Chapter 15 Astraea—Past
Astraea—Past
Astraea walked by Nyte’s side, about to announce their alliance to the most unlikely of groups first. His hand grazed hers, and her stomach fluttered when he took an assuring hold of her.
“How are you feeling?” he asked, voice low—everything echoed in this dark cave they ventured through.
“Like I’m about to walk into a lair of vampires that want me dead.”
She could feel his smile in the dark, accompanied by the promising stroke of his thumb.
“We’re hoping to change that. But one move against you will be the last they ever make.”
“Why do I get the feeling you’re hoping for that?”
“It’s been a while.”
“Always restless for violence.”
“Speak for yourself. At least you’ve been party to some action recently.”
Her unease started to grow when voices echoed ahead.
“How can you be sure there aren’t some here who might go to your father?”
“I can’t be. I’m just willing to deal with that should he hear of this news. But these are vampires who don’t follow him, nor agree with his methods. This is an army of its own, led by elder vampires who want nothing but peace and equality.”
He’d been through this with her already, and she trusted Nyte unconditionally.
Yet she still struggled to believe such a force of vampires existed when all she’d been told by the High Celestials so far was that they’d all chosen to ally with Nyte’s father to overthrow the celestials, and her, for power over Solanis.
“They agreed to see me?”
Nyte’s pause before answering snapped her sight up to him with a new wave of caution.
“I might not have told them,” he admitted.
She would have voiced her incredulity, but they’d come to the end of the passage and already she spied many bodies through the opening.
Nyte merely interlocked their fingers fully, a declaration of their unity as he pulled her unfaltering through the masses of vampires that parted for him the second they laid eyes on him.
Astraea’s whole body tensed when she saw so many faces drop into scowls as their eyes fell on her.
Her heartbeat jumped erratically at the hisses and murmurs of disdain, which tightened a white-knuckled grip on Nyte’s hand.
She had her key shorted to a baton strapped to her hip, but this hall was teeming with so many vampires she was far outnumbered.
“Relax,” Nyte said through their bond without looking at her.
“You have to be kidding.”
The bastard had the audacity to curve a half smile on his face when taking in the tall expanse of the cave.
It had several openings with platforms onto which more vampires spilled out to watch them enter.
She imagined this is where many nightcrawlers lived as she took in all the red eyes and leathery wings.
When the last of the tightly compacted groups of vampires parted, Nyte slowed to a stop before a massive table that sat eight vampires down each side. All of them regarded her with shocked outrage as they rose from their seats.
All but one.
Astraea watched the vampire who remained seated. Her shoulder-length, straight hair was half toned in black, the other half in white. She looked from their joined hands to their faces before casting curious gray eyes on Astraea.
“What is the meaning of this?” One of the others who had been seated was the first to bellow the obvious thought on everyone’s mind.
Nyte replied calmly, “I was under the impression that this was a standard vampire resistance meeting.”
“Explain why you have the maiden by the hand and not in shackles,” another snarled.
“She’s my bonded, and that’s all the warning I give to watch how you speak of her, and to her.”
Gasps erupted throughout the room. She didn’t think it changed much about their distaste toward her, but she had come prepared for gaining trust on both sides to be a long road.
Finally, the vampire who’d remained seated stood slowly.
Astraea said, “I didn’t expect to see you here.”
She felt Nyte’s eyes on her, questioning the greeting, but her small smile finally broke when the vampire’s did.
“Nor I you, Astraea Lightborne.”
Astraea tried to let go of Nyte’s hand but his tightened in reluctance.
She said through their bond, “Laviana is the daughter of two of my guardians. She won’t hurt me.”
With that assurance he let her go, but his tension echoed through her, anticipating any slight foul play.
When Astraea reached the vampire, her steps slowed, uncertain what reception was appropriate after many estranged decades. The shadowless didn’t hesitate, however, pulling Astraea into an embrace she didn’t know she’d missed until now.
“It’s good to see you again, Laviana.” Astraea was suddenly choked with emotion when this reunion brought back fond memories of Laviana’s parents, her shadowless and celestial guardians.
“Your time governing on your own hasn’t been light on you since the guardians left,” she said with a note of sympathy.
“I don’t think even they could have predicted this turn of fate.”
“Nor would they have done any better in keeping things as together as you have.”
That burst the warmth of pride in her, especially from one who was like a distant sister in some ways. The six guardians were, for all intents and purposes, her parents too.
“We need your help,” Astraea said quietly.
“Then I’m glad you were brave enough to come.”
“Have you seen the others?”
Since the guardians left decades ago, their children had long since moved on to live their own lives around Solanis.
“The twins left for North Star not long after our parents left; said they wanted to make a life there. You haven’t seen them in Althenia?”
Astraea shook her head. Last she’d seen the nightcrawler brothers was right before her guardians left.
“Tarran?” Astraea asked with a tightening in her chest.
Laviana’s face fell with sorrow. “He still doesn’t want to be found.”
Even if he were here, Astraea figured she was the last person he would want to see.
How could he stand to face the person who’d sentenced his mate to death?
It had been the hardest choice she’d had to make in all her rule.
Tarran’s bonded was a nightcrawler who’d allied with Nyte’s father decades ago.
He was caught with a band of vampires brought to justice.
Tarran’s begging for his life haunted Astraea still.
Tarran had been oblivious to Gresham’s contribution to the dark cause.
Even for Tarran, her friend and in some ways her brother, she could not excuse Gresham’s crimes that had killed so many innocents, no matter how much it tore her heart.
Nyte’s hand slipping around her waist eased her stiff muscles.
“You never mentioned you knew Astraea personally,” he said to Laviana.
“How could I? In the eyes of everyone here, she’s as much an enemy to us as the High Celestials.”
“Did you believe that too?” Astraea asked.
“Never. I understand the difficult position you’re in with this war that’s beginning. I just couldn’t make that known here,” she mused. “I’m glad you finally came.”
“You say that like you’ve been expecting me.”
She smiled fondly, and Astraea had missed her. “You’re the star-maiden. You speak for us all, and I knew you wouldn’t disappoint the guardians by siding with the celestials merely because of your creators.”
Laviana’s attention flashed to Nyte’s hold around her. “This is very unexpected, however. I anticipated the notorious Nightsdeath would be your biggest enemy to defeat.”
“He still is,” Astraea mused, slipping a teasing look up at him.
Nyte’s smile hid a note of disturbance, because it was the truth.
Nightsdeath would always want to kill her, and so far they’d been lucky he hadn’t lost control to that pure darkness in her presence.
The world didn’t know Nyte coexisted with the harbinger of death and bloodshed.
A person whose love and care was so selective that material riches were worthless to him.
“Now let’s subdue the restless minds of those here and get this meeting underway,” Laviana said.
“What does your bond mean?” a soulless asked, not sounding pleased by Nyte and Astraea’s announcement.
The question stirred the tense crowd’s emotions, which ranged from outrage to confusion and curiosity. Perhaps hope. They looked at Nyte and Astraea as if they could be the answer they didn’t know they were searching for.
“Are you on our side?” another asked her.
“Yes … and no,” she answered honestly.
The questions and opinions started to flood over each other so much that Astraea couldn’t track them.
“You would stand against the High Celestials?”
“Superior scum!”
“What about your allegiance to your father?”
Questions for both of them were thrown from all directions.
She could sense Nyte’s rising irritation with the aimless commotion right before choking cut off the loudest voices.
Nyte’s infiltration of several minds as he severed their speech swiftly silenced the rest. It was chilling to watch how effortlessly he could use his invasive ability.
Nyte let their minds go seconds later and silence fell for him.
“I called this meeting for you all to understand what our bond and alliance can mean for our objective of achieving equality for the vampires. Astraea is risking everything to be here, so you’ll show her your respect or I’ll show you my wrath.”
Nyte led Astraea around to the other head of the table. He encouraged her to sit, then he perched on the arm of her chair as if it was the most natural arrangement.
He took her hand, staring deeply into her eyes, which eased her nerves from having the attention of a hundred vampires on them.
Nyte said to her mind, “Show them how bright you shine, my Starlight.”
“That went far better than I’d expected,” Nyte commented when they were thick into the woodland they were going through to reach the vampire meeting.
“All I did was listen,” Astraea said, not feeling as spirited as he was.