Mortality: The Story of Mortanius

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Chapter Nineteen

They came for him in the middle of the night, just as he knew they would. But when they went into his private room, he wasn’t there. Instead, when they eventually made their way into the central courtyard at the Home of the Guardians, he was there waiting for them, with Moebius standing by his side. A full moon hung in the cloudless sky, casting the courtyard in a pale light, the nearby torch poles cold and unlit.

Aleph showed a momentary expression of relief, but when he saw Moebius, his eyes narrowed in annoyance. Moebius, unlike the other Guardians, had not been invited to the ceremony. He glared at the vampires from under his hood, his hands folded behind his back, gripping the magical staff. His cloak reached all the way to the ground, so the staff was effectively hidden behind him.

The Guardians spread out around Aleph, curious and perplexed by the unexpected turn of events. Some of them Mortanius knew well: Aleph, Lora, and Romanen, of course, and Janos standing in the back of the group, a worried look on his face. The other Guardians were less well-known for a variety of reasons. They either lived far from the Pillars, such as Coruard, the Guardian of Nature, or they had never made an effort to befriend Mortanius, such as Nolanus, the Guardian of States.

“Mortanius,” Aleph said. “The time has come. You are an adult now, so we have decided that it is time for you to truly become one of the Guardians.”

Mortanius slowly shook his head, keeping his eyes focused on Aleph. “No, I don’t think so.”

Aleph bristled and clenched his fists. “This is not a matter for discussion. You have known since you were a child that this was going to happen, so there is no point in resisting. You do not have a choice.”

“I’ve always had a choice,” Mortanius replied evenly. His hand went down to the sword sheathed at his hip. “And now I’m giving you a choice, Aleph. Right now, you can turn around and leave me in peace. Give up any attempt to turn me or Moebius into a half-breed.”

“Don’t do this, Mortanius” Romanen said, stepping forward. “I know it sounds frightening at first, but take my word that it’s not what you think it is.”

“Your word means nothing to me,” Mortanius said. “I’m a human being and none of you are going to take that away from me.”

“You are a Guardian of the Pillars,” Aleph snapped. “And Guardians of the Pillars must be vampires. There is no other way.”

“I disagree,” Mortanius said. “I think it’s time for the Guardians to remain human. Listen to me, all of you. I’m giving you a chance to stop this. If you don’t, you’ll face the consequences.”

Romanen choked out a harsh laugh. “What do you think you’re going to do, fight all of us? You can’t resist, Mortanius. Don’t be stupid.”

“Final warning,” Mortanius said regretfully, drawing his sword.

Moebius snarled something, sweat dotting his forehead, and drew his hands out from behind him. The staff came into view, the crystal ball glowing a shimmering blue. “You’re wasting your time,” he spat. “I’m going to finish this.”

Aleph’s eyes grew wide, but it was Janos, standing in the back of the group, who spoke first, his panicked voice echoing across the courtyard. “Moebius, where did you get that staff? No! Don’t! Moebius, stop!”

The crystal ball pulsed and a ghostly blue light flashed out. Moebius clenched his teeth, straining with effort as he thrust the staff at the vampires. Immediately, they cried out or moaned in surprise pain, clutching their chests and struggling to remain on their feet. Aleph staggered forward, reaching out for Moebius, his face etched in a grimace of fury, before he fell to his knees and hunched over in agonizing pain. All of the other vampires fell to the same fate except for Janos, who spun away and fell against the far wall, crying out as he stumbled away from the staff’s magical effect.

“Now!” Moebius screamed, almost sounding like he was in pain. “Now!”

From above, a dozen humans appeared on the roof of the Home of the Guardians, wielding bows. They aimed into the courtyard and opened fire. Arrows rained down upon the helpless vampires, and the archers kept firing over and over until all of their targets were riddled with arrow shafts. The vampires cried out in pain as the arrows punctured their flesh.

Some of the arrows flew after Janos, but he managed to stagger through the doorway into the building and the arrows struck the wall, missing him. Romanen roared furiously as an arrow jabbed through his forearm. He drew his own sword and made to launch an attack just as two dozen more human rebels poured in through the courtyard entrance behind Mortanius and Moebius. He bared his fangs, eyes blazing, and took off in the other direction, following after Janos.

“After them!” Moebius screamed. “Stop them!”

The human rebels rushed around Moebius and Mortanius like water flowing around stones in a river, sweeping across the defenseless vampires like a wave, stabbing and slashing at the ones who still moved as they passed. Moebius shouted again for them to pursue Janos and Romanen, and they obediently flooded into the hall to give chase. Lora, cowering off to the side, was barely noticed by the warriors, whose attention was focused on the vampires. She shrieked in fear and ran away, darting through one of the other side doorways.

Aleph, a dozen arrows jutting out of his back, forced himself upright, his hands scratching at his chest until they drew blood. He sputtered and glared defiantly, his face contorted in pain.

“I’m sorry,” Mortanius said softly. “I didn’t want this. But you gave me no choice.”

He buried the sword to the hilt in Aleph’s chest, piercing his heart.

Then he staggered back as a wave of psychic pain washed over him, nearly dropping him to his knees. His hand slipped away from the sword, which remained embedded in Aleph’s chest. Another shockwave hit him and this time succeeded in knocking him down. He groaned in pain, clutching his head as the aftereffects of the psychic battering faded away.

“What just happened?” he groaned.

Behind him, Moebius leaned heavily on his staff, his breathing ragged and sweat streaming down his face. He slumped down onto his knees, clutching the staff like a lifeline. “The Guardians are … we are connected,” Moebius gasped. “When one dies, the others feel it. We just felt the deaths of Aleph and the others ...”

Moebius panted and struggled to his feet as more rebels cautiously came into the courtyard and a few of the archers dropped down from above. They looked upon the crowd of slain vampires with as sense of fascination, as if they couldn’t believe they’d actually achieved their goal. Some of them came over to help Mortanius to his feet.

“Go after the others,” Mortanius ordered, waving them off. “There’s still one vampire left, and also a human half-breed. Don’t let them get away.”

“Lora,” Moebius croaked, trying to stand up.

“I’ll take care of her,” Mortanius said.

He managed to get to his feet. With one final glance at the corpses of the former Guardians, he left the courtyard, which was now a grisly slaughterhouse. He walked down the narrow hallways without a real sense of direction. He just felt tired, the sword weighing him down like an anchor in his hand. He went after Lora mostly because he wanted to get away from the others.

He found her in her private quarters, standing in the corner with her hands at her sides, staring forward with a strangely calm expression. He came inside and closed the door behind him. The flickering candlelight reflected off the blood that still stained his sword.

“Are the others all dead?” she asked softly.

“If not, they soon will be.”

“If Janos can get outside, he’ll escape.”

“Perhaps.”

She sighed. “Thank you for not sending the mob after me.”

“They’re chasing down Romanen.”

“How many do you think he’ll kill before they take him down?”

Mortanius shrugged. “Ten, twenty, it doesn’t matter. All of them are willing to lay down their lives for the cause.”

“And you as well?”

“Me as well. I’ll die before I’ll be turned into a half-breed.”

Somehow, that response seemed to please her. She clasped her hands together and then crossed her arms, looking indifferently out the nearby window.

When she said nothing more, Mortanius stepped forward. “I’m sorry it has to be this way. I bear you no ill will. But all of the vampire Guardians must die.”

“Yes, I know,” Lora replied, still looking away. “I knew … I knew about your plans, Mortanius. I’ve known for some time.”

That stopped him. “You suspected?”

“No, I knew.” She looked him in the eye. “I’m the Guardian of Mind. Sometimes I can see things … I can hear thoughts. It comes and it goes. But I read your thoughts a few months ago. I knew what you and Moebius were planning to do tonight.”

“But you didn’t warn the others?”

“I could have. They might have even believed me.”

“But …?”

“I didn’t want to be turned into a half-breed,” she said, her voice cold. “Surely you knew that. It’s no secret. They never told me what they planned, they gave me no warning at all. They pulled me from my bed in the middle of the night and performed the ritual as I screamed and begged them to stop.”

Her eyes shimmered with tears. “They stole my life, Mortanius. They stole everything from me. And even after they turned me into … into this thing, they still didn’t share their knowledge with me like they promised to. They stole my life and gave me nothing in return except this awful curse.”

Mortanius looked down at the sword in his hand. “Is there … is there any way to reverse it, to make you a human again?”

“If there is, the vampires have never spoken of it. But no, I don’t think there is.”

“Just one more secret they choose to keep from us.”

“Yes.”

“I’m sorry, Lora.”

“Don’t be sorry for me. You need to be strong now. You and Moebius will be the only Guardians now. It will be up to you to find and train the new Guardians and teach them about their powers. We might not fully understand the Pillars, but I believe that they’re very important. Without the vampires, you’ll have to figure everything out on your own. It will be a hard road, Mortanius.”

“Yes, but at least the human race will be free.”

She smiled, a sad sense of relief and joy on her face. “Can I ask you to do one thing for me?”

Mortanius knew he should get Moebius, but he chose not to. He had done his part in the rebellion, and the vampire Guardians were dead, so he felt he had earned the right to grant Lora one final wish. “Of course,” he said.

“Let me live until the morning,” Lora said. “When the sun comes over the mountains, let me go out and greet it.” She stood in front of him and placed her hand on his. “Let me see the sun one more time before I die.”

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