RealmofMonsters
patreon
Chapter 652: Morrigan Interrogation
🕑 Added 2025-08-18 02:53:21 +0000 UTC“Meet Gale VIII, my Shadow, and the person I trust the most in this world. She also doesn’t trust you, don’t take it personally,” said Stryg.
“Ah, the legendary Shield of Veres. I should have guessed,” Beatrix said flatly.
“Alright, now tell me about your father.”
“I still have more questions.”
“You get one, then it’s my turn,” Stryg replied impatiently.
“What is that strange energy lurking in your body?” Beatrix pointed at his chest.
“Strange energy?”
“Don’t try to act like you don’t know. I can see it lurking in your heart right now.”
“Right, you’re a True Blue, I had almost forgotten.”
That comment stung more than Beatrix wanted to let on. She had replayed their battle countless times over the last few months, whereas he hardly remembered who she was.
“Answer my question.” Beatrix clenched her jaw.
“It’s chaos mana.”
“Chaos…? That’s not possible.”
“Well, I’m standing right here, aren’t I? You tell me, Miss Blue.”
“Even if you were part-elemental, no one can possess chaos. The 11th element is unstable, it does not bond with living beings, and it particularly rejects chromatic mana. A prime mage like you would be long dead.”
“I guess I’m different.” Stryg shrugged. He wasn’t inclined to share his true nature with someone he hardly knew.
“No, I’ve seen the chaos mana flowing through Shadow Lake’s waters. This is different. Your energy is— more controlled. The color variation isn’t the same either.”
“Well, chaos is different for each person among my kind. I imagine it would look different to your eyes.”
“Your kind?” Beatrix gave him a strange look.
Stryg winced. He had said too much. “That’s another question. It’s my turn to ask.”
“...Ask away.”
“Your father, Lord Corvus Morrigan. If we were to let you go back to Murkton, could you convince him to stop this war?”
“What war? Your assassin attacked us.”
“He isn’t my assassin.”
“He’s a Sylvan goblin, isn’t he?”
“I mean, yes, but—”
“My uncle, our city’s emissary, is dead because of a Sylvan assassin. It doesn’t matter what you claim. Murkton will see his death as an act of war from you.”
Stryg sighed. “It doesn’t matter. Your father was already going to war with us.”
“My father wasn’t interested in war, you idiot. Why do you think he sent my uncle here as an emissary?”
“Disrespect my lord again and I’ll reopen that wound of yours,” Gale interrupted.
Beatrix had almost forgotten the vampire was in the room. “Thanks for the warning, at least this time I’ll have a heads up before I’m stabbed.”
Stryg stared at Beatrix. “You don’t know, do you?”
“Know what?” Beatrix glowered.
“Your father is preparing for war against the Sylvan Tribes. He plans to march his armies into Vulture Woods soon.”
“What…? Why would he—? Unless… The Sylvan armies. He plans to strike first,” Beatrix muttered to herself.
“So you believe me?” Stryg asked.
“My father is many things. Ruthless is chief among them. If he believes he can end a potential threat, he’ll do it without remorse, no matter who else suffers.” Beatrix scoffed, “That’s why he sent us here. To keep Hollow Shade occupied until he could make us move.”
“My question still stands. If we were to let you go back to Murkton, could you convince your father to stop this war?”
“No.” She laughed bitterly.
“How can you be so sure?”
“For the same reason, he never told me of his plans for war. I am a dai-Morrigan. A bastard.”
Stryg glanced at Gale for more information.
Beatrix answered instead. “It means I have little value in my father’s eyes. Even if I were his heir, like Gilgard, Father would still not listen. My father did not become the War Lord of Murkton by bending to others’ wills. He did it by slaying his uncle in a duel. Family ties mean little to him, especially that of a bastard.”
“So she’s useless to us,” Gale noted.
“No, we still need a guide to find Lucas Katag and get him out of Murkton.”
“You want to send her?” Gale frowned.
“Beatrix must know the Morrigan’s palace inside and out. Who better to help us find Lucas?”
“Even if Beatrix does help us, who is to say she won’t just turn around and betray us to her father?”
“Your pet vampire is right. Why would I do anything for you?” Beatrix asked.
Stryg shrugged. “Because if you help me, I will tell you everything I know about chaos and my kind.”
“Your goblin kin?”
“No, not my goblin kin.”
“...How do I know I can trust you?”
“I could ask the same about you.”
Beatrix crossed her arms. “Then it seems we’re at an impasse.”
Stryg closed his eyes and took a deep breath. As he inhaled, the room grew cold and the blue magestone lanterns flickered. He opened his eyes and they were alight with an inner lilac glow. “How about this? You and I make a deal,” his voice had a vibrating ring to it, almost as if it were echoing in the room.
“A deal?” Beatrix asked skeptically.
“Stryyyg, what are you doing?” Gale asked.
“Beatrix dai-Morrigan, I will tell you everything I know about chaos and my nature, but you can never tell another soul about what you learn. In return, you will help guide a team of my choosing through Murkton to help find Lucas Katag and escort them out of the city. You will not betray them in this endeavour, nor will you divulge any information you have learned about the impending war to your father or anyone else, for that matter. Are the terms acceptable?”
“What if you don’t hold your end of the deal?” Beatrix asked.
“I will fulfill my end of the bargain as soon as the deal is struck. No need to wait.”
“Everything?”
He nodded.
“How can you be sure I won’t betray you?”
“If you do… There will be consequences.”
“What consequences?” She narrowed her eyes.
“The kind you cannot escape. So,” Stryg offered her his hand. “Do we have a deal?”
Beatrix stared at the clawed blue fingers hovering in front of her. There was something very unnerving about the way those lilac eyes glowed, the sharp pupils as thin as slits. There had been a heaviness to Stryg’s words, as if it was being engraved into the very air and this moment for all time. Her instincts told her not to accept, but her curiosity had been eating at her ever since that fateful day in Undergrowth. She had to know Stryg’s secrets, and something told her that if she didn’t accept right now, she would never know.
Beatrix raised her hand and clasped his hand. “Very well, I accept.”
“Then we have a deal.”
The air in the room was electric with power as Stryg spoke; it enclosed around both of them, pressure building until Beatrix couldn’t breathe, then it was gone. The world returned to normal, but something felt different in Beatrix that she couldn’t quite place. She ripped her hand away and scurried back in bed.
“What did you do to me?” Beatrix asked, bewildered.
“Honestly? I’m still trying to figure this all out myself. It just felt right.” Stryg stared at his hand.
“You’re acting like the Monster in the Dark,” Gale muttered.
“I’m not anything like her.” Stryg whirled around.
“Really?” Gale cocked an eyebrow. “I’m pretty certain you just made a deal with a mortal that she cannot escape. Do you not remember what happened to the Blackveins? You damned them, quite literally. And now you might have just done the same to another mortal.”
“It’s different,” Stryg said.
“Damned them? What do you mean ‘another mortal’? And what is the Monster in the Dark?” Beatrix asked, confused.
“How is this any different, Stryg?” Gale threw her hands up.
“For starters, I don’t feel drained,” Stryg spoke slowly. “Tired, sure, but I’m not about to fall over. I didn’t have to force my will on her fate. She bound it to me on her own. Besides, nothing will happen if she keeps her end of the bargain.” He wasn’t sure how he knew his words were right, but he knew they were.
“That doesn’t make it any better, Stryg,” Gale said.
“Hey, can someone listen to me!? What the fuck is going on!?” Beatrix yelled.
Stryg and Gale looked at her.
“Lesson number one. Never make a deal with a god,” Gale said.
“What…?” Beatrix whispered.
“I guess I should make good on my end of the bargain. Where to begin…?” Stryg murmured.
~~~
“Ba-ba!” Kamilo cried at the injustice as his little, pudgy hands reached for the spoonful of blood.
“No, only a little at a time. Stop it, you’re gonna get blood all over you,” Nora admonished him as she held him on her lap.
Despite the aching hole in Kithina’s chest, she found herself cracking a small smile at the infant. “He’s adorable.”
“Try saying that when his fangs tear through your skin,” Nora said dryly.
“What? No, really?” Kithina’s eyes went wide.
“Those little suckers came out after 3 months,” Nora gestured to the two small fangs poking out of Kamilo’s mouth. “Turns out baby vampires, even half-vampires, need blood. They bite into your skin until they draw blood while you breastfeed them.”
“That sounds awful.”
“Thankfully, the Gales have sent a white mage to stay with us and heal me after every feeding. However, I have since grown wise and have some blood prepared beforehand.” Nora held up a small bottle full of red liquid. “Doesn’t stop him from biting me, though.”
“How often does he need blood?”
“Too often. But enough about me and my little monster. How have you been?”
“I’m sorry for coming unannounced. I hope I’m not intruding. I just didn’t know where to go.” She bowed her head.
“Nonsense. We’re friends, Kitty. I’m happy you’re here, truly. I was worried about you. I know you left the city before the siege, but still.”
“You knew?”
“Elise Veres personally came by and asked me a few questions about you and Callum. She was respectful, even nice, but I knew something was off. I’m glad to see you’re alright.”
Kithina’s expression broke and her eyes watered.
Nora sat up, reached over the table, and grabbed Kithina’s hand. “Oh, Kitty. What happened?”
Even Kamilo stopped his cries and stared up at her with large purple eyes.
“I lost them, Nora. I lost all of them. My mother, father, brother… They’re all gone,” she whimpered.
Kamilo’s bottom lip trembled, and he began to cry at the sight of Kithina’s tears. Nora stood and embraced Kithina as she sobbed into her friend’s arms. Kamilo sat between them, crying in solidarity.
Comments
optimushead
Good writing ✍️
