Return to Jorgaldur Volume V: Reunion (2)

Ambush (II)

"Sister!" the vampire shouted after seeing her mount lose control.

"Quick! Grab me!" she asked, while standing on the wyvern to jump.

She had a skill that could cushion her fall, similar to Gjaki's Glide, as well as enough experience to keep her balance.

"Come on, jump!" he urged, while creating a shield with his remaining mana to protect himself from any attack that could come from below again.

She jumped, and managed to grab the hand he extended to her. The vampiress put her feet on the wyvern, as hers fell uncontrollably.

She barely made out a fleeting white shadow out of the corner of her eye. The goshawk had Plummeted on them, from above, where there was no protection. She pierced the reptile's wing, and cast Wind Blades at the same time. She would have liked to Grow, tear the wing with her claws, and attack the vampires, but they wanted to avoid her being recognized. That way, their enemies couldn't know who was behind her existence.

She left behind her a hole in the wing, which included the main joint. In addition, she had torn it in multiple places due to her magical attacks. In a flash, the bird disappeared without her enemies being able to distinguish more than a shadow.

She then Collided with the abdomen of the winged beast, far from the eyes of its riders, as she was hidden under the intact part of the wing. The blow shook the wyvern, and made the vampiress lose her balance.

As if that weren't enough, the albino bird didn't move away after the blow, but used her claws to cling to the reptile. Her powerful beak tore off its scales and pierced its hard skin, and she even Grew a little to reach deeper.

That caused her victim to writhe, and threaten to throw the vampires, who could barely stay on the mount. The vampiress was clinging to a wing, while her brother tried to get back to the chair.

Too busy not falling, they had no time to worry about losing height, or not being able to add more protections.

The albino bird appeared next to her sister thanks to Always with you, shortly before a new bombardment of spells reached the reptile. That way, she avoided being a victim as well.

This time, they hit it squarely. The vampiress, unprotected on the wing, saw half of her body disappear. It was impossible for her to scream with her trachea pierced, and she barely managed to maintain consciousness before falling lifeless to the ground.

Her brother came out better. The reptile's battered body had protected him, but he was falling along with his meat shield. He could try to jump and get out of there with his flight ability, but it would be much slower than the reptile, thus making him an easy target.

Therefore, he decided to take a chance and jump at the last moment. The vampire hoped that the impact of the wyvern would raise enough dust to hide his presence. Maybe, it would allow him to flee. The death of his sister was unfortunate, but he had to survive no matter what.

It wasn't a bad plan, but the Guardians of the North weren't going to leave the survival of their enemies to chance. Not to mention that Goldmi was prepared, and that the goshawk had taken off again.

Again, all kinds of spells hit the mutilated body of the deceased reptile, this time even stronger. The distance was shorter, which made them lose less power. Also, those with less range could now hit it too.

They had destroyed the reptile, and there was no trace of the vampire.

"Huff, Huff," the vampire breathed heavily. "I'm alive..."

One of his arms and a leg had been vaporized, but he had managed to contain the wounds, so he was no longer bleeding. The vampire had used all his power to create a membrane of mana around him, and had let himself be carried away by a destructive spell, thus hiding in its contrail. It had been a desperate action, but he had managed to survive by sacrificing a couple of limbs.

He hid behind a thick corrupted tree, while containing his mana, completely silent. The vampire wanted to wait before healing his wounds and trying to escape.

When safe, he would contact his father to send help. For now, he didn't want to invest mana or blood skills that could give him away. In the middle of the miasma, they could be very conspicuous.

"At least I'm safe," he consoled himself, just before noticing a strong prick in his neck. His half-intact arm was immobilized, and his entire being intimidated by the force of Bloodline. He felt terrified by a presence comparable to his father's, but it wasn't him.

At that moment, a hidden spell activated within him, which he didn't even know existed. It ended his life in an instant.

"I was afraid that would happen," Gjaki lamented.

She had followed him, because she could feel the presence of the vampire, of his blood. The vampiress had approached with Darkness, and attacked by surprise. She had Bitten him, Unsettled him, taken control of his blood and even intimidated him with Bloodline.

However, she hadn't been able to prevent the activation of the spell. It was designed to sacrifice him if he was in danger of being subjugated. His father didn't want to risk him leaking information.

She had no choice but to return to her companions without having been able to find out too much, except to confirm her main suspicion. At least, she had made sure that their enemy didn't survive.

"He was the son of an ancestral vampire. Probably, Kan Golge," she revealed.

With very serious faces, they nodded. It was the confirmation of many suspicions. In fact, the previous attack on the puppets disguised as guardians had already revealed the connection. Now, they confirmed that there was also a connection with the shadows and the corruption.

Along with Cahldor, he was their most fearsome enemy. Probably even more so. As much as they assumed he was injured, they could only be suspicious. That vampire had survived for millennia, and was capable of the darkest atrocities.

What they didn't know was that, at that moment, said enemy was destroying his work table and a couple of chairs. His children had died, and of his enemies, he only knew that there were Guardians of the North, no new information.

Only the activation of the spell gave him a clue. He had been able to feel it, although he couldn't be sure of the reason. All he knew was that they had been able to catch his son alive, which wasn't easy. In addition, they had the means to control him.

It didn't really give him much information though. He might have lost consciousness, or been seriously injured. Nonetheless, it was all the information he had, aside from the vague reports from his children in the midst of the battle.

He was almost certain that there was someone else besides the group of Guardians, but he didn't know who. There was no way to know if they had come by chance, or if it had all been a deliberate maneuver. There was too much he didn't know, and he wasn't used to it.