Authors Note: Hey I'm back and if I do say so myself, better than ever. I apologize for the delay. My computer contracted a major virus that shut down all its functions. It took me weeks before I could get back on it. The desktop was gone! I finally found a back door that enabled me to install the anti-virus software I needed. FYI: Don't open anything on Facebook that says "amazing video." It is not from your friend. It is a virus. Anyway, after I finally had access to my computer again, I contracted a virus. The flu virus that is. It was so horrible it lasted a week and a half. I still have the cough but unfortunately it may still be there at Christmas. Ugh! Anyway in all that time I had numerous chat sessions with my Beta murgatroid_98 who was a big help in getting my whole chapter outlined. Thing is, as I was writing it, I realized how much stuff I was trying to cram into it. When I got to page 5 and realized I still had a whole lot left to do, so I decided I would break this up into two chapters. I found a good place to stop, did some tweaking and voila! I would like to inform you ahead of time that I am not very good at action sequences. I did my best, but if you still find it lacking, I apologize. I'm better at dialogue. So without any further delay, the moment you've all been waiting for: Dominic and Zohra are finally going to lay eyes on each other! Don't forget to review!

Chapter 7

Within the body of the raptor, Dominic had only one thought, one purpose—to sate his unquenchable thirst. Night after night he had risen, his body screaming for nourishment, yet nothing would assuage his hunger. But this night, within that small house, he would go to her. Only she would quench his unholy thirst. Yet as he approached, he saw another—one who held her tenderly as a lover would. His thirst for her blood suddenly replaced with a stronger need to kill, Dominic rammed through the glass while simultaneously changing back to his true form. Dominic saw the other male set the female behind him for protection. Mine, the beast screamed in his head. Only mine. With the beast roaring within him, Dominic snatched the man from the female and slammed him into the concrete wall.

"No!" the woman cried. But her words could not penetrate the dark recesses of his mind.

"You touched her!" he growled at the male, bearing his fangs. As the male began to shift to mist, Dominic bit into his neck leaving a trail of red for him to follow.

As the male rematerialized in front of the female, he pushed her back against the wall in attempts to keep her safe from the ensuing battle. "Zohra go!" he said as he fought off Dominic's next attack. "It's not safe! He has death in his eyes."

"No, Dimitri. Dominic won't hurt me, but with the way he is now he won't hesitate to rip out your heart. Get out now why you still can!"

"No! I won't leave you!"

Dimitri's unwanted act of protection will be his last, Dominic thought. Sniffing the air, he caught the scent of the male's blood dripping from the wound he had inflicted. The bloodlust was undeniable. Drain him dry, but let him suffer first. He must feel every agonizing blow. Dominic shifted into a leopard and leapt onto Dimitri before he could so much as blink. Using the cat's stiletto-sharp claws, he went into a frenzy, raking every inch of Dimitri's body, every tear designed to cause as much pain as possible without allowing a mortal blow.

Blood flowed from dozens of scratches. Dimitri tried to shift to mist and attack Dominic from behind, but he couldn't change fast enough. He could hear Zohra screaming at him to get away, but he knew he couldn't leave his niece to be slaughtered by Dominic. Dimitri did not wish to hurt his niece's lifemate, but Dominic had no such qualms. He seemed to be in a blind rage. If Zohra's shouts could not bring him back to himself, Dominic might be to far gone to stop. But for Zohra's sake, he had to try. Dimitri rolled away from the leopard, reaching for its tail, but Dominic was already slipping out of his grasp, shifting back to himself in a move that landed him at Dimitri's neck.

As he went for the kill, Dominic was ripped off his prey and thrown into the wall by an unseen hand. He looked up to find the legendary Gabriel, his twin Lucien right behind him. "How dare you attack my daughter's lifemate?" Gabriel raged. Before Gabriel could strike, his twin pulled him back.

"Stop this! Don't let the blood of the soulless consume you," Lucien said to Dominic. "You are not a vampire! Rise above this madness!"

As Dominic began to attack the twin hunters, Zohra called out to them. "He's confused! The vampire blood coursing through his veins is feeding his rage! I'm his lifemate! On some level he thinks he's saving me from you. It's me he wants! Get out of here and he won't fight you! I know it!"

"Yeah," Gabriel said as he dodged another blow. "He'll come after you and then what will you do?"

"You idiots! Of course he'll come to me! That's what I want!"

Just as Zohra was about to insert herself between the warriors, a huge tigress jumped in front of her. Another Carpathian warrior was right behind it. The tigress pounced on Dominic while the male joined the fray.

Dimitri tried to return to the fight, but he swayed from blood loss. He'd already lost much to Skyler and he had yet to feed this night. But as a man of honor, he had no choice but to fight to the end. If there was any chance to stop Dominic, they would need every warrior in the vicinity. "I love you, Skyler," he called to his lifemate before charging at the Dragonseeker. Dominic anticipated the attack, slamming his fist into Dimitri's gut. He then grabbed him and threw him at the tigress with enough force to slam them both into the wall. The tigress shifted into a red-headed Carpathian woman and pushed Dimitri off of her as the fight raged on. She looked down to see the male's blood all over her leather battle outfit. He was fading fast and Dominic showed no sign of slowing. She ran back into the battle. They had to save Dominic from himself.

Zohra looked on as the hunters dispatched blow after blow. There seemed no end to the fighting. "Denae what do I do? We're losing him!"

The reply was distant and pained. "I know Zohra. He's turning. I wish I didn't have to leave you too."

Zohra recalled Denae's earlier words. "A guardian cannot exist inside a broken soul. If Dominic were to turn, I would leave you too. And you would be truly alone."

Zohra looked up at the chaos. Her lifemate didn't know it, but he was fighting for her. She would not lose him now! A scream ripped from her throat. A cry so piercing it could be heard for miles. Her soul roared for its other half and not a single living thing could escape its agony. For a brief moment Dominic looked up, a glimmer of recognition in his eyes as he met her gaze. Just as swiftly it vanished in a sea of red as he turned back to fighting, leaving Zohra to wonder if she'd only imagined it.

Zohra met the eyes of the red-head. Natalya. She knew her on sight. Using her blood connection to Razvan, she spoke to her. "Natalya I need your help. My power is to control light. I could blind them long enough to stop this fighting. But I need a source. Can you move this outside?"

Natalya turned and met Zohra's gaze. "You are the one my brother sent."

"He helped me escape, yes."

Natalya nodded "I don't think I could move these men at all. But I might be able to cause a light show of my own."

"No. Well yes you probably could, but my light would not only blind them it would calm them. I don't know why, but something about the moon always infuses my power with a calming influence."

"All right. Well, if I can't bring you to the light, I'll bring the light to you." Natalya raised her arms and began chanting. A great gust of wind began to build. A tornado was coming.

"Falcon, the baby is doing fine now. Stop worrying."

"Sara, you know the baby can't take the strain. You've only got a few weeks left until you give birth. We can't risk losing it."

Sara met her lifemate's gaze. "I know. But I couldn't risk losing you either. You needed me last night Falcon. This pregnancy has us all frazzled. I just can't wait to hold her in my arms. I also can't help but worry what kind of life I'll be bringing her into. The other kids are human. They have it bad enough. But the baby will be Carpathian like us. I don't know how to take care of a Carpathian baby. I'm scared Falcon. So very scared." Sara let out a small laugh. "Hello pot, I'm kettle. Here I am telling you to stop worrying and then I proceed to tell you how worried I am."

Falcon gathered her into his arms. "We'll get through this, just like we always do. We just have to have faith."

Sara giggled.

"What?" Falcon gave his lifemate a puzzled look.

"I told you this family needed to go to a church."

"Sara." The look he gave her was clearly a reprimand.

Sara doubled over clutching her belly as a piercing shriek reached her ear. Falcon grabbed her and pulled her back into his arms as he made eye contact with his lifemate. "What was that? Is the baby all right?"

"That scream. It was the woman you were yelling at over at the inn, I'm sure of it. She sounded like her heart was being ripped out of her chest—kind of like how I would feel if I lost you. The baby felt it too. Didn't you hear it?"

"Yes. But I didn't feel it like you did. Is the baby all right?" Falcon repeated.

"Yeah, I think so. She just didn't like the pain. I think she's an empath like Emma. She's very fussy when someone's upset. This was unbearable. I can't feel it anymore though."

"I'll contact Gregori and see what I can find out."

As Falcon searched the common mental path for news of the disturbance, all the kids came rushing in from another room. "Sara, Falcon, its scary outside!" Chrissy said.

"Yeah," Jace said. "The wind is too strong. I'll blow away."

Sara reached down to hug her young son. "It's just the wind, Jace. You aren't going to blow away."

Tempest came out of the bathroom with Blythe clutching her leg. She'd been helping out with the children lately as a crash course in parenting. After all, she'd be having a son herself in a few months. "Actually, that may be closer to the truth than you think. Take a look outside."

Falcon opened the heavy drapes just in time for them all to see a tornado lift the roof off of Francesca and Gabriel's house.

"Dang!" Tempest said as Blythe buried her face in the folds of her shirt. "It's a good thing we're Carpathians. I'm pretty sure homeowner's insurance doesn't cover random acts of magic."

"Darius?" Tempest needed to know he was safe.

"I'm with Gregori. We just saw the tornado. There is some kind of battle going on at Gabriel's house. Dominic has returned and he's attacking our own. We're on our way to help. Promise me you'll stay where you are."

"For once I'll follow that order. Just promise me you'll come home to me when this battle is over."

Tempest felt a pause. She was about to repeat herself when Darius answered back. "I love you Tempest."

There was pain in that statement. It was as if her lifemate wasn't sure he could make it back alive. Tempest's heart screamed. "Darius you promise me! Never have you had anything but confidence in yourself. You are damn good at what you do. Promise me you'll come home!" Tempest waited for a response but was greeted with silence. "Damnit answer me!"

"Stay safe for me." That terse reply was followed by an abrupt block on their connection. Try as she might Tempest could not break through to speak with her lifemate. Gently pushing Blythe away from her, Tempest reached behind her until she found an armchair. She practically fell into the seat as she started to sob. "Don't leave me," she whispered into her hands.

Sara looked up at Falcon, a question in her gaze. I have to go, love. Dominic has returned. They need my help. He…didn't return as he left."

Sara watched as Tempest hugged her extended stomach as if to hold her baby to her. Turning back to her lifemate, Sara grabbed his face in her hands and kissed him like it could be the last time. She poured her entire being into the kiss—all her love and faith in him. As she broke from the kiss there were tears in her eyes. "Be careful, Falcon."

"I love you, Sara." He turned to the children. "I have to go help our friends with a big problem. I hope to be back soon."

All seven children ran up to embrace him in a fierce hug. Falcon was reluctant to let them go. As he walked out the door into the storm, he realized how incredibly lucky he was to have so much love in his life. He just hoped he'd be able to come back to it.

As the moon cast its light upon her, Zohra found herself infused with a power she hadn't felt in centuries. She'd almost forgotten it. She would have if she hadn't escaped. Xavier had known about her affinity for celestial light. That's why he never let her go outside unless it was a new moon. Stars alone could not provide her with such strength. She let the power of the moon's natural light flow through her, filling every cell with light. She could feel her skin start to tingle as she soaked up the moon's rays. It was a full moon tonight. Perfect for what she was about to do. Zohra held out her hands and poured a concentrated beam of light straight at her lifemate. The beam was so bright even Zohra had to squint. As the light dimmed, she finally looked upon the men her lifemate had been battling. She counted at least seven warriors barely clinging to life, they were so badly beaten. Zohra couldn't control a shudder. Her lifemate had done this.

The men seemed dazed and off-balance. The calming influence of the moon would not last long. Zohra looked to her uncle. Skyler was on the floor sobbing over her lifemate's motionless body. Her connection power was enough to see he still lived. His soul branch would have shriveled if he were dead. "He's alive, Skyler. He just shut down his heart to halt the bleeding."

The girl looked up at her. "Thank you for that."

Zohra nodded. Finally she looked upon her lifemate. He was on the verge of collapse. Blood covered nearly every inch of him. Zohra could not begin to guess how much of it was his. As she met his eyes, she saw something she could not identify. It looked as if it wasn't just Dominic looking at her. She sensed no outside influence. "Denae what am I seeing. Is it the blood in his system? Am I seeing the beast battling the moon's influence?"

"No Zohra." There was awe in her words. "What you are seeing is something I never thought possible. We are not the last of our kind. Dominic is a soul walker. His dragon is my mate."

"What?"

"I can save them Zohra. I can save our mates. But I can't do it in this body."

"What do you mean Denae. How is Dominic a soul walker and how do you expect to save him outside my body?"

"There isn't time for that Zohra. Later I will tell you everything. But right now you have to trust me. Do you trust me Zohra?"

"Yes." The reply was instinctive. Zohra didn't need to ponder it; she knew she trusted Denae with her life and her soul. Most importantly, she trusted her with Dominic's life and soul.

"Then it's time you find out what a soul walker truly is. Before when I took over your body, I was merely speaking through you. Now I must take over completely. You will be aware of everything this time. I will hide nothing from you. I've been sheltering you too long. Forgive me."

"Denae what are you talking about? Forgive you for what?"

"I am going to have to transform you. To save our lifemate I have to take my true form. Long ago when soul walkers were still thriving, they would hold ceremonies and rituals to find their soul form. The others in the community would help each person through the change. They had help, Zohra. We will have none."

"Denae tell me! Will this transformation be painful? Why are you so afraid?"

"A guardian has a true form—one he or she may take in times of great need. The form is different for each individual soul walker. Normally I am in the back of your mind, my form lying dormant. To take form, you would be pushed back as the change takes over and my consciousness comes to the forefront. If you don't know what to expect, the first change can be very frightening and possibly painful. I only wish I could prepare you. I don't even know what form I would take. The choice is up to you. I cannot take form without your permission. What do you say Zohra?"

Once again her answer came without hesitation. "Save our lifemate."

"Okay, Zohra. Just try not to fight it. Whatever you feel, embrace it."

"I'll do my best." As Zohra felt her consciousness pulled inward, she felt a power building outside herself. Zohra watched through eyes that were slowly becoming distant. She couldn't help but panic at what she saw. Both Natalya and Skyler were clutching their hips as they pulled themselves to their feet. Their eyes were glazed as they took up positions around Dominic who was now writhing in pain on the floor. They raised their arms up to the moon and began to chant one phrase over and over— "The dragon must not die."

Zohra had no more time ponder this strange occurrence as a wave of pain went through every inch of her body. The change had begun.

Well that's it for now. For all my loyal readers out there I would like to start a little contest. When I read Dark Slayer, I kept wondering what happened to Sara's baby. I found out that although it wasn't mentioned in the book, Christine Feehan mentioned in an interview that Sara had lost her baby. That is unacceptable to me. So, due to the fact that this fic takes place between Dark Curse and Dark Slayer, and the fact that I can write pretty much anything I want because it's my fic, I'm going to have her give birth near the end of the story. I won't give you any more details than that because even I haven't decided yet what will happen. The contest I'm referring to will be to name her baby. I have a backup name in case nothing else works out, but I'd like to get my readers involved. Now remember that it's a girl, so I don't wanna hear anyone suggest I name the baby Bill. If you'd like to participate in this contest, feel free to suggest a name after you review a chapter. I'm looking for a first and middle name by the way. If I like your suggestion, I might just use it. There is plenty of time to place your entries because it won't be for many chapters yet until the baby has to be born. If you have any more questions, PM me. Thanks for reading. Now go ahead and tell me what you think.