Chapter 62: Ally

Marchioness

As Alexander led me to my villa, I was experiencing a mixture of emotions, both good and bad.

I felt awful for hurting Fire. I have never laid a hand on her except when we would spar against each other, and even then I was very careful. Unfortunately, I had to slap Fire in the face to convince everyone I was against killing Damon. I was a bit angry for having to lose an ally so soon, but why wait?

The High Elder had retired for the night right after the mating ceremony, making him unaware that all of this happening. Although, it was forbidden for the nobility to have any kind of relationship with the High Elder, I knew Damon and Magnus, the two stronghold Eldests, were in correspondence with the wolf leader. Adella, the last known golden-eyed wolf, frequented New York City which was where the West Coven Stronghold Eldest Magnus resided. Although Adella's powers may have given her anonymity and security, I believed the High Elder struck a deal with Magnus, allowing Adella to enter and leave the city as much as she wanted.

I needed the High Elder to trust me. He would make a great ally if ever I were to rise as queen among the vampires. And now that I had heard Fire promise me herself, a dream will now soon become a reality.

I wanted to smile... I wanted to celebrate. Damon was now gone and finally the Duke would take his place as Eldest of the East Stronghold. It took years of meticulous planning, but everything was now falling into place. I had only one obstacle left and with the right instruction and guidance, he will soon be gone too.

As for Fire, she may have her powers, but she needed to learn how to use her gifts, to hone her skills. She only saw my most recent memories which for the Enchantress was barely scratching the surface. I sighed. I was hoping the Oracle would help her, but unfortunately, she was now with the Moon Goddess. I needed to find Fire a mentor, someone who could guide her, but who? If there was only a priestess school like that fancy Alpha school of the wolves, then there would be no problem.

We entered the villa quietly. I took a seat on the couch and glanced at their faces. I could see the distrust they had for me. I shrugged. I actually didn't care if they didn't trust me. They were all pawns in this elaborate game of chess.

Ugh! It only used to be the two of us and now we were surrounded by wolves. Everywhere wolves. If I wasn't this close to having the Vampire King in ashes, I would have left after the mating ceremony.

"Marchioness, don't you need to call the Duke and tell him whatever you two have planned is off?" Alexander asked, looking at me confused that I was just sitting down, not doing anything.

"This is why I needed to explain myself. There was no plan to use Isabella. What Damon had said was all staged. I just went along with it," I said, annoyed. Alexander's brow furrowed, making his face look even more confused.

"What do you mean, Marchioness? Isabella isn't really dead?" Alexander asked. I smiled.

"Isabella is dead, but because her death occurred doing the final stages of her transformation, she doesn't look like the Isabella Cuevas you all once knew. Thus, it is impossible for us vampires to actually use her corpse to frame either one of you. The police will not be able to identify her through blood, fingerprints or DNA. Let's just say, even if I put an ID card in her hand, people will not think it is her. She looks more like a monster than anything else. Fire doesn't know this. She has never encountered a human undergoing transformation nor has she ever killed one," I explained. "Anyway, I can not call the Duke. He is with the Vampire King. I do not want the king to suspect the Duke is betraying him."

"Why can't you just take a stake and kill the Vampire King? Why go through all of these mind games?" Alexander asked.

I sighed. The problem with having wolves believe that vampires didn't exist. I wished the High Elder was with me. He could help me give these wolves the answers they seek.

"Sounds easy, when you say it, right Alexander?"  I smirked. "Let's take you for example. You are a powerful Alpha, respected by all of your men. But any one of your pack members can grab a gun and shoot you. It's not quite the same for vampires. Why do you think the Vampire King has survived despite all the wars. The answer is quite simple... None of us can kill him."

I raised my finger to stop Alexander from interrupting me. I knew what was going through his mind. He thought us all to be incompetent blood sucking animals.

"No, it's not because the Vampire King is the strongest vampire or the greatest warrior among us and it's not because none of us have ever tried," I said. "Maacah, our god, provides immunity to the Vampire King from the undead. We can not kill him. Only one with a heartbeat can ever kill the Vampire King."

"I see," Alexander said, nodding his head. "And you've groomed Fire to take up that challenge haven't you, Marchioness?" I didn't like the tone of his voice.

"I've trained her to kill vampires... period. If you are insinuating I have brainwashed her to kill the Vampire King, no I haven't. But the Enchantress was created for one specific reason and one alone and that is to bring balance. Let me ask you, Alexander, did you see balance when the Vampire King spoke to his progeny? A good leader should be willing to sacrifice himself for the sake of his people. Did you see that during the encounter?"

Alexander, Tyler and Mark looked at each other then at me. All three of them shook their heads. They finally understood.

"When the Vampire King does die, who do you think will choose the next king or queen? Why do you think Damon was so insistent Fire make good Ying Yue's word?" I asked.

"The Enchantress will be the one who gets to choose your next leader? And yes, why was Damon such in a rush?" Mark asked.

Alexander's Delta already knew the answer to that question. He was a great strategist and knew the way war was played.

"Yes, Fire has been blessed to choose our next leader. Only a few of us know this. Damon was afraid of the fact that because I raised her as my own child, I already stood in her favor," I said. "However, I only learned of the circumstances when Fire was already in middle school."

"Well, I'd rather you be queen than anyone else," Alexander said. "Don't worry, Marchioness. Fire likes me enough to listen to me."

I grinned. I have found another ally.

__________________

Leia Hemming

Enchantress...

That was the final word that escaped the Priestess' lips when she drew her final breath. Her flight was bound to Boracay Island and I wanted answers.

With the orb in my pocket, I traveled here to seek out the Enchantress and see if she had power for me to take as my own. However, as I watched her and her mate make love on the beach, the orb did not glow. She did not have power.

Frustrated, I roamed the resort secretly, knowing wolves were here. I was surprised to hear a familiar voice, a voice from my past. It was Alexander. Why was he here?

I inched closer to the villa, wanting to hear what was being discussed, however, I was too late. The door opened and out came Alexander.

"Do you smell that? It smells like fish," he said disgusted. "Mark, there's someone else here."

I quickly vanished into the darkness... back to my mentor. I was not yet ready to face him and his men.

"Have you returned with it?" A woman's voice asked.

"Yes, Maria," I answered. "Along with Priestess Meilin's powers."