Divination

by Isaiyan Morrison

Remy spun around. The air carried faint vampire scents. “I’ll take your word for it.”

  “They must move in after five minutes.”

  “They will.”

  Lenore pointed at Sia. “You’re an Adze Deamhan. You’ll use your shadows to get me in the sanctuary.”

  “You’re not going by yourself,” Remy spoke up. “I’m going with.”

  “No, you’re needed out here.”

  “No.” He stepped forward and glared. “I said, I’m going with.” He watched her stand down.

  “If that’s what you want,” she agreed.

  More vehicles arrived and before they knew it, Lenore’s researcher entourage grew in size. They were all unarmed and before starting, she gave a rallying speech. “Our main priority is stopping Amenirdis from releasing the Pure Ones in Limbo by any means necessary. The next few minutes are crucial and for us to succeed, we need to leave our fear at the door.” Her voice grew loud. “Krerina and the Defiler will try to stop us. We want them alive if possible. Don’t approach alone.”

  “If you run into Anastasia, don’t try to kill her,” Remy added. “If you do, I’ll kill you. She’s off limits.”

  Lenore tilted her head. “Is she under some kind of mind control?”

  “More like… Krerina made Anastasia her pet doggy.”

  Silence.

  There is a good chance that this won’t work, Sia telepathically said to him.

  Oh, I’ve been thinking this since the beginning.

  They marched forward toward the gate. There was no path to guide them along the way and he didn’t need one. Remy remembered the area like the back of his hand. The sounds of nature filled the air around them, along with the steps of Lenore and her researchers close behind. When looked over his shoulder, Lenore caught him in a ridiculous leer.

  When they reached the front gate, they stopped. Ahead, the manor looked normal to Remy; it was anything but. The air felt colder and the sanctuary looked darker. “Oh, we’re definitely going to die tonight,” he whispered.

  “Sia, are you ready?” Lenore asked.

  Sia nodded and held out her hand to her. “Hold on and don’t let go. If you do, you’ll get lost in my shadows.”

  Lenore grabbed her hand, followed by Remy. A swath of darkness appeared around them, engulfing them within it. Remy closed his eyes and held on while he felt Sia move forward within the aberration. Only when he felt concrete beneath his feet did he reopen his eyes.

  He didn’t feel anything. There wasn’t any magical force pushing him out of the manor. Instead, the environment felt quaint, like home. Sia had taken them to the basement of the sanctuary.

  “The basement? Really?” Remy refused to believe that out of all the trips to her shadow realm he took—be it, there was only one—Sia overshot their mark.

  “I got us in, didn’t I?” Sia stepped out of the shadows and a second later, the dark smoke dissipated into the air.

  “That you did.”

  He glanced around the basement and noticed that his torture toy was missing. “Where in the hell is Kenneth?” He examined the chains.

  “Do you think he’s dead?” Sia asked.

  “God, I hope so.” He turned his head sharp to the left and saw Anastasia lying on the ground. By the time he walked over to her, Sia had already run to her side. She gently tilted Anastasia onto her back and everyone noticed her skin had a grayish tone.

  “She’s not dead.” When Sia touched her, she flinched back. “She’s Hibernating.”

  “Hibernating? NOW?” Remy exclaimed.

  Lenore hushed him. “Lower your voice before they find out we’re here.”

  “Wake up. We need your fangs.” He gently nudged Anastasia with his foot but found her unresponsive. “Get up, Ana, we got people to kill.” Unable to wake her, he shook her by the shoulders. “I said get the f—”

  “Stop.” Lenore nudged him back. “That won’t wake her.” She crouched over Anastasia and examined her body. “See that?” She pointed to the left side of Anastasia’s neck. “Also this.” She moved her focus to the right arm. “Look closely. She’s shaking.”

  Remy took a closer look and verified everything that Lenore said. The shaking, although subtle, was a scary sign to something that just wasn’t right. When Deamhan Hibernated, their bodies resembled statues. “I’ve never seen this before.”

  “Not many Deamhan have.” Lenore stood. “She’s not Hibernating. She’s stuck in some kind of dark nightmare. The longer she stays in this state, the harder it is to wake her.”

  “If we kill Amenirdis and the others, will it wake her?” he replied.

  Lenore shook her head.

  “How do you know this?” Sia questioned.

  “I’ve seen it before.” Lenore cleared her throat. “I can help but I’ll need time which we don’t have.” She sat cross-legged near Anastasia’s head.

  Her behavior surprised Remy. “What are you doing?”

  “Helping her.”

  Remy quietly placed distance between himself and Lenore. He eyed Sia to do the same. He came to a conclusion which made sense for what Lenore said and how she knew about Anastasia’s rather bleak condition. On top of the fact that he couldn’t read her thoughts or smell her, this conclusion solidified when she closed her eyes and spoke again.

  “It’s thick but I think I can get through; it might take me a few minutes.”

  “I know your little secret.” He crouched to her right and whispered, “You’re the other triplet, aren’t you?”

  Lenore opened her eyes. “There isn’t any time to explain.”

  “How?” Realizing that he spoke almost loud enough to draw attention to them, he lowered his voice and repeated, “How? Ugh! I really, really, really don’t like this dark magic shit,” he sighed.

  She closed her eyes again. “You need to go up there. In a few minutes, the vampires will attack.”

  Remy couldn’t stop throwing questions her way. “Why would the Brotherhood work with you? Wait. Why would you work for the Brotherhood? Do they know?” He paused. “Wait. You don’t look like Krerina? Is that some dark magic hoodoo voodoo crap too?”

  “Go!!”

  He refused to leave the basement until Sia dragged him toward the stairs.

  “We can’t leave her down here with Anastasia! She’s one of them!” He tried to pull away, making her hold on tighter.

  “If we want to survive, we’ll have to.” She urged him to follow.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  ANASTASIA

  “So, you smell that too, don’t you? Can you feel it? Revelation has started.”

  The crowd stood near the back, watching with enraged and rancorous eyes.

  “You… you’re here too?” Now on her feet, Anastasia kept her arms wrapped around her midsection in response to the immeasurable pain she felt in her gut. She heard the faint sounds of her rib bones cracking back into place. So this is what it’s like. This is what it’s like to feel the end coming.

  “We’re all here.” Lucius held out his arms to her. “It’s been a very long time, Anastasia.”

  She didn’t flounder at the chance to feel his arms around her. She ran into them and collapsed. His chest felt hard and his body, cold. He smelled the same, looked the same, and spoke the same. It was him and she basked in all his glory.

  The memories she had of her four hundred plus years as a Ramanga came back to her in little snippets; some bad, some good, and others downright disturbing. She had done too much in her past and she still thanked Lucius for being the only Deamhan who tried to help her atone for it.

  But with Revelation now starting, she couldn’t forget that he helped Amenirdis leave Limbo. At one point in time the Dark Mother’s pure blood mixed with his own and to make her obedient and sympathetic to the cause he fed it to her without so much as a second thought.

  She moved away from him. “Are you here to hurt me too?” she asked. “If so, you might want to get in line. There are thousands of people ahead of yo
u.”

  “No, I came here to make you understand. There is nothing worth fighting for unless it’s in Amenirdis’ interest.”

  “Hmm.” She dragged her feet. “I thought you’d say something like that.”

  He held out his right arm to her. “It’s where you belong.” He slit his wrist. “You remember how it was when I let you drink from me? You had her power. You’ll need it again if you want to escape this reality. Come closer and suckle off the nourishment I have for you.” Blood seeped from the cut and traveled down his forearm in tangled, red trails.

  She had the addicted tasting blood before and although she wanted to keep her distance, she found herself walking toward him. The urge to feed became too much to ignore. She felt her Ramanga fangs drop from her gums and pierce flesh. The cold, rich liquid flowed into her mouth and dissolved into her throat. Quickly, she felt revitalized and strong which made her drink more. But another part of her felt disgusted and angered. How easily she succumbed to the nectar, just like she did before.

  Lucius placed his hand on the back of her head to comfort her. “Take as much as you need.”

  The blood traversed throughout her entire body and her eyes felt as if they’d explode in their sockets at any moment. It felt like a burst of energy entered her and overpowered her. Fight it. Fight it. With her newfound strength, she lurched forward, fangs exposed, at his cheek. She felt her fangs dig into his flesh, but Lucius didn’t react to the pain. Quickly, the puncture wounds closed and anger appeared on his face.

  He slammed her to the floor, rattling the entire cave. Her ribs snapped again and she felt the back of her skull also crack. Dazed and completely defenseless, the more she attempted to free herself from his hands against her shoulders, the longer he held on.

  “Don’t try to fight it. You’re what you are!” he screamed.

  “Being a Deamhan doesn’t rip away our humanity,” she argued back. “We say it’s in our nature to act the way we do, but our nature is defined by those around us. I couldn’t see it because all I saw was rage and anger. I didn’t think of it because all I thought about was my own survival and being one step ahead. Not anymore. I’m done with this and I’m done with you. I don’t want to spend the last moments of my life trapped here. I would rather die.”

  “So be it.” He placed his other hand against her chest. “If you want to die, then I will make these last moments you have with me unbearable.”

  Blood gurgled up her throat and filled her mouth. She felt his hand force its way slowly into her chest. She wanted to scream as his fingers wiggled their way toward her heart.

  “You’ll serve her.”

  “I won’t be controlled by you or anyone—not anymore.”

  He slapped her across her cheek with his left hand. “Then you’ll remain in here, with us, until the end of time.”

  Anastasia felt her teeth loosen at the blow.

  “You Deamhan are like children.” He slapped her again and again until her now swollen mouth filled with her own teeth. “I can hear your thoughts. You can’t block them from me. You want to live but you don’t mind death. You think you deserve it!”

  “Kill her!” Finley screamed from across the room.

  “Rip out her heart!” Branda also yelled.

  The crowd chanted for her death but a voice broke through the noise.

  “Get away from her!!” It rumbled around them, causing Lucius to release Anastasia.

  Near the back wall, a shadowy figure stepped out of the darkness. The female stranger marched toward them. “I said get away from her!” She waved her hand to the side and immediately, Lucius’ body flew back.

  “I’ll get you out of here.” The unfamiliar woman held out her hand to her.

  “Who are you?” Anastasia refused her help. Only someone skilled in dark magic could move someone as powerful and old as Lucius so easily.

  “I’m Lenore. We need to go.” She looked over her shoulder.

  “I… I don’t remember killing you.” Anastasia wiped the speckles of blood from her lips.

  “I’m not one of your victims. I’ve come to get you out of here.” She turned around and faced Lucius. “Stay back.” She held her right hand up as a defensive wall against her.

  “Lenore.” Now on his feet, Lucius brushed the dirt off his clothing. “Mother told us that if you came, to not show you any mercy.”

  “You might have fooled Anastasia, but you can’t fool me. I know what this is. I was the master of it.”

  “Ahh, yes. You did once serve our Mother.” He ran at them in superb speed. Too weak to stop him, Anastasia didn’t move and she didn’t have to. Somehow, Lenore stopped him in his tracks and kept his body frozen in mid-movement.

  “Now you know what I’m capable of.”

  Still feeling drained, Anastasia stumbled forward, only for Lenore to catch her and keep her afloat. “I don’t care who you are. Just get me out of here.”

  “Your miscegenation will be the death of our species!” Lucius screamed loudly, signaling the crowd surrounding them to rush in at full speed. At that moment, a bright light manifested, blinding them all, and Anastasia heard Lenore’s voice as clear as day.

  “Wake up. You need to wake up.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  REMY

  Sia grabbed the knob and the basement door creaked as she slowly opened it. The upstairs looked extremely vacant. However, the scent of burning candles remained strong in the air. Uncomfortable, they continued on.

  Remy had his doubts that Lenore could wake Anastasia from Hibernation. If she managed to do so, the Anastasia he knew wouldn’t be the woman he knew from before all this dark magic crap began. Rather, she’d be that same dark magic-controlled attacking machine bent on killing them all. “If Anastasia awakes and attacks us, we’ll be screwed. She can be pretty violent, if you already don’t know.

  “I know.”

  “If she does, it’ll be your fault for trusting that woman.”

  “I trust her as much as you do. But she’s right. We don’t have time,” Sia said. “Plus, we don’t have any options.”

  They stopped walking.

  “I won’t stand there and allow her to pound our faces in,” Sia continued. “That will be suicide but I won’t kill her either.” She sighed heavily. “Stopping Amenirdis is impossible without Lenore’s help and without the Brotherhood’s help. I, for one, would rather rely on humans and a woman who once served Amenirdis than to run as far as we can with our tail between our legs.”

  “Hey, no one said anything about running. I’m just saying that she and her other bastard sisters helped free Lucius. She stood by that crazy woman’s side for… how long? And we’re just going to turn a blind eye?”

  “Do you want to stop this or not?”

  Forced to answer, Remy stuck out his tongue, annoyed.

  “Then let’s go.” She trekked on.

  Moving slowly, they walked toward the front door. He paused before the door to the study and pushed it slowly open. Nathan’s body remained on the ground where he fell, as did what was left of Ayden.

  “Remy,” Sia whispered to him.

  “Just… give me a second.” He stared at the body with intense eyes.

  In his past, he didn’t care that much for sanctuaries, even modern-day ones where Deamhan traded in coffins and shallow graves for king-sized beds with cotton sheets and fancy decorative bedspreads. He’d experienced enough drama being associated with them through his one hundred and seventy-plus years. He could never get used to rooming together with ten or more Deamhan, especially when his kind caused more damage than good when gathered in large numbers. That changed when he came to Blind Bluff Manor and met Nathan Tiernan for the first time. Seeing him on the floor brought back a flood of memories and more anger.

  “I know how much you cared for him.” As she spoke, Remy felt her hand squeeze his own. “And how much he cared about all of you.”

  “I shouldn’t be surprised. After all, he did surround hims
elf in our world, so to speak. I just didn’t think he’d go out like this. I imagined he’d pass away in bed, from cancer.”

  “We were made to protect humans from vampires and as a species, we failed. We’ll always fail. Instead, we made ourselves their hunters and we also hunted each other. Those who immerse themselves in our world will always be victims of it. At this rate, regardless if we manage to place Amenirdis back where she belongs, we’ll be extinct before this century ends.”

  “I’m sure most supernaturals wouldn’t have a problem with that.”

  “But I do and so do you.”

  “When I’m done, I promise that I’ll come back to give you a proper burial,” he spoke to Nathan’s lifeless body. They tiptoed out of the room and closed the doors. “Now, let’s go kill something.” He cracked his knuckles and marched toward the front door.

  “You were at the warehouse when Amenirdis was first released from Limbo?” Sia asked. “What do you remember about the ritual?”

  He paused. “Chants, blood… you know… ritual crap. Why?”

  “Do you remember what was exactly spoken?”

  He thought long and hard. “Somewhat.” It then hit him that the whispering coming from outside matched exactly what he heard that fateful night.

  Gods of the Old, Gods of the New. Dark Goddess of our flesh. We honor you with the blood of your children. I strike true and I offer you her blood, the blood of the descendant.

  “Oh, shit. They’ve already started, haven’t they?” He cracked open the front door and they met with a surprising sight.

  He saw Krerina, dressed in a brown robe, standing at the foot of a makeshift altar. Her sister, the Defiler, dressed exactly the same, stood at the opposite end, minus the expressionless mask covering her face. On this altar, he witnessed Maris, gagged and tied, struggle against her ropes as the chanting continued. But he didn’t see Amenirdis.

  “They have the tablet,” Sia whispered and pointed to the Defiler who cradled it close to her chest. “We have to get it away from her.”

  “I don’t see our so-called Mother anywhere. Do you?”