Clandestine Chapter 3.5 : Memories part 3

1193 - Dwarven city of Kndra (Petra)

Zenevieva and Mariana have just finished their breakfast and are sitting on a bench on one of the highest levels of the main hall. Since the day they were saved by dwarves in the treasury, they have been trained by the dwarves and they have been living in the dwarven city too. The Romans plundered a lot, but also lost a lot of their loot due to the dwarves’ traps and skilled warriors. Many of the dwarven warriors in the city are stealthy, assassin like soldiers. This is also what Zenevieva and Mariana are trained to do.
“It has been a year now since Lucius got murdered…” Zenevieva sighs.
“Indeed,” Mariana says, “and look what it did to the city. On the outside it looks like a ruin.”
“Yup, though inside it still looks pretty, except for the entrances.”
“Yeah, ah well… when's our next training?”
“Tomorrow. We'll be practicing sword things again.”
Mariana sighs. “Not again… I want to practice magic for once.”
“Are you able to practice magic then?”
“Yes, I can and want to. This is a real problem. I've studied several different elven and dwarven races, but all of them, except for the grey elves, either use magic or physical weapons in combat. They don't combine them, which they should.”
“Hm, I never looked at it like that.”
“I want to go away from here, Zene. The dwarves are nice, but if I were to join an armed force, I want to practice both magic and melee. Honestly, the only reason I'm still here is because of you. Also, the dwarves are really nice.”
“Ah, I see. I can understand that. They are nice, but these tests of them are a bit too much. They look at all the things you do when you're training. But about you leaving, where would you go?”
“Not sure yet, I'd love going to the grey elves, but that's a long trip by boat and very dangerous. I come from the northern blue elves and I'm not sure whether to go back or not. I think the best option would be going to the Black Forest, to the land of the grand elven queen.”
“I will come with you.”
“Shall we go to the dwarven king then to tell him?”
“Alright.”
The two stand up and walk to their sleeping quarters. There they put their belongings in the trunks next to their beds, lock them and walk to the throne room. There they are greeted by the guards, who let them through. The throne room is a huge room, decorated with colourful  tapestries on the walls and on the floor. There are also a few war trophies and other relics displayed. Once inside, the two females walk towards the throne and greet the new dwarven king. The previous king was murdered by Romulus Lorentius in the battle that followed after the death of Lucius. The king is sitting on the throne, looking at a piece of parchment that he holds in his metal hand.
“King Oktra,” Mariana says, “we would like to speak with you.”
“I'm all ears,” the king replies with a friendly tone, “tell me what's on your mind.”
“Our time here has taught me a lot about about sword fighting and stealth, but I've felt like my true passion lies in the arts of magic. It was a huge honour to stay with your people, but our time has come to go.”
“I understand that you have a goal that you cannot achieve here.” The king says in the same friendly tone as before. “I will not refrain you from achieving it. Where would you go to then?”
“I'm doubting between the Black Forest and Ysillicial.”
“Hm, the forest elves supported us during the Fillyne war and we've been allies since. The grey elves however haven't even been here except for some scholars, though they are allied to the forest elves. I think the best thing to do in your position would be to go to the Black Forest and then decide whether to stay there or go to the grey elves.”
“Thank you for the tip. We shall go to the black forest then. Do you really not mind us leaving, your highness?”
“I find it sad to see the two of you go. You helped us when we needed it, but with the Roman attacks becoming less frequent, we are no longer in need of extra forces. If you really want to leave, I suggest you go today. A group of elven scholars left yesterday towards Aegyptus. I will send a handful of men with you, for protection and guidance. If you keep the pace up you will reach them soon, maybe even today. But look out, Aegyptus is a Roman province. Try to blend in with the elves and you will not be harmed.”
“Understood.”
“Oh, and miss Zenevieva…”
“Yes?” Zene asks.
“I have a few things for you. Same goes for you, Clementine.”
The king stands up from his throne and walks to a tapestry that's hanging against a wall, his feet making two different noises. One of his legs is partially made out of metal, just like his right hand. At the wall, he pulls away the cloth, revealing a safe that's been built in the wall. He then puts one of his metal fingers inside the lock it and turns it, unlocking the safe. The kingnow reaches into the safe and pulls out two swords.
“My sword!” Zene says happily.
“It is indeed.” The king says. “We improved it a bit. From the outside it still looks the same, but we made the blade stronger and added a reservoir for blood in the hilt, where the blood of your enemies will flow into through the carved canals in the blade.”
“That is impressive!” Zene says while examining the sword.
“You don't come across a true vampiric blade every day. We wanted to make it last forever. And for you, Clementine, I have Lucius’ sword. It is a true Roman emperor's sword. We made the blade stronger and the grip more comfortable. We think you should have it, since you seem to really look up to him.” The king says.
“This,” a stunned Mariana says, “this is really it… I can't believe it.”
After a moment in which both the girls examine their swords, the king speaks again. “We may not meet again, but consider yourselves welcome here if you ever want to visit or rest. Now go. Idla will guide you to the elven camp.”
“Farewell, king Oktra, you've been very generous.” Zene says, immediately followed by Mariana saying: “Farewell, king Oktra, thank you for everything.”
“Farewell ladies, the best of luck!” King Oktra says as he waves his metal arm.
Zene and Mariana wave the king goodbye and walk away. When they get to the main hall, they see a group of dwarves carrying their trunks and other items. They walk up to them and see that they are being led by Idla, who signs the two ladies to follow her and to pace it up. The group makes their way through the main hall and then a wide corridor until they reach the stables. There the luggage is loaded on a horse drawn carriage and they both get assigned to a horse. The dwarves get on horsebacks too. One of the dwarves in the front gives a signal and the horses take off. In the front there are armoured guards and a navigator, in the middle the two ladies and the carriage, and in the back some more guards. The group heads west towards Aegyptus. They cross rocky canyons and sandy plains until, when the sun is setting, they see a campfire in the distance. When they reach it they are greeted by elven scholars and are offered food and drinks. Zenevieva explains why they are joining them and the scholars welcome them. The two ladies, together with the dwarves, take a seat by the fire and enjoy the food and listen to the stories the elves tell. The stories are largely ancient myths, which date all the way back to a time when stories were passed on by spoken word only. Mariana also tells a few Roman myths, which occasionally resemble the elven myths a bit, and about how she has been disguising herself as a human and calling herself Clementine to blend in with humans. When it's getting late, they all call it a night and head to the tents. Zenevieva and Mariana are assigned to a tent with two female elves, one being a forest elf, and the other being a grey elf. After some chitchat they say goodnight and get in their hammocks. Zenevieva starts reflecting on everything that has happened in the last year and her current situation. Wars are going on, but here she is, camping in the desert with elven scholars underneath a starry sky. That thought makes a smile  appear on her face. Then, she's brought back to reality by a whispering voice.
“I sense that you're awake.” The voice whispers.
“Who are you?” Zenevieva answers slightly scared.
“I am Vyrka, the grey elf. Could you come outside with me?”
“Why?”
“I need to ask you something, but I don't want to wake the others by talking a lot.”
Zene gets out of her hammock and sees the silhouette of the grey elf walking towards the opening and take a seat by the fire. She decides to do the same, but grabs her blanket with her since the temperatures in the desert are really low at night. As she gets out of the tent, she throws the blanket around her like a cape and takes a seat next to the grey elf.
“Thank you for coming outside.” Vyrka says.
“You're welcome.” Zenevieva says, “What would you like to ask me?”
“Why are you different from other vampires?”
That question sent a cold shiver through Zenevieva’s spine.
“What?” Zene asks.
“I'm sorry if I startled you. You show some features of a vampire, yet there's something different. I sense you differently from other vampires. Don't worry, your secret is safe with me. I just find it interesting that you are not like the others and I'd like to know more if it's possible.”
“I don't know what to answer… In what way do you sense me differently?”
“I've studied and trained myself in the arts of magic. I can sense the energy that is present in every living being. Elves have a very different… pattern than humans. And then every human has a different pattern, though they are still very alike. The same goes with your vampirism. Every vampire has about the same pattern yet a tiny bit different. Yours is more different than normal. Do you understand all that?”
“Yes, but I still don't get how you can actually sense that. It's very impressive.”
“It is very hard to explain. It is like a sense, like tasting or seeing. Some things taste different, some things taste similar. That way you can put certain patterns in categories, like you could with tastes. And now I'm using senses as a metaphor, I can describe just how hard it is to explain how I sense those patterns. It's like describing what a colour looks like to a blind person. I can just feel it, I don't know how. That's what I'm currently studying, plus the different patterns.”
“It sounds really complicated.”
“It is. Anyway, is there anything you can tell me? Maybe about how, when and where you were turned into a vampire?”
“I used to live in Alba in Britannia, though I've lost count of the years it have been…. There was an assault on the settlement I was living at. They were vampires… they bit both the living and the dead, the living becoming soulless, ghoulish things… Those things looked like people that had all their life sucked out of them, yet still moving, walking… fighting for the vampires. The dead remained dead on the other hand. I hid myself away, but I was found and bitten too, yet it had a different effect on me. I felt like I couldn't move and the vampire walked away, thinking I was dead or something. I lay there for multiple days… it was really… weird… I vaguely remember a Roman soldier examining me and taking me to a doctor. Then I remember being with them, having huge pains going through my body… my skin tone changed, my eyes changed, even my teeth changed. They then told me that I was a vampire, but they didn't treat me like a monster. They were actually quite nice to me, even getting me a set of vampiric armor.”
“Oh wow. I'm truly speechless… so… you're friends with the Romans?”
“Hmm, it's complicated. I don't want to bore you with it. Plus it's getting quite late, we should head to bed.”
“Can I ask you one last thing?”
“Sure.”
“Who is the earliest person of high importance you can remember?”
“Hehe, the Beast himself…”
Those words made a grin appear on Zenevieva’s face. She can see from Vyrka’s face that she knows who ‘the Beast’ is. A slight grin appears on her face as well.
“You are older than I expected,” Vyrka says, “I can perhaps determine which type of vampire bit you, but I'll have to look up information about the subject at the library of Alexandria and it might be quite a few days until we arrive there. Would you mind staying with us and have me do some research on you?”
“I thought you wouldn't ask me anything anymore, haha.” Zenevieva says jokingly. “But to be fair, I'd like to find out who did it. I used to search for it myself for a while, but didn't get any closer to getting an answer. I really appreciate you wanting to do that.”
“Alright, let's get some sleep. It's pretty late and tomorrow we'll need to travel a long distance.”
“Good, see you tomorrow.”
Both get back to their tent and get in their hammocks again. Zenevieva starts reflecting on her past and all of her good memories. After going through a few of them, some bad memories enter her mind as she slowly and silently cries herself to sleep.