Genesis | Book One, The Genesis Series

Epilogue

Elias' mind was in a frenzy.

The feathered crystals of Alaska's snow clung to the bruised skin of his face like a rock climber on a large mountain. Most of his unkempt, disheveled black hair was matted to his forehead by fresh blood. One would normally be shivering in these harsh conditions, but Elias didn't.

How could he when the embarrassment of defeat warmed his entire body?

He'd managed to geo-leap a fair distance away from Titus Island before fatigue from the previous battle besieged his anatomy. The snowy peaks around him stretched for the heavens. Had those pesky Genesis agents not been busy mowing down the last of Elliot's sympathizers, they'd have been on him in no time.

Not that they would've stood a chance.

Elias clenched his fists so hard he feared he'd have to replace the appendage. His eyes snapped shut. His mind was a raging whirlwind.

Primus was supposed to be superior. To everyone. That was the sentiment Elliot had so relentlessly instilled within his mind. All this time, the man had never told so much as a fib. After all, he'd repeatedly promised Elias that he'd never, ever withhold the truth to him.

If that was true, why had they lost?

The chipped, violet katana on his back hadn't won him the victory. Neither had his enhanced physical attributes and energy abilities gifted to him by the Genodium. His bruised, bloodied face contorted in rage as he kicked the small mound of snow lying near his feet. The speckles of ice splintered off in microscopic, icy fragments and struck the ground, joining their companions.

For years he'd been bred to be the ultimate lifeform. The perfect weapon. It hadn't worked. He'd nearly been bested by The Guardian. He grimaced as he recalled the boy looming over him, the white star on his red shield pulsing with blinding, white light. Elias nearly clasped his hand around the hilt of his blade at the mere thought of his soldier-esque rival.

He was sure of one thing: if he encountered him again, Elias would be the only one standing.

But the odds of that were slim. Primus' ideals might as well have been confined to an impenetrable crate and tossed into the Grand Canyon. He'd survived. They hadn't. It was clear that he'd moved beyond them. Beyond their asinine mission. Beyond Elliot.

He was free to forge his own path.

A tear nearly fell from his eye as he realized that.

A mental block had been ingrained into his psyche. Memories from his old life, prior to being abducted by Matthews, had been severed like they'd met the business end of his blade. He couldn't even recall his own birthday. For as long he could remember, he'd been moved from fight to fight like a pawn in a grand game of chess.

He was off the board. They owned him no more.

But he needed to disappear. To fade into the background like an unpaid extra. He figured ditching his old codename would be good start.

From this day forward, Ajax was dead.

Exile had been born.

A voice plagued his ears. "There he is!"

He whipped his head around to see a squad of Genesis agents, all armed to the nines as they stood atop a tall cliff. Snowflakes adorned the navy-blue and burgundy lines surging down their black uniforms as they barked orders at him.

Elias bristled, his teeth baring against one another. His eyes welded themselves shut. Closing his fist as his jaw went taut like military cable, he called upon the remaining reserves of his depleted stamina to transport him to anywhere but there. He visualized where he wanted to end up, the violet and scarlet lines on his tattered uniform flickering with light.

Hopefully this leap would go as planned. Geo-leaping while physically drained was never a good idea, but Elias was out of options.

Vibrant swirls of purple and red energy swarmed around his body in the span of a millisecond engulfing his eyes. It's low hum soothed him. It would be brief. Tranquility never lasted for him.

Expelling one last grunt of exertion, he geo-leaped away. The finger of an encroaching Genesis agent grazed his shoulder the instant he dematerialized. Black, purple, and red particles lingered in the air where he once stood.