The three companions made their way back up to the rescued beastkin in the cathedral. The Foresters and others that were followers of the goddess crowded around those rescued. Some sat there hugging the younger ones. The injured man missing the arm was busy talking to the other two men off to the side. Lidilia was listening to the older woman as she was speaking. Two of the kids were just eating from the bowls, shoveling in faster than Tad thought might be healthy. All of them had blankets wrapped around them.

Lamruil had placed the healing mushrooms on a cutting board cooks had set up on a table near the fire and was busy cutting the mushrooms into three equal parts down the center of the stalk. It looked like hard work not having them fall apart, but he was getting the job done quickly with a small paring knife.

Lamruil looked up when done, "No, give each of these pieces to anyone that needs a limb or other body part regenerated and give them several helpings of extra food over the next couple days, and they should be full health in less than a week.

Tad remembered how hungry he had been after eating one full mushroom and watching his small finger grow back over a few days. He wiggled the finger, and it seemed just like the old one he lost in his dual.

Tad walked to Lidilia, "Lidilia, we haven't met yet. I'm Tad. I've brought some food that will help restore their injuries. "

"I have you to thank for saving my people?" asked Lidilia, who had tears in her eyes holding one of the smaller girls they had rescued. The girl appeared asleep.

"I'd like to think of it as a group effort. And if I were a counting man, I'd say Nico contributed a bit more than Lamruil or I. Here if you would give one of these to each of the kids, " Tad handed her five of the mushroom pieces on a small wooden plate. "I will assist the gentleman over there, thank you. "

Nico smiled at the woman. A big smile was on his face. He raised his eyebrows a bit and nodded to her as she watched him.

Tad went to the three men talking off to the side of the cathedral. The man Lamruil had carried earlier had a stump just below the shoulder where his arm used to be. Tad's healing magic had closed the wound, and fresh pink flesh covered the end. The ugly infected scab was gone. The men noticed Tad and his companions as they approached. The one missing his arm had a blanket wrapped around himself.

Tad walked up to him, "Here, eat this, it will help mend your arm. " The man took it as Tad looked at the other two standing there.

"Hello, I'm Thaddius Rockgrip, or most call me Tad. If that is possible, I have some questions for you all about the attack on your village, " said Tad taking a more formal tone.

The older man nodded to Tad, "Yes, Master Rockgrip, we know who you are and wish to thank you for saving our families and us. I'm Ilias Boraue, and this is Throf Forrester. The man you just saved is Jabosun Thrulill." Ilias nodded to the man finishing the mushroom Tad had handed him.

"Nice to meet all of you. Just Tad, please, I did have some questions. Those Kyons who attacked your village, do you know why they did this? " asked Tad of the man.

Boraue glanced at Throf. Tad could sense he was uncomfortable with answering the question. Tad just waited. Finally, Throf, Lidalia's father, spoke. "They attacked us in the middle of the night. They brought strong magics, killed our god and protector, and assaulted the city walls. We were not ready for this. Our god had always protected and warned us in the past. He failed us, or we failed him. I am not sure. " He stopped there a second before continuing with a more serious voice, "The Kyontheós do not need a reason to attack the pride's cities. We have been at war with them for centuries. This was the first time they had so many silver weapons. Also, they had strange magics we had not seen before. " Throf looked at Boraue and then Jabosun.

Jobosun spoke. He sounded tired and spent, "They had magic this time. Dark magic we had not seen before, our god Ivamm the Lion could not stand against it. The dark magic engulfed him, and then he was gone. I saw the magic. It was alive, a living dark cloud of death. " He finished the statement by spitting on the floor in an effort to ward himself from the evil of speaking about it.

Tad nodded to the man, "Did you see the god fall, or was he just gone? "

"He was gone screaming rage into the night. After that, the Kyon's charged, and they were inside the city in minutes. Our protector was not there to save us from them, " said Jobosun.

"Ok, thank you for your time. Throf please ask Bernard the Quartermaster to find these people some clothes. Also, make sure the cooks know that anyone that eats one of those mushrooms will need double food. Thank you for your time, and I wish you a speedy recovery Jobosun. " said Tad nodding to the injured man, and he left with Nico and Lamruil.

Tad went with his friends to get some food and think about what he had just heard.

Kettle broke into his thought as he was finishing up his meal, "Tad, you need to come to talk to Aea. She is demanding all types of things like we have to reconstitute or feed Synethaes those blood pods. I do not know what to do. The goddess said we had to grant her greatest desire. Right now, she wants us to feed blood to the mistress vampire. I thought showing her that the other two vampires were in the other tubes might calm her down, it didn't' Tad."

Tad sighed, "I'll be right there. Could you not talk to her till I get there? "

"I have no intention of talking to her. She keeps screaming about being a princess and some other such nonsense, " replied Kettle.

***

Tad looked around the cathedral. It was after midnight, most people were off to sleep while he walked to the World Egg, which was still resting on its wagon. The cage the lasso spider was in wasn't next to it any longer. He wondered where that had gone too, probably scavenged for parts or metal.

"Kettle is there a way for me to talk to Aea without letting her out of the tube? " asked Tad as he looked at the tube.

"Certainly, I can use the micro-perforation function." A few seconds later, the front of the tube turned opaque, and Tad was looking at a woman in a ragged frilly black dress with red glowing eyes and black hair. She was very pale, and Tad thought she might be of average height. She would have been pretty if there wasn't so much anger on that face. She stopped and looked at him as he looked back at her. She wasn't expecting the metal walls to become opaque.

"Hello, " said Tad.

She shook her head, indicating she couldn't hear him.

A section of the surface turned milky grey, "Try it again, " said Kettle.

"Hello? " repeated Tad.

The woman nodded, then her face got scary angry, her eyes glowed, and her fangs showed, "Let me out of here. " said Aea.

Tad grimaced and took a deep breath, "Hello, Nice to meet you too. " Then Tad smirked, waiting there.

Aea's face calmed a bit as she squinted at him with anger plain on her face, "Why do you have me in this thing, " she pounded on the sides of the tube containing her.

Tad smiled, "There we go. Now your understanding. I am Thaddius. Nice to meet you," said Tad raising an eyebrow.

Tad watched as a couple more flashes of anger crossed her face as she thought, "I am Aea. I am a princess of this valley, and my uncle is the King. You will let me out of this thing at once. "

Tad shook his head again negatively. Then he took a deep breath, held it, and started over, "Hello there, Nice to meet you. My name is Thaddius Rockgrip." Then he waited as Aea realized she had no authority over him or this valley any longer.

Tad watched as Aea went from aggressive and haughty to demure and sympathetic. He almost thought she was going to start crying, but he could sense her through the tiny holes in the surface of the tube. Something predatory was circulating in her brain and her behavior. He had no intention of letting her out yet, not like this, blood pods or no blood pods. "Please, let me out. It's so scary in here. " That was amazing how fast she changed. She should join a carnival with that act, thought Tad.

Tad frowned, "I have this feeling you are never getting out of there at this rate. Perhaps you are not aware of your situation. Can you tell me anything about yourself? Right now, I'm half-convinced to close this tube up and leave you there and forget about you. "

Anger entered Aea's face again as she stopped trying to get him to feel sympathetic towards her, well, at least not like a crying girl trying to pull on his heartstrings. Then she stood taller and brought her shoulders up. A more regal pose for sure, "I am Aea Dishalmi, of the house of Dishalmi. My father is the brother of the King, and I am a princess of the Kingdom of Cheshik and a member of the house of Dishalmi. I can see through that opening there that we are in the Cathedral of Niucrelath, and I am to be her high priestess. "

Tad nodded, "Ahh, much better, well Princess, I regret to inform you that you have been away and asleep for a very long time. The kingdom of Cheshik, which I assume includes the Valley of Statues here, is no more. Not just no more, but cursed for almost a thousand years since your goddess well and my goddess now, Niucrelath, lost in battle."

"What, my family is all gone? A thousand years? That is impossible, " shouted Aea as she became angry again. Tad was hoping she would take that better. He actually knew she wouldn't, but hope was all he had right now. He could feel she wasn't upset about losing her family. He didn't know if that was the vampire thing or just being a princess that didn't care for anyone but herself thing. She was angry her plans and world were gone, and he was trying to decide if it was just the plans or her world too.

"Well, if you would like, I can come back later after you have had time to calm down, " said Tad. Then he felt Aea cast a spell in the tube. It was a life magic spell that had no effect on the tube. It also looked like it didn't work correctly as Aea jumped when the magic rebounded into her. Where the life energy struck her, it left large angry red welts.

Tad bowed his head a moment, closed his eyes, and prayed, "Niucrelath, I could use your help here. "

Niucrelath's voice came into his mind, "Oh, my champion, I think you are doing a fine job. I await your solution to my problem. "

Tad projected back with a note of frustration, "You just want her to want something other than being a high priestess? That was it, correct? "

Niucrelath replied, "Yes, she needs to want it more than her lifelong goal to let me out of my promise. "

"How old was she before all of this? " asked Tad.

"In human years, she was twenty before she was turned, " replied Niucrelath.

"And you're not going to help with this? " asked Tad.

"Dear Thaddius, I have already helped, " replied Niucrelath, and then Tad felt her leave his mind.

Tad refocused on Aea, who had stopped jumping around in the tube, like she was on fire. Life magic must burn her or hurt her.

"Ok then, I'm going to explain a few things, then you are going to either make a few magically bound promises and agreements, or you will be spending the rest of your tim----" Tad paused as the loud noise of hoofs landing on the wagon came to him, and the World Egg shook. A unicorn horn, then the rest of a unicorn pushed its way into the World Egg, shoving Tad to the side.

Tad projected, "Jack, what's going on? "

Jack stood there staring at Aea, still as a statue. Aea was staring back at him. Neither of them moving.

"Jack? Jack… " Tad tapped his friend on the shoulder. He didn't move or acknowledge Tad's presence.

"Kettle are you seeing this? " asked Tad.

"Yes, there is some magic flowing into the tube from Jack," said Kettle.

Tad frowned as he used his magic site and saw it now. Several different types of energia were flowing through that grey spot into the tube and circling Aea. Did the vampire cast some sort of spell on Jack? What's going on?

With worry in his voice, Tad projected loudly, "Kettle, close the tube tight!"

Tad watched as the greyish perforated surface became solid again, and the cover obscured, then eliminated his view of Aea.

Jack shuddered. The tip of his horn touched the surface of the tube, he moved it to the left. There was a loud scraping sound, and a scratch showed on the surface. Whoa, Tad knew the metal of this artifact was almost indestructible.

"Jack, snap out of it. What's going on? " projected Tad powerfully with energia forcing the projection.

Jack's head swayed a few times, Tad backed away, avoiding the horn as it swung by. After several moments, he stopped, "Tad, who is that? "

Tad studdered a second, "uhh, that's Aea. What's going on, Jack? "

"She is the one, "Jack's horn tapped the surface again, "Do you know how long I've waited for her? " asked Jack.

"Jack, what are you talking about? She is a vampire," said Tad.

Jack just stood there staring intently at the surface of the tube. "No, she isn't. If she was, she couldn't be the one. " replied the unicorn.

"The one what, Jack? Can you explain what's going on? " asked Tad, now completely lost.

Jack backed out of the World Egg and then turned, jumping down to the Cathedral floor.

"She is the one that is going to save me, " said Jack.

"Jack, have you been drinking too much again? You are not making sense. You are right here. You don't need saving. " projected Tad as he stepped out, following the unicorn as Jack made his way over to the Fey Tree.

The unicorn stood there then he did something Tad didn't expect. The unicorn kneeled in front of the tree. Jack folded one leg, kneeling, then the other briefly. Then Jack stood back up.

Tad spoke quietly with surprise on his face, "What are you doing, Jack?"

"I'm praying and giving thanks for an unexpected gift, " said Jack as he turned back to Tad.

"We need to wake the other ones. I need to know how to save her from becoming a full vampire. " then Jack paused for a moment.

A projected a regal voice that Tad thought sounded more at home in the Elvin courts of Balneiros than here. "Thaddius Rockgrip, I, Jaquine Agagrun, Warden of Nature, request your assistance in saving Aea Dishalmi, the last Princess of the Kingdom of Cheshik and the Valley of Statues, from the vile vampiric curse placed upon her by her goddess. "

Oh shit, thought Tad. He let out the breath he had been holding, "Of course, Jack, I offer my full assistance to you, my friend. Just so you know, I don't think the goddess cursed her, it was Yevgeny Zajíc, but I will help you in the goddess's name." Then he smiled at his friend. What in the hells did he just agree to?

Jack nodded his horned head, then reared back and whinnied loudly, and something Tad didn't expect happened. Jack flared with energia, a bright gold then a pure white. Then he came back down. Jack had been grey for as long as Tad could remember. Now he was white, and the slight light from the cathedral radiated off him.

"We will leave in the morning," said Jack.

"Jack, we are going to look for Samphire. Do we do this after? And where are we leaving too? " asked Tad.

Jack tossed his head back, and his mane sparkled, "I do not know. You are correct, we will help Samphire, and this will give us time to awaken the other vampires so they can tell us how to cure Aea. "

Tad nodded, shaking his head and sighing, "I'll go get some more pods. "

It was going to be a long night again. "Oh, I'm not sure if this will help, " Tad reached into the limited bag of holding on his belt and pulled out one of the few items that would fit in it. The book about vampires that Leana, the artificer workshop keeper, had given him when they first met. "Leana said it contained information on vampires. "

"I'll start with that, put it on the table in the wagon and retrieve the pods, " said Jack.

Kettle chimed in, "Tad, you have a new quest. "

***