by Sarah Carter
Freaking out, knowing she’s in trouble, Claire turns and books it down the side hallway. Running full speed, she turns around the corner. Safety glass begins to slide over the doorway, but Claire drops down and easily rolls under it before it hits the ground.
She quickly kips up. She’s in a large room with medical equipment. Sprinting, she heads toward a door in the corner. Opening it up, it leads to another hallway.
When she gets five doors down, a guard member turns the corner right in front of her, and Claire stops.
“Miss, you need to come with me,” the guy says. He grabs ahold of her.
Claire spins and sweeps the guys legs out from underneath him. He quickly grabs her, yanking her to the floor also. Claire tries to wrestle out from his grip, but he’s too strong, so she turns around and jams her fingers into his chest. The guy falls limp, and Claire scrambles up.
Bending over she states, “You’ll only be paralyzed for like fifteen minutes. It’ll wear off.” With that, she turns and runs.
The hallway finally leads into a large room. She slides into the center and stops. Looking around, she tries to figure out where to go. There are no doors, so Claire turns around.
Two guards now stand behind her. “Miss Livingston, you need to come with us.”
“Oh, hell. Like that’s going to happen,” Claire quips, taking a ready stance.
The two guards walk to her, and Claire start attacks first. She’s surprised because these guys actually fight back better than the other two. They must be higher up in the guard, but Claire has fought two people at once many times before.
She knocks one guard off his feet, which gives her space to go after the other guard member. He reaches out for her, so Claire drops to her knees and shoots her fingers into his hip. He screams out and crumbles to the ground.
Claire stands up and runs back down the hallway. When she gets to one of the doorways, she hears movement, so she opens the door and slips inside the room.
It’s another large room, but this one has two doors on the opposite wall. She quickly runs over to them, but before she can get there, she hears, “Stop, or we’ll shoot!”
Claire turns around to see three guards pointing guns at her. She knows these guns—they’ll take a Neturu down in a second with an electrical burst. Begrudgingly, she puts her hands up.
“Down on your knees!”
“Come over here and make me,” Claire retorts with venom. “I dare you.”
“I’ll shoot!” the guard yells.
A deep voice from behind Claire says, “You shoot her and I’ll put you through more pain than you could ever imagine.”
Standing up straighter, the guard says, “Sir, she’s taken down almost our entire team.”
“Then instead of taking her down, maybe you should ask her for some tips, because if you harm my granddaughter, you’ll pay for it.”
With a huge grin, Claire puts her hands down. “Maybe you need more training.”
The guards lower their guns.
“Now, will someone please explain to me what’s going on?” the voice booms.
Claire whirls around and runs to him. She wraps her arms around her grandfather and buries her face in his chest. She whispers, “Something’s wrong.”
“You need to tell me,” her grandfather replies. “Why are you even here?”
“There’s something wrong with me,” Claire replies, looking at him. “Something seriously wrong.”
Chapter 9
“What do you mean, something is wrong with you?” her grandfather asks.
“I can explain,” Damien says from behind them.
“Master Damien,” her grandfather retorts. “I would appreciate an explanation as to why Claire is here.”
Claire turns around and looks at Damien.
“Of course, Mr. Hardrick,” Damien replies. “If we could do it privately, that would be appreciated.”
“Yeah, come on. I don’t want anyone to hear this,” Claire murmurs.
“Very well. The conference room, now,” her grandfather snaps with a growl. Damien nods and turns in the doorway, and Claire’s grandfather points his finger at one of the guard members. “I will discuss this failure with your supervisor. This was ridiculous.”
“Sir,” the guard member retorts, bowing his head. “She took us by surprise.”
Growling, her grandfather says, “And if she were an assassin?”
The guard member looks up. “Sir, She is incredibly strong and fast. She took us down easily. She must have extensive training.”
“Of course she does,” her grandfather snaps. “She is my granddaughter. Who do you think trains her?”
“I could give you some pointers,” Claire chirps smugly.
“Claire,” her grandfather enunciates.
She just smiles at the guards.
“Let’s go,” he says, pushing her gently on the back. They walk across the room and out the doorway. Claire waves at the guard members. Damien is waiting for them. Silently, they walk through the hallways.
Finally, they come to a room. Damien waves his hand and they go in. There is a large rectangular table with ten chairs. On one wall is a panel of computers. On the opposite wall are screens. Images of rooms on the ship blink on and off.
“Cool,” Claire quips, “Can I see the damage I did?”
“Claire, you shouldn’t be proud of yourself,” her grandfather chastises.
“I didn’t try to seriously hurt any of them,” Claire replies, sitting down in a chair. “Just disable them for a little while. If I wanted to cause damage, I would have.”
“I know.” Her grandfather sighs. “I’m proud that you were able to do that and not harm anyone. Your training is nearly complete.”
Damien sits in a chair opposite from them. “She’s impressive and would be an asset to the guard.”
“I wish,” Claire exhales, “But since it appears I can drain the life out of people, I doubt I’ll be a candidate.”
“Claire,” Damien snaps, “Stop it!”
Claire retorts, “Damien, you can just shut up yourself.”
“Young lady, you will not talk to Master Damien with such disrespect,” her grandfather booms.
Claire falls silent. She folds her hands on the table and stares down at them.
“Oh,” Damien interjects. “No, Mr. Hardrick. Claire and I have an understanding. She and I are…friends…so she can speak to me freely.”
Her grandfather looks at him and then at Claire. “What’s going on?”
“With me and Damien?” Claire chirps.
A steady stare comes from her grandfather. “That wasn’t what I meant, but now you have my attention.”
“What we’re about to discuss must remain confidential,” Damien states. “I mean, even with your family, Sir.”
“As you wish. I’m familiar with top-secret protocol. Now, what’s going on?”
“Well, I have a lot to tell you,” Claire sighs. “Some of it is really personal, but I know I can talk to you about anything.”
He reaches over and takes her hand. “Of course.”
Leaning over, Claire hugs him hard. “Okay, let me start with Alex and me.” She takes in a deep breath and then tells her grandfather everything, everything she told the doctor and more.
Finally, she’s done. Her grandfather sits there for a second and stares at her. “So, you and Alex are in a relationship now?”
“No. I’m involved with someone else, but I’m not going public until I talk to Alex.”
Her grandfather groans and rolls his eyes. “Teenagers.”
“Alex and I had sex one time and we shouldn’t have. We weren’t in a relationship. Are you mad? Do you think I should stay with Alex because we had sex once?” Claire grimaces.
“No,” her grandfather sighs, “I just wish you’d waited, but that’s none of my business. You can’t be involved with Alex if that isn’t what you truly want. I mean, if you really are seeing someone else, then you can’t lead A
lex on. Who are you seeing anyway? Do I know him?”
“Not very well,” Claire slowly states, “But yes, you do know him.”
“A Neturu?” he asks.
Claire nods.
Damien interjects, “It’s me, sir.”
Her grandfather’s eyes widen and they dart over to Damien. “Excuse me?”
“Claire and I have decided to date each other,” Damien declares.
“Are you serious about this?” Her grandfather looks at Claire. “I don’t want you hurt, baby girl.” He eyes Damien. “I would go to jail for a really long time.”
“He won’t hurt me,” Claire replies. “We’re taking it slow.”
“The pace had better be glacial.”
“Grandpa.” Claire clenches her teeth. “Shut up.”
The corner of his mouth turns up in a smirk. “Sorry, dear. I know you’re an adult, but you’ll always be my baby girl.”
“Yeah, a warped baby girl who’s a soul-sucking monster,” Claire snorts.
“Claire.” Damien snaps.
“Soul-sucking monster? What are you talking about?” her grandfather asks.
Claire looks at her grandfather. “We think we know what happened to Alex.”
“Claire!” Damien snaps again.
She looks over at him. “He’s my grandfather and my mentor. I go to him with everything. He was also the leader of the guard and served your family for a long time. He can know.”
“Will someone please tell me what you keep going on about?” her grandfather exclaims.
“I’m a succubus,” Claire declares. “We think I sucked the energy out of Alex when we were kissing. I must have bled him dry accidently. He just woke up a little while ago.”
“I know a succubus sounds kind of crazy,” Damien interjects, “But it’s the best I could come up with.”
With a heavy exhale, Claire watches her grandfather put his face into his hands. “I know…it’s really bad,” Claire whispers.
“Being a succubus isn’t bad,” Damien retorts. “We aren’t even sure that’s what you are. Maybe succubi aren’t even real.”
“No, they’re real.” Her grandfather sighs. “There just hasn’t been one in a very long time.”
There is silence in the room and then Claire says, “What did you just say?”
“Succubi exist,” her grandfather states, looking at her. “There have only been five ever, but they have existed. The last one was five-hundred years ago.”
“How would you know?” Claire asks.
Her grandfather stares at her for a second. “It’s in our family line.”
“What?” Claire and Damien yell at once.
“How do you know this?” Damien demands.
“Family journals,” her grandfather sighs. “I found them many years ago. It was the documentation of the last succubus. Her name was Ventria.”
Looking bewildered, Damien stutters, “You…you never thought to tell anyone about this?”
“What did it matter, young man?” her grandfather replies. “I never would’ve suspected that Claire was one. We knew she had problems shifting, but I would’ve never guessed this.”
“Holy crap. I really am a succubus.” She grabs her chest and starts to freak out.
“Claire, honey, calm down,” her grandfather says, grabbing her arm gently. “Just breathe. There’s nothing wrong with you. Ventria was able to live in normal society. She was able to hide what she was. It takes some practice, but you can learn to control it.”
Unable to help it, Claire starts to cry. Her grandfather scoots over and wraps his arms around her.
“No!” she screams. “Don’t touch me. Don’t touch me at all. Any of you!”
Her grandfather pulls away. “Claire, come on, now. You can be touched.”
“No!” Claire cries, as she stands up. “I don’t want anyone touching me.” With that she turns and runs out of the room.
“Claire!” her grandfather yells from behind her.
She sprints down the hall and then turns the corner. Stopping, Claire braces herself against the wall. Very slowly, she falls to her knees and cries. A few seconds later, someone comes down and kneels next to her. He places his hands on her shoulders. “Baby, please. We’ll figure this out. I promise. We won’t stop until you have it under control.”
“I don’t want to hurt anyone,” Claire sniffles. “I already drained Alex. Who’s next? You?”
“I know when you start to pull,” Damien says. “I’ll be able to stop it and step away. You won’t be able to hurt me. I promise. Now, first things first, you need to eat something. You haven’t in days. They’ve been giving you fluids but you need something solid in your system. Come back to the room. We can talk more about this while you eat.”
“I’m not hungry,” Claire mumbles.
Her stomach growls.
Damien laughs. “Oh really?”
Half laughing, Claire says, “Shut up.”
“I’m going to bring the doctors in and we can find out what your grandfather knows, alright?”
She nods. “Yeah.”
Damien helps lift her up and they walk into the room. Her grandfather stands up. Claire rushes over into his arms.
“See, baby girl? I’m not worried,” her grandfather murmurs.
Damien walks over to a panel on the wall. “Please send in Dr. Galliger, Dr. Rollins, and Mr. Paulson immediately.”
A soft voice replies, “Yes sir, Master Damien.”
“Please also bring Claire’s food in here. She’s very hungry,” Damien adds on.
“Yes, sir.”
“Why don’t we sit down?” Damien suggests.
He pulls her chair out of her, and Claire sits down. This time Damien sits next to her. He reaches over and takes her hand. Claire tries to twist out of his grip, but he holds on tight.
“Don’t,” he whispers. She frowns but leaves her hand in his.
Everyone remains silent until the door opens. Dr. Galliger walks in followed by a woman and another man. Damien squeezes Claire’s hand.
“Claire, this is Dr. Rollins,” Damien says, gesturing to the woman.
Dr. Rollins sticks her hand out to Claire. “It’s very nice to meet you.”
Immediately, Claire shies away.
“Oh,” Damien interjects. “Right now she’s a little timid about touching anyone. I’ll explain why in a few minutes.”
Furrowing her eyebrows, Dr. Rollins nods. She takes a seat across from them. “Very well.”
“Claire, you already met Dr. Galliger, and this gentleman is Mr. Paulson, our head scientist.” Damien points to them.
Mr. Paulson nods his head. “Hello.”
“Mr. Hardrick?” Dr. Galliger interrupts. “I didn’t even know you were here.”
“Claire is my granddaughter,” he replies. “I still have ties to the security force and I was alerted that she was here. I came immediately.”
“We have such great security,” Damien chimes sarcastically. “About the non-disclosure agreements that they sign…”
Her grandfather looks at Damien. “They contacted me about my granddaughter.”
“No offense, Mr. Hardrick, but my orders were broken. That’s treason,” Damien harshly retorts. “But I’m honestly glad that you came.”
“Me too,” Claire adds.
“Now, what’s going on?” Mr. Paulson asks.
Claire sits up. “First, please, how is Alex doing?”
“Vitals are strong,” Dr. Galliger replies. “From what he says, he feels fine. His energy levels are back within normal ranges. It seems as though he is…recharged…so to speak.”
“Well, at least I didn’t kill him,” Claire whispers.
Dr. Rollins looks at her. “How would you have killed him?”
Damien squeezes Claire’s hand. “We think we know what’s different about Claire.”
“We’re almost positive,” her grandfather agrees. Everyone looks at him. He takes in a deep breath. “Twenty years ago
, I went through a time capsule that my bloodline had passed down through the years. No one had really examined it before. Inside I found some really old archives, or journals you could say. They were from 500 years ago. They were about the last…succubus…that existed.”
“A succubus?” Dr. Rollins replies. “As in…”
“An energy vampire,” Claire finishes. “Yes, I drained Alex’s energy from him, by pulling it into myself.”
Everyone is quiet for a second. Dr. Galliger finally sighs. “It would explain everything—the surplus of energy in her, why Alex had none. If she took in all of his energy, that would probably give her the ability to expel it or even the need to expel it. That’s why she shifted into so many things so rapidly. I imagine our bodies can only hold so much energy.”
“Has this ever happened before?” Mr. Paulson asks.
She shakes her head. “This is the first time that anyone pushed their energy into me, so it’s never happened before.”
“Never in your life?” Dr. Rollins responds.
“All my ex-boyfriends were human. You know, I spent my entire life not being able to shift, so it was never a problem. Alex was the first Neturu that I did anything with.”
“Tell them your whole history,” Damien murmurs.
With an exasperated sigh, Claire says, “Again?”
“They need to hear it,” Damien replies.
“Fine,” Claire grumbles. “Most Neturu start shifting as kids. I never did. I didn’t shift into anything until I was 13.”
“That’s incredibly old,” Dr. Rollins says.
Claire rolls her eyes. “Yes, like I didn’t know that. We worked my entire life to get me to shift, and it never happened. I also couldn’t go to shima to save my soul. Twice. I’ve been there twice. When I try, I get sucked back out, which is the exact opposite of what happens to everyone else. So, I spent my entire life not shifting and not going to our plain of existence.”
“This was never brought to anyone’s attention?” Dr. Galliger inquires looking at Claire’s grandfather.
“Claire didn’t want anyone to know,” he replies. “I respected that. She excelled everywhere else. Her fighting skills are off the charts. She’s always caught on very fast. She’s been incredibly strong her entire life.”