by Philip Henry
“We’re gearing up now. The only thing we could find out about it online is a fear of fire. That’s not confirmed but it’s the best lead we’ve found. We have crossbows and arrows with flammable tips so if you could have a fire ready by the time we get there it would speed things up. But don’t light it until we land. We don’t want to scare this thing off course. If the arrows work, maybe we can drive it into the fire and really hurt it.”
“Consider it done,” Nicholl said and hung up. She looked around for something to burn. She told Lynda and Chloe and they all searched for something. Chloe looked inside the tea room and saw the wooden furniture. She smashed the hilt of her sword into the large front window and it shattered. The alarm went off. Chloe climbed inside and started throwing the furniture through the broken window. Lynda and Nicholl, drawn by the alarm, came to the window and started smashing the chairs and tables into smaller pieces and throwing them into a pile a safe distance from the building. When Chloe had thrown all the furniture outside she turned to the souvenir rack and found a bottle of Irish whiskey unscrewed the top and stuffed in a handkerchief with a four-leaf-clover embroidered on it. She grabbed a leprechaun-shaped cigarette lighter and jumped back outside. Lynda and Nicholl were staring off at the approaching helicopter. Chloe stuck her sword into the ground before her and tipped the bottle upside down to make sure the handkerchief was soaked with alcohol. Her other hand was sweating profusely as she put her thumb on the flint wheel of the lighter and waited. The three women were all silent as the helicopter came in to land.
Kaaliz slowly surveyed the inside of the castle. There were a lot of dark places to hide. He closed his eyes and listened. He could hear them breathing. He could smell the nervous sweat. He could sense the boy stronger than anything. The boy’s presence felt so alien to everyone else on the planet he was practically a beacon to vampires. Kaaliz opened his eyes again and looked into the darkness where he now knew the boy and his mother were hiding. He started to pick his way through the builders’ equipment slowly. With each step he felt himself closer to the prize. His whole body ached to taste the blood of the boy. He was going to hold on to this feeling as long as he could. That would make the boy even sweeter. Nothing else mattered to him now.
“You can’t save him, Claire,” Kaaliz said. “I don’t know why, but there is something very special about him. I always liked you, Claire. This doesn’t have to be the end for you.”
Only silence answered him.
“Aren’t you tired of being human? Don’t you feel your muscles and bones aching a little more each day? Remember that old folks home you took me from? That was as close to Hell as I’ve ever been. Sickness, senility, unable to even feed yourself; is that the future you want? Don’t you long for the days when you felt perfect all the time? I can make it happen, and I will if you like.”
Still there was no answer.
“If you were like me again you would feel how powerful the boy is. When I drink from him I will be even stronger. Wouldn’t you be willing to sacrifice him for your own immortality? He’s really no different than a hundred other children you killed over the years. What’s one more dead kid on your CV? What if I…”
Claire leapt from the darkness and drove her blade deep into Kaaliz’s eye and out the back of his skull. Kaaliz dropped his sword and raised both hands to her blade. Claire pulled the blade out, slicing the palms of his hands. She swung again at his neck. The sword drove into left side of his neck and cut halfway across. Kaaliz choked and spat blood from his mouth. Claire pulled her blade out again and drew it back. Kaaliz fell to his knees, gripping his throat. He released one hand from his neck and punched Claire hard in the chest. Claire staggered backwards and tried to draw breath. She stumbled forwards and fell to the ground next to him with her mouth open gasping for air. Slowly her lungs found their rhythm again and she inhaled deeply. She looked over and saw that Kaaliz’s eye was completely repaired and the cut she had made to his neck was almost healed.
“That’s impossible,” she whispered. Kaaliz smiled at her and got up. He looked down at Claire and then kicked her hard in the face. Pain shot through Claire’s whole head.
“You see how weak you are and how strong I am,” Kaaliz said. “That’s why you won’t be able to stop me.” He kicked her again in the stomach and Claire folded with the pain. Kaaliz drove several more kicks into her back. She was seeing spots before her eyes. She felt sick with her inability to focus her eyes on anything. Somehow she held on to consciousness. Kaaliz walked quickly to the darkened corner that she had leapt from and grabbed Tom. The boy threw his best punches and kicks but couldn’t defend himself. Kaaliz picked him up and carried him under his arm, with Tom still thrashing like a hooked salmon, over to Claire’s barely conscious body.
“Wake up, Claire. I want you to see this,” he said. He put a foot on her chest and shook her until she was more alert. Claire saw Tom and tried to get up but every limb was aching. Tears ran from Claire’s eyes. She had let Tom down. She had let Xavier down. She saw her sword only inches from her grasp but couldn’t muster the strength to wriggle towards it.
Kaaliz released Tom and the boy ran to his mother. “Go ahead, kid,” Kaaliz said. “All that pain and regret is just going to make her taste sweeter.” Kaaliz had learned to prolong the anticipation before a kill; to bring himself to the peak of desire and then satisfy his thirst, like letting fine wine breathe, and letting its bouquet tease the senses before tasting. Claire tried to hug Tom but could barely raise her arms. Tom looked at her and Claire was amazed by how calm he looked.
Tom leaned down and kissed her cheek. Then he moved to her ear and whispered, “Take what you need from me.”
Tom put one hand on her head and one on her stomach and it felt like he was completing a circuit. Claire felt waves of energy pass through her. She felt her pain disappear. She felt strength in her body like never before. Kaaliz looked down and saw the look of resigned terror on Claire’s face leave and be replaced by defiant fury. Kaaliz stepped forward to seize the boy. Claire spun round and kicked Kaaliz in the chest with both feet. Kaaliz was sent hurtling backwards across the castle and into scaffold. Kaaliz dropped to the ground and was covered by the falling bricks that had been left on the scaffold. Claire got to her feet and took her sword in her hand. She moved Tom behind her and watched Kaaliz dig himself from under the bricks. He fixed Claire with a look of pure hatred. He extracted himself from the debris and walked to the entrance where he lifted the sword he had taken from Rek. They stood at opposite ends of the castle now. The moon their only light. Two warriors in an arena.
Kaaliz continued to hold her glance as he raised himself slowly into the air. He drew his sword back. “I’m going to show you just how easily mortals die, bitch.”
Claire raised her sword. “I was sword-fighting a hundred years before you were shat into existence, asshole. And unless the Ministry gave you lessons in jail, you can’t use that thing you’re holding.”
“I know where the pointy end goes.” Kaaliz flew at her. Claire raced at him up a wheelbarrow gangplank and launched herself into the air. Kaaliz drew his sword back and swung. Claire aimed her blade at his neck and it cut through the air swiftly. The two swords connected. It seemed that Claire and Kaaliz hung in mid-air for a split second, staring each other out, before Claire dropped to the ground. She fell and rolled and was up on her feet, turning just in time to defend herself from Kaaliz’s blade. Metal crashed and sparks flew in the darkness as the blades attacked at near-impossible speeds. Tom was watching from behind a diesel generator and saw only a blur where the moonlight caught the blades. His mum was strong. She was holding her own. And not just defending herself, she was doing most of the attacking and it was Kaaliz who was trying his best not to get hit. They reached the opposite wall and Claire threw a high kick in amongst the swords and caught Kaaliz below the chin and sent him backwards. Claire used the few seconds of advantage to climb up the scaffold. She reached the first level and looked down at Kaali
z. Fire raged in his eyes.
Claire knew she had to end this. It was stalemate. They were evenly matched: his speed vs. her skill. They could fight for days and still have no winner. An idea blossomed and she discreetly moved a hand to her pocket and felt the bump she was looking for still intact. She looked along the planks she was standing on and saw a couple of bags of cement on the next level of the scaffold above her at the far end. The scaffold planks weren’t secured to the scaffold; they were just sitting on top. OK, she had a plan. Kaaliz hovered up to her and landed on the scaffold a few feet away from her.
“You know I can outlast you,” Kaaliz said, advancing on her.
Claire started walking backwards to keep him a safe distance away. “You think so?”
“Humans get tired a lot easier than vampires, remember? Soon you’ll be so tired you won’t be able to lift that sword.”
“Soon it’ll be morning. Let’s see who gets the best suntan.”
Kaaliz threw a quick glance at the sky. He kept walking towards her. “You’re a fool to refuse my offer. Soon my kind will rise up and humans will just be a footnote in history next to the dodo.”
Claire glanced upwards and saw she was almost under the cement bags. “You really are full of yourself, Kaaliz. You’re the biggest mistake I ever made and one I’m going to rectify.” Claire raised the sword above her head and knocked loose the planks above. Kaaliz stepped back. The cement bags fell on Claire and burst. Claire fell off the scaffold and hit the ground. The cement bags fell on top of her and spewed clouds of grey dust everywhere. Kaaliz looked down and saw her sword had fallen far from her grasp. He waited for the cement dust to settle a little and then lowered himself to the ground. As the dust cleared he saw Claire lying on the ground, pained and trying to get up. Kaaliz strode in quickly and grabbed her by the throat and lifted her to her feet. Claire felt limp in his arms. Her face and clothes were covered in cement dust. Kaaliz brushed the dust off the left side of her neck and smiled at her.
“This is how it ends, Claire.” He opened his mouth and moved close to her.
Claire had taken Nicholl’s last resort locket from her pocket while the dust was settling. She quickly stuck it in-between Kaaliz’s teeth and used her other hand to punch him under the chin. Kaaliz’s jaw snapped upwards from the force of the punch and the glass vial broke, releasing the Ministry’s best toxin against vampires. Kaaliz staggered back, astonished. His throat was retching as he tried to speak. His hands seized around his neck. His eyes were panicked and questioning. It felt like acid eating into his insides as it travelled to his stomach.
“This is how it ends, Kaaliz,” Claire said as she walked past the choking vampire and towards Tom. Kaaliz turned and saw her walking away and his fury gave him a last burst of strength. He hobbled towards Claire’s unsuspecting back. His hand outstretched to grab her. She was almost within his grasp when a shovel hit him square in the face. Claire spun quickly and saw Kaaliz laid out on the floor with a flattened and bloody nose. She saw Rek standing to the right holding the shovel. There was blood running down his face from several cuts but he looked satisfied more than anything. He dropped the shovel on the ground. Tom ran over and wrapped his arms around Claire’s waist.
“How long does that Ministry juice last?” Claire asked.
Rek sat down on a crate and rested. “He’s not waking up for at least two days. I’ll take care of him if you don’t mind.”
“As long as I don’t have to worry about him ever again.”
Rek shook his head. “No. This one’s out of the game for good. I’ll make sure of that.”
Claire looked down at Tom and smiled when she saw he was unhurt. “I think we should get going, don’t you? I think it’s safe now.”
Tom nodded and ran over to the other side of the castle. He came back a few seconds later with Claire’s sword. “Just in case, mummy.”
Claire smiled and slid the sword into the bag on her back. She turned to Rek. “I’ll leave him to you.” She glanced at the still form of Kaaliz and then stepped to the door.
Rek stood up. “Hey, you want me to drop you somewhere?”
Claire looked at Tom and then to Rek. “I think we’ll walk.” Claire and Tom walked out of the castle. Rek turned and stared at the vampire on the floor. He had a phone call to make and a favour to call in.
…and conquer
Nicholl, Lynda and Chloe all tensed as the helicopter touched down a short distance from them. Nicholl steadied the other two and cautioned Chloe not to light the fire too soon. The door of the helicopter slid open and Ramone jumped out. He scanned the perimeter then shouted to his men to debark and the first two were out. Nicholl heard a sound from the darkness, approaching fast and breathing heavily.
“Get ready, here it comes,” Nicholl said to the others.
Nicholl flew forward ten feet and landed face-first in the grass. The punch to the back of her head had been so strong that she was struggling to hold on to consciousness. Lynda and Chloe turned to the gap between them and saw Sin hovering where Nicholl had been standing a second before. Sin kicked Chloe hard under the chin. Chloe fell backwards, dropping the bottle and the lighter onto the grass. Lynda swung her sword and caught Sin on the leg. Sin flew higher into the air to escape the blade. Lynda turned just in time to see the Che’al bolt from the darkness and charge at the helicopter. The soldiers had armed themselves with machine, which they hoped would repel or distract the Che’al. They fired a few shots at the attacking beast and then ran off to the sides. Two more soldiers managed to jump out just before the Che’al’s shoulder rammed into the side of the helicopter. The pilot panicked and tried to take off. Two of the soldiers were still inside and they fired their machine guns at point blank range. Ignoring the hail of bullets, the Che’al reached down and grabbed the helicopter’s skid and tipped it backwards. The soldiers fell about inside. Machine gun fire riddled the pilot. The soldiers struggled for a footing to fire at the beast but it heaved the helicopter over onto its side. The rotors chopped into the earth sending first dirt into the air, then debris as they shattered. The six remaining soldiers were watching with stunned amazement. One of the rotor fragments shot across and impaled a shocked soldier through his chest. The fuel line was severed during the fighting and sparks from either the gunfire or from the struggling engine started a fire inside the helicopter. The soldiers inside went up in flames and immediately threw down their weapons and tried to get their burning clothes off.
The Che’al retreated from the fire and moved away from the helicopter. It ran at the nearest soldier. The soldier did well to keep his cool long enough to unload three bolts from his crossbow into the creature’s face. All three bounced off to the side. The Che’al grabbed the soldier by the throat and gnawed into his chest. The soldier barely had time to scream before he died. When the Che’al was finished with him he threw him so far into the sky that no one even saw him land. Another soldier ran to the helicopter to try to rescue his burning comrades. He climbed onto the tipped helicopter, now lying on its side, and saw the last twitches of life from the two soldiers. Hoping against hope he grabbed the fire extinguisher from the helicopter’s wall. He pointed it at the men, released the safety catch and squeezed the handles together. The fire had reached the fuel tank. The helicopter exploded knocking everyone still standing, including the Che’al, to the ground. Ramone was first to his feet and ran to one of his men who was burning. Ramone rolled him on the ground and smothered the flames. The soldier said he was OK and got to his feet.
Ramone looked around the burning car park. Four of his men were dead. Four, plus himself, were left. He looked to his right and saw that only one of the women was still standing. The Che’al was groggily getting to its feet. Ramone shouted to his men, “Light the arrows off the wreckage. Now!” The men reacted quickly and prepared their bows as they rushed to the burning helicopter. Ramone and his four remaining men all lit their loaded arrows. The crossbows contained a small gas canister that acted as a pilot
light at the front of the bow. When one arrow was shot and the next loaded, the pilot light would light it too. It meant you only ever had to light your first arrow. The soldiers advanced on the Che’al.
Chloe and Lynda shook Nicholl awake. Nicholl looked around at the devastation. She saw the soldiers moving in on the Che’al. “We have to help them,” she said, getting to her feet and collapsing again.
“We’ll help them,” Chloe said. “You get your breath back first.” Chloe nodded to Lynda They both retrieved their swords and ran towards the soldiers. Nicholl was getting her focus back now. She didn’t know what had happened. She remembered the helicopter coming in and then…nothing. Nicholl looked around, found her sword, and used it as a crutch to help her up. She looked across and saw that the fire had been forcing the Che’al back towards the cliff edge. She had to get down there and help but she was dizzy again now she had stood up. She steadied herself on the sword and waited for the world to stop spinning.
No one had fired yet. Just the flaming tips of the arrows were driving the Che’al back. Though no one had said it, they were all thinking the same thing: Get it as close to the cliff edge as we can, then hit it with everything we’ve got. Chloe and Lynda had taken flanking positions at either side of the soldiers. If the Che’al tried to make a run for it they would stop it. The Che’al was close to the edge now. Everyone waited on Ramone to give the battle cry. The Che’al turned and looked behind. It saw the drop and, stupid or not, its own instinct for survival told it to get the hell away from the edge. Ramone saw it was going to bolt and shouted, “Fire!”
Only one bolt from each crossbow had bounced off it when it charged, making its own path through the soldiers. It ran down the tourist trail that led to the rope bridge. The soldiers raced after it, followed by Chloe and Lynda. The Che’al followed the path to its end: a large stone wall the full width of the trail, with a locked gate at its centre. The Che’al heard the soldiers approaching behind. It charged at the gate and toppled the entire wall. The Che’al climbed over the fallen bricks, mortar and twisted metal, and moved cautiously down to the old rope bridge. It put one foot on the shaky structure, unsure of this route of escape. A volley of flaming arrows flew at the beast: some bounced off its shell and some stuck in the wooden slats of the bridge. The same happened with the next volley. The Che’al charged across the bridge, its weight causing the bridge to bounce and ripple in its wake.