Chapter 18: Putting The Plan Into Action

"Nothing," snarled Henri as they emerged from yet another house.

"Calm down Henri," Jean said.

After talking to Pitch about what their plan should be, Jean and a lot of other Vampires had gone on a bit of a rampage around the surrounding area from the Château Rouge. They had come across a few houses but they had no Werewolves or Vampires in them. The only occupants were humans who they could practically smell the fear on them. Jean didn't realise just how many houses were around Château Rouge. She thought maybe one or two which included the house that they want but no, they had been to seven already. The humans that lived out here were mainly farmers or people who liked to live in the middle of nowhere. Jean knew that there used to be a village in this area quite a few centuries ago but Pitch had taken care of those humans.

"Where's Alexi?" Jean asked Henri as they joined the rest of their fellow Vampires.

"Still feeding I bet," Henri responded. "He's taken a liking to the oldest daughter."

"Well he's certainly taking his time," Jean clicked her tongue. "We're kind of on a clock here."

After a few minutes, Alexi came out of the house wiping blood off his face.

"Well you took your time," Jean said clearly irritated.

"What?" Alexi said. "She had sweet blood. Never had blood like that before. It was nice."

"I don't care if she has the best blood you've ever tasted," Jean snapped. "We have a mission to do."

"Now that you mention it," Alexi said, "it was the best blood I've ever tasted."

"Just shut up," Jean snapped. She turned to Charles. "Where to now?"

Charles had a map of the area that he was studying. Vampires over the years were sent on scouting missions to map the area. Pitch wanted to make sure that he knew the surrounding area better than anyone therefore his maps were always highly detailed.

"Okay," Charles said as he studied his map. "In that direction," he pointed in a direction that was west of their position, "is a house. It's about three kilometres, which is less than two miles, from our current position."

"Okay," Jean said. "We'll try there next."

They started to run and it didn't take them too long to run the three kilometres. A small cottage soon came into view. They started to group around the front of it.

"Henri," she whispered. "Go check the windows. They have the curtains on and the light is one. You should be able see what they're doing."

"Rodger," Henri replied.

Henri then approached the house.

"Why are we whispering?" Charles muttered to her.

"Because if there are Werewolves in there, they probably can hear us," Jean muttered back.

"We didn't do that before," Alexi said in a small voice.

"Well I only just thought of it," Jean said in a small voice and sounded very matter of factly.

"Oh," Alexi let out a small chuckle which Jean shushed.

Henri hurried back to where they were waiting.

"Well?" Jean asked him, almost tense from the anticipation.

"It's them," Henri said.

"How do you know it's them?" Charles asked.

"Well Charles," Henri said sounding sarcastic. "I saw this big wolf in the room and thought that it was a human pet. How do you think I know?"

"You don't have to yell," Charles said.

"Okay good," Jean got an evil smile on her face. "We got them now."

"What's the plan?" Henri asked.

"Surround them," Jean said. "They will undoubtedly keep the beast near Elsa. Once we have eliminated those other dogmen, the beast will raise its head. Once we have Elsa, we run for it. We split up and meet back at Château Rouge."

"Got it," they all said.

Ragnar was about to follow Anton out the door before North called them back.

"Um, Anton?" he said.

"Yes North?" Anton said.

"What do we do about Elsa?" North asked.

Ragnar and Anton both looked at Elsa and then Ragnar remembered. North didn't know how to handle sunlight injuries. He was a Werewolf after all. He didn't have to deal with them unlike Ragnar, Elsa or Anton.

"Er," Anton said. "That is a good point."

"Should one of us stay?" Ragnar asked looking at Anton. "So that Elsa isn't left hanging?"

"You're better at the fighting than I am," Anton said. "I'm a lover not a fighter. So you should help out Tooth and Bunnymund."

"But if Jean is leading the group, you should stay," Ragnar said. "She is more likely to believe that you're helping out Pitch than I am. She is friends with you."

Anton had known Jean from time to time. They had a good relationship and were on good terms. Well, if Jean ever found out, that relationship will surely go downhill – if it hadn't already.

"True," Anton shrugged.

"But now that I think about it," Ragnar said, "you're better at doing the healing thing better than I."

"So is Anton now going with North and the others?" Tooth asked.

"I think so," Anton said.

"Okay, enough small talk," North said. "We got to get moving. Ragnar, Tooth and Bunnymund, you guys go out the front to distract them. Sandy, Jack, Anton and I will head out the back to try and smuggle Elsa out."

Ragnar then followed Tooth out a side door with Bunnymund right behind him. They had carefully snuck out the door so that they wouldn't have been seen by any of the Vampires. They ducked behind the tall bushes and looked out into the darkness. Ragnar could see some shapes moving in the distance. Ragnar tried to think of the best way to approach the situation. He kind of wished he had gone with North instead of Anton. It was Anton who would usually be able to plan these kinds of situations. Ragnar was good in the battle field, excellent even, but he wasn't the strategic type.

"Got any plans?" he muttered to Tooth and Bunnymund.

"I was kind of hoping that you had one," Bunnymund admitted.

"Sheesh," Ragnar said, "I was hoping the same thing."

"I may have an idea or two," Tooth said. They all look at her. She suddenly blushed by the attention they were giving her. "Well it's like what North said before, Ragnar will draw them out with his Vampirness and they won't suspect him because why would they, I mean Vampires are known for trusting other. Ragnar will use this to our advantage. Once he's lured a few out, Bunnymund and I will strike. This will hopefully give North and the others time to get out."

"When do we get out?" Bunnymund asked her.

"When we've finished our part," Tooth said.

"Okay," Ragnar and Bunnymund both nodded.

Ragnar moved sideways, making sure to keep low to the ground and in the shadows. He didn't want to be seen too quickly. Ragnar noticed Tooth and Bunnymund doing the same thing but keeping back. Ragnar kept his eyes peeled for any Vampires in the area. He soon noticed one just wandering about in the dark by himself. Ragnar checked the surrounding area to make sure that this lone Vampire was indeed by himself. It turned out he was which was pleasing to Ragnar. He didn't want to start out by having to do the hard bits first. Ragnar noticed that Tooth and Bunnymund were getting into position nearby. Ragnar saw Bunnymund give him a nod. Ragnar nodded back.

Ragnar moved along in the dark. He saw a small rock on the ground and decided that will be good for a distraction plan. There was only Vampire in the area so it wasn't necessary to gain his attention by going up and talking to him. Ragnar threw the rock in a random area and the rock clattered on the ground.

"What was that?" the Vampire said.

He headed in the direction of where the noise came from. Bunnymund moved from his position and quickly raced towards the Vampire. The Vampire turned around just in time to see Bunnymund coming towards him.

"What?" he said.

He didn't get much more out of this. Bunnymund took his neck and snapped it using his Werewolf strength. The Vampire then collapsed. Bunnymund gave Tooth a thumb's up and she mimed clapping. Ragnar then noticed something that Bunnymund hadn't. There were another two Vampires coming in their direction. Ragnar tried to get Bunnymund's and Tooth's attention but it was no use. They were both preoccupied with each other. Ragnar tried waving his arms all about to try and catch their eye but still nothing. Ragnar decided that he had to deal with this himself otherwise his teammates may get into some serious danger and Ragnar didn't want that.

He never thought that he would be helping out a couple of Werewolves before but they were friends of Elsa and Ragnar trusted Elsa beyond anyone else in this world. If she says that they are okay, then they must be. Elsa wouldn't put her trust in anyone. Ragnar moved slowly in their direction. He moved around behind the Vampires and almost glided along the ground. Ragnar snuck up behind one of them. Ragnar slowly reached out and grabbed him. The Vampire let out a little yelp but it was muffled – Ragnar's hand was over was his mouth. Ragnar dragged him away into the night. Once he was a safe distance away, Ragnar broke his neck in one fluid movement.

"Andy?" the other Vampire said. His voice pieced the cool, clear night like a knife slicing through it. The voice travelled a distance in all directions. Tooth and Bunnymund suddenly looked up and realised that they were only several metres away from a Vampire. That Vampire was looking in the opposite direction and seemed to be completely obvious that there were a couple of Werewolves nearby.

The Vampire started walking in the direction of Ragnar. Ragnar shuffled around, making sure that he wasn't heard or seen. Tooth and Bunnymund started to sneak up on him but then he suddenly turned around. He saw them fully and clearly and only a few metres away from them.

"What the –" That was all that the Vampire got out before Bunnymund drew his gun with his famous sun bullets. He fired into the night. The bullet went straight through the Vampire's heart. The Vampire collapsed on a heap on the ground. Bunnymund lowered his gun and that's when Ragnar realised something. The gunshot had echoed all around the night. Everyone could hear it. Ragnar knew that it was best that they should get out of this area as soon as possible. Vampire hearing could trace back whatever they could hear. They would soon be on them. Ragnar was about to go and warn Tooth and Bunnymund but something else pulled his attention.

"Ragnar?"

His name was being called from near him. Ragnar froze. He didn't like this. He was about to be caught for sure. Any moment now, that Vampire who had called his name would call for back up and declare him a traitor. Ragnar could see it now; he would be dragged back to the Vampire Capital to be put on trial, Pitch would declare him a traitor and sentence to death, his last moments would be him screaming in agony while being burned alive. Ragnar slowly turned around and saw that Jean was standing only a few metres away from him. She was staring at him with a confused expression on her face.

She wasn't alone; her friend Henri (who Ragnar had always suspected that they were in a romantic relationship) was with her. Ragnar didn't like to tangle with Jean. She was part of Pitch's Inner Circle of Vampires who he considered to be one of the best Vampires around. Henri, on the other hand, wasn't a part of the Inner Circle like Jean. However, he is a powerful Vampire. Ragnar, himself, was a powerful Vampire but could he tangle with two other powerful Vampires who could easily call in other Vampires to help.

Ragnar and Jean had met only a couple of times before. They didn't really know each other unlike how Jean and Anton knew each other as they had met each other on many different occasions. Anton made his way through to the Capital more times than Ragnar ever did. Ragnar had only ever heard of Henri and never actually met him in person – well until now that was.

"What are you doing here?" Jean asked. "Pitch didn't ask you to come and help did he? I don't recall you being part of the team going around checking houses."

"Ah no," Ragnar pulled up some confidence. He remembered his cover story. "Pitch didn't ask me to come with you guys. You see Jean; I am one of Pitch's spies."

"Spy?" Jean raised her eyebrows. Ragnar couldn't tell if she believed him or not.

"You see when Elsa was being helped by those Werewolves, I decided that it was a good idea to follow them and see what their plan is for Elsa. Obviously they have some kind of escape route planned out and a secret base. My plan was to find this all out, make some excuse and race back to tell Pitch so that could set up an ambush."

"Really?" this time Jean sounded less sceptical. "So where are they heading?"

"Germany," Ragnar said the first country that came into his head. He supposed it was because he had lived in Germany for a number of years after he had Turned into a Vampire and before as well.

"Germany?" Jean looked surprised. "Why go there?"

"Tsar Lunar has set up an army there," Ragnar said. The idea that Tsar Lunar was making an army wasn't a bad one. It may install fear in Pitch and make him send his army off in the wrong direction. It may allow The Guardians to take down Pitch. After all, Ragnar had longed come to the realisation that the only way that the war was going to end was with either Pitch Black's death or Tsar Lunar's death. However, ever since Pitch had decided to call Elsa a traitor and burn her for just loving someone, Ragnar's loyalty for Pitch had taken a serious hit. He doubted that the levels will ever go back to the way they were before.

"An army?" Jean looked shocked.

"Yeah," Ragnar nodded. "Look, I better go back to The Guardians. I told them that I thought I saw something moving around. I thought I'd best give you guys an update."

"Okay," Jean nodded.

"Didn't you hear a gunshot though?" Henri suddenly chimed in. He seemed to have been studying Ragnar intensively. Ragnar had been unnerved the entire conversation by the look Henri was giving him. He was surprised that he had managed to come up with a decent lie with Henri making him very uncomfortable.

"A gunshot?" Ragnar decided play dumb for now. He was quite worried about the dead Vampire not too far from them. The only reason why Jean and Henri hadn't noticed the dead Vampire so far was because Ragnar had been distracting him. Hopefully he could get Jean and Henri to get their Vampires to retreat and go back to the Capital to tell Pitch the 'information' that Ragnar had told him. Ragnar was assuming that he would be brought back to see Pitch to inform Pitch what he had 'overheard' with The Guardians. Once he had the opportunity, he would make a break for it. He would meet the others in Châtellerault as soon as he could.

"Yeah," Henri said, "the gunshot that took out that Vampire over there."

"Er," Ragnar said.

Jean suddenly realised what was going on; the look on Ragnar's face must have also given the game away. Henri must have seen the dead Vampire as soon as he came over and decided to see how Ragnar would explain this away.

"You knew and you didn't tell us?" Jean said.

"I was going to get there," Ragnar said.

"When?" Henri said. "When you were going to tell us that there are two Guardians just over there?"

Henri pointed in a direction. Ragnar followed where he was pointing and saw that Tooth and Bunnymund, who were trying to sneak up on them, had frozen under Henri's glare.

"You little sneak," Henri snarled. "Not only is Anton helping out The Guardians but you are too. I guess Elsa's influence stretches further than we anticipated."

"I can explain," Ragnar stammered.

Suddenly out of the darkness, many more Vampires appeared. They were all snarling and looking pleased to have found what they had wanted.

"Get 'em boys," Jean said.

"Run!" Ragnar shouted into the night.

North helped Elsa back onto Jack's back once more while Ragnar, Tooth and Bunnymund headed out to try and distract or take out the Vampires that were surrounding them. Jack looked eager to have Elsa riding on his back again. Elsa, who was semi-awake, was pleased also. Anton, who had stepped out for a moment, came back carrying a large shoulder bag and several blood bags. He packed the bag full of those blood bags.

"Just trying to be prepared," Anton said when he saw that North was giving him a puzzling look. "I don't know how long we are going to be. Besides, Elsa isn't strong enough to go hunting."

"Please don't mention hunting around me," North said. "I really don't like the idea of a Vampire attacking innocent people."

"Sorry," Anton said. "I guess that I'm so use to it, that I forget just how horrible it really is."

"Yeah, don't talk like that," North said with a sour expression.

"Sorry," Anton said again. "I promise I won't."

"Good," North was happier now. "So, we got everything we need?"

"I think so," Anton said. "The only really thing that can help a sunlight burn is to provide plenty of blood which I seem to have. I have completely taken my cousin's stock here. I left a note saying it was an emergency."

"Okay," North said. "Let's get out of here before they discover that Ragnar's story was all a ruse."

"Agreed," Anton said.

They quickly gathered up their stuff and quickly exited through the backdoor. They were careful in their steps so that no one could hear them. Anton did a quick scout around the area with Sandy by his side. He came back saying there were Vampires around but they should make a clean break.

Jack then took off at great sped. In order to try and keep up with him, they raced on after them. North, Anton and Sandy were running as fast as they could but no matter how fast they were running, they couldn't keep up.

"Why did Jack take off like that?" Anton asked North.

"Probably smelled the Vampires and thought that they were trying to get Elsa," North said. "Jack's mission is to protect Elsa, remember? He isn't about to let anyone hurt her."

"Makes sense," Anton shrugged.

They soon arrived at the car which had been parked near the Capital. Jack was already there waiting for them. He was impatient and was growling at them to try and get them to hurry along. North and Sandy climbed into the front while Jack climbed into the back and rested on top of Anton and Elsa. Jack's head was resting on Elsa's lap. He looked quite comfortable to be in that position. Elsa was awake again and her head was stroking Jack's head which made him look happy. She was looking a little better now. North figured that her regeneration was starting to kick in. North started up the engine of the car.

"Alright," North said. "Let's go."

A/N: Alright, so it looks like North and the others managed to get out of the house but can they make a fully escape? Anyway, I hope that everyone enjoyed this chapter. Please review =)

Reviews:

ElsaTheSnowQueen2: Thanks! Well so far the plan may be working and that Elsa is okay - for now so far.

WhaleCum420: Well as much I would love that to be true, there are more Vampires than Werewolves I'm afraid. Pitch is trying to spread his Vampireness as far and wide as much as possible whereas Manny and other Werewolves didn't.

firenjninjafox: Thanks!

Frostbite Productions: Hmm, maybe you shouldn't be taking ideas from movies and games etc., maybe you should create an original one that could be sort of based off other stuff.

Chey21: Thanks so much! Next chapter as asked!

SureSnowflake: I don't think that everyone is going to die. Maybe just a few from time to time - who, you just have to wait and find out. Jack's POV? That would be interesting but seriously I would have no idea on how to do that. Jack's a wolf, I wouldn't know how to write a chapter from that. Sorry.

Guest (MixyBell): Well hopefully this update will cure the suspense you are in.

Jelslover3: Um, I would have no idea but I could probably guess based on my knowledge of French words. I would assume you pronounce it Shat (same way you pronounce the start of Château)-ell-eraul (I would assume the t is silent). That is my best guess.

Kat-IllumatedPurity: Well It looked like they didn't fall for it. Sorry Katerina didn't get turned into a Vampire. She died long, long, long ago (as did the sailor). Would you like to take another guess? I will say if you are right if you happen to get the right answer.