Underworld 2
Pt.4
Hesper was still curled into a ball when the men in black rushed the kitchen. These were not Michael or his mate. She stared at the guns they leveled at her and it seemed forever that she watched them. She caught movement out of the corner of her eye and was thrown across the room as something huge and furry hit her.
**
Michael stood next to Selene as they watched the liar entrance. They had both watched the Death Dealers go inside. They had both heard the shouting and the gunfire. Neither one had moved. It was times like this when Michael's vampire nature won out. He felt nothing as he heard the snarls and sounds of death. It seemed so right. But it wasn't. Unwillingly, Hesper's face had come to mind and was hanging on him a mace and chain.
"Michael," Selene's tone was distant. "Don't go in there."
He nodded but said nothing. Selene sighed and hooked her arm through his. Guiding him none too gently away.
"She is dead now." Selene whispered and Michael only nodded.
**
Hesper looked up into black eyes and didn't recognize them. She heard the snap and click of cartridges moments before they opened fire. The wolf jerked with each round they hit him with. Hesper kicked him off and scrambled to her feet.
Running down the halls proved to be terrifying; she couldn't see through the darkness so she was lost. Her feet kept slipping on dark liquids. There was no end to it. She ran for what seemed miles, and could have been. Her hands black with dirt and gunk when she finally was forced to stop. Her knees hit the ground and the pain brought fresh tears to her eyes.
A finite sense of dread and loss seized her whole body. There were no waves of anything, no pulsing rushes. Just that razor sharp pain of complete desolation and all she could do was close her eyes.
"For all the trouble you have caused me, I was thinking of just killing you."
Hesper didn't respond to the accented roll of Kraven. His guards hit her to the ground and snapped silver cuffs onto her skin. The warm bite only sank her further and further into despair.
"She's unresponsive, Sir."
Kraven appeared in her tunnel of vision and she as again surprised at his beauty. His dark eyes turned blue as he watched. "Get her out of here. We need to complete the process."
Hesper felt a familiar presence. It was Raze. She knew what he wanted, lifting her head as she was pulled to her feet, she met his eyes in the dark and shook her head. He stepped further into the shadows.
**
The nightmare had changed again; it was no longer Selene but Hesper. It was no longer his lover who was dying, but his sister. Michael's role stayed the same. He would always arrive too late to save her.
Micael forced himself to wake up; his hands found Selene's cool body and he sighed. Rolling to watch her, he smiled. Selene could take care of herself. She would not wait for anyone to save her. Michael kissed her and got out of bed.
The safe house was thick with the sound of emptiness. There was nothing to do and no one to talk to. Michael found himself staring at the room Hesper had used. He could still catch her scent in the room. Unlike Selene, Hesper wasn't much for staying strong. She broke like a fine thread if pulled too hard. There were moments when she could fight back, like she had with that werewolf. But those were rare moments indeed. She was brought up to be that way. Michael's father had ingrained her in the fact that she was only half worth of anything.
For years Michael had tried to think if something to reverse those thoughts. But Hesper was always beyond his reach. Until now. He sat up and stared at the space around him. Now he could reach her, she was Lycan and so was he. They were family now, and in this family, that meant a lot. He didn't bother with a coat as he ran from the safe house and into the gray sunlight.
Hesper stirred just below full awareness; her skin itched as though fire ants were crawling over it. Opening her eyes took so much effort and she wasn't rewarded for it. Once again, she was chained to the floor, seated on her knees. Only this time there was no Michael to save her. She didn't have the will to cry so she went unconscious again.
Khan watched the girl from the two-way mirror. She had stirred once in ten hours and had nothing. Kraven had insisted that she be woken when the clock hit the twelve hour mark. No one knew if it was the drugs they had given her or something else. Khan thought it was something else. They had given her drugs to relax her not make her comatose. He himself had a very good idea of what it was. The answer swelled in him like a black balloon, he popped it with a stubborn shift in his thoughts. Turning away from the mirror he focused on the survivors.
Michael gazed at the pool of water; it was no longer red but greenish-gray. The half fallen timbers still lay absently; there was still the hole in the wall. Everything was the same. He heard the footfall and turned to see Raze in human form. Michael held up his hands.
"I am here for the same reason you are."
Raze stopped, watching him.
"It's about Hesper."
"Who?"
Michael realized she would have used a different name. "The girl who looks like me," Michael saw the flash of recognition. "I am here about her. Selene and I didn't take her, you know that much."
Raze nodded slowly.
"I want to find her as much as you do."
"Why?"
"Because she's…." Should he tell him? "She's my sister."
Raze's eyes widened, "Corvin like you?"
"Half Corvin. There a chance she never even got the virus."
"Which half?"
Michael frowned, "What do you mean?"
"Is she your mothers half or your father's half?"
"Mother's." The word came out tight and Michael felt the memory push up from the depths. He stomped on it. "Why do you ask?"
"The Corvin gene is passed through men only. That's why we never tested any women."
"So she doesn't have the gene." The flood of relief that came over him was startling. "But Kraven will kill her anyway." Michael paused. "Raze, do you love my sister?"
The werewolf glared at him, "What?"
"Do you care for her?"
"Why?"
"Do you?" Michael pressed him.
Raze was quiet for a long time, "Yes."
"Good. Then hear me out. Hesper has nothing in this world other then me and now you. I want to help her feel like she has a family. I can't give her that with what Selene and I have, so I am asking you to do it for me."
Raze blinked at him, "Me? How?
"Someone has to lead what is left of you. Lucian did it. You could if you wanted to."
"What about Hesper? What about Kraven? He killed Lucian. I won't stop until I have his head."
"Listen, in order to strike against the vampires. You need to have an army, a force to strike with. That takes time to build. Time you have."
Raze watched him wearily, "Hesper is infected she won't live that long."
"She might just surprise you. If Hesper know she is cared for, she caned do many things." Michael continued. "After you have said army, you can go up against Kraven."
"What about you and Selene? What is to stop you from coming after us?"
"I'll talk with her."
"Selene has spent her life wiping us out."
"But now she knows the truth. Now she knows it was Victor who started it."
Raze sighed, "Maybe."
Michael lowered his hands. "I'll find Hesper-"
"No! I know where she is." Raze snapped and his deep voice echoed off the walls. "I will find her. You will keep the vampires distracted."
Michael surprised the urge to smile and instead he nodded. "Fine."
Hesper surfaced because she was hungry. Her body craved warm food and hot liquids. Her muscles trembled with it. It was only then she realized she had been moved. The room was no longer dark, but huge. No longer small but grand. Intricate tile work created a complex scene she couldn't make out. Wrought bronze work, glittered darkly and she followed the work to the base of a huge stone chair. A lovely man sat before her. He wore leather pants with solid boots and a glorious full coat with a high necked collar. The embroidery was astounding and so was the man. His chest was chiseled and muscular. He clearly had a six pack going on and his cinnamon-brown hair was thick and silken. The blue eyes that stared at her were vampire eyes and not his own. The color melted away and revealed rich brown eyes.
"You are a Corvin," His tone was accented softly, "But you are not a true Corvin."
Hesper watched him, "So?"
"I am a true Corvin," he snapped and leaned toward her. Hesper had been closer then she realized. "Do you know who I am?"
"That is so cliché," Hesper didn't understand why she suddenly felt compelled to be chatty. "Let me guess, you're Santa Clause?"
He hissed and his hand snapped her head to the side. The pain was the stinging kind, the kind that lasts for a long time. "You are boorish. But you are a Lycan so we cannot expect much more."
"Why don't we just cut the chit chat then?" Hesper snapped. "Who are you and why should I care?"
"I am Marcus." He said it as if the world would bow to him.
"Fascinating," Hesper falsely enthused, "Now I can go home really happy because I met Marcus."
He cuffed her again. "I should not expect someone of your breed to understand."
"Then stop hitting me about it." Hesper snapped. "Why are we even talking? You don't like me and I don't like you, so let's just call it off and go home."
"Your brother has broken our most sacred of rules." Marcus sat back in his chair. "He is the reason we have lived by our code for 12 centuries"
Hesper thought of a few retorts but kept them to herself. "What does this have to do with me?"
"Nothing. Now that I have met you, you aren't worth anything."
Hesper drew in a sharp breath as that as tears unexpectedly fell. Her desolation arose renewed and she didn't fight it.
Raze watched the perimeter of the house and felt Michael return. "Well?"
"I can't find her. She's in there though."
"Perhaps they have her in a different area?"
Michael was quiet for a moment, "Do you hear that?"
They both listened and heard the march of footsteps, "Death Dealers." Raze whispered. "Hesper is with them."
"What say we get her out then?"
Michael and Raze both left the shadows, charging across the yard like not so white knights.
Pt.4
Hesper was still curled into a ball when the men in black rushed the kitchen. These were not Michael or his mate. She stared at the guns they leveled at her and it seemed forever that she watched them. She caught movement out of the corner of her eye and was thrown across the room as something huge and furry hit her.
**
Michael stood next to Selene as they watched the liar entrance. They had both watched the Death Dealers go inside. They had both heard the shouting and the gunfire. Neither one had moved. It was times like this when Michael's vampire nature won out. He felt nothing as he heard the snarls and sounds of death. It seemed so right. But it wasn't. Unwillingly, Hesper's face had come to mind and was hanging on him a mace and chain.
"Michael," Selene's tone was distant. "Don't go in there."
He nodded but said nothing. Selene sighed and hooked her arm through his. Guiding him none too gently away.
"She is dead now." Selene whispered and Michael only nodded.
**
Hesper looked up into black eyes and didn't recognize them. She heard the snap and click of cartridges moments before they opened fire. The wolf jerked with each round they hit him with. Hesper kicked him off and scrambled to her feet.
Running down the halls proved to be terrifying; she couldn't see through the darkness so she was lost. Her feet kept slipping on dark liquids. There was no end to it. She ran for what seemed miles, and could have been. Her hands black with dirt and gunk when she finally was forced to stop. Her knees hit the ground and the pain brought fresh tears to her eyes.
A finite sense of dread and loss seized her whole body. There were no waves of anything, no pulsing rushes. Just that razor sharp pain of complete desolation and all she could do was close her eyes.
"For all the trouble you have caused me, I was thinking of just killing you."
Hesper didn't respond to the accented roll of Kraven. His guards hit her to the ground and snapped silver cuffs onto her skin. The warm bite only sank her further and further into despair.
"She's unresponsive, Sir."
Kraven appeared in her tunnel of vision and she as again surprised at his beauty. His dark eyes turned blue as he watched. "Get her out of here. We need to complete the process."
Hesper felt a familiar presence. It was Raze. She knew what he wanted, lifting her head as she was pulled to her feet, she met his eyes in the dark and shook her head. He stepped further into the shadows.
**
The nightmare had changed again; it was no longer Selene but Hesper. It was no longer his lover who was dying, but his sister. Michael's role stayed the same. He would always arrive too late to save her.
Micael forced himself to wake up; his hands found Selene's cool body and he sighed. Rolling to watch her, he smiled. Selene could take care of herself. She would not wait for anyone to save her. Michael kissed her and got out of bed.
The safe house was thick with the sound of emptiness. There was nothing to do and no one to talk to. Michael found himself staring at the room Hesper had used. He could still catch her scent in the room. Unlike Selene, Hesper wasn't much for staying strong. She broke like a fine thread if pulled too hard. There were moments when she could fight back, like she had with that werewolf. But those were rare moments indeed. She was brought up to be that way. Michael's father had ingrained her in the fact that she was only half worth of anything.
For years Michael had tried to think if something to reverse those thoughts. But Hesper was always beyond his reach. Until now. He sat up and stared at the space around him. Now he could reach her, she was Lycan and so was he. They were family now, and in this family, that meant a lot. He didn't bother with a coat as he ran from the safe house and into the gray sunlight.
Hesper stirred just below full awareness; her skin itched as though fire ants were crawling over it. Opening her eyes took so much effort and she wasn't rewarded for it. Once again, she was chained to the floor, seated on her knees. Only this time there was no Michael to save her. She didn't have the will to cry so she went unconscious again.
Khan watched the girl from the two-way mirror. She had stirred once in ten hours and had nothing. Kraven had insisted that she be woken when the clock hit the twelve hour mark. No one knew if it was the drugs they had given her or something else. Khan thought it was something else. They had given her drugs to relax her not make her comatose. He himself had a very good idea of what it was. The answer swelled in him like a black balloon, he popped it with a stubborn shift in his thoughts. Turning away from the mirror he focused on the survivors.
Michael gazed at the pool of water; it was no longer red but greenish-gray. The half fallen timbers still lay absently; there was still the hole in the wall. Everything was the same. He heard the footfall and turned to see Raze in human form. Michael held up his hands.
"I am here for the same reason you are."
Raze stopped, watching him.
"It's about Hesper."
"Who?"
Michael realized she would have used a different name. "The girl who looks like me," Michael saw the flash of recognition. "I am here about her. Selene and I didn't take her, you know that much."
Raze nodded slowly.
"I want to find her as much as you do."
"Why?"
"Because she's…." Should he tell him? "She's my sister."
Raze's eyes widened, "Corvin like you?"
"Half Corvin. There a chance she never even got the virus."
"Which half?"
Michael frowned, "What do you mean?"
"Is she your mothers half or your father's half?"
"Mother's." The word came out tight and Michael felt the memory push up from the depths. He stomped on it. "Why do you ask?"
"The Corvin gene is passed through men only. That's why we never tested any women."
"So she doesn't have the gene." The flood of relief that came over him was startling. "But Kraven will kill her anyway." Michael paused. "Raze, do you love my sister?"
The werewolf glared at him, "What?"
"Do you care for her?"
"Why?"
"Do you?" Michael pressed him.
Raze was quiet for a long time, "Yes."
"Good. Then hear me out. Hesper has nothing in this world other then me and now you. I want to help her feel like she has a family. I can't give her that with what Selene and I have, so I am asking you to do it for me."
Raze blinked at him, "Me? How?
"Someone has to lead what is left of you. Lucian did it. You could if you wanted to."
"What about Hesper? What about Kraven? He killed Lucian. I won't stop until I have his head."
"Listen, in order to strike against the vampires. You need to have an army, a force to strike with. That takes time to build. Time you have."
Raze watched him wearily, "Hesper is infected she won't live that long."
"She might just surprise you. If Hesper know she is cared for, she caned do many things." Michael continued. "After you have said army, you can go up against Kraven."
"What about you and Selene? What is to stop you from coming after us?"
"I'll talk with her."
"Selene has spent her life wiping us out."
"But now she knows the truth. Now she knows it was Victor who started it."
Raze sighed, "Maybe."
Michael lowered his hands. "I'll find Hesper-"
"No! I know where she is." Raze snapped and his deep voice echoed off the walls. "I will find her. You will keep the vampires distracted."
Michael surprised the urge to smile and instead he nodded. "Fine."
Hesper surfaced because she was hungry. Her body craved warm food and hot liquids. Her muscles trembled with it. It was only then she realized she had been moved. The room was no longer dark, but huge. No longer small but grand. Intricate tile work created a complex scene she couldn't make out. Wrought bronze work, glittered darkly and she followed the work to the base of a huge stone chair. A lovely man sat before her. He wore leather pants with solid boots and a glorious full coat with a high necked collar. The embroidery was astounding and so was the man. His chest was chiseled and muscular. He clearly had a six pack going on and his cinnamon-brown hair was thick and silken. The blue eyes that stared at her were vampire eyes and not his own. The color melted away and revealed rich brown eyes.
"You are a Corvin," His tone was accented softly, "But you are not a true Corvin."
Hesper watched him, "So?"
"I am a true Corvin," he snapped and leaned toward her. Hesper had been closer then she realized. "Do you know who I am?"
"That is so cliché," Hesper didn't understand why she suddenly felt compelled to be chatty. "Let me guess, you're Santa Clause?"
He hissed and his hand snapped her head to the side. The pain was the stinging kind, the kind that lasts for a long time. "You are boorish. But you are a Lycan so we cannot expect much more."
"Why don't we just cut the chit chat then?" Hesper snapped. "Who are you and why should I care?"
"I am Marcus." He said it as if the world would bow to him.
"Fascinating," Hesper falsely enthused, "Now I can go home really happy because I met Marcus."
He cuffed her again. "I should not expect someone of your breed to understand."
"Then stop hitting me about it." Hesper snapped. "Why are we even talking? You don't like me and I don't like you, so let's just call it off and go home."
"Your brother has broken our most sacred of rules." Marcus sat back in his chair. "He is the reason we have lived by our code for 12 centuries"
Hesper thought of a few retorts but kept them to herself. "What does this have to do with me?"
"Nothing. Now that I have met you, you aren't worth anything."
Hesper drew in a sharp breath as that as tears unexpectedly fell. Her desolation arose renewed and she didn't fight it.
Raze watched the perimeter of the house and felt Michael return. "Well?"
"I can't find her. She's in there though."
"Perhaps they have her in a different area?"
Michael was quiet for a moment, "Do you hear that?"
They both listened and heard the march of footsteps, "Death Dealers." Raze whispered. "Hesper is with them."
"What say we get her out then?"
Michael and Raze both left the shadows, charging across the yard like not so white knights.