A Dome of Blood Read online

  “We’re fine,” Amal replied, her tone clipped. “You do what you have to do. We’ll meet you on the outside!”

  “I need to know how long until you can leave the colosseum!” Ridan said. “It’s about to blow! Let me talk to Amane! Quit hogging that earpiece.”

  “Ridan, proceed as planned,” Amal said firmly. “We’ll be okay!”

  Rose reached Ridan through the tunnel, clearly annoyed. “Cut it out!” she hissed. “They’re big girls and smart enough to take care of themselves. Trust me when I say that Amane does not want to be, nor will she ever be, a damsel in distress.”

  “Toughen up, fire dragon. We need to be a model for these people we’re saving.” Dmitri chuckled.

  “Shut your piehole, you little pup!” Heath growled from behind. “You’re not saving us. We’re all saving ourselves. Up until a couple of minutes ago, there was a shock collar around your neck, too. Pipe down!”

  It took a lot of effort not to laugh. Jovi, however, wasn’t as restrained. His guffaw echoed through the tunnel. In the end, however, Amal and Rose were right. There was no looking back now. We knew what role each of us played, and under no circumstances could we divert from them.

  All we had to do now was run as fast as our legs could take us.

  And run we did. All seven hundred or so of us.

  Nathaniel

  The last room on our list was one of the laboratories on the ground floor—one of the artificial womb chambers. It was a weird thing to look at, for some reason. Four new Perfects were curled up in the amniotic liquid sacks, dozens of serium-powered cables connecting them to the main monitoring and feeding system. There were a couple of Faulties present, checking the Perfects’ vitals on the computer screens and taking copious notes on their glass tablets.

  This was the center of life for us, I thought as I stood in the doorway, watching the Faulties casually go about their business. Heartbeats echoed from one of the computers, steady and slow, as the bodies developed in their artificial wombs. Another two, maybe three hours, and they’d be released into this world. New souls for Ta’Zan to poison and turn against the very creatures who’d made their existence possible.

  We were all hybrids. The blood of many flowed through our veins—and with it, so did their collective experience. During our brief learning sessions on Calliope, Uriel, Angelica, Deena, and I had made it our mission to learn as much about our genetic sources as possible. We understood more from the fae and the vampires, the werewolves and the dragons, the witches and the Maras, and other equally extraordinary creatures, than from anything that Ta’Zan had tried to teach us.

  And, as I stood there, watching and holding the last of the larger explosive charges, I knew that I was doing the right thing. I was perpetuating violence, sure, but it was for the greater good. There was no reasoning with the likes of Ta’Zan, and certainly not with a brainwashed brother or sister of mine. We had to do this.

  The clock was ticking.

  The Faulties finally noticed us and stilled, their eyes wide.

  “Out. Both of you,” I said. “Get as far away from this place as possible.”

  “What? Why?” one of them asked.

  “Get out!” I shouted. “For once in your lives, don’t let this place dictate who or what you’ll be. Leave the colosseum and never look back!”

  The Faulties rushed past us and out of the laboratory, leaving the five of us with the four artificial wombs. Araquiel, still invisible, proceeded to plant the last of the small charges, designed to amplify the main one in my hand.

  I saw the black, square, palm-sized bombs appear as Araquiel mounted them in the four bottom corners of the room. One had to look closely to notice them. Their discreet positioning didn’t matter anymore, though.

  “How long till they all leave the dome?” Angelica asked.

  “I’m not sure. Judging by the size of the colosseum, the estimated width of a sustainable tunnel and the number of prisoners… I’m thinking maybe nine, ten minutes?” Uriel replied.

  “We’re running out of time,” Araquiel said.

  “Um, yeah, about that…” Deena murmured, pointing in the direction of his voice.

  His invisibility spell was wearing off. Slowly but surely, Araquiel was revealed. The last thing we wanted was for someone to see him in here, after he’d been declared permanently dead.

  Araquiel frowned, confused by our expressions. He looked down, then sighed. “Okay. Now what?”

  “You take another batch,” I said. “Quickly, before anyone comes—”

  “Something wrong?” A male voice shot through from behind us. It sounded familiar, and that scared me.

  I breathed in, then looked over my shoulder. I recognized the two Perfects. Raziel and Gabriel. I knew them from my memories. We’d trained together. We’d learned together. We were all part of the same batch. I couldn’t help but curse under my breath, knowing how slim the odds were that we’d actually run into someone we’d personally met before. We’d drawn the short sticks, it seemed.

  They were both stunned to see us.

  “Nathaniel?” Raziel said, his jaw close to hitting the floor.

  My muscles were tense. My joints were stiff, all of a sudden. This wasn’t going to lead anywhere good. They remembered us, and we had no way of accounting for our absence. Unless I lied through my teeth. Arwen had taught us the basics of deception, after all.

  “I saw you… Deena?” Raziel continued, his voice trailing off as he recognized Deena and the others, too. “Uriel. Angelica. Sweet fate! I saw you all pierce through the atmosphere and freeze… We didn’t think we’d ever get you back!”

  “How the hell did you make it back here?” Gabriel asked, narrowing his eyes at me.

  I found his expression to be quite irritating. Of course, it probably had to do with the fact that we had to get rid of them as soon as possible. The rogue Faulties were minutes away from getting slaughtered out there.

  “We flew,” I replied bluntly, then motioned for them to walk away. “We’re busy. Let’s talk later.”

  That didn’t work. Raziel took a step forward, clearly suspicious of our presence here. And they definitely weren’t the type of Perfects we could just brush off with a vague, two-worded explanation. My blood was racing, my reflexes sharp and ready to take them on, if needed.

  “What’s going on in there?” Raziel asked, then froze at the sight of Araquiel in the laboratory. “You! You’re alive! Araquiel! Brother!”

  Deena muttered a string of foul words, then grabbed Raziel by his tunic’s collar and dragged him into the room. Uriel was quick to grip Gabriel’s throat and pull him in, as well, away from the main corridor—where other Perfects and Faulties were still buzzing.

  The fight broke out between the seven of us. I threw the first punch at Raziel, taking advantage of his initial moment of confusion. The hit managed to break his jaw. I felt his bone crack under my knuckles.

  Deena and Angelica handled Gabriel, but it didn’t look easy. He was a fearsome warrior, to say the least. The only advantage we had was that we’d fought together before, even if only in training. We had some knowledge of their weak points, based on what we’d noticed in the video files of our memories.

  The sense of urgency blew through me like a shot of adrenaline. Just in time, too, as I had the sense to duck and avoid a deep facial cut from Raziel’s extended claws. Uriel rammed his fists into his lower back, bruising the kidneys.

  I let my claws out and slashed at Raziel, drawing blood and ripping his tunic off. It was a combined effort to disable both him and Gabriel as quickly and as quietly as possible, so we could set the last charge.

  Raziel was faster, though, and managed to sneak an arm out. His claws sliced through my side and cut off the strap I’d used to keep the last brick-sized charge on my body. It fell on the ground with a thump. I caught a glimpse of Araquiel sliding down to grab it, just as Raziel turned around to quickly deal with Uriel.

  This was my only opening. Raziel
was a worthy opponent, to say the least.

  “You traitors! You’re working with the outsiders, aren’t you?!” Raziel shouted, and punched Uriel multiple times.

  I snuck up on him and snatched the long knife from his belt. He heard the screech of the blade leaving its sheath, but he didn’t have time to react. I grabbed him by the hair and cut his head off in one decisive hit.

  “Raziel! No!” Gabriel gasped.

  Uriel snarled from both pain and fury, then darted toward Gabriel. He drove his clawed hands into his stomach. Gabriel stilled, his eyes wide from the shock. His lips parted. A quiet second later, blood gushed out.

  Deena took his short sword and decapitated him. She and Angelica then dragged the bodies out of sight, while Uriel caught his breath, staring at his shaky hands. He seemed disgusted by his own actions.

  “I killed my brothers,” he muttered.

  “They’ll be back,” Araquiel replied, emerging from behind a tall metallic cabinet. “We’re done here.”

  “Are we good to go?” I asked. “Thanks, by the way.”

  “Don’t mention it,” Araquiel said, then looked at Uriel. “Don’t beat yourself up over this. We’ll kill a lot more of our people in the hours to come. We all know what we have to do now.”

  “Yes. No, I get it. It’s just… I didn’t think it would feel this way,” Uriel said, struggling to come to terms with what he’d done.

  I gave him a firm pat on the back. “We have to do what we have to do, Brother. The fate of the world depends on us, and there is so much of it that we won’t get to see, if we fail.”

  “We’re ready, by the way,” Araquiel interjected. “All the charges are set and connected. We need to make them go boom.”

  Angelica and Deena came back to the center of the laboratory. I could still see Gabriel’s and Raziel’s legs under one of the tables, but it didn’t really matter at this point. We just didn’t want them to stand out.

  “We’ve got to get out of here first,” Angelica said.

  “Right,” I replied, then fumbled through my tunic pocket for my invisibility spell ration. We’d all been given ten of these algae-based pouches to chew on, for quick consumption and activation.

  Araquiel found his and popped it in his mouth. We looked at one another as we chewed, listening to the noises coming from outside. Someone was barking orders, directing the guards to the southwest gate.

  “It’s getting hot out there,” Araquiel said as he vanished.

  I couldn’t help but smile. “Then let’s make it hot in here, too.”

  “You two are stooges.” Deena chuckled, then pointed toward the door as she became invisible. “We’re going north. Those charges will go last in the chain reaction.”

  I nodded and put my red lens on. Through it, I could see the four Perfects I knew I’d have a good future with, if we succeeded in this mission. I wanted all the pain and misery to end for those most affected by Ta’Zan’s actions. But I also yearned to go out there and explore the many and diverse planets that the universe had to offer.

  As we ran out of the laboratory, I thought of the four still-developing Perfects we’d left in the artificial wombs. They were still innocent. They didn’t know what they were getting themselves into. They didn’t deserve this.

  “Hold on!” I breathed, then ran back into the room, dodging potential hostiles left and right.

  I entered the lab again and stopped in front of one of the artificial wombs, checking its cables and wiring. How could I disconnect them, and what would that do to the creatures inside?

  Uriel squeezed my shoulder, startling me. “They’re premature, Brother.”

  He’d come back to stop me, but I couldn’t find it in me to leave them here, so vulnerable. Their minds had yet to be tarnished by Ta’Zan. Maybe there was still hope for them. I ripped one of the oxygen cables first. The hiss echoed through the room, and Uriel muttered a curse and went over to the second womb. One cable at a time, he disconnected it.

  I did the same, smiling and thankful that he was here with me. Soon enough, Angelica and Deena joined us, while Araquiel kept watch by the door.

  “There isn’t much we can do,” I whispered, “but we can at least wake them up and tell them to get out of here. Morfuris…”

  Turning myself visible, I ripped through the artificial membrane. Amniotic liquid spilled out. The Perfect, a young female with medium-length black hair and pale, almost iridescent skin, was free. But her eyes were still closed. In a moment of instant clarity, upon measuring her from head to toe, I pulled my knife out and cut the umbilical cord.

  As soon as the blade sliced through it, her eyes popped open and she drew her first breath. In a panicked frenzy, she tried to move away from me—not knowing where she was, what she was, or who we were. I completely understood how she felt. I’d experienced the same after they woke me up on Calliope.

  Angelica, Deena, and Uriel—Araquiel, too, for that matter—had suffered through the first minute of blank consciousness. Only, we had the time for someone to tell us what was going on.

  This Perfect, along with her three equally befuddled and terrified brothers, didn’t have that luxury. I gripped her shoulders firmly, prompting her to look at me.

  “I know this is confusing and scary. I know you don’t understand a word I’m saying right now,” I said, then pointed at the door. “But you need to get out and as far away from here as possible. I don’t want an explosion tearing you apart to be your first memory in this world.”

  “We’re running out of time!” Araquiel whispered from the door.

  It caught the Perfect girl’s attention for a moment, but since she couldn’t see Araquiel, she turned her focus on me. At least she was calm. I took advantage of this moment, pulled her up to her feet, and gently escorted her to the door. Angelica, Deena, and Uriel made themselves visible for long enough to bring the others forward as well. We whispered a collective “Morfuris” just as the doors slid open. The newly-born Perfects wandered out, causing some confusion in the hallway.

  Nobody could see us anymore, but they could certainly see the four premature Perfects stumbling into the crowd. Several Faulties stopped in their tracks and rushed over to help them. I took advantage of a few Perfect guards rushing past me to issue an order as if it was coming from one of them.

  “Take them to the infirmary!” I said out loud. “There was a glitch in the womb. They’re premature.”

  One of the Faulties looked around, obviously confused. He spotted the guards moving down the hallway and exchanged glances with one of them. Fortunately, it was enough of a coincidence in gestures for the Faulty to think that the guard had spoken instead of invisible me.

  They did as ordered, while Angelica dragged me back toward our original destination: the northern exit.

  “Let the countdown begin!” Deena said. “Six minutes.”

  “Five-fifty-nine,” Uriel continued.

  “Five-fifty-eight,” Araquiel replied, a second later.

  “Five-fifty-seven,” I murmured, running down the hallway.

  Soon enough, this whole place would go down.

  In about five minutes and fifty-four seconds, the explosive charges would go off, and we’d be one step closer to giving our brothers and sisters a new and better shot at life. Free from hate and lies. Free from Ta’Zan. My heart almost burst with both grief and excitement.

  Grief for the Perfects I knew we’d lose in this war. Excitement for the future we could still build for ourselves, once we got our freedom and independence back.

  Herakles

  Jakkhiel hadn’t lost his edge.

  In fact, in the days since I’d last seen him, he seemed to have gotten better at delivering efficient attacks. I’d enjoyed teasing him and making him chase me around the colosseum in the beginning, back when he was just a novice in this world. I loved getting him all riled up, only for him to miss me at every turn.

  This time, however, it was different, and my body bore the marks. My move
ments were sluggish, my ribs bruised, and dozens of cuts were blooming crimson on my face, arms, and legs. Jakkhiel had yet to slash at the more important parts of my body. My energy levels were running low, though. I wasn’t sure how much longer I’d last out here.

  “I can smell you!” Jakkhiel shouted through the jungle. “You reek of fear, Herakles!”

  I sighed, perched up on a gnarly branch, about thirty feet to his right. I’d lost my weapon in this fight. It was somewhere on the ground, about two, maybe three yards behind him, but I couldn’t get to it just yet. Jakkhiel’s reflexes were deserving of his species name—annoyingly perfect. I couldn’t make a move without him noticing.

  “And you stink of idiocy, but hey, we can’t all be perfect, right?” I shot back, then jumped on another branch in a nearby tree.

  Below, my fellow Faulties and the Draenir were fighting their own fights against the Perfect guards. The Draenir managed to take shots from beneath the bushes, but the guards were quick to catch on to their positions. It wasn’t long before the Draenir were firing pulverizer pellets left and right, dangerously close to running out of ammo. They’d taken some Perfects down, sure, but they’d mostly hit trees and bushes. That meant fewer places to climb and hide, not only for themselves, but for the rest of us, too. Having such effective and destructive weapons in our possession had a downside, it seemed, since everything they touched was turned to ashes.

  It became difficult to use the ground, as well, since the ashes of trees and fallen Perfects were scattered across it, making every footprint visible. That made it easier for the rest of the guards to track us. Looking around, my crew had been reduced to half of the original number. It made my heart ache, but it also made me angry enough to keep going until every single one of these winged bastards came down.

  “No, you can’t all be perfect, but I certainly am,” Jakkhiel said, sounding dangerously closer than before.

  I let the tip of my tongue stick out to catch his scent. He’d advanced through the jungle, but he was still somewhere behind me. He hadn’t passed my tree yet. Gripping the trunk, I craned my neck to one side, trying to spot him. My heart skipped a beat when I saw him quietly climbing another tree in hopes of finding me.