Fury.
It was all Marcus could feel, all he allowed himself to feel. The cold bricks and wooden foundations of the house lay around him, on top of him, crushing him. He felt none of it, though. All he could feel was a blind rage that he let encompass him completely.
This is not how I will end.
Pushed by the purest of survival instincts, Marcus pushed. He felt his bones crack and his skin rip, but he kept going, growling in anger as he heaved the stones off of himself and stood tall. The wind lapped at him, the dust encircling him as he breathed in the night air, letting his body heal.
The house lay in shambles around him, devoid of any structure, nothing more than rubble and dust. He scanned the wreckage, searching for Ryan, and when he couldn’t find him, stretched and readied himself for the long search.
He’d better not be dead.
It dawned on him, then and there, that for the first time in centuries he was willing to openly admit he needed help. He shook in anger, unable to fathom how it had come to this. His kind was always called upon to assist, not be the ones seeking assistance. Yet, here he was, standing in the rubble of what was once the witch’s lair, hoping his only ally was still alive somewhere beneath the heaps of stone and wood.
The sound of hissing echoed around him, and the humming began to pick up. Marcus froze, looking at the line of trees, his eyes searching the darkest of shadows. If the hybrids were still here, and he knew they were, they remained hidden.
From the midst of swirling dust, silhouettes began to take shape. Marcus waited as half a dozen men and women emerged from the dust, holding in their hands makeshift weapons of bats and crowbars.
Humans.
Marcus would have laughed if he didn’t know exactly what the hybrids were attempting to do. They knew the humans would be no match for Marcus, and had probably sent them to distract him. To keep him busy while they found an opening for their own attack.
“This is absurd,” Marcus whispered, taking deep breaths as he readied himself for the upcoming fight. He tried one more sweep with his eyes, hoping to find any trace of Ryan. In a situation like this, he could use the Wolf’s help.
Especially since Marcus had no idea how many hybrids were actually out there. He knew Adelaide would underestimate his powers, now more than ever when he had no army to back him up, but he doubted she would be stupid enough to send just one of her puppets after him. There would be more. There had to be more.
Anything else would be an insult.
Marcus smiled as the first of the humans raced towards him, a large man with a bat, stumbling forward as he attacked. Before the man could even swing his weapon, Marcus backhanded him. The sound of breaking bones cut through the otherwise-silent night.
Where are you, you damned pup?
The others attacked and Marcus quickly tore through them, his claws and fangs ripping the flurry of flesh apart, their weapons barely making him flinch. Within minutes he was surrounded by bloody limbs and wide-eyed corpses.
“You call that a challenge?” Marcus screamed into the night. “You insult me!”
“Marcus!”
Marcus barely turned when a blur of fangs and claws raced past him and threw him off his feet. He crashed to the ground, rolling gracefully and jumping back up just as the blur made for him again. Marcus was quick, dodging and attacking at the same time, his hands wrapping around the fleshy neck of his attacker.
Marcus froze.
“Bane?”
The Vampire commander’s fiery red eyes bore into his, and Marcus immediately released his hold. Bane jumped back, away from Marcus, his lips wide in a menacing smile that revealed blood-stained fangs. Marcus gazed at his old friend in disbelief, the one Vampire who was almost as old as he was. He had known Bane for centuries, trusted him with his life. Bane had always been a loyal commander, and seeing him like this, compelled, unaware of what he was doing, made Marcus furious.
How many more of those I trusted are out there, hunting for me?
“Bane, you’re alive?” Marcus stared in disbelief.
The Vampire commander chuckled, a raspy coughing sound that sounded like a rabid animal that had found its evening meal. Bane crouched, watching Marcus intently, his red eyes burning.
“Bane—”
“The era of Vampires is over, Marcus,” Bane hissed. “There is only Adelaide and the destruction she will bring down on this world. Yield, Marcus.”
Marcus let the anger take over once more, and he clenched his fists. “Your words fall on deaf ears, Bane,” he said. “Kneel. Return to your senses.”
“You no longer command me,” Bane snapped.
“I will always be your superior,” Marcus returned. “I am your maker. Kneel!”
“You will die tonight, Marcus.” Bane laughed. “And with your death will come a new age for our kind. A stronger age.”
From the corner of his eye, Marcus saw movement at the tree line. From the shadows three figures stepped out into the moonlight, eyes ablaze.
Hybrids.
The humming intensified.
“Yield, Marcus,” Bane hissed.
“Never.”
“You will not survive the night.”
“Maybe,” Marcus replied. “But my death will not come at your hands.”
Bane growled and sprang, his speed incredible, racing towards Marcus with fangs bared. Marcus waited, allowing his commander to come closer, before suddenly turning and lashing out. His fist connected with Bane in a sickening sound of crushed bones, and the Vampire commander was flung to the side. The force should have been enough to keep Bane down but he was on his feet in an instant, as if Marcus had merely slapped him about.
Marcus wasn’t surprised, though. He had seen it several times during his fights in the city. The compelled were bolder, more vicious, oblivious to pain or threat with their blind determination. It made fighting them harder, and Marcus had realized early on that the only result of a fight was certain death. Most of the time he made the choice easily, wiping out the enemy without a thought. But Bane was different. He was a friend, and Marcus was determined to find some way other than killing him.
Ryan growled behind him, and Marcus held up his hand in protest. “No!” he shouted. “I’ll handle this.”
Bane laughed and came at Marcus again, this time much faster, and although Marcus was able to match the Vampire’s speed, he was soon thrust off his feet and slammed to the ground in a shower of gravel and dirt.
“This is the end, Marcus,” Bane spat.
Marcus kicked out, hard, and Bane rolled away only to jump back to his feet and attack again.
I can’t keep doing this. I need to stop him.
But nothing kept Bane down. They slashed and tore at each other, a blurry mix of fangs and claws. Marcus tried to pin him down several times, but Bane’s determination was too strong. Blind rage had taken over the Vampire commander, and there was no stopping him.
“You can’t keep this up for long,” Bane hissed when Marcus slammed him against a tree, the trunk cracking with the force, making them both jump out of its trajectory as it crashed to the ground.
He’s right. It needs to end now.
“One last chance, Bane,” Marcus said. He didn’t expect Bane to listen, and when his friend charged at him again Marcus lashed out, hard and fast, his fist burying itself in the Vampire’s chest.
Bane’s screams of pain pierced the night like a banshee’s call of the dead. He hung in the air, suspended at the end of Marcus’s arm. Marcus pulled his hand back, clutching Bane’s heart. Bane collapsed onto the ground, still and dead.
Marcus turned towards the hybrids, their bodies appearing and disappearing with the shifting shadows, only their eyes a sure indication of their presence.
He held Bane’s heart up for them to see, then crushed it in his hand.
The sound of moving rubble came from behind him, and Marcus turned just as Ryan pushed himself out from underneath the blanket of bricks behind him. He rushed towards him, grabbed him by the arm, and pulled him to his feet.
Ryan’s knees buckled, and Marcus had to wrap his arms around the boy’s waist to keep him from falling.
“Brace yourself, pup,” Marcus whispered.
Ryan looked at him, then followed the Vampire’s gaze. Marcus could see the features on Ryan’s face shift when he saw the hybrids, and underneath his hands the boy’s body began to bend and change.
“Calm down!” Marcus hissed.
But it was too late. Ryan pushed him back, and Marcus watched as the boy began to shift and change, morphing into his Wolf form. The hybrids had made their way towards them, slowly, their mouths open in wide grins, ready for a fight. Marcus took a few steps away from the shifting Wolf and turned to face the oncoming attack.
“Honor your father’s memory,” Marcus yelled. “Avenge his death!”
With that, Ryan howled, the full moon bathing him in its silver glow, and charged forward with Marcus close behind.