Marina’s eyes shot wide open. She felt a dark presence within her that was much stronger than any other the Guardians had faced before. And what made Marina even more scared was this presence was undoubtedly her sister.
“Marina, what’s wrong?” Cass asked, a worried look on her face. Marina almost started to shiver. Marina glanced at Caitlin, who seemed to also be experiencing this presence.
“I can feel a great evil here. It’s much stronger than anything we’ve faced before.” Marina said. “I know this because it’s interfering with life itself.”
“Even more so, light is retreating from it.” Caitlin said. Marina closed her eyes and took a breath.
“Looks like my search has ended.” She said quietly. Cass was about to ask what search when growls could be heard in the street. Anna growled herself.
“When will these stupid things learn they can’t defeat us?!” Anna cried.
“They know they can’t defeat us.” Caitlin said. “They’re waiting for whatever is controlling them to arrive. And I believe that thing has arrived.” With a deep sigh, the Guardians went out to once again fight the werewolves and zombies that prowled the night. Little did they know that they were in over their heads.
In the graveyard, Anne stood. Zombie after zombie rose from its grave. She looked around with eyes that weren’t only just hers now, but Ceres’ as well. However, the outward appearance was Anne just so that the two embodied Guardians could play with the other Guardians before killing them all.
It is true that one cannot kill their opposite, but Caitlin was not Ceres’ opposite, therefore Ceres could kill Caitlin. Of course, this would mean Anne’s death, but by the time the Light Guardian would die, Anne would all ready be gone and Ceres would be the one in complete control.
Suddenly, Anne’s eyes flashed to the side. She threw out her arm, sending tendrils of dark energy out at whatever was out there. When the dust cleared, two female vampires stood there they walked up to Anne and bowed.
“We have,” One said.
“Been waiting,” Said the other.
“For you.” They both said.
With the setting of the sun, he could again move freely, no longer needing to hold back as he traveled. The night infused him with his full strength yet made him sad deep inside, for he knew what he must do tonight that he has done every night for these past long centuries. He must fight in order to live and he vowed to protect those who cannot protect themselves. He devoted himself to exterminating vampires.
Indeed, he did kill his own kind, but he was not a full-blooded vampire. He was half-vampire, half-human. He struggled to control his vampiric side. He cursed himself and his existence. He gazed up at the bleak dark sky. Stars only began to dot it. He knew of the darkness that had awakened and knew he must do his part to put it to an end. However, he could not ignore that that siren’s voice was calling him to her side to fight for her. After all, even a half-vampire is still a vampire.
He started up his motorcycle again, ready to continue on. He was roughly an hour from where he felt the power coming from. He sped off down the deserted road, his black trench coat and long hair flapping in the wind. He wore a black shirt and black leather pants, along with black army boots. At his waist rode a weapon few people carried these days. It was a two-handed long sword. His dark eyes narrowed slightly. He knew he must hurry. Time was running out and there was nothing he could do in order to stop that.
This time, the Guardians would follow the stream of nightchildren to find out if they could find their source. Caitlin and Marina grew even more uneasy as they neared the graveyard. Cassandra even started to get edgy. She was getting angry at herself for it, too. After all, a graveyard should be welcome ground for her, the Death Guardian. However, this graveyard proved to not want to listen to her. More over, voices were echoing through the Halls of the Dead and what they told gave Cassandra the chills.
Little by little, the other Guardians began to grow uneasy. Then, just ahead of them, stood the gate to the graveyard. Marina and Caitlin did not want to go in there, for they knew what was on the other side. This would not be a pleasant time here.
A cold feeling fell upon Marina and Caitlin and nestled within their hearts. Not only was it cold, but it was black and dripped with evil. The two Guardians looked at each other, exchanging worried looks. Marina swallowed past a lump in her throat and looked at the gate. Then a voice entered her mind.
It has been so very long, my sister. Please, bring your friends to me, I’m sure you all will love to see me again. The voice was cold and bitter. More over, it radiated evil incarnate. Marina froze, her eyes wide with unmistakable fear. Cassandra was the first to notice. She put a hand on Marina’s shoulder.
“What is it?” She asked gently, yet sternly. She wanted to know what was bothering Marina. The other Guardians stopped and looked at the two. Marina’s eyes flickered to Caitlin’s, exchanging their thoughts in a mere glance. Marina looked up into Cassandra’s eyes and took a breath.
“This evil that has awakened, I know who it is.” Marina’s voice caught on her next words. She took another breath and tried again. “It’s Anne.” Everyone froze and fell silent.
“How do you know?” Liesl demanded, out of the rage that still lingered inside her for Anne’s sudden departure those long centuries ago. Marina looked away, unable to look at anyone. She pulled away from Cass’ side.
“She’s my twin sister, nothing can break the bond we share.” Marina then looked at the others as a whole. “I’m warning you, she’s changed. She’s no longer herself. Another force, much stronger than any of us, has taken control of her.” She said quietly.
“I don’t believe you.” Heather spat, glaring at Marina. “Anne was strong, she wouldn’t let anything evil control her. She’s probably dead.” Heather said. Caitlin shook her head.
“If she was dead, I’d be dead, too.” Heather blinked a moment and hung her head slightly in defeat.
“Why the fuck would she bother to even come back here? She’s one of them now, she’s a vampire and was one when she left us.” Anna said. Marina growled and slapped Anna across her face. Her gold eyes burned.
“How dare you! She may be a vampire, but she’s still my sister and a fellow Guardian! She was once your friend, why do you bicker about why she’s come back?” Marina exclaimed.
“Marina, don’t you see how much pain she’s caused us?! A friend doesn’t just leave without telling us!! And after 500 years she comes back to us?!” Liesl screamed. Marina took a step back, looking at Liesl warily.
“You would let something as petty as that destroy what you all shared back then? So, would you just go and kill her now? If that’s so, then you can say good-bye to Caitlin, for she’d die too. And then you can pretty much say good bye to all of us because with those two dead, we cannot combine to defeat whatever evil threatens us!!” Marina cried back.
“Don’t you see that Anne is the evil here?! You said it yourself that something possessed her, Marina! So we have no choice but to kill her.” Anna cried.
“Look, guys, we can settle this without all this arguing. Tone it down!” Abby insisted. Heather sent a glare at Abby.
“How can you be so damned calm through all this? Anne was your friend, too, aren’t you the least bit angry at how she left?” She demanded.
“I believe she did what she had to do. After all, she wasn’t human anymore and if she had stayed around us, she probably would’ve tried to do something she’d regret.” Abby defended. Heather crossed her arms with a huff. Before Heather could make a comeback to Abby, laughter rang through the air. Two voices weaved together into one, then back into two. The Guardians snapped to attention.
“Poor pathetic,”
“Little Guardians.”
“All bickering,”
“Among themselves.” The two looked at each other. They were identical twins. They had long black hair and black eyes. The only visual difference between the two was that one had a white streak through her hair on the left side and the other had the streak on the right side. All the Guardians recoiled, for the two female vampires were the spitting image of Tenaka. The one on the left grinned widely.
“Yes, Tenaka was our mother. I am Katar.”
“And I am Cestus.” The two were standing side to side, an arm around the other. Katar eyed the Guardians.
“It seems that you all,”
“Will be our new,”
“Play toys.” They both said together. Anna twitched.
“Ok, please stop talking like that. You two are freakin’ me out.” Anna said. The twins grinned darkly and widely.
“That is precisely,” Katar said.
“What we want.”
“Cut to the chase, why are you here?” Liesl demanded, her blood practically boiling by now. Cestus grinned darker and whispered something into her sister’s ear then did something that disturbed the Guardians. Cestus licked Katar’s cheek and Katar grinned, obviously liking the sensation. All the Guardians shuddered, even Marina and Cassandra.
“We are here because the Darkness has beckoned us.” Katar said, her eyes sparkling with a hidden danger.
“We are but pawns within this game and you are the chew toys.” Cestus said.
“Wait, how can you two be pawns and how can we be chew toys when you both are vampires and we’re the Guardians?” Anna asked, befuddled (author’s note: If that’s not a word, it is now.).
“A force stronger than us commands us and you all cannot defeat it.” Katar spoke, magic seeming to wrap around her words. Marina and Caitlin were getting a very bad feeling about Anne. They well knew that Anne wasn’t herself and that something even more evil was controlling her. They both knew they all should get to the graveyard soon before too much time had passed.
“Look, if you only came here to talk, then let us pass so that we can do our jobs!” Anna demanded. Katar and Cestus both eyed her, then they eyed the other Guardians.
“Ah yes, the Defenders of Earth.” Katar said.
“Well, we made our point,”
“And we were not to harm you.”
“So be off with you.”
“But we warn you,”
“You cannot defeat the Darkness.” Both voiced together. They disappeared as they had come, laughter echoing. The Guardians shook their heads slightly and continued on to the graveyard.
Anne grinned. “How lovely, the Guardians are on their way.”
“Indeed. We shall be ready for them.” Ceres said (author’s note: Yes, Anne is talking to herself, just to clarify).
“Tonight, blood will run and we will crush the Guardians. With the balance undone, they have no hope of defeating us.”
“Little do they know we stand two Guardians of Darkness strong.” The two voices joined in laughter. Within a couple more minutes the Guardians would fully realize just how far in over their heads they all ready were.
“This will be almost too one-sided. They will crumble almost too easily under our grip.” Anne said, watching through the dark of the night for the Guardians.
“But it will still be fun. Once their resistance is vanquished, only then can we truly bring this world into the depths of an Eternal Night where all of our kind may roam freely and no longer must they fear the light of day.” Anne grinned wickedly, a dark gleam passing through her eyes.
A moment later, the grin faded as she sensed another force coming this way. It was a half-breed of vampire and human. It was definitely male and he was strong. He was unusually strong for just a mere half-breed. Anne’s eyes narrowed.
“He may prove to be a small challenge.” Anne said.
“Yes, his aura is strong and I can tell he is trained to kill our kind.”
“Even so, he is still half-vampire. If I concentrate hard enough, perhaps I can lull him to our side of things.”
“No. You need your strength for the Final Deliverance. You’ll just waste your time on the likes of him. Just fight him as you would any other enemy.” Ceres said. Anne shrugged.
“I’d like a challenge, but I want to save my strength for destroying pathetic Guardians. I will not bother him until he bothers me.” Ceres grinned.
“Good girl. Now, the Guardians near.” Ceres then let Anne do the work and talking.
The Guardians had to dispose of some zombies and other night creatures on their way to the graveyard. By the time they reached the graveyard, they were all disconcerted and bent out of shape. They grumbled amongst each other.
Welcome to you all. I bid you welcome to my humble darkness. A cold, harsh voice sounded in their heads. Then each of them heard a song. It wasn’t in English. In fact, none of them could be sure what language it was in. It sounded like Japanese, but it wasn’t. It must be some ancient language that has not been spoken for centuries.
“What the Hell is that song?” Heather demanded. Caitlin grimaced, clamping her hands over her ears. Her eyes pinched shut and her teeth clamped together. Cassandra went to Caitlin’s side.
“What’s wrong?” She asked, resting a hand on her sister’s shoulder. Marina growled slightly, eyes searching the area.
“The song is meant to call us to the darkness. It’s somewhat of a mesmerizing spell. Those most susceptible are beings of the night, next would be the Guardians of Light and Darkness.”
“Well dammit, how are we supposed to do anything when Anne’s trying to manipulate Caitlin?!” Liesl exclaimed. Marina closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
“We stop that by killing Anne.” Marina said. Suddenly, there was another presence in their midst. The Guardians all snapped around and stood perfectly still when they saw who it was. Anne grinned darkly, the song ending.
“Even though you knew it was me you must fight, you are still surprised. Well get over it.” Anne said, looking at them all. Marina and Caitlin were the most fearful. Caitlin was fearful because she felt the ominous darker, more sinister being within Anne, just waiting to be released. Marina could also sense this, but she also could not bring herself to harm her sister. Anne laughed wickedly. The sound echoed throughout the dense night air. “I can’t wait to rip you all apart.”
“What makes you think you can kill us?!” Anna growled. Anne grinned wickedly. Light glittered off of her sharp incisors (aka canine teeth). They were sharper than any human’s incisors were, for Anne’s incisors were now equipped to penetrate human flesh and drink of their blood.
“Because, my dear Fire Guardian, none of you can balance the power I now possess.” Anne looked Caitlin dead in the eye. “Not even the Light Guardian can balance me. The Balance is broken and I have come to destroy it.” Anne raised her hand and a ball of black energy began to gather in it.
I must hurry. I can feel the Darkness is about to unleash the first attack. The man thought as he sped hastily towards the graveyard. His dark eyes narrowed in determination to make it before too much damage had been done. He clenched his teeth. He could feel the siren’s song calling to him, luring him to her. With all his might, he fought against it. I must not give in to her. He thought.
Fight as you will, dhampir, but you will inevitably lose the fight. He her voice in his head. He sped faster, wanting more than ever to put this vampire in her grave.
“Why did we come all the way here to the middle of no where?!” A woman cried, standing on a hill over-looking the city below. A man stood next to her.
“Because we cannot not resist the Call. And we must help mother.” The woman snarled and glared harshly at her brother.
“I would never help her. She’s a lying whore and she must die!!”
“Calm down, Kashya. The more agitated you become the more you will be pulled to her. We must go of our own accord, not hers.”
“Morgan, you do know I will kill you one of these days. Your love and loyalty to that woman just sickens me to death.” Morgan looked at her with sorrowful brown eyes. He set a hand on her shoulder lightly.
“Kashya, I know you love mother. I wish you can let go of all your hate and rage before it is too late.” Kashya slapped Morgan’s hand away. She huffed at him, knowing it was pointless to argue with him. She looked out over the city, knowing, somewhere deep down, that he was right. Kashya needed to get rid of all this hate and rage she felt for Anne.
“Come on you big oaf, let’s get moving.” Kashya grumbled. The two walked side-by-side, not knowing what would happen this night.