Novel excerpts.
p. 74:
Tres strode past the shocked mother and child. He noticed that they both had a thin layer of gloss on their hands and arms from where they had wrestled the nurse.
“UV protection gel?” Tres asked the slumping vampire. “Are you Fleur de Mal?”
The vampire spat at him.
Tres lifted the Methuselah by the neck, taking a good look at the protective sheen on the nurse’s skin. UV gel could completely block ultraviolet radiation from the sun. While wearing it, a vampire could walk around in normal society, unnoticed. Humans had banned the substance years ago, and only the Vatican had any in stock these days.
p. 101:
“But I have not given up on living. I can’t hide from my sins. If I give in, I’ll be nothing more than a monster. But I choose to live as a man. I choose to live with the burden.”
p. 107:
Vampire travelogues gave Asthe a general idea of what the Venetian Carnival was, but upon actually seeing it, she thought it was a ridiculous event. Asthe couldn’t understand the Terran; she didn’t understand the appeal of drinking all day and night for ten straight days.
[…]
In Asthe's homeland, daily business started when the sun set. Here, however, the day began with the dawn.
p. 114:
She snatched the moonstone ring from his open palm. It was easy for her to make out all its laser-etched intricacies. The base’s design depicted two moons, one large and one small-the symbol of the New Human Empire. (…) Only nobles were allowed to have such a ring.
p. 131:
Asthe leapt like a lioness and ran along the sidewalls of the mansion’s exterior, her movements too fast for the human eye.
Vampires could “hasten” their bodies for short periods of time. They stimulated their body’s nervous system until it kicked into overdrive. By doing so, they increased their speed tenfold. For example, back in the office, Asthe had swung her sword down fast enough to break the sound barrier.
Her weapon, the Sword of Gae Bolg, had been a Kiev family heirloom. The sword was a plasma jet system with xenon gas ionized by a laser that streamed out from a vacuum core. The high-temperature-high-density plasma could slice through anything; it was the ultimate weapon. One of the relics found from the Empire’s lost technology, this was the strongest close-combat weapon recovered.
p. 139-140:
The New Human Empire-the largest territory that vampires controlled-was the only non-human nation on the planet. With an abundance of vampires who possessed technologically advanced weaponry, the Empire was quite dangerous.
To the Vatican, the paragon of humanity, the Empire was a threatening enemy. Both nations were embroiled in a centuries-long Cold War. They had not clashed head-on, but it was sure to happen someday. The Vatican’s mission was to prepare for such a conflict.
Caterina Sforza boldly moved to create a mutually beneficial diplomatic pipeline with the rival nation. If found out by her peers, it would mean death by firing squad for her.
[…]
Even so, Cardinal Caterina hazarded the risk because she knew of a third, more deadly enemy. Once the world learned of it, humans and vampires alike would tremble in its wake.
[…]
It was all over now. There had been open fighting during Carnival. It had been a colossal failure. Is it my fault? Am I to blame for trusting a vampire to value human lives?
p. 145:
“So, Terran also mourn death?” she asked.
“Yes. We’re very similar in that respect. We laugh when we are happy. We cry when we are sad. And sometimes, we act out of revenge. We are no different,” Abel said.
p. 146:
Asthe was taken aback by this Terran. She wanted to hug him, but she didn’t know how that vampire custom would go over in the Vatican’s world. So she stuck out her hand and offered it to Abel.
p. 151-152:
“Endre committed genocide against the Terran, that’s what he’s notorious for, yes. But he was exiled from the Empire because he was guilty of treason. Don’t you see? (…) He was secretly trying to start a war between the Empire and the Vatican. That’s why Augusta banished him.”
“What does that have to do with the Saint Mark Mass?” Abel asked.
“Stupid, don’t you see?!” Asthe yelled in disgust, then collected herself. “Endre wants the Empire to start a war, but Augusta is firmly against it. He couldn’t persuade her to invade. But there is more than one way to start a war.”
p. 156:
“Caterina is visiting the tide gate as we speak.”
“We have to get to her now!” Asthe yelled. “She’s in mortal danger, especially if she’s at the tide gate.”
The red laser dot on her cheek disappeared.
“Explain,” Tres commanded.
p. 159:
“Zazazoo, Zazazoo, Nasatanada, Zazazoo.”
p. 175-176:
“Good job, Duchess.” The obscured image of Augusta, Empress of the New Human Empire, looked down from her floating throne. Her electronically altered voice vibrated throughout in the royal chambers. “Duchess of Odessa, you mentioned a collaborator from the Outer World. How was he?” the empress asked.
“What do you mean by that, Empress?” Asthe responded with a question of her own.
Augusta noticed that her shoulders quivered momentarily. “I’m asking if he was helpful. You expressed favorable thoughts about him in the report, no?”
“N-no! Just that, for a Terran, he was useful. If you wish, shall I add m-more details to the r-report?” Asthe stammered.
“No, that’s not necessary. I do not want to burden you with any more work. Excellent job. You are dismissed,” Augusta said finally.
“Yes, Your Highness! As you wish.” Asthe bowed.
Once the tall Duchess of Odessa left the royal chambers, the lonely room’s soft lights grew stronger, illuminating the small figure of a young girl. She stretched out and spoke in her real voice. “So he’s still on the humans’ side? Then maybe I shouldn’t pick a fight with the Vatican. One of him, we could overcome…but two of them? That would be troublesome.”
A green-eyed teenager sat on the throne. Her bobbed brunette hair trimmed her pretty face; she had long, skinny arms and legs; her energetic expression was cat-like in nature. The girl, Empress Augusta Vradica, took off her large hat and draped herself across her floating throne.
“He sure hasn’t changed. He’s still honoring his lost lover’s wish and siding with the Terran. I don’t understand it, but somehow he’s popular with the girls. He needs to take a new lover already. I highly recommend Astharoshe. If I were a boy, I’d go after her for sure,” Augusta said.
The royal chamber’s interior design depicted a Canadian landscape before the Armageddon: a nostalgic, lush green forest. The smell of chlorophyll and the chirping birds were soothing.
“Oh, what should I do?” The little girl sighed. Eventually, she fell into a restful sleep. A small songbird perched on her chest, which rose and fell in a gentle rhythm.
p. 195:
The cut was sharp and clean, right through one of few weak points a Methuselah had: the cervical vertebrae. Even the ageless, almost immortal vitality of the Methuselah would not survive such an attack.
FROM THE EMPIRE extra:
You, who controls
the night
Hidden inside the
lovely girl’s body
Is it a diabolic,
horrendous monster
Or the maternal love
that surrounds
everything?