He swore under his breath. "Okay, let's go see your girlfriend."
Val glared at him and turned back to the elf. "Lead the way. And if my assistant steps out of line again, you can add him to your army of undead."
Chapter 12
The zombie led them deep into the frigid cemetery past crypt after crypt. Snow gathered on the paths and in doorway where it hadn't been removed. Val tried to judge the depth and age of the snow without any luck. Knowing that would have given her a guess as to how long the caretaker in the office had been killed and replaced. Or converted. Or whatever it was that happened to him.
Their guide led them to a small crypt that was unremarkable in every way except for one: the path made through the snow by the undead. Considering the lack of tracks in most of the rest of the graveyard it was a dead giveaway. Val winced at her own pun and then summoned up a new knife into her palm before entering the tomb behind the zombie woman. Her nanobots moved slower than ever in complying with her request.
"Excuse me," Dag'on said, distracting Val from her thoughts. "You said your name is Illiyia, right?"
The zombie paused beside an unassuming coffin on a stone plinth. She looked at him and then blinked and nodded. "Yes, I am Illiyia."
"You were," Val corrected her.
She turned to look at Val. "No, I am."
"You're a fucking meat puppet," Val scoffed. "She killed Illiyia and used her magic to animate her body. You've got no soul, just a brain that is functioning because of magic accessing memories you think are yours."
Illiyia's expression darkened. "My Mistress has given me eternal life. My memories are mine and they will be mine forever."
"Your heart doesn't beat in your chest. You'll never grow old. You'll never have a child, or another child if you already had some. You are dead and maintained only by dark magic."
Dag'on held up both hands, one palm facing each woman. "Please, I was only wondering about your name, that's all. But now I'm curious, do you have a family? Children?"
Illiyia's expression smoothed. She hesitated before saying, "No, I had a boyfriend, but it wasn't serious. It wouldn't have worked out anyhow; he wouldn't have understood my new priorities."
Dag'on winced and glanced at Val. The witchslayer rolled her eyes.
"New priorities?" he asked.
"Whatever my Mistress wishes. I will do anything for her."
"Even die?"
"She already did," Val muttered and earned a reproachful glare from Dag'on.
"Yes," Illiyia said. "She will protect me and restore me, if that happens."
"Not if—"
"Val," Dag'on interrupted. "Wouldn't it be nice to have faith like that? It's almost religious."
Val growled and glared back at him.
"We should keep moving," Dag'on said. "We don't want to keep your mistress waiting."
Illiyia turned and put her hands on the top of the coffin. She lifted the heavy top slowly until it was fully rotated on the hinges. "Please, go ahead, I will close the lid behind us."
Dag'on stared at the ladder that descended into the darkness inside the casket. "I'm sure we can do that."
"It is unusually heavy. Mistress has blessed me with great strength," Illiyia explained.
"Blessed, how nice," Val said in a voice that was too sweet to be believed.
Illiyia's lips flashed in a brief smile, showing that she hadn't picked up on the sarcasm.
"Um, all right," Dag'on mumbled.
"Stop being a pussy," Val hissed. She stepped in front of him and, still clutching the dagger in her palm, she climbed onto the ladder. She climbed down into the darkness until her toes touched the ground. She could barely make out the walls of the pit around her with only the light that drifted down from above.
The pit grew darker when Dag'on climbed onto the ladder and blocked more of the light. He joined her and turned around to find himself a few inches from her. "Woah, uh, hi there."
"Dark," Val muttered while glancing up.
"The dark doesn't bother me, I can still see as long as there's some light." Dag'on said. "You don't think she's going to close the lid, do you? Trap us down here?"
Val watched Illiyia climb onto the ladder and reach up to pull the lid shut above her. They were plunged into darkness.
"Fuck, now it's dark," he hissed. He reached out to either side, touching the walls and then brushing his hands against Val. He left them on her hips and said, "I don't like tight spaces."
"Remind me to make a joke about that later," Val said. "Now get your hands off me."
"Uh…okay. I just… um…"
"Gods and monsters," Val muttered. "Fine, but the first time you try to pinch me or cop a feel I'm going to cut off whatever touched me."
Dag'on's breath hissed between his lips. A moment later he whispered. "Thanks. I'll behave, don't worry."
The sound of the zombie climbing down the ladder filled the darkness. Dag'on grunted as she brushed against him. He pushed into Val and sent her back a step as well. She expected to bump into the back wall of the pit. Instead she took an easy step and reclaimed her balance.
"Pardon me," Illiyia said. "I need to be in front."
Dag'on grunted again as she slipped past him and pushed him into the wall. Val scowled when the zombie's cold skin touched her, making her shrink back into the wall. The incidental contact made Val remember the zombie in the office had been cold to the touch too.
By the time Illiyia made it past them Dag'on's breathing was coming faster and louder. Val almost regretted calling him a pussy. He fed off the power of lust, emotion, and even the magic of other metas. He was a natural predator that had become domesticated, yet here he was trapped underground and powerless— there was no chance of seducing the dead. For a man that was accustomed to always being able to see and have the option to put as distance around himself as he needed, this was surely a frightening experience.
Val twisted her head so she could talk to him over her shoulder. "I had a different picture in my mind when I thought of you breathing hard and heavy."
His caught his breath for a second and then gave her hips a squeeze. "Is that right? I guess you haven't grown accustomed to my pheromones yet."
Val tilted her head. His pheromones? She sniffed the air and smiled in the darkness. She couldn't smell them anymore. She could make out the dirt around them and some sort of lingering perfume on Illiyia, but there was no stink of rot or death. Just as there was no hint of Dag'on's drop-everything-and-fuck-me-now scent.
"There is a passage through the rock ahead of us," Illiyia said. "You may put your hands on me or use the walls if you require guidance."
Val ignored her a moment longer so she could reply to her assistant, "Funny, I haven't noticed them in a while now. Move your hands up a little so I don't smash them into the wall."
She felt Dag'on's smooth fingers and palms slide up her sides and push her loose top up a couple of inches. His flesh was against hers, sending mixture of strange thrills through her. She scowled at the sensations and vowed to ignore them. This was to help him get through this. As for her, she had other options besides touching a dead woman.
She called forth her second sight and watched the tunnel bloom into existence in front of her. The dark purple necromantic aura around Illiyia bounced off the narrow walls and short ceiling of the passage, outlining it and warning her before she would have smashed her forehead against the rock. She bowed her head and then thought better of it and bent forward a little so she could lift her head back up and keep a full field of view. The effect on her posture pressed her ass backwards against the surprised man behind her. He grunted as her butt touched his crotch.
"Sorry," Val whispered. "It's a short passage. I think you'll be fine, but you might want to duck."
He ignored her advice and hissed, "You can see?"
"A little."
Dag'on muttered something under his breath and followed behind her. Their walk was short lived before real light began to filt
er around the zombie and allow shadows to play tricks on them. A few paces later it grew brighter and brighter, lighting up the dark grey passage enough they could make out a few details of the smooth hewn walls. The awkward walk through the passage also caused Dag'on's hands to slip further up her sides, although not enough for her to make good on her threat to him.
The dim light allowed them to see a bend to the right in the passage ahead. As they neared it Val began to catch a hint of new smells. Spices and other strong odors that mixed together to tickle her nose. She twitched it a few times and sniffed, chasing away the tickles before they became a sneeze.
"What is that?" Dag'on asked a moment later.
"Alchemy," Val said. "Potion making.
"Potions? So we're nearly there?"
Rather than answer right away Val watched the passage around Illiyia's body. They rounded the bend and were exposed to direct light from the lamps in the room the passage opened into a dozen feet ahead. The warmth from the room extended into the passage and stopped their breath from turning to fog. "Looks like it."
Illiyia exited the tunnel and stepped to the side. She bowed to the brown cloaked figure that was bent over a table set up with jaws, bowls, tubes, and even a small burner. Spoons, knives, and other tools were spread across the table.
"Mistress, I have brought the human you requested."
Val stepped into the room and took in as much as she could. The room rectangular but not large. The alchemists table was against the far wall and had a passage that led out of it to Val's left. There were no chairs or options to sit or lounge in the room.
The figure had a touch of magic to her aura. It was familiar to Val and it took her back seven years into the past to a time when she'd studied auras and helped her friends perfect the spells for tests. This time the aura was different though. Darker. Twisted with an intensity that spoke of intense passion… or madness.
"Davina," Valerie breathed. She winced at how weak her voice sounded, but she'd spoken, there was no second chance. The knife in her hand fell apart and reabsorbed back into her arm. The nanobots rejoined their brethren before conserving energy and lying dormant.
The alchemist held up a hand and displayed a single black nailed finger. Her other arm worked, hidden by the cloak, for a few seconds longer. She lifted her head and let out a soft sighed before turning around. She held a vial in her hand that was filled with a murky green liquid.
"Valerie," the woman said. She reached up with her other hand and pulled her hood back. Curly black hair fell to the woman's neck and wrapped around her alabaster throat. Intense dark brown eyes swept up and down Val's figure, prompting her dark red lips to twist up into a smile. "I told you we were meant to be together."
Chapter 13
Val hesitated as she looked at the deranged woman. She thought up and tossed away a dozen different things to say before she finally picked one that was neither insulting or aggressive. "They said you died."
Davina's smile faded a bit. "I did, for a bit," she said. "But they brought me back. I experienced death, Valerie. I was there. I felt it. I was it…and you know what? It's not frightening. Once you get past the regret and feeling sorry for yourself, it's peaceful."
"I suppose it would be," Val said, at a loss for how else to respond.
"Then they brought me back," she said. "It took science and magic, but they did it. Except it affected me, you know? That brush with death changed me. I knew what I needed to do then. I knew what I wanted, but I didn't know how to get it. I was lost and confused, but I knew that I had to learn more. That's why I didn't try to contact you. That's why I kept to myself and threw myself into my magic."
"Necromancy," Val said.
Davina nodded. "Yes, but it's not as dark as we thought! The study of death is science, Valerie. It's medicine and healing and life!"
"I wonder, would Illiyia think that if she wasn't magically bound to you?"
Davina's nose wrinkled and she waved a dismissive hand. Illiyia turned and walked out of the room through the other opening in the room. "Every great discovery must come with some sacrifice. It has been that way for science, for magic, for exploration, even for survival for our species! Surely you understand this."
Val was shocked by her presumption. "Surely? Why surely?"
"Your sacrifice was greater than any! I saw that as soon as I heard. It was obvious! You gave up your calling, your life, so that you could bring justice for what happened to me. Even now, you still seek to do what is right."
Val's eyes watered as they narrowed. She'd told herself she wanted justice once, long ago. "It's not that simple," she mumbled.
"Val, are—"
"Be silent, incubus!" Davina snapped. "You are allowed to be here because you came with Valerie. My good will towards you will only remain so long."
"I told myself I wanted justice," Val agreed, drawing Davina's attention back to her. "But it was anger and hate. I wanted to punish them, and I did. For three long years I fought back and killed them."
Davina nodded. "Yes. Yes! That's my Valerie. That's the fire I love in you! You always found a way to rise to the top, to be the best. To succeed. I share your passion. Almost all of my experiments have been on metas. Humans must stick together. We must be ready for when this farce of a truce is over. It won't last, you know it. They are so different. So arrogant and so pompous."
"Hey!"
Val slapped the back of her hand against Dag'on's belly. He grunted from the impact and fell silent. She kept her gaze on Davina. "You said almost all were metas?"
Davina smiled. "Yes. All but one. And that one… my greatest accomplishment! Necromancy is like any magic, it is power without will, intent, or morality. It is also limited in what it can accomplish. I don't seek it for controlling the dead or for trying to exist forever. I did what I did because you showed me how to move on. I learned from you how to adapt. Even though you'd left, you still taught me so much!"
Valerie blinked and cleared the unshed tears from her eyes. "You taught yourself, Davina. All this time you've been doing this for yourself. I couldn't deal with what happened— with losing Tark. I ran away and kept running by hunting and killing the most dangerous metas they would send me against. It wasn't justice, it wasn't hate. It was fear of living without him. I wanted to die the way he died."
Davina shook her head. "No! You're wrong, Valerie. You're alive because we were meant to be together."
"No—"
"Yes!" Davina shrieked. She caught herself and winced then held up a hand. "You'll see. I brought you a gift. Once you see it you'll understand."
"A gift?" Val asked.
She nodded. "I'm here for you, Valerie. Imagine what we can do? With your help, like it used to be, I'll be able to do incredible things! We'll be unstoppable! We can secure our future and humanity's by turning the tide of any battle. We can sweep away the metas and put them in their place."
Dag'on shifted beside Val but he kept his mouth shut. Valerie knew better than to look at him and draw attention his way. For all she knew a dozen zombies waited to rush them. She'd need a knife or two for that and even then she knew she couldn't fight them all.
"We can't possibly get away," Val said. She could feel Dag'on's eyes on her. "Climintra knows. The Watcher, Lennox, sent me to find you. They won't let us escape."
"I arrived under a false identity," Davina said. "I can leave under another. I can arrange something for you too. I will. You'll see!"
Valerie shook her head. "This… no, it's not possible. I liked you, as a friend. I loved Tark. This is my life now, here. When the Complex is finished and I'm done here I'll leave. Not until then."
Davina nodded. "That's fine. We can stay here. It might be easier. Smaller and contained. No one to stop us."
Val snorted and shook her head. "No one to stop us? Can you even hear yourself?"
"My creations are spread through the city. That's how I can get us out and how I can guarantee our safety. They are in key positions and no
one is the wiser."
Val studied the gleam in Davina's eyes. The woman she'd know had been obsessive and compulsive, but this was something else. This was beyond obsessed. This was insane. Not a spontaneous madness, but a cold and calculating insanity that put a ball of ice deep in Valerie's belly. She needed to know more so she could understand the extent of what Davina had done.
Val turned to Dag'on and saw the confused look on his face. The tendons were taught on his neck, proving how stressed he was by what was going on around him. She gave him a tight nod and turned back to Davina. If she was going to learn more and stand a chance of stopping her, she needed to gain her trust.
"Dag'on has recently become my assistant, but he has a great many clientele who are amongst the Complex's affluent and wealthy. He could help you, I think," Valerie said.
Dag'on's breath hissed through his teeth. "What are you doing?"
Val turned away from the grinning necromancer. "You require a chance to save my life? This is it."
He glared at her and hissed, "At the expense of my own?"
Valerie shrugged. "You're just a meta, it hardly matters."
Davina cackled. "Yes!" she hissed. "I knew it! I knew you'd understand! Oh Valerie, how I've missed you! You're more beautiful than ever."
Val forced a smile. "You mentioned a gift?"
Davina nodded. "Of course! Go through that door, I think you'll want to be alone."
"Don't turn the incubus yet," Val said. "Wait until I get back, I want to see how you do it."
Davina laughed. "I think you're getting soft. He is a fine specimen."
Val let a giggle out and glanced down. "Yes, well, I might want a final moment with him first."
"You rotten bitch," Dag'on growled. "I'll endure the consequences of a broken contract before I lay a finger on you!"
Davina laughed even harder. "So feisty! You always knew how to find the most passionate men."
"And women, it seems," Val added.
Davina's eyes gleamed with an eager light. "Oh, I will show you passion unlike anything you've ever dreamed!"
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