The Shadows Will Come

Chapter 1

The two continue down the streets, walking right past the armed guards of the Noctiphan stronghold. About a mile down the road, they stop in front of an all black apartment with a plethora of windows on the bottom floor and one lonely window towards the roof. Black rose petals line the walls of the tower, stretching up to the top, creating an intimidating pattern. Reaching into his back pocket, Jace pulls out a key with a single black rose at the end. He pushes it into a hidden compartment on the door and twists it first to the right then the left and twice back to the right. After completing the pattern, he removes the key and steps back as the door pops and creaks slowly inward. The two step over the threshold and disappear from view.

Inside, the entrance is covered with roses of all colors and sizes. The vines cling along the walls, surrounding the entryway and adding a fruity scent so as to hide any other mysterious smells that may appear from within. Jace begins to remove his black overcoat as his companion takes off her shoes and walks further into the building. The girl heads towards one of the rooms off to the side of the walkway and starts opening and closing drawers.

"There's some stuff in the upper cabinet," Jace says, entering the room behind the girl. She immediately reaches towards the top drawer and pulls out a bag of sugared pops. "I put them up there to hide them from the guys."

"Yum!" She exclaims, jumping onto Jaces back and kissing his forehead. "Speaking of the guys, where are they? I thought you said this meeting was important."

"I told them to meet here..." Before he can finish speaking, a loud clang sounds from the opposite end of the room.

"Ow, shit!" A deep, male voice exclaims.

"Watch it, you dick!" Another voice replies.

"Hey! Leave it alone, you two," a female voice adds.

"It's his fault," someone says.

"Jace, Aurelia! You guys are back. I thought Aurelia would have bailed." A fourth voice shouts, this time from behind the couple.

"I would much rather be at the bar than hanging out with you fools, but Jace only provides me with a home if I do his bidding," the fire haired girl, Aurelia, replies. The kitchen quickly fills with men and women, both young and old, wearing all sorts of clothes but all sporting a black rose tattoo on some visible part of their body. As soon as everyone is in the room, Jace calls attention to himself and begins explaining the plan to stop the Boswells from encroaching on their territory. The Boswells are an old family who have always had claim on the land on the outskirts of the city, but they have recently started moving in on the city and the Roses territory. The Boswells don't seem to share the same concern towards Jace and Aurelia that the rest of the citizens of the city seem to foster. They continue to challenge them, and now, Jace will respond in full force.

As soon as they finish discussing the plan, the Rose members head for the basement to grab their weapons. Aurelia and Jace stay behind, avoiding the crazed chaos of people fighting over weapons. They head to a room located off the back of the kitchen where Jace reaches behind a large picture frame and retrieves his most valued weapon, his black scythe. His scythe has the design of a rose etched along the side and is about seven feet long. He takes a moment to bask in the beauty of his weapon as it absorbs the light around him, and then he straps it to his back. In addition to his infamous weapon, Jace adds a shotgun with six rounds and a jet black dagger to his weapons inventory. After Jace has collected his favorite weapons, Aurelia steps up to the portrait and pulls out a black hilted sword that is four feet long. The hilt is etched with a rose insignia but that is not the most terrifying part of the weapon. Above the hilt is a blade so sharp and long that it could slice two victims straight through. The blade is a silver that seems to absorb the light, and when Aurelia touches the hilt, flames seem to emerge from within. The contrast between the blade and hilt presents a scene of horror as Aurelia straps the weapon across her back. Then, as if one sword wasn't enough, Aurelia pulls out a twin sword and proceeds to attach it alongside her other weapon. Jace nods appreciatively as Aurelia gives him a menacing smile and continues to gather weapons. She grabs five throwing knives that when placed together create a black rose, and Aurelia hides them behind the billows of her cloak. As she is about to close the portrait, Jace hands her a pistol similar to his. She reluctantly takes the additional weapon, adding it to a hidden holster along her waist.

Once the two have gathered their weapons, they join the others in the entryway, and everyone exits the building, heading out to face their enemies. The Roses have been a gang ever since Jace's father brought them together. They are not a group like the Boswells who are bonded by blood. Instead, they are bonded by loyalty and devotion. Each member has been saved by Jace or his father in one way or another and have devoted their lives to the Rose. They are a cruel people who only care about their own and will slice through anything that gets in their way. They are named the Rose because their victims are said to bleed blood that is as dark as the darkest rose, and for the bloodshed they cause, they are feared by everyone but each other and apparently, the Boswells. The Boswells have threatened a dangerous group and the last thing they will know is the terror of what it is like to face the Rose. The last thing they will see is the dark scythe coming down upon them, destroying their lives.

Jace may be the leader of this group, but Aurelia is by far the most feared. She possesses ancient magic found in people who are meant to live nowhere near Noctiphan. No one knows how she appeared in this city. Jace claims that she landed in front of his house in an orb of light and that is how she came to join the Rose. It is a surprise that someone of her power would possess her skills to kill, considering that she comes from a peaceful people. If Jace's story is true, then he trained her from a young age to kill. Not many have seen her in action and lived to tell the tale, but stories of her power travels through the city. She hardly needs weapons to defeat her enemy but brings them along to make sure her enemy cowers before her. To most it would seem that Jace had created a terrible creature who follows his every command. To those who know her well know that she has a mind of her own and cares, but not about anyone on the planet of Noctiphan. She has told very few of her plans to save her world, but it is known that she will do whatever it takes to get back home and free her people. For some reason, she has kept by Jace even after she outgrew her need for him.