I angrily kicked the piss out of the vampire skull, launching it out of sight through the trees. It had been over a month, and we had found nothing further on our return visits to the Black Hills after our initial run in with Bella. By the time Carmilla was able to cobble together a bare bones hunting party with the soldiers still left in Blackwall to retrieve the bodies of our dead, our battleground had been swept clean. The only remnants of the carnage had been blood stains in the dirt and the occasional mangled tree. All of our soldiers’ bodies were gone, including Duncan’s.

When we had returned to Blackwall late that tragic night, we were greeted by a grieving Carmilla, who reported the two platoons that had separated from us at the beginning of our doomed operation had been ambushed and all but wiped out, with a sole witness from each group allowed to flee. With their combined losses added to our main group, the fort had lost nearly a hundred good soldiers. Except for Carmilla, and the soldiers who stayed behind to clean up Rosethorne, only the boys and I survived the night and returned from the Black Hills expedition.

Carmilla was further devastated to learn of Duncan’s death, her grief turning to fury, and it took the combined efforts of Dorian and myself preventing her from marching back into the Black Hills by herself and separating Bella’s head from her shoulders.

After our first hunting party back into the Hills, Dorian, Kit and I made frequent return trips in the following weeks. Despite Carmilla’s insistence we not do so, as she couldn’t spare consistent additional manpower to accompany us, we looked for further traces or clues to the vampire’s whereabouts. Instead, all we found were the occasional feral thralls, with no proof they were at all related to the true vampires who had hunted our party almost to annihilation. With our scouting forays being made without a soldier escort, it also gave me an excuse to fully unleash my restored capabilities without any awestruck onlookers.

Well, except for Kit…

Upon our return, it took a few moments for Dorian to bring Kit, Julius, and Carmilla around that the Goddess’ blessings had been restored and I was Amelia once more. As I had told Carmilla about my more capable form in private, she was delighted to hear of my restoration.

Any surprise Julius felt from the reveal he kept hidden behind a face full of pain. He had maintained consciousness somehow as we trekked back to the fort, and he was adamant he got an explanation for my transformation, but once he had it, he too passed out alongside Chad and Ash. Once he finally awoke, he unsurprisingly acted smug about the new information, claiming he knew I was special all along. He then took a scientific approach to my new form, constantly attempting to test my reflexes or other such capabilities with impromptu or planned exercises. I think he was satisfied with whatever he was looking for in the end as, after a couple of weeks, he began to feign interest in me. I was on to him though, as I saw him monitoring me frequently around the fort out of the corner of my eye.

Kit, on the other hand, had been left completely in the dark. We had slowly leaked secrets about me around him, but the possibility that underneath Amy hid, to use his quote “the most gorgeous women he had ever seen”, caught him completely by surprise. He was not without surprises of his own, however. He had virtually carried Chad on his back while trying to reconnect with us and had been in horrible shape himself, and then walked under his own power with us as we made the long journey back to Blackwall. And yet, despite the extensive bedrest all but Dorian had needed, Kit had recovered in a matter of days. Ash was next out of bed, nearly a week later, but continued to exhaust himself afterwards tending to Julius and Chad, the latter of whom was still unconscious.

And it had been over a month.

I continued to stare at the dense forest, following the direction the vamp skull I kicked had gone, lost in my thoughts, when Dorian came up from behind.

“I see you finished up here.” he commented on my handiwork.

I grunted in response. We had found a pack of half a dozen thralls, thin and starved looking. They panicked and had separated attempting to flee from the three of us, but to no avail. Each of us had a personal vendetta against these monsters and we had not viewed wiping out any packs we had found as “work.” I cleaned Luna and sheathed her back in Minerva before staring at the other vampire head that had rolled near my boot.

Dorian winced at my darkened mood. I had become more frustrated the longer we came up empty. I was worried about the need for Chad’s lengthy recovery. I was upset that we had lost Duncan’s remains. I was also frustrated that we had found virtually nothing in the weeks since to give us an idea on if the vampires were planning something bigger, or merely biding their time and licking their wounds.

But worst of all were the nightmares.

I hadn’t had a solid night’s sleep since our ordeal. Every evening, when I closed my eyes, I relived the moment Duncan’s head was ripped from his shoulders, Belladonna’s maniacal laughter echoing around me.

The nightmare wasn’t always the same. Sometimes she tortured me by feasting on his head afterwards. Once, probably pulled from my regret at being powerless to stop it, it wasn’t Bella who killed him, but me instead. The seconds stretched for an eternity as I held his head in my bloody hands, his face full of shock and betrayal.

I told the boys and Carmilla of my nightmares. I don’t know why. There was nothing any of them could do. Julius had offered some alchemical concoction that he guessed might help me sleep deeper but couldn’t guarantee the dreams wouldn’t follow. Ash regrettably acknowledged his healing magic couldn’t affect dreams either. None of them could help. None of them were there. None of them saw what I saw.

“They will pay, Dorian. She will pay.”

He reached out and squeezed my hand. “I know, Amelia. I know.”

Just then, Kit stumbled through the trees and Dorian jerked his hand away from mine.

“What’s this?” He teased. “Hand holdin’? I’m out here killin’ vamp thralls and you two love birds are exchanging tender moments?” He sauntered up to Dorian and leaned in, a mischievous grin on his face, “Just remember, the Tiger kissed Kitten first!”

Dorian rolled his eyes, “Yes, for the twelfth time, you’ve made that very clear!” He eyed me suspiciously, “One of these days, I’m going to hear the story from the Kitten’s mouth instead, and learn why you ever let him, of all people, steal a kiss!”

I cleared my throat and attempted to change the subject, “It’s getting late, and we need to be heading back. Just because we haven’t found anything more dangerous than these in our patrols,” I prodded the other head with my boot, “doesn’t mean there isn’t something out there still lurking.”

They both nodded and we turned to leave.

“I’ve told you it was with tongue, right?”

Dorian groaned at Kit’s ribbing, “God’s save me, YES!!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When we arrived back at Blackwall, we were greeted by Ash, who looked exhausted. Although his healing powers were substantial, he still exhausted himself every day tending to Chad.

Ash had done a remarkable job healing up the boys from our arduous ordeal. Julius’ arm was mostly healed within a month, his forearm and fingers still lightly scarred but Ash assured us that would improve with more time. Kit requested that Ash allow most of his new scars to remain, as he was proud of them. And while Chad was still unconscious, and no one knew why, Ash had healed up all his known injuries, except for the claw marks to the right side of his face. Ash had done his best, but Chad would bear those scars as a reminder the rest of his life.

“Amelia! Guys!” Ash waved as he flagged us down.

I waved back and put on a cheery smile. No matter how down I was feeling after a return from the Hills, Ash somehow always put a smile back on my face. Typically, the sight of us always put a smile on his as well. But not today. Something had happened. We jogged over to him, each of us with a look of concern.

“What’s goin’ on, bud?” Kit asked.

“I’ve got good news and bad news.” Ash said.

We looked at each other, not sure which we wanted first. I decided to make the call and said, “Let’s start with the good news.” We’d had so little of it lately.

“Chad’s awake.” he reported.

I breathed a sigh of relief and Kit and Dorian each nodded at each other in silent approval. Chad was an ass sometimes, but he was still our friend, and we had all been worried about him.

“Well then what are we standin’ around here for? I’ve got braggin’ ta’ do!” Kit started to push past Ash to the barracks when Ash reached out and snagged him.

“Unfortunately, that’ll have to wait. That’s the bad news: another Zannister has arrived, with reinforcements for the fort. He’s ordered Amelia to Carmilla’s quarters upon your immediate return for a debriefing.”

Dorian quirked his head, “Just Amelia?”

Ash nodded and Kit snorted.

“Tough! We’re all goin’! We all fought in that bloody forest, didn’t we? Which of my family have we been saddled with now?”

Ash shrugged, “He just kept referring himself to me as ‘The Eldest.’”

Kit slapped himself in the face before muttering, “Well shit in a bowl and tell me it’s dessert.”

“Daddy Zannister?” I asked.

“Worse,” Kit said, “My eldest cousin. Remember how I told ya how I’m the oldest of my father’s but not the oldest overall? Coupla dear ol’ dad’s brothers got frisky early, and our hierarchy is a little weird. ‘The Eldest’, as he frequently reminds us, is the firstborn of us all, and he’s not too fond of the tradition that the eldest of the eldest gets to be heir.”

Kit huffed, “To sum up: he’s a smug ass and won’t hesitate to wave his authority in your face. Especially mine or Carmilla’s. He tolerates us the least.”

That made sense. Carmilla should technically be the next leader of the military, if only because she wasn’t a man, and Kit was the actual heir, and one currently viewed as unworthy by his kin. Now I was about to meet the actual eldest Zannister, who was being overlooked purely due to who his father was, and I understood why he probably had a beef with the two of them.

“Still want to come along Kit?” I asked. “I wouldn’t blame you if you didn’t.”

“Pshhh!” He exclaimed, “I ain’t scared! If anythin’, I’m comin’ along to make sure Carmilla doesn’t punch him in the face!”

As we walked along to Carmilla’s quarters, Dorian barked out a laugh.

“Yeah, because that’s who we have to make sure behaves!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We ran into Julius along the way, who was already aware of the situation and he insisted he also accompany us. The five of us walked into Carmilla’s quarters where she and another man were waiting for us. He was sitting at her makeshift war table, while she was standing, sullen, over by her bookshelf. I noticed her eyes glancing sidelong at her hollow books before her attention shifted to our arrival.

The man had faded purple hair, almost like it was already going grey. It was long and wavy, reaching his shoulders. His eye sockets were sunk in, casting shadows on his dull brown eyes. I barely saw any resemblance between him and the other Zannister’s present. He wore a fancy navy blue leather jerkin, almost as nice as the one Chad regularly wore. It bore the Zannister crest, the first time I had seen it: a Silver Wolf.

He raised his hand at our entrance, “Only the female is needed. Kit, you and your entourage can wait outside.” He nodded over at Carmilla, “You can leave too. You’ve already been relieved of your command, cousin. You may pack your things as soon as she and I are done here.”

Carmilla stood up from the wall and walked over to me to stand by my side, defiantly.

“I’m not going anywhere. These are my quarters. And, while I may no longer be Commander of this fort, I was the commanding officer during this mission, and will remain present during this meeting.”

Kit marched up and stood by my other side. “Goes for us too.” The other boys came and grouped behind me and Carmilla in support.

Kit grinned, “Amelia wasn’t the only one who bled that night and walked away from it. You might be able ta’ get away with your ‘Eldest’ crap with my friends, but Carmilla an’ I’ll be damned if you’re gonna try it on us.” He raised an eyebrow at his cousin, daring him to try something.

He merely waved a hand at Carmilla, “Care to muzzle your dog? He’s your brother, after all.”

She held her hands up in surrender. “According to you, Father has dissolved my military status and I’ve lost my position. You want him quiet, you do something about it.” She grinned a little wickedly, “And for the record, I sincerely hope you try.”

I felt Kit bristling again next to me. I put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed lightly, and he calmed down.

The Eldest’s eyebrows raised in surprise.

“So, you’re the one holding his leash. I’ll keep that in mind.” He waved the altercation off as he leaned forward and rested his elbows on the war table, interlacing his fingers and resting his head on them.

“Honestly all or none of your presence matters. Your father and the king provided me the details of Carmilla’s report on what transpired in the Black Hills. I merely called this debriefing to warn you that neither of them believes a word of it and you’d best think up a better story. The, dare I say, authenticity of this girl standing alone against what sounds like an elder vampire, who felled even the mighty Duncan, is very much in question. The king doesn’t believe how Duncan actually met his end nor the strength of the forces you encountered, regardless of the reported body count, and finally,” the Eldest looked straight at me, “the single force who you all have claimed turned the tide.”

He leaned back in his chair, “None of the eyewitnesses to this event are being considered credible. I was going to offer you a chance to tell me the truth so I could send it ahead of you to soften your arrival back in the capital. So does anyone care to elaborate?”

Each of us stood there not saying a word. Why was I not surprised the 126th doubted the events of that night? Carmilla mentioned she had already been set up to be a scape goat. Perhaps she wasn’t the only one. And now, with Duncan gone, most of us had lost a buffer from the king’s judgement. Our return was not going to be pretty.

He nodded in affirmation of our silence. “So be it. It’s my understanding the prince has finally awakened, so your time to spin up whatever else you wish to tell them is winding down. If you have nothing further, consider yourselves dismissed.”

We all turned and left without any appropriate saluting or bowing, Carmilla joining us. We walked out and Kit slammed the door behind us before we loitered in the hallway. We stewed in further silence, all dreading what awaited us back in the king’s throne room.

Finally, Dorian broke the icy atmosphere. “So that’s it then?” Dorian asked.

“Indeed.” Julius muttered.

“Sounds like it.” Ash commented.

“Yeah,” I sighed. Assuming Chad was capable of travel, it was time to catch him up to speed and it sounded like the seven of us were headed back to Monera.

And an audience with the king.