Disclaimers: Nope, don't own any of LJS' characters:( Nor am I making any money off of this... this is just what happened two summers ago when I had no new LJ to read... now maybe I'll actually finish the last six or so chapters that I had planned for it:)
Chapter One
Sarah Strange peeked through the pale yellow living room curtains of the Circle Daybreak Sanctuary before twisting around and settling back onto the couch, her hands on her knees. It was a beautiful, peaceful day outside, and here she was, ready to jump out of her skin at a moment's notice.
She brushed her long blonde hair away from her face, leaning forward with pent up excitement.
"What are you so nervous about?" her green eyed friend, Annabelle Redfern asked, tilting her head to the side questioningly before sitting on the couch next to Sarah. "It's only my brother. You've gone out with Blade thousands of times before." She shook her head in something like exasperation, her honey colored hair spilling over one shoulder. "You get worked up over the strangest things."
"But this time," Sarah said with a wide grin, "He said that he had a big surprise for me." She stood up suddenly, starting to rearrange the green glass vase of flowers on the coffee table with jittery fingers.
The purple orchid next to the orange tiger lily. Now that looked nice. Sarah pulled a bright yellow daffodil forward and placed it above the other two flowers with a satisfied sigh. She had grown the flowers herself, in the lush green fields that surrounded the sanctuary, and had brought them inside. Blade always smiled when she brought the fresh flowers and there was nothing Sarah wouldn't do to see that smile.
"This surprise better not be an engagement ring," Annabelle muttered, her eyebrows drawing together. "This whole soulmate thing has gotten completely out of hand. Besides, you're entirely too young to be engaged." Then she laughed softly, a playful smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "Well it could be worse. You just be happy that your soulmate isn't *vermin.*"
"We're not vermin," Sarah said with a sigh, pausing in her flower arranging to glance at Annabelle. "We're human's. And we deserve to find our soulmates just as much as you do."
Annabelle and Sarah had been friends ever since she had met Blade. And from that moment Sarah had known that Blade was her one and only. It seemed destined that one day, Blade and Sarah would get married, making Annabelle her sister. Unfortunately, a human being soulmates with a vampire caused the couple to be the targets of numerous Night World attacks; attacks that eventually caused them to retreat to the safety of Circle Daybreak.
Sarah knew exactly what Night World Law said. She knew the penalty for breaking the law, for telling a human about the Night World... Or for falling in love with one of them. Unfortunately, the Old Powers that were rising in preparation for the coming millennium didn't concern themselves with Night World Law. And in the end, Sarah and Blade were another set of mismatched soulmates.
Secretly, though, Sarah wondered what would happen if Annabelle found *her* soulmate. And what would happen if that soulmate turned out to be a human. Vermin. Sarah was convinced that it would bring an end to Annabelle's 'vermin' comments quickly.
But being a part of Circle Daybreak had dulled the sharp edge of Annabelle's jokes and, although Annabelle would never admit it, the rumors that had been spreading through the Night World like wildfire must have had her on edge. The rumors about the end of the world, about four Wild Powers, four teenagers destined to prevent the end of the world. And about a group of people, Night Worlders and humans alike, who had joined together to find the Wild Powers and prevent darkness from triumphing.
"What scares me is that one day *you're* going to be a Redfern," Annabelle said with a frown, breaking into Sarah's thoughts. "I can't even believe *I'm* a damned Daybreaker. And soon I'm going to be related to not one but two of them."
Sarah just shook her head in response, taking a spring of white baby's breath and tucking it behind one ear.
"And Blade's a damned Daybreaker too," Annabelle was going on.
"It was always Blade's choice," Sarah murmured, eyes and fingers still on the colorful flowers.
"He's noble, Sarah. He had to follow you. I've seen him do crazier things for you." Annabelle paused, hearing the shrill sound of the telephone. "I wonder who that is," she said with raised eyebrows before dashing into the white tiled kitchen.
Sarah looked after her friend and picked up the vase, starting towards the kitchen herself. She sat at the round wooden table, settling into a white and beige striped chair.
"Hello?" Annabelle was saying into the beige receiver. "Hello," she said again, this time a little impatiently. "Hello!"
Annabelle slammed the telephone down before stomping over to Sarah, throwing herself into a chair across the table. "I hate when people do that. If you've got the wrong number at least have the decency to say so and apologize." She started tapping her red fingernails on the tabletop.
But Sarah was barely listening. Instead, her blue eyes were focused on the brown Dodge that had just pulled into the driveway with a slight cough and sputter. She laughed silently to herself. Blade just refused to get rid of his old car, saying that it was going to be a classic one day.
She did a double take when she saw the smashed headlight and felt her hands clench when Blade got out of the car looking bruised and beaten.
His blue and green plaid shirt was rumpled, mostly around the collar, as though someone had taken the fabric and twisted it around in his or her fist. And Blade's blue jeans were muddy in the knees and lower legs, as though he had been knocked to the ground.
She hopped up from the kitchen chair, the baby's breath falling to the tabletop. Ignoring Annabelle's protests and wild waves of her hands, she rushed to the front door, throwing it open just as Blade reached it and was in his arms a moment later.
Blade kissed her lightly on the forehead and gave her a tired smile. "I know I said that we'd go out tonight, but I don't think that's such a good idea." He ran a hand that was turning purplish from a large oval bruise through his hair.
Sarah studied him closely, noticing the wary look in his hazel eyes and the puffiness just below the right one as though he had been hit hard. Blade's forehead was sliced open; a trail of blood marking the side of his face, and his golden hair was uncharacteristically disheveled. Her eyes traveled down his sculptured face, the planes of his cheekbones, his strong chin. That chin and his lower lip were cut as well and smeared with dried blood. She froze, looking back up into his eyes.
Then her fingers reached up and touched his forehead gently as though it could give her the answers she desperately wanted to know. "What is it? Blade what happened?"
Blade led Sarah into the house, wincing slightly as he put pressure on his left leg, and nodded in greeting to Annabelle who was already coming towards them.
"What in the world happened to you?" Annabelle said, critically wrinkling her nose at her unkempt brother. "The grunge look went out a few years ago Blade."
Blade smiled almost sheepishly and pushed up his torn plaid shirtsleeves. "It will all heal," he said, the smile dropping after a moment. "I got ambushed in an alleyway outside of LA," he said under his breath, slipping one arm around Sarah's waist.
Annabelle raised her eyebrows and leaned back against the wall, her right leg crossed over her left at the ankle. "Let me guess, you got mugged? Did they take your wallet?"
"They didn't want my wallet," Blade said. He glanced at Sarah who was chewing at her lip nervously.
"If they didn't want your wallet, what did they want?" Sarah said quietly, slipping her hand into Blade's comforted by the pleasant haze that encased her whenever they touched. A chill stronger than her witch senses was telling her that something was very, very wrong.
Blade looked at both Annabelle and Sarah with an even gaze as though he were trying to judge their reactions to what he had to say even before he said it.
"They wanted to take me to meet Maya Redfern."
"*The* Maya Redfern?" Annabelle said skeptically, smoothing her flowered skirt and beginning to look uninterested before crossing her arms over her chest. "I don't think so Blade. Maybe they hit you in the head a little too hard. Maya Redfern is dead. Remember? Try again."
Blade shrugged. "Maybe? But that's what they said. They were talking about the Wild Powers."
Annabelle nodded in return. "Who isn't? What a mess."
Sarah glanced at Annabelle reproachfully. "It's not a mess... yet," she said.
*This is just going to turn into another one of our arguments,* Sarah thought with a sigh. "Besides, that's not the point." She looked at Blade. "What do the Wild Powers have to do with you getting jumped in an alleyway? Did they recognize you?" Sarah swallowed hard, apprehension settling over her heart like an iron fist. "Do they know you're a member of Daybreak?"
Blade smiled wryly. "Well apparently all four of the Lamia who got their kicks out of beating me senseless also work for Maya Redfern. *The* Maya Redfern," he mimicked, his eyes on his sister. "Apparently, Maya's still alive. I know that both the Council and Circle Daybreak say that Lady Hannah killed her..."
Sarah nodded. "Yes, with a stake."
"Well somehow, Maya wasn't killed. It's like everyone's been saying. How could a human kill a powerful vampire, the first vampire? It never made sense to anyone. And so now she's alive."
Annabelle straightened, uncrossing her arms. "As wonderful as that all is, what exactly does it have to do with you and the Wild Powers?"
Blade rubbed his temples as though this entire conversation was giving him a terrible headache. "That's what Maya wanted to talk to me about. She thinks that *I'm* the fourth Wild Power."
Chapter One
Sarah Strange peeked through the pale yellow living room curtains of the Circle Daybreak Sanctuary before twisting around and settling back onto the couch, her hands on her knees. It was a beautiful, peaceful day outside, and here she was, ready to jump out of her skin at a moment's notice.
She brushed her long blonde hair away from her face, leaning forward with pent up excitement.
"What are you so nervous about?" her green eyed friend, Annabelle Redfern asked, tilting her head to the side questioningly before sitting on the couch next to Sarah. "It's only my brother. You've gone out with Blade thousands of times before." She shook her head in something like exasperation, her honey colored hair spilling over one shoulder. "You get worked up over the strangest things."
"But this time," Sarah said with a wide grin, "He said that he had a big surprise for me." She stood up suddenly, starting to rearrange the green glass vase of flowers on the coffee table with jittery fingers.
The purple orchid next to the orange tiger lily. Now that looked nice. Sarah pulled a bright yellow daffodil forward and placed it above the other two flowers with a satisfied sigh. She had grown the flowers herself, in the lush green fields that surrounded the sanctuary, and had brought them inside. Blade always smiled when she brought the fresh flowers and there was nothing Sarah wouldn't do to see that smile.
"This surprise better not be an engagement ring," Annabelle muttered, her eyebrows drawing together. "This whole soulmate thing has gotten completely out of hand. Besides, you're entirely too young to be engaged." Then she laughed softly, a playful smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "Well it could be worse. You just be happy that your soulmate isn't *vermin.*"
"We're not vermin," Sarah said with a sigh, pausing in her flower arranging to glance at Annabelle. "We're human's. And we deserve to find our soulmates just as much as you do."
Annabelle and Sarah had been friends ever since she had met Blade. And from that moment Sarah had known that Blade was her one and only. It seemed destined that one day, Blade and Sarah would get married, making Annabelle her sister. Unfortunately, a human being soulmates with a vampire caused the couple to be the targets of numerous Night World attacks; attacks that eventually caused them to retreat to the safety of Circle Daybreak.
Sarah knew exactly what Night World Law said. She knew the penalty for breaking the law, for telling a human about the Night World... Or for falling in love with one of them. Unfortunately, the Old Powers that were rising in preparation for the coming millennium didn't concern themselves with Night World Law. And in the end, Sarah and Blade were another set of mismatched soulmates.
Secretly, though, Sarah wondered what would happen if Annabelle found *her* soulmate. And what would happen if that soulmate turned out to be a human. Vermin. Sarah was convinced that it would bring an end to Annabelle's 'vermin' comments quickly.
But being a part of Circle Daybreak had dulled the sharp edge of Annabelle's jokes and, although Annabelle would never admit it, the rumors that had been spreading through the Night World like wildfire must have had her on edge. The rumors about the end of the world, about four Wild Powers, four teenagers destined to prevent the end of the world. And about a group of people, Night Worlders and humans alike, who had joined together to find the Wild Powers and prevent darkness from triumphing.
"What scares me is that one day *you're* going to be a Redfern," Annabelle said with a frown, breaking into Sarah's thoughts. "I can't even believe *I'm* a damned Daybreaker. And soon I'm going to be related to not one but two of them."
Sarah just shook her head in response, taking a spring of white baby's breath and tucking it behind one ear.
"And Blade's a damned Daybreaker too," Annabelle was going on.
"It was always Blade's choice," Sarah murmured, eyes and fingers still on the colorful flowers.
"He's noble, Sarah. He had to follow you. I've seen him do crazier things for you." Annabelle paused, hearing the shrill sound of the telephone. "I wonder who that is," she said with raised eyebrows before dashing into the white tiled kitchen.
Sarah looked after her friend and picked up the vase, starting towards the kitchen herself. She sat at the round wooden table, settling into a white and beige striped chair.
"Hello?" Annabelle was saying into the beige receiver. "Hello," she said again, this time a little impatiently. "Hello!"
Annabelle slammed the telephone down before stomping over to Sarah, throwing herself into a chair across the table. "I hate when people do that. If you've got the wrong number at least have the decency to say so and apologize." She started tapping her red fingernails on the tabletop.
But Sarah was barely listening. Instead, her blue eyes were focused on the brown Dodge that had just pulled into the driveway with a slight cough and sputter. She laughed silently to herself. Blade just refused to get rid of his old car, saying that it was going to be a classic one day.
She did a double take when she saw the smashed headlight and felt her hands clench when Blade got out of the car looking bruised and beaten.
His blue and green plaid shirt was rumpled, mostly around the collar, as though someone had taken the fabric and twisted it around in his or her fist. And Blade's blue jeans were muddy in the knees and lower legs, as though he had been knocked to the ground.
She hopped up from the kitchen chair, the baby's breath falling to the tabletop. Ignoring Annabelle's protests and wild waves of her hands, she rushed to the front door, throwing it open just as Blade reached it and was in his arms a moment later.
Blade kissed her lightly on the forehead and gave her a tired smile. "I know I said that we'd go out tonight, but I don't think that's such a good idea." He ran a hand that was turning purplish from a large oval bruise through his hair.
Sarah studied him closely, noticing the wary look in his hazel eyes and the puffiness just below the right one as though he had been hit hard. Blade's forehead was sliced open; a trail of blood marking the side of his face, and his golden hair was uncharacteristically disheveled. Her eyes traveled down his sculptured face, the planes of his cheekbones, his strong chin. That chin and his lower lip were cut as well and smeared with dried blood. She froze, looking back up into his eyes.
Then her fingers reached up and touched his forehead gently as though it could give her the answers she desperately wanted to know. "What is it? Blade what happened?"
Blade led Sarah into the house, wincing slightly as he put pressure on his left leg, and nodded in greeting to Annabelle who was already coming towards them.
"What in the world happened to you?" Annabelle said, critically wrinkling her nose at her unkempt brother. "The grunge look went out a few years ago Blade."
Blade smiled almost sheepishly and pushed up his torn plaid shirtsleeves. "It will all heal," he said, the smile dropping after a moment. "I got ambushed in an alleyway outside of LA," he said under his breath, slipping one arm around Sarah's waist.
Annabelle raised her eyebrows and leaned back against the wall, her right leg crossed over her left at the ankle. "Let me guess, you got mugged? Did they take your wallet?"
"They didn't want my wallet," Blade said. He glanced at Sarah who was chewing at her lip nervously.
"If they didn't want your wallet, what did they want?" Sarah said quietly, slipping her hand into Blade's comforted by the pleasant haze that encased her whenever they touched. A chill stronger than her witch senses was telling her that something was very, very wrong.
Blade looked at both Annabelle and Sarah with an even gaze as though he were trying to judge their reactions to what he had to say even before he said it.
"They wanted to take me to meet Maya Redfern."
"*The* Maya Redfern?" Annabelle said skeptically, smoothing her flowered skirt and beginning to look uninterested before crossing her arms over her chest. "I don't think so Blade. Maybe they hit you in the head a little too hard. Maya Redfern is dead. Remember? Try again."
Blade shrugged. "Maybe? But that's what they said. They were talking about the Wild Powers."
Annabelle nodded in return. "Who isn't? What a mess."
Sarah glanced at Annabelle reproachfully. "It's not a mess... yet," she said.
*This is just going to turn into another one of our arguments,* Sarah thought with a sigh. "Besides, that's not the point." She looked at Blade. "What do the Wild Powers have to do with you getting jumped in an alleyway? Did they recognize you?" Sarah swallowed hard, apprehension settling over her heart like an iron fist. "Do they know you're a member of Daybreak?"
Blade smiled wryly. "Well apparently all four of the Lamia who got their kicks out of beating me senseless also work for Maya Redfern. *The* Maya Redfern," he mimicked, his eyes on his sister. "Apparently, Maya's still alive. I know that both the Council and Circle Daybreak say that Lady Hannah killed her..."
Sarah nodded. "Yes, with a stake."
"Well somehow, Maya wasn't killed. It's like everyone's been saying. How could a human kill a powerful vampire, the first vampire? It never made sense to anyone. And so now she's alive."
Annabelle straightened, uncrossing her arms. "As wonderful as that all is, what exactly does it have to do with you and the Wild Powers?"
Blade rubbed his temples as though this entire conversation was giving him a terrible headache. "That's what Maya wanted to talk to me about. She thinks that *I'm* the fourth Wild Power."