This did seem to surprise him at least a little. The smile slid from his face as he worked hard and fast to keep her attacks away from him. Ansuya pressed him and he took a step backwards…then another…and another. He was gritting his teeth now against her attacks.

Ansuya didn’t let up. She knew her body couldn’t take much more of this exertion. She had to get out now or he would kill her. She kicked high and ripped her claws low against his unprotected belly. Only to have both, kick and claw swipe, turned away just before impact. Wolfgang was smiling now.

Ansuya was getting tired, any moment her attacks would slow and then she would be pressed back. She had to break free. She slammed both of her claws together towards Wolfgang’s head. He blocked both claws with upraised forearms. Ansuya threw herself backwards and lifted her legs in a powerful flash kick that caught the vampire in the chest and chin, lifting him up and landing him on his back several paces away.

Ansuya, breathing hard, sprinted to the loft and vaulted herself over the railing landing with a graceful thud on the hard marble below, bathed in sun light. She looked up as the vampire had gotten to his feet, edging toward the loft ledge carefully avoiding the direct sunlight.

“The sunlight might help you, Miss Das,” he said calmly, “But it won’t help your kind, and it won’t hinder Kenneth, not where he’s going.” He looked out the windows towards the ocean and the clear blue of the water. “You can run now, Miss Das. But the sun will set on you eventually, as it already has done on your precious city.” With that Wolfgang disappeared back into the safety of his room with no windows.

Ansuya stood frozen with what he had just told her. There was terror in her limbs, even though she told herself to move. Her mind refused to process what she had just heard. That wasn’t possible, was it? The Mountain had kept the city safe for decades. It wasn’t true.

Yet she knew, somehow, she just knew. She forced her legs to move and she crashed through the big picture bay window that looked out onto the back yard and the impressive pool. She didn’t have any clothes to change into, so she didn’t bother shifting again.

She had to get back. The city was in danger, it may already be too late. She clung to whatever shadows she could find, throwing herself forward on four legs. If anyone saw her, she would leave to hope and the inability for most people to accept what their eyes had seen, telling themselves later it was just an exaggeration of their mind because they had only caught a glimpse of whatever she was.

This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

She had to get back to the Mountain. She was needed there. She only hoped there was something left to fight for when she did.

She raced along side streets, through gardens, and well-manicured lawns. She had to reach the nearest entrance to the Whyte Plain. It was miles away.

As she ran the sun continued to rise in the east. Time was slipping away from her. She forced herself to run faster. Her claws gripped and threw large spouts of deep black soil behind her as she ran.

The upscale part of Los Angeles gave way to smaller houses and apartment buildings. She caught glimpses of people moving around, walking, jogging, and getting into their cars for their daily commutes. She kept as close to the shadows as she could but she did not sacrifice her speed. Even if someone did manage to get video or snap off a picture with their phones, it would be blurry with no real detail. She grimly wondered what kind of urban beast story would rise out of her desperate run. Right then, she didn’t care.

Her steps faltered. She was already tired from her fight with Wolfgang. This run would be a long one and she had sprinted most of the way already. She should have eaten more. She blinked her eyes hard against her fatigue and her blurred vision. She dug down and kept running at her current speed, not allowing herself to slow down. She could be tired tomorrow.

Soon, the suburbs gave way back to the city. There was very little shade or anything to hide behind. As soon as she could she vaulted herself between buildings till she gained the rooftops. There she ran and jumped her way across the city proper.

Finally, after what had seemed like hours of running, she saw the familiar copse of trees that hid the entrance to the Whyte Plain. Not slowing down she threw herself off the final rooftop and crashed down through the trees to land heavily on the grass inside the small park.

Without waiting to hear if anyone saw her or came to look for what had made that horrendous crashing noise, she slipped into the Whyte Plain.

She carefully sniffed at the air and oriented herself. The mist of the place pooled around her paws as she slowly turned around, looking, and observing the place in all directions. She found the direction she needed to go and sprinted off toward the City under the Mountain. Even in the Whyte Plain it would still take time to get there though. She said another silent prayer, her tenth of the day that she wouldn’t be too late.

* * * * *

Alexander didn’t believe what his eyes were telling him. The seemingly solid back wall to the cave just wasn’t there anymore. It had to be some kind of trick. Kenneth waved the group forward.

Sayuri and Carlin motioned for their respective Houses to form two lines. Then the vampires quickly moved into the dark tunnel in a line two abreast about seventy deep. As Alexander passed Kenneth and the two commanders, he saw him pass an orange flare gun to Sayuri as he had promised.

Sayuri ran to the front of the column and pulled the rest of her House with her as they silent flowed down the long corridor where they found themselves. Carlin took Alexander and the rest of House Brandt down the same corridor following closely behind House Himura. Alexander didn’t need to look behind him to know that Kenneth had his House bringing up the rear.