Captive Fate: Age of Chaos, #4

By Debbie Civil

My name is Jayde Bain, and my siblings and I have been invited to a dangerous family reunion. If we don't attend, people will be executed at random. The clones want to conduct an experiment, and they don't care who dies. Our family is broken up into two groups: one receives a serum, and the other is the control group. We are then forced to duel one another. The victor gets their freedom, while the loser will spend eternity as a lab subject. I'm set to fight my twin, but we won't go down easily. I'm not gonna lose my sister again. While we're fighting for our lives, my friends are on a mission to rescue my best friend, Sheena. She's trapped in one of the clones' labs. We need everyone on deck to try to defeat the clones once and for all.

Will the court members be able to rescue Sheena? Will my family escape the clones? Or will we fail again?

The "First Generation" universe consists of a group of interconnected series that focus on the Champion Court. The reading order is as follows:

Series: Age of Chaos

1. Captive Treasure

2. Captive Prince

3. Captive Magic

4. Captive Fate

5. Captive Crown

Series: Age of Dwellers

1. Damaged Warrior

2. Damaged Soul

3. Damaged Relic

4. Damaged Destiny

• Language: English
• Publisher: Debbie Civil
• Release date: Jun 8, 2024
• ISBN: 9798224141289

Book preview

Chapter 1

Sheena

Neretha (The Lab)

Iglared at the lab assistant that stormed into the enormous exam room that the evil clones had stashed me in. The room was sterile, with two cabinets, ten lab tables, and screens mounted to the off-white walls. I was seated on a metal table, wearing a hospital gown that failed to make the hard surface comfortable. It was beyond frigid in the room, and I felt like I would turn into a human ice sculpture.

I let out a sneeze that shook my entire body. The assistant, a tall, slender woman with stick-straight black hair and tanned skin, wrinkled her nose and pulled a cart of supplies toward me. I eyed the unfamiliar-looking tubes and was determined to fight. But a yawn flew from my mouth, letting me know that I didn’t have a prayer of defending myself. I blamed my sudden weakness on the ring that I discovered on my finger after waking up in this nightmare. My intuition told me that it was sucking out my energy. The ring was hideous, with an onyx band and a puke- green, egg-shaped stone.

Hold out your arm, the woman said in Nerth, Neretha’s language.

I’m sorry, I only speak English, I lied. Being an oracle gave me the added skill of understanding all languages. But I was determined to be a pain in the butt. I pictured the grumpy lab assistant rushing about trying to find a translator, which made me smirk. Deric would have told me to behave and look for a way to escape. I begged my soulmate not to go on his mission, pleaded with him to stay. Instead, he had ignored by bad feeling and done what he pleased. Part of me couldn’t blame him. We were shorthanded, and our mission had been simple enough: herd the frightened Janton back to base. But he should have taken my horrid history into account. A mission never went smoothly for me.

Hold out your arm, the woman slowly said in accented English.

I’m sleepy. Can you take off the ring? I asked, letting out an exaggerated yawn. Instead of answering me, the woman twisted my left arm into position, picked up one of the tubes, and jabbed it into my arm. The tube molded to my skin, and she pressed a button on the side. It didn’t hurt, but the suction feeling on my arm gave me the creeps. I wanted to throw up as my blood began filling the vial. That was great, now the clones had more DNA to play with. I tried to reach Deric with my mind, but there was an immediate consequence for my effort, a fist of energy slamming into my brain. Message received. The clones found a way to prevent me from telepathically communicating with my soulmate. The lab assistant pressed another button on the side of the vial and it detached from my arm and sealed itself.

Follow me, she ordered.

I don’t feel so good. Can you get me a wheelchair? I whined. The woman let out an annoyed breath. I’d be as difficult as possible; it was the only plan I had. She stormed out of the room, taking the cart with her. Seconds later, a clone entered the room, his milky eyes giving me the creeps. This one had bronze skin and arching horns. He lifted his arm and I levitated, my entire body being gripped by the air. The next thing I knew, I was telekinetically moved out of the room and down a wide hallway with no doors. Though that didn’t matter. With one touch, the aliens could make the entire wall disappear if they wanted to. It made it difficult to plan an escape.

We traveled down two hallways before he tapped on the wall and a doorway appeared. I was sent flying into a closet-sized room and dumped none too gently onto a cot. It wasn’t until the door closed that I realized that I wasn’t alone. Lord Peirc was leaning against the wall, his silk suit wrinkled, a bruise marking his cheek.

You weren’t made to change into this thing? I asked, gesturing to my hospital gown.

Lord Peirc frowned. Sheena Smith. He said my name like it was cursed or something.

Manor Peirc, I said, giving his name the same treatment.

Where’s the terror that’s supposed to join my harem?

Lucky for you, she isn’t here, I snapped, glad that Amber wasn’t stuck with the man who murdered her father.

How unfortunate. She could have gotten us out of here.

I’m pretty sure she would have left you behind, I fired back. Lord Peirc sent a glare in my direction, as if he hadn’t caused hell for my friends and me. If it wasn’t for his greed, the King and Queen of Neretha and the clones would be a smaller pain in the butt.. A sudden wave of fatigue slammed into me. I collapsed on top of my cot and drifted off to sleep.

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Sheena, when are you going to start being useful? Lord Peirc demanded, his annoying voice pulling me from my dreams. I slowly opened my eyes and let out a yawn. Ugh, I was moved? Did the stuck-up monster complain about our accommodations? Why did the clones insist on keeping us together? Lord Peirc was sitting across from me in a cell made of concrete. Thankfully, the space was much larger than the prison I fell asleep in, with a tiny bathroom that had a curtain in front of it and two twin cots with thick blankets. Those barely acceptable amenities were the only thing keeping me sane.

Thanks for waking me up, I huffed.

The clone who stabbed Gwen is my son, Obi. Ugh, why was this monster speaking to me?

The minute we get out of here, I’m killing you for what you did to Jade, I said.

Lord Peirc shot me a disappointed expression. What did I do to my daughter?

You murdered her foster parents, kidnapped her, sold her into a harem, and—

You aren’t getting out of here, so your ramblings are useless. His words made my fists clench. You see that ring on your finger? I glanced down at the piece of jewelry that was keeping my abilities from me. That’s the stone that’s linked to your energy reserves. If you so much as try to take it off, you’ll explode. Only I can remove it without it blowing you up. But I can’t say the same for the person receiving the energy that your ring is siphoning, he explained.

What in the hell are you talking about?

While you’re getting weaker, someone’s getting stronger. I’m unsure of whose Hyndroyl crystal this ring is linked to. The moment you take it off, the Hyndroyl crystal inside my son or daughter will explode. There is a much safer way to remove the ring. But we don’t have access to my tablet. I usually gifted these stones to any of my problematic children to steal their strength.

What else does the ring do?

Lord Peirc grinned. It stops people from sensing you. It also prevents you from using your abilities. Deric. My mind had been silence thus far, which explained it all. No one was coming for me.

You’re a tool for creating this. Why didn’t you just find willing Earth women to join your stupid harem? You’re not bad looking. All you had to do was bribe a few greedy women.

Lord Peirc rolled his eyes. Not that it’s any of your business, but Narethian males are only able to sire offspring three times a month. I didn’t have time to do the things you suggested. Damn, was this man maddening. If I had the power to, I would have killed him. But every time I tried to flex my hands in aggression, an invisible presence kept them from moving. I wondered if that was also a side effect of wearing the ring. I let out a yawn and lay back on my coat. That’s another side effect of the ring. You’ll be exhausted while wearing it. I was grateful that Jade had her Hyndroyl crystal removed. She was safe from spontaneous combustion. Suddenly, some guy wearing a silk suit, tennis shoes, and a black collar around his neck appeared in our cell out of nowhere. His dark eyes were wide with fear. He looked at Lord Peirc, who shrank back.

What hell did you get us into, Manor? the man demanded.

Prince Dayon, it was supposed to work. I have no clue what went wrong.

Prince Dayon laughed. I do. You murdered a clone instead of including him in your plan. Then you didn’t tell me what you did. If you had, I wouldn’t have shown up.

I frowned at the prince’s collar. What is that thing?

They need to prep me for surgery. This collar prepares my body for the download. I’m not sure how it works. I shuddered. This man deserved death for what he did to his people. But being mentally hijacked and forced to commit atrocities against the solar systems in the Milky Way?

Can’t you teleport your soldiers in here to save you? I asked.

Prince Dayon frowned. You’re Deric’s soulmate, aren’t you?

King Rayon talked about me? I’m so flattered. Maybe calling him cowardly put me on his crap list.

No. Once Deric mated with you, we were planning on bringing you to the Nerethan base. But the clones destroyed that. I take it back, this monster deserved to die.

Are you serious? I was next? What about Deric?

Him too. Amber, wasn’t an option. From what my people tell me, she’s a strong fighter. Her offspring would have been next.

Why are you telling me all of this? I asked, annoyed.

Because, once I get out of here, you’re coming with me. I’ll create another base and—

Lord Peirc got to his feet and held up his hands. Prince Dayon, there’s no way out of here. And if I figure one out, we need her cooperation, Manor pointed out.

Prince Dayon scoffed. She’s an oracle. What would you do with one of those? I wished I could make that horrid red power appear so I could show him that I wasn’t to be trifled with.

Manor frowned. An oracle is useful. She can see if we have a way out. Sheena, take off your ring.

And kill one of your children? Are you kidding me? I cried. Neither of these men had a soul.

Do you want to get out of here or not? Lord Peirc snapped. Before I could answer, a tall, broad-shouldered alien with horns entered the cell. He smiled at us, his jagged teeth made me long for the powers I often cursed.

Prince Dayon, I… Lord Peirc stopped speaking when Prince Dayon took off his collar and tossed it into the face of the clone. Dayon immediately flung his hand out, shoving it at the clone, whose eyes began to glow. The light bled from his eyes and was flung at the prince. The moment it hit him, he collapsed into a heap. Sighing, the clone knelt down beside Prince Dayon and calmly fastened the collar. He then tossed the prince over his shoulder and left the room.

That was stupid, Lord Peirc muttered.

I nodded. Now we don’t know what Prince Eleron’s going to do to us.

Because Prince Dayon opened his mouth, you will probably be coaxed into having visions, Lord Peirc shared. I couldn’t help but think that Jade’s sperm donor was right to be annoyed. That stupid, arrogant prince gave our hand away even before we could play it.

I collapsed back to my bed, defeated. I’d probably be used as a puppet in order for the clones to cause chaos. Would I be strong enough to resist? I’d rather die than be tortured into betraying my friends. I couldn’t take the pain, and I wasn’t tough enough to keep from saying anything. I knew my limits.

As I rested on the cot, stuck with Lord Peirc, my heart longed for Deric. There was no way in hell he’d be able to track me down, especially if Gwen died from her injury. I couldn’t have a vision, and he couldn’t enter my mind. What in the hell was I supposed to do?

Just pull off the ring, Lord Peirc begged.

No thanks, I grumbled. I didn’t want to be the person that killed an innocent, not even to escape. It chafed against my caster sensibilities. Casters don’t leave innocents behind. That was the creed that my people lived by. Once Jade found her Court of Champions, I’d tell her to amend the creed to say, Casters don’t allow innocents to be blown up, even if it’s to the caster’s benefit. Yeah, I was surely thinking optimistically. How in the hell was I getting out of this dump so I could hug and yell at my soulmate? I knew us separating was a horrible idea. My instincts told me to stay close to Deric. Ugh, what was that hot man doing?

Sheena, we need to escape, Lord Peirc urged.

The moment you step foot out of here, you’re dead. If I don’t kill you, Amber will. She’s pissed you killed her father, I announced.

Lord Peirc shook his head. Rose asked me to kill him. He was planning on leaving her for his ex-wife. The novelty of being married to Rose wore off when she refused to join his coven. Damn, I wish I knew if Manor was lying.

No way, Rose was a victim, I protested, though part of me wasn’t really sure. Something about her seesawing personality chafed at me. She could be meek one moment and strong willed when it suited her. Come on. Would she really kill her husband?

Why would I lie to you?

So I won’t let Amber kill you. And just to let you know, I had a vision of the entire event. I saw Lex chop that poor man’s head off.

Lord Peirc shrugged. Then ask Lex, David, and Anastacia what really happened.

From what I saw, David didn’t even want to be there.

He didn’t. I put Gwen’s ring on Lex, and told him to pull it off if David didn’t obey.

Damn, I muttered. You’re pure evil.

No, Sheena, I get what I want. Manor dove forward and grabbed my hand. I was too weak to fight him off. The monster pried off