Chapter 235 Skeptical Lords

Chapter 235 Skeptical Lords
Cassian’s pale lips curled into a sharp, condescending smile. He brushed a speck of invisible dust from his velvet cuff. "We hide because the Emperor controls the sun, little bird. We survive because we do not make a spectacle of ourselves on the open borders."

He looked past me, his glowing red eyes piercing the darkness of the trees where the Outcasts were hidden. He sneered, a look of pure, unfiltered disgust crossing his aristocratic face.

"You summon the old blood to the edge of the world, and you bring a pack of starving, mutated animals with you," Cassian mocked, gesturing a pale, gloved hand toward the brush. "I can smell the rot and the filth on them from here. Is this your grand rebellion? A mud-crawling circus?"

A low, vibrating snarl echoed from the dark trees. Riven and his warriors shifted, the insult landing hard.

"They survived the dead basin," I told him, stepping closer to the freezing water. "They broke an Imperial vanguard inside an abandoned garrison. They are an army."

Cassian let out a dry, rattling laugh. The other vampires behind him joined in, a chorus of cold, mocking amusement.

"An army," Cassian repeated, shaking his head. "You have a hundred starving scavengers holding sticks, Siren. The Emperor has a legion of iron and silver. You broke a single vanguard because General Draven grew careless. Do not mistake a lucky skirmish for a war."

His crimson gaze shifted to Klaus.

Cassian’s smile vanished, replaced by a deep, ancient hatred. He looked at the thick, raised pink scars covering Klaus’s chest, the silver hook marks left by the Emperor’s torture.

"And you brought the chained dog," Cassian sneered, his tone dropping into a vicious, biting register. "The great Grand Admiral. We heard the Emperor had you begging for scraps in a flooded cell. You look exactly like a man who has been beaten into obedience. Tell me, Klaus, do you fetch the sticks for the Siren, or do you still answer to the Spire?"

Klaus did not yell. He did not raise his sword.

He stepped directly to the edge of the riverbank. The sheer, overwhelming force of his immortal presence slammed into the air. The dark veins of his curse turned a deep, furious black. He stared across the rushing water, his sapphire eyes locking onto Cassian’s face with a promise of immediate, brutal slaughter.

"Cross the water, Cassian," Klaus rumbled. The sound was a raw, physical threat that rattled the stones beneath our boots. "Take one step into this river, and I will tear your head from your shoulders and feed your aristocratic heart to the scavengers you just insulted."

The vampires on the opposite bank stiffened. Several of them dropped their hands to the ornate silver hilts of their rapiers.

Cassian did not step into the water. He held Klaus’s gaze, his pale jaw tightening, but he did not accept the challenge. He knew exactly what Klaus was capable of, even starved and scarred.

"We did not come here to brawl with a broken admiral," Cassian said smoothly, recovering his cold composure. He turned his attention back to me, dismissing Klaus with a wave of his hand.

"You sent the code, Siren," Cassian continued, folding his hands behind his back. "The Resistance answered. We are here. But we do not take orders from a mortal girl who spent her life wearing the Emperor’s jewels. We do not ally with mud-crawlers."

He tilted his head, his crimson eyes narrowing.

"If you want our blades, you hand the command of this little uprising over to us," Cassian demanded, laying his terms out with arrogant finality. "We will organize the strike. We will dictate the terms. You and your broken dog will follow our lead, and your scavengers will serve as the front-line fodder. Accept the terms, or we walk back into the dark and leave you to Draven’s hounds."

The wind rushed through the pine needles, loud and sharp.

Klaus stepped forward, his knuckles turning white on the hilt of his broadsword. He was ready to cross the river himself and slaughter the entire coven.

I reached out, wrapping my raw, blistered hand tightly around Klaus’s wrist.

I did not pull him back, but the pressure of my grip stopped his advance. He looked down at me, his blue eyes burning with feral, protective rage, but he held his ground. He trusted me.

I looked across the rushing water at the immaculate, arrogant Vampire Lord.

Cassian thought I was still the terrified, fragile girl he had seen in the throne room. He thought I was a desperate runaway begging for an army to save me from the Emperor. He had no idea what I had left in the dirt of the dead lands. He had no idea what was coiled inside my chest, waiting for a target.

"We will camp on this side of the river tonight," I told Cassian, my voice completely steady, refusing to rise to his taunts. "At dawn, you will cross the water. We will hold a council in the deep pines. We will discuss the terms of our alliance then."

Cassian smiled, a smug, victorious expression. He assumed my delay was a sign of weakness, a clear indication that I was terrified of losing his support and needed time to convince my pack of scavengers to accept his terms.

"We will see you at dawn, little bird," Cassian mocked. "Try not to let your animals dirty the woods too much before we arrive."

He turned his back on the river, his heavy velvet coat sweeping elegantly over the damp earth. The dozen vampires turned with him, melting seamlessly back into the dark, freezing mist of the forest.

The unnatural pressure lifted from the air. The steady rush of the river sounded loud again.

Klaus let out a harsh, tight breath. He slammed the rusted iron broadsword into the dirt, leaving the blade buried deep in the mud. He turned to me, the thick muscles in his chest heaving.

"You are not giving them command," Klaus stated. It was not a question. It was a hard, factual demand.

"They are arrogant," I said quietly, looking at the empty shadows on the opposite bank. "They think their old blood makes them untouchable. They think they hold all the power because they have clean clothes and sharp swords."

I turned my head, looking up into Klaus’s fierce, protective eyes. I let the cold, heavy rot stir just slightly in my veins, a dark promise of what was to come.

"Let them sleep on their pride tonight," I told him, a cold, ruthless edge sharpening my words. "Tomorrow morning, when they cross the river expecting me to kneel, I am going to show them exactly why the Emperor kept me in a silver cage."

Klaus stared at me. The rigid, furious tension in his shoulders slowly dissolved, replaced by a dark, knowing smirk. He reached out, his hot fingers brushing the tangled hair from my cheek.

"They are going to regret stepping out of the dark," Klaus murmured.

"They will," I agreed.