Blood and Tears - Grumbo Vampire AU

Chapter 25: Truth

Night had fallen quickly, and Wels was standing guard in the main throne room of the castle. The world was quiet, as the moon outside provided a sliver of light that crept in through the windows. The knight was alone, other guards busy patrolling the halls or the kingdom itself, leaving Wels alone to enact his plan.

The front door of the palace was slowly pushed open, an orange glow of a lantern filling the throne room. Xisuma poked his head in, making sure that the hall was truly empty before creeping inside. "Good," He said, his voice hushed. "You're here."

"I wouldn't miss it." Wels smirked a bit, "After what that thing did to me, I want to see him suffer."

"Are there guards down in the dungeon?" The hunter asked as he approached Wels, holding his lantern up to guide his way.

"Yes, but I'm taking over their shift. They shouldn't suspect anything."

"And what's our excuse to the king?" X raised an eyebrow.

"The beast got a bit violent and broke out, we'll say." Wels grinned at his lie, "The silver was rusted enough for him to break free."

"That'll work." Xisuma nodded as he pulled a silver blade from his belt.

"Come on then, let's not waste anymore time." The knight walked up the stairs that led to the throne, which had already been moved aside to reveal the staircase leading down to the dungeon. Wels took the lantern from Xisuma, beginning his descent into the prison.

The stairs spiraled deep under the earth, leading far below the surface. It was cold, damp, the walls and floors made of stone bricks from long ago. It didn't take long for the two to reach the bottom, but they were met with two knights standing guard beside the dungeon door.

Wels approached them with a straight back and firm expression, lowering the lantern he carried. "I'll be taking over the guard position for the rest of the night. You two are dismissed." He said, looking between the guards.

"And what's he doing here?" One of the knights asked, pointing to Xisuma.

"The king wanted a guard with experience in vampire hunting," Wels explained, his voice calm and silky as he lied. "I believe he said it was in case one of those beasts managed to break free. He wanted someone with experience in killing the vampire, in case of an emergency."

The two guards looked between each other, then back at Wels. "Of course, sir." The other knight nodded his head, stepping aside. "We'll head to our next post."

"Good. Wouldn't want to do anything against the king's orders." Wels smirked slightly. With a nod, the knight and his companion left, their footsteps echoing as they began to climb the steps.

Wels casually walked over to the door, pushing it open and gesturing for Xisuma to enter. "Easy," He smirked. "Now we just have to kill this beast."

"Should be even easier." The hunter said as he walked into the dungeon, dragging his gloved finger over the tip of his blade. Wels followed close behind, carrying the lantern that illuminated the darkness around them.

Many different beasts and monsters were hiding in the shadows of their prison cells, curled on the floor as they tried to sleep. Others were too afraid to sleep, watching with wide eyes filled with horror as the hunter and knight walked through the dungeon.

They came to a special cell, with bars made of pure silver. On the floor lay a tired figure, his back facing the two. He groggily sat up at the sound of footsteps, Ex glancing over at the hunter. "Oh," He frowned. "You again. Here to finish me off?"

"Yes." Xisuma's dark eyes stared at the vampire, his grip on the handle of his blade tightening. "I'm finally going to kill you, to slice your throat and let you die. After what you did to Wels, to me, my grandfather—"