by JN Moon
“Rachel,” he said trying to keep his intense voice quiet and soft and not succeeding, “If I wanted your blood, I could have already taken it. And it tempts me, it does to be honest. But I need your help more. I am a fool, but not foolish enough to harm those who are my only hope of survival.” He dropped his head, looking resigned to his hopeless position.
Not long ago he would have killed us for being what we are, but fate often has a sense of humour, and so he had to beg the help of those he’d despised for hundreds of years.
“You are right; I can’t survive without you. I apologise, I can’t stop from hear your thoughts. What I can promise, however, that should my kin come I will protect you and I won’t impose too much on your life,” he added quickly, his voice resonating through me. Somehow I doubted that, but I tried not to think it.
I knew there was no point in arguing, As cold as I felt, I couldn’t turn him away, I remembered when I was first a vampire and how relieved I was when Nathaniel took me under his wing. My instincts told me he was sincere, but they also told me that trouble would be right behind him. No chance of a quiet existence!
He was locked into an existence by one mistake. My mistake had been to ignore the vagrants that night long ago that ended up viciously turning me.
I felt an empty resignation as we led the way back to her place. Rachel made it clear that this was for one night only. That he could stay here tonight, but he needed to find a place tomorrow.
Despite our not wanting him in our home, his reluctance to be here, his displeasure with our modest home, angered me more. I reminded myself though that the more displeased he was, the faster he’d leave. I guessed he was used to something grander.
We had received no response from Jamie. I texted him, emailed, and called but his phone just went to voicemail. I knew Marcus wanted to find Emidius before he yielded into drinking blood, and so the next day we headed out of Bath towards North Bristol to Goblin Combe where I had last seen her.
The place was bare with winter, leafless branches reaching down to the ground like skeleton arms and bony hands ready to grab any passer-by. Crunching through the woodland, icy ground sparkled in the sunlight. I had wanted to leave early afternoon so I had some light to recognise the opening, to remember whereabouts we had found near the entrance to the cave that was cut into the gorge. Jamie found it by tuning into his intuition, so I tried the same. The woodland around was extensive, but it was easy enough to find the gorge.
The gorge was majestic surrounded by woodland then rolled downhill gently, lush green farmland, it was a place of spectacular beauty. Rachel and Marcus fell silent as we wandered around. It didn’t take long to find it, remembering the sights and the rock face from before. The entrance was narrow and deep and most of all dark. Rachel had the foresight to bring a torch. Although we had exceptional vision, caves are darker than night and the pitch blackness was difficult and unsettling.
Squeezing through the gap, concentrating on our footing we, one by one, stepped in and followed the narrow path into the earth. As I remembered it was cold and black, but most of all I didn’t sense another being inside. Our path was slippery, and we clung to the walls as the tight tunnel and unstable footing made it difficult. Poor Marcus, as big as he was, found it especially hard.
“You found her here?” Marcus questioned, his voice raised.
“I did. I don’t sense anyone here now, but maybe there’ll be a clue?”
We found our way into a pitch black cavern and Rachel turned on the torch.
“Over here,” my voice echoed around the empty chamber making me smirk. “She had been in this part when we found her.” As I looked around an adjacent hollow it was clear that she was long gone. But I was determined to find something, some clue as to how to contact her.
“Why the hell would she live in a cave if she’s so powerful?” Rachel spoke as bewildered as Marcus.
“I think she liked to be close to the Earth and away from humanity. That I can understand,” I answered.
“For sure, but why not live in a house, or cabin far away. A cave? It’s pretty primitive!”
“Well, I had heard that she is thousands of years old. When Jamie and I came here, this part that we’re in now, it was lit and it looked warm and inviting, although I never got to see it myself. I saw it from over there. I’d been bitten by that half vampire, half zombie creature of Tyrell’s. Jamie brought me here for her to help me, and he in turn wanted to stay with her. He was tired of Tyrell’s war on lesser vampires and tired in general of immortals and their petty wars. They argued, he left. She gave me her blood and then followed him. I haven’t heard from him to this day, so I don’t know what happened to either of them. But she seemed fond of him. I was hoping to find some clue here, something to help you.”
But I didn’t. The smaller cavern where Emidius had emerged from was empty, as if no one had ever been here. “I’m going to scout the area, though if there was any evidence it’s probably long gone.”
“Can’t you just call for her? Isn’t that what the others did?” Rachel asked.
Marcus added solemnly, “She is of a different era. No nephilim has ever done that. We revere her only because she brought some order to the chaos of the vampires and their like. Her magic is unlike mine. It is pagan whereas mine is, or was, divine. It was a chance I was hoping for, though whether or not she would’ve helped was a gamble. Don’t worry Anthony, I think it is clear that she isn’t to be found and neither is your friend. They are gone. They could be literally anywhere.”
Marcus sighed, his head hung low, and he slouched. Avoiding eye contact, I saw his lips were pressed tightly. Rachel, seeing this was quick to act, reminding me of one of the reasons I loved her—her compassion for others.
“Look, you can stay with us until you sort out a place of your own. I won’t say live because who knows where you truly want to be. You need to take stock. You are not alone—we are here. Maybe your kin are hunting you, so now you need to consider a plan. And afterwards, how will you live? I understand the comfort of being rescued by one stronger than you, but now you have to rescue yourself. But as I said, you’re not alone. What will you do with the life you have chosen? The consequences of your decisions have led to this point. What you must decide now is what to do with that.” She rubbed his arm for comfort, and smiling turned to me.
“Let’s go home, we’ll find nothing here. I fear for Jamie, but maybe he’s with her living something we can’t comprehend.” And laughing, she added, “And maybe he doesn’t need mobile phones, texting now. Maybe he’s doing something more incredible!”
So I drove us back.
It was cumbersome having Marcus in Rachel’s home. He was exaggerated in everything he did and his voice sounded so loud and his expressions were extravagant.
Our little home seemed too small to contain him and it felt like he would burst out of it like a jack in the box. As he sat splayed out on the sofa he took up all of it. I felt some angst at that point that I now had to live with this colossus of a man, with my girlfriend, and he looked like a model. I do not. He was enough to intimidate most men.
Immediately hearing my thoughts, he chuckled, face surprised as if he didn’t realise this. Modest then.
As the days went on and he stayed with us, unable to find somewhere fast, I considered letting him use my flat, at least that way Rachel and I could have some privacy. Although he was graceful, his presence and size made me claustrophobic.
I watched him as he helped around the house, his manner towards us ever polite. He slept in the spare room, though it couldn’t have been too comfortable as the spare bed was a single and he was so big. But his gratitude shone. I think he was relieved not to be alone.
After just two days, I knew I had to take him out to hunt, he was horrified to realise that he had to drink the blood of humans, even evil doers. Due to his celestial heritage he hadn’t given into his vampiric thirst since the one he drained. He had bargained for Emidius to help him so t
hat he wouldn’t have to do that. He had fought the thirst with all of his nephilim might.
Emidius certainly cured me when I had been bitten by the infected creature, and even now I still felt her power throbbing through me. Whether or not she had the power to change Marcus, I had no idea. They both seemed to come from different traditions, but one thing I’ve learned in this paranormal world is that there is often some truth in legends and tales.
Marcus believed vehemently that blood contained the soul of the person. On telling me this, I shuffled around, and to say this concept made me uncomfortable was putting it mildly.
If that’s true, had I taken the souls from all my victims? That was something I didn’t want to consider.
And now I had to help Rachel, who up until now had only drunk the blood of other vampires, mainly Nathaniel’s and mine. It had been enough to sustain her but it wouldn’t be enough in the long term.
Vampires only exist on each other's blood, and we need human blood to live, to thrive.
So I had to guide him through the process and at the same time teach Rachel.
I felt like a parent, though to give Rachel her due she didn't resist as much as I think she would have, if I not had Marcus to contend with as well. As I talked to them about this, she fidgeted, her mouth turning downwards whilst Marcus, his eyes wide with shock, just stared at me in horror.
But once Marcus had the taste, he had become a force, righteous in his new found role of protector of the innocent. The hunger, once tasted, drives us with little control.
The park was silent in those winter nights, though fortunately for us some malcontents still roamed around looking for victims. How ironic that they looked to commit crime and yet we found them. Karma perhaps...
When he approached his victims, Marcus was able to read their minds which turned him into a torrent of fury. I had to hold him back—no easy task—to stop him from killing them all, and his thirst, once awoken, never seemed quenched. Aside from the inconvenience of killing every victim, he would be left with consequences of morality that would haunt him, should he kill. I knew that from experience.
Rachel was more discreet, but filled with disgust that she had to feed on the blood of rapists and abusers. The fact that she had to put her lips to their corrupt flesh and drink their foul blood repulsed her, but this was quickly overcome once the elixir filled her body.
Under the barren trees they fed remorselessly and Marcus became more aggressive and beyond control. The effect on his physiology was harsh, sending him thrashing to the ground in a fit of pain mixed with the pleasure of satisfying his thirst. Calming him down was a feat in itself. I had to make him get it together, aside from the noise and attention we needed to be able to blend in. He was so dramatic.
I looked on, ever aware that such scenes would be noticed. Fortunately I never came across anyone else. A mixture of guilt and pride filled me as I looked on at my lover, seeing the power grow within her, the dark vampiric changes. Her strength was increasing, but unlike me in the beginning she was strong and held true to her morals and humanity.
Though I had little time to think my own thoughts and with one who could read my mind when he was in close vicinity of me, I was glad.
Where ever we went, humans were drawn to us, but I was keen to blend in.
You may wonder how the hell does a nephilim blend in with wings? And you'd be right to ask that question. But when he chose, though now it was apparently harder than before the blood, he could turn his wings invisible to all those but the very enlightened or other supernaturals. I didn't believe it myself, I confess, and I cringed as I watched him walk ahead of us into a bar. But to my amazement, no one seemed to noticed. It was bizarre. Marcus, of course, was used to attention, but things got stranger pretty soon after.
This continued for some days and I was perturbed that Marcus was still unable to find his own place. It seems that he left in such a hurry, without identification and papers, that renting seemed impossible. And he now could no longer call upon his kin for help.
One morning, we were all listening to music relaxing in the lounge. The night had been long and all of us needed to take some time out. Rachel went upstairs to sleep, and I took the opportunity to ask him about his life before this. I was genuinely interested as I didn't know much about his kind, and I also wanted to know what else was out there that I didn't know about.
“Anthony, do you really want to know?” he asked grinning. “Or do you want to taste my blood? I only ask because I want to taste yours. Would that be something you would agree to?”
I was taken aback by his question, but he was brazen. Laughing, I said, “Of course I’m intrigued, but I don’t want to die drinking your blood! Burnt from the inside out? No thanks...and as for you drinking mine, I’ve seen the way you take from the living. How would I know you wouldn’t drain me dry? Contrary to your question, I do want to know your story. Where do you come from?”
“Alright... But I should start by telling you that not all nephilim are good. There are some, many in fact, that live in the shadows and are attracted to the darker things in life.” He raised his eyebrows here as he realised that he was now talking about himself. “My early life was spent with my father protecting me from these most evil and foul creatures and teaching me how to fight. I grew up in Toulouse, France. I was born on 20th June, 1683; the year after the Canal du Midi was built.
“Some decades before my birth, plague devastated Toulouse twice. Most of the nobles had fled, but my father and others of our kind stayed to help. After all, it would not affect us. But plague attracts those who prey upon the sick and the weak and during my first few hundred years, evil roamed with an inexhaustible force. I know of late, the Elite vampires, like Tyrell, planned to eradicate the overpopulation of vampires that you were caught up in. But that was nothing compared with the past, my youth. In the past, the numbers of vampires was so widespread, like a pestilence upon all lands. And back then humanity was not as humane as it is now. Vampires today can be cruel, but in the past there were more that were savage. It seems many were unable to hold onto any benevolence.
“It was easier back then to kill and never be traced, and so they infected every corner of the planet. Today you have so many modern powers in place. Police, crime units, the internet. Everyone has a birth record, everything is detected. Your bank details, your phone calls. Remember in the seventeenth century people could go missing much easier? So much of my early life was spent with other nephilim killing the vampires and protecting the innocent human lives. Times were bloody, brutal, and filthy. Disease was everywhere and only wealth kept us from the foulness of life—poverty and crime.”
Marcus paused here and looked thoughtful as he stretched back in remembering a time when living was harsh, deplorable, even for him.
“Death was closer to the living than it is now, at least in the Western world. If you travel to the poorer places now, you would, especially as a preternatural being, be aware that evil is ever-always waiting around the corner. It thrives. The past was crueller than you can imagine, Anthony. Grime. Humans lived in such conditions that even when we saved them from the horrors, often they would die of disease, of filth. Here, although evil lies here, it is minute compared to the past. Never lose sight of that, know that what you have now is so much better than your past.”
As he sat there thinking, I paused to reflect on my own life, after all the madness that had come into my life before now. I used to like to drink coffee, my favourite food was Mexican, and I had enjoyed sharing meals with my human friends. Now my life had changed beyond recognition and I hadn’t seen my family for nearly two years. We were never close and many, many months would elapse before seeing each other. I was closer to my friends than my family. But their most recent email to me had filled me with sadness knowing I could never see them again. They wanted to see me, but that was impossible. And my chest tightened just to think about it, they would fear me in the first few seconds of meeting me, subconsciously
perhaps. And I couldn’t have that.
I knew I was lucky; I had a lot to look forward to. I was after all sitting here with this creature that was over three hundred years old, and this was an extraordinary experience, but in the end I would trade that in an instant to go back to being mortal again.
“Life is easier today, and even though the paranormal world is thriving, it is at least under more control now than it was in the past. And as for people, their lives, their problems are easy compared to that of their ancestors. No longer in the West do you see the dying in the street, the dirt, the cruelty. Money is abundant for those willing to use their skills and talents, and this”—and here he held out his phone—“this technology is incredible. It is power and those who are willing to embrace it. In the past, no matter how much people wanted to better their lives, they were ruled by a rigid social structure. That no longer exists, here at least.” Pausing, he sighed. “I don’t wish to continue dwelling on the gloom of the past. The only thing that kept me driving forward was my mission to rid the world of underworlders and protect humanity.
“This city long ago was nothing like the city you live in today. You may or may not experience this for yourself if you live long enough. I won’t lie to you, even for me it isn’t an easy concept living so long, seeing the changes in humanity even though they are, in the main for the better. The past can haunt you if you’re not strong enough to put it behind you.” He shuffled in his seat and let out a sigh. “So, what now?”
“We rest. Tomorrow I’m going to go to my flat. I haven’t been there in many, many months. I need something more to occupy my mind, more than blood.”
“I see. There are other creatures circling around, have you not sensed them?”
“I have sensed something, yes. But I need some serenity. No offence.”
He blurted out a short laugh, as if my wanting peace was incredulous. “So, you’re an artist? I’d like to see what you do.”
Marcus had the uncanny knack of pissing me off. The fact that he had invaded my mind, my privacy without permission. Before I could answer, he added quickly, “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to pry. A habit, I do it without thinking and I have had little need in the past to apologise for this.”