The Revolution of the Neverending Night

9. The forest's God

 -I'm not sure how you think I can help, Sera. I...- Alucard's voice fades slowly as he recalls the twins; the scar of that betrayal still aches within him—the things they did to him and what he had to do to them.

-Why do you help humans? Why do you protect these superstitious and selfish beings who only think of destroying each other?- The dhampir gapes, uncertain of what to say. His mother had been his great influence in childhood, shaping his beliefs. 

But then all those good and generous people he had met over the years came to mind. The elderly woman who tried to save his mother, Trevor, Sypha, Greta, the humans of the village, his sons' and daughters' partners...

-Not all humans are bad, selfish, or superstitious. Besides, their lives are different from ours. They are fragile, mortal. Do you think you would see the world the same way if you knew your life would last only a few decades?

The angel stares at him, thoughtfully, her eyes reflecting the faint light of the eclipse like a crocodile lurking for unsuspecting prey. 

After some awkward seconds, she finally averts her gaze.

-If you hate humans, why risk your life to save them?- the blonde asks tentatively. 

In these days, he has realized that Seraphiel's character is extremely strange, volatile. For some reason, he suspects she is torn between two opposing feelings corroding her from within.

-Because I hate Sekhmet even more.- Her gaze darkens, filled with hatred. -She could have saved Kamau, could have given him back to me, but she didn't. She was always capricious, arbitrary, bloodthirsty. And she let him die on the battlefield, alone, scared, suffering. That damn monster... she doesn't deserve to live.-

-And you don't think anybody deserves to die like that, right?- Another assumption, but this time he tries to hit a sensitive nerve of the celestial being. -Not everyone deserves to die alone, scared, and suffering, like Kamau died. That's why we must stop her.-

The angel remains silent, an indescribable expression on its face. After a while, which Alucard is unsure whether it's been minutes or hours, she transforms back into a woman and shakes off the dust from her clothes, in a gesture more compulsive than practical.

-What or who is Cerunnos?- the dhampir, who until then had been staring at the night sky, tilts his head and looks at her curiously.

-He is the stag god, guardian of the forests and wild animals. We need him so that his army of beasts can help us contain the vampires and to help us find Hecate, the only one who knows where the hell Ra, Sekhmet's father, is. That damn twisted goat.- She snorts and rolls her eyes.

-Why does only she know? And why can't we find Ra or Hecate directly?- the man mutters, slightly annoyed. He doesn't understand why so much distraction is necessary when they should be figuring out how to fight against that infernal beast.

-Ra is an arrogant lazybones. If not, he would already be here, putting his unruly daughter in line. But he knows that there are many beings who want to attack him, including Apophis, so he stays hidden in the solar barge. There is only one way to reach him from this world, and only Hecate knows it.-

-And Cerunnos?-

-Hecate is almost as distrustful as she is treacherous. She doesn't want anyone ever to know where she is, fears the attacks of other deities who can see through her manipulations. But Cerunnos has been her lover for a long time, knows her very well. He will know how to get to her.-

-But Cerunnos won't want to tell us where she is so easily, right?- Seraphiel scratches her forehead with discomfort, but doesn't answer. 

Instead, she crouches down to trace strange symbols in the earth, murmuring something unintelligible in Enochian. Alucard, by her side, watches cautiously as the magic circle glows gently, with a soft greenish light.