The Immortal Warriors Boxed Set: Books 1-11

by H. T. Night

  After a short drive, Wyatt coasted the van into a darkened parking lot. A sign on the building read, San Bernardino Blood Bank. He pulled the van around back where a light was on.

  The back door opened and a man walked out pushing a dolly with four large boxes. Wyatt parked and hopped out of the van.

  Yari jumped out and looked me in the eye. “Stay here. We don’t want to spook our contact.” Then she slid the door shut and walked over to the man with the dolly.

  “What do you have for us?” I heard Wyatt ask.

  “A, AB and even a box of O,” the guy answered, wheeling the dolly to the back of the van. The doors behind me opened up and the cold night air rushed into the van. I turned and looked at the three of them standing outside.

  “Let’s see.” Yari opened up the top box and lifted what was very obviously a blood bag. She took a deep breath, inhaling any kind of scent from the bag. She nodded and put the bag back in. “All right,” she said.

  The man lifted the top box and set it in the van. Yari opened and inhaled the contents if each box and he stacked them into the van. Wyatt came out of the building with another dolly stacked with boxes.

  “You got the money?” the man asked when they finished loading up the van.

  I heard the rustling sounds of cash being counted. “All right,” the man said. “Pleasure doing business with ya.”

  “See you next month,” Yari said as she climbed in the van beside me.

  Wyatt slipped behind the wheel and we drove off.

  “I can’t believe all of that blood is tainted,” I said. There was no way. There had to be about 200 bags of blood back there.

  Wyatt looked at me in the rearview mirror. “It isn’t, but some are. Our demand is higher than the actual defective blood counts.” He shrugged.

  “Oh,” I said.

  Suddenly, a black raven flew alongside the van. Yari opened the window and the black bird bolted inside. I hoped she knew this guy. The bird collided against the inside of the van. Not the smoothest entrance. And it must have hurt like a mother.

  “Give him room to transition,” Yari said. The man then transitioned into a bleached-blond vampire. He seemed a little dizzy. When he was able to gather himself, he looked at Yari and he said, “Your friend is jogging down Third Street here in town.”

  “Thank you, Andre. You worked hard for me tonight. I won’t forget it the next time we are alone.” The vampire had a goofy smile on his face. He then transitioned and flew out of the van.

  “Wow! The power you have over some men.” I laughed at Yari.

  “Correction, the power I have over all men,” she said, winking at me.

  “I’m not the put-a-woman-on-a-pedestal type. I did once and it turned out pretty bad. So, I’m good recognizing you are a pretty woman, and that is about the extent I’m going to take it.”

  “Oh, you are already so whipped.” Yari laughed at me.

  “If you think that, then this will be fun.” I smirked. “By the way, Wyatt, head on over to San Bernardino College football stadium and track. Josiah is most likely to end up there if he is jogging.”

  “Then, I better go.” Yari transitioned into her beautiful red hawk form and also darted out the window. I guess she wanted to get a head start on us.

  I knew Josiah’s regimen like it was my own. If he was running after an adrenaline-packed day, as the one he’d had so far, the only place he would go was the track at San Bernardino College. He liked to run stadiums there to clear his head.

  I guided Wyatt to the college. It took us ten minutes from the blood bank. Yari flew ahead of us and was probably there in seconds. She would arrive faster than us because she was taking the more direct, as-the-crow-flies route.

  As we approached the field, I had Wyatt pull around back. It would be easier to get in and out. And we would be hidden better from campus security.

  I could see Yari talking to Josiah near the football field. Everything seemed to be going smoothly until out of the night sky, I heard a thunderous roar of birds flying over me.

  They landed right where Josiah and Yari were.

  “Holy shit!” I cried out loud.

  The birds all transitioned into vampire men and there were a thousand guys surrounding Josiah. I began running at full speed. Hector and Wyatt transitioned into ravens. It was the best camouflage they had. All these ravens looked alike. They would just look like a couple of latecomers to the party.

  Unfortunately, I was not in camouflage. I was a 190-pound man running into an awful situation and had one thing on my mind. Save Josiah.

  As I ran from the van at full speed, I tripped on a rock. I went rolling forward, scraping all my limbs as well as my stomach and back. I stood up and several vampire men began to punch me in the face, stomach, and back. They weren’t trying to kill me. It was more about giving me a beating that I would always remember. Just when I couldn’t take any more punches, the largest of the group stood over me and the beating stopped. He looked like a seven-foot-tall samurai warrior. He reached down and lifted my entire body up by my neck. I was gasping for any type of air I could get, but this sick motherfucker didn’t care. Now I thought they were trying to kill me. I guessed they saved the murdering for this sick fuck. My legs were dangling as I grabbed at his hands that were clenched around my neck. As I gasped for my last bits of air, I looked to the sky and saw Josiah in his eagle form circle around. Josiah flew down into the samurai dude’s back and tore into him like the guy was tissue paper. Psycho-samurai finally let go of my neck. He threw me to the ground like a sack of potatoes.

  Josiah transitioned from eagle to his vampire form and charged at him. He turned around to face Josiah, who shot an uppercut punch into him, sending his body five feet in the air. Then, Josiah roundhouse-kicked him in his head, sending him flying across the football field.

  Josiah transitioned into his great eagle form and grabbed me with his talons. He lifted me high up in the air with a strong grip, but it was still scary as hell.

  Josiah and the four vampire birds on our side all flew the hell out of there. Once we realized no one was following us, I guided Josiah up through the San Bernardino Mountains to my grandmother’s cabin that I had been using as a werewolf sanctuary when needed.

  “Fly up to the San Bernardino Mountains and head over to Running Springs,” I said as I dangled from his claws. “We’ll all stay at one of my hideouts.”

  With that, the six of us made our way up the mountain.

  Chapter Five

  Everybody landed on the front lawn of my grandmother’s cabin in Running Springs. I told them to join me inside. I gave them the tour and showed them which room they shouldn’t enter. It was my safe room filled with a large cage and a lot of chains.

  I motioned to Josiah to check out my safe room with me. “Meet my full moon playground,” I said to my best friend.

  “What the hell is that?” he asked reluctantly.

  “Sometimes, I put myself in there.” I walked into the room and made my way to the cage. I opened the door of the cage and walked in. There were five lengths of thick metal chains complete with wrist and ankle restraints at the back of the cage. “These metal bars are what keep me from becoming the next viral sensation.” I winked at Josiah.

  “Did you build this?” he asked.

  “I bought it from a guy on Craigslist.”

  “That must have been an interesting conversation.”

  “The guy thought I was some sicko serial killer.”

  “He sold it to you anyway,” Josiah said, pointing out the obvious.

  “Two thousand dollars cold cash has a way of allowing people to see things your way. For all I know, when I become a werewolf, I just might be a serial killer.”

  “You don’t know?” Josiah asked.

  “Most Carni have no recollection of what goes on when they become a werewolf. Some of the stronger ones can lead packs of werewolves and still have some recollection of the details of their night. Sometimes, I look at polic
e reports to see if there is ever a file that fits my description.”

  “What description is that?” Josiah had never seen me in my werewolf form.

  “Apparently when I turn, I become a six-foot-two gray werewolf.”

  “A gray werewolf?” he laughed. “I knew you were older than you admitted.”

  “It has nothing to do with age,” I protested. “Look at Hector. He’s one of the palest guys I have ever seen; yet, he becomes a black raven when he transitions.” Josiah always knew how to get under my skin. Even now.

  Josiah shrugged and began making statements about how unbelievable all of this was and thanked me for having his back tonight.

  “Yeah, I was a big help,” I said sarcastically.

  “It doesn’t matter. You risked your life for me.”

  I paused and smiled. “All right, Josiah. Don’t get all misty-eyed on me. You were the one who came back and saved my ass. God only knows what all of those Mani would have done to me. Who was that asshole, by the way?”

  “Krull,” he said dismissively. “You would have done the same if you could fly.”

  I nodded. It was true. “‘If you could fly’... this shit is crazy, Josiah.” I took a deep breath and sighed. “I’m going to take a shower and wash that Mani right out of my hair.” I laughed at my own stupid joke.

  “Is that from some dumb commercial?”

  “It’s actually from a dumb musical and then it was on a dumb commercial.” I walked upstairs where the shower had warmer water.

  I took a long shower and for all I knew, I hogged all the hot water. I wasn’t going to piss on the ground to show my dominance, but maybe I could make it up by snagging all the hot water.

  When I was done, I put on a pair of black basketball shorts and a white tank top and went downstairs. I headed into the kitchen and found Josiah sitting at the table, drinking a glass of milk and talking to the others.

  “How about you, Tommy? Is it in you to want to stand and fight with a bunch of vampires?” Josiah asked me as I entered the kitchen. They were obviously in a deep conversation that I had gratefully missed.

  “Well, considering none of you has tried to kill me yet, that’s what I plan on doing. I don’t have too many options, anyway.” I looked around the room and knew I could take most of them one on one. Josiah was the only question mark, now that he had been turned into a vampire.

  Josiah decided to break down how much money the group of us had. Apparently, Hector used to be some prince in the Middle East and before he left there, he took millions of dollars of his own money. My kind of guy. I had my own money from my earnings. But it was good to know a prince was someone I could ask for a few bucks here and there.

  All of this talk about money was my exit to go to my upstairs bedroom. I told everyone there should be enough room for everybody and then, I headed off to bed.

  About thirty minutes later, when I was nestled in my bed, Josiah decided to knock at my door and just walk in. “Hey, Tommy, I have a couple questions for you.”

  “Yeah?” I was a little drowsy, but Josiah had an agenda and I knew it.

  Josiah sat at the foot of my bed and I decided to sit up to face him. We had about three feet separating us.

  “Tommy, why exactly do you lock yourself in a cage when you become a werewolf? What are you afraid of?”

  That was an interesting question right off the bat. What am I afraid of? The truth was, I wasn’t afraid of anything. I feared what my animal body would do to someone else. “I’m afraid of hurting someone or doing something that might cause someone to want to hurt or even kill me.”

  “Do you have any recollection after you come out of your werewolf state?”

  What was the kid doing, writing a paper? But I obliged him because my gut was telling me he was on to something.

  “I don’t have a stream of memory,” I said. “I remember glimpses—or random moments.”

  “Are there any specific details that you remember in those glimpses or random moments, and why do you suppose you remember those moments as opposed to others?”

  Damn, these questions were freaking personal. I knew Josiah needed me to answer these questions to the best of my ability. So, I gave him the best answer I could. “Maybe I remember the times when my senses are heightened.”

  “Really?” Josiah seemed surprised.

  “Where are you going with this, Josiah?”

  He took a moment and smiled at me. “I had a vision last night. Or at least, I think I did.”

  “And...”

  “I won’t go into the details of the dream, but I’ll tell you the message I was given. I was told to, ‘tame the wolf and I will find myself.’”

  Tame the wolf and he would find himself? This was nuts. Even for my crazy-ass life. “And you believe that I am the wolf?” I asked.

  “Why wouldn’t you be?” Josiah said, staring directly into my eyes. “It’s the only thing that makes any sense.”

  “So, what’s with all the memory questions?” I asked.

  “I’m thinking somehow I need to tame or train you when you’re in your werewolf state.”

  “How are you supposed to do that? Have you ever seen a werewolf when one of us has completely shifted?”

  “No,” Josiah said firmly. “But I think that actually is going to rule in my favor. I won’t have any preconceived notions about it. I am coming into it with a clean slate.”

  What the hell was Josiah up to? He wanted to train me? “What do you mean by training? Do you plan on taking me to Vegas to do an act?”

  “Not in the slightest.” Josiah laughed. “I need to get face to face with you and have you trust me to the point that you don’t attack me.”

  I didn’t like this at all. I didn’t trust myself being face to face with anybody. “What if I kill you when you’re trying to Lassie me up?”

  “That’s the part we have to figure out,” Josiah said, sounding excited. “We’ll need to do the training in stages. Tommy, have you ever heard of werewolves having any kind of control during full moons?”

  “Control?” I asked. Where the hell was he going with this? “The older werewolves might be able to. They aren’t as bloodthirsty as younger ones.”

  “Why do you suppose that is?”

  “Cause they’re beaten down and tired,” I said plainly.

  “What if it’s because they are more seasoned, and they have figured out a way to control it?” Josiah asked.

  “Saying, ‘they can control it’ is a big leap.” I laughed. “Werewolves are like psychopathic serial killers who have been chained up for twenty years and finally let out into the general population. Werewolves are told from the get-go to figure out a way to go into hiding. Most go to caves or isolated areas, so there is no temptation to kill humans. I think you might be reaching, Josiah. Werewolves are no better than wild animals.” I wanted to believe in my friend’s fairy tale, but I didn’t see anyone pulling off what he wanted to accomplish.

  “That’s what you’ve been told, Tommy. What if you could be tamed and you never knew it? The way a lion-trainer tames a lion.”

  “Are you intending to beat me with a whip?” I asked, half-seriously.

  “No, you might enjoy that too much.” Josiah gave me a smirk.

  He was probably right.

  “Okay,” I said, “let’s say you do train me. What good will that do?”

  “Tommy, the good it could do is endless. What if we could get you to a point of cognitive thought? What if you could decipher right from wrong?”

  “Cognitive thought?” I laughed. “That’s unheard of, Josiah; there is no way it can be done. Werewolves are mindless beasts who know only one thing—KILL. We act on instinct in our werewolf form.” I wasn’t painting myself out to be the best creature on God’s green earth, but the truth needed to be said. We were pit bulls times ten.

  Josiah looked at me and knew I needed more convincing. “I’m going to put more thought into this. In the end, it won’t hurt to give it
a shot.”

  “It could hurt,” I said. “It could hurt very much, if you let me out and try to train me and it doesn’t work. I could do a lot of damage to everyone. You would be forced to fight back and someone might get killed. Hell, you all might be forced to team up and kill me.”

  “That will never happen, Tommy.” Josiah said. “I would never allow it. We need to do this in baby steps. We take small steps first, and see if we are on to something. Let’s first see if I can build trust with you.”

  “I don’t know, Josiah. Give me some time to think about it.” I was still unconvinced.

  “One last thing, Tommy,” Josiah said. “Just imagine how powerful you would be if you were self-aware as a werewolf. Imagine how much good could come out of it.”

  “We have two more weeks until the full moon. Who knows? I might have a change of heart.”

  Chapter Six

  Over the next few days until the full moon, Yari and the gang needed another run to the blood bank.

  I went with them while Josiah stayed behind. I decided on the trip that I would do whatever it took to become a cognitive werewolf and be able to control it. I wanted to have faith in Josiah. It was just hard considering all we had been through. He said he’d been having visions on how to teach me to achieve this, so who was I to stand in his way with my doubt.

  We were all watching a TV show and I caught Josiah’s attention. He was snuggling with Lena, the mystery girl he had been dating. She came back to the cabin when Yari and the gang returned from one of the blood runs, to Josiah’s delight.

  I mouthed, ‘I’m in,’ to him and he looked as happy as I had seen the guy in months.

  It was the day of the first full moon. I went into my upstairs bedroom and was lying on my bed, listening to my MP3 player after everyone had gone to bed. They were all vampires, so it was about seven o’clock in the morning.

  Josiah liked popping into my room uninvited and being cooped up in this cabin had made that trait of his even worse than usual. To be honest, it was nice having him under the same roof again.

  “What you listening to?” Josiah asked.

  “Some old-school Bobby Brown,” I answered.