Act Two Chapter Seven - Are We Ourselves?

Michael walked in on a scene from one of his most lurid fantasies. Rebecca and Kris were intertwined naked on the bed. Neither was stirring at the moment, but from the up-and-down of Kris' chest, he could tell they had just finished something rather intense and were now taking a short break. Sensing his entrance, Rebecca stirred.

“I hope there's something left in her.” she purred.

“How much did you drink?” said Michael, a tone of alarm in his voice.

“Not much. She's spent from...other activities. Why are you...wait, let me guess. This is the one that's your favorite, isn't she?”

“She is.”

“Not really your type. Not a redhead. Way too much hair, even in places women aren't supposed to have it.”

“ Maybe you don't know what my type is anymore.” Michael sat down on the bed. He gave Kris' unshaven leg an affectionate stroke. She stirred at his touch.

“You're late.” purred Kris.

“Couldn't be helped. Vampire business and all. Any strength left in there for me?”

“A little.”

“Good. I'm hungry.” Michael began to undress when the front door of the apartment launched open with a loud bang.

Michael and Rebecca were both on their feet in a heartbeat when Deborah charged in. She seemed a mite disheveled and distracted.

“Oh, you're here.” she said, surprise in her voice.

“You knew that.” replied Michael, puzzled. “I told Rebecca to take Kris back here before our meeting.”

“I'd forgotten.” Deborah stared at Rebecca intensely. It was an odd look, as if she'd never seen her before.

“Deborah?” inquired Michael.

Deborah snapped her attention back to him. “Sorry, just a little distracted. Your childe is quite the prize.”

“You had a chance to sample the goods last night, but you chose to beat the crap out of her instead of fucking her.” reminded Michael. His tone was angry.

“Yeah,” agreed Deborah half-heartedly. “Maybe they'll be another time.” With that, she turned and walked back out of the apartment, shooting a sly glance back at Rebecca as she did so.

“That was odd.” observed Kris.

“A little.” admitted Michael. Actually, it was quite odd. The tone of her voice, the way she carried herself, none of it was typical Deborah. She seemed rather off. Michael shrugged.

“Where were we?” He said, turning back to Kris.

----

Mathias sat at prayer in the Antrim chapel at Roanoke College. The place seemed deserted, but Prince knew The Djinn lingered nearby, ever vigilant. After a long moment, the Prince stood.

“Any insights? Revelations?” inquired The Djinn.

“We must be patient, as we ever are. Dangers lurk all around us. The werewolf matter is resolved for now. But other threats emerge.”

“Solomon Wolfe awaits your pleasure, mi'lord.”

“So comes the harbinger.” Said Mathias dramatically. “Bring him before me.”

The Djinn half-floated to the chapel entrance. Even Mathias, with all of his centuries, found the assassin's movements unnerving. The Djinn opened the door and beckoned Solomon inside.

The big Gangrel walked in. “I bring word, my Prince. There is a new Kindred within your territory. A new visitor.”

“I had not heard this.” exclaimed Mathias. “Who is he?”

“She.” corrected Solomon. “I know little about her. A young girl, perhaps 18. Red hair, blue eyes. Butterfly tattoo on her shoulder. She has been spotted hunting in Blacksburg, but has evaded Deborah's and my own attempts to corral her.”

“She will not evade me.” interjected The Djinn.

“Go. Bring her before me. She must pay her proper respects to the Lord of these lands.”

The Djinn stepped into the shadows and vanished from sight.

“I appreciate you bringing this to my attention, Solomon. I will not forget this service you have given me.”

With that Solomon dipped his head as if in salute and departed. Mathias turned around and headed back to the chancel, to resume his prayers.

“Not all is as it appears with this new vampire.” came a voice from the darkness. Mathias felt a momentary chill. Few kindred anywhere could get the drop on him. Not even the Djinn could do that, but there was another in the city that could.

“Ernie.” said Mathias nervously. “You spy on my devotions?”

“Like Solomon, I too bring you tidings from Blacksburg and tidings of this same new vampire. She is not so evasive as Solomon implies.”

“Then the Djinn will find her an easy catch.” said Mathias dismissively.

“Do not be so confident in this matter, mi'lord.” said Ernie, emerging from the shadows.

“What do you know?” demanded Mathias, now confident that Ernie himself posed no threat.

“I will not trade what I know so easily, my Prince. You must offer me something, and something more substantial than the weak promise you gave to Solomon.”

“What is it you want then?”

“You know what I want. And I know what you want. There is opportunity here for both of us to claim our prizes.”

“For you, the boy. For me...”

“...Deborah, of course.” said Ernie with a smile. “Your piety is fervent, my Prince, but your flesh still desires those things you have so often denied yourself.”

Mathias looked Ernie up and down. He did not like this. It was one thing for Ernie to know of his desires. Mathias knew he'd made little secret of his lust for the beautiful Daeva, but Ernie had turned that knowledge to his advantage. Mathias was the elder, the greater, the Prince of the city, and yet he felt completely disarmed in this negotiation.

“You shall have him.”

“That is your pledge? Your bond?”

“Yes.”

“Then I will hold you to it, Prince Mathias. He is not to be harmed, but delivered to me at the end of this business. Agreed?”

Mathias nodded. A leap of faith, he knew. “Tell me what you know.”

“The new vampire is not some new visitor to the city. She is the childe of Michael Allens. Newly embraced.”

Mathias felt his anger begin to boil within him, but he said nothing for a long moment. Michael had been nothing but trouble from day one and now this!

“Then Solomon lied to me.” Said the Prince.

“Perhaps. Perhaps not. I do not know if he knows the truth of this matter, but I do know that Deborah does. They conspire to hide this truth from you.”

“Then this is the last straw. They escaped my wrath before. Not this time.”

“He is not to be harmed.” reminded Ernie.

“I made that pledge before I knew the whole story.” insisted Mathias. “A law has been broken. There must be justice.”

“He is not to be harmed.” repeated Ernie. “I have your word. Or is the word of a Prince worth nothing these days?”

“He cannot go unpunished.” bellowed Mathias. “My pledge to you does not exempt him from justice.”

“There are other ways of punishing him. Slay his allies. Deny him his new childe. But harm him not.”

“Go.” barked the Prince, his voice full of fury. “Leave me at once.”

“As you wish, mi'lord. But forget not your promise, for I will not.”

Mathias waited in silence for several minutes. “Marco! Giovanni!”

Two thralls marched dutifully inside. “Summon Andreas and Sophia and their childer. We have much to discuss.”

----

Mathias was mistaken. The Djinn could indeed cloak his presence from his master and, in addition, was also quite proficient at sensing the presence of others so cloaked. A handy skill for a hunter such as he. When he heard Ernie skulking in the shadows, he masked his presence and kept watch. Ostensibly to ensure his master was in no danger, he soon found the conversation to his interest.

"Allens takes a childe when he is one himself." snarled the Djinn in his thoughts. "First, Deborah gains permission along with Andreas and Sophia. And now this violation will go unanswered, all due to a deal with the madman. All the while, the Djinn sits back quietly, all hope for an apprentice still unfulfilled.”

The Djinn opened and closed his hands in frustration. Decades of waiting fueled his own rage. Long had he waited for his moment. Had it come at last?

“If Ernie can manipulate this transgression to his own benefit, perhaps so can I."

With that, silent as a crypt, the Djinn departed into the night.

----

"Sometime soon, maybe tonight, Mathias will send his majordomo to find you." said Michael firmly. Michael sat on the foot of the bed. Kris slumbered softly, but Rebecca was awake and alert.

"You will have to convince him that you are a new visitor to the territory." Michael continued. "Lull him into a false sense of security and then we will strike."

Rebecca shrugged. "That doesn't seem so hard."

"Don't be hasty. He is ancient, skilled, terrifying. He is known as the Djinn, black of skin and black of heart. But he is a man, or once was. That is something you can use to your advantage. You've only been kindred for a few brief nights, but as you've already noticed, you carry the marks of our Daeva heritage: flawless beauty, poise, and grace. And, unlike Prince Mathias, the Djinn is not a mind reader, so your intentions will not be laid bare to him."

"You will not be able to help me." said Rebecca with resignation.

"Not at first. You are the bait. Solomon and I will spring the trap. Between the two of us, the Djinn should fall."

“I don’t like this.”

“Neither do I.” said Michael. “I had hoped for more time before you were discovered. Time to prepare you. Now you are thrust, a babe in the woods, into a world of wolves and lions. Monsters all. Predators all. Killers all.”

“As am I.” reminded Rebecca.

“You’ve had less practice. One corpse does not equal the scores dead by these beasts’ hands. The Djinn was a soldier once, and was one when our grandparents’ grandparents were little more than the hope of past generations. In straight up battle, I’m no match for him. Neither is Solomon. But distracted…” He let his voice trail off.

“So what must I do?”

“What I’ve taught you so far. Go out. Hunt. Feed. He will find you when the time comes.”

“And then what?”

Michael gave her nude form a good long gaze, up and down, from toe to the top of her head. “I think you can figure that out on your own.”

Rebecca nodded. “What time is it?”

“One thirty.” Answered Michael, glancing at the clock.

“Then I’d best get started.” Rebecca grabbed her clothing and began to dress. Michael moved to rouse Kris.

“Suppose he does not come tonight.” Said Rebecca. “If I can’t be around you to keep up the ruse, where will I hide from the sun?”

“Good question. I think I have an answer.”

---

Michael had a number of thralls and allies he could use to hide Rebecca. Some, such as Kris, were students whose residences were the Virginia Tech dormitories. Those would not serve. But Boar, Mitch, Joshua Burke, and some others had their own apartments. So, Michael took Rebecca to Boar.

Although it was 2 o’clock in the morning, Boar and Mitch were both still awake, playing Mortal Kombat on Boar’s Nintendo. Both had been told by Deborah that things were now afoot, so neither reacted with much surprise to Rebecca.

Michael left Rebecca in their keeping, repeating his instructions to Rebecca regarding the trap they were laying for the Djinn. He drove back to his cabin.

Kris was waiting for him, an impatient look on her face.

“Is something wrong?” he asked. The impatience faded and anxiety took its place.

“What happens to me now? With her?” she asked nervously. “I’ve been yours for almost a year now. I love you, Michael. I would do anything for you. Am I to be replaced?”

“I see our fun tonight did not remove these questions from your mind.” Said Michael frankly. “How far does your devotion go, Kris? I seem to recall you once telling me it didn’t matter who else I was with.”

Kris said nothing in reply to that, but her face was a picture of anguish. His words had cut deep. Michael paused. A twinge of regret filled his heart. “That was an unfair thing to say. I’m sorry. You always knew there were others.”

“Playthings. Dinner. All meaningless. This one isn’t. Rebecca is important to you. Why else make her into one of your own kind?”

“To punish her.”

“And yet, you take to her bed with as much, if not more, eagerness than you do mine. How is that punishment?”

“You don’t understand. I…” Michael never got to finish his thought. The world erupted into chaos.

Without warning, the room exploded into sudden violence. Glass shattered. Wood splintering. Michael felt the hard impact of something against his body, flesh tearing. It had all happened so quickly that Michael’s mind could barely register the truth: He was being shot.

He and Kris both hit the floor with a thump. Quiet reigned for a brief moment as Michael came back to his senses. They were under attack! He tore back to his feet, grabbed his katana from his rack on the living room wall, and then dashed out into the night.

It was Norman, Andreas’ childe. He was dressed in military fatigues and wielding a submachine gun; Michael recognized it as a H&K MP5. He was swapping clips when Michael dashed outside.

“Still got some fight in you?” asked Norman, bringing the gun to bear once more. Michael leaped quickly to his right, his vampiric prowess carrying him several feet into the air.

But Norman was just as fast, letting off a quick burst from his gun. The bullets tore through the air, narrowly missing Michael as he grabbed the branch of a nearby tree. Without a moment’s hesitation, he launched himself towards Norman and brought his blade down towards his foe’s head.

Norman brought the gun up to try to parry the sword blow. Steel struck upon steel, and Michael’s slash was deflected off to the side. Michael landed on his feet, barely a yard away from Norman. Norman brought the gun back down to fire again and Michael saw his opening. He slashed hard upward. The razor sharp blade sliced into Norman’s right arm, cleaving it from his body, only stopping when it struck his ribs.

Michael yanked the sword back as the gun clattered on the gravel road at their feet. Norman grasped futilely at the stump of his arm when Michael’s next strike cleaved through his neck. His head dropped and rolled a few short feet before turning to dust. As did his body as it fell forward.

The whole fight had lasted maybe ten seconds. Michael briefly remembered Norman’s boasts at the Akron football game meeting the year before, before remembering Kris.

He dashed back inside to find her lying where she’d fallen. She’d taken at least three rounds from Norman’s initial barrage. Blood was everywhere, calling to Michael. He resisted his urges to cradle Kris.

“Hospital…” he stammered, the shock of the past moments coming home.

“No…” whispered Kris. She coughed and blood spattered from her lips. “Too late…” She was using every effort, every last ounce of her strength, to stay awake. “Shouldn’t…have doubted…” She gasped. “…promise. Remember your…”

Michael nodded. He did remember. And in that moment, he stopped fighting himself. He sank his fangs into her throat and drank deeply. He drank quickly, feeling her life drain into him as she had wanted. He felt her stiffen after a few seconds and knew that she was gone.

Michael took to his feet, the fresh blood now surging to the bullet wounds in his body, healing the damage Norman had done. He looked down at Kris. In the end, taking her life was not so sexy after all. His heart ached. He wanted to cry, to grieve, but he also knew there was still danger. There was no time. He had to get to Rebecca, to Deborah, to Solomon. Norman wouldn’t have attacked without reason. Mathias knew! The game was up.

He turned to make for the door again when a shadow passed behind him. Michael spun to attack, but was too slow. He felt pain in his chest as the stake drove home. He felt his limbs stiffen and he dropped to the ground like a statue.

“Too easy.” Said The Djinn, emerging from the shadow. “Now, for your childe and sire.”

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