Ash flipped the amulet in his hands, studying it. It was roughly circular in shape with jagged edges, tied to a simple leather thong. The amulet was covered with runes etched into its metallic surface. It was lighter than it looked. Mounted in the center was a jewel or stone of sorts that was filled with what looked like liquid mercury flowing just beneath its surface. Above the stone was an oval sized indentation with a barb protruding sharply at its center. The whole amulet gave off a faint glow in the dim corridor’s light. He lovingly traced the edges of the amulet from the woman who had enraptured him so much. He brought the amulet to his nose, inhaled and believed that even with his heightened senses he could smell her again across the gulf of time.
It wasn’t his intention to have been gone for so long. He meant to return to Earth, free himself from his servitude to Lord Cyrax, and return here to her. So much had happened since then. A month or so turned into a year, and that year turned into two. It wasn’t his fault. At least that is what he told himself. His friends needed him. It was bad enough that Par and Paco had died, but he had saved the other guys on countless occasions and they had saved him also. He would follow Drax, Azz, or even crazy ass Faq into hell if they needed him to. That was something that he had to do. All that was behind him now. He was here, but she was gone. Absent mindedly he thumbed the amulet. His thumb slid into the depression above the mercury filled jewel and caught on the barb.
The needle slid into his skin easily and elongated to reach further into his thumb. Ash jerked his hand to the side and cursed, not out of pain, but because it had startled him. The barb should not have so much as scraped his thumb; given his supernatural nature. But it did, and now it was stuck fast to his thumb, digging deeper into his flesh. He brought his hand up to look at the amulet and saw that the fluid inside of the jewel seemed to be lessening. Then he could feel it. The amulet was pumping some kind of fluid into him. He could see it in his thumb now. A silvery color under his skin snaking its way up his arm. The jewel was empty and the barb retracted. The amulet fell from his hand and clinked across the floor.
Azznorock, who had been walking next to him took notice when he jumped and asked “What’s up?”. Ash said nothing and scrambled to grab his vibro-blade and quickly yanked off his upper body armor. The silver fluid spiraled up his bicep. Vibro-knife in hand Ash cut deeply into his upper arm, with a howl of pain, in an attempt to stop the fluid from going any further into his body. The fluid snaked around the cut as if it had a mind of its own and raced up his neck and split into several different streams as it ran up his jaw line and across his cheeks. Azznorock looked on in shocked horror as the fluid raced up into Ash’s eyes and covered them with a mercury colored film. With in a second Ash’s eyes were completely covered in the silvery fluid, and he began to convulse. “Oh shit, ASH!”, was all Azznorock could say as he caught his friend as he began to fall. Ash convulsed and shuddered for just a moment and then he lay very still. Silvery covered eyes staring wide open up into the dimly lit corridor.
