NationStates Jolt Archive

Sigrun shook his head negatively, "No, if you move quickly, and speak as little as you can, it will lower your chances of being caught. Also, while you are in there, if you are caught or in high danger of being caught, telepath me, and I will open a portal nearby you. Do not hesitate to go through it, for it will be open only a very short time, long enough for you to get through."

He thought for a moment about the residence and then spoke up, "Say you're from the next town over. That will eliminate that issue all-together."

He looked over to Hondur, "We'll do fine, bro. Just leave it to my care." He gave him a smile and a wink.

Stephen shrugged as Hondur knocked away his idea. At least it was something.

"The only time I have ever heard someone turn after a bite was well...me."

Stephen's hearing seemed to fade as he thought back to the night in Tarlachia where he had been bitten. He scratched his arm where the female vampire had sunk her fangs into his flesh. He also clearly recalled her face just before he killed her. That bite had begun his transformation into the vampiric form he was in now.

When he drifted back into the present he found Sigrun in the room and the course of action decided. He had to admit, it was better than his idea.

"One last thing Lujza, the man is probably pissed as hell. All the Russians I have known are very explosive when they get pissed." Stephen then mumbled something before coming back. "So, watching what you say is just as important as making sure they don't know you are a vampire."

"Or," Sigrun started, "You could tell him you're a vampire walking around in the middle of the day, and see if he actually gets a heart attack. If that happens, none of us have to worry about good ol' Ivan." He laughed.

"Bloody Russians and their vodka..." he muttered moments later.

Stephen nodded to Sigrun. The young vampire muttered something angerily and smashed his fist down onto a table. He looked up to Sigrun.

"I hate fucking Russians. They were the ones who did this to me." Stephen lifted his shirt to reveal his scarred torso. "They were also the guys who injected me....nevermind. Lets say they were the ones who helped start turning me into a vampire."

Sigrun couldn't help but stare at Stephen's scars. He had seen them before, but like many times in the past, he had dismissed them as something Stephen didn't wish to talk about. Now, however, his curiosity was peaked. He raised a finger to Stephen, pointing it at him. "You and I are going to talk about that soon. For now, we have to get going, before too many of the VP officers are back at the HQ."

He looked over to Luzja and nodded, "Let's go." As he walked away he called back to Stephen telepathically, Seriously. You're going to tell me all about it. His voice was kind, but firm.

Stephen froze as he watched Sigrun leave with Lujza. He then realized he had slipped up. He had never told anyone about what had really happened to him down in the depths of Mendez's torture chambers. The only records of what happened were locked deep in the vaults of the Golden Simatar's National Archives; even then they were incomplete. He had not told the full truth to the military board after the operation against the rebel leader and drug lord. He slumped into a chair, trying to think of a way to keep from talking about it and unleashing his demons.

He heard Sigrun's message in his head, Stephen knew the elf meant it. Like hell I am telling him, or anyone for that matter. Stephen looked up at Hondur.

"What do you think Lujza's chances at success are Hondur?"

"So I'll be off shortly," she said to Sigrun. "Taking a weapon would likely draw suspicion, wouldn't it?"

OOC: sorry about the short posts, been kinda busy.

He heard Sigrun's message in his head, Stephen knew the elf meant it. Like hell I am telling him, or anyone for that matter. Stephen looked up at Hondur.

"What do you think Lujza's chances at success are Hondur?"

Hondur watched as Sigrun led Luzja into another room where they would make final preparations before going on their mission into the depths of the enemy base. As he pondered the issue, Stephen's words interrupted.

"There shouldn't be any problems at all. And even if there are, Sigrun wouldn't let anything happen to her."

Shifting his gaze upon Stephen, Hondur could tell the younger vampire was embarrassed about what he had previously said. Evidently he did not wish everyone to know of his past.

"Stephen. If you do not wish others to know of your past, perhaps blurting it out would not be the best idea?"

Stephen sat quietly as the ancient lectured him. He had to agree with him, Sigrun would not have been interested in his past if he hadn't said it. Finally, Stephen actually began to feel the pull of sleep. He had never noticed it before, now his body was telling him to hit the hay immediatly or fall asleep right there in the lounge. It would also mean he would be asleep when Sigrun came back and most likely the elf would have forgotten what he said. The young vampire slowly stood and looked at Hondur.

"I'm going to bed. You going to wait for them?"

Hondur nodded.

"Aye. I've got to figure out a few logistics things when it comes to an all out battle as well. We have grown substantially over the years and cannot house the entire coven within this mansion. We're now spread out in several buildings over the city. Good night Stephen."

Hondur bid his farewell to the younger vampire before descending the stairs towards his office where he would beginning calling upon all the resources he had to offer in the upcoming battles.

Sigrun walked down the road, a cloak draped over his shoulders and his head. He kept to the lesser traveled paths through the city with Luzja beside him. As they walked he kept his eyes and ears open for the long familiar sounds and sights of the suspicious kind, including that of the VP. They were not out in force now, for they believed that the vampires did not travel in daylight.

"Listen to me Luzja. If this headquarters is where I think it is, it will be the same one I was in once, long ago. It was back when Hondur was captured and tortured by the VP. Skadi and I, we had to rescue him. Anyways, you'll need to know where to go. Keep in contact with me via telepathy, I will make it a secure connection, to prevent unwanted eavesdroppers."

As they drew near to the building, Sigrun noted the presence of squad cars lining the streets nearby. He smiled. Some things just didn't change.

"It's the same building. I doubt they've changed the rooms inside as well."

"Umm... Sigrun... sir... that might be a problem," Lujza said with a sigh. Even though Hondur had said it wasn't necessary, she forgot not to call Sigrun "sir." "I can get the point of a message if it's directed at me, but I'm not very good at sending them myself. I can only send very simple messages, though I can send feelings very well." It was true, she was considered particularly strong in telepathy for a Callisdrunian Moroii, but her abilities were weak here.

Sigrun thought for a moment, "Then I shall maintain a link with you constantly. You only need to think your thoughts to me and I shall read them easily enough. I shall establish a shield around your mind as well. It will be tough, but I am capable of doing so."

He looked to the building and gestured with a nod of his head, "Now go. Do what you must."

(OOC: I am extremely sorry for my disappearance these days. I hope this one I am going to post makes up for it.)

Two nights ago, in the Ebony Palace,
City of Darkness, capital of the Atrosian Empire.......

It was just a typical evening in the Gothic Underworld of Atros. The solid, steady side of Atros, the citizens who worked from 9 to 5 to power the economy of the small but thriving Empire in the daytime, was now calling it a day. The hardworking men and women were now returning to their families, upright citizens of a respected nation, and giving way now to the other face of Atros, the face that some say is the true face of the Gothic Underworld. For as night comes, the denizens of the dark come out from their hiding holes, each to take their own places in the twilight society that Atros has been well-known for- the dual-faced aspect of a nation that is unlike any other.

Now was the time of the young punks, who roamed the bars and clubs at night, partying the day away. Now was the time of the night workers, who sacrificed their sunlight hours to power the economy of Atros for the second-half of the 24-hour clock. From the nighttime versions of the usual office workers, to the bartenders who serve the young punks, to the casinos that entertained the high-rollers within Atros' shores and beyond, the neon lights that characterized the City of Darkness were shining bright tonight. And now was also the time of the few remaining vampires of the Noble Brood to come out and tend to their aristocratic lands. Also too was the Royal Couple to awaken, and reign over Atros for yet another night in a timeless sequence since the nation was first founded by he who now sleeps in the Royal Chamber of the Ebony Palace.

But the sleep of the King Vampire Louis and the Crown Princess Alia has not been peaceful. The daytime dreams that was plaguing them was reaching its peak, and as they gnashed their fangs and trembled at the vision that was being fed to them, a vision which was the sum of all their fears. Suddenly, both Louis and Alia awoke with a gasp, and their faces were pale, far paler than even any vampire's had a right to be. For they were in fear, fear that a prophecy they had dreaded for so long, was now promising to come true. And Louis had only one thing to say, as he beheld Alia's panic-stricken gaze, a gaze which mirrored his own.

"We must summon the Council. Immediately."

_________________________________________________________________

It happened within the hour. The remainder of the old vampiric heroes of the Dark Revolution, now Dukes, Earls and Counts in their own right, were seated at the long table, the King and his Crown Princess seated at their head. All were visibly shaken at what they have heard, for it was oh so familiar to them, so many centuries ago. The Blood Prophecy of the Nobles had come back once more to the only known living members of the Firstsired, this time with a difference: It indicated that the extinction of the Assingtonian Brood was about to become imminient, if the Nobles were to fail of their promise and fail to come to their aid.

"So it has come to this, my King", Count Sedion, a lean-faced Noble of Russian heritage spoke up. "Once more, the Prophecy rears its head, asking of the Nobles the assistance the Assingtonians are too proud to ask for themselves. And now the need appears to be dire. We must decide for ourselves, and soon, if we have to respond to this vision."

"I say no to that!", Baron Rolf suddenly yelled out. "All these decades, all this time, we have been bound to the Blood Prophecy. And to what end? The Lady Skadi has rejected our help time and again, and even during the last Assingtonian Civil War between them and the Lycans, what we DID send over to Emerald City barely made an impact on how the war turned out! What is the point of us holding onto a promise it seems we will never keep anyway? We should just leave the Assingtonians to their own devices, since they seem capable of taking care of themselves so well......"

"I disagree", interjected Duke Candon, "Isn't this what we have been waiting for, all these years? Remember our heritage! We exist solely because of the fact that we swore to protect the Assingtonians from certain death! Are we to forsake our vow of honor now that our lives are at stake? We MUST offer the Lady Skadi our services once more, to fulfil our oath!"

"And you would give away what we've built up all these centuries for an oath that even these foolish Assingtonians have forgotten?", the Baron Rolf sneered. "I say we think about our own lives first! Why shall we give up all that we have achieved just because of a brood who have cast us out?! We have evolved beyond their kind, why should we remain chained to an inferior brood for no reason?"

"You are talking heresy, Rolf!" Candon argued, "These are our brothers we are talking about here! You are speaking of breaking the oath that is the reason of our existence, and to do so is to curse yourself for all eternity!"

"Speak for yourself, you old fool! What are you trying to say, that we should give up our lives for a worthless cause?! The Lady Skadi would never appreciate it even if we did that!"

"And yet we must, for if we don't, who is to say that we will not be next to die out?! We must join forces in this dire circumstances, so as to ensure a place for us as we move on with our lives!"

"Candon, you fool, after all these years....."


"ENOUGH!",

the booming voice of Louis rang through the hall, and the bickering vampire aristocrats went silent. Still, the tension was palpable, and it was evident that not everyone liked the options. With a sigh, Louis stood up, and addressed his fellow Nobles.

"We have two choices here, gentlemen", he began. "Either one unpalatable to us, and yet a choice we must make. Yet, I see we are all divided in this, and I know that, despite the Prophecy that has come to me and Alia, we have not yet secured enough information on the current situation. We must find a way to gather more intelligence on the current situation......."

At that, the Crown Princess Alia stirred, and caught Louis' eyes. Her tone was grave, as were her words.

"Louis. I sense we already have someone in Emerald City in place. And he has been there for the past few days, close to the Lady Skadi herself."

"Who?", Louis questioned. Then, thinking better of it, he cast his mind towards the distant land of Assington himself. In Emerald City, where the Third War has seen the first return of the Nobles, if only for a short while........what he saw caused him to raise an eyebrow.

"Zero. He's in Emerald City now. And the Princess Aeris too.......", Louis murmured, to which Alia interjected. "The erstwhile Zero, my King. Remember, he has a name now. He is your ambassador, Raphael Celadrin, to Tarlachia now."

Ignoring his sister-in-mortal-life and now his vampiric mate, Louis made a decision.

"Summon him to the Palace. We must question him."

And so it is that Zero, along with the Princess Aeris, was absent from Hondur's mansion for the past two days...........

_________________________________________________________________

"One night ago, in the Ebony Palace......."

The summons was unexpected. More so was the reason for the urgent summons to the Palace, that Zero had not gone back to in a long time. But most unexpected of all, was how he had also summoned Aeris to the Palace as well, as if she were some lowly ambassador instead of being a Princess of Tarlachia in her own right.

"It's a good thing Aeris would follow me everywhere I go. Otherwise, goodness knows how pissed off Sigrun would be", Zero thought to himself. Nevertheless, he, as well as his timeless lover Aeris, were now facing the King Vampire of Atros, and while he had to pay his respects as a subject of Atros, Aeris stood defiantly straight, staring at Louis. And well she should, for isn't she a member of the royal family, and a national leader in her own right? Yet, this did not put off Louis at the slightest. In fact, it seemed to amuse him.

"Dear ol' Zero has taught our little sprite here well", Louis thought to himself. And then, it was down to business.

"Zero, the Blood Prophecy has struck once more. And this time, its prediction is imminient. I sense that the Assingtonians face the Threat from which they will not survive, and I do not know what it is. But I believe that you do, so tell me what you have learned."

And with that, it could be seen that Zero's face was troubled, and thoroughly unhappy. The past few days have weighed heavily on his mind as well, and he had often wondered if what was happening was a premonition, that the Blood Prophecy which the Nobles have expected and yet dreaded at the same time for so long was finally coming true. Now, as he sighed heavily, he knew that it was coming close to the point where war was about to break out, and although it is by no means certain, it was beginning to look very likely. Still, as he sighed again, Zero began his tale.

"My King. It is true. The Assingtonians are facing a grave threat to their existence once more, and this time, it is not one, not two, but three threats that they are facing. An Ancient named Svartel has returned to Assington, and as it stand, I believe he is attempting to challenge Skadi's position in Emerald City. What makes it worse is that he seems to be older and thus more power than the Lady Skadi herself, and although I have yet to cross him, I fear that he is beyond our power to control."

"Also, a dark breed of Elves have taken residence of the Emerald Forest. This race of Elves appear to be Moon Elves, unlike the High Elves of Sigrun and Aeris's people. And they appear to hold a grudge against all vampires of Assington in general. I have heard that they will not stop until all vampires in Assington are slain, and apparently they believe in a prophecy which states that they must do as such......"

"What?!", the King suddenly exclaimed, leaping out of his throne. "This is the worst thing I've heard all this time......that a parallel prophecy exists that forecasts the end of the Assingtonians. Could this be it? Could this be the time when the Blood Prophecy finally comes true? If so.....we have no choice, isn't it........?"

The King started pacing for a while, lost in troubled thoughts. After a while, he looked at Zero again. "Alright, Raphael. What else do you have to tell me?"

"The Vampire Police are active again once more, Your Majesty. And this time they are indiscriminate. They kill without reason, even when the vampire in question is legitimate. They have yet to touch Hondur's coven, sire, but once they do.......I believe Skadi will not tolerate it. Her coven will kill any VP in sight. And yet, they will be outnumbered by Svartel's budding forces, as well as the VPs......."

"Enough", Louis suddenly commanded, and Zero fell silent. After a while, Louis gave a great heave of a sigh, and began talking once more.

"You have troubled me much, Zero, with the news that you bring", he sighed. "The Council is now split on whether we should fulfil the Blood Oath we swore so long ago. I, myself, believe that we have no other choice if we are to survive. But until they have made up their minds, I cannot force the chain of events. Hopefully, with all the new information you have brought, you can help me convince the Council against the wrong decision."

"Now. Go back to the Lady Skadi. I can at least send your old team to Emerald City with you. They should be joining you soon. Bless you, soldier of Atros."

Viannor lay in a troubled sleep. There was something to be feared outside. As thick as the curtains and the walls were she knew it was out there. The bringer of life and light and life was now the harbinger of death.

Or am I dead already? she asked herself, knowing the answer. I am Undeath, a creature that stalks the Earth in the dead of night. She had been on her way to true death, she knew, before Stephen had brought her into some kind of hellish purgatory, a lifeline, of sorts.

There was a connection between them, she knew. Whatever had prompted him to turn her into... this, it was now an unbreakable bond between them, she knew. Stephen was there, in the back of her mind. No so much an uninvited guest, as she had first thought, but a necessary part of her existence. Without him, Viannor would be a cold corpse on its way back in a military helicopter to Starblaydia. But was she not a cold corpse already?

Starblaydia. It came to her. Tiberius. This would be... difficult to explain, and to live with. She smiled in her sleep, baring fangs that just 24 hours ago had not been there.

The power she could now wield. Admittedly the abilty to walk up walls and ceilings had been a little disorientating, but she could imagine the fun to be had from that. And the power. But for now, she knew she must learn, learn how to accentuate her abilities to the full.

The rest of her un-life - it could last for ever, after all - would certainly be an interesting one. But for now, Viannor slept.

Stephen bid goodnight to Hondur and headed upstairs to his room. He didn't need the lights as he took off everything spare for his shirt and boxers. He walked over to the bed where his fledgling was sleeping. He stood quietly, watching her sleep. He hoped when she woke the next night she wouldn't try to run in fear from him.

Stephen turned to the couch in the room and took some blankets and a spare pillow from the closet. He made himself a makeshift bed and lay down. Stephen thought of the course of the night. A deep anger surged through him, directed at the ancient Skadi. He couldn't believe her, he had pleaded with her to talk to the elves and she had nearly killed him. When he came back he learned Skadi had done just that. More anger surged through him, Stephen didn't understand why anyone would fight for someone like that. Or for that matter, care for someone like that.

Then, the anger fadded and his gut disappeared. He felt odd inside, a feeling he hadn't had since he was mortal. Stephen closed his eyes and shut out his memories from his last days in the Rangers. He lay there for several more minutes, carefully searching his mind for any loose thoughts and quickly stored them deep in his mind.

Finally, Stephen fell asleep.

Lujza nodded, checked to make sure the necklace was in place, and walked into the building. When she got inside, she removed her sunglasses, and though the brightness inside hurt her eyes, she did not show any sign of it. Her mouth remained closed at all times until she reached what appeared to be the front desk and quietly and politely, but firmly, asked to see the VP commander so she could get his advice.

She waited patiently, though not appearing too patient.

Ivan was deep in concentration before his computer before an officer casually walked into his office, requesting his presence. The captain nodded and said he would be there in a few minutes. The last few hours had been spent scrounging around through public and government files on anything to do with elves. Unfortunately his search only led him to fantasy webpages with little verification of being a substantial source.

Sighing in resignation, Ivan got to his feet and ran both hands through his dark hair. He couldn't shake off the irritation of these elves and the vampire that had been with them. The VP captain could tell by the strength of the blow delivered to him that that vampire was older than most, possibly even an ancient. His ribs still ached but they would heal in due time.

Making the quick walk through his door and down the hallway led Ivan to the front office where a young woman was waiting for him at the front desk.

"How may I help you ma'm?"

"Well, I need your advice." She said she lived in a shabby area of a nearby city in Assington. "I have heard that vampires prefer to prowel the bad parts of town, as their victims will be less missed, or something like that." She did look very concerned, however, not panicked. She wanted to come off as practical. "As you might have guessed, that worries me, as I live alone and do most of my errands alone. How should I deal with the situation if I ever encounter one? I figured that it would be best to ask you, since you're said to be an expert."

Ivan nodded in understanding as the young woman before him recounted her situation and the rumours she had heard regarding vampires. The VP captain was used to many civilians approaching him, asking for advice or weapons when it came to defence from vampires.

"I know exactly what you mean ma'm. Most vampires these days are thugs that merely use their abilities to rob and kill people. They lurk about in the shadows as they can see as if it were day and if they have any intelligence they tend to prey upon those that don't get noticed much."

Ivan took a moment to pull out his USP pistol and place it upon the desk and ejecting the clip.

"Something like this would be the most effective. A reliable pistol with silver/lead alloy bullets. Silver causes vampires extreme pain via any contact to the flesh. A single bullet to the brain will kill them instantly. Never worry about hurting them, you have a right to defend yourself and should shoot them straight between the eyes. All items such as blades and other silver objects can also be effective. Does that answer everything?"

"Yes, well, almost." Lujza wanted to get more than this out of the man, however, she couldn't make up questions on the spot that a concerned human would never ask. However, concerned did not mean she couldn't be a little bit curious. "What if the vampire is not threatening? I mean, that's somewhat unlikely, but I want your opinion on the matter."

She'd have to go after hearing the answer to this question, as she couldn't think of any more. So far she had played her part well. Taking Drama in high school had helped. However, it would be ruined if she made an idiot of herself by asking unrelated questions, which would draw curiosity from the VP commander.

Ivan's cold attitude towards vampires could be seen within his eyes, heard within his low voice. Images of his slaughtered family passed across Ivan's mind as Luzja asked her question, hardening his hostile resolve.

"All vampires are a problem, legal or not. I suggest you place a bullet through their head anyway, you won't be bothered by the law as I can take care of such things. The only truly safe city is one without vampires and I shall endeavour to one day make that a reality. I hope all this helps you. You can purchase weapons here if you wish."

Ivan's hands were practically shaking with the bottled up resentment he held towards vampires, giving Luzja a clear impression.

"Thank you very much sir, I'll be sure to follow your advice," Lujza said respectfully. "I know some people that can get me weapons, so that won't be a problem. You've been a great help." She smiled (not showing any teeth, she didn't want to risk it), and left with a confident air, not walking slowly but not appearing to hurry, either.

When she was a ways away from the building, she gave an internal sigh of relief. Unfortunately, she had been able to pry precious little from the VP commander, but staying longer would have been awkward, and it would have been obvious she was there for something more than advice. Better to cut short the interview, and be alive, than to ask a few more questions and be revealed.

After spending the last few hours going over logistical issues when it came to combatting the VP, elves or even enemy vampires, Hondur decided to take a break. He had once been a politician and did have the mind for such things, yet the mere thought of yet another war weighed heavily upon his spirits.

At that point the door creaked open to reveal Alysandra, her near transparent clothing barely sitting across her slender shoulders as she purposefully strode into Hondur's office chamber. She had that look in her eyes that Hondur was all too familiar with and overjoyed to see.

"Why don't you forget that boring work and join me. It just crossed my mind that I haven't properly thanked you for saving me."

Hondur remained silent as he took in Alysandra's form, his eyes gliding over every inch of her body.

"That sounds reasonable to me. Just let me check up on Sigrun and Luzja."

Closing his eyes to avoid being distracted, Hondur focused and launched his awareness forth, out into the world in search of the two familiar minds. Finally he found their common signatures and engaged them.

"Sigrun, Luzja. I trust all is well?"

Lujza heard, in a manner of speaking, Hondur's message, and concentrated on replying. Unfortunately, she had not the skill to send coherent sentences, but could send feelings easily. She communicated to him her disappointment, as she was not able to get much out of the VP commander, but also a feeling of relief, at being out of the VP building.

Steeling herself, she decided to try to send words, and so concentrated harder. Perhaps her time with the Assingtonians would refine her skill at this. Safe she thought. frustrated. Since she had not seen Sigrun yet, she sent the words and feelings to him as well. The effort was taxing on her meager abilities, so she stopped at those two words. They were the first she'd been able to send through telepathy.

It wasn't long before Hondur recieved the strong emotions of Luzja's attempt at mental communication. Hondur was momentarily stunned by the strength of such emotions and was able to gather a rough idea of what had happened. Whilst he was hoping for more, at least she was alright and proved one valuable fact. She could move through the VP practically undetected.

Safe... frustrated.

Upon recieving those words Hondur opened up a mental link towards Luzja, enabling him to merely read her thoughts now instead of her having to strain herself with projection.

"Good to hear you're fine Luzja. It doesn't matter if you didn't much, I appreciate the effort. You might as well return to the mansion unless you have business of your own. We'll be here when you and Sigrun return."

Alysandra was tugging at Hondur, attempting to make him forsake the communication and tend to her. Whilst Hondur attempted to resist her wiles, he couldn't hold out forever.

Sigrun knew instantly when Luzja left the headquarters building. He deliberately held back in the morning shadows to watch her tail, and see if her venture had gained more attention than desired. After a moment, all was clear, and he stepped out to meet her as she turned a corner.

"You did well. I have been thinking, perhaps we can get you in there as a spy? It could help us learn early what the VP is up to."

All is good here, Hondur. As I was just saying to Luzja, I think it might be worth the effort to see if we can infiltrate the VP with her so we can get early warning on VP movements. What do you think?

He watched as Luzja's face furrowed in her effort to strain out the telepathic words. He remembered having similar struggles long ago. Now, it was easy for him to do so over great distances.

Hondur nodded in agreement with Sigrun, even if the elf was unable to see his physical actions, he soon replied mentally.

"That is a good point Sigrun. We shall consider such things later. I doubt things will stay peaceful for long, especially since you happen to be in possession of Svartel's better half. See you back at the mansion."

Finally finished, Hondur devoted himself completely to Alysandra as she led him into the next room, closing the door behind them.

Lujza considered their comments, Sigrun's words and Hondur's mental message.

"I'm not going to risk my ass like that unless I have a means of hiding my nature a bit more permenant than this necklace," she said, touching the piece. "Whatever rumors you've heard about this guy shooting all vampires, even the legal ones, you would safer to assume true. I think he might also not be entirely sane."

Frowning for a second, she wondered what time it was. "I'm hungry, let's get something to eat on the way back to the mansion."

"We'll have to figure something about your physical appearance. Perhaps Arleni and I can work something out to a more permanant effect."

He listened to the comments on the VP captain. "As for the captain," he began, "he can't be any more sane than I was when I first met Skadi..."

He gave a sly grin, remembering his blood-lust to kill vampires to avenge his wife's death.

"Maybe if we could get one of you guys to turn him?" Lujza asked tentatively. It would be possible, and if he was a vampire himself, he wouldn't be as much of a threat. Of course, it could backfire, in some unforseen way.

Sigrun shook his head negatively. "No, he would use it against us in any way he could."

Sigrun thought about Hondur, then spoke again, "Hondur was a politician who drove for the extermination of vampires, once upon a time. He is different, he doesn't have the fire of determination in him that exists in the VP these days. I don't think it is wise to try to turn this captain. No, we shall deal with him in other ways."

He began walking toward a diner, and soon, the two had sat down. He ordered a simple glass of water, and a salad. He looked over at Luzja, wondering what she might choose, considering her physical state.

Lujza ordered a steak, cooked rare, with milk to drink. "I see what you mean. So I guess eventually he should meet an unfortunate accident, due to bad luck?" She was whispering softly enough so that only Sigrun would be able to hear. She had very good control over the volume of her voice. "Of course, if a way could be found to divert his attentions solely to this Svartel guy, he could be useful."

Sigrun nodded appreciatively at Luzja's suggestions. It was refreshing to have an outside voice in their planning, for it brought new ideas not previously thought of. He replied,

"Yes...that could work. But how? What do you have in mind?"

As he waited for her reply, he chewed a bite of the salad slowly, thoughtfully.

Sigrun finished his food and left the money on the table. Together the two walked back to the mansion, careful to watch their tail, despite it being broad daylight. As they walked, he waiited for Luzja's answer to his last question.

Soon, they were back in the mansion, where Sigrun made his way into the library and took a seat in one of the chairs. He beckoned for Luzja to take one of the other chairs so they could discuss the matter further.

As Sigrun and Luzja discussed issues within one of the mansion libraries, the sun finally disappeared once again, plunging Emerald City into momentary darkness before the artificial lights activated, attempting to keep the streets well lit in order to minimise vampiric attacks.

Hondur awoke as the sun plunged into the horizon, a content Alysandra wrapped within his cold arms. Careful not to wake the younger vampire, Hondur slipped out of his bed and moved into his closet, immediately grabbing necessary undergarments and his usual robes. The ancient vampire was about to leave the room when he thought better of it, spun around and fixed his new 'toys' upon pales wrists, hiding them under the sleeves of his robes.

Slipping out of the room quietly, Hondur reached out with his mind as he ascended the stairs onto the main floor, nodding greetings to several other coven members as he walked by. A quick search found Sigrun in Luzja to be within a library one level above him, Skadi just leaving her room. Moving up another flight of stairs, Hondur smiled as his path joined onto that of Skadi's.

"Sleep well my sire?"

Skadi returned the smile, although there was a substantially smaller amount of mirth within those lips.

"Dreams of the old days, reminds me of when I first plunged my blade into Svartel."

"Charming stuff I bet."

"Indeed."

At that point the pair burst through the double doors of the library to find Sigrun and Luzja in conversation. Hondur took the oppurtunity to fill the silence created.

"We need to get a few defensive things sorted out before Svartel makes a move.
____________

Idun and Ashur stood amongst the abyss of shadows within an alley opposite the front entrance of the VP HQ. Idun had suggested they do something to occupy their potential enemies and Ashur could do nothing but go along with such a devious plot. Ashur leaned against a wall whilst Idun crouched beside a pair of trash cans, his composite elven bow nocked and ready to fire one of the lethal arrows when the time was right.

Finally the electronic doors opened as an officer walked inside. Not hesitating in the slightest, Idun unleashed the arrow and watched as it followed true, taking a path straight through the VP entrace, over the officer's shoulder and deeper into the VP HQ.

Nodding with satisfaction, the older elf patted his vampiric companion upon the back before leading him back down the alley and into the darkness of the night.
____________

Ivan looked out his window once again, gazing at the full moon in disgust. He always felt unsettled around such times, making him more prone to violence and anger. Growling at the moon in an almost animal like fashion, Ivan rummaged through his desk until he found the syringe kit he was searching for. And so the VP captain went through the standard procedure of ejecting himself with the unknown substance, sighing in relief as he pulled the syringe out and lobbed it into the bin.

Ready for another night's work, Ivan stepped out of his office, closed the door as he turned to face down the corridor and began the short walk. Nearing the end of the first corridor, Ivan turned left and went mentally blank. His brain could see it coming but he just didn't know what to do about it. Before he could think it out, Ivan's hand merely shot into the air and curled his fingers around the object, stopping it in mid-flight. Several officers stared in amazement after witnessing the event. Ivan had just caught a speeding arrow within his grasp with dead accuracy.

Ivan hadn't quite realised what he had just done and stared at the arrow for some time before noticing there was a piece of paper wrapped around the shaft. Slowly, the VP captain began to unwrap the paper as an officer approached him.

"Sir, how the hell did you do that?"

"To be honest I'm not quite sure officer. Instinct I guess..."

Finally freeing the piece of paper, Ivan unwrapped it to find a single Emerald City address and the words:

You will find something you have always been looking for here.

Crushing the paper in his fist, Ivan began barking orders to his officers.

"Assemble all teams and gather all VP officers. We have a lot of work to do tonight."
______________

Svartel stood within the basement of the run down complex he called home within Emerald City. He had to admit the place was starting to look better since he had turned several tradesmen and ordered them to work on the building if they wished to live. Of course that was only a minor issue compared to what was at hand.

Svartel leaned against a wall whilst his torso was supported by a high table. Whilst life without legs was possible for a vampire such as himself, it was bothersome and taxing upon his powers. Gathered before him were the majority of his little rag-tag coven, mostly thugs, homeless and whatever other kind of people Svartel felt necessary to turn to his cause.

"Well gentlemen. We have a task tonight. We are going to strike the coven of the dear lady Skadi and deal her a great blow."

A short silence followed before Svartel's second-in-charge spoke up.

"Master, how do we know where it is?"

"Here is the clever bit. I have planted an idea within the head of our good, weak minded friend Idun. He has relayed information of this coven to the current VP officer. By now I'd say he is preparing for an attack upon their coven. Since he is a weak minded human, I shall have no trouble at all finding him and plucking the necessary information from his head without him knowing. We shall strike simultaneously with the VP, slaughtering vampires whilst also dealing a great blow to the VP at the same time."

Many vampires grinned in anticipation of the bloodshed this night would entail. Skadi wouldn't know what hit her.

Stephen awoke as soon as the sun plunged from the sky. He threw on his normal black clothes, grabbed his Paras, a USP, Wolfe Knife, and put on a pair of black leather gloves and his trenchcoat. He woke up his fledgling and when she had awaken he lead her out of his room and down the stairs. Stephen lead her outside and into the night. As the pair walked, Stephen looked around and took her into an alley.

Viannor heard her sire's voice in her head.

"Tonight we will start your training. But first, do you feel hungry Viannor?"

Viannor stepped neatly behind Stephen, immediately noticing the hostility towards them from the other two vampires, despite Stephen's nonchalant attitude. She seemed to sense the hostility, not that it wasn't obvious from the looks on the faces of the man and woman.

On edge somewhat, Viannor followed Stephen down the stairs. Stephen had apparently picked up her fallen weapon, so she was fully-armed with her twin USPs, though the silver ammunition that she'd had so much confidence in twenty-four hours earlier now unnerved her slightly. Silver was a deadly substance to her now? She didn't like that one bit.

But then again, she thought, guns were always like that, able to kill indiscriminantly, and that fact had never bothered her before. A healthy dislike for silver from now on was probably a good idea.

White gold, she thought, that'll do the trick, can't be throwing away all my silver-coloured jewelry, now can I?

The every-day thought of how she would accessorise stopped her cold. She was now a vampire, a dark creature of the night, and she was thinking of how she would look already? Perhaps she was going to get more used to the situation than she had initially thought.

What the hell is going on here? she asked herself as her thoughts brought her back to the present situation, trying not to stare the other vampires in the eyes yet. A voice popped into her head, completely unbidden, and not her own.

"Tonight we will start your training. But first, do you feel hungry Viannor?"

It stopped her dead in her tracks, excusing the pun. Since she had awoken, she'd always felt Stephen was in the back of her mind somewhere, but now he was speaking directly to her. She thought for a moment that he'd spoken to her 'normally', and she'd misheard, but the voice was clear and directionless, right inside her head.

"Yes," she said, "but... how did that happen?"

Stephen had been paying attention to Viannor's thoughts, wanting to know how she felt as they traveled through the alley. He turned to her and smiled. Stephen looked around, he couldn't sense anyone near them and they were far enough away from the coven so Skadi or Hondur couldn't jump in and interupt them.

"We can talk telepathically. If you don't know what that means, it basically means we can talk to each other with our thoughts. You concentrate on who you want to listen and send them your message. Like I am doing now. It is very useful in situations when you don't want your enemy to know what you are up to. Go on...give it a go."

"We can talk telepathically. If you don't know what that means... Go on...give it a go."

"Of course I know what telepathy is!" Viannor said, testing out whether her new 'power' worked both ways.

Stephen obviously got the message.

"If you say 'telepathic powers' in The Golden Simitar, my country," Stephen replied, obviously having not meant to patronise her, "the only folks who would know it are Sci-Fi and Fantasy geeks."

"I see." Viannor nodded. "I'm very hungry, though, feels like I'm wasting away."

Stephen chuckled slightly and led Viannor deeper into the maze of alleys and backstreets. He scanned, searching for a bum that would be an easy target for Viannor. He debated if he should let her drain her first victim completely or only half drain him. He had only drained completely a few people, all in his first year.

As he walked, he talked.

"Now, there are a few ways of getting a meal. First is to walk through an alley and drain a homeless person, second is to grab someone off the street and kill them in an alley, or you can seduce your prey and do what you like with them. I usaually lure my victims into my arms before I feed. Stealth is the key to hunting to us as it is to a human hunting a deer."

Stephen stopped. He moved to the edge of the wall and peered into the next alley, a man was finishing relieveing himself behind a few trashcans. He wasn't homeless, but he was alone. Probably from one of the clubs nearby. Stephen went back to Viannor.

"In the next alley is a human, he will be your first meal. I will be watching and judging you on your approach. He is alone and the alley is dark, he probably can't see very well. You may drain him completely, after that, cut your finger with a fang and drip some of your blood on the bite. Our blood has great healing powers. Now, go and enjoy. I'll be watching."

Now, go and enjoy. I'll be watching."

Viannor poked her head around the wall. She was an intelligence officer at heart, after all, and information was the key to that business. With one swift move she dropped her full-length coat off her shoulders. She was about to step out into the alley, but thought better of it, unclipping her gun belt that held her twin USPs at her back.

"Hold these," she said. Messing up her hair to cover her face, she staggered into the alleyway, scraping her shoes across the ground to draw attention to herself. She faked a drunken groan followed by a giggle.

"Hi!" she said to the man, having obviously got his attention. She giggled again, "having a good time?"

Whatever the man said she interrupted him by tripping over her own feet and falling into his arms. He may have had a few drinks, but his reactions were pretty good. She looked up into his eyes.

"Thanks," she said, sliding her hands up his arms, getting a good grip. He leaned forward slightly, about to say his name, but Viannor cut him off with one swift movement, sinking her newly-formed fangs into his neck.

"Ah-" was all the man managed to say as his lifeblood drained away, pouring through the puncture wounds in his newly-torn flesh. Viannor drank and drank, feeling the warm liquid re-energise her. She drank her fill, breaking away and letting the man slump in her arms. Dragging him back out of sight into the alleyway, she did as she was told, making a not-quite painless slit in the top of her finger, squeezing out the newly-enriched blood onto the wound, and watching in amazement as the now very dead man's neck healed itself. She licked her lips with a grin and a twinkle in her eyes.

"Do I win?"

"You did very well."

Stephen walked up the alley and handed Viannor back her weapons. He was very impressed with her approach; he had half expected her to creep down the alley before jumping the man and tearing him to little strips of flesh.

"A very nice way to approach such a person. Let me dispose of him."

Stephen picked up the corpse and opened a large dumpster and tossed the body. "That should delay the idea a vampire killed him even longer. Whenever you can, stuff you victims into a trashcan or preferably a dumpster."

Stephen looked at Viannor and smiled, he walked backwards and turned to face a five story building. He jumped and easily landed on the roof. Stephen sat on the edge of the roof and looked down at Viannor.

"Come on up. As you learned the night I turned you, you can climb up the wall or jump. Vampires have far greater strength than humans. Come on and I will show you something most people would kill for."

Stephen pulled out his bloodstone and bit into it and started to feed his own hunger.

Looking up five floors of brick wall and windows, Viannor smiled. She spread her long coat out behind her and crouched on slender legs. With a single bound she leapt up to the second floor, landing lightly on the window ledge, balancing on her toes. Spreading her arms out to the side she leapt upwards again, higher this time.

Her hands found the top of the building and she raised herself up into a near-perfect handstand, right on the edge of the five-floor drop. Holding it for a few seconds to take an inverted view of the night's sky, she arched her back and brought her feet down to the roof. Loving the fact that she could contort herself much more easily than before, she crunched her stomach and stood up to her full height, without even needing to adjust her hair.

"Something else worth killing for, Stephen?" Besides warm blood, she didn't have to add, Viannor was flushed with confidence. "I have a feeling I'm going to like this."

Stephen tucked his bloodstone away and licked his lips clean as he watched Viannor come up the roof. He smiled at her and suddenly a brick from the building across from them flew over and knocked Viannor lightly on the back of the head. Stephen mentally moved the brick over her head and into his hand.

"Don't get too cocky. You have only been a vampire for only a few hours. Being cocky about thier new powers is what gets many new vampires killed in thier first few days or weeks of thier life. Of all the vampires to get cocky around...don't get cocky to Skadi, she is the one in all the black leather clothes we passed on our way out. She is an arrogant, self-centered bitch who only cares for Hondur...the male vampire she was with, he is her fledgling...and Sigrun, an elf who she loves. Skadi will cut you to bits if you act cocky or go against her."

Stephen held the brick and looked at Viannor. "Now, I will teach you about your telekinetic powers. You have to really concentrate in order to something level or carry it, that really goes for you since you are so young."

Stephen let go of the brick and it floated several meters into the dark sky.

"I am going to release it. Concentrate on it and slowly lower it down into your hand."

Stephen cut off his lock with the brick and the object plummeted towards the roof.

Viannor concentrated on the brick. Was she meant to order into her hand, or think happy thoughts, or defy gravity, or suddenly distract it with an outlandish sight or opinion? Or was she just meant to use her force of will to...

The brick was at her feet. Tilting her head to the side slightly, Viannor smiled. Stephen raised an eyebrow. Viannor crouched down and flattened her hand. Still concentrating, she ran her fingers under the brick, there was a good inch of clearance between it and the roof. Viannor stood back up and willed the brick up into her hand. She closed her hand around it, and turned her palm upwards. Her fingers unwrapped themselves from around the brick and it floated upwards a few inches, bobbing around in mid-air.

"Aerodynamics of a brick, eh?" she asked, to no-one in partcular. With a thought she tossed the brick over the alleyway to land on the roof of the building across from them. "No pissing off Skadi," she repeated, adding "or Hondur. Or... Sigrun, an elf. That figures. Dwarves, Vampires and now Elves."

Viannor sighed. It was all pretty incredible. With all her new powers had come more than a few drawbacks. But such was life - undeath, she corrected herself - and she had lived with consquences and drawbacks all her life.

Stephen smiled at Viannor's skill, she was a fast learner. She would adapt very well to her new lifestyle.

"Skadi is one not to piss off. Hondur, he is an alright guy. If you have any questions or worries about your new existance and I am not around...he is the one to ask. He is also the head of the coven here in Emerald...the largest I might add. Sigrun, a close friend of mine for many centuries. He and Skadi have had a on-going relationship for quiet a while now. Come along, lets head back to the coven."

Stephen wrapped his arm around Viannor and jumped off the roof with her in tow. He let her go when they landed and started to walk next to her.

"I forgot to mention we can land from high places with really no trouble. Now, here is the situation, Skadi was sired with several other humans by the original vampire. Including herself, three are alive. Svartel is a pyschopath, he would cut a baby from thier mother and hang up the child like clothing. He would slaughter a village for the shits and grins. Idun on the other hand...a peace loving guy it seems. He lives with the elves who are not nice to our kind apparently. We have a shaky truce with the elves right now."

Stephen muttered something as they neared the coven's entrance. He looked at Viannor.

"Any questions?"

""Any questions?"

Viannor stepped up the path, listening and trying to take everything in. Soaking up information like a sponge was the hallmark of a good intelligence officer, which she most certainly was.

"Just one," she said, "how do you fit in to all of this? Just how old are you? What were you like... what were you as a human, I mean."

Stephen looked at Viannor as he opened the coven door. He knew she would probably ask him this sooner or later. The pair walked in and Stephen shut the door.

"I am 1,257 years old. That may sound like I am an ancient, I am not. I have only been a vampire for 257 years. How I fit into all this...that dates back to a life that seems like a dream. I have known Sigrun for over a thousand years, when I first met him he was very different and we were enemies. Skadi and him found me in the Golden Simatar shortly before I turned; it took me a thousand years to change into a vampire.

I stuck with them, they taught me about my powers, a bit about fighting in my new form and such. Sigrun and I are close friends...Skadi...she taught me some swordplay and how to hunt and I looked to her like a student to a teacher. I am still deep in Sigrun's debt and Skadi's too strangly enough. When someone goes from your enemy to friend and then helps you adjust to a new way of life...that is something I don't think I can ever pay back."

Stephen walked over to the library door, his hand rested on the knob before he looked at Viannor again.

"I was Special Forces as a human...that is all you need to know."

Stephen opened the door and found Skadi, Hondur, Sigrun, and Lujza inside. He bowed his head slightly in respect to the two ancient vampires as he led Viannor inside. He shut the door.

"So...what is the game plan?"

Sigrun greeted Stephen with a slight smile and a nod. It was clear that he had been teaching Viannor the ways of the dark ones. As much as he didn't like the fact that he had gone and sired the woman without consultation first, he had a feeling that this one might be around for a while. Stephen immediately cut to the chase, "So...what is the game plan?"

Sigrun was the first to reply, "Luzja and I did some recon of the VP. Things are not looking too good, and I been having a bad feeling that's only grown ever since we left the headquarters earlier."

He walked to the window, slightly obscured by the heavy drapes. He continued to speak, "The Captain of the VP, a strange fellow in his thoughts. I managed to get a brief glimpse of his thoughts while Luzja was speaking to him, and what I saw troubled me greatly. He holds a terrible secret within, something I was unable to uncover in the short time I was probing his mind."

He continued to look out the window, his voice having died away on the last words. He moved away from the window, turning back to the others.

"We need to find some way to turn the VP's attentions on Svartel. They'll probably present no more than a distraction to him, but we could solve two problems at once that way," she said quietly.

Sigrun was the first to reply... "The Captain of the VP, a strange fellow in his thoughts. I managed to get a brief glimpse of his thoughts while Luzja was speaking to him, and what I saw troubled me greatly. He holds a terrible secret within, something I was unable to uncover in the short time I was probing his mind."

"I think it is something to do with his family, Sigrun," Viannor said, speaking to an Elf for the first time, "I was with him in a building the VP attacked and he discovered his sister was there - or what used to be his sister, at least, she had been turned. Right in front of my face he cooly shot her in the head." Viannor shuddered with the grim malice of the deed. "If his sister was turned into a vampire, perhaps that is the secret you could not unearth."

Stephen looked at Viannor as she spoke. He was shocked that the human would shoot his own sister, even if she was a vampire. He thought about it. The human had a great hate for vampires, maybe that was it. Maybe the idea of his sister being a bloodsucker was greater stress on him than thinking his sister was really dead. Stephen finally spoke.

"Jesus. He is really one hard bastard. Shot his own sister...man. Maybe there is more to this Russian than meets the eye. There are many things in this world that aren' t really what they appear. He is probably one of those."

Speaking of which, Sigrun addressed Stephen, You still have yet to tell me what secret you lay deepest in your soul.

Sigrun gave a flat look, though his eyes gave a slight dislike of the murder of family. Once upon a time, he too would have done the same and with no reservations. Yet, times had changed. Now he was gifted with the wisdom of the ages, and he used this to his advantage.

"That is why he did it, for he could not bear to see his sister become that which he so hated."

He shifted his eyes to Stephen, You can trust me. We are friends, are we not?

Stephen felt a twang in his gut. He met the elf's gaze. Stephen walked over to a bookshelf, his back to Sigrun and the group. The elf could sense a feeling of fear inside his friend. Stephen's leg twitched nervously.

"Sigrun, what I will show you...you must tell no one. Not Hondur and certianly not Skadi. I will tell them if I feel like it. Do I have your word you will not show them?"

Sigrun sent a feeling of agreement, as well as his thoughts to Stephen through their telepath, We are friends, are we not? he asked once more.

He turned to the window, more so to avert his gaze from the others. He stood, as if studying the night sky outside, watching the clouds moving along.

When you are ready... he urged silently to Stephen.

Stephen stared at his friend before looking down at the rows of book spines.

"Alright."

The night sky in front of Sigrun disappeared as Stephen sent him his thoughts. The elf was transportted to another time, a time Stephen wanted to forget.


Sigrun found himself in a hot room, muffled explosions were audible. The room was dark, filth and mold covered the walls and floor, a single dim light above lit it. The large stones that made up the floor were slick with water and blood. A gasping sound in the middle of the floor showed a figure tied to a chair with barbed wire, the metal clung into his flesh and blood slowly oozed out. The figure was blindfolded, the face had a large swell under the right eye and much of the mouth and chin was caked with dried blood.

A crumpled jacket lay in the corner under a rust covered table. A name was visible on the jacket, Malone. On the table, various tools and instruments lay like they were on display. A portable generator sat, a pair of jumper cables attached to it, wet sponges were clamped inside the cable’s teeth. In the center of the room the figure of Stephen Malone coughed up blood and spittle. He moaned softly.

Stephen’s body was a mess. Deep red burns dotted his abdomen and lower back were he had been electrocuted His body was riddled with bruises and cuts. The barbed wire that clung onto his body was put in several horizontal parallel rows. His wrists were bound behind him with cable and his ankles were tied to the chair with thick rope. Stephen’s head rolled down onto his battered chest as the door to the dark room opened.

A man standing at 5’11 with a blue beret and green uniform walked into the room. His boots broke the stillness. His face was like a rock, hard and unmoving. The man pulled out a HK VP70 from a holster and put it on one of the tables. He flexed his fingers as he slammed a fist into Stephen’s face. Stephen gasped as the fist hit him then whimpered in pain.

"Ranger filth." The man said in a deep Russian accent as he ripped off the blindfold.

"Sergeant Stephen…Ma...Ma…"

"Sergeant Stephen Malone 4561807…yes I know. We are past that now. You had your chance. Since it seems Vladimir and his men had their fun, I will test something out with you I have been dying to use."

The Russian pulled out a syringe filled with a clear liquid. He twirled it in the light so Stephen’s bruised face could see it. Stephen’s breathing was ragged as the Russian jabbed the needle into Stephen’s arm and pushed the liquid into him. Stephen’s face wrinkled as the substance entered his bloodstream.

"You won’t die if that is what you are thinking. This…this is something unique. A dormant virus. It will find its place in your body systems and wait for a few years before waking up to make you sick, tear you from the inside out before killing you. It will be a joy to watch you suffer in those last few…"

The Russian turned as another man appeared, an AK-47 in his hands. Both spoke quickly in Russian before the other man ran. The guard turned around and grabbed the VP70. He placed it to Stephen’s head.

"Too bad.[i]

[i]A shadow appeared in the door. A Simatarian Ranger, his face covered in dirt and filth leveled his Smith and Wesson Model 386PD and fired twice. The first .357 magnum shell smashed through the Russian’s neck, splattering the top of Stephen’s head in gore and the second round burrowed into the Russian’s back. Shock registered with the Ranger as he saw Stephen. The Ranger started to scream for a medic as everything faded.

Stephen sat on a doctor’s examination table as a middle-aged doctor took his pulse. The doctor jotted down the pulse before turning off the lights in the room and fetched a light. He directed Stephen to stare straight ahead while he studied his pupils. The doctor jotted some more notes on his pad and placed the light back and flicked the lights on.

"For a man nearly a thousand years old, you are very healthy."

Stephen chuckled. "I want to know how I got this way. Your nurse called and said my blood test results had come back."

"I can’t give you an answer one hundred percent. But, it seems that your immortality was caused by that virus you described to me and the vampire bite combined. When the vampire bit you…my guess is some her salvia got into your wound and the vampire cells of course started into your bloodstream. They started to change your blood and also entered the virus cells that were sitting in you. My guess is that the vampire basically twisted the code of the virus to its needs. You said you got something that stopped the change…it eliminated all the vampire cells that were not safe inside the virus."

Stephen sat there quietly. So…it turned the virus from killing me…to basically try to make me a vampire when it wakes? The virus also had a protective wall or shield you might say to keep the anti-vamp drink out."

"Yes…that sounds right. When the virus did wake it was not trying to kill you, but make you a vampire. It was of course weakened by the vampire cells that were killing the ones that didn’t change and ones that did change were too weak to turn you automatically. So it took over what it could and started sending its orders to your system to keep you alive."

"That was rather nice of them. Is there any way I can be cured? I mean…I am not really too excited about turning."

"No…I am sorry to say Mr. Malone. Sooner or later, you are going to turn into a vampire. Hey…come back when you do so I can do another test if you want."

Stephen nodded and left the doctor’s office and everything went black. When there was light, the same doctor who saw Stephen before had aged several years. Stephen walked into the room and the doctor smiled.

"I saw you marching with our new king last night." The doctor said as he opened Stephen’s file.

"I saw you in the crowd. As you can see, I am now a vampire. Can you explain?"

"Same as what I told you a few years back. Only it seems the vampire decided the hell with turning you slowly and go for an all out attack. In my opinion, it gave your body commands over the years to do what it wanted.

"So I was not really immortal as the term applies?"

"No, you were given immortality because of the virus that was injected into you as a soldier. If you hadn’t gotten that and just the bite…if you took the drink and no vampires turned you; you would have died of old age. If you were just injected…you would have died a violent death. In essence…you are a mistake. Never suppose to happen."

"I understand. Thank you.'

As Stephen turned to leave the doctor spoke up. "How did you get those scars on your body?"

Stephen froze at the door. His back was to the human, but Stephen didn’t turn around. He drummed his fingers on the door before he just left the doctor’s office.


Stephen looked at Sigrun as the vampire shut away his memories.

"It isn't much. The stuff the doctor told me was the best he could find with his equipment. The first time I visited him was the night you were killed when you were Maximus. I was going to tell you then...didn't find out you died till a few days later. I up and left Tarlachia and forgot all about this little incident till you brought it up again last night. I hope that suffices."

Sigrun took a deep breath, closing his eyes. When he opened them again, the night sky shimmered back into view. He closed his eyes again to think carefully.

So...this is your secret...

He turned back to the room, "So what are we going to do about Captain Kolstov? Shall we set up someone on the inside of their headquarters, and manipulate them to our needs while we fight Svartel?"

Thank you for trusting me. Sigrun said at last to Stephen, It must be a little bit of relief to share, as well as a painful experience.

"No...no relief. Just pain every time I think about it. Just pain...nothing more."

Stephen turned back to the group and leaned against the bookcase. He wanted to get what he showed Sigrun behind him and move on. He never liked dwelling on it too much.

"I take it killing Kolstov is out of the question. The only person we can put in there is Lujza. Unless you can think of a way to make her appear human for a whole work day Sigrun...it is too dangerous. Unless someone can think of a human we can trust to send in there as a spy. Skadi, can't you lock onto about where Svartel is? We can then just leak some info to the VP there is a vampire coven there. Kolstov can go in and hopefully kill off a good number of Svartel's vampires."

"Right," Lujza said firmly. "I'm not going in there on any kind of regular basis unless I can be absolutely certain that everyone in there won't suddenly realize I'm moroii."

Hondur and Skadi remained silent for several moments as the others surrendered all information within their possession regarding the VP captain. Skadi didn't like the sound of this at all. In all the other wars they had been dealing with VP that were highly restricted by legislation and red tape of human establishments. This one appeared to be a law unto himself.

Skadi shook her head at Stephen's question regarding Svartel.

"Whilst I can sense him if I try, he can also block his presence from me. Being of similar strength to me, there is nothing I can do about that."

Hondur sighed as he took a seat within his comfortable leather armchair, pondering over the impending situations that are sure to arise.

"I agree. Luzja, understand we are not forcing you to do anything. If you do not wish to, you don't have to spy on the VP. We're going to have to face them sooner or later anyway."

Turning to Luzja, Skadi spoke to the woman for the first time.

"Did you gather anything about what he knows? I'm thinking he wouldn't know about the presence of us ancients."

Hondur nodded in agreement.

"Indeed. We've kept it hidden quite well over the years."
_______________

Ivan checked that all his gear was readily available upon himself. He holstered twin USP pistols, several clips of silver ammo, a silver bladed dagger and H&K G36 slung over his shoulder. With his main weapons in good order, Ivan set about grabbing a few extra gadgets, knowing that he would probably need them before the night was over.

The underground carpark of the VP HQ echoed with sounds of loading weapons and ruthless men. All were itching to shoot some vampires for their own reasons and all would follow Ivan to the grave. Over the years Ivan had systematically worked through all the officers, getting rid of those he deemed soft in order create a strong force of vampire hunters.

Finally a dull silence resided of the carpark as all men ceased their actions and gave their full attention to Ivan.

"Alright men, our time has finally come. We have discovered the location of the single biggest coven in Emerald City. This is why I have called all of you for this mission. Whilst there are over 250 of us, we can expect even more vampires so we must be efficient, brutal and merciless. They may be vampires but they still have fear. Exploit that fear and destroy them. Do not hold back in the slightest, destroy anything and everything. Finish up and let's go."

Attatching his radio headset and ops mask, Ivan jumped into the back of one of many unmarked VP vans. This was his moment, his time to shine and the downfall of vampires.
_________________

Svartel made sure to lead his men through the dark alley ways, over the roofs and generally out of public sight. It was very difficult to move so many men without being noticed but they had succeeded so far without any trouble. The ancient vampire couldn't help but grin at his manipulation of the current situation.

Unknown to the elves, Svartel had planted the notion of alerting the VP into the weak minded Idun, causing him to inform the good captain Ivan Kolstolv to gather all his forces for a surprise attack upon Skadi's coven. And amongst the chaos of such, his men would attack and deliver shocking blows to both sides whilst Svartel retrieved his legs. Skadi would pay for such a thing and so would her filthy elven companion.

"Master, I have what you asked for."

Svartel stopped and spun around to view the thing objects within the younger vampire's hands. Elven arrows.

"Good. Be sure to lodge them into a few corpses when we attack. There needs to be enough evidence of an elven presence."

"Of course."

Svartel grinned again, all was going to plan quite nicely. Before she knew it, Skadi would be on her knees, begging Svartel to give her a quick death after viewing the torment he would put her elven man through. Of course she would be denied. Svartel had been dreaming up Skadi's death for thousands of years.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't able to get that much out of him. I thought staying longer than was needed for my pretense for being there might make him suspicious. I really do wish I could have found a way to ask more of him." Lujza sighed. "I was never anything more than a regular soldier when during my time in the military. I don't have much experience doing covert work."

She rested her head on her fist. Damn that man she thought. Lujza really did wish she had thought of a way to make him spill more. Just then, she thought out loud. "Who's been assigned guard duty of the mansion?"

Hondur rested a hand upon Luzja's arm in sympathy.

"Don't worry about it Luzja, you did what you could and it was helpful in its own way. At least we know we are dealing with a VP captain far different to anyone we have ever come across before."

Skadi nodded in agreement, only half paying attention to the conversation as she thought over all the details. She didn't trust the elves at all and knew there was no friendship to be found in the VP or Svartel. Essentially it was a free for all battle royal.

"We need to sit back and let the others take care of eachother."

Stephen looked at Skadi and shrugged as she told him about her and Svartel.

"That sucks."

The younger vampire had been hoping that if the ancient could hook onto Svartel, they could more easily knock him away and then they would only have to worry about the elves; if a battle between them occured. Its going to be a bloodbath. Us, the elves, Svartel, and Ivan. Hopefully the elves are concentrating on Svartel istead of us right now. Maybe...just maybe we can get into negotiations with them.

Stephen's line of thought was broken by Lujza.

"There is usually a dozen or so guarding armed with assault rifles. Sometimes one or two on the roof."

Stephen looked over at Skadi as the ancient spoke up. He was now nervous at questioning the ancient after what she had did to him two nights ago.

"What makes you so sure everyone else is going to kill everyone else off and we can sit back and relax? It doesn't seem the VP know about the elves, so they are going to be steamrolling over every vampire in the city instead of battling elves. Besides, how much resistance can the elves armed with sword and bows offer to automatic weapons and armored vehicles? Svartel of course is probably dead set on coming after you and since it seems we have his legs...he is probably even more determined."

Skadi nodded, acknowledging Stephen's point.

"That is why we must act, but only in the shadows. It would not be hard to alert the VP of elven presence and if Svartel were to know, his bloodlust for elven blood would weigh heavy upon his mind. Alas, your point about his legs will most likely be foremost on his mind. We should be ready."

Hondur nodded.

"I've already communicated such issues to other safe houses and the men around here are all carrying weapons all the time now."

Stephen felt better the ancient had not tried to strike him. He walked around Skadi and peered out a window to the trees below. He began doing the math in his head.

"Put a machine gun here, should cover a good portion of the front lawn. Dot a few more around the house to cover the rest of the outside and have more to cover those machine guns till there is no blind spot. Another machine gun or two on the roof along with some rocket launchers. That should hold off an attack long enough to get reenforced and find areas in the house to defend. Maybe a few claymores in the trees at waist height to break up an attack also."

Stephen turned to Skadi. "Look on the bright side of life, at least we don't have to worry about lycans."

Stephen then thought of something. He turned to his fledgling. "Viannor, besides Ivan being a pyschopath...any other details about him? Anything...even the most minor detail."

"Viannor, besides Ivan being a pyschopath...any other details about him? Anything...even the most minor detail."

"He's a vampire-killing psychopath," she said, elucidating Stephen's point, "and he likes to be the one pulling the trigger. He'll be first through the door and guaranteed he'll be quicker on the draw than any of his men."

She thought for a moment.

"So let me get this straight," she assessed the situation, thinking out loud, "there are two groups of Vampires in this city, ours and Svartel's. There are the Vampire Police - who want to kill all the Vampires - and some Elves, who are also out to kill all the Vampires, but are more likely to get Svartel's mob first?"

"That's the basic situation as far as I understand it. None of them like us, and I'd say that Svartel will be especially angry." Lujza paused.

"Speaking of which, is there any way to get rid of his legs? I mean, it's not a major concern, but if they weren't here, when he came here, or if they were destroyed somehow, that would deprive him of ever getting them back. I don't know if that would help, but it just popped into my head."

Stephen looked at Viannor and gave a nod.

"That is about the gist of it."

Stephen turned on Lujza as she spoke her idea. It hit him like a steamroller.

"It is a great idea Lujza."

Stephen turend to Skadi.

"How about it Skadi? We take his legs and burn them. Destory them completely. I know you use your mental powers to fly and the longest I have seen you fly is across Emerald and back...rest of the time you walk. Svartel is going to have to be flying constantly or be carried on something. He will be drained of power and be weaker. Probably be easier when it comes time to fighting him. The only other option for him if his legs are destroyed is cut someone else's off and place them in place of his own."

Skadi nodded once again.

"Without his legs, Svartel will be weakened, yet as you say he can aquire others. I'll take care of them now anyway. He's going to learn not to piss me off..."

With those words Skadi departed the library and made her way back towards her own room. It was evident that the subject of Svartel, Idun or anything from her past angered the female vampire, bringing out an even darker side than normal.

Hondur watched as his sire left before turning to Stephen and the others.

"I want all of you to be familiar with where the armouries are and carry at least one weapon at all times. It is just a matter of time until one of the factions hits us and we have to be ready for it or we are going to suffer for it. Understood?"

At that point the very foundations of the mansion rumbled from the force of a single gigantic explosion at the front gates of the building. Immediately all the surrounding trees were set alight and the screams of guards had could be heard from their position as they suffered a searing death. Running to the window, Hondur watched as van upon van of VP officers parked in the space that had been the front yard of the mansion. There were so many vehicles and men that Hondur couldn't even begin to count.

The shattering of glass windows snapped Hondur out of his shocked trance and back into reality. VP officers were entering the mansion.

"They're here. Everyone gather your gear, there must be every VP officer in the city outside. Kill the lights wherever you can and fend off as many as you can. Try to stay in groups, you'll need the support."

Spinning around, Hondur flexed his wrists, causing a set of three bladed claws to extend from his sleeves on both hands. Walking up to a seemingly random shelf, Hondur skewered a book upon the shelf, removed it and thumped a bright red button behind it. Immediately the lights died and an ear piercing alarm was sounded, alerting all others within the mansion of the situation. Just to confirm things, Hondur reached out and touched the minds of every vampire within the mansion.

"We're under attack from the VP. Defend yourselves and our home."

Without so much as a glance to the others, Hondur snarled and departed from the library, intent on spilling the blood of those that would intrude upon his home.
_____________

Captain Ivan Kolstolv couldn't help but smile as he watched the remote detonated C4 pack fly over the gates of the newly discovered coven house and unleash the vampiric bane of fire. The explosion was so intense he could feel it from his position down the street and it did its job, completely destroying the front gates, the nearby walls and all the guards positioned nearby.

Once the flames had died down, he gave the signal and every single VP van poured out of the side streets and alley ways, all converging upon the flame covered front step of the mansion. All was going to plan. Jumping out of his own van, Ivan cocked his G36 and and led the first squad through the front doors whilst others went around the side to enter through windows or any other viable passage.

Within seconds of getting inside the lights went off but that didn't seem to bother Ivan, he'd always had good night vision anyway. Immediately he noticed a few stunned vampires upon the floor, the explosion having obviously injured them in some manner. Taking advantage of the oppurtunity, Ivan levelled his gun and unleashed two quick bursts, lodging enough silver into the vampire's heads to assure they died.
_____________

Skadi was only a hallway from her room when the explosion rocked the mansion, almost knocking her off her booted feet. Initially she was stunned and unsure of what to make of it but soon enough her suspicions were confirmed when gunfire erupted upon the lower levels of the house, the screams of her brethren shortly following.

Angered beyond measure that whoever was attacking had claimed the initial strike upon their coven, Skadi spun around as she drew her blade to meet several armed VP officers. Skadi had assumed they would attempt to make her drop her weapon and follow the normal kind of procedure yet that never happened. The officers took only a fraction of a second to identify her as a vampiric thread and unleashed rounds from their automatic weapons.

Remembering that these men were not the usual kind of VP, Skadi dropped to the floor just as the bullets left their barrels and zoomed over her head. With fury in her eyes, Skadi got to her feet and moved forward within a blink of an eye, bringing herself within a pace of the officers. Shocked at such speed, the officers hesitated for a moment and paid for it dearly. Skadi's blade was unrelenting in its arc through the officers, separating all five men's stomach abdominal region and below from their torso. In a downpour of inards, blood and groans, the men fell to the ground, awaiting the release of death.

With a snarl still plastered upon her face, Skadi moved on to the next unlucky humans.
____________

So far everything was working out to his liking. Svartel and his two hundred or so vampiric followers stood upon the roof of a large building on the opposite block of the coven mansion. The VP had done a good job at delivering an initial shock and now they proceded to storm the building, slaughtering his enemies for him. Svartel knew Skadi wouldn't die in the attack, which of course was desired because he had much greater things in mind for her instead of a merciful silver bullet to the brain.

Closing his eyes, Svartel concentrated upon his main goal. His lower half. He could sense where they were, within one of the rooms upon the third level of the building. Life had completely left them and now they were withered, the flesh falling off and the muscle deteriorated. Of course that wouldn't matter once he retrieved the limbs and got some blood back into them. Once that happened, then the true chaos would begin.

Nodding to his men, Svartel launched into the air and indicated that his men should enter the mansion however they could as long as they remained out of the spotlight until they were inside. Two other vampires made the single leap to the building in order to aid Svartel in his mission whilst the others would create as much chaos as possible. The first stage had begun and was looking promising.

Now on top of the mansion, Svartel growled lowly as he and his minions plunged through the skylight, landing upon the third level. His legs were merely down the hall, waiting to be reunited and unleash the full fury of the ancient vampire.

Sigrun snarled and dropped to the floor as the window nearby exploded with bullets piercing through. He spun over onto his backside and flipped backward onto his knees. Lanta came into his hands with a shrill ring of metal and swung outward at an incoming VP's legs. The man dropped to the ground, screaming in agony as he stared down at his severed knees. A spinning kick off a pivoting knee from Sigrun silenced the man. The blade spun again, this time arcing upward as he took down another officer with a slash across his face.

Sigrun ducked momentarily as many guns suddenly focused on his position. Knowing he was outmanned, he ran to the stairs, bounding up them swiftly, leaping to the railing and flipping up to the second floor. He glanced back down to see swarms of VP clashing violently with swarms of the coven's own inhabitants.

Closing his eyes for a fraction of a moment, he found Skadi quickly by mental link. She was stunned from the initial attack, but now he felt the rage in her mind threatening to envelope his own mind. He broke off the connection quickly, more to remain clear-headed about his own situation. He dove into the elevator nearby, and the door closed. Pushing the button for the third floor, he reached up and braced himself onto the ceiling. Moments later, the door slid open, and as he had suspected, several bursts of bullets slammed into the far wall, shaking the small cubicle.

Two guns poked into the elevator, sweeping quickly. The weilders didn't have time to react as Sigrun flipped down back to the floor and drove the blade into the men's flesh. He took off running, searching quickly for Skadi.

The skylight ahead suddenly shattered as several forms dropped onto the third floor. Sigrun instantly reacted by bringing the blade up and about to bear in both hands. He set his face, and blinked momentarily as he realized who one of the figures were. That figure was floating by sheer mindpower, his lower half missing.

Oh hell...

Svartel recognised the elf immediately. He could smell the filthy creature's blood, here his distinct heartbeat and match the face with the one that had stolen his legs.

"Elf."

Both of Svartel's men aimed semi-automatic weapons at the elf, yet Svartel did not indicate they should attack the elf. Adjusting himself to be slightly taller than Sigrun, the vampire approached, halting just out of sword reach.

"You have much to answer for elf. Before all this is over, I will see your blood sitting within my ancient veins."

Before Sigrun could reply, Svartel unleashed a powerful wave of his power, slamming Sigrun into the wall next to him. Grinning maliciously, Svartel wrapped his mental power around the elf and launched him into the air, over the balcony and slammed him hard into the marble of the first floor.

With the elf out of his way, Svartel and his men continued until they cam upon a door at the end of the hall at their right. Not hesitating in the slightest, Svartel slammed his fist into the door, causing it to become unhinged and clatter upon the floor. The ancient vampire took a deep breath taking in the stench of his female counterpart. This was her room. Setting himself upon the bed, Svartel turned his gaze upon the shrivelled form that were his legs. Without the constant supply of healing blood they had begun to rot and fall apart.

"Place them upon the bed."

One of the younger vampires did as ordered, placing the legs inches centimeters from where they had once been connected to his body. As the younger vampire moved to step away from the bed, Svatel lunged forward and plunged his fangs into the fledgling's neck, ripping open the flesh and drawing his lifeblood into himself. The panicing vampire attempted to fight back but was easily overpowered by the ancient vampire. After drawing in enough blood, Svartel dropped the now dead vampire and retrieved a dagger. Ignoring the pain it causing him, the ancient vampire began hacking open his past wounds, pealing back the flesh upon his stubs and the rotting legs.

With that done, he pressed the rotting legs against his now bleeding wounds and bent forward, unleashing several bursts of blood from his mouth. The force of it leaving his mouth was enough to cause the blood to splatter everywhere yet it was obviously directed upon his withered legs and renewed wounds. Watching closely, Svartel sat patiently as the blood began to do its job and reconnect bones, muscle, tissue, flesh and bring his legs back to life. Due to being an ancient, his blood acted much faster than others and so within a few minutes he would be able to walk again.

"Guard the door. I need a few minutes. Once that's done, we place some elven arrows, then we leave."

Stephen checked his two Para automatics, both were loaded with silver bullets. Stephen ejected one of the magizines and replaced with another. He was interested in test in out his slightly modified hollowpoint. Instead of just exanding into an enemy, the four sections would break apart and tear different paths once they entered. He placed his pistols back in his holsters.

"There is no..."

As soon as the explosion occured, Stephen grabbed Viannor and pulled her to the ground. Stephen shut his eyes and when he opened them, he could still see, slightly better now that the lights were off. Gunfire tore into the room, blasting away rows of books. Stephen concentrated his mind and found what he wanted.

"Hello there."

Stephen looked up to see a VP officer aiming a Spectre M4 machine-pistol at the pair. The young vampire simply smiled as the officer suddenly fell as something hit him in the back of the head. Stephen's duffel bag fell on the officer and Stephen promptly struck the man with his fist to make sure he was out.

Stephen opened it to reveal rifles, machine-pistols, shotguns, pistols, ammuntion, and most strangly an RPG-7D. Stephen pulled out the RPG, put it back together, loaded the single rocket, ran to the window and fired into the mass of vehicles. He turned away and went back to Viannor as he heard several explosions behind him.

"Here Viannor, load up and lets go into battle."

Stephen took off his trenchcoat and replaced it with a webbed vest, picked up a HK G36C and grabbed magizines already in pouches and placed them on the vest. He aimed the rifle and brought down a pair of VP officers trying to move in.

"Lets move, stick close to me, shoot at all the VP officers...they will kill you even if they don't remember you."

With his fledgling, Stephen went to defend the coven.

In any other situation, Viannor would have yelled at Stephen for his oh-so-patronising comment, but as a bullet flew past her head and buried itself in the pages of a History of Assington, there wasn't any time to argue.

A quick rummage in the duffel bag retrieved an HK machine gun of some sort, she didn't know the exact type. He loves his HKs, she thought, doesn't he? Crouching low under the shattered window, Viannor risked popping her head up for a moment to check outside.

Holy shit! were the two words that came to mind, in that particular order, though anything she thought in the proceeding seconds was blotted out as she squeezed off a few rounds. There are so many of the buggers outside, she thought, that's bound to hit a few of them.

The return-fire answered her question, as she and Stephen darted out of the room.

The marble underneath Sigrun shook violently as he collided with stunning force under Svartel's powerful attack. He had managed, however, to issue a buffer spell that cushioned his fall enough to prevent his death from the impact.

The marble on the other hand, didn't have such a lucky fate, as it shattered and broke under the weight and power of the attack. Lanta clattered away from Sigrun's outstretched hand as he lay there completely still.

His right arm could be seen bent awkwardly. It was clear there was a bone broken as it protruded with stark whiteness amid an evergrowing pool of blood. At last, Sigrun returned to consciousness, releasing a loud cry of pain as he struggled to his feet. Several cuts lined his body, his clothing ripped as well from the marble shrapnel.

Sigrun looked up to an adjacent doorway to see several VP officers come rushing in. They met a wall of fire issuing from Sigrun's outstreched hand. He turned and ran toward the kitchen, but not before stooping to pick up the elven sword.

As he ran, he called out to Skadi, Skadi! Svartel's here! Destroy the legs!

He held his arm close to him, favoring the bone-revealing wound as he moved deeper into the kitchen. He shoved a few chairs into the way of the door, as well as a table. He turned and picked up the rack of knives on the countertop, setting the knives before him on the nearest cutting countertop. He ducked down behind the counter and waited with two of the knives in his hand. With the progress of the battle, he knew he wouldn't have to wait too long...

Lujza barely had time to get out of the meeting room, running hard, dodging opening doors and bullets. On her way up to her store-room/closet/bedroom to get her AK varient, she encountered two VP who she took slightly by surprise. Instinctively she whipped her axe off her belt and around towards her foes. They died quickly. It was messy.

Once in the store room, she got her AK and several magazines of ammo, though she didn't check what sorts. Some was just regular lead, some was of the silver variety she had been given, and some was of a strange exploding variety that had been created in the basement of the Batory clan castle.

She quickly made her way back towards the action, choosing a place above the main hall where she could take potshots at the VP coming in. Firing in bursts, she noticed quickly that the mag she had jammed into her weapon must contain the exploding variety. They weren't large explosions, but they ensured that almost any torso hit would be a kill. Noticing she could see the VP vans out the windows, she took a few seconds to carefully aim and take a few out via precise shots at spots that were vulnerable on almost any car. In her military service, she had been said to be a very good shot, and the resulting explosions were magnificent.

Eventually, the VP grunts noticed where the fire was coming from, and their captain ordered a group of them up the stairway. Lujza got in a few shots at him just before the barrage of gunfire became too heavy, though she didn't see whether she hit or not.

Fleeing, she emptied her mag at her VP pursuers, rounding a corner before reloading. Taking a few seconds rest, she noticed that she had been nicked by VP bullets several times, and was bleeding, though not too badly. Lujza looked around at her surroundings to orient herself. She was near Skadi's room.

Stephen led Viannor upstairs and he poked his head around a corner. He spotted at least twenty VP officers moving toward one of the stair cases in the parlor. Coming around, Stephen put himself in full view of the VP officers in the palor. With his G36C set on full automatic, he burned through a whole magizine in seconds, downing several officers, before coming back behind the wall.

Stephen closed his eyes for several seconds before opening them. He spoke as he reloaded.

"Viannor, across the palor in one of the other rooms there are a few VP officers reorgainizing. They have a flamethrower and plenty of explosives...don't have to tell you what would happen if you hit the thrower. There are still a few VP on the first floor, with some more coming. I'll give you cover and run hard across and nail the officers in the other room. I'll come once you are finished. If you feel like a barbeque, feel free to turn the flamethrower on the VP. Go."

Stephen knelt and moved to the corner of the wall and opened fire on the VP.

Skadi recieved Sigrun's message just as she plunged her blade into the back of an unsuspecting VP officer. Truly a creature of the night, Skadi moved around silently, invisible to all until she made her swift kill. Yanking her blade clean, Skadi spun around to face Svartel's direction. She had bee too busy slaughtering the humans to even notive but now that she focused, Svartel's distinct presence was evident.

I'll take care of it.

Levitating slightly into the air, Skadi charged through the halls, weaving past several VP and cutting them down as she moved faster than they could comprehend. Within seconds the vampiress was standing outside her room, eyes fixed upon the scene before her.
____________

Svartel sighed as the last sinew of muscle and flesh finally connected. He could feel the blood passing through withered veins, reanimating the limbs and returning them to life, or at least an undead state. He had never really pondered on the issue of whether a vampire was dead or not, it didn't really matter to him. All that was important was the fact that he was more than a human, much more.

Jumping onto his feet, Svartel wobbled slightly but soon gained his balance. The flow of blood was quickly rejuvinating his legs back to full strength. At that point he noticed the distinct thump of a heartbeat outside the door. It was a beat he had never heard before and was even stranger considering the one owning this heart didn't appear to be quite human.

Stepping out of the doorway, Svartel came upon the young lady known as Luzja. A quick search of her mind found a name and Svartel grinned as the word rolled of his tongue.

"Luzja."

As the sadistic vampire approached Luzja, two booted feet thudded against the carpeted floor right before the pair. Without hesitating, Skadi lunged forward and took hold of Luzja, hurling her back down the hall.

"Get out of here girl. This one you don't wish to ever face."

Svartel turned himself to face Skadi, a malicious grin upon his face. In Skadi's opinion Svartel grinned far too much and it irritated her. Bring her blade to bear, Skadi prepared to severe Svartel's newly reattatched legs.

"Time to lose your legs again.."

"I think not... Skadi."

Skadi lunged forward with her blade whilst Svartel placed a hand in front of her, causing her to stop in midair. Svartel's remaining minion took the oppurtunity to unleash several rounds into Skadi's chest. The bullets stang as expected, yet fortunately for Skadi they were not silver and didn't cause half as much damage as she expected. Reaching out with her own mind, Skadi broke Svartel's hold upon her and dropped to her feet. Doubled over in shock, Skadi looked up to find a size eleven boot slam into her face, sending the ancient vampire plummeting out the window and three storeys down, onto the hard earth below.

Svartel didn't bother to view Skadi's injuries, it was not the time for their battle yet. Picking up his metallic pole once again, Svartel keyed a switch and watched as an eight inch silver blade sprung out of one end. There was blood to be spilled this night and his blade remained clean. That could not be allowed.
_____________

Hondur had found himself upon the second floor within minutes of the battle initiating. Scores of VP officers poured up the stairs and moved in every direction, searching for vampires to slaughter. Fortunately everyone was aware by now and able to put up some sort of resistance to the armed intruders.

Several men walked by the shadows Hondur was hiding in, causing the ancient vampire to leadp forth and place his claws cleaning into the necks of two men. A slight gurgle alerted the other two whom prompty spun around to face a desert eagle pistol floating in midair. Without hesitation Hondur forced the trigger twice, unleashing a single bullet through the head of each officer. Withdrawing his blades, Hondur allowed the two gurgling men to crumbled to the ground.

Still caught up in the passion of his recent kills, Hondur didn't noticed as a man armed with a glock came up the stairs behind him and began emptying his clip. The first two bullets struck Hondur in the shoulder, causing bones to shatter and immense pain to shoot down his nerves as the silver reacted with his vampiric flesh. Before the pain became too much, Hondur spun around to gain sight of the officer before unleashing a simple but brutal concentration of mental energy. The power slammed into the young man and knocked him with full force back down the stairs.

Hondur retracted his blades and holstered the deagle before plunging into a room next to him and locking the door. Smoke emerged from his wounds as the silver burned his flesh, causing the vampire to grunt in pain. Drawing a dagger out of his robes, Hondur began the tedious task of attempting to dig the bullets out of his body.
______________

Ivan noted the explosions from outside but was far too busy with unleashing silver death upon the vampiric scum of the coven to do anything about it. The initial surprise had worn off and now the vampires were forming organised resistance. He couldn't be quite sure but Ivan had heard reports over the comms of single vampires fending of multiple officers, leading him to assume there may even be ancients within the mansion. In that casem it would have to be destroyed.

As he rounded a corner, Ivan's almost super-human reflexes were the only thing that saved him from a short sword swinging at his head. Ducked under the blade, Ivan unleashed a few rounds towards the hilt causing several bullets to strike the object and send it flying out of the vampire's hands.

Now back at full height, Ivan moved forward and grabbed the vampire by the shirt, aiming his barrel at the creature's head. It was obvious the vampire was a fledgling, the fear evident in his eyes as he gazed upon the scowling VP captain. The trigger pulled back but nothing happened. Ivan cursed. As he dropped the weapon, the vampire delivered a kick strong enough to knock Ivan back, the wall saving him from falling over.

With renewed spirit, the young vampire charged forward and swung a white fist towards the face of the captain. The instant before the fist would connect with bone and flesh, Ivan moved his open palm in the way and caught the fist. Stunned out of his wits, the vampire began to beg as Ivan easily overpowered the younger man and dropped him to his knees.

"Bad luck vampire. I'm your worst nightmare."

Without another word Ivan withdrew a silver bladed hunting knife and began plunging it into the vampire, causing blood so spew out of the brutal wounds. Finally Ivan grew tired of his butchering and slit the man's throat, causing what remaining blood he possessed to seep out of his neck. Ivan watched for the last few minutes as the vampire finally lost too much blood and died. Just to be sure, Ivan drew his arm back and plunged the blade into the young vampire's skull, breaking through the bone and stabbing the brain.

Wiping his blade clean upon the body, Ivan retrieved his G36 and reloaded it. There were still plenty more vampires to kill.

"Go."

Griping her machine gun tightly in both hands, Viannor leapt out into the parlor and began to run. After only a few steps she jumped high in the air, over the stream of bullets from Stephen's own gun. Her newly-found supernatural speed brought her to the door where the VP officers were cowering from Stephen's weapon. Almost instinctively she leapt through the doorway, practically flying over the men below her. With a mid-air pirouette she landed behind the men, facing their backs. Crucially, though, she had begun to pull the trigger even before her feet had touched the ground.

Sweeping from left to right, she cut down men who hadn't even had time to bring their weapons up to bear. But, as she well, knew, magazines did not last forever. Unlike in the movies, came the thought in her mind. Shifting to a single-handed grip in her right hand, she pulled her left-sided USP from behind her back. A few well-placed shots struck the VP she'd missed on her first sweep, just before the dreaded 'click' signalled her machine gun was now useless at range.

The man with the flamethrower, however, was especially deadly at this range.Viannor darted toward him, flinging her empty machine gun at him while blindly shooting at the remaining men. The flamthrower-armed man instictively blocked the machine gun with the barrel of his own weapon, but there was no defence against the onrushing Viannor. With a deadly sweep of her nails and a stomach-churning crack, the man's neck was swiftly broken.

With almost a sixth-sense, Viannor leapt upwards to crouch on the ceiling, the VP guns not fast enough to follow effectively. Drawing her other side arm she unleashed a deadly hail of fire on those remaining below. A bullet from the VP, however, caught her in the thigh, breaking her concentration and dropping her all the way to the floor. She reacted fast enough, however, dropping the final Officer with a shot to the head.

Viannor slumped to the ground and sighed, but only for a moment until she realised the intense pain in her thigh. She doubled over, seeing the bullet had not gone all the way through her flesh, having lodged itself somewhere in the back of her thigh. Her wound was smoking and the searing hot pain lanced through her leg.

"Good job," Stephen said as he came over, catching a glimpse of the steam from her wound, and her obvious pain, "silver bullet?"

"Of course it bloody is," Viannor snarled, "get it out!"

Stephen concentrated for a moment, sensing the bullet's location. Whipping out his Wolfe dagger, Stephen slit open the back of her trousers, followed swiftly by a weell-placed hack on the back of her leg. He dug around a little, to the sound of her crying ou in pain, before flicking the sliver bullet out of her leg. Viannor gasped as the source of real pain diminished. All she had now was a hole in her leg.

"Right," she snarled again, "that's fucking it!" Now she was really annoyed.

Staggering to her feet, she limped over to the flamethrower-armed officer, grabbed him by the foot and dragged him, grim-faced, out into the parlour, which had a nice set of up-to-now unbroken windows. She unclipped the weapon and lifted the man out of the straps. Hefting his limp body to not-quite shoulder level, she threw him with all her might out of the window, receiving a satisfying shattering of glass for her efforts. Then, grabbing the flamethrower, she pivoted off her good leg like a discus thrower and hurled it out of the window towards the VP vans below. Taking careful two-handed aim with her HK pistol, she fired, the bullet catching the tanks and detonating the entire contents at once, much to the horror of some of those officers tasked with guarding the entrace.

"Now," she said, "it's personal; the bastards shot me."

(OOC: Okay, finally the time when I can return.......)

It has barely been a few nights since Zero took Aeris with him to see the King Vampire, and to receive further instructions as to what to do. But a few nights can change so much.

The carnage that was happening right now at Hondur's mansion was practically unknown to the returning couple, as they made their return once again to Emerald City. Touching down at a relatively deserted part of town, the immortal and the angel immediately walked out of the dark alleyway, and now Zero had new objectives in mind. As well as a new look.

While in Atros, the King Vampire Louis had entrusted him to be personally responsible for the Lady Skadi's wellfare throughout the coming conflict, and to that effect, had promoted him to Brigadier-General, and placed upon him the position of Commander of the Atrosian Vampiric Forces that would soon join the coming war on Skadi's side. Because of that, Zero had received the blood-red jacket of Force Commander from the King, and as a result, had used it as part of an image makeover he had undertaken upon himself. Now, he had shorter hair, a vastly different look from before, and the biggest change of all was the fact that his Treasure Blades, the sister blades that had served him for so long, were no more. Instead, in its place was his new blade, one with a strangely shaped hilt with a skull as an adornment, and it was huge, far larger than the Treasure Blades he was used to. What he held now was the Zantetsuken, a blade forged in the manner of the Noble blades with its accompanying inlaid quartz crystals. All in all, it was a new Raphael Celadrin that returned to Emerald City, ready to serve Skadi once more.

(OOC: Check him (http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0TwCrF4kY1th7JP30dLj1OzHpjKhTzRbLpZRVORI5FqDHJvm!rNZh1xYJAjSsdmXPmfeTQE7SzdlKyWfQqbORNl7eM2lPRSWZwrk 40kVVvA68aNM8cycjrg/Zero%206.bmp?dc=4675527836399899096) out!)

"Are you sure the Lady Skadi will recognize you, and not shoot you on sight?", Aeris asked, more in cheek than anything. The Ancient turned and pinched her cheeks, "What are you trying to say, lass? You've been bugging me to change the way I look for what, over a century now? And now that I've decided to do so, now you're complaining?" They laughed, unaware that in their moment of gaiety, their friends were now even in danger. Neither did they realise, as they walked the short distance back to the mansion, that they were going to walk straight into a battlefield. It didn't last long though, as they heard the sounds of gunfire. Both Zero and Aeris looked at each other, asking without words what all this meant. Then, finding the answer in each other's eyes, they quickly ran towards the source of the noise, fearing that what they were thinking was true.

And as they finally reached the mansion, their worst fears came true right in front of their eyes, as they saw vehicles parked in front of the mansion, and the whole place looking, sounding, and feeling like a battlefield. Skadi's coven was being attacked, and from the looks of it, they were faring badly against what looked to be a surprise attack. In the midst of it all, the VP officers apparently did not realise the newcomer approaching them from behind.

"What the-", Zero muttered, before he was distracted by a crash of breaking glass. Glancing up, he spied a figure flying from the broken window, and instinctively moved to catch her in his arms. It was only then, that Zero realised that the woman that he was now holding in his arms was Skadi herself. "Lady Skadi? What the-", Zero meant to ask, but then he glanced back up.......to see all the VP officers staying with the cars now looking at him. With guns in their hands.

"Oh shit!", he cursed, quickly retreating with Skadi in his arms and Aeris in tow. A hail of silver death rained down upon them, but in a flash, a half-orb of purple appeared to surround the retreating trio, Zero's battle energy emerging to shield the retreating trio as they moved behind cover. The hail of bullets didn't stop, and they were pinned behind cover as the VP vanguard slowly closed in on their position. Just then, in a flash of silver, one of the VP officers fell. With that, the gunfire stopped as his comrades stopped to glance at what had felled their brother in arms.

And they were shocked by what they saw. For the fallen officer had a large wound exiting out of his throat, and just above his body hovered a floating throwing knife.

Suddenly, nine more throwing knives appeared from behind where the trio were hiding, and carnage ensued. The throwing knives swarmed around the VP officers, flying in all directions, and attacking them like a swarm of bees. One by one, the throats of the VP were gutted, yet there was still more of them, even as they fired wildly and vainly at the flying knives in panic. Then, a figure in red strode out, and to add woe to the VP, started firing at them with twin handguns. Zero was seriously pissed off now, and he was showing it. The throwing knives were under his mental control, and adding firepower to it, the Noble was starting to turn the tide against the odds.

Kick-ass!!!! (http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0TwCfAoYYBNh7JP30dLj1O!F8ilV1FZ9hn2h5I*PbBc0hLfycLNVLD0c94xEc5lh2mMigAhjaUkANFefsRkWjIDBnN3HojueRfyq MB1xANtxtCbi8CUthrQ/Zero%203.bmp?dc=4675527835074831693)

Meanwhile, Aeris stayed behind cover with Skadi, waiting for an opportune time to make an appearance on her own. She glanced at Skadi, who seemed like she had taken a huge blow only just recently, and asked,

"Lady Skadi......what's happening here?"

Skadi expected to hit the cement below her with a bone cracking thud, yet it never came. Instead she landed upon something much softer and also moving away from the expected gunfire that her fall had drawn. Opening her eyes once under cover, Skadi found herself upon the ground whilst Aeris stared back down at her. Giving the girl a puzzled look, Skadi sat up to find Zero shielding the trio.

Gathering her senses about her, Skadi spoke as she poked a head over Zero's shoulder to witness the scene.

"The VP attacked us. Svartel is also here. Things are not going well, there must be all the VP officers within the city here tonight and they're not intent on taking prisoners."

Jumping to her feet, Skadi checked to see her blade was still within her tight grasp, which of course it was. With a snarl upon her contrasted face of marble white and blood red, Skadi made a single leap off the ground, over the VP forces and landed upon the roof of the mansion.

"Come on you two, we have enemies to slaughter."
_____________

Svartel weaved through the chaos of the ongoing battle so casually that it didn't appear he even noticed it. Anytime an enemy vampire or VP officer approached him, he either quickly dispatched them with a vital blow from his stave or withdrew an elven arrow from his cloak and firmly wedged it into the eye sockets of the unfortunate challengers.

Without much difficulty at all, Svartel emerged through the front doors to find a few remaining VP officers attempting to salvage their vehicles after suffering much gunfire and explosive attacks from the vampires above. Their luck was not about to get any better. As the men spun around to meet their new enemy, Svartel brought his metal pole to bear, keying several switches in the process. The blade protruding out of one end retracted, allowing another blade to emerge, a scythe blade. The other end opened to allow a small solid metal ball attatched to a chain emerge. A finaly click sounded throughout the silent air as sharpened edges sprung open upon the ball.

The VP unleashed their barrage of silver bullets yet Svartel was no longer there. A furious snarl drew the attention of the four officers into the air immediately before them and that is where Svartel was, already in the motion of swinging his weapon. Nothing could be done as the solid metal ball completed its path and collected two men across the face, pulverising their foreheads to the point where it was a sure thing they would never get up again.

The other two had managed to duck the ball but were quickly disposed of when the pole continued to swing around and the scythe blade carved straight through their necks. Happy with his efforts, Svartel made to leave when he was caught in the back by several silver slugs. As he spun around and fell to his backside, Svartel noted an angry looking VP officer bearing some sort of automatic weapon. The ancient vampire merely roared in fury at the young man, causing his face to shift from anger to fear as he watched one of the VP vans lift into the air and promptly fly straight towards him. With a loud thud the van collided with the man and ploughed into the building.

It was time to leave.
_____________

Ivan found himself in one of the less chaotic levels of the mansion as he searched for vampiric scum. He had no idea how many levels this mansion possessed but he figured he was at least one level underground. Not taking any note of the expensive carpeting or skilled artworks within the halls, Ivan moved into a trot as his hearing picked up voices.

As he approached the door, a female voice called out.

"Hondur? Is that you?"

Ivan grinned and fired a few rounds into the door, causing a shrill scream to emerge from the room. Unfortunately that irritating click followed, signalling that his clip was empty. Feeling around upon his person, Ivan couldn't find anymore G36 clips but he did locate something even better. Claymore.

Without hesitation the captain quickly withdrew the mine and set the trigger string across the doorway. Looking down at the mine he assured himself it was facing the right way before placing it down and hooking it up to the trigger string. With all that done, Ivan ran off as fast as he could, hoping to draw the vampire out.
____________

A silver bullet had grazed Alysandra's shoulder as she stood at the door. At that moment she thought it was all over until that familiar click of an empty gun rang through the air. Knowing she only had one oppurtunity, Alyssandra scrambled around the room looking for a weapon.

At any moment the enemy could come through that door and kill her, she had to find it. Opening a draw in Hondur's desk, the gleaming weapon sat there. Smiling to herself, Alysandra withdrew the machine pistol and chambered the rounds. Hurried footsteps followed and the young vampire figured the enemy had heard the weapon and began to run. She wouldn't let them get away. Leaping over the desk, Alysandra opened the door and ran forward...
_____________

BOOM!

Ivan smiled as the explosion rocked the lower level hallway, obliterating whomever was stupid enough to walk through that doorway.

The sounds of battle diminished to a few isolated conflicts throughout the mansion. The smell of spilled blood, as well as the slippery liquid covering the walls and floors like a second skin, was everywhere. Sigrun rose slowly from behind the counter. He glanced down at the dead bodies of the VP officer whom had come into the kitchen, only to find knives of varying types buried into their heads, necks and torsos. None looked back to protest his brutal and stealthy attacks.

His good hand quickly set a few of the knives between his torso and his elven belt. He snuck closer to the door, and pushed it open slightly to look out.

Thwack!

The body of a brutalized VP officer flew into the room across the way from where Sigrun now stood. He turned his eyes to the entryway the body had come through. Whoever had sent that unfortunate officer that way, was out of sight, but close.

There was a flash of a weapon before it disappeared again to send another body flying out of the way. Sigrun thought for a moment on what to do, and then decided on an option. He held his arms out, somewhat favoring the injured one, and watched as a light blue essence emerged from his chest and formed to look identically like him. The image turned and entered the other room, drawing its astral sword.

Through the eyes of his projected self, Sigrun came face to face with Svartel once more, who was leaving the mansion quickly through the newly reformed front door.

You run, Svartel. Run as fast as you can. Sigrun projected telepathically to Svartel, before immediately ceasing the mental link and setting up a number of mental barriers.

To Skadi, he sent another message, Get down here. Front entrance. Svartel.

As Svartel left, Lujza, ignored against the wall, leapt up and fired at the sadistic Ancient's cronie. Her luck was in, tonight, it seemed, or possibly not, but in any case, silver 7.62 cal. silver bullets practically destroyed the fledgling's head. She managed to get several shots through a window at Svartel and the VP Pigs, but she dared not stand around to see if she hit.

Making her way down towards the fighting, she lost count of the VP men she had killed. A headshot generally killed a member of the Homo Sapiens species, whether the bullet was made out of silver or lead. When she could, she used her axe, to conserve ammunition. It was messier, but she didn't care. On a couple occasions, when she encountered single troopers, she tore out their throats with her teeth for a quick snack.

More difficult than the VP were the several of Svartel's young vampires she encountered. Many were cocky, however, and she survived each encounter. After a while, it was somewhat satisfying, pulling the trigger, seeing parts of their bodies being ripped away by her high-powered weapon's bursts.

After what seemed hours, but was probably no longer than fifteen minutes, she was again fleeing the entrance. She had visited the armories, and had found grenades, which she used to wreak havoc on several larger groups of VP near the main door. However, her systematic slaughter had not come without a price. VP bullets had ripped off part of her ear, one was somehow stuck straight through the palm of her non-shooting hand, and she had numerous bruises from close combat, as well as other minor wounds.

Covered in blood, she then saw the VP commander's back next to Hondur's room. Aiming was automatic at this point.

OOC: Away probably until Saturday night, though I might be able to check in tomorrow.

Stephen watched his fledgling's work. He had to admit, she was pretty scary when pissed off. He grabbed her hand and pulled her back into the room as another VP officer walked into the parlor. Stephen showed Viannor her leg, the wound was begining to get smaller.

"What did I say? Our blood has great healing powers and that also applies to us. Of course they shot at you, you are now a vampire. Ivan has weeded out all those who would have delayed shooting and wonder why you are here in the coven."

Stephen handed her his G36C and the magizines. "Here, take this."

Stephen pulled out both of his Para P14s and shot the VP officer standing in the parlor. He took Viannor upstairs where he sensed Hondur. He kept shooting at any VP officer stupid enough to tangle with a vampire. He had exhausted both magizines when he found the ancient clawing to get silver bullets out of him. Stephen reloaded his guns and exchanged them for his Wolfe knife.

"Hold still Hondur."

Stephen slowly dug out the bullets and smiled as the last one fell smoking to the floor. He put away his knife and his guns reentered his hands. He turned his head when he heard a muffled explosion through the sounds of battle. It triggered something in his mind.

"Claymore...Hondur, call me stupid. It sounded like it was coming from your room."

"Got it, Lady Skadi. Will be with you in a few", Zero replied mentally to Skadi, even as he was busy dealing with the VP who were even now starting to regroup despite the damage he was dealing out to their ranks by themselves. There was no real way for the mortal VPs to deal with the flying knives mental technique Zero had perfected over the last century, and right now he was using it to devastating effect, racking up kill after kill with the knives that attacked like a bee swarm, almost as if with independent minds of their own. Still, there were still quite a lot of the VP to shoot at Zero, and even while he was firing away indiscriminately, some of the bullets were now starting to fly in his direction.

Pivoting around on his feet, Zero looked somewhat like a ballet dancer as he twirled confidently on his path towards the mansion, twin guns returning fire. Most of the bullets aimed at him never hit him, but with the increasing volume, they were getting pretty close, and it was only a matter of time before one of the bullets clipped his shoulder, causing him to grunt in pain. Now thoroughly pissed, almost to the point where he was about to go Berserk, Zero redoubled fire towards the VP.......only for clicking noises to announce to him that he had ran out of ammo. Quickly, Zero holstered his guns, and with a great heave, hoisted the great sword Zantetsuken from his back, swinging in in a great arc to create a crude shield (http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0TwDrAnsY*tZ7JP30dLj1Oy0a4JTWCmY*Iv8taDRKluiZtGUd5tRWCixCsUqtcyWoWtFUbCyLjB8oIVbpwpj81JqESxPoQDEUH15 JofyAgbc3*I74sLuFbg/Zero%205.bmp?dc=4675527835585609883), deflecting the bullets coming his way. With a sudden, great sweep of Zantetsuken, Zero plowed the great sword into a nearby VP van, and with the great strength of the vampire, he lifted the wreckage by the sword, hurling it at the VP officers who scrambled to get out of the way. A great crash rended the night of Emerald City, as the van plowed into several more of the other VP vehicles, causing one hell of a "traffic accident".

Just then, with the VP distracted enough to hold their fire just for a moment, Aeris finally came out of hiding, screaming Elvish battle cries at the VP. Taken totally by surprise by the fact that it was a nubile young woman charging them more than the fact that she was charging them fearlessly with naught but a staff, they did not realize the danger when the top of the staff, which was shaped like a rose bud, opened its metal 'petals' to show a bright rose bud that shone forth white, blinding light. With a scream, Aeris smote the end of the Nephilim Rose Staff into the ground. The earth shook, quaking under the command of Aeris's Elvish magic. What remaining VP officers were there were knocked to the ground, unable to keep their footing, and it gave Zero the breather he needed to grab Aeris by the waist, and launch himself along with her to the rooftop, right after Skadi. The flying knives, after making a few more passes at what survived of the VP outside the mansion, flew after Zero, and neatly slotted into the sheathes tucked inside his blood-red Commander trenchcoat.

With another great heave, Zero smote the Zantetsuken into the tiles of the roof, opening up a huge hole into which he leapt, with Aeris leaping in after him. With a few sweeps made more out of instinct than any real thought, Zero decapitated a few heads that used to belong to several VP officers who were at that moment thinking to rush Hondur, Stephen, and some new fledgling neither Zero nor Aeris had met yet. As he landed right in front of them, Aeris followed, but not before letting off a flash of blinding light and a loud bang, disorientating a couple of Svartel's fledglings who were retreating. Without hesitation, she plucked out the Maiden's Blade from its sheathe, and threw it with a touch an experienced assassin would be proud to call his own. Indeed, with that throw, the Maiden's Blade did its work, puncturing straight through one fledgling to stick the second one in the heart, killing both instantly.

With a flourish of his new Zantetsuken blade, Zero walked over to the trio. "Hello, guys. Long time no see", he remarked with a wry smile. "What a mess, don't you think? Kinda reminds me of when we raided the Hyraphore all those decades ago (OOC: AV3), now I know how Driretlan felt. So what now?"

Svartel whipped around immediately as he heard the elven voice within his head. His eyes caught sight of the filthy creature yet the images faded away before he could do anything about it.

"I do things on my terms elf..."

With his minion now dead, Svartel decided it best to depart the scene before things changed for the worse. Unfortunately before the ancient vampire could do anything, a blurred black form crashed atop of him.
_______________

Skadi was about to plunge into the mountain through the skylight when Sigrun's voice entered her head, informing her of Svartel's position. Intent on getting some measure of revenge for the boot to her face, Skadi didn't even bother to spin around as she leapt into the air, doing a backflip in her arc so that by the time she was about to land her feet crashed atop some unfortunate warrior.

Quickly returning to her senses, Skadi jumped to her feet and gave the still dazed form a quick glance. A satisfied smile spread across Skadi's face as she gazed upon her ancient rival.

"Nice to see you again Svartel. It's been far too long since you've tasted my blade."

With a fury clear to all those around her, Skadi began plunging her blade into Svartel's body, tearing, slashing and puncturing as much as she could of her most hated foe. Nothing could be seen within her cold eyes save for pure spite and the desire to inflict suffering.

Already throbbing from the burn of the silver bullet lodged within him, Svartel wasn't prepared for the vicious attack from Skadi's blade and therefore unable to prevent the point digging into his flesh, the silver burning his nerves to ashes as it made contact with his flesh. The vampire thought it would never end until the whining of automatic weapons filled his ears.

Skadi had been so emersed in her attack of Svartel that she hadn't noticed two of his minions standing atop the roof, machine guns in hand as they aimed upon the ferocious woman and unleashed hell. Immediately she began shuddering with the mutiple impacts of the bullets before finally collapsing to the ground, her bloor splattered all over the ground.

Satisfied with their task, the two vampires landed beside their master, hauled him up the the arms and made another jump, landing them upon the other side of the street and breaking into a dead sprint.

"Another time Skadi... there is plenty of oppurtunity for you to die..."
____________

Hondur thanked Stephen as the younger vampire dug the last bullet out of his ancient flesh, causing the pain to subside and finally fade away into nothing. The wounds weren't quite healing yet but he knew his body would take care of it, all it needed was time.

Relieved to be free of pain, Hondur soon scowled as Stephen mentioned a claymore and his room in the same sentence. Before he could reply with words of his own, the roof ripped upon due to some unknown force and the forms dropped into the room. As the dust cleared, the forms soon took on familiar attributes enabling Hondur to identify them as Zero and Aeris. Hondur spotted the elf princess immediately yet it took a few moments to pick out Zero due to his new appearance. Hondur didn't appear impressed.

"You know, it wasn't necessary to tear a hole in my roof. There is a skylight and it appears I've already got one hell of a repair bill."
___________

Ivan and a small group of his men sat within the basement of the mansion, all fiddling over some sort of electronic devices plugged into small bricks labelled RDX.

The captain possessed that grin that sly grin that always signalled trouble for a vampire.

Stephen covered his head as the roof tore wide open. He leveled his pistols at the pair that emerged from the dust. It took him a while to remember Aeris and even longer to see it was Zero inside the new body. The vampire turned and shot two VP officers trying to sneak up on the group. Stephen mentally pulled over a Styer AUG rifle and a few magizines from one of the bodies. The young vampire looked back at the ancient, still wondering about the claymore.

"Hondur, do you want me to check out the claymore explosion?"

Lujza emerged to face the small gathering of Stephen, Zero, Aeris and Hondur. A faint look of relief settled on the Moroii's face. She had used much of her ammunition, and was in poor shape, cuts and scraps everywhere, as well as all her previous injuries, and silver shapnel sticking out of her bare shoulder. Though it was no more harmful than any other metal, it still looked to be painful beyond belief.

Not all the blood covering her was Lujza's own, fortunately. Right before entering the room, she had killed another couple of Svartel's fledgelings that were still inside the building. She had drained a few VP before that, not bothering to clean herself up.

"Hello there, fancy meeting you here," she said exhaustedly to the others as she sat down against the wall, still holding her axe and AK. After taking a momen'ts breather, she added "I ran past your room a little while ago, Hondur, I didn't look around, but there's not much left of the doorway."

Hondur edged up onto his feet as Luzja entered the room, sporting many injures of her own. The ancient vampire couldn't help but give his foreign guest a smile as she arrived. So far she had proven to be a gracious visitor and a competent ally in this situation.

At mention of his doorway being damaged, Hondur's face seemed to go even whiter. The very thought of losing her clouded his mind. Before he could move from the room, Skadi's soft words entere his mind.

"Hondur... get out here."

The image of Skadi upon the ground with several wounds flashed across his mind before the sight of ten or so VP officers bearing weapons approaching her location appeared.

"Stephen and Luzja, could you please check out the lower level whilst I see to things out front."

The pair nodded and Hondur smiled. Without another word the vampire disappeared through newly created skylight and landed upon the edge of the roof. Gazing down upon the situation, Hondur noticed Sigrun attempted to aid the injured Skadi whilst many VP officers crept around the burned husks of VP vans, aiming their weapons.

Without hesitation, Hondur jumped off the building.

OOC: This is Tarlachia. Jolt suddenly decided that it wanted to use one of my puppets to go onto the forums. Bastards.

IC:
Sigrun couldn't do anything to stop the bullets from pounding into Skadi's flesh except to duck the ones that missed. As soon as Svartel and his minions departed the scene, he rose to his feet, wincing as his broken arm protested the movements. Reaching her, he fell to his knees to pick her up gently with one arm.

"Skadi..." he called out, before placing her back down on the ground. He saw her open her eyes to him and smile weakly.

"Skadi, hang on. I'm getting the bullets out."

He pushed aside the torn fabrics of her clothing and plunged his fingers into the wounds, wrapping them around the bullets. He could smell her flesh reacting violently to the silver, and it only served to urge him faster.

One by one, he pulled them free and tossed them aside. At last, she gripped his arm with a bloodied hand and stopped him, her fangs baring slightly. "That hurts." Sigrun offered no apology. He knew she wouldn't take one from him anyway.

She held her hand over her wounds and closed her eyes. Her palm hovered inches above her wounds and within a few seconds the remaining bullets emerged and fell to the ground next to her. Sigrun lowered his forehead to touch hers. "Hang on." he whispered before sending a telepathic message to Hondur to get there quickly.

Skadi's voice whispered, "I'm getting too old for this shit..."

Skadi winced as Sigrun dug the bullets out of her wounded flesh. No matter how old nor how tough a vampire might be, none could deny the shocking pain that silver caused upon contact with their flesh. Still stunned from the pain and her injuries, Skadi didn't get up as Hondur landed right beside her, two pistols within his white grasp.

Hondur looked down at his sire and gave her a brief smile before turning to Sigrun.

"We've got some unwelcome company lurking about."

Instantly, Hondur whipped around and fired two rounds at a seemingly random car. The bullets had no trouble passing through the burned metal and plunging into the bodies of two VP officers on the other side of the vehicle. Two pained grunts resulted.

"There's a lot of them lurking about, keep your eyes open."

Lujza groaned as she got to her feet. She felt as if her joints were rusted metal. "Sure thing," she said, obviously very tired, but making no protest. She tugged Stephen's sleeve to get him going and then walked through the door.

They trotted down each level, clearing out all the enemies in their way. It wasn't particularly hard, for most were now dead, and those still living largely disorganized.

All seemed quiet in the basement levels, but that doesn't mean anything Lujza thought. They now made their way slowly, carefully.

Stephen nodded to Hondur, he also took Viannor with him as he followed Lujza. He aimed the Steyr AUG into the darkness and fired off two shots, a loud thump was heard as a VP officer crumpled to the ground. The three vampires continued slowly down the lower levels. Stephen spotted the smoke that still hung in the air around Hondur's door, splinters and bits of dry wall covered the floor. Stephen waved his hand in the air to hopefully clear his vision.

"Hello? Is anyone there? Alyssandra can you hear me?"

Stephen gained no reply from the damaged room. Only silence. As the vampire gazed into the room, blood could be seen splattered across the wall and bits of gore spread across the room. Whoever was in the room was not leaving...

One by one, everyone was leaving, galvanized into action by the capable leadership of Hondur. With a grin, Zero turned to Aeris, his own plan forming in his eyes.

"C'mon then, girl. They've gotten everything covered but the mansion itself. So that's our job."

As they made their way quickly through the corridors of the mansion, gunfire still resounded, signalling that the battle was as yet far from being over. Nevertheless, the body count of vampires, both of Hondur's and of Svartel's, and of the VP told Zero all that he needed to know: that the VP had been pushed back, away from the inner chambers. That still meant that they probably still held on to the lobby, judging from the gunfire. Now, if they could only make sure that the VP had no way of entering the inner chambers again.........

Soon enough, as they turned a corner, they came face to face with a group of Hondur's vampires, taking cover from a second-floor doorway overlooking the lobby, where many of the VP were still gathered, getting ready for another charge into the inner chambers. That must not be allowed to happen. Picking out a face from Hondur's coven, Zero realised it was the same fledgling that he had punched into the air after the same punk had challenged him, the first time this year that he had come to Hondur's mansion.

"Ah, ah......Sir......", the fledgling stammered once he took cover and saw Zero, frightened out of his wits. But Zero gave him a grin, and winked. "At ease, soldier. What's the status report?"

"Ah, ah.......Sir, the VP are holding the lobby, sir. There are a great many of them, and we're holding them back, but I don't know how much longer we can hold them."

With that, Zero sneaked a peek around the corner, and immediately drew back as a hail of bullets greeted him. With a grunt, he reached inside his trenchcoat, and pulled out a HE grenade. "Then what in the world are these things for?!", he exclaimed incredulously, before pulling out the safety pin, and lobbing it down into the lobby. As he took cover, an explosion rended the air, shaking the very foundations of the earth. The gunfire stopped for a moment to accomodate the shaking of the mansion......then resumed in full force. There was no way to tell how much damage that one grenade did, but one thing was for sure; it wasn't enough. And they were still getting ready to charge through.

Suddenly, Aeris sneaked a peek around the corner as well, before turning a determined eye on Zero. "I can seal some of the doorways from here", she said with conviction. Puzzled, Zero looked at her questioningly, but then desisted. Over these years, he had learnt when not to question the young, inexperienced, but incredibly cool-headed hybrid being he had guarded with his own life. Instead, with a grin, Zero reached into his blood-red Commander trenchcoat again......and this time, pulled out a vintage WWI Thompson SMG from it, complete with drum. Some of Hondur's vampires looked at him queerly, and the young punk asked, "Sir......where did you get that?"

"I have my means", Zero grinned back in return. And then he had already taken their place in firing, raining down death from the Tommy Gun he had somehow acquired. With covering fire raining down on them, the VP took cover, and did nothing about Aeris as she appeared in sight, screaming Elvish chants.

Incredibly, the potted plants that were placed by some of the doorways the VP were trying to rush through, suddenly mutated and grew greatly in size. In no time at all, the plants had become giant, immovable monsters, blocking most of the ways into the inner chambers of the mansion to the VP, and forcing them to have to fight their way in through the most heavily-guarded passageways. It was a stalemate Aeris had set up, but at least it would buy them some time........

Stephen entered the room, he just held back the bile that was creeping up his throat. He had seen many horrible sights in his time, he had seen the effects on people from a claymore, but nothing like this. Alyssandra had probably gotten it all head on, the VP had placed it right in front of the door. He found what appeared to be a body. Not even Hondur could tell it was her. Stephen walked over to the bed and pulled off a large sheet and placed it over the corpse. Stephen noticed a small bit of fabic on the dead vampire's dress that had escaped the blood and gore. He cut it off with his Wolfe Knife and placed it gently in his pocket.

Stephen reentered the hallway and stared at the other two vampires before turning and vomiting on the floor.

"There is nothing there, just a mound of flesh and cloth. Lets go."

As the trio turned to head back up to the battle, Stephen could only think of how he was going to break the news to Hondur.

Ivan grinned as he placed his own RDX charge within one of the many basement rooms of the vampiric mansion. With over five charges strategically placed around the building, there was no chance of it being salvaged. The blast would utterly destroy the foundations and engulf the mansion in flames, incinerating all the vampiric scum caught within.

After flicking the necessary switches and entering the correct code, Ivan locked the device so it could not be disarmed no matter what. The timer was set for ten minutes but he also possessed the remote detonator in case ten minutes was too long. Satisfied with his deed, Ivan rushed up the dark stairs and emerged into the carpetted halls of the underground level. As he rounded a corner, the quick flash of movement caught Luzja's eye yet Ivan didn't stop to check who was down the other end.

He had to escape before hell itself was unleashed upon the mansion.

"I think we should check the basement. It wouldn't do to think we had expelled our enemies, only to have them come up upon us from down there," Lujza suggested. She headed downstairs in the direction of the basement, assuming Stephen and Viannor would follow.

She finally reached it, without too much trouble, and opened the door.

OOC: for minimum confusion this probably happens simultaneously with Assington's post.

Lujza saw the VP captain running away, and then looked to where Ivan was fleeing from. Her eyes widened in alarm. She swore very loudly in her native tongue, and then started running at full tilt back upstairs, nearly crashing into Stephen and Viannor.

Stephen felt something ram into his back, he spun around and grabbed the person by the neck and slammed them against the wall. It took him only a few seconds to recognize Lujza. He promtly released her.

"I am terribly sorry Lujza, old soldier habits mixed with vampire tendencies. Now, mind if I ask why in the hell you came up running like a bat out of hell? Are there any VP coming up behind you?"

"No, they're not. They're clearing out," she said, panting. "I suggest that all of us do the same. They've planted at least one high explosive down there, on the foundation, the place is going to be blown to... to..." She was obviously most alarmed indeed, and had to catch her breath. "Hondur's mood is not going to be improved. We should warn him and everyone else we can find." She started back up the stairwell.

Stephen's eyes grew wider.

"Oh...oh hell. That will ruin anyone's day. Right, simple plan. We run like hell and get to Hondur, Sigrun or someone and warn them."

Stephen took the rear of the group, making sure no VP officers were ready to pounce on them from the rear. As the group neared the parlor, Stephen moved off towards the lounge to grab his duffel bag. He zipped it up, slung it over his shoulder, and quickly rejoined the female vampires.

When Lujza emerged from the stairwell, into the mansion, it appeared the VP had not quite left yet, and a whole bunch of them were right where the small group of vampires had emerged. With a Callisdrunian battle cry (OOC: basically a really distorted yell/shriek), she fired into them as Viannor and Stephen came out behind her.

Viannor exploded into action as she caught sight of the VP, Lujza's banshee battle-cry filling the room. Viannor leapt to her left, drawing a pistol in her right hand as she landed on the wall. Taking a brief moment to steady herself, she opened fire on the group of humans below as Lujza waded into them with her axe, severing limbs left, right and centre.

Stephen drew a weaon of his own as Viannor dived head-first into the crowd of men. In mid air she grabbed the helmet of one of the men with her left hand, sending it with a sickening but satisfying crunch into the ground as Viannor landed in a crouching position. Immediately she rose, raising up a slender leg in a violent kick to break the nose, and worse, of the nearest man to her. Still balanced on one leg she brought her heel round to crack another in the back of the head, though he was swifly opened from groin to shoulder by a sweep of Lujza's axe.

Pivoting around Viannor grabbed the arm of the nearest officer and brought her gun up to his un-protected armpit, blowing a hole inside him that crumpled the man like a rag doll. Three more pistol shots from Viannor and between them, she, Lujza and Stephen had decimated the group of officers, leaving all of them dead on the floor. Save one.

Viannor swiftly lifted up the man who's nose she had initially broken, grabbing him by his flak jacket and slamming him back into the wall. In a flash she had exposed his neck and ripped out a chunk of flesh, which he obviously felt, judging by his scream. With increasing haste, mindful of the reason why they had to bail as soon as possible, she drank deeply of his blood, merely a quick snack to help her along.

"Does this happen a lot," she asked with a wicked grin on her bloodied face as the three headed for the nearest exit, "or do I just have great timing?"

Stephen marveled at his fledgling's skill in combat. He was also very suprised by her brutality.

"Yes...this is pretty much the norm."

Stephen cast aside his now empty Steyr AUG and grabbed a M4A1 carbine off the bloodied floor. As the trio tried to move towards the exit, at least a dozen VP officers came charging down the hallway toward the door. As Stephen brought his rifle up, the plants nearby almost instantly grew, shut the door, and blocked the VP from reaching them.

Stephen looked at Lujza and Viannor. He shrugged and turned around, several more doors were not blocked, but as his gaze moved upwards he noticed a familiar figure.

"Come on or find some cover ladies."

Stephen jumped and landed next to Zero and Aeris.

"Ah, a 1928 model Thompson sub-machine gun Zero...fifty round drum of .45 caliber rounds. Not bad, but a little old. Now...mind if I ask which one of you blocked the doors with the plant life?"

Zero grinned as he heard Stephen, but suddenly his expression changed for the worse, as he saw what was coming. "Get down!", he swore, dragging Stephen behind cover with him. Just in time too, as a hail of bullets chewed through where they were just a moments ago. With a wipe of his forebrow, Zero whistled, and said, "That was close. You gotta learn not to let your guard down, kid."

Then, he relaxed, and grinned again. "That? Who else but our little sprite here could have done it?", he said, and Aeris stuck her tongue out at him. "As for this Tommy........if you want it, I'll sell it to you. So, kid, what's your bright ideas this time? Any way for us to get them the hell outta here?"

"Well, I don't know the place that well, but we need to leave, preferably soon, or what's left of us won't look much different from burnt SPAM," Lujza said, wiping some blood from her eyelids. "Is there a way to warn everyone in here, with the PA or telepathy or something? It really would be horrible if they all got blown up by the VP's bomb."

Stephen gave a brief nod to Zero for pulling him out of the line of fire. He took off the duffel and placed it on the floor. Stephen fired off a magizine from the M4A1 in his hands, he fished around in the bag for a fresh one and slapped it in. Stephen shook his head as he looked down at the VP that were trying to advance by hacking thier way through the plants.

"I already own a pair of Lugers and a Mauser C-96. I don't want any more antique guns right now. I suggest you grab yourself a more modern weapon. Got plenty of assault rifles, machine-pistols, shotguns, and pistols and ammo in the duffel. One last thing Zero..."

Stephen grabbed the Noble by the collar and dragged him closer. Stephen turned his head from the corner and stared coldly into the eyes of the older vampire.

"Stop...calling me kid."

I'm nearly thirteen hundred years old for God's sake. Stephen thought. He let go of Zero and pushed him back into the wall. The young vampire looked up at Lujza, suddenly remembering the bomb.

"That is the problem, we have our exits blocked by hordes of VP inside...VP men covering the exits to the outside. Hopefully Hondur, Sigrun, and Skadi can hack a path or something for us to squeeze through."

Hondur looked around and thought about the situation. There were several VP surrounding him, Skadi and Sigrun and it was likely more would be on the way in due time. With Skadi and Sigrun injured, he didn't have a lot of options and decided they had to get out of there quickly. Without hesitation the ancient vampire emptied the rest of his clips at approaching VP officers whilst moving back towards Skadi and Sigrun.

"We're getting onto the roof."

Making sure to grab Sigrun upon his unbroken arm, Hondur employed his great strength and hurled the elf up into the air, the arc reaching its peak as he came over the mansion and began descending. Hondur hoped Sigrun had the sense of balance to land on his feet but he couldn't really worry about that now as bullets were already beginning to fly in his direction.

Not bothering to worry about Skadi's comfort, Hondur scooped her up in his arms and spun around to see several weapons being pointed in his face. With a scowl the vampire concentrated, causing blood to pour from the noses and ears of the men holding the weapons. Within a few seconds they fell to the ground, their brains now mush slowly exiting their heads where possible.

Putting his attention to the task, Hondur bent his legs and launched off the ground, soaring high into the air, over the mansion roof and began his descent. From his view he could see Sigrun upon the roof and Zero and Stephen through the skylight.

"Sigrun, through the skylight."

A few nudges with his own telekinetic abilities saw Hondur plunge straight through the open skylight and land right behind Stephen, Skadi still in his arms.

"We need somewhere to put Skadi in order for her to heal."

Skadi remained silent as she wished to focus wholely on healing enough to get on her own feet.

Viannor looked up to where Stephen had leapt, now hidden from her vision. She could sense roughly where he was, though, being able to feel his vague presence in the back of her mind. She decided that she'd had enough of standing around and doing nothing so went up the stairs after Stephen.

"Lujza," she yelled, "are you coming?"

Reaching the second floor, she discovered that the near-constant cracking of gunfire was directed at exactly where she was headed. Typical, she thought.

She threw herself forward towards the hastily-assembled barricades, sliding along the floor and raising herself to one knee when her momentum faded. She looked up and saw Stephen, Hondur - holding a severely-injured Skadi - and two people she'd never seen before. They were obviously not her enemies, which was good enough for Viannor at the moment.

What are we going to do, she thought, sit on this roof as it gets blown up all the way over the rainbow?

Sigrun had landed upon the rooftop with ease, though a bit hard. He followed Hondur and Skadi through the skylight, landing next to them. He winced from the shock of the jump hurting his arm.

"What now?" he asked.

Stephen spun and Hondur found himself at the end of Stephen's carbine. The young vampire shifted his gaze to the injured Skadi. Shit, can't she keep herself from smashed up every battle? Stephen was about to speak when he saw movement to his left. A lone VP officer appeared and tried to bring a Steyr TMP at the pair of ancients. Stephen stood and fired two shots. The officer crumpled, not before unleashing several shots, all missed spare for one which dug itself into Stephen's right leg.

Stephen fell and worked quickly to extract the silver slug with his Wolfe Knife. He didn't pick up on his fledling's observation because of him being distracted. When he had finished he stood and reloaded his carbine.

Stephen looked at Hondur, then at Sigrun as the elf dropped down. Stephen slugn his rifle over his shoulder and rooted around in his duffel bag and found a small towel he sometimes used to lay his weapons on. He brushed off the bits of dust and turned back to Sigrun.

"You need a sling for that arm Sigrun?"

Sigrun looked down at the bone protruding from his arm. There was still some blood loss, but he had sealed up the wound somewhat with a bit of quick-fix magic. He would have to have Aeris set the bone later and finish the healing.

"Yeah, I could use a sling for now."

Stephen nodded and carefully moved Sigrun's arm so that there wouldn't be any futher damage. He quickly applied the sling, making sure it was tight to prevent his arm from swinging about, but loose enough not to cut off circulation. Stephen handed Sigrun a Glock 21 from his duffel bag.

"Here, you might need this."

Stephen made another check on his friend. He knew he couldn't help much more than putting on the sling and hope Sigrun didn't get into much trouble that would cause his arm to suffer further injury. Stephen looked at Hondur.

"You have any ideas?"

As he spoke, he sent a message to Viannor.

"Are you alright? Any damage that isn't healing or anything like that?"

"No, I'm good, thankyou," she replied with a little effort, "hope your leg heals quickly."

"So as there's enough explosives to blow this place to Kingdom-come sitting in the basement," she said aloud, to no-one in particular, "what the hell are we going to do now?"

What are we going to do, she thought, sit on this roof as it gets blown up all the way over the rainbow?

As Hondur lay Skadi against the wall, Viannor's thoughts caught the end of his mind. He would have to teach her about containing her thoughts later, but for now there were more pressing issues. Turning to the young vampire, was about to grab her attention and inquire about her thoughts when she spoke up herself, putting his fears to reality.

"Any idea what kind of explosives?"

Distress was obvious within Hondur's voice, he didn't quite like the idea of his mansion being blown up.

"It was Lujza," Viannor said, "she said there was at least one high-explosive wrapped around the foundation of the building." She turned to where she had came from. "I thought she was right behind me."

From the look on Viannor's face it was quite clear that there was enough of the stuff to blow the Mansion beneath their feet into innumerable splinters.

Zero almost chuckled to himself, when Stephen grabbed him. "Touchy, aren't we?", he thought to himself. But he had no time to think any more before everyone suddenly came swarming into the place, and talking enough to make his head hurt. And all this, right in the middle of a firefight. So it was thus that while everybody else was talking, Zero had had no choice but to continue leading the fightback against the advancing VP, giving orders to Hondur's followers in the apparent absence of Hondur's will to lead them. But the VP were advancing, even with the plant life obstructing their path, and the cover fire from the vampires pinning them down.

"Aeris, a little help here!", Zero yelled, slapping on a fresh 50-round drum for his Tommy. And the young Princess, who was looking worriedly at the state of Sigrun and Skadi, tore her eyes away from them. With a mutter of Elvish under her breath, she pointed her angelic Staff at the VP again. And this time, the results caught the VP by surprise, as the plants blocking their way suddenly came alive. Those officers who had been trying to hack their way through the walls of greenery to break through a way, suddenly found themselves trapped in the very same greenery, as their fellow mates scrambled to get out of the way of vines that had suddenly appeared, waving in the air and catching hold of any hapless VP officer careless enough to remain too close. Those caught in the vines screamed as the very life was literally squeezed out of them, while the plants began to creep towards the officers, like a plague advancing upon them.

"Thanks! Go help Sigrun and Skadi now!", Zero yelled again, patting Aeris on the back. But she didn't need telling as she scrambled back to where the both of them were, nursing horrendous injuries. With a worried glance, Aeris shifted her eyes from Sigrun, then Skadi, then to Sigrun again, wondering what she should do next. Then, she finally nodded, and turned to Sigrun.

"Here, Uncle, hold still a moment", she said softly, then began whispering some Elvish chants. As she did so, she placed her hands on Sigrun's injured arm, and a faint burst of Elvish light emitted from her hands. Suddenly, Sigrun didn't feel any more pain from that arm.......nor did he feel anything else either. It was just a dead weight, a magically anaethesized, temporarily useless piece of flesh.

"Sorry Uncle. I can't do much now, not when the battle is as hot as it is now", she said, before turning to Skadi. She gulped for a moment, pondering what she was about to do. But there was no choice, for her Elvish magicks wouldn't work on a vampire like Skadi. And she definitely needed quite some help.

"Lady Skadi. Drink", Aeris said, offering her arm to Skadi. "You'll heal faster."

Skadi didn't want to feed from Aeris as she figured she would heal fine herself. With that in mind she attempted to get up and found out just how injured she was as pain seemed to shoot through every nerve in her body, rendering her immobile once again. She had no choice. Looking up into Aeris' eyes, Skadi uttered one word before she plunged her fangs into her soft arm.

"Thankyou."

The rush of elven blood into her body was definitely a shock. Skadi had only ever tasted elvish blood once before and that had been from Aeris as well. Now enticed by the purity and strength of such blood, Skadi began rapidly drawing on the blood, feeling it seep into her body and speed up the healing process. Already her wounds were beginning to grow smaller, yet Skadi didn't wish to release the elf's arm.

With a forceful act of pure will, Skadi tore away from Aeris arm in order to stop herself from drawing anymore. She knew if left there she could very well kill Aeris.
_____________

Hondur immediately reached out with his mind until he connected with Luzja's mind. Without enough time to worry about privacy, Hondur dug into her mind and searched for the relevant information he needed to know. Within a few seconds he'd found it, causing the ancient vampire slam his fist into the wall next to him as he recalled the image Luzja had layed eyes upon.

"We need to get out of here, now. There is at least one brick of RDX in the mansion and it's going to detonate soon."

Looking around in desparation to find an exit, Hondur figured they might as well leave the way they came in. Decided upon that course of action, the ancient vampire alerted everyone of the plan through his mind.

"We have to leave everyone. Exit through a window or the skylight, just get the hell out of here."

Lujza didn't know why the others had gone upstairs, as it seemed to her that it would be easier to use the door. Then again, she couldn't climb walls or fly.

After the causing the deaths of many men unfortunate enough to be in the VP, she ran for the main door. Unsure whether or not anyone had sounded an alarm, because of her throbbing head, she mustered all her mental strength to send out a feeling of imminent danger... no... impending doom, that any vampire in the building would feel like getting struck with an emotional hammer. Accompanying it were two words, loud and clear. Get out.

She sent it just before barrelling through the doorway, killing two remaining VP and getting shot in the side in the process. Clutching her side in pain, Lujza staggered away from the mansion, grimacing as she bled.

Sigrun scoffed at the thought of leaping through a window in his condition. He had noted that Skadi had drank from Aeris, whom was now a bit tipsy herself from the lack of blood. Taking her in his arm, he opened a portal and called out,

"If you can't get out through the windows or skylights, follow me!"

He disappeared through the portal with Aeris in his grasp. On the other side, they found themselves far from the mansion, by a patch of dark forest. Sigrun turned to gaze upon the mansion in the distance, waiting for it to suddenly send its hellish fireball into the dark night. He hoped the others would get out in time. His portal remained open, but he kept his eye on it in case an unwanted traveler pursued them.

Ivan burst through a doorway just as vines and other plants seemed to grow over the arch, completely sealing it off from other officers. He didn't have time to wonder why the hell there were plants growing inside a mansion as he spring across the marble floor towards his own men. From what he could see his men were all around the front entrance of the mansion, shooting at vampire barricaded up on the second level. Activating his mic, Ivan informed all remaining officers of the current situation.

"Evacuate the area. We have several charges of RDX in place, this mansion is going to hell."

The VP captain didn't slow as he burst through the front door, weaving around burned vehicles and piled up corpses. All that mattered was that they get the hell out of there or be swallowed into flames with the vampires.
___________

Skadi and Hondur watched as Sigrun and Aeris disappeared through the elven portal. Skadi had no desire to step through anything regarding magic at the moment, even if it was a safe way to get far off from the mansion. Giving the others one last glance, she launched off the ground and shot straight through the skylight and into the night sky.

Hondur watched for a moment as his sire disappeared through the roof and into the night sky, most likely taking flight to somewhere safe like her apartment. Turning back to Stephen, Hondur said a few words before leaving.

"I'll take Luzja with me. We'll meet up once this is all over."

With that Hondur grabbed Luzja and pulled her close to himself. Calling upon his own ancient abilities, the two vampires lifted into the air and quickly disappeared into the sky in an attempt to get far away from the impending explosion.

With all the coven leaders gone and the VP making their escape, the remaining vampires of the coven made their own escapes whether it be through windows, doors or the skylight all depending on their respective abilities.

Lujza didn't quite understand what was happening as Hondur lifted her into the sky. She made no movement to protest, though. In her state, all she could do was hold the wound in her side made by a VP bullet.

After a short time, her hand was soaked with her blood, which then started to drip down to the Earth below. Her shirt was ruined, no doubt. She had managed to keep both her weapons with her, but they would do her no good in this fight.

Barely holding on to consciousness, Lujza moaned in agony. She didn't know if the bullet had hit any organs, but it had penetrated deep and ruptured several blood vessals. Moroii could take much more blood loss than humans, but there was still a limit, after which death was almost assured. With the hand that wasn't clutching her side, she held onto Hondur's arm for her life. Not only out of fear of falling, but because doing so gave her a connection to the waking world.

Hondur noticed Luzja seemed to be barely with him as they soared through the night sky and figured she must be injured in some manner. The ancient vampire increased his speed until the point where it was giving him a severe headache to maintain such flight for long, finally causing him to land upon a dark rooftop.

Laying Luzja against the side of a ventilation vent, Hondur stood back slightly and attemped to discern where Luzja's wound was. Soon enough he noticed the blood soaked hand covering her side.

"Luzja, I'm going to get that bullet out."

The female vampire nodded briefly as Hondur applied his telekinetic powers once again, wrapping his mind around the bullet and being especially careful to pull it out through the path it came in to avoid causing any further damage. After several minutes of concentration, Hondur fell back in exhaustion. The flight and the effort of removing the bullet had taken it out of him.

Sitting next to Luzja, Hondur sighed.

"You may need some more blood. Here."

The ancient vampire offered his wrist to Luzja, implying she should drink from his veins.

The now feeble Moroii moaned as the bullet came out. It increased the pain for an a few seconds, but after the projectile clattered down the side of the roof, her pain subsided. Lujza gasped for air, finally able to expand her lungs all the way without feeling as if she was being stabbed.

She finally realized, after a moment, that Hondur had gotten the bullet out and seemed to be suggesting she feed from him. After several tries, she managed to lift her head far enough to make a small cut on his wrist with her razor sharp fangs. If she had been more aware at the time, she would have taken note of Hondur's exhaustion, but as it was, she drank as much as she would in a normal meal, which was not much compared to how much Assingtonian vampires often took. Very weak, she often was unable to drink and had to lap like a dog. It was lucky that no one else was present, though in her state she might not have realized the humiliation.

Lujza fell back against the roof when she had her fill, mumbling thanks to Hondur.

"It's no trouble Luzja. I'll figure out where we're off to next."

Although still tired beyond belief, Hondur employed his mental powers once again in order to find his sire. Within a few painfully slow minutes he located her across town, just outside her apartment where he expected she would have moved to. A quick mental conversation confirmed that everyone should meet with her there.

"If you're up to it, I think we'll walk to Skadi's place."
_________________

Skadi sighed as she landed upon the balcony of her top level apartment. She hadn't heard the explosion yet but she knew it would be coming, it was merely a matter of time. Hondur informed her he was with Lujza and they would be there as soon as they could.

Content to wait, Skadi leaned against the building war as she stared back in the direction of the mansion. It couldn't been seen from here due to a few other buildings but the general area could be pointed out. If it was a big explosion, she would see it.

With nothing else to do, Skadi reached out to the minds she had not heard confirmation from.

"Sigrun, Stephen. I'm at my apartment across town, Hondur and Luzja are also on their way to my location. I suggest we all meet up here and decide what is to be done."

Lujza nodded, and got up, slowly, carefully, making sure not to lose her balance. She held onto Hondur's shirt to support herself until she was sure she could stand on her own footing.

"I think I can manage to take a walk," she said, softly. "Just as long as we don't go too fast." Lujza's wound had closed up a bit, and was no longer bleeiding badly, the flow slowed to a few drops. Her shirt of course, was ruined, and probably her pants as well, but that was a small matter. She was alive.

As everyone began to clear out, Stephen grasped Viannor around the waist and tossed her through the skylight right after Hondur left. Stephen grabbed his duffelbag and looked at Zero.

"Portal or skylight, your choice."

Stephen then jumped through the skylight onto the rooftop next to Viannor. Both vampires took off across the roof and jumped into an alley across the street. Stephen paused and looked back at the mansion, so far there was no great fireball leaping into the air. He got Skadi's message and sent her back a reply.

"Right Skadi, I don't know if Zero is going through the portal Sigrun set up or if he is flying out through the skylight. Viannor and myself should be at your apartment shortly."

Stephen and Viannor jumped onto a nearby building and the sire helped his fledgling with the more usual way of a vampire getting around the city, roof hopping. After a while, Stephen and Viannor jumped onto the fire escape and found Skadi staring back at the mansion.

"Pity the VP is going to blow that place to kingdom come. Though, it was bound to happen someday. I am suprised they didn't come poking around after the thrid war."

Skadi nodded as Stephen and Viannor arrived beside her but continued to gaze out towards the mansion. She knew it would eventually have to happen but she couldn't help but feel some sadness at seeing the mansion go. It had been her home for hundreds of years and now it was gone, thanks to humans.

Before she could speak the familiar faces of Luzja and Hondur appeared in the air before them, Hondur holding Luzja in his arms as flight was not one of her abilities. Setting down rather heavily, Hondur collapsed against the wall and began painting heavily, obviously exhausted.

"So what are we doing."

"Waiting for the fireworks."

There was no humour in Skadi's tone as she continued to watch in the mansion's direction...
____________

Ivan finally stopped running after a full five minute sprint, getting as far away from the mansion as he could. He knew very well that with so much RDX planted in the mansion, it would be one hell of an explosion. Fire would engulf the entire building and would most likely spread to nearby structures. Of course that was a small price to pay for the destruction of the largest coven home in Emerald City.

Completely alone in the dark streets, Ivan made a quick leap taking him onto the roof of a first storey building. Satisfied with his view, the VP captain withdrew the explosives detonator to discover ten seconds remained on the timer. With a snide grin, the captain awaited the fruit of his efforts.
______________

As the timer clicked on to zero, all four bricks of RDX detonated in one thunderous ball of flame. Fire roared through the lower levels of the the mansion, the force and head tearing down walls as it raced upstairs and into the mansion propper. Nothing could stand in its way, nothing could stop the flaming rampage as hell itself was unleashed upon the old building.

For those watching, the fire cloud was immense. Flames roared upwards, completely engulfing the mansion and yet they continued to climb as if wishing to burn the heavens. The flames were evident all over the city and for a single moment silence reigned as the flames caught everyone's attention.

That moment seemed to go on forever but finally sound followed as the immense noise created by such an explosion burst outwards along with the shockwave of such released forces. It appeared as if thunder was present all over the city, the rumbling noise scaring many out of their wits and those closer to the source even felt the very ground shake

And so in one firery blast, Hondur's mansion was engulfed in flames and spend the rest of the night falling to pieces as foundations collapsed and the structure was eaten away by the merciless flames.

Just a few minutes ago.......

"Gotcha, old geezer. I'll get my ass out of there soon as I see the youngsters getting theirs out", Zero shot mentally back to Hondur, not quite caring if he caught it or not. There wasn't really any chance Zero could get engrossed in whatever plans they were thinking up, being caught with the unenviable task of defending the bunch while they talked. And finally they had decided to get the hell out of Dodge City. "About time too", Zero had thought to himself.

With a last-ditch effort, Zero sprayed the remainder of his second drum into the lobby, and fell back behind cover, assessing the situation. Hondur's vampires were all starting to fall back as well, and Aeris' monster vegetation was doing its work of holding back the VP for those last crucial seconds. Taking a breather, he saw Aeris......collapsed on the floor, gasping for air, looking bloodless. Then, he saw Skadi with a trace of blood on her chin, and he realised what Aeris had just done. "The idiot!", Zero screamed mentally to himself, even though he knew that what Aeris did wasn't wrong at all, just......stupid. Couldn't an Ancient as old as Skadi herself hang on a little longer? But it was not his place to debate what was stupid or not, and neither was it the time.

Seeing that everyone was making their way out of there, and Aeris was being well taken care of by Sigrun, Zero quickly made a snap decision. "You guys get the hell outta here first!", Zero yelled, right into Stephen's face, though he didn't realise it. With that, Zero drew out his last and final drum, slapped it onto the Tommy, and gave one more round of cover fire. Pretty soon, everyone else was gone, and he was the only one left of the senior vampires. Glancing around, he realised it was now or never. And if he flew, there was no way he could clear the explosion in time. With a nod, Zero tucked the Tommy into his trenchcoat, then dived for the portal......

________________________________________________________________

The shock was paralyzing, to say the least. Aeris gasped as Skadi's fangs punctured into her consciousness, and with the hunger borne of the silver-wounds, she could feel Skadi draining her faster than was safe. She started to gasp for air, as she felt her life draining from her. This was not happening, was it? She couldn't die here, right in this place! Briefly, she struggled in panic, but desisted as her strength slowly left her......

......and felt herself drop to the floor, spent. Skadi had let go of her before anything undue happened, and while she was still alive, Aeris barely felt that was the case, near to unconsciousness she was. She could barely feel her uncle taking her up in his arms, didn't even realise she was being taken through the portal.

The cool night air revived Aeris's wits, but only a little. She never remembered ever feeling so weak before, not even when Zero had fed from her. And not even when Skadi had fed from her the first time, so long ago, when she still thought she was nothing more than a mortal girl. Skadi had seriously drained her close to the point of death this time, and even in here groggy state, she still had an inkling that she was lucky to be alive. Her face shockingly pale, she could barely focus on Sigrun.

"Uncle........I.......you......what? Happened.......?"

Just then, Zero jumped right out through the portal, looking disheveled from all the fighting he had to do. And his expression mirrored his state of being, scowling hard. "Talk, talk, talk! Is that all you people know how to do? What's the matter, old age catching up with the whole lot of ya?", Zero complained, his mood not especially good from having to retreat. Then his tone softened, as he took back Aeris from Sigrun's arms. "Anyway.......thank you for Aeris, Herr Sigrun. Once more."

Then in the distance, the mansion blew, almost recreating daylight in its glory. Shielding his eyes, Zero winced as he beheld the destruction of the mansion. He could only wonder how much it meant for Hondur and the rest, who had been here since the beginning, while he himself was as yet still a greenhorn to all the events that had been happening between them.

"Those fireworks must cost quite a penny", Zero observed dryly to Sigrun. "And they had to test it here too. Maybe we should encourage them to do their testing in their own backyard?"

"Third War?" Viannor said, not taking her eyes off the fireball that had lit up the night, "You mean I've walked into this nation a couple of days before a fourth major internal conflict kicked off? Oh fantastic, great timing, typical."

The flames were entrancing, how they spread across to neighbouring buildings to the one that had been turned to rubble by the force of such an immense detonation. The building they had been standing in not two minutes earlier. There was also something horrifying in those flames, Viannor thought, a feeling that most Vampires watching it would probably be sharing: that despite the beauty of the flames, they would spell a quick and fiery death for any Vampire they touched.

Once again it began to dawn on the Starblaydi Intelligence Chief, realising and dismissing a pun in her mind, that she would never lay eyes on a dawn again. The Sun was now an alien creature to her, bringing terrible burning death were she ever to glimpse it again. A tear rolled down her face, the liquid reflecting the light of the city.

"Yup, this is the fourth war." Stephen said to Viannor as he shielded his eyes from the intense flame. "If it wasn't for Svartel waking up, none of this would have probably happened. You would probably still be going on patrols with Ivan and we would be back at the mansion."

Stephen turned to his fledgling, he saw the tear slowly crawl down her face and knew what she was thinking. He placed his duffel bag down and looked at her. His voice softly entered her head.

"I too miss the sun. Ask any vampire, I'm sure most if not all will say the same. Maybe sometime in the future, there might be a way around it. Vampires being able to walk around in daylight, we would be able to feel the warmth on our skin again, without bursting into flames."

Stephen slid down next to Hondur. The young vampire pulled out his Wolfe Knife, his hands were protected from the silver on the handle by a pair of black leather gloves he wore. He pulled out a rag and stared the clean off the blood from the blade.

"Really sorry about your place Hondur. You had it fixed up rather well...it had the old feeling to it while still having some more modern conveninces."

Stephen motioned towards Hondur's shoulder with his blade. "Your shoulder okay? I removed quite a few slugs from there, hope I didn't miss anything."

Lujza slumped against a chimney on the roof. "Perhaps we're lucky enough so that they think we're finished," she said not quite coherently. She leaned back against her make-shift furniture (the chimney) and breathed the night air in deeply. Despite the tragedy of it, the enormous fire was somewhat relaxing to watch. Like one of the winter solstice bonfires back home she thought.

Only now did she finally look herself over, and she discovered that she was a wreck, There were cuts everywhere, bullets had grazed her in many places. Lujza felt up at a slight stinging on the side of her head, and suddenly realized that a large chunk of her ear was no longer there. Somehow, there was a bullet sticking through the palm of her hand, between her finger bones, and would have reminded her of stigmata if she had that much knowledge of Christianity. She lifted her shirt slightly to see the most serious wound, that Hondur had partially fixed. It was gruesome, and that whole side was covered in crimson, and around the wound her skin was black and blue with bruising. She sighed.

Her senses returning, she asked Hondur, "How long do you it will take to regroup?" Lujza didn't want this vileness to go unpunished, and she said as much.

Skadi sighed as the flames went down, plunging the sky into darkness again. Unfortunately it would not be long before the sun would be up once again so the group would have to wait until the next night.

"Come, we should all go inside whilst we wait for Zero, Sigrun and Aeris."

The doors opened through Skadi's sheer will, allowing the vampire to step into the darkness and take a seat upon a large leather chair. Her apartment was fairly large yet quite bare for one of such size. Fortunately there was enough room upon the couch and various chairs to accomodate everyone.

As Hondur stepped through the open doors, he turned back to Stephen.

"Did you see Alyssandra anywhere?"

A tear fell from Lujza's eye as she heard Hondur ask about Alyssandra. She watched as the remnants of the mansion burned, and as the sun rose over the eastern sky.

After dawn, she got up and limped inside to join the others. She would get a sunburn quite easily if she stayed outdoors, and the brightness hurt her eyes. Her sunglasses had perished in the explosion that took the mansion. A small thing, but it irritated her.

Stephen looked at Hondur, the young vampire slid his knife back into the sheath and took Hondur by the arm and lead the ancient into the kitchen. Stephen shut the door to give them some privacy. The neonate looked at the ancient, his cobalt blue eyes soft and torn. Stephen could see the nervousness in Hondur's eyes grow. Stephen bit his lip, he knew he would have to explain it.

"Jesus Hondur...I'm sorry."

Stephen pulled out the bit of Alyssandra's dress he had cut off from his pocket and handed it to Hondur. He stayed silent for several minutes as the ancient held the cloth. He wouldn't tell Hondur that his girlfriend was just a mound of meat and that she had taken the blast head on.

"I know what it is like to lose someone very close Hondur. It nearly destroyed me because I wouldn't let it out and I tried to forget through drinking. I wanted to commit suicide a several times. What...what I am trying to say is, don't let it consume you. If you do...it will destroy you."

Stephen remembered his old Ranger captain telling him that each time you told someone thier loved one died, it got easier along the way. For Stephen, it only got harder.

"You hear me? If you need anything...I'm here for you, Skadi, Sigrun...we are all here for you Hondur. But for God's sake...don't let this destroy you."

It took Hondur a few moments to realise what Stephen was saying. He wasn't quite sure what the younger vampire was getting at until he finally withdrew the piece of Alyssandra's dress and gave it to him. Then it all came flooding back. The blast down near his room, Stephen mentioniong a claymore. Alyssandra had been torn to pieces by a claymore...

For a few minutes there was silence as tears welled up in Hondur's eyes until he finally couldn't take it and had to unleash. A bone rattling scream escaped Hondur's throat, the mix of fury and anguish obvious as he held the noise for some time, finally falling silent once he plunged his white fist through the marble bench of Skadi's kitchen. Hondur merely panted with rage as his face began to bleed due to the pieces of marble now lodged in his face.

"Tomorrow Night. Vengence."

Without another word the vampire stormed out of the kitchen and into his own personal room that had been at Skadi's apartment since before the coven days. The door slammed with such force that many thought it would shatter.

Stephen braced himself agains the sink as the ancient stormed out of the kitchen and into his room. The young vampire came out several minutes later, Hondur's words ringing in his ear. He looked at the confused faces of the other vampires in the room. Stephen walked up to Skadi and spoke to her silently.

"Alyssandra was killed by a VP claymore earlier. You wouldn't of surived the blast Skadi." Stephen added the last part so the ancient could imagine what the blast had done to the far younger Alyssandra.

"Skadi...if he acts upon vengence like this it could be dangerous for all of us. Once he is calmed down a bit, maybe you could talk to him. Shit I've seen this thing happen to guys when I was in the military, thier close friends are killed and they are nearly destroyed inside. I know...I was one of them. He should be calm enough to talk to in an hour or so. Want to give it a try when he is?"

Lujza hobbled over to Stephen and Skadi. "This is about Alyssandra, right?" she whispered, indicating Hondur's fit of rage. It was a very horrible thing, and Hondur had a right to be distraught. However, such powerful emotions might prevent him from thinking with his head, Lujza thought.

"Is there anything I can do, or should I just wait quietly while we all figure out what we're going to do?" Her voice was sympathetic, concerned, but at the same time, sounded very reasonable.

Skadi watched silently as Hondur stormed into his room. Immediately she assumed it had to do with his lady friend and Stephen soon approached her to confirm such. She'd never seen Hondur this angry before but she knew how he felt, she was much the same when Maximus died. Of course Skadi was a different person, perhaps too empty to really feel the loss.

"We do need to think about what we'll be doing tomorrow night. There is no doubt that we must strike back. If they know of the main coven house, they may soon discover the whereabouts of other houses. Tomorrow night, we shall attack the VP."

"I suppose I'd better get some rest then," Lujza said, attempting and failing to stifle a yawn. "I haven't been so exhausted in a long time." With that, she simply walked slowly over to a corner and curled up on the floor, leaning her AK and axe on the wall. She took off her boots and used them as a makeshift pillow, though the discomfort of such a position was obvious to anyone.

Lujza yawned again and adjusted herself. It did no good.

Stephen nodded to Skadi, after she had beat him for going against what she said, he didn't want to do it again. The ancient also had a good point, they had to strike back at the VP before they found the other coven houses. Stephen took off his trenchcoat and hung it on a rack near the door as Lujza was going to turn in. He would wait for Sigrun and the others to show. Stephen looked through his duffel bag till he found what he wanted, a map of Emerald City.

He sat down in a chair and opened it on the coffee table. The vampire located the VP HQ and quickly marked it. He studied the streets heading to the VP HQ and also marked the location of the small VP outposts and stations. The closest was small, probably no bigger than a coffee shop twelve blocks away. Stephen started mumbling to himself as he made more marks on his map.

"Set up roadblocks...rocket launchers and machine guns. Prevent more VP from coming the HQ, contain the fight and prevent retreat. Hit the VP with rockets before the attack, blow a few breeches in the walls..."

Stephen then stopped. He tapped his foot against the ground before looking up at Skadi.

"How do you think they found us?"

Skadi watched the map for a few moments, recalling certain details about areas around VP locations and other such things. The VP HQ was obviously the main target, but they could not ignore the other stations completely. Not the ones close to the HQ at least. Evidently the main force would be storming the HQ, which wouldn't be that easy in the first place but perhaps small teams could be deployed at the stations.

"I doubt the captain merely figured to check the mansion. Besides Svartel's presence, I noticed several arrows embedded within our kind. I'd say the elves happened to slip the information by the VP. That way they're not violating our so called truce, their just letting the ignorant do it for them. We'll have to do something about that, but for now the VP are our priority."

Skadi marked the four VP stations closest to the HQ.

"I don't think road blocks are necessary. I say we strike these stations first with overwhelming numbers, causing the VP to send forces out from the HQ and backup their stations. Then we hit the HQ with our main force whilst it's running on minimum personel."

The ancient vampire then placed red crosses on several buildings surrounding the VP building.

"We keep our forces spread out over these buildings, blast our way in from every direction and storm the place. It will be chaos."

"Yeah...yeah that would work very well Skadi. Keep them pinned down at these other stations while hitting the main force. Skadi, where the fuck were you when the military was planning Operation Cherry Blossom?"

Stephen continued the look at the map and his mind began to go through calcuations, how many men would they need, heavy weapons, best position for attack and so on. He was also thinking of what Skadi said about finding elven arrows in several vampires. That part didn't make sense. Stephen looked up at the ancient, he knew he had to tred carefully, unless he wanted her draining him to near death or beating him.

"Skadi, it is possible the elves might have informed the VP and then fired a few arrows at us during the fight...but I don't think so." He paused, so far no punch, no blade or fangs in his throat. "This war might go into a short attrition stage. We and the VP are best suited for that. We can call in more forces, the VP can too. Svartel is weak in numbers probably...he can just sire more humans if he needs more men. The elves on the other hand, they can't get more forces...unless the group Idun came with was just an advanced group to clear up thier woods for habitation. The elves are not geared for an attrition battle, going against three armies who can get more troops easily and they can't get any...no...I find it very hard to believe they would be stupid enough to attack."

Skadi smiled slightly at Stephen's comment, she wasn't completely useless when it came to tactics. She would allow Stephen to decide upon the specifics of angles and weapons since he was the one with military experience and the knowledge of such things.

The ancient vampire was silent for a moment after Stephen's point about the elves whilst she considered it. He was right in the fact that it didn't make sense that the elves would make the VP do their work, then attack as well, leaving signs of their presence.

"Good point. The last thing they would want to do is provoke us into attacking them. I imagine they are quite large in numbers already though. When they left Assington, they were just under a thousand. They've had two thousand years to grow. Either way, I agree. I'm sure someone told the VP though, and I wouldn't put it past the elves to do so."

Sigrun finally spoke up, "If the elves are at all like the elves from Aria Forest, then they did not strike out at us here. They would have remained in their homes, rebuilding their lives again, their homes, and their defenses. No, they would have let the rest of the world destroy itself and then clean up after us."

He turned to Skadi, "I smell manipulation in this conflict. And my gut is telling me those arrows were planted."

Stephen smiled as Skadi agreed with him, unlike the first time he had questioned her. He looked over at Sigrun as the elf spoke up. Stephen nodded silently to what Sigrun said. He would let him and Skadi talk about the elven question while he tried to figure out an attack plan. If it was still night, Stephen would have run a recon of the buildings meant for the attack, but now that the sun was coming up, a recon was out of the question.

"Skadi, do you have any pictures or anything like that lying around here? And do you know where the VP gets thier vehicles fixed?"

Skadi nodded at Sigrun's words, it didn't make sense for the elves to attack and from memory, some of the angles those arrows were in seemed somewhat odd. And so that presented them with the question of who. There were only two other parties involved and she doubted it would be the VP.

"I have a feeling Svartel has a hand in all this. He may be a bastard but he's also incredibly smart, even if he doesn't let on much."

The ancient vampire shook her head at Stephen's questions.

"Don't have anything. Never needed any of this info before. I don't think we need to go too over the top here, I'm doubting they would expect a counter attack."

Stephen gave Skadi a slight nod. He was dissappointed the ancient did not have any information about the VP in her apartment. Without it, his job of figuring out an attack plan would only be more difficult. He looked up at Viannor.

"Viannor, I want you to send me everything that you remember from the your visits to the VP HQ. From the second you saw it to the second you left. It will make all of our lives easier"

While he spoke to her, he had pulled over his duffel bag and pulled out a pen and a pad of paper. Stephen wrote on the first page ALPHA, second BRAVO, third CHARLIE, fourth DELTA, and on the fifth he wrote HQ. He then marked all of the points on the map according to what he had wrote on the paper. As Stephen waited for Viannor to send him her thoughts thoughts; he began to study and jot down notes that he could gather from his memory and from the map on the first VP station codenamed ALPHA.

His eyes firmly fixed on the paper, he spoke to no one in particular.

"I should have a supplies list and an attack plan done by early afternoon. I hope that is okay."

With a concerted force of effort, Viannor sat down and focussed her mind. Sending a thought or a message to Stephen was one thing, but a whole set of experiences was something else altogether.

At first Stephen received garbled images and speech, before Viannor's trained mind adjusted to its new task. From the last stages of the back of her taxi ride to the moment she left the VP Headquarters for her fateful encounter with a cat, a group of Vampires and Stephen. The layout, security, interactive maps, Ivan's office, every detail her mind held was transmitted to Stephen, innocent-seeming or otherwise.

Viannor gasped for breath as she gave the final image to Stephen. She sat back, feeling lightheaded for the mental excercise she had just performed. She had only vaguely been paying attention to Stephen and Skadi's plotting, tired as she was. Gathering her long coat around her she attempted to get comfortable before she fell asleep from exhaustion.

Lujza rolled over in her sleep. Her dreams were unpleasant, filled with images of gunfire and sounds of screaming. She awoke some time later, dark spots under her eyes, and with a sore neck. Swearing under her breath, she went up to the group of Stephen, Skadi, Sigrun and Viannor, who seemed to be planning the operation.

"I couldn't sleep," she said wearily. "Anything I can do?" Lujza still felt useless and weak surrounded by individuals who would live forever, though she tried not to let it get to her. She didn't want to appear weak, however. She had not felt quite herself since leaving Callisdrun what seemed like ages before, to avoid a clan conflict. On a more positive note, she no longer limped and the wound in her side was fully closed and healing.

Skadi turned her gaze upon Luzja as the foreign vampire spoke. She didn't particularly trust the young woman yet she supposed if Hondur was willing to place some sort of faith in her, she must have some merit to her name.

"Well Luzja, you're pretty much the only one of us that has any chance of getting into the VP HQ without raising any eyebrows. Could you tell us what you noticed in there upon your last visit, then we may be able to consider placing you in there before our attack, it would be very useful in coordinating things."

Skadi's gaze was intense and wasn't exactly the nicest of looks, yet it didn't show outright hostility and so wasn't worrying.

"Of course, only if you feel comfortable."

The way Skadi said things made it sound as if Luzja had no choice. It was impossible to determine whether Skadi was saying that on purpose or not.

Lujza, by now getting better at telepathy, took a minute to get her thoughts focused, but managed to send what was basically almost a first-person mental video of her time inside the VP headquarters to Skadi, and then to everyone in the group. Folding her arms beneath her breasts, one hand instinctively holding the scab on her side, she waited patiently to hear their thoughts.

Skadi was silent as she watched over the mental images Luzja managed to send her. She took note of details such as security cameras, heat sensors and the general layout of the building from what she could see. Skadi had never been inside the VP HQ before and had never had any desire to go near the hostile building.

"Alright, we know the layout of the entrance and front area of the building. There is ample security to prevent vampires sneaking it yet no automated defences. We're just going to have to force our way in, whether it be through the front door or the side window."

Skadi gave Luzja a brief no in thanks, obviously admitting the foreign vampire was definitely of some use.

And once again, while the Assington Vampires plotted their next move in the 4th civil war to hit Emerald City, Raphael Celadrin and Aeris Greenwood were nowhere to be found. Once again, they had disappeared from their sight, in order to conduct some business for their own........

30 minutes ago

With a word of thanks, Zero had taken Aeris off the arms of Sigrun, and bore her away. The quasi-angelic girl, destined for a fate that seemed too much for her slender shoulders to bear, slept soundly in the arms of her dark angel, as he flitted through the trees of the city park, eventually making his way to the heartland of Emerald City. Only then did she seem to awaken, although she was still pale.

"Zero?", Aeris asked weakly. "I'm tired. Where are we going?"

"To see a friend. Someone who will help us redress our grievances", Zero replied grimly, his face now serious, and he was not playing the part of the joker he was so used to anymore. Now, this meant business. There indeed was someone he would have to see in Emerald City, and he could very well have the key to turn the tide of this conflict.

_________________________________________________________________

Somewhere in Emerald City

A knock on an apartment door disturbed the occupant, causing the said occupant to grumble as he made his way out of his room. As he emerged naked from the waist up, his unnaturally pale skin was a dead giveaway that he was not human, had there been anyone to see. No matter, Jack Ambrose, Major of the Atrosian Armed Forces and a Noble in his own right, had a trenchcoat hanging by the door, and should he ever need to, it would provide him enough protection from prying eyes.

Except that, as he peeked through the keyhole to see who would have disturbed him right after he had gotten his meal from the streets of Assington, he knew right away that it would not be necessary. With a sudden alacrity, Ambrose threw the door wide open, and quickly snapped to attention, giving Zero a crisp salute which the Ancient Noble returned just as crisply.

"General Celadrin! To what honor do I owe your visit?"

With a wry grin, Zero regarded his counterpart for a while, remembering the time when Jack Ambrose had been a mere Second Lieutenant, and yet played a small yet crucial part in the Third Assingtonian Civil War. Behind him, Aeris leaned on his body, still a little dozy from her blood loss. Noticing this, the Major immediately sprang into action.

"Here, Sir, come in, come in! Hold on a moment, my Princess of Tarlachia, I've some cookies and milk here. Always have had some to replenish my blood dolls, you know, General. So just to what do I owe your visit......?"

A few minutes later, as Aeris nibbled on her cookies and sipped from her glass of milk, Ambrose was solemn, as he heard his commanding officer lay out for him just what had been happening. Zero, for his part, was just laying back, enjoying what he knew would soon be hard-to-come-by moments of peace. Finally, Ambrose spoke.

"So, Sir.......does this mean it is time?"
"It is time indeed, Major. I trust you still have command over your men?"
"Yes, Sir. They will come upon my summons. Would you like me to summon them now?"
"No, Major. What would be the point? However, I would like you to come with me. It's time I introduced you to the Lady Skadi herself."
"The Queen?! Er......yes sir! Requesting ten minutes to get ready sir!"
"Carry on, and hurry up!"

_________________________________________________________________

Now

A knock sounded through the door of Skadi's apartment, but before anyone could answer, Zero himself stepped through the door, followed by Aeris and Major Ambrose. Immediately all eyes were fixed on the newcomer Ambrose, an unfamiliar face to all of them, but Zero raised a hand. "This is a friend, people", he said, brooking no argument.

"Major Ambrose, the Lady Skadi. Skadi, Major Ambrose of the Atrosian Armed Forces."
"My pleasure, my Lady Skadi", Ambrose said, awaiting her reply.

"You must be wondering why I have brought him here", Zero addressed Skadi. "I shall explain it in time, but first........I need to sit. I've been running all over the place lately." And with that, Zero took a couch with asking. "Aaaaah", he murmured, before looking at Skadi again.

"So, my Lady. Would you like to hear what I have to say?"

At the same time, Aeris went over to Sigrun, looking somewhat better this time, despite still being a little pale. "You need any help for that arm, Uncle?", Aeris said.

Skadi's eyes layed upon Ambrose with immediate suspicion. She didn't care if he was a friend of Zero's, everyone was untrustworthy in Skadi's eyes until they had proven themselves, and that was easier said than done. Not in the mood to start a fight, Skadi got up and closed the door, giving Ambrose a brief nod.

"Major."

At times Skadi had little patience for the way Zero walked around like this was his war, but she had to admit he was a help, as were the Nobles.

"Alright Zero, what is it?"
_____________

Svartel sat comfortably within a large home, the fire place roaring and fine paintings decorating the walls around him. He didn't particularly care for such luxuries but he certainly enjoyed them. This place was nothing like his worn down apartment block on the fringes of the city. It had a sense of warmth, safety and general niceness. There always was a down side.

The ancient vampire had been quite satisfied with his work the previous night and had decided to spend the day inside some cozy family house. Of course the curtains and all had been sealed, no light was getting in. With the coven house destroyed and many of its members dead, Svartel had instigated a giant blow towards Skadi and her followers. If things went as he predicted, the coven vampires would do a nice job at wiping out what remained of the VP. Thus, making this war much smaller and easier to handle.

Of course, now was not a time for pondering his great scheme but a moment for enjoyment. Rising out of the comfortable leather chair, Svartel made his way down the carpetted hallway until he arrived at a large wooden door. He opened it as if he owned the house and calmly made his way downstairs, into the basement. The flick of a lightswitch allowed the three family members to gaze upon the pale form of Svartel as he approached them.

Seated before the vampire were three humans, bound at the wrists and ankles and gagged to prevent any attempts at calling for help. Without any strain at all, Svartel stepped forward and picked up the chair of the father, moving him through the air and placing him down once again, facing his wife and daughter.

The father was a rather youngish man, early thirties by the looks of things and by all appearances seemed to be successful at whatever he did considering the affluence within the house. The little girl whimpered into her gag, the whole event being too much for her young mind. The mother on the other hand managed to keep most of her fear in, save for the eyes. The eyes almost never lied and right now they were spilling tears. Svartel loved it.

Turning back to the father, Svartel gave him that grin that disturbed people to the core. Removing the man's gag, Svartel spoke.

"Well sir, today you are going to make a choice. It won't be easy, but I'm confident you should be able to."

The man was stunned for a moment. He had no idea what the vampire was talking about.

"Wha... What do you mean."

"Well, you are going to tell me which one I shall kill."

Silence. Svartel didn't make a noise as he allowed those words to sink in. The little girl had stopped whimpering and now stared at her father with wide eyes. This was one of the moments Svartel loved. When they realised what was about to happen. Whilst the father kept thinking he couldn't choose between his wife or his daughter, secretly he was trying to weigh it up. The other two couldn't help but wonder who he would choose.

"But.... I can't! You can't make me choose!"

Svartel's grin seemed to broaden at the man's obvious distress.

"Oh yes I can. You see, if you don't choose, I will kill both of them, slowly."

The ancient vampire walked over to a dark corner and retrieved his metallic pipe. A quick sliding of switches caused a scythe blade to emerge out of one end. Ever so slowly, he dragged the tip across the cement floor, the metal ringing throughout the basement.

"You better choose soon. I'm an impatient man."

"But.... NO!"

Svartel merely sighed as brought the blade off the ground and into an arc aimed for the little girl's chest. The second the ringing of metal had ceased, the father spoke up.

"Alright! Stop... give me some time to choose."

"Tick tock..."

Svartel continued to walk around the pair of females, dragging the blade along the ground. Sweat poured down the forehead of the father as he gazed between his wife and daughter. Both looked back with teary eyes as if saying to pick them. The choice was tearing the man apart, Svartel could see the emotional anguish he had caused. It was glorious.

"Time's up."

The metal rining ceased once again.

"Wait!"

"Yes?"

"I've chosen. Sarah, my little girl."

The wife could only watch her husband with scolding and thankful eyes at the same time whilst his daughter burst into a renewed fit of tears fuelled by fear and disappointment.

"Good choice."

Svartel swung around in one fluid motion, whipping the blade around with him and cleanly slicing through the head of the older woman, causing the top to spill off, revealing the cross sectioned part of her brain.

"What!?!?! I said Sarah! Not Alice! Didn't you hear me?!?!?"

Turning around once again, Svartel nodded.

"Yes, I heard you. But I made my own choice."

Stepping backwards, Svartel kneeled besides the little girl.

"Now you shall live, knowing that your dear daddy would have let you die. He obviously doesn't love you very much, does he?"

Standing back to full height, Svartel's grin was broader than ever.

"You won't see me again. I'll be gone tonight. Enjoy the rest of your lives, I'm sure you'll cherish eachother."

The father could only gasp in horror at what had just happened as his distraught daugher wailed in misery, refusing to look at him. Svartel laughed one last time before heading back upstairs.

Lujza returned Skadi's nod, a silent, but polite acknowledgement. When the newcomers entered, she diverted her attention partly to them, but kept focused on running through details of the VP headquarters in her head, analyzing what places would be the weakest and strongest points, where an attack would be a good idea and where the assault might hit trouble. For some reason, the entrance to teh building by the motor pool kept coming back to her. She had not gotten close, but it had seemed lightly guarded compared to other areas. One thing, no matter how successful the attack was, the operation was going to be a messy one.

Most predictably, Skadi didn't regard Ambrose all too fondly. The junior officer quailed under the intense glare of the Lady's eyes, but Zero merely looked on impassionately, knowing full well that Ambrose would have to earn the Lady's trust by himself, just as he had done so all those decades ago. In any case, he personally had the ear of the Lady, so it appeared that he would have to speak on the behalf of his second-in-command. With a deep breath, Zero returned the regarding eyes of Skadi, and began.

"During the last war with the Hyraphore, I trust you would have known that the Noble force I promised you then had arrived at the last minute to turn the tide in our favor, and gave us the victory against the ASHVO at the mall that day. Major Ambrose here was the leader of that force that, although you may not have met him. Because of that, I vouch for his trustworthiness", Zero said, his eyes telling Skadi that he was not joking. "In any case, I would like to once again offer the strength of the Nobles to you once more."

"After you had gone to your long sleep, me and Hondur had made an arrangement between the both of us. I don't know if he still remembers it, but you may ask him afterwards. In any case, the deal we made has meant that some of my fellow Nobles were allowed to move here, to Emerald City. They have been living quietly these two centuries, being part of the Emerald landscape, being Assingtonians. But my Lady, I have reason to believe that the Nobles in Emerald City number over five hundred today, and if we brought the rest of the Nobles from all over Assington, I can guarantee you at least 2,500 Noble Ancients to your cause."

"Moreover, even as we speak, my King has been making even more preparations just for you. In Atros, there exist a force of Spec-Ops troops that are considered the best in the land. The thing that sets them apart is that they are all ghouls, and their strength comes from our blood. They are named the Blood Elites, and the King is prepared to send you an additional 7,500 of these Elites in time. That is, of course, if you wish to accept my offer once more."

"What do you say, my Lady?"

Sigrun looked down at Aeris and smiled at her kind look of concern on her face. She seemed rejuvenated now, her strength back in her flesh. He nodded wearily.

"Yes...it does rather hurt." He said as he glanced down at the injured arm.

He listened to Zero's report on the Nobles and couldn't help but shake his head sadly.

"This is going to be a bloody war. Bloodier than any this nation, or any of us, has ever seen."

As his words sank into the minds of others, he knew they would realize he was right. This was going to require every last person, vampire, and otherwise to ensure the overall survival of the nation. Sigrun could only close his eyes in his weighed thoughts.

"But not bloodier than what I have seen..." said a voice in the background. From the darkness, a lone man appeared, returning finally from his mental hiatus. As the light played across his stern and handsome features, it was clear that the man was none other Avto Crusade. Crossing his arms across his chest, Avto bowed, his movements quick and smooth, extravagant in his attention to the minute detail.

Straightening, Avto revealed that his face had aged greatly. When he first appeared in Assington, Avto looked nothing more than a youngster in his twenties. But now, the mental turmoil of the past several days had inexorably aged Avto. He was old, appearing like a man appearing the end of his life. And yet, he was still young and lithe, retaining his grace and elegance.

With a slight grimace, Avto began to speak, his voice raspy and sharp, his tone cold and forbidding, as he addressed Sigrun's words. "War in upon itself is bloody, no matter how much you attempt to minimalize casualties and eliminate collateral damage. In my esteemed ancestor's three lives, he killed with his bare hands over nine hundred thousand people. In the last great war that plagued my homeland, over a billion civilians and military personnel perished in the nuclear holocaust that occurred. No matter what happens in this war, few things will pale in comparison to the atrocities committed and death toll of that last war."

"If you truly wish to end this war swiftly, without excessive losses to your forces and to neutrals, the best solution would be to eliminate all unnecessary forces like these Nobles and Blood Elites that Zero has mentioned. They, although will help to some extent, will greatly hinder your forces, especially when the battle is joined."

Turning to Zero, Avto bowed once more and spoke. "I do not spite the abilities of your so-called Nobles or your Blood Elites... But I question the wisdom of using so much forces at this time. Excessive force, especially foreign ones, will not achieve victory, but will only prolong the destruction of this nation."

Stephen listened carefully to Zero, it sounded like he had quite a force he could bring to bear on Svartel. The only thing the Simatarian wanted to know was how good they were. He got up and got his trenchcoat. Walking over to the chair Viannor was sleeping in he covered her with it. Stephen turned and walked back to the table and looked over the map again before looking up at Zero.

Before he could speak, another voice entered the room. Stephen immedatly pulled out one of his Paras and leveled it at the figure that slowly materialized. He listened to the figure's words and gave grunt. Sometimes numbers were needed to winning battles, but civilians could still be kept out of it. He kept the head firmly in his sights, the barrel never waviered. Stephen mentally pulled a tube from his duffel bag, reached out, and screwed the silencer onto the Para.

Stephen sent a mental message to Skadi.

"Skadi, I can nail this guy no problem. Though, your wall will be decorated with a new color called 'hint of brain'. Just tell me and I will shoot him. No one in the other apartments will hear anything."

Skadi listened intently as Zero informed her of the Noble forces within Assington and the other warriors that could be sent from Atros. Whilst they were a lot of people, she had the feeling it would be quite necessary when it came to the final battle. Svartel would not simply attack with a few turned humans, he would attempt to build a force that could literally tear things apart.

"Alright Zero. We don't need 10 000 of your people running around Assington at the moment. But some forces for tonight would be appreciated and I get the feeling that we will need large numbers if we are going to do away with Svartel's forces."

At that point Sigrun made a comment about how bloody things would be, which seemed rather obvious to Skadi.

"Of course it will be bloody. That is something we have become accustomed to."

Suddenly another voice emerged from the shadows, this one unfamiliar but not completely. Reaching out with her mind instantly, Skadi discovered it was Avto, despite his apparent aging.

"Don't shoot him, it's Avto."

"That may be so, but currently we have other issues to worry about. Tonight, we are storming the VP HQ and destroying what we can. You're all welcome to do a part."

Feeling that the situation was becoming a bit too tense for comfort, Lujza made a comment she hoped would shift the conversation back to practical matters. "Zero, how mobile are these vast numbers you speak of? I'm not in charge, so that's not my decision, but it seems to me that if we use some or all of them, we need to know how quickly we can maneuver them, as large numbers can become cumbersome at times. We would not want to order them to move more quickly than they are capable, for resting plans on an impossibility could easily result in disaster."

Sigrun nodded in agreement with Skadi's words. He watched as Aeris finished healing his arm, returning its usefulness to him. He thanked her and looked to Skadi.

"I guess all we can do is to weather this storm like we have in the past. Running out into the storm with metal swords to fight the lightning."

He gave a smile and drew his sword to gaze upon the blade. "Once more, old friend." he whispered before sheathing it.

And just when the base plans were being laid out, that annoying being who named himself as Avto, descendent of the great hero Lance Crusade, had to come along and attempt to impose his own brand of morality upon them again. Irritated did not even began to describe how Zero was starting to feel, although he was keeping it well under check. This time though, Zero felt it was time Avto Crusade got what he deserved.

"And I would question the reaches of his wisdom, Avto Crusade, despite the undeniably vast wisdom of your great ancestor", Zero replied, irritated enough to not even look at him. "No one with half a mind wants a war. But in the same vein, no one with half a mind would be foolish enough to attempt to restrain his own ability to defend himself, should a war look inevitable. What you are asking, Avto, is that I should hold back a weapon I can use to defend the Lady Skadi, against all reason, just in order to avoid unnecessary bloodshed. What kind of advice is that? If I were to hold back my forces, I would be responsible if we suffer an utter defeat for no good reason. Avto, before you attempt to give any more advice, please try to gain the wisdom your great ancestor had."

And with that, Zero ignored Avto, instead preferring to listen to what Skadi had to say.

"Very well, my Lady. Just tell me when we will commence the operation. I will leave earlier than that to take a walk around Emerald City, so if you don't see me around, don't wait for me. Just tell me where to meet you, and I will be there with 500 fellow Ancient Nobles at your command."

Then Lujza asked a question that had Zero thinking, and for a moment, he seemed to ignore Lujza, although he was really thinking through that one. And so was Major Ambrose, as he took on the same expression that Zero had, before whispering into his ear. Zero merely nodded at that, and when Ambrose was done, the newly-promoted General turned to Lujza with a smile.

"That's a good question, girl. As I have said, what I can offer consists of 2,500 Nobles, and 7,500 Blood Elite troops. What I've neglected to mention is that all the Nobles are either Elders for the most part, or even Ancients. Which means they are highly mobile, as many of them can fly, or at the very least move fast enough to catch up. Moreover, they are based right here in Emerald City, so gathering them together will be a breeze for me. The trouble lies with the Blood Elites. You see, they are only ghouls, and even though they have been around for a while, they are still no match for the Ancients. Moreover, my King is having enough trouble as it is moving them across the sea to Assington stealthily, and so this means they will not have vehicles of any kind. In effect, we could be dealing with a force that could potentially move too slow to be of any use."

Then Zero grinned, his sharp fangs gleaming in the night.

"However, let me assure you that the Blood Elites are masters in improvisation. Once they reach the shores of Assington, they WILL find a way to make it to Emerald City by their own guile. Stealing cars, hitching rides, you name it. Moreover, although they are only ghouls and are no match for the Elves, or for Ancients or Elders, they will be very effective against the VP, and they will be more than a match for Svartel's fledglings as well. Therefore, I would suggest using the Blood Elites against these 2 groups of ememies, since I can afford to lose a large number of them than I can afford to lose Elders or Ancients of either Assingtonian or Noble stock, which we can use against the more difficult opponents."

With that, he sat back.

"So, is this arrangement good?"

Stephen listened quietly as he lowered his pistol from Avto's head. He unscrewed the silencer and placed the pistol back into its holster. If Skadi says he was okay, he must have been okay, otherwise the ancient would probably be killing him right now. He listened to Zero describing the Blood Elites. He knew he would probably be going into battle with them sooner or later.

"Zero, what kind of combat experiance do your ghouls have? I know that Hondur's vampires and the Nobles are capable fighters since I fought with them in the third war...I am a bit curious on what kind of operations the Blood Elites have been on. Could you explain a bit? It would help greatly."

Skadi nodded after Zero explained things to do with mobility of his forces. She roughly knew the numbers their coven could muster from all over Emerald City and after doing the math figured they would easily have the most overwhelming force.

"All seems in order."

At that point the door behind Skadi was flung open and Hondur emerged, his face cold and blank. It was obvious tears had been pouring out of his eyes. He still wasn't in a good mood but it appeared the coven leader was ready to thing about revenge on the VP. He took a quick moment to acknowledge everyone in the apartment before sitting down next to Skadi.

"I trust we have some sort of plan?"
_____________

Ivan sighed from exhaustion as he stumbled back into the VP HQ, taking a brief moment to glance at the sun before entering the shade of the building. It had been a good night for him. Many vampires had fallen at his hand and hopefully many more died in the explosions. Either way, he had destroyed the coven house of the largest coven he'd ever come across.

Yanking open the door, Ivan threw down his gear and dropped into his seat. After all that he figured an all day sleep was just what he deserved. There would be others to take care of things today.

After settling in comfortably, Ivan plunged into a much needed sleep.

Lujza nodded as Ambrose and Zero described the forces to her. All appeared to be well, despite the ghouls possibly being sluggish. Lujza thought for a moment as Hondur walked in. "I think we should try to arrange it so that we strike as soon after the sun sets as possible. I believe this would achieve the most surprise, and have the greatest psychological effect. It would also give us the most time to accomplish the attack, as I'm sure we all want it to be over and done with plenty of darkness left to get indoors."

Zero was about to reply to Stephen, when Hondur stormed in, looking as if he had been crying freely. Now that wasn't a sight you see often, in fact it was the first time Zero remember ever seeing him so grieved. He would have asked Hondur what that was all about, yet it didn't take a genius to know that he was threading on shaky ground when it came to Hondur, and so Zero merely didn't say anything. Instead, his grin was almost ghoulish, as he gave Hondur a evil glance.

"Let's just say we're gonna have a hell of a party quite soon, Hondur", Zero quipped. Then, he turned back to Stephen.

"I would like to say these Blood Elites are veterans of many wars, Stephen", Zero said solemnly, thinking fast about just what the Blood Elite were capable of. "However, they are not. After all, Atros is a peaceful country, which is not at war with any nation, or indeed, with anything at all. However, I don't know whether I am allowed to tell you this, or whether Louis will have my head when I return. Nevertheless, you will be glad to know that the Blood Elites are veterans of many counter-terrorist operations. There was a terror group in Atros a while back, and while they gave some trouble, the Blood Elites were instrumental in eventually bringing them down. Granted, this is not a counter-terror operation we're talking about here, but let me assure you, the Blood Elites are more than well-trained in a war of attrition. I personally guarantee that they will be more than capable enough of handling the VP, and I'm sure they are a match for Svartel's force of fledglings as well. Of course, they will need some guidance, so Stephen, when they do come around, you may take some of them under your command, show them the ropes. I know you're pretty good at doing that."

Then Zero listened to what Lujza had to say, and while he nodded slowly, he digested the information. It did make sense, in some respect, but Zero had other ideas.

"That's good thinking, girl", Zero said, nodding solemnly. "However, the thing is that humans are still pretty much alert at this point. And especially an organization like the VP, their guard would be at their highest in the early night. So that may or may not be a valid strategy. What I do know is that humans tend to slacken around the time of 3 AM or so. I don't quite understand why, but apparently it's something in their biological makeup. In any case, they would be less able to resist us during that time, and so that's another time when we could strike. Personally, I'm more interested in looting what they have than going around on a slashfest, so if we attack at 3 AM, it'll be a lot easier for me and my troops to go havoc on whatever they have that we can use. What do you all think?"

Hondur shook his head and replied with a flat tone.

"No. We're attacking before that."

Before the ancient vampire could break into a rant regarding his thirst for bloody vengence, Skadi put a hand on his shoulder, indicating he should be silent whilst she eplain a few things.

"We are going to attack not long after sunset. Once we get everyone in position, we shall strike. As some of you may know, besides the VP HQ there are several VP stations around the city. We are going to strike several of those stations simultaneously with overwhelming numbers. This will cause the VP to send reinforcements from the HQ as it shall be the closest source. Once the HQ is left weakened with low numbers, then we storm the building and take care of whoever is left inside."

Hondur couldn't help but smile at the plan. Whilst not terribly complicated, it promised to be quite effective and make their job quite a bit easier.

"Agreed. If we send our forces to worry about the stations, then Zero's Nobles will be more than enough to storm the HQ with."

Stephen nodded to what Zero said about the Blood Elites, sounded good enough for him. At least they were not just a bunch of soldiers who sounded tough but were not. He trusted the Noble enough to understand the Elites were good troops.

"Bloody Good. But, I won't take command of any, I did my time in the army as an officer and NCO."

Stephen listened to the plan of attacking almost right after sunset he agreed with attack as soon as possible when the sun set, but attacking the second the sun goes down would be impossible.

"Skadi...what time are you planning to launch the attack? Sun sets around six to seven o'clock it seems here...we have to inform the rest of Hondur's coven of the plan, equip them, break them off into seperate battalions and move them into position. Way I figure it...we won't be attacking until nine to eleven o'clock tonight."

Hondur remained silent for several moment as he appeared deep in thought. Something was obviously going on in his head and it seemed he didn't even hear a single word being said around him. He remained like that until Stephen brought up the issue of logistics.

"Don't worry about that. I have already relayed necessary information to the men that need to know around the city. They will be ready when we need them and I can continue to feed them necessary information."

Skadi smiled slightly. She thouroughly enjoyed the advantages of being a vampire when it came to such things. Humans had their mobile phones, internet and such things but she much prefered the telepathy.

With that said, Hondur then turned his attention fully onto Luzja. Many of the others seemed to pay her some attention yet not realise just how valuable she could be to the coven.

"Luzja, do you think you could go into the VP station again? It would be a great help in coordinating things."

"So we're going to go for the jugular right from the start, huh?", Zero thought aloud to himself, holding his chin in thought. "That means things will have to move fast........Major, what is our current situation with our people now?"

"Sir, I have passed on information of the coming war to the Emerald-based Nobles, and they have in turn relayed to others. So all the Nobles in Emerald City knows there's a war going on, and their part in it will come tomorrow. So there should be no problem gathering them together into a cohesive force. Except......"

"Yes, Major? Except what?"

"Sir, they do not know where they are to gather, nor do they know where is their target. I can attempt to relay them this information by telepathy, but chances are there will be some who will get distorted information, and then we will have Nobles all over the place, instead of gathered at one point. Sir, I suggest you make yourself known to them just before the attack, by walking the streets of Emerald City. Every Noble will sense you, and they will follow you. Then you can lead them to where they are needed."

"Sounds fair enough, if you don't mind that fact, my Lady, Master Hondur", Zero nodded to the both of them. "I shouldn't take too long about it, I promise."

With that, Zero listened as Hondur asked Lujza about infiltrating the VP camp. "Not a bad idea", he thought to himself. "Except, from what I've heard, she's done so once already........but that's a lucky break to me. She'll still look weird by herself, and maybe, just maybe, this Ivan Kolstov would sense that she isn't as she seems.......wait. Why didn't I think of this before?"

"Lujza", Zero addressed the young Moroii. "It may be a bit risky for you to infiltrate the VP alone again. This Ivan, whoever he is, may not have realized what you are the first time round. But let's face it, you don't look one hundred percent human, and while you can pass off as what those humans call "Goths", sooner or later Ivan is going to sense something is amiss. So here's an idea. Why don't you take Aeris along with you? At least she would pass off as human easily, and if you stick close to her, most people would regard you as human too, by association. Granted you two make a strange couple, but at least I believe that it would work. What do you say?"

Just then, Aeris, having completed the last of her healing magics on Sigrun, took a seat besides Zero, her own face in thought as well. Then she spoke. "Perhaps I should hit the mall? If I can just get myself some leather wear and some makeup, I can dress myself up as one of those Goth punks you talked about, Raph. Then me and Lujza would look just like Goth sisters, and the VP will miss us completely", she finished, winking mischieviously at Lujza.

"Finding another excuse to go shopping?", Zero joked, ruffling Aeris's hair, much to her annoyance. "Still, that's another idea. Although I'm finding it hard to see you in leather wear and that ghastly makeup. What do you all think?"

"Risky."

Stephen leaned on his chair and looked at Zero. "Nice idea about getting dressed up and all, but this VP captain is hyper-paranoid from what I have seen. He has turned the whole VP into an organization that would shoot a kid going as Dracula on Halloween. Still..."

Stephen looked at Lujza. He remembered her fighting in the mansion like a demon, he also remembered that there might be a VP surivor or two who might recongize her from the mansion.

"There is also the risk of someone saw you attack thier friend Lujza, that alone will blow your cover. Though...Aeris here is good with magic so she can easily teleport you two out of trouble. However we do it, there is going to be a high degree of risk and need to understand you are on your own once you step inside that building."

Avto snorted in disgust, as he shook his head, obviously disliking the pathetic and paltry plans that the vampires and their allies were cooking up. Cracking his neck bones quickly, Avto turned to Skadi and spoke, his words harsh and biting, as he addressed her and the plans that were in the process of formation. "First and foremost, before I say anything else, do not ever presume to analyze my mind again. I am not someone who likes to have their minds toyed, especially by a vampire who should have been killed years ago by the failed sniper, Shea Lancer."

His face contorting with ill-disguised anger and frustration, Avto continued, his tone filled with an underlying sharp vehemence that cut to the core. "Your plans are ultimately flawed. Everything you have said is based on a few very unwise underlying assumptions. You assume that the enemy does not have allies. You assume that enemy will only react to you. You assume that the enemy is stupid. With these assumptions, your attack will fail or in the case of success, result in heavy casualties for your forces..."

"Your best option would be to careful orchestrate an attack revolved around a feint within a feint... If you do not understand, Sigrun can tell you..."

Glancing around briefly, so as to allow his words to sink in, Avto continued. "The time has come for the Crusade family to return to what it once was." Turning to Skadi, Avto narrowed his eyes and spoke. "The time has come for me to be sacrificed to Svartel. No one knows who I am aside from the ones in this very room. Make me into a vampire. Now."

Stephen had an arched eyebrow as he stared at Avto. All he knew about the man was that his name was Avto and that he was a bit trustworthy since Skadi had yet to kill him. He cringed as Avto said 'vampire who should have been killed years ago by the failed sniper, Shea Lancer'; he guess that Avto was directing it at Skadi and the neonate could only hope the ancient would not go psycho on Avto. He waited till the man had finished.

"I am a wee bit lost here...I am probably the only one here who doesn't know who in the hell you are. Second...the only allies the VP can be hoping to get is other VP units from the rest of the city or from other cities and towns. Next, it is stupid for any commander to think thier foe is stupid."

Stephen pulled out a laser pointer and pointed it at the map. The green circle landed on the VP station marked ALPHA and moved as he talked.

"I'm not saying the VP won't be also tossing thier forces from other bases to help relieve the stations that are under attack. Our forces attacking the stations are going to hold the VP by the belt buckle and not let go, we then hit the VP HQ as hard as we can. There will still be a plenty of VP inside to put up a heavy defense, but we do have inside intellegence from two in this room."

Stephen stared at Avto, trying to size the man up. He put the laser pointer back into his duffel bag and then turned back to the man.

"But really...first thing first. What experiance do you have in professional military matters? Also, I ask again...who are you?"

"His name is Avto Crusade, kid. A poor excuse of a heir for a great hero who lived and died a long time ago. That ancestor was Lance Crusade, one who changed the world by the mere fact of his existence. And this Avto sprite owns a name he does not deserve, and he thinks he is on a par with us just because of that. Insufferable, blustering fool."

That was the voice of Zero, whose tone had suddenly taken a turn for the worst. In fact, everything about Zero had changed from the cocksure joker that most of his peers saw him as, to something else entirely. All in the room didn't need telepathic powers to read Zero's mood, as he smoothly got up from his couch, and strode silently towards Avto, fingering the great Zantetsuken blade that was sheathed on his back.

"If I were told that a descendent of the great Lance would be an insufferably annoying kid such as you were, Avto Crusade, I would have accused whoever told me that of being disrespectful", Zero murmured menacingly, taking one measured step at a time. "And yet I grieve to learn that this is the case. You do not deserve the Swords of Night and Day that hangs by your side, you do not do justice to it. I should take you now, and as is the tradition of my kind, claim your swords for myself. You fool yourself that your wisdom is that of Lance's, and yet you do not see just how lacking in knowledge you are. You are a pitiful bug, Avto Crusade, and you do not even deserve to be the vampire you want us to make you. Go home. We have no use for you, or your foolish words, here."

With that, Zero turned his back on Avto.

"I do not like his manner," Lujza said, indicating Avto, "but he does bring up some points. I do not know what possible allies the VP could have, other than villagers armed with candles, garlic and pitchforks, or maybe Svartel, who must be hoping that we and the VP destroy each other completely, and we can't assume he's doing nothing, but that's not the issue of the moment. It would be nice, however, to figure the approximate number of VP we are dealing with into our plans." She tried to recall how many had been at the HQ when she had gone in. Forming a mental picture, she then sent it to the others. This telepathy thing was getting easier each time she did it.

"Another thing," she continued. "We all know that this Ivan bastard isn't stupid. Despite the fact that we weren't by any means crushed, last night wasn't exactly a victory for us, either." She had a quiet voice in conversation, but her words were clear enough. "We don't know how much damage he thinks he did. We must hope, until we get that information, that he thinks he completely, or near completely, destroyed us. However, we could be in for a very unpleasant surprise if he knows that we aren't finished. For this reason, we must do some recon, so we can know what's going on at the VP, and if they think we're coming of not." She paused, and then said "I volunteer for the assignment, however I do think it would be an excellent idea for Aeris to be there as well, in case things get out of hand."

Sigrun kept silent, listening and thinking carefully over the plans being discussed. At Avto's insistence to be turned, he shook his head in pity. Just as Zero came within range of Avto, Sigrun's hand pushed him back.

"The fighting will not start between us. If that happens, they win."

He looked over to Skadi and spoke, but kept himself between Zero and Avto to prevent them from bickering any further. "Avto does have a good option. Confusion in enemy ranks is a powerful tool, and something we should take hold of. As far as I've been able to discern, the VP are not very capable of telepathic abilities. I suggest corruption of the mind on a large scale."

Taking a glance over to Avto, he continued, "We do this simply by infecting strategic members of the VP with conflictory instructions, deployments. This will cause them to create their own mistakes, which can be capitalized upon by our forces."

He looked to Skadi, "A feint within a feint. The chaos of war is a deadly foe unless one knows how to manuever it to their favor."

He paused and closed his eyes, bringing to the fore of his mind the image of Ivan. He held his hand out and drew a circle in the air, watching as a 3-D rendition of the man revolved in place. He looked it over for a moment before turning to the others.

"I sensed something different about our good friend Ivan earlier. I wasn't sure, but after some observations made in haste at the mansion, I am now sure he harbors something deep within him, something that we all may need to take heed of."

The image paused and enlarged the man's eyes. Indeed, they looked like they held a terrible secret.

He looked around at their faces. "Something that could become the wild card in this war."

He turned to look at Luzja and Aeris, "I have a bad feeling about you going into the VP headquarters. A very bad feeling."

Usually, his suspicions proved accurate. Whether or not that would hold true in this case, he was not sure. He hoped for the sakes of Aeris and Luzja, that the ominous doubt in his mind was false.

"Well Sigrun, I they can always carry some protection...just in case."

Stephen pulled his duffel bag over and unzipped it. He started to scrounge around through it and talked.

"Corrupting thier mind...not bad. Pyschology is half the battle some say. The real question is hitting someone with power, probably Ivan...but then again hit his second in command or something. Or you can do the bottom to top approach by corrupting a few young VP officers and spread nasty rumors about the place."

Stephen found what he was looking for. He pulled out a HK PDW from his duffel bag.

"Heckler and Koch PDW, fires a 4.6x30 round...fairly accurate and does the job at close range. I don't suggest using this to snipe. I have only have one, but it should do if Lujza and Aeris bump into any trouble and hold off the VP till they can teleport out of there. That is, if they still want to go."

All seemed to be going well with the planning. The major strike was layed out, Zero had his forces under control and was able to organise them and Luzja provided the possibilty of giving vital pre-battle information by getting inside the VP before the attack commenced.

Unfortunately Avto had to speak up. It was obvious he didn't seem too happy with the way Zero had spoken to him before and now the young warrior let his temper flow. The ancient vampire found it very difficult to listen to Avto as he ranted on about their plan. She found it ironic to be calling dangerous assumptions when he obviously doesn't know everything about the situation.

Getting to her feet, Skadi slowly approached the young warrior, her eyes stone cold like they have been so many times before. She wouldn't stand for such things in the slightest.

"You have many, many things to learn of this world, child. Firstly, you enter my apartment via unknown means to us and creep out of the shadows unannounced. Would you prefer I simply plant my blade through your eye socket before touching your mind to determine your identity? You're obviously a sharp boy aren't you?"

Saracasm was evident within Skadi's rant which was a surprise to some as she rarely employed such. Yet it seemed Avto was to recieve the full force of it.

"Are you supposed to be wise all of a sudden because you have great ancestors because if I'm not mistaken, you are clearly guilty of exactly what you accuse us of being guilty. Who are you to come into our war and claim such things? This is the fourth time I have fought a war like this. I've been combatting VP officers since before you were born. I've seen them come and go, I've seen the bright ones and the morons flow through time. Out of anyone here, who would know this better than I? The VP have no allies. The elves will not ally with anyone, Svartel will not associate himself with humans nor elves. The only thing he can possibly do is call upon inter-city VP forces and they are too far away to do anything. Perhaps there will be others attacking the VP, but I somehow doubt it. It seems the others are playing the game of allowing us to fight and wait till the end. The VP had most of their forces at the mansion last night, at the battle you decided to miss. Many of them died. They are low on numbers. Not once have I assumed this Ivan is an idiot. He may be expecting us, but he does not know. For all knows, the attack on the stations may be seen as our retaliation. If anyone can safely be accused of being stupid, it is you."

This was Skadi's war afterall and she wasn't about to let some arrogant warrior walk in and force his own plans upon them. It was Avto's last words that momentarily shocked Skadi. Asking to be a vampire. In her book, anyone that asked to be a vampire was automatically denied. In her opinion, siring was not something one just does on a whim or request. It takes a certain kind of character to exist as a vampire truly, most will go insane after some time with the fact they shall never grow old. Many vampires commit suicide before they are one thousand years old. Avto did not possess the character Skadi believed necessary.

"What do you think you can do? Even if I were to make you a vampire, what could you do to Svartel? He's two thousand two hundred years old. You would be a few days old. He would crush you on a whim and your blind arrogance would be the only thing to blame. There is no purpose in you facing Svartel, none at all. When the time comes, the matter will be settled amongst us original ancients. You shall not become a vampire by my hand, nor by any other in this room."

Finally Skadi fell into silence, her eyes locked with the young Avto's. It was obvious she was ready to run the young man through on the spot, the only thing holding her back being respect for his ancestors.

Zero was still simmering darkly within himself, trying his best to hold his temper in. But Avto's arrogance proved too much for him to take, and at Sigrun's words, the Noble turned on his longtime friend, and the elder of his elven lover.

"'Us'? Sigrun, did you just say 'us'? What the heck do you mean by 'us'?!", Zero demanded, raising his voice at him, while gesturing violently at Avto. "Because if by 'us', you mean this idiot who calls himself a Crusade, then no thank you! He ain't one of us. Where the hell was he when the VP attacked us? What the fuck was he doing when Idun and his damnable Moon Elves visited us? Why in the world is he all hot air and no action? Sigrun, look at me! When has this sprite ever lifted a hand on our behalf? Why has he never done a thing to defend us, and yet counsels with tomfoolery and stupidity? He has never, not once in my memory, fought alongside us. Why should he be considered one of us? For all I know, and for all I care, all Avto Crusade is is a gnat who bothers us with his buzzing, and it bothers me why all of you have withstood his idiocy for so long! Well, not me for one, any longer. Should the little bug named Avto Crusade bother me in the battlefield one more time, I will hack him down as one of the enemy, and ain't any one of you stopping me!"

With that, Zero pushed Sigrun roughly aside, and shoved through everyone else, before entering what would have been the kitchen of Skadi's apartment, and slamming the door shut. And that left Aeris looking on, shaking her head sadly, before turning to Avto. "Master Crusade", Aeris said softly. "I apologize for Master Raphael's behaviour. But do try not to agitate him anymore, would you?"

With that, Aeris turned her attention to Stephen, who had offered them an SMG from his personal duffel bag. "Thank you, Master Malone", she whispered softly, as she took it from him. But Aeris had no experience with firearms despite her more than two hundred years, and it showed in how awkward she looked handling the weapon. "Here, you take it", she finally said, tossing the weapon awkwardly to Lujza. "How about you come shopping with me? I'll find some way of making you look like a decent human for once", she said, sticking a tongue out at Lujza in pure mischief.

Finally, she turned to her uncle, looking at him seriously. "Uncle", Aeris began. "I know you are worried for me. Perhaps you don't want me to go? But I have to, Uncle Sigrun. I don't want to be hiding behind you or Raphael all the time anymore. I have to learn how to stand on my own. Please, Uncle. Would you let me go on this one?"

"Yes, I am a Crusade," replied Avto quietly, "And yes, I am young, merely a couple hundred years of age. But I am Crusade nevertheless. I alone out of the numerous descendants of Lance Crusade have taken the mantle of a swordmaster. My distant cousins rule in the Five Civilized Nations, while I toil upon the battlefield. I am a Crusade, but unlike any other currently alive and unlike any other who will come. My future has been written already, forged the heavens by the gods. And with that knowledge, I already know that I will be the very last to wield the Sword of Cala."

Addressing both Zero and Skadi, Avto continued. "You all believe that I will die easily and quickly. You all have seen my ancestor fight. Even in his youth, his abilities made him untouchable but to a selected few who were his better. Can you judge someone by his or her age? Or should you judge them by what they can do? I have learned most of my ancestor's unique fighting skills."

"I with the unique psychic bond formed when my ancestor dwelled within my body, have the collective memories of the few generations of swordmasters to tread the bare ground of this world. I have become the collective will of all my predecessors. If I do not deserve to wield the Swords of Night and Day then no one in this room or alive on this room can. For I am the only Crusade, the only one with the true blood of a benighted race of superhumans that walked this earth..."

"I am the heir to a legend whether you like it or not. I am the only Crusade willing to bear the weight of a legend. I do not fear death for it will close my chapter and will help usher in the next generation... I contain the willpower, strength, majesty, and legacy of several thousand years. None of you, except for perhaps Skadi and Sigrun, have the right to question what I can or cannot do."

Turning to Skadi, Avto bowed calmly, before he spoke. "If you need surprise, I can provide something that no one will expect..."

Lujza deftly caught the gun Aeris tossed and smiled at her suggestion of shopping. If the situation had not been so serious, she would have laughed hysterically. "Well, I suppose we should go dress me up now," she said awkwardly after Avto's speech. "Talk to me in my head to tell me what the plan's going to be and such." Lujza shuffled around in a closet until she found an old backpack. Putting the gun and zipping it up, she slung it across her back and headed towards the door and waited for Aeris.

There are times when enough was just enough. And no one can accuse Aeris Celadrin Greenwood of having too little patience with people, in fact, the opposite was quite true. However, even the most patient people can have their patience tested, and Avto Crusade, with all his lecturing, has managed to do just that. The Elven Princess, ignoring Lujza for the moment, looked sternly at Crusade, and although her demeanour seemed docile, her eyes were anything but. Nevertheless, she spoke as softly as befitting a Princess, to Avto.

"You say no one save the Lady Skadi or my esteemed Uncle have the right to question what you can or cannot do, Master Crusade", Aeris said softly. "But I am going to question you all the same. I would ask this of you, Master Crusade. Why are you saying that you're willing to help us? What is in it for you? As far as I know, we owe you nothing, neither do you owe us anything. Moreover, as far as I know, our paths need not cross. You could easily go your own way, and we ours. Yet why do you persist in joining us now, when you could have easily done so beforehand? My Lord Raphael may be rash in temper, but he does bring up some points about your behaviour up to this point. If you were sincere about helping us, you could have kept your temper in check when Idun and the Moon Elves visited. You could have helped us by lending your sword to our cause when the VP attacked us."

"Yet you did neither, even when you could have done so. So tell me, how can we trust you now, especially when you persist in a request so ridiculous that none of us here can ever give you your wish? What is your motive in doing so, Master Crusade? Are you really doing this out of the goodness of your heart? Or do you have an ulterior motive in mind? Master Crusade, I am not stating that you may have interests that are detrimental to ours, but your recent behaviour has left me very much disturbed. It is your perogative to prove to us how we can trust you. I am sorry to say this, Master Crusade. But the world does not revolve around you."

Aeris cocked her head gently to one side, looking steadily at Avto. "I will not be sticking around to hear your answer, Master Crusade. I don't have to, for you are not answering to me. You are answering to all of us here."

With that, she turned to Lujza, ignoring all else. She was grinning now, a far cry from the solemn mood she had taken on while talking to Avto. "Let's go, Miss Batory!", she said happily, taking her by the hand and leading her out of the apartment. When they were out of the apartment, the suddenly cheery Aeris turned to Lujza again.

"You definitely look paler than the average human, Miss Batory", she said. "But I think some tanning lotion and some makeup will more then fix that. As well as some suitable clothing." At that, Aeris put a finger to her lips, thinking. "Miss Batory, what do you think would be the kind of clothing we will need to infiltrate the VP headquarters?"

"What foolishness," muttered Avto quietly, as the half-elven girl finished speaking. Shaking his head sadly, he spoke, speaking to everyone in the room. "I am not the heir to a legend that I wish I was. I am not what I wish I was, nor am I like my ancestors. But I am burdened with the memories of many generations. I possess in myself the consolidated memories of all the swordmasters of my father's line, all the way up to the founder of our line, a swordmaster who lived many millenia ago. None of you understand the burden of knowing so many things, of feeling like you are old, hundreds of millenia old. I did not want the life of a swordmaster, of a descendant of legends, but I am the only one capable of fulfilling and discharging what I can do."

"When Lance Crusade inhabited my body, his soul left behind a doorway to a combined nexus that held the memories of everyone single one of my lineage. I know everything that they knew and I understand everything they do. But the memories of so many of my ancestors and of so many millenia is not an easy burden to get used to and comprehend. My mind was in turmoil when I first entered into the nexus. I was deluged by thousands of voices, drowned by millions of separate, coherent memories. For a time, I was lost within my mind, a prisoner of the waves that pounded me. It was only until I accepted and understood the true meaning of being a Crusade was I finally able to become myself..."

"In the process, I have aged greatly, as you can all see. I am no longer a fledging, but a full-fledged swordmaster of my lineage. Question not what I cannot do, question what I can and will do..."

"I will try my utmost to live up to my name and the memory of my predecessors, but how can I have all of you are unwilling to give me a chance to do so?

Sigrun listened to Avto. He partially sympathized with the lad about the burden of many memories. It was indeed heavy at times. Nevertheless, he shoved that aside and spoke.

"You want to prove yourself? Stick around this time. Don't try to be a hero. You'll only endanger more lives than necessary. Fight to defend yourself, and others near you if necessary, but do not let the history and knowledge of your ancestors put you into a self induced high-amphetamine state. Keep your head and know when to pull out of the fight."

He looked to Skadi and spoke, "I think we've finished this planning, unless you can think of anything else. There is nothing more we can do but now wait the time out until the attack."

Skadi calmed down once Avto spoke again, his ego obviously deflated a little. She had no intention of attacking the young man as she knew very well the abilities his ancestors had possessed and assumed he would be of a smiliar yet perhaps not as strong as them. Either way, he was a fordmiddable warrior and she made sure to keep that in mind.

After Zero and Aeris had their rants, Skadi watched as Aeris and Luzja departed the flat. She couldn't say she really liked Aeris, the whole little miss innocent thing about her was quite decieving and irritating. Either way, that was not a concern at the moment.

At that point the ever-wise words of Sigrun interrupted. Obviously he was trying to avoid a conflict breaking out amongst the apartment occupants, which wa desirable of course. Skadi nodded finally at the elf's question.

"I'd say we're pretty much in order. But I would like to here how Avto could contribute to this. As Sigrun said, I don't want anyone playing hero but I'm sure we can find a place for you."

(OOC: snip)

With that, she turned to Lujza, ignoring all else. She was grinning now, a far cry from the solemn mood she had taken on while talking to Avto. "Let's go, Miss Batory!", she said happily, taking her by the hand and leading her out of the apartment. When they were out of the apartment, the suddenly cheery Aeris turned to Lujza again.

"You definitely look paler than the average human, Miss Batory", she said. "But I think some tanning lotion and some makeup will more then fix that. As well as some suitable clothing." At that, Aeris put a finger to her lips, thinking. "Miss Batory, what do you think would be the kind of clothing we will need to infiltrate the VP headquarters?"

Lujza grimaced at the mention of tanning lotion. "I honestly have no idea. What would an average human wear, do you think?" She contemplated this. She wanted to look very ordinary, totally unremarkable.

"Nothing too rich looking," she mused. "But nothing too poor either. Nothing too bright," she made a look of disgust, "but nothing too somber. I need to look absolutely mundane to everyone there." She paused, and gave Aeris a look of concern. "This... tanning lotion... you mentioned... its effects won't be permenant I hope?" Tanning lotion wasn't something widely used in Callisdrun. There simply wasn't really enough sunlight to go tanning, and nobody would understand the concept of artificial tanning. The most tan anyone got, even the southerners, was a sort of very very light olive, or really, what would have been olive if it hadn't been so light.

Stephen didn't say it, but he didn't hold high hopes for Avto. The man seemed far to arrogant and his insitance on using blades made the vampire uneasy about trusting the man to cover his back if needed. He knew Skadi, Hondur, and Sigrun were excellent with swords and could use firearms if needed. Stephen had sold his sword shortly after the third Assington conflict and had opted to use firearms. Stephen was currently dismantling and cleaning his pistols. He looked at his watch, it was already mid-morning.

"If we want to make this attack a success I suggest we turn in and sort out the last detail or two in the morning...I mean when the sun sets."

Stephen chuckled to himself. Nearly three hundred years as a vampire and still thinking like a human.

Skadi nodded. They had most things sorted out and they were now well into early morning. There was no real need for them to stay up so they might as well rest before the coming battle.

"Agreed, tis always best to enter every battle fully rested. Find yourself somewhere to sleep within the apartment and we'll finish up in the tonight before we attack."

Hondur remained silent for a moment as he thought over things. It seemed all was in order and had been mostly established whilst he was brooding on the recent death of Alyssandra.

"Fine."

With that word he was on his feet and back into his designated room. Obviously he was still very upset about his recent loss and there would be no doubt it would rest upon his mind during the coming battle.

Skadi watched as her fledgling departed. He would need time.

"Alright. Avto, Stephen, General, you're all welcome to sleep here of course."

With that the ancient vampire hooked her arms with Sigrun's and led him into her own room. Before long the pair were resting up for the upcoming conflict.

Stephen bid the two ancients and the elf good night before clearing the table. He removed all the maps and papers and placed them into his duffel. He lay down on the couch and closed his eyes, ignoring Avto and Zero, he just wanted to rest. As his mind began to drift, he remembered in his first year as a vampire when he first arrived in Emerald with Skadi and Sigrun to fight against Alexander and his lycans. Stephen adjusted himself before he found a comfortable position.

Finally, he found sleep.

OOC: Sorry for the wait... things have been busy.

IC: The day passed by like every other normal day in Emerald City. Most of the populace where unaware of the battles and tensions between the night life of the city. The VP liked to keep things that way, prevent panic from spreading throughout the people, which could of course lead to vigilante action.

There had been open shock and curiosity about the destroyed mansion of course, yet a few phone calls between government departments and other involved organisations ensured a feasible cover story was fabricated. According to the media, police had been performing a drug raid and stumbled across the location of arms smugglers and other illegal such activities. Unfortunately the occupants had held them off for some time before fleeing the scene and destroying much of the evidence.

The issue was now left to civil departments to worry about the mess whilst the VP recovered and counted their losses. They hadn't been as high as Ivan had expected and whilst he held no particular value on the officer's lives, it was good to know he still had some reasonable man power.

And so the sun plunged into the horizon once again, allowing darkness to reign for a given period. Most wise people would be home and locked away before things became too dangerous. The vampires were rising.

With a start, Skadi awoke from another troubling dream. Ever since Svartel and Idun had returned memories of the past had come back to her. Uller's death, the death of her family and eventually Sithaer. Putting that out of her mind, Skadi rose and placed a hand upon Sigrun's shoulder.

"Come, it is time for us to deliver vengence."

Sigrun instantly awoke upon the soft touch of Skadi's hand on his shoulder. He looked up at her and nodded in agreement.

"Yes. It is time."

He rose from the bed and was ready to go in a few minutes of preparation. He emerged from Skadi's room to gaze into the living room of the apartment. He looked around at the sleeping figures and grinned. His hand flicked the light switch, instantly flooding the room in glare of artificial lighting.

"Rise and shine boys and girls!" he called out to them.

Stephen had been peacefully sleeping until Sigrun flicked on the lights. As Sigrun barked at them, something in Stephen made him suddenly leap up and snap a salute.

"Yes Seargent-Ma..." Stephen looked around him. He wasn't in army barracks, but in Skadi's apartment. He lowered his hand and grumbled. When Stephen had gone to sleep he had some dreams of his old army days in the airborne and the Rangers. It was the first time it had ever happened in nearly thirteen hundred years; Stephen figured it had to do something with him telling Sigrun about what happened to him on his last mission.

Stephen reached into his duffel bag and pulled out a web vest and put it on. He grabbed several magizine and grenade pouches and fixed them on. He grabbed a M4A1 with telescopic sight and slapped a magizine into it. He filled the pouches, put on his Para P14s, his Wolfe Knife, and finally put on a pair of black leather gloves.

"Time to kick ass."

Hondur promptly emerged from the bathroom as the lights flicked on, revealing his pale blank face. The vampire's eyes emitted determination and a desire to spill the blood of humans responsible for destroying his home and killing his love. They had no idea what was about to unleash upon them.

Skadi didn't say anything as everyone gazed upon Hondur. It was not her place or anyone elses to get in his way. Hondur had to get through this on his own and his friends had to respect that.

"It will take a bit of time to get everyone in position. Before we head out, are there anymore questions or details we should run over?"

Hondur nodded.

"I don't want this screwed up."

Already the coven leader was reaching out with his ancient mind, contacting various other coven members in order to coordinate the attack upon the VP.

Stephen checked he was ready for combat. He didn't bother putting on his trenchcoat, he didn't want anything that might trip him up. He noticed Hondur's expression and knew the ancient wanted to cause as much damage as possible to the VP in revenge for his girl's death. He thought for a minute before digging into his duffel bag again and pulling out a large MM-1 40mm grenade launcher. Stephen pulled out a belt of grenades and loaded the cumbersome 12 shot weapon.

He walked up to Hondur and offered him the weapon and belt with extra grenades.

"Here you go Hondur, should cause quiet a bang to start the evening off. Got enough grenades to have another load and a half. All are high explosive and fragmentation. Tis a wee bit clumsy, but it will do the trick to blast a window windows and VP officers apart."

Hondur looked down at the weapon for a few moments as he contemplated its use. He'd never really taken to heavy weapons yet he liked the idea of so much destructive force held within his hands. Taking the belt and grenade launcher, Hondur looked back to Stephen and smiled.

"Thanks Stephen. This will come in very useful. I've contacted all my forces and they are about to depart various locations and get in position around the stations. I suggest we take up our own positions now."

Turning around, Hondur moved towards the kitchen and peaked inside, noting that Zero and Ambrose were gone.

"Where are they, the Nobles?"

Skadi took the oppurtunity to chime in, informing her fledgling of Zero's activities.

"They've gone to gather the Noble forces. We'll meet them at the positions surrounding the VP HQ."

"Good."

Opening his mind, Hondur quickly found Zero and relayed a final message.

"Zero, we're heading towards the VP now. We'll await your arrival, be quick."

Facing the group once again, Hondur looked each person in the eye before speaking.

"There is no goal tonight but to destroy. The VP have been a thorn in our side for too long and last night they went too far. It's time they felt us bite back."

With that the ancient vampire gathered all his gear and walked out the front door in silence. Skadi also remained silent and merely followed.
_____________

Within the cover of night, hundreds of vampires moved through the shadows, over the rooftops or even through the air if they could, all heading towards several key VP stations around the inner city.

Before the night is over, the streets would be running red once again.
______________

Idun stood before the masses of brocken wood, brick, stone and other various materials that had once been the coven mansion. Now there was nothing left by scorched earth and rubble.

The ancient vampire couldn't help but smile to himself, everything had worked out quite well. Ever since the brilliant idea of having the VP take care of the threatening coven, Idun had been convinced it would work. A little manipulation here and there led to the mess before him.

"So much for the mighty coven..."

Idun hardly realised he spoke aloud as he relished in his success. The vampire had never imagined they'd be able to take care of Skadi and her forces so easily and yet here he was.

As he weaved through the mess, a certain object caught Idun's eye. A quick mental pull brought the arrow into his hands, causing an eyebrow to rise. There hadn't been any elves at the attack.

Sigrun watched as Hondur prepared to leave, and accepted the weaponry from Stephen. He looked briefly to Stephen and wondered exactly how and where he managed to keep all these rather bad-boy weapons hidden from discovery and from the border patrols. He smiled slightly, either way, he was good at smuggling and being well prepared for any situation.

He slung the scabbard of his sword about and secured it to his backside. The sounds of others getting ready was heard as they soon filled out into the twilight hours of the night.

Death was coming, and they were the agents employed...

Indeed, Zero and his second-in-command, Major Ambrose had been the first to up and leave the apartment the very moment the sun had cast its last rays over the skies of Emerald City. And for good reason too - even with vampiric speed, it would take a goodly amount of time to gather a sizable force to be ready for an attack within minutes. Which was all the more reason for General Raphael Celadrin to start all the sooner, isn't it?

And thus, it was so that by the time the others were just waking up and preparing to launch the attack, Zero and his sidekick were already pounding the streets of Emerald City, sending out mental waves like moving radio stations of sorts. The thoughts they sent out didn't have any particular imagery in it, or even much of a message to it either. It was just a vague summons radiating through the air, a call to arms, but the Nobles of Emerald City responded. A soft, dark murmuring began to fill the air around Zero as he walked on blithely, outwardly appearing to be just going out for a stroll, but instead, the Nobles were following him, while keeping out of sight. Once they revealed themselves, they would be an army, large enough for their task that night.

"Got it, Hondur. Be with you in a few", Zero replied mentally, putting a hand to his temple. "All right, Major", he turned to Ambrose. "Is everyone who is expected to be here all here?"
"Looks like it, sir. They're ready for your command. Looks like it's time to move to our objective, Sir."
"Very well, now-", Zero suddenly paused, sensing a presence close by. A very powerful presence. And whatever it was, it was heading for what remained of the mansion. "Sir?", Ambrose asked, as Zero turned to stalk whoever it was that would be so powerful, and at the same time so interested in the mansion. But Ambrose did not question any more, and he just followed, as did the army of Nobles.........

_________________________________________________________________


As Idun examined the elven arrow in his hand, he became aware of the presence of a few hundred other vampires around him. And they were no mere fledglings either: the youngest amongst them were still Elders, and even though he was one of the original vampires of Assington, even he could not fight his way out of hundreds. No way to run, no way to hide. He had been caught with his pants down. Slowly, Idun turned to face what was apparently the leader of the small army. And Zero was seething, seething from what he had just heard.

"So. You were behind this all along", Zero said in a calm voice, but a voice which was still rough from suppressed rage. "You were the one who backstabbed us all along. You miserable traitor. You are dishonorable! And I hate dishonor the most!"

With that, purple lightning suddenly crackled around Zero as he raised a hand to Idun. And before Idun could react, he had been blasted a few feet away by a strike of lightning that had left Zero's palm, and rammed straight into him, causing him to smell of smoke as he tried to stand up peacefully. The Noble army stepped forward, but Zero shouted at them to retreat, "No! He is mine!"

Silence. Then with the tone of an experienced commander, Zero turned to Ambrose. "Major. Lead the army to our objective. I will keep only ten of my men with me."
"But sir, we cannot leave you just like that......"
"You will, Major. The rest are waiting for our forces, and we cannot let them down. Take them and go. They are under your command until I get back."
"Yes sir." With that, Ambrose gave a signal, and most of the Nobles retreated, leaving Zero with ten Ancients around him as he turned back to Idun again with a scowl.

"Stand up, traitor", Zero growled, as he reached behind his back, and unsheathed the great Zantetsuken blade, pointing it at Idun. "Fight me. Fight with honor, you worthless scum!"

Lujza was out shopping with Aeris most of the day.

OOC: Callisdrun, if you just want to have Luzja at the VP station, that would be good. TG me with any ideas/questions.

IC: Idun had been quite content with examining the wreckage and even though the presence of an arrow was perplexing, it didn't bother the ancient too much. Unfortunately the vampire was not left alone to ponder the arrow as he soon noted many vampires surrounding him, none of them fledglings either.

At first he thought it was Svartel's forces yet that idea was abandoned when he noticed they were all far too old.

At the head of this massive group was a single ancient, his face contorted with rage as he gazed upon Idun. The vampire couldn't quite place Zero's face but thought he recognised him. Before he could react, the angered vampire spoke, accusing him of what he had supposedly done in secret and laying it all in the open.

Before Idun could reply, a bolt of what appeared to be lightning arced out of the vampire's finger and slammed into Idun, knocking the air out of him as he was forced to the ground. The bolt was more of a physical force than energy, yet it had still singed his elven clothes and burned his flesh.

Now angered beyond curiosity, Idun got to his feet and withdrew his own blade, a diamond edged silver katana identical to Skadi's. Over all these years the vampire had still kept the blade.

"You speak of honour whilst ten of your companions await the oppurtunity to attack me..."

With that Idun placed a hand forward, slamming a ball of psychic force into Zero's gut.

"You shall pay significantly for that..."

Stephen noticed Sigrun's look as he handed the massive grenade launcher to the ancient. The young vampire smiled and sent a quick message to his friend.

"You don't spend a thousand years traveling the world as a human without knowing a few blind spots in security systems. If you want me to smuggle a few weapons to Tarlachia for you, I'll be more than happy to do it."

As the group headed out, Stephen turned his attention to his fledgling. He removed his bloodstone and offered it to her.

"Are you hungry Viannor?"

At the mansion

With a grunt forced out of his lips, Zero was knocked back by Idun's psychic ball, and on pure reflex stabbed the huge Zantetsuken into the ground to stop himself from flying. Even though the sheer power of Idun's psychic force was incredible, Zero was old enough an Ancient to take it in the chest without suffering too much damage, and the huge zweihander served its purpose as well, such that he only slid a few feet back from the mental punch, Zantetsuken chewing up the ground as he ground to a halt. Wiping a trickle of blood from the edge of his lips, Zero scowled at Idun's words, before his expression promptly change to that of an evil-looking grin as he saw Idun draw out his own sword. A katana, made in the same fashion as the Lady Skadi's, and if what he heard was true, then it was made from the same diamond-alloy material as well. He was enough of a connoisseur in swords to recognize quality workmanship, but Zero was also skilled enough a swordsman to recognize that in this battle, Idun's silver-diamond katana was, for possibly one of the few times, disadvantaged against what he knew to be the superior workmanship of the titanium-silver-steel alloy of the Zantetsuken zweihander blade. This would be interesting.

Taking a few solid steps forward to show that he wasn't in the least bothered by Idun's psychic attack, Zero scowled again as he considered Idun's words. "Foolish, Idun", Zero murmured menacingly. "You have no idea of the Noble's code of honor. I fully intend to take you by myself and claim your sword for my own, and the only reason my ten companions are here, is to save me from another backstabbing from your dishonorable Elvish allies, if, or should I say when, it does happen", he sneered. "Now I know what you've done, Idun. While you put up a show with the Lady Skadi about agreeing to a ceasefire, you looked honorable. Who would have thought you would take the dishonorable route, leading the VP onto us to work around that technicality! You are naught more than a backstabber, Idun. At least even I don't hide my daggers behind my back, which I believe is more than you can say", he proclaimed, waving an arm around to indicate the ten Ancients who had stayed behind to guard Zero's life, their positions fully revealed to Idun. At the same time, his movement caused his red trenchcoat, which was open, to reveal also the ten throwing knives he had kept by his side, along with his guns. It was the setting for a Noble's Duel, where the two parties revealed the weapons they had at their disposal, and at no time resorted to hidden, cowardly weapons unless they were revealed beforehand.

"I think I shall give the Lady Skadi a present tonight", Zero growled. At the same time, he shot forth another bolt of lightning again, but this time Idun was prepared, and blocked it easily. It was exactly what Zero wanted though, to distract Idun, giving him enough time to leap into the air, screaming, "I believe the Lady would be pleased to receive your head!"

And with that, the huge Zantetsuken swung down, Idun barely avoiding getting decapitated by parrying it with his katana. The sheer bulk of the Zantetsuken gave it incredible force though, and Idun could not help but stagger back as Zero swung it around for another swing at Idun. As a few more rounds of sparring, where Zero twirled in a circular motion swinging a blade his size whilst Idun did all his best to parry, anyone who had seen Zero fence before would notice a difference. In the past, Zero used to be an incredibly fast whirling dervish of a swordfighter with his Treasure Blades, which were relatively light even double-wielded, and opponents had trouble keeping up with the speed of his two blades. Now that he had traded in the Treasure Blades for the large, bulky Zantetsuken zweihander (double-handed sword), his style had undergone a significant change as well, for Zero, in trading his choice of weaponry, had also traded in sheer speed for sheer power in his fencing style.

If it had been Skadi who had been sparring with him, she would have used her superior speed to undermine Zero's relative lack of speed due to the bulk of the Zantetsuken to strike quickly at Zero. But it was Idun Zero was facing, and if anything could be said about Idun, it was that he didn't have the mastery of swordplay that Skadi possessed, and he definitely did not have Zero's superior swordmastery. Therefore, despite his superior speed, Idun did not know how to employ it effectively against Zero, and was reduced to parrying blow after blow by the Zantetsuken with the katana. Unfortunately, the sheer bulk of the Zantetsuken meant it helped to magnify the force Zero placed behind his blows, and it was tiring Idun's arms.

With a war cry, Zero leapt up in the air, and using all his strength behind his blow, swung Zantetsuken right into Idun again. Idun again had to resort to parrying, but a sudden sharp clink sounded through the air as Zantetsuken hit the katana. It was testimony to Uller's craft that Zero's zweihander still did not manage to slice the katana cleanly in half as it was supposed to do, yet in any case, it had managed to make a notch in the blade of the katana, as well as throw Idun off his footing. That was enough for Zero, who lunged forward with another sword strike at Idun which the latter was unable to parry this time. Idun tried to escape the worst of the blow by leaping backward, and succeeded somewhat, although the tip of Zantetsuken had still managed to carve a bloody line in his skin that extended from his left shoulder to his right hip, and the silver did nothing to help the wound either. Still, it caused enough pain to Idun to distract him once more, allowing Zero to grasp Idun by the arm, charging a wave of electric agony into the elder Ancient.

"Now suffer the pain you deserve!", Zero snarled in Idun's face, a mistake which cost him. For Idun, despite suffering the full effects of Zero's battle energy, managed to deliver a punch with all his might into Zero's gut. With his superior strength, Idun's punch sent Zero flying several feet into the air, before the latter landed on the ground, rolling to his feet. Instantaneously, Zero clutched at his gut, feeling the broken ribs there that were even now beginning to heal.

"Ouch. That hurt.", Zero thought to himself, wincing at the pain. Still, the battle was far from over. With a renewed war cry, Zero charged at Idun again with his great Zantetsuken.......

(OOC: Ass, I did this post with what we had discussed earlier. I hope this is to your liking, and will like to inform you that the battle between Zero and Idun is by no means over yet.)

_________________________________________________________________

A day's shopping could change everything.

In the nighttime streets of Emerald City, two figures seemed to blend in with the rest of Emerald's crowd. And yet, for people who knew who them personally, the changes would be so great as to be astounding.

It had been two centuries ago since a Noble Ancient who was then known only as Zero, had picked up a 15-year-old human girl off the streets of Emerald City. At that time, the girl was close to death from cold and hunger, and she was thin, stick-thin. It was only by an unexplained reason that the vampire had saved that girl, and two centuries later, the very same girl had returned to the streets of Emerald City. Although she was now much changed in every aspect, and now had a different companion with her. Aeris looked around and reminiscened of her beginnings, glancing into the alleyways which once housed her, and which she was sure housed many more tramps such as she once was, long ago. And yet Aeris was no longer that little beggar girl so long ago, who only had rags to wear. The Aeris of today seemed to be wearing just as little as the Aeris of two centuries ago, but this time, it was for a different reason. A shimmering satin halter-neck top which revealed generous acreages of her creamy back, paired with a barely-there miniskirt which almost didn't serve its purpose of protecting her modesty, and knee-length leather boots more commonly seen on the legs of the city's dominatrixes had been Aeris's choice for her makeover, and with a curl on her hairdo as well as some makeup, she had transformed herself from the regal, conservative-looking Elvish Princess she was in reality, into yet another one of Emerald's regular clubbers out for a night of good fun. Which could, in reality, mean sex, drugs, and rock n' roll. Yet that was not her purpose tonight, even though she seemed dressed for the occasion.

"I have a feeling dear ol' Raph is going to scream at me when he sees the bill I've racked up on his credit card", Aeris smiled impishly to herself. "But perhaps not as much as dear Uncle Sigrun would if he ever sees me in this! Hmmm.......perhaps I should put this on the next time I'm alone with Raph? He did say he's all for change after all, and this might appease him just a little......"

Trying hard to stifle a giggle at her naughty thoughts, Aeris turned to Lujza, who she had togged according to what she wanted. "So, Miss Batory", Aeris started. "Shall we go to the VP HQ now?"

(OOC: Callisdrun, feel free to describe how Aeris has had Lujza made up.)

OOC: That's fine GU.

IC: Idun had been sorely mistaken when it came to this somewhat familiar vampire. Whilst there was a reasonable age difference between the two, Zero had skills of the blade far superior to Idun's and combatting such was most tiresome.

Unfortunately for Idun, there was no elven group hiding in the shadows with bows and other such weapons. He'd come into Emerald all alone, not expecting any trouble. The only weapon he possessed was the katana crafted by Uller and it was obviously inept to combat that massive long sword Zero wielded. Idun was starting to get desparate, he couldn't keep up this fight.

The ancient vampire's face screwed up in pain as Zero's silver blade sliced down the flesh of his torso. The cut wasn't deep or particularly threatening yet the sting of silver was unmistakable. Even since the curse had been placed upon his kind, even the slightest touch of silver caused extreme pain for vampires. Of course the tolerance of pain was different amongst everyone, yet Idun had never been partial to it.

With Zero backed away after recieving a thundering punch to the gut, Idun had time to organise himself. He couldn't overpower the vampire as Zero was obviously a far better warrior and possessed a heavier blade, so Idun had to depend on his speed. Unfortunately he was quite drained from merely blocking the several attacks Zero had unleashed. He needed to stop blocking and start avoiding.

The ancient vampire remained still as Zero charged towards him, the massive blade held at the ready to cleave Idun in half if it got the chance. At the last moment, Idun launched himself into the air and used the heel of his boot to deliver a forceful strike upon Zero's head. As he descended towards the ground once again, Idun took the oppurtunity of a stunned opponent to swing around with his blade, aiming a strike at Zero's exposed neck.
____________

As could be expected, the streets were relatively deserted save for those sporting night clubs and other such night life venues. Such places had significant security to protect their customers from vampiric threat and so the blood suckers tended to stay away from such places.

Hondur led the group, keeping a fast pace several steps ahead of the others. The vampire said nothing as he led them through the streets, content with his own thoughts. In order to give Zero enough time and to conserve energy the group was walking and would soon take to the buildings in order to approach undetected.

Skadi didn't bother approaching Hondur and merely kept by Sigrun's side, her shoulder pressing against his. As always the female vampire had opted to use her ancient katana yet had also grabbed two glocks just in case. She didn't particularly favour guns but couldn't deny their usefulness in some cases.

"He just needs time and space. Once he does this, he can start to get over it."
_______________

Ivan awoke with a start, the image of his vampiric sister sticking in his mind. He knew she was dead and it was for the better, he couldn't stand the thought of his family being one of those creatures, it was a fate worse than death.

Rolling off the leather couch in his office, Ivan hit the ground with a grunt and thud. His muscles were still very sore from various vampiric encounters over the last night and the glasses of vodka had done little to ease his muscles and more his mind.

Now leaning against the couch, Ivan sighed. He was tired, a little hungover and generally not in a good mood. He doubted he would go out on patrol tonight and simply have a break. The vampires had suffered a massive blow and would be licking their wounds so the oppurtunity for rest had presented itself nicely.

And so the VP captain crawled back onto the couch and fell back into an unsettled sleep, completely unaware of what was to come.
_____________

Svartel was in a good mood. After spending some quality time with a young family the previous night, the ancient vampire didn't feel any particular need to get involved in the violent affairs of this night and so returned to his own little coven building.

Currently it was in far better state than Hondur's coven and Svartel felt quite proud of himself for that. Night by night conditions within the building improved as more tradesmen were sired and forced to work under Svartel's command. That was all coming along well and he felt it was time to think of the future.

He needed numbers. Skadi and her kind had been in Assington for ages, the elves had replenished their kind elsewhere and there were always plenty of humans around. It was time Svartel focused upon gathering more to his own coven, especially older vampires, the rogues that roamed the streets of Assington.

He would pull them to his forces and even dive into the supplies of other cities if necessary. Svartel intended to have all the playing cards when the final battle arrived.

Ouch. Two physical strikes from an Ancient nearly 3 centuries older than he was isn't fun at all. And Idun had almost knocked a fang out too. This was quite a humiliation for someone who prided himself on being a Kenshin, or in Japanese, a Sword-Heart, a warrior who lived by the ways of the sword. Being taken by surprise twice in a row, even if it were relatively minor attacks compared to the beating he had been handing out to Idun, was an embarassment to Zero, something that could only inflame his heart further. But even then, Idun had played whatever cards he has well, and now he was descending upon him, his katana headed straight for his neck. As much as he hated it, Zero had to grudgingly admit that Idun had the right idea when he surprised himself like that with that kick to the head, and he had fallen for it like a bull that could not help but charge at a red flag hung out by a matador. No more though, he wasn't going to fall for that again. Besides, as Idun now came at him, his katana out for his neck, Zero managed a grin as he thought of one thing; that as there is a trap, there is also the reverse trap.

As Idun would know, when Zero suddenly snapped a leg up into the air, catching Idun in the face just as he was about to decapitate Zero. As Idun flew off in another direction, Zero regained his feet and chased after the recovering Idun, who already had his katana raised in preparation for another battle of life and death. With a roar of fury, Zero engaged Idun in yet another clash of blades against the latter's will, and as the great Zantetsuken swung in all directions in its quest for Idun's blood, the great blade chewed up the ground where the two combatants fought, in effect marking out the progress of the territory they staked. From it, it was obvious that once again, Idun was retreating from Zero's onslaught. Sprays of soil flew everywhere as Zero continued on his mad quest for vengeance, forcing Idun further and further to defeat in his fury.

It was obviously only a matter of time before Idun got overwhelmed, and it happened when, desperate to end it quickly, Idun tried a counterattack to force Zero off him. That was a sore mistake, as Zero saw it coming. In a flash, Zero had Idun's katana trapped on the Zantetsuken, and with a great yank, the katana was soaring into the air, and Idun was left defenseless. Knowing this, Idun attempted to run, but he was too late as Zero swung the great zweihander back, and slashed a great wound in his abdomen, spilling copious amounts of blood on the ground. With a grunt, Idun collapsed onto the ground while still in mid-liftoff, and just like that, the battle was over. Zero's swordmastery had decisively defeated what on paper was Idun's superiority in speed, strength, and psychic power. With a scowl on his face, Zero strode towards the fallen Idun, who was even then still spilling blood out of a large wound that wouldn't heal properly, and who was looking very bad indeed. Silently, the blade of Zantetsuken was placed at Idun's throat.

"You have lost. As per the tradition of the Noble Fencing Masters, I claim thy sword as thine own", Zero solemnly proclaimed, as he summoned Idun's katana to his left hand through psychic means. "It is a good sword. Too good for a cowardly traitor, and a weakling like you", he scowled again, pondering what to do with him. After a while, Zero made up his mind.

"I would gladly have subjected you to the justice of the Nobles", Zero sneered at Idun. "But in this case, I believe it would be far better for you to face the Lady Skadi's brand of justice. I have seen it firsthand, and I believe once you have witnessed it, you would be begging me for the Justice of the Nobles instead. Now, I shall take you to face your fate. Good evening, Idun."

With that, Zero turned to his companions, who seeing that the battle was over, was approaching.

"Do you have the silver wire ready?"
"Yes, sir."
"Good. Truss him up. Make sure he's fit as a present for the Lady Skadi. I am sure she will like this."

A day's shopping could change everything.

In the nighttime streets of Emerald City, two figures seemed to blend in with the rest of Emerald's crowd. And yet, for people who knew who them personally, the changes would be so great as to be astounding.

It had been two centuries ago since a Noble Ancient who was then known only as Zero, had picked up a 15-year-old human girl off the streets of Emerald City. At that time, the girl was close to death from cold and hunger, and she was thin, stick-thin. It was only by an unexplained reason that the vampire had saved that girl, and two centuries later, the very same girl had returned to the streets of Emerald City. Although she was now much changed in every aspect, and now had a different companion with her. Aeris looked around and reminiscened of her beginnings, glancing into the alleyways which once housed her, and which she was sure housed many more tramps such as she once was, long ago. And yet Aeris was no longer that little beggar girl so long ago, who only had rags to wear. The Aeris of today seemed to be wearing just as little as the Aeris of two centuries ago, but this time, it was for a different reason. A shimmering satin halter-neck top which revealed generous acreages of her creamy back, paired with a barely-there miniskirt which almost didn't serve its purpose of protecting her modesty, and knee-length leather boots more commonly seen on the legs of the city's dominatrixes had been Aeris's choice for her makeover, and with a curl on her hairdo as well as some makeup, she had transformed herself from the regal, conservative-looking Elvish Princess she was in reality, into yet another one of Emerald's regular clubbers out for a night of good fun. Which could, in reality, mean sex, drugs, and rock n' roll. Yet that was not her purpose tonight, even though she seemed dressed for the occasion.

"I have a feeling dear ol' Raph is going to scream at me when he sees the bill I've racked up on his credit card", Aeris smiled impishly to herself. "But perhaps not as much as dear Uncle Sigrun would if he ever sees me in this! Hmmm.......perhaps I should put this on the next time I'm alone with Raph? He did say he's all for change after all, and this might appease him just a little......"

Trying hard to stifle a giggle at her naughty thoughts, Aeris turned to Lujza, who she had togged according to what she wanted. "So, Miss Batory", Aeris started. "Shall we go to the VP HQ now?"

(OOC: Callisdrun, feel free to describe how Aeris has had Lujza made up.)

Lujza had been done up not quite as drastically as Aeris, but she still looked quite different from the Lujza anyone had known. Her hair, normally either down or in a pony-tail, was in many thin braids, a hairstyle that, though popular Callisdrun (she had reasoned that none of the VP had ever been there), she had never tried. It was quite odd. Hopefully they won't get in the way when everything starts going to Hel she thought.

Due to the wonders of modern make-up, and advice from Aeris, her once ghostly skin was now a very light tan cream color. And, somehow, it looked like it was naturally that way.

Her clothes were far different than what she normally wore. She now sported denim capris, with kelly-green Converse All-stars replacing her combat boots. Instead of the loose-fitting black tank-tops she was accustomed to, she now wore a white shirt that though three-quarter sleeve, was so tight to leave almost nothing to the imagination. Hopefully I'll be able to change back shortly before the action starts. It was not some prudish modesty that irritated her about the clothes, in fact, she wouldn't have particularly minded going around stark naked, and in Callisdrun, she could have. No, she worried that she wouldn't be comfortable enough to be fully effective in her new garments. Luckily, she had the old ones in a bag.

"So, off to the party, I suppose," she said to Aeris. Her tone had a trace of sarcasm that was enough for Aeris to know what she meant, but such that no one else would know what she was talking about.

Idun grunted in pain as the blade sliced across his abdomen, unleashing vital blood and threatening to spill forth his intestines. Fortunately the wound wasn't quite deep enought to allow such, yet Idun had the feeling it wasn't far off. Falling to the ground, he panted heavily as Zero began speaking, the words hardly reaching his ears.

The ancient vampire had foretold his defeat against this younger, more able vampire and so had called for help. Hopefully Ashur and his brethren would arrive in time to prevent himself from being taken prisoner. Whilst Idun had never personally witnessed the fury of his one time friend, Idun had heard stories and to be honest it frightened him. She was so angry, violent and unforgiving. The complete opposite to himself.

Coughing up blood, Idun heaved as the thick substance exited his mouth to fall upon his grey elven robes. It had been a long time since he'd experienced such pain and he wasn't taking it well. Gazing back up at Zero, Idun shook his head.

"It would not be a good idea for myself to meet... with Skadi."

At that point a brief smile crossed the vampire's face. Stepping out of the shadows, twenty cloaked figures bearing bows approached the pair, eyeing Zero and the other Nobles. Everyone remained still as a line of elven arrows were fired at the ground, creating a line between Zero and Idun. The shafts glowed with a dull light, indicating there was more to them than mere projectiles.

"As it seems, I shall be leaving."

Skadi didn't bother approaching Hondur and merely kept by Sigrun's side, her shoulder pressing against his. As always the female vampire had opted to use her ancient katana yet had also grabbed two glocks just in case. She didn't particularly favour guns but couldn't deny their usefulness in some cases.

"He just needs time and space. Once he does this, he can start to get over it."


Sigrun maintained his silence as he kept up with the brisk pace that Hondur had set. He glanced over to Stephen, who was taking the time to glance into the nightly human venues, almost as if he wished he were a part of that world again. Sigrun returned his gaze forward as he watched Hondur lead the way.

So purposeful. Great is the anger of love in combat. Great is love's strength.

He looked sideways to Skadi, "Do you remember the time I was paralyzed in the ice cave? How did that make you feel then? Did you take unto yourself a purposeful stride like Hondur holds now?"

Sigrun already suspected the answer, but he had never gotten around to asking Skadi about it. He wanted to hear it from her, to settle the suspicions once and for all.

This was a most unexpected development, and Zero grinded his teeth as he stared with frustration at the sudden appearance of twenty Elves right in front of him. This time, he was on the losing end of numbers, yet as he thought it through, it didn't faze him one bit at all. After all, these were just Elves, and what he had at his disposal were ten Ancients of the Noble line, more than a match for anything they might come up against. Including Elves. With a sneer, Zero snapped off a quick repartee, "Who dismissed you, weakling?", and attempted to walk past the line of glowing arrows, not caring what they were.

Attempted, was the key word. For the very moment he tried to cross the line, he was flung back as if from some invisible force, hitting the ground hard and leaving him winded. The rest of the Nobles immediately took up defensive positions as he recovered, and behind a unified shield of battle energy, they pointed their own guns at the Elves, preparing for an attack. Pissed, Zero scrambled up quickly from the ground, frustrated at his inability to get to Idun, despite his overwhelming anger.

"That little trick isn't going to stop me, Idun!", Zero snarled, as he brought up the Zantetsuken, prompting all the other Nobles to draw their swords as well. As one, the swords started to glow purple, concentrating in themselves the battle energy of the Nobles. With another gesture by Zero, all the Nobles lowered their swords to point it directly at the invisible barrier between them and the Elves. It was obvious that they were about to charge all their energies towards breaking the barrier........

_________________________________________________________________


With a smile, Aeris acknowledged the cynical tone in Lujza's voice as they walked through the streets. As they made their way towards their destination, there were wolf whistles aplenty, most of it directed at the hot duo who were undoubtedly raising the temperatures of hot-blooded males passing their way.

"Don't these guys realise that we're a little out of their reach?", Aeris joked as she batted her eyelashes at yet another one of these human wolves who had eyes only for them. Yet as they made their way towards their actual destination, the wolf whistles grew fewer and fewer. After all, how many clubber chicks would head for the VP HQ anyway, unless there was some trouble?

"So", Aeris stated as they neared the VP HQ. "How do you think we should approach this? I mean, you're the one who met this Ivan Kolstov before."

Stephen stared at the humans going to clubs and late night resturants and stores. Some days, he wished he was still human, he wished the bite had just made him an immortal, and not made him a vampire. He liked his vampire powers, but he was completely different in terms of personality from anyone else in his breed. Stephen had not killed for food in since he was a year old and now he was feeding more and more on his bloodstone, though he still enjoyed sinking his fangs into a neck every couple nights or so.

Stephen turned to catch Sigrun staring at him, thankfully no one else seemed to have noticed. He wondered occasionally if he actually had a sire, if he would be any different, if he would be more cold and kill his prey.

Stephen shoved these thoughts from his mind and moved up to Hondur.

"Hondur, are we going to alert Aeirs and Lujza before we attack and get them out of the station before we hit? Or are we going to attack with them inside?"

"Are you hungry Viannor?"

Viannor was keeping up with Stephen as they followed Hondur, Skadi and the group of very angry vampires heading towards the VP Headquarters. Her long coat wrapped tightly around her rather failed to hide the hopefully-bulletproof body armour she wore, though it did cover the twin HK USPs she wore strapped to her lower back, which was slightly more important.

She looked at the bloodstone, an odd creation from her point of view - but then again what had been nothing more than a bad bedtime story had become a forboding reality for Viannor, so this was nothing new - but she saw the need and felt the hunger, too, within her. It had been the previous evening when she had quickly drained the VP officer in Hondur's mansion, now rubble in their vengeful wake.

"Yes," she said, taking it from him, "thankyou, Stephen."

Viannor plunged her fangs into the stone and drank, an odd sensation - yet again - for one who was only beginning to get used to the idea of drinking the life's blood of a human being. But then again Viannor herself was no longer human, she was now a predator of man. At least, tonight she was.

"Hondur," Stephen asked after the group had been travelling a while, "are we going to alert Aeris and Lujza before we attack and get them out of the station before we hit? Or are we going to attack with them inside?"

Perhaps still in the frame of mind that she was on the elite Lord-Protector's Council back in Starblaydia, Viannor immediately spoke up:

"Perhaps we could get a message to them when we are about to attack. Being assaulted from within and without would surely throw the VP off-balance. We would only need to make sure we got to them before they were cut-off."

Skadi was silent a moment as she thought back to the event. It had been many hundreds of years ago, during the second Assingtonian war when Alexander had first decided to become a specialised pain for the vampires of Assington. Closing her eyes, Skadi recalled the images of that event as if it were yesterday. It was good to know her memory wouldn't fail her.

"Indeed I did. As you can imagine, I couldn't have my very fledgling fall to the sting of some water beast. And as you know, such determination was fruitful. So here you are today, albeit not quite the same at that time."

Even as she spoke with her elven lover, Skadi's eyes darted all over the street and surrounding buildings, always on the look out for potential threats.

"I would suggest that we not impede whatever he wishes to do. It's best that he gets it out."
__________________

Hondur had continued to remain silent, not paying attention to the conversations between those behind him as he contemplated the immediate future. There was no doubt in his mind that the VP would suffer for this. The mansion was of no particular consequence as Hondur had never considered himself a man of possessions, yet losing Alyssandra was an entirely different matter.

Suddenly the ancients was yanked from the solace of his own thoughts as Stephen addressed him.

"I shall alert them before we attack, so they are ready. If all goes to plan, it will be chaos and they should be able to handle themselves for the few moments until we get inside."

Just to reasure himself, Hondur reached out with his ancient mind until he came across the familiar presence of Luzja, accompanied by Aeris.

"Ladies, we shall be in position soon. I trust you will be as well?"

Without warning Hondur took a left into a a thin side alley and made the single leap onto the roof of a two storey building before continuing his march, making the small jumps bewteen buildings with ease.
_______________

With Zero thrown to the ground, Ashur and another elf had taken the oppurtunity to approach Idun and aid the vampire to his feet. Quickly Ashur revealed a leaf bearing an odd smelling cream, evidently something concocted from the forests of Emerald.

"It won't heal you immediately, but it should ease the pain and prevent any further bleeding."

Idun could only smile in thanks as the cream was quickly smeared across his wound. The elves had little time to waste as a massive wave of Noble battle energy surged foward and slammed into their runed arrows, causing a brief flash of energies as the two opposing forces cancelled eachother out, leaving the elves with nothing to hide behind.

Idun and Ashur were now within the safe company of the other elves, yet they still needed to make an escape quickly. Arrows were nocked once again and fired into the earth, this time at seemingly random places. Within seconds of contact, thick black smoke began pouring out of the arrows, clouding the air around the mansion wreckage.

Unlike natural fogs and the sort, this smoke didn't seem to dissipate and merely spread around ground level. Vampires may be able to see in darkness, yet they couldn't see through smoke.

"Perhaps another time vampire. I would like to reclaim my sword..."

Zero snarled at Idun's voice wafting out of the fog, extremely frustrated by the way the Elves were thwarting him from carrying out his own brand of justice upon Idun. And now the smoke that was surrounding him and his men felt threatening, not least because it meant they could not see where the Elves were anymore. This was the prelude to an attack against which they had no defense.......except a desperate drill.

"Nobles of the Blood, All-round Defense!", Zero commanded, and like a well-trained squad, the Nobles immediately took up positions, forming a circle of defense where everyone is looking outwards, covering all angles from which the Elves might attack them. "Fire!", he commanded, and as one, the Nobles opened fire with their weapons, firing wildly into the night, spraying at unseen targets which may or may not be there. In the midst of it all, Zero was heard shouting, "You want your sword back? Come and get it, coward!"

The commotion lasted fully a minute, by which time even the magical smoke laid down by the Elves was starting to clear. The Nobles looked around for targets, bodies, anything.......and yet there was nothing at all. The Elves had disappeared without putting up a fight, and apparently Idun wasn't as interested in getting his sword back as he had indicated. In other words, they had chickened out of the fight, leaving them with nothing to indicate that anything had happened here.

"Damned!", Zero sword, punching his fist into the ground in frustration. After a while, he stood up again, and his face was grim, but calm. While the rest awaited orders from Zero, he merely stood there, then drew out Idun's katana, examining it closely.The diamond-silver slender blade was beautifully well-made, and even the carved words "Idun" seemed like it was supposed to be there. Wordlessly, Zero wielded the katana, and went through a few of the motions of a swordplay movement, before nodding his head.

"This is a good blade, indeed. Whichever master of swordsmithing existed in that time knew what he was doing", Zero murmured to himself. Sheathing the katana, Zero came back to reality, and looked around at his men, still awaiting his orders.

"Come on. The rest are waiting for us."

And with that, they took to the air.......

_________________________________________________________________

In the wake of the movement of the vampiric forces making their way towards the VP, a second wave of similar forces was also doing the same. The Nobles were making their way, and soon the attack could commence. Major Ambrose, leading the force, decided at this time to send a mental message to Hondur.

"Commander Hondur, this is Major Ambrose. General Celadrin has been sidetracked and will be arriving later than expected. I am currently leading the Noble force in his absence, and we are in place. I await your order to strike, Commander."

"He seems to respond well to mild flattery. Nothing over the top, but make him believe that you respect him and consider him an... expert." Lujza said the last word sarcastically.

She raised an eyebrow in amusement at the whistles the men gave her and Aeris. She didn't mind, she actually rather liked men to look at her, though, she would be displeased if any more than a handful did more than that.

She got Hondur's message and sent back a reply that said simply that they would be arriving soon.

"Just divert him, get him to start talking at length. Act like you know a little, but would like him to tell you more of the 'vampire threat' or some bullshit like that." Lujza thought about what to do once the attack started. "I think that once the attack commences, we should try and hamper them by destroying whatever computers run their security systems. Chaos will serve to our advantage."

By the time most of the smoke had cleared, the elves and Idun were completely gone. They knew very well that this so called Noble force of vampires were more than a match for themselves and so had opted to get out of the city as soon as possible.

And so Idun found himself being rushed through the dark streets of Emerald by his elven companions as they darted through the alleys and shadows as if they knew the place like home. It wasn't long before they found themselves outside the city limits and could finally fall into a light walk for the remainder of the journey.

Still in pain, Idun could only think about the blade he had left behind. Whilst not a warrior, he treasured the gift from Uller so many centuries ago. He would have to get it back.
________________

After another fifteen minutes of silence, Hondur finally halted upon the edge of a roof. Before him was the Emerald City VP HQ, a large sterile looking building of many levels, most above ground yet not without its own secrets within the earth. Hondur's gaze narrowed.

Most of the coven forces were out providing the distraction, yet a respectable force were atop the other building surrounding the VP HQ, all bearing small explosive weapons. The intention was to blast their way into the building, unleashing all hell in the process. The VP wouldn't know what hit them.

At that point, Ambrose's voice echoed within Hondur's head.

"Alright Ambrose. We're in position as well. We're merely waiting upon word of the two ladies inside, then we're a go. The coven vampires shall provide the initial attack from the side, plunging the place into chaos. Give us about a minute or two, then your Nobles storm the front entrance. They'll have no idea what hit them."

Finally Hondur turned around and watched the group behind him for a minute before opening his mouth.

"We strike within a few minutes."

That was all he said.
_____________

Radios and alarms buzzed into life as multiple distress calls reached the VP HQ, alerting the offices of the dire situation many other VP men were in. In order to alert everyone, a young officer linked the radio broadcast to the P.A. system of the building.

"Alert to all available VP forces. Stations six, seven, eight, nine and ten are all under heavy attack from vampiric forces. We are being overwhelmed and request immediate backup."

That was enough for most of the officers to rush into the carpark or onto the streets, frantically entering their vehicles and racing towards the various stations in order to aid the comrades.

Ivan remained ignorantly asleep, his men deciding their captain needed the rest.

The two ladies in question had just reached the sterile-looking VP Headquarters. "All right then, Miss Batory, let's go!", Aeris said, as they entered the VP HQ.

The building looked just as drab and sterile from the inside, looking almost like a typical police headquarters. Everybody looked like they were in a rush, as was evidenced from the way they seemed to be running, and there didn't seem to be a single officer who noticed the two hot chicks that had just walked into the sterile lobby. Which was definitely unusual in a place such as the VP HQ, isn't it? As the world appeared to rush by them, Aeris, along with Lujza in tow, tried to catch the attention of someone, anyone, yet she was facing difficulty in doing so, even as scantily-clad as she was, which truly made no sense. At last, she managed to pull a rushing officer aside.

"Sir, I'm looking for a Captain Kolstov, do you........", Aeris began, only to be cut off by the officer. "Captain Kolstov is currently indisposed, now would you get off me? You can see for yourselves that I'm busy here!", he yelled, before running off. Looking at his retreating back, Aeris seemed lost in thought as she put a finger to her lips, wondering what this meant. Finally, she grinned widely, as she figured out what was happening.

"I guess this means we won't be dealing with no Ivan anytime soon", Aeris quipped. "C'mon Miss Batory, let us go to the C&C." And so indeed they did, following the signs that pointed them the way to the Command and Control room of the Headquarters. Still, no one looked at the two clubber chicks tottering around the corridors, not even when they came up against the front door of the C&C, which was obviously secured by a variety of means, including eye-recognition software, thumbprint-recognition software, and other kinds of gizmos guarding a heavily-fortified door.

"Now what?", Aeris asked Lujza, looking at her.

Sigrun withdrew Lanta in his hand as he sought out Aeris's mind. Arleni, having remained silent for a while for almost twenty four hours, stepped up next to him and drew her own sword, a curved elven blade, menacingly sharp and anyone's enemy if used against them.

"Found her." Sigrun stated, before speaking to Aeris telepathically, Aeris...where are you in the building?

A brief view of what lay before Aeris and Luzja flashed before Sigrun's mind and he grimaced slightly. He recalled the image back to his mind, and then smiled as he saw something so incredibly simple, a fatal flaw in the security.

Aeris. Use the air ducts.

Sigrun broke the connection and looked to Skadi, "They're heading to the command room. They're going to disable the upper echleons of the VP. Chaos will be our friend..."

He smiled slightly, then looked to Arleni, who did not share the smile. She seemed worried actually.

"She'll be fine. We both trained her well." Sigrun stated to her. Arleni nodded in agreement but replied, "I know, but she's my daughter."

Sigrun nodded understandingly as he returned his gaze to the police that were swarming in different directinos for their stations in dire need of assistance.

"I was never an intelligence officer, just one of the regular point and shoot type grunts," Lujza said with a shrug. She looked around, up and down, though it appeared Aeris was listening to something, Or someone talking inside her head she thought.

There had to be a way in, every security system had its weaknesses. "If a door closes, a window opens," she said idly.

OOC: To keep things moving, I'll assume Luzja and Aeris have given the signal to attack...

IC: "Now..."

That was it, Aeris had delivered the signal and it was time to seek his bloody vengence. Immediately Hondur concentrated fully, reaching his mind out to every vampire involved in this operation.

"We are striking the HQ now. You all know your roles, do them well and this night shall go down in history."

"Let's move."

As the words escaped Hondur's lips, several bright flashes could be seen from the buildings surrounding the VP HQ as RPGs, rocket launchers and other explosive projectiles were unleashed upon the building. Thunder erupted around the inner city area as the explosions rocked the very earth, forcing the walls of the VP building apart and creating several openings for the many vampires ready to attack.

Once the explosions had died down, Hondur made a single leap and landed upon the front steps of the building with epert balance and agility. Flexing his arms, claw like metal blades shot forth from his sleeve and sat at the ready above his fists. With the RPG strapped upon his back, Hondur plunged into the doorway, looking forward to the chaos that would ensue.
______________

Skadi took one last glance at Sigrun and squeezed his hand. She'd been a little edgy about this battle for some reason yet she was unable to explain it. Drawing her katana, the ancient vampire sighed, as if she was almost tired of the fighting.

"Another day, another war. Be careful..."

That said, Skadi took an even bigger leap than Hondur and landed upon the roof of the VP building. Taking a quick look around, Skadi found what she was looking for and promptly kicked in the roof exit. And so the female vampire disappeared into the chaotic mess that was the VP HQ.
________________

Ivan awoke with wide eyes as his office shook to pieces, the wall opposite him was half caved in and quickly catching alight. It took him a few moments to realise what was happening but once it dawned upon him, his voice could be heard above the roaring explosions.

Fruious beyond belief that the vampires would have the nerve to attack his station, the HQ, Ivan quickly grabbed a jacket, his gun belt and several clips of ammo. On his way past the door, the VP captain's arm shot to his right and grabbed a long German dagger from the wall, the blade partially silver of course.

Now in a dark corridor lit only by nearby flames, Ivan found his fury doubled when a snarling vampire dropped from the ceiling before him. The vampire hissed and charged for the captain and super human speeds. Unfortunately for the vampire, Ivan also happened to move very quickly. Quick enough to bring his dagger up so that it pierced the throat of the vampire as he landed upon Ivan.

Ivan gazed into the vampire with a malice never seen before as he drew his own pistol and placed it against the vampires head and squeezed. Blood now splattered upon his face, Ivan ignored the vampiric corpse and got to his feet.

There were vampires in his station and he feared he didn't have enough ammo...

As soon as the vampires made thier move, Stephen moved with the surge. There was a brief chatter of gunfire from the building, cutting down several vampires near him. Stephen moved through one of the holes and fired several bursts, killing two VP officers and chasing a third back into the station. Stephen moved slowly into the room as more vampires came rushing past him.

A click drew the vampire's attention. He turned his head to see a wounded VP officer leveling a Walther P99 at him. It was going to end right there, all of his years of accidental immortality would end in the blink of an eye. Before the VP officer could pull the trigger, his brains decorated the wall as someone shot him. Stephen looked up to see a female vampire in black leather pants, plain a blood red t-shirt with a black leather vest.

"Thanks." Stephen said. The woman wasn't part of the coven, probably a street vampire who saw a chance to take vengence upon the VP and joined in the fray.

She smiled. "No problem. Watch yourself young one."

It was then she moved past him into the battle. Stephen moved out of the room and down a hallway. He remembered from what Viannor had sent him of the VP HQ layout, he already had his target. Several minutes of quick firefights with VP officers and traveling the corridors, dumped Stephen in a dark hallway.

The vampire smiled as he saw the back of a man walking away from a vampire corpse. He saw the captain's insignia on his uniform.

"Hold it right there Captain Kolstolv. Drop your guns, if you take another step you will have a bullet in your head."

Minutes ago.....

It looked like a dead end to Aeris, as she pondered the incredible barricade that was the front door to the VP C&C. Lujza also didn't have an idea what to do either, although what she said did make some sense. The problem is, this door was locked. But where was the window?

Aeris. Use the air ducts.

That was it! Why didn't she think of that before? Her gaze travelled upward to the air duct that dear old Uncle Sigrun had pointed out to her in her mind, and she grinned. But then, she saw a flaw in the plan: they were out in the open, and questions would definitely be raised if the VP officers saw two chicks trying to get into an air duct, wouldn't it? Still, that wasn't too hard a problem, as the solution was right in front of them.

"Miss Batory, follow me", Aeris said, as she literally dragged Lujza all the way into a woman's washroom. Which also had an air duct somewhere, of course. It was only a matter of time before the girls were right over the air vent that led down into the C&C, and they saw officers over their computers, coordinating the defenses of the VP stations across Emerald City, which even now were being attacked. The officers were so fixated on their computer screens, it was no wonder they were utterly surprised when Aeris broke in through the air vent, Staff in hand. And that was the last thing they knew before a blinding flash of light from the Staff knocked them out cold.

Looking around at the unconscious heaps, Aeris sighed softly. "Well, I guess even the most well-protected fortresses have their weak points, huh?", she said, mostly to herself. With a swing of the Staff, she brought it crashing down onto a terminal, shutting it down for good. And as she walked around, smashing terminals left and right, she sent a mental message to both Hondur and Sigrun.

"Now....."

_________________________________________________________________


The lurch of movement within the ranks of the Assingtonians was the cue. With keen eyes, Ambrose surveyed the situation, seeing for himself just how the attack was commencing. As he looked on, the Assingtonians blew holes in the defenses of the VP building, weak points that would soon be exploited by the second wave of Noble forces smashing its way in.......and taking whatever it wanted.

"Alright, remember the plan of the General", the Major relayed his thoughts to his lieutenants, who in turn relayed it to all the vampires of the Noble force. "Take anything we can use. Their guns, their vehicles, their toys. Take whatever you can, don't be preoccupied with just destroying. Take all the documents. Loot the HQ dry."

And with that, the Noble force surged forward, like a plague encroaching on an embattered fortress....

With deftness of hand, Lujza opened all the control terminals, so that the wires and internal workings were visible, and then got her gun out of her bag. It had been surprisingly easy to sneak into the VP, but then again, they had never had any reason to suspect two apparently normal human females coming in during the day.

"Stand back a bit Aeris," she said, toting the AK. Though Aeris had disabled a terminal, there were several more, and Lujza wanted to put them permanently out of commission.

She pumped several of the exploding rounds she had into each open terminal . Those that weren't completely destroyed caught fire and soon were blazing. There were only a couple of those, however. Turning to Aeris, she said, somewhat dryly, "I hope you don't mind if I change out of these clubber clothes in front of you?" Without waiting for an answer, she quickly started changing. It would take less than a minute.

Ivan halted more in irritation than he did from the warning. He was not about to let some snotty nosed little vampire order him around, just because he was armed. Long dagger still in hand, Ivan dropped to a knee, spun around and hurled the dagger at Stephen in the time it took the vampire to get a few rounds off, clearing his head.

Even Ivan was slightly surprised at his speed as the dagger charged towards Stephen. It wasn't a good sign. Cursing to himself, Ivan got to his feet once again and charged around the corner, coming across a massive whole within the side of a wall, leading into an alley beside the building. Opting for the exit, Ivan jumped through the wall and landed outside, barely clearing a pile of trash cans.

Fixing up all his gear, Ivan looked upwards to swore very loudly this time. It was a full moon once again. Ivan was beginning to wonder whether there was something wrong with this nation, the moon seemed to be full far too many times in the month. He could feel it effecting him, chaning him in ways he hadn't felt for years.

No, he couldn't allow this. Looking away from the moon, Ivan focused. He would have to get back to the office and inject himself, before he changed...
____________

After charging down the stairs, Skadi had burst through the nearest door and had been met by the startled faces of six large men, all bearing daggers and blades of some description. By the looks of things they had been sparring yet the attack and summoned them into action.

It didn't take long for the VP officers to realised Skadi was a vampire and so their faces turned from shock to anger as they all moved upon her. Blade in hand, Skadi stepped forward and lodged her blade within the first man's throat, her lunge far too fast for the men to counter.

After watching their companion die, the remaining men noted they were dealing with a vampire older than most and dropped their blades, all retrieving glocks from their side holsters. Skadi couldn't help but flash the men a view of her vampiric teeth. Human always seemed to assume that a gun would always defeat a sword.

Within seconds bullets filled the air, all soaring towards Skadi's calm form. Skadi merely held out a hand and concentrated, stopping all bullets before her. This resulted in several gasps from the soldiers, they'd never battled a vampire this strong before. And they never would again. Sick of the battle, Skadi reversed the bullets and plunged them into the men that had unleashed them. All five of them fell to the ground, large exit wounds upon the back of their heads.

It was never a challenge for the ancient vampire anymore, yet she supposed that was the case when one was over two thousand years old. Wiping the blood off her blade, Skadi sighed and continued through the maze of rooms.
_____________

As Hondur had entered the building, three VP officers were there to meet him immediately, weapons drawn and trained upon his pale form. The ancient vampire snarled at the young men, his face full of rage as his fangs were bared. Before the bullets could be unleashed, Hondur lunged forward and plunged his wrist claws into the chests of two men, ripping down their torsos and slicing through organs during the process.

Now in their dying stages, Hondur allowed the dying men to fall to the ground as he removed his claws and swung to his left, plunging a blade into the neck of the last officer. He too dropped to the ground, gurgling as he attempted to prevent his life pouring away.

Stepping past his bodies, another alarm squealed into life as Hondur stepped through a passageway leading towards the front guard station. Obviously there had been some sort of sensors in place to detect his kind, yet the vampire payed no attention.

The guard station was merely a small room with video cameras, a lockers of weapons and bullet proof glass, a place for the VP to watch all those that came inside the building. As the door was flung open on a mental whim, Hondur stepped inside to find the barrel of an MP5 levelled at his head.

"You're dead vampire..."

Hondur merely glared at the human, not saying a word as his the man before him dropped his gun and placed both hands upon his head. Within seconds he was screaming in agony as the pain intensified, crushing his very skull. Several cracks and splatters signified the deed was done and so Hondur released the pressure.

Giving the room one quick gaze, Hondur snarled once again and retracted his claws, opting to use the grenade launcher Stephen had given him. The ancient vampire backed out of the room yet angled himself for a clear shot at the many computers and screens within the room.

A single shot turned the room into a swirl of flame, plastic and glass. Hondur grinned. There was still much more to destroy. At that point he noted even more alarmed screams and a few more explosions, the Noble wave had arrived.

Stephen let out a cry in pain as the dagger rammed into his gut; the speed of which it had traveled had shocked the Simatarian. He fell to the floor, the silver burning his insides. The young vampire was able to keep his teeth clenched and produced cries of pain through his teeth. He grabbed the handle and yanked it out, dropping the smoking weapon on the ground.

He pressed his hand firmly on his wound as he stood, dropping his rifle. Looking down, Stephen picked up Ivan's blade; it was still smoking from the few drops of his blood still on it. He moved slowly down the hall, looking around for the man. He was still trying to figure out how the blade could have moved so fast. Even a professional bodybuilder would never have the strength to throw it at that speed.

Stephen saw a gaping hole in the wall of the VP HQ and through the smell of death from other parts of the building, smelled Ivan. Stephen removed his hand from his gut, the wound had stopped bleeding, but it would take more time to fully heal the internal injuries. He moved up to the hole and saw Ivan's back.

Without giving the Russian any warning, Stephen gathered every ounce of strength in him and hurled the dagger at the man's back.

Ivan heard the slight exhaling of breath as Stephen threw the dagger, the blade whistling in the air as it soared towards his exposed back. The VP captain attempted to get out of the way yet Stephen threw the blade much faster than he could have hoped for and so it struck home, striking Ivan in the upper shoulder region of his back.

Immediately the burn of silver upon his flesh sent a hidious burn all throughout his nerves, causing his shoulder to spasm in pain as the searing agony ravaged his body. The air filled with an odour of burned flesh and Ivan wasted no time in yanking the silver blade from his shoulder and dropping it to the ground.

Turning around, Ivan snarled in a manner much like a dog would as he gazed upon the guilty vampire. Drawing his pistol, Ivan aimed at Stephen.

"You will pay for that vampire. I don't have time to waste on you so if you would kindly die, I would appreciate it."

Stephen gawked at the sight of the silver burning Ivan. He knew that it wasn't his blood still burning. Holy shit. Stephen finally knew what was up and he looked towards the sky to the full moon. Oh double shit. He knew he had to act fast. The young vampire quickly took cover as Ivan pulled out his pistol and opened fire. A single round grazed his right arm. Stephen cursed and as soon as he didn't hear any more gunfire he jumped out of the hole and slammed into the man.

Stephen knew his unnatural strength for a vampire his age always took an enemy by surprise, he guessed Ivan was probably having the same thoughts. With a grin he tossed the man high into the air. Stephen jumped after Ivan and before the man could fall, the young vampire grabbed him and hurled him downward towards a wall of the VP HQ. Stephen held onto the wall and watched as Ivan smashed into the HQ's wall before tumbling down into a large metal dumpster.

Stephen dropped down and closed the lid. He pulled out one of his pistols and fired a full magizine into the dumpster before he decided Ivan was probably dead.

"Stay dog."

Ivan had definitely underestimated the age of this vampire as he rushed forward and tossed the VP captain into the air as if he were a rag doll. Before he could even react, the vampire was in the air with him and launching the captain back towards the earth.

With a loud thud he collided with the brick wall and fell into an empty dumpster, another thud resounding through the air. The lid slammed shut and a bullet passed through the dumpster, narrowly missing Ivan's shoulder. Still soar from the impact, Ivan leapt upwards and braced himself just under the lid of the dumpster, allowing the bullets to pass under him harmlessly.

Obviously he had to do something before the vampire placed a silver slug between his eyes. Ivan was getting desparate and could think of only one solution. Looking through one of the holes created by a bullet, Ivan gained a clear view of the moon. He focused upon its light, upon its shape and texture. It was so enticing, bringing out a passion within him that had remained subdued for too long.

Finally the last barries snapped and Ivan could feel the change. At first it was simply hair growing all over his body, then his bones began to change form as his muscles bulged. It was certainly a painful process yet Ivan ignored at as his canine sense took over. Eventually a disturbing howl escaped the the dumpster as the lid was shoved off its hinges and a blur of fur, teeth and claws shot upwards.

Another howl escaped Ivan's lips as he landed upon the ground, growling with fury as he gazed upon Stephen.

In the main C&C

Aeris's eyes widened noticably as right in front of her eyes, Lujza Batory promptly began stripping herself, and in no time at all, was butt-naked as she dived into her other set of clothes. She was impressed by Lujza's sheer audacity, even though something else told her that from the way Lujza was behaving, it was as if doing this was natural to her all the time.

"What I would give to be as bold as Miss Batory", Aeris thought to herself, shaking her head. Unfortunately, that was a luxury that seemed like she would never have. After all, what would the populace of Tarlachia think if their beloved Princess of the masses decided to strip down in public as and when she wanted? It would seriously give Sigrun a heart attack, not to mention her mother Arleni. "This Princess stuff sure has too many limitations to speak of", she sighed silently to herself, as she admired Lujza's naked, near-perfect form.

And a moan from one of the prone VP officers, who apparently was regaining consciousness faster than Aeris had predicted, alerted her to the fact that she wasn't the only one admiring Lujza's body. With a few strides, and a good swing of the Nephilim Rose Staff, the Peeping Tom was sent back into a peaceful sleep. And probably a wet dream or two too.

"Hey, no peeping!", Aeris exclaimed, more in jest than in anger, and grinned at Lujza. "So, Miss Batory, you done changing yet? There's still a battle out there, and if you don't hurry up, pretty soon it's going to be more than one Peeping Tom to deal with here."

_________________________________________________________________

Like a tsunami tearing into the coast, the Noble force literally flooded their way into the VP HQ, the pitter-patters of automatic weapons tearing the air. The Noble reinforcements were, to quote a cliche, the last straw that broke the back of the VP camel, and resistance against them was wiped out so easily, Ambrose was beginning to find it boring even though it was only the beginning.

"Well, at least there's the looting to look forward to", Ambrose thought dryly. Indeed, while the Nobles were doing their share of the fighting, much of their attention was focuses on the primary objectve that General Raphael Celadrin had set down for this mission: Loot, pillage, steal. And that is exactly what the Nobles did, wiping out all resistance before taking their stuff. Moving in a well-trained formation, the Noble force split into different sections, each one with their own objectives.

While the main section continued with the general destruction of the HQ, the other sections were also pretty quick into locating their objectives. In a matter of minutes, the sound of multiple engines being gunned could be heard at the underground carpark, as one of the Noble sections broke their way into the armored cars that were still parked there instead of being sent out to fend off the attacks at the outposts. It was only a matter of time before a veritable convoy of what were formerly VP armored vehicles began trundling out into the streets of Emerald City, now commandeered by Noble drivers, and each of them took seperate paths through the streets so as not to be so obvious. Back at the HQ, the guards stationed on the roof were quickly overpowered by another Noble section, who immediately made their way towards the helipads on the roof. Within a matter of minutes, two choppers could be seen lifting off from the VP HQ, a great prize for the Nobles yet again.

Back at the scene of the fighting, it took a bit more gunfighting by the main attack force before the other two sections of the Noble "Acquisition Squads" could get to their objectives. As soon as they could, a large section of Nobles broke away from the main group and headed upstairs to the second floor........where the main armory of the HQ was located. Far more than the heist of the armored cars or the hijacking of the choppers, this section were tasked with looting the richest of the VP treasure trove by far, and they immediately set to work. Like worker ants, Nobles could be seen scurrying from the scene with huge loads of assault rifles, sub machine guns, and no-shit machine guns, as well as the assorted ammunition that came with it. All sorts of explosives were being carted away as well, from the humble grenades to vehicle-busting RPGs, and even C4 charges whenever they were found. It was only a matter of time before they found the portable turrets as well, and pretty soon they were carting those away as well, their section leader figuring that with some work, they could be attached to the armored cars their compatriots had just taken from the underground garage. Even with their effort though, it was becoming apparent that even with the best efforts of the looting Nobles, the VP would still be left with half their equipment left over, for the armory was that huge.

Which left the last of the Acquisition Squads, which were a little more specialized than the rest. Once it was apparent there would be no more resistance in their area, the last Squad of Nobles rushed into the offices. Just how they are more specialized immediately became apparent when they brought out the laptops that they had been dragging around all this time, and started setting it up next to what surviving terminals were left. In no time at all, the select group of hackers were downloading whatever they could from the VP database, while their point n' shoot counterparts were rummaging through the paperwork, deciding what were of interest and therefore should be taken. And that was where Ambrose was, as he busted into the office of Ivan Kolstov, along with some of his men. As his men began setting up their terminals, Ambrose took it upon himself to rummage around. It was not long before he found something of interest.

That said thing of interest being the Elve's note to Ivan, which the Captain had forgotten. With a keen eye, Ambrose studied the note, and it took him only a second to deduce just what it meant. With a grin, Ambrose pocketed the note. The General was going to like this, he thought to himself. That done, he went rummaging some more, and to his surprise, he quickly found yet another thing of interest. With a queer glint in his eye, Ambrose thought about his find: syringes of a green liquid that he had not the skill to identify. "So, this Ivan Kolstov is a drug addict?", Ambrose thought wrongly. "Now that's interesting. I don't know what to make of it, but the General sure will", he thought some more as he pocketed all the syringes he could find in the cupboard.

The battle raged on outside...........

Stephen was rather pleased with himself. He had killed the man behind the death of Hondur's girlfriend Alyssandra. He was sure the ancient would be glad to hear the news. He calmly pulled the spent magizine from his pistol and put in a fresh one. The battle was still raging inside, but he sensed the wave of Nobles; the fight would probably end within the next half and hour.

Stephen turned and was about to pick up Ivan's knife when he heard the howling from the dumpster. The Simatarian turned and stared at it, he wondered if the lycan had survived. His suspicions were confirmed when he was faced with the massive wolf form of Ivan. Though standing six foot one, Stephen had to look up to look Ivan in the face.

"You are one ugly...motherfucker."

The roar caused Stephen to immediatly jump to his left and up. He felt the claws from the lycan tear into his left leg. Stephen clenched his teeth and swung his other leg into the beast, knocking him backward. He looked down at his tattered left jean leg. He would have to remember Ivan had leveled the playing field a bit more with transforming.

Stephen dodged another attack by Ivan and backpedaled down the alley. The vampire tried to grab his pistols, but instead to the lycan near him and sending him tumbling. Stephen looked up at the creature. Though his pistols were gone, Stephen had a suprise up his sleeve, literally.

There was a brief shimmer of something small flying towards Ivan before it struck. There was another shimmer and another sting. Stephen smiled as the lycan backed up, so far he had yet to howl. Though Stephen knew it would be soon. Strapped to his right arm and concealed by his coat, was a small dart launcher activated by pressure from Stephen's arm mucles when he flexed. The darts were a half inch long and made of silver; they were also only slightly thicker than the lead in a number two pencil.

Taking advantage, Stephen moved over to the dumpster and smiled at the lycan.

"Catch dog."

It was then Stephen hurled the dumpster at Ivan.

Lujza grinned at Aeris and then quickly put on one of the loose, black tank tops she favored, and pulled on some pants, lacing up her boots afterwards. She didn't bother with undergarments, and so was changed in an extremely short amount of time.

"I actually don't care if they look," she said. After all, why should she? It was completely legal to run around naked in Callisdrun, though you would be a fool to do it outside any time of the year except summer.

Lujza changed clips on her AK. "Might as well give them something to look at for the last thing they'll ever see" She grabbed the chin of one of the awakening VP, gave him a razor-blade grin and then shot a 7.62 round into his skull right between the eyes. In short order, she killed all the ones that had guns on them.

"Looks like one of them was drinking..." she said, holding two vodka bottles. "Odd... it's Callisdrunian imported." Lujza laughed. For some reason, that seemed ironic to her. She took a swig and offered one to Aeris before dumping the contents of the first all over any computers that didn't look quite ruined enough. "We'd better go," she said. "We should be able to fight our way to Hondur's forces now, since we just decapitated their defense." Lujza sometimes expressed a fondness for dramatic language.

In a place where the majority of combatants were either human or vampiric, it was strange to find an elf tossed into the mix, striking down any that would bring their weapons to bear upon him. Sigrun's blade bit and severed flesh and bone with ease, and quickly became coated in blood. Occassionally, the pistol in Sigrun's other hand fired, when he saw the sword would not move fast enough to deal with another threat. Because he was elven, and dressed noticeably so, it caused VP officers to hesitate, wondering on his position in this hell unleashed.

It was all the time he needed to strike them down with hardly a second thought to the matter. As far as Sigrun was concerned, the officers could wonder in the afterlife why they hadn't shot before asking questions.

It was in this manner that the foes dropped around Sigrun as he moved methodically through the headquarters. Skadi had gone her own route, and he didn't worry about her. They were only human. They were nothing but rats. Easy to kill, easy to get out of the way.

As Sigrun worked and cleaved through his opposing forces, he sang softly an elven tune, a strange thing to hear in a setting such as this. Yet, he had removed himself from the situation, seeing the world move slowly around him and anticipating the attacks by the slightest movements shown or heard.

However, war was never on a single path, for it brought together many new challenges, new situations. One of these situations consisted of the mess hall of the VP Headquarters, where a number of the VP officers had gathered, creating a stronghold, a bastion against the incoming forces of the night. The had made the kitchen their safety area, their controlled space.

Gunfire ceased as the men looked to him puzzled. For the moment, all that moved was the smoky haze from the guns, and the ragged breathing of the officers.

"Who are you? Identify yourself!" demanded one woman, a lieutenant. She raised her pistol higher, fixing it squarely upon the elf. The other officers raised their weapons in response. Several of them could be heard cocking their guns again.

Sigrun looked around at the vampires that had been unfortunate to come before this firing squad. He noted that many had been shot with deadly accuracy.

"I am old. I am a Mith'quessir." he replied at last, returning his gaze to the officers. He stepped closer, lowering his weapons. They didn't seemed fooled, as they kept their weapons trained on him.

He sighed and closed his eyes, "You bore me." And with a sudden flash, his eyes opened, trained upon the officers. With a sudden violent movement, the tables near Sigrun launched upward in the air and spun horizontially toward the officers, causing them to cry out in surprise and pain. He remained standing where he was, his arm still outstretched in front of him.

He snapped his fingers, and watched as the weapons suddenly flew from their grasps and clattered before his feet. He kicked them aside without any further regard and approached them with his sword. The sword drove them further into the kitchen, keeping them at bay with their attacks of desperation.

At last, he corraled them into the walkin freezer, where he closed the door and locked it with a pin hanging next to the door on a chain. A solid hit from the hilt of the sword bent the pin considerably enough to prevent the officers from getting out ever again.

He gave another look through the window and stared into the nearest man's eyes. The man's eyes were wide with fear as he realized Sigrun was serious. He, and several of the other officers began banging on the door, their fists creating dull thumps as they screamed for mercy, for release.

They would freeze to death. A slow, ardurous death.

Sigrun turned and paused, "I hate boredom." He strode out of the kitchen, and moved further through the VP headquarters.

The elven song picked up where it was left off...

Ivan's rational mind didn't hold sway anymore. He was completely engulfed in the lust to slaughter this vampire and embrace his canine desire to kill. Snarling in anticipation, Ivan moved forward and prepared to pounce. Unfortunately, before he could do so he felt a sharp sting of agony as something pierced his flesh.

Gazing down upon his chest, Ivan growled in fury and pain as he noted two silver darts sticking into his flesh. The pain made it hard to breathe and began clouding his mind. It could not be allowed. With one swipe of his claws Ivan tore out the darts and allowed them to fall to the ground.

As the darts fell, Stephen's words caught the canine's ears, causing him to look up and see the dumpster flying towards him.

Thankfully supernatural reflexes were part of a lychan's abilities and it happened to save Ivan on this case. Immediately he jumped into the air and kicked forward with his hind legs, slamming his massive paws into the dumpster and smashing it into the wall not far from Stephen.

Landing upon his feet once again, Ivan howled once more before launching himself onto one wall, bouncing over to the next and continuing to bounce as he moved towards Stephen, murder within his eyes.
_________

Skadi continued her casual stroll along the fourth level of the VP HQ, gazing upon anything that appeared remotely interesting. Obviously there hadn't been many men up here when the attack commenced as the ancient vampire hadn't come across anyone since the six men before.

Katana still in hand, Skadi slashed this way and that, slicing through the many computer towers and servers that littered this level. It seemed the place was more of an administration area unlikely to have anything of particular interest. Nonetheless, Skadi decided to sit down and boot up on of the surviving computers.

Several minutes of browsing produced nothing of interest at all. It was mostly information on situations in other cities throughout Assington, concerning covens and the sort. Skadi had never sought to expand her influence into the other cities of Assington and was quite content to sit upon her throne within Emerald.

At that point the mechanical sound of a gun being cocked filled Skadi's ears as a barrel was levelled at her head. She had to admit, these men had become very good at moving around silently. Vampiric hearing may be good, but it can't hear what isn't there to be heard.

"Well vampire, whatever you've learned you won't be able to share."

With that the trigger squeezed and a single bullet departed the chamber. Upon hearing the trigger move backwards, Skadi stood with uncomprehendable speed, causing the barrel to now be directed at the vampire's upper back.

With a painful jolt, Skadi shuddered as the bullet passed straight through her. Of course the round had been silver and it stung like no other pain a vampire could endure, yet she would live. Spinning around, Skadi faced the stern face of an older man. Before he could react she had his wrist, crushing the bones and causing the pistol to fall to the ground.

"It is dishonourable to shoot someone in the back... human."

The VP officer grunted in pain, yet managed to shake it off enough to reply.

"It's also dishonourable to lurk about in the shadows, preying upon the innocent."

"There are no innocent. There are only the strong and the weak."

And with that Skadi plunged her razor sharp fangs into the neck of the officer, quickly draining him of vital blood. Within minutes he was dead upon the floor whilst Skadi continued her stroll, bullet wound almost completely healed from the fresh blood.

Skadi was bored. It was time to move down to the next level.
____________

Hondur had certainly found the centre of chaos. VP officers hid behind various support pillars as he ducked and weaved, avoiding the sting of silver as his enemies attempted to cut him down with their gunfire. It had been some time since Hondur had been in true combat, yet his passion for revenge seemed to be all that he required in order to engage in the dance of death.

Unlike his sire, Hondur had no real desire to make his enemies suffer. He simply wanted them dead and his every move reflected that. A lunge here sent his steel claws through the throat of an officer, a graceful jump into the air allowed Hondur to slam his boot into the skull of another. He seemed to be the very embodiment of death itself.

As Sigrun continued to wander through the main mess hall after locking the soldiers within an icy doom, Hondur came burst through a wall after an RPG straight to the chest. Fortunately the grenade had been a dud, yet the force was enough to snap a few ribs and leave bruises.

Without hesitation the VP soldiers poured into the hall, forming a semi-circle around Hondur and Sigrun. Hondur remained silent as he climbed to his feet. Retracting his wrist claws, the vampire drew both his machine pistorls and and snarled.

"Well Sigrun. One would never think we'd be fighting side by side like this, yet times do change. Let's show these bastards what happens when they come between us."

With that the VP unleashed a storm of silver bullets.

As the dumpster crashed into wall, a large piece of concrete broke off and smashed into Stephen's skull. The vampire was knocked backwards and fell on his face. Stephen tried to stand and let out a cry in pain and he felt the claws and teeth from Ivan tear into his back and shoulders. The young vampire swung around and knocked the lycan off him.

Stephen grabbed a plank of wood lying with the trash from the broken dumpster and smashed it over Ivan's head. When the wood shatted, the Simatarian placed a kick will all of his hidden strength behind it. He smiled as the dog went tumbling back downt the alley.

Stephen then looked at his injuries. His clothes were torn from the claws and teeth, but they were begining to heal. He would not allow the pain overcome him. Stephen gritted his teeth and jumped high into the air and landed on the lycan's back, knocking Ivan to the ground. Stephen's right shoulder had suffered the worst of Ivan's attack, blood still came out and the flesh was slowly mending.

Stephen bared his fangs and then sunk them into a bare spot on Ivan's shoulder. The vampire gripped tightly and he began to drink, intent on draining Ivan as much as possible and healing his own wounds.

As she watched Lujza slaughter the helpless men one by one, Aeris almost felt burning acid coming up her throat, but with a great effort, she forced it down. Despite having lived with a vampire almost all her life, she has still not yet been able to accept needless slaughter like this. And this was not helped by the fact that Zero hasn't exactly been the most bloodthirsty of killers either. She would have stopped Lujza, but in this situation, she figured it was best, despite the fact that it was downright tasteless to her. Not able to continue watching, Aeris averted her gaze as Lujza completed the massacre, responding only when Lujza offered her some vodka.

Despite having much of her appetite lost by then, Aeris took a swig anyway, figuring it was rude to reject it. The liquid burned her throat, and it was all she could do not to puke, although she did her best not to show it. Taking a deep breath to sooth herself, she opened her eyes again. But this time, there was a hard edge to her gaze.

"Let's go", she merely said, opening the door that led out of the room.

Viannor had rushed through the half-demolished entrance to the Headquarters, a light assault rifle borrowed from Stephen cutting through the smoke and dust to mow down any VP in her path. The vampires were splitting up to cause maximum damage - or perhaps to settle their own scores - so Viannor quickly chose a corridor lined with offices down one side.

Offices with large glass windows facing the corridor. For those hiding, still working or simply not fast enough. The remaining clip in her weapon soon sorted those unlucky men out, sending glass showering like waterfalls across the floor. All in front of her was quickly silent, the sounds of guns, screams and explosions behind her punctuating her steps down the corridor, shattered glass crunching under her boots.

As she passed a half-open door, movement in her peripheral vision propelled her into action once more. Dropping to one knee she quickly avoided the pitol levelled at her head. Reaching up she grabbed the officer's wrist with one hand and brought the heel of her other hand up sharply. The man's arm snapped at the elbow. He managed to let out the beginnings of a scream before Viannor had risen and broken his neck with a single sharp twist.

Glancing around, she saw a note pinned to the wall.

Would all officers please attempt to estimate the number
of rounds used when returning weapons to the armoury,
it will make ammo orders in the future so much easier.

Thankyou, The Armourer.

The Armoury on Level 2, Viannor thought, what kind of wonderful toys can one take from there? She headed off in to find the nearest flight of stairs.

Despite his rage and pure lust for the death of Stephen, Ivan was having some difficulty in ripping the vampire apart. Even after transformation, Stephen was old enough to remain the stronger and faster warrior in this battle, even if it wasn't by a lot.

Ivan howled in utter rage as he felt the vampire's fangs bury into his flesh, drawing out his precious blood. The sheer audacity of this vampire made Ivan's human mind furious, yet his canine brain wasn't thinking about that. All it wanted to do was tear apart the vampire, rip his limbs apart and feast upon the flesh.

He couldn't allow Stephen to drain more blood or this fight would quickly become very one sided. With that in mind, Ivan launched himself backwards, straight into the brick wall behind him. A pleasing thud resulted as a grunt escaped from Stephen, causing him to let go and allow both of them to fall to the ground.

Landing upon his feet with a supernatural grace, Ivan spun around and immediately leapt upon Stephen. Without hesitating he plunged his massive teeth into the neck of Stephen, attempting to wrap his massive jaw around the throat of his enemy and crush Stephen once and for all.

Stephen finally had to release his grip as he felt his back greet the wall. As he tried to get up, he was suprised to find Ivan directly above him. The vampire let out a sharp cry in pain as he felt the fangs tear into his throat. He struggled as blood flood freely from his mouth and open throat. Stephen delievered punch after punch to the lycan, but all that seemed to do was make Ivan drive his teeth deeper.

Gropping through his pockets, he felt his fingers burning as he wrapped them around spare darts. Grabbing them, he slammed them into the lycan's back, but it didn't work. Just out of his reach was Ivan's dagger. Stephen managed to move a slight milimeter and pulled the dagger closer. He rammed the knife deep into the wolf's flesh and was finally rewarded with the lycan pulling back. Stephen placed a kick to its blood covered face and knocked him backwards.

The young vampire ripped part of his shirt off and placed the cloth to his neck as more blood continued to flow from the tattered flesh. He coughed up crimson and turned back to his pistols a few feet away. Stephen stumbled to them and picked up one.

Leveling it at Ivan, Stephen opened fire...

"What? It's not like I killed all of them..." Lujza said, in a voice of somewhat sarcastic protest as she followed Aeris out of the door. Sarcastic, but truthful. Lujza had shown no mercy to the armed officers, and though one would think she would kill those even without guns, for fear of them taking up the arms of their fallen comrades, they had been mostly geeky data-entry types anyway. Those she left alive would probably be of no use to the VP's defense even with weapons, maybe even detrimental in fact, now that their computers were destroyed.

"We should try to hook up with some of the others," Lujza said as they moved quickly down the halls. She still carried her bag, though she had discarded her clubber attire in the C'n'C room, as it held extra clips. "I'm almost out of lead from the last battle, I've got mostly silver left," she muttered. "No matter, if you shoot a human in the head, it won't matter what the bullet's made out of." A few VP officers were scurrying this way and that. Lujza shot the ones she could hit easily. It didn't matter how fast they ran, she and Aeris had crippled any ability to organize the VP's desperate defense.

As Hondur came bursting in backwards through a wall, and almost as quickly recovering from the RPG shot, Sigrun turned to see who it was and smiled. Hondur merely grinned slightly and spoke, "Well Sigrun. One would never think we'd be fighting side by side like this, yet times do change. Let's show these bastards what happens when they come between us."

Sigrun merely raised an eyebrow as he looked over at Hondur and replied, "I was unaware they were even able to get between us in the first place." He laughed slightly, and watched as the remaining VP came swarming in and began to surround them.

"I'm going to give you until the count of three to get your ugly, no good, motherfuckin' asses out of our way, or we're gonna fill your guts with steel..."

The VP looked at him with no emotions showing.

"One..."

Sigrun leveled the sword in front of him. The sound of multiple guns cocking was heard.

"Two..."

The guns raised up to fix on Hondur and Sigrun. Sigrun narrowed his eyes slightly, preparing.

Hondur. Wall shield. I'll form the wall, you make turn the bullets back to them.

Gotcha.

"Three!"

The VP weaponry began to fire, sending a hail of bullets toward the two warriors. And then, suddenly there was an invisible wall, only seen as the bullets struck its surface and emitted a blue flash. The bullets held in the air, frozen in place. Yet, they continued to pull the triggers, hoping to break this shield.

The sound of empty clicks replaced angry projectiles.

Now, what was once a wall of invisibility was now a wall of lead and silver.

Hondur took his turn to grin and unleashed a powerful psychic wave, hurtling the bullets backwards and riddling the VP officers' bodies with hundreds of rounds each.

Sigrun looked down at the bodies and spoke, "Way out of their league. Let's go."

He made his way into the hallway...

Two women came slinking down a hallway, obviously heading away fom the command room. In the chaos and loss of lighting in parts of the building, including the very area these women were in, Sigrun didn't recognize them right away.

He brought his sword up as he snuck up behind them, readying himself to decapitate them before they knew what hit them. Just then, Luzja's voice became audible as she spoke in low tones to Aeris, "--it won't matter what the bullet's made out of."

He let out a slight sigh as he lowered the sword and called out.

"Hello girls."

They spun about, bearing their weapons at him, only to lower them as they saw who it was. Sigrun nodded to them, then looked hard at Aeris.

"Would you mind telling me why my niece is dressed like a prostitute?" he asked her with a hard look in his eye.

"I changed out of my disguise, well, except for the make up, of course," Lujza said cheerfully. She gestured towards Aeris, "I guess she was embarrassed or something." Clearly, she was just teasing the other woman.

Lujza was smiling, pleased to see another familiar face, but she didn't become any less alert, her eyes moving quickly from place to place, looking for threatening VP. She knew very well that it would only take one bullet from one unnoticed enemy to do her in.

OOC: I edited my post Assington. Sorry, I didn't see that Hondur had made his way near Sigrun. I kept what I had before, and just added stuff before that.

"Busted", Aeris groaned inwardly to herself, putting her face in her free hand. "I had hoped to avoid Uncle all throughout this chaos, but he's still caught me. Well, time to think of a good excuse, I suppose."

"Well, Your Highness, I figured Ivan Kolstov would have much preferred to welcome two sexy girls than two plain ones", Aeris reparteed in a cheeky voice, calculated to exasperate the conservative-minded Ruler of Tarlachia. "But as it so happens, Captain Kolstov was apparently too punch-drunk to welcome us, so we've been strutting around like this to no avail. Nobody was looking at us anyway, not with all the trouble everyone's been cooking up. Quite the pity too", she ended with a flirtatious jerk of her hip, meant exclusively to exasperate Sigrun even more. "Besides, Uncle, Lower Taria is just so boring sometimes, and I'm always having to wear those troublesome Elven gowns every other day. Can't a young girl have some fun every once in a while?"

Suddenly, Aeris's expression changed completely, and in the flick of a wrist, the Blade of the Maiden was in her hand. By the next moment, she had screamed out something unintelligible, and tossed the Blade......spinning right at Sigrun. Wide-eyed, the Elven swordmaster dodged easily what appeared to be a traitorous attack from his own niece, no less, only a hear a dull thud as the flying Blade found its true mark. Behind him, a VP officer who had been trying to sneak behind him slumped to the ground, the Blade embedded squarely in his chest.

As Sigrun turned back to look at Aeris again, he saw the young immortal looking at him with a cheeky look in her eyes. "I swear I've seen that look in Zero before. Damned that Zero, what the hell has he been teaching my niece?!", Sigrun thought to himself, as he watched Aeris promptly do the hooker walk all the way to the fallen VP officer to retrieve her Blade. Unlike just a moment ago, when Aeris had expressed distaste at Lujza's slaughter, the Elven Princess apparently didn't think twice about killing herself. But that was only because while Aeris viewed slaughter of the helpless with distaste, her moral compass also said that killing an enemy who was about to kill you or your friends was perfectly fine. Cleaning the Blade on the fallen officer's clothes, Aeris shook it at Sigrun.

"Didn't a legendary Elven blademaster taught me not to turn my back on an enemy a few years back?", Aeris teased with a wink. "C'mon, we gotta get out of here."

And with that, she walked on with her hips swaying, leaving her uncle to mutter as much as he wanted.

_________________________________________________________________

By the time Zero and his ten compatriots were nearing the VP HQ, the heist was almost at its endgame. There was almost no further resistance to the total rout by the vampires, though Zero knew that wouldn't be the case very soon, as the VP forces that had been despatched to aid the outposts would soon be rushing back to fight off the vampire rout. Nevertheless, it was a well-executed plan, and if his Nobles played their part as they ought to, they would have a great stash of newly-looted equipment by this time.

Landing right beside a gaping hole broken into a wall of the building, Zero strolled in with his companions, surveying the damage. And it was real damage, testifying to the fact that the VP were no match for the vampires when caught unawares. For a moment, the Noble Ancient wondered if he should order his men to plant some C4 in the building. They did destroy Hondur's mansion after all, and fair's fair. It would only be right that Ivan Kolstov would soon not have a HQ to return to........

Thwack

"D'oh!", Zero yelled, as he clutched his head. "Ow, that hurt", he thought to himself, as he saw Aeris standing over him, brandishing her Rose Staff. "Jeez, Aeris! What's with you these days?"

"You're late", was all the explanation given by her, as she promptly strutted past him. Rubbing his head in exasperation, Zero shot his men a glare as they started laughing, amused that their great General had been humbled by what they always thought of as a little sprite of a girl.

"C'mon", Zero muttered, and they walked on to rejoin the rest of the group........

Sigrun took a glance down at the VP officer as Aeris drew her sword from his chest and cleaned the blade off. Soon, she had paced away, not allowing him to speak. He followed, a slight scowl still seen on his face.

Kids. Too liberal these days. One day, she'll see. Oh yes, she'll see. Wonder how she'd think if she saw some old woman in those clothes she's wearing now!

He shook his head, shuddering quite visibly. He didn't need to think that again. He followed after her shaking his head slightly as she attacked Zero on the head with her nephilim staff.

"Aeris, wait till your mother sees you." he said to her as she strut off yet again. "And don't expect me to save your hide when she does. You're on your own."

As Zero grudgingly followed after Aeris, Sigrun took his position next to him and looked at him with a half cocked eye. "You didn't have anything to do with her choice of wardrobe...right?"

How sweet the taste of vampiric blood was. Ivan could feel the power embedded within the thick life blood, healing his wounds as it poured down his throat. He would certainly enjoy tearing Stephen apart and lapping up all his supernatural blood.

Ivan merely shook off the thundering blows from the vampire as he continued to clamp down upon Stephen's throat, tearing into his muscle in the hope of crushing his throat entirely, making it much easier to rip the vampire's head off and kill him for sure. Even as Stephen plunged several more silver darts into his flesh, Ivan merely continued his attack, ignoring the searing pain for the moment as he was engulfed by blood lust.

Finally victory was upon him and Ivan could rid himself of yet another irritating vampire. It was all about to end for Stephen. Stretching his jaw slightly, Ivan dug his claws into Stephen's chest as he prepared for the finaly clamp that would sever Stephen's spine and make a kill easy. Unfortunately that never came. Instead it had been replaced with the blinding pain of silver.

Ivan's jaw released as his silver bladed dagger was plunged into him, all the way up to the hilt. A roar of pain escaped his bloodied jaw as the lychan moved backwards and immediately yanked the blade out, causing blood to spew forth from the wound. Alas he only had time to do such before Stephen delivered a mighty kick to his face, sending Ivan sprawling across the grime covered ground.

Gazing back at Stephen as he righted his footing, Ivan's eyes widened slightly as he watched a silver bullet fly through the air and pass straight through his abdomen, causing pain to explode throughout his torso once again. Fortunately the bullet exited his body, yet the pain still lingered and more blood was lost.

It had to end. Baring his bloodied teeth, Ivan began picking up speed as he dodged this way and that, preparing to dive straight into Stephen and rip him apart on the spot.
_____________

Hondur smiled as he watched the bullets freeze in midair as they collided with Sigrun's shield. It did help to have elven friends, especially those magically inclined. Whilst Hondur himself was able to easily handle combat in relatively low numbers, larger forces were a problem. Especially when they were all against him.

And so with the wall of bullets and the dumbfounded VP officers seemingly frozen in time, Hondur acted. Calling upon a great deal of his mental will, Hondur unleashed a wave of telekinetic energy strong enough to send every bullet flying back towards the VP at harmful velocities.

Not a single officer was able to avoid being hit and whilst not everyone of them had died initially, Hondur had no doubt it would be the case in due time. And so he followed his elven companion as the departed the mess hall and rounded a corner, coming up behind two females, one scantily clad. Immediately Hondur recognised the pair as the two women they'd sent in to infiltrate the VP, Luzja and Aeris. Sigrun on the other hand had other plans.

Fortunately Sigrun discovered their identities soon enough and halted his blade movement. In that time Hondur wandered off, up to the next level. He still had much more damage to unleash.
____________

Skadi found herself within one of those mock shootout training rooms there were so common within police movies these days. The lighting was almost non-existent, save for a few flickering fluorescents far above. Of course that mattered little to a vampire as they could see better in the dark than the light.

Skadi moved almost silently, her light tread only making the slightest of noises as she flowed through the course, katana in hand. Without warning the echo of a rifle unleashing a single bullet filled the training room as a bullet shot past Skadi and collided with her blade, knocking it out of her grasp and sliding it across the floor.

Fortunately Skadi had seen the flash and with a quick lead found herself within inches of the attacking officer. He wasn't a particularly big man yet his face spoke of hardened experience and apptitude with his weapon. Skadi remained expressionless as he hand shot forward and wrapped around the barrel of the weapon, bending it towards the officer.

"It's not nice to shoot at an unarmed person."

With that Skadi stepped back as the VP dropped his rifle and drew a long, sinister looking dagger.

"How about I gut you then bitch?"

"How about.... no."

A quick mental yank sent the blade spiralling towards the roof where it was firmly wedged and would remain. Growing tired of the encounter, Skadi drew one of her berettas and aimed it at the officer.

"It's not nice to shoot unarmed people. You wouldn't do that would you?"

Skadi merely nodded.

"I would. I'm not nice..."

With that she unleashed three rounds. One catching the officer in the left lung, the other in the right lung and the final shot between the eyes. The officer's head snapped back as he collapsed to the ground.
_____________

It had taken some time yet finally the VP had caught onto the trap they'd so blindly walked into as distress radio calls managed to reach the forces at the outlying stations. Of course there weren't many left yet the attacking vampires had done their part and now disappeared into the night.

Fuelled by anger and utter shock, the remaining VP forces quickly began to arrive outside the VP HQ and spear their way inside in an attempt to save what was left of their main building.

Stephen was weak and confused by the massive amounts of blood lost. His neck was practically torn open, giving him the slight apperance of the character Jack Goodman from An American Werewolf in London; his wounds were still healing, very slowly due to less blood in his system. The barrel of his pistol waved in the air as he tried to bring Ivan into his sights. As the lycan drew closer, Stephen stumbled backwards and tripped. The vampire fell flat on his back, pistol flying out of his hand, and watched as the animal drew closer. He knew he would only have one shot at beating Ivan; if he failed, all his friends would find would be a pile of blood and gore.

As Ivan moved towards the final kill, he was not noticing Stephen's right arm following his progress. Just as the lycan bent down, Stephen fired his last dart. This one penetrated Ivan's tough hide, going into his body and leaving just a bit sticking out. Though obviously stunned, it would be a few seconds before he would be eaten. Stephen smashed his foot into Ivan's face again, knocking the animal backwards.

Standing up, the bloody and torn vampire put every last ounce of his strength into a powerful upper cut. His fist connected with the lycan's chin and Stephen watched happily as it took off into the air and disappeared behind some buildings across the street. He heard a car alarm and guessed either Ivan had greeted the vehicle as he hit or got close to it.

Not wishing to stand around for much longer, Stephen stumbled around teh alley and picked up his pistols. His armpit holsters were trash, the same went for much of his clothes. He placed his guns in his pockets, the rest of his pants were just strip of black deniem and his t-shirt was nearly nothing. He picked up Ivan's silver dagger from the ground.

Blood still flowing from his wounds, Stephen weakly sucked a few drops from his stone before climbing back through the hole in the wall and into the VP station. He looked at the dagger and noted with some interest some lycan hair remained attached; he had proof of Ivan's lycanism.

Stephen did not know where he was going as he stumbled through the halls. For some reason he directed himself up some flights of stairs, thinking that they might be upstairs finishing sweeps. As he stumbled, he heard three gunshots and he slowly moved towards them.

Coming from behind a corner, Stephen found Skadi with a dead VP officer at her feet, a gun in her hand. Stephen waved a weak arm, hoping the ancient would recongize him through the massive tears in the side of his neck, his blood drenched face, and nearly no existant clothing.

Stephen stumbled towards Skadi and stood in front of her. Overcome by exhaustion and lack of blood, Stephen slumped against the ancient, causing a bit of blood to seep out from his mouth and onto her shoulder before he slid down to the ground. Stephen looked up at Skadi and his mouth moved slightly, his word was very soft, the ancient barely picked it up.

"Lycan."

It was then Stephen closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep.

Ivan had been sure the vampire would die this time. There was nothing to stop him, not even a few silver bullets could prevent him from tearing into the irritating scum. Unfortunately this was not to be. Stephen's agility was just that little bit too much for Ivan to anticipate and so the lychan felt the full force of a boot to the face.

With a few bones now crushed within his snout, Ivan was having trouble seeing beyond the blood and sweat rolling over his eyes. The lychan took the time to paw at his face and gain his bearings once again. By the time he could see clearly again, Ivan would have sworn if he weren't in animal form.

The first thing Ivan was was Stephen's bloody fist arcing upwards, straight towards his chin. It was far too close to evade and Ivan could do nothing as the thundering blow connected, immediately depriving him of a conscious mind and launching him far into the air.

A massive crash resounded throughout the air as Ivan's massive canine form smashed into the roof of a car, causing the alarm to flare into life, wailing in the darkness after being assaulted by the unconscious being.
____________

Once the echo of her gunshots had died down and the body slumped to the floor, Skadi immediately heard the dragging footsteps of someone approaching. Immediately she spun about with her gun raised to find a bloodied and battered Stephen stumbling towards her.

The younger vampire stood for a moment before collapsing against Skadi, obviously unable to stand for himself. Skadi remained silent for the moment as Stephen managed to get a single word out, explaining everything.

Stephen definitely didn't look like a vampire had ripped into him so a lychan made sense. Who and where were the issues, yet Skadi would leave that for a later time.

Laying Stephen upon the floor, Skadi brought her hand back and delivered a massive slap to his pale cheek, immediately yanking the younger vampire out of sleep. With a simple exercising of her mental powers, Skadi pulled the corpse of the recently killed VP officer along the floor and ripped open his collar.

"Stephen, drink. You will need to if you wish to be well."
____________

With the various attacks upon the smaller stations over, the remaining VP had gathered outside their base and setup a blockade on all sides of the HQ, blocking off streets and all entrances/exits to the building.

In order to prevent the vampires from gaining an upper hand, manned and automated turrets had been placed all over the streets and alleys, ready to cut down any vampire that attempted to leave the building.

With that done, the VP had come to a final decision. Most of their equipment was gone, their database destroyed and the building quickly becoming unusable. They figured if they were to lose their building, it would not be without good purpose.

And so all officers had gathered all the flammable materials they had nearby and unleashed wave after wave of napalm grenades, molotolv cocktails and anything else that would aid the building in succumbing to flames. Within minutes the building would be well on its way with the vampires trapped inside.

Aeris's whack with her Staff had left Zero with a pounding in his head, that has yet to subside fully by the time Sigrun had joined them. Thus, he was none too happy about being on the receiving end of a whack. "I didn't give her any restrictions when she went shopping. You'd have thought that after nearly two thousand years, I would have learned that was the worst mistake you can do with a woman by now. Apparently not, and now not only does she have skimpy clothes, now she has an attitude as well", Zero groused, still rubbing his head. "If a change of clothes mean a change of attitude, then by all means there isn't going to be a next time."

At that, Aeris whirled around, still flashing the cheeky grin that was more common on Zero's face. "Well, Uncle, surely you know one of my more......unique, abilities by now? You know, where with just a snap of my fingers, I would be the robes of the Nephilim?" And indeed, in that instant, her skimpy clubber clothing was suddenly replaced with a flowing, pure white gown, and her hair was golden: She was in her Nephilim form. "As long as I appear thus to Mother, how would she know? Unless you told her, but Uncle, I trust you won't tell her, would you?", she finished with a wink.

They made their way to the scene of the most activity, the second floor, where Zero's Nobles were still busy looting as much as they could from the VP's vast armory. Although it seemed that a jam had built up somewhere in the transport line, for there was a crowd of the Atrosian vampires milling around, toting bulky loads of their loot, yet they seemed lost, not knowing what to do next. "This shouldn't be", thought Zero as he approached the vampires under his command, "They have been trained in this for long enough to know what to do. Unless something has cropped up.......?"

"Sir!", the voice of Major Ambrose called out as he ran towards the Atrosian Lieutenant-General, apparently panicked about something. "What is it, Major? Status report!"

"Sir, we have completed two out of our four objectives so far. The VP choppers that Intel has pinpointed have been taken by our men, and we have also made away with 90% of the VP armored cars. The only reason there's still a few armored cars left is that we didn't have enough men to take them all, so we had to leave them behind in the underground garage. We have acquired great numbers of weapons and other stores from this armory so far, and our hackers say they have downloaded 95% of the VP database, and should be ready to pack up and leave at any moment. Currently, we have acquired a great deal more arms than the initial estimates suggested, and the operation is a success. Except for one thing, General."

"Well what is it? Stop beating around the bush!"

"Sir.......the VP forces that had been drawn off by the decoy attacks have returned sooner than we expected. They threw off the plans totally, and some of our men carrying stores from the armory barely got away with their lives when they came screaming in. Some of us have already escaped from the scene, but a lot of us are trapped here, and the VP have barricaded us in. They have set up their turrets out in the streets, and there's no way we can get out without being cut to bits. Moreover, they've set the building on fire, and we will not hold out long. What should we do, General?"

"Hmmm.......", Zero murmured at that, digesting the information that the Major had fed to him. His mind whirled into motion, assuming the role of Commander as he sought to find a way out of this predicament. He had to save his men by any means, yet the situation was dire. But then the solution came to him, and he grinned widely.

"Major, alert the Vehicle Acquisition Squad. Inform them that they have a new objective. Tell them to head back towards the HQ, and engage all hostiles they see. We will catch them by surprise from behind! Also, contact the Data Acquisition Squad, and ask them to send over some hackers to the Arms Acquisition Squad. Have these hackers reprogramme some turrets from the VP armory, and set them out on the rooftop to engage the beseigers. Order the Arms Acquisition Squad to cease acquisition efforts, and to prepare for combat. Once our comrades in the fancy cars smack the hostiles from behind, we will evacuate the building and smash a hole in their defenses. Once that is done, we get the hell out of here. Is that understood, Major?!"

"Sir yes sir!" And with that, Ambrose ran away, screaming orders at the Nobles still milling around.

The enthusiasm with which the Nobles took their new orders were astounding, as is evidenced from the fact that the VP didn't seem to know what hit them next. Before they realised a thing, the VP found themselves suddenly attacked from behind by a convoy of what they realised, to their shock, to be their own armored vehicles full of the Nobles who had hijacked them. In a matter of minutes, a hole had been smashed in their defence lines of cars, officers, and turrets, all of which were now junk in the wake of the blitz attack. The turrets, so deadly to vampires, did nothing at all against the armored vehicles, the rounds merely bouncing off the thick armor plating as the vampires unleashed hell from inside the cover of the armor. At the same time, intense firepower was suddenly concentrated on all areas of the seige line of the VP, pinning them down and making them unable to go to the aid of their embattled comrades at the scene of the hole in their defense line. It soon became apparent that some of the turrets that were in the armory were turned against them as well. The beseigers now had the tables turned against them, as the Noble's Vehicle Acquisition Squad rampaged through the unprepared ranks of the VP, causing as much damage as possible before the VP had a chance to regroup and close ranks.

With the opening set up, the Nobles trapped inside the building all burst out of doors and windows, guns ablazing.......

Stephen had slipped quietly into sleep and was quite content in his dreams of his days as a kid. It wasn't until a sudden nearly two-thousand year old smack, did he return to the present. His bleary eyes looked up at the ancient, suprised that she was helping him without anyone asking her to. After their stormy encounters before, it came to him like he had been run over by a train. Though, it would still be very hard to forgive Skadi for what she had done to him after she had shown Idun out of the mansion in her own way. It was also the first time he knew of her calling him by his name; then again in his weakened, open-neck form he wasn't exactly in the mood for thinking.

He stared at the neck of the dead officer and promptly sunk his fangs into the flesh. Stephen took large gulps of blood, it was not as warm as it usually was, but it still had its power. The human was very dead, but out of pure habit Stephen suddenly pulled back after only drinking a few pints. The scars on his chest began to heal more quickly and in the hole in his neck; the visible tendons began to find each other and begin mending. It would still be time before Stephen looked completely normal, but it was a start.

Stephen looked up at Skadi. His neck still hurt, but he was able to squeeze some words out.

"Ivan. He is the damn dog." Stephen then switched to telepathy, which would be less pain on his throat. "He put this dagger into my gut and I tossed it back to him when I cornered him in an alley outside. Course, when the silver burned him I knew he could only be one thing. I smashed the hell out of him, though it is obvious that he did get me a few good times. Last I recall, he was flying through the air and probably landed on a car somewhere else in the city. I don't know how old he is in lycan years...I don't think he is very young. The night I sired Viannor was a full moon and he didn't change. So he is very likely old enough to change at will."

OOC: GU, there are cars and turrets everywhere.... there is no way you could have destroyed them all.

IC: The VP officers hadn't been expecting one of their own vehicles to charge through their own blockade and empty a force of enemy vampires into their midst. For a few moments shock and confusion spread throughout the men, unsure as to how they would deal with this new problem.

Fortunately for the struggling humans, the one man that could organise them with frightening efficiency happened to stumble around the corner and walk right into the main congregation of VP.

Ivan could barely walk, his muscled form covered in blood and massive bruises were already beginning to form. It was obvious the VP captain had gone through some intense combat and yet he still managed to return to his men, even if he had come off on the losing side.

Immediately his men placed a coat and armour of their captain, quickly fixing him with all the necessary equipment of a VP officer. Ivan merely remained silent as he looked around, observing the situation. They had vampires trapped in the building and vampires attempting to disrupt the blockade.

"Alright. I want all rocket launchers and RPGs put into use. Blast the shit out of these moronic vampires and show them just how stupid they really are. Once they're taken care of, we'll continue to burn out the building."

Everyone nodded in acknowledgement and within seconds several men had geared up with the explosive projectile weapons and were angling their positions in order to gain the best shot upon the enemy.

Without hesitation, several rockets and grenades were launched at high speeds towards the enemy armoured vehicles and the vampires charging from the building whilst several of the automated turrets unleashed a rain of silver doom upon the vampires.

Ivan merely grinned, even if it did hurt.
____________

With Stephen now reasonably safe from the threat of death, Skadi allowed the vampire to support himself and simply waited until he was ready to speak. Stephen managed to get a few words out but obviously he was struggling with it. Whoever had done this had certainly done a thourough job.

It took a few seconds for the words to register but once her brain comprehended the meaning, even Skadi couldn't help but show her surprise. The VP captain, the man that seemed so predjudice against supernatural creatures like vampires, was a lychan himself.

Skadi sighed, this complicated things slightly.

"I see. It seems we'll definitely have to do something about this dog then. This is valuable information Stephen, you have done well for yourself... for once."

With that, Skadi yanked Stephen to his feet and began a direct path towards the stairs.

"Come on, we need to find the others."

As the pair moved towards the stairway, the distinct sound of wood cracking and a small explosion caused them to turn around, finding the ceiling had collpased above the place they had just occupied, the wood on fire, spreading the flames quickly around the room.

Skadi merely turned around once again and continued.
______________

Sigrun's conversation with Zero was promptly interrupted before it could even truly begin as the ceiling not far behind them exploded in a shower of flame, wood, plaster and other various building materials. Before the smoke could clear, the shadow of a human form could be seen descending through the hole.

Hondur noted the ring of metallic blades being drawn as he stepped out of the smoke, revealing his identity. Hondur was almost completely red with the blood ofothers, his face and hands held almost no trace of the white his skin usually possessed. The others could also note the red glow of flames coming from the level above them.

"Fire, lots of fire."

Before the ancient vampire could say another word another explosion rocked the building as flames shot through the front door. Before long the whole building was engulfed in flames.

"Perhaps... we should leave. This place is already destroyed enough as it is. I would suggest the roof."