Chapter 21 Ancient Hunger
Theron's replacement, Commander Darius, nodded to us. "Ready when you are, Your Majesties."
Kael drew his sword. "Remember. Nothing comes back up from those levels. If it is freed, it dies. No exceptions."
We descended.
The stairs went down. Down. Down. Past cells where mad vampires screamed. Past chambers where things worse than vampires waited.
The air grew cold. Wrong. Like reality bent differently down here.
Then we heard it. Laughter. Familiar. Mocking.
Cassian's voice echoing from the deep.
"Welcome, Your Majesties! Come see what I found! Come see what will finally put an end to your corrupted reign!"
We reached the bottom level. A chamber carved from living rock. Dark. Ancient. Covered in chains and seals and wards that were now broken.
In the center stood Cassian. Bloody. Mad. Smiling.
And behind him was something that should not exist.
A creature. Part vampire. Part something else. With too many teeth and eyes that saw through dimensions. Old magic poured off it in waves.
"What is that?" I breathed.
"The First," Kael said. His voice was hollow. "The original vampire. The one all bloodlines came from. The one we sealed a thousand years ago because it could not be killed."
The creature's eyes fixed on us. It smiled.
"Hello, children," it said. Voice like grinding stone. "I have been waiting so long to meet the ones who broke the old laws. Who bonded human and vampire. Who fulfilled the prophecy."
It moved toward us. Fast. Impossibly fast.
"Run!" Kael shouted.
But it was already too late.
The First was free.
And it was hungry. And I was done running.
The First moved like liquid shadow.
One second it stood beside Cassian. The next it had Commander Darius by the throat. Lifted him like he weighed nothing.
"Such young blood," it purred. "So weak compared to what I remember."
Darius screamed. Then stopped. His body turned grey. Desiccated. Like something drained every drop of life from him in seconds.
The First dropped the corpse. "More. I need more. A thousand years of hunger to satisfy."
"Attack!" Kael roared.
The Blood Guard charged. Twenty vampires with blessed weapons. They hit the creature from all sides.
It laughed. The sound echoed wrong. Hurt to hear.
Blades passed through it like smoke. Magic splashed off it like water. Nothing touched it. Nothing hurt it.
It grabbed a guard. Drained her. Grabbed another. Drained him. Moving through trained soldiers like they were children.
"We need to run!" I shouted over the screaming.
"It will follow. Hunt us through the palace. Kill everyone." Kael's blade was useless in his hands. "We have to contain it here."
"How? Nothing touches it!"
Cassian laughed from his corner. "Nothing can kill the First. That is why they sealed it instead of destroying it. It is immortal. Invincible. The perfect weapon to end your pathetic reign."
The creature turned to us. Its too-many eyes fixed on me specifically.
"You," it said. "Shadowborn blood. How delicious. How rare." It moved closer. Guards died trying to stop it. "I remember your bloodline. They sealed me. Used their reality-bending magic to lock me away. And now one of them stands before me wearing a crown."
It lunged.
Kael was faster. He shoved me aside and took the hit meant for me. The First's claws raked across his chest. Blood poured. Kael went down.
"No!" I threw everything I had at the creature. Shadows. Power. Ancient magic I barely understood.
The First paused. Actually paused.
"Interesting," it said. "You have more power than I expected. Untrained. Raw. But potent." It tilted its head. "But not enough."
It came at me again.
I dodged. Barely. Felt its claws pass through the space where my head had been.
My shadows wrapped around it. Held it. For three seconds.
Then it broke free.
"Better," it said. "But still insufficient."
"Sera! The wards!" Lyra's voice from somewhere. "Use your blood on the old wards! It is Shadowborn magic! It might hold!"
The old wards. The ones carved into the walls. Broken now but maybe not irreparable.
I ran to the nearest one. Bit my palm. Let blood drip onto ancient symbols.
They flared. Red light. Shadow light. Power that recognized my bloodline.
The First screamed. Actual pain.
"Yes!" I ran to another ward. Another. Bleeding on each one. Reactivating seals that had held for a thousand years.
The creature thrashed. "No! NO! You cannot seal me again! I will not go back!"
But the wards were working. Pulling it. Containing it.
"Cassian!" I shouted. "Help me finish this or die with it!"
"Never!" He drew a blade. Came at me.
Kael intercepted. Still bleeding. Still moving. He caught Cassian's wrist. Twisted. Bone snapped.
"You brought this nightmare into my palace," Kael said quietly. Dangerously. "You endangered her. You killed my soldiers."
"I regret nothing. You deserve everything coming to you."
"Then die with that conviction."
Kael's blade took Cassian's head.
It rolled across the floor. Eyes still wide with shock.
"One more ward," Lyra shouted. "The central one!"
I ran to it. The largest seal. Carved deep into the floor. I dropped to my knees. Cut my wrist. Let blood pour onto stone.
The ward exploded with light. Chains of shadow and magic wrapped around The First. Pulled it down. Down into the floor. Back into the prison.
"This is not over!" it screamed. "I will be free! I will feast on your bloodline! I will—"
The floor sealed over it. Silence.
Then nothing. Just us. The bodies. The blood.
Half the Blood Guard was dead. Drained. Grey corpses that would never rise again.
I stood on shaking legs. Looked at Kael. He was covered in blood. His chest wound was healing but slowly.
"Is it over?" I asked.
"For now. The seals will hold. Maybe years. Maybe decades." He looked at the floor where The First disappeared. "But it will try to break free again. They always do."
We climbed back up. Exhausted. Traumatized. Leaving bodies behind.
When we reached the throne room, nobles were waiting. Demanding answers. Wanting to know what happened.
"An ancient threat has been contained," Kael said. His voice was cold. Controlled. The king who showed no weakness. "Cassian Morweth is dead for treason and attempted murder. The palace is secure."
"For how long?" Lord Lucian asked. "We heard the screaming. Felt the magic. What was down there?"
"Nothing that concerns you."
"Everything in this palace concerns us. We are the council. We have a right—"
Kael's eyes went black. "You have the right to obey or leave. Nothing more. This discussion is over."
The nobles muttered. Angry. Scared. But they left.
Except Isabeau. She stayed. Looked at both of us with ancient knowing eyes.
"The First," she said quietly. "I thought the seals would hold forever."
"You knew?" I asked.
"Every Draeven matriarch knows. It is our secret. Our shame." She looked at Kael. "Your father wanted to destroy it. Tried everything. Nothing worked. So he settled for imprisonment."
"Why did no one tell me?"
"Because you were nineteen when you took the throne. Grieving. Broken. We thought you had enough burdens." She touched his shoulder. "Perhaps that was a mistake."
"Perhaps." Kael's voice was hollow. "Leave us. We need rest."
Isabeau left.
We walked to our chambers in silence. Inside, I collapsed onto the bed.
"We almost died," I said. "Again."
"We seem to do that often."
"It is getting old."
"Welcome to ruling." He sat beside me. "This is what it is. Every day. Crisis after crisis. Threat after threat. No rest. No peace."
"You did this alone for centuries. How?"
"I stopped caring if I lived or died. Made it easier." He looked at me. "But now I care again. And it is terrifying."
I pulled him down beside me. "We need a plan. The First will break free eventually. We need to be ready."
"Tomorrow. Tonight we rest."
But I could not rest. My mind was racing. The First knew me. Recognized my bloodline. Wanted to kill me specifically.
And Cassian had freed it knowing it would target us.
How many others wanted us dead? How many threats were waiting?
I must have slept eventually. Because I woke to shouting outside.
Kael was already dressed. Armed. His face was stone.
"What now?" I asked.
"Riots. The servants we freed yesterday? Some nobles are trying to recapture them. Claiming they are property." His jaw clenched. "It is getting violent."
We ran to the lower city. Found chaos.
Nobles with soldiers trying to drag freed servants back to their estates. The servants fighting back. Half-bloods from Rowan's group defending them. Blood on the streets.
"Stop!" Kael's voice carried. "All of you. Stop now."
Everyone froze. The king had spoken.