by CJ England
"To give you strength to fight.” Gallegar sighed. Patrick wasn't going to accept what he had done as easily as the others. He had once been human and those standards still applied. To give Patrick the space he needed, Gallegar moved on to Koran, who was lying with Kira's head in his lap. His face was almost as gray as hers.
As he knelt next to Koran, Gallegar noticed the slit on his wrist was healing, so he reopened it with a swift slash of the knife. He heard Patrick gasp behind him, but the cutting made him stagger, so he couldn't respond. He made a fist and watched as his blood flowed unceasingly into Koran's open mouth. Benjamin was there again to help him as the faerie began to thrash against the coppery taste.
Being immortal, Koran was stronger than Benjamin or Patrick, so he came back quicker. The knowledge of what was happening filled his eyes as he threw Gallegar's arm off of him and surged to his feet.
"You sharas ... bastard...” Koran swore. “You have defiled me.” He wiped the blood from his face, glaring at Gallegar.
"It was necessary.” Danolas soothed the distraught faerie. “All of us are needed to help your sister. We all have to be conscious. A vampire can share his strength by giving his blood. It is a gift, Koran, not defilement."
Koran didn't say anything, but just continued staring at Gallegar. His anger was palatable.
With a sigh, Gallegar crawled over to Lucas, the last of the unconscious Chosen. He knew he had saved him till last because he knew how Lucas would respond. Badly. He pried open the shapeshifter's mouth and with a grimace, pressed his forearm to it
Lucas’ mouth clamped against his arm, his fangs growing so they bit down deeply.
Gallegar closed his eyes in agony. He wondered if this was the pain humans felt when an unschooled vampire fed off of them. The unconscious werewolf sucked strongly at the blood flowing into his mouth. Lucas wasn't trying to get away, but just the opposite. His kind also fed on blood when they were changed. Flesh and blood, if they had not the strength to do otherwise. Drinking Gallegar's blood was almost normal.
He knew the minute Lucas woke up. The shapeshifter went still, and then with an inhuman growl pushed Gallegar away. He stared in horror at the vampire.
"What are you doing?” His voice was appalled. “What did you make me do?” Lucas felt the blood dripping down his chin, and wiping it away, began to swear at Gallegar. “I swore I would never ... You son of a bitch."
With a mighty lunge, he threw himself on the Irishman. The two supernaturals rolled around on the ground. Gallegar made no effort to protect himself, so Lucas got a few punches in before Benjamin and Danolas dragged him off.
The wolfman shouted curses at Gallegar, but the vampire just rose to his feet, and said nothing. He was very pale and his eyes were shadowed. Blood ran from his nose where Lucas had made contact. He looked at the angry man, and just shook his head.
He had known when he started what he had done would antagonize his friends, and he would do it again to save Kira's life. He knew they would never feel the same way about him. Gallegar was surprised at just how much that thought hurt him. He hadn't realized just how much these men had come to mean to him.
Danolas looked at the pale and weary Gallegar. His heart bled for him. Without thinking, he slapped Lucas across the face. “Stop it!” he shouted at the surprised shifter.
Lucas just stared at him in shock.
"Gallegar did what he had to do to save Kira. Do you think he enjoyed doing this?” He stared around at all the Chosen. “Giving his blood to us is a tremendous gift. A vampire can only do it a few times in his lifetime. His blood gives those supernaturals who take it strength and longevity. In this case, we hope it will give us time to figure out how to help our Lady. How dare you treat him this way?"
The other Chosen looked at Gallegar guiltily, but he just shook his head with a weary laugh. “I knew going in how you would react. I knew I would lose whatever friendship was beginning between us. But I must be honest with you. I would do it again, if it means saving the woman I love. I am sorry for what I did, but I wouldn't change it."
Lucas stared at the bleeding Gallegar. His outrage drained out of him as he saw for the first time how hard this truly was for Gallegar. He hadn't done it out of spite or anger. He had done it to save Kira. How can I fault him for that? He felt like a royal idiot.
He swore ripely and all eyes turned to him. Picking up a towel that they had used earlier to cushion Kira's head, Lucas crossed over and gently wrapped it around Gallegar's bleeding wrist.
"You did ... okay,” he said stiffly. “I understand.
Gallegar looked at him with eyes wet with tears. The vampire reached over and clasped hands with the shapeshifter. “I thank you, my friend. You are very generous. But I know I have wronged you all. I didn't have your permission to bind you in this way."
"Can it be reversed?” That was from Patrick.
Gallegar shook his head sorrowfully. “I am sorry. Once you have taken my blood, the bond is permanent."
"We will be part vampire?” Koran tried to keep the distress from his voice, but failed.
"Don't be stupid,” Benjamin butted in. “We are already part vampire, remember? From the joining. So we are just a little more now. Isn't it worth it for Kira? Why are we standing around belly-aching? Shouldn't we be trying to figure out a cure?"
The Chosen all stood for a moment, frozen by Benjamin's harsh words. Then, carefully, they all moved toward Kira's unconscious body and knelt beside her.
"You are right, Benjamin,” Koran said. He looked at Gallegar. “I was not thinking. I hope I speak for all when I say thank you."
Gallegar was startled. “Thank you?"
"Yes, thank you.” The faerie smoothed Kira's hair back from her face. “Your sacrifice has given us a chance to save her. And I am not talking about the blood. You were willing to sacrifice your chance to be our friend for her. I will not forget that."
Patrick leaned over and shook Gallegar's hand. Gallegar's shocked stare met his. “It is hard to grasp ... what y'all did. Everything in me wants to hate you, but I find I can't. You are a good man, Gallegar. It's why you're our leader. You were ready to give up everything to help Kira. Since she is the most important thing in all our lives, how can we hate you for what you have done?"
He let go of the vampire's hand and turned his attention to Kira. He touched her arm gently. “So what do we do now?"
Gallegar looked around at the men who circled Kira's prone form. He swallowed hard, trying to bring himself under control. They hadn't thrown him out or refused to allow him to be a part of them. It may take awhile, but eventually they all just might forgive what he had done. He cleared his throat and tried to speak, but nothing came out.
Danolas reached over to the table and got a glass of wine they had been drinking earlier in the evening. He handed it to Gallegar. “The loss of blood has made your throat dry. Drink down some of this before you tell us what to do."
Gallegar took the proffered glass and drank several swallows. It did help his throat and when he tried, he found he could again speak. “The Power told me we all needed to be awake to find a cure for Kira."
Lucas waited a beat, and then asked incredulously, “Is that it? You got nothing else?"
Gallegar shook his head. “Nothing specific. I tried to go in and attack the poison as Danolas had suggested, but I got nowhere. It burned me when I touched it."
"Then what do we do now?” Patrick repeated the question he had asked earlier.
"The old witch, Morag, told us the only way to defeat this thing was to find the wizard who made it. Can we do that?” Benjamin looked between Gallegar and Danolas.
Danolas pondered that. “We know nothing about him, but what Patrick knows.” He turned and looked at the Ethereal. “What is his name?"
Patrick looked nervous. “Can we speak it, and not fall prey to the same sickness as Kira? We aren't completely healthy."
"We are dying because Kira is.” Danolas was blunt in his speaking. “
What Gallegar has given us is time. For Kira and ourselves. The wards in this place will protect us. Of that I am sure."
Patrick nodded. “His name was Adrian. I remember him well. He was so smug when I visited him after Sebastian disappeared. I could tell he was lying, but there was nothing I could do about it. I had no proof he was involved. Just a gut feeling."
Danolas went very still. “Adrian ... he is a very powerful wizard. He could easily be the cause of all this."
Gallegar had taken Kira's hand in his and stroked it, hoping she could somehow feel it, wherever she was. “He will not readily help us."
Danolas shook his head. “He will do all he can to hurt us. He is an evil creature. If he has anything to do with the problem with the Gates of Life, we will have a battle on our hands."
Koran frowned. “At the moment, I am more concerned about my sister. What can we do for her? Will he help us by disarming his spell?"
Danolas gave a pained laugh. “He would rather have a front seat to watch her fade away. He was a terrible man and an even more horrid wizard."
Gallegar thought about what Danolas said. “How badly would he want to watch her die?"
The men turned and stared at Gallegar in horror.
"What the hell are you saying? Lucas asked, his frown fierce.
"We need to get some answers if we are to save Kira. To do that we must speak to the wizard. Would watching her die be a big enough incentive to get him here?"
Danolas rubbed his hand over his staff. “I don't know. I think he is evil enough to enjoy watching us squirm, but I'm not sure it will do us any good. He will just have more of an opportunity to hurt us."
"Not if we changed the warding so he could exist in a specific space, but have no purchase in any other.” Koran's voice grew excited as he caught the gist of Gallegar's idea. “He could watch ... but he could not touch."
"But getting him here wouldn't guarantee him telling us anything. It could all be a waste of time. Something we don't have much of.” Lucas stared at Kira.
"Yes, we are running out of time, but we must get information from him. And if he will not give it freely...” Gallegar smiled a smile that Lucas recognized. He began to laugh.
"If he won't tell us what we want to know, we will just con it out of him! Damn it, Gallegar!” Lucas reached over and pounded the vampire on his back. “You are a slick one!"
Koran was looking at the two men with one eyebrow raised. “Care to let us all in on the joke?"
Danolas grinned as well. “When Elijah wouldn't let Lucas come with us, he pretended to be afraid of Kira and he conned his leader into sending him to us as a spy."
"It was Gallegar's idea,” Lucas said modestly.
"So you think we can do the same thing here? Trick this Adrian into telling us how to cure Kira?” Patrick looked at the three grinning men.
"It is a chance,” Gallegar responded.
"How do we get him here?” Benjamin had bent down to take Kira's pulse. “She is getting weaker. We are running out of time."
"I will lower the warding. Make it look as though I have lost some of my strength and can't keep the whole place warded. If he is as arrogant as I remember, he will come.” Danolas used his staff to mark an area apart from where Kira and the others were.
"Don't go past this line,” he warned. “I have it marked where we can see it, but not Adrian. If you leave the protected area, he can hurt you and maybe us all. Be very careful."
They watched as he finished marking an area about ten feet by ten feet. Danolas then looked around at them all. “Play it well, my friends. This may be the only chance our Lady has left.” With a flick of his wrist, he dropped the warding.
Gallegar immediately went into action. “I am thankful we were able to cure this sickness. The ridiculous wizard who created this didn't do enough research."
Danolas nodded his head in agreement. “His plan is flawed, but then he doesn't know the truth about us all."
"He probably thinks we haven't figured out where the spell came from,” Patrick mocked. “He hasn't figured out we know everything about him. Even his name."
"We wouldn't have known who he was without your council.” Koran smiled at Patrick. “He thought you were too green to understand."
"That wizard was the green one,” Benjamin announced. “And as old as you've told us he is? He should have known better."
The Chosen chuckled, their laughter filling the room. Gallegar, kneeling beside Kira, was the first to notice the fog as it appeared in the unwarded area. He mind-spoke quickly to all the other Chosen, telling them of their success.
"She will be well soon.” He spoke out loud, lifting her hand to his lips. He didn't allow his expression to change, but shivered inside at the touch of her icy skin.
"Yes,” grinned Danolas. “That wizard was a fool to think he could defeat us."
That was the straw that broke the wizard's back. With a great belch of smoke and flare of light, Adrian the wizard came into view.
Chapter 18
He was an old man, bent and crooked with age. His hair was dirty white, as was the beard that straggled down to his bony knees. He dressed in shiny black robes that had mystical symbols engraved on them and he carried a staff somewhat like Danolas', except the wood was black and gnarled.
Adrian swirled the smoke into a ball and threw it at the group standing before him. When it bounced harmlessly off the warded boundaries, he cackled aloud.
"You dare to think you can defeat me?” He stared at Danolas as if he was the only one in the room. “I have been working magick longer than you have been alive."
"You are not older than I or my brother here,” Gallegar stated with assurance, as he pointed at Koran. “We are centuries old. You are nothing but an upstart."
The wizard's eyes bulged in anger. “I am talking to this witch. None of you are worthy of my time."
Danolas yawned. “I would think again, wizard. I wasn't the one who figured out how to bring our Lady back to the living."
Adrian looked at Kira's still body. “She doesn't look very alive to me. I think my spell has worked just fine. She is either dead or dying. I thank you for losing control of your wards. Now I can watch her painful death in person."
Gallegar stopped a growling Lucas from lunging at the old wizard. “She is not dying, Adrian. You didn't do your homework. When I awoke from my rest, I was weak and tired, but I made it here in time. I brought Kira and my brethren back to life. You made a mistake when you crafted your spell."
"Foolish old man.” Patrick sneered at him and Adrian's temper flared.
The wizard looked at each of the Chosen with narrowed, hate-filled eyes. While they all looked tired, they seemed fit enough. He looked at Kira, who lay still on the rug. He frowned to himself. She did look as if she was just sleeping. Could they have managed to break my spell? Impossible.
Adrian took a deep breath and swallowed, suddenly realizing if he had made any mistakes, his life would be forfeit with his Master. He told himself all was well, but he had better make sure, just in case.
"Tell me then,” he creaked out. “How did you cure her?"
Gallegar laughed at him. “Why would we tell you anything? We have beaten you."
"That's right, you ugly old bastard.” Lucas walked up as close to the old wizard as was safe and laughed in his face. “We beat you and your piss-poor spell."
"I hope your boss didn't pay you too much for it,” Benjamin put in, his red eyes glowing. He'd taken his contacts out early in the evening. “He sure as hell didn't get his money's worth."
Adrian lost his temper and threw a spell point blank at Lucas, who stood the closest. It took everything Lucas had not to flinch, but he managed it. When the spell disintegrated at his feet, Lucas laughed at Adrian again.
"Is that the best you got? No wonder you couldn't kill us."
"How did you break my spell?” Adrian demanded, madness flickering in his eyes.
Gallegar watched him closely. His
temper was almost out of control. A little more and they would have him.
"Easy,” the vampire responded, acting bored with the whole thing. “We just reversed your spell. It wasn't difficult at all."
"Piece of cake!” Benjamin crowed as he grinned at the now thoroughly angry wizard. He reached down and kissed Kira on the cheek, almost recoiling from the coldness of her flesh. He stopped himself just in time.
"That is impossible!” the wizard huffed, pacing the enclosed area. “You would all have had to be there, and I know you were not!” He glared at Gallegar.
"Maybe not at first,” Gallegar agreed, his heart pounding. The wizard had given away that they all needed to be together to work the spell. Now if he could just get him to say what it was. Taking a deep breath, he took a shot in the dark.
"Once the life force was mingled...” He shrugged, thinking of his joining with Kira. He opened his mouth to continue, but was interrupted by the wizard's angry scream.
"How could you know that? Who told you?” The old wizard hopped up and down with rage. “How could you know to combine all your—"
The wizard stopped in mid-leap and clawed at his throat as if in pain. He coughed and choked and fell to the ground as bloody spittle ran down the side of his mouth. His eyes bulged and he writhed on the ground. With a burst of foul smelling fog, he disappeared.
They all stood motionless, frozen in surprise, before Danolas came out of it. “Move back, quickly. I must put the warding back up.” Using his staff he concentrated, incantations filling the room. The air was suddenly clean smelling and they all took a deep breath in relief.
"All okay?” Lucas asked, as he stared at the place where the wizard had fallen. The other Chosen crowded around him, save Gallegar, who hadn't left Kira's side.
"We are warded again. All is safe."
"What happened to Adrian?” Benjamin asked, when Danolas had finished speaking. “Why did he fall down like that?"
Koran smiled, and it wasn't a pleasant one. “I think Adrian said too much and his Master punished him."
"Couldn't happen to a nicer guy,” Patrick muttered. “But what did he say?"