The autumn night was crisp, with a harsh wind rustling the trees, causing them to sway and wobble. They creaked and groaned, their leaves fluttering rapidly to the ground below. The moon was full and perched at its highest peak, with a few clouds passing by. It shone proudly, illuminating the forest with an ethereal glow.

Six full moon's had passed since her mother's death. Six more attacks that happened, with a devastating blow to the population of not only her village, but neighboring ones.

That night had been the first time she ever witnessed it to such an extent. Yes, they attacked before, but never at such a magnitude. Not with so many wolves or with so much death. There was one piece of information she did manage to acquire: the wolves were human. Man who turned into vicious beasts each full moon, gifted - or cursed - by Witches.

Anastasia heard of people with abilities to conjure magic, but she never believed the stories. Now she was desperate. If the ancient book her and Kaden found led to a dead end, they would have nothing. If that happened, she needed to find someone who practiced magic, to grant her an ability that could match that of the magical wolf. She needed some weapon in order to protect her father and brother, her village and avenge her mother's death.

But how? Where would she look? How could she bring that up in a conversation? It wasn't something one would openly admit, because many feared anything not human. There was no way any Witch would be foolish enough to out themselves to the likes of her, simply due to the fact that there was always a possibility of someone finding out what they were. If that happened, they would be sentenced to death, to be hanged or their head removed from their shoulders.

Anastasia had no idea where to start her search or who to ask. She read through numerous parchments, spent countless nights travelling to nearby villages in hopes to hear something. Everyone was so guarded and suspicious of any outsider, especially those who've been victims of the wolves.

Her best friend, Kaden ventured with her on her search. He was also desperate to find something to help them fight back. His father had been one of the many to perish that night, and he was just as angry and afraid as she was.

With their discovery of the book, Anastasia had high hopes that their prayers would be answered. A book said to summon an entity that many claimed to be evil, but could grant them whatever it was they wished for, for something in return. Whatever the price was, they were willing to pay.

The Grimiore they stumbled upon a few days ago was crafted leather, worn from its age and use. Anastasia was hesitant to open it, her heart galloped inside her chest and her stomach tightened nervously. Sensing her discomfort, Kaden placed his hand reassuringly on her hand.

"We'll open it together," he said.

Her gaze lifted to him, and she offered him a thankful smile, nodding in agreement. "Together."

Anastasia's lips parted with wonder and she released a breathless gasp. The parchments inside were crinkled and bound to it by thin strings. Written in black ink were words she nor Kaden understood, and scribbled drawings were strewn about.

Biting her lower lip, she studied the contents within the magical book. There were stick figures with two triangles above it and what appeared to be the sun. She heard of them before: Vampires. A being created by Witches that were so fierce, they were immortal. She wanted that kind of protection for her village and family more than anything. With no such magic to replicate what the Witches did, she prayed that they would find something in this book that could offer them that kind of power.

There were others, though drawn beside them were figures of what looked like wolves, with what she assumed was the full moon. Her heart lurched as she gazed upon the wolves and their human counterparts. She couldn't understand the words written underneath it, but it confirmed their theory. The men who transformed into wolves every full moon and attacked her village was, without a doubt, also created from magic.

As the two continued examining, trying to understand what it was they were looking at, they stumbled upon a page that caused the hair to rise on their arms and the bac of their necks. Located on the center of the page was a man, whose eyes were a dark crimson. He was surrounded by black flames, and underneath him were numerous other figures reaching out to him.

Anastasia's eyes lowered to the words that were placed at the bottom of the page. She glanced up at Kaden, who nodded, urging her to read them out, as they had done with the others. Since nothing happened whenever she spoke the other words, she decided it was safe to do so with this one.

She read them out loud as best she could, unsure if she was pronouncing them correctly. It was difficult speaking in a language she never seen or heard of before. When nothing happened, she released an annoyed sigh and tossed it in front of them.

"We were so close," she whispered, her throat tightening with emotion, "I thought we finally had something."

As she stood, prepared to take a walk to calm herself down, the flame from their torches began to flicker ominously before dwindling to nothing but smoke. Her eyes shot to Kaden, alarmed. His gaze was focused behind her, and his eyes were widened with a hair-raising horror.

Slowly, Anastasia turned, her body tense with terror, unsure what she would see. Black smoke billowed from the dirt to the roof of the cave they were in and began to twist to create a figure. A numbing fear radiated through her body and she stumbled back, falling in front of Kaden.

The air around them dropped in temperature. There was an icy chill that caused her to see her breath with each exhale and goose-bumps to form on her skin.

As the smoke morphed into the figure of a man, black flames came to life around him. His eyes glowed crimson and he had neat obsidian colored hair. He was clad in a black cloak, darker than the cave around them. As handsome as the man before the two of them was, he radiated a lethal aura. Being in such a close proximity to this man was suffocating. She struggled to breathe, her lungs refusing to properly work.

"D-demon," she whispered in horror, struggling to speak. She couldn't even gaze upon him, for the longer she stared into his eyes, it felt as if her very life was being drained away. It caused her to feel weak; her body shook and felt heavy, her heart fluttered and slowed its beat. Tiredness washed over her if she stared at him for too long.

The man chuckled, his head tilting to the side as he regarded the two standing before him, "I'm much worse."

The language that escaped his thin lips were of one she had not heard before, but yet Anastasia found herself understanding every word.

"Anastasia and Kaden," he said, his voice was alluring and tantalizing to the ear. Her name rolling off his tongue sent her body into a frenzy. How did he even know their names?

His crimson eyes then turned to her companion, who had been silent the whole time. She wondered if the stranger was having the same effect on him as he was having on her.

"What..." Anastasia struggled to find the words when his eyes flickered back to her. She was unable to think properly, not when he stared at her as if he could see her very soul. "What are you?"

The crimson-eyed man was silent for a moment, before his lips curled into a frightening smile, "You can call me the Devil."

"Power," Kaden finally said, finding his voice, "we want power."

"Power?" the Devil repeated, tilting his head. He looked down at them with amusement, but he didn't appear to be surprised by their request, "sought after by so many."

"We need it," Kaden insisted, "to protect our village. I fear for the lives of our families."

"We wish to become immortal, like those in this book," Anastasia blurted, pointing at the Grimoire, "we've heard of such immortal beings and wish to become them ourselves."

"I see," the Devil replied, another smirk forming on his lips as if he were amused, "such power does not come free. There is a hefty price for such magic."

"We are willing to pay the price," Kaden said, "whatever it takes we will give it to you."

"Oh?" The Devil mused, his smile widening, "Anything?"

"Yes," Anastasia said desperately, "please, can you help us?"

The Devil was silent for a few moments, seemingly pondering their request. Anastasia bit her lip in anticipation, praying he would help them.

"Your souls."

"P-pardon?" Anastasia questioned, her eyebrows furrowing together in confusion. She glanced at Kaden, who shrugged his shoulders at her.

"I will help you, but the price is your soul. Both of them."

"What can a soul give you that gold cannot?" Kaden questioned, confused by the request.

"A soul is valuable," the Devil replied simply, "do you accept?"

Anastasia and Kaden exchanged nervous glances, both of their eyes reflecting their fear but desperation. Whatever the consequences were, they would accept the deal. They had no other options and the next full moon was only a few days away.

"Yes," they said together. Grabbing onto Anastasia's hand, Kaden gave it a squeeze. Surely, their souls weren't as precious as this man made them seem.

A blade materialized in the palm of his hand, and he held out his hand to them. A sense of foreboding overcame Anastasia as she shakily reached out to grab it, wondering what it was he planned on doing. Without a word, he sliced into her hand, causing her to wince in pain. She attempted to pull away, but his grip only tightened. Once blood began to pool in her palm, he released her and turned to Kaden. He put on a brave face and extended his arm, allowing the blade to cut into his own hand.

The Devil then made an incision in his, and let the droplets of his blood mix with theirs.

"Drink," he instructed.

"What?" Bafflement filled her, and she took a step away from him. He wanted them to drink blood? Her stomach turned at the thought, and she shook her head.

"Drink," he said, his voice a hushed whisper.

Anastasia wasn't sure what overcame her. His words echoed in her mind, the sudden temptation to comply grew tenfold. The simple demand richotched in her mind, growing louder until she had no choice but to obey.

Perhaps... She thought to herself absentmindedly, Perhaps one taste...

Her hand lifted and tilted, allowing the crimson liquid to fall into her mouth. Immediately a metallic taste coated her throat, and she gagged. Within a second of her forcing herself to swallow, a sharp pain inflicted her body. She stumbled away from him, clutching her head.

"To acquire the power you have asked of me, death will befall you. With this blood, you will come back. Stronger than any human, faster than their eye can glimpse. There are consequences to this power. A hunger. One that will surely drive you to insanity. When you awaken, the very people you wish to protect are the ones you must feed on to survive."

Anastasia could hardly comprehend what was being said, and with a blurry gaze, watched as he began to dissipate into a black smoke once more before completely disappearing. Another onslaught of pain washed over her, as if thousands of blades were piercing her body. She released a cry and fell to the ground.

Blindly, she reached out to Kaden, gripping his hand tightly. Part of her attempted to fight off the unconsciousness that threatened to consume her, while another, more sensible part, promised the pain would end should she give in. Her wails of anguish were accompanied by Kaden and were the last sounds she heard before her world grew dark.