I nodded slowly and turned back to the wall.
"What about the Captain?"
"I think he's as much out of it as you are. He used a lot of power, but you--"
The ground started shaking violently as a massive hole appeared in the wall closest to us. An enormous explosion crushed the outer layer, peppering us with stone and debris. The Captain stood in the hole growling and glaring at me. One of his limbs was missing along with most of his armor. Blood gushed from multiple deep wounds, but he still stood there.
"You won't escape! Not under my watch!" he roared, charging me with his head lowered. I couldn't help but oblige and used my shadows to lift the boulder, then flew out of his projected path and hurled the boulder at his head. The piece of rock cracked, and the Captain dropped like a fly.
"Come. Don't test your luck, young Vampyre," Freya whispered, embracing me with darkness so soothing, that it felt like I was in my mother's womb.
I didn't even have the time to panic before darkness turned to light again.
I looked around me, only to find myself standing in the room we rented earlier. Freya sat on the bed, her legs crossed while I sat on the trunk.
"You need to teach me that," I whispered as I looked around again. "Speaking of which, where are Katya and the rest?"
"In the other room. They're crying and making up. Leave them be for a while. I doubt the sight of you would be very welcoming right about now."
I sighed and walked over to Freya, sat down on the bed, and put my arm around her.
"You really are much more than I ever thought of you, huh?"
She shrugged, twisting herself around to my front and pushed me down to the bed.
"I told you so, but you wouldn't listen, young Vampyre. There are so many things out there--"
The ground shook violently, accompanied by a thundering explosion from the direction of the keep. I pushed her off me and rushed to the window. A blue and reddish plume of flame and energy rose high into the sky. Moments later, a shockwave hit the town, breaking glass, wood and clay alike. The tavern shook on its foundation, but it luckily held.
The wall between the rooms cracked and partially fell over to our side. Katya stood to the side, while Harma and her parents were huddled up in the farthest corner of the room.
"You're back!" Katya yelled. "Why didn't you tell me? I was worried to death!"
"My love," I replied and shoved what remained of the wall aside, walking up to her and embracing my favorite woman.
"What the hell was that?" she whispered as I held her there.
"I think it might have something to do with the portal. I think that-- I did something to it when I ravaged the mechanism where the energy crystals went."
She sighed, shaking her head. I could see she wasn't in the mood for jokes or any more adventure, at least not for a while, so I did my best to comfort her.
"That's the last we've ever seen of that bastard, I hope. Now all that remains is to get home," I whispered.
"Home. Yeah, I'd like to go home right about now," she replied, looking up at me. "We really could have just died up there, you know? Shit, he was a monster, Ivan. The mere power he radiated."
"We can die any given day," I replied, leaning in closer to her. "This only served to sober us up. We need more power to stand against them, and not just me. We all need to get much stronger and faster. We need magical weapons, armor, and spells. We need something that can change the tide of battle."
"Oh, I think I can help with that. I overheard you and Tierney earlier talking about heading to Bran. It just happens so that a particularly strong-- person of interest lives nearby."
"You did what?" Katya hissed as she pushed me off her. "You make plans behind my back?"
"Hey, it's not like you don't know she's a part of us, no?"
"No, but I expect you to tell me every time!"
I sighed and turned to Freya.
"What's this person's name, and what are they? I doubt it's human.
"I can give you their name, but as to what they are, that's a rather tricky question to answer. Her name is Gamayun--"
"Great, another woman to add to his harem. I swear, if you even add a single woman to-- our numbers, I'm out of here. There's no way I want to compete with ten other women over you."
"And you won't have to. But is it my fault most of the people in my life are women? And one more thing, why the hell are we having this conversation right here and now? For all we know, there might be a monster heading our way right about now."
"Whatever. You better expect us to talk about this when we get home," Katya hissed as she turned on Harma. "Get your shit together, all three of you. Lord Ivan here will be carrying us home, so you better not give him shit."
My right eyebrow rose to her rebuke. Sure, my woman still had it in her. The three stopped moping around and gathered themselves, straightening their clothes and giving me the once over.
"Lord Vampyre," Harma's father said, offering me his hand. "I can't say that I'll ever like you, but you have my thanks. When your own people turn against you, it sure is a hard blow to take. And in the end, you saved my daughter's, as well as our lives."
"I'm not the church, Cardinal. There's a price to pay for every favor, especially for mine. But I guess you already know as much," I said with a grin. He nodded his head slightly.
"I do, but not here. Would it suffice if I opened that Trunk for you when we're back at your-- estate?"
"For now," I replied, trying to hide my excitement. Freya snickered to my side as if something amused her. Whatever. If there was anything worth our time there, I'd be more than happy to reciprocate that snicker. "So. How about we get the fuck out of here, Cardinal?"
Chapter Twelve
The three hours it took us to fly back to our place felt like they would go on forever. Freya took care of the horses, the crystals, the trunk, and the parents, while I carried Harma and Katya. It was kind of unfair that she could move things, animals, and people in her fog, but it was only to be expected of a 'deity' or whatever she was.
The walls still stood, and the lack of smoke in the distance told me everything should be alright. Numerous wards jumped to life as our guest's holy magic came in contact with the witches' protective spells. Much to my surprise, it took our men and women a mere two minutes to man the walls and form up on Boris who stood at the portcullis.
"Easy!" he roared. "It's just the boss and his women. And some more women."
"Hah? More women," Katya sneered. "You flea-ridden dog! I'm his only woman! Not his women and some more women!"
He waved her off and jumped down the ten feet of stone, and landed in a puddle of mud.
"Fucking hell! And I just cleaned up an hour ago!"
"Serves you right!" Katya shot back as she jumped after him, landing gracefully like a cat.
"Stop it. You're already annoying the shit out of me," I cursed, putting Harma down beside Katya after I landed equally gracefully. Freya landed behind me, undoing her fog and revealing everything inside, including the Cardinal and his wife.
"What the--"
"Shush. She's with me. They all are," I said, pushing him back. His werewolves, which now were a full pack, growled low. It only took a single glance for them to whine like puppies and to disperse. Selene walked up to us along with Hana and Vera.
"My lord," Vera shouted, running up to me. "Who are these people?"
"I'll tell you later. Please, prepare a guest room for them, and a bath for the four of us," I said motioning at Katya, Harma, Freya and myself. Hana stared daggers at me before she scoffed, turning back toward the keep and stormed off. Women.
"Yes, my lord. Will you require assistance? And what-- happened to your hand?"
"I cut it off to escape death, but no worries, it's nothing serious," I replied slapping her ass.
"Hey, not in front of so many people!" she whispered and slapped me back playfully, then scurried off toward the mansion. Her long, orange hair was tied in a ponytail
moving like a pendulum from side to side with every step. I stood there and looked down at my shoes, suddenly feeling nostalgic. So many things had changed in the meanwhile, some for the better, and some for the worse. I'd forgotten about her, handing her duties and nothing else. Still, I couldn't help it. She didn't want to be turned, so she might as well live the way she wanted. Immortality wasn't something everyone yearned for.
"What is it?" Katya asked. I grimaced and turned from her.
"Things. Promises. Some kept, some broken. A life I wouldn't wish to my worst enemy. Everything changed so abruptly."
"Tell me about it. One day I was trying to get you killed for Dvorak, the next you were stronger than me," she chuckled before sliding her arm underneath mine. Hana stepped in doing the same to my other free arm.
"I missed you," she whispered. I smiled weakly and kissed the side of her head, just above her ear. She didn't kiss me back and instead turned from me slightly. "Things have changed, huh? I guess we aren't as important to you anymore as we used to be. Your warrior queen and goddesses, huh?"
"Things changed. And they will continue to change. But as long as you ladies keep up with me, you have nothing to worry about."
"Keep up with you?" Hana asked. "Do you plan to make Harma part of us? And that other woman?"
"Harma, no. As for Freya, she was my first when I was a young boy more than ten years ago. As for what she is, please don't ask, as I have no idea myself."
The girls remained silent afterward until we reached the main room. Vera pulled the Cardinal and his wife into the guest room and then lead us up to the second floor. Hana joined us in the bath and helped take care of Katya while Harma kept to herself in a far corner, as far away from me as possible.
"Did Cosimo inflict those wounds on your body?" I asked once I joined them. I couldn't help but appreciate her muscled body. She didn't have an inch of fat that I could see as she turned her back to me, showing gash upon gash across her back.
"Yeah. It were Cosimo and the Captain. I had no idea what he-- no, not was, but is. I doubt we've seen the last of him yet."
"What do you know about him?" I asked as Freya sat on my lap and put her arm around my neck. She rubbed my chest and shoulders clean with her other hand.
"That he's as bad as they come. For some reason, he took a liking to me-- but that didn't stop him from using me as a canvas for his 'art' as he used to call it."
"Torture?" I asked. She shook her head.
"No, not really. He just liked to carve into me and heal it up. He's fascinated by how blood flows from wounds, especially the deeper ones."
Katya and Hana murmured something I couldn't quite make out, but I didn't care as much at the moment. Instead, I focused on Harma's back. When she said he used her as a canvas, she really meant it. There was barely an inch of smooth skin left on her back.
"All of us here, well, most of us here are obsessed with blood, but that doesn't explain how strong he was. Tell me, Harma, what the hell is he?"
She turned around again, showing me her whole body. It almost made me feel bad for looking at her. So perfect, yet so marred.
"I don't know. Until today, I thought he was human. A wicked one, true, but human. But now I don't know anymore, my lord."
I slid deeper into the water, floating in half-absence while looking up through the glass ceiling and into the darkness of the night. Had we made a big mistake? Should we have left the keep alone and endured just like we had until now? No, it wasn't on us, it was on me. I was the one who made the calls, not them.
"She sure spruced the place up," Katya commented.
"Huh? Who did what?" I asked, sitting up on the ledge again. Freya wasn't letting go, no matter how I moved. If she couldn't be there in physical form, she turned to mist and embraced me any way she could.
"Vera. Please tell me you noticed all the candles, scented grass, the painted walls, and everything."
I groaned and forced myself to look around if nothing else but to be polite. Truly, tall candles littered the walls and the marble around the bathing area. Silken curtains hung from the ceiling, all reds, and blacks, just like the walls which went from white to black.
"Hmm, I gotta say the girl knows how to do her thing," I said after studying the situation for a moment. Katya and Hana giggled, then pulled Harma closer to them, leaving me alone with Freya.
"No, I don't," she said before I could even ask her the question. "I couldn't read him at all, not a single bit."
I sighed and looked up at the ceiling again. This wasn't according to my taste at all. If that brute would actually bother to show up, the Captain could wreak havoc here like it was his business.
"Do you want us to talk to Dracul? I know you can slip into the convo if you want," I whispered. She shrugged.
"Sure. If he doesn't bite or something."
"No, but I do."
"You wish. I don't give my blood away so freely, you know?"
"Girls?" I said, holding Freya's gaze. "We're going to talk to Dracul for a while. Don't wait for us."
"Ugh, again?" Hana groaned. "Seriously, you really need to step up your game, my lord," she added sarcastically. I didn't bother listening to what else they threw my way and instead drifted off into a self-induced dream state.
"So, you lived," he said when I appeared. "I thought you'd show up sooner, but whatever."
"Yeah, whatever. I brought a guest along this time," I replied and seated myself on a throne of black and red steel. Freya appeared beside me, clad in a black wedding dress. I couldn't help but lift my right eyebrow.
"What? Don't like what you see? Will naked do?"
"Either is fine, Freya. You just caught me off guard. That's all."
She laughed heartily before taking a seat next to me on an identical throne, only slightly smaller.
"You two don't have anything better to do than to fool around here?" Dracul asked. "If no, then leave. I'm rather busy."
"With what? Trying to chase us away?" I retorted.
"What the hell do you two want? And no, I'm busy trying to project myself where my body was laid to rest. Or buried beneath a mass of stone and rubble."
"Oh? Pray to tell, was that near Bran?" I asked. He frowned before taking his own seat on a throne that easily dwarfed mine. Whatever, I thought. I was the one controlling the body, not him.
"Yes, it is. I can see it," Freya replied in his stead. "I can read his mind partially, but only what's on the surface. How strange."
"No, it's not, my dear goddess. After all, you do remember who I was back then? Who and what we were?"
I didn't like the way he said it, and even less that he knew her at all and hadn't told me about it. After seeing her in action, I could come to terms of her being ancient and reliable, but her knowing this bastard was a bit too much.
"What the hell are you two talking about?" I snapped. She saw the anger in my eyes but didn't hurry to reply. Freya really liked to dress me down or show me my place whenever she could. Freya, just who the hell were you?
"We were lovers once. Just like you and I are now lovers as well," she said.
"This is awkward," I said after a lengthy silence. Dracul cleared his throat and tried to explain himself.
"We weren't exactly lovers," he started quoting the word lovers with his fingers, "But something like, you know. She let me suck her blood when I needed to. I mean, not that there's anything wrong with you, my dear, but I wasn't really available for a lengthy romance."
"Nor for a short one. I mean seriously, you had no idea how to treat a lady. Even less me, a goddess," Freya chuckled.
"Bah, enough of this already! Tell me what or who you are. I'm sick of these games!" I snapped.
Freya's expression turned dark in an instant as she gazed upon me with her pitch-black eyes.
"You sure you can handle the truth? Don't go running to your girls once you know, Ivan," she said, her voice as cold as steel. I frowned. What the hell was it with women and their secrets?
&n
bsp; "Yeah, I can handle it. I think I've proven more than once that I can handle myself as well as the people close to me."
She nodded slowly as if searching for the right word, all the while as a turmoil raged inside me.
"I'm the dark mother, Ivan. I'm the mother that gave birth to everything, not human. I'm the mother of all Vampyres, Werewolves, Shifters and anything living, or undead under the sun and moon that isn't expressly Human."
She stopped and stared back at me as if probing me to see if I'd figured it out. And boy did my imagination run wild. No matter how hard I thought about it, there was only one solution that came to mind. But it couldn't be. Why would someone of such power mingle with me?
"You're Chernobog?" I more questioned than stated. She nodded her head slowly.
"I am her, my dear Ivan. I am her indeed."
"But I don't understand! Why the hell would you willingly act like this? Why would you willingly be part of Bella's plan?" She shrugged.
"I had a debt to repay her, nothing personal. Now that I have, we're done with Bella after Vladimir joins us. And don't take this personal, because if it hadn't been you, it might as well have been someone else. In the end, your mother was a mighty witch, so you had an excellent chance of inheriting some of her power."
I couldn't help but become even angrier. Freya used my mother, or rather her lineage or whatever it was to gamble on me. I didn't know if I wanted to be angry, sad, or even happy.
"So, what does this mean in the end?" I asked, trying for a different approach.
"Whatever you want it to be. It's not like I got anything to fear, even from the Pope, but I rather not mix and mingle too much with you ordinary people."
"Ordinary, huh? Sure, when you compare a lowly Vampyre like to me to a goddess, yes, I'm ordinary. But you wouldn't bother sticking around if there wasn't something else in play, no?"
All seriousness faded from her face and was replaced by a wide grin. Her antennae disintegrated, and the short brown hair turned into a pitch-black mane. She swirled around me at incredible speed for a couple of times, and when she stopped, there was nothing that resembled the Freya I'd known all this time. No, the woman that stood before me indeed was a goddess. Her body was pure perfection, every curve, and every inch of her skin. The eyes weren't black anymore, and instead, two light-blue globes stared back at me.
Lord of Shadows book 2: Bloodlines Page 9
