July 25, 2005 – 03:00 (Manitoba Time)
"Yes. The goal was to let you know something had happened to me, so you'd get there before the guards came to fetch us for whatever reason," said Frank before Aaron could answer.
Coralis closed her eyes for a minute to fully absorb the reasoning behind what truly happened. She gripped the hand Frank had on her thigh tightly and reminded herself that the wolf called Aaron had helped him, that those who would have done something to him were dead.
"An elemental mark on a human is a seal, but it also amplifies the connection. Yet, you, Blue Thunder, were able to fully use your bond to detect your mate's distress and find him, despite the lack of a mark," said High Elf Frizzo.
"My dad told us that spirit mages tend to have a stronger connection to their mates. Was he right?" said Sebastian.
"Yes, but in this instance, I'm not sure this is the only reason why Blue Thunder felt her mate so strongly," said High Djinn Moraa.
"That'll teach me to skip meetings, but from what I'm hearing, you're making me proud! I'll see you in Winnipeg!" said Whazk through mind-link.
"Making you proud? What have people done to your mate? I killed almost as many as Alejandro and I did together in South Africa, and there were a few humans in there." said Coralis.
"When you and Alejandro walked out of jail, what did you have in mind? Go through the damn mission as quickly as possible so you could go back to your mates as soon as possible. The reason we're fighting for makes the entire difference. If the Saskatchewan secret lab reflects the reason you fought for, then you're making me proud. My mate is still alive because I fought and killed for her."
Their transport landed to its final destination an hour later. Coralis and the CMMA crew made it to the meeting room.
"The one day I decide to skip the meeting because of a date night my mate requested, is when shit hits the fan, as people say, right?" said Whazk, going to her as she exited the transport.
"It usually is how it happens, in my experience," said Coralis, standing beside him to watch the remaining passengers walking out of it with Frank on her other side.
"From what I'm hearing, your body count is high for one night, but don't worry too much about it. Your motive will stand and ultimately, those who matter will stick to you. You know why you fought where you fought."
When everyone was out of the transport and heading to the meeting room, Coralis and Whazk followed them behind Sebastian and Frank.
"That's the hope, but I care little about the consequences," said Coralis as her phone rang. "I need to take this before I go in."
"Blue Thunder, it's quite the reports we received during the last few hours, and some of them are conflicting. I understand you have been busy last night," said Nancy from the other end of the line.
"It's been a long night."
"Approximately 80 people were working in that research facility in northern Saskatchewan last night, over 50 kills are attributed to you, but we do not have an exact count. I have one report saying they were all humans, but I do not want to believe that is the case. Were they all humans? Was it a planned operation?"
"Nothing planned. I went there because they took my husband. I have been told afterwards that there were a few humans among the scientists I killed, but the majority were elementals, lycanthropes and vampires," said Coralis, standing near the entry door by the transport landing area.
"We have one report saying they were conducting crucial research to improve technologies, but we also received one indicating there were people who were locked as prisoners in cells and cages, including humans who had been reported missing by their families. Can you confirm the latter?"
"Yes. My husband wasn't the only one who had been kidnapped by this group. The people we freed were mostly lycanthropes, but there were indeed a few humans. From my understanding, none of their test subjects were there of their own free will and had been captured, some of them had been there for several weeks. Eighteen of them, including a human, had been injected with an elixir meant to summon the wolf within them."
"Summon the wolf within them? Do you mean like one would summon a demon? How would that work on a human?"
"With that type of spell, the elemental whose essence is imprinted in the werewolf takes control of the wolf, destroys its connection to his human counterpart, which turns the wolf feral, and forces the wolf to go on a rampage. Anyone bitten gets infected by that spell. I am not sure how they intended it to work on the woman they used to test it. It is possible they wanted to mimic the effects of a demonic possession."
"Thank you for your answers. As usual, this is more on par with what you are known for."
"I admit, I lost control, but I have no regrets."
Coralis ended the call and saw Emery waiting for her by the door.
"The elders are currently taking your mate's statement, Sebastian is with him," said Emery as they walked to the meeting room. "Ignore General Tobly if he is still in the meeting room. Want to know how many humans you killed tonight?"
"Not really, but I can't go back in time to spare them, so I will face whatever consequences come from it. Into how much trouble did I get myself?"
"Given your high death toll, we will say that you only killed six humans."
Emery opened the CMMA meeting room door and let Coralis in. She counted more people in it than when she left it to get some fresh air. She saw three elders and two agents with blood all over them. Even if they were assigned to lead the prisoners safely outside, Chiwa, Sebastian and Emery had some blood splatters on them.
"Blue Thunder, finally you joined us again," said High Mage Finnas as she sat between Frank and Sonylla. "Tonight, you left a crucial meeting without warning and killed more people than The Rogue Paladin did during the entire summer, including six humans and a fellow Elder. What happened tonight will be thoroughly investigated before deciding if charges and disciplinary actions should be laid against you."