Promises Kept

Needle In A Haystack
On the road again; well, traversing the skies. With a lid on her fury for the time being, she watched the forest pass by below, their path straying as the glimmering sea came into view. Renesmee recapped what she had learned. Great-grandmother who is a god...grandmother is a god...her mother a former demigod who forsook her lineage to become a vampire. Saved from mortal injuries twice by a figure she just met today; drinking her mother's blood after defeating her finally. Did that mean assuming Esme's guilt? Rene couldn't help but feel dirty after the act after all.....it didn't sit well even if done in the heat of the moment. Still, what hurt most was the casual meeting between godly ancestor and that male. It was a low blow that he kept such a thing from her....yet he wanted her to trust him. A familiar rage frothed and boiled once more as her head spun.

A sudden dip by Aethon broke her out of this candescent enmity. "Do you want to land for a bit? We've already covered a lot of ground," Rene offered, feeling Aethon fly lower in response. Pergrande and Sin were long in their wake after all; with the rapid approach of the Desierto-Bellum border, it would be time to turn north. She had no interest in flying over or trekking through a desert wasteland. Once they landed, Rene sat down. It struck her finally that they had been traveling for well over a day at this point without a wink of sleep. She was used to this at this point, but the wobbliness of Aethon showed the latter was not. Rene patted the ground next to her, lining up her back against a tree as Aethon joined her, the bird shifting to her human form.

"So..what now?" Aethon asked, yawning lightly.

"We rest a bit, then we turn northwest. We're cutting across Joya before heading for Fiore; according to reports there's a Tetsuya there as the head of a troublesome guild. It's drawn the ire of the MCs if they're to be believed," Rene responded.

"Sounds about right; he's an irresponsible turd after all."

With that, Aethon drifted off, leaving Renesmee to her own thoughts as she took up watch. She still found herself stuck on the complicated nature of her family, one that she largely didn't know. Multiple gods, a treacherous mother who before being a vampire was a demigod, and a question mark for a father. She still didn't know anything about him; Esme made sure of that. The assassin found herself cursing the woman's name once more.

Unless...maybe she could ask that goddess she met; Ataecina right? Her.....ancestor. The dhampir somehow felt dirtier thinking this...an ugly twisted hybrid next to glorious divinity. Rene knew she didn't fit the mold; a blood-sucking heathen claiming to be related to gods? It sounded as ridiculous as it was demeaning...to the gods anyway. What if the goddess was just pulling her leg? It wouldn't be the first time someone toyed with her...

Her mind quieted with moonrise, staring at the large orb as it took up more than its share of the sky. Tonight was a supermoon it seemed. Taking out her swords, she examined the blood red blades, searching for cracks or worn edges before testing their sharpness. A singular drop of blood fell out before sizzling on the ground.

To distract herself from the unsettling silence, Rene began considering their next move. The first move was reaching Fiore; that was the easy part. The hard part was the guild; while she had a rough geographical location within Fiore, she doubted the guild itself would be out in the open. Truthfully speaking, she would think less of them if they were; deeming them either insanely confident or woefully stupid. All things considered, she was leaning towards the latter.

Operating from the presumption the guild was hidden, the question became how. While magic would be a logical conclusion, magic could be disrupted or negated; then again, she had no doubt the guild was large. So some form of magic would need to be utilized, at least in part. Now the question was what type...was it a cloaking magic, illusion weaving (she cringed, reminded of Esme's skill), or some terrain alteration? Those would be the most effective types...the matter was how to expose those defenses so she could find her way in.

"Hmm..."

She tapped her blades against the ground, drawing a line in the dirt as her thoughts continued to drift. Her eyes narrowed as other options popped into her head, seeing the potential for overlapping strategies in effort to strengthen the guild's protection. Now that Rene thought about it, she knew very little of this guild beyond threadbare structures and the rumor mill. Besides antagonizing the Magic Council to the point of becoming an enemy, being home to individuals deemed "national security threats", and headed by a stubborn oaf with a propensity to trot his power around, Rene could think of nothing.

What had she gotten herself into?

"I thought you said we would switch off. How many times have I told you that you need to sleep too?" came the sleepy voice of Aethon. Rene jumped.

"And I've told you repeatedly I'm fine. I've pulled all nighters before...spent over a week straight without sleeping. No ill effects. You ready? We have much ground to cover if we plan on finding this place."

Aethon huffed as it sat up, stretching its wings. "Still wish he had given more information beyond "it's in Fiore". Idiot," it commented.

"There's no use crying over spilled milk. We will find him and his peacock guild just the same," Rene responded, climbing on its back. They took to the skies once more, though flying lower. She readied her magic, spreading it along her frame, prepared to activate it at a moment's notice.

"What are we looking for anyway?" Thon asked.

"Perfection among the imperfect. Irregularities among the regular. Everything leaves a magic signature...even disguises."

Aethon huffed. "So we're looking for a needle in a haystack. Great; that imbecile couldn't give directions if someone handed him a map," it said, its tone snappy. They soared a bit higher.

"Is there anything we can cross off at least? Just to expedite the search a bit. I mean, they wouldn't place their location next to a major city right? Too likely to attract attention even with great cloaking skills. Especially with prying eyes everywhere. Big brother is always watching."

Rene sighed. "Nonetheless, big cities can be useful provided you know how to use the masses to your advantage...still, it would take more effort and coordination to accomplish that feat. We'll check the cities last," she responded.

"Where could they be then?"

"Somewhere relatively isolated, but with easy access to supplies; say a small, but well connected town. They'd probably exist beyond the outskirts, where human towns give way to nature. From what the rumors say, they're fairly large, though not nearly as massive as Fairy Tail at its height. If Tetsuya's piggish mentality means anything, however, their building is likely far larger than FT's despite having less people. No doubt there's quite a bit of pomp and pageantry needing to be obscured."

"So a mountain-face? If it's as big as I'm envisioning that's probably the only thing that could hide it. Or it could hide as anyway," Aethon added, her tone sour in distaste, "there are mountains in northern Fiore. Should we check those? Or stick to the forested sections?"

"We'll check the forests on the way before heading that way. Let me know if you see anything of interest."

Aethon nodded. "Sounds like a plan; I still wish we had more to go on...."

"And wishes are for fools; we make do with what we have, and turn lemons into lemon cake with a side of lemonade," Rene responded. The idea of wishes brought back to mind her conversation with that goddess...well, her ancestor technically. Rene still didn't like the idea of being related to those people up there...not when she saw how dependent the people of Sin were on religion. Praying to some distant deity on high for deliverance; had she not been raised an assassin, the woman was certain she could live well as a priestess of some religious institution.

Nonetheless, Rene knew without divine intervention she would have been dead years ago, her mother still running around. Ambivalence..that's what Renesmee felt as she scanned the landscape. Pure and simple. Though it felt more like a "can't live with them, can't live without them" situation. It irritated her how quickly deities could make themselves essential to your existence; not that she wasn't grateful for the Atae's help.

The woman cast her magic out like a net, scanning for interruptions as night beckoned once more.

"Any luck?" she questioned her flying partner.

"Not a drop. We're looking for a needle in a haystack Rene," Thon responded, its vision refocusing with the encroaching nightfall. They continued their northerly trek, scanning in search of some clues, any clues. Even a person might be useful; at the very least some signage.

Rene then spotted two moving dots below, navigating the high forest terrain on their own. Given the hour, they looked a bit out of place; normally most would stop somewhere and tuck in.

"Are you seeing this Aeth?" the assassin asked, as the eagle soared a bit higher.

"Yeah...I am. Should we check them out? At the very least we could say hello. Maybe find a spot for the night? As much as you don't complain, I know you're probably more comfortable in a bed than on the forest floor," it commented.

"Friendly" Fire
The harmonious serenity of the silent forest was momentarily disrupted by two figures that moved at an incredible pace and brushed past the scenery with matched steps. One of the figures, a young woman with cherry red hair who wore an opened flame pattered jacket that left both her stomach and upper torso exposed, took a slight lead over her male traveling companion as she looked over her shoulder and smiled at him.

"Looks like you're going to lose this race to me Sal" Lindsey proclaimed as she had already made preparations to gloat once she had won. After successfully clearing a mission, the duo had been headed back home when Lindsey had challenged Sa'luk to a race in which who could make it back home without using magic, with the winner of the challenge being able to request any one thing of the loser. There were many treasures that Sa'luk had obtained during his solo days that he wouldn't give up willingly so Lindsey has used this as an opportunity to snag one.

They were dating, sure, but that didn't mean they didn't have things they wanted for themselves and considering Sal's rather toned down personality, these kinds of challenges were always fun to do when she got the chance.

Watching her partner follow behind her trail, Lindsey couldn't help grinning innocently as she felt a surge of adrenaline pump through her veins.

"Try to keep up, Sal!" She accelerated a bit more as her body moved ahead and the distance between the two seemed to keep growing. It was evident that Lindsey was going to capitalize on her opportunity to win and with the goal in sight, she was going to snatch victory.

“Try you to keep Lindsey”, the assassin of Dawn Horizon retorted with a happy grimace plastered on his face. The pace of Sa’luk’s movements went up to respond to his girlfriend’s challenge, filling the gap that separated the two. Due to his speed, a gentle breeze was now cuffing his face, tousling his brown hair which he kept tied in a mane of dreadlocks.

“Hurry, up boy, if you don’t want to get left behind.” An amused chuckle whispered inside the man’s mind: it was Cursa, his adoptive father, giving off his typical jests. “''Your lady doesn’t just look like a feline, bt also moves like one. Though the sight of her rear is a very pleasant one, objectively speaking, I’d not squander a chance to have a desire obtained by such beautiful lady''”.

“Of course I won’t, this is not a chance I ever intend to waste”. Sa’luk said, or better said, thought the assassin. Though he was known in dawn Horizon to one of the dourest and most no-nonsense members of the rather Wacky Dawn Horizon- and for a due reason, given the grim nature of his crusade- he too had a competitive side which yearned for fun and games. A side that Lindsey was bringing more and more to the front. “However…”

“… you haven’t decided yet what to ask Lindsey yet, if you ever win”. Completed Cursan, sighing. By the heavens, his boy was so focused on his mission to purge the world from the scummiest of the scummiest, and so averse to ask anything for himself, that he had serious trouble even thinking of something that would please him.

“''Well, I… think she’s already giving me everything I could wish for. I am already blessed beyond my merits…''”

“''Pleeasee… don’t repeat again how much wonderful and beautiful your girlfriend is, how cool and a caring your friends are, and how much Dawn Horizon has given a place to finally belong with! I know it’s true, you know it’s true, just try to focus on something you would like to do in the immediate moment''. Walking on a beach together, go on a vacation on some exotic part of the continent and beyond…”

“Maybe… I could ask for a new weapon…” Mused Sa’luk. Though he and Lindsey had got their fair share of mission together, Sa’luk had explicitly forbidden Lindsey to take part in his assassination job; so, there was plenty of time where both were busy doing the business they were expert at: Lindsey robbing blind scoundrels, and Sa’luk beheading them. Sa’luk would know of every artifact his honey had managed to snatch from a Dark Guild or some black-market kingpin, but he had never asked one for himself, as he knew how much Lin loved to hoard all the pretty trinkets. But… maybe… there was always time for an exception.

“Well, not exactly the most romantic thing ever. But hey, love between outlaws is bound to be strange”. Commented Cursan, shrugging on his metaphorical shoulders. “I’d enjoy myself too making a shish kebab out or our targets with a new Kriss or blast the fuck of them with some kind of artillery from a forgotten and more advanced civilization”. It was true that of the duo, as unlikely it could be, the demon was the least bloodthirsty and most prone to chill out, but that just barely. Parental responsibilities or not, Cursan had the destroyer’s edge inside him, from the days he was known to raze cities to the ground and beget terror in the people of Desierto. He may have repented and changed for better, but you can’t truly turn an old dog like him upside down.

“Now stop daydreaming and focus on the victory!”

“Roger”. Sa’luk’s muscles fired in a sprint: though somewhat short and lean for a male, being the same height of his girlfriend, he was extremely well trained, a bundle of steel sinews tempered by a lifetime of training, fighting and parkouring through rooftops and minarets, slipping through at the last moment after successful garroting.

Dosing well power and balance on his legs, he finally got to tailgate Linsey, being so close he could almost kiss her from behind. While he was definitively tempted to stamp a kiss on her beautiful, soft neck, his eyes were on a branch above, coming from tree of black berries, shrouded by leaves and full of ripe fruit. With a more powerful effort, plundering a bit more from his stamina, he surpassed Lindesy, with a big leap, taking somewhat of an advantage. Midair, he cleaved off the wooden branch with a single strike, just as Lindsey was passing below.

"W-What!" Lindsey was speechless as she watched her partner muster up speed she wasn't aware he possessed as Sa'luk leaped over her. She would have complimented him on his acrobatics if she hadn't seen him slice off a branch whilst in the air and left the tumbling piece of wood to fall on her head.

“Berries should taste good, honey!” He commented as the very light but visually cumbersome branch plummeted directed above Lin, blinding for enough to secure his advantage. “Tell me how good they are when you reach me at the finish line”.

"Damn it, that's a dirty move!" Lindsey screeched, her mind working into overdrive to avoid the collision with the branch. With how fast it was falling towards her, dodging it with her own reflexes was out of the question and if she tried to destroy it, she'd relinquish the lead she worked so hard to get and the race would essentially be over.

Considering her options, there was only one thing left to do.

Without a moment's hesitation, Lindsey reached for the small pistol hoisted onto her belt and used a finger to adjust the setting on the side of the gun. She then swiftly pointed it backwards while her body was still facing forward and after bracing herself, she pulled the trigger as an explosion erupted from the pistol she was wielding.

"You won't be winning that easily, Sal!" Lindsey yelled with a foxy smile as her body exploded forward due to the the force of the gun she had triggered. She soared through the air as her speed kept climbing higher and higher until she easily caught right back up with Sa'luk, crashing right into him as her body landed right on top of his as they both tumbled and rolled on the grass, coming to a stop as Lindsey used both her arms to pin Sa'luk down as she mounted him on his waist.

"Sorry Sal, if I don't get to win then neither do you" She laughed before adopting a cat like smile as she stared at her surprised boyfriend pinned to the ground "That was cheap move by the way, I never knew you could be so devious. Though...." She smiled further before she leaned in closer, stopping short of his ear "...I'd be lying if I said that I didn't like that side of you" She purposefully whispered those words as she saw his ears flush red, a giggle escaping her mouth at the reaction.

Seeing him like that was far too much fun for the foxy thief.

Considering the mood and the serenity of the forest, certain naughty ideas began to float into Lindsey's head and just before she could voice them out loud, her face narrowed as she detected something up above in the sky and inclined her head upward.

"...Do you feel that, Sal?" Lindsey's attitude seemed to change instantly as she couldn't asertain the nature of the threat she was sensing.

Feeling so close to Linsdey, having her breath tickling his neck… the young man’s heart raced, pumping so much blood his face had assumed the typical hue of a tomato. He was not accustomed being beaten in a race, even through underhanded tactics; he would often dash sideways he if heard a noise like that and try to force his way if someone was pinning him down. Yet, before Lindsey beautiful, loving gaze of gold, he was rendered disarmed… yet wholly happy about that. Sal’uk had never knew that the taste- and touch- of weakness could feel so sweet, so pleasurable…

And still, the moment he saw Lindsey’ golden gaze peeking above, his instincts kicked in. His muscles got tenser, his heartbeat calmer. Sa’luk went immediately to his partner, asking for a check.

“''Cursan, are you sensing some kind of energy? Is it some kind of evil one?''”

“I can’t say it for sure”, the demon nodded his head- if metaphorically. “''The signal I am receiving is weak and intermittent, coming and going. If were a vulgar devil of the Eighth Circle of Hell, I would bet my regal rear that we are dealing with a sensor, and a damn good one at that''”.

Tendrils of shadow came out of Sa’luk’s body, alongside Cursan typical multitude of eyes of ranks of razor-sharp teeth. “Lindsey dear, I hate being busybody, but I’d suggest you take your sniper rifle for a scanning and get down from your pretty boyfriend. He’s a disciplined boy, but I am not sure he can concentrate well in such supine position”. His comment had Sa’luk turn chili pepper, though the assassin for once could not blame for the embarrassment, for his second sword had indeed risen to an alarming rate in such brief moment.

Lindsey nodded at Cursan's words as she quickly regained her bearings and stood up and pried herself off Sal and focused all of her attention back onto the figure... no, figures she was sensing in mid air. If it had just been a wild animal surveying the air then she wouldn't have noticed but there was another life force present that was clearly the presence of a human being, an ominous one at that.

Gazing the blue above, Cursan pondered. Very few sensors had the skills to avoid his immense talent in noticing magical disturbances, even people above his own weight. Who could be that skilled to pull off such feat? Well… except for that damned little dhampir whom the boss was desperately add in his ever growing and ever weirder family. That little dhampir who could seemingly vanish into tin air and phase through everything they would throw at her. Quite the skilled lass, he would comment. But not that skilled she could avoid being detected forever.

Shadow pelt back from Cursan fang, showing off a smile that could make crocodile cover in fear. Between Mizuki, Sabrina and Pele, how much superpowerful chicks had degraded him, belittled him, insulted him, and lorded all over him as if he was some kind of black doormat? Too many. TOO. MANY!! If this Renesmee was truly the culprit, and coming back for a second round, Cursan swore he would make her swallow the harsh and humiliating taste of dust…. and darkness.

Lindsey wasn't going to wait as she snapped her fingers as a long mechanical rifle appeared in her hands and she aimed it above, placing her eye within the scope to extend her range. She further enhanced her vision by acting one of her signature magic as a light pink cross hair appeared in Lindsey's eyes and her range extended through the night sky and she was easily able to spot the figure of what appeared to be a bird and a woman flying in the night sky, looking down at them.

Lindsey frowned immediately when she saw this.

"We've got trouble guys, there's someone up there that's clearly aware of not just our location but also might be targeting the hideout. Nobody would come all the way out here just for a stroll" Lindsey was certain that they were enemies, the question now was who did they answer too? The Brigade? A couple of bounty hunters? There was an endless list of names that Lindsey could think of but that didn't matter at the moment as she had to move quickly and deal with this potential threat before their location was exposed.

Also, she'd be lying if she said she wasn't a bit angry that her alone time with Sal was interrupted.

"I'll give them a warning shot just to test them out" Lindsey smirked before loading her rifle with magic and then pulled on the trigger, sending a sizable beam of energy spiraling towards her pursuers.

"Do you think they've spot-" a pin-point beam targeting their general vicinity cut Aethon off. The bird banked a hard right to put further distance between themselves and the warning shot.

"Yes, they most definitely have...and if that's their reaction, it's worth asking them if they know where this guild is. Fly down to them," Rene responded, hands on her sheathed blades.

"After they shot at us??!! Are you mad??!! I don't know about you, but that seemed pretty hostile. They'll definitely have more in store," Aeth protested even as the bird flew lower.

"Considering they're competent enough to see at night, they'll have enough wits about them to listen before acting out again. If they don't...they'll learn why its good to stay one's hand now and then."

"...They're coming, be on guard Sal" Lindsey spoke grimly as watched the duo begin their descent towards the ground and estimated they'd arrive shortly.

The two landed on the ground with a sizable thump, Rene sliding off Aethon's back before landing on her feet. Meanwhile, Aethon transformed next to her, taking on the bird taking on its human form once more. The two stood side to side.

Lindsey never took her finger off of her rifle and she stood side to side with Sal and eyed the mysterious duo with a hardened glare, ready to engage at a moment's notice.

Aethon eyed the couple with disdain. "Is it customary to shoot at anything and everything in the sky?" she asked, her tone irritated.

Lindsey shrugged "In most cases no but when your dealing with a suspicious couple like you and your partner over there, it seemed appropriate to test the waters"

Rene, for her part, remained unperturbed, though her eyes glittered like rubies. "Tell me, do you know where I could find a certain male named Tetsuya? He and I have some..unfinished business."

The moment she heard the name of her boss, Lindsey's body flinched as her glare hardened and she analyzed the woman standing in front of her.

"''Is she an assassin? She might look like one but there'd be no point of announcing who your target is, unless she was an idiot or supremely confident in her own skills. A bounty hunter perhaps? She did mention unfinished business with the boss, shit this is giving me a headache. In any case, we still need to gauge her intentions and see if she's a threat..." ''

"...Perhaps. What business do you have with him?" She intentionally withheld the fact that they were his subordinates as she needed to ascertain their intentions before revealing such crucial information.

Just as she was about to ask another question, Lindsey noticed something odd going on with Sal, or rather, his companion Cursan as she tilted her head.

"What's wrong?"

The devil’s form coalesced into shadows, sliding toward Lindsey. A tendril coming from the black mass clicked on the sniper’s forehead, creating a mental three-way channel where the trio could freely discuss without the two intruders hearing a thing.

“Linsdey, Sal, I recognize this woman”. He explained. “''She’s exactly like us: a wayward fighter and assassin who captured the attention of our boss. He brought me to help him to track her down. Safe to say, she’s a tough cookie''”.

"I see, so that's how it is" Lindsey was only mildly surprised. Usually when someone came looking for her boss, they were either trying to kill him or to join him. Though, judging by the soulless look on this woman's face, it looked like she didn't exactly have positive feelings towards Tetsuya.

“That’s for sure”. Sa’luk's inquisitive gaze fell on the duo, searching from every detail he could deduce their strength from. From their firm posture, the fierceness of their attitude and the odd auras reverberating from their frame, he could tell the two women meant some business. He was not surprised that Tetsuya would try to recruit them: he was attracted to powerful and awesome people like a bear to beehives, something her fiancée teased him incessantly for.

Even more so, there was something in the raven-haired woman that felt awfully familiar: a lack of a spark, broken shadows darkening the crimson of her sclera. Those were almost empty eyes, drained of life, bereft of purpose. Sal’uk was sure she had faced tremendous ordeals, a lifetime of killing and hiding weighing on her shoulders to stave off the pain and emptiness she was feeling. That was how he used to be before meeting Dawn Horizon.

“Maybe I could help you find him…” Sa’luk squatted in for, without breaking eye contact with Renesmee. “But we need to take some precautions first.”

His demonic partner nodded, already nodded what to do. A part of his immaterial, dark essence slithered on the ground, touching the feet of the two ladies. A dark rim begun rising on the feet, covering their shoes, then their calves.

“If you wish to meet Tetsuya, do not move a muscle nor oppose the rising shadow. Tetsuya has many enemies, and we need to make sure you aren’t one of them”.

Aethon stared at the rising shadow, her disdain growing. "Tch. And you expect us to just sit here and comply? I'm sorry, but that's bad business," she retorted, attempting to slash at the shadows only to learn of their immateriality.

She turned, only to notice Rene remained still, her gaze chilling as she switched her attention from a fellow assassin to the shadows he spoke to. Shadows that felt familiar after all this time.

"You were with him weren't you..." her eyes narrowed, a brighter, more dangerous red. Her mind backtracked to that day, and the faint, third presence she had felt for a short window. Well, her clone had felt anyway.

"Were you the reason he found me..twice?" A simple question, but one loaded with meaning. One she suspected she knew the answer to already.

Renesmee then did the opposite of what was asked, tapping her partner on the shoulder as they disappeared via her magic before reappearing a ways away.

"Considering you indirectly jeopardized my mission, and subsequently, my partner's life, I'm not exactly in a forgiving mood. Had I wanted to assassinate your guild master, he wouldn't have returned home that day," she stated flatly. No arrogance, no smugness, just bone-chilling calm.

Lindsey's eyes flinched when Renes was lost from her eye magic but then soon refocused as she spotted her a few meters away from her original position. She was inwardly surprised that the woman in front of her was able to vanish like that but regained her bearings as she grunted at the mysterious assassin.

"You? Kill our boss? That'll be the day" Lindsey snorted before adopting a more serious look.

"So why the hell are you even here if you're not here to kill Tetsuya? You really expect us to believe you just wanted to talk when you're acting that distant?"

"You don't become an assassin by wearing your emotions on your sleeve," she chided lightly in response, "I'm here to question him about his lying to me. I do not take to liars and manipulators. Think of this as a fact check."

"Then you should consider your choice of words more, carefully". Cursan stepped in. "As, by letting your pride being your master, you are forgoing a chance for an easy and direct way to the boss".

"Ours was just a typical procedure. Cursan would come closer to you in order to sense whether you are telling the truth or not: being a sensor of such great caliber, it only makes sense for us to take advantage of such ability and weed out intruders." Sa'luk continued. "Wouldn't you do the same if you were in our shoes? After all, we assassins can't allow ourselves the luxury of trust, only fools would do that".

The young man's tone was mostly serious, and not without a slight chiding intention. He cared not of the woman's history with Cursan: the test was the most efficient way to dissipate any doubt, and he would not give in without having performed it. Cursan, on the other hand, was desperately trying to hold back tears of pride, for his adopted son, usually so extremely scant in compliment, had for once applauded hisskills as a sensor.

Her own response carried a chiding tone. "You seem to forget your station as an assassin. As if I would simply allow for that to happen...too many have tried that with the same claim as you. All of them ended up dead...surely you can understand a distrust of a demon-wielding assassin after being targeted by assassins for a good chunk of one's life."

"So then it seems we're at an impasse" Lindsey chimed in as her finger etched closer to pulling the trigger "We don't trust you and you don't trust us. So unless you want me to fill you and your bird brain of a companion with holes, you better get out of here" Lindsey's tone changed, her voice dripping with a level of seriousness that she never showed as her loyalty towards those in her family was absolute.

"I don't care what relationship you have with our boss, you aren't getting anywhere close to him without showing us that you can be trusted"

"So it seems," Rene commented before her tone sharpened, "and the moment you try filling my companion and I with holes, you will be on the ground in pieces. So don't tempt me."

Aethon watched the tension increase several fold, her nervousness showing. She had expected to be met with resistance, but this felt almost....rabid. Fanatical even. Her doubts about Dawn Horizon only increased; she was no fan of zealots. Not after seeing the doldrums of Sin anyway.

"Let's just go. It's not worth it Rene; not if they're like this." Her relief was palpable when Rene nodded. She shifted into bird form once more, Rene climbing on her back.

"For reference, we came to demand answers, not join a cult." With that last zing, Aethon took to the skies once more.

He Who Traps
Lindsey watched the duo take off with a skeptical gaze as she deactivated her eye magic and slowly lowered her rifle. Her shoulders relaxed as she dropped her guard and continued to watch the duo fly through the sky, eyes turning slightly over towards her lover and Cursan.

"So, what now? You really think they were just here to talk with the boss? Should we really just let them leave?"

Sal'uk gaze's stared into the horizon, watching the duo shrinking into nothingness, his head seemingly lost in various contemplations, calculations.... and plannings.

"We may... for the time being". He gave his answer, one which Cursan found so uncharacteristic he crossed his many eyes. Ignoring his partner, the young man took a golden capsule in his pocket, the one containing the special dragon-shaped vehicle Sabrina had built for him.

He clicked the object, and barely waiting the ending of the transformation, he put his hand over his door. "If they are not willing to be checked, there is no point in trying to discuss with them. I have a plan to deal with the two, however: we should discuss it inside the vehicle".

"Alright" Lindsey nodded as she was led inside the vehicle and took a seat, unstrapping the rifle on her back and placing it on the seat next to her as she stretched her back and leaned against the seat. "What's the plan?"

"Simple". Sa'luk took his place on the cockpit; the engine lacrima responded to his touch, glowing. A display right on his left signed their altitude and pressure conditions at a given moment, for the vehicle had been been built completely sound proof.

"First off all, we're gonna tell the boss that we've found the lass she's yearning for, and that she's searching for them, but only on the very specific promise he will come with us and let us conduct the "precautionary test.

"Now, we are howering over the forest at a reasonable altitude to be found, and we won't trouble at speed above Mach 1. So, if they want to go and follow, the two will succeed. We will be monitoring their presence with our monitors, and ascertain whether they are curious enough to spy even after calling us a bunch fanatics obsessed with security". He said, but without showing any ill feeling toward Aethon's acrid remarks: Sa'luk was truly that loyal to his own boss, and you don't survive for long in the assassination game without being a complete paranoid. Then he rose two fingers, an index and a middle one.

"Things will go as it follow: the two will stand by their refusal and try and reach the boss on their own. if that is the case, we'll be bringing the boss to them without any trouble. That will indicate that they truly have the intentions they claim." He lowered his middle finger. "Our second option comes if they prove to be much more curious than what they implied: we'll be luring them into trap, far away from the boss, and force them to accept the trial, cost what it may".

"Mmmm...." Cursan shrugged o n his shoulders. "So, are you going to tempt them following us, and punish the proverbial cats- or birds, in this scenario- if they follow their natural curiosity. A decent strategy.

But my experience teaches me a thing: even though we've managed to spot them, they have got magic that can completely erase their presence. I am sure they won't be so stupid to follow our presence without using that skills of the dhampir girl. So, how can we assess our option without the certain knowledge of their presence?"

"Simple. Because, regardless of what the two girls are doing, we won't go straight to our boss. We'll try and bring a new passenger, somebody that knows vampires better than anybody else, and will be of immense help if things are heading toward a violent direction".

Sa'luk touched a smaller glyph close to his left, which started to pulsate in rapid intermittences until a muffled voice was audible, asking what the fuss was needed. Sa'luk smile's turned ear to ear.

"Evangeline, it's Sa'luk and Lindsey. We've got a favor to ask you, one that involves vampires and their proles..."

Aethon continued flying through night sky. "So, we aren't just leaving right?" she asked, her voice hopeful. She wanted nothing more than to leave that troublesome guild behind.

Rene sighed. "Of course not; we find another way. Considering where we met them, we're likely close. That means we can shrink down the search radius by a significant margin, saving time and energy." Her magic rippled around her.

"So now....we hunt."

With that, Aethon banked a left, doubling back the way they came while giving the area they came from a wide berth.

"You know, you'll be the death of me with all of these trips. Why can't we go somewhere nice? Like...I don't know, down the coast? Better yet, we could go look for clues about your father," the bird added dryly.

"Unfortunately, I wouldn't know where to begin. My treacherous parent had a particular skill with cutting that off...and she took whatever she knew to the grave with her."

"Maybe...maybe not? I mean, you did finish her off, maybe there's hints in her blood? Memories or something? I don't know how it all works."

"We can debate this later-" Rene's eyes narrowed as she sighted another object in the sky, "So they didn't take the foot patrol after all...follow them Aethon, but at a distance."

Aethon frowned, wondering what Rene was talking about, until she saw the odd contraption. "What is that......" her own curiosity spurred her onwards, as she which from searching the landscape to following this new entity.

"Some transportation mechanism...but they're in there."

Sa'luk stared at the dots on his right, whose pulsation and size grew by the seconds as it came reasonably close the ship. Not enough to be seen by normal eyes, but under the dragon-maw the two were on displayed on plain sight, bright as they can be.

"So, they decided to follow us. Without even bothering hiding their presence". Sa'luk licked their lips. "We might act fanantical, but they are beyond imprudent in their code of conduct. Let's teach them some lessons about 'being descreet'".

"They've got some nerve, calling us fanatics and claiming to leave but are following us. I knew they were up to something" Lindsey growled as she the turned  to Sa'luk with gleaming eyes "Lets get em!"

Sa'luk nodded as he drew the dumbbell close to them, which the made the ship accellerate to a rather conspicous degree. Even from sound, bullet nad magic proof of the cockpit they could feel something of blackslash as the veichle soared through air at a tremendous velocty, making the treetops below fluttering for the sheer movement.

"Well, so muich being for being discreet, "commented Cursan, thanking he did not suffer from motion sickness or something like that. "Are you sure they won't see our gallop as something rather... suspicious? As if, we are luring them to a trap?"

"If they can see through it, it means we'll just bring Evangeline together for a trip, and things will go smoothly for all of us". Sa'luk shrugged on his shoulders. "If not, shame on them for acting like amateurs".

"Slow down Aeth," she commented as their target sped ahead. Aet paused.

"Why? We're going to lose them at this rate."

"I don't like it is why. They've definitely sensed us. The question is where are they going in such a hurry.." she spurred Aethon forward a hair.

"Maybe to report back to Tetsu?"

"Doubtful. They wouldn't let us within a mile of him earlier, so I doubt they'd head there now, especially knowing we're behind them," Rene responded, working through possibilities before finding one she liked, "a diversion. Possibly a trap. Though what lies in this trap?" She was reminded of a phrase that curiosity killed the cat, but she couldn't help but want to study the behavior that was so devout to this guy.

"You would think he was the Messiah or something," Aeth added, seemingly on the same wavelength. She noticed Rene's growing curiosity with something like intrigue; she didn't know whether to be happy that the assassin was displaying more than emptiness or to be terrified by its cause.

"So we're going to continue following them? Even though it is likely a trap..."

"Yes."

"Are we going stealth mode at least?"

"Yes."

"Good." When the cloaking fell in place, Aethon took after the distant contraption, cutting through the sky like a knife.

"This is such a pain in the ass"

An audible groan escaped the mouth of a silver haired woman who was currently sitting on a thick tree branch, her body leaned back as her legs were crossed; her entire being oozing a sense of laziness as if she was the incarnation of sloth. A bag of potato chips laid on her stomach as she plucked a chip from within the plastic and munched on it slowly, frowning as she looked into the night sky.

"Why do I have to use my precious free time to go and verify some half-ling? What am I, some sort of security officer? Can't say that I'm not surprised by it though, who would have thought the boss would draw the attention of a dhampir assassin of all things? Wonders never cease around him" She snacked on another chip as she licked her soft pink lips, annoyance still present on her face.

"Still, this sucks. I was really hoping me and Dy could go out for a date later..." Evangeline had been planning tonight to ask Dyson out for a romantic dinner as she saw that today was one of the days he wasn't busy managing the Alliance in her negligent boss' place but of course, thanks to this new unexpected curve ball, her plans were ruined. She really wanted to just skip it but her loyalty towards the guild prompted her to at least assist her guild mates in verifying the intentions of this half-ling.

Though, she'd be lying if she said she wasn't at least somewhat curious as to the identity of this mysterious little hybrid.

"Heh, tonight might not be so bad after all" Her lips curved into a wide smile as she snacked on another chip and awaited the arrival of her guild mates.

After many miles and hours of traveling, the dragon's maw landed quietely in the middle of a wooded path. The landscape was quiet and pleasant, a gentle wind breezed through pines and conifers. Since night was already high in the sky, passerby could hear crickets making their concerts and fireflies lit inside the brushes.

Sa'luk came out last from the vehicle, after helping Lindsey getting off, and made the dragon's maw shrinking back to its capsule point by touching the right gliph. Finding the scent of musk pleasant enough, he breathed with his nose, though not at the of lungs, for the was a lot of dust on the track. The aisle was of a medium size- not too small, nor too wide- enough to allow the parking of the dragon maw and the passage on foot of another person, but much more. Flanked on both sides by conifers, it meandered down the depth of the forest, taking a course that narrowed down more and more among trees and branches.

"A quite place to spend a night of rest, and a perfect place to get someone lost". Assessed Sa'luk. He really liked that choice of Avenue.

"Come on lin, lets go and visit our friend". He said, then dove deep into the woods.

Lindsey nodded with a smirk as she took off after Sa'luk, but not before taking a quick glance back towards the direction they just came from.

"We  ll find out your true motives''" She turned back around and followed her boyfriend as the duo sped through the wooded land and hoped the mysterious duo had taken the bait.

Rene remained silent as she watched the dragon land. She was certain they were well away from the actual guild, but her newfound curiosity pushed her forward, continuing to tail them from above.

"Where are they going? I know they're trying to draw us away or something but this place doesn't make sense," Aethon commented. She flew lower.

"We're going to have to land soon, unless we map out if and where this path opens up," Aethon looked backwards, still receiving no response, "are you ok Rene?"

The assassin frowned, an ominous feeling rankling the young woman as they continued to descend. The smell too was familiar, if a bit different; what was it? She could feel the answer on the tip of tongue. Had she blocked it out? It started to irritate her a bit.

"I'm fine, just...on edge. There's something here I don't like, but I can't put my finger on what it is." She spurred Aethon forward, the duo maneuvering between the trees.

As Lindsey continued to run with Sa'luk, a foreboding feeling came over her as she looked back and frowned.

"I can't sense them, do you think they took the bait?"

"I can't sense them either," Cursan followed suit. "Maybe they aren't quite as reckless as we think..."

"No, I am sure about them following us. I can bet on it". Said Sal'uk, taking a different course on the increasingly erratic pathway. "Its not that I can sense their magic, but I'm sure about them following us. Call it a 'sixth sense' or something, but when I looked on the brunette's eyes I saw a thirst... for knoweldge. Whatever the reason, they are longing to see our boss, so much so to take even the slightest detour".

Suddenly, the twisted trail became straight as an arrow, a normal road surrounded by poplar.

"Regardless, we'll discover the truth: we're close".

"I see. Well, your instincts are usually spot on so we'll have to trust you" Lindsey smiled. She had faith in Sa'luk and if he said the duo was following them, she just had to believe in him.

Her breath caught as they inched closer, passing those they had followed overhead. While a part of her noticed the path changing, what really caught Rene's attention lie just ahead.

"No. No, no, no." She felt her magic faltered a bit against the rising tide of emotions. The assassin tried clamping them down, even as the seething, boiling hatred started climbing.

"Rene??" Aethon asked, a note of concern present. The bird then stiffened. Why would one them be here? This had to be one of the worst things they could have chosen! Did those figures they had followed know? Maybe this was intentional..how cruel could they be? The bird's temper flared.

"Rene. RENE. Listen to me!! Focus on me, not that. FOCUS ON ME. We're just going for a joyride at night through the forest. Testing out my flying skills," she dove under a branch, "see? Just a ride."

Alas, Rene wasn't listening.

The erratic change in Renesmee's mental state   slightly cracked the perfect veil she had cast over herself as Lindsey and Sa'luk both picked up on a swirling wrath of emotion coming from behind them as they glanced backwards.

"You feel that Sal? You were right, they were following us" Lindsey was both glad and anxious at the same time. She was happy that Sa'luk had guessed correctly but confused as to why she was feeling so much dread behind her? Just what was going on?

"No", Sa'luke frowned. Having being acquainted to sensing magical traces, and ever more to homicidial urges, the assassin knew things were to take a much a darker path. "She's going after Eva. And she craves for a bloodbath".

"What!? This is bad, really bad" Lindsey feared not for her guild mate, but for the assassin as Eva's power was no joke. In fact, she, along with two other members, were strictly prohibited from releasing their full magic power when near the guild for fear of destroying the area due to the gargantuan amount of power they held.

Cursan understood that frenzied vampire meant terrible business and took preemptive steps: advising Eva via a little telepathic message and praying that the very little common sense left in that centuries old version of a teenage girl with periods would be enough to listen to some good advice.

"Eva, here is Cursan. The half-vampire lass we've talked about is coming after you, and is oozing of intent to murder, rip and mutilate. I am sure you can handle, but please, remember that we must keep both you in one piece. So, for the love of Tiamat, try not overdo this one. We'll providing you due assistance very soon, we promise".

"...Is that so..." Evangeline listened to the demon's request with a half interested mind as she was mainly focused on the amount of killing intent she sensed miles away from her and the reasoning behind it.

"Odd, I've never met this brat before so why does she hold such anger towards me? Perhaps a general dislike of vampires? Whatever, I can just answer those questions when I meet this child" She thought amusedly as she enjoyed the taste of her chips being chewed in her mouth.

A Study in Vampirism
And go she went. Somersaulting off of Aethon's back, the assassin hit the ground running, fury driving her natural speed to greater heights as she closed the remaining distance, roaring to a stop in the clearing Eva resided in.

"Why is a bloodsucker like you here?" she spat, eyes glowing as she began circling, hands on her hilts.

Aethon, for her part flew as fast as her wings would carry her, stopping when she caught up to Rene. Yes, her fears were confirmed. It wasn't just the killing intent rolling off Rene in waves; it was an all too familiar arrogance mingled with the scent of blood. Vampire...she wasn't an expert, but this one smelled old. Older than Esme; more powerful too.

Her concern and anger grew in tandem. Anger at the ones they followed for leading, anger at herself for not pushing harder for them to turn back when both of them knew better, concern for Rene's mental health, fury at Eva for existing. It wasn't going to end well as far as Thon was concerned, seeing Rene spring forward in a feint.

Eva for her part, remained quiet as her eyes remained fixed on the girls standing before her with rage and anger enveloping her entire being, ignoring both the woman's question and the bird that had just flew in.

"So that's her, huh? The child that Tetsuya wanted to recruit and clearly wants to kill me? Hmm..."

Evangeline could easily tell that the woman standing before had sucked a humans's blood before, though nowhere near as much as those who truly could be called vampires.

And if she wasn't imagining it, she could vividly see the trail of a very familiar bloodline in her system. There was only one person she knew who had blood that unique as a chuckle escaped Evangeline's mouth but she refrained from voicing it, for now at least.

She finished chewing on another chip before she licked the salt on her lips and smiled a bit, feeling it appropriate to humor the child.

"Now that's not a very polite way to ask someone a question, who taught you your manners? And if I'm a blood sucker, what does that make you? Or do you think you're excluded from that title because your blood count isn't as high as myself, or even nobles?"

"Less of one for starters," Rene snapped. She didn't need Eva to point out the part of herself she hated just as much; it was something that gnawed at her every waking moment...most of her sleeping ones too. She drew one sword, the crimson blade glowing angrily in the dappled moonlight. Leveling the blade horizontally, Renesmee attacked in earnest, beginning with a forward charge as a test.

Evangeline watched Renes approach her from below and smiled, tossing the empty bag of chips to the side as she stood up from her seat on the branch she had been resting on and jumped down, landing on the ground elegantly and she shoved her hands into the pockets of her fur jacket.

"You're a hasty one, we haven't even introduced ourselves yet" Evangeline merely stood there unarmed and unprotected as the woman came in charging with her crimson blade and just as the woman had entered Eva's personal space, two pairs of claws sprouted from Evangeline's shadow as they aimed to cleave the assassin's head off.

Well, that was new. She ducked while rerouting, ending up facing Eva's back after barely evading the claws. Rene reset, pushing backwards to create more space. Her hatred warred with her curiosity, staring at the menacing claws.

"What are those?"

Aethon landed on the ground next to Rene, nervous. There was something different about this one; not in a good way as far as she was concerned.

Evangeline frowned heavily when she saw the claws and looked rather annoyed that they had interfered.

"Meredith, Nicolai, who told you two to butt in?" Evangeline addressed the shadow below her, prompting the shadows to change and morph as they took the form of two vampires, one a gorgeous young man with a scar on his eye and one a beautiful long haired woman with a bang covering her left side. The two of them immediately knelt before Evangeline and lowered their heads.

"Forgive us my queen, but we just couldn't allow this filthy half breed to be so arrogant and try to harm you" The man called Nicolai said earnestly.

"We are your shadows, my queen. We must eradicate any dangers that oppose you" The woman known as Meredith stated.

Evangeline sighed when she heard their annoying tendencies to exalt her and wanted to smack her servants for even assuming she'd need help to deal with the assassin. That said, they were only doing their job out of supreme loyalty to her and so she decided to let it go.

"Fine. I'll forgive your transgressions, for now at least" She then turned around to the on guard assassin and smiled.

"Sorry about that, these two are my bodyguards, sort of. By the way, you dodged their attacks quite well, thankfully so as I would have been in pretty big trouble with the boss if you had just died back there" She wholeheartedly laughed at the unfunny joke as the atmosphere seemed to change from serious to comical.

Clearing her throat at her poor attempt at a joke, she spoke once more.

"Tell me, what is your name? Before we engage any further, you can at least tell me that, right?"

Rene snarled at the two new additions before attempting to master herself. "Tramps." To think vampires could just pop out of each other's shadows. And queen? So not only was she a vampire, but vampire royalty. Rene's already exceedingly low opinion of Eva plummeted further.

She remained furious as the two "bodyguards" bowed. "Why would I be interested in telling you my name?" the assassin continued, "I have no interest in being acquaintances with you."

Aethon shifted as well, the bird turning into her humanoid form as she stood side by side with. Her dread only increased with the queen announcement. She had no doubt they'd be dealing with a purist if the "queen's guard" was any indication.

"Filthy half-breed? Damn..no wonder people like offing your kind. Remind me to kill you the next time I see you," Aethon retorted, her dread turning into anger at the insult to Rene's person.

"If you actually think you can kill us, then you're even dumber than you look, if that's even possible for some bird pretending to be human" Arrogance dripped from Nicolai's mouth as he addressed the enemies standing before him. He stood up and looked ready to engage in a fight as he spoke towards his mistress.

Aethon gritted her teeth, her rage bubbling. "Oh really nightcrawler? I have a stake with your name on it and bath full of flames ready and waiting dipshit."

"Please my queen, let us deal with these cretins. I assure you we can handle-"

"Silence" Evangeline's command was swift as her terrifying magic power flickered for a moment, shutting up the sweat dripping Nicolai and making Meredith flinch in fear as the two of them immediately lowered their heads once more.

"I was not done speaking with her. The next time you interrupt me, will be the last time you see light in this world. Now begone, I will handle this" Her words were befitting that of supreme royalty as she dismissed her servants, who looked like they wanted to complain but knew they couldn't go against their queen's orders as they slipped back into her shadow.

"Those pests won't disturb us now, and I do apologize for their behavior towards you. Nobles can be such a pain, as I'm sure you can imagine" Evangeline smiled at the assassin, one that was genuine and not induced with arrogance like those of her race were accustom too.

"Don't be so hostile" Eva said and before anyone could react, she appeared standing right before the startled assassin, lifting her soft chin up as she stared deeply into her eyes.

"What is the cause of your anger? I've never done anything to you so where does this hatred for your own kind come from?" Evangeline's words were bathed in innocent curiosity as her crimson eyes began to glow as she looked within the woman's inner being.

She would see a malevolent hatred burning, writhing and flourishing before Rene swatted the queen's hand away. Again, she created separation. "If you have to ask, then you'll never know," her voice trembled with rage. A second sword appeared now; the duo she had relied seemingly forever was complete once more.

Aethon spat on the ground. "Let me make it simple for you someone of your exalted position to understand. When your own kind makes your life miserable and takes everything away from you before you knew you had it, you start to despise them after a while. When you lose control and massacre in the throes of hunger, you start hating yourself after a while. And when your own kind continues to mock, ridicule, and use you as their personal plaything, that despising only grows. The halfling with one foot in each world and rejected by both. 'You reject me, I reject you'. You know how the story goes. The fact you described this as mere 'anger'," the ground cracked around Rene, causing Aethon to pause, "shows how little awareness you have the situation. Anger was left behind a long time ago."

"Oh and one more thing. It was never her choice to become this...existence. Her forebear made that choice for her."

Evangeline's response was tempered as she listened to the bird speak on the assassin's behalf on what had caused such a rift between the woman standing before her and those that carried the name "Vampire". She should have expected something like that; the life of a halfling is never an easy one and she could vaguely guess the amount of hardships the assassin must have gone through.

She almost felt bad for the poor thing, almost but there was another pressing matter Evangeline wished to address as she closed her eyes and spoke towards the blonde woman.

"While I do appreciate your insight on the matter and my gratitude for explaining the situation..." Without warning, Evangeline's previously closed eyes vehemently opened as her eyes gleamed a piercing gold, trading eye contact with the unaware and unprepared human appearing animal with blonde hair as her body visibly shook and starting from her toes, began to turn to stone at an insanely fast rate. She didn't even get the chance to protest before her entire body was frozen in stone, her previous posture and expression remaining in suspended animation.

"...I wasn't speaking to you and I'd appreciate if you kept your big mouth shut while I have a word with your friend" Eva walked right past the frozen human who had gotten on her last nerve with her disrespect and used her eye magic to quiet her down for a bit, now focusing entirely on the assassin that looked just about ready to rip her in half at what she had done to her companion.

"Now then" Eva stopped in place, spreading her legs a bit as she smiled and felt she needed to test this young halfling and see how dedicated she was towards meeting her boss and also saving her frozen companion.

"Show me what you can do"

The last bit of Rene's self-control frayed as her bird friend was turned to stone. "YOU BITCH." She roared, the trees shaking. The ground fissured as she rocketed forward, anger crackling through her weapons as they hummed in tune. She started with a horizontal slash followed by a vertical one, keeping in time as she focused her attempted blows. Remember the elements..remember what they mean..then become them.

An audible reaction Eva thought with a smirk as she watched the assassin rocket towards her, ready to hack her to pieces as she remained stationary. She evaded the horizontal slash from the assassin by simply arching her back and then dodged the next strike with a side step. Her movements were elegant and effortless, as if she was dancing as she continued to evade the woman's strikes.

"You're going to have to do better than that if you want to save your friend" Evangeline smiled before dodging another slash and then with blinding speed, landed a solid kick in the assassin's stomach that jolted her back. She then disappeared and reappeared above the assassin, aiming to land a devastating kick on her head as her body was still airborne from that last kick.

The blast to the stomach jolted her to her senses a little bit. Yes, the speed and reaction time told her the vamp in front of her was a different level than Esme. Not encouraging news. She managed to lift one blade up over her head as the kick landed with an audible crack. Rene was sent back to the earth, the ground breaking from her impact as she rolled to her feet once more. Darkheart hummed in her ear as she took off again, aiming for Eva's landing spot. Was some of that still in her blade from her previous engagement? She hoped so as she prepared her next offensive, ignoring the ache in her stomach.

"So you're not so helpless after all" Eva complimented the assassin's reflexes as she landed back on the ground and had already formulated her next move as she snapped her fingers; a rapid torrent of blood appearing within her hands as she aimed an open palm towards the approaching assassin and smiled innocently.

"You might wanna dodge this"

The blood that had been swirling around Eva's hand suddenly exploded outward as a gigantic tsunami of blood erupted forward and began to destroy the vast amount of tree's and landscape nearby as it aimed to swallow the assassin whole and disintegrate her body.

"Darkheart." Spinning the blade expertly, she reinforced its properties with ethernano flowing from body to blade. "Eat." she continued her trajectory as she swung both blades in an around her person. The wind arose from her circular movements as the waves crashed against the tsunami of blood descending upon her. She carved a path forward with the two blades, cleaving her way through before suddenly diverting her path. Aethon.

"Wow, she's not bad at all" Evangeline whistled as she was rather impressed with how the assassin had countered her blood stream.

The wave of blood in its multitude meant the entire landscape was a wash..and Aethon would be a part of it. She reached the petrified figure as the tsunami crashed down once more, a flurry of sword swings incessantly upward and onward as the blood raced for them both.

Then silence.

Watching the assassin determinedly attempt to protect her comrade from the violent blood made tsunami was quite the sight as Eva noted the woman's fearlessness, even in the face of such overwhelming odds just to save her friend. It was certainly a quality that those who wished to bear the mark of Dawn Horizon all possessed and she found that her boss had some sixth sense when it came to finding people of that nature.

Snapping her fingers once more, the blood surrounding the nearby forest all began to return back to Evangeline as she watched the clearly shaken and fatigued assassin regroup her bearings as she stood protectively next to her still stone faced companion. The landscape around them had been destroyed entirely and a full clearing within the forest had appeared around where they both stood.

"Very commendable half-ling. Your desire to save your friend is quite praiseworthy, admirable even" As she spoke, the blood that had been swirling around her now gathered in one spot and began to shrink, taking the form of a long jet black spear as Evangeline swung the long pole with incredible grace and mastery and pointed it before the assassin.

"That being said, you'll never beat me with just those skills alone. Let me show you" She growled with excitement as she charged towards the assassin with lightning fast speed and began an assault of rapid strikes with her black spear towards the still stationary assassin. Her blows were heavy and carried with her the strength of a true vampire queen.

The devil is in the details. Even as the blows reigned down, Rene blocked them as best as she could, pushed back further and further as her hands throbbed and her back ached. Her muscles screamed at her for forcing them to keep up. Still, she held on..until the time was ripe.

"Darkheart." As the obsidian spear and the deadly Vampire Queen came down yet another blow, Rene levied the crimson blade forward, before releasing the disintegrating blood it had absorbed at point blank range.

"So that blade can both absorb things and release them in condensed bursts. What a fearful weapon" Evangeline's surprise came as fast as it went as she didn't dodge or parry the attack with her weapon; she merely used her hand and crushed the released energy in front of her as it was if her hand was like an immovable wall that wouldn't budge. The damage done to her hand was noticeable as it burned some flesh off her skin but Evangeline didn't so much as flinch at the pain, simply following through with her attack by then rushing forward, spear in hand as she attempted to stab the woman in her abdomen with her spear.

Renesmee registered neither surprise nor dismay when she saw this happen. The reason; a certain other had done the same thing. She could feel her bones creaking a bit as her muscles screamed at her once more; if this is what being a half-blood garnered her, she'd rather be human. However, Rene had no time the ponder further as her blade came up to meet the thrusting spear. Held in a horizontal manner. "Oathkeeper." A wicked gleam seemed to rise from it as it met the spear before ripping through it like a hot knife through butter.

Unfortunately for the assassin, this outcome had already been well predicted by the vampire queen as she allowed her blood condensed spear to be sliced apart and used that opportunity to sneak past the blade wielding woman's defenses that she had dropped momentarily. Utilizing her royal footwork and with a menacing smile, she maneuvered forward and grabbed the assassin's face with a vicious grip, squeezing her face as if she crushing an orange before lifting her up and with her monumental strength, slammed her down into the ground as a giant crater was created from the impact as dust and debris covered the landscape.

Not that far from where the impact had occurred, Lindsey and Sa'luk had been rushing as fast as they could to try and break up a fight between the two and they could only feel worried when they saw the huge impact.

"Damn, we've gotta hurry Sal!" Lindsey shouted as she sped even further to their location, hoping they weren't too late.

Back at the combat site, Eva still held onto the assassin's face even as she stood on top of the highly damaged woman who laid on her back in the crater and spoke in a superior tone.

"Maybe now that you're flat on your ass you'll listen, or do you still feel compelled to fight me even when you know it's hopeless?" She spat with a unbridled confidence.

Something in her snapped when the Vampire Queen slammed her into the ground. This was all a game to them. Some test of loyalty...some piece of bait "to prove she was real". What a joke...It gave her flashbacks to her days in the assassin guild, when they'd have you "kill your best friend" or "execute your fellow acolytes". Little tests, little games, a trap here and there. The rage left, replaced by something cold, and empty. She disappeared from Eva's grip before reappearing several feet away, weapons still hand, and the statue of Aethon by her side.

Evangeline didn't show any surprise when the assassin escaped from her grasp, instead sighing that it seemed she had no intention of giving up or at least having a civil conversation.

The aches and pain disappeared even as the damage remained when she drew upon that hated reservoir, the women's blood circulating through her body. Her aura would change with it, a dense ethernano infused wind ripping through the ruined trees and landscape. Meanwhile, the blades she had wielded sunk into her body. After all, they were only an extension of her right? Pieces of her soul weaponized. And now, they returned home; for a little while anyway.

"Well now, that's not something you see everyday" The Vampire Queen praised as she watched the transformation with a fascinated gaze.

A memory flashed in her mind, Esme's memory. "Why did you become one if you find them so distasteful?" "Easy; power. Why do you think I consumed the one who turned me? They're such whiny, arrogant creatures..I couldn't help but be interested in playing with them... nurturing her hatred for them was so easy too..I mean, why would anyone in their right mind like bloodsuckers anyway? *she giggled*"

"To think we shared something in common after all..." The wryest and emptiest of smiles ghosted across the assassin's expression. She took a step forward, already at Eva's location once more, aiming a kick to Eva's midsection.

"She's faster..." Evangeline caught the woman's kick with her left hand that was aimed at her midsection, noting that the power behind the kick had raised as well, spurring the vampire's intrigue more and more.

Following up, Eva aimed a solid right hook towards the assassin's face as she still held onto her outstretched leg.

"Not enough." She would drive her caught leg forward, rerouting the reservoir as she pivoted on her other foot to drive the caught leg home with bone shattering force. Yes, she had to take one on the chin, but it didn't matter.

"Kuh!" Evangeline grunted as the woman's kick lodged itself further as it pushed her entire body backwards, but not before Eva had taken the opportunity to land a heavy punch to the assassin's chin as they separated and she caught herself by skidding on the ground.

"Hey, that actually kind of stung" Evangeline held her stomach, both impressed and annoyed that the half ling in front of her had used such a crude method, one that was very reminiscent of her boss. There was something very different about her now, her fighting style was much more reckless now, as if she had little to no regard for her own body anymore as long as she could inflict damage to her enemy.

Standing fully upright, Evangeline smiled a bit before she raised her hand to the sky and gathered her tremendous magic as a large amount of blood began to swirl in the air like before. Unlike list time however, thousands of sharp blood needles began to hover in the air as they covered the night sky.

"Blood Storm"

Dropping her hand forward, those thousands of needles were launched forward like missiles as they were all aimed towards the figure of the assassin to rip her body to shreds.

Rene recovered a bit, as she rubbed her chin from the blow. She wondered languidly if her jaw was broken. "The Veil obscures." With that, she disappeared once more, the needles creating a pincushion in her former resting place. Rene then reappeared behind Eva, aiming a brutal kick to the middle of her back.

Evangeline's smirk widened as her opponent had dodged her needles and had vanished into thin air, at least outwardly as Eva could track her movements thanks to the blood that had dripped onto her clothing. When she reappeared behind her and aimed a kick at her back, a swift response followed as Eva stepped to the side and opened her armpit as the woman's leg passed through it but was then locked as Evangeline closed her armpit and used her inhuman strength to pin the woman's leg with excruciating pressure.

"If you thought you'd win in a close quarters fight, you were sorely mistaken" Eva then used her free arm and stepped back as she aimed a devastating elbow in the assassin's unprotected face as she was still being pinned from Eva's armpit lock.

Unprotected? Surely not; she ignored the seething pain in her leg while focusing. As the elbow came crashing down, a grin that didn't quite seem to be her own was present on the assassin's face. Her right hand formed a chopping formation onas the flying elbow came perilously close to her face. "Oathskeeper." The sound of a sword slashing could be heard, though the only movement was her hand with the incoming elbow. It sliced through horizontally, cutting it in two. A flopping sound was heard.

"Apologies about the arm."

At that exact moment, the figures of Lindsey and Sa'luk emerged from the shadows as they landed a distance away from the battle and began an observation of the events that had transpired.

"Looks like we made it" Lindsey sighed in relief that they hadn't been too late as she looked around, eyeing the once beautiful forest that had been here, replaced by craters and blood scattered across the open wasteland. A fierce battle had taken place here and while it was certainly no simple skirmish, Lindsey felt relief that it hadn't escalated further.

However, that relief soon turned to dread as she saw what was laying on the ground next to Eva and the assassin and her eyes widened.

"Oh no..." Lindsey feared for the worst as she could only imagine the rage and storm to come from the vampire queen who wasn't one for controlling her temper.

What was unraveling before Sa'luk's own eyes, at the end of his mad rush, was perplexing... to point of disturbing even an hardened killer as him. Craters were dug, blood was spilled, magic power still roared vigorously through the ether. Nothing more than ordinary administration when it comes to Eva, whose playfulness was only matched by her daunting strength, that in itself. But two details struck the assins mind: the statue of long-haired woman, whom he immediately recognized to be the human form of Rene's bird, and Eva's forearm flopped onto the ground, blood still oozing from the clear cut.

He was livid.

"Lindsey, stay back", he said to his girlfriend with a tone so grim it would make his usual demeanor chilly. "This rage and evil... we've made a grave mistake".

"...Alright, be careful" Lindsey decided to leave it to her lover as she believed he'd be able to fix this situation without anyone having to die.

Sa'luk rose his black sword, black tendrils sprouting from it in droves. He was reaching the highest state reachable for a demon Slayer, Devil Synchronization, when he and his demonic host had become one. Dribbling in a proverbial black ooze, the diminutive frame of the assassin had swollen to a tremendous size, growing and shaping itself like a demon over 20' feet tall. It was Cursan's true form manifest, from the ancient times he used to raze cities and empires to the ground, heralded by a pulse of magic power so strong it almost bared every tree in the vicinity.

"Now things have been taken too far!" The large demon spoke with both voices, as both Cursan and Sa'luk shared the same concerns over the situation. Then he contorted his large part of his mass in a shapeless, pitch black form, which he hurled to the two vampires still caught in a violent brawl, quickly enveloping both of them

"Both of you, stay calm!" A growl came out of his throat, as Sal'uk was putting pressure between the two women, trying to disentangle them and put as much distance as possible.

Evangeline didn't bother too respond to her guild mates declaration, or even his presence as she stood in place, staring at where her arm used to be with a look that couldn't begin to describe the mixture of emotions coursing through her mind.

The black tendrils that Sa'luk had sent towards them to separate them found no resistance with Evangeline who allowed herself to be moved away. It was a unnerving sight to see Eva so unresponsive as she simply continued to stare at her arm.

Well, that was new. "I can remove myself thank you very much," the assassin commented, her voice unnaturally playful as she sliced through the shadow arm before landing nimbly next to the statue of Aethon. Her fangs flashed in the night, as her red gaze welled into a shining crimson, spreading across her sclera. She seemed to examine herself before grinning.

"So she has that power...I wonder where she learned it; neither myself or her father had it, welp, more fun for me," she mused, before drawing a circle in the air. Popping into existence was a circle of blooded blades, hovering around her.

"Shall we? I know your pride is hurt Vampire Queen or should I say...Eva," her tone retained a light playfulness while almost cheeky. The assassin primary adversary would notice the aura around Rene had changed further, to the point of being almost...someone else.

Evangeline completely ignored the words of the uncharacteristically playful assassin as she was too busy staring at her missing limb as her eyes showcased rage, amusement, annoyance, and respect all at the same time. How could she let this happen? How dare a half-ling do this to her? Was she holding back all this time? Was she looking down on her? An endless amount of questions floated in her head as what she was feeling was very alien to the vampire queen.

In the end, she did something that she found was the most appropriate thing to do in a situation like this.

She laughed.

It wasn't very loud or for very long but it was a laugh befitting a queen as she soon quieted down and took a deep breath, quelling her bubbling rage. She was different now; she could control her anger and her frustration much better now after becoming apart of Dawn Horizon as her boss had taught her to redirect that rage and use it in a less dangerous way.

Also, Dyson certainly wouldn't approve of her going ballistic and she'd rather (ironically) chop her own hand off than dissapoint her beloved.

With all that in mind, Evangeline looked towards Sa'luk who had already went full demon sync mode and the worried Lindsey on the side and smiled towards them.

"Relax guys, I'm fine. Got a little careless is all. I'm not going to go out of control. In fact... Her gaze shifted to the figure of the still playful assassin, her previous amber eyes now turning crimson and her facial expression hardening as a malicious smile appeared on her face.

"...I'm actually more scared at how calm I am right now"

Raising her dismembered arm into the air, the chopped off arm that was still lying on the ground began to float off the ground and not a moment later, soared right back to Eva as the severed hand reconnected with the dismembered limb. Wires of blood began to appear around the line where the arm had been cut as it began to sew itself back onto her forearm and not long after, the wound had disappeared completely as Eva waved it back and forth a few times before nodding.

"Huh, it feels and moves better than before. How fascinating" It was truly a bizarre situation as Evangeline began to take a few steps forward as she stretched her arm and spoke towards the still transformed Sa'luk.

"Hang back on this one Sal, I'm going to to deal with her. Don't worry, I won't kill her, or should I say them. That would be a waste. No, I have much bigger plans for this girl" She spoke in a way that indicated she didn't want to hear any objections.

At such point, neither Cursan nor Sal'uk would have complied with their teanmate request, being aware of her chronic lack of self-discipline and love for amusement- though Cursan less so, cause dealing with Eva was always a pain in his immaterial posterior- yet that time... they felt something different. A stench, reeking with blood, a different magical pulsation coming at waves from Rene's body. It took no genius to realize that a presence had nested inside the hybrid, a nasty, bloodsucking one.

"We could..." said both the demon and the man, communicating with Eva through their mental challenge. "But you have to tell us what are your plans with the host inside of the dhampyr. That creature oozes evil intent, a desire to kill and consume. We're not comfortable letting you two fighting if that entails the slighest chance of you becoming the snack of one of your peers".

Eva listened to her comrades worries with reasonable optimism but still felt as if she was being insulted and frowned heavily.

"Thats precisely why I'm the one who has to deal with her. The spirit that has possessd this child's body is intertwined into her very blood, down to the molecular level. I noticed it earlier but didnt think much of it at first but now...." Eva's fist tightened as she hardend her glare.

"...I can't ignore it anymore. I'll yank whatever it is that is inside that girl right out and crush it like an ant with my blood magic. Don't get me wrong, I'm flattered that you care so much about me but I can take care of myself. I'm a Queen after all" She gave Sa'luk a cheeky smile before stepping forward to address the bloodthirsty assassin who returned her stare with a smile that did not fit the usually stoic assassin.

"Who are you? No, what are you? Your not the same child I was fighting awhile ago"

"Who am I? I'm flattered Her Highness would like to know my name," the assassin smiled at Eva, the warmth not quite reaching her eyes.

"My name....is Esme. Just an average vampire, nothing particularly special about me, besides what I'm residing in. Truly, she's made it further than I could have ever dreamed...though she had a helping hand. It's all very interesting no?"

"Still she deserves credit for that arm cut. That was her doing after all; a last act. Though never did I think we'd have a common interest like that..it's all so fascinating."

"She's really been limiting herself for too long; starving her poor self has made her weak. Even halflings need blood no? It makes them sooo much stronger. But you know what's makes them even better?" Her grin darkened, Esme's sociopathy starting to resurface.

Evangeline's eyebrows narrowed when she saw that evil smile; a smile that would make a person's skin crawl.

"Vampire blood," the assassin licked her lips, "all their strength, all of their abilities, and less of the twats running around. It's a win-win!!!" Her magic aura roared to life, forming a female humanoid avatar not unlike the spirit residing within. The ground shook.

"She hated vampires because of me, and well...I just found them so pretentious...even my whimsical self could never tire of watching their pride broken, as they resorted to begging for their lives. Arrogance turned to dust...then...dinner." She giggled.

"Is that right? So you're admitting that you find enjoyment in torturing your own species? How pitiful" She looked at the figure of the wickedly smiling Esme with contempt and disappointment as her immense magic power began to boil, causing a shift in the air and ground around them as everyone picked up on it.

"One final question. What does being a vampire mean to you? Because despite your demented and psychotic nature, there's no denying you possess vampire blood in your veins. So I'm going to ask you one last time and I want you to answer me very carefully, what does being a vampire mean to you?"

"Someone seems a little vexed no?" Esme pouted as Eva's magic power swept across the damaged landscape. "What does being a vampire mean to me? That's the first time someone's asked me that question. You're an interesting one..definitely. Fufufufufu."

She dawdled for a bit while thinking about this. "A shot at immortality, or a way to be endlessly amused. Whether it's wooing a human noble or placing your creator on their deathbed. Plus, a way to observe my own kind; it's so cute how they're just like the humans they feed on. Petty, arrogant, and elitist. Only difference is they more durable and live longer; which means I have long-lasting playmates."

Esme grinned. "No doubt you're disappointed by that answer, but what else can I say? There's nothing inspirational about vampires. They've live a long time, eat other inhabitants of this world, and then parade around like they're important; no culture to speak of, no higher calling. Just immortal livestock. You might as well be corpses running about if I'm being honest...humans are more interesting."

She drums her finger against her chin, "hmm, maybe that's why I like eating vampires? It simply wouldn't do if the humans were cowering wretches in a cave. No one can create like that. So I suppose this is my good deed for the day then." Esme giggled once more.

It was an answer Evangeline had expected; no, one that she was hoping she would get. Perhaps due to the fact that she was a former queen, she still had lingering attachments to any vampires she came across, no matter how demented or warped they were. They weren't a thriving race at all like humans, in fact they were a pitifully small but powerful and resilient race that prided themselves on their superiority over human beings. So to meet one in a place like this was something that Evangeline couldn't just dismiss as two strangers casually greeting one another, there was a deeper connection between those that carried the name of "Vampire".

However, the words that had been uttered by the being known as Esme made Evangeline forgo all of that as she felt any form of nostalgic companionship for her fellow vampire evaporate immediately, replaced with a boiling rage to terminate her existence once and for all.

"I have to thank you, Esme. There were alot of doubts in my head on what to do with you but hearing you say such things has really made things easier for me. You're no vampire, you're just a monster. I won't try to deny the narcissistic views of vampires and the like but you want to know something? Vampires treasure their own, they would never betray each other. There's no way any true "vampire" would hunt and enjoy killing their own, that's something only a monster would do. And that's exactly what you are, nothing more and nothing less"

With nothing else left to say to her, Evangeline's eyes gleamed dangerously as a crimson magic circle appeared beneath her feet as her enormous magic power was unable to be contained any longer. It leaked out in waves, crushing the landscape around them even further as the oxygen became heavy and the temperature took a nose dive. Her aura was to intimidating that those around her had to brace themselves by covering their faces and even the earth itself began to tremble excessively, as if it was afraid of her power.

"I'm going to do the world a favor and end your pitiful existence right here and now, and the first step is to rip you out of that girl's body, one way or another"

"Why rip me out of her? Don't you think that's rude? A mother is supposed to protect her child right?" the assassin hugged herself while grinning, "and now I can, forever!! At least, I read that in a book somewhere." the woman giggled. Her smile only widened as the earth shook, the environment altered by her adversary's power.

"Well..let's see you give it a try queenie dear."

Evangeline glanced over at Sa'luk and Lindsey who had been observing the two vampires go at each other verbally and warned them."You two might wanna back up a bit and shield yourselves, I'm taking off the kid gloves"

Recognizing the severity of the situation, and the depravity of Rene’s ancestor, the young assassin gave a grim nod of agreement to the queen of vampires.

“Jeez, why do we always have to defer to any crazy lady who ask us to move on?” Bemoaned Cursan. “We two could deal with the assassin on our own and alone, if we wished so”.

“Perhaps so,” Sa’luk retorted. “But could we free the woman from her torment? This evil is embedded in every fiber and cell of her body. Only a specialist in vampires or a godlike entity could eradicate the presence without killing the host, and I bet you would like to see Pele in action even less”.

“HELL NO!! I don’t want that lava-spewing hag to go gun-ho and flaunting her overwhelming power and status in front us “puny” beings while giving veiled and not-so veiled threats of incineration.” The demon shouted in horror, for even if the relationship between him and the goddess had improved immensely, she couldn’t just help not being a moody, haughty, fiery bitch.

“I suppose this is the most rational course of action. Hope we won’t regret letting Eva going all out”.

The demonic form of Sa’luk retreated from the vampire women, and expanded back to Lindsey, offering his shadowy embrace. Two large, jet black wings sprouted from his back.

“Come with me, Lin, we must fly out of the danger zone”. Sal’uk addressed his fiancée serenely, showing his human face amidst the shadowy tendrils.

"...Okay" Lindsey reluctantly agreed as she looked back over at Evangeline and shouted at her "Don't go too overboard, alright? The boss will be pissed at us if you do" She warned before grabbing a hold of her fiancee's outstretched hand and let them carry her off as she watched the vampires retreating figures.

Love to Hate, Hate to Love
Eva snorted as she watched them go "What the hell do they take me for? Even I know how to hold back. Whatever, I doubt I'll need to worry about that with the piece of work in front of me" She smiled as she snapped her fingers, a bright light enveloping her body as a set of jet black chain-mail armor replaced the clothes she was wearing before. The armor was intimidating and sharp as it covered most of her body but left spaces of her thighs and hips exposed

Once the light faded, Evangeline stood there with newly summoned armor and finished the act by reaching her hand out as a weapon materialized in that hand. It was the same color as her armor; a black scythe was now being wielded by the Queen of Vampires as she spun it around with masterful skill and then rested it by her side, glaring down her mind controlled assassin with a smug expression.

"My preparations are finished. So Esme, why don't you show me how much stronger you are then you're supposed daughter? Or are you just all talk?" She taunted.

Esme wagged her finger. "Taunting is unbecoming of someone of your station," she teased playfully, the swords floating around her before merging into a beautiful crimson armor, hugging her form. Two more bloodred swords emerged, resting in her palms. She licked them both, testing their sharpness.

"Shall we? It's rude to keep your guests waiting."

"You're right, I shouldn't keep you waiting..." Evangeline spoke as she had already appeared right in front of the assassin, with such blinding speed that very few could ever hope to perceive as she swung her scythe downward with both hands in an attempt to cleave her in half.

"...waiting for your death that is"

Esme saw the scythe whistle downwards, bringing one sword up to block it. The clang of metal against metal reverberated through the landscape.

"So hasty," she commented, driving her second blade forward in an attempt to skewer Evangeline. Esme couldn't help but not the queen had moved even faster than earlier. So she was finally being serious; Esme couldn't help but feel tickled pink at the honor.

Evangeline showed no form of surprise that her adversary had blocked her downward strike, as that was merely her way of testing the waters. If she couldn't handle that speed or power, she didn't even deserve to cross blades with her.

It was now time to ramp things up.

Staring at the blade aimed at her, Evangeline let go of her scythe as she ducked under the blade, planting both her feet as she sucked in a cold breath, redirecting the flow of her inner mana before she flash stepped forward, breaching her enemies defenses as she landed a double knuckle punch straight in her armor covered abdomen. The shockwave of the attack destroyed the landscape beneath their feet as the assassin's body was catapulted backwards from the force of the attack.

Evangeline thanked a certain martial artist in the back of her mind for inspiring such a technique that very few, if any vampires employed in their arsenal.

Thank goodness for armor. As she flew backwards from the force, Esme grin only widened. A vampire who knew martial arts? Did that mean she learned from a *gasp* human? What a day it was. She braced her feet against a tree after coming into contact with it. There was a sickening crack as the tree snapped apart, falling to the ground as she launched herself back to Eva's location. Mid-flight she would disappear from view, her scent and magic signature going with it. Only a Cheshire cat-like smile was visible before it too vanished.

"This trick again? You insult me" Evangeline sighed as she walked over towards her scythe and picked it up before standing still while shutting her eyes. This wasn't the first time her opponent had used this peculiar form of magic that allowed them to erase any form of their presence from this world and while it was true she had no way of knowing where the assassin was at this moment, it would be a cold day in hell before Evangeline allowed someone to use the same move against her over and over without consequences.

"That's what you always taught me, right Dy?" She fondly reminisced over the lesson her beloved had taught her during one of their sparring sessions.

Refocusing, she quietly and subtlety let waves of her magic power seep out of her body, surrounding everything nearby as she stood in place, not moving an inch. To anyone who saw her from the outside, it would just appear as if she was waiting for her enemy to attack her while she was defenseless.

Of course, there was no way that was just the case as a smirk appeared over Evangeline's face as she eagerly awaited the reappearance of her adversary.

Esme ignored her as she reached her destination. The crimson blade out and ready, she'd rip a nice gash in Eva's side, before landing on the ground behind her. She remained within her daughter's magic, flipping her blade experimentally as she went in for another sweep. While Esme was aware of Eva's spreading magic, she decided to let it be; perhaps curious about where it all lead.

Besides, there was more to this "trick" than Eva knew.

Eva didn't so much as flinch as a gash appeared on her right side, no doubt a wound that came from the assassin's blade. Though it was annoying to allow her enemy to strike her like this, it was necessary for her plan to take root.

Meanwhile, she remained silent. Locked away? Left in the cold? Perhaps besieged by memories that weren't her own. A prison of fast moving images, each with a nugget of wisdom waiting to be unearthed. Alas, they flipped so quickly that she merely scratched the surface before they were lost again. There were things she wanted to know in here; but what were they? Something important...something she was forgetting; every time she almost had it, the thing would be snatched away.

What was it?

Evangeline continued to endure as multiple slashes appeared within the spaces between her armor as she continued to stand there. No screams of pain or even grunts of agony; it was a testament to her mental fortitude that she could endure the pain without a reaction.

Her magic continued to leak out while spreading throughout the wide area, almost creating what Evangeline had intended as she patiently waited. Yes, it wouldn't be much longer now before she'd have her way with this "Esme".

Well, she was durable if nothing else. She was probably the first person who would take cuts like that and not scream in agony. There wasn't so much as a grunt. Instead of feeling misled though, Esme's exhilaration only grew, mapping out the extensive network Eva was developing. What was she planning? Hopefully something good; there was nothing worse than extensive build up and a failure to deliver.

Renesmee continued to be swallowed by memories; her curiosity growing as she reached for them only to realize their incorporeality. Again, she had the nagging feeling that there was something important, an imperative that Renesmee had left behind or nearly forgotten. She searched through the tumbling visions and images, snapshots of another's life...wait. Another's life...not her own? A pin dropped. Why did this matter to her? The images slowed, as if attempting to draw her in once more. Yet, she ignore the tempting snippets. Who's life was it...

Completion.

Evangeline's crimson eyes finally reopened as her magic had finally finished spreading out and covering the majority of the surrounding forest. With no more preparation needed, Evangeline raised her hand into the air and cast her magic that had already been planted.

"Blood Field"

The magic that had been spread out materialized immediately, taking the form of Evangeline's signature blood magic as it began to converge and form what appeared to be a large barrier of blood that separated those within from anyone who was outside the barrier. Anything that came into contact with the blood barrier was disintegrated, like the poor forest life that had been unfortunate enough to be in the way when it was summoned.

Evangeline smirked at the completion of one of her more powerful and deadly spells.

"It always takes me awhile to set this damn thing up but it looks like it paid off" She mentally grumbled but knew there was always a price for using such powerful spells. In any case, it wasn't the time to be resentful as she spoke out loud and addressed her "invisible" enemy.

"It's game over, Esme. You're going to regret not killing me when I was standing still and not moving. Go ahead, try to slice me up again with that butter knife you call a weapon. I'm sure that will end well for you this time" Evangeline taunted with supreme confidence as she planted her scythe into the ground and crossed her arms, as if daring the assassin to attack her once more.

"Kill you while you're standing still? Don't be so borrringg," Esme responded, her voice echoing around the area in a manner preventing it from being pinpointed. She studied her invisible blade; it seemed all of those cuts had paid off. Darkheart welled with what it had absorbed; Eva's blood.

"That reminds me...the monster comment. Doesn't it take one to know one?" With that, she took off again this time aiming a vertical slash down Evangeline's back, intending to slice it in two.

A snort of amusement came from Eva as she listened to Esme trying to hide her location through an echo that vibrated throughout the barrier. The fool still didnt understand what exactly her barrier could do and that would cost her dearly.

Towards her monster comment, Evangeline spat on the ground and sneered.

"Don't compare me to you, we're not even in the same class, both in power and in our status as vampires. I'll admit, there are things I've done in my long life that I don't look back on too fondly, but you know what..."

She balled her hands into a fist and gripped them so hard that she began to bleed from it as her eyes turned cold when she focused on a  red figure dashing towards her, a figure she could now see due to the effect of her Blood Field.

"...Even my worst crimes pale in comparison to  the atrocities you've committed, starting with hijacking your own daughters body!" Evangeline exploded forward towards that red figure unexpectedly, pulling her hand back before she landed a devastating punch in the stomach of the red figure that cracked the armor and shattered the spell of intangibility and invisibility that she cast.

Well, this was new. She surmised that the neat little field had something to do with this. She rocketed backwards as the wind was taken out of her, yet her infuriating grin remained as Esme found her footing.

"Isn't this a nice surprise. I'll have to remember this little skill of yours," Esme commented, brushing aside Eva's earlier retort. She analyzed the breadth of the blood magic field, noting its scale. She whistled.

"You can go ahead and try, but I think you'll find that this spell isn't so easily mastered" Eva wasn't trying to demean her, she meant every word. The Blood Field spell was something only vampires who had mastered blood magic to it's absolute peak could ever hope to pull off and even then, required intensive years of training and focus to be able to execute perfectly. If this Esme really thought she could just "learn" the spell that quickly, she was even more demented than she thought.

However, the bone-rattling punch and the blood field had another consequence. Renesmee found herself shaking as the images slowed down even more before falling away completely. It was like taking a cold shower, even as she still held onto one mental image: a dark-haired, smiling male with violet eyes. There was something warm and comforting about it. Other things crashed against her thoughts; wait, wasn't she in a fight? Aethon? What happened to her? A stone statue flashed across the mindscape as she realized she was sitting in darkness. An illusion? No. A mix of worry and anger began bubbling within her.

"Though....it would be a shame if I it." She smiled at Eva, having collected all of the information she needed. Esme reached for her daughter's magic once more; instead of spinning it around to hide herself though, she focused on its special sequence: disruption. After all, she had to nullify the hold the field had on herself. With this in place, Esme waited, certain Eva would be on the move once more.

Evangeline could vaguely guess what Esme was attempting to do, that being try to find a way to either destroy or nullify the magic of her blood field. I mean, it's what anyone would do in this situation since her ability to hide both her existence and presence was the only reason she was still in this fight. In every aspect, speed, power, skill, and magic; Eva had her beat.

That being said, Evangeline couldn't help but smirk as her adversary still hadn't seen all of the capabilities of her Blood Field and why it was considered such an extremely difficult spell to master, along with why it was a skill to be feared.

"Do you really think my Blood Field is such a simple skill that nullifying magic was all it could do? Nullification of magic outside blood magic is only the first step, it has another useful ability, one that you'll understand very quickly if you pay attention"

After she had spoken, the Blood Field began to shake violently, as if an earthquake had been set off within as gigantic waves of blood flooded behind Evangeline's confident figure. The blood soon changed to what appeared to be the forms of three separate gigantic dragon's that towered over both Evangeline and Esme as they were constructs made of blood whose roars shook the very ground itself. The dragon's swirled around their queen's body, not forgetting to glare at the enemy of their master.

"This is the second power of my Blood Field; Amplification" Evangeline boasted before throwing a single finger towards the stationary Esme with one simple command to her trio of blood dragons.

"Restrain her" Any other enemy, and the command would have been "Rip them to shreds" but Evangeline was forbidden from doing so for obvious reasons.

The Dragon's roared in compliance as they all charged directly forward, opening their large mouths wide as they aimed to engulf the assassin that was only a few miles away. They were faster than they looked and judging by the destruction they were causing just be passing by the ground, they were no slouches in the strength department as well.

Esme stared at the dragons before laughing. "Deus Imperium." Each sword expanded in size and shape as she whirls them around her experimentally. Once satisfied they were of a good size, she faced down the three dragons before taking off. Es would adopt her daughter's motions, finding that muscle responded as she fell into the principles of Fūha-ryū. The waves that break defenses, and winds the needle and slice incessantly. Unpredictable swings coupled with mobility and speed. Her blades ripped into the nearest of the three, loping its head after she made a jump at it.

She would activate another skill in tandem to maintain her momentum and to avoid being sandwiched between the dragons. Esme screamed in jubilation as she continued, her pace kicking higher and higher as her daughter's muscles uncoiled, finally let loose.

"You'll have to be a bit faster than that dearie."

"You're right, this isn't enough"

Evangeline snapped her fingers as the dragon who had its head cut off immediately regenerated by absorbing the blood from the barrier. Not only that, a fourth and fifth dragon sprouted from the sides of the third dragon, using more of the blood gathered around, and now a three dragon onslaught had turned into a five dragon onslaught as they all rushed their adversary from every conceivable angle, packing the pressure on the already swift moving assassin.

As for Evangeline, she was making preparations for her final strike as she slowly picked up the scythe that had been embedded into the ground and began changing its shape.

A multiplier effect; she supposed it was inevitable given the sequence above. "Well, time for a grand stand. Fūha-ryū: Roaring Chorus," she began to spin rapidly before resembling a wheel, her momentum building as winds roared off her. She then proceeded to carve a path through the five dragons, unrelenting in her rabid destruction of the five constructs as she remained undaunted by their size, fury, and numbers.

"Wow" Evangeline whistled, genuine admiration seeping from her inner being not towards the mind controlling vixen but towards the body of the daughter she had controlled. No matter how skilled Esme was, those skills would be useless unless the body she was occupying had the necessary speed and reflexes to perform such acrobatics.

Still, while her resistance was admirable, the end result wouldn't change as the weapon Evangeline had morphed from her scythe was finally completed as she smirked and took a deep breath and concentrated. For her strike to work, she was going to have to borrow alot of blood from her field, enough so that the effects it had on nullifying Esme's ability and the power boost it granted her dragon's would severely weaken.

However, those things wouldn't matter at all once she had cast it as Evangeline aimed the weapon in the air as she closed one eye, perfecting her aim.

In the mean time, her dragons were being shredded and ripped apart but continuously regenerated while weakening the overall power of the barrier each time. In one final desperate act, they merged together to form one colossal dragon, far bigger than any individual dragon that almost couldn't fit inside the Blood Field as it earth shattering roar shook even the sky itself and it charged straight at Esme to devour her, under Evangline's command as she finalized her spell.

She pinwheeled around, landing on her feet with a hop as she surveyed the field including the gargantuan dragon barreling towards her. More importantly, the magic nullification weakened a bit. Esme grinned. "Perfect. Deus Eques!!" The ground around her shattered as gaping fissures ran in every direction, a monolith of magic power rising around her. Now, the last part. Pitch-black flames rose from her person, the air sizzling as it was subjected to her scathing heat.

"Fūha-ryū Original: Wheel of Purgatory." With that, she charged, a sonic boom emitting as she began a new pinwheeling motion towards the dragon. "Death is one the windddd!!"

A collision of epic proportions erupted between the pinwheeling mad woman drenched in black flames and the colossal blood dragon as the barrier itself shook with frightening might. The two powers clashed for what seemed to be eternity as the black flames were neutralized by the acidic properties of the blood contained in the dragon but due to the blood field weakening for a multitude of reasons, the blood dragon ultimately lost out as Esme's pinwheel of death overwhelmed it and destroyed it in its entirety.

Though victorious, the assassin's body was drenched in blood as smoke rose from the various parts of her body that had bathed in the liquid, though little damage was done of course due to the body being half vampire.

Of course, this was all within Evangeline's expectations... no, it would be more accurate to say that this was exactly what she wanted to happen as her aim was locked and the weapon she was holding; a beautiful crimson and black longbow, radiated immense power, pressure, and a hint of spiritual magic as instead of a normal arrow, a lengthy spear of blood occupied the string that Evangeline had pulled back and was seconds from launching.

"You're in my sights Esme, and you've played around with that girl's body long enough, it's time to hand it back over to its rightful owner. Got anymore witty come backs in you before your erased for good?" Evangeline spoke with unwavering confidence, despite knowing her blood field had been almost completely drained as cracks had begun to form all over the barrier. It wouldn't make sense to anyone why she'd be this confident when her opponent was free to use her powers to their fullest?

Just what was going on?

"Someone had their wheaties for breakfast." Esme unfolded from her pinwheel, her crimson gaze playful as she spotted the longbow trained at her. "Do you really think that will be enough? You do realize you'll have to hit me honey." She held a finger to her lips as several of her appeared, their Cheshire smiles multiplied several fold.

"Let's play a game shall we?" The various Esmes moved, shuffling several times as if they were a deck of cards, each a marvelous replica of the original.

"Which one of us will it be? Despair, sweet relief, or victory?" they echoed as a chorus.

Evangeline was completely unfazed by the woman's words nor her attempt to mislead the vampire queen as a pitiful sigh came from her mouth, one that was filled with emptiness towards one who shared the same race but clearly, possessed the soul of a being that didn't deserve to exist in this world anymore.

In fact, Evangeline was more concerned with saving the half-ling whose body had to endure quite some suffering under her attacks as she closed her eyes and connected her own spirit energy with the lance, intertwining her own soul into the attack.

"Alright brat, I'm only going to open the door for you. You're going to have to figure out the rest on your own"

With her final resolve, Evangeline's legs spread apart and she arched her back before she unleashed the bow and spell that came along with it.

"Blood Piercer"

She fired the lance from her bow as she was blown back from the recoil as it sped across the landscape, the remnants of the barrier finally breaking as the night sky resurfaced, a bright moon dangling in the air. The lance made a B-line straight for the multiple Esme's that had shuffled themselves humorously, still playing the part of acting coy and playful as she was confident she'd never get hit by an attack she saw coming.

Of course, she couldn't have been farther from the truth as the lance began to steer multiple times as it was pointed towards a certain Esme that kept shuffling with the clones and each time she did, the spear would follow as it appeared to be locked onto one specific target and headed straight for her at frightening speed.

A homing beacon. Well, that would be a problem now wouldn't it? She ceased the shuffling as her clones gathered around. One by one she sent them at the blood lance, buying time as she readied her stance. She put one sword away, focusing instead on the she knew was right for the job. Holding the katana vertically in front of her, Esme took a deep breath as the last clone was skewered by the lance, which continued its beeline towards her. She would close her eyes for a second, the ground cracking as she focused. Es thought about erasing the lance, but noted its structure was too complicated, combining both blood magic and spiritual energy, among other things.

Thus, she'd have to cut it. "Shall we, Oathskeeper?" The blade glowed as she levied it against the arriving lance.

"Pointless" Evangeline whispered as she panted a bit, feeling a bit drained by the attack she had launched as she stood from her knees. She watched as each copy was destroyed instantly after being impaled by the lance whose momentum couldn't be stopped as it almost reached the original Esme, who aimed to counter by cutting her lance.

Meanwhile, with the fall of the barrier, the image and memory bombardment began anew. Yet, they seemed sluggish this time, uneven. A couple were blurry. And well, Rene's thoughts were preoccupied by the situation she found herself in. What had happened? How did she end up here? Whose memories was sh-the assassin stopped as a memory of her own resurfaced. A battle that stretched into the night. A consumption followed by physical changes...more power, a proper adult, a temptation.

A pin dropped in the silence. "ESME!!" The mental world shook, fizzling out bit by bit as a titanic rage surfaced.

The moment of truth; the lance and Esme were moments away from clashing as she attempted to cut the attack with her signature blade, Oathskeeper with a downward strike as the two opposing forces were mere seconds from colliding and just as they were about to clash, a smirk appeared on Evangeline's face as she knew what her lance was about to do.

It was the ability it possessed and activated once the lance recognized that it would come into contact with a strong opposing force, one that could prevent it from attacking its objective.

"Spin"

Without warning, the previously straight lance began to rapidly rotate in an unorthodox manner as its power increased exponentially with the boosted drilling power, colliding with Esme's downward blade and to her surprise, parried it due to the spinning force as Esme's stance was broken through. The lance penetrated the remnants of whatever armor she had been wearing as it pushed her back and carried her through the air at a terrifying speed as she was catapulted through the forest with a lance now impaled straight into her abdomen.

However, the physical damage the lance caused was the least of her concerns as the energy contained within the lance had entered through the wound caused on her stomach, more specifically the spirit energy Evangeline had fused into the lance was sent directly into Esme's inner mind, it's purpose and objective clear.

The blade cut through a part of it, but it wasn't enough. She shook her head as the last bit of her armor was destroyed, before she was sent backwards at breakneck speed. She went through several trees, clearing a small path before her back cracked against a massive, sturdy redwood, the lance effectively skewering her to the tree. Instead of bemoaning her existence, however, the woman started laughing, subdued at first before it reached raucous, unhinged heights.

"Who knew you'd try something like that e-" she stiffened.

Meanwhile, the darkness began to crack. Her rage continued to build, taking on something corporeal as the mental world began to shake. She had killed that bitch yet...here she was again. What had the bastard done this time to accomplish this? Rene noticed a ghostly figure in her periphery, the face and form slowly solidifying. What was is it this time...

Moments passed before the ghastly before began to take a physical form and it was a form that Renes couldn't have forgotten as the person now standing in front of her in the darkness was none other than Evangeline, the Queen of Vampires and the enemy who she had just been fighting not that long go.

"Yo" Eva greeted with a smile as she was wearing her casual clothing from before and raised her hand to greet the no doubt confused and angry halfling. "It's good to see that you haven't kicked the bucket yet, eh halfling?"

"Shut up nightcrawler," Rene snapped back, standing. As if the day couldn't worsen further than it already had. "What the hell do you want?" Another crack ran its way through the mindscape's darkness threatening to fracture more of the location.

"Well?" Her rage threatened to explode, pressure building in the establishment.

"Jeez, friendly much?" Evangeline shrugged her shoulders. Really, how unfriendly could one girl be? Although, she couldn't really blame her all that much given what was happening to her. A vampire is the last thing she probably wanted to see right now.

Unfortunately, they didn't have time for passive aggressive banter right now as Evangeline adopted a serious expression on her face. Vanishing, she reappeared before Renes and flicked the woman's forehead with her finger as the assassin stumbled back a bit.

"Cool your head for a second there, halfling. Think about where you are and the situation you're in first before you start spewing your hatred towards me. You don't find it odd that I'm in your subconscious right now? You're a smart girl, I'm sure you can put two and two together and figure out what's been going on with your body and how your deranged mother is involved in all of this"

"Thank you for telling me what I already know," came her retort, steadying herself after the forehead flick. More fissures ran across the space, darkness crashing into the ground. "Get out. Both of you." Each word was accented by more darkness falling to the ground, revealing blinding whiteness. The traces of another figure seemed to lurk in this land just beyond. Another conscience, one that rattled and shook as layers were peeled away from the space.

"I SAID. GET. OUT. NOW." No longer was it mere yelling, but now, the full brunt of her will was behind it, rage and hatred a fuel that seemed limitless. Eva's appearance was merely the tipping point for an unending vitriol. She was tired of being a vampire's plaything, tired of being talked down to.

Esme's conscience attempted to reach out, only to be met with a bristling wall that pushed, and pushed, and pushed some more. She seemed almost..surprised by this reaction as a tangible, vitriol-infused will ripped through the fabric of the mind trap, a steel toed boot forming in front of her before clobbering Esme. Everything Rene had seemed to be put behind this.

With a spray of blood, Esme suddenly found herself outside, looking at Rene's prone body from above. "Hmm?" She drifted, not paying attention as a ray of moonlight filtered through breaks in trees. She happened to wade into one before being shredded, her last moments a grin as she realized who did the deed.

"So you found me after all....."

"...Well done" Evangeline praised with a smile as she could already tell that the half-ling had prevailed and had took back control of her body. That "spray" of blood that appeared to be the remnants of whatever was left of Esme floated in the air and Evangeline was prepared to rip that thing to shreds but didn't get the chance as the ray of moonlight beat her to it.

"...Who in the world did that?" Evangeline looked up at the sky and frowned when she didn't see anything or sense anyone nearby. Whatever had struck down Esme was no longer here and while she had many questions, the vampire queen decided to let it go for now. She could always ask the young half-ling about it, if she knew anything.

On that matter, Evangeline got up and rushed towards the redwood that the woman's body had been impaled onto, eyeing the amount of blood that had seeped out of the wound caused by her lance. Thankfully, the wound wasn't fatal as she had deliberately missed her vital spots but nonetheless, the woman's body had been beat up quite badly.

"Guess I'll have to help her out" Evangeline was preparing to transform the spear embedded in the woman back into blood and use it to replace the blood she had lost from the wound in her abdomen before she noticed the assassin's eyes begin to flutter open, indicating she was regaining consciousness.

She woke up, feeling like roadkill. No, worse than that. Caught in a dragon's flames, ran over by a giant, and submerged in acid. That is how Rene felt. One eye opened, followed by another, before she felt a stabbing pain in her gut. Looking down, she'd see a spear pinning her to the tree. Without a thought, she ripped the spear out of her abdomen, blood squirting out. She coughed up more blood before sliding down the tree to one knee. She propped herself with a sword, the blade slipping form her forearm. Broken leg? Likely.

She revisited the pain in her abdomen, only to find it worsening. More damage. Broken ribs? Probably. One arm didn't seem to good either, and she could feel caked blood on the back of her head. That was probably why she was feeling woozy.

Her thoughts shifted. Aethon. The flashbacks of a battle fought by someone else in her body told her of even further widespread damage. Had she been caught up in it? Her worry grew several fold as she ran for the location. Well, tried to. She dragged herself and a busted leg around Eva before tripping as her muscles in her "good leg" gave out, fully spent after operating at speeds and duration no half-blood had any business doing.

Still, she would rally what she could, sword in teeth as crawled forward inch by agonizing inch. She had to see if Aethon was ok; dying as a stone statue was not the way. Rene could feel parts of her giving out one by one as her head swam. She still continued to crawl up the path on her elbows, even as her sight dimmed. "Ae..th..on."

Her vision blacked.

Evangeline observed the young half-ling desperately attempt to move her worn down and injured body towards a certain location, no doubt where her petrified human turned bird friend had been frozen. Though her worries were pointless since no harm had befallen her feathered companion as Eva made sure of that, it was admirable how much she cared for her, to the point of risking death itself just to see her.

"Heh, I can see now why the boss took such a liking to you" Evangeline reached the unconscious Renes' body as she gently flipped it over, narrowing her eyes at the various wounds on her body as she rested her hand on top of the hole that had been created from her lance, frowning as she noted the wound.

"Damn, she's lost too much blood" Eva was prepared to use her own blood to supply the missing amount but stopped herself when she recalled the girl's hatred towards vampires. She could only imagine the reaction the half-ling would have if she found out and scrapped that idea as she raised her hand and activated her blood magic.

Instead of using her royal blood, Evangeline used the alternative method and manipulated the blood within the girl's own body to begin the process of healing the hole. The girl would still need blood from an outside source and to have her other wounds checked out but at the very least, she'd be able to prevent the worse from happening as she took her back to the guild.

Gentling lifting her up in a princess style carry, Evangeline looked back to where she had frozen her feathered companion and sighed. Utilizing her blood magic, a pool of blood separated itself from Evangeline's main body as it took on her appearance and became a blood clone as Eva inclined her head towards the direction where the statue was.

"Go and fetch her friend, and be careful with carrying her. I'd reverse the spell but I don't have the time or patience to argue and explain the situation to the bird with the big mouth when this girl's life is in danger"

The clone nodded as it vanished, giving Eva the clearance to begin her return as she contacted Sa'luk, Cursan and Lindsey with her telepathy.

"Guys, meet me back at the guild. The battle is finished but the girl is in a critical state, she'll need to be treated immediately. Since you guys are closer, contact Jaziah and explain the situation to them. I'll handle telling the boss everything that happened. We don't have much time so move quickly!"

Ending her transmission, Evangeline sped up as she glanced down at the pale looking woman in her hands as she grit her teeth. She had to hurry, the life of this young half-ling was teetering on a thread and Evangeline was going to make sure she'd wake up to see another day again.

As a former queen of the Vampire Race and as a proud member of Dawn Horizon, she'd stake her pride and life on it.

“Roger, I am contacting Jaziah soon. Meet us at the Dragon Maw; it’s the quickest way to travel back to the headquarters”.

Sa’luk’s ended with a trembling note. The Dragon’s Maw hovered above the forest, just far enough to avoid being caught in the crossfire. From above, the group had glimpsed the immense devastation wrought by the clash of the two vampires. Craters dung, hectares of trees uprooted; a tremendous wave of power still lingering in the air, along with the drifting splinters. Sa’luk had red still smeared across the eyes, he could almost taste the overwhelming essence of the spell brought forth by Evangeline. Hadn’t he nerves of steel, the mere sight of the blood would have made him collapse. He could not afford that, not when time was running so short.

Flickering with the console, he flipped a channel directly connected to the doctor’s room. Their voce came through, male and female asking together what was going on. Without losing time, Sa’luk gave a quick explanation, stressing the urgency of the situation, which they understood without further question. When the transmission closed, he slammed both his hands on the console, giving off in bellow. His face was wreathed by remorse.

“It’s all my fault, goddammit!” He snarled. “Fuck, fuck, fuck!” He cursed himself many times over, itching to punch himself in the face with all his strength. Paranoid Sa’luk, overtly cautious Sa’luk never trusting anybody, so used to seen daggers behind in her street, poison behind every smile. This time, not only he was wrong, but an innocent was paying for his folly. If she did die like this, he would never be able to forgive himself for the deed.

Lindsey placed a tender hand on Sa'luk's back as she comforted him.

"Don't blame only yourself Sal, I'm at fault too. I shouldn't have gone shooting my mouth off at the time, perhaps we could have avoided all of this if we had just talked things out further"

“Please boy, don’t be too hard on yourself”. Cursan leaned a hand of shadows over his son’s shoulder. “We all thought it was a good idea at the time. I can bet we’re going to put the younglings in good shape”. He said. He was only half sure about that: though still strong, Renesme’s strength was being sapped at an alarming rate, vanishing like a flicker before the wind. There was not a moment to waste.

Putting his head outside the vehicle, Sa’luk starde at the horizon. He waited, his heart racing for interminable moments. Wind was blowing cold, ruffling his mane of dreadlocks as well has his skin. Evangeline’s pale figure finally came by, holding the wounded body of the half-breed between her arms. Sa’luk recognized the severity of the wounds from a glance: her skin had been washed away, bereft of a color. He too turned paler, a sheen a sweat covering his forehead.

“Hush, hush, we are here!” The man shouted to his companion, waving his arms. A golden plate slid from the vehicle’s body, large enough for the two to pass in.

"Good work" Evangeline arrived at the vehicle in no time as she stepped inside and placed the body of Renes within one of the seats carefully, turning back as she awaited someone else.

"Hold on, my clone is carrying that companion of her's. She'll arrive shortly" Evangeline spoke and just as she predicted, her clone arrived a minute later carrying with her the stone body of the blonde haired woman and stopped in front of the vehicle.

"Excellent, she's still in one piece" Evangeline sighed in relief as her eye magic was quite lethal if the stone body recieved any significant damage while the target was frozen. She checked for any cracks and everything seemed to be good as she nodded before dispersing her blood clone that morphed back into a pool of blood and joined back into Evangeline. Carrying the frozen statue into the vehicle carefully, Evangeline signaled to both Sa'luk and Lindsey that they could take off.

"Let's get a move on, time is not on our side"

Sa'luk gave a nod and touched a red button on its left. A rumbling noise took the vehicle, followed a by a powerful sonic boom. Its golden frame appeared to stretch in the horizon for a split second before flashing out from the forest. The veihcle flew at breakneck speed, skidding through the clouds like a real dragon, rushing madly to the headquarter in the hope of saving the half-breed in time.

Touch Stone
Hours had passed since the climactic showdown between Evangeline and the Esme controlled Renes that had destroyed quite a big chunk of the surrounding forest. The clock was ticking and although the battle was over, the immediate threat of death still loomed over the members of Dawn Horizon that had taken part in the misunderstanding as they rushed back to the base in order to save the life of the dhampir.

Thanks to the efforts of Jaziah, Renes' life had been saved as a collective sigh of relief escaped the mouths of Eva, Sa'luk, Lindsey, and even Tetsuya, who after being informed of what had occurred, had ordered an immediate meeting for all those present excluding obviously the still recovering Renes. Words could not express the level of anger that was present on Tetsuya's face as everyone feared for their lives at the punishment they would receive for treating a potential new recruit with such disrespect.

While they were getting an earful from the seething guild master, Jaziah was left in charge of supervising Renes and stepped out of the medical room for a bit to retrieve some files as she left Aethon, who had finally been freed from the stone spell and was briefed on what had transpired, to watch over Renes' side as she stepped out for a bit.

The two who were left in the medical room were the slumbering Renes, who was bandaged up, and her protective companion Aethon, who watched her by her bed side in her human form with complicated emotions.

The throes of unconsciousness would recede as Rene's face twitched. Her eyes opened slowly, revealing a nondescript white ceiling. Was she in a bed? Her gaze moved, taking in her surroundings before stopping. The sound of tears falling and the occasional hiccup cry reached her ears. The assassin managed to turn her head slightly, looking at the source.

Her relief was immediate when she saw who it was: Aethon. She reached a bandaged arm towards the figure, tapping her lightly on the knee; Rene's reward was a tight, smothering hug from the latter.

"Can't..breathe..." she croaked, voice hoarse with surprise. When was the last time someone had been grateful to see her? Happy that she was alive even? Rene decided not to answer that question, slowly bringing her arms around Aethon as she recovered from shock.

Aethon loosened her grip a bit, but refused to part, tears still rolling. "Thank the gods you're alive Renesmee," she blubbered. In truth, a mix of emotions still raged within her. Fury at her own ineptitude, terror at the thought of Rene almost dying, anger at how Rene was treated, joy to see Rene was alive once more, and disgust that Eva and Co. went over their guildmaster's head to "test" someone he already approved. Never mind not informing him that Rene had arrived.

She was broken from her tumultuous thoughts by Rene's voice.

"What...happened?"

"You passed out after losing a lot of blood from an abdomen wound sustained when your mom was controlling your body. Apparently she took over you at some point in your fight with the nightcrawler queen. You ended up needing a massive blood transfu-" she commented before receiving an icy glare from Rene, "no, they didn't use her blood for the transfusion." She finally relinquished Rene as the injured assassin sat up.

Rene's own thoughts turned tempestuous as her left fist collided with the wall behind her, frustration present as she ignored the pain in her arm from the collision. So she had nearly died cause that stupid wench pulled a fast one on her. And looking around the room, it seemed she was the only one seriously injured, so that meant the bloodsucker queen was fine too. A harsh laugh then escaped her; it seemed she wasn't as good at killing vampires as she thought.

Honestly, Rene wasn't so mad about nearly dying as she was about not taking her targets down with her. Now here she was, no doubt brought here by those traitorous guild members and the bloodsucker. Who probably thought Rene owed her.

"Rene?" Aethon questioned, worried, "Talk to me."

"It's nothing. I'm just glad you're not a statue anymore," Rene responded. She didn't mention the numerous times where Aethon had been in danger of being extinguished as a statue.

"Where are we?"

"The guild. This is the medical wing of the building if I remember correctly," Aethon said hesitantly, still seeing a mask of angry loathing on Rene's expression, "Lay down for a bit. You won't recover properly if you re-injure yourself."

Rene huffed, even as she examined the amount of bandages on her person. "I'm fine." Her fists remained balled up as she stared at the sheets.

A brief silence passed before the sound of the automatic door sliding open alerted both Rene and Aethon as a beautiful maroon haired woman wearing a lab coat stepped inside holding a package of documents. Her attention drifted from the documents to the now awake Renes as a comforting smile appearance on her face.

"You're already awake? How impressive, your vitality is something to behold" Her voice was mature and soothing as she placed her hands on her hips and walked closer to the bed that Renes was laying on, a beautiful smile gracing her soft lips as she introduced herself.

"I'm Jaziah, the doctor of Dawn Horizon. You're name is Renesmee, right? How are you feeling?" She showed a level of concern and kindness that Renes was not accustom too from those she had previously met from the guild.

Her temper cooled as a new figure entered the room. She dragged her gaze upward to find a kindly woman in a lab coat speaking to her. While Rene was tempted to snap at her, the seemingly genuine warmth caught her off guard a bit. "Yes it is. It's more stubbornness than vitality honestly," she responded, managing a brittle smile, "Well, I'm alive; at least, that's what my left arm is telling me."

"So you're the one who did the operations?"

"I am. It was a good thing you arrived when you did otherwise I might not have been able to treat you" Jaziah responded with a nod, a bit surprised by the girl's co-operative attitude. She thought the woman would be far more hostile and angry but it appeared she at least knew how to properly control her emotions when speaking to someone she was indebted too.

Aethon, for her part, eased her defensive position a bit. This doctor seemed far more personable than the rest of the guild. Friendly even; then again, almost anyone would be an improvement after their initial welcome.

Thon managed to graft on a smile of her own. "Sorry if we still appear....hostile. Let's just say we've had bad experiences that are a bit hard to forgive and forget."

"No worries, I completely understand. You were given quite the aggressive welcome by some of our younger members. Don't worry though, they're being properly disciplined by our dear leader" She smiled but it was a smile that would send shivers down anyone's spine at the undertones hidden below.

Rene noticed this but chose not to comment on it, preferring to see the results of this "discipline" hinted at.

"In any case..." Jaziah changed the subject as she walked over to her desk and placed the documents on the table. She then grabbed a clipboard in her drawer and flipped through a few pages, reading over the information as she slowly walked back over to where Renes lay "...You're body had lost quite a substantial amount of blood. I administered a blood transfusion immediately, thankfully your blood type matched quite a few of our members so it was simple to replace it"

She laid the clipboard by her side before reaching out to grab Renes arm with surprising speed for a doctor as she gripped it and frowned.

"But this wound wasn't there when I first began treating you and I'd appreciate it if you didn't harm yourself while your under my care. Alright?" She very gently bonked her clipboard over Rene's head as she scolded in a motherly tone full of concern before smiling.

"Now I'm sure you most be wondering why they were so hostile towards you just for wanting to meet our leader, right?"

"Quite a few? As in who?" Rene asked, eyes following the doctor's movement as she bristled. Aethon said that there wasn't any of her blood there, but you could never be too sure. However, her expression returned to surprise at the clipboard tapped her head. Was that...concern in the doctor's voice? She wasn't certain, but it sounded similar to Aethon a few minutes ago.

Jaziah chuckled "Don't worry, the big bad vampire queen has a different blood type than you so you don't have to worry"

She chose to drop it as Jaziah posed a question. "Yes, I would very much like to know why two people who were very clear about their intentions posed such a threat."

"Your anger towards them is understandable but do try to see it from their perspective. Our leader has alot of enemies, ones that would like nothing more than to see him covered in a pool of his own blood. As such, certain measures have been taken up to prevent or at least lower the chances of that happening. You aren't the first assassin to show up to our door claiming to want to speak to Tetsuya and while you obviously didn't have hostile intentions, those in the past did and the precedent was set"

She then placed a hand over Aethon's shoulder and gently smiled "Just as your friend here is very protective of you, so much so she'd be willing to risk her life to save you, they... no, we are also very protective of our leader. He means the world to us, we couldn't imagine going on living without him. He gave each of us a home, a place where we belong when we were all outsiders. He's not perfect, hell he drives us up the wall all the time but even so; he's our light, our sun, and most importantly, our friend"

She let go of Aethon's shoulder and then sat down on the edge of the bed as she traded glances with Renes.

"I'm not asking you to suddenly forgive them but at the very least, I want you to understand that they had no ill intentions towards you and if your willing to give them a chance, I'm sure you'll come to forgive them on your own" She finished but then scratched her cheek awkwardly, very reminiscent of her boss, with a half smile.

"Though on the matter on Evangeline, that's going to be something you guys are going to have to work on"

Rene quietly listened to the doctor's explanation before nodding ever so slightly. So he had enemies of his own; that would have be nice to know when being recruited. It would have saved her from being treated as a prospective enemy and responding in kind.

"Give them a chance you say. While I understand their reasoning, it's going to take more than that to reach forgiveness. Especially when all of this could have been cleared up if they simply CONTACTED him. He's not helpless young to be sheltered and coddled," Rene said.

"Fair enough, and both Lindsey and Sa'luk are being scolded for not doing exactly that. Though if I were to make a guess, I'd wager to say they didn't because they also secretly wished to test you on their own. It's happened before"

"Work on? She's a vampire. They've been nothing but misery for me since I've been born; before you say she saved me, that was after a) her cronies tried to make me mincemeat b) after she turned me into a punching bag c) after another vampire used me as a bounce-back body. Then she's royalty of that lot? No, there's nothing to work on." Her voice trembled with anger.

"Hm, those are all true..." Jaziah scratched her head in helplessness. It seems like the hatred this girl possessed for vampires truly did run deep. How on earth did Tetsuya think they were going to get along?

Part of Rene remained bothered by her and Esme agreeing on hating vampires and targeting them. Sure they had different reasons for reaching that point, but the fact they were in consensus left the woman cold.

"And yes I'm fully aware I'm half. Don't remind me of the part of me I hate the most."

Once again, things shifted. While Aethon could see Rene softening her stance towards Tetsuya (having yet to bring up their original reason for going to the guild) and staying, once again the subject of vampires was a stumbling block.

"Is there something the two of us could have to eat? We've been on the road for a while now," Aethon asked, attempting to change the subject.

Grateful that Aethon had changed the subject, Jaziah nodded her head.

"Of course. What kind of hosts would we be if we couldn't feed the mouths of our guests? Before that though, our leader has requested that I bring you two to him the moment that you awoke. It seems he has alot to discuss with the both of you, so please follow me" Jaziah turned around and began to step towards the door of the room and assumed the two of them would follow her out.

She turned back to Renes when she saw her struggle a bit to stand.

"Don't push yourself, your body is still quite weak after the blood transfusion. Aethon, help her walk" She requested.