The Bleed: Book 2: RAPTURE by David Moody (best selling autobiographies .txt) 📕

Maddie leaned over to see Sandra. “I say you should go for it,” she told the woman. Sandra flipped her off.

“See, the dilemma I am facing is that since the dawn of creation, these two opposing forces have been doing all in their power to eradicate each other. Like I said, this conflict is the basis of the universe. It simply would not exist, were this not the case. To help you, I would be working against everything I have done; if it ceases, so do I. There will be no millennia-long celebrations for this great victory. I will be reabsorbed into the entirety, no longer having my individuality, free will, my own time to do with as I please. I find that most unsettling.”

“Yeah, you should be on this side of it,” Maddie said.

“However, this would be unlike anything I have ever done, and if it were to be discovered I was assisting the opposition…well, there are things far, far worse than death. Eternal torture or a dissolution of self, becoming forever a part of a group consciousness, with no chance of independent thought or action. These are not easy decisions. Neither way appears to offer much hope.”

“What if there is a third way?” Maddie spoke.

“I’m listening,” he told her.

“You could do close to nothing. You could tell us what might work to stop it, then just leave. It will not be discovered that you went against your side, you’ve given us no active help but you will have given us a fighting chance. And another benefit is, you don’t kill us, you can still feel free to shove that gun up Sandra’s ass. I don’t think anyone else here will complain,” Maddie replied.

“Interesting proposal. I have a counter to that. I kill all of you, I do what I can from here, and again, no one is the wiser.”

There was a collective gulp from the four women.

“We don’t like that one,” Thistle said.

“I second,” Sam raised her hand.

“We will fight. Not each other,” he clarified when Sandra raised the weapon. “I will make my determination after a skirmish with the bogalites.” He walked closer to the rings. A glow emanated from them, and they all watched the monitors as a fistful of the enormous insects were plucked up from the outside and neatly deposited inside the crater, where they immediately began to wreak havoc.

Maddie lurched as she watched the suffering of the people, but right now she was doing the best she could to stay in the fight.

“This will be my determination of whether you are worthy of my help. You live and fight valiantly, I will take that as a sign.”

“Worthy?” Sandra pahed. “I don’t need your damn validation.”

“Will you for once shut up!” Maddie railed.

“To be clear, you all must survive. If even one of you falls, I will consider it a failure for all of you.”

“He’s talking about you, Sandra,” Maddie said.

“What are you talking about?” she questioned.

“He just met you, and he already knows what you’re all about. You have to help all of us, not just your own deflated ass.”

“My ass isn’t deflated, it’s toned!” she screamed.

“Mom.” Sam was embarrassed.

“I work my ass off to look like this!” she yelled.

“Like, literally,” Maddie replied.

“Maddie!” Sam looked over angrily at the woman.

“Come on, someone gives you that and you don’t take it? That’s just a waste.”

Thistle went rigid as Kalandar moved toward her. He draped his hand over the entirety of her head. He made a small incantation and his hand lit up. The light flowed down and over Thistle like a luminescent waterfall.

“What are you doing?” Sam moved to help.

Thistle held up a hand. “He’s…he’s somehow restoring my power. Oh, my gods!” She flexed her hands when he released his grip. “I am so strong!”

“Strong enough?” Maddie used her chin to point at Kalandar.

“Talk about not exercising subtlety,” Kalandar said. “And no, she could never have enough, not to defeat me, anyway. Do you wish to go next?”

“Next for what?” Maddie asked.

“All of you here have the blood of celestial ones flowing through your veins. It may be latent, but nothing that cannot be awakened with proper manipulation.”

“What sort of manipulation?” Maddie was moving backward as Kalandar approached. As she ran out of room to run, he covered her head with his hand. She wrapped hers around his trying to remove it, but for all the success she was having, it might as well have been an integrated part of her now. She stopped fighting when the first jolts of current passed through her. She sagged, but Kalandar kept her upright with his tight grip.

“You’re killing her!” Sam screamed, racing over to help. Kalandar caught her in mid-stride, his hand over her head and the same strange glow emanating. When he was done with Maddie, she fell to the floor as her legs gave out. Thistle came and helped her to stand; they watched as Kalandar finished with Sam and helped to keep her propped up.

“Don’t even think about it, Clifford!” Sandra had the pistol pointed at his head.

“It is for your benefit,” he ensured her. “It will be easier to survive if you can defend yourself with something better than….” His words were cut off as she fired a round. It struck Kalandar high in the cheek.

Sam screamed in horror as Kalandar’s head twisted and a spray of blood splashed across her face.

“What the fuck, Sandra!” Maddie rushed the woman, her fist solidly striking her in the cheek, her head rocked back and her knees buckled. Maddie grabbed the gun before the woman could do anything else stupid. Kalandar wrapped his hand around Sandra’s throat and lifted her so they were eye to damaged eye. Her legs were kicking wildly as the oxygen to her brain was being cut off. Maddie contemplated using the weapon to help free the woman, but honestly didn’t think that was in any of their best interests, save Sandra’s, and she’d made this pretty uncomfortable bed to