A white-hot spike of pain jolted Callista, a horrifying vision erupting behind her eyes. Flames engulfed a building, the echo of an explosion still ringing in her ears. A memory flickered – unsettling golden eyes gleaming in the smoke, a voice like silk promising a new dawn.
The jarring intrusion shattered as a voice, thick with drunken stupor, slurred in her ear.
"Honey, everything cool? You zoned out for a minute."
The insistent thrumming of the club pulsed through her. Her date, a wannabe billionaire reeking of cheap cologne, loomed over her. His hand, a clammy intrusion, landed far too familiarly on her thigh. Disgust contorted her features. The cool metal of the car key pressed against her palm, a silent reminder of her purpose.
A static crackled in her ear. "Whatever fireworks you're contemplating, Callista," Indigo's voice sliced through the haze, "save them for a more...discreet setting."
Callista scoffed, the sound barely audible over the music. A slow, sardonic smile played on her lips. With a subtle flick of her wrist, she delivered a one-finger salute towards the security camera. A faint grumble through the earpiece confirmed her message.
With a steely glint in her eyes, she grasped the man's hand, her voice a low murmur. "Just pondering the mysteries of the universe, you know, the usual deep stuff." The grip tightened, a sickening crack echoing as bone met bone. The man yelped, his face contorting in agony.
Callista leaned in, her voice a chilling whisper that sent tremors through the air. "Like… these women," she snarled, shoving a wad of photographs into his chest, the faces staring back with vacant eyes, "seem to share a disturbing encounter with you. Black hair, barely out of their teens. Your type." Her eyes narrowed. "My turn tonight?"
Panic choked a strangled sound from the man's throat. He lunged, a feral snarl twisting his features as his form flickered, a desperate attempt at a monstrous transformation. Callista was a blur of motion. Her other hand slammed into his throat, cutting off his air supply.
"Wrong answer," she growled, ignoring his sputtering pleas. A single blow to the neck sent him crashing to the floor, unconscious.
Spotting approaching watchers, she barked, "Take this filth away." Her voice dripped with disdain.
"Impressive work, Callista," Indigo's voice returned, laced with a hint of grudging respect. "You've honed your undercover skills."
Callista scoffed. "Maintaining the delicate dance, yada yada," she muttered. The charade left a bitter taste in her mouth. Bur investigating twisted supernaturals seemed a good distraction, for now.
Slipping behind the wheel, she floored the accelerator. The sudden roar of the engine couldn't mask the growing unease within her. A deafening boom shattered the fragile peace. A monstrous plume of black smoke billowed into the sky, the source a horrifying spectacle. Callista slammed on the brakes, her crimson gaze fixed on the inferno. Gritting her teeth, she barked into the earpiece, "Get me backup, Indigo! Now!" Her voice was a mix of fury and a deep, unsettling determination.
Neon signs blurred into streaks of colour as Callista weaved through the chaotic traffic. Each honk, each angry curse, fueled the pounding in her chest. This vision, a chilling echo of the one that plagued her mind, couldn't be a coincidence. Was this another encounter with Eydis?
Gripping the wheel tighter, knuckles turning white, Callista activated the hidden switch beneath her amethyst pendant. A subtle shift washed over her. Her raven hair shimmered, transforming into a cascade of flowing silver. The tell-tale crimson of her eyes dulled to an unsettling shade of violet. A holographic mask materialised, erasing her features and replacing them with an unassuming facade.
She wouldn't be caught unprepared this time. The memory of the Queen's telekinetic hold still sent shivers down her spine. This time, the game changes. Capture the Queen of the Damned? Maybe. But surviving her wrath... that's another story altogether.
Callista pressed on, the city lights blurring into a kaleidoscope of colour as she raced towards the source of the premonition.
*****
Eydis, a predator savouring the fiery spectacle, watched the lab burn. A cruel twist of her lips hinted at the amusement dancing behind the metallic glint in her golden eyes. With a single, chilling word – "Leave" – she addressed Lionel, her voice laced with barely veiled command.
Lionel, ever the pragmatist, saw the impending chaos. This theatricality wouldn't go unnoticed. Yet, a flicker of the Queen's power – a subtle reminder of the apex predator in the room – silenced any protest. He retreated, the data chip clutched in his clammy hand, a weight heavier than its physical form.
Smoke and ash coughed out figures – Prince Adrian and his entourage. Their bravado, a thin veil over the primal fear in their eyes, did little to mask their true emotions.
"Pushing your luck, aren't we, My Queen?" Adrian spat, "perhaps if you hadn't abandoned your post as the silent, brooding monarch, this wouldn't be such a messy affair."
A throaty chuckle, devoid of humour, escaped the Queen's form. Tilting her head in a gesture both regal and unsettling, she spoke. Her voice, muffled by the helmet.
"My dear Adrian, naivete is truly becoming your signature look. This entire charade, this supposed protection of your precious sister, is a mere illusion. You're just another pawn on the grand chessboard, manipulated by unseen forces."
Adrian's face contorted. The snarl that emerged was a feral echo of the Queen's words. "And what makes you think you're above the game?" he countered, his voice tight with barely contained rage. A sharp gesture – his hand snapping upwards.
Vampires emerged from the shadows, their movements a blur of lethal precision. In a split second, they were upon Eydis. But before they could reach her, her eyes flared with an ethereal glow. A silent order issued, a flicker of her immense power. The vampires erupted in a spray of crimson mist, their forms dissolving before they could even land a blow.
Eydis' lips curved into a chilling smile, a purr escaping her throat that dripped with undisguised disdain. "Wasting your pawns on me? How naive, Prince."
A twisted grin stretched across Adrian's face. "Still clinging to that power, are we? Let's see how you fare against this." With a wave of his hand, the ground rumbled ominously. Human soldiers, clad in bulletproof vests, materialised from behind cover, their guns trained on the Queen.
A hail of bullets erupted, a metallic storm aimed not at Eydis herself, but at the support structure behind her - a calculated move showcasing their ruthless intent.
Eydis, with a roll of her eyes (the action hidden behind the helmet), raised a hand in a gesture of dismissal. The bullets hung suspended in mid-air, a tableau of frozen chaos. Then, in a horrifying reversal, they launched back in a deadly arc. Shrieks pierced the air as the metal rain found its mark, the soldiers crumpling to the ground in a grotesque display of carnage.
Adrian, however, remained undeterred. A cruel smile played on his lips. "Impressive display, My Queen. But even the strongest vampire needs sustenance."
As if on cue, the roar of engines filled the air. Monstrous vehicles emerged from the smoke, their mounted machine guns spewing a torrent of lead, transforming the night into a warzone.
Eydis, a whirlwind of amusement and lethal grace, became a blur. Bullets pinged off her invisible shield like hailstones on a tin roof. A particularly enthusiastic vampire lunged at her – a fatal miscalculation. With a flick of her wrist and a sickening crack, his neck snapped. The lingering touch of her power disintegrated his body into dust, leaving nothing but a wisp of ash swirling in the air.
"Playing with your food, Adrian? How tiresome," Eydis drawled, her voice distorted by the helmet. A hint of amusement, laced with indifference, flickered in her golden eyes. "Who said this was your little trap?"
Energy crackled around Eydis, a corona of raw power that pulsed in the flickering light. Guns in the remaining attackers' hands contorted and warped, the metal groaning as it twisted and melted under the unseen pressure. Surprised shrieks turned into choked gasps as the weapons fused to their skin, the attackers collapsing in heaps onto the blood-slicked ground.
With a predatory glint in her golden eyes, Eydis darted towards Adrian. The prince, a mix of rage and cunning contorting his features, managed to sidestep her initial attack. In a flash, a hidden blade, its surface shimmering with faint magical energy, emerged from his sleeve. He lunged, blade flashing.
Eydis, with reflexes honed over centuries, twisted her body with inhuman agility. The blade sang past her outstretched arm, the air sizzling where it had just been. A surge of adrenaline, sharp and primal, coursed through her.
With a languid flick of her wrist, she sent Adrian flying through the air. He crashed against a burning car, the resulting explosion barely registering on her bored expression.
But the prince wasn't finished. Fueled by a desperate rage that transcended logic, he tore a metal pole from a nearby streetlamp. Roaring with a primal fury, his eyes burning with a fanatical glint, he charged at Eydis once more.
Eydis regarded his attempt with the detached interest of an entomologist observing a particularly irksome insect. As he lunged, she sidestepped with minimal effort, the movement so fluid it almost appeared theatrical. A casual blow sent Adrian crumpling to the ground, the air knocked out of his lungs. He scrambled to regain his footing, but before he could react, Eydis was upon him. With a twist that defied human limitations, she landed behind him. A sickening crunch echoed through the night as her knee connected with his spine.
Adrian roared in pain, his body convulsing as the breath whooshed out of him. Eydis capitalised on his momentary paralysis, her grip tightening around his throat. Her touch was cold, inhumanly strong, squeezing the air from his lungs. His bravado dissolved, replaced by raw terror reflected in his bulging eyes. A single, swift blow to the back of his neck sent him crashing unconscious onto the bloodstained ground.
Just then, a blinding flash illuminated the scene. A celestial blade, glowing like a fallen star, sang its death knell as it arced through the air. Eydis, caught off guard for a split second, barely managed to dodge. The blade sliced through the air where her head had been a moment ago, leaving a smouldering gash across the back of her expensive (probably custom-made) leather jacket.
A sardonic chuckle escaped her lips, a hint of genuine amusement flickering in her golden eyes. "Looks like ripped leather is back in style," she drawled, finally setting her gaze upon her new adversary.
A woman with unremarkable features stood amidst the carnage, her silver hair and amethyst eyes blazing with righteous fury.
Eydis raised a hand, a telekinetic surge sending the woman flying into a nearby tree. To her surprise, the woman held firm, the celestial blade clashing against the invisible force field with a shower of sparks.
A genuine smile, devoid of malice this time, spread across Eydis's face. "Now that's entertainment, care to dance, hunter?"