"You fool!"
After just receiving a slap from his father, Adrian's face was burning with pain. The man raised his huge hand again, his palms still red. This time Adrian's mother came in and tried to stop him.
"George please!" she pleaded, standing in between the two of them. "He's had enough."
Adrian's father pushed his mother away and she would have fallen if Adrian hadn't sprung from his kneeling position and caught her.
"Three weeks boy," his father said, his huge nostrils getting wider as his breathing deepened. "It has been three weeks since you declared that you would kill that demon, Richard Thane. What... Do you think the Jarand Hanat is a joke?"
Adrian quickly knelt in front of his father and bowed his head.
"Father please! I would never think... I just..."
"You are just an incompetent fool," his father snarled. "Just like your pathetic uncle."
Just bear it Adrian thought. His head was still facing the ground and his fingers were beginning to dig into his palms and at the same time was trying to stop tears from following out of his eyes.
"George..."
"Tonight," Adrian said, interrupting whatever his mother was about to say. "Tonight, I will bring you the Fire Demon's head."
Adrian was already in his Hunter's uniform and was just waiting, to get out this place.
"Tonight right?" his father asked, rubbing his palm across his large chin.
"I swear on my honor as a Hunter and as your son," Adrian continued. "I will destroy Richard Thane before midnight."
"Raise your head," his father said.
Adrian didn't know what it was. Maybe it was the look in his own eyes or maybe it was the conviction flowing out of his words but whatever it was, Adrian's father seemed to believe him.
No other words needed to be said... At least that's what Adrian thought until his father said, "Silva Drathvir is outside... She says she wanted to personally see you in action."
Adrian felt his muscles go numb. Silvia Drathvir, one of the seven Grandmasters was here?
"Well don't keep her waiting," his father said, sounding more elated.
Adrian raised his head and stood up. His mother caught his hand before he could take another step. Adrian assured her that he would be fine and he slid open the brown wooden door. As Adrian walked through the long corridor he observed at the decorative portraits that hung on the wall. He stopped and stared at his favorite.
Adrian stared intensely at the silhouetted figure of a man in a coat holding what Adrian always thought was a sword. The painting itself was thousands of years old and was said to have been made by the very first Hunter. The first Hunter, Salazar Drathvir, made seven exact paintings, each kept by a Grandmaster. The only reason it was in this house was that the Hunters were still deciding on whether Adrian's father should be removed from the seat as a Grandmaster. Apparently, the painting held some special secret that was said to be some ultimate weapon against evil.
With a smile, while shaking his head, Adrian walked past the huge living room and went to the door. Waiting for him outside was a slim young woman with long black hair, dark skin, and razor-sharp brown eyes. In appearance, she looked like she was in her early thirties. She wore a long black leather coat, jeans and held a sheathed katana in her left hand. Her face was expressionless and staring into the night sky.
So this was Grandmaster Silvia Drathvir. Only a few carried the last name Drathvir. The Drathvirs were direct descendants of the first Hunter himself. They were renowned for the extraordinary combat skill and it was also rumored that some even possessed certain mystical powers.
Adrian covered his mouth with a balaclava; a mask that only covered his mouth. He then raised his hood and walked to Grandmaster Silvia.
When he was near her, Adrian fell one knee and bowed his head.
"When the enemy takes away my sword and shield," the Grandmaster said, in a thick British accent.
"Then my body becomes the weapon I..."
Adrian quickly performed a back flip and dodged the sword that the Grandmaster swung at him. He landed with his knees bent and she came at him again. Adrian unsheathed two daggers from his boots and a loud metallic clang echoed when he blocked the sword attack.
The Grandmaster smiled. She slowly raised and sheathed her sword.
Adrian's heart was still pounding viciously against his chest when she asked, "And what happens when the enemy takes hold of your body."
Adrian was on one knee and with his head facing the graveled ground he replied: "Then my soul will fight."
"Interesting... Now, unless you plan on proposing to me I suggest you get to your feet, Adrian Pearce."
Adrian did as instructed. He observed his surroundings. Apart from his father's, his mother's and his own cars, there wasn't any other in the car pack. Did the Grandmaster come by cab?
"Grandmaster... If you don't mind me asking..."
The Grandmaster this time made a move that was too fast for Adrian to block, dodge or counter. In a split second, she was standing behind him and the blade of her black sword near his neck.
Adrian swallowed. What was her deal anyway?
"Now listen, Adrian," she said. "I may fancy formality sometimes... but call me Grandmaster again and your head will be the only part of you I carry on this mission."
There was a brief silence between them until the Gran... Silvia burst into laughter.
"Priceless," she said, letting go of him. "Just priceless... I wish you could see yourself, young captain."
She's crazy, Adrian thought.
"Alright," she said. "So why don't we get to business then?"
Adrian wasn't sure of what to do. If he answered her formally, she was going to pull another of her stunts.
"Well, you wanted to ask me something didn't you?"
Adrian gathered himself and said, "I-I wanted to know what brought a Grandmaster to a town like ours."
"Haven't you heard?" Silvia answered, running a hand through her hair. "We have finally found the vampire, Claudia."
"But that's impossible," Adrian said. "Claudia? Here?"
"Impossible or not, that blood-sucking demon is number seven in the Book Of Condemned Souls. I wouldn't miss a chance like this even if it's just based on speculation."
"So where is she then?" Adrian asked, gritting his teeth in excitement.
"And here I thought you had much bigger prey to hunt," Silvia remarked.
"I will destroy the Fire Demon tonight," Adrian said. "But correct me if I a wrong... Didn't you come here because you needed my help with Claudia?"
"I like your energy, Adrian. It's no wonder you moved up the ranks so quickly compared to any other Hunter in history. Very well, shall we get going?"
"I'll get my car," Adrian said.
Silvia chuckled and said, "Come with me."
The two of them walked along the neatly cut grass, past a few trees that grew around the huge yard and went to the back of the house. Adrian could see his room from here. On the second floor and next to it was a window that led to his training room.
A devious smile then formed across Silvia's face.
"What?" Adrian asked as they continued walking.
"Oh, nothing. Just wondering... Haven't you ever wished you had a brother or sister?"
"The thought has never once crossed my mind," Adrian answered. It was true. The only people outside his family who Adrian felt any emotional attachments to were his own friends and Ashley. Growing up in this huge house, Adrian never felt lonely because he always knew he had his friends; people he now swore to protect with his life. Though having a sibling to boss around did raise some appeal he thought, his mask concealing his smile.
"Is that so? Well... Oh, here we are!" Silvia exclaimed. She was standing in the middle of the backyard.
"And here is?" Adrian asked.
"You mean you can't feel it," Silvia asked. "You are trained to sense aura's right? Sensing magic should be easy for you."
"I must have skipped that class."
Adrian wasn't very adept when it came to mystical stuff like auras and the likes but he knew how important they were. Hunters could predict their enemy's attacks just by sensing their auras. Adrian's honed skills were purely based on instinct and hash training conditions; courtesy of his father.
"Anyway," Silvia said. "Do you know how long it took me to get here? Hint... three seconds."
"You used a portal," Adrian stated.
"So you know about those. Good. I think you might want to step back."
Adrian walked a few steps back and heard Silvia utter some words in a foreign language. A flaming portal appeared right in front of him, spiraling and blowing hot wind against his skin. This was his first time seeing one since he joined the Hunters last year. It was incredible, he thought.
"Shall we?" Silvia said.
"Ladies first," Adrian replied.
Both of them walked into the portal. Blinding orange light filled Adrian's eyes and when he opened them he found himself in town, standing in front of a dinner.
Coley's dinner he realized. The roads and shops around were completely empty. Two more portals appeared a distance away from Adrian and more Hunters arrived. Adrian recognized his Lieutenant, Emery, and two more members of his team; Maxwell, aka Slayer, and Deborah, who were also older than him. They walked towards him.
Altogether, there were thirty Hunters. Including Adrian, there were five others who had Black Swords across their back; symbolizing their positions as Captains. And of course, there was Grandmaster who was the only one without a mask. Adrian could hear the whispers and murmurs among the rest of the Hunters as they stared at the woman in black. Everyone seemed to know what they were up against and the air was more tense than usual.
"Alright everyone," Silvia said casually. "All the civilians are safely secure and I am sure I don't need to tell you what to do."
Three teams of six, each lead by a captain, left and positioned themselves around Coley's dinner. The rest stood with Adrian and Silvia.
"Make sure all the exits are secured," Adrian heard Silvia say over the COMs.
"Why are we here?" Adrian asked.
Silvia's analyzing eyes stared at Adrian. She reached for her left-hand pocket and pulled out a note. It simply read:
Coley Andrews is Claudia the vampire.
Coley? It couldn't be. Adrian had known her for as long as he could remember. She had a special connection with everyone in the town; she couldn't be a vampire.
"Since it seems you and Claudia have already been acquainted, allow me to introduce myself to her," Silvia said, gesturing her hand towards the dinner. "Adrian, you come with me. The rest of you stay sharp."
"Are you sure there hasn't been a mistake?" Adrian asked. "This could be a trap."
Silvia continued walking toward the dinner and didn't reply.
When they reached the entrance, the 'open' sign was still glowing green. Silvia opened the door and closed it behind them.
It was fairly dark inside and the natural light of the moon filled the room. Waiting for them, sitting with her legs crossed on top of one of the tables, was Col... No... Claudia. She was reading a small leather-covered brown book and they were several others on the table. Claudia was dressed formally in a black jacket, and white shirt, black tie, trousers, and boots.
"Just a moment," Claudia said her voice smooth and almost welcoming. "I just have to... What! He dies! Shakespeare, you did it again."
Claudia bent her head, let out a weary sigh, and said, "You see, Shakespeare and I were what one might call friends with benefits. The benefit is that he granted me access to some of his unpublished works... I never got to read them though..."
"Until now," Silvia finished, halting her movements. "Too bad your end will be as tragic as his stories."
Claudia smiled.