*Gudrun*
My heart is in my throat as the huge wolf lifts me off his back in shelter behind a heap of rock.
I watch, horrified as Martin continues in long jumps towards the other hamram. They thunder into each other furiously, and I take it upon myself to worry about whether he will get hurt.
The fight looks deadly as they rip and beat at each other, so tufts of fur and splashes of blood flies around them. It looks like Luca is trying to get rid of Martin and constantly searching towards a specific goal. I only now discover the bundle on the grounds, a cloak, which lays completely still in the grass.
Soleil ! Instantly, I am torn back to reality. What was I thinking ? That's what t
*Soleil*I forget all about my anger when I see Luca lying lifeless in the grass. His eyes are closed, he is barely breathing and does not react when I shake him.“No, oh, no ! What have I done ?"I try to lift his head, but my hands slips in the fur, and I can not get hold due to all the sticky blood,he is smeared into.“Luca, can you hear me ? I'm laying my hands on you now. It should be okay, let me help you heal”.I close my eyes and begin to sing the healing song that Gudrun had taught me after my own fatal encounter with the hamram in the house.
*Gudrun*"It's going to be hard to top what you exposed me to". Martin stops in the courtyard as we arrive back at the desolate farm, and blinks down at me. "Dinner and a movie ?""A simple thank you is good enough for me”. I blush and look away."Well, thank you, then".His gaze scrutinizes mine and I get a clear sense that he knows exactly what I am feeling. A wave of the inappropriate unspokenness he had shown me at the imaginary lake makes me gasp, which only makes his mouth stretch in a larger grin. Intolerable!"We'd better get going”. I flee over to her car “Would you please explain the problem to
*Gudrun*It has gradually become dark as we roll into the courtyard in front of the hut. Soleil is about to step out, but I stop her."What do we say to them ?""What do you want to say ?""We tried to talk to the Pugh boys, but we had a falling out. They ended up in a fight and we had to save them ?”"It's okay, Gudrun. It is my fault. I will telI them that I attacked Luca and Martin stopped us. We patched them up and no more than that”."Precisely. There is no more than that. It may be that the runes tell of an alliance between them and us, bu
*Gudrun*I welcome the surroundings when we go out in the evening to another out sitting on the sejdhjal.Finally, I can get a respite from my confused thoughts and just enjoy the cohesion.The winter cold has begun to whisper between the trees as far north as we are, and we agree not to sing too long with nature."Our kin will forgive us". Siri chuckles. "My old bones can no longer bear it”."Yes, we are some fragile meat suits". Soleil concludes."Meatsuits "? Martha looks up from the fire. 
*Gudrun*I turn hesitantly, ready to go. Suddenly I feel a cold breath on my neck. I turn around and see the huge body rise to its full height in front of me. He holds a paw out to me, and with a strained snarl he pulls the wolf's features back. He does not manage to fully transform before I, driven by an impulse I can not control, throws myself around his neck and presses my lips against his.He freezes and pulls his face back."I ... hurt you". His dark voice rumbles. He narrows his eyes, and when he opens them again, the last remnant of the wolf is driven away. "I'm talking like a caveman"."Martin, you're a caveman". I laugh. My fingers curiously follow the powerful jaw line.
*Lefu*They have been holding me captive at Matelli's winery for over a week now, and I have begun to think they will keep me here forever. That my punishment will be to live on bagged blood until the earth goes down. I am just about ready to prefer thefinal death rather than sucking more of that plastic shit.A suffocating smell of übervampire hits my nose and I make a face in disgust.Without any kind of polite knock, the door is opened shortly after.“Come to hover ?” I ask.“Enzo has told me about your threat.
*Lefu*I am led into a large throne room and the doors are closed behind me.The castle is officially a museum, but inside the historical exhibitions is the Matelli clan's headquarters. It is here, I am to retire when my age no longer matches my appearance. In the past, we could move to a new land immediately and take over the place from one of the others. But now it is impossible not to get ones picture in one or other media, so you have to retreat here, and get an anonymous identity until you can safely appear on the surface again somewhere else in the world.I am sorry to have to leave my clubs, but Celine will find someone among the royals who are worthy enough to take them over. She has taken over more and more lately and is accountable for part
*Luca* "Good morning”. I stop when hearing Martin's overly playful tone of voice. "Morning ? It's dinner now". I mumble. “Why are you in such an annoyingly good mood ?" "I had a good long run last night". Martin finds a mug with a lot of coffee spots. "Where is the little nerd ?” "Somewhere outside with Linus". I stare at my uncle, who takes a sip of his coffee. When did I last see him drinking coffee ? "How did it go with him last night ?" “Same as yesterday. He was about to sm
*Soleil* "Oh! I never thought we would get away from Scotland”. I kick off my shoes and throw the backpack on the floor. "It was getting cramped up there”. "We're getting ok at it actually”. Luca closes the door to the small apartment and slams the lock. "We handed out some serious ass kicking” I huff. "Yes, we could win every time if you did not try to decide it all”. "You can just accept that I'm always right”. He grins. "I do when you realize that it's not about being right, but about what works !" I star defiantly up at him, but surrender as he pulls me into him. "I'm just happy you came back”. He bends down and kisses me. "So am I". The butterflies flutter joyfully inside me, and I pull him down in a deeper kiss. I twist my fingers into his tousled mocha brown hair and indulge in the feel of his lips and exploratory tongue. “Well, what do you say ? English or history ?” He withdraws and deftly avoids my aggrieved gaze. "Seriously ? You want us to read our hom
*Narrator* “Magnificent !” The lord of the wind's eyes shone with obvious joy. “I could not have done thatbetter myself”. "You were entrusted to bestow on this man your strength, and now this !" The lady of the earth thrust her arm out against a settlement, engulfed in flames. "We were just letting out a little smoke". The lord of the fire grumbled. "We just happened to realise that If humans do not gather as a people, then they will never overcome the brood and not at all the queen”. “It might very well be right. But this is not the solution”. She sighed heavily. “They were meant to live happily, not to be subjected to more tyranny”. A small lake began to trickle up from the ground beneath them and manifested itself in a figure like the other three. "It's over”. The lady of the water said. “There is no hope anymore. Tonight they will gather, and your kinship will be wiped out”. "Oh, I can not get air". The lord of the wind sobbed with laughter. "Very funny !" Snarled the fir
*Tjalfe* The villagers have never seen Hrazgouls so close before. Only a few, fleeting glimpses have been had. They always come after the Bakorshas have finished emptying their prey of blood, to eat the remains. In the morning, when the residents venture out into the daylight, there are only pieces of clothing, shattered bones and stinking piles of entrails left in rust-red stains on the ground. When one of them has tried to escape over the mountains, the remaining ones do not even get to see the Bakorshaer’s servants before the death cry of the fugitive resounds across the valley. Now they come in between the houses. One being more abominable than the next. Giant beasts with luminous, yellow eyes, whose long gaps flashes with large serrated rows of teeth. Their upright bodies were covered with dense coarse fur, while the broad shoulders and long, bulging arms end up in a paw-like hand so large that it could effortlessly crush the skull of a man. In between them comes smaller cre
*Tjalfe* Although darkness reigns behind the houses, it is easy to find the victim. The child’s screams drive Saren forward, and the fire blazes furiously in his hand. He finds the child just as life leaves the body. Like a breastfeeding infant it lays the arms of a Bakorsha, whose teeth sit deeply buried in the child’s thighs. With an insane scream, Saren sends a long beam of fire towards the monster. The heat is so high that it instantly sets both the Bakorsha and the child corpse on fire. When the last rays leave Sarens hand, both fall on the ground, charred and annihilated. The embers reveal the next victim and her assailants. It is the child's mother who lays helplessly on the firewood block while one of the dark ones brutally mates her and rips her flesh to blood with its dirty nails. Three others are biting into her arms and neck, where they greedily empties her of blood. Saren raises his hands to obliterate the creeps and free the woman from her afflictions, but nothing h
*Tjalfe* Malicious laughter and agitated voices intrudes in the dark, first from the west, but gradually the sounds spread until they surround the whole village. Bringing promises of carnage and death. The people flee back out of their houses, and all search for the relative safety of the fire. Quickly they get their torches lit and turn front towards the enemy, who is still hiding in the shelter of the darkness. Only now do they become aware thatthat their medicine man stands among them without a torch. The fear of Bakorsha had for a moment made them forget the new danger that had manifested itself in their midst, but then the burning house begin to give in to the ravaging of the flames, and it seems to dawn on them what they had witnessed as they scouted out the windows. Those closest to the medicine man hurried awayfrom him. This is a mistake and part of me wants to warn them, but it is too late anyway, and a shadow flies past and grabs one of the men. His howl is drowned
*Tjalfe* I am watching from my spot inside the storm, watching as things unfold below me. The people look up at the storm, which suddenly hangs over their heads. Panic and confusion arises in the village. Everyone let go of what they have in their hands and run into the middle of the square to seek shelter around the bonfire. Humans are no longer one, they have been divided by fear, and everyone care only to keep himself and his offspring alive. Everyone pushes and hustles to get closest to the fireplace andfarthest from the edge of the circle, for now that the sun's rays are hidden behind the heavy slate-gray clouds the Bakorshas will arrive prematurely. In the middle of the village a large bonfire is burning, and torches have been laid nearby, so they can be quickly ignited. The people has learned that the Bakorshas are not enthusiastic about fire, and that it sometimes happen that the sharp-toothed monsters will abandon the attack and instead throw themselves at another vict
*Tjalfe* The valley is a beautiful, small oasis between the high mountains, which in its time had attracted the inhabitants. They had lived in peace and perfect harmony. The mountains had shielded them from the worst winds, so the crops were diverse and the people of the city had never experienced distress. The only entrance to the village is an opening to the west where the surrounding mountains remain broken by a narrow passage. The view over the pass makes it possible to detect travelers coming from distant parts of the continent in good time, and show them hospitality. No one knew of anything but tolerance and no one dreamed that travelers could come up with anything but peace. It ended when the dark ones came. From then on, the valley became a prison for the people. During the day they were trapped, and at night they were harvested like grapes on stalks. There was no way out off there, all passable roads were blocked by Hrazgouls, the servants. Many had tried to flee, but eac
*Lefu* A tear rolls down my cheek. "Goodbye, Katje". I whisper softly. "I swear your death will be avenged”. "Now you see what they are capable of”. Strano puts his hands in the pockets of his night-black Armani jacket. "It is only the beginning”. I hiss angrily at him. "How can you choose them over your own ?" "You still do not understand, do you ?" Strano rolls his eyes. “They would not be here if it were not for you. Remember that”. “You knew it all from the start, right ? That there were several dogs and that I knew about them. That's why you did not kill me right away when you came up here and picked me up. That’s the truth right ?" I can’t help but seek assurance that I am right. He gives a small sigh. “I saw an opportunity and I took it. When the girls sacrificed Elisabeth, I could not prove that they were involved. I bet you would throw in the dogs as bait if you got the chance, and that Lyndsey would bite”. "What about her ?" I nodded down toward the figure with the
*Luca* My gaze is fixed as I step forward towards Harry. The dark blonde ulfhedin might be the pack leader, but this is my prey, and I do not shy away from the warning snarl of the alpha. Harry must have come to the same conclusion, for he goes silent and withdraws. I stop in front of the charred statue. My nails slide down the rough surface. Although the texture feels like charred wood, the shell is massive. I withdraw my arm and fire. The charred crust cracks, and I have to strike through once more to penetrate into the goal. When the shell breaks, a rain of coagulated blood sprays over me. I stick my paw into the evil bitch, find what I am looking for, and pull hard. The heart is still pumping weakly as I hold it up in front of the statue. I growl triumphantly and squeezeit in my powerful fist. The heart stops beating, and the red flesh-filled tissue gives way and explodes in a cloud of dust. It is over. "What do we do now ?" Soleil's cousin stands in front of the grotesqu