The Last Hunter - Descent - Jeremy Robinson [77]
All eyes turn to Kainda and she is forced to bow.
“You are bold beyond wisdom,” Ninnis whispers to me.
He’s right, of course. I can’t say what got into me. Ull is my only excuse, but I can’t say that. To Ninnis, I am Ull.
Before I can respond, a booming voice fills the chamber. It is Enki. He’s speaking Sumerian so I can’t understand what he’s saying, but there is a howl in response to it. The howl brings a surge of energy, but I don’t join in this time.
Neither does Kainda.
Enki walks toward the hunters. He could squash every last one of us in just a few stomps of his massive foot. But he kneels down on one knee, offers a bow and holds out a glass vial that looks tiny in his hand. “It is time, little Ull, to accept your place among us.”
Enki glances at Ninnis and communicates something with his eyes. Ninnis hops to his feet and takes the vial from Enki. He approaches me, holding the now small container like it is a holy relic.
I realize that’s precisely what it is when Enki speaks again. “This flask holds the last drops of blood from our lord, Nephil. It is the last of his body left on this Earth, free from the confines of Tartarus.”
A howl follows this statement.
“With his blood, you will bind your body with his.” He’s speaks directly to me now. “Over time, it will make you stronger and prepare you for the spirit of Nephil. This is a privilege beyond description and an honor we can only bestow once. Are you prepared to accept the body of Nephil? Are you willing to surrender yourself to his spirit? Will you, as lord Nephil, lead his children against the human race?” This last part is said loudly, with arms outstretched, and it is met with the loudest howl of the night.
I can feel Ull clawing to get out, but I resist him. I need to make this decision, not him, and every atom in my body is screaming, NO! It will mean revealing I am no longer Ull the hunter. It will mean my death.
Not your death, a voice inside me says. Ull?
They will not kill you.
They will break you.
Again.
Say, no.
His agreement with my decision to decline reveals the error of my ways.
No, no, no.
It takes all my effort, but I speak my one word reply with a grin.
Say, NO!
“Yes.”
37
Ninnis slowly raises the vial toward me. I detect a slight shake in his hands. His eyes are glued, not on me, his future lord, but on the blood. There is an undeniable craving in his eyes.
In all the hunters’ eyes.
I suspect many of them are fighting the urge to take the blood for themselves. Perhaps this was an honor for which all of them were considered? Perhaps they’re just envious?
Whatever the cause, something is holding them back. They’d have to get through Ninnis first, who despite craving the liquid himself, is unshakably loyal to the Nephilim. I would come next, striking with Whipsnap (well, Ull would, I’m not entirely sure what I would do) and perhaps even Enki would get involved. But even then, if they survived all of that and drank the blood, would they survive the physical bonding with Nephil’s body?
I suspect not. And I think that is the most likely reason none of them acts on their desire.
The vial is warm to the touch, as though the blood has just been drawn. I think about drinking the ancient liquid and become queasy.
Can I do this?
I look around seeing hundreds of eyes turned toward me, some of them larger than my head. I know there’s no choice. I must do this.
To survive.
For Aimee.
For everyone I love on the surface, who will die if the Nephilim invade.
I pull the stopper and hold the vial in the air, instigating a howl that I hope will supply me with courage. As the howl reverberates through the chamber and my body, I place the vial to my lips and turn it up. But the liquid does not immediately fall. Despite being part supernatural, the blood has dried some. It slides down the throat of the vial slowly, a gelatinous blob.
The blood falls into my mouth and I immediately know the squishy mass is