Chapter 93 - The King's Bite

Cedai was the first to step through the portal, followed by Vladislav and Milena. Zallius waited for everyone else to follow suit, making sure he was the last one through before he promptly sealed the hole closed. Even though it was the dead of night, powerful fae such as Azil could easily sense strong magic even in their sleep. It was best to keep it open for as short a time as possible. When he turned to everyone else, he saw Cedai already filling them in on the situation.

“I'm not familiar with this place,” she confessed. “It looks to be a sparsely populated town, so it makes sense that Azil would bring Cilla here. I can tell exactly where she is, but strangely enough, I cannot sense Azil’s aura.”

“Are you usually able to tell where he is when you’re nearby?” the King asked.

“No, but I can sense him,” Cedai said. “Perhaps he left her here with someone else, but the question begs: who would he trust enough to do that?”

“It’s also entirely possible that he’s masking his aura,” Zallius offered, and his mate nodded in consideration.

“Either way, we need to scout out the exact location so that we do not head in blindly,” Milena said.

“Agreed. Is there a way to mask your arrival?” Vladislav asked. “Rafael will be able to hear you coming a mile away.”

“A silencing bubble,” Cedai said simply. “They won’t know I’m there unless they see me.”

Vladislav considered this. The possibility of her being seen at all could unravel everything. She would also act as protection for the fae so that Zallius would not worry too much about her safety.

“Then you should go with Branek and Milena,” he said decidedly, knowing his sister would automatically muscle out anyone else if she was not chosen to go. “When you are close enough to point out the building, Branek will survey it while Milena stays behind with you to keep you cloaked and protected.”

All three of them nodded and did not waste further time before they set off, following the cobbled pavement beneath their feet. Branek and Milena’s steps were too light to be heard and they all witnessed Cedai wordlessly surround herself with the sound bubble she had spoken of. The sound of her steps disappeared the moment said bubble enveloped her entire being. Now all they had to do was wait.

Cedai and the two vampires had been walking for a while when she was suddenly stopped by a firm hand on her shoulder. It was Milena.

“Are we close enough to make out the building?” she asked tensely. “I can smell the hint of a vampire in the air. Rafael may be familiar with my scent. If I go any closer, I may be endangering you.”

The fae closed her eyes and sensed how close they were to Cilla. Unfortunately, her eyesight was subpar in the darkness that surrounded them. She muttered a spell beneath her lips to clear her vision and saw a slim, run-down building that stood out amongst its surroundings.

The dwellings were all so sparsely populated. They also stood in single storeys. Most of them could be described as huts, or cottages if one wanted to be generous. The slim building was the only one that stood three storeys tall. It was also the only one that looked abandoned. The rest, for all their size, were all lived-in, cosy and well taken care of. She instantly knew that was where Cilla was and could pinpoint her location on the top floor. Judging by the way both Milena and Branek were eyeing the building up, however, Cedai could tell they suspected it as well. It stood out far too much.

“She’s on the top floor,” Cedai said, not needing to specify, as they were all already looking at the place in question.

“Right,” Branek said with a firm nod. “I’ll be right back.”

His body dissolved before her very eyes. Cedai blinked in confusion, unaware that that was something they could do. She had no idea when he left their presence, but she was suddenly aware that she was alone with Milena. She shook her shock off and reached for her mate mentally.

Come forth, Zallius. Bring the others. We’ve found her. I think it’s best for everyone to be close by before Branek returns.

She waited for a brief moment before his response came.

We’ll be there in a little while.

“We have to reach out to the others,” Milena said. She looked down at her phone and back the way they had come, as if debating which method would be the best.

“Already done,” Cedai said. “I'm not sure who will arrive first between them and Branek, but they’re on their way.”

Milena seemed to hesitate before she pinned the shorter woman with a curious look.

“What are you going to do about Azil?” she asked finally.

Cedai sighed tiredly. She had been trying to avoid thinking about that.

“We will take him before the council and they will mete out justice as they see fit,” she said emptily.

“The same council that holds most of his friends and peers?” the Princess scoffed. “So, basically he will get a slap on the wrist.”

“Not necessarily,” Cedai said. “With evidence of dark magic used, this won’t be taken lightly. Especially if the Nefolktuan Crown expresses how displeased they are.”

Milena gave a hum of consideration before the air around them began to rustle and wave. One by one, the vampires came up to them at top speed before halting abruptly, which caused the disturbances in the air. Cedai spared her mate an amused glance when he arrived on Mace’s shoulders. To his credit, though, Zallius leaped down gracefully, so she stifled her laugh. The King was the last to arrive. The way he constantly twirled the lighter in his hands almost looked like nerves, but then again Cedai knew it was just his way of gearing up to burn his friend alive.

She did her best to ignore the vampires who branched away from them into the forest. The firewood they collected was a growing reminder of just how this would all end. Zallius took her hand into his and gave it a squeeze as he looked down at her with a slight smile. She returned it before sighing and straightening her shoulders, ready to face whatever came their way head on. Just as the King gestured that they had enough wood for their pyre, the air around them stirred with a greyish mist before Branek materialised before them. Cedai suspected Vladislav had sensed the other vampire long before any of them had.

“I saw her,” Branek said without being prompted as they all gathered around him. “She’s asleep in a room on the top floor, along with Duchess Elanora. I tried to get close enough to see if I could snatch her out of there before coming back, but she’s in a sort of bubble like the one Cedai conjured, only this one wouldn’t let me come close to her. That’s how they’re keeping her captive, no actual restraints.”

“How many vampires are there? Did you see Raf?” Vladislav asked.

“I did. He’s on the second floor pacing frantically,” Branek said as his mouth scrunched up with distaste. “He’s with Josai and from what I gather, they were expecting more reinforcements, but for some reason, none have arrived. He’s either very paranoid or knows you well enough to suspect you’re coming because the rest of them are all stationed outside to report any unwelcome sightings. Including the two of them, there are seven in total.”

“And he did not sense you?” Milena asked. “Did the others?”

“The others sensed nothing, but as soon as I started to suspect he could sense me, I retreated,” Branek said. “He went to check on Cilla and then returned to his post on the second floor when he saw that she was still there. I left after that.”

“Any sign of Azil?” Cedai asked, but Branek shook his head.

“None. I don’t think he’s in there,” the vampire said.

With that, they all turned as one to Vladislav, awaiting instructions.

“Well, for whatever reason, Raf’s backup failed to arrive,” the King mused out loud. “That only makes things much easier. It will be a clean sweep. We can easily take care of the five standing guard outside, but the sound is sure to alert them. If only there was a way to trap everyone in once we arrive on the scene.”

“There is,” Zallius said. He had proven himself to be quite gifted at conjuring magic. “I could erect a shield around the entire building, but by the sound of it, I'll also need to be inside dismantling Azil’s shield. The problem is that I cannot be within the confines of the target I cast the shield on. It will keep me out as well. I can’t be in two places at once.”

“I can dismantle the shield,” Cedai offered.

“No,” Zallius said sternly. “That’s out of the question. You’ve already done far more than I'm comfortable with. This would put you directly in the line of fire.”

“Look around you, Zallius,” his mate scoffed. “We outnumber them by at least three. I'll be fine.”

“I will accompany her,” Milena said. “Elanora is no threat to any of us and she is the only one in the room.”

“Branek and I will take a few of the others and go after Raf and Josai,” Vladislav said. “They are sure to try to flee when they hear the commotion.”

“I’m going with Milena,” Mace said, to no one’s surprise. “I don't think we should take the chance of leaving the protection of two on one’s shoulders.”

Vladislav nodded his assent and Milena did not react, which was as good an answer as any. Zallius did not look pleased in the slightest bit, but he was resigned to it.

“How long can you hold a shield of such magnitude?” The King asked the disgruntled fae.

“For as long as possible,” Zallius admitted.

“And you know what Rafael looks like?” Vlad asked, glad to see the fae nod. “Then do not lower it unless you see his dead body.”

A shiver went through everyone when they heard those words. They took one last moment to run the plan past one another while Branek familiarised them with the building’s outline so that they knew which spots to avoid. Finally, with everyone aware of which role they would play, it was time to take off. Zallius cast a silencing charm around himself while Cedai renewed hers.

“One last thing,” Vladislav said with his cold, steel eyes directed to the vampires that would remain outside as they picked up all the firewood they gathered. “You are only to start the pyre after Zallius erects the shield and not a moment before.”

With affirmative nods of understanding, they were all off.

***

None of them saw it coming. None of them even thought the order was necessary. They wanted to go home. Blindly following their master to Drausia to do his bidding had proven to be far less rewarding than they had been led to believe. Not a single one of them was keeping their eyes and ears peeled as they had been told. One moment, they were slouching lazily in their strategically appointed locations and the next, each one of them felt cold skin clamp around their heads only to violently twist them.

They were all dragged further away from the building they were supposed to be keeping watch of, completely missing all the activity taking place around them. The attack was not enough to kill any of them. Instead, they were all temporarily disabled. They silently bore witness to the building that still held their master being enveloped in a shimmery cloud before it disappeared altogether. Only a few of them were aware of a fire being lit dangerously close next to them.

Feeling began to return to some and they put up a fight that was doomed to fail from the moment it began. The unluckiest of them laid helpless on the ground as they watched their comrades’ limbs being torn off and thrown into the blazing heat by vampires that proudly wore the Nefolktuan Crest. They knew they were next and there was nothing they could do about it. If they were capable of taking oxygen into their lungs, they surely would have spent their last breaths cursing Rafael with everything they had inside them.

Vladislav, Branek and the few vampires they chose floated into the rickety building and only materialised once Zallius’s shield was up. The King immediately noticed his senses being dulled the second his feet hit the stone floor. The second thing he noticed was how deceptive the place was. From the outside, it looked like something that could only be inhabited by scavengers, but the inside was perfectly habitable.

It was rustic and ancient, but it was as clean and well taken care of as the rest of the town appeared. It was also much bigger on the inside than it looked on the outside. One glance at Branek’s confused face told him that looking in from the outside was completely different from being inside. There was clearly some very heavy fae magic involved here and the King only found himself hoping that the place affected Rafael in the same way it did them.

He nodded at Branek to lead the way. With their senses dulled, they would have to depend on his memory to locate the room he had last seen Rafael in. The younger vampire nodded and did just as he was silently asked, noting with relief that their steps were still feather light. He came to a stop before an ancient, heavy door and looked pointedly at it. Their small party of five slid into the room through the keyhole only to find it empty. Vladislav, being the oldest amongst them, could smell the barest hint of Rafael. He had just been there. They had either taken too long to move or –

“They know,” he said evenly, throwing stealth aside. “Spread out. Shout if you find something of note. Anything else will be muffled. They may be on the move, but they have no idea they are stuck here with us.”

***

The sound of heads being wrenched from the necks they were attached to was their signal. Milena waited for it and as soon as she heard it, she hoisted Cedai onto her back and leaped onto a second storey window. The fae nodded, indicating that the window above indeed belonged to the room Cilla was being held in. With one more leap, the vampiress held onto the windowsill and gently pushed Cedai through the window. Thankfully, it was large enough for her to go through.

Once insuring the other woman was safely in, she flung herself through the window after her and landed lightly on her feet. They looked around and saw Cilla asleep on the bed while Elanora was sleeping on a sofa at the other side of the room. Mace came in seconds after them, taking in the scene as well. They were all silent as they saw Zallius’s shield go up. He immediately locked in on the door and signalled that he would be standing guard. It made sense, as it was now the room’s only weak point. He sublimated into thin air and they took that as their cue to begin. Cedai placed her hands on the shield and began to chant silently, her lips moving rapidly without a peep coming through.

Milena let her do her thing as she turned to study the Duchess. She was tempted to strangle the woman, but instead settled for sitting beside her before her hand firmly clamped itself around her mouth. She jolted awake at the feeling of those cold hands on her skin and when Elanora saw who it was, her eyes widened in pure, unadulterated fear. The Princess considered her silently before she raised her free hand to her mouth in a shushing motion before slowly dragging her own thumb across her neck to let her know what was at stake.

Elanora was trembling violently, but she had the good sense not to even attempt to scream. Still, Milena was not foolish enough to trust that she would stay that way, so she kept her hand right where it was as they both watched Cedai work. She wished she had the foresight to bring a cloth with her to stuff into the woman’s mouth, and perhaps some rope as well. After what felt like an eternity, but could not have been more than five minutes, they watched as the shield beneath Cedai’s fingers melted away right before their very eyes.

Milena also found herself wishing that the shield had not been erected. They could have taken that moment to immediately leave, but she knew for a fact that meant Rafael would flee. Cedai looked at her with relief and they exchanged a smile before she motioned for her to wake the redhead up quietly. The fae did just that, taking a page from the vampiress’s book and covering Cilla’s mouth before shaking her awake.

In Cilla’s case, it was the perfect call, because she woke up screaming. Thankfully, the noise was muffled. It took a moment for her eyes to focus on what was before her. She stared at Cedai in disbelief as her screams died down while she sat up. They stared at each other for barely a second before she threw herself into the fae’s arms. They wrapped their arms around each other as silent sobs of relief escaped the redhead. Even in her state of tiredness, she understood how crucial it was for her to stay as quiet as possible. Still, they stayed that way for a while as her tears dried.

Milena had no choice, but to allow it, since their signal to leave was the shield being lowered and it was still firmly up. It was slightly concerning because it meant they had not caught Rafael yet. No sooner had the thought occurred to her than did they hear the thudding sounds of a fight breaking out just beyond the door. She and Cedai looked at each other in slight panic. This was most definitely not part of the plan.