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She ran away

Elliot

It seems like Reece and I have been running for hours and finally, the castle is in sight. We have been silent the entire time; We don't have to talk to know that we both have the same thoughts about saving Kamila.

I pray to the Goddess that she and our babies are well.

We both return to our human forms as we enter the castle gate, where some servants are always waiting in standard sweatpants. I don't want to waste time putting them on, but we do it quickly and run down the hallway to Kamila's room.

But we didn't get that far before we ran into Mark in the hallway. He also seems to be going somewhere in a hurry, and is not heading towards Kamila's room.

“Walk with me,” he says quickly, and he's moving much faster than walking, but we keep pace with him. We don't even have to ask him what's going on. "Whoever took Kamila dragged her through the secret pas...age and out the library door," he says.

Reece and I nod, our pace quickening a little. By then, I can see that we are heading towards the dungeon, but I don't ask questions.

—They found a syringe next to her—. Her voice changes tone when she says it, and my heart freezes, but I continue walking with him. —Apparently, it's the same drug they use to keep prisoners under control.

"Is it safe?" I ask. I can tell Reece is thinking the same thing. If we know what the drug is, we can probably find out from the doctor how dangerous Kamila would be to Kamila and her babies.

“I haven't had time to find out yet,” Mark says. —First, we need to get to the dungeon. When Kamila was taken out of the castle, there was an altercation, and one of the guys was captured.

At that moment, I start running, and the other two ET1s keep up the pace. Let's find out what happened and where she is from this guy. I know she'll have to answer all of our questions, especially with three strong ET1s pressuring her.

We arrive at the entrance to the dungeon and the guards give us the sign of respect and move aside. Everyone in the castle knows that one of us, or Eli, will one day become ET1 King, and they're not going to stand in our way, that's for sure.

The smell of mold and urine is thick in the air as we walk towards the guard station where the man who registers the prisoners is.

“We're looking for one of your most recent prisoners,” Mark tells the man. —He should have been captured right outside the castle wall.

The man nods immediately. “Cell A five,” he says simply.

None of us have been in the dungeon before, and we must look like it, because he walks around his desk and leads us to the first row of prisoner cells. He points to one to the left, where a lone shapeshifter is huddled against the back wall looking at us in terror.

“Let us in,” I say.

The guard nods and takes out his keys, opening the door for us and stepping back as we enter the cell. The dungeon is dimly lit, but I can clearly see the shapeshifter's eyes widen as he stares at us in pure terror.

"N—Don't kill me, please, gentlemen," he begs us.

“That will depend entirely on you and what you choose to tell us,” Mark says, clearly using his ET1 voice.

That makes the man shake even more. "W-what do you want to know?" he asks.

"Who sent you?" Reece asks. —Where is Kamila? And who took her?

The man doesn't even hesitate to answer. “A—ET1 Kane,” he says. "But I have no idea where she's keeping it." We were instructed to meet his contact here and help lead the Breeder to him.

"Who was the contact?" I ask.

"I-I don't know her," he says. —Some woman, but she wasn't looking at her. She was trying to grab the Breeder and then the soldiers approached us.

“So a woman,” I say.

“Y—yes, sir,” he answers.

I move closer to him so my face is right in front of his and in my strongest ET1 voice I say, “I need you to tell me where he is.” If you know something, anything, tell me now.

“I—I don't know, I promise, sir,” he says. "We were told to take the Breeder back to ET1 Kane, but I don't know where she is now."

I look at the other ET1s, and I can tell that we all have the same fear running through us. The thought of our beautiful Kamila in the hands of that evil ET1 is unbearable. And it's much worse knowing that he takes our four children with her. Our entire family is in danger, and we have to move fast.

I'm also sure that this shapeshifter has told us everything he knows. ET1 Kane would never let his henchmen find out about all of his plans. I've been exerting enough ET1 influence on him that there's no way he's lying to me.

Reece addresses the guard. “Knock this man unconscious,” he says. —And keep it that way until we say otherwise.

This is a good decision; this shapeshifter could warn Kane the moment we leave, when he is out of our control. We need to make sure he doesn't tell ET1 Kane that we know he has Kamila.

The guard nods and takes a syringe from his pocket. I hold the prisoner while the guard administers the drug, and seeing that sharp needle, knowing that the same kind of thick needle had penetrated Kamila's tender skin, I instantly feel sick.

As soon as the man pas...es out, we leave, making sure all the guards know that the prisoner is to remain unconscious until we say otherwise. It must be the same thing they are doing with Kamila right now, since none of us can communicate with her through her mental link.

We left the dungeon and climbed the stairs, grateful for the fresh air.

“Kane has a tent set up out front,” Mark says. —It seems like a permanent installation because of how elaborate it is, so I don't see him returning to his castle anytime soon. And I don't think she trusts his people enough to let Kamila out of his sight.

"Do you think he has it on a battlefield?" Reece asks.

He looks as horrified as I feel. At this point, I'm not sure how I'm functioning with the pain I feel radiating from my chest. Our Kamila and our babies are in the middle of a battlefield?

“Well, obviously, we need to get there as soon as possible,” Mark says.

The three of us were already running.


Adam

"Adam?!" a scream is heard from the hallway.

I shudder at the sound. The last thing I need is to deal with King Gene instead of helping the ET1s find Kamila. I turn around and pretend I didn't hear.

—ADAM!

It does not work.

I turn around and put a fake smile on my face, the same one I've been wearing for years since this egotist took the throne. "Yes, His Majesty?" I ask.

“You fuc... idiot!” he says, still screaming even though he's inches from my face now. "I've been yelling at you from down the hall." You are a ET! Use your damn sense of hearing!

“I'm so sorry, Your Majesty,” I say with false sweetness in my voice. —What do you need, her Grace?

“I need to—” he starts, but then stops and looks confused. —Oh. Yes. The damn Breeder. What is this shit I hear about the Breeder escaping?

"Escaping, sir?" He asked me first where I was getting information from, then I'm concerned about how it's being transmitted to him. Who in the castle is telling him that Kamila is trying to escape?

"Yes, escaping," he repeats. —The Breeder. The one that is full of babies ready to come out at any moment. The servants are talking about how she is missing.

"I don't think 'escape' is the right word to describe it, Your Majesty," I say, although I'm not sure why I bother explaining anything to him. —They have kidnapped her.

“Kidnapped?” he says. "Why the hell would anyone want her with all those babies about to come out at any moment?"

I really don't have time for this, so I need to get rid of it. "I'm looking for her now, if she allows me," I say.

—Oh. Well, go on then! —She says, marching past as if she had somewhere to go or something to do.

But I certainly do. If I can't find Kamila quickly, who knows what will happen? They took it right under my nose, so it's all my fault. Maybe I'm an idiot like Gene says.

A voice enters my head. —Adam!—It's ET1 Tristan. —We are here, and we know where Kamila is!

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