Page 34 of Magic and Medicine

‘We need to find where they are first. My wolves checked out the Naval dockyard in Gdynia after that damn fool you captured insisted they were there, and while we discovered signs of recent activity, there’s nothing left except week-old scents and beer bottles, so if anyone was there, they’re long gone. One of the lads insisted he smelled something in the old armoury, but it was emptier than a politician’s heart.’ The werewolf Alpha sounded angry at such a waste of time, but I felt we were missing something vital, the clues buried deep in my subconscious.

‘Did you learn anything about our captive and his prophet from the SWW?’

‘The man you so graciously allowed to die was Petr Vladislavovich Sedov, dishonourably discharged from Russian Naval Special Reconnaissance four years ago, alongside his entire squad. The official version was exceeding operational parameters. However, there are several notes on the looting of archaeological sites and torture of civilians, along with a highly redacted file on an experimental weapon that went missing from the area of his last posting. I suspect the missing weapon found its way into our people’s bodies. After discharge, Petr joined a mercenary group called the Black Horse Brigade, whose ranks are filled by the worst Russian Spetsnaz has to offer before he resurfaced here.’ Adam had very little time to dig for information. That he’d already talked with the Polish secret service, or SWW as they were known, and found a link between the thug and the bullets Sara removed from Jarek’s body was surprising.

As I mulled over the connection, I absent-mindedly continued. ‘I’m impressed, Adam. Did you have any issues dumping the scumbag in the river?’ It had been an unusual request, but I wanted this bastard found, wanted the world to know what happened to those who attacked my woman.

Once again, it was Tomasz who spoke first, though this time carefully. ‘I told the boys to bury him in the usual spot. You weren’t entirely yourself when you issued the order. I thought this would be for the best….’

The Alpha’s words made sense, even if it was frustrating that the shifter changed my order. However, I would not berate him for thinking about the safety of his team, so I let the subject drop. I saw Adam roll his eyes, smirking as he watched Tomasz squirm.

‘Apart from the overly grandiose name of the mercenary group, is there anything that ties this to Czernobog?’ My question made him wince as if he hadn’t made the connection between the dark god’s avatar and the mercenaries. If a vampire could blush, I wouldn’t be surprised to see his cheek glowing at that moment.

‘I barely had time to explore this issue, but fine, I will share what I found. I messaged the Moscow seethe, but they were unwilling to help. Thankfully, I called in a favour, and they revealed some information on a scandal there a few years back, one the government was keen to sweep under the carpet.’ Adam paused, and I nodded for him to continue.

‘I might have the wrong man, but the Warlock our informer mentioned was going by the name Nicolai Borisovich Rostov, and he was expelled after he was caught practising the Dark Arcana. He was particularly keen to explore thaumaturgy, temporal magic, and, of course, summoning. According to my source, this man had an ego even bigger than yours.’ The vampire couldn’t restrain his smirk again, but I shook my head, annoyed at his attitude.

‘Don’t tease me today. So why is he still alive? Even in Moscow, they rarely tolerate involvement with the Dark Arcana.’

‘He was expelled from the Elitana Brotherhood, but after digging a little, I found out our informant was right, and he worked for some shadowy government agency, often against and betraying the elder races, and they managed to keep him alive.’

‘Elitana?’ That name rang the bell, but I couldn’t think why.

‘Yes, those bastards. Remember, just before the last war? They tried to oust Stalin by using necromancy to raise Lenin? Luckily, they failed, but our man must have done something truly appalling to be expelled. That’s all I discovered in the little time you gave me. I might have brought a dossier of the wrong man, but it’s too big a coincidence, and nothing explains what he’s up to.’

I sighed, mulling over Adam’s findings. I agreed about the coincidence, and if one was unlikely, then two were unbelievable, and that meant this Warlock was attacking the Gates to the Nether, but why here? Why not any of the Gates in Russia, where his gods were seeded and he had government support?

‘Maybe it is about the number of the Gates. With the emergence of the Gates near Sopot and Gdynia, we now have three of them. For whatever reason, something is influencing our connection to the Nether, and I’ll bet whatever it is drew our friend to the region,’ I said finally. Both men looked at me in confusion. ‘Dark Arcana requires a tremendous amount of magic. With the appearance of two new Gates and the abundance of amber, I’m betting that the Warlock has found access to more power. The magical properties of the living gem helped Gdansk thrive through the centuries. If he is planning something big, he would need both. That’s likely the reason he’s focused on me. I guard the Gates and control the amber trade.’

‘Sure, but why attack Nadolny? He has no magic and no amber.’ Adam asked.

‘Divide and conquer. We already assumed the other party was guilty of the attacks, and if we didn’t have a reasonable association, we would already be at war. Besides, until he has control over the Gates or destroys them, returning true magic to the world, he needs sacrifices to power his spells, and where else would you find a steady stream of victims if not a tourist city and its shady nightclubs and brothels?’

I stood up and walked toward the map, studying it. With its jagged shoreline, Pomerania was easily accessible from Kaliningrad, but it didn’t strike me as a likely place for our Warlock to hide out. No, he’d want to be close to the action. The main Gates to Gedania were at the Gdansk docks, with one of the lesser Gates between Sopot and the Kashubian forest and the other in the Baltic, close to Hel. While the sirens had been used to entrap victims, I doubted they would help access their gate, especially with its instability after Jurata’s departure, but assumptions cost lives.

‘Let’s base our planning on your assumption, Adam. We know your Warlock wants access to the Gates, and his recent use and torture of the sirens could point toward their gate, but at least it would be the easiest to secure. I will begin negotiations with the merfolk. Since Jurata abandoned them, I might be able to offer them an agreement that will secure our shores and close access to the gate in the Baltic.’

‘What about the other gates? Are you not worried about them?’ Tomasz pointed out, and I smiled.

‘No, the gate near the forest is within an ancient grove, and while the trees are long gone, it is surrounded by nature and under my control. However, I intend to strengthen the wards during the autumn equinox to ensure its security. With the recent attacks, I think focusing on the gate in the dockyard is our best bet. With it surrounded by steel and concrete, my powers are weakest there, and our adversary would be a fool not to take advantage of that. Tomasz, I’ll leave that to you and your wolves. Work with Nadolny’s men, and be careful. We’ve lost enough people already, and now that we know Dark Arcana is involved, it is imperative to keep them safe.’ I kept the concern from my expression even as I worried.

The Alpha bared his teeth at the mention of the gangster. ‘Did Nadolny agree to this?’ He asked, but I shrugged off his concern.

‘Not yet, but he will. Rostov made the mistake of pitting us against each other, giving us an unexpected ally. I think that’s all we can do for now. Thank you for your time; I’ll leave the rest to you, gentlemen.’ With a nod to punctuate my dismissal, I sat down to consider my next steps.

Once I was alone, the ley lines on the map caught my attention. Whilst the magic running through them paled in comparison to the raging torrents of the past, they still held enough to influence the mortal world, and here in the Tricity area, we had several loci that, because of their magic, attracted trouble and constantly needed to be cleansed of dark energy.

Dozhynki, the harvest celebration, was next week, and I’d need to use that time of transition to help cleanse the loci and strengthen the wards of the second gate to the Nether. I wondered if I should ask Sara to join me as I performed the ancient rites. After my magic’s reaction to her presence, it might even help. I’ll have to check with Michal to see if she is working, I thought, before dismissing the idea when I realised it would draw her further into my world, potentially endangering her life.

I felt calmer after devising a plan of action and indulged myself thinking about how to make this Roskov suffer once I had him within my grasp.

Now that I knew what to search for, the presence of Czernobog was everywhere, his influence affecting the local populace despite my wards, and with no access to my full power, I would have no way to combat him if he fully manifested.

No, I needed to find this bloody Warlock before he did something stupid and plunged my domain into darkness, or everything was lost.

Chapter twenty

(One month later)

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