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Lucas had been on his way back from Lillith's study when the first screams ripped through the air. He thought it was just the apprentices getting into fights with each other again, but there was something laced in with the screams that made his blood run cold. It was the distinct smell of a freshly turned grave and fresh blood.

He knew instantly what was happening and broke off at a dead sprint towards the barracks, where he had first heard the screams coming from. He rounded the corner and stopped at the doorway to a sight that made him want to vomit.

There was blood everywhere, staining the bed sheets and walls as if it were a disease, making it a macabre representation of splatter art. There were bodies littered all across the room, some ripped in half, some missing limbs, and still more as pale as ghosts, their eyes wide in horror and agony. And in the center of all of this death and blood stood a single child, her hair black with single strands of silver dashing through it, like shooting stars on a pitch black night. There was blood on her pale, slender fingers and the front of her beautiful dress, making her look as if she had gotten into a big bucket of jam.

"You smell, lycanthrope." She whispered, her voice easily projecting to him from where she stood. She looked up and fixed her wide, hunger filled copper eyes on his heart, her lips parted slightly as she sucked in another breath. He flinched slightly and took a step towards her, feeling his more wolfish tendencies taking hold of him.

"And what would I smell like, blood-sucker?" He growled quietly, feeling his arms and hands tingling slightly with the strength of his want to kill her. A smirk of revulsion lit up her face and she sprinted gracefully over to him faster than he could blink and launched into his chest, sending him sprawling to the ground. He used her momentum against her and threw her over his head into the wall, but she landed on her feet and clung there like a beautiful black widow. He jumped to his feet and whirled to look at her, backing up a couple of steps into the barracks to get more room to maneuver.

"You smell like her." She spat disgustedly. She bared her fangs and hissed loudly before lunging at him again. This time he was ready for her. He put his weight on the balls of his feet and caught her in his arms before slamming her to the ground neck first, her arms and legs flailing wildly in an attempt to strike him. He kneeled on her chest and pulled a wicked looking curved hunting knife from the disguised sheath on his pants.

"You have three seconds to start talking, leech, else I'll kill you where you lay." He snarled, keeping her pinned beneath him with the knife pressed against her jugular. She snarled defiantly and, much to his surprise, grabbed his hand and slit her own throat, the consecrated metal and infused holy water in the blade killing her instantly and leaving him kneeling in a pile of ashes. He stood up from the deceased vampire and took off down the hall towards the containment chamber, wondering what this vampire would want with Yunalesca.

As he got closer to the containment chambers, he heard more and more sounds of fighting echoing back down the halls that connected with it, the smells of blood and ashes mixing together to make him almost gag. He could feel the anguish of his pack mates and yearned to help them, but his duty as a hunter came first, his pack responsibilities second. But there was something else that made him go to the containment chambers, something that made him feel conflicted. He couldn't put his hand on it, but he felt as if he had to go there.

He heard a loud boom and shook the thoughts from his mind. He let the wolf inside him come tearing out and dropped to all fours before the change started taking hold of him, jet black fur sprouting everywhere on his body and his face elongating into a muzzle complete with razor sharp teeth. His clothes exploded out from him as soon as the new bulk of his wolf self set in and he loosed a loud roar from his throat as he rounded the corner, jumping onto the wall to give him an extra burst of speed as he pushed off.

He bounded over to the empty doorway that led to the containment chambers and saw that the cage Yunalesca had been in was completely destroyed, the bars scattered all over the place and looking as if something had melted them apart. He also noticed a pile of ashes at the foot of the pedestal and knew instinctively that it wasn't her. He snuffled along the ground for a second and caught her scent going off to the left with a quiet bark. He lifted his head and ran off after her, the strange scent of roses and honey in his nose.

He followed the trail to the vault and stopped when he saw the two dead sentries at its gaping entrance. Even though they were his comrades-in-arms, he couldn't help but crack a wolfish grin. Now that she had killed someone, she was no longer under the protection of the hunters and could be harmed. He stalked over to the vault doors and peered inside to find two piles of ashes with a spear lying in between them. He walked cautiously to it and nudged it with his nose to find the same rose and honey scent on it.

That doesn't make sense. Why would she kill her own kind? It would be as if I done such a thing with one of my packmates... He thought as he cocked his head to the side, trying to think of what reasons would bring about such a hatred towards one's own race. He shook his head to clear these troubling thoughts from it and started off down the path she had taken, bounding down it towards the sparring area that lay before the inner sanctum where their leader, Mistress Silver, conducted business and led their particular clan of hunters.

He ran out onto the sparring ground and was shocked at what he found. There were bodies everywhere, not all of which where werewolf. There were more than a few dead sprites and faeries clad in their traditional fighting armor as well as a few elves in their customary warfare attire, but theirs was colored a black that didn't seem to match the near angelic perfection of their features.

He picked through the piles of ash and dead bodies to find that most of his packmates were not only alive, but rendered only unconscious, despite the massive amounts of blood all over their bodies. He found his second, a tawny furred wolf named Amy, huddled in a ball and whimpering in her sleep, her thoughts echoing things about a demon with a sword and a benevolent soul who healed her.

If Yunalesca did do this... then why go through the trouble of healing her enemies while killing those who are supposedly rescuing her? It doesn't make any sense... He thought. He lopped through the carnage and quickly made it to the doors that led to the inner sanctum to find that they had already been forced open by something. He looked at the scorch marks on the doors and sniffed them hesitantly to find that they held a small amount of Yunalesca's scent on them, leaving him to wonder what she wanted in the rooms beyond them.

He jogged into the entrance hall of the inner sanctum and stopped to get her trail again. He was having a hard time concentrating thanks to the thoughts swirling around in his head, all of which were about her. He found he couldn't stop thinking about her and why she was acting so friendly towards his kind, when she should be killing them whenever she saw them. He picked up her scent again as it went towards Mistress Silver's living quarters and felt his blood run cold for the second time that night.

He took off at a quick sprint, flying around the corners until he slid to a stop at the doors that led to her rooms. Infront of him, with a lightly blood coated katanna in her hand, was Yunalesca. Her back was to him and he could see her shoulders trembling slightly, as if she were crying. He padded closer with a fierce snarl and he watched her stiffen considerably before she turned her head to look at him, her eyes rimmed with blood that flowed down her cheeks like tears.

"Oh, you showed up, puppy? I guess I should've known you would have followed me if you saw the broken cage." She said with a grin before wiping her eyes on the back of her hand. She turned her back to him and murmured something under her breath before putting her free hand against the door's gilded surface. They flashed for a second and there was an audible series of clicks as the locks broke and the doors flung themselves open for them, giving them a good view of the meditation garden that occupied the majority of the room. She took a few steps forward and heard a menacing growl from behind her. She turned her head to look at him again and couldn't help but smile as she waved him off. He barked angrily and she hesitated before shrugging her shoulders.

"Come if you want, but don't expect me to protect you if things go wrong." She replied. She walked off towards Mistress Silver's study and let the bloody edge of her sword drag along the ground, the blood soaking into the sand beneath her boots, leaving a crimson trail behind her. He stared confusedly after her and found himself drawn to her sinuous build, her hips swaying ever so slightly and her tail following suit, as if beckoning him after her.

Concentrate you idiot! It's how her kind are, they seduce you and then kill you. You know that! He growled mentally. He forced himself to look away from her and walked after her, inwardly fuming for allowing himself to be taken by her undead beauty.

They walked to the study in relative silence, Lucas's claws clicking on the wooded floor as well as Yunalesca's softly thudding boots. He kept a good distance behind her incase she tried to make a run for it, but she seemed to be taking heavy steps, as if something was weighing her down. He heard her sob more than once and he didn't know whether to laugh or to feel sorry for her. When they reached the study's doors, she put a hand to her heart and let out a single, body-raking sob that sounded like she was gagging.

"I can't do it..." She whimpered, more to herself than to him. "I can't bring myself to kill him." She dropped her sword to the ground with a clatter and sank to the floor with it, her arms wrapped around her stomach as she cried silently to herself, blood flowing down her cheeks like some martyred priestess. He stared at her in mixed confusion and wonder before remembering what he had to do. He walked stiffly past her and nudged the door open with his shoulder, growling slightly at its weight as it grated against the ground and ceiling loudly.

When it was open wide enough to let him in easily, he walked into the room and saw a sight he didn't think would ever happen.

Lamount was holding Lillith in his hand by her throat, a broadsword in his free hand that was already splashed in places with blood. She looked as if she were already dead, pale skin and blood soaking her lips as she dragged down another breath, the effort causing her body to arch slightly. Her eyes slid over to him for a split second and she gave him a knowing smile, the motion stretching her face slightly and giving it a strange, almost serene essence.

"You aren't as strong as you once were, Silent Moth." Lamount muttered disgustedly, a sneer on his face as he brought the sword to her stomach before plunging it into her quickly, piercing clear through her body up to the hilt and letting her fall against his shoulder. She coughed once and muttered something that Lucas couldn't hear before he let her fall off her blade to the ground, licking her blood off the blade with obvious relish.

Lucas felt as if his entire way of life had shattered before his very eyes and felt nothing for a few moments before a hate so black and deep that it seemed to consume everything inside him flared to life in his chest, bringing strength flooding through his limbs and giving him his voice back. He let loose a feral snarl that reached Yunalesca and made her look up from the ground to watch him barrel towards him with the strength of a tank, eye blazing with a desire to rip him to shreds and burn every last fleck of ash till there wasn't a trace of him left. He launched at him and was swatted out of the air by the blunt side of the massive sword with such force that he was sent flying nearly through the wall he hit, the impact strong enough to knock the wind out of him and shatter several ribs in the process.

"Didn't she even teach you of fighting in a blind rage?" Lamount scolded lightly as he stared at the huddled wolf against the wall, contempt flickering in his eyes. He walked slowly over to the growling wolf, still licking on the blade as if it were an ice cream cone and made a show of it to make Lucas snarl threateningly. "I'd forgotten how much I enjoyed Lillith's blood. It brings me back to when I was a hunter."

Both Lucas and Yunalesca stiffened in surprise when they heard that. He was a hunter? They thought in unison. He caught the confused look on his face and laughed as he gave a savage kick to Lucas's ribs, making him whimper in pain and spit up some blood.

"Filthy mutt. Your kind aren't even worthy to lick my boots much less live." He snarled under his breath. He lifted his sword to end Lucas's life and braced his boot against his side so he could go through his shoulder and into his heart. "Any last words before you get skewered, mongrel?"

Lucas looked up at him wryly and spat a bit of blood onto his boot. Lamount shrugged and let the sword drop quickly. A knife sped through the air and stopped the blade from piercing his shoulder with its thin blade, an audible ring echoing through the room as they struck. He looked down at the small knife and followed its path with his eyes to find Yunalesca near the door, her hand bracing against it as she kept herself from falling to the ground.

"Leave... him alone... Lamount." She whispered, finding it difficult even to fight him by saving Lucas. He stared at her for a second before lifting his sword from his shoulder, the knife getting drawn back to her trembling hand on a thin, flexible strand of metal.

"So she wasn't lying... you are here." He murmured. She sucked down a rasping breath and avoided meeting his gaze, the mere fact that she was in the same room with him sending her heart skipping with a mixed sense of dread and elation.

"Why... Lamount? Why..." She whispered, her fingers tightening around the hilt of her sword till the flesh underneath her fur was white. He looked at her with a slightly surprised look, his eyebrow arching as if he just noticed her.

"Oh, you're still here? Well, if you must know, I'm here for something I had taken from me long ago." He replied with an air of superiority that made her feel idiotic.

"But... why kill all of these innocents?" She ventured, her voice small and timid. He smirked and leveled the blade against Lucas's throat, the sharp edge easily drawing blood from it as it rest against his Adams apple.

"You mean those like him? They aren't innocent, or have you forgotten what I taught you back in England?" He replied sharply. She stiffened and shook her head before taking a couple trembling steps forward into the room, a growing sense of determination forming in her mind. As soon as she was past the doorway, the door slammed shut behind her with a few clicks to ensure it was locked.

"Just because they aren't vampires like you and me, they don't deserve to be killed mercilessly this way." She whispered. He laughed and pointed the blade at her throat.

"So, you've become soft towards these mongrels, Yunalesca? Is that it? I thought I had taught you better than that, but, if you are protecting them, then you can die alongside them as well." He growled. She whimpered softly and brought her sword up almost half a second before his sword smashed into hers, sending her skidding back into the door with a harsh thud. He quickly followed up with a sweeping slice to lob her head off, but she caught the sword in her hand this time and pushed him away, feeling her entire left arm go slightly numb from the impact.

"What happened to the gentle Lamount I had fallen in love with?" She asked, tears of mixed pain dripping down her cheeks. He laughed insultingly and took the chance to smash his hand into her sword hand to send it flying into a wall blade first.

"That Lamount never existed... you had fallen in love with me the moment you heard my voice, so I just enjoyed the performance." He answered. He grabbed her shirtfront and threw her bodily into the wall that her sword was in, but she latched onto the handle and swung herself up onto the protruding blade and handle. She murmured the name of the healing runes on her body and sighed as the feeling came back to her arm.

"Then if he never existed," She growled, feeling the pent up hatred she had felt when she had seen Abigail bleeding erupt to the surface and smother the lingering feelings for the vampire below her. She kneeled down and dragged her claws against her blade to send a spark trailing onto them. "I won't have to hold back!"

He watched her spell out a rune in the air with her burning claws and smirked derisively. "You could never beat me and now, just because you can work a little writing with runes, you think you can beat me? You must be more naive than I thought." He held the blade lightly in his hands and jumped towards her quickly, his limbs a blur as he brought the blade crashing down onto her drawing hand, only to slam into a wall of fire that appeared out of nowhere infront of her. She laughed as he dropped to the ground and leapt back a couple of paces as the flame wall landed and ignited the wood beneath him.

"What's the matter, Lamount?" She asked, twisting the end to make it come out as a sneer. "You're running away from me? That's a first."

"No, my poor Yunalesca," He replied, walking over to Lucas and placing the point of his sword against his throat. "Just raising the stakes is all." He watched her with slight interest in his eyes as she barred her fangs.

"Take the blade from his throat, Lamount. This isn't his fight." She snarled. He grinned and pushed the tip down a little to draw a pinprick of blood onto the broadsword's tip.

"Not his fight? Haven't you been listening at all too what I've been saying? True, it may not be his fight, but I will kill him for the sole reason that he is a werewolf, nothing more." He agreed before pushing the blade a little farther into his neck, the warm, sticky blood flowing freely down his throat to pool beneath him.

"Lamount, don't." She growled, unsheathing one of her knives and looping the steel thread around her hand before holding the blade between finger and thumb. He looked up at her and barred his fangs in a dark grin.

"And what, pray tell, will you do about it, you traitorous vixen? By the time you throw that knife, he'll be dead and you're hands will be stained with his blood." He countered before letting his eyes wander over to the door. "It seems the cavalry has arrived."

She looked over to the door as well and snarled as she spotted Adam and Melissa standing in the now vacant doorway, the doors having been blown off their hinges by the excessive use of a dispelling rune. She knew how it all must look: Her standing on a wall away from the actual fighting while Lamount stood over Lucas ready to deal the death blow while their leader was lying dead in the center of the room.

Melissa looked up at her and wordlessly pointed her pistol at her head.

"And what would you like for me to do now, mistress? Kill this worthless dog?" He asked, a slight smirk on his lips as he caught the incredulous glare she shot at him.

"What the hell are you-" She started to say before she heard the click of a hammer being pulled back. She turned back and ducked underneath the bullet meant for her head.

"How dare you come in here and kill our leader? And to think Lillith said we could trust you!" Melissa cried before motioning for Adam to attack her. She smirked darkly and twirled her knife between her fingers.

"Well then, if you can believe the words that come out of this liar's mouth, then you don't deserve to call yourselves hunters." She growled. Lamount laughed and put his sword back into its sheath.

"Well put, mistress. I couldn't have said it better myself." He said with an insulting round of slow applause. She shot him a withering glare and he pretended to quail beneath it like an underling should.

"Don't you dare talk. You don't deserve the right." She snarled, unwittingly falling for the trap Lamount had set for her. Melissa snorted irritably and looked over at Adam.

"A liar, is he? Seems like you're pretty much in control of the situation, leech." She stated angrily. Yunalesca's eyes widened as she caught on to what had happened.

"No, you don't understand! He..." She trailed off as she realized how stupid she actually sounded.

"I shall leave them in your more than capable hands, mistress Yunalesca. Lillith's amulet will be waiting for you when you arrive at the castle." Lamount said with a bow before disappearing with a swirl of his cloak. Yunalesca growled and dropped down to the ground in an attempt to catch him before he left, but she was too slow. She dropped to her knees and punched the ground in anger.

"Damnit! Why did I let him get away!?" she cried angrily, smashing her fist into the ground several times before stopping and looking over at Lucas, who was still lying on the ground. She got up and took a couple of steps over to him, only to stop when a bullet shot near her foot.

"Take another step and the next one goes into your leg, leech." Melisa called out. She looked over at her angrily and continued walking, as if daring her to shoot her. And that is what she did. Melisa pulled the trigger and sent the bullet rocketing over to her, but it bounced harmlessly off the knife that had appeared from nowhere in her hand.

"Next shot you take, Melisa, will be going back into that pretty little head of yours." She growled darkly. She continued over to Lucas and shoved his shoulder gently as she kneeled next to him. "Didn't I tell you I wouldn't be protecting you if we got into a fight, idiot?" she asked as she checked on his wound. He snorted dismissively, the effort causing a little blood to flow from the wound before Yunalesca staunched the flow with a soft-spoken rune. She then rolled him over onto his back to check how many bones were broken, prodding none to gently at his sides and chest. Whenever she touched his left side, he grimaced in pain, so she figured that the worst of the injuries were there. She spoke another rune and this time her hands glowed a soft white before she placed them over the broken ribs and bruised breastbone.

A sense of calm came over Lucas and his form wavered as he started reverting to his human self, his clothes stitching back together over his flesh. She ignored this and continued with the healing, willing the bones to reknit properly and the cuts to seal right while keeping her eyes closed to keep her mind from wandering. His eyes glazed over in peace as the healing took place and he relaxed into her touch, forgetting where he was or who was doing the healing.

"You stupid puppy, you got more messed up than I thought." She whispered sternly.

"I'm sorry... but I had to avenge my fallen comrade." He replied quietly, his eyes distant as the sedative nature of the healing runes made him open up more readily than he would have before.

"Oh, so now you're apologizing to me? That's a first. A werewolf has never apologized to me before." She replied with a hint of surprise in her voice. He laughed lightly and almost caused her to mess up the reattaching of his bones.

"Well its only right to apologize, seeing as you took it upon yourself to heal my entire pack." He answered.

"I only thought it right, seeing as they hadn't done any harm to me. Not yet anyway." She replied quietly.

"Yeah... they'll probably want you dead for bringing this on them." He nodded dreamily, a laugh already bubbling in his throat. She looked down sadly at him and gave the rest of his body a once over with the healing runes before taking them away.

"There, you're all healed up, wolf." Yunalesca said. He nodded his thanks dreamily and leaned his head back before falling asleep, letting his body rest after the pounding it'd taken. She stood up and turned around to see Adam and Melissa standing near Lillith's peaceful corpse, their heads bowed in respectful silence.

This is my fault. Though not directly, I am somehow responsible. She thought before going over to the wall and put her hand to the paneling before whispering the name of the destruction rune on her arm. A small tremor went up the wall, directed at her blade, and shook it loose, sending it falling into the ground next to her with a quiet hiss. She dislodged it from the ground and placed it in its sheath before unbuckling it from her back, feeling that she shouldn't be armed when they take her away. She heard a commotion at the door and saw a massive crowd of hunters, young and old, looking in to see what had happened.

"Melissa... what happened in here?" One asked. He looked to have been in quite a few fights, as his face was covered in scars and he had a patch over his right eye. The one good eye looked from Lillith's dead body to Yunalesca and he pieced together what only his eye could see.

"The leech was used as bait, Quentin. We fell for it hook, line and sinker and now our leader's dead." She said darkly. Yunalesca could almost hear the sounds of dozens of hearts quickening and sighed as she sat down, tossing her blade over to where Lucas was sleeping so he'd find when he woke up.

All eyes were on her as she took off every holster and sheath she had on, leaving them in a pile, along with her weapons, beside her. As she did this, she couldn't help but wonder what Lamount wanted with Abigail and Lillith's amulet. I'd have to do some research on what type of amulet Lillith was wearing, but I doubt I'll get that sort of chance now. She thought wryly. She heard footsteps coming towards her and looked up to find Quentin standing infront of her with a dark look in his eyes and a sharp sword in hand.

"Get up, vampire." He growled. She sighed and obliged before looking him in the eye.

"If you want to kill me, then get it over with." She said defeatedly, feeling no real reason to fight anymore. He smirked and slammed the handle of his sword into her stomach, causing her to double over as the air rushed from her lungs. He caught her as she fell forward and lifted her onto his shoulder.

"Oh, we won't kill you just yet. The warlocks here have been dying to study a vampire for quite some time, and with you here, they might as well get their wish." He replied. Her vision swam for a couple of seconds as she brought air back into her lungs, only to cough spastically as she smelled a mixture of holy water and rosemary coming from his clothes and sword.

"Damn..." She coughed. She tried to call up one of the runes that would keep such things from effecting her, but the smell was making her head swim.

"We all know about your little specialty, leech, so I took it upon myself to try out a new concoction whipped up by the warlocks. Can't concentrate, can you?" he asked insultingly. She tried to think up a responding insult, but she couldn't. Her mind was too foggy to do much else than keep her alive. "Thought so."

Adam walked over and glared heatedly at her, but didn't say anything as he past on his way out. Melissa, on the other hand, was very verbal in her exit, using every swear word she could think of to throw her way before leaving, wiping tears from her eyes and muttering about broken trust. Quentin deemed it time to leave at that point and walked out of the study as slowly as possible, letting everyone see who it was who had brought such a travesty on them.