Jaws snapped and claws raked the pavement as the herd began to shuffle past our positions. The stench was overwhelming. The smell of open wounds, dried blood, bodily waste and other tainted sources of odor made Darby begin to gag as the vampires were within inches of us. Several bumped one and or all of us in passing. Most were silent, though a few antsy souls growled and snapped as they passed Darby who was still slightly convulsing from the horrific aroma.
Veronica had not moved. I was concerned for her safety; she seemed repulsed, but at ease. Darby on the other hand was nearing a panic. I grabbed her and pulled her into my arms, sheltering her head in my chest. She was gently sobbing as the stragglers crept past.
One of the remaining tall GV1s stopped, sneered and stared at the softly crying girl in my arms. This one was very similar to the leader, Bayne, but had two large jagged tears in his skin below the left eye that started at a slit on the bottom lid, finishing at two different intervals spaced three inches apart at the base of the neck.
The GV1 reached a long flesh bare finger that ended where the first joint should have started toward a lock of Darby's golden hair. I held Darby tighter. The finger inched into her hair, tracing up and down then from side to side. The vampire used another finger to rub together strands of the shiny hair between as if he was savoring the silky texture before yanking a solitary cylinder loose from its place.
Darby spun from my arms as she exclaimed, "Fuck! That hurt asshole!"
No reaction except a creepy smirk as the vampire played with the golden hair. He appeared mesmerized; unconcerned at the sudden attention he was receiving.
Pissed, Darby was clamoring for a confrontation. Her demeanor swiftly changed. Quickly, I moved to cut her off as the vampire smelled of the hair.
My attention was diverted from my current situation when I realized the other GV1s had stopped and were all trying to noisily jockey for position to see how the event was going to unfold. The vampires were like school boys waiting to see a fight. The growls being emitted were a cheer for their own to take up the cause.
A rush of what I presumed was adrenaline was making my skin hot. My senses were sharpening. I could feel my claws and fangs straining to be unleashed. My mind was fumbling through the process of preparing for combat, but my body was readying.
Unaware of her close proximity to me, Veronica flatly stated, as she startled me with a ferocious grip on my shoulder, "Don't be foolish, I know that look in your eye. Just because you can feel the vampire within you struggling to be freed doesn't mean we can't die. Forget whatever you think you know about our kind. We are outnumbered and you are still a changeling. And least we never forget the GV1s are dangerously unpredictable."
Bayne slid by dragging and walking as he past the three us. He had taken in the whole affair. A crookedly broken smile framed his horrific features. Upon his kindred, a violent shove to the chest of the vampire sent the abomination struggling to stay upright. Spilling onto the ground, the hair lover clawed the hard packed surface for traction then rose with the swiftness befitting a large cat. Embarrassed, the vampire disappeared in a blur through his friends, sending the others into frenzied stampede. Even the ones incapable of rapid departure moved in a panic state toward the deserted farm houses, dissolving into the remaining night.
Bayne casually strolled off the pavement, slinking away from my sight. Veronica removed her hand from my shoulder and turned toward town.
Darby hugged her then me. "Thank you both. Those guys always give me the creeps."
Veronica made a sucking sound on an extended fang and started walking. "New guy you have a lot to learn about this world. I hope you are a quick learner because I would hate to see you deader."
Confused, I looked at Darby, who shrugged, smiled and locked into step with my tour guide.
Motor-boating my lips, I thought for a second about my choices when a roaring began deep within my ears. It was gradually getting louder. Frozen by the searing pain, I was worried my brain was going to melt. Seconds ticked away as I attempted to plug my ears to block out the sound. Falling to my knees, I longed to call out, but couldn't manage a word or a sound.
Through tear filled eyes I searched for Veronica and Darby. Both were walking toward the Town. Reaching for them briefly I gave up as the noise settled into a less painful experience, turning into more of an annoyance. Looking for the source of the annoyingly painful sound, I rose to my knees. Eyes begging to find the origin of my most recent torment I turned to the horizon in time to see the first vestiges of the sun's rays creating transparent strips of orange and red in the sky.
Chapter 10
I still couldn't remember my name, yet I could remember weird facts about Super Bowls and vampires. At the moment, I felt it was less important to know who the hell Roger Staubach played for and more important to know that vampires tend to combust when exposed to sunlight.
Waiting for my death, I hoped I was more similar to Bayne and less similar to Dracula.
Expecting any second to burst into flame, I decided to die like a man. Taking to my feet as the sound continued to lessen, I admired the beauty of this sunrise thinking it could be my last.
The sun shine warmed my cold, lifeless skin and had never felt so alive.
Veronica called, "Hey! Are you coming sometime today?"
A quarter mile away Veronica and Darby stared dumbfounded back at me. Darby had the look I was sure was her signature grin on her face. Veronica was a blank expression except for her eyes. Her eyes lied. They spoke of a mischievous soul who was secretly laughing at a fledgling vampire.
Jogging down the warming pavement to catch up again, I found the pair waiting semi-patiently. "Sorry. I know you are already tired of hearing it, but I am. The thoughts in my head don't match the reality I am living."
Darby giggled. “It’s fine.” She giggled again. “I am guessing your first question about the sunlight will be why you don’t explode."
Darby and Veronica burst out laughing.
I wasn't real positive what was so damn funny, but I was sure it was about another vampire myth debunked. "Bursting into flames was my most pressing concern."
Veronica said in the tone of being a true tour guide, "We are lucky. We are GV16s. Our generation is one of seven complete that have a sun adaptation. Thankfully our creators found a solution to the variety of offsets that were inherit in gene alteration. Our mutations are much more subtle than some of the ones you may meet in Town."
Before I had time to digest the newest upload of information, Veronica finished. "And don't stare."
Thinking of which question I should lead with as we walked, I had forgotten the walking part. Veronica and Darby had begun the journey without me again. From the agitated look upon Veronica's face as she checked on my progress, I knew unless confronted by another monster we would not be stopping.
Closing the distance, I opened with a question. "So what is our adaptation?"
Veronica and I paced in stride together, almost floating on air, but something was off. She was distracted and far away, my question floating away without an answer.
Darby made the trip more bearable. Her personality was contagious. She was bubbly and upbeat. As we prodded along in unison, she seemed to bounce and not glide in step. Obviously without our shared affliction Darby would have been an incredibly desirable young woman. She still was. Curious thoughts of my vampire life interweaved with a longing for Darby. Even she eventually faded away.
My mind was wandering from the critical information I needed to keep me from descending into madness. An unstoppable thought reverberated: feed. The events with Bayne and the distraction of the sunrise had not satisfied my hunger, but delayed it. The issue had fizzled into nothing more than a hindrance. Now the hunger was scorching my stomach and throat.
Veronica must have sensed my predicament. "The pain will go away once you feed."
I was trembling as I wrapped my arms around my torso to see if I could make the pain go away. "How did you kn
ow?"
"Your body chemistry is off, your eyes are blackening, and you are shaking." Veronica rattled off.
Looking to Darby, the slight nod meant her friend must be right.
Dropping from their sides, following behind, my hands sought my face especially my eyes, but it was of no use I could not feel a change. Smelling of me, there was no unusual odor. Even inside I was fine or so I believed. I knew I felt normal except for the worsening hunger. Maybe since they were fully formed vampires, and not a changeling, their senses worked at a level much higher than mine.
My thoughts were totally random. There would be a rational thought which would then be followed by a thought about my hunger. The thoughts battled back and forth. Rational. Hunger. Rational. Hunger. Then hunger began to dominate. For every rational thought, I began to have ten thoughts about my hunger. A torrent of rational thought broke free squeezing out rapidly before the hunger could dominate again.
The thoughts were all related to a single fact, I am a killer. At any moment I could rip out the throats of my new friends. I worried it could end badly for us all. Still they walked and I followed. Surprisingly, neither of my companions seemed appetizing. There was no need or want to consume their blood.
The girls were silent which left me even more alone with my painful need to feed.
A flash of movement from Veronica broke me from my obsession.
Veronica was securing her cape to cover her red bustier. Modesty amongst vampires I contemplated until I looked further down the path.
The Town neared, less than a mile ahead.
Hunger or no hunger blinding my judgment, I knew the crowd of people standing at the end of a row of houses at the edge of town was no welcoming committee.
Chapter 11
To our right, men dressed in black military fatigues were using shovels to scrap up shards of bones and chunks of tissue from the concrete floor inside an enclosure made of treated lumber. A lone man stood in a corner using a hose to wash away dried blood and the smaller remaining bits and pieces.
There were five pens measuring in the vicinity of forty feet by forty feet. Each of the pens was separated by approximately forty more feet. The enclosures were marked with colored coded signs. The signs were red, purple, blue, pink and green. This was of no meaning to me, but was something I would definitely have to ask Darby or Veronica about later.
Anxiously, I watched the armed guards who were posted outside of the structure label with a two foot by two foot placard in the color red. There were eight, two stationed at each corner, with another ten inside working to clean up the mess.
Darby and Veronica marched straight ahead. Neither one paid any attention to the cleanup operation though the guards shifted their weapons swiftly from shoulders and into ready positions as we pulled even with the pen.
The scene was surreal and one I hoped I would soon forget.
Past the pens were single story row houses all painted white. Each house was well maintained, yard manicured, some had plants hanging from the corner post, others did not. The houses were a few on the right and a few on the left, no more than twenty total. Sounds of foreign origin mingled with sounds of various television shows as we slowed. The sun rose steadily revealing the detailing of each home as the shadows were torn away.
Had it not been for the smell of gore lingering in the early morning air, the scene would have been ideal.
Stopping at a house marked with the number fifteen, I jumped when the hiss of a sprinkler kicked on beside my leg. I stepped from its half rotation path in the nick of time, keeping my pants leg from getting soaked. The ladies sidestepped the initial stream of water jetting from the sprinkler head. Just as suddenly as the sprinkler started it disappeared back into the grass.
Darby faced me before I knew what was happening. "It was great meeting you. Maybe next time you will have a name."
I laughed uneasily not sure of what to say.
She hugged us both. Her tiny arms were strong and the hug seemed of genuine warmth. The gesture was needed. It had been a long night and the contact was greatly appreciated. I even thought she lingered a little long during our hug, but it could be the over burden imagination playing tricks on me.
Veronica spoke, "See you at the meeting tonight. Darby, please don't be late."
Darby fingered the cross around her neck between her thumb and forefinger. She fiddled with the small silver cross on the chain, passing it back and forth along the small diameter of shiny rope.
I thought she appeared to be thinking of something to say though she never did. A sudden frown broke free through her constant happiness. Recovering quickly she smiled, shook her head in a knowing, playful gesture then flipped her long golden hair around as she swiftly moved up the concrete walkway behind her. In a couple of seconds she was gone within the house leaving me alone with Veronica.
Veronica tucked a few stray strands of her dark hair behind her ear as we both nervously stood around killing time. She traced the ground with her foot back and forth as she looked down, pushing a small stone along the edge of the concrete.
I wasn't sure why we were just standing there. The silence and awkwardness didn't help to deter my body from being ravished by hunger, but it did allow me to take the opportunity of studying my tour guide further.
Veronica was beautiful. For the first time since I had met her a few hours ago, I was transfixed. As the sunlight fell across her face, I realized her hair was a dark brown with auburn highlights and not the stunning black I had perceived it to be last night. Veronica's skin was flawless, lips full, cheekbones prominent. She was radiant, but something about her appeared fragile, empty.
I wanted to say thank you to for her helping me. I hoped if I started a conversation it would break up the awkwardness. The thank you would be a gateway to asking more questions about my condition I reasoned. Mouth open, I was about to start to say it when a commotion arose behind me.
The noise seemed to be a conglomeration of angry voices and growls. Afraid to know what was happening I froze. In my heart, if I still had one, I knew the source of the anger was me.
Chapter 12
Veronica's hair phased to black and her eyes grew wide, then murky.
The sudden color change meant I hadn't been mistaken earlier, her hair had been black.
She grabbed my shirt with both hands, violently hurling me out of the way with considerable force. The act was reckless, unplanned.
The arc of my path through the air carried me into the single column of Darby's porch. The wooded column exploded into splinters from the impact. Slamming into the front of the house cracked the wood siding, but stopped me from flying further.
I found myself lying on the small porch, crumpled beside the aluminum door. The door had received a mortal blow when I had flown into it. The ancient piece of craftsmanship was barely hanging on by a few now pulled loose screws that were desperately clinging to the smashed door frame. The concrete was cold and damp. I tried to catch my breath. The porch floor was rapidly growing wet underneath. I could feel the moisture seeping through my pants.
The burning in my side told the truth. My hands hurriedly searched my torso for the source of the brownish red blood soaking the ground beneath.
My torso was bruised and more than one bone was broken. The exploration of my torso revealed that internally the devastation of Veronica's attack was extensive.
My ribs were crushed. I could feel jagged fractures floating around inside of me. Maybe one had punctured through the skin I thought.
A bout of coughing caused blood to be expelled from my mouth, covering the bent and dented storm door I was facing. Half opened eyes could discern the denting was caused by my face. The primary dent was in the shape of my face. I had been lucky enough that most of the glass from the door had dropped between the storm door and the wooden door behind though some shattered specks had fallen onto the porch.
Shaking hands found a sharp fragment jutting from the right small of my back. I coul
d barely touch the sharp end; the tip was almost within grasp. I attempted to roll over onto my side to get my arm free enough to pry the embedded slither out. I was careful not to drive the piece any deeper. Still I was unable to reach more than the tip which I could not grasp. My dilemma was when I struggled to remove the wood from my body the motion moved it further away.
My bladder released allowing a small stream of urine to leak from me. The trickle was lukewarm against my thigh. The strong smell was nauseating.
All sound stopped except for the sound of water rushing over a falls. The sound was low, but loud enough to block all other sounds of the surrounding world.
Consumed with my injuries, I had forgotten about how I had arrived at my situation. Snapping back to reality, I worked my head around to find Veronica. What had happened with Veronica? She had thrown me onto the porch when we had heard the voices approaching. All I could make out was a large crowd of irate people and things circling and pacing around eyeing me.
I had to check on her. Trying to rise from the floor I found myself too weak. Falling back down hard, the pain caused by the action was the worst experience so for in my life as a changeling vampire.
A long groan flew from me.
The rushing water sound had begun to fade before my failed attempt to rise, but was now louder than before.
Looking up toward the opening in the door, where the window had once been, I saw a very animated Darby pointing toward the yard. Her eyes were brackish, fangs exposed. She was saying something, but the sound was still obscured. I knew from her gesturing and shouting she was clearly upset about the events unfolding behind me.
Veronica had protected me before and now it was my turn to repay the favor. I had to get off the porch and help somehow. My mind was racing. How could I get up? I was weak and on top that the hunger was overriding.
I looked to the cute little vampire standing in the broken door for help.
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