Chapter 24

We cut our way through another dozen Voguel before we reached the end of the scent trail. We turned right down a fork corridor and found an open door. My senses told me there was at least one person inside. But there could have been more. Lillian, however, confirmed that there was only one and her demeanor meant that it was our former captive. I slowly walked into the room and saw multiple cells, one of which was open. I approached the open door to find her in chains. There was a dead body on the ground at her feet and I could also see the knife she had stolen at her feet.

“So, the son of a whore arrives to gloat,” Aphronia spat. “Well, go ahead then, you have won and, to make matters worse, I am a human again. Thanks to you and your fucking bitches, I have fallen from grace.”

I sighed and said, “You only have yourself to blame. You chose to hurt and kill people. You tried to hurt the women I love and tried to destroy my home. Because of you, my father and mother are dead. Everything you have touched, you have destroyed. The fact that you resemble my mother was the only thing that kept me from killing you and was foolish on my part.”

“It was not too foolish,” she replied with a bitter laugh. “The body at your feet was once our leader. I had been working for the last century to overthrow him. That was why I attempted to take over Bardack, to have the army to match or beat him. At least I thought he was our leader.”

I gave her a confused look and I could feel that the others were listening intently.

She shrugged her shoulders, “I never knew anyone else but him when I was first turned all those years ago. I only learned after I cured him that he was not who I believed him to be. There was someone that he answered to, the one behind our plans for the last two centuries.”

“So who is it, then?” I asked her, curious for the information. “You must know something?”

She sighed, “Even after I cured him, only Feror was the one the First One would talk to.”

-- Did she just say the First One? -- Irenia asked, shock and awe evident in her voice.

// Who is the First One? I have never heard you get shocked like that before. \\ I said, surprised at her reaction.

Irenia sounded quiet as she replied -- The First One is one of three young men who, myth states, were the first Voguel. Turned by a goddess for killing her child, a huge wolf. If this is the case, then it means that it is all true... --

“So there is nothing you could tell me?” I asked, to which she just shrugged her shoulders. “Listen, I know you found something out, tell me and you can leave here unharmed. At least, you will not be attacked or assaulted by our forces.”

She studied my face for a few minutes trying to see if I were lying to her, but even if I were, what choice would she have?

She sighed in defeat and said, “All I know is that something was being planned for the next blood moon. Our forces were to attack en masse, sweeping southward. I am unsure of what will happen now, as you will no doubt kill all the Voguel in this stronghold.”

“Just how many Voguel are stationed here at the moment?” I asked, curious how much she would be willing to reveal.

She thought for a moment, “Last I knew, there were nearly two hundred soldiers, but I do not know how long I have been here, nor do I know how many soldiers had been moved around in that time.”

“We have killed nearly that many, so far, but I cannot be sure yet if we got them all.” I answered. “I am sure you know the quickest way to the exit, but I need to know if there are any others besides the cave entrance. If any get away, then what we have done here is all for naught. How many more levels are underneath this one?”

“This is the deepest floor of our lair,” Aphronia replied and then shook her head, “If there are any other exits to this place, the only one here who would know is lying dead at your feet. The First One would have been the last person to know.”

I stared at her, wondering if she was telling the truth or not. After a few moments I started to slowly walk towards her. I picked up the knife and slid it into my belt before closing the remaining distance between us. I then grabbed the bracers of her chains and dipped into my well of power. I felt the metal yield beneath my fingers as I tore it off and then did the same for the other one. While I worked, I kept my eyes on her, watching her stunned reaction at the power at my disposal.

“I know, now, that you let me go on purpose, but I had no idea that you could have killed me so easily.” She said with awe. “Perhaps you will succeed where I have failed. Though I will never really know how it will end.”

I gestured for her to come out, “When you leave this cell you are free to leave un-accosted, but should you cross our paths as an enemy again, neither I or my ladies will show you any further mercy.”

My words angered her, and she snapped back in irritation. “I never wanted or asked for your fucking mercy. Though I never asked to be bitten or to survive, I relished being a Voguel. That has been taken away from me, as has my revenge. I hope that I never see you or your cunts again.”

In a flash I crossed the distance and had her raised off the ground by her neck. I saw terror and fear fill her eyes as she realized how much she was at my mercy. She struggled for a moment and then went limp in defeat.

“Never misinterpret my actions for weakness,” I said with a soft menace. “But, speak of the women whom I love like that again, and I will tear you apart.”

She could not say anything due to the tight grip I had on her throat, so she nodded emphatically in response. I dropped her to the ground and she instinctively rubbed her throat before running out of the cell. Within moments she was out of the room, into the hallway and out of sight. I hoped that it would be for the last time, as I felt if we crossed paths on opposite sides one more time, she would not survive it.

-- You showed more restraint than any of us would have. -- Ingrid said. -- What you did when she called us cunts though, let us just say you will not be getting any sleep. --

I chuckled and I could feel their lust through the bond. One thing I knew for sure; if I were not tired when we were finished here, I would be when they were through with me.

We made our way out of the cells and headed down the hallway to the next section. I could tell through the bond that the others were coming against less and less resistance. Ingrid and her group had fought and killed a few Voguel who had slipped past us.

I stretched out with my senses and could hear only a few signs of movement. We continued towards the sounds and I was shocked at how intricate the layout was. As we passed a corridor to follow the sounds of enemies, I stopped dead. I got a feeling that I needed to go down that way, but I could not tell what was drawing me there. I could sense that the others were making their way towards us through their sweep of the facility. Confident that the others would catch those we had left them to deal with, I moved towards the sensation that was filling me.

The feeling grew as we got closer and I could not figure out the reason why. After a few minutes, I found myself entering a large, expansive room. Flickering torchlight filled the room with illumination but only minimal light. It added to the atmosphere of the room and created an ominous sensation. In the center of the room was a throne, not ornate in any way and it would make the person seated here look darker and more sinister. As I looked around, I realized that the lighting and the throne seemed more like theatrics.

Given what I had heard of this Feror person, it would make sense that if he were trying to play the role, he would use theatrics to better sell it. It seemed like it would be unnecessary, but if this had been the state everyone saw from the start, it would not seem out of place. As I moved around the room, I tried to get a sense of where the strange sense was coming from. When I got behind the throne, I felt the sensation emanating from the back of it.

I ran my hands along the back and felt along the surface for anything that would explain my unease. My hand finally found a depression and I pressed down on it. The sound of shifting stone filled the room and the back of the throne lowered into the floor. As it sank, it revealed two skulls resting in alcoves inside. The skulls looked old, though it would be hard for me to know how old. The feeling I was getting made me think they were both old and dangerous. How a set of skulls could be dangerous I could not understand, but the feeling could not be ignored.

I do not understand why I reached out for one of the skulls. One moment I was looking at them, the second my hand touched one of them. Sharp pain exploded in my head and I fell to the ground. I did not understand how, but I knew those were the skulls of the other two First Ones. I looked around for something to carry them in, but there was nothing.

// Someone make sure to grab a sack big enough to carry the two skulls that I have found. Something is telling me that I need to bring them with us, in order to finish this. \\

They acknowledged the request and I could tell they were nearby. I looked around the exposed area, to see if there were any other switches or other hidden items. Unfortunately, I did not find anything before Kayla arrived with a linen bag in hand. She opened the bag for me, and I braced myself for more pain, but there was no reaction the second time I touched one of the skulls. I placed both of them in the bag and pulled the tie to close the bag.

“So how do things look?” I asked, as I tied the bag to my belt. “We know that this is the last floor to the facility. Have we dealt with all of the threats here?”

“We believe that we have dealt with everyone in this facility,” Kayla answered. “Perhaps she should make a pass through each floor before we leave.”

It was a good plan, so we took our time to clear every room and floor. Three hours later, we had returned to the entrance to the cave. I noticed a pulley system and knew what to do.

As we neared the doorway I turned and said, “Irenia, when everyone else is through, cut the cord. I will hold open the door until you get through.”

Irenia nodded and walked over to the pulley area. Once everyone was through the door, I got ready and nodded to Irenia. She cut off the counterweight and I pulled from the well as the door began to close. I was surprised at the weight of it, as it seemed even heavier than the portcullis, but I was able to hold it open. Irenia slid through the gap I had made, though she made sure to rub her body against mine as she passed. Once she was clear of the door, I moved quickly out of the way and Allowed the door to close for good.