• The night was dark, the stars shown lightly in the moonless sky. 18 year old Princess Rina Yokuba stood off in the shadows watching the entrance of a club. "What you want to do? Hes not here." a female’s voice crackled through her earpiece. Rina reached up and touched her finger to the back of the piece. "Hold your ground Sonya we'll be on them soon enough but I want him to see the damage we can do." Rina whispered into the device. "Hold it I got movement over here." Brent’s voice crackled "Alright he is on his way there kiddies. I repeat the target is heading over." the voice said with satisfaction. Rina's heart jumped. So the prisoner had told the truth the prince of demons would be here for his nightly ‘outing’. Rina felt her hands itching with anticipation to kill. She may be a princess of the legion but when it came to killing her people’s worst enemies the Slayers she was among the fiercest, most skilled and brutalist of assassins in her clan. She tightened her fingers around her dagger feeling the curve of the hilt. Her bow was strung across her back the quiver strapped to her leg. She reached down with her free hand and felt one of her arrows. She kept her eyes peeled and soon her target landed in front of the club. His hair was shaggy and straight also the color of onyx. Rina felt her body automatically jerk forward slightly in anticipation. She wanted to kill him the urge throbbed through every fiber in her body. He had caused so much pain. But then didn't all Slayers? They were cruel and devilish creatures with yellow eyes and sharp elf like ears. They seemed to relish sadness and pain. Laughed at funerals, pulled pranks and were just cruel at certain times. About 30 years before the Slayers had aided the vampires attack on the legions and ever since the two clans had fought. She had heard of a powerful warrior named shade that served the prince however the prince had just arrived alone. 'perfect.' thought rina. "Alright guys this is it. Get in get out kill no one. “Rina said into the ear piece. She snuck around to the side of the building and waited until the door guard wasn’t paying attention before she climbed onto the roof. She silently made her way across the roof to an opening. She skillfully notched an arrow in her bow and trained the point on her target. The prince sat next to a man ignoring the woman hanging on him and listening to the booming music. "In position.” came the voices of her team mates. "Alright ..... Go." rina breathed as she released the arrow it flew forward but to her disbelief the arm of the prince flicked forward and caught the arrow. Windows busted and doors burst open as her comrades charged into the building. Rina sat for moment her eyes locked with those of the demon prince. Time seemed to have stopped completely. Rina felt herself drop into the room. "Retreat!!!" she shouted. The others wasted no time in retreating. They were gone within seconds. Rina however was surrounded by Slayers with no way out. It had been a trap. The damn prisoner had been a set up. "Rina!!!!!!" a voice screamed in her ear. "Go! Just get outta here tell Baytuno it was a trap!!! Just GO!!!" Rina Hissed into the piece before she ripped her dagger from it's sheathe and backed away from the surrounding Slayers. "Well. Seems we have been joined by the legion." the prince was saying twirling the arrow in his hand. He was still standing and began to make his way forward. Rina was seized from behind and the dagger snatched from her grip and the ear piece ripped from her ear. She struggled against the hands that held her but they remained in place. "So tell me young maiden how was our puppet? From the looks of things he was rather convincing." he sneered in her face. She could only glare in disgust. "Hey hey hey!!!!! Shade check this out." another man laughed as he examined the dagger. The prince held out his hand to receive the small dagger. He then grinned widely. "Well boys! We have a delivery to make." he yelled raising the dagger over his head for the rest of the men to see. They let a shout of excitement. He stepped forward and grabbed hold of her nape and her vision went black.

    20 year old Shade stood silently in front of his father. The unconscious princess lay on the couch in the shadows to the left of his father’s desk. "And you’re sure the dagger is correct about its master being a Xanh???? his father demanded eyes fixed on the girl. "positive." Shade replied nodding. "Return her." his father said after a long silence. Shade jerked and his eyes went wide. "wh-what???" he demanded in disbelief. "we've caused those people enough pain." the old man said getting to his feet. He walked over to the window and stared out at the falling rain. He could clearly see his sons disbelieving and confused face as he stared at the dagger. Finally he turned. "this is our chance to get help. The vampires have turned on us and the lycans are out of our reach in there current state. We need the legions help Shade." the old man explained. Shade clutched the dagger his eyes darting to the princess. She had tried to kill him and now she was being released? 'well she won't make it to the line.' Shade thought running a hand through his hair. "Alright. So how do we do this exactly? Just put her in the woods and leave her?" shade joked grinning. "No. You will escort her to the line. You KNOW she will not survive. You will escort and protect her until you reach the line." his father ordered standing straighter. Shade felt his entire frame shudder in anger. He glanced again at the girl then whirled and stalked out fuming.

    Rina woke to the sound of a strange voice. She cracked her eyes a little and watched as the prince stood fuming in front of the desk. "you will escort and protect her until you reach the line." his father was saying. 'are they talking about me?' rina wondered. As soon as he walked out she stirred. The older man was Akuma the leader of the Slayers he turned to her a pipe clutched in his hand. She sat up slowly her hand feeling for her boot as she kept her eyes fixed on Nashid. "it's futile princess you see we striped you of weaponry." he explained. Her hand met the hilt of her short dagger but in order to appear innocent she put on a look of hopelessness. He appeared satisfied. With a speed that surprised even herself, rina whipped out her hand and slung the dagger forward. She didn't wait to see if it hit it's target. She lunged off the couch and snatched her Dagger from the desk and pivoted slamming out of the room. She got to the end of a long hallway and turned a corner and slammed into a rockhard chest. She fell back onto her a** and looked out letting out a groan. Akuma stood there next to his son. "shade meet princess Rina. Princess my son prince shade." Nashid said with a smug look. Rina slowly got to her feet giving the prince and his father a look of utmost hatred. Her look was returned by shade whom went so far with his hatred to pull up his lip and flash his fangs. "so then the rumors of you being a warrior are true then." Akuma asked after a moment of heated looks. Rina turned her blue eyes on Akuma. "so the rumors of there being a strong handsome guard for the prince isn't." she replied. Shade straightened. "that strong devilishly handsome gaurd is the prince himself." shade growled. Rina turned her eyes on him and felt herself hesitate. His eyes were no longer yellow but instead they were hazel. She didn't speak instead she straightened and looked away. "well then anytime your ready shade will escort you to the line." Akuma finally said. "let's go." rina growled. Shade nodded and turned. Rina began to follow then stopped. After all they were releasing her. She turned and with a little optimism she bowed to Akuma. He bowed low in return. Then quickly she turned and followed shade. She followed him in silence the rest of the day and finally they stopped to make camp. "how long will this take?" Rina demanded. "a few days." he replied in a clipped tone. Rina growled. She didnt want to camp with this slayer she wanted to kill him she wanted his blood his head on a platter. When his back turned she grasped her hilt tightly however the anticipation to kill him did not kindle and this frustrated her even more. As much as she hated it as they had traveled she had caught herself admiring his wide muscular chest. Liked how he appeared relaxed even when he was being cautious. His body was built to perfection. Every line every muscle was in perfect synchronization like a dance practiced thousands of times. She internally chided herself. This was her ENEMY!!!!! The grandson of the man that had betrayed the legions and now suddenly the Slayers alpha was trying to regain the legions trust?? Sure if Nashid hadn't pulled the Slayers out of the war the legions would have been wiped out but these were SLAYERS!!! Betrayers, liars, thieves there was no end. Yet rina hadn’t felt threatened by Nashid nor now by Shade. Sure he was pissed almost as much as she however her anger was quickly evaporating and it was taking alot of energy to try and keep her anger going. A flutter of wings made her look up. She watched as a large black hawk came down and landed on a fallen log. She stared at it curiously.

    Shade sat on a stump arranging logs for a fire. He looked up to see Nuka his bird companion staring at the girl. His father had called her rina. He watched her slowly approach Nuka she kept her eyes on him usually a sign of aggression however Nuka merely seemed as curious as she. It made his ears twitch when she slowly raised her hand and held it out to him. At first Nuka just looked at her, then slowly he shifted his weight and held out a claw as if to shake hands. Rina moved closer and bent her arm and pressing the skin to Nuka's outstretched claw. His foot closed as he pulled her closer then he stepped off of the log and onto her arm. At this unimaginable sight shade froze. Never had Nuka reacted to anyone before male or female. Shade fixed his eyes on her face his curiosity and wonder must have showed on his face because when she looked over at him she blushed and quickly looked away turning her back toward him. Her shyness made him almost want to smile. Almost however he internally kicked himself. 'legion. Tried to kill you man.' shade thought fiercely however he couldn't stop himself from his admiration. Clearly disgusted with himself he shook his head then turned back to what he was doing.

    After a minute the hawk spread his wings and lifted himself into the air. Rina watched curiously as he drifted. Over to shade and landed on his shoulder. Watching them she felt a small pang of jealousy. One thing Slayers had that legions did not were familiars. Animals that could alternate between two different forms. For the hawk his other form was a black griffin. Rina could only watch as Shade spoke to his familiar. She wanted to touch it again. However she looked instead toward the fire. Later the hawk lifted into the air and flew away leaving her and Shade to sit in silence. The darker the sky became the colder the air got. She felt herself shiver a little and she wrapped her arms around herself to try to keep warm. She closed her eyes and rested her chin on her knees to try to sleep but she couldn’t help shivering. She suddenly felt a wisp of clothe descend upon her shoulders and she lifted her head a little. Shade walked back over to the stump and sat down. ‘he gave me his jacket.’ Rina realized. She pulled it closer around her inhaling. It smelled wonderful and sent chills down her spine that had nothing to do with the cold. She forced herself to think only of the warmth and of sleep. She lay out on her side and soon she was fast asleep.

    Shade kept his eyes on the fire listening to the sounds of the forest. He looked over to were the girl lay asleep. Silently he got to his feet and walked over. Even with his jacket she still shook with cold. He sighed and carefully moved her closer to the fire trying not to waken her. Then as his exhaustion came over him he lay out behind her pressing his back to hers and fell asleep.

    “Running. Panting. Darkness. That’s all he could hear. All he could sense. He turned a corner and ran harder. His legs straining. Sweat rolled down his face. He screamed as a pair of hands grabbed him and forced him to the floor. He screamed again but it was futile as a hand came down over his mouth. With all of his might he tried to get away but it did no good. His clothes were removed and tears rolled down his face as he was gagged. He fainted. When he awoke again it was to the sting of a whip slicing into his back.”

    Shade jerked awake sitting up. He looked around to see Rina sitting up beside him. She stared silently into the fire. He looked at the sky. It had begun to turn purple so Dawn was fast approaching. Rina poked a stick into the fire. Her eyes fixed on the flames. That was when Shade saw the tear stains on her face. This Warrior Princess. This beautiful strong fearless woman had tear stains going down her cheeks. Off of instinct Shade moved closer wrapping his arm around her. “Are you alright?” he asked quietly. Rina looked around at him her eyes a mix of pain and surprise. “Oh.. yea I’m fine.” She replied looking away. He reached up and touched her face turning it toward him and examined her face gently brushing his fingers along her cheeks, wiping away her tears. What shocked him the most was that she remained where she was and allowed him to touch her. She even stared into his eyes and from the glow of the fire he noticed a faint blush rise on her cheeks. Slowly without thinking or even stopping to think of who she was he leaned forward and kissed her lips.

    Rina’s eyes widened in pure shock. Her heart beat wildly her face grew hot. She couldn’t believe he was kissing her. She gasped and scrambled away from him and he in turn did the same. A look of pure horror on his face. “Wh-what the hell??” she stammered getting to her feet. She stumbled a little her entire body trembling. “That… that wasn’t me!!” he snarled angrily turning and punching a tree. Rina watched him her eyes wide and frantic then she sat down and wrapped her arms tightly around her legs and buried her face in her arms and grew still. A few hours later Rina and Shade set off. As they walked Rina constantly found herself touching her lips in wonder. She had been surprised at first that a SLAYER had kissed her but as she remembered the kiss she realized that it had been soft, almost caring. She also remembered how he had been so gentle with her when he had wiped away her tears. However the man from the night before was completely gone now. Shade’s entire body was tensed. He had not spoken to her since he had punched the tree. He walked ahead of her and never once looked back to see if she was following. He was obviously embarrassed but even though he seemed pissed that he had kissed her she also had caught a glimpse of him touching his mouth with a look of curiosity however she had only caught him once. Ever since he had kept a careful emotionless mask on his face. When they reached a small town Shade led her to a Hotel. As he spoke to the receptionist Rina wandered about the front room and found a few brochures and one that particularly interested her was one of a club. She glanced around to make sure no one was watching and she slid the brochure into her pocket. She turned and walked back over to Shade and stood silently as the woman came out from behind the desk and gestured for them to follow. They followed her all the way up to the third floor where she bowed smiling. “I you will enjoy your stay here. This is our finest suite. If there is anything you need don’t be afraid to call.” She handed Rina the room key and hurried off. Rina watched her then glanced at Shade whom also stared after her. Rina felt a sudden pang of jealousy however she quickly shook it off as she unlocked the door and opened it. When she turned on the light she went completely white. Shade cursed. “HONEY MOON SUITE!!!!??” Rina cried rounding on Shade angrily. Shade put up his hands. “I swear I didn’t!!” he replied. Rina stood fuming before she stomped out slamming the door behind her.

    Shade shook his head shuddering when he looked around. He couldn’t believe that the biggest room had to be the honey moon suite. He looked at the door wondering what had caused Rina to become so angry in mere seconds. He had noticed that her face had gone completely white, so there had to be something that had bothered her. He went to the couch and lounged turning off the lights and turning on the TV. The sun had sunk by this time and the moon was out. Shade knew sooner or later he would need to go hunt. His thoughts drifted to the dream he’d had. He had never been chased like that. Nor had he ever in his life been that afraid. He couldn’t understand. Where had the dream come from? Then his thoughts drifted to the kiss. His heart began to beat faster. Her lips had been so soft. Her scent made his mouth water and he felt the dull ache of his fangs. To his surprise he yearned to kiss her again, but more than anything he wanted to wrap his arms around her and never let her go. He felt the wind leave his body as this sudden realization hit him head on. A female, that had tried to kill him, whom was his worst enemy, yet he wanted her. In a way he had never wanted any female. He didn’t know what the feeling was and didn’t understand it. Slowly he pulled out his cell phone and called Akuma.

    Hello
    Dad
    Shade. How are your travels going? I assume the two of you haven’t ripped each others throats out yet.
    Not yet. That’s what I wanted to ask. I don’t know what’s happening but... I have begun to… yearn for her. As in I want to be close to her. I don’t hate her.
    That…that is certainly a development…however not one you should pass up Shade. I guess it might be lust. You haven’t been with many women, perhaps you have found something new and you wish to… explore.

    The door opened and Shade looked around.

    I’ll have to call you back.
    Don’t pass up the opportunity!

    Rina glanced over at Shade as he shut his phone. When there eyes met Rina automatically looked away. She made her way over to the bed and turned on a small lamp. She pulled out a pair of shorts and a tight fitting T-shirt. Without thinking about it she took off her shirt then stopped. As she remembered where she was. She grabbed the clothing and darted toward the bathroom and quickly changed. When she walked out she once again glanced at Shade. He now wore only pants and socks the rest on him was revealed and Rina clenched her fist automatically and glared at the floor. She would not allow herself to admire him any longer. He was a Slayer. She was a Legion. She crawled into the bed and took her phone from her other shorts. Three Text Messages.

    Brent~Rina answer this text if you can.
    Baytuno~Rina I will be sending a team to retrieve you.
    Mystic~Baytuno has an Elite team coming after you. Hopefully you are alright and are receiving these messages. See you soon hopefully

    Rina smiled. She would only let herself think of Brent. As much as she hated to admit, she admired Brent. He was good looking and skilled in combat. She remembered the night they’d had a private training session at Brent’s house. A session that had ended in his room. She felt a shiver roll down her spin. She quickly text back.

    @ Brent: I am fine. Tell Baytuno to call off the search. I’m being escorted to the Line.
    @ Baytuno: Father I am fine. There is no need for a search.
    @ Mystic: No need for a search. I actually have an escort back to the line.

    She lay down but as she was about to fall asleep she received a text message.

    Brent~Geez Rina you definitely know how to scare the living s**t out of a man!!!
    Rina~you were worried that much?
    Brent~Of course I was. How many times do I need to tell you?? You mean the world to me. And I love you. With all of my heart.
    Rina~Thanks Brent. You mean a lot to me too
    Brent~LOL so what’s going on?? You said you are being ESCORTED what do you mean??
    Rina~I don’t know exactly. Akuma just all of a sudden decided that I should go home. And he set some people to take me to the Line. Its confusing. I don’t understand why he didn’t kill me.
    Brent~Well lets be thankful that he didn’t. Maybe he is hoping for a truce… I know that when Dashun was in power he would have reveled with the chance to have even a mere peasant from our side as a prisoner… perhaps the Vampires have turned on them.
    Rina~I don’t know I’ll see if I can find out any information tomorrow for now I will sleep.
    Brent~Sleep well Rina-Ayuma. Pleasant dreams.
    Rina~you as well.

    As she finished the last text message Rina felt her eyes beginning to close curling into a ball on her side she fell slowly into a deep sleep. Suddenly she was being gently shaken awake. She woke groggily. “Come on. Wake up.” Shade said quietly. She sat up. “Whats...” she began but Shade covered her mouth with his hand. “Whisper or they’ll hear.” He hissed. Rina shoved his hands away. “What’s going on?” she said softly. "Jorami. They are about the second most dangerous thing to one of your kind. They find you and your done.” Shade explained moving off the bed. Rina slid off and quickly grabbed her shorts and shirt. She stripped and redressed in record time then stuffed all of the clothes she had bought into a bag she had bought. She slipped into her boots then walked silently to Shade’s side. He quietly took her hand and pulled her to the balcony opening the door and then closing it behind them. “Your not afraid of heights are you?” Shade asked as his wings slid out from his back. Rina shook her head. “Good.” He guided her into his arms and jumped onto the railing. Then lifted into the sky. Rina held on tightly as he flew. Just as they rose to the height of the building she heard shouting. Both she and Shade looked down as a Jorami lifted into the sky. He growled quietly and gathered speed as he flew. Rina kept an eye on the Jorami. “He’s falling back.” Rina said over the wind. Then from the corner of her eye she saw a flash of red before a Jorami slammed into then. Rina was knocked from Shade’s arms and plummeted toward the ground. “RINA!!!” Shade shouted. He stabbed the Jorami and ripped right through its body then dove toward the ground he watched in horror as Rina slammed into the ground. He landed stumbling with the speed then darted to her side. “Oh God Rina?? Rina come on don’t do this!! s**t Rina come on wake up!!” Shade called. He lowered his head to her chest listening. Faintly he heard her heart beat, however she wasn’t breathing. He pumped her chest once twice three times then moved to her lips held her nose and blew into her. She coughed and gasped and Shade laughed with relief. He drew her into his arms and held her close. “God don’t scare me like that.” He scolded. Rina stared at him then with a what the hell gesture she wrapped her arms around him as well. They sat like that for a long time, before Rina yawned. Shade softly stroked her hair and then to her complete disbelief he softly touched his lips to her forehead. “We should make camp.” He said quietly. Rina nodded and began to get up but a stabbing pain lit through her leg and she fell back down. Shade winced and ran his hands carefully down her leg. “It…Its broken.” He choked out. Rina was silent. “I’m going to make camp.” He said suddenly all emotion gone. He got to his feet and disappeared into the shadows. Rina winced. She dragged herself over to a tree and sat silently staring at the ground. Soon after Shade returned with wood. He silently arranged them then struck a match and lit the wood. He crouched there for a long time before Rina spoke softly. “Sh..Shade?” at first she thought he hadn’t heard her then softly he spoke. “Rina.”. Rina stared at him hoping he would go to her he looked at her when she didn’t speak. And then his façade melted. She slowly and hesitantly raised a hand toward him. He rose and went to her without hesitation. He carefully drew her into his lap and wrapped his arms around. At that point Rina knew that it wasn’t just admiration, but she cared for him. And he cared for her and as this dawned on her, she buried her head against his neck and rested a hand on his chest. “Thank you.” She whispered softly. Shade smiled and leaned his head back against the tree. He couldn’t believe how it felt. He couldn’t think of anything else but that he had her in his arms. When she thanked him he rested his cheek on her head turning slightly to kiss her hair. “No, Thank you.” He whispered. And that is how sleep overtook them. Rina woke the next morning to find herself wrapped in the arms of the Slayer she had once hated, but now found herself to care for. She looked at him in his sleep and felt her heart warm. She leaned over and kissed his cheek her lips as light as a feather. With skill she maneuvered out of his arms and to her feet then dragged herself over to the fire. Closing her eyes Rina breathed out slowly she winced a little at her bones realigned. However once she was healed she quietly got to her feet. She heard a shuffling and turned to find Shade sitting up. He raised his head and looked into her eyes. For a moment neither of them moved then Rina walked over and held her hand out to him. He took and stood. Suddenly Rina pushed him into the tree. He looked at her curiously. Straightening up she kissed him. For a moment he was still then he responded. His arms wrapped around her waist as hers wrapped around his neck. At first the kiss was soft but as it became more apparent that neither of them were going to pull away, Shade deepened the kiss. Rina tightened her arms and he pulled her tight against his body. After a few moments Rina reluctantly broke the kiss. He smiled at her and she laughed softly snuggling into his chest. “We are going to have to get moving soon.” He said as he stroked her hair. “I know but I like this. It feels…” she broke off not knowing what to say. “Right.” He finished for her. She smiled and nodded. He laughed with relief then shifted taking her hand and pushing her back softly. He smiled at her then began there journey.