Chapter 2
Nightmares
DREAM
ALEK
The flames rushed up swallowing everything in its path.
His hands reached out blindly.
“Gloria, take my hand.” Her long hair that had long turned white like his whipped in the air. As she stood before the coming enemy in a stained red gown. Alek’s body was held under the foot of the Glowing being sent from Hell.
The smell of smoke and fire cloaked the stench of his people’s blood that had been spilled in their attempt to protect themselves. They hadn’t known such an attack was coming. A demon that spilled black ink from its lips slaughtered them as if they were ants.
His goal, nothing but destruction and absolute chaos. He spared no one, woman or child, human or Vampire.
“Look at them flee,” he said gleefully as he approached Gloria, where she knelt before a group of children, who trembled.
He wriggled his fingers as he eyed her, “I’ve grown so tired of you vampires hindering my fun,” he said, his long form spilling nothing but violence.
He lifted a single finger and pressed it under her trembling chin, forcing her to look up.
“God, you rats are like the salt of the earth. Believing you’re far more than what you truly are.
Bastards of the forgotten, the betrayed and the damned. Children who should never have been.”
An unseen person snapped back. “Enough Zaharis.”
The one who held him down with a single foot upon his back moved away.
Alek gasped as if a huge structure had been lifted from him. Immediately he crawled toward his Queen. She stood alone before an enemy he knew had no intention of mercy.
Zaharis turned on the being standing behind him. “Enough? Eris, my brother. It’s never enough.”
Eris moved, placing a hand on his shoulder, “You have gorged on death for many years.” His eyes searched Zaharis’ face, “Do you not tire of it? Do you not wish to return home some day?”
Zaharis smacked his brother’s hand away. “For what? To what?”
“If I were to return, it would be to see more of this Fire and death, it’s the least they owe me for banishing me here.
” Zaharis took a step towards his brother.
“The real question is what do you want Eris? You who abandoned me for a human woman? Once you wanted glory, to stand with me even above the gods. Has that changed?”
Eris scoffed. “Don’t be foolish,”
Zaharis placed a hand on his shoulder. “Join me Eris. Let us once more rule together, here. You came here because you didn’t wish me to be alone on this plane. Then join me now. They do not deserve your pity, only your domination.”
“I joined you because I wanted us to start anew. These beings do not deserve our hatred; they did not send us here. The True Ones are to be held responsible for that.” Eris argued.
“Enough,” Zaharis said, removing his hand from his brother’s shoulder. He looked around and his gaze stopped on Gloria. “Look, is it not a beautiful sight when they tremble in fear.”
Alek jerked his head up as he felt an ominous chill running down his spine.
“They are creatures to be pitied,” Eris said, his eyes softening on her. “They are not the creators of themselves. Their existence lies with us.”
Zaharis growled in frustration.
Alek could barely move while he watched the one known as Zaharis holding Gloria by her head pulling an inhuman scream blended with his roar of pain as her neck was ripped like paper.
Her red blood falling like petals and cascading over the stones.
“No!!” Alek felt as if his soul was ripped from his body as he stared at his beloved’s head in the hands of the demon.
“This is what they are meant to be. Toys for us to break.” Zaharis declared, as he held out the woman’s head to his brother.
“This is all I want from them. Otherwise, give me the key to reenter and return to our land, so that I may fight those who cast me here.” He carelessly tossed the head aside, “You are either with me, or against me.”
Eris looked at the head for a long second.
“Remember brother you are the one who demanded I choose,” Eris finally said.
Zaharis’ eyes flared with pain at his words, and without another word he turned and disappeared.
Alek lay on the ground, his back slowly healing. The multitude of promises he had made to his beloved and his people amounted to nothing in a single second of terror.
In an instant death proved himself the true ruler of the night.
“You’re alive.” The Glowing entity stared down at him.
Hissing, Alek moved to stand ignoring the feeling of his bones and muscles restructuring to heal.
“Die!” he roared as he reached for Eris’ throat, hands trembling. “Die like she did!” His demand held fury but was broken-hearted. He’d been able to do nothing. Nothing!
A gentle hand landed atop his arm steadying him, his arm trembled as his strength proved little against this mysterious being. while tears blocked his vision.
“You are angry.” The voice started with little to no emotion. “She has shown me this before.”
Alek was swept up in grief, he could barely hear the words this thing was saying. He wanted it to die, but he lacked strength to fight it.
“You wish to kill me? I am not offended by this desire.”
Grasping Alek’s hands, he removed and lowered them.
“My brother broke the law and has become a fallen. I followed him hoping he would see the error of his ways…” he trailed off with a sigh and shook his head. “He has forced me to make a choice that I did not wish to make.”
Alek’s knees finally gave out as the speed of his healing increased. The world around him was going dark, only the bright light of the fire and sounds of crackling flames fading into the distance.
“I am sure your hatred for me, and my brother will not dim over time. Good, that hatred is good. We were sent with a warning to not mate with the females of earth. The Surrem blood is volatile. But just like you I have someone I too love. If my brother stays on this destructive path, he will attempt to destroy this plane.”
Barely able to hear, Alek’s head lolled back.
“Hear this Vampire, the key that glows with the true kiss of magic is your answer. The time will soon come that your knowledge will protect what may be precious to you.”
Alek’s eyes landed on the head of his Queen, and as his eyes closed the head appeared to become Lanias’ instead.
“No.”
The setting changed, Lanias lay dead on the cement ground in a black gown, covered in blood. Her eyes were empty as she reached for him.
And once again he couldn’t move, he was trapped by a cage of light.
“No. Lanias don’t go.”
Waking with a violent shudder, Alek gasped out, “Gloria.”
Abruptly, he reached to his right and found only cold sheets. The emptiness reminded him he was alone.
He forced himself to inhale through his nose and out his mouth. His heart was pounding hard, not because it needed to, but because, like everything else, it followed the dictates of his mind.
Covering his eyes, he slowly let the empty noise fill his mind up.
First with his heartbeat then his breathing.
Slowly followed by muffled voices and then the noise of the city.
When he opened his eyes, he wasn’t in a firepit of Hell, he was in his room.
He looked toward the window to see the damned finished Council building standing front and center.
The phoenix atop spreading its wings before it lit on fire with a flare.
He turned away, preferring the darkness of the apartment.
The smooth black sheets of his bed shifted as he began to get up, stepping onto the floor, he walked into the bathroom.
His eyes went to his face immediately, a corner of his lip lifted.
His reflection was him, but like in the legends written about his kind, humans couldn’t see it, nor would they want to see a rotting corpse.
The flesh on his cheek peeled and fell to the floor, as his jaw dislocated as he yawned.
Vampires only saw their dead souls when they looked in the mirror.
If a Vampire truly wished to see himself he had to get a mirror made of silver and crystal spelled by a Witch. At the thought of Witches Alek emotions darkened.
Turning away he started his shower, another habit that was only kept in honor of the days he’d been human or somewhat human.
The days when vampires lived among them, reading and gossiping with the likes of Byron and listening to splendid piano concertos from Mozart.
He’d lived through the most splendid ages and worn so many names and faces.
The hot water pounded against his body, but he barely felt its heat. The air filled with steam, and he only turned it off when he heard masculine screaming from below.
Releasing a sigh, he reached out and turned the knob, getting out he dried himself off and headed into his walk-in closet to get dressed.
Another scream was released just as he hit the first steps of the den.
The bonus of staying with his sons was the lack of worry over protection, but it was times like these that Alek was happy he’d decided to move out and live alone.
“Could you keep your screams to a minimum,” his son, Sorin, asked his victim.
A man hanging from the wall was being held up by well-placed stakes in his hands and ankles. His body trembled as he appeared to be experiencing shock.
“I’m only preparing for what’s to come,” his son coolly explained, as he leaned forward once more and began removing the skin that was left around the man’s belly. “This requires a great amount of concentration.”
“Then one would think you’d cover his mouth,” Alek said by way of greeting as he walked down the steps.
Sorin stilled before he stood from his chair turning to face his father.
Sorin was his eldest, he placed the short blade in one of the sheaths that lined the leather straps that crossed over his nicely buttoned white shirt.
His black hair was smoothed back exposing his forehead, and his bright mauve eyes.
“I didn’t know you could hear it. I thought the rooms had been treated with soundproofing. ”
“They are,” Alek said, as he walked bare foot over to the sad human. The stench of his blood caused Alek’s lashes to flutter. “My hearing is just that superior. What did he do?” he asked, half-turning to face Sorin who’d walked over to the sink in the far corner of the room to wash his hands.
“Murder, and rape,” Sorin said with little emotion.
“But that’s not enough reason for you to step in.”
Alek mildly wondered when his sons would get tired of having secrets. He knew they were lying well before they attempted to.
“No.” Alek turned to look the poor man over. “He’s hurt someone you know.”
Pausing in washing his hands, Sorin’s head lowered. “Does it matter? He will be good meat for the ones below. They deserve the real thing every once in a while..”
“I suppose it doesn’t matter, only—”
“Only what?” Sorin snapped, bracing his hands on either side of the sink.
Alek enjoyed riling his eldest son up.
Sorin enjoyed his secrets, he’d long thought that he was old enough to leave the nest. And Alek knew it had been a long time coming for his sons to strike out and go their own way, but his sons were all he had left of Gloria, their mother.
He’d brought them to Veil City, their innocence torn away from their eyes by his actions.
He’d tossed them into the hands of the changed vampires. Coldly watching as they started from the bottom. Despite their Royal Vampire lineage, he’d watched as they were betrayed, broken and when they demanded answers for his treatment he feigned no remorse for his choice.
Alek had sworn to himself that his children would grow up strong.
Yet, in the same thread of thought they refused to challenge him for the right to rule. Alek was the Monarch Vampire of Delgado, and he was more than ready to pass the title on.
“Only that the interests of a Delgado Vampire are not the same as the interests of a human or these rats you feed.” He lifted his hand a stylized birth mark shaped like a wing decorated the back of it.
In the center was a letter from ancient Aramaic.
“You know as well as I do what will happen if you grow too interested.”
Sorin sneered, “I am not so weak. Your fear and worry are unwarranted.”
“Urch!”
Alek grabbed him by the throat and slammed him against the wall. His fangs exposed; his eyes shining. “Keep that arrogance for your rats, I am not them. I will be respected, and you will learn to heed my words.”
“Are you two fighting again?” Someone complained from behind Alek.
Alek let his eldest go. Sorin rubbed the places Alek’s nails had pierced his throat, the healing causing his skin to itch.
“We don’t fight, only equals fight. Andrei you should know this,” Alek drawled.
Andrei, his third child, was crouched down looking at the now dead body. “Well, it’s not like we don’t know how you feel about this.” He motioned to his own hand that was blank. “But I think Sorin knows what he’s doing in this case.”
“Arrogance, but you will learn as I did,” Alek said, eyeing his son.
Andrei was much more humor-filled than his brothers.
His hair was longer and pulled into a sloppy man bun.
He usually wore a long stretchy cardigan over brown slacks and a T-shirt with some inane saying.
“Your clothes leave much to be desired.”
“I can’t wear expensive suits like my brother over there,” he said as he reached out and drew a single finger along the chest of the man whose eyes popped open.
Crawling his fingers up along the line he suddenly stabbed his fingers inside the cut line, ignoring the man’s scream and pulling hard he exposed his insides and released a whistle.
“Look at the color of that pink muscle. He must have a good heart and liver. I’ve got six guys who’d love to get their hands on just one good lung alone.
” He glanced at Sorin. “I’ll cut you a deal if you give me his heart and liver. Those rats don’t need the organs.”
Sorin who’d recovered glared at Andrei. “Take them, I don’t care what you do.”
“Hmm, don’t take that back later,” Andrei said, removing his hand from inside the man’s stomach and pulling his phone out he quickly dialed a number. “Hey, Charlie, guess what I have for you…”
“You’ve regained your common sense,” Alek said, speaking to his eldest son.
Sorin averted his gaze giving a short nod. “Sorry, I was a bit sensitive.”
Alek observed him for a moment before he turned away. “You are not alone in that.”
He made his way back toward the steps. “I will be meeting with Tiller and then I’ll be leaving to find Eris.”
He felt the air shift exposing his killing intent that lashed at the walls.
“Father, you’re going to hunt again.”
“You and your brothers haven’t forgotten why we left our home and came here?” He didn’t look back at them. “Our purpose remains the same.”
With that, he continued up the steps and out of sight.