Scythe Page 11

  “And for a while, our family’s life was nothing but roses, too,” continues Luci. “That is, until you came along. Dad used to make good money. Mom did, too. We were set until you ruined everything. But now, things are finally turning around. Godwin’s setting you up, and I’ll be the beneficiary. And the best part? You’ll have your memory wiped, so you won’t recall any of this conversation.”

  This has to be the drugs. After all, I was just starting to accept that Luci was a little entitled and Josiah was a tad creepy. But this? Luci loathes me? Wants to ruin me? What did I ever do to her?

  Luci looms over my bed and grins. “You’ll repay your debt to me, Pumpkin. I’ll make sure of it.”

  Spots appear in my vision. A metallic taste takes over my mouth. I don’t have long to stay alert. And based on what Luci said, not much time remains for me to stay Meimi. Final thoughts appear before the drugs fully pull me under.

  No, you’re wrong, Luci. That kiss from Thorne means I’ll remember everything. And I’m not the one who’ll pay.

  My enemies will.

  —The End—

  The adventure continues with UMBRA,

  Prequel 2 in the Dimension Drift Series

  And ALIEN MINDS,

  Book 2 in the Dimension Drift Series

  Read on for a sample chapter from each title

  Next In Dimension Drift – UMBRA

  Experience the events of SCYTHE from Thorne’s point of view … and a whole lot more.

  Don’t miss UMBRA, Prequel 2 in the Dimension Drift Series … And read on for a sample chapter!

  Next In Dimension Drift – ALIEN MINDS

  DIVERGENT meets OCEAN’S EIGHT in this urban fantasy heist!

  Catch Meimi’s story in ALIEN MINDS, Book 1 in the Dimension Drift Series … And read on for a sample chapter!

  Also from Christina Bauer – ANGELBOUND

  More than a million copies sold!

  Myla Lewis is a part-demon girl who fights evil souls in Purgatory’s Arena. For her, that’s easy. Then she falls a part-angel Prince who’s vowed to kill every demon he meets. Things just got complicated.

  Also from Christina Bauer - MAGICORUM

  The series that USA Today calls “Must-read YA paranormal romance!”

  Take a closer look at these modern fairy tales with sass, action, and swoon-worthy love…

  Also from Christina Bauer - BEHOLDER

  Like GAME OF THRONES? You’ll love CURSED and the Beholder Series!

  Join the epic story of Elea, a medieval farm girl who discovers necromancy, adventure, and true love…

  If You Enjoyed This Book…

  …Please consider leaving a review, even if it’s just a line or two. Every bit truly helps, especially for those of us who don’t write by the numbers, if you know what I mean. Plus I have it on good authority that every time you review an indie author, somewhere an angel gets a mocha latte. For reals.

  And angels need their caffeine, too.

  UMBRA – Chapter One

  THORNE

  Nine minutes.

  That’s how long before this planet implodes.

  I’m talking about a version of Earth that supports thousands of cities. Millions of buildings. Billions of people. Right now, I’m all that stands between them and instant annihilation.

  Welcome to my Tuesday.

  I’m Thorne Oxblood, and I fight inter-dimensional disasters.

  Leaning against the back wall of Clyde’s Gym, I scan the place for the hundredth time. Something in here is a ticking bomb, but what? This parallel instance of Earth broke off from the prime strain in the 1950’s. Got stuck there, too. Case in point: some teenagers lurk in a corner with pomade-slick hair, white T-shirts, and cuffed jeans. Others guys train on punching bags. Even more lift weights or jump rope. The smell of sweat and sneaker rot is everywhere.

  And then there’s me, an eighteen-year-old with a muscular build, short hair, brown eyes, and gray sweats.

  I look human.

  I’m not.

  My earpiece lets out a soft tone. That’s my older brother Justice calling. Together with my younger brother Slate, the three of us make up the royal family for our home planet, Umbra. Our father, Cole, is Emperor of the Omiverse, the universe of universes. Justice takes it all too seriously. Then again, he’s the oldest and next in line for the throne. He loves playing Emperor and I’m his favorite subject to worry over.

  I debate about skipping his call, but Justice won’t give up. In fact, if I ignore him, Justice will merely open a drift void and show up here in person. That’s even worse than a voice conversation.

  “Accept inbound comm,” I say.

  Even though Justice is multiple universes away, his gravelly tone comes through perfectly. “You’ve got less than nine minutes, Thorne. This mission is a bust. You’re sure to fail. Give up. Get out of there.”

  In a surprise move, Justice thinks I can’t do this. And maybe I can’t, but that’s not his call. The guy’s not Emperor yet.

  “What about saying hello first?” I ask.

  “Hello.” Justice snaps off the word. “Now GO.”

  “I’m working a mission.”

  As an Umbran, my body’s unique. I store tiny cybernetic organisms called sentient. Together with these creatures, my family and I patrol the omniverse. Our goal? Protect things like this very planet. Right now, my sentient are really jacked up. They keep sending me mental images of exploding planets. It’s their way of telling me to leave here already. I’m not going.

  “You can’t save every world,” continues Justice. “You know how many parallel universes there are?”

  “Many,” I deadpan.

  “Right. And this Earth will soon destroy itself anyway. Slate gave me the run down.” Our youngest brother specializes in visions and knowledge, or rather, his sentient do. “This Earth broke off from the prime strain in the 1950’s. New tech has come along only recently. They’re about develop drift void tech. You know what that means. Only half of planets last beyond that stage. Most blow themselves up anyway. Why save their world just so they can destroy it? Move on and go home, Thorne.”

  “That’s not your call to make,” I counter. “My sentient guided me here.” I don’t add that my sentient are still sending me kaboom images, which is the equivalent of saying, we take it back—leave.

  “No, brother.” Justice isn’t giving up. “There are only six minutes left. Saving this world isn’t possible. You’re not like me and Slate.”

  It’s an effort to keep my voice level. “I’m aware.”

  Justice and Slate are both far stronger with sentient than I am. Then again, there are ninety-year-old grandmas in my world that have more sentient energy that I do. That said, what I lack in power, I make up for in guts.

  “Look, Thorne.” My brother’s voice turns pleading. “It’s my responsibility to watch over you.”

  Oh, damn. Now Justice has that hurt tone to his voice. Much as I hate to admit it, the guy really does mean well. It’s just that I’m not his problem to fix. I’m about to tell him that when something happens.

  A door along the back wall opens.

  My sentient stop sending me explosion imagery. Instead, a sensation of joy courses through my veins. It’s not my emotion; those feelings are coming from the sentient, too. It’s their way of saying that we’re close to finding the schism, which is whatever or whoever is causing this world to end.

  “Hold on,” I tell Justice.

  A girl steps out through the newly-opened door. She’s young, red-haired, wearing a poodle skirt, and cradling some books and papers in her arms. The name Judy is embroidered on her sweater. To my eyes, the documents glow with crimson light. That’s the sentient telling me that I’ve found what I’m looking for.

  The schism.

  Other dimensions and realities overlay this one, even if the humans here can’t detect it. Every so often, something here sets off a destructive chain reaction. That’s a schism. It could be anything, too. In
this case, the schism’s just a pile of papers Judy is holding.

  My sentient go berserk. They send me mental images of the girl, her father, and those documents. Based on these pictures, I know this girl’s family runs this gym. Judy also does her homework in his office. Those documents are her creation. Whatever she’s working on, it’s important.

  Does she need help with her work?

  Some extra equipment maybe?

  Sentient can tell me what the schism is, but not how to neutralize it. That part needs a little finesse.

  All of a sudden, long cracks form in the gym walls and ceiling. It’s an effect that only I can see. My sentient empower me to see how this world is pulling apart. My pulse speeds.

  Not long now.

  Judy locks the office door behind her. Over in the corner, the greaser kids watch her closely. Or I should say, four of them scan the gym with nervous glances. The tallest one leers in Jane’s direction. Not sure I like the hungry look in his blue eyes.

  The girl steps out a different door, one leads to a back alley. The greasers stalk along behind her.

  Sometimes it’s tricky to figure out how to fix a schism. With Judy, the job’s pretty clear.

  Save the girl.

  “I got it,” I tell Justice. “The schism centers on a girl named Judy; she just moved into an alley. Some guys trailed her. I’m going after them.”

  “No way.” Justice’s voice takes on a frantic note. “A bunch of guys sneak into a dark alley and you’re following? You have no idea what kind of tech they’re packing. I’m coming in to help you.”

  I prowl across the gym floor. More fissures appear beneath my feet. Again, no one in the gym notices; it’s something only I can see.

  “Thorne, did you hear me?”

  Of course, I heard him. “Stay where you are, Justice. I got this.”

  “No! What you’ve got is a damned hero complex that’ll put you in an early grave. Keep this channel open so I can pinpoint your exact location and—”

  I click the earpiece off.

  The connection is severed. I’m doing this alone.

  As I march toward the back door, my brother’s words echo through my mind.

  You’ve got a damned hero complex that’ll put you in an early grave.

  Justice is wrong; I don’t have a hero complex.

  It’s more of a death wish.

  My brothers and I make up the royal family of Umbra. We’re expected to have exceptional powers with sentient. Slate and Justice do; I don’t. That makes me the chipped jewel in an otherwise-perfect crown.

  I’m the extra prince.

  Weak brother.

  Unworthy royal.

  Someone to be pitied as he’s pushed aside.

  I won’t have it.

  With each mission, I get one step closer to either proving myself worthy of my title or checking out of this game entirely. Am I a true royal or a dead fool? Yanking on the back door, I step out into the darkened alley.

  Maybe today things get settled, one way or another.

  ALIEN MINDS - Chapter One

  MEIMI

  In this moment, I know four things.

  One, I just woke up in a hospital bed.

  Two, I don’t remember anything about my life before today. Hello, amnesia!

  Three, there’s a creepy couple in my room—Luci and Josiah—who claim they’re my sponsor parents. According to them, I’m a seventeen-year-old science prodigy called Wisteria Roberts. Huh. That name rings zero bells. I do believe the science part, though: I’ve been brainstorming the chemicals of my sponsor father’s stinky cologne. Acetone? Benzene? Tough call.

  “As your sponsor parents, we’ll fund the rest of your high school education,” says Josiah. He’s been talking for fifty minutes straight without seeming to take a breath. It’s like a miracle of oxygen use. Besides that, Josiah’s a lanky guy with slicked-back hair, a frayed suit, and an overly-large Adam’s apple.

  “Isn’t that wonderful?” asks Luci.

  Wow. Three whole words from Luci.

  I nod and smile. Luci and Josiah have been here for ages, standing at the foot of my bed and monologue-ing about how they’re my sponsor parents and I absolutely volunteered for some program with them. Totally fishy. In between all my smiling and nodding, I’ve also been plotting and fighting the urge to itch my IV.

  I suppose I should be terrified at this situation.

  Really, I’m more pissed off.

  My guess is that some memories remain in my brain and they’re guiding me toward rage. And to that I say: Welcome, anger. Let’s hang out. You’re a much better pal than terror.

  “Later on, you’ll pay us back with interest,” continues Luci. She’s willowy and tall with white-blonde hair and ice-blue eyes. “Now, you may have heard nasty rumors that the loan’s interest is unreasonable. That’s simply not true. Chances are, you’ll only pass a modicum of debt along to your children. Isn’t that amazing? Plus, while you stay with us, your life will be a dream. Comfort. Fresh food. New clothes. You’ll enjoy the best of everything.”

  Wow. There’s a ton to unpack in what Luci just said. Even so, I focus on one thing. Pay off my debt before I die? Maybe? No way would I sign up for this program in general, let alone with these two in particular.

  Which brings me to my final item.

  Four, I want out of here. Preferably somewhere as far away from Luci and Josiah as possible. Why? I don’t remember things, but I feel stuff. And these two make my skin crawl and my blood pressure spike. Since that’s all I have, I’ll go with it.

  Like I said, it’s better than panicking.

  Josiah grins. He’s got large front teeth, a look that’s made worse by the huge chunk of parsley stuck between them. “You’re handling this so well, Wisteria. Let’s move on to what you’ll do for summer school. That starts in a few short weeks.”

  Josiah describes some kind of summer science project that I’ll work on. I keep right on smiling and nodding, but internally, I’ve kicked my plotting into high hear. This is New Mass Gen hospital, which means I’m in the Boston Dome, where everything’s closely tracked by the government. Case in point: this room has no less than six spider bots scaling the walls, each one loaded with video and audio recording power. Before I can escape, I need a little info on bot deployment, guard rotations, and escape routes.

  Okay, a lot of info.

  But where can I jack into a data feed?

  Scanning the room, I look for a good place to connect. There are no data pads or access ports in here. That said, the spider bots could be interesting. An idea forms. If I take over a spider bot, then I can both send and receive data. One bot wobbles on its spindly legs. That’s an older model. Schematics flash through my head for an S-Bot A3-4000. Very hackable.

  At that moment, a wisp of a man strolls into the room, interrupting my thoughts. Tufts of gray hair encircle his bald head. Small round glasses sit atop his thin nose. The nametag on his loose lab coat reads Doctor Godwin. He pauses by my bed. “You’re awake.”

  “Yes.” I eye the doctor. My skin pickles with fear. Although I can’t recall where we met or anything, I know one fact.

  This doc is a dick and I hate him.

  Josiah straightens his stance. “Greetings, Doctor Godwin.”

  “Such an honor for you to visit,” adds Luci. “We’ve been looking forward to meeting you. Of course, we followed all your medical miracles with Wisteria.” She turns to me. “So you know, Doctor Godwin got your memory back after that terrible accident. You know, the one where you fell.”

  That is such BS. I shoot her a level look. “I fell.”

  “Absolutely,” injects Josiah. “And after the fall, you were run over by a hovercraft on Newbury Street. Remember? That’s how your head got injured. We told you all about it this morning.”

  I stifle the urge to roll my eyes. Josiah and Luci absolutely said I was run over by a hovercraft. Only last time, they said it was Hanover Street. I didn’t buy it then. And now? I bel
ieve it even less. Whatever’s going on, I know one thing.

  I want to leave. ASAP.

  Godwin glares at Luci and Josiah. “Cease speaking. Both of you.”

  Now Godwin’s a creep, but I have to admit it: he and I agree on the Luci and Josiah shutting up thing. They’re both perfectly silent now. This is the first blessed quiet I’ve had in hours.

  Godwin then focuses his beady eyes on me. “Supposedly, you’re a science wizard.” The way the doctor snarls out the word supposedly, it’s like I’m a massive scam.

  “You don’t know if I am?” I ask.

  “That’s why you have sponsor parents, Wisteria.” Godwin forces a grin that doesn’t reach his eyes. “You chose to leave your old life behind, and test your skills this summer at ECHO Academy, the world’s greatest school for science.” His voice takes on a placating tone. “Do you know what the drift is?”

  “Sure, that’s the dimension drift. It’s a branch of science that combines theory, engineering, tech, you name it. Drift scientists study other worlds and dimensions that overlap with ours.”

  “Correct.” Godwin narrows his eyes at me. All of a sudden, I feel like a virus under a microscope. “And do you believe what your sponsor parents said about you crossing Newbury Street?”

  My insides twist with anxiety. This is some kind of test, I know it. I worry my lower lip with my teeth before coming to a firm conclusion. As a scientist, the truth is always best.