The Vampire Gift 6: Secrets of Hope

by E. M. Knight

  It will be excruciatingly painful to stand in the sun. And there is no structure that might provide shade for hundreds of miles in all directions.

  It’s not like I can just hoist an umbrella over my head, I think with a bit of dark humor.

  One little-known fact about vampires and the sun is that the sun’s rays somehow taint the very air upon where they’ve shined. A long-standing structure with a physical barrier that blocks the sun only offers relief because the rays have not been there as long. An umbrella or any other source of ambulatory cover can never work because the vampire would be moving through space where the rays existed just moments before.

  But, hell, why am I worried about that? Through some stroke of luck, I managed to live through the demon’s attack.

  My lips curl up in a merciless grin. I must be a glutton for pain. Survive something like that, and then expose myself to the sun’s rays willingly… that is something.

  Yet obviously I cannot stay here. Not now, not anymore, not knowing what I do.

  I look over my shoulder. Is this my final farewell? Will I ever be back?

  I cannot be sure. But deep inside, I suspect not.

  Beatrice must be found. I have to reunite with Riyu. Whatever happens from there is up to the fates.

  But I cannot pledge allegiance to a King who controls magic. Not now, not ever.

  I push open the enormous doors and step into the desert sun.

  Chapter Thirty

  Riyu

  The Paths

  I run through the Paths as quickly as I can, distraught with everything I see.

  There is a corruption here. The crystals I had grown to know as beautiful and pure have been tainted. The taint is subtle, so far, and somebody without my observational skills would doubtlessly fail to see it.

  But I see it, because of who I am.

  It frightens me very much.

  Something is happening to the Elements, the currents, the Forces, and it threatens to change all that I know. No longer do I think the King’s dabbling in blood magic has anything to do with it.

  No, this is a symptom of a much larger, much more insidious problem.

  I fear it will define what it means to be a vampire in a new, horrific way.

  Vampirism and magic are forever, intricately linked. One does not exist without the other. And vice-versa.

  So, if something is fouling the Forces, it is a problem all vampires will see the consequences of.

  The ground beneath me feels more brittle than ever before. The beauty and raw majesty of the Paths is being threatened.

  I feel it with every step I take. This entire constructed void is, for whatever reason, on the verge of collapse.

  It might not happen for ten years. It might not happen for one hundred. But, eventually, it will happen.

  The first signs are obvious.

  The tiny bits of dust on the floor, fallen from the crystals in the ceiling. The minuscule, spiderweb cracks along the crystal wall that only a vampire’s eye can pick out. The strange sort of resonance I feel through the air, a kind of resistance to my being here, for example.

  I have absolutely no doubt in my mind it is linked to that God-forsaken prophecy.

  Eleira. This is all Eleira’s fault. All of this, every bit of my troubles, can be linked back to her.

  As I run down the familiar walls of the caverns, my mind flashes back to how Dagan left me.

  No. Mustn’t think about that. No, no, no.

  I cannot relive that moment now, in my current state.

  Because this is more pressing. Whatever is going on in the Paths is so much more important. Dagan was supposed to kill me. He disobeyed a direct order to let me go.

  What, was I expecting him to come here with me?

  I snarl, a venomous mix of irritation and hurt bubbling up inside. No, of course, I couldn’t have expected that! I’d be a fool, an idiot, no smarter than a mindless girl swooning over her first crush.

  The Paths demand my full attention.

  I reach a pass that is familiar to me. I’ve been here many times before. I stop and look around. The vibration, the resistance is still in the air.

  When I am absolutely still I feel it most.

  So, I go to the center of the platform and take up a meditative pose. I only intend to hold it for a few minutes, to see if I can ascertain the origin of that resistance.

  But it doesn't take more than a few seconds of absolute stillness for my mind to zero in on the disturbance. If I do not move, if I make myself as little of an intruder as possible in this place, the Paths reveal all their secrets.

  I wait. The vibration in the air seems to swell around me, encompassing me and all that I am.

  It feels as foreign to this place as anything I’ve ever encountered.

  Suddenly, my eyes pop open. My head goes to a certain passage.

  I felt something move down there.

  In a flash, I extend my vampiric awareness as far as it will stretch. But either the movement I felt comes from outside its reach, or it is not strong enough to sense anybody there.

  I make up my mind in an instant. If there is an intruder here, I have to know. For all my familiarity with the Paths, they are still shrouded in so much mystery. I know how to navigate them, I can see the telltale signs that differentiate one outcrop of crystal from another, but the truth is, if I’m being honest, I know less than ten percent. Maybe five.

  Maybe even less than one.

  Keeping all of my senses on high alert, I sneak toward the source of that movement.

  My feet fall silent on the ground. I use all my vampire gifts—what little I have of them—to disguise my approach. I don’t know who or what I’m going to find there, but I don’t want to chance alerting it to my coming.

  Nor, realistically, do I want to be spotted and attacked.

  It makes for slow, cautious going. But eventually, by staying close to the walls, I reach the spot where I felt that movement.

  It’s empty.

  Well, of course it is, I chide myself. I took too long to get here!

  But then a glimmer of light catches my eye from up ahead, in the distance.

  I go perfectly still, pressing myself against one massive crystal. The glimmer was not imagined. It was like a streak cutting through the air.

  It almost looked like… the formation of a portal.

  I wait. It doesn’t happen again. And portals open vertically, anyway. Sometimes, they expand from a small dot.

  This streak was horizontal. It makes me suspect that whatever I saw was something wholly different.

  I inch forward. I let me claws come out, just in case I need to fight.

  They bring me small comfort, though. I never was good in hand-to-hand combat.

  Abruptly, the glimmer cuts through the air again. I freeze.

  And this time, from out of the light steps forth a woman.

  I dive for cover. Thankfully, the walls are not perfectly straight but somewhat jagged. As soon as I’m out of sight, I take a small blade from my pocket and hold it out in front of me, angling it so I can see the reflection of the woman without being seen.

  She’s draped in a strange, black robe, facing away from me. Even with the large covering of clothing she looks frail.

  Another witch? I wonder.

  But when I try to sense her, I cannot. It’s like she’s not even there!

  Now would be a good time to call upon the Elements and weave a spell that might explain why. But I haven’t been detected yet, and drawing upon the Forces would give me away in the presence of another magic-weaver.

  So I content myself to simply watch through that very small reflective surface.

  She turns her head this way and that. It looks like she’s trying to get her bearings. I breathe in through my nose, slowly, so as not to be heard, and sense… nothing.

  Nothing. No aroma of human blood, no scent of the vampire’s ether.

  My curiosity grows. So who is she?

  Sudde
nly, she turns her head back. I stifle a gasp when I see only a black mist covering her face.

  No. It can’t be!

  A pit of fear grows in my belly.

  Quickly, I snatch the blade away. My heart starts to race. I press myself as tightly as I can against the wall.

  If she notices me, I stand no chance.

  I wait for a count of ten. Nothing comes to pass. Adrenaline still pumps through my body.

  But the sorceress has not come closer.

  I strain my ears, listening for her footsteps. Even if she can disguise all the rest, she’s unlikely to have cloaked her steps. It’s a frivolous thing to do it, an easy spell, but irritating to maintain no matter how strong in magic you are.

  Besides. I don’t think she expects to meet anyone here.

  When another few seconds pass, I decide to chance it. With a shaking hand I extend the blade in front of me and angle it the right way again.

  To my relief, the sorceress has turned away again. Her arms, however, are moving in front of her, giving shape to an incantation she is preparing.

  Suddenly, such a strong surge of magic rips through the air that I nearly drop the blade in shock. All the currents inside the Paths, every single one, have been grabbed by her. I can feel them racing in a maelstrom toward her.

  It’s astounding. She absolutely drains every last bit of the Elements. Nobody, nobody alive should ever be able to command that much power without being burnt to a crisp.

  Not even with the strongest torrial in existence should it be possible!

  If I tried, I would not be able to channel a spark right now.

  Just as abruptly as it began, it stops. I feel the currents scatter away. I can’t help it—I’m compelled to crane my neck forward and actually look at what’s happening.

  What I see is more horrifying than anything I could have imagined.

  In front of the sorceress is a dark, roiling orb of energy. She’s fed all the power of the Elements into it. It floats in front of her, seemingly of its own accord, but I know she is controlling it somehow.

  She has access to a magic I never have seen.

  Slowly, the orb starts to expand. It grows and spins, swelling until it takes up the entirety of the space in front of her. Floor to ceiling, wall-to-wall, it drapes across the entire tunnel.

  The woman reaches out and presses a palm to its center. The black veil shifts. Ripples erupt along the surface. It’s like looking upon a stormy lake in the deep of night.

  And then, very slowly, the veil turns transparent, revealing a wholly different world on the other side.

  It’s a world of red and black. Harsh, uncompromising ash lies on the surface of the land. Evil, menacing clouds cover the sky.

  Without a second’s hesitation, the sorceress steps through. I see her form appear on the other side. Much smaller, however, than it was here.

  I swallow.

  The passage to the other realm starts to shrink. The ancient woman begins to walk away. Every step is determined. Every step is full of purpose.

  A part of me wants to jump in after her. But that would be foolhardy.

  So, instead, I wait until the shrinking portal is no bigger than the size of my fist.

  Then, finally, relieved, I step out of my hiding spot.

  The moment I do, the sorceress spins back. I see her face, which is not covered in shadow anymore. For a flicker of a second, our eyes meet.

  That bubbling fear explodes into full-blown panic, as my suspicions are confirmed.

  Cierra.

  And then the passage winks out of existence, and I’m left alone, and safe, in the Paths again.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Riyu

  The Paths

  I do not get much of a respite. Immediately, the ground starts to shake.

  I look around me in stark terror. Whatever Cierra has done has ruined the equilibrium here. The Paths tremble, and crystals start to fall.

  I spin around and run as fast as my feet can carry me.

  The Forces have all absconded. Or maybe their transformation into that vile ball of black has left them devoid of life. Whatever it is, they are all no longer here, and in their absence nothing holds up the Paths.

  I race away as the Paths start crumbling behind me. All the energy it took to cast that passageway is being paid for now. Crystals come crashing down. The ground churns and splits. A fissure shoots through the earth.

  Where that fall leads, I don’t want to know.

  I manage to only just stay in front of the wave of destruction, and still I feel it on my heels. I run faster than I ever thought it possible for me to run.

  Even then, it’s barely enough.

  I feel a hint of the Elements up ahead. Ducking my head, I sprint for them with all I’ve got. They get stronger as I come nearer, only just outrunning the collapsing cavern behind me.

  I blaze through the threshold and emerge into their full embrace. I stagger and fall, tripping over an upturned stone. I hit the ground hard. Terror grips me. The roar of the collapsing crystals is horrifying. So much destruction. So much hate!

  But to my relief, the presence of the Elements stops the tsunami from swallowing me whole.

  It stems the tide. It upholds the sanctity of the Paths. The ceiling above me groans, cracks splinter along it, but they do not give.

  Finally, everything goes still.

  I collapse on my front. My heart is racing faster than I ever thought a vampire’s heart could race. It takes me a good, long moment to catch my breath.

  Then, gingerly, I push myself up and approach the edge of all that destruction.

  The Forces have enveloped the fallen mass of crystal, making it solid again. But the way that was lost shall never be brought back.

  And now, I know the cause of the dissonance I feel inside this part of the world.

  Cierra is back.

  I’ve never seen her in my life. Of course, I’ve heard stories. I’ve read accounts of encounters with her.

  Very few, if any, leave those alive. Except for the ones she chose to pass on the legend of her legacy.

  But what was that place I saw her enter? Could it be…

  I swallow, remembering the awful demon that ruined Dagan’s back.

  Could it be the demon realm?

  If it is… it is nothing short of astounding. No witch, ever, on this Earth has had the power to create a passage to that realm. The only way anyone ever had access was through the preexisting portals that intersect our worlds.

  Well. I just saw proof of the opposite, didn’t I?

  A shiver crawls down my spine.

  Forget Eleira, forget Dagan, forget the prophecy and everything else I’d deemed important. This is the most pressing issue of our time.

  And I stumbled upon it through pure luck.

  I snort. Some luck. Nearly getting killed over my curiosity. And, in the end, locking eyes with the sorceress who could spell all of our doom.

  That is the most unnerving thing. She knows who I am. She knows what I look like.

  Most of all, she knows that I know about her.

  It feels like a big enormous X has just been painted on my back.

  She will hunt me. Of that, I have no doubt. She will hunt me, and when she finds me, she will kill me.

  I close my arms around myself and stave off another shiver.

  The only hope I have of survival is that she not find me. But she is the strongest witch of all time. Strong enough, in fact, to somehow still be alive now, many hundreds of years after her birth, without being turned into a vampire.

  How she has achieved that is impossible to know. But it would not be through the regular forces of magic.

  The only thing I can point to is her use of the dark arts.

  I can’t help it. I do shiver in fear.

  If Cierra is here, and she is destroying the Paths with her movement through them as some sort of conduit to that other place, then what is she doing it for? What does she intend, after
all this?

  I remember reading about her absolute, irrational hatred of vampires. If someone with that much strength wants to make an enemy of us…

  Well, it’s no small exaggeration to say that to take her on, we would need a full army.

  And even then we may not be successful.

  I need to get out of here. I cannot risk staying in the Paths while Cierra knows about me.

  Now, more than ever, I need to go into hiding.

  Because, if I’m being totally honest with myself, how else have I gotten this far in life, despite all my self-induced handicaps?

  By staying in the shadows, by remaining unseen, and by only striking when the time is right.

  It’s the only chance I have of making it in this world.

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Eleira

  The Haven

  I stand at the threshold of the exit, looking out into the night.

  “Ready?” Raul asks.

  He and I are the only ones here. After a bit of convincing from him and Felix, I agreed to postpone the congregation of vampires above ground for an hour. Enough time for me to know whether my worries about Morgan’s trap are valid or not.

  Felix has gone ahead to wait for us in the clearing where the throne was brought. I asked him to take that obsidian globe with him. He did.

  I take a deep breath, then nod. “Yes.”

  “I wish I could help,” Raul murmurs. “But as you say. This is all you.”

  He steps forward, into the clean night air, without further remark.

  For that I am thankful.

  “If anything happens…” I begin.

  “I will stay away,” he says. He sounds sullen, almost like a little boy. “I gave you my word, didn’t I?”

  “Yes. Because if you tried to help, you would only get hurt. I am the only one who has a chance to stop any lingering spell, anyway.”

  I can almost picture him rolling his eyes as he turns away from me.

  “I won’t even watch,” he says. “How about that?”

  “Better you don’t talk,” I mutter, and take my first step out of the Stronghold.