Emerald Keep

by Edmund Hughes

  “Alright,” said Jack. “What should I do, then?”

  Mira licked her lips.

  “You will make it through the death challenge,” she said. “With my help.”

  CHAPTER 27

  “There is a ritual in blood magic known as the Sacrificial Gift,” said Mira. “It’s a powerful essence transfer technique that would, for a time, allow you to fight and cast spells at a level far beyond your current capacity.”

  “The Sacrificial Gift,” muttered Jack. “That sounds a little ominous.”

  Mira licked her lips and slowly. She looked contemplative, but there was resolve in her expression as well. It made her look almost regal, even though she was still clad only in her thin white nightgown.

  “The spell does take a toll on the one casting it,” said Mira. “But while you’re under the effects of it, you’ll be more powerful than either of us.”

  “And you’ll be…?”

  Mira smiled slightly.

  “I’ll be resting,” she said. “It will exhaust me and strip me of my magic, though I’ll still have my physical advantages. But I’ll be okay. I’ve already provided Volandar with an excuse for my absence during your challenge.”

  “What did you tell him?” asked Jack.

  Mira’s cheeks reddened slightly.

  “It is unimportant,” she said. “We have little time. If this is to happen, it needs to happen now.”

  Jack frowned, considering the implications of what she was telling him.

  “What happens after the death challenge?” asked Jack. “How do you regain your strength?”

  “You will have to come back to me,” said Mira. “And perform the Sacrificial Gift in return, on me.”

  “You’re basically trusting me with your life, then,” said Jack. “That’s crazy.”

  Mira reached over and intertwined her fingers through his.

  “Is it?” She shook her head, dismissing his answer before he could give it. “There is more that I must tell you. The Sacrificial Gift oftentimes transfers more than just pure essence. You may experience flashes of my memories, or adopt some of my tendencies at random.”

  “Uh, okay,” said Jack. “Let’s hope that it’s not anything too out of character.”

  He felt a small surge of paranoia at the idea that he might pick up Mira’s disregard for consequences or some of her obsessive nature.

  “We must begin, my sweet,” whispered Mira. “The spell’s base begins with a bite, just as the Embrace does.”

  “A bite?” said Jack. “As in, you biting me?”

  Mira nodded. “Through that bite, I’ll will my essence into you. It’s different from the Embrace in that I’ll be pushing out life essence, rather than blood essence. You must make that distinction yourself when you cast the spell in return. Be very careful.”

  There was a slight tremor in her voice that made Jack’s worries double in intensity.

  “Are you sure about this?” he asked. “I’m starting to get a bad feeling…”

  Mira cupped his cheek, and silenced him with a tender kiss. Her eyes were wet when it ended, and Jack felt annoyed at how little it seemed like he could do about it.

  “I am sure,” whispered Mira. “If this does not work, both of our lives are forfeit.”

  “Then let’s not do it,” said Jack. “I can face the death challenge with my own strength, alone.”

  “My sweet Jack,” said Mira. “If you died tonight… I would soon follow in one fashion or another.”

  She’d made her decision, and the resolve Jack saw in her expression made him doubt that anything he could say would change her mind. Mira pressed a hand against his chest and leaned him down onto his back on the bed.

  Jack felt a mix of emotions as Mira straddled him and ran her hands across his chest. She let a finger trace the nape of his neck and flashed a small, teasing smile.

  He’d forgotten just what it felt like to be on the receiving end of a vampire’s bite. He felt nervous and fluttery, though that was interlaced with a sense of anticipation, as he still vividly remembered the ecstasy of the first time Mira’s fangs had pierced his neck.

  Was this what Ryoko and Katie felt each time he fed off them? There was an element of submission to it, of accepting and trusting another person completely. Jack had been so surprised back when Mira had first bitten him. Violated, but in a manner so utterly pleasurable that he couldn’t force out an objection.

  Mira kissed him on the lips, briefly letting her hips undulate against his crotch. She planted another kiss on his cheek, and then one on his neck. Jack shivered with electric anticipation as her breath tickled her neck. Then she sank her fangs in.

  It was the briefest flash of pain, followed by free-flowing pleasure. Followed by the distinct sensation of accepting the essence of another person inside of him.

  ***

  “It’s okay, Melvin,” said Mira. “This isn’t a trick. Really. I’ve been infatuated with you for ever so long now.”

  Mira was leading a teenage boy with thick glasses by the hand. They were in a small gymnasium, and she was pulling him toward the corner. She was sixteen years old, and she was wearing a dress she hated, one of her older plaid ones that didn’t do much to flatter her gawky figure. But at that moment, it was a secondary concern. Everything was secondary compared to the dry, scratchy feeling in her throat. The overwhelming compulsion of her bloodthirst.

  “I… didn’t know,” muttered Melvin. “I thought… well, you were… and that’s why, uh…”

  “You don’t have to explain, Melvin,” cooed Mira. “I understand completely, and soon, so will you.”

  She pulled him through a door and into an empty locker room. Melvin gaped at her in disbelief as she pulled him behind a wall of lockers and into an embrace. She almost felt bad for what she was doing to him, or at least, she would have if she hadn’t been so thirsty.

  “But… but this is the boy’s locker room,” he stammered.

  “You’re a boy,” whispered Mira. “And I’m a girl. And we’re alone.”

  She ran a hand through his hair, smirking as she saw the blush it drew to his cheeks. She hesitated for only a moment before planting a seductive kiss on his lips and then pulling his neck to the side.

  Melvin let out a high-pitched gasp as her fangs sank in. Mira took deep sips, as though she’d finally found an oasis after stumbling through miles of desert. She drank deep, barely noticing when the locker room door slammed open and another person stormed into the room. She only pulled back when the footsteps drew too close for her to ignore.

  Peter Masterson did not look intimidated by the scene he’d walked in on. He was tall, with dark hair, dark eyes, and a strong jaw. His hands were in his pockets, and there was no confusion or fear in the way he stood facing her.

  Mira hurriedly wiped a hand across her lips, but that only removed the last drops of Melvin’s blood, and not the mortified expression on her face. Of all the people who could have found her, it had to be him. She hated him for it, even as she scrambled to come up with a less than damning way to frame the situation.

  “Peter…” she said. “We were just, uh…”

  Melvin had collapsed to the ground next to her and let out a drunken, moaning gurgle. Mira clasped a hand over her mouth, blushing even more deeply than Melvin had been.

  “A vampire,” said Peter. “I never would have expected you to be one, of all people…”

  His tone was full of judgment and scorn, enough to shift Mira’s embarrassment into anger. She folded her arms and narrowed her eyes.

  “No,” she said, bitterly. “Of course you wouldn’t have suspected me. You would have had to notice me, first.”

  A cold smile spread across Mira’s lips. Maybe this was the inevitable conclusion of all those years she’d harbored her unrequited crush.

  “The only reason I didn’t try to enthrall you first was because I was worried about what you might think of me,” she whispered. “But now, I guess you’ve left me with
no option.”

  Peter chuckled and ran a hand through his hair. He looked confident and assured, despite the circumstances.

  “Really?” asked Peter. “I would have thought it was because you knew I was a mage. Unless, of course, that’s something you didn’t know.”

  He took a step forward and flipped one of his palms to face upward, muttering an incantation under his breath. An instant later, he held a fireball in his hand. The two of them stared at each other, letting the tension build until it was thick enough to cut with a butter knife.

  Then they hurled themselves at each other, enemies for the first time.

  ***

  “We’re still in the process of becoming more welcoming to tourists,” said Mayor Blake. “But soon enough, Lestaron Island will be a prime location for sparkling young women such as yourself! So much more civilized than some of the other vacation islands…”

  Mira smiled and nodded along as she took another sip of her wine. The Mayor’s mansion was nice, even by mainland standards. He’d generously offered it up to host a party for one of the first groups of high-class tourists Lestaron Island had accepted in its short time as an economical travel destination.

  Most of the island’s residents had come out for the party, and it only took Mira a minute to spot the man she’d come to find.

  Peter Masterson. The man who’d exposed her, and hunted her, and then, infuriatingly, returned to ignoring her. He was married now, and he had his arm around the woman who Mira assumed was his wife. But his attention was fully focused on Mira. Finally.

  It felt so good. It made all the work she’d gone through in tracking him down and making the trip across the ocean feel vindicated. The mayor made a lame joke, and Mira made a show of laughing and setting a hand on his shoulder. She saw the way it made Peter tense up, and she wondered how he’d react if she decided to invite the mayor off to the powder room with her as her next victim.

  And just like that, Peter was making his way over. The mayor frowned slightly as he approached but still made a show of playing the part of a polite host.

  “Er, Madam Mira,” said the mayor. “This is Peter Masterson. He settled on the island recently and has been extremely active in the community ever since.”

  “Oh, we know each other,” said Peter, flashing a fake smile. “We went to school together, if you can believe it.”

  “Did we?” Mira frowned and shook her head. “Perhaps you’re mistaking me with someone else. I don’t recall anyone by your name…”

  “Would a dance would refresh your memory?” Peter extended his hand, forcing his intense eye contact onto her. Mira chuckled and pursed her lips. It had most definitely been worth making the trip out.

  “Perhaps it would,” she said. “Mayor Blake, if you’d excuse me for a moment?”

  The mayor frowned, but he didn’t object. Mira took Peter’s hand, and then the two of them were on the dance floor, moving together amongst the other partnered pairs.

  “Just what, exactly, do you think you’re doing?” hissed Peter.

  “I’m making sure one of my oldest enemies is no longer a threat,” said Mira. “Given how much trouble you gave me when we were younger, you can’t be surprised.”

  Peter lifted his arm and let her spin under it. For a moment, their bodies were in close contact before returning to a safe, respectful dancing distance.

  “You’re trouble,” said Peter. “But you aren’t evil. I figured that much out right away. My offer still stands.”

  “Your offer?” Mira rolled her eyes. “Please. Why do you waste my time with this nonsense?”

  “We can find the vampire who bit you,” said Peter. “It makes as much sense now as it did then. We were never that close in school, Mira, but I do feel like I’ve come to know you a little in the time since.”

  “You know less about me than you think,” said Mira.

  “Do I?” asked Peter. “Would it be so bad? You already came all the way out here. Stay a while. We’ll find a way to handle your… needs. I can make a few phone calls, see what some of my contacts know about the man who bit you.”

  It was tempting. It was beyond tempting. Mira stared into Peter’s eyes, and suddenly felt like a shy little girl again, all dressed up and waiting for a boy who would never show. She glanced past Peter and saw his wife shooting daggers at them with her eyes.

  “No,” said Mira. “Sorry, Peter. It was good to see you, though.”

  ***

  Mira weaved through the moonlit trees, trying to put as much distance as possible between herself and Peter. She’d gone too far this time, and she knew it. He was here to hold her accountable. He was here to put an end to what he considered to be his greatest mistake.

  A fireball struck the ground a few feet away from her, splashing flames across her left arm. Mira dove to the side, cushioning her fall with a cloud of darkness through her Shadow Levitation. Peter was sprinting after her, another fireball already conjured in his hand.

  Mira rolled to her feet and lashed out with her Spectral Hand tendrils. Peter dodged most of them, but one tendril managed to snake around his ankle and pull him off balance. He fell onto his back, and Mira hesitated instead of pressing on her advantage.

  It had always been a cycle of extremes with Peter. They’d been friends, and they’d been enemies, but seldom in between. And each time the cycle began anew, the swing to one side or the other would happen with even more volatility. Peter blamed himself more and more for each of her evil acts, precisely because of all the times he’d let her off the hook.

  Peter clambered to his feet. He looked enraged at the fact that Mira hadn’t killed him when she’d had the chance. Mira smiled and waved at him with her fingers. He let out a furious snarl.

  She had all of his attention, and she hated it. And she loved it.

  ***

  “It is an option, you know,” said Mira. “Don’t act like it isn’t.”

  Peter let out a quiet chuckle. He was older than her now, at least in appearance. Gone was the handsome man with the thick, dark hair. Peter was aged, wrinkled, bald, and somehow, more confident than ever.

  “I appreciate the thought that goes into your offer,” said Peter. “But you already knew what my answer would be. We’ve known each other for too long for you to claim otherwise.”

  They were sitting on a park bench by a small pond. Peter had a handful of bread chunks, which he was slowly tossing off one by one into a crowd of eager ducks. It was just cloudy enough outside to hint of rain to come, and there were only a few other people mingling nearby.

  “I wasn’t even sure whether or not you’d let me come close enough to talk to you,” said Mira. “So no, I did not presume to think that I knew you’d say no. I hoped you’d say yes.”

  “I’m an old man,” muttered Peter. “I had a family. I still have a grandson. As appealing as beginning a second life as a nightwalker might sound on paper, it just wouldn’t work for me.”

  “Nightwalker,” muttered Mira. “You use the Order of Chaldea’s word for what I am, now.”

  “I suppose I do,” said Peter.

  “The fact that you’re so old is even more reason for you to consider setting your biases aside,” said Mira. “You could still live a mostly normal life. It would save you from the cancer, at least.”

  “A mostly normal life.” Peter chuckled. “Is that how you’ve lived for all these years, Mira?”

  Mira didn’t have an answer for him. She’d strayed into the darkness, more than once, and he was probably the person with the most right to call her out on it. He’d come after her so many times, and he’d come close to having to kill her on more occasions than she could count.

  “Besides,” said Peter. “I think my time is coming to a close. I have an apprentice, and she’ll be able to fill my shoes without attracting too much attention to herself, given what I’ve taught her. It’s time for me to accept the inevitable.”

  “And what about the other people who care about you?
” asked Mira. “Have you given much thought to them?”

  “The other people who care about me?” Peter smirked at her, adding a dozen extra wrinkles to his already aged face. “I suppose young Katherine will take my passing rather hard. Perhaps some of my hired staff, as well.”

  “Peter…” Mira felt a lump the size of her heart forming in her throat. “All this time, all these years… since even before I was what I am now… I’ve cared about you. I’ve loved you.”

  Peter was still smirking, and it seemed to take him a couple of seconds to realize that she was sincere. Mira set her hand down on the area of the bench between them, passively putting it within his reach, if he chose to hold it.

  “Mira,” said Peter. “You haven’t loved me. That can’t be true. You were intrigued by me, and by our history, I’m sure. But love…?”

  Mira just stared at him.

  “You never realized it?” she asked. “I was sure that you…”

  “I’m sorry,” said Peter. “I just never thought that much about you. Not like that, at least. That’s the honest truth. We’ve grown to be something of friends, over the years, but… Oh, don’t look at me like that! I’m an old man. You can’t possibly give a care for what a wrinkled old toad like me might think.”

  He smiled at her, and Mira forced herself to smile back, even as her face and eyes burned with the heat of rejection. How long had she been harboring these feelings? Sixty years? Seventy? Would it have hurt any less if she’d acted on her feelings and gotten rejected back when she’d been that awkward, mousy teenage girl?

  She didn’t know. She just knew that it hurt. It hurt almost too much for her to bear.

  ***

  The island felt empty. Mira wasn’t sure why she’d come back. Looking at Peter’s grave hadn’t brought the sense of finality that she’d been looking for, and at this point, she wasn’t sure that anything would.

  The sun had begun its slow march past the horizon. It was fairly warm weather, suitable for walking. Mira took her time on her way up the hill. She thought about the good times and the bad. She thought about everything she’d said to Peter in life and how much she wished things could have gone differently.