Chapter 16
Time Rhymes
The present…
Grayson’s power lashed out of him without thought.
He didn’t touch the Marrowstalker. Instead, it was the sand around the creature that he moved.
He hollowed out the beach beneath the Marrowstalker’s feet so that those reaching arms were now falling.
It was physical. At least in some way. The pit Grayson had dug with his powers was deeper than the Marrowstalker was tall.
It glared up at him from two feet below the surface of the earth.
Grayson staggered backwards. He wished–not for the first time–he had his Vampiric reflexes. But he wouldn’t need them here, because he fully expected to feel Fiona’s arms around him and that sickening swirl as she teleported them away from. But that didn’t happen.
Instead, he heard her choke out his name. “G-Grayson!”
His head snapped towards her even as the Marrowstalker’s hands started pulling itself out of the pit. It was trying to flap those wings.
“Fiona, what’s wrong? We’ve gotta get out of here!” he cried.
But she was standing in place. Her arms synched tightly against her body and her feet seemingly rooted in place. She looked as if a gigantic hand was squeezing her and holding her where she was.
“Ashyr,” she croaked out. “Eyros.”
He was completely at a loss for why she was calling for him and Balthazar. Another noise had his head shooting back to the Marrowstalker. It was emerging from the hole like a butterfly from a chrysalis or more like a maggot from a corpse.
“No, you don’t!” He growled.
Again, not touching it, he had the sand sift out from under its forearms and more sand begin to pour on its head even as it tried to flap free.
The thing was slipping back down under the beach.
He’d buried the damned thing under tons of the silvery stuff so that it would take one hundred years for it to dig itself out.
“How is he doing that?” A woman asked. Her voice was light and breathy. Young like a child with just a hint of sullen teenager. “He’s human, isn’t he?”
“He smells human. But perhaps that is deceiving,” another female voice–this one deeper–answered.
Two Vampires emerged from the woods that bordered the beach. At first, he thought one of them was Sophia Strange, Seery’s Childe, with the blond wavy hair to her shoulders and big, anime eyes. She was young, so young, and lithe like some girls can be before puberty hits them.
An insect in amber, he thought unconsciously.
The other was voluptuous with curves upon curves.
She had black hair cut in a severe bob. She wore an empire waisted dress in blood red while the younger-looking Vampire was dressed in icy white.
They both stared at him and then the Marrowstalker, hardly noticing Fiona as if she did not matter.
It was only then that he realized Fiona hadn’t been talking about him and Balthazar at all when she’d said Eyros and Ashyr, but these two Vampires.
One from his Bloodline and one from Balthazar’s.
The younger-looking one was the Ashyr. He didn’t recognize her, but he could feel the power radiating out of her, wrapping around Fiona like a vise, and squeezing her.
She was partially keeping Fiona from teleporting, but it was her Eyros Vampire friend that was doing the rest. She was using the Eyros mind control power to limit Fiona’s access to her gift.
Between the two of them, Fiona was stuck.
Not for long. Fiona will break free, but in time?
Grayson stared at the two Vampires. He felt a growing rage inside of him, especially at the Vampire from his Bloodline. How dare she go up against Daemon? How dare she use the gift he gave her against Fiona?
“How are you keeping the Marrowstalker down?” The Ashyr Vampire asked, tilting her doll-like head to the side, as she regarded him.
Her eyes reminded him of dimes, as if they’d been placed over her eyelids to pay her way to the land of the dead.
“I’m not doing that,” he lied and cringed away from them. “I don’t–don’t know what’s happening! Who–who are you? Did Balthazar send you?”
He would play the fool again. The helpless, enraptured child who wanted nothing more than his future-Master’s arms around him.
Had he ever felt that way with Weryn or anyone?
No, he had found a partner in Weryn. Someone who respected and adored him even with all his sharp edges.
The type of sharp edges that were urging him to rip the blood out of these Vampires before him.
I might not be able to use my power on the Marrowstalker directly, but I can certainly use it on them.
But Grayson was well aware that any Vampires who could isolate Fiona like this had to be powerful. And there was something about them–a sameness–that bothered him. Besides, splitting his power between them and the Marrowstalker had the potential of him losing control of everything. He needed help.
Just got to buy some time, Grayson thought. Balthazar, can you hear me?
There was no response. The Eyros Vampire must be blocking Balthazar’s communications, but again, that would alert the Immortal that they were in danger just as much as if Grayson had shouted it to him.
And just like with Fiona, it wouldn’t last forever.
But, again, she must be very powerful to do that at all.
But how long will it take Balthazar to get here? Surely, he’ll just pop over with some Wyverns in a second with a plan and a grin.
But it was just the five of them–alone–on that beach as time ticked forward. The rush and shush of waves. The sifting sound of sand as he buried the Marrowstalker with it.
“He cringes like a human,” the Ashyr Vampire said, observing him.
“Aren’t you from the–the academy?” he gasped out, but allowed a hopeful tone to enter his voice.
Surely, his voice seemed to say, you are good Vampires who won’t hurt me!
It was utter foolishness. Thank goodness that Hue and Eiji hadn’t fallen for the Disney-fied version of Vampires.
He swallowed and let his voice get thick with fear and confusion, “This creature is after us and–”
“We sent the creature after you,” the Eyros Vampire said.
She was frowning. He knew that she was trying to get into his head.
In time, she would be able to, but he knew she couldn’t touch his thoughts yet.
Something Balthazar had done? Or maybe it was his own Immortal nature that was stopping her.
Either way, he knew it wouldn’t last. And once she knew who he really was and what he really intended…
Well, he would have quite the fight on his hands.
“W-why? Why would you attack me? I’ve done nothing to you!” Grayson let out a high, breathy moan as he side-stepped towards Fiona.
“Stop,” the Eyros Vampire commanded.
He nearly stopped in place, to pretend the command had worked, but he knew she would be able to tell it was false so he kept moving.
“I said stop!” Her silver eyes blazed.
But it had no effect on him. He could see her become more alarmed. He thought he felt a knocking on his mind, but he didn’t open the door. It was her. Not Balthazar, Julian or Christian.
“Stop what? Why are you doing this?” He sounded quite hysterical. “Weryn will get–get very angry if you try to hurt me! I’m his chosen one!”
He did cringe internally when he said that.
It was romantic and foolish. But wasn’t that what Julian was to Daemon?
And Christian to Balthazar? And maybe even Balthazar to Caemorn?
He loved Dani, Nero and Kaito. They were his Children.
They were his family. He protected and treasured them.
But he had never been chosen by anyone before.
Being Daemon’s General meant that he was alone as all Immortals had been alone.
“Weryn?” The Ashyr Vampire snorted and tossed her blond hair. “The big, dumb dog?”
Grayson’s jaw clenched. “He’s not a dog! You’re a fool if you think that!”
And I will crush you for it!
Yet he held back. Just a little longer! Surely, Balthazar would come or Fiona would break free. His eyes flickered to Fiona. The sheer rage in her eyes told him that she was going to explode, too. But, again, time was not on their side.
But in case no one else can save me…
Grayson reached for the ocean. The Gray Tides.
He could feel the water being affected by the twin moons.
How the liquid was pushed onto the beach and then pulled out into the deep.
It was an eternal battle. He did not fight it, for that would be foolish, but instead he worked with it.
He started to feed a wave–a very large wave–in the vastness.
If I use my Ashyr powers on them directly they’ll know I’m not human or not normal. The Eyros Vampire could tell others before I’m able to kill her. Best to do something they won’t realize is me.
But it would take time. Again, with the time he didn’t have.
“We killed Weryn so easily before. He was such a fool,” the Ashyr Vampire said with a breathy laugh. She smiled wickedly. “He walked right into our trap like the big, dumb idiot he is!”
Rage formed a hot flame in Grayson’s chest. His gift wanted to strike out, but he fed the flame and fed the wave. It was building and building and building. It was coming.
“W-what do you mean? Have you–you done something to him?” Grayson barely had to act worried as he asked this.
Had something happened to Ryder in these few minutes he’d been cut off from Balthazar?
If so, he would drain the blood from these Vampires’ bodies until they were dessicated husks and stake them out in the desert to be blasted away by sunlight.
Then he’d have Caemorn bring them back just so he could do it again and again and again.
The Sect of Dawn, Legion, Roan Tithe and whoever else is out there will know fear.