by Cege Smith
“You don’t have a gift per se, but you do have a rather effective guard dog,” Caspian said. When it was obvious that Angeline still didn’t understand he sighed. “Your demon, of course. There’s already two of you in there,” he said, poking his temple with his finger. “Not so much room for anyone else to be rooting around. While you may be distracted by the external things around you, your demon is going to be lying in wait. Ever conscious. Ever vigilant. You just need to know how to properly read its signs.”
“Well then it is really bad at its job,” Angeline grumbled.
“Why’s that?” Caspian said.
“Well, if it was so vigilant and all, then why wouldn’t I have gotten some kind of warning that you and Connor were reading my thoughts? Shouldn’t I have had some indication of that?” Angeline said.
“Oh, well then you are a naive girl,” Caspian said.
“What do you mean?” Angeline asked.
“It thinks you trust us, so thereby it trusts us. You need to train it. It’s not like it just automatically knows what to do, you know,” Caspian said.
“What?” Angeline said as she stood up and started to pace. “I’ve been kidnapped. I have no idea if my father is alive or dead. I’ve been changed into some unclean, filthy hybrid thing, and I’m being held here with the promise of certain death if I don’t prove myself to be worthy enough to leave. And based on all of that, this murderous beast inside me thinks that I trust you?”
“It will be much more suspicious when you are around humans,” Caspian said confidently.
“Why?” Angeline asked.
“It recognizes us as creatures like itself. Since you are consorting with us, it has relaxed. It is not uncommon for creatures like us to freely share our thoughts. In fact, in the vampire wars we fully used the ability to mentally communicate as an advantage on the battlefield.”
Angeline sat back down and pondered this. “It’s amazing we won at all,” she said quietly. The vampires seemed to have all the advantages—strength, speed, cunning, special abilities. The only thing that slowed them down was their inability to be out in the sunlight.
“Interesting that you mention that, Princess,” Caspian said as he went to the bookshelf and pulled down another book. Then he turned to her with a wry grin. “Who said the humans won?”
“Surely you’re joking.” Angeline felt disjointed and out of sorts. The time away from her people was starting to have an effect on her. She had been in the company of vampires too long. “We won because we extinguished the vampire race. We built cities and have created a whole society that is human only. No vampires.”
“And yet here you sit in the company of two vampires. One of whom lived lifetimes before your ancestor came along,” Caspian said, shaking his head as he returned to his chair. “Things may make better sense to you if we go back to the beginning and start with your original question.”
“Where did we all come from,” Angeline said. The older vampire seemed to be jumping all over the place and she was having a difficult time keeping up. Connor had pulled another volume off the shelf and settled back onto the floor. “You have no interest in history?” she asked him.
“When Caspian starts telling stories I don’t already know, I’ll start paying attention,” he said.
“Well!” Caspian seemed annoyed that Connor was going to ignore him. “That’s the problem with the young these days. Always so wrapped up in their own personal interests that they forget to appreciate their ancestry.” He wiggled around in the chair as if trying to get comfortable. “So the histories begin thousands of years ago, with the story of Mamette and her brother Arduro.”
“I’ve never heard of these people,” Angeline said.
“Of course not,” Caspian said. “There is no way that your ancestors would have let such a fundamental truth survive.”
“And what is that truth?” Angeline asked with a roll of her eyes.
“That the first beings on Altera were the vampires. We were here first.” Caspian saw her shocked expression and he started to laugh.
“That’s preposterous!” Angeline said as she leapt to her feet and started to pace again. “That doesn’t make any sense.”
“Why?” Caspian said. “In almost every way, the vampire is a superior creature to the human. You are frail and weak. You die easily. You are prone to illogical irrational thinking. And you only live but a brief flash in time. Oh, dear Princess, the gods did not set out to create humans. They created vampires.”
“I won’t listen to any more of this nonsense!” Angeline said as she started back toward the entrance.
Connor was blocking her way before she could even register that he had moved. “Princess, I know this is difficult to hear. But Caspian speaks the truth.”
Angeline felt her anger catch like a spark in a dry field, and then it swept through her. Her whole body seemed to be vibrating, and in that instant she felt the thing inside her detach from its hidey hole inside her mind and shoot to the surface. It was like her body was propelled up, and she felt the vise grip as it scratched and clawed at her. She grabbed her head and fell heavily forward into Connor’s arms.
Let me go! Let me go! Let me go! the voice raged.
I WILL NOT, Angeline shouted back at it.
She blanked for just a second, and then came back. It snarled, but she held it back. Then it slid down back into the blackness.
“Princess, perhaps you’d like to go sit down,” she heard Connor say. His voice was strained.
As she pulled her hands away from her head she realized that she was bleeding again, this time from her nose. She turned away and saw a wash bin over in the far corner of the room. She quickly went to it and used some water to wash the blood away. She felt Connor next to her, and then watched as he carefully washed his hands as well.
“Does my blood tempt you?” she asked. She knew the thought should repulse her, but it didn’t. She was curious what kind of effect she had on this man, if at all.
“All blood is tempting,” he said tersely.
“And yet you can resist it,” she said. Neither Connor nor Caspian seemed to be like any vampire that she had ever read about. The blood rages and unholy hunger didn’t seem to apply to them.
“Just because I can resist it doesn’t mean that I want to,” he said quietly. He turned his face away.
He was so pained by who he was; she could see it. She wondered how he had managed to endure all this time.
“Princess!” Caspian called from across the room. He pointed at her chair. “As fascinating as it is for me to watch this interplay, it is time you heard Mamette and Arduro’s story.”
Was it possible that all the history books she had ever known had been wrong? Angeline’s world was being turned on its head. But she had no choice. She sighed and left Connor staring at the bloody red water in the basin. She sat back down across from Caspian and smoothed her skirt.
“I’m not going to believe anything that you say, but if you insist,” she said, leaning back in the chair and crossing her arms.
“Oh I insist, yes, I do.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
“Mamette and Arduro were the firsts,” Caspian said. “A sister and brother who came into being with no knowledge of how they were brought into this world. They only knew that they were two and that they were alone.”
Try as she might to seem disinterested, Angeline soon found herself completely caught up in the tale.
“Of the two, Mamette was the eldest so therefore she was the one who decided where they would make their home, where they would hunt, and determine the general guiding principles on how they should behave. Although Mamette had no memory of where they had come from, she knew that they had to have come from somewhere. So she and Arduro set about exploring the world around them, looking for any sign of life and telltale signs of their origins.
They traveled far and wide across the vast land that would eventually become Altera. They lived off the beasts of the forest
and various varieties of vegetation that they found along the way.”
Caspian saw Angeline’s raised eyebrows. “To clarify in case you don’t understand yet, Mamette and Arduro were not hampered by the blood thirst.”
“How could they be vampires and not need blood to survive?” Angeline asked.
“Shhh, we’ll get there,” Caspian said, and he returned to the story.
“Mamette loved Arduro with all of her heart, and she would have done anything to protect him. But they both grew more and more discouraged as years passed and they found no one. They began to believe that they were truly alone in this world.
Then the day came that in the furthest heights of the mountains of Gilnor, they found signs of life, or unlife, if you are looking at it through today’s jaded eyes. Mamette and Arduro found a small clan of vampires who made their home in this remote place to worship the gods of creation.
The head of the order took Mamette off to the side after feeding them and hearing their tales, and told her about the prophesy of their clan. You see, they had been hidden away in the mountains for many years. They had no idea what was below. They were as lost as Mamette and Arduro, but they had a prophesy to comfort them. They were waiting for The One. The One would bring about a new golden age for the clan, a time of great prosperity and wealth for everyone. And they believed that Mamette was “The One.”
Perhaps it was because Mamette had been alone for so long that she wanted desperately to feel like she belonged somewhere that she believed him. She agreed to take part in an ancient ceremony that was supposed to herald the beginning of the golden age. Mamette allowed the clan to separate her and Arduro for many days. They promised her that she would see him again once she had fulfilled her obligations in the ceremony.
What Mamette didn’t know was that the head of the clan was feeding her a very special dish every night for supper, a dish that Mamette thought was supposed to help prepare her and give her strength for the ceremony.
The night of the ceremony finally arrived. Mamette was dressed in a lovely white gown and escorted into the temple. And there bound on the altar she found her brother Arduro, who was bleeding from multiple superficial cuts all over his body. Mamette demanded his release immediately, but then suddenly she felt something very wrong start to happen inside of her. She could smell Arduro’s blood as it seeped from his skin, and the smell was intoxicating and strong, and familiar. You see, the clan had been spiking Mamette’s food with her brother’s blood.
The clan started to chant and then the magic took over. Mamette tried to resist, but her blood thirst had been awakened and madness took over. She slaughtered her beloved brother right there on the altar, and the holy shrine was bathed in blood. Mamette became the first blood-drinking vampire.
The ceremony was completed and thus the prophesy was fulfilled. The gods were forced to adhere to a promise they never expected to grant: they had to give the clan total control over Altera for the rest of time. But they added some conditions that bespoke of their anger with the clan and with Mamette, who had killed an innocent in the pursuit of blood.
The gods created humans, the perfect food source for the vampires, and one that would ensure the vampires would prosper. But they also cursed the vampires for their blood lust, and took away their ability to move about during the day. Really, the gods were showing favor to the humans and setting the stage for the eventual battle of human and vampire. A battle that rages on to this day.”
Angeline didn’t say anything for a few moments after Caspian’s story concluded. “You said that this story told the beginnings of all three creatures. What of the wraith?”
“I would have thought you would have guessed,” Caspian said. “Arduro became the first wraith. Drained of all of his blood, he died, but not before being tainted with Mamette’s venom. The worst part was that the ceremony itself poisoned his soul. Arduro went insane and murdered many humans before Mamette was able to find him. Worse yet, he created more of him that the clan needed to deal with so that the wraiths wouldn’t kill off their new food source.”
“What happened to Arduro?” Angeline said.
“When Mamette finally tracked him down she was forced to kill him. Again.”
“That’s horrible,” Angeline said.
“Mamette considered what had been done to her brother to be the worst act of nature. She left the clan and started the first vampire coven, although she kept her coven well away from the humans and the clan. She declared that no wraith should ever be created or allowed to live. The law was turn or kill, nothing in between. And that law has been passed down from generation to generation. Wraiths are too dangerous and unpredictable,” Caspian said.
“So why are you so interested in wraiths?” Angeline said. “Why would you risk your own neck for this, no matter how academic you are?”
“For the same reason your black knight searches in the Master’s books,” Caspian said.
Angeline saw Connor look up in alarm. Although she was sure he had been listening the whole time, the turn of conversation got his attention. There was something she was missing. And then it came to her. Of course, it was so simple.
She looked at Connor. “You are looking for a cure to the blood thirst,” she said.
Connor said nothing. He looked angry. “I’m not sure what any of these things have to do with helping the princess become a passable human,” he said to Caspian.
Angeline was confused. She didn’t understand why Connor didn’t want her to know about his research. She could tell that he carried a heavy burden and that he didn’t want to be what he was; his desire made sense.
“Everything about vampires, humans, and wraiths is relevant,” Caspian said. He looked at Angeline. “There are many among us who feel that not only is the search for a cure an impossible task, but also an unwelcome one, including our hallowed Master.”
Angeline was starting to understand. If Connor’s vampire father was Chief Deputy to the Master, and Connor took an unpopular stance on the idea of searching for a cure that would make him even more of an outcast than he probably was before. Connor wouldn’t want that rumor to be circulated.
“It is rather interesting that the Princess of Altera ended up here to begin with, isn’t it?” Caspian continued. “I seem to recall hearing a rumor that the Master was trying to get an audience with her actually. Something about a ‘game’ that the winner, basically whoever brought her to him, would get whatever wish that they desired?”
Connor shot up and had the front of Caspian’s cloak in his hands in seconds. “What do you know about anything?” he hissed.
“I know that for as much as you despise what you are, you were willing to put those lofty morals aside in exchange for a chance to pursue your own interests. For as much as you may consider me a hypocrite, Connor, you are even more one times ten,” Caspian said calmly.
Angeline’s mind was spinning. Connor had been bringing her to the Master as part of a game? He had told her it was a personal errand on the part of the Master, but suddenly the flight from the Solera Valley made a lot more sense. The puzzle pieces were falling into place. Connor had not been the only one seeking her. He had just gotten to her first.
“Why was the Master requesting an audience with me?” she asked. Her heart was racing.
“I don’t know that, Princess. Obviously my time as the Master’s confidant ended years ago. But the rumors and intrigue of the coven still reach these old ears,” Caspian said. He jerked away from Connor and walked to the fireplace in the corner, staring into its depths.
Angeline felt a gnawing in her stomach. She stood and made her way to Connor. She waited until the silence become uncomfortable, and he finally met her eyes. His emerald eyes were weary, but he didn’t look away. “You told me that I had no reason to fear this meeting. You told me that afterwards I’d be able to go home. Was that just a story or was that the truth?”
She gave him credit that he didn’t flinch. “I don’t know,” he final
ly said.
“So you lied to me,” she said. She knew that this should make her angry, but instead she felt hollow. Of course she couldn’t trust him. Her father had been right to keep her hidden away. At the first sign of a crisis, she had given over all of her faith and hope to someone undeserving of it.
“I told you what I felt was necessary to get you to cooperate,” he said. “It would have been bad for both of us if I would have had to drag you kicking and screaming into a room of vampires who haven’t set eyes on a human in over a century.”
“You lie!” Caspian said, spinning around. “She was not going to be taken to the Grand Counsel!”
Connor didn’t turn from Angeline’s gaze. “I do not lie. Whatever the Master’s intentions, they involve the Counsel.”
“What is the Grand Counsel?” Angeline asked. “But wait, you’ll probably just lie to me again, won’t you?”
“I deserve that,” Connor said.
Angeline laughed but without any humor behind it. “You deserve to rot in hell, Connor. For kidnapping me, for lying to me, and for making me into this thing that I now am.”
Connor reached for her then with a pained expression but she flung his arms away. She started toward the entrance again but this time found her way blocked by someone else. Someone she had never seen before, and by the expression on his face, no one she would have cared to meet.
Seconds later, Connor was in front of her pushing her behind him. Caspian had stepped closer as well.
“This is an unexpected surprise, Searon,” Connor said.
“Not so unexpected,” Searon said, leering at Angeline over Connor’s shoulder.
Angeline had no idea who this stranger was, but given the current company it seemed a safe assumption that he was a vampire as well, and his intentions didn’t appear honorable.
“It’s about time,” Caspian said. “Even I was starting to get bored listening to myself.”
And that’s when Angeline knew that she had been betrayed yet again.
