Julian cracked a smile. “Nor would Oizys, the goddess of misery or Eris, the goddess of strife be likely to boost television ratings.” He brushed his designer suit. “No, like it or not, we must serve as the human face of the Dark Gods – approachable, attractive, desirable, and most importantly, admired and worshiped.”
“Too bad the vampires can’t do some of these interviews. It’s a shame vampires can’t be filmed on photographs or video.”
“Speaking of vampires, don’t forget we have the annual Conference of Nosferatu Lords this evening.”
Angelique nodded. “I discussed preparations for the conference with Mordred. Everything will go smoothly. We’ll be flying to Paris with Sir William and his entourage on his private jet. We’ll have an entire five-star hotel on the Seine at our disposal to accommodate all of the vampires flying in from around the globe to attend the conference.”
“Good. I’ve made a decision. I’m going to tell the vampires about the altered reality.”
Angelique looked at him in shock. “Why would you do that?”
“The vampires are our first line of defense; it’s important they appreciate what’s at stake and not become complacent. We’ve gone through a lot to reach this point and we’ve been defeated many times. It must not happen again. I won’t allow defeat to be snatched from the jaws of victory.”
“We control the multiverse. What could possibly threaten our hegemony? The other gods have all been dealt with. Calliope, the angels, and the Devil have taken refuge in pocket universes. Odin and his pantheon were sent to Ragnarök with the coming of the Age of Magic. Bast and Anubis were caught off guard when the Morrigan triggered the Age of Magic by awakening Merlin and Mordred…”
“Have you forgotten the Morrigan herself is a triple goddess, as is Hecate, queen of all witches?” Julian asked.
“Of course not,” Angelique replied. “Which is why we’ve begun the crackdown on sorcerers. The Morrigan may be mentally unbalanced but she’s not crazy enough to challenge the Dark Gods, and Hecate cannot form while we hold Samantha Twitch, one of her three comprising entities, our prisoner. There’s no one left to challenge us.”
“We thought that once before and then Mother was defeated by a lowly demon in Thenesia.”
Angelique frowned. “Mordred claims Lucifer is an inept demon. He could not have defeated Nyx without Poseidon’s trident and the aid of Metatron, an aspect of God, by his side. Besides, we’ve banished Lucifer.”
“We must still remain vigilant,” Julian said. “There are signs of unrest; iconoclasts are popping up, even in Japan. Lady Chiyoko reported several of her vampires were attacked and seriously injured by a mere human wielding silver weapons, and that a kitsune escaped and defected to the Dreamscape.”
“Do you believe Hypnos and the Oneiroi will grant sanctuary to other defecting kitsune?”
“Possibly. If so, our response must be measured. so as not to enflame tensions with the Oneiroi. We must take care not to alienate them lest they embark on less passive aggressive actions toward us. We don’t need an internecine war within our own family.”
“You worry too much, Julian. Mother has carefully arranged everything this time. Destiny is on our side… Nyx has made sure he is with us.”
Julian Ward pictured the Eternal holding a cocobolo staff, its brass head embossed with a wood carving of the 12 symbols of the zodiac. “Remind me to bring the zodiac medallions to the Conference of Nosferatu Lords tonight. The concept worked well in the previous reality with Nosferatu, Inc.; it may serve us well here in the altered reality, too.”
“Messieurs, mesdames, welcome to Paris,” the French Nosferatu Lord Xavier said, greeting Sir William’s delegation on their arrival at the hotel.
“Harrumph,” Sir William replied. The stout British Nosferatu Lord adjusted his monocle and glanced around the lobby. “I suppose it will do.” Sir William’s animosity toward the French dated back to 1066 and the human he referred to as “the other William.”
Xavier motioned to two French vampires. “Marceau, Claude; assist our guests with their luggage.” Marceau stepped forward and took a valise each from Edwina and Rowena. Claude Gauthier reached for Piper’s overnight bag and stumbled, falling at Julian and Angelique Ward’s feet. Chagrined by the contretemps, Xavier cringed. “Claude, you clumsy oaf!” He turned to the two Dark Gods. “A thousand apologies for this unforgiveable gaucherie. I shall have that maladroit misfit staked immediately.”
Angelique smiled. “I rather like the idea of men throwing themselves at my feet. Just don’t put him in charge of anything breakable.”
“As you wish, Ancient One Whose Name May Not Be Spoken.” Xavier sneered at Claude. “You do not deserve the goddess’ mercy.”
“Xavier, I realize your primitive tongues are unable to pronounce our true names so you may simply refer to me as Angelique.”
A dark-skinned vampire wearing a purple turban and carrying a wooden walking stick joined them. “I’ve known our goddess for more than five thousand years yet I still cannot pronounce her true name.”
“Malik!” Angelique exclaimed. “Always a pleasure to see one of our oldest Nosferatu Lords.”
The Egyptian vampire bowed. “You recall my assistant, Akhenaten.” The vampire following him also bowed.
Julian gazed around the hotel lobby. “Xavier, if all the attendees are present this would be a good time to begin the meeting.”
“I’ll gather them at once. Marceau, escort Julian and Angelique to the conference room. Claude, Fabius from Italy and Stanislaw from Poland are in the bar; tell them we’re meeting in the conference room.” Xavier turned to Julian. “The others are congregated in the courtyard. I’ll summon them now.” He headed off.
“Forgive me, but I simply had tae tell ya how stunning ya both looked on television earlier today,” an Irishman said to the Wards.
“Thank you. You’re…” Julian searched his eidetic memory. “The Earl of Kilbarney, aren’t you?”
“I’m humbled that ya remember me, my lord.” From across the lobby, the aquiline-nosed Russian Nosferatu Lord Ivan eyed the delegation from a small neighboring Eastern European nation suspiciously. “I neither like nor trust that imperious Transylvanian count.”
Countess Valentina Petrovna perused the three women and two men. “Judging from the unimpressive company he keeps, I see no cause for concern.”
Ivan sneered. “You know better than to judge a man by appearances, Valentina. Vlad Tepes may have ruled a small, insignificant nation but he cultivated a reputation as one of the most sadistic and inhumane men who’ve ever lived – and that was before he became one of us. He was a savage who warded off entire armies by lining the border of his country with the impaled corpses of his enemies. Never underestimate Count Dracula.”
Valentina gave him a sly smile. “Men usually underestimate me. Your Transylvanian count will be no different.”
“I suspect he has designs on acquiring territory in the borderlands. Perhaps you could use your feminine wiles to learn his intentions.”
Valentina smiled again. “By the time we leave the conference I’ll know all there is to know about Vlad Tepes.” She approached Count Dracula and his coterie. “Pardon my intrusion, but I couldn’t help but notice your incredibly vibrant complexion,” Valentina said to Countess Erzsebet Bathory. “I’ve never seen one of our kind with such warm skin tone. How do you do it?”
The countess acknowledged her presence with a polite smile. “A strict regimen of daily bloodbaths. But not merely any blood. It must be the cerise fluid of young virgins, and then only after it has been rushing through their veins. I find it best to terrorize and torture them to give their blood the proper degree of seasoning before I slit their throats and drain their bodies to fill my bathtub.”
Dracula stepped forward. “Forgive Erzsebet. She’d rather exchange beauty tips than introductions. I am Count Dracula.” He leaned forward and kissed Valentina’s hand. “And my lovely companion is the Countess Ecsedi Bathory Erzseb
et. He paused, then remembered the remainder of his retinue. “Our servants, Annabelle, Antoinette, and Therriault.”
“Countess Valentina Petrovna of Russia. A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Count Dracula. I hope we have the opportunity to get to know one another during our brief stay in Paris.”
Dracula leered at her. “But of course. Surrounded by so many commoners it’s refreshing to meet another refined patrician.”
Meanwhile, Claude entered the hotel bar. A half-dozen humans were strung up by their ankles dangling over the bar with plastic tubing inserted into their jugular veins. A dark-haired, short chubby woman placed the tubing in a glass and filled it with blood, serving it to an Australian vampire.
“Aye, fresh from the tap,” Callum said. “You’re a skilled bartender, Magda.”
The Hungarian vampire grinned. “It’s all about letting the blood rush to their heads before tapping it.” She looked up at Claude. “What will it be for you? O-positive? A-positive? Or maybe a more uncommon AB-negative?”
“Thank you, but I don’t think we’ll have time,” Claude said. “Julian is about to begin the presentation and he wants everyone in attendance.”
“Bollicks!” Callum frowned. “A bloke can’t even enjoy his drink in peace. We ought to be able to enjoy a chinwag with our cobbers.”
Magda collected the glasses. “You know better than to keep the Dark Gods waiting.”
Claude spotted Fabius and Stanislaw. “Xavier asked me to escort you to the conference room for the presentation.”
The Polish vampire with his distinctive blond crewcut downed his glass of blood in one gulp and joined the others in following Claude out of the bar.
Julian Ward addressed the assembled vampires. “Welcome to Paris. My sister Angelique and I come here tonight on behalf of our entire family of Dark Gods. As you know, we have served as your liaison to the entire pantheon of Dark Gods, just as Mordred serves as your representative to us.” Julian gestured toward the warlock on the dais. “These are good times. Every one of you in this room is a Nosferatu Lord. You should feel honored. It’s the highest position to which a vampire may aspire and few actually achieve it. You are our high priests and priestesses encouraging the faithful to worship us and culling the disbelievers, the seditious subversives, the rebels, and those disloyal to the Dark Gods. Your elevated status within our society brings with it many benefits. You should feel blessed to be a Nosferatu Lord during the reign of the Dark Gods.
“But, despite what you might think – despite what you believe you know to be true – it has not always been like this. When the Earth was formed, we existed in the shadows. We watched mankind evolve and were worshipped by early man. But when man found other gods to follow, our energy diminished and our powers waned. While Angelique and I stayed behind, our brethren abandoned Earth in search of other believers to sustain their eldritch energies. In the Dark Dimension, they found a multitude of followers whose worship and belief increased our powers exponentially. The Dark Gods ruled the Dark Dimension supreme as lords of Chaos for eons, until the fateful day we sought to expand our dominion into the realm of Order. For that act of hubris, our brethren were banished back to what had become our own realm— except for Angelique and myself, who remained on Earth.”
“But… But the Dark Gods have always ruled the multiverse,” Malik said.
Julian shook his head. “Would that it were true. We tried several times since then but were defeated each time by the lords of Order. Our mother Nyx failed in ancient Thenesia, and Angelique and I failed in modern times when Heaven and Hell combined to defeat us. But when the Age of Magic dawned, an unwitting pawn unlocked our prison and freed us. We wasted no time in seizing control and reshaping reality in our image.”
“What does that mean?” Magda, the Hungarian Nosferatu Lord, asked.
“It means,” Angelique said, “we went back to the dawn of time and changed everything. No one remembers the reality that existed before. We created a world plunged into perpetual darkness. A dark realm for the Dark Gods. And who better to serve as our high priests than creatures of the night like yourselves?”
“Of course, your exalted positions come with certain duties,” Julian said. “As we have often preached to you, the breathers divide themselves into two categories: True believers whose faith and belief in the Dark Gods will sustain our eldritch energy — they are our Chosen and not to be harmed — and the Resistance, breathers who deny faith and cherish independence. These rancorous breathers will fight us, overtly and covertly. They are your designated prey. Now more than ever it is essential for you to root them out, for we suspect there are those plotting to return reality to the way it was.”
“If the Dark Gods fall, it’s the Nosferatu Lords who will suffer the most,” Angelique said. “When you return to your respective regions of the world, you must instruct your vampires to be suspicious of everyone, and merciless in dealing with any rebels.”
“However, do not tell them about the altered reality,” Julian said. “At least, not yet. We’ve shared this information with you so you may understand the seriousness with which we must treat dissent and rebellion but we’re not ready for the truth to become public knowledge.”
Malik’s authoritative voice cut through the air. Malevolence dripped from each word the sonorous five thousand-year-old vampire intoned. “Rest assured, we shall eliminate any dissenters; any resistance shall be crushed; and any who dare to challenge the reign of the Dark Gods will be destroyed.”
Chapter Eight
Síofra frowned. “Why did ya want tae see us after school? I dinnae like spending any more time around the school than I have tae.”
Ursula Fenris ignored the changeling’s grumbling. “We need to find Alaric. He’s in danger.”
Síofra shrugged. “Sae what? Why should I care?”
“He’s our friend,” Ursula said emphatically.
“Yar friend, maybe. I can tolerate him… On a good day.”
Kaya looked up at the older girl. “Why do you think he’s in danger?”
“Alaric’s mother’s a witch who was taken by the Dark Gods, and Quinn and I have confirmed his father really is a demon who was banished,” Ursula said. “We think Alaric’s plotting his revenge against the Dark Gods.”
Síofra chuckled. “One wee lad… Against all the Dark Gods, the vampires, the werewolves… Hope ya got a chance tae say goodbye tae him before he went on this suicide mission.”
“That’s why we’ve got to find him, and either stop him or help him.”
Síofra glanced at Quinn Fenris. “Yar sister’s gone batty.”
“Síofra!” Kaya exclaimed. “I’m sorry. She didn’t mean to be racist.” The Japanese girl turned to the changeling and whispered, “Sometimes, you can be so insensitive; you know their mother’s a vampire.”
Síofra frowned. “What did I say?” She reflected on her words. “Oh. I dinnae realize it was offensive. But if the shoe fits…”
“We need to search for Alaric,” Ursula said.
Síofra rolled her eyes. “I’ve got better things tae dae with my time.” She turned and walked away.
“I’ll talk to her,” Kaya said. “I’ll get her to help you.” She ran after the changeling and caught up with her.
“I thought ya were gaeing tae help them look for the witch-boy?” Síofra said.
“We could use your help.”
“Like I said, I’ve got better things tae dae.”
Kaya grinned. “Like seeing that boy Artemus?”
“Artemus is nae a boy any more than I’m a girl. Why dae ya mortals always judge people by their appearance? Artemus may look yar age but he’s four hundred and seventy-one years old; that makes him grown up in my book. And I’m an ancient Fae spirit who’s been reincarnated more times than I can remember, sae neither one of us is a kid.”
“But he’s such a cold fish. Why do you even like him?”
“Ya think I’m a prize catch? I’m a changeling. I’m mean and
cruel and everything ya fear at night, huddled beneath yar covers. I’m a wicked creature, a spirit of evil clad in stolen human flesh, thriving on others’ torment and pain. I am yar worst nightmare come tae life and ya cannae trust me and more fool ya if ya dae.”
Kaya shrugged. “Yeah, but I’ve gotten used to you, and others could too if you gave them a chance. You don’t need to settle for someone like Artemus. Take Quinn for example: he may be only half vampire but he’s a nice boy.”
“Exactly. He’s a child. I cannae relate tae children.”
Kaya grinned. “You relate to me.”
“Get lost. Gae back tae the half-breeds and hunt for the witch-boy if that’ll make ya happy. I’m gaeing intae town.”
Kaya winked. “Say hello to Artemus for me.” She watched the changeling disappear down the path.
Síofra knocked on the door to Artemus’ apartment. After spending the day in Professor Eligos’ classroom filled with immature children she was looking forward to speaking with an adult, even if he was trapped in a child’s body, as she was. Síofra was surprised and disappointed when the door opened and revealed Natasa and not Artemus. “What are ya daeing here?”
“Waiting for Artemus to return.” She stepped back to allow Síofra to enter.
“He left ya alone in his place?” Síofra walked through the living room, perusing Artemus’ possessions.
“After nearly five centuries of friendship, he trusts me.” Natasa sneered at her. “Why are you here?”
Síofra shrugged. “Just visiting a friend.”
Natasa laughed. “You’re a changeling; you don’t have friends.”
Síofra grimaced. “I should nae have come. Tell Artemus… Nae, dinnae even say I was here.”
Natasa studied the disappointment on her face. “Is it possible? Could you possibly have feelings for him?”
“Dinnae be ridiculous.” Síofra sneered at her, but it was too late. Natasa had seen through her acerbic veneer.
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