Why not me?

  Muscles are right.

  My ass should be fine.

  No one cares.

  It's all about them. Them!

  I have looked, and looked and looked and-

  FUCK! FUCK!

  They had problems. They were... sinking. Them.

  I did not

  I will... not...

  It... Was not...

  I just... I just...

  It was them!

  They did it! They made me do it!

  Help THEM! I am here, help THEM!

  Look at me!

  I want to do it too!

  But I’m strong!

  -heh-

  I’m weak!

  I’m a shit!

  I’m selfish!

  LOOK! AT! ME!

  ...They are dead...

  I’m right here. This flesh!

  Touch it! Kiss it! Piss on me! CUT ME!

  FUUUUUUUCK YOUUUUU!

  I loved her.

  Did you?

  That is why, by her corpse…

  I am here…

  Beautiful, this selfie.

  My smile over her rot.

  Delete. Ugh.

  My hair is wrong.

  Now… Lighting.

  Ahem.

  WHY HAS SHE GONE?!

  Look at me.

  WHY DID SHE DO THIS?!

  Notice me.

  SHE WAS SO YOUNG!

  Lick my toes.

  Her toes are still beautiful.

  Bitch.

  Her hair is still perfect.

  Where is my hammer…

  You all see this? Watching?

  Me? I am alive.

  No. No, no, no, no, no!

  There. Her head is gone. Your eyes show what I see.

  Worthless dead people.

  Excuse me, I missed my pills.

  Clean the blood, I’m hungry.

  She took her own life. I did not take mine.

  Instead I’ll take yours.

  CUNT!

  I love you, oh my god, sorry, bad day!

  Still, if you would die, can I watch?

  Help?

  Next time?

  No. Now. They say you need to. I need to. It was them. Not my fault.

  Hmph. I guess I still need my hammer.

  Don't run! They say you need to die!

  Then I'll cry, they'll cry, we'll all cry!

  You skinny fucking BITCH!

  It's time for a selfie.

  ~Look at Me, I’m Melting!

  ~Feldyn Goldchord, the Endless Bard

  * * *

  “I’m sure she’s fine,” X’al’antra said again. Caleb didn’t miss the note of worry in her voice. How the boy wished to still have Nameless in his head. The angel had helped him to understand his own feelings and interpretations. Where a second opinion would be very welcome, Caleb was confident X’al’antra was puzzled by the imps disappearance as he was. “Yeah, you’re right,” he agreed. “She’ll be back. Probably decided to go check on the others. Make sure you weren't pulling something.”

  Caleb had always felt himself a good actor. Though testing his skills in a den of vampires was a first. Xal was studying him hard, so he made sure to look irritated. Best way to lie was to tell the truth! And he was plenty irritated.

  This was bullshit. Something had happened. Only, he didn't know what. If X'al'antra had done something to Iiyni, that meant she was planning to do something to him. The only other two possibilities were Iiyni screwed him over (which would never happen), or she had gotten into trouble that had nothing to do with X'al'antra. For now, he would stall for time. What else could he do? Maybe the others were closer behind than expected.

  “Any chance… you want to… relax a little?” Xal asked, scooting her chair closer. They still sat in the pool house, X'al'antra and her favorite six vampires sat nearby, wearing t-shirts and tight, low-cut jeans, and the ones with longer hair had ponytails. A known favorite of his. Though ironically the most attractive of them had short hair. The girls in the pool still splashed and played, only quieter. “This is annoying,” he declared, turning to glare in the Vampire Queen’s eyes.

  No matter whom or what she was, by all accounts she had always been Rashelle. The obnoxious bitch he dated, was still the same girl sitting next to him. She looked hotter now, and her personality was slightly different, but she was still the same person -demon- he had known for years. And he had questions.

  “Kendra and Leslie. Were they always vampires?” Caleb asked, referring to two of the six that were Rashelle’s cousins. X’al’antra leaned back away from him and sighed. “No. Not until after your little raid on my home, back in Castle Rock.” Caleb nodded to that, before asking more. “Your mom?”

  “Oh, she didn’t know. She’s dead now. And for wheat it’s worth to you, she really was a bitch. Did you know she tried to whore me out to more than one man while I was growing up? Well, while this body aged. Not that I care, but she did deserve it.”

  “How can your body age? I don’t-” she waved a hand to stop him. “This,” she motioned to herself, head to toe, “is just a body. What I am is so much more.” She thought for a moment before continuing. “Me, as you would think of it, is in the blood. I’m a virus. It’s complicated, but I… learned how to… infest a body. With my power, keeping the body I move to actually alive isn’t too difficult.”

  Caleb thought on that. She was guardedly oversharing. It was to gain more of his trust, obviously but-

  More.

  Fucking wonderful, subconsciously he was trusting her to at least not be fully lying. That probably wasn’t good. He needed to change the topic.

  “Can you please stop with this whole trying to seduce me thing? No, listen! We never got along and were never compatible. You took advantage of me on purpose, and you ended up becoming obsessed. Shut it! My turn! It has been, for a long time! You are the Queen of the Vampires, and I am supposedly some mythical hero, but right now I’m the moron known as Caleb; you are addicted to the Dragonheart, not me, but whatever power I have. And I'm okay with that.

  "I did like you X’al’antra, honestly. It was shallow for the most part, and I was never in love with you. You’re hot, and we had some fun, but oh you fucking piss me off. Hey, I piss you off too or you wouldn’t be so fucking irritating! I will never be yours. But I could be… a friend, or an ally. Maybe even one with benefits." He smirked in his lie, and blushed without meaning to. Saying something like that was embarrassing, even if it was to manipulate an evil monster. X'al'antra looked so flabbergasted at his words, he allowed himself to laugh, hoping it sounded amused and not triumphant. “We are on different sides, but Iiyni and I once were too. I mean, maybe you don't want to be evil either?”

  “I don't,” she interrupted, “I really really don’t! I love parts of it, who doesn’t, but I don't want to be the villain! Think about it Caleb, who wants to burn in Hell?” He was curious where she was going with this. Xal got up and re-positioned her beach chair to be able to look at him without turning her head. She was doing a good job at faking anxiousness. He figured she was pulling off her lies the same way he was, by using the truth, and altering it to fit her purpose.

  “Lord Antioch has a plan. I don't know what the Aetherian has told you about him, but he's wrong. He is not some lunatic that thinks his power on par with God, nor does he demand to be worshiped. He is simply a man who found a loophole. I promise you, Caleb, I swear... " she paused, appearing to think over a hard truth. "Imagine a way to be free from God. Not a blank, suffering, Godless Hell; a utopia! A piece of Creation with all the perks He keeps from himself. Free of Him, free of sin, free of death! Free of judgment! That is what Lord Antioch wants. Nt darkness and suffering, but true freedom!

  "It would be like living within a video game where you wrote the rules.” Okay, now she had lost him. When old people, especially ones thousands of years old, starting using terms like ‘video games’ it was -no pun intended- game over. “Infinity with nothing to fear. The life you chose to live for all time, and no higher being telling you how to live it.

  “I want us to be friends,” X’al’antra continued. “Real friends. With... many benefits. Once we get to Aethra, you will shine. You're already awakening to the Dragonheart while on Earth! That's amazing, Caleb. Beyond all expectation. I just need to prove to you I am not your enemy.”

  “I believe you,” Caleb lied, “but I still need to be sure. Tell me what you know about the portal device. What you know about me. Prove you can be trusted.” He didn’t expect her to comply. In fact, he kinda hoped that she wouldn't. “Everyone out,” X'al'antra commanded in a voice that was laced with 'defy me and die', and the harem of naughty bloodsuckers left the pool hanger. Caleb sighed internally, and hoped some of whatever he was about to learn would be helpful.

  “Many years ago, a girl went to the leader of the Order claiming to be the Avatar of Fate, telling a grand tale about portals and prophecies, convincing him put together a group of the best the Order had, to travel through a portal, and save the Dragonheart. You’re dad, William, was part of that group."

  "My dad was in the Order?" Caleb asked without pause.

  "You didn't know? I thought, given your recent company... Caleb, yes, your father was possibly the greatest operative the Order had ever employed; he wasn’t ever officially in the Order, but a free agent. This really is your first time hearing this... William was known as the Area Curse, or the Cursed Air. Which... is where your last name comes from. Kurserieth? Cursed Area?"

  The Cursed Air. Caleb remembered John talking about him. Some elite Order agent. The Appraiser worked for him. And hadn't Mike said... he was dead?

  It had always been a struggle to not hate his father. To force himself to love the man. If he really was an Order agent with ties to all that shady shit, Caleb was free to not only hate, but allow himself to be free of the guilt for not caring what may have happened to him after the events in Castle Rock.

  X'al'antra continued. “The group to save the Dragonheart was formed of combatants, scientists, and clergy. The method and means to open the portal was provided by Fate. On the other side they encountered immediate resistance. All but a three died. The survivors were your father, a man called the Appraiser, and a scientist you knew as the zombie king.

  “Apparently the Dragonheart was still an infant; an infant that was killed in front of them, to prevent the Earth invaders from taking him. Killing that baby, the Dragonheart, caused an... explosion. The three survivors I mentioned, upon returning to Earth, were found to have gained extraordinary powers, presumably from being caught in that blast.

  “Your dad became blessed with speed and strength exceeding anything human. Larry, the zombie king, gained immense knowledge and a regenerative ability that left him practically invulnerable. The Appraiser, already skilled with hypnotism, could control minds. Your father and the Appraiser also quit aging. Larry, envious, used his newfound knowledge to create a form of artificial immortality for himself. Little good it did him.

  “The prophecies I follow speak of those events, and imply the soul of the Dragonheart hitched a ride to Earth on one of the survivors, the soul eventually moving into their first born child. That child was you.” Caleb was having a difficult time trying to read her. The story itself had a lot of holes that didn't seem to add up, not that it couldn’t still be true, or true-ish.

  “The portal device was stolen by Fate. She didn’t destroy it, or even hide it. Instead, and I do not know why, she sold it to- well, the criminal organization. Just like there is an Order, there is a sort of silent leadership that connects all crime in the world, overseen by a tyrant. This tyrant wants to use the device for establishing a trade between Earth and Aethra. Out of fear of God, he has never used it. Now, with rumor spreading about God no longer intervening, there is little doubt the device will be tested. With my connections, we can find it. Actually, we will probably need to do nothing more than wait for it to come to you. Which means we get to set the stage."

  “And if I believe you?” he asked, doing his best to appear flustered and trying to remain calm, while actually being flustered and trying to remain calm. Acting was complicated. “How about we relax we relax for now?” she replied. “Have some fun, and wait for the bitc- for Iiyni, to come back?”

  Caleb, wanting to continue to stall, was getting nervous. The only way he was managing to keep up any semblance of a ruse, was by trying to not think about much besides cute girls. Which was backfiring, as his mind kept drifting to, well, sex. This damn place was a cornucopia off inappropriate thoughts.

  He needed Christ with him. Filling his heart with lust would be one hell of a debuff. Buuuut, getting all prudish now, it could cause the situation to unravel... Fuck.

  Deciding to keep stalling and hopefully avoid face-planting into any disastrous decision, he sighed. "Fine. But only you and your main... girls. And that one little Asian one, and her friend." He felt his entire body flush. Why did he say that?! There were two vampire girls in the pool that he had been trying to not look at.

  The twinkle in X'al'antra's eye went unnoticed. “Excellent!" she clapped her hands, and stood. “I’ll be right back! I have to get the girls back in here. And wine! We need lots of wine!"

  Hurrying out of the room, she didn't make Caleb wait long, returning with her bikini squad who were now in shorts and shirts; the tiny Asian teen, the blonde Caleb had refereed to as her friend. She handed him a wine glass, and motioned to vampire carrying the crate of wine to set it down was carrying down nearby.

  X’al’antra poured Caleb some wine, Keeping an eye on him while making proper introductions to the girls. He was very tense when talking them. And distracted. Good.

  When two half naked male vampires, with shredded abs, walked in carrying a large sofa-bed-thing, Xal couldn't help but laugh at the boys obvious panic. "They aren't for you hun, just the help. Figured these chairs wouldn't cut it. Though if you want..." she smiled devilishly, and he shook his head no, more desperately than he probably should have. She then risked something, “I don’t mean to upset you, but… well, I also prepared… a young boy, a shota, and a loli. Just in case you… were curious.”

  The glare she expected was more of a shocked trying to look casual face. His heart sped up, skipped, and calmed. X’al’antra wasn’t sure what to make of that, but it was curious at the least. When he said nothing, she decided to drop it.

  Chatting as girlishly as she could, and keeping her eyes on his gaze, X’al’antra found herself to be actually having fun. Instead of jealousy, there was a sort of thrill to seeing him desire other girls. She had suspected as much, but the true giggles that escaped her were still unsettling, if not pleasant.

  His specific lustful gaze was easy for X'al'antra to notice. She had to admit, she was surprised. Caleb's eyes were on the three most petite bodies, and Kendra. Quite the contrast. Far as she knew, Caleb had never had a thing for big tits. Probably that bitch Shuzariel's fault. Not like hers were anything special, far more modest in size than the teen brunette vampires. The fact he had a thing for the petite Asian girl wasn’t a shock, as he always had a hard-on for Pazely, even if he denied it. Guess Iiyni was too young looking for him, and with the Japanese cunt supposedly on Aethra, he needed a fix.

  X'al'antra took an empty wine cup, hesitated, then gave a mental command to Kendra. The big breasted undead teen giggle, and straddled the boy, kissing him aggressively. Caleb didn't resist. Expecting her niece to appear at any second, Xal took out the vial, and poured it into the glass before filling it with wine. She needed Caleb alive, but subdued. The Dragonheart awakening was already making him highly resistant to the heavily laced wine.

  Pulling Kendra back, she handed him the glass, which he took and downed in a couple of gulps, before going back to the vampire whom took her top off. Shouldn't be long now.

  The vampire queen sat back and watched, as Kendra moved Caleb to the sofa couch, the Asian girl (the fuck her name was, Xal didn't care, and couldn't be bothered to remember what names she pulled out of her ass when introducing her) joined in. Caleb was still resisting the drugs, but watching as Kendra got him naked and climbed on-

  The vampire queen threw Kendra across the pool.

  Shocked at her own jealous action, a bit of panic surfaced in her suddenly clarified mind. Her niece could be back any second! What was she thinking initiating things this way?

  Glancing down at Caleb, she was surprised to see he hadn’t noticed her yeet the big boobed girl, as he groped two other girls. The look in his eyes... Knowing he would soon succumb to the drugs, X'al'antra decided knew it was now or never. Moving the girls off of him, she leaned down as kissed him. He kissed back, eyes barely open, but his body was still functioning nicely.

  “So sorry sweety,” she said to him. “Don't worry, you were only a little bit tricked, and I’m not going to kill you. Well... not permanently. I hope.” Without taking her eyes off his face, she said, “Do it.” The vampire girls in the room fell upon the Dragonheart, drinking furiously.

  X'al'antra bit into her wrist, and filled a wine cup. "Stop," she commanded, and lifting his head, poured her blood into his mouth. He swallowed without resistance. She got off of him, and watched.

  Caleb lay unmoving.

  Liz checked him. “Dead,” she said, and Kendra started sobbing. “How are you like this?” Monica asked irritably. “It's just so sad,” Kendra whimpered. The vampire Queen ignored the exchange, eyes on the boy, unblinking. If the Dragonheart wasn't as strong as she thought, if her virus pushed his soul from his body, everything she dreamt of, everything she had ever desired - was pretty much fucked.

  Antioch still had a use for the boy, even dead. But the type of dead that removed all trace of the Dragonheart, that was a useless dead. Iiyni vanishing had simply provided her an opportunity she could not pass up, risky and stupid as it was.

  X'al'antra watched and waited. His mark of Christ was still there. Her brood didn’t speak further, as they too watched, stripper music playing in the background. When the Caleb’s wounds began to heal, and his soul mark remained, Xal grinned. “Help me move him. We need to get him into the holding cell, before that bitch returns.”

  She didn’t know how pissed nor how altered Caleb would be once he woke. The Dragonheart combined with the Vamp’yiour’ae, was not a minor threat. Especially since she had given him her full gift, which would allow resistance to her commands. Not that it mattered; he was hers now, and that was something nobody could change. Not even Iiyni.

  Speaking of, X’al’antra was almost looking forward to fighting her. Iiyni was technically stronger, but X’al’antra had planned for this. As soon as Caleb was secured, she would gear up, and guard the door, until the little shit came to fight. And, though it may be rough, here, Iiyni’jeari’eea would fall.

  Finally, after decades of planning, she had won.

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  * * *

  His eyes opened.

  The darkness was not the void it should be, instead full of vibrancy.

  He felt no fear. He was not even angry.

  Sitting up, his body weighed nothing. He rose to standing easily as if he was floating.

  Caleb grinned.

  Not the usual reaction to being drugged, raped, murdered, and demonically infested. Nor did the Dragonheart feel as he would have expected. For one thing, there was no hunger. Wasn’t that part of becoming a vampire? Hunger? Because that is what he was now: a vampire.

  He may not remember exactly what had taken place, but the signs were obvious. What signs? For one, the fangs, that he didn’t know how to retract, or hide, or whatever they did with them. Other than that, it was his senses; hearing, smell, touch - it all had a mild euphoric quality, mixed with clarity and sensitivity he had not had before. A knowledge on top of the feeling.

  Also, he had no heartbeat.

  Strangest of all... was he still felt like himself. He was Caleb.

  Wasn't he?

  Was it possible his existence was that of a newborn demon, with all of Caleb's memories?

  One way to find out. He knelt, and began to pray, asking Christ for help and forgiveness.

  He did not explode nor burst into flames.

  Caleb grinned wickedly. X’al’antra had made a huge mistake. Somehow he had become a vampire while retaining his soul, and it came with new power. Power he would use to kill the Vampire Queen and her entire brood. Then, he would find Iiyni, his friends, hunt down the portal device, and go to Aethra. Nothing could stop him now. Nothing. Fucking nothing!

  Listening to the darkness, Caleb was amused with his new hearing. Sound was never something he would have described as having a physical quality. You heard it, you couldn't touch it. No longer. Sound now felt as physical as something he could hold in his hand. Not sure if he liked the change or not, it was still fun, like a new toy to play with.

  Not wanting to be cocky, he chose to spend a few more minutes adjusting to his new senses.

  Eventually Caleb began to... hear something. Only not with his ears, no, this was something new... what could it be... this feeling... he was... sensing someone…

  Oh. It was Kendra.

  Interesting.

  Did this mean he could exhibited control over X'al'antra's children? Reaching out to Kendra with his mind, the sensation was intimate as touching her with his hands.

  Scowling into the vivid darkness, he invaded the mind of the sleeping vampire, whispered for her to wake up. She did. He continued to whisper into her mind. Seducing. Promising her pleasures she could only imagine, if she were to release him. He felt her resist, and pushed harder; no longer whispering but commanding, her will vanished, giving into him fully. 'Yes, master.' Was her final thought, before he released his connection.

  Standing with a smile, Caleb stepped back from the door and waited, now beginning to feel cravings. A lot of them. The strongest cravings were sexual in nature, and yet...

  The door to his cell opened, and a sleepy Kendra walked in, wearing a thin nightgown, barely longer than a large shirt. Lust filled him to bursting.

  He was going to kill every vampire here, and that wasn't murder, nor a sin, because they were monsters. Pleasing himself with them, and therefor pleasing them would also not be a sin. Why would it? Did we not feel pleasure on a hunt? If we could share that pleasure with our prey, would it not be deemed an act of kindness?

  Violently grabbing Kendra, and forcing a will of submission upon her, she submit with a whimpering moan.

  He was rough. Violent. The pleasure was more involving than would have been when human. Better, yet not as satiating. Not to say it wasn't enjoyable. Okay, it was quite enjoyable; simply lacking... something. Crushing her neck and removing her head while still inside of her, did add a bit of an extra thrill.

  Looking down at Kendra's corpse, it began to decompose, and he felt a bit of regret. It wasn't her fault what had happened to him, it was X'al'antra's.

  Oh well.

  They were still monsters that needed to die. And that wasn't Kendra anyway, but a demon. The girls soul had long since departed her body.

  Walking naked out of his cell, Caleb found himself in what appeared to be a stone cellar hallway, with many doors. Reaching out with his will, he could sense dozens of vampires near him. Most all were females.

  Realizing what he could do to them, he got an erection. Surprised, since he had just had sex, Caleb was more surprised when he looked down. His penis was significantly larger than it should be. That was also when he noticed his abs were shredded. Feeling himself all over, his body felt like it had perfect muscle mass. No more skinny teenager. This vampire shit keeps getting better.

  Not sensing the Vampire Queen, and deciding it best to get rid of her brood while he could, Caleb went room to room, enjoying the females bodies, before killing them.

  At one point some male guards came to investigate, but he controlled them just as easily. He found himself tempted to... experiment with them, ultimately deciding not to. Homosexuality was a sin, after all.

  Or… was it.

  They were not real. Simply toys, in their soulless state. Was it gay if he bought a male sex doll online, for an added thrill? Besides, straight sex outside of marriage was a sin too. So, end of the day, did it really matter? All sex was sin if not married, yet pleasing oneself with a toy… Heh, lets call it a gray area.

  Eventually getting bored, he chose to allow some to live, and simply killed others in their sleep. And each time he chose to allow one to survive, he severed the link they had to the vampire queen. Why do this? Because Caleb was one of the good guys. There was no sin in killing them, but their was also little harm in allowing them the chance to choose God. If they did not, he would simply hunt them down.

  He also severed the link of the two child vampires X’al’antra had made for him. After playing with them, of course. Toys, and all that. But, child looking toys tinged at his heart strings once he was done. Being a man of God gave you such empathy! He even felt bad for not extending the courtesy to the Kendra vampire. To be fair, he had not known such a thing was possible in that moment.

  After all the vampires were either rotting in the dungeon or waiting to flee, Caleb approached the heavy door that lead outside. Opening it, he finally felt physical discomfort when the sun shown upon him. Only discomfort. He was not burning. Lingering in the light, he did begin to experience pain, and was having trouble seeing, though the pain was mild, and his body was not taking any actual damage.

  There was no way X'al'antra had intended this. He would still be on guard to play it safe, until finding the cunt and killing her.

  Time of day was unknowable; the sun was too bright and it took a large amount of will to ignore the discomfort. Still, he reached out, and felt more vampires that had been missed. Caleb spent the next hour hunting down and killing the remaining males, as all the females had been in the underground quarters (other than the sole loli). Still no sign of X'al'antra. Even the vampires he questioned didn't know where she had gone.

  Having no idea where the Vampire Queen could been, he needed to shift his priorities. And next on the list was finding Iiyni. Heading out of the mansion and back into the sunlight, Caleb felt lightheaded. Iiyni would have to wait until the sun went down... He had exerted himself too much, and the sun was draining. If he began to weaken, and X'al'antra returned, after seeing what had been done, she would likely kill him on the spot. Or be proud of him. A game not worth playing. No, he needed to move somewhere safer. Rest, eat, then set out to search after the sun went down.

  Taking a roundabout way down into town, Caleb discovered he was now able to move at high speeds without Trell Physics. Unlike quickstepping, which was a sudden rush in one direction, this was simply moving fast. And, of course, it was nothing like media portrayed it to be, as nothing appeared to be moving slower to him while he sped along. It was actually kinda the opposite. Just like his body could move with supernatural speed, his mind could process what was happening at that same speed.

  Oddly enough, he still couldn't register things around him during a quickstep. It must have something to do with the faith-based nature of those movements.

  Unsure just how far he had gone, Caleb figured it was enough, and desperately wanted to get out of the sun. Choosing a house at random, the nude ripped vampire, walked right in the unlocked back door; sensing two people inside, and in the same room.

  Rushing to be in front of them, a young man and woman, sitting on a couch with the obvious intent to binge watch and chill. “Who are you?!” the man demanded, standing, and coming at Caleb, who punched a hole through his chest by reflex. Oops.

  The woman started screaming.

  The sound arousing him.

  At least he was -slightly- disturbed at the reaction. Then he smelled the blood on his arm.

  Caleb didn't even hear her screaming anymore, the blood had him transfixed. He wanted to taste it. And the desire felt so… scandalous. Enticing. He licked his arm, and moaned. Now this was pleasure.

  But something was off… The way he felt looking at the blood was... rapidly fading! His eyes went to the no longer screaming female, to see her fumbling with a cell phone. And the sound of her pounding heart re-triggered the desire. Ah, dead blood. It needs to be fresh. Media got that part right, it seems.

  How many men had he killed when fighting the Order? Did all or any of them deserve to die? Yet, was it not justified in war? This man on the ground was a civilian, far as he knew, and only defending his home, the unfortunate death an accident; a casualty of war.

  The woman that was struggling to use her phone, would killing her be any different? It would cause a shit storm if she called 911, potentially putting the life of him and his friends, the good guys, in danger…He could try to disable her, but what if he failed, and she went back to screaming, alerting the neighbors? The bitch was a threat, and her life needed to end. God understood.

  And being a vampire now, Caleb felt nothing wrong with feeding upon her instead of simply snapping the -innocent- bitch’s neck neck. It was natural for one of his kind, nothing wrong with it. Could nature be guilty of sin?

  He hadn't realized he was trembling, and grinning. Nor had it crossed his mind that he was still naked, and currently had an erection. The woman froze, noticing his grin, the deep evil hunger in his eyes. The phone falling from her hand, too afraid to resist, too afraid to even faint as the monster lunged.

  Caleb didn’t rape her, no, that was not okay. This woman would suffer no such fate. But he did rip her clothes off before biting into her neck. Her body was nice, not that it had mattered; all her wanted was the skin on skin contact when he tasted her. Killed her.

  In his grip, she finally got enough control of herself to begin screaming again. Though she never screamed for help, just screamed, and sobbed. He allowed her to continue, no longer caring about being heard. The sound combined with the feeling of feeding for the first time, the fear and pain as he took her life; never had he felt such an all encompassing bliss.

  Though a part of him still wanted more. Wanted to adjust how he held her, to slide inside of her. To please himself in other ways while he fed.

  * * *

  Confused, Caleb didn’t know where he was for a moment. Then noticed he was laying on the corpse of the woman he had fed from. The high must have made him lose consciousness. Standing, it was dark outside. Obviously the neighbors either hadn’t heard the screams, or hadn’t cared. He wasn't sensing any-

  Pain shot through his chest, causing a stagger. He knelt hand over his un-beating heart. The pain had been severe, and sudden. Remaining kneeling, and after a moment with no more chest pains, he stood, and began to move around, dismissing it as an unimportant oddity.

  Caleb felt wonderful. Refreshed. It was time to get back to his friends. he just had to figure out where the fuck they were. North was a good bed, so that was the way he would head. Looking for Iiyni felt pointless. She could be anywhere, and if the imp still hadn't shown up by the time he found the others, they could look for her together.

  * * *

  It took far longer than expected to get a lead on his friends whereabouts, and it came in the form of a scent. The new sense of smell took some adjusting. It wasn't that it was overwhelming, but the opposite. Caleb could smell so much detail now, it blurred things into an underwhelming detail. His nose could pick up a spectrum of detailed that felt vivid as something he could see with his eyes. And just like you didn't take in every tiny detail you saw at any given moment, it was the same for this newfound scent.

  Following the scent, he knew it was one of his group, but couldn't place who. A female, but which one? As it got stronger, the scent finally became an individual. A scent he knew well, but had never truly known until now. Reba. It was quite pleasant, if not still faint. Stronger, yes, but the scent an individual left was subtle, if not specific. You needed to be paying attention, as it didn't exactly scream at you.

  What did scream at him was the deer who had been shitting and farting everywhere in this area. Whatever they ate had definitely not agreed with them, and it was screwing up his tracking.

  Once confirming the location of his friends, Caleb stayed as far away as he could, doing his best to conceal his presence, though unsure if he was doing it correctly; didn't want Masque to notice him especially. Though Masque traveled quite far from their camp most days, covering areas the others could not. Caleb knew this was going to be touchy. If he just waltz on into camp, there was a good chance a fight would ensue.

  Approaching them individually was best. He had been hoping Ally would wander from camp, but it seemed it was Reba that wandered the farthest, looking for materials. And Reba was always one of the first ones up, liking to get in training or gathering in the mornings.

  Deciding to wait until just before sunrise, as it was his best bet to catch Reba alone, Caleb pulled back to a safe distance to wait. As the sky begin to brighten, he moved to the edge of where Reba's scent was the strongest. It didn't take long until he sensed her approaching.

  Upon seeing her, desire began to stir, and his original intent no longer felt so important. He had always wanted Reba. Seeing her, experiencing her, as this new him... It was almost more than the boy could take. And there was no reason for him not to get what he wanted, was there? She would say yes.

  Caleb walked out in front of her on the trail. She gasped at the large naked man that appeared, trying to assess the threat, staff quickly in hand. "Woah, Reba, it's me," he reassured. "Caleb?" she looked him over, and blushed, averting her eyes, relaxing her stance.

  "You scared the hell out of me!" she lectured, wondering how to act casual in this awkward situation, before her instincts started to blare warnings. Caleb words replayed in her mind. His voice was... amused. Cold. She studied him now without embarrassment. He was ripped. And his expression... something was off. No, something was wrong. "Are you okay?" she asked hesitantly, then looked around. "Where's Iiyni?"

  “Reba, we need to talk,” he said, walking closer, grinning. Bad move. Reba noticed his fangs, and immediately went back to battle stance. He held up his hands now, and froze,"I’m still me! I’m still me!” Caleb still hadn't figured out how vampires hid their fangs.

  “What did you do with Iiyni?!” Reba snarled. “I’m actually kinda complimented you think I could take her," Caleb's voice held no fear; it exuded pride and arrogance. "I know you think I’m hot, I just didn't know you thought I was powerful.” He grinned bigger. Reba's mind was spinning. “Okay, fine," he conceded, "we made it to X'al'antra's, Iiyni left to scout the area, and she never came back. I was stuck with the vampires, trying to buy time. X'al'antra drugged me, and I woke up like this. But don't worry, I’m still me! Masque can prove it- I still have my mark!” Reba had not relaxed in the slightest.

  “Th-then why approach me alone?” she stammered, her pulse picking up. “So my friends don't react like you are right now, and decide to attack me as a group. Figured one on one I had a better chance of getting someone to listen,” Caleb explained, looking her up and down. “Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked.

  All of her training felt scrambled. It wasn't making sense! Sure, she had always thought Caleb was cute. Everyone did. He was a moron, but an attractive one. And he definitely looked great right now. But he was also a vampire! For some reason though, her mind felt more like a flustered girl being flirted with, than someone who's life was in danger.

  "Why do you think?" he spoke seductively, moving slowly towards her. "Ever since I woke like this, the world around me has contained so much... more. Yet nothing sates my desires. Nothing... yet." Reba's gasped involuntarily, and moved back, trying to keep distance from the teenage vampire.

  “Oh come on, I know you’ve watched things you shouldn’t spying where you could." Caleb's words visibly flustered the girl, she frowned and seemed more focused, though she almost tripped in her slow back-peddling. Now Reba was panicking. Mortal threat in front of her wasn't enough to illicit a proper fight or flight, but being confronted as a pervert - that was freaking her out. There was no way he could know everything! Who had caught her? Had to have been Iiyni, that little narc!

  “Ooookay, we need to get back to the others,” Reba told him, tyring to focus on frazzled mind, barely keeping a semblance of proper guard. "Something is up with you Caleb,” and with me! “we need to get you checked out." That irritated him. So he looked her in the eyes, and began walking towards her confidently. Reba stammered something, looked about to attack, until her eyes fell to his chest, and abs, and inevitably his erection.

  He rushed her, lifted her, and set her roughly, but controlled, on her back. “C-Caleb I can-” he kissed her passionately, and she dropped her staff. Reba grabbed onto his shoulders, and started kissing back. He pulled away and ripped her shirt, tearing it off. Reba tried to speak, to tell him to stop, but he had her bra unsnapped; removed before she could say a word.

  “Stop,” she finally muttered, telling herself in her mind what an idiot she was. He just kept going. “Caleb stop.”Ignoring her yet again, he started kissing her neck, and moved his right hand down the front of her pants. That made her panic a bit, and she began to resist finally, mind clearly, grabbing his wrist.

  A bit annoyed that she started to struggle, Caleb rough, yet -he thought- playfully, overpowered her; grabbing her arms. As she ramped up her struggles, so did he with the aggression. It quickly turned into full out wrestling. She even punched him a few times, not that it did any damage.

  He managed to get her pants off, and his fingers inside- her eyes flashed white, and she elbowed him in the face, the force was much stronger than her previous blows, causing him to lose his grip. Reba shoved, tossing the vampire several yards away. She hurried to her staff, and turned- Caleb flew her backwards, and hard on her back. The impact was forceful enough Reba again dropped her staff, and slid a good distance, Caleb on top of her.

  Her eyes were still blazing, and she was snarling with fury. Caleb was grinning like a madman. This insane strength of hers, how hard she was fighting, fucking this bitch was going to be even more fun than he had hoped for! She wanted to tease him like that, get him all excited, and expect him to stop?! If someone sold him something, then said never mind and wanted their money back, and he ignored them and kept walking, did that make him a thief? No. No, it fucking didn’t! He was going to get what she sold.

  Besides, she'd love it, she just didn't know it yet.

  Adjusting to her strength, Caleb managed to overpower the brunette once again. He was not being so gentle this time. Getting the rest of her clothes off was easy. Flipping on her stomach, he grabbed her hips and lifted her high enough, to thrust into. She made a noise, and her struggling changed. He knew you should just thrust in like that, but he needed to get in before she could kick.

  Reba finally screamed no. He grinned, and realized she would probably orgasm soon. Her first orgasm. He wanted to see her face with that happened. He guessed he should finish up quick too, in case one of the others came to investigate the noise. Long as he made her cum first, there wouldn't be any issue, since she would be fawning all over him. Fuck, maybe even fall in love with him. Ally would love that.

  Pulling out and and flipping her over, he briefly imagined a threesome with Ally, then he looked down at Reba's face.

  She... was sobbing? Her expression... I don't understand.

  Pain shot through his chest again, then a second time. *badump* He grimaced, doubling over, and Reba tried to scoot away. Snarling, confused more angry, he yanked her back to him, and grabbed her hips.

  Hard. Too hard. He felt her hip bones crush in his grasp. She screamed in agony, and Caleb, agonizing pain of his own, like his heart was being crushed, knowing he needed to silence that scream: punched her in the face. The blow was powerful enough to cave in most of the left side of her face and forehead.

  Standing, chest feeling like someone was repeatedly stabbing him, he looked at Reba; seizing, blood between her legs an don her thighs, half her face gone. His heart rapidly slammed, and he almost screamed himself.

  'What... How did this... No! She wanted-'

  *BADUMP*

  'Fuck, this isn't my fault!'

  *Badump, badump, badumpbadumpbadump*

  'WHY DID SHE HAVE TO RESIST LIKE THAT?!'

  *thumpthumthumpthumpthimpthumpthumpthump-------*

  His heart stopped, and he fell face forward onto the ground.

  The pain was gone. So was the pressure. Snarling, Caleb shook off whatever the fuck that was, and getting up, went to Reba's small bag that had been discarded. She kept a healing potion in it. He knew almost anything would let her body heal, but something intended to heal was the best option.

  Her seizing had stopped by the time he got back to her. Pouring most of the medicine in her mouth, he then clamped a hand over it to make sure she didn't spit it out. Aspirating it, coughing and choking, he knew as long as it got in her, it would be fine. Lungs, stomach, whatever. Reba now lay still. He wanted to make sure she healed as fast of possible, so poured the remainder on her face and between her legs.

  Staring at her naked body... Such a shame… If she just hadn't of freaked out for no reason, they would have had so much fun. And now, because she chose to be a bitch about it, this was going to cause a shit storm. Not like he had meant to hurt her, he just didn't know his own strength yet. Granted, he shouldn't have struck her, but he had hit her plenty during their training. It was reflex for fucks sake. Besides, she'll be healed in no time. Wont even be in pain when she wakes up.

  Though, being a girl, she would make a big deal out of this most likely. Probably call it rape, and use it to try to convince the others he was an evil vampire. Masque would see his soul, and that would be that, but then what? People always believe rape accusations, guilty or not, long as the girl acted emotional.

  Ugh, whatever. They would eventually get over it. He's was the Dragonheart. And when they apologized to him for believing Reba, he would make sure to forgive her in front of them. He was just that nice of a guy. Would even let her fuck him again. Surely she will be thinking about it after she wakes up, the weird uptight shit she does would just force her to hide it, and lash out.

  Or... maybe he was in the wrong? Have to always think of all the angles to not be a fool. And if he was wrong, she was going to be pissed, and would definitely get the others to rally against him, soul or no soul. Fuck! That's what you get for thinking with your dick.

  Carefully, he headed the way she had come, his mind spinning to try to think of anything to fix this situation. Then, sensing her, a plan quickly began to formulate in his mind. Once again a grin spread across his face when he remembered something Feldyn had said. Nearby was a small two story cabin. And inside was Gigi. Who was going to be the answer to all of his problems.

  Caleb was a vampire. That meant he could make other vampires. If he, as the Dragonheart, kept his soul, then it led to believe any vampire he made would retain theirs. Gigi wanted power. She also had expressed her desire to be a vampire on numerous occasions. If she was turned, she would have an immortal loli body. Who -in his immediate group of females friends- wouldn't want such a thing? Not to mention having a cute little blonde vampire loli companion. How perfect was that?

  True, it might not work and she could die, or lose her soul. Same thing, really. But hadn't Feldyn dreamt of Gigi as a vampire or something? Nameless had spent far too much time observing others and sharing his speculations and views with Caleb. It had greatly annoyed him at the time, but now he was grateful for the extra insight. Either way though, did it really matter? Caleb didn't want anything bad to happen to the kid, but prophecy, or visions or whatever, they needed to happen didn't they? Wasn't that how prophecies worked? This was the perfect opportunity to fulfill it, and it would tip the scales heavily in his favor.

  When the others saw that Gigi also had her soul, and all the powers she gained, they would trust him more. Ally would probably also wish to be turned. With all of that on his side, Reba wouldn't dare try to slander him, and there would be no rift between him and his friends. Then, with all their new power, they would go find Iiyni, save her if needed, locate the portal device, and go to Aethra. It was perfect! Just one more temporary sacrifice, and everything would be on the fast track to getting off of Earth.

  Approaching the house, he was careful in case Masque was lurking nearby. He still sensed no one. Wow, everyone is always so worried about the kid, but they leave her all alone? Fucking idiots. Good thing Caleb was going to give her the power to defend herself. Entering the front door, he made his way up the stairs, and to the end of the hall, to a room where the child was sleeping on a bed, cuddled in some blankets. “Gigi,” he said loud enough to wake her, “I have a present for you.”

  She roused pretty quickly, sitting up, rubbing her eyes. “Wake up, Geeg, I have something for you.”

  “You came back," she mumbled, then added, "I can see your penis.” Yawning, she flopped back over, intent to continuing sleeping.

  Not having time for this, he ripped the blankets off her. A bit startled, the small amount of adrenaline, finally got her to pay attention. “Who are you? ... Caleb?” The child had gone pale. She was afraid. No, terrified. Gigi was never like this. He wanted to slap that look off her face. “I am going to give you something you have always wanted,” he smiled, hoping she would calm and quit looking at him in terror. “Power.” At his words she began to tremble and softly cry, shaking her head. “No, Gigi doesn't want it.” Caleb was irritated. Why is she acting all wimpy now? Oh well, she'd be over it soon enough.

  “Grow up,” he said, and grabbed her by the throat, lifting her out of bed. She struggled wildly, kicking and clawing, which he ignored, looking her over.

  Gigi still had those crazy abs that Reba's elixir had given her. In fact, Geeg had decent tone to her entire body. Caleb had to admit, she looked nice for a kid. Smelled good, too. One thing with a strong sense of smell is you became aware of things you would rather not be. Wasn't a big deal, like noticing a zit on a hot girl, you just ignored it. Caleb was surprised that Reba had smelled clean as she had, but the scent of the little blonde was even more of a shock.

  Children were always so dirty. Had to force them to bathe, got food all over their faces, he didn't even want to imagine their unsanitary bathroom habits. Gigi, since the moment he had met her, defied those rules. The only times she made a mess when eating, or was overly dirty, every time was a calculated act to annoy or get attention. Outside of that, the kid was very clean. When they weren't dealing with some apocalypse or other, anyway.

  None of this mattered now, the important thing was to turn her quickly before the others arrived. Killing all of his friends would seriously upset his mood. Caleb knew he needed to drain her of most of her blood, and then make her drink his. At least he thought so. Fuck, she was tiny! He wasn’t positive about exact artery locations, and didn’t want to just start cutting her hoping to nick one. Only other way to drain blood was to drink it. Dying to know what child blood tasted like anyway, he figured it was the more humane option.

  Gigi began to piss herself in fear as he sat on the bed, and lay her on her back on his lap. His revulsion halted abruptly when the smell hit him as benign. Realizing he was again giving into curiosities that didn’t matter, he had also been holding her throat a bit too tight. Releasing it she started coughing. Caleb took the moment so do what needed done, and lifted her up to bite into her neck. Keeping one hand over her tiny mouth in case she screamed, he was the one that wished to scream! No wonder the Vampire Queen preferred children! The taste! Oh god, the taste!

  So lost in the experience, he almost drank too much. Gigi was still conscious, but she was very lethargic, and her heart was freaking out. “My bad!” he laughed, laying her on the bed. He bit into his wrist, and it healed. Frowning, he did it again, but he didn’t bleed, and then healed again. Gigi was dying, he couldn't fuck this up!

  *BADUMP*

  He started at the crushing pain in his chest, and felt panic. ‘Cmon man, cmon, figure this out!’ The fuck did he ever think this was a good idea?! Holy shit, Gigi was ding! Caleb bit a huge chunk out of his forearm, and spit it to the side. Now he was bleeding! It definitely wasn't the way a normal human bleeds, but he didn't have time to ponder.

  “Okay, now drink,” he told Gigi, who was still aware enough to resist, refusing to open her mouth. “You are going to die if you don't!” She still refused. He growled, and pain spike through his chest again. “Drink, you little bitch!” Grabbing her hair with his other hand, he yanked, the shock was enough for Gigi to reflexively opened her mouth, Caleb forcing his bleeding wound inside and grabbing her jaw.

  Hindsight told him he should have put the blood in a cup or something first, to make sure she got enough. “Swallow. I said SWALLOW!” he pushed his arm forcefully enough across her face she couldn't close her mouth regardless of how hard she tried, and pinched her nose shut. She eventually panicked, and choked, swallowing the blood, gagging, body twitching, too weak to properly flail. Caleb released her nose but, kept his arm in her mouth for another few seconds.

  Finally removing it, she was whimpering, gasping and coughing. His arm had healed. “Well, that better be enough. I cant seem to make myself bleed for some stupid rea-”

  He sensed Masque.

  FUCK! Caleb forgot Gigi had been able to call to him with her mind before, when under extreme duress. At Jeff's they got her to try and do it again, and she had either been faking failure, or honestly hadn't been able to. It also crossed his mind that when invisible, Lance was said to be completely undetectable, and that fucking cat may have been the one to retrieve the vampire!

  Caleb needed to get out of her now. If they found him like this, he would likely be forced to kill them all! Thinking about just running, he knew Masque would chase him to the ends of the Earth. No, he needed a distraction, and had maybe a second left to find one.

  Feeling like Masque was coming right at the window of the room he was in, 'Sorry Geeg,' Caleb thought, ripped her throat out with his teeth, and throwing her through the window into a charging Masque; who caught her in his arms, and allowed himself to land on the ground outside; eyes on the naked child, throat ripped out, tears streaming out of panicking eyes, as she struggled to breath.

  “NO!” Masque shouted, looking around, “REBA!” he yelled “REBAAAA!” Where was she?! Masque could smell her- and her blood. Was Reba killed too?! Had this really been Caleb like Gigi had said in his mind?! Why had she waited so long to call for him?!

  Feldyn and Ally came quickstepping over, having been alerted by Lance that something was wrong. Reaching the large kneeling vampire, Ally screamed and covered her mouth when she saw Gigi. “Oh God,” Feldyn’s mind went blank. “No, no, no, no,” Masque kept saying, stroking Gigi's hair. He knew it was too late. He knew. They all knew. She was sconds from death. No potion could repair this damage in time. How Gigi was even still alive enough to be trying to move, eyes bulging, hands clawing...

  “What did this?” Feldyn asked, frozen in place. His mind desperately trying to understand what was happening. Lance appeared on Masques leg, and crawled onto Gigi, rubbing on her, purring, doing whatever he could to try and give comfort, meowing over and over. Ally, on her knees now, was trying to control herself, “Gigi, oh my poor baby Gigi," she said to her little cousin, rubbing her cheek, "you're okay. You're okay.”

  Gigi's eyes bulged more, and she trashed with a renewed pointless vigor. The death throes forced Ally into sobs of horror, Feldyn falling to his knees.

  Then, little Gigi went still, eyes wide, mouth open, hands contorted into claws.

  Lance yowled, Ally screamed no, and Masque threw his head back, roaring in anguish.

  Gigi, who had gone through so much, survived despite all odds... was dead.