The First Ark: Deathless Prequel by Chris Fox Read Free Book Online

in my head, slithering through my mind like a serpent. It whispers dark things. Tells me to feed."
    "Are you chieftain or not?" Sekhmet snarled, taking several steps closer. She pulled the fang necklace from her neck and tossed it at Osiris's feet. "This voice is not your master. Listen to my near sister. She does possess great magic and if a way exists to save you then she will find it. If it does not then you will learn to master this evil. Return to this Ark. Fight, as any warrior would."
    "You are right," Osiris said, picking up the necklace and sliding it around his neck. "As long as I have the will, I shall continue to fight. I will return with you to this...rejuvenator. Isis, my love, you will find a way to cleanse me."
    Isis rushed forward, throwing her arms around Osiris. She didn't care about the blood or about the strange green glow. After all, she was different now too. Together a way could be found. They could be happy, could rebuild their tribe.  
    There was hope.
    There is still a matter to tend to, Ka-Ken.
    Isis disengaged from Osiris, unsure what the voice meant.
    We must be certain that the mutagen has not spread. Look to the bodies of the fallen, ensure they do not rise as your Dun rose.
    She raised her staff, commanding the sapphire to glow with the brilliance of the sun. It illuminated the bodies below: Set and his final companion. The scene was ghastly, but the bodies were still.

Chapter 11- Despair

    The creature's eyes snapped open and it rose slowly to its feet. Snow fell all about it, yet curiously it did not feel the cold. It felt nothing, save hunger. The creature knew that it was a walking corpse, a dead thing that should not be. Such things were unnatural. Evil. Cursed. How was this possible?
    When you were slain, the mutagen spread to your body, as it will in turn spread to those you kill, a voice whispered, dark with malice. The creature accepted its presence without question.
    It gazed around, licking its lips as it saw the pool of blood drenching the snow all around it. The creature fell to its knees and lapped eagerly at the blood. The tangy liquid tasted of life, of power. The blood was gone all too soon, and the creature looked around for more. Its gaze fell on a figure in the snow only a little ways away. That figure had begun to stir and even now was rising to its feet. It was familiar somehow, this figure. It was short and male, with a graying beard and dull lifeless eyes.  
    Your former companion , the voice whispered in the back of its mind. Feed upon him and your strength will grow .
    So the creature did. It charged the smaller figure, bearing it to the ground and smashing its head against a rock again and again until it stopped moving. Then the creature began to feed. The flesh was cold, but each mouthful filled it with strength, though it did nothing to sate the awful hunger.
    Yes, feed and grow strong, the voice said, a proud father. Find others of your species. Consume them.
    The creature fed, but as it feasted a troubling thought flittered through its mind. It had a name but could not remember it. What was it called? This lack of identity was troubling.
    You are called Set, my host.  
    Set smiled grimly, for with knowledge of his name memory came flooding back. The world would pay a furious price for the wrongs it had heaped upon him. He would slay them all, and as they died, they would rise again. A glorious army of the dead, united in their service to him.
    He rose and wiped blood from his chin, smiling as he walked away from the Black Mountain and into the storm.

Epilogue

    Ka was more satisfied than she'd been in nearly three eons. Her plan had two segments, a primary way to seed the world with new Ark Lords, and a backup plan, should the first fail. Both had succeeded.
    She watched as the new Ka-Ken led her companions back into the central chamber, pausing by the central obelisk. The woman slammed the primary access key against the floor, then called out to the air