Quick note here. Since I've went ahead with the normal RE violence and stuff, I've changed the rating to 'M', just to be safe. Enjoy~

Quickly Cassandra scribbled a note and sat it on the table in the center of the room. The girls flew out of the castle, dragging Theo behind them.

All four women stood in the dark forest just south of the castle walls. Early on, Alcina had explained that this land had been one of their favorite hunting grounds. The moon's light filtered through the treetops. A white fog hovered slightly above the damp forest floor. For normal humans, it would have been hard to make their way through without help. Luckly, these women weren't normal.

Theo looked over to the girls, each of them bouncing with excitement to start their hunt. "Alright you little heathens. Here's the deal. I want you to stay within a couple miles. If anything happens, just yell my name and I'll be right there."

Cassandra rolled her eyes. "You worry too much."

"Yeah, we hunt here all the time." Daniela added. Just like her siblings, the youngest knew these hunting grounds like the back of her hand. They had all spent countless nights traversing the dark woods over the decades since they had been reborn.

"So, I don't want you dead. Sue me." Theo said as she waved them off. She knew the girls' plan to go out and find some poor unsuspecting victims to devour. However, that wasn't her thing. While they did their hunt, she'd be doing some hunting of her own. Plant hunting, that is. A few weeks back, Bela let her borrow one of her botany books. Inside its pages, she found the perfect addition to the foliage of the main hall. "Have fun!"

Three swarms took off, blending into the dark forest. They buzzed through the trees, hundreds of eyes looking for any sort of target. "I bet I get a manthing before you two!"

"Ha!" Daniela partially reformed as she gave her sister a wicked grin. "In your dreams."

"It's not a competition." Bela's voice called out. Her sisters made everything into a competition, especially hunting.

The brunette looked back to the oldest with an annoyed look. "You only say that because you usually come in last."

"Unlike you two, I like the thrill of the chase." If she could have, each of her flies would have rolled their eyes. Her sisters were always ready to jump straight into the kill. She liked to stalk her food. She savored the fear that her victims would show. It was something she had picked up from her mother.

"Sure you do."

"I do!"

"Wait, look." Daniela reformed first. Pointing towards a faint light filtering through the trees. "What's that red glow?"

Bela stood beside her sister. She could tell from the way the glow flickered; it was a fire. "It's most likely a campfire."

"Which means flesh." Cassandra flashed them a feral grin. Pulling her hood up, she sprinted towards the light. "See ya, nerds."

Daniela balled her hands up, watching her sister disappear into the darkness. "That's cheating, Cas!"

Three cloaked figured closed in on their targets. Four young men all sat around a campfire, unaware of the danger stalking them. From what the girls could see, the men were travelers. Their clothes weren't the typical style found in the surrounding villages.

One of the men looked around into the darkness of the forest nervously. An unsettling feeling filled him. The feeling of being watched. "Are you sure we should be out here at night, Ed?"

Ed, the oldest out of all the men, leaned over and picked a beer out of their cooler. He rolled his eyes at his younger brother. They just arrived in Romania, he wasn't going to let some superstitious villagers ruin his vacation. The village was their first stop on their one-year backpacking trip in Europe. "Come on, Mark. Are you scared or something?"

"You heard what that villager said." Mark countered, memories from earlier that day flooding back.

One of the locals had corned him, grabbing his shirt. Beware that forest, boy. A vampire and her demon spawns roam those woods. Only men with death wishes go in there. The man had growled as she shook Mark slightly, trying to emphasize his point. Ed and his two college friends, Brad and Tony, had intervened shortly after. Ed had pulled his brother back out of the man's grasp, before putting distance between them and the drunk.

"They're just trying to scare us. I've seen the trick before." Tony explained. Unlike his three friends, Tony had prior experiences in backpacking. Though this was his first time in Romania. "They scare people so they'll stay in their inns instead of camping out. It's all about the money."

The sound of a branch snapping caught all the men's attention.

"Did you see that?"

"Hey! Come out!"

A feminine cloaked figure walked out of the woods. The shadow cast from her hood covered the upper part of her face. An extravagant looking pendant with a yellow stone in the middle sat around her neck. Brad and Ed shared a look. Brad stepped forward, a charming smile on his face. "What's a pretty little thing like you doing out here this late at night?"

"Oh, I'm just looking for my sisters. You haven't seen them, have you?"

"We haven't. Why don't you come sit by the fire and wait for them? We'll protect you from the monsters." Ed wiggled his eyebrows.

They watched as dark painted lips curled into a smirk. "Monsters?"

The newcomer unsettled Mark. She seemed far too relaxed considering there were four of them. His brother's friend however, didn't seem to think so. "Yeah, haven't you heard the rumors? One of the locals said that there's an ugly ass vampire bitch that roams these woods at night."

The smirk fell into a frown. Her hands balled into fists at her sides. "What did you say?"

Brad continued on, completely unaware of the aura of danger coming from the woman. He came to a stop, just in front of her. "Don't worry. I'll protect you. I'll ram a stake right through-"

"How dare you." She snarled as her hand shot out, taking Brad's throat in her strong grip. She squeezed, bringing the man to his knees. "You dare insult my mother. You stupid manthing, you will learn your place!"

"Hey!" Tony and Ed shouted, each standing from their seats. They moved to help their friend, but they were stopped before they could get close enough. Two more cloaked figures appeared from out of the woods and easily stopped the men.

A redheaded woman stood over Ed, with a devilish grin. She crouched over him, weaving her hand through his hair. With a jerk, she pulled his head up so she could look into his terrified eyes. "My my. I thought you were going to protect us?"

A blonde rested her heel on Tony's head, holding him down. Pulling a sickle out, she swung it into his thigh causing him to cry out. "You'll pay for insulting, Mother."

"L-leave them alone!" Mark stumbled back, falling to the ground as he tripped over the small red cooler. His instincts told him to run as far away as he could.

Daniela turned to him, not releasing her hold on Ed's hair. "My sisters and I are just having some fun. Why don't you come play with us? We'll have so much fun!" With a flick of her wrist, a red line formed on his brother's throat. Slowly, red started seeping out.

Mark's eyes widened in horror as he watched the girls slice into his friends. Cackling laughter filled the air. Picking himself up from the ground, he ran into the forest. "Monsters! Please, someone help!"

Daniela watched him run away. "Should we go after him?"

"We'll give him a head start." Cassandra shrugged as she pulled her weapon back from the body. She lifted it to her mouth, licking the blood from the blade. Closing her eyes, she savored the flavor. Man blood, she had learned, tasted much better than maidens. It was a rare treat that she savored when she had the chance. "Bela did say she likes to hunt."

"Woah!" The redhead said as she swarmed avoiding the object that flew at her. An arrow stuck in the tree beside her. "Where did that come from?"

"Attack men!"

Seven men burst through the tree line, surrounding the women. Five of them carried swords, two other held bows. The sisters all shared a look. "Looks like we have more playthings."

"Be careful of their weapons. They're dipped in silver." Bela warned. The last thing she needed was for one of her sisters to get hurt. Though they were not sure why, silver seemed to be the only material that hurt them. It was something not even Mother Miranda had been able to explain.

Cassandra rolled her eyes. The men that surrounded them were hunters. Of course they had silver lined weapons. Humans were stupid, but not that stupid. She tossed her meal to ground, and readied herself. "Then don't let them get close to you."

Cassandra walked closer to one of the men. The hunter readied his sword, but made no move to attack. He backed up, keeping his eyes on the brunette. A confident smile formed on his face as he glanced up into the treetops. "Ivan! Leonidas!"

Cassandra sensed their attack just a second too late. A net fell on her, throwing her to the ground. From the weight of it, Cassandra could tell it wasn't normal netting. Instead, the netting had been twisted with silver. "Hey, what the hell?! Let me out of here!"

"How dare you touch my sister!" Bela launched herself towards the man, ready to take the man's head off.

"Bela watch out!" Daniela watched as a second net rained down from the tree above, effectively catching the eldest. Both of her sisters lay trapped under the nets, both snarling as the tugged at the net.

"Keep her back!" Ivan shouted as he and the other man jumped down from the tree. The remaining men circled around Daniela, keeping her at bay. Once they were sure she wasn't a threat, they returned their attention back to the trapped sisters. They pulled out their swords and raised them, ready to strike. "Now I got you. Time to die, bitch!"

Bela closed her eyes, waiting for the sword to pierce her. The smell of blood filled her senses. Feeling no pain of her own, she risked opened her eyes. Relief washed over her.

Theodora stood in front of her, her hands extended out. Bela watched as a line of blood fell from the tip of the sword that stuck out of the redhead's side. The white fabric around the sword slowly began fading to red. Theo's hands were extended out in front of her, holding the other sword inches away from Cassandra's head.

Theo pushed Leonidas' blade back, effectively knocking the man to the ground. Turning around, she focused on Ivan.

"I warned you the last time I seen you. The castle is under my protection." Theo sneered as she snapped his sword in half. Pushing the blade clean through her side, she tossed it to the ground. Theo grabbed the man by his throat, lifting him into the air. "Let this be a warning to the rest of you. Touch any of them again, and I'll end you all."

With a flick of her wrist, Ivan's body went limp. Leonidas felt his blood run cold. Their weapons specially made to end the demons. And yet, he had watched Ivan's blade run the woman clean through. He looked around at his men. They had been prepared for Dimitrescu and her daughters, but they still knew nothing of the redhead. Without knowing her weakness, fighting her did nothing but risk his men's lives. "Run!"

Theo tossed the body aside and turned to the girls. She pulled the nets, freeing the pair. Daniela flew over to them, pulling them into a hug. "You guys alright?"

"Yes."

Now that she knew they were unharmed, she could lecture them. Theo put her hand on her hip, avoiding her right side. "I thought I told you guys to yell if you needed help?"

"We didn't have the chance. They came out of nowhere!"

Theo sighed. This had been the second time in less than a year that the girls had been bested by hunters. She made a mental note to talk with Alcina in the morning, about going over some basics with them. "When you're out on a hunt, you all need to be sure of all of your surroundings. Your mother and I might not always be close enough to help. You girls have to use your heads!"

The three girls hung their heads. "Sorry..."

"We'll do better."

"That's all I ask. Your mother would be devastated if something happened to you girls." Theo assured. She could only imagine how Alcina would react if something happened to her children. It was something she didn't want to see, let alone have to tell her. "C'mon, let's head back home."