SWNOVELS Chapter CHAPTER FORTY
SHARPTON STOOD IN HIS OFFICE and stared down at the three vampires sitting opposite him in the black leather chairs. They all waited impatiently for Oblivion to show up. All three were brothers and excited about their new adventures with Sharpton, a well-known underground figure with lots of status. They were a seedy-looking crew, as if they had crawled out of the nasty part of the city. Meriwether, Alonzo, and Bennet all had similar features, although Meriwether was a good three inches taller than the others. They were blond husky fellows with long faces. None of them would be considered attractive to the opposite sex. Bennet’s heart beat for the first time in six weeks, which made him jump; the rush of endorphins was pleasant enough to the vampire.
Sharpton looked out his window at the forest in the distance. His initial plan was to be the boss of the east coast with the puny humans having to go through him. Now his plans and corrupt ideas were expanding. “He should be here shortly.”
The siblings had been enthusiastic about being employed by Sharpton until now; they had no idea why they had been summoned to his office. As far as they knew, they hadn’t done anything wrong or said anything nasty about him. They would fight to the death if necessary, but they knew that Oblivion was a wizard and that he fought dirty. They were unaware that they would be associating with a sorcerer when they were approached to join Sharpton and the others. In their minds, it was best to stay as far away from them as possible.
Oblivion entered wearing a Brioni pinstripe suit with a purple tie and a purple pocket square. He was carrying three beakers almost full of brown blood, and a few added spelled ingredients; they contained two drops of Werewolf blood mixed with a small amount of slug slime. He gave one to each of the three brothers, and they looked down into the beakers as if they contained dog snot.
Bennet examined it with his left eye and was unimpressed. “What the hell do you want us to do with this stuff? It’s disgusting.”
“I’m not drinking this shit!” said Alonzo.
“Just smell it, and then you can decide,” stated the wizard.
They all took a sniff and were immediately hooked. It was the most beautiful aroma they had ever encountered, and consuming it wanted more, but there wasn’t anymore. All their eyes changed to a dull black, and they all appeared to be deep in their minds. Meriwether blinked and blinked as if he was having a reaction to the stuff. He then shook his head twice.
The wizard faced Sharpton. “This is an experimental spell. I have no idea how long it will last. It could be five hours or five minutes. You should send them on their way. But first, I have to give them a little command as a test. Vampires, I want you to stand up and sit down seven and half times. Now.”
Alonzo and Bennet were more than happy to comply, stopping halfway down into their seat to make it seven and a half and holding their position there, but Meriwether refused to budge. The concoction didn’t have the desired effect on him. Oblivion and Sharpton stared at one another. The vampire continued to blink repeatedly as his system fought the spell.
Sharpton shook his head. “Why isn’t Meriwether complying?”
“He must be resistant to the enchantment.”
“Watch him!” Sharpton commanded Oblivion.
Meriwether pulled his sword and tried to cut Oblivion’s head off; he missed but sliced Sharpton’s left cheek open. A single touch from the wizard turned his skin to dust, and his bones fell to the floor. Oblivion, now drained and frail, also collapsed to the floor. The energy he had expended to save his life had taken a lot out of him; he would recover, but it would take hours. Oblivion didn’t like showing one of his weaknesses; he was a high-level wizard, but once his energy was depleted, he was defenseless for hours. Sharpton could now kill him if desired; he immediately considered bringing his sword down upon the wizard’s neck. It wasn’t often that one got the chance to take out a wizard so easily.
“Are you that weak that you can’t even stand?”
“My strength will return in an hour or two.”
“It’s a disturbing weakness. What guarantees do I have that you won’t kill me to keep that secret when you return to your full power? I should take your head right now.”
Oblivion pushed himself back with difficulty to rest against the bookshelf; he appeared to have a bad case of the flu. He had used more magic than was necessary, but it was understandable with that blade wanting his head. “I need your resources, and you need a wizard. Compliant wizards are few; you may never find another to do your bidding. All your plans would indeed be delayed.”
Sharpton was undecided. Would that decision ultimately cost him his life if he didn’t kill the wizard here and now? But he was correct in that wizards were usually uncooperative, having more interest in themselves than anyone or anything else. “Bennet, Alonzo, head off to Central Park, kill as many humans as possible, and be quick about it.”
Alonzo blurred off without saying a single word, with Bennet behind him, their eyes scary and determined. Sharpton asked if Oblivion had removed the perimeter spell, and he nodded. He also said that he hoped the two brothers would not remember the death of the third. Sharpton sat behind his desk and stared off.
Bennet and Alonzo found themselves in Central Park, where just over a hundred young couples that had met on the Internet were having a picnic. Laughter and joviality were as abundant as alcoholic beverages concealed in plastic containers. Everyone had been looking forward to the get-together for weeks. The planning and the emails had been productive. Several couples had flown in from England. They were on fifty different-style blankets and had just commenced eating. Chongan, a small Asian man who was the organizer, had just finished giving his speech about how he hoped this one was the first of many such encounters. That life was too short to stare at a computer screen all day.
Alonzo and Bennet stood at the tree line and watched. The spell had weakened slightly but, unfortunately, not enough to keep them from completing their mission. They had a great time until the two brothers started taking their heads off. Then there was screaming and running as they repeatedly blurred and killed without considering their pleas for mercy. Heads hit the ground like so many dinner rolls being tossed. In less than a minute, twenty-seven were dead. Only one young man attempted to fight back when he realized it was impossible to flee their swiftness.
Throats were cut, and the blood of humans splashed onto the green lawn, coloring sections of it red. One poor fellow’s head rolled to his wife’s left knee, stopping there as if to bid her farewell. His mouth slowly opened as his muscles relaxed. His lifeblood squirted several more times out of his neck as she fainted.
An old Korean man stood, and his right arm was cut off at the elbow. He knew there was no escape and bravely accepted his fate, staring directly into Alonzo’s eyes as his head was cut off, his torso fell forward, his blood splashing onto his fiancée’s white dress. She was one of the lucky ones who managed to get away.
Wei and Bao showed up. Wei attacked Alonzo, and they battled furiously. The blade hit the blade with tremendous force. Had they not been reinforced by magic, they would have broken. The sheriff was surprised by Alonzo’s speed when he was caught in the left shoulder, creating a three-inch wound that hurt like hell; he was happy that it healed rapidly. He kicked the vampire so hard that it sent him tumbling on the lawn, but he immediately got up and attacked again. Then, he noticed something strange about his eyes, dark and disturbing.
Bennet attacked Bao, missing his face by less than a half inch, then their swords collided as they came face to face. The sheriff thought that he looked more zombie-like than human. Bennet threw his sword, which went right through Boa’s stomach; as he fell, the evil vampire was on him, trying hard to remove his head. Wei somersaulted, pulling the sword out of Boa, and allowed the wound to heal. With no sword to defend him, Boa quickly took Bennet’s head and stomped his bones.
Alonzo sliced Wei straight down his back, cutting into his spinal cord. He did a backflip, cutting the top off Alonzo’s head and then taking the rest of his head off for good measure. He kicked the skull, launching it across the lawn further than any football player could kick a football.
The remaining carnage was an awful sight to behold. The tears and the cries of the humans that remained were something that they would never be able to forget. Not many sounds in the world were worse than what they were hearing. The job of a red sheriff was not usually happy, but life would be unbearable without their valor and courage. It was time to aid the wounded as best they could.