Darkness in Daylight

Darkness in Daylight

Ch. 6

Sarri's Dream

She walked through a long passage, carefully choosing her steps. The walls were an indistinct color, the deepest shade of black, the lightest tint of snow.

She had no idea why she was here.

"Why am I here?"

She spun around. She hadn't said the words, so who did? The voice spoke again: "Why am I here?"

It seemed to be coming from ahead of her, so she continued on her way forwards. Every so often, the voice spoke, each time repeating its question. "Why am I here?"

Finally, she reached a room. The Room at the end of Infinity. There was a small boy sitting on a silver mat. "Why are you here?"

She would have stumbled backwards if she felt physically capable of such a thing. the variation of the question was unexpected, and seemed to have a direct impact on her subconscious mind. She spoke, and her voice was weirdly disembodied. "I am here because I am. I am because the One made me. The One made me because He/She/It believed my life would become something of value."

Now, where had those words come from? She vaguely remembered hearing them before. Ah, yes. The old stone-cutter, back in England. The blond man with the red shirt and orange eyes...

But the boy was speaking again. "Then why am I here?"

Again, she heard her own disembodied voice respond: "For the same reasons."

"How do you know?"

"I don't know. I do not truly understand the words I speak."

"Then why do you speak of what you do not truly understand?"

This particular phrase gave her pause. She thought for a brief moment before allowing her voice to say: "Because if I didn't speak of what I do not completely understand, I would never speak."

The boy nodded. "You have found truth. But you do not know it. Hear me now: I shall tell you something you must know."

The boy was fading into a swirl of indistinct colors, but his voice remained. It spoke, and spoke a small verse.

"You see him,

A piece of the night.

Deepest black, brightest rainbow.

Darkness in Daylight.

High in the sky,

The hawks and eagles fly.

But none of them can match

The Darkness in Daylight."

Sarri woke with a start.

The dream woke her again, it always did. She was no stranger to prophecy dreams. In fact, that was the very talent that Ripfire had seen in her before changing her. They all started the same way: The hallway, the Room at the end of Infinity, and the boy on the silver rug who spoke to her. He never asked the same thing twice, and all questions and answers had an infinite number of meanings. If the boy liked her answers, he told her that she had found Truth, and then told her something about it. If her answers were unsatisfactory, he told her that all answers lay at the End of Infinity, but no man can get there. Her usual response was that she was not a man, but that just made the boy sigh and say, "You know so little. Why is it that you can See?" She would then have to answer that question.

Unless her alarm clock rang, like it was doing now.

Sarri hated alarm clocks. She hadn't owned or needed one (much less heard even of the concept) when she was alive in England five hundred years ago, and she didn't want or need one now that she was a Deamon in America.

Deamon in America. She thought, allowing a grin to slide across her face. Sounds like the title of a bad movie.

She lay back and reflected on the meaning of the verse. "Darkness in daylight, eagles and hawks can't match. As usual, it makes no sense."

Sleep on it. Sarri thought, and then laughed at herself. Yeah, best way to interpret a dream: go back to sleep and hope you still remember it.

She drifted slowly back into unconsciousness, just as a few kilometers away, a man sat up straight in bed.

Silver hadn't had a dream in over a thousand years, and he didn't like it any more now than he did then. Irritably, he threw the sheets off of himself and swung his legs over the side of the bed.

What the hell was that all about? He thought. Whenever a vampire dreams, it always means something. Unfortunately, the dream was rapidly slipping away from him, and the harder he tried to grasp it, the faster it went.

It left him with only a few words:

"Fly high, Young Raven." He said aloud, remembering. "Be Darkness in Daylight."

Raven himself was totally oblivious to the fact that his name was being repeated in dreams all over the Non-Human community. In fact, the only thing he was worrying about was the fact that his dad had to go to California of all places, and he was going to be left at his Aunt Tertia's house.

"But, Dad! If I have to stay there, that means I'll have to be nice to Cousin Car!"

Andrew sighed. "Raven, don't call Caryn that. You know she hates it."

"I know." Raven crossed his arms belligerently. "That's why I do it."

His father merely ignored him and put on a tie. Raven grumbled, and tried some more futile excuses. "But, Aunt Tertia is the creepiest old witch on the planet!"

"She's not a witch."

"Yeah, whatever. You're right, she's not the creepiest. That award goes straight to Aunt Dominique."

"I'm with you there, son." Raven's father grinned. "I'll only be gone for a month. Hardly any time at all. You won't even notice I'm gone."

"I can hardly not notice at aunt Tertia's house, with all her creepy novels, and that weird Ultra-Top-Secret, Totally-Confidential, Completely-Forbidden, Eternally-Locked room of hers." Raven shivered. "Wait, did I say room? I meant tomb."

Andrew rolled his eyes. "Admittedly, Tertia Arun is a very creepy lady, but I doubt she keeps a crypt in her house."

But Raven wasn't listening. He'd already zoned into his own personal hyperspace. He caught the word "crypt" and responded: "I like the word 'crypt.' No vowels. I also like cheese. Trunks likes cheese. Vegeta hates cheese, but has a secret weakness for celery..."

"Is that supposed to make sense?"

"It makes sense to the dense!"

"Do you make bread for the dead?"

Raven grinned at his dad. "I make bread for the dead, and rain for the insane. I fight for the light, and park cars at dark bars."

Andrew rolled his eyes. Again. "Get ready for church, son. And if you make another rhyme, I may have to kill you."

The boy gave a false yell of horror, and threw himself down on his knees. "Please, sir! Let me live! I am too young to die! Mercy! Mercy! I beg you mercy sir! Good sir knight, I..."

Raven would have continued, but his father had already left the house, and was starting the car.

"How rude." Mumbled Raven as he stood up. "Hm. I wonder what church Ty goes to?"

He went outside to see his father starting up the Jeep. "Hey, dad! Can I drive?"

"When you get your license." Andrew didn't even look up. They had had this conversation before.

"I've got my learners permit..."

"Yeah, from Japan."

Raven rolled his eyes. "From an American base!"

"We're not on an American base, Raven."

"No. We're in America."

Andrew was getting impatient. "Just get in the car!"

"Sir!"

As they drove, Raven noticed a black hawk circling over head...

Silver decided that he would follow Raven throughout the day. Probably the most boring thing he could do, following a human. However, Raven was very interesting.

Especially when he saw the church that they were going to.

The priest there was called Father Robert, and he wasn't human. Like so many of the Humanoids in Ramsa nowadays, he was Deamon. A rather young Deamon, only seven hundred years old. He was a great friend of Silvers, really. They had shared quite a few adventures together in the past few centuries, and his was the only Christian church that Silver had ever gone to voluntarily.

Normally, he would at least have gone inside to say hello to Robert, but when stalking one's prey, one shouldn't let his face be seen too often. There would be plenty of time later.

Plenty of time...

The church wasn't a big one. Raven looked up at the ceilings with half interest, half boredom. He scanned the crowd: No Ty, not Richard, no Sara, no Jannie. There was only one person there who would be of any interest to him.

His Aunt Tertia, Aunt Hasana, and Caryn.

He gave a moan of horror, and tugged on his dad's sleeve. "Dad, do I really have to go with them? They creep me out!"

Andrew smiled slightly. "Me too. Look on the bright side, at least Aunty Dominique isn't here." He shuddered. "She's the scariest of the lot of them."

"Hrrrm." Raven sighed. "Does this mean I have to be nice to Car?"

"My name is Caryn."

Raven spun around to face his cousin, then spun back to face the alter. "What did I do to misplease you, my lord?" He asked to the crucifix in the front of the church. "Alas, I am surrounded by misery, and...Cars."

Caryn scowled. "the word is 'Displease,' I think. And my name is not car. It's Caryn."

"Your name should be spelled like so: K-A-R-E-N." Raven etched each letter in the air. "but, no. You're name is spelled C-A-R-Y-N. CAR-yin."

"Just shut up and go away." Caryn turned her back on Raven.

"Hey, I didn't exactly invite you over here!"

Caryn sighed in disgust. She and Raven had never gotten along well. The boy reminded her too much of the vampires she was supposed to be fighting.

Not fighting. She thought. No. I am a Smoke, I heal the wounded, I protect those in danger. Arun and Vida are the hunters.

She followed her mother and Tertia Arun into a pew. But, I'm more like a Vida now than an Arun. I've taken the aura of a vampire into myself. I can shield myself from Hasana, but I think Tertia knows. Caryn stole a glance at the Arun witch. If she does know? Why doesn't she say anything? Maybe...Maybe she approves...

Caryn sat up a little straighter when she heard a voice in her mind. I think she does. After all, Jessica was human when you healed her. She became a vampire later. you did y our job right, young Smoke.

Who are you? She thought back. Why do you contact me?

The voice receded from her mind. I am No One. Just a little voice, telling you not to worry. As long as you keep those nasty knives away from me...

The voice was gone.

Caryn was jolted from her thoughts to the sound of the church's organ blasting out a solemn march. The acolytes began their walk down the isle, following the one with the cross, and Tertia began to sing with the choir.

The effect was not lost on Caryn. This was a religious ceremony, something witches should not be permitted to witness. If only these humans knew the truth: in those they fear lay their lives.