A Shade of Vampire 80 A Veil of Dark - Bella Forrest Page 0,9

devoted to keeping the rest of their people safe. Their own wellbeing could be sacrificed to save millions of other Aeternae, and I had to admit, I deeply respected that. There was neither room nor time for panic.

We were only just getting started, and we’d already lost too many leads at once.

“They must have some medical knowledge,” I concluded as we stopped by the main entrance into the palace. “To be able to use infected blood like that—if that’s what the black goo is, anyway. Or at least some chemistry education.”

“What are you suggesting?” Valaine asked, her delicate brows pulled into a deeply concerned frown.

“Maybe it’s not just the gold and silver guards that we need to shake down,” I said. “It takes a lick of science to pull off these poison capsules. Besides, from what we’ve gathered after the Zoltan incident and based on the identities of the Darklings that Esme, Kalon, and Trev managed to take down, we’re dealing with more than just soldiers. The Darklings are probably everywhere.”

“While that may be true, purging the armed forces is essential,” Corbin replied. “If we cannot trust our defensive forces, then we are utterly screwed.”

There would be more answers once Amal and Amane analyzed the black goo and the glass shards. If they confirmed my suspicions, then we were in a lot of trouble, since chances were that all the other Darklings were in possession of such dangerous poison capsules. How strange, I thought, that these fanatics were ready to use the very disease they were so desperately trying to eradicate by killing Valaine and the many others before her.

Tristan

With the silver guards, Valaine sought assistance from one of Petra’s mazir disciples. The trouble with Visio’s magic was that, while it was powerful, mazir was significantly limited and dependent on energy levels. A barrier spell like the one Valaine had used against the gold guards was consuming, to say the least.

A disciple had been needed to support Valaine’s next endeavor—not only because she was tired, but also because the silver guards outnumbered the gold guards a hundred to one. Corbin had the entire silver army of the city gathered in the biggest square, which was normally reserved for massive events involving speeches from the Lord and Lady Supreme, as well as seasonal celebrations and blood festivals.

This time, however, the Turquoise Square was filled with silver-armored guards. Thousands of them, lined up in tightly organized rows, many wondering why they had been summoned. The golden guards episode had been kept secret, to avoid spooking potential Darklings among this lot. Corbin stood on the northern edge of the square, his armor gleaming beneath the fading sun. The Crimson guards and about five hundred gold guards had been called to assist, surrounding the entire mass of silver soldiers, as Corbin gave his treachery speech.

Valaine and Petra’s disciple anticipated a horde of silver guards looking to get out before they were discovered as Darklings—which saddened me, since it was so predictable. They cast the barrier spell, and I helped Valaine stand as she and the disciple held the mazir in place. The gold and Crimson guards dove into the crowd and started checking each soldier for black-and-white threads. Those who resisted were quickly identified and immobilized, their mouths checked before they could swallow the black goo glass capsules.

All in all, I had to give Corbin credit. He was a fast learner, and he knew how to organize his troops. I dared not even think of a future scenario where my people and I might have to go against his Aeternae soldiers… even with our dragons and Perfects and Arch-Perfects, we were nowhere near as heavily disciplined in GASP as Corbin’s fighters.

“I’m counting about fifty so far,” Valaine said, watching the crowd rumble as most of the Darklings were identified and brought to the front. Some died along the way, ingesting their poison capsules before the guards could reach them. If, at first, the purpose of this gathering had been hazy, it was crystal clear now.

It didn’t take long for the remaining unchecked Darklings who had infiltrated the silver guards to understand that there was no way out for them. Their fanaticism was on full display, too, as they chose to kill themselves before they were even searched or arrested.

By the time the Gold and Crimson guards were done, we had about seventy Darklings captured alive. Corbin couldn’t stop a grin from slitting his face. “I dare say, today is shaping up much better than