Thump.
Thump.Thump.My head was throbbing loudly in pain. I couldn't quite make out where I was, but everywhere I looked, a bright white light filled my senses. I assumed I was in a brightly lit white room, but where exactly, I couldn't guess. There didn't seem to be any windows or doors that I could see. Just where had Eris taken me?Looking around with a wince, I tried to walk in a straight line but I found myself unsteady with everything so bright and white. I felt isolated and alone and all I could do was begin to breathe in and out as though any breath might be my last. After a moment I brought my hands to my face and began to sob quietly."Rakesh, where are you?" I called out weakly. Only silence answered me. I bent down and held my throbbing head and let a few tears fall down my cheeks. "Please come find me, I need you," I mumbled to myself and let out a shuddering breath. The bond between us was still cut off, but my whole body calMy head was throbbing something fierce as I slowly came around. My eyes felt heavy and part of me just wanted to go back to sleep. I recalled hearing Rakesh but now I was wondering if it had all been a strange dream. My arms and legs felt rather numb, as though I had been sleeping awkwardly and the blood had been cut from circulating correctly. I tried to reposition myself but found myself unable to do more than wiggle."Looks like you're coming around," a voice sounded out not far from where I was. I wasn't familiar with the voice, but it was male. I tried to open my eyes a little and winced at the bright light shining at me."Did anyone catch the licence plate on that bus?" I asked woozily yet still able to make some sort of joke despite what I could only assume was not the best of situations I had found myself in. The man chuckled at me, however, so I saw that as a sign that they had a sense of humour.I felt a plastic cup being brought to my mout
It felt like hours had passed by the time I woke up again. I had no other strange dreams and DJay had been rather kind during our little chats and had made sure that I was well taken care of and anything I needed was offered to me during my containment. Of course, I wanted to see my parents, but I could do nothing but wait for Eris.Finally, she returned to where I was contained and with a low whisper, she began to speak with DJay. I couldn't quite hear what was being said, but I assumed it was about me and the bond I had with Rakesh. I waited for them to finish before DJay moved over to me and began to untie my wrists and ankles from their constraints. I glanced between the two, wondering what was going to happen now.I rubbed my wrists as they were a little sore and had begun to get pins and needles in my hands. I then looked at Eris and asked, "you're going to let my parents go, right? Can I see them?"Eris looked my way and then folded her arms o
Once the tale was complete, Eris and DJay shared a look between them before looking back at me. Eris leaned casually back into the couch and folded her arms over her chest though, unlike her usual expression, she seemed more thoughtful this time."So..." I rubbed the back of my neck again, as I tried to softly encourage someone to say something.Eris finally spoke up, "while Rakesh is not wrong, I did kill many other families, but he is not as innocent as he claims either. We both killed many of our own kind, but it was because they wished to harm us first. Though I doubt he even remembers everything. He has lost a lot of his memories and powers, so of course, he would see me as doing him wrong." She pinched the bridge of her nose.I blinked at her. I wasn't sure if she was being truthful or if she was lying. "I don't understand why, though? And why kill those he bonded with in the past?""To protect him," Eris said firmly and without even
Another elevator ride later, we arrived in an area of this place that seemed to be set aside as some kind of hospital. There were a couple of people here, though many of them were young. The nurses looking after them offered the three of us a polite nod of their head but otherwise, they seemed busy with their jobs. At the end of the corridor, a large set of doors stood.Two guards stood on either side of the doors, one a buff man and the other an intimidating woman. Noticing Eris, they offered a polite nod and unlocked the doors to allow us entrance. As my eyes adjusted to the light, I could see both my parents laying down on beds. They were unconscious and connected to several tubes and things.I rushed up to them and looked at them with worry. They were breathing, so I knew they were alive. It seemed they were mostly well taken care of, though after being gone for so long, it did seem like they had gotten smaller. I tried to put it down to me having grown up
The next hour or two, Eris seemed happy enough to leave me and DJay alone as long as we stayed on the floor that we were currently residing on, that being the area where the kitchen, lounge and recreational things I could do to pass the time. I had asked if I could finally be allowed to reconnect with Rakesh, but Eris rejected my request. She wasn't quite trusting of me yet it seemed. I couldn't blame her, but keeping my bond broken from Rakesh this long was making me feel awful. I could only imagine how he was feeling.DJay and I were playing some multiplayer games on one of the gaming consoles they had in one of the rooms and so far he had won the majority of the games. I wasn't too much of a gamer, but I was rather competitive so I refused to relent. We had managed to end up with a small gathering who had been curious about me but still too nervous to get close. Having DJay as my guardian seemed to give them a bit of encouragement
I hated the fact that no matter how much I called, I couldn't seem to get anyone's attention. The voices that had been in the hallway had now gone and things were eerily silent. I kept trying to call out for DJay but so far, he wasn't responding. I hoped he wasn't hurt, maybe he was just a heavy sleeper?'Eris?' I tried calling out to her through my mind. Nothing. I bit my lower lip in worry and then looked towards the door. I knew something was going on but without the mind-link, I just couldn't tell what that something was. Whatever it was, however, was probably bad. I decided that I wasn't going to just sit and wait for someone to let me out, or for death to come to me while I waited for it.The door looked sturdy, but with enough force, I believed it would eventually cave in if I continued to try and kick it in. I wasn't the best supernatural being, but for a human, I wasn't weak. My grandparents gave me enough training to at least put up a good fight if I
Following the wake of Rakesh's movements, I noticed several injured people along the way. I decided that I would leave Eris with them and make sure there was someone there who would be able to take care of them. I stood and looked down the hallway. Some people were making their way here, but there were far and few between them who were unharmed."Eris," I said firmly, I could feel the anger inside of me welling up, but not just anger. I felt afraid. What if I lost Rakesh to whatever he was going through?"You want me to return your connection with him, don't you?" Eris asked with a sigh as she looked up at me as someone helped to tend to her leg. I glanced down at her and she flinched. I didn't need to see for myself, but I knew that my eyes were giving that telltale flashing sign of angry command.I saw her avoid my gaze in order to try and resist it and I made a heated sound in my throat. "This is not the time to play games, Eris, give me back our bond link. N
With only DJay's flashlight to light the way, we slowly made our way down the staircase. We were worried that we would alert the others to our presence or that someone might be making their way up and cause problems. We were both wary and kept quiet, that way if someone opened one of the doors on the stairwell, or was making any noise coming up, we would hear it.So far, the only people we had come across had been our own, but as we got lower and lower, there were fewer people that needed our help. A small group of defenders stood one of the lower doors. DJay suggested we check this floor, just in case there was anyone that needed our help, or if Rakesh was on this floor. I nodded my head in agreement.DJay spoke to one of the women guarding the door, "is there anything happening we need to worry about on this floor?""We're still sweeping the floor, we've had some hell-hound issues, but most of the people on this floor have made their way up, but th
Greetings to all my wonderful readers!As you've likely noticed, I have actual artwork of my characters for the cover of my book now. This was a commission I paid for from a very dear artist friend by the name of Rydi on DeviantART also known as lucia-garcia on ArtCorgi.We've known each other for a long time now, and I was super happy she gave me permission to use the old commissions in this way, so if you like her style, feel free to check her out.Thanks for reading my story and feel free to check out my others also here.Have a wonderful day!
A month passed by quickly. My grandfather Edward had been convinced to come to where we were and was rather glad that I was well though he was shocked when he learned the truth of everything. He worried about the other side of my family not accepting me anymore, but otherwise, he was happy to stay with us for a few weeks to help. He and Tudyr seemed to get along well.Eris and DJay had bonded and had started a relationship much to the joy of most of the supernatural beings that had belonged to the group. Only the other Ancient Ones and vampires from the red-eyed family were not fully accepting of the match, but they were well aware they couldn't hassle the pair. Tudyr was very firm about that.Tudyr, of course, bonded with Eris making him the official leader. Their relationship wasn't great but Eris settled down after a couple of days. Though she held her usual spark whenever she disagreed with something he said or did. The two were almost like an old married c
With Rakesh's fate as my lover sealed, the only thing left was to decide what to do with Eris. Had she not over-taken Rakesh for the leader position when he became unable - it would have meant I would have been the new leader in joint with Rakesh. However, because they had swapped positions, this meant she would need to either bond with me or Tudyr.She was unhappy with either outcome as Tudyr expected. Rakesh didn't want to share me with yet another person and I was not willing to go against Rakesh's wishes but at the same time, I wasn't about to force Eris into bonding with Tudyr if it made her uncomfortable and if it would be easier for her to bond with me.Being Tudyr's second meant that he was a little more lenient and willing to let me take charge of this group of misfits but of course, we were going to let Eris make the choice. Personally, I didn't much care to lead, I just wanted to make sure the fighting was over."I don't want to share him,
Eris was surprised to see Rakesh and me enter through the door and in one piece and without an escort. She stopped yelling and marched over to us. Rakesh hid behind me and clung tighter to my shoulders. It was an awkward sight with him being taller than me but I did my best not to laugh. He was genuinely nervous.I gave Eris a small look of warning, it was gentle but commanding enough that she paused in her steps once she got close enough to me. She hesitated, noticing the change in my blood right away. She opened her lips to speak but found herself unable to bring herself to scold us.I looked over to Tudyr who was sitting at Eris' desk with a rather professional look on his face. He nodded at me in greeting and then waited expectantly for us to come further inside the office. It was a command regardless if it had been said or not and thus, I moved over to where the chairs were placed across the desk and facing Tudyr.Rakesh followed me, unwilling t
A while had passed from when Rakesh and I had reaffirmed our bond and he was curled up in my arms, happily resting in my company. We were merely enjoying being near each other again after what seemed like forever. I wasn't even sure how long it had actually been since we had seen one another.I briefly worried about how my grandparents and Rem had not been in contact with me, let alone poor Eddie, for as long. I hoped they would not think this was Rakesh's fault or think I had failed and been killed. Curious, I sent a message to Tudyr about it.'Are you sure it is wise to keep in contact with Hunters? You are no longer human enough for them to care,' he replied through the mind.Rakesh wiggled his nose in annoyance. He still wasn't happy to share me, but he didn't complain. I kissed his forehead in reassurance.'They're my family, if I don't let them know I am well, they will probably gather up the Hunters to come and find me. I don't know
After giving Rakesh some time to take in all of the information I had tossed on top of him, we laid on his cot in near silence. He couldn't remember hurting anyone or feasting on flesh and part of him didn't want to remember it. There were so many thoughts running through his mind but he couldn't find the answers to any of them just yet."It'll be alright, probably," I offered as I felt his mind fretting again. "I mean, Tudyr isn't going to kill us, just bring us into his fold, so things could be a lot worse, right?" I gave Rakesh a small smile."Only because of dumb luck that you're of his blood. Though in truth, I am surprised he wants you, you not being fully blooded..." Rakesh trailed off. "Or are you now? Though now I wonder why did my blood not do that for you?"I looked up thoughtfully. Tudyr wasn't exactly invading my mind at all as he had wanted to give me and Rakesh space - but that didn't mean he had blocked himself out of my thoughts. I s
With everything I had gone through lately, I was exhausted. It didn't matter if I had been unconscious for a while, that wasn't exactly resting. I watched Rakesh from where I laid on my cot. He seemed peaceful despite the fact that he had also been through so much.I reached out to him with my mind and although I didn't get a worded reply, there was a sense of warmth that surrounded me as Rakesh sensed me. That was enough to soothe my fears and the feelings of being isolated from him for so long finally seemed to melt away and I could truly relax and bathe in the bond we shared.I fell asleep listening to the beating of hearts inside my mind. It was still strange that I could sense it no matter where the bonded one was, but it was even stranger now that there were three of them. Still, it was a relaxing sound and quite the lullaby to listen to.A few hours must have ticked by as I sensed Rakesh stirring awake. My own eyes flickered open and I slowly
The beating of my heart was loud and swift in my chest as I felt Tudyr's fingers tickle my neck while he brushed my hair out of his way. My eyes closed and my head tilted slightly to the side as I anxiously anticipated him feasting on my blood. It wasn't a sexual experience like it had been with Rakesh, but it was still somehow exciting to me.We were already somewhat bonded due to the family blood we shared, but this was much more than just a vague feeling. It felt as though my whole body was aching for us to be fully bonded. I wondered if it was indeed just this reason why it felt so right? Or maybe it was more a servant and master connection? In the end, I guessed it didn't matter too much. I had agreed to share a bond with Tudyr.I let out a pleased sound from my throat as I felt his fangs pierce the skin of my neck. That familiar sound of two hearts joining and beating as one echoed through my ears and mind. The sound was lo
Tudyr watched me painfully mull over my options which only made me feel further pressured. Finally, I asked, my fingers holding onto my neck tightly, "what if I say no? What would happen to them?""I have no use for families that do not submit to the First," Tudyr said harshly but with no malice within his voice. "I will spare your life, only because you are one of mine, but like those of the red-eyes, Rakesh and his sister must submit or they will die.""And why do you need me for that? You could just ask them yourself..." I uttered, glancing away.Tudyr gave me a long look before he replied, "Eris will never submit and Rakesh has bonded with you, I cannot force him into anything without your permission. The same was true for Eris with you and him, is that not correct?"I gave a thoughtful frown and then nodded slowly. "I thought that was for all Ancient Ones... but you said... my blood was your right?" I looked back to Tudyr with the sam