The Dead War Series (Book 2): Desperate Times

by Simmons, D. N.

  He watched as their heads landed in one direction as their bodies landed in another, then he looked up at Chloe seeing that she was finishing off the last zombie—a little girl—slicing her blade through her neck and sending her head tumbling off to the side and rolling on the floor.

  Cassian wiped the blood from his face with several napkins. He made sure none of it got into his eyes, nose or mouth. “We need to get back there.” He nodded toward the locked steel bullet-proof door. Both vampires could hear the heartbeats of the six humans hiding on the other side.

  “I guess this unfortunate lot didn't run to safety fast enough,” Chloe stated as she surveyed the grotesque mangled corpses strewn about. She stepped over several severed limbs and bloody entrails towards the employees-only door, twisting the knob. The door was secure and the numeric keypad insured that she couldn't pick it. Turning with a curse, she frowned at Cassian. “Master, it's locked and I don't want to break it. We'll need to lock it behind us once we're inside. Do you think you have enough strength to unlock it telepathically?”

  Cassian didn't bother to respond as he walked through the remains of the zombies and their victims, slicing off the heads of their victims to prevent them from reanimating... save one. He tossed a wary glance at the heavy, steel door, frowning. He had barely enough energy to manipulate the human mind, having exhausted himself earlier, unlocking the door would give him one hell of a headache. Cassian closed his eyes, concentrating deeply, forcing the mechanisms inside the sturdy lock to bend to his will. There was an audible click and when Chloe tested the door, it opened.

  “I'll get the humans out--”

  “Wait,” Cassian said, stopping her.

  “Master?” Chloe's blue eyes studied him closely as she tried to devise what his plan was.

  “Don't release the humans until you've check the back, make sure it is clear of these creatures,” Cassian said.

  With a quick nod, she disappeared into the other room.

  Cassian stepped up to a freshly reanimated zombie, its body ripped apart at the waist. The zombie dragged itself closer to him with its one good arm as its intestines smeared the floor with red gore and bits of shredded flesh. Cassian studied the monstrosity with a keen fascination as he made sure to step backwards, just keeping out of the zombie's reach.

  Chloe walked back into the room, shaking her head. “I didn't find any more back there.”

  “Excellent. This is the only one we need,” Cassian reached down, grabbing the zombie by the back of its shirt collar, lifting it away from his person as he carried it into the back. He tossed the zombie against the stainless steel fryer and the zombie snarled as it tried in vain to make its way towards them. Approaching, he stabbed his sword through the torso of the mangled ex-human at his feet, pinning it in place.

  “Master, may I ask why you're keeping this thing alive?” Chloe inquired.

  “There is a test I would like to conduct,” Cassian replied.

  “A test?” she asked.

  “Time to free the humans,” he said.

  Cassian ignored her perplexed expression as he began making his way towards the large freezer and banged on the door hoping to make contact with the humans inside. “Can you hear me?” he shouted, hoping they could.

  “Is it safe?” one of the people inside replied.

  “Yes, we've killed those infected that were out here, but we must move quickly. This location isn't ideal. We have a safer compound for you to go to where you will be protected,” Cassian informed.

  “Are you the police?” the panicked human asked.

  Cassian rolled his eyes, but replied. “We're the United States Military and we can't waste any more time. You're either going to open this door and leave with us, or we'll have to leave you here. I don't think you want to stay here. Those things aren't nearby now, but that will change.”

  There was a pause where neither side said anything, but suddenly Cassian could hear the lock on the freezer switch gears and the door began to open. He stepped back, allowing the human inside to stick his head out.

  “You don't look like the military,” the human male said, taking in Cassian's bloodied casual attire.

  Cassian took a quick glance behind the man to see five other humans huddled and shivering in the freezer. His gaze dropped back down to the human. “I'm not.”

  The male's eyebrows creased in his confusion, but then his gaze began to soften as his eyes glazed over, caught in the mental grip of the Master vampire's hypnotic powers. Cassian shifted his focus to the other humans still huddled in the back of the freezer, capturing their attention and taking over their wills.

  “You five...” Cassian pointed to one man and four women who stood together in the back. “...Come out and stand right here,” he directed, pointing to an open space along the wall beside the freezer.

  Following like puppets on his marionette strings, the five humans, four females and one male shuffled out of the gigantic icebox and repositioned themselves along the wall and remained silent. The man who opened the door stood inside the freezer, still under the vampire's spell.

  Chloe looked over the humans, Cassian's plan was starting to become clearer to her and she wondered exactly what part did he want her to play in it. “What now, Master?” she asked.

  Cassian didn't answer her. Instead, he called out to Marco telepathically and ordered the young vampire to join them inside. Within seconds, Marco was making his way towards them.

  “Yes Master?” he bowed his head.

  “Close the door, make sure it's locked,” Cassian instructed.

  Marco did as he was told, making sure the door to the kitchen was secure. He eyes scanned over the room to the zombie trapped to the floor by his Master's blade, then to Cassian.

  “Do you need help saving the humans, Master?” Marco asked.

  Cassian shook his head. “That creature there, let him bite you,” he ordered.

  Marco's entire body stiffened at what he rationalized was an insane command. He gawked at Cassian in disbelief. His brown eyes panned from Cassian to the zombie pinned to the floor then back to Cassian. “But... I... Why?”

  Cassian arched an eyebrow. “Because I said so. It's that simple.”

  “Master, forgive me,” Marco said, bowing at the waist. “I don't want to be one of them.”

  “The infection will be temporary. This must be done in order for us to know what we're dealing with when one of us becomes infected. Now, do as I say.” Cassian stood there, his mouth a straight line as his gaze bored into Marco. If it's one thing he didn't tolerate, it was blatant disobedience by one of his subjects.

  Marco straightened himself and looked at Cassian again. He saw no room for negotiation behind his Master's stern expression, but still he had to try. “Master, I--I don't want to be bitten by one of them. What if I turn and stay that way?”

  Cassian's eyes narrowed into slits and without warning, he advanced on Marco, grabbing the young vampire by his neck.

  “No! Please, don't,” Marco yelled as he began to struggle in Cassian's iron grip.

  Cassian took hold of his chin, forcing Marco to look at him. “Be still,” he commanded as he asserted his powers of persuasion over the young vampire. As he did so, he felt a sharp pain shoot through is brain, a clear and unpleasant indicator that he was overexerting himself. He gritted his teeth against the intrusion and continued to press his powers over the young vampire, coaxing him to submit.

  Marco ceased his struggles, becoming almost lucid in his hold and Cassian led him over to the mangled zombie that was thrashing on the floor, trying to break free of the sword pinning him in place. He gripped Marco's wrist and thrust the vampire's hand toward the zombie's mouth. The zombie snarled as it lunged forward, snapping its teeth into the offering, drawing blood. Marco cried out as it yanked its head away, ripping flesh from the vampire's hand. Blood spurted from the wound, splashing the zombie in the face and squirting over the floor. Quickly, Cassian pulled Marco back and tossed him to Chl
oe. Instinctively, she turned him around so that his back was facing her and held him firmly by his arms. Marco began to lose focus as the room when dark. The strong scent of blood surrounding him sent his hunger into overdrive and his fangs shot from his eye teeth and he lunged for the humans standing in a trance nearby, snapping, growling and snarling as he struggled to break free.

  “Hold him steady, make sure he doesn't bite you,” Cassian commanded.

  “I've got him,” Chloe assured.

  Cassian stepped forward, studying the infected vampire. “It only took a few seconds for him to turn.”

  “He's stronger, too, his heart's beating so fast,” Chloe informed as she tightened her grip on his arms. The sudden changes in the vampire terrified her and she wasn't one easily terrified. She also wasn't sure if Marco would return to normal as her Master had promised. Still, she was glad Cassian has made him to do his little experiment than her.

  “The rapid heartbeat is an interesting side-effect as well as the increase in strength. That's the most disturbing development,” Cassian noted.

  Marco attempted to twist around in her hold as he turned his head towards her face, his fangs snapping at her. Chloe leaned her head back, keeping her flesh out of reach of his teeth.

  “He's mindless, running on pure instinct. I'm going to attempt to control him,” Cassian said as he made eye contact with Marco's glazed-over, rabid stare. “Marco, be still.”

  The zombiefied vampire twisted and jerked in Chloe's grip, completely unresponsive to Cassian's mental persuasion. Cassian frowned then lifted his hand, putting it just out of reach of Marco's teeth. The rabid vampire snapped at his hand, its tongue protruding from behind sharp teeth, trying to get the slightest taste.

  “Let's see if his sense of smell comes into play.” Cassian punctured the palm of his other hand, drawing blood.

  The bloodthirsty vampire's focus immediately shifted from one hand to the other. His black eyes glued to the ruby red running down the palm of Cassian's hand. Marco growled, his fangs snapping at his Master. He snarled and roared as his thrashing about increased suddenly, nearly lunging toward Cassian and causing Chloe to lose her balance.

  “Hold him, damn it!” Cassian ordered as he jumped back, nearly avoiding Marco's fangs.

  “I'm sorry, Master,” Chloe apologized as she planted her feet firmly onto the floor and tightened one arm around Marco's chest, pinning his arms to his sides. Her other hand wrapped around Marco's neck, avoiding his mouth, but keeping his head from moving.

  “Now to see how many humans it will take to bring him back,” Cassian said.

  With that, he shoved the man back inside the freezer. The human fell against the shelves containing frozen meats and then tumbled to the ice-cold floor.

  “Toss him in,” Cassian ordered Chloe and she obeyed, pushing Marco inside before Cassian shut the door. He leaned against the door, listening to the screaming coming from the frightened victim inside as he was being murdered.

  Cassian looked at the zombie thrashing under his sword. He studied the monstrosity noting that it looked different than some of the others. They all appeared to have black eyes which made him wonder how they saw their pray? Did they see in body temperature, infrared? Or did they see as they did when they were once human and only the color of their eyes changed? All of these answers he needed to know. Another thing he noticed was that it was very pale and its mouth widened at an unnaturally large angle.

  “They looked to be mutating,” Cassian commented.

  Chloe looked at the zombie. “How do you mean, sir?”

  “When I faced these things in Chicago, they had black eyes and some color to their skin, they weren't that pale. But they were also freshly turned. It's been several hours and this one looks different than those I faced. I'm wondering how long it's been dead.” Cassian frowned, his eyebrows creasing.

  The zombie's eyes panned from him to Chloe as its bloody fingertips raked across the tiled floor. Several of the nails on its fingertips looked to have been ripped off, while others were chipped and jagged. It opened its unnaturally large mouth again and Chloe shivered in a mixture of horror and disgust.

  “We need to trap one of these things so that we may watch its transformation. We need to know what it all means.” Cassian sighed as he contemplated a brand new series of possible scenarios that was going to make life increasingly difficult and unpleasant for them. He could feel the rage rising within him as the face of the scientist responsible for this nightmare flashed in his mind. He swallowed it down for now. The most important thing was staying focused on his current plan. He nodded in the direction of he pinned-down zombie. “Destroy that thing and bring me my sword.”

  Chloe did as she was told. With some effort, she pulled the sword from the remaining torso of the zombie, then brought the blade down across its neck, severing the head from the body. Congealed blood, dark and reddish brown oozed from the wounds like thick slime. For a few seconds, Chloe stared at it, morbidly fascinated that the blood had started to clot inside the zombie's veins.

  “Chloe, my sword,” Cassian demanded.

  Coming back to her senses, she came over to Cassian, handing him the weapon.

  “You...” Cassian pointed to one of the females. “Come here.”

  The blonde woman followed his command, unable to refuse even if she wanted to, his hold over her was so strong. Cassian took her by the arm, positioning her in front of the door. When he opened the door, he shoved her inside, but not before he took notice of Marco hunched over the horrid remains of the human male. The vampire's face was buried deep within the ripped open chest cavity, the victims insides were spilling out as blood poured from the mangled mess. Marco looked up from the bloody heart he had been feasting on to see the human woman standing before him. Right before he could charge her, Cassian closed the door.

  Again and again, Cassian pushed one human in after another until finally, there stood one left remaining. The last female.

  “P...p...please... don't,” the female managed to say, surprising both Cassian and Chloe.

  “She's trying to regain control over her body,” Chloe commented with a bit of amusement at the human's resolve.

  Cassian studied the woman for a few seconds, watching her eyes twitch and her body tremble as she struggled to break his hold over her. He smirked. “So it would seem.” He could feel his mental control slipping as the drain on his body increased. He loathed the weakness he felt during the daytime hours and only when nightfall came, could he really move forward with all of his plans.

  “It sounds quiet in there, Master,” Chloe said, leaning against the wall beside the freezer door. “Just one slow heartbeat, Marco's.”

  Cassian nodded. “Well, let's see what's behind the door, shall we?” He held the human female in front of the door as he had done with the others. When he opened it, he saw Marco ripping the head off a zombie who had been trying to attack him.

  “Master, please let me out!” Marco begged.

  Cassian smiled, satisfied to see that the vampire had returned to normal. “By all means.” He pulled the human female aside and allowed Marco to exit. The vampire was covered head to toe with blood, gore and bits of body parts. There was a severed toe tangled in his long, black, bloodied locks. The sight made Cassian grimace with revulsion.

  Chloe stared at Marco, taking in his appearance. “So, how do you feel?”

  “My body is still buzzing from all of the blood, but other than that, I feel fine. I feel like myself again,” Marco replied.

  “You're a vampire of less than two centuries, sired by Landon who is only three centuries himself. And still, it took five humans to satisfy your savage bloodlust,” Cassian pointed out. “We still don't know if it would require the death of more humans or less if someone far older and more powerful were to become infected. This virus is extremely dangerous to us for so many reasons.”

  “What does that mean for us if we become infected? Do we risk the human lives?” Chloe inquir
ed, stepping next to Cassian.

  The master vampire's brows creased as his lips turned downward, but he didn't reply.

  “What about the new zombies in there?” Chloe changed the subject.

  “We destroy them all using fire,” Cassian said. “If it's possible, I'd like to see how the fire affects them.”

  “What about doing this experiment in a more private place? Those things can still come in here,” Marco said as he looked around nervously.

  “Are you afraid to fight them?” Cassian asked, one eyebrow cocked.

  Marco swallowed hard as he peered at the ancient vampire. “I... I'm just saying it'd be safer somewhere less open than this restaurant.”

  “I see,” Cassian said. He walked over to Marco, placing a hand reassuringly on his shoulder. “While you were infected, could you feel my mental presence trying to connect with you?”

  Marco shook his head. “No, Master. Even if I did, I don't remember anything that happened to me after that zombie bit me.”

  “I understand.” Cassian's grip tightened on Marco's shoulder, fingertips digging into the vampire's flesh, keeping him in place. “There is one thing that I can't forgive and that's blatant disobedience. I have no use for a vampire who refuses to follow my command.”

  Marco's eyes bulged as another level of panic began to sink in.

  “W-w-wait!” Marco pleaded with both hands up defensively, waving them frankly to stave off the attack. “Master, please, I—Gah!”

  His words were cut off as Cassian's fist punched through his chest, splintering bones and ripping muscles. His hand took hold of Marco's heart and he reared back, ripping the bloody organ from the vampire's body. He let the body fall as he carelessly tossed the heart to the floor.

  “Chloe, open the door and whatever comes out, we kill it, save but one,” Cassian ordered as he stepped callously over Marco's corpse.