Crimson Tears: A Crimson Sky (Book 3)

Chapter XI: Blood Moon & A Lunar Calling

The one thing no one would want, least of all hope for was the loss of a friend, family, or a loved one. Another thing none of us expected was the sheer numbers they would encounter or the spy that had been in the town for several years. The wolves that had been posted on the outskirts of the town had been fighting numerous numbers and were being killed relentlessly.

Cemetery

Taking his physical form, Garnaidious says "I see you received my invitation."

"Such a nice welcome my lord." States a light voice.

"As you can see, I have a half dozen or so starved vampires that are itching to sink their fangs into your friend. If you want her alive and well you'll have them leave, aside from your wife of course." Says Garnaidious with a sinister grin.

Keeping her eyes on the vampire, Kayle whispers "Nora, I want you and Castella to get Aerina away from here. If they so much as twitch, kill them."

The two of them nod and turn to leave.

Looking at Nora, Garnaidioius says "Before you leave hybrid, I must tell you it was a shame to kill my own family, but when I heard my daughter had consorted with a wolf I enjoyed killing her."

Stopping dead in her tracks, Nora whispers "You're the one who killed my mom, and I'll be the one to kill you."

Before Castella could react, Nora turns around and lunges towards her. Garnaidious laughs as he steps out of the way of Nora's lunge, and rips off one of her arms. Holding her arm to his mouth, Garnaidious drinks the blood from it. Nora's screams echo as she squeezes her arm where it had been torn off to stop the blood. Nora looks around her to see vampires edging their way towards her. With one look, Castella, Jerick, and Kayle knew that she was going to fight until she was killed. With Nora fighting her own battle, Castella gets surrounded, leaving Jerick and Kayle to fight their own.

Dropping Nora's arm and licking his lips, Garnaidious says"I see you have some loving and trusting friends. It's admirable but very foolish. Unlike my companions of the council, I am a true-born vampire from ages long past. My genes didn't cause me to change, I was born like this. With centuries worth of knowledge, I have learned what our current system lacks and what should have stayed. Our kinds were never meant to mingle, your kind is meant to be our pets, nothing more and nothing less."

"You can try to provoke me as much as you like, it won't work." Replies Kayle bitterly.

"I see the outcast of a vampire isn't here. Let me guess, he's with the little hybrid pup?" Asks Garnaidious.

Looking at his wife, Jerick growls and continues to walk forward.

"I had heard you were in a coma for five years. I should thank you for that. If it weren't for that my plans would not have borne fruit. However, your grandmother stayed on my trail for quite some time." States Garnaidious.

Standing straight, Jerick says "Let me guess, you planned for the councils to fall apart so you could claim it for yourself. You wanted to rule the vampires into an era where we werewolves were your slaves."

"My, my. You learned how to talk in that form, such a surprise. But yes, you would be correct. I let the current council fall so I could rebuild it in my image." Replies Garnaidious.

"The only thing that was standing in your way was us, so to make an example of your intentions and power to rule was by killing us?" Asks Kayle.

"That too is correct. If I killed the last of the ancient werewolf family in existence I would be able to control the lesser families. However, there is still one last obstacle in my way other than you two, and that would be your daughter. She carries the blood of an ancient and a renowned noble among our kind." Replies Garnaidious.

Barring his teeth, Jerick says "If you want our daughter you have to get through us."

Together, Jerick and Kayle run towards Garnaidious. Jerick feints to distract him while Kayle manages to leave a large gash in his chest. But not deep enough to kill him. Getting a safe distance away, Kayle jumps into the air giving Jerick the time to get close enough to distract him. Garnaidious catches on to what they're attempting and smacks Jerick into a nearby headstone while catching Kayle and slamming her into the ground.

Garnaidious hadn't noticed how quickly Jerick recovered, so while he had slammed Kayle into the ground Jerick had the chance to lunge. Missing Garnaidious' throat by a fraction of an inch, he still manages to tear a huge portion of his shoulder out. Due to how quickly a vampire's wounds can heal, the blood stops, but the missing portion of his shoulder would take time to heal. With Garnaidious' arm immobile for the time being, Jerick stays back while Kayle kicks his legs out from under him. Now free from Garnaidious' grip, Kayle swipes his leg, tearing every muscle and ligament out of it, crippling him.

Seeing his chance, Jerick charges again, this time aiming for the other arm. Garnaidious smacks Kayle away with his good arm leaving it exposed to Jerick's bite. Screaming in pain as Jerick bites his arm off, Garnaidious has no way of defending himself. In the meantime, Nora had managed to kill most of her attackers until they overwhelmed her. Left there to die, tears stream down her face. Having killed her attackers, Castella was too late to save Nora.

Kneeling from his injuries, Garnaidious says "Even when I'm dead, there is always going to be someone that tries to bring this system down. I have planted that seed, and sooner or later someone will fill my shoes and take on that mantle. The two of you have done well this far, but how long do you think that will last?"

Squeezing his throat before ripping it out, Kayle says "We'll cross that bridge when it gets here, but for now it's the end of the line for you."

In the fog that suddenly envelopes the cemetery, Arcania is hidden and whispers "I will finish what you started master."

Castella, Jerick, and Kayle make their way to Nora, who is on the verge of dying. Most of her blood had been drunk, and with most of her internal organs damaged, she wasn't able to heal them.

Holding her head on her lap, Kayle says "Please don't."

Struggling to lift her arm, Nora places her hand on Kayle's cheek and says "I'm sorry I couldn't keep my promise after all."

With those last words, Nora's hand falls to the ground and her body goes limp. Burying her head next to hers, Kayle's screams are muffled. Castella and Jerick stand still for a long time. Unable to hold back his own mourning, Jerick lets out one of the most sorrowful howls any wolf could hear. Other howls could be heard in response to his. The howls go on for miles as every wolf hears them.

Castle Deltrius

Alistair stops and says "Someone very close to him has died."

"It was Nora, she has been a close friend to Jerick for quite some time." Replies Catherine.

With everything they have, Alistair and Catherine let out a howl of their own to show their sympathy.

Once again, the blood moon brings something to an end, and it isn't always what one would think. What loomed on the horizon for them was the least of their worries. What awaited their daughter in the distant future would be the beginning of something else entirely.