The Vampire's War

October, 2050

Bruce signaled to his men to move forward – so far so good. His father Victor crept next to him and together, they tiptoed silently down the staircase leading to the basement. They had been tipped off of this Vampire safe house just last week, and once he had gotten a small group together, Bruce led the attack. Rose had wanted to go with him (she had gotten pretty good with a rifle over the years) but he had insistent that she stay at the base with his trusted friend, Jethro Priest. A pregnant woman shouldn't enter battle, even if she's only a month along.

So instead, Bruce had surrounded himself with his most trusted companions, his best fighters, and led the way to this safe house. His father had insisted on going, and Bruce had argued the whole way (the man was almost sixty, for crying out loud) but stopped when Victor took down three of the blood suckers without so much as batting an eyelash. He was clearly capable, and Bruce stopped complaining.

Even with their UV lights lighting the way, the journey down this long, cold staircase was almost freaky. Though, Bruce had seen enough gruesome things to last him a lifetime, he still found the dark a little chilling, especially after that night in Oceanica. He had learned then first hand the incredible strength of a Vampire that was cornered, and he hoped to not make the same mistakes this time – everyone had lights, and they were only supposed to be raiding a house that stored captive X Bloods. Bruce liked to fancy that this was what Union soldiers felt like during America's Civil War, hunting for slaves to same them from the Confederacy.

Finally, they reached the door at the bottom of the stairs. Bruce grabbed the handle. It was unlocked. 'This is a trap,' he told himself, but apparently he didn't want to listen to his conscience tonight. He wanted blood – both to save some X Bloods and kill some Vampires. They had slaughtered too many humans, enslaved too many people. So he kicked the door and rushed his men into the room, only to find it empty. But as he shined his light around frantically, he saw the shapes of at least ten Vampires.

The last thing he thought of before a blood sucker with light hair and almost pure white eyes ripped him apart was his disappointment in himself as a leader. 'It's Bruce's Last Stand.'

-

"Rose, we have news."

Rose immediately stood up from her seat in her room, closing the book she had been reading. Though paper books were extremely rare, Bruce had found a blank journal somewhere and had started recording everything that happened to them since he found it. Rose had just been re-reading her favorite entry, the one detailing the day they had met, and had been planning on thinking about adding to the journal when Jethro had come in. His face was gaunt, his sky blue eyes troubled.

"What is it?" Rose asked carefully as she followed him out and down the hallway to the war room. The cellars of the old theatre where the first war meeting for HARAV had been held so long ago were now serving as an excellent base of operations for the now international resistance group.

"I... you need to read it," Jethro said softly, pushing open the door and letting her in to the war room, where a single report lay on the table, looking ominous if papers can do that. Trembling, Rose picked up the paper and started reading. She only made it halfway through before she let out a sob and sunk into the nearest chair.

"No," she finally whispered. "This can't be right. He wouldn't do something like this."

"It was a trap," Jethro explained, sitting down next to her. "They thought they—"

"Were going to break some X Bloods out. I know, I remember."

"Yes, but... apparently, some of the more higher up Vampires are joining the ranks now," Jethro continued, rubbing Rose's back soothingly. "Percival Quari himself was there. We believe he killed both Bruce and Victor."

"Those... those goddamned, blood sucking devils!" Rose screamed, slamming her fist on the table and breaking down into more sobs. "Everything Bruce worked for has been destroyed!"

"Not necessarily," Jethro said in an even voice. "You need to lead us, Rose."

"M-me?" she asked, laughing shakily. "I'm a pregnant distraught widow. What am I supposed to do?"

"You've planned dozens of operations. And you'll have help. I'll stand beside you the whole time, and all the other leaders will too. We've put our trust in the Darvill family, and we'll gladly do it again."

Rose hiccupped and wiped tears off her face. "Th-thank you, Jethro. Give me some time, and then we'll hold a meeting. M-make sure all the other leaders know about this."

"Of course, ma'am," he said, picking up the report and heading off for Communications. Rose sat there for a minute, trying to collect herself, and then stood and walked back to her room.

The sight of her now late husband's journal made fresh tears fall down her cheeks, but she picked up a pen who's ink wasn't frozen and started a new entry.

October 25, 2050

I've just recieved word of my husband's demise. We're fighting a losing battle, but we're going to keep fighting until every last one of us is either dead or we have succeeded.

I, Rose Darvill, now take command of HARAV and the fight for humanity’s future.