Zuge moved on to the alley where the noise came from. He was high perceptive and all his senses were tense. Most certainly this turmoil ahead was connected with their mission. It would have been to much coincidence to be random. He came at a crossway and saw a man on the roof of the house on the opposite side. This man ran along the roof and jumped on to the neighboring house. "Quick, follow him!" His men began to jogg down the alley with their heavy plate armor. The justicars always had experienced knights as guardians, Rittmaster and higher. His men were fearless, enduring and formidable fighters. Their faith was unbreakable and they were veterans of numerous fights against as well normal armies and supernatural beings, sorcerors and beasts. The second he commanded his men Zuge witnessed a woman dashing up to the man from behind and pushing him down. She came out of nowhere. The man fell down and slit down on the roof. He hold for a second and then fell down onto another small roof and from there hit the ground. When the woman jumped down Zuge commanded her to stand still.
The woman turned around and the first knight was at her and attacked her with a ferocious strike at her head. Marie ducked down below his swing but the knight smashed his shield against her and she rolled back. Zuge raised his holy symbol over his head and commanded with a loud voice: "Stay where you are creature of the darkness." She was bathed in a white light streaming from the Symbol of Torqua. Immediately she were not able to move anymore. Her feet were rooted to the ground and she could move her arms and her body only very slowly. The knights surrounded her and panic arose in Marie. None of her vampiric powers were available. Zuge came closer up to her and asked: "What are you, demon? Who do you serve?" Maries mind got washed away and with a slow voice she answered: "I am a vampire, serving the father." "So you have once been human. You wanted to live a happy life, have friends and a family. Where did you live as a child?" "Garnor.", she pressed out like on drugs. "Your parents had a lot of wishes and expectations in you. You were blessed by the seven with a strong and flexible body. You had great teachers who learned you to fight." "My parents", she repeated him slowly. "As long as you live you can repent for your evil deeds. You can make you parents proud. They haven´t seen you for years. They heared about all your victories when you were fighting for money and glory. There is still time to return to the path of light." Zuge loosened the paralysing light from her. "You were made to enjoy the holy light and presence of Torqua. Tell me that you regret your deeds for your demonic master. Tell me that you want to be free and that you want to walk in the light of the gods." Marie´s consciousness became clear, she still was very slow and her vampirc powers were practically absent. Zuge went on: "The day of your judgement has inevitably come and you have to choose. Once you could not choose and you fell to the alluring and seductive powers of the father. He made you a creature of darkness. Today you receive a rare grace. Torqua asks you if you want to return in his arms. Shall he heal you? Do you want to be free of the demonic taint that made you to feed upon the weak and hunt them in the darkness ?" Pictures filled Marie´s mind. She remembered the days of her childhood in the hut of her parents in the hills of Garnor. She remembered how she walked through the vineyards, happily at the hand of her mother. And she remembered.....her little brother. She had a little brother! All these memories had been spilled. But how? When? Suspicion rised in her mind. Did this servant of Torqua implanted these memories in her mind? How could he have known about all this? Another picture entered her mind. She was working in the local office of the duke. And, and she stole the casette with money of the people who brought it to the duke. She worked in the saving office and had even the key to the treasury. ´I failed so hard´, she thought, fighting with upcoming tears. She remembered, she made the acquaintance with a young man who wanted to run away with her and be together with her, but when she had stolen the money he was gone. Everyone knew that only she could have taken the gold, so she indeed ran off. It weren´t her parents who cast her out. She made a grave mistake. The voice of the tall Justiciar brought her out of her dreams: "Torqua is willing to forgive you, your parents are willing to forgive you, if you want to repent for your sins. Do you feel regret? Do you feel that you have given your life the wrong direction? " Marie´s will began to waver. She fantasised to leave the dark fortress of father behind, the nightly hunts and the endless hunger for blood and power. To take her father into her arms and silently ask him for forgivness and return into his home. Her soul starts to enjoy the idea to return to the life of a human.
Then suddenly her mind was filled with pictures of a lake of blood, of pictures her standing on top of a pile of dead bodies which she defeated in battle. Her body hungers for blood! She was powerful! She needed no one, just father! She will become a ruler and not a servant. Her wishes and her desires will be fullfilled by others. She would not serve, no one!
Father had felt the wavering of Marie´s soul and flooded her with all his power. Zuge recognized the change immediately. Marie´s face changed into a fierce mask and she showed her fangs with a hiss. He streched out his hand into her directions and a crackling beam of holy white light struck Marie. She was lifted and her body pulled out in pain. With a thundering voice Zuge asked: "Do you regret your evil existence Marie Estelle Magrib? Answer me, ANSWER ME!" In the last second before her soul was drowned in a flood of hate and cruelity she whispered: "I regret." The knights around her fell on their knees and stabbed their swords into the ground. They chanted constantly repeating: "Torqua, torqua, lord of heavens, eternal is your grace and judgement." Zuge stretched both hands to Marie and the white light intensified. It surrounded her completly. Single beams of white light flashed from Zuge´s hands and punctured Marie´s body. From the praying knights a dome of golden energy emerged and shielded the knights, Zuge and Marie.
In his castle father cried out in pain. He jumped into the air. "That treacherous whore! She betrayed me. She dared to betray me! She shall suffer for it. Her family shall suffer for it. THE WHOLE EMPIRE SHALL SUFFER FOR IT! He smashed a stone statue of a Gargoyle and it fell down from the stairway into the yard. There was no one there he could let suffer. He rised into the air and changed into a bat.
The on storming feelings of hate and cruelity vanished, and a peaceful golden light filled her mind. Since a long time Marie felt peace and rest. Her body had passed out and her soul was cleaned from the taint. She felt a light gust of wind and stood at a lake with clear blue water. The sun was rising behind the water and bathed the scenerie in a warm light. Darkness had vanished and her soul was free. She laughed with joy for the ease and lightliness that had filled her being. She never felt so good. An early beam of the sun catched her and engulfed her. A new voice in her mind spoke softly: "Well done. You can bring peace and live to others who had been in equal turmoil like you. I would be very glad if you serve me."
Marie´s body sank slowly down. Zuge exhaled and let drop his hands. One knight released his cape from the hold at his shoulder. Two other knights put Marie´s body on the cape. Zuge said: "She made it. Incredible! What a powerful woman. Carry her into the hospital of the order. Do not chain her. She is our guest. Torqua set her free and we shall not bound her again."
On the central place Marianne pointed her sword at the old man with the grey cloak. "Hold. You can not deceive me. I know who you are." Torentor turned to Marie and put his hood back: "Obviously everybody in Uhlheim knows who I am."