House of Ravens (The Nightfall Chronicles Book 2) (6 page)

I charge at Varian with my sword.

He blocks me and knocks me back. I barely feel the blows, barely register they happened. He's so fast. I can't fight him.

I drop to my knees. "Please. Let her go."

Varian ignores me. On the screen, a soldier presses a gun to Trix's head. TR screams in my ear. "We're here because of you, Nightfall. Do something.
Do something!
"

Something dark shatters through the glass.

It hits the soldier, slamming him into the wall and away from Trix. The others try to fire at it. They cannot. The darkness glides through the room, cutting down soldier after soldier in an instant.

The darkness is death.

The darkness is Zorin.

He saves Trix. Because I asked him to.

I smile, a tear running down my face.

Varian sneers. "He's here." He steps toward me. "Let's see how long you last."

I fly for the door out of instinct.

His whip catches me again.

I talk into the eGlass. "Leave me. Leave me, or we're all dead."

Varian stands over me. I can see his purple eyes. There's no ruthlessness. Only calculation. He lifts his sword.

I clutch the Token of Strife around my neck. I won't give up.

I jump at him, trying to grab him, trying to use my powers.

Varian's sword flashes in front of me.

And cuts off my hand.

I collapse, frozen. My hand lays before me, pale, limp.

I scream.

Varian strikes.

He doesn't hit me. He stops halfway. Why?

And then I see it. The ground below him is turning red. He jumps up as it burns into ash. As Zorin flies through the dust.

His dark sword crashes against Varian's blade. They land and dash across the room, never standing still, weaving around each other. Their battle looks simple, elegant. But I know it is a dance of death. 

My vision grows fuzzy. Zorin and Varian become blurs. Black fighting against gold. Someone kneels before me. Trix. She notices my hand and gasps.

I don't respond.

She shakes me. "N, we need to go."

She's right. I stand up, leaning against her. We walk over to the barricaded window, and she uses her abilities to burn open a hole. "N, you need to fly us out of here."

My strength is fading, but I have enough. I unleash my wings. I grab Trix and step to the edge. But I can't leave. "Zorin."

"He'll follow us. N, we need to go
now
."

No. Varian and Zorin are matched. Zorin won't be able to escape. He'll fight until more soldiers arrive, and then he'll lose.

I need to do something.

"Evie, hack into all the eScreens and networks. Play my conversation with Varian to the people."

I see two screens from where I stand. Both change to an image of Varian and me. The speakers boom through the city. "You'd use innocents to lure me? You'd lie to your people?" I ask in the video.

Varian chuckles. There is no sympathy in his voice. "The people are pawns, and I their King. I will manipulate them again and again to win." The video loops. People on the streets yell in protest.

And Varian hesitates.

It's only a split second. But it's enough. Zorin pulls away from the battle. He grabs Trix and me. And he carries us into the sky. Everything grows dark.

I awake on a soft bed in a dimly lit room. I'm dressed in a white linen gown. Someone removed my armor and changed my clothing. I shiver at the idea of a stranger's hands on me. But, my mask is still on, so perhaps not a stranger. I'm at the Cathedral. I came here when...

My memories come rushing back and bile rises in my throat.  I raise my hand, the hand Varian cut off. I cringe, expecting a bloody bandage.

There is none.

My hand is still there.

I gasp, studying the lines of my palm, the length of my nails, rubbing my hands together again and again. It's mine, but it's not. It's missing the freckle that formed the summer of my tenth year. I stare down at the perfect skin and wonder about that freckle, about this hand that shouldn't be.

"It grew back," says Zorin. I hadn't noticed him, but he sits to my side, his eyes hazy. A tube runs from his wrist to mine. He's giving me blood. And it's taking a toll on him. All this information comes slowly.

I'm still in shock about my hand. "After Jax…" I'm about to say after Jax cut my throat, but I can’t. He didn't know I was Scarlett. He didn't mean to hurt me. "After Jax's execution, my throat healed, but I didn't expect to regenerate an entire limb."

Zorin smiles slightly. "As long as you're alive and have blood, you will heal."

I wonder how hard Nephilim are to kill. I already feel great. Zorin, however, looks worse than ever.

"How long was I out for?" I ask.

"Eleven hours."

I glance at the dark window, moonlight peaking through. "And you've been giving me blood the whole time?"

"My blood is the most effective."

I tighten the clasp on the tube and remove the needle from my wrist. Zorin moves to stop me, but I easily push him away. He sighs, slumping in his golden chair.

I pull the sheets off and stand, and I remember someone changed my clothes. I raise my eyebrow at Zorin. Perhaps he needed to check for wounds. But since I heal so well, perhaps he didn't. "Thank you for the dress."

"I wanted you to be comfortable," he says, grinning.

Part of me wants to smack him with my pillow. But a larger part of me is grateful.

I touch his hand, smiling. "Thank you, Zorin. You saved my life."

I expect him to smile in return, but he trembles. His eyes are hazy. "I wasn't sure I could fight him. I wasn’t…" He begins to mumble.

We're in his room, and I rummage through the dressers until I find what I'm looking for. I grab the Life Force and hand it to him. The can slips from his grasp. "Zorin? Zorin?"

He doesn't respond.

He's given too much blood. I pick up the can, shaking so much it takes me three tries to open it, and help Zorin drink. He sips slowly at first, then faster. His eyes become less clouded. I bring him two more cans, and he empties them in seconds. "Thank you, Scarlett."

I toss him another Life Force and sit on the bed with one of my own. "I wouldn't be here without you. I… was careless. I'm used to going up against Ragathon, but Varian is different. He thinks like no one I've ever met. He outmaneuvered me at every turn."

"Not at the end," says Zorin. "Hackers are still playing your video on the net."

"I got lucky. He could have killed me in an instant, but he didn't. He must have had to take me alive. I've… I've never seen anyone fight like him." I meet his eyes. "I've never seen anyone fight like you."

He frowns, but only for a moment. "I've had many teachers and a long time to study."

"I'm sorry I haven't been a better student," I say, twirling the can in my hands. "I will practice what you tell me. I will work harder."

Zorin clasps my shoulder. "You will learn to fight, and one day, maybe you will even beat Varian. But remember, it is your wits that will win this war." He eyes are dark.

"You're afraid of Varian, aren't you?"

He doesn't speak for a while. "It would be foolish not to be. But as long as we don't let fear stop us, we can still fight." He stands and walks toward the door. "When you're ready, we'll have a meeting downstairs. Your armor is in the chest." He points at a black and gold chest in the corner. "I had it cleaned."

I smile. "Thanks."

And then, something comes to me. There has only been one person to ever match Varian in combat. A Nephilim with a sword black as night.

"Nyx?"

Zorin pauses. "What about him?"

"I thought, maybe…"

He chuckles, opening the door. "Haven't you seen the play?" he asks softly. "Nyx is dead."

***

Dressed in my armor, I march downstairs. Trix notices me first. She jumps from her chair at the table and runs up and hugs me. "How you feeling, N?"

"I have a new hand," I say, waving it.

"Hey, we could all use some new parts from time to time, right?"

"Right." I hug her again and whisper in her ear. "I'm sorry for what happened."

She pushes me away, grinning. "Don't be. I know what I'm getting myself into. Besides, today was a victory."

Not for me. For me today was a lesson in limitations. But I try to look cheerful for the team. "What'd we win?"

Trix projects an image onto the wall with her eGlass. People riot down a street. Officers try to push them back. "After you played your video, riots like this broke out all around North America and Europe. Most of them have been put down now, but people aren't happy. You made a fool out of Varian."

"But the world knows I couldn't beat him."

"Nah. For all they know, this was our entire plan. Reveal Varian's corruption."

"Just got another confirmation," says TR, standing from his chair. He walks over to Zorin who's leaning against a wall. "Sons of Eden just agreed to the meeting. The video got their attention."

I shake my head in disbelief. "I was contacted by the Red Eagles earlier."

"They've confirmed as well. So have many of the smaller groups. We've got our meeting, man," he roars, clasping Zorin on the shoulder.

I flinch at the unlikely moment. "You two are getting along."

"We talked," says TR.

I wonder if he shared how much he cares for Trix. I could hear it in his voice earlier. He would die for her.

Carter enters with a tray of beverages and snacks. "Splendid to see you well, miss. I prepared a Life Force green tea to aid in your recovery."

"Thank you, Carter." I try a sip, enjoying the taste.  A message appears on my eGlass.

Hey, you need to get back to school. My father arrived early. They're having an official greeting ceremony and Initiates have to be there.

-Corinne

My new hand trembles, dropping the cup. The glass shatters, spilling red all over the floor.

"Are you alright, miss?" asks Cater.

"Yes. I'm fine. Sorry. I'll clean that up."

"No, allow me, miss." Carter bends to one knee and begins collecting the pieces of glass. "Miss, can you move over…"

I stand frozen, barely hearing him. How can I face my friends again? How can I face Varian?

"N?" asks Trix.

I don't respond.

I am still, and everyone is silent. Their faces tighten in concern. But not Zorin. He looks at me calmly.

And I remember what he said and step toward the door. I will not let fear stop me.

***

I know I should hurry. Corinne made this ceremony sound important. But my mind is filled with plots and questions, and it's hard to motivate myself to walk faster through the busy New York streets toward the subway that will take me to Castle V, despite my earlier resolve. Sure, I could fly. But I need the space to think, to shift from Nightfall to Scarlett before I get back to school.

Being two people isn't always easy.

In fact, it's never easy.

I'm lost in these thoughts, meandering toward the subway, when I hear the shriek of a cat. It's obviously in pain, but no one around me seems to care. A man in a business suit walks by talking on his eGlass. A woman pushing a stroller doesn't glance up when the cat hisses and meows pathetically. The sound is coming from behind a dumpster by an Italian restaurant.

I push through a gaggle of noisy students and find myself face to face with a homeless man leaning against the brick wall. He has a shopping cart to one side filled with the kinds of treasures only those without any belongings could possibly value, and he's covered in brown and beige layers of recycled clothing. His eyes are a dull brown, and his face is shaded by dirt, sweat and too many days and nights spent on the street.

I feel an initial tug of sympathy for a man so invisible to the world, until I see what he's doing. He has a scrawny black cat trapped between his feet as he zaps it with electricity from his fingers. He laughs as he watches the cat squirm, hiss and howl in an effort to escape the torture.

He's not tagged as a Zenith. He lives outside the system, off the grid. This is the kind of man Nightfall and the Dark Templars are supposedly fighting for, and yet right now all I want to do is sink my teeth into his neck and drain him until he's a limp rag for what he's doing to that poor cat.

The vehemence of my thought, and the thirst it produces, scares me. I shudder, take a deep calming breath and touch the man's exposed calf, who only just now notices me.

He's about to say something, perhaps hit me with his para-powers, when I'm in his mind, my powers seeking out his thoughts and controlling him.

I'm hoping to see that this is an aberration. That he's stuck in something deep and the pain is leaking out of him in dangerous ways, but it's not who he is at the core.

I'm disappointed. More than that. Disgusted. This isn't the first animal he's tortured. I watch a memory of him killing his dog out of gruesome fascination, enjoying the fear and pain in its eyes as it died. I cringe, bile rising in my throat, as I issue a command before pulling my hand away. I can't spend any more time in that man's brain. I'll have to scrub my frontal lobe for a week to undo the damage twenty seconds in his has caused me.

I scoop up the cat, who looks more like a lanky teenager than a full grown male, and pet him soothingly to calm him even as he digs his claws into my arm. "It's okay, kitty. You're safe now," I coo as my final instruction to the psycho in front of me takes effect. He's calm as he stands and walks onto the busy sidewalk. Finally, people notice him, but only long enough to shirk away from his unwashed body.

A few minutes ago I would have judged them for being so blind, so careless to others around them, to their own humanity, but I'm still too haunted by what I saw in his mind. So I wait and watch as he finds the nearest Inquisition Officer and turns himself in for failing to register as a Zenith, for animal abuse and cruelty, and for one other crime, a heinous assault that wasn't against an animal but a human. He confesses to everything and they secure his wrists and arrest him.

Now, I just want to get back to the Castle and away from all these people. I feel dirty, repelled by this city and the darkness that lives within it. I tuck the shivering cat under my coat and make fast time to the subway.

While underwater, surrounded by flora and fish, I think about what just happened. How life isn't as black and white as I'd thought. And if I'm being honest with myself, it's not as black and white as I'd hoped. That would be too simple.

But just because someone is oppressed doesn't make them good. And just because someone is part of the system—privileged even—that doesn't make them bad.

So what is Nightfall fighting for? Who is she—who am
I
—fighting for?

I don't have the answers as I show my Initiate ring to the guards at the Vianney subway exit and make my way through the small island town to the Castle.

I've had Evie turned off for a while, and I turn her on as I stop under a tree just inside the Castle gates. I'm shaking and, I realize, crying. I sink under the tree and listen to the messages Evie has for me. All from Corinne, telling me to hurry.

I like my new roommate. She's sweet. Kind. Not evil.

But that man in the city, he was evil. Or if evil doesn't exist, as some believe, then he's very, very, broken.

I'm petting the cat, who has calmed under my touch and is purring against my chest, when my grandfather walks up to me in his long Chancellor robes, his hair groomed but still a wild halo of white, his long beard tamed into a braid that falls down his chest. He lowers himself to the ground to sit next to me. "Hello, Scarlett."

"Hello."

"You look deep in troubled thought," he says.

I nod and tell him about the man torturing the cat. "Zeniths are mistreated, and that needs to stop. It's not right. But they also mistreat others, and that's not right. Is there a way to protect the rights of one people without sacrificing the safety of another?"