Chapter 3

'When angels fall with broken wings, the assholes come to piss off me.'

Brick thought as he looked out the window of the car he and his two fellows were in, watching as another vehicle slowly entered the street where this meeting was scheduled to take place.

"I don't need to say that you're going to have to stay calm and not kill him when he shows up." Lucian said when he saw Brick's murderous look.

"Yeah, whatever. Could I at least break a bone, or maybe get some skin off?" Brick asked, smiling wickedly as he imagined cutting off the vampire he despised so much.

"You're not going to do anything." Lucian said seriously, giving a glare that made Brick's smile disappear. "I need him with all the limbs and bones in place. Otherwise, he won't be of any use to me."

"At least one punch to the jaw? So we can spare our ears from the sound of that loud bitch voice."

"Gabriel, get out of the car and don't you dare do anything stupid."

"You're the boss…" Brick sighed, getting out of the car and being followed by Raze.

Not feeling in the mood to be wet by the rain, Brick took refuge under a nearby ledge while Raze stayed by the car. The two kept their eyes focused on the car that would arrive when the "whip masturbator" went out and opened the back door for the regent of his coven, who gave the Lycans a dismissive look.

Brick returned Kraven's look with a small sly grin. While Kraven looked at the lycan with disdain, Brick in turn was imagining a thousand and different ways to hurt the arrogant vampire who disappeared into Lucian's car as soon as Raze opened the door for him.

'I swear if they keep facing each other like that, I will feel in need to ask if they want a room.' Brick thought evilly as he watched Raze and Soren stare at each other in the rain with looks that express well both their will to hurt themselves.

Shaking his head briefly and ignoring the display of hostility between the two, Brick focused on his enhanced hearing, suppressing the noise of rain and all the sounds of the surroundings, focusing only on the sounds that were being emitted inside the car where the conversation was taking place.

"Engaging with death dealers in public, and she has to run after some human, that is not what I had in mind!"

'Jesus Christ, listening to this guy is more boring than facing eight hours of Empire by Andy Warhol.'

"You were told, you were told to just set up things and lay low-"

"You better stay calm, Kraven." Gloved hands grip something abruptly and Brick smiled as he realized that Lucian had lost his temper. "The human is none of your concerns. Besides, I've been laid low for enough time!"

When Lucian released his grip, the car fell into a tense and heavy silence when neither of them spoke any more.

"Just keep your men at bay, Lucian. At least for now." Kraven said, breaking the silence despite his discomfort. "Don't make me have to regret our agreement."

"You just concentrate on your part. Remember, I've bled for you once already. Without me, you would have nothing. You would be nothing."

'It's impressive how much more painful the truth can be than any kind of cursing.' Brick thought when he saw Kraven getting out of the car with a less than satisfied expression.

Brick couldn't help but smile widely at the humiliated state in which Kraven left, mockingly waving at the moving car.

Although he had the blood memories of his siren to keep him motivated to fight for his own people, Brick did not taste slavery and the the coven's cruelty directly on his skin as his brethren had. That was one of many reasons why he put anger and resentment aside for a long time instead of hating all the vampire's species.

After all, his time in war as a human taught him that there are troops following orders and the real enemy pulling the strings.

The treacherous and cowardly types like Kraven being a good example of these enemies. Even obeying the orders he had to not kill him, Brick never understood why Lucian chose him among all the vampires to support his plan. The regent, in all his lust for power and domination was far from being fully reliable. That was a certainty that the lycan carried with him since he smelled the little vampire for the first time that night that marked the history of both species, since he was so close to tearing him apart...

And even centuries later, hatred still burned in their hearts, as hot as the flames that once burned that fortress to the ground.

"Run home so you can cry on the pillow cuck." Brick said, backing inside the car and sitting next to Lucian. "So… how was things with Narendra Modi?"

"Since I know you were listening to every word, I'm not going to give any details."

"At least give me the details of how you can hear his bitchvoice for so long." Brick said, taking a cigarette to his lips and lighting it. "The guy has a mouth bigger than mine, this meeting was nothing but him complaining like a little girl."

"What bothers Kraven is irrelevant, the priorities are in moving to the next step."

"Next step huh. So by the count, Michael is for real our moby dick?" Brick asked, blowing some of the smoke. Lucian just nodded in confirmation.

"Yeah, I think it's time to finish what I started early. I really need to do a little exercise."

"Except you won't. That is out of your hands."

"Lucian, are you really suggesting that I sit this one out?." Brick asked, looking at the Lycan leader in disbelief.

"I am not suggesting anything, I have already decided. This matter will be solved but not by you." Lucian said in a firm manner that made it clear that he had already decided and that was how it would be. "There's another task that I need you to supervise personally, boths of you actually."

"And that would be?"

"Getting the second key to our success old friend." Lucian replied as he looked out the window thoughtfully, his eyes focused and showing an indomitable fire. "Even if we get Michael, we will still need another component to be successful in our plan. An elder's blood."

"And I highly doubt that we can just knock at the ördögház door and ask for a piece of the sleeping elders. Even with kraven's support, the entire coven would welcome us with guns drawn and loaded."

"That's why you and Raze are going to be ready tomorrow night at the train station." Lucian explained. "Amelia and the council will arrive, I want you to take care of them and bring me her blood."

"Huh. At least I'm going to have something to keep me distracted." Brick said as he took a drag on his cigarette.

Although his relaxed and calm exterior gave the image of someone who agreed with this plan, inside he was formulating his own plan to avoid an unnecessary death.

'Time to be the knight in a shining armor that all ladies want, I guess'

........

After a while, they returned to the den. Each turning to their own doing. Raze isolated himself in a private area of the den and focused his attention on organizing the details of the ambush as Lucian had ordered. The fall of Amelia and the council would be a big turn in their favor, as well as leaving them one step closer to winning this war.

Raze, who was motivated by his old rage and grudge against his mortal enemies declared by the whip blow, formulated a strategy of brutal attack. Brick meanwhile, flipped through a magazine of random articles he found while secretly thinking about his own plan.

One that he hoped would not spark Lucian's rage.

"Are you going to get your face out of these articles or what?" Raze, who was already impatient, spoke.

"That's your way of saying that your bald head needs my help with this little plan?" Brick asked mockingly as he removed his attention from the articles.

"That's my way of saying that you could get your ass out of that chair and do something useful." Raze replied angrily.

"Just say it." Brick pushed, flipping through the magazine again to Raze's annoyance.

"Your tactical input could be useful, so can you come here and give me a hand?" Raze snorted in exasperation, much to the delight of his fellow lycan who smiled even more.

"Very good big guy! Was it this so hard?" Brick teased, earning an angry growl from Raze. He got up and went to the table with the map. "So, what exactly are we seeing here?"

"The map of Budapest train station, the station where Amelia and the council members are going to arrive tomorrow night."

"Yeah, looks right." Brick commented while looking at the map. "I don't think you spent all that time just staring at this, so you have a plan?"

"Yes. Without the death dealer that would normally escort them arrive, we can carry out an armed ambush. Wait for the train with men taking positions here and there." Raze explained, indicating various points on the map marked in red. "As soon as the locomotive arrives, we open fire and eliminate the crew before they can notice us."

"This looks like a plan that would screw up things. I don't wanna hit Amelia in a chaotic and uncontrolled gun battle between us and the guards who are going to be protecting her and the council. " Brick said, mentally cursing himself when he noticed the suspicious look Raze gave him.

"We need to get her blood, and we won't be able to do that if Amelia is turned into a pile of ashes. Ya got it now?" Brick explained, hoping that this argument would be enough to convince the big lycan.

"So what's your suggestion?" Raze asked, still maintaining the same frown of suspicion.

"A closer approach." Brick took the marker and scribbled badly drawn wolves in the middle of the map. "I don't doubt that the security team could be a problem, but they are in small numbers and don't expect us to show up. If we make the change, we can take them down quickly."

"And prevent the blood collect from being compromised." Raze concluded, a hand lightly scratching his chin as he looked at the map thoughtfully. "Yes, it could work."

"So we agreed. Let the boys have their fun on a night of work." Brick sang, suppressing a sigh of relief when the suspicion disappeared from Raze's face. "Speaking of which, you've already chosen the men who are going to come along?"

"Not yet, I'm being meticulous about who is coming with us. This is a delicate task and I don't need hungry and unfocused young ones to spoil." Raze replied.

"So is a service for the old school huh? Yeah, will do it." Brick said while filling a cup with coffee. "By the way, who is the unlucky dude in Mr Corvin's case?"

"Singe."

Brick had to restrain himself from spitting out all the coffee when his ears registered what had just come out of the big lycan's mouth. He looked at Raze, who had a barely concealed smirk on his face.

"Really?"

Raze said nothing, just smirked even more. A smile that spoke for itself. Unlike Brick, he didn't care who takes the human as long as they were successful. That was the reason why his lycan fellow's indignation was so fun to watch.

"Whatever, I don't know why I care anyway. I'm just going to… donno, enjoy the break or something. You can choose the men by yourself since I fixed your western movie plan." Brick said, drinking the rest of the coffee and discarding the cup angrily before leaving for anywhere else in the den.

The plan was already formed, now he had to wait until the next night to put it into practice. Although it could get out of hand and go totally wrong, it was something he needed to try. But now, all he wanted to do was sit with some of the fellows in the den to enjoy the temporary tranquility.

'Let the austrian scientist who looks like some kind of aspiring Dr Loomis handle this. No chance of coming back and biting us in the ass later'

......,....

The mansion

Heat and humidity produced by hot water were the second most prevalent thing in the bathroom, anxiety and the need for help being the first. Letter after letter were made in the mirror, forming the name of the one she could turn to before wiping moisture from the glass.

"Please forgive me, but I need your guidance." Selene spoke as she watched her own image in the mirror.

Suspicions were all she had, but after examining the mansion's library, her suspicions were now unsettling certainties. A threat over the entire coven was approaching, and she was the only one who could see through the web of lies and conspiracies that were made to cover it up.

She needed not only guidance, but also the help of the one she could trust. But to achieve this, there was an old law established centuries ago that it would have to break.

......

Descending the stairs that led to the lowest part of the mansion, Selene stopped in front of the glass in the monitoring room and faced the vampire in charge of watching the crypt.

"Duncan, Kahn wants to see you." Selene spoke to the fellow death dealer, taking his attention away from the monitors.

"Did he say what it was about?"

"No, just asked me to send you up."

"Well, I can't just go out and leave things like that."

"I hold things here until you come back." Selene offered it casually, her icy exterior not showing her true intentions.

"All right." Duncan said, finally getting up and leaving the crypt free.

'It's time.' Selene thought, staring at the chamber's locked doors and letting out one last breath before heading to the now empty monitoring room.

Operating the controls, Selene opened the doors of the resting place to the elders whom she and all the death dealers had a duty to protect during their rest. Walking into the chamber, she headed toward the grave with an ornate V design. After a brief moment of hesitation, she reached for the mechanism and pulled the coffin off the floor.

While watching the hibernating shape of the closest thing to a father figure she has had since the tragedy that changed her life completely, Selene couldn't help pondering this a second time. The awakening had never been realized by someone like her, only the elders alone had the power to organize their memories and thoughts into a single coherent and accurate view.

However, not even the elders had broken the chain in the entire history of their respective reigns. But now, she needed it. Not just because of her discovery that everyone was in danger, but because she had no one else she could trust to ask for help or who could do the right thing.

She just hoped that Viktor would hear this appeal, and that her memories could justify his actions.

Determined and ready, Selene brought her wrist to her lips and stuck her fangs in it. Taking the leaky wound to the coffin and letting her blood make its way to the mummified body that has inside. Any chance of going back now has been totally ruled out, as the awakening had begun.

Although whoever looked at it had no visible changes, the blood that was driven by the device had already begun to spread across Viktor's weakened body. Bringing with it not only the spark of strength and vitality that he needed to awaken from hibernation, but also the memories that flooded his secular sleep in the form of confused flashes with no time order.

Pushing the coffin to the deepest parts of the elders' chamber, Selene took her attention from Viktor's sleeping body to all the instruments in the room. In addition to the dark purple coat belonging to the next male elder to sit on the throne, there were also several instruments for connecting tubes connected to various blood bags in the room.

Removing her coat from its waiting area and reaching for the bags full of blood, Selene grabbed a pair of tweezers and several tubes that she began to connect to her sleeping sire's mummified body, connected the tubes to the blood bags that will start pumping the plasma that Viktor would need to regain his strength.

Everything was ready, she could do nothing but wait for him to wake up to hear her. About to leave the chamber, Selene retreated to the back room where she had left Viktor's body when the doors suddenly opened with none other than Soren on the other side.

The watchful eyes of the old coven flogger scanned the elders' chamber for anything that indicated a violation or that someone had been present there. But… to Soren's frustration, there was nothing he could see. Although the suspicion still remained, the vampire was satisfied and sealed the doors again, much to the relief of Selene, who let out a brief sigh when she heard the sound of the doors being closed.

Leaving through the door parallel to the main entrance of the chamber, Selene came across not only Soren, but also Kraven and Erika in the monitor room. The blonde vampire look at the death dealer with mild surprise before turning her attention to the monitors where the familiar image of a Michael being soaked by the rain in front of the gate of the mansion.

"Selene! I want to speak with Selene!" Michael's voice came over the intercom, making Selene hurry into the room when she recognized the familiar human voice that saved her life hours ago.

"Is that Michael?" Kraven asked, his voice pouring out barely contained anger. Selene looked between him and the monitor while Michael continued to scream.

"Is that Michael?!" Kraven asked furiously again, but Selene, practically ignoring his presence, went to the monitor.

"I'm coming out." She said to Michael over the intercom before moving away from the screen and walking to the exit, much to the furious regent's indignation.

"If you go to him, you will never be welcome in this house again!" Kraven spoke through teeth angrily to Selene, who stopped to look at him apathetically while Erika watched the scene with curiosity.

"Now that Viktor has been awakened, let's see what he has to say about it." Selene spoke simply, turning and leaving the room.

Kraven's expression was changed from angry to empty and shocked at the end of the sentence. Going into the elders' chamber was his first action as soon as Selene disappeared from everyone's view. His jealousy had been completely replaced by something far more urgent, his self-preservation. Kraven's eyes darted nervously between the ornate V on the floor to the throne which, to his relief, was still completely empty.

"I warned her." Erika murmured when she approached, catching Kraven's attention. "I warned her, but she didn't hear me, she never does. I should have told you soon ...."

"Tell me what? "Kraven asked.

Hesitation and a little fear crossed the vampire's features before she dared to continue, for she knew that Kraven would not take well what she was about to reveal.

"The human… Michael, he is not a human after all. He is a lycan."

"What?!"

"What is this all about?"

As quickly as it came, Kraven's rage and angry expression was totally replaced by a pale expression when his ears registered the voice of the third presence on the chamber thought to be empty.

The atmosphere became much denser when the two vampires faced the dry and mummified form, but awakened from the elder who walked to the front of his throne before opening his eyes to look at his two servants who were looking at him with a mixture of awe and reverence.

........

Outside the mansion, the rain continued to fall hard and relentlessly on Michael as he waited by the gate in a certain hurry and discomfort for the woman who might be the only one to give some explanation as to why his life had been totally turned upside down in the last few two nights. Two nights that were nothing but full of doubts and races for his own life as he continued to wonder if he wasn't going crazy.

Michael pulled back a little when the gates opened the instant a car came towards him, the familiar sight of the woman at the wheel would have been comforting to him if she hadn't been looking at him with the same icy expression she had when she ambushed him in his apartment.

"Come in." Selene spoke, returning her attention to the front when Michael promptly got into the car as she started to speed away from the mansion.

"You can never come back here again, they will kill you." Selene spoke.

"Why? Who are you people?" Michael asked, somewhat exasperated. The amount of confusion he could tolerate had finally reached its limit, he needed answers.

Selene for her part was silent and her expression hesitant when she started to debate internally what to do, until the possibility of what he might be crossed her mind again. Pulling on Michael's shirt, the vampire's usually cold face briefly took on a shocked expression when she saw what was clearly a bite.

Lucian's bite.

Leaning back in her seat while keeping her eyes fixed on the road, part of her was saying to stop the car and unload the pistol on his head. But she ... couldn't. Not when she still needed to know why he was being targeted since that subway shootout where all this mess started.

Releasing a sigh, she started. "Like it or not, you are in the middle of a war that has lasted for at least a thousand years. A blood feud between vampires and Lycans."

"Werewolves." She explained when she saw the confusion on his face.

Although what she was saying should sound crazy, to Michael it wasn't. In reality, as unlikely as it was all she was saying, all the strange things he had witnessed ... that thing that attacked the car ... the man who bit him ... it all made a lot more sense despite how absurd it could be.

"Consider whether with luck, most humans die two hours after being bitten by an immortal. The viruses we transmit are deadly." Selene spoke as she turned the car around a corner.

"And if you bite me, what? I'd become a vampire instead?" Michael asked.

"No, you'd die." Selene answered bluntly, looking him dead in the eye. "No one's ever survives a bite from both species. By rights, I'd stop the car and kill you now mysel-"

"THEN WHY ARE YOU HELPING ME?"

"I AM NOT! I TRACK DOWN AND KILL YOUR KIND!" Selene stated angrily before she calmed down and continued. "My only interest is to find out why Lucian wants you so badly."

Not wanting to upset her more than there already was and already having enough of unlikely surprises and death threats for one night, Michael just stared at the rain through the car window, remaining silent as Selene continued to drive.