Human Revolt 02 - Vampire LA

by Phil Tucker

  “Teharonhiawako ,” said Arachne. “Who died. A long, long time ago. What of it?”

  “He died, but his line lives on. Selah is of his line.”

  Arachne turned to consider Selah, and then laughed. “But she is now Sawiskera’s. See how easily she killed? So much for Teharonhiawako.”

  Theo shook his head. “No. She’s shown me that there can be change. That we can change.”

  “Listen to me you groveling piece of shit. I had you stripped and bolted to that wall so that I could drain you of your blood. You are little more than a farm animal to me, a dumb beast, a slave, and the only reason I didn’t kill you because your blood is so potent it’s worth more than you can imagine. You’re nothing to me. Nothing. So now what are you going to do? Kiss me and tell me you love me? Ask for my forgiveness again? No. You’re going to kill me. As you should.” Arachne’s words hung in the air, and she took another step forward. “Go on. Kill me. I won’t stop you. What other choice do you have?”

  “No. You’re wrong.” Theo’s voice was faint, dull. “I’m going to let you live. You’re free to go.”

  Arachne paused, and laughed again. “After all I’ve done to you?”

  “Yes. I was going to kill you. I didn’t see any other way. But I see otherwise now. One of us has to change. Sawiskera was wrong. I’ll do so here. I’ll let you go, so that we may start anew.”

  Arachne shook her head. “You’re pathetic.”

  “Perhaps.”

  Selah watched, arms crossed, as Arachne began to pace back and forth. “You’re a fool! You don’t even know what love is. You’ve not felt it since you died!”

  Theo said nothing. Arachne’s face was strained, her mouth pulled into a rictus, her eyes swollen and large, nearly bulging from her head. The muscles of her cheek and neck were so taut that she seemed inhuman, an animal, a monster in human form. It was as if her vampiric nature were straining to shed its human skin altogether.

  “I loathe you. I hate you, with your stupid cow eyes and pretense at love. Your pathetic unlife spent as a servant, licking his feet even as you thought you were saving something special and pure in your heart! It was a lie! Look at me! I would kill you this moment if I could. I would destroy you for the sheer pleasure of it—your love is a lie, something you created to save yourself, to keep your sanity, but don’t stand there and tell me it was for me!”

  Theo’s lips pulled back from his fangs at the intensity of her words, at the hatred boiling out of her, virulent and scalding. But he said nothing.

  Arachne stopped pacing and stood, shivering, glaring at him. “You’re lying. You lie! You’re doing this to test me. See if I’ll break down and say I love you. I don’t. I never have.”

  “Go, Sethe.” Theo’s voice was quiet, exhausted. “Go. I won’t stop you.”

  Arachne half turned to leave, and then looked back over her shoulder at him. Hung, suspended in the balance, and then let out a shriek and leaped at him, but he caught her by both wrists and held her back. She spat and cursed and lashed out at him, and summoned all her strength to break his grasp. Though they were equal in age, though they were equal in physical might, something beyond flesh gave him mastery over her, something deeper and stronger, so that held her trapped and she could do nothing more than writhe in his grip.

  “No,” said Theo, his voice soft, sad. “I guess you’re right. It’s too late. You remind me of Sethe, but you are now all Arachne.”

  The creature in his grip quieted down, and hung from his hands. Theo’s words seemed to have stolen its will. It breathed hoarsely through its nostrils. There was nothing human about it at all now; it was a mockery of the human shape. Theo’s face contorted into a silent snarl, and he released his grip on her wrists and swept his nails clear through the creature’s neck with such force that it’s head tore free.

  Theo stepped back. The creature that had been Arachne collapsed into ash, until only her bones remained laid out on the floor.

  Chapter Twenty Three

  Selah followed Theo out of the Observatory, leaving the fifty vampires chained below, ignoring their frantic, incoherent screams and frenzied writhing. Up the stairs, and out to the walkway that hugged the Observatory’s central dome. Into the cold night, and together looked out over the city. The fire still raged over most of the coast, its smoke barely visible against the night sky. The towers of downtown shone, but much of the rest of the Core stood dark, the hundreds of thousands of residents hidden behind walls, hiding in the dark and awaiting the dawn.

  Helicopters thundered their way over the Core from the north. Military copters with twin rotor blades. In the near distance, Selah could make out the ruins of the convoy that had attempted to escort her out. A smudge of fire and smoke on the highway. The helicopters were converging on it. Selah and Theo stood in silence and watched. With her escape, the murder of dozens of soldiers, and the real Arachne’s death, the military would now stop at nothing to kill her. The Treaty had never been in so much danger. The lives of millions hung in the balance. If the Treaty were broken, nothing would hold the vampires to the Core. They would spill free and wash across the nation once more, ushering in a new era of blood and terror.

  “It’s over,” said Theo. “She is dead.”

  He’d been thinking about Arachne this whole time, Selah realized. No thought for the Treaty. For her own safety. Of course. Selah reached out and placed her hand on his cold shoulder, and they stood in silence, each immersed in their own thoughts. The view before them was as grand as it was chilling. The next day would see a wash of military vehicles and soldiers searching for her and declaring war on all vampires till she was handed over. It would see vampires rising up in fury and defiance, attacking all around them. It would see the collapse of civil society, the delicate peace that had sprung up after the Treaty.

  “It’s over,” agreed Selah. “There’s no chance now of making a vaccine. Of using my blood to defeat the vampires.” She shook her head. “If I don’t turn myself in, the military will declare war. The vampires will revolt. The Treaty will be broken. I’ve got no choice. But I’m not done quite yet. Before I do so, I owe a friend a favor.”

  “Oh?” Theo turned to her. “Who?”

  “A man called Armando. He was a Blood Dust dealer. Ran a gang called the Locos.”

  “What favor do you owe him?”

  “My life. He gave his to save mine. It’s an empty gesture, but I’m going to do the one thing he couldn’t. I think he’d appreciate it. Coming?” Theo hesitated, then nodded. They watched the city for a few seconds more, and then turned away.

  Dawn was nearly breaking when they passed through the I-5 gate in the Wall. It was abandoned, and now a flood of people streamed out, leaving the Core for the slums beyond. By simply pressing the horn and driving at a steady speed, Selah was able to part the crowd and drive through. Theo and Selah examined the empty guardhouse as they drove past. They’d planned to fight through if they had to, but this silence, this sudden abandonment of such a key point in the Wall was unsettling. Where had the soldiers gone?

  Neither spoke, and Selah drove on. It took her but ten minutes to drive what had taken her the whole morning yesterday, and soon she saw the sign for Artesia Boulevard. She took the exit ramp, and they abandoned the car where the shacks and tents choked the road too tightly. Selah led the way, and as two shadows they passed through the teeming throngs of humanity. They heard wild speculations from the crowd as they slipped through, some stating that the vampires were all dead, others that the military was going to finally drop a nuclear bomb on the Core. It was clear that nobody knew what was going on.

  Selah led the way to the hospital that had served as Armando’s original base. It was a hunch, but it proved a good one. There were a number of gangbangers standing around the parking lot. Culebras, surmised Selah, but none of them spotted her and Theo as they slipped in through a second-floor window. Once inside, they took the emergency stairwell to the top, and there killed the two guards who s
tood outside an office door. Selah pushed it open and stepped within.

  Padrino Machado stood before the window, chin in one hand. He was dressed in a linen suit, his shoulders slumped with fatigue. He turned at the sound of the door opening, and narrowed his eyes as Selah stepped in.

  “Arachne? What are you doing here?”

  “Arachne’s dead,” she said, walking forward.

  His eyes widened, and he jerked up a gun from the tabletop, but hesitated as she shook her head. “Don’t. I’ll just take it away from you.”

  He tried anyway, pulling the trigger. He got off one shot before she broke his wrist by pulling the gun free, snapping several fingers as she did so. With a cry he fell back, tripped, and sat heavily in the leather chair. Selah set the gun down and sat on the edge of the desk.

  “It’s all over, Padrino.”

  Padrino darted a look from her to where Theo stood by the door. She saw him grapple with the obvious, that his life was about to come to an end, and then he tried to smile. She was impressed. Even now he was going to try to worm his way out.

  “Selah. Let me explain. Remember how I tried to help you? I tried to help Armando. But he made it clear that he wouldn’t be able to handle what’s coming. He wouldn’t be able to swim with the currents. It was better for him—for the people here—if the Locos left. His heart, it was too good. I saved him by pushing him out.”

  “Is that so. You did all this for his own good.”

  “Of course, let me be honest, I wanted somebody here who would work with me and the other gangs. Why would I want trouble? So he left, and I am putting in power a cousin of Esteban’s. A good kid. See? Everybody wins. Armando can go on and start a new life.”

  “Armando’s dead.”

  “Dead?” He licked his lower lip with a dry tongue. “Did you…?”

  “No. He died saving me.”

  “Ah. I see. Then he truly is free. It’s probably better. This way he doesn’t have to deal with what’s coming.”

  “And what’s coming?”

  Padrino sucked on what was clearly a dry mouth and tried unsuccessfully to swallow. “You don’t know? You haven’t heard?” Neither of them answered, so he straightened, cradling his wrist. “I’ll tell you if you let me leave.”

  Selah didn’t even bother to laugh. She just sat there, at ease on the edge of the table. After a moment Padrino Machado wilted. “The vampires have broken the Treaty. We’re at war once more.”

  “No, I think you have it wrong. The military is about to break the Treaty. They’re coming after me, but I’m going to turn myself over. The Treaty won’t be broken.”

  Padrino looked at her strangely. “After you? No. The vampires. They broke the Treaty. Just an hour ago. Louis and the other gang leaders. Within the Core. They have released all of their Blood Dust thralls—the vampires they were draining for blood. They had finally created enough of them, and at a pre-determined hour, they released them all at once.”

  Selah felt the surprise like a blow in the gut. “What?” Padrino shrank back into his chair. “What the hell are you talking about?”

  He must’ve sensed how close she was to hurting him further, for he began to babble. “The blood thralls! The vampires they were draining for blood? All of them, each one of the gangs, they were doing the same thing! Where do you think the Blood Dust came from? They’ve been making more and more of them over time, creating hundreds if not thousands of thralls throughout the city—and using the Blood Dust to pay the military to turn a blind eye. Well, not any longer, oh no.” Padrino almost chuckled. “Tonight they set them free. Louis told me it would be done next week, but they seem to have been forced to move early. Maybe because you stirred up the military? Either way, the thralls are out. Thousands of them, and they are mad with hunger. It’s a bloodbath in the Core.”

  Selah exchanged a wide eyed look with Theo and then turned back to Padrino. “And you knew this? All along? You knew this was their plan?”

  “Yes …,” said Padrino, hesitating. “Which is why … I wanted to save Armando from …” He trailed off. It sounded so weak that even he couldn’t pursue it. Abandoning that line, he lifted his chin. “So what if I did? I was in a position of confidence, of privilege. I was their ally, their trusted friend. It was I who helped them create the Blood Dust in the first place. Why wouldn’t they tell me? I was the one who showed them how, using the wisdom of my forefathers, to meld their blood into something new. Do you know what it represents, Blood Dust? The ability to—”

  But he got no further. With a snarl Selah was upon him. She lifted him out of the chair and held him gasping and choking with one hand. “You created the Blood Dust? You knew what the vampires were planning, all this time? And told nobody? Instead—instead you thought only of taking territory? When it’s all going to be worthless now that the Treaty is broken?”

  “Not … worthless. Vampires will need … human … servants. I will be first … among them.” Padrino’s face was turning dark. He batted feebly at Selah’s wrist. She glared at him, sick disgust rising up within her. His eyes glittered, and though they were human to Selah, they seemed darker than any vampire’s.

  “Why … upset … you are … a vampire. I will … serve you.” Padrino’s voice was almost inaudible now, a harsh whisper. Selah felt her gorge rise further, and before she could change her mind took a step forward and hurled Padrino with all her strength. He burst out through the window, shattering the glass tremendously and then fell away into the predawn air, down into the parking lot below.

  Shouts immediately rose up from the Culebras on guard. Selah turned to Theo, who was frozen with shock. “The war. It’s started again. The Treaty is broken.”

  Theo walked to the other side of the desk. “Are you sure it’s our problem?”

  “What?” Selah felt as if he’d slapped her. “How could you say that?”

  “He was right. We are vampires. You and I. We are the dead. You’re still thinking like a human.” He reached up and rubbed his hand along his jaw. “And there’s more. Don’t you remember? A few nights ago, you asked that I not let you live if this moment should come. You asked that I end it. I don’t know if I can, as powerful as you are. But before the sun rises, I plan to try.”

  “You—wait. You’re going to kill me?”

  Theo’s eyes were liquid with pain. “I already killed Sethe. Arachne. Now it seems I shall have to kill you. Or die doing so, which is all right. I … I don’t have much cause to continue. Sethe—or her memory—has been laid to rest. There is nothing for me out there but darkness and solitude, especially once I have given you peace.”

  “Wait.” Selah shook her head. “You can’t do this. We’re needed. We need to help. We need to stop … the vampires.”

  Theo smiled gently. “You aren’t completely dead yet. Some small corner of your mind still thinks and cares as a human. That will fade. In an hour, perhaps less. Then you will only care for yourself. For your own personal needs. Does your heart yet beat, Selah? Do you still need to breathe?”

  Selah pressed her hand to her chest. Nothing. Silence. And then—there—a faint beat. Silence again. She stood still, shivering. Waiting. Was that the last time? No, there it was again. Once every ten seconds. Almost stopped. Almost done.

  “We can’t … we can’t end like this. You killing me, or me killing you. We can’t.” Tears stung her eyes. Millions were going to die. Thousands were probably already dying, out there on the streets of LA.

  “I lived on because of my love for Sethe. For the Sethe that once was. For the Sethe who stands before me now. I lived on not only for the face that you wear, Selah, but for the person you are. You were. In life, I told you that you reminded me of my wife. Once you die, that semblance will die as well. And then Sethe will truly be just a memory, and I will have nothing left to fight for. We cannot stop your dying. It is upon us. And when that happens, I shall die too. There is nothing either of us can do.”

  Selah turned back to the window. All
of Sawiskera’s strength was worth nothing now. She could destroy any vampire, kill a score of soldiers, run through the night with the power of a god, and for what? For the first time, she felt as if she understood him, understood Sawiskera, seated alone in his room, watching recordings of the sunrise. Hating his dead brother, his good brother, who, for all his faults, was gone, at peace. Trapped by his own power into an eternal solitude over which his might could do nothing.

  Selah raked her fingers over her scalp, and interlaced them over the back of her neck. She still cared, but barely. She felt the last dying pangs of outrage that everything should come to this. But like a candle flame, it was flickering, on the verge of being snuffed. As if Sawiskera himself were bowed over the flame of her soul, lips pursed and prepared to blow it out.

  Selah evoked the same litany of faces. Mama B. Her father. Cloud. Even Theo, here before her. She turned back to him. Dying now seemed selfish. Fleeing the fight that was only now truly beginning. Her mind reeled as she considered the cascade of events that were taking place in the Core. The military had to be mobilizing. The Blood Thralls would be rampaging, freed at last of their constraints. Word would be sweeping across the nation, casting entire cities into panic. Those closest to Miami and LA would flee their homes, surging inland like a stampeding herd, dying by the tens of thousands in the next couple of days as infrastructure broke down, as they starved, died of dehydration and exposure.

  The War. Had it really begun again? Theo’s face was implacable, so she looked out the window. The hospital was only six stories tall, but that was enough to see over the ocean of shacks and slums. Toward the distant Core Wall, where the fire yet raged, painting the heavens a dull orange. Where the Blood Thralls stalked their prey, maddened with hunger and hatred. War.

  “We can’t … we can’t give in. We have to fight.” Her voice was little more than a whisper.

  “How can we fight what we are?” The gentle sadness in Theo’s voice nearly broke her heart. “All that holds me here is you. All that holds me here is your spirit. When that passes, there will be nothing to keep me. Nothing for me to hold onto.”