Shoving one trembling hand through my hair, I slipped the sword back into its scabbard on my back. My mind had just started to turn to disposing the body when a white glow began to grow out of the cold mist surrounding the fountain. I took a couple steps toward it, keeping my right hand lightly wrapped around the hilt of my sword. I couldn’t imagine what I was seeing. A light clan naturi? But I couldn’t sense any naturi in the area.
The energy pulsing through the air felt like every night walker I had ever encountered, and yet it wasn’t a nightwalker. Slowly, a man became encased in the light, standing more than six feet tall with pale blond hair and shining clear blue eyes. Then in a brilliant flash that left me struggling to shield my eyes, a pair of white wings expanded from his back, spanning more than twelve feet across.
I jerked my sword from my back and stepped away as my heart skipped a beat. It felt like a vampire, but it had wings like a wind clan naturi. Neither was a friend of mine and neither wanted me alive.
“Hold, Danaus,” the figure said in a deep, booming voice. “I am no threat to you.” He held up one hand and I took a step backward, a frown tugging at the corners of my mouth.
“Who are you?” I demanded, still poised to attack.
A beatific smile spread across his face, a look of peace and joy. “I am your guardian angel,” he claimed. “Gaizka.”
A fine trembling started in my arms, causing the tip of my sword to waver. Was I truly faced with an angel? I had spent centuries studying and meditating with monks, priests, and other holy men, searching for some divine direction to save my soul from the demonic bori that darkened it, demanding violence. And now standing before me after more than eighteen hundred years was a creature claiming to be my guardian angel and I could not make myself put my sword away.
“Why have you come to me now?” I asked, tightening my grip on my sword. Something felt wrong.
“Because now is the time that you need me the most,” he replied. His smile never wavered as he ignored my sword and took a step forward. He wasn’t solid, but a figure comprised entirely of light and shadow. “We must join together to defeat that naturi that infest the earth once again. If left unchecked, they will destroy all of mankind. They must be stopped.”
I stared at the creature before me, slowly lowering my sword. “You possessed that vampire. You fought the naturi.”
“Yes, I can take possession of lesser creatures to accomplish certain tasks when necessary.”
“And yet you let me kill the nightwalker,” I pressed, more confused by the second.
The angel shrugged his shoulders. “He had his own sins to atone for.”
“I’ve spent a lifetime hunting nightwalkers. They are an abomination feeding off the lifeblood of humans and tossing them aside like used livestock. Have I been wrong in my mission?” I asked. A shiver swept through me and my gut twisted. How could I be wrong? My soul depended upon it. But after centuries, could I finally find the salvation I prayed for now, here?
“The nightwalkers are not our enemies. They are our brothers-in-arms against the naturi. They will fight with us to destroy them. Let me join with you, body and soul, and we will become an unstoppable force in ridding the world of the naturi,” the angel pressed.
“Join with me?” I demanded, taking a step backward.
“You are a powerful figure, Danaus. I need your consent. Together, let us cleanse the world and make it safe for mankind once again.”
Frowning, I looked away from the angel as my mind turned over his questionable words. My gaze tumbled over the remains of the naturi on my left and I recalled the red glow to the vampire’s eyes and devilish glee that he expressed as he slaughtered the naturi. Was that what I would be turning myself over to? Losing all control over myself as I became a puppet for a higher being? It didn’t feel right. No angel would torment his intended prey or feel such enjoyment in their destruction.
The creature before me stood in the guise of an angel, but stank of the powers that flowed from a nightwalker. There was no heavenly light to be found here, no matter how I prayed.
“I’ve fought vampires for centuries to save my soul from the demon that possesses part of it. Have all those years of struggle been for nothing?” I demanded, drawing my gaze back to the creature that glowed before me. For a split second, the expression on the creature’s face twisted and his eyes flashed red.
“No demon possesses your soul,” he snapped. “That is a gift from me, from the heavens. Strength, longevity, and amazing power. You’ve used that power to destroy nightwalkers when you should have been hunting down the last of the naturi.”
My jaw clenched and I tightened my grip on the sword I was still holding. This was all a lie. My mother hadn’t made a deal with an angel. She admitted just before I killed her that she had made a deal with a demon for her powers. This was no angel hovering before me. It was the bori that owned part of my soul, and it had come looking for the other half.
“You’re not an angel. No heavenly creature would accept what the vampires are doing to the human race. You’re a bori,” I growled.
The creature before me smiled an evil little smile as the white glow around it faded. The white wings immediately dissipated and a black shadow seemed to wrap around the creature like a black cloak. I raised my sword again as its flesh seemed to melt away to reveal a white skull with a wide fanged grin. It pointed a bony finger at me, trembling slightly. “Is this a little closer to what you were expecting?” the creature cackled.
I could still see through the creature as it shifted, a classical representation of the grim reaper. I was beginning to wonder if this monster had a specific form or if it was a formless creature that took whatever shape that fit its needs.
“No heavenly creature would condone nightwalkers,” I snarled. “No heavenly creature would ask me to become a puppet in order to destroy naturi.”
“But you have been a puppet of heaven, Danaus,” Gaizka corrected. “Wrapped in your archaic ideas of truth and righteousness, you’ve been slaughtering nightwalkers in the name of God. You’ve been his puppet for centuries. I’m just asking you to eliminate a more immediate threat: the naturi.”
“No.”
The bori growled at me and glided slightly closer, but I held my ground. “I’m asking politely, Danaus. Do not make me force your hand. Those you care for could suffer a horrible fate because of your failure to cooperate.”
“I will not be your puppet.” I raised my sword and plunged it through the center of the creature, but it was like puncturing open air.
With a wave of its hand, a force slammed against my chest, throwing me backward several feet until I hit the side of a car. My body dented the door before I slid to the ground. “Sadly, I expected this from you,” it said with a shake of its head. “Expect my first gift shortly for your lack of cooperation. More will follow. I’ll destroy your world until you finally agree to bend to my will. I’m done waiting for you.”
And then he disappeared, leaving me sitting on the cold pavement surrounded by the dead bodies of the nightwalker and the naturi. The bori that possessed half of my soul waited out in the darkness like a living nightmare, ready to take what little of my soul I still owned. Blood was going to wash over the world as I fought him for my freedom and I didn’t know if it was even possible for me to win.
TWO
I knelt before the fountain and ran my blood-covered hands through the icy water until my fingers grew stiff and numb. In the darkness, the water looked black, but by morning it would carry a slight pinkish tone. The four bodies had been crammed into a nearby car, but I hadn’t yet set the explosive charge attached to the fuel tank. All evidence of nightwalker and naturi existence had to be wiped clean—the secret of their world had to be maintained if order was to be kept in the human world.
On my knees, I sent my powers out of my body before finally breathing in a sigh of relief. There was nothing supernatural close to me: not nightwalker, naturi, bori, or even lycanthrope. I clo
sed my eyes and bowed my head, but the words would not come. It had been more than two centuries since I had last spoken to God. And even after tonight’s encounter, when I was sure my soul was on the line, I could not bring myself to be the first to break the endless silence.
In the beginning, after finally leaving the Roman legion, I had fought vampires as a way of avenging the death of a friend’s child. I fought them as a way of fighting the strange emotions that I felt whenever they were close. It wasn’t until I had wandered the earth for nearly five centuries before I finally found a sense of peace and purpose while living with some monks. They said I would only regain my soul through fighting against the darkness that surrounded mankind. They spoke of salvation and giving order to the chaos that seemed to be constantly swirling about in my brain. They even seemed to forgive me for being born.
But I couldn’t remain with the monks, no matter how I wished it. Vampires needed to be slain and I had more questions than they had answers. So I traveled the earth searching for answers that matched with the God I was fighting for and the soul I was desperate to reclaim. Yet, after more than a millennium of fighting, I discovered that there were no answers to be found. I painted most of Europe and parts of Africa and Asia in blood, and yet there was no answer from God signaling that I was at least on the right course; that I was one soulless nightwalker away from reclaiming my own soul. There was only silence.
It was only when I had grown too tired to continue on alone that I found a new purpose. Themis was barely thirty members strong huddled in a rundown house in Paris, but they were determined to understand the dark paranormal world that surrounded them. They watched nightwalkers from afar as they lured their prey into dark alleyways. They ventured into the woods during a full moon and listened to the werewolves baying at the moon as they prepared to hunt. Their lives were short but determined. They carefully cataloged all their findings in these great volumes for others to read and understand. Briefly, I thought that I might find my answers among them.
Sadly, Themis had offered only more questions with no answers. However, they needed a hunter, a dark hunter who could take on the vampires and the lycanthropes. I filled that role and was content to train others to follow in my footsteps, those who would carry on the knowledge I had accumulated over the long centuries.
Ryan, on the other hand, seemed to twist the early intentions of the research group. The white-haired warlock quickly assumed the lead of the group when his awesome powers and superior knowledge became apparent. Themis had been confident that he could lead them further into the world of the paranormal than ever before. Instead, nightwalkers seemed to die at a faster pace and old knowledge was restudied. Fewer researchers were released into the field, for their own safety, and the number of hunters that I trained steadily grew. Through the centuries, I never questioned his motives. I only saw that he was helping me to build an army that would protect the world from nightwalkers. But kneeling beside the fountain now, I wondered not for the first time in recent months if he was simply building an army.
The annoying jingle from my cell phone shattered the night’s silence, causing me to cringe as I quickly reached inside my jacket. The little glowing LCD screen revealed that it was my assistant, James. Perfect timing.
“I’m impressed,” I said after flipping open the phone.
“Excuse me?” James stumbled, obviously surprised by my rare compliment.
“Your timing. I’m ready to come in. I’m finished here,” I replied, pushing back to my feet. I wiped my free hand on the leg of my pants, drying it as best as I could before reaching into my pocket to find the remote detonator. I needed to be at least a few yards away before setting off the miniature bomb. The car would be destroyed along with the nearest storefront, but no one would be harmed in the explosion, and the remains of the nightwalker and three naturi would be incinerated. It wasn’t the prettiest way of disposing of bodies, but I didn’t have Mira’s flare or ability to simply set the bodies on fire at will while cloaking the entire event from the view of the public.
“Nightwalkers?” James inquired.
“A total of six throughout the area the past couple nights. Apparently, this used to be part of Sadira’s domain. With her gone, they decided to play. Things should be quiet now.” Turning a corner and heading back down the alley. I hit the switch, detonating the miniature bomb. The explosion rattled windows and set off car alarms.
“What was that?”
“Disposal,” I replied.
“Oh.”
“I also encountered three naturi while I was here,” I admitted, but kept the appearance of the bori to myself. I had never told Ryan the origins of my abilities and I didn’t want him to be able to use this newest development against me.
“Did you have any problems?” James asked, jolting my thoughts back.
“No, none. The area appears to be clear now. When can you have a flight ready for me to come in?”
James was silent for several seconds, causing me to stop in the middle of the dark alley. Off in the distance, the sound of a fire engine and police sirens could be heard echoing through the streets. I frowned and leaned my shoulder against the brick wall while rubbing my eyes with my free hand. This wasn’t a good sign.
“You can’t come in yet,” James said softly.
“What are you talking about?” I snapped. “I’ve been going nonstop for nearly three months now. I want to come in. Clean clothes, a soft bed. Sleep for a couple days before the next round of slaughter.”
“I know.”
“What could Ryan possibly need from me?”
“He needs you to go to Savannah.”
“That’s Mira’s domain. She can take care of her own problems. She doesn’t need me in her area,” I argued, pushing off the wall to continue to walk down the alley toward the hotel I was staying at. It was a small place with the lumpiest mattress I had ever had the displeasure of sleeping on. I had hoped that tonight I would be on a plane headed back toward my own bed, but it seemed it wasn’t to be.
“I don’t know too many details. The most immediate problem is the murder of a young girl the other night that has attracted the attention of the world media. It looks suspicious.”
I bit my tongue against the first argument that came to mind and continued to walk down the street in silence. Mira should be able to cover up her own messes, but now that Themis had established a “relationship” with the nightwalker, it seemed we felt it was in our best interest to be nosing around her domain at the first opportunity.
And in truth, despite my growing fatigue and aching body, I was beginning to see the benefit myself. Whether she liked it or not, Mira was a member of the nightwalker coven. The four Elders were the ruling elite among the vampires along with their liege lord. Maintaining my association with Mira kept me close to the coven and one step closer to their liege. If I had any hope of being able to take down the elite of the vampire race, it was going to be through my continued association with Mira.
“When will a plane be ready to take me to the New World?” I muttered after a lengthy silence.
“I should be able to have something waiting for you within the next few hours,” James said with a sigh of relief. “I’ll have more information waiting when you land. Ryan asked that you check out the city.”
“I know,” I grumbled. “See if I can get a sense of the chaos.”
“Try to keep a low profile—Ryan wanted me to stress that this is a delicate situation.”
I resisted the urge to snap. James was simply relaying Ryan’s instructions, no matter how unnecessary they were. I knew how to keep a low profile and observe from a distance. This wasn’t my first mission for Themis.
“Am I to contact Mira when the sun sets?”
“No!” James cleared his throat awkwardly. “No, that’s not necessary. She’ll be in contact with you.”
Something was wrong with this whole situation, but I doubted that I was going to get any kind of valuable information out
of James. Ryan had a habit of keeping those around him in the dark about his ultimate plans until it was far too late.
“Are the naturi involved?” I asked suddenly. I could only guess that the dark race of nature lovers was once again causing havoc within Mira’s domain.
“We don’t know yet. It’s a possibility. It’s why we need you on the ground in Savannah. You’re the only one we have that can clearly read the situation.”
“I’ll grab my stuff from the hotel and head to the airport,” I said. “Once I get a handle on the situation in Savannah, I’ll call again.”
“I have a feeling that you’ll be hearing from us sooner than that.” James sighed softly. However, before I could ask him about that comment, the phone line went dead. Snapping the phone shut, I shoved it back into my pocket. This did not bode well at all. Ryan was definitely up to something and I had a feeling that Mira was involved as well. I couldn’t have Ryan interfering. I may be able to control Mira’s powers, but I wanted more from her. I wanted her help in destroying the coven, and I couldn’t allow the warlock to become involved in my plans.
THREE
It was barely after nine in the morning when I hit the street in Savannah. Squinting against the bright sunlight, I rubbed my eyes and stifled a yawn as I stepped out onto River Walk. The wind sweeping up from the river was cold, cutting through my leather jacket, which sported a few new tears following last night’s encounter. In fact, by the way the tourists were looking at me, I realized that I looked little better than a semi-crazed homeless person. My hair was wild and unkempt, and my clothes were dirty and wrinkled. I hadn’t bothered to shave in more than three days and I hadn’t slept in two nights. My flight from Spain to Savannah had been plagued with turbulence.
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