A Dome of Blood

by Bella Forrest

  “Kale. Kale… Can you hear me?” Hunter asked, trying to reach out to me. He snapped his fingers in front of my face, but, still… I wasn’t even remotely interested.

  I got up and started walking down the road, following the people. They weren’t hypnotized or anything. They were chatting and laughing, clinking glasses and sharing morsels of street food. The night felt young, and I… I felt like I didn’t really belong here, but I definitely needed to see where they were going.

  “Kale! Where are you going?” Hunter called out after me.

  I kept walking.

  Past the streetlights. Past the ritzy hotels and fancy restaurants. The luxury shops and cocktail bars. It all felt so immaterial, like a vivid painting that I was simply a part of—a moving, living, and breathing stroke of paint.

  At the very end of the boulevard, standing tall and proud in shades of beige and royal crimson, with massive searchlights pointing at the sky, was a movie theater. Its main entrance was adorned with millions of wild orchids and a luscious red carpet going up the stairs. Cameras were flashing.

  The crowds gathered at the bottom of the stairs. Photographers struggled to get to the front, to snap more photos. It looked like a movie premiere or something. The street people were all wearing ballgowns and black tuxedoes. I briefly glanced at my own outfit and was shocked. I didn’t expect to find myself wearing a tight, champagne-colored sequin dress.

  I couldn’t help but touch myself, just to make sure it was all real. My hair was styled in massive locks, with an equally imposing orchid resting behind my right ear. I had diamonds in my ears, and… all eyes were on me!

  “What in the world…” I managed, suddenly breaking into a cold sweat.

  I wasn’t comfortable with all that attention. Up until a moment ago, I was talking to Hunter about his latest romantic conquest. Not long ago, I was walking with my parents through the redwood forests of The Shade.

  “No… Seriously, what the heck is going on here?” I asked.

  I didn’t expect to find an answer, but I didn’t stop. This had to be some kind of dream. Or maybe a high-definition hallucination. It was superb. Every detail was breathtaking, and, most importantly, the people’s adoration toward me made my heart swell.

  It was warm and pleasant. The night was gentle and filled with stars. All lights were on me. Gasps erupted from the crowd as I reached the red carpet. Cameras started flashing like crazy. Some fans were screaming and asking for my autograph. Journalists asked me questions. I couldn’t understand a word they were saying, but I loved every second of it.

  “This doesn’t make any sense. None whatsoever,” I said, and climbed up the stairs.

  The doors opened before me. It was dark inside.

  I left the vibrant crowd and sea of lights behind, then walked through the doors.

  As if a veil had been lifted from my eyes, I could see everything clearly.

  A certain peace of mind settled on my shoulders, and I could breathe again—fully, vivaciously, for the first time in what seemed like forever. The theater itself was abandoned. It didn’t match the pompous reception outside.

  Inches of dust lingered on the dark green velvet chairs. The movie hall was shaped like an amphitheater, and I was at the very top. Images were flashing on the big screen at the bottom. Fragments of my life edited into some kind of movie.

  “Oh, wow,” I murmured, going down the stairs.

  I was light on my feet, as if gliding. The closer I got to the screen, the better I could see. Those were memories of mine. My first spell casting—accidental, of course, when I’d wandered into Grandma Corrine’s room during a family dinner and found her witchy workspace. My first bike ride, with Dad anxiously running by my side, struggling to keep up, while I sped up to get rid of him because I didn’t like his helicopter parenting.

  My numerous escapades into the redwood forest with Hunter, back when we were kids. We used to hide up in the trees and scare anyone who passed by—until we came face-to-face with a rather grumpy Derek.

  I couldn’t help but laugh, staring at the screen. Hunter looked so handsome on it, like the sweetest memory. My heart fluttered whenever he showed up. Then why am I so okay with Laura or Melanie or Gina or whatever their names are?

  My memories never betrayed me, no matter what I’d seen in this strange dream state. I could see myself pining over Hunter. Grunting and pouting whenever he missed a Sunday dinner with me and my folks because he was wooing some succubus or vampire chick or anyone but… me.

  I could see everything, right there on that screen. My love for him, unfolding, one memory at a time. Yet the clarity in my mind left no room for such feelings.

  “I don’t get it,” I said. “I don’t get it! What is this?” I called out, hoping someone might hear me. “Why are you doing this to me? Say something!”

  The silence that ensued was deafening. The screen went black. Goosebumps tickled my skin.

  When it lit back up again, there was an image of me, standing by the shore—a midnight in The Shade. A tidal wave was headed toward me. I didn’t remember this. This didn’t happen.

  But that wasn’t the strangest part. The dark silhouette of a male figure stood at the bottom of the screen. I didn’t need to see his face to know that he was looking at me. I could feel the eyes drilling through my very soul. My heart skipped a beat.

  For a moment, I would’ve expected to see Hunter. But I knew it wasn’t him. I’d left Hunter back at the restaurant.

  No, this was someone else. Or something else.

  “Who… Who are you?” I asked.

  “I was wondering how long it would take you to find me. I’ve been waiting for a long time, Kailani,” the man replied.

  “I don’t know who you are. I can’t see you that well. Would you mind stepping into the light?” I asked, hoping he’d take a couple of steps forward—just enough to reach one of the spotlights at the edge of the stage.

  He didn’t move. “You know who I am. And you know that you cannot see me. This is as clear as I will ever be, unless you tell me what you want.”

  His voice resonated in the pit of my stomach.

  Oh, I know exactly who you are.

  I could’ve sworn he smiled. “That’s right, Kailani. You know me.”

  “You’re… You’re the Word,” I whispered.

  “And it took you a while to get here. Longer than most of my conduits, I’ll admit.”

  “Whoa…”

  I was breathless. This was a Word-mode, only the complete opposite of everything I’d experienced so far. All of a sudden, I became incredibly self-aware. I remembered my grandparents. The diamond dome. Raphael. Hunter. Strava. The Perfects. My crew, with Ben and Rose. Lumi. The Draenir. The Draenir I’d… killed.

  “We have a lot to talk about, Kailani,” the Word said.

  “Oh, we most certainly do!” I muttered, feeling all the rage in the world gathering in my throat. I could scream at this point.

  But the Word, a mere black silhouette, raised one hand, and all my emotions were gone. “I apologize. I forget how intense you can be,” he replied.

  I was blank like a sheet of paper. Every feeling I’d just remembered and experienced again was gone, as if erased from the drawing board altogether. I couldn’t, for the life of me, understand how the Word could have such control over me.

  “Finally, I have you all to myself,” the Word added.

  I was ready to talk. It was time to bring this to an end.

  Nathaniel

  We didn’t have any trouble moving through the colosseum. Just like Araquiel had assumed, no one kept track of the Perfects. No one even asked us if we were supposed to be on this level, and not elsewhere. The Faulties didn’t even have the courage to look at us—the poor souls.

  Araquiel stayed close as we advanced through the hallway, placing the smaller charges at the top of the structural pillars. Amal had devised their wireless detonation system, making it a fantastic way to tear this whole place down, sinc
e we didn’t have any cables to struggle with.

  We heard about the commotion on the southwest side from Perfects passing by but kept moving. We knew what Herakles was up to, anyway.

  According to our colosseum blueprints, we had a few more charges to drop on this level before heading out to the north entrance, where Araquiel would detonate them all. Deena pointed at a storage room, one of five, built side by side in the ground floor’s eastern quadrant.

  “We should put one in there,” she said. “It’s the closest to the internal pillars.”

  I nodded. “You have one left in your backpack. Do the honors,” I replied.

  “How many left?” Uriel asked.

  “I think three, without this one,” Angelica said.

  “We’re on track, so far, with the big ones,” I added. “Araquiel is doing his part with the small ones.”

  “Good, so there won’t be any delays on our part,” Uriel concluded.

  “There shouldn’t be. As you can see, we’re practically invisible here,” I replied, tempted to smile as a couple dozen Perfects stormed past us. “Who wants to bet they’re headed to the southwest entrance?”

  Uriel chuckled. “Herakles must be riling them up really good if they need backup.”

  “With pulverizer weapons and a sturdy supply of pellets? You bet,” Araquiel muttered behind us. “I’ve got four more charges,” he added. “I will go ahead and plant them, then I will catch up with you.”

  “Sure. Be careful,” I breathed.

  I couldn’t wear my red garnet lens to see him without arousing the curiosity of the hostiles around us, but I did pay attention to the sound of footsteps. Araquiel was the only one I couldn’t see. However, I heard him walking away.

  Just in time, too, since shortly after he went ahead, two guards came into the hallway, carrying one of the thermal scanners and checking the entire section.

  “I’ll be right back,” Deena murmured, then separated from the group and slipped into the storage room we’d marked on our blueprint.

  As the thermal scanner went past us, I felt the corner of my mouth twitching. This was definitely one of the better ideas I’d had since I’d regained my consciousness and free will. It might’ve come at the cost of a head, but, in the long run, it was worth it. I no longer had Ta’Zan’s poison clouding my judgment.

  Cassiel appeared in front of us, almost out of nowhere. I’d been so busy watching the thermal scanner head down behind us, that I hadn’t even noticed the Arch-Perfect turning the corner. I came to a sudden halt. Angelica and Uriel both froze behind me. This was unexpected.

  “What are you three doing?” Cassiel asked, his tone clipped and his brow furrowed.

  My pulse was racing, but I couldn’t let my reaction, or Cassiel, for that matter, jeopardize our mission. The universe was at stake, and I had zero tolerance for anyone who so willfully supported Ta’Zan. Cassiel was clearly more complex and independent than the other Perfects. His actions were not the result of doctrine; that much I knew for a fact, based on what I knew about him.

  “Our rounds, as usual,” I replied, banking on my old memories. Thank the stars for Phoenix, who’d converted them into video files, straight from our memory chips. We had enough inside knowledge not to stir any suspicion.

  “You’re aware that there’s a group of Faulties currently laying siege on the southwest entrance, right?” Cassiel said, clearly irritated.

  There was something odd about him. His pulse was elevated. Beads of sweat trickled down his temples. He seemed on edge, and it couldn’t be because of a handful of raucous Faulties, for sure. I had a feeling he knew what this was, and he was trying to weigh his options before turning against GASP or against Ta’Zan. His duplicitous nature wasn’t a game. It was literally a part of who he was.

  “And why are you so nervous?” I asked, raising an eyebrow. “They’re Faulties. Easy to take down, with so many of us.”

  “They have pulverizer weapons!” Cassiel retorted.

  “So do we, from the looks of it,” Uriel said, crossing his arms.

  Cassiel let out a frustrated sigh. “They’re not great shots, unfortunately. Or the Faulties are really good, by contrast. I’m not sure, but our people are getting blown to smithereens out there,” he replied. “You three should go help. I see you have weapons of your own.”

  His voice trailed off as he frowned and got a better look at my pulverizer. My heart stopped for a moment. This was it. The second that would define Cassiel, going forward.

  “These aren’t issued by us,” he added, then glowered at me. “Where’d you get this from? What are your names?”

  I took a deep breath and decided to gamble with Cassiel’s duality. Every note I had on him verified my theory: he could be reasoned with, but not through any stammering or pleading. No, I had to be blunt. Painfully blunt.

  “How do you think all this will end, Cassiel?” I asked, my voice low. “Looking around, seeing how resourceful Ben and Rose’s people have been so far. What do you think the outcome will be?”

  Cassiel blinked several times, as if trying to process my question. He measured each of us from head to toe, then smirked. “You’re with the outsiders.”

  “I never said that,” I said. “Answer my question, Arch-Perfect.”

  “Why do you even want to know what I think?” he asked with a shrug. “You’ve clearly picked your side.”

  “But you haven’t. I’d like to know when and how that will happen. So, what do you think this will all end with?” I replied, my lips stretching into a confident smile.

  Uriel and Angelica trusted my judgment and didn’t say a word. I knew Cassiel wouldn’t attack us. Not yet, anyway. He’d let Elonora’s crew escape during their last infiltration. He was flirting with the idea of turning against Ta’Zan, but he definitely needed additional coaxing. He must be extraordinarily intelligent and devious, since Ta’Zan didn’t suspect anything. Cassiel was still his right hand, his most trusted after losing Raphael and Araquiel.

  “I’m not sure,” Cassiel finally replied. “I think the outsiders have some spunk, but I don’t think it’ll be enough to take Ta’Zan down. Then again, they’ve surprised us before. They may still have some aces up their sleeves.”

  “And for how long will you sit back and do nothing, like a coward?” I replied. “Until you feel it’s safe enough to betray your maker?”

  “Watch your mouth, Perfect,” Cassiel hissed.

  “For a Perfect, I clearly have better judgment than you,” I said. “At least I know where I’m standing. As for you, Arch-Perfect, I’m genuinely impressed. You serve Ta’Zan, yet you helped Elonora and Raphael take down the comms blockers. You let her walk out with bags filled with devil-vipers, the very source of the pulverizer toxin. You pretend to be by your maker’s side, but your actions lately have been in the rebels’ favor.”

  “You wouldn’t have helped them if you didn’t believe in them,” Uriel continued. “Why are you still clinging on to this relationship with Ta’Zan? You know damn well you’re no more than a simple tool for him.”

  Cassiel took a deep breath, then exhaled sharply.

  “You three, on the other hand, had no trouble betraying him, I see,” he said.

  “Then what’s holding you back, Cassiel?” I asked again.

  “You seem to know a lot about me,” he mumbled, his eyes wide.

  “I’m observant,” I replied. “So, what is it? Are you unsure? Don’t know which side to bet on? Are you hoping to see more of how this fight unravels before you pick one?”

  “Listen, I don’t like what Ta’Zan is doing any more than you do,” Cassiel burst out. “I think it’ll blow up in his face, sooner or later. But, for the time being, he’s incredibly difficult to kill, and he has a ton of secrets and tricks that he isn’t sharing with us. Not even with his Arch-Perfects, his most trusted.”

  “So, you’re afraid of him,” I concluded.

  “Well, I do have a survival instinct, and I can see the long
-term effects of any potential rebellion. I’m just trying to be smart, here. Smarter than my predecessors, anyway,” he replied. “I mean, Raphael’s in a glass box now, and Araquiel is a pile of ashes. I’d like to make it past the month, at least.”

  The shadow of a smile fluttered across his face.

  “Tell you what. You worry about what’s going on by the southwest entrance and let us do what we came here to do. You slither back to your master and keep pondering whether you’re a coward or the Arch-Perfect you claim to be. We’ll do our part. We’ll fight for what we believe in. And, if you decide you want to be on the right side and take Ta’Zan down, once and for all, I’m sure you’ll find a way to let us know.”

  Cassiel grinned. “You know I can’t let you walk away now.”

  “Of course you can. You let Elonora go,” Angelica replied.

  “Lenny was stealing devil-vipers. You’re doing something much more dangerous in here, and I’m not sure I want to be held responsible in any way. Others have already seen us together,” Cassiel said, pointing at Perfects who passed us by. Shortly after they were gone, the hallway remained empty—except for us.

  “See, this is why my faith in you is faltering,” I replied. “You’re inconsistent in your choices.”

  “You sound like you’re quite a fan.” Cassiel chuckled.

  The swish of a blade threw my senses into a frenzy. Before I could blink, I saw the red line dash along Cassiel’s throat. A second later, his head was on the floor. His body followed. I stepped back and put my red lens on. Araquiel was standing in front of us, his short blade covered in blood.

  Angelica and Uriel were quick to react. They picked up Cassiel’s head and body and tossed them into the nearest storage room, two doors down from where Deena was busy planting the explosive charge. Fortunately, only the body regenerated once the head was cut off, and not the head, too—otherwise we would’ve doubled the trouble with two Cassiels. I shuddered at the thought.

  “Sorry, he was wasting our time with his inability to make a decision,” Araquiel said, still invisible to most. “Maybe this will help him. I don’t know.”