"Here he comes. You can ask him yourself," Rahab nudged Turel on the shoulder as they both saw the ever-arrogant Zephon walk down the dark halls towards the assembly pits where he was responsible on the construction of the Sanctuary of the Clans.
"Sure he won't bite my head off?" Turel snickered.
"Better that we find out from him than hearing it from the many servants and fledglings. You know as well as I do that gossip has the ability to change rapidly. What is a fish in the river soon turns into a dragon breathing fire." Both Rahab and Turel stepped out from the shadows behind the pillars and in front of Zephon. He was a head shorter than Turel and came face to face with Rahab, but with the look that he had in his eyes, Zephon appeared even higher than Turel. Both brothers wore wide grins and immediately Zephon put himself on the defensive.
"Move out of my way Turel, Rahab. I have work to attend to."
"But we need to ask you some questions," Turel bite off a stifled laugh in his throat. Zephon's eyes narrowed at Rahab placed a talon on his shoulder. "We really need to know Zephon about a certain 'gift' that Lord Kain bequeathed unto you."
Zephon slapped Rahab's hand away and tried to move past the two, but they simply moved as well and blocked him again. Zephon tried once more but Turel placed a restraining hand on his younger sibling. "No, no, no. You really don't like it when we ask the questions, do you? I need to know," Turel glanced at taciturn Rahab, who was coughing behind his cape and hiding a smile. "I need to know about this present that father gave to you. Is it really a human woman?"
"We are after all, your brothers, Zephon. You can tell us anything," Rahab said encouragingly. Zephon gritted his teeth and cast his eyes at the marble floor. When he raised them again, both brothers stepped back with the look given to them.
"If you must know this silly little piece of information that means the world to you, then yes. All right, are you happy? I have a human woman who is my consort, forced upon me by father as a gift! Are you pleased to learn about this embarrassment to me? Are you going to run off and tell Raziel or Melchiah since they doubtfully do not know about this?" Rahab and Turel exchanged quick glances with each other. Now they hadn't known anything about a consort. Zephon was fuming; his face had turned a bright red and a glint came into his eye.
Turel raised his hands as he approached his brother. "I am sorry, I didn't mean to get you angry. If you need anything, anyone to talk to-" Zephon punched Turel's hands out of the way and looked at Rahab.
"What I need is for both of you to get out of my way. I, unlike you two, have work to get done and I cannot spend all talk chatting about nothing of importance. Excuse me." Tilting his head, Zephon made his face expressionless and brushed past the two obnoxious Clan lords. Turel looked at Rahab and Rahab looked at Turel.
"When you get that look in your eye, it means that you cannot wait to tell someone. Usually that would be Raziel or Dumah," Rahab spoke calmly.
Turel nodded and pointed a thumb behind him. "I never thought Zephon would have a consort. So here is the plan, brother Rahab. You will go and tell Melchiah and I will dispense the news to Raziel and Dumah. It is only fair that we make them aware of Zephon's plight."
Rahab gave a small grin. "Sometimes I believe you are pure evil."
"Who, me? Never." Turel gave an innocent look before he went off in the direction of Dumah's Clan holdings.
* * *
Zephon's temper was very short by midnight. He was snapping at every one of the servants as they constructed another part of the newly built Sanctuary, finding fault in every little thing and ordering the human slaves to tear parts of the stone down so it could be built again. The Sanctuary of the Clans had almost been completed; it was to be the monument for Kain's empire, a place where the Master could rule in triumph over the humans. But as Zephon was looking over his own drawn schematics he began to cross off parts that he felt served no purpose when they truly did, ordered the western wall to be collapsed and rebuilt once again without the windows, and the furnaces, huge machines developed by him as well, to be moved once again even after it had taken a whole week for the slaves to put them in the exact place.
No one went near the angry Clan lord for they had seen first-hand what happened to people when they crossed Zephon. As Zephon screamed down at one of his foremen over some trivial matter, that was when Raziel appeared. The eldest stood quietly off to one side in the tent where the plans for the Sanctuary were made, arms crossed, and waited for Zephon to come storming in.
"You need to sit down," Raziel said quietly as his younger brother pushed aside the tent flap. Zephon looked at Raziel for a few moments, nostrils flaring, but sat down in one of the chairs with a crossed expression upon his face. "I have come, Zephon, because people are beginning to talk about a 'gift'. The talking started out quietly, but now it has become a buzz and I would like to know the truth behind the whole matter."
"It is an embarrassment, the gift that Kain gave me. If you tell him that when you meet him again, then I do not care for I am beyond all caring."
Raziel pulled a chair up beside Zephon and rested his head in his hands. "Tell me, then, about this embarrassment done to you."
Zephon coughed dryly and glanced at the ground before looking up at the first-born of Kain's Lieutenants. Raziel knew that this 'gift' had to be bad since his sharp-tongued brother did not want to look at him in the eye. "Yesterday, Kain summoned me and imparted a gift to me. I thought at first it would be humans to turn into new vampires for my Clan since we desperately need replacements, but that was far from it. Instead of receiving humans, I received a young woman instead. She is a sorceress from the human Citadel and I thought it might have been some poorly made joke. Either way I took her back to my Clan Territories and decided on what to do with her when the Master sent me a message. This human woman was to become my consort and wear my Clan flag, to stand equal beside me." Zephon was quiet for a few moments, staring daggers at the ground.
"So?" Raziel pressed, sitting back in the chair.
"I had no choice but to keep her, the stupid wench. I want to have nothing to do with her; she is an embarrassment to my Clan and I. A human, standing by my side as equal? What is Kain planning, I ask you that Raziel? Why has he done this to me? I have no need for such a thing and yet Kain has placed this burden on my lap. It is as if he has made some silent joke on me that I cannot understand."
The anger, the damaged pride and honour showed in Zephon's eyes and for a few moments silence hung in the air like a heavy curtain.
"Do you even remember her name?" Raziel said quietly.
"What?"
"Do you at least now her name, Zephon?"
"It is Zarina."
"Zarina and Zephon. I can see why-"
"Do not play games with me, Raziel, for I am in no mood today. I have told you everything, so I hope this little buzz of yours has been solved."
"It has, but now this discussion has raised a few questions. Why does this nag at the back of your mind so much, other than the fact that she is human?"
Zephon pounded his fist into his opened palm and shook his head. "She is not even a vampire; she has no reason at all being in my Cathedral or in my Clan. But what gets me is that Kain has given me no real solid reason why he gave Zarina to me. A sorceress to help me in battle that is what the letter read. If you ask, she would of done better in Turel's Clan. I…do not need someone prying into my affairs, helping me where I do not need the help."
"And you are just being a brat." The audacity of Raziel's statement made Zephon glare at him, anger palpable in the air. "Think of it for a moment, if you will. We are still at war with the humans, the Sarafan and what is left of them. A sorceress could help greatly; like you said yourself you need fledglings. But until you do, what better protection can your Clan benefit from than a powerful sorceress? Perhaps this is one reason why Kain gave you this lady Zarina. You can let her go over the Clan records and events that you do not have time for; just teach her the ropes and I am sure she will catch on quickly. Your word is law in your Territories. No one is asking you to love her or even bed her, Zephon. Besides," Raziel leaned closer to his brother, "Turel is insanely jealous of you. He questions why you and not he have a consort. As well all know he is quite the charmer with the women."
A smile crept over Zephon's face and he gave a chuckle. After talking it over with Raziel, a brother Zephon was jealous of, it made him feel slightly better. "I will have to face her sooner or later. Maybe it might not be all that bad if one were to meditate on it long enough."
"Right, and the worst thing that could happen is that she's an assassin sent by the humans to horribly, horribly kill you." Zephon looked at Raziel with narrowed eyes. "I am joking, brother Zephon. Father would do no such thing to you and I wish you no ill, even if sometimes we do not always agree on everything said and done."
"Hopefully." Raziel patted Zephon's shoulder comfortingly.
"And once you do know the lady intimately, I would like to come over and make her acquaintance. But be careful about Turel for he might just come and sweep her off her feet," Raziel said jokingly. Zephon gave a thin smile, and then went back out to continue the construction of the Sanctuary with a lighter heart. Doubt still plagued his mind, but Zephon was able to push it out of the way.
For the moment.
"Sure he won't bite my head off?" Turel snickered.
"Better that we find out from him than hearing it from the many servants and fledglings. You know as well as I do that gossip has the ability to change rapidly. What is a fish in the river soon turns into a dragon breathing fire." Both Rahab and Turel stepped out from the shadows behind the pillars and in front of Zephon. He was a head shorter than Turel and came face to face with Rahab, but with the look that he had in his eyes, Zephon appeared even higher than Turel. Both brothers wore wide grins and immediately Zephon put himself on the defensive.
"Move out of my way Turel, Rahab. I have work to attend to."
"But we need to ask you some questions," Turel bite off a stifled laugh in his throat. Zephon's eyes narrowed at Rahab placed a talon on his shoulder. "We really need to know Zephon about a certain 'gift' that Lord Kain bequeathed unto you."
Zephon slapped Rahab's hand away and tried to move past the two, but they simply moved as well and blocked him again. Zephon tried once more but Turel placed a restraining hand on his younger sibling. "No, no, no. You really don't like it when we ask the questions, do you? I need to know," Turel glanced at taciturn Rahab, who was coughing behind his cape and hiding a smile. "I need to know about this present that father gave to you. Is it really a human woman?"
"We are after all, your brothers, Zephon. You can tell us anything," Rahab said encouragingly. Zephon gritted his teeth and cast his eyes at the marble floor. When he raised them again, both brothers stepped back with the look given to them.
"If you must know this silly little piece of information that means the world to you, then yes. All right, are you happy? I have a human woman who is my consort, forced upon me by father as a gift! Are you pleased to learn about this embarrassment to me? Are you going to run off and tell Raziel or Melchiah since they doubtfully do not know about this?" Rahab and Turel exchanged quick glances with each other. Now they hadn't known anything about a consort. Zephon was fuming; his face had turned a bright red and a glint came into his eye.
Turel raised his hands as he approached his brother. "I am sorry, I didn't mean to get you angry. If you need anything, anyone to talk to-" Zephon punched Turel's hands out of the way and looked at Rahab.
"What I need is for both of you to get out of my way. I, unlike you two, have work to get done and I cannot spend all talk chatting about nothing of importance. Excuse me." Tilting his head, Zephon made his face expressionless and brushed past the two obnoxious Clan lords. Turel looked at Rahab and Rahab looked at Turel.
"When you get that look in your eye, it means that you cannot wait to tell someone. Usually that would be Raziel or Dumah," Rahab spoke calmly.
Turel nodded and pointed a thumb behind him. "I never thought Zephon would have a consort. So here is the plan, brother Rahab. You will go and tell Melchiah and I will dispense the news to Raziel and Dumah. It is only fair that we make them aware of Zephon's plight."
Rahab gave a small grin. "Sometimes I believe you are pure evil."
"Who, me? Never." Turel gave an innocent look before he went off in the direction of Dumah's Clan holdings.
* * *
Zephon's temper was very short by midnight. He was snapping at every one of the servants as they constructed another part of the newly built Sanctuary, finding fault in every little thing and ordering the human slaves to tear parts of the stone down so it could be built again. The Sanctuary of the Clans had almost been completed; it was to be the monument for Kain's empire, a place where the Master could rule in triumph over the humans. But as Zephon was looking over his own drawn schematics he began to cross off parts that he felt served no purpose when they truly did, ordered the western wall to be collapsed and rebuilt once again without the windows, and the furnaces, huge machines developed by him as well, to be moved once again even after it had taken a whole week for the slaves to put them in the exact place.
No one went near the angry Clan lord for they had seen first-hand what happened to people when they crossed Zephon. As Zephon screamed down at one of his foremen over some trivial matter, that was when Raziel appeared. The eldest stood quietly off to one side in the tent where the plans for the Sanctuary were made, arms crossed, and waited for Zephon to come storming in.
"You need to sit down," Raziel said quietly as his younger brother pushed aside the tent flap. Zephon looked at Raziel for a few moments, nostrils flaring, but sat down in one of the chairs with a crossed expression upon his face. "I have come, Zephon, because people are beginning to talk about a 'gift'. The talking started out quietly, but now it has become a buzz and I would like to know the truth behind the whole matter."
"It is an embarrassment, the gift that Kain gave me. If you tell him that when you meet him again, then I do not care for I am beyond all caring."
Raziel pulled a chair up beside Zephon and rested his head in his hands. "Tell me, then, about this embarrassment done to you."
Zephon coughed dryly and glanced at the ground before looking up at the first-born of Kain's Lieutenants. Raziel knew that this 'gift' had to be bad since his sharp-tongued brother did not want to look at him in the eye. "Yesterday, Kain summoned me and imparted a gift to me. I thought at first it would be humans to turn into new vampires for my Clan since we desperately need replacements, but that was far from it. Instead of receiving humans, I received a young woman instead. She is a sorceress from the human Citadel and I thought it might have been some poorly made joke. Either way I took her back to my Clan Territories and decided on what to do with her when the Master sent me a message. This human woman was to become my consort and wear my Clan flag, to stand equal beside me." Zephon was quiet for a few moments, staring daggers at the ground.
"So?" Raziel pressed, sitting back in the chair.
"I had no choice but to keep her, the stupid wench. I want to have nothing to do with her; she is an embarrassment to my Clan and I. A human, standing by my side as equal? What is Kain planning, I ask you that Raziel? Why has he done this to me? I have no need for such a thing and yet Kain has placed this burden on my lap. It is as if he has made some silent joke on me that I cannot understand."
The anger, the damaged pride and honour showed in Zephon's eyes and for a few moments silence hung in the air like a heavy curtain.
"Do you even remember her name?" Raziel said quietly.
"What?"
"Do you at least now her name, Zephon?"
"It is Zarina."
"Zarina and Zephon. I can see why-"
"Do not play games with me, Raziel, for I am in no mood today. I have told you everything, so I hope this little buzz of yours has been solved."
"It has, but now this discussion has raised a few questions. Why does this nag at the back of your mind so much, other than the fact that she is human?"
Zephon pounded his fist into his opened palm and shook his head. "She is not even a vampire; she has no reason at all being in my Cathedral or in my Clan. But what gets me is that Kain has given me no real solid reason why he gave Zarina to me. A sorceress to help me in battle that is what the letter read. If you ask, she would of done better in Turel's Clan. I…do not need someone prying into my affairs, helping me where I do not need the help."
"And you are just being a brat." The audacity of Raziel's statement made Zephon glare at him, anger palpable in the air. "Think of it for a moment, if you will. We are still at war with the humans, the Sarafan and what is left of them. A sorceress could help greatly; like you said yourself you need fledglings. But until you do, what better protection can your Clan benefit from than a powerful sorceress? Perhaps this is one reason why Kain gave you this lady Zarina. You can let her go over the Clan records and events that you do not have time for; just teach her the ropes and I am sure she will catch on quickly. Your word is law in your Territories. No one is asking you to love her or even bed her, Zephon. Besides," Raziel leaned closer to his brother, "Turel is insanely jealous of you. He questions why you and not he have a consort. As well all know he is quite the charmer with the women."
A smile crept over Zephon's face and he gave a chuckle. After talking it over with Raziel, a brother Zephon was jealous of, it made him feel slightly better. "I will have to face her sooner or later. Maybe it might not be all that bad if one were to meditate on it long enough."
"Right, and the worst thing that could happen is that she's an assassin sent by the humans to horribly, horribly kill you." Zephon looked at Raziel with narrowed eyes. "I am joking, brother Zephon. Father would do no such thing to you and I wish you no ill, even if sometimes we do not always agree on everything said and done."
"Hopefully." Raziel patted Zephon's shoulder comfortingly.
"And once you do know the lady intimately, I would like to come over and make her acquaintance. But be careful about Turel for he might just come and sweep her off her feet," Raziel said jokingly. Zephon gave a thin smile, and then went back out to continue the construction of the Sanctuary with a lighter heart. Doubt still plagued his mind, but Zephon was able to push it out of the way.
For the moment.