• The dark and heavy clouded night sent shivers up the backs of every immortal. They ducked for the shelter of their homes or of nearby shops, afraid for what was coming.

    But shouldn't they have known, the Queen stepped out of the castle gates and walked into the forest. She had a cloak on her body, covering her face and the child in her arms who was not more than a few hours old. The child was beautiful. She had dark blue hair that was at her shoulders, even as impossible as it could be in a child this young. She had shining grey eyes and she was firmly wrapped in a black blanket, and for the moment she was asleep in her mother's arms, sleeping with a smile on her small lips. The Queen shed a tear, of which landed on the childs cheek. The girl stirred, and her small little hand wiped it off.

    "Yumi Nereza Keiko." The woman whispered, kissing the childs forehead lightly and covering Nereza's face more with the blanket. Rain started to fall in heavy sheets, lighting and thunder.

    The Queen stopped at the heavy wooden door, and knocked. Someone opened the door and let her in, knowing all too well who she was and why she was here.

    "Why?" The perky teen asked, taking the child from her arms and holding Nereza close so she could be warm.

    "They want her." The Queen said, and she ran out the door.

    They. To anyone around them, no one would comprehend. But Nathanel knew. He looked at the child he held.

    "You're a strong one, if they want you." He said, and he walked to put the child to sleep.

    One thing he knew too well.

    Nereza must never know of her mother's acts.



    Some people say at your seventeenth birthday it was a time of great joy - well, anyone in this village. When you turned seventeen, you stopped aging. You were young and beautiful for as long as you lived.

    So why did the thought make my stomach clench?

    "Nereza, get up you lazy girl." I heard Nathanel yell from outside my bedroom door.

    "Yeah yeah yeah." I mumbled, rolling over and landing with a thud on the floor.

    "Ouch." I muttered.

    I had been in this room since I was a baby. Nathanel was my distant cousin, he was like a brother to me. He said he had taken me into his care because my mother died in a fire. He never told me her name, and I guess it was good. I don't know.

    Plus, I forgot to mention. When you turn seventeen, you're powers unfold. I was exstatic to find out what the hell they were, but nervous.

    I got up and walked into my bathroom, looking in the mirror.

    "I look like a pile of cat s**t." I sighed. I stripped down and stepped into the shower.

    The water woke me up, hot and refreshing on my cold skin. I made sure my hair was well washed before I stepped out. I blow-dried my hair and combed it untill it was smooth on my back to the end of my back.

    I walked into my closet to choose my clothes. I went to the box that was delivered to me. The king and Queen delivered a birthday outfit to everyone on their seventeenth birthday. I opened the box and looked inside, then grabbed it and walked into the bathroom to change.



    I looked in the mirror. I had to admit, I was hot.

    It was a elegant white collared shirt that had no sleeves and had gold trimming as it fit my upper body like a second skin. It stopped at the bottom by exposing my bellybutton as the front seperated, and it may have looked simple , but it was clearly an elegant shirt. The skirt was a golden plate that covered my front and back, and then the white skirt flowed swiftly to the floor in two detached pieces. My legs were exposed the entire way, showing my tattoo I had on my right thigh on the side. The boots were white and had a very small heel, and they stopped above my knee, right under my tattoo, and split into different slits at the top. I had long elegant gloves that went about halfway up my forearm, covering my slender fingers in white and the white soft material split into ends again where the glove ended. There was a few designs on them, like simple vines. But it made it beautiful. I had a tattoo on the right side of my face. As a matter of fact, my right arm was with this long black tattoo that snaked up to just under where the glove ended. The tattoo on my face went around my neck and down to my waist. Thankfully, the shirt covered it all. My Elf ears stuck out of my long purple hair, and I had this golden vine tiara that was on my head, covering the top of my head in a thin strip and then went down in a v. It covered the odd red and black gem on my forehead. I was quite happy about that.

    When the king and Queen gave one to you, you wore it the rest of your life. I never remembered seeing something this fancy and elegant anywhere in the DarkNite world.

    With a shrug I walked out of the room and into the kitchen, where I took out a, extra strength Nestea and drank it in one shot. I heard Nathanel walk in the room and pause, but I didn't pay attention as I put butter on one side of my grilled cheese and put a blob of butter in the warm pan.

    "Whatever you want to say, say it now. Because in five minutes I'm out the door." I told him in my soft voice, sticking out my tongue at him and flipping my grilled cheese.

    "Is that what they sent you?" He asked, recomposing himself and grabbing a half eaten sandwich from the fridge and started eating it while I put my grilled cheese on a plate.

    "Ew Nathan. That's sick." I told him, washing out the pan and putting it away. I sat at the kitchen bar and ate it in silence.

    "Did the kind and Queen send those?" He asked, wiping his hands on the washcloth.

    "Yeah. Why? What's wrong?"

    "Oh nothing. It's just that usually the clothes reflect the powers of the wearer, and I have to say, you look good." He muttered, and he grabbed a water bottle from the fridge.

    "Uh, thanks." I said. I finished up, and put the plate in the sink. "I'm going into the village for a while."

    "Be careful." He warned.

    "Please. I'm not a child anymore, Nathan. I'll be fine." Jeesh, he was being quite protective, more than the norm.

    I walked out the wooden door and sighed, breathing in the fresh air. I looked around, hearing the sounds of animals and birds. I smiled.

    "And what makes you so happy to be singing, little bird?" I asked, smiling. The bird flew down and landed on my finger. She looked at me in respect.

    It's a day to celebrate. She said, chirping.

    "What for?" I asked, walking through the forest. A few other animals were following me, and I sat down on the rock near the waterfall. My feet were about three inches from the water.

    Many things. The sun is embracing the day in warmth. Many discoveries are coming.

    "You're a very insightful little creature." I ran my finger on her head. "At the roses in my yard there are some nice worms for your breakfast. I suggest you try them."

    Thank you. I shall go there now. Have a nice day, Nereza. With a chirp she flew off in the direction of the roses. I smiled.

    I got up and started walking in the direction of the village, as silent as a hunting fox.

    When I passed the last tree the first thing you would ever see was the large stone castle with the big gate and towers. After that it was the village around it you saw, all made of stone and elegant in it's uniqueness. Not many villages in the DarkNite world were like this. So this one was well known for being this way.

    I walked into the village and paused. There was life bustling about all around me. People thinking, people working. Some were walking in town like me, they were all about fifteen or younger.

    I smiled softly to myself and walked to the fountain in the middle of the village, croutching in front of the little creature perched there. The persian cat washed his paws.

    "What are you doing here?" I asked him.

    My master told me to wait here. He said.

    "That's a good idea. Here." I took something from a little bag I carried around everywhere and gave the cat a small treat. "Be good. I'll see you around."

    The king and Queen might like to see you, Nereza. He licked his paws in silence.

    "Thank you." I stood and walked to the gate of the castle. It towered twenty feet above the ground, tall and magestic. The guard looked at me gruffly, and let me in after checking me over. I resisted the urge to throw up.

    I walked down to the wooden doors and two servants opened the door for me. I walked down this red carpet to two chairs who were made of gold.

    The Queen walked in, and sat down on the one to my right.

    She was beautiful. She had long black hair to her back with a nice crown made of golden vines on her small head. She had blazing green eyes and a soft smile. She had this satin green dress that had no sleeves and it extended to her feet in a silky movement. There was a golden trim at her waist, and she had a red hanging pendant on her neck. She had silk ribbons going up her legs to her knee's and covered her feet.

    The king sat down on the one to the left.

    He had a simple suit. A red blazer and dark red pants and black shoes. He had short black hair and red eyes that watched my every breath. He had a golden vine crown that was on his big head.

    "Yumi Nereza Keiko. What brings you here?" Queen Amaterasu asked me. The two of them were vampire's, said to have ruled the village for over three thousand years with a smile and great passion.

    I was thinking of her pendant. Something about it...

    I fished out my necklace from underneath my shirt. I hid it all the time. Right now I examined it, letting the sun shine into it.

    "I thank you both for the magnificent gift you have given me for my seventeenth birthday. But I have one question. What does this mean?" I asked, removing my necklace and holding it out towards the Queen. She smiled and took it from my hands, examining the rune inside the pendant in silence.

    Her eyes widened, and I thought I saw tears in her eyes. But before I could be certain, it disapeared. She handed it back.

    "You're here to join the force, right?" She asked.

    "Yes."

    "Welcome abord. The pendant told me of your potential and your fate. You are the right kind of girl for this. Nathanel?" She asked.

    I looked behind me to see my cousin walk up to the Queen with a small smile on his face.

    "Can you take Nereza here to the fitting room? Shayra shall find her a weapon for the Blood Daughters and Sons."

    "Yes, Queen Amaterasu." He bowed, and looked at me.

    "This way." He said, and walked out a small door. I followed behind.

    "You never told me you worked for the Queen." I told him, scolding.

    "It never came up. I'm a Blood Son." He shrugged, and we walked into a room with weapons all around, hung on the walls and on display stands. We walked to a lady who was banging a hammer on a black sword.

    "You're here for the lady's weapon." She stated, not looking up as she hit it over and over. She buffed it a bit.

    "Yes." He said.

    "Here girl. Try this." She handed me the iron hot sword with her gloved hand holding out the hilt at me.

    "Her hand will burn." Nathan told her.

    "Oh, right. Nereza, you may use one of my gloves. This sword has to dry by air."

    A flat spear fell off the wall and hit the blacksmith on the back. It made her jolt, and the sword started to soar in the air.

    "No!" She tried to grab it, but it was flying over the air, about to crash onto the wall.

    I ran alongside the flying blade, watching it with my eyes. It was about three inches from smashing when I jumped up and grabbed the sword, doing a sumersault and landing on my feet.

    the blade shone a green emerald, inscriptions in the blade shining green. A pulse of light ran across the room from the blade, and then it stopped shining. But the inscriptions were visible by the green liquid inside them.

    "Her hand!" The blacksmith ran up to me and removed the sword from my hand, and looked at my palm.

    "What?" I asked. Then I looked at my hand.

    It was normal.

    "She didn't get scalded." She muttered.

    "What does it mean?" Nathan asked, muttering to himself.

    The woman shrugged. "All I know is that you're going to make a fine warrior for the Blood Daughters and Sons. I've mad eons of those kinds of swords, and no oen was ever fit to weild one. The fact that you can is a mystery, but we will find out soon."

    "Nereza." A soft voice sounded from the door. I turned.

    "Queen Amaterasu." I said, and curtsied.

    "Pick yourself up, child. I need to have a word with you. It has to do with your coming of age."

    This could be bad.