Rex Easly--The Wilde Side

[Garrett Jax]

Chapter Four

Rex felt dead inside. Lorelei’s words grasped hold of him and left him struggling to maintain the identity of who he was. This can’t be happening to me, he thought. I am not infested. However, as she stood there holding his hands, staring at him with those purple eyes, he knew she was speaking the truth.

He thought back to the time his ship got attacked. That steel girder landed right on top of him, yet he survived. His wounds were grievous, yet his recovery was inhuman. Lastly, he began to notice that every time Lorelei stood near him, he lost considerable control of his emotions, especially when she made physical contact with him. What other conclusion was there, other than the fact that he was infested with a nomad?

The only reason that he maintained any control over himself, was the experimental neural inhibitor. However, that control appeared to be diminishing. Prolonged exposure to the Wilde was weakening the inhibitor’s ability to function. Either that, or the nomad incubus inside him was finding a way to bypass its effectiveness. Probably both were the case. He felt like a doctor just told him he had terminal cancer and only a week to live. He smiled sardonically at the similarity of that comparison. Actually, he felt worse. At least with cancer, there would be an end to the suffering.

Lorelei maintained her strong grip on his hands. Her eyes, burning purple, seemed to bore right through him, searching for something. After several seconds, she smiled.
“There it is,” she said. “I’ve made contact. Thankfully, the nomad seed still lives.”

Rex fought the nausea that rose up inside him. Soon, anger replaced fear. They would have to kill him before he allowed the incubus to fully control him.

Lorelei frowned. “You have not been a very good host to our kind, Rex.” Anger flashed in her eyes as she spoke.

“Good,” he snapped. “I intend on being a poor host as long as that thing lives in me.”

“That thing is the only reason you still live.”
Rex grimaced. “I don’t want to live anymore.” The suicidal feelings became more profound when voiced aloud. “Not if I am a Wilde.”

A smirk found the corners of Lorelei’s mouth. “That’s what all you humans say. Your neural inhibitor is weakening, soon it will fail completely. When it does, you will serve us and assist us in our goals to rid ourselves of the human infestation.”

Panic followed her words, making it difficult to concentrate. There had to be a way out of this. Think. His neural inhibitor was indeed weakening. He could feel himself losing control, bits at a time. Was there a way to strengthen the neural device implanted inside him somehow? The only possibility was to go back to Sunderland and see if that research scientist could help him. The same scientist the Wilde wanted stopped. This was going to be tricky. Maybe if he appeared to capitulate a little it might give him some space to work out a plan.

He tried to look defeated. “What exactly do you want from me?”

She eyed him skeptically. “We sense deception in you, human, but it matters not. You will assist us when the time comes. For now, we head to Sunderland where you will put an end to the research of Dr. Skelter and his assistant.”

“And if I refuse?”

“It will take days to reach Sunderland from here,” she said. “That’s a long time to hold out against the influence of a Nomad incubus, inhibitor or not. We look forward to watching you struggle and then ultimately fall under its control. We predict by the time we reach the facility, you will belong to us.”

Challenge accepted, Rex thought.

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