"Won't these "hunters" be expecting us on the underground though?" Sarash asked. Jacob had told both of the young vampires everything they needed to know about hunters, and the vampires' history. The three of them plus Varan were travelling on the underground, since it was daytime. They'd been lucky to get underground just before sunrise.

   "I'm afraid they probably will." Jacob said soberly. "But we're right outside the council. Anybody on this train could be one of us." Jacob said, careful not to refer to themselves as vampires. The last thing they needed now was more attention. "A hunter wouldn't dare risk it, travelling on the underground during the day. That's prime time for vampires to be underground, for obvious reasons.".

   "So were are we heading? And how come we're bothering to run away and not fight? If they're tracking us anyway using that GPS thing anyway..." Michael said.

   "As we are, we don't stand a chance. Neither of you are strong enough yet to fight a hunter, and these hunters are trained to fight the strongest of vampire soldiers, and more than one at once. Though I'm still stronger than just about every human, a vampire elder is nothing compared to a soldier." Jacob explained. "We must find help. I've travelled around London nearly my whole life, virtually non-stop. It's a way to survive as a vampire. You hear rumours, avoid the hunters, and meet allies. And that's how I knew I needed to recruit young vampires like yourselves, I'd heard talk of more hunters being sent out. But there's a lot of vampire activity to the West. If we head there, it won't be long until we find help.".

   For hours the three of them sat in silence. All were deep in thought about their situation. Sarah and Michael had suddenly been born into a whole new world of vampires and murder, and had no recollection of their former lives. Maybe, they thought, it would be better that way. No one to miss and nothing to distract them from their new "lives" as the undead. For Jacob, things were much more complicated. In the great war of vampires against humans he was faced with what he once was, a human. Whenever he fed, he killed quickly. No one he attacked even knew he was a vampire. But then people were staring at him with hatred, even though he used to be one of them and was taken from them by no fault of his own. Even though he much preferred being a vampire, when the humans tried to hunt him down it was almost as if his family was. At heart, he thought, he would always be human.

   For years the heartache and confusion of that had ended, but suddenly it had started up again. Vampires and hunters were on the move once more, and another war seemed inevitable. But he knew that until vampires died there would always be fighting. Vampires needed to feed, and humans were the best targets. They would obviously fight back, nothing else could be expected.

 

   "We're here." Jacob said, standing up. Sarah and Michael stood as well, and followed him and Varan off the train. "We must wait until sundown." Jacob said. "There's still a few hours of daylight left."

 

 

   Meanwhile, Gavin Harvey loaded up his computer at home. Sighing, he opened the tracking software. "What a fool." He quietly laughed to himself. "That vamp thinks he can get away from me? I'll find him and his scum friends and bleed them dry.". A map of the UK appeared, with a red dot flashing over London. It zoomed in, showing that Michael was much further away than he'd expected.

"He's escaped!" He roared, picking up his ashtray and throwing it across the room. Grumbling and cursing to himself, he marched to the wardrobe that stood locked besides his front door. The key was hidden upstairs, but Gavin grabbed at the handle and pulled the door from its hinges.

"They reckon they can outsmart me, huh." He mutterred, grabbing a dark rucksack from it. He flung it onto his bag, and pulled out a shotgun. The last remaining thing in there was a photo hanging up of his squad in the SAS. They were practically his family. And yet a group of vampires had killed every last one of them. But not him. It could only be destiny. He was destined to destroy vampires once and for all. Gacin stepped out his house, slammed the door, and ran to his car. It had bulletproof and tinted windows. There were five changes of license plates hidden under the seats, and a power hose could wash off the top layer of paint, so the car could completely change colour if the vampires knew what car he was driving. He was the ultimate in hunters, he liked to think of himself.

 

   "How are we going to find a vampire then?" Sarah asked.

   "By looking for one, how else you silly girl?" Jacob said, annoyed at what he saw as such a stupid question.

   "Won't they be hidden though?"

   "Yes, but from humans. Varan can follow the scent of vampries, and we have much increased senses. We instinctively know the scent of blood and of vampires. If they're near, we'll find them." He told her. Suddenly Varan stopped in his tracks, sniffing teh ground.

   "Shh..." Jacob whispered as Michael opened his mouth to say something. The three of them stared at the dog silently. Varan's head suddenly shot up and he started walking forwards.

   "He's found vampires. Now follow him." Jacob said. Varan led them down an alleyway, and eventually into the woods. "They're here?" Jacob asked. He looked forwards, but all he saw was a body lying on the ground. He cautiously walked to wards it, and rolled it over. It was a young man, and he'd clearly been bled dry.

   "There were vampires here, but they've gone. But he's not been dead for very long, they're not far away." Jacob said. Varan started moving again, and the three of them followed. They were sent back into the town, and finally they saw what they were looking for. A vampire, feeding off a human.

   "He's one of us, definitly." Jacob said, inhaling the scent of vampires. "But he must be new. He's stood right under a lamp post... not very wise." The vampire, when fnished feeding, looked towards them in shock. Terrified, he started running.

   "Varan, after him! You two, follow." Jacob ordered, the two young vampires and the dog giving chase. Jacob was too old to chase a young vampire like that one, but still kept the three of them and Varan in sight. It wasn't long before the fledgling vamp had run into a dead end, with Varan, Michael and Sarah around him.

 

   After a minute or two, Jacob caught up. "Do not worry, we mean you no harm.". He explained, showing his teeth. Sarah and Michael did the same. "From your actions, I'm assuming you're a rogue. I'm an elder - sometimes I work for the vampire council, or our "government" I suppose you could call it, but sometimes I'm much like yourself. But, as an old vampire, I need protecting more than one your age does. That's why I have these two and Varan, this "dog", or hellhound which is what he really is. If you join us, I shall teach you the ways of the vampire, and keep you safe from our enemy, V-Sec. Even if you do nothing to provoke them, they will kill you just because you're a vampire. Unless you come with me, and become stronger and wiser. The choice is yours. If you decline, you're free to walk away. No harm shall come to you from any vampire. The hunters from V-Sec who will be here in a matter of hours, however, I can't say the same for."

Cyril was confused by these three people. He felt like what they just said was from a lame movie script and that all this wasnt real.

"Hey, old guy, i didnt want to become what i am, its too early in my life, now i cant be a professional soccer player because of your kind. Hell I can't even go outside. And now your telling me we have to leave, hey I just woke up today as this mess, what about my belongins and house? I can't just go." Cyril tried to explain.

"This is bigger than you rogue," said the old vampire. "We need to leave now, its just for abit, and then we can come back and get what you need. But come on we are wasting time." He sounded anxious and in a hurry.

"Why are these so called "hunters" following you anyway, I thought vampires are stealthy."

The vampire simply replied,"We are, except for this one." He lightly slapped the young man in the back of the head and went on to explain,"He was captured by some of them, and instead of killing him, they shot him in the head with a tracking bug. So now if you would like to come, were gonna get the hell out of here. Come along you two." And with that the vampire left followed by his two "protectors" and his "dog".

Cyril watched the four walk away, and he was debating wether to follow or not. "I mean that v-sec or whatever has no clue about me, and those three would bring me lots of unwanted trouble, and that vampire over glorifies himself alot, but he said he could teach me, ahh hell," Cyril thought as he paced around looking at the disappearing figures. Cyril quickly changed his mind at the sound of screeching tires and didnt want to risk being found alone, so he reluctantly chased after the trio.

"Ugh guys, wait up i guess im coming."

The old vampire smiled,"Ha, you made a choice young one. What is your name by the way?"

"Ugh, Cyril." he hesitantly answered.

"Nice to meet you Cyril, I am Jacob, and these are my two assisstants, Sara and Micheal." Jacob said while still walking in a fast pace.

Micheal, Sara, and Cyril exchanged nods, and went back to focusing on Jacob.

"So, ugh, Jacob, where is it exactly where we are headed to?" Cyril said while trying to keep up with the group.

Name: Chassidy Lendoa

rouge

occupation: show girl

age: 19

Chassidy had just finished her show at the nightclub. So she was still dressed in her purple southern bell outfit. Her blonde hair was tied back into a bun with three large strands hanging out.   She was in an older part of town with gothic styled houses and towers. She had always liked this part of town although it gave her the chills when passing by one building. This night she felt like someone was following her. She grabbed her .45 pistol and glanced around, nothing. She shook the feeling off. She started to run but soon enough she had a man, or a vampire at her neck holding down her arms. She didn't even scream she figured either she was dead or going to be changed. Then the pressence was gone as she fell to the ground. She twisted and turned as the venom flowed through her veins. It was the strangest sensation, stinging, yet soothing.

The next thing she knew she was lost she didn't have any where to go due to the sunlight approaching. She stayed in the alley way hoping another vampire would find her, and not one of those fabled hunters. As the hours passed Chassidy had to hide in a cardboard box to stay away from the sun. But out of on corner came uv rays. She sacraficed her left hand to save the rest of her body.

---

Touch touchy touch touch me, I wanna be dirty!- Rocky Horror Picture Show, Janet.

Janet! Dr Scott! Janet! Brad! Rocky! *blank* Janet! Dr Scott! Janet! Brad! Rocky! *blank*
Janet! Dr Scott! Janet! Brad! Rocky! *blank*

    Debussy was obviously not in the mood to talk. There seemed to be a lot of noise coming from his room, but Journey knew better than to bother him when he was agitated. She would have to talk to him about her brother later. As for his order to kill
Anthony, she wasn't too sure how she felt about that. It seemed like he would be of more use to them alive than dead and it should be easy enough for her to make Anthony see things her way. After all, he would have to be an idiot if he thought that V-Sec would let him live when they were through with him, and he didn't seem to be a stupid guy.

      The only thing she could do was to go and talk to him. She went into Jewel's room to get her when she heard the front door open and Jewel walked in with Jacques, laughing. Journey didn't like the idea of Jewel being around him too much. Something about Jacques still rubbed her the wrong way. In fact, maybe she had made a mistake bringing Jewel into the house in the first place. She should have just killed her when she was done with her that evening at the hotel. Well there was nothing to be done about that now, but she had definitely been too quick to trust this girl. She would have to keep an eye on her from now on. She decided not to ask Jewel to come along after all.

    Journey swept past Jewel and Jacques and headed out the door.
 "Where are you going?!,"Jewel called out after her.
  "Mind your business girl! If I had wanted you to know where I was going, I would have told you!" Journey retorted.

Jewel stood there with a hurt look on her face, turned on her heel and slammed the door behind her. Stupid girl, Journey thought, she'll need a much thicker skin if she expects to be able to deal with Debussy. His words carried much more bite that the sting of Journey's last comment, and that was when he was in a mood!

Journey made her way to the subway, yet again. She sometimes wondered why she didn't just make her home in the tunnels somewhere, as often as she was here. Then again, she appreciated the comfort of a nice home and a cushy bed.

She arrived at Big Ben with some time to spare, so she decided to do a quick survey of the area around the clock. She didn't see Anthony, nor did she see anything else that would worry her. , she mused, he must have taken my words seriously. V-Sec doesn't appear to be anywhere around here.

There was still a bit of time until midnight, but Journey had always been impatient, so she decided to call Anthony. She pulled her cell out of one of the many pockets of her coat and dialed the number he had given her. Yet again, the voice mail picked up.

"I'm here and you're not. Hurry the **** up or I'm leaving."

Now, all that was left to do was to sit on the bench and wait for Anthony to show....

---

Vincent found himself in what must be a wild life preserve. They hadn't finished building this one, so Vincent was rather confused how he'd actually got over the fences surrounding the site. Myriad tree's seemed to glare down upon him accusingly, despite being planted and grown for whatever animals they were going to let loose, they gave the impression that they were ancient. The wind blew through in from the north, dancing across the blades of grass in the clearing Vincent had been drawn to.

Vincent frowned deeply, confused by the fact that he could see two moons.
No, one was not a moon. He soon recognised it as the crystal ball that Darkvein owned. Darkvein was here?
It was at this moment when Vincent realised what stood before him. Around a dozen undead trod forwards slowly and carefully, Darkveins previous fang gang. Behind them around a dozen more living, breathing vampires surrounded the man with the crystal ball, Darkvein. Most already had their swords drawn, dragging them carelessly across the soil or resting them on their shoulders, waiting.

Despite his distance, Darkvein's sinister voice flowed across to Vincent's ears as if he were standing right beside him. "Have you turned the other?" he said simply. The undead creatures snarled.
After hesitating for too long, Darkvein asked again.
"No. No, I haven't. And I don't intend on joining you either." Vincent's voice was weak, as if an invisible hand was choking him.
"Fool." Darvein growled. "I have an entire army before me, waiting to rip you to shreds and you dare defy my will?" Darkvein withdrew his sword now, using it as a walking stick. He was definitely an old man, standing for such a long time was taking it's toll. However, he showed absolutely no sign of weakness, though Vincent suspected it was a mere façade. A damned one, he had to admit.
"I do hope your soul is prepared." Darkvein's last words seemed to reverberate around the clearing. He motioned forwards and the undead creatures began dragging themselves towards Vincent.

Vincent unsheathed his ceremonial dagger, watching it glow with some kind of ethereal magic. Just before the first undead was within reach, Niah and Stacey emerged from the dense foliage and called out. Distracted, the undead turned to see Stacey point a double-barrelled shotgun at them and fire. "Get the hell away from that man." Stacey yelled, cocking the hammer, watching the undead creature drop to the ground uselessly.
"He's...no...man!" One of the undead creatures hissed. It struck out at Vincent and Niah fired a Glock at it's forehead, once, twice, a third time, then a fourth just to make sure.
"Very nice timing." Vincent said weakly, wondering how they could have possibly found him here.

Darkvein waved his hand over the crystal ball and resurrected the fallen undead. They weren't going to rid him of his army that easily. He nodded to the vampires surrounding him and grinning mischievously, they walked towards the fight, nonchalantly, absolutely certain of their superiority.

---

The only thing worse than beating a dead horse is betting on one.

Daniel carefully traced out a map on the back of an old poster.  He used a short stub of one of the large novelty pencils, it's size making it far more suited for his hands, although he was capable of delicate work, the large grip was far more comfortable and easier to use.  He kept the pencil with him at all times, in a large bum bag (ooc fanny pack for americans) around his waist.  The most important items he had were kept here with him, the pencil, a watertight ziplock bag, a large zippo lighter, a small pocketknife and a small, dented toy double decker bus.  Most the paint had been lost years ago, the small wheels had been glued back on and no longer rolled, but this item was the most precious of all to Daniel, it had been his favourite toy when he was human, and all he had left of his old life and his parents.

He included many things on the map, major roads (marked with circles if they were very busy areas), smaller alleys (marked with an asterix to show that they would probably be quiet areas), parks and cemetaries (shown with a cross), and the underground stations including the abandoned ones.

It took hours to complete, but once done Daniel carefully studied the map, trying to remember as much of the major landmarks as possible.  He then folded it up very carefully and placed it in the ziplock bag, and then into the bumbag. 

Since it was now early morning Daniel strode along the tunnel, unworried about being seen, since it's closed in the early hours of the morning.  As he passed through the station itself an unmistakeable smell assailed his nostrils.  Vampires.  And a number of them.  This was no mere lone vampire, this was a group with a purpose, and a destination.  And the likelyhood was, since they had come here once, they would come through again.  Daniel wanted to be around when they did, it would be much better for him to be with others of his kind as soon as possible.  He decided to wait at the station, tucking himself into an recess in the tunnel, and covering himself with the material.  He sat and waited.

Anthony was on top of Big Ben when he received a text from Journey. He smirked and made his way down the clock tower. He creeped up to Journey and said, "I was here long before you, Journey."

"How the hell do you know my name and why did you want to meet me?" Journey had her hand on the hilt of her sword.

"Ease down. I want to help you and your kin. V-Sec has a lot more information on you and your friends than you think."

"You're the one who needs help. You kill your own kind in a desperate attempt to save a pathetic, sinful species."

"You're in a lot more trouble than you think. V-Sec has developed a airborne form of anthrax that only reacts with the body of a Vampire like you and I..."

 

 

(Sorry kymed it was a little rushed)

---

Sorry for taking so long. Busy catching up with school coming back around and this strange cold mutation I have. So if the post doesn't make much sense or somethin', its 'cause I'm unable to think much right now. x3;

It took her a moment to register what Rok had said. Her head tilted in a curious fashion, almost as though she hadn't understood his question. "Why?" She murmured under her breath, possibly wondering the same as him. Too many factors pointed at it being more than a terrible idea. Even disastrous didn't compare to the possibilities and outcomes. "I am a mercenary and always work for the highest bidder, if you wish. I needed the money, and you seemed like an easy target." So much for that. They were probably going to check in and make sure that he was indeed rid of, that she hadn't been lying about his supposed death. The men who had hired her practically climbed into her skin to make sure he was rid of, though they didn't appear to know that he had been a Werewolf. Or had they? It only made sense, looking back on it now. After all, who would hire a lycan if the person they were going for was obviously a foolish human? "At least, that is what I had thought then."

Whoever they were considered Rok a threat, painfully proven--both literally and figuratively. "Now it is my turn to ask you a question, unless you wish to finish this with one of us dead." She kept her katana poised in a defensive manner, unwilling to be the first to go down or caught unaware by a sudden attack. If need be, she would run if he chose to continue the fight. Though if not, she would remain there and try to be peaceable--which may be hard since men and women with his personality tended to rub her the wrong way. Extremely. "Why in the Nine Hells are you so open about what you do and where you go? Any human could have tracked you down and found you where you were without the slightest bit of trouble. It is as though you are parading yourself around like some animal for the slaughter." True, she had only seen him the one time at his home, but what little information had been gathered about him, he would be far easier to find and hit than the broad side of a barn. Maybe a bus if you wanted to be picky. "There is so little of our kind, and yet you go around as though we are not endangered."

---

Even the lullaby of quiescent death cannot still the turmoil of my nightmares.

    Journey sat waiting for Anthony to show. She had the feeling she was being watched, so she figured he must be somewhere above her. Oh well, had he wanted to kill her, he wouldn't have called to set up a meeting. Besides, he may be disillusioned, but he did not seem to be a coward that would try to kill her when she wasn't looking. She bet he enjoyed fighting just as much as she. She heard him long before she felt his hot breath on her shoulder. He should really learn to move a little quieter.

"I was here long before you, Journey."

"How the hell do you know my name and why did you want to meet me?"

"Ease down. I want to help you and your kin. V-Sec has a lot more information on you and your friends than you think."

"You're the one who needs help. You kill your own kind in a desperate attempt to save a pathetic, sinful species."

"You're in a lot more trouble than you think. V-Sec has developed a airborne form of anthrax that only reacts with the body of a Vampire like you and I..."

"A what!? I had a feeling you would be more useful to us alive than dead." Journey mused aloud.

"What are you on about woman?"
  
      Suddenly, Journey felt as if she were transported elsewhere. She knew that she was physically still at the clock tower, but she appeared to be in a forest somewhere. "I know this place", Journey thought. It was a nature reserve they had been in the process of building for some time. She hunted there on occasion, as, like most unfinished properties, young human adults liked to go there to get wasted, among other things. She smiled to herself thinking of all the young lovers she surprised there. It was surrounded by high fences, but that was never enough to deter a human with ideas of partying and fornication.

    It was as if she were looking through someone else's eyes and she did not like what she saw in front of her. There was a very old and very ugly vampire holding some sort of glowing orb. He was surrounded by a small army of vampires and something else. They appeared to vampires, but they were not like any she had ever seen before; something about them was off.

    Nearer to the woods where she was standing and across from the old vamp, stood another, younger, vamp holding a glowing object. She could not see his face, but she felt that she knew him. There was some kind of exchange going on between the two and the old vamp did not look happy at all. She continued walking through the thick growth, toward the confrontation. As she watched, one of the strange creatures began walking towards the man. He turned his face slightly as he readied an attack and Journey could now see that it was Vincent. That meant Niah must be nearby!

    "Get the Hell away from that man!"

    Journey turned to her right and saw the young, clumsy hunter that Niah had recently turned. She was leveling a shotgun at the creature and, without a seconds hesitation, pulled the trigger, dropping the creature where it stood.

    It was then that she realized she must be looking through Niah's eyes. She didn't understand what was going on. This had never happened with Jewel. Sure Journey felt a connection with the girl, but she had never been inside her head before. Maybe it was because she had turned Niah before she had turned Jewel. Is this what she had to look forward to with anyone she turned? That couldn't be possible. Debussy would have told her if the connections were that strong. Besides, it was obvious that Debussy wasn't in her head, so that couldn't be it. There was something strange going on, but none of that mattered. Niah was in some serious trouble and Journey had to get to her.

       Another creature began to attack Vincent.  Journey saw her own hand raise and in it was a 9mm handgun. The angle was all wrong and her hand was shaking;  there was no way that any of the shots would hit the creature. In fact, there was a very chance she would hit Vincent instead. Journey wasn't sure  if she had any control over Niah, but she had to try to will her to straighten the weapon. Maybe this phenomenon worked both ways.

   "Niah", she thought, "Lift the gun up and slightly to the left." She saw her hand respond to her directives.
 
    ", now calm down and breathe deeply. On the exhale, squeeze the trigger. Do NOT pull it, just squeeze slightly. Be prepared, the gun will seem to jump in your hands." Slowly, she squeezed the trigger, hitting the creature in the forehead. She felt Niah gaining confidence as she pulled the trigger three more times in rapid succession, hitting the creature each time. She hoped Niah would be able to pull it off on her own, as Journey had no idea how much longer she would be sharing this space with her.

   "Very nice timing." she heard Vincent say.

    Just as if it had never happened, Journey was back in front of the clock tower, looking at a very angry Anthony.

 "Hey, I'm talking to you!" he yelled.

 "I don't have time for this right now, someone I know is in trouble. You can come, if you must, but I am leaving, now."
    
    With that, Journey began running. She pulled out her cellphone and dialed Jewel.
 
  "Jewel, I need you to meet me at the preserve whe...."
  "The one we hunted at? But why, I'm not hungry, we just recently fed" Jewel whined.
  "Dammit girl, I don't have times for your insipid questions. Get out there now!"Journey yelled and hung up.

  She only hoped she would make it in time.....

---

Anthony knew something was wrong but he didn't know what. He waited for Journey to drift off a little bit and then followed her stealthily. She moved for miles until she reached a nature preserve and moved into the forest. Anthony continued to follow her but now moved more cautiously. Suddenly he was floored by an unknown energy and lost Journey. He finally realized an extremely powerful vampire was nearby and followed the energy.

Was Journey headed toward this vampire? Anthony thought. He heard gunshots and moved toward the energy and sounds of conflict. Anthony made his way to the top of a small hill and as he edged over it he was made speechless by the scene. The great energy was coming from an older vampire carrying some glowing object. He had a hoard of odd-looking vampires with him. There were four normal-looking vampires in conflict with the hoard and the vampire holding the glowing orb.

Anthony realized one of the four vampires was Journey. He realized she needed help and decided this was his chance to prove he was trustworthy. He pulled a grenade from his belt that would release UV rays upon detonation. He threw it close enough to the hoard to kill alot of them but far enough to not harm Journey and her friends. A majority of the deformed vampires were burned into Oblivion. The older vampire was not affected by the UV rays oddly.

The old vampire looked at Anthony. He pointed toward Anthony and then somehow threw him twenty feet toward the battle. Anthony felt his ribs, they were broken from the impact. He pullled out his sword and began fighting with some deformed vampires approaching him, Journey, and the other three vampires.

---

OOC: Figgy, I'd appreciate it if you didn't just blow us all to oblivion with some absolutely inane and daft UV grenade. Half of the enemy vampires are perfectly normal and should not die so easily (or else they'll be no fight), the other half (around a dozen) are undead (zombies)...so UV most likely does not effect them, but we'll say it does since we can't undo what you wrote. Just as a heads up, since I didn't know you'd be joining, Darkvein must survive.

Vincent turned sharply to his left, having just stabbed one of the resurrected undead with the ceremonial dagger. He had turned just in time to watch a small object roll into the midst of the collection of undead vampires, which totally obliterated them, their dust buffeting up into the air wildly. Vincent looked back towards the direction it had come from.
The only expression he could manage was that of utter surprise. "Journey?" But there was no time to ask for an explanation. He glanced back at Niah; she was still horrified she had somehow managed to use a gun.
His senses were sharp. With one swift movement he swirled his body round, trenchcoat flaring around his ankles, and lunged his dagger into the throat of the last undead vampire.
Darkvein looked momentarily confused and then simply waved his hand over the crystal ball, instantly resurrecting most of the undead vampires. It appeared that some of the dust had been rendered unusable through being scattered too far around the clearing.
Vincent stepped back slowly, wondering how they could defeat a force that could come back to life as soon as they killed them. He grabbed hold of Niah and stared her in the eyes, wondering what was going on in her mind. She had dropped the Glock.
"What the fuck are those things?" Stacey frowned, watching the zombie-like creatures writhe around, slowly advance towards them, then stop some distance away.
"Darkvein has control over a horde of undead vampires, his previous fang gang." Vincent said, "As well as those guys." He pointed at Darkveins new fang gang.
The vampires Darkvein had called walked up alongside the zombie-like vampires, all standing in a line. Stacey, Vincent, Niah, Journey and another man, no, a vampire. Vincent had not seen before faced them. For a brief moment of time, there was a chilling silence, before the vampires rushed towards the group, brandishing heavy broadswords.

Darkvein stood quite some distance away now, balancing himself with his long and dangerous blade. These pitiful rogues would be absolutely overwhelmed. That thought comforted the old vampire.

---

The only thing worse than beating a dead horse is betting on one.

Sheathing his sword, Rok began to carelessly approach Lacera. He wasn't about to be worried by some inexperienced werewolf's pointless attacks. Especially when it seemed as though she wanted to stop fighting. It was already apparent she didn't know how to kill werewolves, despite her being one herself, and that put Rok very much at ease.

"I'm guessing you do not know me then. Which is quite apparent considering you were sent to kill me and must have researched information on me. Yet you do not know my age, you did not know I was a werewolf, and you do not know my real name? I'd say I'm doing pretty darn well.
The people who sent you to dispose of me wouldn't have known I was a werewolf either unless they found one of my previous werewolf acquaintances - which I highly doubt - and they certainly didn't know that a simple shot directly between the eyes wouldn't kill me, or they may have mentioned it to you.
No. I'd say I'm very cautious. I'm open about what I do because it is less suspicious. A man wafting through the records for decades and decades trying not to be noticed will be an easy target to pick up on. A man who lives short lives and only jumps between identities on rare occasions when his age no longer matches his appearance, on the other hand, is hard to pick up on..
I have lived long, and I've learned from the best. You think you know a lot about me, and so do your employers, but you nothing of me. And with my new assassination I can easily change my identity without even the slightest suspicion from anyone, including the people who payed you to kill me."

Now close enough to inspect her face carefully, Rok could finally try to recall who she was using all his senses. He walked carefully yet boldly now, allowing Lacera to back away slightly into the light.

"I would like to point out that you have been less cautious than me, just by the by. What with not doing enough research about your targets and suddenly taking jobs you would normally not accept. I heard your little monologue earlier, I know what you said.
But I wouldn't blame your decision making for that one. No, I think this one was fate."

As Lacera moved slightly to his words, some light shone through and lit up her face enough for Rok to recognise her perfectly. In a very subtle way, his face lit up with happiness. The sight of her face reminded him instantly of his younger sister, or at least what remained in his head of her. Even her scent reminded him of her innocence.
But this women was not innocent. She was a killer, a hired mercenary. How could he feel the need to protect her? His mind flashed back to her little monologue, followed by the event that let to him turning her.

"Baldur. The night he tried to massacre an entire town. You were the little girl. That sweet, innocent little girl. He was still young at the time. Shame, what horrors you've been trough..."
Rok paused for a moment.
"So it was fate."

Lacera stuttered, shocked at Rok's most recent discovery. She began to speak, but was cut short by a sudden reaction from Rok. He turned sharply to face the direction of a horrid signature, removing his katana as he did so. It was a signature so powerful and so evil that he could have picked it up from another world.
He could feel a new energy from it, a replenishing yet scarring energy. An energy he found himself drawn to. So much so that he forgot about the woman standing right behind him. And with that he launched himself towards this new threat, guided by curiosity and rage.

---

[Lionhead Pub] [Good Read] [Photobucket]

My post may still be a bit skewed and confusing since I'm still feeling ill, so fair warning!

Lacera's fingers twitched at his revelation, her eyes narrowed as she felt her palms begin to sweat inside the leather gloves. His earlier response to her about commenting on his carelessness went over her head, ignored. The creature that had destroyed her home, her village and life, was some beast by the name of Baldur? Though of little help, she now knew what to call this veiled fiend. Perhaps even gain the revenge she had been waiting for since that day, if only he could be found. But with what Rok had said about how careful he had been... it may be nearly impossible unless she followed him, easy enough. As he called it 'fate', she had been brought to him in the first place. Not only that, but it would be easier to keep track of him since she knew he was a werewolf and she could try and follow his scent or that gentle tug. However, if fate was the true factor in this, then she would possibly find him when she needed him most? With flawed logic, she opened her mouth again--only to watch as he suddenly began running in a new direction.

Her senses were not as great as his, and probably never would be, but she did find a strange, cruel pulsing coming from the direction Rok had gone. Whatever it was, she wanted to know what this new menace may be, a silly hope that it may lead her closer to Baldur briefly flashing through her mind. Childish wants that should be pushed aside and ignored completely. "Wait!" She called after him, sheathing her sword and now opting for the gun she had in her belt...? Blinking, her hand gripped air, and she realized she had lost it when going for her katana. Cursing, she quickly searched and found the weapon, taking off after... What? Her turner? She was unsure what to call Rok as of yet, but she faithfully followed; nose wrinkling as the power seemed to get stronger with every step. "This better be ," she grumbled. Though she had unofficially tied herself to Rok for, mostly, selfish reason, she would have left him and gone back to the states to continue that failing search--even with him being a better choice. "Damn it all to hell," she scowled, now only a few paces behind the older lycan.

---

Even the lullaby of quiescent death cannot still the turmoil of my nightmares.

deliriousstudios:

OOC: Figgy, I'd appreciate it if you didn't just blow us all to oblivion with some absolutely inane and daft UV grenade. Half of the enemy vampires are perfectly normal and should not die so easily (or else they'll be no fight), the other half (around a dozen) are undead (zombies)...so UV most likely does not effect them, but we'll say it does since we can't undo what you wrote. Just as a heads up, since I didn't know you'd be joining, Darkvein must survive.

OOC: I know Darkvein has to survive (I read your posts) and the UV grenade only killed a couple dozen of the vampires. Oh, and I tried to hint at the fact that no zombies were killed by the UV grenade.

---

figgy13:

OOC: I know Darkvein has to survive (I read your posts) and the UV grenade only killed a couple dozen of the vampires. Oh, and I tried to hint at the fact that no zombies were killed by the UV grenade.

figgy13:

He threw it close enough to the hoard to kill alot of them but far enough to not harm Journey and her friends. A majority of the deformed vampires were burned into Oblivion. The older vampire was not affected by the UV rays oddly.

So what are these deformed vampires you're talking about? A couple dozen is 24 vampires. There are only around 12 (not including Niah, Journey, Vincent, Stacey and yourself)...
Yeah.

Anyway...

---

The only thing worse than beating a dead horse is betting on one.

While being rather distracted by this new force, Rok still managed to keep enough of his wits about him to notice his new acquaintance following close behind.
So she was indeed a werewolf, and - more over - one he had converted. Somehow, he had managed to find one of his, what? children? Or rather, she had found him. Either way, Rok would have to try and convince her to join his battle and bring down the vampire council. She was young, and probably knew the ways of the new world better than he. Together with her assassin skills, she would be an invaluable tool in his arsenal.

Snapping back to his current situation, he now realised where the energy was coming from. He could swear he was hearing voices in his head. Crying, suffering voices. Voices telling him to kill, maim. He looked to the sky, seeing only a slight glow coming from in between the trees. It reminded him of the moon - which was currently only about half full - and it was definitely at the source of the energy. Rok could also sense vampires, many of them. Well, relatively many. It wasn't exactly a vampire convention, but there were certainly at least a dozen of them. But they weren't his main concern for now. It was the glow, the energy, and the wielder of that energy that concerned him. Bounding and leaping through the trees silently and stealthily - peering back only on occasion to check how the young cub was coping - he caught a glimpse of the situation through the trees.

He was right. Obviously. A handful of vampires with one old, weak looking vamp - that must have been their leader - at their centre point. There were a few ghastly looking undead creatures wallowing in the middle, and at the other end from the glowing ball were a couple more vampires fighting off the undead menaces. Wait, the glowing ball, it reminded him way to much of the mo-- he stopped in his tracks.
"Oh, I hope you're ready to slaughter some bats," he snarled, turning to Lacera, "because it's about to get ugly."
With those words, his face began to lengthen, his hair began to grow, and his muscles began to tighten. It has finally come time to say hello to the werewolves.

---

[Lionhead Pub] [Good Read] [Photobucket]

The zombified vampires, despite their ability to resurrect were merely a nuisance than an actual threat to Vincent and the others. When they actually came into contact with him, they simply lacked the intelligence to destroy a vampire. The real problem was fending off the numerous actual vampires who slashed, lunged and parried any blows dealt to them with obscene skill and power.
"Do you have anything bigger than this bloody knife, Stacey?" Vincent was becoming tired of ducking and rolling to escape the flurry of sword swipes heading his way. Stacey had long since abandoned her shotgun and was fending off her fair share of Darkvein's fang gang with a sword and surprisingly a hefty looking mace. It appeared that she had beheaded at least two.
Vincent did not have time to wonder how the young woman could manage to lift such a weapon and what they'd been training her behind the scenes all these years. Whilst defending himself uselessly against an overhead swipe from the closest vampire, Stacey was already making her way towards the edge of the clearing. She turned her head to see Vincent drop to the ground, taking Niah down with him, as he was holding her very close to himself. She flung the mace to one side and withdrew a 9mm and shot the vampire multiple times in the head, giving Vincent time to escape.
"I have all my weapons in this car!" Stacey yelled above the snarls and sounds of battle. "How does a rocket launcher sound?"

Then, time stood still. Vincent's perception of reality remained constant, yet he was dimly aware that the fray around him was frozen in time. He scanned around with his eyes and soaked in the new sensations this was bringing. It was then, when he noticed something from his memory.
A werewolf.
Sheer horror grasped Vincents soul, as if something in his blood called out and knew exactly how this werewolf reacted to his kind.
But that wasn't all, there was a sound and a feeling. A loud, excruciating sound and the feeling of debris hitting his face...

Time became constant. The trees were aflame. Vincent turned back to where Stacey had ran to and instantly knew what had happened.

Stacey, having opened her car boot to retrieve the weapons had stumbled and accidentally slipped the pin out a grenade. Vincent could not see if she had ran to safety. The fires were spreading fast and soon they would create a ring around the whole clearing, making escape difficult. The crumpled carcass of a four wheel drive made a few turns in the air before settling down on the ground. If there had been any useful weapons in that thing, they weren't anymore.
Without realising it, he had shielded Niah from the blast, but the attacking vampires weren't going to call off the assault just because of a pretty light show. All he could think to do was thrust upwards wildly with the glowing ceremonial dagger and protect Niah with his life.

---

The only thing worse than beating a dead horse is betting on one.

OOC: If I got something wrong, please tell me. o_o

Lacera was first unsure of how to react to the new scent, pinning it down almost as immediately as it came to her. She had heard mention of them in the paper and in the horribly failing book she had borrowed, and now knew that their kind was near. Vampires. The word flashed across her minds eye as she paused, inhaling deeply and further taking in their scent. New. Foreign. Unforgettable. Whatever they were, and whatever their ties to her kind, she knew that Rok's feelings of hatred toward them were well founded. Though she still did not understand nor truly wish to know how it had begun, this... thing between the werewolves and vampires, only one thought entered her mind as Rok suddenly began to shift: Kill them! Slaughter them like the pigs they are! It only became worse when she finally came to stand next to Rok while he changed, catching sight of the glowing sphere in the elders hands. Quickly she put together that he was leading these undead cretins, though it looked as though some were still opposed to him.

She shook her head and returned her gaze to that orb. As it had effected her Turner--she had chosen to use this term while they ran--it had begun with her next. Usually she enjoyed these shifts, and the fact that they would be able to rip apart an old enemy... She grinned and couldn't help but consider it a two-for-one deal. Though she was unsure as to how to kill one, she hoped that decapitation would work. After all, nothing could survive too long without a head which housed the brain, running all functions of the body. "I look forward to this," she hissed, ivory fur beginning to grow along her arms and neck as her face began to extend into a muzzle; fanged teeth bared in a menacing grin. Live hard, die young, leave a beautiful corpse.

---

Even the lullaby of quiescent death cannot still the turmoil of my nightmares.

Sorry about that, I wasn't clear on how many there were. You said an army so I figured alot.

---

Faith sat bolt upright on the bed, a spine chilling scream ripping from her throat. The scream stopped as suddenly as it had begun, the echo thinning out in the chamber. An eerie silence descended on the room as Faith started to scan her surroundings. Her eyes darting around trying to pick out anything in the gloom of the chamber. She was confused and scared, a figure slowly rose into view out of the shadows in the gloom, a voice rose and drifted through the still air, calming and soothing in its tone:

You are awake finally

Faith tried to speak, but she couldn't find the words.

Rest my child, you've been gone for days and haven't fed for weeks. I'll find you something to sate your appetite.

"haven't fed" the phrase jarred in Faiths head, it was an odd thing to say, something that would be said to an animal perhaps. What did it mean, the darkness crept over her again the voice trailing off as she went under again.

I'll be back soon my child

When Faith woke again the figure was standing over her holding a goblet. Faith blinked away the fog of her slumber and tried to take in her surroundings, however the figure was still shrouded in shadow. The way the light seemed to avoid the figure unnerved her. The goblet was extended towards her.

Drink my child.

Faith reached out for the goblet, the liquid was thick and dark but she was thirsty, so very very thirsty. She poured the liquid into her mouth and swallowed it down her throat. Her throat began to tingle, then it began to burn. The burning swept down her throat and into her stomach, a surge of power suddenly hit her.

She tilted her head back and let out a scream, a gutural, primal, powerful scream. The sound shocked her. It didn't sound natural.

child, now rest, we have much to discuss.

Lilly woke with a start, the sounds of a scream still ringing in her ears, her eyes darted around the room looking for what had caused her to wake. Her eyes found Faith who was still asleep, she had been asleep for nearly 3 days now, Rill had put her in a kind of coma to speed the recovery of her arm. Lilly had stood guard of her mistress making sure that no harm came to her.

She got up and walked over to Faith, pulled back the bandage on her arm, there wasn't even a scar anymore, she leant down and kissed Faiths forehead.

The vivid imagery of her dream still haunted her. The chamber, the smells, the taste of the blood, the sounds, they had been so real ... This wasn't the first time she had dreamed she was Faith, but it was the first time that it had really felt familiar and real. She'd talked to Faith about her dreams before Faith had been injured.

Turning from Faith her eyes fell on the vial that was on the table next to where she had been sat. It was the blood Rill had given her, he had said to drink it but hadn't said what it was for or even whose blood it was. She had been too scared to touch the vial, especially after the dreams she had been having, but things had gone sour recently whilst Faith had slumbered, and the Vampire worlds power base seemed to be shifting, she felt compelled to try something and this was the only thing that could get her started.

She walked over to the table and picked up the vial, the blood in the vial was thick and deep in colour, it seemed to have a faint glow or aura around it.

Removing the top of the vial she pressed it to her lips, she paused as the cold touch of the vial met her lip.

She paused.

Tilting her head back she drank the vials content. It was warm on her throat.

She was aware of it beginning to tingle down her throat, a burning sensation started to build up.

Lilly, what have you done?

That voice, Lilly spun around, Faith was still motionless on her bed, her eyes closed and her face rigid. The burning hit her stomach it felt strange, she felt a sudden and sharp pain, from the source of the pain a sense of power seemed to radiate out.

Lilly went rigid, the vial dropped from her hand and shattered onto the floor, her head threw itself back and her mouth ripped itself apart with a scream.

As the scream faded Lilly slumped onto the floor and darkness overcame her.

---

Mortalitis_Infinitas:

You have gained enough renown to purchase the "Creative Director of European studios at Microsoft Games Studios" title.

     Jewel hung up with Journey. ness, she could be bossy! Jewel made her way to the preserve, all the while wondering what was going on that was so urgent. Journey took everything too seriously, so it could be just about anything. She probably spilled something on her white coat and needed jewel to have it cleaned or something. That what she felt like reall, a glorified secretary. Do this, do that, go here, go there, stay out of the way. She loved Journey with her entire heart and soul, but Journey only had room for one in there. It used to be Debussy, but it seemed like she was replacing him with that Niah girl she was always talking about. Journey had opened up that small part of her past to Jewel and explained what had transpired between them all. Jewel didn't understand why Journey didn't feel the same way about her. After all, she knew what Journey had turned her and still loved her; Jewel didn't think Niah would feel the same way.

    She had followed Journey one night to this neighborhood across town. She saw as Journey sat in a tree watching the drama unfold beneath her. She understood the way Journey's mind worked and figured she was trying to get Niah to kill the young huntress, but that went totally wrong when they opted to turn the girl instead.

    She followed Journey around a lot without her knowledge. The funny thing was that if she could tell Journey that she'd been following her without her knowledge for so long it would actually elevate Jewel in Journey's eyes. After all, it was a very difficult thing to do. Of course, if she did tell her, Journey would be very angry. Not that it took muvch to piss her off.

    She followed her the night that she met her long lost brother too. That had shocked her so much, she had almost fallen off the roof she was watching from. She didn't understand why Journey had changed her name in the first place. Simone had such a sultry ring to it, she would have liked calling her by that. Maybe one day she would share her life and explain what in her past was so bad that she had turned into this monster. Jewel wasn't too much better, but everything she did that was or wrong, she did in the name of her absolute devotion to Journey.

    Jewel's life was full of irony. Donig for love, keeping in secret the few things that would actually impress the woman she loved. Journey's relationship with Niah and Vincent was the most ironic of all. Jewel had figured that Journey was so attached because she saw what Niah and Vincent had and she wanted something like that for herself. The funny thing was that she had it, with Jewel, if only she would open her eyes and see it.  There was some sort of connection between Journey and Niah that was diffferent for the one Jewel had with her. It was more than the fact that Journey's past intersected with Niah's, it was more than revenge and it was more than being Niah's turner. Maybe if Jewel could find out what it was, she could have that relationship with Journey too.

    She arrived at the nature preserve and what she saw shocked her completely. There was a small war going on there. She saw an old vamp, they were called elders according to Jaques. He had what appeared to be zombies attacking for him, as well as a number of flesh and bone vamps. On the other side was Journey, the hunter Anthony, Vincent and Niah. Of course.

    She saw as two people came running upon the open field. At least they appeared to be people until they began changing in front of her eyes. Werewolves! What the hell? She'd seen everything now. She saw movement across her peripheral and saw it was the huntress that Niah had turned; she was running toward the trees. jewel began to run down to the melee taking place and help Journey as much as she could. As she ran, she heard a loud thunderous crash and felt a rush of heat as something exploded form the direction the huntress had ran to. The forest surrounding them began to alight. Hopefully it wouldn't spread too close, or they would all be dead. Except maybe the werewolves, she had no idea if fire killed them too.

    She looked upon the scene as she neared the fight ans saw that Vincent had thrown himself onto Niah. He was blindly stabbing at the air above him, trying to keep both Niah and himself safe from the approaching menace. He would be fine with the zombies, but the other vamps were smarter than that. It was only a matter of time before they noticed and fell upon the both of them. It appeared Journey had noticed this fact at the same time she had noticed Jewel arrinving on the scene. She appeared to have her hands full.  She was fighting a very large vamp covered with tattoos on every inch of exposed skin. He was completely bald and had a tattoo of a large jellyfish that started on the top of his head and who's tentacles extended across his face and along the back of his neck. He was very powerful and seemed to be nearly a match for Journey. Jewel ran towards them to help.

"No, Jewel, I can take care of this moron myself. Help Niah!" she screamed.

    It appeared no one had taken notice of the vulnerable position Vincent and Niah were in, yet. This would be perfect. Jewel could end this once and for all. All she had to do was be the one to kill Niah. She couldn't let Journey know it was her, but it should be easy enough to get it to look as if one of the other vamps had done it.

    "Hey, over here" she taunted at the zombie who was nearing Vincent and Niah. She knew if she made enough noise, she would attract the attention of one of the vamps. Once they saw the precarious position Vincent and Niah were in, they would try to attack them. It would make it easy for Jewel to kill Niah then, while Vincent had his hands full with the approaching vamps. Jewel couldn't understand why Journey was so obsessed with Niah. The girl was weak and sad. She couldn't even defend herself here. Journey needed a woman who was strong, like her. She needed someone who would not only kill for her, but with her. With Niah out of the way, Journey would see Jewel for what she was and she would love her.

Now, to finish off Niah.....

   

---

Vincent's senses were electric. He could sense the anger and hatred in another's blood and whoever it was, he instantly knew was going to cause both he and Niah problems. He glanced out of the corner of his eye and saw a young vampire shouting, the one that had joined the fight with Journey. Vincent frowned and grimaced as he saw three vampires turn his way, alerted to his precarious situation. As one, they charged at both Vincent and Niah and in that split second Vincent sensed an unusual smugness in the air.

Vincent looked down at the dagger he was holding, now glowing so brightly the light appeared to encompass the entire blade. The handle almost felt like it was burning through his flesh.

Vincents memory flashed back to his first encounter with Darkvein and somehow he found himself observing his body being dumped onto a subway train. Darkvein was chanting some ancient words over the ceremonial dagger, weaving a dark fearful power into the steel blade and the ebony handle. It glowed brightly for a moment and then the white light subsided. Darkvein knelt down and slipped the dagger into Vincents trenchcoat.

The memory ended.

Vincent looked up to see the first vampire lunging at him madly with a huge broadsword, instinctively he ducked and grabbed the vampires arm forcing the blade to fly straight into the ground. The vampire turned and snarled, but before he could pull the long sword out of the dirt, Vincent slashed at the vampires throat with the dagger and slid the blade down vertically through his chest straight through his heart. The vampire instantly set on fire and tumbled onto the ground, burning the grass as he rolled around frantically his body soon turned to ash, wisping around the ground in the wind.
The dagger's blade had tasted blood and whatever spell had been cast on it had caused the blade to set on fire. Vincent held the flaming blade at arms length, for a moment, wondering why Darkvein had been so careless as to give him such a powerful weapon.
The second vampire jabbed his blade forwards towards Vincent, who bent his body backwards, watching the sword slice harmlessly through the air above his chest. He weaved around and readied himself for the vampire to attack again. Vincent stumbled on the broadsword the first vampire had dropped and pulled it out of the ground. When the second vampire lunged once again, Vincent deflected the blow and batted the vampire around the head with the flat of his sword. He grunted as his right arm bared the weight of the enormous weapon.
The third vampire attacked Vincent from the side and he found himself desperately defending and parrying against a flurry of attacks. He had not been trained to fight like this, only his natural vampire instincts had allowed him to survive thus far. He grabbed Niah and stumbled towards the treeline, defending each blow the vampires dealt, only letting a few penetrate his skin. The pain took almost all his concentration to ignore.

Darkvein watched Vincent and smiled smugly to himself. He felt that the time was right to finish him.

The ceremonial dagger's handle suddenly set on fire. Vincent felt the flames seer through his hand and he called out in pain, screaming off the top of his lungs. Without thinking he managed to throw the dagger at one of the vampires, lodging it straight into its heart. In a similar manner to the first vampire, he set on fire and burnt to ashes before Vincents very eyes. Vincent  looked at his hand, blackened and charred, utterly disfigured. He couldn't feel his fingers, indeed, he wasn't even sure he still had any. He glanced up to see the remaining vampire lift his broadsword up to finish him off. Closing his eyes, Vincent winced in pain, nursing his burnt hand.

Darkvein growled and spat. Vincent should have been burnt to a crisp. How did he find the resolve to throw the weapon? Ignoring the rest of the fight, Darkvein walked towards Vincent and Niah. If this vampire couldn't finish the job, Darkvein was sure he would.

---

The only thing worse than beating a dead horse is betting on one.

    Journey finished off the large tattooed vamp with a slicing arc of her short sword severing his head clean off. Before his carcass began to turn to dust, Journey already had her attention on Niah. Jewel was jumping up and down screaming like a loon, which was only causing the other vampires to notice the precarious position that Vincent and Niah were in. Suddenly, Vincent seems to be possessed by some power and swiftly killed the 3 vamps headed toward him. The dagger in his hand began glowing with fire and Vincent threw it away, but Journey could tell he was hurt.

  Jewel saw her opening.Vincent appeared to be nursing his hand, while another vamp was leveling a broadsword over his head and the elder vamp was approaching him. Vincent closed his eyes and seemed to have forgotten Niah lying there on the ground in shock. There was no better time than this. Jewel started toward Niah.

"Niah, I'm here to help! Come with me, hurry!" Jewel shouted.
She ran to Niah and grabbed her hand, dragging her away from Vincent and the other vamps. As soon as she was a couple of feet away, she dropped Niah's hand and pulled out her knife.

"I'm finally going to be rid of you, once and for all. now Journey will love me instead of you."

"What..who are you...what are you talking about? How do you know Journey?"

"Silly, stupid girl, Journey was the one who turned you. She says it was to save you. She may even believe it. She's been there watching you ever since the beginning. But, after I kill you, she'll pay attention to me like that. She'll protect me and love me, instead of you. Time to say bye, doc."

"Wait! I don't understand! Please, just talk to me!"

Journey turned and saw that Jewel had taken Niah away from the fray. " girl", she thought. She turned her attention to the vampire who was getting incresingly close to chopping off Vincent's head. Journey pulled out her Magnum and shot the vamp dead between the eyes, forcing him to stagger away. Journey flew at the monster with her short sword in hand and brought the hilt down on the top of his skull, caving it in. As she landed, she used her momentum to spin around, arcing her sword and using the blade to decapitate the vampire.

As the dust began to clear, Journey saw that Jewel had her arm raised at Niah who seemed to be pleading with her. Journey wasn't sure what was happening, until she saw the glint of metal in Jewel's outstretched arm; a knife!

"Jewel, no!" she screamed, as she rushed her two "children".

"I have to do this Journey! I have to make you love me! The only way to do that is to break her spell over you." Jewel cried out" I lov.... LOOK OUT!"

Journey spun around in time to see another vampire running at her with his knife in hand. These damned vamps were like cockraches, scurrying out of every corner. The fire surounding them seemed to be coming closer as well. Journey turned her back on the vamp and ran to stop Jewel. If Journey were to die, at least it would be while saving Niah.

Jewel saw Journey turn her back on the attacking vamp and begin running toward them. She was going to get herself killed! Jewel couldn't allow that to happen. She turned away from Niah and ran at the vamp that was coming after Journey. She lifted her sword and parried the vampires strike, kicking him in the stomach at the same time. The two of them danced, trading blow for blow, with neither of them tiring. Finally, Jewel thrust her sword into the vampire's chest, but not before he did the same. He pierced her heart, but she was able to punch through his, before he could finish. He disappeared into dust, leaving his dagger stuck in her chest. Jewel began to feel faint and sat down hard on the grass. She saw that Journey had taken Niah a few feet away abd had sat her down behind a large rock. She covered Niah with her coat, hiding her from sight.

Jewel's vision began to get a little fuzzy, so she reached for the dagger to try and pull it from her chest, so that her body could heal itself. She felt a hand stop her and looked up. It was Journey, smiling down at her!
"I'm so glad you're okay, my love. Help me remove this dagger, so we can get back to the fight."
Journey grined down at her and then extended her hand, helping Jewel to her feet. She grabbed the hilt of the knofe, but, instead of pulling it out, she pushed it in farther. Jewel's eyes grew wide" But...but, I love you!" She she cried, spraying blood and saliva on Journey's face.
Journey grinned and wiped the blood from her face. "That was your first mistake." she laughed, as she thrust the dagger through Jewel's heart.

Jewel exploded into dust. The wind carried her ashes awya and Journey forgot her as quickly as if she had never existed. She turned her attention to the fight, in time to see a large beast pounce on one of the vampire zombies and literally bite it's head off. The beast then turned it's attention to another and with a wicked gleam of eye and tooth, she pounced.....

---

As the shift was completed and Rok joined in on the battle, Lacera glanced one last time at the unusually old Vampire carrying the orb that allowed them to change. She doubted she would find out the reason until the current events were complete, but right now there were some monsters to obliterate and an elder to avoid. This is going to be fun, she thought, making a quick bound and leap at the nearest vamp. Sinking her claws into its chest and abdomen and then snapping her jaws shut on its neck, she neatly severed the head from the body in a bloody spray. It didn’t last long as the body then suddenly turned to dust, surprising her only briefly. Down with one, several more to go, she launched at another of the beasts and tore her claws through its chest. This seemed just about as effective as her earlier attack, giving her an idea of the best way to kill the disgusting beasts.

With a third down, she landed neatly in a crouched pose, sliding her gaze over to Rok. She wanted to make sure he was faring as well as her—which she was quite certain he would be—and not being easily overwhelmed. After all, with every one that was taken out several more seemed to take their place, making themselves effective shock troops for the man leading them. But off to the side, it looked as though there were other vampires fighting off their own kind, a few doing a rather poor job at it, but still faring decently. Letting off a low, primal growl, she became tempted to try and attack the one wielding the crystal ball. However, instinct virtually screamed that would be one of her worst decisions, and she instead chose to fight alongside Rok. Better to have a friend at ones back then several questionable Vampires' and their enemies at all sides.

Tail stiff and ears pricked, she prepared herself for the next wave.

---

Even the lullaby of quiescent death cannot still the turmoil of my nightmares.

Darkvein and Vincent faced one another silently as the battle raged around them. No vampire or even the werewolves that had joined them dared come close to Darvein, allowing the vampire elder plenty of time to destroy Vincent.
"You are finished." Darkvein said.
Vincent looked up from holding his charred hand and glared at Darvein. "You still think I'll join you?"
Darkvein laughed menacingly. "It is too late for that. Even with these...beasts attacking my undead army, you shall all be destroyed. And I can always call upon another fang gang." Darkvein held his long thin slender blade aloft, not keeping his eyes off Vincent. He would only require one blow. The muscles in his right arm tensed and it took all his concentration to ignore his natural frailty, using the power of the orb held in his left hand to focus his energy.
Vincent clenched his fist. "I just have one question."
Darkvein grimaced. "Speak quickly. Your death shall be swift." In truth, Darkvein could not fathom why he stayed his hand and did not finish the job now.
"Why would the orb pick me? Why not a more skilled vampire?"
Darkvein's arm quivered under the weight of the blade. "It means your are chosen, special, important in some fashion."
Vincent's laugh was a sickly sound and he coughed up a little blood. He bent over and groaned in pain. He looked back up at Darkvein. "And you want to end my life?"
"Your life ended the moment when that cruel vampire sunk their teeth into you. Once you are truly dead you will not have any choice. You shall be resurrected as part of my undead army. Never ending death under my service."
Vincent screamed in pain, partly from his disfigured hand and partly due to the thought of what fate was his future. He closed his eyes and fell to his knees, but in the process he felt something jabbing into his side. With his hand he felt inside his trenchcoat and found a syringe Niah had given him - a highly concentrated haemoglobin solution. Without anything to lose he jabbed the syringe into his arm and soaked up the raw power it gave him.
To Darkveins surprise, Vincent's charred hand grew back before his very eyes, clean and uncut as it was before the actor had fallen into this sorry state of affairs. Darkvein cursed himself for lingering and swung his blade towards Vincent's neck.

---

The only thing worse than beating a dead horse is betting on one.