Page 47 of The Vampire King's Gift

The creatures that followed after them and were near him were the stuff of nightmares, and yet there was a beauty to them that he could not deny. He felt as if he was a part of the same ecosystem and there was this connection between him and them that the Vampires in the Spire ignored, or maybe didn’t even know about. They served Daemon and so did he.

They were about a hundred feet from the edge of the square. From what he could see, the square was located at the top of several staircases of that unique white stone. The Spire, also of that white stone that shone softly in the dark, jutted up from the ground behind it. There were other structures, graceful buildings, and soaring towers beyond the spire, as well as what looked like gardens. Solace, like Nightvallen, was an oasis of civilization within the wildness of the Ever Dark.

The crowd of Vampires was much more visible now. There were hundreds of them all dressed in robes similar to the ones that Arcius wore. Goth priests and priestesses packed every available space. The hair on the back of his neck stood up as he heard their voices raised in angry shouts and derisive taunts. Those were aimed at the two figures that stood on a platform in the square’s center.

He immediately recognized Caemorn’s upright form with the firelight limning his body. Beside him was a girlish figure which had to be Sophia. He heard howls and on the other side of the fire. Tarn and Farun were chained by the neck, wrists and ankles. His vampiric sense of smell wafted over to him not just the smell of burning wood, but blood. Werewolf blood and pain. Julian frowned deeply. This looked like a witch trial, which meant no kind of trial at all.

This was not a trial where there was a judge and a jury and lawyers to argue for and against Caemorn, but just sheer rage at the man who had held the reins of power. Everything that was wrong they blamed on him. Whatever they blamed Caemorn for, it was Kaly behind him pulling the strings all along. That wasn’t to say that Caemorn was a good guy. Far from it. But this wasn’t his vision of the Vampire world. This was Kaly’s.

A woman with startlingly red hair was speaking. Her voice boomed and seemed to carry far farther than it should have been able to without a PA system. She was saying, “Caemorn is a traitor down to his bones! All these centuries he has told us one thing, but now we know the truth! That he believes none of it! And now he would have us throw away our faith and bow down before the Immortals once more!”

I thought they saw Daemon as the good guy. But maybe not. Not if he’s the one that will upend Kaly’s applecart.

Caemorn, who was standing stiff and tall, surveyed the crowd without any seeming fear, which Julian gave him quite a bit of credit for. It must have been terrifying to look out on a sea of faces who only wished one dead. His hands were bound behind his back. They must have grabbed him the moment he stepped foot into the Ever Dark. With the muting effect of the Spire, Julian wondered if he hadn’t been able to bring the dead to life to serve him at all or if he’d just been taken off guard.

Julian glanced to the right and left. There were capering Night Hags, the desiccated Wendigo-like creatures, massive werewolves and other things that he could not put a name to, and might not want to, keeping pace with him. He had a feeling that all of these creatures would be dancing through his dreams for days and weeks or probably months to come. Yet they were on his side.

Thankfully.

As they approached the edge of the first set of steps, he saw that the ground was disturbed. One skeletal hand was thrust up through the earth and slowly flexing its bony fingers. So Caemorn was not completely without power, it was just taking him time to summon. From the looks of it with all the disturbed dirt and the shine of bone against the dark earth, it appeared that he was trying to summon an army of the dead. So while he stood there on that platform, looking unconcerned, the truth was his concentration must be on bringing up a bumper crop of skeletons.

Julian’s eyes were drawn back to the platform toward Sophia, who was also bound, though like Caemorn, her attention seemed to be fixed anywhere but at the fire that would be her Second Death if they didn’t do something about it.

The thought of them tossing a child into the flames, a child who had nothing to do with Caemorn other than that she had volunteered to accompany him, caused rage to boil up in Julian’s chest. He would not let this mob destroy two of their own because they were being whipped up into a frenzy by a liar that served Kaly.

So far none of the Vampires had noticed their approach. All of them though were so riveted to the platform and the fire, that none of them cared what was coming up from the swamp. Julian knew the moment that Caemorn saw them though as the Preceptor stood up a little taller and his eyes widened. It was Sophia though that caused everyone else to know that they were there.

She jumped up and down, her hands still tied behind her back, and said “Julian! The king’s fledgling is here!”

“As is the king!” Julian called back.

He started up the stairs just as the Vampires turned as one to face them. The wave of shock then alarm then fear was practically palpable. Julian didn’t know if it was his Eyros ability to read minds that was telling him this, or if it was simply obvious from the Vampires’ shocked, white faces.

The nearest Night Hag let out a cackling laugh and her long sharp claws flexed at her sides. She saw prey. The werewolves beside him lifted their heads back and howled. Tarn and Farun added their voices to the group howl and it was the saddest music that caused goose flesh to raise on Julian’s arms, and quite a few others.

At that moment, Julian felt Daemon give him the reins of the creatures. They were his to use. He could command them to do anything. The Vampires nearest to him were so startled that they tried to walk backwards and get away from him and the rising horde, but they soon bumped into those behind them. There was hardly any room in the square to breathe let alone retreat.

Julian had made it up to the main square. He looked to the creatures on either side of him and said simply, “Clear a path for the king!”

They didn’t need to be told twice. The creatures surged forward. The Night Hags bounded into the fray. Wyvern Vampires were teleporting wildly out of the way while the others scrambled to get out of the lunge distance of sharpened claws.

The werewolves bared their teeth as they ran full bore into the Vampires who hissed and spat in response. But these werewolves were bigger than their prey, standing over seven feet tall with necks half as wide. While there were, undoubtedly, Vampires that could have taken these down, none would risk it when there were over a dozen surging through them. The Wendigo-like creatures let out shrill, ear-piercing shrieks as they lumbered forward, swinging their long arms in front of them that no one wanted to touch.

Soon there was a broad avenue between where Julian stood at the top of the stairs and the platform. The fiery haired woman walked to the front of the platform, her face ashen, as Daemon stepped up beside Julian. As soon as Daemon’s feet touched the square, light flared across the stones and ran to the Spire where it climbed the entire length and sent a beam of vivid red light streaming into the sky like a beacon. The creatures of the Ever Dark all let out a throaty call that echoed everywhere.

“Nowthatis awesome,” Balthazar chuckled as he checked out the light.

“It’s like the bat signal,” Christian murmured.

“Go to Caemorn. Decide his fate, Julian,” Daemon murmured.

“Is it a weakness that I can’t… can’t kill him?” Julian asked.

“No, you leave death to me,” the Vampire King said and Julian felt a cold wind blow past him.

So far, nothing that Daemon had done had frightened or worried Julian, but the Vampire King had been specific that he feared Julian would see him differently after this coup. So that meant something else was going to happen. But what?

“Do not walk or run, Julian. Try teleporting to Caemorn,” the Vampire King suggested.

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