Bloodlines: Severed Ties

Chapter 40: Blurred Lines

Trigger warning: self harm

"I could snap you in half like a twig right now," Sylvia hissed at James. The tiara was on her head, and although hunters were stronger and faster than humans, their blood was still not magical. It could still be affected by the tiara's power.

"Oooo I vote for that one," Tony clapped from the side. Sylvia shot him a look, before disregarding him and returning her attention to who she considered her true enemy.

"But there's no fairness in that. And unlike some, I believe in fairness!" Sylvia bellowed, her voice echoing in the hall. James seemed somewhat startled by this sudden turn of events, but nevertheless rotated his body to be side on to Sylvia. His rapier raised, he was ready to pounce.

Sylvia took her index finger and placed it against her wrist. She dug her sharp nails into the flesh, making a neat line along it. Blood began to pool out of the wound, crimson red splashing to the floor. James faultered in his step, unsure on what was going on.

Sylvia then repeated the process on her other wrist, the same effect happening. She began to feel slightly light headed from the blood loss, but the energy from her rage allowed her to remain standing. She then activated the magic of the tiara, the gem glowing a brilliant red and casting an eery glow in the dimly lit room.

The blood from her wrists began to rise, forming two solid scimitars where her hands ended. She gripped the hilts with her fists. It didn't quite feel the same as her weapons, but she knew it would do the job.

James looked slightly pale at this display of magical power. But he soon regained his composure, and lunged.

James flicked his rapier forward in a quick motion, but Sylvia stepped to the side and slammed both swords down on the rapier. It hit with a solid clash, and pushed James slightly off balance. He then turned, using the momentum from the blow to spin and lunge once more at Sylvia.

"Look at you Trellom's," he spat as he neatly thrusted his rapier towards Sylvia, "one a vampire, and the other an irrational mess. Your family was never fit to rule."

Sylvia dodged the attack, then swung one sword after the other at James forcing him to jump away on the defensive.

"Oh, like your family's doing such a great job," Sylvia retorted sarcastically, dropping her swords to her side and lunging at James. She shouldered him hard in the chest, sending him sprawling backwards. He regained his footing rapidly, before advancing once more.

On the sideline, Tony watched in glee. He had come to the Hunter Sigil to find Ava. After her escape from Castle Doom, he knew she would come here to seek her greatest ally. But now he had no clue where she had gone, she seemed to have just vanished.

Instead of taking his revenge on Ava, he figured he may as well dispose of the second best option, James. But seeing the rage that he felt inside perfectly displayed on Sylvia's face, he knew watching her kill him would be twice as fun. Despite surviving the incident, it was clear she was just as scarred as he was from the vampire attack on their family.

"Sylvia, stop!" A voice called out. Sylvia glanced up, to see Aliyah had just come down the stairs from the upstairs platform. Her momentary distraction left her open, and James took advantage of it. He ran his rapier through her arm, piercing the skin and going right through to the other side.

Sylvia cried out in pain, and flinched as James pulled the rapier out. She fell to her knees, and James stood over her.

"Had enough?" He mocked. Sylvia looked up at him, grinning. She looked down at her arm, seeing the gaping wound and the gashing blood. She focused her attention on it, and slowly watched as the blood went back into her arm. It slowly went back, and then the skin began to rapidly heal before her eyes. Finally, all that was left was a near scar. She rose to face him.

"Not even close," she snarled, lunging at him once more. Aliyah watched in dismay as Sylvia and James were locked in battle, and turned to face Tony. He also heard foot steps, dozens of them, coming towards them.

They weren't alone.

"What did you do?" Aliyah asked, brandishing his two handed sword. Tony raised his hands in the air, a sickening grin on his face.

"I simply showed her the truth," he said. Suddenly, Aliyah saw another pair of red eyes appearing in the darkness of the hall behind Tony. The torches had all been snuffed out, but Aliyah could see well with their elf eyes.

One pair. Then another. And another.

The dark hall was filling with them, red eyes peering out of the darkness like a swarm of bats. Aliyah felt an uneasy feeling in their stomach, and knew they had to get Sylvia out of there.

A rumbling sound echoed through the hall, causing everyone to stand still. Even James and Sylvia ceased their battle, looking up at the roof above them.

Another rumble, this time louder. Aliyah whipped their head in the direction of the sound. It was coming from the stairwell.

Crack.... CRASH BOOM!

A thunderous sound boomed from the stairwell, as the roof caved in. Aliyah had to shield their eyes to protect them from the dust and debris. The force reverberated through the ground, creating a wave of kinetic energy that flew through the floor.

Aliyah unshielded their eyes to find that the way out had completely been blocked by rubble. Looking up, they also saw noticeable cracks in the roof also.

But suddenly it dawned on them, something very uncomfortable and cumbersome. A realisation that made them slowly turn to face the grinning Tony.

They were trapped inside with the vampires.