Shadows & Moonlight

Prologue

Vezriel stepped out of the shadows, dark eyes flicking to either side as he continued forward into the abandoned street. The moon was clouded over, rain pattering all around him. He frowned slightly. Something in the air was off, a magic weaving its way through the night around him.

"Ooh," a young woman's voice said from behind him. "We've caught an interesting rat tonight."

Vezriel turned to face her, studying her gray eyes and long golden hair. She twirled a small knife between her fingers, its iron blade glinting dully in the moonlight. "We don't like the Fae sneaking around," she continued, eyes glittering playfully. Three others stepped up behind her and Vezriel sighed.

"As entertaining as this could be," he said quietly. "I suggest you crawl back to your leaders. This isn't a fight any of you are capable of surviving."

The woman laughed. "We've taken care of four others tonight, handsome. You won't be a challenge, believe me."

"Clara," one of the others murmured. This one was male, with a head of red hair and hazel eyes that reminded Vezriel of a cat. "Look at the way he holds himself, the emblems on his jacket. He's no ordinary faerie."

The woman, Clara, raised an eyebrow. "So?" she said. With catlike reflexes, she artfully threw the knife toward Vezriel, an arrogant smirk dancing along her lips. Vezriel watched as the knife changed midair, elongating and shifting into a full-length longsword.

His mouth pressed into a thin line and he sidestepped. A small wave of his hand, and the sword split into two, falling to the ground. "So be it," he said coolly.

"Shit," the red-haired boy said. He raised his hands and spheres of fire twisted to life in his palms. "We need to get out of here."

Clara was staring at Vezriel. "He broke it," she said, flabbergasted. "Faeries can't break iron."

Vezriel gave her a small, lazy smile. The darkness around them began to stretch toward him, becoming ribbons of shadow that twisted around him. In the blink of an eye, he was gone, one with the darkness.

Then he stepped out of the night, a blade of black fire in his hand. He shoved it into Clara's back and she cried out, dropping to her knees. Blood trickled from her eyes, nose, and ears as his dark magic infiltrated her system.

He winked at the others, then faded back into the shadows. "Let's play, little mice," his voice murmured, echoing everywhere and nowhere all at once.

Music: Dark Harbor by Two Steps From Hell