Sleeping next to Kahina brought the standard result since she started the transformation. Tall pillars scattered everywhere in fields of pastel grass. Fiery sky warmed my skin. Shades huddled in shadows.

Being in this weird place felt routine. Everything was small again. I could almost reach the top of some of the marble columns. Not the biggest one of course. That remained on the far lip of this valley. It had to be high noon in the waking world, but here the sky was filled with flame.

I hadn't noticed before what the fiery sky did to the shadows being cast. They looked oddly skewed as if one column cast multiple shadows, some weaker, some stronger, and one felt like a true shadow with a creature of darkness huddled inside.

Kahina laid in the greatest shadow cast by the biggest pillar. My limbs felt sluggish as I tried to lean in and see how she was doing. Around her form were other little shades that warily looked up at me.

Standing directly over Kahina was the same darkness creature from before. If what Lennon had said was correct, somehow this one was related to Keeper.

I had known that vampire souls left their bodies during the day. Who was to say that their spirits didn't come here, to this flame filled parody of a world. I knelt in closer and tried to sniff the air. It came out in an awkward huff.

"Keeper?" I tried to ask.

He peered directly at me with those glowing red eyes and shook his head, and then nodded.

"Not quite Keeper?" I mused out loud.

Keeper, or not Keeper, nodded very clearly. How I understood its gesture was beyond me. Watching darkness move in darkness shouldn't have made any sense. There was nothing distinctive to separate it from the rest of the background. But it was.

"We are pressed hard out there." I jerked my head to the side and caught a strange glimpse over my shoulder. Something had sprouted out from my side and fanned out wide. There was another slither of movement among the grass below like something snakelike was sneaking around.

Too aware here. I tell myself to ignore these things. They are useless for now. This is a place where Dangerous Mate lays in preparation for her completion. To be whole. I shall watch. I shall guard.

It took me quite some time to turn my head back and look down at the shade thing. By then everything I had just noticed was practically a distant memory. The creature's eyes tracked my movements and after a moment they narrowed carefully.

"Is she safe here?" I asked.

Not quite Keeper shook his head and nodded again. That same confusing yes and no answer.

"Can I help?"

The same yes no series of motions.

"Your answers vex me." I leaned in and nearly smashed my face into his. The other shades scattered to make room for my larger size. This was the first time I actually reached into a shadow. Here, looming over Keeper, it was clear how much bigger I seemed to be.

The coolness of the largest shadow slowly crept over me. It felt nearly as good as the warming fire above but in a different sort of way. This was like a rush of swirling cool air, not damp, not stagnant, merely a chill. All the heat my face had absorbed was being leeched out into the darkness. I saw Kahina shiver and could hear her groan.

The groan wasn't only here in this otherworld. She was making noise in real life. The not quite Keeper creature made a shooing motion at me and I pulled back out of the darkness. Immediately the noise stopped.

Rolling fire above was starting to fade. Which meant that more time had passed in the waking world than I thought. Not once had anything interrupted us which hopefully meant we were safe. Shaggy was probably out there somewhere playing car tag. A tiny apartment like mine wouldn't be worth notice.

It took me a long time to turn my head around. Things didn't move right here. Maybe this was my fault somehow. Deep sleep perhaps? The shades around me seemed to change position rapidly every few seconds. Fire from above faded in jerks and hops. In the distance additional shades slowly appeared. They were starting to swarm on the far side of the valley as the heat died down.

I moved sluggishly. I tried to concentrate on the dream, on this other place. It felt like watching things through a television screen. Nothing was in focus, I was barely in the scene at all.

Out of the corner of my eye, there was a giant flap of scaled skin stretched out across bones. Like a bat wing of some sort. It was gone as soon as I noticed it. Maybe my subconscious thought I was King of the Vampires. The idea made sense and didn't. That was how dreams were meant to be according to the book I tossed out. Everything makes sense but doesn't.

Darkness had descended and the new siege started. Blobs on the hill poured down towards us. I turned back towards the defending blobs much quicker.

The shades looked different, like the light of consciousness was gone and all that was left was a feral blot. Not quite Keeper made a face and the pillar in the distance reverberated in a low tone. The group defending Kahina spread out past me and engaged the enemy.

Shades brushed against my legs giving way to goosebumps and wracking chills. Things were different when the sky’s fire was gone. Nothing felt warm. Maybe these were true demons. I heard of them before but never believed they were real. It was stupid speculation on my part.

I stepped out towards the attacking shades to the best of my ability. They gave me a wide berth. Only a few dared run right by me. The briefest touch of their rushing forms gave me the chills. Feeling one of these creatures at night was worse by leaps and bounds to feeling them during the day. Their voices filled my head. Angry indistinct shouting. It served as further emphasis as to how quiet everything was here. Their screams were the only noise I heard all night. Every time I visited this place something was different.

Swinging at another shade resulted in failure. My fingers were too slow. The frustration of missing so many of them didn't stop me from trying again and again. My actions didn't make a whole lot of impact one way or the other on the fight at hand. Both sides tore into each other in waves. There was no light to drag the opposing team into now.

Shades limped away from the battle and over the valley's lip. I uselessly tried to chase. My dream-self wasn't responding with any speed. Numerous shades drifted to the rear defense and huddled around Kahina. They might have been limping, or have the equivalent of broken bones. If living darkness could get broken bones.

It was pointless. Between the frustration of constant misses, the chills that wracked me from head to toe, incoherent screams, and a mounting hopelessness, I nearly broke down. If Kahina was taken here, what would happen to her in the waking world? Would the transition halt?

Thin metal crunched innocently and pierced through the screams this dream landscape bombarded me with. My home was being invaded. We weren't being attacked from just one angle, we were being attacked from two. The sieges in real life and the dream world were designed to try and get Kahina killed by whatever means necessary.

Now was not the time to be asleep. Our weird fire and shadow landscape was important but beyond me. Instead, there had to be some method of waking up and getting ready for my uninvited guests. Maybe the wall of crosses would make them pause if it was a vampire. Silver would unnerve wolves.

If they brought humans into the home then all my items could be taken down in a matter of minutes. Or they would crash down here and kill me in my sleep. I should have installed the shotguns and collapsing stairs. That would have served me well.

Adrenaline spiraled through with a pleasant set of chills. The world of shades started to fade away, but not before giving me a final glimpse of Kahina. Her body was still wrapped in the reverent white sheet, but her normally dark skin looked chalky. I had a distant thought as my eyes cracked open to the darkness of my bedroom. When was the last time she had been given blood?

Another crunch of tin set off alarm bells. There was more than one person on the way. It was time to go to work. This was the entire reason I signed up with Kahina. To stay by her side, to be between the enemy and her life, to keep her safe. I would not fail her here. I loved her.

The blade slid out of its sheath. It wasn't perfectly quiet, but I didn't bang it around either. Stealth was useless against wolves if they were here too. They could smell the oils but may not place it right away. Next to the door was a full shield that I would use as a battering ram to deflect bullets. The last time I had been shot it was by lead projectiles without any sort of explosive tips. It was a sure bet that these bullets would be a heavier caliber.

My body felt sluggish. Nothing was in focus. This was becoming a frequent problem. In the future, I would ask the bad guys to attack after coffee. Both ears were on high alert. Trying to track footsteps, the clink of guns, heartbeats and breathing. Anything. They were in my home after all.

There was no time to fully track. Instead, I let my senses run wild.

Two below with me. Heavy padded armor that grates as it moves. One upstairs. Sniffing, pulling in air with huffs. Wears less armor. A fourth in the stairwell. Heavy. Fingers brush against silver and lowers pieces to the ground. Two down below stand guard. They are nervous. Barely move. Breath frozen. Pulses erratic.

I slipped my arm into the shield’s braces. Someone had told me this was a Pavise, all I knew was that it was rectangular and tall. It had no decorative animals on the front and the straps weren't leather like in the old days. This was a modern recreation that stood there like a chunk of movable wall. Between this and the sword, I should be able to make it the ten-foot distance of my hallway.

I lifted the shield with a slight grunt. It was clunky. Even my extra strength wasn't enough to stop that. The blade wasn't that impressive. A lot could be told about wielding a weapon simply through it’s shape. This one was small but sturdy and had a solid guard with sharpened edges. It could, in theory, function with a thrust or slice.

Parrying, feints, ripostes, all of that was above my skill level. I planned on shoving the pointy end into someone so the weapon fit my purposes.

The best part of this basement was easy to access circuit breakers. They were just behind the door to my bedroom. I held the shield up with one arm and pried open the panel. The noise hadn't gone unnoticed by the invaders in the hallway. I heard guns being readied.

With a deep breath, I slammed off all the power. Lights upstairs and downstairs went out. It was nighttime and the darkness would help. Especially once my next trick kicked in.

I flipped on two switches that had taken time to install. One tied into a strobe light on the upstairs ceiling. It went off every few seconds in order to screw with creatures that could see better in the dark than I. Second was a switch that turned on a dog alarm. It was a high pitched whistle above human hearing that was proven to bother wolves. Every wolf within a mile of here probably heard the sound.

It took me another three seconds to reach the door and muster my courage. I was about to charge into a narrow hallway with a sword and shield against men holding guns. This was a sure-fire plan that couldn't fail.

Kahina laid on a bed out of view from the hallway. Gradually I opened the door. Even if they had night vision goggles or something it would take a moment to adjust to the sudden lack of light, then hopefully the blinding burst would screw things up even more.

Maybe grenades. Next time I would pack a couple. Except they would ruin my entire basement. Not that bullets were any better. Between the pending gunfire and mangled countertop upstairs, it was clear I would never get my deposit back. Never mind the painted floors and other modifications.

The lights had flashed once in the time it took me to open the door. Both guards had their hands on guns aimed straight at me. No words, no angry shouts of revealed plans. They were waiting for something to emerge from the depths of this apartment. Who was I to disappoint them?

I yelled out in challenge and charged into the hallway, shield in front of me. Guns rang out in response. Bullets slammed into the metal, a few tore through, others thudded. Further ripped holes into the plaster walls.

It wasn't enough to stop me, though. Through some miracle I made it to the first invader, he was crouched low while the second one had a gun over his shoulder. My shield molded with the standing one’s face in a destruction derby of force. The sword in my hand was brought down into the second one's neck with a nearly pristine moment of rage and calm. With a yank, I pulled the blade out and slid it into his companion's gut. Other than the gunfire they barely made any noise. Well, that and a burble of blood that spit out as their insides' ruptured.

It was easy. Absurdly easy. Elsewhere in the city this would have been harder and required more focus. But this, this was my home, people invading it deserved what they got, nothing more, nothing less.

Two down. A wolf and human to go.

The final human had put down what he was holding and switched to another gun. It didn't feel fake, the weight against his gloves was enough to be real. He was still around the corner. I yanked out the sword from the dead body and looked at it for a moment. Somehow a simple blade had slid through Kevlar vests like it was nothing. Weaves that should have at least caused my weapon to shift direction a little bit. Either I was that strong, or their armor was defective.

Hopefully, the third one would be as easy. That would leave me with a wolf. My shield was a useless chunk of metal with holes in it. I carried it around the stairwell and threw the damaged remains ahead of me. It was heavy enough to knock the third human off balance. His gunshots went wide while I scrambled up the stairs.

A leg gave out on me partway up the steps. Kneecap slammed awkwardly into steps when my still healing limb landed unevenly on discarded remains from the wall of charms. I reached out with my sword to try and get the killing blow. Gravity pulled me away too fast and the thrust that would have been dead center only grazed the human's foot.

Light flashed from the muzzle of his gun. More bullets came out but aimed at the wrong places. Chunks of ceiling rained down along with rocks and other objects from my wall. Each spray of bullets caused further damage to my home than I had ever done in anger. It was hard to use my senses and get a feel for the landscape around me. Everything shifted suddenly as a bullet reverberated through plaster, wood, concrete and occasionally dirt. Each projectile that violated my home was like nails on a chalkboard.

I threw the blade in my hand, using my fractured sense of touch to get a bead on the attacker. The gunfire ceased long enough for me to get my bearings again. A gun had clattered onto the stairs with one limp hand still holding the stock.

My eyes were useless. The strobe effects and muzzle flashes gave me spots. Feeling my surroundings was growing easier now that the bullets had stopped flying. There was a deep whine coming from upstairs. Like something huge was in pain.

Probably the wolf.

I took a moment to get a feel for the third human. A minute of work told me he had a blade piercing his head from chin to skullcap. All those drunken bar games with knives had paid off twice now. Using the blade to kill a wolf would be difficult, though.

Instead, I pried off one of the stairs with a jerk. This one was tipped in silver. At the time, I had installed them to be a deterrent to wolves. Never once had I expected them to become useful. One hand was holding the broken stair step while the other helped pull my beaten body up to the front room.

I took a self-assessment while crawling up the steps. Nearly all of the bullets had missed. Some had been grazes, a few going straight through. Luckily none had been center mass, or I assumed they hadn't since I seemed to be alive. At the top, I paused to gather myself. The wolf was still whimpering and I needed to be somewhat calm before confronting it.

Once my feet were steady I walked around the corner and proceeded to beat the whimpering wolf in the head with the silver piece of the stairway. A few whacks in I realized the wolf was a female. Her hair was nearly shaved off and the muscles betrayed how much she worked out. It was a close thing, but I stopped when she was finally out cold. She wouldn't like me for it. Things were about to get a lot worse for her.

I had questions and only knew one good way to get answers.