• Once upon a time or so I suppose I should begin, there existed a girl. I use the word existed because she was not born of man but created. She was created from the boiled blood of a Demon, charred feathers of an Angel and the eyes of a virgin maiden. All of which was thrown into a pot of melted steel and enchanted by Him. He created her and all those like her. I shan’t give you his name for it is said to bring ill fortune.

    Scarlet of the Hooded Knights was her title, although to be honest, she protected no Kingdom. She was a huntress of sorts whose prey was neither for feast nor for hide but for profit. Who so ever paid her enough, she’d gladly accepted the bounty. It just so happens that our tale begins with a hunt of a runaway.

    “So I am to bring this Grace to her and bring her back to the Gates of Eden?”

    “ Is that too much to ask of Scarlet?”

    “ Never did such words so much as danced on my tongue. Although, if she left Eden willingly, she was within reason.” Venom swirled within Scarlet’s green eyes, daring to infect the other man’s.

    “What, pray tell, do you mean by that?”

    “ My words speak for themselves.” And with that Scarlet turned round, walking from the man known as Adam. Her hair spun like gold in the warm winds of the east. The sun had just begun its trek onto morning. Her robes hid her figure and sword well as she slipped through the gates and onto the unpaved road towards the forest. The Grace she was to force feed to her bounty laid hidden even further within her garments.

    In honesty she was in no rush and leisurely strode through the forest. She was never one to appreciate beauty although many a time was called one.

    “ Good day to you Little Red.” Her hand at once wretched forth her sword; she was not one for surprises and soon stood ready to lay waste to any who dare provoke. The unseen voice chuckled at the girl’s erratic response.

    “My, my, my, such a lethal blade for such a small child. Tell me dear Scarlet, what brings you to the woods so soon in the morn?”

    “Ask all you please but I shan’t give reply till you reveal.”

    “ So be it.”

    Out from the very shadows arose a figure, frail and pale. He wore raggedy grays and black, arms much too long, eyes much too large. A smile from a face which sadness seemed only fair danced before Scarlet.

    “Who are you?”

    “Wolf.” The raggedy man bowed before the girl who then lowered her sword. It was at that moment she noticed his wings; wilted, black, frayed, and ugly barely deserving the name. Scarlet’s lips curled into a devilish grin.

    “A Fallen. You do wrong by presenting yourself to a Hunter.” She raised her sword once more, this time edging ever closer to the man. Wolf let out a small laugh.
    “That so little girl? I fear neither you nor your sword. I’ve presented myself for company.”

    “Company? You’ve gone mad have you not? A Fallen like you should be cowering before me or at the very least doing a better job of concealing himself.” Another laugh crept into Scarlet’s ears as Wolf stepped closer. So close in fact that he dutifully placed his chin upon the flat of the blade so that the very tip met his throat.

    “ Now Scarlet, I do smell that Grace you carry so close to...” His eyes ventured lower than her neck but higher than her navel. “ A rather strong one at that. My question to you is why does a Hunter carry it around?”

    “Curiosity killed the cat.” Those were meant to be the last words he was to hear as she lunged forward to drive the blade into the Fallen’s throat. He had had other plans.

    “Aye but satisfaction brought it back.” He now appeared hanging from the nearest tree, arms high above his head, raven hair covering his golden eyes. His grin became larger and larger, seeming to curl upon itself, revealing sharp canines.

    “ Lilith, first wife of Adam. She fled Eden. I’m sure you’ve heard.” Scarlet placed her sword at her side. She assessed that Wolf was no real threat and had he been, she’d have been already slain.

    “That so? But that’s not her Grace and since when were Hunters the mail couriers?”
    “Bite your tongue or I shall make swift work with my sword with it. The price was to my pleasure, that’s all that matters to me. I do as I am told and am paid. Now I shall be on my way.” Throwing her hood just above her placid green eyes, she marched onward, dubious of the Fallen.

    “ Oh Little Red…why the urgency? The sun has yet to rise higher than the trees.”

    “Why so many questions? You are a lucky one the bounty on your head is not my own or you’d long since been buried.”

    “Would you have brought flowers to my grave then?” Scarlet could only laugh. “ Not even a daisy?” Scarlet kept walking; ignoring him completely until the sounds of following footsteps stilled. Turning around she saw him laid out onto the roots of an elm, his hand clutching at his heart.

    “ Fool. I’ve got much to do than watch your melodramatics.” She turned around to begin her trek again only to realize she had come to where the path had split. The sun was peeking through the trees, not high enough to clear either way.

    “ They both lead to where she hides.”

    “So you’ve known her whereabouts all along? I should kill you now for withholding such precious information.” She answered the to the man who now stood at her side.

    “ You never asked so how could I have answered? I withhold nothing from the girl who would bring flowers to my grave.”

    “ Which flowers would you like?”

    “ So you’ll bring them?”

    “ To your grave. Yes.” Scarlet curled her hand round the hilt of her sword.

    “ Then take the one to the right. It is much faster and laden with many beautiful flowers from which to choose from.” Scarlet smiled, bowed before the man named Wolf and strode into the left path. The Fallen watched till the last of her red robes disappeared into the trees.

    “I knew you would not listen. Now I shall arrive sooner than you.” Opening his pitiful excuse for wings, he took flight into the path that lead to Lilith’s home. Ivy vines wrapped so tight round the shabby one room cabin that at first glance one would think of a giant shrub save for the door that stood a stark blue. Wolf landed softly upon the threshold to hear a weary voice call out.

    “ It is unlocked, come through.”

    “ But I could be a thief.”

    “ I have nothing for you to steal.”

    “ I could be a vicious beast with a thirst for blood.”

    “ I shan’t put up a fight nor spill much blood.”

    “ I could be a ravenous hunter in search for female companionship.”

    “ If I had the energy, I would laugh. One look at me, and you would not be so ravenous. Now come hither. You be not Hunter nor Adam and are welcomed.”

    With that said, Wolf pushed the door open with a creak that sounded as if lightning had been slowed. Had he placed any more strength, the door was sure to fall forth to the floor. His golden eyes danced upon every image inside the room. Spider webs and rotting wood with vines of ivy peeked through the walls. A fireplace covered in ash and a cold, an ember never once lit. A table that a breath could shatter stood to the side of an ill formed bed of hay and worn cloth. There laid the pale creature.

    “ Lilith, I do believe you’ve seen better.”

    Said woman smiled weakly up at the man who now hovered above; her gray eyes struggling to stay open and take in his sight. Tangled locks of white laid lifelessly down to her waist and her skin paled to shades of fading porcelain.

    “ If you are referring to Eden I think not. What brings you here? Can’t I die alone?”

    “ We all do but I can smell your Grace, you still have it.”

    “ So that is what you want.” Lilith let out a dry cough. “ I still possess my Grace but Adam, that tyrant, has cast a spell upon it. I connect consume it, merely watch it flicker.”

    “ While you waste away?” Wolf watched as Lilith coughed once more, uncontrollably this time. If he had had a heart, it would ache,

    “ Take it. Before…she does.” Words barely above a whispered entered Wolf’s ears and had he not seen Lilith’s lips move, he would have believed a ghost said them. Slowly, Lilith reached underneath her mattress of hay and brought forth a small shimmering sphere of light. Despite it only be about the size of her palm, the light shone brightly forcing Wolf to cover his eyes.

    “ Why would you willingly give me your power?”

    “ Are you not a demon?”

    “ A Fallen.”

    “ Even better.” Lilith took this time to close her eyes and settle her breathing. She sensed a different Grace approaching and knew Scarlet was near. “ Take it now my dear friend for your own has been shattered and weaken. Mine is still pure and waiting.”

    “ And what should a Fallen Angel like me do with so much power.”

    “Exact my revenge and live forever outside the reign of God.”

    “ Tempting but what of our little red friend?” A loose grin graced Lilith’s face.

    “ Wolves love the taste of human flesh.”

    “ Lilith! I’ve brought your Grace!” Scarlet’s voice cut through the ivy and straight to their ears. The woman in question closed her eyes and held up her Grace with the little strength she had left.

    “ Take it.” She whispered.

    He did as told, consuming the Grace of Lilith. He smiled as he felt the waves of power rush through his veins and the elation of his wings, now obsidian crystal blades for feathers. He looked down to see Lilith had passed from the land of the living and smiled. Leaning forward he whispered words known only to Demons and the woman was resurrected; still weak but alive.

    “ I need you. If only a bit longer.” With that said, he immersed himself inside of Lilith; his soul and hers' intertwining as one. A bit of color returned to Lilith’s skin but her eyes became large and golden. Her ears turned to spikes and hid poorly underneath her tangle of now gray hair. Her face smiled.

    “ Lilith, you’ve changed since last I saw.” Scarlet now stood inside the room, glaring at the women who laid on the bed of hay.

    “ Hello to you as well.” Scarlet suppressed a snort in response.

    “ My, what big ears you have.”

    “ All the better to hear you my dear.” Lilith bent her elbows to look the other girl in the eye.

    “ My, what big eyes you have.”

    “ All the better to see you my dear.” Now Lilith sat up completely, her frail body no longer so.

    “ My, what sharp nails you have.”

    “ All the better to scratch my dear.”

    “ My, what sharp teeth you have.”

    “ All the better to partake in your flesh my Little Red.” At those words Lilith lunged at the girl who stood to realize too late who Lilith really was. Bringing forth her sword, Scarlet began to fight, knocking the Grace she carried onto the floor. The two were locked in a battle of Hunter and Beast as Lilith use her newly grown nails as small daggers.

    “ This is exactly why Hunters like me are sent to slay Fallen like you.”

    “ That so?” He, and by he I refer to Wolf in possession of Lilith’s body, struck Scarlet across her face. Angry and jagged cuts fell along her right eye.

    “ The flowers I picked will go well on your unmarked grave.” Scarlet lunged forward, striking the possessed woman across the shoulder with her sword. A blood-curling scream escaped the woman’s throat. Then came the laughter.

    “ Bring me those flowers and I’ll smile down from Heaven.” Stunned by his strange behavior, Scarlet did not prevent the fist sent sailing through her stomach. All the air in her lungs was lost while her eyes struggled to stay in their sockets. Lilith’s nails extended and cut into Scarlet, creating a warm fountain of blood to spill.

    As I said before, Scarlet was a Hunter. She did not bleed crimson but rather a black and oily substance, thick with the stench of sulfur. Wolf let out a terribly hoarse laugh that could have never been released by Lilith had her body not been taken and cut deeper into the girl.

    “ Here’s a little gift from me to you.” The Fallen grabbed the Grace that laid on the floor and brought it inside Scarlet’s fresh wound, embedding as far as Lilith’s wrist would go. Scarlet let out a howl of agony as her insides churned at the sudden intrusion. “ Hush now Little Red, you’ll be fine. You have my word.”

    As such things were going on in the cabin, outside walked a Demon, freshly freed from Hell. He knew not the customs of humans and thought it odd to hear such turmoil so early in the morn. He prided himself in stealth as he too was a hunter of sorts. So he stuck his head, inside a crack, to take a peek. To his surprise laid a girl in red upon the floor, a puddle of black surrounded her. Over her body stood a wild woman in white.

    He knew if he was to keep his freedom from Death and Hell, that he should steer clear of the cabin and fled at once. Moments later, Scarlet awoke from her puddle of blood to see Lilith and Wolf smiling down at her.

    “ I told you, you’d be fine. Till my last breath, you shall stay and when I die, remember the flowers to my grave.” The man with golden eyes almost sang as he helped the laying girl to her feet.

    “ How do you feel now that you've become an Angel?” It was Lilith who asked. Color had returned to her skin and her ears were no longer pointed and her nails no sharp; her hair snow white.

    “ Angel am I not for this thirst I now possess no Angel could.” A wicked grin traced her lips as she reached for her wound no longer there. She smiled and said “ I shall take my last bounty now.”

    Scarlet returned to Eden, her bounty at hand. The Gates let open, Adam at wait, his eyes glimmering lust at his most prized possession. Little did he know of the poison she had slipped into his drink. Little did he know of the Little Red Robe, who stole his Grace and laid him to waste. And this is where the story ends. The happily ever after is there, just not in our taste.