Rafe was done with Cheryl.
Once his wolves had beaten her till she could no longer fight back, he took her to the floor of the road and held the gold dagger to her throat, still marked with Synrith’s blood.
“If I ever see you again, vampire,” he growled at her. “I’m going to set you on fire.”
Cheryl said nothing. She was numb from the beating, and could hardly see out her teary eyes.
Rafe let go of her and she rolled onto her back, quivering.
The motorbikes roared and sailed away, until their sound was merely an echo on the horizon.
Cheryl was defeated.
And had he loved her after all?
Had he truly, deeply, loved her?
All that was left of Synrith was his charred remains. He didn’t even shift into a dragon before his death. He didn’t vanish in a cloud of smoke, or transcend into the afterlife. There he was on the ground. Stabbed. Burnt.
Murdered.
Cheryl looked into the sky and at the rest of her surroundings. She just couldn’t believe it. The powerful, magnificent Master Synrith. Crushed and defeated, as was she. It didn’t seem right. This wasn’t how things were supposed to work out.
She screeched out wildly, the rage imploding within her.
All she saw was violence. Hatred. The destruction of all things.
To look behind that, the pain was beyond anything she knew.
CHAPTER FOUR
Synrith was dead, and Rafe and his wolves were long gone.
But Cheryl was not alone on the road that night.
As she stood over Synrith, still trying to control her tears, a figure emerged from the shadows.
It gave her a start, and upon seeing the figure was advancing towards her, she cried out in anger towards it.
“Fuck off, whoever you are.”
It was Reiko, the vampire.
She stared at him in disbelief as he made his way over, his hands out, showing he meant no harm.
Cheryl looked away from him, and fell to her knees by Synrith’s body.
“I saw everything,” Reiko said on his approach.
“Then why didn’t you do something?” Cheryl shot back.
“I was outnumbered,” Reiko replied. “There was nothing I could do.”
Cheryl shook her head. She touched Synrith’s burnt fingertips. “How do you survive, but he doesn’t?”
“There was a space in the cave Jet’s fire didn’t reach to,” Reiko said. “But I was the only one who was in that area at the time.”
“Cassandra?”
“She perished,” Reiko said. “I will have my revenge.”
“On who? Jet? Or Rafe?”
“On both of them.” There was a brief pause. “Perhaps you would join me?”
Cheryl looked up at him. So many words to say, but nothing came out…
Reiko bent down. He touched her shoulder. “This isn’t over.”
Cheryl shrugged him away. “How could it not be? He’s dead…”
Reiko looked at Synrith’s body a moment. “I wonder…”
He trailed off.
“What?” Cheryl urged him.
“It’s nothing. Forget it.”
“What were you going to say?” Cheryl demanded, striking him with her fist.
Reiko landed on his backside. “Take it easy.” After a moment, he sighed. “It’s a shame there was nothing left of Cassandra. But then perhaps it’s of greater torment to have hope.”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“I know of … certain people who might be able to help Synrith.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s been ages since I’ve seen any of them. I don’t know what their disposition is now. But…”
Reiko climbed to his feet. He looked to either end of the road.
His gaze remained still.
“What’s going on?” Cheryl asked, standing up. She went to him and followed his gaze.
In the faint distance a car was approaching them.
“I was just thinking that it would be good for both of us if our friend Synrith was still alive,” Reiko murmured. “But what I’m about to suggest is highly dangerous and the consequences could prove catastrophic, even if we are successful.”
“What are you talking about?” Cheryl hissed at him.
“Isn’t it obvious?” Reiko replied. “I’m talking about a resurrection.”
CHAPTER FIVE
“No,” Cheryl whispered. “No, that can’t be good.”
“It was just a suggestion,” Reiko said. “It would be an effort to carry out. I’m not going to bother if you don’t want me to. You just … seem so upset.”
Cheryl put her hands up. “I don’t know anything about this. Frankly, the idea just freaks me out. I’m … I don’t even know what I’m doing anymore…”
Reiko shrugged. “I’m going after Rafe. You do what you like.”
He waved down the approaching car. The woman who was driving wound down her window to speak with Reiko.
Cheryl couldn’t see anyone else in the car.
“What’s the matter?” she asked Reiko.
Reiko reached into the car and proceeded to throttle her with his teeth to her throat.
At the sound of the woman still alive, crying while she was being devoured by the vampire, Cheryl had to look away.
Behind her, the car door opened, and there was some dragging across the road.
“Are you hungry, Cheryl?” Reiko asked. “There’s plenty for both of us.”
“I’m just fine here, thanks,” Cheryl muttered.
At least it was the truth. Cheryl waited around for five minutes while Rieko feasted. She still hadn’t decided what she was to do next. Whether this resurrection idea was worth looking into. Whether she should continue to remain with Reiko at all.
But when she looked that other way…
When she thought about returning to her life like this…
She had nothing else.
Cheryl walked over to Reiko as he was just about finished. He looked up at her and grabbed the deceased woman’s t-shirt to wipe his mouth clean.
“What can you tell me about this resurrection thing?” she asked.
“Get in the car and I’ll tell you all everything.”
CHAPTER SIX
The woman’s body was left in the middle of the road as if she was nothing. They’d taken Synrith, covered him in a sheet and put him in the trunk of the car. But for the woman there was no extra care. No chance of hope. No chance for resurrection. While Cheryl came to terms with the sheer brutality of it, she also reasoned that she shouldn’t have expected anything else. Yet, one who hadn’t walked inside the shoes of a vampire, might not be so prone to judge. Cheryl had been in those shoes. She didn’t believe this state of being had any bearing on her moral compass.
Outside the car, the roads washed with a distant quiet. Midnight came and went, as did the moon behind the clouds. Thunder stirred within them, the beginnings of a vast and bitter storm. While the roads were still dry and the air was still clear, Reiko ventured them away from the city and suburbs, and towards the wilderness.
“Cassandra was always fond of witchcraft,” Reiko said. “She learnt some and was even in the process of teaching Sophie some spells and tricks.”
“I don’t find that hard to believe,” Cheryl murmured.
“You seem to have some preconceived ideas about magic and our paranormal existence,” Reiko responded. “You’re still caught up in viewing your living state as the benchmark of all things. But that’s only one state of being. One floor of the house you’re looking out from. There are many floors. It’s all connected. Even those who have never seen a vampire in front of them, don’t question their possibility. Because even in your fixed reality, the rules are always bent and broken. Anything is possible…”
“Start talking about the resurrection,” Cheryl said.
“I’m getting to it. It’s just important for you to r
ecognize this isn’t an unnatural thing. It’s something that’s been done for centuries.”
“Well… You’re using some kind of energy to reverse the natural order of things. So unnatural might be its strictest definition.”
“Jesus was resurrected, wasn’t he? No one acts as though that was witchcraft. That was a miracle of God.”
“I’m not about to get into a theological debate with you. Just give me some of the facts. Then we’ll just … think it through…”
Reiko nodded. “It’s good that you’re keeping an open mind about it at least. And we shouldn’t rush into it. Where we’re going to now is a place where we’ll be able to sit down with a few people wiser than us to figure this all out. Resurrection is only one option. They may have a completely different outlook on this than we’ve come up with so far.”
“These wise people … are they vampires like us?” Cheryl asked.
“Is that what we’ve been talking about? Vampires?”
“Well, what are they then?”
“Fortune tellers. Druids. Mages. Spellcasters. Who do you think they are?”
Cheryl looked outside the window on her side of the car. The leaves on the trees had turn from green to red to black.
They were getting deeper into the forest.
“You mean witches?” she asked.
“Bingo.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
Cheryl looked behind her out the back window of the car. She couldn’t see the road anymore. The trees had become so thick that there was nowhere else to go. Reiko glided the car round gently into the corner of the clearing and then parked and shut off the engine. There was a chilling breeze outside. Cheryl could feel it creeping in towards her.
“You shouldn’t have too much trouble finding your way,” Reiko said quietly. “But stay close to me anyway. Just in case.”
Cheryl blinked. “Got it.”
Reiko leaned out the back, checking the window also, and then peered out his side of the car.
“What are you looking for?” Cheryl asked.
“Nothing,” he muttered. “I don’t know. These are strange parts.”
He opened the driver’s door. “Let’s go.”
Cheryl opened her door and followed him outside.
Once on her feet again, she felt oddly rejuvenated. The weight of the wind bore into her, but instead of making her shiver, it seemed to give her an adrenalin rush.
When she made it round the side of the car, Reiko turned to her, and she saw his eyes were glowing red.
“This way,” he said, pointing to the forest behind him.
“Well, duh,” Cheryl said joining him.
Reiko didn’t reply.
CHAPTER EIGHT
As they ventured deeper into the forest the appearance of green and blue lights began to take place. Distant thunder rumbled, and as Cheryl looked up to the sky she saw the lights were coming from the tops of the trees.
“What are –?” Cheryl began.
“Sssh,” Reiko hissed.
They came to a stop.
Just ahead of them a woman was sitting cross-legged in the middle of a clearing between the several of the artificially lit trees. Her head was bowed beneath her, and she was covered in a quilt of purple and black feathers.
Reiko’s stern eyes were on Cheryl. It seemed important not to let the woman know of their presence.
They continued their journey around the edges of the clearing. The woman did not look up or make a sound. After a few minutes, Cheryl felt it was safe to talk again.
“Who was that?” she asked.
“The Mistress of Birds, Lady Glowshark. She’s an important person here and not someone to mess with. But I don’t have a history with her.”
Cheryl glanced over her shoulder towards the woman again.
She was surprised to see she had vanished.
“Is she one of the witches?”
“One of the more powerful ones,” Reiko said. “It’s best you don’t ask any more questions about her.”
“Alright. Do we have much further to go?”
“Just over the hill there,” Reiko said pointing. A moment later there was a loud boom of thunder and the sky lit up with lightning. It started to rain.
“Looks like we’re just in time,” Cheryl gushed.
By the time they actually reached the tree however, they were both drenched head-to-toe. Reiko rapped the wooden knocker at the door of the trunk, and they waited patiently outside for a moment. When the door finally opened, there was no one behind it.
The inside of the tree was warm. The light in Reiko’s eyes went out and his face became fuller, and less pale as they adjusted to the heat. Cheryl wondered if she was physically transforming in much the same way.
They took off their shoes and began climbing the winding staircase in front of them. They passed two levels in the tree – one which contained a study filled with books and papers, the second being a kitchen. Beyond that the walls of the tree compressed a bit.
The third level, the level they found the tree’s occupant, was dimly lit. It was bare apart from a dark, circular patch of carpet in the centre, with a crystal ball in the middle of that. Sitting in front of the ball was a woman with blue skin and silver hair, dressed in a black gown.
“Cheryl Thames, I’d like you to meet –”
“Hylee Chandra,” the witch said grinning.
CHAPTER NINE
“Fresh blood?” Hylee mused. “Let’s take a look at you, girl.”
As Cheryl went to approach, she brushed by a cold and sticky, invisible curtain. Standing in front of the witch Cheryl was put off to see the woman had no eyes. The sockets appeared to be filled with amethyst stones.
“My, my,” the witch said taking Cheryl’s wrist. “Does Cassandra know you’ve been left alone with this one?”
“Uh… Not exactly,” Reiko said approaching. “I’m afraid I have some terrible news on that front.”
“Don’t tell me,” Hylee said dropping Cheryl’s hand. “The two of you had an argument and she’s run away with a more dashing gentlemen.”
“Your powers of intuition always succeed you,” Reiko muttered sarcastically.
“What’s that tone?” Hylee replied. “She isn’t … dead, is she?”
Reiko sat down on the mat as Hylee was. He motioned for Cheryl to do the same.
“I’m afraid I’m all that’s left of the clan,” Reiko said in a bitter voice. “The wolves betrayed us.”
“Ah…” Hylee murmured. “And now you’ve come to me for help?”
“Yes.”
“What role does the girl have to play in this?”
“Well, she is uh, a vampire as –”
“I can see that.”
“I was with the Master Dragon, Synrith,” Cheryl said. “He was murdered by Rafe in front of me. Reiko said you … or someone else, might be able to help with it…”
“Help with it?”
“We have his body,” Reiko added. “It’s in the car.”
“He’s dead?”
“Yes.”
“Then what can I do?”
Reiko cleared his throat. “I once heard of you and some of your sisters, partaking in a resurrection. It was for a fallen dragon master then as well. So, I thought maybe you might consider guiding us from there…”
Hylee turned her head to him slightly. “I don’t have such powers by myself. You would have to speak with Lady Glowshark if you required such a thing.”
“Well, she’s not going to help us, is she?”
“I will not answer for her,” Hylee replied. “You know the dangers in that.”
“I would guess it would be quite dangerous to even ask her this request.”
“Perhaps,” Hylee said. “But then, I would hope you considered your position carefully before doing so.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Is bringing Synrith back to life your ultimate goal? Is that what he would have wanted?”
“We
need to restore order,” Reiko said. “We need to –”
“What is wrong with the order of things? The dragons and wolves have partnered, have they not? There is no war. And you vampires, are but the scum of the earth as it is. Any victory for you in this regard, is a victory for evil.”
“Rafe is evil,” Cheryl put forward. “He gave my sister to Jet and he’s going to force her to be his against her will.”
“I have a feeling your sister’s chastity wasn’t standing up before this.”
“What a – how dare you,” Cheryl cursed. “I don’t care about this good / evil / order of things rubbish. Synrith was a noble protector who didn’t deserve to die – the vampires were stabbed in the back – my sister deserves someone to fight for her even if everyone else is happy for her to be raped.”
Hylee smiled. Her gaze drifted back to her.
“You are absolutely right, my girl. Never mind me – I’m just an old fool.”
“Reiko said you were wise.”
“Indeed.” Hylee reached out to the ball in front of her. It started glowing purple as she touched it.
After a moment of silence within the tree, she looked up again.
“It will talk to you, Cheryl,” Hylee said. “It will answer three of your questions – but only tell you the truth twice. You’ll have to make your own mind up about which answer isn’t true.”
Cheryl blinked. “What questions? Who said I had three questions?”
“You can ask it anything,” Reiko said. “It will give you visions.”
“Visions?”
“You’re one of us now,” Hylee said to Cheryl. “The ball wants to help you.”
“Can I just have a moment a moment to figure out my questions?”
“Take all the time you need,” Hylee said.
CHAPTER TEN
The ball was placed in front of Cheryl on the mat. Her hands reached out to it, and before touching, she could feel a magnetic field rising just above the surface.
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