Chapter 32

Xain felt an overwhelming sense of concern and fear wash over him upon hearing Ercale's voice. While he was relieved that his friend had returned, the urgency in Ercale's words left him deeply troubled. *What do you mean? What happened?* Xain urgently inquired.

Ercale's response only deepened Xain's dread. *That leech has an artifact that poses a threat far greater than an evolved vampire could ever represent,* Ercale explained.

Xain struggled to grasp the gravity of the situation and tried to draw parallels. *Artifact? Like something similar to Zee's necklace?* he asked.

Ercale confirmed with a serious tone, *Similar, but different in how it functions. Remember what I told you about green hair's family?*

Xain mentally nodded, recalling the previous discussion about the Absaar family. *The leech possesses an artifact from the Absaar family—an orb that contains the eye of Violet Absaar, the one who aided Winter,* Ercale elaborated.

Ercale's response sent shockwaves through Xain's mind, rendering him momentarily speechless. The revelation was so significant that it left him in a state of astonishment.

While Xain was trying to grasp the new information, Lennix noticed something peculiar about him. "Hey, you have a shadow now; that's interesting," Lennix remarked casually, jolting Xain out of his stupor. Zee and Larkin exchanged bewildered glances, clearly baffled by Lennix's comment.

"What do you mean, Xain has a shadow now?" Zee asked, her gaze shifting between Xain and his shadow, which seemed perfectly normal.

"You guys weren't aware? He didn't have a shadow until just this moment," Lennix explained, adding to the group's bewilderment. Larkin scratched his head, appearing thoroughly confused.

Ercale then inquired, *Who's that?* in reference to Lennix, before delving further with *And why are you this injured?* Xain realized he had a lot to clarify for Ercale.

**10 Minutes later**

Lennix appeared genuinely puzzled. "So, your brother resides within you?" Lennix inquired, seeming to accept Xain's and Ercale's improbable story as truth. Xain simply nodded in response.

"So, you and Cain were both aware of these vampires beforehand, no offense?" Zee added diplomatically. Lennix shrugged nonchalantly. "None taken," he replied, and Xain nodded once more.

"And you guys were both gearing up to face this alone?" Larkin questioned, genuinely astonished by the audacity of their initial plan. Xain's repetitive nods confirmed the question. *And you attempted to confront a vampire all on your own without my help?* Ercale's voice intruded into Xain's thoughts, prompting yet another nod from Xain, who was beginning to feel like a bobblehead doll.

Lennix offered an assumption, "I'm guessing your brother had a question?" Xain, displaying a growing proficiency in nodding, affirmed Lennix's supposition.

Lennix probed further, seeking clarity. "So, if I've got this right," he began, "your brother, who was basically your shadow, returned from a tussle with my sister. She wielded some kind of device that managed to best him. Your brother also claims to be a great sorcerer, is that correct?" Xain nodded, he decided to substitute artifact  for device  to avoid arousing suspicion.

While Lennix mulled over the information, Zee voiced the question that had been gnawing at her. "But why did you two attempt this on your own?" There was a tinge of disappointment in her voice, which tugged at Xain's guilt. He tried to justify his actions, explaining, "Cain was quite confident he could handle everything alone, so I followed his lead."

Lennix, seemingly perplexed, shook his head. "Honestly, I've got nothing. I'm not sure what device your brother might have seen," he admitted, scratching his head in genuine confusion.

Inside Xain's mind, Ercale's voice echoed. *So the tick didn't know about the leech's artifact,* he mused. Xain mentally sighed and responded, *Could you please stop giving everybody nicknames? Things are already confusing enough.*

Ignoring Xain's request, Ercale pressed further, asking, *Why is he trying to kill his sister?* Xain then remembered an important detail they were missing. "Wait," he interjected, turning his attention back to Lennix, "you haven't told us why you want to kill your sister yet."

Lennix, realizing he had skipped a crucial part of his story, chuckled nervously. "Oh, right, my bad," he admitted, sticking out his tongue playfully before tapping his own head. Xain cringed in mild disgust, "Ew, don't ever do that again."

Lennix chuckled, brushing off the comment. "Finish your story, then. After that, we'll discuss our plan of action," Larkin suggested.

Lennix once again cleared his throat, ready to continue his narrative.

Lennix, deep in thought, paused for a moment before recalling where he had left off in his story. With a nod, he continued, "Oh yeah, I was telling you about my sister. After I made my offer, she decided to turn me into a vampire. You see, I was always her favorite in the family. So, for the next hundred years or so, we traveled across Aetheria, just two immortal vampires, free to roam both day and night. Sometimes, we'd have a bit of fun, causing  havoc in small villages and terrorizing unsuspecting travelers."

Zee, concerned about the implications, asked cautiously, "Um, did you ever... kill people during your travels?" Lennix responded nonchalantly, "Kill? Well, I wouldn't say kill exactly. Permanently disable, perhaps, but outright killing? Never. My sister, on the other hand, had a bit of a different approach. She didn't mind taking a life or two or a couple hundred, especially when she needed to feed. After all, we still required blood to survive."

Lennix paused for a moment, scanning the faces of his audience to see if anyone had questions. It appeared that nobody did, so he decided to continue with his story.

"Anyway," he began again, "after a while, we stumbled upon Triton, the town's original name before my sister changed it to Moonveil. She developed quite an attachment to the place, the scenery, and everything else it offered. So, she decided to take control. She managed to capture the old mayor and used her mind-control abilities to manipulate most of the townsfolk, which, I must admit, surprised me since I wasn't aware of her having such powers. She appointed me as the Supreme Officer, and then one day, we encountered Mari and her mother while strolling around our newly acquired town."

Lennix continued, "That's when my sister launched into one of her grand speeches about the evolution  of vampires. She believed that being sun-touched made us the most powerful vampires to ever exist, or something along those lines. To be honest, I sort of tuned out during her entire monologue. But the bottom line was that her plans would make unlife incredibly complicated. All I wanted was to fight stuff, and if she goes through with her grand scheme, the things I'd have to fight would be so strong that I might actually get killed. So, that's why I want to stop my sister's madness."

His revelation left everyone in the room momentarily stunned, not just by the gravity of the situation but also by the sheer absurdity of his reasoning.

Zee, Larkin, and Xain, along with an exasperated Ercale, couldn't contain their disbelief. 

"That's..." Zee began, her voice filled with incredulity.

"Fucking..." Larkin chimed in, unable to hold back his frustration.

"STUPID!" Xain concluded, expressing their collective sentiment. 

Lennix, on the other hand, simply shrugged, unfazed by their reaction.