Having taken a long walk on this warm summer evening Serena now staood on the top of a cliff. Far beneath her water foamed and clashed against the stone. But in a certain distance the Atlantic lied even and calm, a grey- blue pane of plateglass. Serena often came here to watch the sunset like today. The sun became a blazing fireball, that transformed the smooth surface of the ocean to a sea of flames. She liked watching the fight between the water`s cool tranquillity and the sun`s bubbling intensity, even though she knew the sun had to lose the fight every night. Raising her head she looked upwards at the sky, that changed from red over pink to a dark purple. Slowly she stepped backwards, feeling uncomfortable all at once. As much as she loved the blazing orange of the sinking sun, the much she feared the sunless purple-black sky.

Consumed by her thoughts Serena was completely unaware of the figure, that approached her from behind. She jerked slightly, when two arms put around her waist and drew her slowly back, until she was leaning against a slender, well-trained body. Her vigilant expression turned into a happy smile, when two lips pressed firmly on her neck; warmth spread over her skin, crawled underneath and filled every inch of her body.

"How can it be, the sunset fascinate you so much?" Jaron`s voice sounded amused. "It`s not you who had to live without this for about 80 years."

"And I`ll never understand, how you could do without it for so long." Serena turned around in his arms and looked up into his sparkling eyes.

"If I hadn`t, we had never met. But maybe you already regret having met me."

Instead of an answer Serena wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him fervently. Holding each other tightly they sttod on the cliff, while the sky became black, and when they detached, the first stars sparkled at the dark sky.

"Come on, let`s go, ma coer." Jaron put his arm around her waist and pulled her forwards. "Maybe we can find something at the fleamarket. I..."

"Sht." Serena suddenly looked vigilantly around her. "Didn`t you hier that?"

"No, I didn`t hear anything."

"But there was a noise; a crack, as if someone had stepped onto a twitch."

Serena`s eyes searched through the forest, they had to walk through to reach the town. Jaron looked into the same direction, narrowing his eyes, but then he relaxed and shook his head. "There`s nothing. You must be wrong."

"I am not. I`m sure, I heard something." Serena stared warily at the dark trees, but couldn`t make out anything unusual. Involuntarily she thought of her first nightmare,w hen she was trapped in a dark forest like this one, circled by countless voices, that finally died down, when HIS voice called to her. She shuddered, feeling all warmth withdraw from her body.

Jaron took her hands into his, rubbing them gently. "What`s wrong, Rena? Your hands are cold."

"Nothing, just, he...."

"He?" Jaron stopped and looked at her. "The man you`ve dreamed of? The one you never see, but only hear his voice?"

Serena shuddered again, as the image of two ice-coloured eyes arose from the depth of her mind.

"Yes, he." She replied quietly and stepped backwards, avoiding Jaron`s look. An expression of sudden attention appeared on his features and he stepped closer, lifting her chin up to him.

"What do you conceal from me?"

Serena swallowed and shut her eyes.

"Serena, tell me!" His voice didn`t allow any more evasions, so she sat down on a stone and began to speak. She told him of her last dream, of her fall into the darkness, her landing in the dark damp cave, the voices that had pierced her skin, of the girl that had her own eyes, of this man with a face like white marble, wearing an expression like a beast of prey, how she had been drawn to the mirror without even wanting to resist.

When she ended, she could hear Jaron inhaling a sharp breath. Unpleasant silence spread like a thick curtain.

"Jaron, it was just a dream."

But Jaron just looked at her, an unreadable expression in his dark eyes. He gripped her hand and hauled her on her feet.

"That`s enough now." His voice sounded calm and controlled. "Tomorrow we`ll visit a hypnotist and find out what these dreams mean."

"I`ve already told you, I don`t want this."

Jaron looked at her cooly. "It was neither a question nor a plea. You`ll do what I tell you to." He reached for her hand and started walking towards the forest, but Serena withdrew her hand and stepped back; a wave of hot anger flooded over her and made her curl her fists.

"Who do you think you are?" she screamed. "Noone orders me around."

"I only want you to do what`s best for you. And at the moment you`re not able to decide for yourself with these upsetting dreams haunting you. This must have an end and I will make it stop. You go to the hypnotist and that`s it. End of discussion." Jaron gripped her hand and turned to leave.

"No!" Serena gasped and pulled away so suddenly, Jaron had to struggle to keep his balance. "I`m not your puppet! You can`t force me."

"Don`t be so sure about that, ma chere."

"No," her voice trembled and cracked. Wild panic overflooded her by the sound of those familiar words and swinging round she ran head over heals into the black forest.

She dashed through the forest. Thorny thicket tore her summer kirt, twitches lashed at her arms; but she didn`t notice, didn`t feel the blood trickle down her skin, as her thoughts raced.

"Cold ... such ice cold eyes."

"Hunter"

"Merciless, no feelings at all."

Shreds of words whilred through her mind, spoken by voices, unknown, yet strangely familiar.

"Don`t be so sure about that, ma princesse."

Clinking laughter, mocking her.

More images flared up like ligthening and were gone, before she could get a grip on them. Hunters on black hoarses. Ice on her skin. A meadow bathed in blood, and at her feet... A tormented scream left her mouth and Serena glided along a tree down to the ground. At her feet... She could almost see, almost grasp the memory. At her feet, on the meadow, near the black forest, the hunters watching, at her feet, drowned in a river of blood... Tears streamed out of her widened eyes, while her screams were suffocated in her throat.

"Poor girl." Someone said softly from beside her. A warm hand layed on her feverish forehead and cool blackness filled Serena`s mind, as her head sank down onto the shoulder of the woman, who sat beside her.

"Poor girl." The woman repeated with a sigh and pressed her hand onto Serena`s forehead. "Forget!"

A long groan left Serena`s breast, then her breathing calmed down. The woman layed her fingers onto Serena`s arm, and where she touched the skin, the wounds healed instantly.

"I can heal your skin, but I can`t save your soul, Untouchable. He`s already close." She watched the sleeping girl for a few moments, then she layed one hand ont he top of her head. "Listen!"

Yawning Serena sat upright and rubbed her eyes. When she saw the woman beside her, a confused frown grew on her forehead. The woman was old, her face was covered with wrinkles, but her skyblue eyes gleamed like the eyes of a young girl. Before Serena could say anything, the woman leaned closer; Serena was drawn into an ocean of blue and pleasant emptiness filled her mind.

"You have a dangerous way to go." The woman said calmly. "Be careful whom you trust!" she sighed wearily. "I wish you had more time to prepare yourself, but your time is running out. He has already found your trace. May you be strong enough, Serena." She kissed the girl`s forehead and leant back against the tree.

Serena slowly opened up her eyes and looked confused at her. "I`m sorry, but I must have been absent for a minute. What did you say?"

The woman pointed at a path, that wound through the forest. "If you go this way, you`ll reach the town in a few minutes."

"Thank you very much." Serena smiled, got up and went down the path. After a few methres she saw Jaron hurrying towards her. He pulled her into his arms and hugged her tightly.

"O God, Serena, I was so afraid." His breath was ragged.

Serena detached from his embrace and stroke his tousled hair. "It`s okay, Jaron."

"No," he groaned. "When you ran away, I thought I had lost you." Sinking down to his knees he wrapped his arms around her waist and looked imploringly up at her. "Please promise me, you`ll never leave me." He got to his feet and took her face in boeth hands. "I didn`t mean to hurt you, I didn`t want to frighten you. I`m so sorry. Please, you must believe me. I only wanted to help."

Serena closed his mouth with a kiss. "I know."

"I only want to protect you. These dreams tell you something about your past, something important."

Serena stroke his hair. "I know, but please leave the decicion to me. I feel it`ts too soon to remember." A memory urged to rise from the dark, trying to take shape, but something pressed it down again. "I`ll know when the right time has come."

Jaron smiled weakly. "I`ll give you all the time you need. The past won`t tear us apart."

"Neither mine nor yours." Serena beamed at him and pulled him into a kiss. Finally they detached and walked slowly down the path, not knowing that four eyes were following them.

"Be careful, Serena, very careful." The old woman whispered.

"Deirdre," a man sat down beside her. "Why did you do this?"

Deirdre turned her head and a melancholic smile crept onto her lips, when she looked into two blue grey eyes. "How young you look, Morvan." She ran her hand through thick dark-blonde hair.

"That`s an advantage of the little amount of vampire-blood, that`s flooding through my veins."

Deirdre snorted. "I rather age with dignity."

"Deirdre, why did you do this?" Morvan repeated and shook his head. "Trying your witchcraft on the Untouchable?"

"Someone has to protect her."

"You can`t protect her. You just put off the unavoidable. She will remember. You can`t prevent it. It was a noble, but foolish deed. You know very well, our lord is no man of mercy."

"He`s your lord,not mine." Deirdre replied sharply.

Morvan leaned back and put an arm around her shoulder. "WE all make our choices and have to live with the consequences."

"Please, let her be." Deirdre begged.

Morvan sighed. "Didn`t we have a good time?"

"We had, but then you became this monster`s footman."

"That was, what saved your life. I wish you hadn`t met the Untouchable. For now I can`t protect you anylonger. Deirdre, you know what he`s capable of. He will send his voices after you, and you know what they will do to you."

Deirdre leant her head against his shoulders, while a tear ran down her cheek. "I know." She whispered.

"I can`t protect you, but I can save you the pain. I love you, little sister." Morvan said, a sad expression in his eyes, as he put his hands around Deirdre`s neck and broke it with one abrupt movement. For some minutes he cradled her lifeless body in his arms; then he layed it onto the ground and kissed her forehead, before he got onto his feet and walked down the path towards the town to carry out his orders.