Master of Darkness

by K T Kaye

  “How can a vampire have magic?” Angel asked.

  “How can a shapeshifter transform into other paranormal beings?” Mr Jet replied with a question, as his forcefield extinguished the flames. “Have you never wondered Samantha, why your shapeshifting abilities are so unusual? Or why you’re more powerful than your peers?”

  “Ah, is this the part where you imply that you know the answers to all these questions, and you say that if I join your little demon worshipping squad, you’ll tell me?”

  “You mock but deep down you are slightly curious.”

  “Not really,” Angel transformed into a phoenix and dived at Mr Jet. However the vampire raised his hand and Angel was once again hit by the strange orange glowing object. Like before, Angel was forced to transform back into herself. She collapsed to her knees. Mr Jet smiled. He walked forward and pressed his hand against Angel’s forehead.

  “This isn’t over Night. In fact it’s far from it but until we meet again,” Mr Jet whispered as Angel fell into unconsciousness.

  * * * * *

  Angel stood outside an old manor house.

  The manor house was crumbling and falling apart. The roof had caved in slightly and the windows were smashed. It looked like it belonged in a horror movie. Its walls were grey and uninviting. The house was in a forest, close to a small lake. Unlike the forest at the base, this place was silent. Not even the sound of a fluttering bird could be heard.

  “Where am I? How did I get here?” Angel wondered aloud.

  She looked around, there was miles of dark green forest in every direction. As Angel stared at the mass of leaves, she noticed a little girl skipping across the undergrowth. She hopped over the rocks by the lake. The girl was small with brown hair that fell in curly locks and pink cheeks. She wore a pale pink dress and shiny red shoes. The child ran over to Angel.

  “Hello,” the little girl smiled, “Are you here to play?”

  The girl didn’t wait for an answer. She ran up to the old house and pushed the decrepit door open.

  “Kid, what are you doing here?” Angel asked, “Hey! Hey kid, where are we?”

  “Come on Angel it’s time to play!” the girl squeaked.

  “How do you know my name?”

  “Come on they’re waiting!”

  “Who is waiting!? Kid!” Angel jogged after the girl and up to the door of the house. The girl skipped inside, and Angel reluctantly followed. Once she was inside the door slammed shut behind her. Angel felt in the darkness for the door handle but there was none.

  She was trapped!

  Candles suddenly flickered into life and Angel could see the interior of the house she had stupidly walked into. In front of her was a large staircase which led off in two different directions and there were shut doors on both sides. The walls were painted a dark colour, what that colour was Angel couldn’t tell as the paint was so faded that it had lost its natural shade. The floor was wooden and dead animal heads lined the corridor. Suddenly Angel felt something tap her back. She jumped and span around. The little girl was stood behind her.

  “This way Angel,” the little girl grabbed Angel’s hand and dragged her into a room. The door once again slammed shut.

  “You’re going to die Angel Night,” the little girl sang.

  “What!?” Angel turned to the girl, but she had vanished, “Kid! Hey kid! Where did you go?”

  The room was completely empty. The walls were bare and spiderwebs decorated the ceiling. Angel banged against the door desperately trying to open it. She tried to transform but found herself unable to. Her powers were gone. She was trapped in this unknown place without her powers to save her.

  “You know a lot about curses, don’t you?” said a voice. Angel turned around and found that the room was no longer empty. A table and two chairs had appeared. Seated in one of the chairs was the Pied Piper of Hamlin.

  “You, but you’re, this isn’t real, this can’t be real!” Angel exclaimed. Angel walked over to the table and sat opposite the Piper, “Are you a ghost? What are you even doing here?”

  “You were cursed by a memory loss spell, correct?” the Piper asked distantly.

  “That…wait you said that before!”

  “Clearly the curse never fully settled, which must be why your hair never returned to its natural colour.”

  “Yes you said that before as well.”

  “Ah, it seems that we have run out of time,” the Piper sighed, “For showing you that memory and for what I am about to make you do, I am truly sorry.”

  “What is this?”

  Suddenly the Pied Piper vanished.

  “Piper! Where are you!?” Angel got to her feet.

  “He’s gone,” said the little girl who had suddenly reappeared.

  “What is going on here? What is this place? Who are you!?”

  “They all have things to say to you.”

  “Who? Who has things to say to me?”

  “Only one way to find out,” the girl smiled and skipped through an opened door. Angel ran after the girl. However as she ran through the door, she found herself strapped to a chair.

  “What the…?” Angel struggled but the straps merely tightened. Smoke filled the room and a fire suddenly coughed into life. Angel looked down; her uniform had been replaced with a blood-stained nightdress.

  “Oh no, no,” Angel gasped as from a darken corner a man with heavy footsteps walked forwards. Angel couldn’t see the man’s face, however the baton in his hand was clearly visible. Before Angel had a chance to scream, the baton hit her face. Angel spat out blood. She closed her eyes as the baton continued to bare down on her body. Then it stopped. Angel opened her eyes as the man tipped her chair backwards. Angel fell, but instead of hitting the floor, the chair went straight through it.

  And landed in the lake. The chair sunk to the bottom of the lake, hitting the riverbed softly. The straps turned into seaweed and Angel was able to break free. Angel swam to the surface. She took a deep breath, allowing the cool water to heal her aching body.

  “This isn’t real. This can’t be real,” Angel muttered to herself as she swam to the sandbank and pulled herself onto dry land.

  “Samantha.” Angel looked up and came face-to-face with the witch. She knelt in front of Angel. She grabbed Angel’s face and whispered in her ear, “You can’t escape. Yu can’t run.”

  “Watch me,” Angel got to her feet and ran as fast as she could. As she ran the witch’s voice echoed around the forest.

  “Samantha. I’m coming for you.”

  Angel ran as the voice got louder and louder. Then suddenly everything went silent. All Angel could hear was her own heart beating. Angel stopped running as the world began to spin. When the world stopped spinning Angel found herself once again inside the haunted old manor house. This time she was in a dark empty room. Angel sat down, her body aching too much for her to stand. As she did so another young girl entered the room. Angel recognised her instantly.

  It was herself.

  A younger version of herself.

  “Hello, can you hear me?” Angel asked her younger self.

  She didn’t reply. Instead a man appeared behind her. He shoved her to the floor. There was a loud crack as her skull made contact with the stone floor. Blood ran from the girl’s forehead. The man grabbed the young Angel’s hair and pulled her to her feet. He then slammed her into a wall.

  “Let me...her go!” Angel yelled as she ran over to the man, pulled him away from her younger self and saw his face for the first time.

  “Alex?”

  The man was Alexander.

  Dressed in his Lightning Squad uniform (black trousers and a black polo shirt with the Lightning Squad logo printed on it), the vampire stood staring at Angel. His eyes were red and his gaze menacing. The younger version of Angel vanished, leaving the real Angel alone with Alexander. There was silence. Angel didn’t dare speak; she didn’t want to prompt the madness of this nightmare.

  “Angel, what you saw…was it
you getting cursed?” Alexander asked suddenly.

  “What? Oh this is so messed up,” Angel stumbled backwards.

  This wasn’t Alexander. Angel knew that for certain. This was some kind of strange illusion. It spoke with Alexander’s voice and wore his skin, but it lacked the emotion and feeling of the real thing. The words it spoke were mere recordings. Repeated conversations, lacking the original context and meaning.

  “Angel, some memories are forgotten for a reason. If these memories are painful then maybe its best that you don’t remember them.”

  Angel laughed and took a defiant step forward, “You’re not him. This isn’t real.”

  “Have you read my file?”

  Angel laughed bitterly then suddenly the fake Alexander raced forwards and grabbed her neck. He pushed her backwards, up against the wall. Angel tried to break free but found herself both unable to shapeshift and unable to escape. Alexander grabbed her head and tilted it so that the juiciest part of her neck was within biting distance. The vampire lent forwards pressing his mouth against her skin.

  He whispered, “I’m not a terrorist. I know you can’t just take my word for it but, I want Mr Jet dead as much as you do. Perhaps even more.”

  “Don’t trust Alex, he’s not what he seems,” said a familiar voice. Angel yelled out in frustration and was finally able to push Alexander (who had suddenly become still) away. She stumbled across the room to find Danny stood in the opposite corner.

  “You’re here too!” Angel exclaimed. Like Alexander, Danny was dressed in his Lightning Squad uniform and wore an emotionless expression.

  This was not Danny.

  This was simply a phantom figure masquerading as reality.

  The fake Danny sighed, “I did some background research on Alex. He has a very bloody past. Fe even has links to the Jack the Ripper murder cases.”

  Danny and Alexander continued to talk. Their words overlapped each other and echoed around the room. The room span as the words got louder and louder.

  “Stop it! Stop it! Stop it!” Angel screamed.

  There was silence until...

  “Excuse me…what are you…this is crazy! I’m dreaming…this is a nightmare! I’m human!”

  “Jason!?” Angel cried as Jason appeared behind her.

  “The point is your leader, your commander, your family and even your vampire lover. They’re all lying to you,” Mr Jet said as he appeared from the darkness, “Have you never wondered, Samantha, why your shapeshifting abilities are so unusual? Or why you’re more powerful than your peers?”

  Angel sank to the floor, grabbing her head as the voices got louder and louder. The fake Jason spoke quickly whilst the fake Mr Jet spoke with a steady pace. Their voices interrupted the continuous chatter from the fake Alexander and Danny. What was going on? What was the point of this? Was there a meaning behind all of this? Whatever it was Angel didn’t understand it. The ghosts of the men she knew continued to repeat their words as Angel slowly began to fall into insanity.

  “You really don’t know, do you? This is all because of you. You and the Master of Darkness.” Paris laughed as he suddenly appeared next to Alexander. Upon his arrival, the others disappeared leaving the shapeshifter alone with the man she had just murdered. Angel stumbled to her feet. The room was silent. Paris stared at her. He was no longer beaten up and battered, he instead looked the same as he used to; full of life, mischief, and charm.

  “Your mum, Angel, your birth mum. She’s very much alive.”

  “Paris,” Angel sighed, “What is this? Is this you? Is this some kind of ghost enchantment?”

  Paris just started to laugh, “You’re going to die. Angel Night…you will die.”

  “Is that your new catchphrase?”

  “On Halloween you will die.” Suddenly blood began to drip from Paris’ chest. A line of blood grew across his body. His heartbeat seemed to echo around the room and Angel could hear it getting slower and slower. Paris took a step forward, grabbing Angel. He collapsed and died in her arms. Angel pushed him to the ground. His blood stained her hands.

  “It’s nearly time to go,” the little girl announced appearing from the shadows.

  “Go where?” Angel asked as Paris disappeared, “Who are you?”

  “You killed me. Don’t you remember?”

  “What?”

  “You killed me!”

  * * * * *

  “Angel!”

  When Angel opened her eyes, she found Jason staring down at her.

  “Jason, are you real?” Angel mumbled.

  “Yes! I am! Angel! Hi! Can you see me?” Jason asked.

  “What are you doing here?”

  “Well, see I followed your plan. When the Emperor was about to speak, and the crowd all stood up, Araminta helped me sneak away. But I couldn’t find the blue room and well I got lost! I was trying to find my way back when I saw you and Mr Jet. He tapped you on the head and then you collapsed. I ran to you. Mr Jet smiled at me, said ‘bye Jason’ then disappeared. I started shouting ‘Angel’ and then you woke up,” Jason stuttered quickly.

  “Right. Ah!”

  “Your hand is broken.”

  “Really? Is it Jason? I hadn’t noticed!” Angel exclaimed as she cradled her broken hand.

  “No need to be rude. Should I go and find help?”

  “Don’t bother, you’ll only get lost,” Angel pulled out her wand with her other hand. She flicked her wrist and blue sparks floated from the tip of the wand to her hand. There was a horrible grinding sound as Angel’s hand healed itself.

  “Oh that’s cool! A bit gross but in a cool way!”

  “You said Jet disappeared. How long ago was that? And in which direction was he headed?”

  “It was a while. Well not a while exactly but it was a couple of minutes ago, like maybe five, possibly six.”

  “Forget it. He’ll be long gone anyway…”

  “What happened? How come Jet was here? Did he save Paris?”

  “No.”

  “That means you…oh,” there was a pause, “Are you okay?”

  “No, no I’m not. I just executed…I just murdered someone! Not just someone…Paris! I’ve never…I’m not okay Jason,” Angel sighed close to tears.

  They fell silent until Jason asked, “Why did he come then? Mr Jet, if he wasn’t here to save Paris, why did he come?”

  “I think he was just here because he could be. It shows just how powerful he thinks he is. He’s just appeared right next to the Emperor and got away.”

  “Like a publicity stunt?”

  “Exactly.”

  “What did he do to you? I just saw him touch your head and then…”

  “He has magic!”

  “But he’s a vampire. Vampire’s don’t have magic, do they?”

  “No, no they don’t. I’ve never heard of a vampire with magical powers. I’ve heard of vampires with seer abilities before and I’ve even met one with elemental powers. But in these cases the vampires have been from mixed heritage backgrounds.”

  “Mixed heritage?”

  “Ah it means that they had powers before they were turned. It’s rare though, normally if a vampire bites a paranormal, the paranormal just dies. Vampires rarely go after paranormals anyway. Human blood tastes better, apparently.”

  “Perhaps Mr Jet used to be a warlock,” Jason suggested.

  “It’s a possibility I suppose. Why didn’t he kill me? He had the perfect opportunity too, so why didn’t he? He must want me alive for some reason,” Angel muttered, “Come on, we need to get back and report this.”

  As Angel got up, she felt a burning pain in her arm. She looked down at her wrist. It was covered in blood. Angel turned to the fountain and dipped her arm in the water. As the blood washed away, Angel found that the name Paris Surf had been tattooed onto her skin.

  “You are working fast today witch,” Angel muttered.

  “What is that!?” Jason exclaimed.

  “It’s something you need to forge
t about,” Jason was about to protest but Angel cut him off, “Jason, I don’t have the time or energy to explain this to you today. Let it go. I will explain it some other time, until then you don’t breathe a word about this to anyone, understand?”

  Jason nodded. Angel muttered her thanks as she watched as the name faded into her skin. Where it would remain forever waiting for her to look at her reflection and see the monster within.

  23

  ‘The Hazard Team is less

  impressive than it sounds’

  JASON

  As me and Angel headed back to the courthouse, we ran into a rather scary looking fairy. She was well armed and raised her sword in our direction as we approached.

  “Captain Night. What happened to Mr Jet?” the fairy asked.

  “He got away,” Angel muttered, “The Emperor?”

  “Safe. Your Colonel escorted him back to the palace. How exactly did Mr Jet escape?”

  “We fought. He won and got away.”

  “And left you alive? I see.”

  “What is that supposed to mean?”

  “Did anyone see you fight with Mr Jet?”

  “I did,” I stuttered, the scary fairy turned to me.

  “And who are you?”

  “The Master of Darkness.”

  Upon hearing this the fairy sheathed her sword and bowed her head, “Ah I apologise sir.”

  “No need to…”

  “How did Mr Jet get into the courthouse?” Angel interrupted, “I thought you had security covered.”

  “As did I,” the fairy admitted.

  “It seems you have a leak. You might want to sort that out.”

  “Worry about your own squad not mine.” At that moment a stretcher walked past us. On the stretcher was a bloody corpse. A corpse with ginger hair. Paris! Before I could see the body clearly, Angel covered my eyes with her hand. I took a number of deep breaths. I had to suppress both my desire to vomit and my urge to scream. I couldn’t freak out. Not now. Not in front of Angel. And especially not in front of the scary fairy with the sharp sword! But I wanted to freak out. Paris was dead. Not only was he dead but he had been executed. Executed by Angel. Angel had killed Paris with her own hands. The same hands that now covered my eyes!