David sat in Slaje's lab with Simone on the table in front of him.
Lukacs sat beside him with Slaje seated across the table.
"We have finally discovered the error in our research," Slaje began. "In order to combine the species, we need to take the rarest of bloodlines, a direct descendent of Soloman Armandus. Ukrainian. A warlord. He came to power in the early seasons of the fourth century, just in time to watch a plague ravage his village. He alone survived. And then, his body was able to change the disease, mold it to his benefit. He became the first true immortal…" He paused a moment to look at Lukacs before continuing. "And years later, he fathered at least two children, who inherited this same trait."
"The sons of the Armandus clan," Simone added, glancing over her shoulder at the older doctor. "One bitten by bat, one by wolf, one to walk the lonely road of mortality as a human."
"We've all heard the story before," Lukacs commented. "Does this conversation have a point, Slaje?"
"Yes, sir," Slaje answered. "We need a pure source, untainted. An exact duplicate of the original virus. The Armandus strain itself, which we learned was hidden away in the genetic code of his human descendents."
"So, all we need to do is find the descendent of Armandus," David deduced, looking over at Slaje.
Slaje nodded wordlessly as he met David's gaze.
Niklaus stood up from his throne and walked over to Sonia. "I'm sorry I doubted you," he apologized, stopping beside her. "Fear not, my child. Jozsef will pay with his life."
Sonia looked up at him and met his eyes.
"Mommy," Sacha called from the doorway, rubbing her eyes with her little hand. She padded into the room, her bare feet soundless on the stone floor.
Amelia stood up and met her daughter halfway to the thrones, kneeling down so she was eye level with the girl.
Sacha stopped just within arms' reach of her mother and hugged her teddy bear closer to her chest. "Mommy, I had a bad dream," she whimpered, tears welling up in her eyes.
"It's okay, sweetheart," she cooed, pulling the child into her arms. "It's not real… It was just a dream."
Sacha wrapped her arms around Amelia and returned the hug, crying into her mother's shoulder.
Niklaus watched the display stoically before turning back to Sonia, who was watching Erik out of the corner of her eye. "Go find Mael and have him assemble the Death Dealers," he ordered, getting her attention.
Sonia tore her gaze from Erik to look at Niklaus, barely hearing his orders. "Yes, my Lord," she agreed, nodding and leaving to follow her orders.
Naum burst into the lab with his machine gun in hand. "We've got company," he announced.
"Okay," Lukacs replied, getting up. He followed Naum outside and down the hall into his meeting room.
"I thought we had a deal," Jozsef said, turning as Lukacs entered.
"Calm yourself… Jozsef," Lukacs ordered, smirking at the vampire. "Please, escort our guests downstairs."
The several lycans gathered nodded and motioned for the vampires to follow them with their guns.
Jozsef nodded to Sander and the Dealers and watched them leave with the lycans.
Naum slid the door shut as he left, not at all pleased about leaving Lukacs alone with Jozsef.
"The Elders know," Jozsef told him. "Sonia told them."
"Who?" Lukacs wondered, not recognizing the name.
"Sonia," Jozsef answered. "Your vampire's sister."
Lukacs eyes widened, and he hung his head slightly in shame. He looked up again a moment later and glared at Jozsef.
"How do you expect to get rid of the Elders now that they know?" Jozsef asked, returning the glare. "There's no defeating them."
"That is precisely why I needed you to keep them oblivious," Lukacs said. "If the Elders were so easy to dispatch, you'd have done it yourself… centuries ago."
Naum and the lycans led Sander and the Death Dealers to a room downstairs and stopped at the door, letting the vampires pass. They heard gunfire coming from upstairs, and they froze, listening to the screams.
"Exit shaft!" Naum ordered, moving to shut the doors. "Move it!" He slammed the doors shut and locked the deadbolt.
Sander ran for the doors and hurriedly tried to open them, slamming his fist against them when he realized they were locked.
Mael led the Death Dealers into the lycan den, ignoring the bodies that littered the floor.
Among the Dealers were Sonia and Erik. They walked side-by-side behind Mael and were dressed in the traditional black leather suits of the Death Dealers.
Mael led them to the top of the exit shaft and took a grenade out of his coat pocket. He pulled out the pin and tossed the silver bomb down the shaft.
The lycans climbing the ladders watched the grenade fall to the floor and froze as it landed in the puddle of water.
The grenade exploded and blew the lycans to pieces.
Jozsef flinched as the explosion blew out the windows of the meeting room. "It's the Elders," he said.
"Yes," Lukacs agreed, glaring at him. "And if you had done your job, they'd still be at the mansion."
"Is there another way out?" Jozsef asked, watching Lukacs walk over to his desk.
Lukacs turned to him and gave him an exasperated look. "I guess it never occurred to you that you may actually have to bleed to pull this off," he said, sarcastically. He grabbed a mag of UV bullets and loaded his pistol. "Don't even think about leaving." He walked past Jozsef and to the door, pulling it open.
Jozsef lifted the back of his shirt and took the gun from the hidden holster. He pointed it at Lukacs' shoulder and fired.
Lukacs gritted his teeth in pain and lifted his hand to the wound in his chest. He looked down at his hand at the strange liquid that coated it.
"Silver nitrate," Jozsef told him, smirking arrogantly. "Bet you weren't expecting that."
Lukacs turned to shoot him but fell to the floor instead.
Sonia stepped up on the edge of the shaft and looked to Mael for his signal. She jumped down the fifty-foot shaft at his nod, followed by Erik and several other Death Dealers.
They all landed lightly on their feet and stood up, firing at the lycans.
The lycans immediately returned fire as the rest of the Dealers dropped down to the floor.
The Dealers took positions behind pieces of stone and rubble and shot down all of the lycans before continuing down the corridor with Mael and Erik in the lead.
Simone looked out the window below to see the lycan guards taking on a group of Death Dealers. "We need to go," she told David, turning to him.
Just as she turned, the doors burst open, and three fully armed Dealers appeared. They paused when they saw Simone, thinking that she was Sonia.
That gave Simone enough time to pull out one of her Berettas and shoot at them. She managed to hit all three vampires the first time around and covered her eyes as the Dealers burned alive from the inside out.
David touched her shoulder when their bodies stilled and smiled slightly at her when she looked up at him. "Let's go," he said, heading off.
Simone followed him closely and kept a lookout for vampires, both her guns drawn and ready.
Sonia followed her comrades down another corridor and stopped abruptly as she sensed something. She turned from the Dealers and ran off down a different hallway.
Erik heard her and turned to check on her, doing a double-take when he realized she was gone. "Sonia," he called, getting the Dealers' attention. He quickly went off after her without waiting for Mael's instruction, knowing the Dealers would follow him.
Sonia stopped dead in her tracks at an intersection and turned to see a fully-changed lycan coming right at her. She wordlessly raised her guns and shot it down before continuing down the hallway.
About halfway down that hall, another werewolf appeared in front of her.
She flipped over its head, shooting at it until her clip was empty, and landed gracefully at the other end of the hallway. She reached behind her and took out another mag of silver bullets, hurriedly reloading her gun as she heard yet another lycan coming up behind her. She turned just before the lycan reached her and fired at it, lowering her gun and standing when it fell to the floor dead.
Sander and the Death Dealers finally broke the doors open and exited the room.
"Move, move, move!" Sander ordered, waiting for the other Dealers to head off. He followed them down the hall with his gun raised and ready.
Simone led David toward the exit and stopped at the stairs as she smelled an approaching vampire. She aimed her gun at the stairs, fully prepared to shoot the Dealer. Her eyes widened, and she nearly dropped her pistol when Sonia appeared on the stairs. "Sonia?!" she exclaimed, going to meet her sister at the top of the stairs.
"Simone, I've been looking for you everywhere," Sonia replied. "We have to get out of here."
"W-what are you doing here?" Simone wondered, surprised to see her twin.
"The Elders are on their way, and they won't stop until everyone here is dead," Sonia answered, finally catching David's scent. She looked over at him and aimed her gun at his head.
"No, Sonia," Simone protested, moving closer to David. "Not him."
Sonia watched as Simone reached out and took David's hand, squeezing it slightly. She sighed defeatedly and lowered her weapon.
Naum, in lupine form, knelt down on the floor beside a Death Dealer's body, tearing at his ragged flesh with his fangs. He looked up as he smelled approaching Death Dealers and stood up. He jumped through the wall and roared at the vampires.
Niklaus and the three Death Dealers with him stopped and watched the huge lycan.
Naum walked up to them and raised his arm to swipe at Niklaus.
Niklaus caught his arm in one hand and grabbed his throat with the other. He effortlessly snapped Naum's neck and threw him to the ground. He unsheathed his sword and chopped off the lycan's head, baring his fangs in bloodlust.
Simone and David rushed past the meeting room with Sonia close behind and froze when they saw Lukacs slumped down in the doorway.
"Lukacs," David called, kneeling down beside the Hungarian alpha. He gently turned his mentor's head to the side before letting it drop. He hung his head in sorrow and let his blonde hair hide his eyes.
Simone looked at Sonia when she felt her sister rest her hand on her shoulder and met her twin's sympathetic gaze. She smiled weakly at her and turned her attention back to David.
David looked up sharply as he heard a group of running vampires approaching and singled out Sander. He snarled and ran towards the Dealers, pushing the twins out of the way as he passed them.
Sonia and Simone watched him throw Sander to the ground before giving each other nervous looks.
Sander quickly got to his feet and hissed at David, his eyes turning ice blue. He jerked off his trench coat and unraveled the silver whips from around his shoulders.
David's head was thrown to the side as one of the whips struck his cheek, leaving a large, bloody gash. When he looked up again, his eyes were the clouded silvery blue that indicated the change, and his teeth had sharpened and curved into fangs.
Sander whipped David's other cheek and began to swing his whips around with exceptional skill, watching as the lycan changed.
David roared at Sander and took a step closer to the vampire, his tail waving excitedly behind him. He disregarded the whips as they dug into his face, knowing the wounds would be healed in a few hours, and continued to close in on the Dealer.
Sander slowly backed away from David, still whipping like a madman, and paused briefly, looking over his shoulder, as one of his whips got caught in the rubble behind him.
David moved in at his momentary distraction and bit into his throat when he turned back around.
Lukacs slowly opened his eyes and took a shaky breath. He lifted his head and eventually managed to pull himself up to his knees, gritting his teeth in pain from the effort.
Sonia followed Simone through the den and stopped behind a pillar, pressing her back to it beside her sister. She turned abruptly and fired at the lycan that appeared behind her, watching it fall before turning back to Simone.
Around the corner, the battle raged on. Death Dealers were firing silver rounds at the lycans, while the wolves attempted to rip the vampires' throats out with their teeth.
Simone turned from the battle and walked past Sonia. She headed down the hallway and opened a heavy steel door, her eyes widening slightly when she saw Jozsef standing there.
Jozsef turned to see Simone staring at him. He glanced behind her to see Sonia step up, her eyes just as surprised as Simone's. He pursed his lips and aimed his gun at Simone. He fired three shots at her, the silver nitrate oozing out of the holes, and watched her stumble backwards and fall to the ground, writhing in pain.
Sonia was at her sister's side immediately, lifting her head a little to let her twin know that she was there for her. She knew that the silver nitrate itself would not kill her, but the bleeding holes in her chest would.
Jozsef stepped into the room, and his eyes turned icy blue as he saw the twins. "That's enough," he spoke up, moving to grab Sonia's arm. "You're coming with me."
Sonia slapped his hand away and glared daggers at him, her eyes the same ice blue as his. "I hope Niklaus throws you in the sun, traitor!" she snapped, looking back down at Simone.
"I bet you do," Jozsef mocked, leaning closer to her. "Well, let me tell you a little something… about your beloved dark father… He's the one who killed your family, not the lycans…" He glanced down at Simone and frowned slightly before meeting Sonia's eyes again. "She was telling you the truth…"
Sonia met his gaze and shook her head slightly in disbelief, narrowing her eyes at him.
"He never could follow Amelia's rules," Jozsef continued. "So, every once in a while at night, he went out and gorged himself in human blood… I kept his secrets… cleaned up the mess. But it was Niklaus who crept room to room devouring everyone close to your heart…"
"It's not true," Sonia hissed.
"Believe what you want," Jozsef replied, straightening. "Now, come on. Your place is by my side."
Sonia glared at him defiantly and moved closer to her sister.
Jozsef looked between the identical vampires briefly, getting angrier by the second. "Fine," he agreed, aiming his gun at Sonia's head. He looked down as he felt a hand grab his leg and smirked arrogantly down at Lukacs.
Lukacs watched him turn back to the twins and pulled a blade out of his pocket, stabbing it through Jozsef's leg.
Jozsef fell to one knee, gritting his teeth in pain, and backhanded the Hungarian alpha.
Lukacs crashed into a pile of rubble just as David appeared in the doorway.
David looked down at Lukacs and then over at the twins, his eyes widening when he saw Simone.
"Bite her," Lukacs ground out, smiling reassuringly at David.
David glanced down at Lukacs briefly and nodded when he understood. He knew that Lukacs would never put Simone in danger unless he knew it would do some good. She must have been Armandus' human descendent! he realized with a slight tinge of irritation. They'd had her the entire time and didn't even realize it!
Shaking his head to clear his mind, he went to the twins and knelt down on Simone's other side. He ignored Sonia for the moment and bent down over Simone. He kissed her neck softly in an apology before sinking his fangs into her skin.
Lukacs grinned triumphantly at his protégés and rolled onto his back to face Jozsef.
Jozsef pulled the blade from his leg and tossed it aside, looking over at David and the twins.
"You may have killed me… Jozsef," Lukacs stuttered, smirking up at the vampire. "But my will is done… regardless… We bridged the gap between our species…"
Jozsef raised his gun and filled Lukacs with five more silver nitrate bullets, killing him for sure this time. He looked up as he sensed someone coming, and he retreated when he saw Niklaus approaching.
Niklaus walked into the room with his Death Dealers and paused briefly at what he saw. Baring his fangs in rage, he grabbed Sonia by the back of the neck and casually tossed her aside. He then tore David from Simone and flung him through the stone wall before setting his sights on the semi-conscious Simone. He lifted her up by her throat and carefully studied her face.
Simone opened her eyes a little and briefly met his gaze before he whipped her through the hole in the wall that David had left.
"Where is he?!" Niklaus demanded, turning to Sonia. "Where's Jozsef?!"
Sonia remained silent and cowered away from him, her eyes filling with tears.
Simone looked up from the pool of water she lay in, and her ice blue eyes clouded over to a solid navy blue. She gasped at the sudden pain and rolled over on to her back.
Niklaus knelt down before Sonia and met her eyes, his own icy blue eyes softening a bit. "Forgive me, my child," he pleaded.
"It wasn't the lycans," Sonia said, letting her tears fall freely. "It was you."
Niklaus' face hardened slightly, and he stood up as he realized what she was talking about. "Leave us," he ordered the Dealers before turning back to Sonia. He paused a moment before continuing. "Yes, I have taken from you, but I have given so much more… Isn't it a fair trade? The life I have given you, the gift of immortality?"
Sonia didn't answer, too shocked by his confession to say anything.
Simone's leather cat suit stretched with her body as it transformed into a lycan, her nails already long and her skin blackening.
"I know that you love your sister, but she is a disgrace of the Coven," Niklaus explained.
Simone's body slowly shrank back to its original proportions, only a bit more muscular, and her skin lightened to a silvery blue color.
"I must do what's necessary to protect the species!" Niklaus announced, unsheathing his sword.
Simone opened her solid blue eyes just then, her transformation complete.
Niklaus watched Sonia for a moment longer before going to the hole he'd made in the wall.
"No!" Sonia protested, worried for her sister.
Niklaus looked around the now-empty room for Simone, but she was gone. Hearing breathing, he whirled around and came face to face with the hybrid abomination he'd feared for centuries.
Simone's lean muscles could easily be seen through her tight-fitting clothes, and her smooth skin was a deep silvery blue in color. Her eyes were a dark, navy blue that looked endless, since there was no longer any whites or pupils to her eyes. Her mouth was open slightly to bare her long, sharp fangs, and her once delicate hands now sported three-inch black claws. Her short, black hair was still dripping water, and her sleek, black tail swayed slightly behind her, also dripping water.
Niklaus hissed at her in fury and disgust, only to be shoved through the wall and into the pool of water by her. He rolled over onto his knees and looked up at her, hissing at her as he got to his feet.
Simone appeared behind him, her tail swishing the knee-deep water, and easily dodged the punches he threw at her. She slashed him with her claws at least three times before throwing him into a wall, holding him up by his neck.
Niklaus hissed at her and grabbed her throat, digging his fingers into her tougher skin. He tore himself out of her grip and threw her into a stone pillar.
Simone crashed face-first into the pillar and fell to the floor. She got up just as Niklaus picked up his sword where he'd dropped it.
Sonia moved to get up, her eyes unfocused in thought. She looked up sharply as she felt someone touch her arm, her eyes widening slightly when she saw Erik.
Erik helped Sonia to her feet and smiled reassuringly at her. He gently ran the back of his hand along her smooth, pale cheek, fixing his ice blue eyes on hers.
"Erik," Sonia breathed. "Niklaus killed my family… We have to help Simone…" She nodded in the direction of the fight and looked back at Erik.
Erik glanced over his shoulder at the fight, and his eyes widened slightly when he saw Simone. He released Sonia and walked over to the wall, knowing she was right behind him.
Simone dodged Niklaus' sword as he swung at her and got behind him. She slashed at him when he turned around and watched him fall to his knees.
Niklaus stood up quickly and socked her in the gut. He didn't waste any time in nailing her two more times. He caught her arm when she swung at him before chopping her collarbone and throwing her back into the pool of water.
David watched Simone struggling to get back up from his place on the other side of the room and charged Niklaus, snarling in rage. He punched the Elder in the face and moved to help Simone up.
Niklaus quickly recovered from the blow and grabbed David by his neck. He threw the lycan across the room and turned back to Simone, who was on her feet. He caught her arm in one hand and her throat in the other. Releasing her neck, he punched her in the chin, throwing her about fifteen feet away, and turned to the stairs to see three Death Dealers come down the steps.
Simone slowly got to her feet and turned her attention on the Dealers. She snarled at them as they opened fire on her. She fell backwards into the water as three silver bullets imbedded themselves in her torso. She quickly got up again and moved to get away from the bullets that never stopped coming.
Sonia landed nimbly on her feet and walked up to the middle Dealer. She kicked him in the back of the knee and snapped his neck effortlessly, letting his body drop. She turned to her right and slammed her hand into the second Dealer's chest, sending him flying face-first into the cement.
The last vampire was coming up on her left, and she whirled around to take him on, grabbing his arm as it swung at her. She chopped him in the chest and then slammed her palm into his jaw, looking over at where Simone was hiding behind a broken stone pillar as he fell. She took a steadying breath before running towards her sister.
Suddenly, Niklaus backhanded her, and blood burst from the gash in her forehead as she landed hard in a pile of rubble.
Simone snarled in fury and ran to her twin's aid, only to be tackled by Niklaus.
Sonia sat up and looked over at Simone and Niklaus just in time to see the Elder put her twin in a stranglehold before her icy blue eyes landed on Niklaus' sword laying a few feet away from her.
Simone tried futilely to get Niklaus to let go but only succeeded in getting him to hold on to her tighter.
"Time to die," Niklaus told her, clamping down even tighter yet.
Sonia had made up her mind and was just about to grab the sword when-
Erik snatched the blade from the rubble and ran at Niklaus.
Niklaus let Simone go and turned around just as he heard Erik come up behind him. He grunted in pain and looked down at the blade sticking out of his chest.
Erik watched him cough up a little blood and smirked at him. In one smooth motion, he jerked the sword from Niklaus' chest and sliced his head off, watching with a stony face as the body and head fell into the water. "You've finally paid for your crimes," he muttered, dropping the sword on Niklaus' back.
David scrambled over to them, holding his head in one hand, and dashed to Simone's side to help her up. He held her back to his chest and wrapped his arms around her waist, looking up as Sonia approached.
Erik went to Sonia's side and slipped his arm around her waist, pulling her to him and kissing her right temple gently.
They all looked back at Simone, and their eyes widened slightly when they saw that she was back in her "human" form.
Simone glanced up into the upper rooms and smiled weakly as she saw the lycans backing away into the shadows. She turned her smile up at David and let him lead her away.
"Simone!" Sonia called, jogging up to her sister. She unclasped the onyx snake pendant from her neck and pressed it into her twin's hand. "To remember me…"
Simone smiled gratefully at Sonia and clutched the necklace tightly. "I'll miss you…" she told her, leaning her head back on David's shoulder.
David smiled at Sonia and nodded once to Erik before scooping Simone up into his arms and walking away.
Sonia stood in the doorway to the throne room, watching as Erik broke the news of Niklaus' death to Sacha and Amelia.
Amelia immediately slapped her brother across the cheek, leaving a red hand mark, before she burst into tears and buried her face in his shoulder.
Erik lowered her to the floor and caught Sacha as she threw herself at him, hugging them both tightly as they sobbed.
Sonia turned around and walked away from the throne room to give them some privacy. Though I cannot predict the future, I know that the consequences of this night will reverberate through the halls of both great Covens for many years to come, she thought, ignoring the vampires that she passed. Two immortal leaders have been slain. One of whom I thought of as a father… Soon, Amelia will reclaim the throne, and a tide of anger and vengeance will spill out into the night… Differences will be set aside… Allegiances will be made… And soon…
I will become the hunted, Simone finished, her eyes turning navy blue.
Lukacs sat beside him with Slaje seated across the table.
"We have finally discovered the error in our research," Slaje began. "In order to combine the species, we need to take the rarest of bloodlines, a direct descendent of Soloman Armandus. Ukrainian. A warlord. He came to power in the early seasons of the fourth century, just in time to watch a plague ravage his village. He alone survived. And then, his body was able to change the disease, mold it to his benefit. He became the first true immortal…" He paused a moment to look at Lukacs before continuing. "And years later, he fathered at least two children, who inherited this same trait."
"The sons of the Armandus clan," Simone added, glancing over her shoulder at the older doctor. "One bitten by bat, one by wolf, one to walk the lonely road of mortality as a human."
"We've all heard the story before," Lukacs commented. "Does this conversation have a point, Slaje?"
"Yes, sir," Slaje answered. "We need a pure source, untainted. An exact duplicate of the original virus. The Armandus strain itself, which we learned was hidden away in the genetic code of his human descendents."
"So, all we need to do is find the descendent of Armandus," David deduced, looking over at Slaje.
Slaje nodded wordlessly as he met David's gaze.
Niklaus stood up from his throne and walked over to Sonia. "I'm sorry I doubted you," he apologized, stopping beside her. "Fear not, my child. Jozsef will pay with his life."
Sonia looked up at him and met his eyes.
"Mommy," Sacha called from the doorway, rubbing her eyes with her little hand. She padded into the room, her bare feet soundless on the stone floor.
Amelia stood up and met her daughter halfway to the thrones, kneeling down so she was eye level with the girl.
Sacha stopped just within arms' reach of her mother and hugged her teddy bear closer to her chest. "Mommy, I had a bad dream," she whimpered, tears welling up in her eyes.
"It's okay, sweetheart," she cooed, pulling the child into her arms. "It's not real… It was just a dream."
Sacha wrapped her arms around Amelia and returned the hug, crying into her mother's shoulder.
Niklaus watched the display stoically before turning back to Sonia, who was watching Erik out of the corner of her eye. "Go find Mael and have him assemble the Death Dealers," he ordered, getting her attention.
Sonia tore her gaze from Erik to look at Niklaus, barely hearing his orders. "Yes, my Lord," she agreed, nodding and leaving to follow her orders.
Naum burst into the lab with his machine gun in hand. "We've got company," he announced.
"Okay," Lukacs replied, getting up. He followed Naum outside and down the hall into his meeting room.
"I thought we had a deal," Jozsef said, turning as Lukacs entered.
"Calm yourself… Jozsef," Lukacs ordered, smirking at the vampire. "Please, escort our guests downstairs."
The several lycans gathered nodded and motioned for the vampires to follow them with their guns.
Jozsef nodded to Sander and the Dealers and watched them leave with the lycans.
Naum slid the door shut as he left, not at all pleased about leaving Lukacs alone with Jozsef.
"The Elders know," Jozsef told him. "Sonia told them."
"Who?" Lukacs wondered, not recognizing the name.
"Sonia," Jozsef answered. "Your vampire's sister."
Lukacs eyes widened, and he hung his head slightly in shame. He looked up again a moment later and glared at Jozsef.
"How do you expect to get rid of the Elders now that they know?" Jozsef asked, returning the glare. "There's no defeating them."
"That is precisely why I needed you to keep them oblivious," Lukacs said. "If the Elders were so easy to dispatch, you'd have done it yourself… centuries ago."
Naum and the lycans led Sander and the Death Dealers to a room downstairs and stopped at the door, letting the vampires pass. They heard gunfire coming from upstairs, and they froze, listening to the screams.
"Exit shaft!" Naum ordered, moving to shut the doors. "Move it!" He slammed the doors shut and locked the deadbolt.
Sander ran for the doors and hurriedly tried to open them, slamming his fist against them when he realized they were locked.
Mael led the Death Dealers into the lycan den, ignoring the bodies that littered the floor.
Among the Dealers were Sonia and Erik. They walked side-by-side behind Mael and were dressed in the traditional black leather suits of the Death Dealers.
Mael led them to the top of the exit shaft and took a grenade out of his coat pocket. He pulled out the pin and tossed the silver bomb down the shaft.
The lycans climbing the ladders watched the grenade fall to the floor and froze as it landed in the puddle of water.
The grenade exploded and blew the lycans to pieces.
Jozsef flinched as the explosion blew out the windows of the meeting room. "It's the Elders," he said.
"Yes," Lukacs agreed, glaring at him. "And if you had done your job, they'd still be at the mansion."
"Is there another way out?" Jozsef asked, watching Lukacs walk over to his desk.
Lukacs turned to him and gave him an exasperated look. "I guess it never occurred to you that you may actually have to bleed to pull this off," he said, sarcastically. He grabbed a mag of UV bullets and loaded his pistol. "Don't even think about leaving." He walked past Jozsef and to the door, pulling it open.
Jozsef lifted the back of his shirt and took the gun from the hidden holster. He pointed it at Lukacs' shoulder and fired.
Lukacs gritted his teeth in pain and lifted his hand to the wound in his chest. He looked down at his hand at the strange liquid that coated it.
"Silver nitrate," Jozsef told him, smirking arrogantly. "Bet you weren't expecting that."
Lukacs turned to shoot him but fell to the floor instead.
Sonia stepped up on the edge of the shaft and looked to Mael for his signal. She jumped down the fifty-foot shaft at his nod, followed by Erik and several other Death Dealers.
They all landed lightly on their feet and stood up, firing at the lycans.
The lycans immediately returned fire as the rest of the Dealers dropped down to the floor.
The Dealers took positions behind pieces of stone and rubble and shot down all of the lycans before continuing down the corridor with Mael and Erik in the lead.
Simone looked out the window below to see the lycan guards taking on a group of Death Dealers. "We need to go," she told David, turning to him.
Just as she turned, the doors burst open, and three fully armed Dealers appeared. They paused when they saw Simone, thinking that she was Sonia.
That gave Simone enough time to pull out one of her Berettas and shoot at them. She managed to hit all three vampires the first time around and covered her eyes as the Dealers burned alive from the inside out.
David touched her shoulder when their bodies stilled and smiled slightly at her when she looked up at him. "Let's go," he said, heading off.
Simone followed him closely and kept a lookout for vampires, both her guns drawn and ready.
Sonia followed her comrades down another corridor and stopped abruptly as she sensed something. She turned from the Dealers and ran off down a different hallway.
Erik heard her and turned to check on her, doing a double-take when he realized she was gone. "Sonia," he called, getting the Dealers' attention. He quickly went off after her without waiting for Mael's instruction, knowing the Dealers would follow him.
Sonia stopped dead in her tracks at an intersection and turned to see a fully-changed lycan coming right at her. She wordlessly raised her guns and shot it down before continuing down the hallway.
About halfway down that hall, another werewolf appeared in front of her.
She flipped over its head, shooting at it until her clip was empty, and landed gracefully at the other end of the hallway. She reached behind her and took out another mag of silver bullets, hurriedly reloading her gun as she heard yet another lycan coming up behind her. She turned just before the lycan reached her and fired at it, lowering her gun and standing when it fell to the floor dead.
Sander and the Death Dealers finally broke the doors open and exited the room.
"Move, move, move!" Sander ordered, waiting for the other Dealers to head off. He followed them down the hall with his gun raised and ready.
Simone led David toward the exit and stopped at the stairs as she smelled an approaching vampire. She aimed her gun at the stairs, fully prepared to shoot the Dealer. Her eyes widened, and she nearly dropped her pistol when Sonia appeared on the stairs. "Sonia?!" she exclaimed, going to meet her sister at the top of the stairs.
"Simone, I've been looking for you everywhere," Sonia replied. "We have to get out of here."
"W-what are you doing here?" Simone wondered, surprised to see her twin.
"The Elders are on their way, and they won't stop until everyone here is dead," Sonia answered, finally catching David's scent. She looked over at him and aimed her gun at his head.
"No, Sonia," Simone protested, moving closer to David. "Not him."
Sonia watched as Simone reached out and took David's hand, squeezing it slightly. She sighed defeatedly and lowered her weapon.
Naum, in lupine form, knelt down on the floor beside a Death Dealer's body, tearing at his ragged flesh with his fangs. He looked up as he smelled approaching Death Dealers and stood up. He jumped through the wall and roared at the vampires.
Niklaus and the three Death Dealers with him stopped and watched the huge lycan.
Naum walked up to them and raised his arm to swipe at Niklaus.
Niklaus caught his arm in one hand and grabbed his throat with the other. He effortlessly snapped Naum's neck and threw him to the ground. He unsheathed his sword and chopped off the lycan's head, baring his fangs in bloodlust.
Simone and David rushed past the meeting room with Sonia close behind and froze when they saw Lukacs slumped down in the doorway.
"Lukacs," David called, kneeling down beside the Hungarian alpha. He gently turned his mentor's head to the side before letting it drop. He hung his head in sorrow and let his blonde hair hide his eyes.
Simone looked at Sonia when she felt her sister rest her hand on her shoulder and met her twin's sympathetic gaze. She smiled weakly at her and turned her attention back to David.
David looked up sharply as he heard a group of running vampires approaching and singled out Sander. He snarled and ran towards the Dealers, pushing the twins out of the way as he passed them.
Sonia and Simone watched him throw Sander to the ground before giving each other nervous looks.
Sander quickly got to his feet and hissed at David, his eyes turning ice blue. He jerked off his trench coat and unraveled the silver whips from around his shoulders.
David's head was thrown to the side as one of the whips struck his cheek, leaving a large, bloody gash. When he looked up again, his eyes were the clouded silvery blue that indicated the change, and his teeth had sharpened and curved into fangs.
Sander whipped David's other cheek and began to swing his whips around with exceptional skill, watching as the lycan changed.
David roared at Sander and took a step closer to the vampire, his tail waving excitedly behind him. He disregarded the whips as they dug into his face, knowing the wounds would be healed in a few hours, and continued to close in on the Dealer.
Sander slowly backed away from David, still whipping like a madman, and paused briefly, looking over his shoulder, as one of his whips got caught in the rubble behind him.
David moved in at his momentary distraction and bit into his throat when he turned back around.
Lukacs slowly opened his eyes and took a shaky breath. He lifted his head and eventually managed to pull himself up to his knees, gritting his teeth in pain from the effort.
Sonia followed Simone through the den and stopped behind a pillar, pressing her back to it beside her sister. She turned abruptly and fired at the lycan that appeared behind her, watching it fall before turning back to Simone.
Around the corner, the battle raged on. Death Dealers were firing silver rounds at the lycans, while the wolves attempted to rip the vampires' throats out with their teeth.
Simone turned from the battle and walked past Sonia. She headed down the hallway and opened a heavy steel door, her eyes widening slightly when she saw Jozsef standing there.
Jozsef turned to see Simone staring at him. He glanced behind her to see Sonia step up, her eyes just as surprised as Simone's. He pursed his lips and aimed his gun at Simone. He fired three shots at her, the silver nitrate oozing out of the holes, and watched her stumble backwards and fall to the ground, writhing in pain.
Sonia was at her sister's side immediately, lifting her head a little to let her twin know that she was there for her. She knew that the silver nitrate itself would not kill her, but the bleeding holes in her chest would.
Jozsef stepped into the room, and his eyes turned icy blue as he saw the twins. "That's enough," he spoke up, moving to grab Sonia's arm. "You're coming with me."
Sonia slapped his hand away and glared daggers at him, her eyes the same ice blue as his. "I hope Niklaus throws you in the sun, traitor!" she snapped, looking back down at Simone.
"I bet you do," Jozsef mocked, leaning closer to her. "Well, let me tell you a little something… about your beloved dark father… He's the one who killed your family, not the lycans…" He glanced down at Simone and frowned slightly before meeting Sonia's eyes again. "She was telling you the truth…"
Sonia met his gaze and shook her head slightly in disbelief, narrowing her eyes at him.
"He never could follow Amelia's rules," Jozsef continued. "So, every once in a while at night, he went out and gorged himself in human blood… I kept his secrets… cleaned up the mess. But it was Niklaus who crept room to room devouring everyone close to your heart…"
"It's not true," Sonia hissed.
"Believe what you want," Jozsef replied, straightening. "Now, come on. Your place is by my side."
Sonia glared at him defiantly and moved closer to her sister.
Jozsef looked between the identical vampires briefly, getting angrier by the second. "Fine," he agreed, aiming his gun at Sonia's head. He looked down as he felt a hand grab his leg and smirked arrogantly down at Lukacs.
Lukacs watched him turn back to the twins and pulled a blade out of his pocket, stabbing it through Jozsef's leg.
Jozsef fell to one knee, gritting his teeth in pain, and backhanded the Hungarian alpha.
Lukacs crashed into a pile of rubble just as David appeared in the doorway.
David looked down at Lukacs and then over at the twins, his eyes widening when he saw Simone.
"Bite her," Lukacs ground out, smiling reassuringly at David.
David glanced down at Lukacs briefly and nodded when he understood. He knew that Lukacs would never put Simone in danger unless he knew it would do some good. She must have been Armandus' human descendent! he realized with a slight tinge of irritation. They'd had her the entire time and didn't even realize it!
Shaking his head to clear his mind, he went to the twins and knelt down on Simone's other side. He ignored Sonia for the moment and bent down over Simone. He kissed her neck softly in an apology before sinking his fangs into her skin.
Lukacs grinned triumphantly at his protégés and rolled onto his back to face Jozsef.
Jozsef pulled the blade from his leg and tossed it aside, looking over at David and the twins.
"You may have killed me… Jozsef," Lukacs stuttered, smirking up at the vampire. "But my will is done… regardless… We bridged the gap between our species…"
Jozsef raised his gun and filled Lukacs with five more silver nitrate bullets, killing him for sure this time. He looked up as he sensed someone coming, and he retreated when he saw Niklaus approaching.
Niklaus walked into the room with his Death Dealers and paused briefly at what he saw. Baring his fangs in rage, he grabbed Sonia by the back of the neck and casually tossed her aside. He then tore David from Simone and flung him through the stone wall before setting his sights on the semi-conscious Simone. He lifted her up by her throat and carefully studied her face.
Simone opened her eyes a little and briefly met his gaze before he whipped her through the hole in the wall that David had left.
"Where is he?!" Niklaus demanded, turning to Sonia. "Where's Jozsef?!"
Sonia remained silent and cowered away from him, her eyes filling with tears.
Simone looked up from the pool of water she lay in, and her ice blue eyes clouded over to a solid navy blue. She gasped at the sudden pain and rolled over on to her back.
Niklaus knelt down before Sonia and met her eyes, his own icy blue eyes softening a bit. "Forgive me, my child," he pleaded.
"It wasn't the lycans," Sonia said, letting her tears fall freely. "It was you."
Niklaus' face hardened slightly, and he stood up as he realized what she was talking about. "Leave us," he ordered the Dealers before turning back to Sonia. He paused a moment before continuing. "Yes, I have taken from you, but I have given so much more… Isn't it a fair trade? The life I have given you, the gift of immortality?"
Sonia didn't answer, too shocked by his confession to say anything.
Simone's leather cat suit stretched with her body as it transformed into a lycan, her nails already long and her skin blackening.
"I know that you love your sister, but she is a disgrace of the Coven," Niklaus explained.
Simone's body slowly shrank back to its original proportions, only a bit more muscular, and her skin lightened to a silvery blue color.
"I must do what's necessary to protect the species!" Niklaus announced, unsheathing his sword.
Simone opened her solid blue eyes just then, her transformation complete.
Niklaus watched Sonia for a moment longer before going to the hole he'd made in the wall.
"No!" Sonia protested, worried for her sister.
Niklaus looked around the now-empty room for Simone, but she was gone. Hearing breathing, he whirled around and came face to face with the hybrid abomination he'd feared for centuries.
Simone's lean muscles could easily be seen through her tight-fitting clothes, and her smooth skin was a deep silvery blue in color. Her eyes were a dark, navy blue that looked endless, since there was no longer any whites or pupils to her eyes. Her mouth was open slightly to bare her long, sharp fangs, and her once delicate hands now sported three-inch black claws. Her short, black hair was still dripping water, and her sleek, black tail swayed slightly behind her, also dripping water.
Niklaus hissed at her in fury and disgust, only to be shoved through the wall and into the pool of water by her. He rolled over onto his knees and looked up at her, hissing at her as he got to his feet.
Simone appeared behind him, her tail swishing the knee-deep water, and easily dodged the punches he threw at her. She slashed him with her claws at least three times before throwing him into a wall, holding him up by his neck.
Niklaus hissed at her and grabbed her throat, digging his fingers into her tougher skin. He tore himself out of her grip and threw her into a stone pillar.
Simone crashed face-first into the pillar and fell to the floor. She got up just as Niklaus picked up his sword where he'd dropped it.
Sonia moved to get up, her eyes unfocused in thought. She looked up sharply as she felt someone touch her arm, her eyes widening slightly when she saw Erik.
Erik helped Sonia to her feet and smiled reassuringly at her. He gently ran the back of his hand along her smooth, pale cheek, fixing his ice blue eyes on hers.
"Erik," Sonia breathed. "Niklaus killed my family… We have to help Simone…" She nodded in the direction of the fight and looked back at Erik.
Erik glanced over his shoulder at the fight, and his eyes widened slightly when he saw Simone. He released Sonia and walked over to the wall, knowing she was right behind him.
Simone dodged Niklaus' sword as he swung at her and got behind him. She slashed at him when he turned around and watched him fall to his knees.
Niklaus stood up quickly and socked her in the gut. He didn't waste any time in nailing her two more times. He caught her arm when she swung at him before chopping her collarbone and throwing her back into the pool of water.
David watched Simone struggling to get back up from his place on the other side of the room and charged Niklaus, snarling in rage. He punched the Elder in the face and moved to help Simone up.
Niklaus quickly recovered from the blow and grabbed David by his neck. He threw the lycan across the room and turned back to Simone, who was on her feet. He caught her arm in one hand and her throat in the other. Releasing her neck, he punched her in the chin, throwing her about fifteen feet away, and turned to the stairs to see three Death Dealers come down the steps.
Simone slowly got to her feet and turned her attention on the Dealers. She snarled at them as they opened fire on her. She fell backwards into the water as three silver bullets imbedded themselves in her torso. She quickly got up again and moved to get away from the bullets that never stopped coming.
Sonia landed nimbly on her feet and walked up to the middle Dealer. She kicked him in the back of the knee and snapped his neck effortlessly, letting his body drop. She turned to her right and slammed her hand into the second Dealer's chest, sending him flying face-first into the cement.
The last vampire was coming up on her left, and she whirled around to take him on, grabbing his arm as it swung at her. She chopped him in the chest and then slammed her palm into his jaw, looking over at where Simone was hiding behind a broken stone pillar as he fell. She took a steadying breath before running towards her sister.
Suddenly, Niklaus backhanded her, and blood burst from the gash in her forehead as she landed hard in a pile of rubble.
Simone snarled in fury and ran to her twin's aid, only to be tackled by Niklaus.
Sonia sat up and looked over at Simone and Niklaus just in time to see the Elder put her twin in a stranglehold before her icy blue eyes landed on Niklaus' sword laying a few feet away from her.
Simone tried futilely to get Niklaus to let go but only succeeded in getting him to hold on to her tighter.
"Time to die," Niklaus told her, clamping down even tighter yet.
Sonia had made up her mind and was just about to grab the sword when-
Erik snatched the blade from the rubble and ran at Niklaus.
Niklaus let Simone go and turned around just as he heard Erik come up behind him. He grunted in pain and looked down at the blade sticking out of his chest.
Erik watched him cough up a little blood and smirked at him. In one smooth motion, he jerked the sword from Niklaus' chest and sliced his head off, watching with a stony face as the body and head fell into the water. "You've finally paid for your crimes," he muttered, dropping the sword on Niklaus' back.
David scrambled over to them, holding his head in one hand, and dashed to Simone's side to help her up. He held her back to his chest and wrapped his arms around her waist, looking up as Sonia approached.
Erik went to Sonia's side and slipped his arm around her waist, pulling her to him and kissing her right temple gently.
They all looked back at Simone, and their eyes widened slightly when they saw that she was back in her "human" form.
Simone glanced up into the upper rooms and smiled weakly as she saw the lycans backing away into the shadows. She turned her smile up at David and let him lead her away.
"Simone!" Sonia called, jogging up to her sister. She unclasped the onyx snake pendant from her neck and pressed it into her twin's hand. "To remember me…"
Simone smiled gratefully at Sonia and clutched the necklace tightly. "I'll miss you…" she told her, leaning her head back on David's shoulder.
David smiled at Sonia and nodded once to Erik before scooping Simone up into his arms and walking away.
Sonia stood in the doorway to the throne room, watching as Erik broke the news of Niklaus' death to Sacha and Amelia.
Amelia immediately slapped her brother across the cheek, leaving a red hand mark, before she burst into tears and buried her face in his shoulder.
Erik lowered her to the floor and caught Sacha as she threw herself at him, hugging them both tightly as they sobbed.
Sonia turned around and walked away from the throne room to give them some privacy. Though I cannot predict the future, I know that the consequences of this night will reverberate through the halls of both great Covens for many years to come, she thought, ignoring the vampires that she passed. Two immortal leaders have been slain. One of whom I thought of as a father… Soon, Amelia will reclaim the throne, and a tide of anger and vengeance will spill out into the night… Differences will be set aside… Allegiances will be made… And soon…
I will become the hunted, Simone finished, her eyes turning navy blue.