Chapter 40: Chapter 40 – Not Living, Not Dead

//Author Note: Serious talk now, if you haven't taken the dive now's the time: //

 

Morning’s light dawns on a city unchanged from last night’s events. The merchants are still hawking their wares, the labourers are still heading out to their work, and life for the common class struggles ever onward, but my vision of this city is forever changed.

I had thought that we were in a bad way, corrupted and collapsing. A kingdom that has forgotten how to be a kingdom, but I was wrong.

This is not even a kingdom any longer.

It is a corpse.

We are all simply living in the decaying corpse of a kingdom long dead. The nobility still steals their luxuries from the weaker people, who scrape a small living from their broken homes, and the royalty barely leaves their castle but to play with their favourite nobles. There is no connection between them any longer, and even actors on a stage would play the roles better than those who were born to them.

Last night’s events should be seen as a terrible tragedy, flavouring perceptions and influencing change. I very much doubt that it will be anything more than a topic of discussion at the noble’s balls and feasts.

Last night, the vampires feasted on the flesh of our kingdom. A fox that has taken a bite from the corpse. It is seen as a tragedy only to the worms and maggots that have riddled it through and been caught by the sharp teeth. Worms and maggots that were once a part of the healthy body, spontaneously generated by the rotting flesh itself and are now cursed to consume the greater being that we once were.

I can think of greater tragedy even written in my bedtime stories, or history books, though I’m sure the lies spread within were written to hide such awful things.

There is no repairing this.

No noble, no matter how just, can bring this dead kingdom back to life. All that I’m doing here is wasting my time pretending that the world can be saved if I just act as a proper noblewoman. It is a lie?

How many others see it?

How many others know that this city, this kingdom is already dead?

Am I alone in this realization, or am I late to it? I am sure that there are commoners who already understand.

“Belle,” I whisper her name, resting a hand on her shoulder.

She is warm, and somehow still alive. She should be like me, but she has been granted another fate. She has been saved from the curse that has taken me. A dark shadow in my heart writhes in regret knowing that I cannot share my suffering with her, that she is saved where I was not.

Merry’s strange magic was enough to bring her back and cure her curse, but it is not the same as healing magics. She is still lacking a few limbs, and while I’ve considered using my own healing on her, neither of us is in a state to comfortably take the effort. The healers that are here with us are already so exhausted that we cannot ask them for anything more than what they’ve delivered.

Merry wanted to try and recover more people, as he’s done for Belle, but he only had time for one failure before they became undead and we were forced to put them down. Merry and his people wanted to save them even in their maddened state, but we are not equipped to capture such powerful monsters, let alone carry them across the city to whatever dungeon he thinks to use for the purpose.

I have to hope, for their sakes, that Aldramodore cannot bring them back. If their souls are stuck within the ashes spread over the yard, then I hope they might grow to be beautiful flowers, and know no more suffering.

Some warriors have left to acquire carriages and horses for us to escape, I’ve directed them to my home and I know that Henry is already prepared to come running. We haven’t yet been assaulted, and I must assume that we’re safe, at least for a short time. Rushing our escape faster would be impossible for many who have exhausted themselves to the point of falling unconscious.

The group of mercenaries that came to our rescue, slaying Pharisa at the end before running off, have returned to us. They were at first in a panic, seeking that same elf that they were chasing from before, the one who dared to face the knight. Someone left her lying unconscious among the wounded, though I’m not certain how she was brought here only a little away from where Belle and I are resting.

Her injuries are unpleasant but far from lethal. She is, however, rolling about and groaning in her sleep, or occasionally even screaming. Whatever has happened to her, it has rather firmly locked her into a place of terrible nightmares and no attempts to soothe her have any effect. The mercenaries are gathered with her now but do not seem overly worried for her condition.

Instead, they’ve taken to demanding answers to the evening’s events, eventually dragging Lewark into a conversation. Their eyes repeatedly turn to me and if there was ever any doubt that they recognise vampirism, then there is none any longer. My poorly kept secret has been revealed, to no great surprise.

The reeve’s attention and concern are levelled in my direction as he carefully words each of his answers to avoid implicating me further, but it feels as if his attempts might just be drawing their suspicions further. It does not take them long to decide to ask their questions more directly.

I straighten my borrowed dress, it is ill-fitting and of an uncomplimentary style, but complaints would be beyond rude given the situation. As it is I’m sitting directly on the stone floor, like a beggar seeking scraps from the more virtuous of passersby. Perhaps it is best to set aside my concerns for noble dignity, even if it does burn my stomach to even consider it.

“Greetings, I’m Countess Greystone,” I say, nodding my head to the mercenaries. “Is there something the matter with your friend?”

“No, she’s fine. She will be,” their leader says, stepping out closer to me. His greying hair and sharp eyes speak of experience, though his lacking power suggests a lack of dedication to training. As to be expected, few commoners have the luxury to train as much as is needed. “I’m Theo. There was something that we were meaning to ask you if that is not too much to ask.”

He is clearly without any experience dealing with the nobility and his poor attempts at formality are only grating. I even out my breathing and grind down my itching fangs. I do not need such formalities; I do not even know why it irritates me so.

“And I’ve been meaning to thank you for your assistance,” I say, keeping all frustration from my voice. “I do not believe that I would have been victorious if you had not arrived when you did.”

“She was burning, but she wasn’t dying,” Theo says, making a question of the statement.

“She was dying, just more slowly than is proper,” I explain. “My plan until your arrival was to keep her distracted until the fire drained her strength. I do not think I would have succeeded. At least not until she was finished with her task.”

The mercenaries share a look, hesitating to say anything more, though they desperately want to. Perhaps my nobility is causing them some hesitation.

“You want to know more about my affliction?” I ask, leaning back. Belle stirs for a moment and I reach out for her, but soon settles back into sleep before she can fully awaken. “Reeve Lewark should have already explained that fire, light, and confidence are our weaknesses, is there anything more than that you feel you must know that the others cannot answer for you?”

“Vampires are an organisation? A… gang that curses their members with necromancy?” Theo asks, shifting uncomfortably at the final word, and for good reason.

“I suppose that is a fine enough theory,” I say. “I do not know what the others, the ‘gang’, are up to as it seems that they do not know that I exist. Or, more likely, some know but their leader hasn’t found the reason to chase me down and force me into their little group. As for the necromancy, this curse could certainly be considered a brand of the magic, but I do not know of any proper necromancers.”

That seems to ease them, though I’m not certain that vampires are any more welcome a villain compared to necromancers.

“What’s their purpose?” The elf, Nadia, she hastily introduces herself as, before she rushes to ask more. “Do you know why they are interested in ancient ruins, or æther wells?”

“I know of nothing the sort,” I answer honestly. “To be honest, I know very little and most of what I know I’ve only learnt in the last few hours from very brief interrogations. If there is anything you feel you can share, I would welcome anything that might illuminate my own condition… though…”

If I am the same as the others, then my own will would be stolen away the moment my sire demands something of me.

“I cannot in good conscience demand secrets from you that I may not be able to keep. As I’ve alluded to, I may not be capable of resisting if their leader comes to me.” I barely manage to suppress a shiver, gripping at Belle’s shoulder.

“We will consider that. Sorry for bothering you,” Theo says, bowing to me before retreating. The others quickly follow.

If Aldramodore decides to visit here personally…

I cannot let myself become a weapon against my own people.

I touch the grain on the wooden stake that I’ve recovered since the battle’s end. If he does come here, then it would be better for me to be ash.

Semi, floating around the edges of the entry hall, is staring my way, offering a small wave as she notices my attention. Vael is hanging off of her arm, glancing instead towards Syr, the elf who battled the knight.

Belle remains unconscious, and it is likely we’ll have to move her in this condition, but she’s sleeping quietly and the warmth of faith in her chest burns when I touch her. It must mean that she’s still well.

“We’re leaving soon?” I ask Lewark, whose hand is reaching for a cane that’s no longer by his side. “We cannot linger here for long.”

“We’re leaving as soon as the carriages arrive. Merry is gathering his people to lead them out of here after us,” he says, staring down at Belle. “This was a mess.”

“We learned from it,” I say. “We learned more about vampires, we’ve learned that they are growing bolder, and are seeking to increase their numbers. We even killed one of their leaders. Pharisa claimed to directly answer to Aldramodore, who I suppose is the master behind this.”

“An unreachable man,” Lewark grumbles. “If we’ve weakened him at all, then I suppose this was worth it.”

“It was worth it,” I say, pointing my chin at the gathered survivors. Their lives are worth little enough that they were treated as nothing more than food, and recruits for this cursed criminal empire that the vampires are crafting, but there is more value in their lives than any noble seems interested in bringing about. Each person here has their own skills and abilities, if we could simply ease their lives and allow them to focus on their crafts, but that would be how a healthy kingdom functions.

They are nothing more than the meat on their bones and the blood in their veins in this city which does not quite realise that death has already taken it.

“Watch over Belle for me,” I say, though I only intend to walk away a few steps.

Lewark doesn’t question my intents, kneeling by the girl’s side and wiping the sweat from her brow.

Syr is back to screaming again, her condition not letting up. She still bears the scabbed injuries from the knight’s sword, and her face is misshapen, either beaten with a metal gauntlet or smashed into the stone ground.

Even with all my vampiric powers, I was barely able to stand against the knight for a few seconds, scoring only a single wound. Yet, this girl was able to stand against him for so long, even killing him, and these are all the injuries that speak of her battle?

To kill a knight in open battle…

Given a decade of training, she’ll be nigh unstoppable.

Not that she would seem as such now, writhing on the soft fur laid out beneath her and pushing away her blankets. The clothes underneath are torn and bloodied, showing her injuries. One of her arms has been flayed down to the bone on the outside of the forearm, and while some healing has been done and the bleeding stopped by scabs, it will take time for her to fully recover.

Her ears are pointed, definitive evidence of her elvish blood, but without that, I’d think her human. Her skin is tan, where an elf should be pale, and her clothes are… they are not so revealing as to have her mistaken for a whore, but it still shows enough skin that it feels uncomfortable to be looking at her in this state. It is strange to see an elf quite like this, it’s as if she’s come from an entirely foreign land.

“She is going to be fine,” Nadia, the other strange elf, is here watching over her. Their mage is closer still, holding the unconscious girl as she struggles through her nightmares.

“She seems unwell,” I reply. The sweat on her brow is dripping thick, and though her cries have died down, the whimpers taking their place cut right through to the heart I used to have. She seems so weak and vulnerable.

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A part of me wants to wipe the sweat from her brow, and another wants to know what her blood tastes like. My fangs itch, and for the first time in a long time, the cold inside of me genuinely feels unpleasant. Not simply is it a want for warmth, but a pain at the feeling of frost.

“She gets like this when she pushes herself,” Nadia explains. “It’s a mage’s rage, she’s pushed well beyond her own limits and now she’s paying for it.”

“I should hope that she’s pushed herself hard. If beating a knight comes easy to her, then we should all be terrified,” I say, moving back into the memories of the battle that came before. “She… she fought alongside some of my own kind. Vampires and ghouls; creatures lost to the space between life and death. Do you know how she did that?”

I only ask because I’m almost sure that I already know, and if I am correct then she might assist me in my own troubles.

The pair of women share a glance, it is only brief and perhaps someone not trained to pick up the smallest social cues would miss it.

“Are you sure it wasn’t a vampire like you?” Nadia asks me, looking away. “Another rebel helping out?”

“No,” I shake my head firmly. “Pharisa was certain that it was impossible, or no, not entirely impossible. She was convinced that someone had used magic on us. A lost magic. A dangerous magic.”

Their silence speaks in their place. While it’s not confirmation that this girl is a necromancer, it is proof that they think she is. If she can undermine the chains that bind me to my sire, then…

“I may need your assistance at some point in the future,” I say. “If it isn’t unwelcome, could I invite you to my estate for a longer conversation? Perhaps we might secure a means of contacting one another should another dire situation such as this befall us.”

“I can’t promise anything,” Nadia says.

Henry charges in through the front doors of the mansion with a decent collection of guards, and I give the mercenaries my final regards before leaving.

 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

 

Riding in a carriage out towards my estate, I hold firmly to Belle to ensure that the bumps don’t knock her from her seat.

I’ve sent message ahead to her parents, telling them to come meet me at my estate, and have called for a proper healer to assist us when we arrive. An expert can hopefully identify any issues with potential vampirism arising within her. Merry is still with the others, helping the survivors to recover and escape. There’s no guarantee that those behind this hunt won’t continue to pursue us, no matter how far we run, but at the very least it would be best for us to try and make it difficult.

In truth, it’s likely that they will hunt us. There seems an active interest in hiding vampires from the people. Our weaknesses are an especially important secret, but to try and hide it now would require a much more significant slaughter.

I wish that I could call such a thing impossible.

“You fought well,” Vael says, sitting to my left as I hold onto Belle on my right. Her demonic features are showing freely without regard for Therina, who is with us, looking away and pretending not to see. “It was wonderful to watch!”

“It was hardly a fight at all,” I shuffle uncomfortably in my seat. Her tail whips back and forth as she settles her warm attention on me. “I delayed her and tricked her until those mercenaries came to finish her.”

“You masked them from her,” Vael says. “They were only able to cast that magic because you gave them the chance. War isn’t all about taking blows with a shield and hitting things extra hard. It’s deception, movement, placement, and so much else. You achieved your goal with the abilities that you had. That is a good fight.”

I nod slowly accepting her compliment.

Her tail wraps around my ankle and though I glare at her she doesn’t pull it back. I shake my head and ignore her, but she just continues to push at me.

“What are you doing after this?” She whispers into my ear.

“I don’t know,” I say, staring out the window. “If what I have seen is evidence, then everything I have done so far is worthless. There is no healing this kingdom. There is no fixing what is broken here. What then should I do?”

Vael huffs in disappointment but leans back as she pulls together an answer.

“You’re not going to worry about yourself? Your sire?”

“Aldramodore…” I nod slowly. “I cannot risk meeting him… not if he can control me like Pharisa commanded the others.”

“You are better as yourself,” Vael agrees, leaning up against my side. “Are you going to leave the city?”

“I…”

I must escape from Aldramodore.

I cannot fix this city, I cannot save the people here.

I am… not a noble. Not by my own measure of a noble, as I have no kingdom.

If I am not a noble, then I am nothing more than a vampire. A monster.

No, I must retain my identity as a noble, even without a kingdom to serve.

But what does that even mean?

Vael’s grip on me tightens as her smile deepens. My own uncertainties seem only to incite more hunger from her. A feeling that I have felt when considering preying upon Belle, yet what it would lead us to, I do not know for sure. I’m tempted to lean into her even if just to forget the troubles facing me today.

“Where is there to go?” I ask, leaning back into my chair. “We must flee, leaving this city behind. I cannot go north into the lands of the norkit, I doubt that they would accept me, and the southern kingdoms would welcome me, but I would be left as another beggar on the streets if not in an even worse situation. I couldn’t protect my household like that.

“Perhaps… the lands beyond the mountains?” I ask. “It is so far away, no noble dares to cross the distance. If perhaps we could go there, I might take the role of a noble in that distant city.”

“The role of a noble?” Vael asks, playing with the strings on my dress. I slap her hand away.

“A servant of the people. Guiding those who need guidance, ensuring that roads are built as needed and that the lands are properly defended. Even if I am without a proper title, I am still who I am. If I cannot be a noble lady, then I am only a monster. So, I will be a noble without a king to serve.”

“A criminal,” she says. “Someone who acts like a noble, but isn’t one, is nothing but a criminal.”

“Then so be it.”

Our carriage arrives and Vael hastily recovers her deception, hiding her tail, wearing ears, and giving new colour to her skin. It is a curious transformation, but I have no time to observe it.

The aftermath of this incident is yet to be fully understood, and I’m sure that there will be more issues to come for us. I cannot simply flee when I’ve gathered so many together to serve me, and moving a whole noble’s house worth of people, and their families, is a task much more challenging than simply fleeing on the back of a merchant’s wagon.

I haven’t the gold to pay for mercenaries to do everything for us, so I need hunters to supply us with enough food as we travel. I need horses and wagons to move us. I will need to send some people ahead to secure a home for me and my people in the city. There is much that needs to be done if we are to leave this city. I must also prepare for any failures that might come about from my attempts.

There is much for me to do.

“Maybe you should talk to Semi again,” Vael suggests, playing with my hair. “She knows people, and if you want to disappear…”

I don’t know how to respond to her.

As the door opens and we make way for the foyer, we cross paths with Sonia and the grand reeve that she’s taken an interest in. The air about them holds a warmth and fondness that they have no interest in hiding.

Perhaps I should simply leave this house to her. Without me here, there is no reason for Aldramodore to strike down this household, and she might continue to live with the luxuries of a noble until the day that this city completely collapses.

I will give her the option, but given my plan to cross the kingdom and survive in a dangerous frontier city, I’m not sure that she’ll be willing to come along. Either way, I must leave.

There is nothing good that I can do for anyone here.

It is time for me to leave.

 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

//Author note: Tell me, do you read Bloody chapters or Rotten Chapters first? Kind of curious how you guys are handling two stories at once. It's a little much for some people. Having a choice, I mean. You ask 'red pill or blue pill?' and they just sit there staring at you until you leave their home. People are weird.

 

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