-Lydia's POV-
Several minutes had gone by while my friends and I waited for Nicolae, Drogo, and Peter to return. I watched the entrance to the compound for any sign of movement, becoming more anxious by the minute. I looked over to Sarah, standing to my left, with a worried look on my face. She shrugged her shoulders, but then Elizabeth straightened up and put her hand on Sarah's shoulder, looking forward as she pointed toward the gate with her other hand. I turned my head to see the gate being opened wider. To my horror, I witnessed Nicolae and Drogo supporting Peter's weight between them as soon as they came into view. Suddenly, they appeared right in front of me, and instantly, Peter screamed out in pain. Scared to death by the sound of his voice, with desperation, I asked, "What happened!?" "We don't have time to explain! Everyone, they are coming! Get back to our rendezvous point, now!" Nicolae warned.
My eyes went wide with horror to see Peter continuing to grunt in pain. Nicolae turned his head toward his brother to say, "Drogo, we cannot speed Peter to safety. It's forcing the bullet to move deeper inside him toward his heart." "Bullet!?! Please, tell me what happened to him!" I asked demandingly. Drogo answered quickly and told me by stating, "Peter was shot in the shoulder." A few minutes passed when we finally heard gunshots, and a second later, the tree we were standing next to got hit. Pieces of the bark broke off and fell to the ground. "Everyone, run! Protect yourselves and get out of here!" Nicolae yelled. The witches cast a spell to create an invisible shield wall to block the bullets and arrows from getting through. "That should hold them off for a while!" Cassandra called out. Everyone then turned and ran the opposite direction from where the Templars were aiming at us with their automatic rifles and bows and arrows.
Suddenly, I looked to my right and saw two of the wolves get hit with arrows. Their bodies went down and slid across the ground from the momentum. To my left, two of the witches yelped as they were shot. One got hit in the back, straight through the heart, and the other in the head; both killed instantly. Another of the wolves got hit with an arrow, his body going down just as quickly as the others. I felt something whip past me a second later. Then Sarah, who was running ahead of me, screamed and fell forward, catching herself against a tree. She looked down to see she was hit in the leg behind the knee. Every one of us stopped and looked behind, shocked that we were still being attacked. Breathing heavily from running, Alex yelled to warn us all as he acknowledged the shield wall was still up, but wasn't having any effect against the Templars' weapons.
"TAKE COVER!!!" Sebastian yelled. By that point, he had returned to his human form. It was pointless to continue as a wolf, despite his anger at the loss of his pack brothers and sisters. The trees were thicker the deeper we had come through the forest, so it was easier to stay out of the way, thankfully, but we were stuck and unable to escape. While Alex and Cassandra were trying to help Sarah move behind one of the trees, Nicolae yelled, having seen a bullet flying right into their line of path. "Sarah, look out!!" A couple seconds later, Cassandra moved to position herself behind her granddaughter to block the oncoming lethal projectile. The bullet hit her in the chest. The impact caused her to inhale, her breath catching in her throat as she collapsed. All of the witches, especially her grandchildren, cried out in shock and disbelief. Sarah and Alex tried to catch her body as it fell, but they themselves fell backwards along with her to the ground.
In a moment of anguish, and rage, Sarah screamed at the top of her lungs as she lifted her arm up, filled with adrenaline to boost her magic strength. Without even speaking the chanting words needed for the spell, a wall of fire erupted out of nowhere, following the movement of Sarah's hand in the air. The flames enveloped many of the Templars, causing them to run around in a panic. More of them poured out of their base to join the fight, though. Sarah then dropped her arm to grab at her leg where she was writhing in pain. Seeing his cousin in distress, Alex rested his grandmother's head down gently and moved to the other side of Sarah, keeping his body low to the ground. He then lifted her leg to examine the wound. Even though it was difficult to see in the dark, he was certain it wasn't a normal bullet wound. "It's the runes!... It's the runes on the bullets and arrowheads!" Drogo confirmed. "That's why the magic shield isn't working!" I said, guessing out loud. Some of us tried looking behind us to check the status of our enemy and had to quickly move out of the way as more shots hit the trees we hid behind, and avoided some passing by our heads through the air between the trees as well.
"Nicolae, are you able to use your mind control and get them to turn on each other?" Marco asked as he raised his voice to be heard by all of us from ten feet away. He had also turned back into human form, which was harder for the enemy to target. Nicolae responded, saying, "I could try, but there are too many of them, even with the fire holding them back. It seems we miscalculated how many of them there really were." I noticed both Sarah and Peter were starting to lose consciousness. With being tied down, unable to escape without more of us getting injured or killed, the situation was becoming more dangerous. Something had to be done to turn the tides of the battle we were in. Looking around, I saw there was a creek nearby, so I decided to lean forward and crawl towards it. "Lydia, what are you doing!?" Nicolae asked, worried for my safety. "Trust me." Those who were close by yelled for me to be careful since the lethal objects were still moving through the air at an alarming speed.
I slid my body close to the edge of the bank in the wet soil, getting mud on my clothes the closer I came to reaching my goal. I extended my arm out and put my hand in the cold water and closed my eyes, praying for the siren ability within me to come forth. The once still water began to have ripples form and spread out. Opening my eyes, I smiled as I could sense it was working. The ground began to shake beneath us. Ludovica yelled out, asking, "What's going on?" The next minute, I felt Nicolae's presence within my mind, seeking to learn what plan I was currently executing. I showed him the image in my mind's eye as I stood up. "Lydia, NO!! Get Down!!!" Sebastian pleaded with me out loud. A moment later, one of the Templars aimed his rifle in my direction and pulled the trigger. Before the bullet hit me, though, wings appeared and wrapped around my body to protect me from harm.
As the morning sun began to rise, my family and friends stared in awe. The Templars soon focused all of their attention on me as well, but failed to pierce through my defenses. Feeling the power gradually strengthen, my body slowly raised up into the air. I could feel both sirens' powers emerging together. The air vibrated as the wind and mist picked up around us. "The air smells humid. What is happening?" Marco asked with desperate curiosity. "She's going to break the dam!" Nicolae realized as he spoke out to let those of us still alive know what was about to happen. "WHAT!?! How!?" "Yes, and it's working! I can hear the water pressure pushing against the dam. The stone is cracking as we speak," Nicolae replied with amazement. I could sense everyone's astonishment, but knew I had not yet reached my full potential, the current strength not being powerful enough to succeed in my mission.
With my arms stretched out and my head lifted up, I reached deep within my soul for the last remaining bit of energy I needed. My hair blew in the wind around me as the dam finally crumbled. "She did it!!" Nicolae cried out. "LOOK!!!" Elizabeth shouted as she pointed towards the peak of the mountain. I opened my eyes, seeing the river break through, enveloping everything in its path, like roaring waves of chaos. I focused my mind to guide the flood of water toward the direction of the compound. Many of the Templars trembled with fear and tried to run away, seeing their end was coming upon them. Alex, Elizabeth, and the rest of the witches then blocked them off by increasing the strength of Sarah's spell. The flames rose and moved swiftly across the ground, creating a larger wall. Many of the vehicles parked nearby caught fire and exploded. The men who were standing close to all of the trucks were thrown backwards from the force of the explosions, their bodies landing on the ground burned and unmoving.
The waves came crashing through with sheer force from the power of will I possessed. The avalanche left everything in mass destruction. My body slowly lowered to the ground as the last of the Templars drowned and were washed away. The water level soon lowered to its natural flow, like nothing ever happened. Everyone turned to me, shocked and amazed. All of them were filled with relief and gratitude. Brought back to reality, I noticed how pale Peter and Sarah looked. Nicolae shared my concern and claimed with urgency, saying, "We have to get back to base as quickly as possible if we are going to have any chance of saving their life." The witches worked together to put the dam back together with magic. I looked around at the result of my actions. Completely drained of energy, I started to feel my legs lose strength and was unable to continue standing up on my own. Nicolae moved to my side and caught me before I collapsed to the ground. My vision went blurry, so I tried blinking my eyes and shaking my head. "Lydia...," Sebastian started to say as he approached. "No, I'm okay," I replied, trying to sound convincing. "No, you're not," Nicolae stated, undeterred by my attempt to give positive assurance of my condition. Realizing too late that he was right, I lost consciousness.
The next thing I remember was waking up in bed. It took a moment for my brain to contemplate my whereabouts, but realized I was in the cabin for our alliance. Placed on the nightstand next to me on the left was a glass of water. I sat up slowly to avoid feeling a sudden dizziness and took a deep breath. I reached over for the glass and drank from it, feeling refreshed. A moment later, I heard the door creak open, and then saw Elizabeth peek her head in. "Oh, good, you're awake. I just came in to check on you. Thank goodness you're all right." "Where is Peter and Sarah?" I asked desperately. She frowned before answering, "They're alive, but only barely. The venom from the bullets is spreading throughout their bloodstream. We are all waiting and assisting Alex with finding an antidote for the both of them." "I have to see them!" I demanded as I tried to get out of bed. As soon as I stood up, my legs gave out and I fell back onto the edge of the bed. "Wait! Your mana energy hasn't had enough time to fully replenish yet." She turned to call for Nicolae. He came and asked how I was. "She is still a bit weak, so I thought maybe you can help her move around." I spoke up, reiterating my request, and he accepted as he moved past Elizabeth to enter the room and come to my aid.
Walking into the other bedroom, I gasped at the sight of the two most important people in my life. Drogo stood up from the chair he was sitting in and came up to us to inform me that they were able to get the bullets out and stop the bleeding, but it was the poison everyone was concerned about. The venom was visible on the surface of their skin. Sickly blackened shades of green lines forked and spread out like veins from the point of where the bullets penetrated their flesh. I couldn't stand the sight of them in that state. Tears quickly filled my eyes and I begged Nicolae to help me out of the room. With a sympathetic grin, he nodded and led me out to sit at the dining room table while he fixed me something to eat. Drogo followed behind to join us. I looked up to see Sebastian exiting from the room where Alex was hard at work. He walked into the kitchen to get himself a glass of whiskey and sat down at the table with us.
"How is it going in there?" Nicolae asked Sebastian. With a sigh, he answered, "Another failed test again, but Alex mentioned that there are plenty more alterations of the chemicals he can do to get a positive balance and create a working antidote. He's been awake for more than forty eight hours, so I just gave him an energy drink to stay alert and be able to continue his work with a clear head." At that moment, Nicolae brought me a bowl of soup he had made for me and a glass of water, and then sat down in the chair next to mine. Desperate to learn the details, I turned toward my brothers and asked once more for Drogo and Nicolae to tell me what really happened out there while I ate my soup.
"We managed to get inside where they kept the dagger, and retrieved it along with these...," Drogo said as he stood up and pulled out the contents of what he had remaining in his pockets and dumped them on the table. Picking up an arrowhead and bullet, one at a time, I turned them around in my fingers to look at the engravings cut into them. Continuing with his tale, he explained, "What had happened when we reached the door to escape happened so fast and unexpectedly, even for us vampires. We didn't know, at first, why neither Peter or I could sense there was anyone else in the building. I heard the gunshot just as Peter opened the door. The bullet hit him just above the shoulder blade. As I turned around to see where it came from, Peter's body was flung into the air through the door from the force of impact. I tried to rush up the stairs, but something prevented me from moving more than what is humanly possible. The man reached for his radio and managed to warn his fellow Templars that vampires had invaded the compound and stolen the dagger before I could get to him. I finally reached him, and thankfully, I was still strong enough to grab and twist his arm, causing him to drop the pistol he had in his hand. The gun dropped to the floor with a loud clang, so I kicked it out of the way. He struggled to fight against me, but I managed to gain the upper hand, wrapping my arms around his head. I bent him backwards and succeeded in breaking his neck."
"And when I saw that Peter had been shot, I ran up to the entrance to catch him," Nicolae added. I just shook my head in disbelief, unable to say a single word in response. Continuing, he said, "Drogo came down and stopped at the foot of the stairs, seeming to have difficulty breathing. It was then I realized mandrake particles were in the air inside the building, so I warned him to get out as soon as possible." "Mandrake!?" I said, shocked by the revelation. "Yes, it is one of the two elements vampires are weak against, along with werewolf blood." "So not only can a werewolf bite kill you, but so can their blood and the mandrake root?" "That's right! We're immortal, yes, but not indestructible," Drogo answered. "Peter was hit with a bullet filled with liquified mandrake mixed with werewolf blood. We have seen bullets similar to these in the past," Nicolae noted. "You say 'similar' like you mean these are not exactly the same," I guessed by reading the tone of his voice. "Yes, that is correct. Alex concluded that the original antidote will have no effect because of these runes, so he is working hard to upgrade the original to match what is needed, scientifically that is. Magic is of no use in this case." "What does that mean? What are these engravings?" I asked, confused.
Everyone in the large room went silent. Sebastian then spoke up to answer me by saying, "They are anti-magic runes." "What!? I... I don't understand," I asked, beginning to stutter as I felt a panic attack coming on. Sebastian stood up from his chair and came over to where I sat in order to comfort me and try to get me to calm down, seeing I was in distress from hearing the terrible news. "It means that the arrowheads with silver nitrate and wolfsbane can now kill a wolf shapeshifter. The bullets with the mandrake and werewolf blood not only can kill a vampire now, but also a witch when infused with the anti-magic into the witch's blood, which is filled with magic. It is draining Sarah's lifeforce," Nicolae warned me. I couldn't hold back from sobbing anymore and I struggled to say, "This isn't happening!... They c−can't die!... Oh, please... Don't let them die!.... I just can't... I can't bear to live without my husband, nor my best friend." I leaned my head against Sebastian and continued to cry, my heart nearly broken.
After a few minutes of the men around me letting me cry it out. I looked up to see that each of them, along with Sarah's cousins, were also shedding tears. Nicolae reached over and handed me a kleenex box and then got up and walked into the living room to offer it to the girls sitting on the couch as well. We all shared the same fears for the fate of our loved ones and friends. Elizabeth then stood up, and holding her hands out, she encouraged her cousin and sister to join her in prayer to Gaia. The witches then began to chant among themselves a prayer of blessing for both Sarah and Peter. "I hate this waiting game!" I admitted in frustration. Suddenly, I felt a movement in my belly, and instinctively put my hand to my stomach and looked down. Looking back up, I realized it was already too late. For I had revealed my condition to those who saw what I just did and didn't already know my secret.
"Lydia, are you.... Are you pregnant?" Sebastian asked as he let go of his arms around me and moved to the side, turning my chair to face him. He knelt down in front of me to be at eye level, forcing me to have no other choice but to confess, with the way he was looking at me. "Yes, I am." "And you knew before we left for Canada, didn't you?" he said, obviously having easily figured me out by reading me like an open book. I lowered my head, feeling guilty. "Yes, she knew," Nicolae admitted on my behalf. Drogo slapped the back of his hand against his brother's arm while asking, "You knew as well? Why didn't you say anything?" "It was Lydia's choice to hide her condition, knowing everyone would've tried to prevent her from going with us." "Shouldn't Peter, Lorie, and I have sensed its presence, though?" "Yes, but it was I who shielded the sound of the child's heartbeat to prevent that from happening. It was by her request that I did so," Nicolae confessed.
Marco pushed himself up from leaning against the kitchen counter and moved away to come stand next to Sebastian, who then stood up himself as well. He put an arm around Sebastian's shoulders while holding a glass of whiskey in his free hand. "I drink to you, Lydia. If not for your interference, and at the precise moment you acted upon your instincts when you did, many of us, if not all, would not be standing here right now. We are indebted to you," Marco proclaimed, saluting me with his glass. Sebastian reached for his drink on the table and did the same, agreeing with what he had to say. "Yes, we are all very thankful for what you did back there." Everyone around stopped what they were doing to join in on the praise. "But too many of us died. I should've been quicker to react, and I could've prevented their deaths!" "Do not trouble yourself, Lydia. Fate had decided it was their time," Ludovica advised.
Still unconvinced, I sighed with grief at the loss of our friends. Drogo then spoke up to reassure me, saying, "None of us could've predicted that the Templars had new weapons to use against us, let alone ones with anti-magic." "Agreed, no one could have foreseen that. Therefore, no one is at fault, especially not you, Lydia. You saved us, and at the same time, you had just removed the entire Templar faction in all of North America," Nicolae stated, relaying how important and huge of an impact it really was. I was thankful for their thoughts and sighed with a grin on my face. "I think I'm okay to be with Peter once more. Sebastian, will you help me to the room, please?" I asked him. He graciously replied, saying, " Of course, I will." Taking my arm, he helped me stand up from the chair and guided me slowly toward the room. Once I reached Peter's side, Sebastian let go to pull a chair up for me to sit as close to the bed as possible. "Thank you." "You're welcome. I will have Elizabeth see to replacing these bowls of water and the damp cloths," he said as he picked them up in each hand.
I thanked him once again as he walked out to summon Elizabeth. She swiftly came in with replacements and set the bowls down on both end tables. I thanked her as I took the cloth sitting in the bowl next to me in my hands and squeezed the excess water back into the bowl. Leaning over, I started to wipe the sweat off of Peter's skin, applying the cool wet cloth to his face and neck. Elizabeth did the same as she tended to Sarah. Both my friend and husband grunted in their unawakening sleep. I picked Peter's hand up to hold in both of mine as I lifted it up to my face, resting my lips against the edge of his hand. "Hold on, my love, just a little longer. Stay with me... I need you," I said quietly. A moment later, I was overwhelmed with exhaustion, so I leaned over and rested my head over my arm on the bed next to him. Unintentionally falling asleep in the process.
I wasn't sure how long I stayed in that position, but I woke to someone yelling from the other side of the cabin. "I GOT IT!!!" My body shot up in an upright position as I realized it was Alex's voice I was hearing. He burst into the room, holding two syringes in his hands, and looked at me with excited accomplishment. "I did it! I have the antidote," he claimed. He then hurried over to Peter's side first since his condition was more severe, having been injured for a longer period of time and the wound being above his heart. Alex injected the needle into Peter's chest where it was most critical to have the cure enter into his system. He then moved to the other side of the bed where Sarah laid next to Peter. He injected the medicine into her leg where the poison was doing the most damage. Everyone joined around the room and in the doorway as we all watched with hopeful relief, waiting to see any change for the better. Sarah blinked her eyes open, being the first to stir and show a sign of recovery. I took hold of Peter's hand once more, praying he would recover as well. A minute that seemed to last a lifetime had gone by before I felt him squeeze my hand. I released the breath I was, apparently, holding without realizing. Chuckling and crying at the same time, I said out loud that he was going to be alright, and everyone rejoiced at the good news. Seeing his eyes flutter open and then turn his head in my direction, I breathed a huge sigh of relief and smiled at my beloved.