Genesis: A Soul Savers Novella (15 page)

“How do you expect me to get blood from Zardok? I doubt he’ll just give it to me.”

“Of course not. But you’re clever, Jordan. You’ll figure it out, if you want this badly enough.”

He growled. She already knew just how badly he wanted it. He would have to find a way.

***

Zardok scared Jordan, not an easy thing to do. Jordan towered over the vampyre’s ancient body, so it wasn’t his size, or the stark contrast of his dark hair against his pale, nearly transparent skin or even his red eyes. Just as some people exuded love or anxiety or hostility, Zardok exuded overwhelming terror. With time and his own power, Jordan had learned to block vampyres’ powers, so he no longer felt fear when he was around them. Except for Zardok. The vampyre was too old and too powerful—a demon in human form.

Eris had once explained that a true demon offered Zardok, the human, eternal life in exchange for his soul. Zardok had been the leader of his clan and ruled them with cruelty and fear while leading them to attack and destroy other clans. He wanted power over everyone and the demon’s offer was one he couldn’t reject. He’d be superior to all the others. No one could kill him. He’d rule all the lands. So he surrendered his soul, accepted the evil spirit into his body and transformed. Now, rather than a kingdom of humans, he fathered a family of the fiercest and most dangerous predators on Earth. But they had their problems.

“We need to build our army, Jordan,” Zardok said from his throne in the circular room far underneath the Earth’s surface. The other thrones sat empty, most of the Ancients absent, except for a few who stood in shadows near the fires. “There is a prophecy that God himself will be coming to Earth in human form. He will be called God’s son, if the prophecy is true.”

Not all prophecies were, but apparently this one had the Ancients worried.

“So you would like an army who can kill him, defeat God, so Our Lord may reign?” Jordan asked.

Zardok laughed. “We wish it were so simple. Our Lord will use his spirits to try to tempt the son, but we would still not defeat God so easily. Our worry is in the rest of the prophecy—that the son’s death will allow humans to give their souls to God by a simple decision. Good deeds, which are so easily thwarted by us now, will no longer be necessary to join God in Heaven. They will simply have to choose to believe in him, accept the son’s sacrifice and repent for their so-called sins for Our Lord to lose their souls forever.”

“We must keep them from believing then,” Jordan said.

“Yes. In case this prophecy comes true. We can kill them before they believe and Our Lord will have their souls. Or we can make them one of us and they can see that Our Lord is the better god.”

“You want to convert more humans into Daemoni?”

“Perfect, isn’t it? We win their souls and grow our army at the same time and eventually, we rule all humans. They will bow to only us, forgetting their God.” Zardok stood and paced, his excitement growing. “Vampyres will create more vampyres. Weres will create more of their own by infecting humans. We will release the bind on mages that prohibit them from mating with humans and allow them to spread their magick. Our numbers will grow until we outnumber humans and those that remain will be our slaves. We will have conquered Earth and God will have no choice but to relinquish his power. Our Lord will win!”

“What about the other gods—Zeus and the others? We will need to defeat them first.”

Zardok stopped his pacing and laughed. “There are no other gods. Our Lord sent faeries into this realm to pose as gods and goddesses, distracting the humans and making them unbelievers in the truth. The faeries do it for the attention and adoration.”

Jordan pondered this for a moment—first, that faeries existed, which he had not known, and second, the distraction they’d been providing to the very people he had lived among.

“Since they are unbelievers, we should target them first,” he said. “I know firsthand they have very strong warriors and they’re always fighting each other for power over the land I come from. We should take those soldiers, make them us.”

“Excellent idea!” Zardok said, rubbing his long, bony hands together. “Do not forget, however, the strongest of the believers. Turning them from God to us is a dual win.”

Jordan bowed his head in agreement. “But what do you want of me?”

Zardok put his hands on Jordan’s shoulders and although he’d just been rubbing them together—an action that should have warmed them—their iciness crept right down into Jordan’s bones. He fought the urge to shiver. Zardok’s red eyes pierced into Jordan’s.

“I need you to lead this army.”

Jordan’s heart leapt but his brow furrowed. This was what he’d always wanted. What he had been working so hard for. But it didn’t make sense.

“I thought you would want one of your own to lead.”

Zardok let out a frozen sigh against Jordan’s face. “My children are the greatest predators. They can be strong leaders, too, but only of themselves. The others will not respect their leadership enough for something so important. We need someone who is not any of them, yet is all of them. We know of your and Eris’s potions. We see you taking on qualities of all of us.”

Jordan broke the hold of Zardok’s gaze, looking past him into a purple-flamed fire. He and Eris had tried to keep their work covert, not knowing what the Ancients’ reaction would be. They wanted to wait to show them the results until it was too late for the Ancients to order them to stop.

“We approve of it, Jordan!” Zardok said, shaking him. “We are anxious to see the final outcome. The prophecy said you would lead our army, but we didn’t see how, as weak as you were. But look at you now! You and your descendants will be the best of all of us. You are our future.”

Jordan held his stony face, even while his heart raced with excitement and even knowing Zardok could not only hear his heart rate but also sense his emotions. He tried to control the urge to celebrate because there was still one missing piece. He inhaled deeply, trying not to gag on the mix of odors in the cavern that left a nasty taste in the back of his throat, and exhaled slowly, gathering his courage.

“We’re not quite there, though,” he finally said. “And without this last ingredient, I do not believe your army will respect me. They will see me as too weak to be their leader. Especially your children.”

Zardok’s back straightened and he lifted an eyebrow. “What ingredient would that be? Surely Eris can get her hands on just about anything.”

Jordan crossed his arms over his chest and braced himself, putting forth as much power as he could against this Ancient. “Your blood.”

Zardok’s eyes widened and glowed a brighter red. Then they narrowed and he rubbed his chin as he seemed to truly consider this.

“What will my blood do for you?” he asked thoughtfully.

“Eris says it will give the final touch to invincibility and immortality. If I can’t be killed and I have all the traits of the other creatures, they will
have
to respect and obey me.”

Zardok paced again, but this time silently. Jordan stood his ground and waited, watching the vampyre’s shadows shift on the wall in the flicker of the various fires. Zardok finally stopped right in front of Jordan.

“I will do it,” he said, but Jordan didn’t respond, sensing the ultimatum. “But first, you will bring me someone you once cared deeply about. Prove to me one more time that you are worthy.”

Jordan’s brows pushed together again. “I care about no one. Unless you want my son?”

“No. There is too much potential for your son.”

“Eris?”

Zardok rolled his eyes in a very human way. “Her father would never allow it. But I don’t want her either. Even if you actually cared for her. I want a human. Someone I can turn.”

“I know no humans. The only other would be my sister and I would be happy to bring her to you.”

“I don’t want you to be
happy
about it,” he growled. “That’s part of the point. But I don’t want your sister, either. Again, she’s not human. Not fully. And she’s too weak and pathetic.
Human
, Jordan. Bring me a human you and yours have loved … and one that would make a great vampyre, possibly as great as me.”

“But—”

“If you want my blood, that is my order.” Zardok waved his hand, clearly dismissing him. “In the meantime, begin building our army.”

***

Jordan had no idea how to fulfill Zardok’s wish. Eris said she could try to create a love potion for him to fall in love with a human, which she only offered because she knew he would have to sacrifice that woman in the end, but she also said love potions never worked. Not truly. And he didn’t have time to play such games. He had an army to grow and lead.

Given small numbers of troops at a time—they couldn’t turn too many people at once without creating alarm that would sabotage their efforts—Jordan took them to the battlefields, joining in the fights until the last soldier fell and he and his men could pick through those who barely lived. He hand-selected the soldiers he wanted turned and his troops did the biting, the bleeding and the changing. But then he lost them while they took their new children back to teach them their ways and Jordan would have to wait for the next troops to arrive.

He stepped through the sea of bodies after one such battle, wanting to get this over with. He was distracted by the thought of seeing his sister, a thought he hadn’t had in years. He’d squelched his need to prove her wrong, nearly forgetting her completely. The Ancients said they had no use for her—too weak to do them any good and Jordan had almost come to believe it. But his conversation with Zardok had sparked an idea. It was time to pay her a visit, let her see what he’d become and finally convince her of the truth. Perhaps after this round left with their newborns, he could find her.

He bent down to a soldier whose chest barely rose and fell and felt for a heartbeat. He was still alive enough to be turned, but as Jordan examined his body, his nose wrinkled. Not a good specimen. Too old and weak. He stood and cast his eyes around, looking for any other signs of life, but there seemed to be none. Until he heard someone choking.

Jordan rushed over to the fallen warrior. His body looked strong and powerful, and, although shallow wrinkles spread from the corners of his closed eyes, the face was not too old for his use. But it was familiar. Jordan knelt down and the man grabbed for his hand, scrunching his eyes shut tighter and pursing his lips against a wave of pain.

“Do you believe in God?” Jordan asked him.

“Zeus,” the man gasped, blood bubbling out of his mouth and down his chin. “Unless … you can … convince me now … . My wife … ”

Jordan was sure he knew his wife. As he studied the man’s face, he became more certain of the recognition and an idea occurred to him. This man was a prime candidate for the Daemoni and his soul perfect for their lord. But he could also serve a purpose for Jordan. He cared nothing for this man, but Zardok didn’t need to know this. And hurting this man’s wife … it would be the ultimate revenge and perhaps enough of a sacrifice for Zardok.

“This one,” Jordan called out to one of the vampyres. “But not you. Take him to Zardok. Tell him he’s from me, what he asked for.”

The vampyre lifted the soldier whose eyes popped wide open with terror. And Jordan knew without a doubt this was the man he thought. He knew those eyes and for just a moment, they shared a vision of the woman they both loved. Well, Jordan once loved. A long time ago. He clapped his hand on the man’s forehead and slid the lids down, covering those haunting green eyes.

Chapter 11

Cassandra sat on a flat boulder near the edge of a cliff and gazed out at the sea, while her daughter stood behind her, braiding her hair. She stared at an island far off in the distance, near the horizon.