“You deserve more than this,” I growled, clutching her to me.
She brushed her fingers into my hair. “Oh Erik,” she sighed. “So do you. Don’t you see what you’ve done? You and Magnar have changed everything. You faced death itself and won. You destroyed the creature who cursed the entire Earth. And you’ve saved Callie and I from an unspeakable fate.”
“Did he hurt you?” I choked, cupping her cheek. “When he took you did he…”
“No,” she whispered. “There was no pain. Only the pain of knowing I’d never see you again.” She took a slow breath. “It kills me that you gave up the human body you spent a thousand years waiting for.” More tears fell from her eyes and I willed them away with all my heart.
“I thought I was waiting for that, Rebel, but I wasn’t. I was waiting for you. I was waiting for a love so fierce it thwarted even death. There’s no boundary, no realm on earth or otherwise that I wouldn’t cross to find you. And if there’s a life after this, I’ll find you there, and again and again.” I took her hand, pressing my lips to her knuckles and she inhaled deeply before her mouth met mine once more.
“But I still wish I could give you more than this,” I said heavily as I drew away.
“We have each other,” she said earnestly. “And that’s more than we ever could have had if you hadn’t killed Andvari.”
Montana was right; this was more than I ever could have dreamed for just moments ago. Perhaps that could be enough. Any place in life or death was a sweet gift so long as I was in her company.
I kissed her again to take away the sting in my heart, to know how deeply wronged she'd been. That the full wrath of the prophecy had fallen on her and her sister's heads. That they'd had to make a sacrifice too big.
It wasn't fair, or good, or just. It just was. And there was nothing I could do to make it right.
I clung to Magnar like he was all that was holding me together. His strong arms engulfed me and I trembled as I buried my face against his chest.
I’d been lost to the darkness. Existing without feeling or thinking or truly being at all.
His hands were in my hair and running down my back and his touch was firm, demanding and possessive. He wasn’t going to let me go ever again and I was never going to leave.
“I can’t believe you’re really here,” he murmured and I pulled back just enough to look into his eyes.
They were filled with a deep pit of longing and I could feel the pain I’d left him in when Andvari had taken my soul.
“How did you find us?” I breathed, trailing my fingers along the side of his face.
A frown pulled at my brow as I noticed the translucent sheen to his skin, the way he seemed to be here right before me and yet not at all.
“No!” My lips parted in horror as I realised what that meant. My warrior, the man who had faced a thousand foes, fought against the most powerful creatures ever to have existed and killed a goddess, was dead.
I pulled back but he held me tightly, refusing to let me withdraw so much as an inch.
“I would die a million deaths for a moment with you,” he growled.
I shook my head, denying that what I could see with my own eyes was true.
Before I could voice any more protests, he pressed his lips to mine and every argument I’d been forming shattered to sand which was blown away as my heart raced with the love I felt for him.
Electricity poured across my skin as his mouth moved against mine and I wound my arms around his neck. It felt like the essence of our souls were merging with one another in that kiss.
Of course he’d come for me. Just as I would have come for him. I had claimed this man for my own and nothing, not even death, would tear us apart.
His hands gripped my waist and I arched against him as I pressed my tongue into his mouth and held his face between my hands. His grip on me tightened and I could feel his aching desire to keep me close forever more.
“What now?” Montana’s voice came from behind me and I withdrew from Magnar, though I couldn't bring myself to look away from him.
The love burning in his gaze filled me up and lit every inch of me with a sense of safety. While I was with him, I was home. He would keep me from harm and love me with as much intensity as I would love him.
“We can return to Valhalla,” Erik suggested. “And live on in the great hall.”
“That’s not living,” I replied quietly, finally tearing my gaze from the man I loved as I turned to look at them.
“We aren’t alive anymore,” Montana said softly but I shook my head.
“We didn’t do all of this just to pay for it with our deaths,” I growled. “The gods owe us our lives. And what greater payment could we offer Odin for them than the death of a god?”
“You think he might agree to that?” Montana gasped.
“Only one way to find out,” Magnar said fiercely.
Erik nodded keenly and moved towards the pile of ash and bone which marked the place where Andvari had met his end. “Odin!” he cried, his desperation clear.
The black stone walls of the chamber trembled as a deep power drew near and Magnar pulled me against him, raising Venom an inch as if he half expected us to come under attack.
The rear wall of the chamber rumbled angrily and a terrible screeching sound split the air. Erik moved to protect Montana and the four of us drew together as my sister reached for my hand.
The wall ripped apart with an echoing boom and Odin stepped out of the devastation to stand before us.
I craned my neck to look up at the king of gods and his lone eye raked over the chamber and all that Erik and Magnar had achieved in their battle against Andvari before he finally let his attention still on the four of us.
“So, you have crossed into the realm of the gods and murdered one of my own within the walls of my domain?” he asked fiercely and his anger set the broken glass which lined the ground rattling.
“It wasn’t murder,” Magnar snarled. “It was justice.”
Odin’s eye fell on him and I could feel the power of his gaze pressing against Magnar as he fought to stand beneath it. His muscles bulged with the effort of remaining on his feet and his jaw clenched in pain as Odin tried to force him to his knees.
“Stop it!” I yelled, moving between them and forcing Odin’s attention onto me instead. “I won’t let you hurt him.”
Odin surveyed me for a long moment as Magnar tried to force me back but I refused to give an inch. He’d come through death to find me and I refused to see him bow to one of the deities who had caused us so much pain.
“You still burn with all the passion of the sun,” Odin mused. “Even after your time in darkness.”
I glared at him, unsure how to respond to that and his eye swivelled towards Montana.
“And you still shine with the steady faith of the moon,” Odin added.
Magnar forced me back to his side and my anger started to quell into fear. This god was the only hope we had left and I had no way of knowing whether he would help us.
“Idun and Andvari were ever fond of testing my patience,” Odin murmured.
“You wanted this,” Erik accused. “Didn’t you? You wanted them dead!”
“I could not have turned against my own without inciting a war among the gods,” Odin rumbled in denial.
“Then it sounds as if we saved you a lot of trouble,” Magnar growled.
Odin sighed and the force of his power washed over us like a rush of water. Only my hold on Magnar kept me on my feet. The god stooped to pick up a sword from the floor by his feet and for a moment I almost thought he was going to smile.
“Dainsleif… I had my suspicions about Andvari’s involvement in your disappearance,” he murmured thoughtfully.
I exchanged a glance with Montana as I tried to figure out what the god was thinking. His gaze swept over us one final time.
“I accept this sacrifice before me,” Odin growled. “And I look forward to seeing you all at Ragnarok.”
A blue light built around us and I gasped as the air was sucked from the room. The light grew and grew and Montana’s fingers tightened around mine until I felt sure they were the only thing keeping me in place.
My body began to tremble and a deep heat flooded me, building in the pit of my stomach until it consumed every inch of my flesh. Just as I was sure I could take no more of it, Odin’s voice sounded in my ear.
Live well twins of Sun and Moon. Your sacrifices won’t have been for naught.
I took a shuddering breath as the heat spilled away from me and I tried to make sense of my surroundings.
I was on my back, laying on hard stone with my sister’s fingers still entwined with my own.
My heart pounded with fervour in my chest and a smile tugged at my lips as I heard someone inhale sharply.
“By the gods! You’re back?” Julius cried in surprise and Clarice shrieked excitedly.
My eyes fluttered open and I turned my head as I found myself in the chamber which held Andvari’s treasure once more. But Julius and the others weren’t looking at me. Their attention was on a deep fissure in the rock on the far side of the room which Magnar and Erik had just stepped through.
Montana shifted beside me and I turned to look at her with a wide smile on my lips as Julius and the others pounced on Magnar and Erik.
“We’re alive,” Montana breathed, grinning at me from ear to ear.
A laugh fell from my lips and Julius swore as he turned towards us next.
I pushed myself upright on the stone altar as the others all rushed at us and I couldn’t help but laugh again at the looks on their faces.
“How?” Fabian breathed in disbelief.
“That is a very long story, Brother,” Erik replied, his eyes fixed on Montana with so much love that it made my heart swell with happiness for her.
“Then we have to hear it,” Clarice insisted.
“You will,” Erik replied. “We’ll tell you on the way.”
“Where are we going?” Julius asked. His arm was firmly around Magnar’s shoulders and it didn’t seem as though he had any intention of letting him go any time soon.
“We have an empire to rebuild,” Erik replied. “And a lot of humans to set free.”
My heart raced with excitement at his words. This was it. It was finally over. Everything we’d ever dreamed of in the Realm had finally come to pass. There was no more curse, no more vampires and finally every one of the humans were going to be set free.
I pushed myself up, dropping from the altar and moving to Magnar’s side once again, feeling the warmth of his human flesh with a rush of happiness.
There were still some things to be done before the world would be set to rights entirely.
But it was finally time for us to start our lives together. And I wasn’t going to waste a second of it.
Weeks and weeks passed as we headed back to New York. Our human bodies were slower; we needed more rest than the slayers but we had all the time in the world now.
As we closed in on the city, an ounce of trepidation filled my heart at what we'd find there. But when we arrived, the newly turned humans weren't in disarray. In fact, it looked as though a party had been going on here since the moment the curse had been broken. The final Biters had either died in the battle at the holy mountain or had quietly fallen into the shadows of society where I hoped they’d never bother anyone again.
As the eight of us marched up the road toward the castle walls under the light of the midday sun, eyes fell on us from those drinking or dancing in the streets. Cheers rose up as they screamed their joy at the return of their rulers.
Erik gripped my hand as we walked in our silent procession, the eight of us marching in a row, united eternally by what we'd endured.
I wondered whether the people would ever know what had caused their return to humanity. But so many smiling faces was enough for me. I didn't want to be celebrated for the sacrifice my sister and I had made. I wanted to find a place in this world where we could live a normal life, one we'd dreamed about since we were children.
The days fell away as Erik and the other Belvederes busied themselves with reorganising the empire. Announcements were made to open the Realms and soon me, Callie, Erik, Magnar, Julius and Clarice were on a train to the west where the first of the Realms would be opened. Our Realm. Our old home, the only one we'd ever known and even now I didn't know where we would find another. But somehow, with Erik by my side, I knew we would.
Fabian had remained in New York with Chickoa to ensure the city was kept in order. The Belvederes were working toward a future I was so excited about I could barely contain it. They were going to build schools, hospitals, houses, farms. Everything we’d ever dreamed about growing up in Realm G.
The country had changed before my eyes in the past weeks. The mortal world was shaping up to be the finest it had ever been. And I prayed the humans in the Realms would find a way to one day forgive the vampires, but I didn't think it would be so simple.
As we arrived outside Realm G, I gazed through the layers of fencing that led into the town I knew so well. Except now it looked rebuilt. Renovations were taking place everywhere and the people inside were jovially taking part in the construction work.
A couple of guards opened the iron gates for us and I took Callie's hand as we led the way inside. Two sisters, returned to where it had all started, walking through the gates as free women. We'd changed so much and yet in the face of the familiar streets and buildings, I knew this part of us would never truly leave our hearts.
Eyes fell on us and those who knew us seemed confused by the sight. Perhaps they'd thought we were dead after we'd escaped all those months ago. And I imagined it was a strange sight indeed to see us in the company of two Belvederes.
Erik and Clarice moved ahead of us and Erik called out to everyone within earshot. “Your Realm is no longer a prison. This town is yours and the gates will never be closed again. Food will be sent here until the surrounding lands are farmed and you can support yourselves. The New Empire welcomes you to remain under our rule, but you will have no obligation to do anything but enjoy your free lives now.”
Clarice took over, gazing around at everyone with a hopeful smile. “If you wish to work, there will be many positions available to be filled. To rebuild this world, we must band together. And in repayment for what we've taken from you, every family in every Realm will be given compensation for the blood you and your families have provided throughout your lives.”
Several guards who'd accompanied us from the city set to work tearing down the gates and fences. The people of the Realm broke into cheers, rushing forward to help as they broke down the walls which had confined them for their entire lives.
I turned to embrace Callie, my heart singing at the sight of seeing our people freed at long last.
“I wish Dad were here,” I whispered and Callie nodded against my shoulder.
“I'm sure he's watching,” she breathed. “Now we know about the afterlife, I'm more certain than ever that he can see us.”
I blinked back tears, drawing away from her as Magnar slid an arm around her shoulders.
Erik approached and I bit down on my lip as a secret grew on my lips. One I'd been hiding until I was sure it was true. And he'd been so busy lately with work, we'd hardly spoken of anything else but how the new world was going to look. He longed for my input and listened to every word I spoke of the way I wished the world to be. I didn't know if my musings were really good enough to be put into practice, but he seemed to think so. And he'd soon announced Callie and I as ambassadors for the Realms. In the coming days, we'd listen to the people and try to bridge the gap between the once-vampires and the mortals. In time, I hoped it would work. But right now, there was only one thing on my mind.
I snared Erik's hand, overjoyed by this incredible day and sure now was the moment I wanted to voice what was circling in my mind. I drew him deeper into the Realm, passing down streets I knew as well
as my own pulse. I located my old apartment block, marvelling at how the structure had changed. Newly painted, the broken windows fixed, even a new door in place of the one that had always swollen shut in the rain.
My eyes pooled with tears as I gazed up at it, wishing it could have been this way when I'd grown up here.
“Do you want to go inside?” Erik asked, pushing a lock of my hair behind my ear.
I shook my head, turning to him and taking his hands. “My past lives in there,” I whispered. “And I'm ready for my future now. Our future.”
He smirked, leaning in for a kiss, but I pressed a hand to his chest to hold him back.
“Are you ready for the future Erik?” I asked, a teasing smile on my lips.
“Yes,” he growled, hounding forward so my back pressed to the wall. His fingers skated down my hips and butterflies danced in my stomach. Weeks of sickness and the small swell in my belly had confirmed this truth to me just days ago. I took his hand, placing it on my stomach, anticipation rolling through me at his reaction.
“Are you sure?” I breathed. “Because your future is ready for you.”
His eyes widened as he realised what I meant and his gaze fell to my stomach with a look of awe.
“You mean..?” he asked, hope shining from his expression and I nodded as tears of joy slid down my cheeks.
He kissed me and all the happiness in the universe seemed to meet at the place our lips joined. He tugged me against him, wrapping his arms around me. I soaked in the feeling of his embrace: the safest place in the world.
We didn't have a home yet, but I knew we'd find one. Somewhere our child would grow up and live a free life, where Erik and I would spend countless hours in each other's company, and where every day would be lived to its fullest. Months and years stretched out ahead of us, ready to offer us all we ever could have dreamed of. And I bathed in that dream, clinging to it with my heart beaming and my body trembling.
I'm ready to live.
Age of Vampires- The Complete Series Page 192
