Burn the Night (22 page)

“There will be no return of their cage,” I said grimly with a shake of my head. “We do not know how it was formed. Furthermore, the naturi have been scattered to the four winds, and we would never get them gathered together so they can be recaptured.”

“Then how would we achieve this permanent peace that you spoke of?” Tetsuya inquired.

“We first need to get rid of Aurora.”

“Stopping Aurora would bring us peace? We would still be overwhelmed with naturi,” Hideo said.

“Stopping Aurora would be the first step in the process of achieving peace,” Danaus said, drawing all eyes over to him. “She maintains her plan to destroy not only nightwalkers but humans as well in her effort to save the Earth. She is single-minded in her plan, and she has begun to turn on her own kind. She is alienating those she would need to accomplish her grand scheme.”

“There is a fissure that is growing among the naturi,” I added. “We should be able to use that break in their solidarity to our advantage.”

“How?” Tetsuya asked warily.

I smiled at him. “An alliance.”

“With the naturi?” Hideo demanded, his soft voice hardening for the first time. “You are planning an alliance with the naturi?”

“Yes,” I said with a slight hiss of warning. I wanted to keep this meeting as civil and calm as possible, but I knew that what I was suggesting now was treasonous among the nightwalkers. We had spent too many centuries fighting against the naturi. From the very birth of our race, they had been our enemy. There was no reconciling your differences with your enemies. At least, not when it came to the naturi. What I had said earlier was too true. Nightwalkers didn’t change. But then, I guess Tetsuya was right; I was different.

“Aurora has tried to kill both of her sisters in the name of treason. The younger of the two sisters, Cynnia, wants to establish a coexistence between naturi and nightwalkers. A number of naturi have already rallied to her side, and she aims to take on Aurora. If we can get Cynnia named queen of the naturi, we have a chance at creating a permanent peace between our two peoples.” Danaus stood beside me with a hand resting on the hilt of one dagger at his side in the form of a warning.

“From what we have come to understand, the naturi are weary of war. The race is slowly dying off. Cynnia is offering them a chance at survival by simply blending into the background, a return to the forests of the world where they can live in peace.”

Kojima shook his head and paced a couple steps away from his companions, edging a little farther into the clearing. He was clearly the most emotional of the trio, struggling to maintain the same outer calm as his companions. “If they are already facing eventual extinction, why do we not just take advantage of it and kill them off?”

“Because their numbers are still great,” I said, closely watching the pacing nightwalker for any sign that he was reaching for a weapon. “The war that would ensue would place us against all the naturi, and no matter what you may hope, we would never be able to rally the nightwalkers together to defeat the naturi horde.”

“You would also be faced with the Great Awakening if you attempted to wage such a war,” Danaus reminded us.

The Great Awakening. I liked to think it was something that nightwalkers from both the East and the West were trying to avoid. Especially since we still had to deal with the naturi epidemic first. I could only manage one thing at a time.

“My people are ready for the Great Awakening,” Hideo firmly said.

I shook my head. “But the world is not. If your people are struggling with the naturi, then you are not ready to face a world that knows about nightwalkers and lycanthropes. Those humans you are so eager to call your friends are just as likely to turn on you the moment they begin to see you as a threat—which you are.”

“Coexistence is the only way we can hope to continue our current life while remaining hidden from humanity,” Danaus said. “Cynnia wants peace between the two sides, and it is the wisest choice at this juncture.”

“Do you seriously think peace with the naturi is possible?” Kojima demanded, glaring at me. I didn’t blame him for his doubts. He was only voicing the same thoughts that I had. The only difference was that I knew what had truly happened among the Machu Picchu ruins. Cynnia wasn’t just trying to save her own skin; she was trying to save her race from an even bigger war that Aurora was planning.

We didn’t need to turn the humans against us just yet. That would come soon enough, I was certain.

“With Cynnia as their leader, yes,” I replied. “I’m not so blind as to think that all the fighting between the nightwalkers and the naturi will stop. There will be small branches that are determined to keep the war going even after Aurora’s defeat, but that is nothing in comparison to the war Aurora is determined to wage.”

Hideo scratched his chin as he silently stared at me. “This Cynnia was the one you were meeting with tonight?”

“Yes. The leader of the Savannah lycanthropes, me, and my associates all met with her tonight to discuss her plan. In truth, I have just now agreed to go along with her plan. There is still much planning and strategizing that needs to be done, but I believe in her vision for our two peoples. After countless centuries that have cost us too many lives, I believe that Cynnia can finally bring the war between the nightwalkers and the naturi to an end.”

“If Cynnia is for peace between our races, why were there naturi attacking you tonight?” Tetsuya inquired.

“Because Cynnia is being hunted by her sister Aurora. The queen has become paranoid and insane with power. At Machu Picchu this past fall, she branded Cynnia and her sister Nyx traitors. She banished her consort Rowe. She has made enemies of the very people she needs most at her side to succeed in defeating the nightwalkers and the humans. Those so-called traitors are now gathered together to bring her down.”

“And they have won over the Fire Starter as well,” Danaus added with a smirk. “The odds are starting to tip in our favor. Aurora may have greater numbers, but we just need to take down the queen to finally quell the naturi nation. Cynnia will lead them into seclusion while the nightwalkers and the lycanthropes return to their previous way of life.”

Hideo shook his head at me. He paused and threaded his fingers through his hair, pushing it away from his eyes. “And what happens if this Cynnia succeeds and takes her people away from the human world? What if the naturi are allowed to return to the woods where their numbers are permitted to grow once again? Won’t we be eventually faced with a new, stronger threat?” An evil grin slipped across my face, and I could feel a lavender glow filling my eyes. “The peace that I speak of is merely a temporary one in hopes of avoiding an even greater and more dangerous war that will rip away our veil of secrecy. The fight between Cynnia and Aurora will cut into their numbers, leaving the naturi weakened. It will take them a long time to replenish themselves. That will give us time to train our own death squads to specialize in hunting down the naturi in their own territory. At the moment, we haven’t an edge when it comes to fighting them in the woods. Time and research will give us that edge. Do not mistake my decision to agree to a truce with the naturi. My ultimate goal will always be their complete extinction.”

Mira!
Danaus exclaimed in my head, though there was no outward signs that he was stunned by my admission.

It is better to kill them off before they get the chance to kill us off,
I coldly replied.
Cynnia has
some pretty ideas, but the truce between the two races will always be temporary. She can’t rule forever,
and I know Rowe. He won’t allow the coexistence to stretch indefinitely. He is a soldier and he has been
trained to kill nightwalkers.

But you agreed to a truce with Cynnia!

I will not be the one to break that truce, but make no mistake, it will be broken eventually, and
we will be prepared for it.

“Your plans are interesting,” Hideo conceded. “We are reassured by the fact that your end goal remains the elimination of the naturi race. However, we cannot accept a temporary truce with a group that we plan to ultimately destroy. The naturi are our sworn enemy and we cannot agree to work in harmony with them.”

“Even if it means avoiding the Great Awakening?” I asked, cocking my head to one side as I stared at him.

“This just may be a sign that it is finally time for the Great Awakening to happen.”

“I can’t accept that.” I crossed my arms over my stomach and glared at Hideo. “If it is within my power to delay that horrible event, I will do everything I can to delay it. Humanity is not ready.”

“And we cannot accept such two-faced betrayal,” Hideo countered, looking completely at peace with his decision. It was all I could do not to snicker at him.

“The clans of the East truly are different,” I said. “Here, betrayal is a way of life. It’s a survival mechanism.”

“We are not like you,” Tetsuya said, looking more than a little offended.

“And yet you came here looking for my help. I may be different, but I was raised by the nightwalkers of the West. I’m not that different.”

“We cannot help you,” Hideo firmly said.

“Because of my ultimate plans of betrayal?” I raised one eyebrow at him.

“Because working with the naturi would be a betrayal of our promise to fight them,” Hideo corrected.

“Then maybe it’s time to rethink that promise, if you have any hope of protecting your people in the long run,” I said, and held up my hand to stop his next comment, which I knew would be a rejection of that very suggestion. “Remain in my domain for a few nights. It is a long flight back to Japan, and you and your people will need some time to regain your strength. Think about what I have told you. If you would like an audience with Cynnia to further discuss her vision, it can be arranged.”

“And the coven’s position on your plans?” Kojima asked.

“The coven has no position on my plans because I am handling this as the keeper of my domain.

If we succeed in ridding the world of Aurora, I will then deal with the coven.” Hideo frowned at me, his dark eyes narrowing. “While we appreciate your offering and the position that you find yourself in, we believe that our situation is direr at the moment. We politely request that you accompany us back to Japan where you will aid us in ridding our lands of the naturi pest.”

My voice dropped to a low warning. “I’m afraid that I can’t do that. My job is to protect my domain, not yours.”

“And I am afraid that your refusal is not an option,” Tetsuya countered.

I took a step backward while both my hands dropped down to the knives on either of my hips as I waited for the attack. “You can’t force me to assist you. My work is here.”

“We are confident that you will come if it means coming for your consort,” Kojima said with a dark grin.

It was then that I finally felt it. He had been cloaking himself deep in the woods, but now that he had drawn close to the clearing, I could sense his power clearly despite his efforts to hide himself from me. I growled, stepping in front of Danaus to block the other three nightwalkers in front of me from approaching.

The other one is here. He’s going to attack you from behind,
I warned Danaus silently.

It’s too late,
Danaus snarled in my brain.
He’s already done it.

I twisted around to find the smaller man hanging onto Danaus’s back, his legs wrapped around the hunter’s slender waist while holding a short blade to his throat while his other hand held a knife close to Danaus’s heart.

Boil him, but don’t kill him. I will handle the others.

The fireballs that circled the clearing crashed to the ground in an explosion of sparks and debris as I launched myself at my three opponents. It wasn’t that they had hoped to kidnap me for their own ends. I was pissed over the fact that they thought for even a second that they could lay a hand on Danaus. It would not be tolerated.

Knives spun out of my hands in a flurry of glinting silver across the clearing. They were easily blocked by my skilled opponents, but it gave me enough time to draw my sword. As it cleared the sheath, I coated the sleek blade in dancing flames. The trio hesitated to approach, allowing me to back to them to the edge of the woods.

At the same time, the screams of their secret companion echoed through the clearing, bouncing off the trees and soaring into the black sky above. There was a heavy thud as the body hit the ground behind me. I could hear the scrambling in the dirt as he writhed about, undoubtedly clawing at his flesh.

“Drop your weapons now, or your companion will be boiled from the inside out,” I threatened.

“Nomura,” Tetsuya whispered, his gazed locked over my shoulder.

“Do it now! He doesn’t have much time!”

“Agreed,” Hideo said, throwing down the sword strapped to his back. His companions quickly followed and then held up their empty hands in acquiescence.

Turning sideways, I looked over at Danaus, who released the Japanese nightwalker from the ugly grip of his powers. The nightwalker named Nomura stopped writhing about and curled up into a tight little ball on the ground, moaning.

“In case you were wondering, Danaus can more than take care of himself,” I said smugly. “Touch him again and he will not hesitate to kill you all. Touch anyone else in my domain and we will both hunt you down. I can sympathize with your desperation, and that is why I have spared your companion’s life.”

“How?” Hideo whispered.

“That’s my secret,” Danaus said in a low voice.

I took a step backward and put my sword in its sheath on my back. “Take your companion and return to your daylight resting place. My offer stands. You may stay in my domain for a few nights to give your companion some time to recover. Consider my plan. The elimination of Aurora may also succeed in helping your own people in Japan.”

“We do not welcome the Great Awakening, but working with the naturi to avoid such a fate is equally abhorrent to us.”

“I’m not thrilled with the idea either, but we have been backed into a corner.” I frowned. “It’s time to make some tough decisions.”