by Maya Daniels
“You don’t like him.” Raphael looked at Fern with narrowed eyes.
“Only a fool would like that monster. I did many wrongs when I trusted him!” Fern spat angrily. “He lied to all of us and we followed him like fools. The realm is dying because of him, and soon all of us will be gone because of his greed for power. He killed Artemis’s mother to take the throne, but he failed.” A brief, wry laugh escaped his lips. “She was too smart for the likes of him. She hid it, and no one can find that throne room. The Obsidian Throne is lost to us, but he made his own. He’ll be the death of all of us if we don’t stop him, mark my words.”
Raphael’s mind was spinning. It sounded like Claude was telling the truth after all. Well, part of it, at least. And if Lazarus had no problem killing the mother, he probably wouldn’t bat an eye at killing the daughter. Urgency pulled at him, but he knew he had to wait.
“Why hide the throne?” Raphael asked just to keep himself busy and not go insane.
“That throne unites the light and the dark or destroys it all, depending on who’s sitting on it. From what I’ve heard, it’s waiting for someone. When the queen hid it, she made sure that the right person would find it.”
“A warrior with a bleeding heart,” Raphael mumbled under his breath, remembering Claude’s words.
“You know about it?” Fern looks at him incredulously.
“I heard about that yesterday. Apparently my maker was aware of it.” He gave Fern a humorless smile. “And was very much aware of Lazarus, if Claude is to be believed.”
“Well, I have no idea who Claude is, but I do know that only one that has compassion and a pure heart can find it.”
“Good luck finding that amongst our kinds.” Raphael laughed, surprising himself. Fern smiled slightly at that. “And stay away from Artemis, she’s mine! If you need the motivation to keep your distance, remember that I know where your physical body is. You’ll stay a ghost forever!”
“Ivy told me.” Lifting both hands in surrender, Fern’s eyes widened. “She’s all yours. I don’t get between mates.”
Raphael opened his mouth to say more, but the door unlocked so suddenly that even Fern jumped up and bent his knees into a fighting stance. They had no time to look at the woman properly as she ran towards Raphael, grabbing him by the hand and dragging him with her. Her silver hair flew around and she looked like she glowed, but Raphael was too alert for any possible for danger to make sure he saw things that didn’t matter.
“We have to hurry!” Her musical voice floated as she bolted through the hallways with Raphael hard on her heels.
“That’s Ivy!” Fern yelled, and his voice followed Raphael from the room.
Artemis stood frozen, forgetting how to breathe when Lazarus dragged her outside of the palace. The beautiful nature that she loved so much was gone. Everywhere she looked, there was only grayness and destruction. Where once ancient trees stood, now only dead trunks with no leaves pointed at the sky, as if reaching for help that wasn’t coming. The beautiful colors that her home had been known for were gone. What stood in their place were rows and rows of armored Fae looking straight at her, making her want to unleash her fury on them. But it wasn’t their fault. No! It was the one standing next to her, his eyes glowing proudly as he looked at everything that he’d destroyed.
“What happened in the few days I was gone?” Not looking at Lazarus, Artemis kept glancing around, blinking rapidly, in hopes that the scenery would change. It stayed the same.
“Sometimes, my daughter, we must sacrifice one thing to achieve another.” Lazarus spoke loudly, making everyone as far as her eyes could see shout their salute. Bile rose in her throat. “No price is too high to reach a goal,” he murmured for her ears only. “Most of them will die.” Looking at her and smiling as if he wanted her to be happy with that revelation he kept talking, and each word felt like a dagger in her heart. “But they don’t need to know that. What they need to know is that they’re dying for the greater good!”
“Whose greater good?” Artemis asked through numb lips. I helped him do this! her mind screamed so loudly she almost staggered.
“Ours, of course!” Lazarus scoffed as if she were slow for not seeing it until now.
“Remind me again, father.” She turned her head slowly towards him. “Why exactly are we doing this?”
“To avenge your mother and keep that portal open.” He spat angrily. “They killed my love and banished us from their realm! We need that portal open to keep thriving.”
“That’s not what the vampire king said,” Artemis told him calmly, watching his reaction.
Lazarus stiffened and slowly turned his entire body towards her. His eyes turned flat and cold as his lips twisted in a sneer, making her fight her instincts to accept the challenge that he gave and attack him.
“You would believe your mother’s killers over your own blood?” He roared in her face, all pretense of calm gone.
“It was a simple statement,” she told him calmly, while wondering how she managed to do it when her entire body and soul were screaming at her to kill him. “Every story has two sides, does it not?”
“You know nothing!” Sneering, he got in her face, but Artemis stood her ground. Luckily Ivy had disappeared somewhere, so Artemis didn’t have to worry about her getting caught in the middle of a fight. “I can smell those useless rodents all over you! Is that all it took? A few days to turn you against your own?”
“No one turned anyone against their own. I just want to know the truth!” Lifting her chin, she looked at him defiantly, not backing down.
“You know the truth!” His voice carried as he practically screamed in her face, and the troops were starting to get restless uncertain of what was going on.
“Do I?” Lifting her eyebrow, a calm enveloped her out of nowhere. This was the moment of truth, and she knew it to her bones. “Do I really know the truth…father?” She tilted her head, watching him.
Lazarus was not looking at her eyes or her face. His entire focus was aimed at her neck, and it took her a long moment to realize what he saw there. The marks from Raphael’s fangs were still visible on her skin, and she almost pushed them in her father’s face so he could see them.
“So you’re a vampire whore, just like your mother was!”
Artemis felt faint at hearing his words. There was no anger in them. No, there was a promise of pain and death as Lazarus slowly spread his wings and his power slammed into her chest, almost making her take a step back. An eerie silence surrounded them at his words, and Lazarus slowly turned his head to look at the Fae that just like Artemis, stood frozen in place.
“Yes! You heard me right! Your queen was a vampire whore, letting filthy bloodsuckers into her body and giving them her lifeblood!” he roared.
“You killed her!” Artemis growled loud enough that it felt like the realm was holding its breath to hear the answer.
“I did not kill a queen! I killed a whore!” At his words, the shouts and yells were deafening. Yet Lazarus kept looking at her with a crazed look in his eyes, his face ugly in its beauty with a sneer on it.
Artemis looked at him for a long moment as her chest kept rising and falling faster with each breath she took. She felt his admission as a hot poker in her heart, and her entire life flashed before her eyes. All the times she’d been punished as he watched with glee, not once caring if her blood was spilled or her bones were broken. Tough love, he called it, but now she knew. Lazarus knew it, too, because his eyes flashed with triumph at her realization. A cold smile blossomed on his face while Artemis was fighting not to go feral and truly become the monster he wanted her to be by killing everyone.
“You are not my father.” Her words were almost a whisper as his smile grew.
“Aww,” he mocked her. “Are you disappointed, Artemis? I know I would be,” he gloated, while pain seared her insides.
Movement caught her eye at the doors, and she knew that Raphael had managed to find her. She clenched her teeth a
s rage overtook reason. If anyone could bring her back from the brink, it was Raphael. He would not let her kill innocents, she knew that much. This time her lips started lifting at the corners slowly, and Lazarus first looked confused, then frowned. Her smile grew as he sneered and launched for her, but she moved away faster and stayed out of his reach. She glanced at Raphael, and he nodded at her. He knew what she was planning, feeling it through their bond. That was all she needed to know before following her instincts, and her body shifted into her other form. She smiled wickedly, looking down at Lazarus.
“This is the day you die!”
Raphael watched the exchange between Artemis and Lazarus with such focus that the roars from the crowd of armored Fae made his head go numb from shock. Fear for Artemis made his body coil up, ready to protect her, but he should’ve known better. No matter how much his instincts were telling him to stand like a shield in front of the one that was part of his soul, she was a predator herself—a killer he had feared not long ago but now looked at with pride welling up in his chest. Artemis didn’t need him to protect her. She needed him to watch her back, and that was precisely what he was going to do. Just like she told him, they were a team now. He felt more confident as he watched more than half the Fae separate from the whole and point their glowing weapons towards those that cheered Lazarus.
Black wings spread out and hid Artemis from Raphael’s view for a second before Lazarus rose up in the air, looking like a fallen angel from lore. His black hair was blowing around his face as his eyes glowed like lanterns. Shadows burst from his body, surrounding him like a shield. The grayness stretched and twisted like a living thing, jerking its tentacles towards Artemis as if trying to pull her close. Raphael clenched his fists, preparing to lunge at it himself when a hand gripped his forearm, yanking him back. He snarled in Ivy’s face, long thick fangs chomping an inch from it and making her recoil.
“You will get her killed if she has to think about keeping you safe while she’s fighting Lazarus! Don’t be insane!” Ivy hissed at him.
“You expect me to hide like a coward and watch?” Snapping at her, Raphael jerked his arm trying to dislodge her grip, but Ivy held onto it stubbornly. The woman was much stronger than she looked with her golden glow and porcelain skin.
“Don’t be stupid, bloodsucker! She is the strongest amongst us! You, on the other hand, don’t stand a chance. Watch!” She lifted her chin and with her free hand, pointed behind him.
Artemis stood proudly, clutching her bow in her hand, and watched Lazarus release the hold on his powers. They were so different from her own that it produced the feeling that they glided over each other like oil and water, touching but not mixing at all. When his wings stretched out and he lifted off the ground, she smiled at him. It was the first honest smile she had given him. Finally there would be an end to the madness and she could face her foe—the one that Artemis had been searching for her whole life but was right before her eyes. The shadows around Lazarus started lashing out, trying to grab hold of her, and her wings fluttered, preparing to get out of their way if needed. The sounds of weapons clashing, yells and roars started fading slowly. Everything around her disappeared, and all she could see was Lazarus.
“So, you like everyone to see you die a coward?” Lazarus boomed, pulling a sword out of thin air.
“Less talking, more fighting.” She grinned at him; more a baring of teeth than an actual smile.
Lazarus twirled the long thin sword few times around his hand before launching himself at her. Artemis was expecting him to try to take her off guard, so she twisted around as the glowing blade missed her by an inch. She felt the heat of it on her skin and watched a lock of her hair float to the ground. Lazarus had a crazed look in his eyes as he smiled at her in triumph. That was too close to her liking. She flicked her tail with as much strength as she could muster, catching him off guard and flinging him higher in the air. His wings closed in around him, making him look like a ball of feathers flying up in the air before he opened them up and plunged down towards her like a bullet.
Artemis allowed her wings to bring her down. Her body was larger than his, making him faster in the air. He tried to force her to fight that way, hoping to use it in his advantage, but she stayed calm and deflected all his blows. She needed to bide her time and wait for the chance to get him at just the right moment. It bothered her to play the weakling, but there was something about those shadows and that blade that wasn’t sitting well with her.
Lazarus was getting overconfident in his attempts to get Artemis into the air. Maybe the bloodsuckers have hurt her, and she wasn’t healed yet, he thought as he watched her get back on the ground again. He was frustrated that she wasn’t fighting, only fending off his attempts to push the blade into her soft flesh. He should’ve done it before she shifted, but he was confident he would get his chance soon. She seemed mellow, not the vicious killer he spent his life creating. He lunged at her again, this time slicing her arm above the elbow. The shadows floating around him wrapped around her form, feeding off her life force and becoming darker in color from it. His laughter boomed and was heard over the sounds of fighting as her blood dripped from his blade, down her arm.
Artemis didn’t feel pain. She felt the blade split her skin like it was a silk scarf gliding over it. The warmth of her blood was telling her that her skin was chilled and she frowned as she watched the red run down her arm in rivulets. What a strange feeling… she thought a second before she saw the shadows pulling on her energy like leeches would suck blood. She flung her body away from them lifting up in the air as shivers ran down her spine. Her eyes jerked up from her arm when a roar so loud it shook the ground echoed around her. It silenced everything like it had frozen everyone in place a second before a large body jumped high into the air from the doors and like a cannonball, collided with Lazarus, both of them dropping to the ground in a tangled mess of limbs and wings.
Fear made Artemis forget all about her plans to wait for the perfect opportunity to kill Lazarus. As she watched Raphael pin Lazarus on the ground, holding him down between his powerful thighs, her heart stopped beating for long moments before starting back up again so fast that she felt dizzy. Throwing herself in their direction, she had just enough time to see Lazarus smile like he had already won before the glowing blade disappeared between the two men and her body collided with Raphael’s, sending them both rolling away from Lazarus. Her blood turned to ice when she heard Lazarus laugh out loud as her body shifted to its human form.
“Oh, how tragic! You brought one of them here!” Lifting himself up Lazarus kept laughing.
Artemis ignored him and everything else as she rolled Raphael onto his back. There was an anguished scream that echoed for what felt like an eternity, blanketing everything around them in silence, almost like the realm itself held its breath. She stopped breathing as her eyes connected with his. There was an apology clear in Raphael’s green eyes looking at her face as if he was trying to memorize it. Her hands pressed at the gaping hole in his chest where blood was pulsing out of it with each pump of his heart. Artemis was pushing as hard as she could, but it kept seeping through her fingers, soaking his shirt.
“Don’t you dare die!” she snapped at him, fear making her angry. “How dare you come into my life to just walk out of it like this!”
Raphael lifted his hand, cupping her face, and parted his lips as if to say something. She was so focused on him, his mussed hair sticking to his forehead, the painfully beautiful face with its high cheekbones and square jaw, that no sound penetrated the grief that overwhelmed her. That was until Raphael’s green eyes widened, the long thick lashes framing them stopped fluttering when he looked over her shoulder a second before she felt the hot metal blade pressed firmly to her neck.
“History always repeats itself, you know.” Lazarus spoke from behind her, digging the sword deeper into her skin. “Like mother, like daughter.” He sounded disappointed, making Artemis want to puke, “This is also how she died, you
know? Protecting the filth!” Lazarus spat.
Raphael struggled under her palms, trying to lift himself up while panic and helplessness were making him stare at her as if no matter what was going on around them, he didn’t want to lose one precious second of looking at her face. Artemis ignored the searing pain and the feel of the blood sliding down like the tears that for the first time trickled down her face. It took her a moment to realize what the wetness was as her vision blurred and cleared in rapid succession. Raphael’s eyes filled up as well as they followed each drop sliding down her cheek.
Lazarus kept talking, but no one paid attention to his words. The fighting had stopped at Artemis’s scream, and all eyes were turned on them. It was the moment Lazarus had lived for. To be the center of attention, to have everyone witness his power and never question his position. This whole situation was turning out better than he could’ve hoped for. He would never admit it, not even in his own mind, but he feared that Artemis might end him eventually. Keeping her weakened by making her fight in the arena was one way that Lazarus had made sure to keep her in check. Now the stupid bloodsucker gave him the greatest gift of all. Her head! With a gleam in his glowing eyes, he started lifting the sword up in the air.
“Fight!” Raphael wheezed, unable to speak above a whisper from the pain in his chest. His insides felt as though they were burning, as if he’d swallowed the sun and it was turning him to ashes from the inside out. “Please! I want you to live! For me!”
Pain. That was what Artemis felt as it overtook her entire being. Grief for her mother, for Raphael, for Fern, too, no matter how much he deserved what happened to him when he broke the oath. Even for Ivy, who for some reason had also helped her when Artemis had been sure that the other woman didn’t even like her. She felt the pain of her home as well. The realm that had somehow started dying in the few days she’d been gone and now looked more like the pits of hell than the heavenly beauty she remembered.
