Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to Underworld or it's characters, so don't sue. The other characters and subsequent storylines are mine, so don't infringe. Many Thanks.
Chapter Twelve - Voices of The Past
Kraven blinked owlishly, not sure he'd heard the man correctly. As though in slow motion, he came to his feet. He carefully placed his hands on the table in front of him; long, pale fingers splayed in sharp contrast to the deep, glossy mahogany. He leaned forward and spoke; words quiet and clipped.
"What did you just say?"
Though it hardly seemed possible, the young vampire, Eston was his name, paled considerably in the face of Kraven's barely contained wrath. Eston swallowed, adam's apple bobbing erratically in his throat.
"The prisoner killed Dodge, sir." The polished British tone of his voice rose an octave when he addressed his new leader.
Kraven managed to hold back a grimace at the sound of the American Vampyre's name. Dodge…What had America done to his race? How were they to keep their regal reputation with ignorant names like that?
He shook his head, bringing himself back to more important things. "How, exactly, did that happen?"
"I d-don't know e-exactly…" Eston swallowed again, "It all h-happened so f-fast, you see…"
"Quit stuttering like a damn fool!" Kraven's fist smashed against the smooth wood, causing the crystal decanter to tremble almost as much as Eston's legs were. "Now…start from the beginning."
Eston resisted the urge to swipe at the bead of sweat that was falling lazily down his temple. He'd been warned of Kraven's temper and really had no desire to give the man a reason to stake him out, as Markus had been doing back at Ordoghaz.
With a deep breath, Eston began. "We were interrogating the p-prisoner…" he cleared his throat nervously. "As I said, we were doing just as you ordered. Interrogating the prisoner, looking for the answers you seek. Dodge poked him with the cattle prod, just as we'd done a thousand times before. We'd never had any problems with that method, you see, but this time…well, the prisoner went into convulsions."
Kraven rolled his eyes, holding up a manicured hand to stop Eston. "Let me guess. Dodge…" he spat the name out contemptuously, "thought he was dead and went to investigate."
"Yes, sir. That's exactly right." Eston nodded eagerly, "Only, the prisoner wasn't dead apparently…It all happened rather quickly. I didn't see exactly what occurred…just that one moment, Dodge was opening the bars of the cell and in the next instant, the prisoner…grabbed him…and…and now Dodge is dead. Sir." Eston took another deep breath, glad to have finally gotten the whole story out.
Kraven left the spot he'd been rooted to and began to pace the room, stopping suddenly in front of the fireplace when a thought occurred to him. He turned to face the young Vampyre, who was starting to regain some color in his cheeks. Kraven's anger flared into an icy-hotness that constricted his chest. His next words were strained.
"Are you telling me that Kahn fed?"
A timid nod came in answer and Kraven hissed, sweeping his arm across the mantle. Priceless antiques flew to the marble floor, shattering into a thousand jagged shards. Eston took a couple quick steps backward towards the door, fully expecting Kraven to order his death.
"This is unbelievable!" Kraven shouted, his anger finally taking hold. "Kahn was on the brink of telling me everything I wanted to know! One more day without sustenance and he would have broken down."
"I'm sorry, sir." Eston fell to his knees, bowing before his new lord. If he had to kiss ass to keep his life, then so be it. "Please forgive my ignorance! I never would have thought the prisoner able to concoct such a scheme while in his present state. I will do anything to make this up to you, my lord. Anything, just give me your orders."
Kraven, though still angry, felt a bit mollified seeing the younger one groveling before him. This was how things were meant to be. With the others knowing he held their lives within his grasp. He stared hard at the back of Eston's head, wondering if he should make an example of him…but no. He would do better to spare the young one. Kraven would then have a truly grateful follower, one who would do all that was asked of him. Like Erika.
"Rise, young Eston." Kraven said, settling himself down into a huge, leather chair. He lazily held out a hand and Erika quickly placed a glass brimming with red liquid into it. She had heretofore kept herself hidden in the shadows, like any good servant should, but now he pulled her down to sit on the arm of his chair.
"A lesson learned, is a lesson gained, Eston." Kraven spoke, eyeing the young man over the rim of his glass. "But keep in mind that I won't allow you to have innumerable lessons. You may leave us now."
Eston hurried from the room and Erika turned to Kraven, grinning like a Cheshire cat. "You handled that very well, my lord."
"Of course I did." he answered, trailing kisses along her inner arm. "I was this close to killing the ignorant fool. I can not believe they did such a stupid thing. Have these young one's never gone hungry? Don't they know what being in a full blown bloodlust will do our kind?"
"Apparently not. Maybe there will come a time when some of them will need to be shown." Erika licked her lips in anticipation.
"Yes, maybe, you devious minx." He sighed, "But now I'm afraid we'll have to start all over again. Kahn will still be weak, but he's proven himself to be stronger than I ever imagined he'd be. We're just lucky he didn't escape."
Erika shuddered, remembering the half-crazed, decimated figure she'd seen only the night before. They'd had to move Kahn into a cell; the bloodlust giving him a strength that not even Kraven could manage.
The door burst open, interrupting Kraven's wandering hands. He turned pale eyes onto the young woman who stood there panting slightly, her face flushed and eyes lit with excitement. It took him a moment to remember her, but when he did, he grinned.
"Annalise." Kraven ignored Erika's narrowed eyes as he stood to greet the lithe brunette. She had been a fun one. "I assume you bring me better news than Eston did."
"Yes, my lord." She curtseyed gracefully, pointedly ignoring the blonde woman. "We've found them."
Kraven froze, hairs on the back of his neck rising. "You've found…who?"
"The ones you seek, my lord. Selene and Michael." Annalise's look became more serious. "I'm afraid, though, that you will not like who they are with…"
"Oh, just spit it out, will you?" Erika muttered, downing Kraven's forgotten glass. She wasn't in the mood for theatrics. Especially from another woman. Annalise flashed Erika a malevolent look before turning back to Kraven.
"It seems that Lucian…he is alive and well, sir."
"Impossible." Kraven said arrogantly, annoyed at having been interrupted by what he now knew had to be lies. There was no way Lucian could have survived. Indeed, the coven seemed more than willing to believe Kraven's story of being just as surprised as the rest of them to find that Lucian hadn't died all the many centuries before when Kraven had (supposedly) left him for dead. When he'd stumbled upon the resurrected Lycan leader in the sewers, he'd properly dispatched him, making sure that the lowly filth would never rise again.
"It's true, I swear it." Annalise pulled her shoulders back, as though offended by Kraven's blunt denial. "And worse yet, he's found another Corvinus descendant…"
The sudden tense silence that filled the room caused even Erika to sidle away from her lover. Worry began to worm through Kraven's veins, but he kept his voice calm.
"Do you have an exact location for them? Has anyone actually seen them with their own eyes?"
Annalise nodded, letting out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. "Yes, sir. They're part of the American coven. I gave them leave to freshen up and rest…"
"I will see them NOW!" Kraven ordered, "And you need to remember, Annalise…you don't have the authority around here. I do."
The figure that had been hiding in the shadow's outside Kraven's open door moved quickly away on silent feet before the woman emerged. When he'd seen her heading to Kraven's chambers with such obvious exhilaration, he'd wondered…and crept back to hear the words that she'd spoken. Kraven had been foolish to leave his door open, where anyone passing by could hear such important news, but it was all for the best. This was information that his one true master would reward him handsomely for. Now all that was left was to find the exact location of the murderous Selene…then he could return to where he properly belonged. Ordoghaz was his home, not this decrepit ruin. Just as Markus was his lord. Kraven was conceited to think that everyone in the coven preferred him as ruler. He would soon learn differently. Eston would see to that.
In the bowels of the dungeon, deep below the surface, Kahn paced as well as he could. One…two…three…four steps, turn around. It was the most he could do in the cramped space they'd locked him up in. Even then, he had to hunch his shoulders to keep from scraping his head against the mossy, stone ceiling.
He'd gotten lucky earlier. The one he'd taken had recently fed, so Kahn had managed to have a good meal, but even now the hunger still raged through him. It gnawed at him. Made him feel as though he were trying to consume himself from the inside out. He had been so close to telling all he knew, just for one tiny cup of blood.
He stopped his wild pacing and stared down at himself. His skin was tight against his frame, dry and shriveled. He could still see the marks where, during the height of the bloodlust, he'd tried feeding off himself. Of course, there had been barely anything in his veins, but he'd had no control over himself then. Every now and again, a rat had strayed close to his cell, but that had only whetted his appetite more. He had held on much longer than he'd ever dared to hope he could, but still, he knew it was only a matter of time before he caved in to Kraven's demands.
He had to escape. Some how, some way. There was no telling how long Kraven would keep him here; in this living hell. Kahn knew he was going insane…he could hear voices that weren't there; see comrades that were long dead. Though he knew the hallucinations were just side effects that would pass once he was able to feed normally again, his sane moments were becoming less frequent. Twice now he'd caught himself talking to an old friend about Selene and her troubles, only to realize he was conversing with one of Kraven's minions. There were a lot of them now, mainly the young, inexperienced ones who'd never felt a true connection to the elders and the old ways…but those were sometimes the most dangerous ones of all. And to think that he might innocently betray Selene to one of them…
With a great cry of rage, he flung himself against the bars of his cell, pulling on them with all his strength. Whoever had made them had known what they were doing, as the steel didn't move at all. He couldn't believe the turn his life had taken. One of the best Death Dealers ever created…brought down by a traitorous, back-stabbing snake. There was no way out of this place. He needed help, but no one here would help him. And there was no way for him to get word to those that would help.
He resumed his pacing, not knowing that the winds of fate had already started blowing and Selene's safety no longer counted on him alone. The hysterical laughter that poured from his throat bounced back at him in the tiny cell, feeding the insanity that was gorging itself on his mind.
One…two…three…
