The Vampire was thoroughly enjoying their afternoon, gently swirling a crystal glass filled with rich blood. They raised the glass to their nose, taking a deep, appreciative sniff before tilting it to sip.
Just as their lips grazed the rim, a deafening crash echoed through the chamber. The heavy velvet drapes exploded inward alongside a shower of shattered glass as The Succubus violently burst through the window.
"You," she practically growled, her eyes burning with raw fury as she glared directly at them.
"Yes, me," The Vampire replied, their tone laced with extreme annoyance as they instinctively took several sharp steps backward into the deeper gloom of the room, avoiding the harsh rays of sunlight pouring through the ruined window. "The person whose window you just shattered, and whom you nearly incinerated with the sun."
"Do not play coy with me. You know exactly why I'm here," The Succubus snarled. She drew herself up to her full height and advanced, unfurling her massive, leathery wings. The broad expanse of her wings blocked out the blinding sunlight, casting a heavy shadow over the room—offering them cover, but simultaneously wielding total leverage over their critical weakness in this moment.
"No, I don't think I do," The Vampire shot back, glaring right into her eyes. "You crash into my room out of nowhere and expect me to magically understand what this is about? One of us is already dying, and now you want to start a fight between us?"
The Succubus didn't budge an inch. "Fine. Since you're going to keep pretending to be ignorant, I'll spell it out for you." She took one final, threatening step forward, her voice dropping into a dangerous hiss. "Your wight—the man you sent—shot Amara in the back with a necrotic bullet and nearly killed her! She's been lying in a coma for an entire month!"
The Vampire listened to her scorching outburst entirely unblinkingly, offering no outward reaction whatsoever. "Okay? And you expect me to automatically know he did that?" they asked, crossing their arms over their chest.
"Just because Crow works for me doesn't mean I micromanage his every move or dictate how he's supposed to think. I don't have a clue why he tried to kill Amara," they muttered, holding their ground in defense.
With a sharp lurch, The Succubus closed the remaining distance, seizing them roughly by the collar and hauling them forward until her furious gaze locked dead into theirs. "Are you honestly trying to tell me you just happened to send a retainer who'd try to assassinate mine, and you knew nothing about it? You expect me to believe this is just a coincidence?" she demanded.
The Vampire didn't flinch, their expression flat and lined only with deep irritation. "Yes. That's exactly what I'm saying. Anything else would be a straight-up lie. Why on Aetheria would I want Amara dead? What do I possibly stand to gain from that? We're all hunting Larkin, and she's the one currently tracking him and his little group, right? Killing her would be a massive loss for me, too."
They reached up, aggressively prying The Succubus's hand from their collar before taking a few quick steps backward into the shadows, irritably smoothing down their jacket.
The Succubus merely glared, her eyes narrowing to thin slits. "You can keep playing dumb all you want, but I'll find out what really happened. I'll dig up the truth."
The Vampire scoffed, rolling their eyes with heavy disdain. "Be my guest. You're free to try, but you won't find a single thing except proof that I'm completely innocent."
The Succubus shook her head slowly, a grim, humorless smirk touching her lips. "That's what you think. But we will find out—especially now that your precious retainer got himself captured by the Veridianian Prince and Princess."
The Vampire froze mid-step. All the casual arrogance instantly drained from their posture as they slowly turned back to face her. "What?" they whispered, the word barely escaping their throat.
The Succubus crossed her arms over her chest, letting out a sharp, vindictive breath. "Yeah, you heard that right. Crow—that worthless wight of yours—got himself caught by royalty after botching his hit on Amara. And right now, they're planning to hook him up and strip every single piece of information out of his undead brain."
She watched closely as the shock registered on their face. Those were the exact words that finally, truly rattled them to the core.
"So not only did your idiot retainer manage to put Amara in a coma for a month, but he went and got himself captured and is about to leak everything we have! You and him just ruined us all!" she snapped, her voice echoing off the walls before she spun around and began stomping away toward the shattered window.
Right before hoisting herself over the jagged frame, she glanced back over her shoulder one last time. "At least with this mess, I'll finally find out if you were involved or not. And when I do? There'll be Hell to pay." With a powerful snap of her wings, she launched herself out into the open air and flew off.
Left standing stranded in the dim room, trapped by the harsh sunlight blocking the window, The Vampire whirled around toward a solid stone pillar. Baring their teeth, they let out an unbridled, furious yell and slammed their fist straight into the masonry.