Darkness of Companions: The Somewhat-a-Sequel.

The third final chapter should be out next weekend guys.

"…So if Michel doesn't convert Kerry within seventy-two hours of consumption of her blood, he'll turn mortal. When that happens his whole body will become old and die, decompose, and then turn into a skeleton worthy of his age all within minutes. In turn, since Kerry caused his death, her consciousness will revert into her mind and she'll relive his last few minutes in a loop for eternity."

"Why didn't you say anything sooner?" Agitated, Rocker-boy kept raking his nail across his wrist and watching himself heal. He obviously yearned for the spilling of blood. "We could have 'disposed' of certain factors initially."

Kerry glared at him. Jesse quickly intervened, probably not wanting her husband to implode. "I never thought Kerry possessed enough power to be the Quhadila. She wasn't aware of her powers, and awareness is the first step of becoming. You know yourself that she rates very low on the paranormal-scale." She turned to Kerry. "You may have guessed it, but I'll explain anyway- vampires can detect certain gifts within a creature. It's like defense radar so we know to stay away from someone who may be stronger and overpowering to us. It always gives a correct reading for potential energy levels."

She was interrupted by a Molotov cocktail blazing through the shattered window of the living room. Startled, Kerry naturally ducked, not quite sure what was being thrown at her. After the explosion Lestat glared at her, as if expecting her to be able to reverse time and stop it. Technically, she supposed, she should be able to do that. The only blessing was it destroyed the couch and surrounding area so Michel would never know she flattened his precious rocking-chair.

Lestat dove for a cabinet and dragged out armfuls of weaponry. His image cradled by the fire, he was an avenging angel in a B rated flick, complete with leather and ammo. He handed Kerry a rifle she wasn't gun-happy enough to be able to identify and shoved her towards the back room a feverish Michel was resting in.

"We're counting on you to get him out." He signaled to Jesse and crawled over to the window. Jesse started to pry a floorboard up as Lestat opened fire. Kerry stood frozen. Jesse reached over and grabbed her ankle, jerking her to the floor just as the enemy returned fire.

"Go Kerry!" She was shoved brutally, causing her to roll towards the back of the cabin. "Don't be afraid to use your powers."

Jesse's fangs elongated and her face twisted into a gruesome snarl as she pried open half the floor. Kerry scuttled backwards, crawling in the hazardous filth littering the floor. Lestat tossed a grenade out the window just as she reached the bedroom door. The force of the blast caused her to tumble on her knees clutching the door handle.

Michel was slouched on the bed trying to pull on pants. She had never seen him look as fragile as he did, covered in a feverish sweat, while fumbling and gasping for air like a mere mortal. Even at the Laundromat and Marsala's house he maintained a dignity she had come to expect as a pure Michel trait. She finally appreciated how close he now was to death.

He stood and almost keeled over. Kerry knew this was all her fault. She tried to will his sickness away, but it wouldn't work. She grabbed one of his arms and forced it into his leather jacket. He wobbled a bit and tried to shove her away before drooping into her shoulder.

"You've got to turn me."

He shook his head defiantly. His beautiful dark locks were turning greasy, and his chin dug heavily into her collarbone. "I'd die first."

"Well you are going to!" Close to hysterics she shook tears out of her eyes.

"Good." He whispered so quietly she wouldn't have heard if her ear wasn't beside his lips.

"Good!?" Before she had a chance to say something she would definitely regret, a blast and roar came from the living room. "We've got to get out of here." Kerry put an arm around Michel's waist and turned towards the door.

"There's a trap door under the bed." She sighed and turned again. Before she could touch the bed it swung across the room and shattered through the window. A vocal screech came from outside as Kerry grabbed a typical big brass ring and pulled upwards with all her might. The hatch screeched open on rusted hinges, groaning after a century of misuse. A rickety ladder was slightly discernable.

"You go first." She gestured down the hole. Of course she wasn't frightened. Michel looked chauvinistically offended.

"Ladies first."

"Look, you know whatever is down there better than I do. If someone else is down there, you would know." They glared at each other before he accepted this reasoning, both aware it was a copout. Kerry felt a ping of guilt as he gingerly lowered his legs on to the ladder, testing it with his weight before slowly descending. Within moments his inky hair merged with the cavern, making him impossible to distinguish.

Kerry swung into the dark unknown abyss below hoping she didn't land on the vampire below her. The hole seemed to go on forever. One small step for vampires, one giant leap for mankind. She finally smacked into the floor with a jarring thud.

"Michel?" She squinted around the blackness, not detecting a hint of light, even from above. She groped out and her hand touched against Michel… or, well, a rat. She jumped. The Michel/rodent jumped, and she attempted to scuttle back.

"Hold on." A hand reached out into the dark and clamped on her shoulder. She stifled a scream. "This whole place is booby trapped against both humans and vampires."

"Oh, that's brilliant. Right now you've got weaknesses of both." She could almost hear him scowl at her. The vampire she met two years ago hadn't showed true emotions. He was acting different now, probably because he had never experienced this weak medley of vampiric humanity. One thing he still successfully hid was his fear.

A small explosion sounded on her right. Kerry barely had time to register that Michel could be hurt when she heard a door open. A second later the cave was illuminated with the brightness of car lights. She hurried towards him, ignoring a few gasps of horror as she stepped over all the landmines and traps laid in store for trespassers. Her feet skimmed along a few millimeters from the ground. The power could be very useful. Maybe she could use it for evil perverted purposes. This thought made her smile as she jumped in the passenger door.

"That was careless. You could have been dead at least ten times."

"I'm not the idiot who made his back entrance world war three. Why do you care anyway? Could it be you want to live?"

"Because I…" he stopped short. A little bit of secretive Michel peeked through fever-watering eyes. He stomped on the gas of his little sport's car and sped down the narrow chamber towards a dead-end. Kerry's eyes widened and she slumped backwards into the leather seat, hands clutching wildly on the armrests. They burst through the rock in the cavern wall it turned out to be camouflaged sponge or something and into the crisp freezing air of Canada's winter.

The car immediately launched into a steep downward descent. Kerry closed her eyes to block out the trees rushing at them and Michel gritting his teeth while somehow successfully avoiding them. They jarred onto a rugged dirt road in the middle of nowhere. They're in Canada, everywhere is the middle of nowhere.

Kerry let out a sign of relief as Michel let up on the gas. Slowly they coasted to a stop. She sat there in annoyance for a minute before peeking at Michel out of the corner of her eye. She almost gasped out loud when she found him slumped unconscious. Grumbling under her breath, Kerry grabbed the arm of his jacket and dragged him onto the passenger side as she inched out of the car.

While running around to the driver's side, shouts came from higher up the road. As she jumped in and locked the door, the first figure came in view. Michel's legs were still stretched under the seat so she had to stomp hard on his foot to reach the accelerator. Michel moaned, head rolling back. Kerry didn't have time to entertain pleasant thoughts as their pursuers opened fire.

She ducked with echo of a shot, though she subconsciously knew the bullet would have already impacted. Driving this road was probably difficult enough during the day, but to her weak human eyes the journey was treacherous. Squinting did nothing to illuminate the looming obstacles, but she couldn't slow down and she couldn't turn on the headlights. It didn't take long for Michel's little 'manly' sports car to outdistance all attackers. She was able to pause her critical attention for a second to remove his foot from under hers. She kept speeding until the deserted road branched onto the highway and then flicked on the lights, her eyes firmly attached to the clock on the dashboard.

Three hours left.

She wasn't sure whether Jesse's assessment of their dire situation was correct or not, but Kerry wasn't willing to chance it. If she didn't get Michel to change her within three days of his initial feeding, he'd die. She had a personal investment on keeping him alive, and it didn't have anything to do with her own fate. She'd gladly spend an eternity in hell if he still existed, but that wasn't how the curse went.

Life would be so much easier if she didn't love him.

Gradually their headlights stopped being the only light cutting through the blinding darkness as they neared a village. Kerry's head was pulsing from sleep deprivation and stress. She was just so exhausted. Occasionally her eye would twitch. Desperate to get off the road she pulled into a Comfort Inn, knowing it may be expensive but was at least moderately clean. The town boasted an economy centered around a ski mountain and the parking lot of the hotel was surprisingly full.

She parked in front of the lobby and stepped up from the expensive car. Shutting the door quietly so as to not disturb the slumbering man in the passenger seat, she hurried over to his side of the car and opened his door. She knelt beside Michel, nervously searching his face for signs of wakefulness. His face was smushed against the leather seat, giving him a cute puffy countenance. He wasn't sleeping the slumber of the dead she had grown used to; he was resting like an adorable little boy. Quickly she looped her arms around him, lifting him slightly from the seat. A faint blush bloomed on her cheeks a second before jerking back with his wallet clutched in her hand. As she had expected, he had enough cash for a night in the hotel.

For the second time that day she blatantly stole money from someone's wallet. Michel wouldn't mind, but she hoped Lestat never noticed. She felt a bit insecure using the credit card Michel had procured for her. Everyone knew credit cards were easy to trace. Glancing quickly at Michel, she was glad to note he had slept through her fumbling grope.

Once again she took care to shut the car door. She left the vehicle unlocked; hopefully Michel would make himself useful in his sleeping state to guard the car. Taking a deep breath, she entered the hotel lobby, intent on making herself seem as relaxed and nonchalant as possible. Who knew what they were running from?

AN: Guess what guys? I've got Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. If you look on the bottom of your keyboard, there is probably a warning about it. I always thought it was the urban myth of typists... Oh, if you type too much the Carpal Tunnel Syndrome will get you, and no more shall you write painfree. He'll make sure your hands are so cramped, weak and pained you can't even open a door. BS? Right?

WRONG!

In happier news, the plot bunnies of a new CotN story are floating in my head. I also finished a new short one that will be added to Adversaries of the Light sometime soon.