The mind prison

===Pyre===

Pyre headed downstairs with Gareth, using his staff as a support, as she barely needed it in even ground but could use it to go down some stairs.

It took them a bit more time than it should as they reached the cell area. Outside one of the cells were two individuals, one vampire, and one werewolf. They were making sure that the new 'guest' was staying in his cell.

The person was awake and eating like a beast some roasted chicken they had prepared for him. Vampires didn't need food to survive but could enjoy it while werewolves were in the same situation as humans. So they had provisions to feed them, which probably was stolen by the nearby settlement she noticed on their way here.

The man was eating his meal like a wild beast, its prey making Pyre forgetting for a moment that he was a human.

"Princess, why are you here? It would be best if you were upstairs resting," said the vampire guard.

"How is our new guest?" she responded instead of answering his questions.

She was the princess. She didn't need to report to anyone about why she did anything.

"His appetite seems to be great. He has already devoured two chickens, and he is at his third. He also seems to not be good in his brain, my lady. While waiting for the food, he kept staring at us patiently until the food arrived and became the beast you see. It was almost like he knew and waited."

This was quite weird behavior. If one paid attention, he would notice that the guards weren't human. Both had somewhat pointy ears, while the vampire guard was paler than a normal human should be, but not as pale as Pyre, while the werewolf had too thick facial hair and hair growing at his hands. In addition, the werewolf's nails were claw-like and could definitely do some serious damage if he wanted.

Normally someone would notice those right away and start crying or demanding to get released, but the man seemed calm and waited for food.

'I knew that I felt something strange with this one.'

When Vampires drink the blood of someone, they connect with what humans called 'souls' to an extend. The connection is quite weak, and most times, nothing happens, but sometimes it lets the Vampire get some memories of the individual they get blood from.

She had something like that happening at her last feeding, but she didn't seem to have gotten access to one of his memories, but something else, something darker.

That man intrigued her, especially after hearing about his current reaction to the guards.

"You three can leave. Make sure nobody disturbs us." she said to the guards and Gareth, who had followed her here.

"Princess, I advise you not to…" the Elder Vampire wanted to say something, but a furious Princess quickly stopped him by just looking at him.

"I said you can leave, Master Gareth. And tell the werewolf called Vlad that he will have to go for another hunt tomorrow."

The Elder Vampire didn't know what to say. He knew the Princess was still weakened, and if she fought him, he could beat her since she had none of her abilities or could use her Element. Still, his instincts weren't letting him go against her, as she was his leader, and he had to follow. He could feel that her Vampire Charm abilities hadn't been weakened as much as for the rest of her kind, and maybe if she got back to full power, it would be as strong as before.

This should be because of the pureness of her Bloodline, so the throne taken away didn't affect her as much.

"As you wish, my lady. I will pass the message to mister Vlad. Let's go, both of you."

The Vampire Guard followed his Elder without a second thought, while the werewolf showed signs of hesitation. But in the end, he followed the other two.

Pyre turned towards the human who had finished eating the chicken and actually had laid down, taking a nap.

She opened the cell and got inside. The specific cell didn't open with the use of a key but using some magical energy in it. Pyre could do that as not much was needed.

She got carefully closer to the man, but it seemed like he was truly asleep.

She sat to him and pulled his hair away to check his neck, checking the bite marks that she gave him during their previous encounter.

She could understand that the man had rested enough to restore a significant amount of blood but wasn't back to full health.

But she didn't need him to be so for what she had on her mind.

She started undressing, as the clothes would be on the way during the whole thing.

And so she bit her lips to make some of her blood run and then bit the man's neck at the same position as last time.

===???????===

A man was in the middle of a dark room, and he was down on his knees.

He had his arms over his head, as the voices would start another round of the voices. He knew this action wouldn't block them, but he didn't know what else he could do.

He couldn't harm himself no matter how much he had tried like he didn't even have a body, and so he could put an end to his misery.

It started with a woman screaming in pain.

"Push, darling, push. He is almost out." a man said.

The woman's screams seemed to get louder as soon the cries of a baby appeared, and the woman's screams ended. One could hear only the cries of the baby for now.

"He is born, dear. Can you hear him? He is…" said the man, but he stopped mid-sentence for an unknown reason.

Then there was silence for a split second, as many cries could be heard. They weren't of a baby but coming from grown men and women. It wasn't was more like they were morning someone, and a man saying they could hear some prayers.

"…. we gathered today to pay respect to one of our own. Unfortunately, she passed away while she had so much to offer, but let's not forget what she has offered. May ???? rest in peace, and let be known that her soul is in a better place."

Everything except the name of the woman was clear for him to hear.

As the 'priest' continued with his prayers and blessings, silence took over once again.

The familiar cries of the baby returned.

"Will you shut up already? I am preparing your bloody food, you devil's spawn."

The voice was the same as the one of the first man. This time it sounded tired and angrier than before, though.

The baby continued crying, no matter how much the man was shouting at it, and it even seemed to get louder.

More curses of the man were heard and followed by different ways that he was referring to the body whose screams seemed to stop after a moment. The voice of the man was also changing slowly, as it sounded more like an older individual.

"You… took… my…wife."

Then the man's voice, who seemed to have gotten quite weak at that point, was silenced after this last sentence.

Soon, more voices could be heard, speaking one after the other.

"Here for a new job, boy? We have a delivery you can do."

"Take this. Use it to this address and call the men at this number to clear the mess afterward. Don't let any witnesses."

"How much for a night? You seem like a strong individual, with lots of stamina to play with."

More voices spoke of similar sentences, of different tasks and jobs, although it often seemed quite vague.

Explosions, gunshots, people screaming, or moaning could be heard too.

"Hey man, today is your lucky day. Just received some new product that is out of this world. It will make your travel in places you have never imagined."

Then as the voices suddenly vanished.

The man, who was holding his head the whole time, was puzzled, as there were more he should hear.

He raised his head, and then he saw in front of him a naked female figure.

She was the most beautiful person he had seen, even if he didn't know how much time it had been since he had been in her living this endless torment.

"I came here to free you from your prison," the figure said.

The man, for the first time after a long time, had felt hope.

"But I need something from you first."

The man couldn't speak, as he hadn't for so long, as he couldn't even scream in this place, but only hear the voices.

"I need you to swear to serve me. To be my loyal servant until my life ends or I decide to release you from your services. If you agree on these terms, bow in front of me, otherwise I will let you back to your torment."

The man didn't give it a second, or even a first thought, as he bowed right away.

"So be it. From now on, you aren't the man you used to be. You aren't a weak human, but a proud Vampire. Your name shall be from this day forward, shall be Skotos."

And so both figures disappeared, and the dark room was empty and silent.