Drake Morpheus. Antony Piers. An immortal and a man of immortal legend. The two should be enemies, for it was Antony's ancestor, Anton Piers, the first hunted the DreamWalkers, descendants of Morpheo, and the hell they unleashed on the world.


It all began with Anton Piers, the first of the Mendecants, and his son. They were the first, the true, hunting the entire world for demons and the things that legends would become. As the years progressed, they aged more slowly than the humans around them, their heads anointed with the gift of nearly eternal life from the Gods. The Piers men lasted through the years, Anton finally fading into a cloud of dust at the age of 203 and his son, Antoine, dying centuries later. Another and another were born, the names recycled, but the titles the same. The Mendecants Surnaturel. For years, no others were let into their leagues and it was a family business, but as the darkness in the world grew and the times began to change, the current Mendecant Superior saw that more force was needed. The select few hunters that existed in the world banded together and fought against the evils of the night and the darkest of the dawns.


They called themselves the Mendecants Surnaturel, just as Anton had done, and as the world ticked on, they became established. Though their purpose was often concealed, their headquarters, centered in London, on the much avoided Nebula Alley, was built in the coming of the age of man. The fleur-de-lis at the front was misgiving, but inside the marble hallways, all seemed to fall into place. A sense of leadership followed the current Superior, Anthony Piers, and the other hunters soon turned to investigators, while some turned to the books of lore. It was established, through hard work and simple chance...and the days rolled on, years after years piling together until finally, they were whole, complete. Incorporated. MSI.


It had always been said that only those of purest human descendent would be employed within the walls of MSI, but in 1701, when the Mendecant Minor, Antonio Piers, stumbled upon the legend of Silent Knight, a vampire with a streak of good, he sought him out and gave him the choice. To kill the undead lark would have been exceedingly easier, but Antonio saw something far more rewarding in letting him live. Knowing the benefits of having a Nightwalker on their side, he corralled the vampire, Marcus Trellan, and brought him to the ranks of MSI. It was the first of many to follow, but his trust was never to be surpassed.


He had sensed someone following him for nights on end, but he pushed the notion from his mind. No one had followed him in over 200 years. Still, the presence lingered, footsteps falling in time with his late into the night, even when even the evil of the world had found its resting place.


He had gained a name for himself among the criminals. Silent Death, they had called him. The Executioner, Monsieur Tragedy. And his favorite, Silent Knight. Oh yes, fear wasin their eyes, as well it should be. He loved the power, but most of all, he loved those he saved by killing the monsters far worse than him.


People ran from him at the sigh of his smile, and one look into dark pools of night made them tremble with fear. Who would dare to follow him? He soon found his answer. As he turned around, a man stepped from the shadows and Marcus found it hard to do anything but stare. The man held a commanding presence; even his stance demanded attention. He was taller than Marcus with a white shock of hair atop his head. His severe eyes were a tragic, otherworldly green, his features were distinguished, and his build was that of a man who knew his way around a gym, a bar, or anywhere else you could put him. Nothing could scare him. Marcus was impressed.


"Silent Knight, I presume?" the man said, walking closer to Marcus, fear completely void from his eyes. "Or is it The Executioner, or perhaps Monsieur Tragedy? You do have many names, don't you?".


Marcus watched the man, paying close attention to his voice. It was as if he had no accent, only the aristocracy that flowed through his veins.


"Well, I know you speak. Your voice is known to chill the very sould of men. Speak to me, won't you, Monsieur Death?"


For the first time since his mortal years, it took some time for Marcus' reply to come.


"And what shall we speak of, good sir? You hold me at quite the disadvantage with your extensive knowledge of me. At least give me a name," he finally managed to say.


"Consider me your judge and jury, Silent Knight. I'll change your life," he paused. "Marcus Trellan."


"So you know my name," Marcus said. It wasn't a question, but merely a statement, an observation. "And yet you withhold yours. Are you afraid of something, sir?".


"Antonio," he snapped. "That's all you need to know."


It turned out that Antonio was right. Marcus needed to know nothing else. In an instant, the man, his white hair misgiving of his young age, lunged at Marcus, bringing him to the cold, hard ground. He found himself bound and pinned by a supernatural force, watching as Antoine pressed a blade to his throat. He intended to drain him of his very life...Or did he?


He could still hear the words, rough, but trained.


"You have two choices, Trellan. Join me or die by my hand at sunrise."


His heart had chosen true. Days later, Marcus walked into the grand building of MSI. It's white walls were as pale as his skin and the secerts within were greater than any he could ever imagine.


"You'll get over it soon," Antonio had said then, breaking Marcus' state of general awe. He was wrong; Marcus never got over it. Each and every day, he found new pleasure and treasure inside MSI. One very special treasure, in fact, but then it was a treasure that Marcus couldn't even fathom.


And now, with a vampire amongst them, they all moved on, so used to the mysteries of the night that none doubted his purpose. And none doubted the decision of a Piers.


The Mendecant Superior passed, letting the Mendecant Minor Antonio rise up into ranks, giving birth to the next to follow, Antony Piers' mother, Anna Piers. She was the first woman ever to become a Superior, but she proved to be no less reckoned with. As her time too passed, Antony took his place, some century later. It was during his reign that an old adversary rose up again, along with a dark-eyed girl who was a proven medium in the world. Raelin Lorcan. She was brought in as a rookie, having shown up on the doorstep of MSI and braved all the darkness to do so. Letting her in, Antony took pity, raising the girl as his own, though she was already enough of a woman to hold her own. He knew that she still cared for her younger sister, Keelin, and so he gave her all the breaks he could, allowing her to quickly surpass the other investigators. After some few years, she was given a partner, Marcus Trellan, and her first case.


None knew that this case would mean the hardening of her heart. As she opened the file, she saw one name. Drake. And her heart ceased to beat for just a moment. This idol, that time had forgotten, had once again surfaced and was granting wishes and making dreams come true, not to the catastrophic proportions of his maker, but just the same, he mistakenly granted to wish of a weak mind...Perhaps on purpose, because he knew it was draw them together again. This man, the one whose file she now held in her hands, had been the voice in her mind and the bearer of the heart that she held so delicately in her hands. This was the man that had spoken to her all those nights ago, when she sat by her dying father's bed. This was the man, who was more than merely a man, that had seen past time or place, and into her mind. He had come to her, he had remained. And they had loved. In fact, she knew that this very night, he would be waiting for her. And yet he was the enemy? A DreamWalker, the file explained, down to the last detail. A descendant of the devil, Morpheo, and a short step from the god of Dreams, Morpheus.


Case 203: Dreamwalker, became Raelin's maddening grace.


She had never heard the door open or shut. She had never heard the sound of footsteps on the carpet. She nearly screamed when a gentle hand was laid on her shoulder, shaking her from the meditative state she had slipped into. Looking up slowly, as if seeing for the first time, she saw him standing before her. His eyes were widened with concern as he reached up, brushing his hand lightly against her hair.


"What?" she said softly with a slight smile, watching him standing before her.


"What was that about, Rae?" was his answer to her question.


"My first case..." she said, staring straight ahead as she slipped back in time. The entire time, Marcus watched her, his hand tentatively on her shoulder, holding her in this place, this time. "My first true love..."


"Honey, I don't know what you're saying," he told her honestly, bending down and looking into her face. "Now, come on, love...Don't leave me now. What are you talking about?"


"Oh, Trellan....I can't tell you. I can't tell anyone. Just...just forget I ever said anything," she said, nearly pleading as she hung her head.


"'Fraid I can't do that, sweetheart," he told her, his voice was smooth and comforting as were his hands gently rubbing her arms. "Trust me."


She took his hands in hers, bringing him down to sit in front of her. He saw from the look on her face that whatever this was and whoever he was, it had changed her and made her the woman she was today.


He held her hands, his thumbs running in circles over the tops of them. "Trust me," he repeated, watching her, coaxing her slowly out of her shell.


She said a single word. "Dreamwalker."


His eyes widen as he watched her, his lips parting slightly into a smile. "No..."


She nodded slowly, looking away from him. "Drake."


She began to speak slowly, as if it every word was a struggle. At the hardest moments, Marcus could tell which they were by her actions: gripping his hands tighter in hers and breathing deeper.


And so her tale began:


"I was seventeen years old, sitting by my father's death bed in some shack in the poor part of town. As I sat there, alone with his dying spirit, I heard a voice...a voice inside my mind. He spoke to me, promising all my dreams and desires if I would only be by his side. It was a strange encounter, but I was never an ordinary girl. I heard things I shouldn't have and felt things no one would ever know. I was far from normal and this he knew. He came to me in one of my weakest moments and promised me the world. But what he gave me was so much more.


"Years later, after I had raised Keelin and had just started to live my life, I met a man...late one night at a small cafe. He walked in and it was like Death suddenly set foot inside the walls. Everyone grew quiet and still, watching the man as he walked slowly down the main aisle of the all-night cafe. You could have heard a pin drop and this silence stirred me from my thoughts. Looking up, I saw him. His blonde hair curling about his ears and his ocean blue eyes piercing the dimly lit cafe. His leather coat fell down gracefully, resting just above his knees and brushing against well-tailored, yet torn jeans. His shirt was of the smoothest silk, like his skin and his boots were tough, yet at the same moment, exuding pride. Oh God, Marcus...He was beauitful.


He gave her a small smile, but said nothing. Too enthralled in the story to interrupt, he waved her on, holding her hands tighter as she took in another deep breath, resuming her tale.


"I was reading, I remember, and after staring, I looked back down at my book, my face burning from the heat he produced, even so far away. He walked slowly to me and when he reached my table, he bent down, looking into my eyes with the faintest hint of a smile. 'Tella..'he whispered, and at first, I had no idea what he was speaking of, thinking it was some foreign language. Then, as I listened to his voice echoing in my ears, I remembered him. That night, beside my father's bed. The voice had called me 'Tella' then too. The voice. That voice. His heavenly voice."


Giving her the signal to go on, Marcus nodded slightly, anxiously awaiting more. He watched as she began slowly to loosen up, tugging at his hands as she talked and even smiling now and then.


"He was more then even I could imagine, Marcus...It was like, he walked right out of my dreams and into my life. He didn't even ask as he sat down at my table and reached over, taking my hand."


Marcus interrupted now, his eyes wide. "You mean, you didn't smack him, Raelin? Whoa...."


"Smack him? Marcus, I couldn't even move!" she said with a lingering smile as she remembered so vividly that night.


She closed her eyes as the memories flooded in, warming her to the core. Oh, but she loved him. How could she deny that, even now? After all these years, the very mention of blue eyes made her pause for just a moment. The thought of him sent her into another world, another time, another person.


"Well, what did you do?" Marcus prodded, still holding her hands as if she would suddenly float away.


"I fell in love with him."


She found it hard to control herself as she watched Marcus, his eyes wide and mouth gaping open. "You what?".


"From the way you look, Trellan, I'd almost believe you think me incapable of love," she said quietly teasing as she went on. "Yes, I fell in love with him. Each night, he came to me, showing me the world through his eyes.


"What did he show you, Rae?" Marcus asked softly, looking up at her, this woman he had known for so long, but had never truly met until this night.


"Everything, Marcus...Everything...Oh, he was perfect. He sensed what I was feeling, knew what I wanted, gave me what I needed, and always, always wanted to talk. Some guys, they don't want conversations while holding the woman they love in their arms. They just want the purely physical aspect of it, but not him. He wanted everything. He showed me everything. I gave him...everything," she paused and look down at the floor, suddenly mesmerized by the twists in the carpet below her.


Marcus watched her, reaching out and and lifting her chin gently. "It's alright, Rae..."


She gave him a smile, or a ghost of a smile. Mingling within her eyes was a tragic sadness with a lingering fondness for the memories she recalled.


"What happened?" he questioned softly, watching her, but moreso looking into her eyes.


At his question, her eyes grew dark. Her lips were set into a thin line as she looked back at him. "It ended. Like everything else," she stated simply, bitterly, closing in on herself again and shutting him out. He wondered if he should have said anything, but more than that, he regretted that he had lost their connection so quickly. It was as if he could feel her growing cold beneath his touch and saw all emotion flow from her into some dark reserve that she kept hidden from the world. Now, as he looked in her eyes, he saw only the dark depths of them. The light that had shined moments ago was gone and only the chilling stare remained.


"So nice to have you back, Lorcan," he muttered and rose, knowing that now with the hard exterior of her life around her, nothing could harm her. The trusting, vulnerable woman that had sat in that body moments ago had receded into the inner circle of the mind and in her place was a sarcastic and independent woman. He rose and turned, walking away and feeling the blood thirst rise within him. He had to get out, had to feed. But something stopped him. A voice, soft, but he still recognized the edge to the words.


"I had just been promoted, to Investigator here, at Mendecant Surnaturel after working years in filing and cleaning and billing. After endless hours of hard work, I finally had my dream. I was going to be a member of MSI. By that time, Drake and I had been together for years. I knew there was something different about him...I knew he was the voice that had invaded my mind and haunted me since the night my father died. I knew he was the presence I felt as a girl, alone when I closed my eyes. I knew he was timeless. I knew he was ageless. I knew he was immortal, but I didn't care. I loved him. Whatever he was, it didn't mater. To me, he was Drake. Just Drake. I never really thought anything about it. I had found someone to love me amid a world of hatred and lies. Somewhere, in that darkness that clouds the mind, he broke through, like the sun after a thunderstorm...but then, a greater storm came, like the flooding rains that nothing could contain..."


She paused, her face losing nearly all of its color. Slowly, Marcus turned around, watched her, eyes narrowed in thought and brow furrowed in repose, waiting for whatever was to come. She sat still and rigid, hands gripping the desk again as she remembered something- this that clearly hurt her.


"It was my second week here...I'd finally gotten used to the people and the procedures again from a new perspective when the Chief approached me. He led me into his office and sat me down. He handed me a brown folder, confidential stamped on the outside in bold red letters and papers spilling around the edges. My first case, a simple one, so he said. As I sat there, he told me of a creature that invaded minds and just when he was about to be cast out, the connection broken, he would offer someone their greatest desires and then, through that, he would take advantage of them. I sat there, listening to all the details of how he established these connections, his mind too developed for this world and his methods seamless as he weaved his way through and was never caught. People were terrified, wanting their most secret desires kept that way, never to surface, but then, there were some that begged for this creature to visit them. They would use magic spells and potions and whatever else the dark arts dealers said would work and he would listen and come to their call. With the final order that he had to be stopped at no expense, I was dismissed. Since it was my first case, he gave me a few off-the-record pointers to deal with the particulars and my colleagues, and then sent me on my way."


"What did you do?" Marcus asked, his eyes locked on hers, enthralled by her story, but even moreso by the fact that she was truly giving something to him, a part of herself.


"What did I do? My job, Marcus. I went into my tiny cubicle and sifted through every file and letter connected with this strange being. Inside were several accounts from the clients that described the way he looked, how he spoke, and anything else they could remember. Slowly, I began to bring it all together and no matter how hard I tried to deny it...It all fit. This being I searched for was right in front of me. He was in my heart, whispering to my soul; he was a part of me. I knew at the moment it all dawned brighter than the day that I had to free him. Everyday I worked myself in circles, passing the glaring truth and every night I returned to him. It was sheer agony, knowing that the one person I had ever loved was being tracked down. It was ever harder to take that I was the one sent to bring him in at all costs." She paused as he saw her shoulders rise and fall slowly as she took in a deep breath.


"Are you alright, Rae?" he asked quietly. "You...you don't have to do this."


She gave him a smile and it made his very heart ache to see the sadness swirling within her, to feel the dark despair that shrouded her.


"I do have to do this, Marcus. I do," she told him, then went on, her voice colder as she remembered that ill-fated night. "Finally, I couldn't take it anymore. I was driving myself to the brink of insanity. I told him. I had to. I had no choice. One night, we stood on the balcony and I took his face in my hands and stared into his eyes. It broke my heart to do it, but it was my first lesson in breaking hearts and ripping fate to shreds."


"Tell me you didn't, Rae. Tell me you didn't," Marcus nearly pleaded.


"I wish I could, Trellan. I told him everything of the case, of remembering him and it seemed as though he knew already. He had read my thoughts again. He told me it wasn't what I wanted and I had to lie to him. I can still his face when the lie crossed my lips. I told him it couldn't continue and that I had to do this. I told him that if he wanted to be free then he would have to go and forget me. I told him..." she choked as the breath caught in her throat and held up a hand to stop Marcus. "I told him I never wanted to see him again."


"Oh, Raelin," Marcus said, biting his lip. A vampire with compassion, such a strange commodity in a heartless world.


"He left that night, whispering something to me that I have remembered all my life. Another choice. Another dream," she said, sad but wistful. "He walked away from me that night, but not before kissing me." She smiled. "And touching my heart deep enough to last forever. After all that he had given me, I could only grant him his freedom. He was meant to be free."


"Of course," Marcus said in agreement. "Of course."


"With no more leads to the case, it was closed and filed as "closed". I filed it myself. Closed. I think I became that case in a way. I closed in on myself, rarely letting anyone in. I was too afraid they'd learn the truth and try to hurt him...I had done enough to hurt him. No one else would. So, the case was closed and forgotten by everyone...except me. With him gone, it was meaningless. Until now. With Blaine's emergence, they've searched the database and brought it out again."


"They know?"


"They think they do," she said, becoming the agent again. "It matches the parameters perfectly. 'Dreamwalker' has been reopened with no intent of being closed again until the culprit is brought in. Marcus Trellan, welcome to my hell."


"No," he said in awe, willing something else to come from this.


"Yes, my friend," she said, holding up another file worn with time and a second stamp covering the shadow of one that had been there long ago. "Case 203: Dreamwalker- Reopened. Class: Unknown. Assigned: Raelin Lorcan and Marcus Trellan. Approved: MSI."


The case was reopened some years after Raelin had closed it the first time. A young actor, by the name of Blaine Cavan, called upon MSI to rid of him of the 'devil' to which he had given his soul. He had always thought the man he spoke to was of the darkest of demons, the leader of all of hell's creation. Blaine's dream had been for his past to be forgotten, and for his fame to rise to immeasurable proportions, but when it all started to go awry, the consequences of his desire neglected by him, he sought to blame another, rather than his own idle mind.


"You said I'd be famous! You said I'd be free! You swore no one remember! You're a liar!" He trembled as he looked on the dark frame, hidden by the shadows of the night. His heart raced and his breath came in short, quick gasps.


The shadows laughed as the one before him clapped. "Very good, Blaine. A marvelous performance. Now quiet yourself and sit down, there." He pointed to a chair in the middle of the room, the only thing visible under the soft light of the chandelier overhead. Blaine hesitated, not wanting to be confined to the chair. He wanted to be free to run, never knowing what the one that spoke would do. "I said, sit down."


In a rush, Blaine stepped to the chair, easing himself down in it, his eyes darting from side to side, unable to penetrate the darkness that crept all around him. He heard the quiet footfalls and knew the man was walking around him, surveying him with his unusual and unaging eyes. He was probably smirking at him, relishing in the shivers that flooded over him.


"Now, dear Mr. Cavan, what is your grievance with me? I've done nothing but what you asked, the secret that you held deep within your miserable heart." His words dripped with disdain as he continued to walk, the tails of his long coat gliding over the coarse cloth of his finely tailored pants.


Though he opened his mouth, it took several tries before any words would come. "You lied."


"I lied? Oh, you idiot... You wanted fame and fortune and that you have. No one knows where you came from. You were like a shooting star, falling from the sky. What is this nonsense you speak of?"


Drawing in a ragged breath, Blaine spoke again. "There is one that knows."


The footsteps stopped for a moment as the words registered with his interrogator. "What?" His voice was low, more of a hiss than a question.


"A girl. She says we were friends one summer long ago, when I was a boy. She remembers me. You swore no one would know!" His voice began to shake as he anticipated his world crumbling around him.


"Impossible." He shook his head, the blonde hair waving wildly in the darkness that consumed him. "No one has the power to resist me. I searched your mind for every memory, made all those that knew you forget."


"Not everyone. She remembers! She looked into my eyes and told me my name! She told me of that summer and of her sister, raven haired, that I fell for while she sat by, watching and envying us. She knows!" He looked around the room, unable to place the position of the dark one that had stood near him moments before.


He heard his voice, a low cadence as he spoke from a far corner. "Picture her."


"What?" Blaine turned from side to side, searching for him.


"Do it." There was no compassion in the voice. This was an order and Blaine knew he had no choice but to obey.


He heard the man sigh heavily. The footsteps receded as a door shut somewhere. Blaine called out into the silence, but there was only the soft whisper of an echo as he sat alone. Rising, he bolted from the room, his coat billowing out behind him. He gasped, taking in deep breaths as he met the open night, the streetlamps shining around him, casting small halos on the sidewalk.


He began to walk, never looking at the direction in which he was heading. He had to leave here, had to escape, but to where was the question. No matter how far he ran, he would not be safe as long as that girl knew his secret and as long as that thing carried the knowledge over his head. He had to find help, someone crazy enough to believe him and brilliant enough to save him.



As the case was reopened, she knew that this time, she could not simply let him go. And now, the girl they spoke of, her sister, Keelin, was in the mix. An unknown mystery rested within her, and that was why she remembered, despite the chances of the course of time. So deeply imbedded into this misery, Raelin knew that bringing Drake Morpheus down was her only option. And still, she was not convinced that he was the enemy. Her heart decided long before her mind did, and that brought her to her decision. The capture had been planned, atop a tall skyscraper as she called to him, to Drake Morpheus. He came, and Raelin was to bind him and to make him a prisoner of MSI for eternity. But as she looked in those eyes and saw the remnants of true love shining back at her, she looked to Marcus and goodbye was written within her dark eyes. She placed the amulet of MSI in Marcus' hand and nodded to him, her decision done. She would leave MSI, and leave she did, on the wings of the night with her only love, the DreamWalker. It was short-lived, as she realized that all that he done could not be forgiven, even through the grandeur of love.


Once Antony Piers learned of her resignation, he moved about in a stunned silence. Raelin Lorcan had become his daughter and he could not simply let her go. Did he truly have to choose? He called to her, called to any of those that would listen, and demanded her back among their ranks. He would do what he had to, at all costs, to have her back again. For once, Antony Piers would bend, but it was only under the stubbornness of Raelin or the gentle guidance of Danae.


At any cost. Antony would bend.