Blood Reign

by Harvey W. McCarthy

  "Well, well, well," she asked as she continued to clutch the tome to her chest like a schoolgirl, "What do we have here?"

  "Put the tome down and let's get this over with," the all-black attired warrior commanded.

  She pouted and slowly walked towards him. She allowed her hips to sway seductively. She caught his eyes focusing on her. She giggled.

  "Oh is that how you treat me after we had so much fun together?" she asked.

  Larry stepped out from behind a pillar and aimed his crossbow. A crossbow bolt flew towards the vampire queen. His aim was perfect. It flew directly towards her heart. Larry smiled briefly as his years of practice had paid off. The bolt was about to hit home until her hand snatched it out of mid-air. She looked at the wooden bolt before snapping it in two and tossing it over her shoulder. She sighed loudly.

  "Tisk, tisk, tisk. Won't you and the half-assed Scooby Gang that rides your coattails ever learn?" she asked.

  Before anyone could reply, Larry grabbed at his throat as he was lifted off the floor. His face slammed violently into the pillar. His nose shattered. His blood splattered across the ivory colored column. A long red streak marred the pristine pillar as he slid to the floor. Mikhaeli slowly lowered her arm as she stared directly at Chris. He grimaced but remained focused.

  "While you impress me with your resolve, your pathetic friend over there doesn't. I could hear his heart thumping from a mile away. If you want to plan a surprise attack, I suggest that you find allies who aren't fucking pussies," she sneered as her vampire face formed.

  Chris raised his fists and he prepared for her strike. He had seen that power only one other time in his long life. Her reasoning for hunting down the tomes had become clear. Whatever was contained within those books was making her more powerful. She was formidable in their previous meetings but now he wondered if he could stop her at all. His heart skipped a beat.

  "You blinked," she said.

  Chris flew backwards into the heavy double doors. His back slammed hard and stars filled his vision. He slumped to the floor. He crawled to his hands and knees and shook his head. Her high-heels clicked along the floor as she approached.

  "As you can see," she said coldly, "I am much more powerful that you. Now, get out of my way."

  Chris staggered to his feet. Mikhaeli smirked as she strutted confidently towards him. He shook his head clear. A battle cry snapped him back to reality. A robed bishop was charging down the aisle behind Mikhaeli. His arm was raised. He had a thick stake in his hand. He struck at her exposed back.

  "NO!" Chris screamed as he held up his hand.

  Without turning her head, Mikhaeli caught his wrist and twisted. Bishop Wallace screamed as his arm was ripped from body. Before he could blink, Mikhaeli slipped behind him. She grabbed him by the hair and slammed his face onto the edge of one of the pews. She snapped his neck and then fed on the bishop's corpse. The entire time she never took her eyes off of Chris. She lifted the dead bishop off of the ground and threw him behind her. He flew through the air and crashed into the image of Thomas Beckett. The stained glass window exploded as the body flew into the street.

  "Oh goddamn it!" she exclaimed as she turned to see the shattered window. "I liked that one!"

  A boot struck the side of her turned head. The tome flew from her grasp as she flew down the aisle of the cathedral. She bounced several times. She lifted her head and a heavy fist immediately stuck her face. Her head slammed against a pew. She shook her head as blood filled her mouth. Chris lifted her by her hair and stared directly into her eyes.

  "You blinked," he hissed as he threw her across a row of pews.

  The powerful vampire shattered a pew. Wood fragments flew like shrapnel. Chris didn't let up on his attack. He leapt over the pews and jumped on top of her. She shook the stars from her vision and recovered in time to place a foot in his mid-section. She flipped him over his head, but he landed on his feet. As she leapt to her feet, she was met by a roundhouse kick that flipped her onto her stomach.

  She spat blood as she stood. "You are so fucking hot when you're angry," she teased.

  Chris didn't respond. He threw a punch which he expected her to block. When her defensive stance appeared, he quickly pulled his punch and connected with an upper cut. Blood exploded from her mouth as her head snapped backwards. She flew through the air and landed on her back. She groaned. She tried to focus but the punch had caught her off-guard. Her heart skipped a beat.

  She began to crawl backwards along the floor and she raised her hand.

  "S…Sweetie, can't we talk about this?" she stammered.

  Chris seethed. He approached her cautiously but confidently. She squealed as he grabbed her by the front of her leather outfit. The leather tore exposing more of her cleavage. Despite her pain, the thought of him ripping off her clothes excited her. She thought for an moment that he stole a glance at her chest before staring directly into her eyes. Her thoughts quickly changed as he planted a head-butt between her eyes.

  She giggled. "S…Sweetie," she slurred through the pain, "I like it rough but you are playing just a little too hard."

  He stared into her eyes. She blinked as she tried to focus on the image in her field of view. She gave a crooked, but knowing smile. Mikhaeli Lanaova knew that she was about to die.

  "You have killed your last warrior, My Queen," the vampire face of Christopher Bloodheart sneered.

  She giggled again and she began to rub her fingers along his chest. She licked her bleeding lips.

  "Oh come now, Sweetie," she cooed, "It doesn't have to be this way."

  Chris continued to sneer. His eyes followed hers as she looked down at his chest. He was about to speak, but she kissed her finger and placed it on his lips.

  "Shhhh," she said softly, "You know you want to. The sensation would be fabulous. You know how good that it would feel to do it. The sight of it slipping inside would make you feel amazing…"

  "Shut u…"

  His eyes widened from shock as a crossbow bolt slammed into his shoulder. Pain filled his body. Mikhaeli smiled. She kneed him in the groin. Bile raced up his throat. He bent over and she kicked him in the face. His body flipped over and he landed on his stomach. As he reached back to remove the bolt from his shoulder, Mikhaeli grabbed his arm and pinned him to the ground. She yanked his head back to reveal the identity of his assailant. A tear formed as he saw David holding Larry's crossbow.

  "As I said Sweetie," she whispered in his ear, "I am much more powerful than you realize."

  She slammed a fist into the back of his head and Chris slumped to the floor. She stood slowly. David panted but he remained glassy eyed. She strolled up to him. He continued to train the crossbow on where Chris had been standing. She could still hear his rapid heartbeat. She released her grip on him and he snapped back to reality. He screamed as the beautiful face stared back at him. She giggled and shrugged. He saw the protruding crossbow bolt. He glanced at the crossbow in his hands and he started to cry. She caressed his face as she kissed him softly.

  "Thank you," she said as she slowly pulled away, "For being such a willing partner."

  A second later, his world darkened. He awoke several minutes later as Larry poured holy water onto his face. His mentor held a handkerchief to his bloody nose as he looked down at David. He tried to open his left eye, but it was swollen shut from her punch. As he glanced around, he saw the damage from the battle as he focused his open eye. However, it was what he didn't see that disturbed him. The vampire queen, along with the tome, was gone.

  Chris had vanished again.

  CHAPTER 26

  LONDON, ENGLAND

  Three days later…

  Larry looked skyward. The sun peaked in and out of the clouds. Occasionally, a lone ray of light would slip through the cloud cover. Briefly, its warm rays would touch the skin and attempt to warm souls. Larry stopped and stared. The sun was mostly obscured by a large, dark cloud. David, who walked next to his friend, glanced upward. He looked all around
and tried to find what had Larry's undivided attention. Like it had done in Halifax, the sun disappeared again. Unlike when he saw the beautiful sight in Halifax, Larry wasn't counting on it being a ray of hope.

  He shrugged and continued walking. David, who still didn't understand why his mentor had looked skyward, also shrugged and continued walking. The two men did not speak. As they moved through the streets adjacent to Canterbury Cathedral, they were reminded of the carnage. Not only had the queen eluded them again and walked off with yet another tome, her minions had rampaged through the streets like drunken sports fans after their team had won the championship.

  Larry and David noticed that some buildings still smoldered from the devastating fires. Like the Great Fire of London, several buildings, many of which were businesses, were imploded to prevent the fire from spreading. Others were charred skeletal remains of former apartment buildings which had left many of Canterbury's citizens homeless. Burned and overturned cars were being removed by the military. Soldiers were everywhere. The City of Canterbury was locked down as Halifax had been only days ago.

  No, Larry thought, I don't see a ray of hope anywhere.

  Larry's heart was heavy for other, more personal, reasons. He was upset that Chris had vanished. They had not heard from him and they feared that he was another of the queen's victims. He prayed that the queen had abducted him again like she had done in the past, but he wasn't holding out hope. However, as they arrived at the cathedral, his heart sank. This was going to be one of his most trying moments. He had to play legal council for his friend. David was going in front of the council because they had charged him with treason.

  Construction crews worked feverishly to repair the damage to the cathedral. The vandals, as they had been called in the press, had driven a truck through the front doors. The stained glass windows were all shattered. The vampires had thrown anything that they could find through the windows to deface the religious symbols. Fortunately, they were not able to burn the building because they, unlike their powerful queen, could not walk on the consecrated grounds. Instead, they drove by and threw paint and rocks at the building. Larry shook his head at the destruction.

  They walked past the construction workers and through the front doorway. Inside, the church had lost its once pristine look. Blood stains marred the carpet. The pews were still damaged from the battle between Chris and Mikhaeli. Larry saw several young acolytes trying to wash his blood from the column. He touched his black and blue nose. It was still incredibly tender. He was fortunate that the council had access to some of the best doctors in the country. His nose had been set and the large gash above his right eyebrow had been repaired. However, the splitting headache from the concussion still raged through his head. He was told to stay in his hotel room and stay in bed, but he knew that they would ruin David if he wasn't there to help.

  Council security had been expecting them. Since the vampires knew of the importance of the cathedral, security had been tripled. Their warriors had been placed amongst the soldiers and clean-up crews working on the streets. The repair crews were all warriors. Larry knew that they had been selected for these jobs by the council leadership. The main difference was inside the building. Acolytes were everywhere. Larry knew that a normal church might have two or three staff members visible during the day. The cathedral had at least twenty people, excluding the repair crew, moving throughout the sanctuary. The situation was definitely serious.

  A young, but physically impressive, acolyte approached. His face was stern. His robe barely fit his massively muscular frame. He walked directly to David who swallowed hard.

  "He looks like he's coming to kick my ass," David whispered to Larry.

  "If you keep swearing in here," Larry responded, "He probably will."

  The acolyte stopped directly in front of David. His eyes were cold.

  "You will come with me," he ordered.

  "Are you going to say please?" David quipped.

  "No," he responded.

  "Lead on, Tiny," David said again.

  "You stay here," the guard said to Larry.

  "No," Larry responded.

  The young man blinked. He hadn't expected a negative response. "It wasn't a request."

  Larry scoffed as he placed his hands on his hips. He looked up at the much taller man. "I know that you are strong enough to place my head between your ass cheeks and squeeze hard enough that my kippah would probably shoot through the wall. However, I have been a member of the council longer than you've been pumping iron. I know that whenever someone is brought before the council leadership for questioning, he or she has certain rights. Those rights include being represented by a council member who serves as their legal counsel. Considering that I have served on committees that have established several of those same council by-laws regarding representation, I believe that I am more than qualified to represent this man."

  The young man blinked again. Larry continued to stare up at the man who was at least a foot taller than him.

  "I…I…Follow me," the man said.

  "Of course," Larry said. "David, after you."

  "What was that about swearing in church?" David whispered.

  "I'm Jewish," Larry joked. "If this was a synagogue…"

  David almost burst out laughing, but he kept his giggles to himself. Their escort was a massive human being. David estimated that the man was nearly three hundred pounds and over six and a half feet tall. The council definitely wasn't taking any chances. David also believed that this man belonged to one of their elite units. I am in deep shit, he thought.

  They were led into the basement. They passed through several older looking rooms which had not been remodeled to maintain the illusion that cathedral hadn't been renovated in years. They passed through a long hallway. At the end of the hallway, David had expected to see a phone booth that would lead them to the lower levels. However, there was a door that read 'Custodial Closet.' The large guard placed his hand on the wall to the right of the door. A panel slid open. He placed his palm on a scanner and the door slid into the wall.

  "Get in," the guard ordered.

  "Charming," David mocked as he entered.

  Larry followed his friend. The guard nodded.

  "Another guard will meet you below," he said as the door returned.

  David was thankful that this elevator wasn't designed for speed. He had been in several skyscraper elevators that shot upward rapidly. He always felt his stomach launching itself towards his brain. He never liked that sensation. Despite the uncertainty surrounding his life, he decided to enjoy the brief trip. It might be the most pleasant experience of his day. The elevator stopped moments later. The door parted and another large guard waited. Like the guard on the upper level, he had the same broad shoulders and stern expression on his face.

  "Out," the guard ordered.

  "I thought that the church denounced cloning," David quipped.

  "David!" Larry scolded.

  "Follow me," the guard said sternly.

  Before David could say another sarcastic comment, Larry smacked him on the back of the head.

  "OW!" David protested and rubbed his head.

  "Don't ask," Larry scolded. "You need to keep your mouth shut for awhile."

  "Yeah but…"

  Larry grabbed David by the jacket and stopped him from leaving the elevator.

  "Excuse us," he said to the guard as he hit the button to close the door.

  The door closed. David shrugged out of Larry's grasp. He nearly snarled at Larry, but the disgusted look on his face told Larry everything that he needed to know. David was extremely angry and his temper was never one of his best allies. He had folded his arms across his chest and stared at his friend. Larry shook his head.

  "What?" David asked angrily.

  "Lose the fucking attitude and I will tell you," Larry scolded.

  "Yes Dad," David said sarcastically and he rolled his eyes.

  Larry's patience with David had run out. He stepped acro
ss the elevator and grabbed David by his shirt. He held on with both hands and he shook David. His angered thrust slammed David's back against the stainless steel wall. Larry looked directly into David's eyes. His eyes were cold and calculating, but, more importantly, they were furious.

  "Will you shut the fuck up for once and act like a fucking adult?" Larry growled.

  "What gives you…"

  Larry slammed him again and again. "SHUT UP!"

  David said nothing.

  Larry's angry stare developed another level of contempt. "You are," he said coldly, "Going in front of the council leadership. They are not average people. They have friends. Powerful friends who can make your life a living hell if you let them. They can take everything that you've earned and turn it into spit. Do you want that? Do you?"