Deamhan Chronicles, Books 1-5: Deamhan, Kei. Family Matters, Dark Curse, Maris. The Brotherhood Files, Ayden. Deamhan Minion

by Isaiyan Morrison

  “After you,” Silvanus said chivalrously to her.

  They walked ahead, seeing a flight of stairs leading to a lower level. They reached the bottom platform and two more human bodyguards also wearing masks, stood in front of another door. They didn’t question Selene, nor did they say anything. They voluntarily stepped aside and opened the door allowing them to walk through.

  Bright flashing lights blinded them, giving Veronica only seconds to adjust her eyes. The room, filled with Deamhan socializing and loud, thumping music, filled the once gutted out space in the basement of the building. The smell of dampness, clove cigarettes, and cologne filled the air. Bright purple, white and red couches packed with seated Deamhan, dressed extravagantly, lined the peeled and chipped paint walls. Chandeliers and numerous disco balls hung from the ceiling, along with flashing strobe lights. The packed dance floor soon filled with the onset of a new song.

  “Wow, this is a change,” Silvanus spoke.

  “This is his doing,” Selene muttered.

  “Oh, live a little, Selene. You can at least pretend to fit in.”

  “I don’t want to pretend,” she replied, her voice filled with anger. “This is not what Deamhan should be doing.”

  They walked through the crowd. Veronica made every effort to stay as close to them as possible. They approached a long table, covered in black satin positioned on a black stage. Two chalices sat on the opposite ends of the table, and she saw three huge wooden chairs, decorated with blue, red, and black jewels.

  One chair, bigger than the rest, caught Veronica’s attention. Kei sat there, probably to bask in his immoral debauchery. But who else was allowed to sit at the table? She froze in her steps, horrified at what she saw ahead of her.

  A grotesque set up of five naked men hung a couple of feet in the air over a huge cauldron. A rope fastened to a large metal hook was wrapped around their wrists. Around the cauldron five more naked female victims with their mouths gagged and their wrists tied, sat on the floor. Veronica covered her mouth in shock and turned away, hearing their muffled cries and moans. A part of her wanted to run, to find help. She forced her body to turn back around.

  “Stay calm,” Selene whispered to her.

  Her suggestion seemed ill. She couldn’t understand how she could remain calm while staring at something this barbaric. She wanted to help but she couldn’t risk it. She wiped her face, clearing out any hint that was distressing and she placed the victims out of her mind.

  A Deamhan woman and man holding hands approached Selene. “What a nice specimen.” The woman’s eyes danced at Veronica’s appearance. “Is she yours for the evening or are you going to share?”

  Veronica moved behind Selene in an attempt to hide her from the Deamhan’s prying eyes.

  Selene’s eyes fiercely locked onto the two Deamhan. “Choose your next words wisely.”

  The couple looked at each other and the male laughed. “Excuse us, then. You could’ve just said no.”

  Selene immediately reached out, grabbing the male by his neck. In a quick blur, Silvanus jumped onto the female.

  Veronica found their accelerated speed to be confounding and horrid; something she could never get used to. Silvanus had the female by the neck and he pinned her to the floor. She hissed and squirmed, showing sharp Ramanga fangs which protruded in a wrathful angle.

  Selene also had the male pinned to the ground. “I am Selene, offspring of Lucius and an Ancient. You Deamhan show no respect.”

  The male retracted his fangs and his eyes widened.

  “And I am Silvanus, offspring of Anora and also an Ancient. But I don’t really care about your respect.” He released the female who crawled away.

  Selene also released her victim. “These young Deamhan have no shame.” Their act went unnoticed.

  “You aren’t hungry?” Silvanus asked her.

  “No,” she answered calmly.

  Veronica felt herself wanting to vomit. “Did you have to do that?” Somehow found the nerve and bravery to ask.

  Silvanus smiled. “They need to know their place.”

  “And his scent was all around them,” a voice behind them stated.

  They turned around to see Lambert dressed in a bright white dress suit and black silk tie with polished shoes that gleamed under the falsified lights. His appearance rocked Veronica who’d thought she’d seen the last of him when she left Dark Sepulcher a while ago.

  “They smelled like Kei,” Lambert added. “Correct me if I’m wrong, Selene.”

  “Yes, they smelled like him.”

  Lambert looked at Veronica. “I’m happy that you were able to make it.” He held a chalice in his hand.

  “What are you doing here?” she asked, straightening her posture.

  “I invited him,” Selene answered. She stepped closer to Lambert. She was taller than him, yet her presence did little to intimidate him.

  He smiled, unbothered by her threatening stance. “Yes. I couldn’t miss this for the world.”

  Silvanus held out his hand to Lambert. “We haven’t formally been introduced, vampire.”

  “And tonight is no different.” Lambert turned around and slyly walked away.

  Silvanus stared at his hand. “Vampires can be so supercilious.”

  “Yes, we can.” Lambert looked over his shoulder. “However, we can also be helpful.” He walked onto the stage and stood in front of the long table.

  They followed him cautiously and Silvanus walked around the table, examining one of the two chalices on it. He slowly seated himself in a chair and peered into the chalice, smiling.

  “Very comfy,” he said, squirming around in the chair. He looked out to the dance floor. “This is a nice view.”

  “But this is a better view.” Lambert pointed to the cauldron spectacle Veronica saw earlier.

  Silvanus looked at the human victims. “I have to agree with you. That is a better view.” He picked up his chalice in rejoice and placed it back on the table.

  Veronica turned around, staring at the crowds of Deamhan enjoying their environment. She sensed Selene’s agitation. She didn’t care for anything mildly associated with Kei. To Selene, this wasn’t what the Deamhan were about. The modern, out in the open, careless environment wasn’t what the older Deamhan like Lucius, Silvanus, and Selene wanted.

  “I didn’t invite you here to gloat about the best views, Lambert.” She placed her hands on her hips.

  “Yes, yes.” He waved her worries away with a flick of his wrist. “My vampires are outside waiting for my command. All you have to do is tell me when.”

  The music died down and the crowd began to hush.

  “Come with me.” Selene gripped Veronica by her arm and she led her off the stage and to the side with Silvanus following behind them. It grew quiet in the large room. The human victims silenced their cries. Suddenly a door creaked open from the far back of the room and footsteps approached the crowd in an eerie silence.

  Throughout the crowd the name “Kei” floated in the air like an arcane name. Veronica looked at Selene who remained stern and unmoved by the crowd’s actions.

  She unfolded her arms and began to rub her fingers into her sweaty palms. A weird image of what Kei looked like flashed in her mind. He had to be tall, broody, and unafraid. He had to have a stare that could gaze through her soul. She heard the faint footsteps coming from behind the stage, and she turned to look at the Deamhan who last saw her mother alive.

  A man of average stature casually walked toward the table. He wasn’t lavishly dressed like many of his attendees. Instead he wore a black leather jacket with blue jeans and a faded white shirt. His greasy, brown hair was slicked back; his jaw round, and his sunken eyes accentuated his prominent brow. He held a half-smoked cigarette in one hand and a can of beer in the other.

  His appearance caught everyone by surprise, even Selene, who remained still yet alert. Kei didn’t represent the image of someone who could take down Lucius. He looked assimilated into human culture a
nd society; like an anti-Deamhan representation.

  He inhaled his cigarette and took a sip from his beer. He gulped the last of it and crunched the can, tossing it over his shoulder. The clinking noise of it hitting the floor acted like the bell, beginning round one in what was to be the fight for control of the city.

  Kei raised his hands and everyone in the room went quiet. His display of control was unfathomable.

  “Welcome,” he said in a loud, commanding voice. The crowd repeated their welcome back to him. He glanced at everyone in the room before he climbed the stairs onto the stage. He slowly walked over to the jeweled chair and he sat, kicking his feet onto the table. He inhaled and flicked the ash of his cigarette onto the floor.

  “I have to find better bodyguards.” His steel cold eyes turned to Selene and Silvanus. “And you brought that?” He pointed at Veronica.

  She felt the piercing glare of the crowd and slightly turned her head to look, nervous that at any moment a Deamhan would rush from the crowd to attack her.

  “It’s been decades, Kei,” Selene said.

  “Not long enough,” he replied back. “Why are you here anyway? I don’t remember inviting you.”

  The eerie silence of the crowd became more uncomfortable by the minute.

  Veronica gulped and closed her eyes. She felt the tingling sensation start in her head and she immediately reopened her mind. He tried to read her. This time she had no intention of hiding her thoughts from anyone.

  “You know what happened to my mother!” She lashed out at him. The burning sensation stopped and he cocked his head to the side with a defined smirk on his face.

  He leaned back in his chair with his eyes locked onto Veronica. “Silence your minion, Selene.”

  “I’m not her minion.” Veronica wasn’t ready to silence herself.

  Kei flicked the cigarette toward her.

  Suddenly the crowd began to mumble and a voice within the crowd spoke out. “Kill her!”

  The mumbling continued, growing louder.

  Kei raised his hands for quiet. “No one touches her.” A wide grin appeared on his face. “She’s mine.”

  “She’s protected,” Selene bellowed.

  Kei laughed. “In my city, I determine who’s protected and who’s not.” He raised his chalice to the crowd and they cheered. “I don’t care about your protection.” He turned his head slightly to the right, glaring at Silvanus. “You think bringing another Ancient”—he then looked to Lambert— “and a vampire here to plot against me, would actually work? I own this city and every Deamhan in it.”

  “Lucius is head Deamhan in Minneapolis,” Selene replied. “Not you.”

  “And where is he?” He jokingly looked around the room. “He isn’t here. Oh yeah, that’s right. He’s dead.”

  The Deamhan in the crowd laughed at his comment.

  “You never were the brightest one, Kei,” Selene responded.

  “True, but I was his favorite.” He clapped his hands. From the back of the stage, two scantily dressed females appeared. They rushed to his aid, removing the chalices from the table. These minions hurried over to the cauldron and dipped the chalices in the blood collecting below the human bodies. “But before I allow my followers to tear you both apart slowly”—He stood up from his seat— “you’ll watch me torture, maim, and kill your human.” He then raised his chalice in the air. “A toast!” Everyone in the crowd raised their chalices in the air. “To our species. To our survival. Let no one, human, vampire, supernatural, or Ancient, stand in our way!” They devoured their drinks from their chalices in unison.

  Kei wiped a small trickle of blood from the corner of his mouth and smiled wickedly. His eyes flickered and he dropped his chalice. “Now.” He opened his eyes and his pupils disappeared and his eyes turned stark black. “It’s time to eat.”

  “I’m declaring a Decretum against you and your followers,” Selene stated loudly. Again, the crowd laughed.

  “This is my city, Selene,” Kei replied back belligerently. “And these Deamhan are my brothers and sisters.” He held his arms out to the crowd in response to the crowd’s cheering. “We’re tired of Ancients telling us what to do. We’re tired of rules and laws.”

  “The only way you could get rid of Lucius was to ban him with dark magic,” Selene said forcefully.

  Kei non-caringly shrugged. “So what,” he replied.

  “Kill her!” a female voice from the crowd blurted out.

  “In time, brothers and sisters.” Kei waved.

  “Lucius loved you like a father loves his son.” She stepped forward trying to keep a dialogue going. “And you repay him back by betraying him!”

  “His mistake.” Kei mused as while he picked at his fingernails in deviance and utter disrespect.

  Veronica clearly saw the problem that Selene, Silvanus, and even Lambert saw in Kei. How could Lucius sire someone as defiant as that? He didn’t care about anyone but himself. While he assimilated himself into human society he managed to perfect what the Deamhan were truly like. The Deamhan in the crowd; Ramanga, Metusba, Lamia, and Lugat, latched onto every word that came from his mouth. He was their God.

  He looked at Selene. “You didn’t even exist until you came rolling into my city.” He looked back at the crowd. “Ask them. You don’t exist, but I do. I exist.”

  “Yeah, you’re really famous,” Veronica said in a sarcastic tone. “You’re the child who wasn’t strong enough to kill your own sire.”

  “She can’t protect you from me, human. No one can,” Kei said in a lowered voice. He clapped his hands again, and the front door behind the crowd opened. A trail of naked humans entered, walking in a single line toward the stage. Their wrists were tied together with rope, and they each wore a dog chain around their neck that kept them connected to one another. They passed through the slithering crowd, and when they reached the stage they stopped and turned around.

  They treated humans like cattle, being led to slaughter. Just pieces of meat chained together like wild animals.

  The sight didn’t bother Selene, nor did it bother anyone in the venue, besides Veronica. A massive curdling scream came from Kei’s mouth and the crowd moved in unison, toward the innocent victims to devour.

  “It’s time to feast!” He yelled out to the crowd. He then pointed to Selene. “Kill her and the Ancient. Leave the vampire and the human for me.”

  Just then the front door opened unexpectedly.

  Everyone turned around and watched the body of one of the bouncers fall, landing in the doorway. No one said anything and Kei, confused about the cause of the commotion, walked around the table to get a better look.

  His eyes slowly bulged and he remained dazed, watching Lucius slowly walk through the door. Veronica saw that Lucius now looked fully re-energized. He wore a long blue shirt and black jeans. He swiped back his hair. His eyes were solid black. Veronica turned to look at Silvanus and Selene. Their eyes danced at the sight of him. The assault was about to begin.

  “Now, Lambert!” Selene called out.

  Silvanus jumped onto the stage and he pushed the long table forward. It slid across the stage, stopping only inches from the front of the crowd. The chalices flew across the floor, and many in the front of the crowd jumped, caught off guard by the sudden movement.

  “Kill them!” Kei screamed. “Kill them all!”

  For seconds no one in the room moved at the sight of Lucius. Veronica then felt Selene’s hand wrap around her wrist, and in moments she found herself in a corner of the room.

  “Stay hidden,” she whispered to her.

  Veronica nodded, mute and dumbfounded. Selene ran back into the crowd. In the distance Veronica saw Lucius, cutting through the horde in ease, slashing whoever stood in his way. He paid little attention to the chained humans huddled together on the floor.

  The windows shattered as several vampires jumped through the broken glass and began to attack the Deamhan crowd.

  Selene moved toward Kei, but he proved
to be just as fast. They blurred together as they fought, smashing against the table and chairs around them. Silvanus moved in, but a female Deamhan lunged at him stopping his attack. He wrapped his hand around her neck and twisted with force, detaching her head from her body.

  A brief gust of wind blew Veronica back. She covered her eyes for a moment. Suddenly, she felt cold hands wrap around her neck. A male Deamhan pushed her to the ground. She opened her mouth to scream, but he immediately placed his mouth over her own and he began to feed.

  The man suddenly jerked and let go, glancing at a piece of wood sticking out from his chest. Anastasia stood behind him. She pushed the Deamhan to the side and helped Veronica to her feet.

  “A Lamia,” she said in a monotone voice. The sound of flesh being ripped open grabbed her attention, and Anastasia quickly turned around to watch

  Lucius, covered in blood from head to toe. His hair dripped with clots of blood and dust. A male Deamhan stood on his knees in front of Lucius, begging for his life. In response, Lucius raised his right arm slowly and swiped with his nails across the Deamhan’s throat. Another man tried to run past Lucius but he was caught and killed within seconds.

  Lucius opened his mouth and screamed. The high pitched echo vibrated and drowned out the screams coming from the other Deamhan in the room. It shook the window panes and made the disco balls sway back and forth on the ceiling. It also rattled the chalices on the ground.

  Near the back of the room, Veronica saw a group of Kei’s followers attempting to dive through the windows to safety. Those who were still alive ran for the exits but were cornered off by Lambert’s vampires who guarded the doors. Another Deamhan dressed in a black tuxedo dropped to his knees in front of Lucius and began to caress his feet. Lucius kicked him aside and continued forward.

  Anastasia jumped on stage to join Selene against Kei. Kei quickly darted across the stage, passing Lambert. He jumped over the cauldron, his foot skidding across its edge. The cauldron fell, pouring its bloody contents on the floor.

  “You’ll pay for what you did, Kei.” Selene launched herself toward him, pushing Kei onto his back. Kei pushed her off and in Deamhan speed, he barreled toward the back of the room.