Chapter 49: Shades of Mercy

Red and Valarie hopped down from the tree where they had attacked the vampire. The boys rushed to meet them. Xavier removed the mask from the lady, revealing a young vampire. Her eyes glowed red, and she hissed as the sun hit her skin. “Ah, shit,” she cursed, tears streaming down her cheeks.

Red felt pity for the girl, but pushed it aside, reminding herself of the danger vampires posed.

Xavier's heart clenched for a moment, recalling a time when he was little and believed there was good in every creature. Now, that belief has been tested times and times again.

Although the vampire looked young, it was possible she had lived for hundreds of years. Red yanked the dagger from the girl's shoulder without caring about her pain. Edward held the girl's hands behind her to keep her still. The young vampire was less concerned about her injury and more worried about her body being exposed to sunlight. She had covered herself from head to toe to prevent harm from the sun.

“Please, put the mask on,” she pleaded, her voice breaking, tears pouring from her eyes as her face began to burn in the sunlight. Unfortunately, her pleas fell on deaf ears as Xavier held the mask, showing no mercy.

The girl's sobs and cries began to annoy Leo. Edward released her hands and stepped aside. Thinking she was free, she attempted to escape but soon felt a hard object hit her head. Leo's fist connected with her head, smashing it against the tree behind her. The impact was brutal, and Sage had to look away.

“So, you know what pain is, huh?” Edward said, his question getting no reply from the headless body at the base of the tree.

“Now let’s go for the main group,” Xavier instructed, throwing the mask away before walking off.

Sage stood behind, bewildered by what had just happened. Her perspective of everyone, especially Xavier, had just changed. She stared at the killer gaze in Xavier’s eyes while he watched the young girl beg for her mask back. Leo’s ruthlessness surprised her; she didn’t think he had it in him to end a life. She had questions but knew no one was in the mood to entertain them. She had requested to come along and now had to get used to seeing this kind of stuff.

Sage stayed back, questions running through her mind. The group had started walking off, but Xavier stopped to call for her. “Sage, we’re moving now.” Sage's head snapped to Xavier’s direction. She had been staring at the body on the ground and didn’t notice the group starting to move.

Xavier held his hand out, calling for Sage to take it. “Let’s go.” She hesitated, scared he might hurt her, but his deadly gaze was gone and his face looked softer.

Xavier could sense Sage's fear. He walked up to her, gently holding her cheeks. “What are you scared of?” he asked, his smile warming her heart. “You asked me to bring you along, so deal with it.” he said jokingly.

“Why do you fight the vampires? Can’t you coexist in peace?” Sage had always wanted to ask this question. After finding out she was a mixture of two races, she wondered why both races hated each other.

“We don’t hate them because of who they are. It’s because of what they do,” Xavier replied calmly. He wanted Sage to understand and not see them, especially him, as a monster. “Fighting them ensures they don’t feel free to harm other beings, which they are good at doing.”

“So, it’s like karma. They get hurt for hurting other creatures?” Sage asked following Xavier as the walked behind the others.

“Yeah, something like that.”

“Then what’s the werewolves' karma?”

Xavier thought long and hard but couldn’t think of any. It was almost as if nature loved them more than other supernatural beings. “That’ll be a topic for another day.” he replied dismissing the topic.

Both Xavier and Sage met up with the group. They had spotted the enemy camp. They had tents set up as if preparing for war.

"It feels like they're planning something bigger than just finding the hybrid." Valarie stated.

The way the vampires had returned with more concentrated forces was alarming. It felt like they were planning a large attack. Venzy had deployed forces to certain areas where she thought the hybrid might be with the twins Zayn had requested.

The reason why they had concentrated their forces was that when Venzy delivered Zayn's orders, she deployed troops to areas where she believed the hybrid might be, along with the twins that Zayn had requested to be found.

****

After giving orders to Venzy, Zayn decided to meet up with her and check on their progress.

“Is there any update?” he asked as he walked into the room where Venzy was working.

“You need to be patient. Do you know how long it has been since we started our search for the hybrid?”

“Patience gets nothing done,” Zayn barked. “The hybrid is not my concern. What about the girls? Have they been found?”

Venzy stared at Zayn with sympathy. He used to be a calm figure, a beacon of rationality and hope. Now, the slow death of his father was transforming him into someone she dreaded. She could see the torment in his eyes, the way his hands trembled with suppressed rage.

Venzy's heart ached for the man he used to be. She longed to reach out, to comfort him, but she knew that the only way he could get himself back was if there was a positive report from their search.

“No, sire, we haven’t found any of them.”

Zayn slammed his fist on the desk where Venzy had a map laid out. “You should also be out there looking for those girls. After all, you're the one who can identify them best,” Zayn suggested.

Zayn felt Venzy was useless in the castle, where all she ever did was deliver bad news. He needed her skills out in the field; she would do well there. “Tomorrow, you should be out there and get those girls before the weekend,” he commanded before walking out.

Venzy felt an overwhelming exhaustion seep into her bones. The thought of searching again made her feel sick to her stomach. Zayn's previous decision to call off the search had shattered her morale, and now, the weight of his expectations threatened to crush her spirit completely.

“Yes, sire,” Venzy replied, her voice weary. She wanted everything to be over soon. She wanted her freedom back.