A/N: Disclaimer in Chapter 1.
Four chapters to go after this…
Then 'Dark Truths' can be written a story that will be back to its thirty chapter length.
Although I may have to ask for someone's advice about my next plot.
I know what I'm writing but something has come up that might cause a few problems for me and I'm not quite sure what to do about it…
Chapter 66: Slip
The entire room was bare apart from the wooden chair that was placed in the centre of the cold, concrete room and the portable mirror behind it. The doors opened and the vampires and slayers entered the room on a 'tour' led by Mina.
"We've transferred all of the programming into another laptop and recreated the canisters that the Nobles used." Mina told Vlad, "Although we've changed their idea slightly."
"What do you mean?" Steph asked, stepping beside Mina. "Without us you wouldn't even have a chance of this working!"
"Your system of releasing the particles in increments was the problem! It was drawing too much power as you increased the density of the argentalium." Mina snapped at them, "We've altered the programming so the only density that will be released it the one Bertrand needs. His body went into overload last time because it couldn't handle the change in rates. You can't start small and increase the dosage. You need to start as you mean to go on."
"This should speed up the process Vlad." Jonno told him with a smile. "Bertrand will be treated quicker."
"What was this room?"
"One of the interrogation rooms." Mina told Vlad firmly. He looked at her confused, "In here its not connected to any direct system. So there's no chance of a power failure or a security failure."
She gestured to the wires. "We've decided its safer if only Bertrand is in there. Everyone else can control the device from the observation room above." She pointed to a glass window at least six feet from the ground. "Reinforced glass, not much could shatter that. Grand High Vampires exempt of course." It was clear that Vlad could destroy anything in his path, even the densest diamond.
"I can't be in the observation room when I separate his reflection. I need to be in there to do it." Vlad told them all. It was too… imprecise doing it through glass. Vlad needed to be able to directly transfer Bertrand's reflection to the mirror. "When can we do it?"
"Now, the machine is ready to use now."
YEKNODELTTILYEKNODELTTIL
Bertrand had never expected the device to be up and running so quickly, he felt more confident about it this time knowing that the slayers that he knew had modified its use. They cared about Vlad and his family so they wouldn't harm him deliberately unlike the Nobles.
It also helped that Mina would be operating the controls so she would stop it immediately if something went wrong.
"Are you ready?" Vlad asked him quietly.
Bertrand nodded, glancing up at Ingrid who nodded as well. If he became a gene fang after this he knew none of the younger Draculas would abandon him. He'd always have a home with them.
Bertrand sat himself down in the seat. Vlad came close and he watched as Bertrand's jaw clenched as he forced himself not to attack the Grand High Vampire in front of him for getting so close. Keeping their distance helped Bertrand the most. Vlad grabbed the cuffs and secured his wrists and ankles to the chair as quickly as possible.
A soft clicking on the concrete floor, as the door closed with a small clunk, made Erin turn to see Jonno hobbling into the room. "Should they be here?" He asked her softly watching the way she cradled both of the twins while leaning against the desk to support herself.
"Renfield thinks its okay to take them out of the incubators for a few hours at a time. Nothing more though. I didn't want to leave Vlad on his own and I didn't want to leave the twins either.
"You still didn't tell me which is the oldest?"
"Why are you so interested?" She asked with a smile.
Erin looked down at the twins, before looking back up at Jonno. "I just wanted to see if either of you were being traditional having Alex first or breaking the pattern by having Erika. Vlad's not traditional otherwise we wouldn't even have a truce let alone a half fang wife." He flashed her a charming smile, "So?"
"Fine," She gave in, if anything it would give her a bit of piece and quiet from Jonno's questioning.
"We're ready!" Vlad called through the window making Erin smile as Jonno muttered something under his breath at missing out on Erin's answer as her attention would be fixed on the scene playing out in front of them.
"Be careful." Erin whispered into his mind.
Vlad waved his hand and the mirror moved towards him slowly. The wheels squeaked and ground down on the floor as it moved. The movement jerky but never so much that the mirror was in danger of falling over and smashing on the floor.
Vlad tensed before relaxing his muscles. It would help his concentration. He straightened out completely, Bertrand copying his actions. Bertrand closed his eyes, he knew this would be painful although it wouldn't be anything like the pain Vlad had experienced when his one thousand reflections had been ripped from him.
Vlad stretched one hand out towards Bertrand, he would use the other to telekinetically throw the reflection into the mirror. Bertrand nodded giving him the sign that he was truly ready for this now and Vlad smiled although he knew he couldn't see him.
Erin watched with increasing attention, she knew Vlad could do this all he needed to do was concentrate. She could see him drawing the power in on himself, ready to direct it towards Bertrand to draw his reflection from him…
"DRACULAS REPORT TO THE MEDICAL BAY. DRACULAS TO THE MEDICAL BAY."
Erin jumped as their names came over the PA, she saw Vlad shoot a disgusted look towards the speakers in the room he was in. A small smile crossed her face at his actions. She liked that fact that she hadn't been the only one affected by that.
Bertrand's eyes snapped open and Vlad gave him an apologetic look.
"Go," He told Vlad simply. If Vlad was being summoned then it as important, they could deal with his loyalty afterwards.
Vlad looked up at Erin who was now standing in the doorway to the room, she handed him Erika silently. He stroked the infant's cheek instinctively before nodding to Erin.
They needed to get to the medical bay.
YEKNODELTTILYEKNODELTTIL
As soon as they entered the more public medical bay they could see why they'd been summoned.
Octa was awake.
Octa was propped up on the bed, a bandage securely tied around her head. Small spots of blood had soaked through the bandage but nothing serious enough to warrant a check just yet. Vlad stood at the base of the bed, holding Erika while Erin held Alex. He looked every part the doting father if it weren't for the hardness in his eyes as he looked at her.
Octa knew that the fury of the Grand High Vampire was something that she never wanted to experience, at least not when he was a full vampire again. She knew the only thing stopping him from lashing out at her was the fact he was holding onto one of his children.
"You met with my former Council." Vlad spoke fiercely, "You don't bypass me on anything."
"You weren't doing anything about it…"
"I was powerless, Erin had some power. To protect my kind and my clan I needed to get my power back. We dealt with Olga once."
Octa looked at Vlad, "I went to them to warn them about Olga, I didn't go to expose your plan."
"But you told them anyway, it wasn't any of you business!" Erin snapped at her. "What else did you tell them?"
Octa looked down at her hands in her lap, finding the cuts on her knuckles from her struggles very interesting. "I may have mentioned your children were going to be born – soon."
"They'll be drawing up the contracts already." Erin whispered to Vlad, bile rising in her throat at the thought
"I have to sign them before they're legal." He muttered angrily, "Not that they'll ever get that far…" Matching looks were suddenly directed at Vlad but he ignored them, at the moment it was the last thing on his mind.
Erin was suspicious at her husband's lack of worry at that thought. "What are you up to?"
Vlad gave her his most innocent look. Erin pushed against his mind only to feel mental steel doors being slammed on her. He gave her a smirk and she shrugged, he wasn't going to tell her anything but she was patient – for now.
"They don't think you're doing enough to stop her. Augustus is thinking about aligning himself with her." Octa told him quietly, Vlad ran a hand over his face. "Better to sit at the right hand of the devil than be in its path."
"She won't hesitate in destroying him." Erin told Octa as a matter of fact, Olga used people then disposed of them when she had what she wanted. "Why would he turn to her anyway?"
Vlad wasn't interested in Erin's comment, or at least he ignored it fixing on something Octa had said, "You said 'children' not 'child'."
"So?" Octa was confused.
Vlad's eyes were wide with horror, as he hoped that he'd misheard her. "You told him that 'the *children* would be born soon'."
"Yes." Octa repeated her words from earlier. "So?" She couldn't see how it affected anything but clearly Vlad didn't think the same.
He let out an infuriated cry, running his hands through his hair.
"Vlad?" Erin didn't understand what that meant.
Vlad slammed his hand against the wall. The action made Erin jump, she narrowed her eyes as she looked at him, thoroughly annoyed.
There was only one course of action open to him and he needed to act quickly. Octa's slip had started a chain reaction, one that needed to be dealt with before Augustus or Olga could change the rules.
"I'm ending this… now!"
TBC
A/N: What do you think?
Thanks for reading.