*Rush*
The night was darker than black, even in the witness of the full moon that moved over the misty clouds. The air was silent, filled with dread and anticipation. Midnight was approaching, and the vampire queen would be here soon with her pureblood warriors.
The entire expanse of the pack was surrounded by Rush's warriors. They were in their midnight black wolves so they could blend into the night. Although vampires could see very well in the dark, black fur against the night still gave them an advantage. Just a moment of lapse was deadly to their enemies.
Rush was in his throne room, standing in front of the Night Throne. His muscles were taut and his fingers clenched and unclenched. He didn't like suspense, especially from his mother. She was the most unpredictable person he knew, and usually her unpredictability never ended well for her victims.
Aletha was with Sirka and Iyla. Iyla was keeping her mind busy with girlish chatter. He could make out some of their conversations through the soft words they exchanged. Like when did she first shift into her wolf? What did she like to eat? Apparently Aletha always craved honey. Anything with honey. He almost smiled. No wonder she always smelled like it.
"Rush," Aletha called after a moment.
He turned toward her, noting the worry in her eyes. There was also a sliver of terror in them too, but that was clouded by something far more dominant—stark hatred for the vampire queen. "Yes?"
"She'll come here first?"
"Yes. She'll come to the castle before anywhere else. This is where we'll hold the banquet for her, initiating the start of the ceremony. The vampire initiation ceremony lasts several days after that."
She seemed deep in thought as she took that in. "Will she have a lot of vampires with her? You know, her vampires?" She emphasized the difference now, because she knew there were different vampires that existed. One kind belonged to Rush, and the rest belonged to Vicera. The evil ones, she'd told him yesterday.
"She'll have maybe five hundred of them, maybe more. The last time I've been to Castira, there were roughly five thousand vampires in existence. In a millennia, that number probably escalated. She has more men in her army now."
"Don't worry, it just makes things all the more interesting," said Anya with a bloodthirsty grin. "And fun. A perfect game to stave off my boredom."
Kyla stared at Anya. "Don't tell me you're going to use them for your blood rituals."
Anya began to chuckle darkly. "If I did, you can't blame me. Their souls give me much more clarity because of the endless years they spend lusting after blood and killing to drink blood. It's like the most primal level of an intellectual being, and that simplicity allows my blood rituals to work way better than some wolf."
"Hey, wolves are better than vampires," Iyla argued. "Not only do we fight our battles with honor, but we're a lot more attractive." She grinned at Maddox seductively. "Isn't that right, honey?"
His mouth slowly curved up at her. "Hell yeah."
"I'm a wolf too, you know," said Anya. "But vampires are more useful to me as sacrifices. How else do you think my blood magic grows stronger every year? It's hard to find a stray vampire, but when I do, there's no escaping me."
"What if that vampire is innocent?" asked Aletha.
Anya shook her head. "Rogue vampires are the worst of the worst. Do you know why? Their minds are plagued with bloodlust so deep that it turns into madness. They can only kill and kill, but it won't satiate their hunger. They'll keep killing until there are no more lives left to slaughter."
"Anya, don't terrify Aletha," Rush warned.
Anya disregarded him and approached Aletha. "You know, Aletha, your mate is such a cutie. He's so gentle-hearted. He's trying to keep you away from the darkness that exists in this realm. The thing is, you're in a room full of Alphas and warriors. You'll soon learn that evil has many faces."
"It sounds like you've seen a lot of evil," Aletha observed. He knew she was frightened of Anya, but she was also very intrigued. Something about that glint in her eye suggested that the dark things fascinated her more than he had expected.
Anya nodded. "I've seen many forms of evil. It has so many faces, darling. So many that I've lost count. Even the goodness can have it. Sometimes, it deceives us, trying to convince us that it is good, but when you fall too deep into its treachery, there's nothing much you can do even when it reveals its true face. Always be wary. The evil is always watching us."
"That sounds like a horror story," said Iyla with a carefree giggle. She was trying to lighten up the situation. She nudged Aletha's arm. "If you have a strong heart, sweetheart, you won't get drawn into any sketchy business. First things first, always believe in yourself."
Aletha took her words in they seemed to have an effect on her. He saw her taking a deep breath and nodding. He felt a rush of proudness flare inside of him. She was learning to be stronger, to be capable of trusting herself.
"They're coming," Maddox suddenly announced, his gaze darkening. He stepped closer toward Rush's throne. "Get ready. The bitch has motives. Don't let any of them go unnoticed."
The Night and Death warriors around the throne room shifted their forms, looking as if they would shift into their wolves and rip out throats if they saw anything out of place.
"Aletha, I want you to breathe," Rush said, reaching out for her and taking her hand. She'd gone pale and her body was rigid beside him. "Aletha? Come on, look at me." She wasn't looking, and he knew she was starting to feel the weight of the situation sinking down on her.
"I'm fine," she muttered.
"Are you?"
She shrugged.
She definitely wasn't. "Aletha," he began sternly.
Her brows slanted, and she was shaking her head. "No, I'm okay."
"Aletha."
"I'm fine!"
"Aletha."
"Stop calling my name!" She glared up at him with exasperation, her dark eyes flashing.
"Alright then...Lia."
"Lia?"
He smiled. "Well you did say to stop calling your name. So I gave you another one." When he saw her sigh and finally relax a little, he pressed a quick kiss on her palm. "Don't worry about anything. Don't worry about her. I'll protect you, okay? I just want you to breathe." When she nodded, he finally felt a little easier. But his small relief was cut short when he smelled the poisonous scent of his mother's lands. Adrenaline spiked in his blood as looked at everyone else. "Get ready. She's here."
And then he saw her.
Thick black mist fell over the floors of the throne room and the oil lamps began to burst one by one. Some warriors growled in response, considering that as a threat. The candelabra overhead began to swing precariously at the alarming presence of the Queen of the Undead.
Several hundred shadows of purebloods fell before them, outside the throne room in the night air. They blended well in the darkness, but what gave them away were their glowing red eyes. Their queen was one of them as she strolled forward. She wore a black cape behind her that was sealed around her shoulders. Her breasts were barely covered by black armor, and her entire mid region was exposed down to her hips. A thin string of leather wound around her sides, sliding down to cover her female parts. But that was it. Her legs were completely visible, and she looked like she was here to tantalize and seduce males. From the look in her fading red eyes, he knew she had blood. There was a feverish, almost lust-filled look to her, and he knew what had transpired before she'd come. She'd had mounted her victims while she drank from them.
What was worse, she probably killed them too.
A deranged smile spread across her mouth when her silver gaze landed on Rush. "Rushika," she murmured in a very high, soothing voice. Rush felt Aletha's grip on his hand tighten. "My son, we finally meet. I haven't seen your pretty face in over a century."
"You probably wished it was longer," Rush told her smoothly. He didn't like looking at her. He didn't like watching the eerie way she watched him, his surroundings, his men, all with a large smile on her face.
She stepped closer to him, and his warriors began to growl, stepping closer to Vicera.
Rush raised his hand to halt them, but he never looked away from Vicera. He'd learned from three centuries of being with her that looking away snapped her good mood. So he let her step closer and closer until he could smell blood on her breath. Then she touched his chest, sliding them over languidly. All the while, he stopped breathing. He only stared. She was doing the greeting ritual.
She unbuttoned his shirt and pressed her mouth to his chest, sliding her tongue over where his heart rested beneath the flesh. His body grew absolutely rigid, trying hard to suppress the images of her naked body against his as her men held him down. "I've missed you," she whispered, finding his neck. "I've missed your blood the most." And then he felt her teeth sink inside.
Beside him, Aletha gasped, alarmed and outraged. Her mouth snapped open and she was tugging on his arm, shaking her head. What the hell is she doing? Stop her! she screamed inside his head.
Don't worry, love. It's just a greeting ritual we vampires do. She won't hurt me, he assured her, gripping onto her harder. Her skin was cold to the touch, but somehow it relieved him to know she was here beside him. Especially because his mother was touching him again, invading him again.
Torment flashed on her face before something dark replaced it. Then she looked away, clenching her jaw hard. She didn't say anything to him, but he could feel the borderline rage and resentment she had for Vicera.
Finally, his mother pulled away licking her lips as she faced him again. "You taste just like your father," she said, flashing her sharp teeth. Her hand caressed his neck before he felt her claws suddenly digging in. "If only he was still alive, but you killed him."
"Lower your hand, Vicera," Maddox growled, stepping toward her. He grabbed her arm with brute warrior force and yanked her back. "You're in the Night Pack and you stand in front of the Night Alpha. He isn't just your son anymore. Get that in your head or I'll burn you alive on a fucking pyre."
Her face snapped to Maddox and a hiss came out of her mouth. "You're still as callous as you were when you took Rushika away from me."
Maddox gave her a dangerous smile. "And you still have your whorish tendencies, although I'm not surprised. It suits you the most."
Beside him, Aletha began to smile.
"Mother," Rush began again. His voice sounded levelled, a slow careless drawl. But he felt turmoil within him. After a whole century, here she was, trying to dig her way back into his life again. He sensed all of her evil, her wicked intentions. She wanted to destroy him. "You must be thirsty, considering how much you liked drinking my blood. Maybe it's just that I'm very tasty, but I suspect it's something else. No matter how much you've feasted on blood, my lands bring out your hunger, especially your bloodlust. You and your purebloods need to keep it under control as long as you're here. For that, I want you to drink before anything commences tonight."
Vicera's eyes flickered with lust again. "Ah, yes...blood." Her gaze snapped to Aletha next and a look of interest crossed her face. "Oh, Rushika," she drawled. "This must be your mate. That Crimson girl." She reached over with her sharp nails and touched her face. Aletha didn't flinch away and instead fixed her dark gaze on the queen. "My my, you look tasty, my dear. Just like blood..." She leaned into her, sniffing her hair. "Oh, how I would love to get a taste of you."
Rush stepped before Aletha, shielding her behind him. "Aletha is not food for you or your men."
"No," Vicera agreed. "She's not. A pretty girl she is. Just as pretty as blood." She began to pace around very slowly, looking at Anya for a moment. Her expression twisted violently. "The wicked witch of the north," she snarled. "You killed my husband."
Anya raised her brow. "Oh, really? I thought he was just a worthless bastard that fucked you for fun."
Vicera's teeth bared for her. "You know nothing about him!"
Anya smiled sinisterly, stepping toward her. "He was my father. I know more than you do. After all, I carry his filthy blood in my veins." Then she laughed. "How else do you think I have blood magic? It comes from him."
Rush saw it then, the flicker of raw jealousy. How dare another female have a part of her old lover inside of her and not Vicera? "He fathered you?" she hissed, incredulous.
"Of course. You weren't his only whore, you know."
Iyla was the first to see the intent of murder in Vicera's eyes. She was, after all, the Death Luna. She saw murder before anyone else could understand the intent. Iyla was on her in an instant, grabbing her throat viciously. "If you hurt anybody or even attempt to slaughter them, you will be charged with treason and all of us will not hesitate to bring war to your fucking doors until we annihilate all of your juicy little purebloods and drain them by their necks."
Damn. Her threat rang through the walls as she let go of the vampire queen. Everyone grew rigid as her voice shivered their spines. She was known for her threats. She loved making them. Her reputation as the Queen of Torment went far.
Not one pureblood dared to step toward the Death Luna. Her black eyes were like death itself when she looked at them daringly, as if to say come, fight me. No fight ensued.
Vicera stepped away warily and Iyla gave her a very sweet smile coated with poison. Vicera knew she couldn't start anything with Iyla. She'd examined her prey, and Iyla was the predator. No one could go against her. Vicera knew that, and she swung back around, strolling back to Aletha. "Sometimes I remember the night I burned the Crimson Pack. I can still hear their screams and their burning red bodies. It was a beautiful sight to the eyes, satisfying and exhilarating. I think I held a hundred of your finest warriors captive and drank their bloods one by one." Vicera began to laugh with an almost hysterical edge to her voice now. "The taste of fear is truly the best."
Rush almost expected Aletha to break down. He felt the agony in their bond. She was remembering how his mother burned her pack. But then he felt something snap, just like he'd caught before. That dark edge to her, that eerie shift in her conscience. And only coolness remained.
She was compartmentalizing.
"I wonder," Aletha drawled. She wasn't behind him anymore. No, she was facing her, in front of her, and there was a sinister glint to her eyes. "If you've ever tasted real fear. Crimson is such an interesting color. There's a lot of emotions that are crimson. Crimson like true love, like passion, like lust, like hunger." She suddenly stopped talking, simply letting that sink in. "And then there's danger, anger, revenge...blood. We are the Crimson Pack, we don't have fear."
Rush began to grin. Holy shit, she had balls. Well, not balls--boobs, as Sirka liked to call it. "Dearest mother," he said in his Alpha tone. "The night is waning. I've held a feast for you in the castle. I hope you and your men will enjoy it before we begin with the festivities."
She stared at him with those familiar silver eyes he hated. Her jaw ticked, but she knew this was his dominion. No longer could she hold him captive to her desires. No longer was he her pleasure slave or worthless bastard son who bared his neck in submission. He was the Night Alpha, one of the most treacherous Alphas known to exist.
"Very well then," his mother said finally. "Let us feast on blood."
Rush nodded at his warriors. They came forward, surrounding the vampire queen and the purebloods, escorting them to the large dining hall that was filled with what would satiate them for the rest of the night--blood slaves.
************
For those of you wondering, yes he was raped by his mother.