“No.”

“What? Screw that.” I responded.

Elizabeth growled. “Did I mistake a Grimm for a babe?”

“Insult me all you want lady. I have too many questions.”

“I helped you enough. I have no interest in messing with the Prime’s toy.”

Fuck that.

“I’m not his toy.”

She leaned closer. She wasn’t taller than me, but her presence stretched beyond her physical frame. It was as if the mana in the air surrounded her, lending her weight.

“Do you truly think that?”

Instinct told me to swing, push her away. I wasn’t stupid enough to try.

“I think he’s messing with me for reasons I don’t understand but you do. I’d like to know why.”

A ghost of a smile trace her lips and she leaned away. Because my eyes were being constantly threaded with mana, I saw a wisp of orange trail from her leg and across the floor. It raced against the stone and up the wall before slamming into the spot Adeline had touched to seal the room.

The door rumbled to a close and she leaned against the statue. Her stare was cold, but not harsh. If anything it felt like she was inspecting me.

My fingers twitched. “Looking for something in particular?”

“Yes. Lift your shirt.”

What?

I backed away and she tsked. Before I could leap out of her reach she grabbed my hoodie and pulled up, exposing my chest and stomach.

Her eyes stopped on the rune but moved on and poked a clawed finger at my heart. I knocked her aside and placed my hand against the haft of my axe.

“Don’t do that again.”

Despite what I expected Elizabeth looked at me with sadness in her eyes. Those raked against me in the worst way.

“Stop.”

“It seems I was too late. I hoped he’d take his time. Should have known.” Her voice trailed and she ran her fingers through her hair, slicking it back. “I’m limited in what I can answer. So don’t expect too much from me.”

“How did you send your mana out like that?”

“Practice. You don’t need incantations or skills to use your mana.”

She answered the question easily enough, but I expected it, some advice on mana manipulation didn’t exactly scream forbidden knowledge.

Elizabeth stood the same, but she lacked the imposing nature from before. But even with that fact, I didn’t feel that much taller than her. She carried a fluidity in her movements that reminded me a coiled cat ready to pounce.

Now for a harder question. Let’s see if you can answer this one.

“Your eyes. They’re not amber, or yellow or red. They’re orange, right?”

She regarded me for a long time, so much so I was prepared to ask about something else. But she answered, just not as detailed as I hoped for.

“They are,” she grunted.

“Does that mean your strain is…”

“Different?”

I almost sighed in relief.

“Yes.”

“It is. There are other signs. They don’t always manifest but if you’ll recognize them,” she explained. There was a pause, and in a smaller voice, she muttered under her breath. “If you live long long enough.”

“Like the white fur.”

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

She nodded.

I examined her hair. It was a cascade or gray, but after a couple of seconds, I spotted a patch of lighter hair toward the shaven side above her ear. The sparse light coming from the ceiling made it hard to tell, but it was definitely white, not grey.

“Out of all us, I’ve never seen a case like yours, to show so visibly. Even the boy before you had mere streaks.”

“Elias?” I asked, alarmed. “You knew him?”

She scowled. “Barely. I met him once, on a hunt. His death is sad but expected.”

What the hell does that mean?

“Want to elaborate on that? You telling me his death was premeditated?”

This time, her eyes narrowed. She raised a hand and her eyes glowed purple. She scanned the room before they returned to normal.

“You suspect something. Interesting. No, his death was not premeditated. But it comes with territory.”

“What do you mean?”

She tapped my chest again. Her nail pushing hard enough to draw blood.

“You’ll learn. The Prime’s history of keeping his toys alive is abysmal. Its impressive enough that there’s as many as there are.”

“I said don’t call me that.”

“You’ll learn.” She chuckled. “Or won’t. Keep pushing those buttons and you’ll unravel the thread.”

The anger returned, bristling at the edges. This conversation was going nowhere.

I need answers damnit. Not more questions.

“The four of you… Krulg, Ripper, and Quinn. Are you all… like me?”

Her eye twitched at the mention of Ripper.

“Like you? Debatable. But we all carry the same strain. Each one of us having the pleasure of our flesh violated. Joy to being a Grimm hand-puppet.. All seven… Five of us can share the great honor of being called kin.”

My mind raced but no matter what I remembered, there was only six.

Six if we counted the dead man Quinn returned with. Does she mean Elias? He’s dead too. Did I miss someone? I must have.

I gauged her face, looking for a reaction of some kind.

Crap. Nothing. Direct then.

“Who’s the seventh? Me, you, Ripper, Krulg, Quinn. And you meant the guy she brought. Who’s the seventh like us?”

She opened her mouth and then closed. She tried again and a vein appeared along her neck. Her eyes narrowed and bared her fangs before closing her eyes.

Slowly, as if it pained her until she eventually relaxed, she opened her mouth and worked her jaw. The words that came next was spoken with strain, each sentence spoken clear but with pauses in between as she fought to push past the tightening of her vocal cords.

“You already know them. A failure, not entirely like us. Check their chest.”

Elizabeth snapped her mouth shut and massaged her neck.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“You’re lucky I’m as old as I am. It took decades of struggle to find the loopholes. Just need to know where to substitute words and reword sentences.”

“I take it asking again but differently won’t help?”

“No.” Elizabeth cracked her neck and released a low growl. “Too much prodding and the punishment bites harder.”

“Is it a contract? Is that how Absolute’s work?”

“Its ancient magic forged into our soul. Don’t ask for a better explanation. I’ve none to give.” She opened her eyes and paused. “What boy?”

“When did Prime give you the Absolute?”

“As soon as I became one of his. Why?”

“I don’t think he’s given me one… Is that normal?”

“No,” she replied immediately. “Its not. But as I’ve learned, you are far from the usual circumstances. I don’t care. It only means that he is experimenting again. He’ll tire of you eventually.”

Her words caused another bristle. This time, the anger forming a sharp spike that dug away at my control. My mana responded, the lake of lava leaping to the ready but again I pushed it aside and the shadows helped pull it back.

Elizabeth laughed. “You’d be surprised how alike we are to the bloodsuckers. It eats away at you, to be dismissed over someone you hardly know. I spent a decade pouting when I made that discovery.”

“Just how old are you?” I snapped.

“A child,” she groaned. “Does it matter?”

“No,” I admitted. “But I’m still curious. I stil don’t know who you are. How you’re related to Grim or me beyond sharing the same strain. Do you blame me for wanting answers?”

Elizabeth pushed past me and approached the door. “I lived through the last Harvest. Take of that as you will.”

She stopped near the door, hand hovering in place above the section for control. I moved to join her, stopping far enough a way to watch her movements. Her eyes examined me once again, trailing from my feet all the way toward my head.

“You’re suspicious of me. Good. Don’t trust us, not me or Krulg or Quinn. And if you value your life, avoid Ripper at all costs. Or don’t. I’ve grown too soft in my age. You’re a Grimm, do as you will.”

She pushed her palm against the stone. Her eyes briefly turned purple and she shifted her head, as if following something behind the walls.

All or nothing. Looks like she’s about to leave.

I moved to the door, blocking her line of sight. “And if I had more questions that needed answers? Of the rest of us, who would I approach?”

Her eyes returned to normal, a scowl creasing her face. The scar on her lip stood out like a sore wound as it caught the light.

“Did you damage your ears? I said not to trust us.”

“I don’t.” I shook my head. “Trust you that is. But I want answers.”

She sighed. “Krulg is the most faithful. If he thinks you are genuinely interested in the Prime’s interest then he’ll reciprocate. But don’t mistake his loyalty for blindness, boy. He’s naive, not dumb.”

The stone wall rumbled as the door slid open revealing the dim tunnel behind it. She motioned to the door and I debated standing still to press for more answers. But it was a clear dismissal.

As I approached the entrance I stopped and turned around, asking before she could object. “Why help me? About the Keeper. You knew, right? That whisper trick of yours. You didn’t have to warn me, us. So why do it?”

“Because I still have a heart. One I need to crush and toss aside. Now leave because I am.”

She exited out of the room and turned down the tunnel. I didn’t follow, only stared at her back as she retreated. Even from the little movements I saw, her walk was confidant and silent. Not a single echo rebounded between the walls.

“Thanks,” I shouted.

She ignored me and disappeared around the bend.

Freki emerged from my shadow and he pressed his head against my hand. “We somehow have a lot and nothing to tell Alice. Think we did good?”

“Wulf!”

Yeah. I thought so.