Author's Note: I've just finished this one off today, and I'm still not sure what I think about it. On the one hand, I think it's an interesting idea, but on the other I think it's probably a bit silly.
This is the first time in ages that I've posted a story, so please, reviews would be great, and any constructive criticism would also be much appreciated.
I hope you all enjoy it!
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters from 'The Saga of Darren Shan'. Oh, how I wish I did though...
...
Gavner rushed through the halls and corridors of the vast mountain, dodging around vampires, skittering around corners, desperately trying to keep his balance as he made his way up to the Hall of Princes.
Darren's disappearance had caused the clan to go insane with activity, parties of guards being sent out to search the various caves and halls in which they dwelt, vampires being questioned by the Princes and trackers, groups of Generals vowing to find the boy and punish him for such a blatant disrespect of their way of life.
The throng of vampires increased the closer Gavner got to the Hall, and he was forced to slow down. Others seemed oblivious to his urgent behaviour, and only a few listened when he politely asked them to move out of the way. A group of trackers passed him by as he went through the great white-stone doors of the Hall, and he hoped he still had time to make his discovery known.
Standing on tiptoe – for he wasn't the tallest vampire alive – Gavner scanned his eyes quickly around the bustling Hall, noting the mix of emotions – none of which were positive - on the faces of his fellow vampires. He pushed his way to the front of the Hall, where the Princes and some higher ranking Generals were stood. Nobody paid him any attention as he skirted around the outside of the group and came up behind Arra, who was instructing a group of trackers on where she wanted them to search next.
Gavner put a hand on his friend's shoulder and, as she spun around, opened his mouth to speak, "Arra, I need to-"
"Gavner!" Arra exclaimed, cutting him off, "You haven't seen Smahlt, have you?"
"What? No, why, where is he?" Gavner paused, Arra's question throwing him off.
Arra sighed, and waved away the trackers. "I wouldn't have asked you if I knew, would I?" Despite the situation she rolled her eyes and gave him a quick grin. She then turned her attention to some maps laid out on one of many tables that had been brought into the Hall, "Nobody's seen him for a while. Apparently, according to Harkat, he was last seen with Darren."
Gavner frowned, and then caught on to her meaning, "You don't think...?"
"It's certainly looking that way." She motioned for him to come closer, and she dropped her voice as he ducked his head close to hers, pretending to study a map, "It's very suspicious, but Staffen won't hear of it. You know he fully supported Kurda's ideas, and he seems unwilling to listen to me. I know Kurda is behind this, Gavner. No one will let me act on it though." Though she was second in command to Staffen Irve – the clan's head tracker – she wouldn't be able to act without his consent, or that of the Princes.
Gavner nodded thoughtfully, "Who have you told?"
"Staffen and Paris. Though, he didn't seem to think Kurda could be capable of such a thing." Again, Arra rolled her eyes and sighed angrily.
Lifting his head slightly, Gavner looked around the Hall again, his head clearing and his purpose for coming to the Hall in the first place returning. He turned back to Arra, "I think I've found-"
"Look, Gavner, I'm really sorry," Arra laid a hand on his arm and gave him a sympathetic look, "but I really have to get out there and start looking for Darren." She moved away, but called over her shoulder, "I'll find you when I get back!"
And then she was gone, lost in the crowd of vampires. Gavner cursed under his breath and shook his head – he should have known better than to try to communicate with Arra when she was in tracker-mode. Looking around for another person to tell, his eyes fell on Larten. The orange-haired vampire was sat at the front of the Hall, a group of guards stood over him. Seba was sat next to him, trying to calm his assistant down. Gavner frowned again, realising that Larten was prime suspect for helping Darren escape.
With a renewed energy, the burly vampire ran out of the Hall, pushing aside vampires rather than trying to skirt around them. Gavner knew in his heart that Larten was innocent, and as he crashed into the small storage room he vowed to help his friend in any way he could, starting with following the trail of blood he had found that led behind a large pile of sacks and into a small hole in the side of the wall.
...
The tunnel Gavner found himself dropped down sharply, but his size stopped him from sliding all the way to the bottom. Halfway down he caught onto a ledge to assess the situation, trying to figure out if he would even fit down the rest of the tunnel. Shifting his grip on the ledge, he noticed his fingers were coated in something warm and sticky. He sniffed the air and caught the scent of blood.
Pulling himself up onto the ledge with a grunt, Gavner crawled forward and found himself in another tunnel. This one led gently downwards, the ceiling low, the sides wide but rough. Squinting his eyes, Gavner could just make out a thin trail of blood running along the floor of the tunnel.
Gavner sighed, and stood as straight as he could – not more than a painful crouch – and started forward.
After a short time, Gavner could hear quiet voices ahead, but couldn't put a name to them. He scuffed his boot – as he had been doing the entire time – and the voices fell into a sudden silence. Gavner rounded a corner, and could just make out two figures in the dark of the tunnel.
He slowly moved forwards, and as he did caught the scent of Darren and Kurda. So Arra was right, he thought fearfully. He couldn't guess at what Kurda was doing, but he knew it wasn't anything good.
"You two are in so much trouble." Gavner growled as he came to a stop in front of them, taking the opportunity to sit on the ground and give his back a rest, "Whose idea was this?"
"Mine!" Kurda and Darren answered at exactly the same time and Gavner rolled his eyes. "It was mine," Kurda said again, gripping Darren's arm.
"What are you thinking?" Gavner exclaimed loudly, "Everyone knows you've gone, Darren. And people are starting to realise you're nowhere to be found either, Kurda." He sighed, "If you both come back with me now, then maybe we can avoid either of you getting into too much trouble. We could pass it off as you just needed some air, and Kurda went with you."
Kurda scoffed, "I hardly think that will work, Gavner." He shook his head and glanced down at the young half-vampire, "I have no intention of taking Darren back now. He'll be sentenced to death, and I'll do everything I can to stop that happening."
"But the trackers are looking for you already!" Gavner shouted, waving his hands about, exasperated, "What are you planning to do anyway?"
Kurda glanced down at his feet and then fixed Gavner with a serious stare, "I was going to get Darren out of the mountain, and then lead him to relative safety. Then I was going to come back."
"And you think no one would have noticed this?"
"It won't take me more than a day to do it."
Gavner barked a laugh and glared at his friends, "If the trackers find you they'll drag you back here kicking and screaming. Arra's already figured out that you're behind this." He directed this at Kurda, who shrank back against the wall.
"I think we should just call it quits." Darren muttered, clutching his arm, blood slowly seeping out from beneath the bandages, "I'm in no shape to go running away. It was a stupid idea, really." He sighed sadly, "Is Mr. Crepsley really angry with me?"
Gavner sighed, "He's disappointed more than angry, Darren. We all are. I thought you'd know better than to run away from your problems."
Darren nodded glumly, "I know. I just... got scared, I guess."
"And rightly so!" Kurda chimed in, "Darren shouldn't have to face death so early on in his life. And he certainly shouldn't be condemned by his friends!"
"It's the way of the vampires!" Gavner shouted back. He stood up angrily, motioning back down the tunnel, back towards the mountain, "We should get back, right now, before anyone finds us."
Kurda also jumped up, waving his hand in the other direction, "No, we need to get out! I will not let Darren be killed!" And with that, the blonde vampire grabbed Darren, hauled him to his feet and took off down the tunnel.
Gavner sighed, and almost shouted after them, but thought better of it. Grudgingly, he admitted that Kurda was right. And though he was doing the wrong thing, he had Darren's best interests at heart. Gavner shook his head, and trudged after the escapees.
...
The vampaneze slunk around the corner, and the three vampires let out their breaths. Gavner and Kurda exchanged glances, and Darren started up at his elders, fear in his eyes.
"What do we do know?" Kurda whispered.
"We go back and tell the others about this." Gavner replied, and made to walk away when Kurda caught his arm. "What are you doing?"
"We're so close!" Kurda said earnestly, "Darren's freedom lies just around that corner!"
"As do the vampaneze!"
"Gavner's right, we have to warn the others." Darren chipped in, coming to stand next to the vampires.
Kurda threw up his hands, "We have to carry on! It would be stupid not to!"
Gavner clapped a hand over Kurda's mouth, hissing, "Will you be quiet! You'll bring them down on us if you keep this up!"
Kurda growled and pushed Gavner back. Though the slim blonde had nothing on the burly General, Gavner still stumbled and kicked a rock back against the tunnel wall. The noise echoed around the tunnel, horribly loud, and the three vampires froze on the spot.
After a few long moments, they deemed it safe to move again, but just as Kurda strode forward a long shadow appeared right in front of him, quickly followed by a vampaneze. The vampaneze let out a shout before any of the vampires could react.
Two more of the purple-skinned creatures appeared. Gavner pulled Darren back to stand behind him, and unsheathed two daggers. He met the vampaneze with Kurda by his side, and they managed to kill one of the intruders.
The cave became uncomfortably cramped as more vampaneze filtered in, and the vampires were forced to retreat further back into the tunnel they had come from. Seeing that the situation was going from bad to worse, Gavner turned to Darren, "Run! Go back to the others and warn them!"
"But, I can't leave you!" Darren looked ready to cry, and reached out for Gavner's hand.
"You have to go, Darren." Kurda said, blocking an attack, "We'll be fine. Just go get help."
Darren started at his two friends, and nodded sadly, before running back down the tunnel, hoping that he wouldn't get lost.
He turned back for a brief moment, just to get one last look at his friends, but the sight he was greeted with was not what he had been expecting.
Gavner blocked an attack, and then another, moving slightly in front of Kurda. A vampaneze with an ugly birthmark on his cheek pushed forward with his sword outstretched. Gavner blocked the attack, twisting to the side in the process, and that's when Kurda made him move.
The blonde drove his dagger into the stomach of his target, and pulled back, staring at his work. The vampaneze relaxed as Gavner's body fell against the side of the tunnel, his hands weakly pulling at the dagger sticking out of his middle.
Darren screamed and ran forward, forgetting all about the threat of the vampaneze, focussing only on his dying friend. Gavner groaned in pain as Darren tried to pull the weapon out. Blood spurted over the young half-vampire as the dagger flew out of his hands and clattered somewhere behind him.
"Gavner? You'll be okay. You'll be okay." Darren repeated, trying to calm his friend, trying to reassure himself. His hands gripped one of Gavner's, and the vampire turned his head slowly to focus on Darren.
The dying vampire half smiled, "I'm sorry if... my snoring... kept you... awake."
Darren laughed sadly, tears falling down his face. Gavner's eyes glazed over, a serene smile frozen on his lips. His hand fell limp in Darren's.
"Gavner?" Darren shook his shoulder, and, when he got no response, cried out in pain, leaning his head against Gavner's. Wails of sorrow shook Darren's body, and he completely forgot about the people now surrounding him until Kurda put his hand gently on Darren's back.
The half-vampire whipped around, snatching up Gavner's fallen dagger and brandishing it at Kurda. "You killed him!" Darren choked out, tears streaming down his face.
"Darren, please." Kurda begged, holding his hands up as a sign of peace, "Let me explain."
"No!" Darren yelled, and he hurled the dagger at Kurda, who only narrowly dodged it. Darren took off at a run, sprinting back down the tunnel, not paying any attention to where he was going.
It was only when the shouts behind him became distant did he slow down and take note of where he was. He could hear water coming from somewhere, and after resting briefly set off towards the sound. His feet led him to a large cavern with a wide river cutting through the middle.
Darren ran up to the edge of the river, looking down into the fast flowing current, knowing that if he were to fall in it would most certainly be the end of him. Still – as the vampaneze and Kurda rushed into the cavern after him – he took a few paces back, breathed in deeply and ran for the river edge.
...
As Arra trudged back up into the Hall of Princes, she vaguely remembered that Gavner had wanted to speak to her. She wasn't really in the mood for conversation, but she supposed she could make time for her friend.
Some of her fellow trackers passed her in the entrance to the Hall, and they shook their heads glumly: a sign that neither Darren nor Kurda had been found. She nodded in acknowledgement, and made her way up to the Princes, weaving carefully through the many vampires that were still occupying the Hall.
She was mildly surprised when Gavner was nowhere to be seen. Arra had supposed he would just wait it out in the Hall for her, but obviously he had given up at some point. This upset her, because she knew it was wrong of her to have shunned him so quickly.
Arra informed Staffen that she had found no trace of the half-vampire, and he took down a few notes, getting her to repeat where she had searched and who had been in her group. She distractedly answered his questions, her eyes falling on Larten, who was still being surrounded by guards.
Staffen released, telling her not to go too far, and she went straight over to her ex-mate, throwing the guards a look; they backed off immediately, still standing watch over Larten but moving back to allow them some room. She thought it was ridiculous that they felt the need to stand watch over the poor man, when he clearly had nothing to do with his assistant's disappearance.
Larten smiled sadly as Arra came and sat next to him. "You have found nothing." It wasn't a question, so Arra sighed and leaned back against the bench, running a hand over her eyes as she realised just how tired she was.
"We're still looking though. We'll fine him." She tried to be reassuring, but it didn't come over all that well, and Larten just nodded. He took her hand in his and held onto it firmly, wanting to feel some sort of comfort.
Arra watched him carefully, watching him stroke her hand, watching how his eyes became watery as they overheard a group of vampires discussing Darren's fate. She squeezed his hand, trying to make him feel better, but he just stared unblinking at their entwined hands.
"Have you seen Gavner?" Arra asked after a while.
Larten shook his head and then looked up at her, confused. "I have not, actually. I thought he would have been here..."
"He's probably asleep." Arra tried to joke, and Larten half-smiled.
Still, the fact that Gavner hadn't appeared was worrying, so Arra cast her mind out, searching for her friend.
...
Her mind reached him just as he was taking his last breath, and Arra gasped in pain as she felt the connection snap. She held a hand up to the side of her head, groaning as her mind tried to clear itself. Larten was speaking to her, but she couldn't hear him. All she could hear was white noise.
The noise and pain lasted only a moment, but it was intense enough – and her reaction extreme enough - to have caught the attention of the vampires nearby. By the time her mind had cleared, the group of guards, Paris and Seba had come to stand over her, all looking worried.
"Arra?" Larten's voice was urgent as he knelt on the ground in front of her, holding her shoulders, "Arra, what happened?"
"Gavner..." Arra started to say, but then the realisation of what her words would mean hit her and she gasped, holding a hand over her mouth, the other clutching Larten's arm.
"What is it?" Paris asked calmly, though he could see that something was seriously wrong. He motioned for Staffen, Mika and Arrow to come over as Arra started to sob. Larten ducked his head down to meet her gaze, and he noticed that it was empty and hollow.
"He's dead..."
...
A party of trackers was gathered, and though she could feel a migraine coming on, Arra still insisted that she wanted to go with them. Just before the connection to Gavner had snapped, Arra had managed to see where he was. The party was going to find his body.
Larten was desperate to go along too, but the guards wouldn't let him leave the Hall. He looked on the verge of a breakdown as he grasped Arra's wrist, begging her to do something. A wave of emotion rushed over her as she watched him trying to keep it together; losing his best friend, and possibly his assistant as well, was obviously taking its toll on him.
Before the group left, Arra wrapped an arm around Larten's neck, "I'll come straight back as soon as we find him." Larten nodded against her shoulder, and she pulled away, brushing her lips against his for a brief moment.
"Be careful." Larten croaked as Arra walked away to join the group of trackers. She turned her head and smiled at him.
...
The tunnels were low and many side-tunnels led off from the main one. Staffen stopped the group before he got them all lost, and motioned for them to split off into pairs, giving each pair a set of tunnels to search.
Arra stayed close to Vanez, the Gamesmaster exuding an air of confidence that she desperately clung to. The two of them were given a set of tunnels to search that ran close to the river, and they set of slowly, Vanez holding the burning branch out ahead of him, sweeping the sides of the tunnel with it to get a better look at them.
They soon found themselves in a large cavern with the mountain river slicing through the middle of it. Vanez hung back to check the dark corners of the cavern, while Arra moved over to the river. Nothing caught her eye at first – her mind clouded still, thoughts of Gavner rushing around – but she soon realised that she was treading in footprints that had been imprinted into the dirt. She crouched down to get a closer look, and followed them all the way to the river's edge.
The footprints became mixed together the closer she got, the scuffed up dirt and increase in footprints starting to confuse her. A large rock stuck out of the river, and the top of it was covered in blood, the water never reaching high enough to wash the tip clean.
"Vanez!" Arra called, and the Gamesmaster hurried over. He followed the point of her hand and his eye settled on the tip of the rock. He sniffed the air for the first time since entering the cavern, and a mix of scents assaulted him, the most prominent one being that of vampaneze.
Vanez glanced sideways at Arra, seeing she had realised the same thing. She indicated at the footprints of the ground, and Vanez noticed one was decidedly smaller than the rest. "Darren." He breathed and Arra nodded.
"He must have tried to jump the river." Arra concluded, and Vanez nodded in agreement; any full vampire – or vampaneze for that matter – would have been able to clear the river easily.
"What should we do?" Vanez asked, looking to the higher ranking tracker for advice. Arra looked around the cavern again, and then sighed.
"We carry on looking for Gavner. Tell Staffen about this when we get back." Arra turned around and started back towards the tunnel they had come from. "I hate to say this, but there's really no need to rush back to tell everyone. I mean, it's impossible that he survived that."
Vanez followed behind her and nodded solemnly, "Poor kid..."
...
Gavner's body was found by Staffen and Jasper. They would have walked straight by it had it not been for the General's foot sticking out of the crack he had been stuffed into.
The two trackers carried the fallen General back up the Hall of Princes. Many of the vampires stopped what they were doing and stared sadly at Gavner's body as he was laid down in front of the Prince's thrones. He had been very popular, loved by most, and it came as a shocking blow to the clan that he was now dead.
The Princes stayed silent for a time, simply staring in disbelief down at the body. Mika first broke the silence, seeing his assistant enter the Hall with Vanez, "Where did you find him?"
Staffen cleared his throat, "He had been... hidden in a deep crack in one of the tunnel walls."
Mika nodded, "Was there any clue as to who killed him?"
"There was a mix of scents, some vampire, more were vampaneze."
At this the Hall erupted with shouts of anger and disbelief, confusion and fear. No one could understand how vampaneze could have stayed hidden in the mountain without anyone noticing them. Arrow turned angrily to Kurda, "Did you know anything about this?" The prince growled dangerously.
Kurda shook his head, appearing to be deeply distressed, "I had no idea about this." He had slipped into the Hall unnoticed as the vampires had shouted about the vampaneze, "I assure you, if I had any inkling I would have told you all."
A lot of vampires remained unconvinced, and continued to shoot daggers at his back as he knelt down besides Gavner and laid a hand on the dead vampire's forehead. A single tear slid down his cheek as he gazed sorrowfully at his friend.
The shock and confusion seemed to have passed, and vampires again started to get ready for searching for Darren, and now – more importantly – the vampaneze. Staffen and Vanez wandered off with the trackers and Arrow, already talking about the best place to start searching for the purple-skinned invaders.
Mika and Paris continued to oversee the activity in their Hall, and motioned for a couple of guards to take Gavner's body to the Guardians of Blood. As the General was carried out of the Hall, Arra met Kurda's gaze and the blonde vampire quickly shook his head and scurried out of the Hall.
Wanting more than anything to follow and question him, Arra had to restrain herself as Mika began questioning her as to what she and Vanez had found in the cavern. Larten sat numbly next to her, staring at the spot his best friend had been only moments before, not seeming to hear what Arra was saying – which the vampiress was glad of.
The shock of losing his best friend, and now – almost certainly – his young assistant was settling in, and even Mika had to admit he felt sorry for the vampire. So he let him sit there next to Arra while they discussed every possibility of Darren's fate. And for once he didn't get angry as Larten picked up Arra's hand and just held it in his.
...
Arra knew that Kurda had something to do with Gavner's death, and Darren's disappearance. Hurt and confused as she was, her mind was clear enough to be certain of this fact, and she was itching to go to the blonde vampire and demand he told her everything.
And if Larten hadn't been in such a state she would have done just that. But her ex-mate – or mate, she didn't know anymore – just would not let go of her.
As soon as Arra and Mika had got Larten to his cell, he had crumpled to the ground sobbing and shaking, crying out in pain at the loss of his loved ones. Mika had given him a sympathetic – and slightly awkward – pat on the shoulder and then left Arra to deal with him.
So she now found herself sitting uncomfortably on the ground next to Larten, letting him cry into her shoulder. Occasionally he would sit up a bit straighter and clutch at her shoulders, her arms, hands, begging her desperately not to leave him.
"I'm not going anywhere." She kept telling him, stroking his shaggy hair out of his eyes and kissing him gently, trying to show him that she really meant it. And he would nod his head and kiss her back, holding her face in his hands and staring at her, almost into her soul, as he clung onto the one thing he had left.
Kurda would have to wait. Everything would have to wait for now.
For Arra, nothing was more important at that moment than being with the vampire she loved and grieving for their friends together.
...
Author's Note: So, this was only meant to be about 2000 words. I've more than doubled that. Oops. I know it got weaker as it went on, and the ending is practically nothing more than mush, but I still enjoyed writing it. And I hope you all enjoyed reading it! Again, please let me know what you thought of it.
PS. I know I changed the rolls of some of the characters, but I've always liked the idea of Arra being a tracker – and a very important one at that – so I thought I'd finally put it in a story for you all to see. Let me know your thoughts on this, because I'd find it really interesting to hear what you guys think!