It took a couple of minutes for the guards to return with Vlad and Justin. The wraith trembled, his consistency changing from transparent to full-bodied. Vlad, on the other hand, had a small crease between his eyes, and seemed to be hovering between confusion and being a cocky bastard.
Rachel pulled Daniel closer, but the headache and nausea she'd come to associate with the vampire lord's presence never came. Vlad was somehow no longer a vampire. Or maybe he was.
Oh, God, we gave him superpowers! If he could now hide, they were so screwed.
Calm down, Rach. No, we didn't. Daniel tightened his grip on her hand. He seemed ready to snap. Look at his eyes. They're hazel instead of crimson.
Vlad seemed to decide on cocky bastard, so he grinned. "Hello, old friends."
Daniel let go of Rachel's hand and lunged at Vlad. He knocked him down, put his knees on Vlad's arms and punched him in the face. "You son of a bitch! I don't know why you're still alive, but, believe me, it won't last long."
"Get off me!" Vlad tried to wriggle free, but his superior physical strength was gone. "You can't hold what happened against me."
"Can't?" Daniel paused for a second before throwing a right hook at him. "You made me kill Cheryl! You almost turned Rachel into your bride!"
Vlad managed to slip free and backed away. "So? I was a vampire, you were a Hunter. And you're the one who started hunting me down! Besides, Rachel is gorgeous. You can't blame me for wanting her."
Did... Did Vlad just compliment her? Rachel had no idea how to feel about that, but the moment Daniel stepped toward him, she grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back. They had bigger problems than Vlad right now. Though, it was weird seeing him excuse his actions.
Roz raised her eyebrows. "Are you boys done with your testosterone display? Let's see what we have. I'd like to hear the accusations against these four prisoners." She leaned back in her chair, hands joined.
Daniel threw Vlad one more dirty look and walked back to Rachel. "How about telling me what that big thing I don't know is?"
Roz leaned forward again, her eyes bright blue slits. "I thought Max taught you the protocol, boy. I'd be grateful if you'd respect it." She relaxed against the headrest once more.
Daniel clasped his hands behind his back, eyes fixed on the floor. Great. Another protocol lover. I'm getting sick and tired of this.
Rachel took the required pose as well. Tell me about it. Déjà vú, much?
Let's hope it goes better this time. We don't have Gabriel to bust our asses out.
Rachel took in a deep breath. They'd sacrificed enough for the Hunters. Dying wasn't high on her list of priorities. And the way things were going, she hated Angus more than Vlad.
"The charges." The prosecutor got to his feet, clearing his throat. "The wraith is charged with deceit and espionage on behalf of the traitors. The vampire is a vampire. He should be exterminated immediately.
"Regarding the traitors: to the previous charges of living outside any monitored Hunter division, killing without reporting, endangering human lives, breaking the oath of secrecy and hunting without a permit, the prosecution would like to add those of defying the High Council, refusing to execute their sentences, murder of the Head Hunter, Gabriel Saligny, and genocide against the entire Hunter race.
"Daniel Paxton is also accused of turning a human into a Hunter, not registering said new Hunter, and not reporting the death of his partner to the High Council."
Roz yawned. "Is that all?"
Angus's eyes bulged like they would soon pop out of his head. "Have you heard the charges against them? Genocide, Roz! They killed Gabriel!"
Rachel clenched her fists. "No, we didn't. You—"
Daniel grabbed her wrist and squeezed. He shook his head.
She frowned. Don't tell me you killed him.
Don't be stupid, of course I didn't. Just let them fight this out. We'll take it from there.
"The prosecution suggests the following punishment—"
"You can stop right there." Roz hit the desk with her walking stick. "I know what you clowns always suggest. Execution. Always with the execution. It's no wonder so few of us are left. More Hunters are killed off for breaking protocol than by vampires. I want to hear their side of the story. You first, girl."
Rachel's stomach did a somersault. "Um, well..."
"Name, age and division, girl," Roz thundered.
God, this lady was bipolar. Rachel had never seen someone change moods so fast. "Rachel Giuliani. Twenty-four in human years, eight in Hunter years. I don't belong to any division. I never have."
Roz waved her hand and Rachel took it as her cue to continue.
"Daniel turned me into a Hunter after saving me from a vampire attack. I've been his partner ever since. He'd heard a legend from his previous partner, Max. We wanted to see if the legend was true."
"What is this legend?" one of the Council members asked.
Rachel blinked. Daniel had told it to them a less then a month ago. "Well, it's said that if Vlad dies, the vampires would fall apart."
Vlad snorted. "You took that literally? You Hunters are bigger imbeciles than you appear. And that's saying something."
"Shut it, Vlad. What are your vampires doing now? Butchering each other over your throne?" Roz squinted at him and Vlad recoiled. "I know too well what your presence here means. There will never be another vampire leader like you. Their era has set."
Daniel looked to Rachel, an ecstatic smile on his face. We did it, Rach.
She half-smiled. Not much use if they kill us now.
"Well, be that as it may," Angus stuttered. "The costs have been—"
"Why did you cause that battle?" Roz asked.
"We used Justin to gather the Hunters in order to draw the vampires away from Vlad," Rachel answered. "We knew he was too strong to face if he had others around him. But it's not Justin's fault. Daniel made him take an oath."
Way to go, Rach. Blame me. Who needs prosecution when I've got you?
Rachel sunk her teeth into her lower lip. Even if Daniel sounded amused, she still felt like slapping herself. She should've lied.
"Why did you escape without carrying out your sentence?" the woman asked.
Rachel frowned. "I wasn't going to let them kill Daniel. They had no reason."
"They seem to have plenty of reasons." She leaned back in her chair. "Whose idea was it to start this war?"
"Mine," Rachel and Daniel said in unison.
"I see. You, Max's boy, why didn't you ever report?"
"Max never reported either. I knew I was supposed to, but didn't take it seriously." Daniel looked at the floor, rubbing his forehead. "It was pretty hard without Max. Fortunately, I found Rachel. I had no idea I wasn't allowed to turn humans."
"Oh, yes, I bet you and Max made a sport of it," Angus spat. "Rebellious scum. Always think they know best."
A snap and wince from Angus indicated Roz had probably smacked him with the walking stick under the desk. "How did Max die?" she asked.
"Vampire attack," Daniel mumbled.
"Yes. Stroe and Iancu killed him. He was a tough one to bring down." Vlad tutted. "If you let your best Hunters turn renegade, how are you ever going to come out on top? That Max and these two have caused more trouble than all of you over the past century. They defeated me. You should be kissing their toes. Instead, you want to kill them." He frowned as though he couldn't believe he'd actually stood up for them.
Rachel couldn't believe it either. Vlad seemed to be switching from Hunter to Vampire Lord and back.
"Silence, scum!" Angus yelled.
"We all have a general idea of the facts by now." Roz stood, leaning against her walking stick, and walked around the desk. "These children were following a legend. They started the first war in centuries, a war I believe we've won, and brought Vlad down. Then there's the whole protocol gibberish. Let's get to the juicy stuff." She stumbled to Rachel and Daniel then turned to face the bench. "Why, Angus, do you claim that the Mighty Three are gone when I'm living proof they are not? Am I not a Revealer, or have you all forgotten?" She turned to Rachel. "Girl, you claim to be a Shade."
Rachel nodded. "I am. If I wasn't, we couldn't have snuck up on Vlad." She raised her voice. "That's why I don't feel like a Hunter." Take that, assholes!
Roz nodded back and turned to Daniel. "And you, Max Junior? Do you have any special ability?"
Daniel's grin was almost pure evil. "Can I show you?"
The woman smirked. "Go right ahead."
Daniel spread his fingers out and pushed his hands forward. All the members of the Council were tossed off their seats. His shield was more powerful than ever.
Roz laughed. "Remarkable. And why am I not surprised you're using a shield as a weapon? There you have it, gentlemen. A Shield, a Shade and a Revealer right before your eyes. The Mighty Three are back." She grinned as if she'd just found the cure for cancer. "Except, you fools don't now that the Mighty Three were four." She turned to the room at large. "There is one more special ability a Hunter can be born with. You don't know about it because Max was the only one to ever possess it."
"Elder, what is this nonsense?" a council member asked.
"Do you know how many of the truly old ones are left?" Roz paced the length of the room, her walking stick clunking every other step. "That's right." She stopped. "One. Me. I'm the only one old enough to remember our origins. Those wars had a terrible effect on our kind. And on our memories as well." She resumed her pacing. "How many of you remember that Max was the original Hunter?"
A collective gasp swept the room. Rachel and Daniel looked at each other. She supposed the other Hunters knew about this. They were centuries old.
"You chose to forget and banish him from your midst," Roz continued. "He saw it coming, of course. He was a Seer, after all."
The whole room filled with murmurs and the Council members looked from one to the other.
Angus's eyes widened to comical proportions. "Max was a Seer?"
Roz shook her head, a look of deepest disgust on her lined face. "You had no idea what you were doing when you sent him into exile. He knew you would. Just like he knew he would die. There is no legend." She turned to Rachel and Daniel. "You've been following his predictions, haven't you?"
They nodded. Hope filled Rachel. This woman admired Max. She was on his side. She wouldn't let them be killed.
"Hiding such information from the High Council is a big no-no." The woman shook her head. "Protocol breach I can overlook, but this? I'm disappointed, Max Junior."
Or maybe she would let them get killed.
"Stop calling me Max Junior. It's annoying," Daniel mumbled as though even he wasn't sure if he wanted Roz to hear or not.
"But that's who you are." Roz raised an eyebrow. "You're Max's kid. He wasn't your maker. He was your biological father."
Rachel gasped so violently, she choked. She punched her chest, coughing.
Daniel stood perfectly still and squinted at the tiny woman. "That's impossible. I remember being turned."
"Really? How much of that do you remember?" Roz watched him with polite interest.
Daniel frowned and rubbed his forehead. "I was out, it was night and...it was my twenty-fifth birthday and Max came to me...then..." His voice faded. He'd mentioned not remembering much from his normal life.
"Then what? Out of all people, Max decided to turn a healthy, happy youngster into a Hunter?"
"But I..." Daniel's gaze dropped to the marble floor. "That means..."
Roz nodded. "You are a born, not made Hunter. Why do you think your powers skyrocketed like that? How else would you have stood any chance against a born vampire?"
Rachel felt like slapping her forehead. She'd never been a weak Hunter. It was Daniel who was abnormally strong. Of course she couldn't compare to him.
Vlad cocked his head. "That's why an eleven-year-old runt managed to hold his own against me." He clenched his fists and gritted his teeth as though angry at his own lack of reaction.
Rachel's heart tightened. Daniel was confused and hurt, trying to find some meaning in his past, some clue. She could feel his despair as he searched his memories and found no pattern, no sense to them.
"How could I live like this?" he whispered. "Not realizing that I can't remember anything for certain? That my whole past is nothing but a big blur? A big lie."
"That would be my fault." Roz limped toward him. "You started developing your powers when you turned twenty-five. Max took you under his wing and asked me to modify your memories a bit. He knew he would die and didn't want you to suffer the loss of your father, of your family."
Daniel's head jerked up. "What really happened to my family?"
She reached out her hands as though to take his face in them. "Here, let me put everything back and delete all the false memories I planted in."
"Don't delete anything." Daniel stepped back. "I like the little memories I have. Even if they're not real, they're good ones. Let me keep them."
Once Roz nodded, he bent down so that the much shorter woman could put her hands on the sides of his head. Images zoomed through Rachel's mind, but they moved too fast for her to tell anything from them. She couldn't concentrate either way. The news had made her knees weak. Deleting Daniel's childhood had been an awful decision Max made.
Roz finally stepped back. "There you are, honey. A full supply of childhood memories with your father." She glanced at Daniel for a few more seconds, then turned to Rachel. "There's a lot of you inside his head. Too much for his own good. Come here!"
"What's the point here? They're going to die anyway," Angus said, but Roz shushed him. The other Hunters in the room watched the short woman as though hypnotized.
Rachel stepped back. She liked her head the way it was. Something crossed her mind and she froze. "Well, there is this one memory I'd like cleared up." She bent to allow the woman to reach her. As soon as Roz put her hands on the sides of her head, Rachel's vision disappeared. There was nothing but darkness.
Let's see what you have in here, my sweet.
Images whizzed before Rachel's eyes like a fast-forwarding movie. Yet, the one she concentrated on wasn't there.
Go back to when I was little. Show me memories of my mother, she pleaded. The woman complied and the images slowed down. Still, nothing. Her mother had never sung that song.
What you're looking for is not there, Roz said. She skipped to her recent memories. The images mixed in a cornucopia of colors and made Rachel see stars.
"Fascinating," Roz said, her voice coming from further away than Rachel expected. She must have moved away. "You've built quite a mechanism. This particular memory you seek doesn't exist. You've built a mental shield. But what are you hiding behind it?"
Rachel's vision finally returned, though white fireworks still shot in front of her eyes. "I don't know. That's why I had you look in there."
Roz waved her away and hopped back toward the judges' bench. With the shocking news of Daniel's origin, she'd completely forgotten they were still on trial. The Council Members, even Angus, stared at them, their mouths hanging open.
"I've never seen anything like what you two have." Roz tilted her head. "You love each other to the point that your self-preservation instincts are gone."
"Roz, that's enough." Angus banged his gavel, startling the entire room. "You've had your fun with them. Now it's time to pass sentence. You might be against their execution, but you'll have to vote, like everyone else."
Roz ignored him. "Max hoped you'd inherit his gift of Seeing," she said to Daniel.
Rachel was sure he hadn't. And the certainty came from behind her mental shield. She shut her eyes and concentrated on the blind spot in her brain. Bright light seem to fill Rachel's mind and everything became crystal clear. Seeing. The song. It wasn't a song she'd grown up with. She'd made it up because... her song was a prediction.
Slates washing clean, worlds coming together – they all described the war. Other verses covered her relationship with Daniel, their struggle... There were a couple of verses that nagged her, and she was sure they hadn't come to pass yet.
Only one must take the blame, but it will be too late. We'll create innocence.
"Well, I haven't." Daniel's voice echoed from far, far away.
"I have. You did inherit it. Only it didn't manifest in you because..." Rachel raised her head. "I think you passed it on to me."
Muttering broke out in the room following her statement.
"You see into the future?" the doctor asked in disbelief.
"Yes!" She took Daniel's hand. That song wasn't a song. It was a prediction. I figured out what most of it means. And it's all come true. That's how I knew how to bring Vlad down.
Understanding dawned on Daniel's face and he smiled weakly. "I guess it was my fault, after all. I'm glad you've figured it out, Rach. I was right. You were the key."
"I'll have none of this nonsense." Angus got to his feet, beckoning two guards to approach. "You will both be executed immediately."
"We haven't even voted." The doctor stood, too. "We're not a dictatorship, Angus!"
"And taking an innocent life is against our most sacred rule," Roz said, turning to face the Council.
"Innocent?" Angus laughed manically. "There's nothing innocent about these two."
"Maybe. But don't you see their potential? She can bear children."
Angus stared at Rachel, his head tilted. "Good point, Roz. Kill him. We'll use her to bring our numbers up."
"What?" Daniel stepped forward, his fist in striking position. Rachel, Vlad and Justin rushed to contain him. "Lay one sleazy finger on her, you asshole, and I'll make sure to feed your organs to you one by one!"
"Danny, calm down." Rachel tugged him, but the three of them could barely hold him back. She just then noticed the weirdness of Vlad being there.
"Let me go!" Daniel shrugged them off and wheeled to face them. "And what the hell is your problem, Vlad?"
Vlad bared his fangs. "This all your fault!"
"Order! I will have order!" Angus's yells rose over the murmurs of the crowd. "Rules can be bent in special circumstances. Like genocide. We shall now vote." He got off his chair and exited the room through the door behind the bench.
The rest of the Council followed suit. Roz grumbled something unintelligible and shuffled toward the door as well. The rest of the Hunters in the room muttered and pointed toward them. If they weren't armed to the teeth Rachel would've contemplated escape.
Daniel completely ignored them, his attention on Vlad. "If you touch me again, I'll rip your arm off and beat you over the head with it."
"You think I want to touch you, filthy Hunter?" Vlad yelled. "What have you done to me? Why do I feel like protecting the two of you?"
Daniel opened his mouth to shout back, but Rachel put her hand on his chest to stop him.
"Knock it off, you two. I think I know what's going on."
Both Vlad and Daniel ogled at her. Justin floated behind them, staring too.
Rachel sighed. "We're Vlad's makers. Of course he feels attached to us. We turned him into this...um?" She looked at them expectantly.
"Hunter." Vlad spat out the word as if it were a deadly insult.
"Well, that's convenient." Justin shrugged. "I can't believe all this. Where did that old crone come out from?"
"That old crone is the oldest Hunter alive." Vlad gave Daniel a fleeting, angry glance. "Not to mention she's the only female Hunter who survived the wars. I had no idea she was still functioning." He huffed. "Leave it to old Angus to hide everything from her."
"Old Angus?" Daniel raised an eyebrow.
His thoughts clicked into place and Rachel made the connection, too. Max had warned against a traitor in their midst. And who would know better than Vlad?
"Is Angus the traitor?" she asked.
Vlad bit his lip as though to keep himself from talking. He frowned and threw his hands in the air. "I give up. I can't resist my nature. The simple thought of returning to my vampire minions makes me sick. I hope the council sentences us all to death. That way, you die and I won't be a wretched Hunter anymore."
Daniel looked unimpressed by Vlad's outburst. "You didn't answer our question."
"You're not complete idiots. Well, the two of you at least. I guess you're the best Hunters that could've turned me. Yes, I struck a deal with Angus decades ago."
"What deal?" Daniel asked.
"You know those fancy darts you keep knocking each other out with?" Vlad crossed his arms over his chest, a self-satisfied smile spreading across his face. "Those are my doing. I developed them and sold them to Angus."
"And what did he give you in return?" Rachel asked. Oh, she didn't like this.
"Let me see." Vlad drummed his fingers on his cheek. "A lot of money, the dictatorship, the promise that those darts wouldn't be used on vampires, and he had to make sure I wouldn't be bothered by Hunters ever again. Imagine how distressed he was when you two showed up." Vlad chuckled. "His brilliant plan to take over the Hunters was going down in flames."
"Why?" Daniel let got of Rachel's hands and clenched his fists. "Why would anyone buy weapons against their own kind?"
"So that he could have order in his little empire." Vlad shrugged. "I didn't care about his crazy motives. I just wanted the Hunters out of the way."
Considering Angus, this wasn't hard to believe at all. The shock of his betrayal withered, being replaced by the realization of what his actions actually meant. Rachel glanced over her shoulder, at the Hunters in the room. They were so busy talking amongst themselves, they'd obviously heard nothing of Vlad's confession.
In a flash, an image filled her mind. Darts lay scattered all around. She crawled on the floor, and the only things she could see were furniture legs, the fallen darts and her own hands. Pain seared her body. As quickly as it came, the vision vanished.
"When you block me out, do you have visions?" Daniel asked.
Rachel nodded and looked toward the door behind the bench. It opened the following second, and the High Council poured out, like a grotesque snake, ready to devour them. She knew their sentence before they even reached their seats.
The prosecutor remained standing and unrolled an official looking parchment. "In the trial against Daniel Paxton and Rachel Giuliani, we, the High Council of the Hunters, find you both guilty and sentence you to immediate death."
"What?" Daniel asked, staring at Roz. The woman lowered her eyes and shook her head.
The prosecutor kept talking, and the room filled with loud yells of approval, but Rachel couldn't hear them anymore. She could See the Hunter guards shooting her and Daniel, knocking them out, and that was the end of it. Her insides froze with fear. This couldn't be it.
"Hell no! I've had it with this." Daniel grabbed her hand and pulled her against him. Can you see what happens?
We die.
Not good.
The Hunters rushed forward, guns pointing. Rachel's heart beat so fast, she felt faint. He knees weakened and she tightened her hold on Daniel to stay on her feet. The echo of the shots filled the rumbling room and she shut her eyes. Nothing happened. Instead, a low fizzling sound surrounded her. She opened one eye warily. Daniel had his hands raised, as if holding something above his head, his face filled with concentration.
You shouldn't rely on your visions too much, Rach. The future is what we make it. He spread his arms and the shield swept the room, knocking everyone off their feet. The force of it made the very building tremble, like an earthquake, and several paintings fell from the walls.
"I'll be damned if I stay here and let these assholes hurt the woman I love." He grabbed Rachel's wrist and pulled her toward a door on the left side of the judge's bench, his other hand raised to throw more shockwaves. "You two coming, or what?" he called, nodding toward Vlad and Justin who were the only ones in the room left standing.
"I'm with you, mate." Justin floated toward them.
Vlad hesitated but, as soon as the Hunters started getting to their feet, followed.
🦇🦇🦇
You thought you'd get only one climax? My sweet summer child! Be prepared for more. We're nearing the end.
Thanks for reading another chapter of Hunters. Hope you had fun! This one is another huge one, but there you have it. Leave a comment or vote in case you enjoyed it. And thank you for your support!