The Sarafan made no secret of Princess Alicia's arrest. It was publicly announced within the hour that the Ottmar family had renounced the traitor and all those involved in her plot against the 'welfare of the state' would be hunted down and executed. Soldiers marched out of the royal keep shortly after the proclamation of a grand inquisition. Marching through the streets of their own city they garrison forces went from house to house, shop to shop; rooting the people out of their homes and forcing them into the streets to huddle together in fear.

"We are the Sarafan!" A captain declared to them. "We are rulers and you are peasants. You will obey our word or die." To show the crowd he was not bluffing, several impaling spikes were ejected in full view of those assembled. "Any thoughts of heretical rebellion will now be extinguished." The captain gestured with a flick of his head to several up front and the soldiers moved forward, pulling several children from the arms of their parents.

As the five and six year olds were brought up towards the spikes, soldiers began setting fire to marked business and shops. The flames spread up through the buildings quickly, windows bursting with torrents of fire and burning timbers collapsing to the ground.

"Please NO!" A mother screamed as she was hurled back by several Sarafan as her daughter was dragged forwards the spikes and lifted to be impaled.

"For the love of god, she's only a child!" An elderly shopkeeper cried out.

"The only love god has is for the Sarafan." The captain replied without even looking at him.

Two arrows flew out of the air and impaled themselves through the skulls of the soldiers that held the children. The metal barbs burst out through the foreheads in a small explosion of bone and brain.

"Killing children?" A voice out of the night demanded. "Does your order's bloodlust know no end?"

"Up there!" one of the solders shouted and the captain stared up.

Standing upon the rooftops, a large iron war hammer held like a gentlemen's cane was the Seroli Master-Smith, Ramak. Maintaining human form he stood there half eclipsing by the light of the full moon in fine burgundy linens and shirt with iron plates over his shoulders and chest for armour. Eyes alight with a soft golden glow.

"People of Willlendorf, hear me." He shouted, his voice carrying over the rooftops. "We are the Seroli-Cabal alliance." Along the rooftops on either side of Ramak rose dozens of vampire archers; their bows already drawn back with the arrows ready to let fly. "We are the vampires and wolves you have come to fear but those that claim to protect you would murder helpless children.

They fear you so they punish you for no reason to keep you docile. They fear you because you outnumber them. Their armies are absent, their power lessened. Join us, strike now and for the first time in history let humanity be free from Sarafan domination!"

"The rebel sinners!" The captain shouted. "Kill them all!"

"No!" One of the Merchant Guild's agents who had cleverly infiltrated the crowd declared and others turned to stare at him in wonder for his defiance. "The Cabal are right. Vampires be damned, it's the Sarafan who are the real enemies of mankind!"

The first to stand up in defiance was an old man, a shriveled sixty year old with grey hair and a frail body.

"Stand down old beggar." The captain told him, drawing his own blade from the sheath as his side.

"My brother severed in your army but you people killed him because he refused to do some of the horrible things you ordered him to." The old man stated. "And now when you stand ready to massacre innocent children I see why. I can't be silent anymore."

"I'm telling you to get back in line!"

"And I'm ignoring you." Amazed at the man's sheer nerve the captain's eyes widened in impotent fury. A knight moved to cut the man down but before he could a woman in the crowd stepped forward. Followed by a small boy, and then a well built blacksmith and another three woman, several retired militia men and a bard armed only with a dagger.

"You dare oppose the Sarafan?" The captain demanded.

"Enough is enough." The old man continued. "I don't care if the words come from the Cabal. We're better off at the mercy of Kain himself than you people."

In the end it wasn't the Cabal and the Seroli's shadowy alliance that showed the people who the Sarafan really where. It was their order's own lust for brutality, their zealous need for control that spelt their own demise.

For all their faults the humans had a fantastic hidden strength. Once united in a common interest they became an unstoppable force capable of running over any opposition placed in their way. It was this strength the Sarafan had exploited time and time again from the day they were founded, using the vampires as scapegoats to rally the people under their banner.

This time however the tables were turned. The sword the Sarafan hand had wielded for so long was now turned against them and they were about to feel its strike.

"From one age to another, the Sarafan have oppressed the world of men and what did men get in return? Did they receive the protection they were promised?" Ramak asked from above. "No! The bloodletting grew worse and the people were too afraid to speak up." He branching his hammer with both hands and held it high. "I call upon you all, every man woman and child to see the Sarafan for they really are.

Bullies we've been letting run our lives for eons. Well not anymore!"

"Kill that bastard!" The captain shouted. A Sarafan archer raised his bow, but was shot down instantly by several arrows from the vampires.

"Attack!" Ramak yelled, leaping off the edge of the roof tiles swinging his war hammer above his head.

-

"It's a rebellion, the market district has been completely overrun!"

"What?"

"Impossible!"

"The peasants have taken to the streets. They're renouncing the order."

"That's heresy!"

"Tell them that. They've overtaken the distinct completely, whatever garrison force got in that mob's way was almost literally trampled on."

With the garrison forces now committing themselves to taking out the rebellion peasantry, the forces defending the royal palace and the order fortress were weakened sufficiently enough for Ewoden and Obelisk to infiltrate the island in the middle of the city. According to the announcement by the order Alica had been taken to their securest dungeon for 'questioning'. From personally experience, Ewoden knew that when the Sarafan said 'questioning', they meant interrogation through intimidation and when they felt like it; outright torture.

"If only we'd gotten to her in time." He growled to himself.

"Spilt milk." Obelisk stated overhearing him. "If we can get her out of her then it might not all be for nothing."

The need for stealth now no longer a factor the two of them bulled their way through the weakened defensive line the Sarafan had erected across the bridge connecting the island to the mainland.

Axes Havoc and Malice in his hand Ewoden cut down several ordinary class soldiers that charged him while Obelisk tackled a Glyph knight to stop him drawing his massive sword. After a short power struggle Obelisk slammed the knight up against a wall breaking the man's spine.

The remaining soldiers, their numbers dwindling, retreated back behind the checkpoint door and closed the massive wooden gates.

"Damn clouds." Obelisk spat, a mixture of saliva and blood landing on the ground. "If only I could see the full moon, then we could get through her with ease."

"Well just have to make do." Ewoden replied; drawing runes in the air with two fingers and unleashing a fireball spell. The massive wooden door was set ablaze, burning through unlike it blackened. All it took was a powerful ram from Obelisk to send it toppling over.

Several archers were waiting for them, bow strings already drawn back and arrows being let loose. Ewoden arched his fingers, calling into place a barrier spell Janos had taught him. The arrows bounced off some invisible object in mid air, leaving Obelisk a clear shot. He drew a massive sword blade and charged, slicing one half clean in half before running another three through.

"It's just two men, kill them!" Someone up on the battlements shouted as more archers ran out.

"In through the front gates, hurry!" Ewoden called, racing for the still open towering door that lead into the interior of the fortress with Obelisk close behind them, a rain of silver arrows attempting to strike them.

The Sarafan had made the mistake of attempting to control the peasants through intimidation and now it was costing them. Their forces here in the fortress were far too sparse to defend the structure, even against two men. Several times as they battled their way up through the stronghold they had narrow escapes and Ewoden had to rely a lot more on his magic than he was used but eventually the two of them carved their way through into the inner centre of the Sarafan's fort.

This was the chamber Ewoden had witness Malek being revived in, a round room with a door on the far side from the only they entered by. Waiting for them directly in the centre was a solitary figure. A tanned skin man with long hair tied back by a bandana.

Ewoden recognized him.

"Kal?" He asked, lowering his axes. This was the Seroli agent who had helped him escape from his place before.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Obelisk demanded. "Why aren't you helping master Ramak fight?"

"There's no need." Kal replied quite calmly. "Even as we speak, a regiment of trained Sarafan mages is closing in on the peasants from behind. They'll take the citizenry by surprise and half of their number will be dead before they have a chance to know what hit them.

The Sarafan garrison will have no problems exterminating them after that."

"You…." Obelisk started, eyes growing wide and the side of his mouth twitching. "You gave them our secrets! You let them know." He jabbed his sword point at Kal. "You're the traitor Master Ramak was looking for!"

Kal managed a smile.

"I couldn't have done it alone." He stated. "If it wasn't for Ewoden here, but wouldn't have known about the Cabal's plans in the first place." Ewoden staggered back looking stunned.

"You remember that concoction I gave you, to help quiet your stomach after the first transformation you had into the form of the wolf?" He asked. Ewoden maintained a stern expression. "Well, what I didn't tell you was that mixed in amongst the alcohol was a specially brewed potion created by the Sarafan's best alchemists.

It created a link between one of their mages to yourself. For a short while he was able to see all that you could, hear all that you could." Kal smiled sadistically. ""You were our inside man Ewoden." Kal stated. "Through you, the order learned all about the rebellion and the Princess' betrayal."

"How dare you speak about betrayal!" Obelisk snarled, raging fury clear in every muscle twitch that occurred in his face. "You betrayed your own kind!"

"I like gold." Kal replied with a sneer. "That's all there is to it." Growled and barring his hands Obelisk drew his sword.

"I swear I'll kill you for this you bastard!

Kal laughed and clicked his fingers on both hands, two daggers flying out his sleeves and the hilts into his grip.

"Come and get me then. I kill you it's another thousand gold pieces to me so come on!"

"Go on, I'll deal with this scum." Obelisk shouted, shoving Ewoden forward around towards the far door before charging with a loud battle cry.

As the two of them exchanged blows Eowden forced the far door open and swung inside, running down the long corridor with the sounds of battle fading behind him.

The horrible irony of it all made his stomach turn. The former knight been so eager to find the Sarafan informant in their ranks when it turned out it had been him all along. Without knowing it he'd been feeding the order with information. Just how long had it been going on for? Had they seen what happened at the Midguard temple?

He may have single-handedly handed the Sarafan their victory.

Ewoden came to an abrupt stop and stared. Standing there with his back to him, waiting for him at a flight of stairs that lead down was Sir Gaunt.

The Sarafan warrior was in full armour, his long red cape flowing out behind him. As Ewoden neared, Gaunt reached up and removed his helmet letting his hair drop out.

"I've been waiting for you Werewolf." He began, reaching to his side. With a long hiss of metal grinding upon metal he drew his sword blade. The long, rune covered weapon slid out off the shield upon his arm and was held level with the hand that held it.

"So it would seem." Ewoden muttered in reply. Reaching behind him, he grabbed hold of Havoc and Malice; holding them in both in each hand.

Slowly Gaunt turned around to face Ewoden, his long hair flowing from the top of his head around the wide armour plates around his shoulders.

"You and I have business." He said slowly.

"I don't want to fight you Gaunt."

"Well that's just too bad." The Sarafan pointing his free hand forward and drew several runes in the air; unleashing a spell of lightning. Elemental sparks of magic erupted out of thin air. Ewoden ducked, rolling to the side out of the way as they lashed past them scaring the wall. "Lord Sabre made it clear to me. We are rivals you see. Rivals for the same Pillar."

Ewoden picked himself back up, keeping his body rigid in the best fighting stance he could manage.

"I understand now why fate has placed me standing before you with sword drawn and why I find myself disgusted with your kind more than the vampires. I am chosen to be the Guardian of Nature." A psychotic smile crossed his lips. "I'm destined to kill you. You and all your ilk. You shape changers are perversions of nature, alterations from god's perfect design.

You profane the form of man and wolf alike and for that, you must die."

Outside, the sky began to turn a pale shade of green.