She went pale, probably realizing she’d said a tad much during this first conversation of ours. Covering her mouth, she stared at me in horror.
“I am so sorry, milady,” she whispered. “My mouth spoke without me.”
“It’s fine, Zurah. I understand your reasoning. Hell, I accept it. Makes sense,” I replied. “And you’re right. They’re better off satisfying their lust for violence in the arena than out in public, where innocents could get hurt or worse.”
“To many among the Aeternae, the thrill of dying is more exciting than living forever,” she murmured. “It satisfies many emotions that they would otherwise channel into less constructive activities.”
“Were they violent before the tournaments were established? I assume there was a time before the prize fights, before they reached the conclusion that they needed the Blood Arena.”
Zurah shrugged. “I don’t know, milady. I am young and know little to nothing about such ancient history. The Blood Arena has been around for more than two million years, and the Aeternae do not like to speak about the time before it.”
That sort of answered my question. If the Aeternae didn’t want to talk about it, then it had probably been awful, a stain on their seemingly illustrious history. From what I’d learned up to now, the Aeternae tried to market themselves as superior, truly evolved creatures who’d achieved a peaceful balance with the creatures they’d conquered.
Fighting in the Blood Arena was an outlet for them. Winning the tournament finals was always a cause for celebration, and the champions were given great honors, along with trophies and various riches. But such synergy had not happened easily. It couldn’t have.
The society we were seeing today was the result of many years of troubles and bloodshed—it was a pattern found in many of the civilizations that my brother and I had come across, if not all of them. I could appreciate the bitter irony, though, knowing that the thought of dying made many of the Aeternae feel most alive.
Us vampires had been taught differently, and it probably had something to do with the fact that we were all made, not born. We’d learned to appreciate immortality for its perks, not its downsides. Vampirism did not exist for as long as the Aeternae, either, so there had yet to be a case of a truly bored vampire among us. It made me wonder, would we be the same, four million years from now?
Tired? Bored? Eager to throw our lives in the fire for a second’s worth of adrenaline in the Blood Arena? It got me thinking that some insights from the Aeternae elders would’ve easily answered my questions.
“Zurah, is there any chance I might be able to visit the oldest Aeternae?” I asked, still seated as she finished arranging my hair. I looked like the vampire version of Scarlet O’Hara, and I didn’t mind it one bit. The way the dark curls fell down my back and over my shoulders made my neck look longer and thinner.
“No, milady,” Zurah replied, moving to apply a delicate skin-tone powder to my face with a large brush. “The elders are off-limits to everyone, even most Aeternae. Only the lord and lady supreme, along with the ruling council, the high priestess, and the master commander are allowed to see them.”
“Hmm. I see. Where do they live, exactly?”
Zurah shot me a warning glare before brushing pink blush powder over my cheeks. “Milady, I don’t think it’s wise to ask such things. Especially since you are not of this world.”
“I’m just curious. Don’t worry, Zurah, I have no intention of sneaking out and breaking into the retirement homes of ancient Aeternae.” I chuckled softly.
She looked at me for a while, as if trying to ascertain whether I was joking or not. “There are six islands off the eastern coast,” she finally said. “Gated communities guarded by some of the deadliest Aeternae soldiers and tournament champions. The latter are offered the honor instead of riches and titles, should they wish to protect the elders, instead.”
“Protect them from what?”
“The curious folk. Sometimes, the younger Aeternae like to challenge the system. They make bets or dare one another to sneak onto one of the islands, to get a good look at the elders. It never ends well for them, but they never learn,” Zurah explained. “Sometimes, people with grievances against the lord and lady supreme look to hurt the elders in order to punish our rulers. Again, that always concludes in death and disaster for the attackers. So, yes, the ancient Aeternae are protected.”
“I understand.”
I was being honest. I did understand why they’d chosen to keep the oldest Aeternae away from the rest of the population. But it also made me want to ask additional questions, because there had to be more to these gated communities than just the need to ward off the curious or spiteful folk. What were the Aeternae hiding that they didn’t want anyone to see?
What were the ancient ones like, that they had to be secluded and isolated like this? Naturally, I immediately thought of asking my brother for advice. Maybe we’d even find a way to go there, to sneak in ourselves and see. After all, we had invisibility potions readily available for such endeavors. No one would even know. Not even Derek and Sofia, in case Tristan and I decided not to tell them—since they could easily tell us to stay out of the Aeternae’s business. There was no harm in looking, though.
“Milady, you are ready for the evening now,” Zurah said after a minute’s worth of heavy silence. “Might I ask that you don’t wander through restricted areas of the palace, if you’re to go out for a walk?”
I couldn’t help but frown at her. “Restricted areas? Which are those?” I asked.
“They’re dark, milady. Anything that isn’t illuminated in this palace is off-limits to the guests and the handmaidens.”
Clearly, Visio had its share of secrets. While part of me wanted to follow the rules and focus solely on getting the day-walking protein from the Aeternae, I was dying to uncover and study everything that they were trying to keep from us. It was in my nature to question everything, to dig deeper, and to burrow through the darkest corners until I got to the truth—no matter how terrible or wonderful it could be.
In this case, I knew I wouldn’t be able to resist the temptation. “I’ll be on my best behavior, Zurah,” I said, lying through my teeth as I gave her a comforting smile.
Esme
After Zurah was done with my evening style preparations, she tidied the bathroom and left, promising to be here when I returned after dinner. A bit overdressed for my taste but feeling strangely fabulous, nonetheless, I left my chambers and barged into my brother’s, finding him seated in an armchair by the window, reading some history books that the Aeternae had left under his coffee table, as well.
“Have you never heard of knocking?” he blurted, having been so focused on the pages that he hadn’t even heard me coming.
I grinned. “Dude.”
“Right. Sorry, you surprised me.”
“That doesn’t happen very often,” I said, noticing his apartment was strikingly different from mine. The embroidered wallpaper in the lounge room evoked a nocturnal scene in the woods, in shades of dark brown and green. The furniture was sturdier, more masculine, with dark tapestry and lacquered wood frames. From where I stood, I could see the nautical color palette in his bedroom, with a four-poster bed and dark-blue-and-white linens. “Nice digs,” I observed. “Mine are…”
“Different? More to your taste?” he replied, raising an eyebrow.
He wore a suit, much in the style I’d seen on Kalon and the other Aeternae males—a three-piece combination of dark blue coattail jacket and pants, and light gray vest, complete with a white shirt and a silvery scarf loosely serving as a tie. “You look dapper as hell!”
“Thanks. Turns out I have a valet. He did most of the work you see on me,” Tristan replied dryly, clearly uncomfortable in his outfit. I couldn’t help but smile.
“I have a handmaiden, so I don’t know, perks of being guests in the lord and lady supreme’s palace?” I replied, glancing down at my dress.
“Whoever your handmaiden is, do give her my compliments. She turned you into a spectacular vision,” Tristan said.
I did like the way the suit looked on him. It made his dark stubble stand out, giving him the air of a handsome nobleman—and not the tee-loving, tree-hugging unshaved explorer he usually was.
“Thank you very much. The same goes for your valet, it seems. I’m betting a lot of hearts will be broken as soon as we walk you out that door tonight.”
