Chapter 9

The seven of us loaded into the truck, and then we were gone, leaving the cottage far behind us.

When we'd first returned to the vehicles, we'd split between the two. But the engine of the small SUV sputtered and smoked when Moretti tried to get it started, and we were forced to cram into the farmer's vehicle.

Simon and Moretti were in the cab, and the rest of us were piled into the bed. Anya sat on my lap and sustained a mild feeding as she kissed along my neck. While fighting Somboon, she'd apparently crossed swords with him. He'd sent an electrical charge that carried across the metals, which had been enough to shatter her sword. It'd also given her electrical burns on her hands and arms. Her fingers were particularly bad, the tips blackened and bleeding pale blood.

"Will she be alright?" Nelson asked from beside us, watching as the vampire fed from me. I could tell he was curious about how I could feed her without feeling drained, but he left the question unspoken.

"She just needs some time," I assured him. I was doing my best to keep a mild state of meditation going so that her feeding wouldn't drain me.

"And you?" he asked, turning his critical eye to me.

"I'm fine," I told him, not wanting to discuss it. I knew there'd be questions, but those could wait.

The wizard sensed my hesitance, and nodded slightly before turning back to Argondian and Penny. "How is he?"

"Stable," Penny replied, sitting back as she took a break from healing the old man. Spending all that energy had clearly taken a lot out of her. "He'll need more treatment, but he'll be fine."

"Thank you, dear," the man said, his voice soft and proud. "You've done a marvelous job." The apprentice smiled, obviously pleased. But the wizard's eyes were distant, as were his thoughts. "I guess I was wrong about Somboon."

"He's dead now, either way," Nelson said, sounding somewhat relieved.

"I wouldn't count on it," I interjected. When they looked to me, I shrugged softly. "He's died several times over; doesn't seem to have slown him down."

"You think…" Nelson began, before trailing off, at a loss for words.

"I think he's just as dead as those zombies we saw Salvago raise," I said. "Argondian said his neck was snapped. I saw Rai give him a mortal wound in their fight, and Penny's attack didn't do him any favors. Anya lit him up, and then Simon shot him with… well, with whatever that was, but Peña still took the body with him."

"Necromancy," Argondian said, the word sounding like bile bubbling in his throat. "I never would have thought Yannis could do such a thing."

"There's been a lot of that the last few days," Nelson said, shooting a worried glance at the old wizard. "You should know, the White Council is hunting Donald Morgan."

"What?" the old man said, sitting up. "What for?"

"He's been accused of murder," the younger wizard said, before bracing himself. "Master LaFortier is dead."

If I'd thought the old man had been shocked before, I was wrong. I could visibly see his face pale as his mouth worked, at a loss for words. "Poor Aleron." After another moment, the man groaned softly, his eyes clenching shut. "Yannis was right."

"What?" Nelson said, surprised.

"He was right," Argondian repeated, his tone defeated. "All this, and he was right."

"Master, what are you talking about?" Penny asked, placing a hand on the old man's knee.

An hour earlier that might have elicited a lecherous waggle of the eyebrows, but now the man didn't seem to notice. He simply shook his head in dismay. "He tried to tell us. But we didn't believe him. How could we?"

"What did he tell you?" Nelson asked gently.

"He told us what he'd found," the man mumbled, his eyes vacant. "But it was too much. And yet…"

Nelson looked like he wanted to press, but he held back. The old wizard simply stared off at the landscape retreating behind the truck, the shocks bouncing all of us gently as we went.

Finally, the man seemed to gather his thoughts. "When we first received the orders to kill Yannis, we knew something was wrong," Argondian said. "That type of thing just isn't done. But with the Captain's signature on the paperwork, there wasn't much to dispute.

"When we found him, we tried to speak with him; tried to determine what he might have done to draw a death sentence. But when we told him about it, he spun a wild tale." Argondian shook his head. "Perhaps not so wild after all."

"What tale?" Penny asked.

The old wizard sighed, gathering his thoughts. "Yannis was a warden, but that wasn't what he was known for. His first love was magical theory. He researched everything, sometimes growing dangerously close to breaking the Laws."

"We know of his research on the Black Court," Nelson volunteered.

"Oh, there was that, certainly," the old wizard said. "But it wasn't just the vampires. Studying them was Petrovich's area. No, Yannis dabbled in everything. When he was hunting the necromancers during the Second War, he studied what he found. He studied their magics, to better understand them, to anticipate and counter their spells." Argondian's frown deepened. "But he never crossed the line. Never went too far."

I shared a glance with Anya, who was now sitting up. Her hands were healed, and she'd taken a break from feeding. Her eyes looked troubled, and I could understand why.

The man we'd seen in the graveyard hadn't just crossed the line; he'd wiped it away as he leapt over it.

"Research was his strength," Argondian said. "But after what happened at Archangel, he had to take an active role in the war with the Reds. If he hadn't stepped down after they killed Kemmler, he likely would have died with the rest of the Brute Squad."

"But I heard that he'd left the Council," Nelson said with a frown. "That he'd abandoned us."

"No,"the old man said, his voice firm as he shot a hard look at Nelson. "Not abandoned. Not Yannis. He's done more to hurt the Reds than anyone, save perhaps Morgan and McCoy."

"Then why was he here?" Penny asked.

Argondian took a moment to look for the right words. "After the failed Darkhallow in Chicago, Yannis became obsessed with the idea that there was a traitor on the Council."

My eyes might have widened at that, but I wasn't about to say anything, for fear of them remembering that I was there.

"He confronted the Merlin about it, but Arthur denied the possibility." Argondian sighed. "Apparently he fought with McCoy as well. Neither was willing to openly admit there might be someone working against the Council. And so Yannis left. So that he could concentrate on rooting out the traitor."

"And he did, didn't he?" Nelson said, his voice a whisper barely caught on the winds buffering us in the back of the truck. "That's what he told you."

"Not just us," Argondian said, looking at him. "He found evidence, and sent it to the one man he trusted on the Senior Council."

"Aleron LaFortier."

Argondian nodded. "He sent the information the day before the order came down to execute him," Argondian confirmed.

"But how did the traitor learn of it?" Penny said. "It obviously wasn't Master LaFortier."

"I'm not sure," the old man admitted. "But Yannis said that someone was using dark magics on the Council members. Even against the Senior Council, making them pliable. He said he found traces within himself, and others he secretly worked with. Something that would allow the traitor to manipulate others, bend them to their will."

"But that's impossible," Nelson said. "Someone using mind magic on the Senior Council? The wardens? There's no way—"

"—that someone could control them?" Argondian finished, an eyebrow quirked upward. "Could make them fight each other, perhaps? To turn them against what they've sworn?"

His words hit like a ton of bricks.

"Peña," Penny whispered. "And Somboon."

"Katya, too, it would seem," Argondian said. "He's using something to make them fight for him. Perhaps it's this thing he discovered."

"But if he's right—"

"Then whoever the traitor was would want to silence him," Argondian said with a pained grimace. "Which means that those who knew had to die."

We rode in silence for a minute, before Nelson shook his head in disbelief. "Could it really be Morgan?"

Argondian sighed, a heavy sound conveying the depths of his worries. "Three days ago, I would have said no. But now? Knowing what we know?"

"Perhaps he was forced," Penny suggested. "Maybe the traitor forced him to, like Salvago is forcing the others?"

"Perhaps," Argondian admitted. "I just… I just can't wrap my head around someone manipulating old goats like that."

Nelson blinked. "What do you mean?"

Argondian smiled, a self-depreciating smile that masked his pain. "When you're as old as we are, the mind becomes set in its ways. I could see where someone might have been able to nudge Morgan. Make him pliable, as Yannis described. But force him to kill LaFortier? Or force Peña and Somboon to try and kill us?" He shook his head. "The more I learn, the more I fear I know nothing."

A rap on the cab window drew our attention, and we saw Simon gesturing forward. We looked, and saw that we were approaching a town. It wasn't Avgonima, where we'd taken rooms. That had been back the other way, but we'd feared crossing back into sight of Katya the sniper. Moretti had checked the map, and found the closest town to the cottage.

As the truck lumbered into another ancient town, I sat back, and wondered when the answers would stop leading to more questions.

The first town ended up being less than a village, as was the second we passed through. Neither had accommodations for us, but directed us westward toward the coast. We eventually found our way to Koskinas, a moderately sized town with some visitor amenities. We took rooms at a proper hotel, and everyone took the opportunity to freshen up.

After rinsing off, I'd inspected the bullet wound in my shoulder. The wards on the cottage an the spell-worked leather had done enough to slow the round, preventing it from passing through. The entry wound was puckered and ugly, but it was whole. My shoulder ached, but it was more in line with a weeks old injury rather than one taken a couple hours ago. My lingering headache likely had more to do with blood-loss than anything else, but some aspirin did what it could.

I'd thankfully brought some spare underclothes, but was left wearing my black leather jeans as I walked around the hotel. My coat was hanging in the room after a thorough scrubbing, so I put on a fresh shirt before looking for some lunch.

I found a small market across the way, and used some of the cash Anya had provided to grab some food. I was on my way back to the hotel when I spotted Nelson standing outside.

"Hey," I said, coming to a stop. It was clear he was waiting for me.

"Would you mind if I picked your brain for a minute?" he asked. The request wasn't demanding; nothing about the man was assuming. If I turned him down, he'd accept it. Which is probably why I accepted.

"Sure. Let me run this stuff up to Anya."

When I got upstairs, the vampire was already asleep in bed. Sal was curled up in a ball beside the ash tray, which held the remnants of a quick meal. Part of me wanted to join them, and get what rest I could.

Instead, I joined Nelson in splitting some local cuisine. We settled at a table outside, where we had a decent view of the waterfront.

"I spoke with Master Argondian, and with Vaccaro back in Edinburgh," the bald wizard started after we'd had our fill.

"What'd they say?"

"The first priority is finding Morgan," he informed me. "There will be a full review of the Salvago situation once that Morgan's case has been resolved. Captain Luccio, the one that signed the orders, is currently involved in the search. Everyone higher up is tied up in the investigation into the murder. Wizard Peabody has at least confirmed that everything is in order for the operation. But until the Captain and the Senior Council can review what we've found, we're supposed to stand down."

"I see," I said, sipping from a regional soda. The flavor was entirely wrong, and it was depressingly warm. "Did you tell Vaccaro about what Salvago said? About the traitor?"

"No," Nelson replied with a worried frown. "Considering what happened when others shared that information, Argondian thought it best to sit on that for the time being."

"I see," I repeated. "So is that it then? You guys are just going to sit tight?"

"That's what Peabody said to do," the wizard replied, a calculating tone creeping into his voice. "His exact words to Vaccaro were 'Have the team gather and find a place to hole up'."

"Okay…" I said, trailing off. His tone seemed to suggest that he intended to do otherwise.

"Technically Peña and the others are part of Argondian's team," Nelson explained.

"Ah," I said, nodding wisely. "Well, you can't leave them behind."

"Exactly."

"So what's the plan?"

"Well, that depends on the answers to my questions," the bald man said, sitting back in his chair. The calculating look had returned to his eyes. "Master Argondian wasn't aware of your identity when he divulged sensitive information to you earlier. He thought you were a Council member he hadn't met."

I snorted at the thought of me being mistaken for a wizard. "And I suppose he thought Anya was my apprentice?"

"Honestly, he thought you'd somehow converted her to our cause," Nelson said with a shrug. "Or that's what he said. I think he was just distracted."

"By her breasts, probably," I said. Nelson chuckled, but then grew serious once more.

"Regardless, we now need to ascertain exactly who you are, and whether or not we share the same agenda."

"I want to retrieve Violet and the Hound. Alive," I added, in case there was any doubt.

"I understand that much," he said softly. "But the first thing I need to know is who you're working for."

I pursed my lips as I considered my options. While I was thinking, I pulled a cigarette from my box and lit it using the fire-starter spell on one of the silver rings. I finally settled on honesty. "Who does the Hound belong to?"

Nelson's eyes narrowed, as if he wasn't quite sure he believed the answer. "Is that the story you're going with?"

"It's the truth," I said. From a certain point of view.

"Alright," the wizard said, nodding in acceptance. "I will work under the assumption that there are authorities in charge of the beast that have hired you to reclaim their asset." Which was a long winded way of saying I was working for an ancient Greek deity that he could not confirm actually existed. "The second thing I need to know is… what are you?"

The question caught me off-guard.

"What do you mean?" I asked, frowning as I exhaled.

"I mean, I need to know who we're working with," he said as politely as possible. "You look mortal, but you seem tight with the White Court, and have a fire elemental as a familiar. I've seen you take some gruesome injuries, but you're sitting here healthy and hale. You healed almost instantly from a gunshot wound that looked like it might have nicked an artery. You let a vampire feed from you, but seem none the worse for ware.

"If that weren't enough, I've seen you wield magic, even though I don't sense any talent in you," he continued. "Practitioners can sense each other's power with a touch, but I get nothing from you. And yet I've seen you use what is clearly a magically forged weapon and cast spells with it, use a magic ring," he said, indicating the silver ring I'd just used to light the cigarette, "and I've seen you exhibit a speed and agility far superior to that of a human."

I was with him right up until the last. "Uh, what are you talking about?" When he started to seek clarification, I added, "About the speed and agility."

"I was with you when you fought against Peña," he said, as if that explained it.

"And?"

"You kept up with me," Nelson said, growing impatient for the first time. It seemed as if he thought I was being difficult, but I honestly had no idea what he was talking about.

"Yeah, I work out," I said dismissal. "I think I can keep up with a zen-master wizard in a foot race."

He gave me a flat look at that. "Oh really."

"Yeah, really."

Nelson stared at me for another minute before he spoke. "My magic isn't like most others. It's more internally focused, rather than externally projected."

"Those little force fields you were throwing around certainly looked external," I said smartly.

"A product of extensive training with my bo staff and Qigong," he said. "My talent is balanced more toward sensing energies, manipulating them subtly, and channeling the power of spirit."

"Sounds very Zen," I said. "Do you do Fung Shui too?"

"Yes," he replied, taking my joke seriously. "But as to combat, my Qigong training has taught me to infuse my body with magical energy, to increase my strength, speed, stamina, and agility."

"Sounds handy," I said with a frown, not understanding why I was getting his resume.

He waited another moment, as if giving me an opportunity to say something more. When I didn't, he frowned. There was lots of frowning going on, to say the least. "I was channeling energy into speed in that fight against Peña. A speed that you matched."

It was my turn to blink. "Well, maybe you aren't as fast as you think you are."

Nelson gave me a flat look. I tried waiting him out, but it wasn't working.

"Alright," I told him. "Several years ago I came into contact with a powerful object. One that changed me." I took a drag off the cigarette. "After that, my rate of recovery from wounds became significantly faster. Nothing miraculous, but better. A friend of mine figured out that if I meditated, if I actively tried to tap into the power within me, I could heal even faster."

"Like what I saw in the cottage?" he asked, his curiosity peeked.

"Not like that, no," I admitted. "Just somewhat improved. But then, just over a year ago, I met Anya. By accident, we found that if I put myself into a state of meditation, and she fed on me, she would feed on the source of power, rather than my life-force."

"I see," he said, tapping a finger to his lips. "And in the process…"

"She was basically pulling on that wellspring of power," I confirmed. "Which allowed me to tap into it as well. She can't consume all of it, and the rest fuels my recovery."

"That's why she needed you to be meditating in the cottage."

I nodded. "Right. Thanks for your help with that, by the way."

He waved the comment off. "So when you meditate, where do you feel this power?" he asked.

"I don't," I told him. "At least, not when I'm doing it alone. When Anya is tapping it, it kind of feels like… like it's coming from here, maybe?" I said, gesturing toward my navel.

Nelson nodded, as if he'd expected that. "The Manipura."

"The what?" I asked, looking down.

"The third Chakra," he said. "The chakra of fire. It's commonly associated with power, vitality, and physical growth."

"Olivia said something about chakras once I think," I said absently. "She's into yoga and the like."

"Yes, well, of course," Nelson said with a surprisingly good sardonic smile. "If she's into yoga, she'd certainly know."

"Hey, she's pretty good with this stuff," I told him with a smile, not wanting to add that Olivia herself, along with her younger brother, had also consumed the apple-seeds from the golden fruit. "And she's dating her yoga instructor, so together, they're like, experts or something."

"Of course," the monk-like wizard said with a solemn bow. "Perhaps your speed was tied to that."

"So what does that mean?" I asked. "I'll admit, I feel energized whenever Anya feeds deeply, but I don't know about it making me faster."

I thought back on the times when she'd fed on me. One of the first times she'd done it, I'd felt an abundance of energy. So much so that I hadn't thought twice about bursting into a room to fight several Ramps and several of their chimeras.

A similar sense had accompanied several feedings back in Chicago, when she and I had been sparring with Q. But neither of them had ever said anything about me moving faster than normal.

What made the feeding in the cottage different?

"There are ways to enhance one's physical state," Nelson said. "Drawing on such power is how I can make myself faster and stronger. I can even improve the rate of my healing, but nothing like what you've exhibited."

"It's never happened before," I insisted. "I don't have any power to tap on."

"Or perhaps there is more to it than you realize," a voice said from behind us.

We both turned to find Argondian strolling up, a neutral look on his face.

"Master Argondian?" Nelson asked, confused.

"Relax, young Nelson," the old wizard said as he sat down at the table. His bushy eyebrows rose as he watched a young lady walk past, before turning his gaze to the young man. "Mister Hayes is not trying to be difficult."

I tensed, as I didn't recall telling anyone my last name. "What?"

"Your power," the wizard said, turning to me. "Your nature. You are ignorant of both."

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"My point exactly," the old man said. "Perhaps you and I will discuss that at a later time. For now, we must focus on what we are going to do about Yannis." He sent a frown my way. "But to do so, we need to know everything. Especially about this purple-haired beauty that the foul-minded Nelson here goes on about at great lengths."

"Wha- bu-" Nelson sputtered, an uncharacteristic loss of composure as the bald wizard blushed.

"Now, now, young man, there is a time and place for everything," the lecher said to the monk. "Keep your thoughts pure for the moment. No more tales of curvaceous beauties whipping you as you writhe about."

I couldn't recall the last time I'd seen anyone turn that red, but the younger wizard managed to keep his mouth shut despite his embarrassment. The elder turned to me, waggling his eyebrows mischievously where Nelson couldn't see.

"Tell us everything, Mr. Hayes. If you would."

With my first cigarette burned low, I fished out another and lit it. Once it was started, I proceeded to tell them a condensed version of events. I didn't go into detail about my relationship with Violet; they didn't need to know all that. But I told them about my debt to her, and Rose's collection of said debt in regards to the Hound.

I also explained what I'd seen with Rai. With all of us having seen the resurrected Somboon, I figured any hope that Rai needed to be alive to be of use to Salvago was long gone. Nelson paled when he found out, but I could tell he still hadn't quite given up on his apprentice.

When I'd finished, Argondian sat back, a thoughtful look on his face.

"Well?" I asked, taking a drag.

"Mr. Hayes, I must congratulate you," the old wizard said, offering me a hand. When I took it with some confusion, he pumped it enthusiastically. "To not only have bedded a lusty young succubus, but to have also added a Greek nymph to your harem… bravo, sir. Bravo."

"What?" Nelson and I said simultaneously.

"Calm down, young Nelson, no need to get worked up over it," Argondian chastised. "There are other nymphs in the sea."

"But—"

"Now, Mr. Hayes," the lecher said, cutting Nelson off. "I believe our goals are in line with one another. While my first priority must be to end the threat which Yannis poses, I would not wish to see any harm done to those being used against their will. Restoring your nymph and the Hound would be preferred. But without knowing more about their condition, I am not sure what we can realistically expect."

"I fully expect to get Violet back," I assured him.

"In the name of love, I shall endeavor for the same," he said, placing a hand upon his heart. "I would hate to see young Nelson here throw himself over a cliff should we fail."

"Wha—"

"However, while you all were eating what appears to be a perfectly delectable meal without leaving any for the rest of us," Argondian continued, eying the remnants of the food, "I was speaking with the lovely young lady at the front desk. She shared this with me, at no extra charge, no doubt due to my roguish charm."

The wizard pulled a folded piece of paper from the inside of his blue velvet coat, and placed it on the table before us. Nelson and I both leaned closer to see what was on the page.

"What does it say?" Nelson asked after a moment.

"I have no idea," Argondian replied with a playful wag of his eyebrows. "It's all Greek to me."

"Holy shit," I whispered, my eyes widening as I read what looked to be English text.

"Ah," the old man said. "If you would be so kind as to share with the rest of us that have not had a fiery nymph bestow her most precious gift upon them."

The way the lecher said it made it sound so much worse than what Rose had actually done, but I was too shell-shocked to bother trying to correct him.

"This is a local police bulletin," I explained, reading it quickly. "It says that nearly two dozen graveyards were vandalized last night."

"Two dozen?!" Nelson said, choking on the news.

"The police are asking locals for any information they may have," I said. "Based on what this says, they're interpreting it as a gang of grave robbers. But it looks like all the bodies were removed. They're talking hundreds of corpses, if not more. And those are only the ones they've confirmed since this was sent out… two hours ago."

"I fear Yannis has lost himself," Argondian said, his tone sobering. "In our first encounter, he was still a man, looking for help from friends. But the second time, when he came to us, something had changed. There is a darkness about him, a stark and deathly aura unlike anything I've seen since the days of Kemmler."

The wizard tapped the page. "This proves that the man I knew is gone. Yannis spent decades studying the dark arts, but never gave in to them. He is using necromancy to build an army of the dead around himself, and turning wizards into thralls, to be his enforcers."

"But why?" Nelson asked.

"If his sanity has not fled, then his morality certainly has," Argondian explained. "We watched Kemmler do this very thing countless times. What Salvago once looked upon with disgust, he now does with apparent ease. He is readying an army to defend himself for when the Council comes. As it must."

"But two dozen graveyards in a single night," Nelson said, his voice filled with disbelief.

"It didn't take them that long to raise the graveyard we saw," I reminded him. "With Violet's power helping him, it only took a few minutes. And it looked like she took all of them with her into the Ways." I pictured the narrow tunnels and the empty darkness that lay beyond the torch's sphere of light, and wondered if that was how they'd all been transported. "Traveling that way took us a while, but by our calculations, it would have seemed to have been instantaneous to anyone in the real world."

"So they can move about the island without need of transport, nor concern with being seen," Argondian surmised. "And they can do so with apparent speed."

"But only at night," I added. "Violet has never visited in the daylight, and Rose said she couldn't reach me until nightfall." Which was still hours away.

"The question is, where are they taking them?" Argondian posed. "Is there a place in the Never-never? Or is there somewhere else?"

I glanced at the bone-white ring on my finger. "I may be able to locate Violet, but I'm not sure it will work during the day."

"Then we will leave you to that, while we update the others," Argondian said. "In the meantime, we will seek to find a way of tracking Salvago directly. If we cannot, then we will be forced into a reactionary stance, one that will not succeed if we cannot match Yannis' ability to travel through the Ways."

"Maybe Rose can help with that," I said.

"Very well," Argondian said with a nod. "And let us hope that you are not wrong, and that they aren't busy recovering more of the dead as we speak. I worry that Yannis was not present at the attack at the cottage."

I'd had the same thought. Especially considering that Rose had been able to pass Anya and I back into the world without coming herself. If Yannis could raise the dead without Violet, and she could transport them back and forth to the Ways without entering the real world, then we might not be facing an undead army in the hundreds.

It might be thousands.