by Lizzy Ford
“I’m here because my master told me to be here,” the boy said stubbornly.
“Who is your master?”
“Damian. He bought me off the auction block.”
“I don’t know that name. You’re fortunate to be here.”
“I wouldn’t have been on the auction block if my family wasn’t slaughtered!”
Jenn cleared her throat, not sure what to say. The boy’s eyes flashed. The ground beneath them moved suddenly, a low rumble that made the beds shake. The walls stayed.
“It’s been doing this all morning,” the boy said. “Maybe what happened in the country is happening in the city.”
“What happened in the country?”
“War,” he whispered.
“There’s no war right now,” she replied.
“I saw it.” The look on his face made her want to hug him and ease his fear.
“The earth rumbles sometimes,” she said. “You want to sit with me? I’ll protect you.”
The boy hesitated then left the floor where he sat and joined her sitting on the bed. The earthquake grew more intense. Jenn wrapped her arms around him. He remained tense at first before letting her pull him to her.
“Not so bad now, is it?” she asked.
“It’s worse than before.”
She almost sighed, not sure what to tell the boy. The shaking of the earth grew worse, until the walls began to tremble. Jenn took the boy’s hand and led him out of the building into the bailey area. The other new Guardians were gathered there as well. The boy crept closer to her, and she sought some subject to discuss that would calm him.
“What’s your name?” she asked.
“Dustin.”
“Don’t worry, Dustin. I’ll take care of you.”
He said nothing, his blue eyes darting around their surroundings. There was a crash, and one of the barracks collapsed. Jenn eyed it uneasily. The earth bucked, and two more buildings went down. The walls around the bailey began to crumble. Jenn grabbed Dustin’s hand and pulled him through the crowd, out of the enclosed space where the walls crumbled. She gazed at the city around them, startled to see buildings collapsing everywhere she looked.
Her heart sinking, she looked in the direction of her home. She couldn’t see the poverty-stricken section of the city.
“Stay here, Dustin,” she told him. “You hear me? Right here. Don’t go in any buildings.”
Scared, he nodded. Jenn released him and ran down the street, startled when the shaking ground knocked her down. She hurried to her feet and continued, heart racing as she ran through the city towards her home. The closer she got to the overcrowded, poor part of the city, the more people jammed the streets, shoving against her in an effort to escape the collapsing buildings.
Weaving in and out of people, Jenn made her way to her street and froze. Almost every dwelling on the narrow, crowded road was in pieces. Panic built as she forced herself forward. She stopped finally in front of the dwelling that had been hers. Her mother and father-in-law sat in front of the crushed structure, hunched over while their sobs reaching her ears.
Jenn approached as if in a dream, struggling to stay on her feet with the earth’s shaking.
“Get out!” her mother shouted as Jenn stopped next to them. “You did this!”
Jenn glimpsed the black curls of her daughter’s head as her mother tried to push her away. She gasped. Talia’s head was split open, her lifeless eyes staring at the sky.
No. Jenn couldn’t look away, couldn’t register what had happened.
Her mother made it to her feet and flung something at her. Jenn caught the necklace a moment before her mother began beating her, screaming. Too shocked to react, Jenn let her, until the earth bucked again. A crack split the street, swallowing her father-in-law and her little girl. Horrified, Jenn’s mother dropped to her knees, sobbing.
“Coward!” she shouted at Jenn. “You did this, you coward!”
Jenn stared, the image of her lifeless daughter falling into the chasm replaying over and over in her mind.
“Jenn!” another voice filled with fear cried.
Jenn turned woodenly, the world around her making no sense in her state. She vaguely recognized the blond boy. He wriggled through the crowd to her, looking past her at the chasm and the woman sobbing beside it.
“C’mon, Jenn!” he urged. “Please!”
She took one step then another, not understanding how her body could move when her mind couldn’t. Her steps went faster. Dustin darted in front of her, pushing his way through the crowd. He didn’t go the way they did but cut through an alley towards the center of the city. Jenn struggled to keep up, to breathe, to make sense of the world around her. She kept her eyes on Dustin, not knowing what else to do.
The little boy cut through the central square, where neat stone walkways hedged by vibrant grass wound around the familial obelisks marking the bloodline and succession of each noble house. She stopped and looked around, searching for the one that her family served. She trotted through the square until she found it and crouched beside it to see names at the very bottom, the names of the nobles’ servants.
Jenn, Finian, Talia.
The names of her mate and her daughter were written beside hers. Jenn stared at them numbly then dug a hole in front of the monument with shaking fingers. She deposited the necklace into it and covered it.
“Jenn, come on!” Dustin shouted, darting through the obelisks towards her. “We have to hurry! My master is waiting for us!”
“Where are we going?” she managed at last, stumbling after him.
“The mortal world.”
The ground shook, and she caught him as he fell. He bounded away again, back through the crowds. Jenn focused on keeping up with him. He ran through the city and into the apple orchard on the side of the city she’d only seen once, for peasants didn’t go there. Half the orchard was on fire while the other half rained delicate pink-white blooms from the apple trees. She looked around, astounded by the beauty of the orchard, then realized she’d lose sight of Dustin once he crested the hill in the center of the orchard.
She ran faster to catch up to him and saw the small group at the bottom of the hill. She didn’t recognize any of them. Dustin ran up to the young man Jenn assumed was his master, and the golden eyes at once told her who this Damian was. Only the sons of a White God had eyes the color of amber!
She moved forward. Someone stopped her, and she looked up, barely registering the face of a tattooed man with long, dark hair.
“She’s coming with us,” Dustin proclaimed. “Damian, please.”
Shifting her attention from the tattooed man, Jenn rested her eyes on the young man, who glanced at her after Dustin spoke. His eyes were red as if he’d been crying, and his clothing was streaked with blood. He nodded.
“Jenn,” said the tattooed man, whose hand was on her arm, and she looked back at him. “Yes, you’ll come with us.” His look said he knew her, though she’d never seen any of them in her life. Another woman lay on the ground near the youth named Damian, her shapely figure, porcelain complexion, and auburn hair indicating her beauty even in her sleep.
“Go, Damian,” the tattooed man said.
Jenn looked around, wondering where they were going. Fire still raged at one end of the orchard, filling the air above the trees with black smoke. Damian struggled to lift the woman at his feet then carried her towards a tree. Jenn gasped as the two of them disappeared.
“C’mon, Jenn,” Dustin said and took her hand. “We’re Guardians now. We’re going to the mortal world.”
She went, walking towards the tree without knowing what to expect. Suddenly, she fell, just as quickly landing in a field with waist-high grass and a bright yellow sun overhead. Dustin hopped to his feet and ran to join his master.
Jenn looked around, disoriented again. The ground behind her made a sucking sound, and she scampered away, staring at the swirling earth. It spit out someone else from the immortal world then sl
owed to a near stop. Finally, another body came through, this one bloodied and battered. She recognized the tattooed man. He landed next to her and was still.
“Jule!” Damian exclaimed. He hurried to the unconscious man’s side. “Is he alive?”
Jenn knelt beside him and pressed her fingers to his neck. She nodded. The youth with the golden eyes sat back and looked around, appearing overwhelmed.
“Only an Other could hurt an Original like this,” he whispered.
“The portal closed,” one of the others said.
Jenn looked to where the vortex had been. Damian inched towards it, planting his hands on the ground.
“Gone,” he whispered. “We’re stuck here.”
The small group exchanged looks. The mortal world was raw and new, but there was no magic in it. Jenn felt worn from the inside as her internal magic tried to connect with that of the world. Her movements were heavy and awkward. The longer she sat, the harder it seemed to get up.
“Damian, what happened?” Dustin asked.
“I don’t know,” Damian replied, looking lost.
“That,” another voice said, “was the Schism.”
Jenn faced the newcomer, surprised to see a small, grandfatherly man with brilliant green eyes standing near them.
“Are they all dead, Watcher?” Damian asked.
“The only Guardians in existence are now in the mortal realm, and you are now the White God.”
More words were exchanged, but Jenn heard none of them. The memory of her Talia falling into the chasm returned, filling her thoughts. Crippling pain began to take over her mind and body. She closed her eyes and pushed it away. Not including the man Damian called Watcher, the man called Jule was the only one of the group older than her, and he’d be lucky to survive the day.
She’d gotten her wish. She was now a Guardian in the mortal world. The people around her—the White God she was sworn to serve as a Guardian—needed her. There was nothing she could do for Talia, nothing that remained of the immortal world.
“What do we do?” Damian asked Watcher.
“You must fulfill your duty to the humans. There are many Guardians assigned to this world already. Gather your Guardians and battle the Black God,” the Watcher said. “You are all that stands between him and those who live in this world.”
The youth looked lost again. Jenn pitied him but couldn’t bring herself to speak, not when she, too, barely understood what was going on.
“I’ll protect you, ikir,” Dustin said.
“Thank you, Dusty,” the youth said and ruffled the boy’s hair. “I guess we need to find a … a new home.” His eyes went to the still man in front of Jenn. “Jule will know what to do when he wakes up.”
Jenn glanced down again. She didn’t want to say it, but the bloodied immortal didn’t look like he’d wake up for quite a while, especially if there was no Healer among the survivors. She felt the sudden urge to run again, as far as she could from her past, Talia’s death, the bleak future of the White God and his Guardians. She wanted to sprint until her body gave out then wait for her death to come. She deserved nothing less than to die broken and alone after what she’d done to her baby.
Her gaze went to the unfamiliar horizon as raw pain began to replace her numbness. She would run until she died or until someone killed her. She’d be at peace then, with her daughter.
The Watcher drew her attention as he bent. He peered at the Original Immortal curiously then looked up at her. His eyes were brighter than the moon, greener than any gem she’d ever dreamt of.
“Your fate is with the White God, Jenn,” the Watcher said.
Duty, honor, courage, selflessness. The familiar words in her thoughts were chanted in a voice that wasn’t hers. Somehow, they lessened her pain again, as if the strange figure before her wrapped them in magic before placing them in her head.
“Do you understand?”
Duty, honor, courage, selflessness. Her pain faded, and she drew a shaky breath as the tension in her chest loosened.
“Yes,” she said in a hoarse voice. “I understand.”
Duty, honor, courage, selflessness. The pain was gone.
“Ikir, we should find shelter,” she said to Damian.
“Yes, shelter,” he agreed. “And then you will go forth and find the other Guardians.”
“Yes, ikir.” She didn’t know how to tell him she had no Guardian training yet and wouldn’t even know where to find Guardians in the strange world. But she was a Guardian now. Her duty was to her god and her people.
“Farewell,” the Watcher said.
“Watcher, wait!” Damian shouted. “You can’t leave—”
The Watcher blinked out of existence. The youth was near panicking again.
“Come, Dustin, we’ll find a place for us,” she whispered and held out her hand to the little boy. He came stoutly, the only among them not immobilized by fear.
Duty, honor, courage, selflessness. She chanted the words as they walked towards the horizon. There was nothing she could do for Talia. Her god and the Guardians needed her. She’d made her choice the moment she took an oath to the Guardians. There was no immortal world to go back to now.
Your fate is with the White God, Jenn.
Chapter One
Present Day
Fortress of the Black God
The Black God was slipping out of her influence. Though he consulted her as frequently as he always had, he no longer took her with him everywhere he went or told her what he was doing. In fact, he rarely looked her in the eye, as if she was a reminder of something he didn’t want to recall.
Jenn did her best to act like everything on her end was the same. She came as soon as he called, offered encouragement when he seemed lost, and pretended to believe his shitty excuses as to why he wasn’t taking her with him this time.
Maybe next time, he always said.
She stood before the panoramic window of his lair, gazing at snowfall so thick, it hid the nearby mountains from sight. The steady downward spiral of snowflakes was mesmerizing, peaceful. Dawn had come an hour earlier but only just managed to push away the shadows of night from the cloudy mountain hiding place that had become her home. And probably her grave, she admitted to herself with a grimace.
Duty, honor, courage, selflessness. Her worry faded with the comforting words. If she didn’t make it out of here, she’d at least go down serving the Guardians and the White God.
“You sleeping down here now?” Jonny, the Black God, broke her Zen-like moment.
“I figured I’d rather see who was coming for me than risk being killed in my bed,” Jenn replied without turning. “Xander took my door off a week ago.”
“Xander wouldn’t …” Jonny drifted off. “I can … well, I’ll think about talking to him.”
Jenn rolled her eyes at the window. Jonny’s newfound confidence melted like snow every time the name of Xander—the tree-sized forefather of all vampires—was mentioned. But she let Jonny’s words slide, as she did everything else he’d said to her the past few days.
“I appreciate you taking care of me.” She said the words she knew he wanted to hear.
“I made a promise,” Jonny said, his tone confident once again.
“And you’ve kept it,” Jenn said, turning to face him.
The Black God glowed like a storm cloud. His dark eyes and caramel features seemed much older than his nineteen years. He’d lost the air of indecision and regret, trading it for acceptance and resolve. In less than two weeks, he’d aged, transforming from the lost youth she’d tried to take care of into a young immortal exploring his dark powers.
“If you want, you can sleep in my chamber,” he said.
Jenn looked at him carefully. He’d taken a few different vamps to his bed the past few days.
“I mean, if you’re sleeping on the floor, you can sleep on my floor,” Jonny added hastily, once again the teenager who’d been in love with her for months.
“I appreciate it, Jonn
y,” she said with an understanding smile and added to herself, no way in hell.
“Unless … you can … I mean the safest place is in my—”
“On your floor. I know,” she said, not allowing him to complete the sentence. “I’m proud of you, Jonny. You haven’t lost your honor. Czerno had none.” The mention of his predecessor had the opposite effect of mentioning the Original Vamp.
“I’ll be better than Czerno,” Jonny said, dark gaze flaring. “You’re right, Jenn. He lacked honor. What he did to my sister …”
Jenn eased back on her Guardian power, the ability to manipulate minds. Jonny was slipping out of her ability to use it, in any case, though he seemed more vulnerable to her manipulation when he was emotionally raw. She’d been testing him several times a day, astonished to learn just how quickly he was growing into his new powers. She’d be unable to use her gift against him in a matter of a few days.
She resisted the impulse to check her watch. She’d programmed it to display a countdown rather than the time. She had just under fourteen days left with the Black God until his bargain with her boss was up, and she could go home. With four days at most remaining in her ability to control the Black God, she suspected she’d be dead in five.
“I’m using the skills you taught me to interrogate someone else,” Jonny said. The last of his thoughts about her in his bed slid away with the final push of her magic.
“Are you discovering what the Others are doing in your ranks?” she asked.
“They seem to be looking for something,” he replied. “The last vamp whose mind I read was convinced it was a treasure hunt. And they want something … here.” Jonny looked around.
“Something or someone?” Jenn asked, thoughts going to the Original Vamp.
“It could be a someone,” Jonny replied. “You think that’s possible?”
“I think anything is possible with the Others. You and Damian threw down the gauntlet. If they haven’t acted by now, they’re waiting for something,” she said pensively.
“True. Who could they want? Me?”
“I doubt it. What use are you to them? They’d be looking for someone who could help them win their war. I mean, that’s what I’d do.”