Opulent (The Opalescent Collection Book 1) (15 page)

A
beautiful lady stood on one of the high walls of the Bridge. She paced along the top of the wall and glared down at all who gathered around to peer up at her in curiosity. She wore a long red dress that came down to her ankles and swished with every step. She held a heavy cape in her petite hands.

“What is the meaning of this?” Lucian yelled above those who spoke.

              The woman took a strand of her curled black hair and twisted it around her fingers.

“Are you the King? The King of Catastrophe?”

“I am.” He said softly as to not frighten the woman and cause her to fall.

“Then may you be warned King of Catastrophe.”

              He looked at her long and hard. “What is your name?”

“My name is Tetchra. Get to know it well.” She said and jumped down from the wall onto the Bridge.

“What is the problem Tetchra?”

“I’ll tell you what the problem is! It’s having people like
you
not realize by now that we could be avoiding war.”

“I don’t understand.”

“What is this
thing
I stand on today? Why is it here?”

“To serve the purpose of having the vampires and werewolves cross to Earth to feed and bond with the mortals.”

“And now other species are endangered. In making and crossing this bridge, you have allowed them to cross to our world. Why not just make all of the vampires and wolves go over to Earth and stay there?”

“We can’t do that. The mortals strictly forbid that and we cannot stay longer than the eclipse of Clesta and Earth’s moon.”

“But we haven’t had an eclipse ever since Pete created his planet and caused the ending of eclipses.”

“What are you suggesting?”

“Our little treaty with the mortals is broken. And since that is true…wouldn’t it be best if we had two separate worlds?”

“That’s impossible. How could we survive without blood from the mortals?”

“What do you mean
survive
? You are immortals. You only need to drink blood for the first year of your life when you become a vampire or werewolf to replenish the blood that was lost. You do not need it anymore. We would be better as a separate world, not two connected.”

“We still need the mortals to bond. I will consider the possibilities, but-,”

“Oh, you
will
consider them.” She hissed through her teeth. She had pulled out a knife from under her cape.

“Lucian!” The crowd cleared the way to where I saw him and a woman standing on the Bridge.

             
The old woman was right.

“Do not move Queen.” She said, pointing her dagger at Lucian.

“What do you want? Let him be!”

“I want two separate worlds. That is my only wish and you will make it true.”

              She grabbed Lucian and stabbed him with her dagger. The crowd blocked them from view. I could not be sure if he was dead or not, but that was not my first concern. If that woman killed him, I knew he would reincarnate within a few days. A group of vampires came from behind the woman who had stabbed Lucian. The crowd went into a frenzy of panic and I immediately lost my bearings. A snowy owl flew in front of my face and before I could stop it, Fitzray was missing from my arms.

              All fled from the Bridge and I was left alone, in shock, trying to comprehend what had happened. One vampire now walked in front of me. The figure’s face was so similar, so strange to encounter again. It was not possible, for all that had happened. Why did this character come forth and reveal the shadowed mask of who he was in the blunt glow of the moon before me? I got back up on my feet and grabbed a fistful of his cape to back him violently against the Bridge wall. 

“What have you done? Where is my son? Where have you taken him?”

“I have done nothing!” The figure cried in an innocent plea.

“Yes,” I hissed and pulled his cape hood back so I could confirm who I thought he really was, so I could see his whole face.

              He opened his mouth to speak, but there came no sound.

“What have you done with my son? Do you want to turn him as cold as you are because if so I can have you banished from this planet and-,”

“No, I did not take your son.”

“Liar! You can’t expect me to be as gullible as before! I saw your bird fly before my face and he was gone!” I nodded toward the bird that was perched on his shoulder.

“I suppose you did not see the griffin that leapt in front of you then. My bird flew in front of your face to strike at the griffin, and if not for her you could’ve even been-,”

“So you don’t have him then?”

“No.”

“How much did you see of what happened on the Bridge?”

“I saw most of what happened. I’ve seen that lady before and I knew the moment I saw her that she was no good.”

“You know her?”

“Well, not personally.”

“Tell me everything you know.” I said and walked off the Bridge for him to follow. On the way to the palace, he explained everything he saw and heard on the Bridge.

“Two separate worlds?” I mumbled quietly as I entered the large room where the royal thrones were.

“That’s what she said.”

“What is her name?”

“Her name is Tetchra.”

              The owl on his shoulder ruffled her feathers and gazed at Valiant who was perched on a scepter. He preened his tattered old feathers and looked at the owl for no longer than a moment, taking no interest in the large bird.

              I looked up at the vampire warily. “How do I know you aren’t lying to me?”

              He smiled. “You don’t. But what difference does it make if you know I can help you?”

              I laughed. “I have no need for your help. Lucian will be reincarnated within a few days.”

“There are two things wrong with your theory.”

“Be gone with you. I have no need for this!”

“Lucian will not be reincarnated within a few days. It could be more like months, even years. And secondly, who knows what will come of your son even in a day or so.”

“But…I have never heard reincarnation lasting
years
.”

“It’s possible.”

“Then…we have to find him now! Today! We can’t let another minute go by!”

“That means you will let me help you?”

“I suppose so.”

              Not two hours passed and the whole City knew that the Prince of Catastrophe was missing. Many creatures became just as concerned as I was, but that did not keep me from pacing the floor.

“What will happen? What are we going to do? What if we never find him?”

“Relax, even if he was to be taken to Earth, he would only be halfway across the Bridge. By now if someone saw him in the arms of that woman, Tetchra, we would be notified.”

“What should I do?”

“There is nothing you
can
do right now. Just leave the hard work to me.”

              I stood up and clutched a fistful of his cape. “Princess Pearl and Taj’…we can go to them. They can help us!”

              Reluctant, he came along with me, at my side like an obedient dog. He scanned the area for any suspicion on our way to the Frozen Waterfalls. He kept his identity hidden, for his own sake, and ignored those who looked at him with suspicion since Lucian was not at my side accompanying me as usual. The civilians probably suspected this hooded figure was a sort of replacement. They bowed their heads politely as I passed, but said nothing.

              Once the Frozen Waterfalls were in view, my thoughts raced with the only hope and belief that Pearl could help. My worry would only cease a bit if told that Fitzray was safe. I arrived, panting, already emotionally distressed, and Taj’ slithered up to me in alarm.

“Chenille,” he said in surprise, “why have you a sorrowful expression and your eyes with tears? And where is the little Prince?”

              I breathed out a shaky sigh and sat on one of the large rocks at the edge of the cold pool. Pearl came out of the cave with a bright smile that quickly faded once she saw me.

“They took him away! They took him from me!” I cried.

“Who? Fitzray?”

              I nodded. “And where is Lucian?” Taj’ inquired quietly with not a trace of a troublesome tone.

“Killed, I think, but will be reincarnated.”

“Then who is that?”  

              He eyed the hooded figure at my side and lifted the tip of his tail before his face. Before I could utter a word, he slid the hood back to unmask him. Silence fell over the pool for a brief moment, until Pete fell to his knees. Pearl was behind me concentrating her power on Pete with fury. Taj’ followed through by wrapping his tail around Pete’s body like a boa constrictor. He lifted Pete off the ground to study him with his bronze eyes. A forked tongue wavered before the vampire’s face.

“Let him down Taj’!”

“He has been such disgrace to you and you tell me to have mercy on him? Have you been poisoned by the venom that fogs your head? Have you forgotten that he committed fratricide? I promised to carry him over the Bridge. What can you say that will possibly change my mind of doing so?”

“He didn’t kill Lucian. The woman, Tetchra, I think she killed him…and Pete knows more of her than I do. She could have stolen my baby. Pete is my only hope. Please, spare him for my baby’s sake. He could be my only hope.”

              Taj’s chest swelled to nearly twice its normal size and set Pete down, his tail still coiled around his body.

“Perhaps you know where I can go to find him?” I asked, turning to Pearl.

              She waved her hand over the pond and waited. The placid water stirred gently like silk, with no more than a quiet swish.

“Go to the Ticktay Mountains which will lead you to the village Nalani. Within that village, you will find my dear friend, Lazuli. She is younger than I am and her powers are stronger. She can tell you the exact route which you will take to find him.”

“Must I go, or can I have others go for me?”

“I have already sent a message to Lazuli. She will be expecting you in two weeks.”

“Weeks! I don’t have that kind of time!”

“We will secure the Bridge. No one comes onto it and no one goes off it. We will take your place when you leave. There is nothing to worry about.”

“You will have to do with protecting her since Lucian isn’t here.” Taj’ said and uncoiled his tail to free Pete.

“Leave tonight and you will make good progress by tomorrow morning.”

              I nodded my head and turned to the snake babies. Aura was looking wide-eyed at a dark butterfly on a nearby branch and once it took off, she snapped at it with her powerful jaws.

“Oh no!” Pearl cried and opened the little snake’s mouth to get the butterfly with now tattered wings. “Don’t eat dark insects, those are poisonous,” she scolded.

              Figuring it was a good time to leave, I backed slowly into the woods and headed home so we could be on our way. Pete followed suit.

I
t was nearly midnight when we were on our way, fully packed with Jasper behind us. Minx and Citrus stood at the palace door and watched as we left. I fastened the last saddlebag filled with food and blankets over Jasper’s back. The owl and the blue jay were perched on his horns. I threw a heavy wool blanket over Jasper’s back, hoping it would offer a bit of warmth from the icy wind.

“You ready yet?”

“Yeah, just one more minute.” I secured the Velcro straps together, holding the massive blanket in place over Jasper’s cold, scaly figure.  

“Done,” I said clutching my cape to my chest, “you should be warm now.”

“Thank you.”

              We were on our way at last, headstrong against the winds that picked up speed. All around was nothing but blackness, with no more than a small shimmer of moonlight that poked through the treetops. This darkness continued, making it impossible to tell a gray shadow of a tree from another or hardly anything at all, but soon the City of Lights came into view after an hour of traveling in the dark. I looked over my shoulder at Jasper’s bulky shape that moved slowly over the ground behind me.

“Just a little longer to the City,” I assured him.

              I pulled my cape together even tighter against the cold winds that could chill to the bone. I could see Pete, nearly twenty feet ahead of me, showing no sign of the slightest chill and I felt envious of him. He kept his pace and strutted like a bold warhorse. He paused at the cobblestone streets and looked over his shoulder to me. He waited patiently for my arrival and walked the silent streets at my side.

“We should stop and set up camp as soon as we get out of the City,” he said.

“But we haven’t even been traveling that long.”

“It doesn’t matter, if we don’t stop now we’ll be too tired to get up at dawn tomorrow.”

              The silence lingered between us. The only sound notable was Jasper’s talons on the cobblestone. The stores around us were illuminated only the slightest by the old streetlights. Through the windows, I could see the finest shadows of long gowns and expensive capes, all well protected behind thick glass and bolted doors. One of the very few doors open at night was the blacksmith. He was notorious for staying open for the few customers that need a horseshoe right away or need to pick up a late order of a repaired sword or armor. Next door was the vet, also open late. We were now nearly halfway through the City.

“Have you ever noticed that we have these marvelous buildings, these skyscrapers, but we still have a blacksmith? Why is that?”

“We adapted simple technology like building construction, from Earth, but the planet as a whole is an old world. We prefer the old ways more than trying to catch up with the new. We enjoy candles over the high expense of electricity. We enjoy a sword over a gun with the only reason that it isn’t needed here. We don’t need to shoot people down since most of the creatures on Catastrophe are immortal. Why would we want chaos to rise because of something that really isn’t needed in the first place?”

              I nodded in response. “We have taken many things from Earth and used them here.”

“Of course, things like clocks and all different foods are here now. I mean, Catastrophe is like a primitive Earth in a way, but with some qualities of modern Earth.”

              The lights became narrower as we approached the end of the road that signaled the end of the City. Once we were far from the glare of the lights, we would stop to rest.

              The moonlight was brighter here and it was easier to avoid thick branches that covered the woody ground.

“Here,” Jasper said after a long while and collapsed to the ground.

              The City looked as dim as a candle’s flame from where we were. I sat down and found Pete immediately settled beside me. He smiled and wrapped me in his cape, holding me for several seconds and then turned to take the heavy saddlebags from Jasper’s back.

              It was something like that that could be considered inhuman, for one vampire to show strong compassion to his vampress even when her vampire had been killed. Although, Eternal Mates would always be able to still love each other, regardless if a bond was there or not. Pete could love me as much as Lucian did and there would be nothing wrong with that. Of course, Pete was still the one responsible for turning me, after all.

              With my final thought, I fell asleep beneath the stars.

              Pete pulled me out of slumber early the following morning. My head felt heavy as he lifted me up into his arms to let me continue to sleep. Every bump of the way rocked my body and swayed me into even deeper sleep. For all I knew, it was probably only dawn, since the sun was not even up.

              A cool breeze and the warmth of the sun greeted me once my eyes finally opened. I saw Pete’s face, bold with no hint of fatigue when he glanced down at me. I pretended to be asleep. My legs were tired and I wanted to take advantage of not having to walk. He mumbled my name beneath his breath and I pretended even harder to appear asleep. He said it louder this time and a slight smile crossed my lips.

             
He knows I’m awake,
I thought to myself, closing my eyes tighter.

              A fresh scent filled the air and I opened my eyes at once. We were at the Ticktay Mountains. The mountains themselves were made of gray rock and large portions of shed dragon scales. At their summits was a blizzard or torrential rain, but nothing for us to worry about as we covered the low dirt path that twisted through the range.

              I had once heard that cold rain was common during this time of year, but Pete had reassured me that the mountain range was small and would take only a couple of days to travel through.

              Pete glanced down at me and said nothing but shifted me uncomfortably in his arms.

“Good morning.”

              He still said nothing, but I heard Jasper echo my words politely.

“You can put me down if you’d like.”

              Pete acted as though I had pestered him with an unimportant question and simply scowled, setting me to my feet. I avoided his behavior and stayed beside Jasper, talking to him in a hushed whisper.

“He seems so irritable today. I wonder why.”

“I do not know Mistress.”

              I did not talk to him for the whole day and he did not seem to mind that. I took in the marvelous scenery around me and ran my hands through a small stream. The sun was setting as orange-yellow rays filled the sky with bright pink lining the edge of the horizon. It got lower until there was no more than a sliver of yellow remaining and the dark began to rise.

              It was difficult to travel between the cracks and crevasses of the narrow chain of mountains at night, even with the full glow of our moon and the small stars. Eventually we stopped with no more than a word said between us. I took the heavy saddlebags off Jasper as the birds fell asleep on his horns. Once I pushed the bags aside, the dragon nudged me close to his warm body. I leaned my head against his body, felt his breathing rise and fall with short wisps of smoke rising from his nostrils. I closed my eyes and began to nod off when I felt the sickly chill of a hand on my shoulder.

“You read it, didn’t you?” A voice hissed.

              I turned, unafraid, to see Pete sitting before me. In one of his hands, he held the black book with silver pages. I shivered.

“
Didn’t
you?” There was an edge to his voice.

“I did,” I whispered back, suddenly regretting that I brought the book with me in the first place.

              My words lingered in the air for a long time as he ran his tongue over his fangs in a pleased manner.

“I hardly believed it was you that wrote it,” I continued.

“You weren’t supposed to read it,” he remarked.

“So that’s why you were so provoked today.”

“This was my journal of my life studying vampires, and being one myself. If anyone powerful enough got their hands on this-,”

“Like you?”

“No, not
me
, but someone on Earth. If they got it, our species could be in big trouble.”

“Relax,” I said quietly, catching a glimpse of his panic-struck face, “no one will get their hands on this, not when we have it.”

              He put the book back into one of the saddlebags and looked at me. I leaned back against Jasper’s body and felt myself begin to doze off again.

“How much longer until we get out of this mountain range?”

“Not long. We should be in Nalani by tomorrow night.”

              I turned over onto my side and felt the vampire wrap me in his cape against the chill of the night and then, feeling a sense of security, I fell asleep.

              The next day there were clouds stretching for miles up in the sky. A distant rumble of thunder echoed across the mountain range every so often. People traveling in the mountains reported that storms were vile and could last for days at a time. What frightened me most was the claim that the rain here was as cold as ice and could give someone pneumonia overnight if exposed to it.

              We traveled on in the gloom of the day without much worry of the storm, since we neared Nalani with every passing minute. I stayed beside Pete and clutched his sleeve like a child whenever I heard a crack of thunder.

“We have to stop and find shelter.”

“But we are almost there,” I protested.

              He shook his head to my defeat. “We don’t have a choice. It will rain soon and if we get caught in the storm, we will have no chance of finding shelter.”

“Or getting to Nalani,” I grumbled.

“We will get there soon enough.”

              We walked only a little longer and Pete discovered a cave large enough for Jasper and the two of us to fit.

“This is nice,” Jasper said as he stepped inside with us.

              I slumped angrily beside Pete once he sat down and began to unfasten the saddlebags from Jasper’s back. He lit a small fire between us while I was preoccupied with Jasper. I turned my back to Pete and leaned against the dragon with my eyes closed, hoping he would not bother to say anything to me.

“I promise that if it doesn’t rain tomorrow, we will go to Nalani.”

              I rolled over to face him and felt the dragon’s hard claw curve itself over my shoulder, pressing me to his soft chest.

“I miss Lucian.”

“I do too.” Jasper whispered back.

“Well he isn’t here,
is
he?” Pete chimed.

“No, but he will come back.”

“And what if he doesn’t? What would you do then?”

“That isn’t even up for discussion. You know as well as I do that he will come back no matter what if he was killed.”

“What if we were wrong?”

              I was silent but turned to set a steady glare of suspicion over him.

“I know what you are trying to do.”

“What?”

“I knew I shouldn’t have let you come. I should have never trusted you!”

“What are you talking about?”

“You still want the throne. You still want to be King!”

“Since when was it all about the throne? I wanted you, not so much as to rule.”

“And now you are lying!”

“It wasn’t all about the throne to me!”

“If it wasn’t then why did you kill you own-,”

“Enough!” Jasper yelled. “It is getting too late for this. Say goodnight and go to sleep.”

“Fine, whatever.” I turned my back to him again while Jasper settled back down.

“Goodnight Chenille.”