Blood Cure

by Varsha Dinesh

He looked a little bundle of joy to me.

He was only as small as the palm of my hand, a miniscule baby, hardly anything dangerous or an entity to be feared. He had the most intense blue eyes; I saw when I reluctantly peeked over the shroud that covered all but his head..My breath had caught in my throat when the weak mother had handed him to me, the oneshe would have done good to fear and shy away from.

‘My child….’ Her low, soft hiss rang in my ears. ‘, Take good care of my child…’

Her white blond hair was matted with blood; eyes barely alight with life. She would notlive to see dawn, and if left with her, neither would the baby.

I debated endlessly, questioning my ethics and my morals…could I stoop as low as to nip the life of a hapless newbornshort? …Could I risk what he could do to humanity if I saved him from a certain death? …

‘Promise…me…’, the mother gasped, seeing her end looming close, and clutching my hand‘…promise…you must…help…my child, my Emil…don’t let him be killed…’

I ripped my hand away from her hold, appalled and frightened despite my resolve to be the best slayer. I have seen others like me gently smirk, an expression that madeeven vampires cringe, and slash newborns into pieces. I had never had to facesuch a situation, and so had never discovered my weakness.

Earlier that night, I had come down into her underground hideout and lost my comrade to her wildcat attack as she strived to protect her baby. She seemed alone, and thatwas new to me…I had never seen the cold-blooded ones living alone. It was alltoo easy to outdo her inside the dark, wet chamber she had made her home. I hadalmost walked out of the chamber after incapacitating her and dooming her todeath when she had cried out to me, praying me to take mercy on her son.

‘Give him to me!’, I had cried, a feral snarl, savage hatred burning in me. ‘Give your bruteto me, and I will end it here! I will destroy him before your very eyes, evilwraith…’

‘Mercy, please…mercy, he is but a few hours old…’

I had meant to crush his throat in my hand the moment she handed him over, but my heart did not allow me. We did not have children, Mythri and I, and I had always wanted a boy-

The thought repulsed me.

I chastised myself for thinking that way, and brought myself to throw the boy to the dying mothers’ lap, but before I could, she spoke again, desperately, her voice but awhisper of pain ‘You call us savage and cruel…you find us appalling…changethat, gentle slayer…change my boy, make him one of yours…let him live, he knowsnothing of his true nature…’

He was a beautiful baby, soft-skinned and delicate like all infants but icy cold, likeall of his kind.

‘Have mercy…mercy…’the woman whispered, then took a ragged breath, and was gone.

I stood holding her sniffling baby for a while, then turned and walked back to the ladder,and up into the sunshine.

*

‘A vampire baby…’ said Mythri, amused when I recounted my story and gave her the boy. ‘,Well, he is the most beautiful baby I have seen’

‘And the coldest’ I reminded her.

She caressed him. ‘I could love him as my own’

‘No’

‘Iha, listen to me, she was right, we can change him, change the way he lives…’

‘He will die without blood’

‘Do you propose to kill him?’ she hissed, and as I stood in indecision, she began tosing a lullaby.

‘I have not heard you sing in years’ I said, reproachfully.

‘I have not been so happy in years…I just know he belongs here…with me, growing up as my son…’

‘Mythri…’

‘He need not hunt humans…we can find another way, a way to curb his wild nature…’

‘There is no way…’

I saw tears in her beautiful eyes and knew I should never have brought the child here, now she would never let him go.

‘You will regret this’

‘No, Iha. Never’

I sighed. ‘He has a name’

She brightened. ‘Yes?’

‘Emil. Emil D’Souza, the vampire boy’

PART 2- The Craving

He dragged his bicycle reluctantly homeward, wheels scraping against the tarmac, chain rattling at the sides. Night was falling. Already the sun was low; he could see its darkening plumes through the canopy of trees at the end of the sidewalk. A few neighbors were out, watering plants despite being told to conserve water; the heat of the summer was getting on every one’s nerves.

His blue eyes scrutinized the houses lined on each side of him as he walked, shoulders sagging with each step as the cozy yellow house came into view.

He did not want to go home.

He wanted to race on his bike, feel the wind in his face and see the pavement disappear beneath the wheels.

But rules were rules. The sun was disappearing, and he had to be inside the house before darkness set in, and his father came home.

His father had so many rules imposed…living under his eye was like being in an army boot camp. Secretly, Emil thought that army boot camps must be more lenient than the vigilant mastery of his papa.

Papa had warned him that the darkness had the power to change him, change his nature…that the darkness could make the Thirst overwhelming. He had told him that when Emil had broken the rules for the first, and last, time. His stern eye had burned him as he said ‘Let me not find you playing outside after dark again…darkness will undo everything your mother and I have strived to keep you from doing’

The words had posed a foreboding message: don’t play in the dark. You will lose control after dark. You will turn savage after dark. You will become the vampire boy.

Emil shuddered, remembering.

Once, he had let the darkness tempt him. He had a rabbit, a fluffy white he called Cotton; he had been playing with her when the change had come. He had thrown her into the cage and run out, to escape the bloodlust that had suddenly overwhelmed him; run to his mother, who knew what he needed.

His mother was different from his father. She never cringed from his touch like his father did. She never hesitated to give him what he required.

And the rabbit knew by now to give him space when his brilliant blue irises tinged with ruby.

He didn’t like being feared due to this vampire thing. He wondered why his father had adopted him if he was repelled by the way his son was. Emil still did not fully understand it. Whether it was permanent or not…

At school, Emil was an outcast. The blue eyed curiosity. The freak that was too brilliant at everything. Mama had dyed his white blond hair dark before letting him go to school. Everyone knew that vampires were light haired and blue-eyed. Mama didn’t want them to put two and two together and run away from him screaming.

Only a few people knew the truth about him other than Papa and Mama. Emil knew he was adopted, he had faint memories of people- slayers- coming over to see him over the years, to see the oddity he was. He had heard them telling Papa They always go wrong, Iha, always go barbaric…you should just dispose him before he starts sharpening those fangs

There had never been kindness in their eyes. Only disgust. Hatred. They had sneered at him, said ‘Don’t try anything on Iha and Mythri, bloodsucker, or we’ll come around, and stick the Holy Knife in your throat. You’d like that!’

Mama had told them off, but Papa had looked dubiously at Emil.

Emil knew Papa only doubted him because of the vampirism. How he hated being doubted and despised and sometimes feared!

He walked, lost in thoughts, until he came to the house. The door stood wide and thrown open. Emil narrowed his eyes. This was unusual. The door was always closed.

A sharp noise behind him made him turn.

Suddenly, he was face to face with a beautiful woman with pinkish blonde hair. She was sucking brazenly at red blood smeared on her fingers. She looked at him, into his eyes, at the suggestive blond lights in his silky cap of dark hair and a wide smile split her face, revealing pointed teeth.

‘Vampire boy…’ she hissed, moving closer to him, the curtain of her lovely hair swinging into her face. ‘, Smell blood? Ah, I’m sharing today…’

‘Get…get away from me’ he whispered. He hated his own kind. Hated them. They repelled him. He was not one of them. He would never be.

‘Child…’ she said, softening her tone from the playful arrogance to a more motherly approach. ‘, Will you tell me your name? You seem frightened’

He let the bicycle fall to the ground with a crash and ran from her, into the house, appalled, sick with the sight of her. He closed the door at her shocked face and only then sank to the floor in relief. He knew vampires couldn’t walk through doors.

Because of course, he couldn’t himself.

What had she meant she was sharing her victim? What had she been doing in their house?

The house suddenly seemed too silent.

Emil moved to the kitchen.

The empty sink and the absence of his cheery, welcoming mother sent warning bells ringing in his head.

He moved towards the closed storage room door.

‘Mama?’

His ears perked up. There was heavy, labored breathing on the other side of the door.

‘Mama?’

He froze with his hand on the latch, blue eyes widening as he felt his heart speed up abnormally, the blood beginning to pound deafeningly in his ears.

He clenched his fists into balls, trying, trying to ignore the inexorably penetrating, exquisite scents drifting to him, taking control of his brain. The polished silver dinner plates caught his reflection- he was aghast by his own ruby tinged irises.

‘Blood’ he moaned, with as much longing as revulsion.

A sort of horrific irony, considering what he was.

He could feel his body craving to throw open that door and get to the spilled blood, regardless of whose blood it was, to get to the exquisite elixir he craved.

His lips were dry from the thirst, his mind half-crazed from resisting the memories of the taste that would surely overwhelm him if released.

I can’t run away.

What had happened to Mama? Her blood was spilled in the storage room and he was standing here, here, right outside, unable to go in and help her, for fear he would hurt her. He fought himself with no success.

His hand grabbed the latch, he was about to fling it open, run in, quench the thirst…

Pain.

He winced in torment as his teeth sank into his own white skin, but didn’t release himself. He madly sucked up his own blood. This reduced the bloodlust; just enough for him to get away from the room, to pull his unyielding self away from the tempting aroma in that room.

The question reverberated in his head, again and again as fear choked him.

No. She could not be dead.

He wiped furiously at the blood smears on his lips and hurried to the phone, shaking uncontrollably, tears pouring down his face from acute self-restraint, and the knowledge that any moment he might snap and go hunting for the luscious wine he lusted for.

Papa’s cell phone rang and rang but no one picked up. Desperate, he tried again. Still no answer.

No other way.

His fingers shook as he keyed in the emergency hotline.

If you cant help yourself, if there’s no one here who can help you, call this number.

Papa’s voice rang clearly in Emil’s head. If you can’t help yourself. Meaning if he couldn’t control the appalling need.

He was sickened and nauseated at himself for thirsting something as repulsive as human blood.

Your kind does, his Uncle Jai had leered. His kind. He shuddered, passionate hatred and denial welling up in him. Savage men and women who sank their curved canines into the veins of defenseless humans! Fully grown parasites, freaks of nature, perverse, wild, fearsome, repulsive animals!

He refused to accept it. He was a good boy, a normal school going boy, not a savage.

He was Iha and Mythri’s son, not a cruel hunter.

He would not accept vampirism.

He would not accept the stories of them being fiercely beautiful.

Savage. Uncouth.

That was how it was. That was the truth.

‘Hullo?’

‘Uh…I…um…’his throat was raw. Voice would not come.

‘Hullo?’

The voice was female, husky and very witchy in a measured way.

‘I…am…’ he debated whether he should hang up.

‘Need help? In trouble?’ she trilled, tunefully.

‘Y…yes…I mean, …no, I don’t…don’t know’ he sobbed. Time was running out. He was going to snap.

‘Blood trouble?’ she said, with a note of dawning comprehension in her tone.

‘N…no…’

‘Desperate?’ she asked, sympathetically.

‘It’s not- ’ he cried, dismayed.

‘Oh, baby, isn’t anyone around? You could try your own blood to keep it at bay till you find something to take from – ’

He hung up, shivering and scandalized. What did that woman think of him? Did she think him feral?

The control was growing weaker. He tore the skin off the top of his right hand middle finger, and put it in his mouth, horrified when a wave of pleasure passed through him at the welcome pain.

Crude. Uncivilized.

He felt sick, revulsion sending him into paroxysms of fear and self-hatred.

He called his father again, crying, hopelessness burning him.

‘Hullo?’

‘Papa!’ he cried out through half a mouthful of his own blood.

‘Emil? What’s wrong?’

‘Mama…seems…hurt…’ he gasped, the wave of relief making it impossible for him to speak ‘, Can’t…help. I need… I need…’

His father hung up. Emil knew he was on his way.

He dragged himself to his room, locked himself up. Barricaded his door to hamper him from going out if his senses took over his brain.

He had never been so pushed to savagery.

PART 3 – The Cure

EMIL

It was such a relief to hear Papa trying to break down his door.

He had come to when the house began to shake with Papa’s repeated banging. He rubbed his eyes, and forced himself out of the bed, moving to the door like a sleepwalker.

‘I’m coming, Papa’

‘Emil, baby, are you okay?’

‘Uh-huh’ he hummed, feeling sick inside. Papa shouldn’t be asking him this; he should be trying to get Mama to the hospital. Wait…no, she couldn’t have…

He pushed away the barriers obstructing the door and flew into his father’s arms.

‘Is Mama…?’

Papa took his face in his hands and searched his eyes. Looking for red in the sapphire? He wondered.

‘You didn’t’

It was not a note of relief or a question.

It was pride.

Emil could read that off his face.

‘I thought I would…I thought I would become like…like them…’ he shook uncontrollably, and his heart began hammering wildly again. ‘, You know I don’t want…I don’t have to…’

‘Of course not, sweetheart. You were wonderful, today…I wouldn’t have fared better’

He felt immense relief as Papa cradled him.

‘Mama…?’ asked Emil, suddenly remembering the cause of all this terror.

His father’s face hardened. ‘In the hospital. She’s…she’ll be all right’

Something in that voice was not all that right…

‘Are we going there now?’

‘Yes. If you are ready’

‘I am’

‘Are you sure, dear?’

There was fear in Papa’s voice.

Emil looked down. ‘Yes’

‘Not to worry. I’m sure you’ll be fine, child. You make me proud.’

He felt a small smile tugging at his lips. That felt good to hear.

‘We’ll…go? I want to see Mama’

Papa picked him up and stared intensely into his eyes. There was a lot of love in those eyes, a lot of pride…and doubt. There was fire, fierce hatred against them who had hurt Mythri…and confusion.

And something Emil had never thought he’d see in those eyes.

Fear.

                                    *

IHA

I watched the boy as we sat under the glaring lights of the Slayers’ secret hospital. The doctor, a good man, was attending Mythri, trying to deduce the cure.

We already knew the analysis of course.

Blood poisoning.

The word rang in my head mockingly, driving away every other thought that tried to take position in my head. The vampire had begun the cycle of transformation, and if she didn’t get the cure soon, I would lose her…to those scions of the night.

To those wretched…

No.

That was beyond tolerable.

Why couldn’t she have been killed?

Death was a better option than this. I felt hope deserting me. This very morning, she had been her own true self, smiling and singing as she readied the broken boy sitting next to me for a normal day of school…. this was so unfair. I felt as much a child as Emil sitting here, in the pristine waiting room, maybe as helpless as a newborn. How petty our lives were!

She now rested in the icy depths of the cryogenic chamber, her blood frozen to still her heart, to stop the transformation until the cure could be found. Emil was sitting by me, his head between his knees, sobbing inconsolably. His blue eyes were already red, but from crying.  He’d become unreachable the moment the doctor had revealed Mythri’s condition to us. He hated his kind as much as I did. That gave me a curious feeling.

There were other slayers with us now, sitting across the room: my brother, Jai; the twins Arav and Amithi; the pretty Devyani, who looked like she belonged with a fashion label than with us…

‘Was it…?’ Snarled Jai, as Emil looked up.

I shook my head. ‘No. In fact he was the one who informed me…I would have been too late if…’

I smiled at the boy, put a hand around him protectively.

Jai made a strangled sound that was somewhere between a gasp and a groan. Emil snuggled closer to me.

Arav’s face split into a grin as he looked intently at something quite out of my sight. I felt my heart flip painfully as a stretcher was wheeled around the corner.

‘Now we’ll see!’ hissed Amithi.

Devyani leaned forward interestedly. At that moment, the heartless behavior of the slayers repulsed me almost as much as the manic bloodlust of the vampires did. Almost, but not quite.  Truth was, I was almost as curious as they were to see how much restrain Emil could have on himself. Associating with blood all our lives- as part of very bloody careers - had made our noses familiar with the scent of blood. This man on the stretcher was practically a blood pipe.

I watched him closely as it was wheeled past us.

The boy’s eyes turned red and manic for a split second, and then reverted to their scared star sapphire and snow. His hands were clenched into fists.

I smiled in triumph.

‘Well’, said Arav, through a long whoosh of breath. ‘, You trained him well’

‘Never seen anything like it’ whispered Devyani, eyes sparkling with interest in her cold face. ‘, Tame…very well, Iha. I will admit it…you have done better than we ever predicted’

I was only acutely aware of the changes the boy was undergoing, hearing this conversation. He was sort of cringing into himself, as though trying to hide away, as though trying to hide inside himself. His cold skin seemed to slip a few more degrees down, so cold I could have been holding an ice sculpture and it would have made no difference.

I felt a painful twinge. He was actually suffering…

The new blast of cold air that fanned out from our right made even Emil cower.

The doctor walked out, wearing a warmth suit. I jumped to my feet, and Emil went back to cradling himself. I kept my hand on his shoulder as the doctor removed the facemask.

‘How bad?’ I whispered.

He stared at me, at the quailing young vampire…his eyes hardened.

‘Bad’ he stated bluntly.

Emil looked up again; he was biting his lips in pain, tears pouring down his face. The boy might die if anything too horrible happened to Mythri, I realized, looking at his unfocussed eyes, his wild panic.

‘As in…?’ pressed Devyani.

‘She…I’m sorry, Iha…you were a little late…’

‘She’s…’, I gasped, recoiling back ‘, She’s…become…’

Emil stumbled blindly to his feet. He staggered towards the cryogenic chamber door. Devyani made a hissing noise, springing towards him, violence in her eyes. It wasn’t necessary.

The doctor struck first- the force of the blow threw the boy back, and he slammed into me.

‘Stop!’ I yelled, scooping him up in my arms as he trembled in speechless horror. ‘, He’s my son! No one lays a finger on him!’

‘But he just – ’

‘He wanted to see his mother!’ I growled. ‘, Baby, that’s what you want right?’

He mumbled incoherently into my shoulder. A lot of it was just utter nonsense- unconnected sentences, unfinished lines…the works.

I held onto him, and his sanity.

‘Well…?’ I demanded, because the doctor and Devyani did not release their stances.

Devyani gave a disgusted growl and went to stand with the others.

‘Continue…?’ said Jai.

‘It’s bad. A lot worse than we expected. It’s already in her heart…we’ll have to go for the extreme’

‘What’s that?’ asked Amithi, her serene voice unfaltering.

The doctor hesitated.

‘Well?’ I asked, my voice a guttural snarl. ‘, Didn’t you hear her? What in the damn hell is it?’

‘Maybe the boy…’said the doctor, hesitating. ‘, Maybe the boy should see her now…’

I narrowed my eyes at Arav as he stepped forward.

‘I wont hurt him. I’m taking him to see Mythri’ he said, in a conciliatory tone.

I set Emil down. Wildly, the boy clutched at my shirt, his wide eyes huge with terror. I stroked his silky dark hair.

‘You’ll be fine, baby…’I told him, leaning on my knees to look into his eyes. ‘, He’s taking you to see Mama.’

He looked at me in puzzlement. ‘Mama?’

‘Mama. Don’t you want to see her?’

My heart was hammering, tearing out of my chest. The way his eyes were…like something had died deep down in him… like something had been taken from his childish, innocent mind…like he had been exposed to the despicable…

He cocked his head emptily. ‘See. Her.’

I felt tears in my eyes. It was bad enough that I was losing Mythri…not Emil too, he had to pull through this, and he couldn’t just leave me…

There were no tears in his eyes now, just stark blankness. Too much, I thought. Too much damage…

‘Go see Mythri’ my voice broke at her name. ‘, Go see Mama, baby, she wants to see you…I’m sure she does’

Arav led him away; Emil was still looking very bewildered.

I collapsed onto a chair, pinching the bridge of my nose with my fingers. How much worse could this get?

‘Iha?’

‘Yeah?’

‘Are you…well?’

‘I can take whatever news you’ve got for me. I’ve lost everything.’

‘Now, don’t be like that…’said Jai’s voice.

‘You saw him, you saw his eyes…was that an eight year old boy’s eyes, Jai? So tortured…empty…soulless…’

I shuddered. I wanted to cradle myself, throw away this strong man cover…just hide…

‘There’s still hope for Mythri’ said the doctor.

I looked up at him. ‘Yes?’

‘One cure. Simple’

‘Anything’ I was almost begging.

He took a deep breath. ‘Vampire blood’

‘What?!’ I almost snorted. Something as easily attainable as that?!…

The doctor seemed to sense my thoughts, for he said ‘No, Iha. You don’t understand me, my man…I mean the black blood. The real blood…spilled by the Holy Knife…the blood of a vampire who surrenders willfully to it.’

‘Surrenders willfully…’I said, eyebrows furrowing. ‘, No. No, no, no, NO! You cant mean…you can’t!!’

My voice rose to a high, frail pitch…the blood pounded in my head…

‘Iha…’ called Jai.

‘There’s no other way…’ said Amithi.

‘He has to die…’ muttered Devyani.

My world crashed around me.

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Part 4

The Clan

JONAH

I was lounging in my office, my legs on the dark mahogany table, my hands beneath my head. Rhiannon surprised me when she walked in, her long curtain of hair billowing in the wind as she did.

‘I thought you were taking a flight to France, or Timbuktu or something?’ I muttered, squinting at her in suspicion.

‘Ha, ha, very funny.’ she rolled her eyes, shaking droplets of rain off her strawberry blonde hair.  ‘, Emergency, actually. That slayer’s wife is dying’

‘Oh, crap’

I sat up, and a crystal chalice clashed to the floor.

I looked down, and saw Rhiannon’s face reflected a million times in the facets of shattered glass. Her blue eyes glinted with anxiety.

‘How the hell did that happen?’

Rhiannon shrugged her slender shoulders. ‘Some godforsaken idiot decided to go after her’

‘And Emil?’ I asked, in concern. Because of course, he was what interested me in the whole equation.

‘Jonah…maybe its time…’ said Rhiannon, reluctantly. ‘, We should go to him…’

‘Someone told the slayer the cure, right?’ I said, my voice a low growl. I was surprised with how furious I sounded. ‘, Now he’s trying to kill Emil?’

‘Well, not yet. Soon’

‘Rhiannon… how’s the boy?’

Again I saw the deep worry etched in her interestingly turquoise eyes.

‘Not too good. Something happened to him…he looks like he lost it or something’

‘Crap’ I said again, banging my fist on my table.

‘Hey, Jonah? We’ll go to him, okay? It’s better than this watching from the side thing. He noticed me today.’

‘And say what?’, I asked sarcastically. ‘,Hi, Emil, we’re part of your savage and bloodthirsty clan, why don’t you join us so that we can all lunch on a bunch of unsuspecting humans until we’re satisfied?’

‘Oh, cut it out.’ She looked a tad offended.

Rhiannon really was remarkably beautiful, even amongst our clan. If she had just been a little less sensitive…

‘Emil hates our kind, and he’ll freak big time if we show ourselves on his doorstep’

‘He can’t just hate us forever, Jonah, we’re his siblings’

I arched an eyebrow. ‘He hardly thinks of vampires as some version of humans. If we go marching in there claiming to be his brother and sister…ah. You can see why I can’t see that happening’

‘You think the father will try and kill him?’

I pursed my lips, looking at her with narrowed eyes.

‘Maybe. Before that…we will have to act’

She looked at me in confusion. ‘But that was exactly what I said. I said we’d go to Emil’

‘No, we won’t. We can work from a distance. First, we’ll find the vampire who poisoned Mythri.’

‘And what? Bring him back for the antidote?’

‘Him or her’

‘Jonah, you can’t possibly be serious.’

‘Why not? We can suck out the poison we ourselves have injected’

Rhiannon watched me intensely for a long time.

‘Then I may have an idea as to who that vampire was’ said Rhiannon, her turquoise eyes fixing wearily on me.

I gasped. ‘Rhiannon!’

She looked away.

‘Who was it?’

She looked up at me, and funnily, tears filled her eyes.

Part 5

The Craze

EMIL

Lights.

Voices.

Darkness.

He didn’t care. He didn’t care what was going on. Why was Papa holding on to him like that? Why was Papa yelling at everyone else, waving his hands, Emil pushed tightly against his body? Was Papa protecting him from someone?

Mama.

Mama was lying, so white, so cold…the room was a hell of medicines and tubes and beeping machines…and outside it was hell too, Papa screaming at everyone, holding him close…

Don’t scream at them, Papa. I’m the villain.

Emil heard repeatedly about black blood and the Holy Knife.

Lights.

Voices.

Dark…ness…

He didn’t know when or how he fell asleep. He just did, his face pressed against his father’s chest, the warmth seeping into him, into his confused mind…

Running. Running across a field. The moon is shining. There’s a silvery glow to everything. In the grey and silver world, he can clearly see the prey. He was the predator, the most definite predator, and there was warm blood somewhere, waiting for his lips to taste it…

Running. His breath coming in gasps now, eyes streaming from the bite of the cold…

The silver flash comes from nowhere, a hiss of malice sounds in the cool night air, and a ruby-hilted knife finds his heart.

He sinks to the ground, and the blood the wound spills is not tantalizingly rich crimson. It is not salty and sour and buttery like the carmine elixir…it is dark, dark, dark. Darker than black.

Black. Black as night. Black as black can be. BLACK.

And tasteless upon the mouth.

 Cold.

Numbing the mouth.

 Corroding the tissues.

 He knows that. He does not lick it, but watches it pool, pool in a thick layer in front of him.

He begins to laugh, because the pain this wound was giving him could not be real, could only be a hallucination, could not be…could not be real…

The laughter becomes screams. And now he is no longer the predator but the hapless victim. The helpless prey, pleading for mercy to a deaf entity. Wishing to die. Wishing to die and end the pain.

He screams and writhes and no one helps and the night turns black and the silence comes and ———-

‘Emil! Emil, what’s wrong? Emil, wake up, wake up, child… come on!…open your eyes, it’s a nightmare, it’s just a nightmare…’

He didn’t know what he was doing.

There was a mad frenzy in his mind and he held on to Papa’s shirt, which was blurring, blurring into a blackness so deep…help…a darkness so impenetrable…

IHAThe boy’s silent screams terrified me.

‘Emil! Emil, what’s wrong? Emil, wake up, wake up, child… come on!…open your eyes, it’s a nightmare, it’s just a nightmare…’

His blue eyes flew open, terror burning bright in them, and I sucked in a deep breath, because those eyes were barely sane.

Like lightning, his eyes turned dark, then white as they rolled up into his head and he went limp in my hands, clutching my shirt.

‘Emil!’  I shouted, shaking him. He merely moaned a weak, feeble sound.

I lay his head on my shoulder and shook uncontrollably.

His breaths were quick and ragged. I considered the dim chances of a vampire disease. A fever, maybe? Could it be possible?

The other slayers had all gone home to research on the blade, the properties of the Holy Knife.

It was just pointless. I was never going to hurt Emil. But of course, of course…it was so easy to picture him dead, broken, torn mentally, exsanguinated physically…his black blood giving Mythri her own life…

I tightened my hold on Emil.

No.

Even the thoughts deserved purgatory.

Did I even believe in that place anymore? Where I was right now was hell. Yama’s Hell and maybe two times Hades’ underworld.

‘Mr. Bharadwaj?’

I looked up at the tall, young man. He wore dark clothes and a black cap pulled low over his head.

His eyes were midnight blue.

I jumped up, my hand flying to my holster –

‘No need for that’ said the young man, in a pleasant voice, sitting down near where Emil lay slumped over the chairs and fixing his eyes on the boy. ‘, I’m Jonah. Jonah D’Souza, and this kid here’s my little bro’

My mouth fell open.

The young man named Jonah smiled, and the smile somehow did not reveal his pointed teeth. It looked like a sincerely friendly grin.

‘Ah…you should sit down’ said the man, amicably. I raised my eyebrows into an arch of bewilderment and sat. ‘,How’s Emil?’

‘He hates all of your clan’ I said, rocking back and forth.

Jonah sighed. ‘I know. And all of your clan hates him’

I looked down at the floor.

Rock, rock, rock.

‘Isn’t it better if you just let him accept who he was? Just let him accept that to drink blood is as inevitable for him as it is for you to drink water?’

Rock, rock.

‘No’ I said, still rocking.

‘I thought so’ he shrugged gently. ‘, What will happen to him when you’re dead?’

I stopped abruptly.

‘What did you say?’

‘What will happen to little Emil D’Souza once you’re gone? Who will be a friend to him? The vampires whom you made him push away? Or the humans who are hell-bent on pushing him away?’

‘Emil has been brought up to control his dark nature.’ I said, stubbornly.

‘For how long?’, smirked Jonah. ‘, Once, soon enough, he’ll get a taste of it. And then he’ll lose it’

I gasped. ‘What do you imply?’

‘Leave him be’

The man was no longer smug. He looked sincerely pleading.

‘Excuse me?’

‘Let me take him’

My hands tightened around Emil’s inert body.

‘What do you take me for, you… ‘, I bit my lip to stop my curse ‘,You think I’ll let him…let him be changed by one like you?’

‘I knew this wouldn’t go well. Mr. Slayer, this boy is my brother. He’s my blood. ’ Jonah grimaced at the implications. ‘,Okay. That was badly put…’

‘What are you?’

He blinked at me.

‘Huh? I think you know…?’ he said confusedly, looking closely at me.

‘No, you’re a…you talk very humanly.’ I muttered. ‘,I mean…others of your kind are not usually…’

‘Not all of us are always going “Blood, blood, blood” ‘smirked Jonah. ‘, Funny, how you make all of us sound vile’

‘There are reasons’ I said, sternly.

The young man laughed. Not a mocking laugh.  A sincere, amused, human laugh.

‘Do you not eat meat?’ he asked me, seriously. ‘,What is wrong then about our cravings?’

An intelligent question.

Jonah’s hand accidentally brushed against mine, both against Emil’s hair. I shrank back a little, but didn’t take my hand away. That would be losing to him.

‘You say he is your brother’ I said slowly, still uncomprehending, looking from the boy to the man. ‘,What is your proof?’

Jonah shrugged, smiling. ‘I just know….’

Emil stirred a little. ‘Papa?’

‘Right here, baby’

He opened his eyes, tired blue eyes, wary already. His eyes flickered to Jonah.

‘V…Vampire…’ he said, looking at me, frowning. ‘,Papa, vampire’

‘I’m good, Emil’ said Jonah, mussing his hair.

Emil’s eyes were confused. He shook his head. ‘Vampire’ he said firmly.

Jonah gave a grin. He looked a little happier to see his brother was still there inside that vulnerably small body.

‘Could I talk to him?’

I looked at him. He was pleading. He wanted this. Did he deserve this? I wasn’t sure. But I was a man who took risks. Maybe this is what Emil needed right then. Maybe this was what would save him.

But wasn’t I sending him off with the very people I always wanted to keep away?

Truth was, I was terrified of myself.

Terrified that to save the woman I loved so much, I would raise a knife against the little boy on my lap.

Jonah sensed my thoughts. He took my hand.

I didn’t stop him. I was a broken man tonight.

‘You were always a remarkable man, Iha. When everyone was blinded by savage hate, you tried to understand us. Except where Emil was concerned. He can’t survive in your society. To think otherwise is making yourself a fool. He’s a predator. He has to learn to survive, to fight for survival in a world that despises him. You have to let him go. You were told about the blood cure, werent you?

‘.My wife Rhiannon was the one who bit your wife. She was my scout. We checked on Emil frequently. Today, something happened that…drove her insane’

I clenched my hands. Listen to him. Hear him out. Don’t hit him.

Emil was looking at me wildly.

‘You see. Rhiannon is pregnant.’

I raised my eyebrows. ‘Ah’

They lost their bloodlust control when that happened, I had read that before.

‘She confessed. She’s willing to suck out the poison from your wife’s bloodstream’

Emil looked at Jonah now, fully. ‘She’ll make Mama okay?’

‘Yeah, baby’ said Jonah, smiling.

I looked at the floor.

‘Where is she?’

The girl stepped out of the shadows, eyes not meeting mine.

‘I am sorry’ she spoke softly.

I stood up, letting Jonah take Emil, and walked over to Rhiannon.

She trembled a little, her shoulders drawn up.

‘Congratulations’ I said, taking a deep breath.

What was so different between their race and ours anyway? Wasn’t Jai and the other slayers- wasn’t I- as thirsty for their blood as they were for ours? Didn’t we kill them mercilessly as well? This girl was to be a mother soon. How many of them had I killed without considering there might be life in them? Emil’s mother….she also I had deprived of a chance to raise her child, the same boy who was looking with a hint of recognition at Jonah now. He looked a little better. Was it because of this newfound brother, who was beaming at me? Rhiannon was crying, crying softly, brokenly. Did I hate her? No, why should I ? She hadnt done it on purpose.

‘Emil’ I said, turning to him. ‘,Emil, your real family’

And the light in those blue eyes were all I needed.

I had found myself.

I had found my niche in life, my place in this chaotic life.

They could stuff the blood cure. I would build a new world for this race that co-existed with ours. Me and Mythri, and if they so intended, these two vampires.

Next, I turned to Jonah.

‘I knew you’d see sense’

I smiled. Couldn’t help it.

‘Welcome to the family’

THE END!