ROLEPLAY HQ - dna-vervain-and-wolfsbane

ROLEPLAY HQ

Archive 20 / dna-vervain-and-wolfsbane

NSFW | TW: Sexual Content, Violence, Death, Fantasy Derogatory Terms, Werewolf Erotic Content, TBD

TW: Sexual Content, Violence, Death, Fantasy Derogatory Terms, Werewolf Erotic Content, TBD (edited)

Leather was a material that was stereotypically used by vampires, known to be thick and able to block out the rays of the sun to such an extent that, with proper wear and a matching hood, the leeches could even survive without wearing their rings. It served a different purpose this evening, however, as Andreas and the four other werewolves with him used the strong natural scent of leather to muddy up their own scent. Walking along an alleyway in the busy city, their scents would mix with the humans all around them, hopefully making them less likely to be detected by the vampires they were currently hunting down. The method had worked before when Andreas and a group of Lycans had gotten within one hundred feet of the entrance to a vampire nest, only stopping that close because he called them off. The city was large and packed with life, the humans moving about unaware of the conflict that was brewing behind the scenes and in the shadows at the edge of their vision. This all started as a conflict over resource control, as the different supernatural creatures had starkly different views on how to handle the issue of growing numbers of humans and their potency in modern combat. The politics and debates between the elder werewolves were lost on Andreas, his attention less on why the war began and more on how he would continue to fight it and win. Knowing what total victory meant was a job for the upper council, older Lycans who sent the instructions to the smaller packs to make sure their efforts were coordinated with each other and benefited all of them. .

20:53

The council members each headed a large pack and were generally each chairman or chairwoman of one of the committees that determined the everyday life and operations of the packs and individual werewolves working towards the war effort. These individual wolves, like Andreas himself, were free agents that had lost or left their birth pack in order to sign their efforts on with the main war effort. Andreas had signed up with the free agency when he reached twenty-five years of age, fueled by hatred for vampires after hearing that it was an act of vampire aggression that had destroyed his city and bathed his life in the stench of death and bloodshed. His parents and him had survived the initial attack, but wounds suffered during the escape eventually claimed his mother’s life. His father broke at this point, losing his love and devoting himself to preparing his son for the rigors of combat and to be able to complete the most important mission: bring justice for his mother by killing as many of the bloodsuckers as he could. His training under his father served him well, for when he joined the war effort, he was thrust forward as cannon fodder to act as a stop gap in order to slow down a vampire offensive that was pushing close to the main den of the council. They needed time to relocate to one of the backup locations, but the vampires were moving at with the speed and momentum of a freight train that could not be stopped. They cared not who they put in the fight, needing bodies to stop the bodies of the vampires, even if only long enough to buy them a few moments to get their belongings ready for transport. Andreas took his mission to heart and threw himself into the combat, starting with a crossbow that was loaded with bolts that were kept soaking in a vervain and holy water solution. The dampness of the arrows affected their ballistics and reduced their effective range from three hundred yards to only one hundred. .

20:53

Andreas had abandoned the wall that the werewolves were shooting from, leaping over the front of the wall with his crossbow and a quiver of thirty bolts. The shots that landed still carried considerable force behind them, proving fatal immediately if the wooden shaft was shot into the heart of the vampires. Shots that missed their mark but hit the center mass still dropped the creatures, the wood weakening them and the vervain mixture immediately overloading their system with intense toxicity. As he ran out of shots, Andreas had ripped off his tunic and breeches before transforming in front of the oncoming vampires. Some stopped in fear while others pushed towards him, only to be ripped apart as he transformed faster than they had expected. Thanks to his father’s training, Andreas had mastered a fast and painless transformation that took only mere seconds when he pushed his limits. His performance in this battle caught the eye of the leadership on the War Committee. He was pulled from the fight after the vampire push had been stopped and held to a stalemate that they eventually backed off from, not wanting to lose anymore after their momentum had been dashed. Taken before the committee, Andreas was questioned of his lineage and place of origin. Remarking that his city had been destroyed and so he hailed from nowhere, the council member smirked and pulled him aside before taking him to one of his trusted warriors. The Lycan specialized in covert operations and was starting up a program that could use Andreas’s natural skills. Taken under the man’s wing, Andreas trained and learned more about the art of unconventional warfare, black ops, and reconnaissance. Exceeding expectations and excelling at every task given to him, Andreas earned the wolf’s trust and was placed in a position to be a team leader by the time he was fifty years old. .

20:53

Two centuries and many missions later, Andreas was walking along the street of a crowded city, his black leather jacket over a dark red hoodie with the hood drawn up over his shaggy locks. He wore black jeans that had been dipped in a chemical bath alongside his hoodie that would work as a scent blocker that was not detectable by the primitive senses of the humans. The blocker would make him stand out if he was alone in a room with a vampire as it would make him a being with no scent at all and therefore suspicious, but he had rubbed his jacket over the body of a human they had captured in order to get the human scent on the fabric. This in addition to the multitude of humans around him would make him nearly undetectable by scent alone. The four werewolves with him were in similar getups, the color of their hoodies being dark gray or black by contrast in order to help them locate Andreas. They were spaced off of him by intervals of several yards, the furthest one being nearly thirty yards from him. All according to plan. Maintaining intervals and spacing was what kept them alive and made visual confirmation even more difficult as there was not an obvious group of large men moving together. They each had an earpiece that was hidden by the shadow of their hoods, giving them the ability to communicate with each other without needing to shout or howl. Just another measure taken to keep their identities hidden as they wanted to move unseen. .

20:54

Their quarry did not have the same concern, his black hoodie and gray cargo shorts doing nothing to hide his scent. Rotten flesh and drying blood, this vampire was not well kept and that would be his downfall. He had the sense to wash his face after feeding on the human that Andreas and his troop had found in the alley, but the fresh blood down the front of his undershirt was like a beacon in the night sky. He may have covered it so the humans couldn’t see, but it allowed Andreas to home in on his position. Standing at a newspaper stand as the evening rush walked past him, Andreas picked up one of the newspapers and tossed a five-dollar bill onto the newsstand. Nodding his thanks to the old man, he walked away before the man could process the payment and give him his change. Andreas did not really care; the money was worthless in reality as it was a well-done counterfeit that his squad would use in order to have money for human interactions without needing to actually spend real currency. The vampire had stopped at a bus stop across the street from Andreas, his face down as his eyes scanned for his next potential prey. Walking to the crosswalk and waiting for the light to turn to walk, Andreas brought his newspaper out and made it look like he was reading from the sports section. He was disgusted by these champions of physical capabilities that the humans presented, having a distaste for the baseless confidence that these humans portrayed. They claimed to be the strongest and best species on the plant, and yet they paled in comparison when compared to Lycans and Vampires. Looking up from the newspaper, he saw the vampire’s head turn as he watched a young woman walk in front of him. She was alone and had her eyes glued to a book in her hands, her ears covered by over-ear headphones. .

20:54

As the vampire stepped away from his place at the bus stop, Andreas rolled the newspaper up and spoke quietly into the audio receiver on his collar, “On me.” Stepping onto the road as the Lycans around him started to move closer, he crossed the two lanes before any cars could blare their horns and bring attention to him. He could see the vampire and his target, but even if he somehow lost sight of him, he had his scent and would be able to track him down. Walking behind the vampire by a few yards, he knew his wolves were in a staggered formation behind him at slight distances. This was comforting as he knew he was not alone, but he also knew they had just painted themselves as a target to any vampires that might be watching them. He brought his head up, allowing the light of the setting sun to grace his features as he scented the air for any other signs of vampires. Nothing lit up his senses other than the faint scent of where vampires had been here, part of the reason they were here in the first place. The vampires could be hiding their scents like he and his comrades were, but the chemical he used was a homemade variety, so he doubted that. Seeing the woman turn down an alleyway, Andreas smirked as the vampire sped up and followed her. Not wanting to make it an obvious train of people pushing down the alley, Andreas stayed at his pace before cutting down the alleyway after them. The sound of feet scraping could be heard down the alley before an elbow or wrist bumped into the side of a plastic rainwater barrel hard enough to make a thumping sound. Walking towards it as he heard his Lycans entering the alley behind him, Andreas peeked his head around the barrel and reached down to grab the vampire by his shoulder. Jerking back on his shoulder to pull him to his feet, Andreas shoved the newspaper sideways into the vampire’s mouth, using his extended canines to wedge it in place. .

20:55

Seeing anger on the vampire’s face, Andreas snarled at him and allowed his blue eyes to shift slightly while his own canines on top and bottom elongated. The whites of his eyes bled quickly into blackness, showing his wolf form eyes that made the crystal blue pop even more. Saliva dripped from his canines as he growled close to the vampire’s face, causing the anger to reduce to fear as the vampire’s own fangs retracted. Smirking and stepping back as he allowed his mouth and eyes to return to their human forms, Andreas brought his hand up to the vampire’s throat before speaking in a low voice, “On the prowl for a treat are we, Bloodsucker? Not anymore, tell me where your nest is, and I’ll let you live.” The vampire nodded as much as he could with the newspaper jammed into his mouth, his eyes desperate as he looked at the five men that each stood taller and wider than him. His gaze locked back onto Andreas, however, the tallest and strongest of the group. The paper was pulled from his mouth and thrown on the ground, hitting the motionless body on the foot. One of the werewolves turned as if remembering her presence, squatting down and breaking her neck before ripping it quickly from her torso. Andreas saw the vampire looking at the body and squeezed his hand around the man’s throat before lifting him off his feet. Growling up at him, he slammed the vampire’s back into the wall of the alley before speaking in a menacing yet soft voice, “Tell me or you will die.” The vampire swallowed desperately before nodding and reaching up to grab Andreas’s wrist with his hands. Andreas lowered the man and released some of the tightness of his grip, allowing the man to cough before he spoke in a strained voice, “The paint shop, behind in the courtyard. The entrance is under a set of wooden doors but has metal ones underneath. Please, I’m new to town, I don’t know anymore.” .

20:55

Nodding his thanks, Andreas smiled while bringing his right hand up to pat the vampire on the cheek, “Now, was that really so hard?” Setting the vampire down, he lowered his hand and released the man. His eyes were locked on the vampire’s own as a smirk played at his lips, his canines growing and his eyes shifting once again. Lunging forward and grabbing the vampire by the shoulders, he sunk his teeth into his neck, biting deep and feeling his sharp teeth cut through the flesh with ease. His saliva carried the virus of lycanthropy, and as he leaned back, he could see the poison already spreading through the man’s neck. Releasing him once again, Andreas watched as the man scrambled away, a desperate hand clawing at his throat as he ran off coughing. .

20:55

One of the werewolves raised an eyebrow as Andreas wiped the blood from his mouth and took on the human features again. Looking to the man, Andreas nodded confidently before speaking in a low tone, “He will lead us to his nest. They will turn him away but send out a patrol to find us. Reconnaissance in force my friends, find out the enemy’s strength and their capabilities. They already knew we were in the city, now we might be able to run them out if they think we have their nest under observation.” Seeing the others nodding in understanding, Andreas looked in the direction that the vampire ran before spitting a mixture of saliva and blood on the wall. Pointing at it, he spoke with authority before walking away, “Get his scent and disperse; rally on me when we get closer.” Going back into the crowded sidewalks, he walked a half-block before dipping into an alleyway and scenting the air. Detecting the vampire on the wind, Andreas extended his claws on his hands before climbing up the side of the building he was standing beside. Moving onto the roof of the three-story building, he could smell the air and got a fresher collection of the vampire’s scent. So, he was taking to the roofs to move without taking the chance of human interaction, good. Sprinting forward and jumping onto the next rooftop, Andreas moved carefully along them to keep up with the vampire.

20:55

20:55

Half an hour passed as the Lycans tracked their prey to the paint shop and then rallied a few blocks away with one of the wolves staying as overwatch to see when the vampires emerged. Fifteen of the creatures had swarmed out to meet the wounded man, who was subsequently taken into the nest by a couple other vampires that appeared. The fifteen were currently moving out to try and find the werewolves, likely on high alert but not realizing that they were walking into a trap. Standing above either end of the alley that the vampires found themselves in, Andreas and one werewolf were already transformed while the other two were on the rooftops opposite them with their eyes and ears out for human intervention incoming. The fifth werewolf was assembling a hide near the paint shop, quietly clearing out an apartment so that he could make an observation post with the electronics he had brought with him. Seeing the vampires looking around slowly as they could now smell the earthy musk that the werewolves naturally exuded when transformed, Andreas lowered on his hind legs before releasing a howl and leaping forwards. He landed in front of the lead vampire and lunged forward savagely, grabbing the man by the shoulders with his clawed paws. His jaw opened and latched down on the vampire’s throat before his head jerked side to side quickly, ripping the man’s head from his body. Throwing the head to the side with a fierce growl, Andreas surged forwards at the next vampire. He dropped to all fours for a single powerful bound before coming up and slamming his shoulder into the man. Sending him falling backwards a few feet, Andreas found himself in the middle of the front half of the vampires. .

20:56

He could hear his comrades dropping down and getting involved in the fight, their growls of anger and bloodlust distinct to his ears after having worked with them for years. Slashing his claws at the closest vampire, he opened up four deep gashes on the Caucasian woman’s chest while his other paw dealt similar gashes to her right thigh. She fell back, giving Andreas an opening to attack the vampire beside her, but he felt a fiery hot pain in his back as the vampire behind him sunk their claws into his back and tried to pull him back. Growling and reaching back over his head, Andreas gripped the sides of the man’s head and pulled him quickly over his shoulders. The man’s back slammed hard into the pavement, breaking some of his ribs, but that did not satisfy Andreas. Lowering his head, he bit into the man’s face, his bottom canines and incisors piercing the forehead while his upper canines dug into the sift flesh below his jaw. Biting down and ripping to the side, he ruined the bone structure at the top of the man’s head before gripping his paws on the vampire’s shoulders. Pulling his back away from his comrades, Andreas lifted him slightly in order to bite him again, his jaws crushing the top of the man’s head and his grey matter this time. .

20:56

Snarling and holding his arms out and by his side slightly, Andreas challenged the vampires to come and attack him. One drew a silver dagger as he advanced beside a similarly armed comrade. Stepping forward with a deep growl, Andreas swiped his paw at the first one, batting his weapon away. In that opening, the other vampire sprinted forwards and circled around behind Andreas before he could turn to match him. Feeling a clawed hand gripping at the side of his neck before an intense pain pierced his upper back, Andreas let out a dreadful mix of a whine and growl. His eyes widened before he reached his left paw up to grab the vampire on his back. Grabbing hold of his shoulder, Andreas pulled upwards and threw him down in front of him. The movement dislodged the dagger from his back and as the vampire slammed into the ground, Andreas leaned down to bite his side through his shirt. Tasting the vampire’s blood rushing into his mouth, he took a step back and roared loudly as his hand reached over his back to touch the wound induced by the silver. He could hear sirens in the wind and knew they needed to finish this fight or withdraw soon.

20:56

20:56

The sirens on the wind alerted the Lycan in the apartment that it was definitely time to get moving, as the vampires would be breaking off from the fight the same way his own kind would be. He had entered the apartment building quietly after alerting his comrades that the vampires were on the prowl to try to find them. Remembering his orientation to see the paint shop, he stayed on the upper story and walked through the hallway, gently trying door handles. They were all locked, but there was one in the center of the building that had some voices coming from inside. Opening one of the duffel bags he had retrieved before the rally, he grabbed a white baseball cap that had a local internet provider’s name on it. Pushing his hood back quickly, he slipped the hat on and then knocked on the door with a smile as he looked into the peep hole. The door was opened slightly as a male appeared, keeping the security chain drawn as he spoke through the opening, “Hello, is there something I can help you with?” The werewolf smiled before lowering his head with a chuckle, his hand resting on the door frame as he looked back up and spoke, “It seems the office forgot to give you a call again. Hey there, my name is John, and the landlord told me that you guys were having some connectivity issues?” The man nodded with a slight chuckle before answering, “Yeah, I mean we have been having some issues, but we complained like a month ago and were told there was nothing that could be done for it. If you could come back tomorrow, that would be really grand.” John winced at the mention of rescheduling before speaking, “If it’s no bother to you and the missus, I’d prefer to get it done tonight. Tomorrow is my daughter’s birthday so I’m working late tonight to try to get all my work done for tomorrow. Are you sure I can’t just come in and fix it? It’ll be quick, I promise.” .

20:57

The man sighed softly before nodding, the mention of the daughter instantly touching him. Putting up his right hand with the index finger raised, he shut the door and unlocked the security chain. While the door was closed, John reached into his bag and pulled out a three-foot length of electric wire. Smiling as the door opened, he held the wire in his right hand and stepped into the apartment while waiting on the man to close it. Setting his duffel bag down with a sigh, he heard the man chuckle about carrying a lot for a house call. Smiling over his shoulder and chuckling softly, John wrapped the ends of the wire around his hands as the man stepped past him. Moving swiftly, he stepped behind the man while lifting his arms, dropping the wire around his throat before cinching it tight. No sounds could escape the man as the wire was pulled tighter and tighter, his hands helplessly scrambling for the wire as his face started to grow purple. Kicking the back of his knee so he fell to his knees, John pulled up on the wire and watched as the man’s mouth opened and his tongue lolled out as he tried to talk. Seeing his eyes beginning to spasm back-and-forth as he was turning blue in the face, John pulled up harder before eventually turning his fists quickly and breaking the man’s neck. Lowering him to the ground with the wires still around his throat, John reached back and locked the door to the apartment as well as the security chain. Breathing deeply, he could smell the scents of the dying man, but there was also a singular other heavy scent in the air of the apartment. Closing his eyes and listening, he ignored the sounds of the neighbors and heard the gentle scrape of fabric against itself deeper in the apartment. .

20:57

Moving quietly into the apartment, he kept his eyes moving for any signs of life before he heard the distinct sound of metal clinking against a ceramic dish coming from his right. He smirked as he walked up to the corner of the kitchen, his head peaking around the corner as he saw the woman washing dishes in a two-sided sink. Walking up behind her, he smirked as she turned toward him and froze. John’s hands moved quickly, both of them gripping her by the throat with his thumbs on either side of her windpipe. Squeezing them together and crushing her windpipe, he jerked his right hand up, breaking her neck and causing her head to fall backwards. Picking her up and carrying her on his shoulder, he walked back to the entrance and picked up the man by the belt. Dragging both bodies to the bathroom, he laid the woman in the tub first and then put the man’s body on top of her. Breaking his legs at the knees so that he would fit in the confines, he turned on the water and put the plug in the drain. Walking back to the kitchen as the water ran, he searched for the spice drawer and smiled as he found two large dispensers of mint. Walking back to the bathroom, he dumped the spices into the water before using the plunger to mix the water. Curling his nose up at the scent, he shook his head as he knew that despite how strong the scent was, it would cover up the smell of the decaying bodies. Turning off the water when it was an inch or two above where the bodies were originally, he walked back into the kitchen and filled two stockpots with water. Bringing them back and placing them on the man’s back, John nodded as he saw the bodies submerge and stay at the bottom below the surface of mint-infused bath water. .

20:58

Going back out to the main entrance hallway, he pulled two thick bindings of sage from his duffel bag. Tying them together and hanging them above the door with hooks that he screwed through the drywall and into the studs, he pulled out his lighter and lit each of them. The bundles were soaked in a vervain solution before being allowed to dry, giving them not only a cleansing scent to remove his scent from out in the hallway but also working to be a natural deterrent to the vampires. It would keep them away from this floor of the apartment building, or at least the poisonous smoke would give him time enough to destroy his equipment and run. His equipment consisted of a camera, a video recorder, two laptops, a special encrypted router, and a thermite grenade. He was assigned to take pictures and record the vampires in the city, reporting back to the unit using the router so that the information could not be stolen. If he could get enough to locate the other nests without another mission like tonight, then the werewolves would be able to advance their plans that much faster. The grenade was so that if he was discovered, he could melt the router and computers with the intense heat of thermite, rendering them nothing but melted metal and plastic. @𝕊𝕙𝕒é𝕔𝕝𝕒𝕚𝕣

Delayna's history was an odd one indeed. She grew up in a time before the war, surviving in a small town where werewolves and vampires lived in peace. She had been human at one time of course and the idea of the supernatural existing was something that was taught to her at a young age. Werewolves were creatures born or turned, able to completely shift their form in that of a wolf. At first, it was only during the full moon until they were able to control it better. She had actually grew up with a few wolves, one of them being her dearest friend. She couldn't imagine the struggles they had to endure, but at the time she was a mere human and had a hard time grasping the extent of their 'curse'. She could remember a time when she thought lycanthropy was such an amazing gift, being able to shift and run through the woods as free as a bird and it made her dark brown eyes sparkle with wander. The vampires, however, were a different breed altogether. They could not be born, only turned and without the aide of a magical item, they were rendered housebound until the sun sank below the horizon. There were a fair few families that she grew up around that rarely left their homes until dusk, but there wasn't a single one of them that she would consider dangerous. Of course there were accidents. Werewolves shifted without being properly restrained and vampires would become so overcome with their blood lust that they had to feed, although, there was very rarely an incident where a person was brutally injured. More often than not, it was the livestock that suffered from the creatures lack of self control and everyone deemed that a necessary risk. A handful of goats slaughtered in the night was nothing compared to the loss of a residents life after all.

11:58

. Before finding her way to the supernatural community of Deep Run that she called home, she was an orphan that lived on the streets. She had bounced around from orphanage to orphanage, never taking kindly to the children, care-takers or abuse that she experienced. The streets were a better life for her, even if her sleeping arrangements varied from night to night. It wasn't until the man she now calls 'Father' found her tucked in next to a dumpster in the pouring rain that she finally felt like she found someone who genuinely cared about her. He brought her back to his home and she was raised amongst the vampires and werewolves, a place that she truly felt like she belonged. Lyndon Pierce, her 'father', was a vampire and offered to turn her once she came of age. It was something she looked forward too and eventually noticed as a rite of passage of sorts in Deep Run. Human orphans were taken off the streets, raised and when they came of age were turned into Vampires or werewolves to help strengthen their home. In her time there, she never came across someone who didn't want that outcome for themselves. 'Of age' meant different things to each person though. Delayna personally wanted to wait until she was older, but there were some kids that wanted turned as soon as they hit eighteen. Twenty-eight was the age Delayna would turn immortal, but it wouldn't be the experience that she had hoped for.

11:59

. At the age of fourteen, a wild band of vampires came and ravaged her home. They attacked the werewolves, the vampires and the humans, dwindling their numbers so low that Lyndon and Delayna were forced to flee. He was disgusted with his kind and spent most of Delayna's childhood trying to figure out who they were and what agenda they had, but when news of the war spread, he couldn't waste anymore time. He turned Delayna when she was ready and they both enlisted to fight for their kind, vowing to restore their race and even killing wayward vampires that couldn't be reformed. Instead of taking in orphaned humans, they built a refuge that took in rabid vampires and tried their best to make them see the way of peace. Werewolves were a constant threat, however. There was rarely a time they could have a civilized conversation with them and usually attacked on site, especially if they came too close to their home. They had been attacked countless times and their assailants were getting smarter. Holed up outside of a human city, they looked like nothing more than a large family of farmers. They owned a great deal of land, raised livestock and grew crops that they sold to the humans whenever they could. They were trying their best to blend with society, but that didn't deter the werewolves from trying to wipe their existence off the map. It also wasn’t a help to Lyndon’s cause that the vampires he was trying to help couldn’t seem to keep their fangs off the humans.He occasionally found that some of his wayward vampires would make their way into town for a midnight snack and it caused great upset for everyone when the bloodlust was so strong it ended up with loss of life.

11:59

. With a handful of new recruits, four to be exact, Delayna had taken them down to their secret ‘dungeon’ in town to try and starve them a bit. If they were so ravenous for blood, the livestock they fed them would satiate them. They tried their best to get their kind to feed off animals instead of humans, but sometimes they weren’t as successful as they hoped. On this particular night, one of their captives had escaped while Delayna and her two scouts were keeping an eye on the town. Portsmouth was a human city, but there were plenty of creatures that shrouded themselves in the night and they were determined to keep the peace as much as they could. The night had seemed quiet enough, but by the time they had returned to the holding cell beneath the paint shop, they noticed one of their own had escaped. The other three were more than happy to give away his intentions to feed off the humans above them and hoped for mercy for themselves. Quickly calling for back-up, Delayna remained at the shop until more of her own arrived.

12:00

It didn’t take long for her reinforcements to arrive, a handful of vampires from their farm who were more than capable of handling a rogue reform. A total of fourteen came from their stead to help, Delayna’s father not among them. Enlisting the help of the other three addicts that had yet to have human blood in days would’ve been a bad idea, even if all of them had a common goal to find and return the man who had terrorized the town of Portsmouth. Unfortunately, before they could truly set out to find him he had returned and with a gnarly wound that was spreading from the holes in his neck through his entire torso. “Stay back! He’s been bitten…” Delayna stood between the wounded man and the rest of her ‘family’, holding a delicate hand back to those she wished to protect. The ramblings that spewed from the vampire’s mouth were mostly incomprehensible, but the one word that came out clear as day was one that made Delayna’s heart sink. ‘Werewolf.’ The werewolves were near and this half-baked mosquito had likely brought them right to them. She quickly silenced the man and pulled him to the shop's entrance, instructing two people to stay behind with the wounded vampire and the three who were not to be trusted near humans. She would take the remaining fourteen and make their way through the town to search for the werewolves. What she didn’t take into consideration was that the werewolves had masked their scent.

12:00

. Slinking down an alley in casual human garb that shielded their leather, the group stayed on alert until they reached the middle of the secluded area. Delayna had let a vampire more skilled in tracking take the lead, but she was the one who noted the faintest smell of musky dog in the air. “Steven… I think we—“ She didn’t get her words of warning out fast enough before they had been descended on by the werewolves. Everything that happened next occurred much too fast for her to fully comprehend. Steven was the first to go down, his head rolling further down the alley as his killer charged at the rest of them. Delayna managed to move out of the way, but it caused the wolf’s claws to sink into Cassandra instead. With a fiery shriek, she moved to charge at the werewolf before she heard her name. Four vampires were chasing, biting and wrestling another werewolf near Steven’s body, but they needed help. She moved in a blur towards them, wrapping her arm around the wolf’s neck as hard as she could. The intense hatred for the beasts who killed her friends was shown through the pressure she used to suffocate the wolf and eventually snap his trachea in two. His furry body crumpled to the ground as her dark eyes shot up to see the two remaining wolves in the alley. Another werewolf laid on the ground near the dumpster, meaning there were a total of four of them that had ambushed them.

12:00

. The one who had killed her friends, even more since she had left him, had just been stabbed by a silver dagger. She let all the hate she had been saving especially for him build up before she took off for him. Her feet didn’t even clack against the concrete with the speed in which she was moving as she tackled the wounded wolf to ground. Her sharp claws dug deep into the wolf’s back as the sirens neared them. She could hear her name being called by the retreating vampires, but her sole focus was on the vampire below her. He had slaughtered her friends and she refused to let that stand. She grabbed handfuls of his fur, came to stand on her feet and threw him against the brick building beside them, her hands immediately coming to pin him hard between herself and the bricks. “How dare you! This isn’t over, Bloodhound! I have your scent and I will kill you if it’s the last thing I do!” The vampiric woman was shouting through extended fangs, blood soaked apparel and a rage that boiled so hot in her eyes that her threats were very clearly promises. The sirens were coming closer and closer and she knew she had to flee, but she wanted to make sure that her words were heard. He had her ‘families’ blood on his hands and she would never let that go.

12:01

@Himbo Tie

The vampire had moved to retrieve the dagger that had been slashed from his hand, but Andreas moved forward and swung his left paw out. His claws tore through the vampire’s throat and forced him to stumble slightly, giving Andreas time to close the distance and sink his teeth into the back of the vampire’s neck. He released the vampire and was turning his attention to the next vampire he would attack when a blur of motion caught him off guard and slammed him to the ground. Looking down at the vampire and growling deeply as he felt their claws digging into his back, Andreas prepared to lean his head down and bite into the vampire’s face. He was stopped when the features, despite the obvious rage that contorted them, struck him like a memory carried by a freight train. In the heat of the moment, the memories flashed through his mind like mere flashes of light, but he saw them all the same. A pretty young girl that he had gone on multiple picnic dates with, his palms sweating when he would think to ask her to go again. The tightness in his chest when he leaned in to kiss her, truly afraid of her rejection due to his heritage. A peaceful village where the cousin races, vampire and werewolf, could coexist and live in security without worry of human intervention. Werewolf families inviting vampires over for a meal and vice versa. And then the bloodshed and fires that raged through it all. Andreas had gone to a certain home, trying to find her and her family to help them get to safety, only to find it burning and collapsing in on itself. He had accepted the cruelty of fate, that would tease him with a happy life such as this, only to tear it away. .

07:45

Looking down at the chocolate hued face before him with those amber eyes he had fallen in love with as a young man, Andreas could offer no aggression as he was thrown against the wall. The bricks slamming into his chest and the painful pin that the vampire took on his arms and back brought Andreas swiftly back to his senses. His head turned to look at her as a deep growl rolled through his chest and left his maw, bloody saliva dripping from his canines as he bared his teeth at her. Pulling his arms quickly out of her grip while kicking against the wall to create distance, Andreas growled and whirled around on her, his right paw raised with the claws ready to rip down at her throat. It was not the sirens on the wind that caused his hand to freeze though. As his icy blue eyes, even with the blackness surrounding them, met with her amber eyes, he could not find it in himself to bring his hand down in any aggressive manner towards her. He was vaguely aware of the remaining Lycan growling at the vampires as he moved to swiftly grab the dead bodies of the other two wolves. He was dismissive of the surviving vampires that helped their bitten comrades limp away while trying to get distance between themselves and the scene. The only thing he could see was her, and in her eyes, he saw a past that was so long forgotten that he thought it was not a possible reality. The snarl on his lips fell away as his paw lowered slightly before reaching out slowly towards her. The fur on his body began to sink back beneath his flesh as the bones of his body reconfigured in a rapid, violent display. His eyes stayed locked with hers as the blackness leaked out of them and they returned to his icy blue gaze. Finally, he let his hand find her shoulder for a moment as he whispered softly, “Delayna?” .

1

07:45

Before he could say more or move his hands to take hold of this phantom from his past, Andreas felt the clawed grasp of his remaining Lycan on his shoulder before a short growl was issued that reminded him of the humans that were coming. Stepping back from the vampire before him, Andreas narrowed his eyes for a moment before breathing in deeply, a silent display that the threat of having his scent had been returned. She did not smell entirely different than she had back in his younger days, but it had been so long that he was assaulted yet again by memories. Standing close to her at solstice celebrations or sacrifices where the species would make it known that they were thankful for each other's efforts for cohabitation. Chasing her through the woods in a fun game of chasing before he would eventually find her and pin her against a tree, their innocent smiles and giggles quickly taking on a more heated intention before they separated awkwardly. Jumping and making an easy leap from the ground to a second story balcony, Andreas looked over his shoulder at the vampiric female of his memories before leaping next to the roof where he and the surviving werewolf could get dressed again before carrying their dead back to their people. If it had been a silver inflicted wound, there could have been hope of saving them, but seeing as how they had both shifted back to their human forms, there was no doubting that they were truly dead. The surviving werewolf sprinkled a healing powder on Andreas’s silver wound, causing a low growl from the older Lycan before he started getting dressed quickly. Upon transforming and in the time without fighting, his other wounds had healed. The silver needed the medical treatment it had received in order to heal correctly. @𝕊𝕙𝕒é𝕔𝕝𝕒𝕚𝕣

When the werewolf pushed off the wall and created the distance between the two of them, Delayna crouched slightly and let her hands hover in the air at her side. She would be ready for any attack he gave her, but when he raised his paw and froze it made her give pause as well. The sirens were blaring and becoming louder, something that she almost accredited to his pause as she straightened her posture. She was ready to kill him if he would only give her the chance to get one more in before the humans arrived. She watched as the raised paw turned into an outstretched hand as the man shifted before her. The hair and the height diminished greatly, even his eyes as he shifted back into his human form and once it was complete she was taken aback. With a gasp and a step back, her astonished theory was only confirmed when she heard her name slip through his lips. ‘Delayna?’ “A-Andreas?” Her voice faltered as he touched her, her own mind suddenly pierced with memories of a past she hadn’t thought of in many moons. Suddenly that small boy that held her hand at festivals, danced with her at ceremonies and chased her through the woods was standing before her as a man. He was taller, muscular and aged significantly since their last meeting, but his crystal eyes remained the same. She saw a peaceful and wild past within them that made her heart beat faster than it had during any battle since. She couldn’t recount the names of their friends or even the amount of times they had snuck off to be away from the bustle of their community just to speak quietly with one another, but she would remember those eyes anywhere; the eyes that held much more promise for their future than she could comprehend at such a young age.

08:58

. She opened her mouth to speak as her fingers came up to graze the hand on her shoulder when he was pulled away by his fellow wolf. Their eye contact didn’t break even though the words of warning flitted between the two of them. The sirens were nearly on top of them now and as he jumped up to the second story balcony, her eyes following him the whole way, she heard the voice of her comrade behind her. ‘Come on, De! We have to get out of here!’ Her eyes only left Andreas’ when he was no longer within her sight and as soon as he had disappeared she bolted back with what remained of her party. Those who survived had carried their dead or dying with them as they quickly and silently made their way back to the paint shop. It was difficult to maneuver the city with so many authority figures on their way to the bloody alley, but they managed to slip past them all without drawing attention. Once back at the shop and into their secret hideout, only then would Delayna speak again. ‘We have injured!’ ‘OH MY GODS, HE’S DEAD!?’ ‘NOOO!!!’ ‘WEREWOLVES?!’ ‘What are we going to tell Mr. Pierce?’ ‘We need to get out of here!’

08:58

. The shouts, wails and worries of the vampires that filled the room flooded into Delayna’s shell-shocked mind until her a young woman made her way to her and put a hand on her shoulder. She shook her head and realized she had barely entered the door before she was overcome with her frozen stature. Delayna looked to her and realized that the man who had led their party into the alley was her husband. With a gentle shake of her head, Delayna told the poor woman all she needed to know of the fate of her lover. She threw her arms around the head vampire and sobbed into her chest as Delayna wrapped her arms around her. She couldn’t feel anything for the men and women lost in the night even though she should. She should feel anger, resentment and vengefulness at the events that had just taken place, but every time she thought about the attack, all she could see were those sharp blue eyes staring back at her. When the woman finally pulled herself away, Delayna snapped back to reality and shouted into the chaotic room. “HEY! SETTLE DOWN, NOW!” She waited for a soft silence to coat the area before she began speaking normal again. “There were lives lost tonight and even some wounded. We need to get everyone back to the farm as soon as possible. The streets are littered with humans and now at least two bloodho—.. Wolves. We need to get everyone to safety before our enemies hunt us like the trapped prey we currently are. I need everyone who is well to help carry the dead or the wounded back. Follow me and I’ll get us all back in one piece.”

08:59

. She waited for the room to follow her orders, hoisting people up on their shoulders sometimes two people carrying one body. The wailing cries of the injured at the levitation was silenced by rags found on tables as they all prepared themselves and then turned to her. Once she was satisfied, she pushed the door back open and made her way onto the streets. The lights from the emergency vehicles were bouncing off the nearby buildings and pairs of people were making their way towards them out of morbid curiosity. Once she was sure the attention was nowhere near her, she waved the vampire up until all of them were out and sped off through the alleys until they made their way out of town. They only had to stop twice to allow for cars and passersby to continue on before them, but once they hit the corporation limit, they could easily sprint their way to the homestead that resided far outside of town. The entire trek was filled with memories for Delayna and she knew that her father had to hear of it immediately. Once they arrived, Delayna counted every member that returned and was happy to see that not only had they not lost anyone, they hadn’t failed to clean the scene up from the dead and wounded. The vampires went about the areas they needed, delivering the wounded to the medically inclined while taking the dead out towards the fields. Their bodies would be laid out for all to see before they were salted, burned and returned to the earth. Delayna, however, made her way straight to Lyndon Pierce who wasn’t hard to find when the flock had returned. His face was stricken with worry as he laid eyes on his daughter, even if he was happy to see her alive. ‘Delayna, my girl, what happened?!’ “It was the wolves, father. They ambushed us, but there was one among them that we need to discuss; one I thought long time be dead.”

08:59

. She swallowed deeply as she hesitated. He was a formidable werewolf and she knew her father would be more worried when she told him he was alive, but with a werewolf alive who remembered peace, perhaps he would rather try to talk with him than hunt him down. She could only hope that was the case as she drew in a shaky breath and let the words leave her lips. “Andreas Ekdahl…” @Himbo Tie

Hearing his own name on her lips shook Andreas to the core, his eyes staring into Delayna’s for a moment before he pulled himself away and to the safety of the rooftops. His mind stayed focused on the woman that played behind his eyes, seeing the features of her face while his hands worked to prepare one of the werewolves for transport back to their den on the outskirts of the city. He dressed the man with unguided hands, his mind locking in her speed and agility as he started to categorize the woman who had once been his best friend and secret crush. He did not want to see her as a threat, but his training took over as he recognized just how fast and powerful she was. He had been caught off guard, but he knew that she would have still been able to throw him to the ground even if he had been more aware of his surroundings. She possessed the speed and strength of the older breed of vampires, those that were still feeding on human blood rather than a purely animal diet. Was he confident he could beat her if it came to it? Maybe. But did he want it to come to that? Andreas found himself without an answer when he posed that question. He had just seen an example of a peaceful past, one that he had forgotten or simply cast out of his mind as he made himself more accepting of the notion that the vampires deserved to die without a second thought of any opportunity of quarter being given to them. This change to his mindset was a necessary evil when he largely encountered only vampires that sought out the destruction of his kind. But even as he felt his training coming into place as he deemed her abilities a considerable threat, Andreas could not help but find the answer to his question. .

07:24

He would defend himself, but he would not seek out a fight against Delayna. Not unless she gave undeniable proof that she had changed and was one of the bloodlust filled, kill-crazed vampires. Picking up the body of the werewolf he had been dressing, Andreas looked to the surviving Lycan and nodded before setting off at a run across the roof of the building. He leapt to the roof of the opposite building and so started their slow retreat out of the city, keeping to the rooftops in an effort to avoid the notice of any humans. Only when they reached the portion of the city where the tall buildings fell away in favor of residential homes did they drop to ground level. That was all according to plan however, as it allowed them quick and easy access to the transportation they had used to get here. Finding the van parked under the oak tree he had left it at, Andreas pulled his keys from his pocket and unlocked the vehicle with the button on the key fob. Seeing the lights flash as the latches came undone, he jogged with the other wolf to the side door. Andreas pulled the door open on its track and laid the corpse on his shoulder in the middle of the floor. He waited for the other to climb in with the second corpse before sliding the door shut and slapping his palm against it firmly. .

07:24

Making his way around the front of the van, Andreas cast his eyes down the road for a moment as he paused with his hand on the door handle of the driver’s door. Closing his eyes and breathing in deeply, he felt his lip snarl up at the overwhelming scent of human stench. Settled and back on track, Andreas opened the door and climbed in before starting the vehicle. Looking over his shoulder between the driver and passenger seat, he saw the two bodies had been shifted to the side of the cargo space while his comrade was working on loading the assault rifles that they had in the van. The werewolves had been developing ways to make their firearms deadly to vampires, but their research and development wing had gone up in smoke a few months ago during a focused assault by a large band of vampires. They had been trying to find some way to weaponize vervain by putting it inside of the projectiles, but nothing of any real practicality had made it out of the building before the flames engulfed the research and scientists. No, these firearms were kept ready to be used against humans. Fighting them in hand-to-hand combat or transformed would lead to an easy victory against the unprepared, but humans that were looking for such acts would have the silver on hand to attack them with. Therefore, when conflict with humans was anticipated, it was a rule that wolves had to have weapons on hand that would not signal to the humans that the enemy were werewolves. It gave them time to get the jump on their mortal prey without having to worry about silver countermeasures being employed immediately. Andreas had no intention of getting into any needless conflict as they drove back to their base of operations, but he was not going to be caught unready. He reached his hand back and took the handle of the rifle and bag of magazines that were offered to him, his hands moving to check that a round was chambered before he laid them in the passenger seat. .

07:24

Getting the van in motion and heading down the street, Andreas tried to seem as inconspicuous as he could with his driving. The road was quiet and lacked any traffic, but as he got onto the main road that led out of the town, he had to merge into traffic. Thankfully, he was not like some of the other older Lycans, he had actually taken the opportunity to get used to the technology of this new world. The drive did not take long for them to reach an apartment building a few miles out of the city. It had been abandoned when they reached the city, and they were keeping up these appearances by not turning on any of the lights in the building. Turning into the parking lot and turning off the lights on the van, Andreas saw several Lycans emerge from the shadows of the lot, some in human form and others in wolf form. Not very subtle, but they expected only another werewolf or something that needed to die very quickly when someone entered the parking lot. Holding up his right hand so that they could see him through the windshield, Andreas parked the van and slipped out of the seat to climb through to the cargo area. Picking up one of the bodies, he waited a second or two as one of the wolves outside pulled the sliding door open. There were immediate looks of distress as Andreas and the other man climbed out with bodies in their arms, but Andreas looked around and raised his voice as he called out, “Chin up wolves. We killed three of them for every loss of our own, and that’s not to mention those that we wounded. Celebrate your brothers’ deaths. Tonight, they hunt in the sky, while we are still stuck down here. Do not mourn them, as we are the ones that are still suffering.” .

07:25

Smiling as he handed the body to a werewolf that approached him, Andreas nodded to the other survivor before starting towards the building. The corpses would be burned soon so that their souls in the afterlife could have their physical form renewed, giving them the perfect vessels to hunt for all eternity. He would not be able to attend the ceremony, as he needed to take the information gathered to his superiors and comrades so that it could be turned into actionable intel. @𝕊𝕙𝕒é𝕔𝕝𝕒𝕚𝕣

Lyndon's bright eyes widened as Delayna spoke of the werewolves, especially when she mentioned Andreas' name. He looked to the people around him, most of which were bustling around to try and take care of the wounded with haste. He cleared his throat and extended his hand to the gravel drive that led around the house and near the large barn. Everyone else was heading out to the fields and into the house, leaving them with a semblance of peace for a moment. 'Andreas Ekdahl... Well, that a name I haven't heard in a very long time... Are you sure?' Delayna's own eyes burned then. There was no way she wasn't correct. Memories flashed through her mind of them playing in the fields, dancing around the maypole and having root beer in the tavern while they played cards with the adults. The man before her in the night may not having been laughing or giving her that mischievous smile that let her in when he was bluffing, but those eyes; those crystal clear eyes were cemented into her brain deeper than she cared to admit. She caught her teeth grinding together as her father stared at her expectantly. He wasn't to blame for asking her if she was positive, she knew it was innocent ask, but she was slightly offended that he thought she would've been inaccurate in her recollection. "I'm positive. I rarely forget a face. We killed two of them and I am willing to bet they are heading back to their den to lick their wounds, but we shouldn't take on any new recruits right now. They draw too much attention and right now that is the last thing we need. Our scent is all over that town, it'll only get worse if we're out there snooping around." 'Well, dear, we can't hide away while our home is infested with wolves. We need to find their den and push them out.' "Respectfully, I don't think that is a good idea. We have no idea how many of them there are or what they are doing here." 'Be that as it may, we can't stand idly by and wait for them to find us.'

19:01

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She knew he was right and if it had been any other wolf besides Andreas she would've agreed whole-heartedly, but Andreas changed things. He was someone whom she knew for a fact remembered the peaceful past and if given the opportunity, might be able to see it again. She didn't want to fight and she didn't want a war, not with him. "Let me go. I'll scout out their den and find out what they are doing there." 'Delayna... I have no doubt in your abilities, but are you sure you want to take this on?' "Yes, and I want to do it alone." 'Absolutely not!' "Father, I am not going in there with anyone else and putting their lives in danger too. We lost too many tonight and there were only four of them. I can infiltrate much easier if I'm not worried about someone else's life." It was then that a much deeper voice joined the conversation. Camryn Frost was the only other vampire in their nest that Lyndon praised on as much as he did Delayna. He was one of the first new recruits they helped and one that turned into one hell of a rogue. He was usually put in charge of a mission if Delayna was busy and was very much 'The Golden Boy' are their nest. At the sound of his voice, Delayna rolled her eyes and crossed her arms as the man walked up to the pair from behind Delayna. He put a hand on her shoulder as he spoke and directed his words at Lyndon. 'If you need someone to go with her Mr. Pierce, I volunteer. She won't have to worry about me, she wont even know I'm there.'

19:01

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Delayna cast a sideways glance at the man before returning her gaze to her father. She was not fond of the idea and shook her head as she responded. "No. I refuse. If I'm gone, they will only have you to defend them without Camryn here and I'm not taking that chance of losing you." 'Oh, child, don't underestimate me so. Take the boy with you or don't go at all. Those are your options. Now, if the two of you don't mind, I have some friends to mourn.' Lyndon put his hands together and slightly bowed at the pair before turning and making his way towards the field where the rest of the vampires were gathering. Delayna sucked in a deep breath before she slapped Camryn's hand away from her and spun to face him with pure rage in her eyes. "How dare you. I had that completely under control." 'No need to be rude. I thought I was helping.' "Well, you weren't. Now go tend to the dead. I'm not taking you with me." 'Oh, you sure are little one because if you don't, I promise you Lyndon will send more than just me after you; likely with the command to leave no bloodhound alive. Is that something you want?' Delayna chewed on the inside of her cheek as she stared at the tall man in front of her. It may have been black as pitch out in the cool night, but she could see his green eyes shinning at her with promise. Her arms remained crossed as she looked up at the dark sky in contemplation, a slight huff leaving her lips before she lowered her gaze back to his. "Fine."

Camryn Frost

SPOILER

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19:02

@Himbo Tie

Walking into the dark lobby of the apartment building, Andreas could smell the Lycans around him without even needing to look and see them with his night vision. Chuckling as he stepped back and dodged a lazy swipe from one of them, he reached out and patted his hand on the wolf’s shoulder before speaking in a calm tone, “No need to worry brothers, I was not followed, and we have returned home. Is he upstairs?” Hearing the bones of the wolf beside him shift and crack as the man released soft groans of pain, Andreas glanced over and held his lips shut as he fought the urge to speak. The new werewolves in their pack had not dedicated nearly as much time to their transformations as he had been forced to under his father’s tutelage, so they were always experiencing the more painful and slower transformations. He had ordered them all to start practicing at speeding up their transformations, ignoring the pain and practicing the speed. Their current speed would get some of them caught and killed if they tried to shift in combat, and that was without taking in the fact that they could not do it silently with no sounds of pain and discomfort. They were young and new to their trade, but that was why Andreas refused to take them with him on his runs. He refused to take pups on missions that needed full-fledged wolves, but now he had lost two and would need to replace their number. There were well trained wolves in their ranks and those that were experienced enough to do what he needed, but he was not looking forward to having to sift through the rest of them to try and find the diamonds in the rough. He would have first pick when it came to selecting replacements for his unit, as even those that were needed for base defense could be replaced easily by finding a human that presented promising physicality and turning them. .

11:36

The werewolf sighed as he finished the transformation, his eyes looking at the much older warrior with eager intentions as he hoped that he had impressed him. He had been a wolf for all of three months, and in that time, he had two confirmed vampire kills in his wolf form. It was not a small feat, but the young man had a lot to work on before he could hope to get Andreas’s full attention. He nodded slowly at the older man’s question before speaking, “Yes sir, Jonas, Sven, and Emil are upstairs. There is someone else with them, but I didn’t recognize them. He looked...different, but I’m not sure how to explain it.” Looking to the young man, Andreas nodded his thanks before patting him on the shoulder. Walking past him in the direction of the stair well, he stopped and looked back to the man and his three fellow wolves that had now transformed back to their human forms. Sighing softly, he smirked before speaking in a low voice, “Set timers and try to beat them. Thomas, you’re getting close to where you need to be, considering you used to be human. That is a weakness you must overcome if you want to shift quickly. I have been shifting every full moon since I was an infant, I was born into the pain of transforming. You are learning it, and you must master it. There can be no pain, or you will never get faster. Take the pain your body tries to feel and turn it into something productive. Let it be a fuel as you know that a slow transformation will lead to the ultimate pain of death.” Andreas watched Thomas nod sternly, taking the words given to him as a message directly from the lord above. Smirking and shaking his head as he turned back to the stairwell, Andreas started up them at a quick jog as he scented the air and tried to detect the fourth man that had accompanied his fellow team leaders to the hideout. .

11:36

As he reached the top floor, he felt a vibration on his right thigh and reached down to pull out his cell phone and check the notification. An encrypted text from John, he received images of Delayna and the injured vampires returning before leaving even with the previous vampire that he had bitten and tracked. ‘I think they’ve abandoned their nest. Want me to pack up shop and make my way back?’ Tapping the side of his phone against the palm of his left hand, Andreas looked down along the darkened hallway to the conference room that sat in the middle of it. Seeing the familiar silhouette of Jonas standing there with his dreadlocked hair pulled back in a large ponytail, Andreas turned his attention back to the phone in his hands. Typing quickly, he sent his response before slipping his phone back in his pocket, ‘Stand by for further orders. Will send an update when I can.’ Whistling sharply as he approached, Andreas grinned as he saw Jonas turn quickly to look at him, his arms coming wide to accept the firm hug from the other man as he met him halfway. Jonas was nearly as old as Andreas but stood a few inches taller with a lankier frame. An expert demolitionist, Jonas had been out on a mission for the past three months tracking down and destroying vampire nests in a nearby city. His methods attracted the attention of humans, but his practiced hands made it always seem as if it was a natural gas disaster or some other human caused tragedy. Patting the larger man on the back as he broke from the hug, Andreas took a step back and looked him over quickly before nodding. He was happy to see his old friend in good health, but he heard a voice that caused him to freeze before a larger smile spread across his lips. Jonas did not miss the smile and grinned as well as he stepped to the side, making room for Andreas to walk past him and enter the conference room. .

11:37

Emil and Sven sat across from each other at the glass table, their faces turned to the large figure that sat at the head of the table. Two chairs were prepared for him and Jonas, his own positioned next to Emil as he saw Jonas move in beside Sven. Emil was a shorter man, his hair cropped close to his head with a long nose that hooked aggressively towards his mouth after he had suffered a permanent break inflicted by a silver mace. Older than Andreas, he was selected after the creation of the black ops unit to manage kill squads: packs of werewolves that were tasked with finding vampires in hiding and extracting useful information from them before killing them. Sven was a very large man, every bit as tall as Jonas but packed on with muscle and a physical presence that intimidated most people in a room. He was the youngest team leader, but his experience in the human military had helped him to quickly climb the ranks in the twenty years he had been a werewolf. He was not as able in wolf form as the others, but he brought with him an understanding of tactics and technology that had helped make the difference several times. His equipment was currently being employed by observers like John who were deep undercover with full safety and reliability. Andreas walked past the chair readied for him and smiled as he got closer to the large man, his brown hair obscuring much of his face in addition to a pair of large black sunglasses. Putting his hands out to his sides, he laughed softly before speaking, “My god Mattias, are you trying out for the next top emo kid? What the hell are you doing here, aren’t you needed on the council?” .

11:37

Mattias was the man that had created the covert operations branch and was the werewolf that had taken Andreas under his wing. Together, the two of them had made many changes and brought about progress that had the werewolves no longer hiding and running from combat with the vampires. Andreas watched the larger man stand before embracing him in a tight hug, his smile reaching his ears as he stepped back and shook his head. Walking over to his seat, he waited for Mattias to sit back down before speaking again, this time in a more serious tone, “I know I am cutting out of order, but I hope you all pardon the interruption. I have attacked a vampire nest tonight with my squad, and I think they might lead me to their main nest in the region. I plan to track them down tonight, but I need two replacements for my squad before I can go out with them again. I will track alone tonight, but I need those new wolves before my squad is back at full efficiency.” Mattias lowered his chin to his chest for a moment before nodding and speaking, his tone carrying gravel with it as he looked beyond his fondness for the others and spoke only as their superior, “Go tonight, but do not make contact. Scout only, we do not have the resources to replace you should you die. Keep your lookout in place until you return, I want eyes and ears in the field that can get to you faster than we can.” Andreas stood with a smirk, having not missed how Mattias knew he had an observer without even needing to say it. This level of professionalism and trust in each other was what he had grown to love about the relationship that their covert operations branch had. Nodding silently, he turned and left the room without another word, his feet carrying him towards the stairwell and eventually Delayna, if he could chance such a distant hope. @𝕊𝕙𝕒é𝕔𝕝𝕒𝕚𝕣

Delayna was in no mood for Camryn's idiocy and pride as the made their way to the vehicle. She thought about pleading with her father to let her go alone, but she knew it wouldn't do her any good. Lyndon was bound and determined not to lose her and Camryn needed to keep his white-knight status for appearances. She never understood why anyone liked him. To her, he was chauvinistic, misogynistic and one of the biggest narcissists she had ever met. Although, to everyone else he was charming and a protector. With an eye roll at her own thoughts, Delayna moved to open the drivers side door when she felt his hand push it closed as soon as she had opened it. 'Let me drive, Delayna. You look exhausted.' His wide grin hid the condescension, but not well enough for her to take the bait. "Get the fuck away from this door before I use you as a speed bump on my out of here." He brought both hands up to his head in surrender, the grin still plastered onto his face, before slowly making his way around to the passenger door. It truly was a shame he hadn't been with her when they were ambushed. She would've happily pushed him in Andreas' line of fire just to make sure she wouldn't be returning with him alive. It was then her thoughts instantly shifted to Andreas and the look in those crystal eyes she knew too well. Buckling up and waiting for Camryn to do the same, she pulled out of the driveway and made her way back towards town. She didn't plan on driving far, but she had hoped the trip would be made in silence which apparently was far too much to ask for. 'Alright, De. Tell me what happened. How did these wolves get the jump on you?' She rolled her eyes again as she watched the road disappear underneath the jeep. "I don't know... I had been patrolling in the city, but when I got back to the shop I found that one of the fledglings had escaped and been attacked. I called for back up and--"

21:22

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'Yeah, Lyndon almost sent me. I offered to go, but he needed me here unless you didn't make it back. Go on.' Delayna's grip tightened on the wheel as he spoke. He always interrupted her and every time he did it all she could think about doing was ripping his vocal chords out so he couldn't do it again. 'Go on' he had said, as if she had stopped of her own free will and she needed him to goad her on. Her teeth ground together before she took a deep breath and pressed on. "Once our back-up arrived, Steven took point... I shouldn't have let him... If I--" 'If you would've, You would be the one being buried back at the ranch. You can't think like that, Delayna! Steven knew what he was getting into and honestly, massive respect! He knew as well as any of us that if he would've let you take point on that mission, he would've had every bone in him broken over and over again for your death. Don't you ever make the mistake of thinking these pussies would ever sacrifice you over--' "Camryn... Shut the fuck up." She had had enough. She couldn't stand the way he talked about their family and when he called them names, especially in death, it caused her anger to heat to an unspeakable degree. It took a lot of deep breathes before she was able to properly speak again, but by that time they had reached the city limits. She pulled off on the shoulder of the road where other cars would have plenty of room to go around her before she threw the car in park and shut it off. Her eyes traveled to Camryn, but she instantly regretted it. His smirk was still bright as ever and he seemed to have no sympathy for those lost that night. She clenched her jaw together again before exiting the car and locking it up.

21:22

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"The shop's position is compromised. If we go there, the wolves are certain to be watching at the very least. I would personally like to avoid that area until we know exactly where they are located." 'Copy that, boss. I think I'm going to make my way towards the shabbier side of town. If the bloodhounds are watching, it likely from an elevated position which means they are either on rooftops or inside buildings. I don't see them posting up in places where they will be heard or seen. I'll start on the northern side of town and when I start to make my way towards the shop, I'll give you a call.' "Perfect. Don't die. That would be... such a shame." 'I love you too, Princess.' Her dark eyes flashed to him just in time to see his brilliant grin disappear into a nearby alley to make his way into town. She hated his nickname for her and she swore if she had a gun she would've shot him. He whittled away every last nerve she possessed and it wasn't until she felt his absence that she could properly relax. She had been walking down the desolate street in jeans and a jacket, her leather underarmor being hidden rather well, and she couldn't help but feel a small weight had been lifted with him gone. She made her way towards the southern part of town that was more high end, but it was only to try and catch the scent of the wolves. She would have no reason to check the buildings as she was sure the wolves wouldn't be brave enough to set up in a place so public, but she did keep an eye on the rooftops as she ventured further into the city.

21:24

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Coming to a three-story apartment complex, she made her way up the fire escape as silently as she could to reach the small rooftop just to get a glimpse of the city around her. It was quiet and peaceful, so much so that if she were still human, she was sure would enjoy it. Unfortunately, she knew of all the evil that existed in the world and nothing was peaceful anymore. She took a deep breath as she crossed her arms and looked out over the sprawling city, silently mourning her fallen friends and taking a few moments to try and compose herself before she continued tracking the werewolves. Tears streamed down her face, but she didn't make a single sound as her eyes watched the cars pass and the nightwalkers make their way home from their jobs. Sometimes she truly did wish that she had never met Lyndon, if only for the ignorant bliss that came with being human. @Himbo Tie

Andreas typically used a cargo van when venturing into the cities, relying on its boring appearance to keep up his anonymity. Not to mention the fact that it made it easy to transport his squad together without worrying about their vehicles getting split up in an attack or just basic traffic. Tonight, his feet carried him to the driver side door of a full-size black pickup truck, the bed filled with firewood and covered in a dark blue tarp. An easy form of revenue, there were those that would venture into the woods to cut up trees and sell them at low prices to the humans that evolution had frowned on by cursing them with susceptibility to the cold. Andreas had no interest in selling the wood tonight, for he saw the extra weight of the wood as added traction for his tires should he need to put the truck to use as a weapon. Seeing a couple of wolves walking towards him, he shook his head as he climbed into the seat, his words coming out in a gentle tone, “Going solo tonight boys; keep everything safe here, will ya?” Watching them nod before stepping back to make room for him to move the truck, Andreas turned over the engine and could not help the small smile that spread over his lips at the rumbling power of the vehicle. It had served him well over the years, both to haul cargo and as a mobile artillery piece. The wood in the bed also hid the central reinforcement that could quickly have a pole slid into it with a machine gun mounted to it. Glancing over his right shoulder to the firearm with several boxes of linked ammunition sitting on the floor of the cab, Andreas nodded before backing the truck up and getting it onto the road. He had no one to man the machine gun tonight, but if all went according to plan, he would not need a gunner. .

00:30

The drive was much quicker in the truck than in the van, traffic having died down more and more as the night went on. Most traffic now would not be leaving the confines of the city itself, the suburban families having no need to be in the city this late at night. Pulling his phone out as he drove through the city, Andreas dialed John’s phone number before turning his attention back to the road around him. He was moving too quickly to look at anything in great detail, but he also was not wanting to draw attention by creeping along the roadways and looking at the alleys and roofs. Setting his phone in the holder attached to the dashboard, Andreas waited a few seconds after John had answered to speak, “In the city, active recon to find the vampires. Got any updates for me?” There was a soft rustling sound as John shifted to look through the window, his words coming back softly as he settled back behind the windowsill, “Nothing here boss, the place has been a graveyard since they high tailed it out of here. Requesting permission to do some active reconnaissance of my own and see what I can find in there.” Sighing softly as he brought his left hand back to rub his mouth and jaw slowly, Andreas glanced out the window as the buildings beside him opened up into a sort of park. Surrounded by residential buildings, it was obviously a place that humans would frequent with their families and dogs. It was not a good place to park the truck however, so he brought his attention back to the conversation at hand, “John, the higher ups want you in place to act as a quick reaction force if I run into some trouble. You can’t very much do that if you’re getting into a situation of your own. However, it would make my job a lot easier if you could go have a looksie and tell me what direction our blood sucking friends ran. Catch my drift?” .

00:31

Hearing John chuckle before answering in the affirmative, Andreas nodded and closed the call before returning his phone to his pocket. Looking out of the windows again, he saw a series of townhouses with a couple of parking lots attached to the property. Seeing several open spots in the back row, Andreas turned on his blinker and slowed the truck down while turning into the turning lane. Waiting for a red sedan to drive past him, Andreas turned his vehicle into the lot and moved it slowly through the turns and aisles before finally finding a spot that was isolated from other vehicles. Parking it and shutting off the engine, he shifted in his seat to pull a blanket down over the machine gun before grabbing a shotgun that he could carry under his coat. Three handfuls of buckshot shells found their way into his hoodie pocket before he slid out of the truck and put the strap of the shotgun over his neck and right shoulder. Pulling the leather trench coat on over his shoulders to mask his scent slightly, he buttoned the top three buttons before shifting his right arm to keep the flap closed and conceal the firearm. It was attached to a breakaway sling to make it easy to draw and wield, but he was hoping that it would only be an unneeded precaution in this adventure he was undertaking. His hood came up to cover his head and conceal his presence as it had before, since his clothes had been removed before shifting and therefore would still retain their scent blocking properties. Admittedly, his sweat from exertion would reduce the effectiveness at blocking detection at close range, but if Andreas got his wish, his target’s eyes would be more than enough to recognize him amongst the people of the city. .

00:31

Speaking of humans, Andreas locked the door of the truck and slipped his keys in his pocket as he saw several walking along the sidewalk that bordered the parking lot. Moving to meld with them, Andreas offered the closest one a short nod of apology for accidentally bumping into her before walking through them. He wanted to be near the group so that he did not stand out, but he wanted to have enough separation that he could accurately attune his senses and locate the vampires. He could smell their blood in the air, though with the amount shed tonight, there was a chance it was just permeating through the air around him. He followed the scent as best he could while staying in areas of the sidewalk that had people, but he was close to pulling out his phone to check on John when the wind shifted and brought with it a scent he could not ignore. It was normal for people to sweat when running around and having fun with each other, and this fact was very much the case when young adults and children ran from each other. Chase and tag were common games to play, but when between a young boy and his secret crush, it had the opportunity to draw more instincts than just simple entertainment. When Andreas had chased Delayna as a child, he had used his knowledge of her scent to track her down in the woods and surprise her at never losing a game of hide and seek. He had always accustomed it to good luck, but as Andreas stood still on the sidewalk and breathed in deeply through his nose, he could not help the way his mouth opened slightly to taste the scent as well and lock it down as fact and not simply a fantasizing memory. .

00:31

Turning his head and looking in the direction of the wind, Andreas scanned quickly to try to gain a visual of his target, but nothing came up. Grunting softly in frustration, he breathed in again and nodded as he finalized with himself that he was truly catching her scent, and by the strength of it, she was nearby. Walking along the sidewalk another block, Andreas dipped into an alley and searched quickly to find a fire escape that would take him to the roof. Finding one behind a dumpster that had its ladder retracted, he jumped up onto the dumpster and then jumped again to land on the lowest platform of the stairs. Walking slowly up the stairs, Andreas moved his hands with practiced precision and pulled the shotgun forward slightly, keeping the stock pressed against his shoulder while his right hand held onto the pistol grip. Coming to the top of the stairs, Andreas knelt down and brought the shotgun up, his left hand holding tight to the foregrip as his eyes swept around the roof he was on. Seeing nothing but a couple air conditioning vents, he lowered the shotgun and looked around to the neighboring buildings. He nearly stepped back down the fire escape when the wind picked up again and brought with it that ever-familiar scent. Looking over a few buildings, Andreas could easily make out the frame of a woman crouching near a fire escape as she looked down at the streets below her. .

00:32

Andreas lowered his shotgun and returned it under his jacket before taking a few steps away from the edge of the roof. Jogging forward, he leapt off the roof he was on and landed softly on the one between his building and Delayna’s. His footfalls were heavier than he would have liked, but that worked partially to his advantage. Drawing the shotgun out from under the jacket, he held it with the barrel pointed low, but his hands were in a position that he could quickly elevate and use the shotgun. Standing nearly seventy feet from Delayna, he whistled a soft tune that he remembered hearing from her lips often when they would walk around their hometown. His training kept his eyes locked on her and his finger on the trigger, but his mind hoped that would not be a necessity as he continued the tune. @𝕊𝕙𝕒é𝕔𝕝𝕒𝕚𝕣

00:32

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SPOILER

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Delayna was far too lost in her thoughts to hear Andreas' footfalls as leapt from one rooftop to another. Her mind was lost in the battle that had taken place only an hour or so ago, the blood of her friends being spilt right before her eyes. She knew the risks every time she left the farm, any one of them could die at any moment when they were hunting the wolves, it just never dawned on her it would be the bravest of them. She had almost forgotten how blood thirsty their enemies were and as she watched her friend being torn apart in front of her again and again, it caused the tears in her eyes to fall harder. They didn't deserve that death and she found herself wishing he would've let her take point just so she didn't have to live with the survivors guilt she was currently feeling. Before the resentment could fully set in towards her furry nemeses, a soft whistle broke through the air. "Where the river meets the sea there's a hidden place for you and me Secrets, stories tales of old it's binding bonds are good as gold Don't tell or lead others here for it is ours year after year"

22:54

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As soon as that soft melody pierced her mourning thoughts, the words flowed into her head as if she was reading them off a page. Her dark eyes closed as she began to hum with him the song of their childhood. It was a tune she had come up with on one of their rambunctious games of tag. They had wandered far away from their town and stumbled onto a beach just outside of the woods. Being young, they pretended they were shipwrecked and had to scavenge for basic necessities. It was one of the first times Andreas had gone out for a hunt and actually came back with something. They didn't have a fire or a means to cook the poor hare he had snared, but they weren't really stranded and had everything they needed back home. It was also the first time Delayna had made a 'fort', putting the local trees and sand to good use. It was a memory she didn't think on often now that things were different, but the soft sound of his whistle brought it all crashing back into view as she slowly stood from her crouched position. "You shouldn't be here, Hunter." She didn't turn to look at him, but she knew it was him. Thankful that he had found her before Camryn found him, she crossed her arms as she looked over the city streets and drew in a shaky breath. Her voice was no louder than if he had been standing directly next to her. She knew what he was and with that came hearing that could hear her even if she barely whispered. There was no need to yell or face him for him to read her lips, she knew he heard every word.

22:54

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While she waited for him to respond, she braced herself for the impact of his voice. She hadn't heard it since they were kids and she wasn't sure she would recognize him on that alone. Her nails dug into her arm as she tried to force air into her lungs, realizing just how much they both had changed since the attack. So much had happened between them both and while there was a small bit of fear in her that too much had changed, she knew that not to be the case if he hadn't attacked her yet. Those memories were decades in the past, but they still must have meant something to him. It sure meant everything to her. @Himbo Tie

The sound of Delayna humming the tune that matched his whistling brought a small smile to Andreas’s lips, his eyes closing for a moment as he let his guard down slightly. If she was willing to reciprocate the experimental gesture of the whistle, it wasn’t likely that she would turn to attack him. Opening his eyes as he let the tune complete itself on his lips, Andreas looked across the empty roof that separated him from his target that night. His training screamed at him to raise his firearm and cripple her with a blast to her legs, but he ignored the hatred and bloodlust that had been drilled into him. She was different, or at least he hoped that she would be. She hadn’t been shaping up to be your typical vampire when they were children, so he had to trust that Delayna hadn’t abandoned reason to become a bloodthirsty monster like her brethren. That did not mean that Andreas was safe though. He was breaking a few levels of protocol by being out here alone, so he had to only imagine that Delayna was as well. With that reasoning, and his memories of her father, Andreas knew that Delayna was likely not on mission without any backup. Raising his shotgun slightly as he scanned around the rooftops, the Lycan looked for any signs of movement or an ambush. Finding nothing but more air conditioning units and filtration systems, he lowered his firearm and allowed the sling to catch it when he let go of it. Moving his trench coat slightly to cover the weapon and show that he had no plans of employing it, Andreas allowed his gaze to traverse the short distance and land on Delayna properly. She held no aggression in her poise, and as he studied her for a moment, Andreas felt his memories playing at the edge of his attention. He could smell the salty air of the ocean washing over him as he also tasted the blood of the hare that he had caught. Lowering his eyes to his feet with a smirk, Andreas was working up the courage to step closer when he heard Delayna’s words. .

14:10

Swallowing and raising his gaze to see her crossing her arms over her chest, he nodded slowly as he agreed with her words. It was foolish of him to be out here on a recon mission, much less alone and with no nearby backup. If the shoe was on the other foot, he would be leading a troop of wolves into the city right now to hunt down and kill the blood suckers that had ambushed him. And yet, here he was, standing a stone’s throw from one of the vampires that he had led an attack against, hoping that she wouldn’t hold any resentment towards him. Hoping that he was safe to lower his defenses and approach her. Jumping easily over the alley that separated their buildings, Andreas landed with grace as he stepped slightly closer to Delayna. The distance was to show that he trusted her, but also meant that he was in much better range for the shotgun hanging under his coat. Shaking his head with a smirk as he realized the secondary reasoning without even intentionally doing it, Andreas felt a cold pit in his stomach as he recognized how deeply ingrained his training was. Holding his hands out to his sides to show that he meant no harm, he knew that Delayna wasn’t looking at him but would be able to hear the soft scraping sound of the leather against his hoodie. He hoped she would recognize it as a peaceful gesture, but he had to trust that the humming from before meant that she intended no harm to him. Lowering his hands and putting them in the pockets of his coat, he spoke in a low tone, his eyes looking beyond her to gaze out across the cityscape, “No I shouldn’t, yet here I am. I can only assume that with you here, Lyndon must be somewhere near as well. I hope he is doing well.” .

14:10

Exhaling slowly as he brought his gaze back to Delayna’s form, Andreas knew that he was treading a dangerous path. Showing that he remembered their past and was willing to talk about it could be seen as a sign of weakness to the vampire only fifteen yards from him. It also threatened to undermine his own training and slow his decision making if this turned into a violent affair. Why was he risking his cold mindset by opening up memories that would remind him of a time that no longer existed? Clearing his throat gently as he tried to ignore the questions raging in his mind, Andreas stepped forward slightly and spoke in a soft voice, “I didn’t know you would be in this city, I thought you would be further back from the front.” @𝕊𝕙𝕒é𝕔𝕝𝕒𝕚𝕣

It was the subtle movements he made that seemed to speak the most. Leaping onto her same building was just to be closer to her and while it was not a necessity, she understood. It was the way his feet hit the rooftop when he approached that stuck out more than the jump. They glided almost silently towards her, but not to scare her, no; they possessed an aire of ease and familiarity that told her he knew exactly what they shared as kids and that their childhood memories never left his mind. He then held his hands out to his sides, likely to let her know he meant her no harm, but it was the way his fingertips lazily curled in the air that made her remember his touch. A touch that not even time could erase as he stepped closer. She hadn't been looking at him, but she remembered every mannerism he had and if she had to bet her life on them, she would. 'No, I shouldn't, yet here I am. I can only assume that with you here, Lyndon must be somewhere near as well. I hope he is doing well.' The last sentence hung in the air between them for a moment as Delayna kept her eyes on the ground. Lyndon did everything he could for them when they were children, raised them from infants, some of them, and to hear his name on Andreas' tongue was like she was conversing with a ghost. The man that stood not far from her now was a figment of her imagination for so long that when her amber eyes did finally land on him, her chest froze along with ever muscle in her body. He spoke again, but this time his voice held a gentleness to it that sounded like a grown-up version of the one she knew. 'I didn't know you would be in the city, I thought you would be further back from the front.'

20:00

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Delayna scoffed at his words as her hands gripped her arms tighter. He didn't think she would be here, that meant it was okay to kill her kind and fill the streets with blood of her people; people who were still trying to figure out how to not be a hinderance to society. She couldn't look at him in that moment as she spoke, especially because at least he assumed her to be alive. She wasn't sure if that made the whole situation worse or better. Sure, he had enough faith in her survivability to make it out of their raided home, but he also never came looking for her. What if she had been killed by a pack other than his? Would he ever know? Would he care? "Ohh, Andreas'." She was smiling, but there was no pleasantness behind it, even when she laughed. There was pain. "You didn't think I would be here... Well, I guess that makes two of us. I thought you'd taken up residence in a cemetery somewhere in an unmarked grave. I thought that the first fourteen years of my life were a fever dream that I made up to sleep at night... I thought you were dead." She turned to look at him again, this time not trying to hide the pain and sadness in her eyes. She made no advancement towards him, nor did she loosen her arms. There was a nervousness that he was so close to her now, but only because she wasn't sure if she could ever be that close to him again. She took in a slow inhale as her eyes scanned the city. Her voice came out a little stronger now that she wasn't looking at him, almost like she could pretend she was talking to anybody but him.

20:01

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"Lyndon is well. Steven is... not with us anymore and Camryn is scouting tonight. I hope whomever you brought with you this time is on their toes. He won't grant any mercy after what happened in the alley." She knew her words were cold, but the information she gave him would tell him she still trusted him. She gave away her only source of help if things turned ugly between them and while she hoped they didn't, she knew what his kind was capable of. @Himbo Tie

When Delayna’s gaze lifted and fell on his form, Andreas felt himself growing tense under the amber gaze of the woman before him. He had known that saying Lyndon’s name was a risk, but he wanted to make sure that she knew he still remembered their past. He wanted her to know that he was still plagued with nightmares from that night and the terror he had felt when he saw her home burning like some sick prop in a play. Despite how his worldview had shifted with age and exposure to the horrors of their species’ war, Andreas still had fond memories of Lyndon that he could draw on. Memories of when the old vampire had encouraged him and Delayna to go play or indulge in sweets at the town center during a festival. Memories of when the vampire had helped to bandage up his hand when he had cut it while playing. Memories that reminded him that there was a past worth fighting for. Delayna’s scoff at his words stung Andreas to the core, making him question his choices of coming this close to her. He could feel his hands immediately moving to take hold of his shotgun as the dismissal was perceived as a threat, but Andreas willed himself to remain calm and keep his hands in his pockets. If he wanted to see where this exchange might take him, then he had to trust his initial instincts. He had to trust Delayna and his memories of her versus the instincts of distrust that he had learned. Breathing out deeply, Andreas watched her and saw her fingers gripping her arms more firmly where they were crossed over her chest. She was upset by something that he had said; that much was clear to him. But what was it? Was it the assumption that she would be further away from the direct fighting, where she could put her brilliant mind that he remembered her having to better use? Was it that he made it sound like she wouldn’t want to be in harm’s way? He remembered her as being brave, so he had no doubt of her ability to take care of herself. .

00:45

When she spoke and offered him that cold smile and even colder laugh, Andreas felt a pit of ice grow in his stomach as he realized what he had said. He knew at that point what had upset her, and he immediately felt foolish. Exhaling a short snort as he lowered his head to look at the rough texture of the roof under his feet, Andreas scraped the sole of his right boot against the surface as she spoke. She was perfectly in her rights to be upset with him, and he knew better than to interrupt her by covering his ass. Swallowing thickly despite the dryness that came over his mouth, Andreas knew that he needed to say something to Delayna. Looking up slowly to see her turning towards him, he shook his head slowly before speaking through a throat tightened by emotion, “Delayna, I saw your...your home ablaze that night. I knew it was likely that you...that you were gone. But I couldn’t accept it. You couldn’t be dead; I wouldn’t believe it. I had to...believe that you were alive. I am sorry that I am not dead, I know that would be easier to accept and live with.” Tightening his hands inwards to hold the coat tighter around himself, Andreas picked his left foot up to step away from her, but it would not obey his intentions and simply fell back down to its original spot. His instincts told him to leave, but he could not commit to an action that would tear him away from this reunion, no matter how painful it was. Seeing Delayna turn her gaze to the city around them, Andreas took a shaky breath as if preparing to speak. His words, however, caught in his throat when he heard Delayna’s words. He was overjoyed to hear that Lyndon was in fact alive and well, but the news of Steven’s death hit him like a sledgehammer to the stomach. .

00:45

He had fond memories of watching Steven string his first bow and take it out to the archery range. Steven had been several years his junior, and despite the fact he was being looked at to be a vampire, Andreas would spend time around him. Andreas had seen no reason to separate himself from him based on his fated destination. Steven was treated like a younger brother at times, and Andreas would show him the best ways to climb a tree to get the best fruit where the adults could not reach. Looking at Delayna as she finished, Andreas shook his head before speaking, “Not Steven, was he caught in the blaze? What happened to him? Whoever this Camryn is, he will find his night boring. I came alone. I was hoping to find you and...” Andreas’s words slipped away from him as he furrowed his brows and lowered his gaze to his boots. What was he planning to do if he found her? What did he expect to come from this reunion? He appreciated the honesty that she spoke with, and he respected it by telling her of his own vulnerabilities. But the mention of the other vampire did scratch at the back of his mind. If there was another being scouting, Andreas needed to be on his toes. He knew his scent blocker was effective, but he could not know for certain if its effectiveness had deteriorated after the attack in the alley. Not to mention the hormones that he could feel coming to surface as he stood before Delayna, the girl of his adolescent desires and the figure that haunted his nightmares wreathed in flames and death. Holding his gaze on his boots, Andreas felt his shoulders relaxing and falling slightly. He listened intently to anything Delayna had to say, and out of respect for their past, he lifted his icy blue gaze to meet hers. @𝕊𝕙𝕒é𝕔𝕝𝕒𝕚𝕣

Every word the man uttered only made the rage inside her grow with more intensity. 'I know that would be easier to live with?' ... 'Was he caught in the blaze?' The more he spoke the more she could feel the sharp sting of tears prickle at her nose. He was never dense; he was never clouded with so much blood-lust that he couldn't see two-foot in front of his face. 'Stupid' was never an apt description for Andreas Ekdahl, but in that moment she wasn't so sure anymore. She tore her eyes away from the city and simply shook his head at him. There was so much to share and so little time. "And what? What, Andreas?! We would... hold hands and go back to racing each other through the forest as if we were being chased by phantoms?! Because I've been doing that!... Alone." Finally, a hand came free of her bicep as she lifted it to her eyes to wipe away the buildup of tears. Her gaze fell back over the street while she tried to keep her temper in check. This wasn't how she had wanted their reunion to go, but he had missed too much, been gone for too long. He needed to be caught up with everything on her side of their story, but with Camryn skulking around the northern side, she knew he would find her much too soon for her to be able to tell him everything. She let out a shaky exhale before her eyes found his shoes and then those diamond hues that she knew she would never forget. "No. Steven did not die in the fall of Deep Run, nor the pillage of Fredryk Falls and no, not even at the front of the war that you and I wage. He fell in the alley between 7th and 8th street, when a band of merciless, ravenous, carnivorous beasts attacked him and the friends that followed him. He fell, when you ripped him apart like he meant nothing more than the dirt on the bottom of your shoe..."

15:39

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She was infuriated, but it wasn't as if she had no fault in the encounter. They were out there actively searching for his kind to slaughter and kill as well. The only thing that saved Andreas from being impaled by one of many sharp objects Delayna kept on her person at all times was the fact that she had seen those eyes in her dreams for years. They were a symbol, a goal, she hoped to reach one day; a time of peace between the races that had existed once and could exist again. All of the warm emotions she harbored for the man before were unfortunately buried deep for her and she knew with that came the risk that she'd never be able to express them to him, but the anger that rose to the front of it all had consumed her. "I don't know how he didn't notice you... As soon as I... Your eyes... He should've known and tried to stop you. He is... was... just as asinine as when we were kids..." @Himbo Tie

The way that Delayna shifted her eyes and shook her head told Andreas that he had been a fool to hope for some grand reunion, but the words that came stung more than that realization. He did not know how realistic his hopes had been, but he had hoped that she would entertain them as well. Holding her hands seemed like too much to ask, and the way she spat the words at him only served to solidify their impossibility. She had been suffering years alone without him there, and while Andreas had wept for her loss, this wasn’t the time to focus on his own feelings. Swallowing down the instinct to tell her how badly he had missed her, Andreas simply took one step back as he bore the weight and intensity of her words. When her hand was released from her arm to wipe at her tears, Andreas felt a tear in his chest grow wider at the fact that it was his words that had brought her this pain. Those tears were a result of him being here. He had made a promise to himself years ago, while helping Delayna clean up after bullies had messed up her basket of market goods, that he would never be one of those people that made her cry or feel less than perfect. Breathing out shakily as he felt his shoulders lowering in shame, Andreas licked his lips quickly before finding the courage to speak. Lies and pain had taken up too much of their time. It was time for honesty. “I have missed you, Delayna, every day of my life. It killed me to see your home ablaze, and I would have run into it to find you, if not for my father pulling me back. I don’t know what I expected to happen when I found you tonight, but I knew that I couldn’t go any longer without knowing for certain that you were alive or dead. I needed to see you alive and know that you weren’t just another memory tearing at me.” .

17:15

As he finished speaking, Andreas corrected his action from before and took a step forward towards Delayna. His hands stayed in his pockets, but he knew that wasn’t enough. Another step closer, followed by two more. Soon enough, he stood only a few yards in front of Delayna, and his icy blue eyes searched her own amber orbs for some clue of what he needed to do. Unfortunately, he only got this close right as she revealed Steven’s fate to him. The young boy hadn’t died in the house fire or some other attack that had plagued both sides of this war. He had suffered a much worse fate, and as Delayna revealed it, Andreas could almost taste the man’s blood in his mouth again. He had been the first vampire attacked, and it had been done so quickly that Andreas had not even had a moment of time to verify the identity of the man. There was no face. It was only the vampire scent that had brought his crushing jaws to Steven’s throat and ripped his head off. The news came like a punch in the gut, but Andreas owed it to the fallen man to not step back and recoil from the truth. He had killed him, and he was not going to disrespect him further by shirking the responsibility of his actions. A warmth spread across Andreas’s eyes as tears welled up, only to spill over and fall down his cheeks when Delayna mentioned Steven needing to stop him. Shaking his head slowly, he brought his right hand up from his coat and wiped the tears off of his cheeks before speaking in an emotionally gruff voice. “There was nothing he could have done. I had the element of surprise; there was no way he could have seen my eyes. No. Steven did not die because he was foolish. He died because of me. Because I killed him. I promise you though, I did not know it was him. If I had recognized him, I would have called off the attack.” .

17:15

Swallowing and shaking his head, Andreas glanced to the side as he brought his hand up to wipe away the last of his tears. It was a fruitless effort, for as soon as they were gone, more tears simply flowed to replace them. Closing his eyes tightly, he lifted his head and inhaled slowly through his nose. Waiting a moment to try to calm his racing heartbeat, Andreas opened his eyes and looked into Delayna’s as he spoke. “I am so sorry. I know these words won’t change anything, but I am incredibly sorry. I understand that you are upset, truly. If you’ll give me time, I will leave so that you can mourn in your own way.” @𝕊𝕙𝕒é𝕔𝕝𝕒𝕚𝕣

Andreas' explanation of needing to see her because he thought she was dead tore at her. Just hearing his voice ripped her apart in more ways than he could understand and she was on the verge of breaking. It wasn't until he took accountability for his actions that her stoic and strong will faltered. She brought her hands up to her face and covered her eyes, feeling the tears flowing freely down her cheeks. Steven had been like a brother to them and now he was dead, torn apart by the man who taught him how to make his own bow out of twigs and twine. The tears fell in silence as Andreas finished his apology, offering her more time to mourn if she needed to do it alone and the very thought of going through any part of her life alone again made her heart ache inside her chest. Gradually, she began to sob into her hands. Her back shook and her whines were audible as soon as they started, however, if he came too close to her her hands would come down and freeze in front of her chest as if she was commanding him to stop with a single motion. "Please... Just... I don't need time to mourn Steven alone. I don't need time to figure out how I need to handle this ache in my chest. I don't need to leave. I'VE BEEN ALONE ALL THIS TIME, ANDREAS!" She couldn't look at him, not when there were fresh tears still falling from her eyes. She wrapped her arms around herself again, trying her best to contain the loud, exasperated shriek she wanted to emit. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, letting her head hang for a moment before she looked up at the building across the street.

22:37

blankspace

"I'm thankful you're alive and... I think it's time you see Lyndon." Her gaze slowly turned to him, eyes bloodshot with her tears. "And if you even think about leaving me on this rooftop, alone, again, I will hunt you until you are the last one." Anger, love, hatred, betrayal and genuine relief all flooded through her system at once. She needed him to stay with her, but if he walked away from her willingly there would be no turning back. She would kill his entire race while she strung him up to watch the last one burn. She was not a cold-blooded killer, but if her one tether to reality broke loose after everything she had lost, she would become the very thing she hated. 'Why wait?' The sharp voice of her vampiric companion came from the rooftop Andreas had leapt from last. Camryn stood on the edge just as careless as he always looked with his shotgun slung over his shoulder and a wide grin across his face. He was staring daggers into Andreas, the one that reeked of wet dog and blood. He made no advancement towards the pair, but the jolt of fear through their features was enough to satiate him at the moment. 'Good catch, Princess. This is the one that killed Stevie? Hmm. I expected more. Well, what are you waiting for, De? Do you need a man to do the job? Has Lyndon really made you that much of a pussy you won't avenge the death of you kin?' @Himbo Tie

Seeing Delayna break down and truly sob into her hands ripped at Andreas more than any wound inflicted by silver ever could. She wasn’t sobbing because of something a stranger had done to her or said. Andreas couldn’t go fight someone and stand up to them to defend his friend that he had the beginnings of feelings for. There wasn’t a wound that he could help her with by carrying her home to his parents for some basic first aid. There wasn’t a joke he could tell or an adventure to propose to help her forget about a book that had been ruined by a rainstorm. No, he had to stand here and bear the weight and agony that came with these body shaking sobs that overcame the vampire before him. Why? Because he was the reason and he owed it to her and their fallen friend to stand here and accept the responsibility. That did not mean he wouldn’t try to do something. Though as he stepped forward to try and get closer to her to hug her, Andreas found himself stopped by the way her hands came down as if trying to ward him away from her. Feeling his eyes welling up again as he listened to the whines that came with the desperate tears, Andreas stepped back and took his hands out of his pockets. Holding them clasped together under his chin, he let his tears stream down his cheeks as he closed his eyes, offering a silent prayer to let Steven’s soul find peace in his next life. Hearing her words about how she had been alone for long enough, Andreas’s eyebrows furrowed slightly as he accepted the weight of the words and the pain that accompanied them. He knew a portion of how she felt, but there was some difference that he knew would never match. He had lost his mother to the initial attack on their town, but he had had his father to help him mourn and move past. His father had been there to fill his mind with new rhetoric that would reduce the pain of losing their former life. He did not know if Delayna had that, or if she had truly been suffering these centuries in isolated agony. .

00:25

When she wrapped her arms around herself again, Andreas ignored the way she would have moved to stop him and simply stepped forward towards her. Lowering his hands and letting them rest with their palms facing upwards, Andreas held his upper arms by his sides while letting his forearms extend towards Delayna. It was meant as a display to show that he meant no harm to her before his words came in a low voice, torn by the tears that threatened to choke him, “I don’t want to leave you alone Delayna. You’ve been on my mind and in my heart for the past two and a half centuries. I don’t know if I could leave your side, knowing now that you do still live.” Hearing her promise to hunt down his kind, Andreas felt a boiling heat threaten to erupt in his chest as his training tried to kick in. But he resisted the urge and simply smiled while chuckling softly. He had no doubt about the validity of her threat, despite how much he hated that he had to hear it. Nodding slowly, he considered what she said about going to see Lyndon. It would be good to see the old vampire again, but Andreas also knew that not all vampires would be willing to have a conversation with him on equal grounds. Looking at his boots for a moment as he tried to think of a response, Andreas was vaguely aware of a sound behind them, but he discounted it to belonging to one of the various pigeons or other animals of the city. Lifting his gaze to meet hers, he felt a stab in his heart yet again when he saw the bloodshot nature of her eyes. Emotional and sobbing, Delayna looked everything and nothing like the memories he had of her. He wanted to rush forward to take her in his arms, but he also respected her need for space at this moment and stood his ground patiently. That was, of course, until the voice rang out behind him. .

00:25

Whipping around quickly towards the voice, Andreas dropped his hands and allowed his training to kick in. Before he was even facing the vampire that had appeared, his right hand had taken hold of the pistol grip of his shotgun and his left hand had gripped the forward handguard. Facing the vampire with the shotgun’s stock pressed against his shoulder and the barrel on its way up, he froze in place when he saw a similar weapon in the man’s hand. His own weapon was meant to maim so that he could close in for a kill with his claws and teeth, but his opposite number’s weapon could have silver shot loaded. At his age, Andreas could force out small caliber silver rounds in low enough quantity once they had impacted him, but a shotgun carried too much force and the possibility of too many projectiles to extract. Keeping the barrel off target and releasing a low growl, Andreas snarled to show his elongating canines on the top and bottom jaw. His bright blue irises stayed as present as ever, but the white of his eyes were beginning to fill with inky blackness as he called out to the stranger, “Expected more did you, Blood Sucker? Why don’t you come over here and try for yourself if you think you’re hard enough.” Narrowing his eyes and growling deeply, Andreas flicked his gaze to Delayna for a moment before muttering to himself, “You know nothing of Delayna or Lyndon if you believe either of those comments to be truth. Who are you, and what do you want stranger?” @𝕊𝕙𝕒é𝕔𝕝𝕒𝕚𝕣

'Good catch, Princess. This is the one that killed Stevie? Hmm. I expected more. Well, what are you waiting for, De? Do you need a man to do the job? Has Lyndon really made you that much of a pussy you won't avenge the death of your kin?’ Delayna;s eyes snapped to the familiar voice before the fear settled into her heart. Camryn was a lot of things, but a slack-shot marksman he was not. He had the distance and the advantage of shooting Andreas and she knew that if he felt threatened or provoked in any way, he would do it. It was the first time in a long time the fear she had felt rocked clear down to her feet. Even when Andreas and his pack had attacked them, she didn’t feel fear as much as she felt anger. This was different. This was a member of her clan taunting the man she knew she loved her entire life. ‘You know nothing of Delayna or Lyndon if you believe either of those comments to be truth. Who are you, and what do you want, stranger?’ Finally able to breathe out the air in her lungs, she stepped towards Camryn as slowly as she could with her hands up. Her dark brown eyes had lightened a touch and the red only deepened as she tried her best to de-escalate the situation. “Camryn. He is an old friend. Lyndon would have us strung up for the entire nest to see if we killed him. We take him to Lyndon and if you aim that weapon with intent to maim or kill, I will rip your throat out and bring your twitching body to the nest myself.” She knew he would listen to her, even if he didn’t want to, however, she made sure to keep stepping towards him and align herself in front of Andreas to drive home the point that Camryn could not shoot. The only thing worse than bringing home Andreas’ corpse would be bringing home her own. As Camryn contemplated her proposition, she turned her head slightly towards Andreas as her eyes stayed trained on Camryn. “Don’t do anything stupid. Just trust me.”

The way the giant man tossed his own insults at him made him snicker. He may have been twice the size of the lythe vampire, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t land one solid shot that would render him useless until he could kill him. The growl and hate-filled words were quite noticeable and as he asked his second question, he seemed to answer all too eagerly. “Oh? She hasn’t told you? Well, allow me to introduce myself.” The blonde said as he stepped closer towards the edge of the rooftop. “I am Camryn Frost and Delayna Marx is to be my wife.” He waited for the shocked expression, a growl or even complete astonishment as the statement wasn’t exactly true. Lyndon had encouraged the two of them to be engaged as they were the most adept people in the nest, but when Delayna denied the request, Lyndon didn’t push any further. It was then Delayna’s voice broke the silence. He listened to her words and scoffed as she finished, bringing the gun down to place the barrel in his unoccupied hand. “Is that so? And what’s stopping me from killing you both and burying the bodies? No one would ever come looking if I made it look like you killed each other. Case closed.” He wasn’t aware of the history between Delayna and Andreas, but Lyndon would never believe it, especially if he knew the identity of Andreas. His eyes turned to Delayna, but only for a second while a devilish smirk eked across his features. His bright eyes were a mystery. They seemed to shine playful and carefree, but there was also a strong malice behind them that never seemed to go away. He kept his distance from the two, but he never lowered his gun to aim. It seemed he took Delayna’s threat seriously, even with her hands in the air. @Himbo Tie

It had been sometime since Andreas had last been punched in the stomach with the force to upset his hold on the meal inside of him. The last time he could consider was when he was training with his father on reduced rations and learning to ignore discomfort to complete the mission. He had been given an opportunity to eat and relax under his father’s watchful eye, but as soon as Andreas started to slow down and get comfortable with eating, his father had thrown him from the table. While Andreas scrambled to his feet to try to see why he had been pushed, his father had stepped forward and delivered a strike like an iron hammer to his stomach. Feeling his throat tighten and his eyes narrow as he looked across the roof at the blonde vampire, Andreas felt the pain wash through his body. Meant to be married? That cannot be. Delayna would never...she is...no. Locking his gaze with the other male’s, Andreas released a low growl before stepping forward with a snarl. Opening his mouth so that his saliva that carried the deadly virus could be seen shining on his elongated canines, he shouted across the roof, “That’s impossible!! Delayna would never marry someone like you!! You insult and taint the very ground she walks on with your existence!” Andreas flicked his eyes to the female vampire in question, hoping to find some kind of answer on Delayna’s features to prove that this new suggestion was preposterous. He could not watch her for long, however, as Delayna moved to stand between him and the vampire that she confirmed the identity of. Camryn Frost. A vampire whose name, now that he had a face to the name, meant something to Andreas. There was an active bounty out for his capture and retrieval to answer for particularly heinous crimes against Lycans that he had captured and then released. .

08:56

The entire war was fraught with atrocities and pain as could be expected, but there were attempts made by both sides to reduce the unnecessary loss of life of non-combatants when it could be helped. Camryn Frost, the murdering leech that he was, was wanted dead or alive on the accounts of torturing non-combatants to get the information needed on werewolf locations. Narrowing his eyes as he looked across the roof, Andreas kept his shotgun lowered but felt his shoulders positioning to lift his aim in an instant if needed. Hearing Delayna’s warning, Andreas nodded slightly and allowed the partial transformation he was pushing to recede as a show of good faith. He trusted her and did not want to endanger her if it was not necessary. Feeling his canines retracting back into his jawbones while his black eyes became white again, Andreas breathed out deeply to try and calm himself down. He wanted to attack the vampire that had intruded on their reunion, but he had to trust his old friend to not let them get hurt. Andreas looked over Delayna’s shoulder at Camryn when the man gave his threat. A low growl rolled from his chest as he stepped forward and to the right, clearing himself of Delayna’s silhouette so that she could not use herself as a body shield. He did not want to get shot or hurt in this engagement, but he would not allow himself to use her as a layer of protection. He had always tried to be the one to protect Delayna, whether she needed it or not, and he was not about to start changing that today. Measuring the distance between the two groups with a quick glance, he saw a few air conditioning units that he could dive behind to use as cover if it devolved into a firefight. Snarling as he raised his gaze back to Camryn, Andreas shook his head before his words came as a growl, “You would be a fool to suggest such a course of action Camryn. Raise your weapon, and I will see you in a pine box before you can pull the trigger.” .

08:56

Andreas kept his weapon lowered as he watched Camryn for any sort of reaction to the threat. He could tell by the man’s stance that he was taking Delayna’s threat to heart, so that meant there likely wouldn’t be any real violence on this night. Lowering his gaze to Delayna quickly, Andreas cleared his throat before speaking, “I would love to see Lyndon again, but I do not trust your comrade to drive me safely there. If you can give me a moment to get to my truck, I’ll follow behind you to the location we will meet.” @𝕊𝕙𝕒é𝕔𝕝𝕒𝕚𝕣

“You would be a fool to suggest such a course of action Camryn. Raise your weapon, and I will see you in a pine box before you can pull the trigger.” Standing between the two males had Delayna on edge, more so than just the edge of the roof that she was so close to. She couldn’t slaughter Camryn without consequences and she refused to let Andreas receive even a scratch on him from anyone if she could help it. Their threatening words and slow advances were causing her anxiety to boil and rise inside of her until she couldn’t keep it bottled up any longer. As that low growl left her wolfen friend, she clenched her eyes shut, pulled at the hair at her temple and spun around to face them both with eyes darker than pitch. Fangs protruded from her gumline and her chest heaved with heavy breaths as she glared at them both. “ENOUGH!” She made no effort to keep her voice low and as the echo of her words bounced back against her ears, she could feel the cool breeze stand the small hairs on her neck on end. “We are all going back to the nest and we will all arrive unharmed.” Camryn’s last threat had only solidified the hatred she had for him. In one breath he talked of marrying her and in the next he was all too eager to kill her. Those two lines were the pure embodiment of Camryn Frost. He held no loyalty when it came to those he ‘cared about’. All that held honor in his eyes was what he needed to do to make himself look the best in the gaze of others. He knew the intention of marrying her would get a rise out of Andreas, but he knew killing her could set him off. He didn’t care about either action and would do so if the right person commanded it, but otherwise they were mere pawns in his game. Turning to Andreas, she spoke again to amend his understandable concerns.

18:02

blankspace

“He won’t trust you to follow behind and you know that. You can ride with me while Camryn gets back to the farm on foot. We can’t allow your truck to cross the corporation limits for reasons you know. You’ll have to just take solace in the fact that you have my word you will arrive there safe and sound.” She turned back to look at Camryn as her teeth retracted and her eyes cleared a bit, revealing the honey brown of her irises. Before she could say any more, the sounds of sirens could be heard in the distance. They were faint and likely just turned on, but they were not far enough away that they could loiter on the roof. He stance stiffened as she addressed Camryn, speaking to him as a superior instead of a coworker. “Go. If you’re caught I will not save you.” Without giving him a chance to argue, she turned to Andreas and motioned towards the stairs. “Shall we?” They had to escape without using their abilities. The sirens didn’t sound and start heading their way on their own. Someone had called them, likely from Delayna’s uncontrollable rage that projected her voice throughout the town. Running for the fire escape, she skipped steps, leaped over railings and landed on the ground in a squatting position before looking up at Andreas to see if he was right behind her or not. @Himbo Tie

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