“You command it?”
The rush of power from the voice was more than enough to draw our full attention to the end of the Chambers of Chaos. It was the only area that was still dark, but the outline of ten thrones with ten occupants was clearly visible.
A brown hand adorned with a variety of obsidian rings emerged from the shadows to rest on the end of the throne’s armrest.
“Who are you to command the servants of Duality to speak for the Brothers, little princess?”
Rage filled me, and I bared my fangs. “I am a vampire queen,” I hissed.
Thick brown fingers made a slight movement and an enormous dark shape fell from the ceiling. It was an Evanescence the size of a small elephant. And it looked like it was very hungry. The fingers made the same movement again and five more Evanescence landed on the polished, black floor, hissing.
“Show your maker some respect, dear daughter. Do not let your privileges get to your head. I can take them away as easily as I gave them.”
I seethed inwardly, but kept my outward appearance cold and aloof.
“My lords.” King Yuan broke the silence. “Harijan Shadow’s human lover has informed him that the ones who attack us are dragons.”
“Quetzalcoatl’s children?” A female voice emitted from the throne on the farthest end. “That is definitely a dismay. Nevertheless, we have our orders from Lord Chaos.”
King Yuan’s eyes widened. “My lady, with all due respect—”
“You question Lord Chaos’s orders?”
Yuan was silent for a while, but eventually gave a respectful nod. “Of course not.”
“Make no mistake, my children. These dragons have committed an unforgivable crime. They have stolen a blessed one from us. Were it not for Lord Chaos’s order, we would destroy these blasphemers. Let us pray that our lord deems us worthy to avenge his grace. That is all we can do for now.”
“This is insane,” I raged when we were out of earshot. “How could Lord Chaos give such orders!? We never thought we would be able to destroy Quetzalcoatl’s spawn. More than that, they committed a crime against our god himself by stealing that human girl—Lord Chaos should give us his full blessing!”
“That he should,” Yuan said grimly. “And I have little doubt that he will eventually.”
“But how many of our people will die before he does?” I demanded.
Yuan shook his head. “Only he knows that. And perhaps the true royal family as well.”
I hissed in response to his reminder. That Ariadna, Yuan, and I were little more than figureheads for our makers, the true royal family. Only a very select few had ever seen our makers face to face and even fewer were aware of their existence. Our makers were content with that. We were wise and powerful enough to rule vampire society. Our only limit was that we had to consult with the true royal family before doing anything that could be considered drastic.
Like going against Lord Chaos.
I must trust my lord, I thought to myself. I must trust that the sacred brother will not abandon us during this crisis.
Like Quetzalcoatl abandoned the Harijans.
***
Tarasque
War was brewing in the dragon kingdom. The time was almost here. All of my warriors wanted to be a part of the upcoming battle. More than that, they wanted to know what magnificent treasure the vampires kept hidden.
I had other things on my mind.
While Mercedes had not given me the answer I desired, she certainly gave me a lot to think about. It was good to know that her love for her vampire mate began with admiration and respect. Perhaps if I showed her the wonders of my kingdom, she would grow to admire and respect me. Should I show her my true form? No, it was too soon. We needed to become better acquainted, else I could frighten her.
But she’s not afraid of you right now and she saw what you did to her lover, my inner voice supplied.
True. But it was still too soon. Much too soon. What else could I do?
Nothing, my inner voice suddenly sounded like my father. You can do absolutely nothing. You must kill the vampires in order to protect the sacred grounds, and the human loves the vampires. No matter what you do, she will never admire or respect you. Once the vampires are gone, she will be gone as well. And you will be rid of your shameful desire.
You are that afraid of losing her, are you?
The Mirror filled up with smoke. I bared my massive teeth.
“Leave me be.”
You are in quite a dilemma, are you not? You need to destroy my brother’s children in order to protect the sacred grounds, yet your new human pet worships the vampires. You know that no matter what wonders you show her, she will hate you. She will never love you.
“Then I will find another to be a part of my treasure.”
I’m disappointed in you, Your Highness. You never were one to bluff. You have absolutely no intention of finding another. You want Mercedes and only Mercedes.
“This is what you intended all along?” I seethed. “You wanted me to take her because you knew of her love for the vampires?”
I told you to take her because she is a key to dragon victory.
“Liar!”
Whether you believe me or not is irrelevant. You need only believe what you saw me to do your father’s statue, and that I will do the same to the rest of your sacred grounds if you do not kill my brother’s children.
It was a sadistic choice. I wanted Mercedes. I wanted her more than any treasure I had ever gained throughout my thousands of years of existence. She was the only thing that brought me genuine joy. If I lost her, my world would be bleak beyond imagining.
But I needed the sacred grounds. I needed the wisdom of my father and forefathers. All future dragon kings would need them. In forsaking the sacred grounds, I would forsake the future of the dragon race, all for my own selfishness.
There was only one choice.
“I will do as you say,” I said in a hollow, defeated voice. The words cut me inwardly.
Excellent. You will invade tomorrow at night when the sky is darkest. And, Your Highness? I want them killed in a very specific way: rip out their hearts and then burn them.
The smoke vanished. I looked around at my treasure horde. Beautiful, endless, shimmering, wonderful…
…and utterly irrelevant.
With a roar, I slammed my powerful tail into a large pile of gold and jewels. Then I turned back to the Mirror.
There is a way, I thought furiously. There has to be a way for me to keep Mercedes and protect the sacred grounds. Show me. I am the king of all dragons. You will SHOW ME! HOW DO I MAKE HER LOVE ME!?
The Mirror shifted into an area I would remember forever: it was where I had first entered the human world. Where Mercedes and I first met. And someone was there. He was dressed in dark armor and holding up a thin black object.
Shadow. Mercedes’ vampire mate.
I doubted this was Necoc Yaotl’s doing. If he wished to taunt me, he would want me to know for certain it was him was who doing the taunting. It was not him. It was not even the Mirror. It was my own subconscious. This creature, this vampire, had Mercedes. He had her love, her devotion. And I never would.
And if I could not have Mercedes, no one would.
***
Shadow
Before Mercedes entered my life, I did not believe in miracles. She was a miracle in and of herself, but the fact that she could love a creature such as me was an unheard of miracle. Mercedes existed, so miracles did exist. Even though it was less than an hour before the sun would rise, my Chaos wand would pick up the frequency that bastard left behind. If he made a portal in this area.
He did. I knew he did. My instincts were screaming that he did at me, and I always followed my instincts.
Forty-five minutes.
Mercedes.
Thirty minutes.
My angel of light.
Twenty minutes.
I will find you.
Ten minutes.
r /> I will not fail you.
And just as my skin was beginning to blister…
Beep! Beep, beep!
When I entered my apartment, nearly two thirds of my body was covered in third-degree burns. Blackhole bounded up to me, barking in concern.
“My state is of no importance.” I tried to make my voice as commanding as I could as I staggered to the kitchen. “I found…what I was…looking for…”
A knock at my door. Before I could stop him, Blackhole answered it.
“Shadow?”
My name was followed by a curse. Before I could fall, I was caught by a pair of powerful arms.
“You idiot, what have you done!?” Brandon hissed.
He settled me into a chair and rushed to retrieve several blood bags from the icebox. After downing one, I was able to speak clearly again.
“I found the frequency.”
Brandon blinked. “I’m sorry?”
“The frequency to the portal that bastard used to get into the human world.” I held up my Chaos wand and grinned. “It is all right here.”
My friend gaped. “You mean to tell me you found an area where he created a portal and you didn’t tell the royal family!?”
“They would not have assisted me,” I said coldly. “They did not assist me from the beginning. After all, Lord Chaos specifically stated that I and I alone needed to protect Mercedes. And that is precisely what I intend to do.”
Brandon took my Chaos wand and activated the frequency. “Good point,” he said. “In fact, we should copy this before we give it to the royal family.”
“We should also attempt to construct a portal all on our own,” I said. “I would not be surprised if they forbade me from going after the bastard myself.”
“Huh. So, Xavier no longer holds that privileged title does he?”
“The bastard I address at any given moment is the bastard who holds the title. Who said bastard is, is irrelevant.”
We quickly copied the frequency before handing it over to fellow Untouchables who were more technically adept than we were. Excited to be granted the opportunity to serve the gods, they assured us we would be informed when they were ready to test the prototype.
“I was thinking,” Brandon said on our way out of the lab. “Do you think we should give this to the royal family? Even if you are blessed by the gods, you’re still a Harijan. They could take it as a personal insult that you found what their soldiers could not. They could kill you.”
“That they could,” I replied.
Brandon pursed his lips. “Then again, I doubt we could keep something like this from them. Also, if, when Lord Chaos permits us to fight back, they’ll need a portal if they are to fight the enemy where he lives.”
I stared at the wand, contemplating my choice.
“The royal family will not allow Mercedes to die,” I said with conviction. “If it were not for Lord Chaos’s direct order, they would launch a full-scale army into dragon territory. Their king has stolen a blessed one. They will not, cannot let that go unpunished.”
“What about you?”
“I am irrelevant.”
“Not to me, and certainly not to Mercedes,” Brandon said, looking at me with deep disgust. “Don’t tell me you’re falling back into your old suicidal ways.”
I looked at my friend and thought of Mercedes. My angel of light. I knew how much she loved me. I could not deny it no matter how much I believed I was unworthy of her love. I would cause her great pain if I died.
“I have no plans to die,” I said. “But you are correct. We would not be able to keep this a secret from the royal family. And the more people looking for Mercedes the better.”
Brandon nodded. “So I guess that’s—”
He was cut off by a deafening boom in the distance, followed by a collective howl of such intensity it rattled the windows in the surrounding buildings. We exchanged looks with our fellow vampires surrounding us, and we knew what was happening.
Something shot down the street with the frightening speed of a bullet and landed with a wet smack on the pavement. It was a heart.
Vampires of all races, ages, sexes, and classes drew their weapons, bared their fangs, and hissed a challenge. I sympathized more than I could say.
“YOU HAVE ALL HEARD THE WILL OF LORD CHAOS!” I bellowed. “WE MUST NOT FIGHT! FLEE UNTIL WE ARE ORDERED TO FIGHT!”
They all looked at me, exchanged glances with one another, snarled various curses, and turned to flee.
“You certainly have a way with people,” Brandon commented as we both proceeded to follow the advice I had just given to our fellow vampires.
“I wanted to save their lives,” I snarled. “Perhaps that is why Lord Chaos ordered us not to fight back. Right now, we are no match for this enemy.”
A look of panic entered Brandon’s eyes. “Shadow, Morgan said she was returning home after the sun rose!”
“Ensure her safety, then. I will deliver this to the royal family. GO!”
Brandon nodded. “May Lord Order keep you safe.”
I didn’t turn to watch him go. I had to get the Chaos wand to the royal family. I could not stop for anything.
As I ran, I closed my eyes and focused on the link I had with Blackhole.
Hear me, my friend. Hear me.
Shadow?
Listen to me. You must get to safety. Our world is being destroyed. I could not bear it if you were killed.
I’ll come to you.
NO! Hide. That is an order. I—
An enormous whooshing sound above my head. Before I could stop myself, I looked up.
It was as large as the main city itself. Leathery wings that could shield two separate human towns from the rain beat the air, creating massive whirlwinds that could be felt down below. The light in the vampire world was scant and unnatural, but it reflected off the scales that covered the entire body, giving them not just a hard, metallic look, but an invincible look. Jaws filled with teeth that could crush a mountain opened and the sky was suddenly alight with fire.
The dragon flew on. It was headed toward the royal palace.
***
Mercedes
That night I dreamed of fire. Fire blazing through the sky, buildings, people, everything. The buildings crumbled, but the people screamed. They screamed as if the fire was burning more than just their bodies. I was screaming, too. Screaming due to my terror, my anger, my helplessness. I had failed these people. They would be destroyed because of me.
I awoke with a gasp. My thin, golden nightdress was bathed in sweat. My hand flew to my neck in the vain hope that it was warm. It wasn’t.
I sat on the edge of the bed and buried my face in my hands. Tears were useless, I knew, but if they were all I had to give to those people…
I looked up when I felt a gentle touch on my leg. Blackhole was there, radiating solemnity.
It’s happening.
My heart turned to ice. I put my hand on Blackhole’s head, praying that I misheard. I hadn’t.
“Tarasque is killing the vampires?”
Yes. But don’t worry about Shadow. He won’t be killed.
My eyes narrowed. “Is that what your father said?”
He shrunk away from me a bit.
“Who is your father?”
He shrunk away even more. I gathered my nerve before asking a question that a part of me had known the answer to for some time.
“Blackhole, is your father Necoc Yaotl?”
He emitted a low, pained growl.
My mind raced as it had before Shadow contacted me. A mysterious god-like entity blackmails the king of the dragons into kidnapping me and wiping out the vampires. Said dragon king uses a device called the Mirror as a portal to visit other dimensions. He also uses it to communicate with Necoc Yaotl and it emits smoke when he does.
Necoc Yaotl. Necoc Yaotl. I knew that name, I had heard it from an ancient mythology…
Necoc Yaotl.
Smoking mirror.
Necoc Yaotl.
Quetzalcoatl.
Just as my mind made the horrifying connection, a voice boomed inside my head.
Well done, little key.
A face filled up my vision. The demonic face of a jaguar wreathed in dark gray smoke. Eyes of the darkest obsidian gleamed at me with respect and cruelty.
You said my brother’s name, but you have yet to say my name.
I couldn’t even begin to describe how naked I felt beneath that gaze. It made me want to crawl to the depths of the earth, but I knew even there I wouldn’t be safe.
Tezcatlipoca, I thought, grateful beyond measure that I didn’t have to use my speaking voice to talk to him. Also known as Smoking Mirror. Then again, you have many names, don’t you? Like the one you use with the dragon king. Necoc Yaotl, also known as Enemy on Both Sides.
Tezcatlipoca grinned. You will find I’m quite fond of irony, little key.
Why do you call me that?
Ah, that would be telling, wouldn’t it? And you have already figured out so much. Why should I spoil the surprise?
He was right. I had figured out quite a bit.
I remembered the obsidian statue of the jaguar with the missing paw I had seen in the palace of the royal family. According to Aztec mythology, Tezcatlipoca’s animal counterpart was the jaguar, and the god had supposedly allowed his own foot to be bitten off in order to create the world. With his brother, Quetzalcoatl. Said foot was replaced with one of two things: a serpent or a mirror of obsidian.
And the name you use for the vampires is Lord Chaos, I guessed. And I’m assuming Lord Order is Quetzalcoatl?
The grin turned into a hateful grimace. He was Lord Order.
Anger coursed through me, making it slightly more bearable to look into those horrible eyes. That explained why no vampire has ever heard the voice of Lord Order. Quetzalcoatl never intentionally abandoned Shadow’s fraction, did he?
DO NOT SPEAK OF THAT YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND! Tezcatlipoca bellowed. The vampires are my children. MINE! ALL MINE! My self-righteous, sanctimonious brother tried to destroy me and mold them in his own image. But when I returned, I took my children back and extracted my revenge. His children are now but twisted shadows of their former selves and will live out their rest of their existence as slaves to my children.
Fresh horror swept through me. The Evanescence…
Hard to believe, is it not? You should have seen them as they once were. So majestic, so beautiful, so powerful. They were my brother’s greatest creation. Far more creative than their stupid, arrogant former brothers who think they are going to destroy the vampires.