Fanghunters

by Leo Romero

  “Hey, Pops,” Sammy said in greeting, and Leviah was unceremoniously sucked through the void of DNA memory back into the dreary chamber he was confined to. He opened his black eyes and laid them on the people standing ahead of him. Their ordinariness was infectious.

  He placed his glass down on the table in a lethargic fashion, then leant back in his seat. Under the dim fluorescent lights, he took on a blue tinge, devoid of life. His thick-set jaw, which was home to some of the meanest fangs in all vamp society, jutted outward. His brooding eyes burned with impatience. “Yes, Sammy, what is it?” he asked with a labored sigh.

  “We’ve found Drake,” Sammy answered with what appeared to be a glint of excitement in his eye. Leviah was far too old to feel excitement; it was a trivial state of being, one that inevitably led to disappointment.

  He placed an elbow on the arm of his recliner and used the first two fingers of his hand to prop up his head by the temple. “So, where is he?”

  “Dead.”

  “That’s unfortunate...” Leviah replied with a frivolous shrug. “And the relic?”

  Sammy’s eyes began rolling. “Er...”

  “You did retrieve the relic from him, didn’t you?” Leviah asked, unflinching.

  “We had a snag,” Sammy finally said with a sigh.

  “A snag?” Leviah echoed in a neutral tone.

  “Yeah,” Sammy replied, wringing his hands and nodding briskly. “When we made it to his nest, he was vamos.”

  Leviah released an agitated sigh. So much for excitement… “So, what you’re telling me is you lost him.”

  “Not exactly.”

  Leviah rubbed his eyes. “My patience is not the best tonight, Sammy...”

  “Someone else snuffed him,” Sammy then blurted. “They bagged his body and the Eye.”

  Leviah’s eyes snapped open. He frowned. “Who?”

  “I think maybe these guys can tell you...” Sammy said, cocking his thumb over his shoulder at the three blood sacks cowering behind him. They were disheveled and nervous.

  Leviah could smell the perfume of fear on them. They reeked. “Come,” he said, ushering them with a tired flip of his hand.

  At first they were reluctant, the fear gripping them. They were taking nervous glances at the exotic torture devices stationed around the chamber. Leviah liked that.

  Sammy then grabbed one by the scruff of his shirt and shoved him forward. “The boss wants to speak with you!” he sneered.

  The blood sack came to a halt ahead of Leviah; he stood before him, his head bowed, his shoulders shuddering. “Y-y-yes, highness,” he said in a jittery voice.

  Leviah rolled his eyes. “What’s your name, child?” he then asked with a huff.

  “Marlon.” He turned briefly back to the other two. “That’s Craig and Jeff.”

  “Were you all Drake’s brood?”

  Marlon glanced to the side. “Yeah, I guess.”

  “Tell me what happened to him.”

  Marlon met Leviah’s stare for the first time. “Someone came,” he said. “Someone came to kill him.”

  Leviah remained unmoved. “And did you see them?”

  Marlon nodded fervently. “Yeah.”

  “How many?”

  “Two. A guy and a girl.”

  Leviah glanced at Sammy, who nodded in return. Some semblance of urgency suddenly overcame Leviah; he clicked his fingers and pointed over to the desk in the middle of the room, which was strewn with empty bottles, guns, knives, and various pieces of communications tech. Sammy rushed over, picked up a tablet, and hastily switched it on. He began touching the screen as he approached the now eager Leviah. Once Sammy found what he was searching for, he nodded his head, then turned the screen towards Leviah for him to see. Leviah gave him a brief nod, then pointed toward Marlon.

  Sammy went and showed him the screen. “Is this the girl you saw?” Sammy asked, showing him an image of the Dentist’s daughter.

  Marlon craned his neck forward and squinted his eyes. He stared at the screen for a few seconds, his mind working over. Then, his eyes widened. “Yeah!” he said with a vehement nod of his head. “That’s her!”

  “You’re sure?” Leviah asked, his brow furrowed in concern.

  Marlon carried on nodding. “Absolutely, no doubt, man. I’ll never forget that bitch. Who is she?”

  “She’s not your concern,” Leviah told him.

  “You are gonna smoke her, though, right?” Marlon asked, looking from Sammy to Leviah and back again with wide, eager eyes.

  Leviah and Sammy exchanged glances once more. “She’ll be dealt with appropriately...” Leviah assured him.

  “Good, cause I’m still hurting from what that bitch did to me!” Marlon stated, rubbing his jaw.

  Leviah sighed in irritation. “You said there was a man as well.”

  Marlon faced him. “Yeah, he was already there before she came. I was about to take care of him when she jumped in and saved him.”

  Leviah caught Sammy’s stare and then pointed at the tablet. Sammy began swiping and touching once more. Soon, he was nodding. He glanced at Leviah.

  “Is this him?” Leviah asked while Sammy now showed him an image of the Dentist; the slayer of the old Order.

  Marlon frowned, his mind working once more. Leviah scrutinized him carefully; he expected at any moment to see a spark of recognition ignite in his eyes. But there was nothing, just a blank stare.

  Marlon’s mouth turned downwards. “No...” he said with a shake of his head. “That dude’s too old. The other guy was younger. A lot younger.”

  “A younger man?” Leviah echoed. “Are you sure?”

  “Yeah, I’m sure,” Marlon said with a vehement nod as if insulted. “I wouldn’t have had a problem taking out the old guy, would I? It was a young dude; big, strong, difficult to take down. And I woulda done if it hadn’t a been for the bitch that shot me up with tranq.”

  “Yes, yes, yes,” Leviah said with a flip of his hand. “You’ve informed us ad nauseam.” He then fell back in his seat with a sigh. A younger man with the Dentist’s daughter? A partner? A new apprentice of the Dentist? Someone to concern the Order?

  “And what about you two?” Sammy asked the other two blood sacks, who were quietly standing in the background.

  They both shook their heads. “No, it was a younger dude,” one of them said in a timid voice. “Without doubt.”

  Leviah mulled what he was hearing with some concern. Who was this new foe? What role did he play alongside the slayer and his daughter? Was he a danger? More complications...

  “Hey, uh... Can any of you guys jab us?” Marlon then asked, glancing at each vamp, but ending on Leviah, his favored source of venom; the fangs looked like they packed a huge hit. “We haven’t had a fix since Drake died and we’ve got the shakes.”

  Leviah’s angular jaw rose in a small grin. He parted his lips, exposing his mighty, ancient fangs. Marlon flinched back in both fear and excitement. Leviah rose slowly to his feet, put out a hand and said, “Come here.” His brooding, menacing eyes worked Marlon’s young mind; come here, I’ll numb your pain, I’ll comfort you, they said. A dreamy smile flitted across Marlon’s face as he was drawn by those kaleidoscope eyes. By that electrifying stare. The icing, the hypnosis, the pleasant sensation akin to a boat bobbing on a peaceful lake with no sounds other than the rippling water and the cool breeze. Marlon could feel himself floating across the floor, ghost-like, straight into the arms of the Father, the protector, the one who’d offer shelter from this cruel world beneath his wing of blissful darkness. The one who’d repaint his miserable existence with sublime venom. His soul ached for it. It had been so long, so so long.

  He sucked in a deep breath of anticipation as he drew close enough for the Father to finally touch him. Leviah placed an ancient claw on Marlon’s shoulder and a jolt of coldness shivered him. It quickly dissipated, replaced with a sheer rush of excitement. He closed his eyes, handing his soul over to the Father. He lolled his head ba
ck, exposing his neck, allowing the Father easy entrance. Leviah grabbed the other shoulder and pulled him in. Marlon gasped. Anticipation rose in his belly.

  The Father craned his neck back and opened his jowls wide, his gleaming, ivory fangs readied.

  A smile spread across Marlon’s face. Here it comes, here it comes, here it—

  Leviah brutally lunged. He dug his fangs into the flesh of Marlon’s throat; they sunk in effortlessly. Hot pain tore across Marlon’s soul; he screamed.

  Leviah clamped his jaws down. A harsh tear of meat and crack of bone split the previously subdued atmosphere in two. Leviah growled as he pulled away, taking half of Marlon’s throat with him. He immediately turned his head to the side and spat the chunk of meat and bone from his mouth. It hit the tiled floor with a splat. He wiped the blood from his chin afterwards, licking it off the back of his hand like a child suckling up remnants of sugar candy.

  Marlon staggered backward, his bemused, bloodshot eyes bulging, his hand shooting up to the big gap where the other half of his neck used to be. Blood sprayed from the open wound with each beat of his heart. He stared stupidly at the blood on his hand, his face riddled with bewilderment. What happened? What happened? his confused mind stammered. He’d been expecting to enjoy a massive hit of venom, to be sent to the promised land. Instead, he was witnessing his very life spill from his body as he hurtled towards his impending death. He just had enough time to gasp, for the black vortex to descend upon his severed mind, before his eyes rolled up, not in ecstasy, but in shredded agony. The darkness of death then consumed him completely and his body slumped to the tiles in a bloodied heap.

  The other two blood sacks sprang into life, terror overcoming them. They both turned and ran in fear, hoping to make it to the elevator and their escape. Leviah pointed a casual finger in their direction, giving Sammy his cue. Sammy obediently nodded his head. In one fluid motion, he pulled his Glock from beneath his jacket, aimed, and fired. The loud report was swiftly followed by a blood sack hitting the deck. The other one froze in his tracks, paralyzed with fear. He turned his head to the side to be faced with the muzzle of Sammy’s gun. “Why?” he gasped.

  Sammy gave him a nonchalant shrug. “Just business,” he replied before coldly pulling the trigger. The fanghead’s head snapped back, then his body dropped alongside his companions.

  Sammy replaced his gun and straightened his jacket.

  Leviah picked a small sliver of flesh caught between his fangs and flicked it away. “Fangheads!” he said, his voice laced with disdain. He spread his hands out at the mess on his once clean floor. “And this is why I forbid biting, Sammy. It spreads germs.”

  Sammy had an uneasy glance to the side. “Couldn’t agree more, boss...”

  “Tell the others to stop, Sammy. I’ve warned you before. We have to be careful who we allow to turn.”

  “Yes, boss.”

  Leviah wiped Marlon’s blood from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand. “Drain these peasants of their blood, bottle it, and have it refrigerated immediately,” he then ordered.

  “On it, boss,” Sammy said, before approaching the nearest body.

  Leviah retook his seat, straightened his cuffs, and ran his hands through his hair. “Oh, and Sammy,” he then said.

  Sammy stopped and turned to face him. “Yeah, boss?”

  “Put a unit together. I want that relic back.”

  “No problem, boss. And what about the Dentist’s daughter?”

  Leviah’s face darkened. “He’s broken the pact. He has to die.

  Him and his daughter.”

  Fanghunters 2: The Blood Order is available at Amazon.