Through Blood by Fate

Man of the Cloth

Arriving at the airport and taking the first shuttle to the middle of the city struck the three in very different ways. Rosalina seemed to float in awe at the surreal atmosphere around her, entranced by the language and sights that danced all around. Like watching a dream play out, she marveled as if the daylight reflected off buildings and the sun sat in the sky entirely differently than back home. Ward bounced with energy that kept him hanging on every scent he crossed paths with; in a place like Italy, anything you might have had before was on a whole new level.

Jade enjoyed the pair's reactions to her homeland despite never being able to take pleasure in the same things they were now. Phantom nervously padded beside Jade as he adjusted to not being in a carrier anymore. Mentally, Jade regarded how his comfort would come in time, whereas hers, she feared, might never occur. With every alleyway or every face Jade's woeful eyes scanned, she resisted the urge to hurriedly get this whole ordeal over with.

They walked from the center of town to where the old cathedral was. Even if it had been so many years, Jade knew her clan would never have moved. She could still picture the layers of settled dust on the church pews without much effort, like it was yesterday. Getting closer, the weighted chime of the cathedral bell rang.

***

Jacopa could recall that night, the way Gabriel had compelled her to follow him through the city streets. Though she'd been in a daze, she still remembered the fear and sickness in her gut, knowing she had killed someone. A series of chimes signaling the early hour rang out, growing louder the closer they got. Any stray thought of Gabriel ticked at her like claws sinking deeper into her flesh and heart, dragging her back.

Though the church she'd come to with Gabriel, just minutes after draining a man of his blood, was still running, it looked as though not many people visited anymore. Treading through the center aisle by candlelight and moonlight, the wood looked worn and aged; dust was undisturbed on the pews. Slick, filth-riddled hair fell into Jacopa's face as she looked down, wishing not to be noticed by anyone. A craning man stepped past a pillar with eyes resting on Gabriel and her as they passed. His eyes were full of emeralds and sapphires, while the rest of him looked as if he could melt into the shadows. The man was dressed all in black, much like Gabriel. The man stood idle as they approached the podium and entered the open doorway beyond it.

"Who are you?" Jacopa asks after several minutes of silence, trying not to let the question shake as it comes out. He had given his name but not why they were there. As she thought on it, the only thing was to assume he had a form of persuasion over her because one minute she couldn't bear the idea of following him, and the next she was. Even before entering the main doors, there seemed to be a darkness surrounding this church that she would never have gone near willingly.

"Your maker, I already told you. I suppose it's easier to say I'm the only maker in this coven. No one here is above me." In this way, he sounded like he expected her to call him master. "It's not something to be bitter about. As I said before, you can call me Gabriel." He says coaxingly, taking her in further; they eventually enter a circular room full of lit torches. There are three paths to which she tells herself to remember the middle one as the one they use. The path heads into a large pillared room with a single throne-like chair in the far back just before a balcony staircase. Over 20 men standing and talking instantly grow silent and stare at them. Each pair of eyes had the most pure and wholesome eye colors she had ever seen. Even Gabriel has an opal look to his naturally grey irises.

It wasn't even ten minutes in, and the depth of trouble she felt being surrounded by men was enormous. Looking around, Jacopa was unsure what would happen next. Engrossed in her surroundings, Jacopa quickly loses sight of the throne. She circles on her heels to see Gabriel, leaving the room behind a door she hadn't noticed just beyond the throne against the wall under the balcony. Attempting to follow, she is ushered back by two men who stand in front of the door. Left there, it is clear Gabriel was no kind leader, yet the thought of leaving the way she came made her shake with pain. Among sneers and bitter words whispered about her being such a ragged and weak-looking girl, she took a seat on the steps, choosing not to appear daunted by the circumstance. Like schoolboys near her home, she felt it best not to engage with anyone before it was clear who, if any, were of similar character.