Humanity at Stake (Completed)

Chapter 2

"I won't be held down by who I used to be.

She's nothing to me." -"Weight of the World" by Evanescence

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"There it is!" Inigo breathed out, disbelief evident in his voice. Nova slapped his arm.

"You didn't even know if it was real!" she accused him. "You could have gotten us in trouble for some myth!" Inigo sent her a sheepish smile before grabbing her hand once again and darting towards the end of the city.

"I heard that the vampires don't go out of the city for any reason! We should be okay once we hit it!" Inigo rushed out, a big smile on his face.

Soon enough they crossed the barren expanse and stood in front of the hole. It was a lot bigger than it appeared from farther away. It stood at least fifty feet tall and was at least fifty feet wide. They gaped at its enormousness, dwarfed in its presence.

"Let's go!" Inigo said excitedly. Nova stood in place as he started forward.

"I don't know, Ini... I don't think this is a good idea..." she drifted off, having second thoughts. Inigo stopped, turning around to give her an exasperated look.

"We snuck out after curfew, walked across half the city, and avoided Overseers all for you to turn back now? I don't think so!" Inigo told her, beckoning her towards him once again. "What's the worst that could happen?" Nova made an indecisive noise in the back of her throat before taking a hesitant step onto the steep pitch inside the hole.

"I hope you know what you're doing..." she muttered out, continuing to walk past him as she started into the darkness. She peered up to the top, and a medium sized speck of white-ish-blue light shone.

"Is that your 'other world' up there?" she asked Inigo who was now a few steps ahead of her. He grinned back at her.

"I don't know, but I hope it is!" They continued to climb, and the light continued to grow in size until it opened up into a room. It was floored with white marble. The walls were white, and wrought iron chandeliers hung from the ceiling with dozens of candles lit. Even the furniture off to the side was white, accented with blood red rugs. On the other side was another compacted dirt road, much less steeped than the first, with light illuminating the ground.

There only problem was that in between the two of them and the outside world, was a vampire. The black uniform was decorated with silver colored buttons. The vampires shoulder length platinum color hair was pulled back, a braid from either side meeting at the back of his hair. His cheekbones were prominent, and his blood red eyes shone with hostility. The problem was, the more powerful a vampire was, the more ethereal and angelic looking their appearances became. And this vampire was gorgeous.

"Master!" Nova cried out in surprise. His condescending eyes met hers, a flicker of disapproval in them. She lowered her gaze instantly, knowing it was considered impolite to keep eye contact.

"What are you doing out here, Milord?" she asked, trying to sound pleasant, but her voice quivered with fear.

"Yes, what are you doing out here? Vampires aren't supposed to go past the barren line around the city!" Inigo called out angrily. Nova gasped quietly, shooting her friend a dirty look.

"Inigo!" she warned, daring a glance up to her master. A displeased grimace was on his lip, his fangs fully on display. In a blink of an eye, Quintavius stood toe to toe with Inigo. Inigo refused to break eye contact, swallowing harshly as he did so. Nova stepped back horrified, watching the scene play out before as a thin, wooden stake was revealed from Inigo's sleeve. Without a moment of hesitation, he plunged it into Quintavius' chest.