The Unusual Case of Benjamin Iyana

Benjamin Iyana, a young man in his late teens, entered the mid-section of his hometown, Edith, an Egyptian town. It was bustling, as always, with tourists and shoppers. Workers behind fruit stands called out to passerby. He had long ago gotten used to the sound, though one worker stood out to him, as always. He looked at a woman's fruit stand. "Good morning, Mrs. Ziza. You look lovely today."

The elderly woman smiled at him. "You're such a sweetheart Benjamin. Won't you buy something from me?"

Benjamin looked at some of the fruit, calculating for a moment. "I'll make sure to do so on my way back."

Mrs. Ziza waved at him as he started walking again. "See you later, Benjamin!"

Benjamin walked passed several more merchants, saying "hello" and "good morning" to each one. As usual, business was booming for Edith. It had always been a prosperous town next to the Nile. "Hey Benjamin!" Benjamin turned to see Nnamdi and Sambi, twin children.

"Hello boys. How are you?"

"We're fine Benjamin. What about you?" They said as one.

"Hello, Benjamin!" Aya, the mother of Nnamdi and Sambi, called from her window.

"Hey Aya! What are you doing?"

She walked out to Benjamin and shook his hand, as she always did in the morning. "Just hanging out some clothes to dry and trying to keep an eye on these two boys." She ruffled Nnamdi's hair. "What's the weather look like? Will my clothes be able to dry in time?"

Benjamin looked up at the sky. There wasn't a cloud up there, but he knew better. "It looks like it'll rain in a few hours, Mrs. Aya. I say you've got about an hour or two before you have to stop doing laundry."

"There's no clouds in the sky, though!" Sambi said.

Aya leaned down to her son. "Eventually you'll learn that Benjamin is the one everyone asks about the weather. He's never been wrong...not once." She chuckled and stood up. "Anything else, Benjamin?"

"Yep. There's going to be some heavy winds coming from the North tonight at around 8 or so, so make sure the boys are inside by then."

The twins groaned simultaneously. "Alright boys! You heard him! You can play as much as you want, but be back before 8." They nodded and ran off into the crowd. Aya smiled at him. "Thanks Benjamin."

Benjamin smiled at her. "Anytime, Mrs. Aya."

BW

Tia Almez watched Benjamin as he walked away from Mrs. Aya. She had heard every word that he had told Aya and was surprised to see that he was completely sure of himself when he described the weather to her. Maybe I should talk to him... She reasoned that she should not and finally her intellect won and told her not to go because she reminded herself that she's a vampire.

Nothing could ever happen between the two of us anyway. He's so... She watched him as he spoke to another towns person and a rush of words came to mind. Finally she decided he was lovely. She slowly stalked after him, remaining in the shadows. Of course, nothing bad could happen if she stepped out the shadows. Other than her hands and her eyes, (which were protected by the hood of her robe) her entire body was covered.

"Are you watching that boy again, Tia?" Tia turned to see the leader of her coven, Amun. He approached her. "I thought I told you to stay away from him."

"I'm telling you, Amun! He's special." She turned to Amun's mate, Kebi. "I know you heard him speak. He's gifted, isn't he?"

Kebi, stayed silent, as she did most of the time. "Well," Amun said. "Answer her." Kebi looked at Amun, then back at Tia and nodded. Tia motioned towards Benjamin, who was still talking to a towns person. Amun stared at him for a long time. At last, he spoke. "Today, we'll keep an eye on him and I will decide if he's truly special."

"Hey, I thought we were just here to let Heidi snag us a couple of drinks," Santiago said.

"I was just up for getting to stretch my legs and smell something different than that musty cave, myself," Sebastian said, "And I'm sure Heidi was just good with looking at all the cute teen boys and such."

Heidi gave him the finger in return.

Tia looked back at Benjamin, who was walking down the path again. "Come on! He's leaving again." They briskly followed him, staying out of sight.

"Good morning Cassim! The current's looking extra calm today!" Tia looked over at Amun, who was watching Benjamin closely. "And the water feels great. Wanna race?"

The man, Cassim, grinned at Benjamin. "You do realize that I'm one of the best swimmers in Edith?" He asked arrogantly.

Benjamin shrugged. "You've obviously never raced against me." He grinned and elbowed Cassim. "It doesn't matter who wins. What's a race between friends?"

Cassim nodded. "Alright, Ben. Your loss." He led Benjamin throughout the crowd. Both of them were unaware that Tia and the others were only a few short feet away. "Right this way," Cassim said.

Benjamin nodded and followed him. Amun elbowed her. "I know where they're going. We'll beat them there hide in the shadows behind that woman's fruit store to watch."

She looked back at Kebi, who nodded. "Alright...Let's go." In a flash, they were off. In a matter of 6 seconds, they were behind Mrs. Ziza's fruit store. Tia looked to her left at Amun, who was eying Benjamin like a fresh slice of meat.

A few minutes later, Benjamin and Cassim showed up. They stood at the bank of the Nile River. "You see that cactus hanging off the edge of the bank way over there?" Cassim asked. Benjamin nodded.

"We'll race to that and climb onto the bank, touch it, and swim back. The first one back, wins."

"That sounds fair." They both removed their shirts and jumped into the water.

"Let's get a closer look," Tia said to Amun.

Amun nodded and looked back at Kebi. "You hang back here in case something happens." Kebi dipped her head towards Amun. Amun and Tia then ran over to the bank and watched as Benjamin and Cassim raced.

By now, they were working their way to the bank with the cacti. "You know...I think the tide is speeding up for Benjamin."

Amun shook his head. "I think you are imagining things, you silly girl."

Santiago elbowed Amun. "I actually think Benjamin is gaining speed."

"Of course he is. He has the tide in his favor." She, Amun, Santiago, and Sebastian leaned forward simultaneously.

"Strangely enough," Amun noted. "The other boy doesn't seem to have the tide going in his favor."

Benjamin ran onto the bank with the cacti, where he touched nearby it before Cassim. He then dived back underwater. Cassim stood in the shallow water, seeming to note that Benjamin was swimming underwater. Without even stepping onto the bank, Cassim dove underwater behind Benjamin and the two of them swam underwater for a time. "Alright," Amun said. "We all know who's going to win. Let's go back to Kebi and Heidi."

The other three rushed off, but Tia stayed by the bank. "Tia!" Sebastian called. "What are you doing?"

Tia waved her hand dismissively and leaned forward towards the bank. Benjamin's head popped up out the water and he collapsed down on the bank, panting. Cassim stomped passed him angrily. He never even noticed Tia standing in the shadows. "Need a hand?" Tia asked as she walked in front of Benjamin.

Benjamin looked surprised at her presence, but he took her hand nonetheless...for a split second. He jerked his hand back and gasped. "Your hand..." Tia looked down to see her hand glittering in the sun. Mentally, she was letting loose a stream of obscenities.

She looked over to see that Amun and the others were no where in sight. She looked down at Benjamin and allowed her robe to flutter over her hand. "Let's get you settled down behind Ziza's." She watched as Benjamin leaned against the wall, watching her. He stepped forward and brushed his hand against her scarf. "I hope your face is as beautiful as your skin and your voice..."

Tia stood frozen as Benjamin pulled her scarf off her face. Benjamin stumbled back slightly at the sight of her. "A-Are you an angel?" He whispered, awestruck.

She leaned forward, breathing in his scent. "Something like that." She winked. "Don't tell anyone." And within the blink of an eye, she was several yards away, in between two houses and out of Benjamin's sight.

Amun and the others appeared beside her before she could even register what happened. "What the hell was that?" Amun demanded.

"It looks like Tia's about to get laid!" Sebastian said, snickering. He elbowed Santiago. "Just like you."

"I hope you choke, pretty boy."

"Yes, but the question is, what would I be choking on?"

"Both of you, shut up!" Amun looked at Tia again. "What the hell was that?"

Tia felt dazed at her encounter with Benjamin. Luckily years of training kept her from biting him, but she imagined that he tasted absolutely exotic. "I...I was just getting close enough to get his scent, and before I knew it he was pulling off my scarf." She began tucking her scarf back in the hood of her robe so it'd cover her face.

"You idiot! He probably knows that you're not human now!" Heidi shrieked.

Amun glared at Heidi. He looked back at Tia. "It doesn't matter. He's got talent. He will make for a good vampire."

Tia froze. "So, we're going to turn him?"

Amun nodded. "It would appear so. We'll watch him for a little bit longer and then we'll head back to the cave. And you'd better stay out of his sight," he said with his teeth gritted. Tia clenched her fists and nodded bitterly.

For the next hour, they witnessed Benjamin start a fire with ease, though three other people could not do it, and they witnessed him saying that the rains would be coming later that night, but that they would only last for an hour or so.

After that, the group headed back to the cave, several miles away from the town of Edith. "He's very interesting. He'll make for a good addition to the coven," Santiago noted.

"You know what else would be good?" Sebastian asked slyly.

"Don't say it."

"I couldn't agree with you more," Amun said before trouble could start. "I'll go and turn him myself tonight."

Tia's eyes widened with anger. "I beg your pardon? I'm the one that saw him first! I should be the one to turn him."

Amun glared at her. "I have the final say in this coven and I say that I will be the one to turn him." Tia nodded grudgingly. "Good, now that we've agreed, this plan will take place tonight after the rain."

BW

Benjamin could hear the rain beating down on the roof of his small home. He turned onto his side and closed his eyes, though each time he did, all he saw was the beautiful woman he'd met earlier. He wondered where she was from and why he hadn't seen her before. "Don't tell anyone." She told him. He hadn't said a word to anyone about her. It's not like he would, even if she hadn't given the warning. The visit felt like a special moment, private and indescribable. He wondered what she could possibly be. There had been the legends of the Servants of Bastet and the Servants of Anubis, but they were never rumored to shine like that, or be nearly as beautiful...

An hour later, the rain stopped and Benjamin was finally able to fall asleep, peacefully.

End of Chapter One