2. H O L Y W A R : Peacekeepers

CHAPTER VII

"You have to knock her out!" Zechariah shouted, leaping to his feet. "She can transform—"

But his warning came too late: Venganza was already shifting into her "flock of bats" form. Finishing the metamorphosis in seconds, Venganza burst upward from the ground, easily slipping away from Carrie and the Felinians. She reformed in midair and surveyed the scene: Carrie and Zill had destroyed all of her minions, and the latter was locked in a one-on-one with Simon.

Venganza narrowed her eyes and snapped, "Simon! Here!"

Simon immediately broke away from his fight with Zill (which he had been winning) and trotted over to his mistress. "What, I can't finish teachin' the kid another lesson?" he asked her, smirking and licking his paw.

Ignoring his quip, Venganza gave Zechariah a victorious smile. "Looks like I've won this round, Zechariah," she gloated. She fake-pouted and added, "A shame."

"You've not won yet, Venganza," Zechariah growled, flattening his ears against his head and crouching low to the ground as he prepared to pounce.

Venganza narrowed her eyes. "Choose your next move wisely," she warned, scanning the room for an opportunity to support her bluff. Then her eyes lit up and she said, "Simon? The girl."

Simon grinned, his fangs dripping with Zill's blood, and leapt clear across the room, landing right in front of Cameron, who screamed as he slunk closer.

"No!" Zechariah shouted, streaking toward Simon at lightning speed.

However, Simon saw the attack coming and spun around, countering with a claw to the face.

Zechariah went sprawling, landing on the far side of the room.

"Get away from 'er, ya lil'—ACK!" Carrie gagged as Venganza grabbed the back of her neck and lifted her into the air.

"We're done here, Simon," the queen said curtly. "Let's go."

"Just lemme taste her blood," Simon hissed, moving closer to Cameron. "It's gotta be loaded with fear by now..."

"No!" Venganza snapped. "That fear is meant to be preserved." She tossed Carrie away and repeated, "Let's go."

Simon snarled and sprinted out of the room, teeth bared.

Venganza slowly dissolved into a flock of bats again, fixing her eyes on D'kala and Kia. "You're brave," she told them, sounding begrudgingly impressed. "And rather competent fighters." Then she narrowed her eyes. "But before you enter the fray again... find out just who you're fighting for." With that, she burst apart, vanishing with startling speed.

D'kala and Kia reverted to human form, standing up straight. "Well, that was fun, huh?" Kia said with a grin. "Nothing like a vampire attack at 2 in the morning to get the blood flowing."

D'kala walked over to Zill, who was sitting on the ground and keeping himself propped up with his hands, and pulled him to his feet with a grunt. "Are you alright, Zill?" D'kala asked.

"Eh... I've been better," Zill answered, grimacing. "That guy's got my number. I barely got a hit in." And it was true: Zill was covered in cuts and bruises while Simon had been practically spot-less.

In the meantime, Zechariah walked over to Cameron, a concerned expression on his face. "Are you alright, Miss Cameron?" he asked her.

Cameron remained in a fetal position, eyes wide as she mumbled to herself.