Raven's Ascent

by Ben Blackwell

  Silence descended on the warehouse once again as the witches and the shaman looked at each other in fear and shock. Even the cold, reserved face of the Crimson Fang looked shaken, unsettled by what he had just seen. His eyes were glued to the dead vampire guard lying in a slowly expanding pool of blood.

  “What the hell was that?” one of the witches finally uttered.

  I studied everyone’s faces carefully, hoping to get some insight into what had just happened. A rogue, mad witch seemed unlikely, but either no one in this room was behind this attack, or they were excellent actors, because the confusion in this room was so thick, it was almost tangible.

  But then another sound broke the silence. The witch, or whatever the woman was, had started moving again. I reached for my dagger, the other hand outstretched readily, but then I relaxed again. Whatever had possessed her before seemed to have faded. Her movements were still shaky, but the rotten smell was gone.

  The last remaining vampire guard stepped forward, sword drawn at the ready, but his hands were shaking with fear. Before he could take another step, the Crimson Fang put a hand on his shoulder.

  “Let me,” he said with a calm but assertive voice. He looked relaxed on the first glance, but as I watched him walk over to the witch, I could see controlled rage in every one of his movements. I did not envy the person about to face that anger right now.

  “Who are you?” the vampire demanded.

  “I’m… Lyla?” the witch stammered. She looked just as confused as the rest of us. “What happened? Where am I?” She let her fingers run across her neck, dark with bruises, and inhaled sharply.

  The Elders exchanged glances like they were thinking the same thing. The shaman then walked to the witch, lightly touching her shoulder. “What’s the last thing you can remember, Lyla?”

  The woman looked between the shaman and the vampire towering over her. Lazar looked friendly, I thought. He might have been the loudest before, but as he spoke to the witch, there was nothing but compassion in his voice.

  “I… I was shopping,” the witch stammered. “At the market.”

  The Crimson Fang took a few steps back when she kept looking up at him in terror. She relaxed visibly, turning to the shaman who now kneeled next to her.

  “I was… buying a pumpkin, for dinner, when someone bumped into me, quite hard. That I can remember. I dropped my pumpkin. But… I don’t know what happened next. Wait, uhm… he didn’t seem sorry, I think. I remember being annoyed about that.”

  She looked around and seemed to take in her surroundings. Her face paled visibly when she noticed the vampire guard lying on the ground next to her in a puddle of blood.

  “Was… that…?”

  "No, don't worry about it," the shaman said quietly, offering her a hand to help her up. "We don't know exactly what happened, but it seems you were the victim of a spell, maybe a curse. Apparently, one that transferred to the other vampire when he tried to stop you.

  Her eyes were wide open as she stared at Lazar, her hands still trembling.

  “Go home,” the female Elder said, walking up to her, “and don’t worry about it. We’ll take over from here.” She smiled and touched the scared woman on the arm.

  She nodded quickly, glanced toward the Crimson Fang one last time, then rushed out the door.

  The Crimson Fang looked at the witches and shaman, crossing his arms in front of his chest. “So you’re saying someone cursed her to kill us? A common witch, against four armed vampires?”

  “And then the curse moved on.” The female witch nodded.

  The vampire squinted at her.

  “What if it wasn’t a curse, though?” the shaman added. “Curses don’t move from person to person. What if they were mind controlled, or possessed, perhaps?”

  “That would explain the behavior and memory loss,” the other witch agreed, his brows furrowed. “But we didn’t have curses like that in years!”

  The discussion quickly turned into a chatter that I couldn’t follow. I knew the basics of witchcraft, but not enough to follow such a heated argument on the intricacies of dark spirits and mind control. I wasn’t particularly interested either, not unless they were going to talk about how to kill it. But that didn’t seem to be on their minds right now.

  “Enough!” the Crimson Fang eventually interrupted them. “You can try to figure out what exactly happened and where it came from later—right now, we have a highly aggressive vampire on the loose that we have to deal with.”

  The witches and shaman looked at each other, then hesitantly turning toward the vampire. “What do you suggest, then?”

  He scoffed. “Going after him? Preventing a murder spree? We can cover up a single death, but if a possessed vampire starts killing humans, we’re in trouble.”

  The Elders exchanged glances again for a few seconds, like they were waiting for anyone to bring up a different plan.

  “Alright,” the shaman finally said. “Then our goals align for now. A public slaughter like that would bring too much attention to the supernatural world, and we can’t have that.”

  “We shall assist you with whatever resources we can,” Allard added. “I know a witch who is an excellent tracker, and our friend here will be happy to accompany you, I’m sure,” he continued, pointing at me.

  I looked at him in surprise. “Me?”

  Allard came closer, his voice quiet. “You’ve done an impressive job so far, and we need to make haste if we want to catch that thing. You’ll be compensated, of course.”

  “I don’t think I—" I protested.

  “Please,” he interrupted. “Evie was probably murdered by the same attacker. Her wounds fit—"

  “Evie?”

  “Oh, yes, the owner of the magic shop, sorry,” Allard explained. “We can’t let this thing go on a—"

  I cut him off with a quick gesture. “I remember Evie. If that thing killed her, I’m in.”

  Evie was the first person I somewhat trusted after my mother was killed. When I first stumbled into her store, wounded by some low-life’s poisoned dagger, she’d treated me and let me crash on her couch. I didn’t really get close to people, but when someone messed with one of the few people I liked and admired, I made sure they paid for it.

  A smile spread on the witch’s face. “Marvelous. I knew I picked the right person for the job. Good luck on the hunt, and please contact me when you find anything,” he said and pulled a card out of his jacket, handing it to me.

  I took it with a frown on my face, then laughed after inspecting it for a second. “You have a business card?”

  “I’m not an Elder, but I coordinate many matters for the Ring. Being easy to reach is important for maintaining peace and keeping things civil,” he explained with a shrug.

  “Makes sense, I guess,” I said, still not convinced. But I had more important matters to address for now.

  I nodded at Allard, then walked past him, stopping right in front of the vampire. “You ready to go, or are you worried you might ruin your pretty suit?” I heard myself say, sounding way cockier than intended.

  My heart skipped a beat as the vampire, a head taller and about twice as heavy as me, looked down at me with a mix of irritation and confusion.

  “Let’s go, then” he replied, eyebrow raised, before turning around and strutting toward the exit without hesitation.

  At that moment, I recognized him. I hadn’t noticed from a distance, but seeing him up close and smelling his scent made me remember. We’d met before. And not exactly in a pleasant way.

  “Shit,” I whispered before running after him.

  This was about to be one of the more interesting jobs I’ve had so far.

  3

  After leaving the warehouse, I quickly caught up to the Crimson Fang. Running after him, especially as he was quite a bit taller and far bigger than me, made me feel like a child running after daddy so they wouldn’t be left behind.

  I had chosen to become a mercenary not only because I was a ro
gue—a supernatural who was neither vampire, werewolf, witch, shaman or elementalist—but also because I wanted to be free, not someone’s henchman, not some tool to be bossed around. That was just not who I was, and not what I ever wanted to be.

  “So what’s the plan, vampire?” I asked with a hint of cockiness in my voice. I was not going to let him think I was like his vampire guards, following him like little a puppy.

  “I’m going to call a friend, get us what we need,” he replied briefly without even looking at me.

  Annoyed by his dismissive behavior, I quickly moved in front of him, rearing myself up to full height and staring him straight in the eyes. Which wasn’t as impressive as I intended, since he still looked down on me.

  “I don’t like this any more than you do, but I’ve got a job to do. And today, that includes babysitting you. So until we catch that thing, you’re stuck with me, whether you like it or not.”

  “Apparently, I am stuck with you,” he replied coldly. “So don’t get in my way and let me do my job.”

  With that, he marched past me. I stood there, staring holes in his back for a long second before storming after him.

  “Hey! You think you’re so cool, do you? Too good to need help from someone like me?”

  “Yes, actually.” He stopped to look at me, his face expressionless. “I can deal with this on my own. I didn’t get into the Fangs because of my good looks; I got in because I’m good at what I do.”

  “Oh, and what’s that? Beating up any witches who don’t tell you how pretty your hair is?” I scoffed at him.

  “Right now, it’s calling a friend.”

  Without further explanation, he turned around and started walking again, and pulled out his phone to make a call. We were back at a street again, with a couple of cars parked on the side. I followed, but stayed behind a step or two so I could listen in.

  “Hey, Raina, I need a favor. A tracking spell, preferably mobile, and someone who knows how to banish an evil spirit, maybe a curse. Preferably in the next hour. Thank you.”

  Before I could say something, he put his phone away and turned around to me expectantly. “So, are you going to keep bitching around? Because I won’t have that.”

  I stared at him coldly for a little while longer, then shrugged. “Fine. But I’m only coming because I’m getting paid for it.”

  “I wouldn’t have expected anything different.” He smirked, then turned around to the car behind him, and opened the backseat door, looking at me expectantly. I glared at him angrily, but got into the car without another comment.

  The car was a black SUV, small enough to blend in, but big enough to withstand an attack. I watched the vampire with confusion while he got in the car on the other side. Wasn’t he driving? Then my head spun around as I heard a voice in front of me in the driver’s seat.

  “Where to? Back home?”

  “No, Buck, we’ll have to stop by Raina’s for a visit,” the Fang said, in a much friendlier tone than he had been using with me.

  Of course he has a driver, I thought. But despite my contempt, I couldn’t help but let out a content sigh. These leather seats were surprisingly comfortable. After that fight, leaning back and watching the city pass by outside the car window was just what I needed.

  But my thoughts were still circling. Who was this ‘Raina’ person? She must have been a witch, as only witches were able to cast tracking spells. But how did he have a witch he could call like that? And what are we going to do about the spirit thingy? I’d never fought one before, and I didn’t expect it to go down without a fight.

  I’d never have said it out loud, but I was glad I wasn’t hunting it alone. He might have been a total ass, but he was still a capable fighter and, apparently, also well-connected. And since my dagger was probably useless against a phantasmal being, I wasn’t even sure how much help I would be.

  I was already dozing off in those comfortable seats when something suddenly smashed into the car, sending it into a spin until it brutally crashed to a halt. The aprupt stop jerked my head around, then smashed it against the door. I was dizzy, my vision blurry, but I pushed through to remain conscious.

  My ears were still ringing as I looked around. A lamp post had stopped the car’s spin, and both the driver and the Crimson Fang seemed to be okay. Like me, they had put their seatbelts on, so no one had exited the car abruptly through the windshield, either.

  I blinked the blurriness away as I straightened up, then undid my seatbelt. Shakily, I opened the door and climbed outside the vehicle. My legs gave in on the first step, but I quickly stabilized myself. It was dim already, but not dark, and few vehicles were on the streets. So what happened?

  I looked for the car that had smashed into us. But before I could spot it, a screeching voice broke the silence. “You bitch! You think you can get away with what you did!?”

  Oh hell no.

  I spun around to face her. I didn’t know how she’d found me, but when I’d heard she had asked around at the Blind Eye, I should’ve known that she was going to catch up soon. She was storming toward me, away from a heavily damaged sedan. Going Grand Theft Auto kind of crazy on me was more than even I expected from her.

  “I told you a hundred times, I didn’t do it!” I yelled back at her.

  The woman laughed maniacally, revealing her fangs. “As if I would ever believe you, bitch,” she screamed as she pulled two daggers from her belt.

  She ran toward me, and I pulled my own dagger in response. I bent my knees a bit, making sure to have solid footing. I knew she was not a fighter, but she was crazy, and I was not going to underestimate that. Also, she still had speed and strength of a vampire. I could take her, but she was unpredictable, and that was dangerous.

  She was about ten feet away when she jumped, daggers raised. Her eyes looked down at me with hatred, her blades pointed at my heart. With a smirk on my face, I raised my hand toward her and let out a magic blast.

  It was nowhere near as strong as the the one I threw at the crazed vampire guard, but she was still thrown back a dozen feet, landing on the ground forcefully. She snarled at me when she rolled back to her feet, her head low and stretched forward like a predator on the hunt.

  Well, that wasn’t very effective.

  As she ran toward me again, the Crimson Fang suddenly appeared in front of her. I hadn’t seen him approach, it was almost as if he just appeared in front of her.

  The woman stopped dead in her tracks, eyes widening. First, she swung her knife at him, but he just bent backward a little to dodge it. Then he just stood there, unmoving, his bulky arms crossed before his chest.

  The woman looked up, hissing at this new foe that had appeared so boldly. But when her eyes reached then pin and tie that marked him as a Crimson Fang, her eyes opened widely. She took a step back, letting her arms fall to her sides as a sign of surrender.

  “Whatever problem you have with her can wait,” the Crimson Fang said with a stern voice. “We’re on a mission, and you better not cross our path again.”

  The woman nodded meekly, then ran away at full speed. I was almost disappointed, but mostly I was grateful. While it would have been satisfying to kick her ass, I also knew that she technically didn’t deserve it.

  The Fang looked at me and gestured toward the car. “Come on, we don’t have any time to waste.” He got in again as if nothing happened, and after staring at the fleeing woman for another moment, I got in, too.

  The driver, Buck, quickly inspected the car and seemed to decide that it was only superficially damaged. He took a few photos with his phone, then got back in and got us on the road without any complaints.

  There was an awkward silence between the vampire and me. I was hoping that he was not going to ask about her, but of course, he was not going to ignore it.

  “You know, I don’t get it. You’re a merc. I’m guessing you don’t have friends, you make enemies wherever you go, and don’t even have a real home, a family. Why would you want that for your life?�
��

  I stared at him; my eyes wide open with surprise. Judgey much?

  “You have no idea who I am, vampire,” I hissed. “And not everyone is born into a wealthy, happy family. Some of us actually have to work for things.”

  “Oh, so I don’t get to judge you, but you know everything about me, is that right?” He smirked at me, but his eyes were full of contempt.

  “All I need to know, yeah,” I scoffed.

  He chuckled. “I see. So life’s unfair and I just got lucky. Seems like a good excuse.”

  I scoffed again and shook my head, then turned way to look out the window. The worst part was, he wasn’t wrong. I did fight for money, my dog was my only true friend, and my family was dead.

  To be fair, my life was pretty good right now. I had a decent apartment, enough money to always pay rent on time, the cutest and most intelligent dog as roommate and friend, and I could sleep through most nights without nightmares now.

  But something was missing. Maybe he was right, and one of the reasons I hated him was because he had all the things that I could only ever dream of. But I also hated him because he was an ass about it. Either way, I had promised myself to not think about what to do with my life until I filled my rainy-day fund, so I pushed those thoughts away. But I knew I had to face them someday, so they remained in a corner in my mind like a ghost, haunting me again whenever they could

  For the remaining ten minutes of the ride, we didn’t speak another word. Eventually, the car stopped, and the vampire got out. Though I was still quite upset, an uncomfortable mix of mad and ashamed, I got out and followed him to a small shop.

  It didn’t have a sign, but I could see all kinds of spices, herbs, and a few decorative crystals in the shop window. From the looks of it, the shop of a witch. Once I learned what to look for, I recognized witch shops all over town. The spices were only there as a distraction so regular humans wouldn’t wonder why someone would sell such a wide variety of exotic herbs and crystal powders. Witches were definitely eccentric, but blending in was the best way to keep the supernatural world a secret.

  The vampire walked through the door, and small bells jingled. With two big steps, I caught up and entered the shop right behind him before the door fell closed.