Page 40 of Dark Reckoning
“How long has he been like this?” Damon asked.
“It... it just started to happen. I mean, he was sick at first, shaking and puking... then he passed out. But he still looked the same. He woke up ten minutes ago and started hissing and growling. He pulled at his hair, and it was just coming off with some of his scalp. That’s when I ran to get you, sire,” the griezel said.
“Are you sure he passed out and didn't just die, then was resurrected as this fucking thing?” Sage asked. “I know when you sleep, you don't breathe, but can you tell?”
“I see you know so very little about griezels, Sage. Didn't I tell you our bodies function a lot like humans?” Damon's gaze was on my lover.
Sage huffed. “I didn't think dead things needed to breathe,” he retorted.
Demon scoffed. “I'll ignore your insult and ignorance. We do breathe, our hearts beat, but at a slower pace. It's enough to blend in with humans. Do you think we would have been able to co-exist with them if we couldn't pass even a little?” Damon asked.
Okay, so I was wrong. Learned something new every day.
“Fine, but you don't need to breathe, right?” Sage asked. I was glad he did, because I wanted to know.
Damon nodded. “That is true, but it still comes naturally to us and is beneficial for us when we do. It keeps our blood flowing and skin warm.”
Okay, so I was still kind of right, and now I knew even more about griezels.
Damon went on. “In any case, you did ask a valid question. What did the monitors say?” He turned to his panicked griezel, awaiting his reply.
The griezel swallowed hard, then spoke. “At first, he was responsive and answered the questions I asked him. But right before he got sick, he said that it hurt and that he felt cold. I figured once he woke up, maybe he'd be better, but that didn't happen.”
“And when he collapsed, did his vitals stop?” Damon asked.
“I... I didn't notice... I just walked over to the cage to see,” the griezel admitted.
Damon snarled and was quick with his backhand across the griezel's face, knocking him to the floor. “I do not tolerate incompetency. Now, check the feedback.”
I saw the blood on the griezel's lip, it was darker than mine, thicker too. But it didn't look congealed like I thought it would. Like the corpse on the slab in the laboratory. The griezel nodded and apologized, and rose to his feet, then ran over to the computer monitoring station. I didn't know Damon at all, but his looks were very deceiving. He didn't appear to be someone who could put a griezel nearly twice his size in his place, but he had. His whole vibe screamed ruler. I thought it best not to say anything about his display of violence. Sage certainly didn't seem to mind. Instead, I waited to hear the results of the monitor.
"When he went down, his vitals flatlined, my Liege,” the griezel said, then looked up from the monitor with a terrified expression. I couldn't be sure what was driving his fear. Damon's anger at his incompetence, or the fact that he just witnessed his own kind being killed and then turned into a monster. One that had no conscious, no remorse, no reasoning.
“This is very disturbing. We don't get sick and will heal from any injury. This... whatever it is, it's powerful enough to infect and kill a griezel, then transform one in less than two hours. That's how long he's been in that cell,” Damon said.
“He would have turned instantly, I think, had he been drained of his blood and killed,” Sage said. “At least now, we know even their bites can fuck us up.”
“Holy fucking shit,” I gasped and ran my fingers through my hair. I looked at Sage and he was as concerned as I was by the worried frown on his face. “I'm so happy you called all of your pride to the tower.”
Sage nodded. “Protecting what is mine goes without saying.” He took his cell out and started texting someone.
“Checking on Nadia and everyone?” I asked.
“I will. First, I want to tell Salino to get all of his vampires to safety,” Sage said.
Yeah, that was a good idea. Salino had wanted to catch one of those things. Now, he didn't need to and it was best if all of his vampires were under lockdown.
“He agreed. I'm glad he didn't put up a fight,” Sage said. “I'm texting Nadia now.”
“Good,” I said, relieved. Of course, if Salino was trying to avoid losing any vampires to Emperor Martin's, that was smart too. That was if he was under attack. I guess I'd find out when I got back.
Damon sighed. “I'd hate to see what kind of monstrosity a shifter or vampire being turned into one of these things would be.”
“Something we both agree on,” Sage said.
“Can he get out of there?” I asked, pointing to the thing in the cell because it was no longer a griezel. It was something we didn't have a name for.
Damon shook his head. “Those bars are reinforced to contain a vampire Salino's age. I'm confident it will hold him.”
