Apotheosis of the Immortal (30 page)

Chapter 61

“What are you
doing here?” the Khan fired when Elijah entered the library.

“I followed Ayda; she took something from one of the books and disappeared.” Elijah rubbed the sweat from his forehead as he picked up a book and threw it to the Khan.

“What is this?” the Khan growled as he flipped through the book.

“It is the book from which she retrieved a parchment.”

“Why did you not stop her?” he roared.

“I tried; she was too fast. She even broke my neck.” Elijah rubbed the back of his neck as he spoke, his anger building to epic proportions.

“You mean to tell me a little servant girl overpowered you and outran you?” The Khan’s eyes narrowed; Elijah could understand his suspicions.

“I have come to believe she is far more than a servant girl.” Elijah took a step forward, towards the Khan.

“Or perhaps you took it. It does seem more likely, does it not? Certainly more likely than the great Elijah being overpowered by his own slave girl.” The Khan handed the book to a man standing behind him. “See if there is any significance to this book,” he instructed before turning back to Elijah. The man beside him took the book, bowed and left.

“It does, indeed, seem more likely, Great Khan, but it is not what occurred.” Elijah’s voice vibrated as he stared at the Khan. He took a deep breath in an attempt to calm himself.

“Do you want us to detain him?” Kitbuka asked the Khan.

“No, it doesn’t matter.” The Khan spoke after a long silence. “The Khagan wants him, and so does his puppet master. Elijah will come with us peacefully because we are taking him exactly where he wants to go. Look through the rest of these books and make sure there is nothing else we need; throw everything we don’t need into the river.” The Khan turned back to Elijah. “Are you ready to meet your father once again?”

Chapter 62

Elijah didn’t even
turn to look when he heard the heavy wooden doors boom shut behind him. Anger and anticipation crept into his chest when he saw his father at the top of the stairs.

He took a deep breath and exhaled hard to rid himself of emotion. “I hear you have been looking for me,” William said as he calmly descended the stairs and entered the courtyard.

“Yes, for many years now, ever since you butchered my family,” Elijah replied as he leaned his head to the side to crack his neck. He looked around at the guards surrounding the yard; he was certain they were vampire. Elijah’s rage was growing with every breath, but he tried hard to choke it down; the Khan’s admonitions were ever-present in his mind.

“Well, here I am; what is it you need? Have you come to kill me?” William gulped down the blood remaining in his wooden chalice and tossed it to the ground as he circled the enclosure.

“I would like some answers first.”

“Very well, ask,” William answered after a short pause.

“The night you came back, the night you killed my mother, were you already vampire?” Elijah asked flatly.

“No, I was not, not yet.” William smiled.

“Then I just want to know why.” Elijah stepped closer to his father, who was now standing still; they were finally face to face.

“Why?” William laughed. “You want to know why. You are still such a child.” William turned and ran his fingers along the marble fountain at Elijah’s side. “You know, I used to be like you. I used to play into the fictions of right and wrong, good and evil, but the problem with fictions is, by definition, they are not real. The only thing that matters, the only thing that is real, is power, the ability to do more, unlike your mewling impotence.” William turned back towards Elijah as he spoke.

“You know, there is not much difference between us. I have heard of your endeavors, of all the innocent blood you have spilled.” William stepped closer. “You enjoyed it, didn’t you? Don’t deny it; I can see it in your face.”

Reaching behind him, William pulled a sword from the scabbard at his back. “Do you recognize this?” It was King Leonidas’
kopis,
the one Hassan had given to Elijah. “Thank you for bringing it home, by the way. It belongs to the Khagan,” his father smirked.

Elijah rushed forward to grab the sword, but William quickly knocked him to the floor open-handed. “A bit touchy, aren’t you? Elijah, you’ve always had such problems controlling your emotions.” William laughed as he reached down to help Elijah off the ground.

Elijah slapped his hand away and jumped to his feet. “No, I did not have a problem with my emotions. Not until everyone I cared about was brutally slaughtered in front of my eyes. Let’s get this over with,” Elijah growled as he closed his eyes. The rage growing in his chest thundered throughout his body.

“Elijah, my gentle son, if I had wanted you dead, you would be dead by now.” William sheathed the sword behind him.

“I have heard that a lot recently, but I am not easy to kill.” Elijah reached into his cuirass and pulled out Roman’s mask; he had retrieved it from the Khan after killing Roman. He threw it on the ground at William’s feet.

“Ah, Roman. He was always such a fool,” William said as he picked up the mask and examined it idly. “You have done me a service. The man was uncivilized; all he did was get on my nerves.” William tossed the mask away. “The truth is, I am proud of you, Son. I have heard how you were instrumental in the taking of Baghdad. Even though you managed to let a servant girl slip through your fingers.”

William looked at the ground as he spoke, and then slowly shifted his eyes to watch Elijah. “Don’t worry about her, though; we have news she is traveling to Japan, so that will be our next conquest. I will have what I seek.” He raised his head and smiled.

“What exactly are you searching for?” Elijah asked.

“Surely you don’t expect me to tell you,” William scoffed.

“It doesn’t even matter. Everything I did was in order to reach you, to watch you die squirming beneath my own hand as the devil blue in your eyes flares one last time and then fades away.” Elijah’s eyes narrowed slightly as the now-familiar heat permeated them.

“Wow, there they are, those yellow eyes I’ve been hearing about.” William paused as he stared into Elijah’s eyes. “Elijah, I will be honest with you. Despite the weaknesses brought on by your pathetic thirst for vengeance and a misguided and unintelligible sense of self-righteousness, you are a true anomaly. But I know what you are; I can tell you. I want you with me; you could be my right hand, my second in command.” William said proudly as he lifted his chin.

“Where is Solomon?” Elijah asked as he looked around the courtyard once more.

“Don’t worry about him; he is far away,” William flicked his fingers carelessly before turning to look as the doors to the courtyard opened behind him.

“Just give me a weapon and let us end this,” Elijah growled through clenched teeth as he glared into William’s eyes; his heart thundered with fury.

“As you wish. Hulagu, bring him a sword.” The Khan unsheathed the sword Elijah had forged long ago and walked over to him.

“
Remember!
No desire, no attachment; he must simply be another nameless face… or you will not win.” Hulagu Khan whispered in Elijah’s ear as he leaned in to hand him the sword.

“Yes, well, he’s not.” Elijah accepted the sword and took a deep breath in an attempt to clear his mind. The Khan was barely out of the way when William lunged.

Elijah was caught off guard, but reflexively knocked the sword to the side as it sliced through the flesh just above his elbow. William smiled as he took a step back. The stinging pain in Elijah’s arm helped to slightly dampen his rage, allowing him better focus.

As Elijah’s arm quickly healed, he stuck his sword in the ground and untied the side of his cuirass before sliding it over his head.

“I agree. Let us make this a bit more interesting. The result will be the same, either way.” William removed his armor and stepped towards Elijah as he sliced his sword downward from his right.

Elijah deflected William’s sword and then backhanded him across the face. William stumbled backwards a bit, but quickly gathered himself.

Again William lunged, keeping Elijah on the defensive. The blow was deflected, but William quickly spun and backhanded Elijah hard, knocking him back against the fountain. William chopped down, forcing Elijah to lean back over the fountain while he blocked William’s sword. Their swords were locked as the two immortals stood face to face. Elijah’s eyes burned hotter. Like engulfing flames, they shone in opposition to William’s icy blue.

“I still sometimes dream about snapping your little brother’s neck, and how easy it was. I remember his dead eyes; it was beautiful.” William grinned, delighted to see the effect of his words on Elijah’s face. His targeted taunt had met its mark and fulfilled its purpose.

At that moment, Elijah was undone. He let go, and a tidal wave of emotion surged, crashing through all of his walls and barriers. They went smashing to the ground, leaving him bare, standing at the brink of oblivion. His expanding rage erupted and powered him with an unholy fury, focused towards annihilation.

Elijah kneed William hard in his midsection. As William stumbled, Elijah leaned further back over the fountain and kicked his father hard in the chest, sending him crashing against the stairwell.

Dawn seemed to break in Elijah’s eyes as they burned with the fierceness and color of the sun. His aching bones drove him to the ground. As he fell to his knees, he rammed his sword into the dirt, then picked up a handful of parched earth and rubbed it between his hands. The world seemed to be moving in slow motion as he rose to his feet; grains of sand seemed to fall from his hands one at a time as he stood and dropped them to his side, clasping the hilt of his sword. He twirled the sword in his left hand before switching to his right and continuing towards his father, who was already on his feet.

“That’s more like it, Son,” William smiled.

Elijah stalked forward, swinging his blade furiously. William deflected every blow, and Elijah kicked him once more; he fell hard against the cracking stairwell.

“I like your eyes,” William said as he pushed himself upright with his arms and waited for Elijah to attack again.

As he hurried forward, Elijah saw William’s eyes begin to glow brighter. Elijah swung the sword to his left, but William quickly stepped forward and grabbed his wrist, stopping his arm mid-swing. With his free hand, William grabbed Elijah’s neck and lifted him high off the ground before slamming him down on his back with great force, knocking the sword loose from his hand. As he hit the ground, Elijah elbowed William hard in the side, forcing him flat on his back.

Elijah reached for his sword as William fell, but it was just out of reach. William rolled over, hacking his sword down towards Elijah’s chest. Elijah shoved himself out of the way just in time to see William’s sword plant into the sand.

Elijah quickly stretched and reached again for his sword, but just as he touched it, a searing pain tore through his back. He looked over his shoulder and was surprised to see William’s sword still planted in the sand.

“Stupid boy!” William’s voice was echoing behind him.

“Ahhhhhhh!” Elijah cried out as another searing pain erupted in his back. Suddenly there were hands on his shoulders and back; someone was rolling him onto his back. Drops of blood crashed against his chest as his back hit the ground; he saw William’s face and bloody dagger looming just above his chest. Again and again William rammed the knife through Elijah’s chest and neck.

“Filet him and drain him of blood. Then crucify him on the prow of the fleet flagship heading for Japan. Keep his wounds open; make sure he does not heal.” William’s voice seemed miles away, but a blurry figure still hovered above Elijah for a moment. Then it was gone.

“I am sorry, Elijah, but I told you that you weren’t ready.” It was Hulagu’s voice, and the last thing he heard.

Chapter 63

“Crrrrrr-ack!” Elijah was
jerked awake by a bolt of lightning. All he could see were dark, raging waters, whose crashing waves battered against him again and again. He tried to move, but couldn’t, as if he was stuck in a vat of thick mud. Mustering all his strength, he looked to his left and then to his right; his hands and arms were nailed into the wood behind him. He had been sliced open from wrist to elbow, and his wounds were tacked open to keep them from healing. He saw others crucified alongside him, but they looked dead. He continued struggling to no avail; he was too weak.

“Okay, it’s time.” Elijah heard a familiar voice above him. He saw a rope fall from the deck and watched a cloaked figure climb down. “Stupid boy!” the figure scolded as it removed its hood.

“Ayda? How…? What are you doing here?” Elijah mumbled.

“I’m saving your life. Now be quiet. Are you ready?” Ayda asked brusquely.

Elijah nodded the best he could as she grabbed his wrist. “You need to leave, right now. They are looking for you… going to kill you,” Elijah croaked as he moved his arm weakly, trying to shake loose from her grip.

“You listen to me. You are right; I am taking a big chance, believing in you. But we can discuss this later. Half the ships have already sunk in this storm; this is our best chance.” Ayda whispered as she pulled Elijah’s left arm free.

“Our chance for what?” Elijah asked, barely able to speak.

“Our chance to escape.” Ayda replied as she reached down and pulled his feet through the nails holding them in place.

“Escape where? Land is too far away; I don’t have the strength to swim,” Elijah admitted as Ayda pulled his last hand free and caught him by the chest as he fell.

“Just try to hold on.” She threw his left arm around her shoulder and jumped into the raging sea.

Elijah continued to phase in and out of consciousness, the relentless cold and pummeling waves reviving him and then smashing him back under countless times.

His body, landing hard and then scraping against the sand, finally waked him fully. “Ayda?” Elijah’s voice was still weak and his vision blurry. Out of nowhere, a fist smashed against his face and once again he was lost in darkness.