Bloodlines: Severed Ties

Chapter 42: Mass Exodus

"What was that?!" Darian exclaimed. As he was currently holding up the crate wall against the vampires, he couldn't exactly turn to look at the source of the gigantic crash.

"The roof of the stairs," Dirella sighed. She was exhausted, still holding her hands aloft in the air, fighting desperately to keep the remaining ceiling in place. The vampires were trying their best to knock it down, with their raucous and brutal smashing of the walls. Just the sheer force of them trying to break through the barricade was enough to bring the roof down, Dirella shuddered at the thought of facing them without magic.

She had no clue how the hunters managed it.

"Weren't you holding the roof up?" Zalla pointed out, earning a pouted look from Dirella.

"I don't need to be scolded by a child," Dirella said, still straining under the magical toll. This place was old. Really old. She was surprised it had stood this long. But Aliyah was right, who the hell thought building down was better than up?

Suddenly, Dirella saw Aliyah and Sylvia poking their head out of a crack in the wall, about nine feet off the ground. She felt a momentary sensation of relief that they were alright, before realising there weren't out of the woods yet.

"We gotta go," Sylvia said as she vaulted down off the cliff. She landed elegantly on the floor in a crouched position, before jogging towards Dirella. Aliyah too leapt off, a relatively small drop for them compared to Sylvia. They too jogged forward.

"Bit busy here," Darian grunted under the pressure of the crates. Sylvia glanced at them, then at the stairs. She then raced forward towards Darian, taking a spot next to him and pushing against the vampires on the other side. Aliyah joined suit.

"Alright," Sylvia said, "Dirella, you go first. Then us four, on the count of three, we book it." Darian, Zalla, and Aliyah all nodded in agreement.

Dirella paused for a moment, hesitating. She was holding the roof up. Without her, who knows how long they actually had.

"You go first," she said, arms starting to shake. The purple glow from her fingers was starting to fade, she had used too much magic in too little time. She was definately going to feel this tomorrow, if she managed to survive this.

"Together," Sylvia replied stubbornly. With a scowl, Dirella rolled her eyes.

Just get on with it, she thought to herself.

"Ok one," Sylvia called out. The crates were shaking, the vibrations rattling the floor.

"Two," one hand on the crates, Sylvia adjusted her footing. She was ready to run, and could hear the vampires on the other side of the rubble also on the move. It wouldn't take them long to squeeze through the same crack her and Aliyah did.

"Three!" Just like that, they were off. Aliyah, Zalla, Sylvia, and Darian let go of the crate wall and started running full pelt at the staircase. Without the force to stop them, the vampires piled through. They were tripping over one another, sent sprawling over the crates onto the floor.

Dirella too let go of the magic she was using to hold the roof, running as fast as her legs could carry her. She heard the roof cracking above, and knew it wouldn't take long before it caved in.

They reached the stairs, taking them as quickly as possible. But the vampires had regained their footing, and were nipping at their heels as they ran. Large cracks appeared in the ceiling, and Sylvia heard a familiar booming noise. She glanced back, to see the roof of the cavern had started to collapse. It started an avalanche effect, and the roof near them had started to crack and buckle under the pressure.

They kept pushing forward, each step starting to crumble beneath them as they made their way to the surface. The vampires were closing on them, but Sylvia could hear a few were getting caught under the rubble.

Finally, she could see light. It spurred her on forward, as did the rest of the group. Even Dirella was managing to keep up, the threat of getting squished or eaten making her feet move rapidly.

"The horses!" Zalla bellowed out as they reached the surface. There were a dozen or so vampires that made it out, and were right behind them. Zalla turned, her sword and shield at the ready as she battered them away.

The moon was high as Sylvia made a break for the horses. Porche whinnied nervously as Sylvia approached.

"Yeah yeah I know girl, time to go," she comforted the horse quickly. Sylvia swiftly untied her knot, before making her way to the others.

Meanwhile, Darian, Aliyah, and Zalla were all trying to hold off the vampires who had made it through the rubble. They slashed and hacked their way through the swarm of red eyes and bared fangs, not hesitating in their stead. A few vampires who were half caught under the rubble scrambled to try and break free to join their brethren.

Finally, Sylvia untied the final horse, Zalla's Clydesdale. The horses began to gallop towards the battle, loyal to their owners until the very end. Sylvia quickly grabbed Porches reigns, flinging herself on top of the mare as it galloped into the forest.

As she passed, Sylvia grabbed Dirella's extended hand, hefting her on the back of Porche. The rest of the group quickly broke off from the fight, Aliyah on their white elk, as well as Zalla and Darian on their horses.

The group rode hard away from the battle, hearing the shrieks and battle cries of the vampires behind them. They were victory cries, for the vampires knew they had won this round.

Sylvia felt the sting of fatigue hit her like a tonne of bricks. She faultered in the saddle slightly, the magic use and blood loss finally catching up to her. Dirella had to catch her to stop her from falling, using one arm around Sylvia's waist to hold her still while the other grabbed the reigns.

With that, Sylvia felt herself slip into unconsciousness.