NEWBORN: Book One of the Newborn Trilogy (12 page)

“What?” Gabriel asks.

“Don’t you think you’re taking this too far?
This vampire vendetta of yours?”

Throwing back his head, Gabriel laughs a
high, dark laugh. “Never too far,” he says. “Never too much. There
can be no quarter offered to those mutants of hell, those walking
incarnations of evil. They must die. All of them. Every single one
of them. The men. The women. The children. I will not rest until
the job is done. I will not breathe until the job is finished. I
will exterminate them, Nora.”

There’s a manic quality in Gabriel I have
never seen before tonight. His breath comes sharply, his words
crisply, and his single, illuminated turquoise eye burns with
strange fires. Looking off into the distance across Red Square,
Gabriel swipes his blond hair to the side of his forehead.

I’m struck by the majesty of his conviction.
By the force of his hate. Gabriel is seventeen, blond, healthy, and
beautiful. It strikes me as unthinkable this stunningly gorgeous
boy can wish such destruction on others. Even if they are vampires.
I don’t understand it. Can’t understand it.

I change the subject. “What do you know about
werewolves?”

Gabriel looks at me in surprise. “Why?”

I shrug, trying to look innocent. “No reason.
Just curious, I guess.”

“Not very much,” Gabriel answers, seemingly
convinced. “We wizards and witches in the magical world view
werewolves as primal and uneducated. They have no knowledge of
magic. They are merely raggedy shape shifters, nothing more. No
wizard worth his wand should have trouble killing a werewolf.
Vampires and werewolves, on the other hand, are an even match.”

“But then you’re saying,” I interject, “you
should have no trouble killing vampires, either.”

Gabriel nods. “In theory that’s true, but it
becomes much harder when they’re in their own territory and
outnumber you. Outnumbered and ignorant of his surroundings, a
wizard can find himself in dire straits. That’s the scenario I’m in
now. But I’m not giving up. I have a job to do!”

“Do you like werewolves?” I ask.

“They’re fine – reasonably harmless. I should
like them.”

“Why?” I push.

Gabriel glances at me curiously but answers
nonetheless. “Because,” he begins slowly, “werewolves are the sworn
enemy of vampires. Long ago they decided it was their duty to
defend the weaker race – humans – from the stronger race, vampires.
It was a noble deed but a little silly – to declare it out in the
open. Anyway, I share
that
with them – the desire to make
ruin of all vampires.”

I’m trying to process this all at once. “So
wizards aren’t sworn to protect humans?”

“No!” Gabriel exclaims, suppressing a laugh.
“Why should we care about Immags? One of your kind put it very
well. ‘Survival of the fittest’ he said. Immags are not the
fittest. Neither are the vampires or werewolves. Wizards are the
fittest. I may inadvertently be saving Immags through my odyssey to
release the soul of every vampire, but that’s not
why
I’m
doing it.”

“Why are you doing it then?”

“I really,
really
hate vampires!”
Gabriel says passionately.

Daring myself, I follow up. “Why do you hate
them so much?”

I feel it – Gabriel’s whole body tensing
beside me, from his torso to the outstretched arm behind my neck.
Seconds pass in which I don’t allow my gaze to fall from his half
illuminated face. Gabriel says, “I – I can’t tell you that.”

Silence is the only speaker.

He looks as though he’s blushing in the half
light. I feel embarrassed too, though I’m not sure why. Gabriel has
a way of making me feel self-conscious no matter what’s happening.
It’s his gift.

“Let’s go to the beach,” Gabriel says.

I’m startled by the authority in his voice,
by the lack of a question in his tone. He isn’t asking but telling.
“What – now?” I ask incredulously, waving around at the lamp lit
Red Square. “It’s nighttime and dark. Who knows who’ll be there at
this hour? Anyway, I don’t have a flashlight.”

Half of his grin is illuminated. “Duh!” He
holds up his wand. “This instrument and the power to use it come
with advantages. Light whenever needed is among them. Let’s go to
the beach.”

“But!” I splutter, “what if there are thieves
or bandits!”

Gabriel roars with laughter, freeing himself
to mirth. “Thieves!” he guffaws. “Bandits! What is this, the Wild
Wild West?” Gabriel twirls his wand in his fingers before laying it
on my palm. “The ultimate weapon,” he says quietly, nodding to the
wand. “The ultimate destroyer. Nothing is so harmless and so deadly
simultaneously, nothing so awe-striking and mundane. Behold the
ultimate tool.”

“If you say so,” I reply, smirking.

He gives me a sidelong look and then smiles,
revealing his wondrously white teeth. “I see,” he says to me. “But
being wrong is something I’m not accustomed to. So we’ll say no
more about it.”

“Fine,” I agree.

Jumping to his feet, Gabriel pulls me up with
him. In the light of a nearby lamppost I see he’s wearing robes of
aquamarine. Turquoise eyes shift down to where his wand is clutched
in my hand.

He asks, “Do you want to learn magic?”

Awestruck, I stare at him. “I can’t
possibly!”

“You can,” he interjects. “Just follow my
instructions. Hold it straight… that’s it,” he says, cupping his
hand beneath mine and adjusting my hold on his wand. “Now, slowly
repeat after me – Lumio.”

“Lumio,” I say, feeling silly but reveling in
the electric sensation seeming to grasp me from the wand up.

Don’t fuck this up
, my alter ego
chimes.

Shut it
, I tell her.

“Well done,” Gabriel says. “Do it again, but
this time close your eyes and imagine you’re in a dark place. Then
imagine you are blinded by light of your own creation. When you
imagine the arrival of the light, say the word. Got it?”

“I think so,” I tell him.

Gabriel backs away. “Go ahead then.”

Screwing up my face, I close my eyes and
concentrate on being lost in darkness. Then I’m blinded by light.
“Lumio!” I shout. I wrench my eyes open to be blinded by the light
emanating from his wand.

“Excellent!” Gabriel says, taking the wand
back. “Excellent work, Nora. That was impressive – for an
Immag.”

“Why do you say that all the time?” I ask
him, surprising myself with how furious I feel all at once.

He looks confused. “Say what?”

“Putting Immags down all the time,” I answer.
“Putting
me
down all the time. You’re always acting
surprised to find I can do anything at all. To find out Immags can
do anything. We’re not useless lumps.”

Gabriel looks as though he’s suppressing
laughter. I wait for it to pass. “My apologies,” he says seriously.
“I’m genuinely impressed is all. I wasn’t expecting you to be able
to do it. Or let me rephrase that,” he says in response to my
furious expression, “I wanted to see if you
could
do
it.”

“Why?” I ask harshly.

Gabriel is grinning, a sight making it hard
to stop my face from splitting too. He’s so cute! “Few Immags can
do magic,” he explains. “Most couldn’t even do that simple spell.
No Immag can do the harder spells, but some of the simpler ones –
like Lumio – you can achieve. You did just now. I find that
fascinating. That’s a big deal, Nora. That means that you could
possibly – well…”

“What?” Excitement is pumping through me.
“Means I could what?”

“Nothing,” he says. “Forget I said it.”

“I can’t!” I exclaim. “I can’t forget
everything you say! Or even anything!”

Gabriel shakes his head. “It’s useless.”

“Why is it useless?”

Gabriel looks in the direction of the clock
tower. “Let’s go to the beach. If you come without complaint I may
tell you.”

My impatience aside, I feel this is a fair
bargain. I shouldn’t have to worry about thieves or bandits, being
with a wizard. He should be able to keep the worst of foes at bay.
We begin making our way to the library and the tree fringe behind
it, beyond which lie the many paths to the beach.

“Will you tell me now?”

Blinking at me in the light of his wand,
Gabriel looks resigned. “You’ll only wish I hadn’t told you,” he
says.

“I’m fine with that.” Actually, I’m unsure
whether I’m fine with it.

Closing his eyes, Gabriel pauses before
opening them. “Then I’m fine with telling you, but you’ll wish I
hadn’t. I – I was about to say the minimal aptitude for magic you
displayed means you may have the ability to become a low level
witch.”

I nearly have an aneurism of happiness. “No
way! I’m so –!”

“You’re right,” Gabriel responds.

Surprised, I look over. “What?”

“You’re right,” he repeats. “There is no way.
It can’t happen. Once upon a time it could have. Now it’s
illegal.”

“What?” My heart is falling through my chest.
“Why?”

“The Puridites,” he answers. “The Puridite
Party has held sway over the Bureau of Magic for two decades.
They’ve changed everything. No witch or wizard may enter into
marital or sexual relations with an Immag – it’s against the law.
No Immag may attempt to learn magic – that’s also against the law.
If you were to walk into the enrollment office at Magasant they’d
arrest you on the spot. They’ve done it before.”

“But why?” I ask desperately. How quickly
that dream died. “Why won’t they let me learn magic?”

Exasperated, Gabriel swipes his blond hair to
the side of his forehead. “The Puridites – at the core of their
beliefs – think magical people and Immags should be kept separate
at all costs. They’re afraid if we mix with Immags our blood will
become diluted and impure. That we’d become weaker at magic because
of it. Remember I said the number of magical people in America is
declining more than other places? This is why – because we’re not
interracially marrying Immags.”

I shake my head at the thought as we pass the
library and head into the forest. “That’s so depressing,” I
say.

“Further still,” Gabriel says, continuing to
rant, “Europe and Asia will have our academia beat soon! Magasant
School of Magic is considered the second best school of magic in
the world. It has an enormous endowment and is well respected. But
with respect for the BOM – that’s the Bureau of Magic – at an
all-time low and our numbers declining drastically, we’ll soon be
outmatched.”

I ask with interest, “what’s the best school
for magic in the world?”

“The best, most widely respected school of
magic in the world,” Gabriel begins, “is in Scotland. I did a year
study abroad there. Frankly,” he says, grinning over at me, “I
think having that study abroad on my resume did more than anything
to get me my job at the Bureau of Beast Control.”

“What’s it like? This school in
Scotland?”

“Wonderful,” Gabriel says dreamily, gazing
off down the path to where his wand light illuminates our steps.
“It’s enormous – twice the size of Magasant. I was stunned by the
history and majesty of the place. I’m fond of Magasant, but I’m
sorry to say it doesn’t compare. Their school is a castle. Magasant
is a fortress. Probably to keep the Immags out,” he adds
disapprovingly.

It’s strange to think the warm, fondly
reminiscing boy beside me is the same who promised death to all
vampires only half an hour ago. Now he seems innocent, his boyish
charm filling me with glee and making me feel the wonders of a
faraway land.

“Can I go there?” I ask him. “To Scotland to
learn magic? Would they have me?” I can hardly keep the nervous
excitement out of my voice.

Turquoise eyes gaze in my direction. “They
might. There’s no telling. They don’t have the same rules barring
Immags, but you have to show a certain amount of ability to get in.
I wish you didn’t have to consider the idea. I wish you could go to
Magasant and do whatever you want in your own damn country!”

His force surprises me. “It wasn’t long ago,”
I begin, “you were asking me why magical people should care about
Immags. Yet
you
seem to care about us. You seem angry about
the way your Bureau of Magic is handling things.”

“Well, I am,” Gabriel says, sounding angrier
still. “This isn’t just about Immags. The Puridites have it wrong
about everything. If we don’t start interracially marrying, the
magical community in America
will
die out. It’s in my
self-interest to see magical people and Immags co-inhabit the world
better, I swear!”

I stifle my giggle.

“Okay,” I say.

And I take his hand.

His body tenses around my hand. “What are you
doing?”

“Holding your hand,” I tell him, smiling
innocently at him. Nerves are eating me from inside out. “What does
it look like I’m doing?”

Stopping short, Gabriel pulls his hand free –
not sharply, but determinedly. The turquoise of his eyes – usually
so revealing – are telling me nothing. His expression is
impermeable. “You astound me,” he says.

I desperately hope this is a good thing.
“Why?”

“You just finished making a case for the
intelligence of Immags,” Gabriel remarks. “Saying you’re tired of
my being derogatory. I understand that. I look for proof of the
contrary. Yet I’ve told you it’s illegal for magical people and
Immags to enter into relations. So what are you’re doing?”

I’m trying my best to look unperturbed as my
heart pings off my chest. “I know what you told me,” I say calmly,
determined to keep my cool. “But I don’t care. I don’t care if it’s
against the law. I like you, Gabriel – I like you a lot. Even if
you are derogatory and condescending to, to –”

“Immags?”

I nod. “But I don’t care. I like you
anyway.”

“Perhaps you shouldn’t,” Gabriel says, gazing
off along the dark path ahead of us. “Perhaps you should get as far
away from me as possible. In fact,” he begins, closing his eyes,
“you
should
get as far away from me as possible. I’m too
dangerous for you. And you, Nora – you’re too dangerous for
me.”