There’s a rustling of sheets next to me.

“You’re still up?”

Alice looks down over the edge of the bed with bleary eyes. I’m hunched over sitting with my back against the frame, my crumpled sheets abandoned in a heap on my sleeping mat.

“Go back to sleep.”

“You should too. We can think more in the morning.”

There’s no time for that! There’s less than half a day left…

“Just leave me alone,” I mutter quietly.

There’s a brief silence. I listen to the ticking of the clock in the darkness of our room, slowly counting down the seconds until I have to ring Dracula with my answer.

“If you can’t find an answer, I’ll just turn myself in. This is my battle, after all. It has nothing to do with you.”

“That’s where you’re wrong, Alice. It has everything to do with me.”

“I’ll make sure your sister is safe before I hand myself over-“

“No. I won’t settle for that. That bastard killed my mother, I’m not going to let him win. Even if I die trying.”

I hear another rustling of sheets before a soft hand rests itself on my head. A comforting feeling takes over me as my head is patted, as if I were a small boy.

“She’s gone,” Alice quietly says. “The best you can hope for now is to save Judith. Dracula was the first Blood Lord, trying to fight him by yourself would be suicide.”

She continues to pat my head. “I’ll take full responsibility, so don’t worry. I’ll get your sister back.”

I can feel my tired eyes beginning to close, if only for an instant. Then I remember what must happen if I follow Alice’s suggestion.

“That’s not going to happen,” I growl, pushing her hand away from my head. “I’m not going to hand you over. You’re just as important to me as my sister. I’ll save you both, I swear it.”

Before I know it, the words have left my mouth. I don’t know if it’s because of my weariness or a build-up of stress, but I can’t stop myself.

“You’re mine, Alice. And I don’t like sharing.”

The moment I say those words, I immediately regret it. Alice is strong – she doesn’t need anyone to protect her. How is she going to react to this? It’s a shock for me as well – I’d been uncertain at the start of our time here, but over the days that uncertainty had solidified without my knowing.

It’s official, and I can’t deny it anymore.

I have feelings for Alice Vancratt.

I anxiously await her response with bated breath. The clock ticks on for such a long time I wonder if she’s fallen asleep.

“…idiot.”

She says it in such a quiet and muffled voice that it’s almost drowned out by sound of the clock. I keep my head rooted in place, worried at what I’ll see if I turn around.

“You idiot…”

It sounds like she’s mumbling into her pillow. I wonder what sort of expression she’s making.

“I’m the one who saved you. You belong to me, not the other way around.”

My heart stops in its tracks.

“I saved you too,” I say, my voice shaking a little. “I guess that means we’re even, huh.”

I hear the rustling of sheets and the creaking of mattress springs as Alice sits up. Keeping my eyes firmly fixed ahead I hear her sit down beside me, wrapping the sheets around us both. Her warm body slides right against my own and she rests her head on my shoulder.

“I’ll stay up with you,” she sleepily says.

I remain as still as a stone, not daring to move. It’s not long before I hear Alice’s breathing settle down, and a quick look out of the corner of my eye reveals that she’s fallen asleep.

The adrenaline of the day finally runs out, and a sudden tiredness I’ve never felt before takes over me. Still thinking over the problem in my mind, my eyes slowly close and my form relaxes as I too drift off.

***

“Thank you all for coming here. Now please, take a seat and we can get started.”

Hector waves his arms, gesturing for the five people gathered by the doorway to sit. ANGEL’s ‘meeting room’ resembles something out of a science fiction movie – completely dark, aside from the luminescent screens and fluorescent lights. Behind Hector’s seat is a large display panel, currently showing a map of Ashbrook and its surroundings. The map has been divided into what looks like several slabs of land, such that it resembles a large jigsaw puzzle.

The five men and women take a seat at various places around the table. It’s clear that the room was made for more than just the five called in today.

“In case you haven’t heard, the threat in District Fifteen has been steadily escalating,” ANGEL’s director begins. “After the shopping centre incident, one of our demon hunters was crippled while the other has currently gone off the radar.”

He looks around and makes eye contact with each of the individuals called in, consisting of District Fifteen’s director, Shizuka Hirano and the surrounding four regions.

“Most of the time our Districts operate independently of each other… but in rare cases like this, we must draw aid from our allies to suppress a great evil. Shizuka, if you’d like to start off by listing our losses, please.”

Hector sits down and motions to his left. District Fifteen’s director stands up and speaks in a clear voice.

“In the past two weeks, three of our underground research facilities have been pillaged and rendered unusable. One bank has been robbed of several hundred thousand dollars, and two hospitals have been pilfered for blood.”

“Vampires?” one of the men asks.

Shizuka nods. “In addition to this, it goes without saying that many of our agents have lost their lives in the line of duty. The success of these demons is beginning to cause small uprisings around the city, and previously suppressed demons are becoming bolder in their actions. If we don’t do something soon, another war between humans and demons could break out.”

“What exactly happened during the shopping centre incident?” another man asks. “What triggered it all?”

“We’re still uncertain, but the demon hunter in charge of my district was involved in the incident first hand and I’ve obtained some valuable information from him.”

Shizuka sits down and allows the Director of the Fourteenth District to take over.

“Barry Samson was one of the two demon hunters caught in the building,” the woman begins. “He claims that the feral vampires were fed illicit drugs to drive them insane, before being released into the building. Meeting up with Bran Lietmann of Ms. Hirano’s district, they split up and cleared the building from top to bottom. Samson fought his way to the rooftop, where he encountered who he believes to be the instigator behind this madness – an ancient vampire, clad in crimson armour wielding a Divine Edge in the form of an extendable spear.”

“An extendable spear?” a voice questions. A few quiet murmurs rustle around the table.

“Following that description, one particular entity comes to mind,” Hector speaks. “Vladimir Dracula III, the Impaler, the First Blood Lord and the Prince of Wallachia.”

The murmurs break out into full-fledged argument.

“That’s impossible!”

“He disappeared over five hundred years ago…”

“Why would he be here of all places?”

Hector slams the table. “Silence, please.”

“Surely you don’t believe this, Sir?” one of the men asks. “Never in all my years have I encountered an Original Demon…”

“Archangel Raphael, just because you have not seen something doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.”

The grey-haired man, Raphael, closes his mouth and begins to stroke his beard, deep in thought.

“The more you think about it, the more sense it makes that our enemy is indeed the first vampire. The vampires are too organized to be carrying out these acts of terror; they must be under the control of a Blood Lord. It would make sense if Dracula returned and reclaimed his title from whoever was leading the clan prior.”

“He impaled Samson from the rooftop and pierced through the entire complex,” the director of the Fourteenth District continues. “All seven floors. Samson barely survived by the skin of his teeth.”

The man named Raphael nods in silent agreement. “Perhaps I was a bit too hasty in my judgement.”

The other directors cease their indignant complaints. Raphael is clearly a revered and respected character amongst ANGEL.

“The question is… why?”

“The motive is indeed important,” Hector takes over. “But the fact remains – the demons are rising, and winning their skirmishes with us. No matter what the motive, we must lure out their leader and stop them.”

The five directors break into discussion again, with one of them raising a hand.

“If I might ask, Ms. Hirano,” he directs his question. “Wasn’t your district’s hunter involved in another incident on the news recently?”

“Not him,” she replies. “His family. The mother was killed during one of the raids, and the sister has gone missing.”

“Missing?”

The entire attention of the table has shifted back to the director of the Fifteenth District.

“Most likely abducted,” Hector says. “There’s no denying that Mr. Lietmann is neck-deep in this mess of ours. In fact, I would even go as far as to say that he is the missing piece of the puzzle.”

“Abducted,” Raphael says. “Could it be that they’re trying to draw him out? He went missing too, didn’t he?”

Shizuka nods. “I haven’t been able to reach him ever since the massacre.”

And then, right in the middle of the meeting, a ringtone blares to life. Five heads turn towards Shizuka, where the noise is coming from.

“Really?” Hector sighs. “This had better be important. I thought I made it a rule for phones to be turned off during these meetings.”

“Sorry,” Shizuka mumbles, pulling out her phone.

Caller: Bran Lietmann.

She almost drops it out of surprise. Slowly turning it so the other members of ANGEL can see, she answers it.

***

It was past 11 am, and we hadn’t managed to think of anything. One hour until I was to make a decision and answer Dracula’s ultimatum. That was why I’d been forced into my last resort –

To seek help from ANGEL.

We’d been through all the other options. There was no way we could face Dracula and the entire Vancratt clan by ourselves. That only left one option.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Alice asks. “If they find out you’ve become a demon… you could be even worse off that you already were.”

“So be it,” I grimly reply. “If they found out about you, you could become my next target. I’d have to leave them either way, so I might as well sort things out now.”

The events of last night are still fresh in my mind, but we both act as if it had never happened. There are more important things at stake.

“Relax,” I smile reassuringly. “Shizuka’s good. When I lay it out in front of her, she’ll see the benefits. It’s practically a win-win situation; all I need is for them to realize that not all demons are bad.”

“That’s practically a given,” Alice replies, still uncertain. “Don’t you think they’d have realized that long ago? The fact that they’re still hunting us means it won’t be that easy…”

“It’s the only chance we’ve got,” I shrug, feeling surprisingly confident. “And frankly, siding with their enemy is the only chance they’ve got.”

According to Alice, nothing short of an Archangel or two would be able to stop Dracula. One of the Archangels resides in District Seventeen, but he’s primarily a healer. By the time we draw two in from where they’re scattered around the country, the damage done could be irreparable.

What do we do if we don’t have ANGEL’s top seven Divine Edge users at our disposal? People whose souls are practically bordering on the edge of divinity itself?

We send demons to fight.

By myself, I wouldn’t stand a chance – but if there were an Archdemon status, I’m sure we’d come close if we put our strengths together. With ANGEL’s support, it might just give us that edge we need to defeat Dracula. At least, that’s how I hope Hector’s decision-making process will go, because ultimately he’s going to be the one giving the final thumbs up.

Shizuka answers on the third ring.

“Bran?” she asks tentatively.

I suck in a deep breath, looking to Alice for support.

“It’s me.”

And I make my request.

***

Shizuka is frozen. She can’t move.

Bran… her subordinate, her close friend, her comrade…

…is a demon.

The room around her is equally shocked as they listen in on the conversation, her phone set to speaker by Hector’s request.

“Dracula… wants to secure an heir with this ‘Alice’,” he breathes. “It’s beginning to make sense now.”

“Please,” Bran’s voice begs on the other side of the phone. “Lend us your help. I’m still me, the same me you’ve known all these years. The fact that we’re vampires shouldn’t mean anything at all.”

“Why should we believe you?” one of the directors asks. “You’re demons, just like Dracula. Can’t he just mind control you and turn you against us?”

“It doesn’t work like that,” the girl, presumably Alice, replies. “I share the same blood as Dracula, and Bran shares the same blood as me. The Blood Lord can’t command those who share his blood, which is why it’s so important for him to obtain me. If I get put through the Ritual, I’ll become his forever – you would have lost a powerful ally, and he would have eliminated his only major threat amongst us vampires.”

“Enlisting the aid of vampires,” Raphael muses. “An interesting idea. A controversial one too.”

“Surely you can’t be serious?” the man cries. “We’re an anti-demon organization for crying out loud. You can’t possibly be considering this, Sir…”

Bran is a half-vampire. Shizuka is still trying to wrap her head around the fact. What shocks her just as much is that he’s asking her for help.

Bran. Co-operation.

The two don’t mix.

“Things have taken an interesting turn indeed,” Hector mutters.

“We should just negotiate with Dracula and hand the girl over,” another man says. “Surely once he has what he wants, he’ll leave us alone?”

“You’re an idiot if you think that’ll end things,” Shizuka snarls, to which she’s met with a glare. “Once Dracula secures an heir and takes out his threats, he’ll begin making bolder moves. If he gets his hands on the girl, that’s a massive victory for the vampires. And who’s to say he won’t continue his attacks on us after we hand her over?”

“The vampires aren’t willingly working with them,” Alice’s voice cries from the phone. “I swear it. My father was their leader, he knew we wouldn’t stand a chance against humans in an all-out war. He resigned to his fate, and resolved to allow us to co-exist peacefully with humanity. They’re only working with them because of the Blood Lord’s command.”

“You expect me to believe a whole den of vampires has been hiding in the heart of the city for all this time, feeding on animals and whatnot?”

“Where else would they have all come from?” Hector shoots back. “We locked down the city. The only way a vampire could have gotten in is if they were there from the start.”

“It also explains why we have such low homelessness rates,” Raphael adds in, an amused look still on his face. “Quite ingenious, really. That vampires could have been living with us symbiotically for so long. Your father really was something, Alice.”

The director, having his arguments deconstructed before his eyes, falls silent.

“Well, we have all the facts now,” Shizuka says. “I guess it’s all down to you, Sir.”

All eyes turn to Hector. A silence settles, so soundless that even Bran and Alice’s breathing on the other side of the line can be heard.

“The prodigious daughter of a Blood Lord and a half-vampire demon hunter,” he ponders. “Enlisting the aid of our sworn enemies to defeat a greater evil.”

The audience of five watches on, waiting for his verdict.

“Two sayings come to mind,” Hector continues, his grey eyes twinkling. “We fight fire with fire. Mr. Lietmann is correct, in that by the time we call in another Archangel it could be too late. Ashbrook as we know it could be completely overrun, and demons could make their debut to the world.”

“There’s also another saying,” one of the men, opposed to the idea from the start, rebuts. “If you play with fire, it burns you.”

“Is that even a saying?” Bran mutters from the phone.

“I accept your offer to forge a temporary alliance,” Hector declares, his firm voice booming across the room. “As the saying goes… the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Bran and Alice… we will lend you our arms.”

There’s a brief pause, and two audible sighs of relief from the phone.

“What’s the time?” Raphael asks. “We must have spent quite some time discussing this.”

“This isn’t good,” Bran’s voice replies from the phone. “We’ve got half an hour left before I have to call Dracula.”

“That’s plenty of time to forge a plan,” Hector smirks. “A lot can happen in thirty minutes.”