by P. Mattern
“This is the happiest day of my life,” she confessed to him. Byron thought that she had never looked more lovely; her vulnerability made her even more beautiful than he ever remembered.
“Lexi,” he said quietly,”This one moment is timeless and the most joyful in my existence. You are my sun, moon and stars tonight and every night from now on. I love you, Alexiandra!”
Lexi brushed Byron’s blonde hair away from his face on one side. It was a tender gesture.
“I love you too, Byron Chance…you can’t possibly know how much I love you at this moment. But I will have to ask you to give me a few minutes to freshen up before you enter the bedchamber. I promise I won’t be long.”
Mute with swirling emotion, trying to be careful of her feelings, and with his heart pounding loudly in anticipation of bedding his new wife, Byron nodded and let go of Lexi so that she could ready herself for bed.
After what had seemed like an eternity, the door to the adjacent room opened just a crack, which Byron took as the sign that he had been waiting for. Getting up, he walked over to the arched door made out of heavy wooden slats joined together with brass bolts. At his slight push it swung inward easily and there, in full view was a completely nude woman reclining against a bank of ivory silk covered pillows, spread eagled on a silk sheet. The sight made Byron stop breathing for a moment.
…..Because the nude figure reclining on the bed wasn’t Lexi.
Byron found his breath and gasped ”Who ARE you?”
The woman threw back her head, laughing lightly, her laughter musical. She had long thick dark hair, a beautiful face with almond shaped eyes that glowed green in the semi light of the bedchamber under thickly curled black eyelashes, and a voluptuous body. She looked to be a mixture of Asian and African American heritage.
But it was Alexiandra’s laughter that resounded throughout the room, confusing Byron even more.
“It IS me, Byron! I just wanted to show you what I can do…because—as you can see—I am not only a vampire, but a SHAPESHIFTER also!
SURPRISE!” she finished, breaking into a huge smile, showing rows and rows of perfect teeth.
His eyes still wide with incredulity, Byron approached the bed until he stood within inches of it.
“Lexi my love I couldn’t be more shocked if I returned to find CASS in our bed! Lexi Lexi why didn’t you tell me before this?”
The exotically dark beauty on the bed sat up, an apologetic look in her eyes.
“Well, two reasons actually. I wanted to be sure that, even given your reputation as a Vampire Cassanova in the V-net who had cut quite a swath among female energies, it truly was ME that you wanted, forsaking all others. I needed to know that you were willing to abandon ’variety’ for me—and if you’d known that I could transform into virtually ANY type of woman that you desired…well, I never could have been sure!
The second reason,” Lexi said,”Is that I wanted to save the revelation of my shapeshifting abilities for a wedding gift to you my love. Sooooooo…” she continued, stretching upward with abandon and showing off her magnificently voluptuous body to perfection, ”Are you impressed? Are you pleased with your ‘wedding gift’?”
Byron grinned in his slow, easy trademark style.
“Alexiandra you NEVER fail to surprise me! You vixen! And I love what I see, don’t get me wrong—“
Byron walked over and, standing over her, stripped his clothing off in a few smooth motions.
“But Lexi…” he continued,”Tonight, my darling, I want to see YOU lying naked before me. I have enough sensibility to realize that you might be feeling a little shy, sweetness. But I want YOU Lexi. So please shapeshift back to your own body, the body I have been looking forward to making love to for months now.
“—would you like me to close my eyes?” he suggested helpfully.
Lexi looked down demurely.
“If you woudn’t mind,” she answered.
Byron sighed patiently and lowered his eyelids for a few moments until he heard Alexiandra say,
“Okay my husband…here I am!”
When Byron opened his eyes his heartbeats picked up…he was amazed at Lexi’s physical beauty. Her spendidly full tip tilted breasts with their orangey-pink nipples were amazing. Her tiny waist was offset by amazingly rounded and alluring hips, and the tops of her thighs were firm but also alluringly full, with an enticing valley between them that promised hours of rich delight.
Her eyelashes fluttered as she gazed slightly downward demurely.
“Do I please you?” she asked. At first Byron thought that she was teasing him, but as she raised her eyes to meet his he realized that she really wanted to know.
“Oh Alexiandra,” he replied, overwhelmed by her scent, her curvaceous body and her ability to make him burn with desire,” You are the most beautiful female energy I have ever seen. Lexi you know you made me work, and work hard for this moment…but seeing you naked before me I still feel unworthy to touch you. You are too amazing my Love.”
“Do you need to be blindfolded Byron?” Lexi asked .
This time Byron could tell that she was teasing him.
“Not a chance!” he replied,” I will enjoy exploring and inspecting every inch of you.”
In an instant Byron was on top of her, his hands warmly caressing and searching her, his mouth firmly upon hers. Their energies mingled with an explosion of ecstacy as Byron cupped her buttocks in his hands, driving himself into her, desperate to plant his seed again and again.
Afterwards they spooned as Byron held her, murmuring endearments, allowing himself, despite the tragedies of his tortured past, to love again.
Even though their location appeared to be secure and uncompromised, the vampires kept up surveillance of the area through drones and also foot patrols. Every immortal had, among his daily duties, a shift to serve to this end.
On the 10th day in camp, Charley Rabbit waved Orry off as the two separated to do a preconfigured night patrol on the Western border of the encampment at the New City. The weather was just shy of springlike, and Charley shook his head as he recalled the events of the previous afternoon, when he’d been shanghaied by his darling Fressenda and their Blood Donor human Faun. Although Charley and Fress had had many discussions about having a baby by a surrogate, and Charley had repeatedly assured Fress that he didn’t feel as if he were missing anything in his life, as long as they were together, she had finally gotten him to relent. He had agreed to father a baby through a human surrogate. And Faun, who trusted them and had been their donor for months now had expressed her willingness, and even her eagerness, to be part of what Fress had termed ‘the miracle’.
Charley reflected that he’d never had a chance, especially when face with two very determined female energies.
It wasn’t the perfect situation of course. The child would be a dhampir. A ‘dhampie’ in the crude vernacular of V-net terms for offspring produced by a relationship between a human and a vampire. But Fress didn’t give a fig of a damn about that, and Faun didn’t either. It would be a new world now and society had progressed beyond petty prejudices , it’s focus on survival and restoration.
The moon was a crescent as Charley walked along, his walkie talkie buzzing and spouting out muffled communications between others patrolling different sections. It was a shining slim scythe of silver in the midnight blue sky. The stars were out in impressive and twinkling force and Charley recognized the twin stars, Castor and Pollux and thought of Cass and Lux, also out on patrol in different quadrants. There was a peace here among the trees, a slightly chilly breeze stirred the branches from time to time but it seemed a milder breeze, one that had lost its winter bite. Charley was grateful for many things: the most important was that he and Fressenda were back together, forever this time. He was also excited about the new brother that his mother Mitzi was carrying—he had felt a void since Cory had run off and he knew that within a year’s time he and his new sibling would be doing “guy” stuff together. He and the
other Immortals had discovered new ‘extended family’ within the ranks of the very courageous humans that they had befriended.
Other than the occasional argument, domestic dispute or scuffle, it had been peaceful in New Eden. Charley credited the fact that everyone was busy helping to create the infrastructure for the new society for the lack of dissention. There was even a panreligious cathedral that had been built, made entirely of stones that only the Immortals could lift into place, so that the residents could feel connected with the ethereal and spiritual.
His radio buzzed and some indecipherable chatter came across that seemed strange to Charley before his radio went strangely silent. Charley raised it and tapped it on the back, knowing that some of the units had developed shorts and needed to be replaced, but it seemed dead as a proverbial doornail.
Disgusted, after taking the batteries in and out as a last resort, he shrugged and stuck it in the pocket of the hunter’s jacket he was wearing. The wind seemed to pick up a little. He realized that he was at the farthest point of his patrol, nearly at the cliff side of the mountainous plateau, and was about to turn back, when he thought he heard a human voice.
“Help me,” a female voice said weakly and urgently, ”Help me Charley! Over here!”
Charley saw something white up ahead, and shining his diode flashlight in front of him saw a figure sitting at the base of a tree. As he got closer he recognized the female energy who was collapsed against the trunk, an iron spike that had been driven through the palm of her hand keeping her tethered there.
“Michaella!” he shouted, running up to her. She looked up at him frantically.
“Please Charley help us! Brick and I have been held hostage all this time! We managed to escape and run in different directions but they chased us and caught me first! You know that I am half fairy Charley! They drove an iron spike through my hand to keep me here, and it’s poison to the Fay , and burns like fire to the touch. I can’t get it out Charley!
PLEASE GET IT OUT!”
Mick’s entreaty ended on a scream. Charley quickly, pulled out the long spike and, tearing off the entire sleeve of his shirt, wrapped it tightly around the gaping wound in the palm of her childlike delicate hand.
“We have to get you to Doctor Caligare!” he told her, outrage causing his pulse to pound in his temples. “We need to get help! How many of them are there?”
Mick allowed Charley to pull her up to a standing position and grasped both his hands, sobbing.
“Charley there is no time! There are only three of them! Please Charley! We have to find Brick before they kill him!”
Charley could tell that Mick was on the verge of hysteria. Quickly he made his decision.
“Show me which direction you saw them going in when they left,” he said through gritted teeth, pulling his sharp dirk from it’s scabbard,”And don’t worry, we’ll find Brick! Lead the way!”
Mick turned and plunged ahead quickly, Charley keeping pace with her as she walked. She seemed relieved and excited, and Charley felt determined to justify her faith in him by finding Brick and securing his release.
As they forged ahead the spaces between the trees became more tangled with undergrowth, hindering their progress. Tangled vines were mixed with new spring growth, trees were beginning to sprout the first delicate greens of the season.
Soon it seemed to Charley that they had gone some distance. He was concerned that they might be approaching the precipice of the mountainous plateau. He reached forward to tap Mick on the shoulder, perplexed.
In the act of reaching forward he felt a blow to the top of his head and a sharp agonizing pain shoot down the length of his spine.
And then he knew no more.
Charley was having a dream in which he was in the woods, surrounded by darkness and his flashlight wasn’t working. Although with his innate vampire night vision he could see well enough to move forward with assurance, his progress was impeded by a series of chains fastened to his neck, wrists, waist and ankles. The chains were incredibly heavy, and although he tried with all his vampire strength he was unable to make much progress. Up ahead in the distance he thought he could hear the voices of his family, so he raised his voice above the keening of the wind.
“HELP!” he shouted,”Help me! It’s Charley! I’m over here!”
In his dream he stood still to try and gauge if anyone had heard his heartfelt cries, but it seemed as if no one could hear him. As he listened, the noises of the gathering continued unabated as if he hadn’t been heard at all. He was about to shout again when a unpleasantly familiar voice interrupted the confused dream and Charley’s eyes cracked opened to a floor level view of a pair of black heavily studded boots.
“Good morning Charley Rabbit.”
Adrastos voice sounded almost cheerful. He stood over Charley with the air of a hunter surveying a six point antlered deer that he’d managed to bring down. When Charley didn’t respond he kept speaking anyway.
“I am sure this is your worst nightmare. I wanted to make sure I came in person to welcome you to it! I don’t think I need to explain anything do I?”
Charley’s head was throbbing so badly he could barely raise it from floor level, but with a herculean effort he gingerly sat up.
“What did you hit me with?” was his first question. His voice was filled with disgust—more with himself than with the tall familiar figure standing in front of him.
“I demand to speak with my brother!” he added, pleased with himself for thinking so fast on his feet. He wasn’t sure what he would say to Corey—now Argent—but he had always enjoyed a good relationship with his kid brother right up until Cory/Argent’s disappearance. Charley was hoping that Argent would give him some information. He was sure that Adrastos would not.
“Argent is busy,” Adrastos replied. Charley thought Adrastos sounded put out that Charley would even mention his former sibling.”He is busy being instructed on the particulars of running Faquier Hall.”
Adrastos stepped forward until he was just inches from where Charley was sitting.
“Charley you should consider being a REAL big brother and joining us here, convincing your mother to join us as well. Argent bemoans his lack of siblings and you could help him develop into a great ruler. Learn the same things that he is learning, the mysteries and magic of our calling in this important place.
What say you Charley Rabbit?” Adrastos finished, almost sounding paternal.
Charley bristled.
“I’m afraid your delusions have compromised whatever tenuous grip you ever had on reality, Adrastos. My mother will never join you here, even if she knows that I am your hostage. Your FIRST hint of that should have been that, in spite of the fact that you Thrice Turned her, she never went to the Dark!
And ANOTHER thing—do you NEVER tire of abducting members of my family? It’s getting positively BORING dude!”
Adrastos’ expression changed in an instant.
“I’m so glad for you that your juvenile brand of animosity gives you such courage that you would speak to me with disrespect, not caring about the possible consequences of your rude actions. But you will care soon enough! You are going to find out what it feels like to starve, Charley Rabbit. To have your natural vampire bloodlust go unsatisfied. To feel your throat parch and crack in anticipation of having even a single drop of human blood pass through your lips. You will have an abundance of time in which to regret your lack of homage to me, I assure you!”
With a sinking heart and with his head still throbbing, Charley watched as Adrastos turned on his heel and joined his guard at the entrance to the cell. He searched vainly around his cell for something comforting, but a visual sweep revealed stoutly hewn stone walls and little else.
It was the stony silence that bothered him the most, but he comforted himself by humming a song by a modern day Celtic Minstrel that Fressenda had loved, and somehow that gave him courage.
He knew that his tribe would come for him. He was as sure of it as he
was sure that he would draw in another breath.
For now that was enough to make him feel as if he could withstand anything.
“It’s like a nightmare that refuses to end,” Mitzi sobbed against Cass’s muscular chest as he held her tightly against him, ”Isn’t it enough that he already has ONE of my sons? I KNOW that he had Charley taken! There isn’t any other explanation! WHY would he do this? He has everything that he could ever want including a son that I never intended to bear for him!”
Cass’s voice was gentle but firm.
“You’re wrong my love..he hasn’t ever had everything he has ever wanted because he doesn’t have YOU. It may have been inevitable that Corey—I mean Argent—would return to him, in the way that blood seeks it’s own. But for the most part he is driven by his obsession with you, because of your likeness to the original Parmitsvia…the human female that he loved and lost. It’s always about YOU, Mitzi. Seriously. Adrastos only let us alone all those months because he was recovering from his injuries. And after that he was only ‘hands off’ during the period of time that twins were growing up to lull us into a false sense of security…and maybe because he doesn’t change diapers! He was biding his time so that he could strike without warning.
And ALL of it is part of a grander scheme to bring you back to Faquier Hall. Permanently!” Cass finished angrily.
Mitzi had stopped weeping and stood looking down at her hands. She turned the sodden lacey handkerchief that she was holding in them over and over again for a few moments before she looked up at her husband and spoke again.
“I know that you intend to confront Adrastos, my love, but if you go there it will mean your death! Not only have I myself forseen this but Celeste has also!”
A cloud passed over Cass’s face.
“You CAN’T think that he would defeat me! Mitzi I HAVE to go! ALL of us want to go to Castle Fauquier and kick some ass! There is no way Adrastos can stand against us ALL!”
Mitzi reached out to put a staying hand on Cass’s arm.