The elder vampires Victor, Harold, Fara and Archibald stood around a table, their eyes closed. They communicated in the mindscape, with victor sending out images to the other elders.

“The Night Hunter facility has three main defenses,” said Victor. “The first is the mansion itself. There are night hunters whose job is simply to live in that mansion. Since the mansion is their home, no vampire save a feral one can enter uninvited.”

Victor sent them images of night hunters going through training exercises, eating, and sleeping in the mansion.

“Second,” he continued. “We’ll have to get past the electronic security system.”

He sent them images of keypads, hand scanners, eye scanners, and electronic doors.

“Last, but not least, the facility’s sprinkler system is connected to a tank blessed by a priest on a daily basis. If any vampires breach the facility, they can be killed by holy water raining down from the ceiling.”

He showed them images of a priest standing over a gigantic water tank crossing himself as he blessed the water. Victor then showed water from that tank flowing through pipes and out of sprinklers, burning the skin of vampires in the hallways.

Victor then dismissed the images, and the vampires opened their eyes to speak in the real world.

“The electronic security and the holy water were accounted for long ago,” said Victor. “Through a technique Harold and I developed together; a means to install a mental command into someone and hide it from mental monitoring. It is done by installing the command slowly over a number of years, taking shape deep inside the subconcious until it can triggered at a later date. To make sure it stays hidden from psychics, no other mental tampering must be attempted, making it effectively a one off.

“You won’t be able to control that person outside of that singular command, but they will obey that command, and then have no memory of it once it is done. We already used a command to allow Terry Caldwell access to the same training sesson as Alice Hayes, but we have two more mental commands inserted into four night hunter agents with security clearance. Two to disable the security, and two to nullify the holy water. If things go as planned, we’ll only need one of each.”

“A sneaky trick,” said Archibald approvingly. “I like it. But how did you insert the commands without the Night Hunters knowing? Surely they would know if a relative of the target was kidnapped?”

Victor smirked, “Unless they didn’t know they were related. You’d be surprised how many humans get away with infidelity. It’s simple; a man has a child with his wife, and get’s away with cheating on her, having a child with another woman. The child of his wife then grows up to be a Night Hunter, blissfully ignorant of having a half sibling. After years of observing the Night Hunters stationed at Saint Vivia, we were able to find people with similar scents who otherwise have no connection. By making the secret half siblings our thralls, we have back doors into the Night Hunters’ minds that the hunters cannot possibly anticipate.”

“My dear Victor,” said Archibald. “And Harold, you’ve outdone yourself with this.”

“It’s impressive, I suppose,” said Fara nonchalantly. “Now, how do you plan to deal with the rule of invitation?”

“With the ferals I have altered,” said Victor.

“Uh uh,” said Arichald, “You know, Victor, I may just a half mad vampire with a fantasatic sense of humor and loads of charm…” Fara snorted derisively and Harold rolled his eyes… “But even I can see the obvious problem with that plan. Feral vampires do not require an invitation to enter, sure, but the Night Hunters will make short work of them. With bright lights, strong smells, and those sonic devices, the ferals will be rendered helpless. We can’t train animals to resist such things as we train our more rational forces.”

“Hence my alterations,” said Victor. “The ferals have had their senses removed entirely. No hearing, no sight, nothing. Instead they have a sixth sense granted by a ritual from our Warlock Walter. This sense does not rely on the physical forces that normal senses do, but pure magic. They are simply aware of their surroundings, plain and simple. This will give them the element of surprise.

“Now, not everyone who lives in the mansion is there now, but I have groups of vampires following them. Once they kill those hunters, and the altered vampires kill everyone in the mansion, the rest of our forces can move in.”

“Tell me,” said Fara. “Would our other newborn vampires benefit from this ritual as well?”

“No,” said Victor. “Every intelligent vampire we tried this on went mad. That’s not a problem for ferals, of course, but not an option for the rest of us.”

Harold looked thoughtful, “Perhaps ‘altered’ is too weak a word for what you’ve done. I’d say you’ve defiled them.”

Victor considered this, “Yes. I rather think I have. Well then, we will unleash the defiled vampires tonight. I will lead the assault on the facility myself. If anything happens to me, Harold is in charge, but if all goes well, the Crucivire will finally be in our possession.”

###

Alice didn’t know how long she spent comforting her brother, embracing him as he wept. She wondered if he’d ever told anyone what he’d told her, and figured he probably hadn’t. It was more likely he’d kept all that pain and trauma bottled up inside, until finally letting all out to his sister. She couldn’t think of anything to say to him. All she could do was be there for him.

One moment she was still hugging him, his tears beginning to slow down, and the next moment she was standing, surrounded by seven reflective walls. She was back in Jacqueline’s mindscape.

I must have fallen asleep, she thought. Looking forward, she naturally saw Jacqueline sitting there. The vampire had a melancholy expression as she stared off into the distance. Alice approached, and once she stepped up to the glass cage, Jacqueline looked at her and smiled.

“I heard the news,” said Jacqueline.

“Yeah,” said Alice. “I guess we’ll still be working together once this is all over.”

Jacqueline nodded, and seemed to hesitate to say something. Alice almost asked her what was wrong, but Jacqueline cut her off.

“Alice,” said Jacqueline. “You probably want to know about Gary. I’m afraid I haven’t been able to reach him. Now that they know how we were helping them, they’ve cut us off. I’m sorry, but he’s on his own.”

For a moment, Alice felt discouraged, but she quickly steeled herself, “He just has to last long enough for us to get to that mansion. We can still save him.”

“For his sake, I hope so.”

The stood silence for a moment, and Jacqueline turned away. There was clearly something on her mind.

“Are you worried about…Agent Phoenix?” asked Alice. “They won’t let him hurt you. You know that, right?”

Jacqueline swallowed nervously, and didn’t answer right away.

“You’ve done everything you can to help us,” said Alice. “We wouldn’t be where we are without…”

“Alice,” said Jacqueline.

Alice, startled, saw a vampire with eyes wide. She looked like she desperately wanted to say something.

“Alice I…I…” Jacqueline stammered, before hesitating.

“What is it Jacqueline,” said Alice. “You can tell me.”

Jacqueline hesitated. “I just…thank you…for giving me a chance. And Alice?” she hesitated once more before saying, “Brace yourself.”

Alice suddenly woke up, laying on the floor alone in the conference room. She sat up, and a trench coat fell from her shoulders. Looking at it, Alice realized that Arthur must have placed his trench coat over her like a blanket. She ran her fingers over the collar of the coat for a moment, feeling the warmth it had trapped as it lay over her. Alice didn’t know what was going on with Jacqueline, but she’d have to find out later. Right now, it was time to talk to her brother again.

Alice stood, holding the trench coat over her shoulder, and walked to the door. Outside, she found two Night Hunters standing guard.

“Recruit Hayes,” said one of them, nodding. “We’ve been assigned to escort you where you need to go.”

“Thank you,” said Alice. “Agent Phoenix came out before me. Did he say where he was going?”

“Director Farrow thought you might ask,” said the hunter. “Agent Phoenix is on level five, in the chapel.”

###

Deep underground lay tunnels long forgotten by mankind. Carvings along the walls depicted Aztec warriors, battles, and gods across the span of Aztec history. For hundreds of years, those tunnels lay dark, empty, and silent…until today. Something was being driven through those tunnels, feral vampires that had been defiled by dark magic, their features hidden in darkness and visible only to the creatures of the night as they ran on all fours.

Normal vampires ran behind them, cracking whips to egg them on. They ran like the wind, and it wouldn’t be long before they reached their destination.

###

Alice, escorted by two Night Hunters in uniform, left the elevator with her brother’s trench coat folded in her arms. She was led through the hallways past doors that were surprisingly far from each other. In Alice’s time in that facility, she’d learned that doors being far apart meant that the rooms within were large.

The doors were marked as various places of worship, such as, ‘Buddhist Temple,’ ‘Hindu Temple,’ ‘Jewish Synagogue,’ and more. Just about every religion was represented, and there was even a place for the nonreligious marked, ‘Psychological Therapy.’ Everyone had different ways of coping with the horrors of this job and would turn to different places for answers. The Night Hunters clearly did whatever they could to accommodate everyone.

Finally, they reached the one that Alice’s brother went to, the Christian Chapel. As she approached the door, she noticed a board next to it with a list of times marked, ‘Sunday Services.’ They read: ‘Protestant Service at 8:00 AM,’ ‘Catholic Service at 10:00 AM,’ and so on and so forth. Alice supposed the Night hunters had limits on how much they could provide if the denominations of a particular religion had to share a room.

“We’ll be outside,” said Alice’s escort. She nodded, and pushed on the doors as she went inside.

The Night hunter Chapel, though it lay deep underground, was as big as a catholic church. Stained glass windows, illuminated from behind to simulate sunlight, rose to the ceiling as they depicted various miracles from Jesus Christ. Alice saw windows depicting the feeding of the five thousand, healing the sick, and even raising Lazarus from the dead.

Instead of pews, there were cushioned wooden chairs, with people sitting at tables. The Hunters had mentioned that memories made in a church can help fortify one’s mind from vampiric manipulation, so she figured that that’s what these hunters were doing here. Some people sat around talking or laughing, while others played card games and a few sat alone reading.

Past the many tables and chairs, Alice saw the alter where a few priests stood, reading from the bible out loud. Near that alter, sitting alone, was Phoenix, his head bowed and his hands folded in prayer. Without his trench coat, she could see the crosses tattooed on his muscular arms, and Alice wondered just how many tattoos he had.

She walked up slowly, uncertain of what she was going to say. For a moment, she didn’t know whether or not to think of him as Agent Phoenix or Arthur Hayes. He said his memories had come back, but did that mean he thought of himself as Arthur? She had so many questions.

“Did you sleep well?” he asked as she walked up. He hadn’t even looked to see who was there.

“Yeah,” said Alice, pulling up a chair to sit facing him. “How are you feeling?”

He took a moment to answer, his head still bowed and his hands still clasped, “I feel…uncertain, and I haven’t felt uncertain for a long time. Ever since the day I became a crucivire I’ve known my purpose.”

He looked up. “I am on a mission from God to rid the world of these creatures and protect as many people as I can.”

Alice’s gaze followed his to a wooden cross high above the altar. Somehow she knew that her brother was imagining Jesus Christ hanging from it.

“But now,” said her brother. “I just find myself wondering how I can protect someone who has thrust herself headfirst into danger…or if I’ll compromise my principles to do it.”

Alice frowned, “What do you mean?”

Alice’s brother lowered his head and turned to face her, “Alice, that night on the farm, when I gave that vampire an ultimatum to either spare your life or suffer for it, that’s how I’ve always dealt with vampires. I wasn’t lying. I can’t let a vampire go to save one life, because that vampire will just go on to take more lives. I…I’ve let people die to make sure a vampire can’t hurt anyone else.”

Alice looked away. She wasn’t surprised, exactly, but it was still hard to hear.

“Except,” he continued. “If a vampire threatened you again, I don’t know what I would do.”

Alice kept looking away, giving this some thought.

###

Darkness and silence covered the woods. Though the area had been teeming with nocturnal life an hour ago, all animals had fled. They had sensed something twisted and evil running below the earth in tunnels long forgotten by humankind.

Soon, the earth became disturbed as something dug itself out from beneath. Patches of dirt fell away, revealing the exits to these underground tunnels, and soon vampires began to pour out into the trees. Hundreds of undead warriors armed to the teeth with medieval weapons stepped out of those tunnels, and at their head was Lord Victor Sorenson.

As they stepped out, Victor realized the time was right, and closed his eyes, sending mental commands. First, the vampires following those who lived in the mansion but were in the city should attack now. The other command was to trigger the subconcious commands placed years ago.

Two Night Hunters were contacted in the Night Hunter facility, a few miles from those tunnels in the forest. Agent Thompson, who had been watching the news in his quarters, and Agent Swann, who had been reading in hers, both felt sleepy. Their eyes closed as they passed out, and a moment later, their eyes opened, the two of them in a trance. Neither was aware of what they were doing. They simply followed the command Victor had drilled into their minds, each leaving their quarters to do their respective tasks.

Back in the forest, Victor opened his eyes.

“It has begun,” he said as he turned back to the tunnels. “Bring out the defiled.”

Shrieks arose out of the tunnels as vampires cracked whips to drive the feral creatures out. The defiled spilled out of the tunnels and into the forest, shrieking in pain and hunger. Soon the army of vampires ran around the defiled, driving them to the night hunter facility.

###

Alice took a deep breath, choosing her words carefully. She decided not to bring up Jacqueline just yet, in fear of making him angry, but she did need to be honest with him.

“Arthur,” she said. “I appreciate that you want to protect me. Really, I do, but I have my own reasons for being here. And now, knowing you do remember who I am, I have more reason to be here than ever.”

Arthur seemed to hang onto her every word, his eyes filled with sadness.

“I became a police detective,” said Alice. “And solved a lot of missing persons cases. Somewhere in the back of my mind I always hoped that I’d get a case that would let me find you. It can be a dangerous job, being a police officer, so I’m no stranger to life threatening situations.

“After spending so much time looking for you, I almost thought my prayers had been answered at last, and I’d get a second chance to be your sister. And yet, despite you being alive, it was like Arthur had died a long time ago.”

Arthur looked down.

“The truth is, Arthur,” said Alice. “Even if it would have protected me to keep in in the dark, I wish you would have been honest with me, because I want to fight them with you, and if the vampires do take me hostage again, I don’t think I’d want to be saved just to let others die in my place, so please don’t let that worry you. If something happens to me, my only regret is that I’d leave you alone.”

Alice reached over and held his hand.

“Because you shouldn’t have to carry this burden alone,” she said.

Hesitantly, Arthur grabbed her hand back.

###

Agent Swann and Agent Thompson both went to places they had no reason to go to. They, however, had security clearance for this area, and had been cleared by Jasmine Ross, unaware of the special technique used on these agents.

Agent Swann stopped by a storage room to get a rope and a toolbox before going to the holy water tank that connected to the entire building. Agent Thompson, meanwhile, picked up an item hidden in a vent by the vampire worshipper Terry Caldwell before going the security control room. Passing by the control room itself, with security screens overlooking the entire facility, he entered the server room. These servers, lined up in rows, controlled the facility’s entire security system as they hummed with activity. Thompson went up to one server and inserted the usb device into it. Then he left, going back to his quarters as if nothing had happened. When he woke up, he’d have no memory of doing this.

Meanwhile, Agent Swan found the holy water tank, a massive structure in a masstive room. She went up metal stairs that spiraled around the metal object, her feet clanging as she went. At the top of the tank, she found a hatch where priests would bless the water, and turned the wheel to open it. Once open, she tied the rope to her ankle and then to the toolbox. At this moment, Night Hunters set to guard the area came up to her.

“Agent Swann,” said one. “What are you…”

Before he could finish his question, Agent Swann pushed the toolbox into the water, then aimed a gun at her own head.

“No!” cried the hunter, but he was too late. Agent Swann put a bullet in her head, spraying blood, and the toolbox pulled the rope tight as it sank, dragging her body into the water. The Night Hunter reached the hatch just in time to see Swann drifting down, blood spilling from her head into the water as the weight pulled her down.

Outside, just as the security system began to go down, Night Hunters patrolling outside the facility heard a stampede. Some sort of creatures were running on all fours towards the facility, and would break out of the treeline at any moment.

###

“I didn’t want to hurt you,” said Arthur, shame creeping into his face. “I knew I might, but I figured it was better that I hurt you than they hurt you.”

He looked up, “But you’re right, I should have been honest with you, so let me be honest with you now. Alice, there’s something you need to know about…”

He was interrupted by an alarm. Alice and Arthur stood immediately, looking towards the exit. They took one look at each other and realized they both had a chill going down their spines.

###

Night Hunters fired into the hoard of monsters approaching as they fled into the facility. Though spotlights illuminated the feral beasts, they were visible only as dark grey blurs. Sonic devices build into the city walls blared out a whining noise, but the approaching creatures seemed unaffected. Some of the Night Hunters who had been patrolling the outer perimeter of the grounds were quickly overtaken, buried under a mass of wild beasts.

The Night Hunters close to the mansion managed to get inside and desperately tried to shut the emergency doors, but the security panels wouldn’t respond. The hunters slammed their fists on the controls, but the feral vampires soon reached them. As the creatures leapt upon their prey, entering the light of the mansion, the Night Hunters got their first glimpse of the defiled vampires.

Most of their bodies were the dark grey, skeletal figures they expected, their fangs glistening in the light. These vampires, however, lacked ears and noses. Where there noses should have been they could see the skin stretched tight over the bone where a nose would rest. The most disturbing thing about them was their lack of eyes. Skin had grown over the sockets, leaving two pits of flesh where the eyes should have been.

The Night Hunters had less than a second to comprehend what they were seeing before the creatures bore down on them, tearing into their necks and spilling blood, even as they lapped it up greedily. The defiled overwhelmed the mansion with sheer numbers, and the hunters couldn’t shoot fast enough to stop them.

Nearby, overlooking the mansion, Victor stood, watching as the defiled vampires rampaged through the mansion above the facility. The hunters who lived in the mansion but weren’t there were dead, killed in the streets of Saint Vivia with many witnesses watching through windows. By now, there was no point in hiding the existence of vampires in this city. Everyone knew, so Victor could move openly.

Watching, Victor he could sense the barrier that prevented vampires from entering without an invitation, and sure enough it fell when all the Night Hunters who lived in the mansion had perished. They could now enter the Mansion at their leisure.

It’s time to claim our prize, thought Victor, the glamour falling away from his wings as he leaped into the air. Behind him, the rest of their vampire army ran forward, ready to assault the Night Hunter facility.