Ink

Chapter 38

The ride up is entirely silent. I'm not sure if we're afraid to speak in front of the guards or if we truly have nothing to say.

I quickly glance between Ryder and Caleb, both have stone expressions that reveal nothing, however when I look further, I notice Caleb's hand fidgeting and Ryder tapping his foot quietly against the elevator floor.

The more my nerves rise, the more I can feel my powers tearing at my seams. I clench my hands together stare blankly ahead in attempt to calm down.

Keep it together. I attempt to reassure myself, but, find that it does nothing to calm me.

My mind begins to wander.

Who is she? I had a feeling she was an important piece of the resistance based off of the reactions of those around me.

When the doors open, I hold my breath and step out into the narrow corridor behind both Ryder and Caleb.

One guard speaks up."We will go no further. She is waiting for you in the conference room." With that he steps back into the elevator and the doors close leaving us alone in the hallway.

"Alright guys." I begin quietly."What the hell is going on?"

Caleb opens his mouth but Ryder places a hand on his shoulder.

"We cannot explain now." He looks between the two of us before nodding his head towards the large metal door at the end of the hall.

We walk in silence, the only sound is the affirmative beep of the key pad when Ryder enters his identification number.

The doors open and I marvel at how thick the metal is. Undoubtably used for maximum security purposes. This room was definitely not for everyday meetings.

Which meant that what we were about to be told was top secret.

I was now both excited and nervous.

Ryder and Caleb enter before me. Each coming to a stop in front of a table that could easily seat twenty.

At its head is a woman. Her hair is cut short and she's wearing a similar uniform to the guards. She's not facing us, but, even still, I can feel the power radiating off of her.

It only takes moments for me to realize that she is like me. Gifted.

I cannot explain the exact feeling, but, it is sort of a just of energy, and then a wave of familiarity that washes over me.

I wonder if this is how Klaus felt when he first met me? Or perhaps Mephistor?

Another thought runs through my mind. How could a gifted vampire be running the Resistance? Vampires like us are seen as twice the threat with half the self control.

I quickly push these thoughts from my mind. I cannot even imagine where Klaus is right now. I would like to think that perhaps he's found a way to end this madness, however, I realize now that thoughts such as that are more likely to do more harm than good. Especially with the king slowly loosing his mind, I doubt there is any safe place. Even here.

I bring myself back to the present situation and hear Ryder clear his throat.

"You requested to see us?" He asks.

There's a long pause.

"We're running out of time." Is all she says.

That voice. A feeling of nostalgia falls over me.

"He's completely lost control." I assume she's talking about the king. "If we don't stop him, he will soon annihilate the entire kingdom."

"How do you propose we stop him?" Caleb asks. "He's stronger then we could have ever imagined. And his powers-"

The woman turns. "We cannot let our fears control us if we are to win this war, Agent Walker." Her voice is strong.

My eyes widen on their own accord as they take in her features.

Her blonde hair frames her face to her chin, her eyes shine gold like my own.

"Oh god."I say barley above a whisper. "It can't be-"

She turns her gaze to mine. A smirk hugs her lips.

"It is good to see you again, sister."

"Cleo?" I walk up to her slowly. Our eyes meet and I scan her face to find our similarities. She is my blood, after all."I never thought I would see you again." I can not help it when my arms wrap around her in a tight hug. She is hesitant at first, but, slowly, her arms wrap around my shoulders.

"Same here." She whispers."I should have known you would get yourself into trouble without me."I laugh."And with the king of all people!"

It is funny to me that this moment of embrace is the most affection we have shone to each other our entire lives. I can't help but think that this situation we are in has brought us together again, and for that reason, I am thankful.

Ryder and Caleb both exchange glances.

"Uh, should we give you two some-" Caleb begins but is cut off by the raise of my sister's hand.

"Nonsense! We are all adults here. We can discuss this in a calm manner."

My mouth remains open as I stare ahead at the girl I have not seen for years.

"H-how could this be?"

She only smiles at my surprise.

"I suppose I have Mr. Burke to thank. The old man is the one that helped me escape." She clears her throat."After I escaped from Illinkus, I was brought here. I trained as a soldier, fought in multiple Resistance wars and rose through the ranks until I was asked to lead the Resistance in our largest battle yet--the one that will end the DeLuce regime forever."

"Badass." Caleb whispers.

"We infected the prince with the virus before his coronation, thinking that he would fall too ill to take the throne. Obviously, this did not work out as planned." She looks over at Ryder who holds his head down."The virus not only made him stronger, but, created an alter ego of sorts. One that lived for murder and destruction. The new Mephistor is the one that took the throne, and, we are not sure if there even is an old Mephistor to save anymore."

My brows crease. Alter ego? Could that be the reason his advances toward me were so intense? This-this beast in side of him is the one that wanted me?

"Once we learned he planned to make you his queen, we knew we had to get you out of there."She continues."If you two had mated, his power would have only grown which would have undoubtably lead to many more innocent lives lost."

"We sent in our best squad that had been training to go against the royal officers for months, Squad I, or Squad Ink."Ryder begins."They were ready for us, though, and began to slaughter all of our finest men without even thinking twice. We were unaware of how unprepared we were. That was before we learned that the royal guards are genetically modified to be stronger and more vicious. Without the same alterations we stood no chance." He pauses."And now we stand even less a chance unless we can stop the king." His blue eyes harden at the mention of Mephistor."He will pay for what he has done."

"Yes, he will, Agent Murdock, but, for now we need to focus on formulating a plan to infiltrate the kingdom to proceed with the next steps of the plan."

"And what would the next steps of the plan be?" I speak up, drawing the attention of the others in the room.

Theres a few exchanges of glances before Caleb speaks up.

"Well, you see Al, we're going to kill blue eye's dad."

~

How'd you like it? I have a quick author's note. I will continue to update this book until it is finished instead of writing a sequel to this particular story. I would like this to be the ''main story' so to speak, but, I would also like to create some sub-stories. Maybe following Cleo or Caleb or even a completely new character living in this world. What do you think?