Ren had been extra careful the past few weeks - cleaning excessively, finding new and more elaborate places to hide the contents of the brief case, and the brief case itself. She had even had to instigate the street brawl so she would have time to get the final piece of her harvest. "If they would have stayed away for another few days…" she mumbled, the image of Abel and Esther filling her mind as she jogged to the small pine cove that served as a graveyard on the east end of town.

Ren scowled. She knew she didn't have long before the meddling priest placed all the pieces of the puzzle together. Time was of the essence, and as the sun slowly dipped down behind the mountains to the west she knew she was running out of it.

Once she had reached the cove, Ren rushed over to a thorn bush and pulled out a shovel. Earlier that morning, when everyone, even the nosey priest, was still sleeping in their beds, she had taken everything she needed to the abandoned warehouse at the end of town. There was only one more thing she required now.

She swung the grass patch back, and lifted the mounds of rags, and any other type of foam or cloth that lay there, out. Dirt flew as Ren rapidly scooped the remaining earth off of Aeron's grave. She had been working tirelessly for the past few weeks on the six feet of soil, so only a few inches remained, and it was no time at all before the metal head of the shovel clunked against the wooden casket.

Smoothing away the rest of the dirt until she found the clasp to the lid, Ren lifted the heavy, decorated, wooden plank. Seconds passed as she stared at his face. It was even paler now, the months he had been underground and shut within the tight, dark coffin was taking its toll. At first the stiff body was awkward to move, but once set in the correct position, lying across her back, Ren was bounding off at the same pace with which she had arrived. She assumed the body was going to be heavy, but, on the contrary, it felt almost weightless. It must have been her eagerness to start that caused her to summon the abnormal strength she now felt.

It was easy enough to weave in and out of the shadows on the outskirts of town. By now a limited number of people would be in the streets, and any that were, weren't going to be strolling down dark, back alleys.

The worn down warehouse stood eerily in the setting sun as Ren approached and kicked down the lean-to boards she had placed over one of the entrances. She walked over to the center of the dusty building and tenderly placed Aeron on the cement floor.

Breathless, but knowing there was no time for rest, Ren ran to a small crate to her left and drug it across the floor. Clanking sounded as she removed the multiple jars from within, unscrewing the caps, and removing the various organs that they contained – still fresh from stewing in the blood of the victims from which they had come. She carefully placed each organ on top of Aeron's lifeless body in the exact position in which they would be in a living human's body. Afterwards she took the vile of vampire's blood and poured it in the outline of Aeron's body and onto the organs that sat atop it. Finally, Ren unfolded the cloth that held the skin. She placed the fragile shell on the body, organs, and blood. Stepping back to make sure everything was in proper order; Ren reached in the crate and took out one final instrument, a thick, white piece of chalk.

Carefully, but assuredly, Ren first drew an inner circle around Aeron, only inches away from where the blood pooled and glistened in the late evening sun that streaked through some of the boarded windows of the warehouse. She continued around that circle, drawing a layer of both geometric shapes and strange symbols that could only be described as squiggly lines with various dots and streaks through them. About five more layers were added around Aeron before Ren stopped and rolled the chalk across the floor, away from the completed series of circles.

Ren breathed a sigh and wiped the film of sweat that coated her brow. The complicated work was done, now all that was needed was to activate the transmutation. She reached over to the black coat – she had brought it, along with a simple pair of pants and a shirt, for Aeron to wear once he came back – and extracted the sharp blade of a dagger, about six inches in length, from one of the pockets. Ren took a deep breath and gritted her teeth as she carved a symbol into the surface of her left hand, and then the right. Throwing the knife to the side once she had finished, Ren flexed her hands before taking one final breath and slapping them, palm down, against the floor atop two similar marks she had drawn with the chalk.

At first, nothing seemed to happen, but after a few, agonizing seconds, Ren's arms pricked, and pain shot through her hands to her shoulder blades. The marks and circles glowed brightly, projecting off the floor into the air. A small crackle snapped through the room, getting progressively more intense as the process continued. Ren's hair and the edges of her clothes floated around her with the electricity in the air. She squeezed her eyes shut as the purple and white lightning became brighter and more severe, all sense of feeling and time lost as the intensive air engulfed the room with one final burst.


The sky had ceased to flash and crack by the time that Abel and Esther reached the vicinity of the warehouse. When they reached its front the only movement they could detect was from the other members of the church that, no doubt, had noticed the light and run to it as well. Amadea stood a few feet to Abel's left, her face stern as she held a gun in her right hand, her left signaling to the others to surround the warehouse so that there could be no escape.


Even with her eyelids shut tightly, the bright flash of light had stung. Little by little, allowing her sight to adjust to the now darker scene, Ren opened her eyes. It took a while to focus, but as soon as she had, tears sprang forth and flowed down her face, dripping on the floor and the tops of her hands that still rested on the cold concrete.

He sat there, eyes squinting, shoulders hunched, and ruffling his hair with his one arm like he had just woken up from a nap. His voice, though soft and low, came out clearly. "Ren? Wha-"

But he had no time to complete his thought. "Aeron!" He was swiftly enveloped in Ren's arms. "You're back!" Ren choked out as she buried her face deep into his chest.

"I went somewhere?" Aeron seemed entirely confused, but didn't dwell on it as he wrapped his own arms around Ren's shaking shoulders. "I can't leave you alone for a second, can I?" He gave a small chuckle and a gentle smile.

Ren shook her head and sighed in content. But as she sat there in bliss, a nagging thought flew to her mind. The light couldn't have gone unnoticed. They were probably on their way. She bolted upright and hurried over to the clothes and jacket that lay on the floor only a few feet away; quickly picking them up and rushing back over to Aeron.

"Here, I brought these for you. We need to get going." Ren tugged urgently on his arm as soon as he was dressed, but he didn't budge from where he now stood.

"Go where? Ren, what's wrong?" He looked at her in bewilderment and worry, and then at himself and their surroundings. "What are we doing in the old warehouse? And why was I naked?"

"Later. We have to leave, now! Please!" She pulled on his arm more persistently this time, dragging him towards the opening she had come through earlier and speaking more desperately. "Please!"

"Ren!"

Ren jumped at the sound of the voice that called her name. They were already here.

"Is that the Bishop?" Aeron noticed Ren look frantically around her. "What are you so worried about? Let's go say hi. Apparently I haven't been around for a while...though I can't exactly remember what I've been doing." He scratched his head before shrugging and ambling out of the warehouse.

"Wait! Damn it, Aeron…." He didn't remember death, didn't even remember his encounter with it. The soul started to forget the most recent thoughts when the body had died. She wasn't planning on telling him the truth, just a simple cover story that he would surely believe. But if he found out what really happened now, what would happen? The man, the one who had given her the book and the beginning of the method that had brought Aeron back, had mentioned that the news could cause any sort of reaction: his body could become unstable and the soul could release, or he could be perfectly fine. The results were unknown as none of the previous tries with this sort of thing had been successful. Ren was so unsure about what would transpire; she didn't want to lose him again if there happened to be a negative effect. She faltered for a few moments before grabbing the discarded dagger, placing it in a pocket of her cloak, and rushing after him.


"Ren, please come out! We don't want to have to use force!" Amadea sighed in exasperation. Surely Ren wouldn't give up so easily, but she hoped with all her heart it wouldn't come down to having to harm, or worse, kill, the young woman.

A nun that stood on the far end of the warehouse gasped and dropped her gun, her hands flying to her mouth, her eyes wide with shock. Amadea couldn't see anything and held her grip firm on her firearm, pointing it in the direction of the shaken nun. A few of the other members of the church that were in the same area gasped and wavered as well before the figure appeared completely around the corner out of the shadows.

Aeron strolled past the gaping nuns and priests, giving them a curt nod as he passed, confused by their reactions, but not wanting to be rude. As soon as he spotted Amadea he waved. "Bishop! Long time, no see, I suppose."

Her grip loosened, but she didn't drop the gun. Amadea stood staring in disbelief at Aeron as he approached her in his normal, carefree attitude. "How?"

"How indeed," Aeron retorted playfully. "I always said that warehouse was a hazard, so how did anyone convince me to go in it?"

"Remarkable," said Abel. Esther looked at the priest who had not spoken since their arrival. "She was actually able to do it."

"How are you here? You should be dea-"

"Stop!" Ren's voice shot through the air as she ran to Aeron and hugged him firmly around the waist, pressing her forehead to his back. "Don't tell him…."

"Tell me what?" Aeron asked, puzzled.

"You should be dead," finished Amadea.

Aeron took a sharp intake of breath and held his chest. He gave a weak smile. "That's…not very funny," he said, gasping.

"Sometimes the truth isn't." Amadea said. She had noticed his movements, his reaction to the news that he should be dead. Maybe more detail would cause more to happen, something that would, as much as she hated to think it, save them the trouble of possibly having to kill him again. "Try to remember. It was only seven months ago when it happened, about midnight. You were trying to stop them when they lunged. You felt the teeth first, piercing your skin – your blood boiling with what you were becoming. And then the knife-"

"Stop!" Ren cried for a second time. "Stop! You're killing him again…." Tears streamed down her face as she stooped to the ground, holding Aeron's head against her chest. His knees had given out and he now held his head with both hands, shaking as small streams of blood flowed from his ears, mouth, and nose.

Aeron gave a pained laugh. "I…I remember…but how am I here then? And why does it hurt so much?"

"Because you were brought back unnaturally, against the will of the spirit, though you must have had some longing to come back to life to be walking around now in that body." This time Abel spoke. He kept his attention on Aeron, failing to falter as Ren gave him a sinister glare.

"You say 'that body' like it's some sort of abomination," Aeron grunted as he sat up. "Tell me, mystery priest, do I really look that bad?"

"No, not at all. Handsomer than I imagined, surely, but you're a bit…pieced together is all." Abel replied. Not missing a beat, he continued. "You have Ren to thank for all this, of course. She provided the necessary parts for your untimely come to this earth again. I'm sure you knew the Bohdans, a lovely couple with two children. They provided you with your kidneys, liver, pancreas, and spleen." Aeron's brow furrowed. "Or maybe Dalek, the one who killed you with the dagger? He faced an untimely death shortly after you did."

"What does Ren have to do with any of them and their deaths?" Aeron asked, his brow furrowing.

Abel sighed. "And people told me you were smart. Something must have been lost in the transaction. She killed them, my dear fellow. Is it not obvious?"

"Ren…?" Aeron looked at her.

Ren shook her head. "No…. No! You can't be mad at me too. I tried to find another way, I truly did, but it was the only one. I'm sorry, I'm sorry…."

"Query. Shouldn't you be apologizing to all the people you killed?" Abel said. Esther sighed and whispered to the priest 'Father, I really don't think you should be instigating….'

"Shut up!" Ren's head whipped towards Abel. "This is all your fault!"

"I don't see how," Abel said.

"If you would have just stayed away, we could be gone by now! Everyone could go back to their normal lives and be happy!"

"That's highly unlikely considering you've put a permanent cloak of fear and dread over this town."

Ren bristled. "You don't know what you're talking about. You don't know what it's like to lose someone that meant everything to you! He's back now, and that's all that matters. I won't let anyone take him away again…." A feral glint arose in her eyes as her arm passed quickly to her cloak. She extracted the dagger and threw its sharp blade at Abel's head.

Even though it came as a surprise to Abel, he dodged the dagger swiftly enough that only a few strands of hair became detached rather than the blade lodged in his skull as Ren had surely planned. As the knife clattered to the ground, a shot and gasp of pain rang out in the air.

A small stream of smoke wisped from Amadea's gun, the bullet rolling on the ground and covered in blood from passing through Ren's hand, which she now clutched firmly against her leg to staunch the bleeding. "I'm sorry, Ren, but please don't do this…."

Ren took a deep, ragged breath and gritted her teeth. She glared at Amadea now. "Maybe I should have planted the blade in your skull then," she seethed.

"Ren…how many times have I told you not to be so hasty?" Aeron stood up and faced Amadea. "I'm sorry, Bishop. I know I've been brought back by horrible means…but now that I'm here I can't let you hurt Ren, whether she's done something wrong or not. I would suggest no one shoots again." Amadea looked at Aeron's eyes. They seemed a little more malicious now; the vampire blood, the vampire that he had become before his death, was making him more hostile than normal.

Two more shots pierced the air, both barely missing Aeron's head. His gaze turned to a shaking priest that stood directly behind him in the encasement of church members. In a flash he no longer stood next to Ren, but by the man, whose body collapsed to the ground, his head barely attached, blood spurting from the deep gash in his neck. "I'd rather avoid being hurt as well, if you don't mind."

"O-open fire!" one of the priests shouted.

"No, you fools! I gave no such order!" Amadea boomed. But it was too late; guns were fired from all around the circle. The bullets missed their intended target, as Aeron's speed let him dodge the deadly silver shells, but hit, instead, some of the nuns and priests, their bodies dropping lifelessly to the ground. A light tap sounded behind one of the nuns as Aeron landed, slitting her throat before she could fully turn around.

"This will be simple enough, especially if they all kill each other." Aeron chuckled. "Forgive me, Bishop, it is nothing to laugh at, but that irresistible instinct that insists there be more blood shed seems to be peeking through."

"Then perhaps you would like to fight someone that will satisfy that blood lust of yours?"

Aeron turned to the tall, silver haired priest. He sneered. "And what could you do but provide one more stain to the ground with your blood?"

Abel pushed his glasses up his nose with his index finger, the moonlight shone off of them so that in the place of his eyes there were white circles. "I suppose you'll have to see for yourself…."

Esther's eyes widened. "Father, you're not going to-?!"

Abel gave a sad smile. "It seems to be the only way to get either of them to give up, Miss Esther. Forgive me."

Esther nodded uneasily. "Everyone, you must take cover! Get out of the street!" Amadea and the other members of Saint VincentChurch stared at her in confusion. "Please, listen to me!" Esther shouted again, this time backing up her command with action as she ran over to Ren, and started pulling her out of the way.

"Let go of me!" Ren struggled, hitting the other woman's arm.

"No, you'll get hurt if you just sit there." She ignored Ren's attempts to get her to let go and drug her to the side of the street, Amadea coming to her aid, helping to get the stubborn young woman out of the way. The others followed suit and ran to the opposite end of the street, wary of whatever was to come.

Abel nodded at Esther, then turned his attention back to Aeron, who stared at him curiously, a mock smile still planted on his face. Abel took a deep breath, his next words coming out in a low, even voice.

"Nanomachine 'Crusnik 02' forty-percent limited performance – acknowledged."

Aeron cocked an eyebrow at the priest, and lunged forward. "Fool. Nothing will save you now!"

He was reaching for the priest's throat, when Aeron saw a glint to his left and heard the whipping sound made by a sharp object as it was sliced swiftly through the air. He recovered his footing and leaned backwards the object cutting his cheek, close to his eye, before he was able to fully dodge. Aeron leaped back to get a better view of what had attacked him, but what he saw he did not expect.

The priest, who had looked so harmless before, now stood before him – his blue eyes turned a crimson red, fangs protruding from his lips, his silver hair defying gravity as it flowed upward due to the electrical current that traveled between two black feathered wings that now sprouted form his back, and a scythe, black and sinister, held in his hands.

The smile had disappeared from Aeron's face and he took a step backwards, his eyes narrowing at the site. "What the hell…?"

"Vampires feed on the blood of humans, so wouldn't it make sense that there's something that feeds on the blood of vampires?" Abel smiled hungrily. "I am a Crusnik – a vampire that drinks the blood of other vampires."

"No…." Ren's voice was weak. Esther looked at Ren, who stood to her left, her arm held firmly in Amadea's grasp. "No!" Ren ran forward, but flew back due to the bishop's tight grasp. "Aeron, run! You have to get away!" The man had mentioned this, too, before he had disappeared that night. Aeron would surely die if he didn't run now. "Go!" she screamed as he didn't budge.

"And leave you here? Besides, his image may be a little on the scary side, but I think you give him too much credit. It won't be but a second." Aeron surged forward again, fangs bared, nails extending and sharpening to long, claw-like extensions. He sped through the air, disappearing from the sight of the normal human eye before appearing again behind Abel, swiping for his neck.

Abel stood smiling the whole time, his hand grabbing Aeron's wrist as he swung his hand towards Abel's throat.

"You'll have to do better than that," he growled.

He tightened his grip on Aeron's wrist and whipped him forward. Instead of his back slamming against the cobblestone street, however, Aeron stopped himself, in mid-backbend, his feet landing on the ground, the force of the blow slightly upsetting the packed stones. Spinning himself around, Aeron twisted the winged priest and flung him towards the old warehouse. Abel flew across the air, but before making contact with the decrepit building, Aeron jumped above him and planted a swift, powerful kick to the priest's chest, causing him to hit the wall with double the force, the pressure of the hit causing him to cough up blood.

Aeron landed lightly on the street as the walls of the warehouse collapsed on top of the priest who had shot through them, dust billowing through the air, masking the scene in a cloud of dirt. Aeron stayed tense, senses alert for any sign of movement from the transformed priest. The dust settled, but he stayed on guard. A few of the chunks of debris shifted, which caused Aeron to twitch and glare in their direction. He noticed a small pool of blood that sat around the crumbled remains. Relaxing a little, he smirked.

"Pathetic."

But he spoke too soon as blood flew from two gashes in the shape of an "X" across his chest.

"Ngh!" Aeron clutched at his wounds as he stumbled back, blood trickling from the corners of his mouth. The tell-tale whistling sound of a blade being swung through the air with great force caused Aeron to look up. He leapt to the left, barely dodging the scythe as it hit the ground. He planted his hands on the ground and catapulted himself up, spinning his legs and hitting Abel square in the jaw, which threw him off balance. Aeron kicked again, this time in a downward motion, the priest doing a face-plant into the ground. This gave Aeron enough time to recover his footing above the priest and sink his elongated nails into the priests back.

Abel seemed unable to move, but he retracted his wings and thrust them up, pushing Aeron off the ground and his claws out of his back. Abel rolled over and swung the scythe, slicing at Aeron's chest again. He then got up in a swift, graceful movement, as Aeron seemed to float in mid-air, and swung the scythe down hard, once more, piercing him through his shoulder blades and pinning him to the street.

Aeron's hand dug into the ground, rounding into a fist, as he glared up at the priest.

"In the name of the father, son, and holy spirit – may you rest in peace." Aeron tensed in preparation for a final blow, but upon seeing the winged priest stand motionless, he looked about curiously. It only took him seconds to realize that the blood that poured from his wounds flowed towards the priest, swirling and swaying across the ground and through the air before it was absorbed into his body.

The combination of the scythe in his back and the feeling of the life being sucked from him, made it hard to move, let alone breath. Aeron lay there helplessly, his vision blurring as his blood left his body.

"No, make him stop!" Ren struggled more than ever against the bishop's grip.

"Nothing can be done to save him now, Ren," said Amadea; she had never witnessed such power before, but upon seeing it stood in awe at the sight. "Stay here. I'm sure it will be over soon."

"No!" Ren lifted her free arm, turning her hand into a fist, and bringing it down hard on the back of Amadea's neck. The blow didn't knock her out, but stunned her enough that Ren pulled her arm free and ran away from the throng of church members to Aeron.

"Ren, wait!" Esther called out, chasing after the woman.

Ren rushed over to the scythe in Aeron's back and grabbed it; the weapon, knowing it was not its master, sent a shock up the handle, making Ren grit her teeth in pain. Mustering up all the strength she had, Ren dislodged the blade from the ground, pulling it through Aeron's back, and throwing it to the ground. She collapsed on her knees, both from the numbing electrical current from the scythe and the sight of Aeron's draining body.

Ren leaned down, gently turning Aeron over and hugging him to her chest. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry…" she repeated, tears flowing rapidly down her face. Aeron couldn't answer, his eyes already glazed over, his skin shriveling against his bones.

Esther had stopped a few feet away, watching Ren as she clutched Aeron's body in desperation. Her eyes softened. "Father…" she whispered to the priest. "Father, he's dead, please stop."

Abel, seeming to have heard Esther's request, closed his eyes. In a matter of seconds he returned to his normal appearance – blue eyes, silver hair flopping and flowing down his back, a lanky, silly look about him despite the serious nature of the situation.

"I'm sorry, Ren." Abel said. Although it was necessary, and she had killed many people to bring him back, he did feel a small bit of remorse for having to kill the man.

Ren shook her head, and, through her sobs, said, "Like hell you are…."

Abel sighed. Esther stepped forward to comfort her. "Careful, Miss Esther," Abel warned. Esther paused.

"But what can she do now?"

"She's proven herself resourceful so far."

Esther nodded and carefully stooped down by Ren. "Ren…. Ren, I'm sorry. I truly am." Esther reached up and touched her shoulder gently. "But everything will be okay."

Ren sniffled. "You're right, Esther. Everything will be fine," she whispered. Esther gave a small smile. She didn't expect what happened next.

Ren placed Aeron's body on her lap, turned to Esther and quickly reached for the gun that sat in the holster on her hip. Upon gripping the gun, Ren moved her leg, swiftly kicking Esther away.

Esther recovered and looked at Ren, her eyes widening. Ren pointed the barrel of the gun under her chin. A few of the nuns gasped in the background, Amadea shouted out to the young woman. Ren had a small smile on her face. She gave a small chuckle before they turned into deeper, wilder laughs. After a few seconds they slowed and Ren turned her gaze to Esther.

"R-Ren..." Esther began.

"Don't worry, Esther," she smirked. "Everything will be okay. The circumstances have just changed." She pressed the gun more firmly against the flesh under her chin. "If he can't come to me…then I'll go to him." The hammer clicked.

"Ren, don't!" Esther lunged forward.

A shot echoed through the street.