Return to Jorgaldur Volume V: Reunion (2)

Loose ends (I)

The leprechaun was excited at what was in front of him. There were several dozen vampires, some of them bound and gagged, under the protection of the artifact he had lent to the vampiress. That way, their parents couldn't act against them.

Furthermore, there were also the magic circles for establishing gates. They had been blocked by dwarven artifacts, but were intact. That way, it was easy to reconstruct them, find out their destination.

He was even surprised to recognize some of the faces. He had memorized all the reports of disappearances that could be related to his enemy, and among the artisans he discovered some of those faces.

"We don't have much time. They won't take long to act. Are all the prisoners here?" the leprechaun asked.

"There're a few missing, they're bringing them," the vampiress reported.

"Great! We probably won't get to the boss, he's too cautious. But if we hurry, they'll have to sacrifice a lot of resources. That will put pressure on them. Maybe, they'll make a mistake," he said hopefully, while finishing carefully unfolding five devices that formed a pentagon.

As soon as he activated them, those present could feel the fluctuation of mana, the compression of space, the creation of a gate. Individuals of different races began to emerge from it, some of whom the vampiress knew from previous occasions. They greeted her with a slight nod, and hurried to begin their work.

Five of them approached the circles. Others began to interrogate the vampires. The rest spread out around the palace, looking for clues.

"We've run out of time. Those outside have died," Gjaki suddenly reported.

The vampires who hadn't yet been brought to the shelter had all died at once. Their parent, or parents, had eliminated them so as not to leave witnesses. It was a common modus operandi for that enemy.

The leprechaun nodded, not at all surprised, but somewhat anxious. Time was of the essence, and they had to take advantage of the opportunity. They haven't had one this good in a long time.

He watched carefully, eagerly awaiting the results, although he also greeted the elf with respect and familiarity. She was the only one who could eliminate generals. She was also the sister of a fairy, who was in the jungle at that time, after having been playing with the twins.

He also greeted Eldi with interest. A visitor friend of Gjaki and Goldmi was someone to pay attention to, someone tied to them by the thin and mysterious threads of fate.

Furthermore, there was an additional reason why he was interested in meeting him. That visitor had been designated by the survivors of a purple-skinned people as one of the chosen ones. In fact, his contribution to those people had been crucial. He had given hope not only to them, but to all those who were fighting against the corruption.

For that reason, the leprechaun spoke for a long time with him, wanting to discern his character, his ambitions. When he discovered that not only was Eldi the same visitor related to the kingdom of Engenak, but that he had a close relationship with a dryad, the leprechaun couldn't help but marvel at the designs of destiny.

For her part, Gjaki began to Adopt the civilians by overwriting the blood contract. Their progenitor wasn't an ancestral vampire, something they already expected. Whoever was behind it all used to employ his children as intermediaries. On the one hand, he avoided exposing himself. On the other hand, he saved himself from the tedious work.

"We have it. We're sending coordinates to the assault group," one of those who had been examining the circles suddenly reported.

Kriglod frowned. He had lost contact with one of his children. He attempted to contact another of them, who didn't respond either. It indicated that he was unconscious. If the vampire were sleeping, he would have woken up. If the vampire were dead, Kriglod would have felt it. He frowned even more.

Wasting no time, he tried to contact another, then another, and another. None responded to him, and two others had died. Therefore, he decided to change strategy.

"Use the gate. Take reinforcements and be careful, something is happening on the other side. Inform me as soon as you discover anything," he ordered a vampiress through their link.

The light blue-skinned vampiress sat up suddenly at the orders of her father.

"You, you, you and you. Come with me. Hurry up! We're going to the hole. Father's orders," she pointed to four others.

They were on guard duty. Some were reading, others were playing something similar to checkers but with three types of tokens, others were betting on dice. Those pointed wanted to protest, but the last sentence discouraged them. They couldn't oppose their father.

They all went to the same circle, since it was better to activate only one, it cost fewer resources. The circle activated, but it didn't initiate teleportation.

"Try another one," the vampiress urged, uneasy.

"It doesn't work either," one of the vampires reported shortly after.

"Shit, something serious is happening. Check the others!"

The vampires went towards the other two, but the result was the same. They activated normally, but didn't connect to the other end no matter how much time passed.

They looked at each other. Something was wrong, terribly wrong. The rest of the vampires, who until then had been idle, also looked at the group of five and towards the gates with concern.

"Father, the gates don't connect to the other end," the vampiress quickly informed her father.

Kriglod, who had been worried, panicked. That project was very important to his own father. He knew he would be furious. However, he had no choice but to inform him.

"Prepare to evacuate," he ordered them.

Immediately, he cut the communication and called his father.

"What's happening Kriglod? It better be important," Kan Golge replied. He was somewhat irritated at having been interrupted.

"My children are dying in the new base. I can't contact those who're alive. The gates don't work," his son revealed.

That surprised Kan Golge, because it was unexpected. However, it didn't take him more than a moment to react. It wasn't the first time he had dealt with unforeseen events.

"The base is compromised. Eliminate those left inside. Clean the intermediate base immediately," he ordered.

"Yes... father," he agreed, without resisting.

It pained him to do it, since he had invested a lot of effort in it, and he would have preferred to keep those he could. However, Kriglod knew that he couldn't oppose his father's orders. No loose ends could be left.

What worried him most was being exposed. If so, his father would lock him up at best, not letting him out for years. At worst, he would be disposed of.

"Get out of there immediately and activate self-destruct. Go directly to the shelter. Tell me as soon as it is activated," he ordered his daughter.

What he didn't tell her was that, as soon as she reported it to him, she would be discarded. His father wasn't going to allow the possibility of them being captured. When an operation failed, everyone who could be exposed was eliminated.