A Shade of Vampire 78: An Origin of Vampires

by Forrest, Bella

  Valaine turned to look at me. “Do you understand why we need your help?” she asked. “We’re a proud nation, and we do not do this often, but we need you. Even the Lord and Lady Supreme will admit it. We dare not say it aloud, in front of people, and many among our nobles still refuse to acknowledge it… but…”

  “I know,” I said, giving her a soft smile. “You need us. I’ll have to tell the crew about this, though. They need to understand what they’re getting themselves into.”

  “Yes. Just keep it within your group. No one else knows I’ve brought you down here, except Lina here,” she replied, glancing at the nurse.

  I didn’t have words left in me. After the horrors I’d read about in the library, after seeing victims of the Black Fever with my own eyes… how could I say no to Valaine? Naturally, I wouldn’t have dreamed of guaranteeing any kind of result, given that this was a disease we knew so little about. But we could still try, and I knew that Amal and Nethissis would pull out all the stops to cure this disease.

  They had Amane and Lumi within reach, thanks to Telluris, if they needed additional support. We could send blood samples to Strava through GASP; we could even advocate to bring more witches to Visio in order to work faster against this emerging outbreak. Despite what Acheron and Danika had said last night, I figured curing Black Fever was more important than keeping an extra five or six GASP members away from Visio.

  Valaine had taken a great risk telling and showing me all of this. It couldn’t have been easy, and I had to appreciate her determination—or was it, perhaps, desperation? Either way, she needed me, and I couldn’t allow myself to let her down.

  Without even thinking, I took Valaine’s hands in mine in a bid to reassure her. “We’ll help you. We’ll do whatever we can. You have my word.”

  Relief lightened her expression, her black eyes filled with warmth and flickers of hope. Nobody deserved to go through this. We needed to make this nightmare stop for the Aeternae.

  Seeley

  The evening set over Visio in deep shades of red and purple that streaked across the sky. I stood on the rooftop of the east wing, just above the guest rooms where Derek’s crew had been lodged. I’d spent most of my time split between shadowing the team and looking in and around the city, searching for some clues as to why there wasn’t a single Reaper working here.

  To my disappointment, my search had not yielded any results. All I had was radio silence and zero answers. It angered me, so I’d taken a moment out here, to just collect my thoughts and replenish my energy. Omniscience was tiresome, especially when Derek and his people split up and I had to dart around, making sure I didn’t miss anything.

  I’d seen the Black Fever victims, and I’d witnessed the Blood Arena murder, as well as the duel that followed. No other Reaper had shown up for Krassus or Demetrius, so I’d reaped them myself, not wanting to leave any wandering souls around. Visio was anything but perfect—that much was clear. Their intentions seemed good, though their politics were oppressive. Nicely packaged and well remunerated, but oppressive. Like Derek had said, though… it was their business, not mine. My issue was the absence of Reapers, which made no sense, and the confusion coming in from the higher circles only made things worse. I couldn’t move away from the crew to start reaping anyone who died, so my society had to come up with a solution soon. In the meantime, I had to continue my search for answers.

  How could three planets—three, not one, because the same thing was happening on Rimia and Nalore, as I had recently learned—slip through the cracks of our system? How could millions of creatures not be carted off to the underworld upon their deaths? This was mind-boggling!

  Exhaling sharply, I glanced around the palace. The view was as dreamy as they came, lights flickering through thousands of windows, smoke rising from the tall chimneys, and the sky gradually darkening overhead as the city prepared for slumber. The streetlamps were dim, shadows dancing across the cobblestone, down the alleys and boulevards lined with boxed trees and neat sidewalks. The occasional carriage drawn by Visions clicked and clacked through the neighborhoods. Couples and families and friends retreated to their homes. Tired Rimians and Naloreans moved through the streets, their eyes half closed as they stopped by the baker’s or the market for last-minute groceries, just before the closing bells rang.

  This was a peaceful city. Silver guards were all over, watching, listening, doing their best to keep the people safe—and not just the Aeternae. I’d seen Rimians and Naloreans saved from street violence, as well, on the outskirts and in the less pleasant parts of the city. However, I needed more time for a proper assessment, and more Reapers.

  The latter were currently being gathered and sent my way, so I wasn’t going to be here on my own for much longer. I knew Tristan and Esme weren’t planning on doing their secret explorations till much later in the night, but I also knew Nethissis was running out of patience. I’d heard her talking to Eva over their Telluris connection. She suspected something foul beneath the pretty-looking surface, but she wasn’t sure what it was that bothered her.

  If only I could tell her about what I’d been dealing with. I zapped into her room, to find her standing in front of a tall mirror, wrapped in a dark red silk robe. Her handmaiden had just finished drawing a hot bath, stopping in the doorway with a polite smile.

  “Milady, your bath is ready,” the Rimian girl said.

  “Thank you, Lory,” Nethissis replied, without looking away from her reflection.

  As the handmaiden left the room, Nethissis breathed out, tension gathering around her, the air troubled and supercharged. She wasn’t going to just stand around for much longer, merely observing the Aeternae, the Rimians, and the Naloreans. She’d drawn her conclusions already, and she’d shared them—not only with the crew, but also with Eva, her closest friend.

  Nethissis was convinced that the Aeternae were hiding something. Based on the handmaiden’s warning not to explore the prohibited sections of the palace, I knew she was preparing to do just that. Only, unlike the others on her team, Nethissis had the ability to turn into a small copperhead snake, able to move freely through the dark corners and nooks, to explore and get to the bottom of the mystery.

  For a moment, I wondered if my issue and hers were related. What are the odds that they’re not? I asked myself. Over a thousand years as a Reaper had taught me that there was rarely such a thing as coincidence.

  “Okay, here goes,” she murmured.

  Her bones cracked. She grunted and gasped as her body changed. The copper scales on her skin spread, and her form shrank into that of a snake. The silk robe dropped on the floor, now empty. The reddish brown head poked out from between the soft folds, her amber eyes glistening in the candlelight. Nethissis was ready to explore, and I was in awe of her snake form. Even like this, she was beautiful, slithering across the floor as the dark brown spots danced along her body.

  Her forked tongue slipped out. She analyzed the smells, the chemical composition of everything around her, and I was compelled to follow as she snuck under the door. Nethissis wasn’t a regular, large copperhead like the ones I’d seen on Earth. No, she was significantly smaller, but that allowed her to sneak around virtually unnoticed.

  Maybe my instincts were right. Maybe we were both searching for the same thing, so I decided to stay close to her, just in case. I wasn’t allowed to interfere in the affairs of the living, including hers, but I doubted I’d be able to resist the temptation. This wasn’t just anyone. This was Nethissis. I’d gone to great, unethical lengths to stop her from dying as a sacrifice to Eirexis. I wasn’t going to let anything happen to her on Visio, either.

  She moved through the hallways, keeping to the shadows. Leaving the more populated sections of the palace behind, Nethissis made her way into the west wing, descending a service staircase. The access doors to it had been locked, but that didn’t stop the feisty little copperhead. She slipped through and reached a dark, damp, and filthy corridor—the complete opposite of everythin
g I’d seen above in the palace.

  We were underground now, and I realized I hadn’t seen this area before. It was strange and cold, with barely a flutter of pale light at the far end of the hallway. Water dripped down the walls, forming puddles over the stone floor. There were many doors along this corridor, most of them locked. I peeked through some of them—empty cells with rotten wood benches; dark pantries, their shelves loaded with jars and tin boxes, each smellier than the other; and storage chambers filled with old armor and swords and shields, dating back two to three million years ago, at least.

  Nethissis kept moving, constantly testing the air with her tongue. She’d caught the scent of the pantry chemicals, as she, too, had checked these rooms out, albeit briefly. There wasn’t anything that either of us could consider a red flag.

  At the end of the corridor, a maze of narrow hallways opened up, each leading in a different direction. To say that I was intrigued would have been an understatement. It was time to hone my omniscience again. My energy levels were pretty low, but I had just enough for a nighttime exploration task. I split into three versions of myself, the weaker one staying with Nethissis. In her snake form, she was practically impossible to spot, and we had yet to come across any signs of life.

  It quickly became a challenge for me to focus, as my two other selves continued their quest through the adjacent corridors. More cell rooms, stinky pantries, and storage boxes. More dampness and darkness. More water dripping down the rough stone walls. Soon enough, we were both on to something.

  Guards patrolled these underground sections. Not silver or gold, but black-armored guards, with short swords and belts loaded with small leather pouches, different from other soldiers I’d seen so far. They moved slowly up and down the corridors, occasionally checking the heavy locks on each of the doors. What could they possibly have in here that required armed protection? It didn’t make sense, since I’d checked the rooms myself.

  Nethissis hid in a wall nook for a few minutes as a guard passed her by. His boots thudded across the floor, sending cold echoes through the hallway. She came back out, raising her neck to get a better look at the guy. I quickly realized that she had good reason to be curious. These weren’t regular Aeternae guarding the place. They were all former Naloreans, big and burly and pale of skin, but with fangs and claws and Aeternae reflexes, prompting Nethissis to be extra careful in her endeavors.

  Normally, they only allowed Aeternae to handle palace security, so why was this place different? It still fell within the palace’s jurisdiction. Hell, even the armor was identical to what I’d seen on the upper levels, except for being black. They had the same crests and decorative motifs etched into the shoulder and chest plates.

  I continued shadowing Nethissis on this side, while my other two versions moved farther away. It seemed as though the corridors reached out and away from one another. We ended up in another, tighter hallway, lined with solid iron cell doors. It felt different, compared to what we’d observed until now.

  Strange noises emerged from inside these rooms. Sounds I didn’t immediately recognize. A loud, spine-tingling shriek pierced through the corridor, and Nethissis stopped cold upon hearing it. We both looked around, trying to identify the source, but there was nothing in sight.

  Staying back, I tried to go through one of the iron doors. To my surprise, I couldn’t. Something warded my Reaper form, forbidding my entry. My stomach churned. This wasn’t good at all. In fact, this warranted additional concern. Determined to peek into this room, I didn’t even notice Nethissis was gone until it was too late. She’d slithered away, undeterred by the shriek, while I’d been left standing in front of a door I couldn’t open or pass through.

  To my frustration, it wasn’t the only one. Every single cell on this block was warded against me. Determined not to let the Aeternae get away with whatever it was they were hiding, I decided to break open one of the doors. Nothing they had put together could keep me out for good.

  “Kelara, can you hear me?” I reached out through my telepathic connection.

  “Dream, for Pete’s sake, enough with the…” Her voice trailed off. “Seeley. Yes. I’m here.”

  Our link was weird. I’d never been able to hear her like this, before she’d even become aware of my contact. Something was changing among the Reapers, and I wasn’t sure what it was, or who was responsible. And it was the least of my concerns right now.

  “I was right. There’s something iffy going on here,” I said. “They’ve got locked cells in the underground. Warded against Reapers.”

  My other versions came across similar rooms, also protected against me and my kind. They were also neatly sealed, and I knew even Nethissis, wherever she’d gone now, couldn’t sneak through. Whatever this place was, it warranted an in-depth investigation, and I knew I couldn’t do it on my own. I needed backup, and I needed it quickly.

  “How is that possible?” Kelara replied, out of breath.

  “I don’t know. How’s my team coming along? How soon till they get here?” I asked.

  “They should be with you by morning. I’ve put Rudolph in charge.”

  “Seriously?” I croaked. “Sidyan was much better for this job. He’s got experience with dark places and Reaper wards. Rudolph’s more… corporate.”

  Kelara sighed. “Be thankful. No one wanted to go to Visio for you. Sidyan is busy, but Rudolph said he will lead a team your way, as soon as he’s done with a mass reaping. A disaster is about to hit one of the worlds in his care tonight. He’ll head your way right afterwards. It’s better than nothing, Seeley.”

  “Yeah, we need Death back at a hundred percent so we don’t have to deal with this crap again,” I said, shaking my head as I stared at the symbols that had been engraved into one of the cell locks. “This is ancient Reaper magic, Kelara. What’s it doing in the Aeternae’s possession?”

  “I’m not sure, but we don’t want to go marching in on them,” she replied. “Death says you need to be careful and discreet. If something is going on there, it needs to be investigated without spooking any of the possible perpetrators—whoever they may be.”

  “Yeah. I get it.” Looking around, I watched another guard pass me by, his boots thudding and splashing through the puddles. “I’ll speak to you in a bit.”

  As the telepathic connection closed, I realized I had more questions than answers at this point. I knew there was something going on here, something aimed against Reapers, but I wasn’t sure what, and I didn’t understand what the Aeternae’s involvement was, either.

  Taking my scythe out, I decided to do a little bit of work on the lock. It might’ve been warded against me, but it didn’t mean I couldn’t at least try to override the magic and look inside. I summoned my two other versions, for it would take all the energy I had left to focus on the lock.

  Using the tip of my scythe, I scratched away at some of the symbols on it. I’d need some time, but I was confident I could open it eventually. Whatever they were hiding in these cells, it was important enough to want to keep even Reapers out of here. This entire development begged a new question, though, on top of the many others: How were the Aeternae aware of and even knowledgeable about Reapers and their magic?

  Soon enough, another question poked me, and it beckoned me to stop everything that I’d been doing. If there was Reaper magic in this place, how safe was someone like Nethissis down here, even in her snake form? Catching up with her became more important than this door. I had to find a way to get her out of here. Then, I could come back to fiddling with the spells they’d put in place.

  Sofia

  Starlight glimmered in the night sky outside, as the shades had already been pulled from the study room windows to reveal a most breathtaking sight. Below, the city unraveled with its twinkling windows and streetlamps. Above, the night offered a full view of its endless indigo ocean, ruled by a giant pearly moon.

  Derek and I had been by Amal’s side for most of the day. We’d spent the morning helping her coll
ect blood samples from both Danika and Acheron, as well as Petra, Kalon, Zoltan, and even Corbin. Amal had decided that it was enough to work with, for the time being. She’d brought her equipment back from the shuttle, and she’d set it all up on the tables here.

  Microscopes, a centrifuge, vials and coolers, and a plethora of devices and tools she needed to study and identify the protein in the Aeternae’s blood, by drawing comparisons to Derek’s. We’d gone over everything we’d seen and learned so far, and Nethissis had already sent a first report back to GASP with operational details. As far as I could tell, we were on the right track, and were thrilled to have gained the Aeternae’s support on this.

  If, at first, we’d been reluctant to tell the Lord and Lady Supreme about the protein, Beryn’s malicious intervention during last night’s dinner had actually helped clear the air. It had felt awkward for a splinter of a moment, at most, but reason had prevailed on both sides of the discussion.

  “It’s going to take a while for me to identify the protein,” Amal said after hours of painstaking study. “Their blood is so rich and different. I’ve spotted at least twenty enzymes that could be used in life-saving cures.”

  “How is that possible?” I asked, getting up from my overly comfortable armchair. Derek was flipping through a manuscript he’d borrowed from the library, a series of papers on the benefits of drinking Rimian and Nalorean blood. Despite their less advanced technological state, the Aeternae had studied things profoundly, as best as they could.

  “I’m not sure, but I think it might have something to do with the kind of blood they drink for sustenance,” Amal replied.

  Derek nodded in agreement. “I think she’s on to something,” he said, pointing at the manuscript. “Here, it says that all the Aeternae who have tried to live solely on animal blood have developed various weaknesses and dysfunctions. There’s definitely a health-related reason speaking in favor of them drinking Rimian and Nalorean blood. Maybe it does much more to their blood than they thought.”