X
Unfamiliar Zero
Chapter 2
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"Well hello there. Aren't you just a tasty little snack?" said the blonde lady in the red dress.
Louise felt an uneasy feeling settle into her stomach even while she continued to stare up at the blonde. After all, it was not every day that she saw someone standing on the ceiling as easily as if she were on the floor. And the woman certainly appeared to be entirely too comfortable up there.
"Well nobody told me about you," continued the lady in her sultry voice, her friendly smile twisting into more of a smirk. "This evening is just full of surprises, and I do quite love surprises. So tell me, my dear little surprise, what is your name?"
There was a moment of silence as they watched each other and Louise realized that the woman was patiently waiting for her to respond. The smile on the woman's face didn't shift at all and was getting creepier by the second.
Louise finally broke eye contact and looked back towards the door through which she had entered, blinking the dryness away from her eyes from having stared at the woman for so long. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest and her breathing was shallow and quick.
Every muscle in her body was tense and ready to move at a moment's notice. Like prey trapped by a predator waiting for any chance to escape. Except Louise had a sinking feeling there was no chance to run away from this woman even if she tried.
"My name..?" Louise repeated slowly. She wasn't sure if telling the woman was a good idea, but she was also afraid of what might happen if she didn't. The woman obviously had magical powers of some kind. How else could she walk on the ceiling like that? Not to mention the way the blonde carried herself belied a sense of authority and aristocracy, and such people were not to be crossed lightly.
"You do have a name, right?" she asked with a hint of disappointment, her smile finally disappearing. She didn't let Louise out of her sight as she started to walk closer.
Louise subconsciously took a few steps back until her back hit the wall. She gulped and nodded dumbly and the woman's smile returned.
"Well? Do tell."
"My name... is," Louise started to say, but then paused for another moment of internal debate before she continued, "My name is Louise. Louise Vallière. It's... It's a pleasure to meet you, your Ladyship." She considered lying and giving a false name, but her instincts told her that the truth was probably the better choice in this situation.
"Louise Vallière?" repeated the blonde woman in a tone that sounded like she was testing the way it sounded with her own voice. "I wonder where they dug you up from," she said thoughtfully, then shrugged, "But that's not too important right now. What is important is that I've known a few Louises in my very long life, and none of them ever had such lovely pink hair. Or such pretty pink eyes. Are they naturally like that?"
Nodding slowly, Louise could't help but think that it was incredibly weird that she was having a conversation with someone standing on the ceiling. Not that the blonde lady seemed to mind it in the slightest. Perhaps the woman did this fairly often.
More importantly, Louise noted that the lady didn't appear to recognize her last name, which confirmed that she was indeed somewhere well outside of Tristain. Her family was fairly well-known in Tristain after all. Usually, if people didn't immediately recognize her from her pink hair, dropping her family name meant instant recognition and some sort of special treatment.
Not this time however.
"Fascinating," the woman's smile widened momentarily and Louise further confirmed that the fangs were indeed not simply a figment of her imagination. "Would you say, then, that pink hair and eyes runs in your blood? Do others in your family have these traits as well?" she asked eagerly.
Louise nodded timidly, thinking it to be a rather odd question to be asked.
"You don't talk much, do you?" said the woman. Without warning, she somehow detached herself from the ceiling, spun rapidly in the air as she fell, and then landed gracefully on her feet into a low crouch on the floor with a surprisingly light thud.
Impressed but taken aback by the abrupt movement, Louise could only continue stare, mesmerized as the woman stood back up to her full height.
The pale blonde lady was unquestionably taller than Louise, like most people were, but it was more evident now that they were standing on the same surface. Her beautiful wavy blonde hair was long, going to about halfway down her torso. Some of her golden strands fell to either side of her lovely face, with the majority of it flowing elegantly behind her.
The blonde had an enviously curvaceous body, one that was shown off well by the form-fitting red dress that she was wearing. She was stunning, graceful, confident, and from what Louise could tell she was powerful too. In short, she was everything Louise aspired to be as a noble.
Before anything else could be said, Louise's palm started to throb once more with pain and she grimaced. The shock of meeting the blonde lady in such a fashion had apparently worn off and her body was again reminding her of the burn she had incurred from touching Jade's staff. She glanced down at the injury to inspect the burns.
It looked as bad as it felt. Her whole palm was an ugly mess of swelling, redness, and rampant blistering. Even just looking at the burns served to intensify the pain she felt and she involuntarily hissed and gritted her teeth hard, fresh tears sliding down her cheeks.
Normally, she would have already made her way to a healer to get the burns taken care of, but she had no idea where to get medical treatment in this strange new place.
"Oh my, that looks like it really hurts," remarked the lady sympathetically, though it was hard for Louise to tell if it was genuine concern or mockery. "If it makes you feel any better, dear, you're not the only one who learned the hard way not to touch that woman's spear. Quite a nasty weapon, that one."
That piece of information did not make Louise feel any better. She let out a long hiss as the pain was starting to get overwhelming and the room started to spin for her. She didn't notice at first that the blonde woman was suddenly standing right in front of her, and then the woman gently gripped Louise's arms as she leaned in close, the young girl unable to do anything to stop her or move away.
The lady's hands felt strangely cool against Louise's skin.
"Don't worry, Louise. I'm here to help," whispered the lady, "You see, I can ease your suffering. I can make the pain go away." Her cool breath tickled Louise's neck. "Just relax." The blonde lightly kissed the young girl's neck and Louise shivered from the unexpected contact.
Louise didn't know what to do, but there was no way in hell she was able to relax in this situation.
"Relax," whispered the lady again, her face now a few inches away from Louise's own. Blood red eyes stared into pink ones and Louise suddenly felt herself relax in the woman's grip. Even the pain of her burned hand faded to a dull ache, and Louise was both relieved and alarmed. She was most certainly under some kind of spell now. But how?
The lady smiled as she continued to stare into Louise's eyes, her unnaturally long canine fangs now perilously close. The smile turned into her mouth opening up as one would if they were about to take a bite out of some food, and it quickly became clear that she wanted to sink those fangs into the pink-haired girl.
Louise struggled to get away, but to no avail. Her body refused to listen. She had the misfortune of being able to see and sense everything happening to her and yet was unable to do anything about it.
The blonde lady seemed to be savoring the moment as she tilted Louise's head to the side and then moved her mouth closer to Louise's exposed neck.
There wasn't much Louise could do now except hope that the bite wouldn't hurt, and that she would somehow survive this. For all her sophistication, the lady turned out to be some kind of monster in the end.
The anticipation was killing her and Louise at least managed to close her eyes, trying not to think anymore about what was about to happen and failing pitifully.
"ELENA!" yelled the familiar voice of Jade from across the room, and Louise never thought that hearing the sound of that voice would ever be so sweet.
The blonde lady, who was apparently named Elena, stopped a fraction of a second before her fangs could pierce Louise's skin.
Louise could feel her tense up.
"What are you doing?" asked Jade, hands on her hips as she glared at the blonde like a mother might look at one of her troublemaker children that she had caught red-handed doing some mischief.
Elena's tongue darted across the side of Louise's neck and a strained look came over her face, as if she were struggling mightily with something. Her gaze wandered all across Louise's face and then to her exposed neck. There was a hunger in her eyes. Frightening and wild, but then she blinked several times and it faded.
To Louise's relief, the blonde lady close her mouth and moved her head away, turning to look at the armored warrior without letting go of Louise.
Elena took a deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment before she gave Jade a warm smile. "Oh hello Jade, darling," she said in greeting. "Long time no see."
"What do you think you're doing?" repeated Jade with a pointed glare.
Elena glanced down at the girl in her arms, "Why, I was just getting to know Louise here. Such a young little thing, this one. So very fresh, don't you think?"
"Louise?" Jade looked puzzled for a moment, her gaze shifting between them. "I see. Please step away from the girl, Elena. She is not your plaything," said Jade, her steely voice as hard as her gaze.
"Oh? Well, I didn't know that," replied the blonde innocently, though she made no move to comply. "Besides, it's not like I was going to kill her or anything so drastic. I just wanted a little taste, that's all. Only a nibble, really. One tiny bite. What's the harm in that?"
"I won't ask again," said Jade as she reached out her hand and with the sound of rushing air and sliding metal the spear that had stood at the entrance flew into her waiting palm, tip glowing briefly with power as it made contact with its owner.
"So much hostility, Jade! We haven't seen each other in centuries and this is how you greet your dear comrade-in-arms? No 'how are you doing, Elena? What have you been up to these last two hundred years? I've missed you'?" pouted Elena with a frown for a few seconds, but then the blonde's expression instantly changed into one of eagerness as she smirked, "Are you going to make me comply then?" Her red eyes glowed menacingly. Excitedly, even.
Jade was unfazed and pointed her spear at Elena. "If I must."
There was a tense moment as the two stared each other down, and Louise wondered who would win in a fight between the two. They both seemed incredibly powerful. Though perhaps the more important question was if she herself was going to survive if the two women decided to clash. There was likely going to be some collateral damage, and she didn't want to be a part of that.
"It's been a long time since anyone's challenged me," Elena said, sounding amused.
The lady warrior across the room said nothing, though her spear remained pointed at Elena.
"You know I could kill her before you could reach me," Elena stated plainly, as if she were merely remarking on the weather and not the life of a very much frightened young girl.
Louise gulped, still pretty much frozen and helpless in the blonde's strong grip, listening to the two as her life appeared to hang in the balance.
"Then you will answer to our Lord for disobeying orders to keep her alive, but only after I've punished you myself. But I hope you'll make the right decision here."
Elena's eyes narrowed, searching Jade's face for any signs of a bluff and finding nothing but a resolute look staring her down.
"Fine," sighed Elena, quickly letting go of the young girl and taking a few measured steps back, rubbing her well-manicured hands as if trying to get some dirt off of them. "But in my defense, I wasn't aware of any such orders. And I did say that I wasn't trying to kill her."
Louise fell on her butt with a thud, her legs weak and unable to hold herself upright on her own. She reflexively used her hands to soften her fall and her burned palm erupted in tremendous pain and she cried out. Whatever spell she had been under had apparently been lifted because she could move again.
Jade quietly lowered her spear and crossed the room, never letting Elena out of her peripheral vision. She knelt next to Louise and reached for her injured hand to get a better look.
The young girl made no move to resist, trusting that while Jade might not like her personally, the female warrior would at least obey her lord's command to keep her alive and thus would not harm her.
Elena crossed her arms across her busty chest. "That was your doing, not me," she remarked, turning her nose up.
Jade frowned slightly but said nothing. The warrior reached into a small pouch attached to her slim waist and took out a bottle of red liquid that seemed far too big to have fit in the pouch. Taking off the cork stopper, she poured some of the red liquid onto Louise's hand.
It stung at first, but then the pain gradually diminished and Louise watched as the burns and redness went away in a matter of seconds. A healing potion!
"Girl, in the future do not touch my spear. Or anything that you are unfamiliar with, for that matter," lectured Jade and Louise could only nod in response. The healing potion was returned to the pouch swiftly as the warrior inspected the injured hand one more time before letting it go.
Louise rubbed her now uninjured hand with her other one. "S-Sorry. Thank you," she managed to say as Jade got to her feet. She was definitely not going to get anywhere near that spear again if she could help it.
"What's so special about this girl anyway?" asked Elena, red eyes staring at Louise once again. "Other than the fact that she apparently has no underwear." The red-eyed blonde raised an eyebrow at the young girl, whose eyes went wide in embarrassment as she quickly shifted her sitting position so that the skirt covered her bottom properly.
Jade ignored the question. "Have you presented yourself to our master?"
"Yes, yes. Of course. How could I not? The throne room was the first place I checked when I got here. Only saw him very briefly though. He was in no mood to speak at length," replied Elena with a frown.
"The magic he used to seal himself away has taken a toll on him," stated Jade.
"It would seem so," agreed Elena, pensively looking at the ground. "Do you think he will stay with us now that he's returned? Or..."
"Our Lord will do as he pleases, as he has always done."
Elena snorted then grinned, red eyes alight. "Of course."
"You look well," Jade said, her normally hard tone softening somewhat.
"Thank you, dear. You don't look so bad yourself for someone who's been asleep for the last two centuries."
Jade looked at Elena suspiciously. "Wait. How did you know we were back? It's barely been an hour since we've awoken."
"Oh, it's not like I was waiting for you or anything," replied Elena, lazily waving a hand at her. "I was just in the neighborhood and decided to pop in. Chalk it up to fate I suppose."
"If you say so." Jade sounded unconvinced.
"There is somewhat of a problem, however," Elena said seriously.
"What is it?"
"The fortress wards. They've failed. I noticed it when I got here. I tried to tell him but like I said, he was in no mood to speak."
Jade blinked. "What?"
Elena sighed. "The wards, Jade. They've been blasted through like paper."
"Which ones?"
"All of them. The whole area reeks of a recent massive magical explosion, which would explain it."
"Impossible."
Elena nodded, tucking some stray hair behind her ear. "It should've been, and yet here we are. I'm more interested to know how it happened and who was responsible."
"Those were some of the strongest defensive wards in the world, set up by the Demon Lord himself..." Jade trailed off and slowly turned to look at Louise, who was still sitting on the ground unsure of what to do with herself.
Elena noticed Jade's shift in attention and turned to Louise as well with renewed interest.
Louise looked down at her feet. Was it because of her? She didn't mean for any of this to happen.
"Are you saying..." Elena started to say, but Jade cut her off.
"Can you put up some defensive wards, Elena?"
"Well, I suppose I could but that's not really my area of exper-"
"Good," Jade interrupted again. "We'll make do with what you can muster until he can renew the wards himself."
Elena laughed, all tension between them clearly gone now. "Oh how I've missed this. I'll get right on it, dear Jade."
"Thank you," Jade said and then settled her gaze back to the pink-haired girl on the floor. "And you. Get up, girl. It's time to make yourself useful. There is still much to be done here."
=x=x=x=x=
Marcus was big for a vampire.
Generally, vampires tended to be on the slimmer side, similar to elves, but his barrel chest and matching thick arms and legs was one of the few rare exceptions among his kind. Even his thick facial hair was uncommon. His fellow vampires tended to be pretty hairless except for what they had on top of their heads.
Some might even mistake him for a lycanthrope from a distance, though they would do well not to mention that to his face. He hated the mangy beasts with a passion and to be likened to one was probably the worst insult to him that anyone could come up with. And Marcus was not someone to piss off.
As Captain of the Night Guard, he was one of the most powerful vampires in Nifleheim, both in authority and actual fighting strength. And he certainly looked the part with his extravagant high quality armor, clothing, and the black cape with a blood red crescent moon emblazoned on the back. Additionally, he was a veteran of many battles across the last two centuries since he had been turned into a vampire, by the Night Queen herself no less, and his loyalty to her was absolute because of it.
So it was that he answered her call without question to mobilize the entirety of the Night Guard for a mission that he knew nothing about in a location almost everyone sane these days would avoid. Now he was trudging through the Forest of Shadows and heading towards the Black Fortress accompanied by the full complement of three hundred and twenty nine vampires that made up the Night Guard.
They formed a battle line about a hundred soldiers wide and three rows deep as they moved quietly and adeptly between the trees, senses alert for any potential enemies. Ahead of them and far off the flanks were a handful of scouts, who on occasion returned to the advancing battle line and reported to him.
So far they hadn't encountered any enemies and it made everyone a little restless. They hadn't had to deploy like this in a very long time, and some of them were eager for battle. Others, particularly the newer members of the Night Guard, were simply hoping for a chance to prove themselves.
But they didn't see much as they made their way through the forest. Even animals were a rare sight, and the closer they got to the fortress the less wildlife they saw and the quieter it got. Marcus noted that the ground appeared to have dozens of fresh animal tracks, all of them leading away from the fortress, something that the scouts confirmed.
Something big definitely happened here recently.
"Captain," a scout called his attention as she appeared next to him. "There appears to be significant damage to the forest near the fortress. Signs of at least one significant magical explosion. Larger than any I've ever seen before."
"Still no sign of any enemies?"
"No, sir. Not a soul."
"And the Queen?"
"We haven't seen any sign of her either, sir."
"I see. Be cautious and keep looking," he said in a dismissive tone and the scout bowed her head and then rushed off to continue her duties.
Sure enough, as they continued to make their way through the forest, they noticed that some of the trees were bent, broken, or fallen over in an outward direction away from the fortress. Branches of all sizes littered the ground and there were a few dead animals too. Some of them, he noticed, were not directly targeted by anything but were actually killed by falling trees or large branches. And a handful were dead due to being trampled by other animals. Probably in their panic to get away. But from what?
With each step closer to the fortress, the air seemed to get heavier with excess magical energy and the damage to the foliage seemed to get worse. The night also got much quieter as they neared their destination. Apparently even the insects had either died or fled the area.
"Do you feel it, Kiho?" Marcus asked his lieutenant and the Night Guard's second-in-command who was following close behind him.
He was a typical vampire in almost every way. Tall and thin with blood red eyes and pale skin as cold as a corpse. His canine teeth were long and sharp and perfectly white like the rest of his normal teeth. Like Marcus, he wore the same armor set, except it was smaller and less decorated. Unlike Marcus though, his long dark hair was tied up into a bun atop his head.
Kiho looked puzzled for a moment, then realized what he meant. "The air here is full of magic energy, sir. Unnaturally so."
"Be on your guard," Marcus said. He had felt this before in larger-scale battles where there was a tremendous amount of magical energy being expended with various combat spells exploding all around. They were definitely entering dangerous territory now.
Before long, the trees began to thin out and then abruptly ended, causing them all to come to a stop as they reached the edge of the forest.
About a quarter mile of open ground separated the edge of the treeline from the fortress, and Marcus found himself staring up at the imposing walls of the Black Fortress, feeling a sense of dread that he had never felt before in his lengthy time as a vampire.
It was a magnificent sight to behold. The fortress was masterfully built into the very rock of the mountain, with untold numbers of halls and rooms carved deep within the black stone. What could be seen from the outside were the three layers of walls that separated the fortress into three distinct districts, each district higher than the last and each wall taller to match. Various structures populated the districts, some of them connected by bridges to each other.
High defensive towers were spaced along each of the walls, all of them dark and silent like stone sentinels standing guard. Along the tops of some of the buildings, walls, and towers were dark, unmoving statues of various monsters keeping a quiet vigil over the fort. Marcus had a feeling these things weren't merely for decoration. There were probably hundreds of them scattered throughout the place. No doubt some, if not all of them, would come to life to defend the stronghold if they were activated.
The only entrance into the fortress was a massive black gate made of a metal Marcus couldn't recognize. The sheer size of it was impressive, easily thirty times as tall as Marcus and wide enough for at least four horse-drawn carriages to move side-by-side.
At the heart of the fortress and within the very last set of walls was the massive keep only partially jutting out from the mountainside and towering over the entire facility, giving whoever was within a commanding view over the surrounding area.
Assaulting this stronghold directly was probably going to be disastrous for any army. At minimum, there would be significant losses for the attacking forces before the fortress could be taken, if at all.
Marcus couldn't help but admire the sight of it. The whole thing was probably almost as big as Nifleheim, and in some ways it was certainly grander than the city he called home. Compared to the city though, the fortress was dark and lifeless. Fitting, given the name of the place.
"Why exactly are we here, Captain?" asked Kiho with just a hint of nervousness in his normally confident voice.
"We're here because the Night Queen commanded us to be here," replied Marcus simply.
"But why? Why here of all places?"
Marcus continued to study the fortress in front of them, not bothering to give an answer. Truthfully, he didn't know why they were there either. Not that he really cared that much. His duty, and really all of theirs, was to serve the Night Queen and protect Nifleheim. If she gave them an order they were supposed to obey, and that was all he needed to know.
"Are you afraid of this place, Kiho?" Marcus asked.
Kiho hesitated for a moment, his red eyes scanning the empty battlements in front of them. "A little, sir. Are you?"
Marcus didn't answer. In truth, the unease he felt was certainly partly because he was somewhat afraid of the fortress and what might lie within. But he wasn't about to tell his subordinate that. That would be foolish.
"I've only ever heard about this place from stories or read about it in books. Never would I have thought I'd actually get to see it with my own two eyes," Kiho said.
"So you believe all the stories about the Black Fortress and the Demon Lord?"
"Some of them, sir. Yes. What about you, Captain?"
Marcus finally glanced at his subordinate. "Some," he agreed. "There is almost always a grain of truth to every story, no matter how outlandish it may seem. Though I doubt this place is actually cursed like the legends say. What's more likely is that the defenses are still working and the few people who have gotten close to it or attempted to enter it have actually encountered these defenses... and paid the price."
"That... makes sense."
"It's as impressive as they say it is, though. Perhaps even more so," Marcus admitted.
"I hope we're not here to attack this place, sir. It's better if we let places like this be."
"Mmm." Marcus crossed his arms, fingers tapping against his armor as a short silence settled between them.
Then the scouts returned and reported that the surrounding area was devoid of any signs of life. Even the mountainside around the fortress was apparently clear.
Marcus didn't like the situation at all. They had come expecting a fight, for why else would there be a need to summon all of the Night Guard so suddenly like this, and instead they found nothing but silence and a missing Night Queen.
He needed to think about what to do next, but in the meantime he ordered the Night Guard to form their battle squads and set up a perimeter around the fortress until further notice. Each squad consisted of seven vampires, which meant that there were 47 squads in all, and each had at least two capable veterans to lead the squad.
When the orders were relayed and the vampires began to move into position, he focused his attention on the fortress.
Closing his eyes, he concentrated on his sense of hearing and blocked everything else out. Seconds passed. He could hear the rustle of the armor and the slight murmur of the talking of the Night Guard gathered all along the forest edge. He could hear the subtle movements of Kiho behind him. The creaking of some of the trees in the breeze. The rustle of what few leaves remained on the trees. The breeze blowing all around.
But there was absolutely no sound at all coming from the fortress. It was quieter than the damned grave in there. That uneasy feeling in Marcus's gut was getting worse.
"It's strange, sir. There doesn't appear to be any damage to the fortress or any signs of battle at all," Kiho said with a confused look. "Yet something clearly caused all this damage to the forest and forced the animals to flee from here recently."
"Mmm."
"Could it have been the Queen?" Kiho speculated.
"Possibly," Marcus said with a slight frown.
"But where is she?"
Marcus's frown deepened.
The Night Queen was a formidable elder vampire, and arguably the strongest of the elders depending on who you asked. Regardless, she was far more powerful than Marcus could ever hope to be, and she was certainly more than capable of defending herself if she needed to. In fact, he was certain she could wipe out the whole Night Guard by herself if she desired.
He wouldn't be surprised if the explosion was somehow her doing then, but why did she do it? And where was she now? It bothered him that she was nowhere to be seen. She definitely should have been able to sense their arrival by now, and if so he knew she would have already made contact.
But she hadn't shown herself and Marcus couldn't rule out the possibility that something in the fortress managed to subdue her. Or worse.
He scratched his beard thoughtfully. What was he supposed to do now?
He absently rubbed the pommel of his longsword, a gift from the Night Queen herself. It was supposedly forged in hellfire in the demon realm, a relic from the time of the Demon Lord. Enchanted to enhance the wielder's fighting capabilities, the sword was also supposed to be able to cut through just about anything. And so far, he had yet to find something that could withstand more than a few hits from his sword.
Marcus was a soldier. How he wished for the pure simplicity of being thrust into battle and knowing where and at whom to swing his sword in order to bring about a victory. He kept his eyes closed as he considered his next move. Waiting around until something happened was not an option, and neither was retreating back to Nifleheim, which meant there was really only one thing they could do.
He turned to his own battle group that consisted of the seven best and most experienced warriors in the Night Guard, himself and Kiho included. They were the vanguard, leading the charge into every battle and laying waste to all who stood in their way. He could trust in them to get the job done, whatever that may be.
"Ready yourselves. We're going in," he stated firmly.
They all looked at him apprehensively. Even Kiho.
"Going in? As in, in there?" asked one of the vanguard members. His name was Regis. The shortest and youngest of the group, but also the fastest. He wore a long coat over his light armor, hands fidgeting in his coat pockets as his eyes darted every which way as if they were unable to focus on one thing for too long. Which was exactly the case.
"Afraid, Regis?" said a tall female with jet black hair. She had two nasty-looking daggers out, one in each hand, the weapons deftly dancing between her fingers. That was Katarina, deadly with pretty much any bladed weapon, but daggers were her favorite. She once said that she wielded daggers because it forced her to be really up close and personal with her opponent as she ended their life.
"No. Well, yes. I mean, I know we're all a little uneasy so... I'm just saying... have we considered knocking? Asking around? I mean, have you taken a good look at this place?" Regis replied, hands continuing to fidget in his pockets as he paced around the group.
"And who exactly are we going to ask? There's no one out here except us and whoever might be inside," said another of the vampires in the group. He had a deep voice, slightly accented. Ramsey was his name, and he was the strongest spellcaster among them. Offensive magic was his specialty, and fire magic in particular. With his shaved head and his dark skin, he stood out among his fellow vampires.
"Uhh... the people inside?" Regis shifted his weight back and forth on his legs. His eyes quickly moved between Katarina and Ramsey.
"Your stupidity is at an all-time high today," Katarina remarked, twirling one of the daggers in her left hand and then pointing it menacingly at the shorter vampire.
"I'm just saying attacking this place seems like a bad idea... okay? We shouldn't be so careless, that's all."
"And knocking on that gate isn't being careless?" asked Ramsey with a furrowed brow.
"That was a figure of speech, okay? Like, we should observe and scout it out some more, ya know? Look around and-"
"Oh grow a pair, would you?" replied Katarina, cutting him off.
"Kat's got more balls than you, that's for sure kid," Ramsey added.
"Just get a damned room, would ya? Everyone knows you're fucking anyway," Regis said.
"W-What are you talking about, kid?" Ramsey looked taken aback and started to rub the back of his neck as he glanced nervously towards Katarina.
She looked positively murderous.
The remaining two members of the group, Lora and Lara, were identical silver-haired twins who were only slightly taller than Regis. They were adept at various long range weapons as well as traps and magic. The two were decently skilled at close combat as well, but they preferred to fight from afar if they could help it. They were probably the most versatile of the group. Other than Marcus and Kiho, of course.
They shared a look with each other but stayed quiet as the other three bickered for another minute. Though it was more like Katarina and Ramsey teaming up against Regis.
"Quiet! That's enough from you lot," Marcus snapped at them, his red eyes glowing as he glared. They all avoided eye contact with him, but kept silent.
Marcus's eyes swept across the group as he let out a long sigh, reining in his anger. "I don't have to remind you that this place is a fortress, which means it probably still has defensive wards and traps everywhere. We must be careful. We'll probably need to focus our magic to breach the wards as we encounter them so everyone has to stick together. Is that clear?"
He received a few nods so he continued. "It's supposed to be abandoned, but we cannot know that for sure until we get in there, but let's assume that there are unknown enemies within. Our two primary objectives are to find Queen Marielena and capture the gatehouse so that we can open the gate. This will provide us a means to easily escape and also allow for reinforcements"
Before he could even continue, the ground beneath their feet began to shake violently.
"Earthquake?!" cried one of the twins in shock as they held each other.
Marcus didn't know if it was one, though it certainly felt like it, but then it was Kiho who pointed out that it was not an actual earthquake.
"The gate. Look! It's opening!" said the lieutenant.
They all stared in awe as sure enough the enormous gate began to open vertically. That was what was causing the earth to tremble beneath them.
"I told you we should have just knocked," Regis said wryly.
=x=x=x=x=
After sending Jade and the pink-haired mystery girl off to do some custodial work on his quarters, he returned to his throne and hadn't moved much since then. Even when Elena had surprisingly come before him, kneeling in her form-fitting crimson dress and going on about how much she had missed him, he had barely managed to acknowledge her.
He had told her that they would speak at a later date, most of her words falling on deaf ears because he was finding it incredibly difficult to concentrate. It did not escape him that she felt hurt and saddened by his abrupt dismissal of her, but there wasn't much he could do about that in his current state. He made a mental note to ask her how she knew so quickly that he had returned the next time they spoke.
His thoughts felt heavy and his mind a swirling fog. Each train of thought moved slowly as if they passed through some strange mental quagmire. Jumbled memories came to him in flashes, but the majority of his memory was incoherent and out of order.
In short, he was mentally a huge mess, and it was taking a lot of effort to try and put some semblance of order to his chaotic mind again.
There were things he could remember well enough, but many more that he couldn't recall at all no matter how hard he tried. Those memories were familiar but vague, like staring into the distance and recognizing the shape of things but unable to get any closer to see them clearly. Even names were somewhat difficult.
When Jade had entered the throne room earlier, it had taken him longer than he cared to admit to remember her name. Her face had looked intensely familiar, and he could picture her face in his memories, but the name that came with it had escaped him for long enough that he had become annoyed with himself. Not that he ever outwardly showed his annoyance.
Thankfully, he was able to finally recall her name and along with it who she was and so was able to interact with her well enough so as not to arouse any concern. And she certainly would have been concerned, given her personality and utter loyalty to him.
Elena had thankfully been proud enough to announce herself to him upon presenting herself, though perhaps it was also because he had barely registered her arrival. Hearing her voice and her name, plus seeing her face, was enough to jog his memory of her. She too, like Jade, was one of his most trusted followers a long time ago.
Two centuries had passed since then.
He glanced at his right gauntlet, flexing his armored fingers. Too much of his memory was missing or fragmented. He couldn't even remember why he had isolated and sealed himself away in the first place, and he wasn't entirely sure if this was a side effect of the sealing spell being violently broken by that pink-haired girl or if he had purposefully done this to himself.
Maybe even some combination of both.
Whatever happened before, it was serious enough that he put himself through such an ordeal in order to escape it. And a part of him wondered if it was wise for him to even try to remember.
Adding to his troubles was the fact that his power was currently vastly diminished. Regardless of what had happened to cause his self-imposed isolation, the sealing and stasis spell had sapped a considerable amount of his strength to sustain him for such a long period, and it would take some time to build it back up to his previous levels. And he wasn't sure if there were other spells he had cast on himself either.
That meant he needed plenty of rest. And plenty of mana baths.
Right on cue, Jade returned to the throne room. Her steps were purposeful like they always were as they echoed across the otherwise quiet hall. Kneeling before him, she waited to be acknowledged.
He stirred, fighting hard to concentrate on speaking. "You may stand, Jade."
"My Lord," she said as she got to her feet. "Your chambers are ready now. I apologize for taking so long. We are... understaffed at the moment."
That was an understatement if he had ever heard one. From what he could sense, other than Elena, the only other ones in the fortress were Jade and the girl. And though Jade was more than capable as a warrior, she was certainly no maid. She did take this whole master-servant thing very seriously though.
Oh Jade. As dutiful as ever.
"Good. No need to apologize, Jade," he assured her. "Is the mana spring still active?"
"Yes, my Lord. I anticipated that you might want to take a bath to regain your strength so I checked on it. The spring is still intact and the aquifer has filled to the brim over time. It is ready to be used once more and I can draw a bath for you now if you wish."
"Thank you, Jade. That would be nice." A nice bath certainly sounded like a good way to rest up some more and give him more time to sort out his mental state, and the mana water was going to be helpful in replenishing his power quicker. "What of the girl?"
"She has been marginally useful and is currently finishing up cleaning, but I will have her leave before you arrive, my Lord. If you will allow me to run ahead."
"No need. You will accompany me up to my chambers. It has been a long time and I want to make sure I still remember the layout of this place." He didn't say it, but he also wasn't sure how far he could walk on his own power at this point. He was really starting to feel weak and exhausted. And his head was starting to hurt.
"As you command," Jade bowed her head.
With some effort, he got to his feet and they left the throne room a moment later. Jade followed a step behind him and to his right as he managed to make his way to the spiral staircase without getting lost, the two of them walking in silence.
They were ascending the stairs when he finally spoke. Mind still heavy.
"I trust Elena hasn't been... troublesome?"
From what little he could reliably recall, Elena was certainly a mischievous one. A powerful vampire who was prone to giving in to her baser desires, which sometimes meant headaches for him and the others. Elena was playful, sometimes overly so, but she usually meant well. Usually.
"She is... just as I remember her, my Lord. But stronger now. Older. Maybe a little wiser even."
"One would hope," he said. He could feel Elena's power thrumming within her when she had appeared earlier. In his current state, he was sure that he would be hard-fought to win against her, if at all, and he wondered if the vampire could sense that as well. Not that she would ever let on that she did, nor did he think she would ever act on it.
As one of his closest servants, she was certainly someone he could count on and all indications from her arrival seemed to confirm that. Still, it had been a very long time since they were last together. Thoughts and feelings were prone to changing over time, whether one was an ageless immortal or not. He was going to have to keep an eye on her for the time being until he could be assured of her allegiance once more.
At least Jade had been time-locked like him, which meant that the warrior's thoughts and feelings were exactly the same as they were back then. She was, for now, the only one he could trust completely.
"Keep an eye on her for me," he said, "But try not to lock horns with Elena if you can help it. I'm not sure you could take her on your own anymore. I'll have to assess her current abilities myself some time. Until then, it's better to be cautious."
Jade seemed to bristle at the comment, but didn't say anything about it. "As you command, my Lord."
They arrived at the top of the stairs and walked into his chambers. Flashes of memories came to him as he explored each of the rooms, taking it all in. There had been many good times here, and some bad ones, but overall it was a pleasant mix of memories that surfaced from the mental fog that didn't seem to be going away anytime soon.
Jade followed him dutifully and quietly, waiting for him to command her. She had done a thorough job cleaning from what he could see, and he made a note to commend her on it later. Such a task was well below her station, but she had done it anyway since there was no one else to do it at the moment.
When they reached the bathroom, they found Louise in a crumpled heap in the corner, fast asleep. Her hands were still holding the rags and duster that she had been using to clean the room. She was so tiny and vulnerable and again he found himself amazed and confounded as to how she was able to break his sealing spell, one that not even his most powerful followers could crack. And they had most certainly tried their hardest from what Jade had told him.
"I'm sorry, my Lord. I'll remove this filth from your presence immediately, and I will be sure to discipline her for falling asleep on the job," Jade said with a mixture of anger and disgust. She moved to do just that but stopped when he raised his arm to block her path.
He shook his head. "There is no need for that, Jade. She is just a child."
"But a child must still be taught how to behave properly, sire! Especially when it comes to matters concerning you!" exclaimed Jade, before she reached a hand up to her mouth, looking mortified. She fell down to one knee and bowed her head, spear standing upright next to her on its own. "I'm sorry for my sudden outburst, my Lord. Please forgive my rudeness."
"You are forgiven," he placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "But I command you not to discipline her for this small incident. At least this once. She has worked hard and without complaint, yes?"
She blinked a few times, then nodded her head slowly. "I suppose that she has worked fairly hard, my Lord, and she has not complained. Though her cleaning skills are poor. She seems quite inept at physical labor."
His head began to ache so he started to rub his temples with his fingers. "Has she been fed?"
"No, sire. Our food stocks are empty at the moment," replied the warrior with the beginnings of a frown playing on her lips.
"I'm guessing that she is tired and hungry and yet still worked as best as she could given the circumstances. She is only human after all. There is no need to be so harsh then. She is not strong like you, Jade."
Jade glanced towards the sleeping girl. "I... understand."
"Speaking of being strong... are you not hungry as well, Jade?"
"I..." the warrior hesitated, brow furrowing ever so slightly, "I have not thought about it, sire."
"You are still human as well, at least mostly, which means that you also require food to sustain yourself. Do not forget that, Jade," he said sternly, "I need you at your best at all times, now more than ever, which means you must take care of yourself. Is that clear?"
"I understand and will do better, my Lord. You can count on me!"
"I know," he said as he withdrew his hand from her shoulder then grimaced slightly from the pounding in his head.
He really needed to sort out his mind as soon as possible. "Draw me a bath, then get the girl to her room. After that, I think it best if you go out and procure some food, whether it is by hunting or by purchase. We should still have some coin, yes? She will be hungry when she wakes up, and if we are to keep her alive she will need food. And more importantly you will need to eat as well."
"I have not had a chance to check the treasury, my Lord, but I will do so immediately. Though I think it best if I hunt for now and save the visit to the markets for a later date, when the fortress is in better shape. There are some... issues with our defenses."
He nodded in agreement while he watched Jade begin to run the bath. She also activated the warming enchantment of the tub so that the water would be nice and warm when he got in.
"What issues?" he asked, leaning against the tub as he was finding it hard to keep standing.
"You need not worry, sire. Elena and I are handling it for now."
"Very well. I shall leave it to you two then." He wasn't sure if he could even really do much about it at the moment anyway given his current state.
"And what about you, my Lord? Do you wish for me to serve a meal for you as well?" she asked.
He smiled for the first time that evening. "Why not? It's been ages since I last ate anything."
=x=x=x=x=
Elena watched with open amusement as the vaunted elite unit of the Night Guard warily approached where she was standing, passing underneath the gigantic metal gate of the outer walls of the Black Fortress.
Some of them couldn't help but look up at the massive gate in awe, and a little bit of worry too. The gate was thick and dense. It was also certainly wide enough that if it suddenly fell on them now some of them were sure to be crushed beneath its tremendous weight, even with their enhanced speed as vampires.
Leading the group was none other than Marcus Seinhaisse, the fearsome Captain of the Night Guard. He alone didn't appear to be worried about potentially being flattened by the thousand tons of otherworldly metal that hung a mere fifteen feet off the ground right above him. His red eyes were locked onto the Night Queen, undoubtedly confident that they were safe since she was there.
When they finally reached her without incident, they all knelt down respectfully, and it was Marcus who spoke up.
"I'm glad to find you safe, my Queen. The entire Night Guard is assembled outside the fortress as instructed and we await your orders."
Elena was silent as she stepped closer to Marcus. She pressed a hand up against his rugged cheek, fingers playing for a moment with his beard.
The sudden touch of affection appeared to make the captain uncomfortable, but he didn't make a move to stop her. Nor did he say anything. The others pretended not to notice.
"I'm glad that you all arrived so quickly," she said with a winning smile, retracting her hand. It was always fun to make him squirm a bit. "I called you out here because I thought there might be some trouble brewing here, but it appears that something even more exciting is happening. That being said, there is no need for all of you to be here anymore. Unfortunately, there is no one for you all to fight here. At least, not anyone that you would want to fight."
She could see all sorts of questions cross each and every one of their faces, but no one dared to voice them. Not even Marcus.
Elena turned and looked around at the massive fortress, empty and lifeless. To have this place returned to its former glory would bring her no end of joy. And surely once the place was back up and running like a proper fortress with her help, her master would be more inclined to stay with them and perhaps begin a new campaign. The return of her master was certain to once again upset the balance of power across the continent, and things were going to get very interesting once again.
"I take it that your scouts have searched the surrounding area thoroughly?" she asked, looking directly at Marcus, who bowed his head. He still looked a little embarrassed but he did his best to answer in an even tone.
"Yes, your eminence. There are no signs of life within a two mile radius of the fortress, though we only scouted the lower elevations of the mountain that the fortress is built into," Marcus reported, "Other than the damage from to the forest from a magical explosion, there were numerous animal tracks in the forest all leading away from here, fairly recent. That was all that the scouts reported seeing."
"Have your scouts check again. Expand the search radius this time. Look for any signs of a camp or lookout. Make sure they are thorough, the camp I speak of is likely to be well hidden. Search the whole forest if need be."
"A camp, my Queen?" Marcus looked surprised.
"Yes. I'm certain that the enemies of the old Demon Lord are keeping watch over his fortress. He may have disappeared centuries ago, but they would be extremely foolish not to have an outpost keeping an eye on things in case of his return."
"Yes, your grace. What should we do if we find someone at the camp?"
"Oh, no need to worry. You won't," she replied. "I'm sure they've fled by now if they're smart and doing their job properly. But if the scouts do somehow come across a straggler, then they must capture them alive and bring them straight to me. Is that clear?"
"Should we track them from their camp if they aren't there?"
Elena thought for a moment, then gave a single nod. "Yes. Track them but tell the scouts to keep their distance. They must not know that we're following them. I want to know where they go and who they report to."
Marcus opened his mouth to say something else then closed it. He was probably about to ask why, but instead he nodded. "Yes, your eminence. I'll have the scouts go back out at once."
That's why she favored the big vampire. He was always so obedient and didn't really ask any questions. An excellent and very capable servant that she could rely on to carry out her orders to the letter.
Her gaze swept back across the kneeling vampires, a few of them were furtively casting glances at each other. She could tell what was on their minds now. They wanted to know why she was in the Black Fortress, and what caused her to summon them here with such urgency, but she wasn't going to let them in on what was going on just yet. They were going to figure it out eventually.
Besides, it was more fun to hear the rumors they would come up with later on. And she sure did love to have fun. Especially now, when things were starting to get really interesting once again.
"Marcus, you may send half of the Night Guard back to Nifleheim under the direction of your second. Kiho, was it?" She glanced at the black-haired lieutenant.
"Yes, your highness," Kiho bowed his head low, speaking quickly. "I am honored that you know my name, your highness."
"Of course. Marcus speaks highly of you," she said, noting how Kiho quickly looked over towards the big captain with gratitude and respect.
You're welcome.
Marcus didn't seem to notice.
Returning her attention to the captain, she continued. "They are to operate as usual. You will remain here with the other half and assist me in a project of great importance. Oh, and please have someone fetch Bartho for me. He'll be needed here as well. I will meet you back here at the gate in... shall we say twenty minutes?"
With that she twirled around and walked away, not waiting for a response and leaving them with many unanswered questions.
She couldn't wait to hear the rumors they spread.
=x=x=x=x=
"HYAH!" he yelled as he spurred his horse on.
Trees and underbrush whizzed by dangerously in the dim moonlight, and he got hit more than a few times by low branches. He almost fell off twice and his horse had stumbled several times as well. Thankfully they continued to stay upright and on track.
His horse seemed to understand the sense of urgency and moved swiftly as she could. She was bred for hard riding like this, though probably not in the dark.
They pressed on through the night though, careful to take a path through the Forest of Shadows that he knew had the least amount of trees, holes, and rocks to deal with to minimize the chances of an accident to either him or his horse that might delay him.
This was supposed to be an easy assignment. One that would lead him into a soft and early retirement. The pay was high because of the distance and the potential danger. Plus the assignment was for long periods of time, but it was worth it because hardly anything ever happened. He had been doing this assignment for well over twelve years now and never saw anything of note or felt any danger.
Easy money, or so he had thought.
He came upon a small lake that he had to go around, and the horse began to slow a bit. From here, it would take him half a day to reach the nearest outpost where he could file his report and finally get some rest. Normally, he would have taken his time and a few breaks on his way there, maybe even gone fishing, but the news that he carried was of paramount importance.
The Empire needed to be notified at once. This was his job after all. He had a duty to fulfill. Plus, he was sure that there was going to be a bonus to his pay for this. And maybe early retirement would follow.
Because for the first time in over two hundred years, there was significant movement in the Black Fortress.
=x=x=x=x=
Author's Note: I'm actually having a lot of fun writing this haha and upon further internal debate as well as some of your input, I'll be sure to add in some snippets of the goings on back in Halkeginia. Probably the first glimpse will be sometime in the next chapter or two. :)