Page 15 of Ever Dark Academy, Vol. 3

Trust

“ H ere they are,” Dani said as her hands left his shoulders.

She had practically carried him as they’d raced through the grounds of the Weryn Palace and into the grounds of his.

She had stopped and set him down in a rose garden.

White, red and dark purple blooms bobbed lazily in the faint breeze.

The plants curled along metal constructs.

Arches. Squares. Rectangles. Circles. The mixture of these wild, perfumed blooms tamed by metal was interesting and it appealed to him.

Order even in nature. Yeah, that was me. Is me, I guess.

But he wasn’t looking so much at the greenery as looking for the people.

At first, there appeared to be no one there in this orderly yet wild garden, but he sensed they were.

He felt them. And if he closed his eyes, he swore they appeared to him like flickering flames of icy blue light.

Soon, his eyes confirmed what he already knew.

They stepped out from behind the roses and hopped down from the nearby towers of the Ashyr Palace.

He found he couldn’t quite take in that yet.

But his impression was of contradictions here too.

A castle made of white stone, but sections of it were clear, glass-like with more roses crawling up the castle’s soaring exterior.

But his eyes were focused on the nearer wonders.

His people.

His Bloodline.

“There are so few,” Grayson whispered, more to himself than Dani as he took in the fifty or so Vampires that approached him slowly, reverently, with hands extended, fingers reaching.

“Not all have come to the school. There are… issues for them with answering a call from Kaly and Eyros. And so many of us wanted to avenge you. Weryn… At first, Weryn was our protector. He wanted to keep us safe, but then…” Dani’s voice drifted off and she crossed her arms over her chest.

What had Weryn done? Not hurt them surely! No, but perhaps used them to hurt others. Used them up in his quest for revenge for my death. And I bet that they went for it. At first, at least.

He touched her shoulder. “It’s all right. You don’t have to talk about it.”

And if he were honest, he didn’t think he was ready to know all that she did.

She looked up at him gratefully. “You should know. You should know everything. But perhaps not at this moment when you’ve returned to us. This is a happy moment. One we couldn’t quite let ourselves believe in.”

He nodded. After so much death in the War, why would they ever consider rebirth? He turned back to the Vampires who had approached him and now stood in a half-circle in front of him. His eyes searched their faces as he searched his memories for remnants of them.

Was Dani his own Childe here? If she was then how many had he lost? Over the ages he’d made them and now…

A male Vampire stepped forward. Short black hair, spiked on the top, and delicate yet masculine Asian features.

He was very handsome with a broad jaw and high cheekbones.

His silver eyes were filled with such longing as he stretched out a hand towards Grayson’s face.

His fingers hovered half an inch from Grayson’s left cheek.

He could feel the heat of that skin near his own.

“This is--” Dani began.

“Kaito,” Grayson said.

“You know me? You… remember , Master?” Kaito asked.

But with the name came nothing. His head felt like an empty white room with flickering shadows. He kept expecting the memories to unspool on the white walls before him like an old film.

“You called me Master so…”

“Yes, I am your Childe.” One tear trailed down that handsome face. “I am yours .”

Grayson’s heart clenched. Another Child.

Thank goodness! Another one that survived so long and was here for his return.

He took that outstretched hand and put it against his cheek.

Kaito cupped his face. His thumb ran along Grayson’s cheek so gently as if afraid of breaking him.

He again searched for more memories of this man than the name, but they were like silverfish and escaped him.

“I’m sorry, I can’t remember… not yet.” Grayson grimaced. “Just the name and a… a flash of you laughing by the sea. Different clothes. Clothes from another time. Another place.”

Kaito nodded and smiled encouragingly even as his eyes became wet with tears. “Yes, you are remembering when we first met. Long ago when I was a fisherman and you emerged from the sea like some legend of old.”

“Legend?” Grayson laughed softly.

“More than that.” Kaito stroked his cheek again. More tears were streaming down his face.

Grayson couldn’t put the pieces together about this man, but just like with Dani, he felt warm inside when he looked at him.

This feeling of caring and wanting to protect filled him.

He tentatively reached to embrace Kaito and the man surged into his arms and clutched him.

For just a moment. Before letting him go and stepping back.

Disciplined. He’s always been that way. To show so much even now is not like him. My silent fishermen, he thought, not sure where these lines came from, but accepting they were like the other things that filled his head. True, even if he couldn’t quite grasp the source of them.

Another man stepped up then as Kaito had stepped back.

He and Kaito exchanged a friendly look. This new man had the golden complexion of the mediterranean.

His close-cropped black beard showed patches of white and there was frost at his temples.

He was lean and wore cowboy boots with dark jeans and a flared red shirt.

He moved with a sensual slide that most Vampires had, but it was emphasized as if his hip joints were oiled.

The rich Spanish voice rolled over him, “Master--”

“Nero.” The name left his lips so easily.

He was immediately encased in a set of powerful arms. He was lifted up off his feet despite being several inches taller than Nero. He swung Grayson in a huge circle with Grayson making alarmingly high-pitched squeals of delight.

“Nero! Nero! Down boy!” Grayson laughed and patted the Vampire’s shoulders.

“There he is! There is our Ashyr! Wanting to be seen as all formal when he is like a little boy wanting to be spun around!” Nero laughed.

But he did set Grayson down gently. Grayson was still laughing himself--yes, maybe like a little boy--when Nero stepped back, still grinning at him. A wide, irrepressible grin. And, in that moment, he had a flash of Nero amongst the olive trees in a white toga-style outfit.

“You had a big family, Nero. A vineyard and olive trees,” Grayson murmured. “But…”

“I was sick.” Nero kept smiling. Shrugged. “A cancer of the blood. You could smell it. I wouldn’t get to see my daughters married or my grandchildren born let alone my great-great-well, too many greats now to even contemplate. You gave me all of that, Master, and so much more.”

Grayson pinched the top of his nose. His head hurt as he tried to remember more. “I loved your villa. The smell of flowers and the sea--”

“Whoa! Are you all right, Master?” Dani gently steadied him.

“Yeah, just…” He swallowed and steadied himself. “I’ve used my power a lot recently and--”

“Haven’t gotten enough rest,” Dani said with a lifted eyebrow.

“And the memories.” Grayson blinked then looked up at the palace. It glittered at him and he finally felt the faint pull on his energy. It was going into the palace. “Ah, and the palace.”

“The palace?” Dani asked as all turned their attention from him to this creation of stone and glass, the sturdy with the light, the protected with the revealed.

“It’s trying to connect with me so I can open it. But, as a human, I’m guessing that it would drain me dry before that happened,” Grayson grimaced.

“Then we should leave here,” Dani said, even as the others looked alarmed and yet forlorn.

“It’s okay. We can stay for a little while longer, but I shouldn’t get any closer. Now that I’m aware of it, maybe I can block the power drain,” Grayson said.

He wasn’t sure how to do that, but he envisioned that line of power going from the flames in his chest where he kept his power burning into the ground through his feet.

He cut off the transfer there. Imagining the soles of his shoes were doors shutting tightly.

He grunted. It had worked, but he still felt the palace’s reach.

“Well, we should make a Vampire right away to stop this dangerous draining,” Kaito said and Grayson was amused at how the other Vampires came to attention at this Childe’s barest nod.

They were going to pick Grayson up and take him to wherever the Ashyr were living currently. But he held up a hand.

“No, Kaito. I am not going to be turned yet.” His eyes slid to Dani, who looked down, still unhappy about his decision not to choose her.

“Why? Being human is dangerous!” Nero shook his head.

For a moment, Grayson saw him, lying on his bed, sweating, eyes unfocused, the cancer burning through his blood and bones and skin.

“Being human is giving us an edge right now,” he contradicted.

“Against what?” Kaito asked.

“Before I say more, I must do something,” Grayson said.

He felt a trickle of unease doing this so near his palace, but it should be all right. He had cut off its connection to him. And this would be quick. He just needed to check if there were any constructs in their minds like he had seen in Jill’s.

“Don’t be alarmed. I won’t hurt you,” Grayson told them before he took a hold of each and every one of them.

There were gasps and then amused laughs as he enveloped them in his power.

“I saw you do this in the Ring, but it’s amazing! You have the power now! And so strong!” Nero laughed.

Of course, he was laughing. That had been his defining trait for ages. Ever since he had been freed of illness and got to see his family flourish for generations. To Nero, Vampirism had been and was the greatest of gifts.