Dusk: Final Awakening Book Two (A Post-Apocalyptic Thriller)

by J. Thorn

  “Come on,” Dax said, putting his hand on Monica’s shoulder and directing her into the boat.

  The girl pushed his hand away. She scowled at him for a moment, then climbed over the rail and sat down. Sitting near the side, she faced the mall and didn’t look at Dax.

  Dax shook his head. He put his hand on Darius’ shoulder.

  “All right. Your turn.”

  With wet eyes, the boy looked up at Dax. “We can’t leave. What about Kevin?”

  “We have to go.”

  “No. We can’t. Kevin is still in—”

  “Kevin is gone.”

  There was silence as Dax and Darius stared at each other. More tears filled the boy’s eyes. The waves continued to rock the boat, and the water splashed up and into the craft.

  Dax sighed. “Look, I’m sorry, Darius. We—”

  “Forget it.”

  Darius climbed over the railing and into the boat. He sat across from Monica, who reached over and put her hand on his knee.

  Dax ran his hand over his face and grunted.

  “They’ll be all right,” Papa Midnight said. “They’re scared.”

  Dax looked at the sky. “Come on. Let’s get you into this boat. The sun will be going down soon, and we gotta find somewhere safe to camp for the night.”

  Dax helped Papa Midnight into the boat, then hopped over the rail and jumped in himself. He settled next to the motor and took hold of the starter cord. He gave it a pull. Then another. And another. On the fifth yank, the motor sputtered to life.

  Hopefully, there’s enough gas in this thing to get us away from this place.

  Dax turned the throttle, and the boat pulled away from the pier and the mall.

  No one spoke.

  Monica and Darius refused to even look at Dax. The two held hands and watched the city pass by as the boat floated through the streets. Some buildings they had seen on the way to the mall were now underwater. The storm had also raised the humidity in the air to an almost unbearable level. It drenched Dax’s tank top.

  And other than the immediate need to find shelter and food, Dax had one other thing on his mind.

  How were they going to defeat Serafino’s army?

  Even though Dax had discovered he could break the vampire leader’s mental spell—something Dax would have to ask Papa Midnight about later—there were still too many of them to fight. And what other powers did Serafino possess which he hadn’t even exhibited yet?

  It was too much. Dax’s head throbbed with trying to figure it all out. The odor of the toxic water didn’t help his headache, either.

  There has to be somewhere safe we can stay.

  After the encounter in the mall, Dax felt reticent about taking refuge in any of the surrounding buildings. The structures could be filled with Screamers waiting for the sun to go down.

  Scanning the buildings, Dax finally saw something in the distance. A smile stretched across his face.

  “What are you smiling about?” Darius asked. It was the first time either of the children had spoken to him since leaving the mall.

  Dax pointed towards the Mississippi River. “That’s where we’re staying tonight.”

  Chapter 14

  Serafino watched from the platform in the ceiling as his minions fought with Dax.

  Outside, the clouds had split, and the sun shone through the windows in a scorching blaze of light. Serafino had been watching the movement of the clouds all along. He could have telepathically commanded his forces to retreat, early enough to matter. But what fun would that have been? He wasn’t going to let the humans get away so easily.

  The one called Dax had gotten stronger since their last encounter. Somehow, he had managed to escape Serafino’s spell, breaking free of the invisible shackles—even though it had happened too late to save the boy. The same boy who now stood at Serafino’s side.

  The man stirred Serafino’s curiosity. Was he one of them? Serafino had heard the stories of humans who possessed the power to fight off his kind, to detect their lairs. But this Dax was nothing more than a street thug. He wasn’t a specially trained fighter—he had no previous teachings in the ways of the vampire, in fact. Dax was nothing.

  And yet, he didn’t fight like a typical human.

  Since the widespread power outage, Serafino had watched his army destroy humans with minimal effort. He had been able to hijack the bodies of several key humans, building his army to become stronger. He knew he would need a much larger force to reach his ultimate goal—to eliminate the human cockroaches and serve the Master—but New Orleans had been easy once the city had flooded. The poor and wretched had turned on each other, drowning in their own greed. He had a hunch that people in other cities might put up more resistance… but in the end, they would all succumb. And in New Orleans, Serafino had no doubt he’d be able to control the bodies of all who had stayed behind despite the flood.

  He returned his attention to Dax. The human had killed several of Serafino’s soldiers. Serafino had long doubted the prophecy that any human could take on his kind, but had he been wrong? Even if he was, of course, Dax was only one man. There would have to be hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of humans with the same gift as him if they were to hope to fight off the army rising from the underworld.

  He glanced down at his new creation.

  The child looked at nothing, paying no attention to his former friends below. Serafino loved the orange glow in the boy’s eyes. There was something so satisfying about turning children, as if he had stolen something from humanity and then used it as a weapon against them.

  He placed his hand on the top of Kevin’s head. Kevin looked up at his master, the boy’s face devoid of feeling or recognition.

  “Come,” Serafino said.

  He took the boy by the hand and used his power to levitate. Together, they lifted off the platform and away from the fight. Serafino would let Dax get away, for now. He planned to savor the hunt. The city would be his playground. There was nowhere for the humans to go. Dax was nothing but a chess piece, and the vampire would call checkmate whenever he pleased.

  For now, he would wait and allow his hunger to build.

  And when it was time, he would strike.

  Serafino retreated with Kevin into a nearby department store. There, he waited at the rendezvous point. There were no windows to let in the sun, and this location would provide his troops with a place to recover.

  As one of the more advanced vampires emerging after the Final Awakening, Serafino had a heightened sense of smell. The products at the cosmetics counter smelled sweet and powerful, as many of the glass bottles filled with odorous liquids had broken and spilled onto the floor. He couldn’t quite understand these creatures and their need to mask their own scents, though. It seemed unnatural. He would not miss their vain and idiosyncratic ways.

  With his telepathic ability, Serafino guided his followers into the department store. Yvonne led the group. She had not only avoided the sun’s rays but the fight altogether, being one of the first to retreat from the mall’s open court. Serafino didn’t know whether to punish her for fleeing the fight or to praise her for being smart enough to get away.

  The others followed her. Several of the vampires had made it into the department store unscathed, while others limped along with burns on parts of their bodies. A few of Serafino’s followers had been burned so badly that their flesh smoldered, smoke rising from the wounds.

  “How many did we lose?” Serafino asked.

  “Many were unable to escape the sun,” Yvonne said.

  “And you were unable to pull them away with your powers?”

  “They were weak.”

  “We need numbers.”

  “Extra numbers do us no good if they can’t keep up.”

  Serafino smiled. “Are you questioning my leadership?”

  “No, sir. I—”

  Serafino’s eyes opened wide, and Yvonne lifted off the ground. Her own eyes bulged from her head, and she was unable to move h
er limbs. Serafino clasped his hands behind his back and walked towards her.

  “Who do you think you are?” The vampire leader clicked his tongue. “I created you. Do you not think that, that being the case, I can destroy you?”

  The glow began to disappear from the woman’s eyes. Serafino could feel her suffocating as she was suspended between her vampiric and human states, forced to draw oxygen from the air. But Serafino’s invisible constriction on her throat did not allow it. He could extinguish the light in her eyes, return her to her mortal state, and watch her die. He might even allow the others to feast on her.

  Instead, he let out a sigh as he let her go. Yvonne dropped, falling to the ground and onto her side. Her eyes turned bright orange again, and she lay there staring up at him.

  “Get up,” Serafino said. “And do not question me again. Do you understand? Because the next time you do, I will change you back into your human form, only to kill you.”

  “Yes.”

  “Now go and check to make sure no stragglers were left behind.”

  The woman bowed, and disappeared from his presence.

  Serafino shook his head, then looked on at the dozen vampires in front of him. These were his children. He had had a hand in turning each and every one of them. He had seen their memories before their changes—their most intimate thoughts, and their cherished secrets.

  Three of the vampires near the rear of the pack still had smoke billowing from their skin. With his mind, Serafino called them to the front line, and each abided.

  He raised his hand in the air and spoke in the ancient tongue. Starting with the vampire to his left, he healed each of their wounds. The burns retreated beneath the new skin that had appeared in a fleshy, pink film. They would retain the scars, and at this Serafino smiled. They might not remember the pain, but they would never forget the scars.

  When all three were fully healed, they bowed to their master, and as such, he commanded them back into line.

  Moments later, Yvonne reappeared. She held her temple, and her eyes were closed.

  “What is it?” Serafino asked.

  “I have received a message from Jonas back at camp.”

  Serafino had bestowed his powers on this human, as well. He had given the young Swedish man the same abilities as Yvonne. And like Yvonne, the Swede stirred his desires in all the right ways. But something else troubled Serafino now.

  “Why would he not talk to me directly?”

  “I believe it might be due to the message itself.”

  “What did he say?”

  “They know.”

  Serafino narrowed his eyes. “Who? Who knows what?”

  “The Masters. They know the chosen one is here. And they are sending forces here to New Orleans to capture him.”

  “It can’t be. How could they know?” Serafino balled his fists—wondering if He had felt the others coming, too.

  “Did Jonas give you any idea of how long we’ve got until they arrive?”

  Yvonne closed her eyes. “He says he believes we have seventy-two hours.”

  Serafino clenched his jaw. He had doubted the identity of the man—until now. “Then that’s how long we have to find Dax. We must get to him before they do. And I know how we’re going to do it.”

  Chapter 15

  The commercial fishing boat was anchored near the Riverwalk. Dax remembered a dock once being there, but that structure was now underwater.

  As he drove their own little fishing boat up to it, the motor clicked. Then it shut off. He pulled the cord several times, but it wouldn’t start.

  Dax sighed. “Finally out of gas. Hand me that oar.”

  Darius retrieved it and gave it to him. Dax sat in the middle of the boat where he could paddle. Luckily, they were only twenty yards or so from the fishing boat. Dax quickly found out how difficult it was to maneuver the boat on his own, though. He paddled until his muscles felt numb. With arms like wet noodles, Dax pulled up next to the commercial fishing boat and grabbed on to the side, wrapping a line around an eyehook to keep the boats next to each other.

  “You guys hang here for a second. I’ve got to make sure no one is inside.”

  Dax stepped onto the deck of the commercial fishing boat and looked through the windows and into the cabin. He didn’t see or hear anybody, but he wanted to be sure. He quietly made his way around to the back of the cabin and poked his head inside, then checked below deck. No one was there.

  He climbed the ladder onto the wheel deck. Not only was no one there, but it looked like no one had used the ship in quite some time.

  Dax hopped back down to the deck and returned to the smaller fishing boat.

  “Come on, guys.”

  Papa Midnight stood, and Dax took his arm and guided him into the boat. He then reached his hand down, gesturing that one of the kids should come next.

  Neither moved.

  “Get up and come aboard.”

  Darius scowled at Dax, but then he stood. He ignored Dax’s hand and pulled himself to the side of the boat. Once on board, he walked into the cabin without saying a word.

  Dax ignored the kid’s anger and turned his attention back to the small fishing boat.

  “Come on, Monica. Get up and come here.”

  But the girl didn’t move.

  Dax grunted and put his hands on his hips. “Monica,” he said. “Get up here right now. Don’t make me—”

  “Make you what?” Monica stood.

  Dax leaned back.

  Monica finally stormed across the small boat and pulled herself up into the commercial fishing boat. She never took her eyes off of Dax—not even as she walked away to join Darius.

  “That’s what I thought,” she said as she joined Darius in the cabin.

  Dax shook his head when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

  “They need some time,” Papa Midnight said.

  “Yeah, well, we don’t have the time for this shit.”

  “Give it to them anyway. They’ve been through a lot.”

  “You think I don’t know that?” Dax walked to the bow and looked out over the Mississippi.

  Papa Midnight’s cane clicked on the deck as he followed. Dax closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He needed some time alone, too. Opening his eyes, he looked over his shoulder at the old man.

  “How did you know to tell me what to do back there in the mall?”

  “What do you mean?”

  Dax turned around. “Don’t bullshit me, man. You know what I’m talking about. How did you know I could break free from those mental handcuffs Serafino had on me?”

  Papa Midnight smiled. “Why don’t you join me up top, and you and I can have a chat?”

  Dax assisted Papa Midnight to the ladder and guided him up onto the wheel deck. He was about to climb up there himself when he looked into the cabin and saw the two children. Darius lay on a sofa on his back, his eyes closed. Monica sat at a round table with her back to Dax. The cabin had a kitchenette that came complete with a range and a refrigerator. The fridge door was open, and it was empty inside. Dax considered saying something to the kids, but then thought better of it. Remembering what Papa Midnight had said, he agreed the kids needed some time to themselves.

  Dax climbed to the top deck. Papa Midnight had already found his way into the wheelhouse. He stood in the center of the room, poking his cane around. Dax entered and scanned the room. There was a leather chair mounted into the floor near the wheel. To the right, against the wall, sat a single bed.

  “There’s a bed in here,” Dax said. “You want to lie down?”

  “If you don’t mind. That’d be nice.”

  Taking Papa Midnight by the arm, Dax led him over to the bed and helped him onto it. The mattress was thin, and though it wasn’t as luxurious as the beds in the House of the Rising Sun, it was better than the floors Dax had slept on over the previous weeks. The blind man groaned as he rested his old bones on the bed, then sighed in relief as he settled in.

  “Thank yo
u, Jackson.”

  “Yeah, no problem.”

  Dax went to the wheel and checked out the control deck. Most of his mechanical experience had been in small engine repair, and he’d never worked on a ship like this one. He didn’t know where to begin. From the condition of what he saw, though, he doubted he could get the engine to run. But why would someone have left a boat like this behind? He spotted some tools lying on the main deck—perhaps someone had been working to get the boat running before the Blackout came. Those people had likely taken a boat that worked instead of wasting time working on this one.

  He looked out the window. Another wave of storms was on the way. Clouds had moved in, obscuring the moon. Screamers cried out in the distance, but they’d be no threat to Dax and the others. With the dock underwater, and more rain coming, the Screamers wouldn’t be able to get to them—at least not easily.

  Dax reached around and rubbed his lower back with his right hand, trying to knead the knot out of his muscles. His cuts had begun to heal, but they itched with a dull ache, and he knew better than to scratch them with his filthy nails. He felt a dehydration headache coming on and decided to plop down in the leather chair. As he did, Dax groaned and sighed.

  “Feels good, don’t it?” Papa Midnight asked, laughing.

  “That it does.”

  “Are we safe here?”

  “We are. If you’re right in saying those things can’t swim, then we should be fine. Though, you never said anything about them flying. That was new.”

  “I believe only the Masters can fly,” Papa Midnight said. “And I don’t see Serafino roaming the streets at night.”

  I hope you’re right, Dax thought.

  “Nothing should be able to find us here as long as we’re quiet,” Dax said.

  Dax leaned back in the chair and stared at the ceiling. After a few minutes, he closed his eyes. He thought he might doze off, but then he saw Kevin in his mind’s eye. The boy was still human as he stood in front of Serafino. The monster reached down and grabbed the boy’s neck. As Serafino’s eyes flared, the young boy looked back at Dax with tears in his eyes.