Circle of Death

by Thais Lopes

  “You died.”

  She nodded.

  “People said there was an explosion, some said they were under attack... No one understood what happened that night. And Seth disappeared for months after that. When he came back, he was already covered with scars.”

  “I was never really in the final death. Death kept me on the limbo, where she keeps the souls that may be useful to her again. Some time later she brought me back. She had problems. Her White Hand was using the deaths she owed to increase his own life. He was too powerful and none of the Hands could destroy him, and because of their deals Death couldn’t simply take him. She asked me to fix it. I would have another life, would kill this White Hand and take his place. In return I asked for some new powers and made sure she wouldn’t be able to send anyone else after me. And I also kept all the deaths she hadn’t paid me, double.” She showed her left forearm. “All the scars of my first life, I received again. And that’s how my spirit was released into another body, instead of a new soul. I got to keep my name, to Death’s chagrin, as it was my father who named me. And that’s all.”

  I didn’t say anything. It was strange looking at Kelene, seeing a normal woman, and remembering the past, when we had met in the Middle Age. She had a good reason to hide all her secrets. The Nameless’ daughter. The White Hand. The Fae’s ally. The one who came closer to destroying Seth. It was hard to believe it all.

  “Surprised?” She asked.

  “Yes. I would have never guessed any of it.”

  She smiled, while I was still unsure about what to say. No, I knew what to say.

  “You’re unique, Kelene.”

  This time, her reaction to my words was different, and her smile became one I considered breathtaking: sincere and with no reserve.

  26. Kelene

  The moment for memories ended when another question crossed my mind and I remembered something Lucio had said earlier. I had already thought about it, but it didn’t seem as important as it did now. Seth had been a Keeper, along with Lucio, and then they had abandoned the Sanctuary.

  “Lucio, is there another Keeper? Was someone trained after Seth abandoned the Sanctuary?”

  “No.” He answered, following my line of thought. “It’s only me. And Seth didn’t only abandon the Sanctuary. He turned against Death. About a hundred years ago he still worked for her, but he isn’t a Keeper since the Intervention. In the last century, he even refused to negotiate with Death, and probably just made this deal because I made him furious.

  It wasn’t by chance that the Sanctuary had two Keepers. That was the necessary number to keep the balance of power. With only one Keeper, the Sanctuary was vulnerable and the prison weakened. Besides, Death would never negotiate any power with someone who had broken a vow to her. Negotiate transformations and deaths, yes. But powers? Never.

  “He is helping the Nameless. That’s how he got his new powers.” I told him.

  “Can he still do it? I suspected but wasn’t sure.”

  “The Nameless can do many things Death doesn’t even imagine. You and Seth are bound to him, and that means that anything he has can be shared with you. I guess Death is confident that the Intervention is invincible, but I can bet that the Nameless has already found a way to deflect it.”

  Lucio stared at me, his surprise and confusion clearly visible.

  “There is no way to defeat the Intervention. Believe me, I tried. We tried, for a long time.”

  I shook my head, my mind racing. He didn’t understand the dimension of the problem.

  “It’s impossible to defeat the Intervention. But, for the Nameless, finding a way to deflect it would be simply an intellectual pastime. And he wouldn’t think twice before teaching it to someone who is working for him. Seth isn’t bound by the Intervention any longer, Lucio. And soon many others won’t be.”

  He nodded slowly, shocked. Apparently he had never thought about that possibility.

  “As soon as Death realizes what is going on, she’ll place new restrictions. I don’t understand what he would gain with it.”

  I stared at him, surprised that he didn’t follow my line of thought. But that shouldn’t have surprised me. He had been trained to think as a Keeper, his focus was on protecting the Sanctuary, its secrets and its prison. I had been trained to be the White Hand, the last line between Death and the living. I would recognize a threat to her.

  “He wants to destroy Death, Lucio. The Nameless has Seth working for him, since he can’t leave the prison.” I told him, without any doubts. All my instincts screamed that I had guessed right, and that meant we were in big trouble.

  “We have to warn Death.” Lucio said as he got up and started pacing, not doubting me.

  “Yes, but I’m sure she won’t believe me. It will be better if we already have plans before talking to her.” I replied, picking up the phone and dialing the number saved as the last call.

  The phone rang a couple of times before someone answered. But no one said anything, and I heard the soft sound of breathing on the other side of the line.

  “It’s Kelene.” I said.

  “Lady!” It was Avés, as I expected. “Any problem?”

  “Yes. We need to talk, face to face.”

  “Be at the Red Moon at midnight.”

  “Don’t wait for us if we’re late. Put everyone on high alert.” I took a deep breath, thinking about what else we would need. “Can you make sure we have cover?”

  “Of course. Will you call anyone else?”

  I turned to Lucio, unsure. He was close enough to hear both sides of the conversation, and nodded as soon as I looked at him.

  “Yes.” I told Avés.

  “Good.” He said before hanging up.

  I put the phone down and turned to Lucio again.

  “The Witches’ Council is with us. They told me I could count them as allies when the time came. I didn’t know what they are talking about, but now…” He explained before I could ask.

  “Tell them to send someone with a good disguise. We’ll call too much attention without a known mage among us.” I said.

  Lucio nodded, going to his bedroom, and I went to mine.

  27. Lucio

  We entered the Red Moon fifteen minutes before midnight. Kelene was responsible for our delay, as she insisted on going to Alice’s apartment to warn her to stay away from anything related to the Otherworld and keep her cell phone close. Why not call her? According to Kelene, because some things had to be said in person.

  Kelene was so sure on her way to the club that it confirmed my suspicions that she didn’t know it only by reputation, as she had said before. We entered and went down to the club itself. From the walkway, I could see most people there were Fae. And most of them seemed to be drunk.

  “Damned Fey celebrations.” A were muttered as he passed beside us, leaving the club.

  Kelene didn’t hide a soft laugh.

  “Poor Otherworld people who aren’t used to the Fae’s parties…” And then she became serious. “He is old, I’m glad he’s gone. One less potential spy.”

  I had thought the same thing. Few still used the word Fey to describe the Fae and, of those, almost all were related to Death’s Sanctuary.

  As soon as we started walking between the tables, we were separated and drawn to different groups of people. I would have resisted if I hadn’t seen the glint of recognition in Kelene’s eyes. She went with them, without any resistance, in the middle of that crazy celebration of drunk sidhes and elves, and was soon out of my sight.

  I followed the sidhes taking me in a crazy and drunken dance, and soon saw myself beside a table, where Kelene was already sitting, beside Avés and someone from the Witches’ Council.

  “Greetings, Lucius. We have a privacy dome around us, and my people’s celebration will hide us.” Avés said.

  “None of them are drunk, are they?” I asked.

  “Do you have any idea of how much alcohol is neede
d to get anyone from the Fae drunk?” Kelene shot me an amused glance.

  “Most people are already used to leaving when one of our celebrations start. There wasn’t any easier way to keep the club mostly for ourselves.” The sidhe added.

  “Now tell us what brought us here.” The Council’s envoy asked, her face changing all the time, but I recognized Lilian the Seer’s voice.

  “You both know about how Seth attacked us, right?” Kelene waited until they nodded. “Well, Lucio just came back from the Sanctuary and said the Nameless kept up to date with the outside world. And this can only mean one thing.”

  “Seth is working for him.” Avés completed. “But what could they want?”

  While Kelene explained what she had guessed, I kept watch. Most of the Fae around us were probably warriors, but I couldn’t trust them enough to relax. And I could see that many sidhes glanced at Kelene, and their expressions were enough to tell me that they knew her and wanted to approach, but had other orders. Those who weren’t Fae kept close to the walls, as far as possible from the liveliest part of the celebration, which was around us. Besides, there were only sidhes and elves there, the Fae’s best warriors. Avés had taken Kelene’s words seriously and prepared for any emergency.

  “I’ll go there tomorrow.” Kelene was saying when I turned my attention back to the table. “I can help strengthen the prison, too.”

  “Do you know how much you will be risking?” Avés asked, as if he had read my thoughts.

  “Yes, but are you willing to risk letting him escape?” She replied.

  Lilian nodded.

  “You’re right, Kelene. It is a risk we must take. We’ll be monitoring the energy around the Sanctuary. I’ll send a warning, the witches will be on alert and will help wherever we are needed.”

  “So will we.” Avés agreed. “Do what you must, lady. The Fae are your unconditional allies, as always.”

  “Thank you. And be careful. I’ll get in touch with Death today, but I don’t think she will believe me.”

  “She won’t.” The seer said. “But you must talk to her still.”

  Kelene got up and I did the same. This time, the Fae didn’t separate us, and we lost ourselves in their celebration before moving toward the exit.

  While we went back to the apartment, I thought about what I would do after that. I hadn’t forgotten that human blood didn’t feed the vampires any longer, unless they were sworn to Seth, and I knew that soon the hunger would be upon me. Kelene’s blood, more powerful than any I had tasted before, still sustained me. But it wouldn’t last much longer. What would I do when that happened? It was better if I got away from Kelene before any accidents happened, as I knew any vampire would kill if he let himself go hungry.

  We entered the apartment in silence and she locked the door, already speaking.

  “I’m going to call Death and tell her what we figured out, but I’m sure she won’t believe a word.”

  I hugged and kissed her, letting myself enjoy her taste before telling her about my decision.

  “You’ll have to continue alone. It won’t be safe to stay with you. I don’t know if Avés told you, but human blood only feeds those who are loyal to Seth now. I’ll try to cause as many problems for him as I can, but that’s all I can do before I lose myself to the hunger.

  “I should have imagined you would say this.” She answered, facing me. “A vampire your age can keep his strength taking blood every two or three days, right?”

  I nodded, understanding where she was going with that, but without truly believing it. After all, her blood had fed me after Seth’s attack, and now I knew why.

  “In this body I’m not the Nameless’ biological daughter, but my spirit is still tied to his. No power he uses can change my body’s structure. Which means my blood can still feed vampires. One vampire.”

  “Are you sure?” If she did that she would never be at full strength, but her blood would surely sustain me.

  “Yes. The last Keeper can’t fall. And I can’t do it alone, I need you.”

  “So be it.” I answered, and she smiled.

  “Now I’m going to call Death.”

  She closed her eyes, concentrating, and seconds later Death appeared, once again seeming to reflect her.

  28. Kelene

  “What do you want, Kelene?” She used that voice that only I ever heard, and that spoke loud and clear that I was a nuisance. But that didn’t work anymore.

  “We need to talk. There’s more at stake than your control over me.”

  “Speak.” She crossed her arms, and I took a deep breath to help me remain calm.

  “Did you think about why Seth wants to get rid of Lucio and why he offered me as a payment?”

  “I don’t care about Seth’s vengeances, but he offered you because he remembers the one task he didn’t complete and wants to redeem himself.” Her answer was dry.

  “Do you really want so much to see me turned into a vampire that you would risk releasing my father? The Sanctuary has only one Keeper left, and you were going to take him. The symbols of final death reappeared in all the old imprisonments, you know what it means!”

  “You father decided to go to sleep. I do watch over his prison, you know. And the symbols reappearing mean nothing. It’s just an old superstition.”

  I shook my head, frustrated. I should have waited for that. But still… How could she blind herself so completely?

  “He fooled you.” I spoke softly, and went on before she could interrupt me. “No, listen to me at least once. He fooled you before, and spent centuries without anything to do but planning his next move. Seth has new powers and I don’t think you gave them to him. He is helping the Nameless.”

  “You became very imaginative, Kelene. Did you forget the Intervention?”

  “No, but it’s not impossible to deflect it. We are talking about the man who deceived Death herself. He could find a way around the Intervention.

  “Enough, Kelene. I have more to do besides listening to you letting your imagination speak louder than common sense.”

  She disappeared after saying that, and I stared at where she had been, incredulous. How? How could she blind herself like that? Furious, frustrated and worried, I turned around and punched the wall, barely feeling the pain.

  “Idiot!” I screamed, even though she wouldn’t hear me. Why couldn’t she see she wasn’t invincible? The Nameless only existed because he had fooled her, but she was sure nothing would change!

  Lucio hugged me tightly, whispering soothing words. It was like an antidote to all that anger… Anger and fear, as I knew what I would have to do. I would have to face the Nameless again.

  “Now it’s up to us. I need to go to the Sanctuary.”

  “I’ll go with you.” He said.

  “No. This is something I need to do alone.” I answered, even though I hated the idea of entering that chamber. “And you need to get in touch with the vampire Masters.”

  He nodded, and I moved away.

  “I’m going to sleep. I don’t know when I’ll be anywhere safe again.”

  I went to my bedroom and dressed for bed quickly. I was already lying down when I remembered something far more important, and that I didn’t know if I would have another chance of doing. It was worth risking it.

  As I imagined, Lucio was sitting on his bed, reading. I entered without knocking and sat down beside him after one second of hesitation. I didn’t want to repeat the scene of the beginning of the week. He put the book down beside him and stared at me, silent. Taking a deep breath, I gathered my courage.

  “You survived running, but I survived by learning not to back down.”

  He stayed in silent for a couple of seconds before speaking.

  “What do you mean?”

  “You know.”

  “Kelene…”

  “I can read emotions, Lucio. Don’t lie, please.”

  “It’s not safe, Kelene. For any of
us. It will never be.”

  “You know who I am. I’m not an ordinary woman. I’ve already said this but I’ll repeat: I can take care of myself. You’ve already seen it. You saw me keeping Seth away, you saw me negotiating with Death… Are you still afraid?

  “It’s not fear, it’s just a precaution.

  “Then I’m saying there’s no need for precaution.

  He stared at me with an intensity I hadn’t seen so far, before dragging me close and kissing me.

  29. Lucio

  Kelene left when the sun was rising, saying that I didn’t need to worry about her safety, as she would be on alert and using death’s pathways, that strange limbo the Hands used to travel quickly. But I couldn’t avoid worrying, especially after what had happened that night. She had offered me blood from her left breast and I accepted.

  I had no idea if she knew the meaning that had to vampires, and the old magick invoked by that act, but I was almost sure she didn’t know. Anyway, that night I had fully understood my feelings for Kelene. And not only that, I had Sealed those feelings in a way I knew few vampires ever dared to.

  None of that left my mind while I got ready to visit the vampire Masters. I wanted to talk to them tonight, and try to find a way to keep the vampires from completely losing control. But I had an uneasy feeling, as if I was sure Kelene was in danger.

  Few hours later, her phone rang. I ignored it, as we had agreed that I would never answer that line. I already knew it was the number the Hands knew and used to get in touch with her, but it was better if they didn’t know about my presence there. A couple of seconds after the phone stopped ringing, there was another call. And another. On the tenth call, I answered.

  “Lady!” A woman spoke quickly, before I could say anything, her panic and terror easily recognizable. “They were caught, all the other six, turned! I’m the last and-”

  I heard a crashing noise, a scream, and then the line went dead. The six, seven with the woman. She must be one of the White Hand’s circle, those Hands that were stronger than all the others, as she had explained me. But who had turned them and why? What was Seth’s intention with it? And there was nothing I could do to help them, nor any way to be sure that anything I did would interfere with Seth’s plans. And I had no doubt he was behind it.