Mature: Desert Moon

[Soran Nightblade]

Vlad composed himself carefully. Just hearing a kind voice was enough to unseat some of the control Maxwell had beaten into him. He didn't have the answer Talon wanted. *Light a candle, and speak Maxwell's name into the flame. The doc will take you where you need to go.*

[Emora Deen]

Talon started to panic. He needed a location. *Tenele wants to get you back. She is searching for you,* he whispered through the link. *I need to know where you are, Vlad. Give me anything. Please.*

[Soran Nightblade]

Vlad's nerves flared up protectively at the mention of Tenele coming for him. *No. Talon, she can't come here.* He gagged as the sudden burst of power left the holy magic glowing in his veins. *Listen to me-* He cut off, barely able to think. *Too...hot...* he tried to explain, his voice breaking in and out, until he lost his focus entirely. The link collapsed on itself.

[Emora Deen]

"Tenele," the voice resounded from the stone. "I'm sorry... I won't be able to get a location for you... I am going to Vlad, but Maxwell is coming for me. Vlad doesn't want you looking for him. I think there was more to what he wanted to say, but he couldn't... I'm sorry. I'll do as much as I can for him when I get there."

Tenele nearly dropped the stone. "No," she breathed. "Didn't you get anything? Anything at all?"

"No," Talon's voice replied sombrely. "I'm calling him. I'm sorry Tenele. I'll get word to you through this thing if I can... If not, I'll be with him. You'll just have to find us another way."

And he was gone.

Tenele turned her gaze on Atul, who knew that look instantly. He reached forward and drew her in. "We'll find another way, Tenele. We'll find him."


* * *

Talon climbed out of bed, running a hand through his neck length hair. He lit the candle next to the bed and waited a moment as he slipped the stone necklace on. It looked ordinary, just like a normal necklace to anyone. He let it dangle beneath his shirt to hide it at any rate.

"Maxwell," Talon muttered into the flames. "Come and get me."

[Soran Nightblade]

A minute later, the demon manifested beside the man's bed. "So you are the protege Vladimir insisted upon bringing?" he crossed his arms as he studied the young vampire. "Very well. Come," he held out his hand impatiently.

[Emora Deen]

Talon took a step forward and placed his hand in Maxwell's. There were a thousand things he wanted to tell the demon, but he didn't. He wanted this process to go as smooth as possible. He wasn't sure what he would endure, if anything, at the hands of this monster... But, he was prepared for it.

[Soran Nightblade]

Maxwell took his hand like he was loading a carriage, quick and practical. He turned the other direct, and an instant later, they were in a small bedroom.The room had a window, but it looked out on what could only be interpreted as a wall of ice. Below was just a bare, snowy courtyard. At the far end of the courtyard was a body strapped to a table.

Inside the room were two sparse beds and an adjoining lavatory. That was everything. No furniture. No mirrors. No closet.

"This will be your residence," Maxwell said coolly. "You will share it with your master. Since you are here, I leave it to you to see he is ready by sunrise each day, and to retrieve him from the courtyard at sundown. And so you know, bloodling, you will have access to nothing beyond that. The wards will remind you if you forget."

[Emora Deen]

Talon stared at the body strapped to the table, his jaw setting tightly. "Out of curiosity, where the hell is this place?" he asked the demon, turning away from the window to look at him. "What are you doing to him?"

[Soran Nightblade]

"This is my private residence. I will say this - I had no competition for the real estate. One would not normally expect a reptilian to be someplace so cold, so it served as a valuable refuge," Maxwell said with a shrug. He glanced out the window at the vampire wrestling subconsciously against the restraints. "He is working on three parts to the thousand," he muttered. It is his third day now. If he survives, you are to be his reward. If not, no offense, but it will be tidiest to kill you."

[Emora Deen]

Talon frowned. "What is the point of this torture, if it kills him? Why ruin what you created?" he growled. "Why steal a man from his daughter and his wife? Have you ever loved anyone but your research? Don't you have a woman you care for? A man? Would you want them to be put through the same thing you're doing to him? If you think speaking of killing will frighten me, you are gravely mistaken. I do not hunt for death, but I do not care if it finds me."

[Soran Nightblade]

"You're a nosy one," Maxwell raised his eyebrows. Of course I don't intend to kill him. But extremes are needed to improve someone already at such a high level. Extremes involve risks. As far as love... I suppose you could say Vladimir is the closest to me in that regard. He is the most important existence to my research. You just do your part, since he wanted his pet so badly, and leave the rest to the expert." He turned for the door. "I'll show you to him at dusk."

[Emora Deen]

Talon growled when the door closed. He waited several long minutes before he took hold of the necklace. "Tenele," he called. "Its somewhere cold, very cold. But, that could be anywhere. He purchased the land fair and square... so you might want to check public records to see if you can locate the residence if Sinead doesn't have any idea off the top of her head. I'll take care of him, as much as I can. I can't talk much more than that. I'm sorry. Be careful..."

* * *

Tenele nodded. "I'll be careful, you do the same," she replied softly, cradling the stone in her palm. Tenele turned her gaze on Sinead. "Do you know where he could be? Do you remember anything at all about where Maxwell moved after you closed his research facility?"

[Soran Nightblade]

Sinead pressed her fingers to her forehead and thought for a minute. "Cold... there are only two places I can think of in this part of the world, assuming he didn't flee to the outer lands somewhere. The northern mountains are one, but no one lives there. He wouldn't even have to buy the land there, it's so inhospitable. He's a reptilian demon...I don't think even he could survive there long. The temperatures run well below freezing during the warmest part of the year, and there's no sun for months in the winter.

"Then there's the border between Ighten and Arken, which has been frozen for millennia. Neither place is particularly safe for traveling. If I were Maxwell, I'd be avoiding guests, so it would be far from the main thoroughfares for crossing the border, if those deadly paths could really be called such things."

[Emora Deen]

Tenele pursed her lips together. "We don't have time to search both if we are wrong about one," Tenele whispered. "That could put us months out from rescuing him. He might not have months..."

Atul frowned, taking a seat in one of Sinead's over stuffed chairs. "My money is on the less hospitable one... The first one. It would make it harder for people searching for him to reach. They'll more than likely die trying..." He glanced to Tenele. "If you had to choose one, your majesty... which one?"

[Soran Nightblade]

Sinead frowned. "The one we expect the least, and the one that is most dangerous to navigate. I think he's in the North." She went to the table in the center of the room and shuffled through maps until she found the one she wanted. It was sight-locked. She traced an invisible pattern on its face, and a detailed, very old looking map materialized on the surface. "No one else has a copy of this. I commissioned it many, many years ago," she said, rolling it carefully and handing it to Tenele. "If you are going to the North, this is the best direction I can give you."