“Well done, your highness,” the familiar voice of Cameron Hendry, with his thick Scottish accent, boomed through the training grounds. “It seems four hundred years of being the Sleeping Beauty has not dulled your fighting skills one bit.”

I tensed. The last thing I wanted now was company and it seemed I had an entire flank of soldiers surrounding me. I tried to relax as I faced my good friend. Cameron and his wife, Liana, were two of The Shade’s fiercest warriors and had both fought and bled with me many times in the battlefield. The Hendry clan represented one of the few clans among the Elite that I trusted with my life.

“Hendry.” I nodded his way. “Up and about so early?”

“Early?” he scoffed, his red hair messed up and tousled as if he had just tumbled out of bed. “If The Shade had sun, it’d be midday. Yuri says you’ve been using every single weapon we have available to murder some unknown force for the past eighteen hours. What or whom are you planning to kill, Derek?”

“Midday, huh?” I asked, quick to change the subject. “Since when do we start training troops at midday?”

“Truth be told, we haven’t trained much since the war ended and you went off to sleep.” The large man, only twenty-eight years old when he was turned, threw his arms up in the air with a shrug. “There hasn’t been a major attack on The Shade since your witch friend, Cora, kept it hidden with her curse.”

My jaw tightened. “That has to change. We won’t be safe for long. We can’t afford to have untrained troops. Our adversaries are innovating their weapons, developing their skills, while we sit here, lazy and lounging around like there won’t ever be a tomorrow.”

Concern sparked in Cameron’s brown eyes. He stepped forward and spoke in a low tone – just loud enough for only me to hear.

“What’s going on, Derek?”

“I remain Commander-in-Chief of The Shade’s military force. Am I correct?”

“Of course,” he nodded.

“Well, as of this day, the initiative starts. Within the next couple of weeks, I expect every single vampire living on this God-forsaken island to be drafted for duty.” If I weren’t in such a sour mood, I would’ve been unable to keep myself from letting out a large guffaw at the way Cameron’s face contorted with shock. But I was dead serious. I stood to my full height, summoning all the power I knew I had over every single citizen of The Shade. “That’s what’s going on, Cameron.” I looked at all the men listening in on our conversation. They were a sorry bunch to look at; weak and withered by time. “Does anyone dare object?”

I was met with downcast stares and a tense silence.

I smirked. “Of course not.”

CHAPTER 6: DEREK

Steady footsteps echoed through the torch-lit corridors of the Crimson Fortress’ west tower. I was discussing with Cameron what had to be done over the next few weeks as we made our way to the Great Dome, where most of our military strategic planning was done. The west tower, standing as high as one hundred and fifty feet and roofed with pointed cross-arches, was one of the first buildings erected in the fortress and had already witnessed many battles in defense of the island.

“We’ll need to gather the Elite Council and the Knights to make sure that everyone is on the same page and knows what we are trying to accomplish.”

The Elite Council was composed of twenty highly esteemed individuals who represented each of the Elite’s clans. Liana, Cameron’s wife, was one of them and so was my twin sister, Vivienne. The knights, on the other hand, were members of the Elite’s clans who had enlisted as part of The Shade’s military force. They composed mostly of the high-ranking officers in our garrisons. As far as I knew, we had twenty-one knights.

Cameron met my gaze as if to check that I was being serious. “Not many of them will understand, Derek. The Shade has become a smaller version of Ancient Rome. We’ve grown complacent and drunk with power… Some of the Elite call our citizens the untouchables.”

“And you agree?”

“No.” He shook his head. “We’ve had it good for too long. The tides always turn eventually.”

“Exactly. So you understand why we must prepare our people for that time when the tides turn?”

“Of course. We fought side-by-side a long time ago. You know how I recognize it when the winds speak of battle. I’m just telling you the situation as it is. Not many will understand.”

“We’ll make them understand.” I said through gritted teeth. “There is no choice.”

Before Cameron could respond, I heard a familiar, shrill voice echoing through cavernous corridors.

“Derek! What do you think you’re doing?!”

I turned to find my twin sister, Vivienne, marching at full speed toward me. It was easy to see how furious she was. Vivienne was both feared and respected as the Seer of The Shade. Many of her visions and prophecies had saved The Shade throughout history. However, some of her prophecies had only served to place me in trouble – especially with my father and brother. One in particular burdened me whenever I recalled it: The younger will rule above father and brother and his reign alone can provide his kind true sanctuary.

As I watched my sister storm her way toward me, the words echoed through my mind. Sometimes, I would wish that she could somehow stop seeing into my future and just let me live without being pressured by what she saw lay ahead of me.