In Darkness We Must Abide: The Complete Third Season

by Frater, Rhiannon

Snapping upright, her eyes focusing, Vanora rested her hands gently against his throat and met his stare. “Your destiny is to rule, Aeron. To rule this world. To claim it as your legacy. And, yes, your children will be gods. They will walk in the day and wield powers long gone from this world.”

  “Mother?” It was difficult to speak.

  “No. I am the true White Queen. Born in flesh. Conjured from the fires of your mother’s magic. I am your true love. Vanora is the mortal vessel that…” The White Queen hesitated. “She was a placeholder - that’s the phrase - until I could manifest.”

  “My mother made you,” Aeron muttered in fear and awe.

  “Yes. To sit at your side. To birth your children. To be your queen.” The White Queen smiled sweetly. “Vanora is of no matter to us. Your destiny still lies before you.”

  “My children…” Aeron faltered. How did he feel about his mother being reborn? Vanora had spoken about the prospect in such a negative way that he’d almost been swayed by her argument. But his mother had always been his greatest defender and loved him above all others. He’d never felt safer than when he was in her arms. “My mother and uncle reborn?”

  “Yes. The Sun and the Moon.”

  “Vanora says they will try to kill me.”

  “Why would your mother hurt you? Why would she do all of this just to strike you down? She loves you.”

  Relief flooded Aeron. “Of course.” It was all beginning to make sense now. His mother would do everything in her immense power to ensure his future and happiness.

  With surprising strength, Vanora gripped his wrist. “Aeron, help me fight her.”

  Aeron regarded Vanora with suspicion. “And how will we do that?”

  “We need to die. Both of us. Together. We need to destroy her spell.”

  “I see.”

  “Death is the only answer for us, Aeron. If she is reborn, she will do everything in her power to subjugate humanity.”

  Now that Aeron understood the struggle occurring within Vanora’s mind and body, he could clearly see how fragile her hold onto her own body actually was. “So you want us to die. Together.”

  “It’s the only way to undo the spell,” Vanora replied.

  Aeron sighed sorrowfully. “I love you, Vanora, but your betrayal is noted. You did come to kill me.”

  Eyes wide with fear and panic, Vanora dug her nails into his skin. “Aeron, if you love me…”

  “No. If you loved me, you would have come willingly to my side,” Aeron replied coldly. “Not to kill me, but to be with me. I wanted you to sit at my side, but I realize now that is not to be.”

  “Aeron!”

  “Don’t use my love against me, Vanora.” Aeron yanked his wrist free of her grip. “I expected better of you.” Standing, he glowered at the young woman he loved so much it hurt. But her desire to destroy his mother’s well-laid plans was not acceptable. Furthermore, her audacity to lie to him about their future children killing him was repugnant.

  “Aeron, please…” Her voice cracked.

  “You served your purpose, Vanora. I will miss you. But it’s time for the White Queen.” He spat the words out, hurt and repulsed by her disloyalty. That she would ask him to die with her instead of fulfill his destiny was unbearable. Humanity needed gods to bring order back to their chaotic lives. He would save them. Why couldn’t she see that? Instead, she wanted him to destroy himself. She was foolish if she thought he’d sacrifice his very existence to thwart his mother’s apparently well-laid plans.

  Vanora’s head drooped as her fingers twitched against the fine organza of her gown.

  “My White Queen, it’s time to claim your place,” Aeron intoned.

  After a second, the White Queen raised her head. “And I shall.”

  “Vanora?”

  “Vanquished,” the White Queen answered.

  Aeron smiled.

  * * *

  Aeron’s words fed the spell and his fury squashed Vanora’s tenuous hold on her own mind and body. As she lost control, the White Queen surged forward and banished Vanora’s essence into the ether. Plunging into the void, Vanora lashed out, trying to grab onto anything that would keep her from destruction. It was truly like being cast down into the deepest, darkest well. Instinctively, she knew when she reached the bottom that she’d case to exist.

  “I will not fail!” she cried out, and her spectral fingers clasped onto a hidden handhold in the dark. She clutched what felt like a cold metal bar with both hands and stared toward the pinpoint of light far above. It was doorway to her body. Somehow, she had to scale back up to it and fight the White Queen for control.

  Dangling above obliteration, Vanora let out an anguished cry. It had been a daring move to tell Aeron the truth, but she’d believed that he truly loved her. What she hadn’t anticipated was how much more he loved the idea of fulfilling his destiny. That he was perfectly willing to vanquish her so his mother’s creation, the White Queen, could take her place, was as surprising as it was devastating. It was proof that the man she loved was long gone and that the love he felt for her wasn’t genuine. Whatever moment of true love they’d experienced had passed and was no longer of any consequence. Though she was trapped and precariously close to losing her battle and her life, it was a relief to feel the last bits of her connection with Aeron unravel and dissipate.

  When she faced him again -- and she would -- she had no fear of killing him.

  Though the infinite darkness around her was terrifying with the promise of death, she focused on the light. She had to reclaim her body. It was the only chance she had to kill Aeron and maybe save those she loved most. The thought of Alisha and Armando filled her with hope and determination.

  “I can do this,” she said aloud.

  The echo of her words continued endlessly, but as the sound cycled about her, to her surprise, her vision started to clear. Now she could see handholds fastened to nothingness rising above her. It was a bit of a struggle, but Vanora managed to lift one trembling hand to take hold of the next bar over her head. It took several attempts to latch on, but once she had a solid grip, she heaved her ghostlike body up. Though she knew she was only a spirit, the heaviness in her body and the burning pain in her arms and legs said otherwise. Perhaps it was her mind refusing to believe Vanora existed only as a specter. Whatever the cause, it wasn’t easy to climb.

  When she was finally making progress, the white light far above her blinked out.

  “No!” Vanora gasped.

  Clinging to the handhold, Vanora screamed into the abyss.

  * * *

  Leto slipped alone through the hidden hatch into Aeron’s lair. She’d sent the rest of her pack to enter through the main entrance to mingle with Aeron’s vampire children as they awaited the coronation of their new queen. The supple maroon leather train of the floor-length evening gown she wore stirred the fine dust on the floor. The gown was appropriate for the gathering, and she only had to unfasten the halter strap around her neck to free herself to transform into a likos. It was best to keep up appearances until the right moment.

  The word of the deaths of Mirrah and the Brides at Vanora’s hands was just as much disconcerting as it was encouraging. Vanora was powerful, but Leto knew the spell that Arianrhod had woven was even more so. Even if Vanora faltered and fell prey to Arianrhod, there would be a battle. If Vanora couldn’t kill Aeron, Leto had to find a way to stop him forever.

  Stepping into the small closet behind the hidden doorway, Leto found Dexios waiting for her. “Are all the pieces in play?”

  “Yes, Mother. The Oracle is in the temple. Alisha and the others are imprisoned. Vanora is with Aeron. Aeron’s children are gathering to celebrate. All of your followers are moving into position.”

  Dexios sounded unusually stiff and his gaze was hard. Leto knew he didn’t approve of some of her recent decisions. Every piece of her plan was vital, but she wasn’t about to explain it. It was best to keep it all to herself. Though she trusted Dexios, she didn’t trust
the powers that opposed her.

  “That despicable demon will be about in the next few minutes. Watch for him outside. When the ward falls, bring him to the temple.” If Greg attempted to enter the haven, the wards would burn through his human guise and leave him a smoldering, but living incubus. The last time he’d attempted to see Siana, it had taken him nearly a decade to recover. The thought of the demon reduced to so much burned flesh was appealing, but she had made a deal with him.

  “Anything else, Mother?”

  “Just do as I told you.”

  “Understood.”

  Dexios scooted past her into the tunnel to obey her while Leto continued toward the Temple. The guards in the hallway didn’t give her even a second glance, a reassuring sign that Aeron didn’t recognize her as an enemy.

  Though Dexios had told her of the damage to the temple when she’d spoken to him earlier on the phone, she was surprised at the extent of the ruin. The temple had aged centuries in a short time. Cracks zigzagged through the pillars, the murals were faded, and statues were crushed into chunks. Even Siana had transformed. Her hair was now white with a streak of black. Lying on her side next to the pool, the Oracle’s body was wracked by violent shudders.

  “Siana...”

  Fingers dipped into the churning water, Siana whispered, “The pendulum has swung back in favor of Arianrhod, but the future trembles like a drop of dew perched on the tip of a blade of grass.”

  Kneeling beside the Oracle, Leto rested her hand on the woman’s damp shoulder. “Siana, I need you to remove the wards from the haven.”

  “I cannot. Aeron’s edict stands.”

  The waves flowing over the surface of the pool undulated with each word.

  “Will Vanora win against Aeron?” Leto dared to ask.

  “I can only see death, fire, and pain.”

  Bending low over Siana, Leto whispered, “Remove the wards.”

  “I cannot. The edict stands. Aeron is my master. I serve him.”

  “His magic is being undone. Try to free yourself. Remove the wards.”

  Swinging her head toward Leto, Siana stared at her not with her empty eye sockets, but the glowing eye in the center of her forehead. “If I could, I would. Don’t you think I would attempt to save myself from the fate you have designed?”

  “If you do not try, Siana, I have no other choice.” Regret painted her words and filled her heart.

  “Is he here yet?” The Oracle’s voice caught. “Will he hold me?”

  “Can’t you see?” Leto gently brushed Siana’s wet hair from her frightened face.

  Siana stared past Leto with her third eye, then nodded. “Yes. He will hold me. He’s here.” Rolling back onto her side, the Oracle dipped her hand back into the pool.

  “I do not wish to kill the last of you,” Leto murmured. Tears rimmed her eyes and clouded her vision.

  Beneath Siana’s fingers, the pool swirled into a vortex. “Then your fate is particularly cruel,” she replied.

  With a choked sob, Leto drew the rosewood stake from the lining of her dress. “Yes, it is.”

  * * *

  Greg hurried along the outside of the warehouses, following the path Leto had laid out for him the night before when they’d made their agreement. The demon deftly avoided a puddle of stagnant rain water, careful not to muck up his black and red cowboy boots. Hair slicked into place, his goatee nicely trimmed, and his chubby body dressed all in black - he’d deliberately emulated Armando’s look - with a red shirt, he felt like a teenage boy on his first date. Well, what he assumed a teenage boy felt on his first date.

  The anticipation filling him was nearly unbearable. He couldn’t wait to hold Siana in his arms again. Though there was a good chance that she might die along with all the other vampires when Aeron was killed. To hold her one last time would be exquisite. But just in case she did survive, Greg had plans set in motion to whisk her away to a safe place. He hoped he’d have a chance to show her how much he loved her and shower her with all the gifts he’d accumulated over the years.

  Rubbing his hands together so that green sparks shot from his fingers, Greg stood in the shadows, ready for any sneak attacks from Aeron’s people. He actually trusted Leto’s promise to reunite him with his wife, but Aeron had a way of disrupting plans.

  The werewolf that had been hanging out with Alisha appeared abruptly out of a hatch. The entrance looked cemented over, but that was apparently a glamor. Stepping out of what looked like a solid surface, Dexios regarded Greg with a somber expression.

  “So Leto sent you out to fetch me, huh?”

  “As soon as the ward is down,” Dexios replied.

  Though Greg couldn’t see the wards covering the buildings, he could feel them. The volatile energy flowing off them reminded him of Siana. She could shift from complete calm to flaming rage in a blink of an eye. It was a side effect of her gift, but Greg had rather enjoyed the capriciousness of her personality.

  “So when does the ward go down?” Greg asked.

  “Leto is dealing with it right now.”

  “So Vanora rebelling is messing up all the magic, huh?” He was unusually edgy. Talking helped a little.

  “Definitely.”

  “So Vanora is going to break the edict over Siana like she did with Armando, huh?”

  The werewolf hesitated in answering.

  Dread filled Greg’s veins like molten lead. “That was the plan according to Leto. It changed didn’t it?”

  “Vanora has fallen under the power of the spell,” Dexios admitted.

  “Vanora folded under the spell? Seriously? But she’s such a tough little thing. So if Vanora isn’t breaking the edict, what’s going on?”

  “Leto is dealing with the ward in another way.”

  Swallowing hard, Greg stared at the mirage covering the entrance to the haven. It was a piece of the ward that Siana had erected to protect Aeron. She was powerful, but completely enslaved. Siana couldn’t even leave Aeron’s haven without his explicit permission. Greg had tried to forcibly remove her in the past only to have his beloved’s magic lay waste not only to him, but half of the haven. If Vanora wasn’t breaking the edict and Siana couldn’t leave the haven without the edict being removed, then...

  “How is Leto removing the ward?” Fear and rage bubbled under the surface of his calm words.

  Averting his eyes, Dexios said, “I’m not certain.”

  “Look, I made a deal with the she-bitch. She gets Vanora’s Scooby Gang and I get Siana. That’s cut and dried. I don’t want to hear that you’re not certain. I want to know how she plans to remove the wards and fulfill her end of the deal.”

  “Leto doesn’t share the explicit details of her plans with me. She merely informs me of my role.”

  “Well, I want you to find out exactly what the fuck she’s up to.” Greg wagged a finger at the hidden entrance. “If things are changing, I should be included in deciding what happens next.”

  “If Leto said the wards will come down, they’ll come down.”

  “The only way to remove them is if Leto finds a way to break the edict. And the only way to do that is through Vanora or...” Greg’s chest tightened painfully as he realized what Leto was most likely going to do. “She can’t do that! She promised!”

  Casting a look over his shoulder at the enshrouded entrance, Dexios said, “She’ll keep her promise that you’ll see your wife again.”

  “No! No! No!” Enraged, Greg shouted the words, not caring who heard him. “She can’t!”

  A second later, the illusion hiding the entrance vanished.

  Despair drowned his anger. Greg found it hard to breathe or think. Dexios grabbed his arm and pushed him down into the darkness. Befuddled by shock and fear, Greg allowed the werewolf to pull him through the tunnel and finally into the opulence of the haven. Fingers burrowed into Greg’s arm, Dexios hauled him along a hallway. Dexios urged him on with harsh words and sharp tugs on his arm.

  The utter terror and sorrow filli
ng the incubus were as deep and terrible as when he had found Siana’s body after she’d been killed by Aeron. He hadn’t known she would turn into a vampire and the devastation to his heart had been absolute.

  “She killed her,” Greg finally grunted out. “That’s why the wards are done. I’ll kill her!”

  Dexios didn’t respond.

  Guards attempted to stop the two men, but the demon set them ablaze with the flick of his hand. The reek of burning flesh and fur filled the passage, but Greg paid no heed. The only reason he spared Dexios was because he needed the werewolf to take him to Siana.

  When the incubus entered the temple, the world around him ceased to matter. Even the she-wolf that had torn out his heart didn’t draw his attention. It was centered on Siana, where she lay prone next to a viewing pool with red roses blooming out of her body. Falling to his knees, Greg didn’t even notice the tears streaming over his chubby cheeks as he leaned over her.

  “You came,” Siana whispered, her fingers lightly grazing his cheek. Rose thorns poked out from beneath her nails.

  “I told you I’d find a way,” he answered. Kissing her brow, he sensed death taking hold of her.

  “I missed you.”

  “I missed you, Siana. I love you more than anything,” Greg sniffled. “I wanted us to have more time together.”

  Another rose burst from her skin just below her ribcage. She’d be gone soon.

  Her voice was scarcely audible. “I’ll see you again, darling. In the Elysian Fields.”

  “The place of the good dead.” Greg chortled. “I don’t think I’m eligible.”

  “You’ll find a way.” Siana’s lips were so pale when she spoke. “Help kill Aeron. Set the world right.”

  “It’s not right if you’re not with me.” The misery enfolding him was absolute. Though her beautiful eyes were missing, he could feel her loving gaze warming him. Siana knew what he was beneath his human flesh and still loved him completely. She was the only good thing in his life.

  “Do what is right.” With what little strength she had left, she squeezed his hand. “For me.”