Page 94 of Dance of the Phoenix
It made no sense.
None of it did.
Ragnor, a Malachi? Like CJ?
How?
“It seems Rayne hid some important details from you.” Wode smiled, as if it was the best news he’d heard all day.
My head couldn’t compute. Everything stood still at his words. I didn’t know what he was trying to say, and I didn’t bother trying to understand. Because I felt as if everything I knew was suddenly false.
Ragnor had lied to me by omission.
He never told me he used to be a Malachi.
When I tried to talk to him about it before, he’d changed the subject.
Why didn’t he tell me? Why didn’t he clue me in to the fact I was his Alara Morreh?
Why did I have to learn about this all after he was ... he was dead?
“Let me tell you some crucial things you need to know, sweetheart,” Wode said, and I whipped my head toward him, bile in my throat at the fond way he called me fuckingsweetheart. “Do you know what vampires truly are?”
“I don’t care,” I spit, hugging myself. My trembling just wouldn’t stop.
“Oh, but you should care, considering I plan on removing your Imprint and turning you back into a human,” he said, smiling like a Cheshire cat. “Do you know what an Ekimmu is?”
I knew. It was a creature from the Tefat that served as a medium between species. Like a spiritual being, almost. But what did any of it matter? “I said I don’t care,” I growled, anger filling me up. I clung onto it. It was easier than feeling the agonizing pain.
“Ekimmuis an old name for a vampire.” Wode spoke as if I didn’t say anything. “And it explains what a vampire truly is. It’s a form that brings out the hidden potential in humans, thus you have the Gifted, and even the Sacreds. It’s a medium that allows mere humans to use more than just ten percent of their brains. The downside of that, of course, is the fact that the power that allows this, Lifeblood, forces you vampires to drink blood every day to replenish it, or you will suffer from Bloodlust.”
My trembling came to a stop.
“The Ekimmu is also a species that can bridge between different supernatural species,” Wode continued. “Say a human and a supernatural being birth a child. That child will be born human, never able to fulfill their supernatural potential to the max, unless they are given the Imprint and turned into a vampire. Only then their full potential, perhaps even a special Gift or magic, would come to fruition. The same goes for Malachi who fell from grace—fallen angels, basically, who were kicked out of the Malachi ranks. Like your precious Ragnor Rayne.”
I stilled.
“Yeah, Ragnor Rayne committed a grave sin when he was a Malachi.” Wode grinned. “He got his wings torn off and was banished from Haramon, the Realm of the Malachi. A banished, wingless Malachi no longer has access to their Malachi powers. They are practically humans—though punished to live as an immortal in their human form.
“But Rayne was given the Imprint and managed to access some of his Malachi powers back,” Wode said. “That’s the true power of the Ekimmu—of vampires.”
I could barely process any of it. Just the knowledge that Ragnor hid so many things from me, that I had to hear about it from Wode, who somehow knew all of it despite being a Jinni and thus an enemy ...
“And that brings me back to you, sweetheart.” Wode gave me another of those maddening smiles, and I flinched. “Why do you think you’re a Sacred?”
I froze. “How . . .”
“How do I know you’re a Sacred?” He asked the question for me, since I couldn’t. And he immediately answered. “Well, let’s just say Atalon and I are on good terms. He told me all about your magic. What an interesting power you have.”
I suddenly remembered a couple of months ago, when Atalon locked me in that cell with Isora, and the Jinn came to visit, taking Isora and me in exchange for some sort of object Atalon wanted. How did I forget about this? How could I be so stupid as to forget that Atalon and the Jinn had some sort of alliance going on?
Another mistake to add to the never-ending pile.
“But that’s not the point here,” Wode said, making my eyes snap to him. “You see, you’re not simply a Child of Kahil, one of the mere followers of the Morrow Faith, but rather, you’re a direct descendant of one of the Morrow Gods themselves.”
The story I recalled while in Esheer suddenly came back to me.Neser, with the power of fire. Desher, with the power of ashes. And Ankharen ...
“So you becoming a vampire actually brought you closer to your ancestor,” Wode said with a sigh. “And while that is truly a wonder, a curious case to be studied, it unfortunately cannot be part of the plans.”
