Beast of the Damned #2

*Chapter Twenty-Three*-

*Kenzie looks left, then right. Hits publish and runs*

~ KINLEY ~

Gray cobblestones come underfoot—Valderanna within reach. If it weren't night, I'd be able to see the tallest tower of the castle from here. Instead, I'm unable to see much of anything except for when the moonlight hits the steel armor of the back I'm strapped to. Unlike when the Warriors of the Damned first arrived in Valderanna, their movements are silent. Their spacing vast. It's unnerving knowing thousands of them are marching, yet all I can hear is the rope as it works back and forth with Tristan's movements and the flapping of the cloak concealing me. I had thought I would finish the journey on Talrek's back, but that isn't what happened. Just like we did not wait for the cover of night. Tristan had us move out, hardly affording the humans with us any rest. 

My cheeks warm, my legs automatically squeezing the arms of the vampire who's helping hold my weight—the same vampire whose lips I can still feel pressing against mine. Tristan's skin is like refined leather, smooth to the touch yet you know it would take considerable force to make him bleed. I suppose that is a plus to being vampire. Thicker skin is more durable. More suited for a bloodline built for war.

You would think a vampire like Tristan, all harsh angles with seemingly impenetrable stone for muscles lips would feel a certain way. Maybe like the flat edge of a blade that's been left out in a blizzard—cold and rigid, and also dangerous and deadly. But that isn't at all how it felt. It felt like so much more than a pair of lips colliding. I could taste hunger as if it were an actual edible treat Marianna brings me on special occasions. It was like I couldn't breathe, like I was being drowned by the way his mouth melted to mine with a fierceness that seemed in stark contrast to the softness of full lips. I can recall the jolt that dived straight into my gut and awakened my nerves when Tristan's cold tongue curled around mine. Then, nothing... A blackness where thoughts and sensations didn't exist overtook me. 

When my vision and senses came back, blue eyes were staring into mine. A strange sight to see as the Beast of the Damned was before me. It was easier to see my reflection in the devil black and the entity that dwells within Tristan's depths. With the blue, it's like he's hiding secrets wherever the black veins disappeared. His lethal power no longer swirling magically about serving as a warning to those who look upon him. He has camouflaged himself, and that makes him seem all the more sinister.

My face knocks against Tristan's shoulder guard with the stopping of his feet. "We're here."

Lifting the hood of the cloak off me, it falls back. Torches light up the banners displaying the Dark Prince's emblem while the flag with a serpent intertwined with a bat flies high from the center steeple. The Prince must have known we would be arriving at nightfall and not at daybreak as planned. I sit up straighter, using Tristan's arms to lift myself higher. The Vamperial army stands before us. In front of them are more Warriors of the Damned. While the Vamperial army has their backs to the castle, the Warriors of the Damned are facing the balcony where the Dark Prince usually stands, lined up in formation: shoulders touching, feet apart, and hands wrapped around their weapons ready and able.

The Warriors of the Damned move, allowing us to pass. I can't tell if these warriors are the same ones who were with us in Cistoca or if they're different warriors called here to help defend Valderanna and the surrounding areas from the angels should they attack. But the angels shouldn't be able to find Valderanna. Demon enchantments keep it concealed from the outside world.

The exiled...

The exiled can find Valderanna though, and they could lead the angels here.

"By the grace of hells angels and Satan's will, you've returned." Marianna's voice carries through the vamperial warriors who are slower to move out of our way as we approach castle steps.