Layla’s eyes narrowed, “Your little lap dog can’t help you now Serus. I’ve got this place completely sealed off. And don’t you even think of trying to escape, my hold on this room is unbreakable. You can’t hope to beat me Serus, so let’s make a deal. Join me. Surrender your coven to me and I will spare your life, Jaelynn, and Seth. How does that sound?”
She cackled, jumping down and landing in front of Serus, her face centimeters from the other vampire, “You are quite amazing Serus. It’s a shame to kill such a unique creature.” Her hand gently touched Serus’s cheek as her eyes became black, her irises glowing an icy blue as her pupils shrank away. “Keiara was smart to turn a witch. Strigoi viu’s are rare, powerful, and beautiful creatures. In a couple years, your power would grow to match mine, perhaps even surpass me again.”
Serus trembled violently as Layla touched her. She quickly hissed, baring her fangs, “Don’t touch me!” A cold, deadening sensation traveled from her cheek down her body, causing her legs to collapse underneath her. “I would never accept that proposal Layla. I would rather be burned alive!”
Suddenly, there were gunshots outside causing Serus to jump a bit. Why was Layla’s grip so powerful? She should not have this much power so soon after their battle on the roof. Serus extended her mind to outside the conference room, searching for Jaelynn and Seth, finding them both alive she quickly focused back at Layla. “You know Layla, I now know why your mother hated you. You are an evil creature, inside and out. She was smart to break off from the Raksasha’s and rival them with her own.”
Jaelynn pounded her fist on the door, sending a powerful blast of telekinetic power along it. Nothing happened other than the attack backfired and sent her to the opposite wall. “Serus!” Her connection to Serus’s body and emotions was greater than any other vampire in the coven. Serus was in danger; she was still low on power, having only fed on one human. She repeated her assault on the door again, only to get the same result.
She had to get in there. Now.
She couldn’t help but panic a bit. The seal on the door was so strong, she knew she couldn’t break it or teleport around it. She would have to find a weak spot on one of the walls, but that would take too long. Hold on Serus…I will get in there…
She gathered up all the power she could spare, focusing it to teleport into the room. She also began to manipulate her own body structure to make it easier for her to pass through the wall and hopefully the shield. She would have to be careful. She only had one shot and if she failed, she would die.
Layla grabbed Serus by the neck and hoisted her off the ground, her claws digging into Serus’s flesh, “You shut your mouth or I will sew it shut. My mother was a fool to leave us. No matter how hard you guys tried, you could not defeat us. Even with her greatest accomplishment; destroying my entire coven and my father, she still failed miserably. Now I can rebuild my coven with even stronger vampires.”
She opened her jaws, her fangs hovering over Serus’s neck for a second, before she lifted her face, her hair turning to match the color of Serus’s, “I think, that after I kill you, I will destroy your coven and your image. Seth will despise you and your poor mother will be rolling in her grave, and your lovely little Jaelynn will perish.” Soon, her facial structure and height matched Serus’s, even her blinded eyes. “They will never know that it’s me.”
Serus was suddenly furious. No one ever threatened Jaelynn’s life and lived. She grabbed onto Layla’s arms, tiny telekinetic needles shooting out from her fingers forcing Layla to let her go.
As she was released, she forced herself to step back away from Layla, her face angling downward so her hair covered her face. The gravity around her became low; her hair floating about her in a haunting manner as her power suddenly began to sky rocket to meet Layla’s.
Jaelynn froze, sensing something incredible in the council room, dropping her power and waiting. She couldn’t simply just burst in there, if her plan would’ve worked. She would’ve been crushed from the sheer volume of power being thrown around. “Seth! Please, I can’t get this door open by myself. I have to help her!” She threw a few more telekinetic attacks at the door, “Break damn you! Wait!” She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath.
Astral projection was a rare ability, regardless of the vampire. Jaelynn was lucky enough to have it. She didn’t use it often, as it was very taxing. She placed her hand on the door, focusing her energy to her spirit before dispelling it from her body. Layla was not prepared to deal with such a move, and therefore, her shield would not be either.
It was her only hope to help out Serus.
Her spirit managed to get through the door, but even now, she couldn’t do much. She could, however, supply Serus with enough spare power to perhaps win the battle. Her wispy form made way across the room, broken chairs and tables littered the floor, which she simply passed right through. She stood behind Serus, placing her hands on her shoulders, ”I will spare every last bit I can, but this is all I can do. I hope it will jump start your recharging as well.”
She focused intently on Serus and transferring her power. Once she could spare no more, her spirit was sucked back into her body. Once it merged, she was thrown back into the wall, unconscious.
Layla staggered backwards, “W-what the hell is this? Where is this power coming from?” She snarled, lunging forward at Serus only to be blocked by a solid wall of telekinesis. She felt something grab onto her body and squeeze.
Serus let out a deep growl, looking up as Layla jumped, throwing up a wall of telekinesis then wrapping it around her tightly. “Unlike you, because I’m a witch, I can draw power from others, whether they like it or not. I may have needed a little boost from Jaelynn, but once my power was restored, I could then tap into yours. I will show you the true extent of my power.”
Serus stepped forward, her eyes glowing a bright, pale rose color, “Enough of this useless verbal exchange. Layla Raksasha, you will finally taste death.”
Suddenly, Layla’s head was thrown back as a telekinetic fist pushed her chin up so hard, it broke her neck at the base of her skull. Layla yelled out as she could feel something pulling apart her tendons and muscles, shredding them completely. “You are not stronger than me Serus! You can’t keep this up forever!” But she had the feeling that Serus was indeed stronger as she could feel her own power being pulled from her body.
Serus snarled, throwing Layla to the ground and pouncing her, telekinetic shell kept the vampire still. “So as long as you keep providing me with the power I need, you will die. I may not be able to match you on my own yet, but I don’t need to" She grinned, whipping dried blood from her face with her left hand, as she was sure the ongoing slaughtering of Layla’s insides was going to kill her shortly.
Layla saw her chance. She may not be able to physically move, but she could still use her power. She forced some of her blood to gather at the puncture wounds, then sent a large invisible needle of power shooting into Serus’s wrist, dead center on the brand. Shortly after, the needle of blood dove into her flesh. “You shouldn’t have procrastinated Serus.”
Serus howled out in pain, her hold on Layla quickly fading as she rolled off, holding her wrist with great agony. How could she have been so careless? She continued to scream as Layla’s blood began to spread through her veins. As it happened, her veins began to turn black, the occurrence slowly spreading up her arm causing great pain.
She had to get it under control, but it was such a strong reaction, thanks to Layla’s age. She clawed at her arm, trying to tear away the sensation, even though she knew it wouldn’t work. She gathered up what power she could focus, having full intentions to cut off her arm. Suddenly, her power left her, and all she could do was suffer. She couldn’t sense Layla in the room, as she had fled. ”Jae…”
Jaelynn awoke a few minutes later to a throbbing head, “Why do walls have to be so solid…?” She groaned as she stood, her back sore as well. Suddenly, she was alert, hearing the screams of Serus in the council room. “Serus!” She recognized the spell laced in the brand as it became strong enough so she could sense it.
She pounded her fist hard on the door, surprised to see it fling open. Without the door muffling the sound Serus made, she almost had to plug her ears. She quickly rushed over, trying to hold Serus still, “Seth! Get over here!” Her eyes glowed softly as she used a bit of power to silence Serus’s screams. She sighed, trying to hold Serus still, “It doesn’t help to move Serus. Focus…separate her blood from yours. You’ve done this hundreds of times with me.”