His task was simple. They had agreed that she could not be with him at all times. After all, Lirin was heading to Sularia to meet with her sister and sister-in-law for a special birthday treat. Tadgh was to go out in the world, contemplate on what he would do in this world, and meet her in the Laeto Forest. It was where she was going to head after the private birthday bash at the Ancense Ruins. Yet, somehow, everything went so very wrong.

The three women split up, as Celeste and Larka wanted to return to their daughter as soon as possible. Lirin needed to run another errand first in Adeluna. Afterwards, she was doing her normal thing in a tavern, sipping from one person and another. As she played her flute, her eyes landed on two people who were glaring at her. What had she done to warrant glaring hatred? There was something in their blood red eyes that unnerved the vampress, yet she kept her mounting worry from her music as best as she could.

Lirin left the tavern, and tried to hide in the wind. But her magic wasn't working, as if someone had temporarily severed her connection with it. Worse yet, those two red eyed people were following her. As they left the building, an enchantment fell from them, showing a pair of long horns on each head. Demons. The vampress was defenseless. All of her weapons were summoned with her magic, almost never on her person. They had wicked grins as they approached her.

"Afraid, little vampire?"
"You should be."
"We'll let you in on a little secret."
"The liquor was spiked with a magic blocker."
"We didn't know if you'd drink anything from the bar."
"But we were sure that everyone else would be on the menu."
"Looks like we were right."
"You're going to come with us, now." A third demon appear from the shadows behind, causing Lirin to jump at the unexpected voice.
"If I refuse?"
"We don't have orders on your preservation, just your survival." The tone was sinister.

Lirin fought with all she had, but was quickly overpowered by the three demons, and beat into unconsciousness. From Adeluna, they took her deep into the Umbral Depths.They apparently had some sort of torture chamber set up. Chains were hanging from various places in this giant underground cavern, such as the ceiling and walls. Stretching racks and other torture devices were decorating the flame lit room. On one wall was a selection of whips, knives, prodding tools, a table crowded with various tonics and potions for unknown uses. Their little vampire was chained to a wall, holding her hands high above her head as she sat against the base, still unconscious.

The game has begun, the die has been cast. Now it was time for the second player to realize what was happening.

Three wagons moved slowly on the road through the plains. A group of pilgrims on their way holy journey filled the carts. Among them was a familiar red haired man letting his hair dance in the wind. Tadhg had went separate ways with his Mistress, so he could contemplate his existence. She had gone to deliver the gift made for her sister's birthday. It was a private party so naturally he could not join. This did not bother him though. She made plans to meet him in the Laeto Forest. Which wouldn't be far from the final destination of this convoy.

He had signed on to provide security. Although he didn't understand the need he went along with it. When offered payment, he declined, and asked only to join then to get to his final destination. The congregation leader happily agreed, and soon they left the safety of town for their pilgrimage. The journey would take about three and a half days, which was perfect. Beautiful vistas stretched out before him. The breath taking sights he took in, did nothing to quell his uneasiness. The first day had come to an end, and they stopped for the night. Happy voices filled the air with songs around a large campfire.

A couple days later a voice drew him away from the group. He had gone as far as the forest, and rushed to find the vampiress. Upon arriving at the talked upon spot, he saw no sign of her. The only thing there was a parked wagon with an old couple stopping to make their dinner. “Oh my Henry look a demon”, said the woman. She gestured toward Tadhg then the man started to laugh. “With horns like that?” he scoffed then spat on the ground. Tadhg rubbed the stubs on his head where his horns once were. The old man stood up and approached Tadhg quite quickly for someone of his age. “To think this one could kill Laughlin,” he looked back at her, “Are you sure we got the right person?” The old lady nodded and slowly looked him over.

“Are you with his superiors?” asked Tadhg. The old man looked him dead in the eyes. The look was of pure hatred. “Not for his clan no,” The old woman said. The couple had started explaining things to him. Apparently some of Laughlins comrades had been seen in Adeluna. This kind of demons generally don't set foot out here, unless something is going wrong. The name echoed in Tadhg's head Adeluna. He stood up and bid them farewell. He must hurry to the city to see what was up.

As he approached some mountains something felt wrong. His heart string tugged at him. Something had happened to the mistress. He booked it towards the direction his heart was pulling him. After a while he came upon a small cave. The cave itself looked inconspicuous, apart from the danger sign hanging above it. Tadhg ignored this and ran straight in, before he knew it he had plummeted through the entrance down into a spring. When he surfaced a young dwarf woman was startled as she was retrieving clothes from being washed in the water, “You're not a drow are you?” “No I am not” he said as he climbed on the shore. She stared him down, “What brings you to the Umbral Depths then stranger?” He explained his story to the woman who scratched her head, but nodded as he spoke. “Well I did some a few fellas with the pointy horns on their heads, was weird, the scouts say the drows just avoided them.” Demons was the word, demons here and his heart lead him here. He was slowly placing together what was going on. But after traveling further in he noticed the magic of the string was getting fainter.

The call to action had been answered. With weakend magic, Tadhg had to figure out how to find the demon's. Will our hero make it in time to save the vampiress? Find out in the next exciting post!

The first thing that pierced the darkness was pain. Her entire body ached. Slowly, other senses came to her, such as a dry mouth. When she finally managed to unglue her tongue from the roof of her mouth, she realized she had an odd flavor most refereed to as morning breath. Perhaps the worst of everything was the dry, scratchy throat caused by the lack of feeding.

It was the first sign of the need. Lirin's sluggish mind began to work out how long it would be before the dryness turns into a burning need. At the peak of necessity, everything goes downhill. She'll begin to weaken, her abilities slow, and all contact with her magic would be non-existent until she drank the lifeblood of another. With effort, the vampiress opened one eye, the other having something crusted over it, preventing all movement. The scene that greeted her was horrifying. Chains, strange tables with cranks, and countless bottles decorated the earthen room. No… with the way those boots were echoing off the walls as they approached meant they must be underground. She was in a cavern.

Lirin tried to move, and immediately found her hands had been shackled to the wall. Her legs were stiff, refusing to even move underneath her. The boots were getting closer now, a single pair. When they came to the room, Lirin's eye was met by a relatively beautiful female demon. "Good you're finally awake." She remained silent as the woman's eyes passed over the vampiress dismissively. Instead, she walked over to the table with bottles of multicolored liquid. "You and I are going to get to know each other really well, Lirin. Personally, I regret having to involve an outsider, but you understand?"

As she talked, her hands were busy grabbing a piece of cloth and getting it damp with a clear liquid. The woman walked over and knelt in front of Lirin who tried to pull her legs away. "I'm going to clean your eye, little vampire. No need to be so nervous. we haven't even started yet. Those demons got you good, didn't they?" The cloth felt good against her skin as the crusted blood was cleaned away, but whatever was on the cloth burned the cut underneath, causing Lirin to hiss in reaction. "Some ground rules for you, Lirin. You are not here for comfort, so get used to pain. You are not here for information extraction, so do not expect relief in any shape or form. You are bait, and everything that happens down here is purely for my enjoyment, meaning you will not die here. I am to be addressed as Mistress. Nothing more, nothing less. Are we in understanding?"

A glare formed on Lirin's face, scowling at this 'mistress'. "Oh, don't blame me, sweetie. You brought this upon yourself by choosing him. Consider this your punishment." The woman stood and walked back over to the table where she discarded the soiled cloth on the surface. "Tomorrow, the real fun begins, Lirin. Sleep well." Lirin helplessly watched the woman walk towards the exit of the cavern, trying hard to pull on her magic so she can formulate an escape plan. "Oh, and one more thing. All of my shackles blocks the wearer's magic, so no pulling on that wind ability of yours to disappear." With a sinister chuckle, the woman continued out the doorway, leaving Lirin with nothing to do but listen to her boots fade away, and her own thoughts.

Time seemed to be stretched out forever. Tadhg was sure he had seen this same corridor like an hour ago. Only problem is a lot of passages looked the same down here, and he couldn't make sense of where he was or where he was going at all. The interesting problem was the lack of light, and the target his torch makes him to predators who hunt these tunnels. The Drow are even less trusting of visitors then the dwarves are, in fact they might not even give him the chance to say hello. But there were far more dangerous things in these depths. Tadhg sighed lowly, and trudged onward, it was gonna be a long night, or day he couldn't tell down here.

His legs were aching as he sat by a spring. The cool water showed his tired reflection. Tadhg gazed deep into his own eyes. It was weird, he felt attached to her, yet he was only a play thing. What drove him to want to rescue her? His time with the caravan taught him the importance of doing what must be done, without expecting a reward. This was for him, and her. He didn't want to admit it, but he became far more attached to her then just a slave. He felt responsible for her disappearance, and the guilt was sinking in. He should have just left her be instead of growing close to her. She wouldn't be in this position now.

Loud chuckles sounded through the cavern. Tadhg got up and crept around a rock, and hid. A group of drow passed by with baskets full of ore. The mining party stopped and looked around. They glanced towards his rock, and nodded to one another. “I am Iribra, of the imrun clan, we are just miners returning to our city,” the Drow said nervously. Tadhg stepped out slowly from the rock, and waved them off. “Not a dwarf so we don't have to worry” said Iribra to his clan mates, “Correct stranger?” Tadhg approached them slowly with his hands up showing he meant no harm.

Iribra conferred with Tadhg for awhile. Tadhg had explained who he was, and what he was doing in the depths. After exchanging a few silver with the Dark elf, he was giving a general location of some demons. “The problem is,” Iribra stated, “ You need to make your way down a level or so, demons generally spend more time down there.” That was also where they had just come from collecting valuable ore, and gems. They continued to talk while the others relaxed by the spring. In the end Iribra agreed to lead him to an entry to the lowest level of the depths, from there he would have to look for his Mistress by himself.

As the drow had explained there was still lots of ground to cover once he got down there. He was also told to steer clear of an loud confrontations, as the drow and dwarves were fighting over mining right in several areas. They nodded off the other miners, and headed away from the spring toward the direction they had marched from. Tadhg watched the drow closely. Apparently the drow generally avoided demons, or upsetting them, but there have been times where they would antagonize some demons so they'd wreck havoc on an enemies camp. They feared, and understood the demons powers. Tadhg hated it, but he would need a guide for sometime at least.

Very little sleep graced Lirin with its presence that night, thought she did note that being what was assumed to be this far down, it was nigh impossible to determine time of day. She was using the steadily worsening effects of withdrawal to judge by. Each minute that crawls by felt like an hour of burning agony. It was slight at first, the drying out with an itchy irritation that could not be appeased with anything other than the warm, soothing liquid from someone's veins.

There was a small tickle at the base of her skull, blooming and intensifying as a splitting headache the more time passed. As the itch turned into a dull burn, the clicking boots returned. The sound echoed down the hall, signifying that things were about to get presumably worse. Sure enough, the demoness returned, with a small pack this time. She pulled out several items and placed them on her already ladened table. Food, water skins, and one very familiar item. It was Lirin's enchanted silver chalice. Instantly, the vampress lunged forward, mouth salivating at the thought of finally getting the delicious coppery sustenance. Yet, the woman merely chuckled at the reaction.

"I'm sorry, my little vampire, but you're still a bit too strong for me to play with many of my toys. So, today, we're going to play with my potions instead." She chose a lime green filled decanter and carefully brought it to Lirin. Once again, she knelt before her, swishing the contents around gently. "There's a tiny confession I feel I must share with you, Lirin. You are my first vampire victim. So, I need you to let me know how this effects you, okay? Don't be stingy with the details, though. Even the most minute thing could be instrumentally valuable in the name of research." With more strength than anticipated, the demon arrested Lirin's chin and splashed some of the liquid down her throat.

Coughing and sputtering, she was released. Everything seemed to be freezing on the inside, yet Lirin could not double over, could not hold herself. And she feared using her inate abilities to heal or counteract any effects she knew would be coming from this and future poisons. Without the blood necessary to sustain herself, use of those abilities would only weaken her resolve faster, and what would become of the humane moral she so desperately hung onto? Many potions were used, each had painful effects upon Lirin's body. Her body felt like it was going to be ripped apart from the inside out.

All the while, the chalice sat on the table, mocking her. Lirin could hear the chalice filling with a soft bubbling sound, the tangy, metallic armoa saturated the air. While the pain she could live with, it was this that was the most torturous. To have a meal so close, yet so far away and denied her while the body begged for relief.

---

The next day came, and Lirin was huddling against the wall, trying to curl in on herself as she was recovering from the force-fed poisons. Not to mention the now burning need that was beginning to affect everything. Every thought was blood, pain, blood fixes pain. Thirsty, so parched. Once more, the demon came, accompanied by one other. This second, unnamed demon assisted the demoness, arresting Lirin's lunges mid-attempt as they were transferring her from the wall to the table with two cranks on either end. Lirin had attempted to go for her chalice, the scent it gave had been calling to her all night.

"Lirin, I thought I'd be nice and help you stretch out. You've been on that wall so long, you must be cramped. Remember, I want you to be honest with me." As they bound her feet and hands, her body already screamed at the sudden change of position. The demoness turned the crank, the bindings pulling at both ankles and wrists in opposite directions. "Tell me, on a scale of one to ten, how did that make you feel?" Lirin whimpered. "Interesting. And this?" This continued slowly for an hour until Lirin felt she could not move a single muscle. Tears were streaming down her face as she begged for mercy.

Suddenly, a single knife was dragged along Lirin's cheek, causing her to scream out once more. At this point, the demoness's words were drowned out. All Lirin could focus on was her hunger and the pain. Each new slice into her skin was another layer added to the deterioration of the vampress's mentality. Dress now destroyed, this continued until she passed out. "Pity… Have to admire her stamina though. She's resilient. Put her back on the wall, Oisin. We'll continue tomorrow."

The lower reaches of the cavers were hot. Lava spat up from a hole somewhere in the distance. The sound of pickaxes filled the air as workers were busy with their daily jobs. Iribra lead him to a group of miners who were currently on break. One of the tougher looking drows approached them, and stared Tadhg down. It was obvious he didn't appreciate the outsider at the work site. Iribra waved him off, and kept walking towards the small staging area. The gathering of drows stopped working, and watched the two approach. One of them was wearing cleaner clothes, Tadhg assumed he must be the leader.

The leader nodded to Iribra. The others glanced sideways at Tadhg. The drows motioned for the demon to stay still, as Iribra and the leader went to talk. The miners went back to whispering amongst themselves. The few who dared glance towards the demon looked away quickly when they met his eyes. A few of them readied their pickaxes, then left to get back to work. The last two approached the demon. “What are you doing here?” Inquired one of them. The other had drawn a small dagger from his belt. “Just passing through,” Tadhg said, and stood on guard. “Oh are ya now?” asked the knife wielding one. The one with free hands grabbed Tadhg, and pinned him to the wall. The other one grinned, and approached with his dagger. The dagger slowly pierced Tadhg's up arm.

The drow with the dagger was yanked off him, and tossed to the ground. The leader stood before them, and kicked the drow once. “You two, back to work with no pay!; he yelled loudly. The other one let go of Tadhg, and tried to spit out a complaint. “No excuses, back to work” This time the leader pushed this one towards the other. They both got up, and ran towards the work site. “I apologize for my ignorant subordinates,” the leader said, “You just can't find good help these days.” Iribra tried to console Tadhg, but he waved him off. “Come with me, I will show you our mining maps,” said the leader sternly. At the staging area there was a large stone table, with various maps laid out upon it. Some of them were marked with directions from one camp to another. Others showed approximate locations of dwarf staging areas, or places where wild creatures roam.

At this point Iribra have bid him farewell. He relayed to Tadhg that he would no longer follow because he had kept up his end of the bargin. He thanked him, and sent him on his way. The heat in the cavern had increased but it didn't really faze Tadhg. He could understand why the demons chose to inhabit this area specifically. The dark corridors helped hide their insidious flow into this world. This was strange territory to him though. He knows this was not usual territory for this clan of demons he was hunting. Laughlins clan mates were famous for living in upscale cities, and weren't cave dwellers at all. Infact, this would be where they kept the help, and prisoners.


The next time Tadhg was awake, he headed off towards the open chambers. He still had no idea how to tell the time of day. He wasn't even sure how long he had been down there. The lack of timing made him noxious, his body could not decide when to sleep or be awake. His arm ached as the wound was slow to heal. He winced as he wiped the wound, and bandaged it. He was lucky the leader got there when he did. Tadhg wasn't weak but at the same time he didn't want to cause an trouble. The cut was kind of dead, and was starting to get black around the edges, he had no idea what could have happened. The drow's knife it may have had rust, or something else foreign to his body on it. He tightened the bandages, and cringed while continuing.

The corpses of miners lined this corridor. It looks like there had been a battle here. Tadhg approached a figure, and searched the corpse. Upon closer examination he noticed claw marks. There were no stab wounds. These miners weren't murdered by another group. A roar sounds from behind him. The demon did not take the time to look behind him, he ran away from the noise. The corrior got smaller ahead, he wouldn't be able to evade much of anything. The roar got louder, whatever it was, it was giving chase.
Ahead the cavern got even narrower to a point. Tadhg glanced back to see the faint outline of a dragon in the distance. It was fearsome, and upset for some reason. He realized that the miners had their hears eaten out by this dragon, as their chests were torn open. “Demon blood is no good for you” he gasped as he continued running. The dragon roared in response. Maybe it had understood him. It charged even quicker. “Okay that doesn't seem to bother you!” he exclaimed. He tossed an empty potion bottle behind him, it smashed harmlessly on the ground. The dragon ran over it. It growled as it walked over the glass shards.

Tadhg went into a slide as he approached a small hole, at the end of the cavern. He hope that it was big enough to fit through, or he was as good as dead. The slide propelled him through the hole, he waved backwards towards the dragon as he slid through it. Flames followed through the hole behind him, followed by a thump as the dragon hit the wall.

He plummeted from the hole into a wagon of rations. A demon jumped up from his sleeping position, and drew a rapier. “Show yourself,” he commanded. Tadhg stepped out from the wreckage. “Well i'll be if it isn't the little hero,” the demon laughed, and ran for a cavern entrance. Tadhg gave chase, and followed him through to a fortress tucked into a large cavern. “He crossed into the main entry way, “Oisin we've got company!” he yelled before being tackled.

Aibreann was pleased. The vampire was relatively weak now, and becoming more feral by the hour. Of course, the screaming was purely music to her ears. Everything was going according to plan. To have Laughlin defeated by a weakling coward as Tadgh was unthinkable. It was Aibreann's job to make him pay. If he had a soft spot for this vampire, then this was the method she would strike at him. Tadgh will learn not to defy them after this, especially with his precious "Lirin" in their grasp.

Oh they were expecting him to come, foolishly. He would attempt to save her, be her dashing knight in shining armor. Somehow, this little elf managed to twist the coward around her finger, and it thoroughly pissed off Aibreann's superiors. A whelp like him was giving them all a bad name. Aibreann pulled on her boots, her stomach pleasantly full from breakfast. As usual, Oisin was waiting for her by the curtain she had put up for a makeshift door. "Good morning Oisin. Today's the day she looses herself, I can feel it."

The demon had planned on several activities for the day, including a bit of stretching, whipping, and maybe… just maybe… Aibreann grinned wickedly as she walked in through the door, spying her precious victim standing and hissing at her on the wall. "Thirsty? How about a little water?" She laughed, her eyes scanning the room she has spent the last week in daily. On that wall was a variety special tools she liked used on men and women alike. They were over a foot long, ranging from half an inch to three inches in diameter, and all of them spiked with little nubs. The special feature about the nubs was she could control how big they were. When used, they could mess someone up terribly.

Hours has passed, and her screams were dancing off the wall as each snap of the whip bit into Lirin's back. The whip was a barbed nine-tails, each one tipped with a different poison for varying effects. Some boiled the wound, others was like salt, and one burned with acid. Aibreann laughed again when screams were heard. "Shit. He's found us. Oisin, you take care of our unwanted guest. I'm going to report. Make sure he does not find her." Before they left, Aibreann looked back into the room, feeling an odd sense of disappointment, as if her work here would forevermore be unfinished. The sight that greeted her was the bloody, oozing, destroyed back of a practically naked dark haired elf. It was a shame that she could not complete the day's tasks.

---

Oisin went charging down the hall, toward the voices calling his name. He was an imposing demon, standing about seven foot tall, and well muscular. Everyone respected his position, otherwise, he'd knock some heads together and they knew it. In his mind, he was thinking it was impossible to consider that Tadgh found his way to this place. There were so many twists and turns, too many dangers and traps blocking his way. The maze itself would keep him out.

Sure enough, however, when he got to the source of the commotion, there was the red haired, wimpy Tadgh. "Well, well. Didn't think you'd make it here, hornless twit. But this ends here. You'll never find what you seek. Aibreann will make sure of that." With that, he lunged at little Tadgh. Oisin wanted to have a bit of fun with this piece of meat. A knife in one hand, his other balled into a fist, Oisin first punched, then swiped at Tadgh's chest. Upper cuts, slashes, punches, swipes, blocks, parries. It was a deadly dance.

---

Everything burns. Each lash of the whip bit deep, but the pain inflicted paled in comparison to what she felt inside. The blood filled chalice still enticed her, calling to her with the sweet scent. Lirin hung in the middle of the room, her arms bound well above her head, her feet barely touching the floor. It didn't matter that blood was dripping down her back. In fact, it was due to this that the burning worsened. All she wanted was blood. A single drop of blood and she'd be happy.

What she wouldn't give to sink her fangs into those demons, to drink deep of their life fluids. Is this what Celeste went through? When will it end? … So thirsty… It burns.

The demon fell to the ground hard. It's not that Tadhg had much power, it was more he was surprised that he would be tackled. Unfortunately he had sounded the alarm, before he could be silenced. This Oisin must be the demon in charge. Tadhg vaguely remembers the name, he can recall maybe hearing it during eavesdropped conversations but in the demon realm. He was apparently some kind of enforcer, he was sent to do work, when it needed to be done. Apparently the hornless demon rated enough of a threat to send someone of his rank. He enjoys being a thorn in their side, but at the same time he had no idea what he was in for.

The sound of footsteps quickly approached them. They sounded pretty imposing, he guessed these belonged to the enforcer. But he wasn't prepared for what appeared around the corner. A seven foot, jacked demon came into sight. Now he fully understood why he was an enforcer. Oisin spoke to Tadhg as if he knew him. “Who is Aibreann?” Tadhg asked confused. That was a name he was completely unfamiliar with. The enforcer smiled, and pulled a knife. “And I will find her, you look tough, but do keep in mind I killed Laughlin,” Tadhg smirked.

Oisin was nimble for a person of his stature. Their fight took them across the room as more demons arrived to watch. The enforcer swiped his dagger, and punched on the follow through. Tadhg had a rough time continuously dodging the attacks. Multiple punches had connected with his arm, and abdomen. Though the knife had never connected, because he had deflected the knife which left him open for the punches. With each connected punch he could feel his endurance failing him. But he would not stop now, because his mistress needed him.

Tadhg had a bold strategy on how to deal with this enforcer. He would dive through his legs, and kick him in the back of the knees. Hopefully at this point the demon would drop so he could nail him good in the head. Well at least that was the plan. He had a lot of time to regret that choice, as he was grabbed up from his slide, and tossed across the room into a group of waiting demons. They all stepped out of the way so he would hit the floor hard. Then his back was stomped upon when he landed. He let out a sharp scream as his back made a nasty noise when the foot connected with it.

An intense pain shot through his body as the foot stomped again on his spine. Because of his stupidity he was now in a very bad place. Think, think, the words repeated in his head. He vision flashed back to the conflict by the river, when he murdered Laughlin. He could still see the light leave the pretentious demons eyes as the horns were driven home into his body. The blood squirted out from the puncture sites. Then it clicked in Tadhg's head. He had drunken the blood, and got a massive surge of power. The full powered demon blood coursed, and mixed with the vampire venom making a very potent combination, but it only lasted for a short amount of time. He wasn't sure what would happen if he did it again. Of course he had to do something.

Tadhg grabbed the leg as it was coming down for the next stomp. Within a few seconds the attacker was on the ground, and he had pounced. Teeth were sunken into the demons vulnerable neck. Blood flowed from the wound into his waiting mouth. He had to admit, demon blood wasn't that tasty, but it gave him one heck of a high. The victim kicked his legs as Tadhg continued to drain him. “Oi we're still in a fight here!” yelled Oisin. The other demons stood, and watched. Some of them in Awe, some in horror. One even gasped as the demon stopped kicking, and fell limp. Tadhg stood up, and wiped his lips. His eyes made contact with Oisin who stared with horror, and a mouth wide open.

“Well then shall we do this dance again?” Tadhg approached Oisin as the other demons backed away. The enforcer shot him a very irritated look. He was just laying on the ground crumpled, but now he was approaching him with fire in his eyes. “Boys take care of the prisoner,” the enforcer said, he was no clearly annoyed, and had enough of Tadhg's crap. “So what kind of freak are you hornless?” he laughed, “making a meal out of my underlings?” His tone pretty much confirmed that the other demons were just pawns, and didn't matter much to him. They were easily replaceable, some weren't even from their clan, must be locals they recruited for this scheme.

It was clear Oisin had no intention of asking Tadhg about the plague or his progress. At this point they are just sending killers after him. An enforcer wouldn't be sent to retrieve information, but to take care of the loose ends. That was fine with Tadhg, he relished the thought of proving the big boys they were wrong for underestimating him again. They dagger swiped were faster this time. He was trying to finish the job now, play time was over. It was do or die time. As the knife was swung back towards Tadhg, the arm holding it was twisted, and broken. The dagger clattered on the floor as Oisin screamed in pain. His eyes were now filled with pain, as he turned and retreated back down the hallway. Tadhg gave chase as the enforcer ran for cover. They moved across the cavern to a room with a curtain on the far end. In this room was a very familiar scent. The mistresses blood was in the air, the scent invigorated him, as he drop kicked the demon through the curtain, it came down with him. At the far end of the adjoining room was the mistress, her back to him, and surrounded by Oisin's buddies, “My, my all these ducks in a row, how's next?"

Oisin laughed at the comment of killing Laughlin. "That weakling could have been killed by just about anyone. Including that little vampress of yours. You're just dirt." Each knife swipe, while intending to connect, made for an excellent distraction, opening the pathetic excuse of a demon for a punch. Tadgh's stamina was beginning to wane with each consecutive blow to his body. The bold little demon attempted to dive, which Oisin anticipated. Catching Tadgh, the bigger demon threw him to the side, allowing the crowd to do as they will. What he did not expect was for the weasel to latch onto the neck of one of the demons.

What the fuck was he doing? Drinking the bloke's blood? It was insane! Not wanting to test what could have happened to the piece of shit, Oisin struck at him again, only to have his arm twisted roughly, breaking the bone with a sickening snap. The enforcer's screams echoed off the walls, bouncing back and intensifying the sound. For some reason, Tadgh released him, and Oisin ran, cradling his arm as he did, gritting his teeth against the pain as it flared with each step. Of course, the blasted rat followed him, caught him and kicked him into the one room that the rat was not to be in. Fortunately, there were several demons armed and ready for a fight surrounding their prisoner.

They saw what happened with Oisin, and all but two gave battle cries as they charged Tadgh. Of the two that stayed behind, one was female, slender and fair for a demon. She had been watching what was going on, and felt pity, it broke her heart to watch the innocent vampire be tortured for no reason whatsoever other than the sake of torture. Yet, she could do nothing to help ease the pain, could not supply any blood without Aibreann cluing in to a defector's presence. So, she was forced to wait until the proper moment, and bide her time. With the second guard's back to her, the defector helped the unconscious vampire from her bonds, having difficulties keeping her from crashing to the floor.

Taking a single fingernail, the defector scratched herself until she was bleeding. "Wake up… Your lover is here, your freedom nigh." Wiping a single streak across the vampire's lips, the demon slunk back into the shadows to retreat from the monster she knew was waking up.

A dry tongue lapped up the teaser of a taste off the cracked lips. Blood… Must have more blood. Sensations were beginning to come back to the pain addled, blood deprived mind. Hands were unbound, movement had been granted. The sweet smell of blood saturated the air, sounds of a brawl echoed, disorienting the vampire. Yet, right next to her was a single heart beat, pushing and pulling that life giving crimson liquid. Oceanic orbs snapped open, her limbs screaming as she pushed herself up. Taking the guard by surprise, Lirin sunk her teeth into his neck from behind. Blood gushed forth, and the elf drank deep. Each swallow was bliss, sweeter than the release of a sexual orgasm.

He fought, scratching anything he could touch, pulling her hair. Nothing deterred her, for she was finally being fed. The longer she stayed latched, the heavier he got, the less he fought. Lirin guided him to the floor as she drained him, her eyes locked on the group before her. They had not noticed the fact that she was loose, their attention still intent on a familiar red headed demon. Dropping the empty meat sack to the floor, Lirin wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, and licked it. Her eyes flashed red as she charged forward, catching yet another by surprise with a hiss. This time, she was noticed, causing her to dodge and use her meal as a shield as she drank. Another dried husk, another demon felt her fangs. The fight and meal continued until it was only her and Tadgh left.

Dropping the last corpse from her grasp, the vampire made a beeline for the table, grabbing her chalice. Without pausing for any reason, the crimson liquid inside filled her insatiable, burning need. Dry for so long, everything burned. Finally, the chalice was replaced on the table accompanied by a satisfied sound from Lirin. The back of a hand was racked across her lips once more. Glancing upon her attire, the shredded rags were discarded shamelessly.

Lirin looked at her hands, flexing them experimentally. There was a power she was not accustomed to filling her every fiber. Wounds inflicted over the last week healed without a trace, the exception of the one over her eye. With a dangerous smile, the elf turned her attention to Tadgh. A strong gust of wind pushed the demon against a wall, Lirin pinning him there in an instant. She pressed her nose against his throat and inhaled deeply as it trailed up his neck to his jaw. "Delicious," she purred. The vampress pressed her lips against his, immediately pushing her tongue into his mouth. He could taste the tang of blood still thick on her.

"Ma serannas, ma vhenan. Ame revas. Ar sildeara soun." A giggle escaped her, strange to her ears, even if it sounded mischievous. There was a rat breathing in the opposite corner of the cavern room. She could smell it, hear its heart. Beneath her hands, a pulse was strong, vibrating and deep as a drum. Blood rushed through little veins, from finger tips, to toes… to something else. Was he frightened? Excited? Both? Would his mistress attack him? Teasingly, she leaned into his neck, gently nibbling at his throat. "Tadgh, you came for me. I didn't expect you to. I feel different… Stronger. Everything feels intensified."

She jumped and wrapped her legs around her savior, pressing her lips into his once more as she forced him to hold her weight. This felt different, as if she was soaring high above the world despite the fact they were far under ground. "My little sex slave, saving his mistress. Teehee. You did well. I'll give you a reward."

Tadhg had to admit that catching someone off guard is easier when they're running away from you. The kick had connected, and the enforcer tumbled into the room containing the vampiress. The moment he opened his mouth he knew he made a mistake. Several armed demons turned to face him. One of them watched Oisin tumble, and come to a stop. “Oh hell no!” yelled one of them. They one at a time looked at once, then drew their weapons. “Don't everyone volunteer at once” Tadhg laughed. All but two of them charged across the room. Now he'd done it, his cocky words have gotten him into trouble. Several armed demons now charged down towards them. He glanced past him, and noticed two others were still hanging by the prisoner. They better not hurt her, he would slaughter them where they stand.

The hornless one gritted his teeth, and drew a dagger from a sheath on his back. As he brought the blade to bare, and took a ready stance, the blade began to glow. The first demon reached him, and slashed with a long sword. Tadhg blocked with the dagger, which hissed as it came into contact with the glowing dagger. Slowly smoke rose from the contact point. Then the blade of the dagger started to cut through the now weak heated metal of the attacker's long sword. The tip dropped to the ground, and Tadhg followed through, and brought the dagger to the attackers abdomen. The heat from the blade was enough to cauterize the wound almost instantly. What was left behind was a nasty scar, that wasn't bleeding.

The screaming only caused Tadhg to get more sure of himself, “So do you want more?” The demon slunk away, and another took his place. This scrawny black haired demon wielded, and impressive looking battle axe. He could only guess these weapons were acquired from the sounding land, because that look like a dwarven weapon. This one was barely an adult, must've been a conscript. “They're grabbing kids for their fights now?” Tadhg chuckled as he dodged a swipe from the axe. “If it pays good enough,” the demon said bluntly. Tadhg shook his head, and continued dodging swipes. Across the room he heard the chains rattling. When he got a chance to glance away he saw the mistress latched onto one of the demons.

He was thankful she was okay enough to feed, but he was still very upset. The sight proved enough of a distraction, as he was hit with the blunt end of the axe. This caused him to stumble backwards. The young one use this to his advantage, and swung hard. Tadhg managed to slide out of the path of his blade, only to be punched by another demon. He could just not catch a break. But he had a job to do, so he pulled the other demon down, and stabbed him in the gut, this time the blade was cold to the touch so the demon began to bleed on the floor. The demon struggled, and Tadhg let him go.

His mistress grabbed the demon as he ran from Tadhg. After a short time he was drained of blood, and dropped to the floor. Now it was just him, and her alone in the room, well alive at least. She was upon him within seconds, now completely naked. Aggressively she kissed him forcing her way into his mouth. She whispered into his ears, then gently nibbled his neck. Did she know what she was doing to him? That question was soon answered as she pounced on him. He did his best to hold her up as she wrapped her legs around him. She continued to nibble his neck, then promised a reward. He had a good feeling he knew what it was, it was gonna be a long night.