Shocked, but quickly snapping from my daze, my mind clicked in just the right second. The monster charged and I sprang up out of the books and launched myself to the side, narrowly missing its razor sharp teeth. I hit the ground hard. I winced as my hip took the brunt of my fall. I felt debris cut into my hand and hissed at the pain. The creature slammed its humongous head into the wall and cracked the edge of the room. This thing was destroying my house!
Okay yea, it was also trying to kill me. Priorities.
It was a giant, unknown creature unlike anything I’d ever seen before. Standing on all fours, it nearly brushed its head on the ceiling of the room that rose at least twelve feet. It wailed and kicked its two massive back legs up, bucking and twisting like a fanatical, confused bull. It frantically shook its head to recover, seeming to momentarily lose track of efforts to pursue me. I took a few panicked steps backwards toward the hole in the wall and winced as I crunched a chunk of glass. It stopped flailing and spun around to set its eyes on me once more. It huffed and flared its nostrils, and charged at me again. This crazy brute was going to level my whole house—and me—if I didn’t do something quick. I started to care a lot more about my house being demolished when it was no longer me doing the demolishing.
When it charged this time, I was able to ready myself for the line of fire. Unsure if I could escape by outrunning it, I crouched down, waiting for the right moment to spring out of the way. I dashed to the side, surprising it with my supernatural speed. Unable to effectively break, the beast held speed and, with scrambling feet, skidded right into the pool outside my house. People were sent flying as a tidal wave escaped the edges of the poolside and lapped the walls of the surrounding houses and store fronts.
I stood, shook my head, and looked at the remnants of my stained glass window, but knew there was no time to mourn when clearly my life was in danger. I ran into the kitchen to grab the biggest knife I had and made my way back out to the hole in the wall to peer out. People were recovering and flitting or flying away now, but the beast was also recovering. It had scrambled out of the water and was stalking toward me.
It had become abundantly clear that I was a direct target in this attack. I couldn’t understand what threat I posed or what I had done to cause this thing to advance on me over and over, but running wasn’t exactly an option. I shimmied outside, careful to steer clear of jagged shards of glass and wall protruding at odd angles. Quickly glancing around, it also became clear that I was completely alone. No one had taken up the fight with me. Off in the distance, I could see bodies splayed across the ground wearing the pale gray uniforms of the guards. If our guards could do nothing to protect us, what could I possibly do?
Fly away. I can just fly away. But where will I go? This thing would level the whole city chasing me down. Injured people were scattered all over the place. I didn’t want to think about the bodies that seemed to not be moving at all. If I flew away, what would it do to them? Suddenly, the monster stomped the ground and snorted loudly. It bared its teeth, braced itself, and roared.
I could not describe the smell of its rancid breath. I could not compare it to anything less offensive than the flesh of a thousand rotting corpses. The mere force of the outburst sent me tumbling to the ground. My knife clattered to the floor and I began to wretch. The air was so thick and the smell so strong, for a moment, I was choking on it. My eyes watered and I forgot about anything else for a small moment to scrub my face and keep myself aligned enough not to vomit. I sputtered on my hands and knees, trying to regain myself.
The thing took advantage of this fit of vulnerability and charged at me once more. It ran to me with unnerving speed and lifted a massive paw with razor sharp talons. It was going to stomp me to death. I rolled out of the way and under its belly before I got to my knees again. I panicked, searching the ground for my knife. I found it feet away, snatched it up, and I stabbed the monster through its thick, coarse fur, right below its ribs. It wailed and bucked again, spinning around in circles like a dog chasing its tail, and nearly crushed me once more. As it whipped around, putrid blood splattered across my body. It smelled of rot and tasted like metal; I repressed a gag again and tried to get up. I made it to my feet, but before I could run, it kicked out and sent me backwards and headlong into the pool. I spun around under water a few times trying to get my head the right way up. I finally emerged at the surface and I could hear a horrible noise: a coarse grinding that sounded like sand being scraped across a washboard with a stone. It was laughing!
Furious now that I was being mocked, I turned to attack it full force. I then looked at my empty hand and my anger trickled away, replaced with despair. My knife had been embedded in the creature’s torso and I was now completely helpless and unarmed. I saw it take a hesitant step toward me and screech as the knife cut deeper into it. Defenseless now, I searched once more for something to fight with.
A glimmer brought my attention to the handrail used for getting in and out of the pool. I half waded, half ran to it and grabbed it with both hands. It was long and slender, but still at least 3 inches in diameter. I gripped it tightly where the long length of it began to bend, and pulled with all of my strength. With a heavy grunt, I ripped the top edge from the corner in a swift yank. I could feel dozens of pairs of eyes watching me as the handrail was abused with ease. I kicked at the bottom, splitting it from the base, and was left a long, three-foot spear of metal. I took the whole thing in my hands and looked for the beast.
Realizing that it was too painful to move with the knife in its belly, it had taken to sitting on its haunches and was attempting to pull it out with its teeth. I took this time to shift to the side until the entire expanse of the pool was between us. Keeping one eye on it, I ground the tip of the metal into the cement, attempting to create a crude point. It was a pretty pathetic excuse for a spear, but I didn’t have a lot of options. The beast stretched its neck into an impossible contortion and grabbed the knife with its front teeth and pulled. With a gruesome squelching sound and a pained grunt, it pulled out the knife and tossed it to the side. It set its eyes on me once again and continued its advance; fearsome growls and pants pushing through its bared teeth.
Just then, a rock came out of nowhere and hit the beast right in the eye. It shook its head, blinking rapidly, and angrily began looking around for a source. At the same time, we both rested our eyes on a young girl on a balcony with another rock in her hand. She was no older than me, but tiny and frail-looking. She shot to the skies, her face melting into an expression of terror at being spotted. The creature ran and launched toward her, missing her by several feet, its jaws closing over and over with loud snaps. Relieved now that she was safe enough in the air, I slowly made my way toward it while it remained distracted. I stood on the far corner of the pool and it was bumbling around the opposite end, nearly thirty feet away.
Now I froze, for when it jumped again, I realized just how much she had descended. The second leap had nearly connected with her feet, missing by only inches. She was young. Too young. She would not be able to stay airborne for very long; her wings were too weak, and they would soon carry her down in the monster’s reach. It launched into the air again. This time, she had to pull her legs to her chest. She screamed as sharp nails raked her back. It was like a cat batting at a bird; a very hurt bird who could not escape.
“Fly to the roof!” I screamed, my call echoed by several other coos and reassurances of hidden refugees. Several people appeared at the top of a high rooftop only several yards from her. She whimpered, but tiredly made her way toward it. A defiant battle cry pierced the air and people from all over began throwing miscellaneous things: glass, rocks, shoes. They tried desperately to keep the beast from focusing on her, to no avail. It was going to snatch her right out of the sky!
By the time it started running, I was already bounding toward her. I dropped my spear and jumped into the air, breathing my wings into existence. I flew to her like a strike of lightning and made my way underneath her, effortlessly pushing her higher into the sky with my back. Her feet touched my shoulders and I pumped my powerful wings upward. I angled the force of my body to shove her toward the roof I had told her to fly to. The air whooshed from her body as she fell lopsided and smashed into the shingles. Just as she started to slide down and I was ready to rescue her once more, several pairs of hands caught hold of her and heaved her up onto the roof.
I nodded in satisfaction; it was a peculiar emotion to feel toward these people I thought I had despised so much, but I felt a need, a hard, growing determination to protect them.
I looked down to see where the creature was now. Just as I turned around, I saw it cutting through the air toward me with its mouth wide open, ready to swallow me whole. I panicked and pushed myself to ascend higher into the sky. In a brief moment, I couldn’t remember the last time I had blood. I could feel the fatigue beginning to attack my muscles. Some of its teeth ripped at my leg and my wing beats faltered as I cried out. It fell and crashed to the floor, sending cracks out in all directions.
Then it spoke.
“Enough of this!” It boomed. Its voice was deep and throaty like it came from the very interior of a mountain.
Whatever it was, it was male, and he was angry. He flopped onto his stomach and settled into a leaning squat, much like a dog sitting on its hind legs while trying to ignore some sort of pain. He must have injured himself beyond the stab from my knife because, though his features were alien to me, his face looked pained and tired. It was as if he had endured many days of this brutality and his body was ready to collapse under the exhaustion. Pity washed over me for a moment, and then his eyes brought me to reality. He was staring at me, clearly aggravated, but something else took a home in the set of his mouth; he looked amused. We were playing a game he was used to winning and he had come to the conclusion that he might have lost—or simply found a challenge.
For the first time since he had nearly trampled, drowned, and eaten me, I got a good look at him. Patches of ratty hair stuck out messily all over his body and his huge cat-like face. Small ears poked out from the side of his head. His eyes were large, round, and irritated still; they were red, bloodshot and hazy, but beneath, a grayish-blue. He had a huge body with thick, support beam legs and long claws protruding from all twenty toes; large canine fangs set in his jaw to match. He smiled a sickening smile, revealing his rotting teeth, and I shuddered.
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“It seems you are indeed putting up the fight I was told you would, young one. Though, you are the one I come for, no doubt. I can see by your purple flyers and those eyes, you are her. You are Eyevoree.” I cringed at the way he said my name. He spoke it with satisfaction and almost desire.
“Who are you?” I couldn’t keep the trembling from my voice. His smile widened, pleasure at my fear filling the lines of his face. Adrenaline had kept the fear from touching me until now. As we spoke, it trickled back into me like a poison.
“I beg of you, please, show your manners. Come sit. Relieve your wings.”
I snorted. “Right. And how do I know you won’t attack me the first chance you get?”
“Please, dear child, am I to be so conniving?” He bared his teeth into a horrid grin, far from the entrancing, trustworthy one he had hoped for. My curiosity was getting the better of me, and he was right. I was exhausted. I needed to get out of the air and rest, even for a moment.
His voice was so ancient. I wondered what kinds of things a creature like this had seen. I wondered if he had any answers for me. I wanted to know more about him, and I was quicker; of that I was sure. Had he any nerve to bound on me, I could easily take to the skies again, though my fatigue was growing and I could feel the prickle of a headache. Blood trickled down my leg where his teeth had ripped open my flesh. My body was trying to rapidly heal, and it was sapping what little strength I had left to stay airborne or fight. I cursed myself for falling behind on blood intake. Though, I couldn’t have possibly known I’d be needing it this badly. It hadn’t seemed so bad today at the museum. I almost couldn’t believe that was only a few hours ago. That peaceful time seemed so far away now.
I casually dared a glance down to the pool vicinity. I searched and searched until I saw it. By the edge of the pool, nearest the small building where poolside blood drinks were dispensed regularly, I saw a small glass that had miraculously come out of this encounter unscathed. It rested on a tall bannister and was nearly full. All I needed to do was drop down and make my way to it without making it seem like I desperately needed it. Fear ripped through me at being back on the ground, but if I didn’t rest soon, I’d hit the ground much harder when I fell.
I fought raggedly against my screaming instincts and slowly descended, ready for anything. I glided down to the ground, slowly and cautiously, landing on my toes, roughly fifteen feet from him. Too far from the drink. I retrieved my arms, narrowing my eyes at him, and began to purposefully pace, wincing as the pain in my leg threatened to buckle me. He merely watched me, mesmerized, his eyes taking on that hazy smoke again. As I had lowered to the floor, I could hear people groaning in disapproval and terror. With their grumbles, they invited an unpleasant tenseness to trickle into the atmosphere. It clouded the air around me and left me on edge. I touched my hand to my chin, acting as if I was thinking, all the while trying with my whole resolve not to look too hard at that drink.
He switched positions and slumped to the ground, lying on his belly with his large paws sticking out in front, and his back legs relaxed out to the side, resembling a dog more than a cat. “You are a danger to this world, child, you must understand this. You must be extinguished. It is for the greater good and is not but a sad task.” I stiffened, but continued my pacing. Each pass took me further from him and closer to the drink. Only twenty feet now. “Yes I know, it may not seem so now, but once you harness your true powers, you will be a great danger to us all. This is what is foretold. You are young and na?ve, and I know you may never come to be his sworn enemy, but we cannot let you live in peace with such a risk hanging so precariously above our heads.”
I stopped for a second, contemplating his words. “We? Him?” I squinted and looked around for more intruders.
“Me, and the master I serve, and his people. You cannot be allowed to continue your life. I am sure you understand the graveness in all of this. But it is business. We have all been told of our duty and what must be done.”
I pursed my lips and continued to pace. I put my hands behind my back in a gesture of calm and superiority. I fought the limp in my leg so hard that sweat began to bead on my forehead. I had never stalked anything as intently as I stalked this glass of dark liquid, my salvation. At this point, it was clear he had no reason to believe I could get away alive. If only he knew how strong I could be when I wasn’t thirsty. If I rushed for that drink, he would know how much I needed it. I may have been faster to ascend upward, but with this leg refusing to heal, I could never outrun him now. I needed to keep up this front. I tilted my head toward him, “Who are you?”
“I am Angoroth. You have not seen my kind. There are not many of us left, and none exist freely. My life was spared, but with the debt of my servitude.” He bowed his head and closed his eyes in respect—or maybe sorrow. “I do not wish to serve a master so cruel, but I must for the sake of my life. And you little creatures do make quite a tasty snack!” He bellowed, clearly amused with himself and his sick humor, and clearly the only one laughing. More groans erupted again from all around and transformed into whimpers. Involuntarily, I raised a hand to the sound and silence followed. I gawked at my own hand, baffled at the strange and unfamiliar power it had over these people cowering around me.
He laid his head down on his paws and took me in. He contemplated for a while, and abruptly stood up. I tensed and waited for him to do something. I was so close to the drink. It was barely ten feet away now. “Alright, better get on with this,” he said lazily, “I’ve grown tired of this prattle, and I must see to my duties. I am sorry… for the boy was right. You really are so beautiful. What a waste.”
“Wait!” I shouted, and he tilted his head, more animalistic than sentient.
He smiled, knowingly. He knew I was stalling, he just didn’t know why. Despite his words, he seemed to still want to play my game. “Yes?”
“You’re a slave? Why serve this person then? You’re free now aren’t you? I mean you’re loose from wherever you were before. Why don’t you run? Surely there’s somewhere for you to go.” I was grasping at straws. So close. So close.
His face was filled with pain. “My master has my family. I cannot. For if I flee, he will surely slaughter them.”
I carefully, so carefully reached the drink. I reached down, holding my breath to keep my hand from trembling. Picking it up, I tilted it back and forth in my hand, looking at the blood as if it was insignificant. The smell wafted into my nostrils, gripping me with iron claws. It took every ounce of strength not to chug it down and reveal my hand. I nodded my head as if contemplating his words. Ignoring the burning eyes over me and the childish feeling of insecurity over drinking blood, I sipped at the drink. Instantly, the strength shot through my muscles. I felt it, almost tangibly, as it traveled through my veins and burst into my arms, my legs. My head cleared, and I suppressed a hiss as I felt my leg beginning to slowly stitch together. I finished the drink and held back my gasp before setting the glass down. “I see.” I said. “I’ll say this.”
For a fine moment, something bubbled inside of me. It was a peculiar brightness, like I had harnessed the sun and brought it into myself to radiate from my skin. After a moment, I realized that the feeling I was gaining wasn’t strength from the drink. It was courage. I advanced toward him with a purpose. He watched with amusement and curiosity as I moved to stand at the spot where I had dropped my makeshift spear. I stretched up, so that even many feet below where Angoroth towered, I appeared to be looking down upon him.
“You think that you can come to my home… our home, and terrify us into submission? This is our home. Look at what you’ve done!” I gestured to the ruin that used to be our pools and to my house. “You think you can come to take my life and be on your way like we’re nothing more than chattel to you?” My voice grew low and serious, “Well… let me tell you… you could not be more wrong.”
A low hiss broke free from the darkness and started a revolution of anger and violence. Hisses and snarls exploded from the mouth of every vampire hidden among rooftops, houses, and shops; every nook and crevice filled its corners with a symphony of fury and revolt. I lifted my arms out to my sides, hands outstretched, palms upward to the sky, and I took a step toward Angoroth. As if my fingertips were connected to their hearts, my advance pulled them from the shadows. They emerged, terrible growls ripping through their chests and bared teeth as they swiped at the air. Their fear had now melted away, replaced with determined ferocity. Some wielded blades and some had grabbed the nearest things they could find; the young girl on the rooftop armed herself with rocks again. I reached down and picked up my spear.
Angoroth had nothing; he would take no one tonight. He scrambled backwards, terror touching the outskirts of his face, not having realized before just how many of us had gathered here. Or maybe he had just never expected us to stand up to a beast like him. He looked all around at the numbers now pressing forward onto him, and he continued to take calculated steps backward. During the skirmish, many of the gate guards had recovered, listening to our conversation with everyone else, and now advanced on Angoroth’s flanks.
When he had first breached the great wall of our city, he had taken us by surprise, and twilight had been upon us. He had scared us in the dark and bullied fear into the complacent, confused, and shaken. It was he who was cornered now, and he knew it.
“This is not over, violet girl.” He looked around frantically, “You must not be discovered, for the worst is yet to come, and he needs you out of the way before he can begin. I will inform the master of your death… but you must remain unseen!”
I took off my torn, bloody jacket and threw it to his feet. The arms of it had been nearly obliterated when I popped my wings without taking it off. It certainly looked like the jacket of someone who had been attacked. “Take that to him. You can say you couldn’t control yourself and ate me instead.” I sneered.
Angoroth let out a sharp sigh, “I do not think this will work.”
“Doesn’t look like you have a choice,” I said, jabbing my spear toward him.
His eyes darted around. So used to being the biggest, scariest creature. He must have been so used to everyone cowering before him. He never had to stop and think about the fact that he was just flesh and bone like the rest of us.
“This is not over,” he repeated. He leaned down and scooped up the jacket in his black hole of a mouth. A look of pain and torture resurfaced through his grisly facade as his wide eyes took one last glance at the army of vampires nearly surrounding him now. He turned around and jogged toward the twenty foot high gate that opened to the woods on the North side of the city. He then began to sprint full force at the door and the guards scrambled backwards out of the way, some of them slashing at the air as he passed. For a moment, he looked as though he may crash right through the gate. At the last glimpse of a second, he sprang up and over, landing on the other side with a thud that shook the earth beneath our feet.
We all froze, silent as death, and listened to the rhythm of his thundering gallop fade into the distance.
