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“That’s how you knew we were in Denvato?” I asked.
He nodded, meeting my eyes and leaning closer, but then he stood up to face out through the windows, as if he realized he was being too intimate.
“I’m taking a chance on you, Emily. Flipping a coin. Because I know what happens if I do nothing. Humanity dies out. There will be no children to marvel at my silly tricks. No awe or reverence for education that dispels the unknown. Nothing but ancient vampires in young, handsome bodies, their eyes dead. Surprised or entertained by nothing, squeezing out every last drop of humanity until there is none left, and all our thousands of years of creative work, sits there abandoned; absolutely useless and without meaning. You’ve given me a dark gift, Emily, something I thought I’d lost a long time ago, something I never thought I’d feel again.”
“And that is?” I asked, standing to join him.
“Hope. Not a trick. Not sleight of hand or an illusion to be spoiled. Real, genuine, optimism. It feels like cotton candy in my soul. It’s more dizzying than blood, more intoxicating than oxygen, and just as flammable.”
“I heard once, hope is like water,” I said. “Just as precious and vital. Maybe for both humans and elite.”
He nodded thoughtfully, crossing his arms behind his back. Through the window, a small balcony looked out over the precipitous drop to the street level. Through the window, the pulsing music below was nearly silent. It was easy to imagine him standing here, in a hundred years, when the streets were truly empty, all alone forever.
“I haven’t made a meaningful bet in a long time,” he turned towards me, his expression raw and eager, “because there hasn’t been anything worth risking for. If I’m a collector, a purveyor of the entertainment industry, maybe helping humanity preserve its culture is a valiant step… but only if they survive. That’s a future I can embrace. My name remembered. Passing on the legacy of everything I’ve preserved. No doubt making a fortune in the process.”
“So, you’ll help us?” I pressed.
“That depends on what you’re asking. Look at it this way, you’ve already got soldiers, snipers, and explosives. But that’s not enough. As I understand it, you barely made it out of Iklebot, and Denvato was even worse for you. I’m sorry about that, by the way. So let’s play out the scenarios.”
“One, you roll up during the day. Blow a hole in the wall. Fight through a thousand soldiers… Nope that’s out. Sneak the bomb inside somehow, kill all the vamps? Nah, they don’t all sleep together. Too many casualties. If not during the day, then you go in at night. That’s option two. But even if we helped you, a few more elite won’t even the odds. Not by a longshot. You need a magic wand.”
“What’s that mean, like a miracle?”
“No. Literally. You know what a magic wand is for, what it’sreallyfor? So you have a reason to go into your pockets. ‘Let me put away my wand; now I’ll bring the wand back.’ Give them a plausible excuse for what you’re doing and they won’t question it; they won’t ask to look inside your palm and see what else you’re hiding. They’re looking over here,” he flicked his palm far to the left, “when the real trick is taking place over here.”
“My dress doesn’t have pockets,” I frowned.
“It’s a metaphor, but I’ll add that to your Christmas list.”
“So we need a distraction. Like the bees we used to get into Algrave… never mind.”
“A bit of sleight of hand,” he nodded. “An illusion, a trick.”
“Isn’t the bomb a distraction?”
“Only if it isn’t useful,” he sighed. “If you use it as part of your actual strategy, the bomb will be the war cry, an announcement of your presence and purpose, that will draw everyone together and begin the battle.”
“Sure, it might be a way inside for your main forces, if you’re lucky. But as soon as you use it, they’ll know you’re there. And it should be used during the day, when the elite need to hide from the sun. But then, any teeth I bring to your aid will be out of play. And if we wait until dark, we’ll be outnumbered ten to one.”
“Oh. Right.”
“Even if you somehow had superior forces, even if you tried to burn the whole citadel down, the elite would just escape over the walls. Unless you also had a way to keep them inside.”
“But how, the elite can jump as high as the walls, I’ve seen it.”
“Yes, that’s correct.” He smiled knowingly.
“What?” I asked.
“Well we’ve identified the problem you need help with, or rather, I have. I’ve also thought of a rather clever solution. It’ll be risky though, and dangerous.”
“What is it?”
“We can discuss the details in a moment, let’s give it a minute to settle, so you can see its value.”
“Why?” I asked.
“Right now we’re just trading information, and information isn’t free. I’ve found something you need and figured out a way to give it to you. Do you have anything similar to offer?”
