Chapter 63Lady Lucia looked at the man that had turned her into a vampire and involuntarily shuddered. Rage stood staring at her with a smirk on his face. His midnight black eyes were so intent and probing, she knew with the flick of his iris, he could cause her infinite pain. On either side of him were his vanquishers, ugly-looking beasts with battle scars covering their bare chests, and hands almost gracing the floor.Behind Rage, someone stood in his shadow. Lady Lucia frowned and squinted her eyes, waiting for the moment he would move. He had to at some point, right? After all, he was not a statue. From the corner of her eyes, she noticed the other Mages's heads were lowered and her gaze moved the man in the shadow back to Rage.She watched as the smile slowly wiped away from his face and one of his brows rose. She read his silent message clearly. Do you have anything against me becoming the leader of

Chapter 65"Now, my lady, concentrate on the stone in front of you. Imagine it as an opponent, and no - you are not angry - you just want to incapacitate the opponent in order for you to get him, or her, out of your way."Germaine nodded and looked at the large stone on the ground a short distance from her. She felt the impatience slither upward her spine, like a snake, but she pushed it down. Yes, it had been a week since the last time she cut some of the trees in half, with her powers, but since then, they had become dormant.Nothing she did since then had worked. It was like she was powerless. She sighed as she closed her eyes and removed all forms of distractions from her mind. She concentrated instead on the stone. As she did, she felt something unfurl inside of her. At first, it was sluggish, but she willed it, like a scared dog or cat being coaxed from its hiding place. As she did, she felt a buzzing

Chapter 67Germaine's heartbeat sped up as she jerked up from the bed. She blinked furiously, almost doubting what she had heard.Keratin? Was that you?At first, there was nothing but an uneasy silence, and then she heard through her mind, a loud gasp.My love? My love, is that really you? Germaine, please answer me.Tears filled Germaine's eyes as she let out a long sigh of relief. Finally, she could hear him. She could hear Keratin. She cleaned the tears from her face and laid back on the bed and with a blissful smile, curled up.Yes, Keratin, it's me. I'm here, I'm very much here for you.She heard a choking sound as if he was trying not to cry, but she couldn't be sure.Thank the moon goddess you are safe. I knew it, I knew you were still alive and would not leave me, I just knew it. What happened to you? Where are you? Please tell me.Germaine smiled wider before replying to him. One of Rage's men took

Chapter 70Germaine's breath whooshed out of her as she stood staring at the mage. "Wh. . . what do you mean?"The mage shook his head and looked at her with a solemn gaze. "Magic, my lady, magic that someone has used on you. My guess is that-""I don't want guesses, mage, I want facts, I want-"The mage held up his hand in the air and she fell silent, watching in confusion as he rushed from the sitting room. It took only a few seconds, and he returned holding a particularly large colorless rune in his hand."Hold this, my lady." He said to her."But. . . why? What do you hope to achieve?"He let loose an impatient sigh. "This rune can show if you have somehow been tainted with magic that is not part of you."Germaine's brows pinched. She did not understand a word of what the mage had just said but she knew it was better she did as he said, after all, she owed the release of her magic to him. She reached out

Chapter 72Even the one meant to redeem and unify the various realms began to get tired at a point.Tiredness seeped into Germaine's body but she continued to relentlessly push herself to the limit as she ran, giving herself no time to think or ponder on anything except to get to safety.But that was the issue - where would she go to be safe?When she was thrown into the sea, the mage saved her, but now where were he and his wife?Where was she even to go from here on?The questions went around and around her head like a loop not giving her a moment's respite. Her mind drifted to her discussion with Keratin and she realized with a jolt that now more than ever, she needed to know where the forest of the goblins was.For all she knew, she had already passed it. Ennie's ragged breathing had begun to feel like a drive for her to keep moving, instead, she forced herself to slow down and wait for her to catch up wit