“We need to talk,” I growl, stepping closer to him. He holds onto my shoulders firmly.
“Enough blood has been shed. Please, can you get us out of here?” I say, weakness in my words.
“When everyone’s safe we will. Hold on.” Kal’s shadows swarm around the vampires in the clearing and around us. He was winnowing us, which I learnt was a form of transportation. I shut my eyes and clutch his waist as the reality around me becomes distorted.
CHAPTER 21
We appear again in front of a large tree, its trunk thick and wide. Kal watches me curiously.
“Well?” I say, not knowing where to go.
“It’s through the tree Ali.” Nardia says from behind me, Zeke supports her as they walk up to it, she gives me a weak smile. They turn, the tree ripples as they step through before solidifying again.
I stand there shocked, how on earth was I meant to go through?
“Um I’m not vampire. I can’t go in.” I look to Kalabhiti for answers, his eyes cloud over. Zuriel passes through the tree, leaving me with a wink as he disappears. Kalabhiti gently holds my hand.
“Do you trust me?” He asks, eyes not wavering. No.
“As much as I should.” I say quietly. He guides me over to the tree.
“This is the entrance to our world, the spell around our city will only allow vampires to leave and enter. You have vampire blood in you; I’m assuming you’ll be able to pass through.” He says calculatingly. I gulp as I debate the odds. He guides me closer, pressing a hand against the tree, it quivers and shivers beneath his touch; slowly rippling away to reveal a dark city behind it.
“We’ll go together.” We step through the threshold at the same time. I look behind me as the opening closes; shrivelling up to darkness again.
We stand on an open platform in the middle of the large city. More vampires than I’d ever seen before walk the streets, talking amongst one another. We receive a few curious stares. Kal nods to the ones paying attention. Zuriel beckons over a tuk-tuk taxi.
“Room for five?” He asks, the vampire nods. Zuriel takes the passenger seat as we pile into the back; I end up sitting on Kal’s lap. He doesn’t start conversation, just looks out the window as the city passes us. The tall skyscrapers are extraordinary, towering over us like we’re little bugs. I wonder which one I was in when I dreamt of Kal here, I wonder how it looked in person.
The tuk-tuk comes to a stop at the edge of the city. We get out and look towards the thick, dark forest in front of us. In the distance a castle sits alone, watching over the city.
“What is that place?” I ask as Kal smiles down at me.
“Home.”
CHAPTER 22
I sit on a plush mattress in the guest room, hands folded in my lap. Kal’s pacing back and forth in front of me, trying to piece it all together. He’d winnowed all of us into his castle that sat on the hill overlooking the city, leading me straight to this room. I received multiple curious glances from the female vampires walking around the castle, wearing silk gowns that hid nothing.
After the small battle that took place, I was drained physically and mentally. I had used every last reserve of my power; it was wild and untrained and had taken more out of me than I ever expected it to.
I still needed answers. Humans weren’t allowed in the city. It wasn’t physically possible as the spell was made so humans couldn’t cross, but I had. Kal is mumbling to himself, I am tapping my foot impatiently.
“So, are you going to give me some answers?” I ask, following him with my eyes as he moves back and forth. He stops and glances towards me. He is still dressed in his blood-stained uniform.
“I can only think of one, but it’s impossible. It should be impossible.” He shakes his head again and I sigh.
“Just tell me. Seriously, I am on the verge of getting up, walking out of here and never coming back. I want answers. Now,” I huff, crossing my arms over my chest. My shoulder screams in protest, the bullet still lodged in my flesh.
“A very long time ago, in the Before as you humans like to call it, I was the vampire King, and Cassidar was the vampire Queen. However, she gave that title up once we were on good terms with the government, to show them how much she was sticking to her word.
“Once the old government members were murdered, a new…chairman was elected. He was snotty and sucked so far up her ass it wasn’t funny. They did everything together, and she eventually pursued him to be more than just a friend.
“They became lovers but kept it hidden. I couldn’t stand it. She was once my Queen and to see her grovel on her knees for a human disgusted me.” Kal sits next to me, his weight pushing the bed down. He rests his head in his hands as he goes on, his warriors bun untamed with stray hairs flying everywhere.
“I rebelled. I never wanted to see her that weak and vulnerable for a human again, or any vampire. Something had to be done before it was too late. I dropped off the map, keeping my whereabouts unknown as I searched every dark corner of the world for vampires with the same ultimate goal as mine.
“When I finally had enough forces, I went back for her. Months had passed; I tracked her down easily enough. I followed her scent, although it was different this time. When I finally found her, I was shocked. She was pregnant and nearly ready to burst. She’d given all her rights up to Tobias and he now controlled her spot on the government as well. Vampires and humans breeding were meant to be impossible, but as I stood there I could hear its heart beating in her womb.
“We had a fight, I told her what my plan was and that I had come back to finally make things right. She didn’t like that at all; she shoved me back and told me I needed to leave. I suggested she kill the baby when it was born, that it was an abomination and would stain her name.
“We both said awful things to each other that night. I stayed in town after I left her, keeping an eye on her. When she was due she sent for me, she was in a small cabin in the midst of poverty and giving birth by herself. I was beyond furious. Tobias hadn’t bothered to come for his own child’s birth.
“Something went wrong; there was so much blood. I knew there was meant to be some but the bed was pooled with it. She only cared about the baby. Tobias finally showed up and we got into a fight. He was fully armed. I was going to say something but she sent me away. I didn’t agree with her choice but I respected her.
“After I left I found some maids and sent them her way, hoping they would be of more help than I,” his voice shakes as he stops, the memory of that night consuming him. So she really did have a child, I didn’t realise how much that betrayal would have stung Kal. This fierce nobleman, afraid of nothing, was vulnerable. He had loved and cared for her, yet he’d sat back and let her make her own choices.
“I finally returned to meet the child. I wasn’t sure how I was going to react. I opened the door and fell to my knees. Tobias had stabbed her in the heart and taken the child.
“I had every vampire on the lookout for him and that child. While they didn’t find the child, they found him. I took my sweet time when I ended his life; I thrived on the fear in his eyes as he looked at me.
“After that, I was a mess, I felt like I’d lost everything. I couldn’t find the baby. I’d slaughtered every blood relative Tobias had, not caring of their importance. After that I went into hibernation; only to be woken if a descendant of Cassidar’s child was strong and alive. For years, each blood link was weak, most had deformities and it was slowly being bred out.
“You could imagine how angry I was when Zeke and Zuriel found a scent. I told them they were fools after they’d woken me that the bloodline had died out but they were sure of it. I pushed them aside and attended to more important tasks now that I was awake.
“They found the descendant. Although she was frail at the start, she was starting to turn into the warrior that runs through her blood.” He turns towards me; my heart had stopped beating at the start of the story.
“Have you ever wondered why you had that red rin
g in your eyes?” he asks, stroking his thumb gently across my cheek.
“No.” I can barely breathe; the walls are crushing me into a ball of pain and confusion.
“Cassidar had bright red eyes, Tobias had arctic blue. You have a piece of both, red and blue; inside you these two have a battle raging for the throne. Vampire versus human. As the red dominates the blue, your human form dwindles and weakens, nourishing your vampire form; making it stronger. This is an unforeseeable event as this has never been witnessed before.” The room around me begins to tip; I hold out a hand and steady myself on his shoulder.
“What are you saying?” I croak. My very identity is being torn in two. Everything I’d ever known was useless to me now, it served no purpose. It was good versus evil, predator versus prey. How could I fight a battle that was invisible to the naked eye? How could I choose one side without betraying the other? Kal looks at me with those obsidian eyes, offering me one last comfort.
“You are the last descendent; Cassidar’s blood runs through your veins.” The words leave his lips and entwine themselves around my breaking heart.
I’ve been living a lie.
I was a lie.
I look into his eyes, not knowing what my future holds, not knowing what direction it will take me in. I do know one thing for certain.
No matter what,
I would survive.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I sit here writing this and am utterly dumb-struck. I never thought I’d see a day where I’d be sitting down at the end of my novel, writing my acknowledgments.
First of all I’d like to thank my family for their never ending support, and my Grandad for constantly believing in me and having the cover of my book as his phone wallpaper.
I thank my friends, I know when they read it they’ll find more understanding as to why I was so consumed in this world.
I thank my partner, for his never ending support and push. Without his encouragement this book would still be half finished. So thank you for being patient with me and pushing me when I needed to be pushed.
I thank Kandi, who introduced me to her niece Kia Carrington-Russell. She’s a self-published author and has been a never ending inspiration. Without her guidance I would have had no idea what to do with this book and how to go about getting my world out there. Thank you to all the other authors out there that continue to inspire me.
I thank my laptop for being there for me late nights when I’d need to write the start of an idea down. Although you’re now broken and packed away, I’ll be forever grateful for service.
Thank you to Ann Mickan for blessing Immortal Awakening with your brilliant mind and being the first person to read it.
Thank you to all my teachers for giving me the tools I needed to make this all possible.
And finally, thank you for picking up this book and reading it at this very moment. Without you, it wouldn’t be possible.
Shana J. Caldwell is an Australian self published author. Her passion for creativity stemmed from a young age, only growing as she developed a hunger to dive into mystical worlds. Shana began writing at a young age, wanting to create her own mystical world where she stumbled upon her first novel Immortal Awakening in 2015, which became her vice after she graduated in 2016. A year later Immortal Awakening is as real as ever, and has awoken a hunger she's never felt before.
Connect with her online:
Facebook.com/shanajcaldwell/
Twitter.com/ShanaJCaldwell1
Instagram.com/shanajcaldwell
https://shanacaldwell03.wixsite.com/website
Immortal Awakening Page 20