Author's notes:


2021-07-06: Hey, I would like to show you a preview of the next chapter I'm currently working on. For now, I have ideas planned for around 20 - 30 chapters; however, I seem to be struggling with writing down my ideas and making them a coherent story. Maybe, it's just a one-time incident; maybe I will need a bit of break to just recharge. Currently, I don't really know. I feel like my writing style is a bit difficult to read, maybe sometimes boring. From my side, I think I will start experimenting a bit more; however, I can't say whether it will happen during this chapter or the next or in the future. Still, I hope you will like the chapter. If not, please, consider writing down a comment; let me know what's wrong. Of course, if you like something especially, feel free to write it down as well. I deeply appreciate the constructive comments.

2021-07-11: Hey, I think the chapter will be finished tomorrow (2021-07-12); however, I want to share what I came up with up to now. Please, do tell me what do like or dislike about the story/chapter. I appreciate every piece of feedback that I can get. Anyways, the rest should be finished by tomorrow's evening.

2021-07-12: Hey, as I promised, the chapter has been finished and here it is. Please, tell me what do you think. And... do not forget to vote; the poll is up for a couple of days more.

As always, I would like to thank you for everything. See you soon :)

Changelog:
[2021-07-06]: A preview was released.
[2021-07-11]: Wrote a couple of additional parts.
[2021-07-12]: An entire chapter published.

Schedule for the nearest future:
1. Last Christmas (finishing up the story).
2. My home is where my heart lies (a long, possibly 10k + words chapter).
3 ? (not really sure as of now)
4. Prisoner of Your Eyes (next chapter).
5. Black Diamond (2 next chapters)/(possibly finishing the story).
6. The rise of the Blood Moons' servants (2 next chapters).
7. Alone (2 next chapters)/(possibly rewrite).
8. My home is where my heart lies (a long, possibly 10k + words chapter).

Bonuses' section:
A new story taking place in the Warhammer 40k universe.
A story regarding KaiKali (aka Akali x Kai'sa) (Will you look past my mistakes?).
Sometimes it's just better not to know (possibly rewrite).
Kiss the rain (more than likely rewrite).
Whispers in the Dark (extending beyond 2 chapters story).
Story of one lost soul (translation of 2 of my old texts - previously written in polish).
Story of one lost soul: The war call: rewrite.

*bonuses will be worked on when I don't feel like writing the chapters pointed out in the schedule :D

** It is possible for me to change the schedule a little. So stay tuned for the upcoming information.

Vote poll:
Service: strawpoll
Hash: a46eksrpp


End of author's notes.


The driver had informed her about his arrival minutes before she could even reach the bottom level of the building. Vayne had been caught by surprise when her phone starter to beep, loudly announcing that she received a notification. She had thought that she had more than enough time to exit the building. Moreover, she had expected to wait for the driver. After all, the secretary had told her she would have around 30 minutes before the cab would be able to arrive.

There was no way these recent events had not been planned. Step by step, the pieces of a larger puzzle slowly started to fall into their righteous places. Firstly, the brutal slaughter of men; secondly, they had found bite marks on the bodies. Quite quickly, it had turned out that they lacked sufficient resources for progressing with the investigation. And… finally, the sudden appointment with the council leader; the meeting with the devil herself, the vampire. These events were too coherent, connected with one another to be considered a coincidence.

With a heavy sight, Shauna Vayne exited the RDT's HQ. A chilling wind hit her as soon as she had made it into the open. It was already late evening, a chilly one, one might have added. The air was filled with small drops of rain. It was not surprising; after all, it had been raining nearly all day. The officer made sure to tighten her thick coat. A single blow of the wind made her shudder, and she did not like that feeling.

The sent vehicle was parked just a couple of dozens of meters away from her. It was a disgustingly expensive car, she noticed. One of the newest models of Mercedes, the exclusive class. The vehicle was black as the darkest night; despite the absence of tinted windows, it evoked concern. The RDT officer could not hear the engine; it must have been turned off whilst the driver waited for her. With yet another deep sigh, she began a stroll toward the car.

Even though the stroll did not last long, she noticed a couple of additional details. First of all, the raven-haired woman fixed her gaze upon the driver himself. He was a bulky, muscular man in his forties. Through the tinted glasses, he kept staring at her, as if regarding her, trying to foresee her next move. His clothing consisted of a deep-steel coloured shirt, a perfectly matched elegant suit in the colour of the night, and a Windsor-tied silver tie. The dark hair was cut short, put back, moistened slightly with the use of a gel. There was no doubt that the driver had military experience; he looked like a perfect example of a spec-ops operator.

As soon as she got close enough, the driver exited the vehicle.

"Miss Vayne, I presume?" the man asked in a deep tone. His tone gave away the fact that he was used to issuing orders. But, Shauna must have admitted, the dark-haired man was tall; he must have been taller than 2m.

"Yes, it's me, Shauna Vayne; nice to meet you," the woman introduced herself.

"Likewise, Miss Vayne," the man responded.

"I assume you were informed about the destination of this ride?" the RDT officer asked, lowering her tone slightly.

"Of course, Miss Tayaki made everything clear," a brief response was provided. "It is not usual for the member of 'Rapid Deployment Team' to be invited to meet the council, let alone Miss Tepes. However, who am I to undermine my superiors decision. Shall we ride, Miss Vayne?" he asked, pointing out at the vehicle.

"Yes, the quicker we get there, the quicker the whole situation will be dealt with," Vayne admitted.

"Please, let me open the door for you, then," the driver uttered, then proceeded toward the passenger seat. "This way, please."

Within moments, the dark-haired woman found herself situated inside the luxurious car. The quality of workmanship was undeniable; she felt as if she could melt away in these upholstered leather seats. Just a second later, the engine started to rev; it had been brought back to life. Without much sound, they pulled away from the parking lot. With every second, the vehicle was only going faster and faster. Still, to some extent, it was not even detectable. Without anything better to do, Vayne opted to enjoy the ride as much as she possibly could.

As expected, the ride did not last long. Before the officer could have even relaxed, regained a firm hold over her mind, they entered the underground parking. Each of the 3 stops had been heavily guarded. So, the agents assigned to that task did not even try to pretend that they were members of casual security. On the contrary, armed with top-notch assaults rifles and protected by full-body combat armours, they posed a real threat to any unexpected visitors.

Moreover, their faces were covered by ghost inspired masks. One minor detail intrigued her. On the right shoulders, the agents' origin's country flag had been displayed.

The car had not been stopped even once. Every time, they had been scanned a couple of meters before the barriers. Everything was automated to a massive degree. Just a flesh or red light, then the nearly invisible barrier faded away, leaving the passage accessible to them.

Soon enough, they parred in the highlighted area. The vehicle's engine was automatically turned off with the rest of the systems. Additionally, 3 of the council's agents made their way toward them.

"Miss Vayne, these agents will lead you to Miss Tayaki," the driver uttered after a couple of moments of silence. "It was a great pleasure to meet you, Miss Vayne," he added with a quick bow.

"Thank you for the ride," Vayne replied with a small smile forming on top of her lips. "You haven't introduced yourself. What's your name?" she asked.

"Martin Eckstein," the dark-haired man spoke quietly.

"Hope we'll meet again, Martin," the RDT officer responded whilst getting out of the vehicle.

"Likewise, Miss Vayne. Good luck; out of my own experience, I can say that Miss Tepes can be quite overwhelming," Martin uttered, fixing his gaze at the woman. "One piece of advice, don't waste Miss Tepes's time; it's the thing Miss Tepes hates the most."

"I'll keep that in mind; thanks," Vayne replied.

The agents reached her in no time. Just like their colleagues, they had been heavily armed, ready for a battle. One quick look allowed her to find out that all of them originated from Germany. It seemed that the council was putting a lot of trust into this one particular nationality. After all, most if not all of the previously seen soldiers came from there.

Even though all of these agents were tall, the one walking slightly forward was towering his peers. The man might have been some sort of the officer; however, it was not written in stone whether the council's envoys had any command structure.

"Are you going to take me to Miss Tayaki?" Vayne asked, feeling intimidated by the sheer presence of the muscular soldiers.

Instead of verbally responding to the woman's question, the tallest of the agents merely nodded, turning around instantly after. Even though it was not said openly, the RDT officer was asked to follow her armed escort. It seemed as if the atmosphere around here was thickening with every passing moment.

A quick stroll later, the elevator was reached at the end of the long bright corridor. But, before the piece of technology could be used, it required authorisation. A terminal with a keyboard was projected by the mechanism hidden inside the panel. The projected objects were hanging in the air, awaiting the use. The tallest of the Germans stood right in front of the terminal. Such action cut off entirely Vayne's sight. No sound was initialised whilst the agent was providing the access code.

The credentials must have been accepted cause the elevator announced its arrival just a few moments later. The council's servants invited her to enter it with hand gestures. They followed her just a couple of steps behind.

"Please do provide the desired destination," the artificial feminine voice sounded as soon as the door had closed.

"Segment B42," one of the soldiers said with a solid German accent.

"Sergeant Heinz recognised; verifying the privileges… waiting; access granted," the voice informed them. "ETA 1 min, please hold the handles tight," it added a moment later.

"What handles?" Vayne asked, looking at the agents.

The soldier named Heinz came closer; his right hand touched the panel right next to Vayne. Nearly instantly, the area around his palm started to blur, transform. Then, within a fraction of a second, the outer part of the panel vanished, revealing the handle.

"Feel free to use this one," the German uttered before backing off. "This elevator had been planned for up to 30 people; so, there are a lot of handles here," he added.

Without uttering any response, the RDT officer grabbed the handle. Before she could even notice, the elevator started moving. Then, a strong pull was felt; it nearly threw her to the right. There was no time for her to adapt to the force affecting her. A few moments later, the force started to push her to the ground.

Thankfully, as quickly as the unpleasant feeling began, it faded away.

The quiet beep announced reaching the destination.

"Segment B42 reached," the AI announced shortly after. "Person responsible for the segments is Mia Tayaki; her supervision is Miss Tepes. In the case of any inconveniences, please contact the 'Specters' team," it provided a few pieces of additional information.

"Miss Tayaki will be waiting for you at the very end of the hall," Heinz uttered. "You can not get lost here; however, if you manage to do so, start asking questions, 'Aria' was informed that she is to help you."

"Who's Aria?" Vayne asked.

"Miss Vayne, 'Aria' is the AI connected to this facility," the German responded politely. "You have heard her voice already. She spoke briefly with us inside the elevator," he added.

"Oh… I see," the dark-haired woman replied. "Farewell then," she added.

"I will be awaiting any questions of yours, Miss Vayne," Aria exclaimed as soon as the RDT officer left the lift.

"Thank you, Aria," the dark-haired woman mumbled under her breath.

She found herself inside the enormously spacious hall. On her left, the massive panels simulating windows could be spotted. The outside world seen through them seemed to be dimmed, greyish. It was highly likely that the outside part of the panel looked like the solid greyish surface, revealing nothing hidden behind it. The same could be said about the sight on her right.

The light system must have been located under the semi-transparent segments of the construction. Still, a decent percentage of the light came from the pillars separating the whole hall into 3 sections. Their surfaces seemed fractured, rough, raw. It seemed as if they had been built out of bare granite. Yet, they stood there like a feat of strength, distinguishing themselves from the rest of the room. Which was of a modern design.

The marble floor was polished up to the point that one could see one's reflection inside the black as night stone. It was at the same time horrific and intriguing.

A couple of oaken benches had been put nearby the windows' panels. Maybe… just maybe, this area was meant to be an antechamber, a waiting room for people awaiting a meeting with Miss Tepes. Still, such thoughts did not ease up Vayne's mind. She felt trapped, watched from every corner, surrounded by enemies. After all, the current situation could be easily compared to walking up to the wolves den for her.

"Miss Vayne?" the AI called her up. "Is everything alright?" it asked.

"I'm fine, Aria," the RDT officer responded after a moment or two of silence.

"Miss Tayaki is started to get worried," the voice uttered. "She was already informed about your arrival; however, after half an hour, you have not reached her office. So, Miss Tayaki asked me to locate you and offer any sufficient help you would need," a brief explanation was provided.

"What… you've mentioned that half an hour passed since the agents reported my arrival?" the shooked dark-haired woman asked. "How can it be? I've been here for a couple of minutes at most," she managed to form the sentence without stuttering.

"Negative," the AI responded immediately. "You have been staring into the pillars of remembrance; you must have been affected by their magic. It sometimes happens; I can assure you about that, Miss Vayne. You have been touching the stone, inspecting it closely. I have seen people doing it numerous times before," it added.

"What the hell are these pillars?" Shauna murmured under her breath. "Why are they even located here?"

"This information is classified, Miss Vayne," Aria informed her. "I can only reveal some facts regarding the pillars. They had been found and stored by Miss Tepes's family. These 8 pillars had been found across the period lasting 800 years," the AI explained.

"I assume you won't tell me anything else regarding these 'things'?" the RDT officer asked.

"No, I am sorry, Miss Vayne, but the catalogue storing the data regarding the pillars requires certain privileges to access," Aria uttered emotionlessly.

"Fine, I'll go see Miss Tayaki then," Shauna decided loudly.

"It would be highly appreciated, Miss Vayne," the AI exclaimed. "For now, I will inform Miss Tayaki that you are on your way."

"Fine, go inform her," Vayne responded with a shrug.

Without anything better to do, the dark-haired woman started to head forward. But, strangely enough, despite all her efforts, she felt as if drawn toward the pillars. It felt as if some sort of an unknown force was luring her closer and closer. To counteract, she needed to muster all her strengths and self-control.

"What the hell is going on here?" the dark-haired officer allowed herself to ask.

Sometime later, Shauna ended up in yet another bright corridor. It had been built out of white as snow panels emitting ghostly light. If she had been to speak her mind, she would have said that the surroundings had made her uneasy, had caused goosebumps.

Thankfully, this one was far shorter compared to the one located on lower levels of the compound. Still, the constant feeling of being watched did not vanish as soon as she exited the pathway.

Within moments, Shauna Vayne found herself inside a mediocre-sized hall filled with grim-dark light. It seemed that this section must have been surrounded by other halls; there were no windows there. The design resembled the neo-gothic; however, the material used seemed raw. In many areas across the walls and ceiling, uncut stone could be spotted. The scenery as a whole seemed as if taken out of a medieval castle.

"Ah, Miss Vayne," she heard a pleasant voice coming from nearby. "You finally made it here, splendid."

It took her a couple of short-lived moments to turn around toward the source. A small woman of clear Japanese blood was coming her way. She was beautiful; that one aspect was left without an ounce of doubt. Her short, straight, black as night hair was reaching only half of her nape. The silverish eyes were mesmerising, tantalising openly. Plump yet small lips were inviting to plant a kiss on top of them. She was stunning, like an angel fallen out of the havens.

"Miss Tayaki, I assume?" the RDT officer managed to mumble.

"Correct," the Asian woman responded, flashing a small, charming smile. "Should we omit the formalities? I bet you will be forced to use them whilst speaking with Miss Tepes; there is no need to bother you with them when having a conversation with me, Shauna?"

"Yeah… it can be handy, Mai," Vayne responded, trying to regain a hold over herself. She felt as if something was luring her toward the tiny, delicate Asian woman. Something similar to the energy wrapped around the pillars in the antechamber.

"If you are ready, you can proceed with the stairs toward Miss Tepes's office. Miss Tepes is expecting you; however, there is no need for a hurry," Mia informed the officer whilst finally closing the distance between them.

She stopped only a couple of steps away from the RDT officer. The secretary stood in such a position as if inviting Shauna to look at her, inspect, gawk at her. And frankly… there was a lot of minor or major details worth keeping an eye on. Vayne had speculation that Miss Tayaki was not entirely real. Everything about her was screaming of perfection; she seemed to be taken from the first page of some model catalogue regarding the beautiful Asian women. Her figure was flawless; she could be mentioned as an example of the perfect hourglass, having the right assets to catch the eye. A deep-blue, long-sleeved velvet dress was just an extension of Miss Tayaki's perfect body. In some areas, it was intentionally cut off in others tightened to highlight the woman's feminine assets. However, Vayne was most intrigued about the black as night silk lacy choker wrapped around the entirety of the woman's neck.

"Would it be an overstep if I say that you're tantalising me?" the conflicted RDT officer uttered quietly.

"Oh, not at all," Mia giggled whilst responding. "In fact, many people have such an impression of me. It might be on top5 most commonly used phrases toward me," she added, continuing to giggle. "However, I rarely have a pleasure to hear such a compliment from beautiful women; so, you can count yourself noted and appreciated."

"Thank you… I guess," Shauna mumbled, scratching her nape nervously. "Why did you tell me not to hurry up? Isn't your boss quite a busy person?" she wanted to know.

"But, of course," Miss Tayaki chuckled; it was such a pleasant sound to behold. "Her schedule is usually quite tight; however, thanks to your clumsy call, we have managed to reschedule tonight's meetings for the further dates."

"I assume it's the only reason why my sluggishness was tolerated?" the officer asked.

"Yes, quite frankly, yes," the secretary replied, still smiling. "In any other situation, you would be already informed that your appointment was rescheduled due to you running late. However, tonight is not the case. So, I would suggest taking advantage of it."

"What can you tell me about Miss Tepes?" Vayne asked openly. "Should I avoid delving into some matters?"

"Oh," Miss Tayaki giggled. "It does not really matter," she added. "You will not be able to play any role in front of her; no matter what mask you have prepared for your meeting, she will read you like a book. It is her trait, her tramp card," she explained briefly.

"One last question," the dark-haired officer started. "Is it the bite mark hidden under the choker?"

"How do you think, Shauna?" the secretary asked a question of her own, smiling mischievously.

"I believe it is," the RDT officer responded.

"You are right; Miss Tepes is willing to grant us various benefits for blood. So, she does not have to hurt anyone innocent," Mia replied. "You might think about it as barbarism. However, it is not what you are thinking about. We are willingly offering our blood to her. And… she never forgets to more than repay for such acts."

"It's your decision," Shauna said, a sad tone hearable in her voice. "I'm not the one to judge you."

"Miss Tepes is awaiting you; go ahead," Miss Tayaki uttered, flashing one last smile toward the RDT officer. In the meantime, Vayne started to climb the stairs toward the lair of her fears.