Chapter 16 / Big and angry

July 1st, 15.001.

Refuge City, Velmore Alps, Umbra [Vampire Continent]

The convoy climbed the last curve of the pass just as the sun broke through the mist, and suddenly the first settlement of the Velmore Alps spread out before them.

It was not a fortress like Bloodspire, and it was definitely not like the underground world of Velmore City. The town, small but well equipped, looked carved from the mountains themselves; terraces of pale stone threaded with polished steel, windows gleaming like shards of ice. Bridges crossed from cliff to cliff, their arches strung with glowing wards that shimmered light blue. On the lower levels, hot springs fumed into the cool air, their vapor curling around balconies of immaculate black glass. Snow had melted completely, but if you looked above, on the highest of the Alps afar, everything was white. 

The van rolled onto spotless streets. Trees trimmed sharp, roots bound in enchanted soil. Lamps glowed like steady daylight. Signs shone with crisp silver script.  Merchants didn’t shout—their stalls were quiet, ordered, selling ink, minerals, and jewelry etched with runes as if they belonged in a gallery.

Sukira slowed and parked in front of a tall structure built into the cliffside. Its façade was stone, but the doors were made of black metal, polished like a mirror. 

Eloise’s fingers tightened on her lap, her eyes wide with awe. “It’s beautiful. Look at the wards—they’re perfectly symmetrical. And the way they’ve stabilized the springs with runic anchors—it’s…” She trailed off, almost embarrassed by her own excitement.

Dominique gently laughed while listening to her amusement. 

Jeda’s car pulled up behind them, and he hopped out with his usual grin. “Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Alps. Fresh air, polite neighbors, and the kind of money that makes Velmore City look like a trash bar.”

Sami parked her bike last, sliding her helmet off. Her red hair tumbled free as she snorted. “Too clean. Feels fake.”

Elon stepped out, gaze lingering on the sigils carved into every balcony and bridge. 

Locals passed them in quiet pairs—vampires dressed in long coats of pale gray or deep blue, their voices low, their eyes polite but distant. They didn’t stare at the newcomers. This was a city used to strangers who came, lingered, and left.

Sukira locked the van, her voice clipped. “Unload quickly and lightly. We will only stay for a night.”

The Velmore Alps were unlike any other region of Umbra. Built into the spines of the southern mountains of the continent, the settlements were designed less as fortresses and more as sanctuaries—polished refuges of stone and geothermal steam. In contrast to the restless sprawl of Velmore City, the Alps valued silence, education, and refinement. Their citizens, often the wealthiest and most educated vampires in Umbra, cultivated an identity of detachment: polite, cultured, and unshaken by the conflicts that shook the other lands. Political disorders and wars were regarded as distant storms, acknowledged but never allowed to disturb the mountain calm. To live in the Alps was to embrace seclusion from the rest of the country's struggles, a privilege sustained by wealth, advanced technology, and the natural barriers of the land.

Beyond the city wards, however, the wilderness remained untamed. The Alps were home not to Calamities or demons, but to beasts, creatures, and spirits tied to old Umbra magic and natural traits, manifestations of the mountains themselves. Travel between settlements was only permitted during daylight, when the highway barriers could be activated to repel them. At night, those defenses fell silent, and the peaks returned to the dominion of the wild. For that reason, journeys through the Alps were slow and dangerous—demanding caution, patience, and respect for powers older than the cities carved into the mountains.

♥︎

Inside, the building was warmer than expected. Heat pulsed through the polished walls, carried by pipes that whispered with steam. The lobby opened into high archways lined with runes glowing a steady white, not the erratic neon of Velmore but a constant light, imitating the sun. A fountain in the center hissed with mineral water, its vapor perfumed with fresh herbs.

The staff—vampires and halves in tailored deep gray uniforms—greeted them with soft bows but little else. There were no questions or suspicions. Guests came and went; that was all that mattered.

Eloise’s voice dropped to a reverent whisper. “It’s… so calm.”

“Too calm,” Sami muttered, kicking her boots against the marble floor. 

“Oh, c’mon, let’s enjoy this for a bit,” Dominique said. “We might even get into the terms; they have healing properties and are super relaxing. “ 

Risha spun in a slow circle. “...this place is boring”. 

Jeda laughed, tossing his jacket over one shoulder. “I agree with you, kid.”

Elon said nothing. His attention was on the windows, on the faint reflection of his deep blue eyes in the glass. Beyond the wards, the mountains seemed dark and endless. The calm of the city only made the wilderness feel closer, waiting.

♥︎

July 5th, 15.001.

Velmore Alps Capital, Umbra [Vampire Continent]

The convoy left the refuge city at first light. The sun was weak, already veiled by thin clouds, but the wards along the highway were alive in answer to it—curtains of pale blue energy shimmered on either side of the road. Beyond them, the mountains stretched vast and white-gray, broken by black and red forests that climbed toward the peaks.

Risha asked to travel in Jeda's car this time. 

“They’re glowing…” Risha pressed his forehead to the glass. 

“Those are highway barriers,” Elon explained quietly. “They work with a strong magic spell mixed with a technology-based trigger. As long as the sun touches them, they hold. By nightfall, they collapse. It's actually a very simple concept but incredibly well executed.”

“And then?” Risha asked.

Sami’s motorcycle swerved lazily between the van and Jeda’s car. She lifted two fingers from the handlebars, smirking. “Then the spirits come down to play. Trust me, kid, we don’t want to be out here when that happens.” She was on the speaker in both of the group’s cars. 

The road cut abruptly through the cliffs, narrow enough that they could see nothing but the drop on one side and irregular rock on the other. Fog rolled down from the higher peaks, scattering the light into fractured silver. From time to time, creatures moved beyond the barriers—antlered shapes, wings unfurling, the gleam of eyes that burned too bright. The beasts never crossed the wards, but their presence pressed heavily, a reminder that the road allowed no carelessness.

By noon, the mountains opened into a valley, and the capital revealed itself. Unlike the quiet settlement they first encountered, this city thrummed with life. Broad avenues ran between buildings of pale stone and black glass, their façades etched with glowing sigils that doubled as advertisements: runic boutiques, alchemy studios, and cafés perched on terraces that overlooked the white peaks. Vampires in tailored suits strolled arm in arm, voices low but animated, their jewelry flashing with quiet wealth. The scent of coffee and spiced food drifted from open doors, mixing with the clean chill of mountain air.

“Stylish,” Jeda whistled as they rolled into the central square. “Velmore City could take notes. At least here they know how to polish the grime off.”

Dominique adjusted her coat, gaze sharp. “I think I wanna go shopping.”

Sami, who was a born-and-raised Velmore girl, looked at the citizens with a bit of a disgusted eye. “They buy survival. Technology, wards, servants. This is the Alps’ capital; it sells safety and comfort in the middle of nowhere.”

“Speaking of comfort…” Sukira pointed to a row of shops, mannequins dressed in layered cloaks, fur-lined gloves, boots etched with protective runes. “We’re going higher after this, right? Time to get a few new layers of clothes.” She overheard Dominique’s idea but made it practical.

Risha’s eyes dropped. “Clothes?! Those are boring. Let’s see if there’s a tattoo shop nearby". 

Oh, this will last a while. It's the same as when he was obsessed with fire. Elon laughed but didn't say a word.  

Eloise laughed softly despite herself. “But we need warmer clothes, Risha. We’ll freeze otherwise.”

The group dispersed willingly. The square was alive with muted elegance: soft chatter, glass storefronts, the scent of roasted coffee spilling from terraces. Sukira, Dominique, Eloise, Sami, and Risha drifted away. Elon lingered behind, eyes on the white peaks looming above the rooftops.

“Not so fast, Sunshine.” Jeda clapped a hand on his shoulder, steering him toward a café’s shaded balcony. “You look like you’re about to turn into a gargoyle out here. Come sit. Brood inside, at least with a drink in your hand.”

“I wasn’t brooding,” Elon said, but he didn’t resist.

The café was lined with glossy wooden counters. They took a table by the window, the mountains spilling across the glass like a painted backdrop. A server slid two cups of dark, bitter coffee onto the table without a word.

Jeda stretched out, ankle resting on his knee. “So. This is clearly the Alps. Where even the coffee has manners… Try not to scare the locals with that death stare of yours.”

Elon’s lips twitched, not quite a smile. “I’m not the one who dragged me in here.”

“That’s because I know better than to leave you alone with Suki. You both could burn a hole in the table with all that tension.”

Elon’s eyes narrowed, but the edge softened faster than it might have when they first met. “You enjoy provoking people.”

“Only the interesting ones.”

Before Elon could answer, a man in a leather coat and a gray tie slid past their table, leaving a folded slip of paper beneath Jeda’s cup. The movement was clean, practiced. No pause. No eye contact.

Elon’s gaze flicked down, blue eyes sharpening. “What is that?”

“It seems we have some news,” Jeda said lightly, lifting the paper between two fingers. “I hope good ones”. He unfolded it under the table, lips curving into the same grin he used in taverns and alleys. But his eyes didn’t match.

Elon leaned closer, voice low. “What does it say?”

Jeda saw the chance and took advantage of the proximity, and played with Elon’s hair while whispering: “The Barricade’s seems more alive lately. Not just guards anymore. Troop movements, maybe they are assembling a recruitment camp? This says that people are talking about the government’s building more than just a security line.”

Elon let him play with his hair as he was more intrigued by his words. “The Barricade… Concordia’s desert?”

“Exactly. Facing Umbra’s north shore. Ashveil Desert’s on the other side of that sea. For years, it’s been just a fence; their military was only a premeditated security decision. But if they’re pouring life into it again…” Jeda tapped the paper. “…then someone’s planning to use it for more than defense.”

Elon’s fingers tightened around his cup. “Do you think it’s a decision from this Prowar party you mentioned the other day?”

“Maybe. Or maybe these are just rumors. It's good to stay up-to-date with the gossips," Jeda leaned back, stretching like the conversation was nothing at all, letting Elon’s bangs go. “Either way, you smell really good.” 

Elon ignored him. “So you are a whispers collector now?”, a bit of mockery tone slipping through his words. 

Jeda flashed his grin again. “You’re catching on, Sunshine.” He raised his cup. “And sometimes, if I’m lucky, I collect allies.” He took the paper and started setting it on fire, using his lighter. 

Elon didn’t look away. His voice was quiet, steady. “You think you’ll convince me to join you.”

“Oh, I know I will,” Jeda said easily. “Might take me a decade or two, but I’m not in a hurry.”

Elon didn’t reply, but his silence was less cold than before. The Alps pretended distance from the world—but war was stirring beyond the mountains, and both of them knew it.

♥︎

The days slipped into weeks, and the Alps showed no mercy. Morning after morning, the convoy rolled out with the first touch of sun, the barriers sparking alive around the highway. By noon, they reached the next refuge, each one polished and orderly, carved into cliffs or hidden in steaming valleys. Night after night, they shut themselves behind thick walls, the glow of wards their only company against the black wilderness.

Routine settled in. Dominique’s balance and resistance grew steadier under Sukira’s relentless exercises, her movements less hesitant, her pride stitched together piece by piece. Eloise filled notebooks with diagrams of minerals and herbs she bartered in every town, always with one quiet goal in mind. Risha’s fascinations shifted as quickly as the weather: tattoos one week, snow the next, spirits soon after—always with a hundred questions Elon and the rest of the group tried to answer, taking turns.

Jeda collected whispers in cafés and pubs, dragging Elon with him from time to time, and Elon, for his part, began answering him with less distance, blue deep-sea eyes narrowing but no longer shutting the other man out. Sami grew restless in the refinement of alpine towns, sneaking out at night only to be dragged back before the wards dimmed. Sukira, always awake before the rest, spent most of her time lingering around Risha, sharing time with the kid from training sessions to secret missions, where they ran away from the group’s eyes and explored the cities and their wonders.

By the time August waned, the rhythm felt almost unbreakable; safe, predictable, even dull in its repetition.

♥︎

August 15th, 15.001.

Velmore Alps, Umbra [Vampire Continent]

The caravan jolted along the mountain road, mist curling over the cliffs. Ahead, the barrier was about to collapse, cracks running like lightning through glass. Something was pushing the protection spell. The spirit loomed out of the fog as if the mountain itself had taken shape—so huge it swallowed the sun, casting the road into a false eclipse. For a heartbeat, no one could tell if it had just arrived or if it had always been there, hidden in plain sight like a cloud waiting to solidify.

Its body rippled pale and half-transparent, looking like it was made from storm and light. Four long arms unfurled with impossible grace, each movement scattering coils of mist. Horns arched like white broken trees, strung with glowing strands that swayed in the air.

Its face was a horror of symmetry—rows of white eyes burning cold, unblinking, watching all at once. The barrier shook as the spirit pressed forward, its skull striking the shimmer. Sparks sprayed like shattered glass, wards screaming against the weight.

The convoy stopped hard. Sami’s bike slid, tires smoking as she kicked the stand. Jeda’s car skidded close, his grin sharp with anticipation.

Sukira cut her engine hard. “Out,” she ordered.

The spirit leaned closer, massive hands breaching the barrier, its sheer size dwarfing the cliffs themselves.

A city guard car arrived, warned by the proximity technology placed on the perimeters before the magic barriers. Four police officers got out of the vehicle, and two started trying to re-compose the barrier with sigils, while the other two held guard, pointing their guns at the spirit above. 

Dominique slammed the van’s door open first, her firsts already covered by the silver jewelry gloves, one eye narrowing at the sight. “Finally. I’ve been dying to punch someone.”

Eloise scrambled after her, panic in her voice. “Dominique, no—wait! It’s not a beast, it’s a spirit! They don’t respond like—”

This time, Eloise was right in pulling Dominique back. Supernatural entities in the world fell into distinct orders. Blessings and Calamities were the oldest and most powerful, ethereal beings that once shaped history and continents. Blessings, now rare and withdrawn, granted aid only in moments of dire need; their trust in mortals long diminished. By contrast, Calamities fed on fear and hatred, offering power through exchanges and destruction, their Greater forms capable of swaying entire nations.

Beyond them lay other categories. Demons and re-animated shadows belonged to black magic, summoned or bound through corruption. Creatures and beasts were natural; predators and wonders of the land, dangerous but mortal. And then, apart from all, existed the spirits: ancient manifestations of place and element. A river spirit, a mountain spirit, a spirit of forest or storm. Unlike Calamities, they did not corrupt; unlike Blessings, they did not grant. They simply were—old as the land itself, territorial, untamed, and beyond bargaining.

Because of their sheer power and hostility, many mistook spirits for Calamities. But spirits did not spread hatred, nor could they be bargained with for advantage. To those who lived near them, they were neither allies nor enemies, only forces to be endured, respected, and left alone.

“Does it matter what this is?” Dominique interrupted, “It’s big, it’s angry, and it’s in our way. Let’s put it down.”

Risha clutched Cloud’s fur, wide-eyed but not afraid, transfixed. “It’s not angry. It’s… watching us.” His voice was small, confident.

Jeda clapped his hands together, his sword already slipping free. “Oh, come on, look at where we are. Did you think we’d get through two months without a welcome party? Someone warm me up, I’m freezing out here, Sunshine? A warming spell? Or perhaps a hug?”

Only two hadn’t moved to fight. Elon and Sukira stood side by side, the van’s headlights glinting off their faces.

“You feel it too, right?” Elon murmured near her. We've been asking each other the same question a thousand times already. 

Sukira’s gaze stayed locked on the spirit, but she slightly smiled after hearing his voice behind her. “Yes. This isn’t a fight. Not unless we’re stupid.”

Elon’s lip curled faintly, almost a smile in return. “Strange. First time we agree during a fight.”

“Strange indeed,” Sukira shot back.

The spirit slammed the barrier again, harder, making the breach a bit wider in order to slick a finger through. This time the shimmer buckled inwards, a fracture of light splitting down the length of it. Eloise yelped as the sound split the air like thunder.

“It’s going to break through!” Eloise cried.

“Then let it!” Sami whooped, rifle already in hand.

“Stay back,” Sukira barked. “All of you.”

The command froze Dominique mid-step. Jeda tilted his head, curious, but didn’t lower his blade.

Elon stepped forward, calm where the others burned with agitation. His hand lifted, palm outward, but he didn’t gather flame or summon lightning. “Look at it. It isn’t hunting. It’s testing the wards. If we strike, it will answer.”

“Then what do you suggest, sorcerer?” Dominique snapped. “We wait to be crushed?”

“Patience,” Elon said evenly, drawing a complicated rune on the air in front of him. 

The spirit’s vast head tilted, horns scraping sparks from the barrier. Its gaze swept across them like a tide of cold. 

“Risha!” Eloise cried, reaching for him.

Risha ran off, getting closer to the spirit, slipping from Dominique’s grasp.

He was already past the line of the van’s headlights, staring up into the figure,“It knows we’re not from here,” he whispered. “But it doesn’t want to kill us.”

The spirit bent closer, breaking the barrier more, thorns cracking all over. Its white eyes burned and flared brighter for a heartbeat, red swallowing white. The barrier screeched, sparks spraying outward like rain. Everyone tensed, weapons raised—

Risha narrowed the space between them a bit more and jumped, almost imitating Sukira’s void jump, but he floated when he reached the tallest point. And then, he said something to the spirit, but no one was able to listen clearly. 

“The kid’s fucking floating, or I just died and I’m hallucinating?” Jeda shouted. 

“Is he talking to the spirit? Is that even possible?” Elon murmured while being surprised by something completely different, even though he had never taught him about telepathic magic and its uses, like flying or moving objects. 

“He is,” Sukira replied to both of them at once, in shock too, but somehow trying to keep calm. 

And then, as suddenly as it had pressed forward, the spirit drew back. The barrier rippled, knitting itself whole again with the help of the guards. The creature’s shape unraveled into mist, dissolving into the cliffs until only the echo of its horns lingered in the fog.

Silence.

Only Risha’s voice broke it. “…It left.” Touching the mist that was left behind, still in the air. 

Jeda whistled low. “Now, that’s disappointing.”

Sami swore under her breath, lowering her gun. “I was ready for that one.”

Dominique sheathed her blade slowly, jaw tight. “What the hell happened?”

Elon caught her look. Their gazes met, both in shock, but there was no clash, only a mutual understanding neither voiced.

Sukira smirked. “It seems the kid sorted it out, without us.” She keep looking at Elon for a bit while walking towards the child, slowly. She reached out a hand to hold Risha’s, who stood pale but steady in the mist, still floating without effort. She pulled him down gently. 

Elon’s lips twitched in return, and before he was able to reply, Jeda groaned. “Great. The spirit didn’t kill us, but your weird flirting will. Stop it.”

That broke the tension. The group filed back toward the vehicles, unsettled but unbroken, the mist swallowing the road behind them. The Alps had reminded them: the wards were not walls. They were only illusions of safety, and nature answers to no one.

♥︎

August 22nd, 15.001.

Refuge 55, Velmore Alps, Umbra [Vampire Continent]

The days slid by in a haze of travel and cold air. No one spoke much about the spirit, but something in the group’s rhythm had shifted. Dominique and Eloise felt it most. They had always been close, easy and natural. Now their steps didn’t line up the same. Eloise tried to talk, unsure of the right words, and Dominique answered too quickly or not at all. When their eyes met, both looked away too soon. Eloise, who had never loved before, didn’t understand the weight in her chest or why her voice faltered around Dominique. And Dominique, who had always believed she didn’t deserve to be cared for, held back even more. They were falling toward each other without knowing how to meet in the middle—each step forward turned into a step of misunderstanding.

The two old friends shared a silent moment on the porch of the refuge until Sami leaned forward to murmur toward Sukira. “You’ve noticed it too, right? They’re off. Both of them.”

They were watching the younger girls wander the backyard below, a small patch of green pressed against the feet of the hill, the last ring of the Velmore Alps before the border with Ravelyn’s Alley.

“Do you think I’d ever miss something like that?” Sukira’s lips curved faintly. “I feel a bit sorry for them. They look so confused and worried.”

Sami’s voice softened, almost maternal. “There’s no need to intervene. They’ll find their pace again. Sometimes you have to let people bruise themselves a little before they learn how to walk together.”

“You and your wise words.” Sukira hummed in agreement. “I remember when I introduced those two. I dare to say they liked each other since then.” Her smirk appeared in a second. “I’d still like to tease them a bit. Shake them up.”

“Count me in,” Jeda called suddenly, stepping out of the back door, grin wolfish. “I’d be delighted to join the prank.”

Sami shot him a glare sharp enough to slice. “Don’t you dare. Both of you—leave them be. This isn’t a joke.”

Sukira raised one brow, amused. “Okay, mom.”

♥︎

That night, after dinner, Risha climbed into bed with Cloud, curling at his feet. Elon was there, tugging the blanket over the kid. Lately, this has been the routine. For some reason or another, Eloise and Dominique, who were the first ones to put Risha to bed, were slowly replaced by Elon’s presence. 

Risha’s eyes were wide open, restless.

He’s not going to sleep before shooting me with questions. I know. Here it comes. 

Risha started without hesitation: “Why didn’t the spirit attack us? Was it afraid of us? Or did it just not care? Can spirits understand words? Or was I only imagining it? Why did it listen when I said something? Do you think there are more? Do they live forever? Could we see another one?” He only stopped because he was running out of air. 

Elon sat quietly, letting the flood of questions run their course. He’s relentless as usual. He practiced patience constantly with the kid; he was a professional by now.

“Are you going to reply?? You know everything, tell me what happened!!” Risha grabbed Elon’s face with both hands, his little palms squishing his cheeks, convinced Elon was ignoring him.

Elon laughed, a bit exhausted. “I was thinking, kid.” He gently pulled the hands away, then replied in a low, steady voice. “There will be times when I don’t own the knowledge to answer you.” He paused. 

“There are things I don’t know. That’s why I keep learning new things. But in this case…” he paused again, then looked at Risha with excitement, his voice more vivid than usual: “Ask me again later, Risha. Or maybe I’ll ask you in the near future. Maybe you’ll find the answers yourself, and maybe you can share your knowledge with me. Let’s make it a never-ending conversation.”

The kid nodded and let his small body crash into the bed. Elon stood and gave him a last soft stroke through his long bangs. 

Risha blinked heavily, half asleep already. His voice came out muffled against the pillow, almost imperceptible.  

“…thank you, dad.”

Elon froze at the door when he listened to the fading words. For a heartbeat, he couldn’t breathe. Then something warm spread through his chest, so foreign it almost hurt. 

Dad? He called me dad. Am I allowed to feel like this? He lingered longer than he meant to, watching Risha’s steady breathing until the words sank deep inside him.

♥︎

He left the room lighter than he had entered. Down the hall, the faint scent of tea and herbs drifted from the kitchen. Sukira was perched on the counter in black silk pajamas, steam rising from the cup in her hand.

Jeda appeared from the other side of the room, unaware of Elon’s presence, leaning against the kitchen doorway with his usual grin. “Well, look who’s—”

Elon shoved him back with a firm hand to the chest, not violent but not gentle either. “Not tonight. Tonight’s my turn,” he whispered to the other man, sharp enough that Jeda didn’t miss the warning. 

Jeda stumbled, laughing under his breath. “Finally, you decided to jump into the game. I’m delighted.” He left immediately.

Elon walked inside the kitchen. Sukira didn’t move, just poured another cup without a word, and slid it across the counter. Their silence warmed with the hiss of steam between them.

“It’s been a while since we talked,” Elon said quietly. “Alone.”

Sukira nodded, sipping her tea. “It has.”

They didn’t need to pretend. The spirit’s shadow lingered in both of their minds. Elon set his cup down, watching the way the lamplight traced her profile.

“Any ideas of what happened out there, with the spirit?” Sukira asked, shifting on the counter, in front of him, who leaned on the opposite counter.

“You’re going to drown me in questions, too?”

“Pfft. The kid’s killing you with them, huh?”

Elon nodded, half-smiling. 

“Were you able to reply?” she asked.

“Not even once. It’s been a while since I felt this stupid.”

“That’s new, indeed.” She laughed softly, enjoying the slowed rhythm of their conversation.

They stayed in silence for a while, sipping their tea, exchanging brief glances.

“He called me dad… half asleep.”

Sukira finished her cup, slid off the counter, and moved to the sink, placed behind him. Setting the porcelain down, she brushed a stray lock of hair from his face. Her fingers were cold against his heated skin. Elon caught her before she could pull away, pressing his cheek into her palm.

Cold, it feels good. Just a bit more.

He closed his eyes to enjoy the moment, knowing it would not last. 

“You’re not trying to let go,” he murmured.

“You just had to say it out loud,” she answered.

She smirked disappointedly, withdrawing her hand slowly before moving toward her room.

♥︎