Ace in the Hole
Summary: [Sequel to Celtic Aurora's Dark Ripples in Blood] When an arcane necromancer offers his allegiance and powers to help him defeat the vampires in the grisly war, Lucian cannot refuse. With Kraven as an unpredictable factor in the game, he needs an ace in the hole to win. [LucianxSonja & other various parings]
VI: Nero
Text:
"Speech"
Thoughts
Flashbacks
Music/Poems/Sonnets:
"Bring Forth Ye Shadow" by Theatre of Tragedy
"Dead Is The New Alive" by Emilie Autumn
A/N: Some of Viktor's flashbacks/memories are taken from Celtic Aurora's fanfic, Dark Ripples in Blood. I wanted to keep the dialogue the same so yeah...now you know.
Disclaimer: *does a Tom Huce-as-Mozart laugh* Nope, never got the rights. If Clarissa was real I could use her to get full ownership of Underworld but like that will ever betide. Rora is lending Catherine, Michael, and Cordelia out to me. So only Thanatos, his troupe, Zael, Bristol, and Edward are mine. And the Order of Anarchy–don't touch my badass assassin guild. They don't look too kindly on theft. *grins evilly*
"Time is an abyss -
Profound as a thousand nights;
I sojourn my haste, I make respites
For what availeith this eager pace?
One step more naught to face,
Save the heirloom fatal kiss.
I rave no more 'gainst Time or Fate,
For lo! my own shall ne'er come to me,
Yet! - Who doth my future narrate?
Dim the lights - I cannot see!
Bring forth ye Shadow! -
With whom danceth thou?"
-Bring Forth Ye Shadow, Theatre of Tragedy
Thanatos found himself facing two unblinking, crystal azure eyes and slowly, brought back the alluring, striking woman to her feet. "Are you all right, miss?" he inquired smoothly, withdrawing his hands from her. The blonde female nodded instantly.
"Yes, I am," she answered, "and thank you for catching my fall. That was very kind of you."
Thanatos shrugged. "It was nothing. I just couldn't stand by and let you crash into the ground now, could I?"
Kraven would.
This bitter thought slithered into Erika's mind and from that and all her recollections of Kraven's mistreatment towards her, she wanted to so badly strike back at the lewd reagent. She was beginning to grow weary of pursuing him and perhaps, if he saw her unavailable and in the company of another, highly attractive man, perhaps he'd rethink his motives.
Now, how should I go about luring this man to go into the store with me…? Ah, of course. I shall use Kraven's jealous tendencies towards Selene as inspiration.
As she formed the little story in her head, she adapted a worried look on her face. "Sir? Is there a man…following me? Or nearby, looking at us?"
Puzzled, Thanatos glanced up and quickly yet thoroughly scanned the bustling throng of people, looking out for any man who was lurking about or would fit the bill of a 'stalker', as many people termed it today. When he found no such person, he shook his head, saying, "No, I don't see anyone shadowing you. Why do you ask?"
Erika, feigning anxiety, bit her lip and in a soft whisper, admitted, "My ex-boyfriend has been following me all over the place and I can't just seem to shake him off. I tried filing for a restraining order but he had some high connections. He's really obsessive and it just frightens me!"
Now, Erika performed her act well but not unlike her, Thanatos had been around for countless of years so he sensed a liar when he saw one. However, he merely gifted her a reassuring smile and played along.
"Would it make you feel better if I accompanied you on your errands, Miss…?"
"Erika," provided the said female vampire, "And yes, I would gratefully appreciate it if you did. Thank you, kind sir. You truly are a gentleman." Hook, line, and sinker!
Thanatos let loose a regaled laugh. "Oh, I don't know about that. But please, call me Thanatos."
Now, Erika, I know what you are–you're one of Victor's fledglings. But I'll humor your clever little ploy and see if you'll be any use to me in this pending chess match…
Time was wasting by and Zael knew she had to exit this coven with Markus before the potion wore off entirely or her guise was discovered. Glaring at her cell phone, Zael dialed Bristol's number for the fourth time, agitatedly hoping this time the scatterbrain witch would pick up.
She may be blind but she perfectly capable of answering her damned phone!
Finally, after a couple of seconds, Bristol's voice leaked through the ear piece of Zael's cell phone. "Hello? Zael?"
"It's about time," growled the said female, "This is the fourth time I called you—where the hell are you?"
"With Catherine and her family. You'll love her, she simply is breath of fresh air," the spunky witch rattled one, paying no heed to her comrade's apparent irritation, "and her children, Michael and Cordelia, are bundle of energy. They'll put a smile on that scowling face of yours, Zael!"
Compressing a growl, Zael pinched the bridge of her nose while wishing she was within an arm's length away from Bristol so she could just throttle her. Even during solemn situations like this one, she still have the audacity to chat about simple or random entities.
I swear to God she is going to drive me absolutely batty if she keeps this up…
"That's dandy, Bristol, but I want I really need is for you to use your transporting spell and summon me and Markus to you," Zael grounded out tonelessly, unconsciously pleased how well she managed to reign in her emotions. "I very well can't lug the old bat and his tomb out of the coven myself, it would be tantamount to suicide."
She heard a sigh on the other end. "I know, I know. Sorry for not answering your calls sooner, I was in middle of a conversation with Catherine and didn't even hear my cell. I'll get to the incantation right now."
"Yes, you better—" The line went dead before Zael could even finish her sentence.
Cursing in Hungarian, Zael pocketed her cell away. She was about to turn back to Markus's tomb when a faint din of voices attracted her attention. Her pulse increasingly suddenly, Zael slowly peeked out from the slim fold of the ebony curtain, gifted with the sight of a couple of vampires walking into the observance room and checking the place out.
"Wasn't someone supposed to be on guard duty here?" questioned a dark-skinned vampire, suspicious eyes darting all over the place.
One of the lesser vampires shrugged, replying, "Alec said someone else came to take charge after his shift was over. Some hot red-head, he said."
"But she's not here anymore," remarked the first vampire crisply, narrowing his eyes at the two vampires before scanning the monitors. "And from the cameras, it doesn't show her leaving the vicinity…"
"So that means she's still here," finished the third vampire who hadn't spoken yet till now, "What's wrong with that, Kahn?"
The swarthy vampire called Kahn uttered nothing in response; he simply stepped out of the booth and approached the glass doors, noiselessly entering into the crypt when the doors slid open for him. A gun was in his hand and he held the weapon up, as if expecting an ambush.
Jerking herself away from the curtain, Zael brought out her automatic revolver and planted herself behind Markus's tomb. If Bristol didn't summon her and Markus soon, she would be found out and forced to start a shoot-out between these vampires.
Come on, Bristol! You should be done by now!
As if on cue, the blonde female suddenly felt incredibly lighter. When she glanced down, the stoic female noticed that both she and Markus were fading away, practically blending into the background. In a matter of seconds they would vanish and be teleported to Bristol. That is, if this vampire didn't discover her hidden location first.
With one hand, she gripped on the ledge of Markus's sarcophagus, waiting for the uncomfortable, strange sensation of her cells being stripped apart and transported somewhere else to end. It was like crawling into a small hole in a cave, hardly being able to see or breathe. As the back end of the crypt simply materialized away from her view, that last words Zael heard prior she and Markus were thrust into Catherine's living room were this:
"Search Victor's and Markus's tomb! We have to make sure they're safe and secured!"
"What's the occasion that brings you to this store?"
Erika jerked her head back to Thanatos, who was watching her look at the sizes of the evening gowns. "Oh, I'm just doing a favor for a friend," she lied evasively, "he wants me to—"
"Hold it." The clear-cut, crisp timbre of her new acquaintance halted Erika's feeble excused dead in its tracks. "You're buying a dress for another woman for a 'friend' of yours who just so happens to be male."
"Yes," Erika answered uncertainly, almost unsure in where this discussion was going.
"Why isn't he doing this himself?" questioned Thanatos bluntly, practically aggressively. His eyebrows knit themselves together and displeasure flashed across his ivory features. If Kraven had been here, he would have been reduced to a smoldering pile of ash from Thanatos's killer glare.
"He's, well…busy," Erika finished lamely while wondering the exact same entity. It hadn't occurred to her until now that Kraven could have easily ordered a gown and had the outfit shipped to him in less than a day but evidently, he had better tasks to do. It was ironic in how he was trying to execute everything in his power to have Selene as his queen and yet didn't even want to spend a few precious hours picking out a stunning, fashionable dress for him to ogle her in.
"Is that the excuse he used?" Thanatos replied tonelessly, his smoky emerald eyes darkening ever so slightly, "Clearly, it sounds like he just sent you shopping for his mistress."
"She's not his mistress; she doesn't even care about him!" Erika fired back, although kept her voice down since they were in a public place. "And what's worse, he's desires her as his queen." She didn't realize what personal information she had just revealed until she heard Thanatos's reply.
"Obviously, you're the one who cares for him," he spoke softly, the firmness in his manner evaporating slowly, "Has he shown you any gratitude at all?"
His question, albeit voiced much softer and devoid of any curtness stung Erika right into the very core of her being, piercing her heart as it viciously ripped the veil from her eyes, nudging her to the horrible truth. Shaking her head stiffly, the petite blonde mumbled out, "No, he hasn't."
"I thought so." Unfazed by her sudden silence to his comment, Thanatos simply strolled over the stack of luxurious, regal gowns that Erika had been browsing previously through and pulled out a stunning, sleek corbeau dress of satin, chiffon, and barège.
"Here. Take this one," he told her, passing the gown to Erika's open hands. Frowning, Erika studied the fabric and rest of the outfit. The dress was certainly beautiful and so soft against her fingertips; she definitely could envision her wearing such a lovely thing.
But there was one problem. This wasn't a good dress for Selene.
"I don't think this gown is well suited for her," Erika explained, moving to put the dirndl back, "Black is more of her preference, anyway." Just as she was about hang the dark evergreen outfit back up, Thanatos's hand flew out of nowhere and halted her actions promptly, his rough, yet comforting fingers wrapped around her pale hand.
"I didn't select that dress for her," he began softly, his unreadable eyes locking squarely with Erika's azuline ones, "That dress is meant for you, Miss Erika."
Rubbing her temples in aggravation, Amelia stared long and hard at the center of the table, the only soul in the meeting room. Ever since she heard the news about the disappearance of Markus's tomb and one of the Death Dealers from Viktor's coven was attacked by a new species from Kahn, Amelia had been severely contemplating her options on the matter.
"Markus missing…and a potential new threat," she murmured, severely wishing there was a lycan nearby just so she could ram her sword down its throat, "All this just happened in such a short time and right before the Awakening too." It was alarming coincidence that the very Elder she was suppose to awaken was Markus and now he simply vanished into thin air. Kahn even hinted that a mysterious scarlet-haired vampire who had taken over the previous guard's shift might be the culprit but so far, they couldn't identify the woman.
What would Victor do if he was here? How would he handle this problem?
Exhaling deeply and with extreme frustration, Amelia closed her eyes and slowly summoned all the memories Victor had bestowed to her on the night she was Awakened. The key was in his recollections, there had to be something she could use to solve this conundrum.
Taking in another breath, Amelia surrendered herself to Victor's ocean of memories and plunged into icy waters of the aforementioned Elder's phantasmagoria of reminiscences.
"How could you betray me? With a lycan!"
"Father…I love him."
Sonja's pained visage melted away from Amelia's head and was replaced again with another version of Victor, this time calmly greeting duo of vampires who clutched a toddler with golden locks framing his cherubic features.
"May I present to you my esteemed guests, Edward Orenstein-?"
"Van Helsing. It's Edward Van Helsing." interrupted the said male vampire, his pale face an epitome of perfection and handsomeness.
"Edward Van Helsing," Victor amended without missing a beat. "And his wife, Catherine."
Then this recollection abruptly evanesced, all the images and colors blending together until another one took its place. Now, Amelia beheld a stern, foreboding Victor sitting down with a stranger whose face was obscured via the shadows of the room. The arcane man took a long, exaggerated drag from his cigar and emptied some of the embers on a small crystal tray near his hand.
"So, Victor…what is it do you wish from me? It's been quite some time since you last summoned me," he drawled out smarmily, taking another puff out of his thick cigar.
"I need you to eliminate a small problem for me, a threat to my coven," Victor replied bluntly, his icy tone broking no time for chit-chat, "I want no mistakes, no evidence, nothing. Wipe them off the face of this earth, leave not a trace behind!"
"Victor, Victor, Victor," sighed the man deeply, shaking his head much like a disapproved mother would do to her naughty child, "you're acting like I had never done this before. These targets of yours, the Van Helsing family, will hardly be worth a match for my assassins. They won't live to see another sundown." With that said, he blew a wispy ring of smoke and smashed the butt of his cigar against the clear surface of the tiny glass tray.
"It was pleasure doing business with you, Victor."
As this memory slipped away, Amelia was able to catch the name of the supposed guild the stranger worked for: The Order of Anarchy.
Opening her eyes, the female Elder found herself back into the same, neatly furnished meeting room, opulent and empty. But she now had the information on this occult group Victor had used to dispose of the accursed Van Helsing family. If they could defeat two hybrids and their spawn, they could most certainly handle a new specie and the remaining members of Lucian's army. And thanks to Victor's methodical memories, she now possessed the knowledge to summon their leader.
Tearing off a piece of a paper and quickly scribbling down the message that would convoke the leader of the Order of Anarchy to her, the ancient vampiress tossed the scrap into the flickering flames of the fireplace. Even though she had electricity brightening all the chambers of her coven, Amelia still cleaved to some of the old, traditional ways. Plus, the paper had to burn in fire or else the summoning wouldn't work.
All of sudden, a gelatinous, atrous train of smoke burst out of the old fireplace, chaotically circling around the room in alarming rate. Startled, Amelia unsheathed the sword from her scabbard and positioned the blade in front of her, ready for a precipitate assault. However, the smog ignored her and continued to whirl about, settling near a few meters away from the vampire Elder. The billowing, sinister smoke began taking shape and looked less and less amorphous, forming a more humanoid figure as the seconds went by. Soon enough, Amelia found herself facing the selfsame man she saw in one of Victor's reminiscences.
"Ah, Amelia. It's so good to finally meet you," greeted the stranger charmingly, an unearthly twinkle in his eye as he bent down to give her a flourished bow. "And before you ask me how I know your name, let's just say Victor told me a little bit about his coven and its rules and regulations."
"Are you the leader of the Order of Anarchy?" Amelia inquired bluntly, skipping formalities and ignoring his previous comment. The man nodded and much to her inner frustration, his countenance was still hidden by the shadows.
"Yes, I am. Nero Timur Wentrcek, at your service. Who would you like me to dispose of this time?"
"What is a day without a blessed night?
And what is peace without a blessed fight?
What is a day without a blessed night?
And what is peace without a blessed, blessed, blessed fight?
A quick taste of the poison, a quick twist of the knife
When the obsession with death
The obsession with death becomes a way of life
A quick taste of the poison, a quick twist of the knife
When the obsession with death
The obsession with death becomes a way of life."
-Dead Is The New Alive, Emilie Autumn
Color Glossary:
Atrous- black
Corbeau- blackish green
Azuline- blue
Everyone, look out! Nero's in the house!
Nero: Greetings to you all. *smiles winsomely*
Okay, no playing the sycophant with my readers and reviewers. Go back to your assassin guild; I'm trying to talk here.
Nero: Guess you won't be sleeping well tonight. *walks out*
That's why I have Thanatos! …So anyway, that's chapter six. I would like to thank: Celtic Aurora, Furionknight, ForeverACharmedOne, Explodium, morgan12149, Thrash Unreal, and vamplady101 for R&R. I must say, I wasn't expecting such a huge stream of reviews—thanks again, you guys!
So, review, alert, favorite, critique, but flamers will be sent to Nero and the Order of Anarchy to be used as targets.
Nero: So readers, flame away! My assassins and I could always use some fresh targets for practice! *cocks pistol*
I should have known that he wouldn't listen to me…
:SpeedDemon315: