The small town was at a slow pace, letting time crawl as much as it could. From a glance, this town was nothing special, stuck near the woods and always seeing people in it. One of the visiting persons nervously flicked their fingers, as they observed all around them, first glancing to a male with hair covering one of his eyes. Beside him, a blonde-haired woman was perusing the shop the trio was in, a fabric shop, one of the selling points of the town.

She was currently nuzzling a shiny, smooth material, her face of joy and curiosity. “Oh this is glorious fabric... I bet it's handmade as well~! Fine fabrics like this cost a little more, but the feeling and the air they give is worth it~!”

The blonde’s head snapping to the taller figure,  a sudden change of mood visible on her face. “Ark. Tell me, do you like softer clothes or rougher ones?”The figure, now identified as Arkette, paused their head, tilting, revealing from the long, beautiful hair it was a female.

“Nay, I don’t think it would matter…”

“Of course it matters! How else am I going to put you in an adorable outfit if you don’t tel me what material feel you like? That’s important!”

Arkette heaved a sigh, rolling her eyes a little. “I don’t think…”

“You’d look nice in one of the outfits she was planning,” the male finally spoke, his voice and tone sounding just like a rocker’s, although there were no musical bars to accompany it. “And besides, whatever Nayelia makes, I’m sure she would do her best to make you look amazing, even though you already are.”

The taller female flushed a vibrant, bright red, while the blonde, Nayelia, smiled wryly. “I think Lance is right. You are an amazing person, and I want to show how beautiful you are in what you wear. I want to make sure you know how pretty you really are- something that fits you, both personality and appearance. Which is why I’m not deciding for you...”

Arkette looked downwards, mumbling something. Nayelia leaned forward listening intently, and then smiled, moving towards the appropriate section, while her friend tried to hide her face by her hair. The shorter woman picked through a few colors, settling on a nice, smooth lavender material. She pierced the two with a glare before picking up the entire roll of fabric by herself. “There’s more to come.”

Lance looked a little unnerved by the prospect of more fabric that the changeling woman would need, but he said nothing as he nudged Arkette, smiling at her, which caused the poor girl to blush further. Nayelia rolled her eyes, smiling as she said to them, looking back from where she was inspecting fabric, “Get a room~!”

Ark stiffened, her face turning crimson while Lance felt his cheeks darken with a dusting of pink. While they stood there, Nayelia began to pick and choose more fabrics, stating the length of the roll to a worker that approached her. Everything she liked, it was taken and put into her order. The other parts of the trio had been expecting Nayelia to pick everything in the store and want it. However, as picky as the changeling was, she knew herself well enough to try and control it. And failed. She was always nuzzling or caressing fabric to get a feel for it, testing it out. Lance snickered, humored that the reasonably frightening little woman had such a… childish side.

Yet, when it came to the other half of the needed supplies, they saw her at her pickiest. It was like watching a doctor inspect his tools of trade as Nayelia picked through needles, pins, threads  and scissors, dismissing many and accepting only a few in her small cart that was held by her arm.

“The finest materials are nothing if you can’t get proper materials to make them into a dress,” Nayelia stated softly. She nudged the two. “We’re getting close to the check out, since I have about three more months of orders to go through from around here. This just means I have about three months of orders’ materials… I can’t carry them myself, but I can use the money I’ve gotten to make quite a nice few garments from orders to what I want to do. This includes Ark’s new outfit.”

Lance and Arkette glanced at each other. Oh, no. This meant that Nayelia was going to have them carry it all.

Their suspicions were confirmed when she checked out, paying everything by herself. The numbers on the sign were going farther and farther, and the two watched as Nayelia eyed it calmly. How in the world was she going to have 2,550 dollars to pay for all of it? They stared as Nayelia ran a card through a machine. “Debit or credit?” The worker asked, eying the large materials in all the assorted bags.

“Debit. After all, I have enough to pay for it.” Nayelia’s eyes twinkled mischievously, as though she knew the worker had been expecting her to say credit. The worker nodded, making Nayelia sign here and there for a few things, before telling them to have a good day.

As the charges were paid for, Lance and Arkette moved to pick up the bags, pretending to be as ordinary as possible while Nayelia took the one with the pins and needles in it. She smiled, waving goodbye, walking out of town with the other two. As soon as they were out of sight, Arkette began to use her levitational powers to carry the heavy materials without trying to pop her arms off.

“How much did you buy, Nay? My arms felt like they were burning.” Arkette said, glancing to her friend. Lance snorted softly as Nay smiled to her, as though it were plainly obvious how much she had bought.
“Enough for you to practice with.”


Arkette gave a small chuckle. She wasn't sure what she meant by 'practice with', but the young woman knew that whatever it was she would probably be wearing it.
There was a lot to carry. Nayelia was carrying a couple bags at her sides. The young blond didn't look encumbered in the slightest. However, 3 times as many baggage floated alongside Arkette while the same amount rested in Lance’s arms, and yet the vampire looked as if it all weighed as much as a feather.

The forest was dark but with the help of a torch -carried by Nay who led the way- the walk wasn't as scary as it normally could have been. Though, Nayelia walked as though she was the scissors that cut through her fabrics. The darkness was not a hindrance.

But it was Lance who seemed at once with the night around him. As if he moved through the fabric of darkness like a ghost, graceful and serene. Lance didn't look the graceful (nor serene) type, but in the dark he was.
Upon reaching the thicket the small group of friends realized how at one Arkette was with the darkness.

“OH!..root...” She mumbled. The human girl lacked the kind of eyes it took to see in the darkness and the forest floor was difficult to navigate for her feet.

“Here.” A male voice alongside her caught the young psychokinetic-gifted woman. Setting half his burden down, Lance curled his arm around Arkette’s.  The abandoned load soon levitated above the ground. For helping keep her stable, Arkette took the bags Lance had to abandon to help her. Mumbling a humble 'thank you' the three friends continued forward.

Now, the whole of Darken had been warned of poachers, but truth be told poachers were the farthest thing from the minds of the three friends.  The cool night air, the small talk and company of each other filled their attention. Needless to say, why would they be attacked anyway? Looking at Nayelia, Arkette and Lance a person would consider them three hooligans out for a stroll in a forest.  Humans. They didn't sport some of the more 'decorative' qualities of many of the other residents of Darken. They felt safe enough, naturally. Human-esque was their cover.


The brisk walk led them into a field. The field they had to walk before entering the human world’s forest. In the distance the city of Darken glimmered like some sort of demonic ruby in the night. Though the way the field looked was much different. A full moon was out, casting a glow upon the skin of the three travelers. The tall grass that parted against their pace looked silvery, like strands of hair from a white horse. The world around them glowed with the full moon’s silver blue beams. Naturally the two young women were entranced instantly.

Flicking off her torchlight Nay gazed around the field admiring silently, as Arkette raised her hands to capture moonlight in her hand.

“This is very pretty.” Her face looked deep in thought, she could have sworn this was the same as something. Like she remembered this in some way.  Lance’s hand moved to her shoulder stole her attention away like a thief.

He was a breath away from speaking before Nay flickered her light in the pair’s faces. “Let’s get a move on it, I want to have dinner!” Her tone held no hint of bossy intent. Rather the scene about them rejuvenated some sort of playful demon inside her.  A frown appeared on the handsome face of the vampire before he curled his arm around Arkette’s again.

Arkette wanted to point out she could see just fine, but she held her silence back with a smile.

Slowly they moved, enjoying the evening. With such enjoyment, an oddity was occurring; the world around them had suddenly gone quite silent, compared to the rustling from before. The vampire caught on to this instantly, and began to hum a few bars of a song.

Meanwhile figures in the brush circled. Their sights were on the figures heading back to the city of the damned. They could see the glowing red eyes of the male and the floating bags clearly pointed to one of them having some sort of psychotic powers. The shorter woman in the lead was harder to pinpoint on what she was, but the group now stalking the three figured that the woman was some sort of creature of nightmare.

“ I don't care what you think~ As long as it's about me.” The vampire sang the chorus of the song he had began to sing. “The best of us can find happiness in misery~.” he held the final bar for a moment before continuing.

The young woman at his side grinned, she remembered this! Arkette could remember Lance singing before! Albiet the song was happier than this one, but she could remember in the faintest of ways. Although the memory wasn't in her head, it was somewhere in her chest. Her pale moonlight blue eyes looked up at Lance and her mouth opened to tell the Vampire...
“GUYS GET BACK!!” Nay called out as she dropped her shopping bags to the ground.

On cue both Lance and Arkette turned to Nayelia’s direction. She was in the process of transforming as a group of unknown men emerged from the thicket’s brush and tree line. While most of the men were cloaked and hooded, others simply strolled out wearing heavy materials on their persons. Clearly they were hunter types.

Arkette couldn't help but gawk at first. The objects beside her still levitating, her mind unhindered in control. That was until Lance dropped his bags and pulled her down with him. The crippling sound of gunfire followed after. A pair of poachers had raised their weapons – a shot gun for and a hand gun for another- and fired at the three exiting from the human realm.

Lifting her head Arkette peeked up to see that Nay had dropped to the ground too. A spotted tail propped up, a prophecy of what to come. It was then, suddenly, that the feline form of a cheetah leaped from the ground and tackled one of the men who had fired a weapon. If the attacking group of men had not been taking the three friends seriously before, they would be now.

Lance removed himself off Arkette and dug into his pocket. A grin appeared on his face as his hand pulled a baton from his jacket.  Getting to her knees, Arkette pushed the hair from her face just in time to see the glint of metal in the moonlight.
Lance was the very vision of death as the baton in his hand slide into a scythe. It clicked and he was a black blur on the field.
“Try to grab them alive!” One shouted, commanding the others to attack the shifter and Vampire.

The gun wielding hunters fell back. Lucky for the group there was only 5 of them with guns. The remaining men had knives. Old weapons that Arkette thought looked barbaric. Swords, daggers and one man with a net.
Turning her head towards a wild cat snarl Arkette quickly applied a shield around Nayelia’s cheetah form before a poacher with a sword hit his target at the large spotted cats shoulder. The man reeled backwards and bore a surprised expression.

“Wha-”
“It's that woman!” One shouted and pointed towards  Arkette.

To them, it was obvious she had been the one who levitated the bags now.  Focusing slightly, she brought various rocks around her up to eye level and shot them out at the men attacking Nay. Clutching their heads they turned to avoid getting hit by rocks. A foolish move as the cheetah took this change to sink her teeth into the neck of one.

Meanwhile, not far from Arkette, Lance was on his second head count. The song that the blade made against the wind was the last melody the poachers who crossed him heard. Kicking a man back away from him, Lance swung once more catching a red headed poacher under the belly. His innards spilled to the ground like water. The screaming got the attention of a nearby poacher with a gun. He aimed his rifle at Lances head and took a shot.

The bullet, quivered for a moment in front of Lances eyes. He looked cross-eyed at the silver drop quizzically before he realized Arkette had shielding him. A sinister grin appeared on his face as his fangs flashed against the dim moon light. Lance felt invincible, he hadn't felt this good in a long time. With the swing of the scythe, the gunman’s head fell to his feet, the body soon followed.

Tossing a closing-in attacker, Arkette turned just in time to see the feline Nay change into something else. A large 8 legged tiger, its head crowned with a pair of curling horns grew from the body of a cheetah. It snarled at a pair of men and the net in one of their hands. Arkette knew this form. It was Nayelia’s Kirre.  Pouncing on the poachers, she sunk both her claws and teeth into their feeble human bodies.

Turning away from the bloody mess her small-not really at this moment though- friend was making, Arkette returned to concentrating on the shields she had made.
“Grab her!” A voice from behind, startled Arkette and she felt a pair of hands grab her shoulders. Surprise knocked her concentration for a loop and the shields dropped for a moment. The great Kirre suffered a hammering blow one of her many legs while Lance took a stabbing to his shoulder. Both realized instantly they could not afford to be as careless as they once had been. The shielding had all dropped.

A body was flung past Nay and she turned her head to catch Arkette flinging bodies around to get some distance from the poachers who had realized she was behind the odd barriers. A rifle man took aim and fired at Ark’s back.
“AUGH-SHIT!!” Lance cried out. He had flung himself in front of the bullet and took the silver in his arm. He was already reeling.
The shields went right back up as soon as Arkette gathered her thoughts.

The man commanding the group of men hailed them all to fall back and the poacher minions obeyed. They would not be taking back a Shifter prize, a Vampire or a girl with mental abilities. Not today at least.
Nay made chasing them back into the forest an event by bounding and leap on any of the slower men. Being the clever woman that she was, she made sure to drag a couple back. She would not let the easy money pass her by.


Kneeling beside Lance, Arkette lifted up his shirt and found where he had been shot. The Vampire was almost biting at the air itself the pain was so much.
“It's a silver bullet.” He groaned, glaring down at the wound that seeped blood. There were fine silver lines following the crimson rivers. All around the wound veins bulged, silver in color. The red eyed man needed the bullet out now.  “ Can you pull it out?”

Arkette’s face registered the perfect 'what in the fuck do you mean’ expression. “I don't...know.” She eyed the wound, and realized that silver was seeping into Lances body. Her fingers stretched the wound. If she could just catch a glimpse of the bullet she could pull it out with her mind. Unfortunately she had to dig as well. This took a good minute to do in face. A minute that felt more like an hour to the vampire.

Smashing his hand into the ground Lance writhed. “AUUUUGHHHHH!!!”

“I'm sorry… Nnnn… I see it, I'm sorry.” Arkette wibbled. The last thing the young woman wanted to do was hurt Lance.   A hand reached up to push the hair away from her face, Arkette could smell earth on Lance’s palm.

“Nnngghh, no, no it’s fine. Just try to get it out.” Lance urged, and to his great displeasure she had acted right on cue and the bullet shot out of the wound it had made. Lance became much more ridged for a minute and he looked at the young woman beside him. His lower lip wibbled a bit and a low growling 'ow' followed.
“I'm sorry.” Arkette responded.

“Jesus...I'm going to have to make you some armor, Lance.” Nayelia had returned to short humanoid self and was watching her friend work. Feeling bad for the vampire, Nay put a hand on his other shoulder and gave it a pat. “Well, think of it like this. When we take the bodies of these guys to the Overlord we will get paid.” A bright smile appeared on the blonde woman's face.

Lance made a undignified sound at the mention of 'the overlord' and turned his attention to search for the scythe he coveted so. Arkette was in the process of picking herself and what was left of the shopping bags when she recalled the poacher information. Arkette hadn't even thought of the poachers to be honest. So many creepy crawlies lived in Darken, Human poachers were the last thing in her mind. How ironic.

“M-monsters...Die...” the voice of a fallen hunter attracted the attention from beyond where Nay and Ark stood. Lance turned just as the bleeding man lifted his short gun.

“GET DOWN.” He yelled at the girls. Nay dropped as well as Arkette, but Lance could see she was focusing on a shield. Pleased at this, he hadn't realized that the shot gun was aimed at him. Turning, he too went to drop but as the sound of the weapon firing hit his ears, so did its spray. His back was hit by the silver shower like spray of the shotgun. Pellets hit his back and tore it to hell, some imbedded itself into his back while others simply went through and through his limbs.
Ears ringing, his eyesight failing as pain was shooting through his body. Lance looked up in time to see Nay in her Kirre form ripping the man apart. Arkette, though was at his side in an instant. Her mouth was forming words but all he really could hear was the ringing in his ears. “The silver needs to come out.”

He was fine, he just needed the silver out. A nap as well, actually. When was the last time he took a nap to be honest? Wait-
Lance's head dropped to the ground, eyes closed and face clearly expressing pain. Calling to Nay, Arkette begged her to come back and help her get Lance home. “We need to get these bullets out of him! If we don't he'll die.”

“He's a Vampire, he already is dea-”

“NAAAAAAYYYYY!” Arkette cut off Nayelia's obvious remark, with a whine.

“Okay okay, if you can carry him I can carry some of these guys to the Overlord and get paid for all this.” She sighed as she cast a forlorn look to her fabrics. The blonde felt bad, she had just bought them and paid a hefty price too. But with the amount from just one of these poachers she could easily make that money up 5 fold.

“I'll meet you at home then....please hurry okay, Nay?” Focusing her thoughts, Arkette’s powers lifted Lance's limp body. Wrapping an arm around Lance’s waist, Ark also pulled his arm around his shoulder and started for home. The long haired psychokinetic user would not let her friend die. Not when he got shot twice by helping her.

Both women left the field at the same time for the sake of not being singled out and attacked again.  Though Nay desperately wished she could have taken more than just 5 men- all piled on her back, dead as door nails too.  They were the ones responsible for carrying the bags too…as she felt their legs drag the bags of material for her.

Humans attacking monsters. Who knew?