Chapter Eleven: Madison
“This case is too big for you,” Jack says. I know it is, but I can’t stand by and do nothing. I don’t expect my first case alone to be such a big one but I also can’t allow someone like Victor to run rampant.
“I understand that. I do. But no one’s doing anything about him, so I will.” Jack cocks a brow, sitting forward in his office chair, resting his elbows on the desk.
“We aren’t doing nothing. We’re just busy with other cases at the moment, and he seems to be laying low now.”
“I’m not going to let this go, Jack.” My tone is stern. I’ve done research on how to handle these situations. What you can find on the internet at a click of a button is a great thing, it seems. Self-help books litter the web, teaching you how to get in and out of an interview, meeting, and all the rest, holding your opinion high without letting anyone get the better of you.
“He killed Zeus!” Jack nearly shouts. “He killed a god! What do you think you’re going to be able to do? A couple of low-level attack spells and that’s going to get him to bow to your will?” I don’t think he’s angry. Not at me. He’s concerned. It’s endearing. Cute, even. That doesn’t mean that I’m going to just drop everything.
“Sometimes you have to let fear guide you. You said it: he killed Zeus. Can we just have someone like that walking around where he can just do whatever the hell he wants? People are going to get hurt, and I don’t want to be in a world where that option is freely given to whoever or whatever wants to throw their weight around,” I return.
“Then tell me, what have you found on him?”
“Nothing,” I begrudgingly admit.
“Then I will send word around my circles to have them look for Victor, and if anything comes up, then can contact us. Don’t go deeper into this. You will not come out unscathed, and I don’t want anything to happen to you,” he admits.
“This case is very close to home,” I admit. It’s got very little to do with Zeus and how he fell victim to Victor. This is about a young girl and a promise I made to her mother. Jack has to understand why I don’t want to just let this go. How I can’t just let this go. That’s not how it works. If we just let anyone freely do as they please, the world will fall to pieces much faster than we can care to admit.
“So, that’s the reason you’re pursuing it?” Jack slides his hand into his pocket, pulling a ring out, playing with it in his hands. I’ve noticed him do this a few times, but as of now, I still haven’t bothered asking him what it was. There’s been too much going on.
“Yes. A family lost their daughter. It doesn’t matter what the circumstances leading up to this was. They deserve the answers my family never got.” A peace activist? I like the way this sounds.
“Don’t go into something because of personal drive. You will act hastily. You need to keep calm. Keep your wits about you,” Jack advises. “I’ve gone down my own personal avenues, and they have led only to pain and suffering. Remember this.” A deep sigh grumbles through him. “I just don’t want to see you come into any harm that doesn’t need to befall you. So, let me handle it. If anything comes up, I’ll tell you.”
Jack opens his mouth to speak again but shrugs the last statement off. I nod. I can’t go against him now. We’ve established the differences in our relationship. He is my boss more than my friend, and if the other way is more prevalent, then I am completely oblivious.
Personal and business.
They should never be mixed…
Chapter Twelve: Daffyd
I don’t often find that Brooke and I come to agreement on anything these days. She’s never really bothered trying to be a part of the politics that our kind finds themselves trapped in. A ditzy queen who enjoys the spotlight more than what the title truly represents. The other night, I found that she doesn’t just throw her weight around under the spotlight but she keeps her thoughts on the vampires’ matters hidden. What all she considers, I’ll never know, but what I do know is that she still stands behind me. She still supports me in her own way. My personal struggles that have been coming to light of late are only enhanced by this. We were to rule as a great king and queen. The ideas we had, plans we concocted, the empire we were to build…
What changed?
Torrine Castle spurred a new step in our relationship. Giving way for her to voice her stance as queen, one that I find perfectly acceptable. Why should I give away a castle? All that happened was a supply chain that was broken. Day trade can continue just the same. Now that the humans know that we are a part of their society, we can begin using their infrastructure to further our own agendas.
A simple conversation about a castle becoming the foundation to a new bond in our relationship.
I include her in the war room meetings as a silent witness. She’s given me the drive, and now I must just act on it. Hamish at my right, her on my left. I sit at the head of the table with Lieutenants who lost their resting ground in the strike that was meant to focus on Torrine. They, like us, are just as upset.
“Things are going to change,” I say, looking up through my brow after browsing through some notes. “We’ve been acting very much on the defensive for the greater part of this war. It was the smart thing to do in the beginning because there were too many fighting parties. The Forsaken and the shifters ducked out, and now we still act on defense against a bunch of mutts who think they have superiority. Blindly, I nearly signed a treaty giving away Torrine Castle to the wolves for no reason other than they foiled one of our plans, but this took them ten years and some coward who can’t directly come speak with me, sending notes as his means of communication. So, Brooke…” I give her her dues and admit my mistakes, something I’ve not done in many years, to show that there is room to grow. Giving those around me the option to be a part of this war on a deeper level, instead of just being cannon fodder. “Swayed me into keeping Torrine. Her simple thoughts of keeping the castle have changed my outlook on this war entirely. Why must we stay housed in the castle walls, waiting for an attack that would end badly, if not for both of us, only us?”
I take the time to let this digest, reading over my notes some more. “Many of you here are old but not old enough to know the history of Mattheus of Torfaen, a powerful vampire that chose me as his second in command. He was the one who guided me to be the vampire I am. I lost myself for a century here, and now I am reclaiming my status. The Council is finding their way and settling down. Until then, I need to make sure that this world is ruled and monitored in a way that will bring us and them to good standing.” No one here needs to know that the Council enlisted are only puppets to my own cause. They must believe in a fair rule for all, lest we wish to face a civil war. “I mention my master for one reason. In my early years, he taught me how to fight on an offensive level. Strike before being struck. From today, those who are enlisting into the vampire kingdom as some form of combatant will learn the old ways. Fighting on offense, while keeping defenses high. A simple trick I long ago left to time.”
I click my fingers and a few servants come in, each one holding a compendium – a manual that was compiled by me after going through my notes. These are the new building blocks of our civilization.
“Read through them at your time and begin teaching your troops these ways when you are prepared. Pass them around. The sector leaders are getting copies of their own to do the same, unifying our forces in ancient arts that will take the world by storm,” Brooke squeezes my leg under the table, a smile on her face from ear to ear. It feels good, I suppose, to have someone be proud of you again.
“Now onto why we are really here: Torrine Castle. A supply chain that has helped us pass supplies, urgent matters, and anything else we needed to share between our kind that had no place coming in from over any encrypted channels that could be snooped on. So, with that being gone, we will still deliver those messages without them being intercepted, and that supply run will still move through the day. Nothing will change on that front; the biggest
change will be how we do it. This is where we get humans to do our dirty work for us. It makes things simpler, too. Otherwise, begin establishing vampire businesses around town. Dark tinted windows and whatnot have done wonders for us in the past, and the will in the future. So, on that front, we will have a team begin working on how to best figure out how to do this. Now, this is where you come in.” When speaking without interruption I sometimes find it difficult to know if they know what I am on about or if they just think it’s the ramblings of a mad man. Oh well. “When you return to Torrine, I want you to start showing face. Create a perimeter that extends from Torrine up to the Veil, to the outer city limits and around. At night, there will be constant patrols. There will be constant eyes on the resting grounds. If a wolf goes out for a smoke or to take a piss, you report that back. Constant information must be sourced. Constant information must be passed around. Show your teeth, if you must. Learn their attack patterns. How Romulus set them to fight. Find their weaknesses. We are going to chip away at them here and send wolves back to Romulus after living in a nightmarish state, cowering back to their alpha with their tails between their legs.”
“What about during the day?” someone finally speaks. One of my older lieutenants.
“During the day? Well, we’re going to rebuild our network of tunnels beneath the Veil, to Torrine and onward. The only difference with these will be the way they spread out. They will extend from here to there. Dead ends and circles around. During the day, there will be no trade beneath the earth, there will just be tunnels upon tunnels being created. If they try to blow them down, then like the hydra, two more will grow. These tunnels will specifically be designed to watch. There will be no movement undetected around the Torrine Castle. Consider this project Fort Knox.” I smile.
“Is there anything else, ladies and gentlemen?” I ask to make sure that everyone is happy with the way things are going to change and how the war will proceed from here on in. The vampires will become a force to be reckoned with.
There are no objections from those around me. “Then I call this meeting to an end.” We all begin packing up and making our ways out.
Chapter Thirteen: Mason
I plan it all out well. I wait for the old man and his wife to leave the house to go to the small village not far from their home to get supplies, and then I slip inside. An ancient dagger sat in the catacombs of my prison. An ancient dagger surrounded by the myth that it had potential to kill an Ancient Vampire. A fabrication constructed by me to someday use at the necessary time to root out those who believed they could go against me.
It proved successful.
Though I do wonder when it will have found a need for use again. A network of thieves that could have brought a promising relationship between myself and Drakka now reduced to another rebuild. The infrastructure is there for the shifter named Stanley to simply slide in and take control, but I’m not certain if that’s going to move as simple as I would like it to. Drakka built the empire; why would they, in this age, bow down to a new emperor who has no standing in the realm?
A good spy doesn’t make for a good leader.
And yet, he gave me all the information I needed, sourcing it all back to the old man, Eustace. Going to town. Getting drunk. Explaining his hatred for me and the dagger that has the potential to kill me. How foolish he must have been to think it would actually work. Then again, why wouldn’t I keep it hidden away? A dagger that had the potential to kill me under my own lock and key?
A fool in his own right.
A small dog comes to sit at my feet. I wait in Eustace’s chair, my guns on my lap. The old man’s shotgun behind the seat where it lays forever unless he’s using it to threaten.
Why, I wonder, did he decide to do this now?
Was it the girl? Was it Jack who came to collect her?
It doesn’t matter, I suppose. Whatever the reason was, he has to be punished for his crimes.
So, I wait. The longer I wait, the more I consider the celebration he must be having. The old lady will have no understanding of why they will be celebrating. A night out…
Doesn’t make sense that they are going to get supplies for the house.
Will he come here drunk? Will he come here and see me begging for forgiveness? I wonder.
Seven becomes eight, eight becomes ten. Time goes by. I’m watching television. This is the old man’s life. Now I understand why he has become so bitter.
“Today in the news, Senator Trafalgar announced a new bill to be passed stating that the supernatural community will need to be tagged. The process involves an RFID chip being placed into the hand of the supernatural in question, allowing whichever creature has it inside them to be easily recognized and identifiable. This will give normal people the opportunity to stand a chance if it ever comes to some ill-fated intentions of the supernatural community.” The broadcaster goes quiet for a second, and it cuts to a clip of Senator Trafalgar standing in front of a crowd, addressing the bill he wants to pass.
“The chip isn’t meant to deter supernaturals. It’s just so that we stand a chance. We’re just prey and play things to them, and we can’t allow this. If I had the opportunity, I would tag the gods themselves.” Again, it cuts, this time back to the presenter.
“There we have a clip from Senator Trafalgar himself. What does this mean for the supernaturals? Stay tuned for more.”
This may become problematic.
I hear the rumbling from the old car the elderly drive. It’s in dire need for a service, but the old couple does not care for those small things. The old lady, I understand, doesn’t know how to drive. Her husband was a greedy man. Keeping the generous wealth he would have made over the years that I have had them in my employ well distributed to either generate more funds or safe for a rainy day.
I’ve kept an eye on it all.
“Eustace, you left the TV on again,” the old lady complains, walking up the creaky steps of the porch.
“I didn’t. I turned it off. I must have pushed the button twice.” I can hear he’s had a few drinks on his night out. Sober enough to be cognitive. Good. It would be pointless to explain a lesson to a man that has no understanding of what he is learning.
She is the first to see me. She screams in shock. She sees the guns on my lap. I can tell she knows her husband has done something wrong.
“Mason!” she says. Eustace has already run into the house, stopping at the door, wide-eyed at the sight of me. He was no doubt trying to get to his shotgun.
“I don’t think you should be here for this,” I say to the old lady.
“Take your pup.” He’s no longer a pup. Not by any means. He’s now an old dog. One thing I have found that has passed through every incarnation of myself has been the way I’ve never stopped calling a dog a pup and a cat a kitten, no matter the age they become. “I have to speak with your husband.”
“Come, boy,” she speaks, and the dog jumps up, running out of the room with her. She knows where this is going. Not the why but only the how.
“Eustace, take a seat.” I gesture to the double-seater beside me. “I know what you have done.”
“Mason, now let’s not get ca–”
“Take a seat,” I point to where he must go and sit down with the black gun Ankh created. He follows my order and says nothing else. He takes his hat off and folds it in his hands.
“Yes, sir,” I chuckle.
“Your fate does not change. You can talk me up however you choose,” I add so that he understands the severity of what he has done. “In a drunken stupor, you told those bar dwellers that there is a way to kill Ancient vampires. A drunken stupor that found itself going back to a network of thieves and spies. Do you understand the implications of what you have done here?”
“I do.” I hear the fear in his voice.
“The chain of command has always been me, your wife, and then you, Eustace. In acting selfishly, what have you left for her?” He listens but says nothing. He looks at my face but does
not meet my eye.
“What you have done is allowed the integrity of my prison to be voided.” Luckily, with Stanley as the only who knew about Drakka’s organization in the bar, it seems that no one else will have tracked him back here. Safety is not necessarily a thing this place holds, but at the same time, I don’t know if I have the drive to move it yet. The witches now have a source of power from the energy the imprisoned and dead vampires have left here. So, I will keep it as is, so long as we stay on good terms. “Your wife is in danger now. She will no longer be able to maintain my prison on her own. It’s a good thing you were not the squandering kind. She will live well for the remainder of her life as a millionaire.”
I can see this statement also comes as a surprise.
“How did you know?”
“I always keep a close eye on my investments. I thought you were smarter than this, Eustace. I truly wish it could have gone another way, but it can’t. I have built a life on making examples of people like you. Those who I thought I could trust and then feel the cold sting of betrayal and thus, you must find your peace. Pray to your god and ask him for forgiveness.” I know he’s religious, and these tendencies were only enhanced when the Supernatural community was exposed and he knew the old gods were real.
He drops down on his knees. He prays. I hear him mumbling and whimpering.
“Forgive me.” The only words he says to me after saying his peace.
“That I can’t do.”
I place the gun against his forehead and pull the trigger. I take a note from my pocket and rest it on the old man’s chest.
I’m sorry, it says – an apology for what I have done to the old lady as well as the various accounts and details of the vast wealth she has now inherited.
I leave. The old woman does not interfere. Not until I walk out the house. Then I hear her screaming for her husband and cursing my name.
Just another day in paradise.
The Vampire Touch 3: A New Dawn Page 4