The knock at the door didnâ€™t surprise Kalab, though it did set him on his guard. Who would be there? Had he even seen her meet with anyone? Noâ€¦ Then again, he wasnâ€™t entirely sure how long Nehmahati had been in one place, or if she had any real contacts here. It would be dangerous and foolish for her to have done it, but one couldnâ€™t live in the humansâ€™ world without some link to the outside.<br/><br/>Almost at the same instant of the sound, a male appeared near him. It had no scent, no life, no energy of its own, and Kalab knew it was only an echo of its master. He could have abolished it more easily than it had come into being, but he was curious about its presence. What sort of person with this ability would think to use it against him? So he let it take him, faintly irritated at the interruption, but willing to deal with it as long as the thing left Nehmahati alone.<br/><br/>It smelled cloyingly of blood in the hall, and he didnâ€™t much like the scent. And the vampire mage was only drawing attention to himself. Flamboyant shows of power like that were certain to be noticed by those who were seeking any subtle changes in the lines. Thisâ€¦ this rippled like a dropped rock through the normal ebb and flow of the world.<br/><br/>â€œAllow?â€ Kalab let loose a humorless laugh. â€œYouâ€™re wasting my time, magician. Donâ€™t make meâ€¦â€ Another flash of power screamed through the passages of the world and set his teeth on edge. Along with it came Nehmahati, which would at least save a few precious seconds.<br/><br/>â€œShut up mage,â€ Kalab snapped. The show of absolute fury was rare, but this male had gone far enough and done enough stupid, dangerous things. He was done with it. â€œNehmahati, weâ€™re going home even if I have to drag you.â€<br/><br/><div style="text-align: center;">--------</div><br/><br/>Hyperion had been in luck. It took a little convincing, but a rather odd old man had given him the information heâ€™d been looking for. A seriously pissed off vampire had confirmed the details. Some man named Ellon had taken her upstairs, then sheâ€™d run off. He hadnâ€™t expected for her to still be around, but he also hadnâ€™t expected such an easy trail. Apparently the girl didnâ€™t know how to keep a low profile. There were more than a few of the leeches that had been happy to tell him about the half dressed woman that had fled the club. In return, heâ€™d let them live, which was not his usual method of dealing with vampires.<br/><br/>In his eyes, the world was better off without them, and getting rid of a few was never a bad idea. The old man wasnâ€™t so lucky. Hyperion took what he wanted from him, and considered it a mercy when he also took the manâ€™s heart and liver; the only parts he really cared for from a human.<br/><br/>He dropped the bloody pulp heâ€™d pulled from the manâ€™s chest and tilted his head. There was somethingâ€¦ While he had been in the process of locating this Ellon, and Hyperion was not so attuned to the magic in the world, he knew when things changed. But no, he couldnâ€™t go looking. It wasnâ€™t his job and there had been no mention of the girl having magic. He assumed that if she had, it would have been an important point. If she did, he might learn that from the vampire who was his next step and then he would worry about preparing for that.<br/><br/>Meticulous and always wary of standing out, he washed his hands and arms in a spray of water from a buildings spigot. Out of a sense of cleanliness, heâ€™d removed both shirt and coat, and afterward pulled both back on, trotting down alley shortcuts to the building heâ€™d gotten out of one of the vampires. Apparently this Ellon was rather well known among vampires, though Hyperion had never heard of him.