Disclaimer: See previous chapters

Chap. XXII

"Shoot him down!"

The gunfire began immediately, causing Ethan and Michael to duck and dodge the stream of bullets. They both found refuge behind the subway car and hid away from the bullets. Michael quickly scanned Selene's body to make sure she wasn't hit and to his short relief, she wasn't. The lycan hunters began to close in on them, shooting all the way.

"We can't stay here." Ethan replied shortly. His eyes gazed over to a tunnel in the far right. "Michael, I'm going to make a run for it and draw away as many as I can. As soon as I do, I want you to go down that tunnel. You'll reach an opening with another tunnel above you. Follow it and you should be able to catch up to the rest of the pack."

Michael turned to him with wide eyes, but Ethan cut him off, "Don't argue with me. Just do it."

Michael shook his head, "I can't just leave you here."

Ethan sighed, really wishing he didn't have to go through this argument, "Yes, you can. Yes you will."

More shooting cut their talk short and they cowered down against the car further. As they ducked down, Michael continued, "There has to be another way. I can't just abandon you."

"You don't have a choice." Ethan replied, hearing the footsteps come closer, "If you want Selene to survive, you will."

"Ethan!"

"Lucian! For once, leave it to me."

Michael blinked, surprised that Ethan had called him Lucian. It wasn't until that moment that he realized that he was thinking Lucian's thoughts, speaking his words. The words of a brother that didn't want to abandon his own kin. But there was no choice. Ethan took a short peek out and gave Michael and Selene a short glance.

"Tell Selene…it's been fun."

With that, Ethan leaped out of the back, surprising the incoming forces and buying him some running time. The surprise quickly faded and the Death Dealers fired upon him. Ethan forced his entire body in that run, barely escaping the shower of bullets behind him as he dashed into the tunnel. A group of Death Dealers followed him in, giving Michael the chance to make his move and run the opposite direction. Kraven saw this and gave the order to fire, but Michael was well along and gone. Frustrated, Kraven calls Lucas to him.

"I want him dead. But Selene you are to bring to me. Unharmed."

Lucas blinked. 'Selene? Unharmed?' The very thought didn't bode well with him, but he had his orders. Calling a group with him, Lucas went down the tunnel where Michael had disappeared into with Selene. Meanwhile, Kraven looked back at the tunnel Ethan had gone into.

"Come. We have lycans to kill."

Ethan dashed through the tunnel and turned of to the left where he stopped. Catching his breath, he began to sniff in the air. Despite the dampness of the sewer tunnels, he was still able to detect the Death Dealers closing in on him. Their movements however, were a bit hesitant, showing that they were looking out for him. Ethan had been down there long enough to get a reasonable memory of the tunnel system so he knew his way around. He was just lucky that none of the bullets hit him or they would tracked him down in seconds from his wound.

"I thought it was you. I thought you died a long time ago lycan."

'That voice…Kraven.' Ethan peeked over to see the vampire leader standing in the tunnel clearing flanked by several Death Dealers.

"How fitting it is that I get to kill you the same way I killed Lucian. Do you want to know how he died?" Kraven continued to look around, a toothy grin forming on his face. "On his knees, begging for his pathetic life. I think shooting a bullet in his head was the best thing that could have happened to him."

Ethan felt his anger rage, so much so that his pupils narrowed in response. Ethan clenched his fist against the wall. 'No. This is…not the time…Calm…down…' He shut his eyes tightly, concentrating hard to prevent the Change from occurring. His fingers twitched within his fist, but it soon stopped and Ethan opened his eyes calmly, his pupils back to normal. Unfortunately, his now relaxed hand brushed against some debris alongside the wall and the pieces fell into the water. One of the Death Dealers heard it and pointed his direction. Realizing this, Ethan quickly shot further down the tunnel, dodging the new round of gunfire behind him.

'Michael…please be okay.'

Michael had managed to loose the Death Dealers far down the tunnel. He reached the opening Ethan mentioned and looked up. Another tunnel was just over his head and a ladder was lined nearby. But rather than use it, Michael leaped up to the tunnel and stepped in. He looked back and briefly remembered the time when Selene pushed him out of a window. He never would have thought that he'd survive the fall, much less land on his feet. Now here he was, jumping up to such heights. 'How things have changed.' He quickly rushed through the tunnel where it began to curve around in various directions. But ultimately, he reached a lower opening. Bashing it in, he jumped out and landed on a separate rail of tracks. Just up ahead, he saw what few remained of the pack leaving down the tunnel. Sisera was there as well and upon Michael's landing she rushed back to him.

"What happened? Where's Ethan?"

Michael breathed an answer, "The vampires caught us in. He distracted them long enough for us to escape."

Sisera blinked in surprise, realizing that he must have sent Michael away so that he could do things on his own. Again…

"I'm going back."

Sisera gasped, "No. He went through a lot so that you could escape. We have to go."

Michael looked back, "I can't. I can't leave him behind." The lycan part of him, the part of him that was Lucian, wanted to go back. But it was Michael himself that realized that he had to go back. Ethan had saved them so many times. He had to help him now. Sisera saw the firm resolve in his eyes and didn't argue. Michael looked at her and then at the vampire in his arms.

"Take care of her, please." he pleaded.

Sisera looked at Selene briefly and gave Michael a solemn nod. Michael slowly moved his arms into hers and brushed a lock of her hair. A look of care flashed across his eyes and he rushed back toward the opening.

'I'll be back, Selene. I promise.'

Ethan was now in trouble. The Death Dealers were close on his tail, not letting him leave their sights for a minute. He didn't know whether they had bad aim or he had extreme luck that he was able to continue to elude the gunfire, but he did know that wouldn't keep up for long. The lycan nearly tripped as he turned down the right tunnel and saw a dark opening within. It would be a risk, but he had to take it. The darkness might make them reluctant to follow for a while, giving him the few minutes he needed.

'It's better than nothing right now.'

He entered the darkness and wallowed in. It was too dark for his eyes at the moment so he had to rely on his other senses to get him through. He heard faint dripping in the distance and moved toward it. A dim lighting caught his attention and he moved toward it, ultimately finding himself in some sort of stack opening. A dirty window was over his head and tunnels were all around him.

"A break, finally."

Unfortunately, his hope was cut short when a low growling caught his ears. Eyes flashed out of one of the tunnels and a massive frame stalked out into the opening. Ethan grimaced as the creature continued to snarl at him.

"Zhan."