PRESENT DAY
Dawn stood up and looked through her cell. She could see other demons locked up in the neighbouring pens. The beings looked tired and broken up. Most of them tried to get some rest. Others practiced their particular ways of meditation.
That night only two warriors had survived of the five confrontations. A green goblin who seemed to be six feet two in height and quiet muscular. He was nursing some bruised ribs and twisted thigh muscle. The other survivor was herself, and the pain in the arm was not ceasing. It was the first time she really felt the pain extend itself more than mere seconds. Maybe it was more complicated than that.
Surprisingly, Dawn looked up towards the entrance. She heard the lock being worked and than opened. Two vampires came in and headed towards the goblin. They seemed to whisper something to him. The goblin painfully stood up and headed towards the entrance of his cell. The vampires opened the cell and place a collar on his neck. They than helped him out of the cell and out of the room.
Dawn frowned. She had fought and won four times in this hell contest. She had also seen the other demon in action and she knew the beast was no rookie. Were they giving special treatment? Or where they going to exterminate him since he had no more use?
Again the door opened, and the dark haired vampire that got Dawn into this walked in. This guy reeked in arrogance. He walked towards her cell and smiled at her. "Hello Dawny", the vampire said.
"What?", Dawn asked. "I am playing your game Ricky. Do you have to be here?".
Rick shook his head disapprovingly. "Dawny", Rick said. "I saw you get hurt tonight. I thought you would like some special treatment for that shoulder. I mean… I need you in optimal condition".
"Yeah", Dawn said with a touch of irony in her voice. "I am going to believe a vampire that gets his kicks by seeing other people get their kicks".
"Touché", Rick said with a smile. "Still, I've postponed your battle for tonight. You need to rest". Dawn crossed her arms doubtfully. The pain was jarring now. Rick's smile grew even wider as he unlocked the cell. "You know the rules", Rick said. "Please don't tempt me in using drastic methods".
Dawn walked out of the cell and followed Rick outside. As they walked Dawn could see down in to the circle. It had two beasts inside. They were fighting for their lives now. Around them, a circular metal fence. Outside the fence, a crowd of demons and humans cheered the fighters on from a small wooden platform. The humans seemed to be taking the idea of demons pretty well. The young brunette looked carefully and saw money being exchanged just as one of the monsters in the pit reached for a blade laid on the floor.
Dawn turned away from the action and followed Rick into a room. She looked around and saw that this vampire could have it all if he wanted to. The walls were covered in long drapes made of silk. They were of all types of colours, but red was the one that stood out the most. At the back end of the room, a large box contained several suits and large trench coat. Beside it, a large four post bed covered completely in red silk stood in its extravagance. Each post seemed to be solid gold. In front of the bed, two very old chairs were beside a marble table.
Rick took off his trench coat and placed it on the bed. "Sit"; the vampire said pointing at one of the chairs.
Dawn looked at them doubtfully. "They seem very old", Dawn said.
"They are what is left of the Ancient Roman Empire", Rick said as he put a container with water on the table. "I live very old fashioned. I liked to live like I lived 2000 years ago. Don't worry. They are not going to break".
Dawn sat down slowly. She looked at the door she had just come in through. It had a large golden eagle plastered on it. On the side, several suitcases filled completely with money. "All that money yours?", she asked.
"Yeah", Rick said as he stood behind her. "This thing is very lucrative. Now… Take off your jacket". Dawn turned towards him with incredulous eyes. "Come on Dawn", the vampire said. "I need to see the arm. Besides… I would have killed or feasted from you by now".
Dawn slowly took of her jacket and winched as her shoulder moved. She looked at it and her eyes widened. It was completely purple. It seemed to have swollen also.
Rick smiled at the bruise. "That is nasty", he said. "The demon dislocated it cleanly".
Dawn rubbed the bruise. "It still hurts", Dawn said. "I thought slayers cured easily".
"Sure they do", Rick said grabbing gently the girls arm. "But if the bone is not in its place, what is there to cure. Now… this is going to hurt a bit… ready".
Dawn nodded her head and closed her eyes. All of the sudden, the shoulder exploded into a new surge of ache. Dawn bit her lip so she wouldn't scream out loud. Than, the pain was gone. She opened her eyes and saw Rick rubbing something on her shoulder. He than wrapped a grey bandage. "Done", he said. "Now, get some rest and call me on the morning".
Dawn couldn't help but smile. "Thanks", she said as she put on her black jacket.
"Is that a smile I see on your face", Rick teased. "I think so".
"You are to nice", Dawn said. "Are you a vampire with a soul?".
"Me", Rick said with a laugh as he put the things away. "Hardly. I am a normal vampire… well… more crazy than anything else. I just have more humanity in me than most".
Dawn stood up and looked at the vampire from behind. "I don't buy that".
Rick looked at her. "My sister was a slayer long ago", he said. "I hated her because of what she could do. Until one time, a vampire came and turned me. He than killed her".
"Oh", Dawn said flatly. That story was a little bit more buyable.
"But that is not the end of the tale", Rick said.
"What happened after?", Dawn asked.
"My sister gets turned just as life is leaving her", Rick said. "A slayer turned into a vampire. But the guy that turned her was a vamp with a soul. I think that was the factor that caused my sis to end up with a soul".
Dawn looked at the vampire carefully. He couldn't be making this up. "And after that?", Dawn asked.
"I move on", Rick said. "I become an entertainer for the Roman empire. I organize the games in the great circus. That is when I find my purpose in the after life. I go from hell mouth to hell mouth… searching for demons willing to give it all in the Circle".
"Why did you choose me?", Dawn asked. "I am not a experienced warrior".
Rick smiled at her. "I met your sister in the past", he said. "We danced a bit and I am proud to say that she is the strongest I have met. She beat the living hell out of me. Of course the battle was very close. I vowed from that day that I would get her in the circle. Unfortunally, the word has it that she died. I refuse to believe that".
"And why is that?", Dawn asked.
"Because of The Future Bliss", Rick said. "The prophecy that the world turns into a paradise after The Apocalypse". Dawn sat down again. To much information was being delivered. No time to process it all. "Don't think about it", Rick said. "Let it happen. You will find out what is to come".
Dawn closed her eyes. She now knew she had gotten herself into something worst than hell. But what is it all linked? Was this what was supposed to happen? Was destiny involved? She opened her eyes and looked at the ceiling. Why did I have to read that stupid letter, she asked herself.
A WEEK AGO
Dawn breathed hard as she grabbed on to her stake really tight. One vampire down. Five to go. Two vampires rushed her. She ducked and kicked one in the back while sticking the stake in the other one. As she regained her balance she looked up just to see a vamp backhand slap her across the face. Dawn staggered with the blow. Two vampires grabbed her arms tightly. She tried to free herself just as a third jumped in front of her. He fired two punches at her chest, right before hitting Dawn with a roundhouse kick on the head. The young girl grunted in pain. She than lifted her legs and kicked the vampire in front of her and hit him hard on the face. As she landed she brought her arms together and slammed both vamps together. She than encrusted her stake on the first and the second vampire. She did not have time to celebrate though. A vampire kicked her in upper back area. She stumbled forward into another demon. He head butted her in the face. She staggered back. The vampire than delivered a right hook to the jaw, followed by an uppercut. Dawn's knees buckled under her just as she received a final blow in the back of her head. She was completely unconscious before she hits the ground
PRESENT DAY
Dawn devoured the slice of pizza in her hand. It was much better than the green goo served in the cells. She looked at the vampire who simply sipped from his wine glass. Dawn was so hungry at the moment, she did not care that Rick drank blood in front of her.
"I want to apologize", Rick said as he put down his glass. "The way I got you into this was completely uncalled for… but…"
"But what?", Dawn asked incredulously. "The evil half got the best of you?"
"You are not so far from the truth", Rick said with a sigh. "I have run this business for more than 1800 years. It is very lucrative and my true desire has always been to get a slayer involved in it".
"So your little obsession is the one to blame", Dawn said as she picked another slice.
"Not really", Rick said. "Around the year 1157, I got a slayer in the game. It was not done by force though. She agreed to do so. She won her seven battles and participated for two more years, before she was killed".
"She died doing this?", Dawn asked.
"No", Rick said. "A vampire killed her. He broke her neck clean off. It was a shame to waste so much blood…" At that moment, Rick seemed to enter in a trance. He closed his eyes and moved his head from side to side. He than stopped and looked at Dawn nervously. "Anyways…", Rick continued "… after that, I got more slayers in the circle. Five to be exact and all before the 20th century".
"Than why kidnap me?", Dawn asked. "You were bound to find another".
"As we entered the 20th century", Rick said. "I got some investors in the game and the money poured in 100 fold. But they had heard of my classic tourneys. All had a slayer as their participants. 15 out of 1000 events were most remembered. Only 15. The investors wanted a slayer in this one way or the other". Rick paused a bit and drank more blood. "I tried to get slayers in this, but all of them including your sister turned me down. I always asked for two consecutive years. On the third I went back to them and issued a challenge. If I won, they would participate. If they won, I would not hunt in their zone for their entire period of service".
"How many did you beat?", Dawn asked.
"I bet several", Rick said sadly. "But only two met up with the deal. The others simply died in my arms".
"The contests in which the slayers participated this last century were not what they expected", Rick said. "Mainly because they died in their first combat. So, the investors decided to take matters into their hands. I would organize, create and provide the demons. They would bring in a slayer into the circle. Once she was in, she would be my responsibility".
"And you don't like this", Dawn concluded.
"I hate it that I am not in charge anymore", Rick said. "They now are asking for me to fix the fights".
"Wait a second", Dawn said. "Fix the fights".
"Don't worry", Rick said. "You need to win three more and you are out".
"But what if they ask you to fix my stuff?", Dawn asked with a touch of worry in her voice. "No one knows where I am. No one will suspect this place. No one knows I have slayer powers".
"Hey", Rick said. "I won't let you down. Why do you think you are here?"
"Why are you helping me?", Dawn asked. "I don't get you"
"I have my reasons", Rick said. "First of all, I have this policy in which I cannot see children die. It goes the same for old people. Aside of that, I would kill a platoon of men and women if it were to my advantage"
"And the other reason?", Dawn asked doubtfully.
"There is no other reason", Rick said. "That's it".
Dawn looked at him closely. This vampire had something up his sleeve. But she had to play his game in order to get out of this. She looked at the half empty pizza box and threw the crust of her last slice. She was full.
Rick penetrated the girl with his eyes. The young one was obviously scared. But something was pushing her on. He could not finger it. "Would you like to rest?", Rick asked. "That bed is hardly used. You could regain some strength".
Dawn looked at him doubtfully. "Where will you sleep?"
"I have work to do", Rick said as he stood up. "I don't think I am going to sleep. But you should". Dawn looked at the bed. It seemed so comfortable compared to the cell floor. She slowly nodded. Rick smiled at her as he grabbed a trench coat and put it on. "I will make sure you are not disturbed", he said as he walked out and closed the door behind him.
Dawn slowly stood up. That vampire was planning something. He was being far too nice. She walked towards the bed. On the side of it, she saw a large mirror. That is odd she thought to herself. Why would a vampire have a mirror in his room. Dawn looked at her reflection for a while. Her black top had a large claw mark. So did her belly. But that one was fading quickly. Her leather pants also had a small tear in the upper leg area. The last demon she fought had left injured her with his large claw. The jacket itself was intact. Not a single tear nor stain.
Dawn walked closer to the mirror and looked at her face. She had been hit several times and there were no marks. She didn't understand it. She was sure the last demon had made her taste her own blood from her battered lip. But nothing was there.
The brunette turned around and looked at the bed. Just for a few minutes she thought to herself. She slowly eased her body on the soft surface. At that particular moment, she realized how exhausted she was. It wasn't long after that before she fell asleep.