Chapter 18
~Cassius~
We came to another jarring stop as Velra’s teleportation spell cut out.
Once again.
It was not a result of her magic fritzing or misfiring, as Sylas termed such a thing.
It was simply due to the nature of how we were having to track our targets.
Via Velra’s Watch of Warding.
She grumbled as she stared at the black band with the iridescent face. Warlow Boyd had crafted it for her many months ago as a means to provide warning should anyone within her bloodline draw too close to her.
Velra had come up with the inspired idea of reengineering its purpose to use it to actually seek out those in her bloodline. Our targets today. Her mother and father, Lavra and Arvent Tenebris.
“Sorry,” she murmured, taking in the empty fields around us. “The middle of nowhere. Once again. It’s super frustrating, I know.”
“I am not frustrated. I am concerned about your rapidly rising levels of frustration, though.”
“I’m fine. I just want this done.”
I took to looking out at the scenery—or lack thereof—as she reconfigured her watch, her purple power spidering in and around it.
“Just say it, Cassius,” she snapped all of a sudden.
“Excuse me?” I queried, turning my attention back to her.
She stopped her spell and strode the very short distance to me, glaring heatedly, but with a noticeable hint of nervousness present.
“All that stuff about me using black magic that you’ve been holding at bay.
The fact the reason you’re concerned about my frustration levels is because of that, because you think it’ll push me toward crossing that sort of line again. ”
“I see.”
“Yeah, you do. So just say it at long last. For fuck’s sakes, just say it.”
“You believe I have not mentioned it because I think you fragile at this juncture? Both from what you’ve endured as well as you being with child?”
“Maybe.”
I reached out and took her hand and she started, frowning, not sure what to make of it.
“I haven’t mentioned it because you are strong.”
“You… what? I don’t understand.”
I smiled. “I realized that you did not need a lecture from me in order to turn away from that dangerous path. You did so on your own. Not just from Sylas’ commentary on it either when he interrupted the spell, because that would not have been enough to dissuade you in the grand scheme of things anyway.
You did so because you have grown stronger than your trauma, beyond your fears and pain. ”
“Then… what I’ve been feeling from you… the holding off with it?”
“That was me coming to that conclusion.” I kissed her knuckles.
“I may have come a very long way with my emotional intelligence capabilities, however, I still lag on the processing front when it comes to something decidedly complex. Especially because you were reeling at the time with the news of the pregnancy, trying to reconcile it all, which complicated my assessment.”
Her lips quirked. “Well. Huh.”
I brushed my fingers over hers. “That spell came from a place of needing to help, to find Lazriel and bring him home to us. That was never lost on me.”
“I just… I saw a way through.”
“And you thought it was the only way through. Clouded by terror for Lazriel, I understand. It’s not as if I haven’t acted dangerously myself in defense of those whom I love. That Puritas cell? Your brother? But black magic—”
“I know. It has to be a hard, immovable line. And it is now. I will never go there again.”
“I have every confidence.” She eased her hand from mine, so she could loop her arms around my nape and sink into me for a moment.
My conversation with Lazriel returned to me all of a sudden.
“Sure that they do not need to be spoken? Of course. She knows. The Brand could not conceal something of that magnitude between us.”
“Yeah, I get all of that. But sometimes hearing something spoken… it’s everything, you know?”
This was it… now.
Perhaps strange when factoring in the bigger picture of where we were headed, and the weight of the mission before us, but right for this particular moment.
For us.
As she moved to ease back, I grasped her hips, holding her to me.
Surprise flickered as her gaze snapped straight to mine.
“I wish for you to know… I mean to state it plainly that… the unquestionable fact that I… what I feel for you is—” I grunted. “I love you, little shadow.”
I wasn’t actually sure what I had expected her reaction to be to those words from me.
But when she offered a frown in return, I realized that hadn’t been a part of my expectation at all.
“Velra?”
Her frown gave way to a smile. She seemed… amused?
“Lazriel spoke to you, huh?”
“He… excuse me?”
She took my hands in hers. “My sweet and thoughtful warrior angel, always trying so hard, learning and growing for me, for us, for our family. I know you love me. Just as you know I love you. So fucking deeply.”
“Yes, of course. I just—don’t you need the words spoken?”
“Do you?”
“No. I already feel it. It is already sure and steady.”
“Exactly.” She tightened her hold on me.
“It’s different for us with the Brand. But for Lazriel, he needs verbal reassurance.
Partly his abandonment issues, partly just because of how he is.
He also needs the physicality. Sylas… he goes by feeling, but recognizes the need in others for it to be verbalized.
And Lazriel advising you and I to speak what we already know is him needing to lock in our familial unit, how he knows we’re safe and solid. ”
I gazed down at her in utter reverence. “You are truly remarkable.”
“And so are you. All right? I want you to recognize that. You’re done, Cassius. You’ve been working so hard for us, you need to focus on your own needs as well now.”
“I am. This… what we all have… it fulfills me. Fully.”
“Yeah?”
I nodded. “It’s not effort to me… not in a negative sense.
I cherish it, all of it. Something, as a former warrior of the Celestial Plane, I never thought possible.
These are my choices, it’s my will, my path, and my love for you all.
Being a Fallen… it’s not a disgrace to me anymore.
Being lesser in terms of my power… it means nothing to me.
It doesn’t factor in now that I have built this new life—something the three of you are integral to. ”
She beamed up at me, then took me in a deep kiss that I rose to in an utterly all-consuming way.
When I eased back before the need to take her down to the grass and ravish her entirely took me over, we were both panting.
Regrettably, we had to return to task. “So, now that is all suitably settled, are you ready to continue our search?”
She squared her shoulders, her gaze hardening as she entered her warrior mentality, strength surging forth without her even calling her magic.
It seemed like quiet strength, but it was not.
And soon, when we found those who had betrayed and abandoned her, those who were now escalating those wrongs against their own daughter into actions that harmed the entire supernatural world, that strength of hers would roar in powerful fury.
We rematerialized again from Velra’s teleportation.
This time it was far from being in the middle of nowhere.
Her watch was blazing in warning.
We were right upon our targets.
The location had my stomach roiling in utter disgust.
Because it had been warped into cruelty and a horrific nightmare brought to life.
Sanctum Sands Beach.
It was a special beachside zone where all species could come together safely and peacefully.
The warm peach-gold sand was magically temperature-regulated. Crystalline tidepools dotted the shoreline and cliffs enveloped the space with resting pavilions situated atop them.
There was Tenebra Cove, a crescent-shaped beach alcove specifically developed as a vampire sun-safe zone that was shielded by a dome that filtered sunlight into a harmless ambient glow, allowing vampires to walk, recline, and swim freely.
Black and silver parasols and chairs lined the area interspersed with beverage carts.
There was also Tenebra Walk, which was the sun-shielded entry point for vampires to reach the Cove from inland.
As a result of the efforts of the Shifter Stabilization Unit, a dragon-friendly zone had become a new addition to the area also.
Darkened volcanic sand was located to the east side of the beach, along with sand craters for dragons in their non-human form to lounge and relax.
There was even a magical surf that reacted to draconic energy and produced steam arcs.
Sanctum Sands Beach was a place of leisure, fun, warmth, and unity—a place Ketheron had been so excited to visit in the near future as well.
And now, right before our very eyes, it was being twisted and abused.
Neither Velra nor I could contain our horror at what we were bearing witness to.
It had become a playground of cruelty under the illusion-shielded command of Lavra and Arvent, and the three dozen Dark Fae that followed them.
Vampires from Tenebra Cove were being dragged against their will into the sun through Dark Fae mind-meddling.
The Dark Fae were uttering commands, the vampires repeating them like they were their own thoughts.
Then, as the vampires burned almost to death state, a snap of the Dark Fae’s fingers released them from the mind-meddling, and they burst back underneath the Cove’s shielding from the sun, where they were then doused with water as raucous laughter echoed all around them.
Cheers and more despicable laughter sounded over by the east side of the beach where the mind-meddling madness was forcing draconic beings in human form to shift into their dragon forms, and they were then being ridden by the Dark Fae like beasts.
Others were made to perform perverse forms of dancing as they were struck with magic like lightning.