Dark Reincarnation: Nightshade

Chapter 72

                   Vicebrook's POV

         "Commander, there's someone at the front desk wanting to see you. She said her name is Alice."

                "Let her in."

           "Yes sir."

    Fuck... she's back sooner than I thought she would be. I don't know how she's going to react. I just got some pretty bad news from the Beast Kingdom.

    Reaching into the drawer on my desk, I pulled out a communication stone and activated it. Two voices answered almost immediately.

           "Larain, Zayne, I don't care what you're currently doing, my office immediately. Use the teleportation scrolls."

                   "Sir."

                            "Yes commander."

      A few seconds later a bright flash filled the room and once it fades both an elf and a fox beastkin were standing in front of me.

          "What's the problem Commander Vicebrook?" Lara asked, getting straight to the point.

                  "Take a look at this." Vicebrook said while throwing a rolled up piece of parchment to her. "I received that from the Beast King just yesterday."

      Lara's face paled as she read what was in the letter. Her hands were shaky as she handed the letter to Zayne for him to read. His usually emotionless face clearly showing clear shock and slight fear.

        "The thing is, I didn't just summon you to show you this. To be frank, I need you both here as I tell her, just in case she has a bad reaction so to speak. And she's actually about to walk through that door."

         Thank the gods I timed that right. I was really just guessing how long it might take her to reach my office. Not long after I had said that, the door opened and in walked Alice.

She still had her gear on as if she just came back from a fight. But the hood on her cloak hiding her eyes and her mask covered her mouth so I couldn't get a read on her mood.

          ' need to get a read on her before I tell her.'

                    "Alice, since your back I assume that you've completed your mission? I'd like a full report if you would."

                      "No time. You need to come with me back to my room."

      'Wait, what....'

           "Ummm.. What did you say?"

    Without even answering me, she just sped over to me and grabbed my arm. The next thing I knew I was looking at the main room in the base I made for Nightshade instead of my office.

             'What the fuck just happened?'

   Did she just teleport me to the bunker? That shouldn't be possible... The sheer strength, not to measure amount, of the barriers that the Arch mages placed around this place have....

      Did they fail? No, that's not it, I can still feel that the barriers are around us. The amount of mana someone would have to have to bypass something like this is terrifying. She can't possibly have that much power.....

               "Follow me." Alice said as she started rushing through the room and down the hallway.

      Following after her we ended up in front of her bedroom door. With her hand still on the door handle she paused.

           "Are you ok Alice? What's this about?"

                     "I need your help.." She whispered while opening the door.

      As I followed her into the room I noticed some woman in a cloak was sitting on Alice's bed staring at the wall with a blank face. She didn't even look up as we approached her.

           "Alice.. You know the rules.. Didn't I tell you that this operation was classified? Who the hell is this person and why did you go against orders and bring her here?"

   What the fuck is she thinking? Is she trying to sabotage this operation or something? I have spent too many years and gone through too much hell to set this up just for it all to go to shit. Needless to say I was pissed.

     But when I glanced over to glare at Alice and demand answers I froze. I must be seeing shit. I've intensely investigated and researched each person that I've brought on this operation. Honestly, if things weren't so hellishly bad, I would never have brought Alice into this.

    The things I've learned and the shit I've personally experienced, I can wholeheartedly say that girl is a monster.  It may take balls of steel to want to yell at someone like that but the craziest thing was, it wasn't fear that made me freeze, it was shock.

      That terrifying woman, who've I've never seen express any emotion except boredom, looked utterly broken... She had taken off her cloak and armor and even her mask.

      This is the first time I've ever seen her without anything covering her or her face, she was absolutely beautiful. And she looked absolutely broken.... Just seeing her like this felt like my heart was ripped out.

               "Alice...."

      She was walking over to the other woman with a damp cloth in hand. She pulled down the hood of the girls cloak and I was shocked again. The other girl was a wolf beastkin with silver hair and fur. She looked rough and I saw bruises and marks around her neck like she was wearing a collar.

          'Was she maybe a slave?..'

       Alice started to use the cloth to wipe the grime off of the girls face.

           "This is Lily.... The woman I grew to love and the woman I had to kill.."