Author's notes:
2021-09-17: Hey, a short preview of the next chapter is here. I wanted you to know what I'm currently working on. I was a little torn between writing an update for this story of 'My home is where my heart lies'. However, I thought that the latter would require a hell-lot more preparation from me. So, decided to proceed with this story for now. In the meantime gathering the ideas, thoughts. Anyways, here's the preview.
2021-09-20: Hey, the chapter was finished. It took a bit of time, I must admit. But, frankly, I am quite satisfied with the end result. Of course, it might be only me. So, please let me know what do you think. So, I can improve and adjust ;)
Don't forget to comment. I really appreciate your feedback.
Note that the dialogues written in italic are thoughts.
As always, I would like to thank you for everything. See you soon :)
Changelog:
[2021-09-17]: A preview was released.
[2021-09-20]: A chapter was fully released.
Info: I will be trying to focus on finishing some of the stories, rewriting some parts.
Schedule for the nearest future:
1. My home is where my heart lies.
2. Family tree.
3. The rise of the Blood Moons' servants.
4. Fully original story.
5. Story of one lost soul.
6. Will you look past my mistakes?
7. Last Christmas.
Bonuses' section:
A new story taking place in the Warhammer 40k universe.
A story regarding KaiKali (aka Akali x Kai'sa) (Will you look past my mistakes?).
Sometimes it's just better not to know (possibly rewrite).
Kiss the rain (more than likely rewrite).
Whispers in the Dark (extending beyond 2 chapters story).
Story of one lost soul (translation of 2 of my old texts - previously written in polish).
Story of one lost soul: The war call: rewrite.
References:
Arch Enemy - As the Pages Burn
*bonuses will be worked on when I don't feel like writing the chapters pointed out in the schedule :D
** It is possible for me to change the schedule a little. So stay tuned for the upcoming information.
End of author's notes.
The next few minutes could not have been described with a better word than blurry. Without any other available option, the RDT officer had been forced to follow the council's leader. The platinum-white-haired woman had seemed to be a manifest of nature. Maybe it had been just her, but she could have sworn that the light had begun to dim when the vampire had entered the room. But, of course, the opposite could have been said when she had been leaving. The light had seemed relived with Miss Tepes gone, returning to its former glory, shining brightly.
Before Vayne could even process their journey fully, they reached the garage section of the complex. Truth be told, the raven-haired woman had expected to be lead into the same area she initially had been brought into. However, it did seem that many additional levels were serving the same purpose.
Strangely enough, no member of the security could have been seen as far as Shauna could see. She tried to look around at least a couple of times. But, in the end, it was evident that they were here alone.
It must have been admitted, the nearby area was more than spacious. It would not have been an understatement to say that most if not all RDT vehicles could be stored there easily. However, the council apparently had not opted to utilise it. Only one car could be spotted in the officer's sight. And… it must have been Miss Tepes's vehicle. There was no other explanation about its presence here.
"Surprised, are you not?" the white-haired vampire asked, turning around slightly to look at Shauna.
"Yes, a little," the officer replied.
"You have expected me driving a limousine, have you not?" Akali uttered a question, smirking at the raven-haired woman. "Luxury can be handy in some situations. However, driving is not one of them. In that field, I prefer performance over it," she added. "Come, we have wasted enough time already."
Many things could be said about Miss Tepes's car, but you possibly could not have called it unluxurious. To sum it up simply, it was a vehicle similar to the one from earlier on.
With a little hesitation, she trailed after the council's leader. After all, she had really no other options. Of course, she could have just refused to obey Miss Tepes's orders. However, it could backfire on the whole RDT. And… currently, they really needed the additional resources that Akali could have given them. So, Vayne opted to play obediently.
The revving of the engine was fantastic. Then, within a fraction of a second, a powerful construction returned to life, announcing it.
"Fasten your seatbelts," the white-haired woman commented emotionlessly. Then, she pushed down the accelerator pedal a couple of times, causing the revving to sound time and time again. "I am not a slow driver," she added once she spotted the confused look on Vayne's face.
Before the RDT officer could do as she had been told, Miss Tepes pulled away rapidly. Even though the car only just began speeding up, the pressure put onto Shauna was noticeable, pushing her deep into the seat.
"I told you to fasten your seatbelts," a reproving comment was made by the vampire. "Though do not get too comfortable, it will take us only a couple of minutes to reach the destination."
"Affirmative, ma'am," the raven-haired officer sighed heavily, giving up. She could not win with that woman.
Even if the council's leader had wanted to add something, she had opted not to. Instead, the decision was made to focus solely on driving. After all, as she had already said, it would not take them long to reach the morgue where the bodies were being held.
A couple of minutes later:
Vayne had not been told that the victims' remnants had been kept inside the St. Peter's Hospital. That particular clinic had been considered one of the best across the country for many, many years by now.
Frankly saying, the hospital had been set in the empty buildings that once had been part of the Christian University of Science. So, most of the walls here were black as onyx. Yet, surprisingly, they had endured the trial of time. After all, the university had been built in the early stages of the 21st century.
The whole complex had been build upon a simple plan of three squares. Each following one contained the remaining ones. The outer ring currently was used as the entry point to the main hospital facility. Here the registration office was located alongside the first-contact doctors' cabinets. Due to its enormous space, most of the medical supplies usually were stored there as well.
A few people who worked in the morgue had waited for them right before the hospital's back entrance. Usually, this passage was reserved only for the ambulances. However, as it apparently seemed, Miss Tepes could freely use it. Truth be told, she was the leader of the council. She had nearly immeasurable resources at her disposal, and she could use them with as little as the snap of her fingers.
As soon as they had exited the vehicle, all of these men started to basically worship the vampire. Then, they started bowing, greeting, talking sweetly toward the council's leader. It was evident that Miss Tepes did not like that kind of behaviour. It took only a couple of moments for her to get tired of that crap. Finally, the white-haired woman raised her hand, clearly indicating the men to shut up. Then, she allowed herself to roll her eyes in discontent.
That situation lasted at least a couple of moments, giving more than enough time for Vayne to take a closer look. All of the morgue's employees wore a complete set of suits.
"They must have been working recently with something radioactive," Shauna hummed to herself. "But why?" she uttered a silent question.
Something was evidently off. She could tell that for sure; however, what was causing such a train of thoughts was still unknown. She was brought back to reality when she felt someone staring at her. When she looked around to identify the source of that feeling, the unpleasant shiver ran down her spine. But, of course, it could not have been anyone else than Miss Tepes. Her silver eyes turned crimson-red in a heartbeat. Even though her face remained emotionless, Vayne was positive that the vampire was displeased.
"Can we proceed, Vayne?" a simple question was uttered in such a cold and harsh manner as the Syberian night.
"Of course, ma'am," the RDT officer replied immediately, forcing herself to bow slightly. "I'm sorry, I got distracted," she provided a little bit of explanation.
"I want Dr Michel to be present during the autopsy," the white-haired vampire uttered coldly toward the men. "And, on top of that, I do not want to see you anymore. So you all can consider yourselves dismissed."
The morgue's employees did not utter a single word. Instead, they just bowed before Miss Tepes, and then, they left.
Complete silence was allowed to fell upon them for the next couple of prolonged moments. The white-haired woman had her back turned on Vayne. Based on her body language, she was deeply thinking about something. The RDT officer did not dare to disturb Miss Tepes. In her current situation, it would not be a wise decision to take.
After maybe 5 or so minutes, the council's leader decided to break the silence.
"We can talk now," Akali started surprisingly. "Follow me. They will not be able to hear our conversation."
With these words, Miss Tepes proceeded forward, not waiting for the raven-haired woman to catch up. Without a better alternative, Vayne jogged toward the council's leader, vanishing the gap within moments. She did not want to show it off, but she was curious what would be the topic of their talk.
"You have sensed that something is not entirely right here?" the white-haired woman asked. Frankly, it was more of a statement than a question.
"Yes," Shauna simply replied. "I don't know why, but their outfits don't quite match the case," she provided a simple preview of her thoughts.
"I would say so," the still crimson-red-eyed beauty agreed emotionlessly. "It seems that I will need to take a closer look at the hospital's spendings. But… back to the main topic; Dr Michel is the only doctor here that can be trusted without question," she informed the officer.
"What makes you so sure about her?" the curious black-haired officer asked. Although she immediately regretted asking, she did not manage to bite her tongue quicker to stop it.
"Hmmm… I guess I should tell you that it is classified," the vampire uttered, shrugging nonchalantly. "However, it might matter later on. She is one of our agents, more precisely mine," she added.
"You wanted to say that she's the part of that security team that's protecting the council?" Vayne wanted some sort of verification.
"You could say that," the council's leader replied. "If… my speculations are correct, your case will get much more difficult than it is already."
"What do you mean by that?" the raven-haired officer asked.
"I think you will find out soon," Miss Tepes replied, effectively cutting off the conversation. "But now, we should hurry up. We should not allow Dr Michel to keep waiting for our arrival."
With nothing more to add – or at least, it seemed that way – the white-haired woman sped up noticeably.
The RDT officer had nowhere to go other than to follow the vampire. So, with a heavy sigh, she did so.
A couple of minutes later:
To say that from outside the St Peter's Hospital gave a grimdark aura would not have been an understatement. The very walls in the colour of the onyx seemed to be only a thin layer behind which something nasty was lurking. It would be safe to acknowledge that you would constantly feel watched from afar whilst walking around the complex. For Vayne, it would be no different. The RDT officer was turning around every couple of moments, looking around frantically. She felt as if she had been put into the cage, and someone was enjoying her struggles. The woman felt a cold sweat running down her neck. It would have been enough to say that it had not been the most pleasurable sensation. Still, she must have reminded herself at least a couple of times that as soon as they would be in, the nasty feelings would be gone. The only problem was that she did not believe in such lies since she had been a child.
Soon enough, they entered the cluster of buildings in the middle square. If it had been possible, the aura reigning here had been even more grimdark. The old, scarred by the passage of time, walls were gone. However, the modern lighting system behind the thin layer of the semi-transparent material cast a hollow, bluish light, making the raven-haired woman uneasy. The fact that no one was around only fed her paranoia.
The white-haired vampire paid the RDT officer no mind. Instead, she pushed forward steadily, not even looking behind. The council's leader seemed unaffected by the hospital's aura. Even more so, she appeared to be drawing it toward herself.
"I would strongly recommend you hurry up, Vayne!" a cold snap pierced through the silence.
For a couple of short-lived moments, the raven-haired woman wanted to reply with something. However, soon enough, she realised there was nothing to say. So, she just lowered her head a little, just like a small child. Then, she ran toward the emotionless frame she knew under the name of Miss Tepes. But, as expected, the vampire did not wait for her. Instead, the white-haired leader returned to previously interrupted occupation, heading forward.
Shauna followed the council's leader without uttering a single word. Still, to some extent, the more time she spent nearby Akali, the more intimidated she felt. It would be extremely challenging to express what was really going on in her mind. So, the officer decided to cut off the connection, at least temporarily. She believed it would be far easier to deal with the case whilst keeping her paranoia in check.
It took them a couple of minutes to reach the stairs. Even though it was to be expected that the morgue would be located underground, Vayne shuddered as soon as Miss Tepes started coming down. So, a heavy sigh was allowed to be released. It was steadily getting more and more difficult to control her emotions. The sinister feeling that she had noticed on their arrival here not only did not fade away, but it also grew stronger.
Within the next couple of moments, they started to delve deeper into the lower levels. The semi-transparent material so commonly used on the ground level was nowhere to be seen. Instead, its place was taken by polished corpse-pale tiles. These were used for both the walls and floors. The corridors were flooded by the hollow bluish light coming from the lighting panels installed on the ceiling. The RDT looked a little higher, both curious and uneasy. These panels took all of the ceilings space. It was just a matter of time before the raven-haired woman started to shudder again. Time after time, unpleasant shivers ran down her spine whilst the cold sweat ran down her neck. Vayne needed more than a minute to notice that her breathing had become shallow. Her hot breaths turned into cloudy mists the moment they were through her slightly parted lips. It was evident the temperature here was much lower than in above levels.
They continued delving deeper into the underground level for another couple of minutes. It must have been admitted that the scenery did not change much. However, it was still making Shauna uneasy. To her, it seemed as if they ventured into some sort of a horror movie. And… frankly, she hated that genre.
"Why is there so cold?" the officer allowed herself to ask a question.
"Does it really matter?" the vampire asked a question of her own instead of replying.
"A little," the raven-haired woman uttered. "I'm freezing!" she complained.
"Then, I would strongly recommend preparing yourself for even more discomfort," the council's responded emotionlessly. "Inside the room, we are heading, the temperature will be noticeably lower."
"Splendid!" Vayne complained.
"You should have worn something warmer," the white-haired beauty made a comment. "We will soon reach the room," she informed the latter.
"Much appreciated," Shauna replied. "The quicker we deal with that autopsy, the quicker we can leave that damned place!" she opted to continue complaining.
After that, once again, the silence took its reign over. It was only minorly interrupted by the sounds of the flickering lighting panels above their heads. Although they were getting closer to Dr Michel, the temperature was still going down and down. To Vayne's dissatisfaction, Miss Tepes had told her the truth. The RDT officer clenched her teeth, trying not to think about the cold she was surrounded by. But, sadly, her effort was mostly in vain.
Soon enough, they reached the open door leading to a medium-sized room filled with much brighter light. At first, the raven-haired woman got blinded by an oh-so-different kind of light reigning here. Then, however, her sight adjusted to the new circumstances quite quickly. Still, they had yet to be entangled into a conversation. So, it gave the officer a chance to look around. As previously spotted, the room was more or less of medium size. The numerous square-like opening could be seen on both her left and right. Behind these steel plates, the remnants of the deceased must have been kept. Their surfaces were shinning as if recently tidily cleaned. The RDT officer counted 8 such openings on each wall. The floor still consisted of the corpse pale tile. However, the walls were overbuilt with some sort of silver material that resembled steel. The bright light that was filling the room was coming from the numerous small bulbs. It was a wordlessly welcomed change for Vayne. Outside of these details, the room area was empty. In front of them, another opened door could be easily spotted.
Without wasting time, Miss Tepes pushed forward, getting to the next door in a matter of moments. Behind them, the much smaller compartment lay. In its middle, the tall brown-haired woman was leaned over the decimated corpse, inspecting the wounded tissue inch by inch. The dead body was lying on the ceramic platform. Frankly, it was a disgusting sight to behold.
"Adria," the emotionless voice of Miss Tepes pierced through the silence. "I hope everything goes according to the plan?" she asked, eyeing the doctor.
"Miss Tepes," Dr Michel greeted her superior with high regard hearable in her voice. "I'd say so," she replied immediately. "What is she doing here?" she asked, pointing out the RDT officer.
"She is with me; but, that much you can see already with your owns eyes," the vampire responded coldly. "She came to me with that very case. So, I thought that it would be better to bring her in with me."
"Apologies, Miss Tepes," Adria apologised, slightly bowing. "You don't have to fill me with the reasoning behind your decision, ma'am. So what do you require of me tonight?" she asked, fixing her gaze onto the dead once again.
"I need a full autopsy of these bodies," the council's leader uttered instantly. "In the reports, there are bite marks on these bodies. I would like you to investigate that, and tell me what do you think. So shortly, I need your expertise, Adria."
"Very well," the brown-haired woman responded, nodding. "It'll get messy pretty quickly, ma'am. So I'd strongly recommend putting something on. I wouldn't want your clothes to get dirty."
"Understandable," Akali hummed. "I will assist you, Adria," she added.
"I assure you have already some speculations, Miss?" the brown-haired doctor asked, not even looking into Miss Tepes.
"Some rough ideas, but yes," the vampire provided a response.
"Very well," Dr Michel nodded. "We can start when you're ready, Miss Tepes," she informed her superior.
"Vayne," the white-haired woman referred to the RDT officer. "Please, stay in the adjacent room. With your stomach, you will be of no use to us during the autopsy," she added as emotionlessly as ever.
"I understand," Shuna responded immediately. She was far too exhausted to fight with the council's leader right now. Not that the vampire was wrong. Quite the opposite actually, Miss Tepes seemed to know her better than she had initially anticipated.
Sometime later:
Throughout the following hours, the officer had little to nothing to do. Dr Michel was the only one that had left the compartment since they had begun the operation. Though, it had been given her a chance to look closely at the council's… no, Miss Tepes's agent. Adria was only slightly smaller than the white-haired vampire. Her brown hair was cut short, allowing them to reach the base of the woman's jaw. Vayne wondered whether they were as soft as they looked. The lively green eyes could have been easily mistaken with the emeralds. They were beautiful and intoxicating. Though, it must have been admitted that these emerald eyes seemed to be piercing through one's soul. When Dr Michel looked intensively at her, an unpleasant shiver ran down her spine. The RDT officer could not have identified her nationality. Miss Tepes's agent could have easily come from both the USA or some European country.
Finally, after god knows how long, Adria stood in the door, gesturing for her to come in. Without a single second of hesitation, the raven-haired woman followed her immediately. The white-haired woman still stood next to the platform, looking at something intensively. She was frowning, not really paying attention toward both Adria and Shauna.
"Have you found out something?" the RDT officer asked after only a couple of seconds of waiting. But, unfortunately, after these couple of past hours, she got immensely impatient.
"Adria?" the vampire simply uttered.
"As you wish, Miss Tepes," the doctor replied with a nod. "These bite marks were left only as a distraction," she slowly added.
"What do you mean by that?!" the raven-haired officer demanded the answers. She was already exhausted beyond her limits. So, she did not care about pleasantries.
"The bites were left after the victims were already dead," Dr Michel started again, trying to sound cooly. However, her emerald eyes seemed to be on fire. "Underneath them, we've found decent chunks of meat missing."
"But… it still seems like the work of a degenerate!" Shauna loudly protested. "These chunks of meat could be ripped from the body," she tried to convince the other women.
"Possibly… they could've been," the brown-haired woman uttered coldly. "But," she sighed heavily. "It isn't the case. These parts were cut off, removed with surgical precision. Possibly, the 'thing' which is behind all of that had access to a scalpel. All the cuts we found there were clean. As I said… it was performed surgically," the doctor explained, massaging her tired eyes.
"But… what for? Who would've wasted so much time and effort for a couple chunks of meat?" Vayne asked. No, she wanted to know the answer. The already wicked case was only going nastier and nastier.
"It was human flesh; remember that," Dr Michel replied. "It's the clue to the whole case."
"In what freaking twisted up way?!" the RDT officer burst out.
"There are places all around the world where human flesh is highly valued," Adria whispered quietly. "In any other cases… I'd say that someone has made a very specific request; but, I'm not delusional," she mumbled.
"What are you talking about?" the raven-haired woman asked. Though, deep inside, she knew she did not want to know the answer.
"Think about it for a moment," Miss Tepes's agent replied. "Why would you kill someone for flesh? More than that, get a small fraction of it, leaving the rest to rot, leaving the evidence of a crime?"
"Adria, could you please hurry up?" the white-haired vampire asked, annoyed.
"Of course," Dr Michel whispered. "We… we might be facing the vampire," she started. "We can't entirely disqualify this possibility, but most likely, we're dealing with a cannibal. Or… at least, someone who's willing to openly throw the gauntlet. And… make no mistakes, that person isn't aiming at you, Vayne, nor your RDT. That person is taunting Miss Tepes to react," she explained.
After that, the silence was allowed to take over the reign in the room. Both Adria and Shauna kept staring at the council's leader, expecting her to say or do something. But, instead, the possibly most influential and powerful being in the city stood still, consumed in her own thoughts.
"Adria, you are officially pulled back from the hospital," Miss Tepes uttered after a couple of minutes of silence. "I want you to search the data regarding missing peoples' cases for the last 10 years or so. And… about you, Miss Vayne, you have been pulled into a really difficult case. So I expect you to work closely with me. From now on, until the case is closed, you will be moved to the council's complex."
"Apologies, ma'am," the brown-haired agent started. "You're already suspecting someone, aren't you?" she asked.
"No," the council's leader replied. "The people whom I could easily suspect of something like that are already dead. I need more intel. I will neither work nor act blindly."
"Understood, Miss Tepes," the agent nodded. "Will you summon the council?" she asked yet another question.
"No, they will not move a finger," the vampire responded. "I have some tested methods that will be far more efficient."
"At this point, I'm afraid to ask," Adria whispered.
"Yes, I have them in mind," Akali uttered. "Come with us, little one; we will soon have much to do," she said toward Shauna. Her voice was filled with exhaustion.
The RDT officer was left with no other option than to follow the white-haired vampire. Another heavy sigh was allowed to be released. In the end, it seemed that her guts had been right again from the very start.