The smell of damp stone and mold from the castle's depths enveloped Daniel and Lucian as they approached Viktor's mausoleum. The flickering torchlight cast dancing shadows on the walls, creating a gloomy, heavy atmosphere. The silence was broken only by the sound of their own footsteps and Lucian's heavy breathing, as he felt adrenaline and fury pulsing through his veins. The sight of Kraven's decapitated body, left behind in the cell, was still fresh in his mind, a silent testament to Daniel's lethal and ruthless capacity.
They reached a vaulted chamber, where several stone sarcophagi adorned with intricate Gothic carvings lay in their niches. The air here was even denser, permeated with the slumbering essence of centuries of vampiric slumber. Daniel stopped before the central sarcophagus, the largest and most ornate of all. Lucian felt a chill. There he was, the tyrant, the murderer of his beloved, the author of her torment for ages.
Daniel smiled, a slight lift at the corner of his mouth that didn't reach his eyes. His heightened senses detected the subtle vibration of life within the sarcophagus, a faint heartbeat, the almost imperceptible flow of blood through dormant veins. Viktor, the ancient, the manipulator, was playing dead. A pathetic maneuver for Daniel.
Without hesitation, Daniel plunged his right hand into the polished stone sarcophagus. The marble, impenetrable to a mortal, gave way beneath his strength as if it were wet clay. His fingers dug into the rock, forcing their way in with terrifying ease, the sound of granite creaking and crumbling filling the chamber. Daniel's hand reached deeper and deeper, until he felt the soft tissue of Viktor's neck.
With a swift, brutal movement, Daniel removed him from the sarcophagus, lifting him by the neck like a rag doll. Viktor's body, wrapped in his ceremonial robes, hung inert for a moment, his eyes still closed in a perfect imitation of deep sleep. But the pretense was short-lived. The pressure on his neck and the lack of comfort of the sarcophagus caused Viktor to jerk awake.
Viktor's eyes flew open, revealing a furious, confused red. His body contorted, his arms and legs flailing in the air like a chicken being lifted for slaughter. He let out a primal growl, a sound of shock and outrage. In his many centuries of existence, Viktor had never imagined being treated with such brazenness, with such... lack of reverence. But his eyes, now focused on Daniel, widened. This was no ordinary vampire. The strength, the aura, the power emanating from Daniel overwhelmed him. He couldn't even move, trapped in the unwavering grip.
"Now is your time, Lucian," Daniel said, his calm voice echoing in the chamber. He held Viktor suspended in midair, the Elder's face contorted in an expression of fury and terror. His eyes fixed on Lucian, who watched the scene with a mixture of hatred and satisfaction. Revenge, a dish served cold, was there, materialized before him. "It is your time for revenge."
Daniel tilted his head slightly, a glint of amusement in his eyes. "Or would you rather have a chat to find out why he killed your beloved? You should already have that answer, I think." The last sentence was aimed directly at Lucian, a subtle taunt, a reminder of the truth he'd always known in his heart, but which pain and anger had obscured.
Lucian, who had waited centuries for this moment, felt the fury in his chest boil. The image of Sonja, his beloved, being burned alive under the sun, orchestrated by Viktor, flashed through his mind. He needed no words. Viktor's actions spoke for themselves. The pure, visceral hatred he felt was the only fuel that mattered. The chance to finally end the torment, the monster who had destroyed his life, was here. The air in the mausoleum seemed to vibrate with the tension of that ancient encounter.
The acrid smell of ancient dust and the dampness of the castle's basement filled the air in the sarcophagus chamber. Viktor, suspended by the neck in Daniel's hand, struggled uselessly, his red, furious eyes fixed on the Lycan before him. The humiliation of being treated like a "chicken," the powerlessness before this unknown being, was almost as unbearable as the pain in his neck. He growled and tried to free himself, but Daniel's grip was unshakable, as if made of steel and ether.
Daniel held Viktor aloft, a helpless puppet, and looked at Lucian. "His beloved Sonja was burned under the sun by him, Lucian. Out of passion, out of love. An unforgivable crime in Viktor's eyes, because true love is something he never understood, nor accepted. Sonja's death was an act of pure cruelty, a warning to all who would dare challenge his authority, his 'pure' lineage. He saw her as an aberration, a threat to his control, to his power. And so, he extinguished her."
Daniel's voice was calm, but each word was a dagger thrust into Lucian's soul. He didn't need graphic details; the truth Daniel exposed was more painful than any image. Lucian's pain, which he had suppressed for centuries beneath layers of hatred and revenge, bubbled to the surface. His yellow eyes widened, the veins in his neck bulged, and a guttural growl escaped his throat, a sound that came from the depths of his Lycan soul. The scent of adrenaline and fury filled the air.
"Viktor's hatred is his crown, Lucian. The reason for his existence for centuries," Daniel continued, almost whispering. "He reveled in your pain, in your persecution, in the war he fomented. You know this in your heart, don't you? Revenge is his burden, his raison d'être. And now, the opportunity is before you. There are no more questions to ask, no more doubts to be resolved. The answer to 'why' is in his blood, in the essence of his evil."
Lucian took a step forward, his muscles tensing, his hands turning into sharp claws, his nails darkening and lengthening, tearing at the fabric of his gloves. Rage consumed him, an overwhelming wave that threatened to overwhelm his human form. His canine teeth elongated, ready to bite, to rend.
Daniel tightened his grip on Viktor's neck. The Elder, sensing the terror of imminent death and Daniel's overwhelming presence, made one last, desperate effort to speak. "You don't... you don't understand... I..." he choked out, trying to formulate a defense, an explanation, but his words were lost in a choked sound. Daniel just watched him with a cold gleam in his eyes. There was no mercy there.
"He doesn't deserve your words, Lucian. He doesn't deserve forgiveness. Only retribution," Daniel said, his voice as calm as a lake on a windless morning. He pushed Viktor closer to Lucian, but maintained complete control, as if offering a gift. "Death has long awaited him in your book, Lucian. A just and deserved death."
Lucian didn't hesitate. All the hatred he'd accumulated over centuries, all the pain from Sonja's loss, all the fury at the oppression of his race, concentrated in that moment. With a roar that echoed off the chamber walls, he launched himself at Viktor. His razor-sharp claws tore through the fabric of Viktor's robes and dug into his chest. Blood gushed out, dark and thick, staining the stone walls. Viktor let out an agonizing scream, a sound of pure pain and horror that quickly faded as the life, and the power, drained from him.
Lucian bit Viktor's neck, his face contorted with fury, and tore off a chunk of flesh, hot blood dripping down his lips. He was consumed with revenge, with the need to dismember the monster who had destroyed his life. Viktor's moans faded, and the Elder's body, still suspended by the neck, began to go limp.
Daniel held his grip until the very last, watching with an almost clinical calm. Viktor's death was a necessary event, a crucial link in the change he planned. There was no joy in his eyes, only the satisfaction of a plan being executed. He felt the last breath of energy leave Viktor's body, the end of an era of tyranny.
When life had completely faded, Daniel released Viktor's body. He fell to the ground with a dull thud, lifeless, blood forming a dark pool around him. Lucian, his face streaked with blood, knelt beside the body, panting, the hatred still pulsing through his veins, but now mixed with a strange sense of emptiness and relief. Revenge, while satisfying, didn't completely fill the hole left by Sonja's loss.
Daniel stepped closer, the gleam in his eyes now a mixture of assessment and purpose. "There. He's dead. Death is satisfied." And as if to confirm his words, a pale, ethereal glow seemed to flicker for a brief moment in the air of the chamber, a confirmation of the presence of the Reaper who had crossed out a name in her book.
In Heaven, Death smiled, her deep eyes shining as she crossed out the last line in the book. "There. One less on the list, God. And so... satisfyingly." She laughed, a melodious sound that reverberated through the heavenly space. God merely nodded, a gleam of approval in her eyes. Justice, for Him, was often a complex process, and Daniel was an effective instrument in its orchestration.
Back at the castle, Lucian still knelt, Viktor's blood on his hands, the smell of death permeating the air. Daniel watched the Lycan, sensing the complexity of his emotions. Revenge had been achieved, but the pain of loss remained. Daniel wasn't a therapist, but he understood the nature of loss and emptiness.
"Rise, Lucian," Daniel said, his voice firm. "Viktor's death is only the beginning. There is much to be done. The war between your races may have reached a turning point, but centuries-old hatred does not disappear overnight. And there are others who must be held accountable."
Lucian stood slowly, feeling the weight of exhaustion, but also a new determination. His red eyes fixed on Daniel, a mixture of respect and admiration. He didn't fully understand Daniel, but he knew he was in the presence of unprecedented power.
"What do we do now?" Lucian asked, his voice hoarse.
"Now, let's solve Marcus and William's problems," Daniel replied, his eyes shining. "Their vampire son, Marcus, needs to be contained. His loyalty to Viktor has blinded him. And William... William can be redeemed. He could be the key to peace between their species, if we know how to wield him. I have the knowledge to cure him of his madness, to free him from the curse of his feral form and give him control."