Gods of Blood and Bone (Seeds of Chaos Book 1) Read Online Free Page B

That guy who got me into all this, he seemed pretty desperate to get his hands on another one.”
    YOU’VE ALREADY HAD 1. DO YOU FEEL ADDICTED?
    —Bunny—
    I raised an eyebrow and snorted. “Quite the opposite. That thing almost killed me.”
    WELL, THAT WON’T HAPPEN AGAIN. YOUR BODY’S ALREADY ADJUSTED TO IT.
    —Bunny—
    “How do you know?”
    BECAUSE YOU’RE ALIVE.
    —Bunny—
    I stilled and let out a slow breath.  
    AND NO, THERE ARE NO PHYSICALLY ADDICTIVE PROPERTIES TO THE SEEDS.
    —Bunny—
    “Physically, huh? What about mentally, or psychologically?” I wasn’t stupid enough to be comforted by his not-quite-a-lie words.  
    …SOME PEOPLE DO BECOME OBSESSED. FOR OBVIOUS REASONS. WE’RE GIVING YOU THE ABILITY TO MAKE YOURSELF BETTER .
    —Bunny—
    Ah. That was the question. “Why are you doing this? All this?” I gestured vaguely to myself and the screens hanging invisibly in the air. “ Giving us this?”
    THAT ONE, I’LL LEAVE TO YOUR IMAGINATION. PERHAPS YOU’LL DISCOVER THE ANSWER IN TIME.
    —Bunny—
    I shook my head, frustrated at the general lack of answers. A wish? What could I wish for that would make my life better if it actually worked? This was the modern day, and I wasn’t an athlete or a man, so things like strength would be largely useless. Intelligence would be good, but hard to measure. Would I feel smarter? My eyes caught on Beauty. That would be easy to compare, before and after. And all that crap about the inside being what mattered and people who professed not to be affected by appearances…it was all bull. People cared about appearances. Attractiveness, beauty , made a big difference. And as someone who didn’t have it, I felt its lack.  
    I grabbed the Seed, went to the bathroom, and locked the door, then stripped down to my underwear. I started the video recording function on both the body length wall mirror and the half-size one above the sink, and said, “Okay. What exactly do I have to say?”
    JUST SAY SOMETHING LIKE, “I WISH I WERE MORE AGILE,” AND THE SEED WILL INJECT ITSELF INTO YOU. IT’S CALLED “PLANTING” THE SEED.  
    —Bunny—
    I swallowed painfully and stared at myself in the mirror. Body too tall, and chubby. Slightly crooked nose, pale, thin lips, pimples. “There’s no way this is going to work.” I pressed the Seed into my wrist, above the veins. “I wish I was more beautiful.”  
    There was a sharp pain, and the Seed injected its contents into me.  
    As soon as it was empty, I felt it detach from my skin, and peered at the place it had cut. The small piercing was almost gone already, and as I watched, it healed itself.  
    I put the Seed down on the tiled counter as a horrible realization swept through me. “What have I done?” This was dangerous. Reckless. And I just went ahead with this strange entity in my head and injected an unknown substance into myself?
    I waited to feel sick or dizzy, like I had the last time. I waited to die, to feel high, anything. But nothing happened.  
    It seemed like an eternity, but after no more than a minute had passed, it started. My skin began to warm and tingle strangely, especially the skin of my face. It itched painfully, and when I put my hand to my cheek, I could feel the heat radiating outward.  
    I sat down on the toilet seat and tried to control my panicked breathing. I put my hands underneath my butt to resist the urge to claw at my skin. Just when I was about to rush out of the bathroom and do something stupid, though I didn’t know what that might be just yet, the tingling-burning-itching calmed down, and continued to dissipate with each passing second. My skin cooled, and I stood up and shakily walked over to the bathroom counter, leaning on it for support.  
    I leaned toward the mirror above the sink, looking at my face for any sign of change, good or bad. “It’s my imagination.”  
    IT’S NOT.
    —Bunny—
    I lifted a hand and ran my fingers lightly over my skin. Soft,