A Vial of Life (A Shade of Vampire #21) (5 page)

We gazed at the distant outline of the ship, listening to the cries of Frederick and Colin.
What is Braithe going to do with them? Will he slaughter them?

I glanced at Arletta’s face, drained of all color. Her lips were parted and trembling. I could see she’d gotten past the stage of screaming, and now her mind was numb with shock.

All I wanted to do was curl up in a ball and sob, but we were now adrift in the ocean. We had to reach land before the sun rose, or Arletta and I would burn. Looking all around us, I decided that we ought to head north. Other than Cruor, where we dared not return, the nearest landmass was in that direction.

I tugged on Arletta. “Come on,” I said in a choked whisper. “You need to follow me. We don’t have long before the sun rises.”

She resisted my urging for several minutes, her eyes remaining fixed on the ship in horror. I slapped her face hard, and that brought her out of her stupor.

“Arletta. I’m a wreck, too. But getting fried in the ocean won’t do your brothers any favors.”

Mention of her brothers seemed to get through to her. At least she followed me as I continued swimming with all the speed my limbs could muster.

As we swam, the ghastly forms of Hans and Braithe—the same forms that I was now certain Frederick and Colin would soon develop—plagued my mind. My head reeled. What had happened?
What has my Hans become?
It was like the starvation had caused Hans and his fellow vampires to somehow evolve… into a different species altogether.
How is it that Braithe didn’t die when the pole struck his heart? No vampire should have survived that. And whatever his condition is, it’s contagious?

It was as though they were no longer even vampires… Or at least, not the vampires we knew.

A
s I finished downing
the blue elixir, a fire blazed in my stomach. I dropped the glass bottle. The burning sensation spread from my stomach to my chest, then along my limbs to the tips of my toes and fingers. The Elder’s shrieking faded into the background. I closed my eyes tight, locking my jaw as the agony consumed me.

And then, just as I felt that I could take it no longer, it stopped.

A lightness filled me. I felt myself floating upward. I opened my eyes. The sky above me, previously streaked with red, now looked washed out, its vibrant color faded. I twisted, rolling over weightlessly in what felt like midair, to face downward.

Beneath me was… me. My body. Curled up in a fetal position, face and fists clenched up in pain. Perfectly still, surrounded by the shards of the shattered glass vial.

The black mist of the Elder reached my body. He billowed around it, engulfing it completely, even as he continued to screech.

I stared down at my hands. They were a pearly, translucent white, as were my feet… and the rest of my form. I could almost see the dark ground below through my limbs.

When I’d realized my only path lay in taking the potion, I hadn’t been completely certain that it would work. That the liquid would really do what Arron had told me it would—detach me from my body and turn me into… a ghost. Although I had prayed that it would, I hadn’t been in the slightest bit prepared for it.

I no longer had a body. I was a ghost. A subtle being, trapped in the so-called “in-between” that Arron had described. This was the only place that I could be. I couldn’t remain in my body without putting into jeopardy not just the human realm, but countless others. And at the same time, I wasn’t ready to meet with death…

Staring down at my body curled up on the ground shook me to the core.

I am down there… and yet I am not.

Then what am I?

Throughout my existence, since the day I was born, I’d identified myself with that body, the body I now saw lying on the ground, a corpse. Although the Hawk had told me that I had an existence separate from it, being told such a thing and actually experiencing it were two different matters entirely.
Arron was right. Although devoid of my physical wrapping, I still possess thoughts. Mind. Consciousness. There is more to each of us than flesh and bone.

The Elder, still swirling around my body, was apparently trying to enter it. But he remained outside—it was no longer habitable to him. They couldn’t inhabit corpses. They could only hijack bodies that were still living.

The Elder tried in vain for several moments before, letting out another scream of frustration, he moved away from my body. Apparently having accepted that there was no way I could be of use to him anymore, he began to glide away toward the edge of the cliff… when another presence arrived—another veil of black mist, followed by a voice.

“What happened to the boy?” the hiss asked Basilius.

“This is all a result of the girl vessel’s incompetence.” Basilius’ voice dripped with rage. “She allowed him to carry an elixir all this time. He took it moments before I was able to enter him, and now… Now he is lost to us! All those years we waited, gone to waste! His corpse lies there, frozen and useless. Julie Duan is not to be shown her lover. She must be punished for this grievous error.”

“It is too late for that. I have already taken her to him,” the second voice replied.

Basilius screeched again.

“However,” the second Elder continued, “I assure you that her visit to the mountain chamber just now was indeed a punishment.”

“What?”

“I had taken Julie Duan to see her lover, as you promised her, and she was met with anything but relief… We discovered something… peculiar and wondrous.”

“What did you discover?” Basilius asked, his voice anxious.

“I wish to show you rather than describe it. Let us go now.”

The two dark presences lingered a little longer, as Basilius roamed over my body once more, before both of them vanished.

I didn’t understand half of their conversation, though the Elder’s words regarding Julie reuniting with her lover registered in my brain. Still, I couldn’t pay much attention to it. My mind already felt close to explosion, if it had not blown already.

I reached out my hands, then tried to shift my legs, in an attempt to discover how much control I had over my movements. I willed myself to drift downwards, moving my legs as though I were walking, and effortlessly, I descended to my body.

I extended a hand down to touch my shoulder. My fingers sank right through it. I tried to push against my side, roll my body so that I lay on my back. Again, it was like trying to push air.

My mind was in a state of shock as I tried to process this new state of being. I drifted upward again, regaining a bird’s eye view of my body.

What do I do now?

I cast my eyes over my pale surroundings in desperation.

Although I understood that I had separated from my body and now had a new existence outside of it, I still felt somehow… tied to it. Bound by some kind of invisible rope.

How can I just leave my body here? What will happen to it?

Will it rot like a regular human corpse? Will it become nothing but dust, leaving me trapped in this subtle existence forever?

I felt frozen, my mind in a state of paralysis.

I couldn’t have known how much time I spent hovering over my body. Time had lost its meaning. It could have been hours, days, or possibly even weeks that I haunted that spot, held hostage by a chain I was too terrified to sever.

This body beneath me was the last link I had with my former life. With any life. It felt like I was hanging onto the edge of a gaping black hole—this body being the last grip I had before slipping into an endless oblivion.

I hovered, feeling no sensation. No coldness. No heat. No pain. I just felt numb. All the while, my body remained stiff and still, showing no signs yet of deterioration.

Eventually, I came to terms with the idea that I couldn’t stay here forever. I had to leave, even though it felt like leaving half of me behind. I couldn’t stay haunting this ghastly realm for all eternity, as though I was an Elder myself. I had to break away, even though I had no idea what that would mean for me, what was to become of my life—if what I was experiencing could even be considered a life.

Summoning up every ounce of willpower that I possessed, I drifted away from my corpse. My form floated away from the clifftop and over the steep drop. Even as I moved toward the shore, my eyes remained fixed on my body until it was nothing but a speck in the distance.

As I sensed the ocean miles beneath me, it took all the strength I had to turn my back on the mountains and face the wide-open water.

I tried to calm my mind and focus my consciousness on the only question that mattered anymore:

What now?

I
was surprised
to discover that Cyrus was the leader of the Drizan jinn. I hadn’t expected that a person of such importance would come to meet us outside personally, rather than some lower member of the family.

Jeriad apparently shared my surprise, and he voiced it to the formidable-looking jinni. Cyrus replied with a gracious smile that he had sensed the presence of dragons, and that it was right that he should come to greet them personally—since, after all, they did have a history together.

Although I didn’t trust anything about this jinni, at least we could be sure about one thing—he and his clan clearly still held respect for the dragons and didn’t see them as a threat. And consequently the rest of us were also welcomed in. Derek and I—along with Rose, Caleb, Aiden, the Novalics, Ashley, Landis, Zinnia, Gavin, and other close companions who’d traveled with us—found ourselves descending the jeweled staircase, which led down into a grand entrance hall. The luxury that surrounded us was similar to that of the Nasiri jinn’s abode at the bottom of The Oasis—no expense had been spared, and if it was possible, this place held even more extravagance, at least what we’d seen of it so far. The hall’s floor appeared to be made of solid gold, covered every now and then by rugs so soft they felt like pure cashmere. Gem-studded mirrors adorned the walls and diamond-encrusted chandeliers hung from the ceiling in abundance.

We moved out of this room and entered a corridor, similarly decorated. It was wide, with grand pillars lining the walls every few feet. There was a scent of burning incense, subtle yet heady.

Although it shared its luxury with the Nasiris’ abode, the Drizans’ was not an atrium. It was more like a palace, built underground.

Finally, the jinn stopped outside a tall, open doorway. We entered to find ourselves in some kind of old-fashioned courtroom, lit by beacons of fire. Opposite us was a raised platform upon which sat a silver throne embroidered with crimson silk. Above this throne, hanging from the wall, was another large golden medallion with the symbol of a scorpion—like the one that served as the entrance to the Drizans’ lair. Its shiny surface glimmered in the firelight. Cyrus glided up to the throne and planted himself down on it, eyeing us all from his vantage point.

“Take seats if you like,” he said, his deep voice booming around the chamber. As soon as he uttered the words, dozens of chairs manifested and lined up on the floor beneath his platform. The dragons—having already shifted back into their humanoid forms in order to fit through the entrance—remained standing, as did the rest of us. It appeared that our nerves didn’t permit any of us to sit.

“We will stand, but thank you for the offer,” Jeriad replied.

“As you wish,” Cyrus said. “So, what exactly have you come to tell me?” Cyrus folded his fingers around the arms of his chair. “Our fellow jinn, the Nasiris. You say that they have settled in the human realm?”

“Indeed,” Jeriad replied coolly. “The Nasiri jinn have formed a bond with a friend of mine. He is a vampire, and they have managed to bond him to them permanently. We seek your help in freeing him and in return, I will inform you of their location and anything else we know about them that could be of use to you.”

The jinni’s eyes glinted with interest as he raised a hand to his chin and stroked it. “I guessed that Nuriya had fled to the human realm… In fact, some years ago I even sent out a search party looking for her. But they returned unsuccessful. I always wondered where she’d managed to hide out so successfully all this time…” He stood up, his hand still against his chin, and began pacing thoughtfully along his platform.

“You see, Nuriya and I… we have something of a history together,” Cyrus continued. “Once upon a time, she was my betrothed. Her father, the noble Harith Nasiri, had gifted her to me as a gesture of goodwill between our two dynasties. However, Nuriya was a treacherous woman. She slighted not only her father’s will but also mine, and fell into the arms of another man. A lowly slave, at that. The disgrace she brought upon her father caused him to disown her, and of course the offense caused to myself and my own lineage meant that I was bound to mete out my own punishment on her… For you see, these are the ways of the jinn.”

He paused, biting his lower lip, his eyes coming alive at the memory. “After her father expelled her, she fled with the slave—Freiyus was his name—and a small entourage whose loyalty lay with the young whore, rather than with her esteemed family. They formed a home together, still within the country of the jinn yet some distance away, thinking that they could hide from us. Of course, we hunted them down and found them in the end… We did what we had to do with those who resided with the women, but Nuriya herself, being the slithering snake that she is, slid out of my grasp once again. She escaped the raid and left The Dunes entirely. I suspected she might have fled to the human realm, though we never did know for sure.”

He looked back toward Jeriad, another smile curving his full lips. “So you see, dragon, your visit is quite welcome. And once you disclose the Nasiris’ location, I will be quite happy to assist you in freeing this friend of yours from the jinn’s bond. In fact, after I am finished with Nuriya and whoever else she’s holed up with, I doubt any of them will have the strength to bond again…”

“I’m glad to hear it,” Jeriad replied, clearing his throat. He turned to glance at Derek and me briefly before his focus resumed on the jinni. “When would we be able to leave? I am anxious to reclaim this friend of mine.”

“I, too, am anxious to leave—that much I assure you,” Cyrus replied. “I suggest that we leave within an hour. It won’t take long to gather up my army. In the meantime, please wait here and make yourselves comfortable.” A table appeared in front of us, lined with dozens of crystal glasses and silver jugs. “Help yourselves to refreshments, and I will return to inform you when we are ready to leave.”

With that, he vanished.

I released a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding. I turned to my husband and slowly raised a brow. “What do you think?”

Derek’s forehead was furrowed. “I don’t know what to make of this jinni. I don’t trust him in the slightest—just as I don’t trust any of his kind. But Jeriad seems to trust him. Only time will tell whether Cyrus can help us free Benjamin from the Nasiris’ bond.”

I nodded, gulping. “I guess I’m just trying to think of what could go wrong… I suppose not much, right? I mean, I can’t see how the situation could get any worse than Ben being bound eternally to those jinn. I can only imagine that good can come of this…” Even as I said the words, doubt gripped me.

“I can only assume so,” Derek replied, a similar unsettled expression on his face.

After that, all of us passed the next hour waiting in mostly silence for Cyrus to return. Some of the vampires—Rose and Ashley at the lead—considered the jinni’s offer of refreshments. But the jugs were filled with human blood. I could hardly remember the last time I’d relished the sweet delicacy, but as much as the blood called to me, there was no way I could give into the urge. I simply couldn’t. I was pleased to see that my daughter, Ashley and everyone else also refrained once they realized that it was human blood. Just two decades ago, the older vampires in this room wouldn’t have thought twice about chugging down the human blood. Now, after practicing abstinence from it for so long and training their murderous nature, they were averse to it even when it was presented to them—quite literally—on a silver platter.

When Cyrus returned, he manifested himself in the same spot he had left, just in front of his throne.

“We are ready,” he said, a hint of excitement in his voice. “Let us return to the sand above, where my army is waiting.”

He led us out of the door, retracing the same path he’d taken in bringing us down here. Climbing up the jeweled staircase, we emerged back in the desert of black sand. Surrounding us was a huge swarm of jinn. It took my breath away to see how many there were. They each shared similar features: smooth ebony skin and heavily set jaws—heavier than the Nasiris’. The women had tightly curled hair, and most of the men were bald—some sporting immaculately sculpted goatees.

“So tell me, Jeriad.” Cyrus faced the shifter. “How exactly do you propose to lead us to the Nasiris?”

“We dragons must fly by our own strength, of course,” Jeriad replied.
Of course, I forgot.
“For as you know, we do not accept transport from magical beings. You may fly with us on our backs, for there is plenty of space. Or, if you wish to fly using your own powers, you can soar alongside us.”

“We shall soar alongside you,” Cyrus replied after a moment of thought.

“Our destination in the human realm is a country called Egypt,” Jeriad said. “The Nasiris reside in a desert, whose name is… I forget these human names.” Jeriad looked toward Derek.

“The Sahara Desert,” Derek prompted.

“Then pray, lead us there,” Cyrus said. “Since we’re not traveling by magic, it will take some time, and I am most eager to reunite with old acquaintances…”

W
e returned
through the same portal that we had arrived through, on the beach in the country of ogres. Traveling with supernatural speed—the jinn soaring at the dragons’ side—it wasn’t long before we arrived back in the Sahara Desert. The spell of shade that was cast upon us before we left The Shade was still active, though my throat still felt parched as we descended and touched down on the sand. The jinn cast their eyes about, scanning the area expectantly. We walked around the dunes until we located The Oasis’ boundary.

“Interesting,” Cyrus said, laying his hands flat against the invisible wall. “This is where she has been all this time… Do you know how many jinn live here?”

Jeriad looked to Derek and me for an answer. I shrugged. We really hadn’t spent much time down there. It was hard to give even an estimate. From the look on Derek’s face, he wasn’t sure either.

“We aren’t certain,” I replied. “But if I had to take a wild guess, I would say at least a dozen.”

“A dozen,” Cyrus said thoughtfully, more to himself than to anyone else. “I wonder if more outcasts joined her…”

He ran his hands along the barrier before he cleared his throat and addressed his jinn companions in a low voice. “We’re strong enough to break through this together.” He turned to Jeriad. “I suggest that the rest of you stand back. Far back.”

Derek’s hand slid into mine as we all moved backward with the dragons, while the jinn moved forward and lined up against the barrier. They adopted the same stance as Cyrus—shoulders squared, palms resting against the invisible wall.

A moment later, there was a searing flash of light, so bright that I feared for Derek’s human eyes. I reached instinctively for his neck and tugged him to face the opposite direction.

Once the light had faded, Derek and I, along with Rose, Caleb, Aiden and the other vampires, faced The Oasis. The boundary had been broken and now we could see what had been hidden beyond its walls. My eyes fixed on the camel stable before roaming the ground in search of the trap door. We soon spotted it. Approaching it, we discovered that it was locked.

The jinn emitted another painful flash of light and the trap door popped open obediently.

The sound of scurrying came from beneath us, footsteps echoing across marble floors, in the vampires’ atrium. I could only assume they had already detected our intrusion. Cyrus was about to descend toward the lower levels when Derek spoke up.

“Wait,” he said. “A coven of vampires live in this upper atrium and it’s not necessary to cause harm to them. The jinn are the ones who hold the boy in question—my son—as a prisoner. These vampires are mere puppets. I would also request that you leave all humans alone.”

I understood the motive behind Derek’s words. Of course, he wasn’t the harsh ruler he’d been when I met him, and he didn’t want to cause unnecessary bloodshed. But he also knew that Lucas’ son, Jeramiah, lived here. Derek regretted the hateful relationship he’d had with his brother, and he didn’t want to make an enemy out of Jeramiah, who, at least so far, didn’t appear to have played much of a role in Ben’s troubles. If anything, Jeramiah himself was under the control of the jinn.

“We have no interest in the vampires,” Cyrus said. “Nor much in the humans… Just tell us where to find the Nasiris.”

“Beneath this atrium lies a prison filled with humans,” Derek replied. “Beneath that is where the Nasiris reside.”

The jinn glided down the stairs that led from the desert to the top level of the atrium, whose walls were made of glass, giving us a view of the many levels below. Dark figures streaked across the verandas—vampires, carrying weapons, and all moving in our direction.

One of them looked upward—a young woman with thick blonde hair—and the moment she laid eyes on the jinn a scream escaped her lips.

“Enemy jinn!” She began yelling to her companions and pointing up toward the jinn standing and watching behind the glass. “Retreat!”

More vampires stopped in their tracks and gazed up at us, their faces filling with fear and dread. They scattered in all directions as they hurried toward doors and locked themselves inside apartments. All of these vampires were clearly well accustomed to the might of the jinn.

Even as the jinn flattened the doors leading down to the prison, neither Derek and I nor any of our other companions knew exactly how to reach the Nasiris’ home. Although we had been here before, we had been transported by the jinn’s magic—not by foot—so we’d never come to know of its exact location. Ben, however, had described the entrance to us briefly—deep in the network of cells, in a small storage room, hidden behind a cabinet. We described these details to Cyrus, and strangely, now that we were down here it was almost as though he didn’t need them. He began leading us all forward with a surprisingly strong sense of direction. As we moved, I couldn’t help but notice with a shudder the looks of hunger on the jinn’s faces as they eyed the humans we passed by.

The jinn’s speed picked up and the rest of us had to run to follow. After what felt like half an hour, Cyrus drew us all to a halt outside a narrow door. He pushed it open to reveal a small storage room. The jinni raised a hand for silence and sniffed the air.