The gatekeeper, his guards, and about ten demons I had managed to piss off since being in here, all started to close in around me, making me suddenly bargain with my life in the only way I knew how,
“The Vampire King wants me!” I shouted suddenly, making everyone take pause.
“So, what if he does!”
“Yeah, why would we give a fuck?!” A few more comments were flung my way about not giving a shit and even some that sounded like a cross between a duck and a dog barking.
“He's willing to pay for me, idiots!” I snapped, with a roll of my eyes that really wasn't doing me any favours considering my situation. I received a couple of growls, a few snarls and one weird clucking sound, making me decide it was probably best to rein in on the attitude.
“You have a bounty on your head?” the gatekeeper asked, obviously now very interested in this.
“Yeah and it's a big one but here’s the kicker guys, this Vampire King wants me alive…eeek, sorry guys. I guess if you want the money you have to take me there with all my limbs and toes and everything intact.” I said, emphasising on the ‘everything’ part and motioning up and down my body with my hands, just to make things extra clear.
“Now that makes things interesting, I claim the bounty!” the gatekeeper said, making another one step forward and declare,
“You already have a job, so go fuck off and do it…I will claim the bounty!”
“And you're pissed on root water mead! I will have her!” another argued.
“Wow, have to say, I’ve got a lot of good propositions here it's hard to choose.” Suddenly the guy who had manhandled me before grabbed me again, this time by my top tearing it slightly as he brought me closer to him telling me,
“Who says you get to choose?”
“I do!” A demonic, rough unyielding voice spoke up from the being that suddenly appeared behind me, before the towering form shifted to step in front of me and pushed the demon back hard on his ass.
“And who the fuck are you?” the gate keeper asked, as others stepped back the second he whipped back his cloak, showing them something I couldn’t see. My guess was a weapon and not the kind like the blue schlong demon had.
Then he answered in a way that became unmistakable as to who he was.
“I'm th' one hunting her, 'n' I'm th' one who came tae collect…
Ma bounty.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Lucius
My Brutal Lover
The moment I had finished destroying the Eye’s tomb, I was in the water and through the other side in seconds. I could barely believe that she had been taken from me yet a-fucking-gain! Only this time the problem I faced was that I had no means left in trying to find her. Fuck! Also, this time I didn't even know who it was that had taken her! There was no evidence left other than her blood in the sand along with the blood belonging to the witch. All that was clear was that both of them had been attacked and taken.
Needless to say, I was killing mad! The rage that consumed me was giving way and giving total control over to my demon. The only thing that would sate his thirst for revenge was the blood of our enemies coating our hands! That, and the feel of our woman back in our arms knowing she was safe.
Because admittedly, the last time she had been taken had been different. I had known instantly that the three brothers would not have harmed her. The furious rage and anger had been there yes, but the worry and fear for her life had not. No, I could not claim as much now as I had no idea who had her. But even if I could venture a guess and say it was the witch, then I still didn't know what she wanted with her. I also had to question how they had gained access into here in the first place? Because if it had been as simple as the Hex taking her to wherever the witch was, then why was Nero also missing? And not just the girls, but also the Eye of Crimson?
I couldn't even suspect what I had classed as my inner circle because Nero had been the only one inside and she had lost enough blood on that black sand to have died. The moment everyone had left my tower, they would once more need my permission to gain access to it again. It was the way the tower had been built as an impenetrable force to protect the Eye. Even if they have made it through the storm without it ripping them to pieces, they would not have been able to get through those doors without my blood.
So, how had such a thing even been possible?!
Admittedly, I felt helpless, and it was a feeling that gutted me from the inside out. Naturally, it wasn't something I was used to experiencing, for even when I first came here in search of her, I had motions and steps to follow in trying to aid my search. I had things that could be done and places to go but in this…I literally had nothing.
I had an entire world to search and even though my connections with the Kings of other realms were vast, even that wasn't enough to stretch over even half of Hell. Amelia could have been anywhere and captured by anyone, and tortured by even more. The thought of this had me staggering to the side of the wall to hold myself up. Parts of the wall crumbled in my grasp as I roared my agony up at any God who would listen to it, hoping they feared my wrath!
I made it to my throne room with the path of destruction left in my wake, for I cared little for any of it! The second I stepped foot inside the vast white stone covered room everyone knew to cower before me as my demonic steps cracked the ground. It looked as though I was walking on the ice of the frozen lake that usually surrounded my German castle Blood Rock.
I could barely believe she was gone again, no longer questioning if I was cursed, but fucking knowing I was! For I seemed forever doomed to lose the woman I loved. It was starting to become an inevitability, an unescapable future that surrounded me whenever I was with her. I was losing count of the number of times she had been ripped from my grasp during moments when I had foolishly thought her to be safe.
“Where is my brother?” I bellowed, with enough force that a crack travelled all the way up to my throne where it split the demonic horns collected there. At this dangerous question asked, it was only one being brave enough to approach and answer me. Carn’reau cut across the distance from the front doors I had just walked through and was in front of me in less time than my patience would allow, which was why I snapped,
“Tell me, he’d better be fucking here!” Carn’reau cleared his throat before admitting with a shake of his head,
“I'm afraid not, my Lord.” At this my body twisted suddenly and I went down on one knee as I punched my gauntleted hand into the ground, this time splitting it the length of my throne room.
“SHE’S GONE!” This new information came out in a burst of anger that could no longer be contained. My general closed his eyes a moment as he digested this information.
“And what of the witch?” The second he asked this I started growling at him and was back on my feet in an instant. I was a hair’s breadth away from taking hold of his throat before ripping it out for the insult that I should care about one over the other. And shit me, but didn’t he know it! His hand snapped up to halt my actions as he quickly added,
“I only ask because she could help if she were here, not because I hold any importance of her over that of your Chosen One.” On hearing this I took a calming breath, knowing that he was right, my rage was making me irrational. I took a deep breath trying to calm myself enough to answer,
“The witch was taken also.” Carn’reau simply nodded and after this, he didn't need to be told what to do, calling for his second in command instantly. Alvaro appeared out of nowhere, for I was so deep in my rage I could not think straight enough to acknowledge those present around me.
“The witch, she told you how to use the casting spells for tracking down words spoken…yes?” Carn’reau asked, seemingly now taking charge and I couldn’t have been more fucking grateful for it! I couldn’t think straight, that was fucking obvious!
“She gave me the incantation needed,” he replied with a bow of his head. Suddenly, my own head snapped up,
Explain!” I snapped.
“Nero didn't tell you in fear of your wrath in believing such a thing was needed, however she came to me and told me that the cloud spell could also be used in a different way should the need arise and your Chosen One go missing once more.” After this I took another breath and nodded for him to continue, knowing that if I did happen upon the witch and she was still alive, I was indebted to give her anything she wished for!
“Everywhere the spell was cast we can go back and by speaking a different incantation, it will home in on any word spoken of the girls’ kidnapping.” I closed my eyes and released a sigh, before they snapped open and I admitted,
“It is the best chance we have…send your men out to do it directly and whilst they are there, have any contacts or dealings with anyone with a loose tongue, tell them to loosen them further and find out what they can.”
“At once, my Lord,” Carn’reau said, nodding to a second for him to go. He bowed to me before he left to do his general’s bidding, and just before Carn’reau could do the same, I told him,
“I have another job for you.”
“My Lord?” he questioned, making me tell him,
“Get me the Gryphon and the Wyvern. Call them back for I will need them on this also.” Carn’reau looked thoughtful for a moment and agreed,
“They are the best bounty hunters around and managed to retrieve her the first time, but what of Trice, I believe he is closing in on his target who can remove the hex.”
“Then in that case he can stay, for the other two shifters should suffice and when she is found, she will be in need of this mystery being who can remove the hex,” I said, planning for the best and trying not to focus on the worst, so I may continue to function.
“Very well, my Lord, it will be done.” My general lingered a moment longer and I jerked up my chin telling him with little patience,
“You have something more to say then I suggest you get on and fucking say it!” I snapped, and he wasn't surprised due to the delicate subject.
“And what of Dariush, my Lord?” His question was one that made me turn my head in the direction of his office and snarl my reply…
“Leave him to me.”
***
Five excruciating hours later and I was practically tearing my hair out waiting for news. At the very least Gryph and Vern had returned, and I found my rage bursting to the surface yet again when I had to go through the events of what had become of Amelia. At the very least I was thankful the bastard Trice was not with them, for if he had been, then it would have taken very little for him to say or do before tearing his head off. This was something I didn't think Amelia would have taken kindly to upon her return, it was also not a death I could have hidden from her, for she was sure to notice.
The two brothers had walked the length of my throne room taking note of the destruction as if an earthquake had cracked the crust of Hell. Instantly they had known something was wrong. But then, as I was in the middle of explaining to them what little of a plan we had in using Nero’s spell, it prompted a difficult question from Vern,
“So, Nero, she's out there now reversing…?” I would have winced had I had cared enough at the time, for all of my energy, worry, and anxiety was solely focused on Amelia. So, with no tact at all, I snapped,
“The witch was also taken!” This was when I saw a mirror image of my own reaction, for Vern reacted badly. I simply stood back and let it happen as he found himself surrounded by my guards taking his anger as a threat towards their King. I didn't have fucking time for his own heartbreak, but I was at least sympathetic enough not to let him get killed for it.
I ordered my men to give him space and let his brother deal with his outrage. I also wanted the Gryphon shifter to do so quickly for my patience at having Vern making demands of me would not last. So, I had warned him of this and Gryph’s reply was a simple and effective,
“Aye,” before he went on with his task of calming down his brother. It was at this point when I turned my back on them both that something hit me. It also had the strength to knock me to my knees as I grabbed my head with both hands and looked up at the ceiling with my back arched, as the vision gripped my entire being.
At first I thought it was some sort of attack from the witch, for I couldn’t understand the power if it. I didn't know what was happening, when suddenly I was assaulted with image after image. And every single one was of what Amelia was going through…or should I say…had been through.
It was like a flicker book of time. The last five hours she had been missing started with a painful image of her hanging by her wrists. She was attached to a wooden beam in some fucking cell, but before the pain of this could continue to consume me, I became a witness to the raw and sheer magnificence that was Amelia.
I watched as she kicked out with her legs at the creature that had run at her with a blade in its hand, only to be thrown backwards from the impact. Then I found myself astonished when she freed herself by running up the pole and using the force of her weight to snap her chains. But even as the images continued to hit me in a wave of action, I still had the time to question how the fuck was she able to do these things?
This same question only ended up repeating itself in my mind the second I saw the brutality she was capable of. Not just by killing the creature, one that I was yet unclear as to what it was exactly, but then in the very sinister message she left behind. This was all before watching her picking the lock with nothing other than a bloody talon she had brutally chopped off.
But then as she exited the cell, I was able to focus on the message she had left behind, finally giving me the insight needed as to who it was that took her,
Fucking Harpies!
Chapter Twenty-Five
To Kill Me A Harpy
And Cry Me A River
I could vaguely hear those around me calling something about their Lord, but I switched all my focus on Amelia, blocking all else out as I didn’t want to lose sight of the image. It continued with Amelia’s clumsiness when nearly falling down a spiral staircase one moment, and the next creeping along the battlements like an assassin waiting for the opportunity to kill. I have seen glimpses of the Harpies and the ruined castle before, knowing it was where they had made their lair.
At one time they had occupied the outskirts of Tartarus around the Lost Temple of Olympia when they tried to keep their connection to Zeus, even though rumour had it that they were forbidden to enter inside the temple itself. Which, seemingly, no longer mattered as from the looks of things they had since moved on.
However, that didn't matter for it was a castle all the same and one I knew I would find in Tartarus. A place where they had been cursed to remain for all of their days. I did then have to question how they had managed to snatch Amelia away, seeing as it was always believed that they were incapable of leaving.
But thinking back to the castle and I knew there weren't many sites to be seen from the sky like this one. I knew after receiving the clues that I needed to help find her, I shouldn't have been wasting time with these visions, but I found myself locked to the sight of her bravery. She was unbelievable and a true master in the art of killing. I watched her dispatch one Harpy in a tower before creeping across a bailey to kill another. That one was done face to face and I swear at the sight, I knew she would have made a formidable demon, for right now there was nothing angelic about her.
But then I suppose that wasn't true, considering she was doing all of this in the hope of saving her friend, for the witch, Nero, was still alive. I felt my hand fist in frustration the second they were caught in their escape and put into a cage after the Harpy Queen had found her little gruesome message. I could barely believe, after witnessing all of this, that my little geek, my little Amelia with her cute pyjamas and her childish hobbies was the same girl. Yet I knew with a certainty I couldn't explain that once I got her back topside and away from all of this brutality that she would revert to being the same. For she didn't have it in her heart to change. I knew this as,
still in the face of a seemingly doomed position, she was still making jokes and trying to ease the fear of another.
The Angel inside of her would never leave, not even after all she'd endured thanks to the Hell she had willingly stepped into. After this, parts of what happened next were hazy, and flickered and jumped to parts of the past that didn't follow in order. What happened before this point became clear that it was leading up to what was happening now, and the only thing that made sense to all of this, was that she was being forced to take hold of the Eye. This had been after seeing several Harpies die after being forced to try first.
However, there was one focal point that always remained as a blur. It was as if the Eye itself didn't want me to see this part and withheld the vital bit of information, and that was the one who was obviously pulling all of the strings. I knew this because conversation was always directed to this void in the memory. Of course, the second Amelia had taken hold of the Eye this was when it was connected with me, as its keeper, showing me her recent past. Meaning that the moment it released me was when I knew it had released her too, and we were now back living in real time.
I suddenly fell forward on my hands, slapping my palms against the cracked floor and adding to its destruction. But then I looked up once just in time to see my brother had created a portal and slipped back into this room from wherever he had come from.
But I didn't have time for questioning him on his absence. Not now I knew of all the new events that had taken place. So instead of explaining, I turned my back on him and only stopped long enough to offer hope to one I knew better than most needed it right now. I look down at the Wyvern shifter and said,
“Your witch…she is still alive.” Then I released my wings and flew from the throne room ready to take on all of Tartarus once more, if that's what it would take to get back…
Roots Of Rage: A Vampire King Paranormal Romance (Transfusion Saga Book 9) Page 19