Ring of Madness

by Royden Labrosse

  My daily rhythm of life has shifted. Now I can't sleep at night. I go to bed as soon as I get back from the institute and wake up in the dark. I read or watch TV all night and go to class in the morning. It makes me feel better. Sometimes I dream about Danielle. And those dreams make me wake up in tears. I bought paints and an easel, and I try to paint. I know how to do it from somewhere. Did the Seal work? Or did it not? And this is his goodbye present? I don't even know anything about myself, and it's scary. But to go to a vampire for clarification?! It's better to die right away! I don't want anything to do with Mecislav! I don't want anything to do with Mieczysław! If he comes near me, I'll kill him! Even if it's a huge risk for me! Daniel's eyes are too alive in my memory to forgive Mieczysław. I have loved and lost a loved one. And now I firmly know what remains when love is taken from my heart. There's still a void. And there is pain in it. It doesn't pass and it doesn't stop. They say that time heals. I don't hope so. At night, I look up at the sky and cry. I used to dream of looking at the stars next to my loved one. Now it won't happen anymore. Nothing is going to happen. And for some reason, I am. I live in a habit, I walk in a habit, I talk in a habit. And there's a cross-shaped scar under my collarbone. He'll stay with me forever. As is the bitter memory of my first love that died.

  Book 3 - Fang Passions

  Chapter 1

  The return of the prodigal (or just prodigal?) son...

  The day was innocent and the wind was fresh, the dark stars went out... I was not inspired by Tsvetaeva today. I wasn't inspired by anything at all. Summer, flowers, turkey weeds, the river again, sun tan, and I'm severely depressed. And I've never been to the beach. Although there are good reasons for that. But I guess it's better to tell it all over again. My name is Julia Evgenievna Leoverenskaya. You can't talk out of the cold, it's funny, too. So all my friends and acquaintances call me just Julia. I'm nineteen years old, and in a couple of weeks I'll be twenty. My youth passes, my years remain. And what's this philosophy got me into? Oh, right, it's 4:00 in the morning. That's when my memories come back to me.

  A year ago, I was different at this time. I lived like all students, went to lectures, walked around, cheated, kissed boys, danced at discos. I lived and enjoyed life. I didn't think it could be any other way at the time. And now I look at the brightened sky and I feel crazy longing. And there are questions that never get answered. Where was I wrong?! What went wrong?! Why did my life turn from a normal comedy into a hybrid thriller with a horror movie?! Why did I lose someone I loved?! What could I do to keep Danielle alive?! If Satan had just shown up in front of me and said: "You'd give me your soul and I'd bring you back, in February, so you could try to make it right! But no one can guarantee you luck!" - I would agree without hesitation. Even if it didn't work out, I'd be around the person I love a little longer. At least an hour, at least a minute! To see, to touch, to ask if he blames me...

  Although I do know that. He doesn't blame me.

  And he would have told me the same thing. Danielle loved me. And he gave me a gift to say good-bye. Now I even know what it is. It's part of God's spark. Part of his talent. That's not a gift made to a man who's believed to be guilty of his death. Such a gift can only be given to a loved one. And he loved. And I loved him.

  Oh, Danielle, Danielle... I wish you were here with me for one second! If there's life after death, if there's heaven and hell and vampires are in hell, I'll ask for you! And I don't care about heaven and eternal bliss! I won't trade the frying pan next to you for the fuzziest cloud in the world! It's not terrible to die when someone very close and dear has gone over the line. And Danielle is my eternal pain and eternal sadness.

  It so happened that in February a friend dragged me into a very bad and bloody story. Eventually I found out that there are vampires, werewolves and a goddamn breakthrough of other evil. I really didn't see all of them-- just vampires and werewolves. But I had enough for my eyes. And I fell unplannedly in love with one vampire... Although Danielle was first an artist, then a bloodsucker. And I-I was willing to do anything for him. This was taken advantage of by another vampire who eventually became Prince of the city. And Danielle died. He died stupidly and senselessly, by order of his mistress, who was jealous of him. And she would have been jealous of the man! No! It's just that her toad ran over that no one loved her. And they won't love her! Danielle sketched me a portrait of her from memory. And I'll tell you the truth: to fall in love with one, you have to hit your head hard against a tall tree. And more than once.

  Well, it's okay, the world is small, one day I'll get to this crap, and then ... I'm her IPF, that is, the fighters of paranormal forms, I will not give up - I'll cut into pieces without anesthesia! I'm gonna rub it on a little grater and sprinkle it with red pepper! And my hands won't shake!

  Dzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!!

  The bell went off with a mad thrill. I twitched and went to open it. I wonder who it is. Turns out, Nadia. A friend flew into the apartment, hitting me with a wave of expensive perfume, and smacked on the cheek.

  - Hello, Yulenok! Are you sitting there looking?!

  - Looking at the moon," I said. - And what happened? You seem to be early in the morning...

  I unwittingly fell in love with a friend. And where did a battered girl from the village go, working as a janitor and counting pennies to her salary? Expensive clothes, makeup, perfume, hair... Hopefully our whole story worked out well. The girlfriend even lost five pounds and clearly wasn't going to stop there. And how much energy was coming from her... just like the flow of light from a light bulb!

  Men would come at her like mosquitoes in a flashlight. And Nadia was very happy about it. She had already managed to get her own house and now she studied in the mornings, worked in the evenings, and at night at full moon she ran in animal skins. Such a rich social life.

  - Why, to come to your house later at night and later? - parried by Nadya. - I know it's a quiet hour from noon to night. Yul, would you come with this shit, huh? Why don't I give you some sleeping pills or something? Drink weed, motherwort, they say it helps well, or you can just walk on vodka without an appetizer! What is it, not sleeping at night?!

  I shook my head.

  - Nadia, you know that's not the answer.

  - Yeah, well, staying up all night is the answer.

  - Why, do I also have a choice?! - I shake my head.

  Well, yes, Nadia is not to blame for anything; moreover, it was me who got her into my fight, and through my fault she became a werewolf. And, in a good way, a friend should have ripped my head off. She's got the power now. Werewolves are much stronger than people. But Nadia forgave me, and we still talk. Even more so now. Nadia claims I'm severely depressed. I don't care what it's called. Yes, I'm not interested in living, I don't eat much, I've abandoned all my hobbies, I can't sleep at night, because under the bed there are terrible monsters and painful memories. Now my daily routine is as follows: at night I sit at home, reading, drawing, watching TV or mocking the computer, from eight o'clock in the morning to three o'clock in the afternoon, the working period I dedicate to the institute, and from three o'clock to eight or nine o'clock in the evening I black out and sleep like a murdered person. At this time, I don't care about any nightmares.

  That's how I live.

  Mom was terrified at first, but Grandpa asked her to leave me alone. I don't know what version he gave her or how he convinced her, but now my mother visits me either after 9:00 or in the morning. Or I go to my family when I feel comfortable. Our apartments are in the same house, only in different entrances, and to go to my mother, in winter I do not even need to dress - the parade is connected by a very comfortable attic.

  - Get out of nirvana! - A friend barked.

  I twitched and stared at her.

  - What, Nadyush?!

  - The same! I'm talking to her here, and she's on a cactus meditating! Come to the party with us tomorrow! The Three Sixes will have a great disco, live music, cocktails on the house, strip show! It's w
here the whole town is cracking up, shoving each other's elbows off!

  I'm totally shaking my head.

  - Sorry, Nadia, I'm not going!

  - Why not?! There's a problem! Get out and get out!

  - For someone not a problem, and for me so much, - I cut off.

  Well, yes, and this problem has a name, fangs and a rare bastard character. Didn't you forget something? Yes, I forgot. And when I see this vampire, it makes my jaws want to go. So does ninety-nine percent of women. The remaining one percent are blind, deaf and hopelessly hormonally ill.

  - What the hell is the Three Sixes?

  I haven't had much interest lately, so the city news has been passing by.

  - The newly opened strip club," Nadia said. - Cool program, everybody is tearing up there, Tanya got tickets by pure chance!

  I shook my head.

  - Nadia, you know, I'm not going out after dark even in danger of being shot!

  - How much can you?! - A friend got sober. - What are you afraid of?! That fang?! What makes you think he'll even approach you? He's got thirteen for a dozen!

  But her anger seemed a little played out to me. It may be paranoia, but Nadia knows as well as I do that Mecislav will not leave me alone. Why not? There are many different reasons for that. I'm his surname, I'm very strong in the metaphysical sense, and in general... I'm the first woman who was able to refuse him. The first one in seven hundred years of his life. One of my vampire buddies told me that under a big secret. Will he leave me alone after this? I had a lot of doubts. And so did Nadia. It's hard to speak convincingly under these conditions.

  - I prefer not to take any chances," I cut it off. - That's it. The topic is not discussed!

  - What a fool," said Nadia. - Okay, I still have to nag at work, if you think about it - call. I'll hold on to the ticket.

  - I will not call.

  Nadia left by slamming the door. I went into the fridge. Yes, almost nothing. We should slip into the store. I tracked down my summer pants and shirt and went to the shower. It's just vital that I relax so I don't think about vampires. But it's easier said than done. Thoughts were stubbornly in my head. And the thoughts were about a single vampire. Mecislav. I didn't even know if it was his real name or if he was pretending, as usual. We were introduced by my dead lover.

  It so happens that Danielle was counting on his friend for help. The friend flew in and played it his own way. As a result, Danielle died, and Mieczyslaw turned out to be the Prince of Vampires of the city. I caught pneumonia and stayed in a coma for days. And at the same time has received some scars from bites and cuts on wrists, a scar from a burn in the form of a cross under a collarbone and the Vampire Seal. And if the scars are clear, they can be covered with bracelets and collars and at least temporarily not think about any nasty things, what to do with the Seal - I still do not understand. And when I try to find out something from my vampire friends, they lower their eyes to the floor and mumble: "I'm sorry, but the Prince has forbidden us to talk to you on this subject. He said that if you want to learn something new about yourself, you should call him on the phone..." I'll soon know this phone better than I do my own. I already have this phone in my teeth.

  But there's nothing I can do about it! Mecislav is the Prince of the city. And I put both hands on his throne myself. Why? I wanted to live very much. You see, the previous prince, a rare bastard, promised to make me a vampire, but before that he would abuse me. And if I could also agree to the second one (he was attractive, you can't take that away, this blue-eyed blond Aryan type, Hitler's living dream), then the first one I strongly did not like.

  Mecislav, on the other hand, offered me protection and friendship. And I believed it. You should've known vampires to be trusted. It's like kissing a crocodile with a sucker. Miecislav was no exception to the rule. Auntie, let me have a drink, because I want to have no place to sleep...

  First I got the friendship, then the first Seal. And the vampire was determined to get me into bed. I resisted like hell, and as a result, I was almost free. And Miecislav became the coolest vampire in the area. And if some bloodsucker does something the Prince won't like, I won't envy the poor guy. Miecislav's a rare bastard in a beautiful package. I'd say in a stunningly beautiful and sexy package. By the way, another reason not to go out with him. And the reason for that is the carriage and the little bogie.

  First of all, I don't trust him.

  Secondly, I'm afraid of him.

  Third, I'm scared of me!

  At one look at Mieczysław, all my hormones are off the hook, and I become just a sex maniac! All thoughts, all feelings - only one thing. And the vampire knows it very well. And he's gonna take advantage of it. Why not? Haven't I told you yet? It's weird. It's the most unexpected thing in my life, though. And it happened on principle: there was no sadness, the devil screamed. It just so happened.

  I don't know how, but I woke up...

  strength.

  А

  power

  attracts vampires like... like blood, only harder! Because blood can be obtained from any human, and those who know how to share their own.

  force

  people who have enough of it to give it to them and not die, a handful. I don't know any of those people. I had no idea I was capable of it myself. Though I might have guessed it. It's a legacy, and my grandfather is an extraordinary man. In the seventy with a large tail successfully ruled (does not control, namely, rules, and for subordinates, he is just a king, God and clear sun) of his company, and looks at the same time on the fifty-five, sixty at most. And in general, if he was not my grandfather, I would fall in love with him without memory. That's who else could so calmly accept the existence of vampires and other evil, listen to my story and not only do not define me in an asylum, and even help? And not just in word, but in deed as well?

  As soon as I got out of the hospital, my grandfather brought me to my new apartment. And I made sure it was renovated and furnished in record time. Two weeks later, I was already doing my housewarming. Although I did, it's too loud. I invited Nadia, Valentin came with her for the company, and Boris and Vadim came a little later. I had to invite her. Although I don't like it too much.

  You see, vampires can't enter an apartment or an apartment building without an invitation. But if they get permission, they can come to you anytime they want. So I gave the guest rights to Boris and Vadim, but it so happens that they can now invite their Prince. And if Mechislav comes to me, I don't know how it's going to end. Even remotely. But fortunately, he's not coming yet. It's only on the stairs that new roses regularly appear.

  By order of a vampire, a big vase was placed there, and flowers change regularly. Tender pink roses. So today... I took a look at the flowers and walked past. They smelled all over the place. What the hell is that? The whole entrance! The vase, as always, was amusing. The cheeky vampire ordered to paint it in the style of "Dracula": wolves, bats, clouds, and in the foreground - a girl in the arms of a vampire. The vampire was depicted from behind, with black curls, and the girl looked suspiciously like me.

  But I didn't react anymore. What's the point in freaking out if I tried everything I could and it didn't work? All I have to do is accept it. First I asked you to put that vase away - no way! And you can't break it or disfigure it - it's metal and heavy, as hell knows what. I tried to paint it with a marker! So this stuff is covered in some kind of varnish. It takes two minutes to wipe the paint off. Sprayed it out of the spray can, she's back to being good as new. Only acetone stinks all over the house.

  I ended up spitting and quit trying to get rid of that "sign of attention." So I stood on the court, causing the adorable looks of old virgins and professional gossips. Not even teenagers with a penchant for wall painting were found on it! Although I do not lose hope and try to believe in the younger generation.

  I looked in my mailbox. Nothing new? Nothing. It's still early. That's too bad. I've been getting a very interesting magazine for the last six months. It's called
"In the World of the Supernatural." The paper is grey, the illustrations are black and white, and it's printed in the nearest back. But the information contained on thirty pages is invaluable to me. It's not some kind of UFO mystery or Night Pages nonsense. It's serious information to me. The only thing I didn't like was the IPF emblem in the corner of the cover. And all the information was presented from their point of view. If vampires are vampires, it's bound to be a fang. If they're werewolves, it's either ogres or victims of attack. If they're zombies, you have to destroy them and the necromancer. Elves, dwarves, goblins, blacks, mermaids...

  I had to literally sift out the outbursts of anger on the pages. But in the end I was able to learn a lot about the evil that lives on earth. The magazine first came to me shortly after I was discharged from the hospital. I swallowed it overnight, and the next morning I called Konstantin Sergeyevich and asked how much I owed for valuable information. The colonel gave me the subscription cost and the account number to which the money was transferred. This magazine is published in very small circulation, each subscriber on the account, and leave to the side will not allow any copy. They made an exception for me. The FPI is still hoping that I will join their ranks. And I don't tell them anything to keep my lip from rolling. Why fight? A skinny world isn't a bad invention.

  From the store, I was dragged as loaded as a camel. But that's my principle. You have to go to the store on an empty stomach to know exactly what you want and stock up for five or seven days. Or all ten days. A couple of chickens, a few packs of dumplings, bread, cheese, sausage, all kinds of small things, necessarily a few cans of olives (um-m-m... I love it!), a few kilos of nuts with condensed milk - even if they make me fat, but nothing can hurt me! I've lost weight, and I can't get better! When I came out of the hospital, I was fifty five kilos. Skin and bones, a visual anatomical manual, shit! All the ribs were palpable! And now, six months later, I'm only fifty six pounds. Although I'm not limiting myself to anything. There's not much to limit myself to.