Return to Jorgaldur Volume III: blood warrior

Besieged

She walked down the spiral stairs for about ten minutes, until she reached the very heart of the mansion. There was a huge precious stone, which was floating in the center of a modest circular room.

Diknsa looked at it with concern, for it was barely at half capacity. It's true that, when the owner of the mansion had disappeared, it was nowhere near its full, so it hadn't diminished that much. However, every day its capacity was going down, and there was no way to recharge it.

At this rate, she didn't know how much time they had left, maybe a few months, but not much more. Although she wanted to believe that one day the owner would return, Diknsa was aware that it wouldn't be soon, perhaps it would take years. By then, she would have failed in her mission to protect that place.

The woman sighed. She couldn't do more than prepare the flight of all the inhabitants, and hope to meet her again one day. If she came back.

Diknsa bit her lip hard. She hated to doubt, but she couldn't help it. Only one of the vampire visitors would return, so the chance that it was her was slim. No one wanted to say it out loud, they wanted to believe, but everyone knew it.

At first, she thought she could just wait, while cleaning and keeping the mansion in order. However, two weeks ago, they had received an unpleasant surprise.

A group of vampires and their servants had attacked the mansion, and had demanded their surrender. They hadn't been able to enter, as the shield that protected them was powerful, but the continuous attacks were gradually depleting the energy source.

As she took the stairs, images of the vampire who owned the house flooded her mind again. She refused to cry, she couldn't allow herself to. If she showed weakness, the rest would crumble. Diknsa was the head maid of the mansion for a reason.

Luckily, despite being besieged, she wasn't worried about their livelihood, since they not only had large farmlands, but also many food reserves, even blood. Nonetheless, those warehouses, which the owner called refrigerators, worked with the same energy as the shield.

Many had been transformed into vampires by said owner, since it had been the only option to save their lives. She had done it with her permission, so no one blamed her, quite the contrary.

"Boom!"

As she emerged from the catacombs, the sound of an attack against the shield greeted her. It was something usual lately, although it didn't avoid an oppressive feeling.

She could see in most of their faces the frustration, the helplessness at not being able to defend their savior's stronghold, at not being able to protect her memory and her legacy.

They didn't fear for their lives, as they knew that they could escape. Nevertheless, the imminent loss of what had been their home for years was depressing. At the very least, they wouldn't let them sully it. Before leaving, they would activate the self-destruct mechanism. Hopefully, it would take their enemies out in the blast.

Diknsa looked towards the tinted window, at the figure staring at the forest, at the sky. He was a young demihuman with feline features, and he was what among vampires was called a cow, albeit a willing cow.

This was because not only was he not a vampire, but one of his functions was to let himself be sucked blood, although he was for the exclusive use of the owner. In the past, she had saved him, and he had insisted on staying there, to offer his blood, to help as much as he could. Without a doubt, not counting Diknsa, he was the one who missed her the most.

"Gjaki..." she heard him murmur.

"Dammit! How long is that barrier going to hold?" Pzolor complained again.

"Whatever it is. These're orders from the boss, so stop complaining," Qxilza got annoyed.

The first vampire scowled at her, but he didn't say anything else. He still remembered the pain from the last time his superior got mad at him. He just launched a few more attacks and went to sleep.

She snorted disdainfully. She then attacked a few more times as well, before finishing draining her mana, After that, she left to take shelter from the red light of the sun that was about to appear over the hill.

From then on, her servants would be in charge of watching and continuing to attack. Although they were far less powerful than the vampires, they didn't fear sunlight.

The mansion was coveted by those vampires for its supposed treasures. They had discovered that its powerful owner was a visitor, and that she had disappeared with the rest.

The improbable possibility that she would return didn't worry them. If the worst happened, it would be many years from now, when their conquest would have already been forgotten. Besides, they didn't intend to leave witnesses.

They had disguised themselves and posed as heroes willing to end the tyranny of the vampires. It had made the way easier for them, and to obtain information. Many hated or feared vampires, even though the mansion's inhabitants had never done anything to them.

However, to their surprise, in the nearest town, not only had they not received any kind of sympathy, but the citizens had completely turned their backs on them.

There, those citizens had dealt for years with the inhabitants of the mansion, with whom they had more than a good relationship. In fact, they adored the terrible vampiress, because she hadn't only saved them on a couple of occasions, but she had helped them on many others. In addition, she had always been friendly, if a little shy. More than one even thought of her as an adorable sister, daughter, or granddaughter, or as an impossible love.

It is true that she could suck their blood, but it is also true that anyone powerful enough could kill or rob them. Precisely, she had saved them from a group of bandits, besides the fact that she had never tried to harm them.

Therefore, they were sorry that she had left. If they could, they would have stood up to those trying to attack the mansion. However, they didn't have the power to do so. Therefore, the citizens were frustrated that they couldn't return the favor.

What they weren't going to do was help those who were plotting against their friends and saviors. They had even poisoned a nearby well, which had given the vampires' servants nasty diarrheas. Perhaps, they could have used something more powerful, but that would have given them away, and put them in serious danger, although it had been proposed.