Garden Of Poison

Raylen flew as swiftly as he could back to the castle, and considering its close proximity, he landed directly through an open window with his wings vanishing to accommodate him passing through. He took a deep sniff of the surroundings and proceeded to run in the direction where Emily’s scent was strongest.

Westley and Lauren caught sight of their master rushing through the castle corridors, and promptly followed him.

"Master, is everything alright?" Lauren inquired with concern.

"Where is Emily?" Raylen questioned, arriving at the door of the room where Julia was being held captive.

"She hasn’t left the floor since you departed, Master," Westley answered, and then added, "She’s probably been in the company of the traitor."

But when Raylen pushed the door open, it was just as he feared. He whispered, "Logan has taken her from here."

"He was here? It isn’t possible. We would have seen him," Lauren insisted, her frown deepening. "I will go take a look upsta—"

"Logan tricked us all." Raylen’s jaw clenched as he interrupted her, his frustration evident.

Raylen knew that Logan had switched his own body just before the moment of his death, such that even though he believed he had killed his first half-brother, Logan had somehow preserved himself. Similarly, he had taken over Julia’s body, using her skin and face to conceal who he truly was, aided by demonic black magic.

"Through and through, he only proves that he is her son," Raylen commented bitterly, acknowledging the cunning and twisted nature of his half-brother.

"But the map showed his location to be in the middle of the forest." The deception left Westley gobsmacked.