A Shade of Vampire 79 A Game of Death - Bella Forrest Page 0,71
said. “I sort of unleashed myself.”
“We all have a dark side,” Kalon added. “We rarely show it because it’s very difficult to snap back from it. I suppose it’s a primal version of ourselves, where the body takes over. We’re stronger and faster, but also more violent.”
“I couldn’t help myself,” Valaine replied. “I saw all these people attacking you two, and I just lost it.”
“You mean to tell me all Aeternae have this beast mode?” I asked, trying to process the information, trying to picture Kalon manifesting himself like this.
“Yes. But like I said, and as you must’ve seen for yourself, it’s not a pretty sight,” he replied. “We consider it a kind of letting go of ourselves. It’s intense and consuming, too. It’s best to stay away from an Aeternae if they’re like this, but Valaine and I have known each other for a long time. She doesn’t scare me anymore.” He shot her a reassuring smile.
Nodding faintly, I turned and hugged my brother. “You two showed up right on time.”
“We were in the area, as it turns out,” Tristan replied, his brow furrowed. “We saw the Red Threads coming after you from the streets. I wasn’t sure you knew they were following you, hence the quick Telluris message.”
“It was our duty to join you,” Valaine said.
“Well, I’m glad you did!” I chuckled. “So, what have we here?” Looking around, I counted about twenty Rimians we could send to prison. They were the only ones still breathing, and most were in desperate need of serious medical assistance.
Kalon took out a small whistle from his vest pocket. As he blew, no sound came out, but my ears tingled, nonetheless. Whatever that contraption was, it worked on a different frequency. Minutes later, the square was inundated with silver guards, each looking more alarmed than the other as they observed the scene.
“These are Red Thread faction members,” Kalon said, loudly enough for all the soldiers to hear. “Take them to prison and make sure they’re given the care they need in order to live. We’ll be interrogating them soon enough!”
“Yes, milord!” one of the guards replied.
“And try to identify the dead ones, as well. We need to understand how deep this conspiracy goes. The last thing we need is another enemy right now with the Darklings running loose,” Kalon added, visibly disgusted. “Raid their houses, all their neighborhoods, if you have to. We must nip this in the bud.”
The guards all nodded and quickly got to work. They had a mobile medical unit brought in, loading the Rimians onto stretchers and carrying them to the prison, whose silver-gray towers rose past the Nalorean neighborhood. Fortunately, they didn’t have a long walk ahead of them.
“There was another attempt on Valaine’s life, as you know,” Tristan said. We’d briefed each other in handfuls of words along the way and throughout the day, using our Telluris connection. Kalon and I nodded, each of us giving Valaine a concerned look. “We’re counting three in less than a day.”
“It’s probably going to get worse,” I replied. I’d yet to tell my brother about our conversation with the Rimian, so I went ahead and brought him up to speed regarding the Darklings and their desire to sacrifice a certain Aeternae in order to stop the Black Fever.
“Oh, dear.” Valaine gasped when I was done relaying what the Rimian had told us. The soldiers were still moving around us, the occasional whimper or pained moan coming from the Red Threads they gathered off the ground. “They’re fanatics. They’re insane. What will killing me accomplish? It’s not how the Black Fever works! It’s a virus.”
“We all know that. They probably know it, too, but they just don’t care for facts,” I said. “That’s the thing with fanatics and murderous cults. They fabricate their own reality to justify their killer instincts, and they never set foot outside that carefully defined area.”
“And now we’ve got the Red Threads, too?” Tristan asked. “I swear, Visio looked really nice in the beginning.”
“With all due respect, I think that goes for all peoples,” Kalon retorted, somewhat offended by my brother’s conclusion. Frankly, I was split between the two as far as Visio was concerned. A beautiful world, yes, but ripe with so much trouble. “There are secrets and there is darkness in all societies. More in some than in others, but I doubt we’re the only ones with such issues.”
“We usually have GASP to intervene and maintain peace,” Tristan said, standing his ground.