by J. C. Diem
Luc almost handed me his phone then realized they could just move closer to the building. All I’d have to do was raise my voice and they’d be able to hear me without any trouble. “Alert us if you need our help,” he said.
There was no point in drawing this out so I shouldered my backpack, turned and trotted back towards the condemned building.
I decided going in through the front door would be a bad idea so kept to the shadows and rounded the building to the back. Boards had been nailed across the back door as well. Going in that way would be far too noisy. Peering upwards, I noticed that most of the windows were missing. Picking one on the first floor, I jumped and landed lightly on the sill.
A neighbouring building blocked the weak moonlight and prevented it from penetrating the darkness. I waited for my night vision to kick in before entering. The room was devoid of furnishings so I didn’t need to worry about bumping into anything. Avoiding broken glass, I crossed the mouldy carpet of what had once been a small bedroom.
Taking a quick tour, I found a much larger bedroom, a bathroom and combination living-dining-kitchen area. The apartment was bigger than my old home but size was the only thing it had going for it. The walls were mildewed, the carpet squished beneath my feet and the air was stale and musty.
I smelled something else wafting through the open door that led to a hallway. The stench of fresh and not so fresh corpses permeated the area. Unless a wild animal had taken up residence in the building, this was definitely a vampire lair. Personally, I didn’t know how they could live with the smell. It was a wonder they hadn’t been discovered by humans by now.
Following my nose, I located the cache of bodies several doors down. Ten dead, naked humans had been piled haphazardly in an empty living room. None wore looks of horror. They seemed to be at peace, which told me they had been hypnotized before they’d been murdered.
Their pale bodies were speckled with dried blood. I didn’t have to be a coroner to figure out the cause of their deaths. Gaping wounds had been carved into their chests. Crouching beside the freshest corpse, I studied her neck and found no signs of recently healed fang marks. Frowning, I checked her arms and legs and came up blank. For reasons I couldn’t possibly comprehend, the vamps hadn’t drained the dead. They’d just cut them open and stolen their hearts.
What sort of weirdos are they? The only way I would find an answer to that was to sneak into the basement and spy on them.
At the far end of the hallway, I located a set of stairs leading down. The cement steps were encrusted with dirt and I winced at every scuff noise my feet made. At the bottom, a hallway branched out in two directions. To the right was a foyer that had been emptied of furniture long ago. To the left was a heavy, rusty metal door. The door had the word ‘Basement’ printed on it in Russian.
Through the closed door, I heard muffled voices. Cocking my head to the side, I tried to make out what they were saying. It almost sounds like someone is chanting down there, I thought uneasily. In my vast horror movie watching experience, chanting was never a good sign. Turning the aged doorknob, I pushed the door open and descended into the dimly lit basement.
Candlelight flickered on the brick walls below. It danced as if a breeze had found its way beneath the ground. Creeping down slowly, I reached a corner and dropped down to one knee. I hadn’t been wrong, someone was chanting softly in what I believed were random Latin words. My weird brain translated the words automatically but they made no sense. Then the chanting ceased.
“Oh, Unholy Matron,” a male vampire said in French. “Your unworthy worshipers offer you this sacrifice. Take this human unto yourself and know that we obey your every command.”
Peeking around the corner, I took in the dozen black robed vampires kneeling around a naked woman. Like the other victims that had preceded her, she’d been hypnotized into submission. She lay on the cold, dirty cement floor without protest. Short, fat white candles sat in a circle around her. From the amount of melted wax and layers of old blood on the floor, this was where all of the sacrifices had been performed.
Studying the twelve shadows that were thrown against the walls or floor, the only movement I detected was caused by the flickering light. If any of these vampires had been possessed, they would have been compelled to seek out the First. So what the hell were they doing here and who were they praying to?
Kneeling close to the sacrifice, a couple of the vamps were dangerously close to catching on fire. Personally, I didn’t think it would be any great loss if they went up in flames even if none of them were yet possessed. Sacrificing humans was a definite no no in my book.
An effigy had been placed near the sacrifice’s head. It was three foot high, rough wooden carving of a female vampire. I finally realized it was supposed to be me when I saw the crosses chiselled on her palms. Most of my kin hated and feared me, to my knowledge this was the first bunch to actively worship me.
Chanting a string of nonsense Latin words that must have sounded impressive to the others, the lead worshiper drew a weapon from within his robes. Raising the bloodstained dagger over his head, he moved to plunge it into the woman’s chest. With first-hand knowledge of just how painful that tended to be, I was on the move before I’d even ordered my legs into action.
Dropping my backpack, I crossed the room fast enough to blow out several of the candles. I caught the vamp’s wrist before his weapon could tear into the victim’s flesh. Despite my speed, I’d almost been too late. The dagger point made a small dimple in the human’s breast. A tiny bead of blood welled then trickled down her side. Dazed, vacant eyes blinked slowly and seemed not to see us at all.
My worshipper’s hood fell back to reveal his shocked, pasty face. His cheeks were sunken, black bags crouched beneath his eyes and his fangs were too prominent. It appeared that he’d skipped more than a few meals lately. “Who are you?” he asked in French.
“I’m Nat.” As soon as I said it, I winced, knowing what the response would be.
“Did she say gnat? Isn’t that an insect?” one of the others muttered to the vamp next to her.
I put a finger beneath my left eye as a tiny muscle tried to twitch. Really, you would think I should have learned my lesson by now. “My name is Nat-a-lie,” I enunciated the name for them. “But you can call me ‘Unholy Matron’ if you prefer.”
“How dare you mock our faith!” the lead vampire snarled and futilely tried to yank his arm free.
“How dare I?” I said incredulously. “How dare I!” I was unaccountably enraged that these strangers were killing defenceless humans in my name. Standing, I dragged the worshipper to his feet then held my free hand up in front of his face. “I dare because I am Mortis, the creature you pathetic losers are pretending to worship.” I pointed to the wooden effigy and the robed vamp flinched at the cross on her palm that matched the one on mine. “Now, why don’t you try to explain to me why the hell you’re murdering humans in my name?” I wasn’t quite shouting but my voice rang out in the small room.
“You can’t be Mortis,” a young male robed one said scornfully. When he pushed his hood back impatiently, I saw he was young in both human and vampire years. Twenty at the most, his eyes were still mostly green. His pupils were far larger than normal but I’d bet that he was even younger than I was as a vampire. He’d probably only recently gained control over both of the hungers that raged through us when we were new.
“Really?” I replied sarcastically and made a point of examining the cross on my palm. Releasing the lead worshipper, I turned both of my palms to the small crowd. “So how do you explain these then?”
Recomposing himself, the lead vamp straightened his robe and pulled the hood forward again to hide his emaciated face. “They are obviously fake, heretic.”
I turned to face him and he took the opportunity to plunge his dagger into my heart. Staring down at the blade, fresh anger pulsed through me. “These leather outfits don’t grow on trees, you know,” I said and pulled the dagger free. “Loo
k at that!” I pointed at the tear in both the coat and the black suit beneath it. My flesh had already knit back together. “Who is going to sew this back up?” It wouldn’t be me, that was for sure.
Backing away, the cadaverous robed one tripped over the human. Sprawling, he scrambled backwards into the arms of his followers. “You cannot be the Unholy Matron,” he said, shaking his head frantically in denial. While he wasn’t wearing a black suit, he looked very familiar. I had my suspicions about who he might be and where he had come from.
Leaning against the carving, I cocked an eyebrow as the cringing vamp came to a stop beside his followers. “Why not?”
“Because the true Mortis was beheaded and then cut into pieces.”
“Here’s a newsflash, I managed to put myself back together and claw my way out of the cemetery.”
“Impossible,” he murmured.
“I can give you a demonstration of my powers if you like,” I said coldly. “Choose one of your followers to step forward and I’ll pop their head for them just like I did to the imposter me in the Comtesse’s white marble mansion.”
Faced with the truth that I really was Mortis, he still had difficulty believing it but wasn’t willing to sacrifice one of his flock. “But you are so…uncouth,” he said in bewilderment.
“She’s Australian!” a familiar voice shouted from outside. Thanks, Geordie, I thought sarcastically. I could always rely on my friends to back me up.
“Ah. That explains it,” one of the robed ones muttered.
“Aventius,” the young male vamp said to his leader as he surged to his feet. “Are you going to let this creature defile our sacrificial chamber?”
Aventius’ head swung from me to the sacrifice then back to his followers, undecided about their best course of action.
“Quickly, we must kill her before her friends arrive,” one of the others said.
“Hello?” I pointed at the tear in my suit. “He already stabbed me through the heart, remember? Don’t you know that I can’t be killed with normal weapons?”
Ignoring my sarcasm, the mob stood, drew weapons from within their robes and rushed at me. Obviously they weren’t aware of the legend that was me and just how difficult it was to put me down.
Chapter Nineteen
With my enhanced speed, I shifted away from the human so she wouldn’t be trampled in the stampede. Both of my swords appeared in my hands but I was reluctant to chop my kin apart. We were a rapidly dwindling breed since most of us had now been converted into imps and many more were being drawn to the same fate.
Parrying and blocking, I easily held the mob off without sustaining any further tears in my coat or suit. Young and cocky, the green eyed worshipper lunged forward and tried to stab me in the face with a rusty sword that had probably belonged to his great-great-great-grandfather.
Thinking fast, which was unlike me, I parried his blow then grabbed him by the front of his robe. I spun him around so his back was to me and pinned his sword arm tightly against his chest. Now his friends would have to go through him to get to me. As I’d suspected, they halted their attack.
Aventius motioned for his followers to lower their weapons. “What do you want from us, fiend?”
I’d been called many unflattering things but that was a new one. “I want every new vampire I meet to stop trying to kill me.” A shrill giggle from outside followed my words. Geordie had moved closer to the condemned brick building and that meant all of my friends were near. “You might as well come in, guys,” I called out. “None of these people are possessed.” Not yet anyway but it was only a matter of time.
Sharing disturbed glances, the robed ones huddled together as my companions kicked in the front door and entered the building. In seconds, Luc reached my side. He raised a cool eyebrow at my vampire shield. “Have you found yourself a pet, Natalie?”
“Let me go,” the sullen young man said and I pushed him away. Now that they were faced with five of their kin instead of just little old me, their bravado had fled.
“Lord Lucentio?” Aventius said and pushed his hood back.
“Councillor Aventius,” my one true love replied with a rather formal nod. That confirmed my suspicions about where I’d seen the robed one before. He had been one of the figures cowering behind the Comtesse’s throne when she had ordered Luc to behead me. “You have been gone from the Court for several months and we feared you had perished.” I assumed the ‘we’ Luc was referring to was the Comtesse and the other seven Councillors. I doubted any of the courtiers particularly gave a crap what happened to their leaders.
Clasping his hands together, the hollow cheeked vamp cut a quick glance at me. “When I first heard the rumour that Mortis had at last risen, I formed this small group of believers. I knew Mortis would not truly die when the Comtesse ordered her to be dismembered. As the Unholy Matron’s true followers, we were hoping to be spared from the decimation of our species that was prophesized over two thousand years ago.”
I’d changed physically since the night I’d lost my head and then the rest of my body parts. It was unsurprising that the Councillor hadn’t recognized me.
Gregor’s expression was slightly puzzled. “I do not remember it being prophesized that Mortis’ followers would turn to sacrificing humans.”
“That was Joshua’s idea,” a helpful female worshipper said. All of the vamps had pushed their hoods back now. Just like Aventius, they looked like they could use a good feed. Extremely pale, her hair was strawberry blonde and her face was delicately beautiful.
Joshua, the sullen young man with the green eyes, threw her an angry glance at being tattling on. Aventius patted him on the shoulder soothingly. “We all thought Mortis would approve of our actions,” the Councillor said in a tired voice. “It is expected that she will one day rule the human race. Why would she care if we sacrifice a few in her name?”
“I don’t approve of mindless slaughter,” I said with more than a hint of ire. “I’m prophesized to massacre vampires, not humans.” All flinched at the implied threat in my tone. What is it with them all thinking I’m going to be a world ruler? That is never going to happen.
Geordie sidled up to me and put a skinny arm around my waist. “They were afraid, chérie.” For someone so young looking, he could be surprisingly perceptive. “None of us really knew what would happen when you rose, except that you would end up killing most of us.”
My anger began to ebb and now I could see the fear in the robed one’s malnourished faces. Speaking directly to Aventius, I laid out his choices. “Whether you believe it or not, I am Mortis. I’ve already begun to cull the damned so the prophecy is being fulfilled as we speak.” Most blanched at the news, Aventius just looked sorrowful. “I’m on my way right now to kill the First and his horde of grey imps.” I was going to try my hardest to anyway. The outcome was far from set in stone. “When I’m done, there will be very few of our kin left. It’s up to you whether you are on our side or if you are on the First’s side.”
Confusion was the main reaction to my ultimatum. “I thought the First was just a myth,” the delicate strawberry blonde said to her leader.
Hanging his head, Aventius closed his eyes. “I have feared this day for many thousands of years.”
“You mean it’s true?” Joshua said in appalled disbelief. “He’s really real?”
Aventius nodded, lifted his head and opened his eyes. Sinking to his knees, he held his weapon, a second dagger, up to me. “I pledge my loyalty to you, Mortis.” One by one, his followers, my followers now, knelt and held up their weapons.
Throwing a frantic look at Luc, my dark companion just smiled at me faintly. I was on my own here. “Um, rise Aventius and the rest of you.” Geordie snorted a giggle and I elbowed him in the ribs. Hunching over, he shot me a wounded look and rubbed his side. I hadn’t heard any cracks so I didn’t think I’d fractured anything. “Welcome to the team,” I said lamely and they began to rise.
While I wasn’t ecstatic that one
of the Councillors had managed to escape from being turned into an imp, at least he could act as a leader while the rest of us were otherwise engaged. They could head back to the mansion in France and take charge of the pitifully few remaining vamps we’d sent that way.
Gregor stepped forward to explain what our goal was and I edged backwards. I had a job to do and I’d been delayed from it for long enough.
Luc was the only one to notice as I scooped up my backpack and crept away. He watched me go without a word. I blew him a kiss and he gave me a tiny smile. His eyes reflected his sorrow that he might never see me again. My chin quivered at the thought and I broke into a silent run as soon as I reached the street.
With the wind blowing my hair back from my face and the stolen jacket flapping behind me, I kept up the sprint. I’d planned on stealing a car and driving to the American soldier’s headquarters but running was far stealthier even if it wasn’t as fast.
Cutting across a field, I vaulted over a fence then stumbled to a stop when bright lights suddenly flared to life. My shadows, starkly outlined on the ground, copied my actions when I lifted a hand to shield my eyes and turned my head away. A sinking sensation hit me as I realized why the First had dropped his shield. He’d been trying to find me so he could lay this trap. If I’d sent out my senses more than just the once, I might have noticed what he was up to. It was too late now, I was caught and would have to fight my way out of this snare.
Guttural voices conversed in our father’s alien language. “Turn it on,” one said.
“I’m trying!” another replied.
Dropping my backpack, I pulled my swords free and took a step forward. Orange light bloomed and gurgles of laughter rang out. A stream of fire from a flamethrower shot out ten feet and my skin began to crawl as I realized what they intended to do to me. Another jet of fire burst forth and then another. More imps had circled around behind me, also carrying flamethrowers.
I’d been advised by the Romanian prophet’s journal that fire couldn’t harm me. It looked like that theory was about to be put to the test. While I might survive the flames, my belongings wouldn’t. As much as I hated to do it, I quickly shucked off the coat and twin sheaths. My swords slid back into safety and I wrapped the coat around my backpack. Tossing the bundle off far enough away that I hoped it would be safe, I waited for the coming barbeque.
