A Dome of Blood

by Bella Forrest

  “I did have a mother, in a way,” Ta’Zan said, his voice barely audible.

  “Huh?”

  “A surrogate mother. I came out of a real womb, not an artificial pouch, like my Perfects,” Ta’Zan replied. “I never met her. My creator didn’t tell me anything about her. I would’ve liked to meet her, to be honest,” he added, then looked at me. “Is that what you want to hear from me, Derek? Something to make me seem a little more like you?”

  I took a deep breath and let it out slowly, as if emptying my lungs of everything, to start over. Movement somewhere below caught my eye as we walked. Leaves rustled. Tree crowns trembled. A puff of ashes burst out from one.

  A Faulty poked his head out. Then a couple more. They vanished back under, as several Perfects came after them. More puffs of ashes followed. Only then did I realize that I’d yet to breathe back in. Something was happening outside by the southwest entrance, and I knew it had to do with our mission.

  I moved and turned around to face Ta’Zan in order to block his view of the southwest sector. I narrowed my eyes at him, while my brain practically burned itself out as I thought of a way to distract him, to get him inside and myself back in the diamond dome. Time was running out.

  “Your surrogate mother is alive,” I said.

  That worked. Ta’Zan went blank. His jaw dropped, and his eyes nearly popped out of their orbits. “What are you talking about, Derek?” he croaked.

  “She’s in the diamond dome. She’s one of us,” I replied.

  He blinked several times. His eyes, one blue and one green, were hazy, making him seem lost. I’d hit him right in the gut with this one, and I had to admit: it felt good. I had to play whatever card I had against him. I wasn’t sure what that would mean for Bogdana, but this was the most inconspicuous way to get Ta’Zan away from the edge and inside the colosseum. The scuffle happening below had to be part of the Faulties’ role in Rose and Ben’s plan—a distraction to get as many Perfects as possible busy over here, with apparent intruders, while Araquiel and the others made their way through the different levels and planted their explosives.

  I’d almost forgotten about this stage, worried more about those ships and Arch-Perfects that Ta’Zan had mentioned. Based on what I’d seen in the sky the night before, the full moon was only a couple of days away. That alone had been enough to throw me into a frenzy.

  We couldn’t mess up now.

  “You’re lying,” Ta’Zan breathed, clearly unable to process this information.

  “I’ll introduce you,” I retorted.

  Oh, it had definitely worked. I now had to make sure things didn’t get out of hand back in the diamond dome. We couldn’t have Ta’Zan lingering down there for long. Things were already on the move out here.

  I just couldn’t help but worry, as I wondered what impact this revelation would have on Bogdana.

  Elonora

  “How long will Ta’Zan keep Derek up there?” I asked, nervously staring at the double doors, praying he would walk through them any minute now.

  Corrine, Ibrahim, Kailani, and Lumi took their positions at the cardinal points, with their backs pointing east, west, north, and south, respectively. Hunter and Dmitri had drawn the required symbols with pieces of chalk they’d managed to hide in their inner pockets, guided by Lumi. The rest of us made sure to spread out and obscure the view from above.

  We couldn’t have Perfects peeking in and noticing lines and symbols drawn on the diamond floor, after all. Rose and Nevis were with me in the middle. Vivienne, Xavier, Sofia, Lucas, Marion, and Avril had joined us, while Cameron, Liana, Aiden, Grandma Claudia, Grandpa Yuri, and Varga surrounded us. Draven, Serena, Heron, and his wards, along with Taeral, Bijarki, and the others, formed the outer circle.

  “I don’t know, but I hope it’s not too long,” Sofia replied. She breathed a heavy sigh. “We need him back here. I think our witches and warlock are ready.”

  “Yes, we are,” Kailani said. “But this collar is burning up.”

  “You know the drill,” I replied.

  She gave me a faint nod, pursing her lips. Once we were all in here, Derek included, we’d use the codes Amal had given us to disable the collars while the bilocation spell was performed.

  Ben had taken Vesta, Kailyn, Bogdana, and a couple more fae to the northwest edge of the dome, where they’d use their earth manipulation abilities to crack through the diamond floor and force a tunnel to open up between two rows of beds. Vivienne, Sofia, and Liana had managed to create a canopy of sorts over it, after they dismantled a couple of beds and used the metal frames for a makeshift structure. They’d thrown bedsheets over it, and, as one of the Perfect guards looked through the outer wall to see what they were doing, they’d lain down, pretending to chill in the shade.

  Needless to say, it didn’t take much to divert the Perfects from what we were doing. Most of the guards couldn’t care less about what we did. According to Xavier and Lucas, the change in their demeanor had become visible from the moment that Cassiel had first been introduced as an Arch-Perfect, supposedly superior to them.

  “Are you ready?” Nevis asked me, a deep shadow drawn between his pale eyebrows. His skin had caught a slight tan since we’d arrived on Strava, and I had to admit, it made him look even better, especially in contrast with his snow-white hair.

  I nodded. “Ready as I’ll ever be. If only Derek were back here to—”

  The doors snapped open, interrupting my train of thought. As if summoned by my frayed nerves, Derek walked in, accompanied by Ta’Zan. The way they both looked made me wary. Ta’Zan’s aura was a jumble of emotions—fear, anger, and threads of gold prevailing over everything else. I couldn’t see Derek’s aura, but his expression said enough. He was worried.

  “He must’ve said something to Ta’Zan to get himself back here so quickly,” Sofia murmured, unable to take her eyes off her husband.

  Ta’Zan stopped in front of the crowd, measuring each of us from head to toe. He was looking for someone. I found myself praying to the universe itself that he wouldn’t see the chalk drawings or the concentration of fae on the northwest side of the dome. He didn’t seem to care, though. I followed his gaze, and my heart stopped for a moment.

  He’d found the person he’d been looking for.

  “Bogdana,” I whispered.

  “I’m sorry, Bogdana. I had to tell him the truth,” Derek said out loud, for everyone to hear. “I hope you understand.”

  The old fae gasped, before she cast a quick glance toward Ben and Vesta and moved unevenly toward Ta’Zan, who was utterly speechless and downright stunned. Tension in the dome rose to almost unbearable limits, making it difficult for me to even breathe.

  The entire crowd was anxious about what came next—most of the emotions I could see were in deep shades of yellow. Fear. All kinds of fear…

  “It’s okay, Derek. I’m sure you had good reasons for doing that,” Bogdana replied, her voice trembling slightly. Out of them all, she was the most scared, but she kept a straight face, nonetheless, as she advanced through the hall toward Ta’Zan.

  Only then did it fully hit me what had happened, as if my brain was working in slow motion. Derek told Ta’Zan about Bogdana. But why?

  “Ta’Zan knows she’s his mother,” I murmured. “Why would Derek do that?”

  “What better way to get himself back in here, with us?” Sofia replied.

  Nevis shook his head slowly. “He sold her out, then?”

  “We don’t know that yet,” Lucas replied. “Wait.”

  Now facing Ta’Zan, Bogdana kept her chin high. She was practically crumbling on the inside, torn between fear and some kind of affection, but her expression was remarkably calm. Ta’Zan, on the other hand, wore his emotions on his sleeve at this point. He was beyond shocked.

  “You gave birth to me,” he said, his voice barely audible.

  Bogdana took a deep breath. “Yes.”

  “You’re… You’re my mother?”

  She shoo
k her head. “I only carried you in my womb, as a favor to Mudak.”

  Ta’Zan frowned, then looked around at the prisoner crowd again. None of us moved. We all stood our ground and looked straight at him, tall and unwavering, unwilling to show any kind of weakness.

  “How did you end up here, with these people? Where did you go after you gave birth to me?” Ta’Zan asked. He’d probably settled for these two questions. He must’ve had hundreds more, gathered over the years. No matter what he said about himself, Ta’Zan had to have a weak spot. I had a feeling that we’d just found it.

  “I left as soon as you were born,” Bogdana replied. “Mudak didn’t want me anywhere near you. So I went back to my people,” she added, then motioned around at us. “These are my people you’ve imprisoned.”

  Ta’Zan crossed his arms, keeping his chin between his thumb and index finger. He frowned, watching Bogdana carefully, as if checking every inch of her. As if making sure she was real.

  “My father didn’t want you in my life?” he asked. “Why? Did he ever tell you?”

  “He didn’t tell you?” Bogdana replied. Ta’Zan didn’t answer. We all took that as a no. She offered a shrug in return. “He didn’t want me to love you. He didn’t want you to love me, either. He wanted you all to himself, so he could raise you and shape your personality as he desired.”

  “Mudak must’ve thought he could develop you without the nurturing of a mother,” Derek interjected. “A fool, if you ask me.”

  “No one asked you!” Ta’Zan snapped.

  I instantly covered my mouth to stop a chuckle from coming out. We’d definitely gotten to Ta’Zan, and I regretted not having revealed Bogdana sooner.

  “And you never wondered about me? You never thought to object to my father’s demand? You just… left?” Ta’Zan asked, a nerve twitching in his temple. He was furious.

  “The creature I gave birth to is dead,” Bogdana replied stoically. “The creature I’m facing now is a monster. I could never love or wonder about a monster who seeks to thrive on others’ misery. From the moment Mudak took you away from me, I knew you’d never be complete. He was a scientist, not father material. And I knew, when they told me about what you’d done, that you were—that you are a monster.”

  “You carried me in your womb for months. Our souls were practically connected. Yet you stand here, today, and call me a monster?” Ta’Zan murmured, as if not believing a single word she’d just said.

  Bogdana nodded. “You were gone. Dead. I said my goodbyes then and moved on. Mudak never would’ve let me be a part of your life. It’s too late now, anyway. You’re irredeemable, and there is nothing I can do about that. Honestly, I feel sorry for you.”

  “Don’t,” Ta’Zan replied. He grabbed Bogdana by the wrist and dragged her out of the dome. “You and I have a lot to talk about.”

  None of us could do anything. Taeral and Bijarki tried to go after her, but Xavier and Draven were quick to get to them and pull them back before their collars could do any damage.

  “Stand back,” Derek said to them. “He won’t hurt her.”

  “How do you know?” Taeral asked, surprisingly concerned about Bogdana. He didn’t strike me as the caring type, which made his reaction all the more curious.

  “She’s his mother,” Derek said, as the double doors closed after Ta’Zan and Bogdana. “No matter what he portrays himself as, that’s the one bond he cannot lie to himself about.”

  “She’s not his biological mother, though,” Bijarki replied, raising an eyebrow.

  “It doesn’t matter. She’s the closest thing he’ll ever have to a mother,” Derek said. “I’m truly sorry I had to do that, but I couldn’t think of anything else to get him inside and myself back to you. Faulties are operating on the southwest side. He nearly spotted the scuffle. He’ll find out about it soon enough. I just needed to buy those people a bit more time.”

  “It’s starting, then,” Sofia said lowly. “We’re closer to our escape. But what about Bogdana? We can’t just leave her with Ta’Zan, can we?”

  She grimaced from the pain, her collar burning and clearly bothering her.

  “We don’t have much of a choice. She’ll be okay,” Derek replied. “Amal and Amane were right. Douma, too. Ta’Zan isn’t himself anymore. He’s clearly distraught and losing focus. We’re building a mass memory wiper under his nose. We’ve infiltrated his colosseum, and we’re planting bombs all over it. Down here, we’re getting ready to break out of the joint. His Perfects have low morale, and with Bogdana present, he’s… well, he’s vulnerable.”

  “And he didn’t even know it!” Lucas exclaimed. “Dammit, it’s brilliant. Devious and brilliant.”

  On top of that, if Ta’Zan had been trying to listen in on us, the scrambler on Rose had certainly done its part, since we were so close to busting out of here without detection.

  “The timing is perfect,” Corrine cut in. “We need to get the bilocation spell going now. Once we evacuate, we’ll give Araquiel the go-ahead to detonate the charges.”

  Derek nodded enthusiastically, then looked at Taeral. “We’ll get Bogdana back. First, we need to get everyone out and the fae in. The Hermessi must be activated in order to destroy Ta’Zan and rein in the Perfects and Arch-Perfects.”

  A loud thump made my spine tingle. It was a familiar sound, and it was never good.

  “Kale!” Hunter roared from the other side of the hall. “Kale, no!”

  I spotted him dashing through the crowd. He slid down on his knees and stopped right next to Kailani. She’d passed out, but…

  “Oh, no,” I mumbled, dread crippling my senses.

  Corrine, Ibrahim, and Lumi were quick to get to her and Hunter. Kailani’s eyes were wide open and glowing white. I could hear that eerie hum in the back of my head, and the vibrations in the pit of my stomach.

  Kailani had just gone into Word-mode, with no way of telling when she’d wake up again. Without her, we couldn’t do the bilocation spell. Without her, we were screwed.

  Elonora

  “Come on, Kale, don’t do this now,” Hunter said as he held her in his arms.

  Kailani’s body was limp, and her glowing eyes sent shivers down my spine. This was the worst possible time for her to go into Word-mode. With Faulties pestering the Perfects outside and Araquiel’s group sneaking around on the inside, we had to make our way out before the whole place blew up.

  The explosions weren’t going to obliterate the colosseum, per se, but they were going to deliver enough structural damage to make at least parts of it come down—enough to draw focus away from the incoming fae shuttle. Most importantly, we couldn’t be here when that happened. First, we didn’t know whether the dome would be impacted by the explosion. Not everyone here was a vampire capable of surviving a collapse, and there weren’t enough witches between us to help with the healing process. Second, we needed each and every one of us in the aftermath, for an offensive alongside the super-charged fae and the Hermessi.

  “Kale… Honey, wake up,” Corrine murmured, touching her granddaughter’s face. She looked up at me, her eyes wide and glassy. “She’s so cold.”

  “You can’t wake her up,” Lumi warned us. “She’s communing with the Word again, and any disturbance might trigger a deadly pulse.”

  Derek looked around, then set his attention on Lucas, Vivienne, and Xavier. “Tell everyone to be ready to drop to the floor, if there’s a chance of this happening,” he said. “Don’t shout it; don’t make any sudden moves. Make sure there’s no commotion for the guards to notice.”

  “We have no choice but to wait it out,” Lumi added.

  Ibrahim cursed under his breath. “What the hell does this communion mean? What is she doing like this? How will she snap out of it?”

  “I can’t answer these questions,” Lumi replied. She bit her lower lip. “I’m truly sorry. The laws of the Word reign supreme, regardless of the circumstances.”

  I rubbed my face with my palms, taking deep breaths in
order to cool my nerves. Time was running out, and no amount of magic could save Kailani from where she was now. Nevis took my hand in his, demanding my attention.

  “She never stays under for too long,” he said. “Let’s see what Araquiel’s status is, first. We can’t do the bilocation spell, anyway.”

  Jovi snapped his fingers. “Hold on. The detonator is wireless, right?”

  “Yes. But they need to be within a certain range,” Dmitri replied. “As in, they can’t leave the colosseum. That’ll be too far.”

  Rose pressed the call button on her earpiece. “Araquiel. Are you there?”

  We all looked at each other. The seconds flowed by. He had to be knee-deep in his task if he couldn’t answer straightaway.

  “Yes,” he eventually replied.

  “What’s your status?” Rose asked.

  “We’ll be a while,” he said. “There’s a lot of commotion on multiple levels. Perfect guards are being mobilized and running around. Nathaniel and his group are blending in quite well. No one’s asked them what they’re doing or what unit they’re with. I’m close behind them, dodging thermal scanners. But some of the designated bomb points are busy with Perfects. It’s not easy to get them in there.”

  “That’s fine. Don’t rush into it.” Rose sighed. “We’ve hit a little snag with the bilocation spell, anyway. We want to do this nice and proper.”

  “I take it Herakles and his Faulties are doing a fine job of distracting the Perfects, then,” Ridan muttered, slightly amused.

  “Not all of them are going into the southwest wing,” Araquiel said. “There’s something else going on, and it doesn’t have anything to do with us.”

  My heart skipped a beat. Using my True Sight, I scanned the entire building, from top to bottom. I spotted Douma and Raphael in their glass boxes. Amal and Amane working on something and constantly looking over their shoulders, so as not to get caught—the mass memory wiper, for sure. And, just like Araquiel had said, throngs of Perfect guards dashing through the hallways.