Cognata: A Vampire Romance

by Jedaiah Ramnarine

  'Look up.' His voice shot into my mind. I followed the command and there he sat, on top of a roof, gazing down at me with a growing smirk. How did you do that? I wondered in my fragile mind. Aristide rose to his feet and folded his arms behind his back - the moonlight shining past him, casting a dark shadow over me.

  "The exchange between us is more than just visions and memories. You now have what you can describe as, potential for the greater. The blood that flows through you will grant greater concentration, and greater concentration means anything is possible." He finally extended his hand out to me, "Come Alexia. Get up here by the power of your will."

  What?

  I still was not certain what he meant, although it was beginning to make sense the deeper the thought sank in.

  "Unless you wish to stay down there. Then I will have no choice but to leave you where you stand. I have no room for those who cannot stand on their feet." He coldly turned his back to me and in that instant, my heart sank. It stung some kind of nerve, unexpectedly - all this time he was telling me how special and precious I was and now he was willing to give me up so easily because I didn't understand? It was hurtful, but beyond just that, it was infuriating to think he'd abandon me already.

  Had he seduced other maidens I did not know of?

  Oh, more than ever I wanted to get on that ledge. I wanted to go up there and slap him for toying with me. How dare he! Who did he think he was? To come and whisk me away and then just toss me aside once he was satisfied enough?! I had to show him. I had to show him that I was not all I seemed.

  I am going up there.I will go up there.

  I demanded the desire be fulfilled. My legs crouched, ready to pounce like a lioness on a hyena. My eyes were set on him and him only - ready to bury my claws in his chest. The ground beneath me became like water and the air grew thin, yet warm. It was as if everything bent in that moment. My will carried my body like it was just a puppet; a tool for its purpose and its destination was set. I leaped into the air and everything slowed to an almost complete halt. Aristide was no longer far away. I was getting closer and closer till I could feel his signature coldness just feet away. That is when I knew I was levitating. I didn't think much of it, since I was so focused on getting up there but the very moment the thought crossed my mind, that I was doing something, rather, shall we say at the time - 'supernatural', that is when I lost my balance and the newfound power slipped from my grasp. I was inches away from reaching him, but, instead, I crashed into the roof and slipped down its hems. An instinctual scream got the better of me because I thought I was going to die once I hit the ground. Then I felt his hand reach out and grab me by the wrist.

  I'm not sure what I was more astonished by. Aristide held me as if I were weightless. Such strength seemed incredible to me and, at the same time, I was utterly confused by how all this power worked. Not to mention, the fear of falling was still upon me. He was stooped down as he looked at me nearly completely expressionless, then he stood tall in the air, holding me as my eyes darted below my feet, showing the true height, if he were to let me go.

  "Why did you stop?" He coldly asked.

  "I don't know... " I pleaded with him, wondering if he was going to let me go.

  "Please, I don't know!"

  "What if I were to let you fall?"

  "Please... " I wiggled in his grip, holding on with my other hand. I did not want to fall. "Please, Aristide! Don't let me go!"

  "What would you do?"

  "I don't know! Please! Just don't let me go!"

  "Are you afraid of me now?" His coldness was like a dagger aiming for my heart. I could not answer him as I tried mirroring his gaze, but it was just too much. I wanted to show him that I wasn't afraid and truly, I wasn't afraid of him... I was afraid that I'd been lied to all along.

  "No... " I defiantly stated, determined to prove him wrong.

  I kept my eyes on him. The fear of death had melted away. All that mattered was proving him wrong. My concentration was so intense that I'd forgotten about falling and that's when he folded his arms on his chest, showing me he was no longer holding me. I was floating again. He smiled at me.

  "Very good Alexia."

  And that's when I began to understand, at least to a better extent - how these 'powers' were supposed to work. They were not supernatural. They were a concentrative effort. The blood exchange only made it easier to tap into such focus. That is what he was trying to teach me. I floated silently from the void to the edge of the roof, planting myself gently. I felt a bit dizzy at first and was quite drained from the effort it took.

  "Easy now." He rested a caring hand on my arm. I held onto his shoulders, trying to regain the correct balance. As I looked into his eyes, I wondered what he was trying to do with me. All this, what's it for?

  "Would you have really let me fall?" I softly asked.

  Aristide only smirked.

  "What do you think?"

  "No... " I spoke purely based on my intuition.

  His fingers interlocked with mine to lead me away.

  "Come. The night is young and you still have so much to see... "

  Interlude II

  Samuel Speaks, 2017

  It's a fantastic tale, no doubt - one filled with adventure, wit and the mysterious gentleman that's all charm and grace with the psychotic undertone to ruffle him up. My question is, why does she find it necessary to tell me all these things. Everybody's got a story to tell, right? So why should hers be any different?

  "Why are you telling me all this? I need to know. I'm sorry, as much as I'm enjoying this, there's a reason for everything."

  "That's a rather sober response. Is something wrong?" It's hard to resist the way this woman talks. She has that purity but it's not like, overdone or childish or immature. Lots of people lose their 'light' so to speak. She somehow hasn't.

  "No. Nothing's 'wrong', I'd just like to know why you're telling me this. I mean - I could sit here and tell you my life story too, although I don't think it'd be anywhere near as interesting."

  She starts laughing, each chuckle almost making me feel tinier. Has to be one of my own insecurities because I don't think she means it in a derogatory manner. Whatever it is, I find the strength to call her out on it - "What's so funny?"

  "Oh, Sam... your life has been a genuinely interesting tale too."

  "And how would you know?"

  "Has everything you've told me over the past few years been nothing more than fables?"

  "Not at all... " I'm stumbling, "I mean... "

  She's giggling again.This is such a perplexing feeling. Her laughter doesn't feel like an enemy's. It feels like a needed comfort against my awkwardness. Which is also weird, because I'm not really shy and I'm not afraid of people, nor do I have any social anxieties or the like, but with her - there's a difference. You feel something exotic, something rare. But it's never been my luck to get anything without a price... In this case, I think you know what I mean...

  "Have you been reading my mind again?" I ask.

  "I will not do that without your permission."

  "Thank you."

  She nods respectfully

  "I think it's interesting." I go on, speaking my mind naturally.

  "What is?" Her eyes beam up like they were set for another adventure.

  "How love works." I finish, fixing my eyes on hers - trying to mimic that effect she had with Aristide. I hope I passed the test. She probably picked up on it anyway...

  "Tell me more of your meaning. I am curious."

  "Well, let me ask you something first."

  She nods again, waiting for my question.

  "When I freaked out the moment you showed me your fangs and revealed it wasn't bullshit, and I locked myself in the bathroom. In that moment, did you feel alone?"

  "That is a very interesting question... "

  "I guess. Tell me though. Did you?"

  "I did, and I was very hurt by it."

  "And what made you decide not to leave? At that
point, didn't I just seem like any other idiot who doesn't understand? Why didn't you leave?"

  She wiggles her eyebrows.

  "Why didn't you?"

  Now it's my turn to unleash what's on my mind.

  "Because I couldn't. I trusted my intuition and my gut told me to stay. Ride it out, see what this is all about."

  "Your gut?" She repeats rhetorically.

  "Yeah. The same inner voice that told me the moment I met you, even far away as you were - I knew it was different. I knew you were... real, and it's something that goes beyond thoughts or feelings. It's the same thing that kept me here tonight and I'm sure it's the same thing that's kept you here too."

  "And what could that possibly be?"

  "Love... "

  "Is that so?" She leans forward, crossing her legs on the couch as she pays attention to me.

  "I think so. It's the only reason I'm still here listening to you. You've sunk your claws into me and I cannot deny what has naturally built. Now I told you why I'm still here. Now I need to ask you, why are you here telling me what you're telling me?"

  "Because the same reason applies for me as much as it applies for you."

  "I'm only human, how could you love me?"

  "You've shown me the light where I thought I was in the dark. Such a young creature, and yet you still have such things to show me. That cannot be denied either."

  "That's not really what I meant; I mean - how could you, a vampire or sorry, a Cognata... love a human? Isn't that, wrong? Aren't we just meat puppets to you?"

  "You think Cognati aren't human themselves?"

  I don't know how to respond and I assume she has more to say, so I keep quiet.

  "We have genetic differences, but we are very human too, and like some that lose their humanity - genetic differences or not, we are prone to thoughts and feelings as well. I do not see you for your differences, although we are very different - our age, our time difference, our people, our skin color and yet none of that matters... when I feel you... "

  I reach for her, extending my hand in an act of chivalry as she'd once encountered before - offering her to sit with me and not next to me, as we journey through her tale. She wouldn't have revealed any of this to me without being sure she could trust me and when that clicked in my head, I was more than assured. She snuggles close to me and I have to admit, I'm at first expecting to feel some kind of eerie coldness until I realize she feels just like any other warm blooded human. I wrap my arm around her shoulder and hold her close. The two of us just lay there silent. No words, no pretenses: just the two of us flowing downstream.

  "You know... " I interrupt the moment out of sheer curiosity, "I might be a fool for loving you, but I still want to know more."

  "I assumed I was boring you to sleep and you'd be angry in the morning because we didn't have sex."

  Not going to lie, her response makes me chuckle a little. I'm serious though. I want to know more and I'm sure she wouldn't resist my advances (seriously?) when that time would come.

  "You're not going to blue-ball me, are you?" I know where I'm going with this.

  "Not at all... " She slyly answers, kneading her face into my chest.

  I tilt my head back, taking one good look at the ceiling while I think about everything I just read and everything she's told me so far.

  "Alexia... " I thought of the name. Such a beautiful name to cover up, "It's such a pretty name."

  "It's just a name, Sam... "

  "Let's see... " I start counting the numerical values of her name off the top of my head. I can already hear her sighing for me to stop the evaluation. "2-5-5-6-1-2, it comes up to 21/3. Not a bad number at all."

  "Does it pass your test?" She looks up at me, playfully.

  "Nope. I still have to find out what it means." I shake my head teasingly then she purposely pouts her lips and grins at our silliness.

  "Defender of Mankind." She recites it as if she's studied it before. Meanwhile, I'm still sitting there absorbing everything, at least the name's just the tip of the iceberg. Still better than 'Lilith'.

  "Would you mind if I called you Lexi?"

  "You can call me whatever you want." Her head is back on my chest, listening to my heartbeat. "Your mind races. You are concentrating very deeply on me."

  "I am."

  "You do not want the story to end, do you?"

  "No..."

  She looks up at me again, this time, not so playfully.

  "Tell me what happened with you and Aristide."

  "Haven't you learned enough for one night?" She protests, rubbing her hands on my ribs alluringly as she crawls up my body, her lips touch my neck and it feels like ice quickly melting into a warm moisture, speaking to the very fabric of my skin... "Don't you want me now?" She whispers in my ear, swaying her tongue around my earlobe, making me feel the warmth of her breath. A spell was cast on me and I can't resist it, no matter how much I try, she's in the corner of every part of my mind.

  All the fantasies I'd carefully tucked away for the sake of being a proper gentleman are stripped nude and I know she can see me for who I am and what I want. There is no hiding with her. She could peer right into your mind's eye and you wouldn't even know it. I had no armor and I could hide behind no shield. She keeps drawing me in, whispering my name and that's when I can hold myself back no longer. She unleashes the beast in me - most likely, the thing she wanted all along.

  I hold her body in my arms both with care to protect and will to break. I do not care if she's a vampire or a fairy, a mermaid or an alien - none of it matters for what I'm about to do to her and yes, I want to taste her like she'd taste blood, I want to smell her and keep her roses with me wherever I go. I want to connect with her, so she can never forget.

  I want to break her and bend her to my will - show her just how much I love her. Show her how much I'd be there, no matter where she is; I'd come running and she has to know it. If this was the last night I'll get to spend with the only woman I've ever truly loved, then I have to show her and there is no other way...

  A few hours go by and the two of us fall asleep in each other's arms. I have trouble sleeping. As a matter of fact, I can't say I really do. A mixture of excitement and terror: a wonderful feeling rings in me like I've never experienced before. She's everything I ever needed and everything I don't. Looking at her sleep is like looking at some angel floating on a cloud, resting her troubles away and yet part of me still fears her as a bloodthirsty predator.

  The sex was unbelievable. I'm so glad she let me taste her body. I'd even sunk my teeth into her neck, and no, I didn't do it out of imitation of her vampiric tradition. I did it out of pure lust. I wanted her and I wanted to leave my mark on her. I remember hearing her hiss but turning into a purr when I did it. Oh... she loved it... maybe more than I did. She tasted so pure and I'm still amazed that such a creature can exist...

  So here I am, carefully removing her arm, stroking her lovely blond hair covering her face and wondering just how lucky and cursed I am. I know the journal's still around and I have to continue reading it. She persuaded me with a very pleasant distraction, albeit an important want and the truth is, I need to know more. I need to know what I'm dealing with.

  Chapter Two

  Halona

  Alexia's Journal,

  May 14th 1932

  The night was hot and young, a fiery haze called for me outside the Chateau's walls while Aristide's nails were dug deep in my exposed, arched spine, clawing all the way down to my bottom, pinning me onto him as he laid below - working the instrument that made him a man. Tonight in particular was a special one. All the training and the gifts he'd been so carefully presenting had reached a culmination. Weeks went by and Aristide taught me the secrets of these, 'dark arts' and how to make them a reality, not a slumbering fool's dream.

  I could run faster than any animal, empower my body with the strength of a thousand men and my injuries were healed in mere seconds. Oh, the power was amazing. The tingle of
wanting to possibly hate this man was long gone. He'd provided me with everything I needed. A life that wasn't bound by the hideous society I came from. A life that required no debt on my part, unless I was truly stupid enough to let myself go. I knew my limits and I knew I was not near my prime at that time.

  I was still a young fledging, learning and exploring, growing and tasting... oh yes, tasting - whatever I wanted too. If I found something curious, I needed to know of it and nothing or no one would get in my way.

  "Ugh... " Aristide sighed like he'd been through hell and back as he collapsed on my breasts. I was still thinking of the weird urge to go out that night. Then my mind darted to find out what was wrong with him.

  "Are you alright?" I softly asked, my fingers parting through his thick hair

  "I am fine." His voice was raspy, clearly he was exhausted. Not the usual sexual exhaustion, however, this was clearly different and maybe he was not ready to share it with me. I decided to stay quiet as we laid there blissfully, my mind drifting to the idea that 'something was going to happen'.

  "Do you feel that?" I asked him as my fangs slowly grew larger unintentionally

  "No... " His head slowly peaked up from my breasts and I could tell from the corner of my eye that he was looking up at me while I hawked the moonlight outside the window, "What's wrong?" He asked.

  "I'm not sure... but I can feel... others."

  "Others?" He was probably as confused as I was, although I knew full well what I was talking about.

  "Cognati. I can feel them approaching."

  That very moment I looked back to see what his expression would be. I was hoping for happiness that we weren't alone, but I was in for a morbid surprise. Aristide was horrified. He got off me, naked as ever, rushing to gather his clothing.

  I softly tilted my body to a fetal position, propping my head with a hand as I watched him, curiously wondering what he was about to do.

  "Stay here." He warned.

  "Is something wrong?" I inquired hinting he should tell me more by the tone of my voice.

  "I don't know yet. I am going to find out."

  "And I am to believe that I would get in your way? Oh, poor me... "