My Guardian

A dark haired man came through the portal first carrying a black suitcase. He waited and held out his hand. Seconds later, Bethy came through and seemed to trip over nothing. Instantly, the dark haired man helped her to stand upright, and they moved out of the way. Adriel turned to Declan, who looked as shocked as he felt. The vampire was huge. He had never seen another of their race who stood as tall as the man before them.

The next person who came through could be none other than their commander. Aiden McKenzie was easily as tall as the first man, but he carried more muscle. The portal practically disappeared when he stood in front of it. He turned, rolled his bag to one side, and waited.

And waited.

And waited.

Aiden turned to Bethy. "Where is she?"

Bethy shrugged. "How would I know? I came through before you."

Suddenly, a single hand popped out of the portal, waved, and then disappeared.

Aiden sighed, and Bethy giggled.

When the hand appeared again, Aiden grabbed it and pulled the person through. Adriel blinked. This had to be his commander's mate. Gods, she was tiny! Was she fully grown?

The small woman frowned up at her mate. "Rude!"

Aiden rolled his eyes. "It's not a toy, Meryn."

Just when Adriel thought that the portal would close, a tall, slender man of Japanese descent stepped through pulling a large, square, rolling crate behind him. He immediately went to Meryn's side. "I told you he would pull you through."

Meryn shrugged and looked around. "So. Where are we?"

Adriel stepped forward. "Welcome to the fae portal for Noctem Falls. This portal is located approximately one hundred and fifty miles west of Albuquerque in the El Malpais National Conservation Area. From here, we will escort you down into the canyon to the Ledge, which serves as the main entrance for the City of the Night."

"Adriel!" Bethy exclaimed and rushed forward.

The next thing he knew, he had his arms full. He smiled softly. "We have missed you, Bethy."

The man in front of him growled low. "E-liz-a-beth." He drew out her name in slow syllables.

Bethy pulled back and winked up at him before turning. "Gavriel, my love, let me introduce you to one of my oldest and dearest friends, Adriel Aristaios, the unit leader for Eta and the man in charge of running the units here in Noctem Falls. Behind him are Declan Lionhart, his second in command, Grant Douglas, his third in command, Etain Vi'Aerlin, Eta's fae warrior, and Micah Sageson, their witch." The men inclined their heads at the introductions.

Bethy walked over to stand next to her mate. Beaming up at him, she continued. "Gentlemen, this is my mate and love, Gavriel Ambrosios." She turned. "You may have figured it out, but the huge warrior behind me is your Unit Commander, Aiden McKenzie, and the small woman at his side is his mate and my adopted sister, Meryn McKenzie." The men bowed to Meryn who watched them with an untrusting look on her face. "Last, but certainly not least, is Meryn's squire, Sei Ryuu."

The squire crossed his arm over his chest and bowed. "Gentlemen, it is an honor to meet the men Elizabeth has told us so much about."

Meryn looked at the men. "So, if I understand what Aiden told me about how rankings in other cities work correctly, then Adriel is a vampire, Declan is a shifter, Grant is a shifter, of course Etain couldn't be anything other than a fae, and Micah is a witch."

Adriel nodded his head. "That is correct; in each pillar city, the predominant race of that city leads the units, then the structure falls into place accordingly. If this were Éire Danu, the structure of the units would be fae, shifter, vampire, shifter, witch."

Meryn shrugged. "I guess that makes sense. This is my first time going to another pillar city besides Lycaonia."

Adriel nodded. "We hope you enjoy your visit to Noctem Falls."

Meryn walked over to the edge of the canyon and looked down. Aiden was at her side in a heartbeat, pulling her away. "Meryn!"

Meryn swatted at his hands. "Ryuu wouldn't let me fall. Where's the city?"

Adriel held out his hand to Meryn. Meryn looked over to Bethy who nodded encouragingly at her. With the hesitancy of a trapped animal, Meryn scooted forward and took his hand. He led her to the edge and pointed. "See that large out cropping?" Meryn nodded. "That is the Ledge. We will fly you down, and Micah will de-spell the entrance for you since this is your first visit. If it is not de-spelled, you will not be able to see the door. It is a security measure we have to keep unwanted visitors at bay."

Meryn turned to look up at him. "You can fly?" she asked with the awe and wonder of a child.

He nodded. "Yes, of course, almost every vampire can fly. So can most fae, and nearly all witches can float."

Behind them Gavriel groaned.

Meryn spun and pointed a finger at him. "You never told me you could fly!"

Gavriel held up his hands in a defensive measure. "Now Meryn, there are not many places to fly in Lycaonia, there are so many trees..."

"Don't 'now Meryn' me." She walked up to the large vampire and put her hands on her hips. "You knew I wanted to fly!"

Gavriel paled and looked over at Aiden who shrugged as if to say, 'You're on your own.'

When Gavriel lowered his hands, Declan and Micah took a step forward to defend the small woman. Bethy held up a hand and shook her head. They stared in shock as the petite human pulled her foot back and kicked the hulking vampire in the shins.