by C C Sommerly
“Have you heard of the Ceremony of Unity?”
His hand snaked out, gripping my arm tightly, “Don’t tell anyone you know of it. How do you know about that? It’s something only vampires and donors know about.”
“What?”
“Don’t speak of it again.”
“Listen Morgan, I know about it because I went through it here at the Institute.”
“There are no vampires that follow The True One. You must have confused something else with it. No one here would know about it, let alone how it works.”
“Maybe it’s something different.”
I told him about the cleansing and purifying process, as well as the ceremony.
“Oh my, this is very bad. Do you know why this is a sacred and secret ceremony?”
“Well besides, it being dangerous to give anyone your blood and you don’t want people to know about this secret ceremony?”
“It’s not just that. Everyone knows about blood magic and why blood shouldn’t be shared. But, this ceremony is like a blood oath of sorts. It gives power over the person and their magic. Whoever drinks the blood has access to that magic. It can also be put into an amulet or other type of charm, but that’s less common. We trust our masters and they trust us, but it’s also a guarantee on our part that we won’t harm them with our magic.”
That was a lot to process. And it all sounded bad.
“Why does it mean you won’t be able to hurt them?”
“Because this also makes the person immune to the donor’s magic,” he said.
“Is it limited to how many different types of magic you can be immune to?”
“Not as far as I know. Xavier has charms made from all of our blood. But the master of each donor only has access to his donor.”
They had my blood and could use it. I needed that blood back.
“Listen, I need you to get word to Xavier. Can you do that for me?”
“Yes. You have me worried now.”
“Tell him what I revealed to you. Tell him that if I do not show up in the next twenty-four hours, to go to Sterling and tell him where I am and that I need help. Can you remember all of that?”
“Yes, but what can you do?”
“Don’t underestimate me. I can do plenty. Oh, and the incense is addictive. It’s what is poisoning the blood donors. Tell him that you all need to stop using it and need to find someone that can purge it from your blood. It may leave a taint. And, expect a bad withdrawal.”
“You mean we really are to blame for hurting our masters?” Tears streamed down his face. “We’d never do this intentionally, you must believe that.”
“Xavier will understand.”
“He may think we are too much work and that it’s easier to find new donors.”
“I don’t agree. Please be careful.”
“I will. We’ve been gone too long already. Isa should be back soon,” said Morgan. “I’ll leave now to pass your message to Xavier.”
“Wait, there is one more thing. Find Emma Lynn. Tell her I have a way out and that she’ll be out soon.”
“Okay, I can do that.”
“Thank you.”
We barely made it out of our plant barrier before Isa rounded the bend in the trail.
“Oh, I finally found you. I thought I’d been to this part of the gardens, but I didn’t see you here.”
“We’ve been here the whole time. You’d have seen us and we’d have seen you,” I said.
“Very well. It’s time for the sermon. Are you coming with us Morgan?” asked Isa.
“Unfortunately, I cannot. I have an errand to run for my boss. I’ll be back soon though,” he said before hurrying away.
Isa and I left soon after to attend another sermon.
I was distracted during the sermon and went to the bathroom while they were collecting the blood, so I could avoid spilling my own. I returned just as the sermon was ending. Whew.
“Marty, you missed one of the these most important parts of the sermon. You didn’t do your offering. Let me try to catch one of the disciples,” said Isa.
“It’s okay. I need to talk to His Highness. He can take my offering then, right?”
“I suppose. It’s just not the way we normally do it.”
“I’ll make sure to do it the next time I attend a sermon.”
Which would be never. I hoped to be out of here by nightfall. Xavier would send his people here when the sun set.
Jarl had people in his office, but when he saw us, he shooed the people out.
“You may leave us, Isa.”
“How are you feeling Marty and what brings you to my office?”
He looked so poised and innocent, but his treachery was deeply entrenched in his heart and soul.
“I think you know,” I said.
He stopped what he was doing and damn me if he didn’t seem so genuine in his confusion and surprise. Why for once, couldn’t someone be exactly what they appeared to be?
“I’m not sure why you think I know the reason for this unscheduled visit.”
I stalked up to his desk. Anger and disappointment made my next words come out as harsh darts.
“I know what you did. What you did to me during that sham of a religious ceremony. The Ceremony of Unity is complete crap. If you don’t produce the Jamisons and let Emma Lynn go, then I’ll take the evidence I have, about your twisted blood magic, to the enforcers.”
That got to him and the moment he processed what I said, he glared at me. How easily the mask of caring and compassion disappeared.
“I think you’re confused. It’s been a lot to take in. You should spend more time meditating to clear your thoughts.”
I was at his throat with my blade at the same time Muffin made his move. The devil dog was on top of Jarl’s desk snapping and snarling at the man.
“I know what you’ve done with the help of that creep, Wayne Brownstone. You are stealing magic and powers. That’s wrong and illegal. I won’t let you get away with this. If you don’t stop performing the ceremony and giving out the incense, then I’ll tell the enforcers. – ”
“I –”
“I’m not done, so do yourself a favor and shut that mouth of yours. I want the Jamisons returned and Emma Lynn released.”
“I see that you are serious about this. Very well. I need time to recover the Jamisons. I’ll also see about changing the formula in the incense and we don’t need the ceremony. We can still take offerings without it.”
“A blood oath – that’s all I will accept from you. Swear to it.”
I pressed harder with my blade and crimson dripped down his neck.
“I swear to let the Jamisons and Emma Lynn go onward to their future.”
“You forgot about the incense.”
“And, I will stop giving out the incense. Are we done here?”
“Yes, quite done. Don’t be stupid and think to retaliate.”
I pulled my knife away and slowly put it back into my boot sheathe.
“Where am I meeting the Jamisons?” I asked.
“In the Mid Line. I can have them there around dusk. Be at that trendy, little burger place,” he said.
“BAM?”
“Yes, that one. And, you can leave now. I don’t want to see you here again. Do we have an understanding?”
“We certainly do.”
I stopped at my room long enough to grab my bag. No one stopped me on the way out of the Institute. I sprinted towards the Wolf Agency. It was closer than the house and I wanted back up with this.
33
I wasn’t far away when I ran into Leia Hamm and her husband. I tried to duck down a side street to avoid them, but Leia wasn’t having it.
“Marty!!! Norman, this is the girl I was telling you about. She has a devil dog, see it’s with her.”
“That dog looks rough. We should stay away from it, especially in your condition.”
Mr. Hamm was doing his best to pull his wife the other direction, but she had d
ug her heels in and wouldn’t be pulled away. She must not know that he hired me.
Leia started telling about all of the excitement we’d had together.
“And was there when I took down a demon. She’s also been to the Institute with me and is probably a seeker just like you. Isn’t that the best?”
By the time she’d finished, his worried expression had turned to one of bafflement. Oh, I get it buddy. If I hadn’t lived through those events, I’d questioned it too. And, this was the first time I’d seen him since his rude treatment of me before. I hadn’t given him my findings about his wife.
“It’s lovely to see you again Leia,” I said carefully.
“Yes, I owe you so much. Have you eaten lunch?”
“We really shouldn’t bug her. She looks busy and –”
Leia smacked his arm. “Stop it. Don’t be rude. A little socializing won’t hurt you.”
“Actually, I have a previous engagement.”
“Oh that’s too bad. Can I at least get you dessert? Please,” asked Leia.
Would this delay things too much? I really didn’t want to stop, but it helped with client relations. And there was still several hours until Jarl agreed to have the Jamisons meet me.
“Do you mind the walk? That bag looks heavy. Norman can carry it, he’s rather strong. I know he doesn’t look it, but there’s muscle, it’s just heavily padded.”
“Not at all.”
I wouldn’t have cared it if weighed hundreds of pounds. Nothing was going to stop me from getting away from the cult.
“Are you moving out of the Institute? I hadn’t realized you’d joined. When did you become a disciple?”
“Long story. I’ve decided not to continue with the Institute.”
“But no one does that. Then again, I’ve never heard of anyone leaving either. Everyone loves it there. I’ve been wanting to move in, but my husband not knowing about it, well, that made it difficult. Now maybe that will change and that’s because of you. Had we not met, then I wouldn’t have ever felt comfortable telling Norman about The True One. He’s agreed to be a seeker.”
“Are there other married couples there? I hadn’t noticed any, but I also wasn’t looking for that.”
“No, but His Highness would like to see more couples and even children.”
Jarl and that bastard of a god would love to get his hands on kids. The two of them could corrupt children and steal their magic from a young age. I was going to shut them down. What they were doing was wrong and criminal. Miles was a jerk and would never be a friend of mine, but he’d shut them down and do it thoroughly and efficiently. All he needed was evidence, which I could supply to Miles, who would clean house on this cult.
It was a quick trip to Something Sweet. Once there, Leia ordered us dessert and brought it to our table. Muffin lounged at my feet as I made quick work of the purple topped eclair. I exchanged the bare minimum of idle chit chat – too focused on eating fast to do more than that.
“Honey, she’s looking anxious. See how she keeps looking at the door?” asked Mr. Hamm.
“But I didn’t tell her the news. Marty, I know we’ve only known each other a short time, but I feel like we could be the best of friends.”
Mr. Hamm choked on his water. When he didn’t stop, I leaned over and whacked on his back until he stopped coughing.
“We are pregnant. You’re the only other person who knows besides our parents. I’m only a few weeks along, but we’re due in the Spring. It’s been so hard not to tell people. We’ve been trying for years. It’s the blessing of The True One.”
“That is happy news.”
She needed away from the Institute. They would use her baby. Would Leia using the incense hurt a baby? Once I got the Jamisons and Emma Lynn back, I’d send someone to help Leia and keep her away from the cult.
“I’m glad you could join us,” said Mr. Hamm.
He clapped me on the back, whether it was meant as a warning or a true sign of affection, I didn’t know. I didn’t particularly care.
On my way outside, I noticed people gathering in the street. Not my problem. If they wanted to be dumb enough to stand in the street, they deserved to be hit by a vehicle.
“Marty,” a man called out.
I didn’t recognize the voice, but it came from the direction of the people. Great. Guess I was going to see what was up with the crowd.
As I got closer, I saw that the group was gathered around the Jamisons. Why were they here hours early? They were waiting where Jarl and I had agreed to meet them. Jarl claimed to need a few hours to get them, but now they were here. Something isn’t right. The hairs on my arms was raised and Muffin was agitated.
Now, time was up and I hadn’t prepared. Dang it. I had no back up – not Xavier and his vamps, not Sterling, and definitely not Lochlan. I’d even take Miles for backup at this point. He had agreed too easily to my demands. I didn’t trust him for caving so easily.
The Jamisons looked tense and when they saw me a look of absolute horror crossed their faces. They stood with their arms crossed. Rather than look relieved when they saw me, their looks became what I could only describe as petrified. Mr. Jamison tried to say something, but no sound came out.
I didn’t see any obvious injuries on them, so they weren’t hurt and while Muffin was scary, I smiled and that should have put them at ease, or at the very least make them less scared.
Come on, you two have seen me before. I’m not that scary, especially with disrupters on. I pushed up my sleeves, so they could see that I wore them, so they’d know that I wasn’t able to hurt them. Mr. Jamison was speaking, but either he was too quiet or I was still too far away to hear whatever he was saying.
At least this would be over for them. Jarl made a blood oath that he would return them to me and that when they were safe that Emma Lynn would also be returned. Only a fool makes a blood oath. In my experience, making one never turned out well.
As I hit the ten foot mark, a blast rocked the ground, throwing me back. We’re under attack! I needed to get to the Jamisons.
I fell to my knees. Clouds of ash and debris blocked out my vision and my ears were ringing from the blast. Where were the Jamisons? I coughed until I threw up. I was hunched over, I managed to wheeze in what little air there was. People screamed and all around was chaos.
A spray of blood marked the spot where the Jamisons had stood. As I looked closer, I made out bits and pieces of them and a blackened ring. They’d used my magic. My magic! I felt it again. Not the residual from its used as the bomb, but from it coursing freely through me. My disrupters were gone.
What was I going to tell Emma Lynn? I’d promised her that I would get her parents back. Noise was slowly coming to me. The Jamisons were beyond my help, but the screaming people weren’t. I ran to the nearest building. It was BAM, or what was left of it. All of the glass windows were blown out and blood splattered the walls. A quick scan showed the restaurant only contained the dead.
On my way out the door, I heard a noise. I paused and then someone called from the kitchen. Rushing back to the kitchen, I found one of the chefs trapped underneath the grill. His head bled and his eyes were glossy. After much swearing and sweating, I finally got the grill off him. I lugged him to the street, where I hoped he’d been found soon. A crew of healers and the enforcers should be inbound.
Other people rushed out from the few undamaged areas. I went to the nearest destroyed building and pulled three more people out. There were very few survivors, but many dead and wounded.
I’d just finished bringing a survivor out to the street.
“Freeze. Stay where you are.”
I ignored it.
“Marty, freeze!”
I turned to the speaker. Guns and magical weapons were pointed at me, glowing, and ready to be used.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Hands up!” screamed Miles.
“I didn’t do anything.”
“We traced the source of
the bomb. It had your magical residue all over it. No one else could have done it.”
“You’ve got to listen. I –”
“I don’t have to listen to anything. You’ve been hiding out and plotting. I knew you were a menace, but I never suspected you were capable of this violence. You’re a monster in every sense of the word.”
Two of the enforcers charged me and wrestled me to the ground. They made sure to use extra force. One had his knee in my back and the other was jabbing a magical prong into my arm.
Sterling or Lochlan would get this straightened out – I hoped.
“If your dog had come sooner, then we’d have come in time to stop you. Did you enjoy seeing the destruction?” Miles asked. “Why bother warning us?”
“I didn’t do it! It was the Jamisons. They had my magic in a bomb.”
“Gag her and restrain her. She needs to go into a maximum security cell asap. Treat her as you would someone like the Crimson Fiend. Expect violence and don’t underestimate her. I made that mistake and look what it cost us,” said Miles.
I was roughly hauled to my feet, which were now shackled with metal cuffs that connected by a chain to each other. A draining magic was spelled into them. My hands were behind my back and disrupters were on my wrists. They weren’t taking any chances.
“Dorian, if you will,” said Miles.
One of the enforcers hit me with a spell and everything went black.
I woke up and doubled over from hunger pains. That was one hell of a spell the enforcers had hit me with. My mind was wandering and I felt a brief thought fluttered in my mind that something was off with me.
My stomach twisted and clenched in protest of its empty state.
“Are you planning on starving me?” I asked to the empty hall.
My plea fell on deaf ears. Why is it so hot in here? My shirt was soaked through with sweat, making it cling to me uncomfortably. My limbs twitched and seized up – sending me crashing to the floor. Spasms so painful that I couldn’t even get up hit me one after another. Time had no meaning.
