The Hunted

I was sitting in the dark back corner of the classroom. I rolled my eyes and my arms were crossed on top of the desk with my head resting on them, I wasn't paying attention.

God when do we get the heck out of here, I thought. I had been bored with this class from the very first day.

It was A.P. Statistics and math was definitely not my favorite subject. Mainly the class just bored me. I'd rather do something more creative with my mind than just practice the same stupid problems over and over again. I gazed out the window and saw little serpents of water swim across the two large windows. The weather had been ugly lately. I was a senior this year and that meant I would be leaving soon.

And good riddance, I can't stand this place. I've had enough of this idiotic teenager drama.

I had been told on countless occasions that I'm older than my years. I'm only seventeen which is young for a senior and I wouldn't be turning eighteen until after attending my first couple of months of college. I really didn't like people in general, but I adore animals. During my years at high school I had learned just how weak minded and vulgar people could be, and started to detest them.

The only good friend I really had at school was Azzurra. Azzurra had never known how I really felt about people but she didn't really need to.

I felt a sudden shiver go down my spine.

I want out.

I couldn't explain it. I had an unsettling feeling seemed as if someone was watching me. I turned my head but was met with a blank stare from the wall behind me. I tried to clear my head but the strange feeling would not leave.

Maybe a bit of fresh air would help.

I raised my hand and quietly asked the teacher if I could use the restroom and I quickly left the room.

The hallway was empty and felt like a musty tunnel on the road. I walked down the hall, staring at white linoleum floor and made a right turn. I scanned the tops of the lockers down the next stretch of the hallway before going into the restroom. While I was washing my hands I saw something move near the entrance and I jumped. I turned and realized that it was just my reflection in the mirror. My heart was still hammering in my chest. I closed my eyes and let out a deep sigh. I forced myself to relax and then stepped out into the hallway.

Instead of going back to class, I wandered further down the shorter stretch of the hallway which was lined with lockers. The walls were composed of clear glass and a few tiny rays of sunlight streamed through. Then I saw a glimmer. Something was shining in the trees of the courtyard. Letting my curiosity get the better of me, I ventured to the one of the windows hoping that I could get a better look at the object. I first checked for teachers, who snooped around the hallways looking for skipping students. None of them were in sight.

Turning my attention back toward the trees, I strained to catch another glance of the glimmering object. Then I saw another sparkling object to my right, opposite of where I originally had seen it.

How could it appear in two places like that? And what is it?

Before I could process what was happening, two figures smashed through the windows. I held my arms up to shield myself from the small shards of glass.

To my right stood a strikingly tall pale man with long black hair that came down past his shoulders. He was much larger than I was and he held a beautiful sword in his hand. Despite his jump through the window he didn't have a cut on him at all and his face was breathtaking. As I sized him up I notice his eyes were a deep sapphire blue with a purple-like hue and also realized that he had fangs.

My head turned swiftly to my left as I heard a soft clicking noise. There stood another young man. This one looked about the same age as the other. He had short bleach blonde hair almost giving it a silver hue and his eyes were a glowing aqua. His physique was similar to the other man and he was almost the same height. He however did not bear any fangs.

At least not any that are visible…yet.

I gulped.

The blonde man held a pair of guns, one in each hand. They were like two glistening black cobras waiting for permission to strike. I looked frantically between the two apparent enemies. I had taken several self defense training lessons and was the best in my class. But both of these men looked quite strong, and I doubted that I would be able to defeat them in combat.

I froze, unable to figure out how I could get out of the crossfire between these two angered creatures. One thing I was sure about was that these two were not human at all. The air seemed to be chilled all around them. The blonde man's eyes widened and then he sighed and I saw his shoulder muscles relax. It seemed that he recognized the other man.

The one with black hair narrowed his eyes. His voice was harsh as an icy winter blast.

"Where are they?" he said. The blonde man started to open his mouth to say something. Suddenly a group of snarls echoed through the hall behind me. Both of the men's heads snapped up from their positions, their gazes now fixed on whatever was behind me. The dark haired man swore under his breath. In one swift motion he picked me up. My eyes widened in surprise and I struggled as he grabbed me around my waist.

"Hey what are you doing? Who do you think you are? You can't just-" I said.

"I would suggest that you be quiet and not struggle if you want to live," he said. I shut my mouth as he took off running down the hall. The blonde shot at whatever was behind us and then closely followed. After running out of the school and hiding in a nearby patch of trees they waited patiently until they were sure the threat was gone.

"How did they find us?" the blonde said. He placed his guns in two holsters at his side.

"Probably because they could smell you a mile away," the dark one replied. He sheathed his sword in a silver scabbard.

"Well I would think it was your fault, after all you are the prince are you not?" the blonde said.

"Ummm....does anyone want to explain what is going on?" I said. The dark haired man was still holding me but after I spoke he abruptly dropped me on the ground. I landed on my stomach, which didn't feel too good. I shot him a warning glare but he just smirked at me as if to say yeah, and what are you gonna do about it? The young man with the guns stepped forward first. He shot a glare at the dark haired man, who shrugged it off.

"At least one of us will try to be civil. My name is Nero," he said. He offered me a hand and I took it. I got to my feet and started to brush myself off.

"And my name is Argento," said the other man.

"My name is-"I started to say.

"Celeste" they said in unison.

"H-how did you know what my name was?" I asked.

"We've been keeping an eye on you for a while now," Nero said.

"But how?" I asked still shocked.

Argento waved his hand. "We have connections too you know."

I looked up at them. "So you guys aren't human….either one of you."

Argento snorted. "And neither are you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked. I was getting fed up with his attitude.

Nero rolled his eyes. "Never mind him. But you're right. I'm a shape shifter and also a vampire hunter." He glanced down at his guns and smiled a little.

"Can you guess what I am?" Argento asked.

"A vampire," I said.

Argento clapped his hands mockingly. "I wonder how you ever figured that one out," he said.

My temper was not something I would say I had ultimate control over. It was flaring as Argento mocked me. I bit my lip to stop me from saying something that would get me hurt. My jaw stiffened.

He had better watch it.

"And wouldn't you like to know what you are, Celeste?" Argento said. His voice wasn't provoking this time but actually mellow.

I nodded.

"Well, this is gonna take some time," Nero said. He propped himself against the wall.

Argento sighed. "About seven hundred years ago there lived a vampire named Stregoni Benefici. During this time the vampire race split into two groups. One of them, the Chelicerans, used their powers to help the innocent. But the other group, the Nadarians, was the exact opposite. They had planned to eradicate the human race, a slaughter by the thousands. Stregoni decided that he would side with the Chelicerans. The Nadarians were very strong and composed of a larger group than the Chelicerans. Stregoni then started to prey on the Nadarians. By ingesting their blood he became stronger than any other vampire."

"They say his line diminished with time. But we have found out that there is at least one direct descendent of his left alive," Nero said.

They both gazed at me. I shook my head confused.

"That's not poss-"I was cut off.

"It is possible," Argento said. He eyes seemed amused for a few minutes and then he started to walk towards me. I held my ground, however. I wasn't sure what he was going to do. My body stood rigid.

He circled me twice, his eyes locked with mine. He smirked "You have his arrogant attitude," he said.

I have an arrogant attitude? Me! That's it. I've had enough of this.

I was about to retort when I heard someone call my name. Azzurra had spotted me at the edge of the trees. Her long blonde hair stirred in the breeze as she made her way over to meet me. My heart beat faster as she approached.

How in the world am I going to explain what these two are doing here? Not to mention begin to explain to her what they are.

"Celeste what are you doing out here in the woods? It's-"she stopped.

Her eyes widened as she caught sight of Argento and Nero. Azzurra raised an eyebrow and shot a questioning look at me. I gave a nervous glance at Argento.

"Who are these guys?" Azzurra asked. Nero rolled his eyes, but he was smiling.

"Stop pretending you don't know who I am," Nero said. His voice was playful. Azzurra smiled. Nero walked forward and gave her a quick hug.

"Wait, I definitely missed something here," I said. "Azzurra how do you know-"

"We've been working together for about four months now. I've been keeping tabs on you while they took their sweet time getting here," she said.

"So….does that mean that you're not human too?" I asked.

"Yep. Do you remember the little gray kitten that followed you home last week?" she asked.

"That was you?" I asked. She smiled and nodded. "I'm a shape shifter myself and I also hunt these guys," she said, nodding in Argento's direction, "but not as often as Nero does. Oh and by the way I cleaned up all the glass you guys shattered. Why did you guys have to make such a mess?"

Argento ignored the question. "Speaking of hunting, we should get going."

"Huh? But I have to-"I started to say.

Argento snarled. "You apparently don't understand the situation. We are now being hunted by the Nadarians. For every breath we waste explaining the situation to you, they are regrouping. They'll attack again before nightfall. If we don't get to a safe place by then, we're all dead."

"But where can we go?" I asked.

"We can't go to your house," Nero said. "That'll be one of their targets for sure."

"What about my house?" Azzurra suggested.

Argento shook his head. "Your place will most likely be targeted as well. We'll have to go to my house."

"Why?" I asked. "What makes your house so safe?"

Argento smirked. "Where we're going, the Nadarians won't be able to follow." ~

~ We traveled through the dense forest. Argento lead the way followed by the rest of us since we had no idea where we going.

"How far is you house?" Nero asked. "We've been walking for hours!"

Argento rolled his eyes. "We're almost there, and it's only been three hours so stop complaining."

"Well, where are we going anyways? It seems to me like we've been walking in circles," I said.

"Well you don't want the Nadarians to find us so my way is better," Argento said.

"You still didn't answer my question," I said.

"There is a small pool of water about a quarter of a mile from here and-"he started.

"Oh, I think I know where that is. I used to walk back here when I was restless. I used to stop by the pool and just kinda meditate there. We are definitely not taking the shortest route there though," I said.

"Well if you think know the way better, why don't you lead?" Argento said.

"Maybe I will," I said. I shot him a glare. I caught up to him but didn't necessarily go ahead of him. I hadn't visited the pond in a while but remembered most of the pathway there and didn't want any blame put on me for taking a wrong turn.

Argento caught my eye and he started to walk faster. Again my eyes flashed a warning.

Two can play as this game, I thought.

However Argento beat me to it. He stuck his foot out in front of me. I picked up my right foot, but unfortunately forgot to pick up my left foot. As I started to fall I turned and grabbed his shirt, pulling him down with me.

I'm not gonna let him get off that easy.

We hit the ground with a loud thud. Of course he had to land on top of me. I stared at him with thundering eyes. He however did something I did not expect. He started laughing.

"What are you laughing at?" I said. This apparently caused him to laugh harder. Nero and Azzurra walked by us. This was the first time I noticed the two were holding hands. Nero whispered something to Azzurra which made her giggle.

"So you two love birds coming or what?" Nero said.

Argento immediately stopped laughing and got off me. He was clearly irritated at what Nero had just implied. I stood up and tried to hide the blush that had crept across my face. I shook my head trying to clear my thoughts due the strange incident.

"Come on, we'd better catch up or they'll definitely go the wrong way," Argento said. "And if that happens we'll have to chase the stupid idiots down."

"So…why were you laughing anyways?" I asked him. I felt a little dumb for asking such a weird question.

"Oh that," he paused "Well I guess it's because I thought it was quite immature of you to try to drag me down with you. I found it humorous in a way."

I raised an eyebrow. "You make no sense sometimes," I said.

"Like you make any sense to me?" he asked.

"Huh?" I said.

"Now let me ask you a question. Why are you so hostile towards me?" he asked.

"Ah-"I stopped. I had actually started to argue before I fully understood the question. "I----uhh---ummm…." I trailed off.

"It's okay, I'm used to it. I've been used to it for the past hundred years," he said. He started to walk away from me. Then he stopped. "The question you have to ask yourself is…do you hate me simply because I'm a vampire…or is it because you're afraid of getting too close to people and being hurt by them? Sometimes it's easier to swim with the current of the river, rather than against it."

I looked down at the ground. He certainly had me there. He started to walk off. I thought about his words for a little while before gathering up the courage to catch up to him. As I walked beside him his words kept coming back into my head like an endless echo.

Maybe I should be a little bit nicer to him, I thought.

"We're here," Argento said.

There before us stood a small but deep pool of crystal blue water. It looked like the opening of a small volcano although we were all pretty sure it was not going to erupt anytime soon. Argento waded into the water.

"Make sure you take a deep breath before you go under," he said. All of us nodded. Nero followed after Argento, then Azzurra, and finally me. The underwater tunnel that we followed had black smooth walls. The water was so clear I could even see the bottom of the tunnel. I was almost out of breath when I saw light shimmering above the surface of the water. When I popped my head out of the water I realized I was in a cave. We dried ourselves off as best as we could and then Argento started to lead us out of the cave. Near the entrance of the cave, was a sloping cliff. The sun caused the mica in the granite stone to twinkle. In the distance there was a small forest surrounded by a field of tall wheat. A large black house stood in the middle of the majestic scenery.

"That's your house?" I asked.

Argento simply nodded. ~

~ The sun was starting to set when we reached the front door. The exterior of the house was made of black stone and stood two stories tall. I noticed immediately that there were no windows, at least in the front of the house. We walked in and Argento locked the door behind us. The interior was nothing like the gloomy exterior of the house. The floors were a swirl of white and black marble. The staircase had two magnificent white columns that reminded me of those in ancient Rome. Crimson drapes cradled the walls where the windows should have been. There was a kitchen made entirely of black marble. A larger room had a white couch and a small glass table. Next to it was a smaller room with a large glass table. A few red and white candles were burning on the table. I watched as the wax oozed slowly onto the transparent surface.

"If you're hungry there is a bit of food in the fridge. We should all probably get some sleep though," Argento said. "There are three rooms upstairs and one downstairs. I really hope we didn't attract anyone's attention on our way here. I don't want to have to deal with any Nadarians tonight."

"If any Nadarians do show up, I'll blow their freaking heads off," Nero said as he walked upstairs.

"He gets like that when he's really tired…and hungry," Azzura whispered.

"Then why doesn't he eat something?" I asked.

"Cuz I don't feel like it," Nero mumbled.

I rolled my eyes.

Azzura giggled. "See what I mean? Well, I'm gonna go get something to eat. Want something?" she asked.

"No, I'm fine. Thanks anyways," I said. Azzura disappeared into the kitchen. A few minutes later I saw her go upstairs. After standing there for a few minutes I realized my legs started to tremble. It had been a long walk to Argento's house and I was beginning to feel exhausted. I was about to leave but then I remembered something.

"Thank you," I said to Argento. I thought he didn't hear me but as I walked past him I heard him whisper "You're welcome."