Damien's heart pounded in his chest, but he refused to let the figure's words shake him. He gripped Nightshade tighter and pushed forward, his mind racing for a solution.
"Claimed them?" he spat, his voice firm. "I don't care what your Sire thinks. They're not hers."
The cloaked figure let out a low, eerie chuckle. "You don't understand, slayer. Their fates were sealed the moment they were taken. The Sire's curse runs through their veins now. Even if you free them... they won't be the same."
Damien's clenched his jaws. He didn't have time for hidden threats. "Hoodie girl, move faster!" he barked, locking blades with the cloaked figure in front of him, their strength was evenly matched as sparks flew.
The hoodie girl reached Jenna first, her hands glowing
faintly as she began working to break the shackles. Jenna's eyes fluttered open, and a groan escaped her lips as she regained a sliver of consciousness.
"Jenna, hold on," the hoodie girl whispered, glancing nervously at the glowing red eyes of the enemies.
Feiyun and Finch weren't faring much better. Finch fired another shot from Stormpiercer, his arrows coated with a sliver of electric primal energy, but the second cloaked figure dodged each one effortlessly.
Feiyun attempted to trap it in a prison of ice, but it moved too swiftly, its cloak whipping in the air as it blurred from one spot to another.
"This isn't working," Finch growled through gritted teeth.
"They're too fast!"
'We need to slow them down,' Damien thought, his mind racing.
He slammed Nightshade against the cloaked figure's sword once more before taking a leap backward. "Feiyun, try freezing the entire room!"
Feiyun's eyes widened in realization, and she immediately switched tactics.
Focusing all her energy, she gathered a massive surge of ice around her, the temperature of the room plummeting as frost spread across the floor, creeping up the walls.
"Everyone, get ready!"
The cloaked figures hissed in unison as the cold began to affect them, their movements slowing ever so slightly.
Damien seized the opportunity, charging forward again. This time, Nightshade found its mark, slashing through the first figure's cloak and sinking into its flesh. A howl of pain echoed through the room as dark, viscous blood spilled from the wound.
But the figure didn't retreat. Instead, it raised a hand, and before Damien could react, a pulse of darkish-red energy surge out from its palm, knocking him backward with violent force.
"Damien!" Finch shouted, rushing to his aid as the cloaked figure advanced on him, its red eyes burning with fury.
Meanwhile, the hoodie girl had broken one of Jenna's shackles and was working on the second. Bryan, however, was still unconscious, his skin looked deathly pale, as if drained of life.
She cursed under her breath. "Come on, come on!"
"You won't escape with them," the second cloaked figure hissed in a distorted voice. "They are bound to the Sire. You'll only bring death upon yourselves."
The air around Damien grew heavy as he heard those words, but he pushed the fear away, forcing himself to stand. "If you think that's going to stop us, you don't know a damn thing about us."
With a sudden burst of primal energy, Damien surge forward again, faster than before. He brought Nightshade down in an upward arc, aiming for the figure's head, but before he could land the blow, the figure dissolved into a cloud of dark smoke, slipping out of his reach.
Damien cursed, spinning to find the second figure closing in on Finch and Feiyun. But before he could react, the first figure reappeared behind him, its glowing red eyes locked onto Damien's back.
Time seemed to slow down.
'They're trying to surround us,' Damien realized.
The first figure raised its hand again, dark energy gathering in its palm, ready to unleash another attack.
But then, unexpectedly, a blinding light exploded from the hoodie girl's direction. The shackles on Jenna and Bryan shattered with a deafening crack as her hands glowed with flames, hotter and more intense than anything she'd shown before.
The cloaked figures recoiled, their red eyes narrowing in fury as the light burnt their flesh.
"No!" one of them hissed, its voice full of rage and surprise.
"Impossible!"
Damien didn't hesitate to seize the moment.
He launched himself at the nearest figure, slashing through its figure with Nightshade, feeling the blade bite deep. The figure shrieked in agony as it fell in a pool of its own blood whilst in flames.
The flames unleashed by the hoodie girl could strangely ignore their regenerative ability to heal their injuries. It felt bizarre and at the same time shocking.
Feiyun and Finch regrouped, their eyes opened wide as they witnessed the second figure stumble back, visible shaken by the hoodie girl's sudden display of power.
"How did you..." Finch started to ask, but the hoodie girl shook her head, her expression unreadable beneath her hood.
"No time," she muttered. "We need to get out of here. Now."
Damien nodded and he ignored the prompt from his status window. "Grab Jenna and Bryan. We're leaving."
As they began to retreat, Damien couldn't shake the feeling that this was far from over. The Sire was shrouded in mystery, these thralls might only be a small part of the danger that awaited them.
As the group hurried down the narrow corridors, Damien's mind was racing. The vampires were clearly more organized and powerful than he had anticipated. The fact that the Sire had already placed a claim on Jenna and Bryan shocked him.
What did that mean? Were they already turned or worse, were they some how tied to the Sire's will?
"Damien," Finch called out in a hoarse voice, breaking Damien from his thoughts. "We can't go back to the coliseum. If the Sire's thralls know where we are, they'll send more after us."
Damien grimaced, knowing Finch was right. "We need to find a place to regroup. Somewhere off the radar."
Feiyun, who's breath was still coming in heavy bursts after her massive ice surge, wiped the sweat from her brow. "The academy has hidden passageways," she suggested. "Old escape routes from before the Evermoon World changed. Some of the staff spoke about them, but they aren't easy to find."
The hoodie girl was still full of energy despite the surge of power she unleashed earlier as kept pace with Damien, and Jenna was slung over her shoulder. Her voice broke in. "If they exist, we need to find them fast. Staying in the open will only lead to more ambushes."
Damien nodded, making a quick decision. "We'll head for the library. If there are hidden passageways, they'll be in the academy records."
Suddenly, a faint sound echoed through the halls. The group froze, they held their breaths as the noise of shuffling footsteps reached them.
"Dammit," Finch muttered, eyes narrowing as he nocked an arrow into Stormpiercer. "They're coming."
Damien turned to Feiyun. "Can you slow them down with ice again?"
She shook her head, a little vexed. "I'm tapped out for now. Give me a minute and I'll be back to full strength."
Damien cursed under his breath. The walls around them felt like they were closing in, the oppressive aura of the dark energy from earlier still lingered in the air. They couldn't afford another fight, not with Jenna and Bryan in their condition and Feiyun drained.
"We'll have to make a stand," Damien said. He unsheathed Nightshade once again. "Hoodie girl, Finch, stay with Jenna and Bryan. I'll take point."
Before anyone could protest, Damien moved forward with his senses on high alert.
The dark hallway stretched out before them like a trap waiting to spring. His heart pounded in his chest as he stepped into the darkness, the faint noise of their pursuers growing louder.
Then, without warning, a figure emerged from the shadows.
Damien tensed, ready for another fight—but this figure was different. It wasn't cloaked or radiating evil energy. Instead, it was... human.
The man or rather a young man, dressed in a tattered school uniform, staggered forward, his eyes wide with panic. "Help," he gasped. "They... they're coming. They took the others, but I... I escaped." He collapsed, breathing heavily.
Damien frowned, his instincts screaming that something was off. "Who are you?" he asked cautiously, keeping Nightshade raised.
The man looked up, terror etched into his face. "I... I was with the second team led by Finch's group. But the vampires..."
Damien's eyes narrowed. "How did you survive?"
"I..." The man stuttered, looking around wildly as if trying to piece together his own story. "I hid... I stayed out of sight until they left. But they're coming back. We need to get out of here."
Damien felt a chill creep down his spine. The story sounded plausible, but there was something too convenient about it. The man had appeared just as they were cornered. He couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched.
Behind him, the hoodie girl spoke softly, her voice cutting through the tension. "He's not alone."
Before anyone could react, more figures emerged from the shadows—four of them in total, all dressed in the same academy uniforms, but their eyes glowed with a feral light.
"They've been turned," Feiyun whispered, horrified at the thought.
Damien gripped Nightshade tighter. "Damn it."
The vampires didn't hesitate. With inhuman speed, they lunged at the group, their eyes gleaming with predatory intent.
Damien barely had time to raise his blade before one of them was upon him, its claws slashing through the air.
"Hoodie girl, get Jenna and Bryan out of here!" Damien shouted, as he parried the attack, forcing the vampire back.
"We'll hold them off."
Without another word, the hoodie girl took off, Finch and Feiyun following close behind with Jenna and Bryan in tow.
Damien turned to face the vampires, his pulse pounding. He didn't know how long he could hold them off, but he'd buy them as much time as he could.
With a roar, he launched himself at the nearest vampire, Nightshade glowing in the dim light.