The Discovery of the Tapes

Ila

The air inside the cathedral was thick with dust, and the faint scent of decay lingered as Ila and Whistler moved through the darkened halls. Their footsteps echoed in the emptiness, the quiet punctuated only by the occasional creak of the unstable structure.

Ila’s crystalline blue eyes scanned the room as they entered what appeared to be a side chapel. Ancient furniture lay overturned, shattered pews scattered across the floor. Among the debris, she spotted a small metal cabinet, rusted but intact.

"What do we have here?" she murmured, pulling the door open. Inside were several rectangular black cases with faded labels—VHS tapes.

She picked one up, turning it over in her hands. The technology was laughably primitive by Imperial standards, but something about the worn labels intrigued her. Most of them had handwritten notes: “Newscast 1987,” “Field Footage: Outbreak,” “Global Emergency Report.”

"VHS tapes," she said, holding one up for Whistler to see.

Whistler

Whistler leaned over, his amber eyes gleaming with curiosity. "Wow, now that’s a blast from the past," he said, grinning. He picked up one of the tapes and squinted at the label. "Haven’t seen one of these since… well, actually, I don’t think I’ve ever seen one in person."

He smirked at Ila. "Think there’s anything useful on them? Or are we just gonna watch reruns of vampire propaganda?"

Ila gave him a sidelong glance. "Only one way to find out."

They gathered the tapes and brought them back through the portal to one of the Imperial intelligence bases, where Commander Ralston’s team eagerly took over.