For an eternity, Reece knew only quiet darkness. Then a voice pierced the pure silence as it entered his mind.

“Child of Aphrodite...can you hear me?” came the soothing voice from what sounded like a young woman.

Reece was filled with confusion. He was somewhat used to the strange prophetic dreams by now, but this was something different. He didn’t know what a child of Aphrodite was, but he figured he should try to respond anyway.

“If it’s me you’re talking to, I hear you,” he replied.

“Finally, we can speak to one another,” answered the voice, her tone filled with a mix of relief and impatience like she’d been trying to reach him for months. “Listen closely, we can’t speak long. I need you to come to a place near Mexico City. There is an ancient temple to the north-east of the city called Teotihuacán. You will find me in a hidden section of the temple, buried far beneath the ground. Find me. I can answer all of your questions then.”

“Okay, you have a deal. Now, how am I supposed to find this hidden section of the temple?” asked Reece.

As soon as he did, images began flowing into his mind, showing him exactly how to get there and what to do.

“Alright, I understand...but I’m in no position to help anybody. To be completely honest, I’m not even sure if I’m still alive. Last I remember, things weren’t going so well for me.”

“Fear not. You are alive, and I’ve sent help. Just hold on a little...”

The voice’s last words were barely a whisper before fading away completely. Reece called out to the voice but received no answer. Only the silent blackness remained before his consciousness seeped away and he knew no more.

The next thing he knew was pain. Everything hurt, but it was particularly prevalent in both of his shoulders, both arms, and his left thigh. He was laying on his back, something cold, smooth, and metal beneath him. He tried to open his eyes, but only his right one opened.

From his left, he only felt pain and something dried and caked across the left side of his face from his forehead to his chin. All he saw with his right eye was a high white ceiling with a large droplight directly over his body. The low light source cast most of the ceiling in shadow, but he could still make out metal crossbeams from which the light and various cables and chains hung.

Afraid any movement would alert his captors, he tried looking around with just his working eye. Still, he was able to take in the rest of the room that was within his view. It was reminiscent of a hospital room, though the drop ceiling and chains made it much less inviting.

There was an older quantum-screen unrolled on one wall and helped light up the room a bit. The displayed anatomical images and hand-scribbled notes were bright for easy use on the giant touchscreen. Various medical machines sat haphazardly around the room, most powered by the cords hanging from the darkened ceiling, a couple having screens that glowed a sickly greenish color.

He tried lifting his head and only got it a couple of centimeters off the table before a strap across his forehead kept him from continuing the movement. The small move afforded him a view of his body. It was a mess. Considering his wounds, any lilitu blood he had left in his system was long gone by now. Most of the wounds were gaping, but he assumed they had fixed anything life-threatening so they could pump him for information.

The only clothing that he had on was his grey boxers, and they were torn and bloodstained. Both arms and legs were zip-tied to the metal table that seemed designed for restraint. He spotted his satchel sitting on a counter across the room. It looked unopened which he found a bit odd. If he were in his captor’s position, he would have at least searched it. He also wouldn’t have left it in the same room with the prisoner. That didn’t make any sense, but he wasn’t about to look a gift horse in the mouth.

He rested his neck and allowed his head to once again rest upon the cold metal table to which he was strapped. He was in deep now. Even if he wasn’t cuffed, his wounds would prevent him from getting across the room, let alone out of whatever awful place he found himself within.

He groaned in pain and frustration. He tried focusing his mind on his happy place; Karina, Naeva, and Ciera. He chuckled and then coughed up a metallic-tasting fluid that flowed down the corner of his mouth. He found a bit of dark humor in the fact that he had solved his dilemma about what to do with the three women in his life right now, nothing. He was almost certainly going to die a horrible death, and probably soon.

Still, he felt like he had a sliver of hope, something about a dream he couldn’t remember. Something about...Mexico...City? A burst of imagery invaded his mind, showing him a path to some crypt beneath a hidden temple in the city. Then he remembered everything. Help was coming.

“Well, they better hurry it up,” he said out loud to himself somewhat dryly, if for no other reason than to break up the silence.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t hear himself speak. He concentrated on his ears, and he could feel something stiff and dry covering his lobes. Reece marveled at the fact that he was somehow still alive.

It was clear he had been tortured savagely, but he didn’t remember any of it. He wondered if he had blocked it from his mind to maintain his sanity. Then he began worrying and expecting more to come and he felt tears well up and trickle down his good eye. The longer he was awake, the more the pain encroached upon him until he couldn’t take it anymore and passed out again.

Reece regained some semblance of consciousness in the darkness for the second time. A moment later, he heard the same female voice as before.

“Good, you’re still alive,” said the voice. “I can feel that you are much closer now. I’ve used your abilities while you were unconscious to cloud the minds of those that mean to do you harm and take the orb for themselves. I hope you don’t mind. They should also be susceptible to suggestions, so feel free to use that to your advantage and survive. As I’ve said before, help is coming.”

The then voice was gone, searing light driving the darkness away. He subconsciously opened his good eye. Standing above him was Aldo, the odd anti-social biologist from the space station. Reece forced himself to swallow before addressing the man. The pain in his throat was excruciating.

“Why have you done this to me?” he croaked out, barely a whisper.

Aldo stopped what he was doing, which seemed to be stitching up one of Reece’s wounds, and looked at Reece. Reece noticed that the man’s pupils were dilated, maybe due to the suggestive influence that the feminine voice had mentioned. He had to hope so.

“Oh, because it’s not every day vee get our hands on a species of humanity vee haven’t identified yet. Our best bet is you come from an ancient unidentified line, zhough vee haven’t determined zee nature of your abilities. Don’t worry though, we will.”

Aldo had never spoken more than a sentence to Reece during the few days they shared on the space station. Two things occurred to Reece. First, Aldo’s accent wasn’t just thick, but familiar. He sounded like a North German Nazi from almost a century ago, their accents captured in numerous movies made about how they persecuted and murdered hundreds of thousands of Roma and Sinti along with tens of thousands of disabled peoples. Reece didn’t know if it meant anything, but it was certainly very strange.

Secondly, Reece was starting to think there may be something to what the voice had told him after all. Aldo rarely spoke, so he was definitely acting out of character right now. Reece needed to get as much information out of the curious man as he could. He’d also try and delay Aldo from torturing him any further.

“Why...do you think...I’m not...” rasped Reece.

“A normal human?” Aldo finished for him. “Simple, you and all of zee astronauts aboard zee space station had been specially selected for having the most latent genetic markers of anyzun ve screened. How else do you zhink you vere chosen?”

Then a darkness descended over Aldo’s demeanor.

“Vho vould’ve guessed zhat ve’d pick up some active genetic markers as vell. I told zhem to make zee tests more specific, not just pass/fail...zee simpletons. Vhen that curr, Angel, changed and attacked us, ve vere all very surprised, you see. Else, he vouldn’t have gotten zee jump on us. Ahh vell, lesson learned as zhey say.”

“What’s with the rock?” asked Reece, hoping to break Aldo out of his angry mood and save himself some torture.

“Ahh yes, zee nightcore. Fascinating, isn’t it?” replied Aldo with a gleam in his eye. “Vonce ve get ahold of it again, ve can continue our experiments and finally finish zee serums. Zen zis world vill be completely under our control.”

Aldo bent down until he was face-to-face with Reece.

“Do you know vhat it does? Shall I tell you?” asked the more than forthcoming mad scientist. “Yes, I zhink I shall. It awakens latent DNA strands vhile repressing zee normal vuns. It reveals zee genetic impurities in your blood. Unfortunately, zee effect is a bit too slow to verk on earth. Zhat’s vhy ve used zee space station, zee additional solar radiation had a multiplier effect on the nightcore’s subjects. Simply being in proximity to it vas enough.”

Aldo straightened up, cocking his head like he was studying Reece.

“Vhich is vhy you are so interesting. No-vun vas exposed to it more zhan you and is still alive,” he continued, curiosity in his voice. “None of you vere ever meant to be on zee same station with zee nightcore for longer zhan six months. Ve simply couldn’t predict zee results and didn’t vant a monster on our hands. Unfortunately for you, your changes haven’t been physical. Ve’ve had to dissect you a bit to try and determine exactly vhat you are. Sorry about zhat, but progress is progress.”

“Why...do you care?” came another croaked-out question from Reece’s lips as he sought to keep the biologist talking.

“Vell, zhat’s simple. To purify our bloodline and hopefully cure several genetic diseases zhat may well have come from zee mongrelization of our genes. You’re probably zhinking zhat if ve just want to purify our bloodlines, zhen zee test for genetic markers would suffice. You vould be correct, but ve prefer to be efficient in zee vay we build our new vorld and eradicating such amazing and useful creatures such as yourself vould simply be vasteful. Of course, you vouldn’t be allowed to remix vith our newly purified bloodline, but you vould live and have zee honor of serving zee Order for zee remainder of your lives. And ve vould take great care of you. Doesn’t zhat sound nice?”

“Yeah...sure,” rasped Reece as the pain began to creep back into his consciousness again. “Uuuggghh...”

“Ahh, apologies for zee pain,” said Aldo as he clicked his tongue in mock sympathy. “Unfortunately, vee don’t have any painkillers to spare for our guests.”

Reece blacked out to the sound of Aldo’s mad cackling as the doctor continued stitching up one of Reece’s weeping wounds. With no idea of how much time had passed, Reece was once again awake inside the darkness of his own mind.

“You did well,” announced the soothing female voice from beyond the absolute darkness surrounding his consciousness.

“Who are you?” Reece asked, trying to project his thoughts inside his mind so hopefully, he could communicate with the disembodied voice.

It must have worked, because her reply came quickly, “I was once known as Xochiquetzal and tended to the passions of many people that were collectively known as the Teotihuacanos, though they came from far and wide to worship at my altar.”

“So, um...what do you want with me?” asked Reece, wondering if he was actually communicating with a goddess. He wasn’t even sure he believed in gods and goddesses. Many did, but he was skeptical of so many claims with so little evidence. He thought he felt a hint of amusement from the being before she continued speaking in his mind.

“I need you to free me so that I can assist you in freeing the rest of us and help save our planet. I was greatly weakened when the god of many faces tricked my people into performing sacrifices in my name. Eventually, the impure acts and the sudden loss of our ability to provide our followers with special gifts in exchange for their devotion.”

“Okay, I guess that makes sense. But uh, why me?” asked Reece earnestly.

“I’ll explain everything when you come to me. For now, there isn’t time. Your salvation comes presently. Your welcome.”

As she finished speaking, Reece saw beautiful golden eyes looking at him from the inky darkness. The golden eyes slowly dissolved as light bled into the darkness from every corner of his mind until he was once again staring at the ceiling of the room in which he was strapped down to the cold metal table. Where the golden eyes had been, he now saw Karina’s glowing red eyes staring down at him from the shadows of the ceiling. Waves of relief flowed through him when I saw that she had survived. He could just make out her form straddling several of the metal beams as she looked at the doctor standing over him.

At the sight of the man, the glowing eyes narrowed to slits and she leaped. Her shadowy form flew down and the doctor crumpled under her wait with a grunt followed quickly by a screech. Reece continued to hear the high-pitched screaming before it turned into gurgling gasps, the lilitu girl going about her grisly business just out of his sight. A sickening crunch ended Aldo’s struggles as a female voice called out from somewhere beyond the top of Reece’s head and also well out of his field of vision.

“Aika, stop messing around and grab Reece. We need to go... now!” The words that were uttered, crossing the room in a near-whisper.

“Fine, but you weren’t the one that was riddled with bullets. I needed a quick snack, though he tastes like sewage,” replied the second female from right next to him as she stood up into his field of view.

Reece’s eyes flew wide as he recognized his lost love, though she had changed. Her beautiful brown eyes were now an angry red and her smile had a new savageness to it as she looked down on him adoringly before biting into her wrist. It was her though. There was no doubt. Reece even recognized the handle of the katana he had buried her with as it stuck up over the woman’s left shoulder.

His old self would have gone into shock over the rapid-fire revelations. The world had been flipped upside down and inside out over the past couple of years though. One person’s mind can only be shocked silly so many times before becoming numb to it. So, the new Reece merely rolled with it. He’d get an explanation later, once they had time and weren’t in the middle of what must be an enemy facility.

“Reece, you need to drink my blood. Trust me, it’ll help you,” she explained as she held her wrist to his mouth before looking up and across the room. “Pasha! Get over here and release his bonds. You know we’re on a tight timetable.”

Unbeknownst to Aika and thanks to Karina, Reece knew the drill and began to drink from Aika’s wrist. As he felt his wounds closing and pain subsiding, he looked to his other side as ‘Pasha’ came into view. She was a very cute brunette who began undoing the straps binding him to the table. She looked at him with green eyes and must have noted the look of confusion on his face.

“If you’re wondering how I’m still alive, I’ll explain later. If you’re wondering why I’m a girl, remember when I told you I was a lesbian trapped in a man’s body? Well...I wasn’t kidding. Now, just relax for a minute while we rescue you. And don’t worry, Aika’s extremely strong and durable these days. We’ll explain that too. By the way, nice to see you again.”

Reece thought that she didn’t look like Pasha. He hadn’t had freckles like she did and had a much larger build. Where he had an average build and some muscle definition, she seemed more athletic and toned with a small waist and chest. She sure acted like him, though. Brash, cocky, and quick-witted with a deadly sense of humor. Reece’s mind began trying to connect the dots.

Karina had said she did everything she could for Aika. Did that include turning her into a lilitu like herself, or a vampire? And what about Pasha? He was selected for the same mission as Reece had been, and presumably for the same reason. Maybe he or she had a genetic marker that made them different as well and could explain this. Maybe his miraculous resurrection had something to do with whatever DNA set him apart from an everyday human.

With the last of his wounds finished healing and the two women having removed all the straps, Reece was out of time to contemplate what they were or what had happened. It was time to go, and he needed to keep the nightcore away from the Order at all costs. But first...

Reece instantly sat up, feeling fully refreshed, and grabbed Aika in a bear hug, burying his face just above her chest for a long moment. He snapped his arm out and grabbed ‘Pasha’ by her arm, giving it a warm squeeze. She took the hint and danced around the table to join in on the hug.

“I thought you were both dead for so long,” Reece whispered to them. “I’ve missed the both of you so much. You should know, Angel and Naeva are both still alive, and Commander Rogers is dead. We formed a small community and have been fighting the Order around northern Florida for the last few months. I...”

Gunshots rang out from somewhere behind the girls, interrupting Reece’s explanation. Aika grunted in pain as Reece felt the impacts of several bullets hitting her through where her body pressed against his own. The now female Pasha drew a pistol and fired off two rounds in a flash. The sound of a grunt followed by a body hitting the floor followed.

“That hurt,” moaned Aika. “We can talk later...”