Daywalker chronicles com.., p.96
Daywalker Chronicles Complete Series Boxed Set, page 96
“Let’s just focus on getting you some blood,” Zoey suggested, trying to defuse what she thought was the situation. “Less talking, more drinking, so we can get your nastiness out of my friend.”
“Fine,” Ishtar agreed, eyeing the werewolves as they continued to spar. She licked my lips in anticipation.
“Come on.” Zoey guided me toward the cafeteria. “Let’s get this over with.”
As we approached the cafeteria, the smell of blood hit me like a brick wall. My mouth watered and my stomach was clamoring at me. Ishtar tickled the tips of my fangs with my tongue.
“Easy there, vamp girl,” Zoey warned me. “We’ll get you your fix soon enough.”
My lips curled. I knew that sensation. Ishtar was losing control. Before I could even shout something at the goddess in my mind, she dove at Zoey.
Ishtar! Stop it!
She ignored me.
Zoey dodged out of the way, but Ishtar managed to grab her arm, pulling her off balance.
“Let go of me!” Zoey yelled, swinging the un-bladed end of her scythe at Ishtar.
Ishtar ducked and went for Zoey’s leg. The femoral artery was a favorite for a lot of vampires who enjoyed an intimate feed. In this case, Ishtar was going for whatever was most readily available.
Zoey slammed the blunt end of her scythe on my back, sending Ishtar and me tumbling to the ground. Zoey placed her boot on the back of my neck, pressing down hard.
“You really don’t want to piss me off,” Zoey warned her.
“I need to feed,” Ishtar protested.
“And you will,” Zoey promised her. “As soon as you stop trying to attack me.”
Ishtar growled. “Fine. I promise.”
Zoey removed her foot, and Ishtar scrambled to her feet. Zoey nodded toward the cafeteria doors and let Ishtar move ahead of her. It’s never a good idea to turn your back on a hungry vamp, and this wasn’t Zoey’s first time dealing with a hungry bloodsucker.
“Over there.” Zoey pointed toward the tall refrigerator-shaped heater in the kitchen. It only looked like a refrigerator. It maintained a constant temperature of ninety-eight point six. “Grab what you need.”
Ishtar scurried over, swung open the heater door, and grabbed a bottle. She bit at the cork. “How do I get into this thing?”
Usually, I used my thumbnail. There was a technique to it that I’d learned from Dracula. Push, twist, and pull. With a pop, a full bottle ready to drink. Zoey grabbed a corkscrew from a drawer and took the bottle while Ishtar stood there wringing her hands like a child waiting for her parent to open a bag of candy.
Zoey handed the bottle back to Ishtar and she downed it in about five solid gulps. She belched. “More!!!”
Zoey retrieved a second bottle. Why’d it have to be B-positive? Not my favorite flavor. Whatever. Ishtar didn’t care and it satiated our hunger. She took a little more time with the second one. I was having a hard time with it. Not just because B-positive wasn’t my favorite, but because my optimism was thin. I found it difficult to be positive.
I hadn’t felt cravings like this since I’d been turned. My brooch had helped me get past the worst of a youngling’s urges. There were only a few occasions when I lost control and, back then, Zoey was there to stop me.
As Ishtar finished off her second bottle, a figure emerged from the shadows. Gilgamesh.
Ishtar’s eyes lit up at the sight of him. “Husband!”
Gilgamesh grimaced, disgust evident on his face. “We haven’t married yet,” he reminded her, brushing off her enthusiasm. “But I am a man of my word. If you want to have me, you will learn to behave and treat these people as equals.”
Ishtar frowned, clearly annoyed at Gilgamesh’s conditions. But she nodded, wiping the remaining blood from her lips.
“Very well. I will play nice…for now.”
Gilgamesh didn’t seem convinced, and I didn’t blame him. Ishtar wasn’t one to change her ways so easily. She’d do whatever it took to get what she wanted, even if that meant lying and deceiving us. No one knew it better than me. The longer we were bound, the more I could sense her thoughts—some of them. I still didn’t know her end game. When I had a chance, I’d shout, I’d poke, and prod. Now that she was fed, I suspected I might have a better chance.
Ishtar was careful about what thoughts she allowed to pass through her mind that I could access. Her thoughts were clearer now, especially after she fed, but that also gave her more control over her mind. That meant it was less likely she’d reveal anything she didn’t want to. She knew what she was doing.
I didn’t hear her thoughts, but I felt her eagerness, the culmination of almost five thousand years of anticipation.
It almost made me forget about the threat of Alexander the Great and his Macedonian army.
I wanted to scream, to warn Gilgamesh about the darkness that consumed Ishtar, but I was trapped, a silent witness. All I could do was watch and hope that he would see through her deception.
“Sienna,” Zoey called, shifting her focus to me. “She’s still in there, right?”
“Where would she go?” Ishtar cackled. “She’s fine. More or less.”
Zoey narrowed her eyes. “How much longer will this take?”
“I need my power,” Ishtar replied. “Once Ennigaldi channels enough magic that I can create the golems required to form both our new army and my new body, I will marry Gilgamesh and your friend will be free.”
“Fine,” Zoey relented, though her eyes remained filled with suspicion. “But if you harm Sienna in any way, I won’t hesitate to reap your soul.”
“Such bold words from someone so young,” Ishtar taunted, but the smile that played on her lips held a hint of unease.
“Enough,” Gilgamesh interrupted firmly. “Ishtar, drink what you need and let us proceed.”
“Very well,” she acquiesced, gliding toward the bottles of blood. She retrieved one, her third bottle in less than ten minutes. My fingers caressed the glass as she imitated Zoey’s actions before, twisting the corkscrew into the top and popping it open. She took slower sips this time, savoring the flavor. O-positive, much better than B-positive. More sweet than sour. The rush of energy coursed through my body, intensifying with every sip.
“Disgusting,” Alexander muttered under his breath as he entered the cafeteria with Reginald and Morgan. Reginald looked away, his face pale. The Van Helsings always had a hard time with my natural urges. They’d spent their entire lives hunting vampires.
Morgan chimed in, her quirky nature showing even in this dark moment. “Look on the bright side. At least she’s not sucking it directly from our necks…yet.”
Ishtar finished the bottle and tossed it aside. She wiped her mouth, my red lips curling into a satisfied smile. “Much better. Now, my dear Gilgamesh, it is time we were wed.”
Gilgamesh frowned, his eyes betraying his inner turmoil. “Ishtar, I agreed to marry you to save my people. I did not agree to rule by your side.”
“You dare refuse me?” Ishtar demanded, anger flashing across her face. Her hands curled into fists, nails biting into her palms. The cafeteria lights flickered.
“I will marry you, but I will not rule with you,” Gilgamesh clarified. “Your ambition and lust for power will only lead to more death and destruction.”
“How dare you speak to me this way!” Ishtar shrieked. The glass bottles lining the walls shattered, littering the floor with shards. I always knew I had powerful pipes, but with a goddess inside me, this was something else.
The sound alerted Enkidu and the wolves, who came in holding their clawed hands over their pointy ears. Only Enkidu was a full werewolf, a quadruped with golden fur. The rest were still the hybrid wolf-man that they’d become after Sloth had used Enkidu’s ability to alter their natures.
Zoey stepped forward, hand tightening around her scythe. “Enough of this. If you cannot control your temper, Ishtar, I will send you back to Irkalla where you belong.”
“You foolish girl,” Ishtar scoffed. “You have no power over me.”
“Don’t test me,” Zoey warned.
“Ishtar, I have agreed to marry you to save my people,” Gilgamesh repeated. “But once Babylon is restored, and the Macedonians are gone, I will step down as king. You will rule alone.”
Rage contorted Ishtar’s face, twisting her beauty into something unrecognizable. Then, slowly, her expression relaxed into one of sinister delight. “Very well, my dear Gilgamesh. We shall be wed, and once I have taken my throne, you will be…persuaded to rule by my side, whether you wish it or not.”
My stomach twisted at her words. When she spoke, I had a clear image of her ultimate intentions. A repetition of the nightmare she gave me before.
This time, standing before the crowd of New Babylon, Ishtar stood in my body elevating a severed head in her hand before the cheering crowd. They were still chanting my name. This time, though, she turned to see Gilgamesh kneeling beside her. She stroked his head as if he was her pet. So much for equality in marriage.
Why hadn’t their marriage dispelled the curse? Why was she still inhabiting my body? What did she plan to do with the golem that they were preparing to forge?
She was deceiving all of us.
And I was powerless to stop it.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
The cold air of the school gymnasium prickled my skin like a thousand icy needles, yet I couldn’t shiver. My body was not my own. Ishtar’s power coursed through my veins, her consciousness replacing mine, smothering my thoughts like a snake coiling around its prey.
Ennigaldi’s voice pierced the silence, “Sienna, I believe this spell will give Ishtar the power she needs to create a golem from the Archeus crystal.” Her words were cautious, but there was an unmistakable edge of determination beneath them. She knew I couldn’t reply, but she was trying to let me know what was going on. It was supposed to be comforting, a sign that my freedom was on the horizon. I didn’t trust it. Ishtar was up to something.
Ennigaldi had created a bowl of something that burned like incense. She began reciting an incantation in a low chant.
“Karrašu anašu Šumiši…”
The gym echoed with the sound of her voice, every syllable carrying the weight of centuries. The walls around us seemed to vibrate and the wooden floorboards trembled beneath our feet.
“Kibittišu…”
My body remained unnervingly still as Ishtar’s grip tightened within me. My heart pounded against my ribs, a trapped bird desperate for escape. I wanted to scream, to warn my friends, but my lips wouldn’t move. My tongue lay heavy and useless in my mouth, a prisoner behind clenched teeth.
“Šukkulu ša šamê…”
Ishtar raised my arm, my fingers outstretched toward the pulsating energy flowing out of Ennigaldi’s burning bowl, and I felt a jolt of energy surge through my body. It was as if I had become a conduit for some ancient, terrible power, and it was all I could do not to collapse under its weight.
“Finish it,” she commanded, and Ennigaldi hesitated for only a moment before continuing the spell. Her voice grew stronger, more confident, and the hairs on the back of my neck bristled with anticipation.
“Šumušu…”
The final word hung in the air like a storm cloud, and then all at once, the gymnasium exploded into a cacophony of sound and light. A surge of power escaped Ennigaldi’s body and settled on my own. Ishtar inhaled, absorbing a power so intense I feared it might burn my spirit right out.
My body jerked and spasmed. I was a spectator trapped within my own mind, helpless as Ishtar seized the full might of her newly awakened power.
“Give me the crystal!” Ishtar demanded.
Zoey approached cautiously and handed the crystal to Ishtar.
Ishtar snatched the crystal out of Zoey’s hand. A bit of power flowed out of my body and into the crystal. Some of it was the new power Ennigaldi summoned. My power was mingled with it. The lunar power of the Scholomance. Even my vampiric qualities, my essence as a daywalker, were siphoned and mingled with Ishtar’s energies.
Ishtar wasn’t just creating a common body to inhabit. She was vesting it with power—my power.
The Archeus crystal pulsed in golden power. A body took shape, pale flesh knitting together over protruding bone. Black hair sprouted from the skull, tumbling over mismatched eyes - one pale blue, the other molten gold. Those eyes blinked open and fixed upon my face. It was my face, but not quite right. The black hair and the eerie eyes unsettled me to my core.
“Beautiful,” Ishtar purred through my lips, admiring her creation. I could feel her delight as she took a few steps closer to the golem, examining it with an air of pride. “You shall be my vessel.”
The golem nodded, and I felt panic rise within me. My body wasn’t my own, and now this creature bore my likeness. Thoughts raced through my mind, searching for something, anything that might give me an edge against Ishtar. But every time I tried to focus, her presence snuffed out the thoughts like a candle flame.
Ishtar turned away from the golem. “Ennigaldi, it is time for us to complete our ritual. You will officiate the wedding between Gilgamesh and me, according to Babylonian custom.”
When Ennigaldi replied, her voice was tight with suppressed emotion. “Ishtar, I cannot condone this union. It is not right—”
“Silence!” Ishtar snapped. My hands were fists at my sides. “You will do as I command. I will not release Sienna until Gilgamesh and I are wed!”
A tense moment hung in the air before Ennigaldi bowed her head in submission. “Very well, Ishtar,” she acquiesced, her voice strained with pain and reluctance.
“Excellent,” Ishtar replied, smirking through my lips. “Then let us begin.”
I continued trying to regain control of my body, but Ishtar’s grip was like iron. I could see, hear, and feel everything, but I couldn’t move a muscle or utter a word. It was maddening.
The schoolhouse gymnasium served as the impromptu setting for this twisted ceremony. Its high rafters and polished wooden floor created an eerie atmosphere, as if the space itself was complicit in our plight. The lingering scent of werewolf sweat from just hours prior was replaced by the pungent aroma of incense that Ennigaldi burned in preparation for the ritual.
Please, no, I pleaded silently. Only Ishtar could hear me. I want to be free of you, but whatever you’re planning…
But my thoughts went unnoticed. My team members, those who had fought alongside me against the forces of New Babylon, watched the proceedings with mounting horror and confusion. They knew this wasn’t right, but without the ability to hear my warnings, they allowed the rite to proceed.
Gilgamesh approached me and I watched as he and Ishtar stood in front of Ennigaldi as she began the marriage ritual. Ennigaldi, her hands shaking slightly and her lips quivering, began chanting the words of the marriage ritual in ancient Akkadian.
I caught Dylan out of the corner of my eye. He’d turned away. I wasn’t marrying Gilgamesh, but the way he saw it, I was the one standing there. It was my lips that were about to express my consent to the union.
Ennigaldi’s voice rose and fell as she recited the ritual, her words echoing ominously in the empty space. With each syllable, I felt Ishtar’s control over my body grow stronger. It was as if she was feeding on the magic of the words, using their power to bind me ever more tightly.
When Ennigaldi prompted us for our vows, Ishtar spoke through my mouth. “I, Ishtar, goddess of love and war, take you, Gilgamesh, the once-and-future king of Babylon, to be my eternal consort. Your life, your heart, your body are mine, now and forever.”
Gilgamesh gulped as he grasped my hands. The fear in his eyes made my stomach churn. “I, Gilgamesh of Uruk, take you, Ishtar, goddess made flesh, to be my bride. All that I am and all that I possess are yours, from this day until the end of time.”
Ennigaldi produced a dagger and used it to make a shallow cut on Gilgamesh’s palm. She turned to me, the dagger poised, and I thrashed helplessly against Ishtar’s hold.
“Give me your hand.” Ennigaldi spoke gently and her eyes were filled with sorrow as she caught a glimpse of my futile struggle against Ishtar’s control.
I felt Ishtar’s cruel amusement as I extended my arm, allowing the dagger to slice into my flesh. The sting of the cut was nothing compared to the weight pressing down on my chest as Ennigaldi took our bloodied hands and pressed them together.
“By the mingling of your blood, you are now joined in an eternal bond,” she proclaimed, her voice heavy with the weight of the ceremony.
The group watched in horror and anticipation, their faces pale and tight with barely contained fear and hope that I’d soon be free of my captor. Their eyes darted between my face, the face of the golem, and the tableau unfolding before them. I could sense their unease, their discomfort at the twisted parody of a wedding taking place, but there was nothing they would do to stop it. They thought they were saving me.
“Ennigaldi, seal this union with the ancient rites,” Ishtar commanded through my lips. “Let our power be joined, and let no force in heaven or on Earth sunder what we have created.”
Ennigaldi hesitated for a moment, her gaze lingering on the golem that stood silently beside us. Her jaw clenched as she considered the consequences of her actions, but finally, she nodded her head and began the incantations that would bind us all inextricably together.
As she chanted, I felt the dark magic weaving through the air, coiling around me like a serpent, its poison seeping into my soul. I tried to scream, but Ishtar’s hold on me was unbreakable. My throat remained locked shut, my cries trapped inside me like ghosts haunting a tomb.
With a final flourish, Ennigaldi completed the ritual, and the last word hung in the air like an executioner’s ax. The golem’s eyes flashed with a sinister light, and for the first time, it moved, stepping forward to join us at the center of the room.
“By the authority vested in me by the ancient gods, I now pronounce you husband and wife. What has been joined here today, let no one put asunder.”
The ceremony was over. Ishtar had gotten what she wanted. But as the golem took its place beside Gilgamesh, I saw the cruel smile on my own replicated face, a reflection of Ishtar’s true nature. I still couldn’t move my body. We were all still prisoners in her twisted game.
