Author's note: Wow, I'm already at eighty reviews!! Thanks SO much, everyone, for the lovely reviews and support!! I hope I continue to keep you happy. This chapter has plenty of Michael/Selene, since someone keeps bugging me for it. And also a bit of Lucian/Sonja and Marcus/Erika (which someone has also been bugging me for, you know who you are!!). Hope you enjoy and please review!!
Disclaimer: Ok, I only own the characters not found in the movie or novelization, got it? Good. As much as I'd love to own Lucian, I don't. I'd even like to own Sonja, so they could be together, cause I'm a die-hard L/S shipper, but I don't own her. Obviously. Please don't sue me, Sony. Don't be like White Wolf (sorry, I couldn't resist).
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CHAPTER 7: HAUNTED
Lucian lie on the cold, hard ground in agony, blood pouring from his whipped back. Still, as long as Sonja and the child were unharmed, he would gladly bare this and more. He could not imagine Viktor possible of such a vile act as to kill his own daughter, but he could not help but worry for his beloved and their child.
Everything hurt as he struggled to move, to look up at Sonja. He heard a creaking noise, and wondered what was happening. He finally managed to push himself and up he looked to see a round opening in the ceiling of the cavernous room.
No!! Lucian tried to scream, but his body stayed still as he watched in horror. Sunlight poured in through the widening circle, hitting Sonja.
Her scream filled the room and he finally found the strength to move. Violently struggling against his chains, he cried out in protest, watching helplessly as his princess' skin melted and burned, turned black and chipped.
She writhed in pain and let out a final scream before the light had burnt her enough to kill her.
Lucian stared in horror and despair, and her name escaped his lips in a scream.
***
"SONJA!!!!" Michael cried out as he jerked up. He looked around, dazed. He took in his surroundings, remembering where he was. Moldavia, Lucian's fortress, or what was left of it.
"Michael," he heard Selene whisper next to him. He turned to see her kneel beside him on his makeshift bed. Her eyes had turned the pale blue that marked a vampire, but why he did not know. "You were dreaming." A simply statement, not a question.
He nodded. "It was when she died again," he confided. "So much pain, so much sorrow. It was worse then when," he hesitated, thinking of his own lost wife. Michael turned to Selene, her eyes still blue. "It was so extreme, more passionate than any human could feel. I don't know how he lived with it, it sometimes feels as though it could destroy me."
Selene remained silent for several minutes, before laying a cold hand on his warm shoulder. "It can only destroy you if you let it," she told him. "Lucian used it to fuel him, he took control. If he hadn't, it would have destroyed him, his kind, and the vampires. He sought justice more so than mere vengeance." Selene sat down next to Michael.
"It grew," Michael stated. "The pain, the love, everything. Time didn't make it fade, it made it stronger. When Lucian bit me, he loved her more then he had the day she died." Michael turned towards Selene.
"You should get some sleep, you need to rest some, you haven't since all this started," Selene instructed, but Michael didn't listen.
Instead, he leaned over. Whether it was the leftover passion from the memory, or his own feelings for Selene, perhaps and most likely both, he felt the urge to be near her, feel her cold skin against his warmer flesh.
Kissing her softly, he moved near her ear and whispered, "I don't want to sleep." He raised his hands to hold her shoulders, keeping her near him. He felt her stiffen, but then she relaxed. As he pressed his own mouth against hers, he felt her begin to return his actions, her own hands coming to rest on his chest and her lips parting slightly against his.
He laid her back down on the makeshift bed, careful with her as though she would break. He remember Lucian being that way with Sonja. But this was Selene, not Sonja. He was Michael, not Lucian. He would not break her, not hurt her.
But she could tear him down. And right now, that's what he wanted. To forget everything, to shove away all his responsibilities just for a few hours.
***
Lucian and Rudolf sat next to each other at a large table in the conference room Erik had ordered Karl to gather everybody in. Nearly fifty lycans were in in the room, and these were not all of the British sect of the lycans. Merely the ones Erik felt needed to be present. Lucian grinned as his nephew told him how things had been going, catching up on old times. It was good to see one of his own flesh and blood, especially after losing so many of his closest friends that night. He still harbored hope that Raze had managed to survive that night.
But he was certain he would have seen the large lycan sometime as he watched out for Michael and his pack. And the vampire Selene.
"Lucian, I would like you to meet my wife, Diana," Erik announced as he and a young, at least in appearance, beautiful female lycan. Long, nearly black hair and lovely cat-like eyes were her most striking features, but she would have been beautiful nevertheless.
Lucian stood and shook her hand. "It is an honor to finally meet you after reading about you in Erik's letters," Lucian told her.
Diana smiled. "No, it is I who am honored, to finally meet the leader my husband has told me of since my turning. My husband tells me you come with grave news though."
"Yes, I'm afraid so," Lucian confirmed. He turned to Erik, signaling it was time to start the meeting. He wished to get this over with as soon as possible. His native land and the continuing war beckoned him to return quickly.
Erik nodded and turned to face all of the lycans in the room. "Everyone, I'm sure you've all discovered who it is that came home with me this morning. And you're probably wondering why. It appears that the war may be close to ending, and much has happened. Lucian has come to inform us of the new developments." Erik stepped aside and Lucian walked over to stand in front of the group.
"Viktor and Amelia are dead. Only one Elder remains. A little more than a week ago, we found the human descendant of Corvinus." He waited a moment to let the murmurs die down at these statements. "This is hardly a short story, so I can only give you the basics, as we haven't a moment to lose. A young Death Dealer, Selene, woke Viktor prematurely when she discovered my plan. But we were able to capture the Corvinus descendant, Michael Corvin, and I injected his blood.
"The vampires though, attacked that night, seeking to destroy us all before a hybrid could be made. But they were too late. I was able to inject Amelia's blood into my own, and with Corvinus blood in my system, I was able to take the change. But I am not the only hybrid. This Selene I mentioned, she cared for Michael, and helped him to escape. She bit him, to save him from silver poisoning and therefore changed him into a hybrid as well."
"Isn't that good?" A lycan male asked.
Lucian nodded. "Yes, it is. But not everything else that happened afterwards is. I do not know of all the details, but Viktor was killed in a battle with Selene and Michael. But somehow, Marcus has become a hybrid."
An uproar resounded through the crowded room, but Lucian quickly put an end to it. He did not have time for this.
"Silence!" he commanded loudly and sternly. "You must hear this, for I do not know the Elder's plan. Michael and Selene have been leading the pack. They believe I am dead. Kraven, our source inside the vampire's clan, betrayed us. They have a new weapon, which he used on myself and Michael. Silver nitrate. Fast acting, straight into the bloodstream. There is no digging out, no expelling it from your system. So far, Marcus appears to be hiding his new change. But no attacks have been ordered on the lycans. Simply tracking. I do not know how Marcus has become a hybrid, or what it is he plans. But what I do know is this: we must go back to Hungary. Until Marcus proves otherwise, he and the vampires are still our enemies and a threat to our survival." Lucian stared at the faces looking at him, waiting for his orders, ready to listen to their leader. "We leave for Hungary tomorrow. All of us. On different flights, different times. We will go to the ruins of an old fortress in Moldavia, where we will join the rest of the pack. Now, go, and gather up only what you need."
***
Selene watched as Michaels chest rose and fell with his breath. It was nearly nightfall outside, soon they would have to go and see how many of the pack had arrived, and how they were fairing. But for now, Michael rested. He needed to. And she strangely enjoyed watching him sleep.
To think, not more than two weeks ago she had loathed and despised lycans, and would have hated any breed with lycan blood in it. Yet here she was, lying half atop a lycan/vampire hybrid, after making love to him.
But was it making love? Were they in love? Could they really, truly be feeling something remotely close to what Lucian and Sonja must have felt for each other? It was strange to think she could feel something so, warm. For so long she had been frozen to everything and everyone. Except Viktor, at times.
But Viktor had been a lie. He had created her, molded her to his standards and his expectations. Tore her down and then built her back up. Made her hate the lycans, did everything in his power to keep her from the same fate as Sonja.
Yes, she had to love Michael, to have even thought of betraying Viktor. And it had brought Viktor's deceit and treachery into the light. At first she had almost hated Michael and Lucian for it. But even more, she had hated herself and Viktor.
Now, she simply pitied Viktor. For being so blind, so arrogant, and so cruel. She was beyond her hate of him, of Michael, Lucian, and herself. Viktor was dead, herself, her family, Sonja, Lucian, and their child avenged. Justice served. And that was the end of it.
She had to focus on what mattered now. Michael. Survival. The lycans and her own kind. Bringing this war to its end at long last. That was what mattered. Nothing more. When the war was over, perhaps she could openly admit to herself and to him that she was not as cold as she used to be.
Until then, she simply cared for him. Nothing more.
She looked at the pendant that Michael wore. She reached up, fingering it delicately. Sonja's pendant, worn by Lucian for six hundred years, six whole centuries. And in a way, he still wore it. She wondered if Lucian and Sonja wore reunited in eternity, if there really was an afterlife.
For some reason, she believed there was. And if so, then she knew they were together. No other deserved it more.
Would I be able to love someone for six hundred years? she questioned herself. Looking at Michael, she began to think it might be possible.
***
Erika walked down a hallway, a soft smile upon her face as she remembered the sight of the Death Dealers dragging Kraven away. Marcus would hold judgment tonight, his first venture outside Ordoghaz postponed until the situation with Kraven was taken care of.
The smile grew as she then remembered the look he had given her as he followed the Death Dealers. It had sent shivers down her back in a delightful way. Kraven had never been able to make her react like that. Her lust for him had been nothing compared to what Marcus made her feel.
She wondered though, why was he interested in her of all people? She was merely a servant. The only way to acquire Kraven's attention was to throw herself at him, or if he wanted someone to check on Selene. But Marcus had come to her, had shown more than passing interest in her.
It was thrilling and an adrenaline rush, making her feel warm almost. She was eager for her next meeting with Marcus.
Which was now, she realized as she turned the corner to the hallway towards her quarters. There stood Marcus, dressed in his regal Elder robes, similar in style to Viktor's only his were gray. He turned, hearing her silent approach, and Erika nearly gulped.
In his Elder attire, he was even more commanding and handsome. Almost unconsciously, she found herself bowing slightly, but a hand reached out to lift her chin. Her eyes raised slowly to meet Marcus'.
"Forgive me, my Lord Marcus," she began, but his forefinger was once again placed on her lips to silence her.
"You have done nothing wrong. I realize it must be hard to forget years of training in simply one day," he said kindly. "I was looking for you, my dear, I wanted to ask you, why did Kraven come to you for help? What made him think he could trust you?"
Erika lowered her eyes, wishing she could bow her head in shame. But Marcus' hand was still holding her chin up, and he would not so quickly let her hide.
"When he was regent, I often tried to," she hesitated. She was afraid what the Elder would think of her when she told him. "I often tried to make him notice me," she stated finally. "And I suppose he thought he still mattered to me. But he doesn't."
She felt Marcus' cold breath on her skin and she looked to see him leaning down so close their noses were almost touching.
"I am glad to hear it."
Erika was about to respond when she felt cold lips on hers, and whatever she was about to saw flew out the window, along with any other coherent thoughts she may have possessed.
***
Lucian stared out at the setting sun, his hand reaching up to where he could still almost feel the pendant. But it wasn't there. Gone, now hanging from Michael's neck. He smiled, a bittersweet smile. It had relieved him when he discovered where the necklace had gone to. But he would be happy to have it back. His only piece of her, the only tangible part of Sonja he'd had for six hundred years, the only part of her he would ever have for the rest of his life.
"You'll have it back soon enough," he heard Rudolf say as his nephew approached. "Don't worry, from all you've told me, this Michael will take good care of it," he said, trying to comfort Lucian.
The lycan leader nodded. "I know he will. There's too much of me inside him now for him not too." He glanced at Rudolf. "But it's all I have of her, and I can not stand not having it with me."