She reels, choking on her own blood as her opponent crashes into her, unsure if her chest or her head is in more agony.

And in that moment she knows, beyond a shadow of a doubt: She is fighting outside of her class. Maybe not forever, she is still not fully recovered from the Dark Other who destroyed her in Moscow, but at this moment, she has no weapon powerful enough to counter.

So she dives, releasing her hold on the human world, and retreating into the shadows, to relative safety.





Olga is going to murder her, she decides, resigned, as she begins the long limping trek back towards the bar, still deep in the Twilight.