Pulling away, I took his hand again, and we headed for the study room. “Come on, babe. Let’s see what the wonder twins have worked out.”
Amal and Amane stood in front of the worktable. They took turns looking through the microscope, systematically checking different glass Petri dishes under the magnifying lenses of the device. On the other side of the room, Nethissis’s body was exquisitely preserved under its swamp witch spell, her skin glimmering pink and orange like a sentient gemstone. It broke my heart whenever I looked her way, but I’d learned to adapt and accept what had happened. Knowing Zoltan would eventually pay for what he’d done gave me some comfort.
“What’s going on?” Derek asked as we walked in.
“We found it,” Amal said.
My heart jumped. “The day-walking protein?”
“Mm-hm. Take a look.” She stepped aside. Derek was breathless, staring at her and Amane with wide eyes. It made them both giggle. Amal had broken the news so simply, and we weren’t really emotionally prepared for such a breakthrough.
Derek sucked in a breath and looked through the microscope, his hands shaking as he pressed them on the table. “Okay… what am I looking for?”
“You’ll spot a variety of shapes in the middle, but focus on the caterpillar-looking ones,” Amal said. “They should be slightly yellow around each cluster.”
“Oh, wow… Yes, okay. I see one.”
Amane grinned. “There are billions of different molecules in a single drop. We had to study, examine, and identify each one. Then we had to figure out what function each of them serves. It’s why it took us so long, especially since the Aeternae’s day-walking molecule is slightly different from yours, Derek. Here, let me show you.”
She removed the Petri dish and replaced it with another. Derek looked through the microscope again. “What am I looking for now?”
“Do you see those caterpillar-like formations, but with what looks like a second head? They’re more orange. Easier to spot,” Amane replied. Derek nodded slowly. “Okay. Those are your day-walking proteins. From your bloodstream. Ta’Zan took one Aeternae strand and clipped it in order for your molecular structure to accept it, and it evolved into your ability to walk in the sunlight.”
“Basically, the day-walking protein isn’t a single molecule. It’s a group of five to six molecules. They tend to bond and split, depending on the exposure to direct sunlight,” Amal added. “We’ve never seen anything like this, but it’s truly amazing. Basically, whenever you’re exposed to daylight, these weird little proteins quickly come together, in a matter of nanoseconds, forming amino acids that protect your skin from instantaneous combustion. Once you’re back in the shade, they relax and break down again, becoming dormant without troubling anything else.”
“Like an internal force field of sorts?” I asked.
The twins nodded. “Exactly. It’s how the Aeternae’s bodies have adapted. The cellular regeneration that facilitates rapid healing and immortality takes its toll on the body’s ability to withstand natural light. The Aeternaes’ molecular structure basically takes from one part of itself to feed into the other. The day-walking protein evolved from a rogue cell, as far as we can tell, and its development was so quick that the Aeternae didn’t even have time to adjust or to suffer from sunlight exposure,” Amal said.
“Which is weird,” Amane continued, frowning.
“Why weird?” I asked, feeling my eyebrows rise.
“Because it means the Aeternae did not naturally evolve into what they are today,” Amal replied. “They were once a species similar to the Rimians and the Naloreans in terms of biological features and lifespan. Then, there was a singular event that… made them into Aeternae. Much like vampirism, if you think about it.”
Derek and I stared at each other for a long minute as the information began to sink in. From what Petra had explained, the Aeternae had evolved into this current form about four million years ago. What Amal and Amane were telling us, however, was quite different. “What sort of event could have caused this transformation?” I asked.
The twins shrugged. Amal switched Petri dishes under the microscope again, motioning for Derek to observe the Aeternae molecules once more. “We’re not sure. This is what we were able to get out of the Aeternae’s DNA. We’d need weeks or even months of intense study to figure out a concise evolutionary history of the Aeternae, but my sister and I agree that the Aeternae basically evolved overnight.”
“Previously, they were living up to a hundred, maybe a hundred and fifty years, if they were lucky. Ancient remnant cells in their DNA point to certain dietary habits involving fruits and meat. Then this event happened, and everything in their bodies changed,” Amane said.
Derek looked at me. “Do you think they know?”
“Who, the Aeternae?” I asked.
“They might not,” Amal replied. “And if they do, they lied to us.”
“Why would they, though? And what sort of event…” My voice trailed off as I realized I was about to ask the same question again. A few things didn’t make sense where the Aeternae’s timeline was concerned, but I chose to focus on the good parts. Specifically, the discovery of the day-walking protein. “That aside, congratulations!” I said to the Faulty girls. “Derek and I knew you’d be able to pull it off.”
“What’s next?” Derek asked, beaming at them.
Amane took a deep breath, crossing her arms. “Now that we’ve identified the original protein, we have to isolate it and compare it to yours. We’re assuming Ta’Zan made his modifications to the original because he feared your body might otherwise reject it. Just to stay on the safe side, we’ve agreed to do the same.”
“From what we can tell, the edits are rather straightforward. It will take some time to complete, but I think we can extract and reproduce the same vampire day-walking molecule from the original Aeternae clusters,” Amal said.
A few moments passed in satisfying silence. I didn’t understand the scientific side of Amal and Amane’s work, but I was able to appreciate its complexity, along with their dedication. They also did a great job of explaining their process in the simplest of terms, allowing me and Derek to grasp the fuller picture. They’d achieved something incredible here, and our work in bringing vampires back into the daylight was basically halfway done.
Neither of us wanted to leave until we had what we needed. Derek had often said that abandoning this project would’ve felt like a disservice to Nethissis. Her death would have been in vain. He’d urged us to leave at the time, but no one on our team could even consider going back home with failure and death hanging over our heads.
This discovery made it easier for all of us to stay. The closer we got, the more I could taste the victory. It was right there, on the tip of my tongue. Sweet as honey.
“I’m in awe of you two.” Derek sighed, glancing at Amal and Amane. “And words cannot describe how grateful I am for everything you’ve done.”
Amal chuckled. “Thank us when we’ve got a day-walking cure for every single vampire out there.”
“We should tell them about the… you know,” Amane muttered, nudging her sister. It was enough to capture our attention in an instant.
“What are you talking about?” I asked, my chest tightening.
We had a tendency to run into all sorts of glitches and mishaps in our quests. Finding this protein had felt a little too smooth. Maybe its duplication and modification came with a hitch or something. Either way, the good feeling I’d had until now was starting to morph into something ugly. Hope was quickly threatened by fear.
“The day-walking protein isn’t the only area in which we’ve made significant progress,” Amal said. “We’ve figured something out regarding the Black Fever, as well. It’ll make our efforts to find a cure a lot more difficult, though.”
On the one hand, I was instantly relieved. Our day-walking project wasn’t threatened by any scientific condition. On the other hand, I felt bad. If what Amal had just said was tru
e, it made our stay here all the more challenging. Why would the Aeternae continue to help us if we couldn’t help them?
“Can you please elaborate?” Derek replied.
“At first, we thought the Black Fever was a virus,” Amal said. “We took numerous blood samples and went in deep, on a molecular level, much like we did with the day-walking protein. It took many days and repeated studies, but we’re both confident in our conclusions now.”
Amane walked over to the window. She could see the entire city from here, with its glistening towers and dark gray roofs, its snaking alleys and lush parks. “The Black Fever manifests as a disease. The symptoms, the physical decay—we had no reason to think it would be anything other than a really pesky virus. Only it’s not. We’ve isolated the Black Fever strand, and we’ve taken our time in studying it.”
“We’ve poked and prodded each molecule. We went deep into the cells, only to discover they’re not exactly… cells,” Amal added. She placed a different dish under the microscope, and Derek took a moment to look through it. “Notice the star formations.”
“Black stars. Five-pointed,” he muttered.
“Exactly. We thought those were of organic origin. They’re not,” Amane replied.
“Then what are they?” I asked, my blood running cold.
“We’re not quite sure yet. I’m inclined to say mazir… you know, their weird magic,” Amane said. “Those microscopic elements—the very core of the Black Fever—they’re supernatural, for lack of a better word. It looks like a disease, but it’s more like a fast-spreading curse. We’ve tested the so-called cells repeatedly, and they don’t respond to any of our treatments. And trust me, we’ve tried cures for every single known biological agent out there, including those made by Ta’Zan.”
“And his creations were quite complex and dangerous, too.” Derek sighed. “So, the Black Fever isn’t a sickness. But it’s spreading like one.”
“Yes,” Amal replied. “I’m wondering if it was devised a long time ago by one of the non-Aeternae. I don’t see the Aeternae doing this to themselves, especially since they need strength in numbers against their occupied domains.”
I took a seat in one of the chairs, inches away from the microscope. “How would a non-Aeternae be able to wield mazir magic? I thought it was pretty limited even among the Aeternae. It’s only Petra, along with the whole Visentis dynasty, and several other figures in the upper echelon of the empire, Valaine Crimson included.”
“We don’t know how mazir truly works, if you think about it,” Derek said. “From what we know, it’s taught. Maybe learning the craft isn’t really limited to the Aeternae. Maybe it’s all about access to the knowledge itself, like with swamp witch magic.”
“And if a non-Aeternae actually got their hands on this curse and unleashed it, would the ten-thousand-year cycle be a part of the spell, or is there someone who helps the cycle repeat itself? After all, it’s the non-Aeternae who are identified as carriers of the Black Fever,” I replied.
There were a lot of pieces missing from this puzzle. And the pieces we did have didn’t connect as flawlessly as we’d hoped. The pathology of the Black Fever itself was still quite the mystery, beginning with how it activated itself and how it spread.
Derek looked through the microscope again. “These look weird…”
“If it is indeed a curse, we’ll have to change the way in which we approach this problem,” Amal warned us. “Should we tell the Aeternae about this?”
I couldn’t stop my eyes from narrowing as I looked her way. “What are you thinking?”
“Well, if we tell them now, and they become convinced it’s definitely mazir, they’ll consider themselves more capable of addressing and fixing it. They might not think we’re needed anymore,” Amal said. “If we keep this to ourselves for now, we can continue to study the problem while one of you gets us access to some mazir knowledge. Enough to test these elements and see if they react. We’ll start with swamp witch magic, in the meantime.”
“The point is that we want to buy ourselves some time,” Amane explained. “If they don’t find us useful in stopping the Black Fever anymore, they might decide to send us away before we finish developing the day-walking cure. Before we get a chance to punish Zoltan and stop the Darklings altogether. I doubt any of us want to leave before we avenge Nethissis’s murder. Besides, if they think it’s mazir, it’ll put Petra, Valaine, and other practitioners at risk, too.”
Derek raised his head from the microscope and scratched the back of his neck. “They make a very good point. The only reason why we’re still allowed to be here is because of how useful we made ourselves in the collective effort to stop the Black Fever.”
And we’d come so far with the day-walking protein. It would be a shame to lose it all. “Amal, do we really need to be here in order for you to complete our main project?” I asked, trying to approach this new problem from all possible angles.
Amal nodded once. “We need constant blood samples from the Aeternae—fresh blood, to be specific—until we can manage to separate, modify, and replicate their protein. Annoyingly enough, said protein decays within days. We’ve tested numerous blood samples. It just dies out without its original host.”
“Ta’Zan made it work in Derek. Once we manage to make it work inside a vial, at least, we’ll be okay. We’ll be able to replicate it because it’ll be based off the original blood,” Amane said. “So yes, we need to be here, and we need the Aeternae to keep pumping their blood into our Petri dishes.”
Leaving Visio sooner rather than later was not an option. Crap.
“We’ll keep this Black Fever issue to ourselves, then,” Derek said, his brow furrowed. “I don’t like deceiving them, but it’s our best chance at completing our main task.”
“And you can test the Black Fever… molecules, or whatever those black star thingies are, with swamp witch magic until we figure out a way to get you access to some mazir,” I replied. “I doubt Petra will make a reliable source, though.”
“What about Valaine?” Amane asked. “She seems different from the others. Kinder. Warmer. Friendlier. I think we might be able to convince her to discreetly collaborate with us.”
And in the meantime, they could continue gathering samples from the quarantined Aeternae, and maybe find a way to slow down the Black Fever’s progression. We needed to make ourselves seem useful over the course of these next few days, at least until the day-walking cure was complete.
“We’ll take more blood samples from the sick Aeternae and try some swamp witch healing magic on each batch,” Amal said, as if reading my mind. “If we can slow it down, it’ll be considered noticeable progress.”
Our situation on Visio was clearly more complex than any of us had imagined at first. Nothing was what it seemed. Not even the damn day-walking protein in the Aeternae’s bloodstream. They hadn’t evolved. They’d been made, somehow. Almost overnight. The Black Fever wasn’t a friggin’ fever, either—it was a curse. The Rimians and the Naloreans weren’t all that happy with the Aeternae occupation. Factions like the Red Threads and the existence of blood slave trading proved that much.
And Acheron and Danika didn’t actually have the firm grip over their empire they’d claimed to have so many times before. Zoltan Shatal was evidence of that. We had our hands full and then some, but we needed to tread carefully if we were to get everything we wanted—including justice for Nethissis. I found a sliver of comfort in knowing that GASP was ready to intervene if we needed them, but I was terrified of the prospect of another war, especially with a species like the Aeternae. Violence didn’t need to be the answer here.
We could achieve more if we played it cool, if we were cunning and resourceful. I trusted Derek and the rest of our crew to pull such a thing off, especially once Esme and Tristan were also briefed on these developments. We had to be careful going forward. Extremely careful.
Derek
Danika stayed with Sofia and Thayen up on the terrace of their pr
ivate quarters, joined by several event organizers in charge of putting the Rain Festival together. With their summer over, the Aeternae were preparing for the Visio version of fall—the rainy season, when thunderstorms and monsoon-like events manifested across the continent. They celebrated each change of season with a festival, and this one in particular was adored by the Rimians and the Naloreans.
It honored the harvest, which marked the end of summer. Exquisite breads were baked, and fruit tarts came out of the brick ovens, steam rolling outward and carrying delicious aromas all over the empire. These were all things I hadn’t been able to appreciate for a very long time, but I could still allow myself a deep breath, enough to let the hint of wild apple tart fill my lungs and remind me of my human days.
With an operation like the Rain Festival came numerous logistical challenges. From what Acheron and Danika had explained, the entire event served not only to celebrate autumn, but also to feed the less fortunate among the Rimians and the Naloreans who’d made Visio their home. Most of them made a basic income from selling their blood, but that process had some biological limits, as the empire had strict rules for how much blood they could give on a weekly or monthly basis. Many of these poorer creatures had families and rough housing conditions. A drought or an overly cold season could be enough to make an entire year more difficult for them.
So the Rain Festival became a massive feast, designed to offer meals from the new harvest to all the non-Aeternae of Visio. Thousands came to visit from Rimia and Nalore. Aside from the actual food-fest, the Rain Festival offered musical and theatrical performances, street dancing, and a plethora of stalls, each filled with ethnic jewelry and silks and all kinds of wondrous things. Naturally, it required most of the Lady Supreme’s attention. Sofia didn’t mind spending time with her, mainly because it also meant spending time with Thayen.
Acheron and I could see them from below as we walked through the sprawling palace gardens. Some of the blossoms were beginning to wither, and the caretakers had brought in new green plants—tall, palm-like shrubs that added an extra dimension to the entire ensemble. It was beautiful, but I had a feeling this wasn’t why Acheron had wanted us to take this walk.
A Shade of Vampire 81: A Bringer of Night Page 5
