The City of Fire and Shadows

Chapter 15 - Epilogue

It's been around two weeks since we won the Battle of Toronto, as we called it in retrospect. From what I was told, the actual attack was incredibly quick. All three battle groups were already in position when I was presented to Reginald in Dundas Square, and people were already ready to rebel. Also, when news spread that Reginald was dead, many of his soldiers quickly surrendered. So while it was formally a battle for the city, it felt more like a coup d'état.

For me personally, it's been around a month and a half since I was forced to leave Algonquin Park. It's insane to think that so much has changed in just under two months. I've changed a lot, and so has the city. In fact, I feel like I've aged several years in just a matter of weeks. From survivor to paladin.

But what of the city? People have been busy dismantling the banners of House Drakon throughout the city, tearing down monuments to Prince Reginald, and beginning to build some semblance of a society that predated the beginning of the Eternal Night. There was also a fair share of celebrations too. For five years, Reginald ruled Toronto like his own personal playground; the people were his mere playthings and puppets. Humans all around the world were made subordinate to vampires: either as a food source or as slaves. Toronto was no different, but now the people were free. People were happy; they were hopeful for the future. I was too.

And on this cold November day, I found myself at the Bloor Viaduct, looking out into the Toronto city skyline in the distance. It was still too much to take in, to know that this city is now back under the control of humanity. It felt strangely fragile. Did the rest of the world know about our victory? Did they care? Somehow, I had a sense of unease.

"Basking in the aftermath of victory?" asked a familiar voice.

I turned and saw who it was. It was Meredith. "Hey," I said.

"Mind if I stand beside you?" she asked. I shook my head. "You seem like you're lost in thought, Audrey."

"What are you doing here?"

Meredith turned around and leaned backwards on a railing. "Keeping a low profile."

"What do you mean?"

"I was one of the faces of Reginald's regime. It wouldn't be too good to have an overly public profile. At the end of the day, I am still a vampire. I think people hate me. Hate what I represented."

"But you're with us now. You helped us win! I trust you, I think we all do."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Audrey. It means a lot. And yes, I am with you guys, 100%. But anyhow, I didn't come to talk about me. I came to see how you're doing."

"I'm worried."

"Worried?"

"Yes, I can't stop thinking about that ambassador guy who fled when we took out Reginald."

"You mean, Lord Huxton?"

"Yes, what is he going to do?"

"He's going to run to President Druzillia and report about what happened here. And one of two things will happen as a result. One, Druzillia will do nothing, or two, Druzillia will send an army to retake Toronto for the vampires."

"Scenario two seems much more likely."

"I'm afraid so," Meredith said with a frown. "You did kill his lover after all. So in conclusion, this isn't the end of it. And word of warning: if you thought Reginald was bad, Druzillia is a hundred times worst. But nonetheless, we'll be ready. Druzillia can't come at us from the east, as the New United States is forbidden from crossing the St. Lawrence River - that's the border between them and the Grand Duchy of Laurentum."

"So they'll have to come from the west, through Hamilton and Mississauga."

"Exactly. They'll have a tough fight on their hands."

I thought about that scenario. It would be too hopeful to expect that there would be no repercussions at what we did. We - I killed the vampire prince. I doubt that would be overlooked, especially by Reginald's father, Vlad Drakon, the one who calls himself king of all vampires. The fight wasn't over, not by a longshot.

"I should've killed Lord Huxton when I had the chance. But I was too focused on fighting Reginald." I slammed my fist on the railing.

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Audrey. You did good. No one will dispute that."

As I was turning over these facts in my head, I heard another pair of footsteps approach. I turned and saw that it was Brendan and Cailey, fully clad in their paladin outfits. I hadn't seen much of them in the last couple of weeks, and the last time I did, they were disguised as enemy soldiers during our assault on Toronto.

"Brendan. Cailey," I said to them with a nod. "Looking good."

"Same with you," Brendan replied. "Rebecca's jacket...it suits you well."

"Brendan figured we'd find you here," Cailey added. "Lost in thought."

"That's right, I'm not much for the limelight. I don't really like being paraded around like a hero. Like some sort of champion."

"But you are," said Brendan. "You're a symbol now. The one who slew Prince Reginald and Princess Flavia. The unstoppable red-haired girl from Raven's Keep. Or Red Raven for short."

"They're calling me the Red Raven?" I said, unsure if to laugh or smile. Meredith chose to laugh.

"Yes, even out in St. John's. Prime Minister Jessica Tremblay sends her regards."

"The Canadian remnant government?" I said with a look of surprise. They were what was left of Canada when the vampires took over. "We're able to make contact with them?"

"Yes, after we took Toronto, we quickly seized control of all of the television and radio stations in the city. We were able to establish contact with them. And if they know what happened in Toronto, the whole world will know of our victory too. That means other paladin orders will also know that the Order of the Bear was able to triumph over House Drakon."

"We've given the world hope, Audrey," Cailey continued. "Hope that we can win. Toronto may be a small victory, yes, but the first one in five years of fighting. Rebecca would be proud of us. I know she would."

"But there will be more fighting to come," Meredith warned, stepping away from the railing and walking closer to Brendan and Cailey. "We can't afford to be complacent in our victory. Our mighty fascist neighbour to the south will eventually come knocking and asking for blood."

"But we'll be ready," I said, echoing Meredith's comments from earlier. "Right?"

"We will," Brendan and Cailey said in unison.

Meredith offered her hand to me, and I held onto it. It was cold, just like when I first held it back when I went into her dungeon cell to meet her face-to-face. A cold hand, but a warm heart. One I could trust, and maybe even grow to love.

"Yes, we'll be ready," she replied.

***

End of Book One

To Be Continued in Book Two: The Road of Fire and Shadows