*Soleil*
I slip out of Lefu's arms when the clock on my cell phone rings. If I hurry with the shower, I can just make it to the last two hours.
The hot rays from the shower hit my shoulders and I sigh blissfully. When I open my eyes, I see that the water, which disappears in a small vortex in the drain, has thin streaks in a faint red color. I stare at it, as if it is running from another person, as if I am sitting and watching a movie where the camera shows the protagonist's point of view.
It makes me wonder that I feel nothing at all, neither disgust nor worry. Have I seen too much blood already ? Has the last full moon completely ruined my sense of normality ? I had enjoyed watching Casper wither, actually I really found satisfaction in it. I
*Soleil* "We waited a long time before we dared to dissolve the salt circle". Siri says. All four of us are sitting in her kitchen, preparing for the evening's outing to search for newly transformed. “I felt him all the time in his mind, like an echo, and we were unsure if he was hurt enough to make it safe to open without him fleeing or going on the attack”. She squints at Marta to let her continue. "In fact, we are not sure what it was that killed him”. Gudrun adds, as the proud witch did not make mine to continue. Marta's face is closed. I can not tell if she is angry or just focused. I will probably never learn to fully understand her.
*Gudrun* It’s a little after midnight when we turn down a dirt road, driving into the forest. Marta continues down an even smaller road that ends in a parking area. Getting out of the car we quickly grab our things and Martha leads us in between the trees to a little clearing. “No one will come here at this time of the day, and should someone do anyway I will shield us”. Siri explains to Soleil. After preparing everything Siri sits in the middle of the circle and the rest of us sit down around her. We start singing our galdr in hushed voices. Even if it’s late and we are out in the forest the nearest house is not that far away, and we are not sure how far it can be heard if we sing at full volume.
*Lefu*I sit down in the large chair behind the desk and turn the glass of single malt between my fingers. Now that I have decided how my girl's fate should unfold, there is just the matter of organizing everything.The clan council's shooter is aimed at me because of Casper, the psychopathic little gay. It is annoying to have to postpone being with her all the time. But I must not let my impatience fuck off it up. Not when I am so close. It's all just about timing.There is a gentle knock on the door."Did you take care of it ?" Natascha sticks her head in."Yes”. I mutter, still in my own thoughts.&
*Soleil*Gudrun squints at me. We dropped off Marta and Siri a while ago and were now on our way home to me.“I know what the runes say. I knew it even before we left. I just did not trust that it was true, what I saw”. Gudrun begins cautiously."What did you see then ?" I keep looking out at the dark road and the white streaks that whiz out of nothing.“Them and us. I do not know why the higher powers want it, but we need to consider a ceasefire, or perhaps even an alliance. I'm in doubt about what Hagl wants to say, because I do not see how an alliance can restore balance. It will only be restored if all the hamrams are wiped out, as the curse says". Gudrun goes quiet.
*Soleil*"I could get used to this”. He puts a hand on my cheek and strokes my hair behind my ear. "I love you”.A hiss flies through me and I stare speechless at him."I ... think I feel the same way". I hear myself say."Yes ?" He breathes a sigh of relief and smiles crookedly. "I was afraid it was too fast. But I am completely and utterly in love with you".His gaze is so full of passion that my body is immediately set on fire."Show me that”. I whisper.He gently parts m
*Soleil*The alarm in my mobile rings. I turn it off immediately and sit up. Lefu turns and reaches out for me."I'm buying that fucking school so I can decide when you graduate". He mutters."You decided that just now ? But until you get it through, I better get in the shower and get a move on”.“Is it OK for me to just sleep in ? I had hot sex with a goddess last night, so I'm a little tired”. His eyes blink against the light."It must have been hard". I laugh and get up.“Mmm. But then you should see how tired she is” He smiles ch
*Luca*I am awakened by something rustling in the bushes outside. I jump to my feet and is by the door in a flash. I quickly sniff the air and breathe out with relief when a well known scent hits me. It’s when I smell nothing it is dangerous.That’s how it had been last night when the branch snappes outside. I had not been able to catch the scent of any animal that could be the reason for the sound. That is how I knew they had come.“I thought Martin would come get us”.“Can’t I come get my boys ?” An older version of me shows up in the door. “Martin won’t be back before later”.
*Luca* And now I am standing here. I like this town to be honest. It is nice here, and it feels almost like being home, being here again. I have missed it, no doubt, I realised when I met Twigs, I miss my friends from there, but only my friends. This town has something special. I walk down to the small boat harbour and the promenade by the lake. The last time I was here I had tried to take my own life. I guess I kinda am today too, I just don’y have to do it myself. What am I going to say ? ‘Hi I just happened to come by, do you want to have a cup of coffee ? I was thinking if you maybe would like to not try and kill us all the time. No ? Oh well it was worth a try… see you at t
*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