Broken

by Zara Novak

  “You’re a fucking liability, the Halo Amulet is serious fucking business, Hunter, and you know it is. We need every cock-sucking guardian on this.”

  “Just the cock-sucking ones? Are you getting back into field work again?” I laughed to myself, able to imagine his fury on the other end of the line.

  “Now you listen to me Hunter, you’re going to tell me where you are and we’re coming to pick you up. I hope to god you’ve got the amulet.”

  “Of course, I have. I also have the girl. She can hold it, Davian, isn’t that interesting?”

  He froze for a second. “Really? She’s able to use the thing?”

  I shrugged, a gesture that was often lost on phone calls. “She could hold it with no problem, and the stone even illuminated for a second. Harkin tried to touch the thing. Son of a bitch nearly had an aneurysm.”

  “What about you?”

  “I can just about hold it, but no. I’m definitely not worthy.”

  “Don’t beat yourself up, most people aren’t. Give us your location and we’ll come get you and the girl. Harkin is probably going to start a small war over this, so we all need to stick together.”

  “Didn’t Rocky already give you the address for the hideout?”

  “Yeah, he did, you motherfucker. We went and you’re not there, so where the fuck are you?”

  I grinned to myself.

  I had purposely called Rocky and asked for a hideout to throw the guardians off my tail. The truth was that I had a place of my own, and even the guardians didn’t know about it. The Halo amulet was a big fucking deal, and it could sway even the noblest of men. I had to keep my distance from the guardians until I knew who to trust.

  “Can’t you trace this call?” I said, knowing full well that he couldn’t.

  “I can, but something tells me you’re not in Shanghai right now, because even you aren’t that fast, so where the fuck are you?”

  “I’m somewhere safe, and that’s all you need to know at this moment. You know it’s not safe for me to go back to HQ right now.”

  “Listen to me Hunter. We all know what happened last time. That isn’t going to happen again. Trey was an anomaly, we’re not—”

  “Sorry Davian, I think I’m out of minutes.”

  “Hunter! I’m warning you—!”

  “Speak to you soon, Davian. Don’t wait up.”

  With the press of a button the call was done. Davian tried to call back immediately. I hit ignore and set the phone to ‘do not disturb.’ As I came back into the lounge, I saw Rachel sitting at the coffee table. She was holding the amulet up in the air. It spun slowly around in her grasp, the stone glowing lightly before her.

  She was definitely the one.

  I cleared my throat to alert her of my presence and she jumped up to her feet.

  “Oh god! Oh. It’s just you,” she said, now clutching the amulet close to her chest. “Where have you been?”

  “Just checking in with my superiors. Sleep well?”

  “Really well actually,” she said, though she yawned and scratched the back of her head. She was now wearing one of the dressing gowns that came with the room. Her hair was up in a messy bun. I wanted nothing more than to rip that gown off and fuck her all over again. “Um, what time is it?” she asked. “I think my watch is broken.”

  “It’s not broken,” I said. “It’s just after nine. There’s a reason it’s still dark out.”

  “What?”

  I grabbed the remote off the table and turned the tv on. The news was the first channel to come on, and images of the erupting volcano filled the screen.

  “Jesus,” Rachel said as she wandered over to the TV. “Krakatoa erupted? The last time that happened was in the 1800’s. The whole world was dark for like three days.”

  “It was actually a week,” I corrected her. “And things were fucked up for a long time after that.” Ever dark only lasted a week, but it took time for the ecosystem to adjust in the aftermath. “Look, there are some… things we need to talk about. Do you want to grab some breakfast? I can shed a little more light regarding our current predicament.”

  “Coffee and sugar-loaded pastries are a staple requirement to start my day. I might even need to Irish that coffee after last night. It kind of hurts to sit down,” she said sternly, her eyes glaring at me.

  I bit my lip to stifle my laughter.

  I wasn’t surprised at all. Her ass would be tender for a few days at least. I’d given her quite the punishment. “What can I say, I get out of control when I’m horny. There’s always more where that came from. You just have to step out of line.”

  She rolled her eyes, but there was definitely a trace of interest. “Don’t get your hopes up. What do you want to talk about?”

  “I can explain what’s going on here. I think it’s important you know. Are you down to talk?”

  “I need coffee first, and pastries. I’m still trying to wrap my head around this whole vampire thing. I can trust you… right?”

  “I guess that answer is up to you little lady. There’s nothing I can say to change that.”

  “You’re right,” she said after a moment’s reflection. “I’m sorry, this is all just a bit much. I tracked down the Halo Amulet, watched my colleague die, found out vampires exist, got abducted, and now the world has gone dark for a few days? It doesn’t get much weirder than that.”

  I stared at the amulet dangling in her right hand. Little did she know, it was all down to that tiny piece of jewelry.

  “Why don’t you get dressed and we’ll talk. There are some things you need to know about that amulet there. The weirdness has only just begun.”

  We both got ready and took the elevator down to the lobby.

  A lot of rich folk were milling around, gossiping about the curious darkness, reading the news on their phone screens or looking at the news on monitors in the lobby.

  Rachel and I stepped outside and she followed me down the street. The rain was still hammering down and dark clouds swirled overhead. It would look like regular night to most, but the dark clouds were actually from the ashfall currently circling through the stratosphere.

  The ever dark was entirely scientific, but the actual instigator—the amulet tucked away safely in Rachel’s jacket—was a powerful magical device.

  We were only outside for a few minutes before ducking back inside the lobby of Four Seasons. I didn’t make a habit of hanging around ultra-fancy places like this, but it just happened to be the closest diner to my hidden hideout, and it was also a business that secretly catered to vampires like myself.

  Once inside the maître di escorted us to a table were we ordered some food. Humans didn’t know it, but the more elite parts of society tended to be more vampire friendly. Rachel ordered a coffee and an assortment of sugar pastries.

  “And you, sir?” the waiter asked.

  “A Rooibos tea with an iron tablet,” I said. “Is Bram working?”

  “Always, sir.”

  “Then have him wait our table from now.”

  “Of course, sir,” he said and left.

  “Bram?” Rachel asked. “You’re on first name terms with the staff?”

  “Some places have dedicated staff for vampire clientele. Bram is just a codeword. The vampire host is always named Bram.”

  “You vampires sure have a great sense of humor, eh?” Rachel said sarcastically.

  “I didn’t come up with the code, I just follow it. You say you get cranky without coffee and sugar, want to see what a 250lb vampire looks like without his morning pint of blood?”

  “You mean you can get grumpier?” she jibed. “I’m curious to see what that would look like.”

  “Don’t be, I’ll just take it out on your perfect little ass.”

  She blushed and looked away. I smiled. I knew that would shut her up.

  A couple minutes later ‘Bram’ came over with our order on a shining dinner cart. He set a cafetière down in front of Rachel along with a tiered tray of vario
us breakfast pastries. My ‘Rooibos tea’—blood, if you hadn’t already caught on—was in an old-fashioned tea pot with a matching cup and plate.

  The waiter was dressed just like the rest of the staff, but he was rake-thin, deathly pale and his eyes had a slight red twinge to them. We were both vampires but at opposite ends of the spectrum physically. He gave me the slightest nod of acknowledgement.

  “How about this weather?” he said to me. I very much doubted a vampire like this would know about the ever dark and the Halo Amulet, a few days of darkness was beneficial to our kind, nevertheless.

  “Advantageous,” I said.

  “Indeed. Can I get you anything else?”

  “I’ll let you know,” I said, slipping a hundred-dollar bill into his hand. Bram left promptly.

  As soon as he left Rachel tore into her breakfast, reminding me very much of a lioness ripping apart a wildebeest after a hunt on the plains. I paused to regard her briefly before pouring some blood into a glass and drinking it down slowly.

  From the first drop I felt immediately invigorated. The strength came back to my muscles and my senses sharpened. I took a huge breath of air and savored the amazing feeling.

  “What’s funny?” Rachel asked. I was watching her with a bemused smile on her face.

  “Oh, nothing. Just… Well there’s a huge vampire at this table and a tiny human woman. You’d expect me to be the one eating like a ferocious animal.”

  “I wouldn’t take my sugar addiction lightly,” she said before polishing off the last pastry on the tiered stand. “You’ll do well to remember that.”

  “Oh, I definitely won’t forget this any time soon.”

  She shrugged and took a long drink of her coffee. “I probably shouldn’t binge like this. There’s a good 20lbs of fat clinging to my ass and hips that I would love to kick.”

  “Please don’t,” I said. “I happen to like it a lot.”

  She blushed again, her fair cheeks turning a beautiful pink color. God, she was something else.

  “What did you want to talk about?” she said brusquely.

  I emptied my cup and set it down. “The amulet in your pocket. Do you understand what it is and what it does?”

  “It’s the Halo Amulet, an ancient piece of lost jewelry. Its historical value is incalculable.”

  “Well… that all might be true, but none of it is actually relevant.”

  Her brow furrowed. “What do you mean?”

  “What you are holding is a very powerful magical artifact, one that most people would love to get their hands on if they could. You saw Harkin last night; he especially is keen.”

  “Why?” Rachel asked.

  “The Halo Amulet isn’t really valuable in itself,” I explained. “But it serves a function. It is a compass, it leads to something extremely powerful: the secret burial place of Halo, the sun goddess.”

  Rachel blinked a few times. “I beg your pardon. This amulet is a compass?”

  “Yes.”

  “And it points to the burial place of a… goddess.”

  “That is correct.”

  “I… what?”

  “Just let me explain what I know, and it might make more sense.”

  “Okay.”

  “The device you held in your hands this morning has the power to change everything. The world has literally been shaped by this artifact time and time again. Do you know much about ancient mythology?”

  “Well I’m a PhD in history and archaeology, so, yes, I like to think I know a little bit.”

  “Do you know much about the goddess Halo?” I asked.

  “She is the youngest sister of Gaia, the goddess of all creation,” Rachel answered.

  “Very good, you do know your stuff.”

  “Hunter, this is elementary for me.”

  “Well what you might not know is that this ancient mythology is not a myth. It’s real, some of it anyway.”

  “That just can’t be possible,” Rachel laughed.

  “Bear with me, because it is. Some gods are better known than others, but as it happens Halo is one of the better-known ones. In fact, people used to worship the sun, they used to think it was god.”

  Rachel nodded. “Yup. To this day there are still tribes who worship the sun as the creator of all.”

  “Exactly. The sun goddess, Halo, was very popular, and is still well known to this day. But do you remember how she met her demise in mythology?”

  “I do,” Rachel said. “It was at the hand of her elder sister, Gaia, the goddess of all creation. Halo took much satisfaction in the attention and praise that people bestowed upon her. She took all the credit for Gaia’s work and in turn Gaia grew scornful.

  “Gaia decided to punish her sister for her vanity and condemned her soul. She split Halo’s soul down the middle and locked half in the sun, and half on the earth. With the goddess split down the middle she created night and day.”

  “Exactly. Your knowledge is impressive.”

  “But what does this have to do with anything?” Rachel asked.

  “This isn’t a myth,” I said. “It really happened. The gods are real, and half of Halo’s soul really was condemned to imprisonment here on earth. The amulet you are holding is a compass that leads to her current prison.”

  Rachel blinked. “Suppose I believed any of this. Why would we want to find a hidden goddess?”

  “When Gaia condemned her sister to imprisonment she did so with a caveat. She would give Halo the chance to unite her soul and Gaia created the Halo Amulet. Any human who managed to track down Halo is entitled to one wish. They can wish for anything in the world.”

  “Anything?”

  “Anything,” I stressed. “After that wish is spent Halo’s prison moves to another secret location on the planet and the amulet is hidden elsewhere too. The next person to find the amulet has a chance to find the goddess again and be rewarded with a wish.”

  “How long has this been going on for?”

  “No one really knows how old the gods are, but I’d wager at couple thousand years at least.”

  “I don’t understand how you can know all this.”

  “I work for the Guardians, an ancient organization that helps to contain paranormal troubles. The Halo Amulet is the D.B Cooper of my world. It was last found 137 years ago. That’s when Krakatoa last erupted.”

  “What has Krakatoa got to do with any of this?”

  I shifted in my seat.

  “Whenever the amulet is found the ‘ever dark’ begins. This is a period of seven days where the world is locked in darkness. If Halo’s prison isn’t found in that time the amulet automatically disappears. Both the amulet and Halo are randomly hidden once again.”

  “Wait, so you’re telling me we’re locked in this darkness now because I found the amulet?”

  I nodded. “Are you starting to believe me yet?”

  Rachel didn’t look sure. “If this thing is as powerful as you say, then maybe you should just take it.” She went to fish the amulet from her jacket, but I stopped her.

  “No, don’t give it to me, I’m not worthy.”

  “What? What is this? Wayne’s World?”

  “I’m not kidding, Rachel. Did you notice how Harkin couldn’t touch the amulet? It has a similar effect on me. Only a select few are able to touch it, those considered worthy.”

  “Who had it last?” she asked.

  “…No idea,” I lied.

  Rachel just stared at me, not knowing what to say. “These are all just fairytales.”

  “Just like vampires?” I asked.

  “Let me recap a second,” Rachel said. “You’re saying if we don’t find the tomb in a week then the amulet and Halo are automatically hidden somewhere once again.”

  “Yes.”

  “Well then it seems like the sensible thing to do is just hide for a week and let the amulet disappear by itself. We can avoid a whole lot of trouble that way.”

  “If that is what you want to do, then I will do
it. I’m your guardian now, so I have to stick by your side regardless of the decision you make. I need to warn you however, there is one last part about this arrangement which means that it might be better for us to find Halo.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Gaia made the amulet so those on earth could find Halo, but she did not want the search to be easy, only the worthy should find a wish-granting goddess. This is why there is only a period of seven days to find Halo before the amulet disappears.”

  “And?”

  “Gaia decreed that if the allotted time ran out then the finder was never worthy. If it happened too many times, then the denizens of earth had clearly fallen in their capacities and the amulet would be destroyed once and for all. She made a rule. If the amulet fails to find Halo three times, then Halo would be completely destroyed. The goddess and all parts encompassing her soul, the sun included, would forever be removed from existence.”

  “How… how many times has the amulet failed?”

  “Turn it over and look at the back,” I said. “A mark is added each time it fails.”

  Rachel looked around the room before pulling out the amulet. She unwrapped it from a cloth keeping it safe and placed it face down on the table. Two marks scored into the back told her the answer.

  “This would be the third time?” she said as she looked up at me. Her complexion had suddenly paled.

  “Yes. So… if we fail to find Halo this time. If you fail to find her, Rachel. Life as we know it?”

  I snapped my fingers to finish the point.

  “I’m starting to realize just how big this is now,” she said, her voice shaking slightly.

  “Yeah. It’s one hell of a babysitting job,” I said and took another sip of my blood.

  5

  Rachel

  “Change of plan,” I said as Hunter’s damning words slowly sunk in. “I have to make this coffee Irish now. Where’s that waiter?” I looked around the room but couldn’t see any sign of him.

  “Look we’ll be fine,” Hunter said dismissively. “Yes, there is a lot riding on us finding Halo, but that’s exactly what the amulet is built to do. No other person on earth is more qualified than you right now.”