Tides of Time [TakodaVega, Shu, Cecidius]

[TakodaVega]

It had taken her seven years to find this place.

Slowly wing beats stilled as the Niamh landed at the glacial wall that had obscured her visual in exactly looking for. Steam rose off the woman as she slowly hopped down onto the lower ledges. There would have been no way she would have been able to fly down here without tearing her wings to shreds. Still the heat that radiated off her body had made it difficult to keep her from slipping along the ice.

Finally she reached the bottom of the crevice, light bounced off the walls in rainbow colors though the source of what had been her search rested in the far corner of the room, where the light pooled in the little daylight that had stained the sky. Fluttering her wings a bit, she took the stairs that led to the upright clear prison.

It's the only way Isfraelshra could view exactly what her daughter had done to herself. The resemblance between the two women was striking. Almost looking at mirror images of each other. Almost. Where Isfraelshra's hair was more like fire, her daughter's was more of blood. If she could see her eyes there, too, would be a difference. The warm sky and sea that reflected of her mother's eyes were replaced with the hard ice of her daughters.

Some said the world would end in Fire, and others of Ice. How ironic that the Queen of Fire and Queen of Ice were related. However for forty years now, her lovely daughter had slept. Time had allowed her that luxury. Fate however was not so kind. Slowly the Niamh raised her hand to the ice seal that had surrounded her daughter. The pale arms crossed in front of her made her seem even more like the undead she had become.

"Your loved ones need you, Siofragana. It is time to restore the balance as it should be. Sleep no more." The light pulsed between them as slowly the ice melted away from the vampire queen. And slowly those ice blue eyes opened.

That was the beginning.

-*-*-*-*-*-

Siofragana Amaranth Nyx, that was what her true name was. Phoenix or 'Phoe' to someone had always been a nickname for her from family and friends so it was the one she had taken up. The rest to honor her Clan which was so far gone now that nobody but the oldest of people remembered them. Standing at six foot two, the woman towered most of the mortals that had seen a fraction of her lifespan.

Terra for all it's earthly beauty, was a long neglected world once full of magic that it was easy to pull it into yourself. Now the world had changed. Well, not completely as Siofragana pulled up a leg to her chest, her eyes scanning the skies. She had learned quickly that forty years had passed since she had gone to the Glaciers to the north and froze herself there, for how long she hadn't cared. She had promised Angelus she wouldn't do anything stupid just because he was gone.

However the reason she was on the roof, paying more attention to the stars above her than the earth below was because she had that dream again. Ever since her mother had awoken her from that deathlike slumber she had been dreaming. A hand reaching out from the darkness slipping closer to the edge calling to her. Pleading her to catch them.

Every time she had just been a fingertip away before they passed into the shadows, shadows which would fade as soon as she opened her eyes. For the longest time Siofragana didn't dream. Her mind had tried to make it easier for her to cope with the Creed's mayhem on her mind and body. Finally, she sighed and stood with ease, walking towards the edge of the rooftop and jumping down. Her knees bent to cushion her fall before she stood fully.

There was no hiding those finely tipped points in the streetlight that shown nearby. Hands buried deep into the confines of the leather jacket on her shoulders. Jeans custom tailored to her height clung to her hips and flared just below the knees. Heeled boots lightly tapped as she walked. The boots added an additional two inches to her height. IF she was tall before, she was taller now. Most men would have to look up to her.

Not intentional, she just happened to like these boots. However she needed to feed. Soon. She was not going to break her own rules again and feed off of an unsuspecting mortal. Even if that time had been just a sip to cut the edge off the growing hunger, it wouldn't keep it sated for long. And that dream was still bothering her too. The pleading had been genuine. The repetition of the dream had been going on for almost a week now. This was no coincidence. This had to be someone she knew, someone of her line, or someone she shared blood with. Most of the people on those lists were either dead, missing, or doing the job that Terra gave them to do. So, who was it? This was going to bother her, almost as bad as the pull to feed was.

 

[Shu]

After all that had happened to her she had finally slept. She had left all of her friends behind and didn't look back. She loved them all dearly somewhere deep in her heart but she knew she had to leave them all to get herself back together. She had become many things she never wanted to be. Becoming ill hearted and cruel and changing all the time, like the wind. Last anyone had seen of her Phoenix had taken out the taint of the Creed. She quietly slipped back into the shadows, where she felt she belonged. Finally embracing the darkness of sleep.

As she slept she dreamt of her past, nothing unusual for her. She had done that on many occasions while unconscious though this time they seemed like she was entirely reliving her past. As her dreams began reaching closer and closer to her most recent past she knew something was going on.

She had left Zanfell behind in his Haven with K. Alucard was lying on the cool rock bottom of the cave entrance trying to pull himself together after nearly scorching himself to a crisp by bringing her back up to the surface. She had begun to go through a transformation again and left them all behind. She felt like she was in a fog, her thoughts were not entirely clear as she followed her feet set in a path in her head.

As she arrived to her destination her thoughts became less cloudy and she began wondering where she was and why. Though still drawn inward, like a force pulling her in, she began questioning more and more.

Entering the large room before her was a throne engulfed in flickering shadows being emitted from hundreds if not thousands of candles. There she saw him. Hair as dark as a raven's feathers, eyes as bright green as a cats, tanned skin as the color of leather. She gasped when her eyes laid on him and realization struck as to who he was.

Another figure flowed in behind her and quickly bowed in front of the throne a silky voice emerged, 'I followed her here to ensure her safety as you asked my Lord.' A quick approval from his master and he took his place on the right hand side of the throne.

'It seems as though you have recognized me my sweet Rain Dancer.' He spoke as he stood from the throne. 'You came just as the stars predicted.' He paused allowing her to gather her thoughts, 'You are very dear to us here.' A sweeping gesture gave approval for many more figures to appear out of the shadows.

Taking a step back and nearly tripping over her own feet, 'Why am I here? How are you not dead?'

A light laugh escaped his lips, 'You are here because you are the Tamuríl Tìwele. I'm not dead because...well...I'm not.' He slowly made his way down from the throne and stood before her.

She knew she was in danger...but she couldn't just leave. He was far older than her and was tied to her by something she wished still could not be used against her. He was Lolindor's blood Father.

He was the leader of the Huor Felagund, the chosen nine as they called themselves. Associated with the eight stars of the constellation Orion, and one to lead them. They had labeled her as a sacrifice.

Her immortal life was in danger and granted she had been trying to kill herself for years, but this was not how she wanted it to end. Not at the hand of her deceased lovers blood Father.



Unusually her dreams skipped forward for some time. She returned to Phoenix and Zanfell as something that was not her usual self. She was extremely the opposite of what they knew. Though Zanfell at the time had been taken over by the Beast.

Extremely edgy, sharp tongued and seductive she managed to anger Phoenix to the point where she removed the taint of the Creed.

Leaving everyone behind she wandered for a few year through out different countries, meeting new people, acting as a mortal. Her life was not how she had envisioned it. What she had become still had one tie to her old self, she would never feed off the unwilling. Soon she grew bored and wandered back to a small little cemetery deep in a mountain somewhere in Europe. It was a family cemetery and she had befriend the family of the past generations a few years back. They themselves, though seldom visited, were blood donors. They granted her permission to sleep on their land and she took to the darkness and slept.

Her past had run though itself, suddenly as if an alarm rang in her head she awoke. Slowly she stretched and let herself out from her hiding place. It was an above ground cement enclosed space with a water fountain on top. A small trap door led to the outside world. Not far from the cemetery was a small garden and a young man was working in it golden brown hair and a built farming body.

Pausing to wipe the sweat off his brow his eyes laid on her slim figure with flowing brunette hair. He grinned, dropped his shovel and ran back to the house. Quickly he returned with his father and his mother remained on the porch.

He looked like a much younger version of his father and she could see the resemblances as they approached.

“Did you have a good sleep Ma’am?” The young man asked quietly though obviously not trying to hide the fact that he was starring at her.

After she nodded the father spoke up, “You may remember me...” he began but was quickly cut off by her. “You were only twelve! What happened to you being so young?!”

A grin splayed across his face, “Well forty years will do this to a man...” chuckling he turned to his son, “I have my own son now. My parents however requested to be buried right next to where you slept.”

Turning quickly she walked back to where she woke from and sure enough on either side of where she had been were two newer grave sites. Quickly bending down on one knee she first paid her respects to the man who had housed her and taken care of her and then to the woman who had clothed her and fed her.

Standing she turned back to the father and his son. “Forty years you say?” she questioned with a glint in her eye, “I wonder what else has happened while I’ve been sleeping?”

“Before that though you must be hungry.” The young man piped up his eyes directly meeting hers.

 

[Cecidius]

"There was a time when things were much simpler for me." a voice cracked the darkness and silence of a damp tomb. A deep voice, filled with authority and age, wisdom and grace. "A time when the world was fresh, men were brave, and children innocent."

The sound of heavy boots fell against cement. "That time has long since passed, I often wonder what has happened to the world." A small light flickered, reflecting off of a pale face, gaunt yet regal, fierce yet calm. The flames licked at a cigarette, lighting the tobacco and paper to embers. The light left the face as the first embers of the cigarette were pulled upon, smoke entering the lungs of this person. A sharp inhale, as the embers of the cigarette gave away that this person's arm had moved, and the sound of an exhilarated breath escaped into the silence.

The doorway to the tomb, made of steel, opened inhumanly easily for the man who emerged. He stepped into the darkness of night, brighter, indeed, than the damp tomb, as all the stars in the heavens shone brightly. "What has happened to the world?"

The man closed the door, again as simply, and turned again, facing the night. He dragged upon his cigarette again, exhaling joyously.

Then, he felt it. A being so ancient as he, and in tune with the blood that flowed within him, and those he loved, it came as little surprise, but he was shocked it came so soon... or so late.

He felt the awakening of two beings he knew, and very well. They rested in opposite locations, and he wasn't quite sure which to visit first. The two of them had gone to sleep, coincidentally at about the same time. He had not. He had regressed from the world, and meditated for a time, but this being, this ancient creature of darkness, refused to slumber. The last time he had slumbered, he had awoken in a state that was not quite him. Quite the opposite, actually.

His long white hair glittered in the moonlight, being played in the wind; his blood red eyes shone deeply in the shadows, piercing the darkness. He stood near six feet, with boots bringing up higher, closer to six feet and two inches. His traditional black leather duster that had rested upon his torso is replaced by a brigandine duster, fitted with steel plates under the leather, the shoulders covered with steel pauldrons, chainmail sleeves covering leather to his elbow, and a pair of steel plated leather gauntlets. Straps bound the duster closed taught against his torso, still as formfitting, and exaggerating his form more than his old coat. Steel full-greaves covered his lower legs, hidden behind the duster's brigandine tail, with sabatons covering his boots. A leather hood rested atop the pauldrons, the entire suit - the leather and the steel - carefully dyed black.

He smiled as he felt another wave from the two who woke. Pulses through the winds he controlled. He caught their scent on the wind, estimated the distance to both of them, and decided. He put his cigarette out against the cement tomb, and flicked the butt into the distance, as a red gateway appeared in the wall of the tomb. "I suppose it's time, then. We shall see how these events unfold next."

He lifted his hood over his face, his visage now cloaked in shadows too dark to be natural, and stepped into the gateway.

 

[Shu]

'And before that she needs some new clothes!' A soft but firm voice came from the woman on the porch. 'Come in her dear, I have something you can wear.'

She looked down at herself and sure enough her clothes were rather messed up. Torn and deteriorated in places and covered in leaves and dirt. The two men stepped aside to let her follow the woman of the household. 'I suppose I do look a mess huh?' she winked at the young man as she passed him.

She followed the woman into the house and the men followed her. 'Not much has changed in here has it?' she quietly asked. 'I always loved this little house.'

'No ma'am it hasn't.' replied the man, 'We've kept it just about the same...though we did need to fix and update a few things.'

The woman of the house poked her head out from the spare room, 'Come this way dear we can get you all cleaned up and changed.'

As she entered the room she noted that there was now an additional bathroom to it. 'Go ahead and bathe before your dinner and then we'll get you dressed.'

As soon as she stepped out of the shower, wrapped herself in a warm fluffy white towel, and entered the bedroom, there was a slight knock on the door. 'May I come in?' was the soft motherly voice again.

'Certainly' was her reply.

The mother entered carrying some clothing in her arms and she began to lay them out on the bed. A long flowing skirt dyed blood red at the top and fading into black at the bottom and a seemingly regular black tank top were laid out before her, as well as a pair of black knee high boots. 'My mother in law told me all about you and the things you liked...the one condition to me marrying Andrew was that I would accept you into my home when you woke, and if you slept longer than that, that I would raise my children to accept you as they had.' she paused and looked over and the young looking Vampire. 'I do hope you like the clothes...' she added shyly, 'I made them myself.'

Looking from the clothes to the mother, she smiled. 'They are perfect. Thank you so much!' She gave the mother a hug, 'Now I must ask, What is your name?'

'Sabriel.' She replied before turning to leave the room. 'Now go on and change and we shall get you feed hmmm? I'm sure you must be starving by now.'

'All right Sabriel. Thank you again.' She replied to the closing door.

After changing into her new and handmade clothes that were as soft as Sabriel's motherly voice, she returned to the family. 'Thank you all again for your hospitality. I know it is quite different now...' her voice softened, 'now that your parents are gone Andrew...if you wish for me to leave I will...I do not wish to overstay my welcome.'

Andrew stood up and strode across the living room to her and gave her a huge hug while saying, 'You can never overstay your welcome here, here you are like family. Don't you think I have forgotten when you saved me from those wolves...or that time when I nearly went over the water fall...'

He was interrupted by his son, 'Or the time she had to drag your drunk ass home from that party!'

'Henry! Watch your language!' Sabriel scolded.

'Yes, yes that time too.' Andrew agreed letting her go. 'Any how I do believe my point is made, right hunny?'

'More so than needed I do believe.' his wife replied while giving their son a scolding eye.

'Thank you, both of you for allowing my to stay here.' she smiled at the couple.

'Nonsense! As Andrew said, our home is your home.' Replied Sabriel, 'Now on to getting you feed...'

Cutting off his other parent the young man stood and grabbed her hand, 'Come this way.'

He led her out near the pastures, up the creek a little ways and sat her down in a small alcove on the bank. Upon sitting down she questioned, 'Is there a new warehouse that I do not know about?'

He gently smiled at her, 'My grandmother told me all about you and your stories...she also told me of how important it is for a Vampriss to have fresh blood after she wakes.' He sat down next to her, 'Drink from me little Bluejay.'

The nickname that his grandmother, the woman who had taken her into her home and clothed and fed her, hit her hard. A few tears formed in her eyes.

'It's all right, I'm ready for it. Grandma explained it all to me, including how important you were to her.' Henry told her while taking off his shirt. 'Now you need to feed.' His voice was stern but soft as he pulled her toward him.

Slowly she agreed and sank her fangs into his neck. It was so good to taste warm, willing, human blood again. She gently slid her arms around his back and pulled him closer to her cold body, feeling a shiver run through him.

He also wrapped his arms around her lower back, while a quiet and low moan escaped from his lips. As she drank her body warmed but remained cool to the touch.

When she was finished she licked the wound to close it and kissed his neck. Looking him in the eyes, 'Thank you.'

'Anytime little Bluejay.' His reply was low and coarse, 'We should head back though...' his eyes sparkled, 'Dad might think something else was happening to us.' He winked at her.

Swiftly he put his shirt back on and stood up, offering her a hand. She took his hand and stood looking out at the water, 'This was my favorite spot on this creek...'

Replying over his shoulder beginning to lead the way back home Henry replied, 'I know Grandma told me, that's why I brought you here.'

She smiled at him and began to follow him back to the little house.

 

[Cecidius]

As the two made their way back to the house, a tear formed in the ground. A hole tore through reality, opening a portal to another realm. As it grew in size, a hint of white hair loomed from the ground, and rose forth as the portal grew to be four feet wide. The hooded man stepped onto the grass, and the portal sealed itself back up.

"Good evening, my dear." he said, his voice calm and deep, charismatic and knowing. "I believe it has been too long." He pulled a cigarette from his coat, and as he inhaled, it lit itself. He pulled a second cigarette, and held his hand out, the cylinder rotating just above his hand. "Would you like an after-meal smoke?" It flitted in the air, as he stepped back from it, standing over where the portal had been.

"Allow me to thank you for caring for my kin, mortal." he said to the young man. "You cannot fully understand how grateful I am." He smiled at him, and then turned to the woman again.

"My dear, there are events unfolding, and legacies to be made. It would seem Fate has played quite a funny card this time about, as you are not the only one who has just awoken. I regret to inform you we must be on our way quickly." He dragged from the cigarette, smiled, and exhaled the plumes from his nostrils.

He held forth his hand, and another rift in existence formed, this time as a gateway, instead of a hole in the ground. "But please, enjoy your cigarette."

 

[TakodaVega]

She had finally found what she had been searching for in the hushing dark of the city. If this had been fifty, no a hundred years Siofragana would not have had this dilemma. Before that damned Demon had actually went looking for her, she had only needed to feed once every month, maybe even every other month to keep her strength. Now? She had to do it every other day. She wasn't certain if it was just because she had fed from the intoxicating burn of a Demon though. It could really be the forty years lack of fresh blood that was still trying to recalibrate itself.

The Blood bank had been simmering with that coppery tang that had made her pupils dilate and her fangs grow ever so slightly. Tel had been a blessing and a curse. Without him she may never have regained the powers she had lost when she had been the Coven Queen so many centuries ago, powers which the Creed had tainted and had sealed away when it had reigned havoc on Terra. She still felt as though she hadn't repented enough. Especially after Magi's sacrifice to seal the Creed away forever.

She doubted even her children knew that their mother was Awake. No matter, she placed her hand against the door turning into frost that slipped through the cracks and wove it's way down the hallway to the source of that coppery tang. Cold? Yes, normally she would feed fresh from the source, but she still didn't trust herself with doing that just yet. She had already killed a few animals, mostly rats, by accident. She ruffled through some of the bags before finding her favorite of the bunch.

AB+, a gem that sang as old as her blood did. She slid down to the floor her breath still forming frost in the air as her form continued to materialize until she was whole once more. Tearing her fangs through the plastic she tipped the bag forward slowly, careful not to waste a single drop as it slid down her throat. Sweet heaven did it bring memories. A shudder running through her as she let the blood continue to drip....

PHOENIX!

Her head snapped straight up startling her enough to almost drop the bag. She knew that voice. Where did she know that voice? She licked her lips eying the now empty bag of blood as she tossed it into a 'Biohazard' bag and slipped out as though she had never been there. Damn it. The voice was gone as soon as she had heard it. She pressed her palm against her forehead and tried to concentrate. But even then the voice remained elusive. The town was still thick with life even as the moon hung high above them.

The bag had thankfully taken the edge off and left her alone to puzzle over her mystery. Not even truly paying attention that the others were awake. She was too focused on trying to discover the source of the voice in her head. She was sure she would recognize it if she only heard it again.

 

[Shu]

As soon as the portal opened she was pushed back by Henry. 'What do you want with her?' He asked in a much older sounding voice than his twenty-two year old face portrayed.

Upon observing the cloaked figure she noted a few things as he spoke. The only being she had ever known with hair such as his was someone who had once been vary dear to her.

She stepped out in front of Henry holding her left hand up to him and taking the cigarette with her right. She glanced over her shoulder to the young man, 'It's all right, he is not here to hurt me.' She twirled the cigarette around in her fingers, 'Not even the beast inside of him could ever fully do that.'

'Wait...This is the one called Zanfell?' Henry asked remembering his Grandmother's stories, though he still stepped forward and protectively put his arm around her waist.

'The one and only.' She replied putting the cigarette up to her mouth. It lit immediately and she slowly inhaled a drag and let it slowly curl out from her lips.

"My dear, there are events unfolding, and legacies to be made. It would seem Fate has played quite a funny card this time about, as you are not the only one who has just awoken. I regret to inform you we must be on our way quickly." "But please, enjoy your cigarette."

'Fate is a bitch. You and I both know that.' she stated exhaling smoke at the same time. A fresh pull off her cigarette, 'Though I do suppose you know more than I do right now seeing as I just woke up and all.' she sighed and the remaining smoke left her lungs. She stepped out of Henry's protective arm and turned to him. 'I'm sorry, but I must go. Please tell your parents that I appreciate everything they did for me from the bottom of my heart.' She leaned in and kissed him gently. 'Don't forget your Grandmother or her stories, she was a wise woman and never told a lie.'

A light trail of smoke followed her though the gateway.

 

[Cecidius]

The man chuckled as the boy stepped in his way to defend the woman. He pulled a small dagger from his belt, in the sheathe, and held it towards the man, handle facing him. "To more properly defend those you care for." he suggested. "As it seems you've heard of me, you would then know that even with this, you would stand no chance. Love and purity hold certain strengths, and they would normally allow you to overcome obstacles, but Fate and Destiny are far greater a force."

He turned, following the trail the woman had made, towards the gateway. "Likewise, I am far more powerful a force. Enjoy your time in this world, mortal. It is very short for you." With that, he stepped through, the gateway sealing behind him.

-------

The realm he appeared in was a shadowy reflection of Terra. The woman stood before him, and he laughed again. "You pick your herd well, to say the least." The ancient being walked ahead of her, and turned to face her. "There is time here, to speak. Phoenix has awoken, at nearly the exact same time as you. I have felt something stirring in Terra. Something strange. I have yet to determine if it is simply Fate hinting at it's course, or if it is something much different. Perhaps something is tempting to deny Fate. Fate is so hard to come to understand."

He lowered the hood, his blood red eyes beaming from under his brow; his long white hair falling at his shoulders. He pulled on his cigarette, and slowly exhaled. "As you can see, I've done some work here. Tried to make it more... hospitable." He smiled, turning to a pathway.

He extended his hand down the pathway, turning to face the woman. "This pathway should take us close to her. It will seem but an instant has passed when we return to Terra. It will still be night when we arrive, giving us a better chance at finding her. All that aside, how was your sleep, dear?"

 

[Shu]

"You pick your herd well, to say the least."

She shrugged taking a drag off of her cigarette. 'Henry's grandparents took me in to begin with, his grandmother was something else. She was a good woman and as I told him, she never told a lie. I would know after sharing so many of her memories with her.' she stated referring to the fact that she had fed off of the woman.

"As you can see, I've done some work here. Tried to make it more... hospitable." Brown eyes took in her surroundings as she nodded. He certainly had done some massive overhauling, the last time she had been here was years ago and only briefly, though she did recall how...unpleasant it had been.

"This pathway should take us close to her. It will seem but an instant has passed when we return to Terra. It will still be night when we arrive, giving us a better chance at finding her. All that aside, how was your sleep, dear?"

'The same as always,' she replied, 'Reliving my past.' She let out a slow sigh combined with the last drag of her cigarette and flicked it off to the side. The embers erupted in a small shower of sparks as it hit the ground, 'The good and the bad.' She knew he would understand, seeing as he had been there for a lot of it, and what he had not witnessed firsthand most of the rest she had already shared with him.

She gently placed her cool hand in his looking him straight in the eyes, 'What has been happening with you since I slept?' pausing and not quite finished she asked, 'And where is Alucard?'

 

[TakodaVega]

Siofragana's eyes suddenly flicked towards an archway near her and pulled herself up onto the roof. Her crouch definitive and in the mode to attack if need be. She slightly licked her fangs as the gateway finally opened. Out stood two people she had not seen since they were in their own darker days. Bloodlusted taints had scoured their souls for all it was worth. The question of course became if they still remained as such.

Moving across the rooftops she finally managed to find the overhang near the portal and watched them emerge with those calculating ice blue eyes of hers. Only once the portal was closed did she make her true presence known. "I see some things never change." Came that cool voice as she dropped back down onto the ground with the vampire grace few ancients still possessed. Her arms crossed as she looked at the two carefully. Those ice blue eyes seldom blinking. She had to find the source of the voice. She knew it wasn't her daughter, she had decided to seal herself away into some tower again to study to her fullest potential.

So who was it? She knew it was a female voice, and it wasn't one who apparently knew her true name. She looked down at Zanfell and more still to Shadow. Someone whom last time she had seen she had threatened to kill. Not something normally in Siofragana's nature as Shadow had always been someone very dear to her. It was uneasy seeing them both like this though considering their last meeting hadn't been quite so... pleasant.

 

[Cecidius]

"What has been happening with me?" Zanfell smirked. "Alucard has gone on his own journey, to center himself, and master his arts. Something I did when I was young. It's in my blood, I suppose. As for me, I was able to conquer the Beast at last, after sealing myself in the Void for a month, battling with it's essence. Only once I was in control did my seal break, and permit me back to Terra." He pulled at his cigarette again, and continued.

"After that, I was tracked down by yet another legion of foolhardy hunters, sure of their skills in defeated vampires." His hand searched through his pockets, and he brought forth an arrowhead with a cross stamped into it. "They do not realize that I am not a vampire. They will never have the chance to correct their mistake, though." He shook his head, a hint of remorse wafting over his face. "It's unfortunate they are so zealous about destroying us. They don't understand how much they could learn if they weren't trying to kill us."

"C'est la vie, I suppose. Shall we, then?" They stepped onto the pathway, and were sent hurling through the cosmos of nothingness, as an archway appeared and released them back into Terra.

---

"I see some things never change"

Zanfell spun about, two short straight blades forming out of Void essence. He stood in a defensive stance, being startled from the sudden voice. As the speaker landed on the ground, he recognized her. The blades retracted into nothingness, and Zanfell stood passively. "And why would you say that?" he asked, puffing at the last few seconds of his cigarette. "I should think my wardrobe would state otherwise. Many things have happened over the last forty years. Of course I adapted, as I always have."

He laughed. "In which case I suppose I haven't changed." He lowered the hood, his white hair cascading upon his shoulders and back. "Did you sleep well? Or were you plagued with horrible memories?" he asked, smiling towards Shadow.

 

[Shu]

“As for me, I was able to conquer the Beast at last, after sealing myself in the Void for a month, battling with it's essence. Only once I was in control did my seal break, and permit me back to Terra."

'Pity...' She responded, 'I had fun with the Beast.' She didn't know how Zanfell would react to that last comment seeing as she hadn't been the person he had always known when she was interacting with the Beast. Though what they shared the Beast did admit that Zanfell wasn't protesting to. It had always left her wondering if Zanfell had wished it was his state of mind that was there instead of the Beast's.

She shook her head to herself and murmured, 'A conversation for another time I suppose.'

Stepping out from the gateway she heard a familiar voice behind her, slowly turning she laid her eyes upon someone she wasn't quite sure she was yet ready to see. She took a slight defensive stance not knowing how things would play out.

Somehow she could tell that something had changed in the woman standing before her, she knew it wasn't the Phoenix she had last met.

'Many things change with time...You should know that.' Her response toward the woman was much colder than anything she had yet said to Zanfell, though seeing as the last time they had met things didn't play out nicely.

 

[TakodaVega]

Siofragana's eyes drifted down over Zanfell standing at her full height. "Doubtful, yet last I recalled you two were never very far apart." She flicked her gaze between the Vampyre and the woman she had viewed as very dear. A sister without really being there. Siofragana hadn't even flinched from the Void's appearance of blades. She knew that it was Zanfell's reaction was his natural one.

"I do not dream when I sleep. If I did that I would be sleeping for more than a simple forty years." She said with a soft air of coldness as her eyes moved back towards the smaller woman, the smallest between them. Something about her voice made Siofragana do a double take, and suddenly pieces started to fit into place. A flash of the vision and dreams came back to her head. "Why are you calling to me in my head?" Those cold eyes were no longer as cold, warming ever so softly. Obviously she still cared about the woman. Taking a few steps forward she looked her over again before her gaze moved to the woman's hands. She wasn't sure yet if it was Shadow, or if it was another variation of the woman.

"No, not you." She said softly, after eying her hands. "Another you." She was certain of it now, as she took a step back. "I see the taint left you, but you are still not you...are you?" She said softly as she crossed her arm across her chest. Seeing as how Zanfell hadn't introduced her, she had no idea as to what she was going by now. She would still respond as Phoenix of course, but once she realized her real name things started to be more in motion.

If only they knew.

 

[Cecidius]

Zanfell smiled subtly when Phoenix denied dreaming, and then stated that Shadow, or one of her other incarnations was calling to her, negating her claim. The Vampyre did so like ironic claims. He neglected to mention it, and simply stood still, silent for the moment. Producing his pack, he pulled out another cigarette, and placed it between his lips. Again, it lit as he inhaled, and he began to pace around the two, slowly.

After a full circle, he spoke. "Well, this is a lovely reunion, considering all that had happened before either of you slept." he quipped. "I suppose you may have some greater inkling as to what the Fates desire of three of the most ancient and powerful creatures of the night?" he said toward Phoenix, turning to face to her as he paced. "I feel the threads pulling us together once more, yet am not quite sure why. Though, far be it for me to assume that I may be privy to such knowledge of Destiny, but still, I wonder."

He drew in a breath of nicotine, and savored it for a moment. Exhaling, he stopped on the opposite side of where he'd began pacing. "Isn't it strange how we three always seem to be thrust into some grand scheme?" he chuckled, and faced the two women, shifting his gaze between the two of them.

 

[Shu]

She eyed the other woman carefully taking a step back. 'I don't know what you mean by another me.' she responded coldly. 'I am me. That is all there is to it.'

She shook her head to herself realizing that she hadn't been quite as willing to see the other woman yet as she had thought. She had not thought things through enough when Zanfell had first approached her. If she had stayed where she was she would have been taken care of, out of danger. Instead she had left, throwing herself back into the Fates arms for God knows what to happen.

Observing and listening to what Zanfell had to say she replied, 'Three of the most ancient and powerful?' she questioned, 'Be it far from me to truly understand what you mean seeing as I am much younger than both of you.'

Nodding she also looked between the two others, 'Strange indeed. That we are all brought back together again though not exactly on our own terms.'

She crossed the imaginary circle that Zanfell had been pacing and gently, yet swiftly, took the cigarette right out of his mouth. Looking him dead in the eyes, 'Destiny is a bitch.' Taking a drag of the cigarette she took a step off to his right and slowly turned facing back toward the other woman.

 

[TakodaVega]

"Apparently I was supposed to wake up seven years ago, if the Fates had their way about it." Came the soft, deadlier voice as she looked at Zanfell. "I'm older than you are Zanfell. You just don't realize how old." She tilted her head to one side, "Shouldn't you wonder why Alucard hasn't come back yet?" Phoenix had been known to have eyes and ears everywhere, or at least in some cases places she wanted to, Siofragana was even more entwined in the art. "The answer is quite simple. We restore the balance of what went wrong. Whatever that 'wrongness' is." She let her ice blue eyes flick over to the woman who had yet to name herself.

"Since I have woken up, I've been having dreams about a woman calling my old name for help. You may still call me that if you desire, as my true name is not easily pronounced. However each time she slips into the shadows before I can catch her or find her. I knew I had recognized the voice." She reached over, and without even flinching crushed the red hot cherry with steam passing from her fingers as she released the end of the cigarette. "Destiny may be the bitch, but Fate is an elegant, cold-hearted whore."

 

[Cecidius]

"Fate, Destiny, whatever the name, it's all the same." Zanfell said, smiling at the thought of Phoenix being older than him. He wasn't going to argue. Beside, you never ask a woman her age. "I don't have to wonder why Alucard hasn't returned. He's reached a point where he must learn some things on his own." He held his hand out towards the cigarette, which evaporated into ectoplasm, dissipated, and reformed in his hand. "This is why I can't have nice things."

"On the topic of your name, just as a tangent, really, why would you assume that someone like me couldn't pronounce something? The many times around the world, learning every language I must to blend in. A ridiculous assumption." Zanfell's cigarette lit up again, and he pulled at it. "I'm a bit insulted really."

He exhaled the plume, and took a couple steps away from the two, protecting his cigarette. He glared at Shadow, and smirked.

 

[Shu]

She let out a discontented sigh with the remaining smoke from her lungs. 'Must you do that? Both of you? Can't even let me enjoy a damn cigarette.' She made a mental note that she needed to obtain some cigarettes soon.

She shook her head and continued, 'I'd call you by your real name if you told us.' she retorted to the other woman, 'And as far as another me goes, I know nothing...' she shook her head, 'and well...does the world really need two of me?'

 

[TakodaVega]

"Not exactly Zanfell. You can choose your destiny. Fate?" She chuckled. "Aren't most humans fated to die? I believe so." She glanced over between the two of them. "There's a gas station up the road from here that is still open." She reached into her back pocket and handed the woman who was formally, if not still, Shadow a twenty. "That should cover you for a bit. Human money has changed over the past forty years."

However her glance lingered on her still. "Vampires can kill themselves," she said slowly, "Normally the younger they are the easier it is for one to do so. Remember I've seen your lifetime," her blue eyes became deeper, more of sky blue before flickering back to that icy shield. "Even a Vampire dies, when they try to bleed themselves to death. You need the blood to make yourself heal. The faster you loose it, the slower it is to heal. You however...never died. Think about it."

Her eyes riveted towards Zanfell. "My language is a Dead one. Though by name I'm called Siofragana Amaranth Nyx." Which gave a whole other meaning to Phoenix's name all together. "There is a theory that through my father's line Nyx has given us immunity through the Night. Or at least that is how the story goes." She shrugged carefully, "Though I could easily destroy your ember from here it would only become a cycle of annoyance for everyone."

Her eyes flicked once more. "That doesn't tell me how you found me."

 

[Cecidius]

"What would you expect, a phone call?" Zanfell asked. "Our blood is thick, and ancient. I am attuned to such things as old friends and ancient enemies waking from the long sleep." He dragged from his cigarette, and chuckled as Siofragana noted she could dowse his cigarette. However, such a challenge was not in their interest. A being who controls Ice, and one who masters Fire, such a contest would end horribly.

"What we need to ascertain, and put aside thoughts of mystical contests, is what exactly woke the two of you up at the same time." Zanfell noted. "Whatever it is, must be vexing, or else I would still be at home, further fortifying my thoughts from Him." He stepped away, turning away from them, and pulling out a small gem. It glowed dimly, with a pale red glimmer. He stowed it away again, quickly, and turned back, dragging again. "Any thoughts?"

 

[Shu]

She eyed the woman carefully and nodded thanks as she took the twenty dollar bill. 'I recall that I could not die, you need not remind me.' She said while placing the money in her bra. 'As far as finding you...I followed him.' She pointed toward Zanfell.

She took a step back as the two chatted, 'Siofragana...even more complicated...great...' she thought to herself and then shrugged it off. Didn't matter what her name was now, she still seemed as complicated and temperamental as before.

She listened to what Zanfell had to say, 'I agree we ought to figure out what is going on this time.' Observing him stepping away, turning around, and pulling something out of his pocket. He quickly replaced whatever it was.

'All right then...I'm going to go get me some smokes.' She turned and began walking in the direction that Siofragana had pointed.

 

[TakodaVega]

"Keep in mind, however, The Queen of Fire had been searching for my tomb for seven years. Which means whatever happened started over seven years ago." Those blue eyes of hers flicked toward the Vampyre, there was something about the gem that had caught her attention. "For all you're aloof nature, Zanfell, you still aren't as certain as you like to think you are."

Though her gaze drifted once more to the woman she knew as Shadow, her voice was light as she continued on that train of thought. "I do not mean to remind you of it, my dear, but you must take something else into account. If you remember the Creed couldn't kill me either. Nor could the body die in that same sense." She snorted however before shaking her head, "Angelus had always called me 'Phoenix', thus why when he found me after the Ritual, I took up that name." Siofragana leaned against the nearby wall. One leg slightly crossed over the other as she folded her arms across her chest in the same fashion. "My theory is someone upset the balance and something happened that shouldn't have. If it's important enough that was a seven year search for me alone this runs far deeper than what we thought."

 

[Cecidius]

Zanfell snapped his fingers, and from the Nothing, a pack of cigarettes appeared. "Don't worry about it, cher." he said. He handed the pack to Shadow, and chained another cigarette. He leaned against another wall, and folded his own arms, sliding down against the wall, and resting at a position which made it look like he was sitting in a chair.

"So then, if she was looking for you, did she find you?" he asked, sucking on the paper. "The Queen of Fire, that is. Whomever that is." he finished. He disregarded her comment about his certainty and let it wash past. "And why exactly was she searching for you, anyway?"

 

[Shu]

'Thank you' she took the pack of menthol cigarettes and packed them. 'Don't suppose you could poof me a lighter too?' She asked with a smile. 'I don't expect you to be there every time I want a smoke...Unless there is something I don't know...' she let her sentence trail off and her smile fade. Their past...was in the past...though it was Kaede and the Beast...not her and Zanfell, though she still wanted to know more. Kaede was still a part of her and she wanted to know the truth as Kaede had, did Zanfell have feelings for Shadow?

She put her cigarette between her lips and continued talking, 'Obviously the Queen of Fire found her, if not she wouldn't be here.' She looked over at Zanfell waiting for him to either light her cigarette or to poof her a lighter from the Void.

'Anyhow,' she continued pausing for only a second, 'I suppose I should give you this back,' she pulled the twenty out of her bra and handed it toward Siofragana, 'And I suppose we should figure out what happened seven years ago to start this all...'

She sat on the ground Indian style , 'Seven years ago I was captured by Lolindor's blood Father...Where were the rest of you?' She asked matter of factly.

She looked over at Siofragana, 'Where were you then?'

Siofragana, to her better known in the past as Phoenix, had been her sister, her confidant. Though Zanfell had come in a close second, and Beast closer to her still (in more ways than one) she still thought it best to confront Phe first.

 

[TakodaVega]

"It's safe to assume Ishfaraelshra found my tomb. Only fire could wake me up from that deep of slumber." She glanced over Zanfell, "Considering I had no plans of waking, my mother must have found it to be important for me to do so." The Niamh is where Siofragana had gotten a majority of her appearances from, sans height. Her gaze moved towards the woman known as Shadow before shaking her head. "Keep it, you never know when neither of us will be around. It'll give you access to funds then."

When she started asking she stilled carefully. "I was in the pole at least in the beginning." She said carefully one leg crossing over the other as she continued to lean against the wall. "Though the other months I moved to find the source of the dreams I had been having. Nightmares really. Vampires don't dream like normal people do. We're not supposed to anyway. So I can only assume these Dreams are messages from someone trying to contact me." She shrugged carefully. "I sent my feelers out into the land to see if anyone else could be found but I found no one above the surface of my Blood so I went to restore the Resources until I could figure out the dreams."