by Amber Lynn
“I can’t feel anything but us in this place. It’s not like it was the last time we were here.”
It wasn’t, but Krinla thought that was because it wasn’t filled with people set on destroying their world. It felt empty and maybe a little cold because of that.
“It’s different, but it is, in fact, the same place. I don’t understand how it’s been here all this time and no one has ever found it.”
“Clearly, you don’t understand the first thing about magic, Rya.”
Krinla stopped in her tracks when she heard his voice. She’d just gotten to the doorway of the lab and an overwhelming pressure filled her chest.
After the momentary halt, she rounded the corner to find Hunter sitting with his feet propped up on one of the desks. There was a smile on his face, which didn’t match the tears in Krinla’s eyes that seemed to have issues stopping. When he got a look at her, the smile faded and he rushed over to her. Why he thought the game of hide and seek was fun was beyond her, but the quickness to try to comfort her was appreciated.
“Why are you crying?”
Krinla looked at him in disbelief. When she realized he didn’t understand, she punched him in the shoulder.
“She took you from me and you thought it was all just a game.”
Hunter instantly started shaking his head. Reaching up to her face, he wiped some of the streaks of blood away before he leaned down to kiss her forehead.
“If anything, it was a test, not a game. I’m happy because you completed it and you did it the exact opposite way she wanted you to.”
“Ain’t that the truth,” Rya piped in.
Krinla ignored her and tried to concentrate solely on the man in front of her. She understood the test part of his statement, but she didn’t understand the latter part. On top of that, she was having trouble figuring out why Hunter still felt like he was far away.
“What do you mean?”
Before answering Krinla’s question, Hunter grabbed her hand and took her back to the desk he’d been sitting at, directing her to take a seat in the chair. The desk seemed to be covered in papers, not unlike the desks in the room Krinla remembered. It was eerie how everything felt like someone pushed pause, letting nothing change about the room.
Hunter remained mute as Krinla decided whether she wanted to sit or remain standing. Her brain was busy trying to decide if they should waste time letting him explain or whether they should run back to the Beasts’ fortress and then get an explanation. In the end, it was Hunter’s arms pushing her gently to sit that made the decision.
“When I first showed up here I was sure she’d sent me to the past. You took long enough that you missed the original mess I made when I thought that was the case. Imagine papers everywhere and me screaming at the top of my lungs.”
The scene Krinla envisioned wasn’t that much different than her reaction. She had the person responsible for it and had taken things out on her instead of throwing papers around.
“Anyway, after a few minutes, Rose showed up and told me what was going on. I was pissed about it, but she told me to clean up my mess and hold tight before she disappeared. I’m guessing the red abrasion around her throat was thanks to you.”
Hunter knelt down and tried to wipe the red from Krinla’s cheeks again. Even if they were clear tears, she would’ve looked like a mess. Since they were red, she figured she looked like a horror movie gone wrong.
“Come here,” Hunter said as he gathered her in his arms. “Everything is going to be okay. We’re back together. When I thought I was in the past, I locked things down tight to make sure you didn’t follow me. Rya had said something about them experimenting on the factions, and I didn’t want you here if that’s what was in the works for me.”
“Is that why I couldn’t feel or find you?”
Krinla perked up a little at the notion of Hunter being the reason he didn’t feel right and not something Rose had done to him. He let her pull away so she could look at his face to see his warm smile lighting it up.
“That’s exactly why. My first instinct is always going to be to protect you, even if it makes you feel funny. I’ve been trying to do that since the moment we met. Why do you think the other Draculs haven’t showed up looking for us? It’s not a coincidence they suddenly felt the need to stay home.”
Hunter leaned down and brushed his lips against Krinla’s. She wanted to tell him to stop because of the tears all over her face, but the jolt of energy she felt at the simple touch told her not to stop him. He let his eyes stare into hers, to the point it felt like he was seeing inside of her, which was quite possible based on the abilities he’d already shown.
“Rose’s test was to make you accept the powers of the duo sanguine, and more importantly the leader everyone thinks you’re supposed to be.” Hunter’s head briefly tilted to the side as he seemed to consider his next words. “She probably didn’t figure I’d be able to completely block you like I did, but you proved you don’t need the power to get things done.”
Hunter leaned back down and didn’t bother with a warning brush across Krinla’s lips. There was no other word than assault for what Krinla felt when his lips touched hers again. It wasn’t from the pressure he put on her, but rather the overwhelming burst of energy it unleashed.
He didn’t just give Krinla back the power she’d felt connecting them. He let her have a look at what he was holding back. How one person could harness all that power without exploding seemed impossible. It was no wonder it was supposed to be shared between two people.
When he pulled away, the power ebbed to what she was used to, but the aftershocks rippled through her body, causing her to twitch when she felt them. She stared into Hunter’s eyes, both a little scared and invigorated.
“You’ve felt it now. Are you ready for it to be a permanent part of your life?”
The question wasn’t an easy one to answer because there were many parts to it. After feeling completely lost without Hunter, Krinla had no trouble with the idea of letting him in, which she’d thought was the thing that scared her most. Knowing what was at stake if she accepted the powers went well above their relationship.
If she said yes, she would be stepping into the position of true leader that Trilla had mentioned. Hunter had known as soon as she turned him that things were leading in that direction, but he wanted to give her time to accept what that would mean for her life. No one else seemed to care whether she was ready for the responsibility. They looked to her for hope that the dark days of the past were truly going to be behind them.
“You’ll stay by me every step of the way?”
Krinla was scared, but it was time for her to grow up. Hunter had once called her a child, only partially joking about it. Compared to the things everyone else around her had lived through and had to deal with in their lives, Krinla was a child.
“Every step.”
Nodding her head, Krinla closed her eyes. “Then I’m ready.”
Chapter Forty
The other people in the room could’ve disappeared for all Krinla knew when Hunter started sharing everything with her. The glimpse he gave her was really just the tip of the iceberg when it came to everything they’d inherited. There was so much knowledge that came along with the power that it felt like it should’ve been shared between hundreds of people instead of just two.
It was more than just the sharing of the things Hunter knew. It was a full knowledge of everything that led up to the Great War and everything that happened after that. There were even glimpses of events that hadn’t happened, some of which scared Krinla to her core.
There was a bigger fight out there than the one she thought they had with Hulin. None of the data downloading into her brain brushed on what happened when she finally came face to face with her enemy, but that was a moot point when it came to everything she learned.
“Now you can understand why I’ve been trying to push you.”
Krinla heard Rose’s voice, but didn’t bother look
ing to where the woman had joined the group. With the new power coursing through her, she was liable to kill the woman for pushing her.
“You should’ve given things a little time, Rose. We both understand that you’re supposed to be one of our mentors, but Krinla likes to hold a grudge.”
Hunter didn’t bother looking at the Naturist. His eyes were completely focused on Krinla and making sure she wasn’t overwhelmed. It was impossible not to be, but her brain was working overtime to process what she needed to know and put the other things away for another day.
“I’m not picking up your thoughts.”
With everything else going on, it wasn’t Krinla’s biggest concern. Along with the fear of the unknown, having to know everything Hunter thought about the world and her was her main reason for not wanting their connection.
“I already told you about that. You can control whether you listen in or not. I love to know what you’re thinking so I can react properly, but you’re not ready for that fun. When you are, my thoughts are yours, but until then, just imagine that I’m thinking about nothing other than how much I love you.”
“Exactly,” Rose said, breaking up the moment. “Now, can we get back to the issues at hand? I had a hand in passing along some of the knowledge you now hold, but there are things that are better learned the old-fashioned way.”
Krinla saw a piece of paper appear out of the corner of her eye. It turned out it was actually an envelope when she turned her head slightly to see it. She didn’t immediately take it, even though Rose was offering it directly to her.
“I have had many tasks over the years to make sure this moment happened, so try not to make it too awkward. If you aren’t reading his mind yet, I suggest you read it so you both get the message together. I don’t know exactly what it says, but I have the feeling it’s important to both of you.”
Rose thrust the paper further in their direction and Krinla saw Hunter’s name written on the outside of it. More than Rose’s words, seeing the name was what made Krinla reach out and grab it. After staring at the basic white envelope for a few seconds, Krinla looked up to Hunter.
“Maybe you should read it.”
There weren’t many people Krinla could imagine the note was from. It had to be from someone close to Hunter, and really only one person came to mind.
Hunter shook his head. “Go ahead and read it. I like the idea of us reading it together.”
Krinla took in a deep breath and turned the envelope over. There was a single piece of tape holding the flap down. For being hundreds of years old, the paper seemed to be in perfect condition, with no signs of yellowing or dirt.
Putting her finger under the flap, Krinla slid it across to free the contents of the envelope. She took another unnecessary breath as she lifted the flap and pulled out the piece of paper it hid. There were no signs that the folded paper contained words, but there did seem to be something that was causing a shadow on one side of the paper.
As Krinla unfolded the two folds, she was careful to make sure the item tucked between them didn’t fall out. When she saw what it was, she lifted her hand to her mouth and covered it. Rose had mentioned Noah had carried around a picture of them and Krinla was fairly certain she was looking at it.
It looked like the picture captured the moment of Hunter and Krinla’s first kiss. Krinla could even see Noah’s knees just to the side of the picture from where he’d kneeled to feed her his blood.
Unlike the paper and envelope, the picture was worn, with creases from being folded at different points during its lifespan. Krinla stared at it for a few more seconds and then handed it over to Hunter, who smiled when he got a look at it with his own eyes.
“Have I apologized for attacking you after you’d just been brought back to life?”
“Probably, but maybe you can try again at some point and actually mean it.”
Krinla let his smile and words cause her lips to turn up as her focus went back to the letter in her hand. She was ready to ask Hunter again if he wanted to read it himself, but he reached over and put a hand on her knee, squeezing it to tell her to go ahead.
My dearest Hunter,
Before I say anything else, I have to tell you just how proud I am of you, son. I have to believe you got your strength from your mother, because as I am assured you already know, your father is weak.
I didn’t understand why you left without telling me, but I probably wouldn’t have heard you even if you did. There was so much clutter in my head around the time Krinla and her family showed up that I was already on the way to making sure our race was wiped from existence. When you left, I suppose I told myself that the other factions were to blame, so I allowed atrocities that were already underway to go undeterred.
Please don’t read that as me blaming your leaving for what I did. I tried to be strong for you, but my faith in everything died when your mother did. When they put me in charge of everything, I thought I could fix the world. I sent my own son to the future to try to bring back anything that would help us, but I failed to realize what he brought back was our only salvation.
By now you and Krinla both know how important you are to the world. The plague that struck the humans was only the beginning of a much bigger plot to erase life from Earth. I wish you the best in the fight ahead of you. It’s not going to be easy, but I know you’ll always take the high road and do what’s best for the people who have become your family.
My time is drawing to a close, so I’ll finish this short note the same way I started it. Hunter, you’ve made a father prouder than he deserves to be. May your life and love transcend the darkness that will try to extinguish it.
Love always and forever,
At the end of the note there were letters scrawled that were in a different handwriting and were difficult to read. Krinla could make out that it said “your father,” but it was only because she knew who wrote it.
“I take it in the end it was the disease that killed him.”
There wasn’t a question in Hunter’s solemn words. He’d told Krinla what was ahead for him if she didn’t turn him. It wasn’t something she wanted to think about, but the proof was right in front of her.
“The disease took a lot from him. In the later stages he became even more secluded.”
Rose’s tone seemed to offer condolences, which for once was the proper thing coming from her. With the reading done, Krinla looked up to Hunter to try to get a feeling for what was on his mind. She knew she could know for sure if she really wanted to, but it was probably best if his thoughts were his own for a while. He tried to put on a brave face, even offering a sincere smile, but Krinla knew how hard the letter must have hit him.
“But he ended up making things right.”
Hunter leaned forward and wiped tears Krinla didn’t realize had started back up from her face. She was beginning to feel that being the true leader of every faction meant you had to cry a lot. It was an unnecessary function that she hoped she could get control of quickly.
“We lived many years in peace thanks to your father. He blamed himself for starting things, but the rest of us knew his only fault was trusting the wrong people. I hope you’ll both learn from the mistakes of the past and use that knowledge to strengthen the future.”
“We will,” Hunter said with determination. “There’s too much at stake not to.”
He reached over and took the piece of paper and envelope from Krinla and put them on the desk next to them. Sighing, he pushed up to get to his feet and held out his hand for Krinla. After everything she’d learned, Krinla wasn’t sure she wanted to get up just yet, but she took his hand and squeezed it tightly.
“I have high hopes for you kids, but saving the future for the rest of us can wait until tomorrow. How about we all take a deep breath and head upstairs to decide who’s sleeping where. There shouldn’t be any dust gathering, but I highly recommend beating any pillows you plan on resting your heads on.”
“We’re staying here?” Trilla and
Krinton asked at the same time, causing the leaders to look at each other.
“It’s where Krinla and Hunter were meant to rule from. Not to mention it’s the only place secure from outside forces while they get their feet under them. I’ll be bringing some of my people to join us, even though you seem to have provided a formidable force, Trilla.”
Krinla was concerned about how Hunter felt about living in a building from his past, especially after reading the letter. It didn’t matter if Rose had plans for them. If Hunter wanted to go somewhere else, there would be a fight about it.
Hunter squeezed her hand, and she could feel a calming energy trying to work its way into her skin. It was something he would need to work on, because her anxiety needed a little more than a comforting touch.
“She’s right, which is sadly becoming a common occurrence. We need time to digest everything and figure out what we need to do next. As much as I want to go deal with our initial problem waiting for us back at your home, Hulin has no credence in our lives right now.”
Krinla wanted to disagree with Hunter, but she knew he was right. Eventually, their paths would cross again, but unless they felt there was a direct threat, they had other things they needed to focus their attention on.
“Fine.” Krinla tried to smile, but it was one that didn’t reach all the way to her eyes. “We’ll take a step back for a cycle or two and then try to figure out how we stop the world from coming to an end.”
There were many things Krinla wanted to get done in those cycles. Things like trying to figure out how in the world Earth was hovering above Oblivion and getting to know her little sister were things that were high on the list. Above everything else, though, was the need to find somewhere private she could just hold Hunter.