Savior

by Lane Mason

  “In other war-related news, massive media communications blackouts have been reported around the world in the last two hours. Global media international, a news watchdog has reported that over sixty-five percent of all media satellites have been hacked. Our own media expert is saying large parts of the east coast of North America are completely without coverage, and that at current rates a complete news blackout could occur within days.”

  Erica sat back, rocked by the revelation. So, that was the vampire plan. They weren’t bringing the world to the edge of nuclear war; they were wiping out all nuclear weapons and power plants. Vampires were bringing the entire world to its knees.

  “It is a beautiful plan, isn’t it?” said Jerod.

  Erica turned, she had been so engrossed in the news that she had not heard Jarod enter the library. “I wouldn’t call it beautiful. It is crazy,” Erica said.

  Jerod shook his head while smiling. “Oh no, it’s not crazy. It’s a masterful plan. Have all the countries of the world destroy each other’s armies, destroy the world’s energy production, starting with nuclear and then moving on to oil and coal. Wipe out all communications satellites and place major viruses all around the net, destroying the world’s communication network. We are setting the human population back to the iron ages. No longer will the threat of world wars threaten our population.”

  Eric watched Jerod carefully, something was really wrong here. The young vampire was happy about the attacks and seemed to know about attacks that had not even occurred yet. “Jerod, millions, maybe billions, of people are going to die. How can you say that this is a good thing?”

  “Easily,” said Jerod. “The human population is over six billion and rising all the time, it’s time for a good culling. Nuclear weapons would surely have destroyed the world one day. We are actually doing humans a favor. We are completely eliminating the nuclear threat to the world. Food shortages won’t be a problem anymore. Those humans that survive should thank us. The world will be a better place now.”

  “You keep saying we,” Erica said. “Your parents died at the hands of the same vampires who are behind the attacks.” Jerod was really starting to worry her. Where was Dante? Or Jeffery? Then Erica remembered her necklace! She brought hand up to her chest and discreetly gave the jewel a twist, activating the distress beacon.

  “Well, actually when Vladimir asked me to participate in his plan, I volunteered to kill my parents. They were weak and sad vampires,” said Jerod with disdain. “The old fools actually believed you humans should be treated as equals. They were an embarrassment! When Vladimir and the council gave me the opportunity to join them, I gladly took their lives. Creating the opportunity I needed to come here as a victim. The poor teen vampire being hunted because his parents believed humans were not just like cattle are to men. Having to live here among you filthy humans and disgusting human-loving shifters has been revolting. I am glad I can finally finish my mission and leave this wretched place.”

  Erica could not believe her ears. Jerod had seemed so lost and meek when he arrived. Now he sounded sinister and evil. Jarod was one of the vampires who had killed her husband and had been trying for months to kill her? Erica tried not to panic, as Jerod slowly walked closer. Sliding her hands under the table, Erica pressed the panic button on the wrist watch Dante had ordered for her. Dante might not get to the library in time to save her, but he would find Jerod and avenge her, that much Erica was certain of.

  Looking around the room, Erica tried to come up with a way to stall Jerod. She could see nothing in the library that would be a viable weapon. The only way to stall him would to be to keep him talking. “Did you not love you parents, Jerod?” Erica asked. “Surely, you realize that this plot will fail. Taking out a few nuclear plants is not going to stop the world from seeing what you are. When the world finds out what has happened, you will perish.”

  “It’s not a few nuclear plants, you stupid bitch, every nuclear weapon in the world, every nuclear plant, they’re all disabled or are going to be. Every scientist with working knowledge of nuclear power is dead or being hunted down. The entire web is being scrubbed of info on nuclear power. And who is going to go against us? Right now, half of the world’s armies are busy preparing to kill each other. By the time they figure out who actually started the wars, it will be too late.” Jerod leapt over the desk, knocking Erica down before she could try to escape. Pinning her to the ground, Jerod gloated, “The world, as you humans know it, is done. It’s a shame you won’t be alive to watch it happen.” Jerod opened his mouth, letting his fangs extend to their full length, and then bit into Erica’s neck. He savored the sweet taste of her blood.

  ...

  When his watch flashed and beeped the distress warning, Dante was in the gardens. He was helping Jeffery work the fields, preparing the ground for the spring planting. Dante shifted into gargoyle form and flew towards the house, Erica was in danger! Dante scanned the house as he flew. He could smell her. Erica was in the library, and she was not alone. Jerod, one of the newer arrivals was in the room with her. Dante did not waste any time trying to go through the back door to the house. Instead he flew through the library window. The large glass window shattered as he flew into the room. Dante spotted Jerod. He was on top of the still body of Erica, drinking her blood from her exposed neck. Dante flapped his stone wings one more time and flew into the treacherous young vampire, knocking him sprawling across the floor. Jerod bounced against the wall, injured but not mortally wounded.

  Jerod grinned maniacally at Dante. “It’s too late gargoyle! Soon she will die and you will return to being an ugly stone ornament. The reign of humans is over, and there is nothing you can do to stop it.”

  Jerod sprang from the wall, hoping to escape out of the now broken window.

  Dante quickly grabbed Jerod, wrapping his stone hands around the vampire’s neck. “Perhaps, you are right, but you will not be around to find out,” yelled Dante as he strangled the life out of the vampire.

  Jerod gasped and gurgled trying to breathe as his neck was squeezed, but Dante was too strong. Jerod could do nothing to stop Dante from squeezing. His neck snapped under the extreme pressure. His body flopped to the ground as Dante released his neck and turned to check on Erica.

  ...

  When Dante turned to his gargoyle form and flew into the house, Jeffery had been on the tractor. He turned off the engine and ran into the house. Whatever had gotten Dante moving like that would be bad, really bad. Jeffery turned bear quickly. He could run faster as a bear than as a man.

  When Jeffery got to the library he found Dante crouched over Erica. Jeffery saw the body of Jerod and knew what had happened. The enemy had sent a mole among them. He stood on his hind legs and roared his anguish, shifting back to his human form.

  “Is she alive?” asked Jeffery, holding his breath as he waited with dread for Dante’s answer.

  “She is still breathing, but her pulse is really weak. He drank a lot of her blood before I got here,” answered Dante. He was pressing a torn piece of Erica’s shirt against her neck, plugging the two bite marks, making sure she lost no more blood.

  Jeffery ran to his room, grabbed his cell phone and dialed Terra.

  “Hello, Cutie,” said Terra with a flirty tone, as she answered the phone.

  “Erica has been bitten,” Jeffery said, wasting no time with hellos.

  Terra instantly was all business. “I’m at the farm with Dexter. We will be there in five. Is she alive?”

  “Barely. Hurry!” Jeffery said. He headed back to the library to see if he could help Dante.

  34

  When Dexter and Terra arrived, Jeffery met them at the door.

  Terra had a large suitcase with her. She handed it to Jeffery. “Where is she?” she asked.

  Jeffery took the suitcase, which he knew was really a large medical supply stash that was kept on the farm in case of vampire attack. Jeffery admonished himself for not thinking to have similar kits at the mansion.

>   As they got to the library, Terra moved Dante out of the way and took over treating Erica. She turned to Jeffery. “Put the case on the desk. I need the Hartmann’s solution and an IV.”

  Jeffery opened the case. He found three large clear bags of solution. They were clearly labeled ‘Hartmann’s Solution.’ Jeffery was grateful that Terra was so organized. No time would be lost getting setup. He easily found the rest of the supplies needed to setup the IV drip.

  Terra explained, “It’s more effective for vampire bites than normal saline solution. Once we have her stabilized, we can use donor blood to bring her levels up.” Terra turned to Dexter, “You know what will happen if she survives, right?”

  Dexter nodded, he turned to Dante. “Dante, she is very weak right now. She may not make it. She likely has enough vampire venom in her blood to start the turning, but not enough to survive it. Her body will reject the virus, but if it does she will likely die. The process is extremely taxing and drains the vitality of the victim.”

  Dante knew enough about vampires to understand what Dexter was saying. Erica was poisoned. Vampire venom was coursing through her veins. If she didn’t die from shock from the loss of blood, the vampire venom would finish her off. “How long before the process begins?” asked Dante.

  “Hours,” Dexter said. “First we have to stabilize her, and then we will have a little time before we have to decide what to do.”

  Dante looked at Erica. He could not stand the idea of losing her. “Wait as long as you can. If she wakes in time, give her the options. If she doesn’t wake, just do it.”

  ...

  Erica’s eyes fluttered, and then opened. She slowly came to her senses. She was lying in her bed. An IV was attached to her arm. Erica could feel Dante holding her other hand. She turned her head to look at him. “Hey, you,” she said weakly.

  “Hello, beautiful,” said Dante, smiling at her. He squeezed her hand gently.

  “I’m not dead?” Erica asked, somewhat surprised.

  From the other side of the room, Dexter spoke, “No, you’re not dead yet. But, you’re not out of the woods. I’m afraid you have vampire venom in your blood now.”

  Erica gave a weak smile, “So what is the prognosis? Am I going to make it?” Erica closed her eyes, fearing what Dexter would say next.

  “There is a chance. However, it requires drastic action.” Dexter paused for a second. He took a deep breath before continuing. “Erica, the only way you can survive is to be bitten by another vampire. If you are going to live, you have to become a vampire. Otherwise your body will reject the transformation and you will die.”

  “Lovely,” Erica said. “I don’t suppose you kept Jerod alive? He was the only vampire here.”

  “No, Jerod certainly did not survive his attack on you. However, he was not the only vampire here. I’m a vampire, Erica.”

  Erica looked at Dexter with instant understanding. Why had she not guessed it long ago?

  Erica thought about the revelation. It made sense. It was why Jack had been targeted first. They went after the humans first and then the shifters and vampires. “I always thought you looked a little pale,” Erica said. “Why did you never tell me?” Her smile was weak. Her attempt at humor tugged at the heartstrings in the room.

  “I have been hiding my vampire heritage for a long time. I was once the worst type of vampire. I came to earth from Unreha. I was the type that hunted humans for pleasure. Killing them just for the sake of the hunt.” Dexter hung his head in shame, and then continued with his painful confession. “I would probably have been on the other side of this battle if it were not for the incident that changed my life forever. I was hunting outside a small village. I terrorized them, hunting every night, killing randomly. Men, woman, children, it didn’t matter, I picked my targets by degree of difficulty. I made sure no one in the village felt safe. One night I entered the home of one of the village elders. She was old, but had a vitality to her that attracted me. When I made my presence known to her, she did not run in fear or try to fight me. She knew her time had come, that nothing she could do would change her fate. When I moved in for the kill, I looked into her eyes. No fear, only sadness and pity, the old woman was about to die and she felt pity for me. It enraged me. I asked her why she looked at me like that.

  The old woman answered, ‘Such a magnificent shell, powerful and cunning.’ She then put her hand on my chest, ‘A beautiful creature you are, but so empty inside. Instead of love and companionship, you feed off fear and death. It must be a lonely existence you live.’ I did not understand her words at the time. They stabbed into me like deadly little needles. In anger, I killed her, mutilating her corpse and destroying her home. After I retreated to my lair, I thought about her words. Every day, for months on end, I thought about her words. They haunted me. A mere human feeling sad and pity for me, a great vampire, was too much. I avoided her village after that. My thirst for their fear was gone. Her words had taken away my pleasure from terror. I moved away from the area of the village, and ran into another vampire I had known long ago, one I had been dismissive of because of his more tolerable attitude towards humans. When I spoke to him, he noted the change in me.

  He said I no longer had the look of blood lust on me. He stated that now I could use logic and intelligence to make my decisions instead of thirst. He was right. It was then I began to study humans. I learned to appreciate them. I found myself enjoying the company of humans more and more. One of my vampire powers, is the ability to mask my scent, I made myself seem human. Even my fellow vampires could not tell I wasn’t human. I moved to America, while it was still young, and began a new life. I ended up befriending a wolf shifter, one who lost his pack. I ended up helping him to adjust to his life without a pack, I helped him find a place among the humans. I enjoyed the satisfaction of doing that, and decided to keep doing it. I pretended I was one of the Enlightened, those who know of shifters and vampires, and became someone the shifters trusted to help them. I met your husband through another business venture. I immediately knew his skills as a researcher were exactly what I needed to increase the number of shifters I could help. I brought him into the small circle of humans who knew the truth, the Enlightened. It took Jack about ten years before he confronted me about never seeming to grow older. When I told him my story, he agreed that continuing my guise as a human was the best course of action.”

  “That does explain a lot, Dexter, but why tell me now?” Erica asked.

  “I can help you, Erica. If I do, you will become a vampire. I can bite you. You will be changed forever. It is not a horrible thing to become a vampire, but certain things will change. It is probably the only way for you to survive, but it comes with a great price.”

  “The price is not so high, Erica, let him turn you. It will be okay—” Dante could not risk losing the woman he had tried to resist caring for. Once again, he was ready to sacrifice himself for a woman. Fate was being unusually cruel. History was repeating itself.

  Dexter interrupted Dante. “No, Dante, she needs to know.” Dexter turned back to Erica, “If you die, Dante will likely turn back to stone, and if you become a vampire Dante will still likely turn back to stone.”

  Erica absorbed Dexter’s words. Tears started to roll down her face as she came to understand what was happening. “I don’t want to lose you, Dante.” Erica could not let him turn to stone without telling him what was in her heart. As much as he pushed her away physically, he had not been able to stop her feelings for him. “I love you.” Her eyes locked with his.

  Dante smiled and kissed her hand, “I know you do, and I love you. You’re the most amazing woman I have ever met. I have always had regrets about becoming a gargoyle ... until I met you. Every moment I have spent with you has made the centuries of waiting worth every second. I am so glad to have gotten to know you, Erica. I would gladly return to stone so that I can watch you continue what you have started. Sanctuary is a good thing, and with the world falling apart around us, it will be neede
d now more than ever.

  “Oh, Dante, I can’t live forever without you.”

  “You must, and forever is a long time. I could rise again, someday. Now tell him to do it. Let Dexter turn you.”

  Erica was terrified that she would never see Dante as a human again, that their time together would end, when she said yes. She couldn’t bring herself to say the words. Instead she closed her eyes, and nodded.

  Dante turned to Dexter, making sure he had seen Erica’s nod.

  “There is something else you need to know, Erica. This might not work. The vampire that bit you is far different than I. Vampires that are from this world are descendants of other vampires of this world, I’m from Unreha. I don’t know how having two different vampire bloodlines will affect you.”

  Erica shrugged. “If the choice is between dying and being a mad scientist’s experiment I choose the mad scientist. I want to live.”

  Dexter walked up to the bed. He grabbed her arm with the IV in it. Gently he sunk his fangs into her. He did not ingest her blood. Instead he just let his venom flow into her body. He could taste her blood in his mouth. Like a drug, the blood called to him, begging him to let the thirst take over. Dexter released his grip on Erica, and stood up.

  “It is done. Have Jeffery and Terra keep an eye on her. Terra will know what to do. I have to leave. I need to be alone for a while.” The temptation to start feeding on humans again was hard for Dexter to ignore, the taste of human blood was as addictive as heroine to someone like him. He would return to the farm, and wait there to see what happened next.

  Dante grabbed Dexter’s hand. “Thank you, Dexter, I always knew you were a vampire, but I misjudged your reasons for hiding the fact. I apologize and thank you for saving Erica.”