Guys, I'm so sorry for not updating in forever! I've been so busy with school and work, not to mention I've had major writer's block on everything. Oh well, I updated right? And let's not forget the Destined is officially out! YAY! So, without further ado, I present Chapter 20 of Destined!

Chapter 20:

Stark

They spent the rest of the day planning. They spent the rest of the night in Stevie Rae and Rephaim's room, breaking once for lunch, but it wasn't for long. Stark had to basically force Zoey away from everything and get her to eat. She was determined, and when she was determined about something, no one could really do anything about it. Except him.

"How do we figure out where and when we strike?" Stevie Rae asked. Rephaim nodded beside her.

"We'll strike tomorrow. As for where and the exact time, I don't really know," Zoey said. Stark could feel the worry radiate off of her in waves, so he gave her waist a squeeze. She stepped closer into his side. Mentally, he sighed as he felt her relax.

"Do you think that-" Erin started, but Aphrodite cut her off.

"Don't even suggest it," she snarled, glaring at the blonde Twin.

"But you don't even know what I was going to say!"

"Did it involve me trying to have a vision?" When Erin didn't reply, Aphrodite flipped her hair. "That's what I thought."

"Actually that's not a bad idea," Damien said thoughtfully.

"Actually, it's a terrible idea," the Prophetess retorted. She crossed her arms and sent a death glare at Damien.

"Why is it so terrible?" he asked. "I know you don't necessarily like having the visions, but if you could actually try to have one it could help us a lot. It would be just like when you felt the binds on Kalona back in Italy."

"No, it wouldn't be," Aphrodite scoffed. "Visions are different than sensing something like that. I have no control over when Nyx decides to bless me with one. Believe me, I've tried."

"Tried blocking them is more like it," Shaunee muttered. Erin grinned at her twin and gave her a high five. Aphrodited growled and looked like she was about to rip someone's throat out.

"Guys! Cut it out!" Zoey commanded, slamming her hand down on the one table in the room. "Now is not the time to be fighting amongst ourselves. Get yourselves together! We have a bigger problem on our hands than whether or not Aphrodite can control her visions." Everybody fell silent.

"I still have a feeling that we have something do with the way their acting," Stark said, glancing around the room.

"What would we have to do with anything?" Zoey asked him. "Well, other than the fact that they want to taunt you, Stevie Rae, and the red fledglings."

"Think about it," he began, his eyes meeting every other pair in the room. "Stevie Rae, the red fledglings and I have all died. Physically, we're the same as they are. They don't like you guys because you haven't died. And they don't like us because we're humane, which I guess is the same thing as still being alive to them."

Damien nodded. "I thought about that, too. Do you think that they're trying to torture us and drag you guys back to when…you know." He dragged his finger across his throat for effect.

"They don't want us on their side," Stevie Rae said. "Dallas basically hates my guts for being with Rephaim and the others tried to kill me at one point. Trust me, they don't want us to go back to those days with them."

"Maybe they just want a fight," Darius said. Everyone glanced at the experienced Warrior. "If they hate us all so much, don't you think that if we were them, we'd want to fight us too and try to be rid of us for good?"

"He makes a good point," Rephaim stated.

"Then if they want a fight, why don't we just lay low and ignore it all?" Aphrodite said. Everyone glared at her and Stark growled slightly. "What?"

"People are dying, Aphrodite," Zoey said. "We can't let this go on any longer. If we do, Tulsa could be wiped off the map and vamps everywhere could be in grave danger."

"Guys, we've established a million times that we need to fight back," Damien said. "We need to know where and how. According to Stevie Rae, there's as many of them as there are of us and Aphrodite doesn't know where they'll strike next. We have to figure out how we can fight them all off on our terms."

Zoey nodded slowly. She stood silent for a moment. Stark could feel her anxiety, her worry, and her fear mixed in with his own. "I need some air," she said and immediately strode from the room.

Stark stared after her. The room was quiet for a moment before he finally sighed. "I'm going after her," he said and promptly left the room. He walked down the hall and into their room.

Zoey sat on the bed, head in her hands. Through their bond, Stark could feel the storm of emotions that she was feeling. He went over and sat on the bed next to her. He draped his arm around her shoulders and she leaned into his side.

"What am I going to do?" she mumbled, barely loud enough for him to hear.

"You're not doing anything," he replied. Zoey glanced up at him, confusion showing through her eyes. "We're fighting back. All of us. You're not alone Zoey."

Zoey nodded and smiled slightly. Her brow furrowed and she looked away. "I'm still a leader though. And I have no idea how to fight against them."

"We'll figure it out, don't worry."

"I can't help it."

Stark pulled Zoey close to him and nodded. "I know." He growled out in frustration, causing Zoey to look at him strangely. "I wish I knew how we could get this fight on our terms," he explained.

Suddenly, Zoey's eyes brightened. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him passionately. He kissed her back and gave her a confused look when she pulled away.

"You're a genius Stark!" she cried and hugged him.

"I am?" he said confused for a moment. He blushed and looked away. "I mean, yeah I am! Um, why am I a genius again?" He looked around to see Zoey fly out of the room.

What in the world was that about? he thought. He shook his head quickly and ran out after her. "Zoey, wait up!"

Zoey

I burst into the room and grinned widely at everyone else. I strode forward and looked everyone in the eye, still smiling.

"Are you PMSing or something?" Aphrodite asked. "'Cause this is the second mood swing you've had today."

I shook my head. "No, but I know how we can fight the others and stand a chance!" I said. Everyone gasped and stared at me expectantly.

"Well, are you gonna tell us?" Erin asked.

"Or are you just going to stand there smiling like an idiot?" Shaunee added.

"Well, it wasn't exactly my idea. Stark's the one who came up with it," I said as my Guardian walked into the room.

"Came up with what?" he asked. He came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist gently.

"The plan to stop the dark fledglings," I stated simply, tilting my head back to look at him. He cocked his head to the side and stared down at me.

"Um, what plan? All I said was that I wished that we knew how to fight them on our terms and you ran off."

"That's the plan I'm talking about," I said. I rose up on my toes to peck his lips gently before looking back at the others. I raised an eyebrow since everyone was staring at me like I had grown another head. "What?"

"That's not really a plan, Z," Damien said.

I sighed. "Ok, maybe the idea isn't a plan. But I do have one."

"And what is that?" Rephaim asked.

"Simple. We draw them back to the House of Night and fight them. There, no humans will be hurt and we'll have the upper hand since we still go to the school." Murmurs of agreement came from everyone and Stark squeezed my waist in approval.

"There's one problem with that." I glanced over at Darius, waiting on him to explain. "My instincts are telling me that they want to us to bring the fight to them. How are we going to get them back to the school?"

I laughed. "That's actually the easy part. We just need some bait." I glanced over at Stevie Rae and smirked.

She shook her head fiercely. "Oh, heck no! You are not thinking what I think you're thinking! Are you?" I just smirked wider and she groaned. "Piece of horse crap!"

I saw Rephaim squeeze her shoulder gently. "I don't like it either, but I think Zoey's right. We need them to come to us and I don't see any other way to do that." Stevie Rae sighed and nodded.

"So are we all in agreement then?" I asked. Everyone glanced around at each other before looking back at me and nodding simultaneously. "Then let's get the final details down and we'll be ready!"

So, I know some people were wondering how Aurox was going to play into the ending and I hope maybe this helps a little bit. Also, don't forget about the poll for my Nyx's Hidden Histories series (yes I did name the background series). I've only got two votes in, so I may leave it up until November 5th instead of closing it on the 1st.

And for those of you who read/write Inuyasha fanfiction, there's a forum called The Dawn of the New Moon Challenge. It's a contest forum featuring weekly challenges. The third theme is open through November 5th and voting for the first two themes is open until a minimum of three votes are in. And I would really like it if you guys would go read and vote for my stories in the first two themes. They're called Healing is a Process and Alone in the Dark.

So, with all that said, please review and hopefully writer's block won't stop the last few chapters! :D