AN: this the appearance of the MC
POV: Monna
When I finally came to, my head was pounding.
The room looked the same as before, but something had changed. As I tried to move, I noticed a circle of salt surrounding me on the floor.
A barrier spell.
"Ah… you're awake."
I looked up to see Adeline standing across the room, calmly watching me.
"Well hello again, Monna," she said, her voice smooth and patient. "I was beginning to wonder how long that would take."
I rubbed my head and glared at her.
"Why did you knock me out?" I demanded. "I thought we were supposed to be having a conversation."
Adeline chuckled softly.
"Please," she said, waving a hand dismissively. "Don't insult me by pretending to be naïve. I have lived far too long to fall for that kind of act. This is not my first… unusual encounter."
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"I knew something was wrong the moment you arrived with that vampire."
"We're not here to hurt you," I said carefully. "We just need something you have."
Adeline's expression hardened.
"My twins," she said flatly.
I gave a small smile, no longer bothering to pretend innocence.
"Well, since you already know why we're here," I said, leaning slightly forward, "I suppose there's no point in dancing around it."
Her gaze sharpened.
"Then answer me something, Miss Bennett," she said slowly. "If that truly is your name."
"It is."
"Good," she replied. "Because the Bennett witches have always been highly respected in the supernatural world. Powerful, wise, and—most importantly—careful with the company they keep."
She folded her arms.
"Which is why I find it very difficult to believe that one of them would willingly work alongside a vampire of all creatures."
I smiled faintly.
What she didn't know was that the vampire she was speaking about had spent the last century quietly protecting my family.
"Well," I said calmly, "Nero isn't exactly a regular vampire."
Adeline snorted.
"There is no such thing as a regular vampire," she replied coldly. "Every single one of them is dangerous."
She stepped closer to the salt circle.
"So tell me the truth," she said. "What exactly does your vampire want with my daughters?"
I looked down at the barrier circle for a moment.
Then I looked back up at her.
"You know," I said thoughtfully, "since you already know I'm a Bennett witch, I'm actually a little surprised."
Adeline frowned.
"Surprised about what?"
"That you didn't bother using a stronger barrier spell."
Before she could react, I thrust my arms forward and released a pulse of magic.
The circle shattered instantly.
Adeline screamed as the force of the spell launched her across the room, slamming her against the wall.
I stood up and brushed dust off my clothes as I walked toward her.
"Next time," I said coldly, "be a little smarter."
I turned to leave.
But the moment I did—
A powerful force struck me.
I was thrown across the room and slammed against the opposite wall.
I looked up in shock.
Six people now stood in the doorway.
One was an older man about Adeline's age. Two others were men in their thirties. Behind them stood two teenage girls.
Identical.
The twins.
Exactly who we had come for.
I tried to stand, but the old man raised his hand.
"Stay down," he said calmly.
With a flick of his wrist, an invisible force shoved me back to the ground.
"So," I said through clenched teeth, "I'm guessing this is the Moreau family."
"You would be correct," one of the younger men replied.
The old man stepped forward.
"And you," he said, studying me closely, "are Monna Bennett."
He smiled faintly.
"My name is George Moreau."
His eyes darkened slightly.
"And I believe we're about to become very well acquainted."
POV: George
My children and I had returned only an hour earlier.
We had been hunting vampires in the forest outside the town. Most of them escaped.
But the one that interested me most had survived.
Nero Tone.
Six hunters Tidas hired were dead.
That alone told me something important.
This vampire was far more dangerous than we had been told.
And yet somehow… he had come looking for us.
Even stranger, he had brought a Bennett witch with him.
That part made no sense.
Witches hated vampires.
Vampires hated witches.
That had been the balance for centuries.
But tonight I intended to discover exactly what they wanted with my daughters.
We had moved the girl to a different location.
A house far outside the city.
Hidden.
Cloaked.
No one would find it.
The Bennett witch was tied to a chair in the basement when I entered the room.
"Time to wake up, little one," I said, using a small spell to force her consciousness back.
Her eyes snapped open.
She looked around quickly, trying to understand where she was.
"Listen very carefully, Miss Bennett," I said calmly. "I'm going to ask you a few questions."
I leaned closer.
"You can answer them honestly, and this will all be over quickly… or you can lie to me."
My voice grew colder.
"And then I will have to search your mind myself."
She looked up at me.
Then she spit directly in my face.
"Well," I said calmly, wiping it away, "I suppose we're doing this the difficult way."
I placed both hands on her head and began chanting.
I could feel her resistance immediately.
Strong.
But my daughters had already drained most of her magic.
Slowly, I pushed deeper into her memories.
Searching.
Looking for the connection between her and Nero Tone.
And then…
I found it.
POV: Monna
Flashback
"Mother, you know I'm right," I said desperately. "We need his help. Father and the others are gone trying to find the remaining Bennett witches. We cannot deal with this alone."
"Leave it alone, Monna," my mother said firmly. "Those vampires will leave eventually if they know what's good for them."
"They won't!" I argued. "They're vampires, mother. They won't stop until they get what they want."
A group of vampires had tracked our family to Salem.
They demanded we create daylight rings for them.
If we refused, they promised to slaughter not only us—but the entire town.
"Mother," I pleaded, "he promised to protect our family forever. He made that pact with Old Nan Nessa."
My mother's expression hardened.
"Nessa passed away two years ago," she said quietly.
Old Nan Nessa had lived to be one hundred and forty years old.
She was one of the strongest witches I had ever known.
And one of the oldest.
Before she died, she told us she had made a deal with a powerful man.
A man who had sworn to protect the Bennett family forever.
"Monna," my mother said firmly, "I said no. That is the end of this conversation."
Frustrated, I stormed up to my room and slammed the door.
"Why won't she listen?" I muttered.
As I sat on my bed, something fell onto the floor.
A metal ring.
The one Old Nan had told me about.
The ring that could call him.
I had taken it from the attic without anyone noticing.
I stared at it for a long time before finally picking it up.
When I slipped it onto my finger—
It cut me.
"Ow! What the hell?"
I pulled it off and placed it on my nightstand.
Hours passed.
Night fell.
Finally, I stood up.
"If she won't do anything about this," I muttered, "then I will."
I snuck out of the house and headed toward the cave where the vampires were staying.
Two guards stood outside.
"Hey, who the hell are—"
Before he could finish, I snapped both of their hands with a flick of my magic and shoved stakes into their hearts.
I walked into the cave.
It was pitch black.
Using my magic, I ignited the wooden stake in my hand like a torch.
But the moment the light appeared—
Someone was standing right in front of me.
Before I could react, he slapped me across the face.
Everything went black.
When I woke up again, torches lit the cave walls.
I turned my head and froze.
My mother was tied to a chair beside me.
"Mother! Wake up!" I cried.
She slowly opened her eyes.
"Monna… what were you thinking?" she said weakly. "I told you to leave this alone."
"I know," I said, tears filling my eyes. "I'm sorry… I'm so sorry."
She gave me a sad smile.
"It's alright, baby," she whispered. "We just need to focus on getting out of here."
"You two aren't going anywhere."
A man stepped forward.
He had blood-red hair and cold blue eyes.
"Hello, little witches," he said with a cruel grin. "My name is Vault. It's a pleasure to meet you both."
He walked toward us slowly.
"I'm the leader of this little group of bloodsuckers," he said casually. "And all I wanted was something simple."
He leaned closer.
"Daylight rings."
He suddenly grabbed my mother.
"But I suppose one of you needs to suffer before you understand how serious I am."
Before I could react—
He tore her head off.
"NO!" I screamed.
"Mother! Please no, this can't me happening, mother, mother"
Vault laughed.
But suddenly—
Screaming of his men echoed from the cave entrance.
Then the sound of bones snapping.
And laughter.
Everyone turned toward the darkness.
Two glowing yellow eyes appeared.
A massive wolf burst from the shadows.
It tackled Vault and tore into him, ripping him apart piece by piece.
it turned to the other vampires and killed them to.
When the wolf finished, it turned toward me.
For a moment, I was terrified.
Then its body began to change.
Bones snapped.
Fur receded.
Moments later, a man stood before me.
A tall, handsome Black man.
"Hello," he said calmly.
"My name is Nero Tone."
He looked down at the ring on the ground beside me.
"A Bennett witch hasn't called me in quite some time."
At first, I didn't understand what he meant.
Then I remembered the ring.
Old Nan's story.
"You're the one she made the deal with," I whispered.
He smiled.
"Yes."
I stared at him in confusion.
"Wait… what are you?"
His smile widened slightly.
"Well, miss," he said calmly,
"I'm a what you might call… a hybrid"
Flashback end
–
POV George
My eyes widened, he was a hybrid, no no that can't be possible. Oh but it is, she said. How is this possible I said, she just laughed, answer me woman, I slapped her making her spit out blood. Just go ahead and kill me, she said, you're not getting anything else out of me. I smiled. That's what you think. Well she said,its either you kill me or he's gonna kill you, she said. I laughed you think he's gonna find you. We are in the middle of nowhere nobody can- .But then I remember something. From her little memory, she had ring that told him where she was. I rushed behind her and I saw it, the ring. And then i heard the screams of my son Tidas.
POV: Nero
A few hours earlier…
After that little fight in the woods, only five of us remained.
Me, Lexa, Axel, and two other vampires.
I had many more under my control. If I truly wanted to, I could have brought nearly a hundred vampires with me. But when we came to this small town, I assumed a small group would be enough.
At least… that was what I thought at the time.
Now I was walking through the town alone.
It was still the middle of the night. Most of the streets were empty, the only light coming from a few lanterns hanging outside taverns and inns.
The hunter I had killed earlier gave me one useful piece of information.
A place where Tidas Moreau might be found.
A bar.
I pushed open the door and stepped inside.
Axel was already sitting at the bar, pretending to drink something. Lexa and the others were outside, watching the exits.
The place was half full of drunk locals and travelers.
I walked calmly to the counter and sat down.
The bartender looked up at me.
"What can I get you?" he asked.
I leaned forward slightly and looked directly into his eyes.
"Before we discuss drinks," I said quietly, letting my compulsion seep into my voice, "I'd like to ask you something."
He stared back at me.
"Do you know a man named Tidas Moreau?"
I pushed harder with the compulsion.
But the moment our eyes locked…
I knew it didn't work.
His expression didn't change at all.
"No," he said calmly. "I don't know anyone by that name."
I leaned back slowly.
Vervain.
I glanced at Axel.
He immediately understood and stood up.
"Alright, everyone," Axel said loudly, clapping his hands. "Bar's closed for the night. Go ahead and grab your things and head out."
A few people complained, but Axel wasn't asking.
He began forcing everyone toward the door.
Within a minute, the entire bar was empty.
Only the bartender remained.
I stood up and grabbed him by the collar, slamming him onto the bar counter.
Wood cracked under the force.
"Let's try this again," I said quietly, my voice dropping into something darker. "Where is Tidas Moreau?"
"I told you—"
"I'm right here."
The voice came from behind me.
I turned—
And in that exact moment—
My neck snapped.
Everything went black.
POV: Tidas
I stepped forward slowly, holding a wooden stake in my hand.
The vampire's body lay twisted on the floor.
I had to admit… I was impressed.
He had noticed the bartender was on vervain almost immediately.
That kind of awareness wasn't common.
Still… it hadn't saved him.
"I suspected the hunters might fail," I said quietly to myself. "Which is why I made sure to be nearby."
I knelt down beside him.
"Arrogant vampire," I muttered.
Then I drove the stake straight through his heart.
The body immediately began to grey and dry out.
Desiccation.
Typical vampire death.
I picked up the corpse and carried it out the back door.
The rest of his little vampire crew didn't seem to notice.
Good.
I placed the body in the back of a carriage and climbed onto the driver's seat.
Just as I grabbed the reins—
A hand landed on my shoulder.
And then—
Teeth sank into my neck.
I screamed.
I had been bitten by vampires before.
Even by a werewolf once.
But this bite was different.
The pain was unbearable.
It felt like both venoms were stacked on top of each other.
I turned slowly.
And there he was.
Nero Tone.
"But… I killed you," I said in disbelief.
He wiped blood from his mouth and smiled.
"Well," he said calmly, "you learn something new every day."
The next thing I felt was his fist smashing into my face.
Then everything went black.
POV: Nero
I rubbed the spot on my chest where the stake had been.
"That wasn't the first time someone thought they killed me," I muttered.
People always assumed I was a regular vampire.
A stake through the heart would kill them.
But not me.
Only white oak could end my life.
Then suddenly—
I felt something.
A pull.
A familiar magical sensation.
The same feeling I had experienced years ago when I first found Monna in that cave.
I knew exactly what it was.
A Bennett witch.
And now I knew where she was.
"Well," I said, wiping the last of the blood from my mouth, "let's get to it."
Eventually I reached an open clearing on the outskirts of town.
There was nothing there.
Just empty land.
But I remembered something from long ago.
A cloaking spell.
So instead of searching for it—
I grabbed Tidas by the collar.
"Let's test something," I said.
Then I hurled him forward.
He slammed into something invisible.
And suddenly—
The house appeared.
A large estate hidden by magic.
I walked forward calmly and grabbed Tidas again.
"Now," I said quietly, "invite me in."
His vision was already blurring from the hybrid venom.
"You… you can come in," he slurred weakly.
I smiled.
"Good."
I threw him through the front door and walked inside.
"Alright," I said loudly.
"Now…"
My eyes turned gold as the veins spread across my face.
"Where are my witch… and my twins?"
Suddenly several men rushed into the room.
Hunters.
Armed with stakes, crossbows, and spears.
One of them shouted, "That's him! Kill the monster!"
I sighed.
"Really?" I said calmly. "This is the welcoming party?"
One hunter fired a crossbow.
I caught the bolt midair.
"You people never learn."
I threw it back.
It pierced straight through his throat.
Another hunter lunged with a spear.
I grabbed the shaft and ripped it from his hands before smashing the wood across his skull.
Two more rushed me together.
One tried to stab my heart.
I grabbed his wrist and twisted until the bone snapped through the skin.
The other swung a machete.
I caught his arm and slammed his face into the wall hard enough to crack the stone.
Within seconds the floor was covered in bodies.
Then two more men stepped forward.
Older.
Stronger.
And clearly witches.
One of them glared at me.
"I suppose you must be Nero Tone," he said coldly.
"And you are?" I asked.
"My name is Victor Moreau," he replied.
The other man beside him stepped forward.
"And I'm Marcus Moreau," he added.
Victor raised his hand and suddenly the entire room shook.
Furniture lifted off the ground.
"You have killed members of our family tonight," Victor said angrily. "Did you really think you would simply walk into our home and leave alive?"
I smiled slowly.
"Well," I said calmly, "I was hoping for a conversation."
Marcus scoffed.
"You murdered hunters and broke into our home," he said. "What possible conversation could we have with a creature like you?"
"A productive one," I replied.
Victor suddenly hurled a wave of magic toward me.
The force launched me across the room.
I slammed into a pillar, cracking it in half.
Marcus tried to follow with another spell—
But I was already moving.
In a flash I appeared in front of him and grabbed his throat.
"You talk too much," I said.
Before I could crush it—
A voice echoed sharply from the hallway.
"Stop!"
The command carried real authority behind it.
Before I could even turn fully—
A blast of magic slammed into me.
My body was thrown backward across the room, crashing into the far wall hard enough to crack the stone behind me.
I looked up.
Standing in the hallway were three figures.
Two identical girls stood side by side, their hands extended forward as streams of magic poured from them. Behind them stood the woman from earlier—Adeline—watching with cold satisfaction.
The twins' eyes were glowing faintly as they channeled power.
But they weren't generating it themselves.
They were siphoning it.
Their hands were gripping their mother's arms as they drained her magic and redirected it straight at me.
Another pulse of power struck me in the chest, pinning me against the wall.
Adeline stepped forward slowly.
"I warned you," she said calmly, folding her hands behind her back. "I told you that if you didn't leave, I would make things much worse."
The taller twin focused harder, tightening the invisible pressure around my body.
"mother… what is he?" she asked nervously.
Adeline didn't take her eyes off me.
"A very arrogant vampire," she replied. "One who thought he could walk into our home and threaten our family."
She raised her hand toward me.
"And now," she said coldly, "I think it's time we show him exactly why that was a mistake."
She began casting another spell.
The twins tightened their siphoning grip, pulling more magic from their mother.
But suddenly—
Everything stopped.
The pressure holding me against the wall vanished.
The glow in the twins' hands flickered… and died.
All three witches froze.
Adeline frowned.
"What…?"
The twins looked down at their hands in confusion.
"The magic… it's gone," one of them said quietly.
"I can't feel anything," the other whispered.
I slowly pushed myself off the wall.
Then I smiled.
"You know," I said calmly, brushing dust from my coat, "Monna has taught me a few very useful tricks over the years."
Adeline's eyes narrowed.
"What did you do?"
"Oh, nothing too complicated," I replied casually.
I gestured toward the walls of the house.
"As we speak, my vampires have placed a rather impressive magical barrier around this entire estate."
Their confusion deepened.
"Using salt," I continued, "specially prepared by a Bennett witch."
I tilted my head slightly.
"So unfortunately for all of you…"
"No magic works inside this house right now."
The twins looked panicked.
Adeline stared at me in disbelief.
I clasped my hands behind my back and smiled politely.
"Now," I said calmly,
"let's talk."