Dark Soul Silenced - Part Two (2 page)

Daniel quickly confirmed the first floor was clear then moved on to the second.  That too was clear, though he thought he heard footsteps retreating above him.  The third floor was clear but Daniel paused.  Once again he felt drawn towards one particular corridor.  Something lay in that direction, something that called to Daniel so strongly he nearly forgot where he was, what he was doing.  Shaking his head to clear it he stepped back, turned and started climbing to the next floor.  He knew he would return, would find out what lay down that corridor, but not now.  Not until the keep was safe and he had the information he needed.

The fourth floor was clear too, but now he definitely heard footsteps above.  He knew that any remaining vampires must be on the fifth floor.  The sixth floor was the highest and it boasted a huge, and amazing, domed ceiling.  Or it had until Daniel triggered the switch that controlled it, causing the entire dome to flow down into the walls and disappear.  Now the huge central room at the top of the keep was bathed in bright sunlight.  No vampire could survive being in that room.  Many had been caught in the sunlight when Daniel opened the roof, all were destroyed.  So the only place left for any to hide was the fifth floor.

When he reached the fifth floor he found around twenty vampires cowering at the back of the room.  He had already faced all those that were brave enough, or stupid enough, to stand against him.  These had all fled as far as they could.  There was no fight left in them.  Daniel knew he could destroy them but chose not to.  Instead he opened one of the doors leading off of the room.  Immediately the vampires ran towards it, fighting each other to be first through.  Daniel caught glimpses of other vampires within the room, most looking surprised but one or two trying to reach the door.  Their attempts to escape were futile, the influx of vampires fleeing Daniel forced them back then Daniel sealed the doorway.

Daniel returned to the stairwell and climbed carefully to the top floor, knowing it must be clear but unwilling to risk being wrong.  Sure enough the room was empty of living vampires, though tens of blackened corpses lay where they had died.  Ignoring them Daniel moved to stand in the sunlight, feeling it recharge not just his powers but also his will.  He drew the bright light into his body, binding it to his soul.  Preparing himself for what must come next.  Preparing himself to tear the information he needed from Razgul, piece by piece if needed.  Whatever came next he was determined to find out where Rafael had taken Mary.

Before heading back down the stairs Daniel triggered the switch controlling the roof, watching as the ceiling flowed up out of the surrounding walls to cut off the bright daylight.  Some light still spilled through the one open doorway but it did little to light most of the large room.  Daniel stared at that doorway, remembering how he and the others had been trapped within the room beyond before making their escape.  Then he turned and made his way down the stairs.

Once again something pulled heavily on him when he reached the third floor, urging him to investigate.  Dismissing it he stayed on the stairs and headed down.

When Daniel stepped out on the ground floor he heard Razgul cursing foully.  As soon as Razgul saw Daniel he threw himself against the barrier with renewed fury, unleashing blasts of dark power that would have flattened Daniel in a moment.  The barrier absorbed it all.  Daniel checked and confirmed that despite Razgul’s efforts the barrier was being recharged faster than the vampire could deplete it.

Daniel crossed the room and stood near the powerful shield he had created.  Razgul abandoned his efforts and paused, studying Daniel with hate filled eyes.

“The Cursed One,” Razgul spat.  “I know you.  My master warned me of your dangers.  You may have trapped me but it will do you no good.  You cannot kill me, you cannot even harm me.  I am immortal.  I will remain here until I am freed, then I will find you and rip everything you care about from you before killing you oh so slowly.  That is if my master doesn’t get to you first.”

“
Just words,” replied Daniel calmly.  “I do not fear you.  However I do need you, or the knowledge you hold at least.  I need to know where your master is.”

Razgul chuckled.  “And you think
I
will tell
you
?  I know what you seek.  You seek the girl who is with my master.  I will say nothing on the matter.  You won’t trick any information out of me.”  Razgul chuckled again, amused at the situation he found himself in.

“
But you already have,” replied Daniel with a smile.  “You just told me that you do have the information I need, and that Mary is still with your master.  Thank you.”

The smile left Razgul’s face, replaced by a snarl.  Before he could answer Daniel frowned in concentration.  The barrier collapsed inward, shrinking rapidly until it was like a glowing outer skin covering the vampire.  Razgul’s muscles strained and his face locked in a grimace but he was unable to move.

Daniel stepped in close to the vampire, placing one hand on each side of Razgul’s head.  Then he focused his powers and stretched out for the vampire’s mind.

Daniel’s head snapped back and he let out a howl of pain.  As soon as the connection was made Razgul had attacked, trying to follow the channel back and force his will into Daniel’s mind.  Daniel snapped the connection, then stood panting with effort.

Razgul laughed again.  “Try it again little man.  Please.  This game is fun.”

Daniel stood in silence for a time, ignoring the taunts from Razgul and contemplating what had happened.  Then he spent some time building defences in his mind, mental equivalents of the physical shield he had used to trap Razgul.  Once again he used power drawn from the keep to strengthen his own abilities.

Daniel reached out with his powers once more, forming the mental bridge with Razgul’s mind.  Razgul pounced immediately, using his power to drive Daniel’s probe back and trying to follow it in.  This time Daniel left the connection in place.  He could feel Razgul’s joy as the vampire thought he had won, followed by confusion as his assault became mired in the mental traps Daniel had created.

While the vampire was off balance Daniel attacked again, this time forcing his probe deep into Razgul’s mind.  Boosted by power from the keep he was able to override Razgul’s will with his own, forcing the vampire into a docile state.  Deep down a spark of Razgul’s will still raged, but it no longer held sway over the vampires mind.  Daniel started to draw in the vampire’s knowledge.  He shivered as he did so, the dark thoughts and feelings he was absorbing sending ice down his veins.

The process seemed to last for an age — the vampire was many hundreds of years old.  Daniel couldn’t begin to absorb the huge numbers of thoughts and memories, instead he filtered them — only retaining anything that related to Rafael’s current plans or location.  All the time the chill built in Daniel, settling into his chest like a lead weight.

Finally the flow of information slowed to a stop.  Daniel staggered back, swaying and nearly falling.  He sat down heavily.  Razgul couldn’t collapse, he was held up by the flickering power of the barrier, but it was the only thing keeping him standing.  Where a huge warrior had stood before there was only a shrivelled old man now.  A last chuckle escaped the creature’s lips, more a choking rattle, then life faded from its eyes.

Daniel bowed his head.  He hadn’t known what would happen when he extracted the knowledge and certainly hadn’t expected it to suck the life out of Razgul.  The results were uncomfortably close to how the vampires fed — draining the life force from a victim.  Daniel knew he’d had no choice but it didn’t make him feel any better.

Staggering to his feet he considered what he had learnt.  The memories were fragmented but he thought he could piece them together.  Razgul had indeed known where Rafael was headed and Daniel now had the chance to follow.

Daniel became aware of a feeling both alien and familiar.  A hunger ignited deep in his soul.  A hunger he hadn’t felt since the darkness had been burnt from his body at the end of his transformation.  It surged within, urging Daniel to feed.  Urging him to seek out a victim and drain their life.  Daniel fought the desire, feeling like he was being battered by a storm.  This was far more powerful than anything he had felt before.  Somehow the darkness in Razgul’s soul had been drawn across with the vampire’s memories.  Darkness that had developed and strengthened through decade upon decade of dark deeds.

Horrific visions of violence flashed through Daniel’s mind.  He fought the desire to recoil, to draw back, knowing he’d be lost if he did so.  At the same time the hunger was gnawing at his resolve, and he could feel the pulse of the dark power within his chest as it tried to spread through his body.  This was a battle he couldn’t hope to win alone.  Concentrating hard he tried to reach out to the keep, seeking to strengthen his resistance.  Nothing happened.  He tried again.  And again.  Every probe of power he sent out was tainted with darkness, preventing them joining the power of the keep.  Daniel started to panic.  Without untainted power he couldn’t open any door or window.  He would be trapped within the keep and overwhelmed by the darkness roiling within.

At that moment he sensed a change in the darkness.  A sense of satisfaction, of enjoyment.  He realised with horror that the dark power trying to take over his soul had an awareness.  That it was alive in some way, alive and exceptionally dangerous.  Several memories from Razgul played through his mind again, but with this new knowledge he understood them properly.  Razgul had been aware that the darkness was sentient, but he had welcomed it.  He had worked with the power, revelling in the dark acts it demanded.  Fed by such a willing accomplice the power had grown strong.  Willing or not it intended Daniel to be its new accomplice, and there was nothing he could do to prevent it.

Chapter Three

The assault eased a little, though Daniel wasn’t fooled.  He could feel that the dark power was toying with him, watching to see how he would run before it chose to overwhelm him.  Daniel snatched his chance, rushing towards the stairs then mounting them two at a time.  He felt the darkness within laughing, taunting, mocking.  It knew there would be no escape.

Daniel charged up the stairs, floor after floor.  This time there was no pull from the third floor, the darkness had submerged that part of him which responded to the call.  He reached the fourth floor, the fifth and finally the top floor.  Not stopping he charged across the huge room, seeking the safety of daylight.  Running so fast his feet barely touched the ground he flew towards the one open doorway, towards the daylight pouring through.  While the sun was now too high to shine into the room he hoped the daylight would be sufficient to weaken the darkness.

He reached the doorway at full speed — then stopped dead.  Agony flared through his shoulders and arms which had shot out sideways and locked, preventing him making it into the room.  The darkness inside had returned with a vengeance, snatching control of his limbs.  All sense of play had left it.  Realising what Daniel had planned it had acted to foil him.

Now Daniel stood before the doorway, with dim daylight washing over him.  It made the darkness uncomfortable, a reminder of the much greater power sunlight represented.  A power that could destroy it.  It was taking no chances now.  Every time Daniel tried to draw the daylight into him, to draw in its power, the darkness blocked his efforts.  With every passing second Daniel’s strength faded, as did his ability to fight.  Both Daniel and the darkness knew it would all be over in a few moments.

Suddenly Daniel lurched backwards, managing to get enough control of his legs to rush away from the doorway then tumbling to the floor.  For a brief moment the darkness was caught out.  The last thing it had expected was for Daniel to run
away
from the daylight, to run away from his only faint hope.  That confusion gave Daniel his chance.  He threw out a probe, desperately focusing on keeping it free of any taint.  The darkness caught on almost immediately and managed to overwhelm the probe, corrupting it before Daniel could use it to draw any strength.  Daniel flopped onto the floor, completely spent.  The darkness exulted and prepared to complete the possession of its new vessel.

A sliver of light flashed down into the room, striking the floor nearby.  The darkness paused, confused.  The sliver of light rapidly expanded, spreading across the room and washing over Daniel’s body.  Too late the darkness realised what Daniel had done.  His desperate last probe hadn’t been an attempt to draw power, it had been an attempt to flick the switch which controlled the roof.  An attempt that had worked.  Trapped in the bright sunlight, with no shelter close enough to reach, the darkness started to scream.  Daniel screamed too.  The darkness was twisted around his mind and soul now.  In the short time since it had infected him its power and experience had allowed it to soak deeply into Daniel’s very substance.  The taint was far deeper, far stronger, than when Rafael had tried to turn him.  Blinding agony flooded through him, heat and pressure growing both in his body and his mind.

If it was the first time he’d suffered having the darkness scourged from his soul he would have died.  There was no doubt about that.  But it wasn’t the first time.  He had been through this before, had woken alive and cleansed.  And he had been wielding magical power for some time, learning to bind it to his body and soul.  Teeth gritted against the almost overwhelming pain he focused.  As the sunlight burned through his body he managed to guide it, use it to sear out the darkness and strengthen his own soul.  For what felt like an eternity he wavered on the brink of losing control.  Even as it burnt and screamed, the darkness tried to tighten its grip.  It wanted to ensure Daniel died too, wanted to take him with it.

Daniel wasn’t aware of reaching the tipping point.  Slowly he realised the battle was becoming easier, the darkness weaker and that his strength was starting to return.  Every moment was still torture, he still felt as if molten lead was pouring through his veins and mind, but he no longer teetered on the edge.  Moment by moment he became stronger and the darkness faded. 

The end, when it came, was astonishingly fast.  One moment the darkness was still clawing at his soul, the next there was a final flash and it was gone — taking the pain with it.  Daniel slumped back on the floor, basking in the bright sunlight.  As he lay there panting, trying to recover from the fight, a dizzying wave of brightness swept over him and he finally lost consciousness.

Daniel blinked at the bright light and slowly sat up, enjoying the sun’s warmth on his body.  Judging by the sun’s position it was early afternoon.  He had been unconscious but not for too long — assuming it was still the same day.  He stood gingerly but found his body was strong.  All trace of the darkness had gone, but it had left its mark on Daniel.  Even standing in the warm sunlight a shiver ran down his spine at the thought of what had almost taken over his soul. 

More than that, it had opened his eyes.  He’d assumed the dark power the vampires wielded was innate, that it was merely a reserve of energy and nothing else.  The power Daniel drew on was inert.  It had no life of its own.  Now he knew the darkness did, or could grow to have such a life anyway.  He needed time to consider the implications.  That would have to wait.  First he needed to work through the memories he had taken from Razgul, decode them to find where Rafael had taken Mary.  That took priority over everything else.

Daniel walked towards the stairs.  Even though his body felt fine he walked slowly, tentatively.  The memory of his own body betraying him, of it dancing to the tune of the darkness, was still strong.  When he reached the stairs he placed each foot carefully, holding the stone handrail as he descended.

When he reached the third floor all thoughts of his body vanished.  One again he felt the strong pull towards one particular doorway, but this time there was no reason not to give in.  He found himself walking over and triggering the switch, mesmerised by the siren call.  The doorway led to a corridor with a single exit at the end.  Daniel moved down the corridor as if in a dream then entered the room.  It was large, thirty paces deep by twenty wide, but almost empty.  The only thing in the room was a square stone block roughly ten feet on each side and as high as Daniel’s waist.  Despite its solid construction Daniel felt it was a table of some form.  He knew immediately that it was the table that called to him.

Quickly crossing the room Daniel studied the table carefully with his eyes and his powers.  He wasn’t at all surprised when the table responded to his probes.  Where the doors and windows had a single switch each the table had many.  Daniel counted twenty-six, each one charged with a different combination of powers.  One combined the greenish tinge of healing power with the reddish power Daniel had used to form barriers.  Another needed whitish power tinged with blue.  Daniel worked through them in turn, using a probe formed of matching power to activate each switch.  He didn’t stop to think what he was doing, to wonder if it was safe, yet the feeling was nothing like being possessed by the darkness.  The driving need to complete the tasks came from deep within his own soul.

Finally Daniel triggered the final switch.  A wave of power crashed over him and everything went dark.