My hands were faster.
The spiked ball made contact with his head, jarring loose the helmet and crushing his skull. I snapped Maria backwards to another attacker who thought he’d use the distraction. In an instant, two men were dead as blood and teeth scattered through the air.
The numbers were thinning in this first initial wave of attack. Radu was a maestro of the battlefield, spinning and twirling as he avoided both spells and blade. Each time he came near one of the church’s assassins, he made sure this would be the last battle they participated in. He was almost surgical with his blows, knowing where to strike to cause the maximum amount of damage with limited effort on his part. To see him in battle was a sight to behold.
Both a terrifying and awe-inspiring sight.
“Cassie, how’s that ley line coming?” I asked after I’d taken down another opponent.
“We almost got it activated,” she said. The way her voice sang, you could tell you were in the presence of something incredible taking place.
Four more men landed in the kill zone. The man in front was dressed different than the rest of the holy warriors. Up until this point, they all were the same - white armor emblazoned with a blue cross. It was very Templar of them.
This one, this warrior was outfitted quite differently. He didn’t even have to unmask himself for me to know who it was.
“Jean Pollard…”
“You remembered, Brinza.”
He removed his golden face plate to reveal his face. “I’d never forget a snake like you, pretending that hunting my family down is God’s work,” I snarled.
“Look at what you surround yourself with,” he bit back. “Don’t you try to play the holy card with me.”
At that moment, Radu slit the throat of the last attack. Blood was running down his face from where he had fed, too. “This is the rodent that has taken up the cause.”
Pollard didn’t back down as the old Dracul approached. Instead, he signaled to the men flanking him, pointing at the two witches behind us. He snapped his fingers and a torrent of white light issued from charms on their gauntlets. The two witches were instantly removed from this plane. It was quite the sight to behold.
“You monster!” Radu roared.
“Not all spells conceived by your brother were in the name of the Damned. The church has no issue with using the power he discovered that originated in Heaven.”
Like every time before, the whole magical part of the battle was lost upon me. I was used to it; instead, I took the opportunity to see a momentary lapse in Pollard.
If I could take this monster out with the flick of a wrist…
As soon as Maria was in motion, Pollard was ready. He removed his sword from the scabbard faster than I’d ever seen done. No ordinary human could’ve pulled off a feat like that as the chain wrapped around the blade. Even Radu’s eyes opened wide, as if he too couldn’t understand why this man’s reflexes were on par with his.
“I’ve been blessed,” he sneered.
“Bull shit, I say.”
His lecture continued. “Once I reported the events at the hangar to the Vatican, it was decided that certain measures needed to be taken,” he explained, his thick French accent making each word more arrogant than the last.
“The Vatican was willing to use my brother’s dark ambition for their own good, it appears.”
Pollard leered at Radu. “Vlad used his discoveries to speak with Satan; we used them to speak to the Lord.”
Before anything more could come of the standoff, the ley line burst into life.
Burst just seemed like such an appropriate word for how the deep, old magical line erupted with a force I’d never seen. The force was so great that storm gusts rushed around all of us; no longer could I even hear Radu who was beside me.
That didn’t stop him from grabbing my arm and pulling me towards Cassie. The success of getting the ley line operational was going to prevent any further bloodshed, at least for this day. Pollard, not one to give up, tried to move forward, but an invisible force was keeping him at bay. With a quick wave, I turned and followed Radu towards our exit. It was time to go home.
Cassie pointed downwards. The witches who’d helped her already had vanished. “I will close the line behind us,” she screamed at the top of her lungs. It still was just enough where I could barely hear her.
The pit that wasn’t there before was ominous. Flashes of yellow light streaked all around, making it look like a portal right to Hell. Radu didn’t even hesitate, jumping on in. Cassie motioned for me to do so, but I was a little more pessimistic about this. When I wasn’t moving fast enough for her, she tried to push me. I held back, but someone else wanted me to jump, as well.
It’ll be okay, Castor. I’m with you.
“I’m trusting you, Luka.”
And with that, I went into the abyss.
****
I was back on the family porch. Beside me was Luka; this time he appeared to be in his early twenties. He had the same kind eyes and warm smile that I recalled in every flashback.
The difference was this time he was grievously wounded. Blood soaked his shirt where it was clear he’d been stabbed. “Don’t worry about that,” he gently told me.
“But Luka, you’ll die if you don’t get that tended to.”
He shook his head. “Castor, this is the end of my story.”
A tear slid down my eye after a moment. “This is the end?”
“For me, yes,” he answered. “For you, this is just the beginning.”
“What do you mean?” I choked out.
“That’s a difficult question to answer simply. With my limited time, I’ll tell you what I can,” he responded.
The time to ask questions passed. I sat there, in our own little break of time and listened to Luka’s final story. He’d just come back from town learning some joyous news, his girlfriend Sofia was pregnant. While Luka was overwhelmed and beyond happy with such news, Sofia’s family never approved of him. The rumors the church leaked into the community to help exile the Brinza family even more than we were had worked.
Sofia’s father was livid.
On Luka’s way home, Sofia’s father attacked with two of the clergymen from the Catholic church that recently came to El Paso. The real reason the church was established was to continue its shadow quest to eliminate my family. Stabbing a young man, alone and in the dark was the coward’s way. My blood boiled even more as the story went on.
Luka was able to escape after the initial skirmish, but unfortunately his wound was fatal. He was bleeding out and he knew his time was up. Even though I barely knew my grandfather, to see him in such a state brought about the kind of hate I didn’t even know possible was inside me. I wanted to find those who did this to him and return the price.
“I see your feelings, Castor. They are the same ones that Abigail is about to have. She is the one to discover me, right before I pass.”
God o’mighty, I can’t even imagine her rage. “Julia told me about her husband, Max, who’d been killed by a clergyman,” I told him.
“Max, he was the one who’d kept her human - that’s what Julia had told me,” he responded.
“I don’t want to take full credit, but I’m pretty sure my death took away what was left of her hope in us, humans, that is,” he joked.
Even in death, Luka showed no fear, only warmth and compassion.
“You’re going to send me away before she gets here, aren’t you?” I asked.
“Abigail’s wrath isn’t something I’d want any of her relatives to see. I will not soil her legacy in such a way.”
That actually made me feel better. “I’m going to miss you, Luka.”
“There’s no reason for this to be goodbye. Hopefully as your journey continues, you’ll understand more about this power,” he said.
It still felt like an ending, of sorts. “Still, thank you for giving me this insight.”
“Before this visit ends, allow me to impart some w
isdom, grandson.”
Hearing him call me that was surreal. I felt the love radiating off of him, much like a grandson would expect from his grandfather. “I’d be honored, Grandfather.”
“Brinza men are cursed, cursed to give their hearts to ones who are dangerous to them.”
“Are you telling me to be careful?”
He chuckled, which was harrowing because some blood coughed up as he did. “The world is grey, it’s murky, and it’s difficult. Dangerous or not, love is worth fighting for.”
That may have been one of the most beautiful things I’d ever heard. As the last word rolled out of Luka’s mouth, I could hear the screech of Abigail, finding the scene for the very first time.
Someone tapped my shoulder. “Let’s go before you see something you’ll never to be able to un-see.”
There was a tall, lanky man with scruff building on his face. His pale green eyes and quirky smile were somehow familiar, though I’d never seen him before. “Who are you?”
“Castor, my name is David Brinza. I’m your father.”
Chapter Thirteen
**Nazi Germany; 1941 the year of our Lord**
T he head of a British soldier was dropped on the floor. The lifeless orb was shredded at the neckline in a zigzagged pattern; it was a beautiful sight to behold!
“Otto, it vorked!” I hated speaking English, but with the witch present, it would be rude to not include her.
She tapped her foot, unimpressed. “A ghoul or daemon coulda done what he did, Gerhard,” she said absentmindedly.
I was not surprised by her tones of dismissal. “Alura,” I countered. “What you have before you will be ze greatest warrior to grace ze battlefield! The pride of the Seventh Reich!”
“Boring,” she drawled in her deep Irish accent.
It was easy to see Otto was becoming greatly annoyed with the witch. “We will respect our guests,” I reminded him quietly in our native tongue. Switching back to the crude, common language, “Without him, ze battle will not go in our favor.”
But I’d lost her. No matter, Vlad Dracul’s vision was coming together just as I’d foreseen. The man was a genius and his life’s work needed to be fulfilled. I may not have been able to make a deal directly with Satan for the powers I needed to provide my Führer, but this was a close second. The journal tucked into my interior pocket of my Nazi uniform was the gateway to unlimited power, to ridding the world of the unclean and creating a Utopia for those that were worthy.
The only thing that eluded me was the power of vampirism.
That would change soon enough. I needed this wretched witch if I had any hopes of taking Radu Dracul. His blood was the purest and closest to Vlad’s walking this Earth. Rumors of other vampires that survived the Vatican’s purge were out there, but there was no rumor to Radu. He was alive and well.
“Gerhard, where’d ye get the body?” Alura asked, poking around the super soldier.
It was an odd question. Of all the marvels that I’d performed, wondering where the subject came from was the least interesting. “I found him in ze journal; specific directions to a tomb that Vlad used for his own experiments. He is nothing but a corpse,” I assured her.
“If ye say so.”
I wasn’t sure what the witch meant, nor did I care. I looked at the time; Hitler would be arriving any moment to my castle to see the latest. I gave Otto a short nod, signaling for him to escort the witch out. I didn’t want her attitude to turn off the one man who could lead us to our end goal.
With Otto and Alura gone, I sighed. “Well my friend,” returning to German. “Soon it will be time to reveal you to the world.”
**El Paso, Texas; 1941 the year of our Lord**
As the vision came to an end, I found myself on the exact same front porch. Only this time, my companions weren’t spirits from the past. In the center of the group was Julia. “Welcome home, Castor,” she greeted me.
It’d felt like a lifetime since I was physically here last (not counting my spiritual trips to visit my grandpa, Luka). It was just me, Radu, and Cassie here. I almost asked about the other witches, but then I realized I had more pressing matters to deal with.
“Why didn’t I know the truth about Luka?” I asked her.
“Cutting right into the meat of everything, aren’t you?” Julia quipped back.
“I had every right to know. And what about David?” I just kept going.
Radu and Cassie seemed to realize that this late night/early morning argument was a family affair and slowly faded into the background, out of sight. I didn’t care if they heard me or not. Cassie had already warned Julia that this topic would be brought up; granted she had told her to ask me about it. But after that last vision… I wasn’t waiting.
Again, I’d always known my family was persecuted for who we were, but to actually see a good, decent man stabbed and killed over love? That was a whole different beast unto itself. I understood Abigail’s feelings at that moment.
If circumstances were just a tiny bit different, I might be on her side hunting Julia.
Julia was resigned to the fact that we were doing this. “How do you explain to a hot headed youth that his grandfather was killed in cold blood? Luka was a precious being who meant no one any ill will. His death was cold, calculated, and unnecessary.”
“What happened to David?” I reiterated.
“That’s not a story I wish to relive, thank you,” she rebutted.
“Julia,” Radu’s raspy voice called from the shadows. “He has a right to know what is happening to him. If David’s story can provide him, no us, that information, it is deserved.”
Julia’s red eyes flared in his direction. “When this is over,” she barked. “We are going to have quite the conversation, Uncle.”
Silence
I couldn’t quite picture Radu afraid of anyone until now. Julia was a scary being in her own right. She seemed satisfied for the moment with the conclusion of that conversation. It didn’t make me feel all that comforting when she focused back on me. Julia’s demeanor had changed; on edge, not comfortable at all.
“Abigail, she's gotten worse,” Julia segued into.
“How so?”
She kicked a spot on the porch out of frustration. “One of the side effects to immortality is hatred. The longer you're alive, the easier it is to let ill will consume you to the point of no return.”
I didn't want to think about that eventuality. “What's our plan moving forward?”
The first bit of sunlight was breaking over the horizon. We maybe had thirty more minutes before Julia and Radu retreated for the day. “We need to draw her out. With Radu here, that might be a lot easier than before.”
The rest of the time we had on the porch was spent catching up. Julia had been trying her best to keep Abigail's bloody tendencies in check while I had been in Europe. She was skeptical of the witch but did relent that having a wild card to use helped us more than it hurt. She did warn me that playing with dark magic would only lead to tragedy.
“Our families, both Brinza and Dracul, are drawn to magic. Be careful with that one,” she warned.
Soon Radu wandered into the house with Julia on his heels. “We still need to talk,” she snapped as the door shut.
“Time isn't on our side.”
Cassie rejoined me on the empty front porch as the warmth of light washed over the front of the house. “There's a dark cloud coming, isn't there?”
Sitting beside me, “Radu knows much more than he lets on. I get the feeling he was always coming here, no matter the outcome of the negotiations we had.”
A chill ran up my spine. “Abigail's close,” I murmured.
“I can feel a presence, a powerful one just out of sight. It's like she's not shielding herself from you,” the witch agreed.
Abigail and I were very close, for a very long time. I was about to do something incredibly dumb. “What if I told you I could end this without bloodshed?”
Cassie scoffed. “A c
enturies old vampire who has lost her humanity and you're going to end it peacefully? Please.”
“Trust me on this.”
I reached my hand out. We were both tired and hurting after everything it took just to get us here, but I had a gut feeling. To do this, I needed Cassie to come along. Abigail had a weak spot that was there for exploiting.
Cassie started to put her hand in mine and then hesitated. I could see her brain was working overtime to decide if this was a good idea or not. Seconds seemed like hours but then as quick as a rattlesnake, she snapped her hand into mine.
“If you get me killed,” she warned.
“I'll already be dead, so no skin off my back.”
The two of us got up and walked off the porch into the Texas sunshine. It was the beginning of a beautiful day; it was a shame it needed to be ruined by the evils of the world. I had a sneaky feeling where we needed to go, that Abigail would be there waiting for me.
“It's a bit of a hike, I apologize.”
Cassie grumbled and complained the entire way. She wanted to use magic but I was firmly against it. The use could've spooked Abigail away or worse, caused her to attack. Within about an hour, we were almost there.
“You see that little shack, the one beside the graveyard?” I asked.
Cassie narrowed her eyes in the direction I was motioning. “Don't tell me that's where we are going.”
“It was our hiding spot, for when I was scared. Even Julia didn't know we came here,” I explained.
“What scared you as a child?” she asked.
“Other people.”
We approached the shack and I gave Cassie the nonverbal instruction to hang back. I slowly approached the door and gave it a quick knock. She was in there, I felt it.
“You never knocked before,” Abigail's soft voice responded.
“I just wanted to make sure we were welcome.”
A sigh. “My fight is not with you or the witch cowering behind you. Come in before she loses her nerve.”
Behind me, Cassie's skin color had gone pale and she was shaking. I didn't know what caused this reaction so I grabbed her hand and hurried her inside.
Rise of the Seventh Reich Page 8
