“My duty.” The Firstborn Vampire replied. “I was born on Jiera, just like my wife and son. We have been forced into exile by the plague and even though I like Garlen, my family still misses our homeland.”
“That I know.” Lith nodded. “I meant, how can you go there and leave Lysa and Radusk alone in Lightkeep? What if the Undead Courts attack them? Also, you might be immortal, but your wife is human. You should treasure your time with her.”
“Da!” Elysia had no idea who the people Lith was talking about were but feeling the sentiment in her father’s voice, she nodded.
“I see.” Vladion laughed while offering the baby a finger that she sniffed with curiosity before giving it a playful bite. “Fatherhood indeed suits you and you are right. I would never leave them if not for my privileges as one of the Firstborns.”
“Meaning?” Lith asked.
“How do you think I got myself and my people to Garlen so quickly without losing anyone? The same way I rescued the undead trapped inside the Golden Griffon. I used my link with the Red Mother to open a Gate and reach her.
“I can do it from any distance, no matter how high in the sky or deep in the ground I am. Back then, Mother was in Garlen and she helped us to cross over. Then, she went to Jiera herself to rescue the young hybrids for her research.
“In the same way, I can go back and forth from Jiera with a moment’s notice. I don’t plan to stay away from my family for long, just the time necessary to recover my old settlement and establish a base.” Vladion replied.
“I see.” Lith nodded. “So, is Baba Yaga going to stay in Lightkeep during your absence?”
“Yes.” Vladion nodded. “Also, Ilthin is coming with me. This way, as long as one of us is in Jiera, Mother can open the Gate and we can go back and forth to take care of the Eclipsed Lands.”
“By the Red Mother, who’s this little fairy?” After hearing her name, the Firstborn Banshee had gone to join the conversation but had been dazzled by the baby girl. “Do you know that you resemble your Daddy a lot?”
Ilthin neared her finger as well but Elysia clearly remembered her. Instead of sniffing or grabbing the finger, she shapeshifted into her Tiamat form and attempted to bite it with her small fangs.
The Banshee managed to dodge in time and the clash of teeth produced a snap like a bear trap.
“Hey, that’s not cute at all! Why is she so cranky?”
“It seems Elysia remembers you upsetting Kami.” Lith checked the baby with the Dragon scales. “Come on. Be nice. Ilthin is a bit creepy but she means well. She helped Mom and Dad get back together.”
Such concepts were too complex for Elysia’s mind but the contact allowed her to more or less understand Lith’s feelings on the matter. She chittered for a bit before going back to a human baby and staring at the Banshee with suspicion.
“Okay. No flirting, no grabbing, no mentions of threesomes. Are we clear?” Lith said.
“Fine.” Ilthin pouted yet her bad mood melted away while looking at the six streaks in the baby’s hair and at her big, expressive eyes. “Gods, she’s so cute.”
The Banshee caressed Elysia’s cheek and this time there wasn’t any mutilation attempt.
“By the way, Lith, where’s Kamila?” Vladion looked around the Hydra’s lair, finding no trace of the Constable. “A mother leaving her baby alone is weird. A wife leaving her husband alone knowing Ilthin is going to be there is even weirder.”
“Hey! That’s mean of you.” The Banshee said in outrage. “Do you know how hard it was for me not mentioning that Lith and I could give Elysia a sibling?”
“She’s home.” Lith sighed. “She’s not feeling well.”
***
Blood Desert, City of Quyntan, permanent headquarters of the Undead Courts’ War Room.
Quyntan was located at the borders between the Gorgon Empire and the Blood Desert, making it one of the safest places on Mogar for the Courts. The Guardians’ breathing techniques barely reached the city, making cloaking arrays and a bit of caution enough to shield their presence.
After losing the Horsemen and the War of the Griffons, the Undead Courts had reached an all-time low. Night’s mad plans in her attempt to kill Verhen had cost the life of dozens of elders and then taking part in the War as Thrud’s allies had brought the death count even higher.
The Undead Courts had invested a lot of resources and manpower to ensure the Mad Queen’s victory under the promise that she would provide them with perfect Harmonizers.
Glemos had crafted a model specific for undead that not only removed their weakness to sunlight but it also pushed forward their evolution. Something that not even Baba Yaga could have predicted.
According to the plans of the Red Mother, undeath was supposed to be a temporary condition. A second life where her children would gain the strength and wisdom to overcome the flaws that had doomed them before resurrecting themselves by giving up on the blood red core.
Baba Yaga had never meant for the undead to be a master race nor to leave space for further improvement. Yet the Undead Courts begged to differ.
They had never discovered the secret of Awakening and even though they could still reach the full-blood red core over time, becoming mortals again would have meant to give up on the powers and bloodline abilities to which they had gotten dependent over the centuries.
Not even Awakened Firstborns like Vladion and Ilthin had ever considered following the Red Mother’s plan, let alone those who had come nowhere close to the might of their progenitors.
The Undead Courts had hoped that, after getting rid of the crazy Horseman of Night, things would have taken a turn for the better. Instead, Thrud had been defeated and the Courts had been spiralling ever since.
They still had a few of Glemos’ Harmonizers for undead, but with their limited abilities as Forgemasters, it made little difference.
“Why are we here?” Ezhman Makh, Vampire and General of the Night Court asked. “At this point, assembling in a single location is like begging to be exterminated. We should each stick to our respective turfs and lie low.”
“Lie low?” Shelk Whur, Blood Warlock and Destroyer of the Dusk Court echoed in outrage. “If we go any lower, we might as well disband the Courts and go hide in a cave like the wounded beast we are.”
“Calm down, Shelk.” Anmira Phrett, Arch Duchess of the Dawn Court said. “Ezhman is right. We are just getting weaker by the day. Without a solid plan, it’s better to take a step back and wait for an opportunity.
“At the moment, there’s nothing we can do. The Master’s Organization keeps hunting us down, whittling our numbers, and stealing our resources. The Jiera Colonization plan was supposed to be our second wind but by tightening up the safety measures, the three Great Countries have made it impossible for us to meddle with that.”
