“Is there something on your mind?” He’d been quiet for ten minutes, which wasn’t at all like Acheron. He gave me a weak smile, and I could see the pained look in his eyes, if only for a fleeting second.
“There’s a lot on my mind right now, Derek. Though there is one thing that bothers me more than anything else,” he replied, hands behind his back. His black tunic was covered in an intricate artwork of gold-thread embroidery—it created a tree with many branches, gemstones embedded along each of its arms as they stretched outward and down his sleeves. Each precious crystal reflected the soft light of day, casting shards of pure color all around him. It made it hard for me to look away. The craftsmanship that had gone into this piece was exquisite. The tunic also played against Acheron’s frown, lessening the intended dramatic effect of his statement.
“Can I help you with anything?” I asked, eyeing him intently.
He cleared his throat, his voice lower than usual as we walked farther away from the palace toward the southern fence of the garden. “You might, actually. Here’s the thing, Derek. I’ve had time to think since this whole Darkling mess exploded and made a mockery of us all,” he muttered. “I’ve had enough of them. For thousands of years, they’ve been the bane of my existence and a threat to my reign. I’ve suffered through many Black Fever outbreaks. I’ve lost good people to that wretched disease. It’s bad enough we have to deal with that, and I no longer have the will or the patience to struggle with these maniacs, as well.”
“What are you trying to say, Your Grace?”
Acheron gave me a brief sideways glance before he looked around, making sure no one was listening. “I want to eradicate them. Once and for all, so they may never rise again to hurt anyone. I’m worried the Darklings haven’t fully left the imperial city. I’m worried they’re still among us—at least some of their leaders are.”
“Do you have any intel on that matter?”
He sighed deeply. “My sources aren’t giving me much, but I know the reward I’ve put on Zoltan’s head has caused quite a stir among members of our upper class. Perhaps a greater stir than expected. Some are rather unhappy, I’m told, with how I’m treating Zoltan. They voice opinions against you, the so-called foreigners, and against me for taking your side.”
“That’s ridiculous. The only side one needs to take here is the side of justice,” I said.
“And I agree. I fear that the Darkling lieutenants and higher-ranked agents are part of the nobility, and that they’re still pulling strings, organizing something. They’re up to… I don’t know what, exactly, but I’m concerned I can’t really trust anyone around me.”
“The master commander is hunting Zoltan down,” I replied. “Surely, he can be trusted?”
“Think about it. These Darklings have been engaged in their nefarious and secret wars for ages,” Acheron said. “To this day, we’ve been unable to track down their leaders and destroy the entire faction. We have the manpower, we have the resources and the ability to annihilate them, and yet… we haven’t.”
We settled close to the fence, away from anyone’s earshot. The sky turned into a reddish blanket as dark clouds traveled from the west, unraveling in shades of charcoal and dirty orange. A storm was coming—the first of many, given the change of seasons.
“Are you trying to tell me that the higher-level Aeternae have prevented the capture and elimination of the Darklings?” I whispered the question, shivers trickling down my spine like droplets of ice water.
“It’s a suspicion of mine, yes,” Acheron admitted. It wasn’t an easy thing for him to say; I could tell from the way he glanced downward, his head hung low. “I think the Darklings have been allowed to fester. Maybe because their silent supporters agree with whatever it is these monsters are trying to accomplish, or maybe because they get immense benefits from the blood slave trade and accept the Darklings as a necessary evil. I mean, you’ve heard my wife.”
I nodded slowly. I certainly remembered Danika’s hesitation with regards to banning the blood slave trade. She’d been quite vocal, claiming fear of the elites. The ruling dynasty needed their support.
“Which is why I’m talking to you,” Acheron added. “None of my spies have brought me anything useful in terms of intel, and yet your Esme was able to oust the Darklings from my bloody palace basement!” He paused, taking another deep breath. He even closed his eyes for a moment as he collected his thoughts. “I need your help, Derek. I know we’ve already asked enough of you, what with the Black Fever and all, but I cannot trust my own people on this. I cannot even trust Danika. She’s too reserved. Too comfortable with this vicious cycle we’ve allowed the Darklings to create.”
I had to admit, I didn’t see this coming. “I… I’d be more than happy to assist with whatever I can, Your Grace, provided it’s… you know, doable. The last thing I want is to cause trouble with the Aeternae.”
“Which is why I want to keep this conversation between us and away from the ears of the Aeternae,” Acheron replied. “Zoltan hasn’t been captured, despite the massive reward. The Darklings continue with their machinations and attempted coups. We’re not getting anywhere with any of this. I want to get rid of them. I want them to stop meddling with the empire’s affairs. I want them all just… gone.”
I didn’t say anything, giving him the time he needed to properly formulate his request—because there was a request coming. He’d already laid out the groundwork through his previous statements.
“I need you and your people to infiltrate Visio,” Acheron finally said. “I can only trust you to handle these Darklings. You’ve proven yourselves more than once already.”
“Your Grace, our team is small. Esme and Tristan are already on it. Amal and Amane have to continue their work, and Sofia and I are doing our best to support our agents,” I said, not revealing to Acheron that we wanted to stay close to Amane and Amal in case anything else decided to go wrong. If the Faulty twins got into any kind of trouble, Sofia and I needed to be close enough to react, so we wouldn’t be faced with more senseless deaths. “I would be more than happy to help you, but I will need more people.”
Acheron nodded. “I know. Once I get all my plans in order, I’ll be able to make some of our air fleets look the other way for a few hours while you smuggle more of your GASP troops into Visio. But I will need a couple of days to make such arrangements. It’s imperative that it’s all done in total secrecy. I’ll have to orchestrate something to distract the fleets.”
“Okay. That makes sense. I will talk it over with Sofia and our base.”
“I’ll give you whatever your people need to blend in. There are certain advantages to being a monarch on Visio. I can get away with a lot of things.” Acheron chuckled, leaning against the fence.
“I’m sure you know everything you need to do in order to make such an operation work,” I replied, smiling. “And we’ll have gathered enough intel from Esme and Tristan to help our incoming agents identify the Darklings.”
“Just have them ready to deploy, Derek. Once I give you the go-ahead, hopefully within a couple of days, you can bring them over. Keep it simple, though. No more than a hundred people. You’re all clearly skilled at this kind of work, and I trust you won’t need more than that to cover the necessary ground and eradicate this Darkling filth.”
I placed a hand on his shoulder in a bid to reassure him. I had momentarily forgotten about the customs here when engaging the Lord and Lady Supreme. Acheron, however, was most kind. The gesture surprised him, but he didn’t move away, nor did he appear to find it offensive.
“We’ll do everything we can to help. I know it cannot be easy for you to break your own rule with regards to outside interference. I understand you must be pretty desperate and worried to turn to us for help. Rest assured, you have our full support,” I said.
“Good. Thank you, Derek. It’s hard to live this way, which is why it must all be brought to an end. With another Black Fever outbreak looming, we’re already stretched
thin,” he replied. “I can’t have the Darklings destroying more innocent lives. Especially Valaine’s. She doesn’t deserve any of this.”
That was the precise moment when I fully understood the depth of this Darkling conspiracy. They had the Lord Supreme of Visio nearly quaking in his boots and bejeweled tunic. He was so afraid of them that he’d had to turn to me, to us, for help. It was one thing to assist them in curing the Black Fever in exchange for the day-walking protein, and something else entirely to get involved in such delicate internal affairs.
I found it all quite concerning, but I knew we could handle it. I also wondered what all the implications for me and my people would be, but I trusted a conversation with Sofia would bring some clarity. The Darklings had already killed Nethissis. What would be next? Killing Valaine? Would they stop there? Their own history showed that they wouldn’t.
GASP could help, but we had to be really smart about all this. We had multiple projects open, some more difficult than others. We needed to pull through on every front and return to The Shade with the rest of our crew alive and in one piece. We’d lost enough. It was time for us to win.
Nethissis
Sidyan teleported us farther up the coastal road. Less than a hundred yards away, I could see the Darklings. They’d set up a temporary camp on the edge of the woods, ready to hide if anyone came upon them. Fortunately, they couldn’t see or sense us from this far.
“I can get closer,” I said, glancing at Seeley. “Without a scythe on me, I’m your best option for some undetected eavesdropping.”
“Getting a little ahead of yourself there,” Sidyan replied dryly. “Seeley and I are perfectly capable of spying on those bastards, especially since their ghouls seem to be out hunting with their handlers.”
I followed his gaze to spot movement between the trees—black guards running with ghouls on their iron chains, moving like shadows as they chased after deer and other considerably larger animals that grazed in these parts. It left Zoltan and Veliko essentially on their own, surrounded only by other Darklings and black guards, some of whom were still recovering from the ghouls’ mauling.
“Our job is to follow the Darklings and not intervene,” Lumi said. “But Reapers already have a piss-poor record where the Darklings are concerned. The abnormal number of ghouls in their possession is evidence enough. While the idea of Nethissis getting close to Zoltan again doesn’t give me much comfort, the thought of potentially losing both of you to those a-holes makes me agree with her.” She scowled at Sidyan and Seeley.
“Besides, Rudolph can stay closer to me,” I replied. “The other ghouls know him. I think they’ve got some sort of arrangement or something, because they stopped howling and snarling at me a long time ago.”
Since I seemed to have the ability to hide from wielders of Reaper scythes, I figured I could take advantage of it and gather good intel. We needed as much of that as we could get, given the circumstances. The sky above had darkened considerably, the wind blowing cold—so cold that even I could almost feel it. Sensations from my living days lingered, my spirit still yearning to experience things I no longer had a right to.
Seeley scoffed. “This is insane. I know what we’re dealing with now. I’m not going to get myself caught again.”
“The Darklings know you’re free, and they know you’re not alone,” I said. “They’ve yet to figure out my ability to hide from them, and the ghouls are Nethissis-friendly, so to speak. We can’t risk you or Sidyan getting trapped. Not after everything we’ve been through.”
Rudolph moved closer, nuzzling my hand with his cold nose. It was the one thing I could still feel—the touch of another dead thing. As strange as it was, it did give me a little bit of comfort. It made me feel like I wasn’t so detached from this world after all. I gave the creature a faint smile. I could see my own translucent reflection in his big, beady black eyes.
“I hate to admit this, but Nethissis and Lumi might actually be right,” Sidyan grumbled. “We were lucky they didn’t turn you, Seeley. And I really don’t want to end up in chains. Zoltan and his lot know we won’t let them get away with any of this… they’ll likely be prepared. The death magic they know is complex, as we all know by now. They might have new traps in place.”
“Nethissis does have the advantage of being a ghost, if you think about it,” Lumi said, then gave me a worried look. “You had better not get yourself in any kind of trouble, missy. I’ve only just found you again.”
I wanted nothing more than to be able to hug her. “I’ll be okay. I’m surprisingly light on my feet. Death does have some advantages.”
Seeley gripped my arm, his touch so electrifying that it sent ripples of energy through my entire being. I turned to look at him, only to find his face so close to mine that I swore I could feel his breath brushing over my lips. “Keep at least five feet away from Zoltan and Veliko,” he said firmly. “Don’t stay in one spot for too long. Move as often as you can. If you so much as think you see one of them reaching for their scythe, get out of there. You come back to us, okay?”
“I will. I promise,” I murmured, no longer in control of my voice.
He inhaled deeply and shifted his focus to Rudolph. “And you! You do the same. You can hide yourself from the Darklings. Make sure the other ghouls don’t even look at Nethissis while she’s there. If you’re good, I’ll let you eat a black guard’s soul the next time they take the ghouls out hunting in the woods, okay?”
Rudolph purred like an oversized, hairless, deformed cat. Oh, he definitely got the message. Fortunately, this was a good time to infiltrate the camp, since the ghouls were on their way back from the forest—they were sated and hopefully not that interested in me to begin with. Then again, my soul was like a rare delicacy for these guys. Raw meat? Not so much. But I trusted Rudolph to make sure I had a clear path to spying on Zoltan and Veliko.
“Be careful, Nethi,” Lumi said as I made my way across the plain.
The wind intensified, and a heavy rain started to pour, as if the sky had been suddenly cut open. Everything turned gray and sullen, sad and wet. Even the grass bent to the side, each blade surrendering under the weight of the large droplets of water. I threw Lumi a faint smile and focused on my path.
Rudolph walked by my side. I heard Maya whimpering somewhere behind us, followed by Sidyan’s teeth clicking. “That’s enough, Maya,” he said to her. “They’ll be back soon.”
Infiltrating the Darkling camp felt less like a potential disaster now that I wasn’t alone. Seeley was free, and so was Rudolph. Sure, the Darklings were aware of these changes, but we still had an advantage here and there wasn’t much they could do about it, as long as we were all extra super careful.
Reaching the camp, I noticed the Darklings grumbling and cursing under their breaths, most of them hiding under their coats. For the living, such dense rain remained a noticeable discomfort. Veliko sat on a rock, letting the water seep into his clothes as he stared at the stump where his left hand used to be. There was hate in his eyes, burning red. He hated us. He hated his condition. But he was eerily calm, and I didn’t like that.
Zoltan was changing the bandage around his foot where Rudolph had bitten him. It would need a couple more hours for the wounds to fully close, given that the ghoul had nearly torn his foot off. “Son of a bitch,” he muttered as the bandage got wet before he could wrap it up to his ankle.
“It’s going to take a while for these clouds to pass,” another Darkling said, glancing up at the unfriendly sky.
“Did anyone talk to you?” Veliko snapped. The Darkling frowned at him but didn’t respond. “Yeah, that’s what I thought. Tend to your wounds and leave us be.”
Zoltan shot Veliko an icy glare. “No need to be harsh with the boy. We don’t turn on our own, Lieutenant.”
“You should’ve set Ignatius on that stupid witch the moment you killed her,” Veliko spat. “We wouldn’t be in this mess if you had done things differently.”
“Oh, really, Mr.
Hindsight?” Zoltan retorted, stuffing his aching foot back inside the pierced leather boot. The rain dissolved some of the dried blood, washing it off. “How the hell was I supposed to know she’d befriended a ghoul and could wield a friggin’ scythe?!”
“You should’ve taken her more seriously,” Veliko said. “She’s clearly a problem now. And the fact that she’s got two ghouls and two Reapers with her, not just Rudolph, is an even bigger problem. And don’t even get me started on that white-eyed weirdo witch lady. She was the icing on the bloody cake!”
Zoltan threw his hands in the air, exasperated. “Well, pardon me, all-knowing Veliko. Forgive me for not predicting the future. Things like this don’t happen very often. Actually, they never happen! All we can do is learn and adjust, not peck each other’s eyes out.”
“I would’ve done things differently, had I been Scholar,” Veliko mumbled, glancing at his hand again. “I would’ve fed the girl’s soul to Ignatius the moment she was torn from her body. Had you allowed Ignatius to be… Ignatius, none of us would be out here right now, soaking up all the rain on Visio.”
“You’re not the Scholar, though, are you?” Zoltan replied. He didn’t seem intimidated by Veliko, but I did spot tiny nervous tics. The corner of his mouth twitching. The vein throbbing in his temple. The signs were barely visible, but they were there. Zoltan worried about his future as Scholar of these Darklings.
If Veliko managed to sow enough doubt among his peers, he could easily stage a rebellion and get rid of Zoltan without drawing the ire of their superiors. “Well, to be fair, you’re not fit to be Scholar, either, given this monumental disaster you’ve drawn us into,” he grumbled.
A Shade of Vampire 81: A Bringer of Night Page 6
