Tom T. Thomson: I hope you really like plot twists because there's a BIG one in this chappy…

Bahamut: Glad you like the story, and forgive my stupidity. Didn't know you meant WWE.

Akron: Thanks! Hope you'll continue to read!

I woke in total darkness. No. Not total darkness. Some torches had been courteously lit casting a dim glow in the—Time Streaming Chamber. What time period had I ended up in? Where was I now?

I got to my feet and cautiously moved towards the door. I took note that the gold doors that had previously been rusted were now polished to a buttery shine as if they had just been crafted. I was in the past then. Meaning that Kain and Turel were in the future.

I pondered my situation. I could try to get back myself, but I hadn't the faintest idea how to operate the device. I might just end up doing more harm than good. In any case, I couldn't remain here. I had to investigate my surroundings, and I was curious. Curious to see if I had been delivered back to the time my dreams had described to me.

I exited the chamber, but instead of seeing the curving tunnels of Lucius' dungeon, I encountered a hallway with staircases at either end. Of course. Lucius' mansion hadn't been built as of yet obviously.

It was evident that both staircases converged at the same point. I chose one and stumbled up them. At the top, across from me, was a door, and nothing more. Gathering my courage, I opened it, and prepared to face whatever was on the other side.

* * *

Both demons lay dead on the floor. They were no match for them. And Lillian would soon follow. Kain teleported to the upper tier, taking the crazed woman by complete surprise. He drew Lillian back against him with one arm wrapped around her waist and the other clamped around her throat.

"Where is Marina?" Kain rasped in her ear.

Lillian remained calm, betraying no sign of fear. "Where you cannot reach her."

"Maybe this will clear your memory." Kain began to choke Lillian. She struggled and thrashed against him, but it was no use. Kain wouldn't have dreamed of letting her go. Eventually, Lillian went limp in his grasp. Before she could pass out, Kain loosened his grip.

"Let's try this again. The next thing that touches your throat will be my sword. Where's Marina?"

"In the past," gasped Lillian. "Back to her past."

"Then, you can bring her back."

Before Lillian could reply, the Time-Streaming Chamber shuddered. An enormous cracking sound filled the air.

"The mansion is going to collapse!" Turel cried. "Kain, we must get out of here!"

Somehow, the waves of energy the Time-Streaming Chamber exuded had weakened the foundation of the mansion. Scarcely minutes later, the house would collapse, and it would bury all within it. There wouldn't be enough time.

Kain swore and raked his talons across Lillian's throat. He dropped her lifeless body to the ground. Quickly, Kain teleported back to the ground to join Turel.

"We need to find Marina," Kain said in a brittle tone.

"But sire, the foundation is collapsing. Marina is still alive somewhere, but we will surely perish."

Of course, Turel was always right. Always logical. Kain rarely took advice or suggestions from his lieutenants, but he reluctantly had to agree. Kain's raging emotions would have to be put on hold.

Without another word, Kain left the chamber and rushed through the dungeon with Turel following close behind. As they ran, the house rumbled dangerously around them. It would not hold much longer. At last, they reached the library window. Already, the ceiling was beginning to give way.

Kain and Turel leapt out the window simataneously and dashed into the western courtyard. Together, they stood at its center and watched the mansion fold in on itself. It sunk into the ground, level after level, piece by piece. The great domed marble turrets were the last to fall and shattered into thousands of shards once they struck the ground. And then it was gone. Completely.

Gone. Marina was gone…

And for the first time in a thousand years, Kain felt something shatter inside him as well.

* * *

I had emerged on top of an ancient edifice. And so I beheld Nosgoth's former beauty.

I was in Termagent Forest Swamp, but it had life now, and not an infertile husk. The landscape was exactly as I had envisioned it. Dark fringes of trees surrounded the clearing this edifice was housed in with blue-green vines crawling across their trunks and branches. The ground was marshy and covered with algae and ferns. Here and there were ponds and puddles of water, reflecting the red glow of the sunset.

I watched flies dance through the air, their wings catching the dim light, making them shimmer like diamonds. I saw bumpy toads and agile green frogs hop from one mossy rock to another.

However, there was a taint in the breeze and it wasn't just the smell of the swamp stinking in the humidity. Nosgoth was corrupted. I could sense it. The Pillars aired their corruption like spoiled meat in the afternoon heat. The mortals were ignorant of it, of course. But supernatural beings had a sixth sense on such matters.

Speaking of supernatural beings, I knew that ghouls and werewolves lurked behind the tall weeds of the bog. I would need to keep my wits about me. Even though the situation seemed hopeless—I was going to stay alive. I would find a way to return to my own time. But, before that, I was going to learn about my past before departing. And I had the clear sense that someone could help me. Yes. Someone was waiting for me. At the Pillars. They lay to the southwest I knew.

I sighed and jumped down from my perch and landed in the unseen muddy water below. With a small cry, I leapt for a craggy boulder that rose from the marsh. A swamp was no place for a vampire. But one vampire chose to make his home here. Vorador's mansion lay east. I could ask him some questions.

But then, he would have some questions for me, I thought gloomily. I never knew Vorador personally, so why start now? He'd probably make me stay in his abode, and it would be Lucius all over again. No, it was too dangerous. I wasn't going to stay in Nosgoth's past forever. I would make sure of it.

Besides, there was a greater urgency at hand. I needed to get to the Pillars. To look upon them with my own eyes. With my mind made up, I set off in their approximate direction.

I leapt across the hazardous substances by the means of rocks and the bases of old buildings. It seemed that at one time, there was a township or some city established here. Now only these abandoned shells of buildings remained, inhabited by creepers and covered by screens of cypress.

The way to the Pillars was a treacherous one. There was no road or path of any kind. Just impenetrable forest. Slightly off to my right, the russet sun had just sunk below the horizon. But light was of no importance to me. Light is only important to humans, who need it to make sure there weren't creatures like me stalking in the inky blackness. If I looked over my left shoulder, I could see the crescent moon already high in the deepening blue sky. It is indeed true that a vampire's strength increased rapidly in the evening hours. I never saw the heavens as clearly as I did now. It was if I was draining the moonlight into my very skin, and it gave me power and stamina to survive. And for the first time in many years, I felt like I was making progress. As if I had a purpose now. Old chains would be broken.

It was a world of shadows underneath the greenery of the trees' boughs and utterly silent. Pine needles were scattered all over the ground, completely muffling my footsteps. I knew where I was going. The night and I were absolute partners now and I knew as long as I kept the moon in sight, I would discover my destination.

As I traveled onward, the skies faded into the indigo of twilight. Finally they darkened still to the color of coal. The glowing stars were completely visible. As they pulsed in brightness, I stepped with vigor. I was getting painfully close now.

And then they rose out of the mist, high into the sky. The Pillars of Nosgoth. I scrambled down the grassy embankments bordering the spot and approached the structures eagerly.

Nine of them. They had once been beautiful, or so I read. The Pillars reached even higher than this, touching the clouds. They had been white and gleaming and represented purity and harmony. Now they were blackened and cracked. Deep fractures had settled into each one, some deeper than others.

The Pillars were destined to be reduced to shapeless stumps and would house Kain's throne in the Sanctuary of the Clans. Maybe Kain was sitting right here, right now, a thousand years into the future.

My gaze swept over the Pillar of Balance, Kain's pillar. It stood by itself as if guarding the eight behind it. I knew the Balance Pillar was the most distinguished and the most powerful pillar of them all. But it wasn't the one that interested me.  

I walked over to the second pillar on the right, the Pillar of States. I looked up at the symbol etched in the once pure marble. It felt oddly recognizable to me, as if I understood its unique implications. Transformation. Alchemy.

Searchingly, I touched the base of the pillar. At once, I felt a crackling energy blossom under my fingertips. The Pillars weren't past saving. I felt this at once. The hum of this crackling energy intensified. It was if the pillar was calling out to me, begging me to save it. But its plea would go unanswered. I let my arm drop to my side, suddenly uncomfortable.

"Marina." The sound of the voice behind me was as old and creaky as a coffin lid.

I spun around and faced—Death himself. It was Mortanius, the Guardian of the Pillar of Death. I'd know him anywhere. He wore robes of crimson and black. One could see his bloodered ribs displayed like armor across his chest. His eyes glowed white and a heavy hood framed his ghostly skull-like face. On each shoulder, two curved pieces of clean bone protruded, both lethally sharp. Even though I was a vampire and technically dead already, I could feel an uneasiness settle within me.

"Marina, " Mortanius repeated. "I know of you, child, and of what you seek."

"And how exactly do you know me?" I asked.

"I know of everyone, of course. Your coming was already foretold. Unfortunately, there is nothing you can do. All paths are already predestined."

"What am I to discover here?" I pressed. "Can you provide me with answers to my past?"

Mortanius laughed. "Yes. Of course. I know all about you. And about your sire, Lucius. But one must start at the beginning."

I crossed my arms over my chest defensively trying to preserve a tough exterior, but Mortanius saw through my ruse. He knew of my fright.

"I am here to give you information, nothing more. Besides, you are already beyond my reach, vampire."

I nodded and simply listened. I could hear the trickle of a stream nearby. Water…

"When you were human, did you know your father?"

I was about to tell him I knew nothing of my mortal life. But then, all of a sudden, I remembered it all. My mind was ablaze with images.

"No," I admitted. "I lived with my mother and my half-sister Katherine. I had a step-father, but never knew of my real father."

"Your birth father was a sorcerer, did you know? Quite an accomplished one at that. I know him well."

I froze. He couldn't possibly mean…

"Yes. You still haven't guessed it by now, Marina. Why you feel such a connection to he Pillar of States? The pillar that is standing right behind you?"

I couldn't answer. My mind reeled.

"Yes, Marina. Anarcrothe, Guardian of the Pillar of States, was your father."