The Procrastinator
Author's Note
This chapter was already partially completed when the Canadian media reported on a despicable murder in the Toronto subway system. As most of the action in this chapter takes place at a subway station very near where the murder occurred, I considered delaying posting by a couple weeks or deleting most of this chapter altogether.
In the end I decided I was overreacting to what in the end is a story quietly posted online. If I am wrong in concluding this, please believe I'm sorry if I have offended anybody with this most recent chapter.
I thank everyone who has read and hopefully enjoyed the story so far!
Even a committed sci-fi fan, even a mature sixteen-year-old (or almost-sixteen-year-old, in Rory's case), even a monster-hunting charter member of Team Sabre, hates to leave a fire-in-progress! To see the fire-trucks, to see the hoses connected to the hydrants, to see the firefighters valiantly try to save the burning house. And, of course, some of the firefighters even went so far as to enter the burning building and see if there was anyone alive . . . not knowing that the people who had recently lived there hadn't been alive for many a year.
The firefighters, of course, didn't find anyone. They had to soon evacuate, what was left of the top stories were at risk of falling through to the basement floor. Even the so-recently wet roof was burning steadily now; and it was apparent there would be nothing left of the old mansion but ruins. Funny to say, it had been a neighbour's call that alerted the firefighters and not any house alarm. That was the one thing Colby had neglected in his studious upkeep of the family home.
That delay was a key reason why the light and smoke from the fire could be seen across the whole neighbourhood; from the Don Valley on the east to the subway line in the west.
The Rosedale Subway Station had opened with the original Yonge subway line in 1954, but it was one of the least used in the system. The people in that wealthy neighbourhood typically didn't bother with public transit; nor did the station have connections to major bus routes. Built in a ravine, and this early in the morning, the open-air station had more of the feel of a small town railroad station. Only the double platforms, the electrified high-voltage third rail of the track, and the pedestrian bridges across the subway tracks suggested they were actually in Canada's largest city.
So early in the morning, it was a bit of a wait for the train that would come from the north, go downtown and turn north again on the trip to Wilson, on the U-shaped Yonge-University line. An entire fifteen minutes, but even that was "awesome-lucky" (or so said Benny) as the fact the subway even ran this time of night was due to a summer pilot project.
Ethan, Benny and Rory were cheerful that their night of terror, failure at the Bank of Hamilton, and last few days battles seemed all over. Their troubles were slipping into the background.
Besides thinking wistfully about watching the fire, Benny had been considering what he would tell his mother. Benny decided to lock his phone, then claim he couldn't get her calls because it was locked. He'd say the rainstorm delayed them; and they had an invitation to meet Single Tear. That was true . . . sort of. Would she believe him? Yes . . . maybe?
Should Benny tell his mom the truth? How would Benny's mom feel if she knew her son spent the night battling vampires, held a thousand feet in the air, nearly hanged by confused ghosts, running around atop a burning house . . . . Would she be proud, like his grandma . . . that is to say his Grandma Evelyn? Or would Benny's mom just freak out?
"Freak Out" said Benny under his breath.
That was as good a reason to lie as any.
Rory was looking at his cool photos. Rory noticed that, before they moved on, the ghosts had taken a group shot with Team Sabre minus Sarah. Just outside the grounds, with the burning house deep in the background. Aside from the ghosts' old-fashioned clothes, they looked normal and alive. That was awesome! And those two ghosts in the fedoras . . . Sylvester Gainborough and Tim . . . were standing on Rory's sides. Rory was so cool he even impressed the dead! He'd definitely be emailing copies to Benny and Ethan. Sarah of course, maybe Erica if he ever discovered her email address.
It was just too bad Rory was missing the fire! Rory could hear the fire sirens as more trucks drove by! It must have been at least a three-alarm blaze! Unfair! Rory hadn't gotten the close-up view of the lucifractor explosion like Ethan and Benny did. It would have been awesome to be there right with them and . . . and . . . .
Heck, he couldn't have been right there and seen it, could he?
Rory remembered that if he had, he would have been knocked out like Sarah . . . and not come to until the dark energy had well and left his system and he was back to his good old human self. Rory instead had his dark energy slowly drained, and that bloodsucker's curse starved in an even ten minutes time. Rory would have missed seeing everything! As terrifying-gross as the aging and oozing death of Anastasia and Jesse was he wouldn't have been left out of that for anything. Rory even had his picture taken right there . . . his first photo in two years. Actually, one year nine months. And that was one year nine months too many.
It was as awesome the way it was! And just escaping the burning house . . . that was cool enough for Rory! There'd be other fires!
Ethan was easily the most mature of the three boys, but even he looked regretfully at the nearby glow in the sky and the still rising smoke. Sure, the three had barely escaped the fire! But what a fire! Sometimes, though, a guy has to do what he has to do! It just wasn't worth answering a lot of questions if they were caught on site.
Well, once the three got back to Benny's grandmother . . . and finally had some sleep . . . they could go back on their cool vacation. Canada's Wonderland was probably next! An amusement park would be an awesome way to celebrate their victory over the bloodsuckers! No, first Ethan would call Sarah. Wouldn't she be amazed, impressed, even awestruck the three geeks managed to defeat three major vampire bosses . . . without her?
"Bosses", because in Ethan's mind, Colby, Harlow and Gus no longer were James Bond's nemeses . . . "Double-O-Ethan" had been an epic fail. Instead the three bloodsuckers reminded him of video game villains and levels!
It was just too bad Ethan didn't know the last boss level was yet to come. And what mental and physical strain he'd face before the dawn.
Harlow had wasted precious time unconscious, and even more time finding his sword. Then Harlow wrongly concluded his three targets had tried to escape via the Castle Frank Station well to the south. Harlow's failure to find them there at first rattled him, he thought the trio had well and truly escaped; had without consequence destroying Harlow's friends, another vampire council chambers and all that was left of Anastasia's collection of vampire lore and knowledge.
All Harlow had left were the museum clothes on his back. But he couldn't shrink away in disgrace! He had to find and destroy his enemies to save a semblance of his respect and position.
Harlow realized his enemies may be precocious, but still yet boys. Modern boys brought up with an array of gadgetry and spoiled by comforts unheard of even a mere century before. Modern boys accustomed to a seemingly ordered and scientific world. Modern boys who would have been overly impressed by a mere strike of lightning. They wouldn't be taking precautions any longer; they would think Harlow not un-dead but true-dead!
There was a chance Harlow's quarry would be hopelessly exposed at the Rosedale Subway Station. And that was where Harlow would search next!
The dead travel fast, so as the rainstorm ended Harlow flew over the Rosedale Station and spotted his prey as a hawk spots a mouse. The three were on a bench alongside the wall and undercover, so the swoop-down approach wouldn't work. It was just as well, Harlow would have a word with the miscreants before he killed them.
It was again with the villainous bragging! It hard for an old vampire to change his ways after so many years. And Harlow was far too proud . . . and so enraged his eyes now consistently glowed yellow.
Harlow landed heavily on the platform. Ethan, who had been relaxing with his hands behind his head, stared straight in terror. Benny's arm limply lowered his smartphone. Rory came very close to fumbling his camera.
The colour drained from the three living boy's faces, and Harlow could hear their pulses quicken in their surprise and terror.
Benny and Rory put away their phone and camera respectively while Ethan dropped his arms. At once the three jumped up with their light sabres. Their light sabres without blades. Harlow had sliced the sabres with his sword, the stubs of the retractable blades wouldn't even light.
"Whatever you do" Ethan reminded his friends nervously, "Don't look into his eyes."
"Oh yeah, vampire hypnotism" Rory said.
"It is called glamouring!" corrected Harlow icily. "And I have you in front of me! I needn't waste those powers on you now . . . and, of course, I want you to suffer."
Stunned, the three cowered against the station wall. Of course, they could have been speared right off by Harlow's sword. But Harlow continued to brag . . . .
"Trapped like rats" said Harlow, with satisfaction. "You thought I was dead? I do suppose you burned Gus? Very ironic given his preferred method for obscuring his movements!"
"You were just struck with 1.2. gigawatts of electricity" Benny complained.
"Do you think a vampire can be killed by a mere electrical charge!" asked Harlow, with an evil leer. "My, my, you have had such awful teachers!"
"Dude, are you insulting my Grandma Evelyn?" said Benny, spiritedly yet a bit tremulously all the same.
"B-Benny's grandma is awesome" added Rory.
"It's such a shame that she will soon be in mourning" said Harlow contemptuously. "But I have long lost count of how many mothers and grandmothers, fathers and grandfathers, I have placed in mourning."
Benny, realizing it was up to him, again tried his fireball spell. But it appeared he still couldn't master it.
Harlow laughed.
"There's cameras here, Benny" said Ethan nervously. "We would have been in trouble anyways."
In an instant, Ethan, Benny and Rory could see the broken security cameras falling on both platforms. Harlow had used his sword and super-speed to destroy them in a blink of an eye.
"Whoa! H-he's fast" Rory observed.
"Will you care to hear your new death sentence?" Harlow grinned. "For treasonous activities against two duly constituted vampire councils."
"Again with the death sentences" groaned Ethan.
Rory felt like slumping to the floor. Not only was the caffeine starting to wear off, but . . . hanging . . . splatting . . . impaling . . . draining . . . burning . . . all in the last few days!
But Benny wasn't going to let this go without an argument . . . .
"Dude, that's a load of crap!" said Benny angrily. "There weren't two vampire councils. You never managed to start up the Toronto one."
"Insignificant" sneered Harlow. "Ex post facto, I declare it had been duly constituted. For your crimes, I find destruction by electro . . . electro . . . ." Harlow hesitated as he tried to remember the word, "Electrocution! Being struck by lightning isn't fatal but it was inconvenient and quite painful to me. So electrocution for you! And don't think you can forestall your demise by again by crowing about the burial of your mortal remains! You first, Ethan!"
Without another moment's notice, Harlow grabbed Ethan by the neck. And, in spite of their fear, in a moment of instinct, Benny and Rory grabbed Ethan by his arms to pull him back. Unfortunately, this didn't stop Harlow from sliding the three teens across the platform.
It did ruin Harlow's throw. He had intended to toss Ethan onto the deadly third rail, electrocuting him while likely breaking every bone in his body to boot. Instead the three slid off the platform and fell roughly onto the tracks.
"Will I never be rid of you three!" screamed Harlow, as he jumped off the platform to stand on a crosstie.
"Lightning lummite nummow!" said Benny, aiming a bolt of lightning at Harlow.
A completely ineffective bolt that Harlow bounced off with his sword. Fortunately, the spell didn't again ricochet at Rory; the bolt did hit the wall. Specifically, it hit the "D" on "Rosedale", blasting it off and leaving "Rose ale" . . . which Benny would have found funny at a better time.
"Try again" Harlow sneered at the boys helplessly splayed before him on the tracks.
Benny tried again. But all he could think about was "Rose(d)ale", so . . . .
"Why the frack are you giving him roses?" asked Ethan.
"Are they magic vampire-killing roses?" asked Rory hopefully.
"No, they're my give-a-chick-a-bouquet-of-roses spell" said Benny hopelessly, tossing the roses to one side.
The roses hit the electrified third rail off to the side, making the three boys flinch as the roses instantly burnt in a shower of sparks.
Then they barely dodged a wild swing from Harlow's sword.
"Benny, protective shield!" said Ethan.
"Glass'm indelible indestructible . . . uh, Benny, Ethan and Rory"
A massive cloud that obscured their view.
Benny produced something. An enormous . . . thing . . . that the panicked Benny produced this time with irregular sides and crazy angles here and there. Rory found his head above this pink opaque box, and the rest of him inside. Ethan was half in, half out, one foot in and one foot out, and had Harlow's sword in his hand. Benny was completely inside, but so was Harlow.
"I can always use my fangs" Harlow told Benny. "Thank you for making it so easy to drain you all."
"TRAIN!" yelled Rory.
Even Rory's terrible night vision, even his sleepy eyes looking through his contacts, couldn't mistake those lights, that rumble, that sound as the train appeared from the distant tunnel with the deadly letters reading "DOWNSVIEW STATION VIA UNION" on the electronic sign in front.
The shudder of the rails made Benny's "indelible" geometric thing collapse into dusty pink powder; a powder that reminded Ethan and Rory very much of Pepto Bismo.
No time to climb up off the track! But if they could somehow hop over that third rail . . . .
But now, on the other track, another rumble as the train with the sign reading "FINCH STATION VIA UNION" sped in, it being timed to arrive in Rosedale at the same time as the train headed to Downsview Station.
Could a vampire stop a train? Neither Benny nor Ethan nor Rory knew. Harlow didn't know neither; nor was he was going to give it a try. The vamp flew up in a panic . . . and crashed headlong onto the Southbound Platform.
Benny regretted that his list of memorized spells was so short. But Benny didn't regret using his floating spell for the third time that night. It was incredibly awkward, with no rope Ethan and Rory had to grasp on.
The three teens fell onto the platform opposite Harlow, and scrambled into the last car of the train headed northbound towards Finch. Any train in a storm!
"Benny, dude" panted Rory, out of breath. "I'll never say you suck at magic again! It was gnarly, but it did the job."
"It wasn't any worse than when you lifted me up, Rory, back when you were playing vampire ninja last year" gasped Ethan.
"Uh, yeah" said Rory uncertainly, as "vampire ninja" had lost its appeal.
"Rory" said Benny, reassuringly. " the fact you used one of the bloodsuckers most lethal moves as an innocent game . . . well that explains why our pal Rory had never have any business being a soulless un-dead creature of the night.
"Do you figure Harlow will find us?" asked Rory, as he allowed himself to relax on a chair in the empty car. "Ethan?"
"I hope not" said Ethan, in an understatement. "Benny?"
"You're the seer, Ethan!" Benny exclaimed.
Well, at least their northbound train was off.
As for the "DOWNSVIEW VIA UNION" train, it had stopped short. The driver, under the glare of his headlights, had to his horror seen four three people on the tracks. But they had seemed to disappear! But the driver couldn't go on . . . it was potential lives versus the 3:45 am subway train keeping its schedule.
So, the driver made an announcement and the relative few passengers on the train discovered they'd be late while the Toronto Transit Commission and the police searched the track.
No one had seen Harlow fly off the platform and follow the northbound train into the tunnel.
The next station was Summerhill. Like Rosedale it was relatively little used, yet had platforms on either side of the double tracks; unlike Rosedale the stop was a white-tiled hole in the ground with tunnels on either end.
Benny, Ethan and Rory, sore and still recovering from their latest run-in, had all come to the same conclusion. Get home, making sure they weren't tailed! Then a quick call to Benny's Grandma Evelyn, wherever she was! There was only so much they could take!
Yet the three would have to take some more. They were surprised by the wrenching off of the emergency door at the back of the car. With a bang it fell uselessly onto the tracks behind.
Harlow walk in as the automatic doors closed, trapping the three with him.
"Where's the driver!" cried Benny.
"He only has a video camera to see what's going on back here" said Ethan, hollowly.
"But . . . but . . . how did Harlow get in?" asked Rory, whose mind had been completely stupefied by the latest development.
"It's a train, not a house" said Ethan hollowly, automatically. "He doesn't need an invitation."
"What if we were in a houseboat?" asked Rory. "Or if you lived in a train car?"
"Rory . . . focus . . . angry bloodsucker!" said Ethan. "Dude, concentrate!"
"Try this Harlow!" interjected Benny, hobbling up, but nearly knocked over as the train moved out of the station.
At last, Benny produced his fireball! Too bad as Harlow simply slipped aside and let the fireball bounce out the door, out of the car and uselessly along the tracks behind.
"Dude!" said Rory, having re-gathered his wits. "Shield spell!"
This time, shield spell failed altogether. Benny was stuck wiping some useless pink goop from his fingers onto the back of a nearby seat.
"There's one move I've have" said Ethan nervously to his friends.
With a deep breath, Ethan stood up and walked up straight towards Harlow. Or stumbling, as the subway had only just reached full speed.
"What the frack do you think you're doing!" cried Rory, jumping up and nearly toppling over.
Rory looked around frantically for something to stake Harlow, but everything was either plastic, glass or aluminum!
As for Benny, he swore outright. He told Ethan he was crazy in the most colourful language he could think.
Ethan himself wasn't sure whether it would work . . . it should.
"Stay back!" said Ethan, a bit unsteadily as his friends looked as if they were about to follow him.
Again, Harlow could hear the frantic pumping of Ethan's victim's heart. And now Harlow allowed himself a fanged smile. In all manners of torture, he was cagey. Though, it was proving he was not so good at capturing his subjects . . . slightly out-of-practice no doubt. But no matter . . . now that Harlow had the three, he had to kill them the best way readily available.
It was too bad that blood-draining wasn't the most painful way to die! Also that a teenage boy's addled blood was usually the least appetizing to a male immortal's pallet. Electrocution was far more interesting! Exquisite even!
However, if Harlow were to make Ethan think about being drained . . . well, Harlow felt adept at his craft enough to cultivate a reasonable amount of fear in his prey. Perhaps Harlow would drink Ethan's blood after all! Gus and Colby had been favourably impressed by the blood's aroma. Besides, if adrenaline from fear was the best spice . . . then Ethan had been seasoned well to perfection.
And afterwards, Harlow could still electrocute the lifeless body! All the better to terrify Ethan's friends Rory and Benny!
Harlow, grabbing Ethan's arm in such a way as to hold the youth as a shield from any possible attack from Benny . . . but the subway car suddenly disappeared and Harlow found himself bizarre, purple-clouded no-man's land standing almost face-to-face with Ethan.
"I'm in your mind" said Ethan tersely. "As long as I'm here, you can't do anything but talk to me."
"I have heard of such things" said Harlow, in awe. "A seer of your power is rare . . . that, at least should ameliorate my embarrassment at suffering such reverses at your hands. Yet you've made a fatal error, Ethan. One I shall take advantage of to the fullest."
"Stop bluffing" said Ethan, smiling as he gained more confidence. "I have you stuck here, helpless. You're as badly off as if you were a movie vampire sleeping in your coffin. It's a no-brainer for Benny and Rory to stake you now."
"If you've noticed, in this age, wooden construction seems to be mainly decorative . . . leastways as trains go" said Harlow, after a moment's thought. "And I sincerely doubt your spellmaster friend's rose stems will do the trick . . . and that is all he can produce. However, I know your friends shan't make a move while I have you in my power."
"You're in my pow . . . ." said Ethan . . . but then he remembered. "Glamouring!"
"Certainly" said Harlow. "You may not be such an unworthy opponent after all, with or even without your seer powers. It is a pity you could never be convinced to be an immortal. You might have made an excellent right-hand man, a useful second-in-command."
"You know what happened to your fangy group in Whitechapel, all because Jesse made Sarah a bloodsucker against her will" Ethan retorted. "Temporarily, it turned out."
"Of course" Harlow went on. "I shall, however, just have to make do with you as you are. A mortal, but one bound to exercise my will. And now, in here, there is no avoiding, no escape from my glamour. And to try to quit your psychic connection now, as you know, will release me and lead to the certain death of you and your friends."
As Harlow's eyes glowed, the purple mist about them turned a luminous yellow.
And outside that mind-scape, in the real world, in the subway car, Rory and Benny watched Harlow release Ethan.
Their friends' human eyes were glowing in the same shade of yellow as that of the bloodsucker close by his side.
