Author's note: Wow, that is the most reviews for a single chapter I have ever gotten. Whoa. Ya'll have inspired me to listen to my muse and write the first chapter of this story. So here ya go. Now, everyone's favorite lycan leader won't be in the next few chapters after this. But he will be back, I promise. He's quite crucial. But I have some things I need to work out and so does he, so no Lucian for probably two or three chapters. Then he'll be practically certain piece. Hope ya'll enjoy this chapter and please review, I'm addicted and so is my muse!!!!

Disclaimer: Ok, someone got mad at me last chapter, so I'll disclaim what pissed them off: the line at the end of the prologue is taken from the end of the novel for Underworld. Sorry, I didn't mean t make anybody mad. Nor did I mean any copyright infringement. I don't own any of these characters or situations really, please don't sue me. There. Although, I think whoever owns Lucian should give him to me. I'd take care of him, not let him get killed by that prick of a vampire.

********************

CHAPTER 1: GLIMPSES OF FAMILIAR FACES

Michael followed Selene through the city streets, towards the Metro station, heading for one of the lesser used safe houses the Death Dealers owned. Much to Selene's annoyance, Michael had insisted that they go and retrieve necessary medical supplies, tools for extracting any silver weapons from his half-brothers.

Even now, a week after he had become the hybrid creature, nocturnal and vicious, he still had his humanity. He still had his desire to save and to help. That was why Selene had finally acquiesced. She had lost her humanity long ago, and she knew Michael wanted to keep his as long as he could hold on to it. She wanted him to keep it to.

So now they were stalking through the city, looking over their shoulders and watching those around them. None of the lycans had been captured, so there was no reason for any vampires to be at any of the safe houses, but being who they were, they had to take extra and every precaution.

"I don't like this. Marcus has been too quite, you still have trouble controlling the change," Selene pointed out, "why couldn't we wait until we had more knowledge of Marcus' plans?"

Michael glanced at her. "Because we don't know what he's planning. Any time, one of the lycans could come back to the lair, silver bullets or shuriken in his body," he replied. "I don't want to take any chances, I refuse to let one of the pack die because we simply don't have the proper tools, when we could have them. I just wish we could go back to Singe's lab," he stated.

But they couldn't. They did know that Death Dealers regularly scoured the subterranean lair Lucian and his horde had been hiding out in for so long. It was much safer, going to one of the safe houses used for interrogation.

Selene sighed. He had a point. They were vulnerable, she, Michael, and the lycans. Marcus had been awakened and the death dealers patrolled Lucian's ruined, underground lair, but that was the extent of their knowledge. Marcus had been keeping quite.

She hadn't decided yet if that was a mercy or a bad omen. In a way, it was a small mercy, for Michael had trouble controlling his change sometimes. It would often happen unconsciously when he felt strong emotions. The lycans were still reeling from the death of their leader, and the birth of the new creature that had almost been forced to take the position of the new alpha. She was still having to accept the fact that the one person she had felt that she could trust, the vampire she had believed had saved her from the lycans, had betrayed her from the beginning. She still had to accept the fact that he was dead by her own hand. That she was now forced to hide with those she had once sought to destroy.

And then there were the dreams and visions Michael would have. Lucian's life had been playing out in flashes and images in Michael's head when he slept, and many times when he was awake.

But the most disconcerting thing was when he would wake, calling out her name. And his voice sounded so alien, so close to Lucian's, it scared her though she would never admit it. He would call out to Sonja, as if he himself had become Lucian, then the memory would fade, Lucian's hold would fade.

It worried and scared Selene, but she had remained silent on the subject. She wasn't sure how Michael would react, and she wasn't sure how she was reacting. Everything had been turned upside down only one week ago. Even for someone like her, it took some getting used to a change from the life you knew for more than a hundred years.

"Selene, wait," Michael whispered abruptly, his hand reaching out to grab her shoulder lightly. She glared at the hand, then shot Michael a curious glance. He was looking off into the distance, to their right. She tried to find what could have caused the halt, but nothing out of the ordinary. She sniffed the air. Humans, her own vampire scent, Michael's mixture of lycan and vampire, but nothing else. Wait, a scent, foreign yet familiar.

It was lycan, mostly. Selene's brow furrowed in confusion. The lycan scent was tinged with vampire, yet that was impossible. Michael was the only hybrid. The scent was also vaguely familiar, but she was certain it was none of Lucian's pack. A rogue werewolf, perhaps? And she was merely mixing the smell of vampire from herself and Michael with this lycan's own scent?

"It was him," Michael stated quietly, his voice wavering. He turned to her. "Did you see him?

A shake of her head, her expressions still confused. "No, I saw no one other than these humans around us. Who did you see?" Selene asked urgently. They needed to move quickly if trouble was nearby.

"Lucian."

Selene stared at Michael, her eyes remaining blank, but she could hardly believe Michael. "Are you sure?"

The quiet sureness of his tone had told Selene he was absolutely positive he had seen the fallen lycan master, but she asked anyway. It was impossible, Lucian was dead. She had seen him, crawling on the ground, the silver infected veins clearly visible. Kraven had shot him again, she remembered hearing the bullets as she drank from Michael, doing what Lucian had told her.

He was dead, there was no way Lucian could have survived. He had not become a hybrid, she was sure of that.

Michael did not reply. He met her gaze and began walking towards the Metro station once again.

With a quick, searching gaze around, Selene followed before she could lose her hybrid.

He must have been having some sort of vision again. That could only be it.

***

Lucian swiftly crossed the street as he walked away from Selene and Michael. He had only been following them to the station to make sure they were not followed. But now he had to leave. If what he discovered was true, they were all in more danger than first believed.

It was time for his backup plan to become his new course of action. If only Singe weren't dead. Lucian was no scientist nor a doctor. They needed Singe's knowledge. Knowledge someone else now had.

The war was heading for its bloodiest, hardest battle yet. Viktor may have been older than Marcus, but he was not more powerful. And now, now Marcus was more powerful than ever.

The supposedly dead - again - lycan master headed for the airport. Time to make a quick trip.

***

If there was one thing Lucian hated anywhere close to how he hated vampires, it was crowds. Which was what he was in at that very moment. One huge crowd of humans, shoving and pushing their way through, trying to get to their flight.

Biting back a growl, he pushed forward towards his own flight. He glanced around, staring at the people surrounding him. He discreetly sniffed the air, making sure there were no threat of vampires . AS he looked around, his eyes landed on a familiar, hauntingly beautiful face.

"Sonja?" he could not help whispering. He stared at her, the girl unaware of his smoldering gaze. It was not possible. Was he dreaming? Haunted to insanity by his dead beloved at last? His unnecessary breath caught in his throat as she looked up. It had to be her, the same emerald eyes could be no other's.

Eternity seemed to pass in that moment, as he held her gaze, but she quickly turned away, shooting one last fleeting glance at him before becoming lost in the crowd.

"No," he breathed. He searched around. Had it all been some hallucination? He shook his head. It had seemed so real. But how? Was it simply someone nearly identical? But her eyes, they had been his beloved's eyes.

You're going mad, Lucian. You're finally losing your sanity. He repeated this to himself as he began walking in the direction she had fled. Screw his flight, it was probably delayed anyway from the storm outside.

He searched and searched, but the woman had disappeared it seemed. That's it, I'm mad. I've finally lost my grip.

He turned, defeated. He was late for his flight. As he reached the place where he was to board the plane, he smiled grimly to himself. Delayed.

***

Michael stood next to Selene, waiting for the M3 line to come. He barely noticed his surroundings, he was too lost in his thoughts. He knew Lucian had been nearby, he had seen him, smelt him. How could he not know him? Not with so much of his lycan sire inside his head. He had more of Lucian in him than he had Selene it seemed sometimes.

Perhaps he had been seeing things. Part of him wished Lucian would turn up alive, ready to take back his position as leader. Michael was no leader. He was still struggling to come to grips with everything, with what he had become.

And then there was Selene. Beautiful, frozen Selene, his vampire sire. At times, he could tell she truly did care for him, she had to, or else she wouldn't have made the sacrifices he witnessed her make. But at others, she was so distant, so cold, he wondered why she even came near him.

But he loved her, more so now that he had become this creature, this hybrid. He would stay with her and leave her to her thoughts for now.

A sigh came from his ice queen, and he turned to see her eyes closed and she leaned back against the column. She was weary, though she'd be loathe to admit it. The past week and a half had taken quite a toll on both of them, and both worlds.

Something told him, though, that things were only going to get worse from here. They would have to get worse before they could finally heal completely.