Chapter 3
"Lifemate"
(Revised after reading Dark Demon)
Mandy awoke taken aback with pain, waves and waves of it, followed by violent retching, and then she lost control of her vowels, the pain was mindless, like a living flame burning her inside out. She had never experienced something like it.
Tristan watched in awe, he had never seen that happen before in his centuries of life, he thought of touching her to try and ease the pain, but he couldn't; her mind was closed hermetically. She would not let him into the suffering. She feared he would make it worse. She actually waved a safety spell around her; she felt like she was dying and the pain just grew, stronger and deeper with each second.
She crawled away from him and rolled into a ball like a little caterpillar, trembling with fear and shame. He saw every bone of her back sticking-out with each painful sigh, and then she stopped breathing, the trance had begun; she would need to go to ground immediately. Her heart nearly stopped and she laid there motionless, feeling the transformation of her organs from human to Carpathian began.
Tristan thought he had killed her, so he rushed to her side to help her.
"My God, Mandy. I don't know what's happening, come back, don't you dare die on me, come back!" Her lungs had shut-down, her heart was barely beating, she had undergone the worst of conversion and now her body was shutting down to finish the job properly.
He pulled her up and back to the bed carefully, she felt boneless to him, then he wrapped her on the bed covers and took her down to his secret chamber with utmost care, he knew instinctively she had turned into a creature of the night just like him, and that petrified him. How was he going to explain to her what had just happened?
As he laid her down on the soil he saw the bite-mark on her shoulder, an angry-red circle of blood and torn flesh, he hadn't closed it on time and now it would scar, leaving a permanent reminder of her conversion, of his possession.
He regretted it deeply, what on God's name had taken over him? She was a complete stranger, he knew nothing of her and yet he had bedded her and then turned her. With those few actions he had broken every single vow of restrain he had made to his human family, never to make one of his kind, never to feed for the kill, only for survival, and never with a female he was having sex with, the whole thing was forbidden.
But they were all dead now, it didn't matter, except he felt he had betrayed them, and more than just that, he had completely lost control of himself, he shouldn't have taken her and he sure as hell shouldn't have turned her without asking her first.
Even worse than that, he had declared his feelings to her, looking back on it, he couldn't bear it, such weakness, he was a guardian, he couldn't loose perspective, revenge was his main goal, this girl had to be a mere distraction.
And boy, what a distraction she had been!
His tongue felt swollen, she was untamed; that had to be the dragon seeker blood; it run deep on her veins, making her a wild thing, and a powerful psychic too, and she had more than just that, he tasted something that felt like cat's blood, and something magical, he sensed a great deal of power coming from her, so much it scared him. How was he going to become the other half of this strange woman when he couldn't even understand what she was?
zzz
"They've joined." Mikhail mentioned casually to Raven as they were watching Star Wars Episode one, the phantom menace, as promised, Raven had bought the entire series for her prince, no shocker at all, he liked Queen Padme Amidala.
"Who?" She was a little engrossed with the movie herself.
"Amanda and Tristan; I felt it." Mikhail said softly. Raven turned around, putting the video on pause, she felt there was more to the story. "He also made the blood exchange. He made a rather powerful blood exchange in fact; she's turned into a full Carpathian female now."
"He just met her hours ago!" Raven couldn't believe just how desperate men could be, he had been alone for centuries, but that didn't excuse his impulsiveness. He didn't even ask her if she wanted to be turned.
"I don't think he was aware of what he was doing."
"How can you say that? He's an ancient Carpathian. How could he ignore the consequences of his actions?" Raven asked with barely restrained anger.
"Because he was raised by humans; he doesn't know how things really work, and I fear the one who will suffer the most for this is her… Amanda." It meant she who must be loved in Latin.
Mikhail paused to caress Raven's hair, it was long and silky as usual, but she had just washed it, and it smelled like heaven to him, he couldn't get enough of the soft, satiny feeling of it as he wrapped a lock around his finger, he though pregnancy had made her so much more beautiful. "She's already a victim of the circumstances, I'm sure she won't like to discover who her birth father was, or what she has become now … willingly or not. I sensed her memories were implanted. She's not who she thinks she is, that much I'm certain off, but I must talk about this with Dominic and Natalya, they will explain to me why is it that her mark is on the back rather than the hip, and how she came about to be his daughter."
"You can't be sure of that, it could be someone else. He's not the only Dragon Seeker around." Raven said. They meant Razvan, that unholy name that should never be pronounced in his house again, unless to warn other vampires of their fate. The famous mage seduced by Xavier into the darker side. He who had nearly killed all of them when he guided Maxim to their home, it had taken the combined power of all Carpathians alive to defeat them. And even like that, Gregori had been injured gravely, and Dominic nearly killed. Razvan and Xavier were enemies who should not be underestimated.
"But he's the only one who would use humans like that." In Amanda's case it hadn't just been an affair, her mother had been a slave, a toy, a food supply and warm body for that vampire and for Xavier as well. "And we know he sired many daughters, he's the only reasonable choice and most probably the real one, the only other male Dragon Seeker around is Dominic, and the last I heard-off he was resting then, he couldn't have sired a twenty something year old woman." Mikhail recalled.
"That's sounds reasonable alright." Raven said, she had to agree with the prince in lieu of the circumstances.
zzz
As if the conversation had summoned him, Tristan appeared at the prince's house, he looked so afflicted, so incredibly lost that Mikhail took pity of him. It couldn't be easy for the redhead; there was so much he didn't know about. How could he pass on centuries of wisdom to this lost soul? Easy, he had to let Raven help him, she was his sanity, his life, his everything, if she could explain what having a lifemate truly meant, maybe Tristan would understand better, to Mikhail things were so clear that explaining them would sound like a lecture, and things weren't supposed to be like that.
Tristan should know of just how lucky he was, finding Amy meant he was safe, but it also meant he had a duty to fulfill, someone to protect above all things, finding her meant the end of a cycle but it also meant the beginning of a new phase, one filled with love, joy, hope and of course in due time…children.
The survival of the race depended on each and every single joined couple, if they had children and make that females, in time the balance of the sexes would be found. Mikhail calculated than in another century at least 50 females would be born, if all of them survived to be at least 20 years old, they would find mates and with all the research been done on soil, blood, hormones, and everything else related to pregnancy, in one century … maybe, he would have the answers to end the extinction of his people. He prayed to avoid at all cost what happened with Noelle and Rand, or Rhiannon and her triplets, not one couple should take lightly the duties and pleasures of having a lifemate and the consequent and very precious children.
"Come inside, red man; have a sit, we have much to discuss you and I." Mikhail said as he let Tristan into his home.
"How are you, my prince? Raven you look more beautiful each passing day. How are you, my Princess?" Even suffering deeply as he was; he was always charming to women.
Tristan now noticed his lifemate had those very same looks Raven had: pale skin, dark hair and light eyes, the ones common to the race. In fact, he now thought it was the most beautiful look. Red hair was curse, one he didn't wish on his worst enemy.
"I'm doing great; you on the other hand, look terrible." Raven said pessimistically.
"That's an understatement. I just went through hell."
"It can't be that bad." Mikhail interjected feeling left-out of the conversation and considerably angry with Tristan's manners, he didn't like other males been charming to his wife. "Amanda looks like a fairly biddable female, I'm sure she gave you no trouble at all."
"No, no trouble at all, she's easy-going, a sunshine if I've seen one." Tristan said sarcastically. "She read me up and down, snooped around every last feeling and memory of my mind, then she messed-up with my head … forcing me to convert her."
"She did?!" Mikhail said, holding his own disbelief at bay, he had never heard of a female forcing a male. "How could she do that?"
"She's got … talents." Tristan acknowledged with some degree of shame.
"I see. Well for better or for worse, she's your bonded lifemate, you've finally found her. Shouldn't that make you happy?" Raven asked wondering why he sounded like he was complaining about her.
"I don't know. We didn't fully discussed what's the purpose of her," Tristan realized what he was saying and he backed-off. "I mean, I know she's 'the light to my dark' and all that load of …stuff. But what am I supposed to do with her now that I've found her?" The question was so ludicrous even Mikhail laughed.
"That's a good question." Raven said amused and chuckling with mirth. "Well, you are supposed to love her, protect her, honor her, respect her …and boss her around too. That should make you happy, every other Carpathian male thrives on the idea of having someone to enslave."
"So I basically married the woman un-avertedly?" Tristan sounded so human, like he had been shackled and he didn't even notice.
"More or less, except there's no such thing as divorce or separation for us, we are together, through all time, bonded in body, mind and soul, and believe me, human love cannot compare to what a lifemate does to you." Mikhail responded, imprinting the words of the ritual bond for extra pun.
"That's something I wanted to talk to you about." Tristan began with more anxiety that he could control. "She comes into my head, reads it and then makes me feel what she's feeling. Is that normal?"
Raven was about to make a funny comment but Mikhail stopped her. "Is not only normal, but essential to your survival, she needs to know where you are, and how you feel at all times, she needs you to be aware of danger all the time. And you definitely need to know the same about her … and a lot more too."
"All the time?" Tristan asked filled with disbelief.
"All the time. She's your responsibility; she's your other half, your lifemate. How could you ignore how she feels?" Mikhail got so perturbed by his ignorance he had to stand up from the table they've been sitting at and walk to the nearest window to cool his temper.
"If you couldn't be there when she was in need, if she was attacked by a vampire, captured, even if just injured … if she died, God forbid, you'll turn into a vampire. How could you imply she shouldn't know your mind?! Have you no sense at all? We guard our women so fiercely that at times they complaint they feel more like prisoners rather than mates." Mikhail reprimanded.
Raven touched him, stilled him, his beast was roaring, he couldn't process the idea of a careless mate. He would lose more than just a couple if something happened to her, this new comer was important to them. Amanda, Colby, Skyler and Natalya were the only ones left of this reverenced family, he dearly needed female children and they were key to produce them, and even more so considering they were all young, healthy, female and bonded.
"I thought vampires were males that chose the darker side, the baser passions." Tristan said in a small voice. "I didn't know of all these things."
"I beg your pardon my friend, is just that I struggle so much with this dire treat everyday that every new couple I see is a breath of fresh air." Mikhail stood right in front of Tristan and grabbed him by the shoulders, like he greeted Gregori when they were in good terms, like warriors.
"You must take good care of her, she's fundamental to your survival, but she's also important for the survival of our race. God knows what powers she has, you should find them, develop them, and use them wisely. Her blood is gifted, and if you help her she'll be a great mate, you should have a meeting with Virkinoff, he's Natalya's mate. He could explain you better what's like to tame a Dragon Seeker woman. Also she's your mate's aunt, and I'm sure they would love to meet each other."
"What do you mean by she's important to the survival or our race?" Tristan asked puzzled.
"We mean children, Tristan." Raven responded. He hadn't thought of that, of course he had noticed several of these women pregnant, but he hadn't thought he could have children with Amanda. "This is the great dilemma of our race, we can't reproduce properly; mostly males are born, so the few females around are heavily treasured."
"You mean I can have children with Mandy?!" He asked outraged. "But she's a vampire!"
"She's a Carpathian female, not a vampire, and she's capable of having children, but the few of them born, usually die within the first year, we are actively fighting this curse, we have come close to the solution of this problem, but research it still needed." Mikhail said with great hope in his heart.
"I had thought I could only have children with human women."
"You can, but they are not full Carpathians until they go through a blood exchange," Raven added thinking of Shea and Amanda herself. "Amanda is just like you now, a fully Carpathian female, together you will produce one hundred percent Carpathian children."
"So any child I have with a human is a potential Carpathian lifemate?"
"Yes, that is the utmost truth, in fact, a great deal of females are psychic humans and half breeds of human and Carpathian, very few females are born Carpathian, I was once human, so were most of the females here, except for Savannah, my daughter." Raven added with a tinge of pride, she was the first to have delivered and raised a female in the last century. And now they were expecting two grand-daughters from Gregori and her, they were the dream of elusive hope in the making.
"My God, I knew nothing of these things!" Tristan added with astonishment, humans knew nothing of what went behind Carpathian walls. "I thought we couldn't have children."
"Where do you think you came from?" Mikhail asked puzzled. "Do you believe the stork brought you to your parents then?" Raven laughed out-loud, she couldn't picture the idea of a Carpathian baby been dropped by the stork.
"I though, well I don't know, I thought I was some sort of fluke, that we were made by blood."
"That's how vampires are made, we are born like this." Mikhail added with more amusement that anger. "Dark haired, pale, over-protective, over-bearing, tall, handsome and mostly neurotic; I'm afraid these all are traits of the race."
"I see, so just to make things clear, I'm supposed to know were Amanda is all the time, what she's thinking, feeling, wanting, needing, etc. and she's supposed to do the same for me?"
"Right, that is correct."
"So I can never lie to her, or hide things she shouldn't know, or give her any sort of opinion capacity or independence?"
"Yes, that is correct also." Mikhail noticed a bit of what all the females complaint so much about.
"I think Mandy and I are gonna be a little different, or else we'll have lots of trouble… have you ever heard of feminism, my prince?" Tristan said amused and irritated at the same time, he had been so wrong! Everything he thought was real, was nothing but lies, misconceptions of the truth, pure fiction.
"I would love to see that, maybe you can teach some logical, reasonable, post modern knowledge to these ancients we live with." Raven asked hopefully, he would no-doubt be a different kind of mate, hopefully he'd be tolerant, and maybe even flexible, maybe those rare capacities could be taught to other Carpathian males.
"I don't fight lost causes." Tristan said with a smirk on his face. Mikhail laughed to that as well, he would never change, he loved Raven too much to allow her any risks, and he knew Tristan would get like that too eventually, his cool ways were doomed, specially if Mandy was as wild as she appeared to be.
"Are all the dragonseekers evil?" Tristan asked as he put to the test his last reservation about Amy.
"Of course not! Whatever gave you such insane idea? They are powerful, gifted, and very famous; there were once the ruling family way before my time, but they yielded the place because they hadn't found lifemates in centuries, most of them were males, and they had turned into vampires." The prince answered as he remembered what he had heard centuries ago.
"So Amanda is incapable of being like Razvan, of becoming evil?" Tristan asked.
"Completely and utterly incapable, she's bonded, and far beyond that, women do not turn into vampires unless they are driven there by a stray male. How could you think that of your mate is beyond me?" The prince said with barely constrained fury. "What happened with Rhiannon was a horrible tragedy, one you must prevent by been extremely careful with your mate, and guarding her from vampires and mages alike. You should consider her and every single child you have a priceless treasure."
"You must understand I'm more human than Carpathian, and my notions are completely different than yours." Tristan said to address the prince's comments.
"In that case, you better ask before you make another insane assumption like that. I swear to God I fear for the life of Amanda Dragonseeker by your side, you are bound to get her killed with your crazy ways." The prince said almost ranting.
"Well, I'm going to need a favor from you, my princess." Tristan began, changing the subject to a safer one.
"Anything," Raven answered quickly, Mikhail wasn't as forward as she but he would help him none the less. She took pity of him; his position could not be easy.
"I have to go to The States, to pick up some things, would you mind watching Amy until I come back."
"Not at all, she's sleeping isn't she?" Raven asked.
"Yes, she'll wake up in couple of days, if she does wake up before I return, I ask you to explain some of these things to her."
"Some, but not all, alright, I guess I can do that." Raven said, thinking she could stall a bit, if Amanda started asking the big questions out of her.
"How do you plan to cross the ocean and be back here in a few days?" Mikhail asked once again puzzled with Tristan's methods, it was very unseemly to leave a newly found mate alone hours after conversion.
"I fly cargo." Tristan responded carelessly, as if that alone could explain everything.
"Your trust for humans is deeply uncanny, Tristan Ferdichenko. You are an enigma, I can't imagine how you were kept alive all this time." Mikhail said, he genuinely wondered how a Carpathian male could be so different, in every way, not just physically but also emotionally. "How old were you when your parents died?"
"About 18 months, I'm not sure."
"My God, you were only a baby; I can't imagine how they managed to keep you safe."
"They gave me their blood, and kept me away from the sun … is as simple as that." Mikhail didn't push the issue any further; it had to be painful as hell, reliving a nightmare, as he remembered those days after the Turk invasions.
"What are you going to get at the States that's so important?" Raven asked as Tristan was about to leave. She was too curious to let it go.
"The Lamia Ovis." Tristan then transformed into a wolf and ran-out into the woods, leaving the prince and his mate at a loss for words; he was in a hurry to get back to the states.
What's that?Raven asked through the link.
It's a legend, baby; supposedly, it contains the detailed registration of every Carpathian born since my parents.
Such a thing exists! I can't believe it, Mikhail. We must find it. We could finally be a society again.
We could, little one; that alone has made me a happier man, let us hope Tristan does bring the treasure to us.
He will; that's why he left in such a hurry, I'm sure he's dying to be rid of it.
No, Raven, He's going to get something a lot more important, I don't know what it is but he was so driven by compulsion that he left, and he didn't even bothered to build barriers around Amy's chamber, or around her sleep, she could wake up any time and she'd basically be buried alive. I don't think he did this on purpose but he did it none the less, we should fix that, I have a feeling she's going to wake up sooner that expected.
And she'll be all alone down there and us powerless to contact with her, I can't imagine what that would be like; we definitely need to fix that.
No, baby, I need to fix that, you need to rest, don't forget our daughter needs you to be comfortable all the time, so go to bed, we'll continue watching the movie in a little while.
You'll never change.
Never.
zzz
It was dark, very dark, that's what Amy remembered, she was covered with soil, from head to toe, basically buried, she wasn't afraid of it. It had happened before, she wasn't scared of the earth, she actually felt safe inside it, once, a very long time ago; she had taken refuge inside it from the blazing sun and from other vampires.
But something else had definitely scared her, a dream, more like a nightmare, she was only a babe in it, so small she still slept on her cradle, one night, she heard a riot, then screams, her mother was screaming, she said a name:
"Dragomir!"
She screamed the name once, twice, thrice and then the coppery smell of blood invaded the room. Amanda felt the ice cold hand of fear grip her soul.
Amanda started bawling her eyes out immediately, crying-out for help, she knew her mother was injured and dying, Amy had already learned her mother's name: Drahuska, though she could not pronounce it, she said:
"Drahh,"
Over and over again she said it, pointlessly, then someone came, she couldn't make much of his face, it was too dark, she was too small, but she saw his eyes, they were green, feral, and evil.
He took her by the armpits, held her at arms-length, sniffed her up and down, and then sensing something he did not like about her… he took her out, to the cold wind of the night which hit her fully on her small, chubby limbs, freezing her almost instantly.
It was Slovakia, during the winter, around midnight and she was only a baby, the man left her there and dissolved into a cloud of mist. He clearly meant her to die and didn't have the heart to kill her himself. She had been so pretty, so innocent, even a dark, evil mage/vampire hadn't had the heart to murder her.
zzz
With that very same feeling of lonely despair she awoke, the sun had just gone down on the horizon, the lights were still dark purple, and the animals of the forest were close by, feeding; she felt all these things and more, she heard a distant cry coming from the deep earth, like a howl or a roar, something calling-out to her, someone, she didn't bother following it, she was hungry, with a nagging sense of pain, or a crave.
She knew Tristan wasn't around, she felt his presence at the very back of her mind, silent, he was in his wolf shape again, hunting for someone, she didn't bothered checking on him, she knew he was alright, and he knew she was fine, he couldn't spent all his energy communicating through their private path when he could easily use a cell phone once he finished the chase.
Amanda felt his desperation, whatever he was looking for was terribly important, so he had all his energy focused on getting it; she knew he'd be home soon, so she didn't make a big deal out of it. She was an adult; she could take care of herself for a few hours, because she was sure this other blood-suckers would be looking for her pretty soon. She knew what she had become, in truth, she had always known she was different, but it wasn't until now that she understood just how different she was.
So she climbed out of the soil, went into the house and found her old clothes. She came out of the cabin and into nigh as silent as the wind itself, feeling the call of the blood, a doe was resting nearby, she followed it, deeply into the woods, when she was near him, she used a power she had always possessed but almost never used, hypnosis, she enthralled the animal with her eyes, the deer stood motionless waiting for her to come close to him, she did it and of course she took what she needed.
She knew she should not kill it, so she took some and then she released it, it wasn't enough to satiate the hunger, but it would do for the moment.
Something was out there watching her, a wolf, she felt something oddly familiar about him, he also recognized her, it was Gregori, she was hunting too close to his home for his taste, but she was a female, so it wasn't so important.
"Are you in need, sister?" He asked her, not bothering to change his shape.
"I'm fine, I was just feeding." She found it was really easy to talk like this, nothing too hard or complicated, nothing as difficult as Tristan's mind was, full of drawers, secrets and faded memories. This was just like a phone but with no lines or artifacts.
"You shouldn't be feeding from animals; there are many humans outside this area. Your mate should've provided fresh blood for you."
"He's out of town. I know I shouldn't feed here, but I'm not supposed to leave the safety area." Finally a female who understood what the safety area meant.
"Would that alone stop you when you get hungrier?"
"No, I don't think it would, but it's soothing for the now."
"So, in the interest of keeping you safe, why don't I escort you to Mikhail's house, I'm sure he'll see to your hunger." Gregori himself would not offer assistance, he couldn't. It would create havoc with his very pregnant Savannah and Tristan would have his head on a plate, although it wasn't like Gregori to leave a female go wanting he did.
"I can handle my own hunting, thank you very much. I know where the prince's house is, I'll go there later." He didn't want to let her go, she was too inexperienced to go out alone, she could run into serious danger, but then she did something surprising.
"Be still, Dark One; and let me leave…" she waved a small spell to slow Gregori down, she couldn't paralyze him, merely contain him so she could escape, he felt the magnetic field go around him, making him disoriented; then she turned around and left running very fast, she left a cloud of smoke behind her. Gregori wasn't so worried after that, she wasn't powerless, in fact she seemed very much in control of herself, the doe continued eating right beside him, as if she'd never been there at all, for a second he wondered just how much Carpathian blood she really had, because short of a few hours after conversion she was quite powerful.
And Amanda didn't leave the safety area either, she got as close to the barriers as she could and wooed a new waiter from the Inn to come to her (The inn where everybody spent last Christmas in Dark Celebration) he thought he was coming out for a piss, she repeated the procedure she made with the doe, sent him away with certainly of his ignorance and then she went back on her steps to talk to Mikhail…
ZZZ
Tbc…
AN: You're probably thinking Mandy and Tristan hardly spent any time together, but trust me; he has a good, legitimate reason to be elsewhere, a very good one in fact. So go read the next chapter, you'll understand why he left.
AN2: I'm assuming Dark Celebration took place in December 2006, so this story is about a year after, so Savannah is pretty advanced, and Raven has had enough time to get pregnant again and start showing, you know the idea was planted on DC, along many other future pregnancies, (I see a maternity ward been built on the caverns pretty soon, and Syndil moving to the Carpathian Mountains for good) .
Question: did I miss-out on something? Because I couldn't find the name of Jacques son, he said welcome here and all that, but he wasn't named, and that I think is a huge mistake of Mrs. Feehan, I think that was too much of a cliffhanger for me. So I filled in, I named him Vladimir in honor of prince Vlad, the alleged grand parent, so when he does have a name, let me know so I can change it.
The mean kitten.
Don't forget to review me!!
Extra:
Am I ever gonna find out
By Lifehouse
Silence
is golden
But I think its gonna kill me now
Everything Ive
seen
Never seems to fail me now
No one told me that the world
could fall through yeah
In between this am I gonna find a
way
To defeat this living inside yesterday
Im alive I think its
time to live
Like I am
Am I ever gonna find it
Am I ever
gonna find it
Am I ever gonna find out
Patience can wait
for now
I think Ive waited for too long
You always gave a
choice
Well I know right to be wrong
All my life has been
slipping through your hands yeah
In between this am I gonna
find a way
To defeat this living inside yesterday
Im alive I
think its time to live
Like I am
Am I ever gonna find it
Am
I ever gonna find it
Am I ever gonna find out
In between
this am I gonna find a way
To defeat this living inside
yesterday
Im alive I think its time to live
Like I am
Am I
ever gonna find it
Am I ever gonna find it
Am I ever gonna find
out
I think its time to live
Like I am
Am I ever gonna
find it
Am I ever gonna find it
Am I ever gonna find out