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We listened, honing in on whatever sound Claire picked up.
Scratching. Like something was running… something behind us.
“Shit, go, go, go!” Maddox shouted, urging us on as he blasted the floor behind us with a sheet of ice. “That should slow whatever it is. Go!”
We didn’t waste another second, the eight of us bolting down the tunnel, Damien’s flame flickering with the wind but never going out. The sound got louder before there was a shriek and a crash. Whatever it was had tripped and fallen on Maddox’s ice, but it likely wouldn’t stop them for long.
“Could it be more Shades?” Xavier asked as they reached the exit of the tunnel.
Damien shook his head. “I fucking hope not.” He reached the door and went to open it, but it was locked.
“No time for subtlety.” He took a flaming fist and punched it right through the door. He reached inside the hole and opened the door from the other side.
According to Benjamin, the tunnel should have opened up into a grand atrium where the Matriarch spent most of her time and where she’d go if her district was under attack. It would allow her an easy way to escape while also being defendable, if they needed to fight.
And, just as Benjamin had said, the tunnel spilled into what seemed like a magnificent grand hall. With its towering jet black marble pillars gilded with flecks of gold, the room shimmered and cast reflections in the dim light. The ceiling was domed, painted a midnight black that seemed to suck in all the light from the various sconces and candelabras set around the space.
That’s when I saw her, the Matriarch impossible to miss.
At the far end of the hall sat Helstriva, flanked by seven pissed-off looking vampires. Her deathly silhouette was framed by the elegant drapes of her black dress, clinging to her form in a sick embrace. The top was made of a spider webs silk, see-through, making it appear as though the black threads were tattooed into her poreless skin. Her eyes glittered with malevolence as they settled on the intruders. Particularly on me.
Damien’s voice echoed through the room. “Helstriva, the dragon fall ends today.”
My heart thudded and my knees shook. I half-wanted to throw up and half-wanted to run the hell out of here. I’d come a long way since that scared kid in the snake-way, but I still wasn’t immune to fear. My mouth was ash-dry, and my hands were tight at my sides to hide the shaking. I wanted to be back at with my parents, eating my dad’s pancakes and laughing at the tv with mom, Damien sitting with us on the couch. I wanted it so, so, so fucking bad.
But it didn’t matter how badly I wanted something. I knew that now.
It didn’t matter.
“Ah, I should have guessed it was you who started this whole mess.” Her voice seemed to echo through the space, vibrating inside my rib cage. A thin, wormlike tentacle slipped from her mouth, stretching out in my direction.
“No Shades,” Xavier mumbled, his amber eyes scanning the surroundings.
“They’re probably busy with the explosions outside,” Dawn replied, her usually bright demeanor now replaced with steely resolve, her bright white armor glittering under the light of the chandeliers.
“None of this is necessary,” the Matriarch said as she stood and cupped her hands in front of herself, her smile wickedly sharp. Another tentacle fell from her mouth, reaching up toward her midnight black eyes. “If you would stop meddling and let my plan continue, then I can be the one to usher in a new era, not just for vampires but for everyone on this hells-ridden Earth.”
“What is your plan?” Damien asked, his voice way more rock-solid than anything I could produce right now. If I spoke, I was sure I’d sound like a squeaky rodent looking for some cheese. “What’s the endgame here?”
The Matriarch gave a sickening laugh that echoed through the grand hall. Her bodyguards’ chuckles only added to the macabre chorus. I tried to make it so that my knees wouldn’t tremble, but it felt like my legs were about to give out.
“My plan? My plan is to see the Chaos King reign again. My plan is to eradicate the biggest blocks stopping me from seeing him rise again. When I discovered the dragon fall curse, I realized it would be my only chance at creating the world I wanted. It took some—work, but your kind is dropping from the skies like burning little flies. Now I just need to make sure it stays that way.”
The Chaos King.
A name that made blood freeze solid and hearts stop cold.
Everyone knew about the Chaos King, currently imprisoned deep in the Earth’s crust after a coalition of supernaturals fought and defeated him, ending eight years of living under the maniacal tyrant. It had happened long before I was born, about six generations back, but the scars still marked the world’s psyche. It was a time when the skies were constantly cloaked in crimson red midnights, and water only ran as blood, the drinkable water needing to be diluted and boiled and extracted.
