Chapter 6 Echoes of the Past

Chapter 6

The chamber remained silent.

No one moved neither did anyone spoke.

Only the relentless sound of rain striking the stained-glass windows filled the entire space.

Nyra slowly pulled away from Malachi's grasp.

Her hands trembled but this time it was not from fear.

At least, not entirely.

Something else had begun growing inside her.

Something unfamiliar.

Something ancient.

The woman's voice still echoed faintly in her mind.

Soon.

The single word sent a chill down her spine.

"What does that mean?" Nyra demanded.

Lord Valthorin's expression darkened.

"The awakening has begun."

Nyra stared at him.

"Stop saying things like that and explain."

The elder sighed heavily.

"You deserve answers."

"Finally."

Darius folded his arms while Lilith leaned casually against one of the stone pillars.

Even she looked interested now.

Valthorin turned toward Nyra fully.

"Six hundred years ago, the vampire kingdom stood united."

As he spoke, the stained–glass windows behind him seemed almost alive beneath the flashes of lightning.

"There were two rulers."

His gaze shifted briefly toward Malachi.

"The King."

Then back toward Nyra.

"And the Queen."

A strange pressure formed inside Nyra's chest.

She didn't know why.

But hearing those words felt important.

Painfully important.

"Their reign brought peace among the vampire houses."

Malachi's expression remained unreadable.

"The Queen possessed abilities unlike anything before or since. She could command blood itself."

Nyra remembered the burst of dark power inside her apartment.

The Bloodborn being thrown through the wall.

Her stomach tightened.

Valthorin continued.

"But power breeds fear."

"The nobles rebelled?" Nyra guessed.

The elder looked impressed.

"Among others."

A bitter smile crossed his face.

"Some believed the Queen had become too powerful."

"They tried to kill her."

"Yes."

Silence settled over the room.

Nyra glanced toward Malachi.

Something cold had entered his expression.

Something painful.

Something old.

Valthorin's voice lowered.

"The rebellion ended in blood."

Another flash of lightning illuminated the chamber.

"The Queen disappeared."

Nyra frowned.

"Disappeared?"

"No body was ever found."

Something strange happened then right there after his words. A sharp pain stabbed behind Nyra's eyes.

A vision flashed through her mind.

Fire.

Screams.

Blood.

A woman running through dark corridors.

Holding something.

Protecting something.

Then, a crimson eyes appeared.

Malachi shouting her name.

The vision vanished instantly.

Nyra staggered.

Darius caught her before she fell.

"Easy."

She pulled away immediately.

"I saw something."

The room became still.

Malachi stepped forward.

"What did you see?"

Nyra hesitated and then explained everything she saw.

The fire.

The running.

The screams.

Malachi's expression darkened with every word.

When she finished, nobody spoke.

Finally, Valthorin whispered:

"The memories have started."

Nyra felt sick.

"They aren't mine."

The elder remained silent which was answer enough.

"No."

Her voice cracked.

"No."

She backed away.

"I am not some dead queen."

"Nyra—"

"I am Nyra!"

The words echoed through the chamber.

For a moment nobody spoke.

Then unexpectedly, Malachi moved toward her slowly and carefully like he was approaching a wounded animal.

His crimson eyes held something she couldn't quite identify.

"You are."

Nyra looked at him.

"You don't understand."

"Then help me understand."

Emotion tightened her throat.

"My whole life..." she whispered, "I've felt different."

The room remained silent.

"I always felt like I didn't belong anywhere."

The confession surprised even her.

"I thought something was wrong with me."

Nobody interrupted.

"I thought I was broken."

Her gaze dropped toward her glowing wrist.

"And now you're telling me there's some ancient queen inside my head."

The words sounded ridiculous yet they were real.

Malachi's voice softened.

"You're not broken."

Nyra looked away quickly because hearing those words from him affected her far more than it should have.

And she hated that.

Hours later...

Nyra stood alone on a balcony overlooking the castle grounds.

The storm had weakened slightly as cold wind swept through her dark hair.

Far below, silver lanterns illuminated winding paths through endless gardens.

Nightmere was beautiful.

Terrifying but beautiful.

She rested her hands against the stone railing.

Everything had changed.

In a single night.

Her grandmother was gone.

Her apartment destroyed.

Her life stolen.

And somehow she had ended up in a vampire castle.

A humorless laugh escaped her.

"What a disaster."

"You are talking to yourself."

Nyra nearly jumped off the balcony.

She spun around.

Malachi stood in the doorway silent as ever.

"Do you enjoy terrifying people?"

His expression remained calm.

"Not usually."

"Good to know."

An awkward silence followed.

To Nyra's annoyance, he stepped onto the balcony.

The moment he did, the strange pressure in her chest eased slightly which she noticed.

And hated noticing.

Malachi noticed too while his gaze briefly dropped to her wrist.

Then back to her face.

"The bond is stabilizing."

Nyra sighed.

"Wonderful."

"You disagree."

"You think?"

The vampire king almost smiled.

Almost.

Nyra folded her arms.

"Tell me something."

"What?"

"Why me?"

For the first time, Malachi looked genuinely surprised.

"Why me?" she repeated.

"There are billions of people in the world."

A shadow crossed his face.

"I do not know."

"That's not true."

Silence.

Nyra narrowed her eyes.

"You recognized me."

The wind howled around them.

"You looked at me like you'd seen a ghost."

Still silence.

Then finally—

"Because I did."

Nyra froze.

Malachi looked out toward the dark horizon.

"When I first saw you..."

His voice became quieter.

"You looked exactly like someone I lost."

The pain behind those words was unmistakable.

Nyra didn't know what to say so she said nothing.

For several moments they both simply stood there listening to the wind.

Then suddenly—

A scream shattered the night.

Both of them froze.

The scream came again from somewhere inside the castle.

Malachi's expression changed instantly.

Danger.

The balcony doors burst open.

Darius appeared his face grim.

"My king."

"What happened?"

"The prisoner escaped."

The temperature seemed to drop ten degrees.

"What prisoner?" Nyra asked.

Neither vampire answered immediately.

Darius looked toward her briefly.

Then back to Malachi.

"The Bloodborn we captured."

Malachi swore under his breath.

A dangerous sound.

"Where is it now?"

"We don't know."

The general's answer sent unease through the air.

A creature powerful enough to break out of Nightmere Castle?

That couldn't be good.

Then another scream echoed through the castle but closer this time.

Much closer.

Nyra's stomach dropped.

Something was wrong.

Very wrong.

And the look on Malachi's face told her the same thing.

The escaped Bloodborn wasn't running away.

It was hunting.

And somehow...

Nyra knew exactly who its target would be.