“No!” Jesse heard Kalista cry furiously. “Catan, please don’t do this! Please spare Jesse! Please!” Kalista’s sobs filled the heart, ripping Jesse’s heart into pieces.
“On the count of three,” Catan said with venom in his voice, “I’ll shoot those deadly black swirls in your direction, Jesse, and that would be the end of you.” There was a brief pause, as if it was for dramatic effect. “Three … two …”
24. Sigma
“Stop!” a voice suddenly bellowed from above, startling Jesse and she jerked her eyes open, feeling as though her heart had leapt to her throat. Instantly, she flicked her gaze upward and saw five masked men rappel down from above with black ropes, the shade matching their black ninja-esque outfits. Once all the five of them had descended on the ground right between Catan and Jesse, the black ropes magically vanished into thin air.
Catan exploded into a trade of expletives, the black swirls instantly vanishing from his hands. “What are you guys doing here? Don’t you know that I have an urgent business to settle now?” Catan’s face flushed red with anger, and if looks could kill, all of them inside the foyer would have been dead by now.
“That was not part of the deal, Catan,” one of the masked men said in an authoritative voice, looking like he was the leader of the group. “We had a deal, and you were not allowed to kill Jesse.”
Jesse gasped. What deal were they talking about? What did this group of masked men have to do with her, and were they here to prevent her from being killed by Catan? Jesse’s eyes swiveled from one man to another, trying to figure out who those men actually were. She’d never seen them before … but wait! Jesse vaguely recalled about those men … they were the ones who had invaded Maggie’s house, and from then onwards, Jesse couldn’t quite recall what happened. Were they the ones who had abducted her, handing her over to Catan on a silver platter? And why was a deal made to spare her life?
“I don’t care!” Catan seethed, raising his arms again, tendrils of black smoke oozing out from them again. “Move away or I’d have to kill you all as well!”
“You will not kill us!” the leader howled. “We had a deal.”
Jesse couldn’t stand the suspense any longer, and she burst, “What deal are you guys talking about? What does this have to do with me? I’m so confused right now …” Jesse looked like she was about to keel over from the weight of confusion pressing down on her, and Kalista immediately rushed to her side and wrapped an arm around her for support.
“It’s going to be OK, Jesse,” Kalista whispered comfortingly, even though her face belied the fear and panic she was feeling inside.
“I guess we owe Jesse an explanation,” the leader said in a confident tone, turning to face Jesse. Jesse couldn’t see his face because it was covered by a black masquerade-like mask, with narrow eye slits. “Let me introduce myself. I’m Henson, leader of the Sigma.”
An inaudible gasp escaped from Jesse’s throat. The Sigma? Why did it sound so familiar? She had heard about the Sigma men, alright, but they were so rare in this world that she actually thought they were practically non-existent. A long time ago, she heard from her a circle of her supernatural friends about the Sigma, but she had treated the whole story as a fairy tale, thinking that the Sigma was just fictitious. And now … they were standing right here in front of her in the flesh, and Jesse couldn’t quite wrap her brain around that.
“Yes, we’re the Sigma,” Henson responded calmly, without a single tremor in his voice. “We’re a group of men devoted to turning supernatural creatures or entities back into their former lives, for a good cause, of course.”
Jesse was at a loss for words. She wanted to say something, but the confusion and shock had literally swallowed those words.
“I’ve heard about you guys,” Kalista murmured, breaking the momentary silence. “I’ve read all about you in the Urukan Bible. You guys are so rare, and I’ve never actually seen any of you in my entire life. My great grandmother told me stories about the Sigma when I was a little girl. I remember bits and pieces about the Sigma. You guys can actually turn vampires back into humans, right?”
Henson nodded. “Yes. In fact, that’s our job as the Sigma. We help change vampires or any other form of supernatural entities back to their former selves, which are their human selves. But we don’t do that on a random basis. There always has to be a purpose when we decide to change a vampire back into a human.”
Jesse was struck with a sudden epiphany, and she gasped aloud. “Oh my God! Were you guys the ones who changed me back into a human? Did you reinstate my human self?”
“Yes, we did.” He shot the other members of the Sigma a quick glance before turning his gaze back at Jesse. It seemed as though no members of the Sigma were allowed to voice their opinions except the leader himself. “But as the leader, I was the one who gave the green light to change you from a vampire back to your human form. It was a monumental decision, and I felt that you were better off as a human being, than a vampire.”
“Who gave you the right to change me back into a human?” Jesse fumed, the anger exploding within her. “Because of what you’ve done, I feel so weak and powerless now. If I had my vampire abilities with me now, I would have tried my best to clobber Catan, with all my will and might! Why did you change me back into a human? And on what basis did you do that? I don’t get it … I really don’t.” Jesse wanted to collapse on the floor and just burst into sobs. She was overwhelmed by the fact that her once powerful vampire form had been stripped away by the Sigma, making her a frail and vulnerable human now.
“Jesse,” Henson said slowly, but authoritatively. “Do you know why we exist? Do you know why the Sigma exists? We’re a neutral group here. We don’t work for the dark side, or the good one, for that matter. We have stayed neutral throughout the ages, not taking sides, be it good or evil. And the reason that we’re rare is because we have been hunted down by evil vampires in the past. They killed our kind, because they didn’t want us to undo their dirty work. When those evil vampires turned humans into vampires, we worked around the clock to restore those vampires to their former human selves, and those evil vampires weren’t happy about it. Aeons ago, the Sigma was formed by a group of supernatural beings who had the ability to transform vampires back to their human selves. Of course, the founder of the Sigma, Robbie Harks, wasn’t pleased with what the vampires were doing during those times, which was to turn innocent humans into vampires to increase the vampire population. So Robbie formed the group, trying to save those humans, trying to reinstate their lives again. Unfortunately, one day, Robbie was killed by one of the evil vampire leaders, who vowed to crush every single living member of the Sigma. The surviving members fled and found somewhere safe to hide, far away from the reaches of those vampires. Our kind has thrived throughout the generations, but our number has alarmingly dwindled. There are only a dozen of us left in this new generation, as being a Sigma is a rarity. Not many beings in this world have the ability to change vampires back into their human selves … having this kind of ability is a priceless gift. Even if you’re born as an Enchantress, there is a possibility that you can change a vampire back to their human forms again, but with negative consequences. Magic always have adverse consequences. However, there is no catch when it comes to using our abilities to do the good deed. That is why our group is very unique and rare, and we try to lay low as much as possible throughout the generations.” Henson finished the last sentence with a deep breath, waiting for some kind of a response from Jesse.
“Then why change me into a human?” Jesse questioned. “What’s the point of that?”
Henson paused for a moment, his face turning cold and serious, as if he was venturing on a treacherous subject. “You were never born a normal human being to begin with. All along, you thought that you were a normal human being until you were turned into a vampire decades ago. Did you know that you were born to … Harvey Harks, one of the descendants of Robbie Harks?”
Jesse gasped, feeli
ng as though she had been cast onto another parallel plane. “What? Are you saying that I’m a … Sigma? Th-th-that notion is preposterous! No, I won’t believe that! I won’t!”
“Yes, Jesse. We traced back your roots very carefully, and there is no mistake about it. You have Sigma blood in you, just that you have never known about it. Your dad died when you are only one years old … he was killed by a vampire. You were given up for adoption, to both human parents, who raised you up, not knowing that you were a Sigma. But let me tell you … yes, you are Sigma.”
“There has to be a mistake! I couldn’t be a Sigma! I just couldn’t!”
Henson nodded his head firmly. “Being a Sigma, we do have a little magic of our own, though not as powerful as an Enchantress’s. We were able to identify you as a Sigma, and yes indeed, you are a Sigma.”
“B-but … if I were a Sigma, then how was I able to be turned into a vampire? Wouldn’t I get immunity from that as a Sigma?”
“Yes, you’re right. A Sigma cannot be turned into a vampire. However, you were able to be turned into a vampire because you’re the …”
“Key,” Jesse finished the words for him, her eyes widening.
“Yes, you’re the Key to the Good Pole. As the Key, you hold certain privileges that no normal beings hold. You were able to be turned into a vampire because as the Key, you were able to access other supernatural properties due to the link you have with the Good Pole, enabling you to deviate and become a vampire. If a vampire tried to turn me into a vampire, I wouldn’t be turned at all because I’m a Sigma, and we have immunity to that. But you’re a Sigma and also a Key, which give you deviations you yourself have never known before. Don’t ask me why it works that way, but supernatural deviations have always been a complex and complicated topic, and I try not to dig too deep as it might be very perplexing.”
“So am I a Sigma or a human normal being? I’m confused.”
Henson let out a brief chuckle, as if he’d found Jesse’s question amusing. “Frankly speaking, all Sigmas are normal human beings. We carry the Sigma blood in us, making us extra special as humans. We’re not as powerful as supernatural creatures like vampires, wizards and whatnot in terms of powers and strength, but when it comes to changing a supernatural being back into their former selves, well, we reign supreme in that sense.”
“So you’re saying that I have Sigma blood flowing in my veins?”
“Yes. Once you’re a Sigma, you’ll always be a Sigma, no matter what. It has been imprinted in you since the day you were born.”
Jesse shook her head furiously, questions pounding inside her head. “But I still don’t get it. Why turn me into a human? And how did you do that? How did you turn me into a human? Biting me?”
Henson chuckled briefly. “We don’t work in the same way as vampires. We don’t bite. Instead, we give the Kiss of the Sigma. Yes, just a kiss on the lips, and that’s how the magic works. Once you’re kissed, you will be transformed back to your former self.”
Jesse gulped. “You … kissed me?”
“I have to confess … yes, I did. But don’t take it the wrong way. It’s not romantically inclined. When we kiss, our thoughts are filled with a sense of purpose, a purpose to change lives, to restore glory to the human life. Sigmas have been giving the Kiss throughout their lives, and it’s so normal that it’s just like giving someone a handshake or a hug. So please don’t take this the wrong way. I absolutely felt no romantic tendencies toward you. It’s just part of my job, my responsibility.”
Jesse sighed with a sense of relief. “But you still didn’t answer my question … why change me back? I was doing well as a vampire, and I never had the intention of turning back into a human being.”
For a moment, Henson was silent, as if he was trying to gather the right words to explain. “Well … the truth of the matter is … if you die as the Key … we’ll all die as well. It means that the whole Sigma will be entirely wiped out.”
“What do you mean all of you will die if I die?”
“You must know that as a Sigma, we’re all linked as a group here. We’re supernaturally connected by blood. And as the Key, you hold all of us together as a group. You’re the main element that binds all of us together. Destroy the Key … destroy all of us. We would no longer exists anymore if you’re destroyed. The Sigma will be extinct … for good.”
Jesse closed her eyes for a moment, trying to take it all in. She couldn’t believe that she was all-important in everything that had happened so far. She was the Key. She was a Sigma. She used to be a vampire. But it seemed as though becoming the Key was the most monumental thing that had ever happened to her, as it made her the guardian of the Good Pole, which held gargantuan amounts of magical energies. How could all of this happen to her? She didn’t ask for it. All she ever wanted was to live a peaceful, normal life, and share it with someone who mattered to her the most … Lipton.
“So are you saying that …” Jesse began, trying to maintain the composure of her voice, “by changing me back into a human, I’d lose my right as the Key? Is that what you’re trying to say?”
Henson nodded. “Yes. It means that you’re no longer the Key when I planted the Kiss of Sigma on you, turning you back into a human. By doing that, you won’t endanger our kind if it happens that you get destroyed.”
“But how is that possible?”
“One of the great thing about being a Sigma is about the Restoration. We performed Restorations to supernatural beings, reinstating their lives. And when we do Restorations, the transformation is so thorough and complete that everything supernatural is stripped off. You being the Key is a supernatural part of the order, so when we Restored you, we strip you from being the Key. So once that happens. the Universe will be alerted and then will find a new replacement for you, to find the new Key to the Good Pole, which I think is now in order as we speak …”
“What?!!” Catan suddenly burst into flames of rage. “You never told me that you have completely stripped her of the right of being the Key! You-you lied to me, Henson! That was never part of the deal! I’ll kill you all for this! After all the hard work and effort I’ve put, it will all be for nothing. The Filter will not work anymore for my evil agenda because you’ve de-Keyed Jesse! I’ll kill all of you if it’s the last thing I do!!!” Catan shrieked again, his face etched with unadulterated fury.
“What was the deal, Henson?” Jesse asked, unable to contain the curiosity any longer.”What was the deal that you made with Catan?”
Henson shot a quick glance at Catan, who looked like he could pounce on any of them at any moment. However, Catan held the urge to launch any attacks, as it seemed as though he wanted to hear everything Henson had to say before he proceeded.
Henson swiveled his gaze back at Jesse. “The deal was to abduct you for Catan, Jesse. We came to him in the first place, offering to help him abduct you.”
Shock was plastered all over Jesse’s face, as she stammered, “H-how could you? How could you do this to me?”
“Let me finish my explanation, Jesse. Before we approached Catan, we have already seen the future. We knew one of the Clairvoyants, Kelisse Ringer. She has been our close friends for many years. We have a small circle of supernatural friends, and we’re blessed and honored to know someone as kind-hearted and friendly as Kelisse. And one day, she came to us with despair written all over her face. She told us that she’d seen the future, and it was dismal and bleak. She saw that Catan finally reigned over the world as the new Supreme Leader, decimating all the supernatural beings on earth to create a new race for his own. It was such a grotesque picture that I couldn’t even imagine that for a second. Kelisse didn’t like the future that she saw in her mind, but she knew that it was inevitable. Kelisse warned us to be prepared, for there was no way to stop the Great Apocalypse from happening. And ever since she had come bearing the tragic news, she disappeared, and was never seen again. I think that she was prepared for whatever tragedy that was about to unfold. I was overwhel
med by the news, trying to think of a way to save the world, or to save the race of my people, the Sigma, from being completely wiped out. I knew that I had to meet up with Catan to make some kind of deal, so the Sigma would be spared from death. So I eventually came to the decision to approach Catan, and using the magical means I have left, I was able to locate Catan at the Maze of Doom. I approached him, fervently asking him to spare our race, the Sigma, from being killed by him. I told him that I would do anything for him to save my race. I’ve protected the Sigma for decades, and I couldn’t let this race become extinct. My forefathers would be disappointed if they knew that I didn’t do anything in my power to save our race. Catan agreed to spare the Sigma on one condition, that is if I were to bring you to him. I was puzzled as to why I was needed to do Catan’s dirty work when he could do it himself, having amazing dark powers he could just conjure from his mind or hands. But he gave me the explanation that it was sometimes difficult to get to you, Jesse, because of the curse he was bound with. When he turned into another person, whom he said was a man named Lipton, he wouldn’t have control over his plans anymore, so that made it difficult to find you and bring you to his lair. So he wanted me to do his dirty deed, and eventually I agreed. So that was the deal that we made, Jesse. He said that once I bring you to him, he would spare me from doom when he becomes the Supreme Leader. Catan was pleased to know that Kelisse’s prediction favored him, and he was fueled with ego at that knowledge. So after the meeting with Catan, I started to hatch a plan to abduct you, so I could hand you over to him. I did some research and was able to locate where you stayed, so I headed over there one night with a group of my Sigma men. We surveyed your house and found out that an Enchantress was with you at that moment. As the Sigma, we’re trained for body combat, so skillful that we’re probably one of the best fighters in the whole world. Our prime mission was to capture you, and we knew that it would be a somewhat difficult task to do that since you’re a vampire with supernatural strength and abilities. In order to make it an easy process for us to capture you, we’d decided to turn you into a human so you would lose those abilities. So we invaded your house, catching both you and Maggie off-guard. Before you had the chance to retaliate, I immediately pounced on you and gave you the Kiss of Sigma, turning you human immediately. You struggled against me, and I had to knock you down unconscious. Maggie saw that and thought that we’d killed you, but the truth was … you weren’t killed. Maggie was dumfounded when she saw that you bled red blood, the color of human blood, and she was convinced that we’d killed you. She tried to use her powers against us, but we were fast and agile, and using the great martial skills that we had, we executed the Sigma Takedown on her, causing her to be temporarily incapacitated. Without further hesitation, we carried your unconscious body away and headed to our secret hideout. Once you were taken to our secret hideout, we kept your body in one of our rooms, ready to be handed over to Catan anytime soon. We couldn’t hand you over to Catan just yet because Catan wasn’t in his manifested form at that point of time, since Lipton had taken over. So we waited and waited for the time when Catan would manifest, and hand your body over to him. When news came to us that Catan had manifested, we decided to head over to the Maze of Doom to give Catan what he wanted. If you’re wondering how we’re able to travel to the Maze of Doom since it’s so secretly hidden away in a remote location … well … we have the ability to teleport. Only the most skillful Sigma has the ability to teleport, and I am one of them. The rest of my men are still learning the ropes, but they’ll all get there one day, eventually. So with my teleportation ability, I teleported myself and my Sigma men to the Peak, where the entrance to the Maze of Doom is. However, while I was the Peak waiting to hand you over to Catan, something unexpected happened to me. I felt excruciating pain slice through my heart, and it was so unbearable that I nearly collapsed and fainted. My men were worried about me when they saw what I went through. But the pain wouldn’t fade … it went on and on like it was never going to cease. I tried to figure out what was happening to me in that moment of pain. I’d never experienced such pain before in my entire life … except for the one time when I was in my adolescence. I was a rebellious teenager back then, and I recalled that I almost killed my own kind because I was envious of him. I had this Sigma friend whose name was Jack Pelvins. We were of the same age, but he always stole the limelight, being the best Sigma there was. He excelled in almost everything, from executing the Sigma Takedown to even teleportation at such a ripe age! I couldn’t even teleport at that time. Not many Sigmas were able to teleport, and if you were able to teleport, then you would be revered by your peers. I was immensely jealous of him, and I wanted to be the popular one, so that everyone would gasp in awe when they saw me. Then one day, I couldn’t hold this envy any longer, and I decided to push him down the cliff at one of the mountains where he regularly trained. As I was creeping behind while he was doing his martial arts practice at the cliff, I suddenly felt this unimaginable pain in my heart, it was so devastating that it nearly made me black out. Jack was startled by my presence and he rushed to my aid, wondering what was going on with me. Jack had a good heart, and decided to send me to our Sigma Master, Nelvin Peters, to diagnose my situation. As the Sigma Master, Nelvin was one of the most powerful men in our circle. He was the top expert in all the Sigma martial arts, and was able to teleport to different continents in less than ten seconds. All of us looked up to him, and he was like our teacher, our guide and our doctor in everything we did. So back to the story … Nelvin tried to diagnose me, and he was eventually able to find out what was going on with me. At first, I was reluctant to admit that I was trying to push Jack off the cliff, possibly killing him. But then, Nelvin was able to squeeze all the details out of me, but it felt somewhat good to get it off my chest. Nelvin told me that I had experienced the Sigma Pain, which is triggered when one brother tries to do harm to another brother of his own kind. I regretted what I did, and decided to atone for my sins, and out of the goodness of Nelvin’s heart, he decided to forgive me for what I tried to do to Jack. And you know what? That pain which I felt when I tried to do harm to Jack was the same pain I felt when I almost handed you over to Catan. I instantly recognized that pain, and it brought me a sense of deja vu. That was the Sigma Pain, and I knew that you had to be one of us … you had to be a Sigma. To make doubly sure that you’re a Sigma, I had to listen to your heartbeat. A Sigma’s heart beats in a different way than a human’s, or a vampire’s, for that matter. If you’re a Sigma, your heart would beat three times in succession, and then pauses momentarily before beating three times again, and the pattern goes on and on. So holding my breath in anticipation, I pressed my ear against your chest, trying to listen to the rhythm of your heartbeat, and what I actually heard reaffirmed my belief that you’re definitely a Sigma. I told my men about this, and we make the unanimous decision not to hand you over to Catan, since you’re one of us. We couldn’t just betray our own blood … it just wasn’t right. But Catan eventually emerged, knowing that we had been hanging around at the Peak. He welcomed us into the Maze of Doom, his eyes unwaveringly set on you, as if you were the most delicious feast he’d ever seen. I held you close to me while you were still in your unconscious state, careful not to give you away to Catan. And I began to explain to Catan that I had changed my mind and I had no intention to hand you over to him, and that I wanted out of the deal. Catan was filled with immeasurable rage, and you could practically see steams of fury rise out from his ears. He demanded us to hand you over to him, but we refused. I finally told Catan the real reason why I couldn’t go on with the deal, as I found out that you’re actually a Sigma, and I couldn’t betray my own blood. Catan had to have his way, and he wouldn’t hear any of this. He threatened to kill every single member of the Sigma race in the entire world if I didn’t give you to him. Knowing that we had been trapped at the dead end with not much options, I made the heartbreaking decision to finally hand you over, with the purest intention of saving the
entire Sigma race. I knew that Catan wouldn’t back down on his words on destroying the whole Sigma race if I didn’t do as he said, so I had to give in. But I made Catan promise not to kill you if we handed you over to him, and he easily agreed …”
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