4 comments/ 9086 views/ 4 favorites Emerald Knights By: NikitaSimoneaux The rain had been pouring consistently for two days making normally gothic town of Haven look even darker. Its grey stone walls and dark cobbled streets glistened as the endless raindrops hammered against their aged, smooth facades. This suited her fine. Her mood, too, was dark. She stood shivering under the sheltered canopy of a bar and smoking a hand-rolled cigarette, taking deep inhalations. On the outside the bar blended well into the rest of the street --with a closed down liquor store on one side and a creepy alleyway on the other -- inside, the bar was quite unique. The door opened and music filled the deep emptiness of the street as a man stepped out, lighting a cigarette. "Nice night for it, eh?" He commented with a drawl. She merely nodded and continued to smoke silently. He was only human, probably enamoured by someone that wasn't. The streetlight cast a shadow over her beautiful porcelain face, hiding the colour of her petrol green eyes, eyes which had been known to stop hearts. Her long wavy hair was the colour of rich, dark chocolate and if one were to press one's nose to it, the unmistakeable smell of cocoa seemed to waft right into one's brain. Unfortunately, the man was unable to appreciate her tresses as they were partially hidden by a wide-brimmed hat with all manner of feathers and buttons attached to it from all corners of the world, each with their own story and adventure attached to it. Just under her thick leather jacket, around her delicate, milky neck was all manner of jewellery, an egg-sized green emerald blinking lustrously beneath wooden beads and silver crosses. The man's gaze lowered down her body taking quick note of a black band t-shirt, moving down her shapely thighs and legs in leather trousers that looked like they were spray-painted on. Finally he took in her blood-red cowboy boots which were caked in mud. He looked up with a lopsided grin. "New in town?" "Something like that." She replied without turning to face him. She took one last deep drag and flicked the cigarette into the gutter where it sputtered and got washed away by the rain. She tightened her black leather biker jacket around her body, fighting the cold wind. Taking a deep calming breath she looked out onto the eerily quiet street, one way then the other and prepared herself for what was about to happen. In about half a minute she was going to come face to face with a person that had consumed her thoughts and dreams for over a decade. In about thirty seconds the bar called Limbo was about to come face to face with one of the most dangerous women in Europa. She was also one of the most patient and now after years of waiting she was about to complete her mission. She gently touched her jacket pocket in which the worn letter that contained the name of her enemy, the man that had killed her whole family and annihilated all that she held dear was kept safely hidden. She kept it by heart, like a secret. She shook her head in attempt to shake away the memories but they would always remain there, haunting her to the end. The day she received the mysterious letter revealing the answer to all her prayers was the day she packed her belongings and ran from the stifling tyranny of the nuns of St. Claudius and began her quest for ultimate knowledge and strength. She was fifteen years old then and now a woman standing on the quiet street of Haven. All those years of pain and fear, of loneliness and utter despair, finally she knew she could take all the pain away with on swift move. She removed her hat, shook her hair briefly and readjusted it onto her head, the rings on her fingers glinting in the golden streetlight. She put on the smile that had made several young virile men completely legless and turned to the smoking stranger. "I think tonight's going to be a good night" She said almost evilly, sending chills down the man's spine, that he could not place as either lust nor fear but perhaps both. Before he could say another word she had stepped into thumping darkness of the bar. It was called Limbo but little did anyone know, Selena St. Claire was about to introduce to them to hell. Inside the bar, it was less quiet and a lot more crowded. Beautiful, lithe -- some winged, some scaled -- bodies moved in rhythm to bass heavy electronic music, eyes were shut in ecstasy and mouth met mouth, necks, and shoulders in sweaty sexy dance. Girls were scantily clad and gyrating to the music while their male counter-parts tried to act cool moving only when faced with the possibility of a curved body part touching them. On the other side of the large atrium was a long dark wood bar where three ethereals served tongue- and boxer-tied customers alike. Behind them were hundreds of bottles of different shapes and colours all containing liquids that could bring a men and women to their knees and face their eternal damnation. Customers with lust-filled eyes lit the bar, their fingers straining at their glasses wanting nothing more than to reach over the long bar to touch the nymphs. Further along, a bodyguard stood outside a staircase that led upstairs to a VIP room occupied by melancholy sadness and anger his bitter friend. Two men stood side-by-side watching the scene below with expressionless faces. One was the proprietor, the other his right-hand man. Neither spoke just watched the night evolve before their eyes. After centuries of existence, both men had learned to respect silence and when either of them were forced to speak their words were few but weighty. Alexander had lived through every possible social progression and destruction. He had seen the rise and fall of mountains and men and watched as the seas slowly ate away at ancient lands. He had witnessed the ferocity of love and passion and seen the calm chill of hatred. He had tasted the blood of his enemies and lovers alike and enjoyed both immensely and with equal pleasure. He had bedded whores and princesses and found eager pleasure in mouths of saints. There was very little Alexander had not done and that was his very undoing. Filled with the ennui of eternity he had lost the sight that only mortality can bring, like seeing things in colour once again. He watched the bodies move sensually against each other and gave an almost imperceptible frown. Something about the evening had him slightly apprehensive as if the devil himself was coming to claim him. He ran his hand through thick black hair that fell to his chin and over his eyes. It looked almost dark blue in the dark light of the bar. His thick eyebrows of the same colour framed his ice-blue eyes, like huskies' eyes containing a ring of magic that only the most observant of people will recognise as a real curse. The years had been kind only because he had avoided them completely and like any other vampire one would find in the world he was impossibly beautiful, not handsome but beautiful, as though the Creator himself carved him out of smooth white marble. He was very tall, wide-shouldered and narrow-hipped and every part of his sculpted form was draped in an expensive black Zegna suit. Under it he wore a crisp white shirt with a just the hint of a chain hanging under its collar. Limbo had been his for the best part of a century and he was allowed to do so because of the very special ground Limbo stood on, what human beings would understand as neutral. No magic could be performed on the ground and thus it was like one big scrambler which no creature to date had been able to bypass. No one had ever dared to. First erected by the permission of the Council his predecessor, his father of sorts, Aristos agreed to maintain the neutrality and protect the holy ground it stood on. Aristos taught Alexander everything he knew about the world, philosophy, love and magic before he then died, leaving him Limbo. At first he shunned the bar and left it to be managed by whoever was willing -- and still alive -- to run it. A number of years later after the rivers of bloodshed had dried and there was uneasy peace amongst the all the creatures of the day and night he returned to the bar a hero and renewed it to its former glory, the magic sensing its master. He and Valko, his brother, his friend and his general, had never looked back since and after Alexander received the crown -- an unexpected move made by King Viktor at his deathbed as a personal gift for his loyalty in the war-- there was nothing that was more powerful than the man and King that owned Limbo. Valko stood tall and proud with short hair so blonde it was almost silver. His shoulders were set, his arms crossed and bulging under his black, double-breasted suit. He had been at Alexander's side for almost a millennium but boredom was not an affliction he understood. Alexander, on the other hand, only a few years younger had recently been plagued by over the years, cynicism and bitterness getting the best of him. He shot a brief glance at the man he knew as his brother and who he respected as his king and looked away again. He wondered if Alexander could smell it, that distinct smell in the air...like nothing he had ever smelt before. He shivered. Downstairs, Selena slid fluidly into one of the unoccupied bar stools and signalled to a flame-haired beauty. "What can I do for you?" The nymph floated to face her, her flaming eyes mischievous as they were dangerous. She licked her lips and eyed her customer appreciatively. "Better yet, what can I do you for?" She ran her milky white hands over Selena's arm eliciting tiny Goosebumps. "Double vodka. On the rocks. Clean glass." The woman replied calmly, as if unaffected by the nymph's touch. With a flash of her fiery eyes the she poured the vodka into a glass filled with ice, chucking in a slice of lime for good measure and slammed it onto the table in front of her. No one was impervious to her beauty. No one. "Anything else?" There was venom dripping off each word. Selena did not look up but merely reached into her class, picking out the slice of lime and threw it over her shoulder nonchalantly. "Who owns this establishment?" She was quite aware who the proprietor was. His name was practically tattooed on her brain. The nymph scoffed. "Where have you been, sugar? Don't you know Alexander Demetrius owns Limbo? Where have you been living, a cave?" She laughed melodically. "You gonna pay for that?" She gestured to the glass that was now empty. "Let's take that up with your boss, shall we?" An evil smirk flashed under the brim of the hat. "You're kidding right? You know who he is right? As in King? As in he'll smite the fuc --" Before the nymph could finish her sentence, Selena slowly lifted her green eyes and gave her the most piercing and soul-withering stare causing her to take a small step back and her breath hitch in her throat. Without a word the siren turned to the phone behind the bar and quickly typed in the numbers, her hands shaking for the first time in centuries. "Yes?" Valko turned to his King who was still staring off into the middle-distance. He hung up and sighed. "Looks like trouble just made an appearance and she's asking for you." Selena stood up off her stool and finished off her second double-vodka as the footsteps neared behind her. Here we go, she thought to herself and took one last calming breath before she turned around to face her enemies her ferocious smile back on her lips. "Alexander, I assume?" She drawled. Her eyes roamed briefly over the dictionary description of tall, dark and handsome. He moved like a panther, slowly and stealthily as if every gesture was part of a fluid dance. His eyes were devastatingly blue and she took brief note of the subtle ring around his iris. If she didn't have to kill him she'd probably taken him to bed. "King Demetrius, miss...?" He lifted an eyebrow in curiosity. "Selena." "You seem to be foreign so I will forgive you this once but with warning, impudence is punishable within my jurisdiction." "This is not exactly your jurisdiction I hear" Selena responded, cocking a slender eyebrow and gesturing around the bar. "Semantics. What can I do for you?" The way he said her name almost made her shudder but she was in full control of her body, every fibre, every muscle was taut and under her command. She never got the shakes. "I was hoping we could discuss that in private." She nodded to the balcony. Alexander continued to stare at her silently for a brief minute then without a word gestured to Valko and all three of them headed back upstairs past the stony-faced bodyguard. The nymph watched as they walked away and pitied the Selena and what she was sure to face behind closed doors. Back upstairs, the two men stopped behind a big dark door and seemed to silently communicate to each other, Valko finally grunting and moving away to let Alexander then Selena past into the dark office. Alexander walked slowly to his desk and flicked on a light at his large mahogany desk but remained standing. Something about this remarkably beautiful woman made him wary; the way her eyes shone with something akin to fury while her smile was beautiful with perfectly pink luscious lips that showcased ivory white teeth. "Well?" He gestured to a chair opposite the desk. Selena turned instead to admire the room, its dark polished walls and high ceilings, paintings centuries old adorning the walls. "You've got quite a collection here, Demetrius. Must've taken a lot of blood sweat and tears to build" She looked over her shoulder with a sultry smile. "None of your own, of course" She continued to walk around the room arriving finally mere feet away from the man that destroyed everything. She stood staring into his eyes with a mixture of hate and lust swirling in her belly. Bloodlust. She took a step closer to him so that she could run a hand over the smooth lapel of his jacket. "What else do you collect? Women perhaps?" Alexander did not move, although he was intrigued. "I leave women for the more adventurous collectors. I fear I lack to patience and the stamina for such quests" "Hm... what a pity..." She ran her fingers up his chest to the nape of his neck where her fingers curled around a lock of his dark hair. "I was so hoping I could change your mind" She licked her bottom lip and Alexander followed the movement, lust igniting quietly in his belly and his fingers twitching at his sides. "You've still not answered my question. What do you want, Selena?" He asked, his voice hard but betraying the slightest bit of sexual curiosity. This time hearing her name on his lips did make her shudder and with anticipation. She let her leather jacket slip and fall off her shoulders, stood up on her tip-toes and wound her arms around his neck. "I thought that would be rather obvious by now" She whispered against his lips, never breaking eye contact. Their breaths mingled intimately, and hearts beat against each other. Her pink tongue snaked out and gave the right corner of his unsmiling mouth a tiny flick. She pulled back -- only slightly -- to look at his unchanged face and sighed. "No?" Her eyes twinkled dangerously, and Alexander swore he heard ringing in his head. Stepping even closer so that they were groin to groin, her thigh in between his muscular ones, she gripped the nape of his neck tight and tried again. This time she pushed up with her toes and pressed her lips to his. After a moments resistance Alexander could no longer fight the intoxicating taste of her lips and kissed her back letting his tongue run along the same path across her bottom lip as hers did earlier. The taste of her was sweet and spicy at the same time, like cinnamon like...but before he could finish the thought he felt cold, hard steel at his temple. Selena had pulled two identical old silver guns tucked in the belt of her trousers. They were both locked and loaded and one of them was pressed against his head, the other pointed at his heart. Selena said with a brutal smile and stepped back, briefly licking her lips. "Don't let these fool you; you sure as hell taste fantastic." "Likewise. To what do I owe the honour?" Alexander didn't know if he was angrier at himself or her. How could he let her past him? How could he not smell the metal on her? "Ahem" Selena raised an eyebrow and gestured to the guns. "I think I'm going to run the conversation from here on. I am the one with the firepower after all" "A bit of metal doesn't scare me, especially at the hands of a psychotic little girl" Alexander sneered. "Ah, well, psychotic, maybe. A girl? Definitely not." She tapped the guns gently against each other the sound of tinkling bells rang out in the room and caused the king of the European underworld, the man they called the Destroyer, "the one who could not be killed" shiver with genuine fear. "See these guns, Meta --" she pointed to the one on her left, intricate engravings etched to the hilt and down the barrel of the gun gleaming. " -- Tron" giving the right gun a little wiggle causing the little jewels glint and a gentle vibration of sound whisper through the air. "They were given to me by a very special man, actually, a mutual friend. Cyrus? Ring any bells?" Alexander's eyes flashed briefly but he remained silent. Selena laughed. "Yes, who knew that all it took was a couple monks, a tonne of silver a few magic words to create the ultimate vampire killing machines? They managed to recreate the voice of God. The voice of God! One, single, little flick of this trigger and I can reduce you into dust." Alexander still stood in silence. She walked around to stand behind Alexander. She leaned up into his ear and whispered "Still think I'm a little girl?" She took his earlobe into her mouth and gave it a bite, drawing a droplet of blood. She licked her lips and walked back around to face him. "Guess again. Go on, guess!" "I don't have the slightest fucking clue who you are but in the next minute you will be dead" Alexander answered calmly belying little of the boiling anger within him. "Wrong." She glared at him. "My name is Selena St. Claire Baranov of Bohemia, daughter to Constantine and Vivienne Baranov, King and Queen of the Bohemia and beloved sister to Helia Nikita Baranov. You killed my family, you killed my pack and you killed my happiness. It is you that must die." Tears began to stream down her pale cheeks as she looked into the eyes of the man that destroyed all her chances of happiness when she was a mere child. "Goodbye" She closed her eyes and prepared to pull the trigger but before the decisive moment, Alexander had leapt across sending them both to the ground in a flurry of fist and kicks, the silver guns spinning across the hard-wood floor. Selena kicked up, her right foot connecting with Alexander's chest and pushing him off her. She quickly spun in a move her Capoiera master had taught her years ago and managed to find herself upright and facing one of the most dangerous vampires in the world. Her hands up, ready she eyed her opponent with angry eyes that looked like green flames. With a shout she pushed forward and launched herself up but he moved before she could connect and brought a blow on her thigh sending her to the ground again. Once on the ground she did another spin kick which Alexander side-stepped. On her feet again she threw a punch, smiling as she caught his beautiful face. She did a round-house kick which caught him in the chest and sent him back against the wall of the office. She ran to him and attempted to punch his face but quick as a flash Alexander moved again and her fist went through the plasterboard and into the wall. Alexander countered by grabbing her arm and twisting in viciously behind her back, slamming her chest and face into the wall. He held her there and for a moment the only sound in the room was that of their heavy breathing. Selena then used her knees as leverage against the wall, hopped up so her feet were against the wall and pushed back as hard as she could so that she landed on top of Alexander where she 'people's elbow-ed' him in the solar-plexus eliciting a grunt from Alexander who rolled away from the shower of punches until he reached safety. Emerald Knights Ch. 02 "Who the fuck was that?! Who the fuck uses magic in Limbo?! Nobody! Not even La M'ag himself!" Valko was enraged. For the first time in a great number of years he felt useless. Once the psycho girl had run out it was his job to clean up the mess. Three young vampires' heads had exploded in the middle of a dance floor spraying blood and brains over the shocked clientele. Not the kind of night you expect in Limbo. Alexander said nothing, merely stood and stared into the great fireplace in the vast library in his infinite mansion. He took a sip of his whiskey and turned to his friend. "I knew her father." Valko sighed and walked to the nearby drink's cabinet and pulled a a forty year-old bottle of Laphroaig and poured it into a crystal tumbler. There was a slight tinkle as the amber liquid poured into the ornate glass. He took a sip, eyes closed, then sighed and turned back to his friend. Alexander walked over to a a large leather armchair and sat down with an equally heavy sigh. "It was during the war. He was a lord of the Bohemian territories, his pack was very old, well-respected, strong too. Had things gone the way they should have, the throne would be his. I'd seen his wolves kill their enemies like hot knives through butter. They were natural vampire killers if you'd ever seen one. Unfortunately, we were on the different sides and the respect I have for a man as an enemy is as far as it went. I never even met him but heard he was wise and strong and that he ruled with a kind of pride that only good man know how to use. But as I said, it was during war; Bohemia was one of the last places Viktor hadn't been able to control and one of the last refuges of the werewolf population of Europa. And since the Council then was non-existant, L`Mag missing and all, there was nothing to stop him from destroying everything Baranov held dear. So he sent me." "You killed him?" Valko asked, breaking the moment of silence. "Not directly, but yes, I was there. We had witches with us, it was a prettystandard raid, get the witches to seal the area, start a fire, go in and make sure everyone dies. It was bloody and tragic but everything during those days was." He closed his eyes, remebering the screams and the sound of boiling blood. "It was the only time that Viktor came into the battlefield himself. I still don't know what his vendetta was with Baranov but it was enough for him go down there and kill him himself. How the girl survived I don't know but when we lefft there, there was not a soul alive, a body that was left unburned. We killed everyone and burned everything. "Why does the girl think you killed her father then?" "Because that is what we had to say during the Three Days of Treaty, the King could not be seen to be the instigator of such a violent massacre and I was immune from any consequences because I was deeply in Viktor's favour." "The Destroyer..." Valko walked over and sat opposite him in a another over-sized chair. "Yes, an unfortunate nickname that but I must admit the truth behind it. I was then and even know am, a killer" Alexander's face was stone. "That sounds like regret in your voice, my friend" Valko lifted a blonde eyebrow. "There is no room for regret in eternity." "Well, now I have the last living member of the Baranov line who is some kind of crazy withi magic powers trying to kill me. Excuse me if I regret the role I played in her family's death..." He looked thoughtful for a moment. "..or perhaps it is the fact that I missed her in all that bloody mess that I regret." He stood up from his chair and downed his drink. "I need to speak to Gabriel, get him on the phone as quickly as possible. And get some sniffs on to that club I want to find this chick before she finds me." He looked at his watch, almost dawn, and then as if an after-thought "I want her alive." He walked out of the room. Valko quietly downed his whisky and frowned into the fire. Lia looked out the diner window onto the busy Main Street of Petitfette, distractedly pouring coffee into a customer's mug. "Hey...hey!! Watch out" The man exclaimed as coffee poured over the sides of his coffee cup and onto the laminate counter. "Oh, shit, sorry let me clean that up for you." She quickly mopped it up and mentally shook herself. She had woken up in the early hours of the morning from a disturbing dream she could not remeber and sweat covering her body. Her whole day had been on a downward spiral ever since. Running her hands through wavy copper hair she closed her eyes for a moment and tried to centre herself. She gave the customer one more apology and added a smile this time, to sweeten him up. He forgot all about the coffee. "Hey, Lia? You ok?" Her boss, Lewis, called from behind her. Lia didn't turn around in fear that he would see her lie. "Yeah, I'm fine, just going out for some fresh air" Lia removed her apron and walked out of the diner and out onto the busy streets of Lordstown. A truck drove past loudly honking at another car that almost collided into him. The driver showed some pretty elaborate gesture and continued drivbing. This made Lia smile. Everything was ok, normal. Pulling out a pack of cigarettes she kept hidden in her pocket for moments like these, she popped one in her mouth and lit it, inhaling the smoke and feeling instantly calmer. What was wrong with her? What was making her stomach twist so? Lia's jade eyes scanned the street again and tried to find something in her surroundings that would explain her unexplainable unease. Just people, cars and shops. Nothing new, nothing exciting. She unconsciously fingered a necklace hanging on her delicate neck. It was hanging on a silver chain and had a coin-sized emerald pendant that twinkled in the early afternoon sun. She had always had it, since before she could remember and rarely took it off. It was the only thing she had from her past and had kept her safe through all the foster homes and bad experiences on the streets of Lordstown and beyond. She had finally escaped the dank, dismal gray and ran away, across the sea to Merrickk, finally settling in Petitfette after a bad experience with a man, a knife and a town called Sugar. It had been a while since she could rest her feet and get comfortable. Two years later, that unseasy feeling had come back, telling her to move on. She always listened to that voice, no matter what. Without a second thought Lia flicked her cigarette, threw one last look at the diner where Lewis and a customer were chatting animatedly and walked away from the diner without looking back. Alexander walked up the ancient, creaky stairs of his cavernous and dark mansion. He let his hand slide up the bnniste as he walked up, not for support but rather to be calmed by the time-smoothened wood. The old cobwebbed chandelier whose candles were spelled to burn eternally swayed slightly as he ascended the stairs. He reached the top floor and looked down over the bannister and down the spiral staircase to the bottom where Valko was talking quietly into a phone. Valko, nodded briefly and turned to leave, Alexander mimicking his move, turning to face a set of large, ornately carved doors. With a sigh -- almost inaudible -- he placed his large hand softly agains tthe warmd wood and whispered "Concilium" and the doors opened silently. He stepped into a large circular hall. In it were seven ornate wooden thrones, similar to the carved door, all distributed around an obsidian, round slab in the centre. Each of the thrones was occupied save one, his. He walked to the throne directly opposite L`Mag and sat down quietly, without a word. He looked around the room and his eyes finally rested on L`Mag who was slouched in his throne, apparently asleep. He looked dirtier and thinner than ever. his white beard was merging into his hair mattedly and what little of his eyes were seen under it all seemed wrinkled with time. "Well, Alexander? I do have better things to do than getting splinters in my ass listening to you drone on" Lavinia De Rosaire, Queen of Bohemia said scornfully. She too was ancient, not that her translucent skin showed any signs of aging. She remained eternally beutiful with hair the colour of liquid gold and eyes that shone with the bright turqoise blue of the Meditterenean ocean. Her lips, red and sweet as cherries, where twisted in a sneer and Alexander was reminded of time he would have given anything in the world to kiss those lips again. Now they only produced anger and disgust within him. The Queen of Bohemia was no ally of his. He said nothing but stood up from his throne and walked into the centre of circle, looking each of the members -well, except Lavinia -- in the eye before he spoke. "I was attacked yesterday by a wolf-girl.." He began. "So what? If you can't even protect yourself..." Lavinia insinuated. "Quiet." This came from the strict-looking Gabriel Templeman. He, like a lot of members of the Council, found Lavinia's presence insulting. He was King of Angeland and unlike Lavinia, his place on the Council was rightfully earned. He had heavy, dark auburn eybrows over hazel eyes that seemed to peer straight into one's soul -- assuming one had one. He never rose his voice above conversational tones but when he brandished his large silver sword, rumoured to be forged by angels, his silence was deadly, his stroke true. "She did magic" Alexander threw a look at Gabriel then quickly carried on. "She identified herself as a Baranov, the eldest daughter Selena" He paused for affect and watch Lavinia's eyes burn like blue fire. "But that's impossible!" She nearly fell from her throne. . The Baranov line had been dead for almost twenty-five years. "Which part Lavinia?" Alexander, not even glancing at her. "All of it."growled, the fire in her eyes turning into pure hell. "Where is she? We have her put down like the dog that she is for disrespecing the code of..." "Is it not strange that the only living heir to the Bohemian throne has just magically -- no pun intended - reappeared in our lives and the only person to be so personally insulted by the news is the currently sitting on it?" Damien LeBlanc's eyes were like liquid amber and shone dangerously with a mix of pure hatred and amusement. He was the King of Merrick but had asuffered Lavinia's destructive force and had the scar -- running from behind his ear down the nape of his neck -- to prove it. "Am I the only one to see that she has broken code and needs to be punished?" Lavinia calmed herself and sat back down, putting on a reasonable tone and reigning in her anger. No need to start revealing secrets best left buried, she told herself. "If we allow it, just let it go,we would put all of the Seven Kingdoms at risk would we not? There will be war!" "I think we can all accept that, I think the issue more importantly is, if the one daughter is alive, where is the other? And if they are both alive, where are the three Dragon Amulets?" Gabriel said calmly. It was at the mention of the amulets that La M'ag finally stirred in his seat and like an old bear he rose slowly his robes flowing , a golden chain and pendant of pure ruby glinting amidst fur and silk and all manner of debris from over the years. "I think perhaps it is time I had a word in. Lavinia?" He turned his grey eyes to her and she almost withered in her seat. He was the most powerful man in the room and could kill all of them without a second thought. He stepped off his throne and descended to centre of the circle where Alexander stood quietly watching the old mage. "The girl?" La M'ag raised his grey eyes to Alexander's in question. "It was her. I could spot the Baranov eyes anywhere. Green as the emeralds they wore" Alexander replied with a slight bow. "And where is she?" "My men are working on it, my lord" "Then, return when you have found her and we can truly discuss the situation." He turned his back to Alexander and before he knew it he was outside those two oak doors once again. "Alexander! My Lord, the sniff picked up a trail." Valko shouted from the bottom of the stairs. "She's in the West end" Swiftly and with the fluidity of water, Alexander jumped over the banister and landed on the black and white chequered marble. Valko said nothing merely nodded. The King of Gregoria smiled; he loved a hunt. Selena was preparing herself for the inevitable. She knew it was only a matter of time before they picked up her scent and found her. They would burn her out if they had to just like they did her parents. The Council and its illegitimate bastards and evil whores. She spat on the ground and checked the barrels of Metatron and put them into the holsters by her breasts. She checked an additional gun on her left thigh, a blade in her booth and a crossbow on her shoulders. She turned to Drake who was lying in bed, nonchalantly reading a paper. "Apparently there was quite a scene at a local bar last night." He said to no one in particular but look up to see Selena's reaction. "Not quite under the radar Lena" "My intention was never to 'stay under the radar' Draco, it was to kill Demetrius and run. I failed at the first part and now they are coming to get me. I can practically smell the dirty vampire blood heading our way." Selena spat again. She looked out the broken window to the street below where gangsters where selling dope and prostitutes their bodies for dope. All part of the cycle of life. If only the humans knew that they were not in fact the highest of the food chain. She smiled and looked back at Drake who had stood from bed and was standing naked before her. "Master, what will you do?" Drake was worried. It was not like Selene to be brutal with her words. She rarely spoke so many. "He will not come alone." Selena laughed. "Neither will I" Her eyes came alight and Drake stepped back in surprise. Alexander stepped out of the black BMW and looked up the apartment block to the window in question. He too smiled, predatorily and then surveyed the bottom ground. He gave a brief nod to their house witch, Sarah, and within seconds all the human being in the area crumpled and fell into deep soulless sleep. He waited as his foot-soldier exited several black SUVs and prepared to enter the building. But before they could make another move, several arrows whooshed past and hit several of the men with astounding precision, sending them to the ground, turning them into ash before they even hit it. He took cover behind one of the cars and looked at Sarah, her dark black eyes already closed to enchant them. Within seconds the arrows turned to dust, allowing them several seconds to enter the building. Alexander ran in, followed by Valko, several men and Sarah. They entered the building quietly and slowly, smelling and checking each corner. Guns poised and ready. He noticed the wards but was not bothered by them, they applied to magic and he was prepared with good old vampire sense. He came to a door on the second level that was severely scored and marked with Latin and Bohemian words of spells. He looked behind him where Valko and the other vampires stood prepared with guns loaded with silver bullets. He signalled, and stepped back allowing Valko to kick the door down in. Before he knew it bright green fire erupted and he had to stand back to avoid being turned into ash. Valko growled with anger and looked round the banister to see a bright green fiery figure emerging from the depths of the house. "Oh my God, she has a bloody dragon, Alexander thought to himself then looked at Valko. Valko knew exactly what to do. In one moved he drew out a long silver sword, thin but deadly, ancient writings down the blade and on the hilt. With his eyes closed he murmured something and the sword seemed to sing, ready to act. Its smooth watery surface glinted in the half-light of the corridor as Valko's body leapt through the doorway, narrowly missing another burst of fire. Faster than any mortal eyes could see, Valko managed to take a running leap at Drake and with one fluid swing he had slain the dragon, his head rolling on the tarnished floor of the apartment, the eyes once green now hollow and colourless.. A second later, the head and body both vanished in green smoke. Valko looked around the apartment and silently signalled for the rest to follow in. Alexander walked into the apartment, guns outstretched. He whispered something quickly under his breath and was greeted quickly by the image of Sarah walking up the stairs. He looked around the barren house that consisted of an open-plan kitchen which was really just a kitchen with its connecting walls knocked down. He turned to the 'bedroom' area hidden partially by a door. He pointed his gun at it. Ready. "Selena! We know you're in there! There's no point in hiding" He shouted out, pointing to the door. "Who said I was hiding?" Selena stepped out from behind a corner in the kitchen, sexy as fuck, dangerous as hell. Alexander moved faster than lightning behind a corner as Selena began firing turning several of his men into dust. Valko took cover in one of the adjoining rooms and mouthed to his King. "What now?" His icy blue eyes were wide with question. Alexander, losing the interest in playing with the woman, ran of the room and began shooting back. Selena, attempting escaped the rain of bullets ran behind the only viable corner of the kitchen, pulling her knees to her chest as splintered wood flew around her and tangled in her dark hair. For a moment the gunfire cease and Selene took the opportunity to peak over to assess the situation. A bullet zipped over her head catching a few strands of her hair. "Stop." She heard Alexander shout and Selena smiled. She pulled out Metatron and bashed them together. She heard screams and explosions and stood in one fluid move and began firing at dirty vampire foot soldiers. She almost laughed with glee, the rage in heart burning ferociously. Several vampires were reduced to dust, what was left of the rest was a bloody mess on the floor. When there was no one left to shoot, she tentatively looked around. Where was their King? She stepped silently out of what was left of her kitchen and looked around. Not a soul in sight. She managed a small smile and began walking out of the apartment. "Leaving so soon?" She heard a voice behind her say and she shivered. She turned and the instant her eyes met Alexander's she felt a shot at her heart. Looking down in surprise she noticed a feathered sedative. "Seriously?" and with that she crumpled into darkness. "Hey, girl, wake up now" The bus driver gently shook Lia awake. Lia woke up with a start and out of impulse grabbed him by the throat in a death grip. The bus driver threw his hands up in surrender "Girl, we're here, you reached Toussaint. Was just tryin' to wake young thing up!" His brown eyes pleaded, quietly. Releasing her choke hold on him, Lia stood up and walked out off the bus, tying up her hair in a ponytail and grabbing her duffel bag as she went. She entered the busy bus station where lovers were being reunited, family and friends forgetting grievances and coming together in relief. Lia walked past them, her eyes barely registering the sight, and headed to the public toilets. In the toilets the smell of perfume, sweat and sex filled her nose as she scanned for a free sink she could use. Around her various sizes and shapes of women were in varying states of undress chatting loudly at each other, chewing gum and popping it. Lia found a sink and set her back down, looking into the mirror. Her face was gaunt from lack of sleep, causing dark circles in her translucent skin. Her normally pink and supple lips were dry and cracked and as she ran her hands through her hair it was tangled and messy. With a sigh she turned the tap on and splashed cool water over her face and under her arms. She removed her dirty t-shirt and threw it into a nearby trash-can, pulling out a new black top from her back and slipping it one. It fit tightly around her breasts, small and pert as they were. She tousled her hair, attempting to make it look like it was styled that way and applied some lipstick. Emerald Knights Ch. 02 "That's a little better" She said to no one in particular and walked out of the busy toilet. Outside the bus station, the moment she was out of the oppressive heat and throng of people, she fell in love instantly with the city. Toussaint invaded her senses with sights, and smells colours and textures. She walked past a street preacher that attempted to give her a leaflet warning her of the demons of the night but she just smiled sweetly and continued down the street. She walked down Melody Lane where hookers stood outside buildings in minimal clothing, their hips sashaying to music, their golden and tanned skins gleaming with sweat and sex. She continued on stopping at a food stall where she conned a bit of fried chicken from the street vendor. He had been so enamoured that when she asked for one he merely handed it to her wordlessly. She walked down Boulevard du Orchid where music blasted out of every bar, motel and restaurant and people danced on the streets. She found herself laughing and dancing with them, swaying to the rhythm of drums her feet tapping against the cobbled streets. She finally had her fill and veered down a dark, narrow alleyway at the end of which was a bar Voodoo Room. She threw the left-over bone of chicken and threw it over her shoulder, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. "Gal!" She heard a voice whisper to her side. Slightly surprised she turned to find an old man, his skin the colour of nuts, aged and leathery. He was missing several teeth. "You din wanna be goin' there, gal" He nodded at the bar. "Fool's paradise that, man go in never come out" Lia threw a glance at the bar and then back at the man who didn't seem all that credible sitting on the street in nothing but an old battered pair of board shorts and a tattered bowler hat. "I'll take my chances sir." She smiled kindly, threw him some coins and continued down the alley. Behind her, the old man's grey eyes watched her with sorrow for a moment before he disappeared into the night. Lia stepped up to the two big, black burly men at the door neither of whom acknowledged her, and walked into the bar. For all the old man's warning, it didn't seem like the den of inequity that he made out. The decor was old but in a endearing way with several round tables and chairs in front of a poorly lit stage where a man was playing music so smooth and soul-wrenchingly sad that it practically turned the bar blue. Lia turned away from the mesmerising performance of the man and walked up to a bar where the barmaid was reading a trashy novel, her elbows on the counter, head in her hand. Lia was even more mesmerised by the bartender whose beauty she could not compare to anyone else's. Her head was shaved close to head a revealing her high cheekbones, large deep chocolate eyes and full lips. A haircut that should've made her look masculine did opposite her slender mocha neck, begging to be kissed. Snapping out of it, Lia walked in front of her. "Hi" She said with a smile. The bartender didn't look up. "What d'ya want?" "Um, Bourbon?" "Ice?" "Please!" Without a word the bartender set her book down on the counter, pulled out a glass, threw in some ice and poured a liberal measure of Bourbon into it. Silently, she set it down in front of Lia and turned back to her book. Lia smiled politely then turned to face the stage, leaning against the bar and sipping her drink in quiet contentment. Back in Gregoria, Selena woke up with a start and reached around trying to find a weapon. Instead she found herself in a darkened room, in a large bed and not alone. "Where am I?" "My place" said the form sitting in the chair by the window. "Where is that?" Alexander raised an eyebrow at the stupid question but Selene did not see it. Selene looked down at her exposed body and then back at him. "Why am I naked?" She asked. Alexander did not reply, merely continued to sit quietly in the chair. Selene got out of bed and stood before him, naked as the day she was born. "Well, if you want to cop a feel go ahead" She stretched her hands out, her green eyes flashing with anger. Alexander admired her slim white form; the smooth curve of her alabaster neck, her swell of her breasts and their dusty pink nipples. His eyes moved down her body to the tuft of dark curls and he briefly considered taking her up on her offer. Instead, he stood p wordlessly and walked to a large wardrobe and pulled out a silk robe and slung it over her shoulders, letting his hands rest there. "You are not my prisoner but I cannot allow you to leave, Selena." He said in an even tone, his blue eyes locked with hers. "That is the dictionary description of a prisoner" Selena snarled and pulled her arms through the sleeves of the robe, tying it around her waist. She looked around the room suspiciously and remarked "Who decorated this place, batman?" Alexander fought the urge to smile and said nothing as Selena walked around the room, exploring it and its exits before coming back to stand in front of Alexander again. "So, what? Why am I still alive?" She asked hands on her hips. "Tomorrow we go to the Council." "Ah, so they can do the dirty business" She smirked. "No one is going to kill you Selena." He grabbed her chin forcing their eyes to meet once again. "I promise you this." "Please," She pulled herself out his hot gaze and turned away from him and opened the curtains to a night sky. "I've no fear of death. In fact I welcome it with the things I've seen and done. Death, one event and quickly over at that. Life? Now life is a hell of a lot worse. Lasts a lot longer." Alexander walked over to where she was standing and grabbed her face, his fingers almost bruising her pale skin. His blue eyes shone in the darkness and belied the overwhelming tenderness he suddenly felt for the girl in front of him. "You are not going to die, Selena. You have my word as King of Gregoria, as a man, you will come to no harm" Selena's heart fluttered briefly and something inside her broke. Without a second thought from either of them, without question or consent, Alexander leaned down and captured her mouth in a searing kiss. Selena moaned and wrapped her arms around his neck pushing against him just as his tongue was pushing against hers, invading her mouth as if searching for something. Perhaps the remnants of what was once his soul. His hands dove into the dark cascade of her hair and held her there as his mouth plundered hers. Another moan escaped Selena's mouth as Alexander kissed, nipped and licked over her jawbone, down her neck, at the crook of her collar bone. Selene shivered and released his shirt from his trousers, her fingers aching to find bare skin. She ran her hands up his stomach feeling the delicious ripple of muscles underneath her hands as she continued up to his chest. She sighed as Alexander's hands found her ass and gave it a gentles squeeze pushing her up against him so she felt the growing bulge against her lower stomach. Alexander's hand returned to her hair and pulled so that her neck was exposed and her eyes were forced to meet his. Slowly, never taking his eyes off hers, he undid the tie of her robe and let it fall open, revealing her beautiful body to him once again, pale and luminescent as the moon. His hands moved over her left breast cupping it, enjoying the weight of it as Selena's eyes fluttered shut and her mouth hung open in desire. His hand tweaked her nipple briefly, eliciting a slight gasp, as he moved down over her stomach, tangling lightly in her inky garden before quite ruthlessly plunging into her warm wet folds. Selena moaned and Alexander let her head fall onto his shoulder, shivers running over her body even though Alexander kept his hand still. She began moving against him by her own according, seeking release the way a drowning man seeks land, her fingers closing around the material of his black shirt. Alexander watched as her hips gyrated against him and small whimpers escaped her perfectly pink lips, her green eyes shut against her personal onslaught of pleasure. He added a second finger and watched Selena react to it, pushing harder against him moving her hips faster and fast. He smiled slightly, waiting. Selene threw her head back and moaned deep, her body quivering in his arms. Alexander leaned down so their foreheads touched and whispered. "Selene." She did not reply but continued to thrust against him. "Selene?" He repeated with a self-satisfied smile of a man who had a woman in his sexual grip. "Aaahaa" "Sorry" He said and pulled out of her, expecting her to become enraged with him. But it was as if he had done nothing at all. She continued to move in the seductive rhythm of sex but without him. Suddenly her eyes opened and her green eyes were aflame with something akin to desire but more dangerous. She could no longer stand on her own accord and feel to her knees on the floor, shivering shaking and moaning. Alexander stood back in awe as her hair seemed to defy gravity, power crackling in the air as her own fingers found her pussy, the silk robe falling off her shoulder as she rubbed herself desperately. "Selena?" He watched as her skin seemed to glow slightly her eyes staring off into the distance, as if she was in a trance. Selena wasn't there. As her fingers plunged in and out of her hot body, faster and faster, the pressure in the room was building to match her. She was whimpered, her head fell back. She was pushing her fingers with urgency, with need that was almost unnatural when a loud crack went through the air and Alexander was propelled backwards and hit the wardrobe behind him He watched as Selena's hand stopped its movement and she screamed into the ceiling green light shooting out into the ceiling like a column of emerald night. Seconds later, the moment over, Selena slumped onto the ground, limp and lifeless. Emerald Knights Safely, meters away from Selena, he tried to reason with her. "There is no way out of here alive, Selena." His breath was short. "The only reason Valko isn't in here right now ripping you into bite-sized chunks is because for the first time in years, I'm having an unexpected bout of fun and keeping him out of my head." He smiled dangerously. He raised his arms in a stance, and Selena automatically responded. "Now, you can either give up, calm down and we can talk or..." He stopped as he could see Selena was not listening to him. In fact, she was in what seemed like a trance. Her eyes seemed to glow in her head as her hair started to rise statically defying gravity. She placed both her palms together where an ethereal green glow began glowing. Slowly pulling her hands apart the glow remained in each of her hands as she resumed her stance. Alexander stared wordlessly as Selena performed the impossible: magic within Limbo. He took an unconscious step back when Selena smiled dazedly, put her glowing fists up and said "Let's do this." She launched forward in a fury of punches and kicks, Alexander barely keeping up. One of her fiery green punches connected with his face and he could feel the burn on his skin. He was backed against the wall trying to fend off her blows when he finally conceded. He needed help. He let Valko into his mind and with a second he was in the room with them. Selena looked round and instantly knew she had failed. With all the power within her, she held her hand out towards Valko's nearing figure and stopped him short with a wall of green fire, surprise written on his face. Turning to Alexander, she took a deep breath then with both fists punched him so hard he went through the wall, over the glass balcony and onto the dance floor below where dancing customers stopped and screamed. Selena ran back to the desk under which the guns had slid and then ran and jumped through the hole Alexander was launched through and landed down onto the dance floor her hand connecting with his face once again. She looked up to find vampires of varying sizes of huge trying to move past the people trying to reach her. She pulled out her guns and slammed them together, a ringing sound smothering all other sound in the bar causing half of the customers to fall to the ground, clutching their heads in agony. Selena looked down at Alexander whose neck was firmly under her booth, his fangs exposed, and his blue eyes flashing with anger. She pointed her ornate silver guns at him and allowed the feeling of peace to drift over her. But yet again, before she could pull the trigger a commanding voice called within her "No." and before she knew it she was running. "Selena?!" Drake called as he entered the abandoned house they had converted into their base of operations. It was miles away from Alexander, hidden in Haven's dank and dangerous underworld. Ancient language was scrolled on every inch of the building ensuring that no one would be able to surprise them. Selena was always meticulous with her paranoia. He heard the sound of the running shower and walked into the bathroom where he found Selena curled up under the spray. He quickly stripped off his clothes, revealing a slim but built tanned body covered in tiny little freckles that Selena liked to call constellations, connecting them with her supple fingers. He entered the shower and enjoyed the hot spray for a moment until finally leaning down and picking Selena, his lover and his master, up off the ground and into her arms. She said nothing but wound her arms around his waist, squeezing almost painfully tight. He could feel the fire beginning in his belly and felt the water already steaming off his body as Selena, his beautiful Selena, finally allowed his lips to find hers in a kiss so searing both of them pulled back immediately. "What happened? You're flaming hot!" Drake asked pushing dark wet hair off Selena's face. "I didn't get him Drake. I didn't -- I couldn't, oh God!" She began sobbing against his chest as the water continued to stream down their naked bodies. Her wet black hair was plastered to her face and tears melded with water. "Ssh... hush now, it's alright, let me make it better, princess. Let me take away some of that heat, ok?" Wordlessly, Selena tilted her head up to face his, pale skin against tanned, green eyes meeting green as Drake leaned down, his auburn hair flopping wetly over his forehead as he put his mouth over hers and sucked in her fiery breath. Eyes still open he watched as the green flames ignited briefly in her eyes until their glow slowly began to die. He pushed his tongue into her mouth, exploring the dark wet cavern, extinguishing the fire he tasted. Like tasting a match. He pushed her against the tiled wall of the dingy shower and she automatically lifted her legs up to his waist, her thighs flexing, squeezing at his hips and her arms winding around his neck, the kiss remaining un-broken. Her tongue snaked out, licked at his lips, at his tongue and over his teeth. He responded in turn by dragging his slightly pointed teeth over her jaw and down her neck, biting at the soft skin of her neck. He clamped down, eliciting a small whimper from Selena. Driven by the sound of her surrender, without a thought, without hesitation he entered her hard and fast, and swallowed the hot moan from her mouth. He started slowly at first, allowing his cock to feel the ridged walls within her, inducing deep sighs from both of them. Leaning down Drake kissed her again drawing in the heat and the turmoil into his body as his thrusts quickened and became more forceful. His hands gripped her slim hips as he began to thrust mercilessly, drawing the fire from her and taking it into himself. Thrust after thrust, Selena pleasure increased as the heat from her body passed from her to him. She began to moan more frantically, pleading frantically "Please" over and over again like a mantra. "Please...oh, harder Drake... ambo... ambo Te..." She whispered into his ear, water pouring into her mouth as she uttered them, as is filling the void the words had left. He complied, how could he not? Pounding against her, flesh smacking against wet flesh as his skin began to tingle with familiar power he felt as if he might break apart into a million pieces and become reduced to nothing. Drake groaned. His skin tingled with power. He thrust harder. Selena bucked back against him trying to relieve and yet, increase the tension building in her at the same time. She clutched him inside her feeling him push against the most sensitive part of her. She moaned deep and shuddered as Drake lifted her a little higher, his cock pushing deep, touching her cervix and making her feel overwhelmingly full, bringing her closer to the edge. "Drake, I'm..." She moaned as her back slammed into the cool tiles. She thought she heard one them fall off and hit the floor. Her muscles tensed around his waist, her eyes closed and her head tilted back she began to shudder uncontrollably, her toes curling with the power of it. Drake pumped his hips faster, feeling his own release only moments away. Drake mumbled quiet words of Latin into her shoulder as he pushed her up and over the edge of ecstasy. She screamed arched her back off the wall, pumping madly against as green fire escaped her pink lips and shot into the air above them, forming thick white mist of the shower water. She came back down and fell against Drake who picked her up shakily and walked out of the bathroom into their makeshift bedroom. Sleep was the only thing for her after discharging so much of her power. He laid Selena onto the thin mattress and slipped next to her throwing a scratchy blanket over them both. He pulled her drying body to his so that they were spooning and his cock nestled between her cheeks. She was barely conscious her head slumped over his arm. He was curious, what had transpired tonight? "Selena?" He whispered quietly into her ear. "Mmm...?" Came her sleepy reply. "What happened?" "My wolf." And with that Selena was fast asleep but Drake lay there, nestled against her with the smell of magic lingering in his nose.