Vampires Realm Prophecy 01 - Child of Light

scruffy looking grey dogs appeared through the door. They growled and snapped at each other. Their teeth were red with blood, their eyes white and glazed as they stared at her when they passed, heading for their master.
    She looked down at Valentine, trying to gauge his reaction to the animals as they nuzzled Elena’s hand and then began to fight with each other again. He didn’t look at all bothered by them.
    “Still practising necromancy?” he asked her.
    Elena smiled. “How else would I still look so young after nearly a thousand years?”
    Necromancy. Prophecy stared unseeingly at the dogs as they fought. Was that how Elena had managed to have some control over her when they’d first arrived? Would necromancy give her power over a vampire? Or was she just weak and susceptible? Valentine wouldn’t have brought her here if he’d thought she’d be in danger.
    “I do have some information that might be useful to you,” Elena said.
    Prophecy looked around and found the witch staring at her again.
    “There is a great power rising in the east like the sun. An army is being gathered—vampires and under-demons alike. You have seen it, have you not?”
    Prophecy hesitated and then nodded. She flexed her fingers while she remembered the power she’d felt in her vision and the magic she’d unleashed in order to save Valentine from the robed figure.
    “I find it curious that a vampire is able to harness powers like yours. Where did it come from? They are not yours... they are a gift... a familiar one,” Elena said.
    Prophecy tried to think of something to say but the questions crowded her mind. The power wasn’t hers? It was a gift? The witches had given her an amulet that had belonged to her mother. Did the power she had also come from her?
    She was relieved when Valentine asked something and drew Elena’s attention away from her. She realised that Elena didn’t have any answers to her questions. The witch was curious about her magic and something inside of her told her to keep quiet.
    “You must go to the shadowed land. There the end will begin and there you will find the one that the girl has seen. He is a great power that must be stopped before he ruins everything.” Elena stood and walked across to her. “I see such light inside of you. You can defeat this enemy.”
    Prophecy swallowed hard, feeling the weight of responsibility on her shoulders. Her eyes roamed to Valentine when he stood and moved past Elena to stand by her side. She could see in his expression that he believed what the witch had said. She could defeat the enemy she had seen in her vision.
    “You must go directly, before it is too late. There is no time to lose.” There was a note of desperation in Elena’s voice that made her frown.
    “We have something that we need to do first,” Valentine said.
    Elena’s look darkened.
    Prophecy watched her closely. She reasoned that it was probably just her feelings of jealousy towards the witch that was making her suspicious of the witch. Elena had done nothing to raise alarm in Valentine. Prophecy was sure she would have seen it if the witch had.
    Her eyes narrowed when the witch gently ran her hand over Valentine’s chest and smiled up into his eyes. “I always had big plans for us. We could have been wonderful together, another Ineru and River.”
    Valentine removed her hand. “For that I would have to love you, and that is something I am incapable of.”
    He turned and walked past her. Prophecy watched Elena smile fondly at the dogs.
    “It doesn’t stop me from having plans for us,” Elena said and then looked at Prophecy. “Go to Romania. There you will find the castle of the lord of Tenebrae.”
    “We have business to attend to in St. Petersburg first. Grant us safe passage from there to Romania.” Valentine held Elena’s gaze.
    Prophecy noted that Elena looked uneasy about his request. The witch seemed to seriously consider it before nodding and holding her hand out to Valentine. He took it and pressed a kiss to it.
    “It will be difficult to cloak you from prying eyes and protect you from such a distance, but I will try. Do not lose much time. It is against you, Valentine.”
    “Always a pleasure,” he said and released Elena’s hand.
    Prophecy felt his hand against her back. He turned her around and she glanced over her shoulder at Elena to see her smiling at her dogs again before she disappeared from view.
    A million questions bubbled up inside of Prophecy while