Free The Lycan Collapse (The Flux Age Book 2) by Steven J Shelley Page B

It had always been Yasmin’s hope that lasting alliances could be formed here in New York. But Hector had more to say.
    “The aquila believe that the last Flux Age lasted no longer than a century,” he said. “If that is the case this time round, we can all expect to die out like we did a thousand years ago. Except the lycans.”
    Yasmin’s heart was hammering in her chest. The silence that greeted Hector’s words was menacing. No one around the table dared say a word.
    “We don’t think that’s equitable,” Hector eventually said. “I propose that the lycans be relieved of the horrible burden they have been carrying. I propose that their dark tissue, the substance that keeps them alive after the Flux has faded, be shared between the key members of a New Alliance.”
    Yasmin felt a chill run down her spine and settle in her gut. What Hector was proposing was nothing that she hadn’t considered many times over the last few weeks. She had always wondered why the lycans would hoard all the dark tissue to themselves.
    No doubt they saw themselves as humanity’s one true savior, or perhaps they simply didn’t trust any other species to do the job properly. She had to admit that the prospect of eternal ghouls, for instance, made her kin crawl. What would happen to the human race then? It would tear itself apart and civilization would collapse. For the first time she saw how crucial the coming Flux period was going to be. Humanity’s future depended on a lasting peace between all the Flux species.
    “What Hector says makes sense,” Yasmin found herself saying. She wasn’t sure if it was born from genuine agreement or plain spite. The Mother opened her eyes for the first time in a while, and she looked at Yasmin with sorrowful, wounded eyes.
    “I’m sure the vampyra would welcome the opportunity to live out their lives in the service of humanity,” she said quietly. Yasmin couldn’t tell whether there was sarcasm in there or not.
    “Will the lycans consider sharing their dark tissue?” Hector asked firmly, clearly buoyed by Yasmin’s support. “Without it, none of us can continue to live beyond the Flux event.”
    The silence in the room suggested that the mood had now changed. All the representatives stood to gain from pressuring the lycans into relinquishing their prized dark tissue. The room reminded Yasmin of a pack of hyenas circling a wounded lion. She wasn’t particularly proud of herself for standing alongside Hector but she couldn’t bring herself to side with the lycans. Not when she had been made to feel like such an outsider.
    Everyone waited to hear what the Mother had to say.
    “I thank the aquilan leader for his concern,” Aurora began acidly. “But the Lycan Society has never been stronger. Unlike any of the communities represented tonight at this table, the lycans have an international presence and established bases all over the world. We will not yield to demands for our dark tissue. The Lycan Society does just fine on its own. That is all.”
    Her chilling oratory finished, Aurora glared at everyone in turn. She reserved a particularly withering gaze for Yasmin. So. That’s the way it’s going to be .
    A quiet voice filled the shocked silence. It was Hector, who sounded sad and defiant all at once.
    “Then, Aurora, you leave me no choice.”
    The aquilan leader stood to his full height and drew a silver magnum pistol from a hidden holster by his side. He directed it straight at Aurora’s head and fired.
    Yasmin was splattered with thick blood as half of the Mother’s head disappeared. The lycan leader’s body toppled backwards.
    Yasmin couldn’t shift her gaze from where the Mother had been sitting. A scream erupted from the grand ballroom and her first thought was for Jack.

6 - Jack
     
    New York City, USA
     
    Jack heard the gun shot in the Gershwin Room and starting germing immediately. Something about the whole occasion had set his nerves on edge right from the start. Of