Chapter 232
“G-Grandfather?” I asked horrified.
“Yes,” Marius said, his voice turned soft as he looked down at the man. “My dearest… dumbest brother, the vampire king himself. Lucien, the Bloody.”
He laughed. “He always hated when I called him that… There couldn’t have been a gentler soul in the world…”
I swallowed. “What does that mean?”
He leaned on the casket. “Lucien wanted peace… He sought to follow the Goddess’ will and ensure that you filthy wolves lived prosperous lives on the other side of the divide… Allowing Solare to feed off of the magic and wonder of Lunae…”
He tilted his head. “But his benevolence was his undoing. You wolves grew greedy.”
“That’s not true! It’s— “
“What would you know?” He asked, blinking at me. “You’re barely of age. That pet of yours is barely off the teat. None of you were alive when his forefather marched into Lunae and tried to kill Lucien.”
He shook his head and turned. “I warned him. I warned him that you wolves, so fallen from grace, so graceless would only ever be parasites. Would only ever be trouble, but he insisted on staying the course…”
He laughed. “To think that it was his own daughter who led the way…”
My eyes widened. “What?”
He smiled. “Oh, you never wondered?”
He chuckled. “I suppose Ian doesn’t tend to bring it up. Little Raven certainly wouldn’t know… Your mother told the werewolves how to get into the palace… It’s why she banished herself to Solare.”
His lips twitched. “He was blonde if you’re curious… It would see you, and she has a type.”
He laughed. “Traitors to the end, hm? Her and him, you and what’s his name? Candido?”
My jaw trembled. “If… you’re telling me that Hedwig is the reason the whole war started…”
I lifted my chin. “I don’t see why I would feel bad about it. Vampires are evil.”
Marius laughed. “You’re positively insane! It’s incredible.”
He leaned close and chuckled. “Do you hear your granddaughter? Sounds a great deal like your dear daughter, doesn’t she?”
“He’s dead. He can’t—” I went still and quiet as a glimmering tear of light seemed to stream down his face.
A tear… The man in the cast was crying.
Marius smirked at me. “Your pet’s forefather is dead… Ian made sure of that… I’m certain his corpse is in one of these troughs, but my brother is very much alive…”
He pulled back. “And with your help, he will be changed… He’ll be made to understand.”
I went still. “What do you mean?”
“There is a reason that Lucien was king,” his lips twitched. “While soft-hearted in his devotion, devout in his prayers, he was the fiercest of us… The strongest… With him, wiping out the rest of you scum would be easy… As would finding the artifacts.”
My heart started pounding in my chest. He smiled.
“Ah, so you’ve at least heard of them,” he chuckled. “Let me guess; you want to use the Heart of the Moon to change someone’s mind?”
How could he have known that?
He threw his head back and laughed. It echoed through the chamber over the sound of bodies splashing into the pools. Someone else screamed as Marius leaned over the casket.
“Did you hear that, Lucien? Sound familiar?” He shook his head. “Honestly, it’s like you’re just a carbon copy of your mother. Don’t you have any original thoughts? Can I go a step further?” He chuckled. “Your pet is the object of your attempts?”
I said nothing and he burst into laughter again.
“Where is it?” I asked glaring at him. “What I plan to do with it is none of your business.”
“Oh, I don’t really care what you plan to do with it,” Marius said, picking at his nails. “You’ll be dead soon if I have anything to say about it.”
He paused. “And if not… I’m sure he’ll at least come to his senses and stop protecting the likes of you.”
He lifted up and placed his hand to Lucien’s head.
“If in all this, that is the only lesson I can teach you, then I would be satisfied,” his voice turned solemn. “Traitors deserve no quarter, Lucien… even if you love them.”
He looked at me and grinned. “Ian at least knows that fact.”
Another torch lit up in a brilliant blue. Then, the walls seemed to fill with multi-colored light. I gasped. It was beautiful even as my heart started to pound. The mosaics on the all started to move. The sun shined in the darkness alone. Then, it shed its golden light to create the night. Vampires appeared. Then wolves ran through the darkness.
The two seemed to fight. The vampires were stronger it seemed, overtaking them and pushing them out even though there were more wolves.
A great divide appeared between the two worlds. The moon stayed on the side of the vampires, leaving only the sun on the other side. Occasionally, the moon would go back and forth until a white wolf appeared on the side of the werewolves.
A crowned vampire went to the divide followed by two others: a young girl and a young boy.
The wolf stood on the divide and bowed his head. The vampire bowed his head and the sun seemed to melt, dying the wolf’s pelt golden.
I went still.
I was a white wolf. Did that mean I could become a golden wolf? My heart lightened. That had to be what that meant! It had to be the reason that Candido and I were mates. I knew it was possible. I knew I wasn’t wrong.
The mosaic grew darker as the golden wolf’s eyes turned red. The young girl grew older and led the wolf across the divide. The golden wolf lunged at the crowned vampire and attacked him. Red lights flickered across the sky. The older boy stepped in, blasting the golden wolf and robbing him of his golden fur. The young woman ran across the divide. The young man raised a grand castle from the depths of the darkness and put the crowned man inside. It felt… tender.
“Trying to educate her, are you, dear brother?” Marius asked softly. “Don’t waste your energy.”
I looked down as he came towards me. The last torch, a dark black flame, lit up on the other side.
“We will need your strength to wipe the rest of them out,” his eyes narrowed. “She’ll be first.”
He unsheathed a large sword. I heard his voice start to swell. I couldn’t make out the words, but they were making my ears ring. The lights in the stones started to flash and strobe. The glowing red eyes stared down at me. They looked furious.
Then, he lifted the blade and turned to me. He placed the blade against my throat.
“By your blood, may he awaken, whole and—”
Lightning seemed to flash. Blinding me for a moment with a thunderous boom that shook the whole room. I heard a metal clash against metal and the sound of a body crashing into the far wall.
When the lights cleared, and the spots faded from my vision, I saw Ian there. His hair was glowing like he was wreathed in sunlight. His whole body seemed to be glowing. Raven was there at his side. Her hair was glowing as well as she lifted her staff.
Lightning crackled and struck the vampires that were nearby. They turned to dust with a stroke of thunder and Marius slid down the wall.
He lifted his head and laughed.
“Don’t tell me you care about her,” Marius said. “I wouldn’t believe either of you.”
“I let you go on with your crusade against the wolves,” Ian growled. A gleaming staff appeared in his hand. He struck it on the ground. Light rippled across the floor and walls.
Marius’ eyes widened at the sight of the staff. I didn’t know what any of it meant, but seeing him there, I thought of the image of the crowned vampire in the mosaic.
“I let you carry on with your revenge crusade… but how dare you defile his resting place?” Ian asked. “Leave and perhaps I won’t kill you so painfully.”
He smiled and twirled his sword through the air. The blade lit up.
“You may have inherited his talent, but you do not have his skill… And you? Can you really kill your dear uncle? Have I betrayed you?”
He lifted his staff. “You have betrayed him.”
Marius growled. “You know nothing!”
He lunged forward and swung. The blade and staff met in the air. I watched Ian push forward.
“You know nothing of what it meant to see him nearly killed by that wolf! The strongest of us brought low because of his own sense of mercy!”
“Feel how you want,” Ian growled. His voice shaking the air. “Mourn and grieve, be furious with his gentle heart, but you have crossed a line. Go back to murdering wolves.”
Marius’ eyes narrowed. “Make me.”
