Mortality: The Story of Mortanius

Chapter Fifty-Seven

Several days passed. Mortanius went through the motions at Avernus, trying to avoid Azimuth’s angry tirades, and forcing himself not to check on Kain’s progress. He could have used his magic to detect where Kain was, but he dared not in case Azimuth could somehow sense it. All he could do was wait and hope that Ariel had given Kain the information he needed.

Would Kain go through with it? He was a nobleman, and not accustomed to taking orders from anyone. Although Mortanius had only interacted with him personally for a brief time, he believed that Kain would do as he was bid. Ariel would be a persuasive witness. If nothing else, the sight of a ghost haunting the Pillars would be sufficient reason for him to undertake this quest. Kain’s new undead nature, his egotistical belief in his own greatness, his desire for revenge, and the understanding of what was at stake would all provide motivation.

But the question remained: would Kain actually be able to kill the Guardians?

Mortanius got his answer a few days later. He was in his quarters in the Cathedral basement when he felt it. A familiar rush of pain, knocking the wind out of him and nearly sending him to his knees. He hadn’t felt it in centuries, not since the Slaughter of the Circle. It was the stab of psychic pain that told him one of his fellow Guardians had died.

Nupraptor. He was sure of it. Nupraptor, the Guardian of the Mind, was dead.

Mortanius placed his hands on the edge of a desk and leaned heavily on it. An involuntary smile curved his lips, and a giggle escaped his throat. He covered his mouth with his hand until the feeling ceased. He fought the urge to whoop for joy.

Nupraptor was dead! Kain had succeeded! Against the odds, he had managed to track down and kill one of the Guardians. Mortanius felt a thrilling sense of euphoria that threatened to overwhelm him and make him start cackling like a lunatic. But he could not risk revealing his true emotions for fear of making Azimuth suspicious. Before he encountered her, he wiped his face to remove any trace of lingering happiness.

The one who had infected them all with this terrible madness was now dead. Had Ariel sent Kain to Nupraptor on purpose? She and Nupraptor had been lovers. Was she truly so disgusted by his actions since her death that she would send their assassin to kill him first? Maybe it was merely out of convenience. After all, he was by far the easiest target. He lived alone and had few guards at his estate. All of the other Guardians, save for Mortanius himself, would be much harder to kill.

Mortanius heard screaming, echoing far down the corridors of the underground temple. He shook off any enjoyment from his expression, and any lasting effects of the psychic stab of pain, and walked slowly into the hallway, following the agonized cries for help. He was in no hurry to get there.

She was in one of the small antechambers near the bottom of the stairs. She yanked angrily at the sleeves of her dress. If she’d had any hair, she’d have been pulling it out.

“He’s dead!” she shrieked. “One of the Guardians is dead!”

“I know, I felt it,” Mortanius said, leaning against the wall.

“It was Nupraptor! What are we going to do?”

Mortanius looked at her blankly. “We’ll find out what happened and then we’ll arrange a funeral for him, of course. What are you talking about?”

“Don’t be stupid! Someone murdered him!”

“We don’t know that. I’ve lived a lot longer than you have, and sometimes the Guardians die by accident. Or by their own hand. Maybe Nupraptor grew weary of his life and chose to end it.”

Azimuth shook her head adamantly. “No, I don’t believe that for a second! He was murdered! Whoever killed Ariel had finally returned to strike at us again! Well, I’m not going to let that happen to me, I’m going to do something about it!”

“Azimuth, what are you –”

She spun and ran for the stairs, nearly tripping on the first one. She regained her footing, grabbed the railing, and went up the stairs like a staggering drunk. Mortanius sighed and went after her.

The main hall of the Cathedral was empty, as always. The torches sputtered weakly, casting long shadows. By the time Mortanius got there, Azimuth stood at the front of the room, holding a black obsidian pendant over her head.

“Malek!” she screamed. “We are in danger! Come to our aid!”

“Azimuth, wait,” Mortanius said. “We don’t know –”

There was a crackle of magic and an oval-shaped portal sparked into existence right in the middle of the Cathedral. A knight in glistening black armor strode through the portal, tiny sparks of lightning running along the edges of his armor. His longsword was already drawn, and he braced himself and scanned the room as he turned around, instantly on guard as if expecting an attack.

“What’s going on?” Malek growled.

Azimuth’s arms fell limp at her sides. She stared at him like a helpless child. “Nupraptor is dead, didn’t you feel it?”

“Of course I felt it. I was there right before he died. You summoned me because you said you were in danger.”

“We are in danger! Someone murdered Nupraptor and we might be next!”

Malek snarled something and slammed his blade back into its scabbard with a loud snap. “Damn it, woman! I don’t have time for your nonsense. I have more important things to deal with right now.”

“I tried to stop her,” Mortanius said lamely from the top of the stairs.

“Do better next time,” Malek snapped. “If you summon me here again, the hands of the assassin better be around your neck.”

“So it was an assassin!” Azimuth blurted. “I knew it!”

Mortanius came forward. He leaned on one of the wooden benches for support. “Is it true, Malek? Was Nupraptor murdered? I thought that perhaps it was something else. An accident maybe, or suicide.”

Malek let out a laugh that sounded like a death rattle. “Oh, it most certainly was suicide. I was with Nupraptor when the murderer infiltrated his stronghold, and Nupraptor sent me away. There was nothing I could do. He practically opened his arms and welcomed the assassin in.”

“An assassin,” Mortanius said. “Was it – ”

“It was a vampire,” Malek snarled. “And I would have slain the bastard if Nupraptor hadn’t sent me away, the damned fool.”

“A vampire?” Azimuth asked anxiously, clutching her hands tightly and holding them against her chest. “Was it the same one that murdered Ariel?”

Malek scoffed, “I doubt it. Why would he wait so long to kill Nupraptor? He could have killed him right after he killed Ariel.”

“Then who was he?”

“How in the hell should I know? I’ve never seen him before.”

“I thought the vampires were almost exterminated! You said there were only a few left in all of Nosgoth!”

“There are, but they can always make more,” Malek said dismissively. “This one’s a new vampire. That I could tell for sure. He was probably only turned a few weeks ago, at most.” He growled to himself and took hold of his own transportation medallion. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have work to do and a vampire to kill. Don’t summon me again unless you see the assassin with your own eyes.”

With that, he disappeared in a pop of magical sparks. Azimuth wailed in frustration and pressed her hands to the sides of her head. “He should stay here to protect us!”

Mortanius tried to calm her down, but he knew it was useless. “We don’t know why that vampire killed Nupraptor,” he said. “Maybe it was a personal vendetta. Maybe he was just an opportunist who went after Nupraptor because he was weaker than the rest of us. Besides, even if he does plan to kill someone else, there’s no reason to believe that he’ll come here. He might go after anyone else. We should let Malek track him down and –”

“No! This is the same one, I know it! He killed Ariel and Nupraptor and now he’s going to come for the rest of us! But I won’t let him! I still have so much work left to do!” She stormed back toward the stairs, waving her arms as she talked. “I have to make preparations! When this assassin comes for me, I’ll be ready for him!”

“Azimuth, please,” Mortanius said.

She glared at him and brushed past, nearly knocking him off his feet. “If you’re not going to help me defend myself, then get out of my way!”

She went back downstairs, muttering to herself. Mortanius let out a long sigh and walked over to one of the wooden benches, which had not been used in so long that they actually had dust on them. He sat down and slumped in the seat, letting his hands rest in his lap. Eventually, the sound of Azimuth’s voice faded away, leaving him in complete silence.

When he let his guard down, he finally laughed to himself. The smile on his lips was so intense that it brought tears to his eyes. He sat alone in the main hall for some time, finally letting his emotions show. Azimuth would be completely obsessed with her now project, and would not bother to come up there again, so Mortanius felt safe reveling in his secret victory.

Nupraptor was dead. Seven more Guardians remained.

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