Chapter Queen Ilona of the Near East. Princess Buto of the South.

Getting off her private plane, Anjael walked through the golden morning to the SUVs waiting. Looking polished, yet formidable, Dartanian strode behind her and to her right while four large, masked men in body armor walked around them.

The Cruor in a suit frowned as he introduced himself, "I'm Antonov, a daywalker from Queen Ilona's clan. We can fly there... The humans and wolves can stay..."

"Are armed with emerald rounds to protect the queen and will ride escort in the vehicles we have arranged," Dartanian announced coldly, "Our clan and its allies do not trust the other Queens, especially those allied with that fork-tongued biyatch Echidna."

"No offense." The male who shared Dartanian's coloring stared at him in shocked disbelief at his blatant and vocal disrespect, then bowed his head admitting, "Our queen has said for centuries that the Snake Queens are untrustworthy." He clicked and whistled then three other crew or males leaped down from the tops of the other hangars around the plane.

The soldiers around Anjael and Dartanian didn't move except for the clicks of weapons' safeties being thumbed off. When one of the Cruor stepped forward, the largest soldier let out a deep growl.

Anjael reached out a hand and laid it on his arm. "Easy beast." She glared at the Cruor through her sunglasses. "Where am I meeting your queen?"

"Greek Orthodox Cathedral of the Annunciation, it's on..." The male as pale as alabaster melted into his mortal and began quickly dressing in a suit from a shoulder bag. He looked like Antonov's brother, but was as large as Ouroboros, standing even taller than Dartanian.

"We know where it is," Dartanian interrupted, refusing to tip his head to look up at the older male.

The older male favored him with the same cool gaze that his queen often showed. "Then I shall accompany you. I'm Ivan."

Anjael stepped forward and tied Ivan' tie then looked over her sunglasses, at his tawny colored eyes before tucking some of his blond, sandstone colored hair behind his ear. She smiled showing all of her pointed, mother-of-pearl teeth. "Know this, Ivan, if anything happens to my entourage, you will be the first one I kill, then Antonov, then the rest of them." She waved her hand at the other two pale Cruor males. "And afterward, I will let Dartanian carve your corpses or let Beast crush them into gravel for my garden like those two Romani cruor who trespassed in my territory with the intent to make me a breeder only six moons ago."

Her tone left no doubt that she would do just that and it made the Cruor of the Near East Clan shift uncomfortably; only Ivan did not take a step away from her. They stood perfectly still like statues for several moments, assessing each other, before Ivan turned and opened the SUV's back door.

"After you Queen Anutari."

One of the werewolf soldiers got in the driver's seat while Dartanian got next to Anjael. Ivan and Antonov climbed in, sitting opposite in the stretch limo SUV. The rest of Anjael's entourage got in the second SUV while the two Near East gargoyles leapt into the sky and began flying toward Baltimore.

As they drove through the city traffic, Ivan commented, "Queen Echidna claimed being a day Walker made you insane, but after your clan's claim, I think perhaps..."

"It is not an unfounded claim," Dartanian snarled. "My Queen's blood memories prove it all." He shifted his glare at the Cruor, who could be his brother."

"As I was saying before you interrupted me, cousin, perhaps it is more PTSD than insanity. My sister and I are both daywalkers, as are a third of those hatched since the war of the Black Death." Ivan's gaze was as cool as Dartanian was fiery. "What did she mean you would carve our corpses as you did the Romani who tried to abduct her?"

Dartagnan smirked but it was Anjael answered, "After the Notre Dame eclipse event, Dartanian was found as a decade hold youngling in a quarry and rescued by an artist friend of my uncle's. He spent the first century of his life with the sculptors of the D'Agostino family, and still owns their Etruscan vineyard."

Antonov nodded in realization, "The vineyards of Alabastro Dorato Testamatta Sangiovese is yours?"

"Yes, but the Romani Clan dwelling in Italy. They make it difficult for me to openly visit the descendants of my stepfather and stepbrother, and I dare not confront them because if I am captured, they will attempt to ransom me to my queen and I would never put her in that position. I would rather die than cause her a moment's harm after what happened," Dartanian vowed.

"What exactly happened?" Ivan was very interested.

Anjael blinked at him. "You can ask your queen after we speak."

"I read the letter, and she said I was to make an egg with you."

Anjael ignored the statement to look out the window.

"The letter lacks the details," Dartanian responded, his voice cold, "I will never write the details of the horror she suffered for her pregnancy and egg-watch, and vowed to do everything I could to help her find her twin sons, even if it means killing the entire Romani and Eastern Mediterranean clan."

Antonov shifted, slightly nervously, "Why do you hate them so?"

Anjael turned and looked at the two males with her pale blue eyes. "Because the Romani Cruor Invictus helped Echidna's brother Thaumus torture me. Echidna kept both my eggs and then sent me to the Romani to become a breeder. A storm came. The superstitious sailors threw me into the sea. It was stated in my complaint. Wouldn't you be upset if you were tortured for three years then thrown out of a boat with your wings chained with emerald so that you had no choice but to walk for uncounted days? Do you know how dark it is on the bottom of the sea? How deep the mud? How even our eyes can barely see beyond twenty steps ahead?"

Clenching his fists, Ivan suddenly shuddered and Antonov said, "Easy brother."

Her eyes narrowed as they held Ivan's eyes. Without a word, she demanded the truth. Ivan swallowed and looked away, muttering, "I was shipwrecked, I made it to the shore using my wings as fins in the places where the deep currents were weaker."

"How long did it take?"

"Forty-two days according to the changes of the moon," Ivan answered as he sat rigidly.

"Only forty-two days?" Anjael snorted in derision. "I spent longer than that on a coral shoal, staring up at the surface of the water that I could not swim up to with my wings chained because our flesh is so dense... Don't!" Her voice vibrated in threat when his expression and scent changed to one of sympathy.

Bowing his head, Ivan nodded, "Your forgiveness, Queen Anutari."

"My queen, we are arriving," Ridge announced softly from the front seat.

The SUVs stopped in front of the rounded Byzantine architecture of the Greek Orthodox Cathedral of the Annunciation. Ivan slid out first and held the door for the others, then he jerked his head to look at the side of the building. The shrill whistles and clicks of arguing Cruor vibrated the air.

"How interesting..." Anjael murmured. Looking up, she noticed several Cruor on the roof and snapped her fingers at her entourage. "Give me the Servant Protector Kaiyou's gift." One of the human soldiers immediately held out a katana in its scabbard.

"A sword?" Antonov sounded derisive until Anjael slid the katana out slightly, revealing the scent and shimmer of emerald. Both Near East Cruor backed away a step.

"Yes, a very special sword." She smirked then clicked and whistled, demanding, To which queen are you loyal? Several answered and she relaxed before handing the sword back to her most loyal. "Come, Dartanian. It seems Udo the Green One's Clan is here and she is arguing with Ilona."

With the lilting stride of a runway model, Anjael strode toward the side entrance of the church. Ivan hurried to stay ahead of her then he opened the door, inclining his head as she passed.

"Wait here, males," she growled then she walked inside by herself. When the door closed behind her, she took off her sunglasses and glanced around.

Anjael knew immediately that the female Cruor arguing with Ilona was not Udo, because Ido was a green, snake-tailed gorgon like Echidna. She had legs and wore leather pants laced up the sides similar to ones Anjael owned. The other two queens turned to glare at her.

"I am Anjael Anutari Wasi, daughter of Nixx, granddaughter of Gaia Danu."

The tawny amber skinned female smiled without showing her teeth. "I am Southern Clan Princess Buto Naska, daughter of Udo the Green, descendant of Wadjet, and I was just telling Queen Ilona that those who treat our fellow species like livestock deserve to go extinct like the Demones and Unicorns."

"And I, elder Queen Ilona of the Near East, remind both of you that the humans, Dragons, Lycani, Vampyri, and Wicce cannot be trusted. They are weaker than us and therefore lesser," Ilona scowled, then insisted, "You were not invited, princess."

"Let her stay, I already have grievance with you for sending your thugs into my territory. Princess Buto, do you know where I might find Echidna? She stole two of my offspring after imprisoning for my entire egg-watch and allowed her brother and his Romani lover to sexually assault me for over two years," Anjael revealed in a cold tone.

"I read your ridiculous accusations, vigilante," Ilona sneered. "Echidna may be untrustworthy, but no queen would ever..."

"I once believed that too," Anjael interrupted then held out her arm. "Take my blood and learn the truth. I have nothing to hide, slaver."

Ilona grasped her arm and bit down hard, but Anjael didn't flinch as she willed the memories to her of those three years and her long trek across the bottom of the sea, ending with staring up at the sky through water for several moon cycles. The elder queen gasped and staggered as Anjael gripped the other's arm and pushed her into a chair. Tears leaked while Ilona whimpered as her eyes twitched reading the memories.

Buto asked, "May I?"

"Let me see your memories first... Have you ever been assaulted?" Anjael questioned.

"No, I have always been protected by my mother and brothers. She doesn't know I brought my male harem and came here, but I needed to meet you. The oracles of the jaguar and seers of the snake shifters who share our lands dream a war is coming to the northern American wolves and if they lose it will spread and burn the whole world," Buto revealed, holding out her arm.

"Let me show you of my meeting with the Delphi of the Moon then. I will not show you my torture, but I speak of it to her." Anjael let the memories flow smoothly to the younger Cruor female, while they drew blood from each other at the same time. Buto's memories showed Anjael the life she had always longed for, filled with a large clan, many brothers, and an older sister.

Several minutes later, Buto watched Anjael finish processing her shared memories. "I will share this with my mother and sister... May... May I send some of my brothers to help protect your clan and pack from this evil? You are so few."

"If the wolves do not overcome it themselves then we..."

"Enough!" Ilona shrieked and flung out her wings. She glared at Anjael with a tear-wet face. Her makeup was smudged where she rubbed her eyes, revealing the deep red-brown skin beneath.

Anjael realized the older queen was almost the color of a garnet, like her aunt Ino, while her mother was more of a darker brown color than her uncle's more basalt gray. "Where is Echidna? I have proved I have grievance."

Ilona was panting. "Your vendetta means nothing if our kind is to survive. The Romani Queen is dead. You were supposed to take her place. What happened to you... It must be a misunderstanding."

"That's rich coming from someone who lets her clan help the local mafia sex traffic children from war zones while hiding in the Chernobyl exclusion zone," snarking, Buto rolled her eyes. She bowed to Anjael. "You have the alliance of the Southern Clan, Western Queen Anutari. Queen Ilona, have your own daughter egg for your clan because the daughters of the South refuse and tell Echidna the same. Until she returns either the offspring she stole or compensates with two eggs for the Western Clan, the South rejects the egg exchange in the Covenant of the Queens."

Enraged, Ilona started to grow into her gargoyle, but Anjael warned, "You'll crack your makeup and sunscreen, Nightflyer."

Buto smirked, because as a daywalker she didn't need those things and only used make up to hide the jade tint of her skin. Her golden eyes with their side-ways cat-pupil slit grew more pronounced. "You can try to attack me, blood-covered queen, but your crimes against the lesser races means you die in infamy, hated by my clan's descendants and held as an example of everything wrong with your generation of hatched."

"You also refuse to honor the Covenant and then dare to demand eggs from us? In the last thousand years, have you given the Western Clan a single egg? My mother gave me her blood before she died and told me to remember, and I do." Anjael clenched her fist not to attack the elder queen. "My mother and aunt sent males to your clans, and yet we received no eggs. When you sent males to us, they returned with their offspring. A male that looked exactly like Ivan tried to save my sister when the Abbey was burned the day of my hatching. Do you deny that you sent your males with the Romani to kidnap the princesses of the west?"

Unable to deny it, Ilona trembled again and Anjael knew she would not be able to unsee or not feel the memories she pushed on her anytime soon so Anjael demanded again, "Give me Echidna."

"And then what? You kill her and then run back to your werewolf lover, and meddle in their war?" Ilona snapped.

"Yes. And yes, and not exactly, I am only offering sanctuary and a chance to escape to the Lycani and Vampyri who approach me," Anjael answered, looking at her nails as if bored.

"You can send them to me in the south," Buto offered in a tone, as if they were making small talk, "I mean if they do not wish to go to the Isle of the Archives."

"You are both fools. We are too few to stop this war between the Devas of this land. It has nothing to do with us," Ilona argued.

"The Lycani Delphi of the Moon has seen that if this threat is not stopped here and now it will consume the world," Anjael revealed.

Buto nodded adding, "The Sacred Seers of the Long River and the bell dancer oracles of the Moon Deva who share my mother's territory have both seen the same. You refused to help when my mother sent warning of the Burning Devas before and only Ouroboros of the West aided her clan. He will get a southern egg before you and yours."

"You will only get an egg from the west if you bring me Echidna," Anjael stubbornly insisted.

"What would you do to the Mediterranean Queen?" Ilona muttered, accepting that the two females in front of her would not yield.

"Chain her with emerald, lock her in a cave, and leave her to stare at her brother's severed head while she waits for her egg to hatch after force feeding her my blood so she can enjoy my memories like you are now." Anjael stood then. "Princess Buto, may I offer you a ride on my private jet?"

"I would enjoy that very much. We traveled on a yacht, but I can understand why you are reluctant to sail."

"Thank you for understanding." Anjael shifted her gaze back to Ilona. "Last chance to give me your blood and prove you were not in league with my enemies."

"I was not, but I will not give you my blood," Ilona refused, dabbing makeup over the places her skin was exposed, she looked haggard. "You would weaponize any information you got from me to use against my interests and clan."

Not denying it, the pale white queen grinned, showing all her pointed teeth, as she hissed, "Yes, I would. Keep your criminals out of my city. You now know why I became a vigilante. I don't care what adults do of their own will, but I will not allow children to be harmed."