Still, the new moon was suspended in the black sky of Budapest, although the sun was set to rise in a bit more than an hour. Though the thunder has somewhat dissipated and the lightning bolts weren't as frequent as they were in the past hours, a very slight haze has formed above the damp streets.

As usual, the lanes of the town were crowded with pedestrians. Usually, the roads looked much like a highway, with walkers coming and going, but due to the bad weather of the night, it was obvious that the streets were less crowded than normal.

In one of the many alleys of the main street were hiding Selene and Michael. Actually, they were more of trying to get some rest, not from some recent turbulence, but from the hunger that was devouring them from the inside. Despite the fact that Selene was trying to explain their plan to Michael, and that the latter was making a desperate effort to listen to her, their starvation was definitely taking over them.

Yet, Selene was very astounded - but very relieved - that the dire pain she had been feeling throughout her whole body and skull had now vanished completely. Not to mention her wrist that had been seriously bleeding, only God knew why. Very much to her relief, Michael hadn't noticed this little incident. If they were to flee from the country and endure the entire plight coming along with the process, Selene didn't need Michael's worry added up to all this.

As for Michael, he was very thankful that Selene's pain had finally dissipated. This whole thing had undeniably worried him, although he was now convinced that what his Vampire comrade had been feeling was only a passing faintness. Yet, he still thought that Selene needed to take some rest, contrarily to what she has been doing the two past nights. As far as he was concerned, Michael had yet to believe that what Selene had told him about her sleepless nights was true. Even though he had lived through what could be compared to Hell this last day, Michael was of a very obstinate nature. He still couldn't get himself to believe that Viktor, even after his demise, could still harm Selene. "And on top of that… in her dreams?"  And there they were, both sitting on a cast-off couch that has been abandoned there.

"There's a taxi station not a mile far from here," Michael answered Selene's question.

Selene rolled her eyes. "When I asked you about measures to get away from here, I was talking about leaving the country, not the town! And how far do you expect a cab to go?" She sighed.

Michael nodded but sighed, striking his hand through his messy hair, down to his neck, to finally reach the cress-shaped medallion that was sagely resting on his chest. 

Selene continued, "We've lost too much time these two last nights, Michael. The Vampires are surely out to get us, by that time---"

Michael interrupted her. "Speaking of the Vampires, Selene… don't you think that they've took a bit long to prepare their attack? They should've already been on our backs, by the way you spoke of them. Don't you think it's strange?"

Selene frowned at his statement. "You don't know the Vampires. You can never know what our kind can be up to. I have never seen or known Marcus, but by the way I've been spoken of him in the past… you never know what he's up to." She suddenly stood up. "That's why we have to find a more efficient to leave the country. The continent, even."

Michael stood up beside her. "There's also the train or the plain," he said. "I can't afford plain tickets, for all I know."

"What of the train?" Selene tilted her head, her voice softening slightly.

"We'd have to pass by my apartment first, then," Michael responded after a sigh. "That's the only detail."

"Then we're off," Selene said sharply, as she started to walk towards the end of the alley.

"And what about getting something to eat?" Michael called behind her. "It can't do us any harm, I suppose."

Selene sighed again. "The only place where we can find blood is in the safe house. We can't risk going there, Michael. That's the first place the Vampires will be searching through, if it's not already done."

Blood. Michael still couldn't believe that from now on, he'd be forced to drink what had flowed in his veins for the twenty-eight years of his life. And the worst part of it is that he knew he was going to like it. "Blood. I can't believe it."

He followed Selene to the main street. The roads were getting clearer, not by the dissipating haze, but by the pedestrians that were becoming fewer by the moments. This was announcing the approach of the morning, not to mention the very few birds that were flying by once in a while. The sun was soon to rise.

Michael realized that Selene was gradually becoming more anxious. She was walking ahead of him, almost unreachable, by the speed of her step. Despite the fact that Michael was desperately trying to keep up to her stride, he seemed to be miles away from her. For some reason, his own pace seemed to slow down as he felt that the crowd was closing onto him.

"Selene!" he called, rather in a lost, confused voice.

Michael's vision started to blur little by little. Though his eyes were wide opened, he almost couldn't see where he was going. The pedestrians were now multicolored spots in which he had the impression of drowning.

"Selene, wait!!" he called after her again. But it was too late. Michael suddenly stopped walking and brought a hand to his temples. Yet again, visions invaded his mind.

He was walking in the crowded streets, making his way through the nightly crowd. People were shooting him some questioning and weird glances once in a while, but he was getting back to them by shoving them out of his path. His steps seemed heavy, his temples were pounding from weariness, and his breath was profound.

Making his way through the streets invaded by pedestrians, he didn't know what he was doing, where he was, and what he was supposed to be doing here, at this right moment. But somehow fate was leading him.

Very abruptly, he stopped walking. He had found them, at last. The leather clad woman and Michael Corvin. They were standing just before his weary eyes.

Michael Corvin abruptly opened back his eyes, and noticed that his hand was clenched to the medallion that was resting on his chest. He had seen himself in his own visions. Panting heavily, his eyes took some glimpses around the place, and as a sudden reflex, he turned around.

And that's when Michael saw him, standing right before his very eyes.

A short man wearing what appeared to be rags with a black leather jacket on top, long brown hair, a beard and mustache, a frown designed on his figure, and deep grey eyes.

It was he. It was Lucian, almighty leader of the Lycans.

Lucian who was told and meant to be dead.

Michael stayed there, staring at the Lycan that was standing a few feet from him. As far as Michael was concerned, he wasn't aware of Lucian's death. The only thing he knew was that he was now showing regard and compassion for his Sire, being the carrier of Lucian's memories and at the same time of all the pain Lucian had to endure for centuries. 

Lucian's grave frown disappeared gradually as his features softened slightly. His thin lips curved into a very slight smirk. "Michael Corvin," he sympathetically began. "It's a pleasure to see you again."

Although Michael knew that it was Lucian's fault that he has become what he was now, he bore a whole lot of sympathy concerning his Sire's existence.

Michael nodded. "Lucian," he quietly said after swallowing. Michael knew that Lucian wasn't a threat to his own life, but still, preferred to stay on his guards. He wasn't a Lycan anymore, and who knew what the Lycans thought of this thing he had become.

As for Lucian, he seemed to act quite friendly regarding Michael. He also seemed to identify the surprise that Michael was feeling concerning his presence. "I know you might be astounded to see me here, alive in front of you. I am actually myself, truth is," Lucian said.

Michael ignored his statement and narrowed his eyes. "These visions… in the subway station… the sewers… your visions that---" he managed to say in spite of his astonishment.

"My visions. My memories. Reason is, that I'm actually alive," Lucian interrupted him. "I apologize if they have caused you some trouble, my friend."

Michael somewhat had difficulty with that alive and dead concept. "Why, what happened?" he asked, as Lucian was still staring at him with oblivion.

"Michael!" Michael heard his name being called from behind. "Michael!" Selene arrived seconds later.

Lucian let out a slight chuckle. "You're with a friend, as I see. I'm not surprised." His grey eyes fell upon Selene's pale features as he frown at the sight of a Vampire.

Selene's facial expression darkened as soon as she set her eyes on her Lycan foe. Her hand abruptly reached for the gun that was attached to her belt, but she quickly realized that it was now empty of ammunitions. Her shoulder still ached from the night Lucian had planted his bladed right through it.

"Selene, as I recall," Lucian stated.

However, Selene remained as cold as ice. "Lucian. What do you want?" she demanded. Michael shot her a glance and whispered, "Please, Selene."

"Actually, truth is that I was just looking for you," Lucian answered. Himself, he was quite on his guards, for a Vampire was standing not three feet away from him.

"What for?" Selene demanded again. "What do you want from us?"

Lucian frowned at her. "Nothing from you, exactly, Vampire. I have been looking for you to ask most sincerely for your help."

"What for?" Michael hesitantly asked, raising an eyebrow.

"What help do you want from us, Lucian?" Selene started, rather abruptly. "We have nothing left. Nowhere left to go! And why would we---"

"Selene!" Michael silenced her for the first time. He turned his head back to Lucian who has up to now been glaring at Selene. "What can we do for you?"

"I indeed have plans that I expect to see through, but I highly doubt that your Vampire friend will agree," Lucian said, not detaching his glare from Selene's cold ice blue eyes.

Michael sent a glance to Selene, who looked back at him, still frowning. She looked back at Lucian. A Lycan. For more than a century, she had been taught to eliminate these creatures of his from the planet. For more than a century, she had killed thousands of his kind, thinking that she will one day get back at them for what they have supposedly done to her family. And finally, she had learned that she had been doing this for absolutely nothing, only to please those who were only using her for her abilities. The Lycans were innocent in that story, but still, Selene's vampiric side was taking over her. Could she ever get rid of this hatred for the Lycans?

Selene sighed dryly. "Speak," she told Lucian in a more quiet voice.

Lucian studied her traits. Pale skin, ice blue eyes, and dark hair. All clad in leather from head to toes. A Death Dealer. A Vampire. One of those who had been dispatching his kind for centuries and centuries. One of his one-time Masters. And furthermore, one of Viktor's most loyal soldiers. Lucian had absolutely no reason to take sides with a Vampire, even if Selene had herself created the Hybrid he had longed to create for ages. But yet he had no choice. He needed Michael Corvin to obliterate Viktor and his Coven.

Lucian raised his head and stared into their eyes. "It is time for our two worlds to come to terms," he announced. "For centuries of War, my kind had tried to bring peace to the Underworld." He turned to Michael. "Now that the half-Vampire-Lycan has been created, the perfect occasion to end this damned war has presented itself to us. With you, Michael Corvin, centuries of hopeless attempts can now be rewarded."

Michael seemed rather hesitant. "What do you want from me?" If he was to fight against another almighty Vampire, Michael preferred to die. But as far as he was concerned, Lucian needed him, and the least he could do was to show a minimum of concern to what he was saying.

"Simple as it seems," Lucian answered. "You may side with us Lycans, and help me get back at the Vampires for what they have taken away from me centuries ago."

Selene shot a questioning glare to Michael, but the latter went on, "What shall I do?" Michael could still picture Lucian's memories involving the execution of his beloved Sonja. He could almost feel his pain, being the carrier of these visions.

"With years and years of accurate researches, we Lycans have come to the conclusion that a creature possessing the blood of both Vampire and Lycan can be even stronger, faster, and more powerful than any other member of the two clans." The Lycan leader continued. "This is why I want you, Michael, to accomplish what I've longed to achieve for ages. And this is to dispatch Viktor once and for all, that way peace will be brought back to our miserable existence."

His speech finally over, Selene and Michael exchanged astounded glances. Viktor was already dead, of which Michael was suddenly relieved.

Michael looked back at Lucian. "I might be useless for that part of the plan. Viktor is dead, Lucian."

Lucian's eyes slowly widened in shock. He remained silent for a short instant, but then nodded as a hidden smirk appeared on his features. "Well, I must admit that I'm not that surprised. As soon as I perceived you through the crowd, I knew that you had somehow came out as the winner of the battle that I guessed had

occurred---"

"Actually, I'm not the one who has done the job," Michael interrupted him. "Selene's the one who killed Viktor, two nights ago."

 Lucian's eyes widened even more as his eyes fell on Selene's figure. "Who would've thought," he mused to himself. "Really, are you?" he stated, his glare still obvious. "I must admit that you really impress me, Vampire."

Selene's heart ached as she thought of her so-said deed. "I didn't do any of this for you, I might say. I had personal reasons to do so."

Michael noticed Selene's pain as she was speaking and rapidly changed subjects. "What do you expect of us now, Lucian?"

Lucian sighed deeply. "Well, my friend. Viktor may be dead at last, but this doesn't mean that it ends here. And now that two Vampire Elders are defeated, Marcus will want them to be avenged." He paused. "Might I add anything else?"

Michael nodded. "We'll help you," he said in a decisive tone. He looked at Selene, who glared at him.

As far as Selene knew, she was the one who had killed the most powerful Vampire; therefore, she was the one who had to pay for her act. Her and Michael needed to leave the country; their immortal lives were entirely depending on this option. Yet, she knew that if she and Michael were alive at this moment, it was all because of Lucian, who had prevented Kraven from killing her, and who had helped her to save Michael. She owed him. She owed him big.

Selene's eyes left the floor that she had been gazing at and stared into Lucian's. "Alright. We'll help you," she said impartially. Michael smiled. "What's your plan?" Selene asked, ignoring Michael's smirk.

Lucian was satisfied, although he didn't show any sign of it. "We will meet here tomorrow night, and then we could discuss our plan. The sun is about to rise, and I wouldn't like to keep you from hiding from it."

Selene started to walk away, still glaring at Lucian, as Michael nodded. "Alright. We'll be there," he said.

Yet, Lucian didn't let him go as fast. "By the way, Michael… as I recall, you seem to be holding some object of my possession."

At first, Michael didn't know what he was talking about, but his eyes widened ad his hand reached for the medallion that was resting on his chest. Lucian's Medallion. "My apologies," he said, holding him the pendant.

"I thank you very much," were Lucian's last words as he turned away and left, disappearing in the crowd.

Michael turned around to face Selene who sent him another glare, indicating that she wasn't satisfied at all with their major change of plans.