Ahem. I now give to you...Ch 12 in all its glory!

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Amira stood alone in a dark hallway. She could barely see two feet in front of her, but she already knew exactly where she was going, though she didn't know how. She put her hand against a moss covered wall to help guide her as she began to walk forward.
After a few minutes she felt a bump in the wall and recognized it as a door. She pushed it slightly and it swung open before her, revealing a dimly lit room with a stone coffin in the center. On further inspection of the coffin Amira noticed that there were many elaborate carvings, mainly depictions of creatures of evil such as demons and the like. Around the edge of the coffin was a continuous carving of a thorny stem with roses. The name DRACULA was inscribed on the coffin in an elegant script where one's chest would be if one was to lie in it. It sent chills down Amira's spine. She continued to examine the coffin, and even attempted to lift the lid, but it was so heavy she doubted that even two full grown men could lift it.

Without warning, a chilly wind swept throughout out the room, blowing out all the torches and leaving Amira in total darkness. Just as suddenly, all the torches burst back into flame and the lid to Dracula's coffin slowly began to slide off. Amira gasped and jumped backwards. It finally hit the floor with a deafening crash. Out from the depths of the coffin rose an enraged Dracula .His hair was not pulled back in a clip as usual and his eyes were electric blue. He immediately lunged at Amira, who was now lying on the ground."You are MINE!"He shrieked as he flew in the air toward her. A wordless scream was ripped from her lungs as he tackled her and bit violently into her neck. Her neck was immediately engulfed in a fiery pain that Amira had never felt before. She felt her life slowly drift away in painful agony. Dracula was suddenly pulled away by an unknown force; his teeth were glittering red for her blood and his hair was in a disheveled mess. He looked more animal than human.

"Amira!" Some voice was calling to her...

"Amira! Stay with me Amira..." It was so faint...

She felt her body relax as the last of her life ebbed away...

"Help...me..."
----
"Amira! Wake up Amira!" Amira woke up after a particularly violent shake from Zane. "Are you alright? You started tossing and turning a few minutes ago and I couldn't wake you up." Zane's eyes were filled with concern. "Amira? Can you speak?"
"He's...he's awake. And he knows I escaped..." She could barely speak, her throat was raw from screaming.
"Don't worry. We will be reaching our destination soon." Though his words were somewhat comforting, Amira could see that he himself was worried.

"Where are we going?" Amira wanted to change the subject.

"Ah! I'm glad you asked. We are going to London to meet up with a group of vampire hunters called The Night Stalkers. They should be able to protect you."

"How are you friends with these people? I thought you were on Dracula's side."

"I am. But it would have been unwise of me to oppose them. It's difficult for me to explain. The politics of the UnderWorld are very complicated."

"The UnderWorld?" Amira raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"The UnderWorld is a name we, meaning vampires and other super natural beings, give our world."

"Ah. And these Night Hunters-"

"Night Stalkers" corrected Zane.

"Right. Night Stalkers, are supposed to protect me from Dracula, the most powerful vampire on Earth." Amira stated doubtfully.

"Well...I'm sure they'll try to. Whether or not the succeed is the question. But it's the best hope you've got. I just hope we make it to London before Dracula finds us." Amira began to fiddle uncomfortably with the snake necklace Dracula had given her. Zane's eyes widened as if in recognition. "Where did you get that necklace?" He asked urgently.

"Dracula gave it to me." Zane snatched it out of her hands. "Hey! I actually like tha..." Her voice trailed off as the snake started glowing in his palm.

"Just as I thought." Zane looked straight into Amira's frightened eyes. "Dracula has enchanted this necklace. He probably has some sort of magical tracking device in it. We have to get it off of you as soon as possible."

"I can just undo the clasp." Amira began feeling around the chain, but to her dismay, could not find it.

"The clasp probably melded into the necklace the moment he put it around your neck." Amira began tugging at the necklace in an attempt to break it. "Do you really think that Dracula would have placed that necklace around your neck if he thought the chain could be easily broken? No, it can only be broken by magic."

"Can you do it?" Amira looked desperately at Zane.

"Yes. But it will drain a lot of my power, leaving me near defenseless if we have to battle The Count." Amira clenched her fists in fury.

"Fucking bastard."

"Watch your language. I need you to lie back down on your bed. If you feel any sort of discomfort, meaning the necklace is burning your skin or something of that sort, just tell me. This is a bit dangerous on a moving train, but we must get this done as soon as possible." Amira lay down and attempted to lie still. Zane stood over her with his eyes shut as he began muttering under his breath. Her necklace began to glow as he continued to mutter incantations until the train jolted as if it had run over something. Zane stumbled and lost his concentration and the the necklace ceased to glow. Zane let out a stream of profanities that made Amira's eyes widen.

"Watch your language."

"Oh shut up. Lie back down." Amira hadn't realized she sat up when the train jolted so she lay back down obediently. Zane soon began the incantations again and Amira's necklace was glowing in a few moments. It began to feel cold as ice against her skin but she didn't say anything about it. The snakes little black eyes began to obtain a white glow. The necklace's glow grew brighter and brighter till Amira had to look away for it hurt her eyes. Zane reached out with a thin hand and grasped the snake charm. He uttered one last word and tugged at the chain. It instantly broke into hundreds of tiny links.

"You did it!" Amira exclaimed.

Zane smiled weakly and replied, "Could you please catch me? I do not wish to dirty my tunic." Amira barely had enough time to jump out of bed and catch him before his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he fell backwards. Amira picked Zane up easily for he was very light, and placed him on the bed.

"Dirty your tunic?" Amira doubted she would ever understand this man.

----

Amira attempted to read one of the books Zane had in his pack, but they were much too complex for her. She doubted she would have read it anyways, she was much too worried about Zane's well being. She spent most of her time pacing back and forth across the room. Eventually food was brought to them, but she didn't touch it.

What if he doesn't wake up? Amira glanced nervously at Zane's sleeping form. No. Don't think that way. He will wake up.

He has to... Zane took this moment to leap out of bed, wild eyed. "How long have I been asleep?"

Amira, who had fallen over a chair in shock, stood up and replied, "A few hours. Four at the most."

"Really? I haven't slept that long in decades!" He grinned widely. In a more sober tone he added, "Unfortunately, my powers have been been depleted to such an extent that I doubt I'd be able to lift marble with them. We will be very vulnerable until we get to The Night Stalkers, which should be very soon actually." He cocked his head to one side as if he were listening for something. The train screeched to a halt a few moments later and a barely audible voice began speaking in Romanian over the intercom. Amira made out the word "London" and knew that they must be at the right stop.

They were about to exit their room when Zane exclaimed in surprise,"Oh my! We must change into something less conspicuous. We don't have much time, so change into these in the bathroom over there as quickly as possible." Zane tossed her a bundle of clothing and shooed her into the private bathroom. She stripped down and put on the clothing as quickly as she could. It was only after she had finished dressing she realized that the clothing was all black and that there was a small red insignia on the left sleeve of her jacket. It was a fierce looking outline of a hawk with it's wings outstretched. She didn't examine it for too long, they were too pressed for time. She picked up her old clothing and stuffed it into her bag before leaving the bathroom. Zane was wearing a black trench coat with the same insignia on the left sleeve. Amira was about to ask about it but Zane was already pulling her through the crowd of people leaving the train.

"Fortunately for us The Night Stalkers' den is fairly close to where we are right now. We shouldn't have too far to run." Zane immediately strode off down a dark street. He didn't even bother looking behind him to see if Amira was following him. He didn't really have to though, he already knew she would.

It only took them about fifteen minutes before the reached the entrance to the den, which happened to be in a small, dirty alleyway. The same insignia was carved on the door, but the red paint was chipped and dull. "I don't want you to talk to anyone until I say it's OK. Just stand next to me and keep your mouth shut." Amira nodded silently and squared her shoulders. "Now then," a small smile played across his lips. "Welcome to the Den of the Night Stalkers." He pushed open the door.

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A/N: Woo! That's was even funner than the last chapter! There wasn't much Dracula in it though. He's gonna come back soon, probably next chapter. That nightmare that Amira had was actually based on a similar dream I had a few weeks ago. I like how it turned out. Well, tell me what you think of it. Are you disappointed with it? Are you dying for the next chapter?I WANT TO KNOW! Send me reviews!

A/N: BTW, this isn't gonna turn into one of the Good vs. Evil stories. I hate those stories...

A/N: I know, I know, Underworld is a movie. I was lazy and I couldnt think of a better name.