Last of Daylight

3.4 Resistance Isn't Built In A Day

Andrew had braided his hair for training in a style he'd hoped Xelan would recognize from his ancestor's genetic memories. Over the course of the last week, Andrew had experienced three memories, and all of them were pretty chill. He was proud to say his ancestor was probably a cool guy with a talent for convincing people to take his suggestions seriously. The Progeny known as Andrius had also amassed an enormous family before...

Well, that's what bothered Andrew. There was one memory where he was talking to the woman they'd all accepted was Rayne's ancestor, Celindria. But the two ancient Progeny were on opposing sides of the discussion and then nothing. That was Andrius' latest memory so far.

The mystery of how Andrius' life ended left Andrew needing to know more. Hence, the hairdo. He was hoping to segue Xelan into some answers.

Unlike his friends, Andrew lived in an apartment, so no backyard for training. Xelan agreed to meet him at Boyle Park, within walking distance of the complex. He stood in a field of freshly cut grass, and the smell merged with the scent of wet earth from Rock Creek's nearby banks. The drying leaves of surrounding oak trees heralded the coming of autumn, as fireflies danced their last waltz of the summer.

A Jaguar X-Type pulled up to the gravel lot, and it surprised Andrew to see Xelan step out of it, duffel bag in hand. The Icarus waved like a dork. "Hey."

Andrew frowned and said, "I thought you could fly or something."

The other man chuckled as he made his way over, asking, "What part of 'low profile' are you and the other Progeny having trouble understanding? I'm not looking to be on some government scientist's slab for dissection."

"Oh." That made sense. When Xelan dropped the bag, Andrew dug through it and grabbed the jump rope. "Kinky..."

But Xelan wasn't paying attention to Andrew's hilarious joke. He was peering at the younger man's hair.

Oh, good.

Andrew said, "Yeah. I've had a few other memories of Andrius. Can you tell me anything about him? And what's a 'Pretiosum Cruor?'"

Xelan hid a wince, but not before Andrew glimpsed it. He said, "I'll answer after you give me three solid minutes of jumping rope."

Pfft. Like that was hard or something?

After three minutes, Andrew was spitting between gasps for air. This road to fitness would kill any chance of him becoming a smoker. "Okay," he managed between deep inhales. After a ragged exhale, he croaked, "Tell me."

Xelan didn't smirk or taunt him. He seemed completely aware of the tolls this sort of training would take on the human body. They obviously weren't the first humans he'd gotten into shape. He said, "I was hoping to tell everyone about it as a group, but I suppose we'll have to cover this one at a time. The Pretiosum Cruor is a device Kyle's ancestor—Devis—created to seal the conduit to Cinder. Did you see what it looked like?"

Fully recovered, Andrew retrieved the jump rope, ready to go again. "It was a glass heart thingy with a gold dagger through it, but there was nothing inside."

At Xelan's nod, Andrew resumed jumping rope for another three minutes. The Icarus said, "When filled with blood, it genetically locked the conduit to the donor." While Xelan spoke, he paced around Andrew as if he couldn't keep still while telling the story.

Breathing heavy already, Andrew strained to ask, "Celindria?"

"She took it upon herself, yes. So the conduit can't open without her blood."

Wait.

Andrew frowned. Between skips, he asked, "But she's dead, right? So, why are you worried about Nox invading?"