Chapter XVI — Outcast

In a brightly lit sterile room with blank white pristine walls and a milky glass pane, the rogue, Ray Maddock, had awoken from a dizzying unconsciousness to find all four of his limbs bound in silver chains that burned his wrists and suspended him from the ceiling. And before him was a presence that was as terrifying as it was puzzling to him.

The diabolical aura condensed in such a small confinement area was enough for him to feel oppressed with a fear that had left his breathing constricted and his heart hammering.

"A gathering of rogues. If it had been any other city, I would have no reason to interfere but fortunately you have picked my city. Such a large gathering as well. Wouldn't you say it just reeks of trouble?"

The rich, silk-like voice full of malevolence and authority resonated in the enclosed room, sending shivers crawling up Ray's spine. The one before him was examining an open envelope, one Ray recognised all too well, and as he spoke, tipped to reveal its contents — a thick stack of green hundred dollar bills. When he finished, the pair of steel grey eyes looked up and met widened brown pupils that quivered with fear.

"B-B-But-Hell does not in-intervene-The Werewolf C-Council will hear of this-"

"And?" Lucifer asked looking bored.

"And Hell will pay-"

"Ah but you see, you seem to have forgotten who you are, rogue. As outcasts of your community, you're no longer part of a pack, hence the protection offered by your Council of Elders and packs does not apply. Under the supernatural law, the Council of Elders has no jurisdiction over what I do with you lot. Perhaps, are you suggesting that the Council of Elders will take action or revenge for the likes of you? On the contrary, they should be thanking me for helping eradicate the outcasts of their community, wouldn't you think so?" Lucifer drawled in a bored tone, a cold smirk curled on his lips.

The truth in the realisation began to sink in. In addition, even if it threatens a war, the Council of Elders will not be so willing to lead the Packs into a full scale war with the Demons of Hell. It would be a worthless bloodbath over a bunch of rogues whom were not even protected under the Supernatural Law. The rogue seems to realise this as well as he fell silent allowing the reality of it to sink in. His attempt to hide his shaking in the presence of the entity that reigned over the Underworld, futile.

"But why? Wh-What do you want?"

Ray's question elicited a terrifying smirk from the Prince of Hell that nearly had the former wetting his pants.

And in that moment, the atmosphere in the room shifted, and as if a shadow was cast over it, a figure in a dark red crimson cloak emerged in the centre of a purple magic circle crackling with dark energy. It was an outline that Ray knew all too well after all,-

"Y-You're the w-witch who's been tailing us."

"Raymond Maddock."

He froze and his heart nearly lurching in his throat. The voice that addressed him was soft, crisp, cold yet compelling. 

"Former Gamma of the Narcissus Pack, stripped of his title and casted out after being caught for fraud and embezzlement of pack funds."

"H-How do-"

She pulled back her hood to reveal herself, and the instant purple eyes clashed with the dark brown ones, it caused the rest of the question to die on the tip of his tongue as the chained werewolf paled significantly as if he had seen a ghost.

"Seven years ago, you travelled with a group of rogues very much like the one you were a unit leader of. Seven years ago, on the fifth of May, two hours after midnight, the group arrived at the final destination, rumoured then to be The Sanctuary, the safe-haven for rogues located in upstate New York."

Raymond Maddock felt his soul stripped away layer by layer under that piercing purple gaze.

"The same final destination you had been travelling towards up till yesterday...on whose orders?"

At the lack of response from the still flabbergasted and shaken wolf, Cassandra simply continued as if not expecting an answer in the first place.

"You are the last remaining member of your first unit. Which begs the next question, what happened to the rest?"

The rogue watched as the black witch moved away, now staring straight ahead at the one-way mirror and something told him it wasn't her own reflection. She turned back to him.

"The Sanctuary, the safe haven for rogues they called it. But in actuality, a disguise; used to lure in rogues of your community under the pretext of offering them free food and shelter. It's true purpose, an experimental facility."

....................

The wolves of Lilium and Rosalieé had watched it all from the start on the other side of the one-way glass mirror. Amidst the chaos in the warehouse, they had been briefed and given an address to head down to by the black man — no, demon — whom introduced himself as Agaliarept. And on the drive there, they were able to go over several things amongst themselves most of which were only theories and speculation that were ascertained one by one as they witnessed the proceedings in the interrogation room.

They watched the chained rogue named Raymond Maddock gap and splutter at the black witch with each revelation that was dropped one after another. Their own responses and expressions likely not that far off. But none had an as unnatural and drastic reactions as the rogue — like he did seen a ghost of the past.

Furthermore, none of them had recognised the name of the former Gamma of the Narcissus Pack when Bryan Grace had mentioned it.

And all of them felt chills when the piercing purple gaze had turned towards them, staring straight at each of them, as if she knew they were on the other side of the one-way mirror watching the whole interrogation. No, she definitely knew.

It was clear she had anticipated and planned everything from the beginning; the potion used by Victoria, the intel for the gathering, even Hell's interference despite being carried out under Lucifer's orders, was within her calculations. The former had done it for her. Though she hadn't been physically present herself for reasons unbeknownst to all but Rosalieé.

And each statement made on her part wasn't just some wild guess or a shot in the dark, it held certitude, spoken like they were facts.

"What is the basis of the experiments?"

It was impossible to tell if she knew the answer to her own question or not or even had her own suspicions for her back was turned towards them when she had asked.

But upon receiving no answer from the rogue whom had either been too dumbfounded to reply or had chosen to remain silent, or likely a little bit of both, Cassandra had turned to Lucifer and gave him a single nod. And not two seconds later, a hissing sound could be heard as a vapour-like gas was released into the interrogation room, causing many eyebrows to knit in confusion.

In the next moment, Raymond Maddock began to gasp, hack and wheeze and then thrash violently against the silver chains that bound him before spluttering blood out of his mouth. And when the hissing sound stopped after a minute, he sagged against the chains, his wrists and ankles bruised from the struggle against the silver chains. It could also be seen that his eyes were bloodshot as he stared in horror at his captors. His chest heaved in pants from the aftermath and the blood continued to dribble down from his mouth. His lungs burned.

Wolfsbane. In the form of gas.

And each Lilium pack member felt themselves pale at the sight that unfolded before them, a sense of underlying horror also creeping in for them.

"What is the basis of the experiments?" Cassandra repeated her question, her tone emotionless.

Again, Raymond Maddock remained silent, gnashing his teeth. And when the hissing sound was heard once more, he attempted to hold his breath, but it didn't last for long. The moment he drew in the first breath again, the searing pain and burning flare came immediately, spreading all over his body, with the double the previous intensity, causing him to give a yell of surprise. Every muscle contorted and his vision became a blinding white of dizziness. It was an agony he had never felt before and when the white before his eyes gradually faded, he felt the metallic taste of his own blood as he coughed up more of it.

His captors had upped the dose.

He would have cursed, sworn, spit and glared spitefully if it had not required so much energy to do so and if there wasn't such an intimidating presence in front of him watching his every move and every word that came out of his mouth. So under the mounting daunting pressure, he attempted to choose his next words carefully, scrambling his thoughts together in the haze of pain.

"W-we weren't told the full details. B-But we were promised immortality-" he said in between heavy pants. "-and power if we carried out the orders to gather as many rogues and lead them across the country to the Sanctuary. And the term they used was Lycanthropy."

And every werewolf on the other side of the mirror stiffened. They exchanged glances. Lycanthropy. It was a concept they hadn't heard in years, not ever since they had outgrown the tales passed down in their childhood during bedtime.

"The experiments- its aim is to access the full powers of our ancestors, the most powerful our kind and in myths, said to be the rulers and first of our kind — the Lycans. They desire the immortality and invincibility that our ancestors once had thousands of years ago. But many have failed and they require more test subjects."

Test subjects.

The wolves felt their blood curdle and the bile rising in their throats as the absurdity of it all began to take form.

"On whose orders?"

"We don't know. They never show their faces. We've never seen them in person. Only the messenger. One of their assistants." Raymond Maddock said, as he shook his head, turning to the side and spitting the blood out from his mouth. It left an acidic aftertaste.

"Glaucus Economos. The Delta Glaucus Economos."

....................

The next morning, all four wolves and Rosalieé sat at the dining table of the suite in solemn silence. Each lost in their own thoughts. None of them slept a wink after what they had learnt the night before.

Glaucus Economos. There was not a pack leader out there who did not know that name. But that was not the case for the white witch in the group.

"Um, who is Delta Glaucus Economos?" Rosalieé asked nervously and albeit hesitantly, breaking the silence. She had sensed the sour atmosphere that had settled over those around her. The revelations, without a doubt, a shock to both herself and them, more so for the latter.

Her question caused eyes to turn to her and earned her a sigh from Jayden before answering it.

"He is one of the Council's Deltas. He works under Council Elder Krustos Machado as his right-hand steward and secretary."

Rosalieé's mouth formed an o-shape at the reply. The implications spoke for itself.

"This confirms the suspicions we had all along — there has been something going on in the Council. They're hiding things." Dylan said.

"But does that mean all of them are involved, the whole Council of Elders or just Council Elder Machado? Do the rest know about this? Are they turning a blind eye to it or helping him covering it up?" Lucas asked, shaking his head still in disbelief.

His question was met with silence because all that he said was wholly possible despite all of them wishing it wasn't.

"Whatever the case, we can't report this. We can't go to anyone about this. If anyone catches wind of this, it'll be seen as treason against the Council when we don't have definitive proof. Tell no one. We keep this between ourselves for now understood?" Jayden said as he looked to each of his members present.

And they each gave a nod to his command, they all knew and saw the gravitas of the situation as clear as day.

"So we keep digging?" Victoria clarified.

Jayden nodded and said, "We'll find the answers ourselves, do our own investigation, without tipping anyone off."

"And then what? What do we do if it's real? If the whole Council is compromised? If they're the ones behind the experiments?"

Victoria's question was met with silence from her leaders, as they all pursed their lips and exchanged looks with each other.

"High Priestess Cassandra's warning. She said 'what you may learn, what you may uncover may not be what you expected it to be'. But even so, no matter what lies ahead, I take it we're not turning our backs on this." Victoria concluded.

It was more like they couldn't. It went without say. No matter what dark hidden secrets they had discovered or had yet to discover regarding the leaders of their community, now that they were aware of it — and that it was all very possible to be true, none of them in the room could turn a blind eye to it. It is for certain that they would have regretted it even more had they chose to remain ignorant of it.

They heard light footsteps from down the hall before the bell rang throughout their suite, indicating that someone was at the door.

Although Dylan had been the one to greet the unanticipated visitor, the other wolves in the room could hear the latter whom had spoken so, it was no surprise when he called back to the white witch among them.

"Rose!-"

"Actually, may I request Ms MacKenzie's assistance as well?" Valèrie interrupted Dylan.

The black witch's request made the others in the room exchange curious looks before the she-wolf herself made her way to the door with Rosalieé.

And with that, not moments later, both Rosalieé and Victoria found themselves in the neighbouring suite where two children that looked no older than seven were waiting. They sat at a familiar long wooden table, with a box of cereal and milk in front of them. They both wore adorable pajamas sets and were eating happily away out of their own bowl of breakfast cereal, swinging their legs as the chairs were too high for them. Two other figures sat across from them, one of which caused Victoria to jolt in surprise. 

Upon noticing Valèrie's return, all four occupants in the room turned their heads in unison to the entrance.

Their eyes met instantly, blood red clashing with ocean blue. She felt her wolf surface, and blue eyes glaze. As they held each other's gaze, she couldn't read his emotions, but it was clear that her arrival had been expected by him, just as clear that she was surprised and caught off guard by his presence. She flushed, hurriedly catching herself staring and was the one to break it off. However, she could still feel his gaze following her.

The two kids' cheeks were puffed with cereal they were stuffing themselves with which they hurriedly swallowed and put down their spoons altogether. They looked at Valèrie first before shifting their gazes to the newcomers then back to Valèrie and then to Cassandra and Claudius, blinking their large chocolate brown eyes and tilting their heads in innocent curiosity as they did which nearly made Rosalieé and Victoria coo at the sight.

"Amira, Irfan, this is Rosalieé and Victoria. They're friends. Victoria is a doctor and Rosalieé is a healer. They'll be helping you take a look at your injuries and if need, help you heal them. Is that alright?" Valèrie spoke gently to the pair of siblings in their native tongue. To which the two nodded eagerly, smiling brightly at her then at Rosalieé and Victoria. They all found themselves smiling back at the pureness of it.

Both the white witch and the doctor set to work — after having been given a run down by Valèrie on the rough situation previously. The three worked efficiently with Rosalieé healing the visible bruises using her white magic while Victoria asked questions — that were translated by Valèrie — and analysed and assessed the kids' overall health.

Through it all, Victoria could feel his intent gaze on her, never once leaving her. She forced herself to pointedly ignore it, diverting her focus to the kids, to the task at hand. But that didn't mean, it didn't do things to her and made her stomach flip at the undivided attention he was giving her.  The scent of burnt firewood mixed with spices and a tinge of sour-like lemon was posing a greater distraction than ever too. Not to mention, he looked nothing short of dashing in the navy blue tailcoat suit.

"They have bruises, some recent and some long faded. I suspect from the rough manhandling. No internal injuries. But the most concerning of all is they're malnourished and severely underweight. You said she's nine and he's seven. They look three years smaller than they should. Rosalieé's healing should be able to resolve the external injuries but..." Victoria trailed off, shaking her head. She didn't need to say it, they all knew.

But not the mental trauma of being held captive.

The rest watched the kids that looked on in awe as Rosalieé worked her magic, their eyes sparkling with wonderment.

Amira felt something akin to a soothing cool gel water feeling wash over the blue-black spot on her arm as a circle of bright green light emitted warmly, making the dull ache that was previously there subside ever so gradually. It felt tingly too, no wonder her brother had giggled when he received his treatment.

"...They did have to be kept under a watchful eye and their diet and meals monitored for the next few weeks and likely months if required. Where will you-"

"Romania." Valèrie answered, knowing what the other was going to ask.

"The Samhain Institute of Magic. And where the Covens are located." Victoria stated, nodding her head absently.

"It's time for their baths. Priestess Rosalieé, will you assist High Priestess Valèrie?" Cassandra spoke up, causing Rosalieé to look to her. The latter saw through to the former's message and intentions of the request and quickly agreed.

"Yes, of course."

And without another glance, Cassandra left the common area of the suite.

"Come on, it's time for your baths." Valèrie held out her hand and the young boy Irfan quickly hopped off his seat to grab it and they left in another direction where Victoria presumed the bathroom supposedly was. Amira grabbed Rosalieé's offered one and followed closely behind.

And before she knew it, Victoria was left with the pureblood vampire whom she was not ready to confront alone at all. She felt herself tense and her breath hitch. She swore she could even feel her own heart hammering against her chest.

She stared dumbstruck after those who left the room, unable to turn to face those red eyes that had not left her since she entered.

He broke the silence.

"Are you perhaps suicidal as well?"

Her head swivelled, eyes widening in surprise at the unexpected question from him.

"As well?" She echoed in confusion, trying to not let the accusatory tone in his voice get to her. But the barely concealed frustration in his blood red eyes and mild glare directed at her, had her faltering.

"Taking that potion and stepping into the lion's den without hesitation where one wrong move and everything could have backfired."

Oh. But who else-

"We rescued two kids from a vampire blood auction last night. But there was an...accident. They appear to be unharmed but just to make sure, we would like you to take a look, Ms MacKenzie."

Victoria recalled High Priestess's Valèrie's words. She had said 'we', Rosalieé had been nearby the Malrow Warehouse yesterday night so that only left-

High Priestess Cassandra.

Valèrie's sudden arrival at her behest, the potion of such 'queer nature' nature the former had called it, her dodging of Jayden's question, the reason why she hadn't been at the rogue gathering in person. The answer was obvious.

The two black witches had infiltrated a vampire blood auction to extract the young witchling and apparently, outside of the knowledge of Claudius von Steins. And something had happened — the accident. An accident that had blown their cover and nearly got them trapped in an entire lair full of aristocratic vampires. But the pureblood had somehow learnt about it and intervened in the nick of time else she wouldn't have been able to make it down to interrogate the rogue Raymond Maddock the night before. He had dealt with the situation for her.

As Victoria MacKenzie processed this, she felt a tinge of guilt, jealousy and a pang of sadness at it. It was partly her fault he vanished and there was a change of their plans. But would he have come for her? If he had known she was in similar danger? And was what he was berating her carelessness for out of concern?

She had never felt as insecure as she did now. But she didn't get a chance to wallow in that thought for long as he continued.

"I don't believe either of us have introduced ourselves properly yet. I'm Claudius von Steins."

"I-I'm Victoria MacKenzie." She said unsurely.

They lapsed into silence as he stared openly at her for a moment — which caused her to shuffle uneasily — before deciding to speak again.

"You have the...hope to make this work. I...am impartial but understand that I hail from the pureblooded family von Steins, while I can guarantee you that not a single harm will come to you within the Clan of von Steins, there is nothing I can do about the heavy scrutiny once the relationship is exposed. The aristocracy of the Clans is not to be taken lightly, you may openly face scorn because of the hatred some of my kind have for yours and possibly vice versa. Also know my visit to America is only temporary, once I have dealt with all that is needed, I will return to Germany." He paused, staring at her straight in the eye as he conveyed the following last statement to her. "So what will you do, Ms MacKenzie?"