Elemental Light (Paranormal Public Book 9) (2 page)

“Where’s Lisabelle now, anyway?” Lanca asked, once we were settled and comfortable.

This was the first time we had had a chance to talk to her in private, and of course she’d want to know about our powerful best friend who had sworn her loyalty to darkness. 

“She said she was returning to her master, and we thought that meant someone at Public,” Sip explained, sipping her beloved tea. “But then Public was overrun by demons, and Lisabelle wasn’t in any of the reports. Personally, I’ve no idea where she is.”

Lanca cradled a black mug in her hands. The liquid was the same color as the mug and I didn’t even want to know what it was. She still looked tired, but less so than she had the last time I had seen her. Anger was a wonderful motivator.

So was fear. Loyalty was important, too, but love always won in the end. Or so I still believed.

“What if the demons attack?” Sip asked, worry clear in every line of her face.

“I would relish it,” Lanca said, inhaling as if she smelled something wonderful.

Queen Lanca of the Rapier vampires was still angry. She was also only a couple of years older than my friends and I, secretly dating her world-class fighter personal bodyguard, stunningly beautiful, and did I mention angry? After her father’s murder she had been crowned queen of the most powerful vampire sect in the paranormal world. There were two other vampire
sects in America, the Raor and the Radvarious, but neither was as strong as the royalty that ruled the Blood Throne.

Lanca’s father had been murdered in part because our enemies thought that Lanca would be a weak ruler. In that they were wrong, but he had also been killed b
ecause he possessed one of the Objects on the Wheel, the Fang First. A group of his own vampires had betrayed him and risen to power on their own, and included in their number was a classmate of ours named Faci Decimatar.  Now, because of that betrayal, the Fang First was in the hands of the Nocturns.

Lanca and her personal bodyguard, Vital, had gathered all the remaining Rapiers - all those who hadn’t been at Vampire Locke when it fell – here at Dunne ai Dorn.

Sip, Ricky, Lough, and I had arrived in the middle of the night, nearly terrifying everyone. We had tried to Contact Lanca on our way, but the communications lines were all blocked. We still hadn’t had a chance to ask her why.

“I’m afraid we don’t have a lot of food you’ll find pleasant,” she had said, motioning for one of her aides to find sustenance for us, and tea for Sip.

Lanca had stared hard at Ricky, then smiled.

“I’m Lanca,” she said, extending her hand.

I heard a groan from a thin vampire who for some reason reminded me of Sigil.

“Your majesty, you cannot go around introducing yourself to peons in that casual manner,” said the disgruntled courtier. He wore glasses and had very little hair left. His rapid blinking made me a bit dizzy.

Lanca rolled her eyes.

“I also cannot let courtiers tell me how to conduct my court,” she said quietly. The man shut up, but I felt sure it wouldn’t be for long.

“Ricky,” said my brother, taking Lanca’s hand tentatively. I felt sure he wasn’t shy, just trying to reconcile this frail-looking woman with the reality that she was a powerful vampire, and a queen.

“You have your sister’s eyes,” said Lanca. “My sister had my eyes as well.”

“Is she here?” Ricky asked. “I don’t see anyone my age.”

“There are a few vampires your age around,” said Lanca. “We can introduce you to them, provided they have some supervision. Young vampires, before they learn to control their urges can be . . . unpleasant.”

Ricky raised his eyebrows, but nodded. Vampires, like most other paranormals, always knew what they were. Their characteristics were obvious, and they spent their younger years training to control them. I was unusual in the paranormal world in not having known who I was until I was practically grown up. Having had no idea that what I thought were my mother’s jokes were not actually funny, I had had a very different childhood from most paranormals. But then I didn’t present with blood-sucking tendencies or green skin, so it had been easier to keep the secret.

Ricky pointed to the ring I wore and looked at me.

“Do I get a ring?”

“They’re at Public,” I said sadly. “Otherwise yes, you’d get a ring. I guess.”

“Has he shown powers?” Vital asked, smiling at Ricky as he came into the room. Vital didn’t look like the undefeated fighter that he was. He wasn’t big, massively muscled, or intimidating, but I had learned something of his secret by simply watching him move. He was always aware of where he was and what was around him. He moved like a cat, and I couldn’t imagine him ever tripping.

When we had visited Vampire Locke for Lanca’s coronation, I’d had the chance to see Vital fight. He was a whirl of motion, and I had felt better knowing that he was on our side. Well, at least Lanca’s. The way he looked at his queen made me sigh longingly.

Ricky looked up at me and I shook my head. “I don’t think so, but I haven’t been home to watch him.”

“Carl was always really worried about upsetting me,” Ricky commented. “Like, he never wanted to make me angry. I always thought it was funny, since he’s the adult and all.” My little brother looked so sad at the mention of his stepfather that I went and hugged his shoulders.

“We left all our stuff at Astra,” I said. “Including the elemental rings, the Mirror Arcane, and Mom’s thistle box. We’re going to have to get them.”

“I’m not sure what kind of hold the demons have on the place,” said Lanca. “But Public is formidable on its own, and I don’t believe Martha was pleased when the demons took the place over. She has a hard enough time having to put up with students.”

I snorted. Martha was Public’s middle-aged personification of itself. She was a busybody, she didn’t understand paranormal emotions, and she was extremely powerful. I didn’t give the demons much of a chance against her. She was also a ridiculously good baker.

“Does that mean my friends are alright?” I asked hopefully, thinking of Dacer.

“Yes,” said Lanca, nodding. “I believe they are.”

I took a deep breath, feeling somewhat reassured for my college in the short term, but still in fear for the paranormal world as a whole. I couldn’t help but see Vampire Locke in the distance as I looked out the windows of the warm and peaceful room.

Lanca turned to follow my gaze. “It’s hard,” she said. “They didn’t have an evil place of their own, so they took my place. Sometimes, when I’m tired, I’d like to just give it up and go find a place to live in peace. But it’s family. It’s the Blood Throne, and it is mine.”

“I think you’ll get it back,” said Ricky. “I’m sure you will.” He walked forward and pressed his nose against the glass.

Now, talking with Lanca in that lush room, we came back to the big picture.

“Why do they hate us so much? What did we ever do to the demons, or what was it you said they’re called now? Nocturns?” Ricky asked.

“Because hate is easier than love. Anger is easier than acceptance, and retaliation is easier than letting go.”

“You’d think Charlotte would be held on a pedestal, not disrespected, ignored, threatened, and arrested. Paranormals fear the hard fight, just like everyone else. Standing up for what you believe, even if it’s right, makes you a target,” said Vital, his anger on my behalf clear.

Ricky still looked skeptical. I had tried to play down the importance of the elementals, but Ricky was smart. He could tell from my stories that the way I had been treated wasn’t right, and he didn’t understand why.

“Look,” said Vital, “the paranormals don’t agree about what to do with your sister. Her existence creates questions and choices that no one wants to face, and instead of looking at it as an opportunity they’re looking at it as a danger. It may be stupid, but it is what it is. Don’t you think Airlees would support Charlotte if it were up to them? But it’s not just up to them. That’s not how it works. There’s too much hate and fear on the part of other paranormals.”

Ricky nodded. “I understand that. On the playground there’s this girl. She’s really good at soccer and she wants to play with the boys. None of the other girls want to play and they probably aren’t good enough, but this one girl is and everyone is so mean to her. The girls are mean to her for doing something they can’t and the guys don’t want to get beaten by a girl.”

“Yeah,” said Vital, smiling. “Your sister’s just like the only girl who wants to play soccer.”

Ricky nodded, and I smiled gratefully at Vital. It wasn’t the best analogy, but Ricky needed to put what was happening in terms he could understand.

“I don’t even like soccer,” he muttered.

After a little more discussion, Ricky decided he wanted some food, and the vampire assisting Lanca offered to take him to the kitchen. I felt sure this butler didn’t want to leave Lanca, but if I had a queen who was glaring at me the way Lanca was glaring at her butler, I’d have left too.

Once they were gone, the rest of us kept trading stories and news

“What’s going on with the resistance?” I asked. “Goffer and Caid? The alleged adults in this world?”

Lanca smiled thinly. “Caid tried to make a deal with Malle, but of course she didn’t stick to her end of the bargain. Now Caid is backtracking, trying to win back all the support he lost when he was shown to be on speaking terms with the villain Cynthia Malle.”

“Goffer?” Sip asked.

Lanca tapped her hand against her mug. “He’s another matter entirely. He and Mound have teamed up to start broadcasting slogans like ‘Not Another Paranormal Death.’ They’re blaming everyone but themselves and Caid - no surprise there - but at least they’re mounting an attack. Mound has always believed that fighting was the answer, and I don’t think anyone on the council likes being shown up by a bunch of college students.”

“So, who are they blaming?” I asked, although I already knew the answer.

“Mainly the Sign of Six,” said Lanca. “They believe Sip is running it. Not like she’s made that a secret. But I’m pretty sure they want to arrest her for it.”

“So, the same discord among the paranormals that has always pulled us apart is still doing so?” I said.

“Not exactly,” said Lanca. “We used to be pulled apart along the lines of paranormal type. Now it seems to be more along age and ideology lines. The mere fact that Sip and I are here in the same room respecting each other is progress on that front.”

She had a point. Caid was a fallen angel and Mound was a pixie. Normally the fallen angels got along well with all types - something about their otherworldly and healing nature - and the pixies didn’t get alone with anyone.

But I didn’t like that Goffer was now in charge. I didn’t know anything about Caid’s cousin except that he was hard-driving and relentless. If we were on the same side I would consider that a good thing, but at this point I just couldn’t believe that he was someone who would support elementals in the end. I had a very bad feeling that he would rather tear me down and throw me to the Nocturns. In fact, I felt sure he would.

“I cannot risk leaving Dunne ai Dorn,” said Lanca. “so I need you and Sip to go to Vampire Locke. I want all the information I can get, and I want my crown. Vital will be going with you.”

After I got over being stunned at the idea, we talked it through and made a tentative plan. By the time we had finished, all I could do was to sigh. I wondered how long we could keep up the fight if all we did was go from battle to battle - losing every one.

Chapter Two

I wondered if Astra could sustain a demon attack, and I wondered if I had hidden the Mirror well enough. But I didn’t really want to dwell on it since there was nothing I could do about it at the moment.

“Maybe we should go back to Public ourselves,” said Lough. “We don’t really have anything to do here.”

“Whatever we do about that,” said Sip “we’ve got to help Lanca get what she needs out of Locke first. But what about Ricky? What’s he going to do while we go on this little quest?”

I shrugged. “Right now, right here is the safest place for him to be. Lanca’s powers are stronger on Rapier territory, and if you remember, the demons attacked at a time when they knew she wasn’t there. No one wants to go up against the Blood Queen face-to-face, even if she isn’t at her throne right now.”

“I’d like Ricky to stay here,” said Lough. “The more testosterone the better.”

“You don’t like hanging out with girls?”

“I don’t like not understanding or ever being backed up. More manly men are needed.”

“You and Ricky . . . never mind,” said Sip, shaking her head in bemusement.

Lough shrugged.

Everyone loved Ricky and wanted to take care of him, and I knew that seeing me so distraught about the attack on Ricky had upset Sip and Lough. I felt bad about it, but I was all the more grateful that they had gone with me. Now I just had to open the wooden box with the Key of Light and combine the parts of the crown. I would then officially have to be given a place on the council. Elementals had been thought to be extinct, and therefore irrelevant to the council, but now it was clear that we weren’t, and I wanted to have a say again. I was nearly a college graduate and I had been through enough in the last three and a half years to justify demanding - and being given - my rightful, my father’s rightful, place.