She sat in the shadows, watching people, human, live out their daily lives. Something she'd never be able to do again. She couldn't go beach vacations with her girlfriends; she couldn't go tanning' she couldn't even eat steak anymore, which royally pissed her off. She would have to live a night life and reap the benefit that she was still alive and not going insane like most would.

Ulyena sat in a shaded alley, watching the warehouse door; waiting for it to open so she could dash inside without fully burning to death. Her thoughts were consumed with what Nomak had told her. She was a pure-blood, but a half-breed. She didn't have to be fed blood after she was bit to trigger her vampire DNA. She was the only fetus that the reaper strain didn't affect in the way it did the others. He also told her that her mother was still alive, but barely, and was still being used for DNA.

Ulyena wanted to go straight to Damiskinos's lair, but Nomak told her that it was too dangerous for her to go alone and she'd never make it through the sun. She was a different kind of half-breed and she, unlike Blade, was very susceptible to sunlight, but not to garlic or silver. She healed quickly, but since she had the tiniest speck of reaper DNA, she needed to feed… a lot.

Nomak had taken the time to find some blood whores for her to drink from, and they all died of blood loss before they even hit the floor. Ulyena finally understood why people were scared of vampires. They were killers. She was a killer, and there was nothing she could do to change that. She would have to live with what she was for the rest of her life, however long that may be.

What really got her was that she spent the whole twenty-three years of her life not knowing what she was, or how she came to be. She was designed; a fetus that was made from a creative mind. DNA was transported from a human and into a machine to be converted into her. There was no 'birds and the bees', no love making, or doing what she and Scud had done.

Scud. Had he woken up yet? What was he going to say to her? Would he even remember? So many questions were flowing through her brain as she sat in the alley, pounding in her head and searching her for answers that she didn't have. Did he even know that she was gone? What would she tell him? What would she say to Blade? Would he kill her? By the way he looked at her before he left, he already knew about her change. Would he deem her worthy enough to live?

She didn't want to think about it anymore. Ulyena only cared about getting to Scud and assuring him that she was okay. So she sat in the shadows, watching and waiting. She started growing hungry, but never tired and that amazed her. So did that mean that she would never tire? Never again would she need sleep? Never would she feel the hunger for steaks, chicken, apples, watermelon or eggrolls? No more vodka shots. No more sweet tea. No more egg's benedicts. And what really killed her: no more coffee.

Ulyena could still work at Rush, but she had to be discrete. She was like that already, but something told her that she needed to be more careful about her decisions. She wondered that if someone found out about her, if they would be scared of her. She felt that talking to Nyssa would probably help, since she was a pure-blood herself. Speaking of Nyssa, Nomak had said that Damiskinos was Ulyena's and his father, so did that mean that Nyssa was her sister?

She would just wait until dark to find out. Then, she'd tell Blade, Whistler and Scud everything. About how they're being played like a deck of cards and manipulated like dogs. She would tell them everything that Nomak had told her, and then she would tell them about her.

A flicker of movement caught her eye as the sun began to set. She watched three men, two in SWAT-looking uniforms and a blonde man in business attire, walk up to the warehouse door. The businessman pulled a phone out of his pocket, said a few words into it, and then put it back into his pants. He looked from left to right, making sure that no one was nearby, as the large door opened.

He and the two guards disappeared into the warehouse, and Ulyena quietly followed them in. What were they there for? Blade, perhaps? Did he come back and she didn't realize it? She quickly ducked behind a barrel when the businessman suddenly turned around, suspecting a follower, and then she came out of her hiding spot when he began walking again.

She suddenly feared for Scud's life when the two guards pulled automatic weapons into view. Ulyena prepared to spring into actions and defend him, because one: she was hungry, and two: she didn't want Scud getting hurt, but everything changed when she saw him taking a large sledgehammer to everything in Blade's workshop. He was smashing up his own creations, Whistler's gun cabinet; everything. Scud stopped when he reached her luggage and stared at her open suitcase for a moment before tossing the sledgehammer aside. He picked up a brick and lunged it through the windshield of Blade's Charger, and then looked at the businessman. "Fuck that felt good."

The businessman smiled politely. "Are you ready to go? Blade and the old man are still unconscious, and they sent for you."

How did Scud know Damiskinos? She gasped as she realized that Scud didn't only know about him, but he was probably a familiar.

Scud lit up a joint. "Did you guys find her? Is Ulyena there, too?"

"No, but Damiskinos has no doubt that she'll find her way there." The businessman shook his head slightly. "I'm surprised, Joshua. You actually said her name instead of calling her by a letter. Do you really love this woman?"

"Shut up, she's special. And I told you not to call me that."

"How many times do I have to tell you, Joshua? She doesn't love you. Damiskinos said that she's not designed for that."

"How would you know?" Scud yelled. "How do you know what she feels? Maybe I'm so sick and tired of being ignored that I believe that someone could actually love me! I get treated like shit, and she treats me like I actually mean something in this fucked up world!"

"Joshua…"

"I said don't fucking call me that anymore."

"As I was saying," the businessman continued. "You mean something. That's why you were chosen for this. You went through pain and suffering to earn Blade's trust, and because of that, you are respected. Most of the vampires won't even get close enough to speak to Blade, let alone live with him."

"Well, if that's supposed to make me feel better, it doesn't. I only want to know if she's okay."

"I'm sure she is. Now, let's go so we can find out, shall we?"

Scud took a deep breath and glanced at her luggage one more time. "Alright. I'm ready."