Chronicles of the Uprising (Trilogy 1): Trilogy 1 (14 page)

Stretched wide across a wooden table, arms and legs bound in thick silver chains, Mira was laid out like a beautiful offering to the sun. But her handlers were not finished with her yet.

To her left, she saw the sneering smile of her regular handler. She wished she knew his name, and more than that, she wished now she hadn’t mouthed off so much to him. He looked positively thrilled as he held up a large silver-colored spike. With a heavy mallet, he drove the spike straight through her wrist.

Pain beyond reason flooded her body, but she dared not let out the scream threatening to explode from her throat. She would not give them that satisfaction. The second spike through her other wrist was harder to withstand, but again she bit back her cries of pain.

The third spike they drove straight into her chest. Not through her heart. No. They did not want to injure that organ and cause her to pass out; they wanted her to feel every moment of the punishment she had earned. In unbearable pain, she couldn’t hold back the scream this time.

“Now, that’s what I wanted to hear.” The voice of the Magistrate preceded his stench for once. “You’ve caused me quite a bit of trouble. And in your arrogance, you thought you’d get away with it, didn’t you?”

Even if Mira could have talked at that moment, she wouldn’t have dared. There was no good in giving in to his goading.

“Fancy yourself a smart little vampire, eh? Thought you would incite a riot and escape in the confusion?”

He walked around her, admiring his minion’s handiwork. “Spikes through the feet, too. I want her to be an amazing spectacle when we put her out in the town center for sunrise.”

Mira braced herself for the pain that was about to come.

“If you vampires were half as smart as you think you are, you’d never have ended up as our slaves. If you cannot handle your lot in life, then you’ll just have to be the example that keeps the others in line.”

Mira felt her left leg being shifted and her foot being placed down onto the surface of the table. Moments later the spike pierced her skin and ran straight through her foot.

She couldn’t hold back the cry. And as the second foot was nailed to the table, tears ran unchecked down the sides of her face.

“At least I will die knowing I did my part to change things.” She spat the words at the Magistrate.

“No one will care about your death, or your parting words. You’re just another vampire. But, come morning, you’ll be a thrilling fireworks display.”

Breathing through the agony, she spoke slowly, ensuring her words came out loud and clear. “Some care. And that look of fear you’re trying to hide in your eyes tells me you know I’m right.”

“A small problem. One that will soon be remedied.” The Magistrate turned to one of the guards. “Bring in Lucian.”

His was the last name Mira expected to hear.

Beaten and bloody, Lucian was brought in bound in irons, looking as if he were on death’s door already.

“Ahh, Lucian, good of you to join us.” He addressed his guard again. “Please find an appropriate place to put our former Regent.”

“What’s going on here?” Mira demanded. She’d actually hoped he’d be her savior. She’d counted on his status and position as Regent to ensure his safety and her own. Now it seemed both of them were going to be put to death, a fate she’d happily accept herself but not at the cost of his life, too. He was innocent…sort of. He’d helped her. He had told her of the Magistrate’s plan. For all his attempts at good deeds, her actions had condemned him.

“Well, now, are we surprised to see our lover and informant?” The Magistrate laughed. “It has come to my attention, and will be made public knowledge, that our former Regent has been working on unethical experiments to try to increase the vampire population. This simply cannot happen. As Magistrate, it is my duty to punish such unlawful behavior and bring peace and safety to my people.”

“And remove all links to your own involvement,” Mira sneered. Everything, it seemed, had been all for naught. Both she and Lucian would be dead, and the Magistrate would spin new lies for the human population. Her stomach churned with the sour taste of failure and guilt.

“He’s been sentenced to death right alongside of you, his cohort. When your body burns in the sun, he too will share in the experience. We’ll have to help things along with a little fire of our own, but you shall both enjoy the same fitting end for your treason.”

Lucian, barely conscious, grunted, but had no strength to struggle. He was secured to the rack alongside Mira.

“Wheel them out to the city center. I want cameras set up to catch the show come sunrise,” the Magistrate said as he walked out of the room.

For the first time in years, Mira saw the stars. She hadn’t been allowed outdoors since her capture. The fresh night air stung her already-ruined skin, but she welcomed its cold bite. Even the subtle scent of garbage clinging to the breeze was a welcome change from the musty dungeon air of her former prison. She savored each breath of unfiltered air, knowing they might well be her last.

The cart carrying her and Lucian stopped in what must have been the city center. Some men came out, handlers by the looks of them, too lightly armored to be regular soldiers. They made quick work of securing Mira and Lucian to their racks and connecting chains to the ground. The men unhitched the trailer that had been pulling them and drove away.

Silence, eerie and beautiful, surrounded them. Mira caught sight of a shooting star overhead. For all the beauty and magnificence of it, she could not enjoy it. She’d die not only a disgrace, but a failure too. Sacrificing her life and Lucian’s for nothing. A foolhardy plan that had ultimately failed.

In a vain attempt to escape, Mira struggled against her restraints. The nails that had been driven through her limbs must have been coated in silver, as they burned relentlessly. For all her strength and willingness to rip off her own arm if necessary, she couldn’t break free. She was well and truly screwed. There would be no hope of escape.

Lucian stirred. She heard him struggling against his restraints, but they’d been placed back to back, so she couldn’t see him.

“You alive still?” she asked.

“Why?” His voice was barely a whisper, raspy and low.

“I’ll take that as a yes.”

“I asked for you to get rid of him. This was your plan?” Even through the pain, Mira could hear the disappointment in Lucian’s voice.

“I told you simply killing him would not solve the problem.”

“And getting ourselves killed would?”

She couldn’t blame him for his contempt. “Minor oversight. But the seeds of discontent have been sown.”

“And will be forgotten by morning.”

“Nah. They’ll remember for at least a day,” Mira tried to joke, but deep down she knew Lucian was right. “Sorry to have involved you in this. I was supposed to be the only one to die.”

“The Magistrate had his suspicions the moment he knew I was Patron to a vampire.”

“And you didn’t even get to take advantage of all a Patron enjoys.”

“Oh… I’d say you fucked me pretty good here.”

“Well, now, things can’t be all bad if you’re making jokes.” Mira would have laughed if she weren’t in so much pain it took all she had to hold back the tears.

“We’ll see. Can you move at all?”

“I’m kind of tied up here. Oh and nailed to the table.”

“Sorry. I hoped your vampire strength would help us out here.”

“So did I. Got any brilliant ideas?”

“Maybe.”

“That’s reassuring.”

“I may have been branded a traitor, but I still have a friend or two.”

“Let’s hope you do. Dawn will be here soon enough, and I am really not looking forward to death by sunburn.”

The dull thud of a rock hitting dirt nearby caught Mira’s attention. That was no random falling stone. It hit too closely and too precisely to have just dropped on its own. She listened carefully. Footsteps, slow and quiet were coming closer to her. Another rock hit the dirt nearby.

“Is that you, Death?” Lucian said as loudly as he could manage with his raspy voice.

Another male voice responded, “Come to deliver you to the gates of hell.”

“Friends?” Mira whispered cautiously.

“Yes.”

Two humans arrived clad all in black. At first glance they appeared to be handlers, but Mira’s eyes were better than that. These two were no trained soldiers, nor were their clothes the sleek black of a handler’s armor. Their clothes weren’t even armor at all, Mira saw as they came closer. They were far too simple for any formal uniform: long-sleeved shirts and pants, with what appeared to be dark hats pull low to cover their eyes. A male, the one who had responded to Lucian, came forward first, followed by a female whose face was completely covered. It was only the hint of flowery perfume that gave her away. Without a word, she immediately went to work removing the large spikes.

They hurt Mira more on the way out than they had going in, but knowing that silence was their ally, she kept herself as quiet as she could, whimpering only when the pain became too great.

When all the spikes had been removed, the man pulled out a pair of bolt cutters and made quick work of cutting the chains shackling her to the table.

“Get up and get moving, quick!” The male barked the order at Mira. “We need to move now.” He shouldered the limp form of Lucian, and together with the help of his female companion, headed into the shadows.

Weak and woozy, Mira took a moment to gain her balance. Wobbling on unsteady legs, she followed as best as she could behind them.

Following back alleyways, they slowly weaved their way through the city towards what appeared to Mira to be a heavily residential area. Completely lined with rowhouses, the street was part of a well-planned-out community. Street lights were uniformly set every four houses. A small walkway separated the street from the concrete steps up to each two-story brick home. In front of every house was a clearly marked parking spot labeled with the number of the home to which it corresponded. It was almost too perfectly laid out. Like her prison, only a little bit nicer. For all its perfection, it lacked something. Not a single blade of grass nor tree nor bush anywhere. Perhaps more like her prison than she had first thought. It might look prettier, but it was no more inviting.

Just then, she spotted a blinking red light under one of the street lights. On second glance, she saw it was a camera.

“We’re being watched.”

“Don’t worry about the cameras right now,” the male responded. “The streets aren’t closely monitored. Those cameras are fixed. Just keep to the shadows and don’t stop moving.”

Expecting to be heading away from the city, Mira couldn’t help but feel they were traveling further inside it. “Where are we going?”

“The sun will be up soon. We won’t be able to clear the city walls before that happens. You’ll stay with me today, and we’ll make our escape this evening,” the male called out behind him.

Not what she’d hoped to hear. Spending another day inside the city walls was a dangerous proposition. No doubt their absence would be noticed and a manhunt would ensue, making any future attempts to leave doubly hard. But as she had no other option, she soldiered on, following as close to them as she could manage in her injured state.

They ducked inside a small doorway just off the alleyway, which led down a set of stairs to a large basement.

It was small and filled with all manner of human junk: old clothing, boxes, and shelves of god-only-knows-what. What it didn’t have, thankfully, were visible windows. It wasn’t much but that one fact alone made it a perfect sanctuary. Mira took a moment to catch her breath and acknowledge her rescuers. “Thank you.”

“No offense to you, vampire,” the male responded. He pulled his hat off and met her gaze straight on. “We did not do this for you. We’re loyal to our Regent.”

Strong words for someone who appeared so frail. The man was older than she’d expected. He’d shouldered Lucian and carried him for the better part of four miles, so she’d expected to see a young, strapping man of twenty or so. The man in front of her had to be at least double that, with a head of graying hair and dusky eyes surrounded by a face filled with wrinkles.

“Of course.” Mira nodded. “As am I.”

That seemed to smooth out any remaining tension with the male, who managed a smile. The woman, however, kept her face covered and stood well behind her partner. Mira couldn’t help but feel she was using him as a shield.

Mira acknowledged her with a nod. “Thank you as well. You may not trust my kind, but you have my word I am in your debt.”

The woman refused to respond.

After a brief awkward silence among the four of them, the male spoke up. “You’ll stay here for the day.” He opened up a hidden doorway in what Mira thought had just been a cluttered wall. It led to another small empty chamber. “You should be well hidden in here. Just remember to be silent. Not a peep until I return.”

The man helped a barely conscious Lucian into the small room. Mira stood by, waiting for him to exit before going in to the small chamber herself.

“And how will I know it’s you at the door?” As if his scent would not give him away.

“I’ll speak the word ‘gladiator’.”

With that, he ushered them inside and closed the door.