Chapter Three

A small beam of sunlight crept slowly into the alley. I was still sitting in the exact spot that I had been sitting in for the past 8 hours. I glanced over at the girl and the bartender, who still slept quietly. We had stayed in the damp alley all night, but I couldn't say that I was thankful for the light.

I reached in my pocket and slipped on my sunglasses just as the light reached me.

"Good morning," the bartender yawned as he sat up, stretching.

"Morning," I hesitated before I asked my next question, "What's your name anyway?"

"Justin. Yours?"

"Christian," I answered, almost inaudibly.

"Why are you different?" He asked.

I was somewhat shocked by his question and a bit confused, "What?"

"You're not evil like the others. Why?"

I sighed and turned my head, "I got away."

I didn't like talking about my past. It hurt, knowing that my brothers were going through that torture everyday.

"Are you the only one?" He asked.

I simply nodded, knowing deep inside that that was a lie. I wasn't the only one...

"Tell me about it. About your race. I mean, I've always been interested in it. I knew there were vampires in the world, but I never really knew anything about them."

"Well," I sighed again, looking down at the wet, alley floor, "We are the oldest race on earth. I think...created around 2 million years ago. The first vampire just recently passed away, I believe. We age about ten times faster than humans. And live about ten times longer."

"You're stronger too, naturally, right?"

I nodded, "Much stronger. We're able to run faster, and jump farther. All those abilities were given to us though, we didn't have to adapt them. That's the only reason we've survived this long. Humans are just fragile compared to us."

"And how old are you?" He asked, fully attentive on my words.

"In human years? I'm 21."

"So as a vampire, you're 210."

I nodded, "About."

"That's a long time."

"You have no idea."

"And you, personally. What's your story?"

"My story..." I repeated, mostly to myself, "Well...I was born 210 years ago in Dante."

"Dante?"

"The capitol city of our empire."

"Your race has an empire?"

"Yeah, they do. Larger than the continent of North America."

An extremely confused expression wiped over his face, "Where is it?"

"Its in the other dimension. The invisible one. The one humans can't see. There are hundreds of cities in all. The capitol is Dante. That's where the government council reside."

"And you were born there?"
I nodded.

"Okay, keep going."

"I have two brothers, Pike and Zebulon. They never crossed over into this world. They have no desire to encounter humans. They didn't get away..." my voice trailed off, and for a while, both of us sat in silence.

"They weren't always evil?"

I shook my head, the years of my past flashing through my mind, "No. They were taken by the Force, just like all the others."

"And what is the Force?" He asked quietly, awestricken.

"Its the one thing in the world that could destroy the entire vampire race if it wanted to."

His voice gradually became more and more quiet, "Why hasn't it already?"

"Because it was locked up. Some idiot messed around with the ancient Codes and let it out 60 years ago."

"Could it ever..." he hesitated for a short time, "Could it ever take over the humans?"

"Its possible."

My words finally silenced him and for the next two hours, we kept our conversations to a minimum. I knew that he was pondering what I had told him, and well he should. Although he would never truly understand it all.

Near 9:00, the girl began to stir from her sleep. I watched her as she yawned, slowly opening her eyes. When her gaze found me, she instantly backed into the corner, her eyes wide.

I backed away from her slowly, just to give her space. Following my example, Justin did the same.

"We won't hurt --"

"Who are you?" She asked firmly, cutting my sentence short.

"My name is Christian," I indicated Justin, who was to my left, "This is Justin."

"Thanks Christian, but I usually introduce myself," Justin whispered.

"Shut up," I snapped coldly.

"Where am I?" Her voice shook with fear, and I'm sure that if I could feel pity, than that was what I would have felt then.

Justin took over for me, speaking a bit more softly, "You're on Sunset and 5th street. You ran into some trouble last night. Christian saved you."

Her soft green eyes fell on me then and she examined me carefully. Her breath was back to normal pace, and she was not shaking as violently. I sensed the fear inside her begin to subside and, with her, I calmed.

She was pretty, really. A natural beauty behind the cuts and dirt that covered her face. Again, I felt as through I should pity her, but I knew that could feel that no longer.

"Why?" She asked in a whisper.

Slowly, avoiding sudden movements, I stood and gazed down at her, "I had to."

"No, you didn't," she argued, her voice still timid.

"I couldn't stand by and let them hurt you."

She was quiet then as she wiped a single tear off of her pale cheek.

I held my hand out to her, "Let me take you home."

For a moment she only stared at my outstretched hand, her mind and heart arguing over what she should do. Finally, she placed her hand in mine and I gently hoisted her up.

*~~~~~~*

The three of us walked in silence down the now busy sidewalk. Justin and I stayed on either side of the young girl, trying as best we could to help her feel the safety I knew she longed for. She was still a bit shaky though not nearly as much as she was in the alley.

Before long, she stopped us in front of a small apartment building and hesitated before leaving us.

"This is my place..." she whispered.

I nodded as she began to turn away. But suddenly, she stopped and turned back to face me.

"Listen," she began slowly, her voice a bit louder now, "Thank you..."

I shook my head, sliding my hands into my coat pockets, "There's no need to thank me --"

"No, just...thank you," she interrupted me, and again turned away, disappearing into the lobby of the building.

With the girl gone, I finally felt like myself again. I lost that confusing need to feel pity, and the frustration of knowing that I couldn't.

Justin and I turned and started down the sidewalk at the same time.

"Something about her?" He asked, as if he knew what I was thinking.

I nodded, "Something..."

"Is she like me?"

"No...no, its something else," I paused for a time but soon went on, "Is there some way that I can get in touch with you if I need to?"

"My pager number," he talked as he pulled a small card out of his wallet and handed it to me, "and my home number are both on there. Call anytime."

Again, I nodded and glanced at him, "This is where we part for today."

He smirked in answer and crossed the street at the light.

As soon as I lost sight of him in the tangled crowd of people, I continued on to my apartment at the far end of the city.

My conception about Justin was odd. I hadn't been able to trust anyone my entire life, not even my brothers after their change. But somehow I felt as though I had known Justin from now since my existence and therefore I felt an automatic sense of trust with him. And maybe I had known him in some other place. Reality was never entirely certain to me anymore.

And then, of course, there was the girl. There was something about her. Something that cried out for recognition. Something that was special, and she didn't seem to know it. Though, from the moment I had stepped into the alley last night, I had felt it. I had a feeling that I would surely be seeing here again.

Chapter Four

"Christian!"

Pike's voice rang out into the smoke and debris that covered every inch of Dante. I heard him clearly but he was nowhere in sight. The smoke from the blast was so thick that it choked me and stung my eyes.

"Pike, where are you?! Are you okay?"

"Christian, something's wrong with Zeb --"

"What?" I shouted as I groped my way further into the forest of black smoke, "What's wrong with Zeb? Where is he?"

"Christian, Zeb isn't moving! I can't get him to move, Christian, please --"

Suddenly, I heard his scream echo into the opaque smoke and I felt overwhelmed with urgency, worry, and the most extreme fear I had ever felt. The fear was so think inside me that my entire body ached.

"Pike?!"

There was no answer.

"Oh, God, Pike?! Answer me!"

Suddenly I sat straight up on the couch, my back stiff. I was covered in a cold sweat, my whole body shaking. Often, I slipped into flashbacks more real than I would like. I was never even close to sleep but the flashbacks were so real that I could feel the pain of fear inside me when I snapped back into reality. Although the fear was merely a leftover from that night. Since then, I had not felt it and I would not feel it again.

My mind began exploring every detail of that night and the last desperate words of my brother. Suddenly, there was a sharp pain in my stomach which forced me to stand. The rain was coming soon.

Without warning my phone rang and I quickly picked it up, "Yes?"

"Christian. Its Justin."

"Justin, hey."

I heard a deep sigh on the other end and he continued, "Something is wrong."

"What?"

"I'm not sure. I can't put my finger on it. The visions are blurred and far apart. I've never felt anything like it before."

"Does it involve people?"

"Yeah, from what I can tell."

"Men or women?"

"I don't know."

"I feel something, too," I whispered, mostly to myself.

There was a soft knock at my door that put a stop to my immediate conversation, "Hold on, I have to get the door."

Slowly, I opened the door of my apartment to the face of the young girl from the alley last night. I could tell by simply her posture that she was more confident now.

"Hi, Christian."

I was immediately taken aback when she spoke my name. She wasn't supposed to remember. How did she? I was completely silent.

"Can I come in?" She asked.

"Oh...oh, yeah. Sure."

She went directly to my couch and I to my phone, "Justin, I have to go."

"But I'm not done yet."

"Justin, I have to go."

"But, Christian, I wasn't done."

"Justin, if you don't let me hang up --"

"Alright, okay, fine. But she's only human. Don't take advantage," he laughed and hung up.

I shook my head at his ever-present sense of humor and went to sit in the chair across the room. I was silent still, hoping that she would take it upon herself to tell me why she was here.

"I didn't introduce myself earlier."

"I understand."

She smiled a little, "My name is Athena."

"I'm Christian."

"I know."

"Oh, yeah," I glanced at the floor. I had to admit that I felt a bit nervous with her, and since I hadn't felt nervousness in the longest time, it was frustrating.

She laughed quietly and also glanced at the floor, "I really don't know why I'm here. I guess, I just really wanted to thank you for saving me last night."

"I don't think that's the only reason you're here," I looked up at her then. I could easily tell that something was bothering her. It was clouded in her soul.

"Maybe, but...I shouldn't be talking to you. I don't even know you."

Suddenly, a realization of her swept over me like a wave and I stared into her eyes, "Yes, you do."

Her expression instantly became absolutely serious, but in that silence, I saw it in her eyes. I saw those gold sparkles that I had once known all too well.

As we stared at each other, I saw a suttle change in her. A softness came over her, and I knew she remembered.

"Christian..."

It was times like these that I wished I could smile, "Yeah, its me, Athena."

*~~~~~~*

I refilled Justin's cup with black coffee and went to sit back in my chair. Both he and Athena were on the couch. I had called him over the minute Athena and I had gotten back on familiar ground.

"Okay, so, explain this to me one more time," Justin looked at me, holding the coffee cup in his hands.

"This is the third time, Justin."

"I know, but I'm still trying to get past the part about you two knowing each other."

Athena laughed quietly at his blunt humor.

I simply nodded, "Okay. Athena is my sister."

"Okay, I got that part," he kept his eyes intent on my as I continued.

"Do you remember how I told you about the Force and how it had taken over my entire race?"

"Yes, Christian, I'm not mentally retarded."

"Well, there were only two of us that got away."

Justin shook his head, still bombarded with confusion, "But I thought you were the only one?"

"I never said that."

"Oh, yes, you did."

"No, I didn't, Justin."

"Yes, you did, Christian."

"Okay, whatever! The point is, Athena and I were the only two that weren't corrupted. I escaped, but she was cast out."

"Cast out?"

"Yes, she was too pure for even the Force to take, and so it cast her out of the empire. She was converted into human and forbidden to ever cross over again."

Justin stared at me, blankly, "Too pure?"

I nodded, and gestured to his cup of coffee, "You gonna finish that?"

"Probably not."

I shrugged, "By too pure, I mean that Athena..."

I paused for a while, trying to come up with the right words. Finally, I decided to be blunt:

"Athena was chosen to save the human race from the anti-Christ."

Justin's mouth fell open and he stared at me, "Huh?"

"The anti --"

"Yeah, I heard you the first time," he interrupted, shooting a quick and unsure glance in Athena's direction, "But, chosen by who?"

"Who do you think?"

"God?"

I simply nodded.

"How can that be?"

I glared at him, my defense rising, "What do you mean?"

"Well, no offense Christian, but somehow I expected vampires to be linked to the Devil before I would believe that they were linked to God."

A fire flickered inside me at his confession and I tried to control my anger, "That's what you get for believing those human stereotypes. You humans, bashing everything that you don't understand! How can you be so selfish? The minute that you realize you can't explain something, you cast it aside and decide that its evil, or that its not good enough for the likes of you! And would you like to tell me why? Its because you realize, unwillingly, that you are not superior and that you don't know everything!"

Justin stared at me still, bewildered and frightened at my outburst.

"Christian!" Athena grabbed my shoulder and shook me gently, "Calm down. He didn't mean anything by it."

I ignored her statement and continued. I was still on my soap box and wasn't planning on stepping down anytime soon:

"You go through life believing that you are so righteous! That you are the ones that control everything! But you're not! There is a greater being that controls everything! That protects you and I, but you're so concerned with your own self-centeredness that you deny His love and cast it aside! You're selfish. That's all you are! Sometimes I wonder why I waste my time on you! All you do is torture each other! You're like jackals; you can't seem to coexist! And it makes me sick!"

"Christian!" Athena shouted at me and that's when I realized that my eyes had begun to glow orange again, just like they always did when my anger overflowed inside me. It didn't help to calm me however.

"Let me tell you something," my voice was a bit quieter now as I addressed Justin, personally, "We were created by God's hand, as were you. But there's a difference that you should be aware of. It should make you forget the stereotypes that have been injected into your head, and then maybe you, personally, can spread the truth among others. Vampires were created as God's apprentices. We were put on the earth as His messengers, to spread His Word to the far reaches of the world. And for millions of years we have been misunderstood. So severely that humans chose to forget us all together. If it weren't for us, Justin, the world would be so corrupted by such horrible things that you would wish you had never been born into it. We kept these things hidden for your own good, and we did it without being seen or even known, and we were satisfied that way. Now, with all the others chained by evil, I have to do it alone. And what thanks do I get but the thanks of God, and that's all that matters to me."

He simply nodded, awestruck and speechless.