Virus Within: Vampire Vixen, #2

To Debbi, Alex, and Jeff

Chapter 1

Getting lost in my dreams used to be a favored past time. Nowadays I can’t distinguish dreams from reality. There was no night. There was no day. There was only Origins, an endless abyss. Eternal darkness encompassed me. My only companions were those damn beady red-eyed creatures that scurried everywhere.

The ground gave way and swallowed me ever so. There was sand mixed with chunks of rubble. It scraped and pulled me deeper. I clawed my way across the terrain and stalked the blackened beasts.

My eyes were of no use; it was too dark. I listened as the animals scrambled and slithered along the bits of bedrock. Some hissed, not like a cat but as if they were a vacuum. Others chortled, a sound reminiscent of an electric mixer.

I paused; stones tumbled against my foot. I froze. To my right was a big one. A rank smell of electrified wood wafted from it. That old familiar icy chill of hunger raged in my veins. It never really went away. No matter how many of these things I devoured.

I pounced. It squealed. Blood slipped from my ears. My fingers dug into the slimy flesh. I grappled with the tentacles. Intertwined we rolled downhill. A feeler wrapped around my leg, it squeezed tight enough that I lost feeling in my toes. Another tentacle had my hair; it yanked my head back. I dug my claws into its torso. The creature tensed. It shrieked louder than a stadium of preteen cheerleaders. My nails pierced its jellyfish-like skin. A cold liquid burst forth. Hair be damned, I pulled against its grip with everything I had in me. Ah! The skin on my forehead stretched. Hairs were torn from my scalp. My fangs anchored around the open wound.

I fed. It reminded me of cold coffee. It did the trick, but tasted nasty. The creature eased into my arms as it died. I placed my hand above its heart. The thumps weakened. Seconds before its death I stopped feeding. I learned my lessons. Never will I accidentally swallow another being’s soul again.

A chilling breeze swept over me. Combined with the icy hunger, cold food, and lack of clothes, I was freezing. I fell asleep curled into the fetal position under the creature. While I slept other juices trickled and pooled by my feet. I awoke to the scent of stomach bile, urine, and ammonia. But what peaked my interested was the beam of light that shot up the middle of the puddle.

I tossed aside the squishy corpse pillow. The closer I got the deeper the mystery became. I heard voices.

We don’t even know what it is?  Was that Primus Grump? The light grew brighter and wider.

But we know it's killing us and that he's in town. It doesn't take a genius to figure out two plus two equals four. That sounded familiar. Still, the light grew and grew.

Since when are you not a genius? Meisha said. Her voice was unmistakable. I thought you knew everything. The light and the puddle were the same widths. 

Don’t put words in my mouth, woman. I’m not sitting on my ass this time. Look, it’s been a decade. That’s ten years longer than this asshole should have had out there. What’s it going to take to get him?

The wind picked up. A shiver ran down my spine. In a blink of an eye, the light widened. I fell through the opening.

Between the juices that coated me, the stench that was trapped in my nostrils, this was exactly what I imagined being birthed felt like. No wonder babies forgot it. It was gross.

I landed with a heavy thud and a splat. There was a shriek and a ‘Holy shit!', but I couldn't tell who said what, I was still traumatized by the trans-dimensional birth canal.

I saw Raphe. He had trimmed his black hair. It was shoulder length now, but those eyes. I would never forget his beautiful icy blues. Raphe.

I passed out. 

Chapter 2

I say we kill her. She’s a traitor, a man said and pounded a table. I kept my eyes shut. The situation would not improve by revealing I was awake, eavesdropping felt like the better solution. The longer she is here, alive, the further we put ourselves in danger. If she’s here then Lucian can’t be too far out. You know I’m right. You know it.

No, I really don’t and neither do you, Michael. That’s your fear talking. Veronica deserves a trial, Meisha said.

Really?

Yes, she does.

You carry the evidence with you wherever you go. Don’t give me that shocked look. Romeo told me that Raphe gave you the diary. How you read it whenever you get the chance. You’ve been compromised.

How dare you?

They found my diary. I was totally fucked and not in the fun way. That book had my mortal name on it, had entries from Thais and me, and a confession to Raphe that I wrote out of guilt or stupidity.  Probably a mixture of both. 

Let us stop this bickering, Vinchenzo said. I do not believe a full trial is in order, but a hearing tonight for the record would be sound. Followed by a punishment. Yes?

I peeked open of an eye. We were in The Hooch, the Caravelli’s nightclub. They had wrapped me in thick linen, possibly a tablecloth, and shackled my hands and ankles to the metal grate along the front of the stage. I lay on the dance floor surrounded by Meisha, Michael Caravelli, and a couple men in suits. Grump and Raphe were nowhere in sight. 

If I may, Father Khel walked down the stairs onto the dance floor. We all know she spied on us for Lucian. She confessed to that in the aforementioned diary. She vanished outside the warehouse where we found Brutus’s headless body. His katana was discovered in her car, coated in blood. The deck is stacked against Veronica, but I do not think we need to kill her.

Michael crossed the dance floor. I think I know where you’re goin’ with this? He kicked my feet. Wake up.

I opened both eyes.

Where have you been for the past ten years? He said.

I stared at him.  There was no point in answering his questions. Those answers only led to my death.

Answer me.

Bite me.

He kicked my legs. I bounced off the grate. That would leave a bruise. I was too weak to heal. Where have you and Lucian been hiding?

If we were up your butt you’d know. It was childish, but I didn’t care.

He kicked my stomach. Where?

I coughed up black blood. So that was what I had been eating all that time. I spit the blood to the floor. In your mama’s pussy.

Meisha rushed Michael as he reared his foot back for another kick. What is that? She pointed to the blood.

He hesitated. I don’t know. Dad, do you know?

Vinchenzo shook his head. His eyes were wide with fear.

Khel looked pale even for a vampire. In fact, now that I really looked at him, he appeared older than the last time I saw him. His hair was salt and pepper. It had thinned. He had wrinkles. He gripped the back of a chair like an old man about to collapse.

New plan. Michael picked up a chair and smashed it against the floor. It broke into pieces and gave him a perfect stake. You won’t tell us anything then we’re going straight to the punishment. He drove the stake into my heart.

The petrifaction process spread fast. Roots clawed throughout every vein, every nerve, hardened and thickened my body. The spasms rocked me from head to foot. The shackles broke. The hunger felt like an icy burn that would never stop. It smothered me. I smelled earth. A glaze washed over my eyes, tinting the world amber. My skin became dried out and transformed into bark. Hair morphed into twigs and branches. It was the second most painful experience I have ever felt.

Now what? Meisha rubbed her arms.

We’ll drop her in Lake Anna. Michael handed keys to one of the guards. Make sure you tie her to a buoy. We’ll need to pull her back up later.

Michael, what are you thinking? Vinchenzo finally got up from his seat. Normally his ego matched his stature, but his poker face had slipped.

Two birds with one stone. He turned his back to me. The punishment is the bait.

Chapter 3

The normal cool metal floor of the average conversion van had no effect on me. I couldn’t tell if it was hot or cold. The guards tossed me in with no regard for my safety. 

Michael gave them instructions outside the vehicle. I was unable to heighten my hearing in this state. All I heard was garbled at best. I'd been past off onto flunkies.

A minute later there was the scent of alcohol, two doors slammed, and the roar of the engine. The van bounced across railroad tracks and over long stretches of bumpy roads at exuberant speeds. I rocked from side to side the whole way. Until the van came to stop and the engine was turned off.

In the few seconds it took for the two, I assumed ghouls, to open the back door several things occurred. The whole in my chest, the one that was still filled with a stake, itched then burned. Black ooze spilled out around the edges. It soaked into the linen and fought back gravity as it climbed up the chair leg. At first, the weight of the ooze pressed the stake down onto my heart. The pressure ached. As it grew taller than the wood it became less solid, but it remained strong and twisted. If I could have screamed, I would have cried out. The stake loosened. It clattered against the metal van floor. I was set free.

What the fuck? One of the guards said. He smacked his comrade in the arm. Get that back in her quick.

The clumsy flunky scurried into the van. He ripped away the blackened linen in time to witness a magic act. The sweet earthiness inside me erupted, burned away by the icy wildfire of the hunger. As rapidly as the bark and branches shed like a husk, I became me again. I cried amber.

Holy shit. I took advantage of his surprised gasp and tripped him. He fell forward, almost landed on top of me. I got a glimpse of dull blue eyes before his head collided with the metal floor. On the ricochet, he tried to scream but was cut short by two tactile tentacles. They could've been the oozes big brothers. The tentacles lashed out from the shadows on either side of my head. The sharp points stabbed the man in the face and chest. Then they shoved him out of the van against his partner. I lied back not sure what to do.

Blood-curdling screams rang out from the two men. I lifted my head and saw blood splatter on the open door. It was ripping them apart, piece-by-piece.

I was scared I would accidentally touch the monsters that came from the shadows. I didn’t want to risk drawing dangerous attention, but I had to take my chance to escape. Being ballsy hadn’t gotten me very far, but my luck had to change sooner or later.

I tied the linen around me and carefully inched down the length of the van between the massive limbs like a caterpillar. By the time I reached the end of the cabin, the ghouls were dead and the tentacles hovered over their remains. I stretched a foot as far I could reach to step over them without touching the killing feelers. One foot on the ground, then two, and I was on my way out.

I was jerked to a halt. The linen snagged on the bumper. There wasn’t a safe path back. I tore it free. The rip sounded extra loud in the quiet night.

Oh shit. I whispered. I turned away from the van. There before me was a tentacle. It danced in front of me. Another tentacle stroked my body. I wanted to run. I fought the urge to scream. I wished for a really big machete. None of those things happened. Instead, the shadowy limbs slid under my arms and hugged me.

If they’d been hands they’d be brushing my hair and caressing