Emiel Regis x Reader

Seven

It was not the first time Regis had met the Elder. But this time a kind of fear filled his chest that he had never felt before.

Of course, he always had respect for the most powerful of his species, but fear?

No, it had never been fear that he had felt at the sight of it. But at that very moment, when the oldest, the unseen, from which nothing appeared, Regis couldn't help but look down awe and bite his lips.

He didn't have a beating heart in his chest, but if he had, it would have hit him up to his neck. Suddenly, the vampires in the cave fell silent, made way, and bowed venerably before their master. Admittedly, he wasn't a master, let alone a king. But every vampire knew he had to be respected. And rudeness was not tolerated.

Spellbound, curious eyes gazed at the vampire, who had the shape of a savage human, while questioning murmurs filled the tense silence. With a grim look, the eldest let his eyes wander over the men and women who had responded to his call. One could hear them breathing, it was so quiet.

No one would have dared to speak at that moment.

No one but Teriana.

With a reverent bow, she stepped forward, kept her eyes down, and allowed herself to speak without his permission.

"My most respectful welcome, eldest.", her voice was as smooth as honey, so sweet and full of flattery.

Regis hated it when she spoke like that. He remembered that she often had talked to him like that to tell him lies that she wanted to sell as truths.

She spoke with the words of a vampire, in a language that humans had never learned to understand. The language of the undead, the vampire language. Regis mother tongue.

The eldest looked down at her, his eyes sparkled maliciously. But he didn't kill her.

"Rise.", he commanded her in a hoarse voice. "Tell them."

She smiled sweetly, lifted herself up to her full size, and raised her chin, as she always did when she spoke to someone she did not consider equal.

"Brothers and sisters.", her voice sounded proud, almost royal as she spoke. "It has happened that ours has to face a mystery. A mystery that promises either paradise or hell. Our eldest, the unseen, discovered something deep hidden in the depths of this holy place. Now it is up to you to find the person in charge and possibly get answers to countless questions. Look, brothers and sisters. See the mystery and explain it."

With an elegant hand movement, she stepped aside to allow a view of the eldest.

With surprising care, he leaned down to place the bundle of cloth he had carried in his arms on the floor of the cave. The vampires approached tensely, confused as to why they had to worry about a simple, cotton blanket.

But they all quickly retreated, frightened and surprised when something moved. Strange sounds escaped from the blanket, which evidently concealed a being who did not seem to be peaceful.

Confused, Regis frowned as even the eldest stepped back and raised his hands as if he was expecting an attack at any moment. If he hadn't known better, Regis would have thought it was fear that made him tremble.

"What could it be?", whispered Orianna, bending over to Dettlaff and Regis.

She seemed more curious than tense. Dettlaff, on the other hand, was at least as tense as Regis, if not more tense.

"An unknown monster? Something that could kill a vampire, perhaps?", Dettlaff muttered. "But that would be ridiculous. Only a dragon could kill us, and they're almost extinct."

Still spellbound, Regis couldn't keep his eyes off the bundle, which began to move more and more with every minute.

"It smells... strange and yet familiar.", he muttered. "Do you hear what it says?"

Questioning, he looked at Orianna.

She listened for a moment on,y to raise her eyebrows in surprise.

"Is... is that... no...", she shook her head in disbelief. "It can't be."

"So you hear it too?", Regis asked, just to make sure that he did not loose his mind already.

Now, Dettlaff's curiosity awoke. Carefully he listened, while the emotions in his eyes changed from confusion to realisation and to disbelief.

"It's our language.", he muttered surprised. "Did the eldest caught a vampire?"

His words tore the silence apart like a sword that cut through soft flesh. Immediately it became deadly silent, heads turned towards him, eyes widened, breaths flinched.

No one would have made such an accusation out loud, no one would have dared to think so.

The silence became so intense that death could already be smelled.

Slowly, almost ghostly, the eldest turned to Dettlaff, his fingers twitching, long fingernails clanging like blades hitting each other. He came one step closer, slow and yet threatening, so that Dettlaff took a hesitant step back.

Immediately, he bowed down.

"Forgive my folly.", he said as calm as he could. "I didn't mean to disrespect you It was just a stupid question. I didn't think."

"Of course you didn't.", the oldest growled and came closer.

Regis wanted to say something, to help his friend, but his lips were frozen and the good words got stuck in his throat. He could feel a shiver creeping down his spine, as the eldest stopped next to him, facing Dettlaff. The sheer presence of the eldest made Regis shiver, so powerful and mighty it was.

Never before had Regis felt this weak.

As the eldest raised a hand, Regis closed his eyes. He did not want to see this.

"Look closer, Dettlaff van der Eretein.", demanded the eldest. "Step closer and tell me what your foolish eyes see. Better even, tell me what you feel. Or are you too much of a fool to understand? This... creature that I've found. It is indeed a vampire. But something is strange about it. Tell me, do you feel it?"

Slowly, Dettlaff dared to step closer to the blanket but did not touch or lift it. It was strange, something was off, Regis could feel it. But it was his friend who gave life to those wild thoughts.

"I can feel it is a vampire...", Dettlaff hesitated. "But it is equally human."