50. Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Nineteen
Celeste
The Blaede and Danada psychic networks were crumbling. With Zeke at their center, his depleted energy translated to instability in the foundation of their clans. Despite the lieutenants’ continued efforts to funnel their own strength into it, the heart of a clan remained its sovereign.
Once more tied in with Zeke’s clan, Celeste had begun to fade. She and Derikles worked side by side in the psychic network, attempting to build a bridge between Zeke and Tzuriel and one between Nina and Kaien. While Derikles formed the rudimentary connections, Celeste refined them.
The two of them were the only ones who spanned between Isaiah’s clan and the dual network hosted by Zeke. Shifting from one clan space to the other was simple, but it took time they didn’t have.
Every lieutenant had been asked to funnel energy to their drained sovereign in an effort to keep him—and their clan bonds—afloat. If they failed, the clan would dissolve, taking with it the support for thirteen hundred minds.
It would risk plunging the young and vulnerable amongst them into psychic shock.
Amps and healers from other clans had arrived on site over the last twenty-four hours, each of them contributing to the effort. Werewolves and Elementals had brought food, keeping Blaede and Danada Raeths fueled while they were burning energy at a phenomenal rate. The vampires functioned as go-betweens, keeping psychic activity and energy output low.
And still, Celeste wasn’t sure whether they would make it in time. Isaiah had had weeks of careful preparation to build the bonds that would transfer a sovereignty. Derikles and Celeste had days—if that.
The painstaking and detailed work was exhausting. Everything Isaiah had done was structurally beautiful, but hidden beneath existing clan bonds. To uncover how they connected and what was required to make them functional was exceptionally difficult.
As Celeste began to drift, Derikles’ stabilizing presence came around her. Drop out, Celeste. You need to eat something—and we have a visitor.
Swaying with weariness, she opened her eyes on the physical plane. She’d been seated in Tzuriel’s home, Derikles beside her. A headache pulsed between her temples, but when she groaned, a beaming face appeared before her.
“Toni.”
“Rise and shine, Celeste!” The Elemental helped her stand up. “It’s not every day I actually get to cook for someone else. Living in a House of vampires makes that difficult. We’ve got bacon, pancakes, muffins, scrambled eggs, and grits. Derikles, you’re coming, too.”
As they made their way toward Tzuriel’s kitchen, they found it full of starving Raeths and several other immortals working to keep the table full. Tzuriel and his mate sat alongside Remmus and Ava, the four of them shoveling food into their mouths.
The moment Celeste caught sight of the bacon, she was done for. She lost track of time as she fed the ravenous beast inside her, only looking up when a familiar psychic signature arrived on scene.
“Nice of you to join us, Nero,” Tzuriel greeted, downing his third glass of orange juice.
The sovereign didn’t waste time. “Key’s awake, friends! Jax found a way to get through to her, and she’s woken up!”
A round of applause went up, with voices shouting out congratulations. Though Celeste couldn’t be more overjoyed, a part of her couldn’t help but wonder why Nina hadn’t made the same progress.
As she stewed on it, the reasoning slowly became apparent. Nina had given birth to twins less than two years earlier. It’d taken Nina and Kaien’s mother decades to return to her previous strength after doing the same. Nina still hadn’t recovered fully before going into battle—and now she was paying the price.
“Is she okay? Is she herself?”
“Key’s doing well, all things considered.” Nero grinned. “Bonded with Jax, her mate, and woke up ravenous. As far as her foresight, we aren’t holding our breath. She said it’s changed—and we’re still not sure what that means.”
The hope in Celeste deflated. If Key couldn’t see the future, she wouldn’t be able to tell them in their plans to reveal themselves to the human population would be positive or well received. Fortunately, the future could wait. What she and Derikles were doing now was far more important.
“Either way,” Derikles said, “her waking up is a very good sign. It means that Nina, too, might be close to surfacing.”
Derikles had split his efforts between funneling energy into Nina and Zeke. If she woke up, their issue would hopefully be resolved, but if Zeke’s energy failed him, there would be no coming back from it. Even Derikles had begun to feel the effects of the energy drain. With Isaiah being similarly compromised, the Sylth sovereign couldn’t assist in righting Derikles’ energy loss. Jaeda was already here, helping to power Zeke, and Luna was close at hand.
“How is Zeke faring?” Nero asked.
“He’s losing the battle,” Tzuriel said, “and if we don’t shift the network soon, it’ll spiral out of control. He’s running dry.”
When Celeste had checked on Zeke last night, she’d found him playing tag with the twins. He’d been moving slowly, and at first, she’d thought it was to ensure they could catch him. It was only after watching for a few minutes that she realized he simply didn’t have the energy to move faster.
Looking at Zeke now, it was nearly impossible to reconcile who he had been before with the man he currently was. It was like looking at two sides of a coin. All of his strength had leached away in his mate’s absence.
“We’re already shouldering much of the load,” Remmus added. “If any of us were to go into energy drought or recoil, it could shift the balance and compromise what remains of our network.”
It was a bad situation. Celeste and Derikles were working as fast as they could, but without studying Isaiah’s handiwork, few people could help.
“And the shift?” Nero probed. “How far along have you gotten?”
“It’s time consuming. The shift itself won’t be difficult, but it does require careful strategy and a meticulous foundation. Zeke can’t help, he’s barely treading water right now even with the added energy.” Derikles shook his head. “It will be several more days before we’re ready to attempt it.”
“The problem is that we’re overlaying the bonds of not only one, but two clans,” Celeste added. “Nina’s network is faltering badly without her at the helm, and Zeke’s is deteriorating because of his energy drought. It’s time consuming, and if we don’t get it right, everything we’ve worked for might fail.”
The sound of approaching footsteps came swiftly. Only seconds later, Drake appeared in the door. “Zeke called his lieutenants together. We must go quickly.”
Fear welled deeply with Celeste.
They swiftly traveled to Zeke and Nina’s home. Derikles walked beside her, gripping her hand, as they entered their sovereign’s home.
Zeke was sitting on a couch, his head in his hands. His eyes were closed, and the way Kaien hovered near him was enough to alert everyone that the man wasn’t doing well. If Celeste had a headache from the energy deprivation, she couldn’t imagine what it was doing to their sovereign. His clothes were far looser on him than they’d been even two weeks ago, and the greying pallor of his skin was concerning.
“Zeke?” came Hemin’s gentle prompt.
Slowly lifting his head, he studied those of them who’d gathered. His tired smile was mirrored by everyone in the room, but it faded after a few moments.
“Forgive me for my failure,” he started, “but the time is coming when I can no longer hold out. Despite how quickly the nations have come around us, and the generosity of their healers and Amps, I fear I have only hours left.”
Kaien flinched beside him.
None of them could be at a loss to what it meant. If Zeke passed, Nina would follow. Compromised as she was, the broken mating bond would result in an even more severe psychic shock.
“Celeste, Derikles, how are your efforts faring?” he asked.
Knowing that she would be struggling with the prospect of losing both sovereigns in one swoop, Derikles took the initiative. “We’re building the bridge between you and Tzuriel, and Nina and Kaien. We’ve had help from the other lieutenants, but it’s a slow process.”
“If I had to guess,” Celeste added, “we’re approximately eighty percent of the way there.”
Zeke hesitated, frowning at the floor before he squared his shoulders. “And if I were to succumb before those bonds were fully built, would the sovereignty transition regardless, or would the clan dissolve?”
Though the question was valid, she had hoped it would never need to be asked. “If we rough in the rest of the network with Tzuriel and Kaien at the helm, I’m fairly certain it would transition to them rather than dissolve.”
“How long will that take?”
Derikles and Celeste exchanged a look. “It would take at least several more hours for a workable model, and a day or two more for a fully functioning network.”
Zeke’s nod was slow, but gradually, his face softened with relief. “I can hold out for several more hours. I can do that for our clan.”
He gave them another weak smile, but in it, she saw the vulnerability of the man sitting before her. Someone who was prepared to give everything he had for a clan he loved and a woman he cherished.
It suddenly became clear. If his life ended, he’d find Nina again on the other side. His only goal now was to ensure that their clans were supported before his passing.
“We will work quickly, Zeke,” she promised him. “And soon, you will have rest.”