“Hello there,” said the vampire, stopping underneath a low hanging tree branch, his hands put together like he was praying. “You are the half-vampire that Lord Taranas made, yes?”
I nodded. “That’s me, yeah.”
“Good,” said the vampire. He leaned toward me, his huge eyes scanning my body. “You don’t look very much like a vampire, but perhaps this is just how half-vampires look. It’s been centuries since the last half-vampire was created, after all, so maybe you are more representative of how they look than I thought. Not bad, really.”
The vampire looked at me with obvious lust, but I put a hand on the hilt of Domination and said, “Can we go now? Lord Taranas doesn’t strike me as a particularly patient person.”
The vampire snapped out of his reverie and stood at attention. “Yes, of course, you’re right. Lord Taranas told me to retrieve you quickly. Take my hand and we shall cross the Shadow Way.”
The vampire held out his hand, which I took reluctantly. Like all vampires, his hand was cold, but it was also slightly oily. It made me wonder why this vampire had such oily skin. Did he just not shower or something? Actually, did vampires shower at all? I wish I had asked Lucius that, but it was too late now and anyway wasn’t very important at the moment.
Then the vampire turned around and walked into the shadows. We passed into the darkness and in the next second were walking along the Shadow Way again. As we walked, I could not help but keep my eyes and ears open for any Strangers, but I didn’t see any Strangers anywhere. I didn’t even feel them watching us. Maybe even the Strangers feared Lord Taranas and didn’t want to earn his ire by attacking one of his Hordelings.
In any case, we soon stopped in front of a door, which the vampire opened and passed through without another word. I followed him and briefly found myself in darkness again before we stepped out of the shadows into a room I didn’t recognize.
It looked like the living room of a mansion. An empty fireplace stood against one wall, looking like it hadn’t been used in years, while two large windows gave a startlingly clear view of the sea outside. A huge chandelier hung from the ceiling, while the thick oak floor was covered with red carpeting. Above the fireplace was a painting from the 19th century of a man I didn’t recognize, though I assumed based on the quality of the painting that the man was the person who had built this mansion in the first place.
But the vampire and I weren’t the only people in the room. Seated in front of the empty fireplace, his legs crossed and a book in his hands, was none other than Lord Taranas himself. He looked exactly like he did in the dream I had about him: Powerful, big, and dangerous. He still wore the robes of royalty, but his red hilted sword now leaned against the side of his chair, rather than being sheathed at his side. I guess it would have been impractical for him to sit down with that sword attached to his belt.
As soon as we appeared, Lord Taranas closed the book and rose from his seat. He was even bigger in person, towering over me by at least two heads, if not taller. Yet when he moved toward us, he barely made a sound. It didn’t even look like his feet were moving. It looked like he simply glided across the floor, his robes trailing behind him on his way toward us.
“Tara,” said Lord Taranas, stopping in front of us and looking down at me with a smile I didn’t like. “We meet at long last.”
“We’ve already met before,” I said. I found it hard to meet his gaze for some reason. “Through our mental connection.”
Lord Taranas waved off my response. “Oh, that didn’t really count. Meeting people in person is very different from seeing them in a dream. You’re even shorter than I thought.”
Then Lord Taranas glanced at the vampire standing next to me and said, “You did well in bringing the half-vampire to me. You may leave now and help the others in preparing the ritual.”
“Yes, master,” said the vampire with a bow. He turned and walked toward a door, which he opened and vanished into before I could even register his movements.
I looked at Lord Taranas, a question in my eyes. “Ritual?”
Lord Taranas smiled. “You’ll find out soon enough, but first, why don’t we sit down and have a little chat?”
Lord Taranas waved his hand behind him and another chair, similar to the one he had been sitting down in, suddenly pulled up in front of the fireplace. It looked kind of like telekinesis, but I had no idea if that was one of Lord Taranas’ powers or not. I wished Lucius had taught me more about the full extent of vampire powers, but I’d just have to wing it and hope for the best.
Then Lord Taranas’ eyes darted to Domination and narrowed. “What’s that?”
“My father’s sword,” I said. “The one he used to kill vampires when he was younger.”
Lord Taranas’ lips turned in a displeased scowl. “Take it off your belt and drop it. Now. I don’t want you even thinking about using that blade against me.”
“I wasn’t,” I said. “I just took it with me out of habit.”
Of course, that was a lie. I fully intended to behead Lord Taranas with it, but the time wasn’t yet right to strike. I did consider for a moment, however, drawing Domination and beheading Lord Taranas right there and then.
But the moment passed and I unhooked Domination from my belt and tossed it onto the floor out of my reach. I immediately regretted it, because without Domination by my side, I had no way of defending myself from Lord Taranas.
“Good,” said Lord Taranas. “Now, come sit down over here with me and we can have a nice little chat while we wait for the ritual to be finalized.”
Lord Taranas glided back over to his chair and sat down, though he didn’t pick up his book again. I just walked over to the chair he had pulled up for me and sat down in it, though I hesitated at first because I thought it might be booby trapped. But when I sat down in it, nothing bad happened. The chair was actually pretty comfortable, conforming to fit my body shape in order to maximize comfort. I didn’t know if it was magic or if Lord Taranas had simply bought a chair designed to do that. Either way, it made me feel a little less tense, though not by much.
Lord Taranas leaned back in his chair, putting the tips of his fingers together. “How do you feel, Tara? Do you like your chairs? I made sure to have only the comfiest chairs money can buy placed in this mansion when I moved in.”
“You’ve got money?” I said, looking at Lord Taranas in surprise. “I didn’t know vampires used money.”
“When you’re over a thousand years old, it is easy to accumulate vast riches that most humans can only dream of,” said Lord Taranas. “Plus, I’ve got a few puppets in what you humans call the stock market who make sure to invest some of my money wisely. As a vampire, money doesn’t appeal to me very much, but I understand that money buys power in the human world and power is something that appeals to me very much.”
I bit my lower lip. Lord Taranas spoke of power in the same way that some people talked about sex. Given his obvious egomania, I bet he was turned on by power to some degree, which really creeped me out.
But I didn’t show how creeped out I was. I just glanced out the window at the sea and said, “Where are we? We’re not still in Texas, are we?”
“Yes, we are,” said Lord Taranas, nodding. He gestured at the window. “What you see out that window is the Gulf of Mexico. This mansion is located on the Texas coast on a private property I purchased some time ago and has been my base of operations ever since. It’s well away from most major cities and towns, and the people who live in the nearest small town have learned to avoid it like the plague, because several of their curious townsmen have, ah, ‘accidentally’ vanished whenever they come to investigate it.”
Based on the way Lord Taranas licked his lips when he said the word ‘accidentally,’ I had no trouble understanding what happened to those poor souls who came too close to his mansion. Even so, I found myself deeply disturbed and hoped that I wouldn’t see any blood-drained corpses lying around the mansion during my stay here.
“So it’s not very likely that someone will accidentally stumble upon us?” I said.
“Not very likely at all,” Lord Taranas replied. “And if they do, I will ensure that that is the last thing they ever do.”
I nodded to show my understanding, not my approval. “Right. Well, now that I’m here, what’s the plan?”
“The ‘plan’ is to wait until the ritual is complete,” Lord Taranas said. “Once it is, then I will take you down to the backyard, where we will start the ritual. Until then, I would like to ask what it is that convinced you to come to me directly like this.”
I looked down at my lap and began playing with a strand of my hair. “Well, that vampire you sent to my dad’s house was what did it. I didn’t want to put Dad or anyone else I love in danger like that again. I figured that if I turned myself over to you, that everyone I loved would be okay.”
“Love,” Lord Taranas said with amusement. “I should have known it would have played a role in your decisions. I keep forgetting that because you’re a half-vampire, that means you still have human emotions in you, unlike us full-blooded vampires, who do not.”
I would have made a snappy comment to him, but I didn’t want to accidentally piss him off, so I said instead, “Emotions are important for humans. Without them, we wouldn’t really be human.”
“It also makes you really easy to manipulate,” said Lord Taranas. “But I don’t feel like continuing this particular conversation. I simply want to congratulate you on making the right choice. It saves us all a lot of time, energy, and pain that we wouldn’t have been able to get back otherwise. And once the ritual is complete, then I will finally be able to finish my plans.”
“You mean the Vampire Sword,” I said. “Right?”
“Correct,” said Lord Taranas. He closed his eyes and balled his hands into fists. “I can see it, feel it calling me. The Vampire Sword has chosen me to unleash its power upon the world. The Vampire Sword only calls out to those it deems strong enough to wield it, and being a Vampire Lord, I am most definitely qualified to use it.”
“The Vampire Sword can talk?” I said.
Lord Taranas opened his eyes and glared at me as if I had just said the stupidest thing in the world. “Don’t be stupid. The Vampire Sword cannot literally speak in English or any other human language. It communicates through a deep connection to a person’s heart, soul, and mind. It doesn’t use words, but it is still very effective at communicating what it wants.”
I nodded, but truthfully I didn’t quite understand everything he said. Neither Dad nor Lucius had mentioned anything about the Vampire Sword being able to talk to people, but maybe it was a secret ability it had that they just didn’t know about. Or Lord Taranas had gone completely insane and had deluded himself into believing that the Vampire Sword was talking to him. Either one seemed likely to me.
“All right,” I said slowly. “If you need the Vampire Sword, then what role do I play in this? It sounds to me like the Vampire Sword is powerful enough by itself to allow you to control the world. I don’t see why you need me.”
Lord Taranas smiled, a chilly expression. “Simple. Though the Vampire Sword has chosen me to be the conduit through which its power will be poured on the world, I cannot actually wield it myself. You, on the other hand, can … and will. Gladly.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
I put a hand on my chest. “What do you mean, I can and will wield the Vampire Sword gladly? And why can’t you wield it yourself?”
Lord Taranas brushed back a portion of his long hair. “Let’s go back to the beginning. I’m sure you are aware that the Vampire Sword was forged over ten thousand years ago by Lord Nizara, correct?”
I nodded. “Yes. That’s what I was told.”
“And you are also aware, obviously, that Lord Nizara hid the Vampire Sword in a pocket dimension that no one can access save through a particular ritual he created.”
“Is that that ‘ritual’ you keep telling me about?”
Lord Taranas apparently didn’t hear what I said, because he continued speaking as if I had not said a word at all. “There is more to the Vampire Sword than all of that. You see, the Vampire Sword cannot actually be wielded by vampires. Or by sorcerers or humans, for that matter.”
I frowned. “Then why is it called the Vampire Sword if vampires can’t wield it? What happens if vampires do try to wield it?”
Lord Taranas held up one finger. “One, it is called that because it can turn anyone its blade cuts into a vampire. And two, any vampire who tries to wield it will instantly die. Even just touching its hilt without proper protection will kill the vampire unlucky enough to touch it. And if you do manage to touch it with proper protection, its magic won’t work and it will act like an ordinary sword. Good for stabbing and slash, but nowhere near as powerful as it could be.”
“Did Lord Nizara design it that way?” I said.
“Yes,” said Lord Taranas. “Lord Nizara believed that the Vampire Sword being banished into another universe would be more than enough to keep it from the hands of people who shouldn’t have it. Still, he was aware that a determined vampire or sorcerer might be able to open the portal anyway, so he cast a spell upon it to ensure that even if someone reach the Sword, that it would either kill the user or be rendered as powerless as a normal sword. A brilliant move, all things considered.”
“No one told me that that would happen if someone tried to steal it.”
“Because this particular fact about the Sword has been forgotten for thousands of years,” said Lord Taranas. “Even I didn’t know it until relatively recently, about a year or so ago, when I spoke with one of the oldest vampires in the world, who was living in Mount Kita, Japan, as a hermit who shunned the rest of vampiric society. This particular vampire had been young during the days of Lord Nizara’s reign and had even helped Lord Nizara forge the Sword, which was how he knew that little fact that had never been written down in any history books.”
“Wow, he must be really old if he was around during Lord Nizara’s time,” I said. “That would make him over ten thousand years old, wouldn’t it?”
“Would have made him over ten thousand years old,” Lord Taranas corrected. “He is no longer with us, mostly because I killed him after I drained him of every last secret he knew about the Vampire Sword. I didn’t want anyone else to find out about him and get information about the Vampire Sword from him. Knowledge is power, after all, and power is something I never share with anyone.”
I found it rather chilling the way Lord Taranas spoke so casually about murdering another vampire. I was starting to understand why Dad hated ‘vamps’ so much. “Then your plan is destined to fail, isn’t it? If neither vampires nor sorcerers can even touch the Sword without dying, then doesn’t that mean that you won’t be able to use it?”
“True, I myself cannot wield it,” said Lord Taranas. Then he pointed at me. “But you can.”
“How?” I said. I looked down at my hands. “Do I have a special power that makes me immune to the Sword’s abilities or something?”
“In a way, yes,” said Lord Taranas. “You see, Lord Nizara did not extend his spell to half-vampires such as yourself. In fact, he deliberately allowed it to be wielded by half-vampires, because half-vampires are extremely rare, and even when they do exist, they’re usually too independent to wield the Sword for anyone else. So I understood that if I was going to use the Vampire Sword’s power, I would need a half-vampire of my own … and you were the one I chose to make into my very own half-vampire.”
“But why me?” I said. “Why did you choose me specifically? Why not just any old sorcerer? Surely there are a lot of sorcerers out there who would make better half-vampires than me.”
“There are many out there who would make more powerful half-vampires, perhaps, but not many that would make half-vampires who are easy to control,” said Lord Taranas. He rested his hands on the arm rests on his chair. “Your lack of knowledge about magic and about sorcery meant that
you would be easy to manipulate and would have a hard time resisting my orders. Even though you’re the daughter of the Hunter, the fact that your father didn’t train you to your fullest magical potential meant that you would be easy to control.”
I had to admit that what Lord Taranas said made sense, even though I didn’t want to admit it. In comparison to other sorcerers, I didn’t know much about magic and wasn’t much of a fighter. I could see why he would think I’d make an excellent target for manipulation, though I did feel safe in the knowledge that he still didn’t know why I was really here.
“I mean, look at you,” said Lord Taranas, gesturing at me. “Despite being the daughter of the most infamous, powerful, and magically gifted vampire hunter of all time, you are astonishingly weak. Even as a half-vampire, your power isn’t as high as it could be. Weak people are always easy to manipulate or boss around, and you are no different.”
“You do know that manipulation only really works when the person you’re trying to manipulate doesn’t know that you’re trying to manipulate them, right?” I said.
Lord Taranas laughed. “When did I say I would manipulate you? Now that you are here, I have no reason to play games with you anymore. I can simply force you to do whatever I need you to do and you will have no say in the matter. I don’t even need to use my mental connection to you to do it, because I know that you would never even think of disobeying me. After all, you wouldn’t want to put the life of your dear old dad in danger again, would you?”
I wanted to tell Lord Taranas that the only thing I was going to put in danger was his neck as soon as I got Domination back, but instead I said, “You’re right. I know that no matter where I run or what I do, you will always be able to catch me because you have no problem with putting the lives of innocent people in danger just to get what you want. It’s what makes you such a terrible creature.”
The Vampire Sword (Vampire Sorceress Book 1) Page 13