Everywhere she looked there were vampires bowing down to her. She had to admit it to herself, she liked the way it felt. Raven smiled at the legions of demons who would lay down their lives for her, it was every woman's fantasy.

As Raven lifted her hands in the air the vampire's voices rose in chants. Latin, she thought bitterly, a dead language for a dead people. All she could understand was "death", "rise", "win", and the most important one of all "Slayer". Her brow furrowed at the sound of the word. No matter how many times she heard it, no matter what language it was, Raven's mind could not wrap around it. A Slayer was here. And this wasn't just any Slayer, this particular Slayer had haunted her dreams all of Raven's lifetime. Simply because the lifetime only spanned four years made no difference to the Dark Beauty. The Slayer would suffer and die at her hands, there was no doubt about that.

Raven's fists were clenched, her arms down at her side, and blood was dripping from her palms where her finger nails had cut into her flesh and she realized the chanting had silenced. Letting her eyes wander from one side of the room to the other, the woman surveyed the hand she had been dealt.

A dark, abandoned hospital basement. The floors above were used for illegal transactions, meals for her followers, but the basement was unused. Pipes were exposed, water dripped from every surface, wrought iron pillars held grafitti art, and there were no windows. The dank space was new for one such as Raven, but after what she'd done to establish her power to these leeches there would be no way she'd loose them to something as trivial as sunlight. If darkness was what they craved, darkness is what they'd get.

"Loyal servants," she shouted to the depths of the basement, "you have all been chosen to make history the best way vampires can. Taking a deep, proud breath, "We are going to kill the Slayer."

Cheers arose from all around her. Her dark maroon lips curled into a smile as she anticipated the blood flow that would come of the battle. A battle, of course there would be a battle. Raven had seen how this girl had worked for four years.

Every night she would see the Slayer face demons of all sorts and she would always come out on top. She was a fighter, but this time she would lose. Many had fought Raven and all had died in her path. Brave, scared; weak, strong they all fell in Raven's hands becuase of one thing. Humanity, she thought in disgust. What a vile waste of space. Humanity gave each warrior a moment's pause and that was all it took. A grim smile crossed Raven's face as memories started to flow back. Each more brutal and disturbing as the last. A moment's hesitation led to the end of that humanity.

The feeling that came with the images in her mind were yet to be matched. It bubbled up inside her until it erupted with a cackle that sounded over the cheers of her followers.

A sudden hush fell over her audience as her wicked laughter continued. The unholy sound echoed across the basement giving the illusion that Raven was everywhere. And yet she was no where because by the time the cheers died down Raven was gone.

It was a simple, human magic trick, one she had perfected over the years. No matter who the crowd, Raven could disappear at a moment's notice. Avert the eyes and ears of those around you, this time with the laugh that seemed to multiply and come out of every crevice of the room, then all you have to do is slip into the crowd silently and gracefully, emerging on the other side. An unlocked door was all she needed to complete the illusion. The trick left magic show-goers amused but kept the mystery surrounding Raven dense. It was just the thing she wanted.

Looking around, the Dark Beauty found herself in the hospital's boiler room. The room, which was approximately the size of a king sized bed, was even more dark and dank than the one that held the half breed vampires, all that lit the space was one bare light bulb Raven's fingers turned on as she entered the room. Though unused for a dozen years, the space was empty of the expected diseased rodents that roamed sewer-like environments. The creatures, just as the junkies on the floors aboves, had been taken care of some time ago, eaten as midday treats while the vampires were planted in their underground

Yes, Raven thought, this room will do rather nicely.

Dragging her long, claw-like finger across the wall, she imagined the fun she would have with the Vampire Slayer in a few short days right in this very room. The walls will no no longer be stripping of it's paint but covered in the blood of the "good". It will not smell like years of hard water and mildew, it will have the strongest scent of fear and pain. The sounds of the undead will be drowned out by her pleas for mercy. The Vampire Slayer would meet her demise only inches from where Raven now stood.

Another smile found it's way onto her face.

Finally the years of torment would be over. Raven would be able to rest peacefully knowing that she was the cause of this Chosen One's gruesome end, no longer will she cause pain to any one else's psyche and Raven could go back to hunting and killing. It was the waiting and dreaming that had haunted her for these fours years. It was her only hope that the girl would put up a fight so that every moment of torture Raven had endured would be reflected back onto it's causer. Unfortunately, this Slayer had proved to be quite unpredictable. She may, in fact, give up all resistance as soon as she laid eyes on Raven as she swooped in to begin what she dan only hope to be a person's worst nightmare just as many other opponents had. Though Raven found that to be highly unlikely.

Suddenly, Raven's head jerked back and a burning sensation filled her chest. Gasping for air, she tried to grab onto the stone wall beside her, leaving indentations where her fingers grappled. Then, as quickly as it had started, it was over.

Though it had happened a hundred times before and lasted only seconds, Raven needed to lean against the wall in order to regain her composure. Taking in deep breaths, that made no difference to her in the long run, the Dark Beauty simmered in loathing.

The vampire she had sent to locate the Slayer would not be returning with the information. He was dead. The Slayer had killed him, like so many before him. But luckily her winning streak was soon going to run out. Raven could only dream of the day this girl took no more vampires but, instead, took in her own last breath.