Empire of Blood (Book 2): Fading In Darkness (20 page)

Chapter 29

Betrayal’s Sting

It happened so fast. One moment he was so glad to be home, looking in his lover’s eyes, and the next moment she was looking in
his
with a passion
Ishan
had never seen bestowed upon himself before, even in all their long centuries together. It was a sparkle in her eyes that ripped through his heart like a rock through rice paper. She’d known all along. She’d been waiting for him. And had never once intended to tell
Ishan
of what would take place.

Watching her lead
him
into those narrow caverns was like watching his own past long gone. Would he ever be able to feel her touch again? Would she ever moisten his lips with her luscious life’s blood again? He stood surrounded by hundreds and hundreds of their children both her kind and his and felt a loneliness he’d been dreading all along.
A despair
more powerful than any empire. Like a deep chasm more empty than any cave within the confines of the earth’s crust.
An unending well of darkness.

Ishan
tried hard to focus through what felt like poison piercing his heart.
A dizziness
took over his core and everything he thought he knew seemed to be ambiguous now. If his love for her could do such a thing to him then what else had he grown to believe that would rip out from under him like this? Even surrounded by his own kin,
Ishan
felt completely alien to the world around him, to everything he’d ever known. He stumbled away from the crowd of vampires, human and ancestor, and escaped out into the fresh night air. He needed to be the hunter now. He needed to feel that primal instinct that grips hold of the killer, he needed to drink the blood that he knew would never compare and could only diffuse his suffering so much. But he had to do something.

As he effortlessly yet somehow a little clumsily jumped from tree top to tree top toward the city he hadn’t truly visited for nearly a quarter century,
Ishan
thought of Peter. He could understand now. The pain he had caused the young vampire. He could understand what it must have been like for Rachel to lie to him. Why he would turn to rebellion after what
Ishan
had done. But Peter was dead now.
And Rachel too.
Though he still mourned her loss, he could barely feel the sting of it beside the dark hole growing in his heart now.
I should’ve known.
Even as ancient as
Ishan
was, his youngest days upon the earth, his queen had walked its surface many thousands of years past. She was so old that even her name could not be spoken, its language long dead and buried under many layers of weathered earth beneath this very forest. In a time when this land wasn’t even in its current place geographically.
In a time when all the continents were one.

As
Ishan
came nearer and nearer to the dull glow of the city, he let his instincts take over and the smell of human blood fill his lungs. There were so many humans out
there,
he hadn’t yet taken the time to really sense the difference now that he was free of the city of sin.
The other one anyway.
Many could argue that in its prime,
New Orleans
was hardly a saint of cities. Even now, while a religious empire ruled over its businesses and streets, a hint of that old sinful voodoo permeated the sights, sounds, and smells of the place. It almost felt like home again to
Ishan
.

He let that thought resonate in his mind as he slipped into a dark alleyway and fell in step just behind two young girls scantily dressed.

Neither noticed his presence as he descended on them.

* * *

He had been in a sort of trance when it all went down. But now that Simon could think clearly, he noticed
Ishan’s
absence. And before long he noticed something else. He hadn’t been in the ancient vampire’s head for quite some time. It seemed that the closer they got to the hive, the less he could
hear
Ishan
. Yet, he couldn’t help but notice a growing sense of anger whose source he wasn’t completely sure was
himself
. It started in short waves that eventually grew into bursts. By the time the Queen resurfaced from those deep caverns alone, the feeling was near to brimming the extent of Simon’s senses and he found himself headed for the cave entrance with no intention of explanation or knowledge of where he was going, or even if he would return. He only knew he had to leave this place. Had to find
Ishan
, make sure his friend—his brother—was okay. He owed him that at the very least.

Simon was mere steps away from the open air when of no intent of his own, his body completely stopped moving. He stood there for a long moment unable to move, waiting. He quickly realized
who
had caused his lack of motor functions.

Let him brood on his own awhile. In the meantime, come and keep me company. You forget that I have never truly had the pleasure of your acquaintance. While you may have experienced my carnal nature through
Ishan’s
memory, you’ve never truly experienced it for yourself. Come, child.
And with that, Simon’s body turned for him and walked in a near march toward her as she stood leaning against the cave wall half naked, her glistening body reflecting the firelight.

At that moment her control over him ceased and the force of it letting go sent him tumbling to the ground. But even though she had relinquished her mental power over him, he didn’t truly regain his will. The desire now took over where her mental puppetry left off. It grabbed him, not violently, but with the force that drives the animal when the moment of imminent copulation is upon it. Their eyes locked, his body led the way until it was pressing against hers. Their mouths met and her arms and legs flexed around him.

To my cavern.
Go.

Simon took a firm grip on her buttocks and carried her still clinging to him back toward the firelight. As they entered the vast open chamber, many voices began to howl in a tone that gave Simon the impression of celebration. All around him vampires, male
and
female, gazed at him with envious—yet respectful—expressions. If he hadn’t known any better, he’d have thought they were practically egging him on like some sort of college frat ritual. That was the last lucid thought he had for some time as he continued to carry the Queen to their destination.  But as everything seemed to fade into pure heat and pleasure, Simon felt a blurry yet familiar awareness screaming with fury in the back of his mind. It
were
as if he could see a face wrapped in plastic trying to scream in utter hatred.

* * *

A dissonant howling ripped Hank from his dream.  In it, he and the Queen were still making love and in her passion, she jabbed her claws into his chest cavity and pulled out his still-beating heart Temple-of-Doom style. And as his body began to convulse, he saw the shaking image of her as she tore her fangs into the bloody mess that had previously pumped blood throughout his body. She was licking the wet blood from her fingers when that noise abruptly brought Hank back to reality.

Reality… right.

Within moments the cave was as quiet as the grave. The irony of that metaphor wasn’t lost on Hank. He lay there on the cave floor in what the Queen had referred to as his personal quarters. He tried not to think about what had taken place between them. At the time it had been like he was under a spell, though, he knew it to be such pure animal magnetism as to be unstoppable.
But now that she was no longer in his presence, Hank felt almost used, dirty.
Unnatural.
Alien, even. He had no real feelings for her, whatever she was. She was incredibly attractive, true.
But in an almost synthetic kind of way.
Cold and uncomfortable, Hank lay back down and closed his eyes and hoped that he might be able to get back to sleep.

Chapter 30

Preparations for War

Standing tall beside his Queen, Simon called out with a loud deep voice with more confidence than he’d ever felt. A confidence much different than the zealotry his former self often displayed. “The
Foederati
are to meet with us when the sun goes down. None of our kind
are
to harm even a single hair on any of their people, do you understand me?”

In unison the crowd responded with a multitude of affirmations.

“Good. Any vampire, fledgling included,” he burned a strong gaze toward a bewildered Jackie watching from the crowd, “will pay dearly for such an offense. They are here with mutual goals and the only way either of us can succeed is by working together.”

Vampires of all shapes and sizes agreed in various manners and waited for their new master—now appointed by the Queen herself—to finish addressing them.

“There are only a few short hours left before the dawn comes, I suggest that anyone who hasn’t already, should feed in expectation of our guests. And remember the reason we are here and the huge undertaking that we have ahead of us. Not the least of which to mention is the sheer number of enemies we could end up facing. While the Queen can protect us here now, she will not always be able to do so, and we need to stand our ground and take our rightful place against this tyranny of all, vampire and human.”

Monstrous howls not unlike the ones Simon heard earlier erupted from the vampires and like an army of black wasps the many ancestor vampires in the crowd rose in the air and flew out of the large cavern toward the outer entrance. Just as quickly many human vampires followed on swift blurring feet.

When the cave was nearly empty and the Queen had returned to her cavern, Simon sat on the throne his Queen had offered him and watched as the flames in the center of the huge open cavern licked at the stalagmite-covered ceiling. The shadow of a small figure stretched behind the huge fire. He got up from his seat and walked over to confirm his suspicions. Long black hair spread down around a pale sad female face as its owner sat Indian style facing the fire and throwing small chunks of salt in from time to time. Simon walked over to Jackie and put a hand on her shoulder.

“How come you’re not out there feeding? You know I worry about you more than most.”

“Really?
Then you sure have a fucked up way of showing it, Mr. Vampire King.”

Simon laughed in spite of the sting of her words. “There is no Vampire King. I am merely taking over leadership in
Ishan's
absence.”—
Which hopefully won’t be very
long.
And how will he react to what has happened between me and the Queen?
—“Please, why are you so angry?”

Jackie looked up at him with a wounded shyness. It had never even occurred to him. Why had it not been
obvious.
Simon took his hand from her shoulder.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know.” He looked away for a long awkward, quiet moment.  With his back still turned, he said, “You have to know that even now with what we have become I couldn’t rightfully return whatever feelings you have. Not yet anyway.” He turned to look her in the eye, “You still have much maturing to do.”

Jackie’s gaze burned through Simon in response.

He turned away again. With Simon's hearing beyond that of most vampires, her attempt to leave in stealth was ineffective. He stood still, pretending he didn’t know. When he turned around she was gone and he couldn’t help but feel like some pressure had lifted from his shoulders.
For now at least.

* * *

 When word of George's little book hit the
Foederati
, the old priest found himself answering more questions than even Charlie Duncan was capable of coming up with in an hour long interrogation. At least this time the questions weren't followed with broken bones or other forms of painful torture. His hand still in a cast, George picked at the wrapping as he listened to the young
Foederati
general talk.

"As strong as the Emperor's hold is on the country, there's no telling that information like this could even do anything to sway their feelings on him or his religion. The believers are so fervent that many will likely reason this as an elaborate fake."

"I don't disagree with you, Mr.
Whindsor
, but when I think of all those poor people out there who may not be so easily duped by this terrible man's spell, I can't help but feel like it would be worth it to get as many of them the truth as possible before your people make any major or rash moves. And judging by the tone and weight of your questions, I assume you do mean to make some sort of move soon,
do
you not?"

Whindsor
gave an almost invisible nod.

"Uh huh.
I expected this from the moment
Duncan
told me about you."

"Of all people, Mr. Nelson, exactly why did you come to Charlie Duncan?"

George smiled. He'd often wondered that
himself
but there truly was a simple answer. "Well, you folks aren't exactly in the yellow pages, now are you? I figured if anyone could get me in touch with you it was someone of the criminal element, even as ironic as that fact might be in this day and age."

Whindsor
chuckled. "You do have a point." He looked George over for a long time and his smile warped into an expression of import. "We are planning something big. And we're not alone. I was sent here to make sure this book wasn't a fraud and I'm sure you're not bullshitting us. This thing is very much for real. And it could serve a hell of a purpose for us right now not just counting the very noble reason you want to disseminate it."

"And just what is that, Mr.
Whindsor
?"

"Call me Bill, George. I believe that two people so willing to fight on the same side should at the very least refer to each other on a first name basis. We're like brothers, you and I."

George nodded. "Okay, fair enough. I couldn't agree more." He smiled. "So just what is it you people plan on doing, Bill?"

"We've been in talks with the vampires of Necropolis for quite a while. We've extended them some favors—within reason of course. Nothing we don't morally agree with. Anyway, in these talks, we have realized that we share the same ultimate goal: to remove the Emperor from power."

George found himself gripping the bottom of his chair. This was interesting news for sure.

"For years we
strategized
different plans of attack and defense. And we even
strategized
a response in the event that the Emperor raided or attacked Necropolis as this was one of the main concerns we all had. Unknown
to
many, there has been a tension growing between the vampires and the Empire from the very start. And right now at this very moment, the vampires are gathering in preparation for war. And so are we. Soon we'll be joining together to fight against the Emperor, his Avengers, and the Imperial Army." Bill took a deep breath and picked up George's book. "Do you see now what this little volume could do to help us? Why now is more important than ever that this thing get out there for all to see?"

"I sure do. Something like this could garner more support just in time to fight."

"Exactly, George.
We could even use this as a means to recruit."

George looked at the shiny wood-varnished surface of the table that separated him from Bill for a long moment. He followed the long brown-painted grains with his eyes. "So I could be leading many people to death by putting this thing out there."

Bill stared back at George for a moment that seemed to stretch on then finally replied. "Yes. But how many of those who will see what they've come to worship for what it truly is and fight would have otherwise fought anyway from the other side? We've never gone to war since the Emperor's been in power. What tactics do you think he'll use? Do you think he'll protect the people? No, you of all people should know he'll use the people as a shield. He'll send the men and women of this country to the front lines as he hides behind the crowd and keeps himself alive as the pages of this book show he's done for centuries longer than any man should be allowed. Let alone any man as evil as he."

George nodded. He was beginning to really like Bill. And he was decided now for sure. This really was the best thing to do. Let them use his book to lead them in this war. Let them use it to recruit those who would help them fight and bring the Emperor down from his towering throne. After all, this was what he knew God would want him to do. It was time for bravery. It was time for George Nelson to fight back against this abomination and help make his country free again.