Darkness Is Rising

by C. M. Sipes

  Vittoria’s sword was knocked from her hand by nearby wolf, using her temporary distraction to its advantage. She growled before reaching forward and grabbing the wolf’s throat, ripping it from its body. Blood splattered her face before she rushed to the next target, her leg swinging forward and forcefully knocking a wolf to the ground. She straddled its back and grabbed its jaw. A roar ripped through her throat as she pulled its mouth apart, tearing it from its body and tossing it to the side with a sickening sound. Her red eyes began to deepen to blood-red, closely resembling that of Lilith’s eyes, as she began to feel the pull of bloodlust.

  “Vittoria!” Marcella worriedly called. Her own body was covered in wolf blood as she began to move toward her heir. She could see the deepening red from afar and felt panic grip her heart at the familiarity of those eyes.

  Vittoria paid her no mind, lost in the pleasure of the kill, and rushed to her next target. She lunged at another wolf, forcefully gashing its chest open and sinking her nails into its heart. The beast let out a terrible wail as it fell to the ground, its stilled heart falling next to its lifeless body. She soared into the air, her swarm easily coming forth as she flew through the sky. She dipped and weaved, flying to the ground and grabbing a wolf before surging back into the air. She easily ripped it apart, parts of its body falling to the ground as she flew on before descending back to the earth, returning to herself, and grinning.

  Vittoria felt like her entire body was vibrating, pulsing with delight as the smell of blood surrounded her senses, working her into a frenzy of bloodlust as she effortlessly raced across the battlefield. Her blood-red eyes landed on Marius’ beast form, his red fur glinting in the light of the night, and she grinned. Her fangs bared as she surged forward and raced at him.

  A mass struck her mid run and knocked her to the ground. She slid through the bloody dirt, her eyes adjusting to the heavily breathing wolf a few feet away. The beast let out a roar and its tail flicked with hesitancy.

  “Aerona,” Vittoria growled out, her voice deeper than usual as she stood to her feet.

  Aerona’s tail flicked in response, her body tensing and readying itself to keep Vittoria from seeking out Marius again.

  “You cannot stop me, Aerona,” Vittoria growled out again, her blood-red eyes flickering to Marius once more.

  Aerona let out a roar as she lunged forward. Vittoria anticipated the move and easily dodged her, her elbow coming down harshly on Aerona’s massive head and knocking her into the soil.

  Her feet quickly carried her toward Marius as her hands easily dispatched of the wolves blocking her path. More blood began to coat her body, seeping into her mouth, and she felt her mind become hazy—a sea of red covering her vision. She could not see or think properly. All her senses were trained on the sound of pumping hearts and the smell of their blood. She could feel herself become lost in the bloodlust, her mind feeling as if it was completely at the mercy of her body.

  She continued to race forward, briefly hearing Marcella’s panicked voice echoing in the distance. She paid it no mind as her hands continued to rip into flesh as she ran.

  Hands dug into a wolf and a terrible roar was released from its mouth. Marius’ red-rimmed yellow eyes burned into Vittoria’s blood-red, and he quickly realized that the young Queen was not in her right mind. His vision began to blur as he watched a wicked grin spread across her face, her hand clenching his heart.

  “Long live the Queen,” Vittoria whispered darkly.

  Her voice was deep and hard as steel, and Marius felt himself tremble at the sound.

  Vittoria ripped her hand back, heart in hand, and held it up as Marius’ beast body fell into the blood-soaked earth. Her nails dug into the heart, pushing blood from the organ as her free hand came up to coat her fingers in the sticky liquid. She raised her hand to her face and smeared the blood across it before turning around and letting out a terrible roar.

  The battlefield stilled suddenly at the cry of victory. Roars of victory echoed her call. The forces cheered as they looked to the young Queen, blood smeared across her face, her fangs barred and eyes as red as the blood that flowed through the dirt.

  “Vittoria!” Marcella cried out. She knew the battle was won, that victory was theirs, but fear gripped her heart and sent her reeling as she thought she witnessed the second coming of Lilith.

  Vittoria merely grinned at her maker as she ripped the heart in two and threw it into the dirt. “Are you not pleased, Marcella?” Vittoria called out as the celebrations continued around her.

  Marcella shivered at the hollowness of Vittoria’s voice, her eyes turning to look to Aerona’s form.

  Aerona’s yellow eyes turned and looked at Marcella, her massive head nodding before she rushed at Vittoria. Her paws tore up the earth as she ran with haste.

  Marcella followed and rushed to her heir, determined to subdue her before she would seek out a fresh body to feed on. She lunged forward and hit the dirt as Vittoria easily sidestepped her.

  Aerona let out a roar as she lunged for Vittoria, succeeding in distracting the blonde long enough for Marcella to regain her footing and quickly grab her heir from behind.

  “Enough, Vittoria!” Marcella growled as she attempted to restrain her successor.

  Vittoria let out a roar as she squirmed to remove herself from Marcella’s grip. Aerona whimpered before sinking her teeth into Vittoria’s flesh. Both she and Marcella winced at the pained roar that escaped Vittoria’s lips.

  The young Queen roared again as she thrashed against them, twice as hard, blood from her wound rolling down her armor, adding a fresh layer of liquid to the already stained attire.

  Aerona sunk her teeth into Vittoria once again, forcing the Queen to fall to her knees and whimper in pain. She moved to stand once more and Aerona attacked again, creating a third fresh wound.

  Blood poured from Vittoria’s body and her eyes began to flicker with exhaustion at the loss of blood. Soon after, she fell to the ground—unconscious.

  Marcella sighed as she finally released Vittoria, her worried red eyes scanning Aerona’s yellow.

  The new Alpha looked at Marcella with concern before glancing to Vittoria’s unconscious body. Her body began to shift, her bones cracking with sickening crunches as she began to transform back into her human form. A pained roar ripped through her as her body shrank and cracked into the correct positions. She stood panting, body bare as her yellow eyes looked at Marcella.

  “What the hell happened to her?” Aerona breathed out.

  Marcella’s eyes flooded with fresh worry, her mouth opening to speak but no sound came.

  “Marcella, what was that?” Aerona asked again.

  “I do not know.” Marcella looked at Vittoria’s form. “I have never seen her that bad before.”

  Aerona looked at Marcella curiously. “You say that as if she has been…not herself before.”

  Marcella eyed Aerona a moment. “Help me get her back to the castle and I can explain on the way.”

  Aerona nodded as she moved to grab one of Vittoria’s arms and hoist it over her back as Marcella repeated the action with the other.

  “All of you, begin gathering the fallen and return to camp, and I shall address tonight’s events then,” Aerona yelled to what was left of her pack.

  The wolves all watched her warily for a moment before beginning their shift to human form.

  “Clear away the dead mortals and take them back toward the castle. We shall burn them tonight,” Marcella called to her fellow vampires. Those remaining began grabbing the bodies and rushing off as their Queen commanded.

  “What of Vittoria?” Aerona said softly as they walked across the bloody field.

  “She is being affected by our First’s memories, it seems. I have seen her in blood frenzy before after she experiences a memory of hers. But, she has never been this bad.”

  “When was the last time she experienced one of her memories?”

  “Just this morning.”

  “Ah,�
� Aerona said quietly. “Well then, Marcella, I believe we have our answer as to why she acted in such a way tonight.”

  “Perhaps,” Marcella began, “but this cannot continue, Aerona. She lost her mind. It was as if I was not even looking at Vittoria anymore…” she trailed off.

  “But at your First,” Aerona finished.

  Marcella merely nodded as they approached the castle.

  “Her wounds are already healing,” Aerona said as they entered the gates.

  “She will need to feed as soon as she awakens,” Marcella said with a sigh. “Let us hope she is her sane self when she does.”

  “Indeed,” Aerona replied as they navigated the corridors of the castle and headed toward Vittoria’s room.

  They entered the room and carefully sat her in a nearby chair, the handmaidens rushing into the chamber shortly after to remove the pieces of armor from her body. They carefully cleaned her figure, washing away the blood that coated her skin and taking care to avoid the rapidly healing wounds. Soon after, she was moved to the bed with a clean white shirt adorning her body.

  “They will fear her,” Marcella muttered to Aerona.

  “Fear is a good thing, Marcella, you of all people should know that,” Aerona replied as she pulled a fresh pair of pants over her dark legs. She had freshened up as Vittoria was being tended to. “Let me know how she is when she awakens. I need to go tend to my wolves and undergo the test,” Aerona said softly before turning to leave.

  “We will talk of a peace treaty when Vittoria is well,” Marcella said.

  Aerona stopped and turned to look at Marcella. “I would like nothing more than a peace treaty.”

  Marcella nodded to herself as Aerona exited the room, leaving her alone with Vittoria. She looked at her heir sadly, her mind racing with the thoughts of the war. “Oh Vittoria, what is happening to you?”

  Chapter VII

  Seattle, Washington, USA

  Present Day

  Vittoria arrived back at the coven house in good spirits. Her talk with Lilith was… productive. After Vittoria finished her tale of the Blood War, Lilith was supportive and understanding—with what little words she did utter. Vittoria was still having trouble reading the elder vampire. Her expressions gave nothing away and she spoke little unless she wanted to. Vittoria wouldn’t pry, though. When, and if, Lilith was ready to speak more to her about her plans and past, she would be there to listen. Until then, she needed to meet with Marcella and rouse Emma. They needed to pay a visit to someone Marcella would not be happy to see.

  “Is anyone awake in this house?” Vittoria called out as she entered. She heard Marcella’s chuckle from the dining room and headed toward the sound.

  “You were up awfully early. The sun is still up,” Marcella commented as she sipped her goblet of blood.

  “You are up early as well. It’s only four o’clock,” Vittoria replied with a smirk, taking a seat next to Marcella.

  “If you want blood, you’ll have to get it yourself as Lilith disposed of my servants,” Marcella said with a roll of her eyes.

  “You’ll bring more in, Marcella. Don’t be so bitter,” Vittoria said with a chuckle as she sat back in her chair with a sigh. She looked at Marcella, who was examining her curiously. “I was with Lilith.”

  Marcella opened her mouth, a soft ‘ah’ escaping her lips as Vittoria answered her unspoken question. “Who tracked who down?”

  “Actually, we happened upon each other by chance.” Vittoria looked at Marcella. “She was in the café not far from here, drinking a coffee.”

  “How mortal,” Marcella deadpanned.

  Vittoria chuckled in amusement before growing serious. “I told her of the Blood War.”

  Marcella’s eyebrows rose. “Did you tell her about—”

  “Yes,” Vittoria interrupted. “I told her.”

  “What did she have to say?”

  “She awoke after I…” Vittoria trailed off. “That was all she said about that. She was intrigued by my story, though. She is a very attentive listener.”

  Marcella smirked. “Also temperamental.”

  “She feels bad about that, by the way,” said Vittoria. She chuckled when Marcella’s eyebrows rose.

  “She feels bad about last night?”

  “She didn’t wish to frighten you, just establish dominance.”

  “Ah,” Marcella chuckled. “Perhaps our Queen has a soft spot after all.”

  Vittoria smiled sadly. “I believe she does. It’s just buried far beneath the surface.” “You’ve come to that conclusion just from coffee with her?” Marcella asked with a chuckle. Her laugh died, though, when she saw the serious expression on Vittoria’s face.

  “She did not have an easy life, Marcella. From the moment she was made.”

  “Well, the life of an immortal is never easy, Vittoria,” Marcella replied uncertainly.

  “I meant since she was made, period.”

  Marcella’s eyebrows rose but she pressed no further, sensing that Vittoria would speak no more on the matter anyway.

  “So, what are your plans for today?” Marcella asked, attempting to change the subject.

  “Actually, we are having a little outing today.”

  “We?”

  “Yes. You, myself, Lilith, and Emma,” Vittoria said with a grin.

  “Oh for heaven’s sake,” Marcella muttered but smiled nonetheless. “Where to?”

  “That is the thing,” Vittoria began uncertainly. “We need to go and visit the local coven.”

  “Local coven?” Marcella asked in confusion. “We are the—oh. You mean the witch coven.” Her eyes flashed.

  “Calm yourself, Marcella,” Vittoria warned.

  Marcella’s body began to shake with rage; her eyes changed to red and a little welt of blood bubbled up from her bottom lip where her fang pierced. “You know how I feel about the witches.”

  “Indeed, I am familiar,” Vittoria replied harshly. “But, they have information that we need.”

  “Says who? Lilith?” Marcella asked, her fangs barred and eyes blazing.

  Vittoria let out a growl.

  “You guys are left alone for five minutes and you’re at it again,” Emma said groggily from the entranceway.

  “This does not concern you,” Marcella warned.

  “It does!” Vittoria defended, her own eyes turning red as she glared at Marcella.

  Marcella’s eyes widened slightly, her expression shifting from rage to concern as she gazed into Vittoria’s eyes.

  Vittoria was taken aback by the sudden change in Marcella’s demeanor, but continued staring nonetheless.

  “Your eyes,” Marcella said softly as Emma approached to get a better look. “They are slightly darker.”

  “They look the same to me,” Emma muttered.

  “Your eyes wouldn’t be able to notice the difference,” Marcella replied softly.

  Vittoria stood and walked to the nearby mirror, her eyes widening slightly as she realized what Marcella said was true.

  “They are a deeper red,” Vittoria confirmed.

  “So much for the whole ‘vampires can’t see their reflections’,” Emma muttered.

  Marcella let out a chuckle in response before looking back at Vittoria. “Perhaps it is from ingesting Lilith’s blood last night.”

  “And this morning,” Vittoria added.

  “You drank her blood this morning?” Emma asked, flabbergasted. “When? Where? How?”

  Vittoria chuckled. “I went to my usual café this morning and Lilith was there. I was extremely tired, more so than I should have been.”

  “Did you feed?” Marcella asked.

  “I did. It didn’t help, though.” Vittoria shrugged. “She just added a few drops of her blood to my coffee and it perked me right up.”

  Marcella eyed her heir a moment. “Lilith always did have an effect on you.”

  “Indeed.” Vittoria offered a small smile. “Anyway, back to the original discussion about today’s plans.”<
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  Marcella growled lowly, and both Vittoria and Emma smirked.

  “You sound like a grumpy dog when you do that,” Emma commented boldly, earning a surprised and offended look from Marcella.

  “Focus,” Vittoria said quickly before continuing, “We need to go to the local witch coven today. Lilith thinks that they may have some answers about our influx situation and a way to figure out who is behind it exactly.”

  “I already gave the orders for infiltration, as did Aerona.”

  “When did you do that?” Vittoria asked.

  “Last night. I sent Demetri to send word. I imagine that a few loyal bloodlusters will have infiltrated by tonight,” Marcella replied.

  “How do you know that Aerona had given orders?” Emma asked.

  “She sent word early this morning. I do not believe she sleeps,” Marcella commented as she finished her goblet of blood.

  “You talk about her not sleeping and yet the two vampires were up before the mortal,” Emma mumbled, earning a chuckle from Vittoria and a small smile from Marcella.

  Vittoria could tell that Emma was growing on Marcella already, as much as Marcella would deny it.

  “So,” Emma began, “when do we leave?”

  “Now,” Lilith said as she entered the room, causing Emma to jump in surprise.

  “We need to get a bell for you,” Emma said seriously.

  Lilith merely raised her eyebrows before making her way to Vittoria and taking the seat next to her.

  “Will you be able to contain yourself, Marcella?” Lilith asked seriously.

  “I think I can manage,” Marcella said with a sigh, clearly unhappy about the predicament.

  “Should we contact Aerona?” Vittoria asked, her eyes turning to look at Lilith.

  “I already did. She is going to meet us there,” Lilith replied.

  “Then we should depart,” Marcella said as she stood from the table. Everyone else followed suit and made their way out of the coven house.