I really took too long to get this chapter posted. I've been pretty distracted for a while.

Oh, well. Hope it was worth the wait.

To LunaEtSidera: Do you want Mina's situation to be that way? I'd be happy to keep making the implications. ;P And I'm glad you're really enjoying the story!

Enjoy!

I own nothing except my OCs.

Read, leave a review, but no flames allowed.

Chapter 20: The Face of the Corrupted

The next day after the news of another attack from the Woman in Red, most of the events that occurred within the house were nothing too special. However, due to the reports of specific people in Twilight Town being seduced and victimized by a strange woman who nobody has seen or even knew of her origins, it was pretty clear that the entire family was instructed to be extra cautious until any possible information can be found regarding the culprit behind the attacks.

However, the same thing cannot be said about Mary; while nobody else was too aware of it, she immediately poured over every book about the supernatural as well as the superstitions of vampires with the intent on gathering as much knowledge as possible until evening comes around. As soon as twilight crosses the sky, she intended on commencing with her investigations at the family tomb so she could find answers as to Caroline's fate and whether her death had something to do with the strange attacks. While she didn't want to fully believe that there are really vampires at work and wanted to turn a blind eye to such absurdities, she also knew that continued ignorance of the warning signs of evil might as well be a way to welcome the potential danger into dispatching them even faster. She had to know the truth; it was the only way she could possibly understand what she barely caught on, and confirm what she was able to learn from the professor's peculiar interests in the abnormal problems within the town. She had to confirm the truth, if only to be able to protect her surviving sisters from suffering the same fate as their elder sister did…

"If there is a truth to the problems we're going through, it'd be best if someone finds the evidence to confirm these farfetched notions," Mary quietly admitted to herself.

Still, if there was one thing Mary knew for sure, it's the fact that she would have to find a way to make plans for her investigation. There was the high possibility that if she told anyone about her intentions, they might either perceive her as a bit crazy or question what ulterior motives she has for her curiosities. On the other hand, not telling her family or loved ones was her only chance to find the proof of what the threat is and using what she could acquire to prepare for any potential dangers that might come their way.

To her, there was only one option: she would have to commence these investigations herself, preferably without involving her sisters unless it is absolutely necessary.

Meanwhile, during the remaining hours of evening, Professor Eraqus was making plans of his own for investigating the attacks in Twilight Town. After gathering the data of the incidents involving preying on the specific targets of the town, he had no doubts that there is a source behind this problem, and what caused the attacks might provide the necessary clues as to the real mastermind behind the horrors that have made their way into civilization. After all, he lived by the philosophy that there are answers even in the most unlikely of places.

Looking back on what he had witnessed and everything he had learned from the Chastain sisters, there was no doubt in the professor's mind that there are invasive parasites lurking among the regular folk and there's a connection between them. After seeing Xemnas at Kairi and Xion's home and watching how he and his men were acting around the four sisters, he had a suspicion that there was something they wanted from them for one reason or another; plus, back when he and his apprentices investigated the site of the crash, another one of those peculiar strangers tried to destroy any evidence of the sisters' involvement with them and even perceived them as a threat to their power. Why was that? Clearly something the sisters saw or did would spark such a strong, deadly perception; otherwise he wouldn't have gotten himself involved in these personal matters in the first place.

Perhaps he should've asked Mary about it earlier, but after what happened to Caroline and the attacks that occurred after her death, he didn't find the chance since he wasn't too sure as to where to continue his research. But now that there's a new problem presented in town, he knew that he had to delve into the matter immediately before anything worse could happen.

To be on the safe side, Eraqus thought it would be best if he investigated the family tomb and inspected Caroline so he could confirm what really became of her after she had been killed. If what he found on her days before confirms his suspicions, then that means he had to take action and put a stop one of the damages done to the family's lives. But first, he would have to speak with Terra about the matter of inspecting their deceased relative; at the same time, he would have to be very careful as to how to approach the matter without explicitly exposing what his actual intentions are until the right moment.

"But first, I'd best come prepared for the worst," the professor instructed himself.

Night was starting to completely cover the sky by the time Mary had finished dressing for her travel to the cemetery…alone. Although she was able to successfully hide her intentions from the rest of her family thus far, she knew that someone might get suspicious later on and she will have to answer for her actions. But this was something she wanted to do because her main objective is to search for the answers to unanswered questions.

Without anyone watching her movements, Mary was able to succeed in slipping out of the house and catches a carriage ride by herself; all she had to do was tell the driver that she wanted to visit the graveyard before it got too dark, and she was able to get moving in no time at all.

But the ride there gave her a few minutes to contemplate all that she was experiencing, making her dread what she might possibly find once she reaches the cemetery and took a look inside the family tomb; or rather, what she would find within Caroline's casket which she was placed in after her inspection and funeral.

If I find trails of blood like we did back in Hollow Bastion or any indications of someone's blood on Caroline's lips, then that means she might've become one of those monsters from those old stories, Mary thought to herself. Though, if that's the case, I dread to think of what changes there might be on our sister's characters…most likely fitting who she used to be in life.

With this in mind, she knew that no matter what she finds in the tomb, Mary will know for sure that her fears and her nightmares would become reality of she saw the real deal right before her eyes.

Something was a bit out of place.

That was something Mina couldn't help but notice even after night has almost completely stretched across the sky, more so because she hadn't seen Mary nearly all day. Though her sister and cousin had informed her that she had been studying in the library almost all day whilst hardly taking any breaks, she couldn't help wondering what her older sister was up to ever since the news of the Woman in Red making an appearance after Caroline's funeral.

Though, that wasn't the only thing on her mind. Ever since reading the old journal she took from Mary's bedroom and having a strange vision about Hellene and her lover before losing consciousness, she couldn't help questioning why she was the one witnessing these oddities rather than the rest of her family. The only other time she experienced a ghostly vision was back in Hollow Bastion when she was investigating the art studio along with Jane, and she thought it was a trick of the eyes at that moment; it made her question what the visions could mean and why only she was seeing these apparitions that were apparently telling about a person's past life from long ago…

Her thoughts were interrupted when Jane suddenly came to her bedroom to speak with her. It was easy to tell that she had just discovered something uncanny within the house.

"Mina, did you see Mary this evening? I haven't been able to find her anywhere," Jane asked her, worry evident in her voice.

Mina shook her head. "No, I haven't seen her all day. The last time I heard, you and Terra told me about her fixations in the library. I've heard nothing ever since then."

The fear and concerns on Jane's face spoke volumes as to what was on her mind. It was pretty clear that she felt she was missing something ever since Caroline's funeral, but she couldn't put her finger as to what it was that was completely unnatural. If that's the case, then what were they missing?

Not long after Jane came to see her, Terra arrived at her bedroom, but it was pretty clear that he was a bit on edge since Mary's whereabouts have not been known.

"Oh, I guess Mary's not upstairs either," he guessed.

"No, she isn't. Mina hasn't seen her either," Jane replied worriedly.

Mina couldn't help asking what was up. "If Mary is nowhere in the house, where do you suppose she could've gone?"

Before either of them could answer her question, the sound of the door knocking caught their attention and made all three of them head downstairs and find out who's come to visit them at this hour. Terra answered the door to find Professor Eraqus and his students not far behind them, but it seems that what bags they're carrying on them has strong implications about professional business, but not what the sisters were thinking entirely.

"Pardon me, but am I interrupting anything, Dr. Lander?" the professor asked out of curiosity.

"No, not really, but we have a problem at the moment," Terra replied, "Mary is nowhere in the house, and we don't know where she might've gone."

That caught Eraqus's attention, making his face tense. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. Cousin Terra and I have already searched the house for her since this evening, and we couldn't find her anywhere," Jane answered on their cousin's behalf, "The last time we knew of her location, she was studying every book in the library she could find. What it was she was looking into, we didn't really know, and she didn't even bother telling us what she was researching all day."

Ventus and Aqua looked at each other with worried frowns on their faces, most likely dreading what might've going on with Mary that nobody else was aware of. Mina wasn't sure what was going on, but she was certain that with what they knew, chances are someone's going to want to know what went on and whether or not there are any clues as to the whereabouts of the elusive Mary Chastain.

"May we come in? There is something I would like to discuss about, and I would like to find out what it is that Mary was doing before she disappeared from the house," Eraqus requested politely, bent on finding the truth.

Willingly, Terra gestured them to come inside so they could talk more openly without anyone watching or listening to them from anywhere else. As soon as everyone was in the main room of the house, the professor didn't even try to waste any words and delved into the heart of the matter.

"Now, when you say that Mary is nowhere to be found, do you mean to imply that you haven't the slightest idea where she might've gone?" Eraqus asked, aiming for the truth.

"We hadn't even heard from her all day, ever since the news of the third attack in Twilight Town," Mina replied first, "The most I knew was that she holed herself in the library, and that she has been obsessively reading over books on superstitions and folklores from the bygone medieval ages."

"Now that I think back on it, she has been displaying rather unusual behaviors as of late," Terra agreed, looking back at the funeral. "After we had buried Caroline in the family tomb, Mary was always staring at the tomb as though she were expecting something to happen while we aren't looking, or to hear someone cry out for help. Why that is, I am not sure. To make matters more confusing, she has been researching on the lore of vampires and the like for several days. I've never seen her like that before."

After listening to the oddities that the family had noticed on their beloved relative, Eraqus had a strong suspicion that Mary might've caught on to something without anyone else knowing about it. But why would she not let anyone know about it unless she meant to investigate this herself? For that matter, why didn't she ask her cousin's permission to investigate the tomb when she had the opportunity? In any case, now's the best time to see if Terra could help him before anything worse happens tonight; the lives of the town and the family depends on it, and this was his only chance to shed some light as to what the true danger to civilization is.

"In that case, Terra, I was hoping to ask your permission to enter the Chastain tomb and inspect Caroline," the professor requested.

Jane grew puzzled at this. "What inspection did you want to make on Caroline, Professor? You know that she is dead."

"Is there something the doctor at the morgue missed during inspection?" Mina added, curious about the situation.

Terra, hearing this from his younger cousins, couldn't help wondering what was up. "Perhaps you could explain to me what it is you're intending on investigating in the tomb, Professor, and why you would want to inspect Caroline's body after the doctor in the morgue had already done that days before."

"I will not deny that Dr. Snow put in much effort with uncovering what caused Caroline's demise, but I would like to believe that there is more to this than we think. Unless I search the tomb and examine her personally, I fear that the cause of death that was inflicted with Caroline might have a serious effect on the rest of the town if left unchecked," Professor Eraqus explained, but not telling the real reason behind his intents. "All the same, if I tried to explain what is going on from the very beginning, you probably wouldn't be able to understand me or believe me, for that matter. You'd best be able to understand if you witnessed it all for yourself. Whether or not you'll be willing to accept what truth you'll find afterwards is a decision I'll leave up to you."

"Though, given that Mary's already daring to make her own search, it'd probably be better if we hurry on our way at once before anything happens to her," Aqua emphasized. "If we're fortunate, then we might be able to rescue her before anything worse could be done to her."

"And I'll be honest, if I had any other relatives that could be endangered, I'd dread the worst of the possible scenarios," Ventus agreed.

That settled it for Terra, despite his persistent skepticism; as much as he didn't want to believe that there was more to the trouble in Twilight Town than he already knew, he couldn't help feeling that the professor might know more about the situation than he initially thought. Perhaps it would be best if he joined in on the investigation; as the local doctor, he knew it would be very disastrous if any medical discovery was not properly done, it would have very deadly and devastating consequences on his loved ones and everyone in his hometown.

"Alright, then, I'll accompany you to the cemetery. But first, I'll need to speak with Jane and Mina about this and make sure they let no one into the house while we're away," Terra agreed despite his uncertainty.

Staring ahead at the Chastain tomb, Mary couldn't believe her luck. When she arrived at the cemetery, she was lucky enough to catch the caretaker of the morbid yard and ask for a spare key so she could enter the tomb. Granted, the only explanation was that she wanted to pay her respects to her ancestors for a moment, but only she knew that it was a lie; she wanted to find out whether Caroline had changed or not, and the only way she'd know is if she looked for herself.

When she did unlock the door and step inside, though, she quickly caught the scent of death lingering around the dark, dreary mausoleum and the rustle of the long-withered flora scattered across the vast chambers. But then, she quickly caught the faint smell of fresh blood in the air, alerting her that her suspicions are on the verge of confirmation. Not wasting any more time, Mary cautiously treaded through the chambers as she searched for where her eldest sister's casket was placed when the funeral took place, knowing that since she had just recently been rested there it would have to be mostly intact.

After searching through casket after casket, Mary was able to locate the stone container where Caroline's coffin had been laid in; but – to her unnerving unease – she found that there was undoubtedly something out of place about what she saw before her. Besides the fact that the casket had thin trails of blood on one side of the woodwork, it was noticed that there were drops of blood trailing away from the very place and leading in and out of the tomb. Also, the flowers within the surrounding area appeared to have started to wilt without any possible explanation.

"That could only mean one thing," Mary said to herself.

Carefully, she approached the coffin and slowly opened it, dreading the notion of making her discovery right off the bat and finding her sister in it. But when she did open it fully, she found that the casket was empty! Though she did spot more bloodstains across the edges of the coffin as well as inside the casket itself, she was shocked to find that her sister's body was not in its place; that made her fear that what she had learned in the library was true, and that her sister had become what she dreaded most. But if that was the case, then that could only mean…

"Mary? What do you think you're doing here?"

Jolting in surprise from the eerily familiar voice behind her, Mary turned around to find – much to her greatest shock – her older sister, Caroline, standing there before her. However, despite the shock she experienced, she quickly realized that there was something completely wrong about the woman she had once called her sister. Her funerary gown, already red enough as it was, had dark splotches in several places where blood likely spilled; what was once a reasonably light skin was as deathly pale as the grim reaper's skeletal bones, and the cold, dark blue eyes she used to know were now bright red and burning hellishly directly at her. If anything, Mary felt that she wasn't facing the sister she used to know and try to keep under control, but a fiendish mockery of the sister who was once part of her life.

"Caroline…You're not Caroline, are you? What did you turn into?" Mary wanted to know.

"I still don't understand why you would want to inspect Caroline's corpse, Professor. I know how brilliant you are in researching obscure ailments and the like, but what does all that happened here in Twilight Town have to do with Caroline?" Terra couldn't help questioning after the party arrived at the cemetery.

"There is much to be learned, even from the oldest of superstitions from the bygone ages, in the forgotten links of the past," Eraqus replied cryptically, "Sometimes what can be learned from the past can help us understand what affects us in the present."

"It does make me wonder why many people nowadays would either forget about or ignore the old superstitions and lore of ages past," Ventus admitted.

By the time they had arrived at the cemetery, night had fully crossed into the sky, covering the entire area with the quiet darkness with little to no other sound present within the environment and no one to bother the mysterious serenity. Under the cover of night, the vicinity of the cemetery gave off an unsettling morbidity that would've been found in the oldest of Gothic tales, the tombstones worn and crumbled away by age with moss or vines covering over what would've been guardians of the souls long passed. The grand mausoleums and tombs of distinguished families were no different from the average monuments, more so with the overbearing indications of age staining the dignity of many of the stone houses for the many lineages that existed within Twilight Town and the many forms of nature either blanketing or tearing apart what was once so elegant and grand all those years ago. One could make the argument that the enigmatic atmosphere of the graveyard could very well warn whomsoever intrudes the earthly underworld should proceed with caution lest they summon the wrath of the unknown protectors of the buried and the fallen.

Terra himself couldn't help but feel uncomfortable being out in this isolated world at this period of time, what with the feeling that he was invading a sacred territory of its own. It certainly didn't help that he had to remember he was coming along to uncover what the professor was intending on investigating as well as locate his cousin Mary, and for reasons that were rather beyond his knowledge as a professional doctor.

"Assuming we do locate the family tomb and search inside for Caroline, what do you suppose we might find inside?" Aqua had to ask.

"That is something we will have to find out once we get there," the professor answered, keeping his handbag ready for use. "We shall see what the truth is as soon as we have found the source of the mystery only we can comprehend against the minds of the ignorant."

But then, when everyone least expected it after trekking cautiously through the silent yard, the party got their greatest surprise when they found that the Chastain tomb's door had been left open and could hear…something…going on within the tomb itself. It sounded like two women talking, one voice belong to Mary and the other belonging to…Caroline? It sounded like Caroline, as far as Terra was concerned. But how could that be? She had just died recently! But it was her voice, no doubt, but there was nothing human or harmless about the predatory tone given out into the stale air surrounding the area.

Unexpectedly, Professor Eraqus opened his bag and pulled out at least four silver crucifixes and handed them out to each companion with strong purpose in his actions.

"Everyone, keep these close to you. The cross will protect you and repel what evil lies within this place, which you shall see soon enough," Eraqus warned them as he started to move ahead of them, "There is no doubt that Mary is in there, but she has brought herself into danger without knowing the consequences. Hurry, all of you! We mustn't waste any precious time, unless we wish to allow a death sentence to pass on another innocent soul!"

All of a sudden, the professor began running toward the tomb with his crucifix held out front in self-defense; Terra, not wanting to dawdle, quickly followed not far behind him, followed by Ventus and Aqua with their means of protection kept close to their person at all times. It was clear at this point that all the questions are about to be answered, but the truth will be uglier than the mystery in itself…

"Mary, what are you staring at? You don't recognize your own flesh and blood, your own sister?" Caroline purred hungrily, "You came all the way here to see me, didn't you?"

But Mary had something to say about it. "You say that you are my sister, but the Caroline I know of would never literally feast on the blood of innocent men who have yet to find love. What changed you into this…this animal that wears the mask of what I once called 'sister' before her death? What turned you into this abomination?"

Mary could easily see that Caroline – for simplicity's sake, she chose to call the thing before her Caroline because it bore her shape – was noticing her increasingly distrusting demeanor, and was contemplating whether or not make an advance on her since she was standing there unarmed and vulnerable. But she refused to let her changed sister see her dread creeping through her skin, for she knew that the slightest revealing of weakness would make the fiend assume that she was recklessly looking for death.

"I know who passed this…intoxicating feeling to me. Did it ever cross your mind? The man who gave it to me was Xaldin, that man who we had met in Hollow Bastion," Caroline said without care of the tension in the air. "He wanted to take me as his own, but when I refused, he chose to make me drown in a lust different from what I used to know. But what would you know? You left me in his hands, and look what that brought me: a new life, different from what I desired before." She paused for a moment. "But what difference does it make? You're here, and I'm here. I've yet to sate my hunger. Maybe you could satisfy me, since you've gone through a lot of trouble to come and see me…"

The instant Caroline said these words, Mary was finally able to make one of the connections that she had sought since the tragedy: all four of them had discovered a small portion of the secrets of Hollow Bastion, and each of the members of the castle have targeted one of them for revenge. On Caroline's part, she was pursued by Xaldin, but her rejecting his advances made him despise her refusal and sparked his pursuit of vengeance. And now, with Caroline's transformation, it was clear that this revenge done on their sister was just the tip of the dangerous iceberg, one that might as well be something more dangerous than she could imagine.

But she had other problems to worry about: now that she noticed the warning signs of what her sister had become, Mary knew that she was in danger and had to escape right away. But the serious issue is that Caroline is blocking her only way out of the tomb, which meant that at any moment, the monster that was her sister will make her advance against her and most likely kill her off…or much worse than that.

Really, she would've been considered done for when she suddenly found Caroline had been grabbed from behind and pulled away forcefully. What a surprise for her to see that her cousin had arrived at the scene to intervene against her changed sister!

"Leave her alone, Caroline!" Terra demanded as he forced Caroline away.

After having a stumble from the unexpected intervention, Caroline growled angrily at Terra and was about to lunge out at him instead; but at the right moment, Eraqus got in front and held his crucifix out towards her. The instant she saw the sacred object threatening her power, Caroline recoiled in terror and hissed wildly in anger. Then, Ventus and Aqua joined in and helped their mentor force the transformed woman back into her casket until her ferocity and animalistic behavior had been subsided and ultimately silenced into her deathlike slumber.

When it was over, Mary was able to recover and hurried over to the casket to look upon her sister to examine what she had seen without the fear of retaliation from the monster she saw not too long earlier. It revolted her to know that her sister had become the very thing she had come to fear ever since the nightmares of what went on at the last place she wanted to look back on, and that the creature that manifested in the form of her older sister had just begun to exist within the civilized world.

Terra certainly could notice her disgust right away and understood how she was feeling upon looking at Caroline in the casket. But even so, it did bother him that he wasn't too aware of the situation at hand.

"Was this what you were really looking into all this time?" Terra had to ask, "Why didn't you want to tell us about any of your concerns? It would've been for the best if you had let us know what it is you were thinking about."

Mary was quiet on it before she gave her answer. "I wasn't too sure who would believe me regarding my thoughts on the troubles occurring in town, and I honestly did not want to drag my sisters into the shadows again after what happened at Hollow Bastion. I did tell the professor my fears and thoughts days before, but even then, I still wasn't too sure what we were dealing with, so that's why I had to delve into as much research as I could until the truth could be confirmed directly."

Now that was something Terra was able to understand to an extent; since he worked in the medical profession and if something came along that was very strange and unnerving to the average physician, he would want to make an effort to investigate what it is he was dealing with before jumping to conclusions. But he never expecting to see something as horrifying as a close family member changed into something monstrous…

"So, Professor, is this person in the casket really Caroline?" Ventus asked suddenly, peering into the coffin.

Eraqus looked inside as he handled his bag on the edge of the coffin. "It is undoubtedly Caroline, and yet it is not Caroline. This thing you see lying in this casket is merely a mockery of the woman we had known, nothing more than a fiendish beast bearing her likeness with the single goal of feeding on the fresh blood of living beings."

Mary looked up. "Then if Caroline, as she is now, had continued to do her dirty deed…"

"Had your sister continued to perform her vampiric deeds on more innocent people over a period of time, she would've spread the vile influence until whoever has been victimized by her becomes what she is now," the professor explained, "This poison that the vampire bears can spread quickly if left unchecked, until before long, more victims will become foul things of the night. That is why we must put an end to the undead creature that rests here before her work can start to spread."

As the professor was telling them this, Mary noticed that he was pulling out a few sharp silver stakes as well as a small hammer and bundles of wild garlic flowers; it surprised her to know that such a man was carrying rather dangerous tools and oddly scented herbs on hand, considering she had last heard he was a researcher in obscure illnesses. So why would a professional man have such items on hand?

"What are you going to do with those?" Mary asked.

Eraqus looked at her, as though he didn't expect a question like that. "In order to save your sister's soul, drastic measures must be taken. To purge her of the evil that has corrupted her and made her undead, a single stake must be pierced into the heart of this living dead – through this, only then will she remain dead. If necessary, if only to be extra cautious, she must also be beheaded and her casket purified with wild garlic."

Terra was aghast at this. "Heavens, no! Is there no other way to cure her?"

"No, Terra, there is no other way. If we fail here, then it is not a matter of life and death, but that we may become foul things of the night as Caroline already has," Professor Eraqus insisted, "There is wild work to be done, Mary, Terra. If you wish to save her, then it must be done."

That was something that neither of them were willing to make an argument on; after what Mary has seen with Caroline's corrupted nature and what Terra had to witness afterwards, it was pretty clear that what was transpiring now was real and that there was no point in arguing with the professor now that what was a dark fantasy is realized as reality. All that could be done now is to just follow the professor's orders and help purify what was once their loved one before any more damage can be done against the town.

"What do we need to do?" Mary asked.

"Only a moment's courage is needed, and the deed is done. One person has to drive the stake into the vampire's heart," the professor instructed, "You must not waver, you must not falter. As soon as the deed has been performed, only then will Caroline be truly free of her torment in bloodlust."

Mary knew what this meant: in order to save Caroline from herself and what harm she could do if left to her own devices, someone had to – in a manner of speaking – kill the monster that has tainted her flesh and soul. As much as she hated the way her sister used to behave and pursue selfish pleasures without thinking of others in the past, she couldn't deny that she hated the fact that she had lost her chance at a different life due to evil powers beyond her control. Caroline had her chance to live a better life than she did in their old hometown, and that was lost instantly because of whatever – or whoever – had left her in this wretched, sorry state. It was only fair that someone in the family should be responsible for ending her misery.

Truth be told, it would've been logical to allow the professionals to do the job; but since this was her family that is the target for the worst suffering ever to be…

"I'll do it," Mary decided bluntly.

Everyone suddenly turned their heads to Mary as though she had completely lost her mind, but she was not daunted by their shock in the slightest.

"Uh…Miss Chastain? Did you hit your head while you were in the tomb?" Ventus asked worriedly.

"Are you sure you want to do that?" Aqua questioned, doubting what was hearing.

"I don't care what all of you might think about this, but Caroline was my sister. This is my family that got mixed up in all of this, so someone has to take responsibility for the damage that has been done!" Mary insisted stubbornly, "I never wanted my sisters to be victims of those people who have stalked us, but after what has happened, I'd rather be the one who gets her hands dirty throughout the rest of this hell until those monsters who have stalked us are out of our lives."

A startling silence filled the whole tomb as the professor looked into Mary's hardened gaze, analyzing the extent of the determination within the young woman who has seen only a fraction of the hell that lurked within the forgotten halls of the oldest of eras. But the moment her hands tightened around the casket's edges and her face gave off an unyielding desire to right the wrong that had been done to her and to her entire family, it became clear that there was no way to deter her from delving into matters that the average civilized human being couldn't possibly be able to comprehend if given the chance.

Then, the professor gave her a word of warning just to be cautious. "I only wish to warn you, Mary, that if you partake in this act and insist of joining the battle against evil, your life will never be the same for years to come."

But Mary was adamant. "I'll deal with it. Let me do this."

Eraqus nodded. "Very well, then…If your mind is that adamant, then you will need guidance on how best to do the work that must be done." He gestured Mary to come over and proceeded to give her the instructions on how to perform the purification. "In order to destroy the demon taking form of your sister, you must take the stake in your hand and place it over where the heart would be. Once you're ready, use the hammer and strike three times until the fiend before you has ceased to feel the pain. After that, Caroline will no longer be a monster, and she will no longer harm any more lives as one of the blood drinkers."

Despite her unease from performing such a violent feat and the fact that she was about to wield weapons meant for forces that she never thought she'd have to face for a lifetime. But as she took the tools into her hands and prepared to do what must be done to save her older sister from the monster she had become due to forces beyond their wildest imagination, Mary looked upon the face of Caroline one last time to remind her that she mustn't falter for the sake of her family's safety. Against her shaking hands, she used all of her might to pound the hammer onto the stake; piercing into Caroline's chest deep enough to cause the wretched fiend to writhe in extreme pain for several minutes until it gradually disappeared into silence.

When it was over, everyone looked inside one last time to find that Caroline was no longer the bloodthirsty animal they had seen earlier; instead, her face bore a peaceful, solemn face that showed no suffering. For Mary, she felt a small relief at the knowledge that her sister will no longer be able to inflict any harm on humanity, freed from the curse that had been placed on her with no remorse; of course, that meant that the nightmare against the rest of the family was far from over.

Terra, after the ordeal that happened, examined Caroline's body to find no traces of the vampiric indications; he, too, felt some relief with the knowledge that those who were attacked by her would be saved from certain death – and most likely un-death – and be able to resume their ordinary lives after a period of time.

"To think that Caroline became that…thing…a vampire with no pity for mankind," Terra sighed sadly, "At the very least, she will no longer do any more harm now that she has been purged of the curse she was given."

"That is true. But this horror that we've encountered is just the beginning, and I fear that once it is discovered by whomsoever inflicted her with the vampire's curse, there will be more dangers to come," the professor warned. He then turned to Mary and placed his hand on her shoulder in reassurance. "You had to perform a difficult task in order to save your elder sister's soul, but rest assured that she is now freed from the vile influence that took hold of her body. Now the next things we need to do is track down the source of the cursed epidemic and eliminate it before any more damage can be done. To do this, we will need all the information we can get from you and your surviving sisters, Miss Mary."

Mary nodded. "I couldn't agree more on that. We'd best head home at once and call my sisters together, just to be sure that they are also in the know of the situation. In the meantime, though, I'd say that we'd better see if we can arrange any extra precautions should the need arise."

"That's right. Jane and Mina are still in the dark about the matter," Ventus agreed on it. "The more people who know, the better prepared we might be."

"If that's the case, then we'd best be off," Aqua added as she started to leave, "before any more trouble comes our way too soon."

On their way out, though, Mary couldn't help having a negative vibe sending chills down her spine; it was almost as though she sensed that there were eyes lurking around somewhere within the cemetery. Where this eerie sensation was coming from, she didn't have any idea, but she was quite certain that whoever was watching must've had an awareness of what happened inside the Chastain tomb, and this awareness was negative on all accounts. All she could do was mentally pray that it wasn't one of those strangers who have been hunting her and her family down…

Outside the cemetery, however, Saix and Xaldin stood a distance away from the gates into the abandoned grounds, watching the intruders leaving the area for the town. Needless to say, Xaldin had a rather bitter frown to his face while Saix looked on with icy anger when he suspected something happened that completely ruined their efforts to sabotage one family.

"Damn it…! And I went through a lot of trouble to sate my revenge, only to have someone realize what happened to Caroline and put a stop to the creation I've brought forth," Xaldin growled, "I suppose you weren't jesting when you mentioned a nosy old professor poking his nose where he shouldn't be, but now that Mary has discovered more about us and what we are, that only means we are in greater danger."

"That may be so, but it will take a while for them to return back home with night still around and the overabundance of caution present with the environment," Saix reminded him, "With them distracted, it has allowed the master to make use of that invitation Dr. Lander gave to Xemnas a few days ago. The master, along with Marluxia, should be able to reach the residence before they could ever do that. That should allow Lord Xemnas enough time to lure in Mina, while Marluxia has his way with Jane as he intended previously. Unless something happens to one of our own directly, we are still able to continue with our original objective without too much hassle."

That was when Xaldin understood where Saix was going with it: even if Caroline's corruption had been purged and the undead influence was gone, that wasn't giving them too many problems at the moment.

"I see…But if it's all the same to you, it'd be best if we follow them just to be sure one of those foolish interlopers doesn't do anything to sabotage us greatly," he agreed indignantly.