A Shade of Vampire 75: A Blade of Thieron

by Forrest, Bella

  “Oh, that can’t be good,” Claudia said.

  Serena pressed a button on her earpiece. “Phoenix, come in. There’s something coming toward Luceria, some unidentified object. Can you see it?”

  Phoenix, Dmitri, and Jovi had worked with the witches to put together a surveillance system for Calliope’s skies. The idea had been for us to be prepared if other hostile Hermessi were headed for this planet. The Daughters had made themselves busy with managing the telescopes and preparing to react, in case one or more Hermessi did come through. While Wei had not specifically forbidden them from interfering, they still took the possibility into account. They’d promised to defend Calliope and the rest of Eritopia as best as they could and as much as Wei, Calliope’s Earth Hermessi and their creator, would allow it.

  “The radar I put together with Viola is registering the heat signature, but it’s definitely not one of our vessels. It’s a Fire Hermessi, I think.” Phoenix’s voice came through our group comms line.

  “Wait, it’s just one?” Derek asked, visibly surprised as he looked at me. “If they were mounting an offensive against us, assuming they found out what we’re up to, wouldn’t they send the local Hermessi after us, first?”

  “Also, why would they be sending just one?” I added, equally confused.

  The fireball grew larger in the clear sky, but its speed reduced. Corrine squeezed Ibrahim’s hand. “Get the others ready to teleport out of here, if needed,” she said.

  “You don’t think we should all leave now, while we still have a chance?” Claudia asked.

  “No, Derek and Sofia are right. If the Hermessi were after us, we’d have more than one of them on our case right now,” Corrine replied. “Something tells me we might not be dealing with a hostile, but it’s good to be prepared, just in case.”

  Ibrahim rushed into the ship, which had its boarding ramp down. Meanwhile, we kept our eyes on the sky as the fireball began its slow descent toward Luceria. Instinctively, we moved closer together, along with Draven and Serena.

  The Fire Hermessi revealed its humanoid form as it reached the platform. It landed smoothly, and its brightness was muted, almost contained. Certainly not as bright as I’d seen in Tebir, for example.

  “Harper mentioned you’d be here,” he said, and I instantly recognized him.

  “Ramin? Are you crazy?!” I croaked.

  “What are you doing here?” Derek asked. “You are wanted badly by your brethren, including the Calliope Hermessi! You shouldn’t have come!”

  “I’m coming with you, so you might want to hurry up with that interplanetary spell of yours, before the others sense my presence here,” Ramin replied.

  We all stared at him for the better part of a minute, trying to wrap our heads around how we’d come to this point. “I don’t get it,” Claudia said.

  “He’s coming with us.” Yuri repeated Ramin’s words. “And we need to take off, fast.”

  “Then why are we still standing here?!” Claudia shot back. Without waiting for a response, she briefly kissed Serena’s cheek and took Yuri’s hand as they darted up the boarding ramp. Corrine wasn’t far behind them, followed by the remaining crew members who had joined us in the sanctuary.

  “You’ll need my help to get through the safest entry point,” Ramin said, then motioned to the shuttle. “Please, go in. We’ll talk once we’re off Calliope.”

  Kafei began her chant for the interplanetary spell. The pentagram had been drawn prior to the shuttle’s landing, and she’d already positioned all the minerals and herbs required for the swamp witch magic to work.

  Derek and I hugged Serena and made our way into the shuttle, as well, joined by Ramin.

  “Be careful out there!” Serena called after us.

  “We’ll talk once we’re on our way back,” Derek replied.

  Draven and Serena watched us go inside. Kafei continued her chant as she came up the ramp last. By the time it was closed and the shuttle was sealed and running, the young swamp witch apprentice had completed the interplanetary spell.

  The crew watched us nervously as we introduced Ramin as a friend and ally. “He’ll be coming with us,” I added, offering them a reassuring smile.

  We could see the world shift around us through the massive space-resistant windows. The light bubble swallowed the ship whole, and Draven and Serena moved back, as the spell took off. I held my husband’s hand. The others were strapped into their seats, neatly lined along both sides of the vessel.

  “Here’s to a safe takeoff,” Kafei said, assuming her position at the front, with a full view of Calliope through the gigantic windshield as we got higher and higher. Computer systems were displayed in the corners, glimmering yellow across the glass and giving us real-time data on oxygen levels and other crucial information.

  Much to our relief, none of Calliope’s Hermessi came after us. The spell ascended and eventually pierced through the atmosphere. Suddenly, we were in open space, and cosmos unraveled around us. Eritopia stretched on both sides in a soft arc, with clouds of pink stardust sprinkled along the outer border of the solar system.

  Stars shone brightly, millions of light-years away. Below, Calliope shrank into a colorful marble with streaks of white and blue. I breathed a sigh of relief, looking at Ramin.

  “Okay, we’re off Calliope now,” I said. “Tell us everything.”

  The Fire Hermessi nodded, his flames crackling excitedly. He’d shocked us all with his involvement, but his assistance was more than welcome. He’d been to Yahwen, and he’d seen what sort of security Brendel had set up there.

  If anyone could get us safely to the Hermessi children, it was Ramin. Fortunately, fate had finally dealt us a better hand.

  Derek

  Ramin stayed in the middle of the shuttle, far enough from everyone to avoid accidental burns. After all, he was made entirely out of fire—the purest in existence. The ship itself was made of thermo-resistant materials, every inch of it enhanced and strengthened by magic. But the people, whether witches or warlocks or jinn or vampires, were still vulnerable if not careful. And we were all saving our strength and energy for the mission.

  “I spread the word among the remaining rebels,” the Fire Hermessi said.

  The interplanetary spell shot through space at incredible speeds, aided by a small surplus of serium batteries, specifically added for this part of the trip. The In-Between’s oldest solar system was pretty far away, and we couldn’t spend the couple of days normally required to cover such a distance. Fortunately, the Stravian magi-tech had come in handy.

  “About Yahwen?” Sofia asked.

  “Yes. I managed to keep a faint connection with Harper after she and the others helped me. I was constantly on the move, but I could still reach out to her telepathically. That doesn’t work across greater distances, but it was enough for her to mention your determination to get to Yahwen. Shortly after that, I left Neraka in search of my rebel brothers and sisters. I found them, and they, in turn, had news from Tebir, your patron Hermessi,” Ramin explained. “Upon understanding your intentions, I simply couldn’t stand back. I know that place better than anyone, and I’m sure I can help you.”

  “Oh, no one is denying that,” Corrine replied. “We were just worried about your presence on Calliope, where the Hermessi are simply dying to get a piece of you.”

  “Not as badly as before,” he said. “Ever since I stripped Ledar of his powers, the ritual Hermessi were left with little to no options as far as I’m concerned. I’m always on the move, as well. It’s harder for them to track me like this.”

  “And you said you have a good angle for Yahwen?” I asked.

  The Fire Hermessi nodded once. “I remember that world. I know the stardust streams that Brendel controls, of which you must steer clear. She may be temporarily busy chasing down Taeral, but if she so much as gets a whiff of GASP presence on Yahwen, she will order her supporters to retaliate.”

  We spent the next couple of hours discussing the mission and
its navigation details, while Kafei allowed the spell bubble to take us to Pax-47, a small planet and the farthest one that GASP had reached during its space explorations. From there, she’d have to steer the interplanetary spell herself, but we were all behind her and ready to support her with whatever we could.

  Ramin was incredibly helpful, telling us more about the rebel Hermessi—the hardliners who’d stuck to their mission, despite the fact that Brendel had taken their children; the slightly more neutral ones, like Wei and many others, who’d yet to pledge their allegiance to Brendel, but had ceased their opposition, too; the converted ones, who’d switched sides as soon as they’d been notified of their children’s abduction. The latter were the most important. Their numbers were big and encouraging for us, provided we managed to save their children and keep them safe.

  “If we succeed on Yahwen, there will be dozens, even hundreds of Hermessi willing to switch sides and fight Brendel. They may not win, since she is so powerful and ancient, but they can certainly help keep her busy, while Taeral retrieves Thieron for Death,” Ramin said.

  “What about the loyalists? What are the odds that we could sway them, as well?” Corrine asked, leaning into Ibrahim’s shoulder.

  “Slim, at best, I’m afraid,” Ramin replied. “They’re fanatics, like Brendel. And I don’t see any of you threatening their children in return for their cooperation, like Brendel.”

  The sarcasm was intended, and I understood exactly where he was going with this. Ramin was right, though. We never would’ve used anyone’s children against them. It was simply a vile thing to do, regardless of the endgame. There could always be a better way, if the goal was good or noble or true enough. Brendel knew that the ritual was an antiquated and horrible idea, yet she clung to it as tradition and stopped at nothing in order to get it done.

  No matter what, we had to rise above that.

  The hours went by, and we anxiously waited for the interplanetary spell to bring us closer to our destination. Sofia and I stayed close to Ibrahim and Corrine, Claudia and Yuri, and Mona and Kiev, while Ramin settled next to Kafei at the front.

  It was mostly quiet, with the occasional conversation thread murmuring across the shuttle as people tried to kill the remaining time. It felt as though it was taking forever—but that was the downside of ardent anticipation. The more excited or anxious we were about getting to Yahwen, the slower we seemed to be moving through space.

  Outside, it was peaceful and quiet. Mostly black and riddled with distant stars. We swooshed past a planet system or asteroid field every once in a while, but other than that, the vast expanse of space was muted and breathtaking. The In-Between was a beautiful place, home to so many incredible creatures and fascinating civilizations. What a waste, to burn it all to the ground, just to start again. What a crime, to kill so many innocent people, simply because ancient, made-up tradition required it.

  I simply couldn’t fathom this level of determination coming from Brendel.

  “What’s with you?” Sofia asked Claudia. She and Yuri had been rather quiet for the past hour. The last update from Nuriya had come a while back, placing Taeral and his crew closer to Zetos, apparently. We knew it wouldn’t be easy for them, especially since Brendel and even the local Hermessi were going after them.

  “Not hearing from Taeral is putting me on edge,” Claudia replied. “I asked Nuriya to try again, but she’s yet to get an answer from them.”

  We also knew not to push it with the comms systems. “They’ll get in touch when they can,” I said. “You know they can’t waste a second out there just putting our worries to rest.”

  “Varga is resourceful and incredibly driven,” Sofia added.

  Mona chuckled. “Oh, honey, that boy will cut the Fire Star in half by whatever means necessary, if he has to.”

  Yuri smiled, holding Claudia in his arms. “I keep telling her that,” he said, glancing down at his wily wife, “but a grandmother is still a grandmother.”

  “Jeez, you sure know how to make a girl feel young.” She scoffed, her head resting on his chest.

  “Claudia, Mona is right,” Corrine replied. “Varga is as sharp and as determined as Elonora. She pulled through on Strava, didn’t she?”

  Claudia nodded slowly, but her frown didn’t go away. “Strava ain’t the Hermessi…”

  “I’m anxious about Amelia, too,” Sofia said. “She’s basically like a daughter to me. I love all the Hudsons as much as my own family. But I know she can hold her own. I’ll bet Horatio and Aisha are just as nervous about Riza. Gah, not to mention poor Nuriya…”

  “Where are Horatio and Aisha, by the way?” Ibrahim asked. “I thought they’d be joining us here.”

  “They stayed back and joined Nuriya in running the Fire Star. Riza doesn’t know it yet. They got there after her crew left,” I said. “Upside is they will be more than happy to zap over wherever she may be to help her, if needed. And it’s good for Nuriya, too. She’s overwhelmed.”

  “Any word on Sherus yet?” Claudia asked.

  I shook my head, wishing I had something better to tell her. “Nothing yet. Brendel is definitely the one who took him. We just need to figure out where she might’ve planted him. Phoenix and the others in the intelligence branch are looking into this. Hopefully, they’ll have some news soon.”

  Mona sighed, her lips briefly pressed into a thin line. “Do you think she’ll hurt Sherus?”

  “I doubt it,” Ramin interjected from Kafei’s side. “She’s using him as leverage. She won’t kill anyone she can use.”

  “But Taeral won’t give in to her demands, if she makes them,” I said. “We all know he’s not going to stop until he gets Thieron, and that’s exactly what Brendel is trying to prevent. It’s why she took Sherus, in the first place.”

  Silence settled over the ship. Ramin seemed to take a moment to think about it. “I’m not sure how I can answer that. I don’t know what Brendel will do once she understands Taeral’s determination is unbreakable. She just doesn’t strike me as an entity capable of killing out of pure vengeance. There is always a precise purpose in her actions. A goal she must reach. She had Brann destroyed when he made contact with his daughter because she knew she could use Inalia in his place. She had Mount Agrith torn down to send a message to GASP about repercussions from using the pink waters. She is ready to destroy entire dimensions, simply to fulfill a ritual tradition… She’s likely to use Sherus more, going forward. I just don’t know how.”

  And that was what scared me the most. Sherus was our friend and one of the most trusted allies of GASP. We’d been through so much together, and we’d shared incredible moments over the years. His fate hanging like this made my skin crawl. He deserved better than this, and so did his wife and son.

  Hopefully, our intervention on Yahwen would deal a powerful enough blow to Brendel to make her slip up. We needed our enemy to make significant mistakes, now more than ever.

  “Everyone, brace yourselves,” Kafei finally announced. “We’re about to reach Pax.”

  From there, Kafei would do another interplanetary spell and take us to Yahwen. I could see the planet of Pax clearly—a silver marble that orbited a small, reddish star. It was lonely in its path, surrounded by several random asteroids that had been caught in the star’s gravitational pull. Pax’s air was not breathable, but we’d come prepared for that, as well.

  Claudia brought over a portable tank of oxygen and a connected helmet for Kafei as the spell began its descent toward Pax. The young swamp witch would then go outside and draw another pentagram for the interplanetary spell, and I would use the shuttle’s thrusters to position it smack in the middle.

  Sofia and I exchanged hopeful glances. Maybe this was our time to truly make a difference, or at least die trying. We’d agreed not to bring up the prospect of death, but we were both well aware of the possibility. I, for one, wanted to go back to The Shade once this was over and start planning for the nursery. We wanted a child and a better future, and we were
ready to do whatever it might take to get there.

  Most importantly, we wanted our son, our daughter, and our granddaughters safe and healthy again. Ben was waiting for all of us to pull through on different ends, and I looked forward to seeing him awake, to holding him in my arms and never letting him go. But first, we had some Hermessi children to abduct. It sounded so horrible, yet it was so necessary.

  Harper

  With everything that had been going on, I’d decided not to waste a single second without working against the Hermessi. I’d told Ramin about Derek and Sofia’s mission for Yahwen, and I’d prayed to all the gods and powers out there to watch out for Taeral and his crew. But I was still on Neraka, and Ledar was still in the Infernis prison.

  He’d begged me not to take his powers away, and he’d even offered information if we let him loose. We’d told him he wasn’t useful to us anymore, but that had been solely to stop him from squirming. I didn’t want him to have any sort of leverage against us.

  However, I did need to mine him for intel. He knew more than us about Brendel and her operations, for sure. All I had to do was make him talk. That, in itself, would be a challenge, because he was angry and bitter, stripped of his Hermessi heritage and reduced to living out the rest of his life as a plain ol’ daemon, stuck in prison for the rest of his life. Not that there was any shame in that. On the contrary, the daemons, while not particularly gifted in terms of supernatural abilities, were exceptional hunters and incredibly strong and resilient creatures. I saw glory in their existence, and I thought it was a shame that Ledar didn’t see it, too.

  I walked into his cell unannounced, while Caspian and Zane stayed outside, ready to intervene if needed. I doubted that would be the case, since Ledar had a thick iron collar around his neck, impossible to break and connected to the wall through a solid chain. As long as I kept my distance, he couldn’t touch me.

  “Are you sure you don’t want us in there?” Caspian asked from behind.