Carpathian 05 - Dark Challenge

shoulders with easy familiarity, the move comforting. His chin nuzzled the top of her head. "Darius will not choose eternal darkness, cara mia; he has lived in it far too long. Do not fear for your brother's soul." As always, he read her thoughts easily, a shadow in her mind.
    Desari let out her breath slowly, his nearness easing her worries. He had experienced how Carpathian males changed over the centuries. He had lost feeling and colors until his world was one of bleak darkness, yet he had survived. He had even survived the mark of the beast, the vampire's shadowing of his soul. It could be done. "Tell me of my ancestors. After all these centuries of believing we were the only ones of our kind, it is interesting to know our family can be traced back to such legendary creatures."
    Julian nodded. "There were two of them. Twins. Gabriel and Lucian. They were alike in everything. Tall and dark with eyes that could look straight through a person to his very soul. I saw them once, when I was a child. They were like gods striding through our village, visiting with Gregori and Mikhail for a brief time, then gone again. The wind went utterly still when they were near. The earth seemed to hold its breath as they passed. They were relentless, unswerving angels of death once set upon a path."
    Desari shivered. Not so much at his words as at the pictures she glimpsed in his mind. True, they were the memories of a boy, yet she could see the images clearly. The two men very tall, elegant, their faces cruelly beautiful, as if etched in stone, their dark eyes merciless. Strong Carpathians trembled in their presence.
    "They were loyal to the Prince of our people, but all knew that should the two choose darkness, no one would be able to destroy them."
    "Was the prince this Mikhail you speak of?" Desari asked.
    "Mikhail's father was our leader when I was a small child. I believe the twins, ancients even then, had served Mikhail's grandfather long before that. In any case, they were always together, inseparable. It was said they had made a childhood pact, one with the other, that if one turned, the other would destroy them both. They were so close they thought alike, knew what the other would be doing at every moment, hunted and fought as a team."
    "They were born together, like you and your brother?" Julian nodded. "Some said they were demons, others called them angels, but everyone agreed they were the most lethal of all Carpathians, the most knowledgeable, the most skilled. What one learned through study or experience, he shared with the other, doubling their power and ability. Many of our race were terrified of them, yet they were much needed. In those days vampires were achieving a kind of popularity among humans, a disaster in the making for our people. Without the two angels of death, Carpathians would have been hunted to extinction, the vampires would have triumphed, and the world would have become a deadly, desolate place. There was chaos and war, the hunters of our race stretched beyond their capacity."
    "Why would humans ever embrace the undead?"

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    "It was a time of great self-indulgence and decadence among the rich. They would have orgies of drinking and gluttony and sex. They would watch bloody, violent clashes and worship the victor. It was an atmosphere for the undead. They can be as cunning and charming as they need to be and influencing those already corrupt is not so difficult. We had to do something to change the course of history. It was Gabriel and Lucian who did so."
    "Which was the vampire?"
    Julian shook his head with his now familiar taunting smile. "Just like a woman, no patience."
    She quirked an expressive eyebrow at him. "I am the one without patience? I think not, Julian. You are the one impatient."
    His mouth swooped to take hers in a slow, leisurely exploration. He lifted his head, his eyes molten gold.
    "Then I will have to be more careful the next time to be slow and thorough. I want you to be completely satisfied in all things, lifemate."
    Her slender arms circled his neck. "You know I am. And if you were much more thorough, we might both be dead."
    He wrapped his arms protectively around her, pressing her body into his hard frame. "You are so perfect, Desari. For me there is no other."
    "Nor for me. Before you, my world was not bleak and barren—I had emotions and colors, my singing to sustain me, my family to love—but