Chapter 10: Queen

Chapter 10: Death

Feeling as if I had hell itself in my mind, I roared through the battle – my vampires caught in the their unawares and the slayers wielding weapons I’d never seen before – feeling for the traitor. I decapitated any slayer that stood in my path, looking for any hint of her location. I felt Korey, using the speed to her advantage, using stealth rather than attack.

My mind flashed to the meeting a few days prior. Derek outlining the plan, tossing diamonds from hand to hand, his words describing every road we were to travel on echoed in my ears. It was only Derek, Lucentia, Chami and myself in that room.

I felt a flicker and I swerved in that direction. She wasn’t in the battle, but in the manor and I tore through the doors, ripping them off their hinges as I went.

Lucentia lay on the stairs, bleeding freely from a wound that was healing too slowly. I stopped at her side and dropped to my knees.

“It was Chami wasn’t it?” I asked, and surprised myself with the deadpan tone of my voice. It was such a contrast to the sulfurous rage in my chest. I was trembling and her cold hands wrapped around my wrists.

“Yes,” she said simply, and at the tone of her voice, I knew it was her as well. I rocked back as if she’d struck me and my mouth dropped open in shock.

“But… you? ” I demanded, horrified. The shock numbed the pain and I stared at the dying vampire.

Lucentia shook her head. “Double-crossed everyone. Gen and Tolour.” The last syllable was a gurgle as her mangled throat filled with decaying blood. The battle fell through the doors and my vampires were on the defensive. It was too even of a fight and I cringed as I felt the ripping sensation of bands breaking as my vampires fell.

I stood up abruptly and tore up the stairs, leaving her body as it burst into ashes.

Perhaps I should have re-evaluated what was happening.

I should have stayed and helped fight them off.

I should have sent a message to all that saw Chami to slay her on the spot – but I had the maddening urge to protect Gen and Tolour. They were not awake yet – they were utterly defenseless.

This was the reason why I blew toward down the hall. Some vampires were fighting up here and I swung my blade as deftly as I could, slaying the enemy that fell across my path. I felt her, hurrying up the stairs and a rush of satisfaction washed over me when her fear spiked. She was terrified of what would happen – what I would do to her – I she failed to kill Gen, Toulour, Lucentia and myself.

I sent the most powerful paralyzing command I could and rushed when I felt her stagger against the wall. Even though I was more powerful than her, she had experience on her side and she threw a metaphysical blanket over me.

I was blind and deaf, literally and I stopped in my tracks. I was so used to seeing everything crystal clear that the sudden darkness threw me off. It was only a second before my other senses kicked it. It was like having radar and I slid sideways in time to avoid an attack. My blade whistled through the air and I rushed forward again, still blind and deaf to whatever was going on around me. My bonds were muffles so Chami’s presence was dull but she was progressing up the tower. She knew her little blinding move would only last until my power exploded outwards.

When it did, the blackness tore away and I was moving faster again, ripping through the enemy.

She was far up the tower and we were matched for speed. Korey ripped past me, stunning me a little with her speed and I felt her rage at Chami’s betrayal. I hadn’t realized that I’d stopped blocking my feelings and thought from everyone. I was as open as I could get to everyone whom I was bonded to and that meant literally everyone. I caught hints of indignation, fear and mostly betrayal around me. Chami was the most trusted vampire in this coven apart from Lucentia.

I sent another shock of power to Chami and she staggered again, this time not able to recover fully. I’d hit her badly and my defenses were up so her attempts at rebuke brushed off my shields like the softest caress – not even weakening.

Korey – however – was not as powerful. I scrambled to protect the small vampire but Chami was fast. I felt a twinge of regret when Chami’s blow shattered Korey’s mind. She rendered the girl insane before crushing Korey’s heart with her hands and I screamed. It was a gift Chami possessed. She was psychic and she could also delve into other’s minds like no one could. She was manipulative in all possible ways.

She reached the top of the tower a few seconds before I did and I heard the stony rasping noise of a sarcophagus being opened.

The old fashioned, but effective, silver stake plunged into Tolour’s chest and Chami’s long knife cut through the skin, muscle and tendons of his neck one single move. Chami, along with every vampire in the castle, convulsed when our hearts stuttered, squeezed and released at the death of one of the founders of our kind. I staggered against the wall, my hand flying to my chest, feeling a strange coldness rush over us. I reached out for Gen, who had ripped Tolour’s power from him when she’d felt my desperation and the truth of Chami’s actions in my mind. She thrust his power onto me and I gasped. My knees gave out and I fell.

I couldn’t think, the power was way too much and I couldn’t handle it. It felt as it someone just poured lava on me and jammed my fingers into a socket at the same time.

It was too much, too much! I screamed when another torrent of power slammed into me. I dimly realized it was Gen’s power I was receiving. Chami had killed them, but using the vast amounts of power I had I crushed her mind under my heel. She didn’t stand a chance against me… but I was still too overwhelmed to protect myself.

The blade – I don’t know where it came from or who wielded it – stabbed through my rib cage and through my heart.

Blackness.