Condition Evolution 4 by Kevin Sinclair (parable of the sower read online .txt) 📗

fast cut at Shaun’s head. His attempt to avoid the insane longsword resulted in him falling backwards, inadvertently saving his life. It was a short reprieve. An involuntary scream escaped my mouth as I watched the lethal seven-foot sword of Zarime change direction so swiftly I could barely comprehend what had happened. All I was aware of was that the sword was now buried through Shaun’s chest and into the floor below. Havok attempted a final attack on Zarime, who lithely shifted to one side. Managing to catch his handle, he slammed the huge axe into the deck with astounding force. Then, arms outstretched, Zarime began slowly turning, like a victor in the Roman Colosseum for the benefit of his people.

My own life suddenly didn’t matter anymore. Without Shaun, what was the point? If I could kill this grinning fucker, then I’d at least go out with some small comfort. I screamed again, this time out of pure rage as I hurled my sword, propelled with all the telekinetic force I could muster. I followed the throw up by charging him, vision focused with fury despite the tears that poured freely.

A small shield flared to life over his hand as he batted my sword with contempt, followed by a backhand that caught my face and shoulder like a wrecking ball. I flew across the bridge like a ragdoll, in a spray of blood and teeth, to land on my now dislocated shoulder in a barely conscious heap of failure, misery, and pain. The only reason I was still alive was because his sword was still embedded in Shaun. A problem he was about to address. From my position, I watched as he held his hand out for the sword to come to him. All traces of his annoying smile vanished when it didn’t come. Walking over to Shaun’s lifeless body and placing a foot on his chest, he then took hold of the sword. With a sharp yank, he pulled it free. A small fountain of blood shot forth, spattering on his armor. He looked down in disgust.

“Now for head collection. Don’t worry, young lady, I’ll take yours next,” he said, looking across the bridge at me before raising the sword above Shaun’s head. His expression suddenly changed into one of pain and surprise. “What was that!” he roared. He swept his sword around himself in a wide arc but found nothing to hit. He was facing away from me now, and I saw two heavy streams of blood flowing down his back. He roared again, still looking around for what had caused the unexplained attack. It must have hurt him more than I’d have expected, as his sword now looked unwieldy. “Kill them all,” he screamed.

“Fight!” I tried to shout from my spot on the floor. It came out as a ragged, garbled mess, but my friends needed no instruction as the room erupted into chaos, flames, and shrieks. The guard nearest to my position turned to face me with a sneer. Moving closer, he raised his sword to finish the job Zarime had started. His arm suddenly dropped as he winced in pain and shock. He looked around to find the cause, blood now flowing freely from his armpit. I took the only chance I had and attacked his mind. His defense was almost nonexistent as he dealt with the surprise, pain, and blood loss. Appearing in his Nerve Center and immediately grabbing all the cables that I could get my arms around. With an effort of concentration, I locked the bastard up. I could feel his mind begin to shut down. Leaving a tendril of my consciousness holding on to his nerve bundles, I left his Mindscape to find him writhing on the floor before he stilled, and I regained the part of me that finished the job.

It was hard to make out how anything in the room was going, other than flames and death. My heart broke a little as I saw Roger going down, his body cut almost in half from the neck down. William stood over his body, trying to defend his friend futilely. It was no good, we were done. Our insane journey had finally come to an end. I supposed it was remarkable we’d made it this far.

Another Fystr approached me, axes dripping with the blood of one of my friends, as I sat propped against a bulkhead, broken and all but finished. A desperate attempt on his mind was futile. His defenses were solid. In the few seconds I had left while waiting for the inevitable blow to land, I wanted my last sight to be of Shaun, not this fucking bastard. I looked over to where his body lay. Useless anger filled me as Zarime stood over him, sword raised to remove my love's head. I watched, transfixed in horror, as it began to descend, when I saw Shaun’s eyes snap open and Havok broke free of the floor, shooting into his hand the exact second the blow landed. Despite everything that was going on, I couldn’t help but think, Lucky bastard! A smile played on my lips. Now I was going to have to find a way to survive.

Chapter 27

Be My Frankenstein

Ember’s screams, Havok’s screams, rang in my head, but they were growing increasingly distant by the millisecond. I was dying, and quickly. They're all going to die, and there’s not a damn thing I can do about it. I’ve failed them, I mourned as my consciousness faded.

A mocking female voice replied, pulling my consciousness back from the spiral of despair. “Of course you failed, pitiful human. Zarime is a god amongst you and with me at his side there is nothing we can't accomplish.”

“Who is this?” I asked back.

“I am Lorelei, the sword that has taken your life, and even now I am drinking all of your beautiful essence. You are brimming, my master will be delighted,” the sword taunted, so pleased with itself as it presumably