The Prophecy

We sat there in silence for minutes that felt like hours. Silence was always hard for me. I never knew what the other was thinking. And after a conversation like this one, did I even want to know? I avoided looking at him, I just started to count the scratch marks on the floor next to my feet: fifty-three, fifty-four, fifty-five... I wanted all this to be a bad dream and I wanted Michael to wake me up. I wanted to cook breakfast for my family and kiss them both good-bye as they left home for the day. But that time would never come again. I would never see either of them again; I would never hold Sierra’s hand or taste Michael’s kiss again. That’s the funny thing about silence: instead of talking, like you should, you sit there and think about all the things that could have been.

Alexander told me I needed to sleep. He said I needed to preserve my energy. I could only image what he had in store for me later, but with all the dreams I was having, I was afraid to close my eyes. I was scared of what I might see, or who, for that matter. I couldn’t bear it to see my daughter again, even worse to see what she looked like. It was hard enough the first time. I realize dreams are the subconscious mind showing you images of things that are in your head, but that dream had nothing to do with what I was thinking. I don’t know who that little girl was, but she wasn’t Sierra. She looked like my daughter but she didn’t talk like her and she sure didn’t act like her. What’s all that supposed to mean? How can I dream about something that I wasn’t thinking about? Could it be that, deep in my mind, I see her that way now: as a demon?

Alexander told me he would stand guard and I could rest easy. But if he knew what I was dreaming would he still say that? And if I had to sleep, didn’t he? I wanted to sleep safe and sound but could I trust him? Regardless of what he said earlier, could I be sure he was here to help? I guess it didn’t matter. I found an old square pillow that was dirty and worn, and although the stuffing was coming out, it was still comfortable. I extended my legs out on the floor and rested my head. The room was quiet and dark but not scary and the sound of thunder was somewhat comforting.

I looked over at Alexander and although my eyes were heavy, his image was crystal clear. He stood at the window looking out over the yard. The moon that had been hiding all night was now peering out of the clouds. It was then that I truly noticed his beauty. He looked like a king looking over his kingdom, passionate and strong. His arms where crossed and his legs stood like steel, hammered in the ground; nothing could move them. Somehow I knew that if even one human or one vampire crossed the grounds in the distance, he would know. He would pick me up and take me to safety. Or die trying.

My protector… A man who I never knew but has always known me. He was more than passionate; he was silent and mysterious. There was more to him than what he wanted to share with the world and I was in the position to learn all of it. His eyes where bright and seemed to glow again. There was depth behind his eyes. I finally was able to close my eyes and fall asleep with the image of Alexander, my protector, in my head.

The sun was shining and the breeze was cool. Wait, the breeze…I could feel the coolness of the breeze! Was I human again? I looked down at my hands and noticed they were tan, not chalky white. I ran my tongue around my teeth, there was nothing sharp. I looked further down and I was wearing a pair of black pajama pants and a black tank top. These were what I always wore to bed. What was going on? Where was I?

I stood up and looked around me. I was in an open field of beautiful flowers and green grass. They surrounded me; I could smell the exquisiteness of their cologne. There were trees everywhere adjoining the field full of beautiful spring leaves. There were no clouds in the sky, just the bright, shining sun.

I began to walk slowly, unsure of where I was going, when I saw a man’s image sitting on a blanket in the middle of the field. I could see the blanket clearly; it was an old blanket I used many years ago, with pictures of my family quilted together. As I inched closer, I could make out the man’s identity. It was Michael, just how I remembered him. He was okay! He was there for me. He was close enough to touch, to kiss. I wanted to run to him, but nothing could have gotten me there fast enough.When I finally reached him, I sat down next to him. Yet it still seemed too far away. I stretched out my hand for his but when I tried to touch him, my hand went right through his.

He looked into my eyes and smiled. “I’ve been waiting for you.” His voice was tender.

I smiled back. “Am I dead? Is this our Heaven?” I asked confused.

His lips creased and he gave me a bigger smile. “No.” He paused, shaking his head. “Trinity, this is going to be hard for you to understand and I don’t have a lot of time so I have to jump right into it. Sweetheart, you have to move on.”

I was mortified. Why would he tell me to move on? I didn’t want to; I was where I wanted to be now. I was sitting next to the man with whom I wanted to spend the rest of whatever life I had left. I didn’t know what world we were in, but I didn’t want to move on and leave.

“I know you feel the need to punish those who have done this to our family. I know you better than you think. I know you feel you need to make it right. But you need to understand there’s more to the story of your life than you realize.”

If he was really dead, how could he know anything about my past or anything that was happening in my present? Why would he be here telling me these horrible things? If he knew something, – anything – I was more than willing to listen, to try and understand. As long as he was with me.

“Like what, Michael? Please tell me.” There was sadness in my voice. I wanted him to touch me; I needed to remember what his hands felt like against my skin.

“I’m not the one that can tell you.” He said, trying to be reassuring.

“Michael I need you back. I can’t move on in my life without you in it. I don’t know how to live without you.” I wanted to cry, but again I couldn’t.

“Trinity, everything has happened for a reason. You’ve always believed that. In fact, in our years together you got me to believe that. I didn’t know it when we met, but I was meant to love you and die for you and I know that now. You were meant for a higher purpose, one that’s so much more than our life together.

“This life that you have right now is your destiny and you need to embrace it. You need to grab hold of everything around you and never let it go. You need to move on with no regret, no remorse. But – and this is important –you need to move on with love.

“Sierra and I are gone and you can’t bring us back, no matter what you try and do, no matter who you hunt and kill.” He acted as if he could touch my check. I closed my eyes hoping I could feel the warmth of his hand. “Just don’t ever forget us. Love us here.” He put his hand over my heart. I wanted to grab hold of him and not let go.

How can somebody who loves you move on and not remember? How could anyone who loves two people so much ever want to do anything but love them more?

“The love you feel in the depths of your soul, it’s that love that will fuel your rage, Trinity. Our deaths will give you the strength you need to survive; it’ll give you the force you need to win.”

“I don’t think I can, Michael.”

He put his hands on top of mine without touching me. “You can, and you will or our deaths will be in vain. The battle is in your blood.”

“How can you be so sure I’ll win? How can you even know I’ll get where I need to be?”

“The journey that has taken you here has already been written. But not the war. You will make that up as you go and you will win. You need to believe it.”

As the breeze began to blow more strongly, the petals of the flower around us were being blown between us. He didn’t seem to notice them but they were blocking my vision of him.

“Michael…” I wanted to say more, like ‘don’t leave me, stay with me and help me.’ But he wouldn’t let me finish. It was like he knew what I wanted to say.

“Trinity, I love you and I always will. Remember us, cry for us, and scream for us if you have to. But fight for us. You have all you need to fight and win.”

He started to fade away little by little and as he was leaving me, he smiled. That’s when I noticed something wet running down my face. I was finally crying. When I wiped my cheek and looked down at my hand, I didn’t see normal tears. I was crying tears of blood.

I woke up.

I opened my eyes slowly. I had to blink a few times to see everything clearly. I looked around briefly and stretched out my body. The floor was hard, which made for a very uncomfortable night. I wiped off my face but there were no tears to brush away. I must have only been crying in my dream. The light shone through the curtainless windows and I saw the real emptiness of the abandoned house. The only real piece of furniture was an old desk that looked like it was made in the 1940s. It had the spider webs to prove it.

I looked over to where Alexander stood the night before and saw that he was now sitting in a chair at the window, his head resting on the window frame. He must have fallen asleep. I had to remember he was like my mother and all who came before her. He had to sleep, although he didn’t quite look asleep. He looked dead. His frozen form, so well preserved, sat still, with not even a breath to exhale. I wondered if that’s what I looked like when I slept.

Since he was sleeping, I tried to be as quietly as I could. I walked into the bathroom, but as soon as I was inside I wished I wasn’t. It was as small as a child’s closet, with barely room for the toilet and sink. The floor was made of wood, all cracked,andmany of the lime green tiles on the walls were missing. When I turned on the water in the sink, a brown liquid poured out before it went clear. I twisted my hair into a knot; I needed to remember to get a hair tie. I splashed some water on my face. The water was definitely not refreshing and when I was finished, I wished I had skipped it all together.

I walked outside to see what the storm had left behind, but the grounds seemed untouched. I heard birds flying miles away, chirping and chasing each other. And although there were puddles everywhere, the sun glistened off of them, making them sparkle. For the first time in 48 hours,the day felt like it might bring hope.

“I’m sorry. I must have fallen asleep.”

I turned around startled. It was Alexander. “Oh, it’s okay. You needed your rest.” I said reassuringly. “I hope I didn’t wake you when I came out here?”

“No, you didn’t. It’s beautiful, isn’t it, Trinity?” he asked, looking around.

“Yeah. I don’t think I’ve ever stopped to notice all the things around me in my human life. Looking around now: it’s remarkable! The colors, the shapes, the smells, the sounds… Everything is so different. I mean, if I stopped and listened now, I could hear the most miraculous things miles away. I know you’ve had time, but I can’t imagine how anybody could get used to any of this.”

I wasn’t lying. I was astounded. You would think that after a rainstorm like we just had everything would be wet and unsightly, but there was such a beauty to everything. Even the ground I walked on had a slight charm to it. Every thing was so clear and sharp; I didn’t want to miss out on it. It wasn’t that there were diamonds everywhere and things sparkled brightly; I wasn’t looking at things painted in gold. It’s just that I never had the chance to just stop and look or feel and hear things before now.

My body felt calm, like when you just let out a breath and relaxed your shoulders. I could have woken up in a trashcan and still felt as serene as I did standing there. A hummingbird flew by and I watched it in slow motion. I could even see its wings flutter. That’s how I saw the beauty of everything: in slow motion.

“Your senses are getting stronger.” He let out a small laugh. “It’s one of the…’perks’….” And for the first time we laughed together, almost harmonizing.

“Perks, huh?” I guess I could get used to it.

He bent down to run his hand in the puddle of water that was near his feet. The waves spread gently as his fingers cut threw the water. “I need to teach you to hunt, Trinity,” he said, looking away. I could tell he wasn’t happy with the comment he just made.

“Well, getting an animal wasn’t that hard when I did it before,” I said jokingly. I didn’t think I needed to be trained to hunt animals. I was probably faster than all of them and I was sure I didn’t need to learn any technique to do it.

This time he didn’t laugh. He just let out a sigh and stood to look at me.

“No… Humans.” He said, lowering his voice.

I was shocked. Why was it necessary to kill someone to feed my appetite? I felt all right from the horse’s blood. I knew I would be all right without human blood. “I don’t think I can take somebody’s life, Alex.”

He smiled at the way I said his name. “You have to, Trinity. Human blood will make you powerful. Fierce animals will make you strong – don’t get me wrong. Lions, elephants, panthers… But unless you want to break into a zoo, you have no other choice. There are no wild animals around here like that. You need human blood.” My mouth must have dropped open because he paused and kind of smiled. “I was against it at first too. But than I tried living off stray animals and I’ve never been so weak. You need your strength to fight.” I could tell it hurt his heart to force me to do something I was so against, but in his mind he was doing what was best for me.

The mere thought of a mortal’s death coming from my hands was hard enough for me to fathom, but actually doing it would be impossible. Suddenly I couldn’t see the beauty that surrounded me anymore. The sounds in my head were now crowded by the screams for mercy of my would-be victims. I could only hear panic; there would be no peace for them. There would be no comfort for their family, and the killer would never see justice.

But somehow I knew he was right. This was who I was; there was no way for me to fight it. I had to choose: drink human blood or let myself die. Well, I mean technically I was already dead. But with all the killing I was told I’d have to do, well… if this wasn’t hell, it soon would be. So really, what difference did it make? Vampires have been doing this for who knows how long. Who was I to change it now?

We began to casually walk towards a tiny town in the distance, which was different, since all we had done since we met was run. We used the back roads; he didn’t want to take the chance that somebody from Daniel’s army was watching. It was weird to watch him be so protective of me. Not even Michael hovered over me the way that Alex did.

To pass the time, we kicked rocks to see who could kick them the furthest. He won of course, kicking a large rock almost a mile away. He made jokes and I pushed him away when I laughed. It felt like a teenager on a first date. He had a way of making me feel nervous around him. But it wasn’t a nervous scared feeling; I think all that went away when I woke up still alive. This was a nervous with butterflies in my stomach kind of feeling.

We talked about everything. He asked me questions about my daughter, what kind of child she was, what her favorite things were, hobbies, clothes. He asked about her birth and was so sorry he missed it – even though I wouldn’t have known he was there, he still wanted to be. I told him all of her favorite books and movies, and how great an artist she was. She was never difficult, even when she was a baby. And having her in my life, for however brief it was, was the greatest experience I ever had the pleasure of having. It was hard to talk about her, but it also felt good to think of her as she was then.

He talked more about his human life, his childhood and growing up without a mother. He talked about how hard his father was, but even so, Alex loved and idolized him. He was thankful for having a father who was also kind and giving toward others. It made Alex wonder if that was the reason he cared so much for my family and for all of humanity.

He told me what he did for a living back in 1798. He said he harvested crops and sold his produce in town. He said that for fun he rode and tamed horses. From the look in his eyes, I could tell he missed it. The freedom that goes with riding a horse in the wild seemed to fit him. It seemed like an easier time then, but if you were to ask Alex, he would disagree with you. He would tell you he struggled back then and that sometimes he felt happy to be out of that routine. But again, his eyes told a different story.

I asked him about my mother. What kind of a woman was she? He told me that she was beautiful and that I looked just like her when I smiled. He said that she had a glow about her and it followed her even in her words. She was kind and gentle and loved animals of all kinds. He laughed when he told me that if she had lived, he would have guessed she would have opened an animal sanctuary.

I asked about my real family, if I were like them. He couldn’t tell me much, only that there were many until Daniel came. He said that they had kind hearts and a great deal of honor to share. They were nothing like the vicious vampires that now hunt us.

“Okay, so tell me about the more famous vampires.” I asked with a smile.

“What do you mean…The ‘more famous’?”

“Well, like Dracula. He was supposed to be the first, was he? Did he write his story and then somebody in Hollywood discovered it and produced it?” He smiled and we both shared a laugh. I actually thought it was a reasonable question considering that I was now a vampire myself and I wanted to know who started all this. I mean, come on. I had to know how Hollywood knew about us.

“No he wasn’t the first. But there was a Dracula who lived in Transylvania. He was originally a mortal who was rich and connected and feared by his villagers. Daniel turned him. You see, Daniel saw that power when he came to Transylvania and wanted to dominate it. They were companions for years, but because Dracula held a lot of power in the village – power that Daniel knew he would never get – he killed him.

“Bram Stoker heard the villagers’ stories when he vacationed in Transylvania. He even visited his castle, which is when he felt compelled to write about it. He didn’t know the full truth of what happened between Daniel and Dracula, only what he heard from other people. That was a good thing because Daniel would have killed him next. So Stoker wrote what he thought would make a good story. Now everybody just chalks it up to his imagination.”

I was amazed that these people actually knew about vampires but nobody would listen to the truth. Just as I did, everybody thought that one person came up with one excellent book and others just took the idea and ran with it.

“And then there were others who didn’t hide the fact that they were vampires. Like the notorious Hungarian noblewoman, Elizabeth Bathory. She dates back to the 1600s, before my time. But I know all too well who she was. Back then people didn’t know what to call her; they only knew she was pure evil. They had every right to think that: she killed over 600 peasant women in her village. When she was finally caught, they couldn’t kill her because, under the Hungarian law, it was illegal to try or condemn a person of noble birth.” He went silent.

“So what did they do?”

“They took her away in shackles and sealed her in a tiny room in a tower in Castle Csejthe. She had no contact with anybody from the outside world; it was forbidden. Food was passed to her through a tiny slit under the floor, but nobody knew she couldn’t eat it. I guess whatever she ate kept her healthy enough to live in that room. Four years passed and a guard found her lying prostrate on the floor. In her town, she was known as the Bloody Countess Elizabeth Bathory and nobody mourned her death. But her true identity was never known by mortals.”

I didn’t say a word after that. I remembered watching a show about the woman but I never would have thought she was a vampire. As we got closer to our destination, the veteran vampire stopped talking about past experiences and past family and thought it might be a good idea to explain the process of choosing a victim. I wasn’t eager to hear or to learn. But I listened carefully anyway.

“Years ago, before all the new technology with cameras and lights, it was easier to pass undetected, especially when people were dying of the plague. You could bite a person and just walk away. But now we have to use good judgment. We have to know our surroundings; we have to memorize it.

“If a coven has a female in the pack, they usually have her pose as a prostitute to lure the victim. Most of the time, it’s easier that way. But lone vampires often shadow nightclubs or concerts: anything that’s dark and crowded and easy to avoid being noticed. And of course there are lazy vampires who’ll hunt the prostitutes or homeless that scourge the streets. You know: the people that society won’t miss if they disappear.

“You need to use everything that is at your disposal while avoiding detection. Once you find your victim, you have to finish him. Don’t just leave him. Whatever spot you bite, you need to tear completely apart. If your victim was left intact, our kind will be revealed. And you have to avoid authorities and the media at all cost.”

I looked over at him. “The media? Don’t you think on some level, they already know? I mean, come on, there are thousands of movies and books about us. And let’s not forget all the unsolved murders.”

“Maybe on some level. But it’s still a mystery to them. You don’t hear on the news, “So-and-so died and vampires are to blame.” Right now, vampires are make-believe and we need to keep it that way. If people knew, there would be widespread panic. So, for arguments’ sake, avoid detection.” He turned and looked at the dirt road in front of him.

“In this town, there aren’t any prostitutes or homeless, so we have to use what’s at our disposal. We’ll have to wait outside a bar for somebody to come out drunk. You’ll need to lure him into the alley, so you’re not seen. I’ll take the first, to show you what you need to do. Then you’ll be on your own. I cannot help you.”

I was so intrigued by the conversation I had forgotten how far we had walked and what we were walking for. But now, faced with what I had to do, I felt sick. We arrived. The name of the bar in front of us was Deaths Corner. I had to admire the irony.

The bar was as old as the town. It was in a one-story building made out of wooden logs that looked burnt and brittle and seriously needed to be redone. It looked like the termites had taken refuge there for too many years. It had Old West-style swinging doors, and a sign on top of the roof with its name. The parking lot was in back.

We stood in the alley. My nerves were getting the best of me. I kept twisting my hands together and if I wasn’t doing that, I was messing with my hair. I couldn’t believe I was here, waiting to do what I had to do. This couldn’t be real. I needed to wake up from this nightmare. How could he expect me to do this? Alex never looked at me and if he had, he would have seen a scared girl wanting to go home. I was kind of glad he didn’t.

It wasn’t very long before a man stumbled out of the bar. He looked like he was in his late forties, short and balding. He had tan skin, or maybe it was dirt. I couldn’t be sure. He had dark features and appeared tired. Also, from the looks of things, his jeans and flannel shirt were stained with dirt. I tried to stare at him to take in his features and give him a story, thinking it would make things easier. Maybe he had nothing to live for. Maybe he just got divorced with no kids to speak of. Maybe his ex took all that he had: his home, his car, and his money. And maybe he just spent the last ten dollars he had on his beer. Maybe he was there to get liquid courage. Maybe he wanted to commit suicide, and we were there to grant his last wish.

Alex walked slowly over to the man while I waited out of sight. Hiding in what little shadow I could find, I could still hear them. Alex asked him for help with his car. He told the man he had parked his vehicle in the alley and it wouldn’t start. The man foolishly went along with his every word. Maybe it was the way Alex spoke that was so inviting. I wondered if I spoke that way too. Maybe it was another ‘perk’ that Alex talked about?

As the two reached the alley, Alex walked slowly behind his victim, almost in a creep. The man noticed there was no car and turned around, but I couldn’t tell if he was surprised or scared. Either way he found out too late. Alex had already taken a violent position, his eyes had turned black, baring his teeth and growling. He flew over to the poor man, pushing him against the wall. The man didn’t scream or shed a tear in fear. He just let it happen like he knew it was his destiny. This poor man just stood there with his eyes closed and his hands at his side. I wanted to cry for him, knowing he couldn’t.

Alex sank his teeth in the man’s neck, appearing to relish his feast. Blood splattered on the wall behind them. It dripped out of the sides of Alex’s mouth. I could see his eyes turn from black back to blue as he quivered. When he was done, he took both of the man’s arms and ripped them off of his body, pushing his back forward with his other foot to the ground. That was it. I wanted to be sick; my stomach was turning and my head was pounding. I let out a low shriek and took a step back. He grabbed the man’s head and tore it off his body. Falling to the ground, what was left of the man twitched. He was dead. For the first time, I had to stand back and witness a murder that could have been prevented. But it happened so that others could survive.

This is what I had to do?! It seemed too brutal. How could I, a house wife from Phoenix, viciously mangle an innocent person? How could I go on with my day remembering that I took somebody’s life?

Alex walked toward me slowly, the blood of his victim dripping from his mouth. “Sorry, Trinity, I know it’s difficult for you to take in all of this. But I told you, you have to rip them apart. You can’t alert anybody that they’ve been bitten. I know it’s hard. It was hard for me too the first time. But it does get easier… I promise.”

“I could never imagine this getting any easier,” I whispered.

“Just remember: you can read their thoughts before they have them, and the action they’re going to take before they can take it. Use that.”

“I don’t think I can, Alex.” I turned my back.

“You have to or you’re going to starve.” He turned me around. “Trinity, you need to try. Listen, there are so many benefits to all of this. You just don’t see it right now. This isn’t something we just decided to do as vampires; this is the only thing that will keep us alive. You’ll never grow old, you’ll never die, you’ll never feel fear, but to have all that, you must feed.”

“Yeah, on a human.”

“You need your strength. This is the only way to get it. If you don’t do this, you’ll be weak when Daniel’s army finds you and he will have the upper hand. And then I won’t be able to help you. Then all this ‘brutality’ as you call it will have been for nothing. All of your family will have died in vain. Is that what you truly want? ”

“No.” I whispered. I understood. I just didn’t have to like it. I knew I had to go through with it. And hey, maybe it would get easier, although I couldn’t see how.

I saw my victim as he was leaving the bar. He was young, maybe a college student, or maybe he dropped out and his family didn’t want him to come home until he had decided to go back to school.Well, now he wouldn’t have that chance. He was scruffy looking, as if he hadn’t showered in days. Maybe after his keg party he wasn’t ready to go home yet or maybe he wanted one more drink before returning to his parents to beg for him to come home. He had dark features and walked with a limp. That or he was really drunk.

I devised a plan in my head to lure him to his death spot. Since he was already drunk, I could act sexy and confused. Every drunken man wants to believe a pretty female wants him. I let my hair down and tossed it back and forth, then fluffed it a bit. I started to walk toward him. I was unsure of myself but I had to act like I was confident.

“Excuse me? Are you familiar with this town?” I asked, trying to act puzzled.

“Whyyyyyyyeeeesssss. I am…” -hiccup- “Are you lost?”

I tried to control my laughter as I spoke. I thought this might be too easy. “Yea, I’m trying to get to the highway. I’m parked in the alley. Can you walk with me to my car and give me directions?”

I tried to flirt with him. I felt so bad. He was looking at me like he might have a chance to take me home with him. At night’s end, he would be able to call his college buddies and brag about how he picked up a woman and used her for sex. But between this guy and me: I was the only one who knew how this would end.

“Why, I sure can. Hey, what’s your name, Gorgeous?” He asked.

I gave him a little laugh and twirled my hair just to play along. “Trinity.”

“Matches your beauty. Mine’s Tom. But you, my dear…” as he shot an air gun with his fingers and winked at me, “…can call me Tommy.”

“Okay, Tommy, my car’s over here.” I winked back. I walked in back of him feeling worse and worse as we got closer. I wanted to laugh at him because of the way he was walking. He was trying to walk with swag but he looked more like a drunken pimp with a limp. If he wasn’t looking back and winking at me, he was tripping over his shoe lace.

I did everything my teacher had taught me. Be slow enough to keep up with him but quick-minded enough to think first. Be graceful with my moves and fast enough not to be seen. He obviously was drunker than I realized because he didn’t notice there was no car, just a vacant alley, with no witnesses. He didn’t say anything, he didn’t even turn around; he just walked to the middle of the parking lot. Then something came over me, something I was never expecting, something Alex never told me would happen.

My body tensed and I felt the throbbing of my veins as I heard his heart beat. It beat almost for me. Thump thump, thump thump. It called for me. I hunched over for the attack. I felt the rage running through my body. It seemed to be getting darker outside but I could finally see clearly. The wind started to pick up and dark clouds formed in the sky. Lightning broke and thunder shook the ground. Rain started to fall hard, but I felt untouched.

I let out a hiss, jumped, and flew over to him.

He turned around and screamed as he put his hands over his face to shield the attack. My strength was too much for him. I broke his arm bringing it down from his face. I threw him to the ground. He tried to kick me off, but he had no luck. I was too strong for him. I pushed his head to the side, brought my teeth to his neck and started to drink. I didn’t cringe; I didn’t want to pull away. I could hear my teeth tearing into his flesh.

Alex was right: the sensation I got was indescribable. It was like liquid cocaine. I could feel it enter my veins, empowering them. A shiver took over my body and I felt like I was invincible. I felt like I had a shield surrounding me and nobody would be able to penetrate it, not even with a sword. The entire world could have surrounded me and yelled at me to stop, but I wouldn’t have noticed them. I wouldn’t have heard their screams. The feeling was just too strong.

I hadn’t noticed that the blood splattered everywhere, staining my clothes. The street was now a dark red river washing away with the rain. I fell back, keeping my eyes closed. The world was spinning and my body was shaking. It was as if I got a fix that I didn’t even know I was yearning for. I wondered how long this feeling would last. The rain and the wind stopped. The clouds parted and the sun shone brightly.

“I told you,” Alexander said with a smile on his perfectly shaped face.

I couldn’t say anything, I tried, but nothing came out. I didn’t want to ruin the out-of-body experience I was having. I thought that if I said something, everything would be gone: both the power I felt and the denial I was in.

My bliss was interrupted when Alex spoke again. “Trinity, hurry up and rip him apart. We don’t have much time. Something’s coming – fast!”

I opened my eyes and looked down at my victim. Tommy. Poor Tommy. I ended this boy’s life to satisfy a craving I never knew I had. I grabbed his arms and pulled them apart. I could hear the bones breaking.

“His head, Trinity! Hurry!” Alex yelled.

I dropped his arms, wrapped my hands around his head and twisted it off his body. I couldn’t move. I was appalled at what I’d just done. Who would find him? What would the authorities say about his death to his family? He wouldn’t even be able to have an open casket funeral. And it was all my fault.

“Drop it, Trinity! We have to go!” He grabbed my wrist and dragged me away.