When Colour Became Grey

by A Lorenzen

  ‘It makes me stronger’

  ‘It also makes you high! You said so yourself!’

  ‘Not if I’m careful! Come on Kim, it’s two of us against a hoard of molochs and I don’t even have a god-damn gun!’

  Kim stepped towards me and pointed at my face. ‘If you fuck up, I’m leaving you here!’

  Her eyes blazed with fury. With a quick movement she turned around, whipping her hair at my face and continued to walk along the hallway. I rolled my eyes and followed her deeper into the factory.

  The walls and floors were white, neon lights above us turned on as we walked further inside, activated by our movements. There were numerous doors on each side, but all were locked. We listened at each of them but couldn’t hear anything from the inside. If Dom was pinned down by molochs we would hear them.

  The corridor turned left, and we followed it around the corner. When I looked back it was dark. The lights at the end of the hall had already switched off, obscuring the exit. This promised to be fun…

  I lifted the bottle to my lips and swallowed half of the contents. Kim growled when she heard me drinking.

  The hall ended at a door with a small window. Kim peered through the window. ‘I see big engines downstairs. We need to go down a flight of stairs and then there are large containers and machinery on each side. Plenty of hiding places…’

  ‘Do you think he’s down there?’ I leant against the door and looked at her.

  ‘If I was a moloch I would hide down there so I’m assuming he is as well.’

  ‘Can you hear them?’

  Kim pressed her ear against the window. ‘No… I hear the sound of machinery. If they are down there the machines are drowning them out.’

  She nodded in my direction and I opened the door. With the gun pointed straight ahead she stepped out onto the metal stairs. Suddenly she tripped backwards and would have landed on the floor, if I hadn’t caught her.

  ‘Fucking shoes!’ she swore and slipped out of her high heels, one of which was firmly stuck in the metal-grated stairs. When she ripped it out, the heel nearly came off. Angrily, she placed the shoes to the side of the door and went on barefoot. I followed her out into the lit warehouse.

  We were lucky molochs could not shoot guns otherwise we would have already been dead. The stairs were in the middle of the room and high up. We were exposed from all sides. Slowly we stepped down the stairs, as quietly as possible. The further we went, the more noises we heard. Some of the rounded white metal containers were vibrating slightly and emitting a deep humming sound. I guessed there was some sort of pressure system making things rotate at a steady pace. From the clean and spartan surroundings I could not make out what kind of production this was, and to be honest I didn’t care. All I wanted was to get Dom out and be done with it. We were supposed to be having a lady’s night out, not sneaking around in a factory, outnumbered and outgunned.

  Kim walked to the left side of the warehouse and stayed close to the wall to give us some cover. The moloch blood started taking effect, making me feel confident. I concentrated on my steps to steady myself against the high that was building inside me. If I passed out Kim would have two bodies to drag out of here…

  ‘I can hear something,’ Kim whispered over her shoulder.

  I looked back to make sure no one was following us. That’s when I saw it. A single moloch had climbed up the metal container and was eyeing us from above.

  ‘Kim!’ I called under my breath, tapping her on the shoulder. When she turned, I pointed at the moloch and she pulled the trigger. The sound resonated loudly in the large hall and echoed off the metal structures. We both heard the hissing and howling in the distance that seemed to come from everywhere. They knew we were there.

  Kim continued to the left around a corner. The sound of rabid molochs was much louder. The corridor was dark and the light would not turn on. I looked back only to see three of them crawling closer. When I turned back towards Kim two more were in front of her. Kim shot the front two but by the time she turned backwards she only managed to shoot one out of the three following us. The others escaped behind shadowy corners.

  There was a sudden banging nearby; first one, then several thumps.

  ‘Dom,’ Kim said under her breath.

  He must have heard the shots. I could smell his blood before we saw him. We came to another bend to the left and came face to face with a huge heat-sealed door. A trail of blood drops led to it. Kim ran towards it and pressed her nose against the small glass in the centre of the door.

  ‘It’s Dom!’ she exclaimed with relief.

  Before I had time to join her, something ran into me and slammed my head against the wall. My head split with pain that set my ears ringing. I fell to the ground as the world spun. Shots echoed and mixed with the ringing in my head. Kim appeared to my right. Her dark vague outline stood over me. She bent down and said something to me, but I couldn’t understand what she was saying. Slowly the ringing subsided and the pain diminished enough for me to make sense of the world. I knew I had to get up to help Kim get out of here.

  ‘Gimme som,’ I managed to say.

  ‘What? What do you need?’ Her voice sounded muffled.

  ‘Blood!’

  Kim must have thought about it because it seemed to take forever before she finally raised my head and put the bottle to my lips. Holding the bottle with both hands I let the red liquid enter my body. Kim positioned herself behind me and pulled my upper body up.

  Shots pierced the air, renewing the ringing in my ears and making me cringe.

  Within minutes the blood started working. The ringing disappeared, my sight cleared, and my mind sharpened.

  ‘Meerah, are you ok now?’ Kim shook me. Her arms were wrapped around my stomach, holding me upright. Her gun rested in her right hand in my lap. The molochs had been scared away by her shooting, but they were lurking behind every corner and eyeing us with hungry eyes.

  ‘I’m alright.’ I raised myself up.

  ‘Let’s get Dom… - Meerah!’ Kim gasped when I turned to face her.

  ‘What?’

  ‘Your eyes, they look… different. Your pupils are… oval, and the red…’ she trailed off, but her gaze remained fixed on me.

  A moloch behind her moved and caught my attention. It jumped into the air, stretching out its claws ready to insert them into Kim’s back. It opened its mouth mid-flight, showing off its long teeth.

  It was as if time had slowed down; I pushed Kim aside and stretched my right hand out towards the moloch’s throat. The moloch tried to change its course mid-flight, but I was too fast. My hand closed around its throat and pressed it tight before its claws reached me. An audible crack accompanied the crushing of its spine in my bare hand. I let go of the body and watched it collapse into a stack of dead limbs. When I turned around, Kim was staring at me with wide eyes. She shook her head in disbelief.

  ‘This is where you say thank you.’ I tilted my head at her, my voice filled with sarcasm.

  Kim opened her mouth but couldn’t seem to find the right words. ‘How did you move so fast?!’ she eventually said.

  ‘What do you think? Now let’s get out of here!’ I walked over to Dominic’s hide-out and peered inside.

  He saw me at the door and slowly raised himself up from the floor. There was a pool of blood around him. I could feel my thirst stirring at the sight of all that red. ‘Take care of Dom. I’ll take out the molochs.’ I quickly turned away from Dominic and the terrifying temptation.

  Perhaps drinking blood had not been a good idea. Yet, not trying to calm my craving would have been even worse.

  Dom opened the door and the smell of his blood invaded my nostrils. Everything around me disappeared and all I wanted was to obey my thirst. The delicious scent of his blood seduced me. I could feel myself stepping closer to the open door. The sound of his heartbeat drummed through my body. I could hear the blood being pushed through his veins, all that sweet blood…

  Something bit m
y leg and I awoke from my trance. The molochs, also attracted by Dominic’s blood, had surrounded me, tearing my mind away from my murderous intentions. I kicked the nearest one and it smashed against the white wall, leaving a bloody crater where its head impacted. Another two jumped up towards my throat. Time slowed down again and it seemed they were floating towards me at a leisurely pace. With my right hand I formed a fist and punched the closest one in the side of its face. This sent the creature tumbling into the second.

  Another moloch landed on my back. I reached back and grabbed its arm, tearing the creature off my body and throwing it at two more molochs in front of me. Attracted by the blood trickling from my leg, one snuck in closer and was getting ready to sink its teeth in. That one got a kick from my bleeding foot.

  Another one behind me hopped up and got a hold of my arm and bit me. I tried to shake it off, but its teeth were deep in my flesh. A second got a hold of my bleeding leg and began sucking the blood out of it. With a violent swing against the wall I crushed the skull of the moloch clinging to my arm. Two more jumped on my back. They were everywhere!

  I threw myself repeatedly into the wall, squeezing the two molochs on my back. One let go but the other one sunk its claws deep into my shoulder blades. As for the one by my leg enjoying my blood, I reached for it with my left hand and twisted its neck until it snapped before it could do any more damage. Before I even had time to inhale, yet another was attacking me.

  Suddenly the molochs hissed in fear and retreated, even the one with its claws in my back. Within seconds they had all disappeared, leaving me alone, holding onto the wall, out of breath, my heart racing.

  My sense of danger switched into overdrive, buzzing in every cell of my body. Something much worse was coming my way. I wanted to disappear as well, run away from whatever was coming for me, but I couldn’t leave Kim and Dom behind. It would mean their certain deaths.

  It was silent. No more molochs hissing. Only my own breathing.

  Click. Click. Click.

  I jumped up and spun away from the sound. Kim’s head appeared through the open door. ‘Are you al-’

  ‘Give me the last bottle.’ My voice trembled.

  ‘What’s going on?’ she whispered, motionless.

  I knew what was coming. It could only be one thing. I hurried to Kim, my hands shaking. ‘Give me the bottle.’

  Finally, she disappeared from the doorway. I took a nervous look around. It had to be close. We had to hurry. There was no time to get away. I would have to hold it off long enough for Kim and Dominic to make a run for it.

  ‘What’s going on?’ Kim mouthed.

  I took a long chug from the bottle. ‘Vampire…’

  Kim’s face fell. It took her a few seconds to react. ‘Take the gun.’

  The moloch blood inside me spread quickly. My nerves calmed. ‘No. You need it. Call Blake. When he’s close, take Dom and get out.’

  My vision became sharper, but colours continued to fade.

  ‘Meerah, no! You can’t face it alone!’ She reached for my arms and clung to them in desperation.

  ‘If you don’t get Dominic to Gordon, he will bleed to death. You need to get out of here!’ Memories of Ben needlessly slipping away because Jesper refused to come flooded my mind.

  ‘Lock the door. I’ll be alright.’ I pushed her back inside, where Dom was laying half-conscious.

  The vampire was close, I could feel it. I took another pull from the bottle of red liquid. Tears shone in Kim’s eyes.

  ‘Don’t worry, the moloch blood makes me strong.’

  I tried to look as confident as possible in my own abilities.

  Hesitantly, she let go of me and closed the door. Her face looked at me through the window with desperation. I gave her one last encouraging nod and turned away.

  All colours were long since gone, but my senses were at their highest. I was aware of everything around me. I could feel the blood pulsing through my veins and oxygenating my cells. My heart pumped steadily. Though it was all in grey tones, everything around me was sharp and detailed. I inhaled deeply and could smell Dominic’s blood spreading on the floor, Kim’s perfume hovered nearby. Overpowering all of those was the distinct smell of danger approaching.

  A loud bang echoed off the walls and floors. It was inside the building. I could hear footsteps.

  My eyes scanned the factory for any movement, my muscles tense and ready for attack.

  Slowly, a man turned the corner and eyed me with bright crimson eyes. They stood out against his dark clothing and made him look even more ferocious.

  ‘What do we have here?’ he asked playfully, tilting his head from side to side. He breathed in deeply. ‘I can smell blood but… you seem unscathed.’ His clothes were of different shades of grey. Slung over his shoulders was a black coat that went down to his knees with a high collar.

  This was the end. I was sure of it. Suddenly I felt naked and exposed. I had no fucking weapons! I would die. This was it. The end…

  In one sudden motion he reached me, towering over me, his eyes fixed on me, his prey. I threw a punch, but he caught my arm before I even touched him. With incredible force he pushed my arm backwards, making me stumble against the wall. He grabbed my other arm and pulled himself closer. He breathed in my scent and bent down to my neck. With all my strength, I thrust my knee up into his gut. He groaned in pain, folding to the side, letting go of my arms.

  There was no time. I rammed into him with my shoulder and against the opposite wall. The vampire hissed with rage. He violently shoved me off. His right fist smashed into my face as his other fist slammed into the side of my hip. The impact should have broken bones but somehow, I was still in one piece. The vampire crushed my abdomen and I sank down to the floor. He continued kicking me in the stomach and face.

  Eventually, he stepped back, rearranging his clothes. I crawled away, using the wall behind me to pull myself up onto my shaking legs, trying to catch my breath. When he saw me struggling, a smile appeared on his face. He approached and swung his arm to deliver another blow. The arm approached slower than it should have. Somehow, I had time to duck and jab him into his ribs. His hand shot forward and closed around my throat, lifting me up. My feet no longer touch the ground. The pressure in my head made me dizzy. I tried to claw at his hand and arm, but I could not make his grip loosen up. Flashbacks of Viktor appeared in front of my eyes.

  The vampire got closer and smelled my hair, another wicked smile on his lips. His eyes were the same colour Viktor’s had been. Just like mine…

  I kicked my foot into his stomach. The surprising force of it made him let go and stumble backwards. I fell to the ground and gasped for air. My body moved to get up and into a somewhat descent defensive position.

  The vampire eyed me with a slight air of fear. ‘How are you so strong?!’

  Like a lion scouting out his prey he moved in a half-circle around me, looking at me from every angle.

  Then, the beast threw himself at me yelling like a crazed animal. We both went down and smacked against the hard ground. The vampire reached for my throat again, this time with both his hands. I got a hold of his wrists before he could close his fingers around my already bruised throat.

  Painstakingly slowly I pulled his arms further away from my throat, my muscles shaking at the resistance, sweat pearling down my forehead. The vampire used his bodyweight to swing himself away from above me, making me lose my grip on his wrists as he wriggled his hands free. He kicked me in the stomach, pushing us in opposite directions and out of each other’s reach.

  How was I still unscathed? The moloch blood was fuelling me, but would my ghost-body be able to withstand the beating it was getting?

  On all fours I crawled towards the vampire, he turned his back towards me to slide away. I climbed halfway on top of his back and reached around his throat. The vampire tried to get me off him and flipped over, squeezing me between the floor and his back. He pushed as much as he could into me, pressing the air out of my lu
ngs. He threw his arms and legs around, trying to destabilize me. I was struggling to keep a hold on him. The vampire slowed down as I suffocated him. Eventually, he stilled and slumped onto the ground. But I knew if I let go there was a chance of him waking up. So I grabbed hold of his head and twisted it violently. There was an unpleasant noise. His neck was broken.

  Out of breath and exhausted I wriggled out from under him and lay there motionless, trying to calm myself down.

  I opened my eyes after a minute and saw a face staring down at me. Shocked, the blood in my veins froze and my heart stopped. A pair of bright red eyes glowing with hunger. It was another one! Another fucking one!

  Before I had even time to blink, he had grabbed my leg and started pulling me along the concrete. I tried to twist out of his grip, but he held on tightly to my leg. He pulled me around the corner, past Kim and Dominic’s hiding spot, and out towards the open factory floor. The rumbling sound intensified.

  Holding on to my shoe, he threw me against the wall. The impact made me dizzy and I could smell blood, my own blood. The vampire walked around me, making me feel like a lost cause. I had to keep fighting, Kim and Dom were still in danger. To my left were some tools, hanging on the wall.

  A smile spread across his face when he caught sight of what I was looking at. He took a hammer, pointing the nasty spiked end towards me and took a big swing. I rolled away and the hammer narrowly missed my leg. I crawled under a row of tables while he hammered after me, throwing tools and tables aside. Long metal bars rained down on the floor and my back, bruising my spine. The pain shot through my body, paralyzing me long enough for him to reach me and slam the two long spikes of the hammer into the back of my right thigh.