Soul Taker's Redemption

by A. S. Hamilton

  Settling down a little in the bed, I absently combed the tangles out of her hair with my fingers. I sang softly, it was an elvan song of lamentation, meant to comfort those left behind. I was almost unaware of the words though they passed through my lips. My mind buzzed with questions and theories relating to Jay's mysterious reappearance, Therion's fate, what these events meant to her, to me, and the gods who had interfered with our lives. Finally, I made my mind stop, instilling an immediate silence in my thoughts; a discipline practiced many thousands of times. One thing at a time, I told myself, looking down at Jay's pale face. Even in sleep I could perceive grief in her expression.

  Now, I allowed the shock to wash over me.

  I would miss him. I did, already.

  I didn't understand why I hadn't felt his death. The blood-bond should have been strong enough. I should, even now, be able to concentrate and sense his mood and his location in relation to mine. I could feel nothing. I should have felt his death. Perhaps being on another plane had somehow shielded me from him. Either way, the woman in my arms wasn't grieving because he was wounded… He would never, never have left her alone had he any choice.

  I lost track of time. I must have entered a half-trance because I could tell Thomas had to say my name a few times to get my attention. He was whispering, in deference to Jay, but I could hear him with perfect clarity. His face was drawn, his jaw set hard against the grim news.

  Amelia was beside him, her eyes full of sympathy and sadness. Wordlessly, I caught her gaze and then gestured with my chin towards the sleeping woman. She immediately understood my meaning. Carefully disengaging myself, I eased out from under Jay and out of the bed. Amelia slipped off her heels and out of her jacket to take my place.

  Padding past Thomas, I waited until we were in the kitchen before I started speaking.

  'She was here. Alone. I'm pretty certain from her emotional state that Therion lost the fight.' I went on to give him the details of my arrival.

  'Has she said anything?'

  I shook my head. 'She was planes-shifted at least twice, she could barely breathe let alone speak. I've seen wives of thirty years react with less passion when they discover their spouse has died.'

  Thomas mimicked my move, shaking his head as if he just didn't know what to say. 'It may have been a brief relationship, but I believe there was a strong connection.'

  'Some connections form in a moment, others over a lifetime.'

  'What do you suggest we do now?' Thomas asked.

  I pushed my shoulders forward and then back, trying to ease the tension that had gathered there. 'I think until she is coherent enough to describe what happened, Jay needs protection. How are we to know if she is safe? Especially if Therion lost the fight.' I looked up at Thomas and could see from his expression that he was equally distraught at this news and frustrated by the lack of answers. I started to pace out the frustration I had buried until now. 'It doesn't make sense. If he lost the fight, Jay should be dead, her spirit in the hands of that thief who calls himself master of the Dark Realm. Yet she is here, undoubtedly suffering, but aside from the shock of planes-shifting, she is physically fine. How did she get back? Who brought her? Why did they leave her alone in such a state? Why has Ceri-talen not taken advantage of Therion's absence? Is she under the protection of Aurealis? And if so, why did she not protect Therion? Why is there no guardian to replace Therion? According to Therion, Jay was to be assigned a life-time guardian— why has Aurealis abandoned her now?'

  The touch of Thomas's hand on my shoulder halted my fervent passage back and forth in front of the kitchen counter. 'Bastien… Let go of the unanswered. We have to deal with the now.'

  Mentally scolding myself I gave him a tight nod.

  'I agree,' he continued, 'someone should stay until she recovers enough to explain what has occurred. There's a good likelihood she is in danger still and our duty hasn't ended.'

  I gave him another nod. 'I have a supply of blood in the car, I'll get it.'

  Thomas dug a ghost of a smile out. 'You need to move your car, as ever, your parking leaves a lot to be desired. I am ever amazed you qualify for a driving license.'

  The remark drew a smile from me. 'At least I don't send horses and carriage into a pond because I forget to turn the corner.' The light rejoinder was all I could manage, and Thomas dredged up a good-natured chuckle.

  I patted his back. 'Thanks for the levity, it eased my tension.'

  He returned the gesture, patting my back as I moved by him to get my keys from the bedroom.

  I was more than a little surprised at the scent I caught upon leaving the apartment. Oh, it was friend, not foe, but I had presumed Thomas and Amelia had come alone. The vampire in question was once a protégé of mine. I could always appreciate Yushoki's grace. She also had an aura of solemn dignity about her that rapidly elicited respect from those around her. Her delicate features and petite body gave the impression she was fragile, but she was a strong, fierce leader and a highly skilled and efficient warrior.

  Yushoki was standing near the cars— Thomas and Amelia had brought a car each— but she gave the impression of just having finished a perimeter check. As I unlocked my four-wheel-drive, I realised I'd left the windows down. I huffed at my own idiocy as I put the keys into the ignition and pressed the buttons to close them.

  'Is it true, has the dark-angel been defeated?'

  I nodded confirmation. If I didn't already consider her trustworthy, the fact that Thomas had chosen to tell her told me that he did.

  Yushoki bowed her head. 'He was a great warrior; I respect your loss.' Her voice and demeanour were formal, but I could hear sincerity in her tone and saw it in her eyes when they came back up to meet mine.

  'Thank you. Oh, and, please, keep this to yourself. Let Thomas choose who to tell.'

  'I understand.'

  Closing the driver's door, I opened the rear passenger door to get my overnight bag. The portable refrigerator holding the blood was in the back.

  'Settle in for the night,' I told Yushoki, 'Amelia is not likely to leave until dawn. They are new friends, however Amelia's loyalty, once gained, is absolute.'

  'He needs to go. And soon. They are awaiting him.'

  I leaned against the car and considered her. Her expression said she thought her remarks made sense on their own, but, clearly, I was missing something. 'Who is awaiting Thomas?'

  Yushoki frowned. 'I thought it would be the first thing he told you.'

  After a long moment of silence, I prompted her. 'And...?'

  Her frown deepened. 'He really didn't say anything?' She looked stunned for a second and then shook it off. 'He was in court waiting for his turn to formalise those trade agreements you two have spent so long negotiating, the ones adjusting the regional boundaries. It has to go through the Court in any case, but now he needs to finalise it before word gets out about the dark-angel, else those with whom he made the deals might consider his position weakened and retract their agreement.'

  I sighed as I turned to pull out my overnight bag and shoved the door shut with my hip. 'He needs to go,' I echoed. 'While you're here.' I tossed her my keys. 'Park me legally.' Then I added, 'Oh, and bring the refreshment, too, please.'

  When I returned to the apartment, Thomas was pacing.

  'I hear you left court before getting your trade agreements formally approved.'

  Thomas gave me a grim glance and looked away. 'Yushoki told you.'

  'You need to get back to court. Technically, we don't know what happened to Therion. It might be he needs to stay in the Sunlit Meadows to recover and Jay's just emotionally messed up from planes-shifting, an after effect not even vampires are fully immune to their first time. Go back tonight, get the change in boundaries ratified and made official before this gets out. Because once it does, some of those we are allied with may reconsider their support.'

  Thomas made a murmur of agreement, but I could see from his expression, he didn't like it. In part, it was because Ceri-ta
len had once made his life a misery by slaughtering his family and pursuing him until I made him vampire. If he could, he wanted to prevent the god from getting Jay. He glanced back towards the bedroom, Jay was still sleeping, but she'd started whimpering. A nightmare, my telepathic abilities told me.

  'She's very vulnerable right now, a perfect time for Ceri-talen to strike if Therion did not win,' he said.

  'There are no guardians here, Thomas, they may be able to hide from human sight, but not vampire senses. There'd be guardians if Ceri-talen was still an immediate threat to her. Look, if it makes you feel better, leave Amelia and Yushoki. Yushoki can planes-shift Amelia out of here if trouble turns up and I can take Jay. But Thomas, you have to go. Our kind make a habit of staying well-informed about the goings-on concerning the gods, shifts in power at their level bring opportunities further down the chain. Word will not take long to get out if Therion has been defeated. Those new boundaries mean when we eventually set Amelia up as Clan Leader of the neighbouring district, we will be able to secure a very comfortable powerbase.'

  As I spoke, I pulled a t-shirt from my overnight bag. Yushoki appeared on the balcony and I waved her in. She put my keys on the bench and the blood in the fridge. I nodded my thanks and Yushoki took a moment to regard my t-shirt, it read: Keep out of direct sunlight. She chuckled and shook her head. I gave her a grin. My show of humour said I was relaxed, everything was fine. Okay, everything was far from fine, but I was not about to show it to anyone outside of my immediate family. While I was not official clan leader, any show of weakness, worry, indecision from me reflected on Thomas.

  'Good hunting.' I held out a wrist, Thomas took it and gave me a brief hug. I glanced at Yushoki; she had wandered over to the bookshelves at the other end of the lounge area. She was idly browsing the titles, but the move was one of respect for her leader, giving him privacy while being available if he wanted her. I trusted her, but not enough to speak the rest out loud, so I sent to Thomas's mind. 'Be careful, betray no sign of your concerns in court.'

  Thomas gave me a sneer. 'I may be younger than you, but I am hardly new to this.'

  I bowed my head. 'I'm sorry, I know. I'm a little shaken over Therion's absence. I'm worried, Thomas. If Ceri-talen managed to take Therion down...'

  Thomas met my gaze, he understood everything I wasn't saying. Ceri-talen had almost killed me several times and only Therion's help had saved me. Would the god come for me if Therion was gone? Undoubtably. He knew well how to hold a grudge and he'd take it out on everyone connected to me. Thomas and… and Amelia. Fortunately, although Therion was my most powerful ally, he was not the only one.

  Thomas turned to Yushoki. 'Get Adrian and Tadhg back here to conduct sentry duty. Remain with Amelia. If it comes to a confrontation, she is your priority.'

  Yushoki bowed. 'Yes, my lord.'

  'I will call after I finish my business at court. Tell Amelia to get the shape-shifters back here during the day. We made a promise to Therion to keep her safe and I will not fail in my duty.'

  Although he had turned away from Yushoki to address me, I could still see her in my peripheral, the Japanese vampire gave a slight nod of approval. Thomas's sense of honour and his strength showed in his words. If the vampires talked, I wanted them to talk about that, not how we were worried.

  Thomas left via the balcony and I spent a long time staring out the glass pane. I was not deep in thought; I was deep in grief. I had no way of immediately confirming Therion's demise, but I could not shake the intuition that even if he was severely injured, he would never have left Jay alone unless he was incapable of coming to her side. Unlike Jay, I could not afford to show my emotions, so I shut off any outward expression and stared out into the night, hoping… hoping I was wrong. And hating the weakness in me that allowed me to hope against such bleak possibilities. Perhaps I'd been amongst the humans and lesser vampires too long. I had formed connections and in my home realm, connections were weaknesses. No, that wasn't quite true, connections were helpful, alliances were practical at times. I'd started caring about my allies, allowed them to mean more to me than the tools they should be. My mother would consider that a serious neglect and wonder where she had gone wrong.

  Amelia's soft voice floated out through Jay's bedroom door. She was comforting Jay with reassuring murmurs. She was too young a vampire to have lost all her humanity. Not all vampires do— those that were human once— but a good vampire… A good vampire erased it as soon as possible, if they wanted to survive. Which made me a lousy vampire if I was judged by such terms. The truth was, I did not regret it. I like fighting for someone other than myself. I like causes. I like taking the side of the underdog. It's usually a challenge and I like testing myself against those challenges. I'd had no real choice with Thomas, he was, essentially, my offspring. To let him die was like letting a child die and, by the time I found him, I hated Ceri-talen enough to be damned before I'd let the god win. Amelia… Amelia I could have let die. But I did not regret saving her. Because although Thomas initially changed her, she would have died but for my intervention, not that either of them knew that.

  I lifted my head slightly, inhaling while also using my otherworldly senses to check for any guardians or demons. No sign of either. Whatever had happened, Ceri-talen had been put off for now and, so, Aurealis allocated her angels where they were needed more. But one thing I had learned about gods like the telari— when a dragon wants something, they never give up. They might back off, bide their time, wait for a better moment, but give up? It would never occur to them.

  Em

  I looked down at my daughter. She was curled up in bed, sleeping deeply it seemed, but just a few moments earlier I could have sworn I'd heard her crying. I looked closer. Her cheeks were streaked with tears. I frowned; it didn't look like she was having a nightmare. I was reluctant to wake her, but if she was having bad dreams...

  'Let her sleep.'

  I jumped. 'Bastien!' I whispered the remonstration. 'Make noise next time.'

  The blond giant glided over and guided me out of the room, shutting the door softly.

  'I apologise. I was just doing a perimeter check. I should have met you at the door, but considering it was you, I decided to finish.'

  'What’s wrong with her? She looks gaunt and where's Therion?'

  The vampire looked down, sighed softly and gestured towards the lounge.

  I sat. Bad news was coming. We always got relatives to sit, it meant if the shock overwhelmed them, they had less chances of hurting themselves if they collapsed or fainted.

  'You lied.'

  He looked up and nodded once. 'Yes, I lied.'

  'So, Jay wasn't getting away for a few days.' I heaved a sigh myself. 'I know you think keeping me out of this protects me, but she's my daughter.' I heard my voice going up and stopped talking. I took a moment, then, as calmly as I could manage, said, 'Therion's not here, so there's been some sort of crisis. Please, Bastien, tell me the truth.'

  'Therion is gone.'

  Uh-oh. That was worse than I imagined. Therion's an angel, no, actually he's a demon, I reminded myself. If he was gone… 'Oh, Jay,' I groaned.

  'There's a lot more.'

  I looked up at the vampire.

  'I'm not sure how much you know. I gather you know about the confrontation at your place?'

  I nodded. 'When she moved back home, I thought the worst of the danger was over, but now I see that you,' I fixed him with a stern look, 'lied through your fangs.'

  'Jay didn't mention anything to you about a relationship change, did she?'

  Ah, that's what he was gingerly prodding about for. 'You mean, did I know she made the unwise decision to sleep with her protector? Yes. They both got an earful about that. Not that it helped anything.'

  Bastien gave me a brief smile. 'I also told him he was an idiot. But it was there, the way they connected.' He shook his head. 'Well, at least there's less you don't know than I thought. When I told you they had gone away, what actually happe
ned was that Ceri-talen made another attempt to get Jay. Therion plane-shifted with her to get away.' At my confused look, he added, 'Plane-shifting is where the angels move through those mirror-like puddles, they're portals.'

  I silently made an ahhing motion, I remembered seeing them.

  'Although, to be more precise,' Bastien continued, 'they don't always have to pull one of those forth, so sometimes it looks like they just step behind or through an invisible curtain.'

  'Wait, are you saying someone came for Jay and Therion just… ran away?'

  'Another therilgalen,' he paused for a moment, 'dark-angel,' he amended, 'turned up. And yes, Therion ran. To be fair though, I don't think he ran, so much as took Jay somewhere he thought she'd be safer. It's just that I don't know this for sure. They were gone three days. When Jay returned, she returned alone. She was suffering from severe after-effects of plane-shifting,' he waved me back to my seat as I'd started to get up, 'the primary effect is fatigue, Jay will recover, do not worry.'

  'Don't worry? Oh, I'm worried. I'm her mother.' I managed to keep my voice low, but I couldn't hold back my anger and fear. 'You lied about where she was, you led me to believe she was fine. Then, I visit and find her crying in her sleep, looking far from alright, her guardian has been killed, and the people I thought were protecting her—'

  'Em.' He said it softly.

  I hauled in the rest of my rant and looked at him.

  'I am sorry, Em.'

  Why did he have to be so bloody sincere?