Cassandra Pendragon
“Shouldn’t you be with him,” I asked Erya.
She slowly shook her head. “I… I still have a nearly depressed granddaughter to take care of. Morgan is hiding in her room and I’ve already spent too much time ignoring her. I don’t have the patience to care for your brother all the time on top of that. Besides… while I do enjoy his company, he’s starting to see more in me than I can reciprocate.” Shit. And I thought the two of them were getting closer. That definitely didn’t sound like it.
“Really,” Pete chimed in. “To me it seemed like the two of you were of one heart and one soul, just now. Was I mistaken?” Erya frowned and I could practically see her thoughts as she tried to figure out if and how to respond. Anxiety and regret were clearly visible in the tight line of her lips, her eyes were narrowing with annoyance and something akin to fear hid in her posture. For a former ruler and an instinct driven fey, she was surprisingly easy to read. Or I was just getting to know her better.
“You weren’t. But…” she glanced in my direction before she continued: “do you mind if I go on? It concerns you as well.’’ I blinked, oscillating between confusion, curiosity and just a hint of worry.
“Sure, I mean, how bad can it be?” I replied hesitantly, which elicited a sigh from her.
“Truth be told, pretty bad. He’s jealous of you, in more ways than one, and that we’re tied together doesn’t help one bit. He… I think he’s trying very hard to not blame you for his problems, but it’s not always working out. If we go on like this, I fear he might make me choose between the two of you, one day. And… well, I like him, I truly do, but I don’t think it’s a big secret how that would turn out. It’s got not so much to do with how I feel about either of you and more with who I am. I simply can’t deal with the amount of commitment he expects, at least not right now. One day, maybe, but if I take a step back and look at what has happened since you freed me...” she didn’t finish her sentence and shrugged instead.
I was pondering what she had said, when Ahri squirmed and whispered in my ear: “you should make the time to talk to both of them. Your brother… I think I know Mordred better than you do, and if the fey is right, you shouldn’t allow his feelings to fester. He’s got a nasty streak and I don’t want to imagine what might happen if he truly started believing you were responsible for his troubles. Also, while Erya didn’t admit as much, I still think a part of her believes that she’ll have a chance with you, if she just waits long enough. You owe it to her to clear the air. Unless, you’re interested as well?” Her tone surprised me. It was rather curious than defensive. Which in turn irked me immensely. I’d be furious if she wanted to jump into bed with anyone else.
Sending my thoughts through our tattoo, I asked: “wouldn’t you mind?” I didn’t manage to suppress every impulse that circled through my mind and when she felt what I was trying to hide, the blasted vixen even chuckled. I was ready to throw her off of me but she quickly leaned back and kissed me passionately enough to buy herself a few seconds. While the dwarfs wolf whistled and I could feel a blush rising to my cheeks, she replied:
“Of course I’d mind. I hate the thought of anyone else touching you. But if you were tempted, I’d want to know and I didn’t think that showing you precisely how thoroughly I detest the idea wouldn’t have been the best way to get the truth. I told you before, I’m a tad better at controlling my emotions than you are.”
“You manipulated me,” I wanted to hiss, but with the warmth of her lips still on mine, it came out closer to a moan, even telepathically. “Was that really necessary?”
“Cassy, you’re the most important being in my life. No, it wasn’t, but I still had to know. Just the same way I had to kiss you while Erya was watching, just now. A bit petty, but you know…”
“You actually are afraid of something,” I mused, my bad mood evaporating like a bad dream. She pinched my side before she said:
“That’s what you take form what I’ve said? By the Great Fox, maybe I’m the one who should be looking to get to know someone else.”
“You wouldn’t dare.” This time, I had no problems sounding menacing.
“Of course not,” she laughed. “I love you. And once we’re rid of our guest, I’ll remind you of just how much. But until then, I think we should focus, don’t you agree?” I wrapped my tails more tightly around her and nodded reluctantly. “Unfortunately…”
Our exchange had been nearly instantaneous and consequentially, I was faced with a variety of grins when I glanced past Ahri’s mane. After what she had told me, I couldn’t help but study Erya more closely. Superficially, she seemed as amused as the rest of them but there really was a strange tension to her expression and I saw her gaze flicker to Viyara, more than once.
The dragoness appeared composed while she transformed her arms back into their human form, but she was carefully avoiding looking at me. Now, that I actually thought about it, I realised that I already knew that both of them had been infatuated with me since we had first met. Erya had even been quite outspoken about it, even though I suspected that a lot of it had been simply for show. As far as the young dragoness was concerned, I expected her feelings to be closer to what Archy felt for me, a mixture of gratitude and curiosity, easily confuses with something more, that would blow over quickly enough. In his case, it already had.
The fey, though… I simply couldn’t tell. It didn’t matter too much, she had just now made it perfectly clear that she was level headed enough to make her choices without any sentimental baggage, but Ahri was right, too. If she truly thought that there might be something between us in the future, I owed it to her to set her straight. Even though, in my humble opinion, I had been perfectly honest from the start. Sifting swiftly through my recollections of our time together, I had to admit, I might have flirted with her once or twice, but I didn’t think that I had ever given her a reason to believe there might actually be more between us. Absentmindedly, my fingers brushed over the bracelet Ahri had given me and once again, I felt thoroughly grateful that I didn’t have to question my own feelings. The knowledge that I had already found someone was… comforting.
“Sorry for the interruption,” Ahri said out loud, “but I had to make a point.”
“I think you’ve been heard loud and clear, lass,” Xorlosh replied, “but I’ve got to wonder who the message was actually for. No matter, I don’t think I even want to know. We ought to get back to the question at hand anyways: what now?”
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“I don’t mind providing him with some gossip,” I jerked my head in Tharos” direction, “in case he’s more present than we believe but if you’re right and we have another message waiting for us, I’m not willing to discuss whom we should side with as long as he’s with us.”
“That’s one thing you don’t have to worry about,” Viyara replied. “Mephisto’s in his head. Even if the fox should hear something he isn’t supposed to, Mephisto can delete it instantly and I’m pretty sure he’s blocking his senses already. We’re about as safe as we can be.”
“In that case, let me ask this first: who’s even here? I heard that Morgan came along as well and I already met Reia. How many are we, all together?”
“Let me see,” Xorlosh rumbled while he distractedly packed his pipe again. “There’s the ones you see, the three kids,” he lit the tobacco and began counting off with his fingers, “the elves, a couple of me lads, 18, without the two of us, most of them still on board the ship, and of course, the pirates you took prisoner when you highjacked their ship. Incidentally, that’s something we have to deal with, soon. We can’t keep them locked up for much longer, they’ll become sick shortly. Maybe that’s something we could figure out now? I wouldn’t mind throwing them overboard terribly much, but I imagine you lot would rather find a less drastic solution. I guess we could always set them free, but I’d rather not.”
“And why’s that,” Pete wanted to know. “Most of them aren’t that bad. Hells, I imagine only a few wanted to become pirates in the first place. I could just as well be down there,” he added quietly.
“Lad, I know you’re decent enough folk, otherwise me and me lads would’ve already had a talk with you, but don’t make the mistake of thinking they’re all like you, cuz they aren’t.”
“And how would you know, Axe of Angram? It doesn’t look like you spent particularly much time with them.” The moniker made Xorlosh flinch, but even though I could see the grinding of his jaws, he answered calmly, his irritation hidden behind a jovial mask:
“Pete, I get it, I truly do. You’ve had a lucky break and now you feel like you have to stand up for the ones who weren’t as fortunate. That shows some character, but… tell me, if you hadn’t been around us for the last couple o’ days, dare I say made friends, and someone came up to you and offered you good coin for whatever you knew about us, would you take it?”
Pete already drew in his breath to answer but he deflated quickly enough. “I suppose so,” he grudgingly admitted. “Answer me this, though, if you go ahead and finish them off, where’s the difference between you and the vampire you obviously hate so much.”
“Simple, I won’t hesitate to kill in cold blood if it makes me and mine safer. You’ve called me Axe of Angram… do you know what that means?” The human shrugged and I sat up straighter, curious to get some information about Xorlosh’s past.
“It’s a title, more than anything, one I earned for cutting a bloody path through my own people. You know what happened? I wasn’t chastised, punished or exiled for it. I was hailed a hero cuz I had the guts to do what was necessary and damn the consequences and I slept like a baby afterwards. I think you’ve known me and me boys for long enough now to tell that we aren’t looking for excuses to murder people, but I’ll be damned if I risk the neck of any single one of my friends to satisfy a need to be seen as a hero.” He turned to me and asked:
“Lass, I’ve got a question: do you think you could keep us safe from the vamps and the scum of this place, if you truly tried?” I didn’t even have to think about my answer.
“No, I’ve already proven that I can’t. We came here in the first place because I couldn’t.”
“There you have it,” the dwarf continued. “She’s one of the most powerful beings I’ve ever met and still she can’t. If you want to see yourself as a saviour, you better make darn sure that you’ve got the firepower to back it up, in case things go south. And we simply don’t. Let those buggers out of the brig, let them swarm through the city with everything they know about us, and we’ll have a dagger in our backs sooner than you can imagine.”
“Ah, but I believe that’s were you’re mistaken, my burly friend,” Auguros interjected. “The cat is already out of the bag, so to speak. Do you think a vampire, old and strong enough to walk under the sun, is simply dropping by on accident? Whether or not Tom is telling on us doesn’t even matter, we’ve already left a lasting impression. I don’t see what you’re worried about. Do you truly think that a few handful of human sailors could pose as big a threat as him alone,” he jerked his head in Tharos’ direction, “ never mind his master? If there even is one.”
“What do you mean by that,” I asked.
“Well, I’m not we’ll versed in the lore of the undead, but over the centuries I’ve picked up a thing or two. For him to be able to walk under the sun isn’t normal, it’s an ability unique to the oldest bloodlines, as far as I’m aware. He definitely isn’t just another lackey, but who’s to say that we don’t have the actual Captain Dawn in our midst?”
“I am.” Mephisto’s voice was loud and clear but when I glanced his way, I saw him shake his head vigorously, as if he was trying to get rid of the images that were still stuck in his mind. Tharos, on the other hand, seemed more composed but his movements were edgy and unnaturally fast, his predatory nature clearly visible, despite his attempts to appear at ease.
The demon focused on the fox and said: “get out. We’ll be there but until then, I want to see neither you nor one of your goons near this house. I think we can take care of ourselves for a few days. And… well played. I didn’t expect you to come prepared. It’s… a nice change to deal with someone competent, once in a while. Also, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have judged you so harshly, but it didn’t matter, in the end, did it? Now move, before I change my mind.” Without anther word, the vampire got up, bowed to us and headed for the door, leaving behind a stunned silence.
When I heard the front door close, I asked: “What was that all about? Care to explain? Or would that be too much trouble for his demonic majesty?” I had intended to sound flippant, but since I was beginning to struggle with simply sitting upright, I didn’t think that I actually managed to pull it of. Whiny was probably closer to how I had actually sounded. Mephisto didn’t reply immediately and closed his eyes while his crown vanished and the shadows around him dispersed. After a second or two, he again looked like the slightly eccentric pharaoh I had come to know him as. When he raised his head, he smirked at me: “Isn’t it past your bedtime? You look like you’re close to another collapse.” I flipped him off.
“Fine, I guess I can tell you a short bedtime story. Listen closely, all of you, I’m not keen on repeating myself. First of, I’ve accepted the invitation from Tharos’ liege, the main reason why he was here in the first place. Three days from now, I’ll be visiting the local, undead overlord and you’re very welcome to join me, in case you want to. Now, as for why… it might not seem like it, but I think this time around, Lady Luck actually smiled down on us, for once. If we play our cards right, we might have the chance to throw an undead army at Amon, gain access to a series of gateways that connect to a few islands and, possibly, even to the other continent.” He paused and pinched the bridge of his nose, taking a deep breath before he went on.
“I guess I should start with what vampires actually are. Basically, there are three different types, pure bloods, changed either in the womb or during their earliest days, the turned, who were transformed when they were older and ghouls, the result of a vampire trying to transform someone who’s already given in to carnal pleasures. As you might imagine, they differ greatly in how powerful they are, a consequence of how the transformation works. Vampirism is mostly described as a virus and that’s not a bad metaphor. In essence, when a mortal is turned, his energies are changed beyond recognition. The soul becomes tethered to the life force directly, which is then fused to the body, which means, that even though they are technically corpses, they still live. To make such a thing possible, the astral vessel is burned, consumed to fuel the change.
Consequentially, the stronger the magic of the turned individual was in life, the stronger of an undead he’ll become. Also, the purer the mana used in the transformation is, the more potent the abilities of the resurrected vampire, which is why there’s so much of a difference in relation to when the change happens. Now, aside from providing you with basic education, which all of you dearly need, I’m telling you this so you understand what it means, when I say that the leader of the Cabal and Captain Dawn are siblings, transformed in the womb, when their mother was slain.”