Page 4 of Amaros

“Then this will be your last ride on the carousel, lad,” Crowmon said with a fatalistic shrug.The bells on his hat chimed almost mournfully.“Once you either win or lose the war against Chaos’ minions, you’ll fade away into the ether,” he went on.“The same will happen to your foes.New warriors will be created on both sides when the next cycle begins again.”

Fate turned her head, seeing something the soldier couldn’t.“It’s happening,” she said.“The Rapture has been triggered.Even now, humans are vanishing from all over the world and Chaos will soon release its warriors again.”She turned back to Amaros.Her face was shrouded in darkness, but he knew her eyes were on his.“As always, you will command the Knights of Order,” she said.“Tell them about the choice that I have given to you.Gather your warriors and find the cambions.You can all either choose to bond with them and live, or fade away forever.”

Amaros didn’t get a chance to reply.The fog vanished along with the deities, then he was suddenly falling.

Chapter Three

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ARISING SENSE OF ANTICIPATIONbroke through Zoe’s misery.She lifted her head and looked around through bleary, swollen eyes, waiting for something to happen.Nothing did, so she heaved herself to her feet.She wanted to go home and sleep for several days.Maybe she’d wake up and this would all just be a horrible nightmare.

Gathering her mom’s belongings, she left the cross embedded in the statue’s heart and strode outside.The mist had deepened even more, hiding the path from sight as she headed to the car.Feeling numb, she drove towards her home on autopilot.

Zoe was halfway to town when a bright light flared in the sky.She pulled over and watched as a meteor streaked through the darkness.Beautiful gold light followed in its wake, awing her even in her misery.

“It’s getting really close,” she murmured as the meteor seemed to be heading straight for town.The light intensified and she lifted her hand to shield her eyes.Peering through a slight gap in her fingers, she let out an alarmed scream when it looked like it was about to smash into her car.Instead, it slammed into the field next to her with enough force to rock her vehicle.Dirt and rocks spattered against the passenger side of the sedan, but at least the windows didn’t shatter.

Zoe had been raised by a religious zealot.She knew chaos was about to descend on the world now that the First Resurrection had occurred.There had been signs for years with wars and natural disasters happening everywhere.She peered upwards, searching for more ominous portents, but the sky remained clear.

“Comets aren’t raining from the sky yet, so I guess that’s a good sign,” she said morosely.Instead of gripping the wheel to take off, her fingers undid the seatbelt.Unable to ignore her curiosity, she grabbed her purse, opened the door and climbed out.Her coat was still in the car, but heat was emanating from the crash site.

The crater left by the meteor was far bigger than she’d expected.Reaching the edge, she peered into the hole and spotted something pale.Dirt and dust hung in the air, obscuring her view.Again, her body moved of its own volition.She skidded down the steep slope and stumbled to a stop next to what should have been a large rock.

“That’s not a meteor,” Zoe said in fresh shock.None of her visions of the future had ever prepared her for what she was currently seeing.“That’s a man,” she said.“A naked man,” she added, blushing slightly and looking around to make sure no one was watching her gawk at the stranger.“This is the second naked man I’ve ever seen and he’s an alien,” she said, heaving the biggest sigh of her entire life.

Despite her mom’s best efforts, Zoe wasn’t a chaste virgin.She’d snuck away briefly during a religious retreat two years ago.A young man in a café had flirted with her while her mom was in the restroom.They’d agreed to meet up while her mom was sleeping later that night.They’d only slept together once and it had been underwhelming to say the least.That guy had nothing on this specimen of masculinity lying in front of her right now.

Still half-convinced that this was all a nightmare, Zoe studied the alien as the dust settled.He lay on his side, curled into a defensive ball with his arms over his head.From what she could see, he was muscular all over.

“He puts the max in gluteus maximus,” Zoe murmured, admiring his butt even in her state of shock and grief.His thighs and biceps were even more impressive than his derriere.Ropes of muscle ran down his side to his chiseled abdomen.Not even the dirt that coated him could hide his perfection.

Realizing she’d been staring for a couple of minutes by now, she shook herself out of her daze.“Pull yourself together, Zoe,” she ordered.“Go home, go to bed and when you wake up, none of this will have ever happened.”Even as she gave herself the speech, she knew this was real.The shock was slowly beginning to wear off and reality was setting in.

There was one sure way to check whether this was all just her imagination.With great reluctance, she took her cell phone out of her purse.She had limited internet on it and had only been allowed to use it to research religious topics in the past.This time, she opened a news app.

Even though she’d expected it, her gut lurched at the panicked reports that she skimmed through.People had vanished from all over the world.Most of the people left behind in the United States probably didn’t even know about it yet.The Rapture had happened everywhere all at once.Those who remained were going to have to deal with their loss as they learned to live in the aftermath.