After the Fall

by Martinez, A. J.

  “Rhiannon, what happened?” I yelled. She flinched and shrunk away from me. I grabbed her by the arms. “Tell me!”

  “When I found you, you were unconscious and bleeding. She turned on you, Mordecai. She attacked you and left you to die in the sun. If I hadn’t gone out there just after sunset, I don’t want to think what would have become of you.”

  “She turned on me? But that makes no sense.”

  “Why, because you think you had her undying love and devotion? She’s a traitor. She will only be loyal as long as you serve a purpose.”

  It just can’t be, I kept telling myself.

  Why can’t it? Is it so hard to believe? said the small voice.

  “I spoke to the Queen to plead on your behalf. She truly does not want to hurt you. I have been trying to get her to release you.”

  “She will not.”

  “Why can’t you just give her what she wants? What is so important about this woman?”

  “It’s not about her. I can’t tell you the real reason, not here.”

  “You love her, don’t you? You’re in love with her. All this time I waited for you, thinking you were dead but hanging on to that little thread of hope, and you replaced me like a worn out shoe. You would rather die for this traitor than live free with me?”

  “You know that’s not true,” I said, but it sounded false even to me. As blunt as her words were, she was right. I did care about Rayna and would rather die than hand her head over to the Queen on a silver platter.

  “I hope the Queen gives you a slow death, because you deserve every minute of it. I hate you.” She spoke slowly and with no apparent emotion. I preferred the anger to this. Anger was like being at sea during a storm. This was more like being in a pot slowly boiling to death.

  No one came to visit for the next two days except for the shift guard who brought me my meals. It was obvious why Rhiannon or the Queen would not want to see me, but I wondered why Lucretius had not come. He looked like he had wanted to tell me something the other night, but he left with it still weighing on him. Even Rayna seemed to have disappeared.

  It was quiet. The undead onslaught appeared to have stopped. The soldiers remained on high alert, but I had not heard any reports for some time. I heard less of the roaring diesel engines and more of the normal city traffic. Life was returning to normal, and I was beginning to think they were right. Maybe she had left me after all. My purpose fulfilled, I was no longer of use to her. The only thing I had left to give was my life, and the Queen already had that in her hands.

  After the two days of silence, the Queen came to me, accompanied by two Vampire guards. I pictured these two playing tug-of-war with my arms, tearing them off, and beating me to death with them, all while the Queen watched in amusement. The thought made me shudder.

  “I thought you’d like to know that the city is once again free of the threat. We have repelled them. I only hope she is watching all of this so she understands the futility of going against the Queen, against all of Anathorn.”

  “There are no words to express my joy,” I replied.

  “Has your memory cleared in the last few days? Surely you must have had time to think.”

  “I’ve had entirely too much time for that.” But I think that was the point.

  “Rhiannon has been most persistent about your fate. I cannot promise anything, but I told her I would consider granting you clemency if you cooperate. Have you remembered anything, Mordecai?”

  “She is long gone, I’m sure. I can’t think of a reason why she would stay. There is nothing left for her here except death.”

  The Queen walked to the window and stared outside for a few minutes. When she felt she had built up enough suspense, she turned back to me.

  “Very well. Thank you for your answers, Mordecai. Your trial begins tomorrow evening.”

  “So you are going to give me a mock trial and summary execution, like you tried to do with Rayna?”

  “You are entitled a fair trial, like any other citizen under my domain. As far as your punishment, I think you will find it anything but summary if you are found guilty.”

  “And I’m sure I will be.”

  “The facts will bear you out. We will weigh the evidence and decide your fate. Believe me, Mordecai, when I say this isn’t easy. You have tried to ease my mind of it, but as noble as it is, I will not enjoy this.”

  “I find that hard to believe,” I replied.

  “You can believe what you want. I will see you tomorrow evening. Get some sleep. You will need it.”

  I tried to fight sleep as daylight neared. Part of me seemed to think that time would stop if I just refused to go to sleep. I lost that battle sometime after dawn. I could not tell because the steel blinds were closed, but I could feel it. My body was already shutting down with every passing minute. Every blink felt heavier. My mind began to fool itself, thinking that I could just close my eyes for a moment.

  That moment stretched.

  All the way into the evening.

  Lucretius’s was the first face I saw that evening. He came in to the room and sat down. I knew it was past sunset and he wanted to talk, but I did not want to get up. I blamed the knowledge that I might not get to see the end of tonight. Once again, I was trying to convince myself that I could stop time if I refused to move forward with it.

  “Mordecai, get up. I know you’re not sleeping anymore,” said Lucretius. I could hear that edge in his polite voice that told me he meant business.

  “What do you need?” I asked him. “It’s my last night on this Earth. Just let me sleep in.”

  “I don’t think you understand. I must speak to you.”

  “Well, you’re doing it right now, so speak.”

  “Do sit up. I feel like I’m talking to a convalescent.”

  “Well, I will be dying in a few hours, so it’s close to the truth.”

  “Oh, just sit up and listen. This execution must not happen. The trial will be just for show and you will then be condemned as a traitor.”

  “Those are things I already knew.”

  “Then you must understand that you are not to be at the trial.”

  “What am I going to do, turn into a bat and fly away?”

  “Humorous to the bitter end. Very witty, Mordecai. No, your exit would not be as dramatic, certainly nothing out of a Bram Stoker tale, but it will work just the same.”

  I took a deep breath and stared off into the other end of the room. A man who played right hand to the woman who was trying to have me executed just told me that he could save me. What could be wrong with that?

  “I appreciate your concern, but I think I’m going to pass.”

  Lucretius struggled to keep his composure. “What is wrong with you? I’m trying to offer you a way out of this and you flatly refuse?”

  “What is wrong with me would probably take us the rest of the night I don’t have, if I understood you correctly. Look, it’s not that I don’t trust you, but…I just don’t trust you.”

  He nodded. “And you think your chances are better going forward with this farce?”

  “When I’m dead, I’m dead. It’s not like the last few years have been a dream vacation.”

  “You don’t care that she is going to sacrifice you like a pawn in her twisted game? Mordecai, I implore you to listen to me. She must be stopped.”

  “You’re in the best place to stop it. You’re closest to her.”

  “I’m not as close as you think. She’s distanced herself, as if she can feel my intentions. I’m afraid I have let this situation go too far.”

  “And the reason you need me is…?”

  “She has a soft spot for you, Mordecai. In her own cruel way, she has taken a liking to you. If you could gain entry to her chambers, you could deliver a lethal strike.”

  “Whoa, I’m not going in any chamber with her!”

  He seized me. “Will you please look at the bigger picture here? There are bigger things at stake than your pride here!�
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  “My pride is the last thing I have. I might as well take it to the grave.”

  Lucretius relaxed his grip and placed a hand on my shoulder. “Just promise me you will think about it. I will not spirit you away, but if you try and win the Queen’s heart, we may yet turn this around.”

  I looked down. “Don’t count on it,” I told him.

  He resigned himself and stood up. “Then I will see you in an hour. The trial will start then.”

  “Hey, see you there!”

  Lucretius left the room and I found the energy to get up and get dressed. There was no point in avoiding it anymore. My life was down to a few hours. I should have felt panicked and desperate to live, or at least depressed and hopeless. Instead, I felt a lightness unlike anything I had felt in years. I think I would have to go back to a time when I was a child to find such a moment. This feeling would be enough to send me to the gallows with a smile all the way until the end.

  They came to fetch me an hour later. The car that took us to the crowded square where I had witnessed Rayna’s own mock trial. At least I would know how mine would unfold. The place was more crowded than it had been that night. I had a feeling attendance was compulsory this time. The Queen would not waste such an occasion to show the good people of Anathorn what she could do if they failed to stay in line. Not even those in the council were safe. Lucretius was right to be nervous. After me, she might work her way up the council until it was just her in charge.

  My captors took me to the stage to display to the crowd. Their boos and jeers filled the square, but it didn’t matter. They would bark like dogs or bleat like sheep if given the right cues. People are fickle things. One day they love you, the next day they might be calling for your death. The remaining council members took their seat to the back of the stage, looking on the proceedings with grim faces.

  The Queen stepped out onto the stage to the cheers of the people. A smile appeared on my lips when I imagined the crowd bleating like sheep. She was looking at me. I returned the look, unaware at first that I was still smiling. Something in her eyes told me that Lucretius was still right. She had some feelings for me. A man with less pride and dignity could take advantage of that, but not this one.

  Oh, who was I kidding? I was never a virtuous Vampire, and I wasn’t about to start now. I blew her a soft kiss, so subtle that only she noticed. Her hand moved up to her heart and I knew the opportunity was there if I wanted to take it.

  Here goes nothing.

  The Queen examined me with narrowed eyes, trying to discern my true motives. Aside from living, there were none. I walked to my fate with calm resignation. It may have seemed like I was surrendering, but something told me everything would be just fine. All I had to do was let go and trust fate to deliver me at the eleventh hour. I’m not joking when I said that’s what I felt. It seemed like a thought out of the blue, but I felt inclined to trust it.

  “What in the world are you smoking, Mordecai?” I whispered to myself. Clearly the end was near and I was delirious. That must be it. Nothing to worry about, folks, just old Mordy losing what little bit of mind he has left, but don’t worry because soon he will lose his head as well.

  The Queen faced the crowd and raised her right hand high in the air. Silence radiated from the front rows to the back until the whole square was dead silent. She let the silence hang heavy in the air as she looked around at the many expectant faces. Her eyes had a gleam to them and she looked almost happy.

  “My children,” she said at last. “I have summoned you here so that you many see a grave injustice made right. Our great city was dealt a severe blow by the betrayal of one of our own. Rayna Espinoza was tried and found guilty. Her execution was arranged in this very spot, yet she did not die.

  “I struggled to understand why that was, for surely none of us are immune to the hunger of the undead and the infection they carry. Now I realize why that is.” She pointed that slender finger at me like a gun. “This man, one of our own, one that I trusted and — dare I say cared about, has found a way to tamper with the undead’s natural drive. He was able to become invisible to them and extended his power to the traitor Rayna. Together, in league with these beasts, they unleashed a plague that brought this whole city under siege. We suffered many losses. Good men and women died that night and thereafter. The infected have had to be cremated after their death, denying their families a chance at a proper burial.”

  At this point, she pulled a white blanket off an easel, unveiling the picture of one of the guards that was on duty that night. Several assistants came up and unveiled the rest, which included the guards and others who must have perished in the subsequent waves.

  “Look upon their faces!” she said to me. “Let them burn into your memory, for these deaths are on your hands.” She turned back to address the crowd. “This is your traitor. His name is Mordecai. The whereabouts of his accomplice are unknown, but rest assured we shall find her, and when we do, she will meet with the same fate.”

  Just then, as I was looking into the hateful eyes of the crowd, I thought I spotted a familiar figure moving through the dense mob that was boiling with outrage. She pushed them aside like tall blades of grass. Most of them were too absorbed in their loathing of me to notice. I wished she would look this way just for an instant. Even if I couldn’t see her face, I would at least have a reminder of the reason I was about to lose my life.

  “Mordecai, you stand accused of conspiracy and treason. How do you plead to this charge?”

  I took a deep breath and spoke. “I plead innocent. I have betrayed no one, nor have I conspired against this city.” The crowd’s booing drowned out my response.

  “Let it be recorded that the accused denies the charge.”

  A recorder I had failed to notice was busy chattering away on her notebook, transcribing the proceedings.

  “The Crown of Anathorn will now summon its first witness.”

  His name was Sean Speth, and he claimed to be in service of the Queen’s guard. He had been assigned to guard the cage where Rayna was to be devoured. I recognized him as the one that had left to get help. He testified that I assaulted the guards and opened the cage, releasing the zombies that fed on the guards and terrorized the town. There was no cross-examination, nor would there be any witnesses coming to speak in my defense. I had already been convicted. This was just a formality to seal my fate before the citizenry of Anathorn.

  “That’s not true!” I interrupted.

  “I will add a charge of contempt if you do not silence yourself right now, which will only increase your suffering,” said the Queen.

  “As you wish, my Queen.”

  There were other “witnesses” after him. Not one of them had been present at the square that night, but they all corroborated Sean Speth’s testimony and endorsed one another as reliable witnesses. The Queen vouched for all of them, placing a seal of approval that would ensure a guilty verdict. She may have been the last word in a trial, but she still had to keep the people’s support behind her.

  I heard grumblings and the occasional angry outburst coming from the crowd. The public opinion was set so far against me that they were ready to tear me apart with their bare hands.

  “My Queen, I assure you that I would never betray you. I implore you to look in your heart and find it in you to forgive me for whatever I may have done to fall out of your favor. You have my oath of loyalty. I will be as your slave. Every fiber of my being will be at your disposal.”

  The Queen’s iron façade cracked. I saw the slightest bit of doubt there. Lucretius rose from his seat and whispered something to her. She looked around like a child that was being forced to make the first difficult decision in her life. It was promising.

  Work your magic, Lucretius. Don’t fail me now.

  It seemed to be working. The Queen paced around, shaking her head and waving her arms. The people whispered among themselves. She addressed the crowd with a much more diffident air.

  “The court wil
l take a recess. We shall resume shortly,” she said before walking off the stage. The whispering increased to a dull roar as the people became confused. When she returned to the stand, she seemed to be distraught. I hoped it was because of me.

  “The Crown will now call the last witness,” she said. “Rhiannon Gottfried, if you will please come to the stand.”

  I was too stunned to do anything but stare. She walked up to the stand in the Queen’s guard uniform, her blaze red hair gathered into a tight bun at the back of her head. She actually wore just a bit of make-up now. Not that she needed it, but it made her that much more beautiful. It made me wish that I was with her, but something else had changed. For all her beauty, she had become more distant. Her eyes had a dead look to them. I gave her a hopeful look and all I felt was ice. Rhiannon took her place at the stand and swore her oath.

  “Tell me about your life before arriving at Anathorn.”

  “I lived at a small walled town named Jericho. It wasn’t much, but it was ours and we kept it safe. I lived there with my husband and son.”

  “And why did you leave?”

  “I left because my town had been overrun by the undead. A few days before the invasion, I fell ill and nearly died. When I woke up, everyone I loved was dead and the town was deserted. I have no one left.”

  “What do you think caused this tragedy at your town?”

  “I think it was one man in particular. He forced himself upon me, a married woman, and infected me with his sickness. It was because of him that our town fell.”

  “Could you point to this man?”

  She pointed at me and the crowd gasped as if on cue. She had broken my heart and sealed my fate in one deft move. I had no more desire to live, not when the one I once loved had sold me out. Let them do with me as they please.

  “I have no more questions for you,” said the Queen.

  “There is just one more thing,” Rhiannon said. “Do not let this man destroy your great city like he destroyed my family and my town. Stop him now while you still can.”

  I could already feel the icy fingers of death gripping my neck.