Chapter Fifteen (Nicholas)
"What the hell was that?! You could've killed him!"
I was pissed. The little band of vampires I'd joined up with had pretty much almost killed the whole reason I joined them and it made my blood boil hotly in my veins as I sat forward in the cop car we'd stolen. Kristophe sat in the driver's seat, lighting up a cigarette and blowing the smoke into the car, making me grimace in disgust. He glanced at me with a smile.
"No, your lover is far too smart for that. As is his lovely sister. They're alive. And they're moving East. Interesting... I would think they're next stop to be Red Field." He decided, taking another puff on his cigarette before starting the car up. I frowned, sitting back in my seat as Kristophe drove the squad car out of the ditch and onto the highway.
"I don't understand what's going on yet. Why aren't you telling me anything? I know Storm needs to die, both of us want him gone. But Mark's in that car too. What's he got to do with this?" I asked, confused as Kristophe weaved in and out of backed up traffic with his siren blaring crazily.
"In time, half-blood. You must train first. You must know why my kind, both purebloods and half-bloods, do not deserve the punishment of living hidden from the human world. You must learn why humans are not our masters, but the other way around." Kristophe explained calmly as he took another drag off his cigarette and sighed, the smoke filling the car. I scrunched up my nose and wave a hand in my face before I licked my lips, almost nicking my tongue on my new fangs.
Fangs.
I was one of them too. It wouldn't be long before they made me drink fresh blood, from a fresh human, instead of one of their little blood bags.
The thought scared me. Did drinking a human's blood fresh mean I'd have to kill them? I didn't like thinking about it. It made my skin crawl and I shuddered, covering my face with a hand.
"At least tell me more about Storm. I want to know who I'm killing." I said at last. Kristophe smiled and glanced at me before looking at the high way.
"I suppose I can tell you that. Storm's full name is Storm Van Gothica. His is the only son of Vladimir Van Gothica. Vladimir is the head of the Gothica clan. There are seven clans, not all of them still here today. Gothica, Grey, Drakon, Lupis, Vulcan, Eros, and Xios. The Drakons were distant cousins of the Gothica Clan and Vladimir Van Gothica couldn't stand the power the Drakons had, so what better way to gain back their respect by destroying them? Vladimir made sure to have all the clans members killed. Once he was finished with them, he moved onto Lupis, the clan famous for breeding with werewolves."
"Werewolves exist too?" I exclaimed. Kristophe chuckled, blowing another cloud of smoke into the car, but I ignored it this time. I was too sucked into this.
Something about this was so... interesting. Exotic. Entertaining. It was like being part of a movie, only more dangerous, more life threatening.
"Yes," He answered and continued his teaching, "There are many things you will encounter that you may never have thought existed. You must be prepared and do not show that you're surprised. If you ever let yourself reveal your secrets, your opponent will immediately latch on and suck you dry like a tick."
"Understood."
"Excellent. As I was saying before, Vladimir is very powerful. He even reigns over the Grey family. That is why Storm is betrothed to Alex. They are both purebloods."
"Wait, Alex?" I managed, snapping my head to stare at him. Kristophe flicked his cigarette out the window, glancing at me with a raise eyebrow as he swerved through traffic toward the next exit ramp.
"You did not know this?" He asked. I shook my head slowly in disbelief, sinking my seat.
Alex was one of them.
Alex was a vampire.
But how? He didn't act anything like a vampire. He was too sweet, too naive, too... beautiful, I realized, looking up to stare out the windshield. It fit together now. The reason why Alex was gorgeous and always had been. No scars from acne, no need for expensive facial cremes, skin treatments, tans, or anything.
Alexander was naturally beautiful. He was naturally intelligent.
"Alexander is the only son of the Grey family," Kristophe went on, making me glance up to look at him, "Storm is the only son of his family as well. Long ago, Alex's father, Kornelius, was threatened by Vladimir for not doing a well enough job as his subordinate. Kornelius grew fearful and discovered that Vladimir was searching for a mate for his son, Storm. They needed a pureblood male. The other clans worked to produce a male, but their females either refused or gave birth to females. Finally, after two miscarriages and a female, Kornelius and his wife managed to produce a male heir. Enthralled, Kornelius called a meeting with Vladimir, offering their son as a truce. I'm sure Alex doesn't know that part of the story. It'd be rather heartbreaking to know that you are nothing, but a contract to your parents, so let's not spill those can of worms, shall we?"
"Anyway," Kristophe explained, "Alex and Storm were betrothed, two days after Yule. December 23rd. Since then, Alexander's parents have been preparing him for his handfasting with Storm. They are to become one and create a clan of powerful half-bloods. All males. An army under Vladimir's control, of course. That is where I cannot sit back and let this happen."
"Vladimir may be an overcontrolling tyrant, however, he still follows the laws set down by the first of our kind, by the Celtic Druids. We are not to attack healthy humans. We are not to expose ourselves to them. Mostly rules of those sorts. We were to co-exist with the world, but why? That's my question. Why should we, powerful and beautiful creatures, live as equals, side by side, with humans? Humans are our sustenance. They are our food. Do you see humans living in pens with cows and pigs? No. So why should we do the same? It's like placing a starving dog in a room with food and telling him he cannot eat it. How is that fair?"
The way Kristophe explained it made sense and I was horrified by that. He was smart and he was strong too. He was good at explaining things and I found myself nodding slowly at everything he said.
"Zephyra's main goal is to put humans in their place. They are lesser beings. We are gods compared to them. You cannot force a king to live with his subjects. It's unheard of. That is why Zephyra needs an army. That is why Zephyra will conquer the Court of Seven, starting with the death of the heirs of each clan, leaving them helpless." He concluded. My stomach churned a little at that as I nibbled my lower lip, almost cutting my lip open with my fangs, making me grimace.
"And Alex?" I asked uneasily. Kristophe smiled.
"He is lucky that you love him so. He will be safe and sound and belong solely to you, Nicholas."
"You won't hurt him."
"I swear by the Goddess' name that we will not harm your lover." Kristophe promised as he pulled off onto the exit ramp, stopping at the red light as traffic zoomed on by. We sat in silence for a while until another question came into my head.
"Can't they just reproduce other heirs?" I asked. Kristophe smiled as he pulled out onto the main road going into Red Field.
"Producing purebloods is a lot harder than producing humans or half-bloods. Half-bloods are just bitten and turned. Humans are made through sex and take nine months to develop. Purebloods, however, are a lot harder and take slightly longer to develop. Because our bodies are fueled by blood and being with child takes up a lot of that, a pureblood mother would need at least triple the amount of blood she normally intakes. Let's take your lover, for example..."
"His mother became pregnant and as soon as she found out, she probably hoarded blood bags from the hospital that their clan owns. That's still not enough. Fresh blood is required to keep the fetus stable, so the mother begins to kill off humans. Any human off the street. So long as she has enough blood. The streak probably went on until her pregnancy ended and she gave birth to Alexander Lee Grey."
"No wonder you guys prefer biting." I mumbled, rubbing my neck where the puncture wounds had vanished. Kristophe nodded as we drove around the more populated areas and stuck to the edge of the forest where only a few trailers and rickety old houses sat. We parked on the side of the road, making me glance at Kristophe curiously.
"What're we doing here?" I asked as we got out, slamming the doors shut. Kristophe scanned the woods, then smiled at me.
"We will train here until your lover and his friends show up. While we work, you must simultaneously listen and watch for any sign of movement around you." He advised as we stepped onto the forest floor, crunching dead leaves under our feet as we walked deeper into the woods. The smell of water, gasoline, fast food, burning wood, and blood filled the air. I scanned the trees, studying each detail of the bark, of the way the branches were bent, leaves were settled. I turned to Kristophe who faced me in a small clearing.
"When you fight another vampire, you must know that our vital points are the same as our cousins-- humans. Arteries. Head. Eyes. Contrary to what some may think, go for the legs as well. If you can get your opponent on his or her back, you have displayed your dominance over them and they realize that. Most people don't take that too kindly, so they will try to retaliate to gain the upper hand. Do not let them. Now, what we will do now is fight for dominance first. Get me on my back."
"When?" I asked stupidly.
"Now." Kristophe announced and lunged at me. My eyes widened and I withdrew sharply, but not fast enough to avoid Kristophe's foot slamming into my gut. I gasped and flew back, landing in a pile of leaves and breathing hard, rolling slowly onto my hands and knees.
"You must be ready." Kristophe chided, walking over to help me stand. I cast him a sour look as I held an arm over my stomach in pain.
"You could've warned me." I grumbled, making Kristophe smirk and back up.
"Do you think Storm will show you the same kind of mercy?" He asked, staring at me seriously now, his arms at his sides. I blinked, studying Kristophe's expression as I put some distance between us. Kristophe started to circle me, my eyes locked on him like a sniper rifle as he cracked his knuckles.
"Concentrate on your goal and your reason. Why are you doing this? Why do you want to defeat Storm?" He demanded.
Because Storm was making Alex miserable. Alex was mine. I knew he loved me and he knew I loved him. It was supposed to be perfect. It was never meant to be this way, but if it wasn't for Storm, none of it would have happened. I could've easily asked Alex out years ago.
I'm doing this because I want Alex.
No. Because I needed Alex.
I loved him. I'd do anything to be able to hold him in my arms, even if it meant killing another living creature.
My eyes flashed as Kristophe lunged at me again, aiming to kick, but I spun off to the side and ducked as Kristophe swung his other leg around to knock me over. I dropped into a crouch and swung my foot out to trip him, but he leapt over my leg and grabbed the side of my head, ripping me to the ground.
I gasped hard in pain, rolling over quickly onto my back as Kristophe stood over me.
"Again." He commanded. I gritted my teeth and ignored his out stretched hand, heaving myself up as I wiped blood from my nose, watching Kristophe analyze me.
He darted at me without another word, aiming to grab my throat, but I threw myself back and swung my leg out again, but he caught my leg, flipping me onto my back. I winced in pain.
"Again." Kristophe ordered, backing away from me as I heaved myself back to my feet. I let every muscle in my body get tense, every sound and movement on high alert as Kristophe moved slowly to the side, ready to do another circle around me.
I lunged.
I had to keep doing this. It didn't matter how much this ached, how thirsty I was, how my new fangs throbbed in my gums. It didn't matter how many times Kristophe flipped me onto my back and slammed me into the trees around us. It didn't matter that I pretty much imprinted my face all over the forest floor.
All that mattered was reason and goal.
I was doing this for Alex.
Alex and I would finally be together, like it was supposed to be. We could live together. Go to college, grow older together. I wanted to wake up every morning and see Alex sleeping next to me. I wanted to go to sleep every night and hold Alex in my arms.
I knew something about my loyalty to Zephyra was fishy, but I didn't care. I had to do this for Alex, even if he didn't understand it right now.
He'd understand when I kill Storm. He'd understand how much I loved him then. He'll let me hold him and cherish him more than anyone else ever could.
His clan treated him like a marionette. They called the shots. They set Alex's life out before he was even born. The moment he came into this world, he was nothing, but a tool to them. His parents didn't care whether Alex was happy, so long as he got them what they wanted. Could Amber be the same way? I'd never noticed it before.
I'd seen her several times come pick Alex up from school when he was younger.
While other kids were running out to their parents, hugging them and excitedly telling them about school, Alex sat on the bench outside the elementary school and just watched the sky until his sister showed up. He'd hop off the bench and take her hand. She'd smile and ask him about his day, but Alex would only inform her of the homework he had, the events, but nothing that made him excited.
He looked like a sad doll. Beautiful, flawless, intelligent, and yet, heart broken.
He was caught in a snow globe and his parents were the ones shaking it up and driving him insane.
I wasn't going to let that happen anymore.
Alex deserved his own life and the only obstacle at the moment was Storm Van Gothica.
And when I got my hands on that greedy selfish bastard, I'd rip him apart.
I slid through the leaves between Kristophe's legs, grabbing his ankles and flipping him onto his feet before I spun around on my hunches, shooting to my feet as I stood over him. Kristophe was breathing hard, staring up at me before a smirk curled the corner of his lips.
"Mmm... Looks like you've decided. Good, good... Now try and keep me down." He stated, then went to knock my legs out from under me, but I leapt over them and went to slam my fist down at his chest, but he rolled over and swung himself back to his feet, bringing his foot around and kicking me hard in the jaw, sending me ramming into a tree. I grabbed onto his for support, spitting out a glob of blood before I lunged at him again.
It didn't matter how many times he kicked me, punched me, beat me down.
Kristophe was right.
I'd decided.
Alex was going to be mine.
Even if it meant I had to kill.
We kept up this training until we were both breathing hard, sweat pouring down our faces despite the cold air that made our breathes appear as clouds. Kristophe stood up straight, tilting his head down the darkening sky. He studied the stars before looking into the woods. I frowned, watching him as I stooped to rest my hands on my knees.
"What? Are we done yet?" I panted, making Kristophe smirk.
"For today, half-blood. You've done well so far. I'm impressed. It even took my underlings a couple days to get that good. You must have a natural talent."
"Hahh, thanks." I breathed, finally catching my breath and standing up right, just as the sound of a twig snapped. My eyes widened and I snapped my head towards the noise. Kristophe narrowed his eyes, grabbing my arm and leading me back through the trees.
"Where are we going? I thought--"
"You're not ready to take on Storm. He's a pureblood and you're a mere halfy. He'd flick his finger at you and your head would pop off. For now, we'll do a little reconnaissance. We need to get somewhere they can't find us, but listen closely and watch carefully." Kristophe ordered as we stepped through the thick brush and stopped. We got down and I peered past the thick tangle of thorn bushes and tall grass as I watched the first person make their appearance.
My blood caught on fire, my eyes narrowing as I recognized Storm Van Gothica. He definitely looked like a pureblood vampire. He was too attractive with dark, dark hair and blue-green eyes as he walked in damp clothing, but his jacket from earlier was gone. Instead, it was sitting on Mark Capulet's shoulders. Mark followed close behind him, shivering and pulling the jacket around him tightly.
He looked... different.
His piercings were gone and the sickly look to him had vanished. He looked perfectly healthy. In fact, he looked attractive the more I studied him, but not as attractive as the boy who walked beside him.
Alexander Lee Grey.
My heart leapt into my throat as I watched Alex walk beside him, yawning and rubbing at his blue eyes sleepily. He looked like he was struggling to stay awake, even while walking. As did his sister who walked a few feet behind them, carrying a cooler in one hand.
I glanced at Kristophe for a split second, looked away, then quickly looked back to see that his expression was horrified.
"What?" I whispered, keeping my voice low.
"No," Kristophe managed, withdrawing from the brush, "That... That's impossible... They didn't."
"What's wrong?" I demanded. Kristophe didn't answer and immediately walked back toward the cop car, his boots crunching dead leaves and twigs as he went by. He even stepped on a thick branch and broke it in half, making me wince before rushing to catch up with him.
"Kristophe, what's wrong?" I asked firmly as we got to the cop car. Kristophe ran his hands through his hair in pure frustration, pacing for a moment before slamming his fists on the hood of the squad car. The metal slammed inwards, creating a huge dent. Kristophe whirled around, leaning on the car as he glared into the woods hatefully.
"Those disgusting worthless little worms... They turned him." He spat. I blinked and could only assumed he was talking about Mark.
"Is that a bad thing?" I asked. Kristophe pushed off the car, growling low in his throat as he kicked at the pavement. My eyes widened as I watched the pavement crack and a chunk break off and fly into the woods.
"It's bad. Very, very bad. They were not supposed to turn him. No one was supposed to turn him! He was supposed to stay human!"
"Kristophe, I think this might be a good time to tell me what the fuck is going on." I ordered. Kristophe whirled around and glared at me, surprising me with how furious he looked as he held up seven fingers.
"Storm Van Gothica. Alexander Lee Grey. Edward James Lupis. Jin Vi Xios. Stephano Black Eros. Christian Michael Vulcan. Markus Amadeus Drakon. Seven clans with seven heirs. Overlooking the first two, which one sounds familiar?" Kristophe sneered. I didn't even have the chance to answer as Kristophe ripped one of the mirrors off the side of the cop car and threw it as far as he could into the woods.
"Markus Amadeus Drakon! Mark Capulet! The only human ever to be born to two vampire parents!"