"I told him that you had broken the bonds; the major fonts of power drained. I myself have severed the rest of them, and the Blood Queen is now aware of my betrayal." The witch took a step forward, setting Alice on edge. "The sovereign may have been weakened, but some of that power still remains. It is locked away in her veins, contained within the blood itself."
Unsure as to what that meant, Alice tried to probe further. "But what does this have to do with Sam?"
Morgana stood still once more, her whispers now echoing throughout the cave. "I told him that he was destined to topple the throne. The boy came to accept the truth of which I spoke and wanted to save you from your dark fate. He went to face the Blood Queen alone."
"Alone?" The sudden panic in Alice's voice was obvious. "When did he leave? How long ago?"
"A night past." came the swift, yet steady response.
Trying to push herself to her feet, Alice found that her legs were heavy and weren't as responsive as she would like. It was as if they were dead weight and she had forgotten how to use them, but that didn't stop her from trying. "I have to go to him."
"That is a dangerous path, even for you." Morgana took another step forward, but this time Alice was too busy to notice, let alone react.
Rolling to her hands and knees, Alice continued to fight against her unresponsive limbs. "It doesn't matter…" she grunted through gritted teeth as she kept on pushing. "He would do the same for me."
"Do you plan to go alone, little one?" There was a hint of curiosity in the red witch's voice now as she again stood there motionless.
Alice glanced over at Morgana as she strained to get herself into an upright position. "Why? Is there anyone else who would go with me?"
There were black eyes watching from underneath the cowl now, the almond shapes just visible beneath the crimson fabric. "Perhaps, although they may not listen to your pleas. You have given little reason for them to trust you."
It took a great deal of effort and discomfort, but Alice finally pushed herself into a standing position. She may not have been stable on her feet, but she had made progress all the same. "Who are they? Do…" Her sentence was cut short as she realised that Morgana was no longer present, the red glow of her robe completely gone as it left the cave in darkness.
The thick French accent of another past acquaintance boomed from somewhere near the cave entrance, the familiar sound of a man who she had not heard in quite some time. "Mademoiselle, I see that you are finally awake. It seems that you have some explaining to do, if you would be so kind."
Alice tensed up, knowing full well that she was now in real danger, for she had woken in the lion's den and the masked queen that he served would surely want her head.
Chapter Twenty-Three: Dead Man Walking
Walking down the city streets in the cold night air, Sam made sure to bide his time and take in the sights; not in a rush at all to reach his destination. The snow was falling faster now, as if the clouds were desperate to rid themselves of a burden that now rested upon his shoulders instead and weighed him down heavily. It had been slow going as the freshly shoveled sidewalk had already piled up to his ankles, the ground still slippery underfoot. Large plows continued to clear the roads, their task seemingly endless as the path behind them was filled within mere minutes of their passing. They were fighting a losing battle against a force of nature much stronger than themselves, a feeling that Sam understood all too well in recent nights.
The Calgary Tower could be seen in the distance, its impressive height still dwarfed by the skyscrapers that towered above it on almost every side. No matter how much it tried to stand tall and proud, it would soon be overcome by new marvels of engineering that would make it seem smaller still. The symbolism behind it was not lost on Sam, and it reminded him of how small and insignificant he was in a world where so many others were so much larger and stronger than him. His scars were a constant reminder of the weakness in his blood, something that others were often so quick to remind him of.
For some reason Morgana believed that Sam's thin blood was more of a boon than a curse, claiming that he had been made this way for a reason. She said that he had a purpose; one that he was yet to see with his own eyes, but a purpose nonetheless. With precious few options left, he had put his trust in the witch's plans, moving forward with an uncertain belief that he was somehow the key to Katherine's defeat and that he would be able to face her on his own.
Sam wondered how deluded he had become to believe in the words of a vampire, especially when he had been lied to countless times before. After all, they were all liars in their own way, even if like him they were usually just lying to themselves. Seeing what Katherine had done to Alice in her selfish pursuit for power, it was clear to see that she had deceived herself into thinking that she was far more important than everyone else in the world. Not that Queen Marquette was much better, as she manipulated those around her into doing her bidding without a single thought towards the effect that it would have on their minds.
In the end, Sam didn't care who sat on the throne, nor did he care for their skewed political views or constant warmongering. Right now there was only one thing that he knew for certain; as long as the Blood Queen was left alive, neither he nor Alice could be free from her clutches.
Expecting that he wouldn't survive the upcoming confrontation with his maker, Sam had come to accept his destiny as written fact. As his long journey was nearing its end, he couldn't help but feel remorse for all the mistakes that he had made along the way. The manner in which he had cut Alice from his life when they were younger had always haunted him, and the deaths of his friends in Miami had also left a permanent mark. Worse still was the horrifying way in which Christie had been taken from him and his inability to rescue her from that dreadful fate. He couldn't forgive himself for any of it, and yet his poor choices hadn't ended there.
In some ways, Sam felt responsible for Matty's death too and for how Alice had been damaged by his loss. If he had only been there to support them, to lend his aid in their hour of need, then maybe things could have turned out differently. If he had stayed with them and hadn't been so selfish as to want some time alone, perhaps if he had gone along with them on their supply run, all the events since could have been avoided. Whether he held the blame for it all or not, he felt as though he didn't deserve forgiveness for his sins, nor would he have ever accepted it if it were offered.
Still questioning his past choices, Sam wondered if he was right to leave Alice back at the cave. There was nothing else that he could have done to help her, but she wasn't safe among those who had little love for her, believing that she had played a major role in Katherine's ascension. He had fed her fresh animal blood and a steady supply of blood bags in the hope that she would wake up, but her situation never seemed to improve. He would have fed her from his own wrist too were it not for Morgana's words of warning. She said that his essence wouldn't be enough to sustain Alice, and from what he knew about himself, she was probably right. After all, it was barely strong enough for him to sustain himself; his body constantly wracked with the pain of old wounds that never fully healed.
The witch somehow knew more about Sam's cursed state than she let on, the knowledge that she did impart a little too detailed to be mere coincidence. She had once mentioned that she was the one to have made him this way, tainting Katherine's bloodline so that she could create the instrument of her destruction. As disconcerting as that was, he couldn't be angry at Morgana for what she had done to him. After all, it meant that it was now within his limited power to save his friend from a tyrant that had ruled over her existence for far too long.
Over the past few weeks, Renita's revolution had gained a surprising amount of support, mostly from those who could no longer tolerate their existence as slaves. New allies came in from all over the city, swearing fealty to the old queen who they had once turned their backs on. Pacts were made and others were broken as a string of betrayals and double crosses led to several casualtie
s, one of which hit Sam harder than all the others.
It was Max's passing that hit Sam the hardest, the one person amongst his allies that had accepted him from the start. Rahna held him personally responsible for her packmate's death and he couldn't blame her for feeling that way either. If he had left Alice's side for just one night and gone along with them on their mission, then maybe Max would have returned in one piece. Sam could still picture Rahna carrying what was left of his decomposing corpse; her face stained red, arms dripping with his blood. She had reported directly to Vincent, cutting Sam out of the loop as she was too angry to even look him in the eye.
Over a week later and nothing had changed; Rahna's rage still too great to make amends. Sam couldn't be mad at her for how she felt, as he knew that he deserved far worse from her than simply being ignored.
Sam had been so deep in thought that he had lost track of where he was in the city, the tall buildings giving way to open sky. The night was decorated a bright white, the ground blanketed for as far as the eye could see. Everything looked different to how it had been upon his arrival in Calgary; the city changing with the seasons as it transformed into a strange land that he no longer recognised. In fact, he wouldn't have even known where he was going if it wasn't for the maps that Vincent had them study on a nightly basis, the older vampires among them adverse to trusting the use of technology, let alone having the knowledge to use it.
As far as those ancient beings knew, the internet was a way for their enemies to spy on their activities, and so they avoided smartphones and other such things; instead opting for the tried and tested methods of sending messages or navigating their surroundings. Sure, they had been known to make phone calls on occasion and send a text message or two, but nothing beyond the realm of what a normal flip phone could achieve.
Fortunately, Sam didn't need the help of technology to find his way across town, as he had memorised the route beforehand. He had a good memory for such tasks, not quite eidetic, but it was keen and sharp enough to remember the important things. It had allowed him to traverse the city without much thought at all; absentmindedly making his way to his final destination without even trying. He had navigated the streets as if he had walked them a thousand times before; moving like a local instead of a country boy from way down south. As much a triumph as that was, it meant that he had wandered towards what would likely be his doom, quite literally becoming a dead man walking.
Eau Claire was an upmarket neighbourhood south of the Bow river and the site of Katherine Louviere's personal estate. Sam had half expected some of Katherine's guards to pick him up along the way, but he had made it this far unhindered. It was strange really, as if no one cared whether he came or went; or perhaps they were distracted by something else going on in a different part of the city. A short walk from the town market, a large, snow capped building was set back against a monochrome sky.
The place was rumoured to be an impenetrable fortress, but all Sam saw was a modern building protected by an iron wrought fence and dotted with more security cameras than he could be bothered to count. Rumour had it that there was once a secret passage that led deep into the heart of the building, but it had since been collapsed under Katherine's direct orders. Fortunately for Sam, he wasn’t looking to make a stealthy approach this time; instead opting to walk right up to the main entrance, as foolish as that might be.
The two guards by the gate were unflinching in their duty, neither seeming to acknowledge the presence of the other. It was an odd sight to witness, as in Sam’s experience people would tend to make small talk in such situations, but they both stood diligently at their posts, as if it was the only thing that mattered to them in the world. It didn’t take the pair long to spot the suspicious man making a beeline for their position, the hood of his sweatshirt pulled up over his head.
“Who goes there?” the first guard called out. He was disciplined in the way that he carried himself, dressing smartly in a black suit with a long winter coat draped over the top.
“Identify yourself!” the second one added as he peered at Sam inquisitively. He was wearing identical clothing to his colleague, but that wasn't strange in itself. The weird thing about him was that his features were strikingly similar to his peer, so close in fact that it was difficult to tell the two of them apart.
The guards looked quite unremarkable, their appearances easily forgotten in a similar manner to the few who had turned against their queen and changed sides. It was weird to see a group of people look so much alike, almost as if they had been physically altered to look that way. If Katherine had done something to change them, no one had come forward with an explanation so far. None amongst them seemed to know what it was that had made them that way or how it had been done in the first place, whether it was through surgery or by something more mystical in nature. Perhaps they had always looked alike, but there had been no sightings of anyone like them prior to Katherine's rule, at least as far as anyone could recall. There had been reports of vampires going missing in the months leading up to the Blood Queen's coronation, but no one had been brave or foolish enough to investigate the matter further.
Coming to a stop not far from where the guards waited, Sam pulled down his hood to reveal his heavily scarred face. He looked back and forth between them as he spoke, not knowing which of them he was meant to address. "Sam Mitchell. I believe your queen has been looking for me."
Neither guard appeared to recognise him, despite his distinctly identifying marks. They stared blankly in his direction for a few seconds before the first of them responded. "The name means nothing. State your business."
"I'm here to see the queen." Sam announced, standing as tall and confidently as he could.
"She's not receiving any visitors at this time." the guard replied without hesitation. "Turn around and go home."
"One moment..." the second one interjected, holding a hand to his ear as he kept an eye on Sam. "Yes… Understood." He lowered his hand again as he reached towards the gate and stepped aside. "You may proceed."
As the gate slowly opened, Sam looked at both men again as he tried to distinguish between the two of them; a task that was surprisingly difficult to achieve. He hadn't expected them to just let him in, but he had also presumed that they would have known who he was and arrested him for his crimes of treason against their Blood Queen. Even now it seemed as though he held no significance to his enemies; the threat that he posed to them beneath even their notice.
The guards would have surely recognised someone like Sir Chevalier or Vincent on sight, two men who demanded attention with their mere presence; whereas Sam was nothing in comparison and not even worth their recognition. He was a fly caught amongst the spiders, yet he was too small for them to even notice when he was writhing within their web.
As soon as the way was clear, Sam proceeded into the garden where a stone walkway was lit up by rows of lamp posts that showed him the path forwards. The guards didn't even watch him as he went, closing the gate behind him and returning to their duties as if he had never passed them by. He found that he wasn't upset or annoyed by their ignorance, instead feeling glad that everyone kept underestimating him. Their dismissal meant that Sam could go where others could not. He could walk past their defenses and in through the front door with ease, where others would have been turned away or attacked on sight.
It had been surprisingly effortless so far, with only Sam's thoughts holding any opposition, but he in no way presumed that Katherine would be as much of a pushover. After all, she for one knew who he was, even if she didn't really care what happened to him. If he was lucky, perhaps she too would underestimate him and let him get close enough to do whatever it was that he was meant to do; not that he had any clue as to what that was. It occurred to Sam that he hadn't formulated any sort of plan and was about to come face to face with his maker completely unprepared. As stupid as he had been in the past, this surely had to top the list. It was a foolish endeavour to be sure, and one that he had volunteer
ed for willingly.
As the main door to the building opened in front of him, Sam was hit with a wave of uncertainty. This moment was bigger than anything else that he had gone through so far and he wasn't sure that he was ready for what was to come, but he hadn't come this far to give up now. All he could do was put one foot in front of the other, presenting a false air of confidence that he really didn't possess.
Sam felt as though he was being watched; a feeling that was validated when he noticed one of the cameras moving in the corner of his eye. It appeared that where Renita and her followers shunned the use of new technology, Katherine embraced it; adapting to the new world in a way that the archaic beings who were stuck in the past could not. It wasn't just her power that they feared, but her ability to evolve with the times. Katherine Louviere was more than just a tyrannical ruler, she had done something that they could only dream of. She had broken free of an ancient hierarchy to create one of her own, placing herself high above them all at the very pinnacle.
Near blinded by the bright lights beyond the doorway, Sam shielded his eyes as he stepped over the threshold. He couldn't see what lay ahead of him, but he refused to turn back, proceeding into the unknown with dogged determination. As the door pulled shut behind him, he knew that he was trapped in there, but he refused to let his fear show. They didn't need to know how scared he was, nor did they have to know the limits of his courage.
It had been Sam's choice to come to the palace without backup, he had never been forced; so he had to be brave for his own sake. This was his decision, so he alone could accept the consequences for his actions and no one else could be held accountable. All that mattered was that Alice was out of Katherine's reach while he played his end game, and if everything went as Morgana had told him, this would be the Blood Queen's end. No one else had to put themselves in harm's way, not anymore. No one else had to die. This was Sam's last chance to save them all.
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