The relatively thin cargo vessel broke through the cumulus fog and once again Tani was greeted by the sight of the city below, steadily growing closer. The city of Hord, upon the third planet from the sun called Valoria. A world of relative unimportance that was supposedly thriving under the protection of her peer and now rival, Magistrate Thorn Sariel. But like most things involving her old mentor, she was quite sure that his merits on this world were being over-exaggerated.

The moon in the sky above shone over the opulent and luminescent golden cloud-breakers that reached upwards towards them as the comm-speaker squawked.

“Hauler-Bus-189, this is Control, you have proper clearances to approach either of our civilian landing buffers, do you want an upper-city pad or...a lower-city one?” A raspy male voice officially and yet very casually inquired.

Turk tapped the microphone key and answered, just as coldly and stiffly as she had every time she'd spoken over their two day journey. “Upper, of course.”

“Understood, follow the virtual beacons and put her down on Pad 2358. A security team will meet you to confirm your identity and listed cargo.”

Tani placed a hand on the vampir’s shoulder, who then immediately frowned at her. As much as Turk’s disposition displeased her, it was better than sitting in the back with her underlings, who looked like they wanted to take a bite out of her at all times. “Actually, I wouldn’t mind going down there. Everything up here is probably typical of most Directorate worlds. I came here to see what it is I aim to...alter and before I do that, I wish to see the real world underneath the usual glamor.”

Turk’s frown deepened on her strangely pretty face as she glanced at her hand, prompting Tani to cautiously remove it. “Control? Change of plans, we wish to request a lower-city pad.”

“Really?”

Tani heard multiple fuzzy voices chuckle and giggle in the background over the comm before the man continued.

“Alright, I hope you’re armed and know what you’re doing. Take Pad 0256. Oh, and a friendly piece of advice? Things are extra...unruly down there right now. And whatever you do, don’t look the security teams in the eye too much, they don’t like that.”

The silver and green ship gradually descended through the crowded traffic in the sky-lanes, the thrum of its quad-engines was almost rhythmically soothing. And as they broke through the last vestiges of low hanging clouds, the city’s…aura seemed to change in the blink of an eye. The night air seemed to maliciously warp from warm and free, to cold and choking. The few buildings she could see in detail from this height were either simple brick and mortar in desperate need of repair or low durtanium towers covered in rust. Streaks of dull city lights flashed by with every second and visible smoke and pollution seemed to fill the air more than oxygen itself. It was as the very notion of the nobility and humanity above had been long forgotten, and replaced with poverty and savagery.

“Stars…” Tani said as she covered her mouth in mild shock. “I’d heard things had taken a downturn this close to the Union border, but this is...unacceptable.”

A wide smile opened on Turk’s inhumanly pale face in her peripherals. “Welcome to that real world you wanted, human.”

The shoddy landing gear of their borrowed craft jerked violently and creaked as they touched down. Tani gathered herself as she saw a procession of men wearing dingy and under-maintained Directorate Security armor saunter towards the ship through the wide viewport. Their rifles strewn precariously down at their sides as they approached the slowly lowering landing ramp.

“Well, let us begin, shall we? I hope that man was exaggerating and that they’re the reasonable sort.”

“With us protecting you, it doesn't matter who’s what. Just get in your goddamn sight-seeing so we can break orbit as fast as possible.” Turk spat as she less than gently prodded Tani forward, towards the dozen or so other vampirs readying themselves to depart in the crew bay.

The brown and gray cloak and tunic that she’d purchased before departing the Isle of Man snuggly covered her entire form, her face warmed by its tight hood. The vampirs eyed her as hungrily as they had before and once again, part of her missed the protective presence of her actual guards. Especially since most of them had been at her side since she was a small girl. But their distinct and inhuman nature would stand out here, no matter what they wore. And detection was the very last thing that she wanted.

General Aarons...George had cautioned her about taking this journey in the first place, calling it unnecessary and dangerous, which she understood the reasoning behind. But after hours of back and forth deliberation, her boredom with skulking around the lab uselessly finally brought forth her, as he claimed, stubborn streak and she was on a ship within the next few hours.

Plus she found the uncertainty strangely exhilarating.

A shaggy haired male vampir, named Barbados if she recalled, stood in their path. His black cloak covered his nearly gray hair and disguised most of his visage even better than her own did. “What’s the plan Turk?” His voice was a thin blade of undirected malice, like every vampir she’d heard talk so far.

“There are armed and apparently disreputable humans waiting at the base of the ramp, so be prepared for unprovoked violence. I want half of you surrounding our Magistrate here in standard formation at all times, the rest of you form a loose perimeter of no less than 14 feet and no greater than 30 if space permits it. As per our Lord, her life is more important than any of ours until we return.”

They murmured amongst each other, obviously disgruntled with the very notion of a human life being considered over theirs even temporarily.

Barbados eyed her curiously before smirking. “An awful amount of benevolence has been extended to you human. I assume your high station is the sole reason responsible?”

Tani returned his smirk. “What else?”

“A few ideas come to mind. But either way, I’d be less smiley and more concerned if I were you. I’ve rarely known Vorteth to deal with your kind for long. His benevolence does run out, I’d give it a week or two before you face his fangs or his sword.”

A tinge of genuine concern ran down her spine, but she was careful not to show it. “Perhaps I will be the exception?”

“With Vorteth? You’re quite the optimist I'll give you that.”

Turk grabbed his chin abruptly. “Are you trying to dissolve our newfound alliance with baseless speculations? And it's Lord Vorteth, how many times do I have to remind you?”

“A few more times perhaps. Now please, unhand me woman,” He rubbed playfully at his chin as she reluctantly did what he asked. “Really must you serve him so...fervently?”

“I must. Must you be so laxed with everything, all the time?”

“I always get the job done, Vort…my Lord understands this,” Barbados glanced at Tani with a wicked smile. “Well, I sure hope you're worth the trouble, little one.” He said as he patted the top of her head condescendingly, bringing attention to the ridiculous height differences between her and them. She actually found it rather humorous as well.

But if he patted her head again, she would find it less so.

“I’ll be sure to remind him of your genuine qualities, brother.” Turk continued.

“Where at, in bed or against a wall, perhaps?”

Turk smiled maliciously. “Let’s go.”

Doing as she said, they all walked down the ramp and into the cold and frigid night of Hord. The pad was damp, cracked and the only illumination came from their own running lights and some ineffectual light-poles a couple dozen meters away. The scent of human filth and trash invaded her nostrils as a number of the vampirs moved triumphantly off into the shadows without so much as a word. The guards studied them carefully, gripping onto their rifles more tightly as they did.

"Hey!" The lead man with a tarnished sergeant insignia on his gold and white, open-faced helmet shouted. "Where the hell are they going?"

"Uh, I think they have starship-sickness, they said they simply needed to walk it out." Tani offered with a warm smile.

He chuckled as he studied them. “Nice robes, if there’s a renaissance convention in town, I promise you it's up there, not down here,” He taunted, drawing the laughter of his men. He quickly pulled and inspected a holo-pad from his belt. “Back to business, now why would someone with upper-city access come down to the asshole of the planet?”

“We’re simply tourists.”

“Tourists? Tell me, what marvelous spectacle could have possibly drew your eye here of all places?”

“Well...perhaps we heard about the lower-city’s beauty and the vaunted professionalism of the good men stationed down here and had to see it for ourselves.”

“You want to joke, joke on your own time,” The guard scolded Tani coldly as he took a step closer. “And what’s with the stupid swords?”

Turk stepped in front of her, her tall form momentarily blocking off her view of the guards. “They’re simply souvenirs, is there something we can help you with?”

He smiled, and adjusted his weapon mockingly. “Actually there is. There’s a tax on this particular pad. If you want your ship to stay here unblown to shit, you’ve got to pay a price. Call your buddies back too,” He squinted into the dark. “I want a contribution from all of you.”

Turk scoffed as she ran a hand through her nearly white, blonde hair. “Typical humans. Very well, caedes.”

As if from nothing, the vampirs that had disappeared before, seemingly rematerialized in between the humans’ sloppy formation with silent efficiency, their blades found each of their throats in quick succession. All were dead, before any man had even known they were in danger. Their armored bodies clanked one after the other against the pavement unceremoniously as they dropped, gushing blood from their necks.

“Was that really necessary? I’m sure they could’ve been talked down?” Tani asked as she looked up at her protector, and as she did, a gentle rain began to fall as the rancid breeze picked up.

But she ignored her. “Two of you stay behind, clean up this mess and store their bodies aboard. If anyone comes asking questions, kill them too,” Finally Turk turned to look down at her and pushed her forward. “Let’s go,” She sighed. “Why my Lord even chose to entertain you is the mystery of the century.”

She had allowed Vorteth to offer his own as her guard instead of the General's men, because she was interested in how vampir functioned. And she’d felt reasonably secure in knowing that he wanted and more importantly needed her alive. If his continued efforts at manipulating her were any great indication at least. But his subordinates candor was becoming unacceptable. She was a stars-damned Magistrate, not a servant, and not a dog to be patted and led around with a leash.

“Enough! I’ve put up with your rudeness and impetuousness this entire journey, it ends now!” Tani finally shouted.

Turk prodded her forward even harder and Tani angrily squeezed her fists twice. The preprogrammed gesture instructed her forge to transform from her bracelets into thin, luminescent metal gloves. Holding her hands high, a blinding ultraviolet brilliance erupted from them, flooding the night around them as if the sun had risen and set in an instant flash of light. A secondary gesture brought a thin, shimmering, cerulean force-field around entire body head to toe.

The vampirs hissed in unison as they jumped back instinctively like cockroaches. Their swords were drawn horizontally and poised to impale her upon their sharpened points. Most of their pale faces had burned and blackened and simmering boils festered upon their exposed flesh until they slowly healed before her eyes. Each of them regarded her with homicidal glee unlike any she had seen before.

Soren hadn't steered her wrong, the legends about sunlight as a weakness had proven true...though if she ever needed it to kill, she might want to increase the yield just a bit.

She found her smile amid their cold, piercing stares. “From now on, you will show me basic respect. Or is that not what your Lord would want?”

Tani removed her forcefield with a purposeful wave of her arms and calmly replaced them at her side. Barely managing to keep her face devoid of the terrible dread building in her gut, as the results of her calculated decision hung unanswered in the air.

Within a heartbeat, Turk’s powerful hand was around her throat and lifting her into the air. “You do that again, and I just may temporarily forget my oath and shred you into fucking pieces!” She pulled Tani closer, and she could smell a strong waft of the sauerkraut she’d seen her eat earlier. “And I’ll be sure to keep you alive and conscious for as long as possible!”

Tani croaked as she tried and failed to relinquish her grip with desperate clawing fingers. “And if you do that, how long will it be before he permanently removes your head from your body? Five minutes…five seconds?” She managed another smile as the oxygen to her brain continued to diminish. “He's got plans bigger than you...and he doesn’t seem to be the forgiving type.”

Turk frowned and appeared to consider her words reluctantly, before releasing her to fall onto her knees gasping for air.

That was a bit too close for comfort, she thought she'd finally pressed her luck too far.

The darkness at the edge of her vision receded and slowly she rose to stand as authoritatively as she could manage. “That’s more like it. Had you killed me, you would reveal yourself to not be the rook I thought you to be,” Tani glanced around at the others. “But as a hounding pawn like the rest of them.”

They eyed her evilly, some even going as far as to take a step towards her. But none dared to act upon their obvious violent urges.

“But rook or not,” She continued, feeling a bit more confident. “Don’t dare encroach upon my person needlessly again. Now, let’s go.”

Barbados laughed as he sheathed his weapon. “Are you going to take that from a midget?”

“I can still hurt you, you know? Come on.” Turk spat as she followed begrudgingly.

They moved on in relative silence for a good while. And when Turk wasn’t walking ahead of her, Tani could feel the heat of her intense and hateful stare boring into the back of her head.

Although she would prefer that all of her attention was focused on keeping her safe, she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t enjoying having momentary power over such a being. Immortals had quickly become an obsession of hers and she wanted to know how they worked and what made them tick. She'd spent a good deal of time with Soren who was the most open specimen, and certainly the most friendly among them. And the stark differences in demeanor and physical attributes between the vampirs, him. and even their captive Zahn only served to further intrigue her.

The reason as to why they hated each other so much especially interested her.

Through each dirty street and disgusting alley she took in the whole of the city, and found it extremely wanting. It was supposedly the most prosperous present on the planet’s surface. But if that was the case, she was losing what little reservations she had about releasing the weapon her with every step.

The homeless and despondent slept in rags upon every other sidewalk, and a pang of irony built in her gut. She'd adamantly told Soren that they no longer existed.

At least they were not on her worlds, she'd personally seen to their recovery.

And what she could only ascertain as drug-dealers shamelessly peddled their destructive merchandise upon every corner. The police seemed unconcerned with them all, as they drove past on the pothole riddled streets. Neon signs of many different colors were blurred from the carcinogenic smoke of many passerby and from the heated steam of the city’s sewage pouring out of nearby manhole covers. This place was in every aspect, a far-cry from what she envisioned for her people’s future, it felt more like a Union space city, and that only made her agitation with it worse.

From time to time she heard pleading calls for mercy ring out through the drowning sound of the bustling nightlife. If she had been on any other world, she would have them rush to defend the potentially innocent. But this was Valoria, and she was already convinced that there probably was no such thing here.

Regardless, soon it wouldn't matter. Soon she'd be almost guaranteed to ascended to full-blown royalty and with that newfound power, she would fix the entire galaxy. One city at a time if she had to. She found herself almost cringing internally at the wicked thought, or at least at how much she enjoyed it. She could always change her mind...and not go through with it. Try to do as much for the greater good as she could from her current station.

It was a nice sentiment, but Tani already knew that she wouldn't as she pondered it, but simply thinking regretfully made her feel a little less like a monster, or at least a soon-to-be monster. It needed to be done, either some would die soon, or they'd all die later. This city was a prime example of the rot festering within the Magistrate. Thorn had obviously chosen to ignore these people's suffering, and laid back to enjoy his own bliss and excess on his unnaturally wide ass. As he and the others did on countless worlds. Only she had the will and the ability to wipe the slate clean and rule justly and fairly. And when the last of her comrades fell, hopefully and timely decapitated by a vampir blade, she would do just that.

And then, the blame for the disease itself could more than easily be placed upon the Union’s shoulders. It wasn’t the first time such a method had been employed by them after all.

The sound of blaring horns and shouting people caught her attention and Tani led her dark guardians curiously towards it. As they drew nearer, she recognized the shouting as protesting of some sorts. The harried voices of men and women adamantly yelling at the top of their lungs; expressing cheers and politically charged lines of societal displeasure.

The alley opened up to a blocked off street, where a crowd, numerous enough to occupy at least two heavy Directorate cruisers stood, palely lit by the bright moon and the low red hue of the streetlights. At their center, the army of citizens surrounded the only building she’d seen in a decent state in the lower-city. A short and golden structure with the words Magisterial Reserve upon its top in bright, blue lettering. Stationed in its wide pavilion were more Directorate Security officers, their armor much cleaner than the last and their weapons aimed in warning at the crowd through the property’s grated walls and segmented security shields. A small impromptu stage had been erected outside of the compound, but it was empty at the moment.

“Humans are always up in arms about something, aren’t they?” Barbados asked as he took in his surroundings, she had to lean in a little to hear him. “You’d think they’d realize how short and insignificant their lives are and be grateful for what little they have.”

“I know,” Turk said evenly before stopping beside her. “What is it that you hope to accomplish here, Magistrate? We’ve seen enough, this place is literally begging to be destroyed, like Sodom and Gomorrah before it.”

Tani turned to her, caught off guard. “You’re that old?”

“No…but I can read.”

Tani removed her hood and smiled as she led them a few dozen meters into the rear of the crowd. They were so closely nestled together with the Hordians that she could hardly move her elbows without bumping into one. “I guess I’m more surprised that you didn’t burst into flames upon touching its front cover.” She finally said.

Turk stared at her, residual anger still on her brow. “It was just a colorful analogy. It and magic aren't real.”

“People said that your kind weren’t either. But here you are, glowering at me like my mother used to when she caught me out of bed at night as a child. So what do any of us really know?”

The crowd started to shout louder and louder, the roar of their voices making the very ground shake beneath her feet. But they didn't seem angry, just passionate.

“Taxed to the bone for his gilded throne!”

“Down with the Magistrate, up with the people!”

“No more palaces while we starve in squalor!”

“Magistrate, hear our cry! Serve the people, or say goodbye!”

Tani took in the magnitude of their grievances with a deep and exhilarating breath. “They fuel my desire for change, have any of you ever seen anything quite like this?”

“Not many, but yes,” Barbados answered calmly, his voice once again barely audible over the chanting. “It particularly reminds me of the time around the Reform Act of 18...well something. It had something to do with abolitionists in Britain many years ago. They were calling for the culling of pirates and the end of the transatlantic slave trade.”

“For what other end beyond the obvious?”

“Mainly seeking more rights for their fellow man, I think. I wasn’t paying much attention to be honest…I was too busy pirating.” He smiled slyly and looked down at her.

She chuckled. “And was it accomplished nonviolently, like I assume these people are trying to?"

“Overall, but most things worth fighting for, always require some violence.”

She frowned slightly, his words reconfirming what she already knew.

The chaos simmered as a lone figure emerged on the small stage. The silhouette of their shadow cast along a far building was immense. But in reality, it was a shriveled old man, one who looked barely strong enough to walk unassisted. Somehow his weary voice carried over the crowd with a presence worthy of commanding an army.

"Friends, neighbors, citizens of the forsaken lower-city," He began softly, his voice resonating with passion and conviction. "We like many, have suffered for too long under the oppressive rule of a tyrant who cares not for the welfare of his people! But only for the welfare of his coffers!"

The crowd shouted in agreement.

"We have endured poverty, injustice, and the constant threat of violence at the hands of the Magistrate's enforcers! But no more! Today, we rise up as one, united in our defiance against this corrupt regime!"

"We will no longer cower in fear! We will no longer bow to the whims of a despot who sees us as nothing more than pawns in his twisted game! Together, we will tear down the walls of oppression and build a new future, a future where justice and equality reign supreme!"

A cheer loud enough to shake the stars erupted from the crowd, fists raised in solidarity. But their relatively calm demeanor started to crack at the seams, they started to sound angry, vengeful. As if the man's very voice was stirring them up in a way that the actual injustices could not. And it was almost as if Tani could feel that everything was about to boil over.

Turk must have felt it too, because she prodded her with a bony finger. "We need to go...now."

"I know, I know, just a few more seconds."

“Hey!” A clearly intoxicated man that stank like death and unwashed genitals shouted as he rudely bumped into her. “You...look familiar!”

Tani reflexively replaced her hood. "You are mistaken, I'm just a humble traveler."

He squinted in unfocused drunken suspicion. "No...I do know you. I've seen you on the Link. You an actor?"

"Yup, that's me. An actress, please go see my next holo-movie when it comes out." Tani's stomach dropped as she that man was still unconvinced

"No, that's not it...you're...one of them, aren't you, a Directorate official of some sort? The man roughly grabbed her wrist, at first simply to maintain his balance, but then he didn't let go, as he continued to admonish her with accusations.

Tani tried to gently remove his arm, while scrunching her nose in effort to keep his stench from wafting up into her nose further. “I promise you’re mistaken my friend, now please release me for your own good!”

“No, I wonder how the crowd would feel if they found—!”

Turk grabbed his arm and Tani could hear his forearm shatter as she picked him up by his broken limb and threw him roughly into the crowd with ease. The man yelped in pain and those he landed on screamed in anger and confusion as they collapsed to the ground.

“I could’ve handled that.”

“You were taking too long.”

Tani pulled her cloak closer over her face as the people around them started to scrutinize them more carefully. “Well, perhaps you were right. Maybe we have seen enough.”

They started back towards the alley, but the flying man had started small disagreements amongst the crowd, and people started cursing and pushing at each other. The tiny spark of violence slowly spread like wildfire, a crowd unified moments before, was being divided, fueled by misdirected anger and confusion. It started to bleed over back towards her, and she was knocked onto the ground hard, skinning her knee painfully. But it was nothing compared to the pain that the unfortunate souls, who had inadvertently run afoul of the vampirs' charge of protection must've felt. Their blades moved so fast they were a blur, slicing through limbs and severing heads from shoulders. The screams of those cut down sent shivers of primal fear through the immediate area, inciting an even greater frenzied panicking horde than before.

The sudden increase in hysteria prompted the Security officers to open fire randomly, sparking bouts of return gunfire from all over the street. Soon, flashbangs and launching tear gas canisters summarily landed all around, dispersing clouds of noxious fumes that stung Tani's eyes and made it difficult to breathe.

Turk grabbed her by the collar and dragged her a few feet, before stopping to help the other vampir clear bloody path back to the alley entrance.

“I know who that is! She’s one of them! A Magistrate's among us!” The man from before continued to shout, he was only a few feet from her now and they locked eyes.

As the crowd pushed into her, Tani felt a confliction of emotions tear through her aching heart as the man tried desperately to disappear into the throng. On one hand, he hadn't really done any harm to her...but on the other...he was a witness.

And not knowing when the virus would even be ready, that was something she could ill afford at this juncture.

She weaved in between the vampir and chaotic humans alike and with another gesture, she formed her forge into its final configuration. The cool, liquid metal became two small, handheld plasma dischargers in a blink. Struggling to get a clean shot on her target, she held her arm with her other hand as she lined it up. A whine and blast of bright blue energy that crackled struck the man in the back of the head, completely erasing it from sight in a plume of smoke. Tani felt a twinge of regret as his body collapsed to the ground like a mannequin.

Turk's voice broke through the chaos, and with one swift movement, she threw Tani over her shoulder and they raced away from the chaos that followed them. As they fled, a wave of people surged after them. A mad dash to safety amidst the chaos and confusion. Most were simply running for their lives while some actively fired weapons in every direction, perhaps driven mad by their own fear.

Tani's pragmatism and compassion were at war within her, she was a murderer now...sure she'd killed before, but this felt different. It almost made her feel sick, or perhaps it was the constant motion and Turk's bony shoulder digging into her stomach. A tear almost shed from her eye, but maybe it was from the smoke of the fire that they'd just passed. Her spirit sank into a deep pit of self-admonishment, before it started to lift. Slowly, she realized that this was a good thing, it was good that she felt horrible about it. And really, how could she be trusted to kill a whole world...probably several worlds in cold blood...if she hadn't even yet killed a single man in a similar fashion.

Tani smiled slyly. This was just yet another necessary step towards her ruling...everything.

Within minutes of running at inhuman speeds, the roar of the protestors died down a little and the vampirs with her in tow like a piece of luggage, rather easily evaded the initial stampede. But passing the adjacent roads along the winding alley path, Tani saw that the entire city was slowly devolving into mass hysteria. The protest had lit a tumultuous powder keg that had clearly been a long time in the making.

As they made their way in and out of the crowded streets, the atmosphere grew even more tense. A palpable fear and anger emanated from all around, the air crackled with the energy of pent-up rebellion. Looters took advantage of the distraction, plundering stores for whatever they could get their hands on. The sound of breaking glass and shattering wood echoed through the thin streets, adding to the sense of pandemonium. Smoke from small fires and the smell of burning rubber stung at her nostrils.

The police, who had been so nonchalant before, were hurriedly erecting barricades at key intersections. Some occasionally fired into the air, discouraging the weak and inspiring challenge in the strong.

And it had all happened so quickly.

Turk stopped them all at the end of a small alley intersection as she peered out to observe a convoy of armored vehicles make their way down the street. “We’ll wait here for a moment. There's a lot of gunfire coming from over there.”

“Alright, but we’re safe enough here. Put me down.”

“Fine by me,” Turk threw her roughly to the ground and started pacing angrily. “This has gone from bad to worse fast as fuck. And I’m half-tempted to just leave you here among your people! But…he can sniff out a lie as easily as drawing breath.”

“Then your course of action is clear,” Tani stood and brushed herself off, willing to let the insult go this time. “Just get me the hell out of here.”

“Getting you out is easy, doing so with you still alive may prove more difficult. You humans and your damn frailty. Sneezing and coughing, and dying for no good reason!”

“You sound more concerned than I feel. In some weird and terrible way, I'm beginning to enjoy this. Not the death and destruction...but the incredible energy. I'd assume that you all would be having the time of your lives?”

A few vampirs turned to regard her with both surprise and indignation.

“What? I...I don’t get out much.”

“We’d find it more entertaining if we weren’t babysitting,” Barbados chuckled. “But here I thought you were a bleeding heart or something, concerned for the well-being of your own and all that?”

“I am, but...this place was already falling apart at the seams, no amount of concern would ever fix it, so why should I bother to overly feel it?" She sounded slightly more convinced than she really felt. "I mean, look around you, even the people that live here despise it.”

“I do not disagree.”

"I know, nothing I say is without reason. You’d be a fool not to agree with most things I say.”

Barbados smiled crookedly. “You know, I like you, but not so much your tone. You do realize that we could bleed you dry at any moment, right? Vorteth would get over it, eventually.”

Tani stared into him and exposed her neck partially. Her critical self-realization had drained her of most of her fear. “I do. So, what are you waiting for?”

He gently rubbed the leather of his gloved hand along her neck, his eyes drinking in her flesh hungrily.

“Easy Barbados, if you’re hungry, there’s a veritable banquet all around us,” Turk said coldly, as she slowly rested her hand upon her sword. “Pick one, just not that one. Unless you feel like regrowing a hand or two.”

“I was just…looking, baby-sister.”

“Well, look somewhere else.”

A ragtag man armed with a rifle slung over his shoulder, broke the tension as he ran around the corner. He had some sort of bulky holo-transmitter in his hands and his clothing was disheveled and crimson blood appeared to be soaked into the fabric of his sleeves. Upon noticing them, he set the transmitter down, and walked calmly towards them with his rifle at the ready. “Well, what do we have here? A couple of out of towners by the looks of it. Those robes look mighty expensive, what is that silk—?”

Barbados retrieved a small, previously unseen machinegun of sorts from underneath his robes with flair and fired without a word, cutting the man down without even looking at him. “Whatever your plan is Turk, we can’t stay here long.”

"I know, I know. If more of these rooftops were closer together, I'd say we'd take that route over to the pad."

More people came around the corner, almost tripping over the dead looter and trading glances before turning to accusatorily regard them.

“Hey!” One of the them shouted. “You see what happened to this guy?”

Barbados held his weapon out of sight at his side. “No, I'm afraid that dead guy was already there when we got here.”

“Are you fucking with me? That’s my cousin lying dead there, so I’ll ask you again! You see what—?”

He fired into the second man just as casually as before.

“The hell are you doing?!” Turk shouted as she grabbed Tani again.

“It would've turned to violence anyway!”

She leapt into the air, clearing the lowest building next to them and landing with a quiet thud as gunfire erupted around them. The others quickly followed, the flowing nature of their robes made them appear as dark specters hovering gently against the backdrop of the even darker sky.

“What’s going on?” Someone shouted from below.

“Some guys just killed Ricky and probably killed Stan too, we saw them jump or…float up there!”

“Float?!”

“Well, it sort of looked like—.”

“Who cares, let’s just kill the murderers!”

“Yeah!”

Their words were quickly followed by another barrage of gunfire that ricocheted off the edge of the roof.

Tani started back and forth towards opposite ledges, but quickly found the point moot. On all sides they were surrounded by a violent, unfocused mob. The people were not only attacking each other, but the remnants of the overwhelmed police, and the property of their own neighborhood. But it didn't take long for the dissidents to take notice of the focused rage and shouts of murder aimed at the rooftop, and a good number of them eventually turned to join the attack on them as well.

“Things just got a bit more entertaining!” Barbados waded towards a fire escape on the alley side, rapidly slicing the humans emerging there into pieces, sending them tumbling back down in a wave of blood and screams.

I wonder who could have been the cause of this?!" Turk covered the connecting alleyway with her own firearm, spraying round after round into the people below. “Cull them, maybe they’ll fuck off when they realize their marching to their deaths!”

But after a few, lengthy minutes of people throwing their lives away in droves, it appeared that Turk had been wrong.

Even with retribution for the man’s murder in mind, there was no logical reason as to why they focused their rage on them so…aptly. It seemed that in but a moment, the crimes of the Magistrate had been forgotten, as well as the police and their pillaging. The hordes' only concern now appeared to be spilling their blood. Perhaps they were confusing injustices of the past to be their fault somehow. Or perhaps the deaths of the men and women around them fueled their rage like kindling. Either way, it made little sense to die so senselessly, but as Tani well knew…

Logic had little place in a violent uprising.

Another flood of people found their way onto the roof adjacent to them and began leaping over the small gap. Few had firearms, and most were armed simply with pipes, bricks, and their inconsolable fury.

“Form a perimeter,” Turk's head jutted left to right, inspecting, “Use the rooftop entrance as cover! Protect your Lord’s interests!”

As they complied, the vampirs surrounded her like a cold, dark blanket of death and Tani’s bracelets once again became plasma dischargers. She took aim when she could, the beams of energy illuminating the roof and the night sky in intermittent blasts of power.

“I have an idea, why don’t we just go into the building!?” Barbados shouted as he swung.

“And be completely surrounded and boxed in? Why don’t you let me do the thinking, you fucking imbecile!”

“You know if you keep snapping at me like that, I’m going to have to resort to drastic measures!”

Turk spun on her heel and cut two men in half horizontally with one swing. “Like what exactly?!”

“Well…maybe I’ll tell mom.”

Within moments their unfortunate predicament had turned into a warzone of such a bloody intensity that Tani had rarely seen anything like it in reality or fiction. And she’d seen more than her fair share of battles…from orbit at least.

Her forge vibrated several times, indicating that it was under half-power. The device’s offensive capabilities had been designed with defense in mind. Only intended to give the user time to get away, not fight a whole battle and the dischargers themselves quickly drained the battery life.

As much as it cost to make, the battery should last forever.

A particularly clustered clump of humans desperately managed to grab hold of a lone female vampir, one with short red-hair whose name she hadn’t yet committed to memory. Their collective might was slowly overpowering her against her best efforts to the contrary. Even managing to tear her robes and her left arm partially off, blood squirted as she screamed and swung her sword despairingly with her other hand.

Tani clapped her hands together and focused a combined beam, cutting through her captors like warm butter.

“Thanks!” She shouted as she fell back in formation, her arm lagging behind her with pain etched onto her features.

Every living vampir further guaranteed her own survival.

Tani tried to raise her shields, but she hadn’t enough power remaining for it to completely protect her. So she pushed through to where Turk was with the meager, partial shield she could manage as she stepped over the piling bodies. “We can’t fight the whole city! The more—!”

Time seemed to slow down and her senses captured a sight that the human eye shouldn’t have been capable of witnessing it. Maybe it was simply her life flashing before her eyes. Turk’s blade, gleaming and sharp, flicked towards her head with incredible accuracy. Its edge was so close that it nearly shaved the side of her beige braids. At first she thought that Turk had finally had enough of her, or just got lost in all the excitement, before a wayward bullet intended for her skull bounced off its metal surface and ricocheted harmlessly into the air.

“Fight, stand there, I don’t care! But please shut the fuck up and let me focus!” Turk shouted as she headbutted some unfortunate bastard to the ground, before stomping his head in like a watermelon.

Tani frowned at her rudeness and ducked behind the rooftop entrance, narrowly avoiding gunfire as she appraised their helpless situation more intently. Even with their inhuman abilities, eventually they’d lose, there were simply too many of them. The rioters’ bloodthirst had quickly proven that it would not be easily quenched.

She racked her brain for some sort of edge or stratagem that would see her safely out there. Her first thought was to take her chances with jumping and blending into the crowd below. But she’d probably only break her legs and be helpless to get herself back to the ship. Hopelessness almost overwhelmed, before the only way to survive became crystal clear. She had to do what she’d been hoping to avoid and had killed in the name of preventing...

Being noticed. Stars forgive her for what she was about to do...but it was yet another necessary step.

She pulled her comm from her belt, and deftly accessed the planet’s local communications grid remotely, using her high-level access codes to send out an all-points distress beacon to all Directorate Security personnel in the area.

Thorn would eventually question her as to why she was skulking around in the poorer areas of a world at the edge of his borders. Especially without her guard, and at least a small fleet at her beck and call. And admittedly, she’d have little to abate his suspicions. But none of that would matter if she died on this filthy rooftop.

“This is Magistrate Tani Andula, I’m here on a rooftop in the lower-city, being overrun by rioters, I require immediate air-support at my location, confirmation code A7ZUT56. I’ll set up my comm as a beacon at my exact location, don’t wait for instructions, just cut down everything on the southside of the building and everything in a block radius that isn’t on top of me!”

Turk fired her machine gun and ducked behind the entrance with her. “The hell are you doing?!”

Tani felt suddenly tired as she allowed herself to slump against her cover. “Might want to get closer. Stars, at least, this place will probably look better when they’re done." She said sadly.

The chaos seemed to escalate as the sounds of approaching aircraft filled the air. Tani braced herself as she watched the sky.

Turk cursed quietly beside her, realizing the gravity of the situation. “Everyone pull in together, we’ve got incoming ordinance!”

“Ordinance?!” Barbados shouted as he collapsed beside them, leaning onto his sword to keep from falling over onto his face. Dark rivers of blood that were barely perceptible against his robes, dripped down onto the roof. “Do they know not to shoot at us?”

“Get closer and you might not have to worry about it!”

The vampirs huddled around her eagerly like a bubble, more out of self-preservation than protecting her she thought. Tani was surprised to see very human expressions of fear and pain, as the crowd beat at their backs relentlessly while shouting chants at a feverish pitch. The roar of engines reached a deafening crescendo. Sleek, heavily armed golden gunships descended from the sky like angels of death. The rioters around them looked up in terror as the gunships unleashed heaven's wrath upon them, tearing through the mob with ruthless efficiency. Bodies were torn into unrecognizable pieces of flesh and clothing by the hail of bullets and incinerated by torrents of plasma. Explosions rocked the building and made her teeth chatter uncontrollably as the streets below were leveled with a seemingly unending stream of ruinous missiles. An animalistic fear gripped her heart, and she was sure that she was going to die, killed by her own hand.

But after an eternity went by before silence finally fell over them. Her ears were ringing and the smoke and dust in the air made her cough and choke. Fire was all around them down below, casting an ominous orange glow over the once neighborhood and now graveyard. The screams of the dying both close and distant shrieked helplessly and pointlessly for aid.

Slowly, they all rose to stand, taking in the scene of destruction all around them. The gunships hovered in the air above them, their searchlights scanning the immediate area for additional targets.

Tani almost stumbled onto her face as she dusted herself off, trying to wipe some of the vampir blood that had dripped onto her person on the side of her tunic.

Turk started to laugh, first lightly and to herself, before it gradually turned uproarious. They all stared at her in confusion.

“Did I miss something?” Barbados asked.

She looked at Tani, and for the first time, she regarded her without annoyance or anger. “It really does look better.”