Realms Converge | By : Candice Category: +G through L > Legacy of Kain Views: 3516 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1 |
Disclaimer: I do not own Legacy of Kain, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.Don't get to Nosgoth itself til chap 5 |
Next one up!
Popping these out somewhat fast due to vacation time proving to be fruitful. Thanks again and love to you all!
Chapter Fifty-three: Homeward Bound.
Janos' recovery was by no means a swift or assured thing at first. Depression and a crisis of faith is never an easy enemy to cross blades with after all and my Adopted Sire had several millennium's worth of regrets that had piled up. It did not help that he knew the truth regarding the creature he had once revered as his God. For a time, I thought that we still might lose him, that he would steal away from the Clan again and end things before we could stop him.
Cuthbert, Joan and Gaia herself proved to be the deciding factors in the end, more so than even Vorador, I or even Nikolai, though it did take almost another century for the Eldar's psyche to become stable.
Joan helped simply by the fact that she was an Omega and helped to provide a kind of stabilizing force naturally that he desperately seemed to need. It helped that she had taken a liking to my erstwhile Sire and she took his health as seriously as I did.
Cu helped because of his long-term studies into the soul and the cycle of life, death and rebirth. He knew spells that allowed one to track souls as they made that journey and, most important of all, how to cast a spell that partially opened one up to that existential sense of 'everything' that one felt during the Sealing of a Symbol. That powerful sense that one had briefly touched the whole of the universe. 'Communing with Mother Earth' was not merely a phrase to my Brother...
Those long sessions between the three of them, which sometimes included myself, Vorador and Nikolai, helped him come to terms with the twisted web that had been weaved around him without his knowledge. Eventually those hidden, sorrowful smiles started that meant he was thinking of saying 'goodbye' faded away. He would still mourn what had passed, the lives lost and the path that had led him to where he was, but he had taken my words to heart and had started to truly live.
In the centuries that passed, I did take the occasional lover into my bed. Amusingly enough it was Lucius who was my longest companion in that regard, over a century together and he had become a close enough friend and aided myself and Cu without complaint with regards to my studies. He was cute and sweet, and I had always found him to be endearing. That I could not cure him of his natural shyness, a shyness that would only disappear in the bedroom, was a source of amusement to us both. Nor was he the sort to push things in our relationship, content instead to allow things to fall as they may. Much as I had been with Kain. Eventually things fell to the wayside and we broke things off amicably when his attention was caught by a new love; the plans to terraform Mars. A project that his mother was heading.
His exuberance for said project had drawn him from my side for weeks at a time, that eventually turned to months and while I did not begrudge him his love for the project, I did not want him to feel as if he had any kind of obligation to me. Our relationship had always felt like a kind of lazy, friends with benefits sort of thing once he got past his initial nervousness at any rate.
From there, either male or female, most became lovers for only a few decades at a time. It was not necessarily a lack of shared interests that cut the relationships short, which did happen, but more and more often it came to light that those who had caught my attention had only done so in a way to increase their own Clan ranking by having become my Lover. It got to the point where I was wary to even make the attempt at a new relationship without ensuring upfront the 'why' behind someone's interest in me. I would not be in a relationship for purely political purposes. I refused to be someone's social stepping stone. It might have been rude, being so upfront, but I did not care. I wanted them to want me. Not power. Not prestige. Me.
Occasionally, I had to forcibly eject a former lover from my life violently when they tried to push things. My latest lover, a male from one of the newer Clans, a public singer with a lovely voice and a charmingly domestic attitude despite being a popular singer around the world, was lucky to have been only thrown from my bedroom window when he made the foolish attempt to Quicken me. He was an Alpha vampire in his own right and I might have forgiven the attempt had it merely been his instincts driving the attempt. It happened on occasion. However, his anger at his failure and my violent rejection had been a palatable thing. Rage had filled me in response. I had used my Gift of Aura Strike on him in order to force the truth out of him and had found that nearly forty years of being my lover had merely been a ploy. His Clan had ordered him to woo and Mark me in order to increase their own Clan's standing by having me essentially 'wed' into their Clan or at least be Marked by me so that they could say that he had 'wed' into mine. He admitted that he truly did like me and my company. He had believed it would work between us even with his orders. It did nothing to lessen my rage however. He had endeavored to force things as he was 'tired of waiting for me to find him worthy my Mark or vice versa' and had tipped his hand when he had decided that a child might have 'made me more open' to such a thing.
Vorador paid me a visit barely a week after that. The explosive expulsion of said 'popular pop star' from my mansion had hit the news quite spectacularly… as had the past three such 'break-ups'. The media usually buzzed about eagerly to find out more. Especially when none of those ejected so pressed charges or sought reparations from the Clan for my actions. In his usual way, he had just slipped into the building and started about the residence as if it were his mansion and not my own. I watched my adopted Eldar brother with an equally bemused and annoyed air as he poured blood-wine into two crystal wine glasses before he passed one to me. He took in a slow breath of the wine's scent and watched me for a long moment before he took a slow sip. His eyes hooded and his larger ears dipped faintly with the beginnings of disappointment.
"Dear Sister," he started in a low tone as I took a sip of my own wine. "I've heard rumor that there had been another 'falling out' between you and one of your lovers. If you keep burning bridges so viciously, you may start to affect your admittedly high standing within the Clan. You are lucky that no one had challenged you so far."
"I am the lucky one?" I hissed and bared my fangs in disgust. "They were the lucky ones, Brother. Most of my other relationships end on an amicable note, but some fools simply need to be put in their place."
"Sister dear..." he started with a long-suffering sigh and I pointed a clawed finger at him harshly enough that his ears perked up with surprise at my continued rage.
"The foolish idiot attempted something without consent or discussion," I snapped with a roaring growl. "The little bastard was tasked with attempting to... to ruddy well 'tame' me! Nor has he been the first male to attempt such a thing!"
Vorador's eyes narrowed as I voiced my ire. I had to set aside my glass lest I break it. He let out a hum.
"You speak as if they attempt to Mark you or..." he let out a low growl and set his own glass aside. He crossed his arms a moment later. "Did that little fool attempt to Quicken you?!"
His snarling voice thrummed through the air. A thunderstorm brewing close by. A small shiver ran up my spine at the sound, yet I held my ground in the face of his anger. He was not upset with me after all.
"He did," I said, my tone even but still upset. "Had I not made it my business to learn about my nature, the spells that can be used to ease certain processes and the natural struggles that can occur during a successful Quickening, he might have succeeded. Being confused during such a situation could have been detrimental for me and beneficial for him. Even with no Marks between us, any who might sire a child on me 'in the throws of passion' would gain much in the way of political power. You know that. Hells, you and Elinor have been trying for the past century."
"We have," Vorador allowed with a nod. "It is no easy thing to be able to predict when such efforts are limited to when a Full-blood might prove viable. It is easier for a Half-blood to produce a child with a human or another Half-blood. If cast at the right time during such activities, the Opening Spells can go unnoticed whilst ones other senses are distracted so pleasantly."
"Brother," I let out a huff of annoyance and chuckled. "I do not need to hear any details about your exploits. I never have."
"Hmph, your loss Sister," he smiled gently. A small thing to show that he had been trying to get a smile out of me. He frowned a moment later. "In either case, I now understand your anger and the violent expulsion of several of your former lovers from the premises. It also explains why there have been no complaints from the males in question or their Clans."
"They would not dare," I growled. "I have something on them and they know it. If word got out regarding their attempts, then their standing amongst their Clan, let alone the other Clans would all but cease to exist."
"Hm, you were wise to put them in your debt so," he said with a chuckle. "I will tell Janos not to worry. He was fretting when the incident hit the news so... spectacularly. Will you only be looking for female companionship now?"
"Please do so, he can be such a mother hen. Equal parts good and annoying that," I said with a sigh as I picked my glass back up. I glared at him when the rest of his words sank in. "And no. Absolutely not, Vorador. You are not sending any suitors my way. The last time you tried to do so, things ended horribly. Your tastes in companions and my own tend to differ drastically. Of all your former lovers, only Alma ever truly suited me and she is now happily Mated to her dotting Prince."
"I am one of those most aware of your picky tastes," he responded with a grin. "I could jus-"
"No," I said firmly.
"I know several nubil-" he started again.
"No," I bit out with a low growl.
"There are-" he tried again as his grin widened.
"Do not make me hit you," I snarled, though my lips were twitching as I tried to fight a grin. "I said 'no' Brother. Now leave be."
"Your loss," he said with a shrug and a laugh as he picked up his own wine glass.
I was grateful for his presence and his dry, hentai humor. It helped my mood greatly. Forty years with that man and I had not seen through his deception until that week. The others who had attempted the same thing had barely lasted a year before they tipped their hand. The fact that he had been that skilled at hiding his deception, regardless of if he spoke the truth about caring for me on a personal level, was galling.
Our conversation shifted to a somewhat more relaxed conversation regarding current Clan politics, laced with his usual humor, and I was able to push aside thoughts of my recently botched relationship as I focused on re-acclimating myself into the messy yet slow politics of the Vampires. I had been so focused upon my studies that, well, I'd lost my touch a bit when it came to politics. No more.
Other than those hiccups though, most of my years were spent with in-depth studying regarding agriculture, horticulture, natural health care preventives and of course, with Cu's help, my biggest projects; Soul Theory and Time Theory. The Path stone might have been glowing for some time with the signal that it was safe to return, but I would not return or toss missives through until I had some definitive plans to implement in order to help the dying world that had become my home for so long.
As we had no Time Pillar, or Time Streamers, much of my research only covered hypotheticals. Using the original stories that our world's Dreamers/Storytellers had seen regarding Nosgoth's fate and the outside-looking-in point of view that such a thing allowed for, minimized our options and results. Yet we still made some progress. Our results all seemed to point to a few things. First; It seemed unlikely that any changes could be made to the time-line before the Pillars creation. Anything that affected them would tear apart the time-line, not merely rearrange the current's subtle flow. Second; Any alterations would likely have to wait until after Raziel, as a wraith, started to chase Kain through the past. The events needed to take place for the pair to reach the point that they had when I'd met with Eldar Kain at the Pillars. Even with that memory still partially blocked, I was certain that Raziel had to have been there. Why else block the memory the way he had?
The trickiest part of our research though, was Raziel and the Reaver. Going back through the story again and again showed the loop that Raziel was trapped in. Raziel, now willingly bound to the Blood Reaver, which had turned it into the Soul Reaver. The Soul Reaver would then have to be placed back into the reach of Moebius at some point, all so that a younger Kain could find the blade. But it did not seem right... and Cu agreed.
Raziel's existence was a temporal paradox and, after reviewing the story multiple times, Cu agreed that he should not exist as such. A tentative hope had filled me, but it was not and easy thing trying to figure out how to help. One thought kept coming to mind; when was a paradox not a paradox? And that was when I lit upon a possible answer to the conundrum. The only thing that made send. Cu agreed... but I could only hope that it would work.
All told, I spent about five-hundred years or so on Gaia and despite numerous attempts to re-acclimate myself to life on Gaia, I could not call it home. It was, for lack of a better term, a 'domesticated' planet. Even the project that Lucius had thrown himself into, the terraforming of Mars, did nothing to truly catch my interest nor did I have any desire to pursue the path that my Father had wanted for me. Brice, Eli and Sigrun remained some of my closest friends during my time on Gaia but... Gaia was just too bloody tame and they could see that I was left restless more oft than not. Eli would tease me whenever we got back from one of the random trips that he'd drag me on. Favored place for the trips; the Australian Outback. The land was definitely wild but... not hair-raising-on-the-back-of-your-neck wild. He'd joke and say that Nosgoth sounded like 'Australia on crack' whenever I took time to share stories with him on our trips.
Kain had been right to say that my mind remembered life on Gaia even after all the time on Nosgoth, but my heart? My heart remembered Nosgoth.
Not just because of lingering affection for my Mate, no, but also because of all the small things. The wildling air. The massive forests that encroached on human cities. The wildlife both big and small that could kill you swifter than a loosed arrow. The sky, wild and freeing. A sky that was free of massive airliners, jet planes, drones and other objects that could interfere with a nice calming flight. The loud sounds of the cities and the, admittedly reduced, scents of car exhaust was a near constant drone against the senses. It was all just... too much.
In the end, my efforts at finding a place on Gaia where I could be happy, or at least content, failed. My Father's Clan was wonderful, true, but I was never able to feel like I was 'home'. I packed up everything that I thought I might need for the return and gathered up needed supplies and books. Everything packed into several pouches with expanded space courtesy of my Adopted Sire. I called via Whisper or cell to those who were closest to me for a few days to relax and say 'goodbye'. Vorador, Alma and Armon, Janos and Nikolai, Eli, Sig, Benedict, Cu, Joan, Brice, Lucius and, for an hours time, Altair, all answered my call.
After spending the day relaxing, a spa day with oiled massages and liberal teasing all around, we retired to my mansions 'entertainment' room. Lucius took over my duties as hostess, a hold-over from our time in a relationship, and poured blood-wine for everyone else before readying a glass for me and then himself. He placed a shy, yet familiar kiss to my cheek and I smiled gently at him. He was still such a sweet kid even after five-hundred years. Harder now, yes, but still sweet.
"You sure you wont stay sheila?" Eli finally asked in a sorrowful tone.
"I'm sure," I said as I combed my claws lightly through Joan's hair. My Sister had settled herself across my lap without word, legs taking up the rest of the couch. "As much as I have enjoyed my overall time here... I would like to go home now that my research with Cu is complete."
"Arguably, one could say that this is your home," Benedict said softly. The rest of my Father's Turned Childe nodded their heads whilst Vorador hid a smile behind his wine glass.
I raised a brow at him and then smiled at the others. I had grown close indeed to my Siblings. It was heartwarming to be surrounded by them now as I said my farewells. I loved them each dearly, but I had never found a niche to call my own. Trying to 'settle in' had not worked and... I shook my head and voiced my thoughts aloud.
"I may have been born here, grew up here, but Nosgoth embraced me and aided me through my first, formative, centuries of life. The Clan there helped shape me into who I am," I shrugged one shoulder and nodded my head toward my Nosgothian Clan mates.
"You've been on Gaia longer now though deary," Alma pointed out. "Are you so sure you are not merely returning to your Lord's side because he would desire you to return."
I blinked at her and then chuckled softly a moment later.
"Even now, you still love him," she said in her usual blunt manner.
I did not deny it, but then I had come to care for several people over the centuries, all in their own ways and, save for the singer who had been my lover for forty years, one could argue that I still cared for them as I cared for Lucius and Kain. I said as much aloud.
"I have cared for a number of people, in different ways," I said and then briefly took a sip of my blood-wine. "It is not a sense of duty, nor of obligation, that draws me back to Nosgoth. Nor is it in the hopes of regaining my status as a Queen."
The last was said firmly as Armon started to open his mouth. Said mouth closed hard enough to caused his teeth to click together audibly and I smiled faintly as the others chuckled. The Prince was still rather easy to read.
"Besides which, Kain will have changed by now," I shrugged. "He has had several millennium to change and grow. Small and large events that will have shaped him further still, hardened him. Events that I am not privy to even with the story that the Dreamers wrote. The Kain that I knew will not be the Kain that I meet, not truly. But then again, I am not the same 'Katrina' that he knew."
"But why go back at all then?" Eli asked as he leaned forward. "Ya said it yourself sheila. You don't know him any longer. He doesn't know you. All ya'd have to do is toss that crystal 'round your neck through the portal, as well as all your research and a note sayin' that you want to stay."
"But I don't want to stay," I said firmly, sadly as I fingered the crystal stone that hung about my neck. A physical amalgamation of my research with Cu that would hopefully be a key to helping Nosgoth. "I love you all, I do, but I feel stifled, penned in. Like... like a young lion taken from the wild and stuffed into a zoo's cage. I am fed and pampered and shown off as need be, but I am still locked in a cage. My studies and research with Cu has staved off that sensation for several centuries, but it did not eliminate it. I am a wild thing that thrives best on a wild world. Gaia has practically been tamed. Mars is worse. The careful cultivation of a viable ecosystem there is akin to the rearing of a pup taking obedience training."
"Aye, we get what you're saying lass," Brice pipped up with a smile where he sat next to Sig. They were in one of their 'on again' phases and were shoulder to shoulder in a not-quite-cuddling kind of seating arrangement. "Even Eli's Australia barely gets the blood pumpin', yeah?"
"True," I said and then laughed at Eli's affronted look. "Australia does not have spiders big enough to consider humans viable prey. Nor Gaia have Werewolves, Demons or plant-life that can also find humans tasty. Never mind the few creatures that still existed only around Dark Eden."
Vorador, Alma, Janos and Nikolai all gave little exaggerated shudders.
"There was more than one reason that those mines were always heavily guarded by vampiric troops," Janos said dryly.
"Exactly," I nodded at him with a faint smile. "Hell, there are dangers on Nosgoth that would make you and Sigrun balk, Brice."
"Ain't gonna doubt you there," Brice allowed as he lifted his glass slightly in my direction.
"You always have thrived best upon the battlefield," Janos hummed with a gentle smile upon his own lips. "You thrive under pressure."
"One would think that you were born to battle," Vorador said with a chuckle. "Your ability to navigate the war-table was impressive once you gained your confidence. You learned in leaps and bounds. The arguments that you and Kain got into over tactics were... notable."
I let out a rather unlady-like snort and the others laughed. 'Notable' was the mildest term he could come up with considering some of the blow-up arguments that had occurred.
"When all you know is fighting," Sigurn started and she sent a knowing look my way, "it is hard to set aside your blade during peace-times."
"And that is the crux of the matter, isn't it Sister?" Joan asked softly as she nuzzled her head against my hand. "You tried to 'set aside your blade', but yet itch to take it up. Whenever there has been a battle to be fought that you could agree with on principle and could join with an acceptable reason, you have leapt into those battles with everything you have. King Altair has repeatedly asked you to take Father's place at his side as his right hand as you are an adept tactician, and yet here it is more about politics than fighting."
"Indeed," I responded with a small wince.
Eli slumped against the low back of the settee that he, Cu and Benedict had chosen to seat themselves at. His wings drooped out wide over the back of the settee and he looked up at the ceiling with a heavy sigh.
"Damn all," he muttered. "You would be battle born wouldn't ya? Nothin' we could say would keep you here, eh sheila?"
"I will miss your mate's cooking," I responded in a gentle, teasing tone. "But no. I tried Eli. I truly did try to see if I could stay here and call Gaia home once more. But I cannot stay and be happy."
"Time runs differently there though! We wont... we wont even know..." Eli's voice broke and I frowned at him. Benedict thwapped him upside the head.
"Use your head Brother mine," I said with a chuckle as he rubbed at his skull and glared at Benedict. "We never did destroy my tracking crystal, rare as it is. You'll know and can mourn properly if anything does happen to me. It is equally possible that something might happen to all of you, but I will be left without a means to know."
That sobered him up and the room felt deathly silent for a long moment as they realized the truth of my words. Janos spoke up a moment later.
"I do believe that he merely wished to point out the fact that we will miss you my Childe," he said softly. "No matter that we will have magical means to see that you are well... and that you will not have the same."
"Perhaps..." Eli sat up suddenly. "Perhaps one of us might join you? Those lot are stayin' here yeah, but maybe one of us can travel to Nosgoth with ya."
"Perhaps," I answered and I looked around the room slowly. "You are right to say that Vorador, Janos, Nikolai and Alma will be remaining here. Janos has Sky and Clan once more. He has his Nikolai. Vorador, lazy old dragon that he is, is happily surrounded by his playboy/girl bunnies."
Vorador raised his glass upwards with a rueful smile of acknowledgement and we all laughed.
"Alma has caught herself her darling prince," I said with a smile on my lips.
"He is a charming thing deary," Alma purred from her place on Armon's lap. He blushed at her words and we all chuckled when his scent spiked faintly. Her hand was hidden from sight and we all knew what that kind of blush meant.
"Woman, would you please cease whilst we are..." he was cut off when she put a now taloned finger against his lips.
"Shhh now," she hummed. "This is a private gathering is it not?"
"..." he glowered at her for a long moment before he slumped, wings drooping in the process. "You will be the death of me, I swear it."
I chuckled and took another sip of my blood-wine. I looked slowly at each of my Father's Childe.
"For one of you to come with me, please consider the fact that you will be completely uprooted. No advanced technology like you are used to. No great city-scapes and tall skyscrapers. No amenities that you use on a daily basis. Could any of you set aside everything to follow me?" I shrugged. "Are you content here? Are you happy with your mates? Your duties and Clan? Your homes and the routines that you go through every single day? If your answer to any of that is 'yes', then I will not allow you to travel with me. I will not."
The group fell silent once more. One by one they turned to look at Sigrun and Brice. Sig's expression remained thoughtful and she looked at Brice who's expression was also warily thoughtful as they talked over the Whisper. Eventually, they both shook their heads and turned back to look at me. Eli visibly slumped.
"I recall my youth and the wars that I have fought over the years, not with fondness, but rather with a sense of necessity and relief that those times are over," Sig said softly. "It was not an easy life, nor was it easy to set aside my sword as the times changed, but I am content with my life here. Content with my small home and territory in Norway. I would go with you Soster, if you asked it of me, but you have asked me for my honest response. Not for my blade."
"I'd be willin' to go with ya as well lass," Brice offered. "But I am happy here as well. If you made it a request for me to come along, I'd ask Altair. We both know he'd agree in a heart beat, if only to know that ya had one of us at your side. But like Sig said, you want an honest response and besides... I need to keep Altair and this pup from puttin' their foots in their mouths, yeah?"
We all chuckled, although Armon let out frustrated but accepting sigh of breath. I smiled at the pair.
"Good. Your honesty is good," I said softly. "I do not want there to be any kind of discontent to be left to fester just because one of you felt a duty to follow me. Not when you are all happy here."
"I... appreciate your kindness in watching out for us so, soster," Sig responded in an equally soft voice. Her wings twitched with her hidden emotions even as her face remained blank.
"You are leaving this evening, aren't you?" Benedict asked.
"Yes," I responded with a nod.
"Stealin' away like your bloke in the middle of the night?" Eli questioned with a weak smile.
"Accusing him of something Brother mine? I asked with a laugh. "But yes, I will be leaving quietly some time tonight. I need not a large send off."
Eli and my other Siblings shared a wordless glance. Benedict, Sigrun and Cu both let out put upon sighs and the next thing I knew, I was surrounded by the limbs and wings of the lot as they piled atop me. I let out a yelping laugh and barely managed to hold onto my wine glass in the scuffle. I had to nip forcefully at someone's wing when it nearly popped me in the nose and Cu was the one to yelp at the bite. He reached out to try to bop me on the head in retaliation but I managed to avoid the light-hearted blow. Benedict was in the wrong place however and was struck instead. The impromptu puppy-pile devolved rapidly from there into a mini-brawl and I had to wriggle free from the pile. I won out of the mess and let out a victorious shout when I realized that I'd kept my wine glass intact and my blood-wine mostly un-spilt.
The others in the room had burst into bemused laughter and then outright cheers as I held up my glass like a trophy. The cheering caught my Siblings attentions though and I smugly took a sip of my drink. They growled as one and I let out a yip as they lunged for me. I dodged to the side and drew my wings back into my body in order to leave a brief cloud of feathers to block their vision. I passed my glace to Brice swiftly, lest it be damaged, and then darted to the other side of the room as my Siblings gave chase.
"Fledglings!" Vorador grumbled good-naturedly when his own drink was all but upended by our antics.
As he swiped a hand delicately over his doublet, I shot a smile at my Siblings and nodded my head in his direction. They returned the grin and we pounced on the Eldar vampire where he sat propped up on a large love-seat. He swore mightily as the rest of the drink ended up on him and stood up easily despite our combined weight. He began to peel us off of his person one at a time and tossed each of us across the room, only for us to try to tackle him and bring him back down.
Janos and those not drawn into the squabble were highly entertained by our antics from the sound of it. I let out a whooping laugh as I was tossed in my adopted Sire's direction. I landed roughly atop his lap and Nikolai's and only their steadying hands stopped me from falling to the ground. I looked up at them and let out an almost giggle of sound. Janos' face softened and he drew me up into a firm yet gentle hug as the others continued to harass Vorador. Nikolai leaned back to give me a modicum of privacy with my Sire.
"I... want you to be happy," he whispered softly into my ear.
"I will be content to return home," I responded as I nuzzled against him. I took in his fatherly scent and sighed. "If I should have the good fortune of finding that more than memories await me, then I will be happy indeed."
Janos chuckled weakly. "Kain and Raziel had both best treat you well regardless. Else I will find a way to lesson them both from here."
"Hmph," I chuckled and tucked my head under his chin. "Always the mother hen Sire?"
"Yes," he kissed the crown of my head. "Do you truly expect me to be any different?"
"No," I shook my head bemusedly.
"Mmm," his hands tightened around me and his voice broke a little. "Live well, my Daughter."
"And you, Father," I responded gently. "Live well"
I nuzzled against him and took in his scent once more as I relaxed despite the continued noise in the room. This would be the last time that I would be held by the man who had become a second Father to me. I let out another soft sigh and allowed myself to doze a bit, wrapped in the safety of his arms and the scent and surrounding Aura of 'Clan'.
I woke up slowly and glanced about the room that I was in. I remembered the fighting quieting down and then being carried somewhere. From the look of things, as well as the scents that yet lingered in the air, Janos had carried me to my room and laid me out to rest upon my bed. I let out a hum of breath and glanced at the time; as I thought, just past midnight. I nodded to myself and stood up.
I had gathered all of the supplies I needed, including a small item that I was going to use in order to test another hypothesis, and then left the filled pouches upon my dresser. As I walked over to said dresser, I found a small pile of wrapped gifts sitting on it. I chuckled as I realized that the others had left their own gifts for me. I opened the gifts eagerly.
I liked gifts.
There was a single shoulder pack that Janos had enchanted just as he had the pouches. A final farewell gift from him. Brice and Sig left me a set of vampire-durable throwing knives that I could attach to my belt. Eli had given me the gift of a dead bird-eating spider in a glass paper-weight and I was tempted to leave the obvious gag-gift behind. I sighed and shoved it into the shoulder pack. Cu had made a gift of a hardback, leather covered book that detailed all of our research over the years. Thoughtful and practical in case anything happened to our written notes. Vorador and Alma had both gifted me several 'unmentionables' that left me grateful that I had not been forced to them open in front of everyone. Benedict had given me a new set of bracers. Nikolai gave me a lovely drawing of everyone that I considered to be family on Gaia. Joan...
Joan gave me a small set of highly expensive crystals. Specifically, tracking crystals. For everyone.
Touched could not begin to cover how I felt at the sight of such an expensive and magically exhausting gift as this. I'd found out that it took time, money and a lot of power to make even one of the crystals, which was why only a limited number of people actually ended up being able to afford to have their Half-blood children tracked so and that was if a male vampire was aware that they'd sired a child through such means. Not all Cold-fire males cared about the rarity of their nature. Most did, but not all.
That the others had taken the time to have no less than thirteen crystals made, including one for the King and the Prince as I had gotten somewhat close to the royals of the Draconian Clan, was overwhelming. I needed several minutes to compose myself. I packed away the gifts carefully and hesitated on the crystals, touching each of them and taking in their individual Symbols. I smiled faintly and then tucked the gift away as well. I slipped on a leather duster that I'd taken a liking to and then slipped the pack over my shoulder.
I brushed my fingers lightly over the necklace that I wore and hummed to myself. The important part of the necklace was the smokey quartz, pink tourmaline crystal cut into the shape of a teardrop. Arguably, this one deceptively plain looking stone was the most important thing that I was taking home with me. I glanced around one more time to make certain that I had everything and then started downstairs for the room where I kept the Path Stone. I had placed it, not in a protected room which would have drawn attention to it, but in one of the side rooms where it was mounted up like a light fixture.
Using a priceless artifact like a common place fixture in a home? Yeah, no one expected it. Even Brice and Sigrun, the most attentive people I knew, did not notice that I was using it as such for months. Their expressions of incredulity had been perfection.
I chuckled to myself at the memory and reached up to brush my fingers lightly over the Stone. I breathed the word of power designed to activate the Path stone and backed up a few steps. I watched as a blueish-green portal opened up in front of me and took in a slow breath.
I stepped through...
w00t! please read and review. Love ya all!
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