"This is a terrible idea."

"Well, we are already here, so we might as well follow through with it."

Voices. Outside the door. Voices were what woke Ainsley Redmont from her slumber. The Lady of the Dynasty had her face buried in her pillow, indigo colored hair spilled across the bed sheets. Beauty sleep was an understatement. Not only was she hoping to rejuvenate her own body with some well deserved rest, the Witch was trying to recover a bit of her magical essence; a lot of it had been used just two evenings ago, destroying the foes of her family in a violent battle. Victory was theirs, but with victory came determined fighting and then exhaustion. Her plight to make her Dynasty known as a ruthless force of nature was wearing some of her family to their wits ends. Ainsley had worn her own self out to no avail; after all, she was still human despite her excelled magic capabilities. Yet, it would be only a matter of time before the feeling of being tired, of weakness, was completely extinguished from her families bodies.

Ainsley lifted her body from the feather mattress, pushing her form away from the crumpled bed sheets. She stretched out methodically like a cat, letting every previously aching muscle in her limbs feel awakened again. Moving from the bed, Ainsley reached for the nearest robe, and draped it across her sleek figure, circling the tie around her waist to close her nude body away from her anxious guests.

Her throat cleared, Ainsley's voice rang out in the middle of the room and slipped out past the doors. "Come in already." One of the two people that had been conversing outside her door gasped hearing the Lady's words ring out. There was a nervous air of silence Ainsley could feel outside the door before the ornate silver knobs started turning. From behind the now parted oak double doors entered two of her more skillful fighters, Felicia and Vicktor Redmont.

The doors closed once the pair had crossed the threshold into Ainsley's room and so soon did their eyes start wavering away from her questioning gaze. Ainsley stepped into the only other light in the room besides a lone flickering candle in the corner; the moonlight that filtered through her curtained window reflected on Ainsley's pale skin, making her appear like some luminous ghost. Her head tilted inquisitively as she looked at the two trying to meet their faces, trying to read the words that dared to part from their silenced lips.

"Felicia. Vicktor. I would sooner expect either of you to sacrifice yourself to our enemies than to wake me for something that isn't of importance," Ainsley began. "So, what is it that brings you both knocking upon my door?"

It seemed some annoyance grew on Ainsley's face, especially when she found Felicia avoiding any form of communication. The Witch wondered when this would be over - when one of them would find the courage to say what it was they came here for. Ainsley nearly bent down to knock Felicia's feet out from under her as she noticed the girl was poised to take a step backwards, as if to make a hasty retreat.

"It is about Elijah," Vicktor started.

"And?" Ainsley questioned. Her patience was definitely wearing thin at this point.

"The two of us, Felicia and I, were headed out on evening patrol as our hour was up. It was then that we caught a glimpse of Elijah inspecting the perimeter around the Sanctuary of Northpoint..."

The calm resolve Ainsley held beyond her blank face expertly hid the disappointment she truly felt. To wake her up for this was utter nonsense. There was no way Elijah could have any idea where the Sanctuary was. Ainsley had never showed him and would not even in her death - even if she were to marry him. The Sanctuary was hers and in it the most dangerous of spells and secrets that fueled her families bloodlust. To hold the powers that were bred in that hidden place would mean instantaneous strength. However, Ainsley was the only one with access to it; she was the only one with an inkling of knowledge on how the ancient artifacts and runes worked. She greatly doubted any Bluefield would be able to handle it, and that said a lot for the man she chose to marry was a Bluefield indeed.

"This is nonsense," Ainsley finally announced and for a moment her voice was a hissing sound between clenched teeth. "Both of you, wasting my time like this. I sincerely appreciate your concern, but I am also aware of your hesitation to accept the Bluefields as part of our family. I have one suggestion for you. Deal with it - immediately."

With the looming presence of marriage between Ainsley Redmont and Elijah Bluefield, many of the Redmonts had become tactless towards their Lady. It was apparent they were still loyal to their own Lady of course, but they showed reserve when it came to accepting the Bluefields as kin by the binding of marriage. It had been a many long bitter years before the two families could ever fight together, and Ainsley was not about to let her efforts go to waste. They, her own Dynasty, were afraid of the Bluefields being equal; were afraid of not being above the rest. It was a mixture of both pride and stupidity. Their warnings about Elijah's snooping around the Sanctuary where of mere importance to the overall cause.

Ainsley was smarter than that. She knew that the Bluefields could not excel to the level of the Redmonts, though many of her family did not seem to grasp the concept. Instead, they loathed the fact she was to be married to the animal. There was the nagging suspicions that Elijah would weigh her down and overpower the Witch. And as husband to the Lady of the Redmonts, would his words and orders come before Ainsley's own family?

"But M'Lady," Felicia said raising her face and staring intently at her leader from behind a curtain of curly, blonde hair.

"Enough," Ainsley replied shortly and her words were not objected any longer for an evident reason. The doors to her room that had been shut were starting to open without invitation. It was then that Vicktor and Felicia's lips became tight and speechless. In stalked the tall, looming figure of Elijah Bluefield. His quiet feet carried him right past the uneasy pair of Redmonts and towards the Lady. The Bluefield leader snaked an arm around Ainsley's delicate shoulders. The beast wore a smug grin as if he were clearly listening the whole time outside the bedroom door.

"Oh, please, do carry on. Don't mind me at all," Elijah said and his hand that was perched on Ainsley's shoulder waved nonchalantly once.

"You were saying?" Ainsley said, a slender brow rising in question, daring the two to utter another nonsensical word.

"Nothing, Lady Redmont. Please accept our apologies for disturbing you," Felicia replied rather curtly at long last. She turned with a swift bow to the Witch and departed from the bedroom, Vicktor in tow.

"I do not think they like me hanging about you," Elijah whispered nuzzling his lips against Ainsley's neck. She stood rather stiffly despite his advances on her. The Lady of the Dynasty was suddenly on edge, despite the warnings she blatantly rejected from her family. It was only when Elijah's hand moved beneath her robe to graze the flesh along her bare thighs that she loosened her alertness.

Ainsley's face turned up to meet his and it was with a reluctant sigh that she replied, "They will get used to you."

The two fell back onto disarrayed bed sheets, arms and legs entwining in an intimate embrace as their heated bodies seemed to melt together. Though Ainsley let her body succumb to her carnal desires, her hunger for the flesh of the Bluefield beast, she could not deny her mind had not let the thought of betrayal escape her. Pressing her face against Elijah's flesh, she tasted his skin and smelled beneath the sweat the blood of a battle previously fought - two moons ago. Two evenings ago and it had not worn off. The man had been so preoccupied with something else, he had not been able to clean himself. What was he doing lurking around the perimeter of the Sanctuary...?

The Witch tried to read anything he might be hiding; she was always so careful. But her search had proved effortless and when Elijah's heavy breathing could be felt upon her skin, her being returned reality. There was nothing going on as far as Elijah went, and behind closed doors, the Redmont Lady transformed back into the powerful and imposing figure she always appeared. Not a sniveling, worried little girl. This alliance would forge the two families together - stronger than ever before - and it was with this image that a pleased smile finally crept across Ainsley Redmont's lips.

It was less than an hour before the wedding and Elijah Bluefield stood in front of a mirror watching his reflection with a smug face, his lips twisted into an almost mischievous grin. The Redmont Estate held both Redmonts and Bluefields together under one roof today, gathering for the sole purpose under strained civility to see the two leaders of the families wed. The time was drawing closer when at long last the alliance would be properly forged and the Bluefield leader would have some say over what was done with the Redmont kin. After all, he had won Ainsley's hand rightfully so and the big prize was just ahead.

From the corner of the room, a figure which was previously shadowed until now floated into view, joining Elijah's reflection in the mirror. The person who moved to meet Elijah cocked their head to the side curiously under the canopy of a hooded robe. When the shadow was sure of whom it was, slender hands wrung free of the sleeves of the robe where the edge of the fabric was tattered and torn. Delicate fingers lifted upwards and pulled the hood away, revealing a set of full crimson curls and dim gray eyes. Her milk colored skin seemed to cast some light in the room and Elijah was evoked to turn around and face her.

The woman slid up against Elijah and her hands like spiders climbed across his chest to wrap thin arms around his neck. Her lips tugged into a grin, watching the Beast with a sort of hunger, as if she were about to devour him. Instead, the woman placed a soft kiss on the tip of Elijah's chin, her lips lingering on this spot for a mere second before she pulled away and looked back into his amber colored eyes.

"Oh, I cannot figure out for the life of me why you do this to yourself," she said.

"You know why," Elijah began. "This is one of the few steps into gaining access to the private chambers of Northpoint - into Sanctuary."

The Bluefield leader's throat produced a snarl after mentioning the Sanctuary. It was as if that simple word drove desire and domination into his being just by being mentioned. Elijah had more than enough determination to obtain his goal, however, the Redmont Witch had indeed given him a difficult time reaching it. Not that Ainsley was watching him constantly; she had unmatched protectiveness towards her territory and would not even tell her own fiancé where the entrance to Sanctuary was. The Witch had a tough time trusting anyone and the secrets that were held in the deepest parts of Northpoint were no joke to take lightly.

"Still, the idea of marrying Lady Redmont... of sharing your bed with her," the woman began and here one of her legs pressed forward, wrapping around Elijah's side protectively, "disgusts me."

Elijah's hand moved upwards in a flash and gripped tight against the woman's chin. The maneuver was so sudden, she did not have time to react. Instead, her leg which she had placed against Elijah previously was now weakened, her knees shaky and unstable underneath the pressure of his fingers. The force which he placed upon her jaw was enough to break her lower teeth and it was in this moment she realized she probably should not have questioned his motives.

"Idiot," Elijah answered with a hiss. "Look past your own meager selfishness. My marrying Ainsley is for the sole purpose of strengthening the Bluefields over their kin. Or did you not hear the many times I have mentioned this? Once I have my own heir with that vile Redmont blood in it, I can find the secrets of Northpoint and dispose of the Witch. I summoned you here for a reason, not for you to debate me, whore."

"Very well," the woman began as her teeth chattered. A trail of blood ran from the corner of her mouth; the pressure applied to her jaw and teeth had made her bit her tongue.

Elijah released her chin from his grip with a shove. The woman's feet faltered backwards a few steps, but the two did not let their eyes wander from each other. Her hand absently wiped blood from her chin and when she was done, she reached within her robe and pulled out a small vile. The potion inside was bubbling as if it were alive and radiated an unearthly shade of green. Holding it out to Elijah, the Beast snatched it away from the woman and held it in front of his face, inspecting the contents.

"This will ensure she conceives?" Elijah asked keeping his eyes on the woman.

Her breath seemed to be caught in her throat for a moment, but she managed to still let out a silky voiced, "Oh yes. Without a doubt, you will have your heir soon enough, Elijah Bluefield."

"Do not return again until I command you," the Bluefield leader ordered. It was with that direction that the woman now drew her hood over her face once more and bowed low. She backed away into the corner of the room like she was being banished and seemed to disappear within the comfort of the shadows.

When Elijah was alone, he pocketed the vial and stalked towards the door of the room. Below him awaited the wedding; a sealing of fates that he could not keep waiting any longer. As husband to the Lady of the Redmonts, there were hardly any who would object to his rule any longer. As long as he kept the Witch wrapped around his finger, the Beast would be in good company. And the day when Ainsley Redmont would deliver to him a child, would be a day of celebration indeed.

Despite Elijah's previous encounter with the hooded woman, the wedding at the Redmont Estate went on without any apparent problems. There was tension in the air, but the leaders of the two families had their wrists bound together with silk fabric. For a while, Elijah thought the hooded woman might come out and make a scene; her jealousy over Ainsley had not gone unnoticed. Nevertheless, ancient words were said, rituals were carried out and in the end the two were wed. On this same day, the Redmont and Bluefield families were one – the region's strongest alliance at long last.

The evening continued and during the wedding dinner, Ainsley Redmont lifted her glass in a toast, unbeknownst to the liquid Elijah had emptied into the wine she drank. The color of the potion which was once a vibrant shade of green, camouflaged itself well. After she took a swallow, Ainsley let the bitter taste melt into her tongue and looked back at her glass holding it under some light to see anything suspicious. There was no definite poison within the wine; Ainsley knew that for sure. Still, she looked at Elijah who sat next to her along the table and only seemed to smile satisfied at her, the wedding, the alliance... and at many other things the Witch was unaware of. The Lady Redmont finished her tainted glass of wine and with it came the promise of a new life.

An ocean of fresh corpses littered the now damp ground. Where once was a field of pale, delicate flowers, held the soon to be graveyard of unresponsive bodies. Ainsley Redmont walked among them, checking those who were dead and looking for any familiar faces among the fallen - those of her family. Her boots trudged along the ground as she walked; blood that had soaked into the moist earth sponged up across the leather of her shoes. A hand absently reached up towards her face and wiped a streak of indigo hair off her cheek; the tress was matted with that crimson liquid as well and she had no doubt that her own porcelain skin was stained just as equally.

Another victory. Another land conquered. But at what cost? This time Ainsley had lost more members of her own kin that she had anticipated. Other Redmonts were searching among the defeated, dragging out those who were wounded and tallying the end result of the battle. They should have had more numbers which may have resulted in the surrender of the opposing forces, but something was off. Ainsley stopped, looked about her and in her observance of the dead, she was sure there were more people among the Redmont Dynasty that had died, rather than those of her allies. Ainsley breathed in trying to think, but the smell of blood and smoke filled her nostrils, clogging her thoughts momentarily.

Perhaps the Redmonts had been lacking this time. Perhaps they had fallen behind, but Ainsley was sure she had trained them so well and that her enemies were any easy defeat. She never underestimated her foes and studied their history in battle so accurately before engaging in anything at all. And yet, despite the win against her untimely adversaries, the causalities lost for her own made her stomach twist and turn in sudden realization. Somehow they were not strong enough this time to come out with minimal losses and the mere image of it made her insides burn and her gaze flicker with malevolence as she surveyed the land. The Witch needed answers, reasons why it had come to this and needed them fast.

She had started to pick up her boots again, to find an able body that could give her a full report of the situation, when Felicia came by her side. The girl had a large gash across her arm running from about shoulder to elbow wrapped up hastily with a stained bandage, but other than that she looked unharmed and only somewhat shaken with fatigue. Felicia reached her hand up to secure the bandage around her arm again for a moment and then nodded towards Ainsley, her head bowed as much as she could.

"What is the outcome? I need to make some sense of this situation," Ainsley questioned, letting both of her hands lift and circle to the death toll around her.

"We have about 43 of our own Redmonts who perished during the battle," Felicia started, "and only 16 Bluefields."

"Only 16?" Ainsley repeated her eyebrow arching in question. The Witch's head dropped almost in sudden shame, as if the Bluefield's insignificant losses made her feel her own family was indeed weak and incompetent in comparison. The Bluefields must have fought with some ferocity she was unaware of them being able to handle. "What are those numbers out of?"

"43 out of 110 Redmonts and..." Felicia's voice trailed off for a moment and the next part of her sentence became distinctly more quiet, "16 out of 20 Bluefields."

"16 out of 20? Is this accurate? I thought Elijah was brining more to fight alongside of us," Ainsley said. "Are you positive you did not miscount?"

"I've run the figures over and over again in my head with the same result," Felicia began. With this, she turned to her side and pointed in the distance. The tip of her finger ran over the top of a hill that was not far off, as if she were tracing an invisible line on it. "The Bluefields came about midway through the battle and I counted 20 of them at the scene then and no more."

"Where is Elijah?" Ainsley demanded her tone now very short and obviously irritated at this news.

Whatever it was that had held Elijah Bluefield from showing his face during the battle better have been a good reason. And to only send out 20 of his numbers was beyond Ainsley's thought of reasoning. Why he assumed he need not send more made her blood boil to temperatures she had never felt before. Did Elijah not realize she was fighting today, that without his help there was a greater chance of her laying here dead with the others? No. He knew and the Bluefield Beast was supposed to be present today also.

"I am not sure," Felicia said. Then, she seemed to look away from the Lady of the Dynasty, a sudden idea claiming her mind - something she was not willing to share. Ainsley moved around the girl to get her to face her again. Felicia was always so good at hiding when it came to getting words out of her mouth, whether they were foolish or important.

"What is it?" Ainsley started and there was clearly a snarl in her throat, hidden behind those clenched, alabaster teeth. "Tell me what you are thinking."

"Only that... I told Vicktor to stay behind," Felicia said. "You see, one of us chose to stay behind at the Estate to guard Northpoint - to guard Sanctuary. I believe he may know of Elijah's whereabouts better than I would."

"Again," Ainsley replied, "always with you thinking he is trying to access Northpoint. If the Bluefield leader was or was not, either way Felicia, I will not accept his excuses for his lack of participation today. It is unforgiveable, so you see, it does not matter a damn difference where he was to me. I need to find where he is now. Gather those who are still alive. I am starting back towards the Estate and cannot wait to rally everyone up."

The Witch did not give Felicia another chance to respond or even nod her head. Her feet had already carried her off in a run across the battle field. Ainsley stopped at the nearest and healthiest looking horse she came to. The animal flicked its tail and beat its hooves against the ground like it had been waiting to move away from the sea of the dead laid out before it. Ainsley swung onto its back in one graceful leap and gathered up the reigns. She drove the horse into a determined gallop, fixed on the destination of Northpoint. Answers would be hers, even if she had to force them out of Elijah with her own able hands.

By the time Ainsley Redmont, the Queen of the Dynasty, had reached Northpoint, the horse she rode was panting in protest to the point of physical exhaustion. She had ridden hard back towards her home, the place she now assumed was undergoing some sort of infiltration. However when she returned to the Stronghold, she was almost surprised to see it otherwise quiet and peaceful, if you could use that term to describe it. There was the necessary amount of people on guard, patrolling the perimeter of Northpoint in case any enemies were to ambush it during a counter attack, seeing as the Redmonts had dispersed for battle earlier in the day.

Ainsley's hand covered her indigo colored eyes and she peered off into the darkness of the outer wall that surrounded Northpoint. There a sentry who paced methodically, staring out into the surrounding forests for any approaching shadows. The Witch did not care what exactly what else he was doing; she was more concerned with who it was. When she finally was able to make out the person's face, she realized it was none other than a member of the Bluefield family. What in the hell was a Bluefield doing on guard patrol for Northpoint? Did Elijah send his own men to watch over her ancient city while the Redmonts marched on to battle, on to their death? But maybe...

Maybe they weren't watching for their typical enemies, so to speak. Maybe they were waiting for her to return. It was just in time that Ainsley had descended into the dark shadows of a building. There she pressed her back against the wall, holding in a breath as the sentry turned towards her direction. The night was thankfully black and hid her well. For not soon after, the sentry must have convinced himself what he saw on the Northpoint grounds was only his imagination, and turned back towards the forest trees looking in the direction of where the Redmonts had marched to war only a few hours ago.

Slipping around the side of the building, Ainsley closed her eyes for a brief moment to allow herself to concentrate. Her arms folded across her chest, each hand resting on an opposite shoulder. The Witch muttered foreign words, her summoning whispers barely audible behind the sound of nearby footsteps. Her skin that was once a porcelain shade started to illuminate a cerulean hue, fading in and out until at last the Queen of the Redmonts had seemed to disappear completely, the blue light diminishing once the effect of invisibility took place.

Lurking her way throughout Northpoint undetected was rather easy. Ainsley went unnoticed and didn't break her concentration once; her focus was devoted on finding the traitorous face of Elijah Bluefield. Already she had deemed him as a coward, a deserter at best, and he would be properly judged by her own hands for abandoning his allies - for abandoning his wife. The Witch's brows furrowed together furiously behind her guise of invisibility as she made her way towards the outer entrances of Sanctuary. The pathway was quiet; only the sound of flickering torches on either side of her echoed in the still night. There were not many other things that caught Ainsley Redmont off guard or out of the ordinary, until she heard the bloodcurdling scream cut through the air - a throaty, guttural howl followed by a splash of liquid splaying across the ground. The sound lingered in her ear as she paused in mid footstep. For a moment, her invisible form phased in and out, threatening to reveal the Queen of the Dynasty. Ainsley knew that voice.

She moved forward towards one of the archways where the many and confusing passageways to Sanctuary laid beyond. There she pressed her back against the side of the archway and held her breath; the rise and fall of her chest was barely recognizable that one might think she was dead had she not been camouflaged with her surroundings. Ainsley craned her head around the archway's frame, looking into the passage with her indigo orbs.

The Witch had entered the scene during the very end of futile confrontation. Elijah Bluefield had reached out, his entire arm pulsating with muscles and nearly transmogrified into beast-like features. His fingers and nails had turned to deadly crescent shaped claws and found their target around Vicktor's neck. Vicktor, who was usually no small man in strength, brought up a hand feebly in an attempt to block the attack. The Redmont's parry was thwarted effortlessly as Elijah grasped onto the man's neck, claws digging into the delicate flesh. Vicktor uttered a gurgling sound of protest as his weakened hands tried to pry Elijah's clutches from him. It was of no use as the Beast squeezed his fist together. Vicktor's neck burst beneath the pressure, his head tumbling to a stop as it rolled off his shoulders across the empty hall, blood gushing from the wound in response. The body crumpled, knees falling forward and crashed lifelessly around Elijah's feet who in response let out a hungry, laugh-like snarl from behind barred teeth.

"No!" Ainsley shouted stepping out from behind her post. Her blend of invisibility had disappeared, revealing her fuming form. Her arm was already raised in attack, her skin decorated with ornate casting circles, glowing and fluctuating dangerously. "What have you done?!"

Elijah dropped his head, taken aback by her sudden presence and immediately the strange animalistic growth that fueled his superior strength started to vanish. The Bluefield's arm returned to its normal appearance, despite the muscles still flexing defensively. Ainsley had no idea. She had no inkling of a clue until just this moment. The Bluefields... were they some sort of shape shifters? The Witch was not innocent to secrets; she had some of her own after all. For a while, she had assumed there was something different about her newlywed husband. It was the smell that she couldn't place - something untamed.

"Ainsley, my dear," Elijah started and only heightening her anger, the smile had never left his face. "Vicktor, he was... up to something. I had to stop him, you see. He tried to kill me."

"What are you?" Ainsley demanded, taking another fearless step forward. The Witch was momentarily diverted from Elijah being so close to Sanctuary. She concerned herself with what this man truly was and what she had lined her family in ranks with. The reeking, filthy liar, she thought.

"Nothing to speak of. Just some... curse of ours," Elijah started with a meager wave of his hand that had been previously transformed. Ainsley's gaze followed the hand guardedly, waiting for him to possibly lunge out her. But he did not move, like he was waiting for her to simply accept his answer.

She would not give in so quickly and she would not be so forgiving with his reasoning either. The excuses came from a man with other ambitions, ones that did not involve a strong, working alliance between the families of Redmont and Bluefield. Before she knew it, Ainsley Redmont was a breath away from Elijah, her head thrust upwards with anger illuminated in her vision.

"You leave us stranded and unmatched on a battlefield," Ainsley said her lips parting as venomous words slipped from behind them. "And I return only to find you... YOU and one of my trusted men engaged in fight which was effortless on your part. Here you would like me to believe that Vicktor was up to something?"

A hand rose up to touch the Witch's cheek, not in attack, but it was as if Elijah was trying to comfort her. The daring fingers circled towards Ainsley's pale cheek but she swatted him away with one hand before he could close the gap between them. The Beast had already been caught trespassing on her land of ancient secrets; trying to touch her was a grave mistake.

"Ainsley, I-"

"Be quiet," Ainsley hissed. "Let us be honest here, Elijah. I am smarter than you may be able to conceive. There is something here. Something that you are not allowed to touch, because it is mine. We both know this and I am positive that Vicktor knew this as well."

"Do not push me away."

Again, as he spoke, Elijah rose both his hands up to touch Ainsley's infuriated face. However, she would have neither of his paws gracing her flesh. There was a loud crack, as if a bolt of lightning had ripped open the air, the walls shaking in response. Stone crumbled from the halls of Northpoint. The Witch had stuck out against the Bluefield Beast and unleashed all her force into it. The magic which had welled up in her palms, in her very own body, brewed over. Elijah was roughly flung several feet from where Ainsley stood, his body limp like a ragdoll. He did not get up for good while and an eerie silence thickened the atmosphere. There was the smell of burnt flesh looming about and turning her head towards the scent, Ainsley walked with confident footsteps towards the crumpled figure of Elijah Bluefield.

When she came to him, looking down into his still eyes, she had hoped he was dead. The right side of his body had been completely charred, the skin blackened to a crisp. Nevertheless, Elijah blinked and issued a cracked, half smile up at her hovering figure. No doubt the whole right side of his body would be completely scarred and nearly paralyzed. Despite this, the Bluefield leader found it in his voice to laugh. He let out a chuckle laced with all the amusement and viciousness he could manage. For this, Ainsley threw her leg forward and kicked him brutally in the mouth where the laughter had flowed from musically and childish. Blood now poured from behind broken teeth that Elijah started to spit out. Still he managed to keep his mouth open with maniacal, cheerful roars.

"Get out," Ainsley said.

"Such a fast ending to a lovely marriage," Elijah said, tisking between liquid filled gasps. The Bluefield leader struggled to get up despite all of his burns and his battered face. Once he staggered to his feet, he issued a moderate bow towards the Queen of the Redmont Dynasty. "Do not worry... my love. I will return for you and your precious Sanctuary. Vicktor was kind enough to show me the entrance halls in his guarded state."

"You would like to think it is so easy," Ainsley replied. "Come back and you will be sorry you ever laid your pathetic sights on my Stronghold. I shall promise you that."

Ainsley followed Elijah's limping figure all the way out into the open area of Northpoint. There Felicia and the other Redmonts had returned home and gathered up the Bluefield sentries with them. Normally when the remaining survivors returned from a fight, there was always a discussion after the battle where the leaders would present any victories or losses. But this meeting was different. When the Bluefields saw the tattered body of Elijah somehow standing, they froze. Felicia did not waste time and had her family mimick her own actions by drawing weapons first. It was only when Ainsley drew a beckoning hand that two Bluefields moved forward to catch their wavering leader.

"Take him away," Ainsley started, her voice ringing clear above the crowd. "If you depart now, he might make it back alive. Otherwise, if you decide to make yourself cozy here, I cannot guarantee you will keep all of your limbs intact."

There was no contest to the Witch's words. The Bluefields loaded Elijah up on a horse and marched out of Northpoint's walls at once. Elijah's deformed face was still titled towards Ainsley, his head slumped over the horse's neck and grinning behind shattered teeth. Their eyes locked and just before Elijah's form left the gates of Northpoint, he mouthed words to her from behind trembling lips.

"Till death do us part."

"Death first."

The parade of Bluefields vanished from her vision, the gates echoing closed. Elijah was not the only one who would be able to transform himself after tonight. Things would be different and she would make the Redmonts, her ancient and proud kin, more aggressive than they had ever been. Change was coming... and with it the era of an almost refreshing breed of Redmonts. Already a new death lingered in the air between the two families. The Dynasty was no more; left behind and smothered under a very persuasive weight to make way for the birth of something greater.

Enter the Redmont Brood.

Elijah's departure from Northpoint had been one that conjured swift action. Ainsley had issued scouts to bring reports - what had happened? She had seen enough that let her know the ultimate truth of her late husband's treachery, but what was the purpose of the gruesome battle that took place only hours ago and kept her away from her home? Ainsley stood in silence until what seemed like forever as answers were gathered for her.

For centuries, the Redmont Dynasty had sworn their souls to ultimately protect humans and become guardians of the mortal world. Nevertheless, Elijah had taken advantage of her blindness; while the Beast was in an "alliance" with the Redmonts, the damned bastard was working against her - with the humans. All for the sole purpose of gaining access to her treasured Sanctuary. Had her temple of magic been worth this much loss? For keeping it safe from others, yes. The knowledge buried in Sanctuary was what had helped Ainsley protect the humans for so long and her reign as leader of the Dynasty had been unmatched because of it. But such secrets were deadly in the hands of the wrong people or those who did not know how to handle them.

The most unfortunate of people are born without magic - without innate abilities that make them more unique than those who are able to fight easily for survival. It was Elijah's promise of power from Sanctuary to the humans that made them choose sides with the Bluefields. And while the unsuspecting knife crept up behind Ainsley Redmont's back, the Beast had planned to dish it all out for himself in the end. The Witch had no doubts; Elijah would conquer the world with all she had worked so diligently for. The humans would realize their grave mistake soon; if not by Elijah's betrayal, but by her own hand.

It was with a sick feeling in her stomach that Ainsley Redmont had listened to the summary of the reports. Something had dropped within her soul and weighed any strength that she previously had down. As her scouts waited for her response, she kept her head hung and leaned over, gripping the edge of her desk tightly with her hands. The Lady Redmont said nothing for a very long time until at last, she raised her hand and waved towards the door.

"You may go," Ainsley started. "I need as much time as possible to gather our next plan of attack. Elijah's threat will not go unheeded. Please... do not disturb me under any circumstances."

As the scouts left her room, it was only moments later that their presence was replaced with the aura of something more wicked. From the corner of her study crouched a shadowy figure, one that ambled out of darkness towards her craning its head curiously up at the leader of the Redmonts. Behind jagged teeth, one could notice a smile etching onto the creature's mouth as it gazed up at the summoner.

"Thou hast summoned me. Why, Ainsley Redmont?"

"Once upon a time, I believed that humanity was what my family was sworn to protect. It was our duty, our mission in life, to defend them. To give our lives for theirs, if it came to that. Recently, those that we've protected from the undead - and even your kind, demon - have betrayed my family, and myself. So many of my brothers and sisters, sons and daughters of the Redmont line, slaughtered for a cause I can no longer believe in. I want revenge, demon."

The Lady Redmont stared at the horned creature that crouched in the center of the room, her eyes plagued by both sorrow, and something far more sinister. War had taken its toll on Ainsley Redmont, and the wedding ring she wore was finally removed from her left hand, and placed upon the desk behind her. She turned to face the demon, as flames singed the carpet it stood upon, and it tilted its head with an eagerly curious stare cast towards her. Indigo colored eyes met pale, golden-hued ones, and the unholy creature hissed.

"You wish to become one of us? You would join our kind, as a demon queen of your family?"

And there was no hesitation, when she gave her answer.

"I would, yes. I desire the power to devastate this world, to tear it asunder for what it has done to my family. To exact revenge on them, for every Redmont who sacrificed themselves for the forsaken misery of humanity. Will you give me that power, demon?"

She stood there, her soft locks of raven and indigo colored hair tangled around her face, blood still smeared across her chin. It hadn't been but a few hours since the last battle fought and her brutal encounter with Elijah - an attack that had left the family crippled, and nearly defenseless. She had lost both her husband and more importantly, a great many of her family had been taken in that battle that was merely a diversion to allow Elijah more time to access Sanctuary.

"...We can help you, yes. You have already started walking our path, with your rampant use of black magic, Redmont. Did you think you could stop the change? That your soul could be cleansed? It is fortunate that you wish for this, because it has already been put into motion," the creature explained, its forked tongue snaking out at random intervals as it began to gouge symbols into the floor around Ainsley. The brace of silver stakes strapped to her thigh was torn aside by the beast, as was the silver cross she wore around her neck. The runes that the creature was scratching into the tiles of the floor began to glow with a bright shade of crimson and chanting voices resonated so loudly that Ainsley thought her ears were going to bleed.

The pain hit at once, striking the Lady Redmont so hard that she doubled over as though she had been stabbed in the stomach; her mouth opened in a silent scream of sheer agony and she felt herself choking. Blood streamed from her eyes and stained the fabric of her clothes in ghastly streaks. Her nails dug deeply into the skin of her arms and the flesh was torn open. The crimson liquid splattered upon the ground and for every drop that touched those glowering symbols etched into the floor by the claws of the creature, she felt more pain erupt in her body. The demon had since backed away, and watched as Ainsley stood there, her own blood boiling on the floor around her. She eventually collapsed onto her hands and knees, and her voice rang out in a shrill scream of absolute pain. Bones splintered beneath her skin, and then began to twist and change as her skin darkened. Teeth began to sharpen into deadly fangs akin to that of a vampire, and twin horns burst through her skull upon either side of her head, her dark tresses falling around the new protrusions in a way that only added to her beauty. Her eyes, once proud of her Redmont ancestry, were now glowing brightly in the darkness of the Estate's study with newfound vengeance. Her claws dug into the floor as the pain slowly began to subside, and her changes began to disguise themselves as what she had been... a human.

A human that she would never be again. Lady Ainsley Redmont had given up her life, and awakened as a demoness.

"It shall take time, but as you recover from the change, you will find your knowledge of the world you once fought against will serve you well. You will be our missionary to this world, Ainsley Redmont - to spread our gospel of pain far, and wide. You are in our debt, and must do our bidding," the demon hissed, even as Ainsley writhed and began to fight the effects of the agonizing transformation. Her true nature would be hidden - she knew demons could disguise their true appearance, and that would be an advantage when she began to change those that remained of her family. And as she rose to her feet, she silently vowed that the Redmonts would rise again - but not as guardians of the world, no.

The Redmont Brood would be conquerors of the world that had betrayed them - with her as their almighty Queen.

It had been a year - a year since the transformation of Redmont Leader, Ainsley Redmont, and her family, The Brood. Despite the sacrifice of their human lives to become stronger, the efforts to bring her family to power once again seemed in vain. Ainsley had not seen or heard from Elijah Bluefield and she wondered miserably if he was hiding in defeat. How easily he had betrayed her for the sole purpose of gaining access to Sanctuary and then just as quickly, the Beast had disappeared. Part of Ainsley mused with the idea that perhaps he had died after her brutal attack against him.

Ainsley remembered the look on his broken and cracked face as he left the Northpoint Estate, slung on the back of a horse, but somehow managing to keep a smile raised on his cheeks. No. She had no doubt in her mind that he was alive and it was this thought that made Ainsley Redmont keep her hopes up; her desire to stake revenge upon Elijah Bluefield - for sending her family to the slaughter and making her seem a fool in the process.

She kept a wary eye on everything these days and her caution had made her more strict and unforgiving. One by one, she carried her Brood throughout village after village - places that were occupied by humans that both the Redmont and Bluefield family once protected together. There she took her rage out upon the humans who had betrayed her, the very ones who had exchanged her family's lives for the promise of power - for the sake of figuring out Sanctuary.

Questions were not asked. Her recently turned family spilled the blood of many just as she had wanted them to. Demons and undead ransacked the villages with no quarter given to even the most pleading souls. Women and children alike were executed swiftly and Ainsley Redmont, the Witch, became possessed with the thought of wiping the seed of humanity out forever.

Where was Elijah to save them now? Where were his broken promises to the humans? Life was buried within the shadows and Ainsley sought to rub it out from under the heel of her boot wherever she could.

No one in her ruthless army stopped the rampant slaying of people Ainsley ordered, but the death toll did not bring Elijah out from hiding. What was he waiting for? Torture proved useless; it seemed none of the humans had heard from him or knew where he was either. No answers brought the Bluefield leader out of his withdrawal of the world. He remained perfectly invisible, until at last when Ainsley Redmont could no longer stand it and Elijah showed his face.

Ainsley was in her study at the Northpoint Estate and how he had weaseled his way inside her fortress, she couldn't fathom. The Witch was unarmed, without a single weapon in sight of her, but Elijah knew damned well she did not need a sword or any blade to destroy him. Still, he wore a somewhat charming smile even on his disfigured, crooked lips. He started to semi-circle Ainsley with animalistic-like hunger, but she stood her ground nearest to a bookshelf.

Elijah was the first to speak.

"I have heard rumors, my dearest Ainsley, that you have forsaken your human life as well as that of your families for what...? The power of darkness? To become these pathetic lesser demons and undead creatures?" Elijah began, cocking his head to the side as if inspecting her. Ainsley Redmont showed no signs of being a demon currently; he appeared to be trying to stare beneath her exterior figure.

"Humanity is a mockery to those who wish to become stronger," Ainsley replied. "Nevertheless, I would sooner become human again rather than a flea bitten mongrel like yourself."

Elijah tossed his head about almost lazily and laughed, but when his face returned to stare into her indigo eyes, they were serious and his voice had gone demanding. "Where is the child?"

"What... child?" Ainsley said.

"Our child," Elijah began and his face showed no sign of the jovial amusement it had before.

Had Ainsley missed something? Somewhere back, had she given birth to a bastard child of Elijah's that she was not aware of? Did it just pass her by throughout her transformation? No. The man was going insane.

"Any child with your blood would have been a dead child, Elijah Bluefield," Ainsley hissed. "There is no kin that shares our blood."

"The potion was supposed to work!" Elijah roared as his fist flew out and slammed against one of the book shelves. Books tumbled to the floor around his feet, but he seemed unfazed by the disturbance.

Potion? Ainsley thought. What po-. Her wedding night. The wine. She had suspected it tasted funny, but did not imagine in all her years Elijah would have slipped her some sort of aphrodisiac to make her conceive child. It was all starting to make sense. He had shown up almost a year later because he was so certain Ainsley Redmont would have given birth to a child by now. A child that would have eventually been able to access Sanctuary. Because Elijah Redmont was too incompetent to do it himself.

It was Ainsley's turn to smile and her lips turned upward. A shrill laughter filled the room, but it was short lived as a snarling Elijah came bounding after her. Elijah propelled himself over the desk and halfway in flight, the Beast transformed; muscled rippled violently underneath his skin and his body became enlarged. Fur covered him, dangerous talons extracted from paws, and snapping fangs directed their targets at the Witch. In under three seconds, Elijah had fully transformed into the imposing figure of a werewolf intent on ripping Ainsley's head off. Nevertheless, she was just as quick and she ran forward towards him, allowing herself to slide underneath the desk to escape his grasp.

She felt the tearing of flesh on her back; she had made it skidding under the desk, but her escape was narrow and his claws found her their mark. Ainsley felt blood running onto her waist, but she ignored the pain as she pushed herself off the floor to turn and face Elijah. She had shed her guise of humanity and now bore the resemblance of a demon; twin horns graced either side of her head like some sort of crown and leather-like wings had sprouted from her back. The Witch's hands were armed with deadly claws and for a split second, she ran her tongue across razor sharp fangs before running to meet Elijah's charging figure in the center of the room.

Elijah's beastly claws were raised in an effort to swipe at her, only Ainsley turned her body so expertly and unleashed a column of black fire from the palm of her hand. Elijah assumed this was the same as normal fire and he seemed intent with the idea of running himself right through it; only the impact of the fire sent him spiraling backwards to one of the walls. Elijah landed in a window, breaking the glass and laid there with half of his body across the sill. Shards of long glass protruded into his back and he remained unmoving; Ainsley could smell burning flesh, yet she remained in her place, keeping a safe distance between the two.

His escape from the window was faster than she expected. Elijah flung his body upwards, glass stuck in him and moved to her. This time, the energy she threw at him, missed; he evaded the bolt of lightning that filled the room and keep barreling his way towards her. He swung both hands forward and in his path, picked up her heavy, oak desk and flung it straight at her. Ainsley was quicker in her demon form than she ever was in her humanity; still she could not react fast enough. The desk hit her and she went tumbling backwards with it crashing onto the floor. The weight of the desk pinned her down and the Redmont Queen could hear Elijah's heavy breathing as he stalked to her direction.

The desk was pushed away, but not by her own doing. Elijah wrenched it free from Ainsley's figure and before she could seize her chance at escape, he was on top of her and pinning her down by thrusting a sharp talon into her shoulder. Ainsley gritted her teeth as the claw went right through her shoulder, a wing and reached the floor. Elijah leaned in close to her and she instinctively turned her head when his tongue raked across her cheek, lapping up blood and sweat that had marred Ainsley's otherwise pale and beautiful face.

"Now then, dearest," Elijah started as one hand stroked her cheek, "we are going to do it right this time. You are going to give me a child whether you like it or not."

Feeling his hand upon her cheek surged an unmistakable hate through Ainsley Redmont. Nevertheless, it was this force that made her realize she had control over one side of her body. She focused, as his hands went ripping through the fabric of her clothes and inflicted fresh wounds across her skin. Ainsley clenched her fist together and from within her hand grew a light, blue and pulsating with energy. It was just enough that she needed to get him off of her.

Ainsley swept her arm towards him. In one unsuspected motion, she had him flying off of her across the room. The magic in her hand swelled until it was released against Elijah's form. The blue light entwined around him and constricted like snakes, shocking the werewolf unyieldingly, until he met the wall with a lifeless thud.

As the leader of the Bluefield family opened his eyes, Ainsley Redmont was straddled over his body like the imposing Redmont Queen she was and yet... her face showed no signs of amusement or victory. However, Elijah swore the last thing he heard out of her lips was the unmistakable tone of irony.

"There is just one thing I forgot to tell you," Ainsley said and she lowered her head towards his ear. "I cannot have children. I am infertile."

And it was with those final words that Ainsley Redmont bit deeply into his neck with her sharp, demonic fangs. The Witch ripped through skin, ignoring the blood curdling howls from the writhing creature beneath her. She felt herself chewing and sinking into the most tender parts of skin until she was at last ripping out his jugular vein and spitting it to the floor. Not content with feeling his squirming figure beneath her, Ainsley tore through the rest of his neck with her clawed hands mangling the wolf to pieces until his head was being held away from his body and into her two hands.

Ainsley tilted her head staring at the lifeless and glass-like eyes of her former lover; underneath her legs the body had gone motionless. Leaning forward, Ainsley kissed Elijah's lips softly. Then she moved from him, elegantly somehow, and headed towards the door. With her good-bye kiss, she left the Northpoint Estate and sought out the new Bluefield base. She followed the scent of Elijah's blood to the Bluefield's home and returned the head of the Bluefield Leader back to his family. Wearing a mask of his blood covering her face, Ainsley Redmont delivered the head into the hands of a rather frightened and unaware Bluefield guard. She said nothing.

As she made her journey back to the Northpoint Estate, they did not dare follow the Redmont Witch.

Not yet, anyway.

If there was one thing that Ainsley's attack against Elijah Bluefield had done, it was that it brought an unmatched rivalry between the Bluefields and Redmonts that would last for ages. The feud that could not be cleansed was one that made blood turn to venom for any member of the families. And after delivering Elijah's severed head to the Bluefield Estate, Ainsley had only provoked the were-Kin further and tired to draw them out so that she might at least extinguish them all.

However, it was not without consequence that she found herself backed against a tree with Felicia, the two of them surrounded by a pack of furious and beastly Therianthropes. For the past few weeks, many of the Redmonts had been travelling; they sought out their enemies and tried to put an end to any surviving faction that might oppose the Redmont Brood.

It happened during a trip through one of the densest forest they had journeyed through thus far. The Redmont family was on their way to a village that had sworn allegiance to the Bluefields. As the trees grew closer together, the small company of about twenty or so skilled Redmonts fighters and mages found themselves surround by a pack of snarling creatures, all towering over the Brood with bulging muscles and hungry, saliva dripping teeth.

"You must go," Ainsley had finally breathed to Felicia as she managed to hold the Bluefield numbers at bay. The rest of Redmont Brood had fallen and while all that remained was her and Felicia, Ainsley had no doubt in her mind that she was cornered without any possibility of escape. Nevertheless, she believed at this point that should Felicia survive, the girl would make a fine leader in Ainsley's absence and carry on the Redmont Bloodline to the best of her ability.

"But," Felicia said her words stuttering, "I could never leave you behind here." Felicia's sword came down across the chest of a werewolf that had charged towards her. The animal retreated briefly after Felicia's blade was colored crimson.

"They are NOT here for you," Ainsley growled between clenched teeth. "You must go, if only to carry on my legacy and make sure all of these mongrels die even after I am no longer here. I am not asking you to run away; I am commanding you to."

There was a sense of both betrayal and urgency in Felicia's eyes. If only she could have fought the remaining Bluefields with the Queen of the Redmonts... If only the damned failed alliance hadn't been tested in the first place. So many "ifs", and Felicia barely had time to contemplate the "now" before she had fled away with Ainsley dragging all the attention towards herself.

Not much longer after Felicia's disappearance from the scene Ainsley fallen to the ground. The Witch could only cast so much magic at once to defend herself. She was knocked to the ground by a Bluefield - a Therianthrope that resembled a panther. As her footing was lost, Ainsley felt the back of her head come into contact with a rather sharp and jagged rock that bore into her skull.

The world went black.



When she came to, Ainsley was sure her body was being dragged by something. She did not imagine how she could have kept herself unconscious throughout the whole ordeal. Immediately after her eyelids fluttered open, she was aware of a burning sensation against her throat and tried to reach for the ropes on her neck only to realize her hands were bound as well. She was carried across dirt and rock infested terrain to the Bluefield Estate - one of the werewolves had been pulling her behind him, running at full speed as the rest of the pack roared jubilantly around their captive.

By the time she reached the Bluefield Estate, Ainsley was already muttering foreign words in fast, hushed whispers. The words were ancient and rarely heard; not of prayer but the language of curses. It seemed that in her final hope to cast one remaining spell Ainsley would have damned the Bluefields, but instead the Witch summoned a powerful curse on her own family. Though the words were unknown, they could have been roughly translated:

May the Brood reign... May the anger and hatred in my heart for my enemies surge throughout my family. Let it never die. Let it thrive and flourish and consume those who might stand in our way. Forever.

As Ainsley opened her indigo hued eyes, she had no idea of who the woman was in front of her, but it seemed clear that there was jealousy in her facial features. The woman was the attacker who had finally knocked Ainsley down - the panther - and she stared at Ainsley with a deeply rooted contempt. The Redmont Queen had never seen this Bluefield before in her life and wondered what attachment the woman previously shared with Elijah that gave her an edge over the other Bluefields.

"If only Elijah would have listened to me in the first place," the woman began her shoulders lifting into a careless shrug, "that sleeping with any Redmont was sure to bring disease..."

The Bluefield panther was perhaps the last woman Ainsley had seen in her rule as Redmont Queen as she was hoisted up and tied to a large, wooden stake in the ground. Ainsley shut her eyelids and tried to remember faces - Elijah, the panther woman, any Bluefield - that would not allow her to rest in the afterlife. The smell of burnt flesh swirled and wafted into the air and the Bluefields watched their bonfire in a circle - howling, dancing and cheering around the charred Redmont Queen.

Ainsley's body was consumed to ash and her spirit, bound by animosity, floated into the air lost to the stars for centuries to come.