Fangless: The Alpha's Vampire Mate
Chapter 87: Cold Feet

Chapter 87: Cold Feet

And just like that, the ancestor’s voice vanished, leaving Riona in stunned silence.

"I need to what?" Riona barked when the ancestor suddenly cut off his sentence and went radio silent.

She twirled around, not sensing the ancestor’s presence at all. She couldn’t believe an ancestor could be this irresponsible. Who left in the middle of a sentence? And he was about to say something very, very, extremely important!

"Hello? Ancestor?"

Riona was met with silence once again. She groaned, cursing herself for not asking his name when she had the chance.

"Ugh, I really should have asked his name," she muttered.

She waited, straining to hear anything in the oppressive quiet. What was he doing?

"Ancestor? Are you leaving? We’re not done here!" she called out. Hints of frustration crept into her voice.

"Sorry," the ancestor’s voice came through with a chuckle.

"You’re back!" Riona breathed a sigh of relief.

"Was it not how it works...? But I’m pretty sure I was right..." the ancestor murmured, almost to himself than to her.

Riona perked up her ears to understand his blabbering. "Hm? What is it?"

"Um, do you feel anything?"

"Feel what?"

"I don’t know. Something. When I was gone, did you feel anything, perhaps? Like an electric shock, or were you suddenly freezing?"

Riona grew suspicious. Was he pulling a trick like last time? However, she realized she didn’t feel the heat that accompanied his voice before.

"Nothing like that at all," she replied, quickly changing the subject to quench her curiosity. "By the way, why didn’t I feel hot like last time? I had no urge to remove my coat now. There’s no rise in temperature."

"Oh, the change in temperature only happened during our first meeting. Your body has become accustomed to my presence, so there’s no change," the ancestor explained nonchalantly.

"I see. What were you doing? Why did you disappear?"

The ancestor sounded lost, not hearing Riona at all. He was too focused and kept murmuring to himself, "They told me to... I did exactly as I was told, though... so why didn’t it work?"

"What is it? What’s wrong?" Riona urged him for an answer.

"There’s a tiny malfunction, but you shouldn’t concern yourself with this. I got this."

The more the ancestor spoke, the more unreliable he sounded, especially his last sentence, which lacked any real confidence.

Riona placed her hands on her hips, slowly losing her temper. If the ancestor had a physical body, she would have already grabbed his collar by now.

"What do you mean? Did you cause any trouble?"

"No!" the ancestor retorted. "I mean, it’s not trouble at all. I tried to unlock your power by touching the guarding door that separates your body from your energy. But something went wrong."

Riona raised an eyebrow, confused. "Guarding door? But I’ve been using my energy just fine. There are no such doors."

"Oh, there is. Some people have suppressed energy, which is contained to protect the body. Normally, this occurs to those with immense power or those whose minds are unable to handle such power."

"Huh?"

"It’s different from the warm energy you’ve been using. Did you notice that you couldn’t summon the cold energy? That’s because it’s been suppressed," the ancestor explained.

Finally, he was giving her useful information. The reason Riona hadn’t been able to use the cold energy vampires normally used was because she was the Blood Moon child. That prevented the cold energy from leaking out of her.

"So? Is it open now?"

"Not yet," the ancestor groaned as if he was pulling something heavy. "Give me a second! I need to concentrate."

Riona stood around silently. She tapped her foot, looking at the ceiling. If only she could see the ancestor, waiting would be easier. Not knowing what was happening and when the wait would end was excruciating.

"Ah, found it!" the ancestor exclaimed. Riona could imagine the smile on his face just from his voice.

This time, whatever the ancestor was doing worked. He didn’t have to tell her because she could feel it.

All of a sudden, something cold surged from within her. It was as if her blood had turned to ice and spread throughout her body. She trembled at the sensation, feeling overwhelmed.

"Wha—"

"You need to control it! Don’t let it control you!" the ancestor shouted as Riona started to lose consciousness.

"How?"

Riona was desperate. Control had always been her weakest link. Even with her warm power, she often lost consciousness if she used too much of it.

How could she handle this immense amount of cold power when she had no experience at all?

Her mind wavered between consciousness and unconsciousness. It felt so much like fighting drowsiness. Riona widened her eyes, shaking her head violently to prevent herself from falling asleep.

"Aarrgghhh!!" she screamed.

The screaming helped, but only for a few seconds. Immediately after her throat stopped feeling sore, she was overcome with sleepiness. It was so strong that she couldn’t stand properly.

As she collapsed, the ancestor yelled, "Wake up! No! Don’t close your eyes! No!!!"

His voice became farther and farther until she couldn’t hear him anymore.

***

When she finally regained consciousness, the world around her was a blur of chaos. She blinked rapidly, trying to clear her vision. Why was she in bed?

The sounds of clashing swords, shouting voices, and loud thuds of blunt objects filled her ears. Figures moved frantically, engaged in a fierce battle.

"Get her out of here!" someone shouted.

Riona struggled to get out of bed. Her body was still trembling from the cold energy coursing through her. Her mind was filled with confusion.

"Riona, this way!" a familiar voice called out. That must be Thorin. But why was he shouting?

"What’s happening?" Riona asked as Thorin got closer. Her voice was barely audible.

"We don’t have time to explain! The nobles’ forces are trying to capture you. We have to move, now!" Puck screamed from outside the door.

Was that... Sir Kai? Why was he swinging his sword in front of her room? Puck and Zane were outside the door too, and numerous knights were unleashing their powers against Riona’s group.

Riona stumbled forward. Her vision cleared just enough to see the desperation on their faces.

"Why are they after me?" Riona asked, still feeling weak.

"We must leave. There’s no time," Thorin said, putting her arm around his shoulder to support her. "They know you’re the Blood Moon child."

But when he pulled her past the door, she was thrown back by the invisible shield.