Myne had been inconsolable. She had not handled Velvet’s disappearance very well at all. Sure her rage had been without compare when Sorene had wounded Velvet, but not knowing where she was or what state she was in had torn Myne up anew. She had blamed herself for not having been able to defend her, for not taking Sorene down when she had the chance, for pretty much everything that had occurred. That they had all escaped without serious physical injury (barring Velvet) had been of little solace to Myne, because Velvet was not with them. She missed her, worried about her, needed her, and above all else just needed, really really needed, to know for certain that she was alright. She had barely let Alice tend to the wound on her shoulder from the demon cat, which thankfully was healing fairly well on its own due to her feed from Melody. Ashling had told her that Velvet must still be alive, since he was still in existence, but as he was unable to sense where she was nor talk to her that information did not he Myne much, only managing to sooth the edge of her torment just a little.

Velvet’s cocoon of light and her familiar had disappeared the instant that they had landed at the Academia de Magica, leaving Myne standing there with the unconscious Ruby, staring in horror as the realization of what had just happened dawned on her. Ashling had landed a few seconds later, the words of Alice and Kyla having stopped her from charging off in a panicked frenzy. But her mood had quickly degraded after that, and even Alice had almost suffered a taste of her flames. She had been out hunting Night Beasts three times in the space of a week, her magic helping her locate them quickly, their existence becoming very short once Myne was in front of them. The venting helped, but it was a temporary reprieve, and even though they were just easy prey for her now, she had still thrown her self at them, only moderately keeping her power in check. If she had been able to find a demon she would have thrown herself at that as well, with no regard to her safety at all, but fortunately she had been spared that folly. Sure, given her current abilities she should be easily be able to take down one or two, but her current mental state made it a lot more risky. She had also tried numerous times to use her seeking magic to try and locate Velvet, both with the signature that she knew and with Ashling’s connection to his master, but neither had managed to even get the slightest reaction. Where ever she had ended up, Velvet was well and truly out of range.

What eventually snapped Myne out of the depths of her depression was the sudden return of her hunger. It wasn’t strong yet, but it was growing and she wouldn’t be able to ignore it for too long. Like Velvet’s blood, but no where near as effective, Melody’s blood had sustained her for longer than that of most people. She hadn’t actually fed on anyone else since being released from Zorthac’s control, but it was instinctual knowledge that had carried over from her carnage while she had been. From what she could tell, the greater the persons magical power, the better it sustained her. While she could have asked to feed on one of the party, she really didn’t want to. Alice would have been the best candidate, given the power that she now possessed, and would have probably agreed, but Myne wasn’t going to go there. It was a personal thing at one level, and she found it embarrassing to both ask and feed. She also wasn’t sure exactly what effect her feeding would have on the donor. With Velvet there had been no side effects at all for her, as her magic was powerful enough to reject any intrusion by Myne’s. But when she had fed on Melody she has felt it invade Melody’s body, trying unsuccessfully to change it. What those changes entailed she wasn’t completely sure, and she didn’t know if it would be the same for everyone, but she needed to find out. She would need to experiment, and for that she would need willing donors, or more likely unwilling donors who deserved whatever fate she felt like dishing them out. And if she discovered what she expected, then she’d be getting some decent blood out of it anyways. At least that was the plan.

Letting Alice, who was absorbed in some form of studies, know that she was going out for a while, she called Ashling to her and headed out.

‘What do you need me for? You can fly on your own,’ Ashling complained. While he wouldn’t refuse Myne, given that she was Velvet’s lover, he would have rather just slept.

‘Range and speed,’ Myne replied. ‘I doubt I’ll find what I’m after by myself, and then I’ll be forced to be a lot less picky.’ She still found it odd talking to Velvet’s dragons via thought, excluding that it was also strange that her dragons could talk in the first place. Must be something to do with her magic being primal.

‘You’re committed to doing this?’

‘I did promise, and I’m hungry. Would you rather I feed on you, or some poor villager?’ Myne tried to sound convicted.

‘I’m too small for a feed. Oh, and no real blood,’ Ashling teased.

‘Pure magic may work better for all you know,’ Myne retorted.

‘Blerk,’ Ashling intoned.

Ashling took to the sky, Myne on his back. Oddly, she didn’t find him as comfortable to ride as Light, and she wasn’t actually sure why. Myne hadn’t been trying to shield her thoughts from him at all, so Ashling already knew what she was looking for. Bandits, brigands, thieves, et al. The stereotypical targets of heroes. She wasn’t naive enough however to think that there was nothing morally wrong with what she was intending to do. They were still living people, and would end up as much victims of the tide of darkness as everyone else. She would give them an opportunity to escape their fate, but her patience at the moment was very frayed and her temper hot. She doubted they’d be intelligent enough to read the signs. Myne steeled herself as the land rushed away beneath them.

Annoyingly enough, it took the better part of the day to actually find some suitable candidates, but with the restrictions that she had put on her search it wasn’t all that surprising. Given the swathes of empty land in the kingdom and how zealously the Guilds protected their caravans, most independent bandits and thugs were clustered near the larger settlements and cities, from which they either engaged in petty thievery or preyed on smaller settlements. The wilds were no place for them, even if they were led by Casters or Ferals. Myne however wasn’t that keen on going near the larger settlements. Ashling would be noticed in a heart beat, and she wasn’t keen on attracting Sorene’s or Zorthac’s attention at the moment. So when she finally located what she was looking for the shadows had started to lengthen, and her hunger was growing ever more persistent. One of the small farming villages for Adles Lock had become the target of a small band of mercenaries who were in the process of trying to acquire all of their mountable animals. Myne had sensed an unusual concentration of people in the village when she had scanned it, so she had travelled closer, staying at a greater height to help mask the size of Ashling, and then switched to her own wings once she decided that they were close enough, Ashling getting a free ride down.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

She didn’t attempt to mask her presence apart from hiding her flames before they spotted her, her arrival interrupting the proceedings. At a glance it looked like the group consisted of some twenty men, mostly just normals, led by a muscular, white haired Dog Feral who had a fresh scar running through one eye. The groups equipment looked weathered and worse for the wear, the bandits themselves thin and hungry. Myne felt a pang of pity for them. They were just trying to survive as well, though they were going about it in the wrong way, and they were very much in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The Dog Feral looked her over, scowling, unsure what to make of her.

“This does not concern you,” he finally said.

“No, I am sure it does not, but it still looks to me that you are trying to take what isn’t rightfully yours.” She tried to sound noble, but didn’t pull it off very well.

“What of it?” The Dog Feral shrugged. “Take your leave and we’ll ignore that you were ever here.”

Myne looked around the village. A number of the villagers had died at the hands of the bandits, other were currently being held hostage, their eyes pleading with her for help.

“No, that I won’t.” Myne sighed. “You in fact have something that I need, so I will be ending your petty thievery here. You’re welcome to try and stop me if you wish.”

“You’re a brave one, or incredibly stupid,” the Dog Feral declared, motioning for his people to surround Myne.

The battle was very short. She had learnt more than she had realised from the last couple of battles against demons, and her emotions ran hot, fuelling her strength. The first bandit to attack her was sent flying halfway across the village, while the next was left as a charred corpse embedded in the ground once the flames from her punch had died down. On her own body flames danced on her horns and fists. Then that was it. The attacks stopped, both the bandits and the villagers fleeing for cover, cries of ‘demon’ resounding from both sides. and the Dog Feral knelt to one knee.

“You’re not a demon, even if you have the power of one, so what’s the point is a senseless slaughter?” he said. “What is it you want from us then.”

Myne stared at him for a while, while the rest cowered in fear. No, she couldn’t do this. She didn’t want this. She shook her head, and swore to herself at what had been a massive waste of time.

“Nothing now. Leave, with all of your men, and don’t return. Least I take your other eye for you,” she finally stated, needing to give some purpose to her actions, even if it was just a facade.

The Dog Feral stood.

“You would have us all die from starvation or to Night Beasts or Demons? We’d just return here when you’ve taken your leave,” he stated to Myne.

Myne sighed. He wasn’t stupid, and in the end it would seem that he was just trying to do the best for his men, even though fate had obviously dealt them a bad hand of late. She wasn’t in the mood to be dealing with this situation.

“I didn’t come here to be a hero. I came because I was hungry, but as it turns out I have no desire to feed on any of you,” she said to the Dog Feral, her tone dismissal. “I don’t really care what happens to you all at the moment. Do whatever as I am leaving, just be aware there could well be consequences for whatever course you choose to take.”

With that, Myne turned, wings of flame forming. Ashling took the cue, taking on his full form, and just as she had said she would they departed, leaving the villagers and bandits to deal with each other as they saw fit. Myne’s mood was dark, and now her hunger was even stronger.

‘I knew that was going to happen,’ Ashling couldn’t help adding.

Myne just ignored him.

The ruins were illuminated by the light of the new moon when they returned, Myne landing directly on the collapsed upper level, where she then proceeded to sit, staring into the night. For all her intentions she hadn’t been able to do it. Feeding was just far too personal to her, and she wasn’t going to share that experience with just anyone even if she was starving. Especially not some riff raff. No she wasn’t a hero or anything, but she wasn’t a monster either. She glared at the night sky, daring it to challenge her, so deep in her thoughts that she missed hearing Alice until she sat down beside her.

“It didn’t work out then?” Alice asked in her motherly tone.

“I just couldn’t do it,” Myne replied, her voice sad.

Alice reached over and gave her a hug. Myne found it comforting.

“I’m hungry,” Myne murmured quietly, her emotions at war within herself. She did and didn’t want Alice to hear her.

They sat for a while in the quiet of the night.

“You can feed on me,” Alice said quietly, breaking the silence.

Myne only briefly hesitated, before leaning over and pushing Alice’s auburn hair away from her shoulders, before then sinking her fangs into Alice’s delicate neck. Like it or not, Alice was the best option that she had, she trusted her, and she was too hungry to fight the urges for much longer. Alice gave out a strange moan as Myne drank, a little blood escaping and dribbling down Alice’s front. She only drank enough to take the edge of the hunger before she stopped, pulling back with an embarrassed look on her face.

“I appreciate it,” Myne mumbled, looking down. Alice’s blood was both the same and also different to Velvet’s. They’re were both saturated with magic and almost intoxicating to drink. Velvet’s was sweet while Alice’s was sharp, and she could feel the identity of the magic within. Dawn and Dusk, beginnings and endings, revealing and cloaking. Polar opposites, between which sat her own magic, the destructive and ever burning Hellfire. She much preferred Velvet’s blood though.

“That was... nice, in an odd kind of way,” Alice finally said, her hand gingerly touching the bite marks on her neck.

Melody had said the same thing, and Myne had no idea what other effects her feeding had, beyond the intrusion of her magic, which she knew had no effect on either Velvet or Alice. Not that she had any way of finding out. Velvet though hadn’t said or given any indication of any side effects, but the side effects on Myne herself would have masked it anyways, and she was grateful that Alice’s blood didn’t have the same effect on her.

“You can tell, can’t you?” Alice asked, as Myne finally raised her head and met her eyes.

“I already knew,” Myne replied. “Right from the moment it occurred.”

“Thank you for not saying anything.”

“It wasn’t my place.” Myne cleaned off the remaining blood from her lips, Alice blushing slightly as she did so. “You haven’t told Laphir or Shino then?” she then queried.

“No. They’ll notice soon enough though,” Alice replied.

Myne looked carefully at Alice and then nodded. “You’re right,” she said.

“You’re feeling better now?” Alice asked.

“As much as I can be with Velvet missing.” The feed had helped more than she had thought, and she realised that she was now in a better frame of mine than she had been. Velvet’s absence was a raw wound, but she knew she’d be able to handle it better for the immediate future.

“That’s good.” Alice smiled. “We have much to do while we wait for her return.”

Myne nodded in agreement.