“What are you saying?”
"You must remember that we are unique. The original sired are not the same as the sirelings under the council. We are a unique race of our own," Another one appears out to the side, behind the vampire clad in black. He is the first form of me. Draped in nothing but a tunic, skulls on his shoulders, attached to whatever he was using for armor.
"We were warlocks once. You've forgotten your birthright," His tone disapproving, "We had the ability to directly work with the Forsaken. It is why we were chosen to be turned. When we were younger, we would hold assembly more often. Discussing the necessities of what is truly best for us. It was ancestral to some degree."
He's not speaking English but still, I understand every word of whatever ancient language he's communicating in.
“It was only when you took the mixed-blood deity under your wing that we lost touch of our routes.”
Even that was too far back for me to truly remember.
“Your ability to recall, to do this,” he gestured to Tyr, the other self, “It is due to your shaman heritage. You do not understand the true extent of your power.”
“That may be so, but I am not here to discuss my mistakes. Rather, I need solutions.”
Tyr nods, “Your solutions are dependent on this, Mason. Do you not see that? Consider the Forsaken realm being obliterated. The havoc that will come down when the darkness is let loose.”
“I can’t. The darkness is not something that has come with me,” I admit.
“What the modern youth call Demons. Imagine the world covered in their kind.”
The eldest cuts Tyr off here, “All headed by Kah-Tet and Zoroaster. Humanity will suffer a hell on earth.”
I’m still confused, but the pieces are falling into place. The girl has the power to kill the Forsaken. Without the Forsaken protecting the realm, there will be a literal hell on earth.
Then there’s Ankh. He will die.
“Perhaps you must speak with the Forsaken about the old ways. They will be able to tell you more,” Clad in black speaks again, now sitting on my coffin.
“Indeed. The gods will be the best solution to your problems,” the eldest speaks. He still considers them gods. He was turned before they were Forsaken. Interesting.
“I must tell you one more thing, Mason,” Tyr speaks again, the eldest vanishes and the other too, “If this girl is true Deicine, you must be careful. You’ve had the strength of the Forsaken backing you for years now, but that all falls by the wayside with her power. You must be careful. You do not want to fall from grace like Icarus.”
I agree, “Then the girl must be freed.”
Before I can finish the sentence, Tyr is gone.
A success, I believe the assembly to be. At least it answered a few of my questions.
Chapter 20
Madison.
Ever since the other girl got here, the vampire who calls himself Daffyd has kept us both close. We are usually locked in his room for hours on end. I tried speaking to the girl, but there's very little response. I only know her name is Abbey, and that her mother is here to do something.
I’m scared, but no one has been bad to us. After I was taken out of the dark room things have been…comfortable.
We’re sitting on the bed, both Abbey and me. In the room is a TV and a few things to either watch or play games on. It helps a little, I guess.
A door opens while I’m playing a video game with Abbey. I think it’s Daffyd, he always scares me, but it’s not. It’s the other…vampire that brings us food and water and the stuff we need. She’s actually brought us everything we ask for so far. Her name is Sarah-Lynne.
“Hey, girls,” She’s got a nice smile. It reminds me of my mommy.
“Hello,” I reply, pausing the game. Abbey doesn’t say anything.
“I’ve brought you some lunch, there’s even a chocolate for both of you,” She puts a tray with three sandwiches, orange juice, and the chocolates on a side table.
“I’m gonna eat with you guys today,” She gives a reassuring smile and sits on the bed next to Abbey.
“Is my mom okay?” Abbey asks Sarah-Lynne.
"Yes, of course. Your mom is just fine. She just needs to do something for King Daffyd, and then you and she will both be on your way," Sarah-Lynne reassures her.
“And what about me? Why am I here?” I ask.
Her face turns sour, but she perks up again quickly. “You’re needed for something big,” she says, “You’re going to do great things,” She pats my head, “But that’s a conversation for you and the King. I don’t really have much to say about it.”
“Then where is he? I wanna ask him.” Ever since the room, things have been easier. I’ve gotten into a slight routine, if not getting bored. I still wanna go home, though. I’m just scared that my mommy and daddy must be worrying themselves sick.
“He’s gone to visit what we call the Council. They are the most powerful vampires under our kind, apart from a few much older ones. He won’t be back for a few days,” Sarah-Lynne grabs her sandwich off the table and takes a bite, “So, we have the whole place to ourselves to do whatever we want,” She speaks through a mouth full of food.
“Okay, that’s nice. Maybe we can just watch movies,” I try and make the best out of a bad situation. It was how I’ve always been.
Abbey nods her head.
Sarah-Lynne too.
We end up spending the night relaxing, watching movies, and having nice sweeties and snacks.
If I didn’t know any better, I’d think this could actually be a good place to stay.
Chapter 21
Daffyd.
I decided this time to make the journey back to the council alone. There’s no real chance that Hamish or Sarah-Lynne would do anything to spoil my plans, but sometimes you’ve got to handle business alone.
“Twice in a year. That’s a new record, King Llanelli,” The gatekeeper opens the gate. This time he leaves me to get there myself. I know the way.
At the door, the same robed doorman lets me in. He says nothing. I know where my room is, so I go dump my gear in the room and come back to the entry hall. There I sit and wait until the doorman from before comes to me, "The council will see you now, Daffyd. Though it would be cruel if I do not warn you to tread lightly." He gestures for me to stand.
“Why?” I ask, a little surprised at the mention of treading lightly.
“You will find out soon,” He falls to silence.
“Answer me, I am your King!” I can’t help but shout.
“You are not my King. You are just a King.”
I don’t bother talking to him anymore.
He leads me into the Council’s hall, and, from my entrance, I feel everyone's gaze fixed on me as I step into the center. I can't help but look between them.
“Lords and ladies of the council,” I acknowledge them all in one stride, “I have good news regarding the war.”
“And we have bad….”
I had a feeling that would be said. They can’t go back on this.
“May I inquire as to what that is?”
“You may. We hear the call of war.” They fall silent.
“Yes, but that’s why I came here last time. To take on the Forsaken and show them who they must bow down to,” I reply when I know nothing more is going to come from them.
“The Forsaken are the least of your current problems, King Daffyd. No, what you face is the punishment of your actions.”
“Are you being intentionally vague?”
“The vision is not complete, but you are going to face your greatest trial yet,” an old woman standing at the far end of the room speaks up. I didn’t even notice her there until now.
“Do you want to speak up?” I spit.
The old woman doesn’t take kindly to my tone, and she recoils back into her shell.
The Council, gaze ever locked, “Then so be it. Bite the hand that tries to help.”
The old lady starts walking out.
/>
“Discuss the war then, Daffyd, for that is the only reason you are truly here.”
"Yes. More or less," I look between the seven once more, "I have found a Deicine. Do you even remember the Deicine?" The ever unmoving mass of seven finally cracks their composure when hearing about the witch. It may be minute, with only a small raising of the brows, but it's still more than I've ever seen from them in my rule.
“Along with the Deicine, I have a witch to perform the ritual. We have the ability to slaughter the Forsaken where they stand.”
I can feel the excitement ripping through my entire body. I’ve not had this feeling pulsate through me in millennia.
“And you’re sure that you can complete this task?”
“Yes. I have everything I need. I just need Council approval on allowing me to kill the girl as well as to commence war.”
“Kill the girl? You do not think this will cause more issues than you can deal with?”
“What do you mean?”
“We mean the Division.”
“You mean a couple of drifting supernaturals headed by a force of humans? They are meat bags, Council. They get in the way, and we will show them the full force of our might. I’m confident that the Veil holds enough forces to take on an attack from two different directions.”
The Council has already taken their usual positions again. Blank stares.
“And if all else fails you have your ancient, correct?”
"Correct. Mason will do anything as long as I throw artifacts at him."
"Then you have our go ahead. The Veil is cleared to commence war with the Forsaken, so long as you do not let us down. You will not seek council with us again until the war is over for we will have no direct part. Are we clear?"
When do you ever get involved with real vampire business anyway? I think, but bow, “Yes, my lords and ladies. You will have no interference. I will rally the Veil’s troops as well as any other covens that wish to stand at my side.”
“Goodbye, King Daffyd.”
They don’t acknowledge my last comment, so I assume they accept.
There’s nothing more to do now but to prepare for the tides of war.
Chapter 22
Zeus.
It's rare to find such an assortment of the Forsaken on Mount Olympus, stranger yet is how many have packed themselves into my Pantheon to discuss the war. Thousands have potential to sit here, but still, with all the seats filled around the feasting tables, many are made to stand. Still, we all partake in the feast. Wild boar meat filling the tables, wine overflowing its cups, freely shared across the tables, and the pillars decorated by murals of the multitude of Greek warriors that have come and gone. This is the true sanctity of my people. We gather here because war was declared on us. Had it been another, perhaps we will have congregated in Valhalla or wherever else.
For now, I am warring leader.
Beside me at the god's table sits my son, Thor and on my right, my daughter, Athena. A few others make their way down the table from Poseidon to Hades. In these trying times, we must take whatever we can get.
Before the grand table are the rest. From Odin to Jupiter to Ra and so on.
“Can we settle down?” I call over the crowd. The raucous feast, I can only assume, is inspired by my kind. A nation of people that have always believed in celebrations and connection.
This is different.
We all know that in these dark times we will fight, conquer or die.
"The vampires declare war on us," I shout over the hall, "They forget their place among our kind. They are our playthings. A creation by the Mad God," No one bats an eye, or says a word. The Mad God has been banished to the darkness far too long, for us to have any stresses. "So, we will not stand and let them make their demands. We will fight and slaughter and have their spilled blood as their penance.”
“Hoorah.
Hoorah.
Hoorah,” some group shouts.
I begin getting even more riled up, “We will not strike the Veil all at once. Instead, we will strike their sister covens. We will show them that there is nothing that will stand in our way, burning them down coven-by-coven until the king is the only one who stands to face us.”
Ares is the first God of war to speak up. He is dressed in his full war gear: his black armor, black mask, and weapons littering his body, "I believe that we know the European realm well enough to strike across."
I assume he means the Greek Forsaken.
“And we take Africa,” Montu, the Egyptian Falcon, speaks.
I didn’t think it would be this easy to convince them, but they are the war gods after all. It may just be easier for them to fall into it all, than for the rest of their kind.
Various other Gods and Deities stand and call the nations they wish to face. Many even point to direct covens they want to hunt. Everyone that gets on board is welcomed to join the fight. It’s not until Hades rises from his seat, along with the various Forsaken of the Underworld that I know what is coming next.
“We have been discussing ever since you announced the threat of war, Zeus. We believe that we should open the darkness.”
Just as I suspected.
“We cannot,” I admit, “We need to make sure that the humans survive. This war will wage on for years. The darkness has no part of it. If we let your underworlds all out at once, the world will fall into disrepair, and if they forget us, well you know what happens then.”
This displeases Hades, “What then? We are forgotten, and we become a part of what we keep away from them?”
“But it’s not humanity we are after.”
“We cut their supplies off, and we thrive.”
“You cut their supplies off, and you’re cutting us off too, Hades,” A bow shows he concedes, and both Hades and Hel take their seats again.
“And how do you propose we fight them, father?” Athena raises her concerns, “Surely we cannot out ourselves to the humans. Bringing our entire force down to Earth Realm would mean they would find out, one way or another, that we are there.”
“Yes, daughter. This is something I’ve considered. We will be weaker if we stay on Earth too long as it is, so we will use the portals to move between here and there. We strike in force against the covens. This will keep the human population unknowing of our actions, due to the wards their witches place across the spectrum.”
“Finally, we must discuss our true intentions with this war, Zeus,” Odin finally stands from his seat, hidden behind the bodies. When he’s standing, his shoulders are the height of most of the men around him, “You are our warring commander because you are the one that the vampires have declared the war against. This is fine,” His face shows his true age. It’s weathered; scarred, “But you cannot run into this fight without a clear intention. They declare war on us because it means they wish to have us all dead, I assume. If we strike, we cannot let any remain. Those who are too powerful to kill off without tools, will have to be thrown into the darkness with Kah-Tet.”
“You speak obviously of the first sireling?”
"Yes. Precisely."
I fall silent. Mason and I have not had a good relationship since he went around known as Tyr, but, still, he was, in essence, my grandson. Athena and he had a strong bond in the early years. Kah-Tet was supposed to hold that title but fell by the wayside due to his own hubris….
This puts me in a dilemma I would have much preferred not to face.
“It is only those under the Council that will fight against us. You know this as well as I do, but I do understand your need for concern.”
“Are we going to strike the Council too?” A twinkle sparks in Odin’s eyes.
“If you think you’d like to lead a charge against the Council, then so be it. I will not stand in your way. I just say we leave the ancients, or rather, those who do not fall under the Council’s bill to remain free.”
"If you want to keep your little pet safe, let it be so, though if his actions and his sires later co
me back to cause a ruckus, it will be you to blame for this, Zeus," I only nod. There's nothing else I can do. Odin has a fair point, and I will suffer the consequences of my actions if it comes to it.
“Then let us eat and drink tonight, my brothers and sisters. For tomorrow we dine in Hell!” I call over the hall, and, with one last cheer, all the people go back to feasting on the bountiful layout before them.
"Are you sure this is the course of action you want to take, father?" Athena asks. Someday she will be the ruler of Mount Olympus, and she is the closest to a right-hand I have right now.
“Yes, daughter.”
“We will be killing thousands of them, and we don’t know how many we will lose,” Athena takes a sip from a goblet filled with wine.
I do the same, “They will find a way to come to us if we do not go to them.”
“How? The only two links to the Forsaken realm are Kah-Tet and Mason. One being trapped with us, the other not having the ability to remember his heritage. They have no way to get here.”
“They have witches. Do you remember the Deicine Genocides? That was the closest the supernatural realm was to ever being discovered by humans. We cannot allow them to truly know we exist. The time isn’t right. They will not be able to handle it.”
"So, instead we fight in the shadows and try to hide? They are not stupid. They will pick up on the peculiar weather patterns our portals force. Their technology is not the same as the last time we had to fight on their plane."
“You are right, but if they find out, then so be it. I will not stand idly by when the threats to our kind have been placed by a child throwing a tantrum,” I take a piece of meat and wash it down with the wine.
“Yes, father. I am by your side. I’m just voicing my concerns.”
“And they are noted, my daughter. But we will win this war. They are weak. We strike by day. They will stand no chance.”
“Their covens have their wards to keep the veil of darkness.”
The Vampire Touch 1: The Forsaken Page 6