Beyond The Fangs

Chapter 37

IZEL

After having rummaged through the cupboards and eaten my full of food, I collapsed onto a couch. I may have been silent but my mind wasn't shutting up. It kept going back to thinking of Jaeger. I wasn't going to get any rest at this rate, so I decided I'd take a walk to distract my mind rather than just sit and chastise myself for all my thoughts.

Each house was surrounded by a massive plot of land, and I imagined the children who lived here must have spent their days running around.

I wasn't interested in the land though, that wouldn't keep me distracted very long. What I was interested in was the tall, brick building located right in the centre of Kenter. The Great Hall, I thought was its name. I heard it was like a palace, with so many unique and exquisite features, as well as a handful of secret passages, though I doubted the latter part was true.

I had to walk past three houses, as well as their plots of land before I finally reached The Great Hall. The doors themselves made me gasp. The wood was fashioned with numerous plants and vines intricately carved into it. I lifted a finger and traced along the door before placing my hands on the iron handles and opening the grand doors.

Stepping into the Great Hall was like stepping into a whole other world. Upon opening the doors, I was greeted by a large vestibule filled with chandeliers. The roof was made of some type of glass that filled the room with neon-like colours as the sun shined through.

My steps echoed against the pure, marble floors. There were two large doors on either side of the grand stairs ahead of me, no doubt leading to a large ballroom. I ran my hand along one of the many pillars as I made my way to the massive red-carpeted staircase.

My foot sank into the plush, soft carpet with each step. The grand stairs branched into two, and each side made its way to a long corridor. Each corridor was filled with several doors leading to who knew where. I explored the left side first, then moved on to the right. The rooms on the right were a copy of the rooms on the left. The first couple of doors led to conference rooms, with long tables, massive projectors and a whole lot of other stuff at the back. There was a massive bedroom with a bed that could fit at least five people, and a bathroom almost as big as the bedroom connected to it. Why they had bedrooms, I didn't know.

The remaining rooms were empty but at the end of the hall, there was a door that led to a ginormous library packed with shelves and shelves of books. There were so many different sections in the library that it seemed like a maze. I went down the spiral staircase, ignoring all the other levels before finally reaching the bottom.

I wandered around in the library, browsing through the various sections of books for what felt like hours when a song suddenly started playing on the speakers. It was instrumental, an orchestra I thought. I assumed Jaeger was the one who started playing the music.

The opening of the library doors told me I was right, but that sureness quickly faltered when I heard more than one voice, non that I recognised. 

I stalked around the shelves, getting lost a couple of times because of the twists and turns, but finally located the source, and as soon as I did, I quickly turned, my back resting against one of the shelves. 

They were vampires. A Supreme and a Vamp, to be exact. They'd just entered so they were on the top floor, meaning one wrong move from me and I would be spotted.

"It's a thick one, a really thick book," said the Supreme as it made its way down the spiral staircase to search the first level below.

"Do you know how many really thick books there are in this library?" Questioned the Vamp, searching the upper level.

The vampires made their way down the staircase, searching each of the levels before finally reaching the floor of the library, where I was. I had to be extra careful now because I could turn a corner and suddenly bump into one of them, or they could turn a corner and suddenly see me. There was no chance of me getting out because, as far as I knew, the only exit was all the way up the staircase.

I slowly unsheathed one of my swords; if I couldn't get out while they were still in here, I'd have to take them out so I could leave.

Each step was purposeful and my breathing was steady as I moved around the maze-oriented shelves of the library. I constantly glanced over my shoulder, moving as stealthily as I could, but no matter how many turns I made, I didn't find or bump into any of the vampires. They had stopped talking a while back so it was difficult to locate them.

It was as if I was walking in circles, making zero progress. Maybe the best thing to do would be to wait them out. If I hid somewhere near the staircase, after they found the book they'd make their way to the staircase to leave and that was when I'd attack.

I began making my way to the staircase and only then did I find a vampire. It was the Vamp. It had its back toward me as it browsed through the books on the shelf it was facing. I fixed my grip on my sword as I stalked towards it, each step placed cautiously, my breathing so slow and quiet that it was as if I wasn't breathing at all.

When I was close enough, I struck it. My sword pierced it clean, and I knew I hit its heart because of the shriek that left its mouth. It wasn't loud enough to cause alarm for the Supreme, but it wasn't low enough not to be heard either. I pulled my sword from the Vamp's body and caught it before it thumped on the ground. Carefully, I dragged its limp body, tucking it into a dark corner and that was when I noticed the other vampire some distance away. Its back was also toward me, which would make the kill easy like the other.

I stealthily made my way toward it, and when I was close enough to strike it, I lurched my sword forward like I did to the other, but the Supreme somehow sensed me just before my sword made contact. It swiftly turned, knocking my sword off course, grabbed my arm and threw me against the shelf, its other hand around my neck. I coughed, failing to breathe in air, but extended my leg out fast and hard, making contact with its gut. Its grip lessened around my neck and arm, which was enough for me to get in a proper breath and remove my arm from its hold. I wasted no time and quickly stabbed it, inserting my sword into its stomach.

The vampire bellowed but rather than recoiling, it brought both its hands to my neck, lifting me off the ground. I kicked the sword, piercing it deeper into its gut. It roared louder and released me, stepping back as it sought to remove the sword from within it. I unsheathed my beautiful dagger from my thigh sheath and penetrated the Supreme's skin with it, and its sudden stillness made me sure I hit my target.

I removed my dagger and sword from its body, wiped them against its clothes to clean the dripping blood and sheathed them again. I dragged the vampire and tucked it into the corner with the other vampire before I made my way up the staircase and exited the library.

The music that I'd heard playing became louder when I entered the corridor. I hurriedly made my way to the steps to leave the Hall but quickly stopped, quickly stepping out of sight of the vestibule and putting my back against the wall. The vestibule was no longer empty.

It was packed with vampires.