Chapter 13

• *Erolzwald*
• Lord Ascelius and Resos stepped onto the training field. With Resos close behind, Lord Ascelius did the introductory.
• “Is there a place where we can speak in private?” Resos asked as she finished shaking Straightarrow’s hand.
• “Whatever you have to say can be said in front of everyone!” Firxis said as he crossed his arms over his chest.
• “Firxis, you don’t have to be a dick about things.” Davder said to his brother, “but it would save a lot of time if you would pass the message onto us as a group, missy.”
• Resos bounced her eyes from the brothers to the group of fighters. “You are not going to like this! But here I go!” Resos took an inhale of air, “the shuttles that had gone to the southern kingdoms … they haven’t been heard from. And no one has been able to get a hold of the leaders or alpha’s. This means that …”
• Straightarrow exhaled, “we are in a great deal of trouble when the unregistered vampires attack with their fledglings.” He interrupted Resos. “There is no way we will be able to evacuate everyone.”
• “Let's not be delusional, we all knew in the back of our minds, that we would not be able to get everyone out. What we are doing now is getting the possible recruited fledglings out of here. And keeping the food supply here.” Firxis said bitterly.
• “Firxis, you don’t have to be a dick!” Davder snapped.
• Throwing his hands up in the air, “someone had to say it! The only ones that are going to get out of this alive are those loyal to the underground society and maybe …. MAYBE a handful of humans. What is that going to do at the end of the day?” Firxis yelled. “We should have left the moment we found the first dead body, but no we remained here for what?”
• Resos moved in front of Firxis, “the same reason why half of my family still remains at Whispering Port. We will get as many people out as possible. Zane told Caid that the hidden city is fully functional. Your kin are to leave soon and go to the secret entrances.”
• “We can’t allow that to happen, unregistered vampires have taken refuge in the woods, and we haven’t had the chance to find their hive!” Damillan informed Resos.
• “Zane knows, Marable told him! That is why a group of hunters had been sent to the woods. When the hunters get here, they are going to lead your families to the passageway. The next shuttle should be here in two days. Around that time more hunters will arrive and will take another group to the passageway that is close to the Whispering Hills. The only way this will not happen is if the hunters believe that this would compromise the mission.” Resos was rubbing her hands together as they began to become sweaty. “Zana also wanted me to tell you that close if not more … a million unregistered vampires are coming this way. A good amount of their force are fledglings that are assumed not to be trained in proper feeding.”
• Yelling, “fine … when are the hunters going to be here?” Firxis was trying to control his temper.
• “They should be here now! They will show themselves once they know for sure there are no unregistered vampires in the woods and in the capital. The last thing we need is for our enemies to figure out where we are located and take the people to.”
• “How many shutters are coming this way?” Damillan asked in a harsh tone.
• “There will be two shuttles for sure, the other shuttles are in rough condition and require more work. When the next conductors come this way, they will be able to update you on what to expect.”
• Lord Ascelius was thinking as he listened to everything that Resos had said. “The hidden entrance that is around Whispering Hill, how many days will it take for the people to get from here to there and how protected will they be?”
• With a smile, “With the journey here, there was no sign of activity. But the terrain is wide open with no protection. The people will have to shift and move at the pace that is set by the leading hunter. Of course they will slow it down to a shifter's speed and not that of a vampire, but they will be able to get them to safety.” Resos was confident with what she had to say.
• Davder thought about their next move, “Craimie, you have your connections, get the group ready to leave the second the hunters get here. We will need those that can run long distances. No children, they will only slow the group down. And they will have to be shifters.”
• “How many?” Craimie asked.
• “As many as you possibly can get! If they are in the cadets program, even better! They would at least have knowledge on how to protect themselves if something should happen.” Resos answered promptly. “My father has already sent my brother as a recruit for the underground army.”
• “I already have in mind who to send!” Craimie brought his attention to the Alpplefinger brothers.
• “If you are thinking about next year's recruitment … do it!” Firsix commented. Noticing Lord Ascelius' expression. “They are kin and friends that are in their last year of academy. It is well known in the alliance that children are unofficially trained once they can print their names. Officially they have to have finished their educational years before anyone is allowed to enlist.”
• Davder cleared his throat, “you are about to awaken the wrath of the beast!”
• Lord Ascelius had a questionable expression while Resos giggled, “been there done that! My mum cried for three days straight when she heard what happened here.” Her mannerisms changed to sombre. “No mum wants to send their child out on their own. But as it stands, Firxis was right about one thing, we should have moved the second the first body was found.”
• “Damillan, I want you to go to the north and see if you can find the hunters.” Lord Asceluis ordered. A few hands went up in the air, each of them stating they would join Damillan. “Sieden you take the west, Norrix you have the south and Melantha I want you to scout the east.”
• Without another word being spoken, elite warriors paired up with the ancillae fighters.
• “Remember … the hunters will not show themselves until they know for sure there are no unregistered vampires.” Resos said as she left the area.
• *Daha Cliff*
• The rugged landscape reminded him of his homeland. An emotion that seeped into his bones made him move harder and faster, Alpha Zevar had not had an overwhelming need to get home for a while, his mind had been occupied with the crisis that was going on. The need to hear his wife's voice was his driving force. The smell of the saltwater drifted into his nostrils, letting him know how close he was to his destination, yet so far away.
• Alpha Zevar picked up the hint of bread and meat. Again he found a satchel filled with food. The first time he came across a bag like this he was unsure what to make of it. Inspecting the satchel he realised that someone had been setting them out for him. It was clear that Iun had connections in this location. And it was up to him as an alpha to get everyone's attention.
• Shifting the alpha found a bag filled with fresh meat and bread. saying silent prayers of gratitude to the person who left them out for him to find.
• Allowing the food to digest, the alpha strolled near the edge of the cliffs. In the far distance, he could see the outline of one of the many islands of Dorasea. Alpha Zevar smiled to himself, studying the terrain, he already knew he had a two day travel until he would reach the Toadfen forest. With roughly another day's travel, he would come to the southeastern entrance.
• As the alpha was about to begin moving forward knowing he had roughly ten hours of sunlight left, his wolf ears picked up the slight sound of children giggling. Crouching down closer to the ground the alpha listened attentively. As the wind blew the sound of children laughing could be heard by him. Though it was soft, almost not audible, the alpha was able to hear them, yet he could not see any young child. He was alone and there was no odour in the air to indicate anyone around. The alpha shuttered at the thought of hearing the sounds of the ghosts of children who had died in the area.
• With one last glance around, the alpha shifted, gathering his belongings and picking up the pace trotting forward, keeping his eyes and ears alert, with his mind clear and his destination the focus of his desire.
• *Crypt Port*
• “Eh Skippy! Grab the rope and secure it to the anchor!” Javan yelled his order out.
• The last ship that was to arrive with supplies made it before it was completely dark out.
• “Any issues getting here?” Javan asked Captain Tang.
• Getting onto the deck, “strong winds and high waves, I am just glad to be off the wretched beast. We are going to have a rough winter, I am telling you!” Captain Tang forced a smile, “if the seas are not lying to me, we are in for high waves and harsh winds.”
• Javan chuckled, “don’t worry we will get this maiden out of the water first thing in the morning. We just need to get everything off of her that is all!”
• The captain patted his good friend on the shoulder, “it is good to be home!” He exhaled, “What are the chances of getting a hot meal, a mug of ale and the chance to sit down with my good friend?”
• “I am sure the women folk still have the last meal warm and ready for your belly.” Javan slapped his friend on the back, “Let's go while the boys finish unloading.
• ***
• Lifting the mug off the table as a server took the empty bowls away, “How long have we been friends?” Tang asked Javan.
• Chuckling, “since the day we could run! Drove our parents crazy with our recklessness.”
• Taking a swig of his ale, “then you know I am not one for spreading tales and lies. Trustworthy man I have always been …” Tang wiped the back of his hand over his mouth to get the suds off his moustache. “The tales they speak of, in the east! They are true!”
• “Did you kill one on your ship?” Javan leaned forward and whispered.
• “No! The men and I were about to go wenchen, nothing out of the ordinary for us. Then we crossed paths with a gift from the gods. Or at least that is what we thought. Breckon followed the wench down the alleyway, we were laughing and enjoying ourselves. We might have had a few to drink or more than we should have. But we sobered up when we heard Breckon screaming! It was the type of scream that sends the parents running after the wee one, that type of steam. When we got to him, three females had their fangs in Breckon. If it were not for Mills taking out his machete, we would all have been dead too. Because from above us more blood suckers pounced on us. We had our pants down at our knees I am telling you. We did not have a clue what was going on.” Tang took another drink trying to steady his hand as the mug visibly shook. “We got out of there with only a few bites in our flesh but Beckon … poor bastard didn’t make it! When we killed the last vampire and realised that Beckon was dead, we ran for the ship and set sail. By the time we had sailed out of Alquaren Port that is when we heard the screaming and spotted the fire.”
• Javan's jaw was bobbing up and down, trying to find the right words to say.
• “If we had stayed any longer than we did, we would never had made it out alive.” Tang finished the rest of his ale, “we left Alquaren 90 days ago. When we went to our scheduled stop at Centaur Port, the place gave off a vibe all too familiar as to when we arrived at Alquaren. We dropped off the supplies, and in double time we had the ship stocked and ready to go. There the wenches tried to entice us to stay. We left with our balls full and our wits running down our legs.”
• Javan placed his hand up in the air for a server to come to the table, “refill for Tang and one for me!” He ordered. Bringing his attention back to his friend, “do you figure they are going to come here?”
• “I don’t know but I can say this, if they do … we are in a lot of trouble.”
• The server sat the ale on the table and left to continue with her chores.
• Drinking half the mug of ale in one gulp, “I am not saying that we are in trouble, but I am not saying we are not prepared as well. We have been working on the secret city since the other captains got back. Each of them telling us their encounter with the feral vampires. Each of them had a stolaway, and had to kill them before they did any damage.” Javan finished the rest of the ale feeling tipsy.
• Tang had his sight glued on his drink, “you might want to get to work on the hidden city a bit faster. These old bones of mine tell me this is going to be a rough one. And if we are caught with our pants down around our ankles, it is going to be more than Beckon’s we will lose!”