Derek
Seeing everyone here tonight filled my heart with much-needed joy. Sofia and I had taken our own time away from it all to recover after the ritual. We’d needed a two-week break, which we’d spent in New Zealand, surrounded by rolling hills and colorful volcanic lakes. We’d come back somewhat refreshed, and we’d spent a lot of our time strengthening our family bonds.
The Novaks had grown tighter than ever, and the whole of GASP had grown with us, in a way.
We were looking at a whole new world, and even a new life, in a certain sense. I felt good, in general, but tonight that feeling had escalated to “amazing,” as I’d just seen Tamara reunite with her daughter—proof that, unlike the ritual-supporting Hermessi and the spiteful Spirit Bender, we, the living, could still change for the better, if given the right opportunity. Perhaps that was what had saved us. Our ability to change, to adapt… to evolve.
“What’s on your mind?” Sofia asked. We’d settled at a table close to Eva and Varga’s, joined by the rest of our family. Corrine and Ibrahim had offered to stay back at our treehouse and look after the Novak babies, claiming they’d had enough gatherings to last them a lifetime. They were old and tranquil souls, by nature.
“Nothing in particular. Just looking back at everything that happened to bring us to this point,” I said. A couple of tables away, Sherus and Nuriya were inseparable, lovingly gazing at each other, whispering and giggling, mostly unaware of the world around them. I was always overjoyed to see them, thankful that the fae king had survived.
“Technically speaking, the ritual wasn’t our first rodeo,” Sofia replied, her hand resting over mine on the table.
River, Ben, and the others were deep in conversation over the Earthly Dimension exploration missions, while the Lamia artists played their lyra instruments in the background. I found myself fascinated by the musical notes produced by the silky, tightly wound strings. Tamara had joined Eva and Varga at what was commonly referred to as the Death Crew’s table. Laughter rippled across the room, occasionally followed by cheers and the clinking of spiced rose water glasses.
“It was our biggest one yet, though,” I said to her, my nose bumping hers, softly. She sighed deeply.
“Yeah, you’re right about that. But we made it,” she replied, glancing to the side for a moment, before she set her sights on me again. “Maybe it’s time we address the adoption thing again, Derek. Not that I’m putting pressure on you, not at all… but are we still for it? Yea? Nay?”
We’d been so busy with the ritual’s physical and psychological fallout that we hadn’t had a moment left to discuss our initial plans of adopting a child from the human world. Having our original family back had been intense enough, for all the right reasons. But Sofia was right. It was time to address our plans, indeed. Only, I didn’t have the right answer for her, and she somehow guessed it before I could even think of what I might say.
“You want to wait a little while longer?” she asked. The question was more or less rhetorical, but I was still impressed by her finesse. Every day that went by, I loved this woman more. I wondered how much more I could love her, given my physical limitations. My heart might give out.
“I don’t want us to rush into it,” I replied gently. “We’ve been through hell, Sofia. I felt differently after Strava, for example. I was more than ready to go ahead with it when the first fae started to fall under the Hermessi’s influence. But we nearly lost our worlds. All of them. It could’ve all been gone in the blink of an eye. We did lose our son and a good chunk of our family, for a little while. Remember how that felt?”
Sofia’s smile faded. She gave me a brief nod. “I do.”
“I’m still reeling from that. Let’s… Let’s just take a few more months, okay? Just enough to look over our shoulders and wholeheartedly say that yeah, we’re ready.”
“I get it, Derek. The ritual drained us emotionally. We’d be rushing into it now. Had the ritual not happened, we’d have brought home a human baby already,” she said, relieving the pressure that had begun to gather in my temples. “But the ritual did happen. And it took its toll.”
I pulled her close, my lips pressing over hers in a sweet, heartfelt kiss. It was the best way to thank her for being so kind and understanding. I was truly the luckiest guy alive to have found her, all those years ago.
Lucas leaned in from my right, grinning like the devil. “So, no baby yet, huh?”
“You jerk. You’ve been eavesdropping?” I retorted, slightly irritated.
He laughed. “You’re at a table with your entire family. Did you not think we’d hear you?!”
Only then did I realize that the conversation at our table had died down a while ago. Our children, our grandchildren, our great-grandchildren, my brother, my sister, and each of their respective spouses had been watching and listening to us the whole time. Awkward silence reigned supreme for about a minute, until Rose broke it.
“You know what, Mom, Dad? You do what you want, when you both feel ready. We’re all behind you on this. You know that, right? Whatever you decide, there will be no support lacking from us.”
“And baby clothes. Chantal is already growing out of hers,” Vita replied.
“Who says they want a baby girl?” Lucas asked. “What if they get a strapping little boy?”
“Jericho’s growing out of his,” Caia said, smiling.
“Right. So there are options for baby clothes. Glad to see our evening devolve to this point,” Vivienne replied, slightly amused. “From exploring the neighboring galaxies to onesies. My, oh my, how we’ve fallen!”
The whole table exploded in a wave of laughter, drawing everyone’s attention. Riding the wave, Lucas cheered and raised his spiced rose water glass in the air, diverting the entire party back to its original purpose. “Cheers to the engaged couple, Eva and Varga!” he shouted. “Long may you two live!”
Naturally, it got everybody else applauding and cheering, as the young couple smiled and nodded and mouthed thank yous all around. I was so lost in the moment that I failed to see Amane and Amal get up from their table and walk toward ours, until Sofia drew my attention.
“The genius twins, our twelve o’clock.”
I smiled at them, though the looks on their faces were pretty enigmatic and rather difficult to read. Or maybe I’d relaxed too much from the spiced rose water. It did tend to disarm me, sometimes completely.
“Derek, Sofia, can we speak with you in private?” Amal asked.
Glancing around at the table, curious looks abounded. I gave Amal a brief smile. “Sure.” I got up, joined by Sofia, and we followed them outside and out of the party area. Moments later, we were surrounded by giant redwoods, the music barely a murmur somewhere behind us.
Amal and Amane had continued their research work on my blood, and I hoped they’d come up with something soon. Naturally, my heart was already in my throat, as both Sofia and I waited for them to tell us if they’d made any progress. I figured they must have, since we were out here.
“What’s up?” I asked, after watching the twins exchange encouraging glances, yet neither of them had spoken.
“We wanted to tell you this, first, and let you decide whether you’ll go public with it or not, given the delicate nature of the subject,” Amane said.
I blinked rapidly, trying to process. “Are you talking about the day-walker thing? You’re talking about the day-walker thing, right?” I’d asked the same question twice. Oh, how nervous I was, already, my mind practically glitching.
“Yes. And our recent discovery warrants your counsel,” Amal replied.
“Okay. Shoot,” I breathed, unaware that I was gripping Sofia’s hand a little too tightly until she squeezed back to warn me.
“We managed to isolate the day-walking protein,” Amane explained. “In a controlled environment, as an entity of its own. It doesn’t come from any known sources in the In-Between or the Supernatural Dimension. We did two trial tracking sessions, and they both came up e
mpty.”
“Tracking sessions?” Sofia asked, her brow furrowed.
“We inserted proteins into a clear fluid, which we then placed inside a protected glass bubble,” Amal said. “We mixed a tracking spell into an interplanetary travel bubble, powered it up with serium crystal, and let it go, hoping it might lead us to the source of the protein. We knew it was alien, in a way, which is why we used the spell combination as such.”
“The interplanetary travel spell was to cover large distances, and the tracking spell served as a guide,” Amane added. “Point is, the first two trials yielded nothing. The origin of your day-walking ability does not stem from the In-Between or the Supernatural Dimension. Ta’Zan somehow got his hands on specimens from the Earthly Dimension, at one point in his life.”
“Probably before he made us,” Amal said.
I took a deep breath, trying to understand where this might lead. The twins were clearly nervous about something, so I decided to help them out before my blood pressure might burst like a steam engine. “And did you do a third tracking session?”
They nodded simultaneously. “We found it,” Amane replied.
“You found what?” I asked.
“The origin planet of your day-walking protein,” Amane said. “We know where it is, but we’re not yet sure as to whether it’s still inhabited or not.”
A few moments passed quietly, as I finally made some connections. “Wait… You’re telling me some day-walking-protein-holding creatures resided or still reside somewhere in the Earthly Dimension, and that either Ta’Zan got to them or they got to him, and thus he wound up with the very thing that gave me the ability to walk in the sunlight?”
“In a nutshell, yes,” Amal confirmed.
I looked at Sofia, and she seemed as surprised as I was. For good reason, too. We’d been waiting for this kind of news for a while, now. We had not been entirely prepared for the full meaning to sink in, though I wanted to give my gift to all the vampires, if I could. It had become my mission before the Hermessi had come in with their ritual.
“If you tracked the protein to wherever it is you found it, then that means there must be some creatures there, still alive for the spell to find them, right?” I ventured.
“Yes and no. The spell might’ve found remains, too. We only sent a small drone with the protein, to record air and soil data, in an exploratory fashion,” Amane said.
“We have a lead now, Derek, and we wanted to get your opinion. Shall we proceed and send a video drone, next, and see what’s on that planet?” Amal asked.
Sofia nodded first. “Do it.”
“Yes,” I said. “As astonished as I might seem right now, I am still determined to get to the bottom of this.”
Getting the day-walking cure for all vampires would mark an incredible milestone for our entire species. After our trials and tribulations, many of them senseless and marred by bloodthirsty violence, my kind deserved a breakthrough. I wanted us to evolve, to become better versions of ourselves in all possible senses.
Maybe I was driven by this need to prove that we all deserved to live, no matter what the Hermessi and the Spirit Bender had thought. Maybe, even though our enemies were dead and gone, I still felt like I had something to do to show them how wrong they’d been. How wrong they would always be.
Yes, I thought to myself. Yes, to any endeavor that would bring us closer to helping all the vampires set foot in the sunlight without being burned. Yes, to a small step forward into a better future for ourselves, as a species, and for our allies—after all, if we were less vulnerable, we strengthened our allies, too.
Looking deep into Sofia’s eyes, I said it again. “Yes.”
Yes to vampires finally taking a step outside of the shade.
* * *
The end of Season 9…
What’s next?
Dear Shaddict,
Thank you so much for following the Shadian crew on their adventures this far! I truly appreciate your continued enthusiasm for this series. It’s quite phenomenal.
I’m also excited to announce that there will be a Season 10! Introducing…
An Origin of Vampires (ASOV 78) where we’ll be diving deeper into vampire lore than we’ve ever dived before—going back to where this series, truly, began...
What if the Elders were not the beginning?
(There will also be fewer main characters, which will allow more breathing space for the romance ;) )
An Origin of Vampires releases July 13th, 2019!
Check out the gorgeous cover:
And click on the links below to check out the teaser blurb and pre-order your copy now!:
If you’re in the USA: Tap here
UK: Tap here
Australia: Tap here
Any other country: Tap here
See you there!
Love,
Bella x
P.S. Join my VIP email list and I’ll send you a reminder as soon as I have a new book out. Visit here to sign up: www.forrestbooks.com
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Read more by Bella Forrest
A LOVE THAT ENDURES TRILOGY
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A Love that Endures 2
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Harley Merlin and the Mystery Twins (Book 2)
Harley Merlin and the Stolen Magicals (Book 3)
Harley Merlin and the First Ritual (Book 4)
Harley Merlin and the Broken Spell (Book 5)
Harley Merlin and the Cult of Eris (Book 6)
Harley Merlin and the Detector Fix (Book 7)
Harley Merlin and the Challenge of Chaos (Book 8)
Harley Merlin and the Mortal Pact (Book 9)
HOTBLOODS
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Coldbloods (Book 2)
Renegades (Book 3)
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Traitors (Book 5)
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Invaders (Book 7)
Stargazers (Book 8)
THE CHILD THIEF
(Action-adventure/romance. Completed series.)
The Child Thief (Book 1)
Deep Shadows (Book 2)
Thin Lines (Book 3)
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Ghost Towns (Book 5)
Zero Hour (Book 6)
THE GENDER GAME
(Action-adventure/romance. Completed series.)
The Gender Game (Book 1)
The Gender Secret (Book 2)
The Gender Lie (Book 3)
The Gender War (Book 4)
The Gender Fall (Book 5)
The Gender Plan (Book 6)
The Gender End (Book 7)
THE GIRL WHO DARED TO THINK
(Action-adventure/romance. Completed series.)
The Girl Who Dared to Think (Book 1)
The Girl Who Dared to Stand (Book 2)
The Girl Who Dared to Descend (Book 3)
The Girl Who Dared to Rise (Book 4)
The Girl Who Dared to Lead (Book 5)
The Girl Who Dared to Endure (Book 6)
The Girl Who Dared to Fight (Book 7)
A SHADE OF VAMPIRE SERIES
(Supernatural romance)
Season 1: Derek & Sofia’s story
A Shade of Vampire (Book 1)
A Shade of Blood (Book 2)
A Castle of Sand (Book 3)
A Shadow of Light (Book 4)
A Blaze of Sun (Book 5)
A Gate of Night (Book 6)
A Break of Day (Book 7)
Season 2: R
ose & Caleb’s story
A Shade of Novak (Book 8)
A Bond of Blood (Book 9)
A Spell of Time (Book 10)
A Chase of Prey (Book 11)
A Shade of Doubt (Book 12)
A Turn of Tides (Book 13)
A Dawn of Strength (Book 14)
A Fall of Secrets (Book 15)
An End of Night (Book 16)
Season 3: The Shade continues with a new hero…
A Wind of Change (Book 17)
A Trail of Echoes (Book 18)
A Soldier of Shadows (Book 19)
A Hero of Realms (Book 20)
A Vial of Life (Book 21)
A Fork of Paths (Book 22)
A Flight of Souls (Book 23)
A Bridge of Stars (Book 24)
Season 4: A Clan of Novaks
A Clan of Novaks (Book 25)
A World of New (Book 26)
A Web of Lies (Book 27)
A Touch of Truth (Book 28)
An Hour of Need (Book 29)
A Game of Risk (Book 30)
A Twist of Fates (Book 31)
A Day of Glory (Book 32)
Season 5: A Dawn of Guardians
A Dawn of Guardians (Book 33)
A Sword of Chance (Book 34)
A Race of Trials (Book 35)
A King of Shadow (Book 36)
An Empire of Stones (Book 37)
A Power of Old (Book 38)
A Rip of Realms (Book 39)
A Throne of Fire (Book 40)
A Tide of War (Book 41)
Season 6: A Gift of Three
A Gift of Three (Book 42)
A House of Mysteries (Book 43)
A Tangle of Hearts (Book 44)
A Meet of Tribes (Book 45)
A Ride of Peril (Book 46)
A Passage of Threats (Book 47)
A Tip of Balance (Book 48)
A Shield of Glass (Book 49)
A Clash of Storms (Book 50)
Season 7: A Call of Vampires
A Call of Vampires (Book 51)
A Valley of Darkness (Book 52)
A Hunt of Fiends (Book 53)
A Den of Tricks (Book 54)
A City of Lies (Book 55)
A Shade of Vampire 77: A Fate of Time Page 27