Red Fang II

Chapter 19 (L/T Arc): What's The Code?

We last read Chapter 18, in which Chef Cedric officially kicks off the Omega Vector X pandemic within the newly-rebuilt Nuka Bistro after subtly feeding his customers dishes laced with OVX particles over the course of the day's shift, with his other fellow chefs, his waiters, and his clientele being none the wiser.....once again displaying the lengths he would go through to get revenge on the vampires who ruined his establishment the first time, even if it meant harming innocent city folk.

In the meantime, Balfort and Agnes's efforts to try and synthesize a cure for the vampires' regressing visages is briefly interrupted when Balfort's wife Amber enters Agnes's room carrying Agnes's steward, who has been stripped of his visage and left groaning emotionlessly and miserably—like a zombie—about how apathetic everything is. Devastated, Balfort, Agnes, and Amber resolve to increase their efforts, while Amber transports Agnes's ailing steward to another one of the empty guest rooms within Ladair Castle.

This time, we continue following Lily Ladair and Theo Ladair as they trail Boripedes, Mavis Ladair a.k.a. Red Fang, and Mavis's husband Garson, as the rather incestuous couple set out on their own hilarious adventure to steal Boripedes's supposed "vast fortune".....

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-Prince Boripedes's Island, Romanian Coast-

As Boripedes gently hovered down onto the sandy shore of the island which held his underground base of operations, he gently set Mavis and Garson down on the ground as well, and all three of them gazed up at the massive, expansive, dilapidated set of temple-like ruins serving as the perfect disguise for the base's entrance.

Not too far off, Lily Ladair and Theo Ladair also arrived on the island, still riding on the back of the huge whale which Lily had summoned using the enchanting tunes from her flute. The duo then disembarked from the mammal's rear—at which point the whale bellowed a farewell before disappearing beneath the waves once more—and Lily and Theo promptly dove for the nearest hiding spot once again so as not to reveal themselves to Boripedes, Mavis, or Garson.

With Lily and Theo hiding behind two separate pillars—among many which lined both sides of the wide staircase leading up to the main chamber—Boripedes, Mavis, and Garson walked up the steps, completely oblivious to Lily and Theo's presence. Lily and Theo took care to follow them very closely, so they would still be able to see everything Boripedes did.

When Boripedes, Mavis, and Garson officially reached the top of the wide stone staircase and entered the main chamber of the temple ruins, Lily and Theo quickly made their move once again, darting up the steps and each diving to opposite sides of the entryway, pressing themselves up against the outside "walls" to render themselves out of sight from the trio.

Boripedes then brought Mavis and Garson to a tablet at the back of the main chamber which contained nine raised portions which could apparently be pressed.....which was heavily akin to a nine-button keypad that one might see on various communication gadgets. After a few seconds, the hidden vampire prince inputted the correct code into the tablet, at which point the circular design in the middle of the chamber parted into multiple "slices" which pulled themselves apart, revealing a downwards-spiraling passageway leading to Boripedes's underground base. Once he, Mavis, and Garson had disappeared down it, the circle reformed itself once again and blocked the entrance, leaving Lily and Theo by themselves.

"Pssst!" Lily called to Theo in a hushed tone. "That gold-laced vampire dude.....did you see what code he put into the tablet?"

"What? Heck no!" Theo replied. "You think I saw that? I was busy trying to keep myself hidden!"