Terraformed Skies

by Anna Lewis

  “None…you wouldn’t believe how desperate the situation was. A wolf drove her in,” Wallace told him.

  “How many Hunters did you encounter?” Porter asked.

  “They were endless…but please, I need blood,” I said. A driving migraine had bloomed around my entire skull. Wallace helped me to a bed and Porter handed me a bag of blood.

  “We just made a run to the blood banks; the Hunters are trying to keep presences around there as well,” he said.

  “They need to be eradicated,” I mumbled.

  “We have an audience scheduled with your father at midnight. If you are not up for it, we can surely reschedule,” Alexis said.

  “No, I’ll be fine for midnight. Is he coming here?” I asked.

  “Yes,” she said. I took a deep breath. I’d gone out with an entire party and lost many good fighters. Wraith, my father, would have my head for my failure.

  “Don’t drink yet, I’ll see about this leg,” Porter said. He injected local anesthetic and went about making sure all parts of the bullet were removed from my leg before he sewed me up. Afterwards I was helped back to my room where I quickly showered and changed into comfortable clothes before the anesthetic wore off. I settled into my bed with the bag of blood and a copy of the Homer’s Iliad. If I gave into rest, my mind would have purchase to haunt and torture me. Really, I wanted to be curling up with Kai. He could talk me to sleep with his dreams of our living peacefully in Canada.

  A deep sigh left my chest. I didn’t even know where Kai lived. I only knew his pack was near Seattle. I didn’t even get his phone number…how could we possibly keep seeing each other? How could I have let him convince me that a relationship was possible between us? Of course it was impossible. We both had immense duties, starkly apparent now that we had returned to our respective worlds. I bit into the blood bag and took a long pull. The sadness pushed heavy on my chest as I realized the last time I saw Kai was the last time I’d see him ever. After I finished the blood, I shut my eyes and attempted to find sleep. Thankfully, my exhaustion was heavy enough to pull me under almost as soon as my eyes closed.

  * * *

  “Sophia,” my father’s cultured voice drew me away from sleep. I opened my eyes and saw him standing in front of my window. He was dressed in a black suit, as was customary for him. His hands were held loosely behind his back. Wraith was a tall and regal vampire. He was a handful of years past five hundred and his hair had only just begun to gray around his ears. The rest of his hair was still jet black.

  “Father…” I murmured.

  “I was beginning to think you’d perished in that forest,” he said.

  “And what would you have done if I had?” I asked.

  “Perhaps I would have made another daughter,” he said. I sat up while he turned around.

  “Mother hates you,” I said wryly.

  “She hates everyone. I would never lay with that viper ever again. All her goodness died after you were born,” he said sharply. I smirked and the ghost of a smile touched his lips.

  “Father, the Hunter situation is imperative…” I said.

  “They will not be underestimated anymore,” he agreed.

  “We have to hit them…full force,” I said.

  “I will call a conference” he said. “Then we will decide how to handle this affront. As for you...” His ice blue eyes seemed to cut through me. I recognized his look. He was concerned.

  “I’m fine, father,” I told him.

  “You lost a full fighting party. And Damien, I know how fond you were of each other,” he said. Damien and I were always close, but more in the manner of brother and sister than anything else.

  “They were soldiers. Their sacrifices will be honored father. But there is no use in pining after the dead,” I said. Immediately, Kai’s face flashed in my mind.

  “You are pining,” Wraith observed.

  “Father—”

  “Just because we are vampires, does not mean we do not feel,” he said. “You need time to recover from this tragedy. Take the time. I am sure Alexis can manage running this place a few more nights. Soon you will be moving to Prime Coven and she’ll be taking over here anyhow.” He glided to the door, but paused with his hand on the old carved mahogany. “I will send word when the conference is confirmed,” he said. With that, he was gone.

  I sighed, and it sounded as if it had culminated from centuries of repression. One of the few kindnesses of immortality was that memory always faded with time. I let myself remember Damien and cried, those tears mingling with my loss of Kai as well.

  * * *

  I woke at sunset feeling markedly better than I had the day before. My energy felt nearly replenished. Standing up, I shook off some dizziness and tested my leg. There was only slight pain, but not enough to deter me from a full day of training. After breakfast, I intended to stay in the sparring room and face anyone who arrived to exercise. The green marble tiled halls were still quiet as I made my way to the kitchens.

  “Oh, Sophia…” Alexis’ voice brought my attention to one of the high-stooled tables. It sat next to a wide view of the forest outside.

  “How are you Alexis?” I asked while checking out a half glass of blood. There was a line of industrial refrigerators on the far side of the kitchen that dispensed various amounts of blood per whatever vampire’s needs. But it did cap dispensations when blood supplies were low.

  “Fine, just having a boost,” said Alexis. “Your father told me you’d likely be resting for a few days.”

  I joined Alexis at the table. Her honey blonde hair was pulled up into a bun. She wore a loose dark gray blouse over black leather tights and dark gray combat boots. Her eyes were the same gray as her clothes.

  “Well I woke up feeling fine,” I said. “So, I figure, why not spend the day sparring?” I took a sip of the blood and set down my cup.

  “If you’re feeling up to it…” she said. There was a moment of comfortable quiet. “I was fond of Roland you know,” she said…to no one in particular. Her gaze was far away, in the trees.

  “I’m sorry. We lost…many great vampires,” I said in a low voice.

  “What am I going on about? I shouldn’t bring this up again for you,” she said, apologizing.

  “It’s fine Alexis, I’m alright,” I insisted.

  She studied me closely for the span of three breaths.

  “You don’t seem—”

  “I said I’m fine, does my word mean nothing?” I asked, cutting her off.

  “N-no Sophia, I meant no offense,” she said. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

  “If you need me, I’ll be in the gym,” I said. I took my glass with me and went towards the sparring room with purpose. I was first to enter the gym. As I finished my drink I went around, turning on lights and checking the weapon stores.

  “Sophia…” Porter’s voice called my attention to the entrance. “I assumed you’d be resting tonight. Your body needs it,” he said.

  “I’m fine Porter, I feel my usual self,” I lied. “Why are you here?” His night colored hair fell into his face as he glanced down.

  “I was going to wait for someone to spar with,” he said.

  “Very well, you’ll have me for a match,” I told him. His silver eyes widened as they quickly met mine.

  “Sophia, I strongly believe you should still be resting. All the blood you’ve taken in since returning is going towards your healing. You’ll have no energy in there,” he said. I glanced across the matte gray gym floor to the steel doors of the sparring room.

  “I have plenty energy, I’m standing here aren’t I?” I asked. Porter took a deep breath and sighed.

  “As you wish,” he said. Once I finished turning on all the stations in the gym, Porter followed me into the sparing room. It was designed as a ring. There was a raised mat in the center. For those who sparred, the rules were simple, step or fall out of the fighting area and you lose. Porter stepped onto the mat. He wore form-fitting pants and ligh
t weight boots. His shirt was loose and I could use that to my advantage. I’d dressed for close combat; my clothes clung to my shape and were made for ease of movement.

  I stepped onto the mat and slowly circled around Porter. He sprinted forward to grab me by the neck. But I moved my head back just in time. I caught him by the elbow and shoved him back. As soon as I did a wave of dizziness draped over me and I fell square on my bottom.

  “Sophia!” Porter exclaimed, he was at my side within the blink of an eye.

  “I’m fine…” I said, though suddenly. I was short of breath.

  “I told you, you should be resting,” he said.

  “I don’t need to rest Porter! I need to be in motion,” I said through miles of frustration. I shook him off and forced myself to stand.

  “I won’t fight you while you’re like this,” he said. He guided me off the mat and I realized I leaned on him heavily to move.

  “This is irregular. I just drank blood, I should be able to at least stand steady on my feet,” I said.

  “True…let’s go to the clinic. I’d like to draw your blood,” he said thoughtfully. I let him escort me there, not trusting my own two feet. The way the halls constantly spun didn’t sit well either.

  “Could that bullet have been poisonous?” I asked. Porter sat me down on one of the transfusion chairs. He stretched my arm out and quickly took out the instruments needed to draw blood.

  “If it were so, you would have exhibited symptoms directly after being shot,” he murmured. He glanced at me curiously, then seemed to consider his words before speaking again. “While in the safe house…did you happen to get close with any of the vampires?” he asked.

  “Get close?” I asked. Porter painlessly took a vial of my blood. He went over to his desk and set it down before going to one of his giant bureaus in search of something.

  “Lay with, I mean,” he said. A jolt of shock froze me to the seat. The thought of my being pregnant hardly crossed my mind. Not when I laid with Kai and not after. It wasn’t as if procreating with wolves was impossible. At our base, our kind were both human. Only, we had evolutionary deviations that made us what we were. There had been crossbreeds before, though the hybrids weren’t well received in either wolf or vampire cultures. In fact, they were despised. Wolves and vampires were natural enemies. The thought of creating offspring with them was practically abhorrent in most cases. Whenever a hybrid surfaced they were weeded out and killed, along with the parents. They weren’t allowed to exist.

  “Sophia?” Porter snapped me out of my thoughts, still colored with shock.

  “I…ah,” I didn’t know what to say. Porter pursed his lips and proceeded to drop my blood into some small test he withdrew from the bureau. It was circular and appeared very much like a birth control wheel.

  “You are very much pregnant…” he murmured. “The test hasn’t even fully absorbed your blood and already you have a marked showing of pregnancy hormones.

  “What?” I gasped. My head became so light, I felt as if it would detach from my body. Porter’s concerned gaze found me and he was quick to bring a bucket under my chin. I vomited what little was in my stomach. Then the sight of the blood kept me dry heaving.

  “Sophia, it’s alright,” Porter said. He rubbed my back. “The child will be well protected and cared for. It has the backing of an entire coven.”

  Tears blurred my vision. My child wouldn’t have the backing of a coven, or a pack. It would be born an outcast. Potentially an outcast without a father, and that was only if I managed to keep it a secret and it could live.

  “Was Damien the one…?” Porter asked.

  “Y-yes,” I forced myself to say. “He was.”

  Porter sighed heavily and took the bucket out of my sight. Soon he handed me a bottle of water. “You’ll need to increase the amount of blood you intake. You’ll be feeding for two. Preferably you’d take from Damien’s vein. But it’s fine to stick to an increased diet of human blood,” he said.

  “Will I be able to…function at my norm?” I asked.

  “Of course, should you have the proper diet. Otherwise you will become dizzy, and your body could give out. Like in the sparring room,” he said.

  “Without the blood of its father…will the child be weak?” I asked.

  “Not necessarily. Though, vampire children that were fed their fathers’ blood while in the womb do come out generally healthier and with a better outlook. But so have offspring coming from regular human blood nutrient. There is equal statistic on this,” he reassured me.

  “Alright then…” I said slowly.

  “I will be back with some blood for you,” he said and left me alone to the chaos of my thoughts. I had four months until the child would be big enough for Porter to take a DNA sample, then two months later the child would be born. That didn’t leave me with enough time to come up with some plan for a life for it. I needed to find someone who’d care for it, I needed to set up a home for it, funds…I needed a safe place to birth it. I needed Kai. He should know about his own child, I couldn’t keep that from him. I just had no way of getting to Kai, or even getting a hold of him. I didn’t know where to begin.

  “Here you are Sophia,” said Porter, returning with a full glass of blood. Alexis was in his wake.

  “Is it true?” she asked.

  “Porter, must you gossip?” I asked.

  “Only to Alexis,” he said, his tone apologetic.

  “Oh, a child between you and Damien, it’ll be beautiful,” she sighed.

  “I believe it’ll be a girl. Damien was just a tad effeminate,” Porter mused. I rolled my eyes at the both of them, but let them talk. My mind was on how I’d get into contact with Kai. It would have to be soon, while Alexis was still running the coven, and certainly before the conference my father was putting together at Prime Coven. I took a sip of the blood and started planning my trip to Seattle.

  * * *

  I managed to leave the house without raising any suspicion. Of course, no one there knew about anything to be suspicious of so I left without a problem. I knew of a few wolf packs in the Portland area, but I didn’t know where any of the wolves lived. When in human form they were just that, humans. They had their own houses or apartments. The wolves tended not to draw together under one house as vampires did. Which is why I figured my chances of finding Kai would be greater at the wolves’ center in Seattle. I was sure there’d still be wolf patrols in any of the national parks near that city. I’d have to take my chances walking around in Cougar and Tiger Mountain parks.

  I focused on the road. The usual two and a half hour drive was cut down to two hours. The fleet engine of my Porsche saw to that. I drove to Cougar Mountain Park first and parked in one of the hiker lots. I wore regular jeans, boots, and a plain green flannel shirt covered with a black jacket. It wasn’t the usual vampire combat gear I wore when venturing into forests. My heart rate sped up as I strode towards the trail. If I was confronted by a wolf, they’d more than likely attack. Then what would I do? Ask for Kai? I sighed and then shrugged. I suppose that was all I could do.

  The trees seemed to close around me like a womb as I made my way down the hiking trail. A couple of humans passed me. They seemed like tourists, wearing packs and holding a map at the ready. All I had was a canteen of ‘just in case’ blood clipped to my belt. The wolves wouldn’t show themselves until I was at least five miles into the woods. I rubbed my stomach, somewhat apprehensively. I hadn’t yet fully accepted the idea of being pregnant. I couldn’t really believe that I was. Porter suspected it would be a girl, yet I kept thinking of ‘he’ whenever I thought of it.

  Late afternoon had turned to dusk by the time I picked up on a wolf’s scent. My steps slowed and I listened for company bigger than a complaining bird or squirrel. I picked up on a slow heartbeat at the same time I heard soft padded footfalls to my left. I didn’t move. Instead I waited for the giant white wolf to emerge from the trees. It growled at me and gnashed its teeth before it tossed
its head to the right. It wanted me to go back where I came from.

  “I…I’m looking for Kai, Head Alpha heir. I need to speak with him,” I said. The wolf ceased its growling and tilted its head at me. “I have no weapons on me, I’m just looking for him,” I added. Its pale blue eyes appraised me for a full minute, before she shifted into the form of a human woman.

  “Why are you looking for Kai?” she asked derisively.

  “I was one of the vampires he took sanctuary with in the safe house. I…just need to speak with him. Do you know how I could get a hold of him?” I asked.

  “Look, I’m sure whatever happened in that safe house should stay there. Wolves and vampires shouldn’t be getting mixed up. Especially now. There’s a greater threat to deal with,” she said.

  “Why are you speaking to me?” I asked, trying for a different angle.

  “When a single vampire, not dressed for combat, and without any weapons on her comes to speak with us calmly. I’m more inclined to listen. Plus, I thought vampires couldn’t tolerate any degree of daylight…you look fine,” she said.

  “Only humans turned vampire burn up in sunlight. Those of us born from pure blood, truly vampire, can tolerate sunlight. But…can you at least relay a message to Kai?” I asked.

  “I don’t do the bidding of vampires. Anyways, Kai just left Seattle. He’s back with his local pack in Portland,” she said.

  “Thank you,” I said. I knew that’d be as much help I could hope for from a wolf. She rolled her eyes, then shifted back into wolf form and stalked off into the trees. I would’ve sprinted back to the car. But I sensed more wolves on either side of the trails. No doubt, they were making sure I left their woods quietly. I sped back to Portland. I’d have to venture out into the woods of known wolf territory come the following afternoon. My coven would no doubt take notice of my prolonged absence. That, and the commemoration of those we lost was to take place that night. I couldn’t miss Damien’s memorial.