It was silent, the world before me. I felt cold, numb, lost. Hurt. I had been injured, terribly wounded. I couldn't feel the pain, but my subconscious refused to believe the serenity of it all. I'm hurt, I know it. I could feel myself at the brink of death, lost and alone. Even as I'm unconscious, I felt strong. Like all the power in the world belonged to me, yet I couldn't move a muscle. A force caged the remains of my soul into the body, as it began to work it's devilish charm. A dark, evil magic coursed through my veins, repairing the damage inflicted with its cold touch. It held no warmth nor life, yet it was, ironically, reviving me.
Slowly, as my body began to mend itself, my senses were coming back to me. First, the pain. The sharp, agonising stinging in my chest, which still hurt but thankfully lessened with every moment my body began to regenerate. Then, my sense of touch. The soft, plush carpets that embraced my damaged and lifeless self. My hearing returned, allowing me to acknowledge my frail, slow beating heart, which strengthened with every second that passed. My sense of smell . . . my sight . . .
My eyes met with a very white wall, no, a ceiling. I blinked a few times before trying to sit up. I groaned as pain exploded through me. Annoyed, I searched myself for the cause of my agony. A wooden object was pierced through my skin, half of it sunk into my chest. With great difficulty, I grasped the weapon and pulled it out. I stared at the, now crimson, object in my hand.
What happened to me? I looked around the room and stiffened. The memories of what happened flooded through my mind. With Rose, we were talking, the kiss, pain . . . She did this to me, but why? Wait, where is she? I couldn't sense her around. I looked down at the makeshift stake in my hands. It was a chair leg, I could tell by the rounded end. My gaze shifted to the broken chair, abandoned in the corner. I hadn't noticed it before, but now that I did, it seemed so obvious and it shocked me how I hadn't spotted it before.
I underestimated her strength. Even in her weakened state, she managed to overpower me. I can't let her go now, she's too valuable. Her strength is admirable and it's something I need to obtain to succeed at overcoming Galina and gaining immense power, I am very sure---
A loud bang outside of the room caught my attention, causing me to rush to my feet, alert. Marlen was on guard, against his will, as usual, and he seriously hates Rose. After surviving at the mercy of a dhampir, his status here has really plummeted to the worst. I'm surprised Galina hasn't killed him already for being so weak. I'm surprised no other guardians have managed to hunt him down yet too. The problem here was that guardians use weapons to kill Strigoi, and right now, Rose is probably weaponless. He was out there, most likely with Rose.
This is bad, Rose is in trouble, I can't let her die! I typed in the combination with quick fingers and opened the door, running through the narrow corridor. Marlen stood facing the second door, his bloodied fists pounded against something stained in blood. Rose? I shifted closer and realised it was the door he was charging into, in an attempt to break it down. Rose was nowhere in sight. I wasn't sure whether that was a good thing or bad one.
"Where is she?" I demanded.
"She got out." I grinned, thankful I couldn't smell her blood as it meant that she's still alive.
"Wait, she trapped you here didn't she." My words were mocking, and I already guessed what his answer may be.
"She did much more damage to you." He pointed at my blood stained shirt, clearly angered by my words.
"But she beat you without even having a weapon. You don't deserve to live as a strigoi, you insult my species." I shoved him out of the way and typed in the second code. The door had been dented and bruised by Marlen's fists, but the lock still surprisingly flashed green and granted access.
I pushed past it and stiffened. I couldn't catch her scent. Marlen briefly ran past me, panicked, but I ignored him. Wherever Rose was, she could take him down easily. How long had I been 'knocked out'? Why did she do this? Why does she want to escape, she has everything her! Why bother, she can't ever escape here. She'll either be killed or awakened, doesn't she realise this? I didn't have much time to ponder this, I needed to find her. But there were too many human scents that interfered, making it harder to track Rose.
She would search for a weapon first, I know that. My pockets were lighter than they usually were and I reached into them. Empty. The money and keys were missing. I had expected that for some reason, maybe it's because I knew her so well. She must have taken them with her to use if needed, while I had been unconscious. I know that once awakened, I will be able to rely on her to support me for all eternity.
She must have gone to the vault! I had mentioned it once in her presence, and the fact that her stake was there. Well, not hers but a stake at least. It didn't make a difference if it was hers or not, it was still a weapon. A very lethal one against us. I used my Strigoi speed to get there. I stood still and stealthily crept towards the vault, but she wasn't there. I was too late. The door had been left slightly open, and my keys were on the lock. I pulled them out and pocketed them, I may need them later. They were definitely my keys, I could tell by the accessories and chains that hung from it. Rose had certainly been here, but now she wasn't, and that worried me the most. Her alone against sixty odd Strigoi? She'd have no chance.
A sweet scent drifted through my nostrils. A very familiar one that made my eyes glow in excitement and victory. A beautiful mix between her scent, the faint fragrance of her shampoo and sweat. Rose, she was nearby. So very close. I used it her scent to track her down and in seconds, I stood in front of the library. There was a fight going on, I could tell by the the fury filled growls and grunts of pain and rage. But it was the sudden scream that caught my attention. A scream I recognised all too well.
Whoever it was, they're going to have to face my wrath! They're hurting Roza, and they'd kill her if I'm not there to protect her. I pushed through the doors. My eyes widened at the scene before me. A snarl erupted from my throat, grasping their attention and momentarily breaking the fight. I bared my fangs at them, eyes narrowed. Galina was going to kill Rose. They were fighting, trying to kill each other, and it looked like Galina was very close to winning. If she dies, I won't be able to kill Galina without being at risk of dying myself. I won't be the strongest of the strong either without Rose as a reliable asset to my upcoming organisation, which is what I have wanted since awakening.
I lunged towards Galina, using the element of shock to my advantage. They were both equally surprised, expecting me to attack Rose which was . . . understandable. I may not like Galina, but our instincts usually make us favour other Strigoi over dhampirs. I had defied this, which even shocked me. I fought, whilst dodging her attacks, with the intent of just surviving. Someone like Galina was a challenge. Too difficult for me to face alone. Even at my strength and power, she can take me down. It's why I have been training for so long, why I had prepared for this moment. Now that I have headed towards trouble, I can't back down now. Not without facing death.
Rose has a silver stake, she can kill Galina for me. Without making it too obvious, I attempted to restrain Galina in a way that would expose her chest towards Rose. Hoping she would listen, I called her. "Rose!" She turned towards me and we briefly made eye contact. I silently pleaded for her to understand, and thankfully, she did. At the academy, just by eye contact, our thoughts would be conveyed, We were too alike to not understand each other's thinking and it hasn't changed after my awakening. I had been too arrogant and foolish to not try to understand Rose's escape plan when she had first considered it. That was giving me the trouble of rushing into my own plans and trying to forcibly awaken her.
It was tough, keeping the Strigoi incapacitated. Galina kept trying to escape my grip, and attack me; it took a lot for me to restrain her and turn her slightly, but not enough for her to notice. Rose lunged forward, stake poised dangerously towards Galina. The stake was going to pierce her heart---
A sudden force caused me to stumble to the side and slam into Rose. Stunned, I turned to the new threat before me, the old one forgotten. Nathan had pushed me, he stood tall and glared at me with anger fueled eyes, flashing his fangs at me. He must have entered when I had been distracted, along with Marlen and a female I didn't really recognise. Distracted . . .
I sharply turned to where Galina had stood. Only Galina wasn't standing, she was on the floor, eyes wide and mouth open. Dead. Rose had taken her down whilst I had been distracted, I had been right all along. I do need her in the future because she'll always have my back. There is no way I'd ever willingly give Rose up, that was definite. Now, she's proved of having the strength I have so longingly seeked for in an asset. Not to mention her reliability and quick thinking.
Leaving her as a dhampir though, probably won't be the best idea. Because she has abandoned me here to fight alone, outnumbered. A window had been smashed and I assume that she had jumped out. She's reckless and stubborn, that will never change. Once I awaken her, she'll learn to be more loyal and respectful towards me. Not abandon me here to my death. But I don't blame her, I would probably have done the same thing, if I was the pitiful dhampir I unfortunately had been.
Being a former dhampir and guardian did have some perks, like making me stronger and giving me the upper hand in this fight. My three opponents are much weaker than me, obviously, but together, they have a chance. A very small chance for them to survive, it seems like only I had acknowledged this fact, as they poised to attack. They took the odds that were undeniably in my favour.
"Belikov, finally without her in the way, I can get rid of you." He was talking about Galina, he obviously rejoiced her death, but was doing a terrible job at hiding it. "Damn, you're so annoying, I really wish I hadn't awakening you." He smirked, and looked down at me, as if I'm below him. "How pathetic, using a dhampir to do your dirty work."
"But I got the job done. And I'm very well aware that you have been planning to kill her. You feared her too much to actually do it." I pointed out, which made him glance at me with surprise. The others had the same expression; this was news to them. It was true, Nathan had wanted to kill her. He wanted her power, very much like myself. I won't let him, of course, that was all for me alone. It's also why he hates me. Galina had been stronger than him, and so am I which just adds to the threats that keep appearing and ruining his schemes. I was also on his hit list, the second person he'd target after Galina's death.
Very foolish of him to want to gain power. With his lack of skill he can't ever be. Too bad it will be too late for him to realise this. I lunged towards Nathan and punched him a few times before retreating. I took a few steps back before Marlen or the female could interfere. They all suddenly attacked me, and my smile curled into a smirk, as the thrill of the fight took control.
I took the female down in seconds, her severed head hit the ground seconds before her body followed. Nathan had pushed her in my direction, in a way to trap me. He was trying to distract me, so he and Marlen would strike. I pretended to fall for it, knowing this meant I could rid of one strigoi at least. There was never a moment where I wasn't ready for their pointless defiance. They were both driven by anger and hate. Hate for me, which made them a surprisingly good team. They were much stronger, jealousy fueled their animosity. It didn't mean I couldn't take them down.
Marlen was first. I shoved him into the fire place, and his body lit ablaze. He tried to scream, but choked on it and let out a muffled cry. His skin bubbled and blackened as signs of life left his features. His body began to shrivel into nothing but ash, and it was just me and Nathan. Fear and realisation flashed in his eyes. He was alone now, and he knew he couldn't win. He also didn't have Galina to hide behind now. No matter how much he didn't want to believe it, I was always the stronger one. I have to admit, he really did try to win. But sadly, for him, it wasn't strong enough. He stared at me, wide eyed and lips apart. I lunged forward to attack, and the flames engulfed his body as he let out a penetrating scream.
The slam of a door caught my attention. I turned and glared at them, fangs bared at them in anger. A few strigoi rushed in and attacked me, and for once I wasn't sure whether I'd leave the room alive.
We fought for what seemed like hours, but only lasted minutes before I looked down, in victory, at the dead bodies before me. Even in my exhausted state, I managed to smile. Everything I had hoped for, has finally happened. Now all I needed to do was awaken Rose and seize control. A muffled whimper caused me to turn in that direction. A human servant sat there, hugging himself. He stared at me with fear and confusion. Now that I think about it, I was feeling a bit hungry. With someone like Rose, it's important to be at a good strength. Fighting all those Strigoi were really taking a toll.
I drained him in seconds, and turned to face the bloodied mess that looked strangely beautiful. It was like some sort of medal or achievement of my gain, it represented my strength and power. I glanced at the clock, I didn't have long before the sun rises. Walking towards the exit, I grinned. This should be fun.
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