The duffle bag of rats squealed and rustled on Kasha’s back. She shifted the bag’s weight and snarled softly. The bag became still as the rodents stopped moving, too paralyzed by fear. Rising from the garbage near the dumpster, Kasha swung her thick, wavy black hair over her shoulder. Her ears perked as the sound of a man’s boot slapped the rain-slicked stones of the alleyway.

     “You are clumsy and loud, Bilal,” she said.

     Bilal smirked. “I wasn’t trying to surprise you, sister.”

     The scent of blood on her brother’s lips sang through the air like the sweetest perfume. Kasha’s nostrils flared. She braced her core muscles and resisted the urge to hunt as hunger surged through her. Her fangs protruded despite her clenched jaws. She tightened her fists to prevent her fingernails from turning into talons. “I did not give you permission to kill humans, Bilal.”

     “I do not need your permission to feed during the change of houses, Kasha. We cannot fight the others off on a diet of vermin.”

     Kasha relaxed her fists and let her talons descend. Her back became wet with rodent piss as her snarl echoed through the alleyway. Bilal took an involuntary step back, but his sister was on him before his foot hit the ground.

     She wrapped her fingers around his neck and slammed him into the brick wall. “We will not be fit to fight anyone if you alert a stronger coven to our presence.”

     Bilal smiled arrogantly. “I grow stronger every day, sis. I do not fear other vampires, wolves, witches, or humans the way that you do.”

      Kasha applied more pressure to his neck. “Ah, you think I’m a coward, Bilal? The stars’ current alignments have given you strength, and you feel as though you can best me?” She lifted him higher against the wall. “You feel it, little brother?” she whispered softly. “You feel it in the air and in the Earth. You vibrate with the power, raw and unfettered, that surges through the water.”

      Bilal gripped his sister’s arm as her fingers tightened around his neck, and her talons pierced his brown flesh. He opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came out of his vocal cords as she pressed his windpipe closed.

Kasha’s eyes locked onto her brother’s lips. Traces of human blood painted them a rich, dark burgundy. She resisted the urge to sink her fangs into his mouth and revel in the blood there. “You felt it in your prey’s veins, little brother?” Her words rolled off her tongue, thick and seductive, so close she was to giving him sleep. “Everything and everyone is pulsating with the power of the dawning of the new age.” Her eyes morphed into a reptilian gold as her true nature came to the surface.

     Bilal’s talons ripped into Kasha’s sleeve and tore at her flesh, but he couldn’t break her hold. He was no match for his older sister even after a fresh kill. *Kaventhana* Bilal hurled a binding spell, but it had no effect on the Regent. 

      Kasha’s lips curled into a snarl, and Bilal abandoned his pointless challenge. He clearly envisioned Kasha draining his essence from his body, giving him final death, and there was none in the coven that would mourn his passing. She was Regent, and he was no match for her, yet.

      He closed his eyes and let his head go limp, offering his neck in submission. *Forgive me, Kasha, * he said on a mental link. *Forgive me, please.*

     Kasha released her hold on his neck, and he dropped to the ground with a thud. “The age has not changed yet, you idiot. What you are feeling is nothing compared to the alignment of houses. We are on the cusp, and we are not strong enough to face Mary’s coven. 

     Bilal opened his mouth to say something.

     *iishku,* Kasha commanded and her brother’s mouth snapped shut. “The next time you violate my direct orders and endanger Ishka’Ian Clan, I will kill you, Bilal.” 

      She launched herself into the air. *No mercy for you little brother. I will give you sleeeeeeeeeep.*