by Brian Carmen
Olivia had told her that a very long time ago; “I can’t tell you because you would end up depending on me for every human that you tried to turn. I won’t be around forever so you must learn the truth that all makers of Volstir have to face. Your progeny may die no matter what”.
The words always seemed so cruel whenever Nia thought back on them. It was a truth that she didn’t want to face. It made her bitter that the process couldn’t be simple like in the movies. Humans couldn’t possibly know how painful and difficult turning into a Volstir was. Now she understood that Olivia had been trying to teach her something very important. Nia hoped that she had understood the meaning and didn’t seem to be so reliant on her.
“What will you do if a Morte Lumo occurs?” Olivia asked as Nia looked at Victor.
He was sleeping the last of his human life away. She hadn’t wanted to think about the question Olivia had asked her. All Volstir including Nia knew that the dreaded Morte Lumo could occur. It was something that most makers could not bear to even think about. It was easier to try and ignore it while hoping that it didn’t occur.
If the ‘dead light’ did happen than Nia and Olivia would have no choice but to kill Victor when he awoke. Nia knew that it was possible for a Volstir to return but not have a light. It was something she had only seen once before when Olivia was turning another. It was a rare phenomenon that the Volstirs didn’t fully understand. She had seen the way they acted when a Volstir awoke without a light. To this day; a great pain would appear in her heart whenever she thought about it.
Nia was lucky that she could only imagine how horrible it must be to try and return without the light guiding you. Olivia had described the event as being born and forced to live without any kind of hope. Every waking moment was supposed to feel as though you were living in hell. They Volstir would be turned but without any part of their humanity left. They known as Soulem and would simply feed for the rest of time if they were allowed to go unchecked. Nia understood that the only relief any of them could have was a quick death.
The Volstir believed that it was impossible to try and live in such a way. Being a normal Volstir was a difficult life to have without adding to the burdens. The Soulem were described as abominations; mistakes that had to be destroyed. When she had first heard about them; Nia had disagreed with killing them. It hadn’t seemed right that they should survive the turning only to be killed. Seeing the Soulem that Olivia had made was enough to change her thoughts on the matter. The creature was definitely no longer human and had to be destroyed. It was the only merciful way.
Nia knew that Victor would have no choice but to learn everything he already knew. He would have to learn about his body so that he wouldn’t destroy the things around him. Once he managed that; he would have to begin learning about his ability. Nia had been alive for a very long time and even she didn’t know everything about herself or her ability. She remembered that it took fifty years just to be confident about her own body and ability.
Once she was confident enough; Nia was able to leave Olivia’s side. Becoming a Volstir was always and would continue to be a day by day existence. It was believed that you could never know the full extent of yourself. The only thing you could do was learn more as time went by. It was another truth that the wise Volstir were able to understand.
Nia closed her eyes in an attempt to try and sleep even though she knew it was pointless. She had fed the night before and wouldn’t need to feed for many days to come. In order to fall asleep quickly she would have to allow the hunger set in. When it did she hoped that Victor was not still human. Many older Volstir’s died because they ended up starving in the middle of the turning. They would then attempt to feed off the person that was being turned. Doing such a thing would only have one result for both maker and progeny; they would die.
Olivia had taught her that part of becoming a maker was being able to control your hunger. Her maker would also be standing by to ensure that she wouldn’t try feeding off Victor. Both Nia and Olivia were not worried since they had both properly fed themselves before they began. She figured that she would be able to sleep easy by the time the third day arrived. She would be waiting for that day since it would be when Victor was given his light.
It would also allow her to see her light once more. She would try to decipher whatever clues there were so that she could make her vision a reality. She didn’t really have a need to go back and see her light again. It was something that she did because she enjoyed it. Many other Volstirs had expressed great envy with her ability. Only an empath Volstir was able to have the same feeling that came whenever the light appeared. It was never as strong as the first time she’d seen it but she had never thought it would be.
She thought about Victor and wondered what he might dream before the pain of death began to kick in. Nia and Olivia knew that it would be very painful and would feel as though it were going to last forever. If the human was strong enough they could eventually push through the pain and awaken new. Her eyes were closed but she could still feel Olivia in the room with them. Her maker would not leave until they were both finished.
Olivia knew very well how difficult it was to kill someone you cared about. Nia was always grateful to have her maker by her side during this time. The process was always difficult to deal with and she wouldn‘t want to be alone. They would have to wait and hope for the best since the turning was only just starting.
Nia knew that she would able to rest with some comfort because she was being looked after. Victor would need all the help he could get during this time. Nia didn’t want to leave his side before his light arrived. If she did; then there was a very real possibility that a Morte Lumo would occur. She scolded herself for a moment for allowing such thoughts to enter. She needed to be positive because she had done everything on her end correctly. The rest was left out of her hands and depended only on Victor.
Chapter Four: The Light of the Volstir
The rain had started on the second day. At first it was light but by the start of the third day it had begun to pound harder. The windows throughout the house could be heard pounding as Nia listened and began to feel relief. Victor’s heartbeat had begun to slow considerably so that she could only hear it beat a few times every minute. His blood had also slowed down so that it no longer sounded like a rushing river and was now more like a gentle stream. Nia was starting to sense little of the human that she had known for so many years.
She listened to the rain and to his heart as the sound blended together. The rain was light compared to him. Every time she heard it beat; his heart sounded as though it were a drum going off inside her head. When she heard the beat of his heart she knew what was coming next. She hated knowing that Victor was next to her and was having to suffer.
His body would tense up as the unimaginable pain began to rush throughout his body. She had felt that same pain many years before when she had been turned. Even now her ability made it so she could feel a shadow version of it. Just by being so close to him; her ability would activate with each beat of his heard. There were times when she wanted to call out but instead she kept silent. Victor’s pain was much worse than her pain; she needed to be strong.
Olivia never said a word and though Nia could not hear her she did not need to open her eyes. She knew that her maker was still in the basement with them; watching. Hunger was starting to appear but Nia was determined not to leave Victor’s side. Today was the third day and though he suffered she knew that it would subside with his death. Human’s thought about death as something that was quick and painless. When they thought about vampires they imagine them dying and then coming back to life.
They were always supposed to be reborn pale, beautiful, and immortal. These things may have been true for vampires however not for Volstir. The vampires did not have a heartbeat or a need to breathe air. The truth with Volstir was that while their heart did not need to beat as much they still had it. They also didn’t need to breathe as much even though they still
needed oxygen. They were never truly dead however they were always very close to it.
Nia’s heartbeat only occurred about once a year and had been that was for over a hundred and forty years. When the heartbeat came so did the memories of her light. She also had the thoughts that she had before she turned. Her blood still flowed underneath her skin; though at times even she forgot because it moved so slow. It was so slow that it didn’t seem to move at all. It was almost impossible to use conventional means to extract her blood. That was why they needed silver since it had a strange reaction with their body. It couldn’t kill them however it was able to make them weak.
She didn’t know why their bodily functions slowed so drastically or how it was able to speed up for certain functions. Nia only knew that it was how her body worked. Humans probably would never be able to understand her thought. She figured it was like the cells in a human body. Humans couldn‘t feel them; however they still knew they were moving, living, and dying inside of them.
She heard Victor’s heart again and at the same time they both tensed up. it was like having a heart attack, kidney stones, and having your entire bones break all at once. Even while unconscious his cells screamed out in pure agony. Just as the pain began to fade; it would come back again. It was not quick, simple, or easy for them. Instead it was traveling into death at a slower rate and then having to push back as something else entirely. Nia wished that there were something she could do to make it easier for him.
Unfortunately; she had already done everything that was possible. The suffering he felt at the moment could not be lessened. No matter how much Nia and Olivia might want to make it so. This was the same pain that they had all been forced to endure. Now it would be Victor’s turn to endure the seemingly endless pain.
Nia remembered Olivia telling her that back when she had been turned the process was much worse. Back then the process had only been modified slightly from the original method of turning someone. Blood was still mixed however the Volstir did not feed off the progeny the night before. They also didn’t lie beside them during the turning. Instead they just left them somewhere and waited to see if they turned or not.
Simple things; would not be discovered for another three hundred years after Olivia was turned. It would make the process ten times less painful. The modifications greatly increased the survival rate of those that were being turned. It’s also why most Volstir’s were younger than three hundred. Before the additions the ceremony killed three out of four potential Volstir.
“It’s going to be alright Victor; just hang on a little longer and your light will appear” Nia thought to herself while another minute passed.
His heart sounded its loud drum once more. Nia could feel the pain mix with the stiffness in her limbs. She fought the urge to stretch and instead tried to distract herself. Her ears started listening to the rain. The sound helped her ease everything inside her body while she continued to wait. Every second brought Victor closer to the moment when his light would arrive.
“It’s about to happen; death is taking him” Olivia said suddenly as Nia opened her eyes and stared at her.
Olivia was still standing but had decided to lean against one of the walls. Nia could see her eyes fixated on the two of them. She seemed surprised that Nia had opened her eyes when she spoke. Olivia didn’t know that the sound of her voice would be enough to snap away Nia’s concentration. It felt as though there was nothing until Olivia had spoken.
“Can you feel it?” Olivia asked while Nia turned her head so that she could look at Victor.
Sweat could be seen on his entire body this made Nia aware that his body temperature had skyrocketed. It felt as though touching him would be enough to burn away the skin from her fingertips. Olivia was right about death being close to him; Nia was now able to feel the desperate struggle of Victor’s human life. It was fighting desperately to try and keep him. Nia wrapped her arms around him and closed her eyes again. Desperately; she began praying for his light to come. Nia couldn’t bear the thought of another progeny suffering so much, only to die like many Volstir before him.
Suddenly a blinding white light appeared on the inside of her eyes. It had come without warning like on the previous occasions. She found herself standing in the middle of a grass field surrounded by wild flowers. Nia looked up at the bright sun and then looked down at a blanket with a picnic basket on top. A man was beginning to set a lunch for the two of them. Nia looked at him and smiled brightly. She was warm inside and very happy; it was the same feeling she always had when she saw her light. The man looked up and smiled at her.
He was tall and handsome with short black hair and slight stubble. His eyes were brown and deep that they reminded her of a doe. She watched them stare at her with completely love and adoration. Nia could feel that she cared a lot for this man; she had a strong feeling that they were in love. He was the light that she’d spent more than a century trying to find.
“I know we don’t need to eat this but I think it’s nice for us to enjoy ourselves more often. We have all eternity to worry and together we can solve any problem” the man said while he continued to smile at her.
Nia looked back at him and smiled. She tried to figure out what it meant while she struggled to remember his name. When she was in her light she knew his name along with everything else about the man. She knew that as soon as the light ended she would lose the knowledge. There had to be a way for her to remember and be able to keep the knowledge. Nia was tired of knowing that she had a true love without knowing his name.
“I love you Andrew” Nia said as the light around her began to flicker.
The words spilled out from her mouth without a thought. She felt herself turn just as she had every other time she was in her light. Something was different this time; the light was struggling to hold itself together while two others joined them. Everything felt a bit strange as though something wasn’t right. Nia had a feeling that her light was being altered because of the two people that were now beside them.
She was able to recognize both as Victor and Venus. Nia knew Venus very well; because she was one of her sisters. Venus and her twin Ebony had been turned by Olivia over eighty years ago. They were both dark skinned like Olivia and they both had kind but dark eyes that were almost identical to Andrew’s eyes. Nia wasn’t able to understand why the two of them would appear in her vision.
“It’s hard to believe it’s already been thirteen years since you turned me” Victor said with a light chuckle. He leaned in and hugged Nia; “I’ll always be grateful” he whispered as the world around them began flickering again.
She figured out what was going on as the things around her flickered along with the light. Somehow the light from both Victor and Nia had merged together so that they were one. She had heard of a Duos Lumo before but she was not foolish enough to believe that she and Victor had a shared light. The truth was that because she was close to him and because she had the empath ability she was actually seeing a part of his light. If Victor awoke he would have no idea about Nia’s own light because he was unable to see it himself.
“Nia wake up!” she heard loudly as she opened her eyes to see Olivia stand over her. The bed was moving violently causing Nia to look into her arms. She was able to see Victor flailing around. Nia had been afraid that this would happen; it was something that had happened before. Victor’s light was starting to fail because Nia had inadvertently interfered with it. If they didn’t act quickly than Victor could easily end up dying.
The pain was starting to become too much now and would like try to claim Victor entirely. Nia held him closer as she began reaching inside of him for the pain. This was the only way they could save Victor. The pain had grown and would have to siphon away from him. Nia’s empath ability was his only chance now.
“Don’t worry Victor; I’m here and I will save you” Nia shouted while her own body began to feel the same excruciating pain that Victor was feeling.
She knew that she would hav
e to siphon off enough of it so that Victor would have a chance of coming back to them. Nia struggled to hold onto her consciousness as the pain swept throughout her body. She was weaker than she needed to be and knew that it would be difficult to try and take all of the pain from him and not end up dead. This would not be an easy task to perform and could have horrible consequences.
Nia had made a mistake and should’ve fed before it had gotten this far. She felt the pain continue to throb throughout both of them. If she could just hold on a little longer than everything would be alright. Olivia was right beside her; coaching for Nia to hold on for as long as possible. Victor was depending on Nia’s strength and despite the pain she was determined not to let him go.
“You can’t have him; he’s mine and I won‘t let him go” Nia called out as she squeezed Victor harder so that many of his bones literally broke.
The pain was added causing Nia to scream out loud. She heard the loud boom outside as lightening struck somewhere nearby. Part of her wished that the lightening would striker her. She wanted something to interfere and stop the incredible pain before Victor and her ended up dead. It seemed like only a matter of time before everything would be gone; permanently.
She began wondering if she would be able to hold out. Then something happened that she didn‘t think would. Nia could feel Victor’s pain begin to leave; it was slow at first but as the pain left he stopped flailing around. The intense heat in his body vanished almost instantly; leaving him as cold as any other Volstir. Within a few minutes the pain was gone though Nia was still clutched onto Victor. She began trying to listen for his breath; silently for twenty minutes. At last relief was allowed to set in; Nia heard him take a light breath.
Nia turned her attention towards Olivia who smiled back “he’s going to live and by the looks of it; he has a light” Olivia said as she held out her hand for Nia.
Now that the worst part was over Nia would not need to keep lying down beside him. They both knew that he was going to live. He would awaken as a Volstir and be able to search for his happiness like Nia and Olivia. That was what the light was for all Volstir; a hopeful glance at a happy ending. Every Volstir spent their lives searching for their individual light. Olivia looked just as happy as Nia though she didn’t look nearly as messy.
