The inside of the church was huge and was lined up with pillars. Several humans were sitting on the pews, some were lying on them in pain. Children sat next to their parents. Their eyes were filled with fear. This place served as their haven. Raine fought hard to keep it that way. Still, there was just so much to do. She had people to heal with her abilities, people to rescue, and supplies to gather. She had only one night of freedom outside the church to do these things. Instead she was struck inside taking care of the wounded.

“Raine,” Fang crouched down. “Why don’t you take a break for a sec?” She couldn’t do that not until she helped everyone. “Raine,” She repeated. “I know you want to save everyone but you’re still just one person.” She pulled her away from the injured man. “You’re no good to us if you wear yourself out.”

“I need to get this done,” Raine argued. “The faster I heal everyone, the faster I get outside and rescue the people that need me.” She explained. “This is the night of the Lunar Ball. The werewolves and vampires have cleared out. This is our one and only chance to gather people and bring them here to safety.” She walked over to the injured man. “Now let me handle this,” Fang stopped her.

“Raine,” Fang scolded her. “I’ve been in this faction a lot longer than you have. I know what needs to be done.” She added. “The fact of the matter is,” She put her hand on her hip. “We don’t have the manpower to do it all.” She explained. “I realize we’re taking a risk by letting this night of freedom dwindle. We got no choice in the matter.” She blocked her path. “Now listen to me,” She stared into her eyes. “We will do the best we can for them but,” Fang pulled out a blood pack. “Not at the risk of starvation.” She handed the blood pack to her. “Now go, I’ll go get Vanilla out of her room.”

“Out of her room,” Raine crossed her arms. “You seriously thought I wouldn’t figure it out.” She glanced over at the girl playing toys with the kids. She was dressed in a robe with a hood to hide her face. “Hey there,” She pulled the hood back revealing Vanilla’s face. “Vanilla,” The woman quickly jerked her hood up.

“I’m not Vanilla,” She answered. “I’m ugh,” Raine raised her brow. “Okay,” Vanilla let out a defeated sigh. “You got me.” She pulled her hood back down. “I know,” She let out a deep sigh. “You told me to stay in my room until you figured things out.”

“Right,” Raine crossed her arms. “That’s exactly what I told you to do.” She knew Vanilla was eager to help. Perhaps, helping others was Vanilla’s way of taking her mind off Jake. Regardless of that, Vanilla is a vampire even though she’s half vampire. The fact remains that the people here have been hurt by Vampires. Vanilla couldn’t just jump in and start helping whenever she felt like it. She needed to build their trust first. Most of the people here would look at her as if she were a threat and they’d even fear her.

“Look,” Raine crouched down beside Vanilla. “If I’m going to be protecting you in Ja-,” Vanilla eyes glanced toward the ground. “In his place,” She corrected herself. “I’m going to need you to start listening to me.” She pointed out. “The only way this works,” She pointed at herself then at Vanilla. “Is, if you trust me and follow my orders. You understand?”

“I understand,” Vanilla acknowledged. “It’s just there’s so many people here that need help and-,” She rose to her feet. “I just want to help them.” Her pale blue eyes shifted over to the people who needed medical attention. “I can’t just sit around and do nothing.” She sat down on a bench. “It’s driving me insane just sitting there in my room.”

“Raine,” Fang placed her hand on her shoulder. “Let the new girl take over for a second. It’ll give us some time to talk.” Raine let out a sigh. They were wasting time, still, if they were going to get back on track. They needed Vanilla’s help.

“Fine,” Raine allowed. “Vanilla,” She shifted her eyes to her. “I want you to start helping the injured. You can start with him,” She pointed towards the man that she was healing before her break. “I’m making an exception just this once. You screw it up and it’s back to your room.”

“You won’t regret this,” Vanilla hugged her. Raine watched as she ran over to the injured man. “Don’t worry,” She assured him. “You’re going to be okay.” She coated her hands in a light blue aura treating his wounds.

“I’ll be back in a couple of minutes,” Raine assured her. “Fang, you want to talk. Let’s talk.” She headed down the narrow halls of the church. “How bad is our situation?” She opened the blood pack. “From my end it only seems to get worse.”

“It’s not good,” Fang answered. “I’ve been training a few people to fight thinking maybe that’ll help. Even so,” She leaned against the wall. “Their progress has been slow. If it wasn’t for our leader’s barrier, we wouldn’t stand a chance. You and I are the only inside line of the defense.” Their leader would fight too but he doesn’t like getting his hands dirty. “You know,” She walked over to the bench taking a seat. “That Vanilla girl has helped quite a bit.”

“Is that so,” Raine took a seat next to her. “This wouldn’t happen to be. Because, you let her out of her room would it?” She scolded her. “That hooded robe, you were the one who gave it to her.” She accused, “I’m willing to bet, it was your idea to hide her from me.”

“You got me,” Fang leaned back on the bench. “She snuck out of her room and began helping people. I was going to bring her back to her room like you wanted but, the kids really like her. She had them smiling for the first time in years.” She shifted her eyes toward her. “It’s odd when I first saw that Vanilla girl. I thought she was going to be a huge disappointment.” That made two of them. “She proved me wrong and I’m really glad she did. The girl has potential.”

“You’re ignoring the fact she’s part vampire,” Raine pointed out. “The people here have been hurt by vampires in the past. Some of them have lost the people they care about.” She took a sip from the blood pack. “We can’t assume that they trust her simply because we recruited her.” She crossed her legs. “She has to earn it just like I did.” Raine took another sip from the blood pack.

“I agree with you but,” Fang shrugged. “The girl can heal and that is something we desperately need right now.” She pointed out. “Vanilla wants to help, I respect that, if any trouble stirs. I’ll take care of it.” She smirked. “I did it for you didn’t I?” She punched Raine’s shoulder. “We’re thick as thieves, you and I.” Fang is the only person that Raine trusted to have her back.

“I hate to admit it but,” Raine half smiled. “You’re right,” She took another sip from her blood pack. “The only way she is going to get their trust is by helping them. It’s what I had to do,” She rose to her feet. “I’d better go,” Raine tossed the blood pack in the trash. “I think it’s time I informed our leader that we have a new recruit.” She wiped the traces of blood from her lips. “A new recruit, that’s, part vampire,” She let out a deep sigh. “He’s not going to like this.” She put her hand on her hip.

“Good luck,” Fang rose to her feet. “He made an exception for you but Vanilla,” She paused. “I don’t think he’s going to be as generous with her.” She crossed her arms. “There’s also the fact that Jake had the mark for earth on his forearm and you,” She pointed at Raine’s chest. “Ruined it.”

“Right,” Raine let out a sigh. “He’s been searching for that mark, hasn’t he?” She groaned. “Now that I’ve burned the earth mark it will no longer be of use to anyone. This is going to be one hell of a report.” She walked toward the portrait at the end of the hall.

The painting was of their leader sitting on his throne. She held out her right hand and began charging it with lightning. The hidden insignia appeared absorbing the energy she offered. The insignia was a light purple lightning bolt which formed above the throne in the picture. The painting faded creating a secret passage to their leader. Raine followed the dark narrow path to their leader.

“Raine,” He spoke at the sight of her. “It’s so good of you to finally come to see me. I’ve been expecting your report.” He snapped his fingers, one of the rings on his finger shined with the symbol for fire. The candles that surrounded her lit up all at once. “So,” He dressed in a white hooded robe that concealed his face. He had a gold pendant around his neck that allowed him to absorb certain elemental based attacks. “Tell me what happened in the forest,” He tapped his finger on the arm of his throne. Raine’s eyes lingered on the four rings that were on his fingers. Each of these rings represented a specific element that he had gained control over using his pendant. So far, he had fire, water, lightning and wind. “You can start by telling me about that girl you decided to sneak past me.”

“She wishes to join us,” Raine explained. “While I was confronting a group of vampires seeking to destroy our operation. She came to my aide with another vampire.” She forced a swallow. “The vampire that was with her, he bore the earth mark.”

“Fascinating,” He leaned forward. “I take it you have this vampire in custody. I will begin extracting the earth element from him right a-,” Raine turned her head. “You don’t have the vampire in custody, do you?”

“No, I don’t,” Raine answered. “A woman by the name of Siren took him from us.” He rose from his throne in anger. “I tried to bring him in but this woman. She wasn’t like anything I was used to fighting. I did the best I could.” She assured him.

“I see,” He sat on his throne. “Well, he still has the mark. The earth element can still be extracted from-,” Raine lowered her head. “What did you do?” He rose from his throne. “Raine, tell me you are not foolish enough to do what I think you did.”

“What would you have suggested?” Raine argued. “I couldn’t risk the chance of him using that mark against us. I had to burn it in order to ensure that the earth mark wouldn’t fall into enemy hands. It was the best option given the circumstances.” He snapped his fingers, a lightning bolt struck next to her. The loud crack caused her to jump.

“You’re telling me,” He took a deep breath. “You single handedly destroyed our plan.” He yelled. “I needed that mark to turn the tides of this war. I could have used it to build a fortress. I could have used the earth mark to fuse the elements together into one attack. The power of that one attack would bring both the werewolves and the vampires to their knees. Now because of you, I can no longer do that.” He screamed. “Why did you allow him to be taken in the first place?” He yelled. The candles ignited in flames melting the wax away. “You best have a really good explanation for all this Raine.”

“It was his choice,” Raine answered. “Vanilla, the woman that was with him got captured. He traded himself for her. He even asked me to burn the mark. There was nothing I could do. Unless,” She crossed her arms. “You’d rather me be captured.” He let out a sigh.

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“No,” He took a deep breath to calm his nerves. “You are far too important to fall into their hands.” He paced back and forth. “This Vanilla girl, she is to blame for his capture. Therefore,” He put his hands behind his back. “You are to remove her from our ranks. The girl has no experience in combat and will only prove to be a burden to us.”

“I can’t do that,” Raine argued.

“Excuse me,” He glared at her. “I don’t recall giving you an option.”

“No, you didn’t but I made an option.” Raine walked up to him. “I gave Jake my word that I would keep her safe.” She tightened her hand into a fist. “I don’t have much to give.” She pointed out. “In fact,” She lowered her head. “My word is all I have to give. If I lose that then I become nothing.” She glared into his eyes. “You can do whatever it is you want to me as punishment but Vanilla stays here. I will keep my promise to Jake and if that’s a problem for you.” She crossed her arms. “I have no problems with walking out that door. The choice is yours.”

Raine stood there waiting for him to decide. The two of them continued to glare at each other. He reached for his sword and held it to her throat. Even with a sword to her throat, she refused to back down. She’s too important for him to lose. He wouldn’t kill her and even in this situation. Raine knew she could kill him. Far range, he had a chance. Close range, he was stepping into her territory. A very bad place to be. The sword in his hand was shaking while she remained perfectly calm.

“Fine,” He sheathed his sword. “The girl can stay. Make no mistake, you did not win this argument, Raine.” He returned to his throne. “The girl is your responsibility and yours alone. Wherever you go, she goes. You will also be responsible for training her. Let’s not forget your other duties either, I will not have you slacking Raine. If you fail to keep up, I’ll kill the girl myself. Do I make myself clear?”

“Perfectly, as long as you understand. I will protect her even from you.” Raine countered. “Another thing,” She smirked. “The next time you decide to pull your sword out on me. I’ll use that same sword to cut your head off. Just to be clear sir,” He gulped, holding his neck. "Now then,"

“The woman who attacked me,” Raine leaned against the wall. “Is there anything you can tell me about her? She had a tattoo of a "P" on her chest. Does that mean anything to you? She's too strong to be compared to your everyday vampire or werewolf. She even gave me a hard time. Which troubles me, so, whatever infomation you have to offer. I'll take it."

“I can’t say,” He answered. “That woman is of no concern to us. The vampire she took no longer bears the earth mark. He’s of no use to us without it. What should concern you is the Lunar Ball.” He added. “I want you and Kassandra to attend the ball.” That’s absurd, there are more pressing matters to deal with. They could use this ball to their advantage to attend it would be a waste.

“You can’t be serious,” Raine argued. “There are people outside this place that we could be rescuing. Not to mention, the people here who are injured and need our help.” She pointed out. “We can’t ignore that for the sake of a stupid ball. We aren’t even required to go, in fact, Lord Alexander doesn’t want us there. If he did,” She glanced up at him. “He would have extended us an invitation.”

“I don’t care if he wants us there or not.” He countered. “I’m making a statement. Lord Alexander sent his vermin into our woods and attacked our native grounds. He has disrespected us for the last time.” He tossed her a map that was tied up in a roll. “You will show him this and make it clear that if he disrespects us again. We will start taking action, it’s time the Vampire Lord learned his place.”

“I’ll give it to him,” Raine assured him. “I doubt he’ll be pleased but,” She smirked. “That’s all the more reason to do it.” She walked down the narrow hall meeting up with Fang. “We’ve got new orders.” She handed Fang the map. “It seems that we’re going to be attending the Lunar Ball.”

“Oh great,” Fang’s voice filled with sarcasm. “Lord Grimm is going to be so pleased to see me.” She tucked away the map. “Considering that, the last time we squared off.” She smirked. “I left him smelling like a wet dog. So,” She crossed her arms. “Does that mean we get to wear a fancy dress?” Raine rolled her eyes. “I bet you’re so thrilled about that.” Not really, she hated dresses just as much as Fang did.

“Just get ready for the ball,” Raine headed down the hall to get Vanilla. “Well,” She crouched down beside Vanilla as she was treating another wounded person. “I talked it over with our leader. You’re officially a part of the team.”

“You’re serious,” Vanilla stopped. “That’s great,” She smiled. “I look forward to working with you and Fang.” Raine began walking her to her room. “I promise, I will do my best to help, I won’t get in the way. I-,” Raine cut her words.

“Let’s not get carried away,” Raine advised. “The first thing I need you to grasp is that I’m your leader.” She pointed at herself. “You have to do as I say. You can’t disobey me like you did by sneaking out of your room, got it?” Vanilla replied with a nod. “Second, I’m not Jake. I can’t be your bodyguard. I will do my best to keep you safe but sometimes,” She held out her hand. A bright pink light formed in her hand, the light took the shape of a compound bow. “It’s better to protect yourself.” She handed Vanilla the bow.

“Wait,” Vanilla took the bow. “I’ve never shot an arrow before.” Raine placed her hand on her shoulder. “I don’t know if-,”

“You’re a healer,” Raine pointed out. “The further you are from the enemy. The harder it will be for them to hurt you.” She explained. “Until I find the time to train you properly. This bow is your best chance.” She explained. “We have a firing range for arrows in one of our training areas. You can practice there as much as you want.” Vanilla’s eyes remained on the bow. “I just wouldn’t advise using this bow for practice.”

“Why is that?” Vanilla asked. “Is there something wrong with it?” Raine took the bow from her. “What are you-?” Raine opened the window to her room. She glanced at the bow in her hand. She was going to show her instead she’d let Vanilla see for herself.

“Here,” Rained handed her back the bow. “I want you to,” She created an arrow from the same shimmering pink material that created the bow. “Shoot this arrow at that tree,” She pointed at the tree right outside her window. It would be a clear and easy shot which made for a perfect demonstration.

“Okay but,” Vanilla took the arrow from her. “How exactly do I shoot it?” Raine walked up behind her. “So, um, I think I’m supposed to hold the bow like this right?” She used her left hand to take hold of the soft grip that was marked with a floral pattern. Her other hand held the bowstring. She’s somewhat on the right track.

“Your feet,” Raine pointed. “You need to place them in a firm and steady position.” She added. “It should look something like this,” She adjusted Vanilla’s stance to where her legs were spread apart. “Place the arrow here,” She pointed at the arrow rest. “Now hold the back of the arrow with your fingers while holding the bowstring like this.” She adjusted Vanilla’s fingers on the arrow. “This is your sight,” Raine pointed toward the circle-like piece on the bow. “You use that to focus your shot.” Vanilla replied with a nod. “Now pull back the bow string and,” Vanilla’s eyes focused toward the tree, her target. “Release.” The arrow shined with a bright pink light as it flew toward the tree. The arrow pierced the tree leaving a massive hole and was able to travel all the way through to two more leaving a huge hole in them as well. Afterwards, the arrow disappeared leaving no trace of it.

“Did you see that?” Vanilla pointed outside the window. “I hit three trees with one arrow. I can’t believe I was able to do that.” She spun around. “That was amazing,” Vanilla hugged Raine. “I just pulled back the arrow and-,”

“Ahem,” Fang spoke, getting their attention. She was wearing a black dress that faded into blue. The dress had an over the shoulder cut but only covered her right shoulder. She wore black high heels to complement the dress.

“Fang,” Vanilla raised her brow. “Are you wearing a dress?”

“Yeah, well,” Fang stepped into the room. “Funny thing, you see.” She glanced over at Raine. “I was just getting ready for the ball and this bright pink light emerged out of nowhere. It struck a tree leaving a gaping hole in it.” She crossed her arms. “Now I’m no expert but I think I know where that light came from.” She glared at Raine. “Care to-,” She shifted her sight to the bow in Vanilla’s hands. She gasped and rushed over to Vanilla.

“Vanilla, listen to me,” Fang placed her hands on her shoulders. “I’m going to need you to be extra careful with that bow you hear. You may not realize it but Raine gave you something rather unique. So,” She looked Vanilla right in the eyes. “Be sure to take good care of it and whatever you do. Do not go around free firing that thing. If you hit someone with that even by accident you just killed them. So I can not stress this enough. If you’re going to practice, use a regular bow with regular arrows. Because,” She cleared her throat. “We don’t want anyone to die.”

“Of course not,” Vanilla chuckled. “That would be bad. I promise. I will use regular arrows at the firing range. So um,” She stepped back. “Are we going somewhere?” She pointed at Fang’s dress. “It’s just I’ve never seen you dressed up like this though,” She placed her finger on her lip. “We’ve only just met. I do get the feeling that this,” She gestured at the dress. “Isn’t something you would typically wear.”

“That obvious huh,” Fang hitched a laugh. “You got me, we’re going to the Lunar Ball. Which means,” She grabbed Raine by the shoulders. Here it comes, Raine rolled her eyes. She dreaded this part. “Raine, our fearless leader needs to get ready before we’re late.” She started walking her out of the room. “Vanilla, you should do the same. I take it that you’re coming with us.” She glanced over at Raine for the answer.

“She is,” Raine answered. “Now get ready, we don’t want to be late and-,” She half smiled. “Welcome to the team, Vanilla.” She shut the door to Vanilla’s room. “Before you say anything about what I did just know I did it to keep her safe.” She walked to her room with Fang beside her every step of the way.

“I get that,” Fang agreed. “It’s just making her a bow from that material.” She whispered. “You’re not supposed to be showcasing that ability to anyone. Our leader made it very clear he didn’t want you using that.” What choice did she have? Vanilla wasn’t strong enough to take on two powerful Lords. Raine, even as skilled as she is. She couldn’t protect her and fight two Lords at the same time. Even with Fang’s help. There was no guarantee of Vanilla’s safety.

“I know that,” Raine acknowledged. “We are about to confront two powerful Lords.” She pointed out. “Vanilla isn’t strong enough to fight them. I had to do something that would give her a fighting chance. So, I took a risk and made her that bow.” She crossed her arms. “Unless you have a better way, this is all I got.”

“The leader isn’t going to like this but,” Fang smiled. “What he doesn’t know won’t hurt us. I just hope you know what you’re doing.” She narrowed her brows. “This bow might be a great help to her but, it will also-,”

“Make her a target,” Raine finished. She was aware of that which is why Raine wasn’t allowed to use that ability. If she did use it, she had to make sure it was concealed so it couldn’t be detected. “Don’t worry,” Raine opened her bedroom door. “If anyone tries to attack her.” She gripped her blade. “I’ll be sure to handle it personally.” Raine walked into her room getting ready for the Lunar Ball.

Once she was ready, Raine waited with Fang at the main hall. She was wearing a solid white frilled dress that fit her figure well. On her right wrist, she wore a pink corsage that was the same color as the pink light that created Vanilla’s bow. Around her neck, she had on a silver necklace with a pink butterfly crest. Her white high heels were tapping against the ground as she waited for Vanilla.

“I just want to say that,” Fang started to speak, she glared at her. “Right, got it,” She turned her head. “I was just going to say that you look amazing. No need to threaten my life or anything.” Still, Raine didn’t want to go to this ball, she didn’t want to wear a dress. She should be outside helping people or inside healing people. Not going to some stupid ball that celebrated the mating moon for werewolves.

“Sorry to keep you waiting,” Vanilla walked up to them. She wore an elegant white dress that was cut to show off her legs. She had on white high heels with a pink flower design on the ankle strap. “Raine, you look amazing, if I didn’t know any better.” She smiled at her. “I would think that you were some kind of prin-,” Raine gave her a fearsome glare.

“You don’t want to finish that sentence.” Raine warned. “Before we go,” She handed Fang a hood to cover her face. “We should,” She handed Vanilla a hood as well. “Wear these, the less we draw attention to ourselves the easier it will be to carry out the mission.” She pulled up the hood she had on over her dress.

“That’s a good idea,” Fang put on the hood hiding her face. “If Lord Grimm or Lord Alexander see us, they’ll kick us out immediately long before we carry out our mission.” Vanilla’s eyes shifted back and forth from Raine to Fang.

“Wait,” Vanilla pointed at them. “You guys said that this is a mission, right?” She tilted her head. “If so, where are your weapons?” She asked. “I brought mine,” She showed them the bow that was given to her by Raine. Fang placed her hand on the dolphin tattoo that resided on her shoulder. The tattoo shined a bright blue transforming into a golden trident that now resided in her free hand. Raine snapped her fingers, the pink corsage on her wrist turned into her sword.

“Oh,” Vanilla glanced down at her weapon. “I guess it makes sense to hide our weapons too.” She frowned. “But um,” She paused. “I don’t think I can hide mine like the two of you can.” She pointed out.

“She’s got a point,” Fang added, her trident turned back into the dolphin tattoo on her right arm. “It’s kind of hard to hide a bow on your person.” She crossed her arms. “She will be stopped at the door.” That’s unless Raine’s sword turned back into the pink corsage on her wrist. She walked up to Vanilla.

“Close your eyes,” Raine ordered the moment Vanilla shut her eyes. She hovered her hand over her head. A pink aura surrounded Raine’s body and shot into Vanilla’s body infusing her with some of her abilities. The second Raine’s abilities were shared with her flashes struck Raine’s mind revealing an image of a shimmering pink chain. -What was…- She touched her forehead after being struck with a very weak headache from the images.

“Raine,” Fang placed her hand on her shoulder. “Is everything alright?” Vanilla opened her eyes. They both looked concerned. Either way there was no need for Raine to trouble them with some image she saw. She had enough to deal with. Besides, it could just be a result of her pushing herself too hard. Right now, her main concern is keeping her promise to Jake.

“It’s nothing,” Raine assured Fang. “Now,” She took the bow from Vanilla. “We just have to conceal your weapon,” The bow transformed into a floral hair tie which took the place of the pink hair tie that Vanilla had on. “The moment you feel you are in danger,” Raine helped Vanilla put on her hood in order to conceal her face. “You just need to prepare yourself to wield your bow and-,” Vanilla took her stance and her bow formed in her hands. “It’ll appear just like that.” She lowered her stance. The bow turned back into the floral hair tie. “We should go,” She glanced over at Fang. “The Lunar Ball will be starting soon.”