Darklight 3: Darkworld

by Forrest, Bella

  “It is interesting to meet a human here in the Immortal Plane,” he said, keeping hold of my hand for a moment. “Especially one who would come here to risk her life for the sake of vampires. I don’t even need to read your aura to know there is very little darkness in you.”

  Was there anything more uncomfortable than getting praised by a stranger? I murmured awkward thanks, unsure what to say.

  “She’s risked more than you know to help us,” Sike chipped in, making it worse. “Lyra is one of the humans who has been fighting for months to get us asylum in the Mortal Plane.”

  “I’ve been to the Mortal Plane many times,” the vampire said, golden eyes gleaming, “and I can assure you that such generosity and open-mindedness are rare, in my experience.”

  I’d experienced generosity and open-mindedness plenty of times, but I supposed it would be different for a vampire, especially one who only visited briefly before returning to the Immortal Plane. I inclined my head in acknowledgment.

  “So, you’re a scout of the Hive?” Sike asked. “You go to Itzarriol to feed?”

  “Close to it,” Kono replied. “We rarely dare to get within sight of the walls.”

  “I guess you’re not too impressed with Dorian’s plan to visit the city, then?” Sike asked, his face revealing that he expected a negative response.

  Kono remained silent for a moment, obviously picking his next words carefully. “I am impressed,” he said. “And I see the logic behind his plan.”

  “But?” I sensed the counterpoint he was leading to.

  “But we cannot risk this haven for the sake of potentially gathering information that might take us a step closer to fixing the rift in the barrier.” He shrugged. “Though you’ve found safety in the Mortal Plane, you must remember the horror of living in the Immortal Plane immediately following the fall of Vanim. We’re finally finding a shred of stability. If it were just me, I would join you in a heartbeat. But we have much to protect here. The young. The very old.”

  “Your history,” I said softly. “I promise you, we do understand.”

  Kono spread his hands, palms up. “This is only my opinion. Others may think differently.”

  “That’s what we’re trying to find out,” Sike admitted. “Just to get a sense of public opinion, you know?”

  “I wish you well in your endeavor,” Kono said, bowing slightly to say goodbye.

  “We have a question before you go, if you don’t mind,” Sike said, giving me a look. “We’re trying to learn more about an old piece of folklore involving vampires in the Mortal Plane. Do you know anyone who might be an expert in the histories of vampires visiting the other realm?”

  “I don’t personally.” The other vampire frowned but thankfully didn’t press for more details. “However, if you go to the central spiral, you should either be able to find someone who can point you to a scholar or the scholars themselves.”

  “The central spiral?” I asked.

  He pointed down the violet hallway. “Keep going until you reach green, then go left until you find pale pink. The core is close by there. If you reach amber you’ve gone too far.”

  Sike and I shared a silent look as Kono nodded farewell and continued on his way.

  “To the core,” Sike announced, starting off down the hall.

  More of the Hive’s complex structure revealed itself as we walked. The full extent was like nothing I’d imagined. We followed twisting hallways, often coming face-to-face with unexpected dead ends or needing to double back. Finally, after finding the right green path and correct pink corridor, we emerged into an open space that could only be the central spiral of the Hive.

  The spiraling structure in the middle of the vast chamber acted as a ramp, providing a walkway for the dozens of vampires bustling up and down in pursuit of their daily life. I tipped my head back to admire the walls, which were pitted with honeycomb cells and doorways carved at various levels. The higher openings of the chamber connected to the central spiral by strings of thin walkways. Some were organic, made by the jaspeths, and others were more recently constructed from wood and rope. I dropped my gaze back down, taking in the dozens of vampires moving about the space. Voices mingled, echoing from above.

  “It may not be stairs, but I don’t think I’ve got the energy to make it all the way up there,” Sike said, grinning up at the half dozen levels above us. “So hopefully we find this curse expert on the bottom floor, right?”

  I nodded, realizing for the first time how many different professions the vampires here seemed to have. A willowy woman in green robes drifted by carrying something that resembled a microscope, though it had a lot more levers and lenses on metallic arms. A man walked past us in the opposite direction, a book open in his hand and a satchel spilling scrolls from the top over his shoulder. When I looked, maps and markings I couldn’t understand filled the book. The man caught my wandering eye and frowned, shielding his precious pages from me. I raised my hand apologetically, but he only sniffed, giving me a suspicious look as he hurried away.

  “Bravi would eat these guys for breakfast,” I mumbled.

  Sike stifled a snicker. “Bravi and the others are warriors,” he reminded me. “The Hive has always been a place of study and strategy.”

  I watched his lean form as he hobbled through the crowd, noticing he didn’t refer to himself as a warrior. “You’ve always favored stealth and wits, and you said you worked in the library in Vanim,” I said, moving out of the way of a pack of scouts wearing sleek cloaks—all of them men with cropped hair of various shades—who shouldered past us. “Would you have preferred to come here instead of the Mortal Plane?”

  He gazed up at the spiral, watching the community of the Hive swirl around us. “No. This place is important in its own way, but the Hive is about protecting the past. What we’re doing in the Mortal Plane is about securing our future.”

  A small boy raced past, nearly taking out Sike and making my vampire friend chuckle. I shot Sike an amused smirk. An older woman, presumably the child’s mother, ran after the boy.

  "Now,” Sike said, “shall we ask some folks what they think about our plan and try to find this curse expert?”

  We began flagging individuals down, trying to ask what they thought of Dorian’s plan. The reactions and responses were varied—some refused to talk to us, skittish about a strange vampire and a human, while others held opinions similar to Kono’s but were reluctant to get close to the Immortals’ city. A few were very supportive, glad that someone was thinking proactively rather than defensively.

  Occupied by my thoughts, at one point I almost ran into a vampire woman. She glared at me, either offended or horrified, and fled, her rough linen dress brushing the ground.

  Sike was right. None of these vampires had ever been around a non-hostile human. I tried to keep this in mind, but I couldn’t help but feel as though I was constantly being watched, examined, judged. It was like being a specimen under glass or a butterfly pinned to a board.

  Unfortunately, of the few vampires we managed to speak with, none were long-time residents of the Hive and so didn’t know where to find a scholar who knew about human and vampire folklore.

  “One last guy,” Sike promised for at least the tenth time, eyeing an oncoming vampire. “He looks like he might know something about scholars.”

  A short man with a shaved head bent over a book shuffled toward us without looking up from the page.

  Sike stepped subtly into his path. “Excuse me?”

  The man lifted his head and blinked round green eyes, pulled from the book’s trance. “Yes?”

  Sike cleared his throat. “Do you know where we can find vampire scholars? I’m looking for information about history and folklore involving the Mortal Plane.”

  To my surprise, the man nodded. He gestured back the way we had initially come. “Find the green corridor. That’s where all the history scholars gather. Check the last door.”

  I waited until the man disappeared into a
nother corridor before I clapped victoriously. Finally, some progress.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  The room of the history scholars turned out to be an interconnected series of small, cozy chambers. The light was mainly provided by dozens of soul-light lanterns, with polished metal mirrors reflecting their light. Shelves lined the walls from floor to ceiling. Judging by the color, I was pretty sure they were made of redwood, though the whispers were thankfully no longer present. Scrolls, papers, and books were packed onto the dark red shelves, and thick rugs littered the floor, with low tables on top of them.

  A man sat on one of the rugs—this one woven from various shades of green—with a scroll unfurled in front of him, his pen moving quickly over a separate piece of parchment as he made notes.

  “Hello,” Sike said cheerfully. “We come seeking a scholar.”

  The man looked up. His lean face suggested middle age, but his sharp brown eyes looked younger. Graying blue hair stood up in every direction, the color contrasting with his dark skin. When he went to stand, I noted that he was very, very tall. He enthusiastically extended a gangly hand—not to Sike, but to me.

  “A human in the Immortal Plane,” he breathed with an oddly pleased smile.

  I gave Sike a surprised glance as I shook the scholar’s hand firmly. His hands were soft, clearly more used to turning pages than to holding weapons.

  He turned to Sike. “If it’s a scholar you seek, maybe I can help. My name is Echen. I am a history keeper and lore expert.”

  Sike grinned and introduced us. I recognized the strong scent of jaspeth musk on Echen. It wasn’t unpleasant but more overwhelming in such a small room. When Echen moved, his gangly limbs reminded me of an exaggerated version of Sike.

  He gestured around the room. “My humble haunt,” he said.

  I glanced at another set of nearby shelves. Bottles and jars of a strange mustard-colored liquid sat on the shelves.

  Echen caught my eye. “I see you’re admiring my collection of jaspeth pheromones. Did you know that infant jaspeths release a distinctly different hormone when they’re in danger? It causes an adult jaspeth to become enraged. You don’t want to mix them up with the type that keep us safe.”

  Oh. I leaned away. Sike suppressed a chuckle.

  “We have a few questions about vampire folklore for you,” Sike said as Echen showed us to his small table, inviting us to sit on the rug opposite him.

  Papers with diagrams that reminded me of mathematical figures covered the surface. He speedily tidied the area as we lowered ourselves to the ground.

  “I rarely have guests,” he said with a wink. “People tire of hearing a scholar spout off his ideas, especially in times such as these.”

  “I think you’ll find us eager to listen,” I said.

  Echen’s smile grew at my response. His genuine delight made me feel, for the first time since I’d woken up in the Hive, like I was welcome here.

  “We want to know anything you can tell us about contact between vampires and humans,” Sike explained. “Especially romantic relationships. We believe something strange happens when vampires have strong feelings for humans.” He kept the specific details of who to himself.

  “There’s a painful reaction, usually in the human.” I hesitated before adding, “I know this from personal experience. I just came out of a three-day coma caused by that pain.”

  “Interesting.” Echen scratched his head. “Well, there are various tales. The general idea, however, is that it is incredibly foolish for vampires and humans to couple.”

  “But it has happened before?” Sike asked. “Like, what we’re experiencing isn’t something totally new?”

  “Oh, there are various accounts of vampire and human couples, though according to the historical record, it’s not something that has happened often. Friendly interactions between our kinds are exceedingly rare.” He stroked his cheek thoughtfully. “Many vampires think it’s beneath them to study such things, but I’ve always thought it quite a fun subject. The situation happens. Why ignore it?” He looked between us expectantly with a singular arched eyebrow.

  I glanced at Sike in confusion, not understanding his pointed gaze.

  “No,” Sike blurted, apparently faster on the uptake. “Not us. We’re not the couple.”

  I laughed awkwardly before I could stop myself, hoping it didn’t offend Sike. From the mock grimace on his face as he looked at me, he was equally uncomfortable with the idea.

  “We’re just friends,” I assured the scholar. “But we’re both affected by the issue. I’m with a vampire. He’s interested in a human.”

  Echen leaned back. “Of course,” he said smoothly. “And I’m not here to judge. But you should know that there’s hope for both of you.”

  “There is?” I curled my fingers around the table’s edge, the anticipation so strong that I went lightheaded. Were we finally going to get some answers?

  “Maybe,” Echen said, a note of caution in his voice. “There have been records kept of a few vampire and human couples throughout history. As I said, it happens very rarely, since our two peoples have very little contact with one another. The fact that there are potentially two at once right now is… fascinating.” He leaned forward slightly, hitting his stride. “Rumor among scholars has it that the most recent vampire-human couple lived together in the Mortal Plane for a few years. They didn’t want to submit to study, so there were only ever the vaguest of notes kept. Those notes couldn’t be verified, so they weren’t brought here to the Hive. They’re probably ash in Vanim now.” He sighed. “Such a waste.”

  “What do you remember of the situation?” I asked. “Do you know what became of them in the Mortal Plane?”

  “I think there might have been a child,” Echen said, grayish brows drawing together as he tried to recall more details. “No, wait. I think that was the one from my father’s era. That would be, oh, two hundred years ago now, and I don’t believe it was ever verified.”

  A couple at some point in history had been able to have a child? I sucked in a sharp breath, trying to process it. If true, that was huge news. Still, it was slightly frustrating that we couldn’t confirm any of this information.

  Sike leaned his elbows on the table as he watched Echen. “Do you know their names?”

  Echen shook his head. “No names, unfortunately, or where they lived in the Mortal Plane. Or did they move to somewhere in the Immortal Plane? No, that can’t be right…”

  My mind raced as he continued to mutter to himself. How had this couple managed to be close enough to one another to live together? In the back of my mind I’d pretty much abandoned the idea that Dorian and I would be able to do something like that. I wasn’t entirely sure I wanted children at all—and certainly not for a long time—but did this story mean that maybe it was something we could consider in the future?

  “How did they manage to live together?” I asked. “After he’s fed, I can barely be in the same room as the vampire who cares about me. Our…” I paused, flushing at the detail I was about to reveal. “Our first kiss put me in a coma. How could this other couple get past that kind of problem?”

  Echen laced his fingers together thoughtfully, closing his eyes. “My memories have faded somewhat, and my knowledge only goes so far, but my good friend was the lead researcher on the situation and kept me well informed. Let me think.” He was silent for a few moments as he gathered his thoughts. “I seem to recall that the couple shared their blood somehow… joined in a way that fused their auras together.” He hummed as he reflected. “Yes, I think the vampire began to drink tiny amounts of the human’s blood, leeching the naturally small amounts of dark energy they otherwise wouldn’t have touched. The process blended the auras. That was enough to nullify the curse, and the painful effects stopped, or were at least reduced enough for them to… interact.”

  There were some similarities to Halla’s story, but Halla had said she’d heard the story when she was a child, so it seemed likely she was
thinking of a couple from much longer ago.

  “Do you remember what happened to them?” Sike asked, hope in his wide brown eyes.

  “The couple allegedly lived together for some time, so the solution at least worked for a while,” Echen said. He looked at us solemnly. “The story unfortunately has a rumored gruesome ending, however.”

  Sike’s face fell, and my eyes shut as though I could block out the disappointment.

  “It seemed that the vampire overdid the feeding. The human died of blood loss, killed by the one they loved. Or at least that’s one of the rumored outcomes.” Echen scowled. “If there was ever an accurate record made, like I said, it will have been destroyed when Vanim fell. It burns me up, really. There’s nothing to confirm whether they even existed at all, or if it was just a story.”

  The tale partially echoed Halla’s warning, although her absurd explanation that the vampire accidentally drew dark energy from the human had been off. I should have asked for more details, but it was too late now.

  “Was this couple from a long time ago?” I asked. “An old legend?”

  Echen shook his head, his gray-blue hair flying wildly in every direction. “I don’t know for certain. Might be twenty years or seventy, or more for all I know without the details in front of me.”

  “And you can’t remember anything else?” Sike pressed.

  “No, sadly. I wish I did.” Echen spread his hands helplessly.

  “Could we ask your friend who was the lead researcher?” Sike asked, but I could tell he was clutching at straws. “Maybe they’ll remember.”

  Echen’s eyes took on a glassy sheen. “As I said before, dear boy, any record will be ash in the ruins of Vanim. My friend did not make it out of the city when the Immortals attacked.”

  The reflective sadness in Echen’s face suggested it was time to wrap up our visit. I rose from the table while Sike thanked him profusely. I gave him my own thanks as I shook his hand once more, my mind reeling from what he’d told us. Echen, for his part, muttered something about being pleased that he had finally been able to meet a human.