*~*~Adrian~*~*

It was clear that there had been people inside here at some point in time. The faint scent of different body odors hung in the air. He couldn’t tell how many people had been here or how long ago because the scent was obscured by the cleaning agents that had been used. These cells had been cleaned fairly recently. There wasn’t a speck of dust in any of the cells.

Adrian walked further in, stopping every so often, to examine the cells he passed. When he reached the end of the hallway, he stopped. There was a large, metal trap door on the floor. He knelt down and pulled it open. A ladder stretched down into the darkness. Further down he could see a concrete landing at the bottom. He tried to see further into the hole by changing the angle of his head but all he could see was more concrete. He shook his head. There wasn’t any time to go down and see where it led. Adrian closed the hatch and stood up.

The cell to the right caught his attention and he moved closed to take another look. The room smelled heavily of bleach and other chemicals, more so than the other rooms. Unfortunately, even with the heavy cleaning, he could still imagine what this room had been used for. Dark stains colored the floor and walls. It was something out of a nightmare. Adrian frowned before he quickly made his way back to Marie.

He went back to the larger room and searched for Marie but he didn’t see her. She wasn’t where he had left her. He checked the blood link and followed it to her. As he got closer, a scent in the air made him grit his teeth and pick up speed.

Dammit.

He should have known. Adrian could feel his hands clench into fists. He stopped a few feet from where she sat...in the middle of a magic circle drawn in blood.

“What are you doing?” He kept his tone even but on the inside, he was seething with anger. Marie looked up at him and wobbled to her feet. Adrian wanted to go to her but he was wary of stepping into her circle. Marie was careful not to step on any of her lines as she made her way over to him. She stopped at the edge of her circle.

“You need to get out of here before this place explodes.”

“What about you?”

“I need to stay here so that the spell can activate properly.”

“Wouldn’t it require less magic if you were to just stop the explosion from happening in the first place?”

“It would but I won’t be able to get to the spell in time.”

“Where is it? If there’s still time—” She pointed up. His eyes went to the ceiling. On the ceiling was the largest circle Adrian had ever seen. How had they managed to write it all the way up there? The ceiling height must be at least fifty feet. He mentally shook his head. That didn’t matter right now. Adrian turned back towards her. “There must be something.” She shook her head.

Marie looked at him and opened her mouth to say something but instead, she closed her mouth and smiled. He saw a flash of orange before he was thrown backward.

Adrian was slammed against a wall before he slid down to the ground. He shook his head to clear it and looked around. It was the cell they had been in earlier. The chains were still on the floor and the door was still open. A loud explosion went off as hot air blew down the passageway. Marie! His chest felt tight as he ran down the hallway.

He sped through the hallway. Adrian was still able to use Marie’s spell to guide him back. He slid to a stop in front of the entrance. The doorway was blocked by debris. It was high enough that he wasn’t able to see what was on the other side. Adrian worked quickly to make a hole for himself. He didn’t need to open the whole thing up. He just needed to reach her.

Once a large enough hole was opened up, he forced his way through ignoring the cuts he received from twisted bits of metal. His regeneration would take care of them anyway.

“Marie!” No answer. He followed the blood link back to her. Adrian knew that if she was dead the link would have faded so he held onto the hope that she was fine. That she would be standing there, looking annoyed he had come back.

He was half right. She was standing there in the middle of her circle.

But she didn’t stay standing for long.

She looked at him for a moment before falling forward. He caught her before she hit the floor and flipped her over. Her dress was wet and sticky. It was drenched in her blood.

“Heal yourself!” Marie shook her head weakly. Adrian lifted her up and she hissed through her teeth, tensing for a moment. He looked around but the way she had pointed out was now blocked with debris.

“......come back?”

“What?” He hadn’t been paying attention and missed most of what she said. Adrian looked down at her when she didn’t give a response. Her eyes were unfocused and her breathing was uneven. Dammit! He needed an exit now! He looked around. No, she needed a doctor. If only Leon was here. He could—

It was a crazy idea but if it worked it would get her the help she needed.

“Marie. Marie, look at me, please.” Her eyes focused on him but he could tell he was already starting to lose her. “Can you take us to Leon?” Adrian wasn’t sure how far her teleportation could reach. If Leon was too far for her then maybe she could teleport them to their room. Help would take longer to reach her but it was better than nothing.

“Le..on?”

“Yes. Can you take us there?” Her brow furrowed for a moment. Her eyes changed from brown to orange to brown again. She sighed and he began to worry his idea wouldn’t work. Marie frowned as she concentrated. This time her eyes stayed orange. The area around them changed, going from a hot smoky environment to being cool and clean.

She had done it!

They were inside Leon’s house. His happiness was short-lived. She went limp in his arms. Her time was running out.

“Leon!” His shout was met with silence. Where was he?! "Leon, are you there?"

“Adrian?” He rushed over to the front door and there stood Leon. The dragon looked back at him, clearly confused until his eyes landed on Marie. “Bring her over here!” Leon opened a nearby door and went in. Adrian rushed inside. A hospital bed sat in the center of the room. “Put her down there. We need to bandage as many of her wounds as we can.” Adrian put her down and as soon as his hands were free, Leon shoved rolls of gauze into his hands.

Between the two of them, her wounds were wrapped within minutes. Leon stepped back and raised his hands. Adrian could see the man's hands begin to glow as the dragon began to chant. The glow moved from his hands to her body, encasing her in a cocoon of light. The light was bright and steady for a moment but then the light dimmed and pulsed sporadically.

Adrian glanced at Leon. There was sweat on the dragon’s brow and his teeth were clenched. Adrian’s heart dropped into his stomach. It wasn’t working. The glow dimmed further until it sputtered and died.

And with it his last remaining hope.

“I’m sorry.” Leon’s voice was soft as his arms dropped to his side.

“Why?” His voice came out sharp but he refused to believe that this was the end. The man shook his head.

“Something is preventing me from healing her with my magic.”

“Is there nothing else?” The dragon shook his head.

“You could do something for her.”

“I...” Adrian looked down at Marie. Could he do that to her? He clenched his fists as he watched her fight for her life. Her breathing was labored and the bandages were already soaked through. He placed his hand over hers. There wasn’t much time left. He needed to make a decision now.

But would she want that?

Would she want to be a vampire?