There was nothing natural about the implausibly straight and pitch black cavern path, the walls smooth and unblemished. However, Sookie was bothered most by the quiet. No sound. No movement. Could space be this quiet? she wondered. Could anything? She wouldn't dare even think it, but Warlow's alert eye, his handsome head tilted over so slightly upward gave her comfort. It'd been a long time since he'd encountered danger quite like this.
She'd been through worse.
What's the worse that can happen? These are Fae. A whole city of them. If anything, they'd try to protect her from Warlow—and she'd always be suspicious of him anyway. Shut up, Sookie, she thought. He'd definitely be in danger—and he's our only hope for stopping Bill.
As strong as they could make it, their light could only illuminate a few hundred feet in front of them. They saw no hint of a city. Heard no sounds. Or thoughts.
Until. There. Right there, Warlow thought to her. Look far. As far as you can.
Sookie saw nothing. Fucking vampires.
"You are very, very, very much in trouble, my friends."
Behind them.
The man wore a dark robe, his hair long and dark. Sookie could not hear his thoughts.
He was not Fae.
"We want to see the High Elder. That is all," Warlow said.
A smirk. "You are 3,000 years too late for that, I'm afraid."
Fangs protract.
More bodies emerge behind them. In front of them.
More fangs.
###
A giant purplish orb illuminated the city. Towers arose from the perfectly smooth and level ground, some reaching 50 stories. They were close enough to each other that a man could jump from window to window with little trouble. A vampire could leap a whole block, easy. And they did. Sookie couldn't help but look up and marvel.
Warlow's eyes stayed forward.
Directly below the giant orb was a pit, 10 stories deep. The dozens of vampires surrounding Sookie and Warlow walked them past it; Sookie looked down and saw a whole other city. In the pit—as big as a small town—was, well, a small town. Three or four story tenements. The people looked up to see the commotion above them—Sookie could hear them. They were Fae.
"Food," said the long-haired vampire. He smiled.
On the other side of the pit, Sookie and Warlow were stopped before a man no older than 16. He was shorter than Sookie, rail thin with cropped dark hair. The long-haired vampire bowed ever so slightly as he stepped behind the captives.
This new vampire glance vacantly at Sookie at honed in on Warlow. His eyes raised as he appraised.
"You must this nephew I've heard so much about."
"I am-"
"I know who you are. And I know why you're here. Come."
###
Inside the tallest of the buildings was a spare room—nothing but a chair. A throne room.
It was just this vampire, Sookie and Warlow. The vampire sat in the chair. Sookie stayed close to Warlow, a step or two behind him. Now she was getting scared. A Fae entered the room and approached the vampire.
"My king."
"Warlow, you must be hungry after such a journey. It must've been days! Even at my fastest, it takes most of an afternoon. This is Shalia. Please."
Warlow approached, slowly at first but then in a wisp he was on her neck.
"Please don't drain her. Our breeding season isn't for several months and I'm afraid we're a bit spare. And I'm sorry, Miss…."
"Stackhouse. Sookie Stackhouse."
"Of course. I'm sorry, Ms. Stackhouse. We haven't kept food suitable for humans in Pandom for centuries."
"I'm, uh, okay anyway. Thanks."
Warlow reluctantly released the Fae and pushed her away, as if he knew he couldn't control himself much longer. She scurried off, all the while her King smiled from the throne.
"Now, may I share a story?"
"Look, Mister…"
"I've had no use for a name for 4,000 years, Ms. Stackhouse. Here, I'm simply the King."
"Look, Mr. King. We were looking for a fairy city to help us fight a very, very, very fucking scary vampire. And, see that there ain't a Fae army anywhere, we'd-"
A fit of laughter.
"Ms. Stackhouse, the Fae city you seek was overrun by my men millennia ago. We are 2,000 vampires living peaceably here. But I am familiar with the threat you face, and I assure you that I'm not at all pleased with the developments over our head.
"The vampire you fear, from what I understand, is a reincarnation of a great enemy of mine. We here in Pandom are civilized—none here are younger than 1,000. If Earth were overrun by vampires, humans turned to cattle, then my charges would have no reason to stay. They'd enter into a world of chaos, ruled by a crazed fool for a false god.
"Who also happens to be the reincarnation of my sister."
Warlow's brows unfurled for the first time since they'd left the desert sun of Alexandia and entered the Earth.
"You'll help us, then?"
The King leaned back. For the first time, Sookie noticed a large goblet of the floor, which instantly appeared in the King's hand.
"May I indulge you in my story first? I can make 10,000 years of history very concise."
"Mr. King or your majesty or whatever," Sookie said. "I really like a good story and all, but-"
"Ms. Stackhouse, to stop false god, you must first understand it. This story involves Fae, too. In fact, Fae are where this story begins, more or less. Oh, Warlow, you'll find it most interesting. I can tell you everything about where the Fae originated. And vampires, shapeshifters. And creatures that walk the Earth now you've never seen, and creatures that no longer exist. I assure you, it is valuable information. Then, we can talk about other ways I may be of assistance.
"May I?"
Sookie stood silent. Warlow gave a single, soft nod.