by Emma Glass
He let out a rattling laugh from his withered old lungs. Folding both hands over the hook of his cane, Akachi partly straightened his back, peering at me like a crazy old man.
“You are a very spirited one, I’ll give you that. But you must know that I won’t tolerate such a display of rampant disobedience from a lesser…” He shrugged with a smile. “Yet, I can return to the Badlands knowing what I came here to learn. There is a human, and she is here in Stonehold…”
I did not allow him the satisfaction of rattling me, and I maintained my furious glare.
“Remember your place, young Lord… or else one of these days, another will show it to you.” He gave a depraved smile that put Nikki’s own work to shame. “Rather forcefully, I would imagine…”
Akachi Azuzi waved over towards my guards, turning on his gnarled cane. When they glanced to me, I condoned his implied order with a nod.
The royal guards escorted the vampire lord back out of the throne room and ostensibly to my sister. I expected him to be led in the same meandering direction that he’d come. Akachi didn’t see fit to turn back as the doors shut, and I sat back down on the throne in complete silence.
I hoped, deep down in my heart, that I hadn’t just started a war.
26
Clara
When heard the scraping of the bedroom door, I was still half-asleep.
It must have been a few minutes later when my eye opened. Elliott’s weight shifted down onto the other side of the bed, and I heard him groan.
“Is everything okay?” I asked sleepily.
“Don’t worry. Just go back to sleep, Clara.”
I’d have been more than happy to do so, but I could hear the lingering weariness in his voice. “You were gone for hours,” I murmured in a daze. “Were you stuck with the vampire lord the whole time, Elliott?”
He sighed. “I was thinking.”
His forlorn tone gave me all the convincing I needed to wake up. With a small groan, I slid my palms under myself and pushed up from the bed, dragging my fatigued body into a sitting position. That’s how I saw that he was sitting on the edge of the bed, staring into the dark.
“The day we met, Elliott, you told me specific words. You said, ‘You are under my protection while you’re at my side.’ I think I’ve figured out how to repay the kindness.”
“Oh?”
“That’s right.”
I reached over to him and took his hand in mine. In the darkness, Elliott half-turned towards me; the window drapes slightly parted, and they shimmered a quick burst of moonlight off of his radiant, vulnerable eyes. “Keep me near, Elliott Craven, and I will always be your shoulder.”
He lowered his head softly, pulling his hand free from mine. “You don’t have to do that, Clara.”
“Yes I do,” I adamantly told him. “You’ve done so much for me… I’m sorry that I lost sight of that earlier tonight. But mark my words, Elliott: while I’m at your side, I will be your sounding board. No matter what happens in the days that come, I will support you and your choices.”
The vampire lifted his gaze to me. Darkness had already reclaimed the room, leaving him little more than a silhouette.
It brought to mind the many times that his dream echo had rescued me in my nightmares; even if that wasn’t really more than a figment, it still convinced me that he deserved my support.
“I may have to take you up on that,” he spoke quietly. “Danger looms on the horizon. I now have proof that a vampire lord knows that you’re here.” His gaze drifted sadly. “There’s no telling what’ll come next…”
The black wind howls…
“Then, whatever it is, we can face it together,” I reassured him. “We trust each other, right?”
Elliott exhaled through his nose with a smile. “Yes, my extraordinary and unexpected Clara...” He matched my gaze with a firm, resolute stare. “That’s right. We trust each other.”
I loved that we did. In this world, I could be nothing more than a pawn or a prisoner to Elliott; but he’d treated me with respect from the start, as if he truly believed I was someone that was worth protecting from all these dangers.
“There’s something that I should tell you,” he glanced over at me again. “I’ve been working on a little something of a… pet project.”
“Oh?
“It involves you.”
Now I was curious. “Tell me more.”
The vampire’s eyes glinted mischievously. “I believe we’ve found a spell for you, one that will protect you from the others in the castle.”
“No way! Really?!”
“That’s right,” he smirked briefly, but his face fell as he continued. “It weighs heavily on me. The day I had to sentence my tailor, I knew something had to be done to protect you, and to keep the rest of my subjects safe from an inevitable repeat.”
“You know I don’t blame you for that.”
Elliott smiled sadly. “And I don’t blame you, either. It was an oversight, and a terrible mistake. But one that should never happen again.”
“I really do like it here,” I reassured him. “Your suite is beautiful. But… it’s true that I want to get out of here a little more.”
He nodded sympathetically, glancing around at the room. “To you, Craven Keep is a gilded cage. Keeping you here, and with strict guardians, has been working so far at keeping you protected… But I understand that you need to see more of the castle, and so I visited my sage that afternoon and asked him to find me a solution to an impossible problem.”
“The spell?”
“That’s right, Clara. Buried in all those dusty, old books down there, Sebastian found a spell that should mask the compulsive effect your blood has on other vampires…”
“You mean…?”
“You’ll be free to walk the castle.”
Without thinking, I flew across the bed and threw my arms around his chest. Immediately, the vampire lord stiffened in my embrace. It was selfish of me to keep my hug with his reaction, but this was the closest I’d ever been to him. I couldn’t help but crave more of it. I found that I loved the touch of his skin against mine. His chest was warmer than I thought; I even thought I felt a heartbeat in there.
“Clara…” He whispered, achingly.
“I’m sorry,” I murmured softly. “I just wanted to be close to you, to show my gratitude. I’m so utterly grateful for everything. Especially this.”
Elliott sighed. “I’m trying to not bite you…”
Oh. Pulling back away from him, I dove down under the bedding while keeping my eyes on his. “I didn’t think about that. I’m sorry.”
“It’s not the end of the world,” he noted. “But soon, perhaps I won’t have to struggle to keep my bloodlust down.”
“Oh, I think you’ve been doing pretty well so far,” I noted cheerfully. “We eat dinner together, we sleep in the same bed together… at this point, I’m not sure what else we could do to test that.”
He was watching me intently.
“…What? Is it something I said?”
Suddenly, he descended upon me. I could barely see him in the dark, but I felt his hands on my wrists and his body weight on mine. There was no point in shrieking or desperately calling for help. Even if there had been, I would have never dared, because the same four words we just spoke to one another were fresh on my mind:
We trust each other.
“Elliott, what are you…?”
But I already knew, and I welcomed it.
I felt his lips crash into mine.
His lips were like electricity to me, sending a jolt of pure emotion to my mind. I kissed him back, hungry for his taste. I’d never known that a kiss could do this to someone.
The way that it felt against me – the way that he felt against me – was a burst of overwhelming pleasure that blew my mind.
I needed his kiss. I had to have it.
Elliott slowly pulled back, a sly smirk across his face. “I’m so sorry, Clara. But I had to do that
. I couldn’t control myself.”
I smiled back. “I don’t hate it.”
He chuckled, shaking his head. “Well… that’s certainly good to hear. But I don’t know that I can keep doing it right now… it was too much a risk to kiss you the first time. More would be…”
“Intoxicating?” I lifted an eyebrow.
“In more ways than one,” he chuckled darkly.
As much as I loved that kiss and craved more, I didn’t want to push him too hard. That’s why I didn’t whine when he quietly retreated back to his side of the bed.
“Wait a moment,” I realized. “We just had a big fight about all this. You let me pout at dinner over being trapped here, and you were planning on having a spell cast on me anyway?” I grabbed a pillow and smacked him with it. “Bad! Bad Elliott! What were you thinking?!”
Elliott laughed, halfheartedly deflecting the soft blows. “I was going to keep this all a surprise, but after tonight…”
I lowered the pillow.
“It’s the other vampire lord, isn’t it?”
He looked me in the eyes. “I don’t want any time wasted. Not long ago, I sent out my finest couriers across all of Stonehold. Any day now, a powerful magician will answer the call and arrive at the castle.”
“Maybe even tomorrow?”
He looked saddened. “It’s not impossible. But either way, I want this spell cast on you as soon as we have a qualified practitioner here.”
I smiled softly at him, knowing he could see it clearly in the dark. “Lay down with me. The danger hasn’t come yet, and it isn’t here in this room with us.”
He rose from the bed, pulling off his socks and ripping off his shirt. The vampire’s hardened muscles rippled in the faint light as he climbed back down to bed and lied down nearby.
“You can come closer,” I said. “If you want.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes,” I replied nervously.
Elliott didn’t move for a few seconds. Just as I thought I’d pushed it too far, I felt the bed lightly creak as he shifted my way. I started to close the distance, eager to feel even the slightest hint of his touch.
“No,” he replied.
“But… don’t you…?”
“It’s too much,” he answered. “I can control myself, yes. But your blood is still too intoxicating to me. If we’re lying against each other, I may not be able to stop myself from drinking you. It’s even worse, now that I’ve tasted your lips… I’m sorry, but it’s better this way. For now.”
“Okay,” I replied softly. “Like this, then.”
When he didn’t say anything else, I felt pangs of sleep begin to draw me back in. A powerful spell to keep me safe, I thought, and a vampire’s lips that taste divine…
As I started to drift off to sleep with a large smile on my face, I could have sworn I heard him whisper in the dark.
“If only I could, though…”
27
Elliott
The following afternoon, I sat on the throne. Silas was rattling off another inane list of topics.
Listening to his droll voice was always a low priority to me. But with all my attention spent on Clara these days, it was even harder to pretend I even remotely cared about his inane monologues.
“…Scientists are working on lowering costs in chrysm node expansion. In a few years, we might even see fast travel commonplace in the public…”
I stifled a yawn as he rambled on.
“My Lord?”
A different voice stirred my attention. Lifting my head from my apathetic haze, I glanced up at a female guard who was crossing the room.
Silas glanced at her with obvious irritation.
“Please pardon the interruption, my Lord,” the guard knelt respectfully with her head bowed.
“Speak,” I ordered.
“A magician just arrived at the castle gates,” the guard replied as she rose to her feet. “From out in the far reaches. She wishes to speak to you.”
I glanced at Silas meaningfully.
“Lord Elliott, I understand your frustration in hearing the issues of the kingdom every day, but you cannot keep forestalling such an important part of your royal duties. It is my job to keep you up-to-date on your people’s plights and the latest developments in Stonehold...”
When my expression merely hardened, Silas accepted defeat. He lowered his head with muted resignation. “As you wish, my Lord,” he muttered. “I suppose we could continue this another time. Wisdom be to thee.”
The high chancellor drew his robes close and left, shaking his head all the while. It occurred to me that I should consider paying better heed of his warnings but, for the time being, there were more pressing matters on my mind.
My attention returned to the guard, standing patiently before me. “Send her in,” I ordered.
She nodded and left the room momentarily.
As I patiently waited for the newest arrival to my castle, I wondered what Lorelei thought of the latest development concerning the holds. She and I hadn’t spoken since before Akachi came to the castle. While I fully expected her to offer little to no guidance, I still couldn’t help but wonder what she might think.
When the doors reopened a moment later, the royal guard returned. This time, she wasn’t alone. Flanking her was the slender, confident form of a hooded woman, wrapped up in a dark cloak that swayed with her movements.
As the magician took a small, modest bow, the royal guard knelt respectfully. “Presenting the sorceress Sabine, your Majesty.”
I leaned forward and took a good look at the sorceress as she lifted her head and pulled back the hood. A golden circlet with an inset emerald sat on her forehead, holding back long, black hair. Her fierce, green eyes were glued to me as she held my attention. But her most striking feature was the array of rust-toned markings, all thickly tattooed across a face of the purest, palest ivory I’d ever seen.
“Greetings, my Lord,” the sorceress spoke in a dark and sultry voice. “I have heard that you have need of great and powerful magic…”
“Yes,” I answered bluntly, settling into my throne and propping up my cheek with my fist. “Sabine, was it?”
“Sabine, the Sorceress of Sifter’s Hollow,” she replied in a low, cat-like purr. “For seventy-five years, I trained at Seven Portals under the greatest magicians in the hold…”
“Seven Portals?” I cocked my head curiously. “That is one of the most prestigious magical academies in the entire world. Legendary for their rigorous, sometimes lethal training…”
Sabine looked amused. “You know of them?”
“I also know that their curriculums run half a century,” I replied evenly. “No matter the course of study. Explain to me then, Sabine, where the extra twenty-five years went…”
The visitor quietly closed her eyes with a knowing smile. “Certainly, you recall the last major scuffles with The Wastes, roughly three centuries ago?
“Of course,” I remembered bleakly. They were older still than she claimed; I was merely fifteen years old at the start, even before my first equinox. “We were very nearly plunged back into war.”
“The skirmishes began halfway through my studies. As the threat escalated, I felt it was my civic duty to return and fight.”
“It’s rare that the arch-mages allow a student to leave the academy unless there is some kind of regal intervention,” I replied calmly. “As I recall, the ruling vampire lord did not conscript from the student classes of any of our battle guilds…”
“Let’s just say that I talked them into it,” she responded cryptically. “Naturally, it came with a small downside. When I returned a decade later, I had to restart my work from the beginning.”
“Not from the very beginning,” I replied with some boredom. “The first two years are what was described to me as a kind of ‘magical orientation’. That would have been useless to repeat, and thus immediately waived.”
The sorceress eyed me curiously, her gaze filled with i
nterest and wonder. “I must admit, Lord Elliott, that I did not expect such intricate knowledge of my academy’s innermost workings. You know their common practices to a relatively surprising degree.”
“You must think me a rather naïve ruler, sorceress, if you believe for a second that I’m not well aware of all the resources at my disposal in my own kingdom…” I replied disinterestedly. “It is only natural that I’d understand how the source of my best magicians operates. If not for my small distrust of the Seven Portals, I would have likely reached out directly.”
She drew back a foot. “My apologies, my Lord. I did not intend to offend. It is merely that…”
I narrowed my eyes. “Yes?”
“It’s only that you are, well… fairly new to the throne. I could not expect you to have complex familiarity with all the major factions and guilds within Stonehold, at least not just yet…”
She had underestimated me.
It was up to me to decide what to do with that information. For one, it grated on my nerves that my own people thought I was a beginner on the throne. But on the other hand, that meant my enemies would likely be prone to underestimating me as well…
I decided to let it go, turning the conversation elsewhere. “You certainly look the part, sorceress, but I need to see some definitive proof of your abilities. What can you do?”
“You wish for a demonstration, my Lord?”
“Call it that if you want,” I replied idly. “Show me that I’m not wasting my time with you.”
Sabine merely smiled. Dramatically raising her hands, she interlocked all her fingers together in a balled gesture in front. With a quiet whisper under her breath, she coiled her wrists back around and brushed apart her fingers as if striking a match. Both her hands were ablaze with green fire in an instant; she lipped silent syllables as her hands arced in a wide circle in front, the flames trailing a lingering shape of burning jade.
The guard looked spellbound; I’d seen more impressive magic out of initiates and acolytes, and frankly expected better for a former student of the Seven Portals.