029: WHEN THE MUSIC STOPPED; CHAOS ERUPTS
029: WHEN THE MUSIC STOPPED; CHAOS ERUPTS
“REBELS!!”
The hall erupts in chaos, and everything seems to happen so fast as nobles try to leave the party; figures in dark cloaks appear from nowhere, moving fast—too fast as glass shatters, and nobles scream while vampire black blood spills across the once-polished floor as trays crash to the floor and the music dies completely, replaced by the chaos.
Suddenly, one of the rebels throws something, a vial that explodes, and it releases a cloud of silver dust that sends several vampires stumbling back with hisses of pain.
“Block every possible entrance. No rebel shall escape!” An order erupts through the chaos as the large doors open and guards rush in, locking the door and fighting off the rebel vampires, and more black blood stains the floor like wine.
And Cassian. He stands in the middle of the chaos, not sure what to do, not sure where to run to when all exits are blocked, and whatever sliver dust was blasted makes it hard to see, as most vampires get weakened by it, causing most of them to collapse.
Cassian should have brought a dagger along, but he didn’t. Of all days, it had to be fucking today when he chose to be defenseless. He curses under his breath, unsure what to do, but all his mind screams is to find Alastor.
He needs to find Alastor. He thinks as he spins around in the mess, but then his gaze lands on the familiar figure of the man hurrying down the stairs.
Instantly, Cassian’s heart blooms with a relief he had not felt before, and he breaks into a smile. Without a second thought, he starts to race towards the man amid the chaos, but that’s when it happens.
One moment, he was running toward Alastor, and the next moment, he was under the claws and dagger of a rebel vampire who had the pointy edge of the dagger to Cassian’s heart, assuming he was a vampire. Cassian realizes he’s now a hostage too late, while Alastor pauses in front of him, eyes fixed on the vampire behind Cassian with a predatory gaze.
“Lord Alastor, how lucky I am to have your mate under my grasp,” the rebel vampire chuckles darkly beside Cassian’s ear, pressing the dagger hard against Cassian’s chest; a little bit harder, and Cassian would be bleeding all over the floor, and that will be another eruption of disaster, and Alastor notices, especially when Cassian hisses from pain.
“You want blood? I’ll give you blood as long as you let go of him.” Alastor holds out his gloved hand, and suddenly, a guard appears beside him with a large bag that Cassian believes contains blood.
The rebel vampire laughs. “Oh, how does it feel giving in to us disgusting rebels?”
“I said, let go of him," Alastor orders.
“You are no place to give orders, Lord Alastor. Your mate is in my grasp, and my dagger is made of silver; one wrong move and I’ll have it buried in his chest. I don’t mind dying if it means taking Lord Alastor’s precious mate with me. It will be worth it!”
The rebel presses the silver dagger harder against Cassian’s chest, and the cold tip bites through the thin white fabric of his suit. Cassian sucks in a sharp breath as a surge of fear surges through his chest. He looks at Alastor with desperate eyes. He has to do something before he starts bleeding. He can’t die like this.
“Drop the blood and unlock the doors, then I will let him walk out of my grasp alive," the rebel promises.
“Open the doors,” Alastor orders the guards without looking away from Cassian, as if as a way to assure him he won’t be bleeding on the floor anytime soon, and for some reason, Cassian feels assured by that gaze.
“But my lord…” a guard starts to protest.
“I said open the doors!” Alastor repeats the order more loudly, and the guards finally move, and soon the doors are open.
“Get the blood,” the vampire whispers to Cassian. “Give him the blood, Lord Alastor. I will let him go when we’re out of here.”
Cassian gulps, but he reaches out his hand. Alastor doesn't hesitate as he throws the bag of blood into Cassian’s hand.
“Good. Now, move with me."
Cassian’s jaw clenches at the order because he has no plans of moving further than this. Cassian will never trust a vampire to keep his promise about keeping him alive after leaving through that door. Cassian’s eyes sparkle as he looks at Alastor and then the second kind of chaos as Cassian flips the bag of blood hard, and it smashes on the vampire’s head, blasting open, and there’s blood showering everywhere.
In an instant, the smell of blood spread fast, masking the little bruise on Cassian’s chest from how hard the vampire pressed his knife, while every vampire who had fallen from the silver dust rises, eyes blazing red with hunger and unrestrained as they search for the source.
Red eyes. Long fangs. Hungry and terrifying. For a moment, Cassian can’t believe what he has done. He almost gags at the sights.
“You little piece of shit!” the vampire roars as he raises the blade to strike, but Alastor moves fast as he pulls Cassian out of the vampire’s grasp into his arms, and at the same time, the rebel vampire is enveloped by dozens of hungry vampires in search of more blood.
Alastor wraps Cassian with his coat as a shield, hiding him away and his arms around him, while Cassian's heart beats so fast he fears it might rip out of his chest. He watched as the rebel vampire got devoured like a piece of meat, his flesh being torn open by so-called noble vampires who barely had any restraint at such a small amount of blood. Fear surges through Cassian at the sight of the horrifying snake. If they could do it to a fellow vampire, Cassian can’t imagine just how fast a human could be ripped apart.
Quickly, he looks away, hiding his face on Alastor’s chest and shutting his eyes, hoping everything will be over soon.