by G. K. DeRosa
“Love?” Alek chuckled. “That is preposterous, who ever heard of a vampire being in love with the Guardian?”
“And she loves him too.” Fabian clapped. “This is just too much!”
Celeste’s blood boiled. She wanted nothing more than to rip that smug smile off Fabian’s face. In a fit of anger, she hurled the rock in her hand and somehow it tore through the invisible barrier. The rock zipped through the air so quickly it caught Fabian entirely off guard, smacking him squarely on the forehead.
“You insolent thing!” yelled Fabian, holding his head where the blood had started to flow.
At the sight of fresh blood, Dani, who had been huddled in a corner frozen in fear, lost control. With a savage growl, she lunged at Fabian, knocking him to the ground. Everything happened so quickly that she was able to get a bite into his neck before he zapped her and sent her crumbling to the floor.
“Alek!” Fabian roared as he clutched his neck to stop the bleeding. “Enough of this, we must start the spell immediately.”
Back in the invisible prison, Nico glanced at Celeste in amazement. “How did you do that?”
“I’m not sure,” she answered. “I was angry, so I threw the rock as hard as I could. I have no idea how it broke through the barrier.”
“Can you get yourself through it?” asked Roman.
“I’ve been trying, but I haven’t been able to.”
“You have to keep trying.” Roman squeezed her shoulder.
“Did you see Dani take out a chunk of Fabian’s neck?” asked Nico. “That was awesome!”
“Let’s keep the celebrating down for now since we are still stuck in this cage. A little vampire bite isn’t going to keep Fabian down for long.” Roman glanced across the room. Fabian remained on the ground scowling, fastidiously wiping away the blood from his black robe.
“I’ve been trying to summon the Council, but I don’t know if it’s working.” Celeste’s shoulders slumped. “I’ve never done it before; shouldn’t they have answered me by now?”
Roman and Nico shrugged, unable to provide any insight. She clutched the key and focused intently. Again, she wished for her sword.
Alek appeared with an ancient leather-bound book and flipped through the yellowing pages. The worn cover was filled with dark symbols that Celeste recognized as black magic. Once he found the page he was looking for, he helped Fabian off the ground and placed it in his arms.
“Get me the first one,” he said to Alek.
Alek appeared inside the cage and taking hold of Nico popped back out taking him with him.
“No!” Roman hissed. He reached out for Nico, but he slipped right through his fingers. Roman hurled himself at the invisible wall with a growl, but it remained unmoving.
“Don’t worry, you’ll be next.” Alex sneered.
With a flick of his hand, Fabian snapped Nico’s neck. He fastened him standing upright to the cave wall with iron restraints around his limp neck, wrists and ankles. He took out an ornate dagger and sliced open each of Nico’s wrists, inserting a pin in the wound so that the skin couldn’t heal itself. As the blood came gushing out, Alek positioned an ancient looking vessel on each side to contain the flowing dark red liquid.
Roman began desperately pacing inside the cage. He bit his lower lip to keep from screaming.
Celeste could feel the pain radiating from him at the sight of his brother’s suffering. She grasped her key tightly and summoned the Council again, imploring that they come to her aid. Celeste placed her arm around Roman’s broad shoulders, holding him as he watched in helplessness as Fabian tortured his brother.
“I’m so sorry,” she whispered.
Fabian began to read from his book in a strange language, and as he did Nico began to come to. “Demonium resurectus omniam filibus…”
“What are you doing?” Nico murmured, his eyes dazed.
Fabian ignored him and continued the chant as Nico’s blood poured into the vessels.
“Alek, I’m ready for the next one.”
Celeste’s heart leapt into her throat. She couldn’t lose Roman, not now and not like this.
“Everything’s going to be okay,” he said. “He’ll let you go once he has what he wants. I’ll make sure of it.” He caressed her cheek, looking deep into her eyes.
“No, Roman, please don’t leave me. You have to fight him!”
“I’ll always be with you Celeste, I love you.” He gave her one last glance as Alek yanked him out of the cage while Celeste scrambled to hold on.
“No!” screamed Celeste. “No!”
As Roman was dragged away, the beautiful ring he had given her caught her eye. She couldn’t believe how useless she felt. There was nothing she could do but watch in disbelief as Fabian took the lives of those she loved most.
No! I won’t let this happen!
Celeste plopped down on the hard floor and shut her eyes. She envisioned being back in Stellan’s sun-filled yard meditating like he had taught her. She focused all her power and for what felt like the millionth time, Celeste squeezed the Wilder key desperately reaching out to the Council and wishing for her sword.
“My brother and I have done everything you wanted Fabian,” said Roman. “Now let Celeste, Stellan and Dani go.” His voice was calm but forceful.
“Alek, chain him to the wall.”
“Wait!” Roman dug his heels into the ground. “Give me your word that you will let them go.”
“Fine, fine, you have my word,” conceded Fabian. “I will let them go as soon as I get what I want from the two of you.”
“Okay, then let’s get on with this.” Roman shot one final rueful glance at Celeste.
Fabian repeated the exercise with the dagger on Roman, restraining him against the wall. The blood flowed rapidly and filled the vessels as Fabian continued his chanting. Nico was pale, his body limp. Celeste noticed a slight movement from where Stellan lay. She released a breath as he began to wake.
“That’s enough!” cried Celeste. “You’re killing them!” She jumped to her feet and threw herself against the invisible barrier. She hit it with a smack. Dazed, she knelt down on the floor, willing herself to stand back up. Placing her hand down to push herself up, something icy and metallic grazed her palm.
It can’t be…
It was her sword. It had appeared from thin air as if by magic. She cautiously glanced around to make sure no one had seen it. She left it where it was, partially submerged in the dirt. She had about five seconds to come up with a plan.
“Alek, it’s time. Bring her.” Fabian motioned down a dark corridor.
Roman glanced worriedly at Celeste, but Alek didn’t make a move toward her. Instead, he suddenly disappeared from the chamber and returned moments later wheeling in a shrouded body prone on a table. Fabian carefully removed the sheet, gazing intensely at who or what lay underneath. Roman, nearly unconscious from blood loss, stared, his eyes wide when the cover was removed.
“Mother?” he asked, right before passing out.
Celeste picked up the sword and holding it high over her head focused all of her power into it. A surge of energy flowed through her and a blazing white light shattered the invisible barrier. Fabian, momentarily distracted from whatever was under the shroud, spun toward her.
At the same moment, Stellan sprung up and unleashed a fiery flash of lightning, blinding everyone around him. Celeste put her arm up to shield her eyes from the bright lights. From her peripheral vision, she saw Dante, Sierra and the other three members of the Council crash through the outer wall of the cave.
Fabian stared, eyes bulging as he ducked for cover from the flying rocks and debris. In the midst of the chaos, Celeste ran to Roman and Nico. She removed the pins from their wrists to stop the blood loss and began working on freeing them from the restraints.
“Are you okay?” she asked. Nico looked deathly pale, and though she had removed the manacles, he hadn’t moved.
“Of course. See, we’re starting to heal alrea
dy.” Nico forced a smile and then collapsed to the floor.
“Nico!” she cried.
“I’m okay, I just need to rest.” He curled up into a ball against the rock.
Roman was as white as a ghost and didn’t say a word. She helped him down and was rewarded with a reassuring smile. She propped him up against the wall next to Nico.
“Stay here, I’m going to need help getting you two out of here.” Celeste ran over to Dani, shaking her until she woke up. “Get up! We have to get out of here.”
Dani opened her eyes and looked around dazed.
“Come on Dani, you have to help me get Roman and Nico out while Fabian is distracted. I can’t do it by myself. They’ve lost too much blood.”
“Okay, okay, I’m up. I’m coming.”
As the Council members crashed through the wall, Fabian attempted to pick them off one by one. Each was clad in black fighting gear with their weapons at the ready. Fabian steeled himself as a frightening glint flashed in his eye as he battled his former colleagues.
“It’s been much too long, Seraphina,” he said to a fearsome raven-haired woman and with a wave of his hand sent her flying across the room. Dante leapt up in time to catch her before she hit the stone pavement and lowered her gently to the ground.
While Dante tended to his companion, Fabian moved on to the next one. “Balthazar, I didn’t think you were still alive.” He glared at an elderly, graying Council member. Before he could repeat the move on Seraphina, Balthazar lunged at him with his spear.
“My, you are pretty spry for such an old fellow,” taunted Fabian, dodging the assault.
Suddenly, Alek appeared between Fabian and his attacker. Balthazar paused, spear in hand ready to strike at either foe.
“Alek, get Dante!” shouted Fabian. “He’s been meddling in my affairs for far too long. I’ll handle this old man.”
“It would be my pleasure.” Alek crossed the room in a blur and flung himself on Dante. Dante struggled to regain his balance and unsheathed his sword just in time to strike at Alek. With a mighty swing of his arm, he slashed Alek across the chest. Reeling from the blow, Alek took a few steps back then raised his hand to hurl a large boulder at his attacker. Dante sprang away just in time to avoid the blow. The rock hit the cave wall and smashed into a thousand pieces sending shrapnel across the room.
Seraphina, who had been unconscious, now rose to her feet to help Dante. Faced with two angry guardians wielding hefty swords, Alek stopped.
“Wait!” he said, holding both hands up.
“Finish them!” shouted Fabian from across the cavern. Balthazar was slumped in a corner and Fabian had another Council member on his knees. With a terrifying gleam in his eye, he looked at Dante and then back at the man kneeled before him and with a wave of his hand snapped his neck.
“Bastard!” screamed Dante.
“No! Markus!” cried Seraphina, running toward her fallen companion.
Alek scanned the scene and with a sly twitch of his mouth disappeared into the wall in a puff of smoke, leaving Dante frustrated and Fabian outnumbered.
Stellan, Dante and the three remaining Council members cornered Fabian and pinned him against the wall. He fought back with black magic of his own, dark flashes of light emanating from his hands. Celeste stared with jaw hung open at what would have been a spectacular light show had the circumstances not been so dire.
“You fools!” roared Fabian. “You think you can defeat me?” He muttered a few words and a whirling tornado appeared, ripping through the group of Council members, tossing them unceremoniously about the cave.
In the midst of the fighting, Celeste and Dani each took a Constantin brother and tucked them safely away in an alcove away from the chaos. They were still much too weak to move.
“Stay here, I have to go back and help,” said Celeste.
“Celeste, please be careful.” Roman squeezed her hands but didn’t try to stop her.
Celeste sprinted back toward the fighting, firmly gripping her sword. Adrenaline coursed through her veins, and it felt good. Something had clicked inside of her, and she was in full-on Guardian mode.
When she reached the others, Stellan was barely holding himself up by a wall. His clothes were tattered, and there were cuts all over his worn face. The rest of the Council members were in no better shape; some had been badly injured by the tornado. The winds, having been swallowed up by a portal opened by Sierra, had started to die down, but Fabian was nowhere in sight.
“Quick, Celeste, you must find him before he gets away.” Dante struggled to get to his feet. “We’ll be right behind you.” He had a large, bloody gash across his forehead.
Celeste nodded and took off in the direction he pointed. She sped through the dim, winding passageways guided only by the light of her sword and instinct. She could feel Fabian’s evil presence nearby. She slowed and crept silently through the shadows. Turning a corner, she found him bent over the body on the cart. He stared at it reverently, gently caressing the arm, which hung limp at its side. It was a look she had never seen in Fabian’s eyes, and for just a moment she pitied him.
Behind her, a rush of footsteps approached. Fabian reacted to the sound and turned around, finally seeing Celeste. Dante and the others rounded the corner, swords in hand ready to resume the fight.
“Give up now, and we will spare your life in return for your years serving on the Council,” said Dante. He stood poised for battle, back straight and shoulders high. Stellan, Sierra and the others flanked him on both sides, faces unflinching.
Fabian let out an ominous chuckle. He made a move toward the body, but Dante stopped him, crossing the distance between them in the blink of an eye. He clutched Fabian by the neck and held him high in the air.
“Surrender,” hissed Dante.
“And what, live powerless for the end of my days in a prison? I’d rather die.”
“If that is what you wish.”
All of the Council members pooled their energy, and a powerful force swept over Fabian. He trembled uncontrollably as an invisible hand stripped him of his magical essence. A cloud of shimmering black encircled him and then disappeared into the ether.
“No! You can’t take away my powers!” Fabian shouted.
As he struggled futilely against Dante’s iron grip, Sierra approached him, wielding a sword similar to the one Celeste had but with its own unique hunter symbol. With a sharp thrust, she drove it straight into his heart. His body contorted then began to shrivel leaving only a charred black corpse in its place.
Standing behind Stellan, Celeste let out the breath she’d been holding for the past few tension-fraught minutes. Fabian’s lifeless body crumpled to the ground. Dante hovered over it, mumbling a few words Celeste couldn’t make out. The other Council members gathered around it as well. They formed a circle and with hands held tightly they stood together in silence.
Celeste needed to get back to Roman and Nico. She turned away, leaving the strange scene to hurry back to the center of the cave. As she ran, she looked around for Alek. She had lost track of him since the appearance of the Council, but he was gone.
Relief sank in when she reached Roman. “It’s finally over.”
“I knew you could do it.”
Noticing Roman’s haggard expression, she crouched down to sit beside him. She picked up his head and cradled it in her lap. He still looked so pale.
“Roman, please take some of my blood.” She offered her wrist.
“No, I can’t.” He shook his head.
“You are going to need your strength to get through the portal—both of you are.”
“I’m feeling better, Celeste,” said Nico. “Dani and I shared a blood bag that she had brought for a snack.”
“And you didn’t save any for Roman?”
“Sorry, that was my fault.” Dani’s face flushed. “I didn’t realize how hungry I was. After I gave the Council my blood to heal them after the tornado, I needed to replenish.”
Roman
was having a hard time sitting up, and he was doing a poor job trying to hide it.
“Oh this is ridiculous.” Celeste picked up the dagger from the floor and sliced her wrist.
“Celeste, don’t!” said Roman. But it was too late. She put her bleeding wrist up against his mouth, and he was unable to control his reaction. His fangs fastened onto her soft skin, and the lifeblood he desperately needed trickled into his mouth.
“Don’t worry, I’m fine. I’ll tell you when to stop, and you will. I trust you.” She gave him a reassuring smile.
Dante appeared in the alcove to find Roman feeding from Celeste. “What do you think you are doing?”
Roman quickly released her arm and retracted his fangs, a mortified look crossing his beautiful face.
“I’m saving his life!” Celeste insisted.
“Do you know how precious Guardian blood is? And you are wasting it on a vampire!”
She glared up at him. “A vampire saved your lives today, too. If Dani hadn’t given all of you her blood, you wouldn’t have been strong enough to defeat Fabian.” Dante had the decency to look down, slightly abashed. “And I don’t care what you think. It is my blood and I will do with it whatever I feel like. Roman was willing to give up his life for me today—both he and Nico were. There aren’t many humans I know that would do the same.”
Dante backed down. “Still, you must know that this sort of thing is unconventional and of course frowned upon.” He looked at Stellan with a smirk. “It looks like you will have your hands full with this one.”
“Yes, I am quite aware of that. Thank you for intervening, Dante. I know it is not something the Council does frequently,” said Stellan giving Celeste a frown.
A pang of guilt filled her chest; they had just saved their lives. “Yes, Dante, Sierra and everyone, thank you.” She mustered all the sincerity she could.
“I am happy we were able to avert a disaster,” Dante said. “The end of the Wilder family bloodline would have been an immeasurable loss to the world.”
With a parting bow, all four of them, carrying their fallen companion, vanished in a burst of light just as quickly as they had appeared.