Slay My Soul
Chapter 27 Lysario

Eve comes down the stairs as I wipe down the bench, Acassus trailing behind her, smiling happily now his itch has been scratched. I hand her the travel mug.

“Are you ready to go and look at the blueprints?” I ask. Eve nods, tucking her hand in mine and waving to Acassus as we head for the door. She’s toying with the idea of assassinating the King like Reece was trying to do. Cutting off the snake’s head, so to speak. She also wants to meet with the witch proxy and Carino’s second later on to discuss spells that may be of use if she moves forward with the idea. She would prefer to speak with Carino but he's busy setting early detection spells and anti-magic wards.

Before long we are hunched over the blueprints Sirus and her drew of the castle. We look for points to portal in that will be good hiding spots to lay in wait. But we really need the Witches here to tell us if they can mask our scent for long periods. Maybe shadow us, so we can hide better and see what other shit they can come up with to help. If we go ahead with it, it will be volunteers only. There is no guarantee they will make it back alive, especially if they are caught.

We push the plans aside for now and move on to plan B. Moving the war to their turf and portaling in, as they did to my people. Take as many out as we can, cause mayhem, shoot off again, then reappear at a different part of the land, do it all over again, and so on. We hope to whittle down their numbers, causing confusion and panic. It’s a good plan but I know Eve worries about the innocent and the brainwashed being caught in it. More vampires have been arriving every day thankfully, after heeding Luka’s warning. Mikyda and Eve have been tag teaming to check each newcomer isn’t a spy. It’s still a better plan than plan C, which is just outright marching on the castle and seeing how far we get. I much prefer the Ace in the hole plan. Eve completes the circle and demands the Kings surrender, ending the war for good. That’s the most preferable one. But the Demon not being accessible is wrinkling that idea.

“Have you thought any more about how to get to the Demon?” I ask after we have poured over plans and maps for several hours. She nods.

“Yeah. Mate Max and then portal to the demon for a quickie. It’s the only thing I can think of to get to him,” she sighs, sitting back and rubbing her eyes. “As long as I can seal the deal before I’m caught, I win.”

“Eve, that’s dangerous as fuck. It’s risky and stupid.” I groan and thump my head onto the table in frustration. “And probably our best option,” I mutter into the smooth wood. “Don’t tell any of the war room members though, save our ace for our circle’s ears only. Carino hasn’t caught his rat yet and there may still be others.”

“Carino said he’s pretty sure he knows who it is. He’s watching them like a hawk. He’s setting boundary alarms today and setting wards to deflect magic attacks. That’s why I get his second to talk shop with instead of him today.” She sits up straighter and clears the table of our plans, looking expectantly at the door.

Sure enough, the two witches come in and bow to us before taking a seat.

“My lady,” the proxy begins, ” I believe you wished to see us?” He looks a little nervous and Carino’s second eyes me closely, looking for... something.

“Yes, Ly and I were going over battle tactics and would like to gain a better understanding of what the witches can do. I suspect we are not utilizing you to your full potential, ” Eve says diplomatically. “Can you mask scents? And if so, for how long?” The witch seems to relax a little and shares a glance with the second.

“Scent masking yes, Light witches can do that. It’s about three hours with a spell, five with a charm, or there’s a potion version that you take twice a day.” The proxy says. I nod, sounds like the potions are the safe bet.

“What about cloaking people, wrapping them in shadows, or even invisible?” Eve pushes. Carino’s second answers this time. Maverick I think his name is.

“We can, but only on ourselves. It’s a spell cast by the one wishing to be cloaked. Not invisible, but can certainly blend into the shadows." I tap my fingers in irritation. So that’s a no-go unless we send Carino’s circle in after the King.

“What things can you offer in battle? I see your people casting spells and lobbing things at the enemy, but I have no idea what they are doing half the time. Could you maybe enlighten us so we understand and can factor them into plans?”

“What about what you’re doing, or rather not doing,” the proxy snaps. Eve’s eyes narrow.

“What do you mean? I’ve been working every day on plans and training our people-”

“Which would not be necessary if you would just do your actual job!”

“And what job would that be?” Eve replies icily, her hand twitching over the knife holster on her thigh.

“You only have two men left to claim, just ride them already and end this farce! This is no time to be fucking frigid!” The proxy explodes and Maverick smirks. Well, there goes diplomacy. I snarl a warning.

“Not another word!” I caution him, grabbing Eve’s twitching hand and rubbing circles on it with my thumb.

“Don’t bloody defend her! She has the power to stop this, but she chooses not to. She plays hero without doing what she is put here to do, to be one.”

“You seem to be forgetting the issue of getting to the Demon,” Eve says, fighting to not lose her shit at this arrogant fuck.

“Just portal in, claim him, and be done. Problem solved. Jesus, are your other mates getting any? Or are they all suffering through your sex strike? If you had just done what you needed to do in the first place and looked into the prophecy earlier, Reece would still be alive and you would only have the demon to fuck. But nope, you dropped the ball and instead, your mate took drastic action to save your ass, instead of you saving all ours. He died. Reece died because you’re incompetent.” Eve’s face drains of color. “To think you’re going to rule us all. What a joke when you won’t sacrifice your precious morals and fuck to save all our people. How many more races do you want to watch be pushed to extinction? How many more mates do you want to lose? All because you won’t lay down and spread your legs like the bitch you are!”

Anger, uncertainty, and then shame flicker on her face. To hell with taking the high road, I’ve had enough of this prick, they can replace another proxy. I launch myself at the asshole, knocking him from his chair and punching the living daylights out of him before he can utter a spell. My vines pin his hands so he can’t wave in an attack. Who the fuck does he think he is talking to my mate that way. Judging her when he doesn’t even know her. He makes it sound so simple like she is a common whore that suddenly put an out-of-order sign up for shits and giggles. He is not even worthy to be in her presence. I glance behind me and see Maverick muttering under his breath with his hands moving. I fling vines his way and bind him, one hand in front and one behind, turning him into a green mummy from his toes to his nose, before I continue to slam my fist into the proxy.

“What the fuck did I miss!” Carino growls behind me. I bind the proxy as I did to Maverick and get to my feet.

“Your men were fucking assholes to Eve, the proxy spewing vile opinions like our mate is a common whore. Even blamed her for Reece’s death,” I spit angrily. Carino curses.

“Where’s Eve now?” He asks. I quickly sweep the room with my eyes.

“Fuck, she’s gone,” I see the twinkle of delight in Maverick’s eyes. The proxy is looking delighted too. Carino narrows his eyes as he spots their looks of triumph.

“Hello, little rats. Time to confess your sins,” Carino says, an evil grin stretching over his face.