I heard his footsteps above me. The chains my wrists were wrapped in dug into my skin with my struggle to get free. I wouldn't let him getaway this time. No. This time I would kill him. This time I would slip free from this prison. I can't even remember what the outside world looks like. All I see, day to day, are these stone walls. The bars in front of me have been my only windows, and they only lead to more cells. I've been in his dungeon for too long. Today would be the day I broke out. I would go back to my life, find my family and move on. It would end here. Now. His heavy steps were on my level now. I could smell the fresh blood on him. He often didn't feed before visiting me. This means he's going to be stronger, more aware than usual. He'd be alert. Great. That's the last thing I need right now. A stronger Vampire.
"Good Evening." He said the same thing he says every time he comes down here. I never respond, usually. The way he's walking toward me now used to trance me, but I know better now, sort of. He could make me do anything if I looked him in the eye, and usually I was forced to look.
"You've already eaten. I can smell your kill on your breath. What do you need more for?" I said quietly. My throat sore from months of not talking. His eyebrow raised, he smirked and tried to look in my eyes, but I looked away.
"Why do you fight it?" He asked sighing and turning his back towards me.
"Humans often fight what they do not accept." I said. He turned back to me in an instant.
"You are not a human!" He exclaimed. "Not anymore. The sooner you come to terms with this, the sooner you will be set free."
"I will not succumb to your will! Let me free now." I demanded, like that would make him do it.
"Oh no, little Fey," This is the nickname he's come to call me since I've refused to tell him my real name. "You will learn. Maybe a night without supper will teach you a lesson." He walked out leaving me alone, still hanging from a wall. I guess tonight wouldn't be the night I broke free. It surprises me he didn't force me to feed. He usually does. It can't be that hard to miss a meal. I've been a Vampire for, well I've lost track, but around six months now. I've never missed a feeding, no matter how repulsive I find them to be. That man, I still don't know his name, turned me. He said he was keeping me captive for my own safety. I wasn't always chained to this cold wall. But after a couple failed attempts at killing him, he felt he needed to lock me up, for his safety. I hated him. I haven't seen my family or friends in so long. I didn't know if any of them survived the attack. Mr. Bloodsucker and a few of his colleagues crashed my eighteenth birthday party. It was outside in my parents back yard, and it was night. It's all a bit blurry to me, but I just remember those eyes. His silver eyes, he got into my head and made me believe it was going to be alright.
He lied, obviously.
For a Vampire, he was old, and rather ugly. I thought they didn't age, so either he was turned as an old man...or all the stories and myths about eternal life are wrong. His, I guess nightly now considering I sleep through the actual daytime, visits were for one purpose. To let me feed off of him, and the really disgusting part, to let him feed off of me. Yes, he looked like someone's Grandfather, that is with fangs and very pale skin, but he was still a pervert. Whenever one is bit by a Vampire, endorphins from the fangs get into the body, and it's a rather orgasmic experience…so I've been told. He just likes to see the look on my face when my body, unwillingly, goes into that euphoria. I couldn't wait to kill him.
A few hours passed before I tried to free myself from the chains again. I could feel myself growing weak from lack of blood, ugh. I wiggled until my wrists began to bleed. That's when the trouble started. I could smell my blood rather than feel it running down my tied up arms. I felt my fangs grow longer. Damn him for making me into this disgusting monster. I struggled more, only causing more blood to drain from my wrists. I felt an unwanting conclusion come to mind, to drink my own blood. He must've smelled the blood from wherever he was because he was in front of me in an instant, just as I was about to bite into my own lips.
"Four hours, and your already turning on yourself." He said smirking.
"I hate you. " I sprayed blood in his face as I yelled those words. He only licked the outside of his mouth before reaching up and placing his hands on each side of my head.
"You will look at me little Fey."
"No." I said, shutting my eyes so tight. That's when he bit my shoulder. I felt that euphoria consume me, and before I could stop myself I jerked my head forward and bit into his shoulder. I drank until he forced me away. He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped around his mouth, then did the same for me. It took a minute for the warm feelings to fade, but when they did I was disgusted with myself like I always am when this happens. Which is every day. He prepared to leave when I stopped him.
"I give up." I said weakly, even though now I felt much stronger physically. He stopped as the bars opened, and glanced back at me.
"I don't believe you." He said walking out of the cell. The bar door clanged shut.
"I swear it!" I cried before he left the dungeons completely. "Please let me go." I'd do anything just so I wouldn't have to give in to this torture again. He stood there looking at me, and then nodded. He came back in my cell and unlatched the chains. I fell unattractively to the floor.
"You will follow me, and do not try any tricks little Fey. I won't be so nice next time." I agreed and stood to follow him out of the dungeon. When we reached the main floor my eyes grew sore from all the lights. They were dim yes, but I hadn't seen any type of light in so long. There were a dozen or so vampire's spread out through the mansion as we walked to a bedroom. There were probably more lurking around outside. We stopped in front of a large door on the third floor.
"You're room will be heavily guarded in case you get any idea's." He opened the door, shoved me through and shut the door behind me. I could hear him turning a lock on the other side, and then his footsteps walked away. I needed to escape. Well, first I would shower and clean this blood off of me. I held my wrists up for inspection, they were already healing. One good thing about being a monster I suppose. I searched around my dark room for a door, and found two. One lead to a closet. The other, mercifully opened up into a grand bathroom. I flipped the switch, cringing when the lights came on. It took a minute for me to adjust to the brightness and when I did I began running my bath water. I grabbed a towel out of the closet and laid it down beside the tub. Once it was full of steaming hot water I undressed and slipped in. Instant gratification came over me. I stayed in the tub until the water turned cold and my fingers were turned to prunes. It was the best feeling ever, to finally be clean after months of being dirty. I can only imagine how terrible I smelled before. There was a knock at my bedroom door and I nearly slipped as I jumped out of the tub and reached for my towel.
"Miss?" I heard a young ladies voice come from the room. I opened my bathroom door and before me stood a girl, around my age I would guess. She had clothes neatly folded in her hands. She looked at me and smiled.
"Uh. Can I help you?" I asked timidly still standing in the bathroom doorway.
"Sorry if I scared you. I just thought you would like fresh clean clothes. I know the dungeons often ruin clothing." She had a point there, my clothes had been torn and bloodied for I don't know how long. She sat the pile of clothes on the large bed that I just now got a good look at. It was massive, California King size for sure. I looked back at the girl. She had long curly blonde hair, bright blue eyes and the palest of skin. Vampire.
"Thank you." I said quietly, not leaving my post.
"My names Ashley. Just let me know if you need anything by pressing that button there." She pointed to a black button that was embedded into the nightstand to the right of the bed. "It rings directly to me."
And she left. Her little fangs showed when she smiled before leaving, but she wasn't what I expected other Vampires to be. I dried off and wrapped the towel around my hair. I looked at the clothing. Everything seemed to be in my size, including the bra's and panties. I didn't want to know how they knew those facts. I put my undergarments on and slipped on a black shirt and jeans, that were way too long. I wasn't short, an average five foot six, but these must've belonged to a really skinny giant. I walked back into the bathroom and found it stocked with everything I could need. Make-up, hair accessories, everything. I guess they figured I'd be staying. I looked at myself in the mirror and nearly screamed. My brown hair had grown very long, nearly down to the middle of my back. My face, it looked different. Much more pale, and hollow if I may. I looked sick. I looked down at my body in the clothes. You could see my bones. I was on the border of anorexia. Not good. I liked my body before this mess happened. I had been a gymnast, and I had been toned to a T. Now...gross. This would not do.
I needed food, and fast. Then I would escape with a full stomach. I applied some make-up, mostly eyeliner which made my brown eyes stick out greatly against my pale skin. Brushed my hair that I would let dry on its own and walked to the little black button on the nightstand. I pressed it and Ashley's voice rang around the room.
"Yes miss?" Her soft voice startled me.
"Uhm, I was wondering if I could get some food."
"Of course! I'll be up in a few minutes." I nodded, and sat on the large bed. Ashley was walking in with a plate in her hands in no time. My stomach growled in anticipation. But when she handed me the plate, it held packets of blood. What one would see in a blood clinic. This was not what I had in mind.
"What is this?" I said picking up a packet and examining it.
"I thought you said you wanted food?"
"Yeah! Actual food. Steaks! Fries! Not more blood." I said flinging it back on the plate and setting it on the night stand. Ashley looked taken back by my sudden fury. She cleared her throat before speaking again.
"We can't consume actual food. I thought you knew that." My mouth dropped. No more food? No more greasy hamburgers? Pizza? Not even a damn salad? Oh no, this was not happening to me. I looked at the blood and my stomach growled. Even my own anatomy was turning against me. I picked up a packet.
"How do I..."
"You just bite it." She explained. I nodded and brought the packet to my mouth. Ashley watched as I drained the bag in no time. Then without realizing it I picked up another packet and did the same, and then another until all four were empty. Ashley took the empty plate and left without another word. I felt stronger. I felt like I could do anything. I walked back into the bathroom and looked at the mirror in surprise. Not completely back to my old self but at least my bones were no longer protruding. I was still ghostly pale but I had a feeling nothing would ever change that. Now, it was time I got the hell out of here. I walked back to the bedroom and pulled aside the drapes from one of two large windows. I looked outside, I was three stories up and it was completely black out. But for some reason that didn't scare me. I opened the window and sat myself on the ledge. I might get a broken leg out of this, but it would be worth the freedom. Besides the way I was healing, I'd be far gone before they noticed. With one last look at the bedroom door I jumped. I closed my eyes in anticipation for the impact and pain for when my bones would break, but I landed. I landed on my damn feet, crouching on the ground. I looked back up to the ledge I jumped from.
"Damn." I said quietly to myself. I looked around at my surroundings, my eyes adjusted themselves to the night and I could actually see. I didn't see anyone patrolling so I took off. I ran as hard as I could, not looking back, and not really knowing where I was headed. The house was surrounded by tree's, but I kept running. Nothing would stop me, nothing could stop me. Just as I thought this, I felt a sharp pain hit my right leg and I stumbled to the ground. I looked at my leg, no doubt about it, I'd been shot.
Fan-fucking-tastic.
I looked around me and even with my heightened sight I couldn't see anyone. But I could hear someone. Panic shot through me and I jumped up, I turned and came face to face with a body. A hard body. I looked up and bright blue eyes were glaring down at me.
"You set off the alarms." This stranger said evenly. I gulped. He looked serious, and maybe a little...intimidating. I felt like his eyes were boring into me. Before I knew it I was surrounded by three more men. Blue eyes stepped back and I just noticed he had his gun pointed at me, as did the others. I held my hands up in surrender. And then I heard clapping. All five of us turned and there he was. Mr. Bloodsucker himself.
"Very well, little Fey. You got further than I thought you would." My anger over came my fear and I glared at the man.
"Fuck you." I said and the air shifted. My friends always told me my mouth was more of a badass than I actually was. I spewed things out before talking, and it always got me in trouble. All the gun holders were holding their breath, waiting for what this guy would do. He stepped close and looked down at me. I got chills.
"I'll let you leave." I was taken back by this. "If you can win." He smirked. Damn.
"If I can win what?" I asked, putting my hands back by my sides.
"A fight of course."
"I don't want to embarrass you old man." I said strongly, though I was quite scared. He stopped smirking and glared at me. Even a geriatric patient could win against me in a fight right now. I'm shot for Christ's sake. I looked down at my leg. The bullet grazed my jeans, I only had a flesh wound, and it was already healing.
"Alex." Blue eyes stepped forward at the mention of his name. I gulped. He could snap me like a twig. "You'll be fighting our little Fey here." I turned back to the old man.
"You've got to be fucking kidding me." I said to him only causing him to smirk again.
"If you want to leave you have to get through him first." Fine, I could do this. Blue eyes, err, Alex handed his gun to one of the others and stepped a few feet away from me. His face was all business. His jaw was set tight. Alright, I can do this. A quick kick to the groin and an upper cut to the face. I've never fought before, but I've played street fighter. This guy was between me and my freedom. I could do this. I pulled my hands into fists and brought them up. I could hear the other guys sniggering, but I didn't care. Alex didn't move and I was growing impatient. I lunged forward, attempting to fake him out with a punch and then brought my leg up to kick him in the gold mine. But he was fast. He grabbed my foot and flipped me in the air. I fell on my back with a grunt, but jumped up and went after him again. Time after time he blocked my attempts, but he wasn't fighting back.
"Alex." Barked the old man. "Teach her a lesson." I looked up at Alex, he looked at the old man and nodded. I finally got a shot. I swung my fist towards his face while he was distracted. I'd love to say I got a good punch in, but no. That's not what happened.
Not even close.
Alex gripped my clenched fist and squeezed. I felt my knuckles crack. Oh crap. The next few moments were a blur. I tried to block as many hits as I could but they kept coming. One to my face, the next to my rib, my stomach, my ankle until I was lying on the ground, bleeding and breathing harder than ever. I tried to move, rolling over to my side. My vision starting going blurry, but I know someone knelt next to me and placed their hand on my shoulder.
"Pick her up and take her to see Marianne." I faintly heard the old man say. The person beside me slipped their hands under my increasingly weak body and lifted me. I tried to open my eyes to see who was carrying me, but even that tiny movement caused me to pass out. And so I did.
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"Jesus, Alex, what did you do to her?" I faintly heard a woman's voice from the darkness. I tried to open my eyes, but couldn't. I tried to speak, only to find I could barely move my mouth. I tasted blood. My blood. I tried to focus on what was going on around me.
"I only did what I was ordered to do." I knew that voice, blue eyes. He was carrying me. Oh nice, if only he hadn't just beaten me to a pulp. Alex laid me down on what I could only guess was a table of some sort. I tried again to open my eyes. This time I managed a little, only to feel blinded by bright lights directly above me. I tried to jump from the bed but only fell to floor. Things went dark after that.
Something was irritating me, a smell. It was terrible. I tried to get it away, but it was only getting worse. I felt like I was suffocating.
"Come on, child. Wake up." I heard that woman's voice again. I squinted my eyes, but it was too bright. I couldn't stand this damn smell anymore.
"Lights." My voice sounded croaky, but I have to say I felt immensely better than before.
"Oh! Of course, how silly of me." The woman laughed a little to herself and turned the lights to a low dim. I opened my eyes slowly. She came into view. An older woman, she had brown hair with streaks of gray. She smiled at me and I saw her fangs. Great, another Vampire. She seemed nice enough. I looked down at her hand. She was holding garlic.
"I thought Vampires couldn't stand garlic." I said quietly. She laughed slightly and shook her head.
"We don't enjoy the smell, as I'm sure you've experienced just now. But it does no harm to us. I'm Marianne Hathaway." She smiled and I nodded. "What's your name?"
"Dominique." I replied. I was getting a terrible headache. "Could we just turn the lights off all together? I feel a raging migraine coming on."
"I'll dim them more." She said as she walked over to a switch. "If I turn them completely off we'll just be standing in the dark. That would be silly."
"Oh, I'd hate for that to happen." I said sarcastically as I sat up on the table and rubbed my eyes. "Where am I?"
"You're in the medical room. I'm the Doctor here at the Castle." She smiled. "I hope you don't mind, we've been circling blood through your system. Alex took a lot from you." Ah yes, he did. Funny thing is, I didn't feel like I just got the shit beat out of me. I felt great, well, minus the headache.
"Can I go?" I just wanted nothing more than to get up to that big California King size bed and sleep this terrible dream away. She frowned.
"I'm afraid not. You've been out for a few days," My eyes widened at that. "Alucard wants you to learn a few things before you go gallivanting around the Castle again."
"And who the fuck is Alucard?" I didn't mean to sound so harsh, and the look on Marianne's face only added more grief. She was about to answer when I heard a door to my left and there he stood. The old vampire who ordered my beating.
"I am." He said. I frowned, at his smile. This couldn't be good. Alucard, weird name, walked towards me and frowned. I smiled sarcastically.
"Oh goody."
"I need to fill you in on a few things. First of all, you must not try to leave again." He glared.
"And why would I want to stay here?" I asked crossing my arms and glaring back. My intense staring only worsened my headache.
"Because if you do leave, that is if you can get past the guards, you won't make it far before its daylight out. Further more, the city of Prague is a days drive away. You will die." I stopped listening after he said Prague.
"You mean to tell me I'm not in the U.S. anymore?"
"That would be correct."
"How the fuck did you get me to a different country?" He smirked.
"I have my ways." I wanted to choke him. I stood and began walking around the room in a pace.
"Where's my family?" I turned and looked at him. He actually frowned, like he didn't want to say. This scared me.
"I'm afraid, I do not know."
"What? How could you not know?" I yelled, my voice cracking. "You attacked us! Are they dead?"
"I wouldn't say they're dead, technically. And I did not attack you and your family."
"Bullshit. I remember that." I said sitting back down on the table. I didn't remember that actually. I don't even remember what exactly happened. From my time in the cell I only assumed what had happened. Alucard stood in front of me.
"Dominique, you were attacked over six months ago by rogue Vampires. I was trying to track them down when I found them at your house. They had already left, but I'm sorry, they took your family with them."
"So my family was turned as well? Like me?" I asked with a little hope.
"No, not like you. It's possible they were turned but these vampires are different than us." I don't like the fact that he includes me in the word us, but whatever. "Rogue Vampires drain all the blood from their victims before turning them. We don't. There for we still have our souls, and we still age. We still reproduce, and we die. They don't. They never age, they live for thousands of years. When I found you, you had lost a lot of blood, but they must've forgotten about you. I gave you my blood and that's when you were turned, still intact with your human soul. I'm sorry but your family, if they were turned, were drained completely before turned, they have only vampire blood now. If you ran across them they wouldn't remember you, they'd only smell the human blood in you, and they would kill you. They are extremely strong." I was having trouble taking this all in. Alucard talked about my family as if they were monsters. Oh god, my mother, my dad…my baby brother…oh god.
"Can I please just go lay down." I begged, tears coming to my eyes. Alucard nodded.
"Alex will escort you to your room." He said and began to walk out of the room, then turned back to look at me. "I will want to speak to you when you wake, there is still much you need to know."
"Yeah, whatever." I said sniffing. Marianne put her hand on my back soothingly.
"It will be alright." Ha. Like I could really believe that. Alex stepped into the room after Alucard left. Marianne looked up at him.
"Try and get her to her room in one piece Alex." She said. Alex nodded, and I looked up at him. He had a small smirk. Oh, he thought this was funny? Asshole. I stood up and followed him out of the room. The doctor's room was in the basement. We walked past the cells and I cringed. I would never miss those chains. I looked up at Alex's back. The dude was tall, probably 6'5" I would say. He was quiet.
"How old are you?" I asked for sake of a conversation.
"Twenty-five." He said shortly.
"Did they have to chain you to the walls too?" I asked after he didn't say anything for a while. We reached the main hall, the lights were all dimmed. I guess us Vampires have pretty sensitive eyes. Oh crap, I just used the word 'us'.
"They usually have to chain all the new vampires up for a while. You were chained the longest from what I remember, and I've been here since I was fifteen." I looked at him with wide eyes. One reason was he actually said more than two words, and the other was because he was turned at fifteen? That sucks.
"Is your family here?" I asked as we reached the stairs. He nodded.
"You've met my sister, Ashley." Ah yes, the maid girl. "The others died."
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be, I killed them." I stopped in my tracks. Say what? He must've heard my lack of foot steps because he turned and looked at me. I guess I had a questionable face.
"They were turned into rogues. I had to."
"I couldn't imagine killing my family."
"If you ran into them and they tried killing you, you could." He turned and started walking. I soon followed and didn't ask anymore questions. If my brother tried to kill me…I'd probably let him. He was only ten, and we were really close. Alex must've read my mind.
"If you saw the monsters your family has become, you would want to put them out of that misery." I thought about that, he had a point. I shrugged.
"I guess." We had reached my room. He opened my door and turned to look at me.
"For a warning, there's three guys patrolling your window alone. I'm one of them. So for the sake of you not getting beaten to a pulp, stay in your room." He smirked and walked off. I scoffed and walked in, slammed my door and flopped down on the bed. What an exhausting day…err…night. What time is it anyway? I looked at my watch. Ten thirty at night. I wasn't even tired. This would be morning technically, if I were still human, for me. I guess I am still half human, according to Alucard. My thoughts drifted to my family. Monsters? Would kill me if they saw me? They probably could too, if they're so strong. That got me thinking. I pushed the little black button on my nightstand and Ashley's voice rang out.
"Yes Miss Aires?" Did everyone know my name now?
"Just call me Dom." I said.
"What can I do for you?" She asked politely. What a difference from her brother.
"Can you come to my room?" I just wanted someone to talk to and I figured, I'd give her a break from…whatever it is she does. There was a knock at my door and Ashley opened it and stuck her head in. I waved my hand for her to come in and when she just stood in the open door way, I smiled and patted my bed.
"Come sit." I said laughing a little. Ashley frowned.
"Did you need something?" I sighed.
"No, just some company and you're the only person I can stand to be around at the moment. Girl talk?" She looked confused. "I demand you to talk to me." I said sarcastically, but she actually bowed. Christ. "Ashley, how old are you?" I asked as she came and sat in front of me on my large bed.
"I just turned seventeen." She smiled. I thought back to what Alex had said, he'd been here since he was fifteen, which was ten years ago.
"So you've been here since your were seven?" She nodded. "And they made you become a maid?" Alucard has lost his damn mind if he thinks I'm going to be a maid. Ashley shook her head.
"No. I volunteered. I'm not much of a fighter, so I had to contribute something. The help here all do it because they'd rather not fight. My brother, Alex, chose to fight."
"Fight what?"
"The Rogues." Ah of course.
*****************************************************************************
I was never the type of girl who believed in ghosts, werewolves, and vampires. But after a long chat with Ashley last night, it brought things into perspective. For one, I'm almost convinced my old History teacher was a werewolf. The dude was hairy. Obviously I'm a vampire now, so why couldn't the other supernatural things be true? Ashley didn't seem to think that was so.
"We're the only supernatural beings around." I believe she said exactly. Well, that's what I would call close mindedness. I would talk to Alucard about this whenever that old fart decided to show his face, and then I would ask if there are witches…maybe they could turn Vampires back to humans…and if that were true, I'd go find me a witch and then hunt my family down and turn them back. Then I'd have her turn me back and we'd all go on with our lives and forget this mess ever happened. Yep. That's what I was going to do.
****************************************************
"No. There are no witches, werewolves, or ghosts. We are the only supernatural beings." Shot down. Alucard was surprised by my questions, but he chuckled and answered them anyway.
"How is that possible? Vampires exist don't they! I thought this was how things rolled in this world, Vampires vs. Werewolves, Witches vs. whoever they feel like?" I threw my hands up in the air. Why am I the only one who questions this?
"I've been around a long time, and my ancestors before me even longer…no one has ever come across any of those."
"Ah ha! No has come across them yet!" I smiled with confidence.
"Little Fey, we have our hands full with the Rogues to fight. We don't need to worry about silly little things such as big wolfs and Pagans." He shook his head, but he was still smiling. That only aggravated me more. I stood from the chair I was sitting in and walked around his office. It reeked of old people. Alucard sat behind his desk, a smile playing at his lips as he watched me.
"I know why you want to believe witches and others exist. You want to find your family and turn them back. Even if such things existed, it wouldn't be possible." He said and I stopped from scanning the large amount of books he had stacked up. I turned and looked at him.
"There has to be a way."
"I know it's hard, believe me, nearly everyone here has gone through what you're going through. But, your familys' souls have already left this world. They're in heaven. That's something that should comfort you. The bodies they left behind are being used, only moving because of the vampire blood moving through them. If you want to help them, the only way is to kill their corpses." I sat in the chair I was in previously and sighed. "Do you want to kill those responsible?" I looked at him. He had a serious look in his eyes. Did I? Hell yes I did.
"I'm not strong enough, and I can't fight."
"Oh, you're very strong, and we can teach you to fight." Ok, he peaked my curiosity.
"Just how strong is the average Vamp?"
"We all have super human strength."
"Even Ashley?"
"Ashley could snap you like a tooth pick before you saw her coming. Don't be fooled by her hospitality. All vampires know how to defend themselves, it's practically inscribed in our DNA. Ashley could be more powerful but she chose not to take that path, like her brother did. Instead she does what she enjoys, and that's making other people happy. She could care less about killing the Rogues." I was surprised. Sure, I knew I was stronger than before. I did jump out a three story window and land in a crouch, without broken ankles. It never really registered to me that that had been unusual. Ashley definitely didn't let on that she could break me in half. I'd figured even before I was turned I could've taken her. How embarrassing would that have been. Good thing we get along.
"So, even right now…I'm super human strong?"
"Yes. But without proper training, your strength is useless. We have classes here, for Vampires that would like to learn to fight. However most of the students have been training for many months, since you're new you'd be very far behind in the class." He looked like he was thinking something over. Then he reached to the side of his desk and hit a little black button. Kind of like the one on my bedside table. A man's voice came out loud.
"Yes sir?"
"Bring me Alex and Kirill." Alucard spoke nice enough I suppose.
"Right away." Alucard looked at me and smiled, but said nothing while we waited for Alex and Kirill to arrive. Soon there was a knock at the door. Alucard stood and walked towards it, opening it and let our guests in.
"Gentlemen, please take a seat beside our little Fey here." I hate that he still called me that. Alex sat to the left of me, and Kirill, I recognized him from when I tried to escape, sat to my right. "Which one of you will be next months lead?" Alucard asked and Kirill spoke.
"I will be, sir." He had a Russian accent. Nice. Alucard nodded. He then looked at Alex. I looked at Alex as well. He was sitting tall and straight. Towering over me. Matter of fact, both him and Kirill were towering over me. Alex looked grim. Like he knew what Alucard was going to say.
"Alex. You are going to catch Dominique up on what will be taught in Kirill's class next month." Well, shit he didn't look too happy about that. I'm not happy about it either, it's not like he's the most pleasant person to be around.
"Sir, that's only two weeks away. There's no possible way she could catch up on everything by then." Kirill said. I looked at him with my mouth open about ready to bitch him out when Alucard cut me off.
"It's plenty of time." I looked at Alucard who wasn't looking at me or Kirill, but he and Alex were looking into each other's eyes. Not in the "I want you way", but in a way that said they were having a private conversation and Kirill and I were not invited. Then Alex nodded. Both he and Kirill stood up and left without another word. Weird.
"When does the whole mind reading thing start for me?" I asked when Alucard looked down at some papers and basically forgot I was in the room. He looked up in surprise and then smirked.
"I'm afraid that will never happen. If you can't by now, you never will."
"Damn." I frowned.
"You can leave. You're training will start tomorrow evening at twilight. Alex will come get you from your room."
"Joy." I left his office and decided I didn't want to return to my room. The office was on the main floor. I walked down a long hallway that led to the foyer, a living room off to the right. There were younger vampires in there, watching TV. It got me thinking, just how many families were here, and how big is the place? I've only seen a fraction of the castle. It had been a while since I had some fresh air, deciding to go out for some I began to walk towards the front door. Kirill stopped me.
"Please tell me you're not trying to escape again." He smirked. I shook my head, too distracted by Alex behind him. He looked pissed as hell.
"I'm not leaving, I swear. I just wanted fresh air." Alex tilted his head and Kirill stepped back.
"Don't go far. You're still under watch." Kirill said and he and Alex walked off. Shit, now I didn't even want to go out, but I did anyway. I walked out the front door, there was a large fountain surrounded by gravel. I saw Ashley sitting on the edge, her hand reached towards the water.
"Hey Ash." I said walking towards her. She looked at me and smiled.
"Hi. I'm surprised they let you out without a guard." She chuckled as I sat down next to her. I rolled my eyes and looked up at the night sky.
"I miss the sun." I said. Ashley looked up as well and sighed.
"I don't even remember what the sky looks like with color." She said. I smiled. I remember it perfectly. Ashley looked at me.
"I hear you're going to be training with my brother."
"Word travels fast around here huh?" I said looking at her. She smiled and nodded.
"It's hard to find privacy, that's for sure. Alex is a great teacher. You'll do great." She said assuring me. I nodded.
"I hope so." I heard the front door open. Ashley looked towards it and frowned. I followed her stare. A girl about our age was walking towards us.
"Who is that?"
"Bristol. She's Alucard's granddaughter." She groaned, throwing the coins she had in her hands into the fountain.
"She looks like a bitch." I said with a raised eyebrow.
"She is. She's also a really good fighter, she trains with Alex too." For some reason that just made me hate her all of a sudden. Bristol stopped in front of us and smiled at me.
"I heard my grandfather brought another stray home." I think she was going for sincerity and kindness, but it came out like a sneer. "I'm Bristol Emerson." She said reaching her hand towards me. I took it and smiled like a good little actress.
"Dominique Aires." She nodded and then looked at Ashley.
"Have you seen your brother? I need to ask him something." Ashley shook her head and looked back down at the water.
"He was with Kirill." I answered, even though I wasn't asked the question. Bristol looked at me and smirked. Without saying another word she walked off. I looked at Ashley who was now glaring at Bristol's back.
"I hate her." She said quietly to me. I nodded.
"I can tell." Ashley sighed and stood.
"I should probably get back to work." She went back inside. I stood from the fountain and walked around to the back. It took me a good thirty minutes to get there, like I said, this castle is huge. The backyard had a large garden, with many smaller fountains placed everywhere. I saw a few more vampires, but none of them paid attention to me. I kept walking until I saw Alex ahead of me. He was seated on a bench and looking up at the sky. I didn't want to interrupt him, so I turned to leave.
"Dom." He said and I cursed to myself. I turned back around and did a little awkward wave. "Come here." He said. He had a way of saying commands like that but made them sound like I had a choice in the matter. I walked towards him and he stood.
"Are you sure you want to fight?" He asked as I stopped at the end of the bench. I nodded and he stood. "I take this very seriously. And I don't tolerate slack." I nodded again afraid to say anything. He looked behind him and cursed quietly to himself, though I heard the "F bomb" quite clearly.
"There you are! I've been looking all over for you." I heard Bristol and cringed. She smiled at Alex and then looked at me, and her fakeness almost faltered but she didn't lose the smile.
"What did you need Bristol?" Alex asked. She glanced at me out of the corner of her eye before putting all her attention on him.
"I was hoping to get a few training sessions in before Kirill's class."
"I can't. I have to catch Dominique up." Her smile finally fell and she looked at me. I smiled brightly.
"You're training?" She asked with a raised brow. I nodded.
"Sure am." Bristol looked like she was biting the inside of her cheek before she nodded, smiled at Alex and walked off. Alex turned towards me and was about to say something, but I cut him off.
"If you want to get a few extra sessions in with her, you can cut mine in half. Or someone else can train me." I suggested. No, I don't like that girl, however I got the slightest impression there was something between her and Alex. The look he was giving me instantly crushed that theory.
"No. That's quite alright, I'll train you. Besides, Alucard's word is law around here. You should go inside, it's only about an hour until daylight." He said sitting back down on the bench. I started to walk back towards the back doors, when I stopped and looked back at Alex.
"Shouldn't you be going in as well?" I asked. Why did I have to go in if he got to stay out? Alex turned his head to look at me. He smirked and shook his head.
"I can't go in until all the others are in first. Guard duty." He explained.
"And when the sun comes up? How are you supposed to guard this place when you can't even go outside?" I asked, walking back towards him. "And…I thought we all passed out when the sun started to rise." He sighed, like I was bothering him. Whatever. I'm curious.
"Only recently turned Vampires fall asleep before the sun rises. It's a biological mechanism that gets you used to when you should get inside before its too late."
"So, if I was out in the middle of the desert…" Alex scoffed.
"Why would you ever be out in the middle of the desert?"
"Hear me out." Alex put his hands up like a surrender and I continued. "If I were to be out in the desert and I fell asleep…I would die?"
"Obviously."
"You don't have to be so snarky." I said putting my hands on my hips. Alex stood, towering over me.
"I realize you don't know many things about being a Vampire just yet, but it's common knowledge that sun equals death." He said and turned to walk further away from the castle, and from me. For some stupid reason I followed him.
"How long until I don't pass out?" I asked trying to catch up. My legs weren't short or anything but compared to his, it took me a minute to get to him.
"Usually around a year." He said without turning around. I stopped.
"…a year." Sure…that isn't too far at all. He stopped and looked at me.
"But you've already been a vampire for…I don't know, six months or so? So you only have roughly five or six months left. Go inside already. And be ready by sunset." And he walked off. I yawned. Damn biological…whatever he called it. I turned and walked back to the castle, and then to my room. Ashley had two packets of blood waiting on my nightstand. How thoughtful. I drank them, changed into some pajamas and crawled into my large bed.
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Lauren and I were driving back from the mall. I had gotten so many new pairs of shoes, my parents were going to kill me when they got their credit card bill. When we reached my house I stepped out and grabbed all of my new bags. Lauren turned her car off and walked in with me, holding a few of her own bags. I unlocked my front door and stepped inside, all the lights were off. I sat my bags in the foyer and flipped the switch.
"Surprise!" Twenty or so people jumped out from behind furniture. I literally jumped into Lauren before I started laughing. My parents rushed forward and hugged me tightly before I was swarmed with guests, ranging from family members to my closest friends. Drew, my little brother ran to me and gave me a squeeze. His blonde hair was growing way to long, nearly to his shoulders. He brushed it out of his face.
"Happy Birthday D." He smiled.
"Thanks D-two." Lauren laughed and shook her head. We had been best friends since we could walk, yet she never understood why Drew and I called each other D and D-two. I thought it was pretty obvious…both of our names start with a D, and he was born second so therefore; D and D-two. Drew ran off with our cousin Aaron, and I mingled with my guests. The party was moved to the backyard, some of the guests were in our pool. My mom had to have spent the four hours that I was shopping to decorate. Our backyard was turned into the Tiki lounge. There were tiki torches lighting the now dark sky. My dad was making fruity drinks at a tiki bar. My Uncle James was grilling hamburgers and hot dogs. Lauren and I found a group of our friends and sat down on the patio chairs. This was the best eighteenth birthday.
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"Dom. Wake up. Alex sent me, he's waiting for you down in the Gym." I felt Ashley shake my arm and I opened my eyes. "You should really hurry, he doesn't tolerate tardiness."
"I feel like I'm back in High School." I grumbled as I climbed out of bed. I heard Ashley laugh before she left my room. I didn't even bother showering first, I was only going to get all sweaty anyways. I pulled on some sweats I found in my drawers, tied my hair up in a pony tail and…oh shit. I ran to my nightstand.
"Yes Dom?" Ashley asked.
"Where is the gym?" I asked. There was a pause, and then instead of Ashley answering back there was a knock at my door and she stuck her head through.
"Hurry!" She said rushing us out the door.
"Well if I knew where it was, I'd be there already." I said closing my door behind us. I followed Ashley, she took me to an elevator.
"Of course there's an elevator." I mumbled. Ashley looked at me.
"It takes us directly to the gym. It's about twenty feet below the mansion." My eyes widened. Did she really say twenty feet? I'm not claustrophobic, but that's scary.
"Why so hidden?" I asked as we stepped into the elevator. She pressed in four numbers on the keyboard and the doors shut. We headed down to hell…literally.
"It's far more than a gym, it's headquarters for the guards. We have advanced technology, it helps them track the Rogues. That's how they saved you. Whenever suspicious news headlines pop up around the world, Alucard sends a team there to check it out. More often than not, they find Rogues. Which brings me to ask, did you recognize the Rogues when they attacked your family?" She looked at me with interest. I tried to think back to that night, but I hardly remember any of it. I only remember up to the attack. Which, now that I think about it, is very odd. I shook my head.
"I don't remember." I looked at Ashley, she nodded.
"The code for the elevator is 1420. It's the year the castle was built." I was surprised. I knew the castle had to be around for a long time, but I never expected it to be this old. The elevator doors opened and we stepped out into a hallway. The white walls and many doors reminded me of a hospital. We walked down the hallway and stopped in front of a set of double doors. Ashley pressed in the same code and they opened. The gym was huge. A large floor mat was placed in the middle. Weight lifting equipment was placed on one wall, while treadmills were on the opposite side. There was also an Olympic size pool through glass doors on the opposite side from where we were standing. I felt at home, strangely enough. It felt like I was back home, getting ready for gymnastics practice. And then I saw Alex walk out of what I could only guess was a locker room.
"I'll see you later." Ashley said and walked out the double doors sliding closed behind her. Alex walked towards me, he didn't look happy.
"You're late."
"Yeah, about that…"
"For your tardiness, we're gonna start out on the treadmills." He said cutting me off.
"I'm sorry."
"I don't care. Two miles." He said walking over to the treadmills. I obviously got stuck with the hard ass for a trainer. I followed and got on the one next to his. I typed in two miles and began walking at a fast pace. Alex skipped the walking and started running.
"If you had gotten here on time you could've stretched, but now you have to run. No walking." He said not looking at me. I sighed, but punched up the speed and began running. I used to be in great shape, because of the ten years of gymnastics, but I never liked running on treadmills. After the first mile I was ready to collapse. Alex hadn't slowed one bit, and was barely sweating. I could only imagine how often he runs on these damned things. When I came close to finishing my second mile, I felt so incredibly light headed. Before I knew it, I tripped over my own feet. The fall was the most humiliating thing I think I have ever experienced. With the treadmill still going fast, I slid right off and rolled into the wall behind us. Alex slowed his treadmill down and eventually stopped. He got off and walked into an office off to the right of the gym. I laid where I fell, afraid to move my cramping legs. There was no doubt about it, I had shin splints. Alex came back out with two packets of blood.
"Why didn't you feed before you came?" He asked as I bit into one of them. I waited to answer him until I drained it.
"I was in a hurry."
"From now on make sure you feed before, or you'll hurt yourself." He said standing over me. I drained the second packet and felt better, I still had shin splints. I stood and looked at him. He was breathing easy and wasn't sweating. I was soaked in sweat. He took the two empty packs from me and walked back into the office. I walked over to the floor mat. It was springy, just like the ones for gymnastics. I didn't know what Alex was doing, but I decided to have a little fun. I walked to the corner and pretended like I was back in competition. I raised my arms and snapped them back down to my sides. I darted off in a fast run, did a round off into two back hand springs, and then finished it off with a back flip, landing right on the corner diagonal to where I started. Music came on above me. It sounded eerie, like something you would hear at a funeral. Men screaming "We will never sleep, 'cause sleeping is for the weak, and we will never rest, till they're all fucking dead" was not my type of music. Alex walked out of the office.
"Where did you learn how to do that?" He asked as he stopped in front of me.
"I used to be a gymnast before…you know." He nodded. "What the hell are we listening to?" I asked desperate to change the subject.
"Music." He raised his brows.
"You call this music?" I scoffed.
"I call this good music."
I don't pride myself on being a great fighter. Hell, this was my first day, and although Alex hadn't beaten me down like my first encounter with him, he was still leaving me with bruises that would last a couple of days.
"You have to rely on your senses first. Always remember that. Rogues are much faster and stronger than we are. But they have weaker senses." He said after he kicked my legs out from under me for the third time. When we had begun on hand to hand combat he had tied a bandana around my eyes. I declared it was cruel and unfair. He said it went along with the training. I stood up and ripped the bandana off my eyes and glared at him. He didn't flinch. Of course he didn't, but that's besides the point.
"How the hell am I supposed to defend myself when I can't see? Yeah, so they are faster, but I would be able to see them coming. I would have time to defend myself." I argued. Alex shook his head.
"They're quiet. They attack unfairly. You think I'm using the bandana for my own pleasure?" The thought had crossed my mind. "If you continue this track of thinking, you'll be killed by a Rogue faster than a blink of an eye." It was eerie to me how he never raised his voice. It was always steady. There was emotion, but it only showed in his eyes, and only when he was angry. Which was about fifty percent of the time he was around me. Most of the time he looked like a fierce statue. And I wasn't blind. He was extremely attractive that way, but also incredibly irritating. He grabbed the bandana from my hand and tied it back around my eyes. The music turned off, and I had the slightest suspicion someone else was in the room besides the two of us.
"Listen." Alex said quietly. I sighed loudly, but then took his advice. I cleared my mind. Listening for any movement. I could smell him, but smell wouldn't do much good. Ashley had told me Rogues have no scent, which makes them damn near impossible to single out in a crowded place. Then I felt the air move. Literally felt it, and I heard the beginning of a swooshing sound. But I was too slow, and once again fell onto my back with my legs kicked out from under me. I laid there for a moment. That fall had knocked the wind out of me. The bandana was pulled from my eyes. Kirill was leaning over my face.
"You alright?" He asked, a smile playing at his lips. I rolled my eyes and pushed his face away from me. He laughed as he stood next to Alex. There was tension in the air, but I hadn't the slightest clue why.
"You almost had it that time." Alex said. I took it has a huge compliment. "I think this has been enough for today.
"But you haven't even taught me defensive moves yet." Did I really just complain? What is wrong with me?
"You have to be able to sense danger before you can defend yourself against it."
"Maybe you should keep her a little longer Alex," Kirill suggested. "With what little progress she's made, she needs all the extra time you can give." I didn't like how he talked as if I wasn't in the room. I looked at Kirill who was looking at Alex.
"I don't think I like you very much." I declared. Kirill looked at me with a lazy grin.
"Sweetheart, what makes you think I care if you like me or not?" What an asshole.
"He's right. You need to be able to sense an attack before I let you go for the night." Alex said interrupting what I thought would've been a good argument between me and the Russian. Kirill left and Alex looked at me.
"He's going to be your trainer in a few weeks, remember that." Alex said wrapping the bandana back around my eyes.
"How could I be so lucky?" I said before, once again, I was kicked to the mat.
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