When Blood Runs Cold - Chapter 214

A whisper of magic on the air lands on my tongue with a bitter aftertaste that lingers and prickles. With a sly glance, I allow my gaze to slink back to the little angel that shuffles across the floor, watching with a muted curiosity about what she might do.

She is the key to all this, she has to be.

A flurry of sparks run through Dawns finger tips, exuding a warm but fragile light into Delina’s cold body as a jolt runs through her. All at once Delina’s eyes snap open, red and searching, burning with the fires of confusion and a terrifying hatred for the instances that have gone on. She splutters a cough, then a gasp, her hand running to her throat, before she soon realises who exactly has been missing from the room.

I can tell it goes against every instinct in Dawn’s bones not to scamper back to us as quick as a flash.

“Azrael and Serena,” she chokes out, raising herself on one knee in a wobbly attempt to stand. Next to her, Dawn places a hand against her arm, the tiny little angel helping to lift her up to her feet as Delina scans the room, the look on our faces, soaking in the atmosphere like a sponge in water. At first her expression remains outwardly blank, but then, slowly, the cogs start to turn.

“Are they… dead?” she whispers, her voice dropping frightfully low. Next to me, Kal shakes his head.

“Gone, not dead. Azrael took her through some sort of portal- we have lost connection for the time being.”

Delina’s face goes impossibly more pale. In that moment it appears she would like nothing more than to curl back up into herself and lie discarded and unconscious once more, at a blissful ignorance to the world. Her body thrums with guilt as her eyes make their way towards the flame in my hand.

“Oh,” she breathes, backing up against the wall, shaking her head as she brings up her fingers to cling to her hair. “What have I done?”

But despite the near breakdown Delina appears to be having, my eyes are not on her, instead trained on the little angel girl stationed beside her, who looks up to this peculiar blue skinned vampire not with a look of fear, but one of awe.

“What is it, Soren?” Kal whispers from the side of his mouth, obviously wary. “You said that you knew what we had to do- but currently I am failing to connect the dots. Enlighten us won’t you?”

“Yes, right,” I breathe, crouching down as I flick my finger in indication to the little winged girl who dances around Delina. Dawn continues to skip almost merrily around the blue skinned vampire, inspecting her, a curious smile upon her face. I think she must be too young to fully understand the extent of the situation- too young or doesn’t like to show it, that is. But that is not of concern any more.

“Come here, Dawn. Kal and I need you for a moment. The nice lady will be fine, don’t worry,” I assure, stretching out my fingers towards her.

As I beckon her over, she stops, her eyes wary as she looks at me, the fear in her heart beating through her veins like a tidal wave washing over a beach. I am her capture, the one who- had Serena not stopped me, would have killed her many, many days ago. Naturally, she is going to be apprehensive at best, but to my surprise, and with a little nod of encouragement from Kal behind me, she tip toes forward, almost shyly, not quite prepared to face me.

“Dawn,” I say softly, and all at once her body relaxes, content to comply with the notion that I might not be so monstrous after all. “I have a very important job for you to help me with,” I say, smiling a little as I watch her face go from fearful to confused. Beside me, Kal lingers close, obviously keen on hearing what so called great plan I have after all. Even the little fox bristles with intrigue, pattering silently around us to scoop up the scraps of drifting information.

But like any smart angel would- and Dawn is surely more hardy and weathered than most, she flings her arms across herself, giving a childish pout before uttering:

“I will only help you if you tell me what it is you want me to do, first. Serena told me I should never ever accept offers from strangers without knowing their terms first.”

Surprised by this, I lean back on my heels, rising with a laugh as I lean down to mess her scraggly white hair with the tips of my fingers. Her wings bristle at the motion, but she does not protest. With a silent beam of pride, I note the use of ‘strangers’ there. Not vampires. Strangers.

For an angel, it is most peculiar to come across any negative accusation that is no laced with the term vampires, (we were always a target for their misgivings, much like they were ours) so it is somewhat refreshing to see a much more neutral term for the subject be used with someone who quite predictably has been raised by the crude and old fashioned mannerisms of the angel’s council. Perhaps there is more hope for this plan that I first presumed. Serena would be proud.

“Well, you are a smart girl,” I muse. “Alright then, I will tell you,” I relent, holding out my palm where the crystal encased flame of gold lies dormant. Much to my relief it is no longer glowing with that awful unnatural crimson, but a soft, much more reasonable buttery light that seems to almost instil warmth into my eternally cold skin. It is a marvellous thing.

“I take it you know what this is, hmm?”

Dawn steps forward slightly, inspecting the rim of the crystal shard before prodding it once with her finger- likely to test the integrity of the object, and of my claims. No doubt she has seen a few handful of illusions down here. But upon finding it safe, she says with a sniff:

“Yes, that is the second flame of my people, the one that was taken by your kind many years ago. You have held it for thousands of years, though my people seem to very much want it back. Why are you showing me?”

“Because,” I say slowly, my fingers glazing over it as I turn the flame within my hand, watching entranced and encaptivated as the flame flickers and glows with life. “It was Serena’s greatest desire to have this returned to her people, and I plan to do so as a symbol of my goodwill. It will be enough to revitalise your kind, and perhaps even convince them to help us save their Queen- my Queen- and the whole of Faey, from Azrael’s wrath. I need their strength, and it has been a long time now since the war between our kind has started, and it has since stagnated into death and bitter rivalry. It is high time someone brought this arduous affair to an end. In fact, I hope to end it tomorrow-”

The response is immediate, cutting me off from my thoughts.

“What?” echoes Kal and Delina around the room, their eyes wide, glancing between each other, then at me, their mouths moving but no words coming out. Confusion laces the air like a thick mist, all except in Dawn, who furrows her brows, pondering over the matter. Firmly, I hold up my finger silencing them once more.

“I need you to help me with that, Dawn. I want you to help advocate for our peace. I know your experience with my kind has not been the greatest, but you seem to realise that not all of us are so bad.”

Dawn nods to herself once, her eyes sparkling with a magnifying power, sparkling and twinkling with the hundreds of thoughts that whizz through her head. After a brief moments hesitation, she raises her head and murmurs:

“All right. I will do it.”

Then, just like clockwork, the room explodes once again.

“Soren, you cannot be serious,” Delina pleads, tumbling forward, her arms outstretched and reaching towards me, but I raise my hand before she does, causing her to drop backwards.

“Your people- surely they would not agree to something so… drastic.”

Coldly, I narrow my eyes.

“Whether they agree or not is entirely up to them. Either they agree and live in peace with me, or can be exiled to face a life of solarity in the tundra’s or with Azrael- he certainly will have a place for such wretches- that is if he doesn’t wish to kill them,” I snarl, lowering my voice, a shudder running through me as my eyes glistening with droplets of a bloody red.

“There is nothing bad that can come out of peace, Delina. My people may be stubborn, but they are not idiots. If they defy me, they will be left to die, and the luxuries of my kingdom will become foreign to them. They will agree. My Queen’s people may be more difficult to encourage on this matter, but I have an advocate,” I point out, gesturing to the little winged girl who wavers beside me, giving me a half hearted smile.

And perhaps an advocate is all I need.