Alright, as usual, disclaimer, I do not own any of the LoK Characters, etc.
More edits have been done as of 7/2021. Please enjoy :D
Now, On with the story!
Chapter nine: To shock a Vampire
I woke slowly, feeling the dusk of a new night fall around the city. I rolled over with a yawn, still feeling tired from the prior night's... activities. Kain had kept me occupied well past the dawn. Drawing the sheets closer to my chest, I sat up with a tired blink and looked around the room. Kain had to have woken earlier, as he was no longer within the room. The Soul Reaver was gone as well. Not surprising. I rubbed at where he'd bitten me, marked me, and I shook off the last vestiges of sleep that still clung to me.
While I was not sore, I still felt pleasantly worn out, and I smiled faintly at the memories of the night. Kain'd teased me like hell throughout the night, taunting me as he pushed me to the edge of release, only to deny me again and again. Many times I had been driven near insensate. Had needed to fight just to think. At one point, I'd even tried to force him down, force him back, and... well, take control of the situation. Only Kain had moved quick as lightning to pin me and drain me of blood.
I'd been left too weak to struggle free of the simple silk ropes he suddenly produced from thin air. He'd pulled it from some sort of pocket dimension. Using the rope to tie my hands and feet firmly to the bed frame, he'd left me spread-eagled and defenseless. Kain had spent several moments looking me over, a faint hint of amusement behind all that apparent anger before he'd continued that sensual assault on my body.
Strangely enough, despite what I had been through over the years, I too found that I liked a little bit of pain mixed with the pleasure. Later, as both of us lay upon the bed, spent and satiated several times over, he'd fed me some of his blood so that I would recover from the long night.
As I looked around, I noticed a set of clothing laid out at the foot of the large bed. I leaned forward, picking up the clothing and pulling it close to examine the pile. There was a black and red bodice-like top with a rather low-cut back. If I decided to extend my wings, I'd have room to do so without risking the top ripping apart. There was a pair of crimson and black cotton pants that looked like they would be a little loose on me. There was also a pair of black half-inch heeled boots with blood-red lacing laying on the floor to the right of the bed to top the outfit off.
Black was the predominant color of the overall outfit, and I had to chuckle. I liked it. Overall the clothes and boots looked to be just about my size and would at least be comfortable to wear compared to the too-tight clothing that I'd been wearing. Better clothing that was too loose as opposed to too tight.
I slipped out of bed and got dressed, moving to stand in front of the narrow, full-length mirror leaning against the wall. The top was just a little too tight around my ribs, but overall it wasn't as uncomfortable as some of the other things I'd been forced to wear. I turned and slipped on the thigh-high boots, happy with the snug fit of the boots. They were just my size!
I looked around and found a small bristle brush on the bedside table. I quickly brushed my hair before pulling it back into a short ponytail. Something caught my eye as I passed by the mirror, and I hesitated. I looked at my neck where Kain had bitten me, directly beneath my right ear. Brushing my fingers against the spot forced a shiver through me. For a moment, I saw the faint pulse, like that of an Aura's glow. I shifted to get a closer look.
The skin was smooth and unblemished. Nothing was visible to the naked eye. I frowned and brushed my finger against the spot again. Once more, the faint Aura-like glow appeared. It had a distinctive shape to it. I realized after a moment that the shape was well and truly Kain's mark. His Symbol. A small huff of amusement escaped me. I was right. It was a mark. I turned toward the door, still smiling. How odd was it that the deepest parts of me felt safer than I had for a long, long time?
As I started to leave the large room, I noticed the sword I had 'acquired' from the Sarafan several days ago. It had been placed against the wall next to the bedroom door and sat nestled within a new leather sheath. I picked it up and, with a little difficulty, tied the sheath to my belt. The weight was comfortable against my hip, if different. I practiced with it to make sure the draw was okay and found it satisfactory. Stepping out of the room, I looked up and down the hall. The clear sounds of two familiar male voices arguing almost made me laugh.
Kain and Vorador are at it again, eh? I thought to myself.
I made my way down the hall and warily slipped into the room where the two men were arguing. Now that I wasn't feeling like crap, I could get a good look at the main room. The first thing of notice was a large table. I stepped closer and saw that there were two maps spread across the surface. A map of Nosgoth itself and one of Meridian.
Both males had their backs to me. Vorador stood to the left end of the table and Kain to the right. Kain abruptly pointed a clawed finger at the first map and looked sideways at Vorador with a sneer on his lips. His visage was dark with contained anger, his annoyance with the Eldar writ plain in his expression.
"We should move and move now, Old One," Kain growled. "If we strike quickly, we can take over new territory while the Sarafan's forces are at their weakest."
"And again, I say that I do not agree with that plan, Kain," Vorador responded with a shake of his head. "We still do not know who their new leader is and, from the rumors, this new... leader is a sorcerer who somehow makes the previous Sarafan Lord look weak in terms of magical might. Yet, he lacks physical prowess and goes nowhere without sufficient guards. We should find his haven within the city and defeat him first using stealth. Then we can turn our attentions elsewhere rather than spread our forces thin when we need to consolidate them."
Kain curled his hand into a fist and slammed it against the table. He about ready to start ranting. Vorador simply stood there and watched the white-haired vampire coldly, decidedly unimpressed with Kain's behavior. The older vampire simply looked as if he were ready to wait out show of upset. Surprisingly, Kain took a slow breath.
"Fine then," he growled in a forcibly controlled tone. "Send one of your informants out and find out who, or what, this new leader is. I will not be taken by surprise by another Hylden masquerading as a Human. I will ensure that the Sarafan rule here ends for certain this time!"
Rather than stand there waiting for them to notice me, I made my way to Kain's side, careful to approach at an angle where they would both see me. I had no desire to find out what would happen if I somehow startled either of them. I was half-tempted to see if I could do something to ease his current mood, but I instinctively knew better than to attempt it. Something thrummed through my head. Said, 'Not in public.'
Attempting to calm him in private might be one thing. Maybe. With others around to see? Probably not. And I did not want to misstep when it came to whatever relationship we had. I looked back and forth between the two. I wanted to be of some help. I hesitantly turned to look at Vorador.
"I believe that I can help... if you'd like me to," I said with a small shrug of one shoulder. I glanced at Kain. "It... would be fairly easy for me to stay hidden and not get caught by the Sarafan. I'd... I would like to help you in some way since you helped me by taking me into your care."
"Indeed," Kain said, suddenly looking more confidant rather than upset. "Your Dark Gift would be advantageous in this instance, my Little One."
Kain smirked at me, eyes trailing over my form. A pleased hum escaped him, and he reached out to catch my chin in his hand. I started at the sudden hold, more of a small twitch of almost unease, really, but made no move to pull away. Those claws just barely dug into my skin. Pinpoints of pressure that wasn't a threat, just... a firm hold. I wasn't sure what was going through his mind as he looked me over. The look in his eyes was both calculating and hungry.
Vorador watched us with a raised brow. Upon noticing his look, I could feel the blush as it spread across my cheeks. I pulled away from Kain's hand, or more to say, Kain let me pull free. I looked at Vorador with a raised brow as if daring him to say anything. His lips quirked, but he said nothing. I stepped closer to the table to look at the two maps. I eyed the one of Meridian, trying to memorize the details of the map. Not that hard to do ever since I'd changed.
"So... um, where, and when, should I start looking?" I asked them after a moment of silence.
Vorador looked faintly amused by my willingness to help. He moved to tap one spot on the map. A building that looked like a castle or a keep. I realized that it was the Sarafan Keep. I looked at the various marks on the map. The black-lined areas with skulls in them seemed to signify buildings that had been destroyed. There were also spots lined in green ink. It took a moment for me to realize those marks were likely Ward Gates which were still up and running.
"Here, the Keep itself is where most of my Childe have seen the new Sarafan Lord," Vorador began. "He does not travel often and never alone. Large walls were built up recently around the Keep. They are too high for a vampire to leap over, were rendered magically smooth to rid the walls of any potential hand-holds, and are made of a stone enhanced by magic to be strong enough to resist damage. Even I would have difficulties damaging the wall enough to climb it. Regretfully there is no easy way to sneak in even were you to possess a Gift akin to Kain's 'Mist.'"
"Huh. That should be easy enough to bypass, actually..." I let out a huff of breath and looked at Kain, muttering softly. "After I've had a little bit of time."
Kain inclined his head at me, knowing without my saying that I would need time to... well, learn how to fly. I'd been akin to a bird trapped in a cage after their flight feathers came in. I might be able to use my wings to cause damage, try to fly in short bursts to boost my jumps, but flight? True flight?
"And how do you expect to get over the wall, hmm, young one?" Vorador asked in a drawling tone, pulling me from my thoughts.
I glanced back at Kain, wondering if it was a good idea to reveal my wings to the Eldar. The only thing Kain gave me to work with was the faintest of smirks.
Some help you are, I thought to myself, turning back to Vorador with a small shrug.
"Fly," I said in a matter-of-fact tone.
Vorador blinked and looked me over with a raised brow. He shook his head a moment later. He turned to face me fully and waved a taloned hand in a seeming dismissive gesture. I felt a thrum of energy pass over me. His Aura? Vorador's eyes narrowed thoughtfully, and I felt as if he was examining my Aura with the mental equivalent of a fine-toothed comb. Vorador shook his head again.
"And how do you plan to fly, young one?" he asked, his voice rumbling. Though it was an amused rumbling more than anything else. Great. Apparently, he was intent on mocking me. "Will you magically grow wings? Your Aura shows no signs of one who might know the Bat Form ability nor any shape-changing ability that might grant one wings like that of a hawk or a raven."
Well. Wasn't that an ironic question? I backed away from the table, making sure there was nothing behind me that would be knocked over. I shot one more glance Kain's way and gave him a tentative if questioning half-smile. Kain, along with Nikolai, were the only ones currently aware of my wings. Vorador's Sire was Janos, an Ancient with wings so...
Kain responded to my look with a single nod which I took to be approval. Right. Well then. I let my eyes fall shut and let out a quiet breath to calm my nerves. I found myself grateful that the top Kain had left for me to wear this morning was so low-cut in the back. Even if it was a little embarrassing to be wearing so damned little instead of a normal shirt with two holes torn into the back. I suppose he'd figured it a good idea. Which it probably was. I mean, the previous shirt hadn't had much of a back left by the time he tore it off of me.
After having them for so long, I merely had to concentrate for a second to bring my wings out. Before, keeping them tucked away was a bad idea. Auron had somehow known of a way to force my wings out whenever I tried to hide them so. There was a sort of pressure point along my spine and between my shoulder blades.
Having them out? It felt more... comfortable, natural, to have them out. I wasn't left with an uncomfortable, pinned-in sensation like a winged creature whose wings had been tied down. The sky denied it until the bindings were released.
I didn't need to look to know what was occurring. Flesh rose, bulged, and then within less than a handful of seconds, the air filled with the telltale sound of skin tearing. There would be no blood nor any signs of wounds to be found at the base of my wings. No. Just the heaven of having them out.
I spread my wings out to their full length and took a brief moment to just enjoy the sensation. A faint wind current built around me as they gave a reflexive beat. The air caressed the feathers and membrane underneath, and I shivered. Sweet freedom. Dragon-like, or bat-like as they were, there were no primary flight feathers. Instead, they were covered with a layer of soft down-feathers on the underside of the wing membrane and slightly larger feathers along the back of each wing. It was like a fluffy layer of protective 'scales,' if you will. The feathers were surprisingly tough. They weren't easily broken or damaged.
Auron always had to make an effort to... 'make patterns' when he damaged my wings.
After one last little stretch, I furled my wings around my body like a red, black, and silver feathered cloak. The largest bend of the wings rested comfortably on my shoulders. I opened my eyes and looked at Vorador with a smirk... and fight back a burst of outright laughter. As it was, I had to quickly raise my fist to my mouth to hide my smile, letting out a choked-off noise. I'd never seen another vampire look so shocked in my entire life.
It was kind of adorable.
Vorador's jaw had dropped at some point. His eyes were wide with disbelief. His arms, which had previously been crossed over his chest, were now slack at his sides. Kain let out a huff of open laughter, unable or perhaps unwilling, to contain his mirth. He leaned over and snapped his fingers in front of Vorador's face.
"Such a fine impression of a fish out of the water you are doing, Vorador," Kain drawled in a mocking tone, blue-gold orbs glittering in amusement. "But we have things to do. Focus, Old One."
Vorador's slammed mouth shut. He let out a faint but vicious hiss of annoyance at Kain before batting Kain's hand aside. The action merely elicited another dark laugh from Kain. Vorador turned back to look at me, eyeing my wings with a mix of amazement and... awe? He might well have been thinking of Janos' wings while he looked over mine. Noting the differences, perhaps? Or maybe I was reading too much into his expression. Eventually, he nodded.
"Very well, it seems you're capable of getting over the wall," he said. He tiled his head. "But how do you expect to avoid being seen?"
"I... um, I have my ways," I responded hesitantly.
I'd rather that only Kain knew of my Dark Gift. From what I could recall, one could simply feed upon another vampire to gain a Gift. Either over time or... after killing the vampire in question. It was how Kain had gained several Gifts during the events of Blood Omen 2, after all. Something that, to my knowledge, held true of the vampires in my home realm. If what tidbits of my vampiric nature Auron shared with me held true.
Then again, everything about my forcibly Awakened nature had been true thus far. And only shared in the most painful ways possible. Auron had taken great delight in telling me that my wings would grow back. Repeatedly.
Regardless, my Gift of invisibility would be useful for sneaking up on one's enemies or staying hidden from those same foes. Vorador looked at me, obviously waiting for me to explain further. I shook my head at him.
"I'd rather keep it to myself if that is alright?" I said softly.
"If it-" Vorador began, only to be interrupted by Kain.
"Leave it, Vorador," Kain said in a firm tone.
Vorador looked at Kain with a raised brow, but upon realizing that neither of us was going to elaborate, he decided to let it go. Which was a relief. Vorador was supposed to be a staunch defender of his fellow vampires, but I had no desire to be proven wrong about the Eldar. Vorador pointed at the map, tapping at the marks signifying the walls around the Keep.
"There are a large number of Sarafan Knights who patrol the walls at regular intervals," Vorador began. "There are a handful of openings where the guard changes out, but before, we had no way to take advantage of said opportunities."
I nodded my understanding. It made sense, especially if the walls were really so well built that even Vorador could not scale them.
"I would suggest getting a better lay of the land before proceeding," Vorador said in an almost kindly tone. "From what I understand, you are new to Meridian. Best to get a feel for things first before plunging that deep into enemy territory. Hidden talents or no."
"Right," I said carefully, looking over the map. I mean, what Vorador was describing was about what one would expect castle security. "Do you have a suggestion of where I should start?"
"The surrounding districts here have lighter patrols," Vorador said, pointing to the sections in question. "Most of the guards are stationed behind the walls."
"Are the ones outside the walls are either recruits or those being punished?" I asked with a curious tilt of my head. I glanced over at Kain, who continued to watch me as I talked to the Eldar. There was a clear glint of amusement in his eyes.
"They are, for the most part," Vorador responded with a dark chuckle. "Well spotted. However, even amongst the dregs, there are still threats to be wary of. If you see guards wearing Sarafan armor instead of the lighter garb of the city guard, be wary. Their armor will glow in the presence of a Vampire."
I shared a look with Kain, curious if he'd noticed what I had the night of my arrival. He gave a subtle nod of his head. He'd seen that their armor was useless around me. It seemed that being a half-blood had more uses than one might expect here. I'd have an easier time sneaking around.
This was going to be a fun few weeks.
Please read and review. Let me know how the edits look :)