Freak 13! The trials of Death!

A/N: Ok all; here is your chapter 13, finally! Chapters including a football shaped yellow fruit of the citrus variety soon to come (at least within the next three to four chapters!) I am so so so so so sorry it took me so long to update. I finished the chapter a while ago but, I wasn't completely happy with it. I must have wrote the ending at least 12 times before I was remotely happy with it. Hopefully you like it! Now my flying monkeys grow hungry! R&R if you wish to live! *VERY evil laugh* Sorry it is so short!

I stood before the princes, tall and brave. I was ready. The trails had changed a lot since Darren had done them, the main point of my trails was to prove myself and I planned to do just that. I had just reached to the bag and pulled out a numbered stone. "Your first trail is…The Aquatic maze." Prince Paris announced. The Aquatic maze couldn't get much simpler than that for a first trial as long as you could swim that is… Thank the gods Mr.C taught me how to swim at an early age. I'd have to thank him later for that. I walked out of the Princes hall looking confident, but in reality… I am so full of shit! I was terrified! But because of my ever so delicate and proud ego… I couldn't show it. I bowed and left the hall. Arra caught up with me first.

"Nervous?" She spoke quietly as we walked aimlessly. "Yeah..." I muttered. "Only a fool would be completely excited about their trails..." Arra looked at me for a moment. "Why didn't you take the time offered to prepare for them?" I glanced back. "No amount of training could possibly prepare anyone for the trials..." Arra nodded, "That is true..." I looked up at the older vampiress. "And... Never mind." Arra stopped. "And, what?" I shook my head. "Nyx, tell me..." I shook my head again. "No, it's stupid." Arra grabbed my shoulder and pulled me to a stop. "Tell me." I looked away for a moment. "I just have this... gut feeling. Like if I don't do this now, I'll never be able to do the trials." Arra looked confused, "What do you mean?"

I shrugged, "Like something really important is going to happen... I don't know when, why, or what it is... I just know something is going and soon." Arra's blue eyes met mine directly, "Something good or..." I shook my head. "Something bad... really, really bad... And it will be big, really important. I don't know why... I can just feel it." Arra looked sympathetic, "Your instinct is not without cause Nyx. You are feeling what all vampires are feeling. You have heard of the War of the Scars?" I nodded. Mr.C had told me a lot about it. It was a long, bloody and brutal war between the vampires and the vampeneze. The victory seemed to go to the vampires, but it wasn't a very decisive one. Both sides took a heavy loss.

Arra was silent for a moment, "Many vampires feel, that history will repeat its self. That it will happen again... Let us pray to the vampire Gods that it does not... I doubt that either side would survive another war." At least I wasn't alone in my fears. Arra left to go to the main hall and I headed for the game room with my staff to warm up before I started to train for my first trail.

Seba was there and waved me over to him. "Nyx, this is Vanez Blane. He has agreed to train you for your trials." I took note of this vampire. Two eye patches... He was blind. But I didn't doubt he could whip my ass in to next week. And he had a full staff. I immediately took a liking and respected this man, I hadn't met very many vampire who trained with a staff. Most liked daggers or fought with their hands. I shook the blind vampires hand firmly. "Pleasure to met you, sir." Vanze smiled, "And a pleasure to meet you, Nyx."

"You train with a staff as I do, sir?" Vanze nodded. "I do. I have heard you are partial to one as well." I smiled at the vampire. "You heard correctly." Vanze nodded, "Very well then. Let us begin."

I was amazed, not two minutes in to our sparring and I was already breathing heavy. Vanze and I were evenly matched. "You fight very well, Nyx... So few vampires chose the staff to train with. Many prefer swords." I spun my staff in a circular motion to block and attempt to land on him. We had still yet to hit each other. "Damn shame, if you ask me. Although I don't blame them... A sword is easier to wield... Usually only requires one hand and are simpler to train with." CRACK, CRACK, WHACK! "However, they require a great deal of strength, they are heavier, they throw off you balance more easily, they are also easier to know out of your hand or drop. A staff on the other hand, is lighter, help your balance, but you need a great deal of discipline, speed and..." Crack whack smack! "They are a lot more fun." Vanze laughed. "That they are." Whack crack smack. Then Vanze held the staff in a position that signaled the sparring was done. I gently matched this and press it to his hands to show him I was done too.

"Well done. That is it for a warm up. Now you have the Aquatic maze first, yes?" I put my staff down, leaning it on the wall next to his. "Yes. I must swim through the maze while carrying a stone half my weight." Vanze, "Ah so you are no stranger to our ways." "No, I am not." Vanze nodded and walked over to a wall of various sized stones. "How much do you weigh Nyx?" "One hundred and ten pounds give or take." Vanze paused and looked back in my general direction and started laughing. "One hundred and ten pounds! That's it! You're a tiny thing then! No wonder you favor a staff!" I normally took barbs like that in stride but in my present condition I was a little perturbed. "Is that a problem, sir?" Vanze calmed. "No, no... I meant no offense. Forgive me." He picked out a stone and handed it to me. "Now that should roughly be half of your weight." I trained with Vanze until I could easily pull the stone through the water. I was pretty tired at the end of the night, but I made sure I fed and fed well. I couldn't go all clawed and red eyed in front of the vampire clan.

But before I fell asleep, I prayed. I prayed to the vampire gods that I could keep my demon hidden from the clan, and Mika. But had I known how I would have been answered I wouldn't have bothered at all...

R&R... please?

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