A Shade of Vampire 70: A Breed of Elements

by Forrest, Bella

  Riza cleared her throat. “We need to study the Hermessi more. I doubt you had enough time to study those library records tonight,” she said to Taeral.

  He shook his head. “I barely skimmed through a few bits, until I found out about Brann. I’m positive we’d need to dig deeper in there. We have to gather whatever data we can find about the Hermessi. If there’s something in those old parchments about how to stop, debilitate, or destroy a Hermessi, I’m all for it.”

  “I don’t think destroying a Hermessi is a good option,” Amelia said. “They’re primordial beings, not ghouls or Elders. They’re as old as time, and they facilitate the creation and existence of life itself. I don’t even know what would happen to a planet if you deprived it of its fire Hermessi, for example.”

  “Amelia is right,” Eva said. “We should focus on reaching out to that rogue Hermessi and finding a way to stop what it’s doing. We don’t have the knowledge or the power required to take on an elemental. Not even if we bring the three dimensions together for it.”

  Herakles nodded. “Then it’s settled. Riza and I will check the library again. In detail.”

  Riza’s head turned so fast her neck almost snapped. “That wasn’t settled. I never said I was going there with you.”

  “It’s settled now,” Herakles said with a grin. “You can teleport. I can’t. We can handle the library and Taeral can zap the rest of the crew around to find Trap Mellon. I think it’s a reasonable division of resources.”

  “It’s a good idea,” Taeral replied. “You two do that. We’ll deal with the prison.”

  Riza nodded slowly. She didn’t seem thrilled, but she wasn’t too bummed out about it. Amethyst fires burned in her eyes, and when they met the crude green in Herakles’s gaze, they exploded like miniature galaxies.

  “What are we going to do about Nalyon Martell?” Amelia asked. “He’s sent the Armed Forces out to get us. They will not stop until they trap us. Worse, what if he’s already given them orders to fire at will? We were told not to retaliate.”

  I exhaled sharply. “I’ll turn them all to ashes if they point a single weapon at you—at us, I mean. Don’t worry about them. Lumi’s on her way to handle things, isn’t she?”

  “Yes. I’m just waiting for a confirmation from GASP that she left Calliope,” Amelia replied.

  “Good, then let’s leave that ghastly Nalyon Martell issue with her,” I said. “We also need to consider approaching Aya again. She may know more about this rogue Hermessi, since she’s the one who told us about him in the first place.”

  “Ugh. That might be a tough one,” Varga replied, wearing a grimace. “You know Vesta won’t be thrilled about it. She hates the possession part with the fire of a thousand suns.”

  “I don’t think her discomfort should trump our quest for the truth,” I said.

  I had all respect and love for the Nerakian fae, but she was a resource we had to make full use of, given the circumstances. I could only imagine how terrible it was to lose control over one’s body during a Hermessi possession, but it was temporary—the death of innocent fire fae, on the other hand, was permanent.

  Determined to drill Aya for more information at any cost, I pressed the call button on my earpiece. Thankful to have magi-tech combined with swamp witch magic helping us reach out to our people across millions of light-years, I took a deep breath and uttered a simple voice command. “Zeriel, are you there?”

  The earpieces were quite smart, with voice-activated functions that allowed us to open both individual and group channels. In this case, I secured a private line with Zeriel.

  “What’s up?” he replied, his voice somewhat scratchy.

  The distance took its toll. The transmissions weren’t crystal clear, but we could hear each other well enough to pass around intel and commands. “I need you to do us a favor,” I said. “Can you get Vesta to reach out to Aya again? In private, if possible? We’re not having much luck where the rogue Hermessi is concerned, and I’m pretty sure another Hermessi could help. Aya seems to be the only one willing to cooperate.”

  A few seconds went by in silence. Zeriel was processing my request, and the longer he took to respond, the more convinced I was that he’d say no.

  “I’ll try and talk to Vesta,” Zeriel finally said. “She really isn’t a fan of talking to Aya or any other Hermessi right now.”

  “More than the usual displeasure? Did something happen?” I asked.

  “Something changed after Aya’s last possession, when she first told us about the rogue Hermessi,” Zeriel explained. “Vesta is… different. She’s moody and quiet, always jumpy, on edge. I have to make myself heard before I get near her. It’s like she’s back in the Neraka of the old days, when she spent her days and nights running from daemons and Exiled Maras.”

  “I understand, and I’m sorry to hear that,” I said. “But the truth is, Vesta is one of the few people in our midst who can contact a Hermessi. And Aya did want to help us, from what I could tell. Time is of the essence, too. We need to put an end to this madness before other fae become victims.”

  “No, I… I get it. I’ll try,” Zeriel replied. “I just don’t want to promise anything. I love Vesta, don’t get me wrong. I love her with all my being… but she’s got me walking on eggshells lately. Anyway, it’s cool. I’ll talk to her and let you know.”

  “I understand, Zeriel. Thank you. I truly appreciate it,” I said, then ended the call and looked at Taeral and the rest of our crew. They all had their eyes on me, eager to hear the response. “He’ll talk to Vesta.” I sighed. “She’s not in the best of moods. Aya’s possessions affect her more than we’d thought.”

  Taeral nodded slowly. “I’m not surprised. Especially since she now knows that a Hermessi is responsible for the fire fae attacks.”

  Fair enough, I thought.

  All I could do was hope Vesta would gather enough willpower and strength to summon Aya one more time for us. If Strava’s Water Hermessi had any additional information that could help us identify the culprit, then we were that much closer to a conclusion and, hopefully, a positive ending to the exploding fire fae saga.

  In the meantime, however, we had a Cerixian prison to infiltrate, a library to ransack, and a murderous cult to terminate before more lives were lost. I liked my life as far away from boring as possible, and this situation more than met such a standard.

  Lumi

  My instinct rarely failed me. I’d lived more than ten thousand years, and I’d seen multiple scenarios unfold in patterns which later revealed their similarities. All roads ultimately led in the same direction.

  The good thrived and progressed, but not without trials and tribulations. Not without pain and misery. Not without violence and greed from those who sought to tear them down and subjugate them. It was a tale as old as time. There was evil in this world. But there was also good. And there were plenty of entities who didn’t subscribe to our moral norms at all—they were the ones I feared most, for what we considered to be wrong didn’t even make them flinch or rethink their ways.

  For the time being, I couldn’t draw any definitive conclusions about the Hermessi. I’d been aware of the risk stemming from their activation since before the Blackout. But it had to be done, to save Strava and the rest of the In-Between—even the other dimensions, including Earth’s. Ta’Zan’s insane ambitions were too much for any of us to deal with in the absence of the Hermessi’s primitive but devastating energy.

  Now, we had a rogue element wreaking havoc in our corner of the In-Between, and I had a feeling the others knew more than they’d already told us. Whether they kept quiet to facilitate further destruction or to deal with the rogue themselves was unclear. I only knew that I had to do something about it.

  Taeral’s crew was on to something. Cerix was somehow related to all this. My instinct was pretty adamant about it, and I would have to be the biggest fool not to listen to it. So, I decided to help.

  First, I called a council meeting on Mount
Zur. Derek and Sofia, Ben and River, Rose and Caleb, Grace and Lawrence, Vita and Bijarki, and Serena and Draven were present, gathered around a large oval table in one of the meeting rooms. The others were in charge of managing GASP’s operations, which had taken up additional resources since the Emerald and Akvo incidents. We had to monitor our agents carefully as they liaised with the local fae in their efforts to nip the murderous cults in the bud.

  “Thank you all for coming,” I said to the GASP seniors as I took my seat at the opposite end of the table in order to face them. “I know you’re all busy with these recent developments, but I had to speak to you.”

  “It’s fine, Lumi. Don’t worry about getting us over here,” Derek replied. “We’ve left GASP’s bases in capable hands. They won’t miss us for a couple of hours. Besides, I believe you’ve got some updates for us, right?”

  I nodded. “I do. We’ve sent ten teams out to investigate the fire fae incidents and the attacks against Taeral’s crew on the Emerald and Akvo. We’ve identified a total of fifteen hot spots where these murderous cults have operated.”

  “So they’re real.” Sofia sighed. “There really are people out there killing on behalf of the Hermessi.”

  “We cannot confirm that the Hermessi actually had anything to do with it,” I said. “But we do know of one rogue that powered up the fire fae who exploded.”

  “Therefore, not all Hermessi are bad. That’s what you’re saying,” Derek replied.

  I offered a faint shrug in return. “I suppose. We just don’t have enough information to draw a solid conclusion right now. We’re still too early in the investigation. But one of the teams we sent out managed to capture some of the cultists. Alive.”

  Eyes widened around the table. Ben leaned forward. “Did they talk?”

  “Not yet. They’re bringing them over to Calliope. We’ll interrogate them here, on Mount Zur,” I said. “We need to find out where the cult first started, and who the ringleaders are. It’s a classic case of cutting the head off the snake, if you ask me. Only, in this case, the snake is full of deadly fire.”

  “Do we know who the captured ones are?” River asked.

  I shook my head. “No identities yet. But they’re not just fire fae. We captured a total of six. Two fire, two earth, one water, and one air. I think it’s enough to assume that the cult affects more than just the fire fae, considering where the incidents have taken place so far.”

  “I take it we’ll need Maras to mind-bend them into talking, right?” Draven asked.

  “Jax’s Wards have already offered,” I said. “They’re strong and influential enough to get the job done, for sure.”

  Rose nodded. “Oh, absolutely. Their swamp witch tattoos certainly help amplify their mind-bending abilities.”

  “And then some,” I replied. “One thing is clear so far. The cult has spread far and wide, and not just on our side of the In-Between. There’s a cell on Cerix, too, as you already know. Chances are they’ll have infiltrated other neighboring societies as well. What’s even more intriguing is that those particular agents are not fae—proof that the Hermessi could take over more than one species, if, I suppose, necessary.”

  “But we don’t know what their goal is.” Derek sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Unless we figure out their motivation, there isn’t much we can do to stop them.”

  “The interrogations may yield results,” I said, unwilling to give in to any kind of panic or despair. We’d dealt with worse, and in crippling conditions. At least we were all together now, with access to magic and technology. “You will all receive updates as they come through, no doubt. The reason I asked you all to come here is because of Cerix. I’ve spoken to Field and Aida about this already, but I feel like I should run it by you as well.”

  “Is this about that Nalyon Martell fella?” Derek asked, one eyebrow arched in contempt.

  “Yes. I think my intervention on Cerix is necessary,” I replied. “We advised Taeral and his crew not to retaliate, but the Cerixians are becoming a real pain in the—” I paused, then took a deep breath and put on a dry smile. “We have bigger fish to fry, and the rotten ambitions of a high chancellor’s assistant should in no way interfere with our mission. There is valuable intel on Cerix regarding the Hermessi, and there is also confirmation of hybrid children having been born there, of Cerixian mothers and Hermessi fathers. They might help us unlock this issue we’re dealing with.”

  “The cults and the exploding fire fae, you mean,” Sofia said, frowning slightly as she tried to make the connection.

  I nodded again. “I know you don’t see it right now, but I have a gut feeling about this. I think all roads might lead to Cerix.”

  “What makes you say that?” Ben asked.

  “Like I said, gut feeling.” I smiled.

  “I think your experience is proof enough that instincts rarely falter,” Derek replied. “If you think we need to intervene on Cerix, then, by all means, please go there and settle the issue.”

  “It’s pretty simple, actually,” I said. “Nalyon’s petty machinations pale in comparison to the ongoing threat of a Hermessi cult. He’s having the Armed Forces hunt down Taeral and his crew, which, in itself, isn’t exactly a threat, but it’s a thorn in our side, and we need to get it out. It’s a troublesome disturbance. On top of that, Nalyon might have something planned for Inalia, otherwise why would he have made her disappear? Or maybe he’s just a mean jerk with an axe to grind. Either way, he must be stopped.”

  I could feel my blood boiling. From the moment Taeral had told us about Nalyon Martell and his imprisonment of Inalia, I knew he was up to no good, and I looked forward to slapping him around until he either got some sense into his head or got the hell out of the way.

  “I’ll go to Cerix as an official envoy and senior GASP officer,” I added. “I’ll bring my full weight to the table and persuade the Cerixians’ leadership to stand down. I’ll be convincing enough to make them understand that they’re better off being decent, this time.”

  “Good. You do that, Lumi,” Sofia replied, smiling.

  “In the meantime, we’ll send out an alert to all known worlds regarding the Hermessi death cults,” Derek said. “We’ll be careful to emphasize that not all fae are involved, of course. The kings and governments will have to make sure that there is no deliberate discrimination against an entire species because of the sins of a few.”

  Ben shook his head in dismay before muttering, “This isn’t right. We’re already getting the stink eye, you know? Even in The Shade. Mothers pull their children away, albeit discreetly. Some of our friends are canceling dinners, postponing weddings and naming ceremonies. All in an effort to keep us out. Like we’re all about to explode or something.”

  He was on edge, the poor thing, and I couldn’t blame him. He was in no way responsible for these murderous cults, but their actions affected enough people on a scale large enough to warrant precaution—the kind that would eventually offend Ben and his people.

  “Up until recently, being considered emissaries of the Hermessi had been an honor,” Grace added, her gaze darkened. “Now… It’s a shame. People are so careful and frightened around us. They don’t want to be; I know they don’t. But they can’t help themselves. Not that I can blame them, thanks to these recent developments.”

  A small droplet of sweat trickled down her temple. She fidgeted in her seat, then cursed under her breath and leaned back into her chair. Lawrence tried to tuck a lock of hair behind her ear, but she jerked away, refusing his touch. It hurt him, but he was a kind and patient man.

  Ben was on edge, too, though calm and brooding. Vita, on the other hand, was boiling. She punched the tabletop and shot to her feet. “This isn’t fair. I shouldn’t have to worry about my wellbeing like this. Not to mention my daughter’s. She’s half fae and equally subject to suspicious looks and whispers. We have to do something about this blasted cult. We are fae! Ethereal, kind, and warm creatures, not bloody bombs!”

>   Bijarki was as surprised as the rest of us to see Vita react like this. But I sympathized with both sides here. The fae couldn’t all be blamed for the cults, and we, as their friends and family, had to find a way to soothe them while searching for and finding the truth—no matter how uncomfortable it would get.

  An entire species was at risk of falling from grace because people, regardless of where they hailed from, shared a common instinct. When crippled by fear, they turned against others. It wasn’t wise. It was purely the exaggerated response of self-preservation. It was my job, along with the rest of GASP, to respond and stop this before it got too dark and heartbreaking. I’d seen enough in my life to put me off people of all species, and I’d seen just as much good, too. I wanted to hold on to the latter, not the former.

  “We’ll get to the bottom of this, Vita,” I said, then looked at the other fae in the room. “Grace, Ben, know this: I will not rest until this nightmare is brought to an end. And I will give it my all to keep you all safe and happy. Your children saved me from a prison I didn’t think I’d ever escape. They gave me my life back, and GASP gave me new purpose. I’ll be damned if I let anyone or anything hurt you. I imagine you all know me well enough by now to understand that I keep my word. Always.”

  Ben blinked several times, then seemed to find some sort of clarity. “Thank you, Lumi.”

  “I will keep you all posted,” I added. “Once I figure out what the political landscape is like on Cerix. I doubt it’s all festering with the likes of Nalyon Martell. If it is, I’ll cleanse it.”

  That got a shocked glare from Derek. “What do you mean?”

  “Oh, for… I’m not going to kill them all. Sheesh!” I retorted, rolling my eyes. “I have your authorization to use force. Not lethal force. I don’t need to kill any of them to teach them a lesson. Besides, you damn well know that’s not my modus operandi. Chill.”

  As the GASP officers got up and prepared to leave the room, I motioned for Derek and Sofia to stay back. I smiled at everyone else, warm and genuine in my demeanor, then shifted my focus to the leading couple once we were left on our own.