by M C Ashley
A swirling vortex of wind gathered around the man, and he ushered it forward, killing the last Horde vampire instantly when he collided with the railing at over 100 miles per hour. I closed my eyes, my body drained.
But then I felt a firm hand wrapping around my back and it lifted me up to my feet. Feeling returned to my legs and I managed to support myself. He was offering some form of healing, but hadn’t uttered an invocation that I could hear. My body warmed. A pleasant breeze flowed through my veins. Oddly enough, I felt as if this had happened to me before, but I couldn’t place the memory.
I opened my eyes and saw the man looking back at me. “Who are you?” I asked.
“Clooney Dressler,” he said, rushing forward before I could react. “I’m here to help you.”
I looked up, but fell back. Nathan dropped down by my side and examined me. I ignored him and watched as Clooney fought the remaining Sanguine Collective members.
“Are you okay, Blake?” Nathan asked as Clooney sent a lightning bolt out from his fingertips and into the head of a vampire.
“I’ve had better days,” I said. “How did you know my name?”
“I told me.”
“Oh. Nathan-Prime told you.”
One of the vampires reached around Clooney and avoided his attacks. Seeing me in my weakened state, he ignored the other Christener and moved to Nathan and me. I tried to move my hand up to invoke an attack, but failed to move it higher than my knee.
The vampire seemed to notice something behind me, but didn’t stop his advance, and was rewarded for his trouble by a spatha slicing his head off. Surprised, I moved my head around to see Zea gripping her spatha in a defensive stance.
“Zea?” I said. “How did you find me?”
“I followed you,” she said, moving to stand in front of me. “You really need to be aware of your surroundings. Granted, I had to spend time tracking your spiritual energy to find where you jumped to.”
She bent down and placed her sword beside her, ready to grab it in a moment’s notice as she put her hands in front of me and said, “Defy Reality.”
A soothing warmness ran through my body, restoring my nerves and muscles. I felt the bullet wound start to seal itself. I gave out a sigh of relief that the bullet hadn’t gotten stuck in my body. That would have made the healing process even worse.
“Who’s he?” Zea asked.
“This is Nathan,” I said. “He’s the reason I came here.”
“No, not him.” She pointed at Clooney. “Him.”
“No clue,” I said, shrugging. “Says his name’s Clooney.”
She looked up at him and frowned. “Another one,” she said, shaking her head. “You’re here for less than a week and the Christened numbers grow.”
“Must be my magnetic personality.”
“What? No. What does magnetism have to do with anything? Now try to stand.”
I tried to move, but winced in pain. Zea’s healing was great, but few Christened healers could make it as if wounds had never happened in a couple of seconds.
“He’s good whoever he is,” Zea said, gazing intently. “They never had a chance.”
I turned to Clooney to see him grinning smugly as he walked over to us, every single vampire lying in a bloody pile next to him. He didn’t have a scratch on him.
“Very good,” I said and then thought, Now, how’s the little scamp doing?
“He’s okay,” Nathan said from behind me. “And he doesn’t like being called little.”
I looked at him. “We’ll have a talk about invading people’s thoughts later.”
Clooney stopped in front of us and continued to smile as he bowed. “A pleasure to be of service,” he said.
He looked at Zea and winked. As much as I hated to admit it, a flash of jealousy ran through my mind.
“Who are you?” Zea asked, holding her spatha outward.
“A friend,” he said, calmly. “Heard there was some fool trying to start a rebellion. Seemed like fun.”
“Heard where?” I asked.
“Oh, the grapevine.”
“Cute. How did you know those Sanguine vampires were after me?”
“They were not after you,” Clooney said, pointing over to where the vampires had appeared. “They were after them.”
Utilizing my enhanced eyesight, I noticed for the first time that two corpses were in the general vicinity of where the light had originated. Not even thinking, I ignored my pain and ran over to their location, my mind frantically making connections I couldn’t know about in the short span of time it took to get there. I looked down at the corpses. I reeled as I recognized the body of Perdita Chase and what appeared to be what was left of Thead.
Chapter 11
I surveyed the survivors of the caravan. None of the vampires from either side were left. I avoided turning around. Perdita’s body was still too fresh to look at.
I looked at the oldest survivor. He was a rugged man with copper skin and dull green eyes. He met my gaze with a ragged indifference.
“How long have you been traveling?” I asked.
“He doesn’t speak English,” a female survivor said.
I looked at her. She had a felted shawl over her head, with a fuller shawl covering her body.
“Understood,” I said. “What is your name? Mine’s Blake.”
“Afsoon,” she said. “From Afghanistan. What’s left of it anyways.”
“What happened?”
She eyed me for a moment. “The Sanguine Collective of course. When they tried to wipe out The Horde, they attacked all of their strongholds. Kabul was no exception.”
“Do they control it now?”
“No. For some reason they left everything they gained in Africa and Asia in favor of their holds in Europe and America. When The Horde came back, they simply took what was left behind for their own purposes.”
“I see. Where is everyone else from?”
“Most us are from Central Africa or southern Asia.”
I looked at Nathan. “But a couple were picked up along the way.”
“Just him. It was odd. They seemed to single him out. I doubt they know why they did it. He had them in such a frenzy.”
I nodded. “Are you all well enough to travel?”
“We can make it,” Afsoon said. “There are supplies from the caravan.”
“Good. We’re going to get you to safety.”
“And where would that be?” Zea asked, surprising me with her presence. “The Free-Zone? Surely not here.”
“No, I was thinking of the Silver Fortress.”
Zea furrowed an eyebrow. “I can never tell when you’re joking.”
“I figured the rent would be cheap enough for them. Maybe we could make an honest buck.”
Zea shook her head. “No. They can’t come.”
“And why not?”
“Because then they’ll know where we are.”
“Then where do you suggest they go? Should we cart them off to the Sanguine Collective with a smile on our faces? Is that what you want?”
“Of course not!” Zea shouted, putting her hands on her hips. “But we can’t just let everyone we save figure out where we live!”
“Then what do we do with them?”
“I don’t know.”
“Then it seems the best option is to place them in the Fortress,” Clooney said, appearing beside me.
I tried not to register my surprise. I really needed to work on my sensing skills.
“And how do you figure that?” Zea asked, eyeing him intently.
“Because you want to protect them, no?” Clooney asked. “Then your Fortress seems like a good place. The name itself means it defends people.”
“It’s not meant for mundanes,” Zea said.
“No, but times have changed,” Clooney said. “These people need protection.”
“Why are you so interested in this?”
“Why? Because I came to help.”
“So you say. How
can we even trust you? I have no clue who you are.” She turned to me. “Don’t you think it’s rather suspicious? Another Christener here after you show up? How do we know he’s not a tracker?”
“He did seem to find us so easily,” I said, looking at him. “How’d you find me?”
Clooney scoffed. “You two pour out so much power that I’m surprised the whole Collective isn’t here trying to kill us.”
“Oh,” I said, rubbing the back of my neck. “Yeah, that tends to happen.” I turned to Zea. “Sorry. I never really had to hide myself so frequently. I’m not used to it.”
Zea shook her head. “That still doesn’t answer my concerns,” she said, looking at Clooney. “Who are you working for?”
“Oh, my family,” he said, smirking.
“Family? What are they like?”
“Well, they were a bit fair, but nowhere near as beautiful as you are,” Clooney said, taking Zea’s hand and kissing it.
Zea blinked twice and removed her hand from his grasp. “Cute,” she said, as she glared at him. “But that doesn’t answer my question.”
I stepped forward to get in-between them, but for some reason I got in front of Clooney more. “All right, enough of this,” I said. “We have places to be, plans to make.” I turned to Zea. “Nathan vouched for him, so I say we don’t worry about his past yet.”
“What?” Nathan asked, shaking his head. “No, I didn’t.”
“Not you-Nathan, the Nathan-Prime.”
“Oh.”
“I’m taking these people with me,” I said, looking at Zea. “You can’t stop me.”
Zea gazed at me, then at Nathan and Clooney, and finally returned to look at me. She threw her hands in the air.
“Fine,” she grumbled and turned around.
“Ha! Me: 1. You: 0.”
She turned back around. “If we’re keeping score, I’ve already beaten you several times over. You might need to reconfigure your scoring system.”
I flinched, remembering our fight. “Dang it.”
Clooney chuckled. I glared at him, but that did nothing to stop him. Nathan-Prime had a lot to answer for when I talked to him again.
I looked at the survivors and said, “We’re going to safety. Follow us.”
Afsoon repeated what I said in a language I didn’t understand and the group gave their approval. Nathan moved over to me and smiled. I smiled back and I patted him on the head. For someone so young and green he was taking this better than he should have.
I turned to Clooney and said, “You too. We need to talk.”
Clooney nodded and followed after me as I walked toward the teleportation circle in the church.
Chapter 12
Mara was not happy with me. The moment she saw the caravan survivors inside the Silver Fortress, I could practically see her mind explode in anger.
“What…is this?” she asked, simply.
“Our new tenants,” I said. “They saw our ad in the paper and decided to answer en masse for the open apartments.”
That earned me an almost silent chuckle from Clooney.
Mara sighed. “Idealistic as ever,” she said, shaking her head. “You leave for one, you bring back—” she noticed Clooney and her eyes narrowed “—more.”
How did she know that? I asked myself. Did Zea tell her when she left? She hadn’t mentioned that to me. Interesting.
“There was no stopping him,” Zea said.
“Clearly, you let nothing get in the way of what you want, Guardian Azarel,” Mara said, as she turned to the survivors. “All of you are welcome here. We do not have much in the way of supplies, but we can guarantee hospitalities that you have long been denied. Stay here in sanctuary, work with us for what is right, and stay away from evil. Disobey the rules I will establish to you later and you will be forced away from here. Make no mistake: I will not tolerate anyone who threatens our safety. You have been warned. Now please, follow me so you may rest.”
Mara ushered the survivors into another section of the Fortress, more than likely the living quarters. I turned to Zea, who was watching them leave us behind.
“She took that better than I expected,” Zea said. “If I had done that, she would have murdered me.”
“Really?” I asked.
“I’m…upset at this?” Zea asked herself. “I don’t understand.”
“Sounds like someone’s a little jealous,” Clooney said.
“What do you mean by that?”
“I’m sure you’ll figure it out for yourself soon enough.”
“That’s not helpful.”
Clooney shrugged. “Sorry, I’m not used to being forthcoming. It was frowned upon back home. I’m trying to be better, but it’s so frustrating.”
I looked at Nathan and he shrugged. People were talking about their feelings. Clearly, I had no idea what was going on, so I ventured forth with that grandiose academic wittiness that endears me to everyone I meet.
“Uh, yeah,” I said, scratching the back of my head.
Zea furrowed an eyebrow at me. “I’ll be in my room,” she said. “I suggest you rest as well to recover from the fight. Once we are done, we need to talk.”
“Sounds good to me,” Nathan said, yawning.
Zea offered us a nod as she headed out of the room. I looked at Clooney and decided I wasn’t ready to sleep yet.
“We need to talk,” I said.
“Of course,” he said.
“Alone. Nathan, stay here for a moment; I’ll be right back.”
“Whatever,” Nathan said, sitting down at one of the unbroken benches.
I directed Clooney over to the Hallway of Countenance, which led to the Fortress’ Archives. I didn’t go far; I didn’t want Nathan out of my line of sight, but I needed to be far enough away from him to not let him overhear us. I had suspicions that Clooney wouldn’t tell me anything if there were prying ears around.
Crossing my arms, I looked him dead in the eye and spoke.
“Look, you don’t have to tell me everything about yourself, and I imagine you wouldn’t even if I asked nicely, but all I want from you is your Word that you won’t sell us to the vampires,” I said.
“You have my Word,” Clooney said, no hint of hesitation in his voice.
I nodded. “Well, that was easier than I expected.”
“People make life far more complicated than it needs to be. So much misdirection and subterfuge. I might not give up everything about myself, but I like to be as blunt as possible. Something my family and I disagree on immensely. You have nothing to worry about when it comes to my loyalties.”
“And why is that?”
“Because I work for a group of people who are fascinated by your return. They were quite adamant that I locate you.”
“Can I know who these people are?”
“They have already revealed themselves. The clues provided should be enough.”
I grunted. “Then I suppose I’ll have to do some investigating.”
“Good. It’s a part of the test they’re offering, though I suspect it will not be your most pressing matter to attend to at the moment.”
“And what is that?”
“I believe you know the answer to that.”
“The Feast.”
“Yes. My family is very much against it.”
“And yet you’re all they sent to help me stop it.”
Clooney smirked. “They thought it would be sufficient.”
“What’s your specialty?”
“Illusion invocation, though I am quite skilled with weather invocation, as you have seen for yourself.”
“May I see a demonstration?”
“Certainly. I’ve already watched you, so I don’t feel the need to ask the same.”
I twitched involuntarily, as Clooney held his hands outward and muttered an invocation I couldn’t hear. When nothing happened, I waved my hand around to get him to do something, but when I felt a man’s hand tap my shoulder, I knew I’d been had.
Turning around, I saw Clooney grinning at me. I turned back to watch the first Clooney disappear. I moved back to the real Clooney and offered a single clap.
“Impressive,” I said. “How long?”
“Since before the start of this conversation,” Clooney said.
“That’s…wow. You had me completely fooled.”
“Oh, I’m sure you would’ve found out eventually. My invocations last longer around mundanes, but with empowered people there’s always a tell. The fact that you couldn’t hear the invocation the fake tried to perform was one.”
“I see. Very promising. Thank you for indulging me. Now I’m going to see Nathan gets some sleep. I’ve got some thinking to do.”
“Very well. Good night, Blake.”
“The living quarters are down the Hallway of Self-Discovery. I’m sure you’ll find many spots to choose from.”
“I get to choose my own room?” Clooney asked.
I stared at him for a moment. “Yes?” I said, unintentionally inflecting the word into a question.
“Splendid,” he said, revealing nothing as he left me behind.
Confused, and not willing to figure it out myself, I walked over to Nathan, who had almost fallen asleep on the bench. I picked him up and carried him away, as he tried to protest, but gave up when he yawned.
“I can’t go to sleep yet,” he said.
“Yes you can,” I said. “You need some rest. It’s been a long few weeks for you.”
“But it’s not over yet. There’s more to do.”
“There always is. But surely whatever Nathan-Prime wants can wait.”
“It can’t.”
“And why not?”
“Because I’m not the only person he wanted you to save,” Nathan said. “There’s a woman in Vice City—Cinderella Young. She’s working for Zoë Slinden.”
“Wait. Nathan-Prime wants us to help someone working for the enemy?”
“She’s not doing it willingly. Zoë controls her somehow. He didn’t say how. He only said we needed to help her.”
“Why?”
“She’s a tracker. She’s a descendant of Gray Forum survivors—one of the last Sentinels.”