Claws of Eternity ✔️

Chapter 36: Baby did a bad, bad thing

GISELLE

Cries of pain spread through Bran Castle. Grunting, shouting and sheer panic. Fear was written all over everyone's faces. Giselle had never seen anything like this, she was never this much afraid. All the dangerous situations she was ever in gave her the opportunity to escape. This one didn't. They had nowhere to go, they were surrounded by enemies on all sides. Their home was being destroyed.

Giselle bumped into vampires as she tried to find her friends. Every person she encountered had the same hopeless expression on their face. The same painful, scared grimace.

It seemed as if the day had somehow become even darker than it already was, so full of death and blood and anguish. Finally, she noticed Alacaris leaned against a wall. Jelena was underneath her, she sat on the ground, her head in her hands. She was crying.

"What the hell is going on?!" Alacaris asked. She was in her fighting gear, her white hair tied on her head. Octavia was next to them, too, dressed in the same manner. Giselle ran to them, realising she didn't even have time to walk.

"They are attacking from all sides!" Giselle had to shout because the screams from the fields were deafening.

"We need to get down there! They need all the help they can get!" Ala shouted back. For once, she was completely serious and it was a strange state to see her in.

"Vlad didn't let me go!" Giselle said.

"You need to help Luciana rebuild the Border. You can't fight!" Octavia interrupted. Jelena cried out on the floor and Giselle saw her red, watery eyes.

"It's over!" She shouted, tears streaming down her face. She was so scared, Giselle felt her eyes filling with tears against her will. Just looking at Jelena so defeated made Giselle's heart ache. She kneeled in front of the girl.

"No! It's not over! We aren't done, we can still win this! Once the Border is back up, the Unknowns will be weak, do you hear me?! They will be weak!" Giselle grabbed the girl by her shoulders and shook her, until she focused solely on Giselle.

Giselle almost staggered back as she saw Jelena's eyes, so sad and full of pain. Tears streamed down Giselle's face as she hugged the girl in front of her, finally letting fear overwhelm her. All she kept buried since the Unknowns attacked, suddenly escaped from her heart. She was so, so scared.

"We are not going to make it." Jelena said through the tears.

"Yes, we are. I promise you this." Giselle whispered into her ear.

"Giselle!" A hand grabbed her and pulled her onto her feet. Giselle found Luciana next to her. "We need to go! Now! There's no time!" She practically screamed.

Giselle nodded hastily, feeling her heart pound in her chest. She turned to look at Ala and Octavia once more time. Just in case this was the last time, her mind whispered.

"Are you ready?" She asked them and watched Ala's mouth spread into a wide smile.

"Ready? I was born ready." She said, her smile excited, a bit devious even.

"As was I." Oton appeared behind Alacaris and offered her his wrist. She didn't take her eyes off Giselle as she bit him and drank his blood. She offered her wrist to him and he did the same. Giselle watched their face veins fill with black colour as their smiles widened.

Ala grabbed her sword and handed one to Oton. They both looked at Giselle and in a matter of a moment, ran for the castle walls. They jumped over them in tandem and probably landed somewhere in the middle of the battlefield. Giselle was too awe-struck to say anything.