*Luca*
I get off the bed with a bitter sigh and walk into the tiny dirty bathroom. While I look at my tired reflection I pull out my pills.
She did it again, lied to me. For fucks sake I have super senses here, I Can hear it in her voice so easily. Why is she doing it ? Doesn’t she love me anymore ? Am I too much ? Am I smothering her with my need ?
Another huff escapes me as I see the desperation in my pained face in the mirror. It is like she is slowly slipping away and I have no idea how to stop her.
Sometimes I feel like grabbing her and just shaking her or something to make her see that she can trust me. I love her no matter what, even with … well, even if she has a pa
*Luca*“Damn, this is rural”. Twigs laughs as we get out of the car.Just like the last time at the vampire-pigs' place, this is also in a barn that has been outfitted for the event. This is just a lot less fancy and well much older.I give the rusty metal plates on the walls a skeptical glance, several places there are holes that someone tried fixing with plastic covering.As we step inside we are met with the stench of sweat, stale beer and cigarettes, even if it seems like they tried to hide it with cheap perfume.There are piles of huge balls of straw along the edge for the audience, or what the sad collec
*Luca* Finally a medium tall and sturdy man steps into the rink and I turn towards him. We are standing for a moment, measuring each other, but nothing really happens. I turn to look at Twigs who indicates that I should just attack. “Okay”. I shrug and move towards this Torstein guy. The man has finally raised his arms up in front of his face and starts moving in a circle around me. Just hit for fucks sake so I can figure out what kind of fighter you are. But Torstein just keeps circling me, forcing me to turn too. In the end I lose patience and hit first.
*Luca*Suddenly Harold is standing in front me. With wide legs and arms crossed the man gives off a superior attitude. I tense my body, but do not make any notion to appear provoking. One thing is to play with the muscles, it is something else to start a direct confrontation. I do not want to fight with Harold in here and risk people getting hurt, however I am unsure whether the man in front of me has the same sense of responsibility."Good evening”. Harold’s gaze moves to Twigs, who instantly withdraws behind me."You are far away from London, huh ?""Tonight we are". I reply. “Yes, we heard about a good party up here. But you are not happy to let go off the money".
*Luca*Harold freezes as he meets my half-transformed yellow eyes, growling warningly. I stop and raise my upper lip slightly so that my still human teeth appear."The rule is simple”. Harold mutters bitterly. "These people must not be harmed. They are my friends, and I'll break your neck if you as much as think of touching one of them”. He points with an annoyingly arrogant index finger towards me. “And no matter how many beatings you get, you remain yourself. If there comes as much asa canine forward, then you have lost, and I rip your head off. Are you following me ?""What makes you think you can rip my head off ?""Do
Chapter 12*Luca*"So this is your place ?" I catch up with Harold in front of a farmhouse.He had to assure Twigs that everything was in order before I left, despite the fact that I am actually not quite sure. It had helped, however, on the persuasion, as two ladies had tailed past us, and Twigs, like the Dario he is, sneaked after them.“Yes, but unfortunately I am not as good at being a farmer as I thought. I have had to supplement with fishing, and then there is no one to look after the fields or the house”. Harold laughs. "I'll just find you a towel”. He shows me out on a small toilet in the hallway and disappears upstairs."Damn !
*Luca*The alcohol seems to put a light anesthetic on me. Finally, I am able to escape the constant gnawing of unrest that always lays below the surface. The fear that something will happen to Soleil. I can not really do anything from here anyway, so for a single night I might as well forget my miserable life and drink myself into oblivion."Where did the booze go ?" I aske. "I'll pick up the first round”."Isn't there a place where we can be more ourselves ?" Twigs winks at the blonde after we have poured a few drinks inboard.It seems that the blonde is just as keen on privacy, because she nods and leads us down behind where the big balls o
*Luca*While we are crossing the courtyard the wind changes and the fog starts disapparating from my brain. Most of Michala's scent is out of my nose and when I reach for the handle I am clear enough to hesitate.I turn to apologise and send her off, but she basically jumps me, throwing herself around my neck and we tumble into the hallway. In here there is no wind to blow away that scent and her intense aroma is pulsating right into my face. The Wolf goes crazy and I lose all control of myself.Next I know we are in an ice cold room. Even I feel the difference in the temperature.“I can’t do anything in this cold”. Michala pulls away from me, laughing softly.
Chapter 15*Soleil*My arm falls down limp and the phone hits the floor with a hollow sound. My legs are threatening to collapse beneath me, so I sit heavily on the bed.Lefu’s voice had been as cold as dry ice. There was no seduction in it or dark humour. He was deadly serious. He was coming for me, not to turn me, but to kill.In a full on panic attack I had called Luca. He has been involved in starting all this. I didn’t think so, I just instinctively went to the one who could protect me. Too late I realised I had no story to tell him. It went all wrong and now Luca hates me too.I had tried to protect him. I see no reason to tell him
*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