Transit of Ishtar

by Natalie Gibson

  The element of surprise spent, Billy held no challenge for Nathalia. She had his arms tied behind him in a heartbeat. She hated to do it, but she punched him right in the face, hard enough to knock him out, but not hard enough to kill him, which would have been easy for her. She laid him on the steps and jumped to Libby and Leonard. Neither of them had the stench of Akhkharu, though if Billy had come in contact with him, Eitan was here.

  She immediately sent the warning to Maeve, Get everyone inside the storage room. Men, women, children, guardians, everyone. It's the only place the Akhkharu won't follow you. Our secrets are less important than keeping everyone safe. Don't come out until I come down. If a monster manages to get in with you, get everyone inside the golden energy sphere. It won't be able to cross that border to get to you. I'm on my way.

  “You're hurt, Nathalia.”

  Ay, ay, a scratch, a scratch. There's no time to explain, Libby, but I need blood.

  “I think the first order of business is to get that knife out of her back. This is no place for a blood transfusion anyway. Of course I would give you anything you need, but I'm not a match to your type.”

  It doesn't matter. I promise this won't hurt. I will only take a little if Leonard would agree to donate also.

  Libby's eyes got big but she said, “Of course, friend. Leonard loves you almost as much as I do. Anything you need, please take.”

  Nathalia hesitated, but not enough for a human to notice. She had a battle coming up and she needed to feed, but Eiran was still holding the whole beast. Nathalia had never drank blood without the hunger to help it be more palatable. She had to manually lengthen her incisors. She pierced the skin of Libby's neck quickly, pushing the feeling of pleasure into Libby's mind, all the while keeping the restrained Billy and free Leonard in her sight.

  She should never have worried. The taste of the elder woman's blood was more than palatable. It was delicious. It was perfectly natural for a Nephilim to enjoy that kind of feast and that was what she was now. She drank as much as she dared before closing off the wounds with her own powerful blood. Leonard willingly offered her his neck, which she silently accepted.

  She finished and healed Leonard. Only then did she pull the ordinary kitchen knife from her back. She wiped both sides the blade on her palms and used it to paint the war markings on her face. It was a frightening look to Leonard and Libby, she knew, but would help her portray what she wanted to the betrayer The wound on her side healed quickly, her abilities heightened by her intake of prana, but not before a good amount gushed out. This too she wiped with her palm, but she didn't use it. She consumed it. And then she ran. Only after she was on her way did she send Libby instructions. Do not fear. All will be well. Hunker down in the hanger and don't come home until I send for you. Billy should be no threat to you now that I am gone, but I'm not as sure about Minali, the Gish Abay survivor. She's been through a lot and I would appreciate it if you kept them apart just in case. The Akhkharu programed him to harm me and could have done the same for her. Once the monster is dead his hold will be also. Don't let Billy see her until then.

  Nathalia didn't know how to tabalu, not that she would have given up her added strength before the battle that was about to occur. She ran so fast that no one could see her anyway. She was at the gates of the Daughters compound before she realized it.

  It stood open and the guard station was empty. Not a good sign. Nathalia hoped that her message reached Maeve in time. There was gunshot residue in the air and the smell of Akhkharu blood was strong. A few drops had landed on the asphalt drive and were steadily burrowing a hole with their acid corruption.

  Nathalia ran the length of the drive, passing a couple of drained and mutilated guards along the way. They were good men and deserved better than that sort of death, but at least they were dead. There were few things worse than death, and becoming a Akhkharu's puppet was one of them. These lucky few would never feel the desire to murder their loved ones.

  There were no bodies littering the yard as there had been in Ethiopia. The sanctuary was clear, as she expected it to be. The slowly setting sun shone brightly through it's plexi-glass ceiling, making it impossible for any of Eitan's children to find a safe hiding place. She was glad she didn't have to do violence to anyone, even vitala or vrykolak, in their holy asylum. Nathalia went to Maeve's office, her old personal quarters.

  Eitan was waiting for her. Unwilling or unable to tabalu, he had to run here, just as she had and was wearing suitable attire. The track suit and tennis shoes were very expensive but looked absurd on the ancient giant, the Sarrum of his city-state. He was standing behind the desk flipping through written records, not knowing the wealth of information that lay less than a foot away in Maeve's laptop. Computers had been invented during the 500 years he had spent underground.

  I knew you would be here.

  He smiled at her in a way that made her veins feel like they were filled with ice water. “You had to know I would be attracted by the violent echoes of your death.” He took a deep breath, as if enjoying the smell of that hostility. “I am glad our paths did not cross when you were human this time. I would have drained you dry and never known the joy of your augmented blood.”

  I'm glad too. Now I can quench your thirst, not just once but, endlessly. The knife, her dagger, lay on the desk in front of him. The weapon was beautiful and it called out to her. Nathalia could remember the weight of it in her hand, how sure it made her feel. She took a step towards it. It and Eitan became a blur.

  “Do you take me for a fool? I will need more than your sweet words to convince me of your new allegiance.” His voice came from behind her and she turned to meet his fiery stare.

  But we want the same thing...to destroy the Igigi. With the dagger, I can do that.

  “Do you want it because you want it or because I am ever in your mind telling you that is what you want? Part of me wants to believe that you really do wish to make war with the Shining Ones. That it is not just me. After all, you don't seem to want to rape and kill your friend the Holy Mother and I have been polluting your thoughts with those ideas too.”

  Nathalia tried not to allow the relief to show on her face or in her body language. She had thought it was the beast that hungered for Maeve's pain. Maeve is just a human woman. I can slate those thirsts with any one of billions. Ki is over run with human cattle and prostitutes.

  They were now locked in a semicircular dance around the room, staying opposite each other, but not making any sudden moves. “Yes, she is a simple human, but her unborn will be like us. She will be..., how does it go? 'She will be called Sarvamata and Yamina Prima as she will be mother to all proper and suitable love to everyone who lays eyes upon her. She will be the true mother of peace and take the throne of her ancestor and will reign over Earth forever; Her kingdom will never end.'”

  Eitan stopped moving and turned his body to fully face Nathalia. He thumbed the painstakingly detailed carving on the hilt of her dagger, almost absentmindedly. “Guess what Ereshkigal..I do not desire proper and suitable love. Peace is boring and would be the death of my kind. I came here to make sure her kingdom never begins. It seems they knew I was coming and ran to hide in the one place I cannot follow them.” He began to use the dagger to slice off his clothing. “I was angry at first. Very angry. But then I read something that changed my mind all together. You've done the dirty work for me. You are killing the One as we speak. All I have to do is wait here for her mates howls of anguish and then we can be on to our next venture, that passion we share. We will make war on the Shinar.”

  Nathalia's mind started to spin. She was killing the One? How? She quickly scanned the books laying on Maeve's desk, the ones Eitan had been reading, the ones that changed his mind. She recognized one she had written herself. It was about Camilla's rare and useful healing ability. The ability that removed anything her magic recognized as not belonging inside anyone's body that happened to be near her. That included fetuses. Eitan was right. Camilla would
be charged, unable to control her ability and Maeve was trapped in there with her.

  Nanae Raphael, I have need of you again. The Holy Mother is trapped by an Akhkharu in the holy storage room with our own healer who's special brand of magic will force the unintentional abortion of the One. Go to them. Hold the baby to her mother. I will call you all out once I have destroyed the enemy.

  Then she spoke to Eitan, True. It is done. Surely my inactivity should convince you of my support for the cause. The One will parish and all we have to do is wait.

  Eitan's eyes glowed red in the relative darkness of the office. His clothing, most definitely stolen, lay in shredded tatters. Totally nude, he was comfortable and she could see that her presence had decreased one appetite and increased another. “Perhaps you could offer me your body and blood while we wait. That would convince me of your support.”

  We have plenty of time for that. I have something better to pass the time. She opened the line of communication to Eiran, allowing Eitan to listen in, It is time for your death. I am prepared to pass judgment on and dole out punishment for your sins. Come to me. I am with your brother in the room where I met my human death.

  Chapter 13

  Nanae tabalu'd into such a scene of chaos that no one noticed his sudden appearance. If the sect was under the attack of an Akhkharu, there was no telling what horrors they had witnessed. Some of them were crying. One girl was struggling with a Nephilim, though it was no struggle for him. He carried her to the far end of the room and held her there. She was trying to reach the elevator, which was locked open. The floor of the cage was at eye level, between two floors, rendering it unusable. It was a very good defense, or it would be against anything other than superhuman enemies.

  The capacitor's magical storage room was much too small to house all these refugees. Everyone was trying to steer clear of the golden glowing sphere but there wasn't enough space outside it to accommodate. Most of them looked as if they had never seen the living statues that collected the communal white energy. As an ancient, he knew of them, but had never laid eyes on them. They weren't why he was here anyway and paid them no notice. The yelling and moaning to his left told him where he needed to be.

  Two visibly pregnant women lay in one corner surrounded by other women and a few of his brethren and he was pretty sure that meant the human healer, who was such a threat to the One was in the opposite corner. That view was blocked by the throng of people. Nanae tried to approach, but knew he'd better announce himself if he didn't want to be attacked by 'He who is for the One'.

  He spoke loudly and when he did the tide of noise receded some. “Nathalia, the former Abbess and the first female Nephilim, Ereshkigal, sent me here to protect the One and her mother.”

  The woman who waived him over did not look well. Her skin was gray and her once lovely hair lay in sections pasted to her face, arms and back, by sweat. Her fellow mother-to-be looked worse. There was blood stains between her legs on the floor where she lay. Nanae knelt between the two and went right to work. One hand on each belly, splayed wide, it took him no time to find the magical links trying to force the babies from the mothers. He severed them both and began to heal the damage. The placenta had started to tear away from the uterine wall in the bleeding woman. She had been close to aborting her unborn.

  Nanae immediately felt the female healer's connection trying to make contact again with the more damaged woman. “Instruct your Panacea to actively direct her healing abilities to someone else. Gather anyone with an ailment around her.”

  “There's no one sick. We already tried that.” The man behind the less damaged woman spoke but never took his eyes off of her.

  “That's why I told Camilla to focus on me.” The bleeding woman spoke for the first time and the man with her erupted.

  “You did what?!”

  “She is carrying the One.” She explained. It sounded perfectly reasonable to Nanae but not so much to the father. He did not know the importance of the One. He only heard how little the mother of his unborn cared for it.

  “Do not fear. Neither of you will lose your children. Are you men willing to help?”

  When both men acquiesced, one verbally, one silently, Nanae put his ability in reverse. He caused several cells in each of them to grow and multiply in an alarming rate. He formed and hid a half dozen tumors in both men. “Go to the healer. You now have cancer. Healing your bodies will keep her occupied.”

  At a gasp from one, maybe both of the women, Nanae assured all of them, “I can completely remove every trace of the disease after all this is over if your healer doesn't. Neither of you are in any danger.” The two men pressed their way through the crowd.

  “And if you die before healing them?” The Holy Mother was not pleased that Nanae had taken liberties with her mate's body.

  “I cannot die except by the hand of Ereshkigal I am Nephilim uncorrupted.” He glanced up at 'He who is for the One' who had taken the Holy Mother's mate's place behind her. “Surely your guardian has told you of our nature now that you are to bear his child.”

  “This is MY baby: mine and Aaron's. Not his. My guardian rarely speaks. He certainly doesn't talk about his 'nature'.”

  Someone bumped into Nanae, he stumbled, balancing himself with a hand on the floor, only to have it stepped on. “Holy Mother, is it damaging for people to stand within the glow?”

  Maeve's voice was weak, “Please don't call me that. My name is Maeve. And, no, it wouldn't hurt anyone, but it would be unsettling for children to experience that ecstasy. No men or guardians – It could be damaging to the capacitors, but I don't know. It's never been done. That's just not allowed.” Technically they weren't allowed anywhere near this room even, much less inside the sphere, but Nathalia had told her it was okay. She didn't just say it was alright; she had commanded Maeve to do it. It went against everything inside Maeve to do it, but she couldn't resist the compulsion. Now, there were no more secrets. Not for the Daughters anyway. The guardians, on the other hand, were a whole other story.

  The orders were carried out efficiently. All women of age moved inside the sphere, all men, guardians and children outside it. The women were in no danger of petrification because they were not properly plugged in to the collection system, only standing in the pool. It was a pleasant experience for most of them, a little taste of what their lives would be if they ever decided to donate their lives to the cause, rise to the higher plane of existence, and become a capacitor. From the look on their faces, Maeve might be facing a flood of volunteers very shortly.

  During the last few organizational seconds, the previously struggling girl, slipped away from the Nephilim holding her and bolted across the room for the elevator door. Her path took her directly through the center of the golden glowing globe. A funny look crossed her face just before it went slack and her body crumpled.

  “Gwyneth!” The guardian's voice rocked the cavern and people all around covered their ears. He jogged toward the girl's fallen body.

  “No!” Maeve's voice rang out across the room. “Don't cross the boundary, guardian. I forbid it.” The guardian froze, his gaze locked on the lifeless body of his beloved. Ancient Immortal or not, when the Holy Mother gave someone an order, they followed it. “Who's daughter is this?”

  Several people answered, “Alisha”

  “Well then, she's just experiencing her first ethereal projection. A little earlier than most Peregrinus, yes, but she'll be fine as long as we can get her back here soon. The capacitors and their white energy sphere will keep Gwyneth's body alive while you go and entice her astral self to come back to her body. Does anyone know where she might have traveled?”

  “Alisha's still in the medical ward and couldn't be taken off of her machines.” Ingrid replied as she laid Gwyneth's limbs straight and tidied her hair and dress. The girl looked peaceful, but a little too like the dead for her guardian's tastes. Ingrid tried to reassure him, “She's fine, but you should hurry.”

  Maeve was about to give h
im instructions on getting the elevator out of safety lock down when he vanished. No preamble, no pretending to use a human escape; he just disappeared. There was a small breeze that no one would have noticed if they weren't in an airtight room, and then he was gone.

  Maeve's dismay must have been glaring because her guardian spoke quietly to her, “There is much you do not know about us and that is my fault. I promise we will remedy your ignorance on the subject of Nephilim once Ereshkigal has removed the enemy.”

  Nanae assured them both, “That will not be long. She has a plan. I don't know what a woman can do against a freshly turned Akhkharu.”

  'He who is for the One' spoke, “She can do anything. She is more powerful than any of us. You were away at war when the first of us turned. I have seen her kill a new Akhkharu with the weapon. If she regains it, there is no limit to what she can do.”

  ***

  Nathalia sliced through the last vitala, it's corrupted blood spewing from the now headless neck. She dropped it in the pile with the others. Some of the bodies had been people she knew and loved. Inside she wept for them and that the sanctuary had seen such violence. The petrified capacitors stared at her with blank eyes, but she could see they were indeed alive to varying degrees. Even the pieces of the one that a vampire had thrown down from it's marble stand glowed with prana.

  That shattering sound had brought her running from the office. She had to protect the others. She tried to make Eitan think she'd craved violence and that's what made her come looking for a fight. I've had my fill. If you have more children, we should probably save them for our escape. They must come in useful for causing distraction. I'll have to make some of my own someday.