The Dark Edge Chronicles - Clan War

A Helping Hand

She looked back at the big vampire, who was quietly reassuring two liliths and a little sister that he was okay.

"And they love him for it. If he stormed the very gates of the Sun to confront the Day Witch herself, they would gladly follow!"

With a final kiss on top of Meredith's head, Lash looked up and found a miserable Sakura standing a few paces away, alone and isolated from the others. It was no secret why: his company blamed her for nearly killing him with her oversaturation. Which, sadly, wasn't really her fault. The fault belonged to Romanescu, the slavers who served him, and the shield suits that put her into hibernation for months.

"Please excuse me," he said and carefully extricated himself to walk towards her.

Then, with everybody intently watching with bated breath, he respectfully bowed in front of her.

"Night Mistress," he said, straightening up to find tears streaming down Sakura's face.

"What troubles you?"

"I ... I nearly killed you!" she sobbed.

"But you didn't succeed, mistress," Lash replied with a smile. "And you didn't strike out of malice. You were cruelly imprisoned against your will, your body unnaturally forced into hibernation. That was not your fault and I don't hold you to account. But if it's forgiveness you seek, you have it."

Then he stepped forward to gather her into his arms to hold her close, an embrace she fervently returned, crying with relief into his shoulder. A heartbeat later they were joined by Meredith and Dru, the two liliths adding their embraces to his.

"And that is why he is legendary!" Fiadh declared with a smile at Jeriko. Then she too went to add her embrace to those of her sisters, and in doing so, drew Sakura back into fellowship.

Lash let the fourfold embrace last a few moments longer then lifted his head.

"As Qos Viran you will all have an intimate relationship with death. She will visit you time and time again, demanding you yield up your soul for judgment," he said in a quiet voice that nevertheless carried to every part of the medical bay.

"And she'll make you wonder if you're bound for the pyre of the Sun Witch, or the blessed shadows of the Dark Father's garden. And believe me when I tell you I know this from experience."

He paused to look everybody in the face as best he could still surrounded by liliths.

"But, as Qos Viran, it is also your honor and your duty to tell Death that she must wait. She cannot take you yet for your task is not finished. How is it not, you ask. To answer, I ask you: do we still have enemies?"

Jeriko smiled when the entire company shouted with one voice:

"Yes!"

"Can you still fight?" he then asked.

"Yes!!"

"Do the People of the Night still need our protection?"

"Yes!"

"Then by thrice yes do we say No to Death. She will be denied until thrice No. Only then will your duty be done. Only then can you rest."

Lash smiled fiercely.

"And I am not yet ready to rest!" he declared and the bay filled with cheering. He let them go for a long minute before lifting a hand to settle them down.

"Sometimes we need help in telling Death no. And I recently was helped by Mistress Fiadh's friend, Dr. Jeriko, a neuro-somatic specialist out of Stockholm." He indicated Jeriko with a gesture, the Storm Wolf smiling and bowing her head in acknowledgement.