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The Vampire lay against the building, wrapped in her cape-like jacket. Dawn was approaching. She had lain there for hours, unable to make it back to her home. Not that she had a home, but if she had made it to Noirstrasse she might have hidden in one. She'd not been in Ankija very long, and was still learning her way around. She looked out of her bundle of covering to see what store she was in front of. It was a cafe. A simple cafe. She could see someone moving about inside, hear their heartbeat. The very sound of it made her want to jump up and hunt. But she couldn't. She was too tired. Tired, and in danger. The sun would be rising soon. Soon. She had to get away. She had to get away before the sun came.

The Vampire was Rie Desdemona. She had come to Ankija with her Master, a Vampire who had ordered her actions for over five hundred years. At least, she would have come with him had he not been killed on the way. Alone, Rie had continued on to the city. Now she was going to help the Elders. Rie Desdemona would do anything she could to see her kind resume control of the earth. She believed in the same things as the Elders, that humans were the weaker and they should rule. She would have her revenge on those petty beings that had seen her Master die, that had forced her watch, helpless. She would have her revenge. Hers, and the entire Vampire kind’s.

A chubby man had appeared in the doorway. He prodded the small form of Rie with the handle of a broom. She rolled to face him. His heartbeat was loud and steady, but as Rie rolled it quickened. She grabbed the broom, and jerked it from his hands. Springing to her feet, she grabbed him.

"Let him go, Vampire." Emima's cold voice rang out through the pre-dawn darkness. Even though a line of light blue had appeared on the horizon, the street was still dark. The Vampire had no right to be on the Einkaufstrasse, not this close to the dawn. Stepping away from the wall she had been leaning on, Emima prepared herself for a fight. From the looks of things, this Vampire had not satisfied the Thirst in a while, several days at least. There was no way she would give up her easily-gotten prey without a fight, and Emima did not intend to let her keep the man. He was, after all, a civillian. Human, in every way possible. From the look on his face, he didn't even know about the creatures that plagued his city.

The sky was beginning to lighten. Soon the street would no longer be steeped in darkness and the Vampire would be forced to run. Assuming she wasn't willing to risk the pain that sunlight would cause her. Emima glanced over the roof of the shop. The lighter shade of blue had spread. She looked back to the man. Stay calm, she willed him silently, even though she had no telepathic ability. She was willing herself just as much she was him. Whatever you do, stay calm. She thought back to everything she had learnt about Vampires at the Academy. When confronted by a Vampire, remain calm as increased heart rate will exite their Thirst... Fat lot of good that is. How was a person supposed to remain calm when their life was in danger?

Of course, she wasn't worried for herself. She could fend of the Vampire easily, she hoped. Emima was more concerned for the man, the man held prisoner by the Vampire. He was in more danger than she was, and he probably knew nothing of Vampires. Emima felt her heart begin to race. No. Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out. Stay calm. Think. How was she going to get a Thirst-controlled Vampire to release its prey? The answer was obvious, but that could damage the Human. Emima would be stripped of her rank and her chance to save her sister if she damaged a Human. The ruby fragments in her cheeks and forehead glisstened as a ray of sunlight struck them. Keep talking.

"As I said before, Vampire, let him go."

"Fear not, Guardian, I heard you the first time." Rie could see that the woman was a Guardian, a Fire one. The ruby fragments in her face caught the first few rays of the sun, reflecting them onto Rie's own skin. She felt the areas blister and begin to burn, and her grip on the man loosened slightly. He struggled, and she tightened her grip once more. Rie could hear the Guardian's heart begin to pick up speed, and gasped. She could feel the man's blood racing beneath her fingers, it was already hers, but she had heard that Guardian blood was far more satisfying.

Take the blood you already have a hold of, then go chasing what you have not. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. Her mind told her to be rational, to keep the man and then chase after the Guardian, but the Thirst was in control now. Besides, even if she did not manage to claim the Guardian's life, she should not find in too difficult to find another Human. There were still plenty of them in the City, and it was about the time when they began to emerge from their houses. Ah, but the Sun rises. You will Burn! Reason told her to take the man and run, but rumours told her to dump him and drain the Guardian.

"Well, Guardian, the choice is yours. Shall I drain this man, or claim you?" There was something about this Guardian, something she should know. She was forgetting something in her sassiness, in her Thirst. There was something about this Guardian. The rumours of a Fire Superior that stalked the dawn... A Guardian of exceptional strength and power. A Guardian that had Burnt many of her kin and rarely let a Night Creature, whether Vampire or Lycan survive. A dangerous one. Emima Phoenix... Emma's sister. It was rumoured that the terror Guardian had lost a sister, that it was pain that gave her the Power. Rie's eyes snapped up. This was the Fire Stalker, this was Emima Phoenix! She, Rie Desdemona, was face to face with the most feared Guardian alive! She smirked.

"I know who you are, Guardian. I know why you kill. I know about Emma, Emima. I know where she is."