Chapter 6: The Conspiracy Revealed

Rosaline’s heels clicked against the cool stone dungeon floor. Light stones affixed to wall mounts illuminated the otherwise foreboding area. She walked past empty cells and guard stations on her way to the hunters who invaded her castle.

“What do you mean? Answer me!” Diana barked. She looked for Clair for an answer, but the maid had vanished.

Rosaline remained silent as they approached the only occupied cell. Three hunters shared a cell large enough for them to spread out and relax. They had separate beds and even folding walls to enjoy their privacy in an enclosed space.

“Diana!” Juliet bolted from her mat and ran to the bars.

“Juliet!” The two clasped hands in relief. Diana turned her head and sighed. “Oh, good, Carter is here, too.”

“Diana, I’m glad to see you safe and sound,” Baron happily greeted her. “Who is this?”

“I thought the vampire lord captured you,” Carter said.

Diana looked to Rosaline, expecting to hear the same joke as before. However, Rosaline still wore a look of quiet fury. She tried to lighten the vampire’s mood by saying it herself. “What part of this looks like a 'lord,' Carter?” She waved her hand, motioning to Rosaline’s mature, feminine physique.

“None at all,” Carter grinned.

“Well, she looks fine to me. More than fine, actually. Is that a new perfume I smell?” Juliet teased her. “She’s wearing the same scent. We were here to hunt a vampire, you know?”

Diana blushed and let her temper take over. “Nothing happened!”

“You wound me,” Rosaline feigned a hurt expression, confusing Diana. “Well, that may have been your objective, but even so.” She couldn’t help but tease Diana, but she also wanted the hunters to lower their guard.

“My my. Did you go hunting for a lover instead of an enemy, Diana?” Juliet teased her.

“No, because that’s forbidden!” Diana argued.

“Ah, forbidden love~.” Juliet swooned. “Fresh, clean clothes, perfume, and a meal, no doubt.”

“That’s enough,” Baron commanded, feeling a bit flustered himself. “I would like to know what happened. We were surrounded and dispatched like novice hunters by knights far stronger and faster than any vampire lord I’ve ever faced. Where are the others?”

“Safe in Colchester, the place you considered a ‘village.’” Rosaline spoke, her voice growing cold once again.

“Colchester? What?” Juliet was just as confused as Diana was.

“Why the act of mercy, vampire? Your kind do not show any,” Baron inquired.

“She’s from the Shadow Inquisition,” Diana quickly answered.

“What?” Baron was stunned.

“You were spared because killing you would have destroyed both my castle and Colchester,” Rosaline stated.

“Really,” Juliet was skeptical.

Rosaline’s eyes began to glow. “Does the name Catarina de’ Mozzi sound familiar to you?” Her voice echoed unnaturally in the dungeon.

“I’m afraid it doesn’t, but I wish her well,” Baron replied.

Rosaline grit her teeth in fury. “She died to the same magic that dwells in the three of you,” she fumed, her voice laced with bitter rage. “Don’t play the fool. The same spell, the same mana wavelength. I was there when our villa vanished in that terrible light.”

“Rosaline…” Diana put her hand on the vampire’s shoulder.

Rosaline looked at her. “If you tell me you know nothing of what I speak, I shall believe you.”

“I don’t, I swear it. None of us can use magic beyond the few artifacts that anyone can use, like the monster tests.” Many hunters knew of magic, but few could use it as well as any mage.

The vampire’s expression softened. The cell door flew open at her command. She held her clawed hand out, her palm facing upward. Baron took a step forward and placed his hand on top, only to pull it back when his hand passed through hers.

“This gauntlet is used to extract embedded magic artifacts from their hosts, either living, dead, or inanimate,” Rosaline explained. “All three of you are hosts to something dangerous. This is why you were imprisoned here, a place that was designed to contain magic threats.”

She reached forward, her clawed hand passing into Baron’s chest to extract a glowing blue orb roughly the size of an apple.

Clair reappeared with an ornate chest open in her hands. Rosaline carefully placed the core in the chest and rounded on the other two hunters. “These are unstable mana cores. When stable, they could empower their hosts beyond their wildest dreams,” she began. “Unstable mana cores are little more than explosives. Just one could destroy my castle and leave nothing but a large crater where it once stood.” Sparks crackled across the orb, a warning of its volatile state.

She placed two more cores into the chest, prompting Clair to seal it. “Three together, resonating as they erupt, would engulf all of Colchester as well. No one would survive,” she explained.

The hunters were horrified. “My god…” Baron breathed. “I had no idea of this. I would never subject anyone to such an atrocity, even if it is to slay evil.”

Diana angrily rounded on Clair. “Why didn’t you tell us about this last night?”

“My Lady was indisposed with a guest. It would have been rude to interrupt with such troubling news.”

Juliet grabbed Diana from behind and wrapped her arms around her friend’s neck. “Oh ho~. Indisposed, was she? Was it supper or dessert that made you forget your mission?”

Diana’s cheeks took on a shade of pink again as she grabbed Juliet’s braided ponytail. “Let go, or I pull.”

“Oh my~. Is the vampire lady not enough for you?” Juliet’s hazel eyes shone with pure glee.

Baron loudly cleared his throat. “What do you intend to do now, vampire?”

“It’s quite simple, really. I believe you speak the truth, and in light of my prior cooperation with your ally hunter clans, I’ll forgive your trespass,” Rosaline spoke. “However, we are all victims of a greater conspiracy. I’m sure you’ll understand that I will demand an explanation from your leadership.”

“And what of us?” Baron pressed.

“I’ll escort you back to your home,” the vampire promised. “As long as you refrain from further acts of violence, you have nothing to fear.” She nodded to Clair and walked away. “Please follow me to the courtyard.”

“Rosaline.” Diana fell into step beside her. “What are you going to do now?”

“Do you fear me and what I might do to you and your comrades?” Rosaline asked without sparing her a look.

Diana answered without hesitation. “No. I don’t think you’ll try to hurt any of us. I just want to know what you’re thinking.”

Rosaline lightly chuckled. “You want to know what I’m thinking, hmm?”

The hunter tensed up. “I-I just want to know what you’re planning, that’s all.”

“I’m just going to dispose of the mana cores and highlight the depths of the conspiracy that would have taken so many innocent lives. I’ll have the maids prepare a carriage afterward.” She gave Diana a playful wink, which made the flustered hunter look away.

Rosaline told Elwin to lift the evacuation order and inform the others that she planned to detonate the unstable mana cores safely.

Clair opened the chest once they reached the courtyard. The mana orbs levitated in the air at Rosaline’s command. “Watch carefully, for this is what someone planned to unleash on my home.” One of the mana orbs flew high into the air and out of sight. Rosaline pointed at it and whispered a single word. A loud crack preceded a large, brilliant pale-blue light that shone brighter than the sun.

The hunters were stunned into silence as Rosaline detonated the remaining two mana orbs, one after another. Clair handed the empty chest to another maid and addressed her mistress. “Shall I prepare your traveling attire and a carriage, Lady Rosaline?”

“Yes, Clair. Thank you.” Rosaline turned to the hunters. “Please gather by the front gates,” she turned her heel and walked toward the castle. “Or don’t. It would take around an hour to reach Colchester on foot, but only a few minutes by carriage.”