Chapter 4

Payton in the Dungeon

Payton was driving home after her meeting with Gabby. Her mind kept revolving around her problems. Vampires and witches and werepanthers. Oh, my. She wondered if there was any other type of supernatural creatures in the wings who were waiting to come out and demand their piece of her. Up until a few weeks ago, her life was almost as mundane as everyone else's. Well, almost, she admitted. Let's face it, life with Mother had never been mundane. She had been possessed of a roaming soul and she had carted Payton around with her. It was probably a reason that Payton didn't really have any friends. She had always been the new girl who was never around long enough to ever become more than a stranger. Her mother had always been searching for something. Or, running away from something, thought Payton. There had been the numerous boyfriends that came and went. Payton never had a traditional father. She was almost ten before Charlie was introduced to her as her father. Maybe, she had been so excited to finally have a father that she never questioned the story. But, if Charlie wasn't her father, then who was? A nagging doubt had crept into Payton's mind that maybe her mother had indeed been running away from something or someone.

Payton glanced at the road and immediately slammed on the brakes. There was a tree lying across the road that her wandering mind had almost caused her not to notice in time. Her car screeched and skidded to a stop and Payton sat there breathing deeply for a few seconds. She got out of the car to see if the tree might be pulled off the road. Looking at the tree and seeing that it was much too heavy for her to move, she saw rapid movements out of the corner of her eye. Payton whipped around and saw three vampires before her. They stood and menacingly stared at her and Payton wondered if she could reach her car before them. But, even if she did, her car would offer her little protection.

"What do you want?" she asked.

"That's simple," one replied. "We're here for you."

With a little signal from him, the vampires began to circle around her. Payton tried to track their movements, but they began to move so fast that they just became blurs. Before she had time to react, a cloth sack on some sort was thrown over her head and her arms were tied down. Payton screamed and kicked out when she felt herself being lifted and carried somewhere. Even though she felt her feet connect a few blows on them, they didn't attempt to harm her. She was placed into a car trunk and her feet were quickly tied. The lid was slammed down and she was driven off. Payton decided not to waste her energy on yelling and pleading with them. It wouldn't do any good. They were only following orders and Payton was thankful that so far those orders had been to deliver her unharmed.

Payton blinked as her eyes tried to readjust to being in the light. The sack had been taken off and her restraints removed. She knew that she was downstairs since she had felt herself being carried down a flight of stairs. Slowly, a concrete basement came into focus. She looked along the wall and saw numerous sets of chains that were set at different intervals along the wall. Her eyes looked to the vampires standing in front of her. One stood by himself in the front and Payton thought that he must be the leader. She had never seen him before. He looked very young, but he probably wasn't, she thought. He had dark blonde hair that fell in soft curls. His cold eyes stared at her and examined her. Payton couldn't help but feel like a mouse that a cat was sizing up for dinner.

"How do you know Gabby Owens?" he asked.

"My mother used to be in her group, several years ago," replied Payton.

"Are you in her group?" he asked.

"No," replied Payton.

"Why did she want to see you, then?" he asked.

"She...she wants me to spy on another group in Shreveport," replied Payton.

"Why would you do that?" he asked.

"She implied that there would be repercussions if I refuse to cooperate," replied Payton.

She could still prove useful, even if she wasn't a member of that witch's coven, thought Blackburn. She could also spy for him. It was too bad that Eric Northman already had a claim on this human. Blackburn turned his gaze back into her eyes and began to glamour her. Her eyes widened slightly as she realized his intent, but it was too late.

"Do you belong to Eric Northman?" he asked.

"No," replied Payton.

Evidently Eric had not been able to close the deal with this one, thought Blackburn with a smile. She was technically fair game, but there would be a price for antagonizing Eric. He wasn't sure if this pretty witch was worth that much trouble. Blackburn turned his eyes away from Payton and she blinked as his influence wore off. While she was still somewhat out of it, he gave a signal to the other vampires and they swiftly chained her by the wall. A metal collar encircled her neck and she had a length of chain that allowed her some range of motion.

"Please, enjoy the hospitality of my jail," said Blackburn.

He and the other vampires turned to leave. Payton tugged on her restraints and watched their departing figures with unease.

"Please, don't leave me down here!" cried Payton. "I'm...I'm begging you."

But, they didn't hesitate and Payton was left all alone in the dungeon. Except, Payton knew that she wasn't alone. Too much misery and horror had happened in this place. The echos of those powerful emotions still resonated within these walls. Payton grasped the collar around her neck and tried to pull it off. But, it would not budge. Her fingers found that it was secured by a sturdy padlock. She then grabbed the chain and pulled on it. As much as she pulled and yanked on the chain, it didn't show any signs of loosening from the wall. Evidently, the vampires were more than skilled enough at making sure their guests stayed and enjoyed their hospitality. She looked to the walls and saw that they were covered in blood spatters. It was starting, she thought. Turning around, she gazed at the basement and the shadows began to swirl and shift. The shadows formed into figures. They stood and stared at her with eyes that had lost the spark of life. They were empty, except for the grief and horror of their wasted lives. Taking shambling steps, they started to move towards her.

"Please, let me out of here!" Payton screamed.

But, no one came to release her and the spirits moved ever closer. Payton fell back against the wall and sobbed. Please, make them go away. She closed her eyes and wished herself to be somewhere else. She tried to send her mind to another place. But, she couldn't focus. She felt grasping hands on her. She tried to knock them away and she cowered away from them. But, still they came. Like moths to the flame, they could sense her difference and were drawn to her. They knew that she could see and hear them. They began to speak to her.

"Please, help me," said a woman's voice.

Payton saw a woman in her thirties who was dressed in a dirty leather dress. Her blonde hair was stringy and her face was almost white as a sheet. Fang marks stood out against her throat. Payton tore her eyes away from her.

"I can't help you, you're dead," Payton whispered. "Leave this place and move on."

"I can't be dead," she cried. "I'm just trapped here. My boyfriend sold V, but they didn't believe me when I said that I didn't have anything to do with that. He got me hooked on the stuff. I just wanted my next fix."

The woman began to cry and Payton turned back to her, "Tell me what the last thing you remember is."

"I was down here. I'd been here for days without any food," she said. "Then...then the vampires came down to see me."

"What did they do?" softly asked Payton.

The woman's face creased with thought as she tried to remember. "I...they bit me. It hurt and I screamed for them to stop. But, they just kept doing it, until I...I died."

"I'm sorry for you," said Payton. "But, you have the power to leave this place. No one can hurt you any more."

The woman stood as if torn, "But, I'm afraid."

"Do you want to stay in this place and relive your misery over and over again?" asked Payton. "The only thing left for you here is pain and sorrow."

The woman closed her eyes and a calm settled over her. She whispered, "Thank you."

Payton watched as her body lost it's form and she vanished from sight. Another spirit stepped in front of her. His head swiveled around at an odd angle and Payton realized that his neck must have been broken in death.

"Please, help me," he said. "I've been here so long."

"I can't change what happened to you," replied Payton.

"I just wanted some V, fresh from the source, that's all. We didn't mean to drain the vampire dead," he said. "There were two others with me, but I'm the only one that got caught. It's not fair."

Payton just stared at him and he began to sob, "Please, can you tell my family that I'm sorry? Bob and Celia Gibbons from Boyce."

Payton stared at him for a long moment and said, "I will."

He seemed to reach a peace with himself and he began to fade away. Before he totally disappeared, Payton heard a faint, "I wasn't a good son, but I loved them."

Hands began to pull and tug on her and Payton tried to turn away from their seeking embrace. Just leave me alone, she thought. She saw a man with a ravaged throat in front of her. His clothes were crusted with dried blood that had flowed out from the wound. He tried to speak to her, but only wet, gurgling sounds came out. Payton turned away and cowered against the wall. She was being drained of her energy by this onslaught. She didn't want the ability to see them and she always ignored them before. She had never asked for this gift.

"Please help us," came their calls.

"You are dead," cried Payton. "Dead."

A girl tried to grasp Payton's hand, "We know we are, or at least some of us do. We are being kept here."

Payton looked at the girl who looked too young to have met such a cruel fate. She held Payton's eye and said, "Only you can help us. We have been waiting for someone like you."

"Shut up, you miserable little bitch," came a voice.

The girl paled and backed away. Payton followed her gaze and saw a tall and imposing man who had moved to the front of the crowd. He was as pale as all the others and his eyes were just as devoid of life. But, they were not devoid of everything. Payton saw something sinister that radiated out of those eyes. His face was light by anger and menace. These emotions could take on a life of their own and he was channeling them and growing stronger. A bad soul, thought Payton with a chill. And he had a captive audience of other souls to feed off of. He relished their fear and despair. They were growing weaker and were becoming slaves to his will. The man strode closer and Payton could feel the chill in the air that surrounded him.

"You can see us," he said. He wasn't asking a question, only stating a fact.

"Yes," said Payton. "You must move on."

"Don't give me that mumbo-jumbo crap," he hissed. "If you can see me, then you can find a way to bring me back."

"The dead can't come back to life," replied Payton. Well, not exactly, she thought. But, she wasn't going to tell this spirit that.

"I'm here and I'm not going anywhere," he said.

"Then, I fail to see what you expect me to do for you," replied Payton.

She turned cold eyes on the image in front of her and said, "You will end your days in madness if you stay here. Forever haunting this place for no reason. The vampires that you hate can't even sense you. You stay here because you are afraid to move on and possibly find the justice that awaits you."

"You bitch," he hissed.

"You are just a bully and a coward," said Payton.

He placed his cold fingers around Payton's neck and Payton could feel his power. A little smile formed on his lips. He was growing strong enough to influence the living as well as the dead, thought Payton. He might have been nothing in life, but in death he had achieved a measure of power and control. He would not willingly relinquish his hold of the others that were also trapped with him in this place. Her grandmother had always told her when she was a little girl that even bad things can have a purpose. Maybe, this was her purpose in being kidnapped and locked in here. Payton reached her hand out in front of her and with her other hand she took hold of her necklace to help focus her thoughts. He backed away and stared apprehensively at her. When she opened her hand a blue flame blazed in her palm. She began to speak.

"Craft the spell in the Fire,

Craft it well and weave it higher.

Weave it now of simmering flame

Let none pass to hurt or maim.

Be gone, back to whence you came,

Back to the darkness and eternal shame.

I cast you out, let your evil disappear

Into nothingness, of you I have no fear.

By the power of three,

So shall it be."

Payton's flame blazed higher and higher until the dungeon was bathed in it's blue light. Before this blaze of light, the spirit cried out and vanished from sight. Payton lowered her hand and watched as the other spirits let go of this existence and moved on to another plain. Their faces turned to a light that blazed brighter than Payton's flame had. With no fear and with a calm acceptance, they stepped into the light and disappeared from view. As the dungeon once again filled with shadows, Payton sank against the wall in exhaustion. She was once again alone and Payton let out a sigh of relief. She sank to the cold floor and curled up into a ball. After emptying her mind, she finally fell into a light sleep, but her hand still clutched her necklace.

A/N: We see more of Payton's power. I feel there is more to her history than she is aware of. She is still very much of a mystery to me and I like unraveling some of her secrets.

I don't think she's going to be much of a happy camper when Eric shows up to claim his prize.