Alice

I stared at the TV, horror and sadness still in my eyes. Runo let out her own expression of shock by saying, "Oh my gosh. That's horrible." Runo had only met Bertha on one occasion and it was at the café not two days ago. I stared at the screen that was showing the charred building having the last of its flames put out. I said flatly, "It wasn't an accident."

I could feel Runo's eyes on me, but I kept my gaze up to the TV. "What are you talking about, Alice? They said it was from a lightning strike. A freak accident. They found no proof of arson." They could find all they want, but I wasn't about to believe it for one minute. I turned to her and said, "I'm not sure how I know, but that building was set on fire." Somebody was looking for Shun.

I felt like tears were ready to form again, but they didn't. I had spilt so many in such little time. Runo looked out of the window we were sitting next to and said, "The rains letting up. Maybe we won't have to run the generator much longer." I nodded, and pretended to care about the rain or the generator. A banging on the glass door to the café startled both of us. Runo raised an eyebrow and said, "Wonder who's out in this weather."

I felt tense as she approached the door. It was still too dark outside to see. She unlocked the latch and Dan, Julie, and Murucho came tumbling in; soaking wet and wide eyed. Runo looked at them with surprise in her eyes, "What are you guys doing out there!"

Dan hugged Runo tightly for a few seconds before he answered her question. He said, "Come on. We need to get out of here and get back to Murucho's. It's safe there." I was standing up from the booth now, and watching Runo try and pry explanations out of Dan.

"Why is it any safer there than it is here, Dan? What's going on?" Murucho chimed in to try and make all of this rational for us. "I've opened the shelter under my place for people to have safety and we're taking you two there. We'll explain what's going on later, but right now we aren't safe standing right here." Runo and I exchanged looks.

I knew she was thinking they were insane, but I was perfectly calm other than wanting to know what was going on. I nodded my head and said, "Ok. Let's get out of here before the rain picks up again." I had to force Runo to go upstairs and get some of her belongings.

She kept dogging me about why I agreed to go with them and was trying to see what I knew about everything. I turned around and snapped at her, "I don't know any more than you, but I do know we need to get out of here!" She stayed shut up after that.

We both went down the stairs with lightweight bags over our shoulders that were filled with clothes. Nobody knew when we might be able to come back here. Murucho nodded and said, "Let's hurry. We have just a short walk to my place." Runo gawked at him and said, "Walk? You didn't bring Kato and the limo or something like that?" Murucho shook his head and told her, "The streets are too flooded for anything to be out on them."

Runo didn't seem pleased with having to run out in the rain, but when I cut her a look she didn't say anything. Runo then shut down the generator, and when we walked out of the café, she locked the door. Murucho told us, "I'm sorry for not bringing umbrellas, but we kind of rushed out of my place to find you guys."

Runo and I nodded our heads, and didn't comment on what the short blonde said. Murucho wasn't lying when he said the streets were flooded. A good two inches cascaded down the black asphalt and splashed onto the sidewalk occasionally. I didn't think it rained that much. The rain was all but a mist when we were in eyesight of Murucho's mansion, but we were still damp and wet.

There was a low growl coming from behind, and we all stopped and turned around to see what it was. Julie said shakily, "Maybe it was just a dog." There wasn't anything dog-like about that growl, and the others seemed to know it too but were denying it. Out of the dark shadows across the street, two creatures jumped out and cornered us.

All of us were as close up against the wall as we could get as we tried to get away from it. When I looked closer at it, the creature fit in with the description of the things in his dream and visions. As the two monsters closed in on us, they nipped at each other and growled.

Their sharp, glowing red eyes fixed on us and seeped the want to kill. Out of instinct, I yelled. "Shun!" Dan yelled back at me, "What's he going to do! We couldn't even find him in this city!"

Fear was gripping the others, including me. Shun had said these things looked terrifying, and they were much more than that. They were five feet away from us, and still slowly closing in on us as if to savor the moment that they ripped us apart.

I turned my head to the side when one put its face next to mine and sniffed me. Its breath was hot, and rank of death. They both drew back to finish us off, and two gunshots echoed out into the city. Then the two creatures dropped to the ground and didn't move. Blood came from a wound in their heads, and one of their feet twitched as the rest of its life ended.

All of us were looking around for what had shot those things and saved us. I saw up on the top of a building the dark outline of somebody, I couldn't make out facial features or anything, other than he had wings. Shun? He turned around and disappeared from the roof.

Runo grabbed my hand and said, "Let's get out of here before more of those things show up!" She was now pulling me along the sidewalk with the others as we rushed to Murucho's for safety.

Shun

The rain was dissipating, and was now just a fine mist floating in the dark air. Bertha's face kept popping up in my mind as I walked down the street. I wasn't sure where I was going. Away I guess. So much had fallen apart before my eyes could even blink, and I didn't want to go on and fight anymore. I turned onto another street, and saw cars with deep gashes into the metal.

The image of my vision hit me again, and I could picture those things running down this street and doing this. They were here now. I just kept on walking by, not looking at the damage they had caused. I stopped when I thought I heard my name yelled out, but when I stopped to see if I could hear it again, it never came. It was probably just the wind. I looked onto the water filled streets.

I could make out my reflection in the choppy water. It was like I was looking at an entirely different person. This wasn't me. It couldn't have been me. I shook my head and looked up at the black sky. The fine mist fell on my face. What do I do, Lucy? Lucy.

She had been killed by Tristan in the most brutal way he could think of, but she didn't give in until she told us he was coming. That was Lucy for you. She never gave up until the very end. Lucy was also one of the best friends I had, even when I was little and before the Brawlers formed.

And even before the Clans formed, we stayed closely in touch. She was like a sister, maybe even more but I never realized it. I said under my breath, "It's pointless now. She's gone. Alice is gone. Bertha's gone. It's all gone." I turned away from my reflection and kept on walking down the sidewalk. I didn't care if this path took me out of the city. Anywhere was good for me.

To start over sounded like a guilty pleasure to me. I stopped dead in my tracks, and jumped to the side into an alley and hid. It was Paul and his Clan. They looked beaten, battered, and about to fall over and collapse. Standing before them, was Kiba with two of those creatures flanking his sides.

Somehow, I recognized them as the ones who burned down the tenement building. One looked fierce and ready to attack at the first order given, and the other looked like it didn't want to be doing this. As if those things even have any emotions or soul in them. Paul was a few feet from Kiba and was saying, "Don't do this, Kiba! It's not too late for you to turn back and stop all of this!"

His Clan mates wobbled on their feet and looked like a bunch of beaten dogs. They were hunkering behind Paul for protection from their abuser. Kiba laughed, and it made my skin crawl with hate towards him. "I have to do this, Paul. It's my destiny to become the Lord and create a new Realm, and destroy this world down here so none of its hatred and greed can contaminate the air I breathe again."

He's lost his damn mind. Paul shook his head and kept his eyes fixed on Kiba. "It will never work. You may have burned down our home and taken out half of my Clan, but you won't stop us right here." Kiba waved his hand nonchalantly and said, "I could give a rat's ass about your Clan being a threat to my plans. I mean, look at them! They're pitiful! But if you se desire to stop me, then try."

Kiba held out his arms and opened himself up to Paul. The Black Iris's Clan leader charged at Kiba, and when he was almost to him, a rope of darkness lashed out and tied itself around Paul's neck. He was suspended in the air as the darkness strangled him. When I strained my eyes, I saw it was burning him too. One of his Clan mates yelled out, "Paul! Paul!" I looked around and saw it was Delilah, his wife.

Tears were streaking down her face as she watched him have the life taken from him. Paul was then slammed to the ground, and didn't move after that. Delilah was being held back by others in the Clan, and she soon gave in and dropped to the ground. I wasn't sure if they had kids or not, and I felt a pain of loss for her if they had any or not.

Kiba rolled his eyes and said, "Aw. Too bad. Hey, look at it like this. I could have had my Abominations rip him apart before your very eyes." So that's what he calls them. Suiting name. He snapped his fingers and walked off into the shadows, followed by his Abominations.

One of them stopped though, and looked right in my direction. I froze, wondering if it saw me. Somehow, I knew this was the one that was outside of my room door before they set the building on fire. I stared right into the eyes. There was no sign of a soul or anything, but beyond the glowing red of them I saw something.

Or more like somebody. It took one last look in my direction and stalked off into the shadows after Kiba. I stepped out of the alley and approached Paul's Clan. Their eyes flew up to me, and fear scorched their eyes at the thought that somebody else was coming to cause them harm.

Delilah stood up and saw me. "Shun?" I looked down at Paul's body, and sighed. He was gone, no point in trying to deny it. She approached me. I had always known that Delilah was a beauty, and understood why Paul loved her. Her tear stained eyes narrowed at me. "What are you doing here, Shun?"

I held her gaze and said flatly, "I was walking this way and saw what was happening." A skinny guy jumped out from behind her and got right up in my face and yelled, "And you didn't do anything to stop them! Huh! No. You know why? All of the Blood Rose Clan are nothing but cowards!"

I felt my jaw tightened. I didn't feel like dealing with this twerp. Delilah pulled him away and instructed somebody to keep him away while she talked with me.

"What were you doing going this way? Last time I checked, your Clan's home was in the opposite direction." I didn't meet her gaze, and I knew that was disrespectful to do to the partner of a Clan leader. I said flatly, "Kiba and his beasts burned it down. They killed out Caretaker in the process."

The words stung me, but I wasn't sure about her. She nodded her head. "He did the same to us, except he killed most of our Clan. This is all we have left. And I'm sure Bertha's death is difficult for you. Losing a Caretaker is like losing a parent. That's why we never chose to have one."

I remembered being told by Bertha that they didn't have one. I thought it was a stupid decision, but now I knew why. They didn't want to deal with the pain of losing somebody that would be close to them. I asked, "Where were you heading, Delilah?" She looked beyond me and said, "To the Marakura household. We caught word that they opened a shelter in there for people looking to seek safety from Kiba and his monsters. We aren't entirely sure how to get there though. It's more part of your Clan's territory. And we aren't over there enough."

I bite my lip. The right thing would be to take them there. The wouldn't last long out here if Kiba found them again. But I still wanted to leave, and if I turned around I could kiss a fresh start good-bye. I sighed. "I know where it's at, and I can escort you there."

Her eyes lit up and she gave me a sad smile. "Thank you so much. Paul would be grateful for this." Tears started forming in her eyes, and I made sure to stand between her and Paul's body so she would see. There was a low mumbling amongst their Clan. Delilah turned to face them and said, "Shun is going to take us to the Marakura residence. Stay close to one another and keep all of your eyes alert."

They nodded, but the little punk who got up in my face broke free from the Fallens that were holding him. "I'm not following him! He suddenly appeared after Kiba killed Paul! How do we not know you're working with him and going to kill the rest of us?" Delilah turned around and slapped him. He fell to the ground and held onto his face. She yelled at him, "Just because you're the new Clan leader, doesn't mean you're ready to be one!"

I blinked. This was their new leader? I could have laughed, but kept my composer. Delilah turned around and said to me, "Sorry about that. Paul saw something in him and chose him as the second in command. He was going to teach him to be a Clan leader one day, but as you can see, that plan didn't turn out so well."

I nodded my head. Seemed like both Clans had made poor choices in their second in commands. I went back to picturing Mason trying to kill Alice. We started walking towards Murucho's, and Delilah made small talk with me. I knew why. She didn't want to be alone while she was grieving.

She kept telling me stories about her and Paul before the Clan Wars, and I listened. I had realized that I didn't want to be alone either during this time. She asked me, "Do you know the status of your Clan? Or are they gone like ours?"

I shook my head and said, "I don't know where they are. They weren't at our home when Kiba burned it down. For all I know though, they could all be dead." I felt sick at the thought of my Clan killed at the hands of Kiba and his monsters. I suddenly blurted out, "When I found you all confronting Kiba, I was actually leaving town. Getting away while I could."

She looked at me with surprise in her eyes, but there was still more sadness in them. "Without your Clan or anything?" I shook my head. "I didn't want to be here anymore. I had lost so much that I didn't want to keep going on here in this city."

She nodded her head and said, "I'm sure if I lost everything that you have, then I'd want to leave too. What are you going to do when you take us to the Marakura's?" I shrugged. "Not sure." She looked over her shoulder to check on the Clan behind her. I turned to look myself.

They all had their heads held low. Now pride or fight were in their eyes. Delilah startled me when she said, "It's going to take a lot of time for them to recover from this. If we ever do." We were nearing Murucho's, and stopped to stare at two of Kiba's Abominations laying dead in the streets.

One of the Fallen's from the Clan behind me ran over and checked them out. He said, "They're good as dead. Been shot in the skull." We nodded, feeling relieved that they weren't a threat. I examined the area.

This was the place that in my vision, I had seen Alice and the others cornered by those two creatures that were now dead. Did they make it? Who helped them? Delilah tugged on my shirt and said, "Let's keep walking. I feel that we're close to our destination." I nodded and we continued on our way.

well, record timing and it was fun. ^^ yay! i has a party this afternoon! -does party dance- beh. but i also has chores. -.-'' oh well, better get started! read, review, and other thing! oh! and happy holidays if i don't upload tomorrow! ~Copperpelt~