Tides

CHAPTER 2--Cassin

A few hours earlier...

Cassin stalked down the hallway, his mother's advisor at his side. Well, his advisor now. There had been no funeral, no deathrights. The Vampire Queen died and left her son a hot mess to clean up. One dead vampire killed by a Wolf, low game populations...The list went on.

Cassin didn't know how he was going to survive this. 

  "Your Majesty, Your Majesty," Ranok said at Cassin's right shoulder. "What should we do about it?"

"Oh–uh." Cassin snapped his thoughts back to the matter at hand–low food stock.

"I–I–" Cassin rubbed his sore temples, feeling a knot of hunger twist in his stomach. When was the last time I ate? he wondered to himself.

"Just...Double the watch and, and send out an extra hunting party–We need more fresh kill."

"Yes sir."

Ranok turned on his heel and marched off, polished heels clicking against the marble floors. Cassin sighed. Sitting down heavily, he curled his knees up to his chest, eyes blurring with tears.

Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry, he chanted to himself, silently.

Vampire princes didn't cry–it was not an option.

Sighing again, Cassin climbed to his feet and prepared himself for a hectic day. Maybe at the end of it he'd be able to pay some respects to his mother's body–

"Sir!"

An omega advisor. 

"Yes?"

"We lost another at the border, claw marks indicate it was a Wolf. Her deathscent was not within our borders, either."

Cassin stifled a groan. Werewolves. Stupid overgrown mutts. It wasn't always like this–vampires hating werewolves, but that's the way it was now and Cassin saw no change.

"Did she–at any time before her death--cross over the border?"

The omega cleared his throat.  "Yes, she was running away."

  "From?"

"A Lone Wolf killed her."

"I see. We will not push this time because she crossed over." Cassin shook his hair out of his eyes.

"Er– one more thing." The omega looked nervous, but also...sorrowful? Cassin felt his stomach drop to his feet.

"What is it?"

"The vampire that was killed...It was Vali. I'm sorry, sir." The omega looked ready to sink into the floor.

Cassin cast panicked eyes at him. No. it couldn't be. Not his sister too.

 "What was she doing up there? She— she was too young!" he almost yelled, his third eyelids sweeping across his eyes fast enough to catch the tears before they fell.

"I–We don't know, Prince, but now she's dead."

Silently promising revenge on whoever the Wolf was who killed her, Cassin straightened up and shook himself. In the custom of all vampires, he recited the words of death: "What has come has come; what has been done cannot be undone. So is the way."

Cassin took a deep, shaky breath.

"Sleep well, sister," he whispered, "The Clan of Blood-Tears mourns you."

"Sir!" Ranok was back. Cassin tried to pull himself together. Royalty was always stone-cold in the presence of others. No emotion.

"Yes?"