No Mere Zombie: Deathless Book 2 (35 page)

She dropped the blur, spinning to face Rodrigo, “Drop anchor, then get the other unblooded below decks. My foes have arrived before us. I may be able to barter with them, but your presence will inflame their hunger and they may not be able to control themselves. For your own safety you must flee.”

In her own time her servants would have died rather than leave her side, but Rodrigo had no such compunctions. He ducked back into the cabin, diving for the lever that released the anchor. Then he seized the microphone, his voice booming across every deck. “Attention, everyone, this is Captain Rodrigo. All personnel report to the fuel storage room on deck six immediately. Go now. Drop anything you are doing and run.”

Then he was following his own advice, dropping the microphone in his haste to scramble through the oddly shaped door at the rear of the cabin. Some might call the action cowardice, but the Mother was pleased by his obedience. He’d been an excellent servant, one worthy of the sacrifice.

A warm nose nudged her thigh. Yukon’s liquid brown eyes peered up at her. He sent no thoughts, despite his newly awakened intelligence. He merely waited expectantly for her will. She smiled, stroking his soft golden fur. “Yukon, you may wait here. They will sense our connection and shall not harm you. But do not attack, no matter what happens.”

Yukon laid down at her feet, licking an errant patch of fur on his hindquarters. Then he froze, hackles rising as he leapt to his feet.
 

“Calm, Yukon,” she said, gripping the fur at the back of his neck so tightly she nearly pulled him from the deck.

Her fears were justified a moment later when a figure blurred into place on the rail directly in front of her. A second appeared to starboard and another to port, but it was the one before her that she focused on.

“Hello, Sobek,” she said, slowly releasing her grip on Yukon. She straightened and took a slow step towards the reptilian god. “You’re a very long way from the Cradle.”

She was still horrified by his appearance, even all these millennia later. His once handsome visage had been twisted beyond recognition. He’d always been fascinated by the crocodiles that prowled the mouth of the River of Life where it spilled into the sea. They were patient, powerful killers that men had long feared. Even the occasional deathless had fallen to their jaws. Sobek had been so obsessed that he’d begged her and Ptah to shape him into their likeness, more reptile than man now.

“Yes,” he thrummed, voice low and deep. His mottled green snout split into a toothy grin. “I did not seek refuge there. I slumbered elsewhere, somewhere far closer to the Pole. You are not the only deity to understand the significance of this place, nor to seek position in this age.” His long tail swished across the deck, a languid reminder that he could strike at any moment.

“Do you really expect me to allow you to establish control over the Lesser Pole, a site so close to my own stronghold you could come upon me within days?” she asked, shifting as she spoke. By the time she’d finished the words were low and deep, possessed of a violence to match his own. It was time to remind him who he’d accosted.

“You mistake me, Isis,” he replied, chest rumbling out a low laugh. He dropped into a crouch. “I neither seek nor desire your approval. My master will have this island and it will aid him in dominating this new world. That does not mean I will attack you, but it does mean I will deny you this place.”

The Mother’s mind raced, thoughts and connections forming as she considered all she knew from her millennia with the man Sobek had once been. He valued no one outside himself, save in that they could help serve his agenda. They were nothing but tools. But in that she found her answer.

She blurred, far faster than even Sobek could track. A direct strike at him would avail her nothing, as even her mighty claws would find difficult purchase on that scaly hide. So she took one of his two thralls, grabbing the vassal around its wide neck. The other arm encircled its chest, pinning the beast’s arms.

“Will you, now?” she asked, grip tightening still further on the beast’s neck. Bones popped. “How many such servants do you possess, Sobek? I see only two. You’re a cautious god. If there were more they’d be with you. I can kill this one and be on the other before you take a step.”

“Isis,” Sobek said, extending his hands in a placating gesture. The long gray claws ruined the effect, but she paused to hear his words. “Surely we can come to some accord. This island is only valuable for its stone. I will quarry and deliver some of it to you. You must need it, or why journey here so soon after waking?”

“Do you think me a fool, Sobek?” she hissed, claws drawing pinpricks of black blood upon the servant’s scaly neck. “You would betray me in the first century. The first decade, even. You’d be a dagger to my throat, one thirsting for my blood. To say nothing of this master you serve.”

“Not so,” Sobek said. He licked the lips running the edge of his snout, reeking of apprehension. She’d chosen a wise tactic. He extended an arm, his hand beginning to vibrate as light flared in the palm. The Mother’s eyes widened as gold pooled there, flowing into a gleaming golden staff that she recognized instantly. It was tipped with a winged scarab, a large sapphire set in its belly.

“Where did you get that? Sekhmet would never have given it up willingly,” she said, grip slackening slightly.
 

“Who says she gave it up? I took it while she wasted time picking her pantheon, then fled for distant shores to secure my passage to this age. I know how strongly you desire it, for you better than any know the true worth of a Primary Access Key. Hear my offer, mighty Isis,” he said, bowing his head in supplication. His gaze shifted back and forth between his minions, as he seemed to weigh their relative value. “I will give it to you as a sign of goodwill, a proof that I intend no animosity between us. Surely parting with such a magnificent weapon shows I intend no confrontation. You would flay the flesh from my bones with such a weapon.”

“Why part with it?” the Mother asked, eyes narrowing. Then it occurred to her.
 
There was only one way Sobek would part with such a treasure. Self-preservation. “You know Sekhmet will come for it. You want to rid yourself of it rather than risk her wrath.”

“She hates that name, you know. Any who use it are flayed alive. I’d rather Ra focus on you, and you can make use of such a potent artifact. Besides, my master would not take kindly to Ra visiting war upon these lands. I would suffer mightily for such a slight. We both gain, Isis,” he rumbled, as close to embarrassed as a reptile could be. “I need time to build my strength, to recruit new followers. My master will rule the land this world calls Australia, across the great sea. Away from you. I require this place only that I may build weapons with which to secure his new empire.”

“Very well, I will give you a decade. Ten years to mine and build,” she said, cocking her head to the side. She hurled the reptile from her, the beast tumbling into its companion against the bulkhead with a hollow boom. Both rolled into a crouch, ready to attack if called upon to do so.

A low growl came from Yukon. She reached down to stroke his muzzle, turning back to Sobek. “In exchange, you will fill this vessel with stone. You will give me the Primary Access Key. You will send no vessels to my continent, or to the continent to the north. Have we an accord?”

“I’d also have a mutual pledge that we will not attack each other during that time,” Sobek rumbled. He gave throaty growl as he extended the staff. “Do you agree, Isis?”

“We have an accord,” She said, nodding resolutely. Then she took a step closer to Sobek. “If your mind should turn to betrayal, I would counsel otherwise. I sense an unseen hand jerking us about like puppets. A threat to both of us, to your master as well.”

“What do you mean?” Sobek said, eyes narrowing as a troubled rumble burbled up.
 

“Study this world’s history. Look especially to the land they call Egypt,” Isis replied, finally giving voice to thoughts that had troubled her for some time. “For thirteen thousand years we slumbered. The world should know almost nothing of us, just vague scraps and myths …”

“Yet our names survive,” Sobek finished after she trailed off. He’d never been the smartest of their band, but that didn’t make him stupid. “They survive
exactly
as they were. Even genetic memory couldn’t do that. Someone woke early, and their hand guided this culture. Perhaps others”

“Or that someone never slumbered at all,” Isis countered. She raised a hand to forestall his protest. “I know, such a feat would have required an incredible store of energy, one we assumed could only be found in an Ark. What if we were wrong? None of us knew Set’s whereabouts when we entered the Arks.”

“Set died in another age. There must be some other explanation,” Sobek replied, giving an agitated rumble. Still, she had placed the seeds of doubt. Enough that his attention would be divided in the coming years.

Isis had chosen a dangerous course, but Sobek’s eventual betrayal was nothing beside the power of the staff. Now she could meet Sekhmet in battle on equal footing, could control any Ark in the world. She was once again a true Ark Lord.

Chapter 54- Permission Denied

Jordan tensed as the elevator doors slid open to reveal a wide auditorium with three rings of seats facing a massive screen. Every figure was focused on that screen, which showed a man of indeterminate age with blonde hair and the beginnings of crow's feet. He had a hard jaw and even harder eyes, the kind of eyes that broke anything lingering too long under their oppressive stare. That stare shifted to Jordan, giant eyes narrowing.

“Commander Jordan. The prodigal son returns to the fold,” the Old Man said. It was Panama all over again. Could he never escape this guy? The Old Man smiled, and it chilled Jordan to his very core. “Please, have a seat. You’re relevant to this discussion and I want your input. Director Phillips seems to think I should give you a squad and send you after a creature that’s the closest thing we know of to a god. He’s demanded I give you Object 2, what’s more that I should put it in the hands of Ms. Gregg, a woman who hates us with the intensity we cannot possibly fathom. Tell me, what do you think?”

Jordan swallowed, sifting through the different approaches he could take here. Fuck it. It was time for honesty. He strode boldly down the stairs and past the first two rings, the heads of the most powerful organization left in the wake of the apocalypse swiveling in his direction. Section chiefs and their top aides whispered quietly, clearly surprised by his arrival. Interesting. The Director must have kept his return quiet.
 

“The Director is right. If we don’t stop Irakesh, he’ll seize control of a pyramid just like the one in Peru. It’s designed to harness the power of the sun and will amplify his powers,” Jordan explained, jaw set. He kept his posture rigid and looked the bastard right in his digital eye. If he was going to be crucified, he’d do it with dignity. “His powers are already immense. If we let him get a base of operations, he
will
become our primary competition on this continent. It will lead to war and that’s a war we aren’t equipped to win. Our infrastructure is critically damaged. Our communications with survivors near nonexistent. That isn’t the case for Irakesh. He can control the dead and hurl them against us in near limitless numbers while we struggle to save survivors. His army is endless.
We have a chance to stop him …” The Old Man met his gaze, expression unreadable. “If we take the hit and succeed, we’ll have eliminated our primary competition. If we fail, we’ll have risked nothing.”

“Nothing?” Mohn snapped, eyes smoldering. Then he struck, spittle flying at the screen as his face twisted. “You want us to deliver one of our most potent artifacts into his hands. To alert him to the fact that humanity still has a technologically advanced stronghold. Are you insane or just reckless? He
cannot
know about us, Commander, not until we are strong enough to defend ourselves. Right now we have the power of anonymity, a power you’d casually discard. We saw how things turned out on your watch down in Peru. What makes you think you’ll have any more success now?”

“Because,” Jordan roared, beginning the shift. It came swiftly, his clothing shredded in the blink of an eye as blonde fur exploded around his expanding body. His voice boomed through the room now, bestial and immense. “We have the forces capable of taking him down. Werewolves were created to fight his kind, the deathless. You have two of them. Give us a plane, a squad, and Object 2. We’ll take Irakesh down and end this. It’s worth whatever risk that might mean.”

“
If
you’re successful,” the Old Man shot back, apparently unfazed by Jordan’s new form. The fury was still there, but the Old Man had reigned it in. A smart move, as it made him appear more reasonable in front of his underlings. “I will not trust the weight of the world on your shoulders, Commander. Not a second time. Not after the monumental disaster in Peru. That was our chance to hold onto South America. Do you know where that is, Jordan? In the middle of the green belt least affected by this disaster. The place where power grids weren’t utterly destroyed. The place where we could have re-established civilization.

“
You
cost us that. If I trust you a second time it will jeopardize the little we’ve been able to save,” the Old Man continued, tone scathing. Jordan remained unbowed. The Mother represented a powerful ally, one with a knowledge of their enemies gathered over millennia. Waking her had been the right thing to do, though admitting that here would mean a swift trip to the lab. He wasn’t sure how he’d avoided it thus far.