Sidyan nodded slowly. “What did she say?”
I motioned for Lumi and Nethissis to join us, making sure Rudolph and Maya stayed out of earshot. They got skittish whenever Death was even mentioned, and I needed them both to be alert and confident, not terrified of their maker—especially Maya.
“What is it?” Nethissis asked. “Did you get ahold of Death?”
It was difficult to concentrate around Nethissis. She’d died in her serpent form, so her spiritual figure was naked. Her long copper hair covered most of her intimate parts, but still… I’d died a man, and the mere sight of her was enough to make my very soul catch fire. It was hard for Nethissis, as well. Self-consciousness followed her everywhere.
“I did. She said that as long as your body is safe, she might be able to do something.” I gave her a soft, encouraging smile. “I’m sorry I couldn’t get more out of her. The line was… bad.”
“So, she admitted Nethi’s death was unnatural?” Lumi asked.
“No, not in those exact terms,” I said, trying to find the right words. I hesitated to convey Death’s entire message, mainly because I couldn’t give any additional explanations as to why Nethissis was different. We could spend days talking about what Death might’ve meant.
Nethissis frowned. “Then what terms did she use, precisely?”
“She said you were… special. I swear I couldn’t get more out of her. I tried, but the connection faded,” I said.
“Special? I’m special?”
I nodded. “I wish I could tell you more.”
“What could she have meant?” Nethissis murmured, looking at Lumi for answers. But the seasoned swamp witch didn’t have any answers, either.
“I don’t know, but I think we should take it as a good sign. Death could’ve easily told Seeley to simply reap you,” Lumi replied. She was right. I was expecting such an order, and I had to admit, I was relieved.
Hope glimmered in Nethi’s white eyes, the amber circles around her irises shining brighter than ever. It felt good to see her like this. Maybe I’d see her in flesh and blood again soon. She’d yet to get the most out of life. She deserved to live for much longer than she had.
“So, as long as my body is safe, there’s a chance for me to get back to it,” Nethissis said.
“Yes. I assume Death will grant me the authority to resurrect you with Thieron, if that is the case,” I replied.
As quickly as she’d smiled, Nethissis went pale. “If that is the case? What other case is there, Seeley? Why mention my body, if that’s not what’s in store for me?”
Sidyan exhaled sharply. “Knowing Death as well as we do… believe me, Nethissis, nothing is certain with her. Absolutely nothing. She might change her mind five minutes from now and not care who gets hurt in the process. Take this as a win for now. Let’s focus on finding the Darklings’ true leader. Let’s bring something good to Death, and her mood will improve significantly.”
“Yeah, that’s the trouble with cosmic powers,” Lumi grumbled, crossing her arms. “They’re moody. Downright catastrophic if they choose to be. Sidyan has a point. Let us be thankful for what we know now and get back to work. I doubt the Darklings’ true leader will be easy to find.”
“As long as we stay close to Zoltan and Veliko, I think we’ll get there,” Sidyan replied.
“Can you still sense them?” Lumi asked. The question stirred my interest.
Sidyan brought his scythe up, whispering a spell against its curved, silvery blade. He closed his eyes as whispers flew past him, tickling my ears. “They’re close. A few miles up north, but within my range.”
Lumi grinned. “It’s a good thing you carved a tracking rune into one of their boots.”
Indeed, with all the craziness surrounding my release, I’d yet to catch up with Sidyan on a few aspects of this mission—including how we were going to track them. As soon as Lumi mentioned the tracking rune, however, I knew exactly what the Reaper had done. Taking advantage of the ghouls’ ferocity and Nethissis’s movements in the Darklings’ camp, Sidyan had discreetly carved a tracking rune into the thick leather of a black guard’s boot.
That way, whenever he whispered into his blade, Sidyan could sense them. The spell worked on a ten-mile radius, at most. Chances were we’d need to get moving soon. Lumi had yet to figure out a way of telling Tristan about Valaine’s significance among the Darklings, but, knowing the witch as well as I did, I had no doubt she’d think of something soon.
The worst-case scenario was that she’d screw Death’s command altogether and simply reveal herself to Tristan. The truth often had simple yet brutal ways of coming up. Despite everything that had happened, I retained a sense of optimism. The end of the line was no longer in sight, and that meant we had a better chance of getting to the bottom of this entire Visio mess.
I even dared to hope that Nethissis would survive all this. Maybe I was fooling myself, but it was the one thought that kept me going, that stopped me from going mad. And to think this had all started because Death had wanted me to follow Nethissis and her crew around. Sheesh…
Tristan
There weren’t any Darklings in sight, but the rush with which they’d left Astoria had made them careless. Tracks had been left behind—patches of dried blood and footprints in the softer dirt, particularly in the areas of tall grass where they’d hoped no one would notice. The Darklings were on the run, and we were right behind them.
They couldn’t be more than three or four miles ahead, farther up north and close to the coastal road, while Corbin’s troops were likely still at least two miles behind us, if not more. After all, they’d had their hands full with investigating Astoria. Our Vision horses were coming back from the stream where they had grazed and drunk their fill of water. Visibly rejuvenated, they crossed the plain toward us, their muscles twitching.
The gold guards we’d taken with us were still combing the nearby woods, gradually returning to the open field. We’d yet to find any ghouls, but I was certain we’d cross paths with them soon enough. The Darklings had them—we just didn’t know whether the creatures were free or in chains. We’d made plenty of assumptions, but until we saw them with our own eyes, the knowledge of their presence was all we had.
“My father should be on his way,” Valaine said. “Though I’m not sure how quickly he’ll get here.”
We sat on a flat boulder. Behind us, the ocean sprawled in rippling shades of dark blue and splotches of weedy green. The storm heightened in the distance, blackening the sky. Thunder rolled with the swelling winds as the temperature gradually dropped. It wasn’t cold, but it wasn’t bikini season anymore, either. The ocean breeze had a tendency to nip at one’s skin after prolonged exposure.
Valaine’s hair danced on the wind, black as ink and fine as silk. It was almost hypnotic, and I became lost in watching the dark strands swirl beside me. Several seconds passed before her words registered.
“Right. Shall we stick around and wait for him?” I asked, immediately regretting the question. I damn well knew we couldn’t risk losing the Darklings’ trail, but Valaine had a way of slowing my brain down.
“We can’t—”
“Lose the Darklings’ trail.” I cut her off, trying to save a little bit of face. “No, you’re absolutely right.”
She gave me a soft smile. It faded as she noticed more soldiers returning from the woods empty-handed. Some were shaking their heads at her, confirming what the both of us were already thinking.
“I doubt they’ll find much now,” I said. “The Darklings are on the move, and they probably know we’re following.”
Valaine raised an eyebrow. “Do you think so? If I were them, I would’ve left some men or ghouls behind to keep us busy. I suspect they’re too busy running and recovering from whatever happened in Astoria to even notice us. Besides, there are at least three miles between our groups.”
“Fair enough. We should get moving, though,” I replied. “They’ll keep going north for now. Do we know o
f any potential hideouts they might come upon along the way?”
Valaine took out one of the maps she carried in her leather shoulder bag. Unrolling it, she checked our location first. I moved closer so I could get a better look. Energy emanated from her, seeping through my skin and warming me up on the inside. The fewer the inches between us, the better I could feel the impact she had on me. I was falling, faster and deeper than I could’ve imagined. I had no way of protecting myself, and I figured there was a fifty-fifty chance I’d get my heart broken—an outcome I wasn’t sure I was ready for.
“Up here,” she said, pointing her finger at the road drawn in black ink along the fractured coast, “there isn’t much. But farther north there are several settlements. Most are inhabited, from what I remember, and they’re pretty old. There might be a Darkling bunker beneath one of those villages, for sure. They seem to have them all over the continent, especially along the main roads.”
“Albeit underground, but yeah… that makes sense,” I replied.
“I do have a question,” Valaine said, slowly turning her head to look at me. Her dark eyes jolted my very being, her breath tickling my lips. I didn’t even realize how close I’d gotten until I stopped breathing, my face mere inches from hers. She paused, her gaze dropping for a second.
Clearing my throat, I nudged myself back a bit, enough to give her room to think. “Yes?” I asked, then held my breath.
“Once we catch up with the Darklings, what will we do?” she replied. “We’ve got enough soldiers for a solid offensive, but they’re Aeternae, too. On top of that, they have ghouls and death magic, as you called it. Will it be enough? Would we be better off if we waited for my father and the rest of the troops to reach us before we attack?”
“That’s an option, I suppose. It really depends on how quickly they’re moving and how many of them are wounded. Judging by the severe blood loss we’ve spotted on the ground in Astoria, I’m pretty sure at least some of them are critical.”
“The problem is we don’t know how many of them there are.” Valaine sighed. “Based on the footprints alone, the gold guards have said somewhere between two and three hundred.”
Taking a deep breath, I looked back down the coastal road. It was empty and quiet, but I couldn’t quite shake the feeling that we weren’t alone. More than once, I’d put on a red garnet lens, unsure whether it would be able to reveal anything except anyone using an invisibility spell. The odds of seeing anyone in particular were low, considering my sister was still on the west coast, but I’d still worn the red garnet, just in case. The hairs on the back of my neck tingled. I expected to see the air ripple here and there, but nothing moved.
My instincts remained sharp, but there was no immediate threat. Just this feeling… this strange feeling that we were being followed. Maybe the paranoia of these past few days was finally getting to me.
“I would advise caution, regardless,” I said to Valaine. “These are dangerous foes. The death magic is way above my paygrade, too, not just yours. Among my people, only a few individuals have any idea what it’s like and what it can do.”
Valaine’s eyes twinkled. Our horses finally reached us, and we got back in the saddle. The soldiers were riding again, as well, slowly regrouping in the middle of the road.
“So, you’ve met your share of Reapers?” she asked. “What are they like? What do you know of the afterlife? Is Death… I don’t know, have you met her?”
I laughed lightly. “I knew these questions were coming, but I must admit, you’ve held back for quite a while. I admire your restraint, Valaine.”
“You can’t blame me! I mean, this is cosmic stuff! I thought mazir was the epitome of one’s existence, but clearly I’m barely scratching the surface here!” She chuckled.
“That’s true. Unfortunately, I haven’t met Death, myself. Only a few of us have… Nethissis was part of that team,” I said, my voice fading slowly. I could tell it saddened Valaine to see me like this, but she didn’t say anything. “I haven’t met any Reapers, either. Again, that honor befell others. But I know they’re agents of Death, and they obey her to the letter because they believe in the natural order of things and do their best to enforce it. Unfortunately, what’s happening here on Visio is anything but natural, so I’m hoping they will eventually intervene.”
“Why haven’t they already?” Valaine asked. We guided our horses up the road, trotting casually behind the convoy of golden-armored guards. The precious metal captured a rosy hue as the sky darkened to a soft red. Within hours, the black clouds from the east would spread over the coast.
“I don’t know. From what I’m told, Death has been quite adamant about keeping Reapers out of here. My guess is she’s already got someone here, investigating, unbeknownst to any of us. Considering the Darklings’ use of death magic, I’m inclined to assume she wants to tread carefully before sending in the cavalry. Either way, we cannot rely on her assistance in this endeavor. Derek and Sofia have already made it clear: the classic rules apply. The dead and the living do not work together. We must do what we can.”
“I agree,” Valaine replied. “Besides, someone needs to bring Zoltan Shatal to justice. I won’t expect strangers to help, living or otherwise.”
“For you, I suppose it’s also deeply personal, since the Darklings seem hell-bent on killing you,” I muttered. It frustrated me that she was a target. Out of all the Aeternae, they’d picked her, and we had no idea why. We didn’t even know what their endgame was. What scared me the most was that the Aeternae society had gone millions of years without figuring this out.
Valaine thought about it for a moment. She let a deep sigh leave her chest. “It is personal. Not just because of me, but also because of the lives they’ve destroyed so far. I mean, look at Ansel. Merely a teenager, and he’s fallen under their spell. Not to mention other Aeternae. People I grew up with. People I thought to be good and valiant. This world is not what I’d thought, and I’m stunned it took your arrival here for all this ugliness to come out into the light for everyone to see.”
“I bet you wish we never landed on Visio.” I scoffed, bitterly amused.
Valaine didn’t appear to find it funny. She gave me a reprimanding scowl, her gaze set on my face. It made my heartbeat quicken. “Meeting you has been the greatest moment of my personal history, Tristan. You’ve opened my eyes to worlds beyond Visio, to different cultures and mentalities. You’ve been by my side since day one, and I am so grateful… there aren’t enough words to convey how I truly feel. Had it not been for you, I would probably be dead by now. The Darklings would’ve gotten the drop on me, especially since I wasn’t even aware they were after me.”
I took a few minutes to mull it over. Valaine had a point. The Darklings’ plans would’ve advanced without me or my people. They would’ve gone after her. They would’ve found an opening, a weak moment… a few seconds would’ve been all they needed for the deadly blow. The first time they’d gone after Valaine, they’d had to deal with me, too. The second time, as well. And the third. And so on.
“I’ve been quite the thorn in their side, come to think of it,” I murmured.
“And I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Valaine offered me a broad smile. Faint dimples sank into her cheeks, accentuated by the pure black of her hair.
Looking ahead, I noticed the soldiers occasionally glancing at the woods sprawling to our left. “If the Darklings are northbound, perhaps we should have a group of soldiers moving through the forest,” I suggested. “We haven’t found any traces of ghouls yet, but I have a feeling we will soon enough. Especially if we have boots on the ground over there,” I added, pointing at the woods.
Valaine nodded. “I agree. The Darklings could move between the road and the forest in a bid to lose any trackers. The earth is soft and damp in there.”
She called out to one of the lieutenants and asked for a small group of soldiers to go into the woods and move at our pace. If we covered both areas at the same time, we had a
better chance of coming across ghoul tracks—especially if my suspicions were true, and the Darklings allowed the creatures to hunt, sheltered by the nearby trees.
We watched as six gold guards rode their horses across the slim strip of grass before vanishing into the dark forest. I could still hear them—they didn’t go too far—but they were out of sight, checking for traces of Darklings.
“As for what we should do when we catch up with the Darklings, I’m afraid we’ll have to decide on the spot,” I said, after a long pause. “We’ll have to see with our own eyes what their capabilities are in terms of combat.”
“Most importantly, we’ll have to see whether we can wait for my father or not.” Valaine frowned. “Once we reach them, we cannot let them escape. Assuming their death magic can help them cheat against our forces, we simply can’t take any chances.”
That meant we’d have to engage them as soon as we found them. I had a feeling the Darklings were moving north solely for the purpose of finding a spot to virtually disappear. They’d done it before, and they were bound to do it again. The disaster in Astoria had thrown them off their game, but that didn’t mean they’d run out of options.
On the contrary. They likely had even more dangerous aces up their sleeves. Valaine was right, though. We couldn’t hesitate. As soon as we found the Darklings, we’d have to take action against them and capture Zoltan. I wondered about my sister whenever the treacherous Aeternae’s name popped into my head. I worried about her.
Esme was strong, and she had Kalon by her side. Perhaps it was time I worried more about myself and Valaine. Our small army was likely to have trouble against the Darklings’ ghouls and death magic. I’d already given basic anti-ghoul training to the Aeternae under our command—I’d taught them to recognize the tracks, the air shimmers, and all the other small signs of ghoulish presence. I’d taught them to decapitate the fiends and rip them apart, if needed, in order to destroy them. Without Reaper scythes, it was all we could do.
A Shade of Vampire 81: A Bringer of Night Page 2
