Sacrifice of the Septimus: Part 2 (Afterlife saga Book 7) (13 page)

So surely this must have happened by now? This is where it would have really helped knowing what year I had made it back to but even then…what would Lucius be like in this time? Was he working with Draven yet or was he out there on his own? But more importantly, why did that thought worry me as it did?

I tried to replay the history the two of them had together in my head but without knowing the dates it was hard to comprehend. I knew that they had been not only allies but also brothers at arms for the longest time, but when did they first make their alliance? Lucius had been Draven’s right hand man for a small forever before they became enemies and, other than Vincent, had once been the only man that he had once called brother.

Which bombarded me with even more questions and this time they were about Vincent. I hadn’t yet seen him but knew he must not have been far from his brother’s side, so where was he? I was so curious that I almost asked him, but then how would I explain my reasons for doing so? No, it was better left for the likes of Ranka, who would know why I asked…of course now all I had to do was find her again to get the chance to actually ask her.

“What is that pretty little mind of yours thinking?” he asked me giving me a quizzical stare and it was only when he said this that I wondered how he must feel about not being able to read my thoughts the way he could with most humans…or had he simply not tried? I found that doubtful somehow.

My god there were just so many questions I felt like my head would soon explode!

“Just that the sooner you go the sooner you can return to me.” I said instead and this worked, as what else could I tell him? Thankfully his eyes softened from their intense stare as he heard what he wanted to and I was saved from telling him the truth, which felt like madness since arriving here.

“And return for you I will,” he said as a way of goodbye before placing a light kiss on my lips. Then he covered up my naked body to ward off the night’s chill. After giving me one last look from the door, he left knowing no more words were needed for his eyes said it all…

He was falling in love with me.

Chapter 49

Loathe to be Friends

I knew I was asleep when I felt a presence enter the room and it was one of those times when your dreams seem to merge into reality confusing your mind as to what was real and what was make believe. I stood upon a rooftop and looked out to a vast space of unsettled sand that had been transformed from desert to battlefield.

The sun was close to setting but before it could cast these horrors back into darkness it showed me the death and destruction that I knew my actions had caused. I didn’t know what those actions were yet but I just knew from the tears that I shed upon looking down at the dagger I held, that there was an army’s worth of blood on my hands.

“There was nothing you could have done, Keira.” A familiar voice came from behind me as I wasn’t alone on this rooftop. I looked down and to the side as way of acknowledging her without having to meet the same tears in her eyes.

“Maybe not, but what about you…could you have stopped this?” I asked the famous Oracle of Delphi.

“Some wars are destined to be fought, no matter the cause that fuels the hearts of men whose swords cast the first strike.” I closed my eyes knowing whose heart she spoke of and whose hand was behind that sword.

“But am I always destined to die?” I asked feeling the tears fall for a very different reason.

“That I cannot answer for it is not my heart you fight for, Electus.” I released a held breath knowing I would receive an answer like this as I always did. I knew what I had to do, I could feel it pulsing in my palm as though I held a live heart that still continued to beat in my hand. It was almost as though the dagger was speaking to me the way that Lucius’ sword once had back in the Temple. Only this time instead of telling me his own story, it was trying to tell me mine. Now if only I could decipher what it wanted me to do.

I had heard its legend and how it came to be, but now gripped in my hand none of it mattered. It was now an extension of my soul and had fused itself to me in a way I couldn’t describe. As though something I didn’t yet understand held it with me and wouldn’t let it go until our destiny had been lived through and we had battled together.

“And if he knew I lived, would that end the death?” I asked watching as hundreds fell with every second I stood here waiting, trying to figure out the right thing to do.

“I am afraid the sun has set not only on the day we faced but also on our King of Kings, for he has only darkness left in his soul to fight with.” I knew she was right, he wouldn’t stop until he had killed them all. For he was coming to claim his queen, whether she breathed or was bathed in blood, I was his and he would stop at nothing to reach me.

“Then I think it’s time I go keep my promise.” I said gripping my dagger tighter, knowing that it was what I would use to deliver that promise.

And a blood coloured blade was just the thing when cutting the head off a snake…

A snake that had betrayed a King. 

I woke on a scream because when I opened my eyes I knew I was no longer dreaming and the horror I faced was real. Sophia was stood over the bed with her face close to mine. She had her head cocked to one side as if trying to make me out and if this in itself hadn’t been enough to give me a fright then seeing her in her demonic form doing so certainly was.

“Why so frightened? You look as though you have seen a Demon,” she said smiling and in her demon form it wasn’t the usual endearing sight I was used to. Skin like sand cracked and peeled from her face like dead flesh that had turned to ash. The slashes either side of her lips gave her grin a sadistic craziness that told me not to make any sudden movements. I knew this was a test by the way she studied me and my reactions.

“I just…just didn’t expect to see you.” I said trying to keep my voice as even as I could at seeing her this way. She raised a flaky eyebrow and I knew she didn’t believe me. But what could she say, ‘I know you can see me human’… not likely, so in the end she rolled her demonic eyes before clicking her fingers and snapping back to the Sophia I was used to seeing.

“Come with me.” She snapped out the order after she obviously didn’t get the reaction she was hoping for, which was no doubt to scare me to death or make me run a mile.

“Why, where are we going?” I asked having a bad feeling about this.

“Do you know who I am?” she asked with such arrogance it made Draven look like a kitten compared to her.

“Yes.” I said quickly, deciding it best not to piss her off any more than I obviously had done.

“Good, then stop asking questions and do as you are told, slave!” she shouted and then threw some clothes at me. I caught them and twisted them in my fists trying to dispel some of the anger I felt towards her. I wish she had at least warned me that she was an utter bitch in this time but then again, she obviously saw me as a threat of some kind. Which had me wondering what her attitude would be to me if she knew who I really was? Would she have welcomed me as she once did when we first met? Was I actually someone she considered a threat…
to myself?

The thought was almost laughable, considering she was trying to eliminate any threat to her brother finding his Electus, when here I sat. I was almost tempted to tell her who I was but as I watched her storm out, slamming the door behind her I knew it was unlikely she would even believe me. After all, if her own brother didn’t recognise his own Chosen One, then I doubt she would believe me telling her otherwise. Which meant I could only hope that her version of making me disappear didn’t includ
e
Stateira’s version of making me disappear, where I ended up dumped in the desert somewhere with a knife in my back.

I decided I had little choice than to do as I was told so I slipped from the safety of his bed and dressed myself in the long plain kaftan she had given me. There was also a long scarf which she obviously wanted me to put on to hide myself away. So I knotted my hair behind my head using the pins from the floor I had discarded earlier and wrapped the scarf around my head. Then after a deep breath I opened the door to the viper waiting on the other side.  Well, if I was ever curious as to what it would feel like to piss Sophia off then I could consider that curiosity well and truly fulfilled.

There were four guards standing around her who I hoped were only there to escort me far from here and not to find use for their curved swords which hung in their leather sheaths. Sophia gave me a seething look that almost curled her lip and reminded me of an aggravated jungle cat.

“Let’s go,” she said throwing over one length of her silk scarf which hid half of her face from view. I didn’t say a word as I followed her with guards either side of me and I couldn’t help but feel that sickening chill creep up my body as though I was being led to my death and not to my freedom. Strange then how my mind wasn’t panicking as though when the time presented itself I would know what to do or was it simply misplaced trust in a girl I still loved like a sister? Whatever it was I followed without emotion and without judgement for I knew this wasn’t
my
Sophia doing this to me.

I don’t know how far we walked but it was obvious how big this palace was when I didn’t recognise any of it. We were walking down a long corridor of open arches on one side that showed the sun was rising in front of us. I must have slept longer than I thought if it was the start of a new day…and what a start this was, I thought bitterly. But then who was this now stepping out from the shadows…

“Ranka.”
Sophia hissed the name answering my silent question. With the sun to the back of her she looked quite formidable with the blades at her sides and the large bow at her back. Almost like some warrior elf ready to do battle in the most graceful of ways. She kept her stance at the ready and even with her arms folded you just knew that she could have had an arrow embedded in your skull in a heartbeat if she chose to do so.

“Going somewhere
,
Saphira?” she asked with deadly calm.

“And what is it to you? I have the right to go where I please in my own home!” Sophia replied in anger.

“But not with the King’s new head concubine you don’t,” Ranka replied cool as a cucumber and I wanted to do a fist pump shouting ‘Boo yeah!’ but thankfully I refrained, thinking it would totally ruin Ranka’s bad ass moment. Sophia looked back at me and snarled as if this was all my fault…which in her mind, then yes, I guess it was.

“This is no business of yours, so leave now before I make you answer for your insolence,” Sophia threatened venomously.

“I answer only to the King of Kings,” Ranka reminded her and this was when Sophia lost her temper.

“Fine! You want her, then take the little whore, for you will soon see what will happen to your King of Kings when he beds her!” The pain of her words was far worse than the pain of her nails digging into my arm as she grabbed me. Or even when she suddenly threw me across the room, causing me to slide sideways the rest of the way to where Ranka stood. I had to say I didn’t really care for the way Ranka chose to prevent me from knocking her over like a pin at a bowling alley when she just calmly placed a foot on my back to stop me.

“Princess,” Ranka said bowing in reply and with an aggravated huff Sophia stormed off having just stamped on my heart.

“I must ask but do you manage to get yourself in this much trouble in your own time?” Ranka questioned as she helped me stagger to my feet. I winced as I straightened up knowing that thanks to my old friend turning new enemy, it had set my healing time back by at least a week.

“You have no idea,” I answered her truthfully as I walked past, knowing it was a good idea to get out of here. 

“I thought as much,” she said pushing both blades back in their sheaths at her thighs telling me that she had been expecting a fight…or at least ready for one.

I then held back letting her take the lead as she knew where we were going much better than I.

“So I am going to take a wild stab in the dark and say that the Princess isn’t my biggest fan?” I said as we walked along even more arched sandstone corridors.

“I don’t understand…why would you want to fight in the dark and what has a large fan owned by the Princess got to do with it?” I rolled my eyes before repeating to myself ‘simple thoughts Keira, simple thoughts’.

“What I mean is, the Princess doesn’t like me.”

“I would think that was obvious considering she was just about to have you murdered,” Ranka said bluntly causing me to miss a step.

“She was?” I asked surprised and I didn’t know why. For starters I myself had suspected as much but I guess just hearing it being confirmed by someone else was enough to make it more real. I mean this was Sophia we were talking about here!

“What did you think would happen, that she would merely allow you to just leave the palace?”

“Well, yeah…kind of,” I replied feeling like an idiot but even more so when she said,

“She knows as well as the rest of us do what would happen if you were to leave here a free woman.” I stopped her from walking any further by grabbing her forearm and asked, 

“And what is that exactly?”

“You would quickly be declared property of the King and hunted down until found.” Christ, but that did make me sound like a damn pet!

“He would do that?!” I asked in astonishment. Ranka smirked at me as if she found my bewilderment at her King amusing.

“I think it is quickly becoming common knowledge of the obsession that infects the King and come tomorrow night it will be confirmed when he chooses you as his new head concubine in front of the entire kingdom.”

“He is going to do what?!”

“I must say Electus, you do work fast,” she said on a laugh and it was as unnatural to witness as it sounded.

“Well I didn’t intend to, I tried to run remember.” I reminded her of what she obviously already knew. This was when she no longer looked amused and gave me a stern glare.

“Oh save it, I thought it the best thing to do at the time, alright.” I snapped at her and carried on walking.

“Lucky for you I forewarned the King of Stateira’s intentions,” she said not knowing what I had already confessed to Draven but she didn’t need to know that, so instead I asked,

“And what of the Princess…will you tell him of her same intentions also?” She frowned and I knew why as this wasn’t exactly something that could be considered a giddy prospect to look forward to. What would she say, ‘oh yeah, I just caught your sister trying to kill your girlfriend, just thought you should know before that shit gets ugly but hey, good luck with that can of worms your Majesty.’ …uh no, I didn’t think so somehow.

“I am not sure that is wise,” she answered and I had to cough to mask my laugh.

“No, I didn’t think so,” I muttered after she walked past me to lead me down a darker passageway.

“So you said the rest of you?” I asked referring to her earlier comment. She raised an eyebrow at me as we walked side by side and at first I didn’t think she would answer me.

“My kind has been warned to stay away from you.” Now hearing this did surprise me. It almost felt like history repeating itself, only in reverse. In fact, the similarities were mounting if not just working at a much faster rate. Which had me wondering how Draven would have reacted taking away the Western ways of the world I grew up in. Because Draven as the King was only ever used to being obeyed by both his own kind and mine, so this very much included me and what he expected of me.