Page 70 of Red Queen

Our boots scrape against the stone floor as we head for the exit.

The oppressive air of the dungeon clings to my skin as we move silently, a pack of vampires denied their victims.

Suddenly from the dark, several of Catarina’s sentries appear and block our path.

“General Amanar! To arms!” Nicolai’s voice is sharp as he draws his blade in one swift motion.

Catarina’s vampire guards’ fangs are bared, eyes burning with bloodlust. In an instant, swords swing, and the clamor rings through the underground corridor.

“Damn these leeches!” Marianne’s curse is almost drowned out by the sound of her sword cleaving into flesh, splattering blood across the stones.

I surge forward toward the nearest guard. My blade sings its violent tune, finding its mark in his chest. He snarls, trying to retaliate, but I’m faster. I rip my sword free, and his body crumples to the ground, a grotesque puppet severed from its strings.

“Behind you!” Ivan’s warning comes just in time.

I pivot, parrying a strike that would have spelled my end. Our swords lock, and I can smell the stench of decay on his breath. With a roar, I summon all my strength and shove him back before bringing my blade down in a vicious arc.

“Where are they coming from?” Nicolai dispatches another guard with a precise thrust.

I grunt, my voice a growl of fury. “Just send them all to hell!”

The vampire guards are relentless in their attack. But with our own inhuman vampire strength, we fight them off, each battle cry and spray of blood inspires our determination. Our movements are honed by years of training and tempered by the heat of battle.

The vampire guards press on relentlessly, their red eyes gleaming with malice as they seek to overwhelm us with sheer numbers. But we are warriors forged in the crucible of war, unyielding in our defiance against those who would seek to snuff out the light.

With every strike and parry, we push back against the surplus of evil that threatens to engulf us. The rhythm of combat pulses through my veins, driving me forward.

Nicolai, Ivan, and Marianne face the vampire guards with an inhuman blur of blades. The atmosphere is infused with the meeting of swords and the grunts and snarls of relentlessness.

“Keep them off me!” Marianne’s voice soars above the impact of weapons as she fends off two attackers at once.

Ivan’s sword blurs in a flurry of movement as he moves to assist her. “I’ve got your back!”

Besieged on all sides, we stand back-to-back, a fortress of flesh and bone.

“Take heart, my comrades! For vengeance!” My cry echoes through the cavernous space.

Blood coats our hands and arms, a crimson stain.

“Watch out!” Ivan’s warning barely precedes a guard’s lunge toward my throat.

With a swift sidestep, I easily evade the attack and retaliate by sending him crashing into the wall where he sprawls to the ground.

“Eleanna, this is for you,” I hiss as my blade finds another victim.

The guards are faltering, their numbers dwindling under our onslaught.

“Alexandru! To your left!” Nicolai shouts just in time for me to pivot and block a fatal swipe aimed at my side.

With a powerful thrust forward, I end the threat.

The last of Catarina’s guards crumples to the ground, his life extinguished. Silence descends upon us, broken only by our heavy breathing. We stand at the heart of the ruin, victorious yet hollow.

“Let’s move out,” Marianne says, her voice edged with fatigue, yet the steel in her gaze remains unyielding.

I nod, exhaustion mixed with the failure to find Eleanna weighing heavy on my chest. “We might have failed tonight, but we’ll regroup and plan our next step.”

“Eleanna needs us,” Ivan says, wiping his sword clean on a fallen guard’s cloak. “She’s alive, it’s why she’s not here or?—”

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