Author's notes:

2021-10-02: Hey, here's a short preview of the upcoming chapter of the story. I want you to know what I'm currently working on. On a bit more personal note, I don't know why but I seem to be unable to write longer chapters in the most recent history. Even more to that... I feel like I'm really struggling to write 'My home is where my heart lies' chapters. Maybe... just maybe, it's a temporary thing. Or, maybe I just tried to write too much and kind of burnt out. For now, I'm not entirely sure what's causing the problem; but, I will try to find the reason behind it and solve it.

2021-10-11: Hey, the chapter is finally finished. I would want to say that it has not taken ages to finish... but, tbh it would have been an evident lie. On top of my limited free time, I recently started to have problems focusing on the texts I'm currently working on. Possibly... it's due to the pressure I'm currently under. But I can't say that with certainty. Please, let me know what do you think about the chapter and the story as a whole :D

Don't forget to comment. I really appreciate your feedback.

Note that the dialogues written in italic are thoughts.

As always, I would like to thank you for everything. See you soon :)

Changelog:
[2021-10-02]: A preview was released.
[2021-10-11]: A chapter was fully released.

Info: I will be trying to focus on finishing some of the stories, rewriting some parts.
Info: I have decided to put 'The war call' into its own separate story. There, I will be slowly rewriting it and adjusting. However, it will take me some time to do so.
Info: Overall, the current plan is for me to write 'My home is where my heart lies' and 'Family tree' alternatively. Between the updates of these stories, I will try to upload other texts. Maybe, just maybe, I will be able to finish some of the short stories. However, I truly doubt that. It seems that most if not all of the stories will be extended both in terms of the time and the number of chapters.

Schedule for the nearest future:
1. My home is where my heart lies.
2. Family tree.
3. The rise of the Blood Moons' servants.
4. Fully original story.
5. Story of one lost soul.
6. Will you look past my mistakes?
7. Last Christmas.

Bonuses' section:
A new story taking place in the Warhammer 40k universe.
A story regarding KaiKali (aka Akali x Kai'sa) (Will you look past my mistakes?).
Sometimes it's just better not to know (possibly rewrite).
Kiss the rain (more than likely rewrite).
Whispers in the Dark (extending beyond 2 chapters story).
Story of one lost soul (translation of 2 of my old texts - previously written in polish).
Story of one lost soul: The war call: rewrite.

References:
Ratt - One step away

*bonuses will be worked on when I don't feel like writing the chapters pointed out in the schedule :D

** It is possible for me to change the schedule a little. So stay tuned for the upcoming information.

End of author's notes.

After some time, the full realisation of what she had witnessed put its weight on top of Vayne's shoulders. The officer initially had considered a macabre crime quite quickly rose into a much more complex and dangerous threat. But, unfortunately, the matter so horrible already got even worse.

Frankly, before the raven-haired officer could even notice, she was already back in the expensive vehicle of Miss Tepes. There were a couple of differences between this ride and the previous one. However, the most noticeable was the fact that she was situated on the backseats. The council's leader and Adria were in a constant heated discussion. Sadly, the RDT officer could not understand a thing out of it. It was due to the conversation being held in German. However, even though the raven-haired woman did not know a word in that language, she quickly noticed a minor detail. Whilst Miss Tepes was fluent in German, her agent was clearly not. Her original accent was softening the usually harsh sounding language. Besides that, Adria was speaking much slower, and Akali was required to repeat herself on multiple occasions. Still, both women opted to cut the RDT officer out of that topic, at least for now. After all, as the council's leader had said earlier, they were all in the same boat currently.

"Why can't I return to my office?" Shauna asked after a couple of prolonged minutes of listening to the womens' conversation.

"You'd be the easiest target for anyone who's behind that massacre," the agent replied instantly. She seemed to be thankful for the change of the spoken language. Talking in German must have been quite taxing to the brown-haired woman.

"Out of all people… why would that psycho target me?" the officer asked, seemingly missing some context.

"Let's put it as easy as possible. So… bluntly speaking, whoever did that would target you because you're connected with Miss Tepes. Even though the connection is slim and pretty much marginal, non-existing, it wouldn't matter to that psycho," Dr Michel explained. "But," she hesitated for a moment. "Make no mistake, you'd be just another nameless body carved in his path toward Miss Tepes."

"Ehhh," the grim news drew a heavy sigh out of the RDT officer. "So, maybe another question: why would someone want to challenge Miss Tepes? After all, in every field, that idea sounds like a suicide plan. In the best-case scenario, I'd call it a one-way ticket."

"There might be multiple reasons behind such a commitment," the brown-haired doctor said. "However," she stopped, taking a quick glance at her superior. "I think the greed might be the correct answer. Miss Tepes possessed a lot of resources scattered all over the world. These resources can be money, influence, agents, regular armies, pretty much everything you could think of. And… all of these at Miss Tepes's disposal. A snap of a finger would be enough to cause chaos all over the world. So… I'd assume someone wants that power."

"Still… that psycho will be forced to reveal at some point. That power can't be overtaken without a face-to-face encounter, or at least I don't think so," Shauna provided her point of view.

"It is much more complicated," Akali spoke for the very first time in a couple of minutes. "It is obvious that whoever is responsible for that action will have to kill me. In any other case, I would hunt that person even if it took dozens of years. I have immortality at my disposal; the time is on my side. However, I would not speculate about the final encounter, at least not for some time. As called it, 'psycho' started a game in which each player is set to take action. You can imagine it as some sort of a chess game. His first move has been already performed; now, it is my turn. That 'thing' will wait till I make my move. Of course, in the case of my highly unlikely inactivity, further crimes would soon be committed. With each one… the 'thing' would become more and more daring," the white-haired woman explained the situation.

"You seem awfully unmoved by the whole perspective you've just presented," Vayne dared to point out coldly.

"It is a benefit of being immortal to grow up at a much slower pace," the vampire uttered harshly. "It is crucial for me not to show emotions. Though it does not mean that I do not care about people living under my protection. I consider this whole challenge to be some sort of a riddle. It will take me some time, but it will be inevitably solved. So you can freely put your trust into my words," the crimson-red-eyed leader provided further explanation.

"It isn't wise to doubt Miss Tepes, Vayne," Dr Michel commented in a whisper-like manner.

"Fine," the raven-haired woman sighed out, defeated. "Sorry, I guess my emotions took a better of me. I'll try to follow your orders, though it really sucks that I can't do more."

"Sometimes, you can't really do more," the leader's agent responded.

With no more words needed to be said, the silence was allowed to take back its reign. So their drive continued in silence, only interrupted by the splashing sounds of the passing puddles. With every passing moment, the sunrise was drawing nearer and nearer. The entire length of the night seemed to vanish in a blink of an eye. However, it was not the most frustrating part of the current situation. Far worse was the fact that the next couple of days would be even more taxing for all of them. There was no telling how much sleep would they be allowed to catch in that subsequent period. Even if it were just a nuisance for the white-haired vampire, the same could not have been assumed for Dr Michel and Vayne.

"You will be granted separate rooms inside the council's complex," the red-eyed woman decided to break the silence after some time. "Consider the remnants of today as time for you to catch up some sleep. I will make sure the food will be delivered to your rooms. However, I expect both of you to be in top form in the evening. There are things we will need to discuss. Besides that, plentiful data is waiting for us to go through. Do you understand?"

There was no need for any sort of response. Both human women were simply not given an alternative. All they could do was follow the council's leader's plan. And… it was evident that they were only fed the pieces of information that Miss Tepes had decided to share.

Sometime later:

It was just a matter of time before they reached the council's complex. Miss Tepes had not uttered a single word more throughout their drive. At very first glance, one could say that the council's leader was focusing on driving; however, it would only be an elusive explanation. Realistically thinking, the vampire was adjusting her plan on a fly.

Before they could even stop the vehicle properly, people started to enter the garage. Amongst them, Vayne managed to spot at least a dozen of fully-armed security team members. However, they were only a fraction of the whole party that had come to welcome the council's leader's return. These men and women were all similarly clothed. The exclusive, elegant suits, covered by long dark heavy coats, seemed to be a go-to option for them. Even if a simple question could be born in one's head, such as: who are they? In reality, it would have been a rhetorical question. Considering the current situation, these mysterious figures could only be vampires, the servants of Miss Tepes.

As soon as the council's leader left the car, one of the gathered vampires quickly closed the distance between them. It was a man of an ashen complexion. His long raven hair was pulled back using some gel. The eyes of dark chocolate colour were fixed upon the council's leader. During the walk, he did not blink even once. Instead, the eyes seemed still, as if dead.

"What happened, my lady?" the man asked, bowing gracefully. "You wouldn't have called us if everything was alright. Am I right, Miss Tepes?" he continued. His voice was so deep, rich, as if silken.

"Lucius," Akali greeted the vampire coldly. "It seems we have a situation that will require some finely to be dealt with."

"Then… you're more suitable for that matter than most of us, my lady," Lucius replied, smiling mockingly. "I'd even go as far as to state that you're the best suited for such occurrence."

"You have an audacity; I must admit, Lucius," the council's leader responded emotionlessly. "You have sworn to serve the council, have you not?" she fixed her gaze on the raven-haired man. "If it is too much for you to fulfil… you can consider yourself relived from that troublesome duty. I am more than certain that one of the guardians will be a good replacement."

"You can't strip me from my post!" the raven-haired man hissed. "Members of my family served the council for millennials; you can't take my heritage away from me!" he added, clearly losing his composure.

"So… I would strongly recommend taking the situation seriously!" a cold whisper left Miss Tepes's lips. Even though the sentence was nothing more than a mere whisper, there was clearly a threat hidden behind it. "Can you honour your ancestors' heritage with your devotion?"

"I'll do as you command, Akali," Lucius uttered slowly, bowing before the leader of the council. "I won't disappoint."

"I would not expect you to fail me," Miss Tepes replied entirely emotionlessly. "Please, select 4 guardians whom you can trust with your life. I want them to take a vigil under these two agents of mine. Due to their mortality, they would soon need rest for more than a couple of hours. I expect those 4 you will choose to keep a close watch over them. After my agents awake, I will have a request for you and them. Something special with great importance toward our cause."

"It'll be done as you wish, my lady," the raven-haired vampire responded obediently. Although he tried to keep his composure, he obviously failed to fool the one person he had put that whole act for. "Anything more needs to be taken care of?"

"For now, no," the white-haired vampire uttered simply. "I will have my hands full for at least the next couple of hours. So, I would love not to be disturbed," she added, moving forward, clearly considering the conversation finished. "On the other hand, though… I want Loghain to meet me as soon as possible," the woman uttered coldly.

"Loghain?" Lucius asked, surprised. "I wouldn't put my trust in him… but your request will be taken care of right away."

"Good," Miss Tepes responded emotionlessly. She was still slowly pushing forward, not even turning around to spare a single glance over her speaker. "Escort my agents to their chambers. The other complex services had been already instructed what is required of them."

"Understandable," the raven-haired man said quietly.

With nothing more to say, the council's leader sped up, quickly vanishing from Vayne's sight. The RDT officer felt uneasy, surrounded by the council's servants. After all, the feeling was evidently understandable; Miss Tepes left both Dr Michele and her with the guards and the vampires. In a sought of some sort of validation or assurance, the raven-haired woman looked at Adria. One of the few logical thoughts residing currently in her mind suspected the agent of knowing more about the situation. However, it quickly turned out not to be the case. Dr Michel established eye contact only to shrug nonchalantly, silently expressing her lack of additional intel. Apparently, Miss Tepes's agent had been thrown into this situation as unprepared as Shauna.

"Pity, I expected to learn something more," the RDT officer thought.

Dissatisfied with the situation, Vayne averted her gaze off Dr Michel, trying to look around a bit more. Soon enough, her eyes were fixed upon the dark-haired vampire who was brave enough to mock against Akali. After the council's leader had left the garage, the man seemed to freeze visibly. He was standing still, frowning from time to time.

"Take them to the assigned chambers," Lucius threw toward the security members. "I have other things to take care of."

The vampire did not intend to wait for any sort of response. Instead, without uttering a word more, he decided to take his leave, gesturing extensively toward his kinsmen. Only a few of them opted to follow Lucius's lead whilst the rest focused on Miss Tepes's two agents. A small woman came closer within the next couple of moments.

"I'm Sarath," she introduced herself briefly. "We'll take care of you as Miss Tepes has requested… cause, as you can see, this worm decided to disregard the clear order. Worry not, though; my men and I'll take you to the assigned rooms and make sure your food arrives on time," she added, bowing slightly.

"Can I have a question?" Shauna dared to ask.

"I'm sure you have plenty of them; however, currently, it isn't the best time for this type of conversation," Sarath responded instantly, eyeing the RDT officer.

"Alright," Dr Michel exclaimed. "Let's not delve deeper into that matter, Vayne. When we rest – at least a little – there will be plenty of time for asking questions. For now, tho, please take us to these chambers you've mentioned earlier."

The small vampire nodded slightly, pointing out at the long corridor that marked the garage's exit. The gesture spoke louder than the words. So… there was no need for the remaining night hunter to say anything at all. As expected, the moment the blond-haired woman moved forward, remaining vampires followed her in utter silence. It was a clear sign for Vayne and Adria to move alongside them. All they could do was to exchange the looks and then catch up to the slowly proceeding party before them. Cause it was their only available option, they did so without delving too much into conflicted thoughts.

Vayne's POV (late evening – the same day):

Before she was allowed to return from Morpheus's realm, it was already dark behind the thick, glassy windows. Nearly unthinking, the piece of technology was grabbed from the elegant ebony nightstand on her right. The display flared up within a fraction of a second, informing Vayne about the current time. A quiet curse was drawn from her slightly tightened throat once the realisation hit her. She had been sleeping for the past 10+ hours. First, though, it was necessary to note that the raven-haired was unable to pin the moment she had fallen asleep onto the timeline. Regardless of that, the exhaustion she had been building up and storing within her fragile frame for the past 3 weeks must have finally taken its toll on her. Due to the split-second decision, the mobile was thrown onto a comfy bed. The same bed she had been occupying for the majority of the current day.

At least a couple of prolonged moments passed before Shauna mustered enough strength to stand up. Then, without thinking too much, she opted to come to the bathroom.

"I must look horribly," the raven-haired officer thought as she slowly approached the bathroom.

The lights had been switched off, which resulted in severely reducing the woman's vision. Vayne countered it by using her phone to light up the path before her. Still, it has taken her more time than she had suspected.

As soon as she reached the bathroom, the light system installed there switched on. Therefore, it must have detected her movement and acted according to its implemented features. Nevertheless, the change was wordlessly welcomed by Shauna. Nearly immediately, she chose to close the distance between her and the full-body mirror located at the back of the room. The quiet gasp of appreciation was drawn once she took a closer look at the item. To describe it simply, it was beautiful. The mirror was built into the wall. Its frame was covered in mysterious grooves that, at first glance, seemed to be placed there randomly. Finally, though, after a couple of moments of looking closely into the lines graved into the deep brown wood, it began making sense. Those engrave were telling a story of an unknown origin; however, the officer was fairly certain that it had to be connected with vampires. Still, regardless of what it tried to tell, it was a master crafter item.

The raven-haired officer redded up a little when her gaze finally settled on the flawless surface of the mirror. The realisation of her being half-naked struck nearly instantly. She had been sleeping only in her undies for the past 10+ hours without even noticing it. As previously stated, it must have been the result of her recent disregard of her limits. It would not have been a surprise if she had just gone to sleep, striping out the clothing. Frankly, it would have made a lot of sense, giving clear reasoning behind her the scattered pieces of clothing laying all around the bathroom.

Regaining her composure took her a couple of good moments. A heavy sigh was allowed to pass through her slightly parted lips in the meantime. As expected previously, she looked kind of horrible. The bags under her eyes were huge. After her makeup had worn out, it left the signs of her fatigue pretty much visibly for everyone.

"It's going to be a lovely night; I'm pretty sure of that," the raven-haired officer allowed herself to complain deep inside her mind.

"Aria, can you hear me?" Vayne called more out of curiosity than of necessity.

"Miss Vayne, how can I be of service?" the AI replied nearly instantly. Even though Shauna had witnessed the sound previously, the synthetic voice of the AI caused a shiver to run down her spine.

"How can I turn on the light system in my room?" the RDT officer asked the very first question that came to her mind. Frankly, it was a stupid one, but it was a question nevertheless.

"It is very simple," Adria sounded once again. "You can change the settings just by demanding the change. The system has been already adjusted to recognise your voice, Miss Vayne," the AI informed a little dumb-struck officer.

"Is it some sort of a joke?" Shauna asked without even thinking. "You've adjusted the system to recognise my voice? Shouldn't it take more than a couple of hours and quite a lot of voice samples?" she asked, confused.

"The adjustment is pretty much straightforward," the artificial voice announced. "However, you are right with the statement that it requires quite a lot of samples. Regardless of that requirement, we had enough footage to proceed with the process."

"How? You've been recording everything I've spoken since I had arrived here, haven't you?" the raven-haired woman wanted to know.

"But, of course, Miss Vayne," the AI replied without wasting a moment. "I am programmed to record all the conversations happening within the complex and seek through possible threats. In your case, though, it tuned out the process was twice as productive as usual."

"Ehhh," the RDT officer sighed heavily, hiding her face in her hands. "I guess… I can't do anything about it, can I?" she threw a question. However, it was more of a rhetorical question cause she was already expecting the answer.

"You would need to gain the additional privileges to change the current protocols," Aria uttered emotionlessly. "Currently, only Miss Tepes has the required access level to do so."

"Splendid!" Vayne allowed herself to complain, throwing her hands spectacularly into the air. "Ehhh… never mind," she added, sighing. "Can I at least get some fresh clothes? Mine outfit is currently drenched in sweat and gross."

"You have been provided with the new clothing, Miss Vayne," the AI responded. "You can find it inside the wardrobe. To guarantee your comfort, we have obtained the same pieces of clothing."

"What about food? I thought I heard Miss Tepes assuring that we'll be provided with it as well," Shauna uttered, clearly dissatisfied with something.

"But, of course," the synthetic voice replied back. "What would you want to order? The full catalogue can be found near your bed. If you want to speed the process up, I can select something for you. The estimated time of delivery is around 10 to 15 minutes. Nearly everything presented in the catalogue has been prepared earlier and deep-frozen."

"Can you request the meal to be delivered into Miss Tepes's office?" Vayne asked, massaging her still-tired eyes. "I've wasted enough time already, and… there's still a lot of work to be done."

"Not a problem, Miss Vayne. The order was made; the ETA is 15 minutes. So you are free to proceed to Miss Tepes's office," Aria informed.

"Thank you," the RDT officer whispered under her breath.

Vayne's POV (a couple of minutes later):

If not for the business she had left unfinished, she would have much rather stayed inside the shower stall. The pleasurably warm yet not hot water had done wonders to her exhausted, tensed up body. It had been such an incredible sensation that it had been pretty challenging to shorten it up. Still, as she was telling herself, there was too much work to be done. And… frankly, she would not have felt great knowing that everyone was working their asses off whilst she would have been taking a pleasurable shower.

Thanks to the advanced lifting system installed inside the council's complex, getting between points A and B was as effortless as it possibly could be. It must have been noticed that the usage of that system was still leaving the raven-haired woman in a conflicted state. Of course, it was caused by the sheer, incredible speed the system was operating. Nevertheless, her stomach was hurting her. It was partially due to the recent travel, partially due to her hunger. At some point, the officer allowed herself to daydream about the delicious food that possibly was already waiting for her to arrive.

With a little help from the AI, it was just a matter of time before she reached her destination. But, once again, she stood still right before Miss Tepes's doors, looking at them, conflicted. To some extent, one could call it a Deja Vue cause the same exact moment had happened just yesterday.

For a couple of prolonged moments, the raven-haired officer was arguing with herself whether it was the right thing to knock or just enter the room. Considering her previous encounter with the council's leader, it would have been a much safer choice to knock. Once she came to that conclusion, it was high time to turn words into action.

Vayne knocked gently three times then took a few steps back. Surprisingly, a gulp of unknown origin formed in her throat, pressuring it.

At first, nothing happened. A minute or so might have passed without any sort of reaction. Then, Shauna started to get worried. To calm herself down, she decided to knock once again.

"Maybe she didn't hear it; I should try to put a little more strength into it," she thought, coming to the doors once again.

The moment she was about to hit the wooden frame of the entrance, one of the wings opened. The RDT officer, driven more by her instinct than rational thinking, jumped back. Just a moment later, a woman walked through the doors. However, the figure that emerged from it was not the one Vayne had expected. The raven-haired woman was not expecting Miss Tayaki to be present tonight in the council's leader's office. Mia was wearing a long dark nightdress with a thin, light-coloured bathrobe put over it. Another minor detail that was spotted by Vayne was a small smile playing on the kissable lips of the Asian woman.

"Miss Tayaki… I haven't been expecting you here tonight," Shuna mumbled quietly as some sort of a greeting.

"As expected, Shauna," Mia responded immediately. "I hope your rest was uninterrupted?" she asked politely.

"Yes, no one has interrupted my sleep. Though, I'd rather want someone to do so. I've slept for more than 10 hours. Which… in our current situation is pretty ridiculous," she told Miss Tepes's assistant.

"It is understandable considering your past couple of weeks," Miss Tayaki uttered. "It will let you go see Miss Tepes. She is expecting you… and have a good evening, Shauna," she added before moving forward.

Within the next couple of moments, the raven-haired woman had the opportunity to take a closer look. The black lacy choker that Mia had yesterday was gone, and two small fresh wounds could be spotted on her shapely neck. "Hmmm… Miss Tepes must have been craving for some fresh blood, apparently." Still, it was not the most out-of-the-place detail she managed to spot. The Asian woman was slightly flushed over her pretty face. Even though the light makeup was covering her blush quite effectively, Vayne had managed to notice that detail. Her breathing pattern was shallow, uneven. More than that, Miss Tayaki's clothes were crumpled as if firstly discarded without any regard and then put on in a hurry.

"Is she giving Miss Tepes more than just her blood? Is she giving Akali her body as well?" the raven-haired woman thought. "Frankly speaking, Miss Tepes wouldn't have to do much to attract someone. Maybe… just maybe, it's the case?"

As Mia's footsteps started to fade away in the distance, the conflicted officer pressed forward into the lair of her demon.