The building looked like it had once been a stately manor, with intricate iron gates surrounding its sprawling lawn and hedges lining its paved driveway. But now, the lawn was overgrown with weeds, and the hedges had turned into tangled bushes that engulfed the iron fences.
Aubrey's eyes narrowed as she caught sight of a few sigils etched into the building's walls, just barely visible beneath the peeling paint and faded brickwork. She couldn't tell what they were meant to do, but she knew that any enchantments placed on the place couldn't be good news for her.
She followed Jake through the gate and up the front steps, keeping her head down and trying to look as docile as possible. The shackles he'd put on her made it difficult to walk, but she managed to keep pace with him.
The man escorting her had a limp in his gait, though he did his best to hide it as he led her through the door and into the building's foyer. Inside, she saw several other cloaked figures waiting for them—two men and a woman, all dressed in similar black robes. They stared at her intently as she approached.
"Who is this?" one of them asked Jake, gesturing towards Aubrey.
"An Unhallowed," he replied, keeping his eyes focused straight ahead. "Found her lurking around the old asylum. She gave herself up."
"Where are the others? Didn't you have a team?"
Jake stiffened slightly, glancing down at his feet before answering. "Dead."
The three cloaked figures exchanged glances, frowning. "All of them?"
He nodded grimly. "She killed them."
Aubrey tried not to grin too widely as she listened to their conversation. The other three seemed surprised by the news, though they didn't seem particularly upset by it either.
"That's unfortunate," one said simply. "But at least we can get some answers out of her."
As if on cue, four figures approached from behind her. They wore suits of armor made from interlocking metal plates, and carried shields engraved with sigils similar to those etched into the building's walls. They each held a spear in their right hands, which they pointed directly at Aubrey's throat.
Their helmets looked like medieval knight helmets, but with slits for eyes and a flat nose guard that came to a point. The faceplates were painted black, with glowing red eyes staring out from within.
Something seemed off about the way they moved—not quite human, and yet not quite mechanical either. They stepped slowly and deliberately, as if each footfall had been choreographed ahead of time.
"Take her to the interrogation room," said one of the other cloaked figures. "Make sure she's secured properly before questioning begins."
The four guards nodded silently in unison and gestured for Aubrey to follow them. She glanced over her shoulder at Jake and winked playfully before letting herself be led away.
She kept up her charade as they walked through the building's halls, passing by rooms filled with equipment and shelves stocked with jars containing strange-looking liquids. At one point, she even saw a table covered in bloodied surgical instruments.
Aubrey did her best to memorize every detail she saw as they walked along, noting which doors were open and which ones closed, where she saw signs of activity, and where there were none. Anything that might prove useful if things went south.
After heading down the basement level, they eventually reached a set of double doors leading into what appeared to be a makeshift prison cell, with iron bars set into stone walls. One of the guards opened the door for her and shoved her inside, then locked it behind her.
The cell contained nothing but a single cot and a small wooden chair, both bolted to the floor. There were no windows or vents; the only light came from an oil lamp hanging on the wall outside.
Runes etched onto the bars glowed softly in the dim lighting. In response, her shackles tightened and squeezed her wrists uncomfortably. The runes seemed to drain away at her strength, causing her knees to buckle as she tried to stand upright again.
Great... These must be anti-Unhallowed bindings. Damn it, guess these assholes aren't as unprepared as I thought.
She took a deep breath and steadied herself against one wall before slowly sinking down to sit on the edge of the cot. She had no idea how long she'd be left alone here, but she figured it wouldn't hurt to rest while she waited. After all, she would need to save her strength for whatever came next.
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Aubrey paced around the cell impatiently, waiting for someone to show up for her interrogation. Every so often, she tried testing out the bars to see if there might be a weak point somewhere, but no luck.
Her wrists ached from the shackles' constant pressure against them, and her knees still felt unsteady after whatever enchantment had drained her strength earlier. The worst part was that she didn't know how much time had passed since she'd been thrown in here. It could have been hours or days; she'd lost track completely.
Finally, she heard footsteps coming down the hall towards her cell, accompanied by the faint sound of voices conversing in low tones. She stopped pacing and stood facing the cell door, crossing her arms over her chest and doing her best to look nonchalant.
Two figures appeared in front of her cell—one of the guards who'd brought her here, along with a man dressed in a black suit and tie. His face was hidden behind a dark mask shaped like a raven's head, complete with hooked beak and glowing red eyes. He carried a silver rod topped with an ornate spiral design that pulsed with energy.
The guard unlocked the cell door and opened it, letting the masked man step inside. Aubrey kept her eyes locked onto his, trying not to flinch as he approached.
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The masked man stopped directly in front of her and stared down at her for several long moments without saying anything.
"Can I help you?" Aubrey asked sarcastically, breaking the silence between them.
The masked man didn't respond, but instead reached out towards her with one gloved hand and gently brushed some stray strands of hair away from her face. His fingers trailed lightly along her cheekbone before sliding down her neck and coming to rest against her shoulder.
"Remarkable," he whispered in a raspy voice, almost too soft for her to hear.
She could feel the warmth radiating off him through his clothing. He smelled faintly of sandalwood and cedar, like a cologne worn by an older man.
"What's so remarkable about me?" she inquired, keeping her tone neutral.
He continued tracing patterns across her skin, his fingertips moving slowly from her collarbone down to her sternum. "An Unhallowed human, so perfectly preserved... And with such unique traits..."
Aubrey gritted her teeth together as she felt his touch start to linger on her breast. "Get your fucking hands off me," she hissed between clenched teeth.
The masked man paused, glancing up at her face before withdrawing his hand. "Forgive me. I'm simply fascinated by your condition."
"You and everyone else," she muttered under her breath.
The masked man took a step back, giving her some space again, then began pacing around her in a circle. His gaze never left hers as he moved around her, watching every little twitch or shift of movement she made.
"To have the privilege of conversing with an Unhallowed... it's an honor," he said after a while. "Never did we think that such a thing would be possible. To have your unique perspective..."
"What? Is an Unhallowed that talks instead of roars a novelty for you?"
He stopped circling her and turned to face her directly once more. "Language is the privilege of sapience, a gift granted to those blessed with consciousness. It separates us from beasts and monsters alike. Yet it seems almost supernatural how you've managed to retain yours despite being Unhallowed."
She frowned. "Yeah, it's a real blessing... So what happens now?"
"Well, I suppose we'll have to see how much information you're willing to share with us," he replied calmly. "You can either cooperate, or we'll resort to more... aggressive methods."
"I came here willingly, didn't I? Seems like I'm already cooperating enough."
"Unusually so, yes," he agreed. "Which makes me suspect that you have an ulterior motive. I wonder what that could be?"
Aubrey smirked slightly. "Maybe I just wanted to see how deep the rabbit hole goes. Maybe I'm curious about what kind of weird shit you've got going on here."
The masked man chuckled softly under his breath. "Indeed... I suspect there's far more than meets the eye with you. But we'll worry about that later. For now, tell me—what were you doing in that abandoned asylum?"
How much should she give away here? Lying wouldn't help much since she had no idea what this guy already knew. But she certainly didn't want to divulge everything either...
She paused for several seconds before answering. "I was looking for answers."
"Answers to what?" he inquired.
"About who turned me into... this," she said, gesturing at herself with one cuffed arm.
"I knew it," he whispered, sounding excited now. "I suspected that the Luminous Consortium had been experimenting with forbidden sorceries and alchemical processes. But this proves it! They must've found a way to keep an Unhallowed human from turning feral!"
"You didn't know that they were doing that? Weren't they the ones who hired your group to put up the glyphs and wards around the place? You should have run into those ghouls and that chained-up Unhallowed there too. They're part of their experiments."
His posture stiffened noticeably, and his voice grew strained as he replied, "So it would seem... I'll have to look into the matter further. Nonetheless, to think that they've managed to achieve such a breakthrough whereas we could not. How very... vexing."
He tapped the rod against his leg several times, seemingly lost in thought. After a short while though, he turned his attention back towards her.
"How much of yourself do you still retain? Do you have the urge to feed on others? To kill?"
She narrowed her eyes at him. "No. I'm in perfect control."
The masked man gave a brief nod. "Then what is it you're after exactly?"
Before she could answer, the guard opened the cell door and entered. "Sir, there's a situation—"
"What kind of a 'situation?'"
"Representatives of the Luminous Consortium have arrived. One of them demands to have a word with us before proceeding."
The masked man let out a slow sigh, clearly unhappy at being interrupted. Still, he didn't hesitate before giving his answer. "Tell one of the guards to escort them to my office. I'll be there momentarily."
"Yes, sir." The guard nodded respectfully and stepped out of sight, leaving Aubrey alone with the masked man again.
She watched as he turned back towards her and began moving closer. "No doubt they're here for you," he stated flatly. "Perhaps they wish to collect their property and ensure that we won't get a chance to make use of it."
"Maybe... or maybe they want to make sure I don't tell you too much," she offered with a small shrug.
"Either way, I intend to take full advantage of this opportunity," he declared. "If it turns out to be the former rather than latter, then so be it. If it's the latter, then I shall endeavor to glean as much information as possible before turning over this fascinating specimen to them."
Aubrey frowned as he reached out and started stroking her cheek again. "You've got quite an interesting attitude toward people, don't you?"
The masked man chuckled softly once more, letting go of her face. "Perhaps. Or perhaps it's simply how business works." He turned away and walked towards the doorway. Just before leaving, he glanced over his shoulder and added, "I'll be back soon."
He left Aubrey alone in the cell with only her thoughts for company.
She sat down against a corner of the room, resting her back against the cold stone wall and stretching out her legs. Her hair fell across her face, partially obscuring the widening grin on her lips.
This had all gone better than expected so far. Hearing that people from the Luminous Consortium were coming to take her meant that this scheme had paid off. Now it was just a matter of sitting tight until they arrived.
Aubrey stared down at the metal shackles around her wrists and ankles. The runes etched into their surface glowed faintly, causing the metal to feel warm against her skin.
Her strength still felt sapped away, and her legs still felt unsteady. But what about her powers? Would she still be able to use them?
She closed her eyes and hummed softly under her breath, concentrating on the music playing in her head.
Nothing happened at first. She hummed louder, channeling more power into the melody.
[Ability: Echo of Vitality Activated! Duration: 60 seconds; Cooldown: 240 seconds]
And after a moment... There! Her limbs felt stronger already. And she felt some energy return to her. It wasn't nearly enough, but it would have to do for now.
That answered one question, at least. Her abilities were still available to her. The only downside was the effectiveness and duration were cut in half. Not exactly great, but it could've been worse. At least this meant she could still fight back if she needed to. Even at half-power, her abilities were still more than most people could handle.
Now, she just had to wait until they came for her. And then the real fun could begin...