Willy and Maria had watched as Dustin and Kelvin squeezed their way through the half-open gate to enter the cemetery. Not wanting to appear obvious and follow, they walked around the perimeter and got to the small gate on the far side. It was padlocked.

“We can’t climb this fence, it’s too dangerous,” Maria commented as Willy pulled back on her arm with some force.

“I take it you’ve never seen a bear shifter?”

“Never. I wasn’t aware any existed until I met Hank.”

“Stand back.”

Willy curved his back and lifted his head up toward the moon that was half-blocked by dark clouds which hovered over New Orleans. His head swelled as jowls pushed from his face. Large black lips quivered as he spat saliva onto the sidewalk. Maria watched as his shoulders broadened, and broadened even more. Fuck, he’s gonna be huge. Black fur sprouted down Willy’s back as his posture straightened. He towered above Maria as his huge paws waved in front of him. He dropped to all fours and turned toward Maria.

“Impressed?”

“Pretty much.”

“Go on, feel it. I know you want to,” Willy added as he leaned his body to hers.

Maria ran her fingers through his fur. Her hand ran down his back and hit a ticklish spot. Willy lifted his rear leg and started to scratch at his belly.

His legs quivered. He smiled in a sort of bear smile. “That’s the spot. Any more and you’ll have me rolling over.”

Maria slapped his shoulder and heaved a sigh. Already, she’d had enough of his suggestive tone. “You’re not a freaking dog, you know.”

“I know, but I loooove my belly being rubbed.”

Willy walked to the gate and hunched on his hind legs. His front paws lifted and he grabbed the chain. He tugged outward. Maria saw his fur ripple as his bear muscles pulled at the chain. With not so much as a grunt of effort, the links broke apart and the lock fell to the ground. He dropped the chain and changed back into his human form.

“It’s easy when you know how.” He stood, standing and tugging on the gate. This time, he huffed as the hinges were seized solid. He placed his foot against the steel grill fence and pulled with all his might.

“Willy,” Maria commented.

“Hang on, nearly there.”

“Willy, you’ll never open it,” she said.

“I will. I will, you watch.”

“No, you won’t, it’s a push gate.”

Willy smirked. He stood and pushed the gate. “I knew that.”

They entered the cemetery and pushed the gate closed. “Do you know where the tomb is?” Maria asked as she stood on a large boulder and peered over the shorter tombs.

“Sort of. It’s over there in the middle.”

“I can’t see diddly squat from here. There’s too much mist rising up,” she said, stepping from the boulder.

“As a bear, that’s not a bad thing at all. It’ll give us protection.”

“Protect us from what?”

“You never know. The guardians will be okay. But these vlads you mentioned always seemed to know what you’re doing. Isn’t that the case?”

“Yes!”

Willy wasn’t wrong, and Maria pondered on that as he weaved through the small tombs. Shadows fell at angles as the same eerie light Kelvin saw also began to shine in their direction. Maria pulled one of the throwing knives from its sheath and held the tip of the blade in her fingertips. She followed Willy closely. He stopped and raised a clenched fist. Maria paused and tilted her nose in the air and sniffed.

He pushed her into the shadow that fell behind a tomb. Maria tuned into her wolf senses. Her head cocked to the side as she listened. The leaves rustled in the large tree that was ahead of them.

“Can you hear that?” she murmured. “The leaves are rustling, but there’s no wind.”

Willy shrugged his shoulders. He couldn’t hear it. His bear senses weren't as astute as a wolf’s. He could sense there were other things in the cemetery apart from them. What they were, he couldn’t tell.

“You think the vlads are on the same trail?” Maria asked.

“More than likely. I’m not sure how they’ll find the location of the shaman if Dustin and Kelvin are already there.”

They huddled close to the tombs and sidetracked away from the grassy path that led to the tree. If the wind picked up, they could mask their scent. As it was now, they couldn’t.

Slowly they approached. Willy paused again. He heard voices. “Guardians,” he whispered. “We’d better wait here.”

Maria poked her head around the side of the tomb. She smelled the burning of the candle wick that was up ahead. She gazed up at the sky. The moon stood no chance of casting its glow over the cemetery. If anything, Maria thought it was going to rain again, very soon. Her head snapped in the direction of the tree. The leaves more than rustled. It sounded as if something fell.

“What the hell was that?” she asked.

“God knows. I heard a light thud as if something hit the ground,” Willy added in a surprised tone.

“I reckon there’s something else in here apart from vlads. That’s unless the guardians are that adept at climbing trees.”

The leaves rustled again, and there was a second thud. Maria and Willy heard voices ahead. The area lit up, and torch beams sprung up around the cemetery.

“Something’s spooked the guardians,” Willy said as he stepped back into the shadow.

Maria leaned with her back pushed firmly against the white marble, and the cold seeped through her jacket. The lights cast past them and shone back toward the gate. Black figures zigzagged then cowered as they made their way toward them, and to their right. Maria grabbed hold of Willy’s arm as he started to flex himself ready to change.

“Vlads.”

Maria heard Kelvin’s voice in the darkness. She pushed her fingers in her mouth and whistled. She waited for his response.

Kelvin replied. “After three; we need to run. We’re surrounded!”

Maria bounced up and down on her toes. She looked deep into Willy’s eyes. “Are you ready?”

“Lead the way. I’m right behind you.”

“One—two—threeeeee.”

Maria turned and started to sprint. She saw two vlads crawling over the top of a tomb. Her arm pulled back with her knife as a black figure leaped from the side, attacking the vlads with gusto. She heard the scream as one of the bodies fell on their side. The vlad's head was hanging by sinew.

“What was that?” Willy asked as he pushed Maria hard in the back to run faster.

“Fuck knows, but I think it’s here to help.”

The cab dropped Gabriel and Megan where the road was flooded. They needed to make the last couple of blocks on foot. Megan already sensed the text she managed to send to Sanders did the trick, and he would’ve already gotten the vlads to the cemetery. He’d be a step closer to beating Gabriel to the shaman, and could make full use of it, making the vlads into the race of daywalkers he so dreamed about. From across the street, the cemetery looked covered in a sea of mist. Gabriel couldn’t hear the ruckus, but Megan’s tuned ears listened to every sound of what was happening.

The sound of Maria’s whistle cut through the night’s silence. Gabriel heard that and dashed across the street to the gate. Megan followed, and Gabriel paused as he squeezed himself through the gap.

“Wait here, we don’t know what’s happening inside,” he said.

“Okay, I’ll hang around here!” She lied. “Right until you come back for me.”

Gabriel pushed through the gap and reached for a piece of two-by-two. He swung it as if it was a baseball bat. It was a good length and a good weight. Megan watched as he vanished into the sea of mist. It swirled around and enveloped his human form.

Megan waited a few minutes before she sprinted to the side of the cemetery. She changed to her wolf form (vlad powered) and leaped over the fence. She also vanished, silently, into the mist.

Gabriel sloshed his way down the puddle-ridden sandy path. He stopped when he heard the noise from his right. Pushing through the marble tombs, the first drops of rain pattered at the side of him.

Charming, that's all we need.

The rain increased. The sea of mist slowly descended and cleared. The rain streamed down his face, causing him to wipe his eyes with his hand. He raised the wood over his head as he heard voices up ahead. Obscured by clouds, the moon fought to shine down over the city. It failed, though it looked as if there’d be a clear point breaking in the sky. The wind picked up, and the rain started falling at angles, rather than just straight down.

“Gabriel,” Dustin yelled. “What’re you doing here?”

“Maria texted, and we got here as soon as we could. It’s taken ages with these floods.”

“Well, we might need the help. The vlads knew we were coming,” Dustin replied. His hair had been flattened against his head, and the rain was streaming from the end of his nose. “I’m not sure how many there are, but there seems to be a lot.”

A flash caught Gabriel's eye above. A vlad lunged itself from the top of a tomb in his direction. He swung his makeshift baseball bat overhead. The edge of the wood smashed into the neck of the vlad. It fell, with no chance to recover. Gabriel pummeled the wood against the vlad’s skull as it attempted to crawl back into the shadows.

Dustin turned back to the Voodoo Queen’s tomb. He watched as Kelvin flexed his shoulders, ready to turn. “Huh!” Kelvin yelled. “Huh!”

“What’s wrong?”

Kelvin moved. His hand wiped the lashing rain from his face. He tried to turn, although the nuts in the coffee had diminished his ability.

“I said this might happen.”

Maria burst into the ring of tombs and saw the two talking. She sensed that something was wrong. Willy followed behind, now looking over his shoulder. He stretched his arms out to his sides and called on his inner bear. The moon finally broke as Willy stretched. His arms doubled; if not tripled in size. The rain lashed at his long black fur. His monolithic form cast a shadow over Maria. His jowls opened, and the first noise broke the silence of the night. He roared as his jowls quivered. Willy clenched his huge black claws.

“Maria, stay close.”

“Stuff that. I’m gonna change.”

She handed her knives to Kelvin and told him that if he was stuck as a human, then he still needed a way to defend himself. She checked if Gabriel needed a knife. He held his piece of wood (that looked like a bat) in front of himself, and grinned. Maria bowed her head. She felt the muscles under her skin ripple as she threw her head back toward the first glimpses of the moon. Her dark fur flattened from the rain, the same as Willy’s. The rain lashed at their animal forms.

“Dustin!!” Kelvin yelled. “Are you going to change?”

“No. I want to keep my eye on the guardians.”

He backed to the tomb where the marble slab was half closed. He saw LeBron huddled inside with two other guardians. “Stay there.” Lebron nodded.

Although a tower of a man, he was still scared. Voodoo was his bag, and it was the first time he’d encountered ethereal shifters, first hand. Not to mention the onslaught of vampire-werewolves, called vlads. He knew they wanted him and the location of the shaman. He hoped and he prayed over the Voodoo Queen’s tomb that sat before him. He prayed that they didn’t reach him.

In a flash, Kelvin spun. A vlad landed in front of him. His fingers tightened around the handles of the knives that Maria handed to him. The huddled figure of the vlad swayed, walking toward him. The golden color of its eyes stared as he stared back. He gestured with the knives to bring it on. Kelvin saw the white tips of razor sharp teeth as its jaw opened. He swallowed as the vlad readied itself to lunge. Kelvin saw it coming. The vlad didn’t. It was a crack from Gabriel's piece of wood between the vlad’s ears. It shook its head and closed its eyes. Big mistake. Kelvin dug his boot in the mud and leaped. The vlad stood as Kelvin's knee crashed into its chest. It tottered over backward as Kelvin raised his arms over his head. As it hit the ground with Kelvin towering above, he brought his hands plunging down. The blades slammed into its chest. The vlad squealed. Its jaws snapped violently toward Kelvin.

Kelvin looked to Gabriel who shouted to him. “The head, lose the head.”

Kelvin swallowed hard as he pulled a knife from the vlad’s chest. He swiped to the side. Blood spurted from the ruptured jugular. He sliced again. The squeal stopped as it’s vocal chords were severed. Kelvin let go of the chest and implanted the knife and grabbed the vlad’s head. He sawed with the knife. With a triumphant yell, he held the head in his hand. He placed the head on a white marble headstone. Dark crimson ran down the marble and pooled in the engraving.

“Rust in peace, motherfucker!” he yelled.

The sound of Maria and Willy fighting faded under the sound of the rain. Kelvin turned back to Dustin and Gabriel. They’d moved away from the Voodoo Queen’s tomb. He saw that vlads had rallied together and four were stood, now silhouetted in the moonlight.

“Ohhh, fuck!”

“You can say that again,” Gabriel yelled, waving his lumber from side to side.

None of them noticed the solitary figure that slinked around the side of the open mausoleum. But it silently made its way inside. They never noticed the marble slab slide closed, and none of them heard the screams from the guardians as they divulged the secret location of the shaman.

Dustin, Gabriel, and Kelvin readied themselves to fight. The vlads readied themselves to jump to the clearing.

With a scream like a banshee, a dark figure appeared from nowhere. A metallic flash waved through the night sky. Three vlads fell in the blink of an eye. The mysterious figure leaped at the fourth. Its body crashed to the ground. A raised arm and a flash of silver ensued, and the final vlad’s head rolled toward Kelvin's feet. The figure stood. Gabriel clenched the piece of wood, tightly. Kelvin flexed his fingers around the knife handles.

Dustin stood, open-mouthed.

The leather-clad figure turned. Silver eyes flashed as the figure blinked. “I thought you might need some help.”

“Kelita, is that you?” Kelvin asked.

“The one and only.”

“I smile when I creep in the shadows by the wall, but you won’t hear me at all.”