~O~
Bay View was deathly silent, Alice noticed. Although she knew that the silence was brought about by the fact that it was past midnight in the city, it still created a very ominous atmosphere. She found herself glancing down into alleyways for any signs of unwanted guests; this was the City of Hunters, after all. However, Alice wasn't sure what a Hunter exactly looked like, so she had no way of pointing one out if she saw one. She turned her head around and faced forward.
Shun walked alongside her to her right, his eyes occasionally glancing around for anything that may be a threat. They were on the edge of the group, just like the night before. On the inside were the weak and injured. It was a smart setup, but Alice wasn't so sure if she should have been on the outside with those who could fight. She still didn't have the skills to completely hold her own, but she still had the ability to get a few blows in and create herself an opening to escape through.
However, she wasn't so sure if she would have been able to run off and leave behind her Clan mates. Alice silently hoped that nothing would attack them while they walked through the dead streets of Bay View. She looked at the front of their group, which was being led by Sinclair. Beside Sinclair was Gillfrey, who was hiding himself beneath a cloak.
It was a smart move on the Count's part, for he would be a prime target by Hunters if spotted. Carson walked not too far behind his master. Off to the side was Alucard, who was walking beside Loran. Alice then said to Shun, "Earlier on the boat I noticed you were talking to Loran. How's he doing?"
Loran had been struck down by his brother, Zoran, and nearly killed, so to see the gray-haired Vampire up and walking on his own brought a sense of relief. Shun's expression turned somewhat sad when he said, "Alucard told me that Loran woke up shortly after we boarded the ship, but he hadn't uttered a single word. They think he's in some sort of shock or deep depression…."
Alice felt her heart ache in sympathy for Loran. She had been in the same spot for a while, consumed by depression, that is. So, Alice kind of knew the pain that Loran was going through. She knew how overwhelming it could get, and if it hadn't been for Sinclair's little 'pep talk,' she might have let it consume her later on. That wasn't so much the case now.
Sinclair had told her how to face her demons, despite the unconventional methods it required to do so. "I hope he gets better," she said. Shun nodded in agreement. "Yeah," he said quietly, "I do too." Alice sighed. Loran was one of her first friends in the Clan. He hadn't shut her out like the other Vampires did at first, and he didn't treat her differently, either.
He had even saved her life a couple of times. So, to see such a dear friend struggling to find his way back from the darkness pained Alice greatly. She shut her eyes and sighed. There was a long road ahead of them, one full of hills and other obstacles that would get in their way, but she knew they would all eventually make it to the end of this road. What she didn't know was what might be at the end of it.
Alice reopened her eyes and continued walking. Her eyes wandered around the City. She looked up at the shadowed buildings that loomed overhead, and she tried to picture them fully lit and bustling with people, but for some reason, this was a difficult picture to create. Maybe she just wasn't trying hard enough. Alice flinched when she felt something brush against her face.
She reached up and grabbed what had touched her and held it in her hand. It was a single rose petal. Alice stopped walking and stared down at the piece of flower, wondering where it came from. Maybe the wind blew it off a nearby plant, she reasoned with herself.
An urge to look up took her over, so Alice tilted her head back and felt her blood run cold. Standing atop one of the buildings was a cloaked figure cast in shadows. Beneath the hood of the cloak, glowing red eyes stared down at her. Alice found herself frozen in place, unable to move. Her brain screamed danger, but her body didn't want to respond.
The figure suddenly turned around and walked out of sight. Alice stood there, gazing up at where the person had once been standing. Something touched her shoulder, and she jumped back. "Alice, calm down. It's me," Shun said. She saw the confusion on his face. Alice shook her head and asked, "Did you see that guy on the roof?" Shun arched a brow and glanced up at the building Alice was pointing to.
"I never saw anyone on that roof," he told her. Alice felt her own confusion mounting. Had there really been somebody up there, or had it just been a trick of the shadows? "I swear I saw somebody up there," she muttered under her breath.
Shun took her hand in his and said, "Come on, we need to catch up with the group before they leave us behind, and this is the last place we need to get separated in." He tugged on her hand and she followed along behind as they hurried to catch up with their Clan mates, who had continued to walk on without them.
All while she walked, Alice kept looking back, searching for any signs of the mysterious cloaked figure. And even though she had never seen a Vampire Hunter, she somehow knew that what she saw, had been one. What didn't make sense to her, was why the person hadn't attacked.
~O~
The cloaked man stepped down from the ledge of the roof and returned to where two others stood; one male, one female. He gave them a single nod through the hood of his cloak. "Are you sure?" asked the male, whose name was Luther. The cloaked man nodded again and said, "I'm sure of it."
Luther scratched his chin, which had started to develop slight stubble from not shaving that day, and said, "So, looks like the rumors circulating around the Watering Holes are true then." The female stepped forward and said, "Wait, hold up. How can we be so certain that she's what everyone's been saying she is? I mean, we are kind of taking the word of some mangy lowlife bloodsuckers. They could have been exaggerating or strung out for all we know."
Luther glared at the female and said, "Hush, Emilia. If Levi says he's sure, then he's sure of it. Right, Levi?" Emilia flicked a lock of her bright red hair off her shoulder and huffed. "Kiss ass," she muttered. Levi removed the hood from his head and fixed his sand-colored hair, which had been messed up by the cloak, and said, "I sensed it. She's the real thing. Not some hoax made up by a druggie. Have some faith in me, Emilia."
The redhead walked to the edge of the roof and said bitterly, "Well, if that's the case, then she's obviously loyal to the wrong side. How do you plan on getting her to join us?" Levi walked up beside Emilia and leaned in close to her ear. She tensed and he could smell the anxiety pouring out of her.
"You leave that to me," Levi whispered into her ear. He then stepped back and watched as Emilia tried to recompose herself. The girl was scared of him, as she should be. As they all should be. They need to remember who's in charge of this outfit, he thought to himself.
Levi turned around and said, "Give it some time." Luther kicked at a soda can that had been discarded on top of the roof and said, "I understand that, but what I don't get is why we just didn't go on and attack them. They were obviously tired, and those in the middle were clearly too injured to fight. Why not just go down there and slaughter a couple dozen or so? It's not like anyone would miss them."
Levi turned around and back-handed Luther, silencing his rant. Luther stumbled back and fell onto the roof, where he held his jaw and stared at Levi in shock.
"You really are mindless, aren't you? Their group is not our current target right now. The girl is. If we went down there and slaughtered her Clan, do you think she'd ever trust us enough to join us? No. We need her to enact our plan. Without her, we can forget our ultimate goal…..This is why I'm the one who calls the shots and you're the one who dances whenever I say dance. Keep that in mind next time you open your mouth," Levi snapped, his words oozing poison.
Luther wouldn't look him in the eye. Instead, he kept his head low in a submissive manner and said, "Yes, boss." Levi threw his hood back on his head and said, "It's time for us to head back. The others will want to know what we discovered tonight, and from there, we'll watch her from afar so we can begin forming our plan of action."
Emilia and Luther both nodded and fell in line behind Levi. The three of them then leapt down from the roof and landed in the alley below, where the shadows hid them from any wandering eyes.
~O~
Sinclair was surprised that during their entire trek through the City, they never once ran into any trouble with the local Hunters. He expected to at least have had one run-in, but even that didn't happen. It was strange. Usually in cities like Bay View, the Hunters lurked around during the night to find their prey.
Sinclair figured a scout might have spotted their large group and informed several Hunters of their presence. And yet, there hadn't been a single sign of danger since they entered the City. Sinclair thought maybe their large numbers deterred some of the Hunters, but then he thought better of that.
Numbers didn't matter to those skilled in killing Vampires. Sinclair recalled stories of where two or three Hunters had taken out several hundred Vampires, or more. If they were good enough, it didn't matter how many enemies they were up against; they would always come out on top.
Sinclair stopped walking and said, "This is it." They now stood before a tunnel which, a long time ago, would have been used for underground maintenance of the City. Now, it served another purpose; a safe haven for Vampires built by the Society.
Ancient Vampirian script was scrawled along the top of the tunnel entrance, a way for Vampires to know that this place was safe, and for Hunters to know they weren't allowed here. Gillfrey stepped forward and said bitterly, "Never thought I'd have to use one of these things." Sinclair stared up at the ancient language above them and said, "I don't think any of us thought we'd have to. At least, not under circumstances like this."
Gillfrey mumbled something else under his breath, which Sinclair didn't quite catch, but he knew it was something negative. "Alright," the Vampire Lord said, "let's open this thing." He stepped towards the large, iron bars that closed off the tunnel from the public, and grabbed onto the rusty lock that held a chain in place.
Sinclair then focused his telekinetic power on the lock and shattered the mechanism inside, popping the lock open. The chain fell off the iron bars like a massive metal snake, and the gate slowly creaked open. Rust fell from the hinges, a sheer sign that this safe haven hadn't been used in a very long time, by neither human nor Vampire. Sinclair looked through the gate at the dark tunnel and said, "Welcome to our temporary home. Make yourselves comfortable."
My last band banquet was Friday, and I wasn't hit with as many feels as I thought I'd be. I'm still sad that it was my last one, though. Anywho, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, so please read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~
