Rosa found herself lying on the roof of the SUV's interior in a pile of glass. Something had actually managed to flip the entire car. She groaned as the warm sensation of fresh blood coated the insides of her mouth. The crash had warped her head into a maelstrom of pain and chaos. Unsurprisingly, being pinged around the inside of car wasn't fun. Slowly, the ringing in her ears began to die down and her mind steadily pieced itself back together.
Suddenly she was wrenched out her daze, with desperate force. With nightmarish body coordination, Rosa managed to crane her neck up to make out a cut and bruised Sam, dragging her out the car. Through blurry vision, she saw the anguish and strain in her friend's face. Rapidly gripping back hold of her reality, she aided her friend's efforts and climbed back onto her own two feet. Unfortunately as she regained control of her body she also reclaimed the full extent of its aching and misery, the crash had caused.
"Ow," she grunted through gritted teeth, as a sharp pain radiated down her ribs. With a final, violent tug Sam pulled Rosa into a sprint down the road.
"Move!" Sam ordered, her voice panicked.
"My head hurts," Rosa grumbled.
"It's better than it being removed from your shoulders!" Sam barked. "Keep moving!"
And that's exactly what Rosa did. Even in the chaotic state she found herself in, it was crystal clear that their crash was no accident. Rosa had no desire to confront the culprit.
A familiar and haunting murderous growl rumbled in the darkness behind them. Rosa glanced back. She was hit with regret in an instant. Why had she done that? Not one but, three pairs of glowing bloodred eyes could be seen staring daggers from within the shadows.
'Mierda.'
When fully armed and in considerably better condition than they were now, Sam and Rosa weren't able to take on one of the damn monsters. Now they somehow had to deal with three. Just what in the hell had happened on Zack's hunt? She was told they'd be safe on their trip to HQ.
Despite already running at what she thought was maximum speed, through pure fear alone, Rosa managed to accelerate. Her feet leapt from the ground with even more force, fuelled by the shivers rampaging down her spine. However, no matter how fast they ran it, Rosa knew neither of them was out running a camaz. Rosa remembered their frightening agility from her first encounter. The car sized monster moved like a blur, faster any creature of that size should be able to.
The sound of the approaching camaz grew terrifyingly close. Suddenly Rosa was swung across the road by Sam, barley in time to avoid the pouncing steroid bat. Sam's firm grasp on Rosa's arm was the only thing that kept her sliding off her feet on the icy road. While skilfully maintaining perfect balance like the slippery tarmac didn't exist, Sam pulled them towards the seven-foot wall, crafted from huge, irregular, mossy stone bricks. On the other side was a desolate and incomplete estate property site.
They dashed into a small break in wall. The gap was barley big enough for them to dive through. The two of them crashed into mud and bushes, Rosa's ribs screamed out in agony as they slammed into the ground, but Sam gave her no time to cry out. Instantly, she forced them both into another sprint. The wall had bought them near to no time as, the camaz easily leapt over the stones, staying hot on their tails. Sam and Rosa emerged from the bushes and found themselves inside the garden foundations of a hollow, two-story house. Without delay, they jetted inside the building, passing through the rectangular hole that had been cut out for a back door. While easily sufficient in size for them, there was no chance the camaz were fitting through it. And after a quick scan at the interior, Rosa noticed, all the window holes where far too small as well. Both Rosa and Sam let out a relieved sigh as they came to a stop inside. They just had to pray that the camaz couldn't tear through the building walls, though her doubts where strong. The bottom floor of the house was one massive open plan room. They took a position at its centre, far from every exterior surface. Rosa glanced back towards the garden, the camaz were nowhere to be seen.
"Shit!" Sam gasped, abruptly and completely exasperated. "What the fuck is happening! We should be in the clear." Only now did Rosa notice the sweat drenching her friend's face and matting her blonde hair. Her breathing was heavy and unsteady, similar to a dogs pant, and her eyes were trembling as they darted around searching for monsters.
"What do we do?" Rosa asked, in a surprisingly calm tone that even caught herself off guard. "We won't be safe in here for long. If these three are anything like the one from school they'll claw their way inside soon enough," she stated grimly.
"I don't know," Sam responded weakly.
Rosa looked into her friend's distant gaze. Fear began to brew in her gut as she witnessed how lost and helpless Sam's was. She had nothing. Was this it then? Would this be how their lives came to an end?
"My phone's fucked. I've got no weapons, Noctrm or stims. And heaven will fall from the skies before I can kill one camaz with my bare hands, never mind three," Sam muttered.
Listening to her words, Rosa instinctively searched for her own phone, but it was nowhere to be found. 'Damn, must've been lost in the crash,' Rosa figured. She carried on further down their list of problems. Weapons. 'Wait.'
It had been with her every day for so long now, it had practically become an extension of her body, so unnoticeable even she had begun to forget it was there. Rosa reached under her shirt at her lower back, where she'd been keeping the sheath strapped around her abdomen. Her fingers brushed along the familiar grip of the enchanted, obsidian dagger Louie had once gifted her.
"We're not completely defenceless," Rosa said, withdrawing the dagger and offering it out to Sam.
While she'd miss the comfort and safety it brought her, Rosa wasn't going to pretend it'd be more useful to them in her own hands. Sam had years of training under her belt while Rosa had only a few weeks. The answer was simple.
Sam accepted the dagger into her grip.
"It's not much," Sam admitted sourly. "But it is something."
"Do you think you can do it?" Rosa asked.
"Kill them?"
Rosa nodded while scanning the perimeter. The camaz where still nowhere to be found, she couldn't even hear them nearby.
"I don't know," Sam admitted, tightening her grip on the dagger. Suddenly a booming crash upon the roof ended the eery silence. "Times up," Sam hissed.
Instantly a barrage of thunderous sounds could be heard above. 'They're ripping apart the roof,' Rosa realised horrified.
Something huge hit the floor above and Sam gripped Rosa's forearm tightly and dragged her out the front entrance of the house. Together they darted out into the abandoned housing estate. Rosa maintained a panicked sprint, not daring to look back even for a moment. She understood, well, that they needed to create as much space as possible while the monsters where unaware of their movements.
They bounded across the estate, in what Rosa felt like was Olympic timing, and grew close to the opposite row of housing foundations. Sam brought them to an abrupt stop. Rosa's heart leapt as she almost flew over her own feet and into the icy stone ground.
"The hell!" Rosa barked. She looked up and her body froze, completely paralyzed. Any rage and annoyance that had suddenly built up was instantly cooled, like a blizzard had rampaged up her spine. Rosa's eyes met a dozen crimson glows.
'Mierda.'
Slowly and cautiously, avoiding any sudden movements, Sam and Rosa retreated back across the estate. Not breaking eye contact with the murderous crimson dots for a second.
A series of vicious snarls and growls thundered from behind. Instantly Rosa snapped her head to the source and cursed as she saw their original assailants closing in from behind.
Sam ragged Rosa pulling them both back-to-back as the horde of camaz slowly surrounded them, cutting of any possible escape route. They were completely trapped. The camaz stalked forward, their movements slow and without urgency, as if they were savouring finally entrapping their prey.
"Sam if you're going to have some hidden awakening and suddenly reach your full potential now would be the time," Rosa stated, a wry smile cracking her expression even though Sam would never see it.
Despite their dire fate, Sam laughed. "And if you're going able to use that power you unleashed like last time there'd be no better time," Sam remarked back.
"If that's all we're left with, I think we're fucked," Rosa stated, her smile surprisingly never fading despite the situation.
The thought of those abilities had crossed her mind. Actually the truth was, she hadn't been able to get them out of her head since her conversation with Louie. She'd attempted many times to replicate that power but to no avail with the exception of re-entering her visions. She had being praying that the constant near death experiences in the last few moments would've caused them to awaken once again, but she felt no different than usual. Well except for being in a hell of a lot more pain.
"Flare!" Sam called out and a burst of flames forced a few camaz back. "Vis!" She launched a powerful force through the air pushing more camaz back. Despite Sam's efforts, the camaz were back on them in an instant. However, Sam never let up. Constantly launching a barrage of fire and invisible forces, trying her best to slow down the monster's advance. However, it was quickly becoming clear how strenuous on the body those incantations were. Sam's movements began to slow and heavy pants flew out her lungs. The camaz saw this as the perfect opportunity to claim their kill, with one pouncing through the air. Sam threw Rosa to the ground and raised the obsidian dagger high to meet the monster. Rosa's heart felt like it'd stopped. Without her Noctrm Sam wouldn't stand a chance.
"Don't!" Rosa cried.
A sudden ear shattering boom tore through the air. The upper body of the leaping camaz burst into a bloody and gory mess. Like it was nothing more than a water balloon. Rosa flinched at its crimson insides hit the ground with a gruesome squelch. The rest of the camaz pack scuttled back in a panic.
"The hell?" she murmured, lost in a baffled daze.
She looked up at Sam but saw her friend was just as, if not even more confused. Rosa switched her attention to the retreating camaz. Guttural growls and snarls rumbled from their maws as their focus strayed from their prey and off into the distance. Rosa followed their gaze off into the far shadows of the desolate estate.
A series of silhouettes emerged from the night, and instantly a wave of relief struck both girls. Hunters, all enhanced by the effects of Noctrm. Familiar faces of the HQ rushed forward to meet the camaz and with a vicious bark the pack charged towards their new targets. A second shot shook the air and another camaz erupted. Rosa followed the smoke trail. Audrey slowly crept forward out of the night. A long, magnificent and bulky metallic sniper rifle was held up to her eye as she chambered the next bullet and took aim.
"Audrey," Sam gasped breathlessly before she collapsed to her knees in exhaustion.
Behind Audrey more hunters appeared including both Emma and the commander himself. Their saviours numbered to a total of eleven and despite that still being weaker compared to the thirteen camaz Rosa liked their odds. Her confidence grew as Audrey continued to effortlessly slaughter each camaz and the hunters held them off with blades, firearms and magic incantations.
Emma dashed forward, commander Ruthor and Audrey close at her flank. A camaz attempted to intercept her path but her sister bounded forward to meet the beast head on. Emma ducked under its slash before drawing the sword sheathed across her back and plunging it deep into the beasts neck. The camaz roared in agony as Emma then tore the blade from its throat. It tried to tear her head off with its dagger like fangs, but Emma was faster. With drug enhanced physicality she plunged her first into the gaping wound in the monster's neck.
"Vis," Emma chanted. A powerful force erupted into reality and the camaz's head exploded in a gory display that caused Rosa to wince. Not paying the corpse a second glance her sister rushed to Rosa's side and pulled her to her feet.
"You alright?" Emma questioned, pulling Rosa's face into her hands and analysing her condition. Rosa managed to nod despite her sister's steel grip. That Noctrm was something else. Once satisfied with Rosa's condition, Emma released her and turned her attention back to the fighting. She never left her Rosa's side, instead alternating between firing the pistol she drew from her holster and unleashing powerful incantations. The commander and Audrey joined them while issuing commands to the hunters who were currently butchering the remaining camaz. And after Audrey unleashed a few more shots and the battle was over.
Everyone assembled on the commander at the centre of crimson and dismembered monster remains.
"What happened?" Sam questioned as older sister dragged her up onto her feet.
"We were wrong," the commander admitted regretfully. "When the attack force struck, the vampire lord was nowhere to be found. And to make everything just that much worse we still have no idea where it is. We need to get back to HQ now!" commander Ruthor turned his voice to everyone.
With Audrey and Emma supporting their younger sisters they began to move across the estate back in the direction the hunters had come. They informed the girls that transport was just up ahead. They sprinted forward leaving the Abyss to claim back its dead, the corpses already being reduced to smoke and ash by the time they began their retreat.
'Safe at last,' Rosa thought relived.
A little scared of collapsing, she leaned heavily on Emma's body as they ran, letting her sister support her dead weight.
"Just a little bit further," Emma said. "Almost there-"
Something struck her sister cutting of her words in an instant. It moved with such frightening speed, Rosa registered it as nothing more than a blur. Emma was sent flying away.
"Em! Gah -" Rosa's cry transformed into a sharp gag as a tight and painful grip curled around the back of her neck. Her body froze up and was raised from the ground with ease.
"Put her down!" the commander bellowed, with such authority Rosa trembled. Every hunter snapped their attention to the new assailant. Alarm consumed each of their expressions. Each and every one of them had been caught off guard, even Audrey and the commander.
Rosa's neck was trapped in what felt a like an unbreakable grip of pure iron. The only reason she knew it was a hand was due to fingers painfully digging into her skin like steel bars. Rosa attempted to pry at the fingers but one warning squeeze from her kidnapper paralyzed her in an instant. A haunting feeling told her, the grip she was caged in had the power to effortlessly snap her neck, as if it was as fragile as a dried twig.
She couldn't see who it was. Her attacker barley gave her enough leeway to breathe never mind mobilise her neck. But then again she'd didn't need to sight to identify her attacker. There was only one possibility in her mind. There was only one creature here that could have all the hunters on edge.
"Release my sister Valdosk!" Emma roared as she staggered up from the ground. "Abyssal scum."
Blood seeped from her head where she'd been struck, but she remained unfazed to the injury. The vampire's grip tightened violently as Emma used its name. Rosa let out a coughed gag as the air flow was cut off from her throat.
"Cursing me in my presence. You have guts child," the vampire spoke. "I look forward to tearing them out." Its voice was deep and powerful. It possessed an accent of ancient European descent, but Rosa couldn't pinpoint where. Her best guess would be eastern Europe.
"Release my sister," Emma growled, unwavering.
"Very well," Valdosk said, a subtle amusement in his voice. "It'll be more sporting to butcher you with both hands anyway."
Rosa was flung backwards, as if she was weightless, and sent crashing into the ground. Rosa painfully pushed herself up onto her arms and was instantly caught in a fit of coughs, as her body desperately tried to take in oxygen. She glanced up to see Valdosk standing between her and the hunters. She was completely isolated.
Rosa was taken aback by how human Valdosk appeared. She'd expected an extremely pale, almost ghostly, and bestial man dressed in ancient, classical royal clothing however, he was nothing of the sort. The vampire lord was a tall and broad man and while pale, not much more than the average human and he showed no bestial or demonic nature upon his face. If you saw him on the street you'd think he was nothing more than another passerby with his combed back, brown, slightly greyed at the sides hair, kempt beard. He even wore a modern-day attire of a jacket, shirt and jeans. The only thing that possibly unveiled his identity were his predatory, ruby eyes.
Audrey was the first hunter to move. Steadily she stepped forward, her rifle raised high. It was trained on the vampire lord, prepared to tear a hole through the monster as soon as Rosa was clear of danger.
"Holy hell you must be one desperate bloodsucker," Audrey chuckled, humourlessly. "You're beyond an idiot to think you could take Rosa and kill us all alone. Vampire lord or not. And just when I was giving you credit for tricking Zack and Seis."
Despite Audrey's provocations, the vampire lord grinned. His face then began to contort and warp. His façade began to fade away. Fangs appeared from where human canines had once been and a bestial bloodlust illuminated his crimson eyes.
"Who ever said I was alone," Valdosk said. A feral rumble echoed from within the vampire's throat.
Instantly, rustling and snarls could be heard from the surrounding darkness. Fear hit Rosa like a rampaging train as dozens upon dozens of murderous, blood red eyes lit up the shadows, like a starry night from hell.
'An army of camaz.'
"Leave the girl," the vampire lord commanded, gesturing to Rosa. "Kill the rest."