The Guardian Lineage (24 page)

Dementae straightened. “Very well. I will remove the Aneksham if you agree to cooperate.”

Mike looked from Aaron to Annabella, whose movements were already starting to slow. Garzan must've been able to fight it for much longer. But Aaron and Annabella… they wouldn't stand a chance against the poison…

It could save their lives…

But who was he kidding? Dementae wouldn't actually
heal
them… and he'd kill Mike as soon as he was done with him…

But what other choice did he have? He couldn't heal them by himself, he couldn't get them to Stockton or Garzan or anyone else who could help… they were stuck in the middle of nowhere, without any way of transport…

“Done,” Mike said quickly. If Aaron and Annabella had any chance to live, this was it. He would deal with the consequences afterwards. “What do I have to do?”

Dementae grinned. “Follow me.” He snapped his fingers. A massive portal formed behind him, and Dementae turned to leave.

“What about them?” Mike said, pointing to Annabella and Aaron.

“If you think I'm going to heal them before we're through, you're crazier than I am.” Dementae walked into the portal, and disappeared. Steph took one impassive look at Mike, then followed Dementae without a word.

 

 

Mike dragged Aaron and Annabella into the portal, then followed. He ended up in a tremendous antechamber. The floor was a checkerboard of white and black marble. Drapes covered enormous glass windows, and glass chandeliers – not unlike the ones in Windham – illuminated the room. Tall columns stretched to the ceiling. Marble sculptures guarded enormous wooden doors. Renaissance paintings hung all around.

And in the middle of the room lay a pile of bodies, not unlike the one he had seen at Blackrock Castle.

Mike gagged on the smell.

“Welcome, Mister Prior, to Chateau de Vincennes. Although I must say its inhabitants have seen better days.” Dementae clucked and shook his head at the pile of remains. “Come, to a more pleasant sight.”

Mike dragged Aaron and Annabella through the wooden doors and into the Castle's Greeting Hall, which had been set up into a laboratory of some kind. A tremendous mass lay underneath a white sheet, its expanse nearly taking up half the room. Various bottles of neon liquids lay strewn about, some on tables, some in a cabinet that was wide open. Several displays of knights' armor stood with various weapons in hand, as if to decorate the place. There was a seat off to the left, almost like an electric chair, with a leather hat and metal bindings for the wrists and ankles. Wires ran over from the chair to the covered carcass. Mike had never read Frankenstein, but it must've looked exactly like this, only ten times smaller. He slipped Annabella onto the floor where she could lie comfortably, and kept Aaron supported upright.

“Honey, I'm home!” Dementae called. Instantly the room was filled with movement. Vampires, almost like grunts, ran over to the carcass on the floor and peeked underneath the sheet, making sure everything was in place. Tall, handsome men and women in black robes came over to Dementae and kissed his hand, only to immediately slink out of the room.

“Put these two with the others,” Dementae said to two of the black-robed Brethren.

“Hey, where are they taking them?” Mike said as one of the Brethren grabbed Annabella. He held Aaron up with both arms, as if to protect him, although Aaron was starting to slip into unconsciousness.

“Relax, Mister Prior, they won't get any worse where they're going.”

That was hardly comforting, but Mike didn't have much of a choice. He had to help Dementae, or they would die. He reluctantly let Aaron be taken by the Brethren, along with Annabella, towards a downwards staircase at the end of the hall.

Then someone across the room caught his eye. She was a tall, slender brunette, walking around in a different manner than the other Brethren. With an air of importance about her, as if she owned the place. Finally as she walked into the light, Mike glimpsed her face.

It was Cassandra, Lord of the Slayers.

“Evan, darling!” Cassandra walked over to Dementae and plastered her lips to his. “I've missed you!”

At this point, Mike almost started laughing. This was ridiculous already. Who was next, his dead father? Was
everyone
he knew a Brethren spy?

“You know, Evan, we caught an advance party of theirs.” Cassandra nodded at Mike.

Mike swore silently. So they
had
caught them.

Dementae's response barely registered. “I figured as much. Are they still alive?”

“The boy is. And the gargoyles, we took to the holding pen, for use in the experiments.”

Mike's knees almost buckled. Only the boy was alive. Meaning Julius Brutus. Kiva was
gone
…

“Hello, Steph,” Cassandra said. “I barely saw you.” Cassandra kissed Steph on the forehead.

Steph's face was still blank. She was standing off to the side, taking it all in. But she wasn't in a trance. She looked in full control, knowing exactly what she was doing.

Then something clicked in Mike's mind.

“It was you,” Mike said to Cassandra, seething. “You asked Garzan for the alliance. You convinced him to send out the Book of Lineage, and you had the Brethren ambush both parties.”

Cassandra clucked. “Please, my dear. You give me too much credit. I convinced Garzan into making the alliance, of course I did. I begged for his help, claimed we were going to be wiped out, pleaded with him to be merciful.” Cassandra snorted. “Which he always is. I planned on publicizing the agreement the moment it was consummated, by the way.” She rolled her eyes. “It was
Evan
here who took out the Greeting Party. Something about needing you alive.” She snickered, mouth curled into a cruel smile.

Dementae laughed. “Yes, well said, Mister Prior, well thought out. I admit, you're brighter than your mother.” He smiled wide. “And now, it's your time to shine.”

The Brethren Lord snapped at two vampires, who quickly lifted Mike off his feet and dragged him towards the chair. Mike didn't fight back only because of the thought of Aaron and Annabella. As if that was a legitimate reason. As if Dementae would really heal them after he was done… there was no way, not even after he used Mike's powers for whatever he needed…

Mike was about to grab some of the electricity from overhead when he caught Steph's gaze.

She shook her head, ever so slowly.

Before Mike could figure out what that meant, Dementae spoke again. “Listen closely, Mister Prior. This spell requires your complete focus and concentration, as well as your
will
.” For some reason, Mike found himself allowing the vampires to snap in his wrists and ankles. Dementae continued. “That's correct, if you don't want the spell to happen, it won't. But then your two friends won't survive the Aneksham, either. So I suggest you pay attention.”

Now the vampires strapped Mike's head into the chair. Mike's heart beat at an insane level, as if it was sure it was on its last moments. He eyed the chandelier.

“I need you to access the power inside of you. Without it, my baby over here will not be able to rise.” Dementae motioned to the prehistoric-sized tablecloth. “Capice?”

“Why don't you just do it?” Mike said as the vampires finished strapping the leather helmet on. It was so tight that Mike thought his head was going to burst before any spells were cast.

Dementae wagged a finger. “Ah, but there's where you're wrong. Death has a funny way of shifting things around. When I was reborn, I received some of the young man's vigor. You think I was this maniacal back in the day? Of course not. But this kid has a sense of personality, a sense of humor!” Dementae laughed at his own gaiety.

So that was why Dementae looked the way he did. He wasn't two hundred years old – he was twenty. Whoever had cut his heart out to revive Dementae had given him his looks, personality, and strength. But apparently Dementae had retained whatever was in his brain – his know-how for spells, magic, and sheer ruthlessness.

What a crazy spell… who would be able to cut his own freaking heart out?

Dementae shed Cassandra's arm, which had been wrapped around his waist, and slid over to Mike. He placed a hand on Mike's forehead and began speaking gibberish. For a moment, nothing happened.

“Concentrate, Mister Prior!”

The gibberish began again. Mike found himself focusing on… using his power? What did that even mean? He thought Dementae meant that burning sensation in his chest, the one he'd gotten when he'd attacked Zachariah a month ago, but Mike had never actually tried to create it. He didn't know if—

“Mister Prior!”

“Okay, okay.”
Find the power within
,
use the power within
… it was Aaron and Annabella's only hope, their only chance… strength, power, energy… this was all a joke, right… power, energy, strength…

Dementae threw his arms up. “What do I need to—” He cut himself off, and a huge grin spread on his face.

“Of course, how could I be so dumb?” He chuckled at himself. “Really, Mister Prior, sometimes I remind myself of one of those stupid creatures over there.” He gestured at the vampires attending to the carcass on the floor.

Dementae waved a hand over his face, and his features started to change.

Crease lines appeared on his forehead, and black hair sprouted from his head. His nose grew larger, and a long mustache sprouted from his nostrils…

All of a sudden, Mike felt a ball of fire in his stomach.

DuBois
.
Dementae is DuBois?

“But I thought…”

“That DuBois was dead?” DuBois finished in Dementae's voice. “Yes, indeed he is. About two months ago. Very sad.” Dementae snapped a finger, and his face returned to normal.

“It was
me
in that video,” he whispered.

Mike filled with rage.

“I'm going to kill you, Morningstar! I'm going to
kill
you!”

Dementae just laughed. “Yes, I'm sure you will. But first…”

He touched Mike's forehead, and Mike screamed in pain. It felt like a dentist was drilling on his skull. White splotches appeared in his eyes. A terrible throbbing began in his brain, then moved down to his feet… the pain climaxed, and Mike screamed again…

Then Mike felt a ball of energy move upwards inside of him, from his chest into his mind. The world exploded in light and flame, and everything went black.

 

 

When Mike came to, his head felt like it had been detached. His neck throbbed. Mike remembered why his head hurt, but what was that ache in his neck… he tried to move his arms, but there was a jingling sound, like the wind chime outside their house back in Queens…

Then he looked around, and cursed.

He was chained to a wall, spread-eagled apart, two or three feet off the ground. He seemed to be in some sort of underground level; the rocky wall jutting into his back told him that much. The floors were not paved or smoothed at all; they were more like the portal room in Blackrock Castle. Mike shook his head, trying to rid himself of the cobwebs, and gain some measure of awareness.

“He's alive!”

Mike's attention snapped to the far end of the room. Light was sparse, facilitated only by a few torches burning on the walls. But Mike could make out a steel grate marking off one side of the room. He squinted, trying to see who had spoken.

“Yeah, he's alive,” came another voice. Mike's eyes finally adjusted, and he could see Annabella and Julius Brutus peering through the metal bars, as well as the rest of the Guardians behind them.

“
You
guys are alive?” Mike retorted. Then he realized what that meant. “Wait, Dementae actually healed you?”

“Yes, to my utter shock.” Mike looked to his left, and saw Magus Stockton chained up in exactly the same fashion.

“What? Why?”

Stockton pursed his lips. “Undoubtedly to feed his own purposes.”

“What does that mean?” Mike looked around. “Wait, where's Aaron?”

“We don't know,” Annabella said from across the room. “What did you do up there? Ever since you showed up, Dementae sends a few Brethren goons down here every half hour to take one of us upstairs.”

“And we haven't seen any of them since,” Julius Brutus added.

Mike wanted to answer them, but even he had no idea what he'd done. He had blacked out immediately after the pain had reached its pinnacle. As soon as the power within him had… what, exactly?

“How many of you guys are left?”

JB peeked behind and did a quick body count. “Like thirty.”

Thirty!
Mike thought. There must've been at least a hundred kids at school, probably more…

“Why don't you just fight back?” Mike said.

Julius Brutus tapped the bars. “No magic,” he said. “Some kind of charm on the metal.”

So that was why Stockton couldn't break free. Mike had wondered why measly chains had held the Magus, and some of the teachers who Mike started to make out in the back of the cell. If they couldn't fight back, then their fate was already sealed…

“Any sign of Caroline? Alexis?”

Stockton shook his head. “The only ones to join us are yourself and Miss Frost. Where are the others?”

“I… I don't know,” Mike stammered.

“What do you mean, you don't know?”

Just then, Mike heard footsteps coming from the stairs off to the right. The Guardian cell broke into frenzied pandemonium, with each of the teens trying to hide behind another. Only Annabella and the teachers stood firm, as if the threat did not faze them at all. Stockton, meanwhile, made as if he was unconscious, closing his eyes and drooping his neck back to an unnatural level.

Mike's eyes narrowed as Steph appeared at the bottom of the stairwell. She was dressed in Brethren garb now, black robe and all. Mike felt another rage build up inside of him, but something was missing.

The ball of power in his chest.

He didn't feel it at all.

Steph glanced at Annabella momentarily, then made a bee-line for Mike.

“Look who it is,” Mike snapped. “The arch-bitch herself.”

“Shut up, Mike,” Steph hissed. She placed a hand on one of his ankle braces and muttered a spell. The lock broke free.

“Did Dementae send for me?”

“I said shut
up
, Mike!” The other ankle lock snapped open. Mike gasped as his body dropped a few inches. He felt a sharp pain as the metal chains scraped against against his wrists. His feet dangled towards the ground.

“No,” Mike said. “You're a filthy, slimy little worm who will
rot
when I get through with you.”

Steph climbed on a protruding rock to reach Mike's wrists. Her body was stretched out, close to his. One wrist popped free. Mike had no idea why she was doing this, but he was going to
kill
her when she was done…

“Will you stop it already?” Steph said as she moved to get the other wrist. “Someone's going to hear you.”

Mike paid her no attention. “That's it, release me so I can fry you with one of those torches over there—”

Then, out of nowhere, Steph kissed him. Hard.

“Now will you shut up?”

Mike's mind turned to mush. What the…? But before he could actually get his mind working again, he heard another voice from behind Steph. A voice that was both familiar and caustic at the same time.

“I knew we never should've trusted you.”

Steph jumped off her perch and whipped around. Mike dangled from one wrist, his wrist feeling like it was about to snap in half. Blood trickled down his arm.

No, come back, free me first!

But then he saw who had entered the room.

It was Aaron Caulderon.

His pupils were black, only black. He wore a Brethren robe, and his expression was not nearly the kind, amused face Mike was used to seeing.

“Every single day, I kept telling myself: maybe Steph really is on our side. Maybe the Headmage's daughter really has been swayed by her stepmother's influence.”

Aaron?
He was a part of this, too? And now Steph wasn't? Wait – Cassandra wasn't Steph's real mother?

Aaron stalked towards them, grinning like a cheetah who'd just caught a week's worth of dinner. “But I was right. You
are
a traitor.”

“You're such an idiot,” Steph said, stepping up to Aaron. “Dementae asked for Mike, to run the machine again.”

“Is that so?” Aaron said, rubbing his chin. “And I suppose that when he asked
me
to bring Mike to the machine, he really wanted
both
of us to bring him?”

Oh crap,
Mike thought.

He slid his gaze over to Stockton, who appeared to be peeking at the action through closed eyes. But he was still chained, too, and there was nothing he could do but watch…

“I don't understand,” Mike said, hoping to stall. “We were friends in Windham… we fought with each other, protected each other… Dementae hit you with an Aneksham, you would've died if I didn't carry you in!”

Aaron snorted. “A calculated risk, I admit. But a little pain is nothing compared to the reward I will receive for serving my master.”

He is a total psycho
, Mike realized.
How did I never notice this? He never acted like this in Windham…

And that's exactly the point, you fool.

“Let's see here,” Aaron said, circling Steph so he was in between her and Mike. “You, Steph, switched from Pyro to Electrokinesis because you sucked at it, if I'm not mistaken.” Aaron's eyes mirrored the room. “Big mistake. I don't see any electricity down here.”

Mike felt totally helpless, dangling there from that one support. He wanted so badly to help Steph, but he was still connected to the magical chain, and he probably couldn't do magic… well, it couldn't hurt to try, did it?

“But me, on the other hand…” Fire streaked towards Aaron's open palm. He curved his hands back and forth around the tiny orange globe, as if he was raving at a club. “My weapon is right here.” Aaron's eyes glimmered in the flame. “So what's it going to be, sweetheart? A fiery death? Or should I subject you to the mercies of our great leader?”

Mike's brain pounded. Fire? Aaron could control fire? He was an Electro major in Windham, Mike was sure of it…

Mike thrust his free arm forward towards Aaron, hoping the fire would jump from Aaron to him.

But nothing happened. Nothing, except, Aaron's amused laughter. He pointed to the chain.

“Almost, Mike, almost. But I'm afraid those chains are still binding.”

Aaron lifted the fire to Mike's chest, so close that he could feel the heat. Aaron stared into Mike's eyes, black hatred emanating from them. It sent shivers down Mike's spine, just like the first time he had met him. “Where's the book, Steph?”

“Huh?” Mike said.

Aaron dissolved his weapon and got into Steph's face. Steph backed up just a step. It was clear to Mike that she was afraid of him.

And if Steph was afraid of him, there was something about Aaron that Mike was
definitely
missing.

“The
book
, Stephanie!”

“I… I don't have it,” Steph stammered.

What is going on?
Mike wondered.

Aaron rolled his cue-ball eyes. “Are you really going to make me do this?” He walked over to the jail cell and raised a hand. The door swung open. The Guardians inside started murmuring. A few stepped backwards, away from the opening. Aaron reached inside and telekinesed a kid out. It was Minor, the guy Aaron had dueled on the first day of Sparring.

“Hey, Aaron, listen,” Minor protested as Aaron grabbed a handful of Minor's curly black hair, then shoved him. Minor stumbled, and he fell to his knees.

Out of nowhere, Aaron produced a club from inside his sleeve. He whacked Minor on the back of the head. Minor crumpled to the ground.

Steph screamed. “Aaron you son of a bitch!”

“Let's try this again,” Aaron said. He lifted up Minor's head like he was a chicken about to be slaughtered. A blade slid out of the base of Aaron's club. He held it at Minor's neck.

“Aaron, hold on,” Steph whispered. “What are you doing…”

Mike closed his eyes for a second, his brain piercing, his arm feeling like it was being amputated. There was something off about this whole thing… this made no sense… how could Aaron have been the spy, he was one of his closest friends…

“
Where is the book, Steph?
” Aaron thundered. “The Book of Lineage, which you stole three days ago! There are other forces at work here which you do not understand,
what did you do with the book?
”

“Aaron,” Mike said, “Put that thing down, don't you dare…”

Steph said, “I swear, Aaron, I don't know what you're talking about—”

Aaron's blade flashed, and Mike saw red liquid spurt upwards.

“No!” Mike yelled as Minor's head fell to the floor. He screamed curse words, cursing Aaron out as loudly as possible. Screams came from the jail cell, they seemed muted, as if they were behind a wall. Mike could not keep eyes off Jason Minor, lying on the floor, motionless, a river of red flowing across the stone…

That is, until Aaron jumped up and held the bloodstained blade at his neck.

“Round two, Steph, let's try again. Maybe someone you care about a little more. Where is the book?”

Mike's mind screamed,
Steph, do something!
But she was frozen stiff, almost too terrified to act. It occurred to Mike that she had no idea where the book was, or who had taken it… but maybe, just maybe… Mike checked the proximity between him and Aaron and thought,
could this really work?

Aaron, meanwhile, started on a victory speech. “By the way, Prior, if you're wondering, it was me who sent the vampire to your hospital room. Almost got you there. The Calebra in the girls' dorms – me again. I'm sure the girls I put into a coma are dead by now, huh?”

Mike knew that without any Guardians to care for them, they probably were.

“And now I have you, mister top of the class,” Aaron sneered.

But before Aaron could do anything else, Mike rocked his leg backwards.

And punted him straight in the groin.

Aaron toppled over, a hand on his crotch, his mouth open in plain surprise. Then, as if a spell on her had been broken, Steph drew a twin-sided dagger from beneath her robe. She lunged to stab at Aaron's side.

But he was too quick. Aaron threw up his club and knocked Steph's dagger away. He grabbed her by the wrist and flung her into the wall. She hit hard, and her hand flew to the back of her head.

Suddenly, a ball of flame hit Aaron in the back, and he fell forward. He turned around just to get another one in the chest.

Mike turned and saw several Guardians from the jail cell flooding into the room, fire flowing to their hands, including Professor Punn. For a moment, he was confused, but then he realized how they'd escaped.

Aaron had left the door open.

“No,” Aaron moaned. He muttered something under his breath. The Guardians reared back to finish him off…

Just then, a small blue oval appeared out of nowhere. Aaron launched himself into the liquid. A volley of flames flew in his direction. The fire hit the mini-portal, which shuddered, then closed as quickly as it had appeared.

A few of the Guardians ran over to Minor. Others just stood there, shocked by the whole turn of events. Steph had her head in her hands, sobbing.

One of the Guardians Mike didn't know jumped up on a rock to reach Mike's lone chain. As soon as he released it, Mike fell to the floor, tasting dirt on his lips. He tried to get up, but he couldn't move. He had no strength whatsoever, even to keep his eyes open…

“Swallow this,” Mike heard Stockton's voice say. Something was pressed into his mouth – a pill, maybe – and he swallowed it without thinking. Out of nowhere, Mike felt rejuvenated, as if the energy that was stolen from him had been restored.

Mike bent over, hands on knees, hoping even more strength would return. He spit out dirt and saliva, then wiped his mouth.

“Let's get out of here,” he heard someone say.