by F. J. Gale
“Yes, I know, by a thousand men. But their skills in battle cannot match ours.”
“The faster we take out Silas, the fewer casualties there will be. Without The Hunter, it's up to you alone.”
“Silas will die this night,” Mathias vowed.
Valta nodded. Good luck, my friend.
“Time to rally the troops,” Mathias said. He reached for the door to the dining hall and opened it. Immediately a ferocious, deafening roar of thousands of voices flooded his ears. He walked towards the front of the room where two microphone stands stood. He waited for Valta to join him. He gestured for him to begin. After all, he was the current commander of Eternus.
Valta raised his hand for silence. Immediately, his troops obeyed.
“Tonight we march on Immortalia,” he paused for effect and applause thundered. “Eternus has operated in the shadows for the last couple of centuries. But tonight our former glory will be reignited. We will remind the likes of Silas and his men why Eternus is such a revered army. We will crush them this night. We march with Legion and our former leader to victory!”
Mathias stepped forward amid the thunderous applause following Valta’s speech and the room once again fell silent. He nodded, acknowledging their respect. “My friends, I am honored to stand with you once again. There is no other army more dedicated, more skilled, more powerful. Armageddon is once again on our doorstep. We have seen it before. It is not new to us. But where we have shown mercy before, we shall not tonight. Immortalia is a threat to our very existence. Tonight we end this!”
Mathias had barely finished his sentence when the troops rushed forward, their fists pumped in the air with excitement. They encircled him and, as though they were one fluid organism, they lifted him up, carrying him around the room chanting his name.
Luke approached Valta. “Just like old times.”
Valta smiled. Tonight would be a victory of legend.
CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE
Sweat poured from his body as he continued to pound into her with a vigor fuelled by grief and rage. He heard her yelping from the abrasive ferocity of his thrusts. He pressed the red headed vixen more tightly against the wall, muffling her screams.
“I told you I would put your passions to a better use, Tanya,” he whispered hauntingly in her ear.
“My lord—” she attempted to protest.
He laughed and responded by forcing her onto her knees beside the wall, his fingers digging into her ass as he continued his ruthless assault.
Suddenly, the door to his chambers flew open and his chief security guard barreled in.
“Sorry, my lord,” he started upon seeing the scene before him.
Silas smiled and taunted Tanya. “Hmm, the fun just doubled for you, my dear.” He slowed his speed but didn’t stop what he was doing. He enjoyed making both his security guard and Tanya uncomfortable. “What is it?”
“Sire, we have received reports from several of our spies that Eternus marches for us.”
Silas stopped in his tracks. He pushed Tanya away with both hands and snatched up his robe from atop his bed. He wrapped it around himself and hurried to the window, peering outside. He didn’t see any sign of an army. The night was still.
“Do you have their location?” he demanded.
“Thirty minutes out. Shall I ready the troops, my lord?”
“Yes. Tell them to take no prisoners. But Mathias is mine.”
The security guard nodded and was about to hurry off to do his master’s bidding but stopped short when he felt a vice-like grip on his arm.
“Wait,” Silas ordered. “I want the Day Walkers mobilized.”
“It is night, Sire.”
“I’m aware. I can’t spare any Immortalia soldiers, not with Eternus coming for us. Mobilize them. Use the information provided by our spies to backtrack Eternus’ movements. It will lead them to their base of operations. I want the girl killed.”
“The Hunter?”
“Yes. I want her head.”
The security guard nodded and sped off.
Moments later a siren resounded through the entire estate. The call to war.
“I thought you weren’t going to go after her,” Tanya said, surprised.
Without turning back to her, Silas answered, “I changed my mind.”
CHAPTER TWENTY SIX
“Jenna, please. He asked me to protect you,” Jax called as he watched her struggle towards the front doors of the base, holding onto the wall of the hallway for support. She had somehow managed to shower and dress herself without help, despite her weak state. She was decked out in familiar battle gear—brown cargo pants, a white tank and well-worn brown leather jacket. She was packing several stakes and knives as well as a large broadsword that she had clearly commandeered from somewhere inside the base. He knew she didn’t own one.
“That’s not gonna mean much in a couple of hours when Silas is dead and, by extension, so am I. You know the legend. You wrote one of the books on me for goodness sake.”
“You’re in no state to fight.”
“I just need one clear shot at him. No hand-to-hand or long drawn out battle. Just one shot and I can kill him.”
She reached the doors and paused to catch her breath.
She felt Jax grip her arm, trying to pull her back. “He loves you!”
His words affected her and she stopped short. “I know.”
Using what little strength she possessed now, she shook her arm out of his grip and reached for the doors.
When she stepped outside, her breath caught in her throat.
A dozen men approached, just a few feet away. She squinted to get a better look and that was when she saw that they weren’t men. They were dressed like men, like humans. Long scarlet robes adorned each one of them and they each carried a machete in their right hand. But their faces revealed the truth of what they really were. Their skin was a moldy green, all rotting flesh and scabs. She knew from her readings that their entire bodies were live rot that regenerated as fast as it rotted again. Day Walkers. But it wasn’t the daytime. What’s happening here?
“Silas has found the base. They’re here to kill you. Retribution for Arthur,” Jax yelled from behind her.
Instinctively, she drew her sword, then hesitated. There was no way she could take them in her current state. Before she could even think about turning back, they were upon her in one incredibly fast blur of motion. Jax tried to intervene, but she knocked him back. He was no warrior. She couldn’t let him die for her. This was her fight.
“Silas wants your head, slayer,” they spoke in unison.
Jenna had seen a lot of disturbing things during her decade as The Hunter. But witnessing the sight of their disgusting rotting flesh just a few feet in front of her and thinking about them about to touch her was stomach-churning. It was all she could do not to throw up.
She raised her sword. They raised theirs. Jax yelled frantically from behind her.
Automatic fire cut through the air. Bullets sputtered and echoed through the wide expanse of empty fields surrounding them, flooding her senses. Jenna watched as the bullets tore through the Day Walkers like they were mush, ripping their rotting bodies to shreds within moments. She averted her eyes and tried to shield herself with the arm of her jacket.
As the last one of them perished at her feet, the gunfire stopped. Before she could ascertain what or who, the sky opened with a deafening crack.
She looked upwards and a blue light shone down from the heavens just a few inches from where she stood. An inexplicable feeling possessed her to step into it. It was warm and reassuring. Safe; a feeling she hadn’t known for years. Hold out your hand, it seemed to tell her. She did as commanded, which was unlike her. She hated taking orders from anyone. But for some reason, in that moment, acquiescing didn’t bother her. She held out her upturned palm. She blinked rapidly from the sheer brightness of the light. It disappeared suddenly and she felt a burning sensation
on her palm. She watched as, to her surprise, a bright blue ball of light—or was it fire?—materialized on her hand.
She heard voices in the distance yelling to her, warning her to release it. She shook her hand, but it wouldn’t topple from her palm. The light burned into her skin. To her horror it traveled up her arm, burning as it continued its path until it covered her entire body. She cried out from the searing heat that enveloped her, drilling through her very being. It became too much for her to bear and she sank to her knees.
“Jenna!” a familiar voice called out.
She looked up to see General Clark running towards her with a small army in tow.
“Fuck,” she gasped as she felt the sensation leave the rest of her body and zone in on her heart. It burned with an intensity far beyond what she had felt moments before. But only for a moment, and then it was gone.
She felt strong arms holding her; it was the General.
“Jenna, are you okay?”
To his surprise, she climbed to her feet unaided.
Jenna smiled and clenched her fists with a strength that she hadn’t felt for days. I’m healed?
“I feel…amazing,” she said, gazing at him with disbelief.
He smiled with relief.
“Thanks for the help,” she said, eyeing him and his army.
“I told you I had your back, Hunter.”
“I need to get to Mathias now. Do you have transport?” she asked.
The General nodded. “We’re here to join the fight. Mathias mentioned that Immortalia outnumbered Eternus by a thousand men. I’ve got the fifty that you see here and another nine hundred and fifty a few miles back waiting for us to return with you.”
Quickly she called back to Jax, “I have to go!” If she didn’t kill Silas before Mathias did, her renewed strength would mean nothing. She would die anyway.
Jax nodded. He watched them go. He looked up at the sky and thought about the blue fire that had been bestowed upon Jenna. Blue fire could only mean one thing: Alna is still alive!
CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN
“Hold the line!” Mathias bellowed as he swept his sword at the neck of another Immortalia soldier, slicing cleanly through flesh and bone. He stepped back to avoid the mist of ashes that quickly followed as the vampire became just more dust in the wind.
He stood in the courtyard of Silas’ estate. When they had arrived, Immortalia had been waiting for them. That was inevitable. Silas had spies everywhere. The twenty-foot-high wall had posed no problem for Eternus. As vampires, they were able to clear it with ease. Their problem was that they were outnumbered by close to a thousand soldiers. And now they were struggling to push back the enemy, to gain any ground. They had to change tactics. Now!
Mathias fought through a sea of soldiers—Immortalia and Eternus—to reach Valta a few feet away. His sword swung back and forth vigorously, almost of its own accord, as he allowed his vampiric instincts to guide him. By the time he reached Valta, his sword was drenched in blood and guts that dripped from the blade like lava oozing down a hillside.
He watched Valta plunge a stake into the heart of his latest opponent. He then brushed the dust off his shoulders and turned, sensing Mathias instantly.
“I'll take Legion with me to breach the fortress. Can you hold it out here?” Mathias asked.
Valta wiped sweat off his forehead and choked out, “Eternus has never been defeated. I don’t plan on breaking that winning streak tonight.”
Mathias smiled and laid a strong hand on his shoulder. “Watch your back.”
“Always.”
Mathias touched the ear-piece in his right ear. “Follow my lead.” He was communicating with Legion on a special frequency that Luke had established years ago when they’d first formed the group. In situations like tonight it was an invaluable tool.
Time to reduce my visibility. Employing his vampiric speed and stealth, he left Valta in the blink of an eye, cutting through the battlefield with ease.
***
“Bring Mathias to me,” Silas ordered.
He stood in modern battle garb—tactical gear—holding a far-from-modern weapon ready at his right side—a medieval broadsword. Tanya and a dozen Immortalia soldiers knelt before him in his throne room listening carefully to his orders.
“I will deal with my brother, Luke,” Tanya said.
Silas stiffened, feeling his rage headed towards boil. How dare she bark orders at him? He forced himself to remain calm as he said, “First, you bring them to me. It will draw Mathias out.”
“Yes, Sire.” Tanya bowed her head respectfully.
“Go! Now!” he commanded.
He watched them hurry to the door and leave hastily. He lifted his sword and glared at it. “Tonight you pay the price for your treachery, Mathias,” he breathed.
“You always have been ambitious,” a voice came from behind him.
He spun around to find Mathias thirty feet away beside the balcony doors, his broadsword at the ready. Silas watched his arrogant grin as Mathias stepped into the room.
“You should have brought back up. You think you can take my fortress alone?” Silas called.
“No, I don’t.”
Ah, so Legion has already penetrated the building. Well, they won’t get far. “Legion is outnumbered.”
Mathias scoffed. “They are more skilled than your soldiers. I trained them myself.”
“Your arrogance will be your undoing,” Silas warned, watching Mathias carefully for signs of a sudden attack. He could move faster than any warrior Silas had ever known. He’d have to be ready.
“And your hatred will be yours.”
Silas could feel his agitation mounting. His words were doing nothing to unnerve Mathias. He needed to affect him, to throw him off his game. And that was when it hit him. He remembered his age-old weakness.
“I’ve dispatched my Day Walkers to kill The Hunter,” he announced. He watched Mathias’ hand flinch, his sword shake. He saw reaction all over his face. Too easy, brother.
“They'll never find her,” Mathias shot back. Eternus’ base was a well-kept secret. It had been for centuries. Silas had never known its location.
“Eternus’ march drew the attention of my spies. All the Day Walkers have to do is follow that intel to retrace your steps and the location will become clear.”
“You have truly lost your honor, Silas. You know she's weak now. Helpless. It's unlike you to take on such a worthless target.”
“I have my reasons.”
“Retribution for Arthur.”
Silas shook his head. “That was just an added incentive.”
“What?” What is he talking about? What other reason is there?
Silas saw the confusion on his enemy’s face. He failed to suppress a laugh. “You really have no idea, do you?”
“What are you talking about?” Mathias snapped, growing increasingly agitated by Silas’ cryptic comments. He forced himself to remain calm, to focus on the task at hand. He had to best Silas tonight. He wouldn’t kill him. He would bring him to Jenna and help her to kill him. She had to be the one to do it in order to fulfill her contract with the Sorceress. No one knew that was his true intention. They wouldn’t have understood. I can’t let her die.
Silas approached him slowly. Cautiously. “You won’t survive past tonight, so I might as well tell you. If I were in your position, I'd have never formed an alliance with someone without thoroughly researching their background and, in this case, their lineage.”
Mathias glared at him. Her lineage?
“I killed her great-grandparents, as you know. That’s how the family’s quest to destroy me began. She was the first one to take it further, to actually endow herself with supernatural abilities and compromise her humanity. But rage and hate cloud one’s judgment and rational thought. That hate was carried from generation to generation in her family and they never questioned their quest, never even questioned why? Why did I kill thei
r ancestors and that entire fucking village? Humans see us as monsters, so perhaps, the notion that there was a reason didn’t even reach their consciousness. After all, monsters don’t need a reason, do they? Humans don’t understand that we aren’t monsters—we're a step up on the evolutionary ladder!”
“You are a monster, Silas. But not all of us are. And not all humans think that way. If you’d taken the time to know some of them, you’d have seen that.”
“They're fools! And The Hunter is no better. I killed her family for a reason. They were Keepers!”
Mathias was stunned. “Impossible.”
“Why? Because the Sorceress never told you? She didn’t trust in her most beloved Guardian?”
Was Silas telling the truth? He was a manipulative son of a bitch. But Mathias wasn’t sure that even he would stoop so low as to lie about something like this. Keepers were beings entrusted with powerful secrets that had the potential to harm civilization if obtained by the wrong people. The Sorceress had told him about them. She knew and saw everything that was. She saw what had been, although she could not see the future. Not anymore. She had known all the secrets herself. But she had recognized the risk of one person possessing so much knowledge and centuries ago had severed the secrets from her mind and entrusted them to those she deemed worthy—supernatural and human beings alike. A handful of Keepers existed. They safeguarded the secrets that had once been hers. She had no memory of them now. The Keepers were to contact her should anything threaten the secrets they kept. To the best of his knowledge, none of them had. But she had a connection to each Keeper. She would have known that two had been killed by Silas. Why had she not told him?
“Keepers can’t reveal their secrets. They're bound by mystical forces that make that impossible,” Mathias said.
“I’m aware of that,” Silas snapped.
“How did you find them? No one knows who the Keepers are.”
Silas scoffed. “You just have to know where to find the information. I have a lot of powerful allies, Mathias. I was informed that the secret they kept would have threatened my agenda and that it would have caused the human and supernatural worlds to pull together against a mutual enemy. The two would have become united. I didn’t want that. It would have threatened my life’s quest.”
