The Beautiful Monster

Elias shoved open the side door to the RV the second that it stopped in the back parking lot of the rest stop.

He looked around, not seeing a single soul in sight. Faint security lights broke through the darkness, providing enough light to see the expanse of concrete.

"Here they come," Elias told Melina as they stood beside each other. He turned to look at the door of the RV, seeing Scott and Alyssa standing in the doorway. "Scott, watch over Alyssa."

Scott nodded and shooed Alyssa aside, despite her protesting. He shut the door behind them.

Elias swallowed hard as he turned back forward, watching the black car stop across the parking lot from them.

He glanced over at Melina, seeing a small pouch attached to the belt loop of her black jeans.

"I don't even know what to do," he admitted, feeling nervousness creep up his spine. He wasn't a fighter.

He had his basic abilities, but his fire ability was so limited. Something was blocking him from achieving his true power, but he didn't know what that was. Probably the seal.

"Survive," Melina told him as they watched two men exit the car and head their way.

"Vampires."

Elias tightened his fingers into fists as he watched the two vampires break out into a run toward them.

They moved so fast that Elias could only catch a glimpse of them until he felt hands around his throat. He grunted as he was shoved back against the RV with a heavy thud.

The vampire smirked at Elias, tightening his grip on Elias' throat.

"Alaric said you would be weak, but not this weak," he said, starting to crush Elias' throat.

Elias gasped for air before his mind finally snapped into fighting mode. He slammed his hands against the vampire's chest, knocking him back before tackling him to the ground with a grunt.

The vampire was slightly stronger than him, but Elias moved fast, dealing blow after blow to the vampire's face.

Suddenly, Melina cried out in pain.

Elias snapped his head to the side, seeing Melina put her hand up to her nose as blood dripped from it.

He started to move to help her, but he watched her reach into her pouch.

Melina threw what looked like red sand into the vampire's face as he approached her. She watched the vampire cry out in pain, clawing at his face as the grainy material started to crackle and spark on his skin. It reminded Elias of fire. Melina turned to look at Elias, nodding to him.

Elias pinned down the vampire beneath him with a hand on his throat before focusing on the sparks of fire emitting from the other vampire's face.

Whatever material it was, it was highly flammable. Within a few seconds, a huge flame erupted, engulfing the vampire's head and then body.

The vampire beneath Elias took advantage of him being distracted. He struck Elias in the stomach before flipping them over, putting himself on top.

He punched Elias in the face, his fangs protruding. He wrenched Elias' head to the side by his hair, starting to lean down to rip out Elias' throat.

Out of nowhere, Melina leapt onto the vampire's back, yanking his head back away from Elias.

She dug her nails into the vampire's face, clawing at him as the vampire struggled to get her off.

Elias caught his breath and reached up to grab at the vampire to keep him from throwing Melina.

His hand instead graced hers, and he felt a jolt of energy echo throughout him, starting from his chest and moving all over his body.

He looked up at her in shock, wondering what just happened.

Melina looked equally as confused. She then gasped as the vampire threw her off and turned on her. She tried to hurry up and crawl away, but the vampire pinned her to the ground. She tried to fumble for her pouch, but her hands were pinned.

"Elias!"

Elias looked over at her in panic, that echo of energy still residing in his body. All of the fear and anger that he felt seemed to join together in one strong sensation, and it was all directed toward the vampire about to kill his sister.

"No!" he shouted, putting his hand up. To his shock, his palm heated up to a burning temperature. By the time his eyes shifted up to look at the last vampire, he was already screaming and fighting against flames eating him alive.

Melina shoved the burning vampire off of her, her clothes being singed slightly. She rolled out of the way, jumping to her feet to keep from being burned alive too. She watched the vampire collapse onto the ground in a burning pile, shock outlining her face.

"You… you conjured that on your own," she said as she turned to look at Elias.

Elias looked down at his own hands, breathing heavily as he adjusted to the feeling of power surging through him. Something had clicked.

When he touched Melina during the fight of their lives, something happened inside of him, granting him the power that he thought he would never achieve.

"Did you feel that?" he asked her as she approached him. He saw her look of shock when he felt that surge of power. She had to have felt something too in that moment.

Melina nodded, her lips curling up into a smile.

"I think our powers linked. My magic helped you find the rest of yours," she said.

"I've never felt like this before," Elias murmured as he lowered his hands, which felt like they were back to their normal temperature. His mind was blown, but he would be lying if he said that he didn't feel great right now.

He felt alive, knowing that the full extent of his fire ability was finally available for him to use.

He wished that they didn't almost have to die for that to happen, but at least he would have it to fight against Alaric.

"Your demon side is powerful, but your witch side makes it even more powerful," Melina pointed out.