20
There was little time to search for his new power. As soon as Ansel pulled the hilt from Will’s chest, he jumped to his feet, narrowing his eyes on Azu. The witch floated in the sky above the church, her eyes blazing with fire, her hand clutching the small hell charge, which was set to destroy everything.
Inside, Ansel’s body was a cauldron of raging power. Every soul he’d ever taken, every power he’d consumed, they all whirled within him, fighting and stretching out, trying to compete for his attention. The most striking was the cold and flaring fire of the Nephilim spirits, which were so much stronger than all the other spirits inside of him. Deep in the recess of his mind however, there was the strange and ghostlike presence of something new.
That’s it—that’s Will’s power.
He reached out and grabbed the power in his mind, pulling it toward him. As soon as he touched it, the world burst into a vision of melting smoke. One moment Azu was in his vision, the next he felt himself hurtling up and spinning round in all directions, screaming as he tried to regain control. He tried to straighten his eyes and look forward, but his vision had stretched into a deep tunnel. Somewhere around him, he heard the manic cackling of Azu, echoing through the hallways of his mind.
A cold burst of air touched his hands, and he grabbed hold of the sensation. The world came crashing back into focus and Ansel realized he was up in the air above the church, just behind Azu. There was one thing he'd forgot about, and that was gravity. Thrusting his hand out, he grabbed Azu and held on tight.
The witch screamed as they fell. They were turning fast through the air, and only seconds from the floor. Ansel pulled his sword back and speared it through her chest. Silver emerged on the opposite side of her body streaked in dark red, and an ear piercing scream filled the valley.
They smashed through an old stone altar, the witch’s body taking the brunt of the force. Azu was dead. Ansel stood, all eyes in the church were on him.
“Looks like you did us all a favor there Draco.”
Anderson limped across the stage area with a gun pointed at Ansel’s chest.
“Really? Are we still doing this?”
“What? Are we best buddies now because you killed that crazy bitch? You’re still a vampire, and I’m still a vampire hunter.” He pulled back the trigger on his pistol, the blue fire fading from his eyes. With Azu dead, the Nephilim magic would work no more, Ansel even felt it fading from himself.
“I’d reconsider that. Your powers are fading. In a few seconds, you’ll just be mortal again, and I’ll tear you limb from limb.”
There was no hint of worry on Anderson’s face. “I had accounted for that Draco. I grabbed this when you took the witch down.” Anderson lifted his hand to display the hell charge. “One word and I light this place up.”
“You’re bluffing. You’re too vain for self sacrifice.”
“Actually, Azu gave me the trigger word. Care to hear it? It’s SHA—”
The stone glowed bright blue, but Logan stepped forward, raising his voice over Anderson’s. “This has gone far enough Anderson. The contract from the Circle was a mistake. Neither of our parties should ever have taken it. If you set that thing off, you kill us, and you kill your own men too.”
Anderson surely wasn't that crazy, but the fear in his men's eyes told a different story.
“He’s right Anderson.” A blond haired girl stepped forward. “Don’t sacrifice the rest of our lives just because you’re too stubborn to admit defeat.”
“Stay out of this Ellie.” He snarled. “I’m the leader here, and it’s my choice. I’ve been hunting these families for as long as I can remember, and now I can finally kill them.”
“Kill us, and we still survive.” Eric Belmont said. “We’ve escorted the York prisoners, and we still have Belmont vampires safe back at the castle.”
“And with you dead, no one is there to protect them.” Anderson laughed. “After we die, the White Order will get word of it. They’ll send in more troops to finish your families, including your whore wife and your fucking demon children.”
Ansel watched as Eric fought to keep himself held back. Anderson had gone insane, and he was holding the one thing that could kill everyone. They could try to jump him, but annihilation was just one word on his lips.
“So we’ll leave it at that.” He continued. “I can’t say it’s not been fun. You vampires put up a rather good fight, I have to give you that. It’s time to draw it to an end however. Farewell folks. SHAVR—”
A bolt of white light erupted from the dark ink of night, bursting down through the air in a second. The lightning struck the ground under Anderson’s feet, exploding through the church in a deafening crack. A shock wave burst through the church, sending everyone flying backward. Annihilation hung on Anderson's’ lips, and the triggering word twisted into a shrill cry of pain, followed by nothing.
His body vaporized into a cloud of sparkling ash, leaving only a charred pit of stone in his place. Ansel lifted himself back onto his feet. The hooded vampire stood in front of him.
Weird shrieking sounds folded through the air of the church, and Ansel realized half the shifters had sprinted at the sight of the feral. A few Order members had taken that as their chance to leave too, and only a few people remained in the church now.
“I apologize for taking your kill.” The hooded vampire said while looking in Ansel’s direction. “Anderson has been a thorn in my side for some time now.”
“Wraith?” Eric Belmont walked forward. “It’s me, Eric. I’m your brother.”
The vampire turned to look at Eric, but did not pull his hood back. “You must forgive me Eric. I’m not great with names anymore. I’ve changed quite a lot since the accident.”
“I can see that Wraith. But we’ve found you again now. Why not come home? We can help you get better.”
“No.” The glimpse of a smile came beneath the shadow. “That’s not my plan for today. I’m only here for one reason. Her.”
The hooded vampire pointed at Ellie, the blond haired girl from the White Order.
“Me?!” Ellie gasped.
“Yes.” He said, his voice dark and knowing. “I’ve been trying to get you for some time.”
Ansel's eyes locked on the black stone in the feral's hands. He had the charge. Eric glanced his way, indicating that he had noticed it too.
“Hand over the charge Wraith.” Eric said while trying to keep his voice calm. “And we can talk this over.”
Wraith looked down at the charge in his hand, almost as if he hadn’t noticed it. “This thing? One word of demon tongue and we're all dead. I know that word. It’s SHAVR—”
“No!” Eric jumped forward. “Please. Think of Claire, think of our family. If you kill us now, that will perish.”
“Then comply with my demands.” His voice whispered. “This girl, for the charge. It’s a simple exchange.”
All eyes turned to Ellie. Why was this vampire so fascinated with her? She looked at the shadowy figure and swallowed. If she didn’t go, everyone in this church would die. There were still a good amount of vampires inside the church, maybe a giant explosion wouldn’t be such a bad thing? She’d die but maybe in that death her father might finally see something worth loving.
But you never wanted to kill vampires did you? She asked herself. So why end your life that way?
She walked forward through the dust up to the front of the church, stopping just a few paces away from the charred pit. She was closer to the vampire than anyone else now, and there was a dreadful sick feeling in her stomach.
“Take me then. Hand the charge over to him and we can go… wherever you want to go.” She shuddered. Just what did he want with her? What horrible things did he have in store for her fragile body?
Another wicked grin flashed from under the shadowed cloak. In a flash of movement, the vampire launched the black stone in Eric Belmont’s direction, then he rushed forward and grabbed Ellie from off the ground.
Ansel tried to understand the feral vampire’s complete obsession with this seemingly random girl. As the feral grabbed her and hoisted her over his shoulder, the girl let out a loud cry. It was in that moment that Ansel noticed what made her so special.
“Well, that will be all from me!” The feral shouted while clutching the girl tight on his shoulder. He turned his attention on the few remaining members of the Order. “You'll want to search for me, you'll want to save your friend. I strongly suggest you don’t.” He turned to Eric. “And you… brother. It’s been rather splendid seeing you again, but don’t take it personally if I forget you next time.”
“It doesn’t have to be this way Wraith.” Eric said. “Come back to the castle, we can help you.”
“There’s only one thing that can help me, and I have that right here.”
With a powerful thrust of his legs, Wraith burst upward into the sky and disappeared into the night. Ellie’s screams echoed into nothing, leaving the church in heavy silence.
“I suggest you leave while you still can.” Eric turned and looked at the remaining Order members. The scattered group of men and women flashed nervous looks at each other and nodded, realizing that Eric’s offer was a good one. They were out of the church in less than a minute, leaving the vampires and Logan’s half of the pack.
“It looks like I missed all the fun.”
Turning, the group saw Rubago stood in the church's entrance.
“You have a great sense of timing.” Ansel said.
“Indeed. I understand my sister tried to obliterate all life? You're all still here, so she obviously failed. Who has the charge?”
“Me.” Eric held his hand out, Rubago walked over and took the stone from him, making it disappear between her hands.
“I’ll keep hold of that for now. As for everything else—what happened here?”
They started with the first attack, and talked her through the frantic events of the night, until she was up to speed.
“That is the second time you’ve seen my sister die now Ansel.” Rubago said. “I think you're connected somehow. Tell me, did you feel anything when you killed her?”
Ansel shook his head, thankful he’d absorbed nothing of the witch. “I absorbed nothing, and I’m grateful. I don’t want any of that shit inside of me. She was out of her mind.”
“Nephilim magic is powerful stuff. Play with it for too long and you'll go crazy. Look at Anderson, he wanted to kill everyone, just to accomplish his mission.”
“That is another thing for us to worry about.” Eric said while looking at Ansel. “We all laughed at Draco for his paranoid battles with the Red Circle. From what we hear, they are the ones responsible for the attacks on our family.”
This news seemed to surprise Rubago more than anything else. “I must admit that is very intriguing. The entire purpose of the Circle is to prolong the vampires' existence, so why would they try to eliminate it by thwarting the prophecy?”
She looked at Logan for answers. The shifter shrugged and cracked his knuckles. “Scarrow was the one who arranged the contract with Vangzali. He’s fled along with the other half of our mutinous pack. We’ll hunt them down in the coming days. I might get answers for you then.”
Rubago nodded. “Please keep us updated, any information might help secure the prophecy.”
“What need did my brother have with this girl?” Eric said to Rubago. “Has he lost his mind? Why go to all this effort?”
“I ran into Wraith before I arrived here. From what I understand, his mind is broken since he fell from the castle roof.”
“Broken? You mean to say he’s insane?”
“Not insane.” She countered. “He has drastic amnesia. He is not entirely vampire anymore, he is something much greater.”
“Fuck,” Edmund laughed. “That was evident enough just from the lightning.”
“As for the girl. He's convinced that she is his mate. What he intends to do with her, I cannot say. We can be thankful he showed up however, without him, Anderson would have killed us all.”
“I can explain his obsession with the girl.” Ansel said.
“You can?” Rubago asked.
“When the vampire took the girl, he hoisted her up off the ground and placed her on his shoulder. I’m not sure if anyone else noticed it... the bottom of the girl’s shirt lifted to expose her skin. There at the bottom of her back, was a spiral shaped birthmark.”
Gasps burst throughout the room at Ansel’s comment.
“Then this girl is the next daughter!” Eric said, looking at Rubago with questioning eyes.
Rubago stared at Ansel, who had his eyes fixed on the charred ground in front of him.
“A spiral. Are you sure Draco?”
“Certain. The girl is one of the lost daughters.”
Rubago thought it over. It lined up with Wraith’s demented ramblings about the girl, and it accounted for his unusual interest in her too.
“What now Rubago?” Eric said. “My brother has stolen one of the daughters. Should we find them and take her back?”
“No, we need to protect them. Wraith is part of this prophecy now, just as much as you were. He and this girl are destined for each other, and now they're running for their lives. The Order will step up their efforts to find Wraith. In his demented state, they both are vulnerable. It’s up to us to help them. At least now we know that the second daughter exists.”
Now they had to keep her alive. Wraith was out there somewhere, and with him was the key to the vampire’s survival, whether he realized it or not.