Chronicles of the Uprising (Trilogy 1): Trilogy 1 (28 page)

Chapter 18

The troop moved swiftly upward toward the cave that would lead them to Caldera Grove.

Mira didn’t quite know what to expect, but she prepared for the worst. Maybe they’d be shot on sight. Maybe Remy would have a choir of other sirens ready to sing them right off a cliff. The scenarios she imagined became more ridiculous the longer she thought about them. Death threats were something she was used to, but they weren’t something to be taken lightly, and it was not only her life on the line. The whole pack as well as her human companions were on the chopping block.

Turning the humans against their will seemed more and more like the best choice when compared to the other option.

That’s when she knew she her nerves were getting the better of her. Never before had she faced a battle with so much riding on it. It had always been her own life on the line, something she was okay with gambling. The same didn’t apply when she actually cared about others and they were the ones at stake. She was determined that no matter the consequences, she’d fight to the death to keep her friends safe.

Closing in, the entrance to the cave became visible. Mira spotted Remy, the annoying singing siren. She recognized his short stature and ugly hat. That wasn’t the only thing she noticed; behind him, the Council was coming out to greet them. Not surprising.

Rather than slow down and prolong the inevitable, Mira sped up to meet them head on.

“What the hell is going on here?” Alec spoke before she’d even come to a stop. “You dare to defy my rule? You bring humans into our midst. We had a deal, vampire.” His eyes turned an eerie gray as he locked on to her face.

She came to a sudden stop inches away from the Otherkin dwarf leader. Though short in stature, he was no less intimidating. Wearing ancient looking armor and carrying a large-handled axe, he was clearly ready for a fight. So too were the other members of the Council, all armored all carrying weapons. Others too were there, waiting behind the Council members. Soldiers perhaps. Mira had yet to be introduced, nor had she seen formal soldiers on her last visit. Their weapons, she noted, appeared new – they had a shine to them that went way beyond good care and maintenance. If she didn’t know better, she’d have thought they’d never been used. Despite the disparity in in their numbers, Mira and her group might have a slight upper hand, being more adept at defending themselves. Not that she wanted to test that theory yet, but she would if it came to it.

Twitchy fingers near her belt, she stood ready to grab her dagger if necessary.

The others in her group came up short behind Mira. Wolves shifting into their human form took spots to her right, and the humans stood just to the left of her shoulder.

Still keeping his eyes locked on Mira, Alec waved a hand and two women, Otherkin she’d yet to be introduced to, seized hold of Curtis and Sarah.

Stryker grabbed Lucian and pulled him behind before anyone else could come near him.

Mira wasn’t a wolf and would not let Alec’s focused stare intimidate her. “What deal? You tried to force your will on me with that Otherkin skill of yours. That won’t happen again, and you won’t try it on my friends.” She could hardly believe the word “friend” had left her lips, but when it did, she knew she meant it. They were more than just companions. They were her friends. People she could count on. They’d proven themselves. And human though they were, she was fond of them, and had already and would continue to look out for their welfare.

Remy, standing a few paces behind Alec and the rest of the Council, calmly hummed a tune. He smirked at Mira, taunting her with his eyes.

She refused to break eye contact with Alec, but shouted, “Don’t listen to the siren. He’s going to try to send you away.”

“Damn you!” both Remy and Alec shouted.

“What’s a siren?” Sarah whispered.

“Someone you don’t need to trifle with.” The woman holding her snarled.

“You let her go right now.” Mira grabbed the dagger from her belt and crouched ready to strike at anyone who dared make a move at her.

“Release the humans for now,” Natasha spoke calmly.

Surprised to see such civility from the dark-haired vampire, Mira relaxed her grip on the dagger. Maybe she had misread Natasha the first time she’d seen her in the Council chambers. Mira had pegged her for an ice queen with absolutely no care at all for the lives of humans. If Natasha wanted, she could snap the humans’ necks in a heartbeat, and Mira would have no way to protect them all.

“I’m interested in hearing why you chose to break our rules.” Natasha strolled over to Curtis, icy eyes inspecting the older gentleman’s salt and pepper hair. She ran the back of her hand over his stubbly cheek, clearly in need of a shave. “What is it about you that makes this vampire so willing to ruin everything?” Her words had been spoken to Curtis but were clearly directed at Mira.

Nervous, but keeping a stiff upper lip about it, Curtis addressed the tall, slender vampire. “We’re not all bad…us humans.”

“Indeed.” Natasha turned away, clearly unimpressed. “Mira, dear, there are reprisals for breaking the rules, no matter what the reason.” Her tone may have been calm, but the threat was there. “Lesser vampires have died…”

“You deserve death.” Alec, however, was not so subtle. “You’ve turned our wolves against us, you bring humans to our door, and from what I understand from our wolf patrol, more humans are on the way.”

Mira caught sight of Terrance standing nervously toward the back of the cave. Eyes cast down to the ground, he noticeably avoided looking at his Alpha. Not a good sign at all.

Clenching her fist tighter again around her dagger, she glared back at the Otherkin dwarf. “The only thing you’re mad at is the fact that I have not turned my friends against their will. All I wanted was to find refuge for me and my friends. We’ve been through so much, risked everything. Instead of welcome from my fellow people, I have been tricked, shunned, and lied to. You used your magical mumbo-jumbo to force me to betray my own friends so you could keep your segregated society closed to all but your own kind.”

Niko had been watching the situation like the hawk he was, analyzing the posturing of all in attendance like a chess master ready to claim checkmate. “Our rules are set in place to protect our society and way of life. If you cannot abide by them, then you cannot be part of our society and claim sanctuary.”

He may have looked meaner that the rest, but Niko appeared to have the calmest of heads among the angry mob. She directed her attention to him and relaxed the grip on her weapon. “Then leave us to our own devices. Put down your weapons, and let us walk away.”

Still angry, Alec refused to back down. “That won’t happen now. You know the path to our home. You will divulge our secrets.”

So much for Niko’s civility. Alec was determined to push for a battle. “You leave me with no choice then.”

Mira’s tone lowered to a dangerous level. “I’ve fought for my life for over thirty years; nothing will stop me from that now.”

“Wait!” Stryker shouted. “This is insanity.”

“You’ll hold your tongue, wolf.” Niko’s tone sharpened. “The Council will decide what is best for the good of the community.”

“You had a job to do, Stryker,” Alec said. “You were to ensure she turned the humans. You could have prevented all of this. We hold you equally accountable.”

Stryker joined Mira, standing shoulder to shoulder with her. “Our situation has changed. The enemy is at our gate.”

“Yes, we can plainly see this.” Natasha almost appeared as if she wanted to laugh at his obviousness.

“Wrong enemy.” Deadly serious, Stryker’s tone deepened to a rumbling growl.

“Respect, wolf.” Niko warned.

“I’ve patrolled this area for decades. It used to be that the humans would never come across the badlands. They didn’t have the technology or were too afraid. Whatever the reason, they left our borders alone. Now in three days’ time, we have seen tanks and soldiers, and have lost members of our pack due to human encroachment.”

“Because of them.” Alec threw an accusatory finger at Mira.

She’d love to bite that thing off, but didn’t want to interrupt Stryker. He more than made up for her lack of diplomacy.

Stryker calmed the anger in his voice. “Today, tomorrow, Mira, or someone else, the reason is irrelevant. The humans will eventually come. That fact cannot be disputed.”

 “But they are coming now, as a result of this woman,” Alec responded.

“Forget this woman and forget these humans for now. We have a bigger battle to worry about. Humans from the Iron Gate city will come back. They’ll not stop now that they’ve made it this far. Can’t we set aside our disagreement until after we solve our problems? Mira is an accomplished fighter; she’d be good on our side.” Stryker pulled Lucian forward.  “This human here. He’s a former Elite; he knows things about their society. He can help us find their weaknesses.”

Not one to show his intimidation, Lucian, who’d calmly stood by, finally spoke. “Yes. I would be happy to offer you any help I can.”

“Silence, human. You have no say here.” Alec lowered his axe in an attempt to intimidate.

Mira caught sight of Lucian’s nostrils flaring angrily, but being the better man about it, he held his tongue. His eyes met hers, and she understood he was and deferring to her rather than spitefully responding. Smart man. She, however, was not so diplomatic.

“You’ll want to be a little nicer to my friends,” she snarled.

The look on Lucian’s face at the sound of the word “friend” was priceless. Clearly, he was just as shocked as she was to hear the word out loud.

“Everyone needs to calm down. Nothing good will come of a fight.” Stryker addressed the angry dwarf. “You know as well as I that Mira’s no stranger to fighting for her life. When was the last time you used that axe in battle?”

The dwarf’s face turned a deep shade of angry red. He mashed his teeth together, and Mira could swear she heard a rumbling coming from Alec’s throat. He looked as if he was about to blow his top.

Niko, remaining the calmest of the bunch, placed a hand on Alec’s shoulder. “Easy, brother. The wolf, though disrespectful, has a point.”

 Despite suddenly not caring whether or not she was allowed in Sanctuary, Mira liked the sound of Stryker’s plan. Working together using all of their skills would be best. They could meet the humans head on and maybe even drive them back to the city. She’d be able to keep her promise to George, too. “I have friends on the inside of the Iron Gate prison as well – warriors, like me. If you all drop the death threats, we can word towards some kind of arrangement. Maybe we find a way to free them. Imagine what kind of an army you would have with hard-core trained fighters on your side.”

Alec should have appreciated that plan, but being the hotheaded dwarf, he scoffed at the idea. “We have our own warriors.”

Now it was Mira’s turn to laugh. She glanced around the cave. New weapons, shiny armor that had hardly a scuff mark? None of these soldiers here were trained fighters. She wondered if a demonstration was in order, but thought better of it. Alec was already too close to blowing up. She’s just have to attack him with words until she provoked a physical reaction. “No offense. No, wait… actually I do mean to offend you.” She cast a sidelong glance at the others with their bright, shiny, unused weapons. “I could mop the floor with what I see of your warriors.”

Stryker cast a wary glance at her.

Mira shrugged. “Hey, he wants to boast, but when it comes down to it, you want the real deal on your side… unless you just want to lose. And from what I see, the stakes couldn’t be any higher. Lucian can attest to the horrors the human race is capable of. And they’ve got plenty of weapons to back themselves up.”

The Council members all exchanged guarded glances. Tension ran thick as the silent moments dragged on. No one dared to make a move, but everyone was wound tighter than a spring ready to be sprung. Just one word from either side and an all-out war would be started.

Finally, Alec let out a loud defeated sigh and lowered his weapon. “We will discuss your proposal in Council.” He took a few slow steps backwards, not turning his back to the group. “You all, Stryker included, will stay here until a decision is made.” He disappeared into the hidden entrance of the rock.

The rest of the Council followed behind Alec; they, however, did not worry about turning their backs on Mira or her human friends.

“Thanks for your defense.” Mira nodded to Stryker. “You took a big risk, going up against your leaders.”

Worry clouded his warm amber eyes. Stryker sat down on the ground and began his ritual of drawing in the dirt. “I am the leader of my pack. And I decide what is best for them. You are good people. Your plight is the same as all of our kind, only you are much closer to the actual danger. Our people have grown soft, comfortable in their security. What I said was truth. They might have taken it as disrespect because it was not what they wanted to hear, but it needed to be said. Whether it was you or someone else down the line who brings the humans to our door, it will happen eventually. We can’t take on the humans as we are now.”

Lucian crouched down next to Stryker. The simplicity of watching someone doodle in the sand had caught his interest as it had Mira’s days before.