"Our time has been cut short, it seems," the fallen man snarled as he looked at Morrigan who was clutching onto Galandir laying on the floor. All she had to do was hold out until the guards or ideally her father came to her rescue. "Forget the dragon and the boy – get Princess's blood!"
Morrigan paled as all of the dark figures turned their attention to her. Before she could even realize what was going on, a barrage of various spells was flung her way. Haku stepped in front of her, spreading his wings and protecting her from the majority of spells. Morrigan erected her forcefield, trying to protect herself and Galandir from any spells that got through.
"Haku, are you alright?" she called out. The dragon growled in confirmation, his scales undamaged. Same couldn't be said about her forcefield, which had been destroyed in some places. Another barrage of spells was launched straight at her but the dragon blocked them. This time it proved too much for Haku and he fell limp on the floor.
"Haku!" she called out and her concentration on the forcefield slipped. The fallen man took the opportunity and broke through it, grabbing Morrigan by her neck. She grabbed onto his hands, struggling to free herself, but the pressure on her neck was increasing and she felt like it would snap at any moment. Instinct took over and she allowed angry blue flames to come out of her palms and burn the man.
He howled in pain and dropped her, but as he did, his nails painfully scratched against her neck drawing blood. She coughed and sputtered as she tried to regain her breath.
"I got what we needed. Retreat," he commanded and the black men tried to leave the stables. However, before any of them even had the chance to register what had happened, the Demon King had appeared inside the stables and cut down most of the intruders in a single swift attack.
His red eyes bore into the fallen intruder and dark tendrils wrapped around him, capturing him in an instant. Morrigan looked at the scene in horror – Haku lying limp on the floor, her father with a bloody sword in hand standing above a pile of corpses, Galandir lying motionless on the floor.
"Morrigan! Are you alright?" Alphegor ran up to her checking for injuries and saw the deep scratch mark on her neck. His face contorted with rage and fury, and she saw how his red eyes almost began to glow from his anger. "Whoever did this is going to pay!"
"Galandir and Haku need help!" Morrigan said frantically, not caring about the cut on her neck. But it was merely a scratch when compared to what happened to her friend.
"The elf? Why is he here?" Alphegor growled.
"I got… him out, Father," Morrigan explained, clutching at her injury and feeling the blood seep through her fingers. Seeing that, the King's expression turned to that of worry.
"We're going to get that healed right away," Alphegor said.
"Nevermind that scratch, I can barely feel it. That fallen did something to Galandir! And to Haku as well. You need to help them first," Morrigan pleaded, and the King relented a bit.
"Azrael!" he tried to call for the mage, but nothing happened.
"That won't work. They did something to the stables to prevent summoning," she explained.
"Those annoying pests. Messing with magic in my own home," Alphegor growled.
"Your Majesty. Your orders," Melanos suddenly appeared out of seemingly nowhere, making Morrigan flinch in surprise.
"Get Azrael here to take care of the dragon. Take the elf to healers immediately and summon one to come here and take care of Morrigan," he commanded.
"At once," Melanos bowed and then disappeared just as quickly with Galandir in tow. Merely half a minute after the spymaster had gone, the whole castle seemed to come to life and guards rushed into the stables.
"Your Majesty, what–" the guards looked around the gruesome scene in horror.
"You lot are too slow. Rally the guards, strengthen the defenses in the castle. Remove the ward placed upon the stables. Investigate for any stray magic," Alphegor commanded.
The guards nodded, each one taking on a different task with most of them turning their attention to intruders. They began hauling away the bodies, while Alphegor pulled the fallen man closer, glowering at him with intense red gaze. Meanwhile Morrigan focused on her dragon who still lay limp on the ground.
"Haku, are you alright?!" she called out desperately, inspecting him for any injuries. There were a few gashes on his tender wing membranes, however, his scales looked largely unharmed. But lack of reaction from the dragon, made hot tears well up into her eyes.
"He's been knocked out cold, but he'll be fine. He's still breathing," Alphegor explained, pointing at his chest that rose each time Haku took a breath. Morrigan relaxed a little and then looked at the man who attacked her. Despite being captured he didn't appear very fazed by it. He almost appeared satisfied.
"Speak. Why did you attack my daughter?" Alphegor demanded, but the fallen man just laughed.
"As if I'd tell you anything," he cackled.
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"Fine then. I'll guess we'll do it the hard way," Alphegor eyes glinted with malice and the dark tendrils pulled the fallen man into the darkness. Morrigan's stomach churned – she knew that her father would use any methods necessary to get the information out of him. And she doubted that he'll be as nice to him as to Galandir.
But I suppose it has to be done. We cannot let this kind of attack just slide.
Azrael finally appeared in the stables as well, his eyes opening in shock as he saw the limp dragon on the floor and the corpses of the intruders. "What in the name of darkness happened here?"
"Take care of the dragon, then check for any stray magic or magical interference. The enemy launched an attack right in the middle of my home," Alphegor raged, his eyes glowing red.
"The enemy? Who?" Azrael asked, perplexed.
"The fallen. They're the ones behind this attack," Morrigan said, and Alphegor alongside Azrael looked at her with grave expressions.
"You're going to explain everything that just happened. Including the reason why is the elven boy outside his prison cell," Alphegor growled, and Morrigan shrunk back, hiding behind Haku.
I am in deep trouble now.
***
Morrigan sat on the couch in Alphegor's office while Alphegor and a very confused-looking Lucius sat on the couch across from them.
"Your Majesty, what exactly is going on? Why is Princess Morrigan covered in blood? And what was that blue fireball earlier? And I also received a report that the elven slave was out of prison and now being tended to by our healers," the older demon asked, his gaze darting from one person to the next.
"Is Galandir alright?" Morrigan asked, her voice filled with worry. She feared that the fallen might have killed him with whatever strange magic he used.
"He's alright, merely unconscious. May I have an explanation now?" Lucius asked, his eyebrows furrowed.
"Morrigan will explain everything. From the beginning," Alphegor commanded, tapping his finger impatiently against his knee. She took a deep breath, mustering the courage to speak.
"I snuck into the prison to get Galandir out of there," she admitted with her head hung low.
"W-What?!" Lucius sputtered in shock, then looked helplessly at Alphegor, who looked mildly annoyed. "You snuck into the prison to get a slave out of there but…"
"Seems my daughter has developed a bit of a soft spot for the boy," the King noted bitterly.
"But even so… sneaking into prison… Princess Morrigan, I had always thought you were more mindful than that. If people were to find out… " Lucius's face paled in horror, and Morrigan feared that her action might have added a new wrinkle to his complexion.
"Yes, that would instantly ruin their public opinion of you and make them rally against you as the Crown Princess," Alphegor explained, and Morrigan realized just how bad that would be. More assassination attempts, a possible uprising, or maybe even worse.
"Even so, the way you treated Galandir was unfair. Putting a child in prison to later have him work in the dungeons is absurd!" She protested, looking her father straight in the eyes.
"So I should just let him go free?" He challenged her.
"That is what he asked of you. And you promised to fulfill his request," Morrigan objected, not wavering under his intense stare.
"Three million gold is not a small amount."
"You promised him freedom."
The two stared at each other stubbornly, not willing to budge. After a long, tense minute, Lucius spoke up.
"Let the boy repay his debt through hard work once he wakes up," the older man suggested.
"What?" Morrigan looked at him incredulously. "Have a child work in the dungeons?"
"The boy already agreed to repay his debt when I interrogated him," Alphegor said. "And so he shall work to repay it."
"Father, sending a child…" Morrigan objected, but Alphegor held his hand.
"I understand your concern. I shall not send him to the dungeons. He'll work as a servant in the Demon Castle instead. However, he will not be able to leave the castle as I do not trust him to simply not run away at the first opportunity."
"That is a very wise resolution, Your Majesty," Lucius agreed.
"Alright, I'll consider this matter settled. Morrigan, tell us what happened once you left the prison," Alphegor said, not allowing her to raise any objections. She huffed a bit in annoyance, but since there was no time to spare, she continued her explanation.
"According to Galandir, the fallen were planning to get my blood right from the beginning to get into the Royal Treasury. Or at least he thinks so, they never explicitly told him. The one who scratched my neck was a fallen and he looked a lot like Mrs. Heinspiel," Morrigan said. Alphegor's and Lucius's expressions turned grave at this.
"Now when I think about it, there certainly was a resemblance. But you say that he was the one who injured your neck? It must have been their son. But they claimed that he remained in the Fallen Kingdom," Alphegor growled.
"Your Majesty, did this intruder manage to get Princess's blood?" Lucius asked, his face turning pale. Morrigan thought back on the attack and remembered how he definitely had some of her blood on his hand. He even ordered them to retreat. She nodded. Alpegor's expression grew dark and the room grew silent as the King got up from his seat and began pacing around the office.
"But he's captured, so it doesn't really matter right?" Morrigan said hopefully. "Whatever he wanted to do with my blood, he can't do it while captured."
"I need to make sure of something," Alphegor growled. Morrigan noticed how Lucius's eyebrows had twisted into a deep, concerned scowl.
"Your Majesty, what if he actually managed to…" the older demon asked, his voice sounding as if all hope was lost.
"We have no choice then. We're going to have to negotiate with them," Alphegor said and clenched his hands into tight fists.
"Negotiate? Why would we negotiate with intruders?" Morrigan looked at her Father in confusion. She then looked at Lucius for explanation but the demon would not meet her gaze head on.
Something else is going on here. They shouldn't be so worried about the attacker being captured. It feels like I am missing some crucial bit of information.
"Lucius, summon the fallen Prime Minister. Tell him that it's time to negotiate," Alphegor ordered.
"At once, Your Majesty," Lucius said and left the room in a hurry.
"Father, what is going on?" Morrigan grabbed onto her father's sleeve, hoping to receive some answers.
"It is possible that the the fallen who attacked you managed to teleport your blood to his allies," Alphegor said grimly, and Morrigan could see that this fact scared him. It scared him, the almighty Demon King, whose power is unrivaled in the Underworld. And even if Morrigan didn't understand why, she knew that if he was scared then she should be too.