by Steve McHugh
"I assume Achilles is dead," he shouted, his words almost drowned out by the sound of the helicopter rotors.
I nodded.
"I'd hoped he would keep you busy longer."
I was astounded. "You knew I'd kill him," I shouted. "You sacrificed him."
Mordred smiled. "For the greater good, yes. I've sacrificed pawns before and will do so again. I can always start over." He moved toward the foot of the stairs. "I also assume that I'm next on your list."
My glyphs shone and Mordred raised his hand, a remote control in it. "I'd lose those if I were you."
I glanced around me. "Is the roof wired with explosives or something?"
"Dani and Samantha are in a locked room on the thirty-seventh floor." He pushed one of several buttons on the remote. "I've now released a toxin into the room. In ten minutes they will both be dead."
I took a step forward as my only thoughts were how I had to get the girls free. I needed the remote. "Are you insane? You're not going to kill your only link to the Fates."
"It would be a disaster, true. But like I said, I'll make the sacrifice. Besides that just means I'll have to double my efforts to find those you stole from me."
I stared at Mordred in shock, but knew he meant every word. He would kill those girls, along with anyone else whose death could help him escape.
"You want this?" He wiggled the remote at me, before tossing it over the side of the building. "I believe you had to make this decision before, with Ivy. That didn't work out so well for you, now did it? So, you get a second chance. Either come take me, or save those girls. But I'd hurry up." He checked the watch on his wrist. "You have nine and a half minutes."
I turned and ran. Mordred's howls of laughter followed me, and I prayed that I'd reach the girls in time.
*****
A swath of dead bodies greeted me on my arrival at the thirty-seventh floor. I ran through them and eventually found Anne standing in a circle of bodies, blood-covered sword in hand, killing anyone who dared get close to her.
"Anne," I shouted, drawing the attention of the three remaining guards.
I kept running, dodging the knife that one of the guards held, darting around him and snapping his neck before he could turn on me. A second guard was within arm's reach. A blast of thick, heavy air, the density of iron, directly into his temple, knocked him cold. Anne used the diversion to slam her katana into the stomach of the last guard, ripping it sideways with a shower of gore. She kept moving and plunged the sword into the unconscious guard's throat, twisting the blade and removing it with an accompanied spray. I wanted to say that she hadn't needed to kill him, but they were trying to keep her from her children. To be honest, I'd have considered a lot worse before I'd have told her she was in the wrong.
"The door’s locked," she said. "I can't get through." Anne moved to the window next to the door and then Dani's face appeared. She saw me and her eyes pleaded for help.
My air magic allowed me to see the gas as it swirled inside the room. They wouldn’t have had long before it overwhelmed them. I motioned for her to take her sister and stand at the rear corner of the sizeable room and checked my watch. Three minutes left. The window was inscribed with several runes on both the inside and out. It would be almost impossible for me to get through in time. And the door was made of thick metal, probably titanium, and would be unaffected by any normal fire. I didn't have a lot of options.
Apart from asking Achilles questions, and removing his head, I'd spent the little time I'd had using his blood to charge my magic. It had been a long time since I'd used blood magic, and I wasn't sure how much power I'd actually have left in me if I needed to use it.
I placed my hands near the metal door, ready to try the same trick that I'd used in the abandoned warehouse, and turned to Anne. "You need to back up."
"They're my daughters."
"And you'll be a lot safer a few feet back."
She nodded and, although she didn't like it, moved to the end of the corridor.
At first not much happened. Fire glyphs burned brightly across my body, mixing with the darkness of the blood glyphs, merging in places. And then, all at once, I released the magic inside me.
The fire burned so hot it was white. I had to close my eyes to keep myself from going blind as the door began to glow. Yet it still wasn't enough, so I pushed harder, willing the blood glyphs to give me the power I needed. The flame became more intense as a voice inside my head began to speak, wanting me to keep using magic. I gave into that voice. It was a familiar need, to allow myself to be totally enslaved in its power.
The titanium soon started to melt. Big chunks of it fell from the door and dropped hissing to the floor by my feet, forming a pool of molten metal. It was so hot that it burnt right through the floor in some cases, but still I kept on, even when exhaustion began to take hold and that damn voice in my head grew louder. I didn't stop.
I channelled all of the hate and rage, the fear and hurt, from the past few days into more fuel for my magic. And eventually I made it all the way through. My watch had burned to a cinder long ago, so it was impossible to tell how long, but as the gas began to escape and the door began to fall apart, I switched magic and blew the toxic fumes along the corridor, away from anyone who could be hurt.
Inside, Dani and Samantha were huddled together in one corner, holding one another tightly. Dani looked up at me, tears streaming from her eyes. "Wait," I said and used more blood magic to enhance my air magic and cool the metal, using a similar method to the one I'd done on Achilles.
When the door was cool enough, I helped the girls out.
"Go down there," I said shielding my eyes and pushing Dani away as she tried to hold me. "I won't be long." Dani looked hurt but did as she was asked, leaving the room free for me to enter.
I collapsed almost immediately, as the voice rose in volume. Allow it to happen, it said.
"I will not let you take me," I told it.
It's been so long. So long since you've used this much powerful magic. It felt good didn't it? To let loose. To live. I can make it all better. Make you more powerful, more capable.
"No," I snapped.
You should just let it happen. It's what you are. I can make you powerful. I can help you.
I caught my reflection in a nearby mirror. My eyes were jet black, the darkness spilling out from them to crawl down to my nose and up to my hairline. The power the voice offered was immense. I wanted to accept it, but the price was too much. I would lose too much of myself. "You will not take me," I shouted and slammed my fists onto the floor as I forced the magic back down inside of me, cutting myself off from its seduction. I had to use every ounce of willpower to suppress the nightmare that wanted to consume me.
When I next caught sight of my reflection, the darkness had receded. The voice was still there, but it was a whisper. Something to ignore. It had been a long time since the darkness of a nightmare had first been allowed to enter me. And I knew that I was lucky to have fought it off once again.
I got up gingerly, my body protesting from the rigors it had been put through, and stepped out into the hallway. I found it empty, with no answer when I called the girls' names.
I looked around, frantic, and found the word 'reception' written on the wall nearby. It had been done in blood, probably belonging to one of the many dead guards who had met Anne's wrath.
This time, I caught the lift down to the ground floor, where I found Anne, Dani and Samantha sitting together nearby. Dani's smile brightened and she ran toward me, this time I didn't push her away as she hugged me. "Thank you," she said and moved aside, as a younger version of her stepped forward. "This is Nate," Dani told her little sister.
Samantha waved, but there was a nervous edge to her.
"I've told them both who they are," Anne said, her voice almost breaking from the emotion. "That they're my daughters."
"Hi Samantha," I said. "How does it feel to have a big sister now?"
"Weird," Samant
ha said with a slight smile. "Nice though. Although I wish my dad were still here."
Anne's face clouded over. I hoped she wouldn't have to tell her newfound daughter that she was responsible for her dad's murder.
"What will happen to us now?" Samantha asked, suddenly tearful.
Dani hugged her little sister, and I knew that no matter what might happen next, these two sisters had found one another and they would never willingly let go. "Come with me back to Francis'," I said. "We'll sort out your next step from there." I looked at Anne. "That okay with you?"
She nodded and the four of us left the murder and death behind us, walking out into the crisp winter morning.
Chapter 41
I called on the way and spoke to Francis. He told me that he and Laurel were the only occupants in the subway as Jerry was with the rest of the vampires, somewhere deep in the catacombs of ancient tunnels as his transformation started. Laurel was forbidden from going with him as she would constantly worry, and in Francis' eyes, that meant get in the way at any opportunity.
Samantha and Anne both eyed the entrance warily, but followed Dani and me down the stairs without complaint. Francis was in his shop, re-hanging all of the items that had fallen off during the fighting. "So, you're alive," he said with a smile as Laurel appeared in the hallway and hugged Dani, a huge smile on her face.
"Apparently, I'm a bastard to kill," I said and Laurel turned her attention to me hugging me so tightly I had to tell her to stop.
"Sorry," she said. "And thank you for talking to Jerry. He trusts you, and he let me turn him."
"I'm glad he's okay," I said, aware that he would be far from okay for some time to come. He'd always be a vampire with one arm, something he would have to compensate for. At some point another vampire would challenge him to a fight, sensing weakness. Jerry needed to be ready for it.
Dani and Laurel took Samantha and Anne further into the station, Dani introducing her mother and sister on the way. When I turned back to Francis, he'd recovered the box of my stuff and placed it on the table. "So, are you back to having full memories?" he asked.
"Sort of," I said. "They're all there, just jumbled up. I think it'll be a little while until everything gets put back in place." I told him about everything that had happened, Jenny's sacrifice, my returning memories and the death of Achilles and Mordred's escape. As always, he just stood and listened until I'd finished.
"You know blood magic?" he asked eventually. "Why not just use it to remove the curse yourself?"
"You can't use your own blood magic to remove a curse. That would make the curse somewhat pointless. And, blood magic is different from normal magic. You have to actively want to use blood magic. It's a conscious decision. As I had no idea I could use it, there was never a time when I thought to try. And without the experience, if I had tried, I'd have probably killed myself."
Francis nodded that he understood. "I'm sorry about Jenny."
"Thank you." I would miss her. Until I'd received my memories back, I hadn't remembered just how much she was like someone I'd known... Morgan. I shook my head free from the thought and picked up the sword cane. "Well, I know what this is," I said, unsheathing the sword. "They're given to all of Merlin's Acolytes. Mordred killed one, and then stole this from them."
"Did he kill many?"
"Probably, it was a stupid fantasy amongst the Acolytes that anyone who killed Mordred would gain Merlin's favour. It got a few of them killed, and Mordred used to take the swords as a sort of trophy. I know of about five or six who crossed him and didn't come back, although the actual figure is probably double that."
"So you work for Avalon, then?" Francis asked, finally acknowledging what concerned him.
I hadn't decided how to broach the subject when it came up. Lying was pointless, as was trying to hide my past. But full disclosure may not have fill Francis with a lot of joy.
"I used to," I said deciding honesty was best. I liked Francis, and he'd helped me a lot. He deserved the truth. "I left just before the twentieth century. Merlin and I had a falling out of sorts, and I haven't worked for him since."
"So how did you get involved with this?"
"I'd been hunting Mordred for a long time and found out that he was conducting more experiments on kids, and trying to create yet more crimes against magic. I decided to put a stop to it. I still had friends in Avalon, and I found Daniel through them. But be assured, I don't work for Merlin or Avalon, anymore."
“So, how old are you anyway?”
I smiled. "Over sixteen hundred.”
The shocked expression that crossed Francis' face caused me to smile.
"Yes, sixteen hundred," I said. "And I don't even moisturise to keep a youthful appearance."
Francis laughed at my poor attempt at humour. "Those blood curse marks, do you know what they are now?"
I shook my head. "I don't know what they do, or who put them there, or even why. But they've done me no harm, and no one who's examined them has ever been able to give me more information. Mordred suggested that Jenny’s death has unlocked whatever they’re meant to do. So, I guess we’ll see what happens.”
Anne soon joined us, a seriousness to her features. "Do you have a plan?"
"I'm going to take you to the Fates," I told her. "You should be with your family. Ivy is your sister, yes?"
Anne nodded. "Although she's much older than I, she doesn't look it."
"You'll be safe there," I said.
I wanted to say something else, but Dani and Samantha took that moment to join us, Laurel in tow, and I decided it could wait.
Dani told Francis and Laurel that she would stay in touch, and I explained to Francis that our deal still stood. Three jobs and then we were even. He told me he'd see me soon and with that I departed the subway with Anne and her daughters, eager and nervous in equal measure as we made our way to the Fates.
*****
They were greeted by Cassandra and her two fellow Fates with hugs and kisses, and more than a few tears by all involved. After an hour of everyone talking at once, I took Cassandra aside to an unused room to speak alone. "You lied to me," I said. "You knew that Jenny would kill herself to save me. Dani's vision of me screaming for someone to stop, that's what she saw."
Cassandra took a deep breath and nodded. "I'm not happy about it. Nor am I proud, but if you had been told, if you knew the truth, you would have never gone to that place. Even after they took Dani, you would have thought of another way to get her back. And you'd have gotten both yourself and the girls killed."
As much as I understood why she'd lied, it didn't mean I had to like it. "Jenny wasn't related to you?"
Cassandra shook her head. "She was just a normal psychic girl. But an incredibly powerful one. After we escaped, she continued to work for Mordred, hoping that she'd be able to save more from within. She will be missed."
I looked away, pretending to stare at a painting on the wall next to me. "Yes, she will."
"I understand your anger at me, but my granddaughter would like to talk to you," Cassandra said as Ivy appeared in the doorway.
She looked the same as she had back in Soissons all those centuries ago. I started to say something, but she ran at me, flinging her arms around me and hugging me with all her might. "You came for me," she said, crying into my t-shirt.
"I'm sorry it took so long," I whispered.
Ivy pulled away and wiped at her puffy, red eyes. "Sorry, I don't normally do crying."
I wiped at my own eyes. "Not a problem."
Ivy smiled. "You need to tell Thomas where I am."
I nodded. Last I remembered, Thomas, or Tommy as he was now known, was a private investigator. "He'll be thrilled to hear from you."
"You've got to go see your friend," she said. "Do you want to know what I saw just then?" Ivy was more powerful than I'd ever imagined, being able to draw out my future without even a hint about what she was doing.
I shook my head. "No thanks, I'd rather it be a surprise."
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"Just be careful, you've angered powerful people by destroying Mars Warfare." She took a piece of paper and a pen from a table next to me, writing on it and folding it in half twice. "In six weeks, open this paper. Not before."
I took the paper and put it in my pocket. "Six weeks."
Ivy gave me one last hug. "You need to go see your friend, the one in hospital."
I nodded. "Dani and Samantha will be safe here, yes?"
Ivy nodded. "And you can visit whenever you wish." She kissed me on the cheek and we left the room together where I bumped into Anne.
"We need to talk," I said and took her back into the room.
"I want to thank you for your help," she said.
"You're welcome." I was aware that she wasn't going to like what I needed to say. "You're an assassin. Like me, you've killed people in the name of those you work for. Unlike me, your boss was a psychotic prick."
"Do you have a point?" Her eyes became hard, matching her tone.
"Dani and Samantha will call me every Sunday, without fail."
"Are you threatening me?"
"If they miss one call. If one Sunday goes by and I don't hear from them. The following Monday, you will hear from me. And it will be a meeting you're unlikely to forget in a hurry, am I clear?"
"They are my daughters, what do you think I'll do to them?" Anne snapped.
"You're a murderer, and a cold one. And quite frankly, I don't trust you enough to leave them without checking up. Every Sunday. Without fail."
Anne stared at me in disbelief, but nodded her agreement. "I will never hurt those children."
"Good, because I'd hate to have gone through all this just to have to kill you." I took a step closer to her, and to Anne's credit she didn't move. "Thirty seconds, just remember that." And then I left her alone in the room as I said my good-byes to Dani and Samantha, promising to keep in touch.
Dani followed me out of the book shop and stopped me as I hailed a taxi. "Thank you," she said. "For everything."
