The Division of the Damned (37 page)

As he addressed the men, he started to undo the buckles on the satchel. "As you know, the Book of Blood has been stored in my library these past months now.”

"I didn’t know that,” puzzled Nau softly. Gruhn shrugged in answer.

"The problem started because the Book corrupts everything in its immediate vicinity. After a while I noticed that certain ancient scriptures, scrolls and other items in my library were falling into an advanced state of disrepair. I realised it was down to the corrosive influence of the Book
, so I asked the
Grand M
aster if
we could store the book in a special room.
” He spat on the floor to show his derision.
“
There is an incantation that renders the walls of a room impervious to the book’s influence but the room must be empty. Regrettably, t
he
Grand M
aster decided to send the book to Berlin as a present to Himmler.”

"So where is it now?
In Berlin?" Schneiderat broke in.

The old man smiled and tapped the unopened satchel
.
"No, I stole it and came here.
You
need the Book, not Himmler.” He produced the volume from his satchel and le
a
nt back with the satisfied air of a man who has just finished a significant task.

It lay on the table before him. Nobody moved to touch it but everyone stared at its ancient hide cover. Immediately
,
the varnish on the table around the book cracked and turned a sickly shade of grey.

"It doesn’t look much," Schneiderat said finally.

"Is that what all the girls say, Andreas?” Nau enquired.

"At least the girls get to see it, Matze
.” H
e smiled back and a brittle, uneasy laugh channelled through them all.

Michael didn’t feel comfortable with the banter and he moved forward to study the book's cover. Czerolka picked up the Book. "Brother von der Heyde, I present you with the
Cronica Insangerata
, or as you know it, the
Book of Blood
. You should put it in an empty room so I can make the proper incantations. It really is as mordant as I said. If any of you have questions, I would be more than obliged to answer them for you.”

Michael nodded but didn’t move to take the Book from him. The last time he’d handled it had been at Marienberg and the sense of revulsion for the Book had still not left him.

"I’ve got a question." It was Grand. "Why did you steal the book? We know what we have to do so we don’t need it, and your boss could spoil
everything by reporting its loss to Himmler.”

The librarian nodded and put the Book back down on the table.

"And how do you plan to tempt the demon Lilith to fight you, boy?” Czerolka admonished him caustically
.
"W
ith marching songs and the promise of a quickie behind the stables?
Ha! For that you’ll need the Book. She wants it back because her powers are in direct relation to the Book. She needs the Book just to survive.”

Berndt stoically took the rebuke with as much grace as he could. Clearing his thro
at he asked, "And the G
rand
Wizard, or M
aster, or whatever he’s called, won’t he inform Berlin that you’ve stolen the book and you’ve made your way here?”

"The
Grand M
aster
,”
he spat again, "won’t say anything to Himmler. He’s too scared that Heini will be angry with him for its loss." He turned to look Bernd in the eye and his vo
ice took on a conciliatory tone.
"No
,
lad
.
T
here is no danger of Berlin hearing of its absence. The Order would sooner turn Jewish rather than admit a failing to Himmler. The only danger is if Himmler asks about the Book. He knows about it but he thinks it’s with the Order. If he starts getting greedy he might ask for it and then we are all in trouble.”

Grand nodded and Nau stepped forward
.
"Old man, I just wanted to say that that was the first time I’ve seen big Bernd Grand being called a boy. You’re the bravest librarian I’ve ever met.”

Czerolka’s face, which had been frozen in its customary scowl, suddenly cracked and he cackled like an old witch. The laugh was contagious and the sombre atmosphere was momentarily relieved.

Michael waited for the laughing to stop before putting his own question forward. "Brother Czerolka, before I addressed the Brothers at Marienberg, you told me of a few requisites for the mission, but you never explained the reasons for these conditions. The silver weapons I understood, the bringing of the Dracyl’s brother made sense too, but why must we only march with ten men against an army?”

"Isn’t it obvious, Michael?” he answered.

"Well, no, to be honest. It makes no sense to me at all. The whole plan makes sense up to a certain point. I just don’t understand why we can only march with ten men and not as many as we can find.”

Nodding his head, he answered. "Symbolism, Brother Michael. It’s all symbolism. How many names are there in the
Book of Blood
?
Ten.
There are ten names that signify the end of a curse and the renewal of the old ways. Have you explained this to them?" He nodded at the squad.

"Yes, the numerology was explained.”

"And promptly forgotten,” Nau muttered to Gruhn
.

"Gentlemen, make no mistake, you are fighting evil in the truest sense of the word. Your only protection lies in magic and belief." He
paused to look to see if they were listening. They were. "The magic is in the silver swords and the
Book of Blood
. The very fact that your enemy is a vampire dictates that you must turn to the supernatural to destroy him. You must be aware that normal rules do not apply. This An
ti-Christ is not just Communism. T
his is the Beast and he was roaming the earth before the usurper cult called Christianity was even thought of.”

"So what has that got to do with the number of men called to kill the bloodsuckers?" Gruhn asked nobody in particular.

Czerolka ignored him. "Ten is the number of names in the
Book of Blood
. To mirror this list of ten names, we have in the Bible the ten generations. That is the ten patriarchs of the Antediluvian age. From Adam to Noah there are ten named patriarchs. These names are of the same period as the first names in the
Book of Blood
. They are Adam, Seth, Enos, Cainan, Mahaleel, Jared, Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech and Noah. You will represent these ten biblical patriarchs of the Antediluvian age.”

"Which one am I?” Wolfgang asked, triggering a ripple of laughter.

"It’s not the names that are important, it’s the numbers present. We want to mirror the Dracyl’s Book with numbers from the Bible.” He took in their blank faces and resignedly pressed on. "Also in the Bible, in the story of Sodom and Gomorrah, we have the Ten Righteous.”

"I’ve
heard about Sodom and Gomorrah.
” Gruhn smirked.

"I’m sure you have, but the point is that God was willing to spare the judgement of Sodom and Gomorrah if ten righteous people could be found therein. You could compare the world under vampire rule with Sodom and Gomorrah and thus you would be the ten righteous people. God will come to your aid to save the world from the iniquity of a demon’s reign.”

Once again the blank faces stared him down, with only Michael showing any comprehension. He turned to Michael. "Finally, what is the tenth line of the
Oratio Dominica
?”

Michael thought for a moment.
"
Sed libera nos a malo
.”

Smith asked what they were all thinking
.
"What on earth is the
Oratio Dominica
?”

Czerolka looked up from the Book to study Smith from his seat.

"So the Dracyl finally speaks,
" he slyly mocked. Smith fleetingly considered rising to the bait but let it
slide
. "Don’t you recognise the line, Englishman? Didn’t you ever go to church?"

"Old man, from the age of six onwards, every Sunday was Church Parade. But the service was conducted in English. Latin is only used by the Catholic denomination of which I am not.”

”Tell me, then, if you would be so kind, what the tenth line of the
Lord’s Prayer
is?" The old man studied him as Smith tried to remember the litany.

Unsure but goaded to answer by his pride, Smith stammered, "
And
deliver
us from evil
.”

"Correct
.
S
o you’re not the Anti-Christ I thought you were after all.” The sarcasm was beginning to tell on Smith but he doggedly held his tongue.

"So why do you think the number of soldiers needed to destroy the Dracyl, I
mean your brother
, is ten?” He sat back and muttered loudly for all to hear. "This should be very interesting, the opinion of a defector."

Smith pondered the question and threw a question back, "Why are you asking me
,
old man
?
Are you too senile to remember the answer yourself? Would I be right in assuming that ten is probably the highest number you can comprehend?”

A long silence drew out as the two eyed each other. Nobody spoke but all were conscious of the deep enmity that the
l
ibrarian held for the Dracyl bloodline. Only Smith seemed unaware and held his gaze until Czerolka snorted and turned to the rest.

"The tenth line in the
Oratio Dominica
is
Sed libera nos a malo
. Deliver us from evil. This line is the amulet you will wear to brave the demon hordes. That is the true magic of this battle. Your belief will be your keenest weapon.”

Michael looked at the lost faces of the squad. Czerolka saw their doubt as well and decided to elaborate
.
"The Dracyl and Lilith were cursed by Gods who don’t exist anymore. They died with their religion. As the people stopped worshipping them their power faded to nothing. Lilith and the Dracyl are held to their curse only by their own belief in the authority of the old Gods. That is the power, or the problem, of faith.
 
We worship the one God. Our faith must be pure and unbridled if we are to destroy the Dracyl. Believe in God and he will deliver when the time is come. The line,
Deliver us from evil
, is written in your numbers and your belief." He looked around at the men and repeated again, "
Deliver us from evil
.”

Nau dou
btfully put his hand up to speak.
"I realise what you’re saying but I’ve never even been in a church. How can I believe in something that I don’t even know about?”

"You’v
e never been in a church?" the l
ibrarian enquired, shocked.

"No, my parents were both Party members from the beginning and they saw no reason in going to church. They’re the reason I joined the SS.”

"And I thou
ght it was to cuddle with Matze,
" Wolfgang s
aid with a s
nigger. The old man held up his hand for silence
.
"Tell me one thing. Do you believe that there is a God?” He turned to them all
.
"Do you all believe in God, because if your faith is brittle, then your sword arm will be weak and you will
fail.
Without conviction the words will be lost in the
wind.”

Nobody answered at first.
I
t was Schneiderat who broke the silence. "I believe. I always have, and now in the face of what we’re going to do b
attle with,
I believe more than ever.”

Wolfgang was next
.
"So do
I
.” One by one they confirmed to the
l
ibrarian their belief. Only Smith and Nau remained silent.

"Englishman
.
"
Smith noted tha
t he didn’t use the word Dracyl. "Y
ou haven’t answered. Do you believe?”

"I have seen the evil so you don’t need to ask me, old man. I believe because if there is no God, we are doomed in the truest form of the word." Nobody batted an eyelid at the theatrical nature of his answer and Czerolka nodded before turning to Nau.

"And you, young man. Can you believe?”

"I don’t know," was his answer to their insistent looks.

Czerolka nodded.
"Very well.
Your honesty in the matter is a good sign. We must be ready to face the Dracyl on the 22nd of December, the Winter Solstice. That’s the shortest day of the year and thus for the Dracy
l the best time to take on the S
un
God
that cursed him. So we still have time to convince you, and if all else fails I’ll go in your place.”