Candy: Book 5 of the Lord Emperor Vampire Saga

GACK!!! See what happens when you don't check your upload..sorry guys..it spacing when I loaded it....don't know what happened...I will fix that now. rassafrackinword2007crappyjunkorama.

Thanks for hanging in there with me. I know some of you don’t like the way this is heading at the moment but as I am still plodding forward, although right now it’s like trudging through quick drying cement in a bugs bunny cartoon, I am moving forward. Back in Cloves when I had to scrap about seven chapters and start over again, it was because I had hit a wall. No way around it, no way over it, just no way to continue. No so with CANDY, I am progressing. Mush onwards, you Lycan, mush mush mush. So let me keep cheesing you off for a few more chappies and we’ll get back to the smexy good stuff after the Lycan business is settled.

And…I’m two pages short of 10 but it’s kicking my sass….

Read on…
As always…ENJOY (or grouse in silence….naw, if it sucks, tell me. I needs tah know.)


Chapter 201: The Red Russian

The decision went to Gregor.

Disappointment was a word that just didn’t encompass the deflation the Imperials and I felt. We watched stunned as Gregor’s Alpha Leader stepped toward the Overseer. How the hell did we lose? A hand dropped on my shoulder and I glanced back to see Bruce’s face dark with anger that the decision wasn’t for us. I could actually hear his teeth grinding together.

“Alpha Gregor.”

The big Lycan stepped forward. Maybe another winner might smirk and gloat over their upset, but Gregor was a battle hardened Alpha Male. No matter how absurd I found this, the dancing part, the showdown before the throw down part; this was not a simple battle. Actually no battle was ever simple. If you disregarded your opponent or underestimated him you had a high likelihood that you could end up mangled or dead. That wasn’t on my agenda for the day.

“Your Opponent?”

Gregor swept his eyes over us then settled on Manu. Just because the Maori Lycan was the smallest of us, it would be a mistake to think him the weakest. He was ranked third in the Pack. I shrugged off Bruce’s hand and stepped into Gregor’s line of sight. I wasn’t going to let him pick anyone but Alpha me.

/You choose anyone but me and you will never know if you could had taken the throne./ I challenged him.

His eyes narrowed. /I am the true heir. I have been named High Alpha./

/I’m going to be in your way no matter what. Just pick me and let’s get this done./

He paused. One of his pack came forward and whispered into his ear. No doubt they were talking about the fact that I fell on my ass when I changed into an Alpha. I could feel Gregor’s feral eyes on me but they were shuttered and unreadable. So they thought. I wasn’t going to be fighting as a Lycan. It would be suicide to try and fight with a weapon I was unfamiliar with. I was far from suicidal.

“Alpha Azrael.”

Everybody heard the slight in his voice. Bruce puffed up. For me?

Vladimir stepped in front of me. “Send the Nation a message My Lord Alpha Azrael. Make it quick. Make it decisive. Don’t let there be a question of your victory.”

I nodded then stepped forward toward the center stage. The Overseer had to be close to six feet. Gregor was about the size of my Marcus. I’ve taken my Puppy down hard when he needed it; not lately but it can be done. Size can be negated with skill. Strength can be negated with speed. I might not have been declared the winner of the challenge, but I have already pricked his will. The war is in the will. I’ve already one. It’s about time that Gregor learned that.

“To the submission or to the death, Alpha Gregor?”

“Submission.”

“During any battle there is a chance of death. When the challenger falls, or submits, the pack must disband. This must be sworn to now.”

“It’s a long ride home back to Japan, little white cub.”

“I’m not from the East and my boys aren’t going anywhere.”

“Confidence. What do you base it on?”

“Swear and find out.”

“Should I fall, my Alpha pack will disband.” Gregor turned and knelt before the Overseer offering up the Lycan bow.

“High Alpha, do you swear?”

I turned and bowed my head respectively toward the Overseer. I was Lord Emperor after all. “Should I fall, my Imperials will disband.”

“Take your marks.”

Hard and fast. That I can do. The Female color guard pointed to a spot where I was supposed to stand. The gash in the floor was dead center between us. “The challenge has been won. The terms have been set. The penalty has been agreed. BEGIN!”

Lycan Gregor could change fast. Wings of silver are faster. Skell’s wings ripped wide through the vents in the grey fighting leathers. I flared them wide which separated the individual feathers. I reached across my body, opposite sides, and ripped two feathers free. The quill part was smooth. Thank God for that otherwise I would have cut the hell out of my hands. I angled the long metal cutting edge so they rested against the thick leather of my forearms. I did this while I was jumping forward. I brought my wings up and around like a battering ram and slammed hard into Gregor. Apparently I got a little bit o’ Sexy in me, speed wise anyways because the Lycan wasn’t ready for me. Gregor slammed backwards and fell to the stage. I opened my wings and arched them, slamming them down on either side of Gregor’s Lycan wolvish head They dug into the wood again and I sat on Gregor’s waist. I rammed the upper part of my forearm up under his neck forcing his muzzle up and back. I twisted my wrists so the sharp edges of the feather blades rested on his throat. I pressed down hard enough to draw blood.

“I’ve cut off the head of Lycan before…I can do it again. Submit or die.”

/You are no Lycan, Vampire./

“You’re right. I’ve been forcibly bitten twice now by the Dennings family. I didn’t ask to be a Lycan. I didn’t ask to be made High Alpha, but here we are.”

/Then why are you here…facing the challenges? Isn’t the Vampire throne enough for you or are you power mad like your grandfather?/

Bad form slighting my family, however, I knew the truth of Lord Emperor Sigmund and he did more harm than good in his lifetime but it wasn’t intentional. In a moment of clarity, Sigmund righted his wrongs the best he could. He might have been mad, but it wasn’t for power. It was for a little peace.

I cut Gregor a little bit more just because he pissed me off but I was in complete control and I was going to make sure that he knew it. “I am here for Haley. We were littermates long before I was a Lycan. We grew together. We raised our litters together. He died while in my care. His murderer sits on the throne and watches even now… untouchable and gloating. You are in my way, cousin Gregor. If I have to go through you to avenge Haley’s death….then I will. I want blood; not yours but I will take it if you force my hand. This is the last time…Submit.”

/How do I know that you’re telling the truth?/

“Britta believed me. Why the hell do you think I’m 11th litter?”

There was a strong flash of gold in the Lycan’s eyes then Gregor twitched beneath me. I ended up sitting on a naked man. My feather blades were deep into his flesh and there would be scars. As it was my nostril was assaulted with his split blood. He might look like a human but he wasn’t. His Essence wasn’t a pure tone. Haley’s was a mix of merlot and wet dog. Was…had been. Vladimir was potatoes and wet dog. Ping was jasmine-ish and wet dog. Gregor was custard…and wet dog. Not the most pleasant of combinations to my enhanced sense of smell.

“I submit.”

“HOLD!” The Overseer yelled and just to make sure that we heard her she followed it up with a pack call.

/HOLD!!!/ Her sharp yip echoed around my skull.

I took my blades off of his neck and made sure that my hands were in plain sight. I remembered Bruce’s warning about the lack of good hearing and the teeth of the female Alphas. I leaned forward under my check was resting against Gregor’s. The smell of his blood was stronger this close up. “Swear fealty to me, Gregor. Once others know that Britta has passed, the Lycan Nation will be under attack.”

“The other packs…”

“There are more enemies in the world than just other Lycans. A strong leadership will stabilize the Nation. United we stand…divided pups will die. Those that burn the cradle, destroy the Nation.”

“Take the throne first, High Alpha. Take the throne and I will swear loyalty to the Line of Saitou.”

“It’s Dennings.” Actually it was Von Drachenfeld, but since this was a Dennings only affair, I was going with the flow. A rose by any other name would still smell as sweet.

Gregor snorted. “Not with that notch in your ear it isn’t. Lady Ping will keep you in line, High Alpha.”

I dissolved my wings and climbed off Gregor then I offered my hand down to him to pull him up. He regarded me for a moment, almost puzzled at my gesture then he extended his paw to me. I pulled him up from the stage and gave him a football like shoulder bump for ‘good game’.

Gregor raised his hand to his neck and looked down at the blood there. He reached out and dragged his thumb under my eye just along the sharp bone of my cheek. He reclined his head to me then bowed down to the Overseer hunching his shoulders up and forward and then waited for the official announcement.

“The winner, High Alpha Azrael. As per the agreement, the Alpha Pack of Gregor Dennings is dissolved. Return to your families and resume your former positions.” There wasn’t a sound in the arena or on the stage. I think I was the upset of the season here.

Gregor touched his forehead to the floor then rose and walked off the stage. The final act of his pack was to force open a path so their Alpha Leader could exit the battlefield gracefully. Gregor Dennings might be defeated but he was not beaten. You can’t help but admire that type of moxie.

The Overseer gestured me toward her. I approached holding my feather blades in my left hand. “The rate you are going, High Alpha, you are going to be re-building the whole arena.” There were two more gashes in the floor.
I just shrugged. She shook her head and brushed me away with the back of her hand.

I walked back to my pack. This was not a time of rejoicing. Any time an Alpha pack falls or is disbanded it is a bad omen for the Nation. I got slaps to my shoulders and my back but there was no verbal hooting or hollering. I went to wipe away Gregor’s bloody smudge from my face but Sang Kyu caught my wrist. “That is a mark of victory and of honor.”

I nodded. It stunk and I swear vapors were making my eye twitch but I left it alone. Hopefully it would dry quickly.

“Quick and decisive, Lord Azrael.” Vladimir smiled over at me. I could see what Claudia liked about him. Now that he was done sniffing around me, he was a stand up kind of guy…er…wolf. X didn’t hold anything against him for making time with ‘our’ wife. The truth be known, he had been rather worried that Claudia didn’t know what the hell she was getting herself into when the High Council of Vampires had ordered her to marry us. We could have been at the most best friends. While BFFs are great and all that, the bed gets lonely around three in the morning. That attempt at a hetero lifestyle back in college told all the brotherhood that we really didn’t belong in that type of relationship. Subjecting Claudia to that poor attempt would have been a slap in the face. Vladimir was someone she could rely on. Vladimir was someone she could turn to. I knew that he would die for her if it called for it. He would lay down his life for any one of the winglets. I knew that. I appreciated that.

That was why I was going to make sure that this pack didn’t get disbanded.

They, all the Imperials, might have grown up half a world away but they were part of my pod. I wasn’t going to fail any of them again.

Hate can burn a hole through you. I felt Frowny’s feral gaze on me as I stood with my crew. I returned his stony look. I felt the phoenix struggle within me. It would be so easy to just go burny on his ass but then that would leave the Lycan Nation in disarray. Orel Wessel was still around. Not in as great a number, in fact, the operations had moved underground but to discount their influence in random events of trauma would be a mistake. Baby bro was a sign of their mercy. Thirteen years and he still wasn’t right. Well, not ‘right’ but there were times he felt like he still didn’t belong in our happy massively overcrowded home. I lay that at Orel Wessel’s feet. There is still a reckoning to pay for that.

I dropped fang and flashed Frowny a growl. Our direct eye contact was broken as Bruce stepped in front of me. “Hennessy was a wimp of a whelp when he was young. The lack of character that was so apparent when he was growing up is even more so now.”

I blinked the blue flame out of my eyes and retracted my fangs. “Bruce, how the hell old are you?”

“I am two hundred and thirteen years old. Which is why I can still call you a pup, Lord Azrael. Clear the stage, the Overseer has acknowledged another challenge.”

Bruce herded all of us Imperial types off to stage left then down into the wings. “There was never a chance in hell that I would have been able to bring you unwillingly before Britta, was there.”

I patted Bruce on the shoulder. “Let’s just say you’re still around because we respected you.”

Manu dropped a stool beside me. “Impressive wingspan.”

I snorted. Father’s wings, hell Alexander’s wings out spanned me.

Manu flashed his white grin at me and crinkled his nose. “It’s not about size, Lord Azrael, it’s about how you use it.”

“I’m not short.” I returned with a narrow gaze.

“Neither am I.” He turned and wrapped an arm around Pytor. “Am I?”

The red headed Russian Lycan just head butted his partner.

My stomach growled. “I will hunt for you, Lord Azrael.” Sang Kyu turned and disappeared.

“Uh…”

“I’ll help.” Bruce motored off after Sang Kyu. What the hell?

The Overseer was mediating the next round of challenges. Manu and Pytor stood beside me in Imperial mode but still holding hands. That was cool. I had never really gotten into the backgrounds of the Lycan mainly because of the early conversations X and Haley had about Lycan country. What happens in Lycan Land, stays in Lycan Land. Pytor turned when he felt my eyes on him.

“Russian Circus?”

“Once upon a time. My family came from a long line of performers.”

“That’s were you two met?” As soon as I said that I had a flashback to running in the woods with the pack the first time. The lover’s shields were down and I had intruded in there private time. Pytor met Manu when the Maori Lycan rescued him from a dark small cage.

“Nyet.”

Manu turned towards me. The easy smile that was normally on his face was gone. “As you have said, Lord Azrael. There are more horrid out in the world than Orel Wessel. Humans who know the difference between full blooded Lycan and werewolves, and can tell the difference between pups and adults prey on the young. Do not speak of it, Pytor if it still hurts you.”

“Lord Skell has been a fine confidant and counselor, Lord Azrael.”

Apparently Skell has figured out Sex’s blocking ability – the way to keep precious moments private from the rest of us. But he chose things differently, X and I had all the freaky stuff Lanseng go up into but there was no mention of heart to hearts with any of the Imperials. All my experiences were an open book to the brotherhood. I had no secrets. I didn’t need any.

Pytor watched the two groups, Uter, fifth litter, yadda yadda yadda and Benny, seventh liter get ready for their dance.

“My family line were travelers, wanderers. We moved from place to place and somehow ended up with the circus. It was a small one. The humans were trusted with our secrets. The pups were in the sideshow to be looked upon but never touched. The adults were just wolves. Alphas in my line are rare. Lycan have better balance and control so it was easy to be acrobats and trapeze artists. I grew up in the sideshow. My mother and father were flyers. We pups only played animal for the crowds but the rest of the time when we were able we took human like form and learned to be a part of the act. Small circuses can run into difficulty. The owner lost the circus to debt but before we could leave they came in the night.”

“Who came?”

Manu tightened his hand on his lover. “Demon Hunters.”

“They swept in like a firestorm. Many of the performers were Bloods but the majority were Lycan. They killed all the adults. If the pups couldn’t change…they were killed too. Money was owed and money would be paid. I was still a young pup when my brothers and sisters were murdered. I watched the fires burn high into the night as the tent was set ablaze. The Demon Hunters brought us to a warehouse and the new owner turned us into fighters.” The red head stared across the stage but I could tell that he wasn’t seeing the first challenger dancing center stage. He was viewing his own personal hell. “They made us fight dogs. Sometime singles, most of the time a pack of two or three. Sometimes they would haul in a werewolf or another pup from somewhere else. It was all to the death.”

Manu turned toward me. “It was reported that these atrocities were happening. Alpha packs were sent out to find evidence. What we found sickened us. The night we came to liberate everyone…”

“They were one day too late.” Pytor’s voice was quiet.

“What happened?”

“They brought in third generation werewolves. All adults. It was a slaughter. We were just pups, seventeen of us walked into that arena. Three of us left. One died of her injuries on the way back to the warehouse. From what I understood from the guards, they had made a fortune and could retire from wolf fighting. The only debate now was if it was better to put a silver bullet in our head or to sell us.”

Manu pulled the red Lycan into his arms. “All the Alpha Teams in that region descended and we made the discussion a mute point. I found Pytor and freed him from that hellhole.”

“I am sorry for your losses Pytor.”

He turned and gave me a small smile. “I lost my memories of happier times for a long time. My heart was filled with hate for all humans. If I didn’t have Manu, I wouldn’t have survived. I have my family back in my heart now and it has grown large enough to encompass the pod.”

I spoke to Pytor in russian. “You look good in love.”

“Thank you Lord Azrael. You would know the look of love.”

What the hell was my love doing right now? My Marcus. My reminiscing was cut short as the sound of two Alphas ripped into each other. It was a long battle and it grew bloody as it continued. Finally about nine minutes in Uter made a critical error. Benny knocked the larger Lycan to the ground then locked his fangs around the pale yellowish grey Alpha’s throat. Uter submitted.

Two Alpha teams were now disbanded.

I caught Frowny’s look as he watched Uter get defeated. His dismay was palatable. He had expected the bigger grey Lycan to win. Upset set number two to his apple cart. Looks good on you, bastard.

Sang Kyu came back and handed me a lunch bag full of corned beef sandwiches and a can of Arizona ice tea. I glanced up to say thanks when I noticed his eyes were a little flushed and his lips were swollen and red. Uh…Bruce looked a little disheveled as well. He held a tray of little mini cakes and wagonwheels and…twinkies! Hmmm. Now that I think about it, I haven’t seen Sang Kyu with anyone. From what I understood, and we had already admitted that I wasn’t an Lycanthrologist, the Alpha Pack was just like a boy’s private school. You used what you had. Well that kind of came out wrong, but the gist was that the pack were fuck buddies. Manu and Pytor were the exception to the rule. Good for Kyu. Timing sucks.

Vladimir intercepted a challenger.

Bruce sat the tray beside me and whispered. “Vincent. Eighth litter. Young. Only about eighty. He’s been involved in minor skirmishes but nothing major. He’s a lefty.”

Aside from the dancing, this whole tournament challenge thing was very regimented and very code of conduct oriented. I expected there to be more blood. This was a good thing. What had Bruce said? In the past the Nation would rip itself apart with Alphas killing alphas in a free for all. Kind of like King of the Cage with a whole Generation of Alphas at risk. This alternative Britta imposed saved the blood line. Crafty Bitch. I mean that in a good way.

The stones were drawn and Baojia was called out.

Vladimir came back to the pod and knelt beside me as I pulled out a sandwich. I was starving. My only explanation was that Skell’s metal wings took more out of me than I expected. “This is going to be a lock for sure.” He reached into his suit pocket and pulled out a quarter fold piece of paper and handed it to me.

Starting position was arms akimbo with the knees knocking together. Shift weight back and to the side right and clap, arms straight down. Slide over to the left with leg leading the way, drag torso behind hip while splaying hand over forehead. Lift foot in a half hitch step, step ball chance, do a quarter turn, drag free leg in circle ending up with top of foot running from back of knee to the ankle.

I looked up from the papers. “This might as well be a foreign language.”

“Watch.”

Baojia came forward and took the starting position. It was a song I didn’t recognize. But when he began to move he made everything fluid and graceful and rather Usher-esque. Ahhhh…

We won this round. I wiped my hands clean and stood up ready to take the next fight. I would rather go Alpha to Alpha with the Pack leader than pick on a lesser rank. The blame for dissolution should fall on the shoulders of the ones who called the pack together to begin with.

I pointed at Vincent. He snarled back at me.

“Let’s dance.” I smiled back at him. Now, this was my kind of dancing.


* * *

here I go again, dragging my keyboard behind me....and a puppy. and two disgruntled kitties...plot, I must plot some more...somewhere my big dog is running around in the woods stinking like a skunk...oh the joys of spring. Later Loyal!!