Bite Me

Chapter 20: The Big One

"So why do you want to save Taylor so bad?" Dezzy asks as we make our way down the mine. Since it's the last abandoned one, we've come to the conclusion this has to be it, so we're taking it slow and steady, checking every crack and crevice we can.

"He's been like a brother to me my whole life. I couldn't imagine him dying alone in a cave by the hands of a crazy vampire. Not while I have the strength and abilities to save him." I explain, glancing at my sister briefly in the dark before searching once more along the winding walls.

"I get that, but at what point do you start separating yourself from the humans? You can't abandon your family for every human inconvenience." Dezzy is starting to sound like she's judging me for me choices, and it sets my nerves off again.

"I'll separate myself from the humans when they give me a reason to. Taylor has done nothing wrong, he doesn't deserve to die like this." I can't help the defensive tone, nor can I help the slight rage filling me as I think about Dezzy wanting to abandon him here to die.

"I'm not trying to be judgmental, I'm trying to understand. Before all this bullshit, we kept human problems out of our lives. They were considered a threat, and Hades never wanted us to harm them if they weren't on the list. So we had to avoid them at all costs. They would try to kill us, with fire or with stakes. They tried hunting us for a long period of time in the 60s. Now you come along, and we're risking our lives out here with monsters and demigods attacking us to save one." Dezzy pauses in the hall, and I stop and turn to face her.

"We would've had to come out here anyway, because Lester is alive. That's what Devin told me. We aren't risking our lives for just Taylor, we are out here to find Lester. The humans are a very misguided race, and though they have pretty scary moments, they are still worth saving. Isn't that why we do what we do? To get the truly evil ones out of there for the good of the rest of them?" I meet her scrutinizing gaze with one of my own. "We are the ones with the real power, and we are the ones that are going to suffer if the human race kills itself. How will we keep up with our abilities if we let them kill themselves?"

"Okay, so you think the humans are more important than they are." She nods, lost in thought for a moment.

"No, I think they're just as important as they have always been. You guys seem to think of them as only food, but the ones we don't take are the ones I'm worried about. A lot of them are still inherently good, and to write off the whole species as non essential when we literally survive with their essence is a bit ignorant." I explain, and Dezzy shoots me a glare. "I'm just saying, without them the world would fall, and you treat them like they are useless blood bags."

"I know everything would end without them, I'm not stupid. I just think you're placing too much on their shoulders. They will never be strong enough to be apart of the real world." Dezzy states, folding her arms. "Teaching them about our world would be catastrophic for the whole of humanity."

"You think. Times have changed, people grow more tolerant every day. I was a human and I would've been thrilled to have vampire friends that help save the world sometimes." I say, and the feeling of rightness washes over me. "When we settle things on Olympus, I will prove to you the true value of humanity."

"I like that you have high hopes, but I've been around a few centuries longer than you have." Dezzy's voice shows clear signs of denial, but I know she will be able to see for herself. "Do you hear that?" She asks suddenly, tilting her head to the side. I feel my blood run cold as I hear the muffled shouting.

"Where are they?" I ask, moving towards the sound as fast as I can.

'It's Echidna, she's got the small one.' A familiar voice I now recognizes as Apollo whispers through my head, and the hair on my arms and the back of my neck stand up. This isn't the first time I've heard his urgent, whispering voice, but it is the first time I've felt the power of his voice run through my mind. It's strangely thrilling. 'Hurry, before she corners them and kills the small one.' I am not totally sure whether I can trust Apollo yet, but the fact that he's speaking to me is cause for alarm. I also am not sure if I should mention his helpful hints to my siblings, unsure of how untrusting they are towards the Gods that aren't Zeus.