Elena and Haven were running through a double door where they stared down a long corridor with a lot of doors. They exchanged a 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 check if there are not any children still left in the castle Then we must find a way to help them escape. This place is no longer safe."
"Then let us not waste any more time Haven"
With renewed urgency, they hastily ran down the corridor. Elena opened the first door; it was a big spacious room with a big intricately carved bed. Further, its dark wood featuring elaborate designs that hint at a rich history. The room also had a few furniture's-like tables and chairs and in the corner of the room was a two-door wardrobe with two drawers.
"Is anyone in here? You can come out now!" Elena shouted, her voice echoing slightly in the silence. But there was no response.
Stepping inside, she crouched down to look beneath the bed and opened the wardrobe doors, but found nothing. Haven, in the meantime, conducted a similar search in the room she was examining.
"Is anyone in here?" she called out, urgency lacing her tone. "Come on, don't be afraid. I'm here to get you to safety!"
Despite their efforts, both Haven and Elena were unsuccessful in locating any children in most of the rooms they searched. As Haven approached the second-to-last door, her hand closed around the doorknob, but she quickly realized it was locked. A frown creased her brow; it was odd for a door to be locked when everyone had been ordered to let the children escape through the tunnel. Still, Rebecca had instructed them to locate any children still trapped in the castle. Perhaps some of the children were inside and hadn't had a chance to flee—possibly frozen by fear.
Haven didn't expend much effort to force the door open; after all, she was a vampire with superhuman strength. Pushing the door open, she quickly scanned the room. It was empty, devoid of any signs of life.
"Hey, is there anyone in here. I promise its safe, please come out".
There was no sound. Haven moved to the bathroom, parting the curtains beside the bathtub in a hopeful search for hidden children, but found nothing. Just as she was about to leave the room, an instinct compelled her to check under the bed.
Approaching the bed, she lifted it effortlessly with one hand, peering underneath, but still found no one. "Damn, I really thought someone would be in here," she muttered, placing the bed back down.
As her gaze shifted, the wardrobe caught her attention. She opened its doors to reveal a jumble of clothes. She pushed the garments aside, but the space remained empty, devoid of any sign of life. Yet something about the wardrobe struck her as unusual. Closing its doors, she noticed a small opening at the back.
Curiosity piqued, Haven moved the wardrobe aside and peered behind it. There, huddled together, were two vampire children—one a girl, the other a boy—clinging tightly to each other, wide-eyed with fear. "Hey, I'm not the enemy; I'm here to help," Haven spoke gently, her tone softening to put them at ease.
It was a girl and a boy that was six- and four -year-old respectively. With one hand she moved the wardrobe out of the way. The girl had short blond hair with a light green dress with white stripes. The boy on the other hand had light purple hair with a white shirt and black pants. Also, the girl wore white sandals and the boy was barefoot. Haven knelt down, bringing herself to their level. "What are your names?"
The children recognized her maid clothes, and their fear slowly dissipated. "My name is Carla, and his name is Adam. 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, her voice trembling.
Haven did not know what to say "I…I"
Just then, Elena entered the room, her eyes widening in surprise as she spotted Haven crouched next to the two children. "Hey! Did you find anyone?".
Haven was momentarily lost in thought, but Elena's presence jolted her back to reality. "Listen, we need to leave first. After everything is settled, I promise I will find your parents, okay?"
The two children held in their tears and nodded their head "Then please take care of us Miss"
"Oh, by the way, this is my friend Elena. She's also here to help you get to safety," Haven introduced.
The children looked at Elena, their expressions softening. "Nice to meet you, Miss Elena," they both chimed in unison.
"Oh, you two are so adorable!" Elena smiled warmly. "By the way, do you know if there are more children hiding nearby?"
Carla shook her head. "I don't think so, Miss. Before we were attacked, Adam and I were the only kids playing here. Most of the others were outside.
"Elena," Haven suggested, her brow furrowing in thought, "maybe the knights are keeping track of the children going through the escape tunnel. They'll likely inform us of how many are missing. Some may have perished during the attack on the castle; it's a possibility we may never fully understand. The only thing we can do is our best to help."
Elena's expression grew stern. "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 had the clear advantage in their brutal confrontation. Raven had been driven through multiple walls, and even with his special armor, it offered little protection against the ongoing impacts. He fought to regain his composure, his mind racing. "This leech is toying with me, using me as a ragdoll. I will not allow this to continue," he vowed, fuming.
"Hahaha! Get up, human. I haven't even warmed up yet!" Markus taunted, a sinister grin stretching across his face.
Raven looked up and the fury could be seen seeping from his eyelids. He forced himself up and focused large amount of spirit force into his fist. Further, Raven used his special armour to add more strength into his right arm. "I'm going to kill you, Markus. You've been a tough opponent, but this is where our little dance comes to an end."
Markus's grin widened, filled with amusement. "You really think you can kill me, human?"
"I'm going to punch your head off!" Raven declared, channeling energy into his fist. A fierce white aura enveloped his hand as he prepared for his ultimate attack.
"Then I won't block your strike, human. I'm quite curious to see if your so-called ultimate attack could really kill me." Markus planted his feet firmly, a look of eager anticipation on his face. He even taunted Raven further, waving his hand and pointing to his own cheek. "Don't miss, boy."
Raven's fury reached its pinnacle. For him, this blatant disrespect was intolerable; he couldn't allow it to stand. The thoughts swirling in his mind focused solely on one goal: he had to end this man's life today, no matter the cost.
Fuelled by rage, the mercenary lunged at the massive vampire, unleashing a powerful punch to his face. The impact shattered the ceiling above, sending debris raining down, while furniture that lay behind Markus disintegrated into splinters. 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, though the distant sounds of clashing swords, panicked screams, and torrential rain could still be heard filtering through the chaos.
Raven's arms hung limply at his sides, fingers grazing the dirt as he gasped for air. He felt utterly drained, having exhausted most of his energy in that desperate attack against Markus. Each breath was labored, his chest rising and falling rapidly as if he were struggling to pull in enough oxygen
A minute passed in tense silence when two vampire knights entered the room, their predatory gazes locking onto the weakened Raven, who knelt on the floor, as tired as an ox after an arduous day of plowing. They unsheathed their swords, eyes glowing red with murderous intent, ready to strike.
Just as they were poised to descend upon the tired mercenary, a voice echoed through the room, causing both vampires to sheath their swords abruptly. They bared their teeth at Raven one last time before turning and leaving, leaving him bewildered—feeling like a helpless gazelle cornered by two hungry lions..
"Why didn't they kill me?" Raven whispered to himself, confusion stirring within him.
Suddenly, a voice sent icy shivers racing down his spine. "You thought this was over?"Raven's eyes could not believe this person that came through the hole I the wall. It was Markus, he has returned and does not look like took any damage from Raven's all out punch. Markus's vest was in tatters and one strap had already broken off. He touched and caressed his jaw, especially the part where Raven punched him "Thank you for helping loosening up my jaw, it was a little tight. Now let me return the favour"
Markus walked up to Raven, his large hands grabbed the mercenary's neck and he slowly picked him up. "Try not to pass out" Markus then infused his fist with spirit force and punched Raven in the stomach. The mercenary couldn't help but to throw up, saliva dripped 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, splattering it across the ground. The metallic taste filled his mouth, mingling with the remnants of his last meal, but the pain surged through him like a wildfire.
Raven fought desperately to stay conscious, his body begging him to close his eyes and 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 pain jolting him back to focus. Gritting his bloodied teeth, he glared at Markus with a mixture of anger and hatred. "Kill me, Markus. Kill me!" he spat defiantly.
"I won't kill you yet, human," Markus replied, his voice dripping with disdain. "Stay here while I go deal with that bastard who killed my father."
"Come back here, Markus!" Raven shouted, his voice hoarse and strained, but the vampire was already turning away, striding towards the gaping hole in the wall.