(Ace POV)
Three days after Ayana's visit, we left our village under a cloud of smoke and ashes, making sure to burn the white oak tree. The decision had been made, our belongings packed, and our goodbyes left unspoken. There was nothing left for us here except memories and ghosts.
Mikael had returned the night before, silent and brooding. He'd said nothing about where he'd been or what he'd been doing, but the look in his eyes when they settled on Klaus told me everything I needed to know. The timer on his hunt had already begun ticking.
We traveled light and moved quickly, using our enhanced speed when the roads were empty and forcing ourselves to maintain a human pace when we passed other travelers. Mother was quiet throughout the journey, lost in her guilt and grief. Finn walked as though heading to his own execution. Elijah kept everyone organized and moving forward. Klaus simmered with barely contained rage. Kol treated it like an adventure. Rebekah kept glancing back the way we'd come, as if hoping to see our old life following us.
The journey to the coast took a week. We fed on animals when the hunger became too strong, and I was grateful that my potion worked as intended. My siblings had control, even if it wasn't perfect.
When we finally crested the last hill and saw the ocean stretching before us, vast and endless, the reactions were mixed.
"By the gods," Rebekah breathed, stopping in her tracks. "It's magnificent."
"It's terrifying," Finn muttered.
Klaus said nothing, but I saw something shift in his expression, perhaps the first glimpse of wonder he'd allowed himself since Henrik's death.
The port town was bustling with activity when we arrived. Ships of various sizes crowded the docks, sailors shouting to one another in multiple languages, merchants haggling over cargo prices. The smell of salt water, fish, and unwashed bodies assaulted our enhanced senses.
"Stay close," I instructed. "Let me handle the negotiations."
I found a captain fairly quickly, a weathered Norwegian named Captain Nordmann who was preparing his merchant vessel for departure to France. The negotiation was straightforward: gold for passage, enough to convince him to take seven passengers and ask minimal questions.
"We sail with the evening tide," he told me after counting the coins. "Be aboard by sunset, or we leave without you."
We spent the remaining hours acquiring additional supplies and mentally preparing for the voyage ahead.
---
(Two Days at Sea)
The ocean was both beautiful and monotonous. Endless grey-blue water in every direction, the ship creaking and swaying with each wave, the crew going about their duties with practiced efficiency.
My siblings struggled with the close quarters and constant proximity to human blood. I'd gathered them in the hold that first night for a frank discussion.
"The next few weeks will test everything we've learned about control," I said, looking at each of them. Humans surround us. The smell of their blood will be constant. You must resist."
"And if we can't?" Klaus asked, his jaw tight.
"Then you'll endanger us all. The crew finds out what we are, and we'll be fighting for our lives in the middle of the ocean." I pulled out containers of animal blood I'd prepared. "These will sustain you. Not pleasant, but necessary."
Kol wrinkled his nose. "We have to drink cold animal blood for weeks?"
"Unless you want to explain to the crew why their numbers keep dwindling, yes."
The days fell into a rhythm. We took turns going above deck to maintain appearances, played cards in the hold to pass the time, and practiced meditation techniques I taught them to control the bloodlust.
Elijah adapted quickly, his natural discipline serving him well. Rebekah struggled but persevered. Finn seemed almost relieved by the deprivation, as if it were penance. Kol complained constantly but managed. Klaus was the wildcard, some days perfectly controlled, others requiring me to restrain him when a sailor came too close physically.
Mother spent most of the voyage in a corner, staring at nothing, speaking to no one.
Mikael kept to himself, watching Klaus with predatory patience.
---
(One Week at Sea)
I found Klaus on deck one night, alone, staring out at the dark water. The moon cast a silver path across the waves, and the ship rocked gently beneath us.
"Couldn't sleep?" I asked, though I knew none of us needed sleep anymore.
He didn't look at me. "Do you ever wonder if Ayana was right? If we're cursed?"
"That's just some witchy, nature crap they like to spout when they don't get their way," I admitted, leaning against the railing beside him. "But being cursed and being doomed aren't the same thing."
"Aren't they?" He finally turned to face me. "We drink blood to survive, Ace. We're literally monsters from children's nightmares. How is that not doomed?"
"Because we choose what kind of monsters we become. We can be the nightmare, or we can be something else. Something more."
"You make it sound simple."
"It's not simple. It's probably the hardest thing we'll ever do. But it's possible." I paused. "Klaus, I meant what I said before. Mikael will have to go through me to get to you. You're my brother. That means something."
He studied my face, searching for deception, finding none. "Why do you care so much? You could leave us all behind, go back to your life in Norway. Why stay?"
"Because family is all we have now. And because I believe we can be better than what people expect." I straightened up. "Now come on. We should get below before the crew starts wondering why we're always lurking on deck at night."
As we headed back to the hold, I noticed Elijah watching from the shadows. He nodded approvingly, and I returned the gesture.
Small steps. That's all we could manage right now—small steps toward becoming a family that could survive eternity together.
---
(Three Weeks at Sea - French Coast)
"Land!" The cry from the crow's nest brought everyone above deck.
We crowded at the railing, watching as the coast of France slowly materialized from the morning mist. Rolling green hills, rocky shores, and in the distance, the spires of what might be a town or castle.
"We made it," Rebekah said, relief evident in her voice. "Thank the gods."
The port was smaller than the one we'd left, but no less busy. As we disembarked, the sounds of French filled the air—a language we'd heard before but never truly needed to speak. With our enhanced minds, we could pick up the meanings quickly enough, but the accent would take practice.
Captain Nordmann met us at the gangplank. "France, as promised. Safe voyage, fair winds. If you need passage again, you know who to ask."
I handed him the remaining payment. "Thank you, Captain. You've been most accommodating."
He bit one of the coins, grinned, then strode off to supervise his crew.
We stood on French soil, seven vampires in a foreign land, with nothing but the clothes on our backs, gold in our pockets, and eternity stretching before us.
"Now what?" Finn asked, looking around at the unfamiliar port town.
"Now we find lodging," I said. "Rest, gather information about the local nobility and territories. Then we venture inland and find our place in French society."
"Just like that?" Klaus scoffed. "We just walk into French aristocracy?"
"With the right presentation, the right story, and the right amount of gold? Yes." I started walking toward the town. "We're minor nobility from the North, seeking to establish trade connections and cultural exchange. It's believable enough, and gold opens doors that bloodlines might not."
Elijah fell into step beside me. "You've given this considerable thought."
"I've had three weeks on a ship with nothing to do but plan."
We found an inn that accepted foreign coins and took rooms for the night. The innkeeper was suspicious of us, seven strangers with unusual accents and pale complexions, but gold smoothed his concerns.
Once settled, I gathered my siblings in my room.
"Tomorrow, Elijah and I will scout the town. We need information on which noble families hold power in this region, where their estates are located, and most importantly, which ones might be receptive to newcomers." I looked at the others. "The rest of you stay here. Practice your French, maintain your control, and do not draw attention."
"How long will we be here?" Rebekah asked.
"A few days, maybe a week. Long enough to learn what we need and prepare ourselves for the next step."
"And what is the next step?" Mother asked quietly, her first words in days.
"We find a noble family willing to host us, or at least tolerate our presence. We establish ourselves in their household or a nearby location. We learn French customs, French politics, and how to survive in this new world." I met her eyes. "We build a new life, Mother. One day at a time."
She nodded slowly, something like hope flickering in her expression.
As the others dispersed to their rooms, Elijah lingered.
"You have a specific family in mind, don't you?" he asked. "This isn't random."
I smiled slightly. "There may be a particular count whose territory could suit our needs. But first, we confirm he exists and that approaching him won't get us killed."
"Who is he?"
"Count de Martel. From what I've heard, he controls a prosperous territory with strong political connections. If we can gain his favor, we'll have a foundation to build on."
Elijah nodded thoughtfully. "And if we can't?"
"Then we find someone else. France is large, and there are many noble families. One of them will serve our purposes."
That night, I stood at the window of my room, looking out at the French town below. Somewhere inland, our future waited—new faces, new challenges, new opportunities.
I thought of Lagertha and the Order of Ravens, wondering how they fared. I thought of the empire I would build, the centuries of history we would shape.
But first, my family needed stability. They needed time to adjust, to learn, to become more than just newborn vampires struggling with bloodlust.
I closed my eyes and breathed in the foreign air, tasting salt and possibility.
France.
Europe.
A new beginning.