Chapter 1794: Troubled Queen. It was a tense moment for the group for multiple reasons. First, they had heard Quinn talk about Layla before. When talking about her, it did sound like the two had some connection, but to hear directly from Peter that the two of them were dating meant it went a lot further than they thought. "Wait a second.. those three are acting pretty close." Jessica thought. "Quinn was in slumber for a thousand years while Layla was running the Red Vampires. It would make sense for her to move on and find someone else, and these guys are incredibly close to her." "That means I might be able to sweep in when he has a broken heart, show how caring and loyal I am, and then with Minny on my side and all the juice boxes I have prepared, Quinn and I can, we can…" "These are not my kids," Layla answered. These four words crushed Jessica's hopes, and a few other faces reacted for a split second, but not many managed to catch it, as they quickly put on a brave face. "That's right. She's our auntie." June replied as they continued to help. "I'll answer your questions once we get inside," Layla said. Upon entering the mansion, the first observation everyone had upon stepping inside was, "It's huge!" It was a luxury mansion with a large double staircase leading to the second floor and even had specific pieces of furniture carved out, all made from Earth. It looked a little strange because it was all one colour, but the others could imagine what it would look like when everything was fully furnished. Walking around, they all eventually found a large room to sit in, and Ashley, who was a bit embarrassed to be with everyone, had decided to head over to where Xander, Layla and the others were. He didn't feel comfortable around others because of his former identity. "Oh, it's a surprise to see you here." Xander smiled, "Don't worry, I'm only teasing you. I heard from June and Kev what you were doing in front of the lab." "I know it must have been hard for you, but you know. even though you were an arse sometimes, I always liked you." Ashley didn't know what to say, so in the end, he just lowered his head and didn't say anything. Layla sat down in one of what she could only assume was the living area due to the things that looked like sofas and a table in the middle. There were no cushions though, but it would have to do. "I'm really interested to know about you all, and how you came to travel with Peter, and Peter how you are even here."𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖 "It's been a long time, all of us doing our own thing, but I guess I should explain myself first." Layla said, adjusting her position a little. "First, about your question from earlier, these kids belong to Xander, and they are a lot older than they look, a few hundred years old in fact. Unfortunately, their mother, Amy, has passed away." "During that time, they were still young, so I helped Xander look after them, which is why they refer to me as their aunt." Layla smiled and rubbed Kev's hair. He seemed to enjoy it but was also a bit embarrassed about it. "When the Cursed faction was going through troubles, everyone had agreed to split and go their own way." "Xander had decided to follow me at the time, but there was something that I had hidden from everybody, and it was this sword." "When I used it during the fight against Helen and a few more times after, the sword started to affect me." “Even when I wasn't using the sword, I could hear screams in my head as if they were trying to torture me. I tried to hold them back, but in the end they took over me." "And because of this, there is a blank space in my memory. However, during all those years, Xander stayed with me." "At some point, I had woken up from this daze to find out that ten years had passed, and next to me was Laxmus." "It was then that I found out that the sword, and Laxmus, were linked to the same god, the god that created vampires in the first place." "He's called Immortui. During that time, I stayed with Laxmus, and we founded the Red Vampires group." "Laxmus saw me as an ally because we had the same marking, and I decided to take advantage of that. But in those years, I also helped the Red Vampires." "Unfortunately, there were times when I found cruel things humans were doing to vampires, and I lost my way at times." "Enough to even use powers which I never wanted to use." Saying these words, Layla stared at her hand and felt a pain in her chest simultaneously. The others didn't know what she meant by that, and although they wanted to ask, it didn't seem appropriate. "Anyway, I'm happy Xander stayed with me. If you're wondering how he's still here, as well as Ashley, that's thanks to the shadow powers they have gained." "Not only do they have the power to stop and slow attacks, but it seems like it slows down the ageing process of those who use this ability." "Even if it's in a crystal, there is a way one can use it to slow down their own body's time, and they can live an extraordinarily long life." That was when Xander pulled out the crystal. "Well, maybe not so much anymore. The shadow belonged to Laxmus, and I stored it in a separate crystal from the one he gave us, but now that he's dead, there won't be a chance to refill the energy." "Also, unlike MC cells, the shadow will not regenerate and can only be stored up to a certain quantity in the crystal. So, the more we use it, the faster it will deplete. Eventually, there will be no shadow left…" Although it sounded like an unfortunate end to the tale, the expression on Xander's face told a different story. There was a smile on his face, and honestly, it was because he lived quite a painful life, but he never shared and would never reveal his thoughts and emotional pain to anyone. Amy was his wife, and he loved her dearly, but after her demise, the old flame he had for Layla reignited, especially whenever he saw her with his kids. As they spent more time together, his feelings matured, but he knew her mind was always on one person, and she would wait forever for him. To be with the person he loved and to be by her side all this time to support her while knowing she liked someone else was heart-wrenchingly painful, yet he chose to go through it. He was happy that she was happy and that his kids could now live a life with motherly care, but he was also a bit tired. Thinking about this, he inwardly sighed and was thankful that no one else had noticed his sudden mood change, although he could just blame it on the shadow problem if someone asked. On the other hand, after Layla had explained herself to the others, the group started to talk about their experiences and the events that transpired in the last few days. Peter started the discussion and talked about how he found himself in the room one day, and after an unknown time, Quinn also woke up, and from that room, their new adventure began. Next was Jessica, and then Lucia, too, talked about her side of the story. After some time, Layla finally had a clear picture of what happened, how things worked out, and who all these people were. In the end, Layla sat there in silence while thinking about Quinn. "So… no one knows where Quinn is right now?" She finally asked. Everyone looked a bit depressed by this fact, but it was a truth they had to accept. "Well, at least I know he is alive. And there is a good chance that I will see him again. But, for now, I guess we just have to do what we can and carry on as we have for all these years." Layla smiled. "About that." Shiro opened his mouth, but he had switched with Vorden. "We need to talk about the elephant in the room. I know we have been avoiding It all this time, but what has happened to Erin? Why is she so hell-bent on thinking that everyone is her enemy?" "Layla, you were close to her and were also part of the Red Vampire later, and the dhampirs seemed to have a huge grudge against the Red Vampires. Is there a reason for that? Do you know something?" Vorden asked. "I want to know too!" Lucia sighed, "I mean, she had the turtle familiar. Does that mean she killed our leader, Owen? I thought he had died of natural causes." "We also learnt that the Dhampirs can control their natural urges," Peter added. "Does that mean Erin is doing this out of her own will?" "I'm not sure, but I think I might know someone who can answer these questions," Layla replied.