Caramel: Book 3 of the Lord Emperor Vampire Series

As the spring heralds a new growing season, it also kicks up allergies which in turn starts to kick my ass. It’s hard to think through a stuffy head and watery eyes. But here’s the next chappie. Enjoy!!

General Questions

Q: How did Marcus get there? Lanny was watching him back at the brownstone.
A:Lanseng & Marcus have had a frank decision (later, later -- I'll talk about it later) Marcus still has to go to work. He is #2 after all.

Sesshomarunaraku
Q: I still can’t remember when Marcus left A alone for the first time.
A: This happened at the end of Cake when Marcus fixated on X (raped & stalked). Az would hunt him down and he would bugger off. Az mentions this in the beginning of Cinnamon when he mind walks Marcus and tried to get him off of X.

Laur
Q: Okay, if something happens between the bloods they all go before a board and that board decides what to do?
A: Nope. Each Blood Nation is independent of each other. Sigmund tried to unify everyone and got whacked for it. Only Hashmallim can do that, and that is through brute force. The Vampires are the strongest and can be viewed as the arbitrators, if the complainants can get their petition sponsored by someone on Council they will get a ruling by the High Council and the Vampires will see that ruling enforced. Meanwhile, the Hunters are like Interpol. They police all illegal activity and act against the Blood (doesn’t matter which Nation is doing the damage) in preservation of humanity. There is a tenuous peace (status quo) between all the Bloods that the SAX/Britta feud will most likely upset.

A taste of insanity
Q: Back to Cake, I never understood why Armor left that time, after x proposed to him and X called out in his sleep.
A: This shows the Marcus/Armor dynamic. They don’t talk to each other. They are classic sibling rivalry. Marcus sicced Armor on X. A wanted X for his own and fought like mad against M to stay while he trained X to love him. (Yah, this is messed up.) Once he got X’s declaration, he let down his guard. He had won over M. X was his and was going to remain his. X calling for Trisha blew him away- shook him to his core. A retreated because he emotionally at this time he is only about two years old.

Well, that’s my take on it. Willing to hear other points of view.

Jenna T.
Love the compliment. It made me giggle.

Thanks for the R&R from the Loyal. Thanks for staying with me. It is much appreciated. Kudos to you all: Rosei; Rosemary; newmoon/brittany; k; bambigirl; Astra; Mihara; Spirit; SODA; Sfroza; Steph8503 and Paradox


Chapter 106: Discovery

Sasha stroked my hair with his face.. His hands were locked tight around my chest. I just quivered. My wings shimmered in agitation, the sound of clinking broken glass was grating on my nerves. I knew the wings battered at my black haired lover.

“Drop the blade, Sex. Relax. He is gone now….sssshhh.”

The blood that was pounding in my ears slowed and I was able to make out the crooning noises he was making. Blade? I looked down at my hand. It was bloody….and sticky tight. Clarity snapped down. I cut Marcus. I dropped my blade. It went ka-thump.

“Sex…” Sasha kept pressing against me, gently. Bump with the hips. Whoa…my black haired blanket of calm. I took a couple of deep breaths. “…relax…”

“I’m good, Sasha….I’m okay.” I cut Marcus, badly. Fucker deserved it. He made Azrael cry. I stilled. It was worse. Marcus broke him. I could hear him in the darkness. He was trying to stifle his sobs. My little annoying brother was broken. There was no way X was going to find him in that darkness, even if Azrael wanted to be found.

“No, you are not. Get rid of these.” I willed my wings away. Father pulled me back tighter to him. “I need to see to Marcus.”

I bit my tongue. I almost, stupidly, just about but bit it back , gave Father an ultimatum. Be with me, or go to him. My stomach clenched. I didn’t want to know which one Father would choose…and honestly, I was scared it wouldn’t be me. We were grown men, not squabbling siblings. We shouldn’t have our Father running interference.

I nodded. “I will be back soon, Sex.” I watched sort of numb has Father took off at a run to the office door.

Where did that rage come from? It was just overwhelming. I didn’t even have a chance to think. I just dropped my blade and punched out. A little lower, I could have slit his throat. I’d have to remember that. I went to cross my arms around myself then noticed the stiffness as Marcus’ blood dried on my skin.

I should call maintenance to get the blood out of X’s carpet.

/Sex, get down here. I can’t find Azrael./

/He doesn’t want to be found./

/I don’t give a rat’s ass what he wants. He shouldn’t be alone. Now, get down here. You’re the lightening bug. I can’t see a damn thing./

I propped myself against the window and slid to my ass. I closed my eyes and rested my head back against the pane. I tried to relax….just relax. Focus on a single light, a perfect circle on the ground. My body just got heavier and heavier. I could hear my breathing even out and get calm. I envisioned a circle of light surrounded by darkness. I opened my eyes and found myself in that circle of light.

Xavier walked up, red winged, crimson haired and in a temper. /What?/

/You cut Armor’s face./

/It was Marcus…it’ll heal. Father went running off to find the whiny bastard./

/Well, look who’s turned into a royal prick./

/I am the original royal prick./ I cocked my head and listened. Azrael knew we were there. He knew we were looking for him. He stopped sobbing but he was hurting, out there somewhere in the darkness. He was so tough. He was used to standing alone. Right now he needed tenderness. Brotherly love. /Where are you, you annoying little ass?/

/Yeah, that will make him want to come out./

Aside from me flying all over the darkness, which would be foolish as I had no idea where I’d be flying to, or into; the only other way I could think of to at least light the area temporarily was fireworks. I could feel Xavier’s eyes on me as I walked out past the circle of light and called on the hand of light. I fashioned my bow and arrow, notched it and pulled back pointing it skyward. I didn’t know if I would have any control over the bolt once I let it so. I might just look stupid. Wouldn’t be the first time.

I watched the arrow race skyward. When it looked like it was at the top of its arc, one thought just came to my head. /Explode./

Shades of the deathstar, remixed. Whoa. A blue pulse of light flashed then radiated out like a smoke ring, glittering and sending a strobe light effect through the dark. Then the after shock rumbled the ground beneath our feet; I dropped to one knee. Flash, rumble, flash. X pointed behind me. Azrael sat on the ground staring up at the sky.

/WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT!?/

X hurried passed me. I climbed back to my feet and looked up at the after effect. That was wickedly cool. There was one final flash then the darkness started to encroach on us again. From what I could see, this plain was just a neverending flat horizon extending out in 360 degrees. I turned my Phoenix on brighter and hustled in the same direction X had motored to.

/What part of leave me alone don’t you guys understand?/ Azrael gripped at us.
/Shut up./ X dropped to his knees and brought his wings around little brother in a protective cocoon.

/Welcome to the club, little brother./

/What club?/

/The He-man woman haters club….what do you think?/ I stepped closer illuminating the area in a bright blue glow. /Why are you in red?/

All three of us looked down and sure enough, Azrael’s signature black wear was now a crimson burgundy – tank, cargos, boots. /I guess, I’m still bleeding internally./

I lowered myself behind him, my Phoenix wings were bigger than X’s so I hiked them up and over enfolding both of my brothers. I offered what comfort I could pressing my face of the opposite side of X’s hold. /I’m so sorry, Azrael./

/It’s not fun to be let down.” Xavier added,

Azrael gave a deep breath but there was a shudder under it. /You got Armor. You know you got Armor. Sex has got Father. Everybody knows that. I wanted him, but I never had Marcus. I think now, even when we switched, he wasn’t with me./

X reached out and caught me by the back of the head. His hand tangled lightly in my pure white hair. /You didn’t have to kick him out of Von Drachenfeld, Sex./

/Yes, I did. I think I would have killed him if Father hadn’t jumped me./

/What did I say about this? You need to think before you act, Sex./

/I was just so angry./ I wasn’t going to offer an apology. The bastard deserved it.

/I thought you hated my guts./ Azrael whispered.

/You weren’t playing asshole lately, so I thought it was okay to love you. There were times, I wanted to hurt you, especially when you were calling me names; but that was before Father./

/What? You can hurt me, but no one else can?/

/Basically./

Azrael just slumped between us. X had his front, I had his back. His voice was a whisper. /Please tell me, this gets better. It’s not going to hurt this way forever?/

/It’s going to hurt for a while It will get better. Then something will just strikes you odd one day and it starts all over again…but it’ll get better again. Eventually it will be just a dull ache./ X stroked his neck and shoulder.

/I wish I could heal like you guys. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt so much./

/I don’t think it works that way, but here goes./ I called on the healing light. My wings flared to bright white illuminating the ground around us. Power tingled down my spine and I could feel my hair stand up on end. Why the hell did we have to be in the dark? Liam had a frickin’ ocean front view.

Cold sand seeped into the legs of my suit. What the… All three of us broke apart and looked around sort of panicked. None of us had a good experience of Liam’s beach. Wait a minute. Liam was merged with William now. He can’t come back here. He’s a red. I raised a hand to my mouth.

X took that time to turn around. “What did you do, Sex?”

“What makes you think I did this?”

“The oh-my-god-my-brothers-are-going-to-kill-me expression on your face.” X returned with a hiss.

“Get us the hell out of here.”

How did I do it last time? I wish I was back in the dark. I fell over on my ass in the dark. “X? Az?” There was no answer. Oh crap. I wish I was back on the beach. Az turned around and jumped on me. He knocked me back into the sand. Thank goodness the Phoenix wings had gone. I was melting sand the last time I was here.

“What the hell do you think you’re pulling?” He grabbed me by the hair and rattled my brains.

“I don’t know! I don’t know. Get off.” I smacked him and scrabbled to my feet.

“Calm down. Everybody. Gees, we sound like girl scouts out camping for the first time.” Xavier stood up and looked around. “I’m going to assume this place is real and not a figment of Liam’s imagination. I couldn’t get out of here by myself last time. I don’t think you could either, Azrael.”

“You know I bit Liam.”

“How much you drink?”

“As much as I could before he beat me to the ground. I didn’t exactly have a measuring cup. It should have filtered down to you guys.”

“What did you do?”

“I wanted the hell of this beach before Liam ripped my wings off. I just said I wanted to go back to Claudius Just now, I said I wanted to go back to the Dark.”

“Try it.” X gestured at Azrael. It was like he just started faded into nothingness. Sort of a Star Trek transporter shift without the cool sound effects.. I looked over at X. He did it a little quicker. Azrael transported back in.

“I prefer the beach.” X said as he popped back into view. “Well this is interesting. What else have you been holding out on me?”

“Show him that samurai knight armor you picked up. And…Endellion.”

“Endellion?”

“You were out like a light bulb, X. Sexy here did pretty damn good. He did a whack job on five Hunters then he drove the biggest alpha male Lycan I have ever seen into submission.”

“You killed hunters?”

“I didn’t kill hunters. I just defended myself.”

“He mindfucked a talent from one of them. Damn impressive too. I can’t work that fast.”

X held a couple of fingers to the bridge of his nose. He was getting pissed. I moved off a bit and called on my Phoenix. I felt the warm wind stir around me. /Endellion…show yourself./

I felt an answering brush of awareness. /Hashmallim…by your command./

It felt as if a blanket was draped over my shoulders. I opened my eyes and saw X just stare. I glanced down and saw the breast plate but more importantly the black hilt of the blue katana.

“Liam said she only comes in the time of Hashmallim and usually only to him. He actually kind of freaked about it. Azrael, you have one.”

Az and his short funky hair and crimson garb looked down at his side and found the same blade as mine sticking from his belt. Both of us looked over to Xavier. He had nothing.

“Do you have armor?”

I got an evil eye for that remark but both X and Az furrowed their brows and tried to pop a blood vessel. There was a whoosh of wind sound and Az was standing in crimson Japanese armor. There was a howling wind and I had to close my eyes as sand blew up blinding up. I flared my wings blocking most of the debris and wiped my eyes. Xavier was standing in electric blue European armor with a helm that had a gigantic crest on it…something like the Romans. But he didn’t have Endellion.

/Why don’t we all have a sword?/

/You are Hashmallim. You are Pi-Zues One destroys; One creates. One aligns; One rules One annihilates; One saves. This Endellion will serve this Hashmallim./

Oh, crap.

I looked over at my brothers and they were still staring at me funny. “What? You didn’t hear her talk to you?”

“You just zoned out there for a minute, bigger brother.”

I let a hysterical chuckle escape before I slapped a hand out over my mouth. X struggled out of the helm, “Sex?”

“Xavier, you were panicking for nothing. You don’t have Endellion, because you aren’t Hashmallim. Azrael, you didn’t hear her?”

“Nothing.”

I willed the armor and the katana away. I dropped my wings then sank to my knees.

“In the End of days,
He will come upon fiery wings,
A creature no Blood can call his own
Through a storm of fire and silver he will walk
Rendering asunder all we have known
Or can remember.”

Xavier’s voice stopped.

Azrael crouched in the sand. He looked absolutely at home in that blood red armor. On top of the crimson helm was a phoenix with outstretched wings. Oh how apropos. “Sex, you’re the one with the Phoenix wings when we end up together. You’re with one who can walk through your blue fire basically unscathed. You got the silver hair.”

I think I stared at him horrified. “Its white.”

“Not when you’re in Phoenix mode. It’s silver.”

“And, we are not exactly simple Bloods. Human, Vampire, Ocanlov demon, Hellcat and Lycan, if the truth be told.” Xavier dropped hid helm into the sand. “What do you mean, I’m not Hashmallim?”

“Endellion promised to make my throne out of the skulls of my enemies. Just now she said that One is Hashmallim, he destroys and One is Pi-Zues, he creates. Someone who creates, doesn’t need a sword.”

“Harbinger of destruction,
Destroyer of Darkness
He will walk in blood and light
Hashmallim, the Illuminated.“

“So that leaves, X as the Illuminated. Destroyer of Darkness, has to be you, Sex cause he walks in blood and light. That leaves me as the Harbinger. Well that just sucks, doesn’t it. I just get to kill things.”

“None of this has to be true. Who says that we are death? Who has we have to do this?”
Xavier stared at both of us. His eyes were conflicted.

“I think this is why you are Pi-Zues. You feel so much, X.” I opened my mouth to say something else when it felt like someone took a hold of my lower intestines and yanked me to a bungee halt with them. I bent over and wretched.

“Sex!”

I held my stomach. “Someone is moving our body…”

“Get moving!”

I want to go back to Claudius. Hands were gripping my shoulders tight. I was cold…icy cold. I thrash and struck out with my arms and kicked with my feet. Water splashed everywhere. My elbow connected with something and I heard a crunch and the hands dropped off me. I sank beneath the water. I choked and fought my way back to the surface. I was in a pale blue tub…my tub in my private office. I coughed and turned to see who the hell was trying to drown me.

Liam sat on the tile, holding his broken nose. Blood poured out of the hand that cupped his face.

“What the hell where you doing?”

“Saving your life, you…..emperor. You broke my nose.”

I flipped my hair out of my eyes and looked down at my half naked self. “Yah, tell me how stripping me naked while I’m unconscious equates to saving my life?”

“You can’t spirit walk for a long period of time without a guardian for your body. Your vampire body will burn if it isn’t cared for.”

I noticed I was in ice cold water. I was starting to shiver. I reached over and tried to get out of the tub. I was so weak. Liam reached out and helped me crawl out and land on the floor. “You need to be regulated if you are going to be out of your body for more than ten minutes.”

Damn it. “Drop your hand.” I called on the Healing Light and knelt before the Ancient. Blood was still pouring freely. “On three, I’ll straighten it. Count.”

“One…”

I gripped his nose and wrenched it back into place with a creaking sound. He shrieked then I healed him.

“Spirit walking is a dangerous thing, Sex. It should only be done in emergencies, or with someone you trust.” He grabbed a towel and handed it to me. He dunked his face into the tub and scrubbed at the blood. The water turned pink. He looked down at his white shirt and swore. “We’re not going to have time to get me another shirt. He stripped it off and held it under water.”

“What do you mean?”

“Spirit walking?”

“What’s the time thing?”

“Didn’t I tell you? Frederick has the publicity photo shoot set for tonight. It’s an all Vampire crew so you’ll be using your wings. I keep forgetting I’m not a big as I normally am. Maybe something of yours would fit.” Liam hauled me to my feet and gave me the bums rush to the bed. I flopped on it and my icy cold hair landed in the small of my back. Cold….brrr.

I toweled my head dry. Having a complete conversation with Liam was going to be novelty. I was tired. I needed blood. Something flew at me. I raised my hand instinctively and caught a blood pack. “Drain it. I’ll get Hades to warm one up. I can’t work that wavey microbe thing. The last blood pack blew up in there. Had to replace it. Maintenance can be so bitchy.”

“Speaking of bitch…where the hell is Hades?”

“Getting your, I don’t know what to call it, it’s too late from brunch, and it’s not dinner…dupper?” Liam turned and pulled a pale grey tee-shirt over his head. It stuck to him like plastic wrap. “It’ll have to do.”

“I got a call from my sister while we were on our way to Tokyo. My mother had a heart attack. There was a new Lady Regent crowned and I knew nothing about it. Shayne said she called my assistant.”

Liam paused and sort of zoned out for a minute. “I never took a call from your sister. William didn’t either.”

“Hades is still fucking up.”

“He’s trying now.”

“He needs to try harder.” I stuck the cool bag on my fangs and sucked it dry, just like a juice pack until it collapsed in on itself. “More.”

“It’s cold.”

“I’ll live.” He disappeared for a minute then came back carrying a new pack and a brush.
“Liam, I know you want to be with Cillian, but you need to tell us stuff like this spirit walking.”

“I didn’t think you could do it.”

“I didn’t know I could either. It just happened.”

“Just like Endellion?”

“Yah.” Liam sat on the bed behind me and began brushing my hair. It felt good.

“She is an eternal power. I’m not exactly sure what she is, but when change was needed in the Blood Nations, she would come to the most powerful—he who would be Hashmallim. She is a soul killer. Your Hellcat groupies would like her but I think they prefer giving you their memories and allowing you their essence. In their own way, they are remaining in this world. Your grandfather, was just a user.”

“Don’t speak of Sigmund. You drove him to suicide.”

Liam stilled, “He accepted the offer of merging freely. Once I merge with an entity, we are intermingled. There is no backing out or changing your mind. Sigmund couldn’t live like that. He had been dancing on the razor’s edge for years before I finally approached him. I was just the catalyst that set everything in motion. He wanted to die. I ceased trying to stop him. Still, it was a betrayal to have your most trusted advisor literally stab your in the back.”
“Thomas.”

“Yes. I take it, Sigmund’s bitch told you that.”

“She was a psycho.”

“But an effective one. She was glorious on the battlefield, bathed in the blood of the enemy. Too bad. Are you falling asleep on me?”

“No…”

“I will wake you when Hades gets here with the food, or if Black Death returns. Nice cut. It would leave a scar on anyone other than a Vampire. Still, Marcus will remember what you did. It is good to see that you will protect your family, Number One, with force and conviction. It shows character.”

I laid down on my back with my head resting near the edge of the bed. Liam shifted and continued to brush and dry my hair. “You know this reminds me of brushing out my horse’s tail.”

“You calling me a horses’ ass?”

“Never.”

I closed my eyes.

“You’re more of pony. You’re too short to be a horse.”

“Liam….” I said with a warning in my voice.

I felt his breath on my forehead then the soft brush of lips. “Ask any questions you want, Little Emperor. I’m not a mind reader in this body. I will be your source stream.”
He started his brushing again. “Rest, you need to look pretty later. Tears, do not become you, Edward.”

“Sex.”

“Not right now, I’m involved with a jealous little shepherd who knows how to shear a troublesome lamb.”

“Lamb my ass. You’re mutton if you’re a day.” I closed my eyes and let the gentle rhythmic tug of the brush ease my troubled mind. Sasha….where are you? You should stay with me. I’ll never ask you out loud, because I’m terrified of what your answer would be. Your Fallen Angel needs you. I need you. Please, come back soon.