Elara looked annoyed as she and Caldwyn filed into the small alcove to speak while the children in the garden were left unattended to their own devices, most deciding to work on their refining skills with their magic, knowing their instructor was just beyond the doorway in the building. "Cyne, still thinking me a savage on the battlefield? I did give instructions for retrieval to those loyal to me, those tired of looking outside their windows and seeing desolation in our world. I did not send a death squad." She replied, running her fingertips against her forehead in her frustration. “If they find a mortal that came through, they will bring him or her back here to the holding cells down below the castle.” She promised, looking askance at Caldwyn who still looked displeased and fairly upset at the prospect of destroying the portal.<br/><br/>The queen turned at the sound of footsteps behind them down the corridor and was rewarded with a view of a few of her loyal guards who bowed low before looking her in the eye again. “Did you find whatever it was that came through the portal?” She asked quietly, stepping forward between Cyne, Caldwyn, and her guards. She had a responsibility to her kind after all, she was their queen by might and loyalty.<br/><br/>One of the guards nodded, opening his mouth to speak. “Yes, Your Majesty... it was a woman from<i>his</i>realm. She killed the two guards on the portal with magic before we caught up to her...” His eyes flicked once to Cyne, a hard look to his face and the muscles in his jaw feathering in irritation.<br/><br/>Elara’s eyes fell closed as she inhaled sharply. “Who... who was on guard duty last night?” She asked, her hands clenched in fists at her sides while she waited for an answer.<br/><br/>“Not anyone of our regiment, my Queen. That might give you a little leeway in dealing with her, but she’s quite violent and making a lot of noise in the cells below.” Her guard bowed his head again and touched his fist to his chest as he stepped back and returned to his business.<br/><br/>The vampire Queen turned slightly to look back at Cyne, her dark eyebrows arched in a quizzical expression. “Well, do you want to accompany me in speaking with your wayward follower?” Her eyes flicked to Caldwyn once. “You, however, may want to dismiss the young ones, and prepare to close the portal. I can’t have more following and killing our kind, and keep the Council under my thumb at the same time.” Caldwyn nodded and bowed once before turning to head back out in the garden with the little ones, Elara herself starting off down the corridor without waiting for a reply from Cyne. She had made it very clear that it was his choice what he wanted to do, and would not fault him if he simply wanted to go somewhere on his own instead of being pulled into this messy situation.<br/><br/>***<br/><br/>There was a steady drip, drip, drip coming from some forgotten corner of the prison cells, and it set Elara’s teeth on edge to hear as she descended down the stone brick steps into the dim light of the chilly prison. The cerulean blue orbs that were her eyes glittered in the dim torch light as she strode in an even pace toward the cells. Her boots made the soft click, thud, click, thud of evenly-spaced steps announcing her arrival. Soon the raven-haired queen stood before the cell containing the only warm body in the entire prison and she studied the nude curled up form on the floor critically. “Leave, Oriel. I will speak with the prisoner. Return when I call for you, not a minute sooner.” She commanded, her voice cold, emotionless. The Queen Incarnate.<br/><br/>The guard hesitated a moment and only started walking away when Elara actually turned to give him a look that said ‘Do as you are commanded or you will find out why I am raised from general to queen’ and his steps were very quick. She only stepped closer once Oriel’s footsteps were no longer audible and cleared her throat. “You know, if you hadn’t killed those two watching the portal, this would be much less difficult for you. State your name and purpose crossing over, mortal.”