Chapter 28 Sylas #2
“We are discussing ways to prevent you from dying, Sylas. I do not think that me being impacted a little should even be considered a factor.” He smiled.
“You are my friend, yes? This is something I am willing to do for a friend, and especially one who Velra holds so dear. She’s formed a connection with you, a deep bond, and we both know how rare that is for her.
I won’t let that be broken. I won’t allow her to lose you. ”
“It’s… no.”
“No? This is feasible.”
“Let’s just… tell me about what you’ve discovered with Velra’s power.”
He ground his jaw. “As you wish. I suppose.”
“Cassius.”
He blew out a breath, clearly irritated. He liked solutions and he didn’t do well with things being danced around, and definitive paths forward not being established.
“When her panicked eruption of power that day impacted yours and boosted it, you were experiencing the raw, unfiltered version of her magic. When that surged around somebody who operates on that same twilight frequency it was akin to a “free for all”—extra magic out there for the taking. Like channeling somebody in a way, but without directly drawing from them and draining them, because the power had already been disconnected from them and released. Velra is able to do this without weakening herself because of her unique magical physiology as both Dark Fae and Wraith. It stands to reason that you could access this “loose magic” if a connection is established so that it always goes to you when it is released. And that connection we can infuse into what she has already created—your Nexus Band ring.”
As I stared at the ring she’d spelled me with, he went on, “This would automatically direct that discharged magic into your system, allowing you to stabilize your power and provide you with a magical boost without you having to use the serum to do that. The serum can then return to its original intent of just stopping the desiccation, which will make it far less taxing on your body.”
“Okay,” I said, nodding. “I’ll discuss it with her after this dinner.”
“Very good.”
“And… thank you, Cassius. I appreciate your help and your insight.” I shifted my weight. “There’s something else.”
“I’m listening.”
“With Puritas rising, that directly impacts Kai from the perspective of Nyx.”
“No, don’t tell him.”
“What?”
“This is Kai Hunter. He’ll raze the world to protect those he loves.
Remember, his power set has now reached the level of an Immortal like me and Cornelius.
It’s too dangerous. Until we know more. And until we have solutions or at least sound strategies in place.
The collateral damage that could occur if Kai was unleashed would be catastrophic. ”
Kai certainly did have a burn-the-world-down approach when it came to protecting those he loved and also ensuring the world knew well not to fuck with him.
He had calmed lately, but all that would likely be thrown out the window—or tested majorly at the very least—if he knew about Puritas rising, an organization that existed to punish and eradicate hybrids just like Nyx Laryn.
It was quite likely that Vorzyr would be a target as well, in that he was a dragon but with Celestial blood coursing through his system which gave him abilities beyond that of regular draconic beings—he was an unofficial hybridized being.
“All right,” I agreed. “But if things escalate, we might not have a choice.”
“Yes. It’s certainly a delicate balancing act.”
“Speaking of that, regarding my contact offering a name for one of the high-ranking members of Puritas, it didn’t come with strings, or the need for a favor to be returned this time.”
“How is that the case?”
“It was a gift. Because we wiped out that Puritas contingent.”
He frowned. “This contact cannot know that we were responsible. I ensured it, believe me. There was no evidence of you or I being there in any form.”
“It was the coincidental nature of it. And because he knows me. He tells me about that specific group he’d managed to locate and days later they’re all eradicated? Speaks for itself.”
“I hope you still didn’t admit to it.”
I tossed him a look.
“Right. Of course you didn’t.” He shifted his weight. “So, what is this name?”
“Victor Halrow.”
“Who is he in relation to Puritas’ organizational structure?”
“An Ancient Vampire who is in charge of what they term Execution Oversight. Specifically a facility called Genexis which is a Puritas-controlled extermination facility for hybrids.”
He looked as sick as I’d felt when Charlie had conveyed this information to me.
“This facility is still operational? Even with them disappearing into the shadows?”
“According to Charlie it exists in a pocket dimension.”
“Much like those Chimera Circle labs did, making them near-impossible to track until the central link was discovered and severed, revealing the entire network.”
“Yes. But here there is only one. No network. Not many different labs where we’d only have to identify one and then employ that same process to expose them all.”
He gritted his teeth.
“It’s the shadows in which we need to work with to expose all of this, to stop it before it gets off the ground again,” I told him.
“Hence your insistence on the Blood Trace and possibly locating somebody privy to it.”
“And if he is connected to Lazriel in the way I believe, then he’s someone just as motivated as we are to dismantle this nightmare.”
“Yes, indeed.”
“I’ll pose this to Lazriel after dinner.”
“You may have to break through a Death Seal.”
“I will have to. Lazriel had this performed years ago, but by an inexperienced magic-wielder who didn’t understand that they’d come up against a Death Seal at all, and thereby reported to him that his father was dead.”
He grimaced. “Misunderstood spellwork at its most painful.”
“Unfortunately, yes.”
“Now that we’ve discussed business and put our necessary next steps in place, would you object to actually assisting me with the dinner preparation?
I was intending to make a chicken pot pie.
It’s something Ketheron and I have managed to perfect together.
But it’s come to my attention that Lazriel requires red meat—a steak, I believe.
I do not know how to prepare that—at least not without magic, which I’d prefer to avoid, as this dinner is meant to be grounded and…
special. He mentioned he enjoys that… jerky…
you make yourself. It is red meat also, so I suspect those skills could translate to this steak-making situation? ”
My lips quirked. “Yes, I can help you out.”
“Thank you.”
“Thank you, actually.”
He arched an eyebrow.
“Being able to discuss this with somebody who sees complicated and emotionally tumultuous situations the same way I do is a weight off. And, yes, I’ll admit, it is something I needed currently. So I appreciate you talking it out with me.”
He smiled. Full-on smiled. “I’m glad I could contribute in a way that pleases you.”
I let out a quiet chuckle. “Come on. Let’s get this dinner underway.”