Vatican Vamps

by Megan Hammer

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  Entering into the main audience chamber of the Noctum Sect, Emaline saw that Bain was standing at the Lord of Night’s side. Good. That shall make this easier then, if there is a witness, she decided. Walking up to the throne, she dropped her coat and bowed to Alaric, ignoring the Prince of Stars completely. “My lord,” she began, “I wish to challenge the Prince of Stars in ritual comminus for his position. He has let his hatred of the Diu Sect to cloud his judgment and is no longer fit to hold such a position of authority.”

  “Why you filthy little—“

  “Silence!” Alaric glared at them. “A challenge. One that has not been issued to anyone in the Sect for as long as I can remember.” He stared hard at both of them, weighing the options that Emaline’s words had opened for them. “ Very well. As much as I dislike having to officiate it, I see no other choice. What do we have if not Tradition and Honor to keep us from being as the mortals? I do not wish for any death on this day, however. Therefore, the fight shall be to First Blood. Does this agree with the combatants?”

  “Aye, it does,” Bain spat out. Emaline only nodded.

  “Very well. Begin.”

  Before Alaric could even finish the word, Bain was already rushing Emaline, pulling out his sword on the way to her. With the same lightening reflexes she stepped calmly out of his way, sticking her foot out to trip him. He did, but quickly recovered to hit her with the Sword of Stars. The flat of the blade connected with her hand, causing her to wince in pain. She spared a moment to look at it, and was relieved to see that no blood had been drawn. Then, just as calmly as before, she grabbed his arm and twisted it about, causing him to drop the metal weapon to the stone floor. He howled in pain as she moved it back far enough to break with a sickening snap. When it was let go, the fractured arm hung at an odd angle by his side. It looked disgusting, even to one who had lived through the Black Plague. The sight made her want to vomit. But her body would no longer allow for such an event to happen.

  Still, the fight was not over. With the flick of his wrist, a small dagger popped out of his left sleeve and into his uninjured hand. He pulled it back and launched the deadly metal at her neck. She ducked to avoid its edge, hearing the keen edge of it whistle past her ear as she barely managed to get out of the way in time. As she went down, she made a calculated risk and lashed out with her foot to try to bring him down to the ground. The Prince of Stars attempted to break his fall, unthinkingly using his arm that had served him so well in the past. But his broken arm collapsed beneath his weight, leaving him writhing on the ground with a scream of agony caught in his throat. Emaline rose, taking his sword with her. She dragged it over his arm, causing blood to appear; she dropped the weapon, its bloodied blade falling to the ground with a hollow clang. “I win,” she declared softly.

  “Yes, you do. Princess of Stars, pick up your weapon and take your spot next to my throne as is fitting as my second,” Alaric told her, assuring her victory as he used her new title.

  She bowed low to the Lord of Night, completely silent. Turning her back on the defeated Bain, she picked up the new weapon and began to clean it on her skirt when there was a sudden noise from behind her. Without thinking, she dropped the sword, rolled to one side, pulled out her small gun and fired a single shot. It hit Bain square in the heart. He began to shudder and convulse violently, foaming at the mouth like a rabid dog. “You…you shot…shot me…Why?” he demanded to know.

  Emaline froze in her walk towards Alaric and closed her eyes. Dare she reveal the secret she had carried since her creation? It could end with her being dragged into sunlight because of it. But what could a dying man to do her? She turned towards Bain, face hard with both sorrow and courage. “Because the leader of the Diu Sect is Kuroi Daikirai Diu, my brother. And I refuse to kill family.” With that, she dismissed him from her mind and sight, and walked away from him towards Alaric, who was staring at her in shock. As she took her place by his throne, sword at her side, she hoped that she wouldn’t be the next to die.

  “What was that?” he whispered, amazed at seeing one of his own killed by what looked like a simple bullet.

  “A silver case around a piece of wood. The silver shatters on impact, leaving the wood to penetrate the body,” she replied scornfully. “A smith in France was making them for the locals as protection. I had him make me some before I removed the threat to our kind.”

  “But why shoot him?”

  “Because I forgot my knife!”

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  Thank you for taking the time to read this short story. I hope you enjoyed it. If you would like to read more of my writings or get in contact, feel free to go to https://inkblabber.blogspot.com.