The Sentinels The First and the Second (second edition) Smashwords edition.doc

by The Sentinels- The First

  "Now do you understand?" Grayson asked him, Nulo's face was also a mask of rage.

  "Yes, I understand now, what can I do to help?" Nulo asked; Grayson smiled at him and nodded.

  "This is not something I offer very often, so consider it very well before you answer, because I will only offer it once. I can make you a Sentinel hybrid, so that you can better protect the Vampire children we are rescuing today and your family, specifically your Father. He will be helping us, and in doing so, he will be in more danger than normal. Not to mention, you will be much more capable of protecting everyone if you are a Sentinel. With your lineage, age, and my blood, you will be one very powerful hybrid," Grayson offered, looking Nulo in the eyes intently.

  Amarantos looked at Grayson in surprise then turned to Nulo.

  "The last time this one offered something like this was 12,000 years before I existed, or so Harry told me then. You offered the change to the powerful Fae Hadox to save her life, if I remember correctly, am I right?" Amarantos asked, Grayson nodded and grinned.

  "Yes, since technically Yoshihiro turned himself, you are correct," Grayson said then turned back to Nulo, awaiting his answer.

  "Father, I am unsure, I would really like to accept, but how would that affect your standing as King?" Nulo asked, looking frustrated and indecisive.

  "Let them come and tell me something, besides what Vampire in their right mind wouldn't want a gift like this from the First?" Amarantos asked Nulo.

  Nulo turned and looked at Grayson with wide eyes, staring in disbelief. Had he not realized who he was from the flashes of memory Grayson had showed him?

  "You are the First? That means that Harry is the Second?" Nulo asked in awe.

  Grayson grinned and nodded, then looked over his shoulder in the direction where Harry and Yoshihiro were; they needed to get over to them and help them with the children.

  As if he had been summoned, Harry appeared, silently walking up to Grayson's side and looking around. Grayson turned to Harry and relaxed allowing Harry to see all that had transpired during his absence, and what he had remembered when he looked into Alexi. Harry nodded his understanding the information not seeming to faze him then he turned to Nulo, as Grayson had done, and waited for his response to Grayson's offer.

  "I accept, please help me protect those in need as well as my family?" Nulo asked, biting then stretching out his hand to Grayson.

  "It will be my pleasure," Grayson said then bit his own hand gently drawing blood.

  He touched their bites to each other; the change came almost immediately. Nulo reacted in almost the same way as Yoshihiro had at the beginning, grabbing his stomach in pain and curling into himself.

  "Oh shit!" Nulo exclaimed and dropped to the floor, his face a mask of anguish.

  Harry knelt beside Nulo and petted his head soothingly, while Grayson pulled his sleeve back as he had done for Yoshihiro, and sat down next to him, waiting for the change to finish.

  There was a reason he was doing this now and not waiting until later. The feeling of impending doom seemed to be getting closer, and he felt they were running out of time faster than he had previously thought. The Void was planning something soon, and he feared he would need all the help he could get.

  After roughly 15 minutes of trying to sooth Nulo as he went through the change, it finished and Nulo was five inches taller and considerably bulkier for it. Though he was fully grown as a Vampire, the Sentinel blood had forced him to grow even more. Nulo's eyes, which were a deep electric blue, the same as his Mother's, swam with the gold and silver as Grayson's and Harry's did. His pupils were gold and the outer ring silver and the mist that seemed to shimmer across his eyes looked just like Yoshihiro's eyes.

  Once the change was physically evident and Nulo opened his eyes, he lunged for Grayson, the hunger more pronounced than with Yoshihiro since the change had been more drastic. His teeth pierced the soft skin of Grayson's forearm and he drank from him hungrily.

  After a minute of greedily drinking Nulo pulled back, just as aroused as Yoshihiro had been, and just like Yoshihiro he lunged for Harry, biting the only part that was exposed, Harry's neck. He moaned as Harry's blood filled him and drank just as greedily from Harry as he had from Grayson.

  After another minute he stopped drinking, then released his tight hold on Harry and sat back, breathing hard. His pants were considerably tented and his pupils were dilated, leaving only a thin ring of silver and blue around the gold.

  His jeans which had fit him lose enough for comfort were now shorter and tighter around his thighs, his shirt which had clung to his body before, now showed much more definition. His muscles now looked more like Grayson's and Harry's, and his shirt showed just how much he'd changed.

  Amarantos stared down at his son in awe, a huge grin spreading across his face slowly.

  "This is marvelous, now I will not have to worry so much about your safety, you are much safer now. Thank You Grayson and Harry, you have given him a gift that I could not," Amarantos said, bowing to Grayson and Harry.

  Just then Yoshihiro ran in, saw the King bowing to Grayson and Harry, and looked at Nulo in surprise, but it didn't last, because he interrupted them quickly.

  "I'm sorry to interrupt, but there is someone at the gate, I think he is like Grayson and Harry. We need to hurry and get the children out of here, the gate and it's magic will not hold them off for long," Yoshihiro said, looking from one to the other, flustered and nervous.

  "Time to go then, we'll take them all and sort it out afterwards. Harry, do you think that is wise?" Grayson asked, looking at Harry as he asked him.

  Had it not been for the fact that they had to protect the children, he would have waited and seen who was at the gate, however, the children's safety was more important at the moment.

  Harry had been with the children and had met them; if there were any problem children Harry would know. Grayson may be able to know who they were and even catch glimpses of their life, but unless he delved into their minds, he wouldn't know their personalities.

  Harry nodded his head and Grayson took a deep breath then concentrated on each individual person and took them all back to Amarantos' castle, all 168 children were there. Luckily, when they'd rescued all the Sentinels from the Void, they'd gotten lucky enough to get the children before he took them to Alexi’s home.

  Chapter Sixteen

  They arrived at Amarantos' castle in a flurry, the children were noticeably scared, looking around and clinging to each other. A few ran to Harry once they realized they'd arrived wherever Grayson was transporting them.

  Amarantos sighed and looked around sadly as Nulo directed his sentry to secure the castle and make sure everything was properly closed down, no one was allowed in or out except for the royal family until he said so.

  Then Grayson turned to Amarantos and spoke quietly.

  "Amarantos, I shall take the Sentinel children, I think it wise to leave the Vampire children with you. Not only is it safer for them, but they will have you to teach them the proper etiquette for vampires. Is this acceptable to you?" Grayson asked him.

  Amarantos nodded and smiled his face lighting up at the thought. Grayson nodded back at him and smiled, patting the smaller man on his shoulder then he turned to all the children and spoke loudly, getting everyone's attention.

  "Everyone calm down please and listen well. I am Grayson Phillips, this is Harry McDonnell, and beside him is Amarantos, and Nulo, Yoshihiro you already know. Please do not be scared children; you are safe and sound here. We have one more stop before we arrive at our final destination. For all of you that are Sentinel children, Harry and I will be taking you to a haven for all Sentinels; there is a school specifically for training the children of Sentinels there as well. For all of you that are Vampire children, you will be remaining with Amarantos, the King of the vampires."

  Grayson stopped talking and looked at a few of the children that seemed more scared than the rest when he said some would be staying with Amaran
tos. Without speaking, he walked over to them and crouched on his haunches, bringing himself down as close as he could to their level.

  The little group consisted of one little Sentinel girl named Silk; she was 10 years old; and two little boys, one little boy was a Sentinel boy named Angelo, and he was also 10 years old. The other little boy was a natural born Vampire, he was named Grant, and he was 11 years old, he was only a month and half older than Silk. Grant was Alexi’s son, but it looked like Alexi had treated him worse than the others. From what Grayson could see, Alexi had drained Grant's Mother dry, killing her only hours after she gave birth to Grant. Grayson's memories wavered, and he saw from both Alexi’s and Grant's perspective, it only made him angrier, so he stopped and turned to the children.

  "Hi kids, why are you scared?" Grayson asked.

  Grayson looked from one cute little face to the next, waiting for them to answer; the boldest of the three was the little girl, and she spoke up for the rest of them.

  "We don't want to leave Grant behind, he is our family, we've always been together, and if you separate us, Grant will have no one else. No one else likes him, they all blame him for the bad things Master Alexi did to us. But none of them bothered to find out the truth," Silk said, lifting her tiny little chin defiantly as she looked around the room, daring anyone of the other children to object to her words.

  No one spoke, or uttered a single sound; instead, they bowed their heads guiltily. How could he take in three more children? Although they could easily make the room, especially with the money he had stashed over the millennia. However, would everyone accept the poor abused Grant? He looked so hopeless; he seemed to have lost his ability to smile if he ever had it to begin with.

  "Grant, do you want to stay with Silk, and Angelo?" Grayson asked him quietly.

  All three children looked at Grayson with wide surprised eyes when he spoke the name of Silk and Angelo, but despite the surprise, Grant nodded his little strawberry blonde head silently, and looked at his feet dejectedly.

  Grayson turned to Harry, knowing he would have heard Silk's request; Harry's eyes reflected Grayson's feelings, he didn't' want to leave the poor Grant behind, nor did he want to separate the three tightly bound children.

  "Plus, my mommy once told me that when we share our blood with another, it bonds us, and all three of us have shared blood," Silk added. Grayson frowned at her words and sighed then turned to Silk.

  "Is it ok if I see your memories, so I understand better?" Grayson asked her with a smile.

  He was enraged inside, but he managed to keep his feelings buried so that he wouldn't frighten the children. Silk nodded her little dark brown haired head and relaxed as Grayson looked into her eyes and delved into her memories.

  A flood of information filled his mind as it had done with Alexi, but this was much less information. The Void had taken Silk to Alexi when she was only a year old, Angelo had been only a year and a half old, but from the start, Grant had taken to them and spent most of his time with them. Grant had also taken the brunt of Alexi’s anger and horrible deeds. He'd been tortured until he broke, bled until he was almost dry. Worse still, Alexi had tested things out on Grant, just to see the results. The multitude of horrendous things he'd done to his own flesh and blood son made Grayson want to rip the Vampire to shreds and keep him alive to feel the pain as he burned for eternity.

  Grayson sighed in sadness as the last of Silk's memories filled his head; her Mother had been one of the Sentinels absorbed by the Void. In the same fashion, Grayson turned to the other two boys and looked into them. The Void had absorbed Angelo's Mother and Father when he was 2 years old, and, like Yoshihiro, Angelo had suffered the atrocities that Alexi had doled out defiantly. Nevertheless, Grant was by far the worst; Silk spoke the truth when she said that Grant had suffered for them.

  When Grant had known Alexi planned on taking Silk or Angelo, Grant would anger his Father in an attempt to make him take him instead of Silk or Angelo. A few times, he'd taken the place of another child when they had been to hurt to take much more.

  Yet, even when he broke, he didn't really break, the thought of his friends waiting for his return fueled his inner strength, and he never gave up hope. However, Grant had known his days were numbered, he'd always feared he would not make it the next time Alexi would take him. He'd feared most of all what Alexi would do to Silk and Angelo when this happened. His fear had only fueled his stubbornness, allowing him to keep surviving, when most would have given up. Grant was one very tough kid, and Silk and Angelo were well aware of just how strong he was.

  When Grant had been brought back to their cell, beaten and bleeding, they had fed him their blood, strengthening him and making him stronger. Had Grant taken the amount of blood he took form Silk and Angelo, from a full Sentinel, he would have died, but the fact that Silk and Angelo had not gone through the change had allowed him to heal faster, stay strong, without the fear of dying.

  Grayson patted Silk on her little shoulder and turned to Grant, smiling at him and taking his little hand.

  "You are one very brave little boy Grant, and much stronger than most, very well, you three will stay with Harry and I when we go home," Grayson said, petting each of their heads in turn.

  If it were up to him he would love to take them all home, he knew they had all suffered, but the school was the best bet for them. The Sentinel school was in a pocket of time that was inaccessible without Grayson or Harry. Over 50,000 years ago, they had set this time pocket up for all Sentinels, mainly for the purpose of training their young.

  Nevertheless, it was a land that flourished and thrived on its own. Many Sentinels had opted for remaining in this land along with their children while they attended the prestigious school, named simply KiGa. It was a well-rounded school teaching all the levels needed from infancy to adulthood, and any diploma from there was accepted anywhere on Earth as well as other worlds as a fully accredited diploma because of the magic used. Grayson wondered how it was doing since in essence it was its own world; although the land was one large supercontinent, life thrived on land as well as the ocean.

  Grayson turned to Harry and took a deep breath than stood as tall as he could and spoke loudly once again.

  "Ok, all Sentinel children on the right-hand side, all Vampire children on the left-hand side, except for Grant. Grant stay with Silk and Angelo, please stand next to Harry. Before we go, I want to say one thing, if any of you, and I mean any of you, need to contact Harry or me, all you need to do is think of us really hard. Call out to us, and we will come as soon as possible; if there is an emergency, you just need to think of us, and we will do our best to get to you immediately. Do any of you have any questions before we get going?" Grayson asked, looking around the room.

  A tiny little hand raised; the little Sentinel girl had to be the tiniest of all of them there. Her name was Fiona O'Hare, and she was 6 years old, Grayson smiled at her as she spoke timidly.

  "Master Grayson, can we also stay with our friend, Joseph? He's also a Vampire, but we've grown up together, and we also have a blood bond. I think we are all like that; all of us have formed blood bonds. Isn't there a way we can all remain together, can't they come with us to the school? Won't they be safer there than here also?" Fiona asked sadly as Grayson gritted his teeth at the term Master.

  He would have to correct her on that later because Grayson could tell she was having a hard time asking him this. He could see that she had no hope he would say yes, yet she still asked in an attempt to convince him. She spoke the truth; when Grayson focused, he could tell every single one of them had a blood bond to each other. Separating them would hurt them both mentally and physically.

  Grayson sighed when he saw the state the children were in; how could he separate them when they all clearly needed each other? He turned to Harry, uncertain of what to do; Harry nodded his head slightly, letting Grayson know he thought they should keep the children together.

  Grayson turned back to the children an
d nodded then looked at Fiona and winked, cupping her face gently and caressing her tiny delicate face lovingly as he smiled down at her.

  "Very well, but you have to understand one thing, this school is meant for Sentinels, not vampires, you will have to take responsibility for your bonded Vampire friends. They will be learning alongside you, so you will have to help them study and train. When the time comes, if you wish to make them a hybrid you will have to make sure you know just how to do that, or you can kill them. If, and when, that happens, please let Harry or me know beforehand, and we will assist you in the process, ok?" Grayson asked, looking at every little face, which had now lit up and only happiness was displayed clearly on each one of their faces.

  As one, they all said yes and grasped hands together, forming one long chain. These children were so very strong, to have gone through so much at such a young age, and yet still have the ability to smile the way they did, it gave Grayson hope.

  "Ok then, well Amarantos, it appears they will not be staying with you after all. This might be for the best though, they will be very well trained if nothing else. We'll stay in contact though, we need to go over some stuff, and I also have to feed Nulo so I will be seeing you in the next few days. See you later Amarantos, Nulo. Ok everyone, link hands and hold on tight," Grayson said.

  Once everyone had done as they were told and Harry was holding Grayson's hand, he teleported them to the Sentinel land of KiGa. The land of KiGa was named after the great Mother of all creation herself, the very being that had bestowed Nurushi and Etushi onto Grayson and Harry and blessed Gaia's creation of all Sentinels. They arrived in front of a massive stone wall, which seemed to extend forever, on both sides.

  Grayson thought the words that would open the secret stone entryway into the school and then placed his hand on the wall. Grayson felt a small prick on the palm of his hand, but did not remove his hand. The prick tested not his blood or DNA but his life essence, something that would not change no matter what lifetime or incarnation it was.