Of Angel's Blood (Chronicles of The Order Book 2)

by Martyn Currill

  She vanished and suddenly attacked from behind again, her bizarre blade carving through my backplate like it didn’t exist and laying my back open to the spine.

  I spun around again, bringing Black Terror down in an attempted slash, and to my surprise I actually connected.

  Taken slightly by surprise, The First raised her arm to block the blow, and smiled as the blade bit flesh...and then the leading third of the blade shattered like glass.

  Black Terror had been forged for me especially, a steel blade coated in tungsten carbide. It should have made a mockery of any flesh, and yet when it met hers it just...broke.

  In response she opened her hand, that strange blade dissipating as she did, and laid into me with a flurry of kicks, punches and open-palmed strikes. Every blow was like being punched by a sledgehammer - a kick cracked my shin, a punch shattered my breastplate and broke my sternum, a blow to the back of my knee putting me on the floor.

  As I tried to rise, she drove a foot into my ribs, a strike which ensured I stayed down for the time being.

  Afterwards she kneeled beside me, speaking to me softly as if nothing had ever happened and stroking my hair.

  “I regret that you made me do that, my sweet, but perhaps I have expected a little too much from you. Perhaps there was too much for you to take in at once. Very well. Go back to your little fortress, and know me for who I am. My name is Celeste. Go now, learn, and when you are ready, return to me - alone. You shall stand before me and decide, once and for all, where you stand. If you wish to be my heir, you shall stay at my side, where you belong. If you choose otherwise...you will die where you stand, to my utmost sadness.”

  “W...why?” I managed, struggling to remain conscious.

  “Why what? Why am I sparing you?”

  I nodded weakly, and she stroked my face gently.

  “Because whether you believe it or not, you are the closest thing I have to a child. For that reason, and that reason alone, I spare you. Now go my dearest, learn what you must...and I hope you will return to me promptly. Until I see you next, my darling.”

  Her disappearance in a burst of black mist was the last thing I saw, before finally passing out.

  I awoke to shuddering, and for a moment I thought the cathedral was collapsing - until I noticed the sound of engines, and realised we were on an Osprey.

  “Welcome back, idiot,” Lorelei said softly, kissing my forehead. “Try not to move, hon. You took a beating, and your regeneration is still slow right now.”

  “Wh...where are we headed?”

  “Back home,” she said. “It’s something you muttered to us while we were tending to you. I assume your dark mother vanished again, because all those ferals just suddenly ran for whatever little holes they hid in. So, here we are.”

  I didn’t want to ask my next question, but I had to know.

  “Did...did we lose anyone?”

  Lorelei nodded.

  “A few more members of Corvus Team. Several soldiers from Kalin’s teams. Kelly’s alive, but only just - got mauled by a pair of those wretches before we got to her. She’s in bad shape, and...I’m sorry Deimos, but her medics aren’t even sure she’ll last the flight back.”

  I nodded weakly.

  “Sh...she will. She’s...Scottish. They’re a...a tough lot.”

  “Hush now, you stupid fool,” she said gently. “Get some rest. You should be mostly functional by the time we get back. And I’m guessing you have some homework to do.”

  I nodded again, and closed my eyes.

  I was lulled back to sleep by Lorelei, gently stroking my face and singing softly in Italian.

  I didn’t even know she could sing.

  CHAPTER 10

  Best laid plans

  I spent quite a while resting after we returned to the fortress. Even after my wounds had healed, the icy deadness remained for longer, leaving me feeling sluggish, weak and drained.

  Lorelei, being her usual amazing self, took over a lot of duties while I recovered, even refusing Markus’ help - her view was that as my aide and girlfriend, she was best suited to enact my will. By all accounts, Markus wasn’t pleased with being snubbed, and knowing Lorelei, she didn’t care.

  She occasionally brought some paperwork back to my quarters for me to sign - although, with her finally staying with me on a more permanent basis, it was finally beginning to feel like our quarters - but mostly dealt with the majority of it herself.

  She also brought her laptop to me, to allow me to do some research through The Order’s database, and what I found on Celeste there was useless - it told me only what I already knew. It looked like I’d have to visit the Hall of Records again, and that place was a veritable maze, even with Master Deans to assist.

  “I think I’m doing well enough to go for a walk now,” I told Lorelei one morning, as she prepared for another day in the office.

  “Well if you do, make sure you take someone with you in case you fall over or something,” she told me, buttoning up her emerald blouse, and I rolled my eyes.

  “Hon, I’m not some frail old man, a fall or stumble won’t kill me.”

  “Maybe not, but you are my boyfriend, and as such I worry about you. Is that so wrong?”

  I smiled at her, and slowly moved myself to the edge of the bed.

  “No hon, it isn’t - and thank you for being worried.”

  “Shut up you idiot,” she said in her typical affectionate way, “you know I only want you for your body.” She grinned at me and helped me stand, pulling me into a tight embrace.

  “Just be careful, alright?” she told me softly, and I nodded. She pulled back and gave me a deep, longing kiss, before finally letting go of me and straightening her outfit.

  “You be careful then, Eyathehn,” she told me as she moved to the door. “And don’t be gone too long, I can tell you’re still not fully mended.”

  I agreed and gave her a kiss good-bye, and after she’d left I got dressed into some casual clothes and readied myself to head out. I needed to go down to the Hall of Records, but there was one other stop I needed to make first.

  True to my prediction, Kelly had in fact survived the flight back, although we’d nearly lost her as a complicated landing sent her body into shock. She was taken to the infirmary, where her condition was stabilised, but she still was still drifting in and out of consciousness, and her fate was still currently unknown.

  “How is she?” I asked of the doctor responsible for her care, and she gave me a concerned look.

  “We’ve done as much as we’re able to, My Lord,” she told me quietly, “but she took a lot of damage. She’ll have some pretty unpleasant scars if she makes it through this, and it will be some time before she can return to active duty, but right now...we’re just waiting to see if her body recovers, or if it gives up.”

  I really didn’t want to lose a friend, but there was no way I was going to have her turned for my own reasons. She would live or die as a mortal - it was what she would prefer.

  “May I see her?”

  The doctor nodded.

  “Her girlfriend is with her now, but you should be okay to visit as well. Just...try not to be long.”

  “Of course.”

  I walked over to Kelly’s bedside, greeting Sabine as I did. It was hell, seeing a close friend lying so still, hooked up to every medical device known to man and barely even breathing without assistance.

  “You okay Sabine?” I asked, and the petite blonde never moved as she answered.

  “I’m better for being here, My Lord,” she said quietly, her normally cheerful voice broken by sadness and a lot of crying.

  I had told Lori to make sure Sabine was informed of Kelly’s condition - since the two of them were in a relationship, it was only right that Sabine was told. Shortly after that, I found that Sabine had requested leave from Setra to come over and be by Kelly’s side, but the Toronto base commander had refused it.

  Ignoring the potential consequences, I over-ruled Setra’s
decision, arranged Sabine’s indefinite leave - with full pay - and ensured that a private jet was waiting for her to bring her here as soon as possible.

  If she genuinely cared about Kelly, there was no way I was going to see Sabine denied the chance to be at her side.

  “She was awake a couple of minutes ago,” Sabine said, he occasional sniffles indicating she’d been crying again recently. “She was surprised I was here, but...I think it helped her a little bit.”

  “It’s amazing what helps people in her condition,” I said softly, so as not to disturb my friend’s rest. “Sometimes, knowing that someone else is with them helps them fight - reminding them why they want to stay alive.”

  Sabine just nodded, still holding Kelly’s hand.

  “I’ll leave you two in peace,” I told her after a minute. “I need to attend to some other business anyway, but make sure you look after yourself as well, okay?”

  Sabine just nodded again, and I gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze before I made to leave.

  “My Lord?”

  Sabine’s voice stopped me, and I turned to face her once again.

  “Thank you...for letting me come to see her.”

  “You’re more than welcome, Sabine. Some guest quarters are set aside for you, so you can stay here for as long as you wish.”

  She thanked me again, and I left them in peace once more, stopping only to ask the doctor to notify me if anything changed.

  I arrived at the Records Hall in time to hear Master Deans swearing at his son, protesting that he was well enough to work shortly before descending into a coughing fit. As I entered, the younger man approached me, his plea written plain across his features.

  “My Lord, please can you tell my fool father that he isn’t well and needs to rest? He might actually listen to you.”

  “Don’t be tryin’ to go over me ‘ead, boy!” Master Deans rasped, coughing again shortly afterwards. “I know me own mind well enough!”

  “Master Deans, if you’re not well-”

  “Bah!” he said, with a dismissive wave, straightening up as much as he could. “I’m well enough, lad. Been workin’ these records for nigh on sixty years, and I’ll probably die among them too. But I ain’t about to lay down an’ give up yet!”

  The man’s stubbornness and exuberance was always pleasant to be around, somehow. I found the man immensely likeable.

  I turned to his son and shrugged.

  “Sorry, but if your father doesn’t want to rest, I’m not about to force him.” I turned back to the Master, who bared his yellowed teeth in an amused grin. “You are going to get that cough checked out though.”

  “Bah!” he said again. “I know what’s wrong with me boy - it’s old age. I’d rather be killed by that than some maniac out in the world.”

  “If you’re sure?”

  “I am. How can I help you, me lad?”

  “I need to see all the books you have on the first vampire, the Children of the Firstborn, and anything pertaining to the origins of vampires.”

  Master Deans was quiet for a moment.

  “So, you know what comes for us, eh?”

  “A little too well,” I replied dryly, and he nodded.

  “Very well. This way, milord.”

  He led me, in his usual deceptively rapid pace, into the very deepest recesses of the hall, where the main occupants were ancient books and desiccated spider corpses.

  He told me that this area was where I would find anything I needed on my chosen topics, and that I should handle everything there with the utmost care using the gloves provided. As always I thanked him for his help, and allowed myself a moment of sadness as he left.

  I could hear, all too clearly, how unwell he was. His heart was beating weaker every day, his breathing was laboured and rattling, and although he still moved quickly, he was slowing.

  He would not be long for this world, and I only hoped it was going to be an easy passing.

  I lost track of how long I spent down there, browsing ancient scrolls and books, some so old they were written in Ancient Vampiric on tattered parchment, with notes made in Hebrew.

  I even managed to find the very first written example of the vampiric language, a document I thought would have long faded to dust. It was, if my understanding was correct, the decree to start an organisation that would exist for the good of all vampire society - the very first mention of The Order, written some four thousand years ago.

  It wasn’t until Lorelei called me to see if I’d fallen off the battlements that I figured I should probably make arrangements to leave, until at long last something caught my attention.

  While speaking to her on the phone, I’d been idly reading through a series of scrolls, written entirely in Vampiric again, collectively documenting the lives of some of the earliest vampires. Almost by accident I caught sight of the name of Celeste, and followed that particular passage of text.

  It seemed she had been appearing to vampires on and off for thousands of years, trying to keep them on the path she wanted for them, which apparently failed. But as I read back, to the beginning of that text, I found the answers I needed - the truth she wanted me to learn.

  I could barely speak. It was impossible, it had to be, and yet I’d seen the proof with my own eyes. I told Lorelei I would speak to her back at my quarters and hung up, tidied the scrolls and books away (carefully, of course) and hurried back to my room.

  The information was vital, and explained a great deal.

  “Find anything good?”

  Lorelei was already laying on the bed when I entered the room, reading some sci-fi novel while she listened to some music on her phone.

  “No, it’s bad, all bad, and probably very fatal,” I told her hurriedly, pacing nervously.

  She frowned at me and sat up, pausing her music.

  “What is it?”

  I stopped and pinched the bridge of my nose.

  “The First Vampire - Celeste - she wasn’t born a vampire, she wasn’t born at all. She’s a fucking angel.”

  Her eyes went wide.

  “You have got to be shitting me,” she said in slow disbelief, and I shook my head.

  “That’s not even the fun part. Obviously no faithful angel could ever become something as dark and unpleasant as a vampire. She’s a fallen angel, which explains all too much for my liking - that strange smell that always lingered after she’d been here? It’s sulphur, also known as brimstone.”

  I sank into one of my chairs, numbed by the shock.

  “It’s where she inherited her strange abilities, it’s why my blade shattered when it connected with her arm, and why her strength and speed were more than I could ever have imagined.”

  “Are you aware how bat-shit crazy this sounds?” Lorelei asked, getting up from the bed. I stared at her blankly, watching as she poured a couple of glasses of ale.

  “I’m very aware, sweetheart, believe me,” I said. “I know all too well that this makes me sound like some sort of religious nut. Well, I don’t believe in God and I never have, but don’t you think it makes just a little bit of sense?”

  I leaned forward and took the offered glass from her, taking a long sip from it before speaking again.

  “The oldest vampires had a weakness to holy water and crosses, and weren’t able to walk on holy ground, right? Then what better explanation for those weaknesses than the Firstborn being an angel who was cast down to Hell? Any of the population of that place would have those same weaknesses, because in falling they become unholy creatures.”

  “Bat-shit crazy it might be, but yeah, it makes sense,” Lorelei said as she sat down. “Question is, how the fuck do we fight an angel?”

  I had been about to answer when my phone rang.

  “Yes?” I answered, more tersely than I’d intended.

  “Sorry to disturb you, My Lord, but we have a vampire named George here? Says he wishes to see you urgently.”

  “Have him escorted to my personal quarters, I’ll see him imm
ediately. Thanks.”

  “As you will it, My Lord.”

  “George just arrived,” I told Lorelei. “If anyone around here will know anything, it’s him.”

  “I know what I am about to say will sound mad,” George blurted out, as he entered my room, “but you are in danger. This ‘First Vampire’ you mentioned is, in fact, a fallen angel, by the name of Celeste.”

  “We know.”

  “I know that’s hard to swallow, but- what?”

  “I said we know, George. I found out about twenty minutes ago,” I told him, sipping my drink. “Ale?”

  “Er...well, I...” He seemed to deflate visibly, as if I’d just crushed his dreams. “Yes please, Lord Black.”

  “It’s just ‘Deimos’ to you, George. And while you haven’t told us anything I don’t already know, you are the most experienced in this matter.”

  “And how is that the case?” Lorelei asked, passing George his own glass of ale.

  “George once served Celeste himself. If you remember hon, he told us that before he’d adopted the new life, he’d been...an unpleasant person?”

  Lorelei made a noise of agreement as she sat again.

  “Well, that was because he was trying to enact Celeste’s will at the time.”

  “Precisely so. So what is it you need me for, my favoured kin?”

  I set my drink on the table and stood up, offering my seat to George.

  “As someone who served her once before, I was hoping you would have some idea of how she can be killed. Or at the very least, stopped, or banished, or something.”

  The saint sat in thought for a moment, sipping the beverage we’d given him as he considered the question.

  “There is a way,” he said at last, “but it takes a lot of time to prepare. Time which she can very well shorten if she catches on to the fact that we’re doing it.”

  “What is it?” I asked him, desperate for any means to fight Celeste.

  “We first need to obtain a very particular sword. That sword is then ritually consecrated, using a variety of oils and engraved runes, but that is where a lot of the time is spent - obtaining the necessary materials and holding the ritual. It cannot be disturbed, for any purpose, or else it is entirely worthless.”