Bite, Blaze, and Enchantment

by Zara Zenia

  Chapter Three

  Stephanie

  The instant we land on this strange world, I feel utterly lost. Something is not right about this place. The sky is yellow, like a leaf-filled puddle in the fall that's changed an eerie color beneath the waning sunlight. And the land that stretches out before us is all sand and rock. It's a desert planet for sure. Nothing like I would have expected, or wanted, for any experience that is meant to be an adventure.

  "What do you think?" asks Katie, but she can tell that I'm not too happy about where she's brought me. "You'll like it here. Just trust me, okay? You said you were going to. Come on." She leads me away from her car—her spaceship—and we head out into the planet. "This is Etwan," she tells me. "This is where I've been, the reason you haven't seen me for so long."

  "No wonder you didn't tell us where you were really going. I know I wouldn't have believed it. But why does Mom know about this planet? Surely she should have told me. Not that I would have believed her either."

  "See, you have an answer to your own question there," said Katie. "Let's go to my place."

  This is a desert planet, but there is also clearly a society here. There are buildings, what look to be houses, areas of commerce, all the things that you'd expect to find on Earth. It looks similar to what we have back there. Yet, everything is simultaneously so different. The creepy yellow sky that looms above us doesn't help to get rid of that feeling.

  Katie's home is situated in a large building with lots of other residencies. I'm glad that we don't bump into anyone on our way to her front door. I can see people walking around the streets from a distance. They don't seem any different from me, but I recoil at the thought of getting up close to any of them. If this is all real, if this is truly another planet, then those people are aliens. "Do you think we can just hang out here for a while?" I ask Katie once she's let us into her apartment.

  "Sure thing. I don't want to put too much on you all at once. You can think of this as your home away from home, okay cousin? I know you've been getting tired of living with your mother. This can be like a little stay-cation for you, okay? Only you'll be staying here at my home instead of your own." She's smiling as she says this.

  I know Katie only has my best interests in her heart, and her place is pretty nice, albeit it's just a tiny two bedroom apartment, not a house or anything. "Thank you. Those people out there," I start to say, then I'm not sure about how to word this without seeming rude or maybe even racist. Is that what it would be considered if I said something bad against aliens from another planet? "They didn't seem any different from you or me," I say, hoping that I'm hinting at my meaning enough so she will get my drift.

  "You want to know if there's anything weird or creepy you should know about, don't you?" Katie says. It's like she's reading my mind. "Look at me," she continued, gesturing to herself.

  It's then that I come to appreciate what an attractive young woman she really is. Since her time away, evidently on an alien planet, she seems to have grown up a lot. There's a glow to her, which can't be just physical. Is that what happens when you feel truly happy? Maybe she's found more than just personal adventure on this planet.

  "Do I look like I've been going through hardship? I'm not hurt, am I? There's nothing on this planet that's going to harm you, as long as you don't go around looking for trouble. But that's just like back on Earth, right?"

  "I guess so," I respond, not completely sold on this unsettling new world. "Maybe I can just hang out inside for a while, like you said."

  "That's my girl. When you're ready, we can head out and look around the planet together. I won't make you do anything on your own," she says.

  Something about that doesn't sit well for me. Katie came alone to this planet by herself, didn't she? Maybe that's where her sister, Eva, went. If they were able to come here by themselves, I shouldn't have to be taken care of like a child. It was my mother's doing that I'm even here. It's like I'm a little girl again, being set up with an older cousin to take care of me, to play with me.

  I used to be so much more capable than this. That was before the car crash though, before I started to blame myself for Dad's death.

  So, that night, fully aware that it was probably the stupidest idea I've ever had—I sneak out of Katie's apartment by myself. Out into an alien world with no one to hold my hand. No one to make sure I'm okay. If this place is really so harmless, then why shouldn't I be alright alone? I close the door slowly behind me so as not to wake my cousin. I doubt she is worried about me trying to leave. Not after the way I acted like a frightened child upon arriving here.

  Before I left, I figured I could head out and go to a late night diner. Or at least something equivalent to that. I know there has to be places to eat around here. Katie wasn't surviving off air alone. I walk away from the apartment complex. Move down the street. But something calls out to me. Not physically, not with sound that I could actually hear with my ears. I don't know how to explain it. I just feel it, and I let my feet do the thinking for me. Soon they lead me to a small park not too far from Katie's place. There I see someone sitting on a bench in the center. Now, I know this is incredibly stupid. To approach a strange man at night, in a local park, and on an alien planet no less. All alone.

  I can't stop myself. There is something so familiar about him, even though I'm standing at a distance. As I walk closer to the man, I feel my eyes begin to water. This can't really be happening. The stranger on the bench is an exact replica of the man I lost in that car crash. "Dad?"

  Chapter Four

  Wayne

  I can't express how much I hate this stupid planet. Sure, when I first came here I was happy. After meeting Stuart, he told me that Etwan was a wonderful place for vampires. I have to admit that there are a lot of positives in that regard. I can at least live a somewhat normal life here. If you call being alone all the time normal. Kicking around on this alien world with barely anything to live for. I know that sounds melodramatic, but I honestly feel that way sometimes.

  I've been trying too. I leave my small apartment regularly. I go out to the local bars and diners to see if I can meet someone who will want to hang out with me. Right now, I'm at a small place that plays some pretty cool music sometimes. It's just gotten dark, and I see a group of other vampires come in. That's one of the reasons I come here, to Le Fangs where a lot of the younger vampires hang out.

  I see a group of four of them come in. Two guys and two girls. It seems like two of them are a couple, judging from the way they hang close to each other. Maybe the other two are together also and just not as comfortable about publicly showing affection. Maybe they're just friends. It doesn't matter to me, so I don't think about it. I'm not looking for a girlfriend anyway. Just anyone would be great. Friends for starters. I can't even start to think about being with a girl right now, not when I'm so desperate for even a friendly conversation with another person.

  They situate themselves at a booth, which happens to be just by the little table for two I'm sitting at. I can't help but make eye contact as they settle down. One of the guys, a tall vampire with dark hair, smirks at me. He whispers something to the others and they all chuckle.

  Oh great, I wonder if they're making fun of me.

  What the hell, I figure. Maybe I can win them over with a show of generosity. I'm too desperate at this point to let their snobby looks and laughter deter me. Maybe at least one of them isn't a dick.

  "Hey guys, do you think I might be able to buy you a round of drinks?"

  Of course they look at me like I'm from another planet. I am, after all, but I look just like them all the same. "Sorry, we don't hang out with babies," the smug looking guy says.

  The others laugh at his stupid insult.

  "Yeah, how long have you actually been a vampire? Like ten minutes?" asks one of the girls.

  She's right about me being very new to being a vampire. It's been longer than that, but not that much, not relative to how long all the other vampires on Etwan hav
e been this way. And I stupidly thought this was going to be the start of a better life for me.

  "You sure act like it," I reply. There's no sense trying to be nice to them, I see. They're assholes. I go back to my own table, sit there long enough to finish my drink. I can almost feel them leering at me and making fun. I hate this fucking planet.

  It's been six months since I came to Etwan. Even though I'm no longer alone as a vampire here, that just makes things seem ever worse. At least back on Earth there was a reason I felt like an outcast: being a vampire in a world where such creatures were only meant to exist in the realms of imagination. We were things of nightmares and bad fiction. Now what's my excuse for feeling so isolated? It must just be me, personally, I guess.

  Six months is a lot of time to think about why my life is like this. I have to find Stuart, I finally tell myself. Standing to leave, I glare at the group of rude vampire teens at the table and head out the door. I'm going to make a change that actually counts this time. I'm going to go back home to Earth, but this time it's not going to be like it used to be. I promise myself that.

  Chapter Five

  Stephanie

  "There you are!" Katie shouts just as I'm walking back toward her apartment's front door. "I've been worrying my butt off about you, cousin."

  "I know, I know," I say, sounding like a petulant kid. I feel bad that I let her worry by taking off like that. I also know that I can't let her know what just happened to me. "I'm sorry," I add to make sure she doesn't get too worked up about it.

  "Where the hell have you been?" she asks. "First you tell me this planet freaks you out. The next minute you're out there by yourself. What were you thinking?"

  I've come through the door now. I notice how she carefully locks it behind me, like she's sealing me inside a prison. It gives me the feeling that I've been grounded. Katie isn't my mother, but there seems to be a divide between us suddenly. That whole independence I was starting to feel seems like it is all just an illusion; just a facade to trick me into thinking this planet is going to be different than living on Earth.

  "Do you really want to get away from me that badly?" Katie asks. Her eyes are wide, and she seems offended.

  I didn't mean to make her feel unwanted. "No, of course not," I reply. How can I tell her what really just happened to me when I was out there? What are the odds that I would happen across my dead father on an alien planet, and just minutes away from where I was staying to boot? I have to keep that part a secret.

  "While I was searching my whole apartment, hoping you'd just been playing some prank on me, I made a decision. If you really don't like being here with me on this planet—I think it's only fair that I take you home. You're welcome to stay with me of course, but—"

  "Then I want to," I interrupt before she can take that back. "I mean, please, can I stay here on Etwan with you?" I do my best attempt at looking cute and helpless. That kind of crap usually used to work when we were younger. Hopefully I've still got it now.

  "Aw, I always did find it hard to say no to you," she finally says with a warm smile. She playfully gives me a light punch on the arm. I hold the spot where she made contact, acting like it hurt but also laughing myself. Maybe this isn't going to be so bad after all. And hopefully I can figure out what on Earth... no, what on Etwan is going on with Dad being here.

  The next day, I wake up feeling refreshed. Different. New in some strange way. I feel like there were dreams last night, but can't put my finger on what they were about exactly. They weren't bad; just different. That can be a good thing, right? Katie tells me she has a friend she wants to introduce me too.

  "You want me to make friends with one of the locals? Are you sure we'll even get along?" I truthfully just want to get to the bottom of my strange encounter in the park last night.

  After Katie cooks me breakfast, which is surprisingly normal food to me, we head out to meet this friend of hers. "So, can you tell me anything more about him?" I ask.

  "Well..." Katie start to say then trails off. I can tell she's holding back.

  "You're not leading me to another big surprise are you? What, is he really an alien?" We're walking across the front area of her apartment complex now. I can't get over how this place isn't that different to where I'm from. I just don't want that feeling to cause me to drop my guard. This is still an alien planet. That means anything may be possible.

  "He might sort of be a vampire..." said Katie. The way she said it was like she'd just mentioned that she wanted to grab some pizza or something; so casual.

  "He's a what?" I demand. "You have to be messing with me now. Are you going to tell me the locals here are vampires?"

  "Well, some of them are. But don't worry, he won't bite you. That is, not unless you want him to." She smirks and the way she does it is salacious.

  I have a bad feeling about this. There is something in me that is getting more excited now though. A part of me that I'm ashamed to admit is there. Oh boy, it has been a long, long time since I've even thought about a guy in that way though. And I've had my little crushes on various vampire bad boys from movies and books just as much as the next girl. I decide to just roll with this and see what happens.

  We go to meet up with her friend at a nice little coffee shop. There are people walking around on the streets. They just look so normal to me, and that might be more disconcerting than if they were weird and alien. I want to ask about that, but there are so many things that I'd like to know. I can't stop my mind from racing. This is so much like a dream still.

  "Look, just a cafe, like what you're used to on Earth," Katie says reassuringly as we enter the establishment.

  "I didn't get out a whole lot, you're forgetting. It's been a while since I've been out to grab a coffee with friends. Well, with family in this case."

  "And hopefully a new friend. Trust me, you'll like Wayne. Oh, there he is." Katie takes my hand in a mothering way and guides me over to a table. Sitting at the table is honestly, a very handsome young man. He can’t be much older than me. He has dark hair, almost impossibly black. And his eyes are seemingly black too. They must actually be a dark brown. Or the lighting is just making them look black. Something about him draws me to him.

  "Hey Katie," he says to my cousin, standing to greet us.

  "What's up, Wayne? How have you been?" She gives him a brief hug then stands aside and gestures to me. "This is my cousin, Stephanie. She's new to Etwan."

  "Even newer than me?" Wayne asks. He leans forward and shakes my hand curiously.

  I find the act a little old fashioned, but also I’m flattered by how polite he is. It's like he actually cares about meeting me.

  "A lot newer than you. She just got here last night. It's a long story, but we have plenty of time to talk. Unless you have somewhere to be?"

  "It's a pleasure to meet you," he says to me.

  I blush as I notice he’s even better looking up close, and he has a strong, confident stature that I find very appealing. The way he looks into my eyes, like he's searching for something, really gets to me.

  "Nice to meet you too," I say. We all take our seats around the little round table he was waiting for us at. "So, I'm told, I mean, Katie just told me that… Are you really a vampire?" I say that last part kind of loud. Loud enough for the people nearby in the cafe to hear. But they don't even bat an eyelid at it. It seems that being a vampire is nothing out of the ordinary here.

  "I certainly am. I can't say that I remember much about becoming one though. But can you tell me more about yourself before we get into all of that? It's been a while since I've had the chance to meet anyone new. I'm not exactly mister popular here, what with being such a fresh vampire, and an Earthling who only got here six months ago."

  "Oh, you're as much an Earth native as me then," I say excitedly.

  "That's why I thought Wayne might be the perfect friend for you to make here first. He knows exactly what it's like. Except, you haven't been turned into a vampire. Unless you got up to any mis
chief last night on your little secret outing?" Katie laughs and gives me a sideways eye, playing around like she's interrogating me. "Anyway, excuse me for a moment. I have to go to the little girls’ room."

  Once Katie leaves the table, I edge my seat closer to Wayne. "So, I know this is going to sound really weird... but here goes anyway. Have you come across a guy who's about this tall, old enough to be my dad, answers to the name Stuart?"

  "Well, actually I do know him."

  "Are you sure? It's just that… Well, this will seem even weirder, but when I snuck out and went walking last night—"

  "You met someone you know from Earth?" replied Wayne in seriousness. It doesn't seem like he's messing with me.

  "My father..."

  "What are you two talking about? What about your dad?" comes Katie's voice from beside me. I didn’t even notice her coming back from the bathroom. It seems she heard the whole conversation practically. "Is that why you've decided to stay? Do you want to see your dad?"

  "No, no, he's dead. He died in that car crash. I was with him," I say in shock. “But I know who I saw. I wanted to speak to him, but it was just too much. When I saw him, I ran the other way. I don't know why I didn't approach him. Are ghosts a real thing here or something? Am I dead now? Is this heaven or something?" I know I sound ridiculous, but this is all so strange.

  "Calm down," says Wayne reassuringly. He reaches out and places a hand on my hand. "I can introduce you to him if you like. I try to get to know people who are also new to this planet. It's easy to spot them since they act like they don't belong here."

  "You must think that about me then," I say. "Everyone here probably thinks I seem really strange with the way I act, right?"