The Blessed and the Damned

They let Dane out of the hospital to attend his parents' funeral. He sat in a wheelchair at the doctor's insistence. His Aunt Saliah wheeled him up and placed a handful of earth into his hands to throw into the graves. Melody and Rocket waited for him in Saliah's van. He would be going home with her after the service, and she was taking the hounds with him, even though she wasn't fond of dogs. She had been attacked by wild dogs as a child and all large dogs made her nervous. Dane had heard the story many times as an explanation for how they had to put up their dogs every time she came to visit. Still, she held her fear in check now; they had saved her nephew's life and she felt she owed them. Dane had not needed to beg for his dogs at all.

The boy felt hollow as the funeral drew to a close and Saliah wheeled him to the van. She settled him in the passenger seat and Melody immediately put her head between the seats to lick his face. Dane wrapped his arms around her head and held onto her with a desperation that brought a look of pity from his aunt's face.

Saliah reached and scratched between Melody's ears while she let the engine warm. "They are good dogs. They will not bite me."

"They only bite the bad guys…" Dane replied, trying to show her a strong face.

"And I am not a bad guy."

"No, Aunt Sally, you're not a bad guy. You aren't a guy at all," Dane struggled with a small joke and then choked on a fresh sob.

Saliah stroked his head for an instant and put the van in gear. They headed off down Highway Six for Saliah's home in Morgan Province. They drove through the hills of Virjira Province in silence for a long time. Then out of the blue, Saliah said to him in a low, troubled voice, "the gods are dead, Dane. The Gods of Light are dead."

Dane looked up at her sharply, feeling a chill rush over him. "They can't be."

"The hellgods got them all; I felt them die. All but one and she's vanished."

Dane wanted to protest, but if anyone would know it would be his Aunt Saliah. She was a witchwoman. She'd know. "What do we do?"

"Whatever we can."

Dane stared at his hands until Melody put her head between the seats and whined at him. He slipped an arm around her again and pressed her big head to his face. "Who made the vampires?"

Saliah considered as they turned onto Highway 5 West. "Mother Damnation."

"Everyone knows that, but what is her name?"

Saliah caught Dane's expectant look in the rear-view mirror. She frowned, took one hand off the steering wheel, and drew her woolen shawl tighter. "The Glistening One. The Queen of Night." Another glance in the mirror revealed her nephew still leaning forward, still watching her. "No one 'cept her inner circle knows her true name." She went quiet, hoping against hope that her nephew would not press her further. Such hopes were in vain. A few more seconds passed awkwardly. "I have seen three names in my scrying fires: Lilith, Gylorean, Galee. Whether they're separate or the same, I don't know." She hissed through her teeth. "No more questions, Dane. It's dark and we need to find somewhere to spend the night. One I can easily ward."

The Blessed and the Damned is written by Janrae Frank and Phil Smith. Another excerpt is available from Phil's website.

GODWAR CENTRAL

The Blessed and the Damned