Immortal Brother Where Art Thou (The Immortality Curse Book 4) Read online

  Immortal Brother, Where Art Thou

  Immortality Curse Book 4

  Peter Glenn

  Copyright © 2021 by Peter Glenn

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  IMMORTAL BROTHER WHERE ART THOU

  First edition. May 6, 2021.

  This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places,

  or events are entirely coincidental.

  Written by Peter Glenn.

  Cover created by Miblart.

  Created with Vellum

  This book is dedicated to my son Matthew. He was a super fan before I even knew I had a super fan. The original super fan, if you will. Your faith made a big difference to me.

  Second, I’d like to thank my wife as always for her love and support. I couldn’t do this without you babe.

  Third, I’d like to thank my editor Chris Bailey and my beta reader Amanda Bailey. Damian wouldn’t shine without your input.

  Lastly, I’d like to thank Miblart for their overall awesome job on the cover like always.

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Author’s Notes

  Also by Peter Glenn

  1

  “Die, alien scum!” I shouted.

  Another of the vile creatures came for me. I raised the tip of my rifle, aiming at the thing’s head, and fired. The ricochet slammed into my shoulder as the bullet left the barrel, spinning through the air at frightening speed.

  The bullet hit the alien right between the eyes, exploding as it hit and exiting through the back of its skull. A shower of blood, bone, and alien brains flew out of the creature as it shuddered and fell to the ground.

  Panting, I took stock of my situation. There was only the one alien in this room, thank goodness. I was free for the moment to do whatever I needed before, presumably, the next wave showed up.

  I forced myself to breathe slow and calm until my pulse slowed with it, then worked out a kink in my shoulder. I’d never really used a rifle before and was shocked at just how much the recoil could affect you if you didn’t hold onto it correctly. And seeing as I was completely untrained, I was pretty sure I wasn’t holding onto it correctly.

  Still, for a newbie, I’d managed a headshot on the first try. That should count for something.

  Back to the room, there was a small case of ammo on a table in the corner, but it was otherwise empty. Not even a bed or a sink or anything. It was less stocked than my own apartment, which was saying something.

  Well, empty except for the alien corpse littering the doorway, of course. But that was all my fault. I knew why that was there.

  I strode over to the ammo container and pulled out several bullets. I reloaded the rifle as best I could and shoved several extra rounds into my pockets. I wasn’t sure just how many of these aliens I was going to have to take out in order to escape, and I didn’t want to risk running out of ammo along the way.

  As untrained with guns as I was, it was a remarkably useful weapon. But only so far as I made my shots. I’d have to learn how to use one better when I got out of here.

  If I got out of here. Think positive, Damian. This could always be the time when death finally got the better of me. One could only hope.

  Of course, as amazing as the rifle was as a weapon, it wasn’t very practical. The laws regarding weapon usage were pretty strict in Seattle these days. Even the police barely used guns anymore, replaced with semi-automatic wireless tasers. So even if I managed to master the rifle and get a license, I couldn’t exactly carry one around in the streets.

  That’s where my good buddy Grax’thor came into things. She was my magic good luck sword. Her luck, along with my own, had gotten me out of dozens of hairy situations worse than this one.

  Not that she’d done anything this time. For once, I was stranded without her.

  And because of that, here I was, smack dab in the middle of Russia, battling aliens on my way out of an old military complex.

  But I’d had worse starts to my week than this. And I had hope things would improve.

  Who was I kidding with all this, though? I was stalling for time. At some point, I’d have to walk out that door and see what had become of the rest of the laboratory.

  That’s where I was—in the science lab. Not a great place to be stuck when hordes of bloodthirsty aliens were on the loose. Though it came with a surprisingly high number of places to crouch and hide, which was nifty.

  I made my way over to the doorway, taking care to step over the alien corpses and not slip in any of their blood. What a target that would have made, a lone human slipping and sliding into the hallway?

  No, I wasn’t going out like that. I was better than that. I would die with a heap of alien gore raining down on my corpse. I was determined.

  I placed one finger on the trigger and crept toward the open doorway. There was a bi-directional hallway just on the other side, and I could hear strange noises coming from both directions. If I wasn’t careful, this could be my end right here and now.

  The tip of my rifle entered the hallway first, and nothing came of it. No change to the noise outside.

  I double-checked that the rifle was packed with ammo and took a deep breath, then launched myself into the hallway in a rolling motion.

  Looking one way, I saw nothing but a bunch of broken vials and liquid spills littering the otherwise empty expanse. Humph. Safe for the moment, then.

  A screeching noise from behind me made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on edge. I spun around, rifle at the ready, my itchy finger on the trigger ready to let loose on whatever made itself known.

  The thing that stood before me made my skin crawl. It was easily eight feet tall, taking up the majority of the space in the cramped hall. Its black body was covered in cold, slimy scales and it had two large, milky-white eyes on the top of its angled head. Both its hands and feet ended in sharp, talon-like claws and a long, circular tongue rolled out of its mouth. The alien beast had a row of spikes running along the crest of its head and down its back where a similarly spiked tail lay just behind its massive feet.

  It was like a giant bipedal lizard from hell.

  The creature hissed and lunged for me, its claws out in front as it made a swipe for my neck.

  “Die!” I shouted as I dodged backward into the empty hall.

  My finger squeezed again and again as several rounds left my rifle, slamming into the alien’s massive body. Each concussive blast made the alien shudder as the rounds exploded into it, sending a hail of bloody gore flying everywhere.

  But the beast kept coming anyway, ignoring the wounds.

  “Aah!” I screamed.

  I raised the tip of my rifle and fired three more rounds into the creature’s skull. One of the bullets went right through its left eye, shattering it instantly. The beast screamed and staggered backward, clawing at its own eye socket.

  Screaming even louder, I fired another three rounds, emptying the rifle into what was left of its hea
d.

  “Die, you fiend! Just die already!”

  Finally, the beast succumbed to the multiple injuries, falling to the ground in a pile of blood and shattered bone.

  Panting and with shaking fingers, I reloaded my rifle, suddenly glad that I’d thought to take more rounds with me.

  My fingers were shaking so hard that one of the rounds fell to the ground as I tried to load it, becoming lost in a sea of alien blood. I thought for a second about retrieving it, but I didn’t want to put my fingers in that ichor, lest it burn me. I’d heard alien blood could be toxic to humans, even from a light touch.

  So I let it be, hoping that decision wouldn’t come back to haunt me later.

  I finished reloading the rifle and smacked it on the side a time or two. It was a worthwhile weapon, for sure, to have taken down a beast like that. Had I been left with only Grax’thor at my disposal, that alien would have been the end of me for sure.

  To be safe, I went back into the first room again, but the bag of ammo was suspiciously absent. Damn.

  Stepping carefully to avoid the worst of the muck, I made my way back into the hallway and over the new alien corpse into the room it had come from. I could make out a few mangled bodies of scientists strewn about in this room, and in the corner was a giant server that looked to have been ripped to shreds, but there was nothing moving in here.

  Of course, there were no more rounds for my rifle, either. I thought about going the other way and checking there, but I had to keep moving forward. Who knew when the next batch of aliens could come smashing into the lab? There was no way to know for sure, but I wasn’t going to be here when they did.

  I made my way over to the door. It had one of those keypad locks on it, but the keypad had been smashed and was hanging by a half of a wire. I tested the door handle. It opened with the slightest touch.

  Taking in a deep breath and tensing for the next wave, I shoved open the door, pushing my rifle into the blinding maw that lay beyond it.

  An intense light came from the next area. Light and a stiff, cold wind. I blinked my eyes a few times to let them adjust, and piled into the next area, my eyes darting all about and holding my rifle close to my body, ready to shoot at anything that moved.

  The door led to an outside balcony of sorts. There were tables and chairs littering the area, along with the half-eaten contents of someone’s lunch. Lobster bisque, I thought. At least the poor sop had had good taste.

  But no aliens, as far as I could see. It looked like the main force hadn’t made it this far.

  Yet.

  I tightened my grip on the rifle and took a few furtive steps forward. It was snowing pretty hard, and the snow was starting to build up on the railings and walkways, making everything just a little slick. I glanced down over one of the railings. This complex had been built into the side of a mountain, and it was a good five-hundred-foot or so sheer drop to the ground from where I was standing.

  There was no coming back from that, for sure. I took slightly smaller steps as I crept forward. I really didn’t want to slip.

  Up ahead, I spotted a small, metal bridge that led to the next part of the complex. The barracks. Or at least that’s what I thought the sign next to it said. My Russian was pretty rough. A barracks would be handy. There should be extra weapons and supplies in there, if I could reach it.

  All I had to do to get there was cross one small bit of slippery metal in the middle of a snowstorm. What could go wrong with that plan?

  I pulled my parka—somehow, I’d had the foresight to dress for cold weather—a little closer around me to ward off the stiff winds. It did quite a bit better than my Duran Duran shirt would have. Could you imagine how cold I’d be up here if that’s all I’d worn when I’d come here?

  Anyway, I advanced on the bridge.

  The going was slow, but I put one foot in front of the other, making my way across the slippery metal. It buckled as I went along. About halfway through, I swore it started to swing slightly in the heavy winds, threatening to push me off of it at several points, but I held fast. A bad fall was not how I wanted to die. My family would never forgive me for that.

  A shrieking noise broke through the howling wind as a lurching form broke through the door to the barracks, headed my way. It was another alien looking for fresh, warm blood to drink.

  Now, dying to an alien claw, on the other hand? That, I could live with.

  But I wasn’t going to go down easy. I looked through the scope on my rifle, but at this distance and with the wind, I worried my shots would go wide, so I waited for it to get a little closer.

  This one was smaller than the last but looked every bit as vicious. The spine of an unfortunate soldier hung from one of its claws like it had gotten caught there and the beast had just carried it with him instead of shaking it loose. The sight of it made my stomach churn.

  Alien guts were bad enough, but human ones were a different matter.

  The alien screeched again and slammed its feet down on the bridge, sending a shudder through the cold steel that almost ended me right then and there.

  I bucked as the bridge threatened to throw me once more and shot out my free hand to grab onto the railing. My fingers slid over the icy metal, seeking purchase and not finding it as I felt my feet give way as well.

  I felt a moment of abject terror as I thought this was finally it. Then, at last, my fingers caught onto the railing and I felt a jolt strain my shoulder as I held on for dear life, scrambling to get back up onto the bridge before the alien could reach me.

  Meanwhile, the beast kept coming. It opened its mouth wide, and an overly long, pointed tongue shot out of its mouth. The slippery black thing wrapped itself around my arm, squeezing as it went. I could feel the tongue constricting around my arm, cutting off the circulation.

  I sat there for a moment, one hand holding onto the railing and the other with an alien tongue wrapped around it. My body strained against the pressure as I felt like I was going to be torn apart.

  Something had to give, so I let go of the railing, bringing my rifle out in front at the same time. I flew through the air faster than I would have thought possible, flailing toward the beast’s open maw.

  I pointed my rifle forward and squeezed, letting off several rounds mere seconds before my other arm came into contact with the beast’s rows of long, sharp teeth.

  The alien shuddered and fell backward, howling and screaming.

  “Die, you bitch!” I shouted.

  I whacked the beast’s tongue with the butt of my rifle, hoping to free my arm from its grasp. The tongue went slack a moment later as the alien breathed its last breath, and once again, I was free and able to roam around.

  Something at my side buzzed like mad, but I did my best to ignore the sensation. Likely a trick of the wind or something.

  I checked my rifle. I still had about five rounds in it. Not much, but if I was careful, that could take out another three or four aliens before I’d have to find more or fend for myself. Not much, true, but it was something. And the barracks was just ahead.

  How many more aliens could there be out there, anyway?

  Getting shakily back to my feet, I stepped over another alien carcass and continued my trek toward the barracks. The door had been taken off its hinges, and warmth from the structure beyond radiated out of the hole, acting like a beacon against the forces of nature that were still battling to end me.

  I took a few more hesitant steps, slipping and almost falling on the last one, then I was over the bridge and somewhat safe on the far balcony. This area was similar to the last one, with several tables and chairs strewn about.

  No half-eaten lunch this time, though.

  I could make out a trash can near the wall to the barracks that looked to be about full to bursting. A small bowl stood on top of it with a frozen, mushy, reddish-purple mess sticking out of the top. Borscht, most likely. I shuddered. I’d never been a fan of borscht.

  The stench of dead bodies assaulted my nostr
ils as I got closer to the barracks. A mix of blood, piss, and fecal matter. It was unpleasant, to say the least.

  I pushed the tip of my rifle into the opening the alien had left behind and followed it into the barracks a moment later. Nothing came out of the shadows to jump at me, which I considered a boon.

  The acrid odor was even stronger inside the barracks, threatening to overtake me completely. I gagged and placed my free arm over my mouth and nose while I crept inward, taking in the full scene.

  Dead bodies lay everywhere. Many of them were still in their beds, but others had obviously put up some sort of a fight. I saw a few bodies of the alien attackers mixed in with that of the fallen Russians, but not many. At least, not enough for my liking.

  Overall, the barracks was a mess, with several bunks overturned and chests of clothing ripped apart, their contents spilling onto the floor and mixing with the coagulated blood of their one-time owners. The level of carnage was unreal.

  That buzzing sensation on my leg came again, and I did my best to ignore it. I was fairly certain it was no longer a trick of the wind, since I was indoors, but neither was it my friend. I needed to focus if I were to have any hope of staying alive.

  I took another step forward into the dimly lit barracks. Into the murk. A strange shadow caught my eye, and I spun, rifle at the ready. But it was just another dead soldier. This one was hanging from some sort of cord falling down from the ceiling. I glanced up and saw that it was one of the server cords.

  Had he killed himself, or had the aliens done this? It seemed a little too deliberate to be a move by the alien scum.

  I said a silent prayer for his soul and kept moving. All along the way I wondered, if I had seen what that guy had seen, been faced with the utter certainty of death at the hands of these creatures, would I have done the same? Nah. I couldn’t go out like that. My mom would never forgive me.