Darkness She Becomes

Rose's POV

Something evil lurked in my best friend. No, something evil had overtaken her. My Lissa was no longer there. For some reason I found myself checking the bond for the tenth time since we'd found her. It was there, that's what I couldn't comprehend because she was quite clearly dead – awakened. I knew they were basically the same thing but maybe this slight difference is what mattered in this situation. She was still…lingering. Her body was moving, talking, or at least it had the ability to. Maybe the Strigoi weren't truly dead like we'd always thought…just altered in a way that gave them the distinct characteristics of a dead body.

I knew I was rambling in my mind but hey, shock does that to a girl.

"Lissa." Christian's choked whisper broke the silence that had descended over the room. His shock could be seen on all our faces, yet I knew his heartbreak could not be compared to any ones, except maybe my own.

Dimitri's hand suddenly gripped my arm and I realised with a start that I'd unconsciously taken a step toward the most dangerous things in the room. The reality in front of me hadn't quite caught up with my brain in a way where I knew what had happened but I couldn't believe it. This was some sick dream, like many I'd had before. A dream where I'd lost one of the most important things in life – my other half, my sister…my best friend. But no, while this moment reflected the nightmares I'd had so well...it was real. Undeniably, soul-crushingly real.

My duty as a Guardian was to kill Strigoi. I'd been trained all my life to view them as creatures and not as people I loved, but how could I ever do that with Lissa? It dawned on me that she had been a powerful spirit user – the most powerful we had. Without her…it would be impossible to bring her back. The stark reality of the situation began to sink in. Tears began to cloud my vision and I felt something I'd never felt before – a trembling in my hands.

Then my brain also calculated the position we were in. There were ten guards, one Strigoi on the throne with standing Lissa beside him. Twelve Strigoi all up. While we had four people, one whom wasn't even trained in hand-to-hand combat and would undoubtedly be useless in a fight right now due to his overwhelming shock.

The male Strigoi regarded us with disdain and a spark of interest. "I'm surprised you made it through. Quite impressive…considering your meagre numbers." His words were punctuated with a growl.

Dimitri moved a step ahead of me, an ominous growl growing in his chest. My heart lurched at the sound – memories of my time as his captive flashed in my mind. I spared him a quick glance just to make sure it was still the Dhampir standing beside me and not the monster that tried to end my life.

As if to taunt us more, the male chuckled. "If only you'd brought a mightier force with you. Maybe then you would have been in time to save the Princesses life. So close…" he drifted off with another chuckle – deep, throaty and hair-raising. The guards surrounding him and Lissa were as still as statues. I could almost pretend they weren't there.

Suddenly he rose and in one fluid movement, he was beside Lissa, taking her delicate hand into his own. Apparently, we were no longer worth his time because his full attention was now fixated on Lissa's face. "Ah, my prize. It's time we leave." Lissa turned methodically towards him as if she were still growing accustomed to her body. Her lips raised in a chilling smile, her fangs sticking out for the world to see.

Finally, she locked eyes with us.

I felt my body stiffen at the coldness in her eyes.

She let out a sigh, full of annoyance. With her eyes locked on mine, she told him, "Have your guards kill them once we leave. I'd hate to get blood on my dress." And with that, she turned away with the monster that had awakened her and we could do nothing but watch helplessly as she disappeared through another door on the opposite side of the room – the one surrounded by the Strigoi guards.

"Remember the most important lesson I taught you?" Dimitri whispered, not that it would prevent the sound from travelling directly to their ears anyway.

Run.


We made it out, miraculously. Oliver had taken the lead while Christian and Dimitri hung back to set them ablaze and stab and maim. My shock hadn't worn off, and I knew Christians hadn't either…but he somehow managed to break through his grief long enough for us to take the winding underground path back to the warehouse and into the light.

The medic and Guardian waiting at the car were relieved to see us. God only knew how much time had passed while we'd fought our way to Lissa…only to find her gone. Once we were finally in the daylight I felt myself collapse on the ground – the adrenaline had finally left my system and I was left with an overwhelming sense of sadness. I heard a high pitch cry and was surprised to find it coming from my throat, and as the tears began to fall I felt a familiar presence appear next to me. His arms lifted me from the ground like they had done before, and Dimitri Belikov silently carried me to the car.

I knew I should thank him, or ask about Christian…or do anything. But my mind felt like it had broken apart after finding Lissa like that. All rational thought had left the building. Instead of doing all the things I knew I was supposed to do, I sobbed. I vaguely noticed Dimitri place me in a seat and put on my seatbelt before he climbed in next to me and wrapped me in the protective shield of his arms.

Through my sobs, I heard him whispering over and over again. "I'm here Roza, I'm here."

Please let me know what you thought of this update. Obviously, we'll be dealing with Strigoi Lissa soon and the implications of the still-there bond, but I just wanted a quick update to push the story a little further ahead and give us a nice little Rose/Dimitri moment.

Oh and Happy New Year! R&R