The Dark One's POV:

The sound of helpless people screaming was music to my ears. Their flesh sizzled and bones cracked as the fire ate them alive. Every person that died brought her closer to me. Caddie was the key to not only my future but to my sanity. I would slaughter the entire world if that brought her next to me.

Teleporting to the tallest spire on St. Vitus Cathedral, I lifted my fingers towards the sky and engraved a special message in clouds. It was a shame I had to destroy such a beautiful city but all good things mustn't go unpunished. A wicked smirk touched my lips as Prague replaced Paris as the city of lights.

The vibrations from my phone interrupted my twisted thoughts. Glancing at the caller ID, I rolled my eyes and reluctantly accepted the call. Only he would dare to interrupt me as I set the world ablaze.

"What do you want?" I hissed.

"Do not speak to me like that, brat." He growled through the phone much to my dismay. "I need to make sure our plans are in order."

I sighed. If he weren't so important and powerful I would have killed him by now. He was everything I used to hate in a person; sophisticated, pretentious and worst of all royal. The urge to set him on fire was growing with each phone call. There was no reason to go to extremes, yet. He was a valuable asset to my plan but once his part had been played I was content with never seeing his face again.

"There's no need to worry Roberto, I'll get my girl and you'll get your blood." Then I can kill you when I take over the world.

Visions of dead bodies lying in a pile filled my mind. My plan was rather mundane but I wanted to stack the bodies of everyone who had ever wronged me. I wanted to soak their bodies in kerosene and light them on fire. Caddie and I would sit by the burning pile and laugh. She would ease the whole in my heart and spread darkness throughout the land. It was her destiny as the Dark Witch to be evil. Once the other heirs were destroyed she wouldn't have anybody to keep her in place. She could use her magic freely, without fearing the consequence.

"Good," Roberto responded, "Do us a favor and don't do anything rash. I still haven't forgiven you for burning Nox Haven down."

Was burning half of a city considered rash? I shook my head and grinned carelessly. Of course it wasn't rash. I didn't set the entire city on fire. And I was positive Caddie's good natured friends would lure her into my trap. The hitch in my plan was her psychic best friend. My master had placed a spell on her earlier- to make her visions unclear but the spell seemed to be wearing off. She had seen the attack on Castle Böse and Caddie's adventure to meet the Vampires. There was a very good chance she could even see me. I silently prayed that my identity would remain a secret until the time was right. I was never one who like being over the top or dramatic but I wanted to give Caddie a surprise.

"Like I said before; there's no reason to worry. Everything is going according to plan."

It wasn't a complete lie, everything is going according to my plan. He had his own vendetta against the council members- I assumed it was because of his past. He never spoke about his life before he became eternally damned. But every time he spoke about the Council Members he acted as if they were the sole reason he was a vampire.

"It better be," he hissed in a thick Spanish accent, "the last person who crossed me lived two hundred years ago. Since then there hasn't been a single soul who dares to challenge me. I'd hate for you to find out why."

I hung up before he could utter another threat. People needed to stop underestimating me. My self-restraint could only take so much before I do something really rash. I may be losing a bit of my sanity but I was still in control. There wouldn't be a soul in sight if I released the leashes on my demons. I'll set this entire world on fire and start new if I have to. I'll start new with my Dark Queen by my side.
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Caddie's POV:

See You Soon?

See You Soon!

I felt incredibly ill. Somehow I had accepted the fact that my life was a horribly written horror movie. I didn't expect somebody like me to receive a happy ending but I didn't want innocent people to die because of my misfortune. My eyes began to well with tears as I heard a baby wail from a neighboring house. Kids were being barbecued and all I could do was stare. I was completely frozen in place as the city fell apart.

"Oh my god!" Kimone shrieked when a house completely collapsed.

Maddox wrapped his arms around her torso when she tried to run towards a dying family. He tried to whisper soothing words in her ear but Kimone was relentless. For many of the heirs it was their first time watching a person die. They had lived sheltered lives and their protective walls were slowly deteriorating away. Every incident with the Dark Ones chipped away at their innocence.

"Why are we just standing here!" Ryder asked incredulously, "We need to help them."

Ryder's teddy bear fell onto the cobbled road. Leaving the rest of us standing, with dumbfounded expressions on our faces, Ryder ran towards the burning buildings. Kimone managed to escape from Maddox's hold and chased after
him. Sending me a pleading look Maddox begged for me to help him bring back our estranged friends.

This is a trap, I told him.

I know, he responded in my mind, but they don't. We can't let them die.

I shook my head. They were right though. Even if it is a trap we can't let innocent people die.

The others were talking quietly to one another. Trying to come up with a rational plan. While they were distracted Maddox and I slowly began to inch away from the group. Just as the tip of my converse hit the open road Alix's head whipped around. Her eyes locked with mine- anger was evident in her stare. Dmitri, Aleksander and Mira looked up and followed her path of sight. When their eyes locked on me an stifling tension was added to atmosphere.

Run! I mentally shouted to Maddox.

He didn't wait another second. Darting down the streets of Prague, we called out for Ryder and Kimone while ducking underneath fallen pieces of wood. I knew the other three were on our flanks but I refused stop. The rational part of me knew I had no business here. I could have just left- I wasn't a superhero. But I wasn't a super villain either. Only an evil person would leave all those people to die.

"Caddie! Maddox! Come over here!" Ryder's voice emitted from a dark alleyway.

Maddox and I stopped in our tracks when we heard his familiar voice but I couldn't help but be cautious. Last year, I wandered down a dark hall searching for my friends and nearly got raped by psychotic freak. They say to learn from your past so you don't repeat- and I was dead set on repeating it.

Wait! I mentally shouted to Maddox.

He quirked an eyebrow in confusion. Unfortunately, he had been wrapped up in finding Ryder and Kimome he didn't pick up on my previous thoughts. It would have been so much easier if he had seen flashes of my memories.

We can't go down there without a plan. We might get attacked!

Maddox furrowed his brows. I was no mind reader but I knew he couldn't comprehend why I would think Ryder would would attack us. People never expect to be stabbed in the back by their best friend- until it happens.

Nothing bad will happen, he promised me, he's our friend.

With that last thought in mind Maddox turned away from me and marched into the dark alley. Like an idiot. Allowing my magic bubble to the surface of my skin, I sorted through a dozen different spells that could destroy anyone in mere seconds. I would not fall victim to more trickery.

Releasing an exaggerated sigh, I reluctantly followed Maddox into the dark alley. The repugnant smell of moldy trash and decaying rats assaulted my senses. My vision began to blur from the foul stench. I couldn't imagine that people willingly walked down the alleyway on a daily basis.

"There you guys are!" Ryder exclaimed, "Kimone just ran into one of the burning houses. She thinks there's still somebody trapped in there."

I stopped short. In the darkness, my sight was limited but he sounded like Ryder. His was rough and deep but still  had a playful tone. Even his emotions seemed normal. He was worried for Kimone but even more worried for the person in the building.

"Why didn't you go with her?" Maddox asked, his voice became louder with anger.

Ryder flinched away from his friend. Kimone meant a lot to Maddox and if she were to get hurt, he'd be as broken as I was when Cam died.

"She told me to get you guys and search for other survivors."

That sounded like something Kimone would say. She was fiercely protective of others and always trying to do the right thing. Being the HeadMinister's daughter made her natural born leader- but I was afraid her sensitive side would lead her into dangerous situations.

I cleared my throat, grabbing the attention of both boys. "Let's not waste anymore time. Maddox go after Kimone- we all know you're going to do that no matter what. And Ryder come with me, we'll try to save anyone who might still be stuck."

I think we were all surprised by the authority in my voice. The two boys had taken me in under their wing, as a person to protect. None of us expected the day to come when I was no longer a victim. Gone were the days when I would hide and let somebody walk all over me. It was time to embrace the truth of my destiny and move forward.

"Pomoz mi!" A little girl's voice rang out.

"Let's move!" I yelled, "Some people don't have all day!"

Maddox was the first to leave. He darted off in the direction Ryder had pointed too. That left Ryder and I with task of saving a poor girl's life. My stomach clenched as the weight of that responsibility crushed me. We jogged through the rest of the alley until we reached a path that diverged. Using my empathetic powers I picked up on feelings of distress and fear from a neighboring house. That had to be the girl, I realized and related the message to Ryder.

We continued to run until I felt the emotions become stronger. I placed my hand on Ryder's bicep to slow him down when I felt the fear spike. My eyes flickered from building to building until I saw a burning apartment complex at the end of the street.

"Caddie wait!" Alix shrieked.

Spinning around, I saw Alix sprinting to my side with Mira and the Volkov twins on her heels. Aleksander immediately wrapped his arms around me and pulled me securely against his chest. The magical sparks I felt only while in his presence didn't have an effect on me as I wildly thrashed around. They couldn't stop me from saving her! She was a little girl for goodness sake, it was not her time to die.

"Let me go!" I roared.

Dmitri stepped forward and placed a comforting hand on his brother's shoulder. "Alek," he said in a soothing voice, "You have to let her go before she blows your head off."

I could feel Aleksander's entire body go rigid. Everybody there knew I wouldn't actually hurt Aleksander. Try as I may, I didn't have it in me to swiftly remove him from my life. It hurt to know that the biggest player on the planet had managed to make me another one of his victims. I could blame the centuries year old connection but that still wouldn't change the way he made me feel.

"You didn't feel Alix's emotions when she saw that vision," Aleksander seethed, "Something bad will happen if she goes in there. I can't let that happen."

Did I disappear? I wondered. He was talking as if I weren't struggling in his arms.

"Dude," Ryder interjected, "We can't let that girl die."

A growl rumbled in Aleksander's chest. I could only imagine the intimidating glare he was sending Ryder. Even though the Heart Curator was practically the Cupid of the supernatural universe, Aleksander has proven he can be quite scary when he wants be. Unfortunately, that wouldn't scare Ryder he'd only take Aleksander's growl as a challenge. I could see the mischievous glint Ryder's sparkling blue eyes. He looked like an angel- but that boy hated peace and serenity.

"I'm the only one that can get her," I reasoned, "I can teleport myself into the house, grab the girl and go. It'll be simple."

Alix was quick to argue. "You don't know it'll be that easy. I see several several different scenarios and all include you being severely burned or dead."

I could live with being severely burned. Maybe I wasn't thinking properly but I didn't want to be cause of another innocent death. My sanity couldn't take it.

"I'm the only one," I repeated.

"No," Dmitri said hesitantly, "You're not the only one who can get in there."

How could I have forgotten? That was absolutely perfect! Dmitri could teleport into the house as well. I didn't like putting his life in harms way but he was the only one who could get the girl.

"Alix, if Dmitri were to grab the girl would the outcome be the same? Would he die?" I asked in a rush.

I could feel all of their confusion but I didn't have time to explain every little detail to them.

"Um-" her eyes fogged over. The vision didn't seem to affect her any way. The emotional atmosphere surrounding her did stay the same but I could detect a smidgen of hope.

"He should be fine," she spoke seconds later as the vision disappeared. "I think everything should go according to plan but-" I hated that word. "There's a very small chance he could die."

Aleksander tensed again. The anger that was radiating off of him was driving me insane. I had never felt as if the two brothers were close but Aleksander was feeling almost murderous while thinking of losing his twin. Before Aleksander could remove his arms on my waist and place them on Alix's neck, Dmitri spoke.

"I'll do it," he said with conviction, "There's only a small chance. This girl's life is depending on us."

"Dmitri this isn't the weather we're talking about!" Aleksander snapped, "It's not like Alix is saying there's a small chance of rain. There's a small chance of death! Your death! You have to take that seriously."

"I am," Determination shined brightly in his eyes, "I've always wanted to be a hero and here's my chance."

Aleksander was going to argue further but his brother was already disappearing. His existence was slowly slipping away from us, as he teleported into the apartment complex. A window shattered into pieces as the flames grew taller. Faintly, I could still hear the girl's pleas for help. The fire continued to crackle and hiss- like a giant snake waiting to go in for the kill. I only hoped Dmitri wouldn't be its next victim.

**Okay so I think this book will be a little longer than the first. I don't know if you guys will be annoyed with that or not but it should at least be 35 chapters. I know with the first book a lot of people complained, saying the ending was rushed so I'll try keep a good pace with the sequel. Tell me in comments what you think will happen next. I've decided the chapter before I reveal who the dark one is, I'll ask one more time who you guys think it is. People who get it right will get a prize I don't know if I want the prize to be a dedication or the ability to name a new character for the third book. You guys can tell me which prize you like more. Also my submission for #OnceUponNow will be published on June 12th please vote on June 14th if you to help me out.
XOXO,
Ro.**

Translation:

Pomoz mi- Help me