Chapter 10 - The Vial
Alex followed after Elijah, sometimes she wished she could be a vampire. It felt like they had been walking for hours. In actual fact it had only been an hour, but Alex being lazy couldn't walk any longer.
"Can we please stop and rest for a minute." Alex called to Elijah. Elijah turned towards Alex, no emotion crossed his beautiful features.
"The longer you take, the more likely people will die come sunset." Elijah replied curtly. Alex took that as a no, she could not rest.
"Where are we going anyway?" She asked, if she couldn't rest she might as well take her mind off of putting one foot in front of the other.
"There should be a road around here somewhere. It leads to a small cabin not too far from here, a warlock lives there." He said vaguely.
"And why do you need me to go there?" Alex asked jogging to catch up with Elijah. He turned to her and stared for a moment. Had it been someone like Damon he probably would have raised an eyebrow but he answered her question nonetheless.
"As you probably know, vampires cannot enter a household without being invited in. This is also the case for an Original Vampire." Elijah answered turning to carry on walking.
"Wait, what?" Alex was confused, she had never heard the term Original Vampire before.
"My family and I are the Original Vampires, we aren't affected by sunlight and we cannot be killed." Elijah replied stiffly, seeming vexed at the notion of having to explain himself.
"Anything can be killed, there is always a way." Alex said knowingly, she knew that there was always a loop hole.
"Correct, but the details of how to kill an original vampire should not be discussed with the likes of someone like you." Elijah said curtly.
After another long hour of walking they reached the road, it was a long winding road with corner after corner after corner. Alex cursed under her breath as the road became steeper. "It's not too far now." Elijah called. Alex thought it was terrible motivation but she kept going, even though her calves were aching and she thought she could feel blisters beginning to form on the souls of her feet.
The cabin was small and wooden, with only two windows and a door. Elijah knocked on the door as Alex made her way over the last hill. The door creaked open and a tiny man with a balding head peered through a crack in the door.
"What do you want vampire!" The old man hissed his eyes fixed on Elijah. The man's gaze turned to Alex and he straightened a little. "Why do you have a witch with you?" The old man asked peering at Alex quizzically.
"She's here because she needs some help." Elijah replied quietly. Alex was confused, the help she needed probably wouldn't come from a warlock. Especially someone who clearly hated vampires.
"She can come in, you cannot." The old man said, opening the door for Alex to step inside. She entered reluctantly, turning to Elijah searching his face for help but it was still, as if it was made of stone. "What can I help you with?" He asked kindly, the hatred has vanished from his voice as he offered Alex a seat. She sat on the edge feeling uncomfortable, there were vials of dead animals and organs all around her. Piles of books that looked like they hadn't be touched in decades and the smell of the room made Alex's eyes water.
"I..um...well what it is..." Alex began, unsure of where to look so she fixed her eyes on the floor at her feet. "My...friend has been poisoned." She began, unsure of how she would be able to explain the whole thing. How could she tell him about Damon, he probably wouldn't help her if he she wanted to help a vampire. But why would Elijah have brought her here if he thought this warlock couldn't help?
"My friend is a vampire..." She paused for a second, looking up to judge his reaction. The old warlock frowned at her, not saying anything urging her to go on. "The thing is, this poison isn't to save him, it's to save the town. Come sunset he will be able to roam the street and feed on who ever crosses his path with no one able to stop him." Alex explained fixing her brown eyes onto his. He nodded solemnly letting out a frustrated sigh.
"I will help you, child." The old warlock said resting his hand on her shoulder. "But I fear that you may be too late to help some. By the time the potion is ready the sun will almost have set." The warlock got to work on the potion.
Damon shot to his feet his sensing tingling. The sun had almost set and he was going to tear this town apart. His fangs pushed down through his gums and he smiled at Stefan who stood beside him.
"Damon, you shouldn't do this." Stefan said taking hold of his older brother's arm but Damon pushed him back.
"See you later brother." Damon replied and he was out the Salvatore manor in seconds. He breathed in the cool Mystic Falls air and smelt his first victim. Tonight he would stalk his prey and tear their throats out so they could not scream. He made his way towards the trees and he could hear giggling from a group on young girls. He snapped a branch and heard one of the girls turn, he could hear her heart elevate and it was like music to his ears. Damon hid in the shandows watching a the girls prepared to tell stories, he took a step closer rustling the leaves purposefully.
"Did you hear that?" One of the girls asked she was a short blonde girl with high cheekbones and a long neck. Good for biting. The veins under Damon's eyes squirmed and he let out a low snarl.
"Don't be stupid Amber, there's no one out here." A girl said rolling her eyes at her friend. Damon stepped out from the shadows and the girls turned one of them screamed.
"No need to worry ladies, I live in the Manor house not too far from here." Damon said smiling at them.
"You're Damon Salvatore...Stefan's older brother." The girl called Amber said smiling back at Damon. He nodded giving her a small smile. He could hear the steady rhythm of their hearts and the urge to kill became too great. He snapped the blonde girl Amber's neck and sank his fangs into the soft skin of her neck and drank hungrily. The two other girls screamed running in different directions, Damon dropped Amber's body to the floor and sprinted in pursuit of one of the girls. "Where do you think you're going?" Damon asked appearing in front of the small girl. The scream built in the girls throat but Damon tore at it hungrily with his teeth and her head fell to the floor followed by her limp body. Damon's face was covered in crimson red blood but he didn't bother to wipe it from his face as he followed the footfalls of the last girl. Drunkenly he breathed in her scent intoxicated by her fear.
Alex and Elijah arrived back at the Salvatore manor too little too late. The front door was ajar. A high piercing scream caught Alex's attention and she began to run into the forest, the potion clutched tightly in her hand. Elijah took hold of Alex's hand and pulled her along, they found Amber face down in on the ground, Alex pulled her hand from Elijah's, sinking to the floor, her hands over her mouth trembling.
"Alex's me must go, else the body count will begin to build." Elijah urged. She got unsteadily to her feet, and followed quickly behind Elijah. Damon's attention was distracted from the terrified girl when he heard Alex's footsteps. Her aroma deterred him from his victim and with vampire speed went back to Alex. Damon spotted Elijah and Alex, he stepped out from behind a tree his hands up as if surrendering.
"Alex, my love I feel so betrayed." Damon said amused, flicking his gaze from Elijah and back to Alex once again. With vampire speed Elijah grabbed the vile from Alex and jabbed it into Damon's neck. Damon collapsed to the floor clutching his neck and slowly going limp.
"Wh-what happened!" Alex called, running to kneel beside Damon's body. She smoothed back the black hair from his eyes and carefully whipped the blood from around his mouth. Elijah then picked Damon up as if he weighed nothing, carrying him back to the manor house.