By Zachary Holbrook
“You knew this day would come. Why did you insist we stay?”
Wilson pretended to load his gun. He had far more potent weapons at his disposal, but he needed the excuse to avoid Maria’s accusing gaze.
Outside, hideous shadows danced on the window, the first visible evidence of the approaching mob. Glass shattered. Screams.
Jax echoed the terror on the streets.
Maria clamped a hand over his mouth, holding him tight against her breast. “We could have fled.”
Wilson set his gun down, summoning the courage to meet his wife’s eyes. “I have duties in this city. I can’t leave. Please, please trust me. You and Jax will be safe, I swear on my life—you two mean the world to me.”
Maria rested a clenched fist against the countertop. “Your smile, Wilson.”
“What about it?”
“It’s gone. Something grave has been on your mind for far too long.” She took a deep breath. “I need the truth. Did you know that they would come for me?”
Wilson nodded. “But I prepared for this.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
Light from the mob’s torches crept around the window-frame. The shouts grew louder. Wilson stood up, shoving his hands into his coat pockets. “Into the basement. They’ll never know you’re here.”
“Wilson!” A note of desperation crept into Maria’s voice. “What is happening?”
“That which must.” Wilson kissed her gently. “I love you. Now go.”
Maria stared at him, jaw clenched in defiance, then descended into the basement. Wilson sighed and covered the trapdoor with a rug. The writhing mass that comprised his organs, once so vibrant and full of energy, drooped like an empty bag. Never had the centuries weighed on him so heavily.
A sole purpose animated him. Protect them. With that task finished, he could finally rest.
The mob passed by the house at a command from the white-cloaked man at its head. Only their leader remained. Wilson swallowed. The rioters knew a woman of Dizadian descent lived here with her half-breed son, but Winthrop’s control over the mob still exceeded the rage they felt at the terrorism committed by Maria’s countrymen.
Winthrop wanted this kill to be his.
The door Wilson had intentionally left unlocked creaked open. Best not to delay the inevitable.
Winthrop the Hunter leaned against the doorframe. “Which name are you going by these days?”
“Wilson. From now until the day I die.”
Winthrop sneered. “You took your teacher’s name? Too bad you don’t have a fraction of his resolve, or I might actually have some fun tonight.”
“What kind of hunter mocks his prey before the kill? Just do your job.”
Winthrop snapped his fingers, and a dagger materialized out of thin air. He slashed open Wilson’s stomach.
Wilson doubled over in pain, his fingers pressed to the wound. They came away covered not in blood, but in glowing worms, writhing in silence as they spilled onto the floor.
“So this is what goes into immortality, huh?” Winthrop swept Wilson’s feet out from under him and stabbed again. “The higher-ups pour all that money into discovering the secret, then they have to create someone like me to track down their escaped creations. Pitiful.”
“Immortality… isn’t what they thought it was.”
Winthrop slashed ruthlessly at his chest, stomach, neck, and limbs. At first, Wilson focused on Maria, imagining her telling Jax the story of his father’s sacrificial love late at night. Pain eclipsed his ability to focus, and he let out a scream.
Winthrop plunged a hand into a wound and ripped out a mass of worms. His cloak should’ve been bloodstained, but no. He didn’t kill ordinary people.
Wilson’s insides crawled about aimlessly, their light slowly fading. Fire burst on his skin. Breathing was too much effort.
Wilson gave up, surrendering his whole world to torment.
Sunlight streamed through broken windows, waking Wilson. He groaned and glanced around. The lower half of his body was missing, but he was home.
A scream erupted from his lungs as he faced the most horrifying truth of his life. His worms crawled towards him, reforming his legs. The pain had vanished, leaving a void behind.
Maria knelt beside him, sobbing, piercing his heart. He sat up, then slumped back to the floor. Nothing had changed. He was still doomed to wander the Earth for eternity. Maria and Jax were still in danger—Winthrop would never give up pursuing him and wouldn’t hesitate to use his loved ones as hostages.
Maria touched his face. “What…”
“I was supposed to die,” he growled. “What does it take for an immortal to die?”
“Immortal?” Maria heaved in a shuddering breath. “Why didn’t you tell me this earlier?”
Wilson hung his head. As the glowworms reknit his legs, he told her everything, from his days in the lab to Winthrop’s attack. When he finished, silence weighed on him like a crushing avalanche.
Maria bowed her head, her eyes confused, desperate.
“I’m sorry,” Wilson added. “I endangered you and Jax, and in the end, I couldn’t even sacrifice my own life to keep you safe.”
Pathetic.
Maria looked up. “This… hunter. He’ll never give up until you’re dead?”
“Yes.”
“Well, then why are you still alive?”
Wilson’s legs linked together, the critters emitting a protective coating that became his skin. Winthrop had shredded every inch of his body. Nobody should survive that.
A smile crept across Maria’s face. “He thinks you’re dead. You didn’t fail, Wilson. You saved us from the rioters and from Winthrop.”
She took Wilson’s hand and pulled him up. Wilson groaned, his muscles weak after not existing for several hours.
“Immortality isn’t all bad,” she said. “I’d rather have a worm-filled husband than a dead one.”
“But you’ll die,” Wilson protested. “I’ll leave you… someday.”
“But I’ll live first.” Maria rested her head against his chest. “And my life will be better for having you in it. So smile, honey. Life’s too short not to.”
Almost against his will, Wilson obeyed.
Can you guess which song inspired this story? (This month it could be any time period, any genre.) Share in the comments!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Really good story! So intense, with fascinating world-building and detail. And the characters – ! I want to know so much more about them.
But now I’m wondering: 1) Is this story connected to any of the others you’ve released? 2) Is the song something by Muse? (yep – asking for a hint!)
Thank you! No, there isn’t any connection to my other stories– I used the same name for a country as I did in my earlier flash fiction ‘Fire and Stone’, so if I ever expand the world of that story I’ll make sure to include this one. But currently I have no plans to do so.
It’s not by the Muse. I’ve never heard of that musician. Do they make good songs?
Hint: One of my favorite songwriters is Andrew Peterson. The song for this story wasn’t written by him, but by someone connected to him. It’s also one of my personal favorite songs of all time, so as soon as Havok announced the season theme I knew I needed to do something with it.
Oooh! Thanks for the hint. Now off to explore AP-related songs ;)
I love your work!
The immortality reminds me of the Immortal Blade, a Japanese samurai movie. The ending is sweet.