Greater Vampires

by Trudie Collins

  “I take it this is the first time any of you have seen him die,” Luke said.

  “It’s the first time he has died,” Craig said. “You’d better be right about him coming back to life or Sarah is going to kill you. And I don’t mean that figuratively. I have no idea how, but she will find a way.”

  “He will be fine,” Luke said with confidence. “Though he’s not going to be happy when he comes round. It always gives me a headache worse than a hangover.”

  “Have you died often?” Craig asked.

  “More times than I care to recall. Mostly it has been Gabriel’s fault.”

  “Now why doesn’t that surprise me?”

  Craig placed a blanket over JD’s body then the two men went in search of the ladies.

  ————————————-∞————————————-

  As soon as Luke and Craig left the arena, Jonathon slid down the pole, closely followed by Scott and Katie. He walked up to Gabriel and took a swing at him. Gabriel easily stepped away. Before he could try again, Scott and Katie took hold of him and dragged him to the edge of the room.

  “Calm down,” Katie said. “Getting yourself killed is not going to help JD.” She released her hold on Jonathon, walked up to Gabriel and slapped him round the face with as much force as she could.

  The sound of her palm connecting with his cheek echoed around the arena. On the balcony, Jane winced. She could imagine how much that hurt Katie’s hand.

  Gabriel did not react.

  “You complete and utter bastard,” she said, her voice rippling with anger. She swung at him once more, but this time he grabbed her arm before her hand could reach its target.

  “You only get one,” Gabriel said coldly. “You needed a demonstration as to how deadly greater vampires are. Now you won’t do anything stupid like try to attack any of us. Spread the word to all of your fellow hunters.”

  Then he let his eyes soften. He turned Katie’s hand over and kissed the back of it. “JD will be alright. I promise.”

  He noticed the slight hesitation before Katie pulled her hand out of his grasp, but he didn’t comment. He turned away from her and leaped onto the balcony. Jane backed away from him.

  He then left the room in search of Luke and Anna.

  ————————————-∞————————————-

  Doc was in the lounge when Craig and Luke walked in.

  “That didn’t take long,” he said. “What happened?”

  “Gabriel killed JD,” Luke said. He looked embarrassed about it.

  Doc sprang to his feet. “He did what!”

  “He’ll recover. Just give him a couple of hours.”

  “Does Sarah know? Where is she?”

  “Natalie and Anna took her away,” Craig said. “Probably to Natalie’s room. She was screaming so they’re trying to calm her down.”

  “That sort of shock is not good for her in her condition,” Doc said and stormed out of the room.

  Luke and Craig both watched him leave. “Can I offer you coffee or anything?” Craig asked.

  “Coffee would be good,” Luke said so Craig took him to the kitchen. It was there that Gabriel found them.

  “You really shouldn’t have done that,” Luke said as soon as he saw him.

  “No, I really should. They needed a proper demonstration on how deadly we are.”

  “Actually he’s right,” Craig said. “The others are angry right now, but will calm down. When he wakes up, JD won’t be pissed at you. He might be at himself, but not you. How long will it take? Any idea?”

  “For greater vampires, only an hour or two. I have no idea about lesser ones. Whenever I have killed one in the past I’ve made sure they stay dead.”

  It was a couple of hours later when the whole house was disturbed by screaming. Luke, Gabriel and Craig raced to the medical unit.

  JD was sitting on the bed, shaking uncontrollably. Sarah was beside him, gently whispering that he was alright. Anna and Natalie were standing nearby.

  He spotted the two vampires. “What the hell happened to me?”

  “I stabbed you with a sword then killed you. Coming back to life is a bitch, isn’t it.”

  “You can say that again. My body feels like it has been dragged behind a truck for a few miles and it felt like my mind was physically pulled from my body then dumped back in. I never want to go through that again.”

  Gabriel shrugged his shoulders. “You get used to it. Wait till the headache hits. You’ll be begging me to kill you again.”

  “I’ll go warn Doc,” Craig said. “Hopefully he has some pain killers that will work on a vampire.”

  Luke, knowing what JD would be going through, had brought a mug of coffee with him. “Drink this,” he said as he handed it over. “It will help.”

  JD winced when he took a sip. Luke had made it a lot stronger than he usually drank it. The hot liquid flowing down his throat did help a little, so he took another sip.

  “You should stay here for a while,” Gabriel said. “Relax. Try to get some sleep if you can.”

  “Where are the others?” JD asked as soon as Craig returned. He had Doc with him. “How did they react to my death?”

  “Scott and Jane are shooting aliens on the screen. Jonathon was so angry Katie had to get him out of the house. I’ve no idea where they went.”

  “I’ll call them,” Sarah said. “I want a word with you,” she said to Gabriel as she passed him.

  He followed her out of the room and as soon as they were in the corridor, she turned to face him and slapped him, managing to hit the same spot that Katie had. “Don’t ever do that again.”

  He put his hand to his cheek and rubbed it gently. “Twice in one day,” he said. “That’s never happened before.”

  “Next time I’ll have a weapon in my hand and it won’t be your face I’ll aim for.” She looked down at his groin meaningfully.

  “There’s no need to get nasty. JD will be alright. Now don’t you have a call to make?”

  He returned to the medical unit where Doc was examining JD’s neck.

  “It has completely healed,” he said in amazement. “No sign that there was ever a break.” He then asked JD to lift his blood stained shirt. All trace of the sword entering his body had disappeared.

  Natalie and Anna both widened their eyes, but not at the lack of a wound. It was the first time either had seen JD’s torso and it was an impressive sight.

  “Sarah’s a lucky woman,” Anna whispered to Natalie. The look Luke gave her told her he had heard her comment and wasn’t pleased.

  “They’re on their way back,” Sarah said as she walked back into the room. “Though they have requested that the house be devoid of greater vampires by the time they get here.”

  “They’re right. We should be leaving,” Luke said. “I think we have overstayed our welcome.”

  JD had other ideas. “No, please stay. I want to see another demonstration.” Sarah started to protest, but JD hushed her and looked at Gabriel and Luke. “I want to see you two fight each other. Something tells me you were holding back when you were in the arena with me.”

  Gabriel and Luke looked at each other and grinned. Anna rolled her eyes. “They have an Olympic size swimming pool in the grounds,” she said. “But they have never filled it with water. It doesn’t happen very often, or so I’ve been told, but occasionally a greater vampire will become aggressive. Whenever that occurs, one of the others will take them to the pool and they will fight. Usually to the death. Those two go there whenever one of them does something to piss the other one off. They’ve never done it since I’ve known them, but I’ve heard about some of their fights and the cracks in the concrete told me all I need to know about how violent they can be.”

  “This should be fun then,” JD said.

  He winced as he eased himself off the bed. The headache had started and it was worse than anything he had ever had to endure. He felt like he was being stabbed by multi
ple needles all over his skull, while being pounded with a baseball bat and having hot liquid poured over him. He began to feel faint as he tried to cope with the pain.

  “Hold out your arm,” Doc instructed. He had come prepared. JD rolled up his sleeve and watched as Doc injected him with something. He had no idea what it was, but a few minutes later the room stopped spinning and he was able to stand.

  “Come and see me again in a few hours if you need another shot,” Doc said.

  “Looks like it’s handy having a doctor around,” Luke said. “Next time I die, bring me here before I wake up.”

  Gabriel looked at his watch. “You mean in about ten minutes.”

  Everyone except Doc headed to the arena, picking up Scott and Jane on the way. They didn’t have to wait long for Jonathon and Katie to arrive and when they heard what was going to happen, they were eager to see it.

  They all stood on the balcony, looking over the edge at Gabriel and Luke. Luke was looking around him. The wood panelling still hid the weapons.

  “Take it easy,” he said to Gabriel. “Try not to break anything.”

  “I presume you’re talking about the woodwork, not your bones.” Luke didn’t bother to answer.

  “Hey Luke, do me a favour,” Katie called down. “Beat the shit out of him.”

  “Why?” Gabriel called up to her. “Want to tend my wounds for me afterward? Are you that desperate to have your hands on me again?”

  Katie muttered under her breath exactly what Gabriel could do with himself, in explicit detail. She didn’t realise that he could hear everything she was saying.

  “Who is going to win?” Sarah asked Anna.

  “I have no idea. From what they have told me, they are pretty evenly matched. Gabriel is stronger, but Luke is faster. They have killed each other roughly the same amount of times.”

  When the fight began, swearing and blaspheming filled the balcony. The two vampires were moving so fast that they became a blur.

  They were punching and kicking at each other, but there was no sound that any of the strikes managed to hit their intended target. Snarling could be heard coming from the arena floor and it was like watching two animals fight.

  Then Gabriel managed to grab hold of Luke and he threw him into the wall. The impact cracked the wood and Anna couldn’t help wincing as Luke’s body fell to the floor.

  Gabriel slowly walked over to him, watching him carefully as he approached. Luke didn’t move. To those watching from above, he appeared to be unconscious.

  Then, just as Gabriel was about to place his hands on his head to make the kill, Luke swung his legs out, taking Gabriel’s from under him.

  Gabriel landed hard on his back, forcing all of the air from his lungs. Luke leaped to his feet and stamped his foot down at Gabriel’s throat. It was a move that would have crushed his windpipe had Gabriel not moved out of the way in time.

  “I see what you mean about being violent,” Natalie said. “I can’t watch this anymore.”

  “I’ll come with you,” Anna said and both ladies left the room.

  Luke had Gabriel on the defensive and was driving him back into the corner of the room. Too late he realised that this was Gabriel’s intention.

  Gabriel grabbed a Bo from the urn and smashed it over his cousin’s head hard enough to break it. He then pushed the broken piece of wood forward, making it pass through Luke’s ribcage and into his lung. He let go and stepped back.

  “You’ll have to do better than that,” Luke said as he pulled it from his body and threw it onto the ground. His voice was rasping as his pierced lung failed to inflate. Blood was pouring onto the floor, but both of them ignored it.

  “Why don’t we make this a little more interesting,” Gabriel said as he backed away, giving himself room to prepare his next attack. “Next time your claim wears off, the winner gets to have a night of fun with Anna.”

  “Over my dead body,” Luke snarled. Gabriel wasn’t serious. He would never touch Anna in any way; he was just trying to distract him, but Luke couldn’t stop himself reacting.

  “That is the general idea,” Gabriel said and launched himself at Luke.

  Despite his injury, Luke was ready for him. He stepped out of the way and put his arm around Gabriel’s neck as he went past. With his other arm, he locked his hold and tightened it. Gabriel struggled, but to no avail. He couldn’t get Luke to release his grip.

  Luke forced him to his knees. Gabriel could feel his lungs screaming out for air and his vision was beginning to blur. He made one last desperate attempt to free himself, but Luke was too strong for him. Unconsciousness took him.

  When he was sure he was not faking it, Luke let go. Gabriel was still alive, but only just. He began breathing as soon as his airway was no longer being compressed, but it would be a while before he regained consciousness.

  Luke looked up at the balcony. “I think some help from your resident doctor might be needed,” he said before he collapsed.

  Should we operate

  JD somersaulted down to the arena floor while Craig slid down the pole.

  “Get Doc,” JD yelled out.

  “And Anna,” Craig added.

  JD reached Luke first and felt for a pulse. “He’s still alive,” he said as Craig knelt down beside him. “Get the door open.”

  Craig obeyed and JD picked up Luke’s body, ignoring the fact that he was getting blood all over him. Neither the sight nor the smell brought on his body’s usual response to blood. He felt no craving and his fangs didn’t elongate. Vampire blood smelt different. It was as if something in it was telling him it wouldn’t give him what he wanted.

  He ran up the stairs and headed to the medical facility at the back of the Sanctuary, meeting Doc on the way.

  “What happened?” Doc asked, falling into step beside JD.

  “To say that Luke and Gabriel were vicious when they fought is an understatement. I’ve never seen anything like it. If I didn’t believe that greater vampires are more deadly than lesser ones, I do now. Gabriel broke a Bo over Luke’s head and then stabbed him with it. I think his lung has collapsed.”

  “Gabriel won then.”

  JD shook his head. “Luke carried on fighting, though God knows how he managed to stay on his feet. He got Gabriel in a strangle hold and cut off his air supply.”

  “Vampires need to breathe?”

  “Of course we do. We can die of asphyxiation. We just come back to life when we are able to breathe once more.”

  When they reached the medical facility, Doc opened the door and instructed JD to place Luke on the operating table. Between them they removed his bloody shirt and wiped down the wound, which was still bleeding.

  Scott walked in, carrying a video camera.

  “What are you doing?” JD asked when he spotted him.

  “When do we ever get to see a vampire healing?” Scott asked. “I thought it would be a good idea to document it.”

  JD didn’t think Luke would agree, but said nothing. The information might be of use to the scientists at Sanctuary 7.

  Anna arrived and almost screamed when she saw how badly injured Luke was. “I’m going to kill him,” she said through clenched teeth. Nobody thought she was referring to Luke.

  “Should we operate?” Doc asked her.

  She didn’t need to think about it. “No. He will recover on his own. At least that’s what he keeps telling me.”

  “Looks like we are about to find out,” Scott said, earning a scowl from JD. That comment should not have been made in front of Anna.

  “Where’s Gabriel?” she asked.

  “Still in the arena I guess. He hasn’t regained consciousness yet.”

  “Let me know when he does. He and I are going to have a few words.” The way she said it made it sound like a threat. JD was glad he wouldn’t be on the receiving end of those ‘words’.

  Doc moved a chair next to the bed and indicated that Anna should sit down. She took Luke’s hand and squeezed it tight.
/>   “Do you want to be left alone?” he asked, but she shook her head.

  “No. It’s okay.” With her other hand she brushed Luke’s hair away from his face. “This is the first time I’ve seen him injured.”

  “He’s already healing,” Doc said, pointing to the wound, which had stopped bleeding.

  “I’ll leave you to it,” JD said. “Call out if you need me for anything.”

  JD returned to the arena. Everyone else was still there, debating what to do with Gabriel.

  “I would say leave him there,” he said, “but the floor needs cleaning and he is in the way. Someone carry him to one of the spare rooms.”

  Silvia arrived with cleaning equipment. “I’ll take care of this,” she said. “You children get out of here.”

  Between them, Craig and Jonathon carried Gabriel to a spare bedroom and dumped him on the bed.

  It didn’t take him long to regain consciousness. He awoke to find himself in a strange room. Then his memory returned and he went in search of anyone who could tell him where Luke was.

  He found JD in his office.

  “Go down the corridor to the medical facility at the end. Anna is there with Luke and she wants a word with you.”

  Gabriel grimaced, but did as instructed.

  As soon as Anna saw Gabriel, she grabbed his arm and led him away. She pushed him into the first empty room she could find and slammed the door shut.

  The yelling brought a crowd. JD found Craig, Jane, Jonathon, Katie and Sarah standing outside Doc’s office, listening in.

  “She’s really letting him have it, isn’t she,” Craig said. So far, they hadn’t heard Gabriel get a word in.

  Then they heard him say, “Ow,” followed by, “Stop touching me Anna.” JD smiled. He knew from experience what Gabriel was feeling.

  “He will be alright,” Gabriel said from the other side of the closed door. “Ow. If you don’t stop doing that I’m going to make you.”

  “Try it,” Anna said.

  Gabriel’s reply was to say, “Ow,” again, followed by swearing.

  “I think we’ve heard enough,” JD said. “Give them some privacy.”

  The hunters grumbled, but moved away from the door. JD grabbed hold of Sarah. “You,” he said, “are coming with me.”