Decius had given Laurenz the slip and he didn't feel guilty in the slightest. 

He had stuffed some pillows under the duvet, making it look as if he was still in bed. It would buy him a few hours to stack up some distance between the two, or even better, lose him completely.

The sun was not far from rising, and Decius felt like he had never been better. Thankfully, he had been able to sleep for nine hours, giving himself enough time to recharge his power. He felt it flowing through his veins once again, but he was uncertain about how much he had. One night's rest most likely wasn't enough to regain full strength, and teleporting a large distance like he had done the day before could be disastrous.

The village was growing distant as he walked on, towards his home. He hoped to be there by late afternoon, remembering why he made the jump to the great lake. Closer to my family, he thought, not that he shared that with Laurenz, when being quizzed the day before.

His mind drifted back to Seraphina, and he quickly bridged the mental gap to see her again, desperate to be sure of what he saw. He stopped in his tracks when he saw the blood.

Shards of glass littered the wooden floorboards around her slumped body, and the curtain from the broken window behind her had been torn down, the fabric piled on the wood below. Her mop of curly hair covered her face, matted with the blood that had blossomed from the gunshot wound in her forehead.

Somebody had killed her, and Laurenz had no idea.

It was all his fault, anyway, Decius thought to himself, he dragged her into his life. He was selfish. He knew that he was risking her life by loving her, and now she's dead because of it. He almost deserved it.

Decius remembered the look in Laurenz's eyes when he admitted he didn't know if she was alive or not. It was his worst fear, losing her. A fear he only brought on himself.

Decius broke the connection to Seraphina, and he started to move again, ploughing through the tall grass.

He wondered why her death bothered him so much. Was it because he had a family of his own and knew how much it would hurt to lose them? But he had killed so many people with no regret, so why was he so concerned now?

As the sun's golden rays began to caress the horizon, a morning chorus of bird chirps erupted. The bird calls came from all around, sourced from the sky and the trees sprinkled across the fields. An early morning breeze brushed past Decius, the cool air dancing across his face and through his hair.

He let his feelings go with the wind for a few minutes, focusing on the nature that surrounded him. He allowed the peace to fill him up, pushing aside the confusing thoughts in his head.

As his legs carried him closer to his home, the more apprehensive he became. What would he say to them? He knew he had to tell Renata about his power, there was no doubt about it. Decius knew he was becoming too dangerous to be around Sascha, and that scared him.

While he was lost in his newfound wonderings, he didn't realise that the area had fallen silent. The birds had stopped singing, and the wind had suddenly seemed to drop to a standstill. It took a few moments for it to dawn on him, but when it did, he immediately knew something was wrong.

Very, very, wrong.

Power engulfed his piercing blue eyes, scanning around for the root of the issue. His eyes narrowed when his gaze found human life signs crouched behind shrubs.

"Show yourselves!" He bellowed, blue mist beginning to swirl around his fingertips as he stood his ground in the open.

One man emerged with a heavy duty gun raised, aimed for Decius. "Decius Cavlacanti. You have been ordered to die by the Azeri Bounty Federation."

Decius chuckled. "The ABF? Sorry to break it to you, but you've already sent people to kill me. I don't think you're needed, pal."

The man smirked. "Did old Marcello finally give out? Maybe this will give the rest of us a chance to get paid."

He stroked the trigger, ready to kill. However, Decius was prepared to protect himself, and he could easily get rid of all three men if he wanted to. His fingers twitched in anticipation, ready to dish out some pain to the men who thought their pathetic attempts could kill him.

A gun fired, and before Decius could raise his hand to deflect any bullets, the man crumpled to the ground, a red patch forming on his lapel.

"Not a chance, buddy. I'm not going anywhere." Spoke a voice from behind him, and he whipped around to see Laurenz, who had a gun still trained for where the man was just standing.

Decius hurried to think of an excuse. "Laurenz, I-"

"Save it. Are there others?" Laurenz snapped, cutting him off.

"Two. Underbrush to the left. Wait for my signal, let's have some fun."

"What's the signal?" Laurenz hissed but Decius had already turned to face where the other hunters were hiding.

If they had weapons, they seemed hesitant to use them, so Decius was going to use this to his advantage.

He summoned more magic towards his hands, getting ready to strike. "You'll know the signal when you see it," he whispered.

With that, he dropped, slamming his palms to the ground, sending a powerful pulse of energy into the dirt. It shot underground towards the two hunters, sending a path of uprooted dirt in its wake.

Suddenly, the two men lifted into the air, the energy having pushed them up. They stayed like that, suspended in mid-air, struggling for movement.

Decius quickly shot two tendrils of blue mist towards them, encircling their bodies and yanking them back towards Laurenz.

"Now!"

Laurenz rapidly fired two shots, hitting both men in the chest. Decius dropped the magic, letting the two men fall to the grass. Decius was about to remark on the weakness of the men when one of them began to move, trying to drag himself to safety.

"I'll handle this." Decius snarled, storming towards the dying man. He grabbed him by the collar of his jacket, pulling him to his feet. In a split second, both of Decius's hands were on his neck. He squeezed and jerked his hands swiftly, sparking the satisfying crack of the man's bones, and a wave of fervour that momentarily revealed itself on his face.

He dropped the hunter, who was now limp, and turned back to Laurenz. "I'm surprised you caught up with me so quickly," he mused.

"Why did you leave?" Laurenz asked stoically, storing the gun back in one of his pockets.

"Because I don't want to be dragging you around all the time. Find your own way back to Vaneaux."

Laurenz's face quickly contorted into irritation. "Oh no, you're not getting away that easily. If you think you're leaving me here, you're mistaken. Where do you even think you're going?"

"I'm going home, Laurenz. If you think I'm too heartless to have a family, that's your issue, but I haven't seen them in months. They're my priority, not you."

Laurenz scoffed. "Who would want you for family? Do they know that you kill people, or more importantly, that you actually seem to enjoy it? Do they know what you've been doing, Decius?"

"What, are you going to try and make me feel guilty now? Go ahead, Laurenz. You can't say anything that I haven't already told myself." he replied, trying to convince himself more than anyone.

"If I come with you to see your family, will you take me home afterwards?" Laurenz questioned, all the anger gone from his expression. He couldn't explain why accompanying Decius to his family, suddenly seemed like a good idea, when he had his own priorities. He also had to admit to himself, that he didn't really know how to get back home, and did not relish his chances wandering the wilds, trying to find his way with the creatures of the night.

Decius was immediately on guard. He had far too many secrets accumulated in the last few months, and this man was not to be trusted with anything he knew, or thought he knew. Why was he suddenly interested in coming with him? Decius didn't want him anywhere near his family. He could only see things working out badly. He was also motivated to be away from Laurenz, when images of Seraphina threatened to intrude into his thoughts, and he wanted them to be gone for good.

"No thanks" was all Decius said.

"Not an option Decius. I need your magic to get me back."

"You're resourceful and strong, you'll be fine" Decius retorted.

"Let me cut to the chase, this is not a negotiation, I will pursue you and make sure your family knows who you really are. I know that's the last thing you want. I need something from you, and you need me to keep my mouth shut and my finger off my trigger - let's call a truce" Laurenz offered. The bounty on Decius's head or maintaining his reputation as the best hunter seemed to fade in importance for the moment, at least until the time was right and he could regain the upper hand. But he wasn't about to let up the pressure on Decius - at least while he still needed him.

Despite himself, he also saw some of his own character reflected in Decius, and was also very curious about his powers. Laurenz not only needed him to get him closer to home, but was smart enough to recognise that Decius could be handy to have around in a tight spot.

Decius paused, considering his options. He was in no doubt that Laurenz would be true to his word, as he had the determination and nothing to lose - a dangerous combination. The thought that his family would discover anything about his recent activities was crushing. "Fine. But don't you dare say anything to them about what I've done and where I've been. As far as they know, we're friends and neither of us have killed anyone in our lives. Then, and only then, will getting you back to...." The words had tumbled out as he conceded, but caught in his throat the moment Seraphina's image entered his mind. "Got it?" he managed, and immediately started walking to hide the angst etched on his face.

Laurenz nodded, and Decius continued on his journey with the older man trailing a few steps behind.

It wouldn't be long before he would see his family again.

He couldn't wait.