Chapter 1

Miaka’s P.O.V

I came out of the shadows provided by the alleyway, but I didn’t let down the cloak of darkness that surrounded me. To the naked eye I’d look like a shadow amongst shadows, a blind spot. The darkness was my friend, but I’ve yet to perfect this technique. It drains energy if used for too long, not a lot, but it could be my downfall if a battle went on for longer than anticipated. But tonight would be a short fight; my quarry was at a direct line of sight.

 They were carrying a huge sack with them. If it weren’t for all the blood that soaked the sack deep red and scented the air with its pungency, anyone could mistake it for a stack of potatoes, misshaped and lifeless. But it wasn’t. It had someone in it...someone immortal.

My men have been tracking these people for days now and we finally had a lead on them. This wasn’t the main base, not by a long shot, but this is where it’ll begin. These were people who captured immortals and experimented on them, a sick bunch of lousy mortals! Humans!

 I couldn’t hate them more than I did now. Those filthy people hurt and killed those under my protection just for the fun of it. They were trying to discover a way to get rid of us, to rid the world of our ‘infection’. Fools didn’t know that there were so many living among them that if a war broke out, the entire human population could be wiped out. The Dark Council were still debating about the possibility, and I, as the head of the Council, was trying to avoid a mass cleansing at all rates. The innocent ones didn’t need to be punished for the foolishness of some of their kind. And I’ve seen enough good to know that they existed.

They were clever, this lot. I have to agree with that. What better way to hide their transgressions than it plain sight. On the surface, the factory was a meat possessing farm and a cold storage unit, but inside it acted as a laboratory and storage facility for younger or weaker immortals that had been easy prey. But my men had been noticing suspicious activity here lately and it didn’t take much time for them to figure out exactly what was wrong.

The human’s didn’t notice me as I followed them. Unlike us, they had to rest at night, but although they had a rotation of guard to watch over their subjects, they were still wary at night. Attacking at dawn would be the appropriate time as there is a breach in their security when the morning guards replace the night guards. I followed them soundlessly, my boots didn’t make a single noise as I walked down the pebbled street, but I could still hear them following behind me silently, waiting for my command. My faithful pets, a gift from my dad.

Not everyone could see these creatures, not until they were about to die within the next few moments. I’d started noticing them ever since I was little. They liked to follow me around. Sometimes they disappeared but they were always nearby whenever I needed them.

The men entered the factory with the bloodied sack and I followed behind them before the doors were closed, ordering only some of my pets to come with me while the others waited outside in case we have an escapee. What I saw inside made my stomach twist and lungs burn in need of air.

 Cages; rows of them were lined in all sides of the huge space. And they lay in the open as if they knew no one will find them. The most horrifying of all was that they were all chained to the wall and the stench of chloroform was so high in the air, that it burned my lungs. That was when I noticed that the immortals were not just inhaling them, but it was running through their bloodstream in huge amounts, which was the only way chloroform worked on immortals, or the weakest of our race. Even pets weren’t chained with such cruelty. Collars with metal spikes that pierced the delicate skin of their neck, hands and legs shackled with similar spikes, blood pouring out freely from open wounds and some wounds were even infected as the stench of blood and rot lay heavy in the air. There were mostly females, all naked and helpless and the males were in no better condition. The presence of older wounds showed signs of further torture, even rape.

 The thought enraged me so much that a harsh growl left my mouth, alerting everyone at once. Instantly the place came to buzzing motion.  The human guards stood alert and gathered around in the centre of the huge warehouse, guns in their hand, which, I was quite certain, didn’t contain normal bullets. All the lights were turned on, taking the veil of darkness away from me. But it didn’t matter; no one will be left alive to report how I looked, back to their HQ. They’ve had their fun, now it was my turn.

 I strode towards the middle of the room and stopped just in front of the armed guards, letting them surround me, making them believe they had me. I could see the hunger in their eyes as soon as they saw my face; I let them see the beauty before I unleashed the horror. They were carrying guns with silver bullets as well as iron and other poisonous metals, the combined scents making it difficult for me to identify them all. It was a shame that they didn’t know that nothing would work on me. My pets, the hell hounds, were invisible to human eyes because they were their worst nightmare personified and it gave me the upper hand. They were restless, already growling silently with the skin of their muzzle pulled back over their sharp glistening teeth. The immortals, those who were awake sat in their cages, mouth agape and fear and relief evident in their eyes, while the other slumped in their unconsciousness. Even the humans were getting scared from the power I was emitting.

 “Who are you? State your purpose,” one of the humans asked in a brave voice, but his insides were anything but. His fear coated the air heavily with its stench.

“My name is Miaka. Any you lovely people...are about to die” I smirked, letting my words sink in.

 The entrance door to the factory was shredded to pieces an instant later as the hounds came running in. It was a good thing that only very few things had the power to kill them and they were the rarest creatures in all of the dimensions. I watched them ripping every human in the house to shreds. The humans didn’t even know what were attacking them as they died a merciless death, some tried to fire their guns but to no avail, they ended up firing at their comrades instead.

 A movement at a far corner caught my eyes and I turned to see a man in a white lab coat trying to run away without being noticed. A hound followed my gaze and ran after him.

 “Let him live. He’ll come in handy,” I ordered the hound as it pinned the man to the ground and was getting ready to rip his head off. He stopped and sniffed the man, then pulled back its muzzle and growled ferociously in his face, leaving him unconscious with fear. Within minutes everyone in the house was dead, except for the immortals in their cages. But everyone was now awake and afraid, unsure if I was a friend or a foe. I was neither.

 I took my phone out of my jeans pocket and called Rain, my knight. She picked up on the second ring.    

 “Rescue trucks are ready, awaiting command, Your Highness” Rain said at once.

 “Bring them forward” I ordered.

Of course I hadn’t come alone. I knew what went on around here so I had brought backup with me so that the immortal prisoners could be transferred and given first aid on their way to the recovery facilities.

 The truck arrived within a few minutes, since I had ordered Rain and a few of my trusted guards to stay near the highway, in case someone from the human team got out alive but the situation was under control. The prisoners were freed and my men began to shift them into the truck, wrapping them in warm blankets and providing water if needed. They would be taken to a healing facility immediately where they’d be looked after and treated until they were healthy and ready to head back to their old lives.

 I looked around at the mess my pets have created and decided to burn down the factory once all the prisoners were set free. The scientist would be taken to the dungeons and questioned till he answers and I doubt the factory owner would make any complaints. As far as our research went, the man had no clue as to what was going on in his factory...well either that or he was getting his pockets heavy by these goons.

Well, too bad. This experiment was about to end soon. Because once I set my mind on something, I was not letting go until I had reached the bottom of things. And these human researchers were going to learn the hard way exactly what they have messed with.