The Vampire & Her Witch

”Good,” Ashlynn said in a voice that seemed to have grown strangely flat and distant as a blend of her own earthy power and Nyrielle’s dark wind swirled around her. Her face had grown pale and her emerald eyes seemed to harbor ghosts beyond the ones that had haunted her ever since the night of her wedding to Owain Lothian.

”Rise, Commander Aspakos,” Ashlynn said formally, almost mechanically as she reached out to take his taloned hands in hers, helping him to stand even as the power she held made him feel as though he was standing at the edge of a dangerous precipice. ”We respect your reservations,” she added in the hopes of reassuring him. ”We won’t ask you to do more for now than training and organizing the sorcerers under our banner. You won’t need to lead them in battle against the Lothians unless the Church sends their mightiest of Miracle workers.”

As the last words left her lips, Ashlynn’s shoulders sagged almost imperceptibly and a fine sheen of sweat appeared across her brow. In her chest, her heart began to beat rapidly, falling out of sync with the echo of Nyrielle’s heartbeat within her chest as it struggled to regain its own rhythm.

”Commander Aspakos,” Nyrielle said with a calm voice and the barest of smiles as she withdrew her dark aura and the thread of power that flowed from her to Ashlynn during the tense exchange with the mysterious sorcerer. Instantly, the room seemed to brighten and the pressure that had kept anyone else from interjecting in the intense exchange faded away.

”I’m grateful that you have agreed to join us,” Nyrielle said simply. ”But now, the evening is already growing late and there are precious few hours before dawn. Lord General Thane,” she said in a tone that was both warmer and softer as she faced the greatest of her progeny. ”I’m sure you have many details to discuss with your new commanders as well as Marshal Jakob.”

”Of course,” Thane said, noticing a subtle shift in Nyrielle’s eyes as she spoke. ”Gentlemen, I have more detailed maps available in my office. Before tomorrow’s celebration, it would be good if we can pin down a few last details and I value each of your insights to make final adjustments to our opening moves,” he said smoothly, gesturing toward the door.

”Ollie,” he added with a warm, inviting smile filled with so much charm that it made it difficult to reconcile the affable appearing vampire knight with the terrifying figure who forced Savis to his knees with little more than words. ”You and young lord Hauke should attend as well, if for no other reason than to learn a few things that may be useful to you later.”

”If Lady Ashlynn permits it,” Ollie began, only to be interrupted by Nyrielle who seemed to materialize from the darkness directly beside Ashlynn.

”I have a few more matters to discuss with my darling,” Nyrielle said as she slid around a startled looking Ashlynn who seemed to have become so distracted that she hadn’t even noticed Nyrielle’s movement. ”If she has instructions for you, she can deliver them after.”

”I’ll make sure everyone is settled and prepared for the beginning of the festivities tomorrow,” Heila said helpfully as she all but tugged Ollie out of the room by the sleeve of his tunic. ”And I’ll see that we have everything we need to prepare a hearty lunch before joining the festivities tomorrow.”

”What was that all about?” Ollie asked Heila after she ushered him rapidly out of the room. ”Is something wrong?”

”Hush,” Heila said, quietly pulling Ollie to the side as everyone else filed out of the room. ”You felt Lady Nyrielle’s power when she confronted Aspakos, didn’t you? How intense it was?”

”I did,” Ollie whispered, briefly glancing in the sorcerer’s direction. ”But Lady Ashlynn stopped it from affecting us, just like she weakened Sir Thane’s voice when he... Ow!” Ollie yelped as Heila stepped on his foot with a cloven hoof.

”Now that you’re one of Mother Ashlynn’s close ones,” Heila said quietly. ”You have to learn to pay attention to these things. Mother Ashlynn has been too busy with you and Virve to attend to Lady Nyrielle much since we returned to the castle. Even if she could have tended to Lady Nyrielle, because she was nurturing Virve’s seed after bestowing your seed on you, her body was too weak to offer up much blood to Lady Nyrielle.”

”I... don’t understand,” Ollie said, blinking in confusion. ”Doesn’t Lady Nyrielle take offerings from the villagers the same way that Sir Thane, Sir Marcel and the others do? Why would she need to feed on Lady Ashlynn?”

”Because a witch’s blood is powerful,” Virve said quietly as she joined the conversation. ”And because there is meaning to the sharing of blood between them. Heila, do you think confronting Aspakos put as much strain on Lady Nyrielle as exposing herself to the Holy Flame Blade did? Is that why she wanted to hurry everyone out?”

”I don’t know,” Heila said honestly as her diminutive hands clutched at the folds of her skirt. ”I think this was something different. I’ve only seen Mother Ashlynn do this once before,” she said slowly as she recalled the way Ashlynn had transformed the arena in High Fen City into a lush Willow Grove by collecting the last wisps of energy from dying and decomposing plants all across High Fen City following the harvest.

”Mother Ashlynn wasn’t just using her own power when she stepped in to speak to Aspakos,” Heila explained. ”She was blending her power with Lady Nyrielle’s. It’s something that...” For a moment, she almost said ’something that no other witch could do’ because she was certain that the bond between a True Vampire and her Seneschal was what allowed Ashlynn to do it but, was that really true? Already, Heila felt a growing closeness with Ignatious and she couldn’t help but wonder if she might one day be able to achieve something similar to what Ashlynn had.

Heila’s face began to turn a brilliant shade of crimson as she imagined sharing the kind of closeness with Ignatious that she’d seen between Ashlynn and Lady Nyrielle. Would he shower her with kisses as sweet and all encompassing as the ones she’d glimpsed Lady Nyrielle bestowing on Ashlynn? Would he carry her away again, the way he’d held her closely during their battle in the snow at the Frost Walker Fortress?

The thought of it was enough for her knees to grow weak and the blush on her face only grew hotter when she spotted a knowing smile on Virve’s lips that suggested the older woman had followed the trail of her thoughts.

”It’s something that, for now, belongs to the two of them alone,” Heila said, putting aside questions about herself and Ignatious for the moment to focus on what had happened in the dining room. ”Lady Nyrielle didn’t feel hungry, but when she looked at Mother Ashlynn, the feeling there was almost as intense as when she needs to feed, so... So we should make sure that lunch tomorrow is hearty in case Mother Ashlynn needs to replenish herself,” she said with a determined nod.

”Do you need my help in the kitchens?” Ollie asked, casting a conflicted look over his shoulder as Thane led the newly appointed commanders towards the tower where he kept his office. ”I should...”

”Oh, just go,” Heila said, placing her hands on Ollie’s waist to turn him around and give him a gentle shove. ”Go with the other boys and plan your battles,” she said firmly. ”Virve and I can tend to Lady Ashlynn’s needs in the morning.”

”But I,” Virve began, looking in the direction of the departing warriors. She hadn’t been invited to attend, but if even Hauke was attending in the name of learning more then it shouldn’t be a problem for her to attend as well, should it?

”Fine! Go, I’ll make the arrangements myself,” Heila said, throwing up her hands and shaking her head at her ’younger’ siblings. The three of them formed a trinity of healer, warrior and guardian and she could hardly blame the other two for focusing more on the battles to come, but she couldn’t help but hope that Ashlynn’s next witch would be somewhat less focused on the battles ahead even though she knew it wasn’t likely.

At least not as long as the war was looming over them. But perhaps, one day, there would be someone to take up a plum seed, or an apple... someone bright and sweet who could help to feed other rather than fight them. For now, however, Heila was certain that Ashlynn would want help recovering from the intense meeting and she intended to make sure that her lady had whatever she needed, even if she had to rouse Georg from sleep to make something special for her.

With a last glance over her shoulder at the closed door of the formal dining room, Heila set off in the direction of the kitchens. Even though the hour was late, she was certain that the cooks would be busy with preparations for tomorrow’s celebration. Even if Georg wasn’t there, someone should be able to help her to prepare something that Ashlynn could easily eat before bed when Lady Nyrielle carried her back to her bed chambers after feeding and she could leave instructions for a hearty morning meal as well...

Meanwhile, inside the formal dining room, Nyrielle wrapped her arms around Ashlynn’s shivering body, giving her strength and support even though she couldn’t offer warmth.

”Talk to me, my darling,” Nyrielle whispered. ”You’ve never borrowed my power like that before. What is it that you needed it for?” she asked softly as she gently stroked Ashlynn’s long, pale blonde hair. ”And what price did you pay to use it?”