by P.A. Ross
‘No. I said before. I used him,’ Sarah said, shaking her head and biting her bottom lip with regret.
‘So what happened next?’ Kate prompted.
‘He came around my house early on the night of the party with his costume. We spent some time together first and made love a couple of times. It was amazing. The things that man can do would blow your mind,' Sarah smirked.
Kate frowned and gritted her teeth. The older man placed a comforting hand on Kate's shoulder.
‘Ma'am, stick to the relevant parts,’ he said to Sarah.
Sarah delighted in the reaction. Memories of that afternoon's love making caused her to flush. She took a sip of water and fanned her face to cool down. Sarah looked back at Kate who sat back in her chair with her arms crossed.
Sarah continued, ‘Anyway. We dressed, helping each other into the costumes. Then stripped each other again as we made love as vampires.’
‘Ma'am. What happened at the house,’ the man barked.
‘Okay, we got a taxi to the party. Everything else was the same until they took us down into the cellar and flung him into that room. As they dragged him away, I noticed his eyes. I had never really focused on them before, but his eyes were crystal blue clear, but they looked like the crystals had been broken and shattered into fragments in his eyes. I could see lights beginning to glow within the fragments. He looked at me, his face sad and dejected, with a tear stinging down his cheek. Why? I have always wondered.’
‘You betrayed him and it was the end of your relationship,’ Kate said smugly.
#
Sarah continued her story. ‘The door slammed and after a while, we heard the screams.
“He screams like a girl. You are better off with me,” Luke said, and stepped forward with our faces inches apart.
‘Then a different scream, lower pitched, came from the room and blue lights flashed around the frame. I heard explosions and a banging on the door. Luke turned to face the door just as it swung open. The shock of it will never leave me. A terrified vampire bolted through the door. Behind it was the slumped body of a dead vampire girl with her heart ripped out and blood oozing from her chest. Out of the dark, a whipping noise cut through the air. An electric stream of bright blue twisted sparks wrapped around the vampire and then hauled it back through the door. It clawed and tore at the doorframe in desperation and fear, its eyes straining in terror and effort. The blue electric whip of twisted sparks led back to an outstretched hand. I followed it up and into the lights glowing from the fragmented crystal eyes of my boyfriend.
‘His forehead frowned, and he yanked his hand back, snatching the vampire's claws from the door frame and pulling it back into the killing room. He stared, his eyes burning brighter as the door slammed shut. The vampires on either side let me go and scrambled back up the stairs as Luke pointed in awe. The screaming grew louder and lights flashed, as explosions and splattering of flesh could be heard against the inside of the room, and the red dripped door rattled against the pressure of energy inside. I seized my chance and hit Luke on the head, yanked my gun from out of the back of his jeans and shot him in the back. The other two vampires scrambled up the stairs, and I fired after them. The bullets killed them both at the door with the explosion of ash blowing it off its hinges.
‘Behind me, the door to the killing room creaked opened, revealing the last swirls of ash settling back onto the blood-coated floor. Out he strode, his crystal eyes glowing and blue flames dancing around his fists. Vampire ash dusted his clothes and blood splattered across his black jacket as it swept behind him. Above, the screaming started as the vampires began their bloody revolution.
“I hate vampires,” he said, his voice deep and angry as he walked out. He slipped his jacket off to the floor, ready to fight.
“I know, you said before,” I replied pathetically, staring at him like a schoolgirl with a crush.
“Create an exit and get the people out. I will take care of the unwelcome guests,” he said, and he thumped up the stairs.
‘I followed and shot the vampire in the kitchen with the girl, as my boyfriend walked on into the main house. A vampire lunged out from the drinking room, claws slashing through the air. A blue bolt of lightning fired from my boyfriend’s hands and smashed the vampire back into the room, splattering it against the wall. He walked into the drinks room, and two vampires parted around the table and a third jumped up, kicking the bottles to the floor. He outstretched both hands and the electric whips streamed out to the first two vampires. The one on the table saw his chance and leapt at him. He slammed his hands together, pulling the two vampires from either side together, and pinning the third jumping vampire in the middle. They stayed suspended in the air until he pushed with an extra burst of power and rocketed them through the window. He walked across the room, swiping a bottle of vodka and pouring the contents down his throat as he headed back into the hallway.
‘A vampire charged at him from the stairs, and he threw the vodka bottle at it, smashing it across its face. The vampire staggered back and snarled in anger, ready to retaliate, but my boyfriend shot in a fire bolt from his hand. The vodka burst into flames, and the vampire crashed to the floor, rolling around until it burst to ash, extinguishing the flames.
‘Two more vampires jumped from the landing, over the rails, falling straight down towards him. He fired out two bolts of ice shaped bullets into their dead hearts and ash rained down. Another charged through and swung a punch. He blocked, twisted the arm, snapping the bone out and ramming it back through its heart.
‘Vampires poured out of every room to attack him. He sprayed their ash across the house. One got in close and punched him hard in the face, but he never moved, rocked or staggered. The vampire screamed in agony as its fist shattered on impact. He swung a blue-flamed fist, punching the vampire in the chest, and the flames swept across its body, before burning it to ash.
‘I grabbed hold of two frightened girls trying to escape the horror. We dodged through the carnage, and I directed them towards the front doors, just as two vampires burst in.
“Duck!” I shouted. The girls dived to the floor as I shot the two vampires. I jumped over the girls and dispatched three more vampires that were rushing towards me from outside. I pulled up the girls and dragged them through. “Keep running!” I shouted and watched them run down the pumpkin lit path.
‘Other people appeared as my boyfriend brought judgment to the vampire revolution. I ushered them into the dark and away from the house. Steve and John came running out of the disco and skidded to a halt as my boyfriend telekinetically flung two vampires out of their way through the windows. They stared at him in disbelief, while looking into his glowing fragmented eyes.
‘I ran forward and grabbed them by their coats and shoved them through the doors. “Run and don't look back!” I shouted.
‘My boyfriend carried on through the house and for some reason, the vampires seemed drawn to him, and him only; he was like the Pied Piper. During the mayhem of the vampires attacking him, the rest of the guests at the party scrambled to safety and sprinted off into the night.
‘I emptied the last of my gun into a vampire then picked up an old chair leg and resorted to the old fashion stake in the heart. I trailed after my boyfriend, following his path of ash destruction through to the dance floor, picking off the vampires as I went. On the dance floor, I saw Lucy lying dead, neck punctured and oozing blood. He stepped over her body. The music was still blaring out, and the mirror ball was flashing around the walls.
‘The vampires closed in, their blood stained fangs snapping and claws preparing to rip at his flesh. They walked in from the chill out room in the corner. The windows smashed and in they climbed, wave after wave of vampires slowly encircling him. From behind me, they pushed past, ignoring my presence. They only had a lust for his blood.
‘He scanned around, raised his hands and broken fragments of wood floated up from the floor to fly in circles at the top of the ceiling. T
he vampires looked up in wonder. His eyes glowed as he pulled his hands down, and the wood swooped down like guided missiles through the air, staking in and out of the vampires and turning them into waves of explosive ash. The ash swirled to the floor, and I covered my face with my arms to stop it from going into my eyes and mouth. There was silence for a moment, and then noise, as more vampires thundered down the stairs, climbed through the broken windows and swept around corners from other rooms. All of them were being invisibly called to him.
‘Then I heard a voice in my head. Sorry, it didn’t work out. I think I was falling in love with you.
‘Sorry, I didn’t mean this to happen, I thought back, choking back a tear.
‘They will come and ask questions. Tell them. Tell Kate the truth. She will know if you are lying. Now leave.
‘I nodded and ran out of the house, with my eyes streaming with tears. I ran into the dark fields, tripping over dead bodies of the Dark Watch and partygoers. As I ran, the house suddenly exploded into flames, glass blasting outwards and flames engulfing it. I was flung off my feet and dumped onto the cold wet grass. I struggled to get back up and then ran to the vans of the Dark Watch to call for re-enforcements.’
#
Sarah wiped her tears away. After a few moments of silence, she looked back up, as Kate scribbled away on her notepad. ‘Is he alive?’ Sarah sniffed the question.
Kate lifted the notes up and fished out a photo. She pushed it around for Sarah to see. ‘Is this the man?’ she asked.
‘Yes.’
‘What did he call himself?’
Sarah looked at Kate and frowned. ‘He never did tell me his name, his real name. He said everyone just called him Zero.’
‘Subject Zero is his classification. Are you telling me you haven’t seen the news recently? The events in the plaza. The revelation of superheroes? The apology and reconciliation between them all?’
‘Yeah. I have done my own research since. I live mostly at night and news just seems to pass me by. He is famous, you know, not just for what happened in the plaza, even before that. There are stories about him all over the internet: different names, faces and impossible events. Some of them go way back in history, Eastern Europe fifteen years ago, smashing a human trafficking ring. The Wild West in America, nearly 150 years ago. Reports of a man fighting demons with a female accomplice. But it has to be him; the description and actions sound too similar. It’s all been passed off as tall stories before, but recent events have cast a new light upon these records.’
‘Yeah. You’re right. It's probably him,’ Kate agreed.
‘Why didn’t he just stop the vampires on arrival?’ Sarah asked. ‘Why wait until they tried to kill him? He could have saved more!’
‘He has a policy of non-interference. He only gets involved if directly required or for self-defence.’
‘Why did he date me? What was the point of it?’ Sarah asked, believing Kate might hold the answers to the questions that had since haunted her.
‘Why does anyone date anybody? For the same reasons you would date someone or I would date someone. He may have powers beyond our understanding, but he still has emotions just like everyone else. If he dated you it was because he liked you,’ Kate responded.
Sarah gritted her teeth and held back her tears. She didn't want to hear that answer. She wanted an answer that would give her an excuse for using him. The truth that he liked her, maybe even loved her, was sickening and heartbreaking.
‘He must have known what I did for a living? He must have read my mind, so why stick around if it was bound to go wrong?’
‘Sarah, I have met Subject Zero a few times already and will meet him again at some point,’ Kate said. ‘What I know is that he only uses his powers when needed. He may have purposely kept out of your mind so the relationship was real. I doubt he used his powers around you until the time at the Halloween party. He could have stopped the bullies on the train, but he just walked away, until you rescued him.’
Sarah tried to think of something else, some reason to blame him for what happened, but none of it made sense. ‘He mentioned you especially. Tell Kate the Truth,’ Sarah said.
‘We have a past and potentially a future together I believe,’ Kate said.
It made sense to Sarah now – the anger in Kate when she’d learnt they had been intimate. The knowledge of their potential future together sparked her own pang of jealousy. Sarah decided to change the subject, to get through the sudden uncomfortable silence. ‘I want to go now,’ she said.
‘No, you know too much,’ Kate snapped back.
Sarah frowned, expecting such an answer. She reached into her coat sleeve, to the silver stake she kept concealed inside. I even told them about it in my story, she thought, but they still failed to check. She tipped back on the chair, creating the right angle, and put her feet under the table. She kicked, spinning the table off the floor into Kate and sending the paperwork flying in the air. The chair flung back with the opposing force and Sarah somersaulted over its back and onto her feet, with the silver stake gleaming in her hand.
The man had stepped back to avoid the table but now charged forward. Sarah kicked the underside of the chair up into the man, smacking him under the jaw and putting him out cold on the floor. She saw Kate disentangle herself from the table and notes, finally standing up, ready to fight. ‘Come on,’ Sarah shouted.
Kate shoved the table out of the way, accidentally hitting the man who was still lying unconscious on the floor. She grabbed the hem of her skirt and ripped it down the side to allow her legs to move.
Sarah advanced and swung with the stake, but Kate swayed out the way and fired in a low leg kick. The blow hit Sarah's leg, and she took the knock, surprised the office worker could fight. She swung the stake some more, pushing Kate back against the door.
‘Don't be stupid Sarah. There are armed guards outside. You won't get very far.’
‘Better to try than to die.’
‘You are not going to die. I told you we work for the same people,’ Kate replied.
‘Yeah, right. I know too much, remember?’ Sarah said, and launched herself forward into Kate, who dived out the way across to the side of the room, leaving access to the door.
Sarah looked back at her and turned the door handle, but it remained locked. She banged at the door. ‘Open up,’ she shouted, but received no reply.
She realised it was strange that they hadn't opened the door earlier and burst in to subdue her. Why no reaction?
Gunfire rang out from the other side. She dived into the corner of the room, fearful the shots were coming through the door. She looked back, and the door remained intact, but the gunshots continued firing outside. As she stood back up, Kate threw the chair across the room at her and ran in behind it. Sarah turned her back to the chair, as it knocked the wind out of her, and barged her into the wall.
Kate slammed into her, with her hands grasping at the silver stake. Their hands clasped around each other's hands as they fought for the stake, exerting their strength against one another.
Sarah tried to head-butt her and missed. Kate kicked at Sarah's legs but made little impact with her white strap office shoes. They bundled onto the floor, rolling around and fighting for dominance over the stake. All the while, the weapons blazed outside.
The gunshot noise stopped. Men’s voices, shouting, took its place, followed by two thumps to the floor. Sarah and Kate continued to fight, faces red from the effort as they struggled to gain control over the silver stake.
Sarah pushed Kate onto her back and leaned up, arms locked, forcing all her weight down. She had the stake's point turned around and pointed to Kate's neck. She looked through her tunnel of long purple hair as it draped forward and knew that she had the better of her opponent. To kill a human would be new. I have no choice, she thought. I know too much and have done too much with Zero to be allowed to live.
The stake descended down towards Kate's neck. ‘Please, no,’ Kate
said through her straining muscles.
The door to the room swung gently open, and both women looked over to see a pair of black boots and scruffy ripped jeans at the doorway. They scanned up past the jeans, to an old black leather biker's jacket, a grey t-shirt and into the crystal blue eyes of Subject Zero.
Both released their grips simultaneously and scuttled back across the floor with backs to the wall. The silver stake rolled across the floor and hit Subject Zero's boot.
He put his hand out and the stake flew up into his palm. ‘Good to see you both again,’ he said. He waved his hand across the room and the table, chairs and paperwork flew through the air, back to their original positions.
‘Zero, I'm sorry what happened at the Halloween party. Can we try again?’ Sarah asked, getting in first.
‘If only we could, but they know about us now. It could never work,’ he replied. His bottom lip rolled down.
Sarah looked around at Kate, who was smiling. ‘It's her isn't it?’ she said.
‘Kate, you mean? Yes and no. There is a right time and right place for everything. This isn't it for me and Kate,’ he replied.
Kate frowned. ‘Until then, I will continue to hunt you.’
‘Good! I am relying on it,’ he replied, grinning. He looked back at Sarah. ‘Sarah, listen to Kate. She was about to offer you a job: promotion, pay rise and dental plan. That is what she meant by “you knew too much.” Knew too much to not come and work for her and the General.’
Sarah looked over at Kate, who nodded.
‘Offer is still open, but I want a rematch though,’ Kate said.
‘I’ll take it.’ Sarah snapped back her answer, realising her choices were limited and opportunities great.
‘Good,’ Zero said.
Kate's colleague on the floor awoke from his enforced slumber and stared up at Zero.
‘Hi, George,’ Zero said, and turned and went through the door, stepping over the sleeping bodies of the two guards outside.
Sarah bolted off the floor into the hallway to catch him, but he had disappeared.
‘You get used to it,’ Kate said.
Sarah walked back in and reached out a hand of friendship down to Kate. ‘Boss,’ she said tentatively.