Ardent | Elijah Mikaelson

Chapter 11

Building her army wasn't so difficult.

Lucien's advice had given her much to consider. Whether she was willing to infiltrate the family to be the inside man and take down Klaus once and for all or whether she'd only follow with half the plan and simply build a network of those loyal to her and be separated from the Mikaelsons altogether.

She started with the easiest part. First, she went to the younger vampires who she knew and who knew her. Many were aware of her past (in vague detail) and either idolized her or simply wanted to know more about her life and experiences. It was simple enough to get them to want to stay in touch with her, and she imagined it would be effortless when the time came to ask them for favors. Their devotion to her would be easily bought solely by her talking to them.

Not everyone was so malleable and obsessed with her story because of how widespread the knowledge of Klaus's hunt for her and Katherine was. Others she had to buy. The list of vampires almost her age without daylight rings was longer than she thought. Lucy helped her get in touch with other witches who aided her in producing daylight rings for every single one she recruited into her ranks, leaving them indebted to her.

Then, there were those who needed a bit of a larger favor to be convinced that they ought to stick by her. Some vampires who were on the run from a variety of tormentors could be persuaded to follow her if she sent them the heads of those who wanted to hurt them. Most, she hunted herself. A few older than her required the solicitation of Lucien's help, which he was more than happy to give. She hadn't realized how fun it could be to bounce around killing people without worrying it would leave a trail that'd expose her. Klaus didn't care what she was up to.

"That makes one hundred," she said, laying on her side, scrolling through her phone while she tried to rub the sleep out of her eyes. "As of this last gratitude text."

"One hundred is a good number to start," mused Lucien from beside her, arms tucked behind his head. "Quite an accomplishment for only a week of work. Those one hundred will make proclamations of your strength, your ability to liberate them as you liberated yourself. They will admire you more than ever, first seeing how you freed yourself from Nik and then how you went to pay it forward to those less capable of protecting themselves. Now they will be willing to do you favors, believing you can continue to keep them safe and give them that which they cannot acquire at their age, without the connections you have. I surmise you can have them do anything for you."

He rolled over to wrap his arm around her waist, resting his head on her shoulder. "Mm, I think you ought to remain close to me, love. I could grow quite used to this. Killing together, feeding together, and the glorious sex that comes after both things."

"You want me to stick by the Originals so I can tear them down from the inside," noted Evangeliya, setting her phone aside and wiggling to face him. "Something quite dangerous for me. I have always been vengeful, yes, but my primary concern has always been preserving my life."

"You'd be fine, love. I'd never let anything harm you."

"You won't be there, Lucien. I will be. And if any of them sniff me out then I will be killed. Nothing can protect me from it. I prefer we find ways to kill Klaus from a distance. Get close when it is needed. In the meantime I inform him as if all is well but I will not attach myself to the family."

"You have an army of little sycophants who soon, will shout praises to you from the rooftops. Klaus will want you closer to him, he may be willing to offer you a great deal for it."

"Or he may be jealous and take me out so I'm not a challenge to him."

"Not if he believes that your army works through you to satisfy him. He is quite selfish; this is no secret. He aims for control and if he believes he has it, you will be safe."