TAKEN BY THE DRAGON KING

Dracul

The feelings of ecstasy faded away the minute we opened the door, ominous energy seeped in like a mist, instantly feeding the room an intense sense of dread.

“What is this?” I growl at Gulliver whilst clutching Elena close, the need to protect her dominant over my other senses. “What sort of spell is this?”Property belongs to Nôvel(D)r/ama.Org.

“Are you truly that disoriented that you cannot smell the source of the magic?” He asks quizzically. “While you guys were here getting properly fucked.”

He takes a slight pause looking us once over and Elena ducks her head behind me, positively blushing.

“I took the time to have a little chat with our current ‘guest” and you won’t believe what I managed to find out.”

“He’s a spy sent here to trick us.” Elena says simply.

“You take the fun out of everything.” Gulliver sneers but not in an unfriendly manner. “Come on, let’s go exorcise the bloody fuck out of him”

“Exorcise?” I ask raising a brow.

“Yes.” He says grabbing the nearest vial of what seemed to be a cool clear liquid. “Exorcise.” He repeats.

The energy grew with more intensity as we move towards him, it seemed all too little in time for this to happen, but with each step the negativity in the air seemed to increase to the point where I felt like I could taste it.

As we moved closer groaning and grunting echoed off the walls and the distinct smell of a foreign entity became clear.

“Be careful.” Gulliver says, more to Elena than to me.

The sight of Tanner gave me chills, sorcery like this hadn’t been used in ages, binding one’s soul with the willpower just so as to trick us was extreme, a snarling and spit ridden Tanner did well to attest to just how far our enemy was willing to go.

He thrashed and shook, held down by chains of silvery magic, a skill which I had seen Gulliver use once, at the sight of us however he stilled and his enraged eyes seemed to regain just the slightest bit of sanity.

Hr walked towards us in a strange fashion and stopped just a fee feet short of us, his chains withholding him frim further movement.

“She will kill you!’ he snarls particularly at Elena. “She had hopes for you but you are just like her!, Just like your mother, TRAITOR!, TRAITOR!, TRAITOR!”

He uttered the words with intense power and each repetition only caused Elena to quake and step back!

“Do it now!” I bark at Gulliver who seems ro have forgotten his task in the heat of the moment, at my words though, he proceeded to smash the vial across the floor, the liquid inside evaporated instantly, turning into a gas and seeping it’s way up Tanner’s nose as Gulliver chanted in a low almost hushed tone.

The spasming was instantaneous, red mist flowed from him in waves despite the incessant curses and occasional screams that came from him.

“She will kill you all!” He roared with finality. “The queen of the west will have her–”

The mist pooled up inthe moment swirling into a thick loud and choking up his words before abruptly disappearing leaving behind a glassy rather frail looking Tanner who abruptly crumpled up on the floor.

“Nymph tears.” Gulliver says breaking a silence that ensued between us. “Tricky to coe by but sure works a lot better than purified water.”

Elena looked pale and visibly shaken, granted she’d had her suspicion but the entire process seemed to have drained a lot from her.

“So ” she says her voice warbling ever so slightly. “What happens now?”

They both stare at me, and just like that I’m thrust back in control.

“I’m not waiting any longer.” I tell them. “Not for any more of the people to go through this, I’m leaving in the morning and I hope you two will come.”

“There are things we still don’t know.” Elena says. “My mother-”

“We can find that out when we take it all back.” I tell her. “I’m done hiding from whoever this is!”

“Good.” Gulliver says. “What’s your plan?”

“Give me tonight.” I tell them. “I’ll have it figured out.”

Gulliver shrugs.

“Anything to get you guys out of here.” he says. “You’ve used up my precious supplies and I don’t hear a replacement coming in, but that doesn’t mean I’d rush in without a plan, you’re much more resistant to dragonsbane it’s still going to hurt like hell but at least you’d be standing.”

It’s not much of a reassurance but it’s all I have, Gulliver picks up Tanner up from the ground where he laid limp.

“I’ll watch him.” He tells me. “Come up with a plan and fast.”

It was easier said than done, all probabilities left them being stronger than us, especially with their stacked up arsenal, in the end I had only one crazy plan that resided just on the edges of probability but half a chance seemed better than waiting.

The plan was simple and all I needed was some alone time with those fuckers on level ground and I was guaranteed victory. Gulliver placed a spell on the house to keep Tanner from leaving and a quick teleportation spell to transport us to back.

It started going wrong from the beginning, we landed at the base of the castle at about thirty paces from the nearest guardpost luckily there was something to hide behind.

“Inside the castle.” I barked in a harsh whisper. “Are you trying to get us killed before we even begin?”

“I know that!” He says, “something is throwing off my spells here, probably some strong wards which we should have anticipated for, if ONLY we prepared ahead.”

“Don’t fight.” Elena says flailing her arms wildly in an attempt to dissipate the tension. “How the hell do we get in now?”

“Come on.” I say. “There are some tunnels underneath, I’ll guide us across.”

The tunnels were a probability, they hadn’t been used for years and they might have planned for that as well but we couldn’t just go bursting through the front doors. Gulliver provided lighting for us and I served as the guide swiftly moving us through the network.

An end was coming right ahead, it’d have led us straight up to the rooms but it would seem they were well prepared, it started with a flick of a vine so minute and miniscule was the action that one might not have noticed it.

“The vines.” I said. “Be careful.”

No sooner than the words left my mouth than a chain reaction started, vines spring from every and all corners lashing out and trying to get a grip on us, Elena yelped as the vines trailed towards us with incredible speed but Gulliver was faster a vial broke across the floor, a wave of fire burst forth from it sizzling and burning it all off.

But things had just began, clamoring and clanging of armored plates and from the darkness a pale blue hex that I thought I’d never seen.

“Ghost soldiers fuck!” I yell ” let’s go!”

“You go!” Gulliver shouts. “I’ll hold them back.”

“No!” Elena yells.

“Elena go!” Gulliver yells and begins to perform a weird form of weird incantation, our eyes meet for one final look and I drag Elena off.

“We can’t just leave him there!” Elena yells pulling away from me. “He can’t-!”

“He can handle himself!” I tell her. “You can’t, Let’s go!”

I pull her along dragging across, my plan felt like it was crumbling in pieces we’d already lost Gulliver and an integral part of the mission we were fucked up if we let emotions get in the way. I tried not to think of what would happen if Gulliver failed as we approached the courtroom.

We burst in expecting the high and mighty self proclaimed kings seated atop their mock thrones but we were met with emptiness, their scents lingered heavily in the background they were either in hiding or had left moments after my arrival.

Splitting up to search for them had to be the worst idea I came up with and despite the urge to keep her safe, I was too enthralled with getting my revenge than her safety. A frail yelp alerted me to the current situation.

With his half formed claws placed at the base of Elena’s throat Delan had a nasty smile that screamed checkmate written across his face, Ryder stepped out from behind him the same infuriating look plastered across his face

“It’s been a bit long don’t you think Dracul.” Ryder laughs.

I snarl, my feral instincts take over as I proceed to launch an attack, Delan’s claw tightens drawing on the slightest amount of blood and just like that I’m beat, I stop dead in my tracks just enough for Ryder to land a hard kick to my shin. It’s the first hit of many that follow, I crumple to the floor intense pain wracking my frame.

“Feels awfully familiar.” Delan remarks.

“Yeah the weakling gets beat up.” Ryder remarks as he lands a hard kick to my ribs.

I’m blacking out, Elena calls to me to fight, but I can’t let her get hurt, I almost slip out of consciousness until a loud piercing scream emanates from her.