on its peak. Somewhere on the speakers, the voice of the commentator blared, describing the process of the event. All these were normal, and again, Damian would have enjoyed the game if everything had been normal.The opponent, yes, their
“What are we going to do now? How do we know it is not right in our heads?” “We should get out of here,” Catherine said, looking up as if Damian had just voiced her mind. Her ageless features had returned, blending with that calmness that Damian was all too familiar with. Mood swing and the ability to remain calm under diverse situations was one of the many things about Catherine that Damian admires a lot. She had a unique characteristic of knowing what and how to do things, no matter how trivial. Damian couldn’t help but think of his grandmother whenever Catherine pulled off such features. His granny was one person in the universe who had such a rare trait until he had met Catherine. And the woman has never ceased to amaze him. “Okay,” Damian nodded and held her shoulder gently. “That’s the exit” He pointed to the door, “It is an underground tunnel, one that would take us back to the street, and right to the spot where I was abducted. God help us if the Darkeel follow us there.”
Again, the Founders, as Merck had called them, started running in his direction, a blazing ball sitting perfectly on their amplifier. They were attacking again, they were going to try to add more goals to the scoreline. They were going to push his rib and force it to crack.Damian swallowed and readied himself. Catherine was watching from the stand, she had instructed him on how to work his way through the arena without getting his body tossed around like a useless bag. Well, as always, her instructions were easier said than done. Execution was the problem. Plus, she had said so many things that he was finding it hard to distinguish what to do and what not to do.Just do something goddamn it. A small voice at the back of his head yelled. His heart was already racing, and with the speed at which the Founders were coming at him, he doubted he could
CHAPTER 63Crease animated the end of Claudius’ masked as he dropped the test tube into the test tube rack. Inside it was a jellylike object, dark and scratching the edges of the test tube as if trying to force its way out. Claudius has seen something similar, during his time in the school laboratory when he was working on some parasitic worms. This on the other hand was different. The deforming nature was not the only thing that intrigued him, it also had a red glowing centre, twice as small as a pinhole to go unnoticed. His guess was that the creature had a form within the red glowing end. A mouth and teeth, perhaps a hand and legs also, he was not sure. But he was determined to find out. It was one thing about science. The drive to dive into an ocean of unknown. He was going to arrive at the answer eventually. Just time. Yeah, time was the only that that would be wasted. It was the price he would pay, and he wouldn&rsq
CHAPTER 64Coloured dancing lights animated the gloom that caroused the side of his face, contrasting with the music and glee that wrapped every corner of the club. She had not seen him anywhere but his laboratory, mixing stuff or complaining that one thing or the other was not working. It was a wonder that she had tricked him into this side of the city, to have a little fun at least. Work was needed to put food on the table. But he was working too much for her liking. Not that she was being an ingrate of course, after all, it was his work that had brought her back to life and had given her the one thing she doubted she would have found. Love. But on the other hand, she wanted him to have a life outside the sphere of his machines and chemicals. She wanted what is best for him, to enjoy life to the fullest, for himself at least. He deserved the best, and she was going to try and give him that.“This is a bad idea,” Claudius hissed, folding his hands over his chest. The dancing lights d
The brisk smell of burning wood and leaves met her nose, following the ember glows that danced with the cold. Instead of ignoring the whiff, Kristen brushed them with the back of her hands before standing to keep the pile of burning logs in place, hoping to kill the white smoke that colored the dark. She was the only one awake, the girls, or what was left of them, were sound asleep. Having traveled for about six days through the unfavorable forest, it made sense how fast they had slept when Vick announced that they would stop here for the night. It was the sixth day since they left the field, six days since they began their wander. And as if adding more salt to the injury, Ygon and Meyla had kept their distance. They had not mentioned it again, none of them had. But they didn't have to. That stabbing glare was all the proof Kristen needed, the girls still blamed her for the death of Ruth and Kennish. Meyla had said so before, Ygon too. Those accusing fingers and daring gaze…Kristen h
The sun came up too early from the other side of the world. Kristen would have called it beautiful if she had rested perfectly. But the rough forest floor took that luxury away. Her head was throbbing and she could feel the ache all over her body. She needed rest and a good one at that. The days of traveling through the forest were beginning to take their toll on her. Her legs had also grown stiff and she doubted she would sit on the Bostrich for the time being. Good, they were not chased by those monsters. She would have to walk for a while, until the burning on her legs fades, at least."Raise and shine, sleepy head. We've got to move." Vick said. She had saddled the Bostrich and was fastening their supplies on the biotech animal. "If we maintain the same pace as yesterday, we might get to the wall before sundown.""The same pace?" Ygon yawned a