148. Klaus

CHAPTER 148

Klaus

We become aware of Oberon's arrival and go listen to what he has to say. Especially after what happened with the Lycans that we had spared, we're concerned there may be others plotting silently in the shadows.

Jayce's mom is kind enough to take all of the children back to their playroom while the adults handle these pressing matters. There's a study on the first floor that we tend to use for our meetings, so I head there immediately. Nicodeamus is already there and has checked and made sure that there are no additional passageways into the room.

Oberon has put himself at the head of the table, sitting with his legs crossed, sipping on what I guess is a glass of white wine. He regards everybody as they enter and then motions for everybody to sit. I can see the tick in the corner of Aurora's eye, which generally tells me she is not pleased with how everything is starting. Oberon, unbeknownst to him, is sitting in her chair. I can watch the various emotions flicker over her face as she tries to maintain the aura of calm that she needs for this meeting. I decide now, feeling that I may as well test my metal. I stand before everyone at the end of the table, directly facing Oberon. "I assume you have heard about what transpired here." I tilt my head slightly to the side, looking at him. "From what I understand, you would be able to tell who is friend and foe?" I raise the question gently, not wanting to aggravate the ancient before me.

He smiles, sets his glass down, and then plays with a strand of his long, white hair. "But of course, young one," he says with the flourish of his hand. "That is exactly why I've come." He smiles and lightly lowers his head to me before looking back up.

"I am here to assist the young queen as well as protect and preserve her valuable bloodline." He makes a circle with his hand over the top of the table, and under it, shimmering into view is a scroll. Aurora, who is sitting off to his right, leans over to look at the scroll and then quirks an eyebrow up. Her eyes dart between her father and Oberon, then back down to me, then back over to the scroll. By the way, she's looking at it I can only determine she cannot read what is on it.

Nicodeamus, who is sitting on Oberon's left, leans over and looks at the scroll as well. He furrows his brows, staring at it quite curiously. "Dear friend, is there a way for you to translate this for all of us to be able to read?" he asks cautiously, not wanting to upset or aggravate the ancient before him.

Oberon laughs a little. "Silly me, I keep forgetting that not everyone can read ancient Elvish." He throws his hands up in "the oops, my bad" position and then runs his hands over the scroll again. Within a few moments, the scroll is in English and able to be read by everyone.

Oberon slowly sides the scroll over to sit in front of Aurora. I watch her eyes dart left to right as she reads through the scroll. Through the bond, I can hear her clear as day as she reads the contents out loud for us. The details within tells the story of the creation of the Blood Queen. Aurora's great-grandmother didn't just happen; she was thoughtfully engineered by the fae.

This new news is shocking to us, and Aurora looks between her father and Alaric. The repercussions that this could have on the twins are incredible. Aurora's eyes read down to the line describing the mark of the Blood Queen. Those that can tap into her power usually bear the mark of the crescent moon on their body somewhere.

Aurora quickly looks to her wrist, and sure enough, she has a very faint crescent moon. Her eyes glow and take on that ethereal quality that we know all so well. Shortly after, both Ladon and Tia show up. Aurora carefully grips their wrists, examining them. Both twins bear a double crescent moon on their right wrists. Aurora motions for both of her children to show Oberon their wrist. He examines both of the children's wrists and then Aurora's. He reaches out and then grabs Nicodeamus's as well. His is the faintest of the four of them. Tia has the darkest marking out of the four of them. It's still faint in comparison to a tattoo but yet dark enough to be seen easily.

I move closer to the group, looking over exactly what Oberon is examining. "What does this mean for my family?" I ask as I put my hands protectively on Aurora's shoulders, standing behind her. I'm willing to do anything necessary to keep her and all of our children safe.

Oberon smiles and then reaches out and touches my hand. "Young king, you are doing exactly what needs to be done. You are supportive of your mate and protective of any of the children born into this union. These two," he motions to Tiamat and Ladon, "will need a lot of guidance and training as they grow in age. Nicodeamus, yourself, and your son-in-law, Alaric, will need to teach these two how to use their frost and their flames wisely. Aurora, you will need to work with your daughter on some of the gifts that she has, for her brother does not have them," he says gently as he scoops Tia up and sits her in his lap. He pulls the back of her collar on her shirt to the side, looking down her spine, taking note of the scales present even in her human form.

"She is almost an exact replica of the Blood Queen. She bears the scales of her great-great-grandmother," he says as he shows us the line of scales across Tiamat's shoulders and the set about three to four scales wide running down her spine. "She will have access to powers and gifts that the rest of the Dragons in this room do not. You must protect her fiercely; she is the deadliest of all of you." Oberon smiles and gently rests his fingertips on Tia's temples.

"I have already foreseen who her mate is. He is born of a great house and is a blend of two dragon species. He is approximately three calendar years older than she is." Oberon gently hugs Tia holding her to him. "Princess, you will need to learn all that your parents and grandfather can teach you. There will come a time that you will need to do everything within your power to protect yourself." He kisses her cheek gently as she turns to face him.

"What do you mean, Obie?" Tiamat asks. She gently places both of her hands flat on his cheeks smiling up at him. Chronologically, right now Tia appears to be about the size of a six-year-old child. Unlike her appearance mentally, she is far advanced for her age.

Oberon smiles at the nickname that Tia had given him. "Young princess, I cannot tell you everything that I've seen in the future. But I can tell you this: your future mate is a good man. He comes from great parents as well as a peaceful and powerful kingdom." He smiles as he places his hands over Tia's hands on his face. "Do as your father asks to be able to protect you. Please, do not be angry at him over the extreme measures he may take in the future." Oberon's eyes move to lock with Alaric's. "Everything that is going to be done from this day forth has your safety in mind, princess." Oberon gently kisses Tia on her forehead. And then he gently passes her back over to Aurora.

Oberon's eyes take on a blue glow as he turns his palms upward. We can feel the power stretching and radiating off of his form. Nicodeamus smiles and then alerts us through the bond that he is reaching out, sensing who still has malice in their heart.

Just shy of fifteen minutes later, Oberon's eyes stop glowing, and he smiles, looking at us. "All of those that you have in the dungeon should be sentenced to death immediately. They are the last of the uprising that was about to be staged here in this very castle. Two of them were plotting to murder the children; the rest figured that they can take out Aurora in her sleep," Oberon says with the finality that sends a chill down my spine. My nerves are on edge now, thinking about all the times that we could have possibly come into harm's way.

"If I understand correctly, ancient one, if we eliminate those in the dungeon, we should be safe?" I say because I'm pretty sure I already know his answer.

"Simply put, yes." He smiles and claps his hands and then rises from his chair. "Eliminate these threats, and your home will be safe. The Winter Palace is your next visit; there may still be some that might cause issues there as well." He starts to head towards the door and then stops. "I will meet you there next month on the full moon. Together we shall seek out the last of those who wish your bloodline harm, young Queen," he states just before he drops into a flourished bow. As he moves to stand up straight, his form shimmers and then vanishes from sight.

"I don't think I'll ever get used to seeing that with him," Arnulf states flatly, being the mystic of the group, magic usually upsets him slightly. "I hope that he's wrong; I really don't want the children growing up in fear," Arnulf says softly, sighing at the end of his statement. He runs his hands through his hair and then looks at the rest of us for our reactions.

I move from where I'm standing to go and give Arnulf a hug. "Don't worry, with the eight of us here we will do everything within our power to keep all of the children safe." I embrace him a little tighter for a few more moments before releasing him.

Dimitri moves forward and places his hands flat on the tabletop. "I will send the War Dragons to finalize the executions. After that, I believe it would be wise for us to head to the Winter Palace and clean house there too." His eyes drift over to Alaric, who nods slowly in agreement.

"I believe you're correct, old friend. We will handle the Winter Palace and then the Summer Chalet." Alaric begins to pace the room before coming back to stand next to Aurora. "All kidding aside, my love, I believe our safest bet is to move everybody to either the Summer Chalet or the Winter Palace. That is until either you're done having children, or the children are old enough to protect themselves."

You can almost see the gears turning in Aurora's mind as she weighs the options out before her. "Sadly, I believe your deduction is the most accurate and safest course for our family." Aurora stands slowly and begins to pace around the table. "In the interest of safety for all the children born and yet to be born, we should move swiftly." Aurora moves to come and stand before me. "Appoint your grandmother as pack master for the German Lycan pack."

I lower my head to my mate and raise my fist to my heart. "Your wish is my command, my angel. As you have spoken it, it shall be done." I furiously began to type on my phone, sending the message to my grandmother, alerting her about Aurora's wishes. Through the pack bond, I hear Aurora reach out to both the American and German Lycan packs. She tells them that my grandmother, Elsa, shall be pack master in her absence. That Elsa's word is law and carries as much weight as her own. Any who rise up against her shall meet her talons. The respective pack members answer one by one, agreeing to the terms set forth by Aurora. Her eyes meet mine, and she nods.

She moves to stand before Dominik and Jayce taking both of their hands. "Your brother, Alex, will remain in power as my proxy for the Dire Wolf pack." Her eyes take on the ethereal glow as she uses Dominik as an anchor to reach out to the Dire Wolves. She sends word to the pack, advising them that Alex is still in charge of them. Dominik backs Aurora up immediately, telling them that his brother is still his proxy in his absence. His word is their law and to go against him is to stand against the crown. The Dire Wolves all are in agreement and understand what needs to be done.

Aurora looks to Alaric next; their eyes start to glow with that ethereal halo around the whites of their eyes. They're reaching out to all of the dragons and dragon-kin, alerting them about what is about to happen. Aurora smiles as she sits there, I'm assuming making plans for transport for all of us.

"Is everything set?" I ask them as their eyes lose that ethereal glow. I look carefully now, between myself and the other mates, and then back over to the two of them. They nod their head slowly, then Aurora starts to head for the doors.

"I'll have the babies ready within the next thirty minutes. After that, we leave for the Winter Palace," she says, so sure of herself that she will be able to get the babies ready and out the door in less than thirty minutes. The other mates and I start to place bets as to whether or not she'll be able to accomplish this feat.