The Vampire & Her Witch

”I fear my teacher is behind this attack,” Nyrielle said, coming to the only conclusion that made any sense. Before, she never would have considered it, but after learning about Shubnalu’s involvement in turning powerful Frost Walker ancestors into deadly Blood Golems, she couldn’t deny his aparent ability to control this isolated clan.

She’d heard from Hamdi that the Fangs of Death had ordered her capture and she avoided the other vampire Eldritch Lords for the remainder of her journey through the Eldritch nations precisely because of that, but no it appeared that her teacher had come for her himself.

Given everything he must have heard during her travels, perhaps it was unsurprising. The barren High Pass would weaken Ashlynn and the other witches traveling with them, and the cold itself, combined with the narrow roads and the rough terrain would allow even a weaker force like the Frost Walkers to cause significant damage to her forces.

Moreover, it was one place that he could guarantee she would pass through on her way back to the Vale of Mists. All he had to do was take control of the puppets he’d neglected for a few centuries and then wait for her to arrive. In the months since Nyrielle had defeated Hamdi, Shubnalu had plenty of time to make his move here.

”If he is here,” Nyrielle said, flapping her wings and shooting into the air. ”He will be in a place where we can speak alone. If he thinks that my people are so weak that they’ll be decimated by the likes of Ritchel’s Frost Walkers, however, he’s sorely mistaken.”

A sudden, intense surge of anger and frustration flowing through her bond with Ashlynn momentarily pulled Nyrielle’s attention away from her surroundings as her mind sank into the bond that grew stronger every day that she and Ashlynn shared together.

This close, she could faintly hear the clash of Ashlynn’s sword against ice that cracked and shattered under the force of her blows along with the sounds of a bitter argument between the two people trapped beneath the ice.

Clearly, Ashlynn thought there must be some way out of this that wouldn’t require killing the young lord or she wouldn’t waste her words on him, but Nyrielle was much less confident in finding a solution to this without spilling blood, particularly if her suspicions were right about the person behind this sudden attack.

Pulling her attention back to the world around her, Nyrielle did her best to push her concerns about Ashlynn to the back of her mind so she could do what must be done. If her love was able to produce a miracle and find a solution to this that saved as many of the Frost Walker’s lives as possible, then that was obviously ideal, but Nyrielle’s first responsibilities were to her own people. Whether they were captured pawns in a greater game or not, since Lord Ritchel had moved against her, he and his clan would have to face the consequences of their treachery.

”Zedya, secure our people,” Nyrielle commanded, her mind moving rapidly as she prepared her counterattack. Part of her wanted nothing more than to rush to Ashlynn’s side, but if Shubnalu was truly present, doing so might only make things worse. At the moment, she had to trust in Ashlynn’s strength to endure, at least for a short while.

”Search among the ones who joined us most recently,” she told Zedya. ”Ensure no one is attempting to sabotage us from within. Ignatious,” she continued, turning to the former Inquisitor who had already retrieved the box containing the Holy Flame Blade. ”I see you already understand.”

”I will remove the blizzard, Mistress,” Ignatious said, holding off on opening the box containing the sword until Nyrielle departed. ”Then I will break Lady Ashlynn free of the ice prison.”

”Assuming she hasn’t already done it herself,” Nyrielle said with a confident smile. ”Uncle Tausau, Uncle Savis,” Nyrielle shouted to the Mongrel Horde and Black Wolf Brigade who had already begun to gather together under the orders of the two elder vampires.

”I fear the Fangs of Death may have brought his progeny with him,” Nyrielle said, worried that there might be more powerful forces lurking in reserve. Shubnalu had always had a fondness for skilled assassins among his progeny and she didn’t expect to find them openly joining the battle if they were present.

In fact, if her teacher had brought his progeny with them, they were most likely holed up deep within the Frost Walker’s fortress, likely holding Ritchel’s wife and the wives and children of the elders hostage as a method of compelling obedience from their unwilling pawns.

”Seize the fortress,” Nyrielle commanded. ”If Shubnalu’s minions are here, find them! If they have taken prisoners, you may bring this to an end by freeing them, but you should expect that any one of Shubnalu’s progeny are just as strong as Hamdi was. Do not spend your lives foolishly protecting people who have betrayed our trust. Retreat if you must,” she added after a brief hesitation. ”Your lives are more important to me than a swift victory.”

”The Black Wolf Brigade will not fail you,” Savis said, kneeling formally in the snow and offering a salute with both of his claws pressed across his chest. Though he kept his eyes firmly on the ground, he didn’t do so out of a true sense of submission to Lady Nyrielle. Rather, he did it to hide the gleam of eagerness and hunger glittering in his golden eyes.

For months, Savis and the Black Wolf Brigade had been the defeated dogs of the Tangled Wood, forced to act as common heralds and ordinary guards. Now, they would finally be let off their leashes, released to hunt and wash away the stain of their defeat with the fresh blood of victory!

”Come, Brother,” Tausau said eagerly as he peered through the drifting cloud of snow between the carriages and the bridge. With his sharp senses, even though much of his vision was obscured, he could see the Frost Walker soldiers pouring onto the bridge.

Despite their impressive layers of woven armor and icy weapons, to the man who sired the Mongrel Horde, the white fur of the Frost Walker soldiers made them resemble a flock of fat sheep, rushing ignorantly to the slaughterhouse.

”Tonight,” Tausau said as Nyrielle shot off toward a lonely mountain lake in the distance. ”We hunt!”