Tenebrae
Immortalis
By Arcadia, Kain's Queen and Kain, Lord of Nosgoth
Disclaimer - Raziel and Kain are © Eidos and Crystal Dynamics, everyone else is © AKQ.
Summary - Never mind. You'll see.
Chapter Seven - Dark Moon Travelings
The woman blushed even more and stared up at Kain, lips parting even as the blush receded for the most part, but just the faintest hint of it remained. For a moment, she felt like he was going to kiss her, but it was broken by a door slamming upstairs. Flushing, Arcadia looked down swiftly before moving back over to her seat and sitting down, looking down at the rest of her meal.
"Well.. He.. he looks like you.. the.. the lips and the eyes.. Those are very much alike.. but you've got white hair and he's got black hair and.."
Realizing she was somewhat babbling, the woman shut up.
A soft chuckle came from him as he picked up his glass again and, lifting it to his lips, took a rather deep drink of the crimson liquid it contained. Lurking somewhere in the back of his mind was a small voice that was telling him to kiss her, to just take her in his arms and kiss her, if only to experience something wonderful for a single moment. He found it difficult to argue with that voice as he was starting to want to kiss her..
"Yes.. that's where the resemblance ends, too. He and I are nothing alike, as you've no doubt figured out, Arcadia."
He fell silent once more, that internal debate intensifying before breaking out into a screaming match between his growing desire and his more logical, rational self. Neither side was gaining ground, for which he was thankful. So long as he was caught in this internal conflict he wouldn't be able to do anything, torn two ways. Silently he began to finish his glass despite the fact his appetite had left him when his brother had let himself in.
Arcadia's gaze turned over to him before her gaze focused once more upon her plate. She had gone exploring here the morning after giving him the drawing and now her mind was focused upon the thin book that she had found on one of the tables. Thumbing through it, she had found words written in it in a bold, dark hand and had known without knowing how she knew, that Kain had written the words, dark words, troubling words...
I 'During the night,
I am the creature before you,
pale and tall and straight
dark eyes firing towards you
gliding, lifting, steering, directing
I am the silent and the powerful
a moonlit field of smooth, untouched snow
But he
Yes, him, the other me
Oh, he would tremble in your grasp
his lily hand would crumble to your touch
he would twist to press your lips to his
he would stroke your silken cheek
and slide his corroded lips along your
dovelike neck.
Not I, you understand, the other me
he who squints
and hesitates
and weakens
in the daylight.' /I
It had been with a trembling hand, her heart beating erratically, that she had turned the page to the next poem..
I 'I feel it coming
through the tears in the darkness
quickly approaching as I conceal
myself
quaking underneath
the shadows in the light.
Shivers ripple my moist skin
The urgent itching on the
surface tormenting me
keeping me locked in.
I run my tongue over
my lips
And I am found, as always.
Then it begins
My resistance bleeds away
and I am filled with
the emptiness of my being.
Awareness is replete.
The trial is ended.
Sated by the shattering
my knowing
why
and left alive
for the next visit
The darkness has taken a piece of my soul.' /I
Then.. the third poem which had been the most profoundly beautiful to her..
I 'I hide in the shadows
and lust for the light
for I am Vampyre
forever imprisoned by the night.
The moon is my sun,
the night my day,
Blood is my life,
and you are my prey.
I long for what I've lost
For that which can never be.
I cloak the horror of what I am
and pray you never see.
I shadow my gaze in your presence
and pray you ne'er be part,
Of the hunger that claws at my vitals
of the evil that blackens my heart.
I look in her eyes
and find forgiveness there
and for a moment -
a brief, sweet shining moment,
I see an end to my despair.
Her touch has rendered me helpless,
her trust weakens the chains of the past.
Dare I believe in the love she offers?
Have I found an end to this darkness at last?' /I
She wondered who the woman in the third poem was, but the girl dared not to ask him. After reading the words that Kain had written, Arcadia had merely closed the book and put it back down where she'd found it. Finishing her meal, she murmured soft words to Kain of simple gratitude for the meal before excusing herself and heading up the stairs towards her room, her skirts rustling ever so faintly about her ankles.
He watched as she left, idly sipping at his glass, it was just barely half empty now. Again the thought of lying next to her in her bed came to him and with it a profound sense of longing for something he couldn't quite identify. With a low sigh and a shake of his head he brushed the thought away again. Such things were not meant for creatures like him, they were meant for those who lived, whose hearts still beated, who weren't murderous creatures that stalked the shadows. Finally he drained his cup and set it on the table before sitting back in his chair, thinking. Thinking about the long years of his life, always alone. The only time there was ever anyone else in his life it was his brother or some other vampyre come on business of one sort or another. But never before had it been such an intriguing and beautiful woman. Surely this had to be a mistake and when the fates realized it they would correct it and she would be taken from him, leaving him to his loneliness once again.
Arcadia sat down in an over-stuffed chair by her fireplace, staring at the flames with unseeing blue eyes. She had to wonder idly that if she lived out a mortal life with Kain, married to him, if he would feel upset about losing her to death. Probably not.. After all, he most likely had a woman vampyre to go to whenever he wanted companionship.. Unbidden, an image flashed briefly in her mind.. an image of Kain, kissing a pale woman with long, dark brown hair.. doing more then kissing her... loving her..
The girl shook her head slowly from side to side, pressing her hands to her temples, squeezing her eyes shut.. Why did that hurt..? Why did the idea of him leaving her to go to a lover hurt..? Arcadia didn't know.. And she wasn't brave enough to try figuring it out.. But, it hurt deeply for some reason to know that he would simply go to another woman when she died.. Burying her face in her hands, the woman began to weep softly, trying to stifle the sounds from the acute hearing of the two vampyre within the home.
The unannounced and unexpected arrival of his younger brother had put him off balance. Though he couldn't explain it, part of him felt the need to keep Arcadia safe from Raziel, to fiercely protect her. He dismissed it as nothing more than his being honor bound to do so rather than entertain the notion that he cared for her. And yet that didn't seem to be too far-fetched, she was the first woman to know what he was and show no fear. And just a moment before she'd behaved in a manner suggesting that she felt the need to protect him as he did her. No one had ever sought to protect him, not even his own brother. He had always been on his own. Save for that one time..
There had been another, but she had been put out of his mind. She hadn't cared for him, she only cared for the power and prestige he had both in mortal society and vampyre. They had been together for a long time until the day came that she betrayed him and he realized he'd been deluding himself to believe she cared. She used his want, his need for someone to love him to use him. He had almost lost everything because of her. He all but killed her in his rage and heartbreak. He had regretted allowing her to get so close to him and for the longest time he swore that no one would ever again... until the pangs of loneliness grew stronger than the ache of a broken heart..
Finally, the tears faded and Arcadia just lay on her side upon the bed she had moved to during a pause in the tears, letting the tearstains upon her cheek dry before levering herself up onto her elbow, slowly sitting up. She couldn't stay in the mansion tonight.. Not tonight.. And it had been a fortnight since she had last roamed out into the city on one of her nighttime excursions. Inhaling slowly, the girl moved off the comforter and began to strip out of her dress. Once she wore nothing but her brassiere and underwear, the woman moved to the trunk pushed up against the left side of the room. Kain's servants had brought her items to his manor on the morning after her arrival there, for which Arcadia was deeply grateful. Kneeling before the trunk, fingers gently tracing the inlaid cedar letters of her name, which stood out against the black oak wood of the chest, she then opened it slowly, almost reverently.
On the outside of the trunk, it looked to be at least twenty-four inches deep, perhaps twenty-six at most. However, on the inside, the chest was only twenty inches deep. With no thought as for the delicate nightgowns and lacy lingerie within it, more private garments meant for her eyes alone.. and soon only for Kain's.. the woman pulled them out of the wooden chest and dumped them onto the floor. It looked like there was nothing wrong with the trunk on the inside of the trunk either, but to skilled eyes that knew what to look for, they would see a faint crack on the walls of the chest. Reaching into it, the woman moved her hand to the back right-hand corner and pressed down. A subtle click awarded her ears. Slim fingers removed the false bottom before they ran lovingly over the ebon garments laid out there. Removing a top and pants, replacing everything else within the chest, her boots would come on soon, the woman dressed herself within the dark clothing. Gently, her feet were slid into the supple leather boots she wore, the leather as soft as a lover's caress against her stockinged feet, the woman stood, finally reaching out towards the mask she would wear on her excursions before whirling about as she heard the door opening, blue-flecked sapphire orbs lifting up to meet the wolf gold eyes framed by snowy strands of hair.
".. Kain.."
Slowly, Arcadia felt her face flush guiltily. Her fingers slowly grew limp upon the mask which slowly dropped onto the floor and she backed up from both it and the expression on his face. It wasn't fear that had her scared on the inside, but guilt.. The look he was wearing as he looked at her.. Her throat bobbed with a hard swallow before the woman tossed her head, lifting it proudly. This was who she was.. what she was.. Yes, by day, Arcadia would be the Duchess of Nosgoth, with him as her Duke, but at night, she was little more then a common thief. It seemed to be a family profession as her mother had been one. In fact.. her father had caught Alyssa in much the same manner that Kain had, except that her mother hadn't escaped. After a whirlwind romance and dealing with a man who had wanted Alyssa for himself, the two had come together when Arcadia had been born, marrying soon after. Yet, even when the thief's mother had given up her profession to raise her daughter, that didn't stop her from teaching the young girl her own thieving skills. Then had come the carriage accident... And her father became a widower. The man showed no interest in taking another wife and Arcadia had grown up with the hereditary headstrong and temptuous nature of her Scottish ancestors. Slowly, the marquis' daughter swallowed before she spoke, voice betraying none of the roiling emotions within her.
"I hope you don't mind if I go out for a few hours.."
Yet, the girl made no move towards her mask. Within the kerosene lamps and the light of the fireplace, the vampyre lord was able to see her outfit clearly. The boots and pants seemed to be melded to Arcadia's long, lithe legs which carried her with such confidence. Her top ran down her arms to the wrists, just slightly looser then her pants, but a belt about her trim waist reemphasized the womanly curves upon her body. Arcadia's entire body was worked to become one single muscle, each part working with the others in singular unison. She had brought him to his knees with a single kick. And now.. Now he'd caught her preparing a little trip. Arcadia squared her shoulders, struck by a sudden idea. It was almost laughable. Almost. But..! She had to know.. Had to know for this idea to work.
"Kain.. when was the last time you saw the sun rise..?"
Slowly, Arcadia moved, bending to pick up her mask. The glossy leather shone like obsidian, the supple material flexing in whim with the movements of her fingers. Then, slender arms lifted it up and she stared at him through the eyeholes with dark azure orbs. Moving over to the fireplace, the woman covered her hands with ashes before coating her face with the flaky black stuff as well. Then, hands moved, masking the white tips of her hair before she rose, awaiting his answer.
An ever deepening frown creased his features as he watched her, his eyes fixed squarely upon her face. He knew exactly what she was up to and it was clear on his face that he did not approve of it. For briefest instant something else, some other emotion flashed in those golden eyes.. but before it could be identified it was gone. With her question came an irritated twitch at the corner of his lips. She was treading on very dangerous ground right now, and she most likely knew it..
"When was the last time I saw the sun rise..? Just what, exactly, are you trying to accomplish with a question like that? I have been a vampyre for nearly three millennia.. So.. as to your question.. what do you think?" His eyes narrowed sharply as his voice lowered to an angry hiss.
There was a great many things that he missed from his mortal life, and watching the sun rise and set were among them. Slowly and deliberately Kain began to look her over, the outfit she was wearing practically clung to her form like a second skin, leaving little to the imagination. And the vampyre's imagination immediately began to see through the expanse of midnight that enveloped her.. then began to run wild with thoughts of caressing his long, pale fingers over her every curve, dragging the lethal points of his claws over her soft skin and seeking out those places that would send shivers of desire through her before she would begin whimpering almost pleadingly for him to take her. His mind was flooded with a flurry of images and sounds and imagined sensations.. he so desired to lay in bed with her.. to make love her.. but he was a master of himself before anything else and if he could help it none of that would be visible in his eyes.. but how wrong he was, for the tiniest flicker of that desire danced behind those gold wolf eyes..
"And just where are you going, Arcadia? Can't stand my company already?" His tone had an edge that, if it were a blade, could cut even this fiery woman down to size, but there was something else in his voice, a faint undercurrent of an ages old pain and loneliness. With a wave of his hand he cut her off just as she opened her mouth to reply. "I had come here to ask if you'd like to take a walk under the stars, but you apparently have more important things to do." His frown was replaced by a dark scowl, that flicker of desire in his eyes was mingled with a profoundly deep hurt, his gaze fixed upon her.