Knocking sounded from the other side of the door. Whoever it was had done so several times and waited for an answer. Only no answer came. Elaina was still in a deep sleep and could not hear the knocking or perhaps she simply ignored it thinking it was part of a dream. A few more knocks came from the door and another pause of silence, only to still be met with no response again. Instead of knocking again, whoever was on the other side opened the door this time and walked over to the window of the bedroom. Light from the morning sun flooded the room after one of the manor's servants had opened the curtains. With the vanilla colored silk curtains pushed aside it allowed for a full view of town below the Duke's manor.
With the sunlight perfectly hitting the back of Elaina's eyelids, she finally opened them before squinting at the brightness. It didn't help that she had better nocturnal vision due to being a Dhampir. Despite being able to walk in the sun unlike normal vampires the brightness of it could be quite an annoyance. A soft sigh escaped from her lips before she finally sat up in the bed, letting the covers fall to her waist.
"I envy those who aren't woken up by bright lights." Elaina mumbled.
"I apologize, Miss." The servant had lowered her head to apologize.
"Heard of knocking?"
"I tried.. There was no answer." The woman who had awoken and entered her guest quarters quickly backed up. Her heart had begun to beat faster in her chest as though it was trying to break free of its prison. It was the only sound that Elaina could focus on. It was the sound of fresh blood coursing through her veins. It had been so long since the last time she fed on blood. The vampire part of her wished she could have a taste while the human and slayer part loathed the very thought of it. She grasped at the bed covers tightly trying to focus on anything else other than the servant's heart rate.
"D-Did you need something?" Elaina asked. She found herself looking slowly around the room. Anywhere but the servant woman until her gray eyes had landed on the bedroom window.
"The Duke has requested your presence in the parlor" The servant informed Elaina. She simply nodded her head in acknowledgement to the request.
"Very well. You are dismissed." With those words, the servant had left the room and closed the door behind her. Once she was gone Elaina was able to relax and let her guard down. She made a mental note to feed more frequently even if it was on vampires. She thought that she could ignore and even deny that part of herself but it was moments like that which reminded of what she really was, part vampire, a killer. A monster.
Elaina swung her legs to the side so her feet would hit the cold wooden floors beneath before pushing herself off the bed. It didn't take her long to put on some proper clothes. Once she opened the door, Elaina came face to face with Kalyn with her fist lifted to knock on the door. Silviu was by her side as usual.
"Oh good! You're ready. Let's Go!" Kalyn said, grabbing Elaina by her hand and dragging her off towards the parlor. It had felt like forever and seemed to be on the other end of the manor. She didn't get much of a chance to look around at her surroundings due to being pulled the entire time.
The trio of slayers reached a lightly colored room filled with off-whites, creams, pale gold and mahogany wood floors. It was intricately decorated with expensive looking furniture. The room was certainly fitting for someone of noble title. Large windows allowed for natural sunlight to flood the room. Elaina looked around the room at her surroundings, that one room felt fairly warm compared to Fort Aurea. Not that the cold really bothered her.
"Look at this place.. Just being here makes you feel like someone of nobility! I could get used to this." Kalyn screeched happily.
"You realize we're not staying, don't you? There is only one reason we are here.." Silviu said.
"I was just saying.."
Elaina drowned out Kalyn and Silviu talking to one another once a painting sitting above a nearby fireplace caught her attention. It had a dark haired male at the center of it as the subject. She could only assume it was a portrait of either the current or the previous Duke that had resided at this manor. Elaina admired the beauty of it, whoever had painted it was certainly skilled at it. A pair of footsteps broke Elaina's concentration from the painting.
"How are preparations for the masquerade going?" Asked a masculine voice that Elaina did not recognize. She figured that must be the Duke of Grymmere.
"Everything is going as planned, Your Grace." Another voice answered him.
"So everything should be ready in time?"
"Yes, Perhaps even sooner."
"That is good news, Thank you. You are dismissed." The duke stated, upon which one pair of the footsteps faded into the opposite side of the manor.
Upon entering the parlor, The Duke of Grymmere adjusted his attire on his torso before dusting himself off. "I am sorry for the wait." He apologized, addressing the trio of slayers.
Elaina turned to face the man who had entered the room. She had been right, the man who stood before her was the man from the painting she was staring at not long ago. She dipped her body elegantly in respect to him. "Pleasure to make your acquaintance, Your Grace." Elaina quickly shot Kalyn a stern expression.
Kalyn quickly understood what Elaina meant even though no words were spoken between the two. She followed in her actions to curtsey before the Duke as well. "Your Grace."
Silviu, unlike his sister, did not need any cue to bow to the Duke. "Pleased to meet you, Your Grace."
"It's good to see the three of you could make it. I'm sorry I wasn't able to greet you upon your arrival last night. I am Miron Eliade, Duke of Grymmere." he said, offering them a warm smile. "May I interest any of you in some Socata?" He asked. Miron took a seat on one of the chairs at the center of the parlor.
"Yes please." Elaina, Silviu and Kalyn all said in unison as they waited for the Duke to take his seat before joining him on one of the sofas.
With the ring of a bell, Miron caught the attention of one of the nearby servants.
"What can I get for you, Your Grace?" A female servant asked.
"Glasses and some Socata for the guests and I."
"With pleasure." The servant responded.
Miron returned his attention back to Elaina, Kalyn and Silviu. "So, I hear that the three of you are some of the best that the order has?" He inquired.
"I trained from a very young age. I practically grew up in the order." Elaina said.
"My sister and I have as well. The order is all we know." Silviu added.
"That is pleasing to hear. The three of you look quite young. I don't mean to offend any of you but my first impression was that you would be inexperienced."
"Age does not always equate to experience, Your Grace." Elaina said. To a degree, what she said was true. The order likes to train its slayers from a tender age, growing up within the order makes for some of the best hunters. Of course that didn't mean they never allowed older individuals to join but it did mean that sometimes the younger members were better at slaying vampires than older members. It all depended on when they started their training.
"Apparently so." Miron nodded. The servant who was here moments earlier returned with a tray with a metal pitcher and four glasses. She sat the tray down on a nearby end table and poured the Socata into each of the glasses. Afterwards she handed each person their drink glass.
Elaina brought the glass to her lips and sipped at the liquid inside of the cup. She waited for whatever Miron had called the group here for, it couldn't have been just for a drink and to know about their experience or lack of. It was only a small pause as Miron sipped his own glass of Socata.
"I have recently received a letter which I believe to be a threat.." He started, setting his glass on the coffee table in front of him. The Duke stood and moved to look through a nearby drawer. Inside were various papers, Elaina assumed them to be letters. Miron dug until he reached the bottom of the stack and pulled out an old, yellowed piece of paper stained with blood. "Here it is." He muttered under his breath.
The rusty smell of the dried blood hit Elaina full force. She couldn't help but think to herself, fuck, not again... not here. She tried to use the smell and taste of the glass of socata to distract herself from the other scent overwhelming her.
Kalyn glanced over at Elaina, catching onto her acting a bit odd. In her eyes Elaina suddenly seemed to be very thirsty with the way she was gulping down the liquid. "Are you okay, Elaina?" She asked.
"I'm fine… Thanks for asking." She reassured her, mostly whispering. Despite her words, she was all but fine but she couldn't admit to them what was wrong. It would mean confessing to them that she herself was the very thing they hunted down and killed. It would mean admitting that she was a monster that lusted for blood. Elaina didn't imagine such a conversation would go over very well.
"What leads you to believe this letter is meant to be a threat, Your Grace?" Silviu asked. He noticed the red stained paper, but there could've been other reasons behind it.
"This letter was found with the body of one of the servants. She had bite marks on her neck and was drained of blood." Miron explained, walking over to hand the letter to Elaina. She grabbed it gently to read whatever was written on it, a single date. More specifically it was today's date, the date of the masquerade. Elaina handed the letter over to Kalyn and Silviu to read.
"So you suspect whoever planted this letter plans an attack on the masquerade?" Elaina asked Miron.
"Yes… I don't know how many or why they would… but it can't just be a coincidence."
"Would have to be at least a nest of vampires, gatherings like this would be like a buffet to them." Silviu explained to Miron his suspicions. Elaina couldn't argue with his logic when she agreed with what he had to say.
"We will make sure everyone is safe tonight." Elaina said.
"That is good to hear. Gives me peace of mind." Miron smiled warmly. He was pleased that he would have members of the order here to protect the guests at his event. The last thing that he wanted was for it to turn into a bloodbath that he couldn't stop.
"Was there anything else, Your Grace? We should prepare for tonight." Elaina asked, curious. She was anxious to get tonight over with. There was a feeling in her gut that something was definitely going to happen tonight but she couldn't figure out what. The letter that Miron had received definitely wasn't helping with that feeling.
"Other than keeping an eye out, that will be all." Miron responded simply. "I shall leave you to your preparations." With that, the duke grabbed his glass and left the group.
"I suggest spreading out across the ballroom." Elaina stated, turning to face Kalyn and Silviu. "That way we can have the whole room covered." She further explained.
"I have to agree. It only makes sense." Silviu agreed, before turning to Kalyn who just shrugged. Regardless of her answer, she was outnumbered. The decision to spread out was made.
"We should go purchase our attire and get ready for tonight." Elaina said, getting up from the sofa.
"Yay! Shop Time!" Kalyn exclaimed. Elaina only sighed. Yay, Shop time… she repeated Kalyn's words unenthusiastically in her head.