A Piece of History

Devon's interrogation of Colt was immediately forgotten as Vincent hurled himself from the bed. With a swear under her breath, she ran after him.

"Vincent, don't!" she called ahead. "There's nothign you can do and we still don't know what happened!"

"That's my brother!" Vincent shouted back as he turned a corner. He was the victim of fierce loyalty.
Colt and Ronnie where both close behind, though Colt seemed to be gaining ground on the prince faster then anyone else. Just as he got to the infirmary she managed to catch up to him and roughly grab his arm and yank him to a harsh halt.
The older princes screams of agony were so loud, it was almost unbearable.
"Let me go!" Vincent shouted, attempting to pull from her grip, but she hung onto him with everything she had, closing her eyes tightly.
Ronnie wasn't sure what else to do so he blocked the door to the infirmary with his body. He wasn't sure what was going on at all, but he could was getting the sense that no matter what his friend couldn't go in the room.

Devon managed to keep pace with everyone else, and when Colt finally managed to stop Vincent, Devon moved around to his front.

"Vincent, listen," she said in a firm, calm voice. "If you go in there right now, you'll just get in the way of the healers. He's going to live, but you need--" She paused, trying not to feel ill at the thought of defending William in any way. "You need to let the healers do their job. You shouldn't even be running around. You fainted, too!"

Vincent looked down at Devon, tears glossing over his eyes. "I can not just sit here an do nothing..." He stopped pulling on Colt to get away but the girl didn't loosen her grip on his arm.

"She's right Vincent! Obviously you will just faint again at the first sign of blood!" Ronnie reminded harshly.

Williams screams of agony died down and everything fell quiet. Was he dead? There was commotion behind the door and a short cry of pain from someone else and then silence again.

Ronnie took a couple steps away from the door, kind of in shock... Why would someone else cry in pain?

"Oh no....." Colt whispered, her voice shaking in fear.

Devon whipped around to stare down Colt. "You need to tell us what is happening," she said. "If you have any idea at all, it could help. Who was that woman, and what did she do to William to make all of this happen?"

Colt looked between Devon and the door to the infirmary several times, "fine... I'll tell you... As long as we leave..."
Vincent looked back at Colt and the fear in her expression made his heart skip a beat.
There was a thud on the other side of the door and it clicked as it started to open.
"NOW!" Colt shouted, yanking on Vincent again.

But he wouldn't leave, he starred at the door, confused and wanting to make sure his older brother was alright.
Ronnie jumped away from the door, grabbing his friend by the arm that Colt also had a hold of.

Devon looked at the door doubtfully, but decided that if Colt was this worried, it was probably in their best interest to go.

"Vincent, c'mon," she urged, grabbing his other arm. "Let's go. If Colt tells us what's going on, maybe we'll have a better idea of what you can do later."

Vincent reluctantly turned around to leave with his friends. They could all over power him anyway. They turned and started walking down the hall. The door creaked opened behind them when they were no more then ten feet away.
Expecting to see the doctor, Vincent turned back around and gasped in shock at what he saw.

His brother stood in the door way, his dress coat and vest were off and his blouse was stained red with his own blood and hung from his skin loosely. A loose and unraveling bandage was looped around the wound on his neck. He leaned against the door way with one hand, messy brown hair covering his dipped head.

"William! Are you well? You should not be moving," Vincent said, taking a couple steps toward him but pausing when he saw the sudden paleness of his skin and his dark veins sticking out against it in contrast.

Colt was frozen in fear, she couldn't breath or move or feel her legs.

"What the hell...." Ronnie mumbled, watching.

Devon stared at William, her breath catching in her throat as she took in the inhuman traits he exhibited. He was clearly ill after the attack, although she had no idea what could be causing it.

"We should keep going," she urged, tugging on Vincent's arm. "Let's go. We can call for the other healers and guards to help him if we need to, but I don't think you can do anything."

"No, we need to help him," Vincent said firmly, "he needs to get back into bed." He started to walk over to his older brother but stopped again when he looked up, his mouth covered in blood. He smiled his same wicked smile, only now long and sharp fang hung down over his lips.
"Will...iam??" Vincent stuttered, eyes wide with horror at the blood on his face. William laughed and started to run at them.

"Vincent!" Ronnie shouted, yanking on his arm which he still had a firm grip on. There was a very quick shredding sound behind then where Colt was and a large black wolf with red points and a red crescent moon on the back jump over them, landing on top of the older prince with a snarl. As they hit the ground the wolf was launched back off with a swift kick. She slammed into the wall, yelping shortly, and stood back up. Lips curled into a growl, green eyes flashing against her black She was larger then any normal wolf, shoulders up to Williams belly button. But he seemed to have little difficulty when he threw her off.
"RUN!!" Colt's voice came from the wolf but it's lips didn't move as if speaking. Williams attention was only on her now.

"Holy shit," Devon breathed, unable to believe either of the sights in front of her. Colt had turned into some sort of--demon wolf, and William was clearly crazed. She yanked on Vincent's arm, half-dragging him down the hallway. "Come on! We need to go get help!"

Vincent was practically dragged down the hall for a few steps, unable to take his eyes off the scene playing out in front of him. But soon pure fear took over him and he turned and ran with Devon and Ronnie. He couldn't help notice how familiar this wolf looked compared to the beast that had attacked the girl when they had snuck out of the palace. He also wondered why no guards were even checking on them. Surely someone else beyond them heard Williams cries? But as they sprinted away from the sound of two beasts fighting the halls were oddly empty and dark. Not a servant or guard in sight.
They headed toward one of the main chambers where the guards would gather for meetings. Someone had to be there! He quickly entered the room, gasping to catch his breath, but no one was there. The room was empty. It was never empty!
"Where is everyone?" Vincent asked in shock, he looked at Devon as if she would have the answers. "What do we do?"
"Everyone is probably out looking for that woman!" Ronnie shouted, growing angry.

Devon swore again, looking desperately aroun for a hidden guard or anyone who could help them. "The one time the guards aren't breathing down our necks," she muttered. She sucked in a deep breath, trying to ease the burning in her lungs. "Come on. We should hide. Maybe block these doors."

They could still hear the distant sounds of two beasts fighting. Snarls and shout echoed by things breaking.
Vincent just nodded to Devon but it was hard for him to move his body. He was tired and his joints ached from all the running and his muscles screamed for a rest. He wasn't used to so much activity.
Ronnie quickly started to pile chairs in front of the doors when he saw his friend still gasping for air.

Before they managed to get the doors completely blocked off foot steps filled the hall outside the room. Many of them, running in the direction of William and Colt.
"The guards?" Vincent asked, listening.
"Let's stay in here," Ronnie suggested, half was out of concern for their safety, and half was because he was sure that him and Devon would get blamed for something.

Shouts from the guards filled the air and over took the sounds of the beasts fighting.

Devon helped move chairs over the door and leaned up against it, listening to the fighting outside. She felt guilty and wanted to go back out and fight, but what could she do? She had never seen monsters like those before, and she had no weapons. All she would do was get torn apart in seconds.

The shouting and scuffling lasted for a good ten minutes or so and then suddenly died down.
"We should go out now..." Vincent said quietly, still listening. His heart raced, worried at what they were going to open up the door and see. He hoped his brother was alright and back to normal.

Ronnie helped Devon remove the chairs from the door so they could leave. He would never dare to admit that he was scared enough to tremble lightly.

Everything seemed calm outside the door, there was talking amongst the guards further up in the hall where the infirmary was.

Devon helped move everything away from the door. A fine tremor shook her hands, which she hid with the work. She dreaded what she would find outside the door. The halls were quiet, but what if the monsters were waiting for them? Even though she could hear the guards speaking, it was impossible to shake her fears as she pulled away the furniture and finally eased open the door.

When the doors opened the strong smell of iron filled the air. Something they hadn't ever really smelt before. As they dared to slowly venture out into the hall they heard groans of pain from some of the guards.
Vincent came tot he corner and peeked around it, leaning on the wall lightly. He gasped lightly as the sight filled his eyes. There were bodies shredded apart, laying everywhere, and everything seemed to be covered in wet blood. He had to pull back around the corner and close his eyes quickly, his stomach threatening to spill whatever he had eaten that day.

When Ronnie dared to look around the corner he noticed one of the large windows broken and several guards looking out it. They were several floors up, and with no sign of William or the beast, he wondered if they had fallen through the window.

"Are they dead?" He wondered out loud.

"D-Do you see William?" Vincent asked, visibly shaking. He hadn't been able to look at it long enough to see if his brother was there.

Devon slowly picked her way into the corridor, staring out at the gruesome scene. She covered her hand with her mouth, her stomach roiling at the thick, coppery stench of blood.

"No," she said thickly from behind her hand. "No, William's not here. It's just guards and . . ." She trailed off, unwilling to say "bodies."

Vincent was silent for a long moment as his heart and mind raced. What was happening? He had to make a decision..
"You two go back to your quarters..." He said with an oddly firm tone. "I am going to return to my room until my parents send for me..." He was going to call on them when things settled down and they could investigate more. For now he knew there was nothing he could do, specially with guards around. And he couldn't stand to look at all the gore again.

Ronnie let out a deep sigh, having to also look away from the scene. "Please stay safe.... Lock your door if you have to." He begged his friend lightly.

On instinct, Devon opened her mouth to argue, but found there was nothing she could say. How was she going to fight whatever had killed all the guards? How was she going to help anyone? The best thing they could all do really was go back to their quarters until those above them had figured out what was happening.

"Barricade ourselves, more like," she said thickly, the attempt at a flat tone strangled by her nausea. Her thoughts drifted back to Colt, and she wondered just what had become of the strange girl.

"I would not want anyone to blame you two for anything," Vincent added before he pushed himself off the wall to head back to his room.
His chest was heavy with grief and fear. He was so confused and concerned for everyones safety. He felt bad that so many had died and he felt so powerless. Hopefully some one could figure out a way to stop all of this and bring his brother home... And make him sane again. Well... As sane as he was before all of this.
"Please do not tell anyone of what you have seen.." He added, not wanting any one who didn't witness this to panic as well.
Ronnie started down the hall as well, staring at the ground in a mixture of shock and anger.

Devon slowly turned to follow Ronnie down the hall, picking her way around the spatters of blood and gore. Despite her efforts, her shoes picked up flecks of red and carried them down the polished tile. Zeke's going to be so pissed, she thought hazily, remembering the young man scrubbing the floors only that morning as one of the older butlers stood over him.

"We're not just going to let him go after whatever that was alone, right?" she asked, looking up at Ronnie.

Ronnie looked over at Devon, shaking his head lightly. "Hell no. I am just as many questions as he does and I can't let him get hurt." He looked back down at the floor again.
"Plus I need to make sure Colt is okay.." His voice a bit less stern, worry etching into it in a way only someone who had spent time around Ronnie would catch it.

Vincent watched his friends walk back tot he servants quarters before turning to head back toward his room quietly. His plan was to sneak out later and try to find answers and he didn't want Devon and Ronnie knowing. But for now he needed to compose himself. The night was still young.

Devon was quiet for a moment, processing the unusual concern she heard in Ronnie's voice.

"Yeah," she agreed after a moment. "I hope she is. I don't know what she was doing, or what, but we have to figure it out. It's not like anyone above us is gonna try. They're probably just scared the scandal will get out." She made an annoyed face, the agitation somehow managing to cut through her fear and disgust.

He nodded, but was only half listening to Devon. Ronnie couldn't stop thinking about how he never knew such a big thing about Colt. He had known her for a few years, since before he was even a servant in the palace.

They returned to their quarters to change out of their stuffy clothes. With in a hour or so they headed back out to where they could sneak through a hole in the outer wall to get out into the city.

Vincent was already there, just about to sneak through when they approached him. When he heard their footsteps in the grass he quickly turned around, expecting to see guards and then relaxed when it was just his friends.

"Well I suppose I should have known better..."

"Please, Vincent. Some weird bloodthirsty . . . things are running around and you want to run after them. We can't just let you do that alone." Devon dusted down the front of her fresh, not-bloody shirt. "I still think you should go back to the castle, though. It's safer. Kind of."

"And you should know better that I will not just sit and wait," Vincent flashed a smile. He was wearing a brown cloak over the top of his clothes to try and blend in better.
Ronnie couldn't help but roll his eyes a little, "well lets go then." He lead the way through the hole in the wall and out and down to the dirty streets of London.
They went to the side of the palace that was on the same side of the window that William and Colt fell through. It didn't take them long to find a blood trail leading away from the palace and toward the city. The followed it for a while until it trickled off and seemed to vanish next to a stream on the edge of town.
It was quiet and dark with very few lanterns lit so it wasn't very easy for them to see.

Devon was silent as they followed the trail of blood spatters. Her skin prickled with the feeling of wrongness the entire situation gave off. What kind of monsters were these things/

If she thought it would do any good, she would have tried to convince them to turn back to the safety of the castle. But Vincent was, for some reason, concerned about the human-shaped piece of garbage that was his brother, and Devon couldn't deny her own curiosity, so she continued on without argument.

At the creek, they paused at the bank, and Devon cast a glance around for any sign of the trail. "Now what?" she asked.

"I have no idea..." Vincent mumbled, not wanting to admit that he didn't know what they would do if they had just simply found them either.
As they tried to figure out where they may have gone after the river a dark figure moved up to them slowly. First the shadow was on all fours before turning into a two legged figure. Devon was able to notice it JUST before it silently came into the light.

"Are you from the palace?" A males voice asked as he stepped into the light to reveal himself. His hair was light brown, almost reddish, and pulled back into a pony tail with a ribbon. But his bang hung loosely, half covering his orange eyes that almost seemed to glow faintly. His face was not one commonly seen on the streets at such hour, his features defined but also smoothed over with higher cheek bones. He could be defined as handsome by most. But his clothes were simple, boots, dark pants, white blouse and black vest. He seemed non-threatening and paused about 10 feet from the group. He was of average height and weight for someone who may or may not have been homeless.

Vincent didn't answer as he looked carefully at the man. There was something about him that was weird but also familiar but he couldn't put his finger on it. He was quick to notice the rather fancy looking ear rings he wore that dangled a bit and assumed them to be stolen. Perhaps it was better to not tell this stranger that they were, indeed, from the palace.

Devon stared at the bizarre figure as it approached, her expression turning to one of mixed alarm and confusion as she watched it shift. As she looked at the human who approached them after, she was immediately certain he wasn't someone to be trusted.

"No," she replied. "We're not. What were you doing over there? I saw you . . . change."

The stranger seemed to ignore both Devons answer and question. He was careful to not move any closer to the group and just crossed his arms over his chest.
"You are lying to the wrong person," he looked over at Vincent and direction his question at him.
"Are you looking for Colt?"

Vincent gulped a little, unsure of what to say for the first second before nodding, "yes... Have you seen her?"

"Vincent!" Ronnie shouted, angry that he just told the stranger what they were doing. But he was ignored.

"Ah okay, I will take you to her!" The man insisted, "she said she might have friends looking for her from the palace."

Devon scowled. "Fine," she said grudgingly. She hated not knowing what was happening. The entire night was a terrifying mess of monsters and death and now some stranger was playing games about Colt. Nothing made any damn sense.

Vincent glanced at his friends before following the strange man. He didn't feel threatened by him but didn't really trust him.

He lead the small group back into the city before turning down an alley.
"Oh, my name is Zachary, you can call me Zach though." He introduced himself, flashing a smile. He had noticeably sharp teeth.

He turned down a couple more alleys, bringing them behind the butcher. He paused at a door before pulling out a key and unlocking it. They entered the butchers shop where it was dark and quiet and a bit cold. He then lead them down a hallway and into the basement. As they entered the basement light and warmth filled the darkness and it seemed more welcoming then the butchers shop. As the stairs ended they saw what looked like a place where someone was living. There was a kitchen and a living room and what seemed to be other rooms that connected to it.

"I found her friends," Zach announced. A dark skinned lady with black wavy hair looked up from something she was working on and smiled at them. Devon and Ronnie could tell she was Romani, or Gypsy as they were often called. Vincent, however, didn't know any better.

"She finally passed out," She said, motioning to the couch where Colt was laying, asleep. Her clothes were torn and covered in blood. Her body was bandaged in several places with a bit of blood seeping through them in small amounts. Her face was bruised and pale, but she was in one piece.