Elena and Haven burst through a set of heavy double doors and found themselves staring down a long corridor lined with many rooms. The eerie silence here was a sharp contrast to the thunderous battles raging throughout the rest of the castle. Even though they were deep within its massive heart, the hallway was far from dark. Large, glowing crystals were embedded in the ceiling, casting a soft, steady light that caught the fine details of the stone carvings. They exchanged a brief, determined glance.
"Haven, I will look through the doors on the right, while you take the left," Elena said, her voice firm.
"Agreed. We need to make sure no children were left behind. Once we find them, we must get them to the escape tunnels. This castle is no longer a sanctuary," Haven replied.
"Then let us not waste another second."
With renewed urgency, they sprinted down the corridor. Elena threw open the first door on her side. This room belonged to one of the vampires who served Leonidas. It was windowless but beautiful, lit by an array of smaller crystals in the ceiling that hummed with a faint energy. The room featured an intricately carved bed made of dark, ancient wood, though the space was currently messy. The war outside had clearly caused a panicked departure. Furniture was overturned, and fine fabrics were strewn across the floor.
"Is anyone in here? You can come out now!" Elena shouted. Her voice bounced off the polished walls, but only a hollow silence answered her.
She stepped inside, her vampire eyes easily picking out every detail in the illuminated room. She checked beneath the heavy frame of the bed before pulling open the wardrobe doors. It was empty. Haven, in the meantime, conducted a similar search in the room across the hall.
"Is there anyone in here?" Haven called out. "Come on, do not be afraid! I am here to get you to safety!"
Despite their thorough efforts, both Haven and Elena were unsuccessful in the first several rooms they searched. As Haven approached the second to last door on the left, her hand closed around the heavy brass doorknob. She twisted it, but it did not budge.
A frown creased her brow. It was odd for a door to be locked when the order to flee had been given. Perhaps some of the children had panicked and locked themselves in, paralyzed by fear.
Haven did not need much effort to force the way open. With her superhuman strength, she gave the door a sharp shove. The lock snapped, and the door swung inward. This room was also windowless, but the crystal lights above still bathed the beautiful, slightly disordered space in a warm glow.
"Hey, is someone in here? I promise it is safe. Please, come out."
The air was still. Haven moved into the bathroom, pulling back the thick curtains beside the bathtub in a hopeful search, but she found nothing. Just as she was about to turn and leave, an instinct compelled her to check the most obvious hiding spot.
She approached the bed and reached down, lifting the massive mattress and its heavy wooden frame effortlessly with one hand. She peered underneath, but the floor was bare.
"Damn. I really thought someone would be in here," she muttered, placing the bed back down with a muffled thud.
As her gaze shifted, the wardrobe caught her attention. She opened its doors to reveal a jumble of clothes and fine fabrics. She pushed the garments aside, but the space remained empty, devoid of any sign of life. Yet something about the position of the heavy furniture struck her as unusual. Closing its doors, she noticed a small gap at the back where the wood did not sit flush against the wall.
Curiosity piqued, Haven gripped the edge of the wardrobe and moved it aside with her vampire strength. She peered behind it and her heart softened. There, huddled together in the narrow space, were two children. They were clinging tightly to each other, their eyes wide with a paralyzing fear.
"Hey, I am not the enemy. I am here to help," Haven spoke gently. Her tone was soft, designed to put the little ones at ease.
The pair consisted of a girl and a boy who were six and four years old. Haven moved the wardrobe completely out of the way to give them space. The girl had short blonde hair and wore a light green dress with white stripes and white sandals. The boy had light purple hair and was dressed in a white shirt and black pants, but he was barefoot. Haven knelt down, bringing herself to their eye level.
"What are your names?"
The children recognized her maid uniform, and their terror slowly began to dissipate. They realized she belonged to the castle staff.
"My name is Carla, and his name is Adam," the girl whispered. "We were playing together until we heard a loud noise. Father came into the room and told us we were under attack and should hide. Before he left, he promised he would come back, but he never did. Aunty, is my daddy dead?"
Carla's eyes shimmered with unshed tears and her voice trembled with a weight no six year old should carry. Haven felt a lump form in her throat. She did not know what to say.
"I... I..."
Just then, Elena entered the room. Her eyes widened in surprise as she spotted Haven crouched next to the two children. "Hey! Did you find anyone?"
Haven was momentarily lost in the heavy silence of the girl's question, but the presence of Elena jolted her back to reality.
"Listen, we need to leave first," Haven said, avoiding the direct answer about their father for now. "After everything is settled, I promise I will find your parents, okay?"
The two children held back their tears and nodded. "Then please take care of us, Miss."
"Oh, by the way, this is my friend Elena. She is also here to help you get to safety," Haven introduced.
The children looked at Elena, their expressions softening further. "Nice to meet you, Miss Elena," they both chimed in unison.
"Oh, you two are so adorable!" Elena smiled warmly, trying to keep the mood light for their sake. "By the way, do you know if there are more children hiding nearby?"
Carla shook her head. "I do not think so, Miss. Before we were attacked, Adam and I were the only kids playing here. Most of the others were outside."
Haven stood up, her brow furrowing in thought. "Elena, maybe the knights are keeping track of the children going through the escape tunnel. They will likely inform us of how many are missing. Some may have perished during the attack on the castle. It is a possibility we may never fully understand. The only thing we can do is our best to help the ones we find."
Elena's expression grew stern and focused. "Then let us be on our way."
====
Kilo's subordinate, Raven, lay on the ground gasping for breath as Markus towered over him. The hulking, muscled vampire held the clear advantage in their brutal confrontation. Raven had been driven through multiple walls, but his special armor had proven its worth. Despite the constant, bone-shattering impacts, the armor had absorbed the brunt of the force, keeping him from being crushed and allowing him to stay in the fight. He fought to regain his composure, his mind racing.
"This leech is toying with me, using me like a ragdoll. I will not allow this to continue," he vowed, his thoughts fuming with hatred.
"Hahaha! Get up, human. I have not even warmed up yet!" Markus taunted. A sinister grin stretched across his face.
Raven looked up and the fury was visible, seeping from behind his eyelids. He forced himself to his feet and focused a massive amount of spirit force into his fist. He activated his special armor to funnel even more strength into his right arm.
"I am going to kill you, Markus. You have been a tough opponent, but this is where our little dance comes to an end."
The grin on the face of Markus widened, filled with genuine amusement. "You really think you can kill me, human?"
"I am going to punch your head off!" Raven declared. He channeled energy into his fist until a fierce white aura enveloped his hand. He was preparing for his ultimate attack.
"Then I will not block your strike, human. I am quite curious to see if your so-called ultimate attack can really kill me." Markus planted his feet firmly into the stone floor, a look of eager anticipation on his face. He even taunted Raven further by waving his hand and pointing directly to his own cheek. "Don't miss, boy."
The fury of Raven reached its pinnacle. To him, this blatant disrespect was intolerable. He could not allow it to stand. His thoughts focused solely on one goal. He had to end the life of this man today, no matter the cost.
Fueled by pure rage, the mercenary lunged at the massive vampire. He unleashed a powerful punch to the face of Markus. The impact was so great that it shattered the ceiling above, sending heavy debris raining down into the room. Furniture that lay behind Markus disintegrated into splinters from the sheer pressure of the blow. The vampire was sent flying like a paper plane, leaving only a swirling cloud of dust and rubble in his wake.
The room fell into an eerie silence. Only the distant sounds of clashing swords, panicked screams, and the torrential rain could still be heard filtering through the chaos from outside.
The arms of Raven hung limply at his sides, his fingers grazing the dirt as he gasped for air. He felt utterly drained, having exhausted nearly every drop of his spirit force in that desperate, all out attack against Markus. Each breath was labored. His chest rose and fell rapidly as he struggled to pull enough oxygen into his lungs.
A minute passed in tense silence before two vampire knights entered the room. Their predatory gazes locked onto the weakened Raven, who knelt on the floor as tired as an ox after an arduous day of plowing. They unsheathed their swords, their eyes glowing a deep, murderous red as they prepared to strike.
Just as they were poised to descend upon the exhausted mercenary, a voice echoed through the room. The sound caused both vampires to abruptly sheath their blades. They bared their teeth at Raven one last time before turning and leaving the room. Raven watched them go, bewildered and feeling like a helpless gazelle cornered by two hungry lions.
"Why didn't they kill me?" Raven whispered to himself, confusion stirring within his tired mind.
Suddenly, a voice sent icy shivers racing down his spine.
"You thought this was over?"
Raven could not believe his eyes as a figure stepped through the jagged hole in the wall. It was Markus. He had returned, and he did not look like he had taken any damage from the full power punch. The vest of Markus was in tatters, and one strap had already snapped off, but the man himself was perfectly fine. He touched and caressed his jaw, specifically the spot where Raven had landed the blow.
"Thank you for helping loosen up my jaw. It was a little tight. Now, let me return the favor."
Markus walked up to Raven. His massive, calloused hands clamped around the neck of the mercenary and slowly hoisted him into the air.
"Try not to pass out."
Markus infused his fist with spirit force and drove it deep into the stomach of Raven. The mercenary could not help himself. He doubled over in the grip of the vampire and threw up, saliva dripping from his mouth.
"Oh, I see you had some chicken and mashed potatoes," Markus chuckled darkly, his eyes glinting with sadistic pleasure. "But I want to see blood."
With that, he punched Raven even harder. This time, the mercenary coughed up a mouthful of blood that splattered across the stone floor. The metallic taste filled his mouth, mingling with the remnants of his last meal, while the pain surged through his entire body like a wildfire.
Raven fought desperately to stay conscious. His body was begging him to close his eyes and finally succumb to the darkness, yet his pride would not allow it. Just when he felt himself slipping away, he bit down hard on his own tongue. The sharp, metallic spike of pain jolted him back to focus. Gritting his bloodied teeth, he glared up at big vampire with a mixture of raw anger and pure hatred.
"Kill me, Markus. Kill me!" he spat defiantly, the blood spray hitting the floor.
"I will not kill you yet, human," Markus replied. His voice was dripping with cold disdain. "Stay here while I go deal with that bastard who killed my father."
"Come back here, Markus!" Raven shouted.
His voice was hoarse and strained, echoing uselessly against the stone. The vampire was already turning away, striding with purposeful, heavy steps toward the gaping hole in the wall. He left the broken mercenary behind in the dirt, not even worth a second glance.