The Amalgamation Of Two Worlds

** Audrey’s POV **

The one thing I would never get over, or get sick of, were the sun sets. On my return to Earth, that had to be my greatest joy. It wasn’t the beauty they let off, or the mere calming sense they gave off, no, it was more than that. It was the symbolism. The sun would set, forcing darkness on the world. But this darkness would go away, for in a few hours, the sun would chase it away. For the light always came back, and that was what struck a chord inside me. I may not have remembered anything at the time, but deep down, the thought of the light always prevailing, had my quivering with happiness. And again, as it set, I found myself thinking the same thing. Everything would be okay, for the sun would always rise again. It was how the world was.

** Hayden’s POV **

I could see his lips moving, I could see the tentativeness in all the other mens eyes, but I couldn’t take it in. My ears were deaf to the world, and all I could hear was darkness. Hearing darkness, now there’s a strange concept. Something was messed up, and I was beginning to think it was Earth. Was it somehow messing up my Clave senses? Or was this how Earth felt like? I wasn’t sure, but something was up. Something was brewing, and I knew it wasn’t going to be good. If only my talents could hone into the “what” factor. That would be useful.

“Hayden?” My head snapped up to find all eyes on myself. A frown found my lips, when had I sat down? And since when did people crowd around me? I ignored those questions and stood, my eyes on Mackenzie.

“Yeah?” His face held concern, but as I glanced around, I realized he, aside from Josh, was the only one. I got a mixture of looks from them, from anger to annoyance and just plain dislike. I don’t think I had ever blatantly gotten such looks, but no one seemed to be hiding it anymore. It was confusing, to say the least. I didn’t start fights, I didn’t think of myself as higher than everyone else. All in all, I was a decent guy; a good guy. So why did they hate me?

“You alright? You seemed to... blank out.” More so than he knew.

“I’m fine, honestly. You were saying?” He gave me a weary look before continuing where he left off.

It wasn’t stuff I hadn’t heard before. Basically the routine stay with your check, don’t wander off, yell if there’s a problem, and never do anything stupid or heroic. It was also an explanation and general map for the area we were heading into, but I didn’t need to hear this. I had helped map it out, so with that though, I slipped away which earned me some rotten looks.

When I finally stepped away from the groups of people, I took a large inhale of the cool night. The moon was shining brightly in the sky, the stars keeping it company. The air was brisk and cool, the way it was at home, and it brought back many memories. Some happy, some... unpleasant. Who was I kidding? Basically all my memories were unhappy, for even the happy ones had the harsh reality of The Demonio wrecking it. There were days, today among them, that I found myself thinking, why? The Demonio liked power, yes, and they killed off the weak... but why my family?

My father was a pure demon, as was my mother. So why did they come to us? Was it because of me? Being part Clave? I had to doubt that, for those powers didn’t hit till puberty when I was under Mackenzie’s eyes, so how would they know about it? No, it wasn’t that, but what? It was a question that haunted for a long time, and I was beginning to doubt whether I would ever get an answer.

“Shouldn’t you be getting ready to leave?” The voice wasn’t exactly gentle, but it wasn’t harsh. I turned and gave Gabriel a weak smile. For a human, he was mighty inquisitive, and he was showing a great amount of strength for the way he treated Audrey. It was in his eyes, and even if he didn’t know it yet, he was proving to be her only family. He was taking the roll of a big brother, even if he was younger. It was rather heart-warming.

“Most battles with The Demonio are hand-to-hand combat, so in a sense, I’m ready.” He rolled his eyes at me, but his lips did hold a small quirk in the corners.

“If that’s the case, I have hands. Why am I stuck staying back?” Being from The Dark Lands I had it engraved into my mind that humans were weak, or had it subconsciously. I personally believed that I didn’t feel that way, but when I saw him and Audrey... I couldn’t help but cringe. It wasn’t that they were inferior... it was their strength that was. If it was about who was the most cunning, they would definitely stand a chance. But hand-to-hand, The Demonio would rip them apart; literally.

“You won’t have hands if you go, Gabriel. You saw what they did.”

“Yeah, and I also saw how you had to have mine and Audrey’s ass to save yours. Doesn’t that mean shit?”

“You’re too young to swear like that.” I held a hand up before he could protest and get us off track. “Do you think Audrey should come along?” He was shaking his head before his lips formed the no. “Then stop arguing. Someone has to stay with her. But I suppose Damon ma-“

”Fine! I’ll stay. Damn, angel boy, remind me to argue with someone else next time.”

“Language.” Was all I said before walking away.

** Damon’s POV **

Small droplets of blood rolled down, silently splashing down onto the ground. The once solid drop shattered, sending slivers into the green grass to get absorbed by the soil. The sting in my hand was like a tiny little pin-prick which lasted half a second before dissolving. One second. One stupid second. I was trying to distract myself from the agonizingly slow process of getting ready to go, but so far, I hadn’t found anything to keep my attention for long.

I wiped away the remaining blood and glanced around for my next source of amusement. Where was Audrey when I needed her?

According to Mackenzie, The Demonio were laying rest in the Northern part of the forest. And that was according to the feelings that Hayden was getting. We were heading out to them, to do a sneak and catch... or so Mackenzie called it. Lame name, if you asked me. Basically we were to circle them then voila, the whole thing was done with. I was beginning to wonder what colour the sky was in their little fantasy world.

Audrey, Gabriel and Brale were staying behind to guard the camps. Truth be told, if The Demonio came looking for us, they were as good as dead. But who was I to argue over their lives? They meant nothing to me. Nothing.

The crowed shifted, and it was then that I knew we were leaving. My eyes scanned the crowd before landing on the bright blonde blob I was looking for. I made my way over, not caring who or what I moved out of my way. I got a few obscene gestures, and some worse words, but I ignored them. They were flies to me. If one was to approach, all I would have to do was swat them away. Small little, annoying flies. Kind of like Audrey.

I scowled, pushing her face from my mind.

“We moving out?” Hayden swirled in my direction, causing a frown to form on my lips. Hayden may not be on the top of my good list, heck, I don’t think anyone was, but he was never this... spaced. His eyes kept dilating randomly, and he seemed to be struggling to hold his composure. “Keep the eyes. Make you look less like an angel.” He scowled. Ah, so he wasn’t too far gone.

“Find Josh and Zenon then our group will leave.” All of The Zaccur was split into groups. Now, if myself had split them, I would have made sure there was one powerful strong fighter in each. Not Mackenzie. He made a few strong groups, some medium ones, then a lot of weak ones. His theory was that the stronger groups would take the front, and the weaker ones would only have to catch the stragglers. My thought? What happens if we’re off in place, and they get the full brunt of the force? On the bright side, it would probably teach Mackenzie to listen to me, and rid myself of a lot of whiny men.

I didn’t bother searching for them, and sure enough, they showed up shortly. Judging by the looks on their faces, they weren’t getting along too well. Great. I was stuck with two bickering men and an angel. Could this day get any better?

“Let’s go.” Murmured Hayden, walking off. Josh’s frown mirrored mine as we hurried to catch up.

“Hayden, are y-“

”No. Nothing to do about it. Let’s just concentrate.” Josh shut up after that, and I didn’t press him. Zenon wasn’t really paying attention, which I was sure was for the best.

We were the first group to leave, being the strongest one. For some reason, being stuck with Hayden and Josh didn’t spike pride in me about being in the top group. If we were the top, I really did not want to know the weakest. Audrey could probably take them.

The moonlight didn’t last long, neither did the starlight. Dark clouds, or what looked like dark clouds, rolled past them. My eyes automatically switched modes, making the dark not a problem, but that didn’t stop the sudden knot in my gut. I may not be a Clave, but my gut was telling me something was up. And obviously the Clave felt it too. His shoulders tightened and his strides became more jumpy and less smooth. Josh muttered something, but Hayden didn’t even bother to respond. Zenon finally clued in, his eyes now scowling at the sky. Josh followed his gaze, and I just waited for one of them to shout “what’s that in the sky?” I was with a group of pure geniuses.

I was bored after the first half an hour, when the adrenaline from finally leaving wore off. Now all I had to do was walk around trees, how thrilling was that? Now, throw in a crazed demon jumping from the tree and dismembering one of the men in front of me, and maybe I’d be less bored. Maybe.

When Hayden sunk to the ground, I thought we were about to have another one of those feeling moments, but I was wrong. He remained silent, his eyes facing forward and hardened. Josh’s lips were pressed tight as he scanned the area, taking in everything. Zenon was also doing the same, and it didn’t take me long to realize we were in position. My eyes turned back to Hayden who’s shoulders were still tight.

“Sit this one out.” His eyes moved to mine, a slow reaction.

“No.” Before I could force the issue, he cut me off. “It’s not a feeling... well, I don’t think it is.” His eyes held confusion. “It’s different. It’s dread. It’s darkness. It’s... I don’t know. It’s new. I’ll be fine.” I shrugged. It was his life on the line, not mine.

So now, we waited. My day was just full of fun. The only thing that kept me going was the thought that soon, really soon, I was going to get to hurt something. Rip something, bleed something. Those thoughts had my blood pumping and the adrenaline already begging to pour out. This was it. This was the time of the day that was mine. And I didn’t care if I was considered a sadistic maniac, this was who I was. Killing was a part of what I was, and though even at times I got sick of killing, I would never be able to fully give it up. I lived for the thrill, for the death.

Hayden’s watch let out a very small, almost inaudible beep, which had us all on our feet, Hayden a little slower than the rest of us. It was time.

This was when we split. I took the front, Hayden took my left, Zenon took my right, and Josh was slightly behind me. If it was correct, everyone else would be in place, and when we merged, The Demonio would be surrounded, facing myself and the others. I was basically quivering from anticipation as I crept forward.

My body was dying to break position, but I held it. It would come soon, and my aching limbs would feel so much better. I held my breath as my legs took step after step, almost cramping from the slow process. Just seconds.

My hands kept flexing off and on instinctively, waiting for some action. I could see the area, a thin layers of trees separating me from it. The trees were thinning now, and if I looked really hard, I could see Hayden to my left, going the same pace I was.

When my body reached the final layer of trees, the only one that separated us from The Demonio, I stopped and counted to five, as everyone else would be doing.

I needed this. It was like my drug, and I couldn’t wait to hurt something. To be challenged. Since I took on the king, nothing had been a challenge, not even taking on a single demon. But this? The whole group? Now that would be a challenge, and I was just dying to face it.

Four. Let the blood shed. Five. I pushed through, and the sounds of everyone else doing the same hit my ears hard. I braced myself in a fighting position, my fangs beared and my hands tensed. I was ready for the assault, for the attack, for the mind-blowing fighting that would surely follow and issue so many deaths. Deaths that would just feed my emotions right now... but none of it came. None!

And when my eyes scanned the area, it felt as if my stomach drop. No. This wasn’t fair! I needed this!

Not counting the many corpses, the clearing was empty. Deserted.

** Hayden’s POV **

I should be worrying about where they were. About what they were doing, but I couldn’t. Whatever my body was doing was consuming my mind, and I didn’t understand it. My father always told me to read my body, for instincts are never wrong. They may not be what you think they are, but they’re never wrong. There is always a point to them, always some hidden message. So what was it?

“Hayden?” I ignored Mackenzie, something I rarely did. We were almost back to the camp, and I tried to view this as Mack was. It had been a waste of time, time we didn’t have. It was a good effort... but for what? It left us all anxious, and Damon mad. Really mad.

I was just briefly wondering if what I was feeling was towards Gabriel or Audrey, that maybe something went wrong at the camp, but their voices to one another cut that thought off. They were arguing, Gabriel sounding calm, Audrey not so much.

I pushed some bushes aside to where Gabriel and Audrey were. Brale was sleeping on the ground, not bothered one least bit about the noise. Was that a good or bad thing? Damon and Mack followed me over to two arguing humans.

“It’s clouds, Audrey. Nothing to worry about.” He glanced at me now, “right?” I frowned.

“What?” Gabriel let out an annoyed sigh, which earned a glare from Audrey.

“It’s dark.” So?

“Audrey, this may be a hard concept for you, but nighttime usually means it’s dark.” Came Damon’s response, his voice slow as if he was talking to a kid. That earned him a glare. Who knew she could glare so much? She turned away from him, obviously ignoring him. Smart move.

“Look at the time. It’s not normal! It’s supposed to b-“

”Morning.” I cut in. Mack was looking horror stricken, and I was sure I semi mirrored that look. Well, I suppose I finally knew why I was feeling darkness. Damon was the one who broke the silence.

“Huh. Who knew demons could attribute The Dark Land’s darkness to Earth.”