There are fates worse than death…
#amwriting #books
Welcome to the serialisation of Accidental Immortal. Chapters will be published four times a week so the serialisation will be completed at (roughly) the same time as on Wattpad, if not a little sooner!
If you would like to start from the beginning, please head over to chapter one. There is also a contents list at the bottom of each post.
–Ceri Clark
Chapter 22 – A Meeting of Minds
This was getting to be a habit. Lynsey groaned. “What the hell happened?” She woke up groggy, struggling to wake up from the miasma of drugged sleep. She kept her eyes closed, letting the last wisps pf confusion drift away from her.
“Pico, Pico?”
“Hello Lynsey. We appeared to have been drugged.”
“Master of the understatement yet again. Do you know where we are?”
“Inconclusive. The drug they used to make you sleep, shut down all your brain as well as body functions so I was knocked out as well. I can tell you that we are in a humid environment and it smells like animals have been here but beyond that I have no idea.”
“GPS not working then?”
“Very funny Lynsey.”
“I thought so.”
Lynsey opened her eyes and blinked. She could hardly see a thing. She tried to bring her hand up to her head but couldn’t. She tried again and realised she was tied to a chair. Oh, come on. Give me a break here.
She went limp. Was that a sound? She listened hard. There! She could hear even breathing to her right. She peered into the darkness. It took a few moments but then she saw a dull light pulsating. Lynsey craned her neck to get a better look. There was definitely someone there. Were they waitingt to make a dramatic entrance or something? If they were trying to make her nervous, it was working. A rasping sound behind her made her jump. There was more than one person here. She stiffened as she tried to identify what it could be. It sounded large. Maybe it was just someone scraping a chair trying to get the wind up her. Remembering the two headed snake, she fervently hoped so.
In silence, the light to her side moved up and travelled across the darkness towards her, revealing a figure in a long hooded robe. What was it with priests and robes? Lynsey almost laughed but her mouth felt dry. She realised her skin felt tight. She must be dehydrated. Where the hell was she?
“Would you like a drink?” The voice was thick as if the speaker had smoked for years.
Lynsey swallowed, tiny knives grazed up and down her throat. “I don’t understand. Who are you and where am I?”
Pico answered again in her mind, “The temperature in here is too high. You need water. You will go into a coma soon if you don’t drink and we don’t know what will happen to you if that happens. Take the offer!” Pico was getting far too bossy but she was tired, hot and she didn’t know how long she could cope. Irritated she replied to the priest.
“Yes, I need a drink.”
The hood lowered in response and the figure moved out of view. The light floated back across the room and then bobbed back. The priest now carried a small wooden cup.
“Please don’t try to escape Lynsey. You may get past me but there are guards on the other side of the door and there is a fearsome beast behind you. There is no way you can get away so we may as well be civilised about this.”
Lynsey nodded. Whatever, just give me the water, will you, she thought. The robed figure put the cup on the floor in front of her. She heard a grunt behind her as her bonds were released. Lynsey rubbed her wrists while the pain lessened. Where the rope had would around her hands, it had cut into her skin. The light was dim but she kept her hands over her wrists to hide any healing. A splosh on the floor made her look up to see the proffered cup jiggling. She reached up and took it gratefully.
It tasted tepid but it was the most delicious water Lynsey had ever drunk. She felt it slide down her neck and down through her chest. She drank thirstily emptying the cup within seconds. The stranger watched in silence until she finished.
“Now that I have your attention, we need to start at the beginning. Where are the pyramids?”
“I don’t know.”
“Come on now. We know you have been there. We have the elephant and the other trinkets you liberated from there.” Lynsey heard a tinkle and a bag of jewellery and ornaments flowed on to the floor. The eye in the elephant twinkled in the lamp light. She heard something move behind her.
“Lynsey.“ Pico called, “I can take you there. Maybe they will let you go if you tell them.”
“I don’t know, but I can take you there.” Lynsey said out loud.
“That is good. We have a party preparing to leave in the morning. There is some more water on the table and some cold meats and vegetables if you want it.”
The figure moved off and she heard some banging on what she presumed was a door. When she was sure she was alone, Lynsey dared to stand up.
Slowly she turned. It was too dark to see clearly but she could make out the table in the gloom. She stumbled over and picked up the lamp. There was a wheel underneath a glass globe. She turned it fully clockwise and the lamp brightened. Lynsey held the light aloft and turned to face the beast the priest had said was there.
There wasn’t anything? Except … there! A pile of rocks moved, morphing into a face in the gloom. Its head was the size of a small car. She looked back and saw a long neck connected to a huge body that could house a small building.
Its jaw was resting on its … claws? They could almost be hands. They had six digits with evil looking talons which ended in sharp points. Its great head rose and tilted to get a better look at her.
”A dragon,” she breathed out.
“Another human”, she heard in her mind as it growled back. Lynsey jumped.
“You can talk?”
“You can understand me?” The voice in her mind was tinged with surprise.
“Yes.” Then she directed a thought at Pico, “It’s you isn’t it, I can understand him through you.”
“Of course, I am your universal translator remember.”
Lynsey drew closer to the creature. “You won’t eat me will you?”
“Why do you creatures always assume that I’m going to eat you? No. You people have done a lot worse to me over the centuries.”
“You’ve been here centuries?”
“Is that all you are going to do? Turn whatever I say last into a sentence?”
“Sorry, but I’ve never been able to talk to a dragon before, It is slightly overwhelming.”
The dragon rolled his red-green eyes. “Why are you here?”
“I can take them to the pyramids.”
“From what that person said, she wanted more from you than that. How can you talk to me?”
“Lynsey held out her arm and Pico made the band visible. The dragon looked at it with interest then his head sank back to the floor again. ”I’ve seen that before when I first got here. A priest had one.”
“Priest. When you got here? Where are you from?”
“Somewhere very far away human, you wouldn’t understand.”
“I think I might. Was it another planet?”
“You know about planets?” This time the dragon’s head stayed up with a clink and Lynsey noticed an iron chain leading to a collar around his neck. She touched her own neck in sympathy.
“Yes, of course. I’m not from here. I’m from a planet called Earth.”
“Original. Funnily enough my planet is called that as well but I don’t think we are from the same place.”
“I’m from the Milky Way Galaxy. I was hit by lightning and I found myself here.”
“Interesting, the same happened to me. I was on my way to a meeting when the weather turned for the worst. I suspect it was a combination of a solar flare, freak weather conditions and a black hole occurring at the same time. A once in lifetime occurrence. I thought I might be the only one.”
“Wow, you know about solar flares?”
“I find your incredulity quite insulting. Do you think your kind are the only species that can create a civilisation? Has your world even achieved space flight yet?”
“Yes! We’ve been to our moon and we’re planning to go to Mars.”
“I bet that is in your solar system?” She nodded. “Well, we achieved that hundreds of years ago. My civilisation has colonies on moons and planets throughout our galaxy and I’m reduced to this – chained and tortured by barbarians on an obscure planet. My family will have been dead centuries ago now.” A single tear fell down his snout.
Lynsey felt uncomfortable. “Why do they torture you?”
“Travelling to this world changed me. My life span increased. I have lived for centuries longer than I should have. I’m almost starting to fear that I cannot die.” His laugh sounded hollow in her mind. When she didn’t respond, he carried on. “Every day they come with their bowls and their rituals and they take blood. They found that my blood can extend their lives as well. But while I do not age they still do at a lower rate.”
“Oh God.” Lynsey turned pale as she made the connection.
The dragon clinked as he leaned closer and then began to growl with laughter. “They are going to do that to you as well aren’t they? You are immortal like me!”
Contents
Chapter 1 - Duat Chapter 2 - London - Present Day Chapter 3 – Lynsey on Duat Chapter 4 - Nomads Chapter 5 - Scorpion Chapter 6 - The Dragon Temple Chapter 7 - Assassin Chapter 8 - The Luscious Luna Chapter 9 - Arkan Blade Chapter 10 - Kidnapped Chapter 11 - Rescue Chapter 12 - Modesty Chapter 13 - Banquet Chapter 14 - Arkan Chapter 15 - Dancing with the King Chapter 16 - Dragon Brotherhood Chapter 17 - Pico Chapter 18 – The Dragon Chapter 19 – Settling Down Chapter 20 – Danger Revealed Chapter 21 – Betrayal