Page 46 of Prayer of the Damned
Chapter Nineteen
Bartimaeus
“Iswear to take upon myself, body and soul, the role of he who made the indisputable sacrifice. May my soul be bound in the bond of eternal life.” I kneel before the Pope himself, standing at the altar in the Sistine Chapel. I hold the sacred dagger in both hands and drive it directly into my heart. My hands shake and blood pours from the wound in the center of my chest. I gurgle, my vision goes blurry and I fall forward.
All the breaths I ever took in life, which I’d always taken for granted, all funnel into the last breath. How bitter it is, and how sweet. I can smell the mildew in the air, the dry oil in the painted ceiling, the smoke from the incense, I can taste the Holy Communion. I notice a single drop of blood staining the Pope’s clean white robe. I roll onto my back, mesmerized by the painting of Man’s creation. I reach out and a strong light envelopes me, caressing my blurred sight. Before I close my eyes I feel someone or something touching the tip of my finger.
How beautiful my life was before my vision cleared. How little I knew, and only today can I appreciate the beauty of not knowing, of humanity’s ignorance. The chant in the church grows louder, or maybe it’s my mind playing tricks on me. The organ music makes the chapel’s marble floor shake, and I say goodbye to the life I’d known until now.
I let out my last breath, emptying myself of all familiar, pure, peaceful scents. I sear these sensations into my mind and treasure them in my heart, because I know that very soon I’ll enter directly through the gates of Hell. I close my eyes and take into myself the cold of the marble floor, piercing every pore in my body.
I’m coming for you, Lilith.
That’s my last thought as I feel my skin stinging with the holy water the Pope sprays on my lifeless body.
Chapter Twenty
Bartimaeus
Infiltrating the University of Bologna was more challenging than I’d imagined. First I had to get rid of that scatterbrained Professor Sapienti. That was the easy part. I looked through the research he’d conducted, bringing evidence to the Council that proved his treason. Walking through the castle’s ancient halls, where they hid like sewer rats, accompanied by a woman dressed so immaculately that you couldn’t find even a single wrinkle in her clothes, my confidence faltered for the first time.
Much like those accursed demons, we have some tricks of our own up our sleeves. The members of the Church made sure to disguise my scent and appearance, but I admit that doubt crept into my heart when the heavy double doors opened and the woman gestured that I was permitted to enter.
The Council members are far more powerful than any other demon walking the lands of Adam. We are well aware of the powers that sisters Beatrice and Greta hold, and the abilities of Alfredo and Simon. But when it comes to Libretto, the head ofthe Council himself, we’re in the dark. We know that even the demons themselves are unaware of his true abilities. And from what I’ve learned so far, if someone’s hiding something from you it’s probably for good reason.
And if you know the source of the secret, you’ll almost always find its weakness too.
Because everyone has a weakness, especially the strongest. All I have to do is find this damned creature’s weak spot. I know he’s the key to the mission I’ve been tasked with – finding Lilith and banishing her from the land of Adam back to where she belongs.
The day Senoy, Sansenoy and Semangelof appeared in their human incarnations upon the lands of Adam attested to just one thing. Lilith is coming. If we know that, the demons must as well.
We lost the first battle. As long as humans are marked and soul incarnation is incomplete, the battle for their souls still goes on. It’s why we take them from their biological parents and take them under our wing. It’s our way of keeping them from our enemies and ensuring that they remain protected until it’s time for them to join our ranks. The accursed demons follow the same course of action. But the damned ones have found some mechanism that contaminates human blood until they’re deeply immersed in impurity. We still haven’t figured out how they do it, and every attempt to exorcise them has failed.
Unfortunately, Senoy, Sansenoy and Semangelof have been taken by the sisters Beatrice and Greta. And since they’re Council members, we had no way to get them back. We lost the second battle as well, probably the worst defeat we’ve suffered. We thought the manner of suicide the girl chose would work in our favor, her humanity hadn’t left her body as we were fighting for her soul, but the Devil is stubborn and managed to win that blasted fight too.
This time we had to take extreme measures. The Pope decided we had no choice but to directly infiltrate the enemy base and act from within. It’s the only way we can stop Lilith’s reincarnation into the land of Adam.
“Dr. Abano,” Libretto addresses me, and I kneel to him, showing him the respect he does not deserve.
Libretto sits on a throne in the center of the stage, as though considering himself a fucking king. He examines me for long moments, and I feel my jaw tighten until I’m sure my teeth will crack any moment. I recognize the sisters Beatrice and Greta sitting on his left side, each on her own throne. To his right are Simon and Alfredo, and a man I don’t recognize – if he’s present at a Council meeting, he must be valuable to them.
“I thank you all for agreeing to consider my candidacy for the position of university lecturer,” I bow my head.
“We must do so. After all, we need to know who will educate the best of our sons and daughters.”
“Of course, my lord,” I raise my gaze to him.
“We’ll see about that.” He smiles, stands up straight and walks towards me with confident steps. He stands before me and looks into my eyes for long moments. We know the eyes of demons are white, so in addition to cloaking my scent, I’ve had to undergo a painful medical procedure to change the color of my eyes. My superiors warned me that because my body purifies itself, the procedure won’t last long. I have to get the job and get out of here as soon as possible, before it fades and my true form is revealed. I just pray the damned ones will soon let me out of the most stressful job interview in the universe. He raises his hand in the air and the stranger approaches, standing at Libretto’s side.
“Whenever you’re ready,” he commands, and the stranger quickly obeys.
In one swift motion the stranger scratches my jugular, and I choke. Damn them. I press a hand to the wound to stop the torrent of blood, and hide the fact that my body will heal in a moment. The stranger licks my blood from his long, sharp talon, his eyes never leaving mine.
Time is relative. When I was informed that someday I’d leave this life, it felt like getting on a rollercoaster galloping towards the intended date. But from this day on it seems time is stretching out, losing its meaning. At this moment, with so many white eyes staring at me, time seems to have almost come to an absolute halt.
The hourglass turns again as the stranger looks away from me and nods at Libretto.What was that?
“You’re hired.” Libretto turns and goes back to his ridiculous throne. The stranger remains where he stands, narrowing his eyes at me.
