by Sean Stone
"Never to part," Victor repeated. The words comforted Richie more than he'd expected them to.
"I want to know who did this," Richie said, keeping his head bowed.
"Jamal Rasul said that Kristen Dagmar and James Tenson are responsible," Victor said. Richie had heard that already.
"I want to know exactly which of them killed him. Find out for me," Richie said.
"And, what do intend to do?" Victor asked, his voice full of caution.
"Kill them."
Victor placed a hand on Richie's shoulder, trying to comfort him, but failing. "I understand how you feel, Richie, but this is not a good idea. We have just managed to even things out with Nickolas. It would be foolish to start another rivalry."
"I'm not going after Nickolas," Richie replied.
"No, but going after one of his disciples will achieve the same thing. He will retaliate," Victor warned. Victor had always been the more cautious of the two, the one to think things through fully before acting. Richie was more impulsive. Victor had changed his mind many times in the past, but this time, he would not.
"I don't care. This cannot go unanswered." Richie turned and looked Victor in the eye. "Find out who did this." He would risk a fight with Nickolas. William deserved justice. After all, justice was the very thing he lived his life for.
Victor nodded. "Very well, if that's what you want."
"It is."
The sound of a scuffle just outside the door caught Richie's attention and he looked up just in time to see Lydia Aramaya walk in with Isabella on her heel. Richie felt a slight fluttering in his chest at the sight of Lydia.
"I tried to stop her," Isabella said furiously.
"I know," Richie said. Lydia was thousands of years Isabella's senior and nothing she did would have stopped her from getting in. Even Richie wouldn't have been able to stop her. "What do you want Lydia?" Lydia was not a member of Richie's clan, but part of the Cult of Osiris, an ancient order of vampires who had recently come to town to kill Richie. Luckily he'd managed to avoid that fate thanks to a deal Lydia had made with Nickolas which resulted in the head of the Cult; Cain Aramaya, being disposed of. Although, Richie had found out after that Cain had not been killed, but merely desiccated. Either way, he was no longer a problem for Richie.
"We've got a problem," Lydia said grimly.
"When haven't we?" Victor grumbled.
"Is it Cain?" Richie asked at once. If he was revived then he'd be coming after all of them. Lydia and her brother Michael had acted against Cain, and their brother Ramsay. Years of following orders and being forced to work for the Cult had finally made them fight back.
"No, he's still desiccated. We're trying to get his body from Nickolas so we can keep an eye on it. Ramsay is still locked away too. Desiccating as we speak," Lydia replied with a slight smile.
"Then what's the problem?"
"Osiris," she said. Osiris was an ancient whom Nickolas had revived. The founder of the Cult. Nickolas had assured them that he would kill Osiris after reviving him, but he had been unable to make good on his word. "He's at the castle. Those of the Cult who didn't flee when Nickolas attacked are serving him now."
"What's he doing there?" Richie demanded. He'd foolishly hoped that Osiris would leave town. He didn't know much about the ancient, but he didn't want anyone with that magnitude of power anywhere near Cedarstone, they could only cause trouble and there was enough trouble in town already.
"Recovering. He was cut up for millennia, it's going to take a while for him to heal completely and restore his power. He's staying at the castle protected by the Cult until he's ready to move on."
"But I thought he fought a battle moments after waking up?" Richie demanded. From what he'd heard Osiris had killed a jinni and that was no easy feat.
"And the fight took what little power he had. Apparently, if he'd been forced to expend any more power then he would have died."
"Right, so what's the problem?"
"He wants you," Lydia said and Richie's head swam. "I don't know what he wants, but to refuse would be worse than idiotic. Even in his current state, he has enough power to decimate your entire clan."
Richie sighed loudly and said, "I'll get my coat."
Lydia led Richie and Victor into the castle. Richie noticed that several items of modern furniture had been moved into the castle to accommodate the new residents. Prior to the Cult's arrival, the castle had been an attraction. People paid nine pounds and they got to look around at all the old relics from a bygone era. Now the antique furniture that had been the property of some lord had been joined by what looked like the Ikea range. Clearly, it was more about functionality than it was style. Richie would have to disguise his distaste when in the presence of Osiris.
As they moved through the halls of the castle, vampires of the Cult came up behind them, no doubt to block their exit if they changed their minds. By the time Lydia showed them to the great hall there were twenty or more vampires around them, all wearing collarless white shirts with the crook and flail emblem on the chest that was customary of the Cult. The doors slammed shut behind them and the Cult vampires positioned themselves around the walls, blocking the doors. At one end of the hall stood a long table and behind it were three people. Osiris sat in the middle. He was a tall man, so tall that the top of his head sat above the back of the high-backed chair in which he sat. His face was thin and angular and his skin had a green tinge to it. He was wearing a white shirt made of a thin fabric that could easily be seen through. There were scars all over his body, no doubt where he had been cut into pieces, but they looked like they were healing and soon would no longer be there. To his left was Michael Aramaya, Lydia's brother, and to his right was a vampire Richie did not know.
Osiris contemplated him with steady black eyes. "Richard Morgan and Victor Redmane," he said in a deep voice, with the slightest hint of raspiness. "Thank you for bringing them, Lydia." He moved his gaze to her and she moved over to the edge of the room.
"Osiris, I presume?" Richie said. Richie had often sat in his own throne room and had people brought before him as a means of intimidation. He was not going to let it work on him.
"In the flesh," Osiris said slowly.
"And all in one piece," Richie said with a grin. Nobody laughed but he'd been expecting that.
Osiris' expression did not alter. "Indeed. Lydia has informed me that I have you to thank for that. In part at least. However, I cannot help but think that had you not stolen a piece of my person and kept it hidden for so long then my return may well have come about a great deal sooner." Osiris raised an eyebrow questioningly.
"Well… I didn't believe that you would actually return to life," Richie lied. He'd known full well that he would return if restored and had worked against that outcome.
"So it was a lack of faith, rather than an act to try and save yourself from the punishment for desertion?" Osiris asked. Richie remained silent, not sure how to answer. Osiris continued. "I heard that my noble captain, Cain, attempted to hold you to account for your crimes but the trial was interrupted."
"Yes, I remember," Richie replied. So this was to be the reschedule of his trial.
"As it happens, that interruption resulted in my return. Nickolas Blackwood kindly reunited the pieces of my body and filled my veins with blood. Even if it was only in aid of his own dastardly machinations."
So Osiris knew about Nickolas' plan to kill him. "Is Nickolas…" Richie started.
"Dead? No, nor will he be by my hand. Despite his intentions, he did revive me and it would seem that he and I share a common enemy."
"Me?" Richie asked. He was square with Nick now.
"No," Osiris said drily. "My brother Set. You've heard the story?"
"Of how he cut you into pieces and scattered you across the earth? Yeah, I've heard it."
"Indeed. He was tired of how I was ruling. He had his own ideas and decided it was his time to rule. Needless to say, he made a mess of things. Our entire race is now gone
, save for three of us. And now that I am back, it is time to hold him to account for his crimes. I have learned that he is here in this very town."
"And where do I fit into all this?" Richie asked.
Osiris took a deep breath and gave Richie a long hard stare. "I am weak," he confessed, clearly with difficulty. "I need to be at full strength when I face my brother and I am a long way from it. I need you to put your clan to use and fortify this castle until I am ready to leave it."
"So you don't want me to fight Set with you?" Richie wanted to confirm it. There was no way he'd lead his people into that fight. It was unlikely that any of them would survive it.
"That would be pointless. You wouldn't last ten seconds. No, I only need your protection whilst I regenerate. The Cult are more than capable of defending me I am sure, but my brother is incredibly cunning and I would rest easier knowing that as many vampires as possible were guarding this castle."
"And why should I put my people at risk for you?" Richie asked. He just wanted to stay out of all the dramas. He had his own task to do and he wanted no part of anyone else's.
"Need I remind you that you swore an oath of allegiance to this Cult. Membership to the Cult of Osiris is for life. However, if you do this one simple task then I shall release you from your oath," Osiris said. "However, if you need more of an incentive." He raised his hand and placed it over the top of the vampire's sitting next to him. The vampire looked at Osiris' hand in confusion but did not move. "This is Josiah. One of the oldest vampires in existence. I created the vampires. My intention was to have my own army of super soldiers. The Aramaya family, of whom you are familiar, were the first vampires. I created them using an elixir of my own design. All other vampires came from them. Josiah was the first vampire created by Cain Aramaya." Osiris didn't move but Richie could tell that he was doing something. Josiah's eyes widened and he clamped his mouth shut. He let out a strangled moan and then fell against the back of his chair panting heavily.
"What did you do?" Richie asked. He didn't seem to do anything other than make it difficult for Josiah to breath.
"I took away his vampirism. I made him human once more. You see, I created the vampires and I can uncreate them if it is my will," Osiris explained.
Josiah let out a low moan and Richie looked at him once again. What Richie saw was one of the most horrifying things he had seen in all the years he'd lived. Josiah's smooth skin started to wrinkle. His dark hair turned grey and wispy. He raised a hand to his face, trying to determine what was happening to him and when he felt his ageing skin he let out a croaky moan. He continued to deteriorate and Osiris sat motionlessly beside him, eyes trained on Richie. Josiah's eyes sunk back in his head and then disappeared. His hair fell out, landing scruffily on the stone floor. The vampires around the room were shifting about uncomfortably, but none of them made a sound. Richie's stomach was turning over and over. He wanted to look away but couldn't bring himself to move. Josiah's skin grew thinner and thinner and as it stretched it started to crumble in hundreds of flakes of dandruff, leaving only bone behind. Then Josiah made a hiccough like noise and he jolted forward. His skull hung limply over the table and swung from side to side twice before growing still. The room was silent. Richie stared at the skeleton a moment longer and then returned his gaze to Osiris.
"You could have just told me you could do that. You didn't have to show me," Richie said sourly. He absolutely loathed the man sitting behind the table. Even Michael looked uncomfortable sitting next to him.
"I find that a demonstration is far more effective than mere words. Judging by the look on your face, I would say that I am correct. Besides, Josiah failed me in the past. He was one of the guards protecting me when Set attacked. I do not respond well to failure, Richard Morgan. That is why I have not liberated Cain or Ramsay from their current predicaments. I expect to see your people at the castle within the hour."
Lydia showed them back out of the castle and only once they'd crossed the drawbridge and were safely away from Osiris and his minions did anyone speak.
"So, you see why we have a problem," Lydia said.
"Oh, yes," Richie replied, still feeling like he needed to vomit.
"Osiris said he was weak," Victor said, his voice faint. He was clearly affected by the demonstration inside. "Why don't we return with the clan and kill him?"
"He isn't that weak. He's only weak against another ancient, or some other powerful being. He'd make short work of any vampire," Lydia explained.
"How is he treating you?" Richie asked. Dreading the answer. He hated to think of anybody mistreating Lydia, to say he had a soft spot for her would be an understatement.
"It's not too bad. Michael said that little stunt he pulled on Josiah won't work on my family. We're pure vampires and it takes a little more to unmake us. Don't think I won't be taking the first chance to escape, though."
"Why don't you run now?" Victor asked.
"My family has Osiris' blood in our veins. He can track us easily, just like we can track each other. Running would just get me a death sentence. What are you going to do?" she asked Richie.
"Exactly what he said. I'm going to guard him until he's strong enough to fight Set."
"Really? You're just going to bow down?" Lydia said, resentment obvious in her tone.
"I'm not bowing to anyone. Oh no, that thing in there is a danger to us all. He can't be allowed to live," Richie said.
"What are you planning?" Victor asked, dread rising in his eyes.
"I'm going to find Set, I'm going to tell him how weak Osiris is and I'm going to bring him here, and when I do our people will be ordered to let him through."
*
CHAPTER THREE
Things were different now. Nick could feel it. There was a change in the town. Osiris was here. Set was here. A war between two ancients would soon break out. Nick was surprised that it hadn't already; he could only deduce that Osiris was laying low and strategising before he attacked. Nick had kept the Thirteen out of the way. He had confined them all to the house including himself. The only one who had been permitted to leave was Jamal who was under cover. They couldn't afford to get caught up in the ensuing fight, they could not contend with ancients. Not even with Nick's newly acquired jinni powers.
The jinni magic he had stolen from Aniketos was like nothing he'd ever felt before. Nick was one of the most powerful sorcerers in the world before he had taken the jinni magic, now he was on a whole new level. It felt as though his power had doubled. Maybe even tripled. But it still was not enough. Osiris had been weak when he'd killed Aniketos. That meant that in comparison to the ancients, Aniketos was weak. Which meant that Nick was still not strong enough to defeat Kayla. He needed more power. His options were; find a way to kill Osiris and claim his power, or go and find a stronger jinni. Both were near impossible tasks. What frustrated Nick the most was that the Thirteen had all the power they needed to complete their goal, but they would not be able to do so until Kayla was out of the picture. There was another way to remove Kayla from the equation, an easier way than killing an ancient or jinni.
The door to Nick's study swung open and Jamal and Kristen strolled in. They crossed the room to where Nick was sitting by the fire and Jamal fell into the vacant armchair, Kristen perched herself on the arm.
"You called us?" Jamal said casually.
"Yes. It's time to get back to work," Nick said quietly, still thinking things through in his head. "What's going on in town, Jamal?" Having Jamal on the town police force meant that Nick had eyes virtually everywhere, as it was their job to keep control over supernatural matters. Not that they did it particularly well.
"Well, the vampires and the werewolves have been fairly quiet, but the coven is being hunted."
"Hunted? By what?"
Jamal shrugged. "They seem to think it's us. It's definitely a warlock, I've seen the evidence, but other than that I've got no idea," he said.
"Could it be Osiris?" Kristen asked. "Maybe he's trying
to increase his power to fight Set."
Nick shook his head. "The power he'd get from the coven wouldn't be enough to leave any lasting damage on Set. It's someone else."
"Someone we should be worried about?" Jamal asked.
Nick shook his head. "No warlock in the world is powerful enough to take us on. Not even if they killed the entire coven and took their powers. Keep your ears open, but otherwise don't worry about it. What else is going on?"
"An agent from MI5 has turned up and taken over SIT. He says that if we don't get a handle on things then more agents will turn up to kill everything supernatural."
Nick snorted. "Good luck."
"They have access to the weapons from the research labs now, so they might not need luck," Jamal countered.
"Ah yes, the weapons I instructed you to destroy," Nick said to Kristen, giving her a pointed stare.
"I tried, it's not my fault there were defences in place," she said defensively.
"It hardly matters. There's nothing in there that can cause us any serious harm."
"Phil's calling a meeting between the factions. He wants them all on the same page fighting for the same thing," said Jamal.
"Which is?"
"Getting us out of town," Jamal said.
Nick closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair, thinking. They couldn't afford to take their time any longer. They needed to finish up and get out of town. The factions wouldn't be able to kill Nick, but they could kill his disciples and they could trap Nick as the coven had before. It wouldn't do well to underestimate them. "Alright, I was going to pull you out from under cover but I think it would be more useful to leave you there for now. Keep an eye on things and try to sabotage any action they want to take against us. Don't dance about, though, if anybody gets in your way kill them. And I mean anybody," Nick added the last bit knowing that Jamal had grown feelings for Clara Winters. Feelings that he could not allow to compromise their plans.
