[Aurora, Our Impish, Mysterious Succubus Vampire!]

  Aurora twisted her hips in a slow dance with one of the opposing vampires in the swirl of chaos that ensued from Scarlet’s declaration. She was more or less along for the ride, so Rachel could do all the planning and dealing with Selene’s death. She’d have fun.

  Parties were being picked, and the tense atmosphere of murder was hypnotic, taking over her mind. She couldn’t control herself; her knees felt weak, hooves moving in lockstep with her enemies, casting her binding spell in a fevered rush.

  Not soon into her dance, a reflection in the bloody pillar nearby drew her back to earth.

  “Mmm. I was enjoying myself, handsome, but I’m being called away, so give your lovely patron my regards,” she winked while spinning away, “I’ll knock later.”

  Without skipping a beat, she walked to the sway of the music humming through the walls. Lovely chaos made her sway with the bloodlust surging through her veins as she opened one of the many doors lining the hallway to be the first to enter one of the side rooms.

  The tempting chatter outside died the second she pressed her back against the door, closed it, and looked around the dimly lit, cozy space. She closed her eyes, letting the ecstasy of the party behind her fade with the withdrawal that shivered through her bones; this was not where Aurora would be.

  Opening her eyes, she saw her twin, or at least she appeared to be, with the exception of her black adder mask instead of the white one she wore. “What can I do for you, My Everything? I am yours to use,” she chimed, feeling elated as she blinked and her twin changed.

  A cute, black-haired teenager with pink eyes—a beauty mark under the left—appraised her with a tempting smile as her single gloved hand rose to take off her mask, moving forward to walk around her in a slow, giggly way. Her poniard-shaped pupils were daggers against everywhere she looked, making Aurora feel inadequate.

  “Want to play a game, My Puppet?”

  “Oh? Exciting!” she chirped, arms held tightly at her front. “What’s your wager? I shouldn’t be away for too long or…”

  “Nonsense! Embrace the chaos…you did when tricking Scarlet into defending Cássia. I loved it!” her benefactor laughed, a new slow song spinning out of nowhere to replace the instruments and making her belly squirm with delight at the praise.

  The pink-eyed girl plucked at the top of her unique, strapless dress, attached to the bell choker around her neck that tinkled with her movements to the music. “Wager?”

  Aroura’s throat caught as the 19-year-old twirled to her front and cupped her cheeks, looking up directly into her eyes with glee. “No peeking! Close your eyes.”

  Throat dry, Aurora closed them, breathing heavily as hot fingers caressed her arm, tickling her skin as her hand was pried open, and something hard was placed inside it. The shape was too real, and her other hand was brought around to clasp the object.

  “Benefactor?”

  “Open up!” she chimed, bringing her arms up. “Why…the death of a faker, of course! What else? Let’s play a game before your meeting!”

  Aurora’s hair stood on end as her vision cleared to see herself wielding a small, cute, rose-themed revolver, aimed right at the teen’s head. “First one’s free,” she winked, Aurora finding it hard to breathe as a smile brightened her cheeks, and she pulled the trigger.

  Confetti exploded out of the end, making the teen giggle.

  “Your turn now! C’mon, c’mon! Show me your beautiful face!”

  Licking her dry lips, Aurora put the gun to her own head and pulled the trigger, legs feeling weak as a bang sounded, confetti spraying her.

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  “Hehehe! Wow, I…I shouldn’t be doing this—not now! Please…”

  “So what if this isn’t what you should be doing?” the teen whispered, bringing the gun to her head, face now masked by the black adder. “Let me tell you what foolishness is…”

  Aurora quivered as she pulled the trigger, flinching as the firing pin struck, hitting a fake round and spraying more confetti over her insane, suddenly disappointed benefactor, staring at the gun as if defective. Aurora’s legs gave way, the rush of adrenaline spiking as her green dress rose up before settling around her, breathing becoming ragged. An uncharacteristic giggle slid through her throat, yet she couldn’t pull her gaze away from the crazy teen, joining her on the bloody carpet, hypnotized with her intense, dagger-like eyes.

  “Pretending to be smart, like you do.”

  Aurora pulled the gun up to her own temple again, an inferno roaring up from deep within, making her sweat, and she flinched as she pulled the trigger again—confetti blanketed her. Laughing and feeling like she would pee herself, Aurora frowned as the final two rounds clicked into place, and she slowly shook her head, now trembling as the disguised, very familiar teen she’d known all her life pulled it up to Aurora’s forehead. This wasn’t right! This changed the rules!

  “Then…what is a Fool?”

  A crazed smile lifted the girl’s chaotic eyes as she pressed the barrel into her skin.

  “No…no, I-I can’t!”

  Aurora couldn’t pull it away—she didn’t want to, she couldn’t. Arms trembling, she couldn’t control herself, she put her finger to the gun and pulled the trigger.

  “What is a Fool?” A pop came as she snapped her eyes shut, only to hear soft words bleed through her ringing ears. “Knowing when to act clueless…like I do.”

  Teary vision clearing, she looked up, not knowing when she’d stood up or raised her arms, the final round aimed at the raven-haired actress’ head again—the face she’d known all her life—her real face.

  “Don’t you get it now? What is Chaos?”

  “No!” She tried to move the gun away, but it was as if she were fighting a god for all the good it did. “No! I don’t like it! I don’t like it!”

  “Me!” She pulled the trigger, the bullet entering her brain for confetti to exit the back with a whirlwind of information, colors, and images. “I am Chaos!”

  Joy, unlike anything she’d felt, ripped through her as she was sucked into a cyclone of elation, entering a dimension she couldn’t hope to understand. Flashes of the many characters she’d played over her 14 years of acting, the lives she’d taken and replaced swirling before her eyes as she morphed into each one in third-person. A rift in space opened as she watched she and herself skip hand-in-hand into welcoming insanity. It was like warm hands sliding up her spine, caressing down her belly, and slowly gripping her throat to strangle the air from her lungs.

  All at once, her teary eyes came into focus beside a fireplace; across from her was a familiar blonde woman her benefactor had shown her in dreams. The beautiful woman showed a sad smile as she leaned against the back of her hand.

  “I see you’re back, Aurora…or should I call you Eden Picot? An anagram for the name you gave yourself. Cute. Killing Aurora just before she met with Selene in Scotland and mimicking her powers with Eris’ support was a clever touch to infiltrate the organization due to her personality.”

  A polite smile brightened Eden’s lips as twinkling light and color swirled around her, revealing her true, black-haired 19-year-old self as she slid her adder mask up a little.

  “Twilight! Hehehe. It is my pleasure! And playing Aurora has been quite enjoyable; the pretty flirt can get away with murder,” she cooed, crossing her legs while bobbing left and right. “I am suspicious that you let my presence slip your tongue to our dear bloody host, though. Why so mean? I wanted to see the look of shock on her face! Hehehe.”

  “Oh, I am sure your manipulations will have been shocking enough to satisfy by the end of this drama. I have my reasons for Elizabeth that your benefactor is aware of. So do not fear, my little rose can keep a secret, or would it be better if she didn’t? Hmm-hmm,” the golden-haired woman whispered. “Of course, you have the talent to play just about anyone, yet being a young star of a world-hit monodrama must have been difficult for you, despite the success. That being said, it must be even more challenging to be the Mystic of Eris. You do reflect your goddess, at least.”

  “You know how to flatter!” Eden giggled. “I love what I do, but what can my benefactor and I do for you? I will say it has been fun to see Rachel think the Scarlet Hand has been stumbling due to her actions; she’s so cute and smart! It’s almost as if she is hiding who she really is, hmm?” she playfully asked, a wicked grin lifting her eyes.

  Twilight’s mouth curled. “Well, she had some effect on bringing you into their crosshairs since you wanted to see how Nike was doing and meeting the hare who manipulated Dionysus to his…end. You, or more specifically, your benefactor, is the most dangerous thing in this Legend Quest.”

  “More flattery!”

  “There is much to praise. Well, I don’t want to take up all of your time for Rachel to start missing you, so…why don’t we have a short little chat to see where we line up?”

  Teeth flashing, Eden replaced her mask, calling upon her goddess to share her body, splitting the adder down the center, one-half black, the other white. “I’m always up for a change in script! Hehe. What elation do you have in mind?”

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