Valkyrie Divided (Pyralis Book 2) Read online

  Gasping for breath, I became suddenly aware of the cavern around me. Like the ancient caverns hidden around the world, this place was an absolute mystery. Red clay walls glimmered around me and stalactites reached their twisted forms downward from the ceiling of the cave. Scattered across the floor, stalagmites rose upward as though reaching for the other half of themselves above. I was reminded of lovers, studying these gruesome yet beautiful formations.

  Like the fingers of lost lovers reaching out to one another, never quite able to grasp the other. Closing my eyes briefly, I allowed the image of the man who haunted me to flutter there. His mosaic eyes taunted me, and his cocky grin made my heart blanch. Opening my eyes after only a heartbeat, I pushed the face of the man I longed for away. Dwelling in death would not help me now. Taking a deep breath, I stepped forward on shaky legs, emotion trying to claw its way to the surface. The floor of the cavern was strewn with holes and mounds of semi-formed stalagmites. The reds, golds’ and pale colors mixed together as the limestone walls rose around me.

  The result of the precipitated calcium carbonate was stunning. I had seen a few small caverns in Oregon growing up as a normal human teenager, but it was nothing compared to what I saw before my eyes. The mysterious formations of minerals was incomparably captivating. Behind me, the pressurized tube of water which seemed to emerge from inside one such formation spat out the other four Vampires one at a time.

  We stood in awe, realizing that we had jumped into the pool of water only to be spat out into this cavern. I had the suspicion that we stood upside down somehow. The science behind the pool of water made no sense at all. Surely we should have dropped onto the floor beneath it, not been thrown out of it. Shaking my head at the insensibility of it, I decided I wasn’t the person to figure it out, and just attempting to, was confusing enough.

  Moving farther amongst the limestone formations, I looked around with growing admiration. The walls sparkled as though thousands of tiny diamonds twinkled back at us. The young woman in my arms pointed deeper into the caverns.

  “Keep going. They are far back, hiding.”

  I frowned. “How did the five of you end up captive if the rest of you were hiding down here?”

  It was the chocolate skinned woman who answered from the arms of one of Villart’s four men. “We were caught off guard. Those Vampires and those other…creatures, they swarmed us with no warning. We had all been gathered in the entrance to the caverns, where you found us. That’s where they cornered us. The five of us had guarded the doorway, trying to buy the others time to get through the pool.

  By the time they had all gotten away to safety, it was too late for us. We were severely outnumbered and we could not risk giving away the entrance to this place. It is why they tortured us. They wanted to know the way in here.”

  It made sense to me now, most of it anyway. I had to admit, I felt a slight admiration for these five women. They had been tortured beyond belief, and yet they had not given away the secret entrance to their people’s home. I knew then that these women were no mere humans. They were Draikais. I had thought all the Draikais had fled into the woods, but now I knew why I felt so compelled to seek out the Caverns of Draikais.

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  As I continued to carry the woman in my arms toward the unknown parts of the cavern, I became aware of voices. They were hushed, whispering to one another. They were aware someone had entered their lair. As I expected them to, several men leapt out at us in ambush. I kept the delicate woman in my arms shielded. Hissing at the men who advanced on me, I felt my wings grow up out of my shoulders. Wrapping the black feathered raven-like wings around the young woman, I yelled.

  “Get back! We have your missing women! Stand down! We are not enemies!” Waiting, my muscles tensed, prepared to protect myself as well as the woman I carried should the need arise.

  One man moved forward amongst the twenty or so warriors. He stared toward us, calling out. “Serefalis? Do you have my Serefalis?”

  The woman one of the Vampire carried shifted in his arms. Sobs escaped her as she tried to crawl from his arms. He glanced at me, seemingly unsure about what move to take. I nodded, indicating he should help her to the man. As I watched, the woman hobbled to the man with the aid of the Vampire. The man, a large muscular man with dark skin, eyed our group wearily. He didn’t trust us, but it was obvious he would let nothing stand between him and the woman.

  I watched the man pull the caramel colored woman into his arms. The two of them wept together, and a bittersweet jealousy washed over me. I didn’t want to feel jealousy, but thoughts of Aeron came to mind as the pair were reunited. How I wished I could have such a reunion with the man who haunted my dreams. I knew the likelihood of such a thing ever happening was slim to none. I had killed him when I hadn’t been in control of my fires.

  The casket may have been void of his ashes, but that didn’t mean anything. In my heart, I wanted desperately to believe it was possible he were still alive, but in reality, I knew it was futile to hold onto such hope. Rafael didn’t think it was possible. I shouldn’t either. In the end, it would only lead me to more heartache. Lifting my eyes, I found the dark skinned woman with the mysterious silvery eyes watching me intently. I had the suspicion she could read my thoughts. Her face expressed sympathy.

  Looking away, I refused to accept her sympathy. I didn’t deserve it. It was because of me and my inability to control myself that Aeron was probably ash blowing in the wind now. It was my own fault I would never know what it felt like to have his arms around me again.

  A deep baritone voice pulled me from my endless despondency. “Who are you?”

  I looked up toward the direction I had heard the voice, for I had no doubt he spoke to me. The man who stared me down was huge. He had to be nearly seven feet tall with at least two hundred pounds of muscle covering his body. He was bare from the torso up, exposing his thick chest and arms. His deep coffee colored skin stood in contrast to the man’s golden blond hair and golden brown eyes.

  He stood apart from the others with a sword in each hand. He was certainly formidable. “I am Valkyrie.”

  He seemed annoyed that I offered no further details. Stepping closer, he opened his mouth to speak when he faltered. His gaze stared at the woman in the aquamarine eyed Vampire’s arms. Defenses forgotten, the man dropped his swords as he ran forward. His cold face had turned soft as tears streaked down his face. Stopping abruptly as he reached the pair, he looked over the woman before falling to his knees in relief.

  “My Celosia, oh, my baby. I am so sorry. I failed you…” a sob tore through the man’s throat as he bowed before the woman.

  Gingerly, she crawled from the Vampires arms. Limping forward, she lifted the man’s face in her hands. “Papa, you did not fail me. I did what needed to be done in order to protect our people. I have been trained my entire life to keep our secrets. You would have come for me if you could have. I know that. Protecting the future of our race is imperative.”

  The man pulled the woman into his arms, bellowing over his shoulder for someone to bring blankets for the five women. Lifting his gaze back to mine, he shook his head slowly.

  “I do not know who you are, Valkyrie, but you have my eternal gratitude for saving my daughter and the others.”

  “I only did what was right. I thought this place had been overtaken.”

  The man shook his head. “No, they tried, but they have not been able to find the way down here yet.” Bowing his head, he took a deep breath. “I am Osur, King of the Draikais. Our numbers have dwindled in the past centuries and we are not the warriors we once were. It was easier to hide my people, than to watch them die.”

  I felt sympathy for him. I understood the choice he had been forced to make. “How many of you are left?”

  Osur turned toward the others. Looking back at me, he seemed to be making a decision. Finally reaching that decision, he turned, beckoning me to follow. “Come, I will show you.”

  Following Osur a
nd his men, the Vampire sidled up beside me. Lowering his voice, he said, “I thought you were going to get yourself killed when you went down that manhole alone.”

  I lifted a brow at him. “What on earth would make you think me so fragile? Haven’t you heard of the Vampire who walks in fire?”

  His aquamarine eyes held mine for a long moment. A spark of attraction ignited in them, and I forced myself to look away. I was not interested in his attraction.

  “I have, but until today, I did not give the rumors the credit they deserved.” His mesmerizing eyes refused to leave my face.

  I smiled despite my efforts to diffuse his attraction. I found him amusing. “I am happy to confirm the rumors.”

  “I have not introduced myself. I am Devyn Villart.” He smiled roguishly as my mouth probably fell open. To say I had not seen that one coming was an understatement.

  “Villart, as in Dresden Villart? How are the two of you related?”

  “Dresden is my older brother. He tends to run the business side of things whilst I like to do the field work, so to speak.”

  Still trying to recover from my surprise, I nodded. “I see. Well, that makes things a little more interesting, huh?”

  Our conversation came to an abrupt halt as I caught sight of a series of columns that had been created by the stalagmites that had grown all the way to the ceiling. They had connected with the stalactites there and formed the long slender and misshapen pillars that stood before us. The passageway between these pillars was tricky. Giant holes opened into the earth around them, leaving only a narrow ledge between the columns. Inside the holes, it was complete blackness.

  Osur followed the narrow ledge, walking across it like he’d done so his entire life, which I realized he probably had. As we followed him and the other Draikais, I looked around, caught again by the mysterious beauty of the sparkling gems engrained in the cavern walls. As the narrow ledge ended and the floor opened up once again, I caught sight of several places along the wall that seemed to be… decaying.

  “Osur, what are those areas there? It looks almost as though the wall of the cavern there is changing, dying or eroding or something.”

  Osur glanced to the place I had indicated. With a deep sigh, he said, “Those areas started changing a few months back. I believe it is why the Vampires want to overtake our home. They have been rotting. It’s just those two spots.”

  I frowned deeply as I considered these abnormalities. “One of the Vampires we caught spoke of bringing the hounds of Hell through doorways hidden within the Lost Cities. The Fiddler believes each of the Lost Cities holds a portal into Hell and through these portals Desmond and Byron can bring forth a plague of unholy beings.”

  Osur studied me. He seemed overly interested suddenly. When he finally spoke, his words were slow and precise. “You are the one the Witches prophesized. You are the mixed bloodline that burned in flames and rose again.”

  I had no doubt his words were a statement, not a question. He and all the others stared at me. Devyn and his men stared at me. The petite woman in my arms stared up at me with her one un-swollen eye. Looking each of them in the eye, I shrugged.

  “It would seem that way, but I am not convinced the prophecy is as clear as everyone seems to think. For example, there are many mixed bloodlines.”

  Osur smiled at me. For some reason, I felt the gesture was somewhat animalistic. “Perhaps, but how many of them rose from the ashes of their own death?”

  I sighed. Fortunately, I was saved from answering as many women and children appeared along the path that widened out before us. When they saw the five battered women, they ran forward, sobs of gratitude ringing in the air. I understood now why Osur had been torn between protecting his people and rescuing his daughter. Of the sixty or so Draikais, only twenty were grown males. The women out-numbered the men more than two to one, and the children who were male were much too small to have protected themselves.

  I stood back as I watched the reunion between the four women and the other Draikais. Looking down at the small one in my arms, I wondered why no one came forward to claim her. She glanced out at the crowd, before turning away, hiding her face amongst my feathers. The woman called Celosia came forward through the crowd. Looking down at the naked form in my arms, she reached her hand forward.

  “Come Shelloa. Your father is gone now, and you proved your loyalty to our family. You will stay with me now.”

  The small girl-woman in my arms slowly turned toward her, taking the hand she offered. Celosia draped a blanket over her shoulders as she led her forward. I wondered if I should leave now that I had made it to the Caverns of Draikais and seen that the doorways to Hell were still closed here. I felt like I was intruding. I began to turn away, when I heard Osur call to me.

  “Valkyrie, you and your friends shall stay here and rest. My kind owes you much for rescuing our daughters.”

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  3

  Caverns of Draikais

  The central cavern where the Draikais lived was magical. The path had continued to descend deep into the earth, and now I stood in the center of what looked like a cavernous city. Homes and buildings had been carved into the giant stalagmites that took up most of the space down here. The sheer size of some of the calcium deposits was amazing. The entire space was easily the size of a football stadium, and some of the columns reached all the way to the cavern ceiling. They stood as wide in diameter as a house in some areas, and as slender as a light pole in others.

  Apparently the larger ones had been somehow hollowed out and made into homes. The space here was dark, with the only light coming from the glimmering crystals imbedded in the walls and the fires that burned here and there. Osur led us deeper into this magical cavern and I soon found that the Cast of Draikais had everything they could need to survive.

  A small waterfall ran down the far wall, feeding a series of small pools, and near that, an area was set up with gardens. I shook my head at the impossibility of it all.

  “How are you able to grow food down here with no sunlight?” I was still confused over this place.

  Osur smiled at me. “Well, there are a few crops that can grow without much light. We use heat to germinate them, and from there they sustain themselves. I should also mention that the first seeds we ever planted here were given to us by a Witch.”

  I smiled. Nodding my head, I had little doubt to the identity of such Witch. “So you know the Fiddler then?”

  Osur grinned. “I think there are few who do not have knowledge of your Fiddler, and fewer who have not met the canny old Witch.”

  Shaking my head, I wondered why Rafael hadn’t mentioned his personal acquaintance with the Draikais before. “Your Cast, the Draikais, are dragons, are you not?”

  Osur seemed to consider his words before he replied. “We are the last descendants of the dragons, yes. We are not, however, dragons as one might assume. We have our dragon side, but in essence, we are more human than Dragon now. There are two ways in which we relate to dragons the most. First, we breathe fire. Second, our offspring are born from eggs.”

  I grinned, shocked. “You can breathe fire? So, you do not shift then, into dragon form?”

  Osur grinned back at me. “Well, we do not shift as the Werewolf shifts to wolf. I will show you, if only to ease your curiosity.”

  I watched him, and as he stared back at me, he began to change. It was subtle at first, his eyebrows moved closer together, protruding from his forehead and becoming rigid scales. His eyes took on a slanted appearance, and the entire bottom half of his face lost its skin to become glimmering golden scales. Along his arms and chest, thick scales covered him, and his hands turned to talons. His spine popped and snapped as it sprouted large curved boney spikes down its length.

  When he blinked, his eyes seemed to luminesce, and a puff of smoke came from his multi-toothed mouth of sharp teeth. He looked incredible. I laughed, shaking my head in wonder. “Wow. That is a nifty trick.” His body began the slow proce
ss of becoming human once again.

  “We lost our ability to fly several centuries ago. Over the generations, our young were no longer born with wings. Some now, are born with webbed toes. Evolution of our species, I suppose.”

  His gaze tracked the five women as they followed the others to see to their wounds. Sighing, he looked back at me. “I cannot express how grateful I am to you for saving them. It was like a knife to my heart, knowing my own daughter was amongst them, and I was unable to save her. If we had failed, the women and children would have been left helpless.”

  “It was by chance that I found them. I was looking for one of the leaders of those who have been attacking the Lost Cities. I killed the Vampires and the Doblin’s who held them captive, but Desmond was not there.”

  “No, he probably left his minions to do the dirty work. I have met this Desmond before, many years ago. A group of my hunters and I were out gathering meat, when he and a group of Vampires crossed our path. They ambushed us, telling us about a darkness that would soon come. They wanted us to join them, but when I refused, they attacked. I lost many brethren that day. The few of us who escaped have not forgotten him or his evil plans.”

  Sighing, I thought about his words. It was looking more and more like Desmond had been a betrayer from the very beginning. I was disgusted with myself for having called him my lover, for being blinded by lust and love. Had I seen the truth sooner, he would not be the powerful enemy he was now.

  Osur studied me. He assessed my expression, and finally, nodded knowingly. “You seem to have an intimate knowledge of this Desmond.”

  “Like your daughter and the other four, I too was held captive at the hands of the brutal Desmond.”

  I could tell he wanted to know more, but I was unwilling to share more of my past. Retracting my wings, I glanced down at my naked form. “I don’t suppose you could lend me some clothes?”