“Yes, there is. And from what I saw, it’s amazing,” Spirit replied. “But that isn’t for you or the Aeternae to worry about. You’ve already got the greatest gift of all. Eternal life. I wish I had what you have, which is why you must preserve it.”
“You need to stop,” Time said. “Everything you’ve done has only hurt people. It got you obliterated. It left nothing but misery and suffering. You need to stop.”
“I won’t stop until I get what I want!” Spirit snarled. “I won’t stop until I move on, until I’m no longer in Death’s reach! She refused to reap me, so she must suffer! Unending staying here in this cycle means exactly that, and I’ll be damned if I’ll let you or any other self-righteous drone tell me otherwise!”
The Darklings were in agreement, very much by his side. That didn’t come as a surprise, since they’d all been indoctrinated into following the Spirit Bender and his Whip disciples. His chronicles had helped shape the Aeternae empire, even when the Darklings were vehemently outlawed. The Aeternae, however, looked slightly doubtful, exchanging glances and the occasional whisper.
“As long as the Law of Armistice is in place, all he can do is shout and scream,” Esme mumbled, unable to take her eyes off the Spirit Bender. “Also, is it just me, or does he seem extra weird to anyone else? What’s with the angry ripples and shimmers on his face?”
“It might be the missing soul shard,” Sofia said. “Think about it. He’s incomplete, which might mean he doesn’t have the full strength to… I don’t know, smite us. Emphasis on ‘might.’”
Unending and Kalon were still talking, and judging by their frowns, they had difficult decisions to make. Anxiety gnawed at my stomach, but I had to stay sharp. “Either way, Time needs to sell the immortality pill to the Aeternae,” I whispered.
“People of Visio!” Time shouted. “Valaine has offered you forgiveness. Eternity without any repercussions for everything she was put through for the past five million years. It would be foolish to follow the Spirit Bender into more war and suffering when a better reward is yours if you stand down.”
“People of Visio!” Spirit countered, increasingly angry. “Valaine is not Unending. She is only a vessel of bones and flesh, and she does not speak for the one who made you immortal! Unending would never let you live forever, not after five million years of being chained to this planet! Also, I hate to break it to you all, and I hope someday you’ll forgive me, but there’s another problem with taking Valaine up on her offer.”
The silence that followed made us all pay attention. I had a feeling the worst was yet to come. Noticing all eyes on him, Spirit sneered with a mixture of disgust and satisfaction.
“What are you talking about?” Time asked.
“I put a failsafe in the last seal,” Spirit replied. “You see, once I had Unending stripped of her scythe and physical form, I was able to tap into her power, too. I had access to her ability to grant and strip immortality. All I needed to do was to put a little charm in place, subtly hidden within the seal. Once you break it, the charm will go off. Once Unending is truly free, the immortality she’s given you all will disappear. Aeternae, vampires… they will all be mortal again. I know you find it unbelievable, but there is a lot one can do with enough death magic knowledge, and I went to great lengths to make sure nobody wins if I don’t get my way. I mean, it’s a one-time thing, obviously, but after everything she’s been through, I think we all know she won’t deign to give immortality to anyone ever again once she’s released from the seals.”
The news hit me like a punch in the gut.
“What do you say to this, vampires?” Spirit yelled, well aware that we could hear him. “I’m told you were the result of the Night Bringer’s influence on a bunch of Aeternae, but still, the end will be the same for you, too. If you set Unending free, you all become mortal! And rest assured, my sister is angry and bitter. There isn’t a chance in hell she’ll make you immortal again. Not once she’s free, and you have nothing to hold over her head anymore. Do not mistake a Reaper for a righteous and sincere person. We do not abide by your moral codes. Our promises are easily broken!”
The Aeternae were getting restless. Even Corbin looked worried. He was going to lose Valaine either way, so not losing his immortality too had to be one hell of a no-brainer. He turned to face the people in his impromptu army—the civilians, the silver and gold guards, the Crimson soldiers, and the remaining Darklings.
“People of Visio! Aeternae, supreme beings of this universe! For five million years, we have built an empire for ourselves. Many of us have lived through entire ages. The Black Fever has been the bane of our existence, but by the stars, it is a small price to pay in exchange for guaranteed immortality. The Spirit Bender is right, and while what we must do to secure our eternity is difficult and painful, it must be done! If the Unending is free, we’ll all become mortal. And after everything we put her through, she will have no interest whatsoever in making us immortal again! It is an uncomfortable bed we’ve made for ourselves, and now we must once again lie in it.”
“Your choice is clear,” Spirit added, shifting his gaze to Time. “Keep the current system in place or watch your lives crumble and maybe live for a few more years before nature takes its course. You enslaved the Rimians and the Naloreans for their blood because it tastes better than the animals’. It’s not like you had a perfect moral compass to begin with. And spare me the ‘they get paid for their blood’ crap—we all know they don’t have any other option. At least accept yourselves the way you are and stop beating yourselves up over it. You are apex predators! You are conquerors! It’s time to act like it!”
The crowd began to rumble. Roars ripped through as the Aeternae gradually turned back to his side, baring their fangs and claws at our protective shield in an aggressive manner.
“No more apologizing and whimpering!” Spirit continued. “You’re immortal! You shall remain immortal! Follow my lead, and I will give you everything you want! We’ll find a way to keep the Black Fever under control, to reduce its damage even more, but for now some sacrifices are required. Who’s with me?”
The people shouted their approval. “We are! We are! We are!”
“Who’s with me?!” Spirit roared, emboldened by their response.
“We are! We are! We are!”
I groaned softly. “Ugh. This isn’t working.”
“The Law of Armistice is still in effect,” Unending reminded me, returning to my side.
Esme hooked an arm around Kalon’s waist. “It may be in effect, but the negotiations seem to be breaking down.”
“You’re giving Unending very little credit,” Time insisted, his voice booming across the mass of tens of thousands of Aeternae. Tens of thousands more were still gathering from all over the continent. Airships hummed in the air above us. The empire had brought its full force into this fight, despite the Black Fever outbreak. The sick ones had likely been quarantined, but the healthy ones were still standing and desperate to end this cycle once more. Every minute that passed further convinced me that a plan B would be sorely needed. “If a promise of immortality is made, she will keep it. The Seniors can confirm she is a Reaper of her word!”
“The Seniors want us all to die of old age!” Corbin snarled, taking out Unending’s scythe.
Time took a cautious step back, eyeing the Master of Darkness. “Don’t do anything stupid. The Law of Armistice still stands.”
“I… I don’t know, I don’t feel compelled by it,” Corbin hissed.
Spirit raised an eyebrow. “The living don’t have the obedience element encoded into their systems like we do, brother. It’s best if you end the Armistice here, then surrender Valaine and Thayen. I’m really itching to get the rest of my soul back.”
“Don’t do this,” Time warned them all. “You’ll give yourselves to perdition, and there will be no coming back from it!”
“Enough! We shall prevail!” Corbin lunged at Time, his scythe glimmering white.
�
�Time, no!” Unending gasped, covering her mouth with both hands.
The Reaper blocked his hit and tried to cut him down, but Unending’s weapon rejected each blow. Spirit was already inching closer, and Time knew he wouldn’t be able to fight them both at the same time. He jumped back, his lips pressed into a tight line.
“Fine, I’m ending the Armistice.” The Reaper vanished before Corbin could reach him once more, so the Master of Darkness took it out on the protective shield. Within seconds, Darklings, Knight Ghouls, and Aeternae joined him, and they cut and kicked and slashed away at the invisible magical membrane while the Spirit Bender laughed, delighted by this development.
Time reappeared before us, exhaling sharply. “Son of a…” He looked at Valaine. “I had to end the Armistice. I’m sorry, sister. I tried. There is absolutely no reasoning with the Aeternae while Spirit is still around to fan the flames… You saw for yourself.”
“It’s okay,” Unending replied, placing a hand on his shoulder. “There’s still hope. At least Corbin and the others bought that the Armistice law addressed them, as well. You were right to assume that Spirit might not know it applied exclusively to Reapers.”
“Yes, he never paid much attention to the Code of Death,” Time replied. “The arrogant bastard cared more about the death magic than the rules.”
“Well, whatever we plan on doing next, we need to get cracking.” Esme sighed, worriedly staring at the protective shield. Each blow made it shimmer in different shades of red and yellow, as if it were hurting, reacting to the Aeternae’s attacks. “This thing won’t last forever.”
Spirit continued laughing, his arms crossed as he watched his minions lay siege to Roano’s defenses. The city was in peril, and every living creature beneath the shield could die unless we came up with a way to free Unending and finish this, once and for all.
Fear trickled through my veins like ice water as the worst-case scenario reared its ugly head in my mind. There was still a chance we might lose this war, and the mere idea made me queasy. Unending squeezed my hand again.
“It’s not over, Tristan,” she said.
I nodded slowly, wishing for it to be true.
No, it wasn’t over, but it was damn close to it.
Esme
Everything had gone from bad to worse in a matter of seconds. Our GASP crew gathered in a circle, joined by the Reapers, Mira, Kemi, Taeral, and Trev, the latter choosing to represent the Orvisians in this conversation—he would serve as spokesperson on a temporary basis while they got their bearings after Kalla’s funeral. Fear reigned supreme in Roano, and for good reason. There weren’t enough of us to defend this city once the protective shield failed, and there were too many Aeternae out there eager to destroy us all in order to save themselves and retain their immortality.
“Is it true?” Derek asked Unending. “If we set you free, we’ll all become mortal, vampires and Aeternae alike?”
“It is.” Unending sighed, lowering her starry gaze. I felt terrible that she had been put in this position, but I felt even worse for myself. I’d grown accustomed to the idea of a long life. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I worried you might decide to keep me here.”
“How long have you known?” Sofia asked. Thayen refused to leave her side, but he stayed quiet, patiently listening to the exchange and trying to wrap his head around this monstrous situation.
“From the moment I remembered everything,” Unending said. She gave Tristan a brief glance. “I deliberately kept it from you. Forgive me.”
“There is nothing to forgive,” Tristan replied.
I groaned softly. “I guess we’ll all die of old age, then…”
We did our best to ignore the scuffles beyond the protective shield. The Aeternae and the ghouls were actively attacking the magical membrane, and each of their blows further weakened our primary defense. Every moment of silence between us distracted me and drew my attention back to the enemy’s ongoing effort to get to us. Meanwhile, the Spirit Bender was still standing there, watching and smiling as his underlings did his bidding.
Time was right. I had no forgiveness left for these people. They’d chosen this despicable path, well aware of the repercussions. But now that we knew the Unending’s freedom would make us mortal again, what choice would we make? I knew my path, but would the others join me?
“Should we still help you, would you consider restoring our vampiric immortality when this is all over?” Derek asked, matter-of-factly.
Unending gave him a cold smirk. “Is that a condition for your assistance?”
“No,” Derek replied. “I can’t speak for my fellow vampires, but I’m okay with dying of old age sooner, rather than later, if it brings everything here to an end. You’ve suffered for too long—not to mention the Rimians, the Naloreans, the Seniors—and it isn’t right. I’m willing to sacrifice my immortality to fix it. The balance in this universe is the single most important thing. Our immortality has been a fortunate gift, but if it must end, then so be it.”
“Does everyone else present feel the same way?” Unending asked, looking at us.
I nodded alongside my brother. I’d been the first to state I was okay with dying of old age, anyway.
Kalon was too tired and sick to even care. “I just want this to end. I want the Black Fever out of my system, so that whatever time I have left, I can spend it with the people I love,” he said, holding my hand up to his lips and kissing it gently.
“It’s a sacrifice we must make,” Rose said. “It wouldn’t be fair on our part to talk you into doing anything. If, at the end of this journey, you decide to give immortality back to us, we will be most grateful. But if you don’t, we’ll have to learn to live with it.”
“Good,” Unending muttered. “Because my gift has brought nothing but trouble across time and space. Look at how Visio turned out. I definitely understand why Death thought she gave me too much power.”
Sofia cleared her throat. “Let’s not worry about what comes after we win this war. We need to focus on how to win. Even with your memories intact, the odds aren’t exactly in our favor.”
“You’re absolutely right,” Unending replied.
Mira took a step forward, raising a hand to touch Unending’s face. Unending closed her eyes for a second, welcoming the caress. “I’m deeply sorry that you’ve had to go through all this, my darling. But I swear to you, on my life and Kemi’s, that you have our full support until our dying breaths.”
“You’ve apologized already,” Unending said, sounding endeared but amused. “And I’ve told you before, if only as Valaine, that I would no longer fault you. We all made mistakes in this story, Mira. Mine was the worst because I cared little for the people I affected and more about sticking it to Death for breaking my heart. And look where that got us.”
“I don’t know… had it not been for vampirism, Sofia and I would never have met,” Derek interjected, holding his wife close. “We would never have survived all our previous troubles. We would never have started a family, not to mention GASP. You see, I think the universe reacted to your mistake and made sure to offer a solution through us. So, yes, you did wrong, but in the end we are who we are because of you, and there isn’t a single thing I’d like to change about that.”
Derek’s words hit the Unending hard, tears welling in her galaxy eyes. Tristan hugged her and pressed his lips against her temple, while all hell continued to break loose beyond the protective shield. Trev raised a hand, politely demanding our attention.
“I look forward to being a mortal Rimian again, for what it’s worth. But we really need to start talking about the next step, ladies and gents, because Spirit and the Darklings are knocking.”
“And kicking and slashing and punching,” Kalon grumbled. I wished he felt better. Yet given our current predicaments, I understood why Unending had wanted him to be awake. He needed to see and hear all this, and I felt thankful to be with him for whatever time we had left.
Unending took a deep breat
h, then let it out slowly. “Kalon and I have an idea, but you’re not going to like it.”
“I don’t like it, either,” Kalon replied, a muscle ticking in his jaw.
“But the circumstances require it. We must all pitch in,” Unending reminded him, and he gave her an uneasy nod.
Whatever they were talking about, it made me anxious, though the current assault on Roano’s shield made me feel even worse. Once the bubble broke, there would be mayhem and violence and blood and death. If we had a way to stop that, we had to do it, regardless of what it required.
Once Unending and Kalon explained the details of their plan, I broke into a cold sweat. “You’re insane,” I murmured. “You can’t. Kalon, you of all people know how sick and twisted this is!”
“And you know that we don’t have a better option,” Kalon replied. “Trust me, Esme, I hate it even more than you. But he’s the only one who can pull it off and get away before anything bad happens.”
I shook my head, though deep down I had to admit he was right.
Tristan seemed to be on board. “It’ll be up to the rest of our crew to hold down the fort here,” he said. “I’ll stay with Unending and see it through to the end, but everyone else… the gritty task falls into your hands.” He glanced my way. “You’ve got to be careful and survive this, okay?”
Tearing up, I threw my arms around his neck and pulled him into a hug, drawing every ounce of strength I had left not to fall apart in his embrace. The universe was demanding that our paths split at this point, but I held on to the hope that we would be reunited soon. It was my duty to survive what came next and make sure that all those around me lived, too.
Defending Roano was not going to be easy. But Derek had a tiny bit of good news to give us, once we all agreed on our roles and responsibilities in the fight ahead. “We’ve got GASP shuttles coming. All our combat personnel have mobilized for this.”
“What? How?” I breathed, feeling my eyes widen.
A Shade of Vampire 86: A Break of Seals Page 3
