The sleek black limousine glided through Mystic Falls' streets like a shark through dark water, its polished exterior reflecting the golden glow of street lamps.
Inside, the atmosphere was thick with tension despite the vehicle's luxury.
John Winchester adjusted his burgundy tie for the third time, his discomfort in formal wear evident in every movement. "Let's go over it once more. We identify the ritual site, locate Elena, disrupt the ritual and extract her before midnight."
"While maintaining our cover as Zach's guests," Dean added, tugging at his own collar. Unlike his father, whose discomfort manifested as stillness, Dean couldn't stop fidgeting. "I still say we should just grab the girl and run."
"And alert the entire Council?" Trevor countered, surprisingly at ease in his tailored suit. The last Belmont sat with perfect posture, "They'd lock down the town before we reached the border."
Lucien remained silent, his eyes drawn to Katherine, who sat beside him.
Her black dress was a masterpiece of elegance, conservative enough to be appropriate yet designed to accentuate her natural beauty - another form of taking into account Lucien's possessiveness, despite him never having completely accepted her.
The fabric seemed to absorb light rather than reflect it, creating an almost otherworldly effect.
'She's beautiful,' Lucien thought before he could stop himself. The admission came reluctantly, but he couldn't deny the objective truth. .
Katherine caught his gaze and smiled, her eyes warming with genuine pleasure at him noticing. "See something you like?" she whispered, just low enough that only he could hear.
Lucien looked away, refusing to give her the satisfaction of a response. But the slight flush on his cheeks told her everything she needed to know.
Zach Salvatore cleared his throat, his complexion ashen in the dim interior light. "Before we arrive, I need to remind you all of the rules."
His voice trembled slightly, "Every guest must submit to the Blessing at the entrance. It's tradition - though now that I know, it's most likely part of the ritual just disguised – a Council member will mark your hand with ceremonial oil."
"As I already said before, nothing harmful is in the oil," Zach assured him. "It's meant to track outsiders, not harm them. But refusing would draw immediate suspicion."
"Remember also that non-founding families must wear identification markers – subtle pins they'll provide at the entrance."
Zach's fingers tapped nervously against his knee. "No one leaves the celebration grounds between sunset and midnight. It's enforced by security disguised as event staff."
"And the most important rule," Trevor interjected, "visitors must be personally vouched for by a founding family member at all times."
"Which is where I come in," Zach nodded. "I'll introduce you as friends from out of town interested in Mystic Falls' history."
The limousine slowed as they approached Founder's Hall, an imposing Greek Revival building illuminated by strategically placed spotlights that made the white columns glow against the night sky. A stream of elegantly dressed attendees flowed up the marble steps.
"Remember," John said as the vehicle came to a stop, "Stick to the plan."
"Time to play dress-up," Dean muttered, straightening his jacket as the chauffeur opened the door.
---------------------
Founder's Hall hummed with activity – a symphony of clinking glasses, polite laughter, and the string quartet playing in the corner.
Lucien stood beside Katherine near the refreshment table, his senses extended through the Force.
The ambient energy of the place felt wrong – a subtle distortion beneath the veneer of normalcy, like static on an otherwise clear radio frequency.
"Smile," Katherine murmured, her lips barely moving. "You look like you're at a funeral rather than a celebration."
"Maybe I am," Lucien replied quietly, his eyes tracking Elena across the room. She stood with Bonnie and, surprisingly, Caroline Forbes, who had mysteriously returned after her unexplained absence.
Caroline looked pale but otherwise normal – too normal, considering her recent disappearance.
'How can I fucking smile, when we've found nothing after hours of searching. Nothing that could even look like the ritual set up. Nothing that gives even a hint on how to stop it.
Maybe Dean was right. Maybe we should've taken the chance and tried to run with Elena out of Mystic Falls, power through anything that would stop us...' he thought to himself.
Katherine's hand brushed against his, a fleeting touch that appeared accidental to any observer. "Your father is speaking with Sheriff Forbes. Dean is by the east exit. Sam is charming information out of Dr. Fell. Everyone is in position."
"And you?" Lucien asked, finally looking at her. "What's your position in all this?"
Katherine's smile was enigmatic. "Right where I need to be. Protecting my dear god."
Before Lucien could respond, Zach approached with a middle-aged couple. "And here's the youngest son of my friend from out of town," he said smoothly. "Lucien, meet Mr. and Mrs. Peterson. They're on the historical preservation committee."
Lucien slipped effortlessly into his role, extending his hand. "It's a pleasure. The architecture here is remarkable."
As Lucien engaged in mundane conversation, with them complimenting his manners and speech at such a young age, his Force senses remained alert.
The mark on his palm remained dormant, but he could feel Elena's anxiety from across the room – a bright point of fear amid the dull hum of the party.
The minutes ticked by, each one bringing them closer to midnight.
The grandfather clock in the main hall chimed, marking ten minutes until midnight. The sound cut through the party chatter like a knife, causing a subtle but noticeable shift in the room's energy.
Council members exchanged glances. Servers began discreetly directing guests toward the main ballroom for the "lantern ceremony."
Suddenly, Katherine stiffened beside Lucien. Her head tilted slightly, like a predator catching a distant scent.
Her previously relaxed posture transformed in an instant – back straight, muscles tensed, eyes sharp and focused.
"What is it?" Lucien asked, immediately alert.
Katherine's hand gripped his arm, her fingers tightening with unusual urgency. She leaned down, her lips brushing his ear. "I have to go," she whispered, her voice taut. "There's another danger coming. One I know."
Lucien's first instinct was skepticism.
Was she abandoning them? Running from danger while claiming to be confronting another? He reached out through the Force, probing her emotions, and was surprised to find no deception – only grim determination and a flash of what might have been fear.
"More dangerous than this?" he questioned, eyes darting to Richard Lockwood, who was now making his way toward John.
"I don't know exactly how dangerous this is," Katherine replied, her voice a low growl. "But I know that one. And if I'm right about why it's here, we're in a world of trouble if it isn't taken care of."
Something in her tone convinced him.
Lucien himself knew that he had gotten a lot stronger since he first arrived at Mystic Falls - he grows stronger and stronger by the day, for each day, the Force stablises more, and isn't as volatile.
Finally, after a moment's hesitation, Lucien nodded. "Go."
Katherine vanished in a blur too fast for human eyes to track, her exit covered by the increasing activity as guests moved toward the ballroom.
Lucien immediately began making his way toward Elena, keeping sure his movements look casual.
-------------------
At the edge of Mystic Falls, Katherine Pierce materialized on a deserted stretch of road.
The night air crackled with energy – cold and ancient. Katherine's eyes narrowed as a tall, blonde woman stepped from the shadows.
The woman's modern clothing couldn't disguise who she truly was to the vampire.
"You," Katherine said, recognition flashing in her eyes, fear threading through her voice despite her attempt to hide it. "What are you doing here?"
"Katerina?" The Valkyrie's blurted out in surprise, before it melted into cruel delight, her lips curving into a smile. "How fortunate to find you here."
"Answer me," Katherine demanded, her body tense, ready to flee. "What does Klaus want from Mystic Falls?"
Skögul laughed, the sound like ice cracking. "My allegiances have... shifted. I serve Queen Hela once more now. She... didn't like how her brother treated us after we were punished- punished because of you running." Her eyes flashed with anger for a moment.
"You should understand. Fenris was... very angry with us Valkyries. And the Wolf isn't known for his control over his temper. "
Katherine - focusing only on the important parts - circled slowly, processing this information. "Hela? What does the goddess of death want with this town?"
"My queen seeks the boy marked by life," Skögul replied, her own stance mirroring Katherine's movements. "The one who brings light where there was none."
Katherine's expression hardened, her fangs dropping instinctively. "Lucien."
"So you know of him," Skögul observed, looking genuinely intrigued. "How interesting."
She tilted her head, studying Katherine silently for a long moment. "In consideration of being on a mission, I'll give you one chance. Step aside, vampire. This is far, far beyond your concern. Though to be honest, please don't step aside. I really want you to not step aside."
"Well, today then you're getting what you want today, bitch. Everything about that boy is my concern. And you're not getting anywhere near him."
At this Skögul couldn't help but grin. "Good. resist me. Please. I want to feel you break."
The Valkyrie's hand moved to her side, where her jacket concealed a weapon. "Five centuries I've waited to repay you for my punishment," she said, eyes glowing with anticipation.
"I had hoped to receive permission to hunt you after completing this mission, but this... this is too perfect to pass up."
"You hoped wrong," Katherine snarled, launching herself forward in a blur.
-----------------------
The grandfather clock chimed again, marking five minutes until midnight.
Lucien felt it immediately – a deep, rhythmic pulsing from the jaguar mark on his palm. The sensation wasn't painful, but insistent, like a heartbeat not his own.
Richard Lockwood stood before John Winchester, his politician's smile firmly in place. "John, I've been meaning to ask about your restoration work on classic cars. Zach mentioned you're quite the expert."
Lucien watched as his father engaged in the conversation, keeping calm in front of the true danger standing before him. The moment the mark began to pulse, Richard's eyes flicked toward him, the smile never wavering.
And then it happened.
For a split second, reality distorted. Richard's human form flickered, replaced by a monstrous, jaguar-headed shadow.
Obsidian mirrors embedded in its skin reflected a thousand tiny horrors, and its eyes – ancient, cruel, hungry – fixed directly on Lucien.
The vision lasted only a moment before Richard's human appearance reasserted itself, but it was enough.
Lucien knew it was happening.
'I have to get to Elena, now!'
"Dad!" Lucien called out sharply,
John's head snapped toward his son, instantly alert to the urgency in his voice. Before John could respond, Lucien was moving, shoving past Richard Lockwood - desperate.
Richard made no move to stop him. His smile remained fixed, his eyes tracking Lucien's movement with amused interest, like a cat watching a mouse run toward a waiting trap.
Lucien sprinted through the crowd, his focus entirely on Elena.
She stood near the ballroom entrance, her face contorted in panic as she clutched her wrist where the jaguar mark pulsed also, in the same rhythm as his own.
The world around them began to shimmer, reality distorting like heat waves rising from summer asphalt.
The ornate chandeliers flickered, casting strange, elongated shadows. The music warped, notes stretching into discordant wails.
"Elena!" Lucien shouted, lunging the final distance between them.
Just as her scream began to escape, his fingers clamped around her wrist. Their eyes met for a fraction of a second – mutual terror reflected – before the world dissolved into a blinding flash of crimson light.
One moment they stood in Founder's Hall.
The next, they were gone.
--------------------
The transition was violent and disorienting, the best comparison would be like being torn apart and reassembled in an instant.
Lucien and Elena crashed to their knees with a wet, squelching sound.
Lucien's head snapped up, vision swimming before clarity returned strong, and painful.
They knelt in an ocean of blood.
The viscous, metallic-smelling liquid lapped at his knees, soaking his suit and Elena's dress.
"Oh my God," Elena choked, almost beginning to cry, her voice thin with terror. "What is this? Where are we?"
Above them, the sky was a sickly, oppressive yellow. A massive, bloated red sun hung low on the horizon, casting everything in a lurid, bloody hue.
In the distance, Lucien could make out the twisted, grotesque parody of Mystic Falls – familiar buildings warped and decaying, like reflections in a broken mirror.
"Some kind of... mirror world," Lucien managed, fighting to keep his voice steady. "A parallel dimension for the ritual."
Elena's breathing came in short, panicked gasps. "The ritual? You mean-"
Her words died as a colossal shadow fell over them, plunging them into momentary darkness. Instinctively, they both looked up.
Looming above them, stretching impossibly high into the yellow sky, was a monstrous statue in the form of a gigantic hand.
It was carved from dark, obsidian-like stone, its surface etched with writhing symbols that seemed to move in the crimson light. The hand reached upward, fingers splayed as if grasping for the red sun itself.
And perched atop each massive finger, silhouetted against the lurid sky, were five towering figures.
On the thumb stood Richard Lockwood, his human form now fully merged with Tezcatlipoca – a jaguar-headed entity of swirling shadows and obsidian mirrors. His eyes reflected a thousand tiny versions of Lucien and Elena kneeling below.
The index finger held Bill Forbes, Caroline's father, transformed by Sekhmet into a blazing lioness-headed figure of golden light. His eyes burned with solar fire, fixed on Elena with cold, righteous fury.
Margaret Fell occupied the middle finger, her frail human form barely visible beneath the four-armed, blue-skinned Kali, adorned with a necklace of whispering skulls.
On the ring finger stood a man Elena recognized with a strangled cry – her grandfather, Howard Gilbert, supposedly dead for years. His distinguished figure was consumed by the serpentine shadow of Apophis, coiling around him with red eyes.
The little finger held Victoria Salvatore, elegant and poised, her form overlaid by the triple-faced shadow of Hecate, holding a torch that burned with black flame.
But it was the figure in the center of the hand's palm that drew their attention most. Kneeling in the pooling blood, hunched and contorted in agony, was Grayson Gilbert.
Unlike the others, he wasn't proudly displaying his transformation. Instead, he fought against it, hands pressed against his ears as if blocking out whispers, mouth open in a silent scream.
The skeletal shadow of Ah Puch loomed over him, gradually consuming his form.
"Dad!" Elena screamed, her voice breaking with horror and desperation.
Lucien stared upward at the impossible tableau, his mind reeling.
'Fuck me, since when am I in Berserk?' Lucien thought to himself with a hysterical chuckle.
The five "gods" gazed down at them with ancient, hungry eyes – predators regarding their prey with patience and anticipation.
The ritual had begun.
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(Author note: Hello everyone! I hope you all liked the chapter.
Do tell me how you found it.
So... The Ritual has begun. What do you think? Could the Winchesters and co have stopped it before it begun, or was it just... destined given the circumstances.
Also, how do you think Lucien will deal with all this?
Will he win? Will he save Elena? Or will she die, and him have to escape?
Or will he die too?
I'm interested in your thoughts. I hope to see you all later,
Bye!)