Eternal Sanctuary

by Sela Croft

  The humans continued down the steep path and welcomed the aid of my troops. With their assistance, it was possible they’d make it to the bottom. That depended on not alerting Alban’s monsters, whom I hoped were holed up in their barracks like slumbering bears.

  Quin and I continued toward the palace with a band of soldiers. I marveled at how Mirela had managed to free the servants. Yet, if they were to live much longer, I’d need to ensure that Alban didn’t have a chance to get to them.

  My mind ran wild with what might be going on inside the palace. I didn’t understand why there were no guards posted along the parapet. As I crept closer, I prayed that Mirela was unharmed.

  At last, we reached the palace walls then moved toward the back where the escape tunnel was. Curtis had described its location well, so it wasn’t difficult to spot. The opening was behind large boulders that were covered with ice.

  Inside the palace, we were met with silence. We navigated the stairs without running into a single guard. Once I was in the hallway, I sensed Mirela and knew she wasn’t far. I began to move in that direction but was overcome with a strange sensation.

  Alban’s presence seemed strong, and I perceived his power. But something was off. It was different than I’d experienced before. Concerned, I flagged my men to move faster. I thought of Mirela facing the evil king, and adrenaline flooded my veins.

  Before turning a corner, I stopped. It was Mirela’s voice. “Your display of power is magnificent. But you haven’t begun to reach your limits.”

  The hallway glowed as if electrified. Whatever the power being emanated, it was strong. Mirela kept talking to the king, flattering and encouraging him. I didn’t believe for a second that she had changed her opinion of him. But I had no doubt that the king was soaking in the admiration.

  “No god can outdo me now,” Alban said. “I have the ultimate power. It’s all I’ve been missing. The kingdom is mine.”

  I’d heard the king’s ranting many times, but he sounded like a raving lunatic. The brightness in the hall increased to a nearly blinding level. I feared for Mirela, so I peeked around the corner. Energy pulsed around her, and I deduced that Alban was in a manic state.

  The king waved his hands furiously, then barked at his guards, “Out of my sight! I don’t need you. My strength cannot be challenged.”

  The guards began to scurry away, apparently unwilling to question the mighty king. Mirela would be alone with Alban looming over her. I waved my men forward, then fighting broke out as soon as the guards became aware of our presence.

  While my soldiers engaged in battle, and Quin fought alongside them, I raced toward Mirela. A beefy guard blocked my path and brandished his sword. I yanked the whip from my belt and snapped it around his neck. While he was down, I plunged my sword into his chest.

  Another guard leapt toward me, but I dodged. When he spun to attack, I jumped and kicked both feet into his gut. The force knocked him back without taking him to the floor. But in the split second that he was thrown off, I dug my knife into his heart.

  While the fighting continued behind me, I levitated then flew toward my love. The heat and light surrounding her was intense. Alban was shouting, but Mirela looked at him calmly. She was like a marionette dangling a puppet on a string.

  Alban continued to spout insanities, while Mirela egged him on. Whatever she was doing had clearly affected the king. He appeared to be in a trance, high on his own power. But I was intent on rescuing Mirela, before his monsters heard the ruckus and descended upon us.

  Chapter 23 – Draven

  Before Alban’s monsters realized what was going on inside the palace, I had to get Mirela out. It was fortunate that the Royal Army wasn’t capable of making independent decisions. The monster forces had been trained to wait for their king to command them. If he didn’t give an order, they might not take action—the downside of creating an utterly subservient army.

  The energy that filled the room seemed as if it was too much for the space. Light pulsed, growing ever brighter. I witnessed the effect Mirela had on Alban, although I wasn’t sure exactly what she’d done. Her attention was focused on the king, so she didn’t look my way.

  There was one guard standing close to Alban, wide-eyed at his performance. The king was shouting, but most of it was unintelligible. The light of the room made his white hair glow, and energy seemed to radiate around him like a full-body aura.

  The king’s blood-red eyes were as shiny as rubies, and his parchment skin looked translucent. He stood tall, almost godlike, surveying the room. It was a frightening sight, for I had not seen him in such a state before. I stared at him, wondering if he’d even notice if I crossed the room to Mirela—since he was so engrossed in what he was doing.

  Mirela had her hands held out toward the king and didn’t take her eyes off him. I took a step toward her, but my motion caught the king’s attention. The guard focused on me, so I stopped. He was closer to Mirela, and I didn’t want to give him a chance to reach her before I did.

  Alban looked at me, and his face contorted with rage. “You have the nerve to enter my palace! You are not my son anymore. I will take your life, as surely as I’d take that of any enemy.”

  “I’ve come for Mirela,” I said. “She can’t survive in this putrid place. You have no right to detain her.”

  “You dare to defy me,” the king said. “You don’t realize my power. You never did. You’ll be sorry for that; I promise you.”

  I took another step toward Mirela, but I was still too far away. The guard leered at me.

  “Let her go,” I said to Alban. He was in an unpredictable mood, with wild, staring eyes. I had to save Mirela before it was too late.

  “I will never let her go!” Alban shouted. “Her sorcery is mine. She promised it to me. You cannot have her, and it won’t matter anyway. My guard will see that you don’t leave my palace. You’ve lost, my pitiful son.”

  I judged the distance to Mirela, wondering if I could get to her before the guard did his worst. “You’ve misjudged the situation. I will leave here with my love. You cannot stop me.”

  “Mirela is mine!” Alban yelled. “She taught me how to do sorcery; she dispelled the lies. You see for yourself what she has enabled me to do.”

  In a flash, I understood what Mirela had accomplished. The king believed that he was capable of sorcery, and Mirela was manipulating him without his knowledge. Her eyes didn’t leave the king. She clearly intended to stand there for as long as she was needed.

  While the king believed he was performing magic, he was distracted from all else that was going on in his palace. Yet I knew in my heart that continuing this fiasco would destroy Mirela. I witnessed the magical energy spiraling upward, out of control. But still she pushed him, maybe beyond tolerance.

  Alban behaved like a madman, waving his hands and shouting. Random objects flew into the air then crashed against the wall. Fire burst forth at the ceiling, only to disappear. Then the king called out, “You cannot harm me, Draven. I have created a shield to protect me. I’m impervious to attack.”

  I didn’t care a whit about Alban. I knew the king well enough to realize that he wouldn’t stop. Having tapped into the heady feel of power, he would crave more and more. He fancied that he was immensely strong and infallible.

  “I am all-powerful now,” Alban said. “I’ve been enlightened about what I’m capable of. Mirela gave me what I deserved, what is rightfully mine.”

  The guard stood motionless, watching. He remained closer to Mirela, while Alban kept his eyes on me. No matter how fast I moved, the guard would reach her first. And I had no idea what Alban might do next.

  The king was prideful about his accomplishments. His vanity had not been more apparent. He looked at Mirela with disdain, hardly evidence of the gratitude he should have felt for the gift of sorcery. Then his fangs distended, and his eyes narrowed.

  “I can see it in your eyes, hybrid,” the king said. “Despite your agreement with me, you’d leave
and go with Draven…if you could.”

  I prepared to move quickly; the situation had veered in the wrong direction.

  “You didn’t really think that I’d let you live, did you?” The king smirked. “Foolish woman. I possess my own sorcery now. I don’t need you anymore.”

  Mirela continued to watch the king. She seemed prepared to act, so I had to be sure that I got to her before anything bad happened. “There is more I can teach you, my king. Feel it within you…embrace it.”

  “You’re lying,” the king said. “It’s a feeble attempt to save yourself. Draven believes that you care for him, but self-preservation is your primary aim.”

  “Then let Draven walk away,” Mirela said. “And I will share all my magic with you.”

  “You cannot be trusted,” the king said. “You’ve revealed your true loyalty. And you must pay for taking my son away from me, for turning him against his king, his own father. I haven’t forgotten your role in making him believe that stupid prophecy.”

  “You are making a mistake,” Mirela said.

  Alban ignored her, then turned to face me. “I don’t have a use for Mirela anymore. I have all I need.” He lifted his hands. “I’ll kill her, as I planned from the start.”

  Mirela glanced at me, and I assessed the odds of getting to her before Alban could do her any harm. Then he thrust his hands toward her with a growl, and my heart sank. A bolt of energy shot through the air, aimed at Mirela.

  The force struck her in the head and she was thrown back, falling to the ground unconscious. I wouldn’t allow my love to die in death’s palace. I lurched toward her, but Alban yelled, with his eyes gleaming in anticipation of witnessing the execution.

  The remaining guard moved toward Mirela and lifted his sword, blocking my path to her. A split second could make the difference in whether she lived or died.

  The space was suffocating from the intense heat of sorcery unleashed. Power pulsed hard, and a wall cracked wide open from the surge of energy. It had split from the sheer force of Alban’s magic.

  Chunks of ice flew through the cracked wall and whipped around in the air currents. The heat radiating from Alban was instantly melting the ice, and the water level in the room rose swiftly.

  The icy water rushed over Mirela’s body, splashing her face, then her eyes opened. She awoke at the last second to flinch away from the sword before the guard decapitated her. Just as the room seemed on the verge of collapse from the duress, I leapt at Mirela’s attacker. With lightning speed, I closed the last few feet between us, then drove my sword into the guard’s back.

  His grip went slack on his weapon, and the sword clattered to the floor then slid over the watery surface. Mirela was dazed, yet conscious. She was in a weakened condition, so I grabbed her in my arms to flee with her.

  Alban emitted an insane laugh, in a world of his own, and on such a high from his newfound power that he hadn’t seemed to realize his guard was incapacitated. From the look on his face, death’s greatest advocate thought he’d won.

  With Mirela cradled in my arms, I dashed into the hallway. It was strewn with the bodies of palace guards. There was some commotion farther along, but it appeared my men had done their job.

  Quin strode toward me and waved his arm. “This way.”

  It was safe to exit, but there was no time to lose. Clutching Mirela to my chest, I flew with vampire speed out of the palace and carried her away. Whether any monsters pursued us, I couldn’t say. I didn’t stop or look back. The bottom of the hill beckoned, and safety for my love was within reach.

  I could see below that the humans had made it off the mountain. They grouped together behind a faction of my army. As I descended, the energy from the palace pulsed at my back. For expediency, I levitated, not trusting what was happening behind me.

  There was no sight of Alban’s monsters, and no indication of battle. My troops were deployed, ready to defend us. But I saw no sign of action.

  Mirela wrapped her arms around my neck and rested her head against my shoulder. I gripped her tighter, as if to reassure myself that she was there. I rejoiced at having her in my embrace, although we weren’t safe quite yet.

  At the base of the mountain, I joined my comrades. Mirela slid from my arms to stand beside me. She noticed others she knew. “Curtis…Emma.” The humans came over, and she hugged each in turn. “You made it out. Are the others safe too?”

  Curtis put his arm around his wife. “I’m indebted to you, Mirela. We escaped, and so did the rest.”

  Mirela smiled. “I’m immensely pleased.”

  Then Emma shoved a small trinket at her, and Mirela cupped it in her palms. It was Pegasus, her ivory pendant. “How did you find it?”

  “That first day, I saw the king drag you in. I watched him yank the chain from your neck,” Emma said. “When he left, I scooped it up. I thought you’d want it back.”

  “It’s precious to me,” Mirela said. “Thank you.”

  Then a loud boom drew attention back to the mountaintop. I put my arm around Mirela and looked up to see that the palace was glowing. Throngs of royal soldiers hovered near the fortified walls. The light was as bright as a sun, so must have alerted them.

  The black palace was electrified, with energy pulsing in an ever-widening sphere. I stared in awe, and Mirela pressed closer to me. “It seems your magic lingers.”

  “Yes,” Mirela said. “I cast a spell to temporarily give Alban sorcery power. It was my power transferred to him.”

  “So it won’t last?”

  “It was never truly his.” Mirela watched the mountain. “Once the energy gained full force, though, even I couldn’t control it.”

  I looked at her, with a sinking feeling. “You would have died.”

  “That was possible,” Mirela said, then touched my cheek. “But I’m very much alive…thanks to you, my love.”

  The brightness of the palace occluded the stars, and for several minutes the light was blinding. Soldiers of the Royal Army began to descend the mountain at a run, slipping and sliding on the icy surface. But it was too late.

  There was one explosion, then another. The palace shattered, bursting into shards of black, shooting across the sky in the moonlight. Concussions rumbled down the mountain, shaking its very core. Then, with one deafening sound, the top of the mountain collapsed.

  As if dynamite had been placed in strategic locations, the palace blew up first, then the mountain caved in with ice cascading down its slopes. I stared at the empty space that had been the royal estate, then gazed at the night sky where the top of the mountain had been.

  Avalanches of ice roared halfway down the mountain before slowing. The king was dead, and all his monsters with him. The palace had been obliterated, and death’s march halted. The last of the energy glowed like a burning ember then faded away.

  Chapter 24 – Epilogue

  For the first time in centuries, the kingdom of Lumea thrived during a time of peace. Draven Petrovic was welcomed with open arms as the king. There were several days of festivals following the coronation, during which the populace expressed great joy and celebrated their new ruler.

  The previously warring factions of the realm settled into an aimable existence. The rescue of the servants from Alban’s palace had created good sentiment among the human populace. Their race was treated with respect, and those who were employed in the kingdom did so willingly.

  The vampire hunters desire to wipe out the vampire race abated, as they claimed to be impressed with the new regime. Since they considered themselves more human than vampire, Mirela’s rescue of humankind had changed their view. For a while, at least, they held off on any attacks.

  Calina and Nicolai didn’t wait long to marry after the victory. The family they’d planned for so long would finally happen. Following their well-deserved honeymoon, Calina announced that she was expecting their first child.

  Silvain spent time between his castle and his mother’s home in the hills. He was finally able to get
to know her, and to establish a relationship with Erembour, who treated him like his own son. The dark leader spoke privately with Draven and confirmed that he recognized him as the new king. Silvain had no desire to rule as a monarch, but would continue to fight alongside his Dark Fighters against oppression—should any rear its head within the realm.

  Selene was officially recognized as the senior sorceress of the realm. She accepted the title with grace, although she spent the majority of her time in her magic forest. Nemuri was a revered seer, whose predictions were valued by all. She often visited the magic forest to have conversations with the animals and plants and to share visions of the future with her sorceress friend.

  Draven married Mirela in a lovely ceremony on the cliffs by the ocean. She wore a pale green lace dress, and a wreath of flowers in her hair. With friends and family in attendance, they spoke their vows to each other. Mirela had chosen the poem for the ceremony, one she particularly enjoyed.

  Under the moonlight, with stars glimmering in the night sky, the bride and groom spoke the romantic lines to each other.

  I take you my heart

  At the rising of the moon

  And the setting of the stars.

  To love and to honor

  Through all that may come

  During our time together.

  In all our lives,

  May we be reborn

  That we shall meet and know

  And love again.

  Draven wore an emerald-studded band on his ring finger to match Mirela’s wedding ring. When he kissed his bride, the crowd broke into song and dance. The bride and groom joined in with enthusiasm. Calina came over, holding hands with Nicolai. She hugged her brother, and they knew that their dear mother Odeya was smiling upon them from the world beyond.

  Mirela traveled with her new husband to Washington that spring for their honeymoon. She had a long visit with her mother Jeanne and spent endless hours chatting with Lana about everything. A special ceremony was arranged, because her mother wished to witness her marriage.