And her beloved, awake and reborn, came too then, and time failed to keep going around them in a long moment of shared beauty. A passion unquenchable.
When they were done, the Queen reached in through her tether into Ishan and sifted for any sign of the creature who had taken hold of her dearest child, her most beloved lover. In time she found what she was looking for.
Bellona's will existed no longer within the recesses of Ishan's mind.
Chapter 45
Sleight of Hand
It was as good as any place Jonny figured as he pulled into the dip in between two large trees about ten miles west of the Imperial center on some back road he couldn't even remember the name of. This was as good a place as any all right. When the truck was in park, he let it sit and run as he reached into Tom's glove compartment. When he found the small box, he pulled it out and opened it without hesitation. Inside lay a small black plastic device with a single red button, Jonny's cell phone, and a letter addressed with his name.
Jonny,
If you've already successfully dropped off the package then the Emperor is already too busy to watch what you are doing right now. I've seen this with every vision I replay. Push the button on the black device immediately. This will disable the Emperor's implant and in a few days your body will flush it out naturally.
Jonny's hand had already pressed the button before he even finished the sentence. He continued reading.
Once you have disabled the implant, you can contact your sister at the following phone number. Good luck with you and your family's future.
Your friend,
Hank Evans
A long streaming tear ran down Jonny's face. He broke into sobs at the thought of hearing his sister's voice. When he was able to calm himself, he pulled the cell phone from the box and dialed the number from the letter.
***
Reality came and went as everything that was Hank swirled together in a pool of unending void. Images twisted around him. Faces, memories, familiar and unfamiliar, real and likely just as unreal. The whole world burned to a cinder and then reappeared around him like it had never happened and then the entire process started anew. Scenes floated around his ethereal presence in flat moving images like playing cards each featuring a different movie. Some were from the past and some he guessed were from the future.
He saw the memory of Toby's death and looked away to the other scenes. In one card, he watched Jonny run beneath Tom Fulton's black truck as a man took several shots in his direction. In another he saw an early Christmas he and Diana had spent together so many years ago. The cards were falling all around him like countless snowflakes in the middle of a heavy winter storm.
He felt drunk as he spun around, surrounded by glowing memories and futures raining from the sky in an otherwise featureless void. It had to be the effect of whatever concoction of drugs the Emperor had given Jonny to inject him with. What wasn't swimming away of his mind stretched out and smiled at this realization. It meant that the plan had worked. It meant that the words Hank had told Jonny to say had created a seed of doubt in Joseph Caesar's mind strong enough to grow and propagate into full on paranoia. Now he would have no choice but to try and extract the information from Hank whether in person or through a mediary.
The plan had truly worked. Hank watched as the words in his head floated up to the top of some translucent pond he was now swimming in. The green water went in and out of his lungs without incident and he swam, letting the water carry him to some faraway shore. A hand took hold of his and he turned to find Diana naked and grinning, her hair floating haphazardly in the water behind her.
They kissed and then, hand in hand, swam against the tide in the direction of a tiny island of dull gray soil and bright red streams of blood where the Queen sat upon her throne, watching over a small horde of ancient vampires all floating on the air, pale faces watching as a comet flashed across the sky in hues of purple and gold and Hank once again, fell down into a deep unconscious state.
Part Four: A Dream Worth Dying For
Chapter 46
Eye for an Eye
It didn't take long before the new vampires of Necropolis were circling around Jackie and Simon. Floating on the air as they whipped around them, their eyes blackened with bloodlust as if these were mere humans they could feast upon. The rage was building in Jackie again but she knew the time to strike had not yet arrived. She buried her hatred deep inside her heart and locked it away for the time being. Down below on the main floor, a large crowd of human vampires approached. In the middle of them, one large blond nordic-looking bastard stood carrying Frank over his shoulder.
Jackie and Simon watched as the vampires stopped just below the platform and waited. With one fluid motion, Simon dropped to the floor below as Jackie floated down like a gentle leaf riding the wind. When they were both standing before the other vampires, the tall one stepped forward and dropped Frank in between them. He smiled at Jackie.
"You fly? How?"
Simon let out a quick snort at the large vampire's words. "You gotta be kidding me."
"No kidding. Must know. How?"
Jackie grinned up at him, her fangs pressing against her lips. The very next second everything around them went into chaos. Rosadelma jumped down behind the blond one from seemingly out of nowhere and took hold of his neck, pulling him away from the crowd.
Jackie had been reigning in her rage, waiting for just the right moment and it seemed to have walked up and landed right in her lap. She sent out her anger in tendrils that reached for nearby machine parts, large steel pipes and blades and brought them all in at one moment crashing into the vampires standing before them. At the very second it happened several of them moved just in time. Jackie grabbed hold of Frank and flew away to a dark corner beneath another platform. Simon slashed at the nearest vampire with his claws. In one quick simple motion he ripped the other vampire's throat out with a lunge of his mouth and a pull of his teeth. Jackie watched in hiding, waiting for the right moment to do some more damage.
That moment didn't come though when the next second she looked up to find the large blond vampire, blood running down from his nose and a long tear in the flesh along his cheek, standing over her. One quick punch to her face and everything went black.
***
Simon screamed, “Jackie!"
The blond vampire, who seemed to be the leader to some capacity, reached down and picked up Jackie and Frank and threw them over his shoulders and turned and ran, jumping up onto a nearby platform. Simon clawed and tore through the three vampires blocking his way until only one of them was left alive, lying on the floor, his jaw ripped out and blood leaking from his face all around him. With all the power Ishan had shared with him, Simon leapt on the platform where the large vampire stood, waiting.
"You fast, strong. You fast enough?"
Simon lunged at the giant vampire and he jumped aside at just the right moment to send Simon barreling for the floor below. When he landed, Simon bounced off of the concrete and shot himself back up into the mammoth bastard's back, sending the monster crumbling to his knees and dropping both Jackie and Frank. Simon lunged for the vampire's throat but the beast pulled up his huge heavy arms and tossed Simon over his shoulders. A flood of ancients came flying into the room then and dove down as Simon's body screamed toward the ground. They clawed and bit and scraped at Simon just before he landed, leaving a large crater in the concrete.
***
Something flashed beyond Jackie's eyelids and brought her back from unconsciousness. She opened her eyes just in time to witness Simon's body colliding with the concrete. A scream of rage erupted from her and she rose up suddenly, floating on the air. A faraway boiler exploded and her tendrils grabbed hold of the flames and sent them swirling into the room like a tornado of fire. The twisting giant tongue of flames ripped through the vampires, spreading over their bodies and sending them running and flying aflame.
The blond vampire who had hit her watched in horro
r as the entire horde of vampires was destroyed. He turned to try and grab hold of her but she was up in the air before he could get to her. She sent flaming fingers out from the twister and wrapped them around him squeezing him. Rosadelma, her face covered in dried blood, screamed one word from the far end of the room.
“Harek!”
She took off running toward Jackie and the blond vampire then. She jumped up into the air and with one swift swipe of her claws, she ripped a large gash through the big blond vampire’s throat, then grabbed hold of his head and twisted apart the remaining chunk of the creature’s neck, severing it completely.
When it was all over, ashes hung in the air like snowflakes and Jackie floated down to where Simon lay unconscious. She picked him up out of the rubble and held him against her. There was a slight flutter from his eyes and he looked up at her and smiled. His voice was more moan than words, but she could make out the words nonetheless. "You guys seriously just kicked their asses."
She smiled back at him. "Yeah, something like that."
A moment later and a number of his bones began to crunch as his body healed itself. They went back and found Frank. He was still out cold but he appeared to be okay mostly. Simon carried him over his shoulder and they began checking bodies.
Rosadelma sat watching over the Jolly Blond Giant’s body. Her face was a mess of tears and sobbing. Jackie stood there a long time, waiting for the right moment to speak when she noticed something sticking out of the vampire’s shirt pocket. It looked like paper. She pulled it out and examined it. The paper was folded a number of times and burned at the edges from the fire. Jackie opened it. There were at least a dozen pages. Some diagrams, some handwritten notes. The word "launch" appeared in a number of places and the words "nuclear missile" sent the temperature of Jackie's blood dropping to zero. "Simon!"
Chapter 47
Soon to Depart
Ishan watched his precious lover as the agony ripped through her and the foundation below them shook with rage. He had never heard her scream out of pain before in the entire time since he first laid eyes on her. Pleasure was another story and one he took great pride in. But now he knew that time was running out and nothing else mattered. She would die soon and he would be all alone again. He couldn't imagine the loss that would overwhelm him. In mid contraction she reached out with her mind to soothe him but her pain ripped through him instead and she lost hold of their connection.
He took her hand and she broke his in pieces, but he didn't mind the pain. He would heal after all and if it gave her even a moment's release, he would gladly give her every bone in his body to dismantle one by one. Images unleashed from her and entered Ishan's mind. The sacrifices she had made, the secrets she had kept. Every bit of it only made him love her more. His reaction wasn't hidden from her and though her face and body were writhing, she sent out a single wave of love to him amidst the screaming and the sweating and the shaking. Large chunks of the walls began to crumble around them and Ishan draped his body over hers to keep it safe. He wondered how much longer this place would be safe for her. Her labor pains would have her destroy the entire cave and the collision with all those pieces could hurt the two young ones inside her.
All that time that he had been away, deep inside his own mind, had been wasted. A deep melancholy overwhelmed him then and the blood tears formed at the corners of his eyes and dripped down his face. He was going to lose her. She gripped hold of him then and a wave of emotion struck him. At first he had thought it was his own but it wasn't. It had come from the Queen. She wanted him to know just how strong her love for him was. Just how much it had brought her forward over so many centuries. Their eyes met and he touched her face. The contraction seemed to be waning for now, but there would be more.
My love, hold me.
He did as he was told, climbing up into the narrow bed and pulling her close against his body.
They clung to one another, the embrace of two lovers, one recently returned to this world.
The other soon to depart.
***
When Jonny arrived at the cafe, his sister and the man sat at a corner table at the far end of the place. It took everything he had to keep from running to her and making a spectacle in front of everyone there. Jonny wasn't sure what to make of the man, but he had brought Julie back and that was all that mattered to him. He walked up and sat down across from her. She was near to tears herself, reaching across the table to take his hand. "Jonny!"
Jonny looked at Braldon. "I can't thank you enough."
"Don't thank me, I just did what I was told. I had no idea about either one of you until Hank called me and gave me my final undercover assignment," he said in a low whisper.
Jonny nodded and thanked him again nonetheless. Then he smiled at Julie. "It's so great to see you."
Half an hour later, as they left the cafe together, Jonathan broke everything down for them. "Hank wants you guys brought safely to the New Orleans Foederati base, so he asked me to make sure that happens. So from here on out, you're both with me. Leave the truck here, Jonny, and ride with us, okay?"
Jonny took one last look at Tom's truck. He knew the plan had been for Simon to save him, but he still felt a strong shudder of guilt. "Yeah, no problem." He went to the truck and got out Hank's letter and put it in his pocket. Then he set the keys in the driver side seat and closed the door. Someone very lucky would find them, he was sure.
***
The road was barely dotted with cars as they raced along Highway 40. Yellow sunlight bled across the horizon like the brightest golden honey the world had ever seen. Braldon flipped on the radio and dialed it over to a rock station, raising the volume just a hair as they crossed over a bridge, bumping along. Jonny thought about everything that had happened to him in the past few weeks. He thought about these last few years when he did whatever he could to help out his fellow believers and now, all of that was behind him now. Everything was on Hank's shoulders now. He hoped the man would succeed. They deserved it, he thought. They all did. Every last one of them who had lived under the tyranny of Joseph Caesar's monstrous government.
He watched out the window as a mostly barren farmscape passed them by. Jonny wondered just what it would take to get all these people fighting on the right side and no longer cowering under the Emperor's shadow. Braldon quickly reached down in his pocket. He brought up a cell phone and answered it.
"Yeah?" The trebley whisper of another voice wrapped out like paper. "Still pretty far east in Tennessee right now. But I can probably be down there in about three hours... Yeah. Okay. Where? I'm on my way." He closed the phone and looked over at his two passengers. "I have another assignment which just so happens to be on the way to our very destination. But first we have to meet a friend. He'll get you to safety, little miss." He nodded to Julie.
She looked over at Jonny with concern.
Braldon continued. "So, hold tight. We might be treading some dangerous waters soon. Jonny?"
"Yeah?"
"Do you know how to fire a weapon?"
"I sure do."
"Good, reach in the glove compartment there and get out my extra gun. You'll also find a stake crossbow in there. Both will come in handy, I'm sure."
Jonny reached inside and took out both weapons.
"Now, there's a locking mechanism on that crossbow, but I don't usually have it activated so be careful."
Jonny nodded and then pushed the lock into place. He didn't want to accidentally put a stake through his foot and then drain away all his blood in one huge show of dumbassery.
Braldon snuck a glance over at Jonny and watched as he examined both pieces.
It wasn't long after that when the sun went completely down and one by one bright stars blinked into view in the night sky. Jonny let his eyes wander across the expanse of it. A chill swept over him and he decided then and there that when the time came he would fight in whatever way he could against the Empire. Joseph Caesar hadn't just taken his sister. He had taken Jonn
y's fear and turned it into something strong and mean. Jonny put his arm around Julie then and she laid her head against his chest and, before long, the sound of her snoring overpowered the radio. He was so glad she was safe. He couldn't imagine life without her. He kissed the top of her head and hugged her for what had to have been the eight hundredth time.
Chapter 48
Reunion
Light ruffled its way in between Hank's eyelashes and he blinked several times before opening his eyes. The Emperor's face resolved in front of him and then spun around in the opposite direction of the room. Everything was suddenly blurry for a moment and then appeared again in focus. He blinked some more, trying to make his eyes cooperate better. The Emperor now had six different faces spinning on a wheel of evil in front of Hank. The faces each spoke in unison. "Mr. Evans. Glad you could make it. You seem to be perpetually inserting yourself into my business." Hank tried to lunge forward but his body was restrained. He let his head hang down a moment.
"I wanted so badly to take your life today, Mr. Evans. I wanted it for myself and I almost took it, but then I learned a secret. Do you know what secret that is, Mr. Evans?"
Hank shook his head, then sucked back his saliva and mucus and spit forward. The spittle splattered against what he had originally thought was Joseph Caesar's face but now realized was nothing more than a screen displaying Caesar's face.
"Well, there's no need for that kind of response, Mr. Evans. You are, after all, my guest. Guests tend to treat their hosts with more respect."
Hank spit again in response. "Fuck you."
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