The Bloody Masquerade

Days had passed since then but since Alexis had taken Eugene outside. It had done him good, I had to admit, but I was still nervous about whether or not I should’ve agreed to the wolf. My doubts however faltered when I noticed that Eugene had grown happier after going outside to walk and play with Alexis. He even remained without a complaint when it came to practicing how to sense immortals. I decided maybe I was being too nervous and suspicious of the world. Alexis was right in saying that, as there were no threats since Eugene had appeared, I shouldn’t stop him from enjoying the outdoors while he still had time. If last time was anything to go by, Eugene would be stuck inside for months unless we were moving to a new hideout. I had to force myself calm down and stop being so twitchy. Eugene was calm and, most importantly, so was Alexis and I made myself take comfort from that.

So, as languidly as I could, I watched them as they stared at my almost dead TV. I was sitting on the windowsill, watching the darkening world outside, as Alexis watched his drama show with Eugene sitting close to him. In the corner of my eye, the light illuminating out of the screen flickered over Alexis’s face, varying in strength as scenes rolled across the screen. He was as usual perfectly calm with a faint smile on his mouth. It annoyed me a little that he could be so calm when he was aware of an enemy in the shadow but not knowing what it was or how much of a threat it posed, but that was Alexis. Perfectly laid back in dire situations, no matter how worried or angry he felt inside.

I sighed heavily and returned to watching the dark sky, tapping my teeth with my nail lightly. I stared at the moon for a moment, noting that it had gone passed its fullness and beginning to wane. Absentmindedly, I felt my canines, just as I had been doing out of habit for the last few days whenever I laid eyes on the moon. Again, my teeth had changed. They had become thick and stronger and ever so slightly pointed. I would have to keep my lips covering my teeth when speaking to humans now. The sharpness of my canines would be far too noticeable.

I suddenly got the feeling of being watched and my fingers froze when I caught sight of Alexis watching me. He was giving me a calm look, one of knowing but also of sympathy. Smoothly I removed my probing fingers from my mouth and gave him a light smile then averted my gaze quickly. There was no point in worrying him about it. I had stopped years ago after I figured out no one could do anything about it or tell me what caused it.

Time went by sluggishly and so much that Eugene had fallen asleep curled up tightly beside Alexis. He didn’t bother to move the boy and instead continued to watch the TV in the dim tiny room with his hand on Eugene’s head. Strangely, with the static of the machine and the dim sound of dramatic voices fizzing out of it, I felt quite calm. While I was not watching Alexis, I was aware he was there. I could sense him like there was a burning fire right behind me. But I was content as I watched the skyline, listening for danger and trying to sense threats.

And then I froze. Out in the city, someone called me. It was most definitely a witch, one I was familiar with, and they were desperate that I sensed them. They were practically putting their aura on loudspeaker. Without a word I slipped off the side and padded into my bedroom to find something that would cover me up. Just wearing shorts and a thin baggy top was not really the best idea when walking about in the cool night air.

As soon as I had found a grey jacket and found my sword for good measure, I walked over to the sofa and leaned down to kiss Eugene’s forehead.

“Going out?” Alexis asked as he watched me out of the corner of his eye.

I nodded slowly, pushing away some of Eugene’s hair out of his eyes. “Someone is calling me.”

“Who?”

“Diana.”

At hearing this name, Alexis looked at me sharply and with a disbelieving look in his eyes. “The Diana?”

Again, I nodded. “I don’t know how long I will be. Will you be okay?”

“I’ll be fine, just be careful please.” He said soberly. “You said the Crone was our enemy and Diana is her granddaughter after all.”

“I know.” I murmured then, with one last glance at man and boy, I pushed myself away from the sofa and exited my flat, ignoring the rejected voice of Alexis demanding where his kiss was.

Down the eerily creaky stairs I went and darted out into the cold night. Today had been a cooler summer day, marking the beginning of autumn, but it was still warm enough to just wear simple loose clothes. I walked quickly through the streets with the heels of my boots clicking sharply against the concrete and my arms folded firmly over my chest.

The sword strapped to my waist and knocking against the back of my leg was filled with every ounce of Matter I had available to me. Along with the monthly mutating of my teeth, my Matter changes as well. It becomes weaker and flimsier so I can only use one thing at a time. To even things out, my body strangely becomes stronger on its own however. I can move quickly and become more resilient wounds. My Matter wasn’t needed to enhance my body and my senses and, in a way, I was pleased about that. It meant I just needed to concentrate on my gun and blade.

As I drew closer to the source of the Matter, the call diminished to a small ebb, ensuring it wasn’t strong enough to draw in unwanted attention but still enough for me to follow. I wasn’t at all surprised when I the call was muted when I found myself in a dark alley with walls on both sides reaching up so high the sky was virtually blocked out. It was out of site and in a quite area of the city, a perfect place to summon a witch to without being seen.

I came to a stop and placed my hands on my hips when I saw a figure standing at the other end of the alley. She was shorter than me and her dark hair was in an immaculate bob cut. Just as I had expected, she wore the witch-suit with the normal pair of guns strapped to her thighs. Diana stared at me as we sized each other up. For a moment, nothing happened until her hand shot to her guns and left me no time to hesitate from shock.

Instantly my hand was on the hilt of my sword and drawing it as she aimed. Shots rang out and I just about managed to deflect each invisible bullet. As the last bullet left the barrel, Diana bent low darted forward. With her large amount of Matter being pushed into her legs, she moved smoothly and dangerously fast, becoming almost blurred from the speed. As she drew in close to me she raised her right hand and aimed the gun at my face, pulling the trigger just as I raised my sword and forced the bullet to fly just short of my face. Without needing any Matter in my arms I shoved my sword to the side, forcing her arm to move and leave her open. My knee then darted straight for her stomach but it only came into contact with the barrel of her other gun. Alarmed, I swiftly flung my leg back but the bullet still scraped my unprotected leg. I ignored the horrible sting of the Matter and the swelling of blood and readjusted the grip on my sword to let her hand go. I quickly shifted my weight and flung my unwounded leg at her in a sharp kick, forcing her to raise her hand to block my foot from making contact with her face. Taking my now free sword, I swiped up, hoping to catch her chest and exposed throat however she reacted quickly. She fired a shot at my sword, causing my attack to pause briefly and give her time to shove my foot away and jump back hard.

I staggered slightly as she landed firmly a fair distance from me but I recovered quickly and went in for the offence. I ran across the wall as she aimed and began to fire at me once again, giving myself some height then dropped on her. Diana’s guns were instantly in front of her face to block my blade. For a moment we struggled as Diana held the guns firmly in place while I tried to break through. She then however gathered her balanced Matter, drawing it from her guns and suit, and pilled it into her arms. In one strong movement, she flung her arms back and forced me to stumble backwards a few paces. Quickly Diana rose in a long kick which I avoided then struck out with my sword. She swerved to the side, just an inch from the blade, and twirled around as she avoided another attack as I rose to my feet. Not wanting to let her get to me first, I moved rapidly to get my sword against her throat, the one place I knew she could not defend. Just as the blade pressed against her skin, the barrel of her gun was pressed against my forehead.

We froze with our own weapons pressed against a fatal point. For a moment, neither of us spoke. Diana just stared at me with a calm expression while I smiled softly, weapons eerily still and ready to push the final blow. Both of us knew we would react to each other. The moment I sensed the trigger being pulled, I would slide my sword against her throat like butter. And vice versa. We were currently stuck. At least, that’s what I thought.

“This is a warning, Augusta.” Diana suddenly told me in her soft, surprisingly delicate voice.

“A warning?” I echoed in an annoyed, strained tone. “For what?”

“That you are now an enemy.”

“What are you talking about?” I said in total confusion.

“The Crone Ilda. She has given an order to every Family.” She said clearly. “The witches are to find and reclaim the young warlock, Eugene Allaway, and kill the traitor who has taken him for her own purposes. That’s you, Augusta. The Crone has ordered your death.”