Page 36 of The Eternal Muse

S ebastian stood outside the darkened Louvre, his palms sweaty and his breathing heavy.

Between the nerves and the weight of carrying multiple magics, he was a little nervous his body would give out before he could accomplish his mission.

But he pulled in a deep breath and placed his hand on the wall.

Simultaneously, he became invisible and phased through the wall.

So far, so good. He honestly thought that asking Victor to lend him invisibility, intangibility, and fire control would be the most frightening part of this plan, but quickly realized that had been the easy part.

Now that he stood inside the locked-up Louvre, he was pretty sure his heart was beating so rapidly that it would set off the security system.

But it didn’t, and neither did his passage down the halls toward his exhibit.

The silent halls were eerie, especially when he thought about how many of these artists he’d known in their lifetimes.

He could imagine their spirits walking the halls with him, chastising him for putting their works in danger.

It didn’t take long for him to reach Quello Che Ho Perso.

He stood in front of the paintings and just stared at them for a long time, wondering if he really had what it took to destroy them.

Needing reassurance, he fished the small pendant from the front of his shirt and held it tenderly in his hand.

He ran one finger down the dog’s back, and almost immediately it began to grow warm.

Isabel was there.

The reminder gave him strength. He extended his hand upward and called to the electricity running through the overhead lights, willing it to pool in the bulb and cause it to explode with a spark.

He grabbed the spark and gently placed it on the surface of the first painting.

Light, he thought, and the spark obeyed.

The dry oil paint was all too happy to burn, and in seconds the entire surface was engulfed.

Jump, he commanded, and the flame moved to the second painting, and then the third.

Pain began ripping through his body and he fell to his knees, fighting to keep the invisibility magic active.

The dog pendant in his hand began sending jolts of pain into his hand as well, telling him that Isabel was suffering alongside him.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered over and over, waves of pain stealing his breath every time he managed to catch it. The smoke alarms began to blare and Sebastian heard footsteps pounding toward him.

Security! They must be coming to put out the fire!

Hotter, he demanded, and the flames intensified.

With the increased speed of combustion, the level of pain increased as well.

He collapsed, his vision swimming. Two men armed with fire extinguishers burst into the room and wasted no time pointing the hoses at the paintings and pulling the triggers.

Keep burning, he ordered, and the flames lapped up the final bits of paint from the ruined canvases.

The pain drained away, leaving Sebastian trembling on the floor.

The guards seemed to have the flames out moments later, so he forced himself to his wobbly legs and began rushing for the exit.

His vision had upgraded from fuzzy at the edges to encroaching darkness, and he knew he had to get outside and away from the building before he passed out and let go of the magic.

He reached the front door and pressed his hand to the glass, calling on the last of his strength to activate the intangibility. Thankfully it rose to the call and he literally fell through the glass, landing hard on the concrete outside.

Exhausted, he allowed himself a few moments to lay on the ground and catch his breath.

But only about half of his vision remained.

He knew blackout was imminent if he didn’t stop using the magic, so he forced himself back up and ran.

Two blocks away he slipped into a dark, cramped alley and let go just as the last of his vision and consciousness gave up.

He woke with a pounding headache and the sting of burning flesh on his ankle.

The sun had risen high into the sky, and while most of his body remained in the shade, a single beam of sunshine had left a bright red burn where his pant leg and shoe parted ways.

Sebastian pulled his leg into the shade with the rest of him and again closed his eyes, fighting back nausea.

While he’d heard of vampires overusing their magic, he’d never personally experienced it.

It was absolutely horrible.

All day he lay in that alleyway watching people pass him by, completely unaware of his presence.

He drifted in and out of consciousness, feeling desperately thirsty every time he woke.

But he had nothing to cover his head and arms if he went out in the sun, so he had to wait until nightfall to escape Paris.

In the early evening, he realized he hadn’t checked if Isabel made it through the ordeal.

His hands were shaky as he pulled the little dog from beneath his shirt and stroked its back.

No response. His eyebrows lowered and he stroked it again.

Come on, Isabel. Let me know you’re okay, he begged, cupping the pendant in both hands.

And then…it began to warm. Relief flooded his entire body and he allowed himself to fall back to sleep.

When he woke again, darkness greeted him.

The vampire picked himself up and began searching for a cab to take him to the airport.

He had originally fought Isabel on booking his flight an entire 24 hours later than he wanted.

Yet now he was grateful that she’d given him a full day to recover, ‘just in case.’

* * *

Venice, Italy. 22 June, 2007

A s soon as his plane landed in Venice, Sebastian was on the move.

He braved yet another cab, despite his hatred for modern transportation still plaguing him, and returned to the keep a few minutes before noon.

In his exhausted state it would easily have taken him 3 hours longer to walk there, so it was a beneficial evil.

He stumbled to his quarters to change, then down to Josephine’s where he suspected his wife would be. And he was right; he knocked on the door and when Josephine opened it, he immediately saw Isabel laying in the bed.

“Is she alright?” he whispered, not wanting to wake her. Josephine nodded, but her face was full of exhaustion. She stepped out of the way and allowed Sebastian to enter, and he hurried to Isabel’s side.

“She’s mostly been sleeping since the pain stopped.

I think her body is just exhausted.” Josephine sat in her desk chair while Sebastian sat on the floor and took Isabel’s hand.

“I gave her some of the mild sedative tea like you asked, and she still screamed the whole time. We might have to choose something stronger for the main event.”

Sebastian nodded, not even wanting to think about the Herculean task that still stood ahead of them.

Yet he asked, “Were you and Isabel able to get all of the paintings in my living quarters photographed? I want to start bringing them up to the truck as soon as I’ve gotten enough rest to manage it. ”

“Yes. We were just finishing up when you gave the signal. They’re stacked against the wall across from the fireplace.

We even bundled them by size so you’d have fewer trips to make.

This better work, Sebastian. I can’t lose her again.

Not like before.” Josephine looked longingly at her little sister, who wasn’t entirely her little sister, and sniffled.

Sebastian felt her pain echoed in his own and he longed to reassure her.

But he knew that lies made nothing better.

He didn’t have time to think of something to say, however, because there was a knock at the door.

Josephine jumped up and answered it, to find one of the newer coven members standing there.

She must have had messenger duty today, because she peered into the room and, spotting Sebastian, smiled.

“Oh good, you’re here! Victor wants to see you in his private quarters, right away.

He was very specific about you coming as fast as you can. ”

Anxiety took root deep in his stomach, but Sebastian nodded and rose to his feet. “Very well. Thank you for the message.” The girl nodded and disappeared down the passage. “I don’t even want to know what’s happening now,” he grumbled to Josephine, who shrugged.

“You better go, though. It’s definitely important if he used the words ‘right away.’ Hopefully it’s good news?”

Sebastian agreed, but didn’t actually have much hope. “I’ll be back soon,” he said, and exited the room. Once outside, he moved as quickly through the passages as he could, not willing to use his vampiric speed in case his body wasn’t ready to handle it yet.

He barely knocked on Victor’s door before it swung open and the master vampire called him in. Sebastian stepped into the dimly lit room and froze at the sight before him. Remus sat at the table, ashen, but that wasn’t what startled him. No, that was the other figure.

Standing in the center of the room was someone Sebastian had only ever seen in paintings or books. He wore a deep crimson robe which pooled on the floor at his feet and held his head high and proud. His features were sharp and his fangs sharper.

Vlad.

Sebastian instantly dropped to one knee and extended his wrist, but Vlad only gestured for him to return to his feet. “Victor, I swear I didn’t-” he started, but Victor cut him off with a hand.

“I am aware you did not break the treaty. The fault for that falls on Remus,” Victor’s eyes flitted to Remus, who refused to make eye contact with anyone else in the room, “and has been ongoing for some time. However, Vlad has come with the knowledge you seek.”

Victor gestured to Vlad, who turned to face Sebastian. The original vampire smiled, which was unexpected, and said, “Remus informs me that you have broken the laws of your magic and, by so doing, have trapped a human in a cycle of endless torment. Do you now realize why the laws were made such?”

Sebastian nodded wordlessly, starstruck by the fact that the Vlad was here, talking to him.

Vlad continued, “Very good. I have been informed that upon learning of the impact, you have gathered all of the illegal paintings together and will be destroying them by fire as is proper.

Because of this, there will be no punishment.

“However, Remus also told me you intend to have Victor bite the human before the burning commences, and I must forbid this.”

“But if she dies and has no venom in her veins, then I’ll lose her forever!” Sebastian interrupted, panic filling his chest and leaking out in his voice. “At least if she’s bitten, there’s the possibility for her to Turn when the curse is broken, instead of dying permanently!”

Vlad held up a hand and Sebastian fell silent.

“The girl must die, Sebastian. If you break the curse and end her reincarnation cycle, but make her immortal before she dies, then she will permanently be severed from the other portion of her soul. Only by allowing her soul to leave her body entirely can it be knit back together and become whole.”

“And leaving her soul severed would violate the Code,” Sebastian murmured. “Unnecessary human torment.”

“Exactly,” Vlad replied. “If you wish to Turn the girl, you will have to strike in the moments after her heart stops, but before her brain dies. There is a 4-5 minute window where venom should be able to reanimate her body and impart the curse. Too late and it won’t work; too early, and I will be forced to drive a stake through her heart. It would be easier to just let her go.”

Sebastian shook his head violently. “No! I can’t lose her, not after also losing my life’s work as well! My entire existence would be in vain if I lost her.”

“You may feel differently when you release your soul from the paintings as well.”

Confusion clouded Sebastian’s face, and Remus’s as well. “What do you mean?”

“Each painting traps a portion of the artist’s soul as well. The you that currently exists is missing all the parts you have sealed away in your paintings. You might find you are someone entirely different when you unlock those parts of yourself.”

“Every part of me loves her,” Sebastian insisted.

Vlad chuckled, his head shaking slightly from side to side.

“Perhaps, perhaps not. You won’t know until you are restored to yourself.

And be warned: If you miss any paintings and fail to break the curse, you will have to go through the torture again on her next reincarnation cycle.

It would be in your best interest to do it properly the first time. ”

Sebastian’s head and heart were spinning with denial, fear, and anger. He knew he could only blame himself for the situation, but that didn’t dampen the flood of emotions. “How do you know all of this?” he asked. “Why wasn’t any of it in Victor’s book of magics?”

“I’m sure you can figure that out on your own,” Vlad replied. He held up his hand and allowed the sleeve to fall back, revealing a small patch of paint on his wrist. Then he winked. Understanding rushed in like the tide and Sebastian felt just the smallest bit better.

“Experience, then.”

The original vampire nodded. But Sebastian had one more question.

“She wants to try defeating the shadow within the paintings before we burn them, in some attempt to avoid having to destroy my works. Is that…possible?” His voice carried a hint of hope, but the light went out when Vlad shook his head.

“I cannot say for sure whether simply defeating the malevolent force created by the stolen soul fragments would be enough, as I have never tried. But even if it did, your soul would remain trapped inside. I am honestly surprised you are still able to use your magic after sealing away so much of yourself. There is no shortcut to avoid accepting the consequences of your actions.”

The vampires stared at each other for a long moment until Vlad broke the silence.

“Do you have any more questions? No? Be on your way, then. So long as you end the human’s suffering, your life will continue as it always has.

Do not delay. Should you choose to selfishly continue her cycles of reincarnation, I will be forced to end both of your lives. ”