Blood Heavy: Ascension

by S. L. J. Shortt

  BOOM!

  The entire entrance of the mansion was blasted apart as if a bomb had gone off outside the front door. Debris showered the entire hallway but didn't even have time to hit the ground because instantly it had come to life. Broken bits of wood and glass flew around the corridor acting like possessed stakes. They shot into guards left and right causing them to burst into sparks and ash.

  Aria simply marched straight through the chaos as it wasn't happening and once she reached the middle of the corridor, Cass, Claire and Sophinia were blasted backwards and pinned against the wall by an invisible force.

  All the broken weapons she'd just been controlling fell to the floor as she strolled up to the three trapped vampires.

  “Evening girls,” she purred dangerously.

  They struggled against her hold but it was futile. You couldn't overpower something thing that wasn't there to fight.

  “Where's the priest?” she asked almost as if she were talking about stock options.

  “Not here,” Sophinia answered. Despite being rendered powerless against Aria, her voice was still stern and unwavering.

  “Never mind, I'll get to him later,” Aria's eyes scanned the area, as if she were looking for a trace of him. Then she smiled as she approached Sophinia. “My, my, Sophinia. You really are beautiful. Wings make such a lovely accessory on women, don't you think?” Aria's unfurled slightly as she spoke. Their metallic back feathers glistened in the light. “Oh. no, of course you don't. You think they're a curse.”

  “They are.”

  “Oh, naturally,” she mocked. “Tell me, still trying to play mommy to Jerry? Still trying to adopt him because there's no chance you'll ever have a family of your own?”

  “What would you know about family?” Sophinia shot back. “You don't deserve a family or those wings!”

  “Why? Because only God's angels should have them? Oh, please. God doesn't care about me or you. God stopped caring along time ago, but he still hates vampires.”

  “You can stop with the whole Castiel crap!” Claire blurted. It was as if she were deliberately trying to take Aria's attention away from Sophinia. She was trying to protect her. “We know what you are!”

  “Ahh,” Aria grinned dangerously. “Wick's been telling you fairy tales I see.”

  “He told us who you work for!”

  “Oh, yes...my boss. Well, he's a lovely guy, provided you stay on his good side,” she said dryly. Her English accent only made it obvious how much they repulsed her. “You know some say that Lucifer was the most beautiful of all the angels. From what I've seen, I'd have to agree. But, you know what, you guys...as vampires go, aren't bad. I mean beauty is hard to achieve for a bunch of filthy, bottom-feeding maggots like yourselves, but some how you manage it.”

  “Shame you don't,” Cass hissed, clearly trembling but trying to hold onto her courage. Aria turned and studied her for a second.

  “Hmm, Cassandra...so, you're the one that sucked him, saved him, fucked him then almost killed him? Pleasure,” she dipped her head slightly with a dark grin. “Love your shirt by the way.”

  It was a fake black silk little number that was, as usual, a size too small for her so it showed her breasts as much as possible.

  “It was on sale,” Cass shrugged or rather tried to.

  “Lucky you. You have good taste. But...” Aria's eyes changed from deep emerald green to completely black with a burning ring around the iris's. “I hate people that try to eat my man!”

  Aria flicked her hand and Cass's head snapped to the left with a horrible crack as her neck broke.

  “Cass!” Claire yelled but was completely ignored by Aria.

  Instead she grabbed hold of Cass's broken neck and lifted her off the wall, holding her up with one arm as if to display her like a trophy to the others. She wasn't dead. A vampire could easily survive a snapped vertebra but it was a nasty wound and would take a while to heal from. For now, she was a ragdoll.

  “Now, which one of you lovely ladies is going to tell me where my Jerry is or should I just start pealing the flesh off her pretty little face?” she asked, shaking Cass like she were a stuffed teddy bear.

  Sophinia realized her game.

  So, that's why she hadn't just killed them straight away. She wanted collateral in case she couldn't find Jerry. Aria had just killed thirty odd vampires without blinking an eye but she knew they were close. She knew they were family. She wanted leverage, something that would make Jerry bow to her commands.

  “Come on Jerry! Wake up!”

  Aria's head turned as she heard Rachel mutter the words. They were right in the next room. She dropped Cass, who's limp body flopped to the floor and grinned. “Hold that thought.”

  “No! Rachel, run!” Sophinia screamed.

  The doors to the library were blasted off their hinges and flew straight over Rachel while she desperately tried to pull Jerry and Vic out of the dream. Yanking them out when they weren't ready was like sticking your hand in a deep fat frier. She had to wait for them to cool down.

  Aria walked up to the entrance, took one look at Rachel and burned with terrifying fury.

  “Just what in the hell do you think you're doing?!” she hissed and stomped forwards.

  Rachel, with only a second to react decided to take the only option she had left. Aria suddenly came to a screeching halt and buckled to her knees, yelling out in pain and holding her head. Rachel was throwing everything she had at her, trying to destroy her mind.

  To her horror, Aria stopped screaming and looked up at Rachel with a sadistic smile. She was still in pain, but her defenses had kicked in. “You're gonna have to try a lot harder than that little girl!”

  Rachel screamed in agony. Everything she was trying to do to Aria's mind was being thrown right back at her. Wick had warned them about this. That Aria had mental protection and that psychics couldn't beat her but Rachel had to do it. She had to hold her off long enough to wake Jerry and Vic. They were still deep in the dream, trying to get through the barrier.

  It wasn't working.

  The containment doors had slammed down and they were trapped. The SWAT team had already surrounded them and were about to start planting explosives on the sides and that horrible ringing noise was getting worse. It was so high pitched and loud that it was actually hurting.

  “God, what is that?!” Jerry cringed.

  “Jerry, I'm tellin' ya, somethin's wrong! We gotta go now!” Vic yelled, also hating the sound.

  “Wait, wait, look!” he pointed at room four-twelve, “you see her? What is she?!”

  “See who, Jerry, there's no one there!”

  “What?!” he turned back and saw her, sitting there in her white business clothes looking back at him. “No, she's right there! How can you not see her?!”

  “I'm tellin' you there's nobody there!” Vic yelled. The ringing was about to give him a migraine. “No magic, no woman, no nothin'! Jerry we have to leave now!”

  He looked back. She was there. She was definitely there but Vic couldn't see her. If this had been a hallucination then he would have been able to see it because they were in his head. They would be able to see his imagination but he was blind to her. She was purposely blocking him from seeing her.

  This was a lost cause.

  “Rachel, pull us out!” Jerry yelled.

  But nothing happened. Instead the ringing noise only got worse. That was when it hit Jerry. He'd been so obsessed with getting answers he'd completely ignored the possibility that something was wrong. The noise was Rachel.

  She was in pain!

  “Rachel! Rachel!” he screamed realizing that she was in trouble.

  Vic suddenly vanished from his side and returned to his body. In the library his eyes shot open and he sat up in an instant. He saw Rachel. She had blood coming out of her nose and ears. She was pushing her self right to the limit and it was killing her.

  He saw Aria, wings tense, eyes shut and teeth clenched, fighting against Rachel's psychic attac
k. Behind her, Cass, Claire and Sophinia rushed in. Rachel had managed to stop her telekinetic hold on them and they were free. The jumped over Aria's wings and ran to Jerry's side just as Rachel's eye's glazed over.

  She went limp and fell into Sophinia's arms just as Jerry bolt upright. He was dazed but back.

  Aria began to stand, shaking off Rachel's power when Vic stretched his arm out and a wave of ice that had to be at least minus eighty blasted out. It covered the demon in an instant, freezing her into a statue like you'd see in the Vatican. Wings outstretched, pose perfectly captured, almost as if she'd been designed for it. Snowflakes drifted around the room and frost drifted from the icy structure with a low hiss.

  Jerry shook his dizziness away and looked over. Rachel was pale and out cold.

  “Rachel! Come on baby, open your eyes!” he begged, checking her pulse. She was alive, but she wouldn't wake. “Vic, hospital, now!”

  Vic closed his eyes and the tiny blue balls of energy began to surround them. At the same time, they heard a cracking sound that caused fear to shoot through all of them. Aria's ice statue prison was weakening. She was breaking free.

  SMASH!

  The ice exploded shooting all over the room. At the same time, the big oak table at the back of the library suddenly flew forwards clipping Jerry on his right shoulder and knocking him out of the ring.

  “Daniel!” Sophinia screamed as they disappeared into thin air leaving only Jerry and Aria in the mansion.

  He looked up at her as he picked himself off the deck. She actually seemed more concerned with her hair than anything else because it was now wet but still managed to throw him a death gaze.

  “Jerry, I think we have some issues to work through before this relationship can move forward.”

  He didn't wait for her to finish checking her blood red locks. He ran. Grabbing his sawn-off from the table as he did and rushed down the hallway. He made it to the kitchen but the door suddenly slammed in his face. He went for the one next to it that led to the swimming pool but that one shut as soon as he got close as well. He tried the door handle the it wasn't going to budge. Aria was holding it there with her mind. Even if he blew the lock off, it wouldn't make a difference.

  He tried the door to the garage and was met with the same result.

  That was when Aria turned the corner and walked into the hallway with him. She seemed completely calm but had steam rising off her body. She was heating herself up, drying the water that had come from being frozen by Vic. It was surreal and frightening site. Like looking at someone that had just stepped out of a lake of fire and was just cooling off.

  Jerry raised the sawn-off but before he could get a shot off a chair came flying at him. It was a big, clunky arm chair that completely knocked him off his balance and caused him to loose the gun from his grip in the process. It barely had time to hit the ground before it shot through the air and landing right in Aria's hand.

  She studied it for a second, looking only mildly interested. “This is a very big gun. I really hope you're not compensating for something Jerry. That would break my heart.”

  Before Jerry had a chance to respond, the chair came to life again, shooting straight up in the air above him before crashing down right on his head. It broke apart with pieces flying all over the place and Jerry hit the floor, out cold. Exhaustion, Inception style brain surfing and then a bit of furniture dropped on his head...it didn't take long for him to lose consciousness.

  CHAPTER 21 – THE DEVIL YOU DON'T KNOW

  Sanford Medical Center – Sioux Falls

  Deja Vu of the most horrifying kind had struck. Once again, they were gathered around a hospital bed.

  “I'm sorry,” the doctor said looking over his scans. “Coma's are impossible to predict.”

  Goose, Joe, Cass and Claire were only half listening. Their eyes were glued to Rachel, lying in the bed in front of them. She seemed so peaceful. Almost as if she were simply sleeping.

  But she wasn't.

  Whatever Aria did to her, it had overwhelmed Rachel's mind. She was completely unresponsive to treatment. It was like some kind of sick joke. A few months ago, Jerry had been the one in the hospital bed with the others all gathered around him. Now a fifteen year old girl had taken his place.

  It wasn't right. Rachel had incredible power, was smarter than all of them put together and cared deeply about her friends. She didn't deserve this. She was just a kid.

  At that moment, the humans were looking just as pale as the vampires. How many times were they going to have to see the people they loved lying in hospital beds?

  “We'll run another batch of tests in the morning. Might give us a better idea of the damage,” the doc said.

  The only word they really heard was damage and it made their hearts sink even lower.

  The doc left and the group walked out of Rachel's room and into the hallway. Wick and Vic were waiting for them there.

  “I am so sorry,” Wick said instantly. He looked guilty and panicked.

  “It's not your fault,” Joe said quietly.

  “No, I screwed up. I must have done something wrong with the wards. I mean, I knew she would break through them eventually but they should have stalled her for a few hours at least! I can't believe she broke through them so fast!”

  “It doesn't matter now,” Claire said sternly. “All that matters is getting Jerry back. We can't do anything for Rachel right now.”

  “Agreed. Just got a text from Soph. She wants us back at the mansion to start searching,” Vic said putting his phone away.

  “The mansion? Is that a good idea?” Cass asked.

  “She's already cracked that place wide open. She'd never expect us to go back there,” Joe said.

  “And besides, she doesn't give a crap about us. She got what she came for,” Goose added with darkness in his tone.

  Cass put a supportive hand on his shoulder. They needed to save their regret and fear for later. Right now they had work to do.

  Lake Preston – South Dakota

  “Kidnapped by an evil bitch with wings...It must be Friday,” Jerry mumbled as he woke up.

  And sure enough, he was hand-cuffed to a chair again. This time he wasn't in a disused metal factory though. This place looked to be some kind of abandoned cabin in the woods. Judging by the level of cobwebs and dust, nobody had been there for a while. At least, not since the homeless guy that had left a few empty bottles of booze and candy wrappers in the corner. It was amazing that this place still had electricity but it did. The light above his head, while dim, was still working.

  His gun was sitting on a stool just next to him. It was less than three feet away and he couldn't reach it. She had done that on purpose as well. Just to piss him off.

  “You should be getting used to it by now Jerry,” Aria smiled as she walked past him. She still had her wings out, folded neatly behind her back and a bottle of whiskey in her hand. She walked over to a table in front of him and set a glass with a few ice cubes in it down. She then poured herself out a glass making sure to show the label to him. Johnny Walker Blue. She was doing it on purpose, to tease him. Drinking his whiskey. The bitch. “I mean, what is this? The third time you've been kidnapped and what do they say? Third time's a charm.”

  “Don't count on it sweetheart.”

  “You know, most people would be happy to have themselves a guardian like me,” she smirked.

  “You're not an angel.”

  “Never said I was.”

  “No, you didn't. Never said you were hell spawn either,” Jerry hissed back. “How long were you down in the pit? How old are you?”

  “Don't you know it's rude to ask a lady that question?” she pouted.

  “You're no lady.”

  “Was once,” she smiled knowing that she'd just caught his interest. She took a sip of her whiskey then walked towards him. “What did you think Jerry? God makes a prison for his wayward son then just for fun decides to fill it with legions of demons? Where do you think they
really came from?”

  “Humans...” Jerry said realizing the awful truth, “they used to be human. How?”

  “I assume you've heard the story of Lucifer's fall from grace?”

  “I caught the highlights.”

  “Well, he wasn't always a naughty boy. Once he was a very good boy and he loved his daddy. Some say he loved him more than any other angel and that Lucifer was actually God's favorite. But then humans showed up and suddenly Lucy wasn't the center of his attention anymore. He didn't like that. Not. One. Bit. All that anger and jealousy just built and built until he attempted the greatest coup d'etat in history,” she paused to take another sip of her drink. “Civil war breaks out, Micheal hands his brother his own ass and Lucifer and his followers are banished from heaven forever more, jammed into the eternal penitentiary known as perdition. Of course, God didn't want the naughty humans getting a slice of paradise so he sent them down there too.”