Chapter 14

“Here Comes the Sun” played like a phantom soundtrack, and I couldn’t figure out where the music was coming from. The serene guitar strums felt like they were mocking me.

I huffed and muttered to myself. “Of all the Beatles’ songs...why this one? How about ‘Helter Skelter’?”

As if on cue, the tune morphed into the chipper notes of “Good Day, Sunshine.”

Another Beatles number. Not my favorite. “Have anything from the White Album?”

The song kept playing. Whatever DJ was hiding in the clouds had apparently declined my request.

“Whoever’s out there playing this shit, I get it. You have a sense of humor. Hil-arious.”

That time they heard me. The soundtrack changed the song again. That damn Johnny Nash song. You know the one. About how it’s going to be a bright, sunshiny day.

I was picking up on the theme. It wasn’t a Beatles theme… it was the goddamn sun!

I was walking in broad daylight, and my skin wasn’t sizzling off my bones. “That’s right... I became human... but why am I here?”

The sand between my toes felt oddly comforting, each grain a small reminder that I was… alive.

I stepped into the surf and let the waves wash over my feet. It felt so different—so real. I laughed.

“Well, this is new,” I said, lifting my arms and twirling like a ballerina—though without the grace, given I was in sand and didn’t have the training. It differed from the Otherworld’s light. On this beach, the sun was blazing in the skies above. “I wonder if I can… tan?”

I’d been so pasty for so long, I was probably in for a sunburn. Nothing like the burn I’d suffer as a vampire, though.

“A base tan,” I pinched my chin. “That’s what they call it, I think. A few minutes in the sun today. A few more tomorrow. Build it up over time.”

I shrugged. Whatever. I’d figure that out later. I started running around, letting the sun drench me in its golden warmth. It was intoxicating. Euphoric. I hadn’t realized how much I’d missed this simple pleasure. Hell, I grew up in Exeter, Rhode Island. I’d never been to a beach even as a human…this was my first time enjoying a beach in…forever!

My laughter echoed across the empty beach, mingling with the sound of crashing waves.

“Having fun, are we?” A familiar voice, smooth as aged whiskey, cut through my euphoria.

I stopped dead in my tracks, spun on my heel, and there he was…

Nico.

My former sire. He’d got his soul back from the Baron, too. Smoked his soul into his flesh. Then…well…

Let’s just say he died. That’s what he wanted. After thousands of years, he’d grown weary of his existence. I didn’t understand it at the time. Still didn’t completely. How could anyone understand what it was like—vampire or not—to exist for thousands of years?

That damn wizard did… but he didn’t share Nico’s former death wish. If he did, things would be a lot easier.

I looked Nico over. Exactly how I remembered him. Tall, dark, and wise.

He stood there staring at me, arms crossed, an amused smirk playing on his lips.

“Wait,” I said, squinting at him. “This is a dream, isn’t it?”

“Indeed, it is.”

“So it’s not real?”

“Who’s saying dreams aren’t real? What if this is the real world, and the other place is the dream?”

“Stop fucking with me, Nico.”

“See, vampire or not, you’re still the same Mercy.” He chuckled, his laughter rich. I’d almost forgotten how…comforting…his laugh could be. It was like everything was the way it was supposed to be. It made me feel safe.

“But you’re really you…”

“Dream or not, it’s me.”

“Okay. But what are you doing here?”

“Surely you’ve heard.” His tone was almost playful. “I’m among the Loa now. I was divinised in death.”

I sighed. “I hear a lot of things. Hailey said something about that.”

“Then none of this should come as a surprise.”

I scratched my head. I fell asleep in the Otherworld. Just after I’d inhaled my soul on the cherry of Pall Mall. Were human dreams always so vivid? I couldn’t recall. It had been so long.

“Fine, this is a dream. But you can show up in my dreams. What’s the news? Am I mysteriously with a child destined to save the world?”

“The virgin Mercy?” Nico laughed. “Please. You may have found favor with the Divine…but this isn’t that.”

“Then why are you haunting my beach party?” I crossed my arms over my chest.

“Let’s just say that Baron Samedi owed me one.” Nico stared at me with a kind of fatherly affection. His eyes. That was one thing that was different. They were so dark now. As a vampire, they had always been blood red…like mine…I mean, like mine used to be. I hadn’t had a chance to catch my reflection yet.

“He owed you one?” I tilted my head. “What did you do for him? No one wants to be in the Baron’s debt.”

Nico shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. Suffice it to say, the power he mentioned you’d get to help beat the wizard? It’s me, Mercy.”

I tilted my head, narrowing my eyes at him. “What do you mean, it’s you? You’re a spell or something?”

“Not quite.” Nico shook his head slowly. “Think of it more like..an aspect. Annabelle has the aspect of Ogoun, the Loa of War. It’s why she’s such a great fighter. Pauli has the aspect of Aida-Wedo, the Loa of snakes and rainbows. That’s how he teleports and shapeshifts.”

“I know how that works.” I wasn’t into voodoo magic, but I’d been in New Orleans long enough to understand the basic mechanics. “Okay, so...what power do you have?”

“You might consider me the Loa of Balance,” he said.

“Balance?” I raised an eyebrow. “What does that even mean?”

“It means I put things back where they belong,” Nico explained, his tone growing more serious. “When people make a mess of things, whether with magic, technology, or whatever, I clean it up.”

I snorted. “So you’re the janitor of the gods?”

Nico laughed again, shaking his head. “We aren’t really gods, Mercy. Closer to what you’d call angels. But call us what you will. I have a job to do, and that’s that. It’s a bit more glamorous than taking out the trash and cleaning bathrooms.”

“Sure,” I said, rolling my eyes. “How will this help me beat Anqi Sheng? We’re going to do his dishes, mop his floor, and clean his shitter?”

“You don’t understand,” Nico replied without hesitation. “Anqi Sheng violated the natural order. He needs a little cleaning up.”

“Balance…right. You don’t just clean up messes. You fix what’s broken. You’re more like the Tim Allen of the gods.”

“Tim Allen is an actor. You’re really dating yourself with that reference. Home Improvement. Really, Mercy?”

I shrugged. “It’s not that old. Relatively speaking. It’s not like I was invoking the memory of Charlie Chaplain.”

“Fair enough,” Nico said, smirking. “But yeah, think of me as the cosmic handyman. And Anqi Sheng...well, he’s a pretty big repair job.”

“Great,” I muttered, kicking at the sand. “So, you’re saying when I face this ancient wizard who’s been cheating death for millennia, you’ll pop in and fix everything?”

“Not everything,” Nico corrected, his tone softening. “But I’ll be there to help. I’ve always been with you, Mercy. Always watching your back, even if you didn’t know it.”

“Yeah?” I looked up at him, a mixture of skepticism and hope in my eyes. “Then why do I feel so damn alone sometimes?”

“You’ve never been alone,” he said simply. “Do you realize how many people…vampires, rather…look up to you? You give them hope.”

I took a deep breath. Something I actually had to do at regular intervals as a human now. At least I would when I woke up. “Well, those days are over.”

“You think your vampirism made you a hero, Mercy?”

I shrugged. “My magic helped a little. But yeah. I couldn’t have kicked all the asses I kicked through the years if I wasn’t a vampire. But now…as a human…I’ll be so damn—”

“Vulnerable?” Nico smiled at me—no fangs now, either. That was another difference I didn’t think I’d ever get used to. Then again, as I traced my tongue over my teeth, I realized mine were gone as well.

I nodded. “Right. That.”

“Vulnerability sucks, I get it. But it’s also what makes you strong.”

“Sounds like bullshit weak people say to make themselves feel better.”

Nico laughed. “Not at all! You’ve always had vulnerabilities, Mercy.” Nico gestured out toward the ocean. We watched a moment as a wave crashed ashore and the water creeped up the beach toward our feet. “Are you afraid of sharks?”

I shrugged. “I suppose I should be. Now that I’m human.”

“If you’re in the ocean, you might have a reason to be. On the beach, though…sharks are pussies.”

I laughed. “Right. Not too scary when they’re flopping around on shore.”

“In the ocean, they’re practically invulnerable. They are an apex predator. A dolphin might fend one off, but there’s not much out there that can kill a shark. Put it up on the beach, though, and it’s a different story. The shark is vulnerable. To the elements, not just to those who might do it harm.”

“Right. So as a vampire, I’m deadly at night. Weak as shit during the day. I get the metaphor.”

“The point is that you’ve always been vulnerable, Mercy. You learn to work around your weaknesses to minimize them as much as possible. But not being able to go out during the day does limit us—well, it limits what we used to be.”

“Well, as a human, you can kill me during the day, you can kill me at night.”

“But you can fight in the light now. Couldn’t do that before. Not without those ridiculous kevlar suits you all use in the Underground.”

I tilted my head. “How do you know about all of that?”

Nico laughed. “The Baron sees everything you do. Vampires are his eyes in the world. He’s let me look in on you a few times.”

“Creeper.” I laughed.

“Not like that,” Nico winked at me. “I’ve watched over you. That doesn’t mean I’ve been watching you Peeping Tom style.”

“I get the point,” I said. “Maybe I stand a better chance fighting bad guys at high noon than I did before. Eventually, though, I will die. Every human does. I had a fighting chance at immortality before.”

“Even vampires die, eventually.” Nico added. “It’s the law of averages. How many times do you think you can get lucky saving the world before someone does you in?”

“As many times as it takes.”

“And on the scale of eternity… eventually someone would eliminate you. It’s just how it works. Vulnerability isn’t about your weaknesses. It’s about how much you allow those weaknesses to hold you back.”

“I think I get it. You’re saying that I can use this to my advantage. Because I’m fighting ghosts who are suffering from the weaknesses of their vampire bodies.”

“Pretty much,” Nico replied. “When you face Anqi Sheng, ask for my help, and I’ll be there. We’ll put things back where they belong. Together.”

Together…

“Dude, you belong in one of those Christian Bookstores. So damn sentimental. What happened to the Niccolo the Damned I used to know?”

Nico laughed. “I prefer to be called Niccolo the Blessed. It’s more fitting.”

“Not nearly as badass, though.”

Nico smirked. “Well, we can workshop the moniker. Maybe I can be Niccolo the Slightly Inconvenienced.”

I rolled my eyes. “Really living on the edge with that one.”

“Niccolo the Fix-it-Guy!”

“Nope. Doesn’t work.”

“Niccolo the Well-Adjusted. Niccolo the Balanced. None of these work.”

“Maybe you should change your name to a symbol. We’ll call you the demigod formerly known as Niccolo the Damned.”

Nico shook his head. “Ah, I met Prince. Since I’m technically aligned with the Ghede, it was inevitable. After he died. He regretted that move. He strongly advised against turning a multi-million dollar brand into an emoticon.”

I shrugged. “Didn’t matter, though. The symbol didn’t stick because he was always Prince to the rest of us. Purple Rain was just as amazing no matter what people called him.”

“Then call me what you like,” Nico said. “But consider the same is true for you. You might not be the bloody queen, the last surviving and favored progeny of the original vampire. But you’re still you. And you can sing all the same songs.”

I cleared my throat. “See my previous comment. Christian bookstores and Hallmark Cards. You’re so warm and fuzzy now!”

“But I’m still the Nico you always knew.” My former sire pulled me into a hug. “And you’ll always be my Mercy.”

“Gag…gag…gag!”

We laughed together about that. Our voices melding into one. Until the scene of the beach, Nico’s calming touch, the smell of the sea all faded away.

“I think she’s awake,” Sebastian’s voice said as I shielded my eyes. In a split-second, he was leaning over me. “And she’s human. Look at those dark brown eyes.”

I snorted. “Screw you.”

Sebastian laughed. “Mercy’s back, everyone. You ready to go teach this wizard a lesson?”

I hopped up—with more energy than I’d expected. “I think so. How long was I asleep?”

“How long?” Annabelle laughed. “Let’s just say it’s hard to keep track of time in this place. But you’ve been down for at least sixteen hours, give or take.”

I shook my head. “Haven’t slept that well in a century. And the dreams…”

“What kind of dreams?” Pauli asked. “They were about me, weren’t they? Hate to break it to you, Mercy, but while I might be the man of your dreams…”

“You aren’t,” I quickly added. “And I know I’m not your type.”

Pauli put his arm around Donnie. “This guy, on the other hand…”

Donnie shrieked and jumped away. I didn’t blame him. Pauli was totally naked. “How many times do I have to tell you! I’m straight!”

“Right!” Pauli winked at Donnie. “Straight as a circle.”

“It’s the truth!!!” Donnie insisted. “I like women. WOMEN!”

Pauli shrugged. “I can put on a dress if you’d like. Everything about me is fluid, you know.”

Donnie shook his head. “Fluid my ass.”

“If that’s where you want it!”

I couldn’t help but laugh. “I know you’re embracing this whole Garden of Eden vibe, with the traditional dress and all—which is nothing at all.”

“Fig leaves are in fashion from time to time,” Annabelle quipped.

“GET DRESSED, PAULI!” I shouted. “We have an immortal wizard to fight.”

Pauli sighed and shook his head. “Fine… if I must.”

Annabelle tossed Pauli her backpack. Then she looked up at the sky for a moment. She looked back at me. “Last chance, Mercy. Ready for this?”

I nodded and cracked my neck. Ouch. That felt different now. I retrieved my wand for good measure. “Let’s end this.”