The Queen's Shadow

From The Strongest

~~~Lilith

The flight was long and quiet, and Gabriel was focused. It was impossible not to see Michael in him. Carter hadn't contacted Lucia's agent, and the agent has gone silent. Either they were a traitor or they were put down. I close my eyes and focused again. We could only bring three of us and it was more than enough but something was bothering me. I knew something was off, Hans wasn't a fool and he wouldn't just let us come to him. What in the hell happened to Carter? The information had to come through him being forced to talk. Or he could have been a traitor. Carter didn't have it in his character. His thoughts always drifted to serving me and fighting to protect the throne. I hope I can save Carter, but something is telling me there will be no happy ending.

~~~Wendy

I opened my heavy eyelids trying to process everything that happened. I felt a soreness on my neck and realized I was attacked by that man. Oh, you're finally awake again.', I heard his voice, I was still trying to understand what happened to me. I felt a wet liquid on the ground and realized I was drinking something...it was blood. The cold truth poured into my mind like ice water into a glass. I had been bitten and something changed in me. The world felt different now, what did he do to me? "What did you do to me?"

'Simple my dear I made you like me.' My eyes widened then I remembered something he had a bag leaking with blood where did it go? Almost as if reading my mind he then said, 'You needed to feed.' I smelled the faint smell of blood and looked at my clothes. My yellow dress with white polka-dots was covered in blood, I remembered how I almost attacked my son. I remember delivering a message, and then I remember how I slurped up the blood. 'You don't need to worry about your son, he will be fine.' He then stepped to the side, and he allowed me to walk upstairs to see my children.

I then remembered that I was on the phone, who was I talking to? I didn't have time to think about it, I just wanted them to be okay. I saw the children were soundly asleep, Adrian was even sleeping. I didn't bother waking them, I went back downstairs. I saw the time it was close to morning, it was only 3:45 a.m. I thought about Gabriel and how he used to have night terrors, I also thought about how he would hold me so tight at night. A tear then went down my face, and I realized it felt different. I touch my face and saw a red liquid oh, it was blood. I really wasn't human anymore, but what on God's green earth was I? I walk down the stairs to see this man sitting, with his legs crossed. He then said: 'You should be getting ready.' You soon will have company, I wanted to attack him but something was wrong. I felt a feeling of helplessness against him, why did I feel this way?

'You will attack your husband and beat him within and make him suffer, then you will make him watch as you slaughter your children.' I ran to him I don't know what I hope to accomplish, but I wanted him to undo this curse. When the gap closed, he dodged. I tried punching him and all he did was dodge and move as if it was nothing. Each time I felt like I would hit him I would only come into contact with are. He was snickering the entire time, then he said with a German accent. 'Oh, my little Fräu·lein you couldn't touch me even if you tried.' Did he always have a German accent? 'You would need at least one century to even touch me.' I collapsed to the ground helplessly, was this truly how I was supposed to live?

~~~Hans

"They're almost here Wendy, I was proud of what I have done." I made her slave to my will, Everything I hate and planned for the last 5 years has come to fruition. I would bring the Queen to her knees, I would make it so that Gabriel will die by his wife's hands. Her face was recently bloody from crying, she begged for me to stop her. It was at this moment, I knew she understood her situation. Not a soul can help her, she was a slave to my will.

I had damned her to an unavoidable fate. I wanted him to break, and then in his last moments see the life he had built be wiped out. 'He will fight until the last breath.' A smile formed on my face, and I knew what kind of man he was. Yes, he would fight till his last breath, but he doesn't have the necessary drive to kill his loved ones. "We will see." I grabbed my items and prepared to leave. She had wasted so much energy trying to fight me, but it was no point in being afraid of the inevitable. It's time I helped Carter with his preparations. For a lot of this to work, I would have to buy time against her. From what I've learned, my source also tells me Gabriel has a bodyguard. She is an old acquaintance of Ilana. Anastasia is like a dog with a bone or so I've been told, all it takes is for a bone to show up.