I skipped back, swaying on the spot, ready to end this. I threw myself into the fight, parried, and kicked, knowing I had no choice but to keep up. Both boys pushed me back, flung me away, and slid me behind them as they landed strike after strike on the other. Always did I slip back into the melee, doing my best to make them stop, make them see it did not have to end like this.
It should not have been possible. I should have been pummeled, but I was there, and in a flurry of stances, I forced them to acknowledge I was an equal contender in this clash. They had to fight me back and that complicated things. They had to be mindful of hurting me whilst trying to inflict fatal damage on each other.
My sense of self-preservation was obliterated by feral anger. I wanted to tear them both apart. Smash their heads into the wall and beat them senseless to have my way. I was done watching these to fools snip at each other, and I was over this jealousy foolishness in a big way.
Even as I thumped him in the stomach, Breandan jabbed right around me then swung left – raining blows down on Tomas.
The vampire changed his tactics. He kept low. His punches alternated between uppercuts and loose-handed swipes. But then he sprung up, entire body lengthening, and brought down an overhead swing that landed square in Breandan’s forehead. Stunned, he stumbled. Tomas followed the move through by going for his neck – fangs glinting, fists flying.
Grabbing Tomas’ wrist as it sailed past my torso, I dealt my vampire a blow that had him shunting sideways; his arm bent too far the wrong way and snapped. He fell to his knees with a scream of pain.
I spun round to Breandan, unsteady on his feet, and launched myself at him with a shriek of rage. My ankles locked behind his neck and I threw myself backward. My hands hit the ground, and with all my might, I pulled my knees into my stomach. His weight smoothly shifted from my calves to my thigh and stomach muscles then released completely as gravity took over. He flipped over and slammed onto his back. My body bowed, elbows jarring as I landed hard on my chest, my butt sticking up in the air. I unlocked my ankles and slid my feet apart to keep my balance.
It had taken me an entire month of Disciple training to learn that move and never did I think I would find use of it.
I frog leaped backward and straddled him, but he twisted his hips to unseat me. He pushed forward so I fell back and smacked the back of my head on the concrete, softened by nothing but rainwater. We rolled in an indistinguishable haze so fast was our movement. Mid tumble he gained the advantage, his combating dexterity superior to mine, which was nothing more than frenzied instinct. He grabbed my wrist and yanked my arm high up my back. I howled in pain and jerked my head. There was a loud crunch and my wrist was released. The back of my head throbbed, but as I scrambled up, I saw his hurt was worse than mine. His nose was crooked and bloodied. It jerked oddly and healed as he swiped his forearm over his lips to clean away the blood. Not giving him a moment’s breather I boxed his ears, kneed him in the gut, and brought my foot down hard on the back of his knee, feeling the joint shudder under the strain.
All this was accomplished at inhuman speed I had thought only warriors the like of Conall possessed.
Gasping for air, I backed a step away, and opened my mouth to speak.
Breandan darted past me and collided with the vampire, whose broken arm had locked back into place, and was already springing forward to meet him half way.
I was half a step behind.
I punched Breandan in the neck causing him to gurgle oddly then twisted round to plant myself in front of him protectively when Tomas tried to maneuver him into a chokehold. Grabbing the vampire by his coal black hair, I rammed my fist into his solar plexus. I pivoted on the ball of my foot, and with my back to him snapped my elbow into his nose then again into his stomach. The double tap was done with a speed and sharpness beyond my own comprehension. His feet left the ground and he flew back. He rode his own darkness like a wave, somersaulting in the air, and landing silently. He snarled at me – entire body trembling in rage.
I tugged on the darkness trying to appeal to his better nature. It was a thick broiling cloud. It swelled the edges blurry but more present than I had ever felt. It called to me, the sinister depth alluring.
Breandan tried to use my pause to his advantage and sped past. I beat my wings twice and lifted from the floor. I kicked him in the stomach and again higher up on the chest with the other foot – running up his body – using the powerful impacts to flip over and land in a crouch with my left leg sliding out to expel the spare momentum. My fairy staggered back and glared at me balefully.
Chest heaving, I held my hand out to him and pleaded with my eyes. Words could not to convey the sentiments I felt, so I sent a plea with a wave of love. Please. The entreaty hit a wall and dissipated.
Breandan was done letting me sway his decision when it came to my vampire.
Reason had fled this place.
The air crackled with the intensity radiating from the three of us – elemental power pure and potent. Neither boy looked ready to quit and I was long past rationale. I buzzed with anger. Strength and speed were physical burdens racing through my veins.
Breandan pulled his gaze from the vampire to flick over my face. His jaw worked, but never did the tension in his body lessen. He saw it in my eyes that I was in this to the end like he was. He understood. I would not back down, not now, not ever. Apprehension flickered in his eyes when he glanced at me, quickly repressed by cold calculation. I focused my mental abilities on the barrier he had erected to keep me out of his mind.
I tuned into our bond, throwing myself into it like I never had before. Reaching out with mental fingers to slip past the barricades and trenches he’d created across his psyche to keep me out. I was sucked down a channel of emotion crammed with the intentions behind his actions. A flash of knowledge burned into my mind’s eye as the jealousy and hatred he felt for Tomas poured into me. My nature panted in approval.
Dragging myself back, I saw the world with my own eyes once more and understood Breandan with a lucidity that defied logic.
My feet slid apart, boots making a soft scraping noise as I eased them apart. My knees bent and I bounced from side to side. I was hyper aware of everything. The low growl from Tomas that never left his lips rang loud in my ears. Breandan’s heart thumped into his ribcage – racing with the thrill of the chance to rid himself of this rival for my heart.
The three of us measured each other and acknowledged that this fight would take everything.
If Breandan got the upper hand, Tomas was dead. If the vampire managed to get his fangs into the fairy’s neck, he could drain him in seconds.
The blood rushed in my ears as the finality of this moment swept over me. Neither of them would back down so I had to win this. If not, one would be lost to me forever. Oh gods. A bubble of panic had tears threatening to fall. No. I needed to stay calm and focus. I had to use what I had seen and manipulate it to my advantage.
Breandan favored his left fist and would always swing left if presented with a choice. Tomas’ fangs and his ability to cloak his next moves in darkness were his greatest weapons. Breandan had difficulty in anticipating his next strike so he had to take the blows and deliver his own with enough force to wind the vampire. Both were blinded by the fact they hated each other, and were sloppy in executing their defensive blocks. They wanted to attack, advance, and cause pain. Both focused their energies on the offensive rather than defending their vital spots.
Breandan stepped closer, as did Tomas. I had no choice but to move forward too. Our circle closed step by step until we were a mere leap away.
“Rae,” Tomas growled. “You must leave this place.”
“Agreed,” Breandan said simply. His eyes were opaque gray, pupils dilated.
My chin lifted as a sudden gust of wind whipped my hair into my face. “I will not.”
We three stood, tense, aware. Silence. Who would make the first move? Who would be the one to start the beginning of the end?
<
br /> Tomas broke first – a flurried lunge and swipe. In slow motion, I watched as Breandan’s foot shot out and clipped him in the jaw. The fairy’s fist swung toward me and I reacted – realizing a fraction of a second too late his other arm headed for my torso. His open palm connected with my upper body even as his left fist sailed past my head as I jerked to avoid it.
I had trusted my instincts and my instincts had been wrong. My mind reeled as the end of this fight became horribly clear to me.
By the gods, it was impossible. No one, nothing, could move that fast.
The blow to my chest vibrated my whole body. The force behind it sent me airborne, soaring back until I hit the building steps with such momentum they buckled inward. With immeasurable speed and unbeatable grace – even as I flew through the air – Breandan’s legs shot out in a double kick that jerked Tomas to the left then instantly to the right. Tomas crumpled to the ground in a tangled sprawl of limbs. My fairy was on him and rained blows upon his limp body; a left hook to the ribs, a straight jab to the face. Finally, he gripped the vampire’s head in both hands and slammed their foreheads together. Tomas’ head bounced off the floor and there was a hollow sounding crunch. Blood spattered – beaten beyond recognition – he spasmed.
Hissing, Gwendolyn landed in front of me. Before her clawed fingers could grab my throat Daphne jumped on her back. She sank her teeth into her Queen’s throat, mauling, long braids jiggling madly as she buried her fangs deeper. Snarling they fell backward entwined. Gwendolyn tried to scratch Daphne’s face, but the girl threw her head back gasping, blood dribbling down the corners of her mouth and throat. Even as her eyes fluttered in pleasure, she rammed Gwendolyn’s head into the concrete in a powerful push that cracked the pavement. She sprung up and dragged the vampire Queen back up the stone steps by those dark ringlets she was so fond of – smacking her head on every ledge as she went for maximum damage. Gwendolyn’s legs flailed and she shrieked in high-pitched squeals of rage.
My heart skipped a beat before pounding erratically. The balance of power shifted and Breandan filled the street with the influence over magics I lacked. I fought him, trying to claw the power back to me, but it was done. His power had grown to fill the void mine had briefly vacated.
Fisting his hands in Tomas’ shirt Breandan hauled the limp vampire onto his knees. He swayed and Breandan wrapped his large hands around his head, fingers pressed into his skin. His wings unfurled, gleaming silver, until they fully extended from his body. My fairy-boy glowed like the sun, a specter of light.
I was afraid – terrified – of what would happen next.
Dragging myself up I tottered on my toes. My body screamed at me to lie back down, but I gritted my teeth and took an unsteady step. Already the bond tugged on me, the urge to touch my other half flaring to become a desperate thing. No! I would fight it. I would not be overcome this time.
Tomas’ face healed revealing the bold and unusual features that had stunned me the first time I had met him.
I clutched my chest and applied pressure to the stabbing, wrenching agony I swear was more than my heart could handle.
“Please,” I mumbled so quietly my lips may have not moved. My head swung sluggishly from left to right. “Don’t do this.” Breandan eyes were riotous. His nature wild and aggravated – ready to destroy. “Wait,” I held my hands up and drew in a ragged breath. “Just wait. Let him go. We will leave this place and never look back.” He shook his head causing my heart to thump and quiver. A tear rolled down my cheek, slid across my lips then dropped from my chin. No doubt, it was lost in the cold rain streaming down my face. “Don’t. Don’t do this. Wait.”
“No,” he roared. “I am done being patient. I no longer understand nor do I care to. You belong to me. We are bonded and that is the end of it.”
Gwendolyn’s grip on the stair railing tightened until the metal groaned and warped.
Daphne held her by the hair and the strain on her face was horrible to see. Her eyes were locked on Tomas and they filled with sorrow and acceptance. The Nest Queen tried to crawl forward, but Daphne tightened her grip in the fistfuls of ringlets she held, and yanked her head back.
Gwendolyn had no choice but to stay crouched as she was. The railing buckled under the force of her might as she wrung her hands. “Leave him, fairy,” she rasped in panic. Her eyes pinged from my fairy to her vampire consort. “I’ll let you leave. I’ll let you both leave.”
Breandan’s nostrils flared, but not once did his eyes stray from me. “This has to happen because he will never stop. Do you understand, Rae? He will never stop wanting you. I will not live in fear that he may take you from me. You are mine and there can be no other. The blood tie will leave you open to him for the rest of your life. I let you save him once, and still he pursued you, brought you closer to danger. At one point your light winked out completely and I thought he had–” He choked up. “You nearly died. I cannot let this go. I will not.” Abruptly, Breandan’s mind touched mine. He twitched when he felt the darkness that connected me to what he saw as an enemy. He openly recoiled when it twisted inside me, whispering for me to embrace wicked things, for me to save my vampire.
“Rae, you remember what I told you?” Tomas asked urgently. “I never knew it would happen. I didn’t know I would love you.” He stared hard at me, eyes begging forgiveness. “Believe me.” He reached out and his pale fingers curled in the air as if he stroked my face.
Opening my mouth to give him what he needed my words caught in my throat. I ran forward and clasped his hand, pressed it to my chest over my heart. “I can’t say it,” I sobbed. “I can’t give you a lie.”
I cried, unable to express what I felt for him, knowing that was not enough, not what he needed to hear. Breaking, my heart was breaking, and the sound that choked from my throat was inhuman. No, I could not give this demon my heart because it did not belong to me anymore. It never would again. And I could not give him a lie to give him peace.
However, I could give him a truth. “But I believe you,” I whispered.
From Tomas’ red rimmed eyes – bottomless puddles of black ink – flowed contentment. He was saying farewell. That I would be safe and that this was the end of him. “Quiet now,” he murmured and brushed away a tear. I memorized the feel of his cool hand, knowing this would be the last time he touched me.
Standing, I let his hand slip from mine. I locked eyes with Breandan who worked his jaw, expression stony. He would not relent, nor would he back down when there was breath left in his body. Breandan’s life for Tomas’. It was a trade … one I was not willing to make.
This time I could not be the one to save my vampire.
It was over.
Backing away from them both, I kept Breandan’s gaze; summoned the last of my strength to endure the finality of those steps, but in the last moment I broke, and watched it happen.
Watched, as my fairy gripped Tomas’ head in hands that glowed with silver light.
Then ripped it off.
Epilogue
I remember flashes. Pain. Screams. Blood-curdling shrieks razed across my eardrums, and drowned my cries of terror. My heart took stabs of emotion, splinters of pain. I had been braced, prepared, yet still my world rocked, trembled, crashed down. Then I was sprawled on the ground as my legs failed me, buckled, the strength knocked away by shock. It did not matter how hard I screamed, how wildly I shook my head, how quickly my wings fluttered.
Breandan’s bellow as he dropped Tomas’ head was savage and triumphant. Now the lightning silhouetted him. Thunder rumbled across the sky and he roared back, but the end was tinged with misery and sorrow.
Gwendolyn’s grief-stricken wail seemed endless, hollow, as she crawled to Tomas’ side. She grabbed at his clothes and pulled his headless body toward her, draping herself over him. Her body shook as she extended a hand to the head that lay face down a few paces away.
Daphne stood still, head bowed, lips moving in silent prayer.
Breandan stepped
over the vampire Queen and crossed the distance to loom over me. He scooped me up and cuddled me close. His nature was sated and rolled over mine in comfort.
I stopped screaming, and stared into his face still struggling … no … unable, to comprehend what I had witnessed.
The absence of Tomas’ darkness was stark. The cold clarity of his demise reached me and I shook. My eyes landed on the headless body sprawled beneath Gwendolyn. She stared at nothing, face slack and dazed.
Tears blurred my vision and I gasped, chocked on the air, on my own tears. I could not breathe. I could not think. The darkness on the edge of my vision ebbed. Like clear water washing a stain, a silver-blue glow bloomed, and I shook my head to try and stop the purge. I sobbed, but it caught in my chest, a bubble of pain that bloated, and pressed down on my heart, restricting its erratic beat. It hurt. Oh, Tomas. A numbing disbelief crept through my legs and arms, sucking away all feeling, all hope. My eyes burned so I clenched them tight, and tucked my fisted hands into my stomach – holding myself together.
“The Queen,” Breandan muttered, weary. “I must–”
“No,” Daphne murmured. “She’s no danger to us right now, and besides, Cael won’t let her live long once he discovered Rae was here. Is she alright?” She asked and it sounded as if she spoke from down a long windy tunnel. “I’m out of practice with this kind of thing, being immortal and all, but she looks feverish.”
“We should not have lingered here,” Breandan said quietly. Sighing, his chest heaved against my body. “It is too much for her. Let me pass.”
There was a faint and cool pressure on my forehead. “She’s burning up.”
“It is how we grieve.” His arms tightened around me. “Her body and mind are fighting to accept the loss. She will bear the pain and live. Now let us pass.”
“I’m coming with you.”
Breandan was quiet before saying in a curious voice, “You stopped the Nest Queen from hurting my Rae. Why?”
Demon Day Page 33