Hey, everyone. Sorry for taking you so long. It's pretty much the same over here. Y'know, college, family, virus, the works. I had to get everything set up for this semester and it took me a while.
Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, the Mummy (2017), Dracula Untold, Frankenstein, or any of the franchises that appear in this story. The only character I own are my OCs, all others belong to their respective owners.
WARNING: This chapter will be pretty graphic near the end. If you are sensitive to this type of content, please avoid reading it.
The Light's Shadow Ch. 2
Bella hummed as she watched the sun set, drinking from another beer with a sigh, Ahmanet having gone to town for some food and other supplies. She thought back to her friends, to Charlie and Renee. To the Cullens. To Leah. It absolutely broke her heart, watching Leah leave with the Volturi, but she knew what it was to have a mate. Family and friends, they still mattered, but... they took a back seat. To the animal inside of her and a piece of her own, Ahmanet meant everything to Bella. She couldn't pretend that it was perfect, not with the constant moving on and the cheap food or the constant looking over her shoulder, but her mate did make it worth it. The princess gave Bella a shoulder to lean on when she needed it most, but Ahmanet could only do so much. Her heart ached for family, the same way it had when she had been deployed and when she was with Nick and Vail.
Her thoughts went back to Leah, wondering what the girl could be doing as the brunette sat there. Maybe she was hunting with her mate. Jane, if she remembered right. All she really knew was that she hadn't heard anything from the shifter since the day she had left. It had been bothering Bella for a while, the thoughts keeping her up for hours sometimes and distracting her on the road. One of those times, she hadn't realized she had been speeding until she heard the police sirens and the flashing lights in her rear view. Taking another swig, Bella sighed again and was about to check in with Ahmanet when she felt a sharp pain in her chest, the brunette falling from her seat for a moment as she clutched her stomach.
Bella groaned as she turned to clutch onto the car, her stomach growling hungrily and muscles straining under her skin, her breaths shallow right before another wave of pain and hunger shook over her. Letting go of the car and taking hold of her hair, she pulled at it while she yelled in pain, feeling something struggling inside of her. Struggling to break out of her. She was forced to her knees, puking her dinner and the beer onto the grass before she turned her gaze to the moon, her eyes draining of color until they were a haunting white. The hair on her head followed after, turning a deathly white with black spots forming markings in the strands. Bella felt the talons bursting out of her fingers and toes, the fur growing along her skin, her teeth lengthening as her jaw dislocated. Inside of her, she felt the beast breaking free of its chains at last, her sight going black soon after as her body continued to change.
Vlad walked under the cloudy sky, smoothing over his ruffled jacket with gloved hands as he passed by dozens of people. The trains rumbled by as he moved into the crowd, the vampire turning his sight away as a priest called out, the cross's light bothering him slightly. After he had returned, Vlad had gotten his fair experience with the cross and the pain it brought, but he had gotten used to it in time. Vlad looked down at his watch for a moment, another train rumbling by him and the humans, when he heard it. The familiar haunting voice spoke "Well, well. How you've grown, Dracula."
His eyes went wide and darted up, looking for the elder as the voice continued "You've been busy these past few weeks, little prince. Looking for something? Or rather, someone?"
Vlad stopped mid-turn, turning back over to the other end of the train station and he finally saw him. The elder stood in the crowd, his gray-ish eyes flashing red for a moment when they met Vlad's. Vlad growled in the back of his throat "So, you've finally worked up the courage to meet me, face-to-face."
The elder merely scoffed "Courage? Merely the patience."
Vlad kept his eyes on him "Funny."
The elder chuckled "I thought so."
Vlad rolled his eyes, a red glow glancing out in his iris's "So, who do I owe for you finally coming out into the open finally? I'll be sure to repay the debt after you're dead."
The elder... vanished in an instant and before Vlad could think to look for him, the younger vampire heard his voice coming from behind him "You... kill me? You can try, but I doubt you'll succeed. So, I propose that you stop the drama already and listen."
Vlad, shaking slightly in both fear and rage, quietly asked "What do you want?"
He could hear the smile in the creature's breath, but it vanished as he spoke in a somber tone "I told you, when we first met, that I would call on you one day. After you failed."
Vlad growled "I will never serve you."
The man chuckled darkly "Such hatred. What ever did I do?"
Vlad answered immediately, a bell above them alerting the crowd around the crowd about a train coming into the station "I am responsible for what happened, but I can't- won't let you hurt anyone else like-"
The elder interrupted "-Like I did you?"
Vlad's silence was all he needed and the elder continued solemnly "I never once hurt you, Dracula. I didn't lie, I didn't threaten, and I only ever told you what would happen when we played the game. You made the decision, you drank the blood, and you lost. Lost everything I said you would in that cave. And I wouldn't dream of making you serve me. The choice always has been yours. You can come with me, survive, and even thrive in a new world. A new world created for those like us. Or you can fight me. You may win. You may lose. As you were before, you are playing the ultimate game. Light versus dark, hope versus despair, and all of the world's fate hanging in the balance. And so, let the games begin."
The train pulling into the station, Vlad looked back to meet the elder's eyes as the crowd moved towards the cars in front of them, but he had already vanished as the humans pushed forward. Vlad cursed under his breath before he moved with them, stepping into the train as thoughts fired through his mind. He moved to his compartment and took his seat, his mind roaming for a solution, but who would believe him? Monsters... they were just figments of the imagination to the rest of the world, entertainment for the masses. That's when he remembered, his eyes lighting up as he reached into his jacket and pulled out a journal. Flipping through the pages, his eyes darted across the pages until they found the word. Prodigeum. His finger followed the writing steadily, focusing on London's scrawled name. He shook his head, remembering what had happened the year before. He stopped for a moment, remembering the feeds and watching as a sandstorm swarmed over the city near the Thames. That woman walking through it all, her death pale skin and black markings still seared in his mind.
Shaking his head, he looked through the names for somewhere they could've gone after that, finally settling on Scotland. In centuries past, he had heard of the group and their mission. He had investigated them, to see if they could be a threat, but he had simply shrugged them off as a bunch of self-righteous idiots. Honestly, it had been something he had been all too familiar with in that time. Now, though... maybe they could be of use to him. Pulling his phone out, even as others took their seats beside him, Vlad waited for a moment until his agent picked up "Good evening, Vlad. What could I do for you?"
Vlad replied immediately "Hey, Freddy. Could you charter a flight for me? I need a ride to Scotland."
Freddy hesitated for a moment before he spoke "But you just got to America a few days ago. Did something go wrong?"
Vlad sighed "I'm afraid so. I have to look into something. I'm not entirely sure if I will be coming back to the States. Everything is pretty crazy nowadays."
Freddy chuckled "I hear that. Alright, so where are you right now?"
Vlad answered and it took a few moments, but Freddy came back fairly quickly "Alright, I'll have a flight ready for you by the time you get there."
Vlad smiles "Thanks, Freddy. I don't know what I'd do without you."
Freddy shot back "Crash and burn?"
Vlad chuckled a little at that "Maybe. Give the family my best, will you?"
Freddy replied "Of course, mate. You need anything else, you know where I am."
He disconnected and Vlad was left to his thoughts as the train started to move, praying silently and hoping that he was right.
Cain looked down at the flames as he ran the stone along his axe's blade, sighing as the scream echoed in his ears, his mind flashing back to that night. Smiling as the little girl offered him the small flower, lake water gently hitting her skin. Blood and tears splashing against the fresh grass as he swung. The thundering sound of feet hitting mud while torches burned over a hundred heads and pitchforks were thrust into the hair by another hundred hands. His father screaming to him as Cain forced him to the entrance, closing the door before the man could do anything. The kind one clamoring up into the tower, desperate to stay out of the way of the roaring mob. Climbing through the windmill. Watching as the fires built, the crowd screaming in righteous fury at him. Falling through wood, fire, and mud as cheers rang out in the cold rain.
Breathing out, Cain's head turned from the fire when he heard the familiar whump against the door, the creature walking over just as the slot slid open. Nick Morton pushed a red, plastic cup through into Cain's hand before he held a bottle through the slot, the clear liquid sloshing slightly as he spoke "Feeling like a drink?"
Cain held the cup up to the bottle and watched as Nick poured it in, asking quietly "You alright?"
Nick sighed "Not really. You?"
Cain grunted "Same as always. Not a lot changes in here, human."
Nick chuckled as he sat down against the door, Cain doing the same before the both of them took a drink of the vodka. Cain hummed at the new flavor, looking in the cup for a moment "New drink today?"
Nick looked at the bottle once "Yeah, vodka. It's a little more appropriate for the bad days. Or if you want to really hurt in the morning."
Cain took another sip "What's going on now?"
Nick looked to the door for a moment "Nothing and that's the problem. Everything is going too slow for my liking."
Cain scoffed "Spend a few decades in this room and then you can talk to me about slow."
Nick breathed out "I have no idea how you stayed sane in that room. Didn't see much in there honestly."
Cain wanted to respond, but he didn't, merely drinking from the cup again before he held the cup up to the slot. It took a few moments, but he heard the liquid sloshing into the cup for a few moments. Waiting until it stopped, Cain pulled the cup back and took a few swallows before he spoke again "Have you heard anything from your friend?"
Nick sighed "Nothing. I'm worried about her. Wondering if I should go and track her down."
Cain admitted after a short silence "I understand wanting to. With what is happening, it might be for the best."
Nick took another swig from his cup "Yeah, maybe. I wouldn't know where the hell to start though and I don't exactly want to piss off Zombie Princess."
Cain chuckled "You have a point there. I... forgot to thank you last time we spoke."
Nick was silent for a moment "What do you mean?"
Cain quickly answered "You came down here. Not many do. It's been a long time since I've talked to anyone. Though, I must say... the language of your kind has grown quite vulgar since I was last free. I've grown accustomed to it in your presence."
Nick chuckled "No problem. Maybe I could teach you some nau-"
Nick was interrupted by his phone, looking to it for a moment to see a text from Jenny, asking him to join the briefing upstairs. With a sigh, the former sergeant capped the vodka and got up from his seat "I've gotta go. We can talk later, right?"
Cain simply nodded and got up, walking back to the fire as Nick slid the slot closed and walked back up the stairs into Prodigeum headquarters.
Eve breathed out as she walked into another new town with more new sights to see and more new people to meet. Ignoring the looks she got from the adults walking past, Eve walked into one of the alleys with her pocket knife in hand, her eyes darting around for any sign of movement. Looking it over, she was about to pick a spot for the night when she... felt something weird, like cold needles were being traced along her spinal column. Turning, Eve spotted a woman walking past and the feeling intensified, intriguing the girl enough to follow the mysterious girl. Trying to be discreet as she followed, she watched as the woman stepped into a convenience store, catching some glimpses as she pretended to look over the tools and objects on display.
Sighing in boredom, Eve pulled her bag of trail mix and pulled out a pretzel when she saw it. As the woman turned to grab something else, the girl saw her mahogany eyes turn amber for a moment and stepped back in horror. Eve kept stepping back as her hairs stood on end until a car honking broke her out of the state, the girl jumping a moment before realizing how close she had been from stepping into traffic. Looking back into the store, she saw the woman talking with the clerk and clenched her fist, moving around a corner and waiting until she came out. The grip on her knife tightening, Eve followed the woman out of town, putting a few meters of space between her and the figure. She knew all too well how bad it could get when they felt trapped, when she backed them into a corner by force. When they knew she was there, at least.
Ahmanet heard a car honk close by as she grabbed the last item, but ignored it as she walked over to the counter where the man looked over the items, "scanning" them with a small device. As he did, Ahmanet noticed the televisions behind him, news stations tuned in on most of them. As images of conflict and depravity flashed past, Ahmanet could only flinch and clench her fists as her eyes swiveled between them all. Scoffing in disgust as they spoke of hate and fear, Ahmanet could only compare it to children blaming one another in a tantrum, never taking responsibility. That's when she saw it, one of the screens showing a "video" of a sandstorm, one very familiar to the former princess. As if on cue, the recording showed her stepping into view of the screen, the pale skin and her dark skin making Ahmanet wince for a moment. The clerk spoke, grabbing her attention "Creepy, right?"
He was looking at the exact same screen as her while she kept his gaze on him. He was pudgy with glasses fit over his nose, an almost bored look on his face as he continued "Must've seen that feed a dozen times by now. Can't really get it off my mind."
Ahmanet looked back to the recording, a fuzzy picture of her now frozen on the screen while one of the humans talked in the corner of it. Taking a breath in relief at the state of the picture, she said "I have seen it a few times as well. I'm not really sure what to make of it."
The man reached down and grabbed a half of a ham sandwich from a plate, taking a bite and swallowing before he said "I wasn't sure at first either, but I think I got a grasp on it now."
Ahmanet hummed before she asked "What do you mean?"
He took a swig from a soda bottle and continued "Now, I know how far-fetched what I'm about to say is, but I think she is an alien."
The former princess laughed slightly, remembering what Bella told her about the human's ideas of aliens. The princess could get her head around it all, especially after watching MIB on television, but this was just too good. Her smile didn't fade as she spoke again "Wait, what? Why would you think that?"
The man looked a little annoyed by her laughter, but he continued "Think about it. She looks human, sure. Honestly, you could probably get that makeover with enough white and black paint, but you look at what she did. Right? Windows, display cases, glass of all kinds shattering as soon as she got close. Then she makes it into a giant, grey storm of glass. Government equipment, I would buy if the glass only shattered, but shit like that? No way. She's either an alien or a government experiment, but even that's too far-fetched for me."
Shaking her head slightly, she asked "It honestly does not look too real if you ask me. It seems like something you could see in a movie nowadays."
The man scoffed "Oh, please. That's what they want you to think. That it was some kind of show. I got family over the pond. A couple cousins. One of them said she was in the city when it happened and she sent me some pictures. Here, I'll-"
Ahmanet interrupted him "I am afraid that I have to get home. Thank you for everything."
He narrowed his eyes for a moment "You new in town?"
Ahmanet shrugged "Maybe. Why does it matter to you?"
The man looked at her with that indifferent look "Lived here most of my life. Know most people here. Small community and all of that."
Discreetly rolling her eyes, Ahmanet started walking out of the store "Well, again, thank you for your hospitality. I hope you have a good night."
She heard him wishing her the same behind her as she took her groceries, hearing him silently cursing to himself before the door closed behind her. She walked out of town, some horns blaring behind her as she kept going. She cursed silently, shifting her groceries to one hand to rub the bridge of her nose with the other. Instead of thinking back on it further, she kept moving to where Bella had parked, eventually coming to the spot "Bellaaaa, I'm baaaccckk. I got you something called "jerk-y" and some app-"
She stopped short when she noticed no one was there, her eyebrows quirked as she walked over to the drivers side. They widened when she saw the ripped up clothes and massive claw marks in the dirt, the princess throwing the food into the car and calling out "Bella! Bella, are you there?!"
Her only responses were the chirping of crickets and rustling of leaves. Her normal mahogany eyes were already turning amber and beginning to split as she pulled off her shoes, sprinting into the trees in an effort to follow Bella before someone saw her.
A police officer walked through the park with her flashlight held up, the light shining in the dark as she cursed under her breath. Speaking into her radio, she asked "Dawson, you copy?"
Another voice came through, her partner's voice coming through "I copy. Find anything in your area, Lome?"
Lome replied tiredly "Nothing. This is the right park, right?"
Dawson shot back with a tired tone in his voice "Yeah. Dispatch said we got a 10-91V call out in Oak Park."
Lome sighed "Well, we're in Oak Park and I don't see any "vicious animal" anywhere. I don't even see anyone out here. No flashlight, no one running over to meet us. Who called it in?"
Dawson took a moment before he sighed as well "I think we've been punked. I'm going back to the car and see if Dispatch can get this joker o-"
Lome listened in horror as Dawson's words cut out for a moment before she heard a scream off in the distance, a monstrous roar echoing through the radio as Dawson screamed. Lome took off running in Dawson's direction, her heart pounding as her partner yelled in the night, the redhead spotting a flashlight moving frantically in the darkness. When she started getting close, the screams cut off and the flashlight stopped moving around. Lome finally got there and she felt bile reach up in her throat when she saw it all.
Dawson's guts were strewn across the grass, his flesh ripped and torn apart, blood spilling out onto an already soaked uniform. His bodily organs were crushed to pulps, shredded to ribbons, and bitten through with almost nothing left inside. Dawson's head lay a few feet away, the spinal column still attached, with half-lidded and dead eyes. Lome felt the tears coming to her eyes, only imagining what could have done this. Hearing a stick snap behind her, Lome's heart stopped as she slowly turned her head, thinking that a bear or a wolf that wandered into the town would be growling at her the moment she did. What she did see simply made her blood run cold as her eyes traveled up it's body.
It had to have been at least 10 feet tall, white fur grown along it's muscular frame with black lines of fur in some spots, almost like markings. Pitch black claws shined in her flashlight's glare, blood dripping onto the grass from the creature's fingers, a lithe tail with the same white fur moving back and forth in the air behind them. Lome raised her light from the creature's bloodied chest to it's mouth, where pieces of flesh lay between pink-stained teeth and saliva dripped down along it's maw. As the light raised, Lome could only best describe it's head as a wolf's. It had what could be a mane along the back of it's head and it's ears were perked back, the creature growling. What struck the officer the most was the pure, white eyes peering down at her, the color practically glowing as she tried to step back. As soon as she did, the creature roared down at her before it lunged, Lome screaming as it's talons shredded and ripped apart her body, her flesh rended apart by the monster. The last thing she felt before she blacked out from the pain was the creature biting down onto her arm and the limb being torn from it's socket a second later.