“I had thought Alurian’s case was closed. We are no longer agents of the MASO. We may never leave this era. Now, I’m not so sure I can ever fully accept not knowing what happened to her eleven years ago.”

~ Bek Trent, M.A.S.O

The night was chilly in the city of the vampires, the air wet with a creeping fog. Standing in the cobbled streets while Sori collected Sara, Holtson, and a few others from the surrounding houses was less pleasant than standing in the dusty streets of the outpost would have been. It was even less so when Bek joined them. Silver’s gaze met his, but neither of them spoke. Silver doubted she was the only one bothered by it, but no one around them would say anything.

When Sori did return, it was with one of the vampires as well as their human allies.

“We were waiting on two more dragon riders. They’re coming to the city gates now,” Cevora informed the vampire when he warily drew level with them. He was slightly paler than usual, or so Silver thought, when he turned and stepped slightly away from their group. After a moment, she was aware that he must be using some sort of magic to inform Olrier of what was happening.

“To the front gate,” he said when he was done, casting one more glance over them all. If he was worried when they all fell into step behind him, it did not show in his expression – it would have bothered Silver if the tables had been turned, and she had fourteen or fifteen vampires following her. As they walked, she stared at his stiff back, wondering idly if he led them through the crooked streets to the front gate out of a sense of duty or something else.

It was quiet on the damp Libertian streets, the only sound the distant trill of music. The vampire must have noticed her glance in the direction of the sound, though why he chose to answer Silver’s unspoken question was a mystery to her; possibly for the same reason Olrier had tried to wake her the day their party entered the city. That thought upset her more than she wanted to show.

“Parts of this city wake with the night. They are celebrating your arrival even now.”

“A little fresh blood?” Silver heard someone ask nervously. When she turned, she could not identify the speaker. It was lucky for him. If Cevora had heard or seen, he would be hanging by his toes the next day. The vampire looked back at that comment, a snarl on his lips.

“Visitors,” he hissed. “Altian royalty has come to our sacred city, and even sought an alliance with us. They are celebrating the recovery of our place in the world, and hope for a future where we can trade our skills to the Altians.”

Silence greeted his comment, though Silver did not turn her eyes away from the source of the music for a long time afterward, even when they turned onto one of the main thoroughfares and it mostly faded into the hush. A part of her was wondering if the future the vampire alluded to existed. She and Bek certainly knew that Atlantis and Alti, no matter what anyone might do, would disappear. Whether or not the past could or should be changed, she could not imagine that it would change their present. No; Alti would fall.

But vampires would remain.

If they ever returned to their own time, Silver would be going to meet them with Zien, ambassador of the beasts. It was ironic, somehow, that coming to Libertia could help her in her own era as well.

Before she could voice any of her thoughts, they were at the gate. Olrier met them with several more vampires, all heavily armed and some lightly armored. Only Olrier was without a weapon when he faced them and beckoned them forward through the gate. Seijelar and the other dragons joined them there, since they could not land among the narrow, cobbled streets. As Seijelar gracelessly put it, why jump when one can fly?

“What manner of men are we expecting?” Olrier asked stiffly.

“The king’s selurnal kivgha,” Cevora answered carefully. “Though they wear the armor of the king, they are our allies.”

“What makes you so sure?” asked one of the vampires towards the front of the group. His hand rested on the wrought iron handle of what appeared to be a modified javelin. Silver shuddered.

“They started all of this,” another vampire observed.

“They have sworn an oath to me,” Cevora stated coldly.

“I don’t like it, Olrier,” the same vampire growled. Even the others around him looked uncertain, but Olrier raised a hand in warning.

“Restir, that’s enough.” He looked over the rest of them and a slight, wolfish smile lit his otherwise stony expression. He took several steps forward, until he was standing only a foot from Cevora, before looking past her. “Silver, isn’t it. Would you vouch for this man?”

Silver was taken aback by the sudden and direct question, and peered around him at the other vampires questioningly. No one missed the fact that she was being, for better or worse, favored. Not among the vampires, or among the people around her. Her hazel green eyes hardened. Just what she needed; the leader of the vampires had decided he liked her.

“He’s an honest man. I trust him with my life, and I owe it to him, in fact,” she said. Olrier seemed to think for a moment, though his golden eyes never left her face, before he switched his gaze to something behind her.

“And you?” Trying not to be too obvious, Silver shifted her head to see the object of the vampire’s stare. Of course, it was Bek, standing well behind her. She felt his gaze flicker to her face before he answered.

“He does not answer to any man,” Bek replied. He seemed undisturbed; his face was a perfect mask of stony distrust.

The wolf growled softly, and Silver believed she understood why when her eyes returned to Olrier and found a faint smile creeping across his lips. Indeed, Illian answered to no man, but to the woman, Cevora. Clearly, the vampire understood.

“So it is. Let us welcome them, my friends,” Olrier said, turning to the other vampires. Silence greeted his proclamation on both sides. Silver felt herself flush, with anger or embarrassment or something closer to shame, she did not know. The vampires’ trust in her would only bode ill for both her and Bek. Sori nudged her arm, clearly trying to subdue some of her anxiety.

They stood there for far too long, the silence slowly drawing in around them, before the dragons turned their heads to the sky, chattering amongst themselves like great birds. After several breathless seconds, the trees overhead parted with the boom of cracking branches and the rattle of leaves. Wood and needles showered the forest floor, among twigs and bark and pine cones. They covered their eyes against the rain of debris as two dark shadows blotted out the trees. When Silver uncovered her eyes again, it was to see two dragons bathed in the faint moonlight, hundreds upon thousands of dark scales glittering across their hides. Somehow, the massive beasts had come to a graceful landing even though they were easily twice as large as any of the hatchlings. Their eyes, one pair mud-brown, the other sky blue, blinked calmly at the welcoming party.

“Illian,” Cevora said, already coming forward. It was only seconds before Illian was on the ground, and several more before they realized that he was helping Dirk off of the same dragon. Cevora rushed forward, calling Sara and the brothers, Terald and Kit, to go with her.

When the people of the outpost half-carried Dirk past Silver, she saw that Dirk’s expression was as composed as ever. Cold, distant, and set. He was a friend. She had seen him laugh with all the rest of them. But when she saw the blood clotted against his armored side, she knew why his expression was strained. He would not share the extent of his pain with them.

Olrier demanded that a vampire go with the wounded man into the city. It only occurred to Silver after several thoughtless seconds that their peaceful world might well explode into chaos within a matter of seconds. A man covered with blood, and a city packed to the eaves with vampires. What worse combination could there be? She had visions of a modern vampire horror flick, fanged monsters with glowing eyes jumping an unsuspecting victim with a small gash or even a pinprick. She could only imagine the drama caused by a clotted wound the length of a man’s arm.

But Olrier walked briefly with the vampires that were meant to guide Dirk, Sara, and the brothers, offering support to the wounded man and speaking to Sara and Cara and Cevora. There was no fang bearing – apart from the unavoidable – no glowing eyes, no instant attack.

“Your witch will have whatever supplies she requires, Cevora kuirsrinn,” Olrier assured them, rejoining those who remained as Illian finally turned away from the two unfamiliar dragons. He appeared to be seeing the people of the outpost gathered to greet him for the first time.

But Silver was not looking at him.

Like dominoes before a breeze, one realization was leading to another, toppling into a distinguishable pattern as if laid down for that very purpose. Her eyes were rooted to the dragon at Illian’s back. No matter the time, no matter the place, she would never mistake this beast for any other. The dragon had noticed her attention, and turned to stare at her in turn, his jaws half-parted to display his bone white teeth. He watched her…and she understood why the Zara had not killed her the first time he set eyes on her. Because he knew her. After seven hundred years, he may have all but forgotten, but some part of him had known.

“Why do you stare, human?” the beast asked in a voice she was certain could be heard only by her.

“Silver?” Illian asked. His voice startled her out of her thoughts, and she looked at the man now quickly closing the distance between them, his dark eyes mirroring the expression in her own – the expression of someone who had seen a ghost. He turned his attention to Bek, who had approached through the people to greet him. “She’s awake?”

“I tried to touch her. A dire mistake, it would seem. She threw me several meters into the dirt. That is an affront which I had not suffered in nearly a century,” Olrier said seriously. Illian looked at him, dark eyes reading into the stranger’s golden gaze.

“Illian Trent,” he said courteously, “once a knight of the king, but no more. Now, I am one of the captains of the Juran. You seem to be a man of standing.”

“I enjoy humans with a sense for the way of things,” Olrier agreed, “I am Olrier, srinn of Libertia. You will find yourself most welcome here.” He flashed his fangs, and Illian appeared unphased.

“Welcome might be an overstatement,” Bek said frostily.

“It may be,” Olrier agreed readily, “but I will not turn you away now.” The vampire cast a knowing leer in Bek’s direction. “And no vampire will trouble any of you, so long as we all honor our agreements.”

“You have my gratitude,” Illian said, looking back over the rest of them. It was not long before his eyes strayed down the path that Dirk had traveled moments before, dark with concern. “Everything is in place. If only we had known where you had gone, we would have come sooner.”

He glanced again at Olrier, who had turned and strode in the direction of the dragons, apparently to address them separately. Silver was surprised, and her eyes followed him, falling on Illian’s dragon for a second time. The beast watched her, thoughtful.

“What are these agreements, princess?” Illian asked softly, turning to Cevora.

The princess looked disapproving when she answered.

“We train the vampires to fight, and they help us prepare for what is to come. And Olrier works with Silver and Bek directly.”

“A vampire…” Illian growled. “Why?”

He looked at Silver as if she might have the answer, but it was Bek that replied, his voice flat. “When we first came, he was convinced that Silver was one of their kind.”

Silver glanced at Bek out of the corner of her eye, unsure if he believed that was really the only reason for Olrier’s unnatural interest, but wary now of both Cevora and Illian’s eyes on her. It was an uncomfortable scrutiny that passed over her before Illian finally looked towards Olrier and the other vampires, his mouth set in a firm line.

“I’ll speak with him. Truthfully, training with the vampires will be good for us as well. We’ll encounter worse in the battles to come.”