Haldred Chronicles: Alyssa

by JG Cully

  He was by the sink now, using the bucket to fill a thermal kettle.

  Wonderful invention Alyssa mused to herself.

  To think fire magic could be harnessed for good. It had been one of the inventions that had come out of the Six Nations War that wasn't about killing people. The 'outbreak of peace' (a local expression referring to how quickly, and unexpectedly, peace had come about) had made a lot of inventions available to the populace of Argon, ones previously confined to military use. The thermal kettle, a part magical device that boiled water, was just one. Possession of a thermal kettle was further indication that this guy wasn't poor. Thermal kettles weren't cheap, and the post war economy wasn't exactly sturdy.

  The kettle hissed as he set it aflame by rubbing the heat stone beneath it. He then turned toward her, smiling awkwardly again. She decided she liked his smile. His manner was cute if not exactly brimming with confidence.

  “So,” he said. “what's your name?”

  Yes, it seemed like a good idea to get names in now.

  “Alyssa.” she said, finding herself adjusting her glasses again.

  There were a few seconds of silence save for the kettle hissing. They stared at each other.

  “And you are?” she enquired helpfully.

  “Sorry!” he started, jumping as if from a trance. “James. James is my name. Sorry, you're a bit distracting...I mean I was a bit distracted!”

  It was actually quite refreshing for Alyssa to see someone getting more flustered than she usually got. She had a good memory of meeting any number of charming young men in her life and more often than not it ended up with her being the one with her foot in her mouth. She didn't always like the attention her beauty gave her. She chuckled.

  “You've not done this often have you?” she asked, trying to offer him some reassurance.

  He sighed, some of the tension lifting.

  “No, I really haven't.” he lamented.

  “You're in good company,” she said looking away, “it's been a while for me too. You can relax.”

  His relief manifested itself in a softer smile.

  “I find it difficult to believe someone as beautiful as you hasn't been in a situation like this more often.”

  She felt her cheeks burning. Yes, vampires could blush. Though she'd yet to figure out how considering there was technically no blood in her veins. Maybe another reason Nature wanted her dead. Messing with logical explanations was reserved purely for the fey, and it was common knowledge that those winged humanoids were made of magic. To Alyssa's mind, that was a license to get away with it (that or cheating).

  “Thanks.” she said more shyly, wiping her face in a vain attempt to hide her discomfort.

  “Sorry. I've embarrassed you.”

  Yeah no kidding.

  “I only meant to speak the truth.”

  “And now you've embarrassed me even more!”

  They both laughed, Alyssa's cheeks burning and his not far behind, but they were enjoying the situation. This was most definitely out of the ordinary. He'd not run off; he'd started a conversation with her; he'd even invited her into his house; and now he was flirting with her!

  I'm a vampire for Saraken's sake! Humans don't just flirt with me!

  But he was, and it was marvellous. Still, it was verging on the too-good-to-be-true now.

  The kettle chose that moment to start to sing with a harsh whistle, as the water boiled.

  Leaving her to continue blushing, James poured two cups of steaming black tea, the tea’s aroma that of peppermint. As Alyssa recovered she noticed they were no ordinary cups he had set before her. Porcelain, not wood, expensive Magra imports. What did this guy do to be able to afford all this?

  “So, James,” she said with another small smile, flicking her hair back and being rewarded by him almost melting into her eyes from across the table. “what do you do?”

  He hesitated for a moment but nodded, as if confirming something to himself

  “Engineering.”

  “Oh? You work with the Machines?”

  He nodded.

  Steam power was a rapidly developing concept in the Argon nation, one pioneered during the Six Nations War and becoming more commonplace. Whilst magic could create steam, engineering did so without the need for a mage. In effect an ordinary man, or woman, with the right knowledge, could do things previously restricted to mages. A very tempting concept and one that had massively improved the morale of the people in the wake of a war that had claimed the lives of so many over such a long time. Steam powered carts had been used to pull vast siege cannons into place or been used as siege engines themselves, armed with huge iron rams. Now, they were used to haul rocks or timber, taking the place of dozens of horses. They could even allow a man to fly via the use of the vast airships. This all explained why James had the best of the best. Engineering, whilst technically open to anyone, disregarding sex or race, took a certain kind of person to figure it out. Those individuals were well paid for their talent.

  “So engineering, is it good?” she asked, taking her cup and sipping from it.

  Being a vampire didn't necessarily mean you couldn't eat any more. You could. But it was like eating grass when you weren't a cow. It did nothing for you and took ages to go through you. Her stomach craved blood, nothing else. Still, she could pretend to like it. It would probably please him.

  “It's good. The new science is...interesting work.”

  “What do you do?” he asked in return.

  “Barmaid,” she said automatically, though with just a touch of hesitation. After he had described working in a unique and well paid job, she wasn't sure how he would react to her more common occupation. Night shift barmaid had been her job more or less since she had discovered she was the last vampire. It was the perfect cover for 'sleeping' (it wasn't really sleeping) during the day.

  “Oh? Which tavern?” he asked. Alyssa smiled inwardly, pleased that he'd asked with what appeared to be actual interest as opposed to polite 'I'll humour you' conversation.

  “Elk's Horn.” she said with a touch of pride.

  The Elk's Horn was a well-known and well looked after tavern, just off the rich quarter of Larrick. Oddly though it was frequented mainly by non-humans. Dwarves and elves came and went, as well as orcs and even the occasional ogre (if they could fit through the door). Alyssa had likewise found that non-humans didn't have the same tendency to get worried round her that humans did. They seemed unaware of any aura that she generated, so she found it very easy to fit in and not raise any suspicions.

  “I know it,” he said. “I've a few friends that go. I'll have to pop down some time.”

  Relaxed now, the two of them sat in silence. Drinking tea. She chanced a glance outside, through the front window. It was still dark, but her internal clock was telling her not to delay. One very nasty aspect of being a vampire was that the sun was not your friend. Really not your friend. She'd found this out with brutal clarity when she'd watched Regorash execute one of his lieutenants by throwing the man into a shaft of sunshine. The man had simply exploded into a fireball, his whole body disintegrating into ash. Alyssa's mind had imprinted that vision on her memory.

  Never go out in the sun, never even look at it. The idea of exploding did not appeal to her.

  She found she had finished her tea, and now felt conflicted. He seemed to notice her nervousness.

  “I can tell you want to head home.” he said. His sadness was almost solidified.

  “No no.” she said immediately. She found her hand suddenly on his in an automatic effort to reassure him. She blushed again, biting her lip.

  “It's just been a long night.” she said.

  “But I really want to see you again!” she managed to blurt out, her hand shooting to her mouth immediately after.

  Gods I'm such a child!

  “Great.” he managed, after several long (very long) seconds of surprise. Surprise, Alyssa fancied, at the fact that a girl's hand had been on his and the fact that
she wanted to see him again.

  “Ah.” her eyes flickered. “Ah, well, why don't you pop in to the Elk’s Horn tomorrow night? We could chat during my break?”

  “That would be...great.” he said but he was obviously still in a state of slight shock.

  Yeah, I definitely like the awkwardness, she decided.

  She rose, slowly, and James stood with her.

  “Strange times, eh?” she said.

  He grinned, relaxing.

  “But good times.” he said.

  She gave him a grin back.

  He led her to the door and they both stood looking at each other for a while. He at the door, not wanting to close it, she just outside the door, not wanting to leave. Eventually it was Alyssa who leaned forward and gave him a kiss on the cheek

  “Thanks” she said.

  He wasn't hiding his goofy grin.

  “You can stop that now.” she said, raising an eyebrow.

  “Sorry.”

  “See you tomorrow.” she said with a smile, before turning to head off.

  She glanced back to see him still at the door, watching her go. They waved to each other. Only when he closed the door did she step into an alcove and giggle in delight.

  “I just got flirted with!” she giggled to no one in particular, hugging herself with a beaming smile that could have melted ice. She had not felt this happy in a depressingly long time and wanted to savour the moment. Even her normally pale complexion seemed to be beaming with an inner light. She was doing the oddest of little hops at the same time.

  She had met a boy. A human boy. Whom she'd kissed! She was unable to stop smiling. But just like most things in Alyssa's unlife, reality decided to step in and ruin things a just little bit.

  “Are you alright Miss?”

  Alyssa almost leapt out of her skin, suddenly doing an impression of someone with their back glued to a wall. She found herself staring at two Larrick City militia men on the street, their round rimmed metal helmets and red and blue padded jerkins identifying them, each holding a lantern and evidently trying to figure out what the hell was going on with the young woman in front of them. They had curious, critical looks on their faces.

  “Oh...sorry!” she stammered. “I just, ah, the guy.”

  Both of them seemed wary of her, exchanging glances.

  “I just got flirted with!” she blurted out.

  “Okay.” said the one on the right after tense seconds, his frown deepening.

  She suspected that they, unlike James, were affected by her unnatural aura. She took a step forward to check. Sure enough both of them stepped back, hands automatically going to the swords on their belts.

  “I'll just be going then.” she said, quickly turning on her heel and walking off at a quick trot before either of them could enquire further. She could feel their eyes watching her as she left, with hands she strongly suspected, still on weapons. Secretly, she had hoped her experience with James had meant that the aura was gone. For good. That even her vampiric condition was suddenly cured, but the militia men had confirmed that was not the case.

  She wasn't in a fairy tale; this was real life. Damn it. Quickly she turned a corner and was out of sight. At least it meant James was unique, her kind of unique. She liked this. She checked the night sky, still very dark. Always darkest before the dawn, so they said.

  Best to hurry off then.

  Chapter Two:

  Chance Encounters

  * * * * *

  Alyssa's adventures were not done that night. She had one more odd situation to encounter, which she found as she rounded a corner onto Holt Street. There in an alleyway off the street she saw a very fat ugly man in mucky work clothes with his hands around the throat of a young and completely terrified looking girl in a brown dress. Even from a distance, she could smell the alcohol. Instinctively she acted on seeing someone in danger.

  “Let her go!”

  Alyssa had found that one particularly useful aspect of being a vampire was the commanding voice which, when used right, compelled weaker willed individuals to do exactly as she told them. Unfortunately the fat man before her was rather drunk; it wasn't working.

  Fudge.

  “Blah ha ha!” he slurred, letting go of the girl regardless but now turning his formidable bulk toward Alyssa. “Wa's thes? Annather little girly? You's stay aut ah this. Me and her gonna ave sum fun!”

  The girl was backing away down the alley on all fours, her frightened breath misting in the cold night air. Her face was as pale as...well as pale as Alyssa's, although given her current circumstances Alyssa was pretty sure she wasn't a vampire; she was just terrified.

  Alyssa wasn't terrified. Something the fat drunk in front of her was about to learn the hard way. She took an authoritative step forward, and the drunk reacted by pulling his right hand back threateningly.

  “Ga autta it!” he growled and swung for Alyssa with the back of his hand.

  Alyssa didn't consider herself a good fighter. Indeed in most circumstances she preferred to avoid close combat in all its marred and horrible forms. She did have a problem with falling over, after all, whether she had been hit or not, but she knew her strengths, one of which was blocking. Like a lightning bolt, her hand shot up and with more strength than a young woman of her size or stature had any right to command, she stopped the drunk's arm mid-swing.

  He blinked; sudden confusion and shock written plainly on his ugly face as the small girl's hand held his much larger arm in a vice-like grip. Alyssa allowed herself an evil grin. She brought her other hand up to grab the drunk’s elbow, and twisted; he suddenly found his arm twisted at a very painful angle round behind him by someone two foot shorter and several feet thinner.

  “Grah!” he managed.

  “My guardians always said you have to beat manners into a boy,” Alyssa whispered in his ear with an air of menace. “here's how.”

  She pushed, with a significant degree of force, and the fat man’s head impacted hard on a wooden storage crate stacked by the alley wall, making one impressive hole in the crate, and one very unconscious drunk. She let the limp body collapse to the ground like a sack of potatoes, before turning to find the damsel looking at her in mute shock.

  “Ah,” Alyssa said. “hey.”

  “Hey.” the girl managed in a whisper, her eyes wide in fear and surprise.

  This close Alyssa could see the girl was no older than her (in human years). Maybe sixteen? She had long blonde hair in curls, which had been slightly messed by the drunk, and deep blue eyes, watery with tears. She was beautiful, with the kind of features you either admired greatly or were very jealous of. That beauty was marred only by the terror on her face. The drunken man at least had taste.

  “Are you ok?” Alyssa asked, taking a step forward.

  She was ready for the expected reaction. Normally after rescuing someone like this (something she at least got right more often than hunting bad guys), the aura thing would kick in and the rescued person would suddenly become very wary of their rescuer, then very scared, eventually running off without so much as a thank you. This one however, did none of these things and so Alyssa was entirely unprepared for the real reaction that manifested.

  “Oof!” she said as the youngster leapt forward and hugged her tight, burying her face in Alyssa's chest.

  “Thank you!” she practically screamed, sobbing. “I was so scared, thank you. Thank you!”

  Alyssa made to speak but she just managed to mouth a few indistinct noises. It was now her turn to be shocked. This was entirely unexpected and that made twice in the same night!

  “You're welcome?” Alyssa hazarded after a few seconds, though it was a little hard to breathe. Alyssa didn't need to breathe but she preferred to mimic it. Seemed only natural. It was a very tight hug. The girl continued to sob into Alyssa's chest.

  “Hey,” Alyssa said, looking down and stroking the blond curls of the girl's hair. “it's ok, it's over now, alright?”

  She's like a frightened
puppy dog.

  For a few moments they stopped embracing each other, the young girl starting to calm down and Alyssa attempting to figure out just what the hell was going on. First meeting a guy who wasn't immediately afraid of her and now, a girl in the same position, apparently unperturbed by the fact she was hugging a freaking vampire! Not that she was advertising that fact, but still. The aura that she had didn't seem to be working at full strength tonight. It felt nice actually, almost human. She nearly broke into tears herself at that thought, but resisted. Best to remain the stronger one for the sake of the lass.

  “What's your name?” Alyssa asked as the girl's sobbing abated.

  “Katy” She said with a sniff, wiping her eyes.

  “Well Katy, I'm Alyssa. You going to be ok?”

  “Yeah.” She flicked her long blonde hair back behind her ears, trying to fix it.

  “Gods,” she sniffed again. “I'm such a mess.”

  “Could have been worse.” said Alyssa

  “Yes, if not for you.” She smiled up at Alyssa, being just slightly shorter. She was still trembling with fear. “Thank you so much.”

  “Right place, right time.” said Alyssa with a shrug.

  She secured her glasses again before peeking out of the alley, looking up and down the street. Despite the commotion they had caused not another soul was in sight. The city was fast asleep, unaware of the situation the two of them had just resolved.

  “Where you headed Katy?”

  “Just home I guess. I live down the Barnsburn.”

  “Well, that's not too far. How about I give you an escort?”

  That seemed to straighten the youngster a little, and she nodded enthusiastically. Alyssa gave the unconscious inebriated man a glance. That glance generated an idea.