The Vampire Ambassador

Once we got back to the house we waited around to hear news from the council meeting. John was diligently working, trying to tap into any phone call he could that could give us some information on what happened. He turned up nothing, so we decided to all head down to the beach for some fresh air and drinks.

“Wine anyone?” Luna said, sitting down in the sand next to me. We poured ourselves some in our plastic solo cups and took a long drink.

“It just worries me that Harry hasn’t called with an update,” Gael said as he sipped his whiskey. I looked up at the stars glowing in the sky and sighed.

“I’m sure they are straightening out details,” Luna replied, “But it does concern me that he told us he would call right after the meeting.”

“Surely they aren’t still meeting?” I said, “It’s been hours.”

“No,” Gael responded, “I believe something is happening and we just haven’t been notified.”

“Have you tried to call him?” I asked, glancing at Gael, “He could have gotten busy.”

“Yeah,” Gael answered, “I tried to call around 5 this evening but it went straight to his voicemail.”

There was a sudden ping of anxiety in my stomach and I knew something had either happened or was going to happen. There was no way uncle Harry would just not inform us of what was discussed in the meeting.

“Hey,” Gael said, interrupting my thoughts, “I want to try something. You up for it?”

“Depends on what it is,” I chuckled, "What do you have in mind?"

"So," he said, standing up, "You can control stuff with your mind, right?"

"Yeah," I answered, dragging the word out.

"Do you think you can control everything?" he said as his eyes lit up and he sprouted a flame from his hand, "Like maybe other powers?"

"Oh," I replied, standing up and looking at the small flame, "I have no idea. I've never come across anyone else with powers."

"Let's see if you can stop my fire," he said with a smile, flicking some flames along the ground. The flames traveled on the sand with incredible speed as they headed toward the ocean. I focused my energy on the flames and stopped them in their tracks about two feet from the water's edge. I decided to take it a step further and I raised my hand, eliminating the fire completely as a sizzle was heard in the air.

"Whoa," Luna said in a daze, "Now it's my turn." She raised her arms and the water in the ocean formed into a huge wave, not moving but just sitting there at a high crest. She lowered her arms and the wave began to descend. I could feel the droplets hitting my arms as the wave grew closer to me.

I put my hands up and stopped the wave, pushing against the resistance that Luna was giving me. I could hear her grunting next to me and I was surprised that it was so difficult for her; I was hardly pushing back at all.

"Just breathe," I told Luna, "You're stronger than you think."

She furrowed her eyebrows and pushed harder against me, causing me to take a step back.

"Good," I said, stepping forward a little, "You've got a shit ton of power. Let's rest for now in case we have to leave tonight."

She dropped her arms and the water fell back into its normal place, lapping at the edge of the sand.

We all sat back down and I took a long drink of wine as I looked at the moonlight beaming down on the ocean. My memories went back to the night that Erik followed me to the ocean when I nearly lost my composure while eating dinner with him.

It was the first night he showed his compassionate side, and I was forever grateful for it. That night was what started my feelings toward him and eventually turned into my profound love for him.

“You look deep in thought,” Luna chuckled as I tore my gaze from the water to her.

I smiled and looked down at my cup. “I was just thinking about this night I had with Erik.”

“It’s crazy how that soulmate bond works,” Luna said as she dug her bare toes in the sand, “I always tell Gael if we aren’t truly soulmates we are damn close to it.”

“Have you drank from each other?” I asked, looking up at her.

She shook her head. “No, not yet. I guess I’m scared to do that because I don’t want the answer to be no.”

“What will happen if it’s not?” I replied, “You’ll still be together. You know you love each other no matter what happens. And if it is the bond, you’ll be stronger than ever.”

She peered over at Gael who was chugging beer with a few other guys. “He’s my everything. When we met nearly ten years ago he hasn’t left my side, and I haven’t left his. I don’t want to loose what we have.”

“You won’t,” I said, taking her hands in mine, “If it’s not the bond, so what? It won’t change a thing between you. You don’t have to have the soulmate bond in order to be in love.”

“I guess you’re right,” she replied, smiling, “I’ll see if he wants to try it.”

“You should,” I said, “It makes everything better if it really is.” I looked over at Gael and noticed him stealing a glance at Luna before winking at her.

“I think it could be,” I added, “You seem pretty in tune with one another.”

“It’s like I’m hooked on him,” Luna said, “I can’t ever get enough.”

“Oh you’ve got it then,” I said with a smile, “No doubt about it. If you have had that fire for ten years it’s going to be amazing once you seal the bond.”

Her eyes lit up and she smiled proudly. “I’ll make sure to do it tonight then.”

“Make sure you have plenty of time for the activities that follow,” I chuckled, “It makes the sex better too.”

“Oh, my,” she replied, blushing, “I’ll be honest, I’m not sure if it can get better.”

“You just wait,” I laughed, “You’ll be surprised.”

“So,” she said once she finished her third cup of wine, “What’s your life back at home?”

I went into the whole spill of how I ended up at Erik’s castle, how I met Maya, what all went down with Malachi, and eventually how I ended up on the island. With every word I spoke her eyes seemed to get bigger. I made sure to leave out some of the details, almost embarrassed to tell her how I was basically addicted to sex once I met Erik.

I was almost to the end of spilling my thoughts to her when I picked up a vibe from the guys that didn’t seem too cheerful. I stopped talking and turned my head to Gael, who was on the phone with an expression of anger.

I stood up and walked over to him as I caught the last of his conversation.

“…yes, she’s here now,” he said, “I’ll let the island know and get prepared to strike out in a few hours.” He looked at me with a glow in his eyes and handed me the phone.

I swallowed what saliva had formed in my mouth from anxiety and took the phone from his hands. “This is Melody.”

“Your Majesty,” Sir Patrick said, “I apologize for the delay in getting in touch with you. The meeting was not what anyone could have expected.”

“What do you mean?” I asked as my stomach churned with fear.

“As you know,” he answered, “We were meeting with King Johnathan, King Kalani, and King Elias. They are wanting to expand their kingdom borders onto human lands. The meeting started off as normal; opening arguments and statements. No hostility was brought forward.”

“I sense a ‘but’ coming into the equation,” I interrupted as I felt my tattoo burning with rage already.

“However,” Sir Patrick sighed, “When the question of whether or not they could expand was brought to the table, we informed them that would not be happening. They could expand north or west and not disturb any human territories. Unfortunately they did not like that answer and a shouting match started. When I enforced the answer again, with vocal assertion, Johnathan decided to take physical action.”

“Is everyone alright?” I asked, immediately thinking of uncle Harry.

“It appears that he has somehow replicated your powers,” Sir Patrick replied at almost a whisper, “They aren’t as strong as yours, but it was enough to kill two council members and injure the rest; two of them are in critical condition.”

My blood was boiling. I could feel my eyes glowing brighter by the second. I clenched my fist that was holding my cup and caused it to burst into several pieces. The mist that was now swirling around me held the pieces in the air as the wind began to blow around me.

“Sir Patrick,” I said through gritted teeth, “Please tell me that neither of the two dead is uncle Harry.”

“Harry is alive,” he answered, “He is one of the two in critical condition. He is here at the medical ward on council premises.”

“When are they pushing forward?” I asked.

“Soon,” he answered, “I’m not sure how soon, but I would get your army together as soon as possible to meet them at the border.”

“We will be there at dawn,” I replied, looking at Luna and nodding before she took off to the house.

“It’s my understanding that Gael has already contacted the humans that border the kingdoms,” Sir Patrick said, “I have also contacted the United States army along with the president. As you may not be aware, he must keep our kind hidden from most of the human population in order to keep a civil relationship between us and them.”

“I understand,” I replied, “As I stated, we will be at the river by dawn.”

“If you happen to get a call from the president,” Sir Patrick added, “He is aware of who you are and will be sending added reinforcements to aide the humans on the border. It’s a small town so we knew there would need to be assistance.”

“Yes sir,” I whispered, suddenly filled with every emotion at once, “We will see you soon.”

“Be safe your Majesty," he replied, "I know you can lead our people in the right direction and defeat this threat.”

I nodded and hung up the phone before I handed it back to Gael. He looked at me as I stood in front of him, shaking with anger.

“Mel?” He asked nervously, “You alright?”

“I’m fine,” I said through gritted teeth, “We need to get everyone together right now. We ship out for the states in an hour.”

“Luna is already on it,” Gael said, looking up at the house. I glanced around him and noticed it was just us two standing on the beach now.

A whistle came from the house and we both sprinted back. Once we were back in the control room, John was diligently typing away and waving us over.

“Listen,” he said, turning the volume up.

“We begin forward progress at daylight,” Johnathan said, “They won’t know what’s coming.”

“What if they put up a fight?” Kalani asked, “You know Patrick is still alive. I’m sure he’s called on King Donovan’s army along with our late brother’s.”

“Fuck them!” Johnathan exclaimed, “They have nothing on us! We have 500 men on our side along with these new abilities I have managed to salvage from that bitch, Melody. She was a thorn in my side, but now that she has been taken care of nothing will stop us.”

“I see your point, Johnathan,” Kalani replied, “But we have to think of a backup plan in case something goes south.”

Johnathan erupted into laugher. “You act as if we are really going to be facing a threat. These are humans! They are worthless, weak, pathetic excuses for souls. They will be no match for us.”

“Alright then,” Kalani said, “I’ll prepare my men, and Elias will do the same. We will meet at dawn for expansion.”

The call ended and everyone grew silent. John looked up at me and I attempted to control my breathing.

Johnathan had taken my powers and made them his somehow, he had hurt the closest thing I had to family, and was threatening the stability that I had to ensure.

“The people are gathering at the dock now,” Luna said as she ran in, “We leave in forty minutes.”

I looked up at everyone and straightened my back, feeling the tingle down my spine where my tattoo was.

“Let’s meet at the dock in forty then,” I said. Everyone started to scramble around and get their stuff together. I ran to my room and changed into the outfit that Luna had given me.

It was the same as she had worn the day before; black combat suit and boots with a mask pulled up to the nose. There was a hooded part as well, so I put that on too.

I looked at myself in the mirror one good time before I left and headed down to the dock. My eyes were ice blue and I looked like a completely different person. I almost didn’t recognize myself, but I was admiring the person who I had become in such a short time.

I knew that was because I had one mission in my mind, and that was to kill Johnathan.