by J. C. Diem
“I also love you, Nat,” Geordie said in a small voice.
“I love you right back, Geordie.” I kept my tone light so he didn’t read too much into it.
Uncharacteristically serious, the teen studied my face. “But you do not love me in the same way that you love Lucentio.”
“No,” I broke to him gently. “I love you like a…” I almost said pet but that would have hurt his feelings even more. “Little brother,” I said instead.
Leaning forward over the seat so our faces were only inches apart, he looked through me rather than at me. “I was a brother, once. I had two sisters that were older than me. When I was small they used to dress me in their clothes and pretend I was a girl.” His smile was sad with more than a hint of embarrassment.
“I promise I won’t ever make you wear a dress, Geordie,” I said sincerely.
“I don’t promise you anything,” Nicholas muttered. “I think you’d make an excellent girl.”
Turning to glare at him, I lifted a hand to stop the kid from spiralling into a tirade. “If you are going to continue to be a pain in the arse, we’ll stop and let you out, Nicholas.” I maintained eye contact with him and he seemed to understand that I was being serious.
“That will not be necessary, my Liege.” His reply was stiff and formal.
“If you truly believe that Natalie is your ruler,” Luc said, “then I suggest you begin to treat her as such. You would not want to get on her bad side.”
Nicholas had seen me fighting the imposter pretending to be me the night he had helped to dismember my body. I’d popped her head like an overripe pimple so surely he knew just how dangerous I was. Luc’s warning seemed to slide off the newbie without sinking in.
Subsiding back into a sulk, Nicholas turned his face to the window. His reflection was ghostly but I could still make out his annoyance. Maybe we should get rid of him, my subconscious muttered. It was being more talkative than usual. We’d be better off without him, it advised. It was rare for me to be in complete agreement with my subconscious. The fact that I agreed completely this time probably meant that I should take heed of its advice.
Chapter Seven
Reaching the outskirts of a medium sized city, we drove past a motorhome dealership. I noticed a vacant slot where a large vehicle had recently been. Coincidentally, it was roughly the size of the sleek black vehicle travelling in front of us. No one ran out onto the road bellowing in anger so maybe Ishida had paid for the motorhome after all. Then again, the dealership had closed for the night so maybe there was just no one around to see us as we glided past.
Not far past the town, we turned onto a dirt track that took us to our destination. A small collection of buildings made up the airport. A single airplane sat on the tarmac. One look at the pilot waiting beside the plane as we pulled to a stop was enough to tell me that he was well and truly hypnotized. His vacant eyes latched onto Kokoro as she exited the motorhome on Ishida’s arm. Despite her blindness, she had still managed to ensnare the guy. I wasn’t sure if I thought that was cool or creepy. Maybe a bit of both. I was definitely impressed that he’d remained beneath her spell for so long.
White and shiny, the plane looked expensive. Inside, it was plush if not extravagantly so. There was plenty of room for all of us and even a few spare seats for our luggage. Ishida chose a seat near the front and motioned me to sit beside him. It would be an insult to refuse the offer so I complied with his silent request. Luc sat across from me, discouraging anyone from taking the window seat by placing our bags beside him.
Kokoro sat in the seat in front of Ishida. It was a surprise when she allowed Geordie to sit beside her. She’s used to spoiled kids after ten millennia of dealing with the Emperor. I hoped she didn’t pick up on my thought. I had some small hope that Geordie would behave himself while in her presence. If he propositioned her for sex, I’d slap him up the back of the head so hard he’d end up facing the wrong way.
I understood why my young friend had chosen to sit beside Kokoro when he launched a dozen questions at her. He wanted to know what life was like on their island. As the seer did her best to answer the kid’s questions, the teen at my side sent me a worried glance. Ishida’s warriors had taken all of the other seats around us so Gregor, Igor and Nicholas had moved to the back of the plane.
“What’s on your mind, Emperor?” I kept my voice low enough that only the first few rows of his men and women would be able to hear us.
“Kokoro’s visions have been very…disturbing,” he spoke even more quietly than I had.
“What has she seen?”
He pondered for a few seconds before leaning in to answer me in his native language. “She sees death coming.”
That particular prophecy wasn’t new but my blood wanted to drain out of my face anyway. Unfortunately, it had lost the ability to do so months ago. “Do you mean we’re all going to die?” I’d thought putting an end to the First would also put an end to the annihilation of our species.
Ishida gave me a disturbed shrug. It was a habit he’d picked up from spending too much time in my company. “She does not know for certain. All Kokoro will tell me is that she sees death and then darkness.”
Chilled, I wondered how the First’s ten disciples could be an even bigger threat than their master had been. We weren’t facing beings that had been transformed into living, breathing, breeding monsters this time. They were just vampires, even if they were more virulent than normal.
During the long flight, I shared further quiet conversation with the child king. We discussed many things, ranging from our doom to the suits and weapons he’d given me to the zombie games he loved so much.
Our conversation was interrupted by the pilot towards the end of our ten hour journey. “Emperor Ishida, I was told to inform you of any strange news coming out of Africa.” His voice came through discreet speakers at several points around us.
The pilot flicked a switch and a news report started playing. “A small village in western Africa has been attacked by what is believed to be a rogue pack of vampires.” Only a few short days ago, our kind had been a myth. Now, thanks to me, everyone knew we existed. “Every adult in the village has been taken and every child has been slain,” the reporter continued gravely. “There were rumours that vampires helped stop the uprising of the grey monsters in Russia only a few short days ago. Many are wondering if the vampires are now seeking to take ‘unknown entity’s’ place with a plan to force humans into bondage and slavery.”
“And so it begins,” Kokoro said softly and with grave finality.
I could almost hear the nails being driven into our figurative coffins. The freshly risen disciples wouldn’t yet be aware that our kind was no longer a secret. They would quickly be hunted by soldiers and that would only add to the problem. At least some of the soldiers would be taken. They would then be turned and become the very things that they’d been sent to hunt.
Now that he had a firmer idea of where we needed to go, the pilot altered his course slightly. Our shutters were down to stop the sunlight from filtering inside and incinerating us when dawn arrived. When it did, heat engulfed the plane then was quickly gone. None of those who had chosen to remain awake showed any signs of discomfort. Maybe the heat was only in my head.
Being extremely elderly, Ishida kept me company when we landed on a secluded airstrip somewhere to the western edge of central Africa. We’d heard several more updates over the radio, enough to know the village that had been attacked was somewhere in the jungle. We couldn’t get any closer by plane and would have to arrange for ground transportation.
When the pilot emerged from the cockpit, Kokoro drew him aside. She instructed him to find suitable transportation for all of us. He was to search for a large truck or any type of enclosed vehicle. He had plenty of time to search since we had all day to kill before we would be able to leave the safety of the plane. Opening the main door would be bad for our health so the pilot disappeared back behind the curtain that hid
the door to the cockpit. At a grating sound coming from up front, I assumed he had some kind of escape hatch and was using it to exit from the plane.
Something had been bugging me so I took the opportunity to draw Ishida and Kokoro aside. Luc joined us with only a slight frown from the child king. To Ishida, Luc was just a lackey and of very little importance. Sliding my arm through Luc’s, I let the emperor know just how important my most favourite companion was to me. “Emperor Ishida, why did you come on this journey yourself?” I asked. “Why not just send your warriors to help us fight the disciples and their minions?”
Kokoro shifted slightly as if she wanted to field my question but demurred to her ruler. Only she and I knew that she had turned Ishida. As Ishida’s true maker, she had the capacity to rule their nation through him, if she wished. I had the feeling she only rarely used her secret status and only to nudge the kid in the right direction. His origins were kept a secret from his people, which added to his overall mystery.
“Kokoro foresaw that it would mean my death if I did not join you in this battle,” Ishida said. He hid it well but a shadow of fear crossed his young face. After living for so long, death would be a frightening prospect. “She also advised me not to bring more than fifty of our warriors.”
“Can you tell me why, Kokoro?” I’d wondered why they had brought only a quarter of their force with them. After I’d culled their damned, there had only been two hundred Japanese warriors left.
She hung her head for a few moments before responding. The seer struggled to explain something she didn’t fully understand herself. “To bring more would have resulted in disaster. Staying behind would also have ended badly. Our only hope for our people was for the Emperor and his chosen few to aid you in battle.”
Wow, she couldn’t be more vague if she tried. Kokoro winced and I knew she’d caught the thought.
“I have asked Kokoro to be more specific,” Ishida said with a hint of dryness. “She either cannot or will not say more.”
From the stubborn tilt to her head, I figured it would be a waste of time to question the seer further. “Let’s just focus on one disaster at a time,” I suggested. We’d have plenty of time to worry about the coming ‘death and darkness’ once the disciples were dead. Or so I hoped.
With hours still left before the sun would scurry into hiding, I checked on the rest of our team. Half of the Japanese soldiers were sleeping. I knew most of them by sight and nodded to those who I recognized. Toward the back of the plane, a much more familiar face stopped me. The instructor who had taught me how to wield a sword sat in an aisle seat, watching over the emperor from afar. I bowed and he nodded slightly in reply. His face held even less expression than most of his people but I was pretty sure I saw a hint of pride at how I’d turned out from his tutelage.
Sitting in the back couple of rows were the rest of my friends and Nicholas. The ex-courtier’s pretty face was slack with death and his head lolled against the window. Geordie had joined the others before the sun had risen. He sat across the aisle from Nicholas and was almost dainty in comparison. His face was pinched as if he was trying to frown even in his unconsciousness. Igor was also asleep, with his arms crossed and a knife in one hand.
Only Gregor had elected to stay awake. He stared pensively down the aisle but acknowledged me with a brief smile. I took the seat beside Igor, careful not to jab myself with his knife. I only had a few changes of clothing left and they would no doubt be ruined quickly enough.
“I take it Kokoro has foreseen something that concerns us all,” the polished vamp said.
There was no use lying or trying to smooth the coming disaster over, whatever it may be. “Well, she hasn’t exactly seen rainbows and pots of gold waiting for us ahead,” I replied quietly.
“Being friends with you will never be boring, Natalie,” Gregor observed.
“You think this is my fault somehow?” I hadn’t heard any accusation in his tone but I could have missed it.
“No,” Gregor replied without hesitation, which eased my worry a little. “I believe we have always been doomed and that our fate is simply finally catching up to us.”
I do not like the sounds of that. “What do you mean?” My worry was back with a vengeance.
He motioned me closer and we leaned across the aisle towards each other, striving to keep our voices almost soundless. “The only reason we exist is due to an alien landing on our planet,” he reminded me, as if I could ever forget that fact. “It was an anomaly that shouldn’t have happened. If not for our long dead Father, we never would have been created.”
His point was chilling. “You think fate or destiny or whatever is trying to correct a mistake it made millions of years ago when the alien landed here?” Summed up like that, it was a scary thought.
Gregor inclined his head. “It is just a possibility that has occurred to me recently.”
Now I understood why Kokoro was so concerned. If Gregor was right, and he was rarely wrong, we could indeed be facing our doom. I only wished I had some idea of how to fight it.
There’s no use trying to fight it, my subconscious advised me. Haven’t you learned by now that you can’t escape your destiny? Not for the first time, I wished it would keep its opinion to itself.
Chapter Eight
By nightfall, our pilot had located two small trucks and a van. The trucks had once been used to ship milk, judging by the old, sour smell. Ishida’s lip curled in disdain at the sight of them. He might be a revered ruler but he would be crammed into the back of one of the trucks along with the rest of his people when the sun rose again. Helping Kokoro into the passenger seat of one of the vehicles, he climbed in after her. A female warrior took the wheel. The pilot remained behind, presumably to guard the plane.
Igor appropriated the van and our team piled inside. I called shotgun, much to Geordie’s disgruntlement, and sat beside the grizzled Russian. Frequent news updates had confirmed that two more villages had been hit while we’d been on our way to Africa. We knew roughly where we needed to go and Igor took the lead down a narrow, bumpy dirt track. Branches screeched unpleasantly against the sides of the van, putting my fangs on edge.
There was just enough room in the back for Nicholas, Gregor, Geordie and Luc, as well as our baggage. Unfortunately for them, there were no seats. Geordie sat next to Luc, sending the occasional glare at Nicholas sitting across from him. The muscle bound vamp crossed his arms, and looked down his nose at the teen.
Gregor, crammed in beside the ex-courtier, ventured a suggestion. “Natalie, are you able to sense the disciples and their fledglings?”
I’d had the same thought and shook my head. “I could try but I don’t think it would be a good idea. The Second might sense me searching for him and I don’t want to tip him off that we’re on our way.”
Igor agreed with me. “We should remain unnoticed for as long as possible and strike when their guard is down.”
Luc wore a slight frown. “It will be difficult for us to locate their exact location if you can’t sense where they are.”
I’d thought that problem through as well. “We’ll just have to map where they’ve hit and try to guess the most likely place that they’ll strike next.”
“With the attacks being broadcasted to the general public, I assume the local army has become involved by now,” Gregor said more to himself than to us. “They should have the information that we require.”
While I wasn’t looking forward to dealing with foreign armed forces, it would probably be for the best. The last two armies I’d dealt with had ended up co-operating with me to take down the First’s offspring. They’d only tried to kill me once before we’d come to an agreement.
Igor drove along seldom used dirt tracks for several hours then turned onto one that was far more frequently used. Fresh tyre tracks led in the direction we wanted to go. From the size and shape of the tracks, it was easy to guess that the soldiers had beaten us to the first village to be attacked.
The tracks turned sharply to the left and lights blazed in a clearing several hundred feet ahead. Wisely, Igor continued along the path that suddenly became narrow and seldom used again. He parked well out of sight of any soldiers that might be on patrol. The pair of trucks trailing us stopped just behind our van.
Ishida’s leather clad soldiers jumped from the backs of the trucks. All had drawn their weapons and masks covered their faces. I’d armed myself as well but hadn’t drawn my swords yet. The sheaths crisscrossed on my back with the hilts easily accessible. I’d patched up the straps of the sheaths as best as I could after they’d been sliced apart during my fight with the First. I was just glad the handcrafted sheaths and samurai swords hadn’t been damaged during the battle.
“What is your plan?” the child king asked me. I was a bit surprised that he was willing to let me take charge, considering my overall lack of vampire age and experience.
“We should sneak in and scout out the area,” I replied. “We need to discover which villages have been attacked and where they are.”
“I take it we do not want the soldiers to see us?” Ishida surmised.
Nodding, I examined his people. In their midnight black suits and masks, they would be all but invisible amongst the trees. “They’ll probably shoot us once they figure out what we are. We’ll have to try to convince them that we are their allies.”
“Someone should stay behind to protect our vehicles,” Gregor wisely suggested.
I had just the person in mind for that job. “Nicholas, I want you to guard our van while we recon the area.”
He instantly scowled but smoothed his face out when Ishida glanced at him imperiously. “As you wish, my…Natalie.” The courtier bowed but his expression was bordering on insolent. Igor’s hand twitched as if he was forcing himself not to smack the muscled one up the back of the head again. Geordie’s lips thinned into a straight line and he quivered with unvoiced indignation. Luc patted the teen on the shoulder to calm him down. What is Nicholas’ problem? I scowled lightly as I asked myself the question. He’d started out worshipping me and now he was being as difficult as possible.
