World of Alvarra: Rise of the Vampire Lord

Chapter 143 Red Knives

A few days later after meeting with Xenith for the first time, Van and the group spread out, using Sena's help to recruit the surrounding rabbit kobold tribes. They also tried searching for other groups that might be willing to join their cause, and slowly, their fort and his soul realm became a hodgepodge of many different species.

It was a bit hard at first to get everyone working together, but by delegating and enforcing a few rules here and there, they were able to at least create a modicum of order. Surprisingly, or perhaps not, what was the hardest part of accepting all these different tribes, was not the different cultures or different species intermingling, but needing to acquire the necessary food to feed them all.

The ravenous insect hordes have laid waste to many of the edible vegetation. Which was having a cascading effect on the ecosystem and everyone that relies on it. It became so bad, Kella was willing to set Van and the group out to search for food.

But they only came back with a half-starved venom tiger cub... a beautiful black and green majestic beast. Whose mother was the queen of the north forest. But had died after constantly having to fend off hordes of insects every day. Forcing it to take its one and only child south, away from the center of horde activity in search of food and safety...

It was hard to separate the cub from its deceased mother, but Luna was able to after a few moments alone with it. The group then burned the body in its honor, so as not to be eaten by the insects and left. Luna carrying the small cub in her arms, a complicated yet sad expression on her face. Having achieved her goal of gaining all the queens of the forest, but not in the way she had imagined it.

When they came back with the news that there was nothing to eat for miles around. Morale dropped, and people became fearful of what may become of them in the future. Van's greenhouses, even with the newfound help of the mandrakes and alraunes, were barely able to keep up with the demand.

Soon, refugees all over the forest began to show up at their fort's front gate, hearing about the group that was willing to accept anyone willing to join. Van wanted to increase his power and numbers by recruiting others to join him, but now he was facing a dilemma where there were too many mouths to feed and not enough to go around. It didn't help that most of the people coming to join were mothers with children and those who couldn't fight and had to be taught from scratch how to help or work a specific task or another.

And as the alarm bells began to ring once more, warning them all of another impending insect swarm. Van couldn't help but wonder where Lyn was... normally she would have visited by now, telling them of all her woes, yet promising that she will turn things around despite everything going wrong.

She was late... and that was not like her.

And just as Van got on the ramparts of the wall and looked down on the new horde of insects down below. Their mana barrier activated on its own, to the surprise of all, and a strange red mist began to blow over the area. No. the entire region, filling the people with dread.

And when he looked back down from the reddening sky to the insects down below. All he saw... was horror...

Horror enough to haunt him for the rest of his life...

---Lyn pov---

"You can't do this!" Lyn yelled from behind her bars, grabbing them, but then being rebuffed by a magical power that seemed to make up the cool metal rods.

Undeterred she continued to yell. "Are you crazy! Have you finally gone mad! Is this some sort of treason! What gives you the right to do this!" Lyn shouted at Saline who Contemptuously looked down on her.

"The one that is treasonous is you, Lyn..." Saline said, looking a bit gleeful at Lyn's predicament. "I knew a 'freak' like you would only serve to hold us back in this war of ours, and that it would only be a matter of time before you showed your true colors..." she sneered.