Disclaimer: They're not mine. Please don't sue.
Forgive me father for I have sinned. It's been 20 days since my last update.
"Are you okay, sir?" Daniel asked quietly.
Eliot stared at his reflection in the guilded mirror, not sure what to make of himself. His hair seemed a darker brown to him and his skin appeared a shade whiter, like a porcelain vase he once lifted from a museum in Bangkok, and the lines that had begun to form on his face from years of travel and combat and stress were suddenly gone, as were the scars. He stared at his own eyes, bluer than they'd ever been, and nearly lost himself in his own reflection.
"It's an old wive's tale, sir." Daniel's soft Irish brogue broke through Eliot's contemplation.
"I'm sorry? What?" replied Eliot as he shook his head and jammed his hands into the pockets of his sweatshirt.
"The old myth that you can tell someone's vampire because they haven't a reflection."
"Myth?"
"Self-preservation; misinformation of sorts," replied Daniel as he leaned against the wall. "In fact, most of what's known about vampires is all myth."
"Like they can be repelled by garlic?"
"Mmm garlic. I like garlic, especially with shrimp."
"Crosses and Holy water?"
"Been attendin' mass every Sunday for goin' on three hundred years."
"Seriously?"
"Promise I made to my mum on her death bed."
"Those are promises you have to keep," Eliot laughed. "What about a stake to the heart?"
"Oh, now that one's true."
"Ah. Avoid wood. Got it."
"And silver."
"Silver?"
"Silver won't kill us, but it'll allow us to be weakened so we can be killed." Daniel started back down the hall. "It was the silver in the handcuffs that kept you under control while you changed."
"What about bullets?" Eliot asked.
"Oh, those hurt like a mother goin' in, but they're harmless. Best thing t' do if you get hit is play dead. Even if they put a bullet in your head for good measure, the only thing you'll get is a nasty headache."
"Anything else I should know? Is there some sort of orientation or induction like the army?"
"No." Daniel laughed. "It's not like we gather all the novice vampires for formal classes or anything. Captain Mercier's blood helped create you so he's responsible for you. He'll be your guide until you're strong enough to be on your own. I'll be your bodyguard until then as well." Daniel reached to open a large paneled door.
"I don't need a bodyguard." replied Eliot.
"Sir, you're strong enough t' take on a human, maybe several at once, but you're nowhere near ready t' take on another vampire. We get stronger and more powerful with age. Right now, you're a mere infant."
"How long is that gonna take?"
"It'll be a couple, three weeks, sir. You'll stay close t' the nest for a few months after."
Daniel turned the handle and opened the door to the library. "Captain Mercier and the Minister will tell you everything you need t' know." He stood to the side and let Eliot pass.
Eliot let his eyes adjust to the room. The lamps barely gave off any light and the windows were covered with heavy dark curtains. Eliot remembered he could walk around in the daytime but the others couldn't. The sun would be over the horizon soon and the others would be going...somewhere.
Eliot heard Nate cry out 'Parker! No!' just as she jumped into his arms. As he embraced her, the room went completely dark. He was back in the basement, this time looking at himself struggling under the weight of three people. He heard tendons tear as he dislocated his shoulder. He saw himself hauled to his feet. He saw his shirt torn away from his body and his own blood flowing down his his chest. He saw himself lowered to the floor and then hoisted onto another man's shoulder.
He felt Parker being pulled away from him. He felt his legs buckle. He felt himself being picked up and set down again on a sofa. He felt a pillow under his head.
"El! I'm sorry!"
Eliot looked around, his vision still blurry. "Waterston," he said quietly. " Waterston fed on me."
"Yes," replied Mercier. "That's why we had to turn you. You lost too much blood."
Eliot covered his eyes with his arm. "What happened? Why did I see those things."
"It's a gift, Eliot. It may not seem like it now, but once you learn to control it, you'll find it can help you do great things." The Minister's voice echoed against the stone walls of the library. "Miss Devereaux, would mind helping me for a moment."
"Not at all," she replied.
The Minister reached out for her hand. "Come over here, child." The Minister put his arm around her. "I need you to think of a happy memory, a recent one. Perhaps a memory you and young Eliot share. Can you do that?"
"Yes. Yes I can." Sophie closed her eyes. A minute later she opened them. "Okay."
"Sit close to him. Put your arms around him. Get as much contact between your bodies as you can."
Mercier helped Eliot sit up and Sophie sat down next to him. She hesitated to touch him but gingerly she gave him a hug and he returned it. He closed his eyes and rested his cheek against hers. His skin grew hot as he saw himself walk on stage and sit behind the microphone. The melody danced in his head and he could feel the vibrations of the words against his chest. The bar was dark and it seemed he was the only one in the room. He relaxed and let Sophie hold him for just a moment.
When he opened his eyes, he could see clearly again.
"How do you feel?" she asked as she let him go.
Eliot smiled. "Better." He rested against the back of the sofa and tried not to look at the small crowd around him.
"Minister Alexander filled us in on some of the details of what happened to you." Nate sat down next to him. "It's quite extraordinary. Apparently you are able to absorb memories from other people."
"That's why I saw Waterston feed on me. It was what Parker saw."
Eliot leaned forward and rested his head in his hands. The memories from the last few days began to trickle through from the deep recesses of his mind. The grey figures. Drinking the blood. Victoria.
"Victoria," he whispered.
"She's on her way down to see you."
"She's okay?" He lifted his head and looked up at Nate. " My God, there was so much blood."
"It wasn't your blood," replied the Minister. "Your Queen, our Queen, is alive and well."
"Queen. Those things that came out of the staff. I'm sorry. I have so many questions."
"Souls," replied Nate.
"The souls of the queens and their guardians" said the Minister. "They are what hold our different species together. Your gift comes from them. Within your body are the souls of eleven guardians and yours makes twelve. You are a vessel that holds more than 5000 years of our history." The Minister pulled a chair closer to the sofa and sat down. "You are the guardian of memory. Our world has been in the midst of a civil war for the last hundred years because we have been without a Queen and a Guardian."
Eliot stared down at the floor, silent. He swallowed, licked his lips and brought his hand up to his chest. He didn't want to look at any of them. He had a hard enough time processing what was happening to him without everyone staring at him. He closed his eyes and listened to the symphony of heartbeats. He wrinkled his nose. Whiskey. Nate. He wondered how much he'd had to drink today. Hearts were beating faster now. Chanel mixed with the whiskey. Sophie. Plums. Parker. Oranges. That had to be Hardison with all that soda he drank. The burning in his chest began to spread to his arms. He rolled his head to the side and opened and closed his fists. He heard whispers and through closed eyes saw shadows dancing back and forth. The whispers turned into shouts, panic. He licked his lips again only to find his fangs in the way. He had no choice now. He had to see what was happening around him. He nearly wretched when he opened his eyes and saw a bowl of blood being held near his mouth. He tried to lean back, to get away but a strong hand cradled his neck. He saw Daniel, to his left, holding Nate back. He saw Hardison shouting and struggling to break free from the grip of another vampire, but he didn't hear him. A voice broke through the haze.
"Eliot. Eliot! You need to drink." The voice sounded familiar. Mercier.
Eliot tried to brush the bowl away from his face, but Mercier grabbed his hand. Eliot tried to look away, but the hand on his neck held him fast.
"Eliot, drink this," said Mercier. "It's animal blood." Mercier held the blood closer to Eliot's lips. "Come on. Drink."
The infant vampire leaned forward and began to drink, slowly at first, then in long fast gulps. He finished the whole bowl. As he felt his fangs retreat, he leaned back against the hand on his neck. His eyelids fluttered and he saw clearly again.
"You faded out on us," said Mercier. "You're okay now."
Eliot rubbed his eyes. "This shit's gettin' old." He looked around for the rest of the team. They stood back, silent and fearful, as far as they could get. He look back at Mercier. "What did I do? Why are they afraid of me?" He asked under his breath.
"You were scent tracking your prey," replied Mercier.
"My prey? You mean..." Eliot didn't wait for an answer. He jumped up from the couch and started for the door, keeping his gaze down to the floor.
"Eliot!" Nate called after him. "Eliot, it's okay. It'll pass." Eliot stopped and looked at him then, saying nothing, he turned back toward the door. Nate pulled away from Daniel and rushed toward Eliot. He turned and as Nate reached out Eliot grabbed his arm, attempting to swipe it away. Instead he heard the crunch of bone as Nate's forearm snapped under his grip. Nate dropped to his knees but Eliot couldn't make himself let go.
"Eliot! My arm! Let go!" Nate cried out.
Eliot dropped the arm and backed off. "I'm...Oh God."
Mercier and Sophie tried to help Nate up off the floor as Daniel restrained Eliot, holding his arms behind his back. Eliot thrashed, but even though he was strong enough to snap his friend's arm in two, he was no match for the three hundred year old vampire.
"I'm sorry, Nate. God, I'm sorry."
Mercier helped Nate to a chair as Nate cradled his injure limb. "His strength is growing faster than we expected. I should have known, but it has been a thousand years since we've had a vampire Guardian."
Eliot pulled against Daniel's grasp, trying to get to Nate.
"Sir," said Daniel. "You need to calm down. You could hurt him again without meaning to. You don't really know your own strength yet."
Eliot continued to struggle. He watched Nate's labored breaths. "I'm supposed to protect them, not hurt them." He was frustrated and angry.
"Listen to me." Daniel tightened his grip on Eliot and drew him closer. "You can still protect them. It's going to take time. Let us protect them until you're able again."
Eliot stopped and leaned against Daniel. "How can I help them if they're always going to be afraid of me?" For the first time, Eliot really looked at Hardison and Parker and saw the fear in their eyes. He smelled their fear and it broke his heart.
Daniel walked Eliot over to Mercier and Nate. "I'm going to let you go. Don't try to touch him, not yet." Daniel release Eliot's arms, but held his right wrist, his thumb pressing the veins in the inside of it. "Right here, the blood is closest to the surface. Bite into your wrist and make sure Nate drinks before the wounds close."
"Are you serious?" Eliot shook his head. "Him drink my blood?"
"You want me to drink his blood?" Nate sounded worried.
"Yes," replied Daniel.
"You need to know what it can do," said the Minister. "Your blood, that is. It's truly remarkable."
Eliot again felt like he was going to wretch. "This is sick."
"Eliot, the sooner you accept who you are, the easier the transition will be," said Mercier.
Nate tugged on Mercier's sleeve. "I'm not...you know...going?"
"You won't be drinking that much, just a few tablespoons," Mercier replied. "You would have to be drained of your own blood and then drink several pints of vampire blood to change. Remember how much Eliot had to drink."
Nate nodded and looked up at Eliot. "Trust them like I trust you."
Eliot managed something resembling a sigh and held his wrist to his mouth. He silently counted to three, popped his fangs and bit down hard. The pain from the bite traveled up his arm and then quickly subsided. Blood poured from the wound as he held his wrist out to Nate who took it into his mouth, drank for a few seconds then stopped as the wounds closed. Eliot backed away and looked down at the floor.
"Eliot, don't. You have to see what happening," said Daniel.
Eliot looked down at Nate's arm. The bruises that had started to form began to disappear and the deformed bones appeared to heal themselves. Nate flexed his hand and wrist and looked with wonderment at the arm. "It's fine," he said laughing. "It's like it never happened."
Eliot stumbled back to the sofa and sat down, clutching his chest.
"You need to feed again," said Nate.
"It's like bad Chinese food. You eat and hour later you're hungry again."
