by L. A. Banks
Marlene's lips continued to move and the head of the dead female were-jaguar began to smolder on the ground. The old vampire screeched, and sent a bolt of electrified fury toward Marlene, but the protective crystal breastplate she wore reflected it and sent it back to him. Seconds mattered. His semidisoriented state had been their salvation.
As the old master fell to the dirt beside the severed head, Big Mike tossed Damali a holy-water vile, and she caught it quickly. Vlak raised his hand to send a dark arc toward Damali, and as he moved, the were-jaguar demons nearby rushed him. Damali cast the vile hard, smashing it at the head of the creature next to Vlak.
Blue flames covered and spread from the incinerating head. Vlak's robes combusted on contact with the edge of the holy water's band of flame. Thick, black clouds plumed around him. But through the blackness, eleven white beams of energy immediately shot up—connecting to a single, wide amethyst beam of light that met them.
"The ancient Neteru collects her team…" Marlene's voice trailed off in awe.
Despite the majesty of the event, Damali didn't waste time while Vlak was deconstructing. His awful, screeching cries made the audio-sensitive guardians stoop and cover their ears.
It was not about leaving Vlak's end up to chance. Damali knew that with a vampire that old, one could never be too sure. Madame Isis raised, she looked Vlak dead in the eyes for just a second, added a smile, and plunged the Isis with her full weight behind it. "Rest in peace!"
She jumped back, hearing the high whine of energy gatheringùthen covered her head for the boom. The team was knocked off their feet from Vlak's body explosion, splattered with ash, and left coughing and sputtering as they stood up quickly.
"Blow the lair," she told Big Mike, snatching the Amazon's battle-ax out of the slit cavern wall. "Holy water this area down! Remove all traces of ripening Neteru in the air!"
Damali was running, helping people to their feet. "We gotta get out of here before they send up a search party—you don't just nuke a council-level vamp and not expect them to check it out! C'mon! And the level-five demons that were supposed to witness this ritual—to be sure their interests were protected, will come up through the lair breach… it's gotta be in their zone. We ain't outta the jungle yet! Let's move!"
"What are you saying?" The chairman screeched, leaning over the Vampire Council's table. "You and Counselor Vlak may have your differences, but he is still a ranking—"
"Look at me," Carlos said, breathing hard, his eyes set hard. "Do I look normal?"
A murmur went through the three seated council members.
"Where would I get a hit of ripened Neteru? I had international couriers with me! Look in my eyes—see for yourself!"
Three sets of cool, steely eyes gripped Carlos, and he could feel his stomach move and a sharp pain enter his intestines, dropping him to his knees before the council.
"Your charges are beyond sheer arrogance, it's pure hubris that has possessed you! I will rip out your gizzards and feed upon them myself," the old chairman warned. "If I sense duplicity…"
"Damali is out of phase, but you've got a level-five breach," he panted. "Our Neteru in a demon hot zone, and one senior council member about to turn a five-hundred-year-old, risen-demon, Amazon warrior, a trained Neteru guardian fighter, on her—then start a new empire with her."
"How can that be?" the chairman said, running his bony hand over his chin, but releasing Carlos from the painful hold. "There was no Neteru before Nzinga within the five-hundred-year range…"
The chairman's voice trailed off as he realized he gave Carlos too much information—highly guarded data only known at throne level. Carlos didn't blink, but the fact that it wasn't just an early sent Amazon Neteru, or Damali in the equation, another Neteru had been sent, too… all within a very short period of time. A trinity of them? And that info was so guarded that only old council seats knew? No wonder Nuit was so frantic to claim Damali. It was more than just daylight access, or even world domination. The last one bridged the millennium, and anything that created daylight capacities in the demon realms in this era was… they might try to rush even Heaven. These bastards were crazy. Oh, shit it was on. The Armageddon.
"All of this is speculation," the chairman said, coolly recovering. "Even if your claims about this demon are correct, her womb is dead."
Carlos nodded, standing with effort, using the seconds to work on his game. "She's got daylight—he's risking to do a black blood ex-cha—"
"Never…"
Carlos nodded. "Supernatural law; the demons tricked the Neteru's mother-seer, the mother-seer is doing time for the crime. But she wants out bad. She came to Vlak with a proposal after she became a were-demon, and Vlak saw an opening." He looked at the chairman hard. "You think he's out searching for my soul, don't you? Well, last night he came to see me just before dawn to strip my ass of pride and to get me to go against you. He's known where my soul is all along."
When the chairman didn't immediately answer, Carlos pressed on. "He sent his twisted demon bitch to my lair to pollute the perimeter with her hijacked scent during the day while he and I both slept. He's smart enough to stay away from it; is probably lying low and told her not to trail it into the mating dens… but when I woke up, it hit me. It leads a trail right to her dens, but probably not in it, where Vlak will be to ensure the exchange goes down right."
"Impossible. How did you break away from the trail?" the chairman said with fury in his eyes, but his tone not quite as sure as it had been. "If it was ripened Neteru…"
"The demon's batch is synthetic product, tainted, not as strong as the pure stuff. Its will-polluting effect is only temporary—like a quick rush… leaves you high, but not totally stupid-blitzed. That's what gave me a half-ounce of common sense to pull up from the trail and come here, first, to report in." Carlos opened his arms wide; the old men were wasting time and frustration was drilling a hole in his brain. "But you'd better kill me now if you think I'm not going back topside tonight."
The chairman's gaze narrowed. "I assure you we can accommodate your request here in chambers."
"What part about this don't you get?" he said louder than advisable. "Damali is out of phase, and you know that—which means I had to get this contraband from somewhere!" Carlos paused, trying to regain enough control to sound respectful—but if the old vamps didn't know for sure about the demon, had only heard rumors and only Vlak had solid proof… something happened at the borders of Purgatory… the forces of light had to be losing strength against evil on the planet. Now he understood the Covenant's haste and need to make every soul count, better understood his position in the equation, too. Very interesting…
"If I go back up and take another hit, Mr. Chairman, I could abort the whole mission by accidentally destroying our cargo because this is in my system. If the demon ain't around, I could hemorrhage Damali or kill her, if she gets in between me and whatever's trailing false Neteru, you know the outcome. The demon plans to double-cross Vlak and come out of the fusion then whack our vessel, or set me up to do it, so that she's the sole source of the daylight option. When I thought she was one of us, I did a mind lock with her, messing around… I went back in high—trust me, I'm much stronger than her under these conditions."
Renewed rage entered Carlos as the old men at the council table simply stared at him. The look of outright shock on the chairman's face helped Carlos build his case.
"Vlak is so stupid and so desperate for power that he doesn't see it! He not only betrayed us, but he's put our package in jeopardy, if his twisted plan fails." Carlos rubbed his face with both hands. "I need something to come down, man, before I go topside again." It was the stone-cold truth. His hands were shaking. "I've gotta get Damali out of harm's way for the empire. I need your help. Stop fucking with me and let me do my job."
The council ignored Carlos for a moment and conferred.
"Vlak would take such a risk, at his age?" the chairman asked evenly. "He would need insurance." His gaze nar
rowed on Carlos. "Wouldn't he?"
Nodding quickly, Carlos stepped forward, feeling the effects of Neteru rocking his concentration. Only the depth of his subterranean meeting was helping, but he knew it would be all over as soon as he hit topside—if they didn't gut him down here. "Vlak has been lying to us all. That stupid bastard allowed my soul to get dragged into Purgatory!" Carlos forced feigned rage, which wasn't hard to do with ripe Neteru in his system. "He lost mine! I'm doomed!"
A bolt of red, crackling current slammed into Carlos's chest. Were it not for the additional bulk from the ripened Neteru scent in his system and protective brand, his heart would be lying on the marble floor.
Bending over, his hands on his knees, Carlos sucked in huge inhales through his mouth. His eyes were shut tight as the fire of pain tore through his lungs, chest cavity, and began to ignite his liver.
The chairman had rounded the table with the others, which surrounded him. He snatched Carlos's chin up, making the sweat that ran down his face fling off it. "Tell me why, a man with such redemption options, would be standing in my sacred chambers telling me about a potential coup… one coming from a council seat, from a trusted adviser I have known for several thousand years!"
"Because I wanted the power." Carlos could feel his jaw crushing as the chairman's red glowing eyes went black. "But Vlak forgot a variable."
The two stared at each other and the chairman slowly released his grip. Carlos's chest heaved.
"I can't go against the vampire that made me… he told me who delivered the bite."
The chairman's hand lowered and he placed his hands behind his back.
"I didn't want to be in Purgatory, after having a chance to sit in Nuit's abandoned throne." What Carlos said was true—but it could be taken in two ways. He knew which way the vampires before him would take it; they had a blind spot created by their evil perspective.
The chairman nodded, then rubbed his jaw. His fangs retracted, and he swept away toward the table, the others following him. Taking his time, he sat slowly, and after he did, the two others seated themselves at his left.
"I was willing to wait seven years for the chance to be made council. Ask your couriers; we all tried our best to keep your cargo out of harm's way. But Vlak put her in danger with his fucked-up plan, and was going to use my body—no self-respecting master would allow it. You know that."
The chairman nodded. "And, with my bite, you were strong enough to resist Vlak… were strong enough to drag yourself here even with ripe Neteru in your system. You also feared me more than him." He paused, his gaze raking Carlos. "Good," he finally said with a low hiss. "Wise choice."
The old vampire leveled his gaze on Carlos then looked away in the distance, thinking. "That I can believe, because you were made by the top of this empire." He nodded again. "Thank you. Your report has been most helpful. We will deal with Counselor Vlak in our own way. You may go. Bring me back my cargo."
Carlos shook his head, making the council go still. "I can't. That's what I've been trying to tell you," he said honestly, his gaze tearing between the council members. "Has it been so long since you've been topside?"
Their expressions held a lack of comprehension.
"I've got ripe Neteru in my system—but your cargo isn't ripe! Yeah, I can get her out of the Amazon, with some demon breach-sealers with me as backup, but I'll injure her. She'll hemorrhage internally. Don't you remem—"
"Yes," the chairman said, standing. "We'll have to send somebody else."
"But it's my mission!" Carlos was pacing in an agitated line. "Don't you have an antidote for this shit at your rank?"
The chairman looked at the others who shook their heads. "There's only one… and we have to destroy Vlak to do it. That will take time to locate him and corner him." The old vampire sighed and studied his claws. "The elixir from our table keeps us refined, balanced, and very strong while here—as our physical strength has ebbed over the years. But do not toy with our mental capacity, Carlos. Topside, you could have beaten Vlak. Why didn't you, especially with what courses through your system?"
"Because," Carlos said, combining the truth with the deception, "he also left me vulnerable when he lost my soul."
All the senior vampires looked at him, and Carlos saw that as his next in.
"Until you guys figure out a way to retrieve it, I have a weak spot for this Neteru. I would rather see her sire daywalkers willingly, to help our cause—even if I have to work on her for the duration of seven short years—than to see her emotions butchered by plagues." He took a deep breath, holding their gazes. "You have seen how effective I've been in swaying her to our side, haven't you? She's drawn to me because I have a piece of soul left—even I didn't understand that. She a Neteru, and could sense it. But I'm using it for the empire, and I'm patient, can wait for my opportunity… let's use it to work her. If you send somebody else, she'll fight to the death and may get injured or die—but she'll come to me, and only me!"
The chairman offered a lopsided smile and nodded.
"I've proven my loyalty by using my weakness to your advantage. For the dark realms, I was already marked. That's fact. I was turned during the commission of a crime—fact. I was supposed to be full-fledged, but was somehow robbed. I figured, fair exchange is no robbery… but I'm no fool. I wouldn't hurt the only chance we have to strengthen the empire. That's why I came here—home, first, and didn't go with Vlak, or try to follow the plan myself, using the Amazon."
The room went very, very still, save the screeches of the bats.
"When a council seat is lost, the throne runs black blood from that senior officer. The history of the event immediately burns into the arch of the seat. The only antidote for ripened Neteru is for a council member to be slain by a Neteru—and when the throne runs red blood, we can give the affected master a sip."
The chairman let out his breath hard and pointed to each throne. "Masters have been killed by a Neteru, that is the ongoing struggle… see for yourself in the high histories. But never has a slayer taken out one of our Vampire Council chairs. It would mean a search for a very crafty, and very old council member—and we'd have to allow her to kill him in order to remedy your condition."
The chairman chuckled. "Ah, the conundrum. While I have no problem in exterminating Counselor Vlak with my own bare hands, you would never be able to tolerate the wait while we found him, bound him, and brought her before the chair to kill him. We would have to exterminate you, just to get the act completed."
Leaning forward on the pentagram-shaped table, the chairman sighed, holding Carlos with an empathetic, but smug, stare. "My suggestion, then, is that you remain on the sixth level for a few evenings until our border patrols find and eliminate Vlak. We will perform the ceremony on the ancient Amazon ourselves, and will ensure the current Neteru's safety, but won't abduct her to cause her to fight us or sustain injury. We'll allow you to guard the younger vessel, as a reward for marvelous undercover work—once you have collected yourself. You're right; if she's with you willingly, then you're our safest long-term containment strategy—and your soul can stay where it is, until the seventh year… it's best to keep her confused… might even render her team and the Covenant off guard. But this is so very interesting… two available vessels, only seven years apart. Wonderful variable; unprecedented opportunity." He laughed deep and low in his throat. "Thank you, Mr. Rivera. You are amazing."
Carlos nodded. But pure defeat stripped every option away from his mind. Humiliated by his condition, and knowing that now they'd really do everything in their power to sway his soul just as Damali was ripening, made his shoulders slump. The word was out; his soul was hanging in the balance up in Purgatory. At least they still thought he was pissed off about that fact, and it being there made it impossible for them to read his mind at will.
The only small glimmer of hope within the travesty was the fact that they wouldn't hurt Damali, or her people. Greed was their imperative. They wouldn't jeopardize two shots at creating
daywalkers, and that was the only thing he could hold onto.
There was nothing else to do but chill and suck it up. Still reeling from the effects of the intoxicant in his system, and slightly weakened by the council's initial angry beat-down, he knew he had to be hallucinating. Carlos laughed as he turned to walk away, wiping his nose with the back of his hand. Yeah, right, Vlak had gotten his heart cut out and his throne is running red. It wasn't even midnight. Boss would last more than a few hours topside, old and treacherous as he was. In his wildest dreams.
But sudden hisses and commotion behind Carlos made him turn around. He froze with the others, their eyes on Vlak's throne that had come to life in a red gurgling stream. The inscription within the arch of it flashed with a blue-white light that made them all cover their eyes. Then the light vanished, leaving a burning brand of a Neteru sword with a glowing date in the blade handle. Carlos stepped forward slowly as the glow of the date abated. Immediately a searing sound cracked into the throne's black marble, and a new etching began. A name was written.
Spellbound, the vampires stared at the inscription. The chairman dumped out the contents of his goblet and pressed the empty chalice against the bleeding arm of the throne, lifting it toward Carlos. They all understood. If Vlak was dead, so was the demon, so was the second option to make daywalkers—option one, Damali, was at risk.
"Give the man an army and strengthen Rivera's borders from every quadrant in the empire," the chairman said with controlled panic. "ASAP." His eyes narrowed. "This vessel is so much more than the millennium slayer, Carlos. She sways the Armageddon… was delivered five hundred years early, which is how we know the hour draws near. We did not even speak of it at the table before, because you were too new, and this was of such magnitude. However, with her squarely at risk in demon territory, you must be clear that no cost is too great to ensure her safe return. Now, do you understand? The precious nature of this cargo to our side is beyond measure."