“Well, I wasn’t there when the first ritual happened. I’m pretty sure I wasn’t even born, but I do remember a few mentions of it during my time as a Reaper. The Hermessi were dormant at the time, though. Nobody worried they’d do it again.”
“We had to awaken them. They were our only way to defeat Ta’Zan. He would’ve destroyed entire worlds,” I said. “We didn’t know any of their history. We had no idea what we were unleashing.”
Herbert continued his trek toward the cliff. He snuck between the thick trees and past the dark bushes, and climbed up the rock wall with expert agility. His claws were long and curved, perfect for gripping without the risk of a slip. I could see him, even though the nearby animals couldn’t. Then again, I was inside him. I was privy to his field of vision.
“I thought you ghouls traveled between worlds,” I said a few minutes later. “Is it necessary to climb this cliff? I mean, you’re not bound by the usual laws of physics, are you?”
“I still respond to gravity, darling. But no, you’re right, I don’t need to. I’m doing this to stretch my legs. If I’m to make my way to another planet, I have to make sure I’m in decent shape,” Herbert replied.
Personally, I kind of looked forward to this trip. Not just because I’d be getting back to my body, but also because I was beginning to see flashes of Herbert’s memories. Nothing too clear, but enough to make me understand that he’d seen and experienced a lot prior to his capture by the witches. Most importantly, he’d said he knew Hellswan, the original ghoul that had founded my sentry bloodline. Needless to say, I was dying to know more about him, since he was basically responsible for my existence, from across the centuries.
“How does a ghoul move from one planet to another?” I asked.
“Like you said, we’re not bound by the usual laws of gravity. Space, for us, is a soft fabric that we can move through. It’s like slipping through doors in a maze of… dimensions. You’ll see for yourself, soon enough.”
“But you respond to gravity.”
“Respond, yes. Not conditioned by it,” he said. We reached the top of the cliff. The ocean breeze brushed past us, cold and salty, as the sun began its descent into the west. “I can jump off this cliff, for example, and graciously land on the bottom. If the physical you jumps off, chances are you’ll sprain an ankle, at least.”
He was right. The height of this peak was too much, even for a vampire. “Okay… Makes perfect sense. So, you respond to gravity. How do you respond, specifically?”
“I use it when I need it. Like now, to remind myself of how my bones, my muscles, and my reflexes work. I’ve been locked inside a pencil box for decades. I needed this,” he replied. “Now, are you ready?”
“Ready to…”
“To get the heck out of here, for starters,” Herbert said.
“Yes, yes, I am,” I said and paused for a moment. “Wait, for starters?”
“We’re going to make a bit of a pit stop on the way to Neraka,” Herbert replied. “Nothing too long, don’t worry. I just need to figure something out about these ritual Hermessi. There are some ghoul buddies I haven’t seen in a while, and they might have the information I need.”
“Whoa. You’re taking me to other ghouls?!” I croaked, fear mercilessly gripping me by the throat.
“Relax, darling. I’ve no intention of defrauding Ibrahim. My freedom depends on it, and I didn’t give him everything I know about the Reapers to have them easily find me later, in a damn pencil box.”
Whatever was coming next, I couldn’t help but feel like I couldn’t do anything about it. Whether I liked it or not, Herbert was going to make this so-called pit stop and talk to his so-called buddies. I had no way of stopping him. The only thing I could do was brace myself and hope for the best.
Caspian was still on Neraka, waiting for me, and Herbert was maybe many things, but definitely not an idiot. Corrine had made it crystal clear that not delivering me safely back to my body would spell nothing but trouble for this peculiar ghoul. I had to rely on that.
What else can I do?
“Have a little faith in me, perhaps,” Herbert replied to my thought.
I’d forgotten about his ability to read me so easily. But yes… I could find a sliver of faith and put it in Herbert. He had my soul and every reason to keep his word to Ibrahim.
Varga
As soon as we got word from Phoenix about what had happened at Stonewall, Eva, Riza, Herakles, Fallon, and I rushed back to meet with him and Ibrahim in his office. The Daughters, Corrine, and Kailani returned to Stonewall in order to assist the Bajangs with the clean-up operation—the fallen felines had to be brought back so their pack could give them their proper burial rites.
There was a sense of urgency and agitation coursing through our base on Mount Zur. Many of our agents were tasked with protecting the cult prisoners—often from themselves. The crystal casings on their hands were painful now, because of the Hermessi’s increasing influence, but we couldn’t let them take them off, so we were stuck in an agitated limbo where GASP lieutenants constantly patrolled the prison cells, making sure that all the prisoners were still asleep. If any of them woke up, the others would scramble to bring in more sedatives and put them back down.
On top of that, Hunter was due to come back with his crew and a fresh batch of cult prisoners. They’d been raiding the southern woods, and that particular campaign had yielded impressive successes. Twenty cult members had been captured, and not one of them fae. It also confirmed our greatest fear: the Hermessi were reaching out to other species now, not just the fae, and this was likely happening on other planets, as well. It put the quarantined fae at risk, making that five million mark even more possible. Downright imminent, even.
“Harper’s gone?” I asked as we walked into Phoenix’s office.
He nodded. “Herbert took her. Ramin left Calliope. It seemed to stop the Hermessi’s offensive. So far, so good.”
“Can we trust Herbert to see this through?” Riza replied.
“We can. The terms are ironclad,” Ibrahim said. “He only has his welfare and his life to lose if he doesn’t take Harper back.”
“At least we have the advantage of none of the hostile Hermessi knowing about Harper and what she and Ramin did,” Eva chimed in. “Therefore, she’s not on Brendel’s most wanted list.”
“Glad you all got out of there in time,” Herakles said and shook Phoenix’s and Ibrahim’s hands.
“It was touch and go for a while,” Phoenix replied. “The Hermessi were quick to pick up on Ramin’s presence.”
Ibrahim nodded. “And yet, they didn’t come down in full force right away. They sent Shills. Surely, they must’ve known Shills weren’t enough to capture a Hermessi.”
I was genuinely surprised by this. “You’re right. It’s almost as if they weren’t trying hard enough. That’s odd, to say the least.”
“I’d have thought Firr would be extra flamey as soon as he felt Ramin here,” Riza added.
Eva thought about it for a moment, tucking a lock of black hair behind her ear. Golden-green scales had begun to grow just beneath the lobe. Only a few, enough to remind me that, one day, she’d be all covered in them, before shedding and revealing a new Eva altogether.
“Firr destroyed Mount Agrith but didn’t kill anyone,” she said cautiously. “What if that gesture was a forced message? What if he sort of… I don’t know, had to do it? Firr was, after all, a rebel. I doubt he’d take pleasure in turning against us. They have his child, and that’s the only reason why he switched sides, in the first place. I’m starting to doubt his evil intentions, if I’m honest.”
“It seems reasonable to think that,” Ibrahim replied, inclined to agree. “It would explain why he and/or his brethren sent the Shills, instead of coming down themselves.”
