I was back on Dome Rock.
The sun had not yet risen. Kingsley and Allison were asleep in the bungalow.
It had been hours after the ordeal in the mausoleum.
God, had I really cut off his head?
I had. Or, rather, the thing that lived within me had.
No, it had been me. I had made a point to squeeze the life out of Conner Thurman - or the thing that animated Conner Thurman. I had made the decision to remove his head.
He'd threatened Anthony. He had been going to kill Anthony.
Consume Anthony, in fact.
Yes, I had cut off his head, and I would do so a thousand more times if I had to.
The rain had finally dissipated. The ocean beyond seemed relatively calm. I could even see stars peeking through the thin cloud layer.
Before me were both medallions: the opal medallion that I had plucked from the ocean's depths, and the amethyst medallion that had once been embedded within my chest. Each glittered dully, catching whatever ambient light there was.
My chest had healed marvelously. Not even a scar.
"Penny for your thoughts," said a voice behind me.
I gasped, turning. I hadn't heard anyone approach, and my inner alarm had failed to notify me of danger. Standing behind was, of course, the young Librarian. The alchemist. He was wearing jeans and a sweater and shoes that didn't seem appropriate for a hike up Dome Rock.
"I'm sorry to startle you, Samantha Moon."
"How did you get here?"
"The ferries are running again."
"How did you know I was here?"
He smiled and walked around me and stood over the two medallions. "I, too, am intricately linked to these guys."
"Because you created them."
"Yes. Do you mind if I sit?"
"It's a big rock," I said.
He chuckled and sat before me. A small wind blew steadily over us. His short hair didn't move. Neither did his clothing.
"There's some weird shit going on," I said.
"Yes, I imagine so."
"Why am I connected to the medallions?"
"I don't know, Sam, but I suspect it's a combination of many things."
"What things?"
"The vampire who first created you, for one. He was one of the oldest...and perhaps even one of the most powerful."
"I don't understand."
"Knowledge and power is always transferred through blood, Samantha. It is the carrier of all information, all knowledge. Have you not noticed that those around you, and those blood-related to you, are growing in power?"
"Yes."
"He infused you with his own knowledge, his own power. Sam, you have abilities you've not yet tapped into."
"I don't want them. I just want to be normal."
"That might still be possible."
I looked at him sharply. "What do you mean?"
He picked up the medallions. "I created these medallions, Samantha, to help someone like you find normalcy again."
"But they also do unspeakable harm," I said.
He nodded sadly. "There was an unforeseen consequence of the medallions, I'll admit."
"As long as they are in existence, my son will always be in danger."
"I cannot deny that, Sam. At least, if all four are in existence. However, they can also give back the normalcy you seek."
"So, my two choices are either normalcy for me or danger to my son."
He nodded once.
"That's not an acceptable option to me," I said.
"Then destroy one, Samantha Moon, and the medallions can never again be used for evil."
I nodded. I had been thinking the same thing. I touched the opal medallion. "What will this one do?" I asked.
"That one will remove your need to feast on blood."
"And the fourth medallion, the one that hangs from Fang's neck?"
Archibald Maximus, the young-looking guy with the old man's name, nodded.
"Yes...the diamond medallion."
"What will it do?"
"A very interesting medallion, indeed."
I waited. Seagulls circled high above.
Something small and undoubtedly furry scurried in the brush at the edge of the dome.
"If you'll recall, the ruby medallion reversed vampirism within your son."
I nodded. "Mostly."
He smiled. "The amethyst medallion gave you the ability to exist in the sun."
"Mostly."
"The opal medallion would remove your need for blood."
"We'll see."
"The diamond medallion grants the user, in effect, all three."
"What do you mean?"
"Once the diamond medallion is invoked, Samantha, one would have all the powers of the vampire, without the shortcomings. One would, in effect, have it all."
"Immortality, too?" I asked.
He nodded. "And great power, great strength, everything you currently enjoy.
Without that which you don't. It is, in effect, the answer to your prayers."
"Why make only one?" I asked.