3. Dimitri

CHAPTER 3

Dimitri

NIGHT OF THE WOLF CELEbrATION

Moldavia, Romania

November 30, 1791

Festivities are underway within the Lycan castle. Wolves and other shifters from surrounding clans are gathered for the celebrations. Queen Anca sits upon her gold and crimson dais, hand resting on her heavily pregnant belly. Her dark crimson gown hugs her generously. Within her womb is the heir to the Lycan Empire. Her gunmetal-gray eyes follow her mates' movements throughout the hall as they mingle with the various creatures gathered. I notice the mild contractions had begun almost a half-hour ago. It was still too soon to alert anyone to the impending birth. This child would be the first one born in about one hundred years. How fitting that the pup chose tonight to make its appearance.

I am a local Great Bear Shifter, tasked with the protection of the Queen and Heir. My hazel eyes lock onto the Queen's hands and her stomach; something has changed. My eyes churn, turning golden as my bear rises to the surface. Quickly I cut through the crowd and arrive at her side.

"My Queen, is it time?" I tilt my head to the side, eyes focused and muscles tensed, ready to spring into action. The Queen slowly turns her head to face me.

"Soon, my friend. Send Andre to gather the Elder Dame to my chambers. We will follow shortly." Anca's voice is strained as she tries to remain composed, watching the gala. I turn slowly and lock eyes with Andre; a simple short nod of the head sends him off to do his Queen's bidding. I then watch for the Queen's mates to look towards the dais; one by one, they are given the signal—only the Alpha King, Vladimir, approaches.

"Is it time, my love?" he speaks reverently to his mate. His tone, however, doesn't convey the affection his words suggest. He offers her his hand and helps her stand up. Anca nods her head slightly. Carefully and slowly, she stands. Vladimir and I flank her as we escort her to the birthing chambers. Several stops are made as the contractions increased in power. Poised and proper to a fault, Anca refuses to show pain or weakness. She clenches her jaw and lightly growls through the pain. Her eyes bleed to the liquid mercury of her she-wolf, both of them anxious to meet their pup. Once within the chambers, the Elder Dame leads her to the bed and prepares her for the birthing. Vladimir paces the rooms anxiously, waiting for the arrival of his firstborn child. I move and take my post just outside of the chamber, but remain close enough if I need to get back quickly. The Queen's agonizing screams during labor makes even my big bear cringe. The tones she hits sounds like she is being murdered within her chambers.

A sudden pounding on the door startles me, making me turn and rip the door open. In the hallway, I find the Queen's second mate, Mikhail. His face and clothes are covered in blackened blood. "The Strigoi are attacking; we must evacuate Anca and the pup, now!" As soon as his statement leaves his bloody lips, I whip my head around, looking back towards the birthing chambers. Anca's blood-curdling screams pierce the night.

"I'll see to it myself, M'lord. Send Andre. Worst case scenario, he can fly off with the pup while we move your mate." I hope my words are what Mikhail wanted to hear. A swift nod was all he gave before he retreats and takes off running down the hallway. I double bolt and barricade the door before running to update my charges. Andre's Golden Eagle sits on the windowsill before dropping into the room to join the evacuation.

Anca screams and thrashes on the bed with each contraction. Unable to shift, she grips onto the sheets for dear life. The Elder Dame keeps passing different herb mixtures to Anca, but nothing is helping. Without warning, the sheets start staining red with blood. Way too blood much for it to be from labor alone. The Elder Dame draws back the drenched sheet to find tiny white talons ripping through Anca's flesh. Anca screams, her voice growing horse from effort. Nicodeamus's dragon calls back to her in the distance.

Several moments pass, and the partially-shifted little baby has clawed its way free of her mother's womb. The blood-drenched, hairless Lycan pup paws at the flesh of its mother as it drags itself free of her womb. Vladimir orders for his daughter to be cleaned immediately and tended to. He shows no concern for the Queen as she lies dying, bleeding out in her own bed. Her dying words whispered, begging for her Seraphina to be protected. I watch Anca as the life drains from her body, desperately wanting to save her but not sure how to. The internal damage to Anca's body is too significant. The Queen expires silently, her lifeless gray eyes looking in the direction of her daughter. I turn, watching the Alpha pace back and forth next to the bed. Vlad is deep in thought as the Elder Dame slowly covers Anca's lifeless body, as he gently rocks the tiny package in his arms, humming softly.

The Elder Dame brings forth the family crest—the blackened brand that all Marelup descendants were marked with. Andre and I stand shoulder to shoulder, watching the little bundle get marked. A shrill scream comes from the pup as the silver burns her flesh. The sounds of battle drift to us as the fight draws ever closer to the birthing chambers. Swords clashing, and the shrieks of the Strigoi draw closer. His back suddenly straightens, and his presence becomes commanding. "Take my daughter, Aurora! Please, protect her with your lives!"

The Elder Dame comes forth with a magical potion and a very sharp dagger. "I must bind her to one of you; otherwise, without a pack she will be amongst the lost ones—insane from the lack of a pack." Her eyes dart between Andre and I then settle on me. "You're a predator like she is; a beast. You will be the best candidate! Give me your arm, Dimitri!" Such authority from a little old woman almost frightens me. I hold out my left arm to her. She dips the blade into the magical elixir, then makes a swift cut across my forearm. The wound stings then turns to a warm tingle as the flesh begins to knit back together.

Her amber eyes turn to the pup still in Vlad's arms, pulling out her tiny left arm and repeating the process. Instantly I feel her like she's a part of me. I feel such a sense of wonder as I am handed the pup. This tiny cherub looks like a mini version of her mother, right down to the gunmetal-gray eyes and ruby lips. Hands grip my shoulders and turn me, snapping me out of my inner thoughts. "You must go!" the Elder Dame shouts at me, then pulls out a gnarly, twisted stick from her robe and flourishes it in the air. Energy explodes into the room as a rip in the fabric of reality opens before us. "Go! My sister Elena will shelter you in the new world. Go now!" As soon as she finishes imploring us, a harsh pounding starts coming from the direction of the door. The cracking sound of the wooden door starting to give way dispels any hesitation we had. Without a second thought, Andre, the pup, and I venture into the unknown.

Vladimir

Wood splinters fly everywhere as a dozen Strigoi break into the room, remnants of the door littering the floor. The metallic tang of blood and the scent of spilled birthing fluid mixed with magic lie heavily in the air. The Elder Dame and I remain in the room, looking without fear at the monsters beginning to fill it.

The Strigoi are a vile bunch; ashen skin, long, pointed, bat-like ears, and dozens of needle-like teeth fill their mouths. Their noses are the most disturbing part of them. They are a larger version of a bat's flared and rippled nose. On the tips of their long, boney fingers, sharp, hooked claws glisten with the blood of my people. These horrid creatures reek of sulfur death and decay and look as if they had freshly risen from the grave. They stand there as Tomas moves through the gathered horde to stand before myself and the Elder Dame.

"You shouldn't have tried to exile us forever, Vladimir, we are many." He flourishes his boney, clawed hand towards the door. "Your kind is dying off." I face off with the Strigoi Alpha showing no fear. Tomas's needle-like fangs glisten in the candlelight, fresh blood staining his chin and chest. "Once our pets, now our wardens... Wardens no more! Now you are food for the horde." Tomas steps forward. Slender, clawed hands flexing as he tries to bait me. "Your kin lay dead at the feet of my kind. Your allies run in fear and die before me. You are king no more." As he speaks, droplets of blood fall from his mouth and onto his chest. Tomas's black eyes drift to the sheet-covered body on the bed and smiles. "Shame, I wanted to dine on the blood of your pup."

That made my blood boil. That creature wanted my daughter, my only heir. We lost the pup's mother in childbirth. I would not let anything happen to alert the Strigoi that my daughter had survived. "You want the crown, come for it..." I know this fight could mean my death. My eyes drift to the Elder Dame, a slight nod tells me my precious cargo is safe. My last thoughts are of the daughter I would never get to know as I charge into what may be my final battle.

Nicodeamus

On the far side of the castle, I fall from the sky the moment my mate died. My chest feels as though the weight of a thousand worlds lay upon my heart, smashing it to dust. My dragon bellows his grief into the night; its mate is gone. Slowly, he releases his hold over me and allows me to return to my human form. By some miracle I feel the faint thread of life that is my child. Somehow, even though my mate had perished, she lived long enough to deliver our baby into this world. This small joy spurns me on to seek out what's left of my mate and my surviving child.

The battle wages on throughout the castle as I barrel through Strigoi and Dires alike. Reaching the demolished birthing chamber to find the Elder Dame in a magical sphere, where a lone Strigoi attempts to attack her. My hands shift into my taloned gauntlets, and without a second thought I cut the Strigoi's head free from his shoulders. A satisfying, wet thud resounds through the room when its body hits the floor.

My eyes drift to the blood-covered sheets before me. Slowly, walking to the edge of the bed, I lift the corner of the sheet. I have to see my Anca one last time. Her abdomen is shredded, a hole was created where it looked like something punched its way out. My eyes go wide, horrified at what's left of my beloved mate. Silent tears stream down my cheeks and drip onto the floor. My heart sinks further as I begin to mourn the death of not only my mate, but also my hatchling too. I turn slowly, looking at the destruction around me. The Elder Dame approaches and squeezes my shoulder. "I couldn't do anything for Anca, M'lord. The baby was partially shifted during the birth and ripped her way out of her mother." The Elder dame moves forward and motions to the hole in Anca's abdomen. "She's a powerful one, the strongest I've seen in generations."

The Elder Dame lowers her head and sighs. "I sent the baby to my sister, where she will be safe. The Strigoi have yet to cross the ocean, so she will have time to grow strong. They won't be able to find her until she ascends." She lifts her eyes to lock with mine, hoping to give me some comfort.

I turn back to look at Anca; carefully, I close her eyes and kiss her lips one last time. Slowly I pull the sheet back up and over Anca's body before turning to the Elder Dame. "Leave now. I will cremate my love and send her to the great beyond." I wait for the Elder Dame to leave before breathing my frost flames upon my love. I watch as the bed ignites and begins to burn as I back into the hallway, watching the fire burn my beloved mate.

That was my fatal mistake; once outside the door, a broadsword comes down and lobs off my left arm. My remaining hand shoots up, burning white-hot to stop the bleeding and cauterize the wound. I whip around quickly to find the Dire's Beta, Lucian, holding the sword's point to my throat. "Surrender and live; fight, and I'll take your head where you stand." A sinister sneer crosses his thin lips as he stares at me. His cold, hazel-green eyes bore into me, challenging me to make a move against him.

For now, I have to bide my time and make sure to live long enough for my child to find me. Even though my dragon fights against my decision and wants to rage for what has been done. I must surrender so we could live to fight another day.