In Love With A Vampire

by M. J. Stevens

  “I’m the last surviving member of the Urukan clan,” Kalista murmured, her voice choking. “I’m fearful for my life as we speak. I could be the target of any wild vampire at any moment, and if I die, then the Urukan line would die with me. I just … can’t let that happen, but yet, I can’t keep myself safe all the time. Danger lurks everywhere for me.”

  Lipton hugged Kalista close to his chest, arching his wings closer around her like a shield against the whipping wind. “I won’t let anything happen to you, I promise. I’ll protect you with my life if I have to. No vampires will come close to you as long as I’m around.”

  Kalista gazed into Lipton’s eyes, her heart melting at his kind and loving words. But she knew that Lipton couldn’t possible protect her twenty-four seven. Lipton was cursed, and he could transform into the deadly vampire serial killer at any time. How was Kalista going to feel safe when she wasn’t sure when Lipton’s transformation was going to be triggered?

  But she decided not to bring that up, because talking about anything that revolved around Catan made her feel repulsed. She’d rather spent every intimate moment with Lipton as long as she could … before Lipton transformed into Catan again. For right now, she wanted to savor this moment with him.

  “I know I’ll be safe with you,” Kalista whispered softly, aching at the thought of the reality that she wouldn’t be safe with him as long as he was cursed. But she knew that Lipton would move mountains and oceans to protect her and ensure that she was safe if he could.

  Then, Lipton put his hand on Kalista’s chin and lift her head higher so their eyes were level. And then, he kissed her, and they were both drowned in their own loving world, filled with unspoken passion. Lipton wasn’t sure about his feelings for Kalista, but he was confident that he was deeply concerned for her, and didn’t want to see her get hurt. Kalista’s heart brimmed with love for Lipton, and she felt like she was on top of the world.

  After a moment of silent intimacy, Lipton pulled his head back, and then gazed at the darkening sky, where the stars started to emerge as the last rays of the sun slithered away. Kalista followed his gaze, and for a moment there, she felt so safe that she didn’t feel a single ounce of fear within her. Even though she’d promised herself earlier on that she would leave the forest as soon as night fell, she still stayed on in the forest, relishing the moment she was spending with Lipton. Stars dotted the black veil of the sky, casting its dim shimmer on the surface of the stream in front of them, setting a romantic atmosphere. Kalista held on to this moment which was so rare, and she cherished it deep in her heart. She didn’t even feel like leaving the forest now, even though it could be a hunting ground for wild animals and bloodthirsty vampires at night.

  Keeping his gaze trained at the star-spangled sky, Lipton finally broke the silence. “So are you saying that you are the last surviving member of the Urukan clan?”

  Kalista turned to look at Lipton. “I think so. Most of my family members are either dead or have been killed by bloodthirsty vampires. And I know that my next of kin are also dead, all of them. Most deaths were caused by vampires, and some of them are actually natural causes of death. I don’t think that there are anymore surviving members of the Urukan clan in this world. Members of the Urukan clan are very small and limited through the span of generations, and we have lived in a tight-knit community. Safe to say, I’m the last one.”

  Lipton grabbed Kalista’s hand and squeezed it. “How can you be so sure? Maybe some of them have fled the country and moved elsewhere? Maybe there are some Urukan clan members who are living in isolation in other parts of the world, trying to conceal their identities so vampires wouldn’t come after them. Who knows? Maybe they’re still out there somewhere …”

  Kalista sighed. “I know that you want to sound positive, but I’m not so hopeful about that. I keep close track of all my kin, and so far, all the ones that I know of are already dead. But I do hope you’re right. Maybe there are other Urukan people out there … somewhere …”

  “But how do you know if someone is of Urukan descent? You can’t possibly take a sample of everyone’s blood, right?”

  Kalista chuckled, amused. “That would be ridiculous, Lipton. We can’t possibly do that.” Then, she flashed a grin. “But there’s an easy way to tell. If let’s say another person I meet is really of Urukan descent, I’d feel a tingle across my body … it’s called the Urukan Tingle. When my family members were still alive, I could always feel the Urukan Tingle every single day. It’s not a very intense tingle that it would affect my everyday life, but it’s something that I could feel inside my body. It’s a comforting tingle that you feel in your body when you’re in close contact with another Urukan. But only an Urukan can feel that tingle. Normal humans or other supernatural creatures cannot feel that. That’s the way we tell if a person is an Urukan.”

  Then, Lipton made a joke. “Alright, let’s go all over Wartwick tomorrow and walk past every single person to see if you can catch that tingle … the Urukan Tingle.”

  Kalista gave Lipton a playful slap on the shoulder. “That would take me years. Do you know how many people actually live in Wartwick? I’d need to clone myself to finish the task. Besides, I’m confident that there are no other Urukans living in Wartwick except me.”

  “Alright,” Lipton said, arching his wings a little higher as if doing some stretching.

  Kalista's eyes roamed the forest surroundings. “So what forest is this? I wanted to ask earlier on but it kind of slipped my mind.”

  “It’s Jacknaught Forest,” Lipton replied.

  Kalista felt chills run down her spine. She’d heard about Jacknaught Forest, alright. It was a forest notorious for murders across the span of many years. Many ghastly crimes had been committed in the forest, ranging from abduction to human killings by vampires. A dozen of dead bodies had been found scattered at Jacknaught Forest for the past few months, and the deaths had been tied to the vampire serial killer, who was still on the loose.

  “Why did you bring us to this forest?” Kalista asked, her voice edged with fear. “Of all the forests to choose, why did you come here in the first place?” Kalista couldn’t help but tremble in fright, knowing that she was now in a forest reeking with darkness and danger.

  “It is the biggest forest in Wartwick,” Lipton responded. “I wanted to find a place where it was big and secluded, and this seems like the best place to be holed up. Anyway, I’ve built a nest high on top of the tree, so it wouldn’t be easy for us to be spotted, especially at night.”

  “You didn’t hear about the murders which have taken place in this forest?” Kalista said incredulously, her eyes widening. “There have been many deaths here, Lipton. And do you know that even though you build a nest as high as the stratosphere, vampires can still find us because they have this ability called scenting? What if one of the wild vampires randomly passes the tree and scent something which even smells remotely human? He or she will no doubt try to search the tree, and then we’ll be dead meat …”

  “Well, for your information, as I’m always constantly changing into Catan at unpredictable timings, I can’t really keep abreast with the latest affairs. So yeah … sorry that I’ve missed out on the current affairs. I seriously didn’t know that murders have happened here. No wonder I feel a dark and ominous vibe around here.”

  Kalista sighed. “Don’t blame yourself. It’s not your fault that you didn’t know, OK? But it’s a good thing we’re actually here. If not, we wouldn’t have stumbled upon Rellie. Now I know that she’s been turned into a vampire and in some sort of predicament, I really want to help her. After all, I consider her as a friend.”

  The mention of Rellie’s name brought a hint of fire in Lipton’s eyes, and then he asked, “Oh, yeah. I’ve almost forgotten about Rellie. We’ve talked so much about your Urukan thing that we have kind of sidetracked from Rellie. So what really went on between you and Rellie?”

  “You’re right. We’ve really sidetracked. OK, I told you befor
e about how I was cursed so I wouldn’t be able to reveal Catan’s name to anyone, right? So I actually found a way around the curse. I decided that my blood would be able to keep me from feeling the mental pain that would erupt every time I decide to open my mouth about Catan. I also tried to think of the best person to tell this to, and after lots of contemplating, I finally decided to tell the star news reporter of Satellite News, Rellie Edwards. I’ve followed her news throughout the years, and read every single piece she has written. She has really good coverage on vampire stories, and she has a big fan base, and a huge number of followers on her social media. Initially, I thought that if I told Rellie about Catan and this news become public, Catan’s name would be plastered all over the media and this would spark a lot of buzz in the community and also the world, which in turn would spur the police to find every possible lead regarding this killer, and hopefully Catan would be captured in the end.”

  “Why didn’t you tell the police about this in the first place?” Lipton asked in a puzzled voice. “Wouldn’t it have been easier?”

  Kalista sighed . “Well … I did weigh the pros and cons. But I guess the biggest factor was because I’ve been a huge fan of Rellie for a long time. Some police can be stubborn, and I was afraid that they wouldn’t believe my story. They might think that I’m drunk or something, coming out with a story like the Maze of Doom or something. During that point of time, I just felt more comfortable relating my tale to Rellie, woman to woman, someone whom I could share my feelings and stories with. Rellie just seemed like the right person at that time. But I guess you’re right. I should have told the police. Because now Rellie’s been turned into a vampire and is not mentally sane at the moment, I don’t think she’ll be able to publicize my story and bring it to national attention. All my efforts have been wasted.” Kalista buried her head in her heads, her shoulder sagging in dejection.

  “Hey, it’s OK,” Lipton said comfortingly, hugging her closer. “It’s not your fault. We’ll find Rellie and fix all of this, OK?”

  Kalista started sobbing. “It’s my fault. How are we supposed to catch Catan if I can’t even say his name to anyone … because of this stupid curse?”

  “Look at me,” Lipton said, holding Kalista’s gaze. “You told me about Catan … but you didn’t even experience the pain from the curse. How is that possible?”

  Kalista stared into Lipton’s eyes for a long moment, as if trying to figure out. “Wait a minute … are you … Urukan?”

  Lipton laughed as though that was the funniest thing he’d ever heard. “Me? Urukan? I’m a Wingman, OK?”

  Kalista paused, her mind jumbling with thoughts which slam into one another, trying to bring out the logic. And then, she started to see the picture clearly. Her heart sank, and she almost felt like it could burst at any moment. “Oh my God!”

  “What is it?” Lipton asked, but Kalista didn’t reply.

  The tingle that she’d always felt whenever she was near Lipton. The tingle … the Urukan Tingle. Every time she was physically close to her, she could feel the tingle, which she figured was the result of her feelings for him. But the more she thought about it, the more constricted her heart felt. How could Lipton be Urukan? How could he have Urukan blood in him? Kalista thought that she was the only surviving member of the Urukan clan in the world.

  And then, she wondered why she wasn’t affected by the painful consequence of the curse when she’d actually told him about Catan. By right, she should have been overwhelmed by mental pain if she so much as uttered Catan’s name to anyone. But she didn’t feel it at all.

  If Lipton really had Urukan blood, that must have explained why Kalista didn’t feel the pain at all. The supernatural healing properties of Urukan blood only worked when it was outside the body. If Lipton really was an Urukan, then the healing magic from his blood must have emanated from his body and enveloped Kalista like a protective magical shield, sparing her from the pain triggered by the curse.

  The more Kalista thought about it, the more logical it seemed. But how could a person be an Urukan and a Wingman at the same time? That combination was really rare, but it wasn’t entirely impossible.

  What if all this time … Lipton was really an Urukan? What if all this time … her feelings for Lipton were nothing but borne from the effects of the Urukan Tingle?

  Kalista didn’t want to think more about it, but the truth dawned upon her like weights, burdening her and slicing her heart at the same time.

  She dared herself to look into Lipton’s eyes, and she trembled as tears streaked down her cheeks.

  “I think you’re an Urukan,” Kalista said, her voice heavy with the weight of her emotions.

  Lipton gestured at himself. “Me? I can’t possibly be Urukan. I told you already. I’m a Wingman.”

  Kalista didn’t want to confuse Lipton further, so she began to explain to him about the Urukan Tingle she’d mistaken for feelings of love, and also how she wasn’t affected by the pain when she was in close physical proximity to him.

  “It makes sense, doesn’t it?” Kalista cried, her heart protesting against the truth but it all seemed to overwhelm her.

  “But I’m a Wingman!” Lipton protested, unable to accept Lipton’s explanation. “I don’t believe for a second that I have Urukan blood in me. Vampires have tasted my blood before, but it wasn’t so tasty to them as I’ve recalled. If I truly have Urukan blood, then vampires would have gone wild in olden days … but that wasn’t the case.”

  “That’s because your Urukan blood is mixed with Wingman blood. That combination probably dilutes some of your Urukan blood essence, making it less tastier to vampires because it is mixed with another different type of blood. But as long as you have Urukan blood, it will always retain its supernatural healing properties, no matter how diluted it is. It means you have the ability to heal others with your blood too.”

  “That sounds insane and you know it! I strictly refuse to believe for a second that I’m an Urukan. I’m a pure Wingman. And are you trying to tell me that all the feelings you have actually felt for me weren't real? You mean to say that it’s the Urukan Tingle that you’ve been feeling? So you don’t love me at all?”

  Lipton’s words tore Kalista’s heart, as she tried to figure if she had any feelings for Lipton. She did have feelings for him, but that was because the Urukan Tingle actually magnified those feelings, making it feel as though she was in love with him. But she couldn’t tell if her feelings for him were purely love, because every time she was standing close to him, the Urukan Tingle would erupt, clouding her real feelings and making it difficult to see into her own feelings.

  “I do love you,” Kalista gushed, straining against the tears that were threatening to burst. “But I’m not sure if it’s because of the Urukan Tingle. The Urukans have always been a close-knit community with warm feelings for one another because of the Urukan Tingle we share whenever we’re close together. The Tingle binds us into one big loving family, and rarely would you see any of us show hostility or coldness to one another. We’re the symbol of warmth and love, and for generations, there has never been a single war amongst our own people.”

  Kalista paused, feeling as if her heart could break at any moment. She was confused, wondering if she’d ever truly loved Lipton from the core of her heart, and not just because of the Urukan Tingle. The truth was … she’d never loved a man so much as she’d loved Lipton. Of course, she did love her father and older brother, but that was a different kind of love. And most of the time when she was with her family or the other members of the Urukan clan, she had always felt a strong sense of community among one another, strengthened by the bond of love, which was sparked by the Urukan Tingle. All Urukans loved their own kind, treating all members as their brothers and sisters. So back when her family and the other Urukans were still alive, she’d always felt this kind of familial love when they were all together.

  But when Lipton came into the picture, Kalista was infatuated with him, and her heart skipped
a beat every time she was close to him. She’d never felt this way before, and she liked the way she felt when she was with him. She relished this immense feeling of warmth which swelled inside her heart whenever she thought of him. Never if her life had she ever had such a feeling before.

  But when she thought about it again … she wondered if she’d truly loved Lipton out of the Urukan Tingle effect … and if it wasn’t real love. Maybe she’d jumped to conclusion too soon. She’d never been in a relationship with a man before, or even had any form of intimacy with a man before, so right now … she was overwhelmed with confusion.

  Maybe her feelings for him weren’t so real after all, if Lipton really was an Urukan. When two Urukans came together in close proximity, the Urukan Tingle would inadvertently be triggered, and feelings of warmth would reverberate around them, bringing them closer together and forging a sense of community, love and trust.

  “I-I can’t be an Urukan,” Lipton repeated, his face twisting in protest. “I’m a Wingman, like I’ve told you. There’s no way I can be an Urukan and a Wingman at the same time.”

  Lipton’s words suddenly triggered a flurry of images inside Kalista’s mind. She recalled that when she was a little girl, her grandmother used to tell her stories about their Urukan ancestors. She had this thick leather bound book which she referred to as the Urukan Bible, containing stories about Urukan people in the past. There were words written in ink across the book pages, accompanied by hand-painted illustrations which depicted the Urukan people and their lifestyle in the past.

  Janiska, Kalista’s grandmother who had a knack for telling stories, had always told Kalista that the stories in the book were real accounts, written by Urukans across a span of generations. Kalista remembered the story about a man known as a Birdman, who was half-man, half-bird. He had a pair of wings and a beak, but the body of a human. According to the Urukan Bible, his name was Taintis Borealis, considered as one of the greatest Birdman warriors in the early fourteenth century. During that era, Birdmen were famous for their hunting skills as they could hunt and fly at the same time. Taintis went on a hunting expedition one day, flying in the sky with a spear with his hand. However, without warning, a storm broke out, and made his flight a grueling experience. Taintis had to brace himself against the strong gales which whipped him around in the gray clouds like a toy, and eventually, he ventured too far away from his hunting point and got lost. The sky rumbled and a stroke of lightning struck his wings, causing Taints to lose the function of his wings and he spiraled down the sky in a circular motion. He landed on a grassy patch on the ground, which acted as a cushion which helped minimize the damaging impact from the rough landing.