“Hm,” the shaman said with satisfaction. She patted the dust off her robe, then turned around and walked out.
I looked at Octavian, who seemed as irritated as I was. He opened his mouth to say something, but then the vampire coughed weakly. “Where… Where am I?” he asked faintly.
“Safe,” Octavian replied. “You were possessed by a spirit, but it’s gone now.”
The vampire sighed and closed his eyes for a second. Then he quickly opened his eyes again and picked himself up, his arms and legs still shaking. He stood up as well as he could, holding his head high, and looked at Octavian expectantly, like a soldier waiting for an order.
“Come on, let’s get you home,” Octavian said in a soothing voice, putting an arm around him in support. The vampire relaxed a little and hobbled toward the door, heavily leaning on Octavian.
I stepped out of the way to let them through. “I’ll just call Allard, let him know the good news,” I said as I pulled out my phone and his business card.
As Octavian passed the still frightened shop owner, he stopped for a moment. “I’m sorry for the chaos. You did well. We don’t know yet who’s behind this malicious attack, but we are working on bringing them to justice.”
The man gulped, but then let out a sigh of relief. “Thank you, uhm, sir. I… I wouldn’t be alive without you,” he stammered, still shaking. His eyes darted back and forth between the pale vampire, Octavian, and the pin on his suit.
“That’s what we’re here for,” Octavian replied with a subtle nod.
Octavian continued back to the street and helped the vampire into the car while I stayed a few steps behind to call Allard. “Hey. We got it. It attacked a magic shop, but we banished the spirit before anyone was hurt.”
“That’s great news!” Allard replied enthusiastically. “Can you come to the meeting house? You know, the one on Riverside. I’ll send you the address. We’re gathered there, trying to figure out who’s behind the attack. A more detailed report would help us greatly.”
I sighed, but then remembered that I had to go to pick up my payment anyway. “All right, I’ll be there.” I hung up and put the phone away. When I looked up, I saw Octavian looking at me expectantly.
“They want me to come in, give a detailed report,” I said. “They are still trying to figure out where that thing came from.”
“I see. Let’s get him home, then I’ll give you a ride,” Octavian acknowledged, pointing at the open car door.
“Thanks, but I think I can manage to travel through the city alone, even if it’s getting dark already,” I scoffed.
The vampire laughed. “I’m in this mess just as much as you are, so I’m going over there on my way back with or without you.”
He looked at me expectantly for another moment, then got in the front of the car, leaving the rear door open.
“Ugh, fine, whatever,” I muttered before striding over and getting in the car behind him. I would’ve appreciated a bit of solitude, away from vampires, but I supposed a car ride was more comfortable then taking the subway.
***
Lucky for me, both vampires were completely quiet the entire car ride. The guard was still pretty shaken and pale, and spent most of the time staring out the window. Color was slowly returning to his skin, but I suspected that the real trauma was in his head. In the meantime, Octavian was sitting in front and spent most of the time on his phone, apparently messaging.
I couldn’t help but smile as I suddenly saw the scene like a distant observer. Hundreds of years of stories of brutal, bloodhungry vampires who slayed entire villages just for the fun of it. But now? Some big, bad vampire being driven around by his chauffeur, probably texting updates to his superiors on his phone, and maybe checking Instagram while he’s at it.
While I appreciated the irony, I couldn’t let that fool me. I had seen him fight. It must have been at least two years ago, back when he was still in the guard. He had fought ferociously against a beast that I wasn’t sure I could have taken on.
Suddenly, he looked up. As he glanced into the rearview mirror, our eyes met briefly before I quickly looked away again, trying to seem bored.
“Don’t worry, we’re almost there,” he said before turning his attention back to his phone.
As predicted, the car pulled up and stopped just a minute later. It wasn’t in front of the dark, ancient castle that one might expect. It also wasn’t some big renaissance mansion, or even a church or monastery.
From what I’ve heard, the vampires were spread out throughout the city. At least the main clan, Clan Dulaire. They founded this city some 300 years ago, and decisively fought other vampire clans that popped up. I was sure they had secret underground hideouts, too, some probably as grim as those in popular movies. But this one? No, right now we were parked in front of a simple office building, probably with regular companies rented inside, too.
I had to admit, being a supernatural must’ve been easier a hundred years ago, without the internet, social media, and government trying to track everything. And yet, the vampires might have been the faction that proved the most adaptable. They built up regular businesses as fronts for their operations, as well as for cashflow. They still maintained one of their original castles at the edge of town, though.
Werewolves, on the other hand, didn’t care much, and preferred to spend a lot of time alone and in the wilderness. They still lived in the city, most of them at least, but often had seasonal jobs in fields that needed physical labor. Anything where their supernatural strength would help.
Witches liked to stay in small communities—covens—often appearing to the outside like stay-at-home moms with very peculiar interests. Their magic was connected to ingredients and tools, so many had shops selling herbs, crystals, specialty supplies, or magical jewelry.
Shamans tended to be rather reclusive, exotic in appearance and lifestyle. Sometimes even creepy, I thought as I remembered Ana, a shiver running down my spine. They were connected to the primal side of nature and magic, so they often weren’t as “modern” as others. While many witches might have had their spellbooks on tablets now, shamans still used leather or even bones to keep track of spells.
Elementalists were all over the board. They didn’t have much of a community, no covens like witches, no clans like vampires. Because of their strong connection to natural magic and the elements, they often liked to either live a quiet, peaceful life, or a very active, dangerous one.
And us rogues? We tended to stay in the shadows. It was hard to say anything that was true for all of us, since we were all so different. Anyone with magic could be a rogue if they grew up without anyone teaching them how to use it. Since we learned to use our magic intuitively for survival, it tended to develop in unpredictable, unique ways. I had met only a handful other rogues in the last two years, and we barely exchanged words.
Sometimes, I wondered what else I could do. All my life, I either focused my magic into raw force, magical blasts to push anyone back who came to close, or used it to conjure up a shield to protect me from harm. No fancy spells, no harnessing the elements. Just pure, raw magic. Simple but effective.
Maybe one day I’ll have a witch or a shaman try and teach me.
I barely noticed my surroundings as the car started driving again. The Ring had acted like this attack was something big and important, some huge event that needed to be dealt with. And sure, it had to. But from where I stood, it was just another day in Darkhaven. If I had a drink for every time there was a supernatural attack or someone innocent was murdered, I’d be an alcoholic. I kept to my dark thoughts until Octavian’s voice eventually broke the silence.
“What are you so broody about?”
I turned my head to look at him through the mirror, blinking twice to get my mind back to the moment. “What?”
He smiled lightly. “We won. We found the spirit and banished it. Why do you look like your cat just died?”
“Don’t you ever get tired of all this?” I sighed. I hadn’t meant to
share my thoughts, but it had slipped out regardless.
“Of what?” he asked, tilting his head.
“The constant battle, the fighting, the bloodshed,” I shrugged. “I mean, you could probably just retire and live a long, happy life. You would always be healthy, wouldn’t age, would never get old and wrinkly. Most people would kill for that, and yet all we do is fight. There’s always someone getting murdered around here, isn’t there?”
“Wow, that’s dark.” The vampire chuckled, then looked out the window. His gaze drifted into the distance, his brows furrowed. After a long pause, he eventually replied, his eyes still gazing into nothingness.
“I guess I’m hoping we can leave all that behind someday. Live together peacefully. It might not always feel like it, but maybe we are getting closer.” He looked at me again, but the sadness in his eyes didn’t make me feel like he was totally convinced himself.
“But for today, we succeeded,” he continued. “And you might not like it, but from what I’ve seen, you’re quite good at fighting, even against terrifying foes. We made the city one spirit safer. Let’s focus on that and worry about the future tomorrow,” he said with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.
“Hm,” I shrugged in response. I wasn’t that idealistic. I used to fight for survival, for food, to live another day. Then I fought to make money, just enough to pay for a decent life. But now… I was lost.
I kept quiet for the rest of the ride. Bringing it up had been a mistake.
“Oh look, we’re here,” Octavian eventually exclaimed, straightening himself up in his seat. “I was hoping for more depressive bantering, but I guess it’s time to give that report and figure out our next steps.”
I shrugged and got out of the car. Maybe I should’ve stayed in bed and watched Netflix. At least the payment for this job would be enough to finish that rainy-day fund. That should have filled me with joy, a sense of achievement, but it didn’t. Maybe it was just my current mood, sick of going in circles, but I just didn’t care for any more fighting. There was no fire in me, no passion. No drive.
Maybe it is time for a break, I thought. Head out of the city for some time, take some time to smell the flowers. Figuratively, of course. I’d probably end up wrestling with a bear, though, because he couldn’t appreciate my jokes.
I guess the vampire was right. My thoughts are getting pretty depressing.
I shook my head as we entered the house. Now was not the time for a mid-life crisis. Also, I was far too young for one. Supposedly, they start when you’re forty-something and have wrinkles around your eyes, not when you’re twenty-one. All I had was dark circles, although I wasn’t sure if that protected me from an early burnout.
Unlike the vampire’s building, this meeting house for the Ring of Elders was not some grand construction, but a simple suburban-style house near the river, a quieter district of Darkhaven. I had been here only once to deliver something, but I remembered it as a warm and friendly place, a place that felt like home… to those who belonged here, at least.
But today, something seemed off. I didn’t hear agitated chatter as we walked into the house, no heated conversations. Either they were done arguing, or something was wrong. And when given that choice, I would always assume something was wrong.
I pulled my head in and started sneaking forward slowly, gesturing for Octavian to fall in line behind me.
“What?” he asked, confused. “I thought we were invited?”
“Shh! Something seems off,” I whispered as I continued through the hallway and into the house.
He frowned, but followed suit, moving completely silently behind me. As we reached the first room, I looked inside and almost jumped back against the wall with shock.
Just two steps inside the room, there was a witch, staring at me with eyes wide open. His face showed pure disbelief,and his eyes were filled with fear. But after my initial surprise, a cold shiver ran down my spine.
It wasn’t me he was looking at. Whatever had surprised him was already gone.
The witch was completely petrified.
I took a step closer, waved my hand in front of his face. Nothing. Octavian stepped next to me and took a long look at him. When he turned his head to look at me again, even his usually carefully controlled face showed a fear I hadn’t seen before.
Still spooked, he gestured forward. He took point and slowly advanced with controlled steps. At every door and corner, he stopped, peeked inside, then methodically inspected the room before moving on.
Whatever dark thoughts I’d had were gone now, replaced by cold focus before a fight. I felt like we were in the calm before the storm, and goosebumps spread up my spine. Something was very wrong, but I had no idea what it was.
When we sneaked around a corner, my heart stopped for a moment. We reached the main living room, which had an open glass front leading toward into the garden. Normally, a beautiful, calm environment. But right now, it was a scene straight from a nightmare.
There were three people at the kitchen isle. One had his hand on a sandwich, but his face was to turned toward me. He looked surprised, but had an otherwise relaxed posture. Like I was just late to a party, and he didn’t expect me to show up. But he, too, was frozen in place, like he hadn’t even realized what was happening until it was too late.
There was a mix of anger and fear written on the faces of the other two. One wielded a wand in his hand, the other had a short sword in her hand. They had both seen the attacker, tried to stop them, but ultimately failed. Judging from their combat-ready stance, they had been incapacitated before they could put up any sort of fight.
But in the main area of the living room, it was pure chaos. There were six people around a flipped table, probably all Elders. All frozen mid-movement with fear on their faces, like they were frantically trying to escape, tables and chairs knocked over around them.
My heart skipped a beat and then raced even faster as one figure suddenly moved. I had barely noticed her before somehow, despite her sticking out like a sore thumb.
She looked female, about my height, but was wearing a hooded black cape, so I couldn’t make out anything else. She moved calmly toward one of the elders, whose face was a mask of terror. He was on his back, like he tried to retreat away from her before he was frozen in place. His eyes were still locked to his attacker, terrified and wide open.
I turned to look at Octavian, who was standing next to me, his face paler than usual. This was probably the first time I had seen real fear in his eyes.
“What… is that?!” he stuttered quietly. Then he straightened up, and the fear was pushed away by determination. “Hey! You! Don’t move!” he shouted as he stepped into the room.
I quickly pulled back around the corner, my heart beating like a drum. Was he being a suicidal fool, or a heroic badass? While I liked the thought of saving the day and kicking ass, I also liked living. A lot. And right now, I wasn’t sure about my chances of making it out alive if I charged into this blindly.
I heard Octavian take a step forward and the mysterious figure snarling angrily in response.
I took a deep breath and looked around the corner, ready to bravely step next to him and take out that thing together. I turned around the corner, my hand reaching for my dagger.
Octavian was still looking at the figure grimly, his arm stretched toward her, pointing at her like he was scolding a child. My hand gripped my dagger, ready to draw it, when I froze.
He was still standing there.
And he wasn’t moving.
Fuck.
I immediately withdrew behind the corner. I tried to breathe, but my heart was beating like a heavy metal concert. My palms were sweaty as I quietly pulled my dagger. I forced a deep breath into my lungs, then out through my mouth. I could still turn around and run. No one would stop me. Or I could stay and save half the Elders and a Crimson Fang. I wasn’t one for playing the hero, but that sounded pretty badass. If I survived it. Blood rushed through my ears, drowning out all
other sounds as I tried to focus and think.
But there was one more sound that broke the silence.
Steps.
Steps coming toward me.
Double fuck.
5
Think, Raven, think!
Okay, what happened? How did she get him? She didn’t say anything, so it can’t be a spell. At least not the kind that I know.
There was not a lot of sound, so she didn’t hit him with anything… probably. It could be some other magical artifact. Something you could point at someone to petrify them. I shuddered at the thought.
Wait.
The guy at the kitchen. He had looked at the entrance, petrified before he could react. He must have looked at her when she entered the room as he became petrified. As the idea developed in my head, fear took roots. This would be a nasty fight. My hand played with my snake bracelet that I still had on my wrist, but it wouldn’t help me now.
The steps were getting close, and I had a few more seconds at most before she came around the corner. If I was right, I had a decent chance of making it out alive.
But if I was wrong, I was dead.
I straightened myself up and took a deep breath, holding my dagger tightly in my hand. I closed my eyes and listened intensely. From the sound of her steps, she was about three feet around the corner.
My heart raced, the sound of blood rushing through my ears almost drowning out her steps. I swallowed hard, then breathed out slowly.
You can do this, Raven.
Another step. One more. Now.
I took a deep breath in, then spun around the corner, keeping my eyes closed tightly. In a wide arc, I swung my dagger forward, aiming at where I thought her throat must be.
With an ugly sound, I sliced through flesh. It was too hard, though. Not a throat. A chest, maybe?
An ugly scream filled my ears, like nails on a chalkboard, sending jolts of pain through my spine. I hit her alright, but I only made her angrier. And whatever she was about to do, I couldn’t even see it. My skin crawled at the thought. I swung my blade again, but it sliced through air.
Raven's Ascent Page 5