1. Macabre Marmalade (COMPLETED; EDITING)

XXXVII (17.1)

Todor swallowed the string of curses that popped in his mind. He can be civil and play nice with this creature, or at least not lop off his head right away. Let us see what he has to say. If I play my cards right maybe he will let something slip, he thought as he tapped nervously with his foot.

"Let him in," Holanador ordered briskly. Hillard nodded and closed the door.

"I don't understand what is his plan? Why would he want to take over the city?" Todor wondered out loud.

"Many reasons. To gain access to bigger resources, to gain glory, prestige. After two centuries of having him in my city, I still don't know what makes him tick," Holanador answered. Todor jerked back at her explanation. He didn't expect her to answer, he was just thinking out loud.

"Gain bigger resources, huh?" Todor repeated. "I am almost sure he wants to make new vampires. But since this virus only propagates through mana and humans, his list of victims was zero."

"Until now. You could become an immortal vampire." Governor suggested looking at him intensely.

Todor pulled his palm through the hair. His scalp started to itch the same way as last night when masked Anadori tried to cast a spell. Ezezu, my scalp itches when Anadori casts the spell nearby. But I didn't feel a thing when that Morg started casting, you had to warn me. The mental shrugging of the ghost girl spread through his mind. Todor looked at the Governor but she wasn't doing anything, just watching him intently. He felt a thin veil come over his mind. He could barely see it but it had a similar texture to the magical sound catching web.

Making a face he stretched his mage awareness in every direction before he was stopped by the veil. He pushed slightly and even with such weak mental nudge he almost broke through. Someone is trying to bewitch you, Ezezu said in his mind. I noticed, but it's weak, I can break through it with ease, he retorted. Don't, let them think they have you. Curious 'hmmm' escaped from his lips. Not in the mood for playing cat and mouse, Miss Book.

"Is something wrong Mister Corpus?" Holanador asked.

"I don't know, you tell me?" Todor snapped back as he bulldozed the flimsy enclosing spell with the push of his mind. He stretched out, questing and searching for the caster. He found five behind bookcase on his right. Questing a bit more with his mind he got a picture of a hidden room. His radar returned black spot from that direction. Shielded room with a cabal of mages? Bodyguards? He pointed at the wall behind which they were hiding. "Are those there to protect you from me or the business partners such as Midnight Breeze?"

Holanador smiled widely.

"Gods, I missed you humans being able to do magic," she said almost jovially. She nodded towards hidden mages. "They are always there when I am in the office. They are always close by where ever I go, in fact," she stopped and put her pen down. "I had hundreds of Anadori etriarchs and Morgothlite shamans walk in here in the past century, and not even one of them noticed them. They are very proficient in casting discreet honesty spells."

"You made it impenetrable by radar waves. So you know that technology is no joke," Todor said more to himself than to her.

"I fought in Three Banners War, Mister Corpus. I know how deadly your human toys can be, personally," she said with more vigor and more vehemence than Todor expected from her. There is something here we don't know, Ezezu, he pondered in his mind. The ghost of the girl agreed with a short hum.

The door open and Hillard entered followed by Midnight Breeze. The old vampire wore a sharp white suit with a cane resting under his arm. He smiled as he noticed Holanador, then his eyes moved to Todor and he his eyebrow twitched. But his composure returned in a blink of the eye.