00:00His fangs grazed my throat, and I felt the world tilt.
00:04You've poisoned me, Alistair whispered against my skin, his voice breaking like shattered glass.
00:11Every other taste turns to ash. Every other heartbeat sounds wrong.
00:17You've ruined me, Riva. I couldn't breathe, couldn't move.
00:22His grip tightened on my waist, possessive and desperate.
00:26And I'll destroy anyone who tries to take you from me.
00:31The castle walls trembled. My blood hummed with ancient magic I didn't understand.
00:37I never asked to be marked by darkness.
00:40My name is Riva, and I grew up in the shadow villages, where humans learned to bow their heads when
00:46the sun fell.
00:48The vampire lords ruled from their obsidian towers, and we survived by staying invisible, forgettable, unremarkable.
00:56I was a healer's daughter. I knew herbs and prayers. I knew how to stitch wounds and quiet fevers.
01:03I knew nothing of magic, nothing of prophecies, nothing of the blood that ran through my veins like liquid starlight.
01:12Until the night they came for me.
01:14The crimson court had been searching. For what? I didn't know.
01:19They tore through our village like a storm, their eyes glowing red in the darkness, their hunger palpable and ancient.
01:27And then he appeared.
01:30Alistair. The oldest of them. The most feared.
01:33The vampire lord who had lived a thousand years and never shown mercy.
01:38He stepped into my cottage, his presence filling every corner with cold fire.
01:45His stare burned.
01:47And when his eyes found mine, something in the world shifted, rearranged itself, locked into play.
01:55You, he said. His voice, like velvet, dragged across broken stone.
02:00I pressed myself against the wall, my heart hammering so loud I was certain he could hear it.
02:06He probably could.
02:08Vampires heard everything.
02:10Every breath, every lie, every terrified prayer.
02:14He moved closer, impossibly graceful, and the air turned sharp with the scent of night-blooming jasmine, and something darker,
02:23something that tasted like forbidden things.
02:26Do you know what you are? He asked softly.
02:30I shook my head. Words had abandoned me.
02:33His eyes, God, his eyes, were not the burning red of the others.
02:37They were winter silver, cold and endless, and they held me captive more securely than any chains.
02:46Curious, he murmured, tilting his head.
02:49You don't even know.
02:51He reached out, and I flinched, but his fingers only brushed my jawline, feather light and freezing.
02:58My heartbeat stuttered.
02:59I could kill you, he continued, almost conversationally.
03:04It would be easy. Snap your neck, drain you dry, leave you as empty as the others.
03:10Terror flooded my veins.
03:12But I won't.
03:14His thumb traced my lower lip, and magic hummed under my skin, wild and uncontrolled.
03:21Because you're mine.
03:22The word hung between us, heavy and absolute.
03:26I finally found my voice.
03:28I don't belong to anyone.
03:30His smile was devastating, dark, dangerous.
03:35Not yet.
03:36Before I could respond, he pulled me forward, his grip iron strong but strangely careful.
03:42He leaned down, his lips hovering just above my throat, and I felt the sharp press of fangs against my
03:49pulse.
03:50One bite.
03:51That's all it would take.
03:52But he didn't bite.
03:54He inhaled deeply instead, and I heard him make a sound.
03:58Low, almost paint.
04:01Impossible.
04:02He breathed.
04:03Then he released me so suddenly I stumbled.
04:06He stepped back, his expression shifting into something I couldn't read.
04:10Hunger.
04:11Confusion.
04:12Something close to fear.
04:14Come with me, he ordered, his voice regaining its commanding edge.
04:18Now.
04:19And if I refuse, he stepped closer as if I belonged to him, his silver eyes burning into mine.
04:27Then I'll carry you.
04:28Your choice, little healer.
04:30He brought me to his castle, a fortress of black stone and crimson banners that pierced the sky like a
04:37dagger.
04:38Inside, the halls were cold and beautiful, lit by floating orbs of pale light.
04:44Vampire courtiers watched me with hungry eyes, as a laster led me deeper into his domain, his hand wrapped possessively
04:52around my wrist.
04:53He didn't speak until we reached his chambers.
04:56The doors slammed shut behind us, and suddenly we were alone.
05:01Sit, he commanded, gesturing to a velvet chair near the fireplace.
05:05I remained standing.
05:07Tell me why I'm here.
05:09His jaw tightened.
05:10For a moment, he looked almost vulnerable.
05:13Because I haven't fed in three days, he said quietly.
05:17Because every human I've tried to drink from tastes like poison.
05:21Because my court is beginning to notice my weakness.
05:24And weakness in our world is a death sentence.
05:28He moved to the window, staring out at the blood red moon.
05:31And then, I found you.
05:34My throat went dry.
05:35What does that mean?
05:36He turned back to me, and the intensity in his gaze made my knees weak.
05:41It means your blood calls to me in a way nothing has in centuries.
05:46It means you're the only thing standing between me and starvation.
05:50Between me and my enemies tearing me apart.
05:53His stare burned through me.
05:55It means you're my salvation, or my destruction, Reva.
05:59And I haven't decided which yet.
06:01The firelight cast shadows across his face, beautiful and terrible, and utterly inhuman.
06:08I won't let you feed from me, I whispered.
06:11I know.
06:12His voice was raw.
06:14And that's why I brought you here instead of taking what I need by force.
06:18Because despite everything I am, I find myself unwilling to harm you.
06:23He crossed the room in three strides, stopping inches away.
06:27Do you understand what that means?
06:29I am a creature of hunger and death.
06:32I have destroyed kingdoms.
06:34I have ended bloodlines.
06:36I have never hesitated.
06:38His hand lifted, cupping my face with unexpected gentleness.
06:42Until you.
06:44Magic hummed under my skin, responding to his nearness.
06:48And I saw his pupils dilate.
06:50What's happening to me?
06:52I asked, my voice breaking.
06:53I don't know, he admitted.
06:55But I will find out, even if it means burning down every library, interrogating every witch,
07:02threatening every god.
07:04My heartbeat stuttered as his thumb stroked my cheekbone.
07:07You're staying here, he said, under my protection, in my rooms where no one else can reach you.
07:14I'm a prisoner.
07:16You're mine, he corrected.
07:18There's a difference.
07:19Not from where I'm standing.
07:21His smile was dark and devastating.
07:23Then let me show you.
07:25He leaned closer, his lips brushing my ear.
07:29Stay willingly, Riva.
07:30Let me keep you safe.
07:32Let me figure out why the universe bound us together.
07:35His breath was cold against my skin.
07:38Because if you run, I will hunt you.
07:40And when I find you, and I will find you, I won't be nearly as gentle.
07:45The truth came three days later, delivered by an ancient witch named Marathi, who materialized
07:53in Alistair's study like smoke given form.
07:56I stood beside him as she circled us, her milky eyes seeing things beyond the physical realm.
08:02The blood-bound curse, she finally announced, her voice crackling like dry leaves.
08:09Rare.
08:11Devastating.
08:12Eternal.
08:14Alistair's entire body went rigid.
08:17Explain.
08:18Marathi's gaze fixed on me.
08:20The girl carries the blood of the first ones.
08:24The original humans who made pacts with darkness.
08:27Before your kind even existed.
08:30Her bloodline was thought extinct.
08:33My world tilted.
08:35What does that mean?
08:36I demanded.
08:38It means your blood is pure magic, the witch said.
08:42Ancient.
08:44Uncorrupted.
08:45And to a vampire, it would be transcendent.
08:48The finest vintage.
08:50The ultimate euphoria.
08:52She turned to Alistair.
08:53But the curse embedded in her lineage is protection.
08:57Once a vampire tastes her blood, they can drink from no other.
09:02Every other source becomes poison.
09:05Starvation follows.
09:08Horror washed over me.
09:09So if he drinks from me, he'll be bound to you forever.
09:15Marathi finished.
09:16Dependent.
09:17Vulnerable.
09:18And if you die, so does he.
09:21The silence that followed was suffocating.
09:25Alistair's expression was unreadable.
09:27But I felt the tension radiating from him in waves.
09:31There's more, the witch continued.
09:34The curse works both ways.
09:36Once the bond is complete, if he dies, your magic dies with him.
09:41You'll become human.
09:43Ordinary.
09:44Powerless.
09:45Mortal.
09:46Magic hummed under my skin.
09:48Wild and terrified.
09:50So we're trapped?
09:51Not yet, Marathi said.
09:53The bond isn't complete until he drinks.
09:56Right now, you're simply resonating.
09:59But his hunger grows stronger each day.
10:02Eventually, instinct will override control.
10:05She vanished as suddenly as she'd appeared.
10:09Alistair stood motionless, his hands clenched into fists.
10:12I won't do it, he said, his voice barely above a whisper.
10:17I won't bind you to this curse.
10:20I looked at him, really looked at him, and saw the war raging behind his silver eyes.
10:26What if I want you to?
10:28His head snapped toward me, shock and hunger blazing across his face.
10:34Don't say things you don't mean, he warned, his voice dangerous.
10:39I mean it.
10:40I stepped closer, my heart racing.
10:43You're starving.
10:45Your court is circling.
10:46And I...
10:47My voice broke.
10:49I don't want to watch you die.
10:51His control shattered.
10:53He moved like lightning, backing me against the wall, his hands framing my face.
10:59Do you understand what you're offering?
11:02He demanded.
11:03Binding yourself to a monster.
11:05Giving up your freedom.
11:07Your future?
11:08I understand that you've protected me.
11:11That you've shown me more gentleness than anyone with your power should possess.
11:16That you're not the monster you claim to be.
11:19His forehead dropped to mine, and I felt him trembling.
11:24I've destroyed everything I've ever cared about, he whispered.
11:28Then don't destroy me, I breathed.
11:31Save me instead.
11:33Save us both.
11:34His eyes met mine.
11:37Silver fire and desperate hope.
11:39Reva.
11:40Do it, I whispered.
11:42Before I lose my courage.
11:44He made a sound between a growl and a prayer, tilting my head back with infinite care.
11:51His lips brushed my throat once.
11:54Twice.
11:55Mine.
11:56He breathed.
11:57Yours.
11:58I agreed.
11:59His fangs pierced my skin.
12:01The world exploded into sensation.
12:05Pain and pleasure and magic so overwhelming I couldn't breathe.
12:09I felt him drinking.
12:11Felt the bond snapping into place like fate itself.
12:15Felt his hunger and his devotion and his absolute obsession pouring into me.
12:21When he finally pulled back, his eyes were no longer silver.
12:25They burned gold.
12:27What have we done?
12:29I whispered.
12:30Alistair's thumb wiped the blood from my throat.
12:33His expression transformed.
12:36Softer.
12:37Fiercer.
12:38Utterly possessive.
12:39We've declared war, he said quietly.
12:43My court will see this bond as weakness.
12:45They'll come for you.
12:47For us.
12:48His hand cupped my face, and I saw eternity in his golden eyes.
12:53Let them come, he murmured.
12:55I've spent a thousand years as a weapon.
12:58Now I finally have something worth protecting.
13:01He kissed my forehead.
13:03Gentle and devastating.
13:05They'll learn what I become when someone threatens what's mine.
13:10Outside, thunder rolled across the blood-red sky.
13:14The hunt was beginning.
13:15And this time, I was the prize worth killing for.
13:20To be continued.
Comments