The Roc's life essence was so powerful that it made up for the bad taste and allowed Nyka to instantly reattach her limbs. The young Vampire grabbed the Roc in a feeding frenzy and s.u.c.k.e.d her dry before Scarlett could even react.
Meanwhile, Lith pushed and pulled War to free it from the Harpy's four-handed grip, slamming her against the walls and the ceiling as if she was a dirty rug. The angry blade cut deeper into her talons with each impact, making its Counterflow ability ravage her body.
On top of that, Lith breathed a new burst of Origin Flames every time it was safe for War, weakening the Harpy even faster.
'I've still got a chance. Flimsy, but still a chance.' The Harpy thought. 'I've still got enough Life Maelstrom to counter his abilities and the moment he stops, I can use all the Maelstrom I've left to produce a silver lightning that-'
Her hopes crumbled as the Scorpicore's Adamant-coated tail pierced through her armor and filled her lung with acid, making it collapse.
"Hands off my prey!" Lith snarled as Scarlett rescued the Harpy before he could double-tap her.
"I'll give you her equipment, but we need them alive. Otherwise how can we make progress with the investigation?" Scarlett said while her healing spell made the Harpy faint.
"There's no use interrogating them." Vladion said while helping Nyka to stand up after she had finished her meal. "Why do you think I let that creature bite me and blow flames on me for that long?
"I exploited his conceit to use combine the effect of mind link and Mesmerize to probe the Hydra's mind. They are small fish that know nothing relevant, hired muscles whose services have been paid with their unnatural strength."
Vladion explained how, based on Pretion's memories, he had been recruited by the Sphinx and led to a lab where both of them had been experimented upon while being kept in an unconscious state.
A face meant nothing to creatures who could freely shapeshift and Vladion had seen the lab being dismantled after the experiment was done. The man who had hired them had given them only a location where to drop the undead.
"Vampires can read people's minds?" Lith stared at Vladion in suspicion.
"Not all of them. Only those Awakened who also know how to use mind links. They can only mind-read people who are unconscious or not Awakened. Those like us can counter such power with their own Spirit Magic." Scarlett explained.
"As for my prisoners, keep your hands off them. I have my ways to track people, but I'll explain it once we're back to the privacy or your home, not in the middle of nowhere."
Vladion checked the status of Lightkeep's arrays before leaving and discovered that they were back to normal.
"How is this possible? Until a few moments ago, there was a malevolent will that defied my orders and turned the arrays off. I thought it was some kind of Forbidden Spell, but now there's no trace of it. Any idea?" He asked.
Scarlett shook her head in confusion. Not even the craziest of Liches that she had met in the past had ever mentioned something like that. Nyka had no clue as well, leaving Lith and Solus with their doubts.
'A malevolent will coursing through an array? Could it be some kind of Domination?' Solus asked.
'In theory, yes, but I doubt that even Faluel could control something so big and powerful as a frigging city. There must be another explanation.' Lith thought.
Returning to Vladion's mansion took them but a minute. The Firstborn took the time to assess the damage to the city and make sure that no one had died from injuries. The attack had produced no casualties, but the group could smell the fear of the citizens.
"How can people who live with the undead be scared so easily?" Lith asked.
"There's no crime in Lightkeep. All they knew until now was peace. It's only natural for my fellow citizens to be afraid since never before had the sanctity of our home been violated." Vladion said.
"No crime? At all?" Lith was flabbergasted.
"Crime brews from ignorance and misery. Stay here long enough and you'll discover that in my city they have been eradicated long ago." Vladion replied.
At their arrival, they found two women waiting for them.
One was a human woman in her mid-twenties, about 1.6 (5'3") tall with long blonde hair held in a tress over her shoulder and clear blue eyes. She wore a black day dress with silver embroidery that emphasized her slender body as she held Radusk in her arms.
The other didn't look like anyone the group had ever seen before. She had hair of gold, eyes of silver, and ten centimeters (4 inches) long pointy ears that came out of her waist-long hair.
She was about 1.75 meters (5'9") tall, wearing a skin-tight hunter outfit that outlined her lithe body and delicate curves. She stared at Lith in a daze as much as he did with her. There was a longing in her eyes that worried Solus quite a bit.
'Is that an elf?' Lith thought. 'It sure resembles those that Friya met in the Fringe. The face is on par with Tista, her a.s.s is tight, but she barely has a full B cup-'
'Seriously?' Solus snarled in annoyance, cutting him short. 'Kidnapped undead, lesser species with powers they're not supposed to have, marvels of magic all around us, and you complain because a pair of b.r.e.a.s.ts is too small for your liking?'
'I have a girlfriend, but I'm not dead.' He shrugged. 'Besides, I must have gotten too used to Awakened standards. I mean even you have-'
Lith realized his mistake only when it was too late. Pointing out that with Solus's petite body her full C cup was a sight to behold would have meant to cross the boundaries of their relationship.
'Even I what? I double dare you to complete that thought!'
"Lysa, what are you doing here? It's not safe." Vladion said, saving Lith in the nick of time.
"If I'm not safe in my own home with your mother and sister, then there's no safe place on Mogar." She replied.
"Sister?" Everyone echoed in unison. The Firstborn and the elf couldn't have been more different.
"I apologize for my lack of manners. Everyone, this is Ilthin Demere, the Firstborn Banshee. Ilthin, these are my honored guests Lith Verhen, Nyka, and Scarlett."
"Nice to meet you." Ilthin gave them a small bow that they promptly returned. "I've already met Lady Kalla. As you have probably guessed, despite our differences Vladion and I share the Red Mother's blood. It makes us family to each other."
"Yeah, sure. Save the pleasantries for later." Baba Yaga appeared in her Mother form, dragging Nandi along until they reached the middle of the garden in front of the entrance to the mansion.
"Now that everything has settled and your certainties have crumbled…" She threw a mean look at Vladion while she took a wooden hut out of her omni pocket.
"…let me show you kids how a proper protection is done. Nandi, my tower is useless without world energy to fuel it. Do your thing."
