The Last Vessel (The Chronicles of Luna Moon Book 1)

by Winter Rose

  Before I could gut him like a fish, Eros spun me around, taking my blade in the process, ending us in a graceful dip.

  “What are you?” I asked him, trying my best not to sound too breathless with the movement. I didn’t like to be out of control.

  “What do you think?” Eros’ movements were graceful as he led me into a dizzying dance.

  “Some sort of Demon maybe? An Incubus?” I replied, attempting not to sound as breathless as I felt.

  Eros laughed at this.

  “Close. I’m a Siren, Luna.” I literally stopped dead, causing his chest to crash into my face.

  “I thought Siren’s had tails?” I eyed his two legs skeptically.

  His lip quirked. “And what would I do with a tail on land?” True, he pulled me in once more and began to dance to a new, slow song. “So now you know what I am, will you forgive me and not bleed me dry on the dance floor?”

  He was being cute, which kind of pissed me off. When Eros had used his glamour on me, it felt as though I had no control over my body. I needed control, and I was not going to give it up for a pretty face. I stopped dancing with him and turned away. Gods, these men were getting under my skin.

  “Luna, please, I’m sorry!” Eros shouted, causing the entire room to stare. I turned around to give him a death glare and found the powerful Siren down on one knee. Whispers started, as more people turned around to look at the spectacle—kill me now.

  “I Eros, Prince of Atlanta, swear to you, Luna Moon, on my honor as a Warrior, I will never willingly use my glamour on you, so long as you will it to be.” I just stood there with the rest of the hall; mouth hung open. A vow on a Warrior’s honor was unbreakable. His face was solemn with no trace of his usual banter.

  “I accept your Warriors’ oath,” my voice croaked as I bound the magic, that he was now unable to undo. I was completely dumbfounded. An impish smile spread across his face as he took my hand and spun me in a circle, whooping. I was completely pissed at the giggle that escaped my throat.

  Gods, these men will be the death of me.

  Chapter Thirteen

  The sounds of merriment grew faint as I walked with Vulcan back to my new living quarters. The candlelight licked at the castle’s stone walls, the echo of our steps almost deafening in the silence.

  Vulcan appeared next to me as soon as I excused myself from dancing as if he had waited in the shadows for the opportunity to walk me back to the room. Apart from offering his escort, the man or Dragon had not uttered another word. The silence should have been awkward, but my senses were thankful for the reprieve.

  Vulcan’s energy signal was extremely potent this evening, his dominance weighted heavily in the air. This could sometimes happen back at The Estate when dominant wolves’ positions within the pack’s hierarchy were challenged. I wonder what crazy bastard even dared to challenge this man. I was surprised to find that some primal part of me enjoyed his display of dominance. I wasn’t afraid; I was enthralled.

  “Here we are.” I was definitely ogling the man as we walked, so when he stopped to gesture to the door, he most definitely noticed. I couldn’t help it. He looked so damn good in that suit.

  “Don’t do that, Luna,” his voice pitched lower, deep and rich like the wine I desperately craved.

  “Do what?” We both stood on either side of the closed door, and he rubbed his hands over his eyes.

  “Let’s just say, I am extremely good at reading emotions.” My heart raced as he took a step toward me. “My Dragon is especially sensitive to them this evening.” He lifted his large fingers to push a stray hair behind my ear. His skin was rough and calloused. My lips parted, and a soft oh sound escaped them. As with the other men, thousands of sparks flitted across the skin that he touched.

  Vulcan’s chest rumbled with a low groan. His breath became ragged, and he closed his eyes like he needed to regain some control. I could have sworn I saw a flash of yellow.

  “I should go,” he opened them once more, allowing me to fall into their dark depths.

  “Why?” The world tumbled out of my mouth.

  He lifted a brow.

  “Would you like me to stay?” His question was loaded; I should have been terrified. I wanted to blame the alcohol for lowering my inhabitations.

  “I …” Vulcan pressed a finger to my lips, the side of his mouth lifted.

  “Don’t. My Dragon’s particularly possessive this evening. If I come in there, I’m never letting you go.” My stomach somersaulted, and before my bravery, or stupidity could test his statement, he turned me around and pushed me through the door. When I looked back, he was gone.

  The three sisters had obviously been in here. The bed had been turned down, and a wash bowl and brush had been placed on the bedside. I stripped out of the silver dress; my flushed skin thankful for the frigid air that circulated the room. After I was clean and my hair released from its bonds, I pulled on a pale nightdress, that was placed on top of the purple covers.

  “What in all the gods?” The opaque material finished at the top of my thighs, leaving nothing to the imagination. “What is it with these people and almost transparent bloody clothing?”

  Lay against the soft feathered pallet, my eyes grew heavy with the weight of the day’s events. Anxious excitement filled my chest as it finally dawned on me that I had escaped The Estate.

  “The Elites,” my voice sounded weak against the roar of the open fire. In my dizziest daydreams, I could never imagine the opportunity that lay before me now. I had three years to prove my worth to them, and in that time, I would be taught by the fiercest Warriors in all the realms. Magnar’s, Vulcan’s, Eros’, and even Ehre the arsehole Elf’s faces filled my mind as I drifted off to sleep with a smile on my face.

  A lifting sensation pulled at me. I looked down on my sleeping form and let out a shocked cry. My raven hair fanned out across the pillow. I looked so still, I looked … dead. My other form’s chest rose and fell in deep, steady breaths, and I could have cried in relief. A breath that I didn’t realize I was holding escaped my chest, and I felt myself lift higher.

  I began to rise at a dizzying pace, the castle and its grounds lay below me like an exquisite tapestry. I flew across the mountain range away from the ocean. I closed my eyes against nausea that attempted to escape my phantom form and came to an abrupt stop. Once I was sure my stomach settled, I opened my eyes and covered my mouth against the scream that never came.

  Below my floating form was an army. No, a legion, of creatures straight out of a child’s darkest nightmare. Decaying skin stretched too thinly over the creature’s skeletal bodies. Their hands and feet had claws; their monstrous mouths filled with razor-sharp fangs which caused them to hang painfully open. I wanted to scream, I wanted to fly away, but I could only hover there watching the nightmare unfold.

  Two of the nearest creatures turned on one another. The crowd around the fighting pair made a skin-crawling clicking sound, almost as if they were cheering. The larger of the two ripped his opponent’s head clean from its body with its sharp talons. The smell of sulfur and death attacked my nostrils, and I gaged once more. The monstrous victor let out a triumphant roar and began to rip at the body with its fangs.

  He was eating the dead creature! I couldn’t look at the horror anymore. I closed my eyes, willing myself to wake from this nightmare.

  “Remember what you have seen here, daughter, death will soon be at the castle.”

  The room I was standing in was somewhere I had never been before. The walls and floor looked as though they had been cut from the same black stone. The thick heat in the air was relentless, and I was terrified.

  “Let me go!” I cried. “Please, I will do anything you want. Just tell me they are safe, that they got away.” I fell onto the floor; the pain was too unbearable. I was no longer in the clearing, but the stench of sulfur and death followed me to this new place. I had no control over my body. It was as if I was a spectator behind my own eyes. I cried out once more; where
were they? I looked down at my cuffed wrists and tried again to feel for the bond—nothing. Sobs shook my body.

  I knew it in my heart that they were gone, and I knew that it was my fault.

  I bolted upright as the door to my room banged open. A shirtless Magnar ran toward my bed, kneeling before me.

  “Luna, what is wrong?” Magnar’s hand brushed up and down the bottom of my sweat-soaked spine as I heaved into the bowl on my nightstand, throwing up what little food was in my stomach. Vulcan handed me a chalice of water, and I drank the cool liquid deeply. My whole body was shaking, and it was almost impossible to hold my own weight. “Lie back, Luna,” Magnar guided me against the soft cushions he piled up against my head, and I look around the room, across four sets of very concerned eyes. Four?

  Ehre was standing in the corner of the room, leaning against a wall. His silver hair fell around his shoulders in disarray. Like a silken waterfall, it reflected the light. He had obviously just thrown on the nearest pair of trousers. They were brown, made of some sort of animal skin; the leather ties hung open.

  His chiseled chest and abs were covered in small Elvish symbols, the emerald green stark in contrast against his luminous pale skin. The symbols covered his broad chest and narrow waist, lining the vee of his stomach muscles before dipping down into his low-hung trousers. The lines that made up Ehre’s body, like his face, were harsh and strong. I shivered.

  “She’s cold,” Eros’ panicked voice stole my attention, his turquoise eyes ran over me frantically. Vulcan draped a pelt over my shoulders, and I welcomed its security. The bed dipped with someone’s weight, and I flinched.

  “You’re scaring her,” Eros hissed.

  “Please, even Hades himself wouldn’t scare her,” Ehre spat. Hades. His name made me claustrophobic…

  “Luna,” Magnar drew my attention as he sat facing me. “I felt your terror; what happened?”

  I took an uneven breath and repeated it was just a dream in my head until my heart slowed. I shakily reached for the goblet that someone had re-filled, allowing the cool liquid to wash away my fear. Once I felt calmer, I became painfully aware of my compromising position, pulling the pelt closer against my chest. Magnar’s bizarre comment then came back to me.

  “What do you mean you felt my terror?” I asked him.

  “You’re dead, Vampire,” Eros chuckled.

  “That is not important now. Luna, why were you so afraid?”

  I considered his comment, beginning to feel slightly foolish.

  “I’m fine. It was just a dream,” my voice quivered, not convincing anyone. I could still smell the stench of sulphur, even when I was awake. You shouldn’t be able to smell in dreams, should you? A shudder ran through my body when I thought of how very real the dream had felt.

  Each of the men looked at me expectantly, not satisfied without an explanation. I took a deep breath and began a recap on what had happened.

  “I was lifted from my body here in the castle. In my dream, there were monsters, a voice in my head warned me that ‘death would soon be at the castle.’” A hollow, empty laugh rattled my chest.

  None of the men spoke, so I continued.

  “Then I was in a room within a palace. The room was made entirely out of black stone. It was hot and smelled of sulphur. I was a prisoner. I was afraid for … my life.” I had no idea why I hid the whole truth, but something in my gut told me to, I decided to trust it.

  Eros cursed in Lantish.

  “He knows,” he said to the three stony gazed men. “He knows that she is here, and he will doom us all to get what he wants.”

  “Who knows what?” I asked the group.

  “You need to tell us everything that happened in your vision. Don’t leave anything out.” Ehre’s eyes were alight with urgency, the most brilliant emerald green.

  “It was a dream,” I felt sick again, and my head started to hurt.

  “Humor us,” Eros said. They were entirely serious! I felt too terrible to argue, so I began to tell them my dream in detail.

  The more I told them, the better I felt. The sickness and headache started to lift as if the dream needed to be expelled from my system. I was extremely aware that as I talked, each of the men looked increasingly worried. Magnar’s rough fingers traced nervous circles on the cover over my foot. As soon as he realized what he was doing, he stopped, and my heart panged with his absence.

  “Did you see how far away the army was?” The king was all business. “Eros is right; he must have found out about her, that she is here. It is the only way to explain her visions,” Magnar said to the three men like I wasn’t even in the room.

  “But how? Nobody but us knows about the prophecy,” Eros said and looked from me to Magnar.

  “That is not exactly true,” Vulcan replied as he pushed himself off the wall.

  “No brother,” Magnar argued as he balled his hands into fists. “He’s dead; we haven’t felt him in years.” He stood and began to pace.

  “Is he? Have we actually seen a body, brother?” Vulcan touched Magnar’s shoulder, grounding him to a halt. “The bond was never complete.” His accented voice rang with wisdom. “Until it is, there are ways to weaken our connection without death.” The men’s grave expressions left a heavy weight in the air.

  “He would never…” Ehre spat out. Something Vulcan had said really touched a nerve.

  “Twenty years is a long time, brother.” Eros placed a hand on the pale Elf’s shoulder. “Anything could have happened in that time; he could have found ways to make him talk.” Ehre shook off Eros’ comforting hand; his wild green eyes found me.

  “We cannot even be sure that she is even the one!” he spat, making it quite clear the she he spoke of, was in fact me.

  “Don’t pretend like you cannot feel it, Ehre; we all can.” Vulcan stepped before me, the warning behind his words was suffocating, and his energy weighted the room considerably.

  Ehre puffed up his chest, turning his piercing eyes to the Dragon Prince. He should have looked ridiculous squaring up to the giant man.

  “It could be a trap; we have to be sure. I don’t believe that he would ever …” Even though his size wasn’t as impressive as Vulcan’s, his energy signal sure was. The two invisible forces crashed against one another as they both battled for dominance.

  “No spell could make us all feel this way, magic couldn’t fool my Dragon!” Vulcan spoke over Ehre, his power rose, making my lungs heavy.

  “No, but those tits and lips would,” Ehre snarled causing each of the men in the room to growl. Two of them battling for dominance was bad enough, once the rest of the guys joined in their energy suffocated me.

  “Ah! Could you guys stop doing that!” I pressed my hands against either side of my splitting skull.

  “Luna, what is wrong?” Eros came over to me, worry marring his features. Some of the pressure subsided.

  “One of you is dominant enough for it to feel like a Giant crushing my skull when you become all Alpha arsehole. Four of you throwing around your energy? My skull was going to explode!” Each of the men stood around the bed, their expressions ranging from shock to smug.

  “You can feel each of our energy signals?” Ehre asked in annoyance.

  “Yours are all so strong, a bloody rock could sense it.” I rubbed at my temple.

  “You still unsure that she is the one?” Vulcan smugly asked.

  “The one what?” I all but shouted at them, frustrated and exhausted.

  “If he knows, whatever he has planned is sure to tip the scales, you heard her second vision … He’s already toying with the balance or she wouldn’t be here.” Magnar commented, obviously talking about me while completely ignoring me.

  “All of the portals here are manned; how the fuck could a giant fucking army slip by unnoticed?” Vulcan began to pace next to the bed. I was getting a little annoyed.

  “Prophecies can change. The goddesses wanted her to see this for a reason; they could be warning us to fortify the b
oundaries,” Magnar replied, running his hands through his unrestrained hair. Okay, I was getting more than a little annoyed. These men were literally talking over my head.

  “Unbelievable,” Ehre hissed as he faced the king. “Now you believe he is alive?” They all began to whisper-argue between one another; I was over being ignored.

  I stood up on the bed, allowing the covers to fall from me. The cool air whipped around my exposed skin.

  “Oi!” Four sets of eyes found me. “Now, either one of you is telling me what in the Underworld is going on, or I’m gonna start throwing knives!” I levelled my gaze and lifted my chin. “And, I never miss …” The room became silent, their expressions ranged from shock to amused.

  “Such a lady.” Ehre still managed to look down his nose at me even when I was above him. I gave him my best fuck you, Elfie glare.

  “We believe that your dream was a prophecy from the goddesses,” Magnar responded, like what he said was completely sane. Great, he was mad.

  “You’re joking, right?” I asked, and a serious expression was his only reply. I looked over to the other three—who were either great actors or just as batshit. “I think you’re all crazy.” I crossed my arms.

  “You asked me if I knew what you were before, well I do. You are a unique creation that the goddesses themselves made,” Vulcan replied, entirely serious.

  “I’m not quite sold on the idea. I still believe she may be a witch,” Ehre rolled his eyes and argued.

  “I’m not anything. I mean, I’m not one race, I am a Hybrid, I have no powers,” I laughed, “That is not exactly true, now is it?” Vulcan grunted.

  Magnar walked toward me. “No Hybrid would be able to separately read our energy signals, let alone feel the energy that we released physically. Most supes can only feel energy when they are personally challenged for dominance. They know to stay away from someone more dominant; they fear us, but they cannot read our signals. Only the most powerful supes can do that.”