A New Beginning – Chapter 3
Hey, dudes! Sorry about not updating. I've been at home. Grounded. And now the school isn't letting me log on here! UGH. So here's the next chapter.
Vancha groaned and rolled over on the cold, hard floor of his room in Vampire Mountain. He had arrived the previous night, and the vampire flu had improved slightly since then. Fortunately for him, Skyler – he had dubbed her his "little headache" to make fun of her height and loud mouth – was not with him at the moment. He hadn't heard from her since their last fight.
She'll be here before the weeks out, he thought. I've got nothing to worry about.
Barely a week had passed when Seba, now the oldest living vampire, came into Vancha's room. "Sire—" he began, but was cut off by Vancha's sleepy voice.
"Seba, you know to call me Vancha. Or, at least, I hope you do by now."
The man fidgeted, not sure whether to follow this simple order or not. "Apologies. Vancha, the vampaneze are holding a vampire's assistant captive, and we have heard several gruesome stories concerning what they are doing to the girl."
"So then have her mentor go and rescue her, or wait for her to free herself," Vancha said simply. It wasn't in the vampire's customs to save each other; if they couldn't defend themselves, they weren't worth the time.
"I would, Vancha, but the girl is…" Seba trailed off.
"The girl is…?" Vancha prompted, hoping to get Seba to continue.
"She is your assistant." The old vampire said.
A frown suddenly came across Vancha's face. "Seba," he said, rising to his feet. "Do you know where Evanna is?"
"I believe she is at home for the time being," Seba replied, but Vancha was gone before the word 'for' had formed on his lips.
Vancha slowed to catch his breath outside of Evanna's cave. It had been a while since his last visit, yet nothing had changed. The pond still glittered in the dim moonlight, the frogs that Evanna bred were still croaking, and Evanna came to the cave entrance to invite him in as she normally did.
"Hello, Vancha," she said, her voice grim, as if she knew what was going on.
"Hello, Evanna. Do you know where she is?" Vancha asked.
"I do," Evanna replied mysteriously.
"Well then, will you tell me?"
Evanna sighed, then looked out at the pond. "I can't give you an exact location," she said softly, as if her words might kill Skyler. "But I can tell you to look near Larten's hometown."
Fortunately for Vancha, the vampaneze holding Skyler worked alone, and had no guards—assuming he was in the right place. Hours upon hours of looking for Skyler had led Vancha to an old mine just outside of Larten Crepsley's hometown. He took a deep breath, and entered the mine.
Screams filled the room that Skyler was in. They were in a small wooden shack, near the mine that Vancha was searching, but far enough away from it that he wouldn't hear her bloodcurdling screams. She was hanging upside down, bound by old rope. Roz had beaten the poor girl almost beyond recognition by the time Vancha had figured out where Skyler was, and found the right place.
"Stop!" Skyler screamed hoarsely.
"Not until you tell me what I want to know! Tell me where the blade is!" Roz shot back, and dug a knife into the girl's ribs, which triggered a bloodcurdling scream.
"God damn it, I told you I don't know what you're talking about!" she sobbed in pain. "I don't remember anything before November of last year! Nothing!"
Roz took a small step back, and a smirk grew on his pretty face. "So you've no idea who you are?"
Another sob wracked its way from her chest. "Not a clue."
"Well, I can tell you that you ar—"
"That's enough, Roz." A voice cut in. "Let the girl down."
The man stopped short, his eyes now wide and blinking. "But—"
"Now," the voice said sternly. When Skyler was down, she looked to the source of the voice. Standing by the lamp Roz had was a tiny man in a yellow suit with green boots, holding a heart-shaped pocket watch.
The man walked over to Skyler and offered a hand up, then turned his icy gaze to Roz.
"Carry her," he demanded. Roz almost objected, but then he did as the man said.
This guy has to be pretty powerful to make the vampaneze do as he says with no objections… Skyler thought.
When the trio arrived at the entrance to the mine, Vancha was only just arriving. He stopped when he saw Skyler with Roz and the man in the yellow suit, as if he expected something to go dreadfully wrong because of the man's presence.
"Mr. Tiny," Vancha said coldly.
"Vancha!" the man boomed. "How've you been?"
"What are you doing with Skyler?" Vancha demanded suspiciously, ignoring Mr. Tiny's question.
A devilish smile protruded from his thin lips. "Oh, absolutely nothing. As a matter of fact, I saved her from the vampaneze she's being carried by," he said, gesturing to Roz. "I thought I'd return your daughter to you while I've got time."
Vancha glared. "What did you do to her?"
"Absolutely nothing. But Roz here did quite a number on the girl. Now, take her. I've got places to be."
Vancha glared harder at Mr. Tiny, then at Roz as he took Skyler from the vampaneze, being as careful as possible because of her injuries.
Skyler laid quietly in her room as one of the vampires tended to her wounds. Vancha sat in the room equally silent until the vampire left, and Skyler was the first to speak after that.
"Who was that man?" she asked softly.
"Someone you should avoid," Vancha snapped irritably.
"That doesn't tell me who he is."
Vancha groaned. "Fine. That was Desmond Tiny, or Mr. Tiny as many call him. Like I said, avoid people. He likes to play games that will tear lives apart."
"I see," Skyler said. "Vancha?"
"What?"
"Did he mistake me for your daughter or something?"
Vancha stood and headed for the door. "Yes."
"You're a liar. Destiny wouldn't get confused. So will you answer my questions?"
Vancha stopped in the doorway and sighed. "What do you want to know?"