"It's me, don't worry," she said calmly.
"I hope you gathered everything you needed…" She nodded toward the black stake in Ethan's hands.
Ethan slowly lowered the stake, but didn't put it away completely. He looked at the woman with cautious surprise.
"How did you get in?" he asked quietly.
"The door was locked."
Zeydana gave a faint, crooked smile.
"I'm a witch. Doors aren't exactly barriers for me."
Flash finally relaxed and moved his hand away from his weapon. He watched Zeydana with a mix of respect and noticeable wariness.
"You came at the right time," he said.
"We brought back what you asked for."
He nodded to Gideon. Gideon stepped up to the table, picked up the metal canister, and opened it. Inside lay gray, almost black ash with a faint silvery sheen.
"Vampire ash," Gideon said, handing the canister to Zeydana.
Flash stood slightly apart and remained silent. He didn't mention how easily the fight had gone for him. He didn't say how he had moved faster than any human should.
He simply stood there with his arms crossed, watching Zeydana with a calm, almost indifferent expression.
"We barely made it out," he added evenly, though his voice carried none of the exhaustion the others clearly felt.
"But we got the ash."
Zeydana took the canister, opened it, and examined the contents. Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"Good ash," she said softly.
"This will work for the Knot."
She closed the canister and set it on the table.
"You've taken an important step. But this is only the beginning."
Susie, who had been sitting silently in the corner, lifted her head.
"And… what now?" she asked quietly.
"Next, we need to create protection for Ethan." Zeydana walked over to her granddaughter and kissed her on the forehead.
"Good," she said softly.
"We have the ash. Now we need to perform the main part the Binding Knot."
"It won't heal you completely. But it will give you time."
She stepped closer to Ethan and held out her hand.
"The ring. The one you gave me last time. Check your pocket."
Ethan nodded silently. He reached into his pocket, took out the small silver ring, and placed it in Zeydana's palm.
He was slightly surprised, he clearly remembered giving it to her earlier.
Zeydana took the ring with unexpected care. She closed it in her fist and shut her eyes for a few seconds, as if listening to something only she could hear.
"Yes…" she whispered.
She opened her eyes and looked at the others.
"No one interferes. No one speaks. I will work with his blood. If you feel the air becoming too heavy, leave the room."
Zeydana turned to Ethan.
"Sit on the chair. Place the stake on your lap and do not resist. The calmer you are, the easier this will be for me."
"Alright… as you say," Ethan thought. He glanced briefly at the others.
Ethan sat down and laid the black stake across his knees, watching Zeydana.
Zeydana picked up the small silver knife she had used before. She carefully made a shallow cut on Ethan's wrist.
He closed his eyes slightly from the pain and winced.
Dark blood began to drip slowly into the copper basin she had placed on the floor.
Then she took the ring, the one that had once belonged to Ethan's mother, and dropped it into the basin. The blood around the ring immediately began to change color.
Zeydana started to whisper.
The words were ancient, low, sounding like the crackle of dry branches and the rustle of dead leaves.
Protective symbols appeared on the walls and flared brighter. The stake on Ethan's lap trembled. The voices inside it growled, but Zeydana only raised her voice, and they fell silent, as if crushed beneath a heavy slab.
She took the ring from the basin, now coated in a thin film of black blood, and pressed it to Ethan's chest, directly over his heart.
"Close your eyes," she said softly.
"And breathe slowly. I will help you…"
Ethan closed his eyes.
Zeydana began to draw a complex pattern on his chest with her finger, using his own blood. Each stroke was accompanied by a faint hiss, as if the blood itself was reacting to the magic.
Ethan felt a wave of icy heat wash over his body. The stake on his lap trembled harder, but Zeydana placed her other hand on it and pressed down.
"Quiet," she whispered to the weapon.
"You will sleep, and obey only at your master's will…"
The stake fell still.
Zeydana continued whispering.
Her voice grew lower, almost inaudible. The air in the room became thick and heavy, like the atmosphere before a storm.
The black lines on Ethan's neck and shoulder began to slowly fade. They didn't disappear, but they stopped pulsing so aggressively.
After several long minutes, Zeydana withdrew her hands.
She exhaled heavily. Sweat glistened on her forehead.
"It's done," she said wearily.
"The Binding Knot has been placed. It will no longer greedily drain your strength. I have weakened the curse by one level."
Ethan opened his eyes. He looked slightly dazed, no longer quite as exhausted.
"One level?" he asked hoarsely.
Zeydana nodded.
"Yes. There are five stages in total. This is the first. You must pass the rest yourself. I can only slow the process."
"Stopping it completely is your task. Though it will take a very long time. Months. Possibly years."
She looked at the ring in her palm, which now glowed with a faint silvery light.