Chapter 42 #3
Directly ahead of us, suspended by chains that appear to be made out of the same alloy as the Crimson Templars’ weapons, hangs an angel.
Gabriel. He’s massive, even larger than my father, his body stretched and broken.
His wings are shredded, torn, barely more than skeletal frames with no feathers remaining.
His skin has been flayed in places, exposing muscle and sinew, streams of dried blood visible below the wounds.
“Gabriel!” Lucifer cries out his brother’s name, moving towards the angel.
“Wait!” I scream, realizing there’s something else in the room. Something feeding from a gash in Gabriel’s flayed flesh.
“It’s a vampire,” Wyatt’s voice comes out as shouted whisper. “An ancient vampire, older than the last one we fought.”
Lucifer stops in his tracks as the vampire walks out from behind Gabriel.
The vampire is so ancient he barely looks human.
His eyes are blood-red embers. His skin is withered to the point that bone is showing on his scalp and sinews along his neck.
He’s wearing a red robe with a white cross, but the cross is stained with blood, and darker spots on his robe appear to be from blood as well.
“Another angel,” the vampire hisses. “I’ll hang you next to your brother, and I’ll feed on you both. My children will feed on you both.”
“No, this ends today,” Lucifer seems to illuminate the ghastly room as his anger fuels his angelic glow.
“We’ve killed an ancient vampire before,” Jaxton rumbles. “We can take another one, especially with Lucifer’s help. Even if he’s been drinking angel blood.”
“We’ve been preparing to finish the Scions, the scourge born from unholy blood, for centuries,” the vampire boasts. “You brought the fight to us, but the result will be the same. Don’t worry, I’ll even make a few of you into my servants. If you survive.”
The vampire raises both hands and then the caskets around us begin to open. I look around in a panic, as does my pack. Even Lucifer looks worried.
“Oh no,” I gasp, taking a step back. “He’s not alone.”
“Retreat!” Lucifer calls out.
We back out of the room as the casket lids tumble to the floor and fully armored Crimson Templar vampires emerge from their dark slumber. Some are younger vampires. Some are older. There’s way too many to fight, even with our immunity.
Then we hear it. Footsteps, and not just a few. It sounds like thunder approaching, and I sense them before they get close enough for us to see them.
“We’re not alone either,” I shout as Fae, witches, wolves, bears, and hundreds of Scions begin to fill the huge room.
“Let them fight the Templars,” Hayden speaks to the pack through the bond. “We’ll rescue Gabriel.”
We carve our way through the vampires as the Scions join the battle.
I get bitten a few times, as does my pack, but we’re immune to them, so we shrug off the pain.
From watching my father fight, I discover that with a quick swipe I can remove a head, drive my sword through the stump of the neck, and pierce the heart.
That allows me to kill several vampires on my own while my pack clears the way for us.
“Even if you defeat all of my children, you’ll never defeat me. Think you can remove my heart? Gabriel already tried,” he says, gesturing to the broken angel. “Take a look at what happens to those who dare challenge the Crimson Pope.”
“Doesn’t matter what you call yourself. Doesn’t matter what kind of blood you drink,” Jaxton roars, charging ahead. “You’re still just a fucking vampire.”
Lucifer swings his sword, but the Crimson Pope blocks it, the blade not even breaking skin when it skids across the vampire’s arm, sparks flying.
Jaxton hits the vampire’s chest with both paws, but he slings the largest wolf in our pack towards the wall without even looking at him.
Jaxton lands in a casket and it shatters, then he comes charging from the darkness, fangs bared for another attack.
“We need to find a way to immobilize him,” I call out through our link. “Just like with the other vampire.”
“Weaken him before we kill him, just like before,” Hayden answers.
The wolves snap at the vampire’s legs, but he leaps into the air to avoid them.
Lucifer keeps swinging his sword, zipping around as he tries to break through the vampire’s defenses, but he doesn’t seem to have any luck.
The vampire is too quick. His skin is too tough.
Even his bones are too hard for us to break them.
How is it possible for a creature that looks ready to collapse into a pile of skin and bone be so damned strong?
“I will return,” Lucifer says, then he takes flight, shooting into the darkness overhead.
“Did he just… abandon us?” Hayden asks, then he gets slung into a pillar and goes down with a groan.
“He wouldn’t. Surely he…” I try to form words but then have to deflect several attacks.
“Your blood isn’t as good as an angel, but perhaps you’ll make a nice queen,” the hideous vampire cackles, his blood-red eyes studying me as he continues to attack.
“One of your kind already tried to bite me, unsuccessfully,” I sneer, feeling the fury of the Viking Warrior’s soul as I try to cleave through this Crimson Pope.
“Just because I can’t bite you doesn’t mean I can’t get your blood,” the creature actually laughs, kicking Storm hard enough that he lands in a burial niche several rows up. “And once I’ve had enough, you’ll gladly drink from the angel to taste life again.”
“Never,” I swear.
An explosion catches me by surprise and I look up. The vampire punches me in the chest and I fly back into a row of caskets as chunks of the ceiling cave in. I lay in the rubble for a moment, trying to convince my lungs to start working again.
“Tell your pack to be ready, daughter,” Lucifer transmits.
I can see the stars overhead. Lucifer has opened a hole that goes all the way to the top of the Vatican. But why? I transmit his message to the pack, drag myself up, and we continue fighting the vampire.
It’s hardly a fight. The vampire zips around and moves through the air so fast it’s hard to even get a swing, much less a hit.
Every time he strikes, one of the wolves goes flying, yelping or whimpering as they crash into caskets and concrete.
I take a hit that makes my spine feel like it’s going to disintegrate as I go to my knees.
Then there’s a streak above us and it catches the vampire’s attention. Lucifer descends so fast he’s almost a blur.
“You think that will be strong enough to stop me?” the vampire cackles, preparing to fight Lucifer.
“I’m not the one that will stop you,” Lucifer rumbles, spinning his sword. “I’m just the distraction!” Then I hear Lucifer’s voice in my head. “Now, daughter! Attack!”
The vampire’s back is to us. His attention is on Lucifer. I force myself to my feet, and my pack joins me. We rush the vampire’s back and I swing my sword hard enough to lodge the blade into the side of the vampire’s neck while he’s distracted.
“Tear him apart!” Hayden roars.
The vampire screams and deflects Lucifer’s attack, but it’s the opening we need.
Storm takes a leg. Wyatt takes the other.
The two enormous Alpha wolves pull the vampire out of the air.
Jaxton goes for the other side of his throat.
Hayden sinks his fangs into the belly as the vile creature tries to pry Jaxton and me off his neck.
Remy hits the beast’s back, just below the ribs, biting as hard as he can.
“Help! Children! To me!” the vampire screeches.
I glance to my side, seeing that the Scions have killed most of the Crimson Templar vampires. Several Scions are already pushing toward us, ready to join in the attack against the Crimson Pope.
“Your children are all dead,” I taunt, yanking my sword free and swinging again. “But ours will inherit the world you tried to destroy!”
I concentrate and call every soul inside me.
Begging for their strength, just once, so I can finish this Crimson Pope.
I feel the warmth in my chest. Feel their strength.
My mates have the vampire pinned. Lucifer has him distracted.
I aim my flaming sword and swing, not just for myself, but for every Scion that has ever died at the hands of the Crimson Templars.
My blade cuts deep and doesn’t stop until it reaches the cervical spine.
The vampire screeches, the smell of cooked rancid meat fills the air, and my mates just keep tearing into him.
Black blood spurts everywhere. He’s no longer able to focus on Lucifer and Lucifer batters the vampire’s hideous face with the pommel of his sword as Jaxton and Hayden rip chunks of flesh out of the neck.
“Finish him!” Lucifer roars.
I leap into the air, spin my sword and drive it into the exposed neck. I’m weaker now, but so is the vampire, and the rotten flesh yields until I hit something hard. I can’t pierce the stone heart, no matter how much I try, so I yank my sword downward, opening up his chest.
“I need help,” I shout.
“I got it,” Lucifer responds, dropping his sword.
The vampire is still fighting for life. Twisting, thrashing, trying to get away.
His open mouth gnashes helplessly, skull barely held on by his spine.
Lucifer drives both his fists into the gash I left and with a deafening roar, rips open the vampire’s chest. Hayden yanks the heart free and throws it on the floor in front of the other Scions.
“Smash it!” he growls.
There’s a cheer from the Scions and they stomp the heart until the only thing left is onyx powder.
The vampire slumps to the ground, twitching as it finally dies.
Among countless dead vampires, noble dead Scions adorn the necropolis behind us.
They gave their lives to put a stop to this once and for all. And we did.
It’s over.
We won.