A few guardians stayed back at the crime scene to analyze who was attacked and keep watch over the captives. The rest of us went in the direction of the Strigoi, who were supposedly taking refuge in a few dark cabins inside the woods. The terrain was rocky and ragged, and we had to be careful to avoid any twigs, though it wouldn't have made much of a difference. Every once in a while, the image of the scattered bodies began to play in my mind and it empowered me, knowing who did this, and we had to kill every last one of them. Or at least, I did.

I was breathing rapidly, but I kept my mind clear. We plunged deeper into the black forest, the sunrise giving some kind of substantial light for others who couldn't see well. The Strigoi couldn't escape the cabins at this point, which meant they couldn't get far. As I thought about it more, the records had said that there were lots of dhampirs and humans. Back there, there had been only been 10. Which meant that they left behind the weak ones to do god knows what, and they took the stronger ones with them. So that meant that they did have some forces to attack us with outside the cabins...

As I came to that conclusion, which I'm sure many other people had, 2 dhampirs jumped out of nearby bushes with knives. They attacked 2 guardians and a moroi magic user in the middle, but the guardians were able to kick the knife out of the dhampirs hand and knock them out. The magic user, who specialized in fire, dodged the other dhampir's swing and set his arm on fire. The man fell to the ground, clutching his arm as he tried for another swing. The moroi girl had been too focused on her magic to see it coming, and he was able to get a cut on her cheek. She punched him and he fell to the ground, unconscious. The guardians had tried to see her wound but she pushed them away, saying "I signed up for this. I shouldn't expect any less."

This ambush gave a perfect distraction for the next. Three humans jumped off of the trees in front of our group, two with swords and one with a gun. Dimitri immediately reached for his gun and shot the humans arm, causing him to lose his grip on the gun. He then lunged for him, trying to take the gun from him and detain him. I, meanwhile, dodged the two human's attacks and managed to seize one girl, while the other boy was being surrounded with water, which covered the sword he had been holding and threw it to the ground. The water then circled his head and began to suffocate him as two other guardians knocked him out. Water magic.

We moved faster towards what looked like a house. As we got closer, there were multiple, made out of log and they were pretty tiny. The windows were blacked out, and we knew we hit jackpot. Two groups circled the houses, rendering it clear before we blocked all means of entry and immediately busted in. Then chaos had started. None of us had even waited a nanosecond before we plunged and began to fight the targets in front of us.

Everything was a blur. I heard glass shattering and felt lots of heat as fire was being thrown and caught all around me. I heard screams of agony and watched as bodies dropped to the floor, one by one. Whether they were Strigoi, Guardians, or Moroi, I couldn't tell. All I focused on was killing the enemy. The ones who killed all those people... I whispered to myself as I remembered that image. The occasional flash of light and sobbing occured around me, which meant we had saved many people. I was so focused on the sensory around me that I hadn't noticed the Strigoi in front of me hit me like a fly, sending me flying out the window.

I landed on my back, in extreme pain. I forced myself to get up regardless, and I staggered in my step. My head was whirring as my eyes tried to focus. I saw a tall figure jump in front of me and immediately take out the Strigoi that was advancing. I managed a weak smile as I knew who that tall figure was, and I was finally able to focus my eyes and get back into action. I helped Dimitri stake the Strigoi that had attacked me, and we parted ways to fight others. One came at me from my left and I dodged, managing to grab him and stake him in the chest with ease. He was obviously new. Another came at me from my back and I fell to the ground as he punched my shoulder with such a great force it hurt badly. I got up without thinking and turned around. He attempted another hit. I moved to the side and seized his arm, trying to stake him while he was open, but he had however caught me. He grabbed my shoulder and tilted my neck as he tried to bring his mouth closer, but then he caught on fire.

He let go of me and began to scream. The fire encircled him and fell to his knees, trying to get it off of him. I looked up at a fire user, who was focusing all his energy on keeping the fire. I took the opportunity to stake the Strigoi, and he fell as the flames dissolved. I gave the fire user a nod of a thank you, and he nodded too. I continued staking. I'm not sure how many Strigoi I took down, but at this point I wasn't aware of my surroundings. It was just me and my target as I took them down one by one with no hesitation.

Pain from earlier injuries finally caught up to me and I decided to go help other guardians with the restored people and the dhampir and human captives. We rallied them into some of the SUV's, and gave some comfort to the restored souls. I looked back at the forest and there were still some Guardians and Moroi fighting a small group of Strigoi. I ran over to Dimitri who was fighting two Strigoi on his own and decided to help him. I creeped behind the Strigoi in front of Dimitri and I think he realized I was behind him. He swung his hand behind him, aiming for me, and I grabbed it and twisted it. He flinched and I tried to Stake him as he swung for me again. I ended up being flung against a tree. I aimed for him again, but he was gone once I got up.

I watched as Dimitri finished off his target in a lethal dance. He took my breath away, or maybe it was me beginning to pass out. I wasn't sure. My eyes were drooping before I felt a hand swung around me and pull me close. "Roza... Stay awake." his warm voice whispered as he helped me up. I felt his hand pull my hair from my face as he sat me down near a tree. "Stay here." he said before he walked toward the SUV's, helping them get the captives in and talking to other Guardians. I smiled weakly and tried to steady my breathing. I took seriously hard hits from them, they were so strong..

I wasn't sure what happened soon after, but I woke up in a flash as a strong hand seized my shoulder. I was about to say Dimitri, but there was a different feeling to this hand.. It was cold, and the way it seized my shoulder was as if it wanted to prevent me from moving. It succeeded. I tried to say something but before I could it lifted me up with such extreme force I felt as if my arm was going to be dislocated from my body. I managed to glance at the face, and it was the same Strigoi I had failed to kill not too long ago. I opened my mouth to scream and tried reaching for my stake, but it was too late. The other hand tilted my head and it dug its fangs in my neck. I managed to whisper something, but it was barely audible. "No..." The endorphins filled me in such a drug-filled haze I didn't even understand what was happening.

The sweet, bliss feeling transformed into excruciating pain. I let out a bloodcurdling scream as I tried to pull away. I was completely helpless, unable to move any of my limbs. In front of my bleary eyes I could see a tall figure immediately get up and run towards me, yelling something I couldn't understand. He ran at a pace that was so fast, you'd think he was a god. My vision blurred even more, and I could only feel my heels drag against the soft brown soil as I watched the figure get distant, but it kept getting caught up. Soon, my 5 senses were on full alert but I was still in the most pain anyone could be in as I felt the blood retreat from my veins all the way up to my neck. "Dimitri!" I screamed so loud, but I choked. "Rose! Rose no! Rose!" he was yelling, tears streaking his face. I was sobbing, knowing exactly what was happening now. I didn't want to leave him. "Dimitri! No!" Soon, I couldn't feel anything at all. My heart ached. But not because I was almost dead, it was because I was leaving him. I was being ripped from his arms. I took my last breath, whispering so quietly, Dimitri...

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Yeah.. I'm horrible. Sorry guys. I really hope you enjoyed this chapter, considering my other one's were short and didn't have the cliffhanger of a lifetime as I tried to make this one have. I'm going to try to update soon, but I have midterms starting tomorrow so it's not a promise I'm willing to make. I will try my best to write between study sessions however, so that's good, I guess. See you guys later!