Reposted Chapter.

Chapter Eight: Cause I Wanted to Fly

"Perhaps we should go out one at a time." Selene looked up, smiling wickedly. Her face reverted to an expression of innocence before continuing, "She might get a bit suspicious of the two of us being in here. Together. For so long."

Michael grabbed the towel away from her, leaving her bare to his stare before pulling her into his arms. She laughed lightly, unable to recall the last time she felt so carefree. He kissed her soundly, reveling in the small moan she made. They pulled back, Selene panting slightly to catch her breath. Smiling, he pulled her black tank top over her head, kissing her again once the material was out of the way.

"She's sound asleep. Why do you think I came in?" Selene whacked his arm playfully before pulling on her panties and a pair of black leather boot-cut pants. She turned around to look in the mirror, running her fingers through her hair briefly. Michael wrapped his arms around her and pulled her back from the mirror enough to open the door to their bedroom. She giggled, not laughed but giggled, when he snuck several kisses to her neck.

He lifted her off her feet briefly before walking them out of the bathroom, placing her back on her feet when he turned to shut the door. He looked back when Selene suddenly gripped his arm tightly. Her face held a look of fear and panic, the last fourty-five minutes of pure joy gone completely. "Selene,what's--" He followed her vision to their bed and felt panic rise in his chest.

It was empty.

"Fan out, search every room. When your room is cleared, call it." Selene grabbed the large flash light from Victoria's offering hand. "If you find her, call it and try to bring her to the main hall. Remember, she's probably frightened, so don't shout or try to force her to come with you. We'll get her if she won't come."

The team bowed their heads and headed off to every section of the mansion. Doors opened and closed, lycans and vampires both searching for Nyssa. Their princess was missing and scared; they would find her again.

Michael and Selene headed to all the locations they took her to, starting with the medical areas. Despite his reassurances, Selene strapped her guns on; if someone was in the house, she wasn't going to be caught off-guard.

An hour later, no sign of Nyssa made Selene even more irritable and angry. "Search everywhere again," she barked into the headset. Several hurried responses came back as they retraced their steps. They headed back towards their wing, checking all the rooms on the way. Upon a fifth search of their quarters, they came up with nothing again.

Selene paced the floor, stomping her boots down as she tried to think. The house was massive; Nyssa could move easily from room to room while they searched without being caught. And if she got outside into the mountains...oh God, she could be lost in the mountains.

I can't do this. I can't lose her again. I promised her...I promised she would be safe. That I would protect her from them. Oh God, where is she! Where's Nyssa! She screamed in fear and frustration, unable to hold back her emotions any more.

In a flash, Michael was at her side, catching her as she crumbled to the floor. Her entire body shook as she broke down in tears. "Michael, I...I...I can't...not again, Please god not again!" She looked up at him, anguish-induced pain in her eyes.

"Please Michael, please," she begged through tears. He cradled her against his body, rocking and soothing her. He kissed her forehead firmly.

"We'll find her, Selene."

"Anything?"

"Nothing, sir," Thomas said, his voice shaky and worried. Samuel sighed, shaking his head as the crease in his brow deepened. He pressed the button on his headset and gave the command he hoped he wouldn't have to give. "Teams four, seven and eight to the mountain side. I want everyone else checking the perimeter." He clicked the microphone off and looked at Thomas. "Keep inside in case she's still in here. Keep an ear on all reports."

"Yes sir." Amelia came up from behind Thomas and Samuel followed her down the hall and out the back doors. Thomas sighed, rubbing his temple. It was going to be one of those nights. As he turned to go back through the main rooms, a movement outside the window caught his attention. He moved up to the massive glass panes, looking out into the back gardens. Everything was dark, the moon only half full tonight.

Another movement caught his eye and he jumped back. Quickly, he moved to the gun locker hidden in the wall panel by the entrance to the garden. What ever it was, it wasn't the princess. He pulled out a semi-automatic, slamming the mag in and switching on the search light mounted to the top of it.

Stepping outside, he moved through his standard training techniques, sweeping and checking each corner before moving out into the open. Following the cobblestone path through the flowers, he watched all the large bushes and shrubs for anymore movement. A wind came up, causing everything to move and he froze, watching for a sign of anything out of place. A flash of white caught his eye and he turned quickly, moving toward it swiftly with his gun raised.

He saw it again between to of the larger bushes. Licking his lips, he charged forward, splitting the bushes with the barrel of the gun and aiming. He nearly laughed as the light revealed it to be a small statue of a chubby Buddha. He lowered the gun, sighing with relief. Was that it? A Statue? He shook his head with a laugh. A bit on edge, are we?

He turned around and was thrown back. Before he knew it, a female vampire lunged at him, her teeth bared, saliva dripping from their sharpened tips. She pushed down on him, only to have Thomas plant a foot in her stomach and flip her across the garden. He stood up quickly enough to get his gun and fire several shots at her. She rose against the bullets, hissing loudly but moving forward at him to attack again.

Her inhuman shriek echoed through the walled sanctuary, followed by an grippingly loud roar. He watched as claws of some type punctured her shoulders and yanked her into the air. His hands shook so much, he nearly dropped his weapon. The vampire's scream was abruptly stopped, the sound of choking replacing it. The dead silence was torn once again as that roar returned.

The clouds over the moon parted and Thomas watched as the vampire tumbled from the sky to distant part of the garden. He bolted over to where she landed and halted in his tracks. She was there, her throat torn savagely as blood rushed out. But she wasn't alone. Three other women, all vampires, lay beneath her body. Two suffered the same fate, the one on the bottom had her entrails splayed across the stones instead.

The sound of wings caused his gaze to shoot up. A figure landed nearby in the cover of the trees. He raised his weapon again only to drop it to the ground when the figure emerged. A beautiful blue silk night gown spattered in blood covered Nyssa's snow white skin. She shook as she walked out onto the stone patio where he stood.

Thomas knelt quickly, "My lady," he said softly. He looked up when he heard a soft noise.

Nyssa sniffed up her sob, looking at her blood-coated hands with a combination of terror and disgust. Tears fell and she began to cry, hiding her face behind her wrists so not to get more blood on her face.

"No, no, its okay," Thomas said, dropping down in front of her. He took her hands in his, pausing as he jumped slightly. "I'm not going to hurt you," he continue, wiping away her tears as she continued to cry. Looking around, he realized the vampire on top wore a white cloth dress that remained mostly clean. He tore off a huge portion of it and began to wipe the blood off of Nyssa. "See, its fine," he soothed.

Thomas had seen Nyssa prior to this moment. When she sat with Selene in the security room, avoiding direct eye contact with everyone who approached them, but looking about curiously at everything. She gripped to her mother and father so tightly, he found it amazing they could breath. No one would touch her because she was so scared of everyone.

But right now she stood shaking like the last leaves of fall and he held out his arms to her. She watched him for a moment, tears stilling. A few moments elapsed then she fell into his embrace, crying into his shoulder. "Momma, daddy," she choked out.

"I'll get them right now." He patted her back softly before pushing the button to his headset. "I found the princess."

"Is she alright?" He recognized Michael's voice.

"Yeah, she's okay. She was out in the garden. You really need to get down here, sir."

Selene slammed the door open and sprinted across the garden. A few branched slapped at her, scraping her pale skin but she cared little for the pain. She came up to the patio and stopped. A quick look over of the four fallen females caused her to hiss softly. Thomas turned around and smiled gently. "See? Here's your mom."

Nyssa looked up from his shoulder and her face lit up. "Momma," she whimpered, tears forming again. Selene took the girl in her arms and held her in a crushing embrace. The pounding of her ancient heart began to slow as she rocked them to and fro.

"Shhhhh," Selene soothed her quietly, "I'm here, Nyssa." The child pressed her face into her shoulder and her crying began to cease. Selene looked up to Thomas, reaching out and grasping his shoulder. "Thank you."

He nodded before turning his attention to the person emerging from the darkened pathway. Michael came up quickly, rushing first to Nyssa and Selene. He kissed his daughter'shead gently, whispering to her and getting a soft nod before turning to the Lycan solider.

"What happened?"

"I saw something moving in the garden so I came out, thinking it was the princess. The one on the top came at me and gave me a shove before...," he paused, looking up nervously into Michael and Selene's faces.

Selene nodded, saying, "I'll get her cleaned up." Michael waited until the door was shut and they walked past the windows to continue with Thomas.

"Did she say anything?"

"No, just cried. I think she was too scared to speak for a while there."

Michael sighed. How did they get past all the security around here? Every lycan in the complex should have picked up on their scents. He knelt down, looking at the girl on top closely. She looked fairly young by mortal standards, but that gave away nothing in the immortal world. Looking over the wounds, he leaned in closer and saw something on her skin. Wiping a finger across her collarbone, he pulled his hand back to find a white residue on his fingers.

"Amelia," he asked into the microphone.

"Yeah, Michael?"

"I need you to meet me in the med lab. I need to do an autopsy on the four vampires."

"I'll be there in five." He stood up, pausing before looking Thomas over.

"You didn't change."

"No, sir."

"Then who killed them?" Thomas looked down uncomfortably and Michael's eyes widened. "Nyssa," he asked, stunned completely. The nod confirmed it and he felt almost out of breath. She's so small...even transformed, she wouldn't be that big. "How did she?"

"I don't know, but for someone so small, she's damn good at fighting. Especially with those wings."

Michael gaped, "What wings?"

Selene gently squeezed the sponge, letting the warm, soapy water run down Nyssa's back. Most of the blood came off when Selene stood her daughter in the shower first. Now she used the bath water to hopefully soothe her tiny child.

"Do you feel better, angel?" Nyssa remained silent, the same she had been the entire time. Selene leaned forward and kissed her temple, brushing her wet hair back. She went back to washing her back, trying to get the thin gray lines of dirt off of her. She rubbed a bit harder, the streaks unmoving on the pale skin. Stopping, she traced the lines with her fingertips, feeling distinct bumps beneath them.

Nyssa jumped slightly as she pressed down on the thickest line. "Nyssa, does that hurt you," she asked. She nodded softly, pulling her knees up to her chest and pressing her face into her knees. Selene scooted down the tub, looking directly at Nyssa. Lifting her chin, she looked into fragile blue eyes and asked gently, "Nyssa, did you change to fight them?"

"Yes," she whispered as tears began to fall again.

"Nyssa, there's nothing wrong if you change. Your dad changes when he fights; you're a hybrid like him." Selene wiped away the wayward tears on her daughter's face with a soft smile. "I just didn't know what happened to your back."

"They...they my wings," she said softly, reaching over her shoulder to touch the top of the grey lines. "They will sleep now." Selene forced the stunned look off her face and nodded.

"Okay. We'll let them sleep. And we'll get dressed." As she lifted Nyssa from the tub, a million thoughts ran through her head.

How did they get in?

What did they come for?

Why would they attack Nyssa?

Nyssa has wings?

A/N: i have recieved a few questions about what i'm using to be my basis for this story. i have seen Evolution (I read the full book three weeks prior to its release) and some of it is from there. i will give you more detail, i promise, but yes, Marcus is a hybrid, William was killed by Michael and Selene is Uber-Vamp (like walking in the sun). outside of that, i've got my own ideas. thank you all so very very much for your reviews and support.

i'm also posting for a editor. i got a post about my grammar and realized what my english teachers told me all K-12...i suck at grammar. if you are interested, post a note with your email address. thanks.

til' next chapter,

anthestria