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Last updated/edited 09/22/2024.

First Person POV: Astrid

I closed my eyes and waited for the carnage to begin…

But the jarring screams around me cut off abruptly and I found myself surrounded by silence.

I groaned at the sharp, stabbing headache that was forming quickly and felt wetness trickle onto my lips. I lifted a hand to wipe my face and opened my eyes to find my fingertips smeared in blood.

When I finally looked around, my location took me by surprise. I had appeared back in the west wing of the castle next to the of the statue of the two women embracing.

I recalled the scene in the throne room a moment ago. The cloaked individuals surrounding my tour group had removed their hoods and revealed themselves as - what I assumed to be - vampires. Obviously, I had heard the stories; everyone had, but was it possible that the myths were true?

Of course, I had also just appeared on the opposite side of the castle, so I wasn't really sure what to believe at the moment.

I groaned in frustration. I wanted to dismiss this experience as another vivid dream, but unfortunately, I hadn't appeared in bed this time.

I was brought back to the present by a strong wave of vertigo. The world tilted and spun making me stumble backwards. I caught myself against the base of the statue and carefully lowered myself until I was sitting on the cold floor. I tucked my head between my knees as my vision grew spotty.

I couldn't escape the castle if I was unconscious, but if anything I knew about vampires was true, then it didn't matter anyway. Even if I ran or hid, they would smell my blood and come for me.

Darkness swallowed my vision, and I fell unconscious.

Third Person POV: Aro

It had been an especially monotonous day in court and Aro could hardly wait for the monthly herd of humans to arrive. He could hear Heidi's "tour" spiel coming to an end outside the throne room doors.

When the doors swung open, the most glorious scent hit him. Although diluted by the other less appealing humans, it was by far the most enticing scent he had ever come across and surprisingly, it didn't ignite his thirst. Generally, for vampires, one's mate would smell the most appealing, even compared to human blood. However, he was unsure of how that would translate to a vampire who found their mate as a human. Aro had heard of vampires who found their mate as a human, but it was such a rarity that he had never had the opportunity to read the mind of a vampire in that situation. Aro focused back on the situation as he realized it was time to greet the humans.

He raised his hands welcomingly.

"Our honored guests have arrived." He projected cheerfully through the open space.

Aro removed his hood, and the rest of the court followed his lead. Nearly every guard currently stationed within the castle was present for today's feeding. A guard's rank could be decerned by the gray-scale shade of their cloak, the darker the shade, the higher the rank. The elite guards were designated charcoal gray, upper guard were iron gray, and the lower guard were heather gray. And members of the royal family wore pitch-black cloaks.

Aro took a deep breath to select his prey from the group and realized that the alluring aroma was emanating from a young woman at the front of the group. Her scent was a seductive mix of jasmine and vanilla. However, the moment Aro met her eyes, he froze.

His mate…? After nearly four millennia his mate had been delivered to him. His dead heart swelled with warmth.

He felt his brother and fellow King, Marcus, brush the back of his hand against his own. Marcus had the gift of bond sight which allowed him to view the strength and designations of relationships between individuals. And Aro had the gift of tactile telepathy, skin-on-skin contact allowed him to see every thought and memory that an individual had ever had in their life. As Marcus's memories flooded through Aro's mind, he saw the thick, golden bond that had formed between himself and the young woman.

His mate was petite, standing at about 5'3". She had the most striking eyes, bottomless blue with a ring of gold around the pupil. She had a heart shaped face framed by dark chocolate-colored locks that fell to the middle of her back with a slight curl at the end. Her figure was slender with soft feminine curves. She was dressed in a white flowing sun dress and Aro couldn't help but compare her beauty to that of an angel.

He stood there, stunned, as she took a small step towards him, while maintaining eye contact. He was surprised that she was approaching him in this precarious situation, perhaps she could feel the pull of their bond? The tour group that she had arrived with was already huddling towards the center of the room.

He watched as his mate broke eye contact with him. She looked back at the group of humans she arrived with and then at the guards surrounding them. Her face went pale as she stumbled back to join the other humans. On cue, the doors slammed shut.

The coven selected their prey in order of rank, so he always had the first pick. Aro knew that the guards were waiting for him to start the feeding.

If Aro had been in his right mind, he would have formulated a plan to get his mate out of the throne room without frightening her too badly. Humans were vulnerable, breakable, and her safety was at risk from being present during their feeding. However, Aro was currently operating on panic and possessive instinct. He needed to get her out of here, now. He rushed forward, intending to secure his mate and bring her to a safe location. But, as always, his family and then the guard followed in order of rank to claim their prey.

Aro pushed himself, racing at her even though he knew that no one would dare steal his selection. The guards probably assumed that he had been staring at the girl because she smelled especially delectable to him. And while that was true, it was not for the reason they would assume.

Aro watched the young woman's eyes widen in panic. As he moved to grab her, she suddenly disappeared, and his hands ended up grasping at thin air. He took a step back and scanned the room thoroughly. Humans don't just disappear… He took a breath in to track her. He already knew her scent by heart, he had never smelled anything as irresistible in his immortal life. But it was to no avail, her trail ended abruptly where she had stood only a moment ago.

He spun around, snarling in frustration as the rest of the guard finished their meals. Where hell had she gone?! He had just found his mate after waiting over three millennia and somehow he managed to lose her in a mere second.

Marcus and Caius dropped their kills and approached him.

"Brother- " began Marcus.

"Aro, explain yourself. Why are you behaving this way? Was that girl your singer?" Caius began to question him.

Aro was already high strung from losing track of his mate and only a growled threateningly in reply. He didn't care if Caius was in a bad mood today, he was overrun with several millennia of pent-up emotion and was itching for a fight.

"That's enough both of you!" Marcus hissed. It looked bad to have these kinds of quarrels in front of the guard. Aro clenched his jaw in frustration, Marcus was always the peacekeeper of the group.

"She is my mate." Aro informed Caius in a hushed whisper and Marcus nodded at Caius in confirmation.

Caius notoriously despised humans so Aro prepared himself for the potential backlash, but he was surprised when Caius just raised his brows in surprise and then gave him a supportive clap on the shoulder.

"Congratulations, brother." Caius said. "Hold on… did you not secure your mate?"

"She disappeared before I was able to reach her." Aro explained.

"Perhaps your mate is gifted?" Marcus suggested.

"I suppose it's possible, but regardless, she has vanished. Even if I find her, she's likely terrified of me now. Plus, if she is truly gifted, then she may already be outside of the castle grounds." The only thing worse than being mateless was losing a mate.

"Aro, she's only human, how far could she have gotten?" Caius countered.

Aro nodded and pulled himself together. He ascended the dais and called the guard to attention.

"Silence! You will search for the human I targeted during feeding. You will retrieve her without harming her. And if I discover that she was harmed in any way, the perpetrator will be dismembered and burned immediately. Am I understood?" He commanded the guard and received only silence in reply.

"Good. Upper guard, search the city. Elite guard, search the castle. And lower guard, take care of this mess." He said gesturing dismissively at the bodies now littering the floor.

The guards that were not close enough to overhear the kings' conversation were clearly confused by the orders, but obediently set off to complete their assignments without question.