CHAPTER FIVE

Talisman

 The night was filled with restlessness and for most of them; it was spent lying wide-awake in their uncomfortable beds thinking of how they should face Jaehwa again. There were so many questions that they wanted to ask but for all of them, the question of what she was now plagued them. She was the splitting image of herself fifty years ago, if not, more beautiful and that was not possible unless she had turned but if so, into what? And how? And above all, why?

It was like this, that they spent their evening, waiting for the morning to come so they could ask these questions and seek out the answers they wanted. No one spoke or moved until morning came and they could feel the blazing heat of the sun permeate through the thick blinds.

Then, the female elves from the previous night came and led them to a relatively small room with a round table packed with Elvish delights – wild berries, goat’s cheese, yoghurt with a variety of toppings, an assortment of pies, mint and lemon tea, various puddings and a range of breads and butters.

“Please enjoy your breakfast, young masters.” A maid bowed and retreated back into the corner of the room to simultaneously observe them and to await any orders.

Before they could even begin eating though, the door flung open as three elves tried to carry a squirming and shouting Soojung into the room. She didn’t stop until she opened her eyes and saw the princes. The room fell quiet all too quickly and the boys couldn’t help but shake their heads, laughing softly.

“Breakfast, my lady.” One of the elves huffed and sent an acknowledging nod to the female elf in the corner before exiting. Though not before a few elves carried in a tray with thirteen glass vials lying on a soft bed of hay. Slowly, the elves walked around the table, offering one glass vial to each member at the table. It was then that the thick, gluggy red liquid bottled inside became visible.

Suho was the first to pull off the cork to his and immediately, the sweet scent of fresh blood filled the room.

Soojung felt her gums ache as her fangs threatened to pierce through but beside her, Sehun grabbed a hold of her wrist to help her control her bloodlust.

“Courtesy of Lady Song.” The elf announced.

“Lady Song?” Soojung perked up and she watched as Sehun’s face hardened – his hand on her wrist falling slack. She leaned in so that she could whisper, “Who is that?”

He didn’t reply but instead removed his hand from hers. Soojung could tell that Sehun knew whoever this Lady Song was and she had to be of some significance to Sehun. For as long as Soojung had known this man, she had always felt that he had been guarding something that only the closest of his friends knew and somehow she had the inkling that it was not something but rather someone.

He pulled the cork plug from the bottle and emptied it into his mouth, ignoring Soojung’s questioning gaze. The smooth liquid easing its way down his throat in a way that seemed to soothe his insides – it had been a long time since he had tasted such good quality blood. He could tell that this blood was from a strong man in his prime from its flavourful aroma.

Though the dose was small it was enough to ease all of them for the next day or so.

Breakfast continued at a more comfortable pace after they took the blood and no one brought up Jaehwa again. At least not until they finished and were led by two elves, through the darkest parts of the castle to an underground basement. From the top of the staircase they could make out the painful cries of creatures trapped behind the metal door and they followed with caution.

Walking down, they could feel a cold draught passing through, bringing with it the scent of blood. For a split second, they stiffened but the bloodlust seemed to be under control due to the small dosage of blood that morning – in comparison, the scent of Elvish blood was far less appetising. Bravely, they followed through, waiting as the heavy duty door to what seemed like a dungeon was being pushed open by four elves.

It was only until they walked inside the spacious, dimly lit basement that they realised this was an underground infirmary. The sight was almost horrific – the damage that the Eligorians were capable of was gruesome. For those that were injured and resting in the infirmary, the least worrisome were those who had lost limbs for there were far worse situations like those diagnosed with psychosis or poisoned.

As they walked past the beds, they noticed that some had passed away – lying limp amongst clean white sheets that had probably been changed just that morning. Soojung watched with sad eyes, swallowing hard.

“What is this place?” She mumbled to herself but Tao heard and rested a hand on her shoulder.

“This is what war looks like.” He had seen too much in his life to become too affected by this scene but a part of him was more determined to do something about this injustice.

They kept walking, passing all sorts of strange cases – a few were placed under spells of self-harm, some had lost their senses, others were disintegrating as poison slowly ate away at their flesh, there were even elves who had lost their souls. In a far corner though, they felt a source of energy drawing them to it and the closer they went, they stronger they began to feel.

Slowly, they realised they were moving towards a small ball of blue light that seemed to shine over the body of an elf and as they turned the corner, they could see Jaehwa cradling it in her hands. Carefully when it had formed a perfect ball, she pulled her hands away as the ball slowly sunk into the body. She was so concentrated that she didn’t notice them, focusing only on the task at hand.

“Tranquiliser.” Lay recognised it immediately – it was a spell only he could harness for he was the only healer amongst his brothers. It required a lot of energy to be able to create one as strong as hers, and from her posture he could tell she was still only learning. The way she knelt placed strain on her spi