Title: Song of the Siren

Author: Twilightstaruby

Disclaimers: All Night World concept belongs to L.J.Smith. Kiele and the other characters in the story belongs to me

Author's note: Thanks to those who have reviewed. You guys really gave me the inspiration to continue the story. Hope you like it!

Chapter One:

The roar of the sea filled her ears and she could taste its salt in the air. The sea. She had grown up beside the sea, had loved it. Now, the vast ocean seemed to beckon to her, like a siren's song. It was one she couldn't resist, for the song of the siren was both seductive and beautiful. With a laugh, she spurred her mare towards the waters.

Someone shouted at her to come back, but she had missed the ocean so much and had suffered so much recently. She rode down the narrow rocky path that led to the vast sea ahead, urging the mare ahead even though she knew it wanted to bolt.

"Gwenivere!" the frantic cry came faintly, over the sound of the crashing waves.

She turned, laughing with delight and looked towards the shore. She saw him then, her companion, her soul mate. He was dressed in simple, ill-fitting clothes, his face a mask of terror as he raced towards the waters, towards her.

She wanted to tell him to stop worrying, to get back to the shore, for he was no swimmer, and that she had done this dozens of time before without harm. She lifted a hand and waved to him, to reassure him, but he kept coming, shouting her frantically as he fought against the waves to reach her. She frowned; the sea was more turbulent than usual that day, and he might be swept away by the waters if he was not careful.

She tried to steer the mare back towards the shore, but at the same moment, a gigantic wave came sweeping by them. The mare, already edgy, reared and flung her off its back. She heard him cry out in anguish as she stuck her shoulder hard against a rock. Pain, suffocating, rose up in volumes as she tried to remain on the surface. The heavy weight of her gown and kirtle dragged her down into the darkness of the sea. She tried to scream, but water filled her mouth, drove her under and held her there.

Then she felt another blow, this time on her head and she knew nothing, heard nothing, felt nothing-except for the name she had been screaming before she died.

Then a voice whispered into her ears," If I can't have you, neither will he."

Kiele woke up with a gasp to the shrilling sound of the phone's ring. Drawing a shaky breath, she picked up the phone.

"Hello?"

"Kiele? Andrew here." The sound of her fellow slayer and friend relaxed her slightly, though still not enough to detach her from the fear that still gripped her from the chillingly realistic dream she just had.

"Andrew? Is there another meeting?"

"Uh-huh. Eli's place later tonight, eight." Then his voice turned concerned, his tone turning big-brotherly all of a sudden. "Kiele, are you alright? You sound…funny. Is Kalika all right?"

The concern in his voice made her smile. Andrew was one of the few people who knew about Kalika; one matter Kiele had trusted enough to tell him about. After all, he had practically taken her under his wing when she was going through her roughest patch in the lousy excuse of life she was living in.

"No, it isn't about Kalika. She is all right." Andrew's sigh of relief was audible on the other line, loud enough to make her grin. "I just had a bad dream. A very horrible one." She added with a shudder as she remembered the details of the too realistic dream.

"Nightmare. Hmm...I don't think even yours can compare with my live one. I don't believe yours reoccurs everyday. Mine does," As though in accord, a loud shriek came though the phone even as a thud followed. Kiele couldn't help laughing.

"Darn. Talk about nightmares. Tell me about yours later. We could exchange pointers about how to fend them off." Another thud and sound of crying rent the air. Andrew winced. " Have to go. See you later. Ciao. Let us hope she sprained her legs." Kiele heard Andrew mutter under his breath before he hung up.

Kiele burst out into laughter as she placed the phone back into its cradle. Andrew's little cousin Darla was more than a handful. She was a little terror. Poor Andrew, she thought as she went upstairs to her room dress for the meeting. Herlaughter faded as she remembered the dream. She recalled the terror, the last horrifying moments as she felt her life; no, not her, Gwenivere's, flow out of her.The feeling and taste of the salt water that had filled her mouth and lungs as she fought to breathe in the darkmurky watersas it suffocated her and killed her eventually.It wasn't real of course, only a dream, but Kiele had felt as though it was she in that dream. She fought a shiver of terror and sat down at the edge of her bed, trying to control her feelings.

She wondered who that man had been; the one Gwenivere had said was her soul mate, her companion. She remembered little of his face, except for his striking storm-grey eyes and his agony which she had felt she clearly that had sliced through her when she had died. Whoever he was, he had loved her dearly, she knew that.

And that voice at the end of her dream: who had it been? It had been cold and evil, even twisted. It wasn't Gwenivere's soul mate who had spoken those words. She didn't know how she knew, she just did. And it frightened her. How could she have known? She thought as she got to her feet shakily and dragged on a pair of jeans and tattered T-Shirt. She slid her dagger out from its place of honour on her wall into her belt.

The dagger was made out of lignum vitae: the Wood of Life. The blade was a satiny green-black and carved with intricate designs and spells placed on it by the strongest witch in the city. It was Kiele's pride and joy. Kalika had an exact same dagger, not that it would ever be used. It had gone missing on the same day they found her.

The dream that had haunted her slipped from her mind as she looked in on her sister, who was sleeping. Moving quietly to Kalika, Kiele smoothed back the girl's hair from her forehead.

"I'll be back as soon as I can. Until then, be safe." She touched her fingertips to Kalika's forehead before going out. She locked the door behind her as she exited the apartment.

More out of habit than cautiousness, she kept an alert eye on her surroundings. She knew that her looks and physique were not exactly like those required of a slayer. Her pretty looks and petite figure gave rise to thought of faeries, delicate and fragile. But she was quick, with strength belying her looks. And those who worked with her before knew that she was one of the best slayers around.

She didn't meet any vampires on her way to Eli's three-room apartment, which was something new. Vampires like to prey on those who look delicate and defenseless, the exact image she knew she portray on the outside. She grinned as she heard a loud shriek emerge from behind the heavy oak door that was the entrance to Eli's home. It appears that Darla had somehow found her way here uninvited.

Raising her hand, Kiele rapped the door lightly in a rhythm they had devised to indicate that a member of their exclusive 'society' if you could call it such was at the door. The door opened to reveal a young man about Kiele's age, his brown eyes twinkled warmly at her as he bade her in. Like Kiele, Eli was dressed casually, glasses perched owlishly on the bridge of his nose. One would never guess from his appearance that he was the leader of the most formidable vampire slayer groups around on these shores.

"A little problem?" Kiele grinned as another shriek rent the air, piercing and high-pitched.

"A regular little fire-engine is our darling Darla." Eli said dryly as he led her to the living room, where an extremely harassed-looking Andrew was seated on the rug, his eyes closed, with Darla running circles around him, shrieking the whole time. It seems as though he had given up on trying to keep her in control. Otherslayers in the room lounge around, some amused, some couldn't care less.

"Say, do you think we should help him?" Wayne,one of theslayers present, said in general, eyeing the little hellion racing around Andrew, tugging on his hair occasionally as she went by.

"I think we should. He looks pretty pitiful." Leah murmured, but didn't move from her comfortable position on the couch.

"We should." Vivian said lazily, but didn't move.

"All talk no action eh, guys?" Eli commented dryly.

"No, of course. It is just that well, none of us care enough to be shrieked at until our eardrums bursts. We need our acute hearing for future missions." Jarve replied, a lazy smirk at theedge of his lips.

Kiele grinned and decided to spare her poor friend from the torture. As Darla streaked by, she reached out and snagged her arm with a practised ease. Then she produced lollipops from her pockets that quieten the little girl down immediately. Seated in Kiele's lap, she happily sucked on the lollipop given.

"I always wonder how she does that." Leah raised a brow.

"Did the little devil finally die of exhaustion?" Andrew asked, opening his eyes at last. "Ah, my angel." He grinned as he saw Kiele and the little girl in her lap. "What will I ever do without you?"

"Try to attempt murder on a little underaged girl?" Ashley piped up mischievously.

Kiele rolled her eyes in exasperation. " You are so bad around kids I can't help but worry for your kids next time."

"Why don't you marry me and put that right?" Andrew grinned, unrepentant.

"Yeah, in your dreams." Kiele retorted.

"Okay, I'll start dreaming tonight."

"Alright, now that peace has reigned again in this place I call home," Eli shot a look at Darla, who had fallen asleep, the lollipop still in her mouth,"Let's get down to serious business."

Immediately, all straightened. As Kiele glanced around the room, she could see how people might mistake them for simply ordinary teenagers out for a gathering. But all present were the best slayers in the continent.

Shifting Darla in her lap so that she might be more comfortable, Kiele leaned forward attentively.

"I have found out about the ring leader of illegal dealings in human slaves. His name is Shadrach Silverthorn, a Night World lord."

She stiffened. Kiele felt her heart clench at the mention of the name. Shadrach Silverthorn. The one scum of earth who killed her parents and made her sister what she was today.

"I need volunteers as this might be a suicide mis-"

"I'll do it." Kiele interrupted, her eyes glinting with malice.

Eli looked taken aback, but he quickly composed himself. "All right. As I was saying…"

Kiele didn't hear much of what he said later. She would kill Shadrach, for more reasons than one. But the sole reason that really mattered was enough to make Kiele decided that she would make him die a slow, horrible death.