by D L Blade
The man walked over to me and I noticed he held a metal bracelet in his hand. He grabbed my arm gently and fastened the bracelet around my wrist. I tried to pry it off, but it required a key.
“What is this?” I tried again to pull the bracelet off, but it was still no use. “What did you do to me? Take this off.”
“Sorry, Akasha. That bracelet prevents you from using your powers.” He spoke in a distinctly Hawaiian accent.
“Akasha? My name is Mercy.” I fiddled with the bracelet again. “Dammit.”
I can’t fight them without my powers.
“Akasha is what vampires call you. It means Spirit, or, Fifth Element.” He frowned. “What would you rather me call you?” He was oddly polite.
“Mercy, please.”
“Okay then, Mercy. We walk from here.”
He grabbed my arm and escorted me toward a nearby park.
“Where are you taking me? What do you want from me?” I asked, but he stayed silent. I moved around, hoping he would ease up on his grip, but he didn’t. “What’s your name?” I asked, hoping a simple question would get him talking.
“My name is Noah. I was sent here to bring you to the master.” He gestured ahead. “We aren’t far from where I’m taking you.”
Noah clearly wasn’t much of a talker. I tried to engage in conversation as we walked, but he wouldn’t respond. I even tried to make a few jokes to ease the tension as fear was rushing through my body, but he didn’t crack a smile. We walked for about thirty minutes before we arrived at a tall black gate in front of a beautiful, very dark, and gothic mansion.
I was exhausted and all I wanted to do was lie down, even if it was in a strange and dangerous place. Noah rang the bell on the outside of the gate and announced his name and that he had Akasha with him. The gates opened slowly, and Noah gently dragged me through the entrance and along the long driveway. Once the gate closed behind us, Noah released my arm. I now saw the rest of the house that was apparently going to be my prison.
The house was made of gray stone with detailed carvings on every inch of its structure. There were three stories and each story had several windows facing the front. The balconies featured large stone gargoyles that seemed to glare down at me. My heart skipped a beat as I took in the view above me. This wasn’t just a house, but a dwelling where something dark and evil resided. I feared what was ahead of me, but I wasn’t going down without a fight.
Entering the house, my eyes were drawn to the front room that was filled with three black couches and a machine of some sort sitting in the center of the room. It was a clear case with tubes that protruded from the inside and into small glass vials surrounding the machine.
“What is that?” I looked at Noah.
He, as expected, remained silent.
“Noah, I’m not your enemy.”
He looked at me expressionless. “You really want to know?”
I nodded.
“If one of the humans the vampires drink from tries to run away, the punishment is death. They are then placed in that glass chamber, hooked up to those pipes, and drained until all their blood is emptied into those vials. Blood is never wasted here, so if we are going to kill them, we might as well take the blood while it’s fresh and pumping through their veins. They store the blood in a cooler downstairs.”
My jaw fell open, and my stomach was in knots again.
“You see, Mercy. I am your enemy.”
What was I thinking, sacrificing myself? I’m going to be their next meal.
I didn’t see any residents but could hear laughter coming from closed double doors down the hall. Noah was staring at the doors in front of us, but we didn’t enter. I walked ahead toward the doors, not wanting to wait any longer to find out what they were going to do to me. Noah grabbed my hair and pulled me back.
“Ouch! Quit it!” I was so exhausted from the last twenty-four hours, I almost didn’t care at that point what happened to me.
Almost.
“Honestly, Noah. I just want to lie down. I may have powers, but I am also in a human body and humans sleep. Do you sleep?”
No response.
That didn’t shut me up. “Noah, you don’t seem all that scary to me. You don’t belong here anymore than I do. You’re not like them,” I said, and waited for a reaction.
Noah started to give a sideways smirk, then quickly became serious again as he heard a door open. It caught us both off-guard. Another guy, a little shorter than Caleb, was walking toward us. He was handsome with a strong jaw line and ashy brown, medium length hair, slicked back over the top of his head. His eyes were hazel, and they looked right through me as he approached. He looked to be in his late twenties. He was wearing all black with a black trench coat that reached to the floor. Once he was about three feet in front of us, Noah got down on one knee and bowed to him.
“Master, I brought her to you unharmed, just as you asked. The wounds on her shoulders have healed, which further proves that this is Akasha. She has indeed gone through her Awakening and is now immortal.” Noah quickly stood up.
I looked straight into the man’s eyes. He walked around me slowly, touching each part of my body. He ran his fingers through my hair and lightly touched my neck with his cold fingertips. A chill ran up my spine. He then put his hands on my shoulders and rubbed where Noah’s claws had been embedded. He traced the markings that were almost, but not quite, healed. They were simply red marks now. He stood in front of me again and placed his hands under my chin and lifted it up. He slowly traced his fingers down my cheek and to my lips and smiled.
“You are so beautiful. I heard Spirit was perfect, but I had no idea he or she would be this perfect.” He smiled again. “And now you belong to me.”
No, you creepy, yet good looking vampire, I do not!
“What do you want from me?” I finally asked.
“My name is Maurice, and I am the master of this house.”
He glanced at Noah who was now right in front of him. “You may go now, Noah. I will get your report tomorrow. You served me well.”
“Mahalo, Master.” Noah proceeded down the hallway and through the double doors.
Maurice turned back to face me. “Akasha!”
He paused as I shook my head. “You can call me Mercy,” I mumbled under shaky breath.
This man really scared me.
He laughed. “Mercy no longer exists.” His smile that followed sent a wave of unwelcome goosebumps over my skin.
I wasn’t a praying person, but I said a silent prayer that I’d find a way to get the bracelet off, so I could show them how powerful I really was.
“The famous witch I have been learning about for years is finally born again and made immortal. Not only immortal, but she now carries the blood that will make me stronger, faster, and a day walker.” He smiled again, sending another wave of fear through my entire body. “You’re my own personal blood witch.”
“You do know I have the power to use all five elements at once, don’t you? You will be dead before sunrise,” I threatened nervously, realizing it was just an empty threat. I had no idea what I had gotten myself into.
“Not with that bracelet on your wrist you won’t.” He laughed to himself. He was right, I was defenseless with the bracelet on my wrist, but I wasn’t going to let him believe I was feeling defeated.
“You don’t own me,” I quickly snapped and took a step back.
The corners of his mouth turned up into an evil grin and he grabbed my hand gently. “Come with me, Akasha.”
“Oh, I can’t wait,” I said sarcastically
We walked toward the double doors. A few times, I put on the brakes as Maurice tightened up his grip as he led me to the doors at the end of the hall. He opened the doors to a room filled with possibly twenty to thirty vampires.
Everyone was lying on beds and couches, some on the floors, and some holding humans that had been bitten, and there was blood everywhere. My stomach churned, and bile rose in my throat. The smell of
copper flooded my senses.
A few clapped as we entered and a few hissed at me. It was mostly the females that gave me the unwelcome invitation. I knew I was immortal, but I honestly feared for my life. Vampires didn’t even exist in my world until I had met Abigail, and the stupid bracelet on my wrist was keeping me from protecting myself. Just because I was immortal didn’t mean I couldn’t feel pain.
“Please don’t hurt me, Maurice. I have done nothing to you.” I turned toward him.
He raised the side of his mouth, chuckled to himself slightly, and showed his fangs. “How about this, Akasha. I will promise not to kill you, but I can’t promise I won’t hurt you.” His response sent a wave of laughter throughout the room. His words and the sound of their laughter terrified me to the core. The unimaginable horror that awaited me hit me like a ton of bricks. In that moment, hope left me, and the sight before me, of blood, torture, and evil, became my reality. I was a toy for them, a walking blood bank, and there wasn’t anything I could do to stop them.
“Quiet, everyone!” Maurice shouted. Everyone came to an abrupt halt. Maurice smiled and gestured toward me. “I’d like to introduce the newest member in our home. The Fifth Element, or as we refer to her, Akasha.” Everyone cheered and shouted, but slowly quieted once Maurice raised his hand up. Once the room was completely silent again, he continued. “The ritual was performed and now her blood will change our kind forever. Every vampire clan in the world plans to seek her out, but we got to her first. She is ours.”
There was another round of applause, even from some of the humans.
“She will make us stronger, faster, and allow us to finally walk in the light.” I heard whispers from those around us, discussing my presence there, and a low growl came from Maurice. I sensed he was getting irritated with the interruptions.
“Silence!” he yelled, and the room instantly became quiet again. “I plan to have her blood to myself for a while, and then I will share her with those who prove themselves worthy.”
They applauded him again.
A woman from the opposite side of the room with an Irish accent called over. “Can I ‘ave a taste, Maurice?” Then a roar of talking and pleading filled the room.
“Silence!” Maurice screamed again, much louder this time, while raising one of his hands up for the second time. Quiet followed and several vampires looked away in shame.
“Forgive me, Master. I should not ‘ave asked,” the Irish woman apologized, lowering her head.
Maurice walked toward the back of the room until he was in front of her. He placed his hands on her chin and lifted her lips to his. He kissed her softly, then took both his hands and placed them on each side of her temples. Maurice twisted her head so fast it completely disconnected from her body and the rest of her turned to ash. He tossed the head against the wall and it crumbled to powder.
I couldn’t hold in the scream that left me. I quickly turned around and ran for the door. I knew I wasn’t going to get far, but I couldn’t stop my feet from moving as far away from the sight of a decapitated head as I could. Two vampires quickly jumped in front of the door to prevent me from escaping. Without looking up, I tried to move around them, but was grabbed by my shoulders and swung around to face the room again, their hands now gripping tightly around my arms, forcing me to face Maurice. Maurice walked back over to me.
“Let that be a lesson to you all. You will never ask for her blood and you will never address me unless you have permission. Let’s pretend we are all in a classroom and start raising our hands. The only topic that is forbidden is Akasha.” Maurice smiled to himself.
He was now next to me and I cowered while leaning back into the chest of the other vampire that was holding me in place. I didn’t even care that this other vampire was just as evil as Maurice. I just had to find comfort in someone. The closer Maurice got to me, the closer I clung up to the body holding me in place. I turned my head and buried my face into their chest, not looking up. Maurice placed his hand gently on my shoulder, trying to turn me around.
“Dorian, you can let go of her now.”
My gaze snapped up toward the vampire holding me.
I felt his hands slowly releasing my shoulders while I stared into the eyes of a familiar face. It was Dorian. My Dorian.
Oh. My. God!
My mind suddenly blacked out into another time. I was in the barn training with Caleb.
“You’re forbidden to see each other. You cannot fight the vampires while you are distracted by love, if it’s even love,” Roland told us. Caleb had his arms folded and he stomped off and out of the barn.
“Is there no other way?” I asked. We’re just supposed to be alone for the rest of our lives? It’s not fair, Roland.”
“You were never supposed to come here and fall in love, Mercy. You’re a soldier.”
“We promise we won’t let it distract us from the mission.”
“Whenever the rest of the coven is in danger, the first one he saves is you. You can’t fight this way. The answer is no. I have your mother’s support on this. We need to continue our training.”
I shook my head and turned around. I couldn’t look at him anymore. I ran out of the barn, trying to find Caleb, but he was gone. I turned to run toward a small hill by the farm and heard shouting coming from a clearing.
“Caleb!” I shouted.
When I reached the top of the field, it wasn’t Caleb who I saw.
“Kill her Dorian. Do it,” a woman commanded him, but he shook his head.
“Look at her, she’s terrified. Please don’t make me do this,” he pleaded. He helped a young woman to her feet, who was shaking profusely. This only infuriated the woman that was giving him orders.
“You’re worthless. I should have never turned you.” She leaned down and picked up a branch from the floor. I saw her snap the end, creating a sharper point. She then turned to Dorian, who was still helping the girl to her feet.
No!
I remembered the memory like it was yesterday. I ran as fast as I could while reaching into the holster around my waist and pulled out my stake. I leaped toward the woman and plunged the stake into her heart. She exploded into ash in front me. I turned to Dorian whose eyes were wide and terrified. “She was going to kill you,” I said, grabbing him by the hand. I didn’t fear him, and yes, he was a stranger, but his kind eyes spoke to me like no other had ever done.
“Mercy, back away,” Roland shouted from the opposite end of the clearing.
I looked back to Dorian and took a step closer to him. “Run.”
My memory then sped up, taking me through an entire year of memories with Dorian. I saw our love grow and the feelings of trying to fight it. I watched every memory become a part of myself again, as if it had never left me. I watched us together, until the moment my neck was snapped by a rope.
My eyes popped back open.
I looked up at Dorian, standing in front of me in this room filled with blood sucking vampires, wondering if he even remembered me. There was no emotion in his eyes. He wasn’t ripping the head off Maurice in my honor. He was acting like I was a stranger. He was acting like … one of them.
Why hadn’t Dorian come for me? Simon had never killed him like Caleb told me, so Caleb had lied. Why hadn’t Dorian come for me after I came back into this life? Did he know who I was?
Dorian caught my eyes and shook his head discreetly, and he adjusted his shirt as if he were uncomfortable with me looking at him now. He only focused on Maurice.
Was that expression a warning to not let him know that we knew each other?
Dorian had the same face, but his hair was shorter than it was in my memories, and even from my visions that came through my dreams. He had messy, medium-length hair that stood taller on the top than the sides and had the beautiful light brown eyes that I remembered from my dreams, which I now knew to be memories. He wore all black and a long red scarf around his neck. Dorian’s eyes met mine again and his face went still.
Maur
ice grabbed my hand gently and we headed out of the room. I looked back at Dorian as we exited and gave him a pleading look.
I tried to reach him with my mind.
“Dorian, if you can hear this, please help me.”
I wasn’t sure with the magic bracelet on my wrist, he could read my thoughts, but I hoped he could.
Maurice brought me up a long spiral staircase near the front foyer. We stopped on the second floor and headed toward the very last room at the end of the hall. We walked into a large room with a canopy bed. The canopy posts had beautiful carvings all the way up and a red, silk cloth was draped over it, creating a cover to the bed. The king bed was covered in black bedding with several throw pillows. There was a vanity on the corner of the room with a gaudy vintage mirror. The closet was open and there were dresses and heels that aligned the walls. Were they expecting me? Or was this room always made for women coming and going?
“This will be your room, Akasha. We treat our blood donors with hospitality here. However, if you disobey me, you will spend the night in the dungeon below. I want you to feel at home here, but you are still my slave. You have your own shower and your closet is filled with clothes your size that Kyoko, my right hand, picked out for you once we learned that Spirit was a woman. You are expected to be bathed daily, perfect hygiene, hair and makeup done, but not overly done. You will always be presentable in my presence. If you need anything, you press the speaker button here and Kyoko will come to your aid.”
“So those you drink from, they are donors? Not kept here against their will?”
He laughed. “Most of them came here of their own free will.”
That thought alone was so disturbing. Why would anyone sacrifice themselves to be fed on and imprisoned like this?
“Get some sleep and Kyoko will be at your door in the morning with breakfast.” He leaned in and kissed me on the forehead. Was I just a blood supplier for him? Or did he expect us to have a weird master-slave relationship? Because that was never going to happen!
