Invincible Blood Sorceror

Chapter 240: Saving the faery band

“Though I’ll need your help.”

Kleela pulled back from Jorghan and turned to her brother with an expression that mixed childish enthusiasm with surprising authority.

“Jorghan is really strong, Pecah! You should see what he can do! He can make blood do anything, and he can control plants. He’ll kill all the Scavenetores and save everyone!”

Pecah looked skeptical despite his relief.

“I appreciate the confidence, sister, but the Scavenetores are numerous, well-armed, and experienced at hunting beings more powerful than individual warriors. One person, however capable, can’t eliminate an entire hunting organization.”

“Then we’ll find out if one person backed by a motivated clan can,” Jorghan replied.

“Where do we start? Where are the nearest confirmed Scavenetore operations?”

Pecah was quiet for a moment, clearly torn between hope and learned caution about trusting strangers.

Finally, he made his decision.

“There’s a major Scavenetore outpost about three days’ flight from here. They use it as a processing center for captured specimens before transporting them offworld for sale. If we hit that facility, we could free potentially dozens of faeries and deal a significant blow to their operations in this region.”

“Three days by your flight speed?” Jorghan asked.

“By wing,” Pecah confirmed. “I can maintain about sixty miles per hour for extended periods. So roughly a thousand miles northeast from this location.”

“We can cover that faster,” Jorghan said. He looked up, using his Bloodhound Creed connection to call Kaleth. The massive white Swarafa was too far to hear normal summons, but their bond allowed communication across significant distances.

Within minutes, he felt Kaleth’s acknowledgment. The Swarafa would arrive within the hour.

“We leave as soon as my transport arrives,” Jorghan announced.

“I’ll need to brief Sigora about temporary absence, gather supplies for extended operation, and coordinate with—”

“I’m coming with you,” Nami interrupted.

“Don’t even try to argue. Kleela trusts me, and you’ll need someone who can actually talk to frightened survivors rather than just killing threats. I’m coming.”

Jorghan recognized that tone. Arguing would be pointless. “Fine. But we keep the group small. Just you, me, Kleela, and Pecah. Large forces would draw too much attention and slow us down.”

He looked at the faery siblings.

“This won’t be safe. We’re going to encounter significant resistance. Are you both prepared for that?”

“I’ve been preparing for nothing else since the kingdom fell,” Pecah replied.

“I’m ready.”

Kleela nodded vigorously. “I want to help! I can make plants grow fast to trap enemies, and I can heal injuries, and I can—”

“You can stay close to Nami and not take unnecessary risks,” Jorghan interrupted firmly.

“You’re ten years old, Kleela. This is a rescue operation, not training for child soldiers.”

“I’m older than I look,” Kleela protested.

“Faeries mature differently than—”

“Close to Nami. Minimal risk. Non-negotiable,” Jorghan repeated.

“If you can’t agree to that, you stay at Colloniel with Sashru and the others.”

Kleela’s ears drooped with disappointment, but she nodded acceptance.

“Fine. I’ll stay with Nami and be careful. But I still want to help where I can.”

“Helping is fine. Dying heroically is not,” Jorghan confirmed.

Kaleth arrived with remarkable speed, landing in the clearing with powerful downstrokes that scattered debris. The Swarafa took one look at the alien corpses scattered around and made a questioning sound that suggested confusion about what his bonded master had gotten into this time.

“Long story,” Jorghan told Kaleth.

“We’re going on an extended trip. Three days northeast, possibly longer depending on complications. Think you can handle that?”

Kaleth’s response was to lower himself for boarding, clearly ready for whatever madness Jorghan had planned.

They flew back to Colloniel, where Jorghan spent a frantic twenty minutes explaining the situation to Sigora. She took it better than expected, probably because she’d learned to expect the unexpected where Jorghan was concerned.

“How long will you be gone?” Sigora asked.

“I will be back before you know it. Can you manage the settlement in my absence?”

“I’ve been managing settlements since before you were born,” Sigora replied dryly.

“We’ll survive. Just try not to get yourself killed hunting alien slavers. It would be inconvenient for clan morale if the head died before we’ve even finished construction planning.”

Jorghan gathered supplies—weapons, medical materials, preserved food, and emergency equipment. Nami did the same, her practical experience showing in the efficiency of her preparation.

Within an hour of returning, they were ready to depart again.

Kleela sat in the carriage with Nami, her earlier trauma already fading beneath excitement about rescuing her people. Pecah flew alongside Kaleth, his transparent wings keeping pace easily with the Swarafa’s powerful flight.

As they rose above Colloniel and turned northeast toward the Scavenetore outpost, Jorghan reflected on how quickly circumstances could change.

A month ago, he’d been planning clan construction and navigating marriage politics. Now he was hunting alien slavers to rescue the royal family and protect a species from extinction.

The responsibilities just kept accumulating.

But as he watched Kleela’s joy at having her brother back, at having hope that her people might be saved, Jorghan found he didn’t resent the additional burden.

Some things were worth fighting for beyond just strategic advantage.

*

Kaleth flew northeast for three days, following Pecah’s guidance through increasingly dramatic terrain. The uneven lands around the Colloniel Ruins gave way to rolling hills, then forests, then finally to mountain ranges that rose like the bones of the world breaking through skin.

But these weren’t normal mountains.

As they drew closer, Jorghan realized they were pillars, massive stone columns that rose thousands of feet into the air, their tops disappearing into clouds. The pillars were arranged in loose formations, creating narrow passages between them that required careful navigation.

Pecah led them through these passages, his wings adjusting constantly to air currents that swirled unpredictably between the stone giants. Kaleth followed with the careful precision of a creature that understood one mistake would send them crashing into unforgiving rock.

They passed through natural arches where erosion had carved openings in the pillars, creating bridges of stone that connected the columns at various heights. Some arches were small, barely wide enough for Kaleth to pass through. Others were massive, cathedral-like spaces where entire cities could have been built.