Sunset (Pact Arcanum)

by Arshad Ahsanuddin

  “Let the English learn to fear us once again.” Lorcan grinned and then turned and walked away from them all, into the stony stillness of the graveyard. Reaching into his pocket, he brought out his portable AI receptacle and stroked his finger over the crystal, making it glow.

  “Sunburst.”

  “Prince Lorcan,” answered the AI.

  “Activate the video link.”

  “Stand by.” After a moment, the voice spoke again. “Link established.” A black rectangle two feet wide and one foot high appeared before him. Nick’s face, framed by his office in the Washington Embassy, was visible on screen.

  “Ruarc,” he said, his eyes shining. “What’s up?”

  Lorcan’s voice calm, deliberate. “Nicholas,” he said, “you are at war.”

  CHAPTER 40

  Armistice Embassy, Washington, D.C.; Five minutes earlier

  Toby Jameson sat calmly on the couch in his brother’s office, dressed in a gray silk shirt and black slacks, watching as Nick wrapped up his paperwork for the day. Then he began to whistle.

  Nick glared at him. “You know, technically, you’re a member of my diplomatic staff. I could assign you some work, if you feel you have too much free time.”

  “You wouldn’t do that.”

  Nick growled, showing his fangs. “And how can you be so sure?”

  Toby smiled and reached into his shirt pocket to pull out the all-important printed pieces of paper. “Because I have the concert tickets.” He glanced at his watch. “Are you almost finished? We should get going, if you want to go home and change first.” He looked critically at the Daywalker’s tan suit. “These guys are friends of mine, Nick. They’re not going to be impressed by the Government Stooge look.”

  Nick snorted and was about to reply when he was interrupted by his AI. “Nicholas, you are being contacted by Lorcan Magister Diluthical.”

  Nick checked his watch. It would still be late evening in Ireland. Lorcan usually waited until midnight to call on business. He shrugged. Maybe he just wants to chat. “Put him through, Rapier.”

  A black rectangle opened up above the conference table, which lit to show Lorcan’s face as he stood outside next to some stone ruins. Behind him, there seemed to be quite a crowd gathered.

  “Ruarc,” said Nick. “What’s up?”

  “Nicholas,” said Lorcan. “You are at war.”

  “I beg your pardon?” Nick paused for a moment, trying to figure out the joke.

  “The Court has conspired with the Americans to infiltrate your defenses,” Lorcan informed him. “They intend to launch a surprise attack, using some kind of first-strike weapon they’ve developed.”

  “Wait a minute.” Toby stood and stepped into Lorcan’s view. “You’re serious, aren’t you?”

  “Deadly serious, Consul.” Lorcan shifted his attention back to Nick. “The Sentinels of Paris feel they owe you something, so they came forward tonight and told me. They say the Americans have been making preparations for weeks. It might already be too late to stop them.”

  “Do they know where the attack will take place or anything about the weapon?” Nick asked, still trying to wrap his mind around the idea of a sneak attack.

  The Nightwalker shook his head. “No. I am going to lead an assault against House Daviroquir in a few minutes. If we can capture their Magister, he should be able to shed some light on that. I will contact you afterward with what I’ve been able to find out.” He paused. “If I don’t make it back, I will have my successor contact you with whatever we learned. Goodbye, Nick. I love you.”

  Nick swallowed. “Ruarc, I love—”

  Lorcan cut him off. “No! Don’t say that to me unless you mean it, Nicholas.”

  “You’re not the only one in my heart, but I have never lied to you,” Nick said quietly. “Don’t you dare die on me.”

  Lorcan took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I’ll see what I can do.” He broke the connection.

  Nick stared at the empty air for a few seconds after the virtual screen closed and then said, “Command Access.”

  “Online.”

  “Initiate a level IV lockdown of the embassy and bring our fixed defenses online. Inform the Garrison Commander he is to immediately redeploy forces to secure positions throughout the building to repel a possible attack of unknown origin. Authorization code Luscian five-seven-three-six, authentication keyword ‘destiny’.”

  “Guardian clearance confirmed. Lockdown in progress.” In the background, an alarm began to peal through the halls.

  “Release Command Access.”

  “Confirmed.”

  Nick looked at his brother. “If you want to leave, tell me now. Your clearance codes won’t get you through lockdown, so if you stay you’re going to be stuck here for the duration.”

  Toby scowled. “Not a chance in hell that you’re leaving me out of this. I’m going wherever you are.”

  The door to the office flew open. “What’s going on?” Scott yelled as ran in, followed by Ana.

  “Lorcan called me. Apparently, the Court and the Americans have joined forces and are about to attack us.”

  “Bullshit,” scoffed Scott. “He’s pulling your leg.”

  “He wasn’t lying. Guys, you know the projections. It’s been against the odds that things have remained peaceful so far, but it was never going to last. Now we just have to see if we can stop this before it goes any further. Lorcan is trying to dig up additional intelligence; otherwise, we might have to just ride this out. Scotty, I want you to come with me to brief the Triumvirate and be my liaison with the Winds.”

  Nick turned to Ana. “As soon as the embassy is locked down and the defenses are in order, leave the Garrison Commander in charge and head back to Anchorpoint. We’ll meet up at the Council Chamber.”

  “What do you want me to do?” said Toby, summoning an ebony staff covered with runes to his hands in a flash of green light.

  Nick bit his lip. “I want you to stay put. You’ll be safe here for now.”

  Toby’s jaw dropped, appalled, before he recovered. “Fuck you, Nicholas! I’m a Sentinel, not just your baby brother!”

  Nick grabbed his shoulders and shook him. “Listen to me, Tobias. This could be nothing, or it could be everything. I need to know you’re safe, and I need to know you can get the rest of our family behind a defense shield somewhere, either at one of the chapterhouses, at your apartment, or at my house. This is personal, Toby. I can’t ask any of the others to take care of them. Please, just do this for me, okay?”

  Toby grimaced. “All right. I’ll get Mom and Faith under cover, but you have to swear to keep me in the loop. If we’re going to war today, I’m not hiding behind the lines.”

  “You’d better get going,” Ana said. “The Master AIs at Armistice Security Headquarters will already have informed the Council about the lockdown. They’ll be awaiting an explanation.”

  “Let’s go.” Placing his hand on Scott’s shoulder, Nick jumped them away in a crack of displaced air.

  Ana looked at Toby. “You’re going to stay in here?”

  Toby nodded, pulling out his sat-phone. “I can follow orders. You go take care of yours.”

  House Daviroquir Stronghold, London, England

  Alastair Magister Daviroquir swept his senior scions with an imperious glare. “Are you sure that is all the soldiers we can field?” He sat upon a carved throne of oak inlaid with bone and varnished a deep, bloody scarlet. His Consuls stood around him at attention. The crackling blaze in the open fire pit was the only sound as his vassals decided who should speak first.

  “Yes, Lord,” his Primogenitor answered finally. “Even if we strip our defenses to the bone, we can’t offer the Court more than ten thousand troops for their assault on the Armistice once the Americans make their attack.”

  Alastair growled. “I had hoped our people would take a special role in the invasion.”

  One of the more junior Consuls spoke up. “Perhaps, my Lord, if we focus
our additional forces on taking a primary target, rather than in the general advance, we might gain greater honor from our part.”

  Alastair frowned, thinking before answering the Consul who had spoken. “That might be a profitable argument to make. Did you have a target in mind?”

  “The embassy in Washington has taken on special importance since the Armistice Day event. If we focus our attacks there, we could make a significant contribution to breaking the spirit of the Armistice.”

  “Very good. That would bring honor and advancement to our house. I will present your argument to the Court.”

  A knock sounded at the door to the Great Hall.

  “Enter!” Alastair frowned, annoyed by the interruption.

  One of his Praetors hurried into the room. “My Lord, forgive me for disturbing you, but the Praetor Diluthical wishes to speak to you directly. She says it is most important but refuses to divulge the nature of her business.”

  Alastair snorted in derision. “What could House Diluthical possibly have to say that would ever be of any importance?”

  His senior scions chuckled.

  “Very well, send her in.” Alastair gestured dismissively and got to his feet.

  Aislinn Praetor Diluthical entered the room. Ignoring the other vampires, she walked sedately to stand before Alastair and bowed deeply. “Forgive me for intruding, Prince Alastair.”

  “Yes, yes,” said Alastair, waving his hand impatiently. “Say whatever it is you have to say, Praetor, so I can get back to more pressing business.”

  Aislinn ignored the slight. “My Lord, my Master wishes to inform you he is aware of your intentions to attack the Armistice in concert with the United States government.”

  Alastair blinked, then smiled as his senior scions moved to flank him. “I see. And does the Magister Diluthical desire some sort of consolation prize for acquiring that knowledge?”

  Aislinn smiled. “No, my Lord. He asked me only to tell you that he feels your participation in such an attack constitutes a breach of the treaty between House Diluthical and House Daviroquir. Accordingly, House Diluthical withdraws from that alliance. We are once again at war. My Master just thought he should let you know.”

  Alastair stared at her, astounded. “Has Lorcan gone mad?”

  “You can ask him yourself, Lord,” she said, her fangs extended.

  The room flared with light, filling the room with Sentinels and House Diluthical soldiers. With surprise and numbers on the side of the attackers, it was a short but bloody battle. Alastair’s guards and senior scions were quickly eliminated, taking half of their enemies with them.

  The surviving Sentinels continued to hold the door against waves of Nightwalker soldiers attempting to batter it down, while the remaining House Diluthical soldiers stood guard over Alastair—some holding him down, others maintaining a ward over him to suppress his mystical abilities. The vampire lord continued to struggle, glaring at Lorcan, who knelt next to Siobhan’s body on the floor.

  * * *

  Lorcan reached out and closed Siobhan’s eyes. Ignoring the rest of the dead, he stood and pulled his AI out of his pocket. “Sunburst, what’s the status of the jumper block?”

  “The access code has rotated. I am calculating the new code sequence.”

  “Project it in the air as soon as you get a lock, so we can all see.” Lorcan turned to Gabrielle. “As soon as you see the new code, get your people out of here. We will meet back at the rendezvous point.”

  She began giving orders and immediately the Sentinels congregated around the remaining Air and Fire Sentinels, their wards on the door beginning to splinter as they waited. A virtual screen opened up above them, displaying the new access code and both groups teleported away instantly, landing in the Great Hall of the House Diluthical fortress in Dublin. Lorcan turned to his Consul in charge of the facility. “Rotate the jumper block code immediately, random frequencies every ten seconds, and keep it up until I tell you to stop.” He strode over to the imprisoned Magister.

  “You will suffer for this, Lorcan!” Alastair raged, as the House Diluthical soldiers dragged him to his feet. “I will see your entire house burn for this affront!”

  Lorcan peered into his fiery eyes. “Do you know the details of the Court’s involvement with the human attack on the Armistice?”

  “We all know, you simpleton.” Alastair sneered. “Only House Diluthical will be spared the glory of the Triumvirate’s defeat.”

  “Good. I’m glad the effort wasn’t wasted then. Consider this to be in defense of their lives.” He bared his fangs and plunged them into Alastair’s neck. The bridge opened between them as he fed, driving the blood magic like a sword into the other Magister’s memories, absorbing his power and knowledge as Lorcan went deeper and deeper, ravaging his mind, taking everything. Only when Alastair’s labored heartbeat stuttered to a stop did Lorcan finally withdraw his mouth from the other vampire’s neck. Then he casually considered the dead body of his enemy as his soldiers dropped it to the floor.

  “What did you learn?” asked Gabrielle. “Were you able to find a way to block their attack?”

  “The attack is going to take place on two fronts. The Americans will attack the Triumvirate using a weapon designed from technology they stole from Armistice Security, as well as something new they developed with the help of their co-opted Fire Sentinels. They haven’t informed the Court of the details, or when they plan to strike, but Alastair did know where the weapon is being built. What the humans don’t realize is that the Court intends to double-cross them.

  “Now that the world knows they exist, they see no reason to remain hidden. They plan to invade and conquer North America as soon as the Americans bring down the coastal defense grid. Most of their armies are already in place, awaiting the signal to shroud the continent in cloud cover so they can attack openly. If the Armistice falls, millions of people are going to die.”

  Gabrielle gasped in horror, the point of her sword dropping to rest on the floor. “Can we stop it?”

  “The Americans plan to attack from a military base in California, so Armistice Security will be in a better position to take it out. In case they fail, however, we need to be prepared to prevent the invasion.” He thought quickly. “We can’t do anything about the armies already in place, but maybe we can find a way to delay the Court from giving the order to attack, at least until the Triumvirate has a chance to reinforce their defenses.”

  “How?” she demanded. “Is it possible to interrupt their communications?”

  Lorcan shook his head. “Their broadcast nexi are in the Council Chamber Complex itself to allow rapid exchange of information between the Court and their forces in the field. To get to them in time to block the signal, we’d have to neutralize the overlapping jumper blocks the Night’s Herald has layered over the facility. It would take weeks to decode them all, and the codes are rotated at sunrise every day.”

  “Your AI can’t do it?”

  Lorcan shrugged. “Only from inside the blocks. The AI I have is self-contained, not implanted. It will be confiscated before I can bring it beyond the entry hall of the Council Chamber to the center of the defense wards. Only the Triumvirate Ambassador has an AI he could bring through the security cordon, and he hasn’t been given access privileges to the Council Chamber. They’ll kill him if he tries to sneak in.”

  “Then we can do nothing!”

  Lorcan began to pace. “There must be something. We can’t just give up.”

  Gabrielle swore in French under her breath. “I should have stayed retired in Paris.”

  Lorcan froze. “Of course,” he whispered. “Paris is the key. We don’t attack their communications. We cut off the head of the invasion force by striking at the Court, itself.”

  She frowned. “Do you intend to replicate the Magister Luscian’s cleansing spell?”

  He shook his head. “No. Even if we could convince Nicholas to release his spellforms to us, the Night’s Herald will be on guard for that.
If the Court’s security forces are fast enough, they’ll be able to kill our spellcasters before we can complete the perimeter circle. We’ll have to be more creative.” His eyes gleamed and his fangs extended. “Can you get in touch with the new Daywalker community in Paris?”

  “Yes. We stay away from them as long as they leave us alone, but they’re easy enough to find. But Daywalkers will be of no use to us in an attack. They can only fight defensively or to defend their honor.”

  “They won’t need to fight directly, but it will require Armistice magic and technology to make this work. We need to visit them as soon as I let the Triumvirate know what we’ve found out.” Lorcan’s smile was savage. “They once said they would help me if I had great need. It’s time to call in the marker.”

  THE TRIUMVIRATE COUNCIL

  CHAPTER 41

  Armistice Security Headquarters, Anchorpoint City, Grand Mesa, Colorado; Thirty minutes later

  Take projected a virtual display of the Los Angeles Air Force Base and highlighted a specific building. “As best we can determine, this is our target. Not only is this building projecting a jumper block over the entire base, with random codes rotating every thirty seconds, but there is a high concentration of magical energy emanating from it, consistent with Fire Sentinel activity.”

  He tapped a control and the view zoomed in, becoming a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the interior. “We have no idea what defenses are active inside, but the basic layout is simple. Three levels: one above ground and two below. The upper floor is mostly industrial, composed of workshops and fabrication areas. The second level appears to be office space. The bottom level has an almost completely open floor plan. That’s where we believe their control center will be. The weapon was most likely constructed on the first level, but if it’s already been deployed you will probably have to take out the command facility to prevent its activation.”