Orville studied the fledgling prostrating before him with a dispassionate gaze, he could smell the young blood’s fear. A mixture of revulsion and sadistic glee warred in his chest as the scent tickled his nostrils.

His “advisors” stood silently off to his right as they awaited his decision, they too radiated uncertainty and fear in smaller quantities.

His hand moved to fix his tie, the fledgling flinched at the movement eliciting a soft chuckle from his lips.

“Rise, childe”

He commanded softly, yet his voice carried over the immaculately tiled floors and lacquered furniture.

“You display great courage by venturing here alone, the journey must have been perilous. No doubt you must be famished”

The fledgling gulped and rubbed at his throat, proving Orville’s statement to be true.

“Tell me, kin. What is your name and who is your sire?”

The man shuffled in place, seemingly uncertain of his next words or perhaps he was simply too terrified to speak; either way, Orville waited patiently for him to gather his wits.

“I....my name is Erik. My mistress goes by the name of lady Lull”

That piece of information gave Orville pause. Lady Lull, as she called herself was one of the few fanged (as the mortals dubbed them) who rivalled himself in personal and political power. Although she was younger than himself by a few centuries she more than made up for it with magical might and scathing intelligence.

Despite her status as an ancient, very little information could be found on her. Any who attempted to glean any information went missing, no doubt thanks to her magical prowess. Orville himself attempted sending spies to her court to see what they could glean, unsurprisingly, he never heard from them again.

Imagine his surprise in finding her progeny wandering within his halls. A coincidence? Unlikely.

Orville pulled himself from his thoughts, refocusing on the dishevelled young man before him. Intrigue and the barest hint of worry emerged within his mind as he contemplated her purpose in sending her childe to him.

Subterfuge perhaps?

Only one way to find out, he reasoned

“Well, Erik” he leaned forward as he rested his elbows on his knees and interlaced his fingers, piercing golden eyes bored into Erik’s hazel “What, pray tell, is your business here?”

The room shifted as he released the tight grip he kept on his aura, the change would be imperceptible to the average mortal but to creatures such as they, it was blatantly obvious.

The fledgling no doubt saw it for what it was, a display of power. A needless show, but one Orville saw as necessary given the situation. Either way, the display worked as intended given the way Erik seemed to shrink in on himself.

“m-my master....requests an audience”

Orville raised an eyebrow but made no comment, Erik took that as an indication to continue.

“Lady Lilith Graham formally invites Grand Regent Orvillus Valcroix to her inner sanctum” Scrounging what little courage remained and displaying as much pride as he dared, he belted out the words his mistress instructed him to relay.

Somehow, faces which lacked pigmentation paled even further. Orville paid them no mind, opting to study the implications were this piece of information proven to be true.

His instincts were quiet, Orville took that as a good sign. He had long since grown tired of the conflict wrought by mortals and Fae alike, he didn’t have the energy for more needless strife.

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An alliance perhaps? He spent a few tense minutes brooding as Erik and his advisors waited impatiently with bated breath.

“I accept” he finally announced much to his advisors’ dismay. They began to raise their voices in objection but were immediately silenced with a gesture “Tell your mistress I’ll be there before sunrise tomorrow. You may go. Feel free to grab something to eat before you leave”

Orville watched as the fledgling bowed low and hurried out of the room as quickly as his legs could carry him without a glance backward.

One of his advisors stepped forward, her heels tapping rhythmically against the tiled floor as she approached.

“If I may speak freely, my lord”

She began, head bowed and eyes downcast. Orville gestured for her to continue “Forgive me if I may sound rude, but are you really going to waltz into her court accepting her words at face value? Doesn’t that seem a tad……..impulsive?”

Orville chuckled, reading the undertone of what she actually wanted to say but refrained from doing so. Catalina was one of his most trusted advisors for a reason, her willingness to speak her mind regardless of the circumstances was invaluable to him. He loved her for it.

“I appreciate your concern, Catalina. Under any other circumstance you would be correct but these are different times we live in” Orville fixed her with a tight smile, she looked like she wanted to press the issue further but the look in his eyes stopped her in her tracks; instead she bowed her head and stepped back in line with the others “As you wish, Lord Valcroix” she intoned.

Orville nodded and rose from his ornately designed throne, his heeled shoes reverberating through the hall as he made his way down the steps to stand before his most loyal followers. He met each of their eyes individually, smiling to himself as his aether passed through their beings “Catalina, Desmond, Biyon, Kaiyon. Should I fail to return I leave my lands and everything I own to you. Continue to defend the mortals in my stead”

The four bowed in unison, to which Orville smiled before disappearing with an audible pop and rush of displaced air.

-0-

Orville reappeared in his private armoury, startling the poor serpent he tasked with guarding his most precious of treasures. The snake pressed her mind against his in query, her forked tongue flicking out of her mouth in agitation.

“I’m simply here to collect something, Sapphire. You needn’t worry yourself” The serpent slithered forward, splintering the granite floor beneath her bulk as she came to a halt before Orville; releasing a warning hiss directly in his face.

“You’ve gotten awfully rude in my absence, dear. Do tread carefully” he stated with narrowed eyes though there was a trace of teasing in his tone to take some of the bite out of his words.

He stroked the gleaming scales on her massive head as she shrinked back minutely, suitably cowed at committing her faux pas.

Orville smiled sadly and transmitted his feelings of forgiveness through the bond they shared via the aether. The ancient serpent’s golden eyes bored into his own, conveying what words could not as she pressed her head against him.

“Don’t worry, Sapphire. Nothing will happen to me” he comforted her as he chortled, though his words did little to convince her when she felt his uncertainty as clearly as he felt her own concern.

Putting aside her concern, the serpent nudged him deeper into the armoury and slithered away into the dark recesses of the decrepit room.

Orville strolled through the room as he felt the item he sought pulling him toward it like a moth drawn to a flame. It wasn’t long before he saw the ring which helped him achieve the level of power he had reached several hundred years prior.

“Hello again, old friend” Orville spoke as the unassuming ring floated above an empty wooden bowl. The ring was a plain band of silver with a small ruby stone imbedded within; it floated in place in a lazy circle and as Orville reached out to it, seemingly sensing his intent it zipped toward him and seamlessly slid itself onto his index finger.

The world seemed to freeze for a moment before a pulse of pure aether exploded from him, blasting everything around him away with force. Orville found himself lifted into the air as aether flowed through him as easily as if he were breathing.

Orville closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath. The feeling of unbridled power flowing through his being left him with a heady feeling he took time pulling himself back from, that was a slippery slope he had no interest in going down.  After several moments of wrestling back control over his mental faculties, Orville released the breath he had been holding and opened his eyes slowly.

His golden eyes burned with an intensity akin to the sun as his feet touched the floor and the room returned to its previous ambiance. The rolling power buried beneath his skin settled and waited for his command to be unleashed like a loyal servant.

A content smile spread across Orville’s face as he opened and closed his hands. He took a moment longer to gather himself, his body felt like an old suit he had long outgrown.

“it certainly has been a while” he muttered to himself and with a flex of his will, he disappeared with nary a sound.