Return to Jorgaldur Volume IV: Reunion

A cure?

Gjaki questioned all her vampire acquaintances, and especially Jiknha. Pokmu's niece knew of some of her uncle's strange experiments, and had been going through his notes.

"I think she wanted to turn Elendnas's blood into something close to the blood of an ancestral vampire. In theory, it's impossible, but that elf must have some kind of special constitution. That's why she must have chosen him. There're some mentions of the procedure, but nothing of a cure, or how to revert the blood to the original. I'll do what I can, but don't get your hopes up," the countess explained.

"I see. At least, we have a clue about what happened. Let me know if you find anything more. Any problem around here?" Gjaki asked.

"Nothing serious, at the moment. But neighboring counties haven't had a fight for almost a year. It's weird. We've also caught at least half a dozen spies trying to sneak in. Although my uncle was scum, I have to admit that his surveillance gadgets works."

Gjaki nodded. It wasn't new. Something had been brewing in the neighboring counties for a while. They were gathering forces, and they suspected that there was a non-aggression pact between them. Everything seemed to indicate that they were preparing to attack them.

Discreetly, they too were making preparations. The former mercenaries, some of whom had comfortably settled down, had returned to training. Some were even eager to get back into combat.

The other counties were also gathering strength. The peace was increasingly tense.

"Maybe, I should pay them a visit," she thought.

It wasn't that hard to go undercover into hostile counties, and leave a few Gates ready. In fact, she had already been creating some. While it was true that they had some spies in said counties, it was also true that she could do more if necessary. By herself, she could create great chaos, and then disappear.

What worried her the most was who was behind it. However, for now, there were only rumors or speculation. Some of them pointed to alleged Krovledi siblings.

Nonetheless, right now, there were more pressing matters to deal with. Although she didn't feel like going, the vampiress opened a Gate to the Beginner's Village. It had been a long time since she had been there.

Between disappointment and relief, she discovered that no one was there. Gjaki wanted to consult the Oracle, although she was reluctant to do so. Talking to them drove her crazy. She might not get any clear answer, but she at least had to try.

"I'll be back tomorrow," she told herself.

Immediately, the vampiress returned to her mansion. She needed a rest from a long and frustrating day. She had been traveling from one place to another, and got almost no answers.

"Perhaps, should I have left him a note? I'll do it tomorrow," she murmured.

"A note? What're you talking about?" Chornakish asked, while getting up sleepily from the sofa.

"Have you been waiting for me? Didn't I tell you that it wasn't necessary?" she scolded him, although without much conviction.

"I missed you," he answered tenderly.

"Do you think flattery is going to save you?" she threatened him as she got closer.

He smiled, and waited for her. He let himself be bitten first and kissed later. The demihuman was no longer the insecure teenager of ten years ago, but he was still totally in love with her.

Gjaki sometimes complained that he was cuter when he was young, although she didn't dislike the adult version at all either. Besides, his blood was still delicious.

"What about Gjaki?" Diknsa asked.

"I think she's back, but the door to their room was locked. I'm afraid we'll have to dine without them. They must be busy," Coinin laughed.

"Again...? They're a lost cause... Here I thought they would only last a few months," a dwarf vampiress shrugged her shoulders.

"We all underestimate them, ha, ha," Coinin's couple laughed, while caressing her bulging stomach.

By looking at them at the table, there was no apparent big difference from ten years ago, but all of them had become much stronger. Gjaki had kept her promise to take them to the dungeon, to help them level up. Those who did less, had risen 20 levels. Others, more than 40. Perhaps, their power wasn't comparable to their savior's, but it was more than enough to be of help.

In addition, they had a training room with a multitude of skills and spells at their disposal. It was much easier to master them when the whole process could be visualized over and over again. Therefore, their power hadn't only grown in level, but in versatility.

In fact, even Gjaki had learned a few, much as she complained that it was easier in-game. Surely, she could have learned more, but getting strong wasn't her main goal, she just needed to be able to defend their way of life. They didn't find sense in losing the opportunity to enjoy it for perhaps having to defend it in the future. Training a little was fine, but not to stop living.

The next morning, the vampiress returned to the Beginner's Village. Her intention was to leave a note to let them know that she would be back later, to ask if there was any way to contact them. In fact, she didn't even know if they would return to that place, since she hadn't seen them in ten years.

To her surprise, they were there. They were looking at her with their eyes hidden behind the mask of two colors, of two expressions. It was as if they had always been there, as if they had never left.

"Anyway, if he's here, so much the better," she told herself, ignoring her own astonishment.

She walked over to them and sat down, ready to ask them about Elendnas's illness.

"There are several cures. Some are impossible to find. Others are too egregious to reveal. Some have been lost in the eternal passing of time," they got ahead.

She looked at them, between surprised that they knew what she wanted to ask, and outraged by such a cryptic and useless answer.

"How am I going to get impossible cures?" she asked them, annoyed.

"What is impossible today may not be impossible tomorrow. What is atrocious today will always remain so. What has been lost, perhaps can be found," they replied, annoying her even more.

"Where do I look for them?" the vampiress insisted.

For a few moments, the Oracle was silent. It was impossible to figure out what they were thinking behind that mask. Finally, they spoke.

"Although highly unlikely, it is not entirely impossible that... one of the lost recipes will return. Although the full cure has been forgotten, some pieces are not unknown. It is known that in the depths of some dungeons, seven crystals can be found. They are necessary, although not sufficient. It's all I can reveal to you."

"Dungeon... Crystals... Like this one?" she showed them some red gems, similar to rubies.

"You have six to go."