Sui sat tapping the table with her finger. Her eyes narrowed at the piece of paper Leon had presented to everyone in front of her. News wasn’t the best. Reaching up, she stroked Shadow’s feathers slowly.
“So...” Lack leaned back in his chair. His sword propped up against his thigh, unsheathed and shining from the rigorous sharpening he had given it. “We have a fake Governor who has placed a bounty on our heads for attempting to kill him.”
“Add to that,” Leon leaned forward and rested his head on his hands. “Cindy is being bribed by the vampires to leak information to us. Also Ian reported that he had no knowledge that the vampires were advancing on Barton this aggressively.”
“I could take that two ways,” Sui murmured unintentionally resting her hand heavily on Shadow’s head causing the poor bird to squawk loudly. “Ian, either, unintentionally added the other meaning or he knew the vampires were planning on taking over Barton just like they did with Durem.”
Silence fell heavily at this statement leaving only Shadow’s distressed calls to fill the room. Sui lifted her hand off his head and rested it beside his feet. The owl pecked her hand in anger. Noticing no reaction produced, he flew and perched himself on the back of Lulu’s chair. He watched Sui with narrowed eyes and ruffled feathers.
“We need to flush out...” Lulu paused in mid sentence. “Someone’s coming.” Her ears flicked around erratically. “Two.” Leon and Lack placed a hand on their swords. Sui glanced at Shadow. The owl gave her a very soothing coo-like hoot.
“No need,” Sui replied closing her eyes to focus onto the approaching footsteps. One set heavier than the other. More body weight? No...Supporting. What is Kate thinking? Sui looked at Lack wonderingly. Perhaps Kc is well enough to move without tearing her wound open. She smiled at his confused glance at her. “It’s Kate and Kc.”
“Kc is well enough to get out of bed?” Lack asked surprised. “That wound was pretty deep.”
Lulu sniffed the air. “It’s closed. I don’t smell fresh blood.” She exchanged a glance with Lack. “Human wounds heal that quickly?”
“No,” Sui pretended not to notice the exchange. “But Kc did attempt to make an immortal elixir once. It failed, however, this could be a side effect.”
Lack watched Shadow fly over to Sui and rub the side of his head against her arm. Sui’s lips moved producing only the faintest of sounds. Lulu’s ears twitched in reaction and the owl cooed soothingly. He didn’t have much time to mull over what had just happened.
Kate kicked the door open and helped Kc into a chair onto Sui’s right, then dropped herself into a chair near Lack. “You’re heavier than you look,” she remarked breathlessly.
Kc made a face at Kate. “I don’t know whether to feel insulted or flattered,” she replied giving Shadow a pat. She, too, whispered something that sounded vaguely like ‘Fluffier’ before the owl rubbed his head against her hand.
Lack gave Kate a concerned glance before looking back to the two sisters. Am I imagining that? He watched Sui tilt her head slightly towards Kc. Her eyes narrowed, clearly showing displeasure at something, before closing completely. She knows something. Something new. He looked at Kc, then at Kate, then back to Sui. Something about one of these two made her react. But what?
Sui stood up and lifted her staff. “I need to visit home for a few things,” She poked two fingers into her belt pouch and drew out a vial that contained a potion which appeared to be made out of liquid night. “I’ll go in disguise.” Before anyone could utter another word, she uncorked the vial and downed the contents in one gulp.
Kc smiled lightly. The potion was one of her favourites to use. Stretching out her hand, she waited for Sui to alight on her fingers and wrap her tail around her arm. The shocked gasps made Sui flap her wings in amusement.
“Never seen me transform before?” Sui asked taking flight again and landing once more, this time standing on clawed feet. Looking down, she breathed a sigh of relief. I managed to make it allow me to materialise clothes this time. “I’m a demon imp. Vampires will pass me over as I’m disguised as a dark species, like them.”
Lulu’s ears flicked back and forth in amusement. She had seen Sui’s imp forms before and enjoyed the little moments of panic that flickered across her face when she looked down to see whether her clothes had appeared or not.
Sui changed back to her mini imp form and hovered for a while. “I’ll probably be back in a day or two. Keep this window open for me to get in.”
***
A lady in the finest white silks lay with her hand resting on her forehead. The ‘distress maiden’ pose was a favourite of hers after having a dream about newborn vampires. Lifting a delicate hand, she rang a pure crystal bell than sent silvery peals that sounded like laughter over the expanse of her room.
“You called, Your Majesty?” A girl in a blood-red tunic knelt on one knee on the floor next to her bed. Looking up, she took note of the pose and smiled. “Another you wish me to mentor?”
“In Barton,” The lady sat up and rested her chin onto the back of her hand. “There is a newborn called Kc. Bring her here to test for her abilities. They should have awoken by now.”
“My Queen Siren, It will be as you command.” The girl stood and bowed before leaving the room. Turning to the guards on either side of the doors, she snapped. “The Queen will soon call for freshly chilled blood to sooth her dreamscape. Be sure you are well prepared for her.”
“At once! Captain Miwa.” They snapped into a formal salute to her before scrambling to fetch a bottle of blood and a bucket of ice.
Miwa walked down the hall quickly. Only the soft scuffing sound from her boots accompanied her. So the newborn’s name is Kc. It’s such a strange name for a human to have. She looked up at the lights overhead with a frown of concentration. Why that is the newborn’s name so familiar?
“Miwa!” She looked up at the dark eyed imp that floated near her. “We’re having some issues. Could you give us a hand?”
“Not now, Mona.” Miwa replied waving her hand as if to shoo a persistent fly away. “I have been given a task from the Queen to do.”
“It’s about the newborn right?” Miwa froze and looked at Mona. “The issue we’re having is about her sister.”
“The newborn has a sister?” Miwa smacked her forehead hard with the palm of her hand. She understood now why the name was so familiar. “I’m going to have that same issue.”
“Both sister’s are in Barton at the moment,” Mona changed and stood on her clawed feet to walk alongside Miwa. “Sui is in hiding and Ada has been seen but it is unconfirmed if she will come and assist her younger sisters if we do anything to them. Both are quite strong and so will be difficult to deal with them as well as Kc.”
“If Kc doesn’t come with me willingly,” Miwa mused out loud. “I’m going to have to find a way to bypass her own strength to force her back here. However, if she is like any other newborn, she’ll come willingly to learn how to live as a vampire. Not many live very long if they are left to their own devices.”
“This is one of the alchemy sisters we’re talking about,” Mona reminded her with a shake of her finger. “They may have means to make a living as a vampire without needing assistance.”
“We’ll see,” Miwa replied as they turned the corner into the armoury. “Better to be prepared just in case.”
***
Sui sat on her table at home. Her clawed feet clicked each time they touched the lacquered wood. A beautifully woven bag with intricate beadwork sat at her side filled with bottles and vials of potions and other strange substances. A flask filled with a pearly white substance sat bubbling not far away on a Bunsen set on a blue flame.
Flicking through the papers in her hand, she pulled out three more recipes she had not made before. She felt that it would give them an edge if she used transformation potions no one has seen her use.
Snow leopard for me, I think. Sui prepared a potion that developed a deep roan colour. Centaur potion for Lack since I don’t think I can handle seeing Leon’s bare chest. She shuddered at the thought. A loud bang sounded from the front of the shop. What in the world?
Sui carefully placed the centaur potion near the Bunsen for it to be boiled as soon as the snow leopard potion was done and ran out to the front of the shop. Smoke filled the entire room. “What in the hell is going on in here?”
“We had a thief try to steal and this idiot thought it would be a good idea to throw a potion at him,” Sui heard a female voice reply. “We need some help here Sui.”
Sui stepped carefully through the smoke and came across her two assistants. Both were sitting in a pool of crimson fluid. Surveying the area, she saw a series of broken vials over their heads that dripped a green potion onto their heads. Her eyes softened with sympathy for the two.
“You don’t have much choices left for you,” Sui moved and locked the door to the shop’s entrance. “What is dripping on you is a poison that is normally sold to farmers to kill pests. Usually only a drop diluted in water is enough to kill insects but you have had eight vials empty onto you. I can save you but you will be subject to my orders.” Sui turned her back on them and headed back to her workroom. “You’ll also no longer be human.”
“I…” The female assistant looked at her partner then back to Sui. “We don’t want to die.”
Sui disappeared and returned with two potions. One was snow white in colour and the other was a chocolate brown. She handed them the potions and replied. “Then the choice is yours. To survive, you have to drink the potions. When you’re done, you can find me in my workroom. Walk at first because it’ll be a big learning curve for you.” Sui left the two alone and went back into her workroom.
It wasn’t long before two owls, a snowy and a barn, walked in. Their claws clicked against the lacquered floorboards as they walked in and sat on the floor. Sui wordlessly opened the backdoor and allowed the owls out to practice flying while she finished the potions.
***
Kc awoke to the sense of something was in the room with her. Her eyes strained to look through the darkness to see who it was.
“Sui?” she asked nervously at the dark outline near the door.
“Not quite,” Kc watched as a woman with pale, translucent skin stepped into the moonlight. Her outfit was reminiscent of the days when ninja’s existed and the words honour and valour had a heavy meaning. “My name is Miwa. I’m Captain of the Guards.” Smiling at Kc’s confused expression, she continued. “I’ve been sent to retrieve you by our Queen.”
“Queen?” Kc stared at the Miwa’s dark hair and eyes before glancing at her ruby red lips. The woman smiled, revealing short sharp fangs. “You’re a vampire.”
“Yes,” The woman settled herself onto Kc’s bed. “Her Majesty, Queen Siren Nightsfall, ordered me to bring you to our underground realm in Durem proper.” She placed a hand on her chest. “I’m to be your mentor and trainer in everything from how to live to be a vampire to learning the basics of fighting in whatever form you prefer…” She sniffed the air around Kc. “You’ve been stealing blood.”
Kc stared at her shocked. A small part of her wished to ask how she knew such a thing. But the greater part squashed it out quite thoroughly. Of course she’d know. She’s a vampire after all.
Miwa smiled revealing her fangs once more. “Stolen blood has the sharpest of all the scents blood could create. You’ll learn it eventually. Fresh blood is mostly mellow while animal and part-human bloods have an additional musky smell to them.” She sniffed the air once more. “Old but sharp which leads me to believe you’ve been stealing blood from the hospital cold room.”
Kc’s voice caught in her throat. Not even Sui or Lulu could pull off that quick a deduction based on their surroundings. She was quite sure that even Lulu’s sense of smell couldn’t pick up the faint scent of blood on her.
Only one sentence took form through her frozen voice. “Am I in trouble?” Miwa’s laugh quickly defrosted her. “What’s so funny?”
“There are only two hard and fast rules with vampires,” Miwa wiped tears from her eyes. She had not had such a good laugh in a long time. “One, you do not drink noble blood unless invited. That is noble blood of any race. Two, you do not turn anything into a vampire. This rule gets broken often. But there are ways our Queen finds out and punishes those who break it.”
“Why not drink noble blood?” Kc asked curiously. “Nobles are the same as anyone else. It is just a title given to them by those either higher or thrust onto them by those lower in status. I don’t see…”
Miwa pressed a finger onto Kc’s lips. “While it is true that nobility are beings with a title attached to them, the power they wield begins to seep into them. I broke this rule once. The blood of Nobility fizz and bubble like soft drinks or perhaps, more closely, like sea foam against a cliff. The power in their blood gives more energy and stamina than the most caffeinated drinks in the world.” She watched Kc’s eyes widen at her words. “Queen Siren forbade anyone to drink noble blood unless invited by that noble. Vampires running on noble blood become wild and violent. The blood courses through looking for an exit, maddening the vampire into a crazed state.”
“So like the illegal drugs that the humans are forbidden to use,” Kc pulled Miwa’s finger away from her lips. “Vampires are forbidden noble blood because they are very much like illegal drugs in our world.”
“Correct,” Miwa’s voice deepened slightly as she lowered her voice to a whisper. “But without the use of noble blood, we each have an ability that develops the longer we are vampires. The ability you gain is what determines your social standing amongst vampires.” She tilted her head. “The most common is the ability to soothe even the most skittish of prey. It’s a natural aura that causes living creatures to be at calm, allowing the vampire to do what they will without being interrupted during feeding.”
Kc frowned thinking back to the vampire who bit her. She didn’t feel calm. If anything, she was wound up with adrenaline. Miwa watched her expressions, reading them like a book.
“There are exceptions,” Miwa added softly. “But that’s not for you to worry about unless you have that ability.” She glanced at the door then back to Kc. “Before I leave, I’ll show you my ability. You have a visitor coming. I’ll be watching you.” Stepping into the darkness, she melted away.
It wasn’t long before there was a knock at the door. Kc’s eyes saw a flash of colour in the darkness. Amongst the indeterminate colour was a golden staff held upright by a small white hand. Kc rubbed her eyes and mumbled “Come in.”
“Kc?” Sui poked her head in. Kc wondered briefly if the vision she saw was a pre-warning or merely coincidental. “Can you stay in here tonight? We’ve set traps again and without the mana seed charm, you might get caught in some.”
“You hid them?” Kc asked. Her senses of the room heightened. She could feel Miwa nearby but neither she nor Sui could see her. “Why did you hide them from my sight as well?”
Sui smiled and waved at her. “Try and get some rest. I’m hoping we’ll have them caught tonight. We’ll have a source of information then.” The door closed leaving Kc confused.
“She didn’t answer your question,” Miwa mused in her ear. “I wonder if she knows something that she hasn’t shared with anyone yet.”
Kc nodded still confused over the lack of information from Sui. It was unusual for her to withhold her thoughts, especially with their heads on the line. Her head. Kc corrected herself. I wasn’t there the day that she and the others went to see the governor.
***
Sui sat in the basement with four vials sitting before her. “I’m not going to change my appearance!” Lulu protested for the eighth time. “It will interfere with my kitsune blood.”
“It’s why I made your potion to contain your hairs, Lulu.” Sui replied exasperated holding out a chocolate brown potion to her. “You want to be unrecognisable to our opponents?” Lulu nodded uncertainly. “Then you have no choice. All of us, including the governor and probably anyone under him, will know you are a kitsune. If you don’t change, you’ll be a target.”
Lulu sighed and took the potion. After shooting a glare at Sui, she downed the contents. Smoke swirled around her. “You have got to be kidding me!” Lulu cried twitching her little brown nose. “I’m going to have an intense craving for nuts after this.” Leon and Lack fell out of their chairs at the sight of the small brown pointed ears and the giant bushy tail. “I’m a damn squirrel.”
“It works,” Sui replied in a very calm tone. She slid silver grey potion to Lack. “You’ll probably need some practice before going out into the medical centre. Lack glanced at her uncomfortably before downing his vial’s contents.
It wasn’t long before a grey centaur stood where Lack had been sitting. He rose up onto his hind legs before bringing his hooves down with a crash. “Good but I’m going to have trouble with my sword like this.”
“Like I said,” Sui tipped her head towards his sword. “Practice.” A crimson potion slid across the table to Leon. Both he and Sui, who held her snow white potion, downed their contents. Sui winked and both Lulu and Lack giggled. Sui’s snow-leopard look made her the most indistinct of the four and Leon’s red wolf made him look more like a deranged werewolf than an actual wolf.
“That,” Lulu gasped trying to breathe while the bursts of laugher continued to come out of her. “Was the best thing I have ever seen this month.” She leaned forward to look at Leon’s face. “Maybe you should make that a permanent feature.”
“And maybe we should make you a permanent squirrel,” Leon replied with a growl and a smile. “I would find that amusing.”
Lulu frowned and swiped a paw at him and then covered her nose. She couldn't help constantly twitching it. It was almost as if there was a fly permanently perched on the end of her nose. I hate being a squirrel!
***
Sui sat outside the blood bank with her staff across her knees, her head tilted slightly listening to the distant sounds. Their plan for tonight was simple. They were placed in strategic places on the ground floor. Lulu's animals were positioned on windowsills and doorways through the entire hospital. If the vampire was a patient in the hospital, Lulu would know straight away.
She looked around. Her feline eyes saw everything. The instinct to play with the ribbons that floated with the wind being emitted from the air conditioner, yet her own personality squashed the instinct firmly down until it was only a small tickle in the back of her mind. The ribbons fluttered at her lazily, flashing purple reflections off her when the shiny side of the ribbon hit the moonlight. She swatted at the ribbon, pulling it off the air conditioner and placed them on the windowsill. She needed all of her concentration right now.
A scuffing sound caught her attention. Standing up quickly, she ducked into the blood bank and crouched down in the darkness, watching the door closely. She repositioned the sheath at her waist so it wasn't poking into her side. The constant cold breeze in the room didn't affect her in the slightest.
***
Kc crouched near the door of her room and listened carefully. Her eyes saw colours and watched a rabbit bouncing past her door in the hall one way, then turned and bounced back the other way. She could see a bird fluttering outside, hidden behind the curtain.
I'm a seer? she asked herself as she waited until the rabbit was past her room before sneaking out. Perhaps I can get to the blood doing this. She continued to use her ability to travel down the hall and down the stair to the basement where the blood bank sat. Pausing at the door, she frowned. No one guarding this door. She focused on her ability again… nothing came. Why?
"Why?" Miwa echoed her thoughts. "You have a seer's ability. You haven't exercised that ability enough to allow yourself to use it at length." Kc frowned at her. Miwa lifted her head, listening to a distance sound. "The Queen is calling me…" She gave Kc a serious look. "Be careful. You might end up doing something that you'll regret."
Kc watched Miwa disappear into the darkness. Regret? I have a lot of things I regret. I doubt there is anything else that can add to that list.
Kc opened the door and stepped inside carefully. The coldness of the room felt more like a gentle brush of a cool breeze to here. Her fingers trembled for an instant as she reached out towards the boxes of packaged blood. Her mind whirred at Miwa's cautionary words to her.
Not many people can sit in this room without freezing. Kc reached out without hesitation now and grabbed a bag of blood. She bit into it without a care and froze when she saw a quick flash of a golden staff in front of her eyes. Sui? It can't be. She'd freeze staying in here for so long.
"When were you bitten?" A cold voice spoke from the darkness of the room.
A chill ran down Kc's back at the tone and volume of it. She had only ever hear this voice with this tone only once before. She watched a white snow leopard step out carrying the same ornate sword as the Elf Prince carried. She mentally gave a sigh of relief.
"Who the hell are you to speak to me in that way?" She replied baring her fangs. Her nails elongated and leapt at the snow leopard. The sword lashed out and block her, forcing her back to where she stood. "Did the medical staff here recruit you to help Sui catch me?"
"Did you want Sui to catch you?" The snow leopard asked in the same cold voice. "Do you realise how much this will hurt her?" The snow leopard padded forward, unhampered by the growing cold. "Have you become part of the invasion into Barton?"
Kc was speechless. Invasion? She stared at the snow leopard uncertainly. "I don't understand. What invasion?"
The snow leopard sighed with relief. Kc stared at it hard. Why is it relieved? She watched the sword warily. It's quick with the sword. Kc waited, watching the snow leopard for any sign of movement. "Why are you relieved?"
The snow leopard didn't respond at first. Kc's blood began to boil. She was hungry and this creature was blocking her from feeding. Her fangs and nails elongated once more and she leapt at the snow leopard. "MOVE!"
Moments had passed and both froze. Kc's hands were wrapped around the shaft of a golden staff… the exact same staff that Ada had given Sui. Shaking, she looked up at the snow leopard. Its eyes looked down at her sadly. The sword flicked out forcing Kc back again.
"When were you bitten?" The voice asked no longer cold but calm and collected.
Kc pressed her back against the wall and looked around for an escape. She didn't want to answer. She knew that the answer would make Sui leave her. Realising the only exit was the door behind Sui, she sighed and replied "The day I brought back the sun staff."
The snow leopard lowered the staff and sword. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"What could you have done?" Kc closed her eyes, trying to ignore the hunger pains. "There's still no known cure for a vampire bite. Even your alchemy experiments haven't been successful." Her arms prickled with a familiar sensation.
"KC!" Miwa leapt out of the shadows at the snow leopard. "RUN!" She pushed the snow leopard back. Her left claw pressing against the golden staff. Her right held an oversized ninja star that blocked the sword. Kc could hear the sirens ringing throughout the entire building. Grabbing a bag of blood, she darted out the door.
The snow leopard pushed Miwa back and sent the vampire flying. Miwa stared at the snow leopard clearly for the first time before beginning to laugh. She allowed herself to continue until she disappeared through the darkness of the room.
The snow leopard sighed and allowed the transformation fade away. Sui sheathed the sword and stepped out of the blood bank, sealing it shut once more. Kc…
***
Lulu's ears pricked up at the sirens and ran towards the blood bank, gathering her animals in her wake. Her nose picked up the strong scent of blood coming towards her. "Spread out!" she called. She stretched out the Mana Seed Staff to ensure any alchemy used against her was dispelled.
She waited patiently. The sound of quick steps… someone running… came towards her. Holding her staff out horizontally in front of her with both hands, she called "Halt in the name of the Barton Tamers!" She could hear the person skid to a halt and step closer slowly.
"Barton Tamers?" The voice called out to her from the darkness. "Is there such a group in Barton? Or are you a part of the Gaia Tamers Guild?" She stepped forward into the light. "I didn't think they accepted part humans into their ranks."
Kc? Lulu's nose twitched as a reflex. She sniffed the air and narrowed her eyes. She smells strongly of blood. She watched Kc crouch ready to attack. "Does Sui know?"
That question threw Kc off balance. She stared at the squirrel questioningly. Sui obviously must have used several potions she had never seen her use before, thus she couldn't recognise who she was facing. "Which one are you?" she asked, knowing full well that the question was going to be made redundant.
Silence spread between them before the familiar prickle travelled up and down her arms. Kc waited patiently. Miwa was on the way. Moments passed and a flurry of claws and fangs dropped down from the ceiling onto Lulu. Kc dashed past without looking back. Her mind wondered how many times Miwa would be saving her before she manages to get out of the hospital.
Lulu called to her furry friends to attack Miwa. A cruel laugh, some yelps of pain, and an explosion later; Lulu sat with the Mana Seed Staff over her knees. Her back stung with the aftermath of being thrown hard against the wall from the explosive smoke bomb. She looked up as a golden staff touched her on the head.
"You know about Kc?" she asked, not looking up at Sui. She could feel her squirrel features disappear, being replaced by her kitsune ears and tail. Her voice was heavy with sadness. "I'm sorry. I couldn't smell the blood on her when I saw her before in the basement."
"That's alright," Sui replied extending a hand out to Lulu. Pulling her up onto her feet, Sui continued "I had a feeling something had happened. Kc's aura had changed dramatically. It was darker… almost like Ada's but not that strong." Sui shrugged. "We better see if we can get to Leon and Lack before Kc escapes the hospital." Lulu nodded and the two ran down the hall with all Lulu's furry friends trying to keep up behind them.
***
Leon scratched his ear. He didn't mind the wolf appearance. In fact, he felt that the wolf transformation suited his personality best. The claws felt powerful. He swiped the air as if mock fighting.
Laughed invaded his ears. A familiar, teasing laughter. "Where are you?" he called out into the darkness.
"I can probably guess who you are," Kc stepped up and easily side-stepped his swipes. "Clumsy and totally self-absorbed. The poor Captain of the Barton Regulars."
Leon continued to furiously swipe at her with his claws fully extended. More footsteps could be heard coming towards him. He grabbed a nearby bin from a washbasin and threw it at her. Both were shocked as the bin hit a dark shadow in mid air. Miwa dropped down and snarled at Leon.
"Sui and Lulu are coming this way," she hissed over her shoulder at Kc. "Sui's carrying a green vial…"
Shit! Kc thought and ran off down the hall. She braced an arm over her chest when she felt the bag of blood begin to slide out of its hiding place in her shirt. Sui means business. When it was clear she wasn't being chased, she slowed and looked back curiously. She mentioned an invasion before… Sitting down, she quickly drank the blood and discarded the bag into the nearby bin. Are the vampires planning an invasion of Barton? Why else would Sui mention an invasion…
***
Sui reached Leon and managed to throw the green vial at the vampire. Netting wrapped around her and forced her down to the ground. Lulu used her Mana Seed Staff to release Leon from his transformation while Sui crouched down next to the struggling vampire.
"Why are you helping Kc?" she asked in a low whisper. Miwa continued to struggle furiously against the tight green gossamer-like net. She turned to the two and said quickly "Go after Kc and help Lack to catch her." She tossed another green vial to Lulu. "I don't have another one so be careful with your aim." The two nodded and left.
"Why are you chasing her?" Miwa spat trying to not get a mouthful of the floor each time she rocked towards it. Sui sat her up and looked at the vampire with clear red eyes. Miwa felt uneasy. "Why are you being kind to me?"
"Because," Sui said in a soft voice. "If you answer my questions truthfully then I will let you go." Miwa gave her a sceptical expression. "There is no cure for a turned vampire. Even alchemy can't heal one. So if you're here to help Kc learn to become a vampire, then we have something in common."
Miwa stared at Sui, the words shocked out of her system. Moments passed before Miwa could manage the words to ask "So what did you want to know?"
Sui sat down comfortably on the floor. "You're bound by the Queen's order to not say certain things correct?" Miwa nodded, curious on why she was talking to her rather than killing her. "So if I was to ask about details on the invasion plot or the reason why numerous of Barton citizens are being turned, you wouldn't be able to answer me?"
"That's right," Miwa replied. She relaxed against the wall, part of her knowing that Sui might be keeping her here for a while. "So what exactly can you ask me about?"
"The laws about newborns," Sui said, sketching out a small alchemic circle with a blue piece of chalk on the floor. "What is the stance of vampires towards newborns?"
"We train them," Miwa strained. The question in itself was skirting along the lines of one of the Queen's orders to her. "We train them in the ability that develops upon being turned and then position them in the society where they can put it to the best use."
"So," Sui ordered her thoughts to summarise Miwa's words. "Newborns are fully supported within the Vampire community with a job and training."
"Correct…" Miwa tilted her head and looked at Sui under the moonlight. She could understand now what Sui was thinking. "Kc would be well looked after amongst the vampires."
"Another question," Sui said, jumping from the topic at hand. "Kc's ability…" She heard Miwa make a strangled sound but chose to ignore it. "What is it?"
"I'm… not… sure…" Miwa's voice almost froze in her throat. "I can't answer that question. A current ruling order against me."
Sui nodded. "I see…" She lifted her staff and tapped the net. "You were a turned vampire yourself. So you'd understand then how much help Kc will need."
Miwa stood and stretched her limbs. Red marks along her pale skin showed where the net had pressed into her. "You're letting me go?" She tilted her head at Sui. "You're one unusual human."
"I get told that all the time," Sui stood and held out her hand. "Keep an eye on Kc. She's strong on the outside but inside she has many fears. More so now that she knows that I know she is a vampire."
Miwa took her hand and shook it before disappearing into the shadows. "I'll try my best."
Sui stared at the shadow a few moments before running down the hall. Red cloth floated in front of her eyes causing Sui to skid to a halt. Falling back onto her butt, she stared up at the large Popobawa that towered over her.
***
Lack stamped a hoof and sneezed hard. He had to pull on a jacket to keep himself warm. The cool breeze continued to tease his hair, ears and jacket. "Leave me alone already," he muttered softly over his shoulder. A cold sweat trickled down his back. Looking into the dark hallway, he tried to see through the darkness.
Kc remained couched just inside the reception desk peering at Lack over the top of the table. A small tingle and Miwa appeared beside her. Kc noticed the red marks on her arms and raised a curious eyebrow.
"Your sister is one weird person," Miwa breathed. She was quite dizzy from using her ability so many times today. "She caught me only to eventually let me free."
Kc's eyes widened. "Sui caught you?" She turned and looked at Miwa. "What did she ask?"
"About how we treat newborns and about your ability," Miwa peered over the table top and added. "The first, I told her because she was deadly serious on letting me go if I answered her. The second, I couldn't because of the Queen's order. She accepted that." Miwa looked at Kc with a curious glance. "What I want to know is how she knew about the absolute rule of the Queen and how a verbal order something we are forced to obey."
"Sui has friends in almost every race," Kc replied with a sigh. "Her knowledge on other races is vast. Each of us sister's are better at one aspect than the other. Mine is weaponry, Sui's is knowledge, and Ada's was verbal in terms of speeches and convincing people. When the three of us use to travel, Sui would always be the one to inform us of things. Ada would be the one to liaise with the Monarchs/Governors of wherever we were and I would defend/attack if people turned against us."
Miwa waited patient while Kc continued to explain about Ada and what happened after she disappeared. She guessed that Kc needed to get everything off her chest before she answered Miwa's question. "Sui managed to keep her relations with someone from each race so she can find out what is going on."
"So who is her contact amongst the vampires?" Miwa asked curiously. She knew practically every vampire and really could not think on who would be an informant for a human without succumbing to the temptation to bite them.
"Someone called Mona," Kc replied thoughtfully. Miwa let out surprised yelp before smiling. "What?"
"Mona isn't a vampire," Miwa replied with glee. So that's how she knew so much about the Marius sisters being in Barton. She smiled and added "Mona is a devil imp who is our liaison officer between our race and other dark races."
"I see…" Kc replied going back to peeking over the table top again at Lack. "Well Sui's information comes from her and one other. I don't know the name of the other informant."
