The mysterious guy rides closer and hops off the bike letting it hit Rowen in the face. As he lands, he pulls out the shotgun on his back and aims it at Rowen and pulls the trigger. Rowen starts to mummify with smoke coming off the wounds and then bursts into flames. Kaelen shifts back into human form. Kaelen stood still for a breath, as the last remnants of fur receding into skin, shadow melting from his frame as he shifted back into human form. The scent of burning vampire filled the air, acrid, ancient, and final.

 

He looked at the stranger, the one with two-toned hair, standing like judgment with a smoking shotgun in hand. The bike still rattled where it had fallen. Kaelen steps closer to the mysterious guy, glancing down at what little remained of Rowen, a charred husk, still twitching as fire devoured it.

 

Kaelen: *Looks at Rowen* Well that's one way to make an entrance. *Shifts gaze to the stranger* Name?

 

The mysterious stranger says nothing as he puts the shotgun back in its back holster and looks at the charred body without flinching, as if it's an everyday occurrence for him.

 

Sylas: The name's Sylas Marren. *Looks at the car* This your car? Let's get going, need you to speak to someone.

Kaelen: Speak to who?

Sylas: Someone who’s watching the pieces move before the rest of you notice the board.

  

Before Kaelen can ever say something in return, Sylas just opens the passenger door, getting in and shutting the car door. He just shakes his head getting in on his side, closing the driver's door. Kaelen then rests his hand on the lever and presses it down like a stamp. suddenly the missing back window, is replaced with a new one. Sylas messes with the center consol setting up a GPS. Kaelen follows the coordinates.

  

Aways back the guy in the random building gets out of the broken window, brushing the shards of glass off and tossing his helmet on the ground bearing his fangs, growling in anger. He starts to run to where he heard the shot. He arrives to find the bike on its side, still running, and looks at Rowen's smoldering corpse. He goes to reach for Rowen, who just crumbles to a pile of ash. He mutters "You protected me well, like you were told by my father." and then stands up pulling out a phone.

  

Unaware of what happened after they left that location, Kaelen and Sylas arrive at a building that overlooks a cliff behind it. Kaelen shuts his car off and follows Sylas inside. They walk upstairs, to a guy with white dreadlocks sitting in a throne.

  

Jax: *looking at the floor* Ah you have returned and brought The Veilwalker with you.

Kaelen: You say that like I’m a weapon that got dropped off at your doorstep.

Jax *Looks up at Kaelen with the one good eye and chuckles* I may have only been around since the A.I. Wars, but a lot has changed in that amount of time. I'm looking to rebuild the Council. Without a representative from Holmfirth Village and Alvoria.

Kaelen: What does reforming the Wolf Council have to do with me?

Jax: To have The Veilwalker who's home is Avoria, would be an asset to the new council.

Sylas: *thinking to himself* So this is Jax's next move? Then what purpose do I have? I know this sickness of mine is going to kill me soon.

Kaelen: Alvoria isn’t even a village anymore. It’s ash and silence. Or did you forget that part?

Jax: *Leans forwards and speaking serious* It's true that when you were about 5 you were exiled for your mysterious abilities, and shortly after it was destroyed. What nobody else knows is some survived, albeit broken spirited. They rebuilt the village. It doesn't look like it once did, but it's still around. Kept hidden.

 

Jax gets up from the throne after sniffing the air. Kaelen looks at the moon and feeling something is off. Sylas pulls out the shotgun pointing it at the stairwell. Jax's arms shift to wolflike. Sylas pulls the trigger as a vampire comes up the stairs, and turns into a mummified corpse catching fire, just like Rowan.

 

Kaelen: What the hell kind of ammo are you using?

Sylas: holy water-soaked wooden buckshot, with an ultraviolet solution inside each wooden ball. It's designed to instantly kill any vampire.

Varrick: *Speaking with a cold anger tone of voice that echos* The Veilwalker. And the White Wolf. How Bold of you both to be in the same place. But boldness doesn’t win wars. It just marks where the bodies fall.

  

As soon as Sylas goes to reload Varrick smacks him against the wall, causing Sylas to go unconscious. Varrick moves over to Sylas's unconscious body and goes to take a bite but stops and stands up.

  

Varrick: This one isn't even worth killing, his disease is already going to consume him. I'd say he has only till sunrise.

Kaelen: What the hell are you talking about?

Varrick: Just ask the white wolf. *Motions over to Jax and grins showing his fangs*

 

Jax rips a vampire in half his arms reverting to human as he walks towards the throne and staring out the window at the ocean. Varrick stops another vampire, going to lung at Jax, with just holding up his hand.

 

Jax: *Voice dripping with sorrow* Sylas was diagnosed with a terminal illness called Dreadwither. It is incurable, and some people will never show any physical signs of it.

Varrick: *Still grinning* It's only been found in humans.

 

Jax lets out a low growl saying nothing but transforming into a normal white wolf and runs towards Kaelen. The wolf jumps at Kaelen and vanishing into thin air. Kaelen blinks clearly confused of everything. Varrick grins and just walks away.

 

Varrick: Don't worry we will meet again. *Laughs coldly and maniacally while walking away*

Hours slipped away unnoticed before Kaelen finally stirred. His body was heavy, sluggish, as if waking from a dream weighted in lead. A sharp, lingering burn gnawed at his side where the silver bullet had grazed him, not deep enough to kill, but more than enough to remind him he was still alive. He feels where the pain in only to discover some stitching and no open wound, but the sting remains. He decides to turn his car on and starts to drive towards Alvoria Village.

 

The road stretched ahead, bathed in the soft glow of dusk, as Kaelen guided the car with one hand on the wheel. With the other, he reached for the touchscreen on the center console, his fingers gliding across the interface until they paused on the music icon. A single tap, and the car filled with the mellow, nostalgic rhythm of calming notes. He listens to it as he drives taking his mind off his pain. The rain began to fall.

 

In the rearview mirror, Kaelen caught the glint of chrome. A motorcycle closing in fast, the rider gripping an assault rifle in his left hand. Without missing a beat, Kaelen reached for the center console and tapped a button. The mellow rhythm vanished, replaced by a hard-driving track that matched the sudden surge of adrenaline. His gaze shift to the tripple screen on the dashboard near the glove compartment, keeping an eye on the data its showing. Kaelen smirked and pressed harder on the gas. For a moment, the motorcycle seemed to fall back. Then, with a sudden burst of speed, it began gaining on him again.

 

The engine growled beneath Kaelen’s feet as he tore down the rain-slicked highway, neon reflections flickering across the windshield. The rider leaned into the chase, eyes hidden behind a mirrored visor, assault rifle balanced in his left hand like it belonged there. The growl of the motorcycle rose to a howl as it carved through the air, drawing closer with every second. He swerved between lanes, weaving through sparse traffic and throwing the car into controlled skids. Still, the biker clung to him, relentlessly closing in. A mysterious guy watches them pass and sees a secondary bike keeping up from a distance. He smirks and jumps off the roof, landing on the second bike and tossing the rider off, into the window of a random business.

 

A flash of light in the mirror. The muzzle of the rifle lifted. Kaelen jerked the wheel left, just as the shot rang out. The round shattered the rear window, glass exploding inward in a hail of glittering shards. He didn’t flinch. Just gritted his teeth and places a hand on the lever. He drifts through side streets hoping to lose the bike but to no avail. The second Kaelen sees a flash in front of him; he slammed the brakes to avoid a building that wasn't there a second ago. The biker had no time to react. The motorcycle plowed into the back of the car, launching the rider into the air like a bullet. The rifle spun out of his grip, bouncing off the roof. A split second later, the biker slammed into the hood with a bone-jarring thud causing the strange building to vanish.

 

Kaelen: *Says in an unfazed tone of voice* An echo of the past. But I'll worry about that later. *Looking at the biker on the hood* what to do about you?

 

The rider lifted his head; visor cracked and takes his helmet off, as the rain stops. With inhuman speed, he pulls Kaelen out of the car and against a wall.

 

Rowen: *smirks, fangs glinting in the low light* You wiped out the rest of my bloodline... how thoughtful. *Draws a silver dagger slowly, savoring the moment* Now I get the pleasure of finishing this with style... and I assure you *leans in, voice a dark whisper* I never rush dessert.

Kaelen: *Grins* Vengeance? that word has been uttered by many today. If only those who say it really knew how cold that word is, then perhaps people would just accept fate. You think this ends with me? I am not a chapter in your revenge. I am the Veilwalker, marked by fate, and exiled from prophecy.

Rowen: *Chuckles* The Veilwalker, guardian of lost things, slayer of foretold lies. *Smirks baring fangs and slowly lifting the dagger up* You wear your legend like armor. Let’s see if it bleeds.

 

Rowen goes to plunge the dagger from above into Kaelen's chest, only for it to hit the wall next to Kaelen's head. Rowen getting pissed as his blades never miss. Turning into smoke that wraps around Rowen's arm, Kaelen reappears behind him from smoke.

 

Kaelen: Damn, you forced me to use that ability.

 

After he says that he transforms into his werewolf form. swinging at Rowen, who dodges most attacks. Rowen drops the silver dagger after one of Kaelen's claws leaves a gash across his left arm. The sound of a bike speeding gets loud and louder.

 

The mysterious guy rides closer and hops off the bike letting it hit Rowen in the face. As he lands, he pulls out the shotgun on his back and aims it at Rowen and pulls the trigger. Rowen starts to mummify with smoke coming off the wounds and then bursts into flames. Kaelen shifts back into human form.