Praetorian Rising, стр. 90

the high treetops near Romeo Village ablaze with fire. Two of the warships had begun their retreat, but one remained to lay waste to whatever structures were still standing. The entirety of Romeo's topside had crumbled into the depths of the compound, which belched heavy clouds of acrid smoke into the blackened sky.

"Camille!" the man called out again, much closer this time, and Camille spun to find Phillip fighting his way toward her.

He reached her in a matter of minutes, and she immediately saw that something wasn't right—his skin was pale and yellowed, and sweat poured down his face. His left arm and chest were a bloodied mess, and Camille immediately understood why he'd come to her rescue: Phillip had already been bitten.

"Take cover, Camille—get out of here!" Phillip coughed, slicing a Chimera straight up through the gut as it tried to attack Camille from behind.

"No!" Camille said, choking on the words fighting to escape. She'd unknowingly killed Phillip's wife in Charlie Town and now he was fighting for her life? "I never got to say how sorry I am. To make it up to you and Charlie!"

"You just did," Phillip said through labored breaths, slaying two more Chimera with a determined slice of his sword.

The Chimera numbers had dwindled, and the two of them were cornered against a ledge as the pile of dead bodies grew. She charged one advancing Chimera, her sword moving with such speed she was barely aware of her motions. The metal slashed through it's neck, spraying the ground in a waterfall of blood before the body slumped heavily at her feet.

Surrounded by a wall of bleeding and dead Chimera, silence enveloped them. Sweat dripped down Camille's face in rivers, but she paid it no mind. Her eyes flew to Phillip's, and she trembled with the emotion bubbling up to the surface.

"I remember her face," Camille said softly.

Phillip leaned heavily on his broad sword peering at her trembling expression, his face also dripping in sweat.

One final Chimera lunged over the tower of carcasses toward her, but she notched her final arrow and took aim. It rolled down the heaping pile of dead bodies to land at her feet, purging the last remnants of its life onto her boots.

"She was a beautiful woman. Charlie looks so much like her," Camille continued as Phillip slipped to his knees, unable to stand any longer.

Tears mixed with sweat on her face, dribbling down her cheeks in hot, wet rivers as she darted toward him to keep Phillip from pitching forward on his face. Her words were pointless; she knew it, but she still felt they had to be said. "I didn't know what I was doing. I never meant to hurt them."

"What happened to my wife, to my friends in Charlie Town—it wasn't your fault," Phillip said, hacking up thick chunks of blood and mucus. "I know that. Vesyon knows that. You need to accept it as well."

He lurched forward, scrambling for something in one of his many pockets. He unearthed a flattened, palm-sized bag tipped with a nasty, thorn-like cylinder. He jabbed it into his thigh and emitted a heavy sigh of relief.

Phillip peered up at Camille, his color almost returning to normal. His skin remained clammy, however, and turned red with fever. "It won't last long," he grunted. "I'd get that look of hope off your face, soldier. The antidote only works when you're able to remove the virus."

"Let's go, then! I can carry you," Camille said, reaching to help Phillip up.

He waved her off and shook his head as he swayed backward toward the ground. "He warned me about you," Phillip said, removing his chest protector with a grunt of satisfaction. "I promised myself I'd hate you after everything that's happened, but Vesyon told me I wouldn't be able to resist your charm. By Ma'Nada, he was right for once," he said dryly. "Even after all these years, I look at you and see her blazing through your eyes—the same genuine smile and spark of hope."

She stared at him, confused, but his lips twitched with a slight smile. "Your mother," he said, almost choking on the syllables. "You have the same determination to do right, to protect those around you even at the expense of yourself. Jesabelle would be proud of you, proud that you're still fighting."

He coughed loudly, spitting copious amounts of blood on the ground. The wound across his chest bloomed with color, and the poison spread like black ink through his veins. His once-bright eyes were now bloodshot, and his curling brown hair stuck to his sweat-slicked forehead. "Camille, please, you have to kill me. I will turn; I can feel it."

Camille shook her head violently. "No, I can't. What about Charlie?"

"She can take care of herself. Please—I don't want her to see me like this." His eyes started to fill with tears, and his skin flushed with the heat of fever.

"What about the antidote? Do you have more?"

Phillip shook his head. "That was my last one."

His eyes were almost entirely glossed over with red; he wouldn't be able to keep the venom at bay much longer. Soon his mind would recoil in agony, and he'd either die or transform into a monstrous beast.

Camille's eyes shot up toward the rim of dead Chimera as Vesyon, Theo, Neeko, and Charlie crested the pile.

"Do it. Now," Phillip commanded, placing his dagger in Camille's right hand.

"No!" Charlie screamed as she catapulted over the edge of the barrier wall, lumbering through the bleeding bodies toward Phillip. "Daddy, please! I can save you!"

Camille stared shakily down at Phillip, the dagger in her hand suddenly weighing a hundred pounds.

Phillip's eyes rolled back, and he slumped over, blotchy green face angled up to the misty night sky.

"Daddy, no!" Charlie hovered over her father's body, and then looked from Vesyon to Theo in desperation. "Help me, please, help us!"

Vesyon and Theo moved swiftly down the embankment, while Neeko remained above in jaguar form.

"Give me the blade, Camille. Theo, please hold Charlie