Hello Lovelies! I'm back with a quick but rather interesting chapter (at least for me). Hope you agree. The next chapter is at least halfway done as well so I hope to post it within the week. (Yes, I know I always say that and yes, I know it never happens, but I'm really going to try this time.) Thanks for reading and stay safe!

Chapter 19 – Entranced

Tyriks walked back toward his lab in silent contemplation, servitor following closely behind. The conversation had not gone how he expected. While he saw merit to both sides of this dilemma, he had lent toward that of caution and destroying the nuur'khu. The servitor had disagreed and quite vehemently. This surprised him and discussions with the servitor rarely did.

He had been curious about its overwhelming desire to allow the creature's presence and had stated as much. The servitor had given him convincing arguments as to why the agreement was a good idea, but he noted that none of those reasons were a direct explanation of its own motives. He had prompted it a few times, curious what it knew about the pair to desire their presence so readily. It had insisted it knew nothing and was only calculating the most logical choice based on everything it had heard.

Servitors didn't lie, but they sometimes held back everything they knew, and this seemed to be one of those cases. However, he figured it must have a good reason and decided not to inquire further. Ultimately, he had acquiesced and agreed that the pair's offer of studying them was worth the risk. If that had been the end of the conversation, then he would have felt more content with the result than he did right now. There was one caveat and it did not enthuse him; the servitor wanted to meet them first.

Controlling the creature's presence would be a difficult enough task already given its ability to evade him and he needed to be focused on resolving that conundrum. Instead, he was concerned only about this meeting. It was, in his opinion, unnecessarily, and dangerously, giving the creature direct access to his crew's only source of ether.

What if this was the reason it was here? Maybe it assumed that the more moments it was permitted to remain, the higher the chance it would have of encountering and destroying the servitor, effectively crippling his crew. It was an elaborate trap, but he put nothing passed nuur'khu. They were sneaky, honorless creatures.

They finally arrived at his lab and the guard addressed him deferentially, "Captain," avoiding eye contact.

"You are relieved," he growled, which startled the lesser vandal; Tyriks never left his lab and quarters unguarded. The lesser Fallen hesitated, much to his surprise. Any more moments and he would have issued a warning that left no doubt, but it was not necessary, the other Fallen turned and left toward the lower rooms. The preceding events had most likely left him curious about what was occurring and now he had been ordered to leave his post, but it was none of his concern. Tyriks explained himself to no one, save the Devil's leadership.

Activating the command codes for his lab, the doors slid open, and he stepped inside to an assault of his scent receptors. All the doubts he had had about whether the creature truly mated the lesser Vandals were crushed in that moment. The scents were indicative, and they were strong. Hunting pheromones and mating musk were present as was the sweetly metallic scent of lifeblood. There was also the heavy scent of seed denoting just how much the lesser Vandal had enjoyed himself.

However, overriding everything was a particularly pleasing composite that he was unfamiliar with, which could only mean one thing, the creature. He had no more cause to wonder how the spawned Vandals had been manipulated so easily; he himself was tempted by that scent on the most basic of levels. Fallen females secreted something similar, but it paled in intensity to this. It took him more moments than he would ever have admitted to control his body's instinctual reaction. Unfortunately for him, the fact that he was a Captain meant the scent would affect him more so, but his disgust at the idea of touching the creature in such a manner was enough to counteract it.

Shaking off the effects, he stepped further into the lab, noting the position of each Vandal and their current demeanors. The Elders had split to cover both doors, a strategy he approved of even if the far door did not allow escape from the home caves. Their agitation from before had lessened, mostly replaced by curiosity, which was to be expected. He could only imagine what they had just witnessed; although, curiously enough, none of them displayed any noticeable signs of disgust.

Both lesser Fallen were content. They stood near his worktop where the creature lounged seemingly without care and the nuur'az floated close by. That was until he had entered with the servitor. They had all become more reserved, greeting him with deference as was expected.

All, except for the creature. It had looked at him, but otherwise had remained irritatingly indifferent to his presence. Or so he thought. He couldn't pinpoint the exact change, but he knew something had caught its attention. He followed its unwavering gaze and it landed not on himself, but lower and slightly off to his left.

The servitor.

He didn't like its interest. The situation suddenly became tense and all the Fallen were picking up on it. The Elders were on guard and the lessers looking as though they were not sure what to do. The nuur'az had noticed it to, floating closer to its owner, and speaking softly to it in their own language. It was impossible to tell if the creature responded, but it did not physically acknowledge the nuur'az.

It dismounted the worktop, taking a few steps toward them, and Tyriks let out a warning growl. The movement put him on edge, but worse yet, was the servitor's own reaction. It moved around him, seemingly as entranced by the creature as it was of the servitor.

The nuur'az moved forward, trying to gain its owner's attention, but it did not seem to be working; he recognized the signs of anxiety and worry. Tyriks had a moment to think that that was not a good sign, before the nuur'az shouted, "Female, don't—" and they were gone.

No more than a single moment, the pair reappeared directly in front of the servitor and a shield of purple nuur formed around them. His enraged trill filled the air and others joined him. Weapons were drawn and his desire to hunt activated, the pheromones he released riling up the other Fallen as well.

He had enough recognition to note the Elders holding off; they would not interfere with his kill. He'd made his intention well known; he wanted to rend the creature most painfully for this foolish attempt at an attack.

"Captain," he heard the urgency in the word coming from one of the lesser Vandals, but he ignored it completely. He had seen these shields from nuur'khu before; they would block projectiles, but they did nothing against physical assaults. Shock blades out, he launched himself at the creature.

I can't wait to see what happens next!

Fallen Language. Listed in order of appearance:

Nuur'khu – literally means lightbearers.

Nuur'az – literally means tool of light.

Nuur – weaponized light