A Queen Among Blood: Chapter Fifty-Six - Yildiz

A Queen Among Blood: Chapter Fifty-Six - Yildiz
“Yildiz?” I hear a familiar voice call in surprise. I turn to see the swirling gold and onyx aura with a dusting of hazel and green that belongs to Empress Mei. Next to her I see a vaguely familiar aura of dark, chocolate brown with a dusting of dark greyish blue. This aura is quite radiant, not as radiant as Mei’s but still very strong. Based on the scent and brightness of the aura it’s enough to tell me the person beside Mei is an Alpha.

I nod politely, “Empress Mei.”

“You’re back so soon, did you not resolve what you came to speak to Alpha about?” she asks curiously.

I smile sadly, “It is most certainly not resolved.”

“Oh! I’m so sorry,” she suddenly squeaks, “Where are my manners? Yildiz, this is Alpha Jasper, Alpha Jasper, this is Yildiz of the Delegation.” Ah, that’s where I recognise his aura. He was one of the guests at Luna Marcus’ Luna ceremony. I hadn’t had a chance to properly meet the current Alpha of Aurum Obscuro, so I guess I can tick that off the list. See? Finding distractions already.

“Yildiz, it is an honour to meet you,” he says politely, extending his hand to me.

I shake his hand, “You as well, Alpha Jasper, a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance. You’ve been doing terrific things with your pack; we’ve been very pleased with the reports.”

“Thank you so much,” he says with pride, “Such praise from a Delegate is an honour.”

“What brings you to Invictus?” I ask curiously.

“Alpha Amelia has started a training program. She has invited wolves from packs all around the country to participate. I send my pack members in groups, and I decided to join the current group this time. It’s a hell of an experience so far,” he says with excitement.

This is news to me but thrilling to hear the way Alpha Amelia is uniting the packs. The Delegation has been trying to establish a single Alpha as a representative for the mutolupus’ packs in each country, but most Alphas just begin feuding over who is the best. If Amelia continues to bring the packs of the United States together, she could be our very first official representative. If the other Alphas go for it of course.

“And what is the purpose of this training program? I never got around to asking on my last visit,” I admit.

“Alpha is teaching wolves how to do a partial shift and is teaching other Alphas how to use their abilities to help their pack,” chimes Mei proudly.

I blink in surprise, “That… is quite remarkable.” Amelia truly is changing the game, and for the better.

“It hasn’t been easy, but the long-term benefits will be worth all the hard work,” says Alpha Jasper.

“I’ve told Alpha Amelia that you’re here. She’s just busy handling things at the school, but she’s on her way,” Mei says brightly.

“Thank you, Empress,” I say graciously.

“Please just call me Mei,” she insists.

“I’m sorry, formalities are just a habit,” I say with a polite smile.

“Should see how bright red she gets when people use her title, it’s adorable,” Jasper laughs, then groans as I watch Mei’s outline elbow him in the side, “What was that for?”

“Yildiz is blind,” she says quietly, though moderating her volume was rather pointless.

“Oh my Goddess, I am so, so sorry, I had no idea!” Alpha Jasper quickly explains in a panic.

“It’s quite alright, I take no offence. You couldn’t have possibly known,” I assure him.

“Thank you,” he sighs with relief, “Wait, how did you know I was offering you a handshake?” he asks suspiciously. That is almost the number one question I get asked after someone learns I’m blind. If I had a dollar…

“I can see auras. It’s not the same as having sight, but it is still useful,” I explain.

“Wow, I’ve never heard of such a gift, but that is totally awesome!” Alpha Jasper praises.

“Thank you,” I say appreciatively. Already it feels nice to be around people who radiate honesty. It’s not that my sisters don’t, but my sisters will badger me by asking me questions, and I already have a long list of my own questions I’d like answered. I’ve encountered many packs or covens, or septs or kingdoms in my time, but there’s something about Invictus that just feels like a home away from home. I enjoy it here very much. Even more so since Amelia became Alpha. No offence, but after so many years of nothing but male Alphas, my sisters and I were a little over all the testosterone.

“Yildiz!” I hear Amelia shout. I turn to see her turquoise aura with its blueish-grey hue racing in my direction, and she gets to me in record time, “I’m so sorry I wasn’t here to greet you, is everything alright?” she asks, concern evident in her voice. I don’t have to see her face to know what it says. Her concern comes from the fact she knows exactly why I was here last time, and that knowledge has tears pooling in my eyes. “Come inside, I think this calls for Tezus and a lot of junk food,” she says sympathetically, wrapping her arm around me and guiding me into what smells like the packhouse.

“Thank you,” I sniff as I try to hold it together. Just as we approach the stairs I see two auras approaching, one I recognise as belonging to Beta Vitali, the other belonging to I’m not sure who.

“Hey, Yildiz! Visiting us again huh, we must be special,” he gloats.

“I won’t deny that Invictus is a very special pack.”

“You hear that, Calix? And she can’t lie, so you know she’s telling the truth,” he says proudly as he nudges the person next to him.

“You know the whole point of this training programme was to bring the packs together, not ascertain which pack is better,” this Calix person admonishes.

“I know. Still feels good though, right Amelia?” he says playfully.

“Not now, Vit,” says Amelia dismissively as she guides me up the stairs.

“Party pooper,” he mutters, “Oh Yildiz, can you tell Nuray I say hi? It’s been ages since I spoke to her,” he says casually.

His words have me freezing in my tracks and feeling out for the banister. I grip it with all my strength causing the wood to split under the force. I shut my eyes tight and will the tears not to fall, but it’s no use. The tears come streaming from my eyes one by one and I can’t make them stop.

“I can’t,” I whisper.

“Why not?” asks Beta Vitali in confusion.

“Because Nuray died a week ago,” I announce as I turn to face him, while Amelia gasps beside me, “She was killed. I’m sorry to be the one… to tell you. I know you two were close,” I say as I take a shaky breath.

“But… I don’t understand,” he slowly whispers. It will take him time to process this. It’s been a week and I’m still processing it.

“I’m so sorry,” Amelia says softly as she squeezes me tight. I nod in thanks and continue up the stairs with her as I brush the tears from my face.

Once we enter what smells like her suite, she guides me to the sofa and sits me down, taking my bag from me. The moment she does the floodgates open. I hang my head in my hands and just let out every tear I was bottling up. Amelia sits down and wraps her arm around me and holds me close, and I lean into her embrace as she lets me cry on her shoulder.

“Is that why you’re here? Because of Nuray?” she gently asks.

I shake my head, “Not entirely. He lied to me Amelia, everything I thought I knew about my animai was a lie,” I sob.

“What do you mean?” she inquires, her fingers gently gliding through my hair, even though I’m sure it’s a knotted mess.

“The Osiah I thought I knew, the one who is the first sanguidae, turns out he’s a God,” I laugh bitterly, “Not just any God, but Oshmin, the God of Life and Death.”

Amelia stiffens against me, the shock no doubt hitting her before she speaks. “As in, the same God who created Mei’s kind? The one she spoke to?” I nod against her, “Holy shit… and he never told you?”

“Never even alluded to it. I don’t think he ever planned to tell me. How could he betray me like that?” I cry.

“You’re having a really shit week huh?”

I laugh through my tears, “That’s an understatement.”

“I’ll go get the Tezus, I think it’s going to be a long night,” she says as she gets up and walks across the room.

“Would it be okay if I stayed here for a little while?” I sniff, “I just need to get away from everything, so I have time to think.”

“You can stay here as long as you like. The other bedroom in this suite is already set up, so you are more than welcome to have it. I promise no one will disturb you unless you want them to,” she assures me.

“Thank you, Amelia. I didn’t know where else to go,” I whisper painfully. Only hours ago I was thinking that Oshmin’s home would be my home away from home, and now the prospect of ever seeing it again has my stomach twisting into a knot.

Amelia walks over and places what feels like a glass in my hand, “I’m honoured you thought of this place as a sanctuary,” she says as she sits down. “Bottoms up,” she declares, clinking her glass against mine and seemingly downing the contents. I do the same and down the drink and feel the burn down my throat that brings with it a warm tingle through my body. This is definitely what I need. I just hope she has enough Tezus on hand because I’m going to need a lot more than this.