Demon Vampire (The Redgold Series) (77 page)

The fatter, shorter vampire that had been on the ground was now gripping Lucretia's left hand. “You don't look like much.” He said while examining Lucretia.

“Well not to you tubby. I'm not much at all.” Lucretia snapped.

“Oh well. You're still a snack none-the-less.” The nameless vampire bit into Lucretia left forearm. His fangs pierced her skin, her flesh entered his mouth, as he chewed.

Lucretia screamed aloud. The vampire pulled back, leaving an empty void in Lucretia's arm. His mouth was full of skin, muscle, and bone. He swallowed.

Moira watched from the darkness. Horrified by what was happening to Lucretia, she wanted to help. She had to help her, but she didn't know how. So far only one of the seven vampires was fighting and Lucretia was already immobilized. This would be a short fight if Moira joined in as she was. She needed more strength and unfortunately she knew exactly where to get it.

“Rip, tear, rend, and swallow the blood like milk.” A dark voice boomed as Moira closed her eyes. Salas was inviting her inside.

In an instant, Moira stood on the shoreline of a beach. The ocean was blood red, as the tide stormed in the distance.

“I need your help, Salas.” Moira asked the ocean before her.

“You should not have come, Moira.” Salas answered her with a stern tone. His body still not materialized.

“What do you mean? I came here to take part of your deal. I thought you would be happy!” Moira yelled out to the sea.

“No Moira. The place you are in now. You should not have trusted Lucretia. She has betrayed you and I.” The shape of a man gathered from smoke on the water. Salas stood before Moira.

“No, I'm the one who is helping her.” Moira argued.

Salas shook his head side to side. “Don't you think it has been strange that you haven't been able to hear her thoughts as of late? That you weren't able to hear what the men in the room were thinking? That you aren't able to hear them now that you are so close?” Salas stepped onto the shore. “She has betrayed us Moira. She has brought you here to die.”

Moira knew that Salas wouldn't lie about any direct danger to her. That he was just as much concerned about her safety as she was, possibly more. “How bad is it? What has she done?”

“Lucretia plans to kill you.” Salas' words rang through to the trees behind Moira. The wind picked up, blowing their hair, tossing it to the ominous news.

Moira was stunned. “I'm going to die tonight?”

“Not you, Moira. We're going to die tonight.” Salas corrected her. “That is if you refuse my help.”

Moira was crying, sniffling over the news. “What?”

“If you accept me. If you take the deal. If you let me take what is mine.” Salas paused. “I will undo Lucretia's treachery.” Salas took Moira's hand, lifting her to her feet. “All of the deceit, all of the lies. None of it will matter when confronted against the absolute power I will grant you.” Salas embraced Moira as she let him comfort her.

Moira was giving in.

“Lucretia will finally be deserving of all her excessive and delusional fabrications.” Salas stated.

Moira pulled back before letting Salas sink into her neck. “Wait.”

“What's wrong. Lucretia's charade will not last forever. The time here moves slowly, but it does move.” Salas informed Moira. He cradled the back of Moira's neck. Softly holding her, he once again made his move.

“Wait, no. I don't want this anymore.” Moira pushed Salas away and stepped back.

Confused, Salas questioned Moira's reasoning. “She will kill you. Do you want that to happen?”

“And you'll devour my soul.” Moira replied.

“What's the difference?” Salas smiled.

“Death is better than what you offer.” Moira told Salas.

“Do you really want to die that badly? What about Lucretia and those men?” Salas was pushing back. He could taste her soul, it was timid and afraid before his lips.

Moira smiled back. “You said yourself that she lied. Those men are all a part of the act. I know Lucretia, she will go all out if she wants something. The arm was just part of the act. If I die, she will be accepted by them as an equal.”

“Then what?” Salas asked.

“Then you die.” Moira answered confidently.

“No, you have that quite backwards there. This will mean your death and my delay.” Salas explained.

Moira shook her head. “No, my death will mean my salvation and more.”

“And what, knowing that you were a patsy? That you played right into her hands? What will this really accomplish, Moira? What is so great that you are willing to die for?” Salas was holding his ground. He was injecting doubt into Moira.

“Your exorcism.” Moira said proudly.

Salas jumped back to the surface of the red ocean. “You would sacrifice yourself just to get rid of me? Why? What would be the purpose?”

“To remove you from the world. Yugo told me what the demon gifts can do. You are destruction in the form of a cold inviting whisper. You mean to burn the world and force me to watch.” Moira shouted at Salas.

“Who said I'd let you watch.” Salas replied with a fiendish smile.

“You are evil.” Moira yelled at Salas.

“Then you won't accept my offer? Do you really think I won't return and do this all over again? Time is forever my ally. I am eternal, you are not.” Salas reminded Moira.

“Yugo also told me that you have to reincarnate. That it takes hundreds of years.” Moira defended her decision. “I can at least slow you down.”

Salas backed away, off into the distance. “Then enjoy your betrayal.” Salas disappeared into the waters. The storm in the sky tore open, hailing down rain onto the shore. “This is goodbye.”

Moira opened her eyes to see the fat light red haired vampire biting off Lucretia's ring finger. Her arm was dripping with blood. The blond vampire hadn't moved. He was still standing in the same place staring off towards the door where Moira lay hiding.

“Stop eating me you bastard! Just fight me already.” Lucretia was kicking and screaming at the vampire to stop.

Moira got up. She walked out of the darkness, her mind was resolute. Moira had decided and now she was going to commit. “You can stop it. I know what's going on.”

The fat vampire bit off Lucretia's middle finger.

“Stop that!” Lucretia screamed.

The fat vampire chewed and turned to Lucretia. “What?”

Lucretia only had her left thumb and index fingers intact. “You don't have to actually eat them!”

“So what he said was true.” Moira said as she stepped into the center of the room. “The demon was right. This was all a set up to lure me here.”

Lucretia shoved Moira across the room and into the far wall. She ran swiftly enough to pin Moira down with ease.

Moira didn't resist.

“What? Aren't you going to fight back? You know what I'm going to do to you, right?” Lucretia was waiting for Moira to lash out at any moment.

“No, I've made my choice. It wasn't him. I'm ready to die.” Moira went limp in Lucretia's arms.

“Then do you know why I did this? Why I brought you here?” Lucretia wanted answers.

“No, but that doesn't matter now. All I care about now is severing that demon's only chance at getting what he wants. I want to die and put out his evil flame.” Moira explained.

Lucretia let Moira fall to her knees next to the wall. “I can't. One of you do it.”

“Gladly.” The vampire with white eyes spoke up first. He flashed before her, ready to deliver the kill.

The vampire with silver hair and eyes slammed his cards on the table. “NO!” Everyone in the room turned to him. He had shattered the wooden table, smashing it into the ground. “This is her mess. She is the one that must kill the demon host. This task is for our venerable founder. This will be her offering.”

“But she doesn't have the will to defend herself. It would be easy enough to-” The white eyed vampire salivated over Moira.

“-No. If Lucretia wants to earn her membership. She must take this demon's life herself.” The silver eyed vampire commanded.

“Then I want to know a few things first.” Lucretia took one of the empty chairs from the card table, her left hand was still dripping with blood onto the floor. She turned it around and sat down with her legs open, facing Moira. “What did the demon tell you about me?”

“This is pointless, she's just given up. Why can't I just?” The white eyed vampire raised his right hand in an attempt to touch Moira's neck and chest. He failed.

Without sound and seemingly without motion, the silvered vampire had broken the white eyed vampire's arm in two. The cut was clean and only began to bleed a moment after the injury. He was fast, without a doubt he was the undisputed leader of the group.

“You didn't have to do that.” The white eyed vampire's arm bled onto the ground from the remaining nub.

“You didn't have to make me.” The silvered vampire held the dismembered arm in his right hand. Blood dripped on the floor, nearly matching the rhythm of Lucretia's wound.

“He told me that you needed me. That you wanted to kill me for some reason. That's all.” Moira leveled with Lucretia.

“And you'll just let me kill you? Just like that?” Lucretia wanted to make a few things sure concerning what she was doing. The idea of being treacherous wasn't difficult for her. It was the concept of complete pacification that Moira was adopting that bothered her. Killing her best friend wasn't the issue, it was killing someone that was asking for an honest death. Lucretia had been thrown off and she wanted to have a clear conscience about it.

“Yes.” Moira closed her eyes, welcoming the final blow. She capitulated to her fate.

“What about Orhn? Does he know you're here?” Lucretia brought up a valid point.

“No, he doesn't.” Moira answered.

“Don't you want him to know what happened to you? You are his lover. Aren't you afraid he'll try to take his revenge on me for you? What do you think about him dying for your sake?” Lucretia was reaching for buttons to press.

“I don't want him to know anything. If he thinks you killed me, fine. But I'm not scared that he'll end up dead chasing after you. You've seen his gift, he's practically invincible.” Moira had made her counterpoint. “Whatever club you're getting into with my death is sure to have some kind of protection program from people like Orhn. It's my hope that he'll just never find you.”

“And what if I tell him that you let me kill you?” Lucretia pushed.

“He wouldn't believe you even if you had the guts to say it to his face. Besides, telling him doesn't help you, it only hurts me. With my death, you would have no reason to do something like that.” Moira knew how to manipulate Lucretia in a way that few people, including Yugo were able to.

“You're right.” Lucretia lowered her head, then looked around at all the other vampires in the room. “So where does this leave us? Do I just kill you and get it over with?”

“Yes.” Moira answered.

“No.” The silvered vampire spoke up again. He dropped the disconnected arm on the floor. “Recite the chant to prove you are worthy as you do it.”

“Fine by me.” Lucretia stood, kicked the wooden chair over and walked towards Moira.

The white eyed vampire stepped away from Lucretia's path.

“By the heavens across the stars.” Lucretia slowly approached Moira. “For the sea below the nightmares, I consecrate my hand as a tool forged by god.” Lucretia stopped at Moira's feet, looking down at her. “With this sacrifice I pledge my loyalty to prevent the causalities of tomorrow. I vow to end the demon's reign before it begins. I swear to end life when for the greater salvation of the whole.” Lucretia knelt down on the floor, staring into Moira's eyes. “I aim to abolish the evil from the world. I strive to cleave the reaper from the womb. To slaughter the worm and feed the crop.” Lucretia's face lost all expression. It was as if she had lost something dear to her and chosen not to search for it. “Rip the soul from its teeth, tear the flesh from its fingers, rend the strings of the marionette, and spill the blood like milk on the floor.” Lucretia quickly pierced Moira's chest with the tips of her fingers. Impaling her heart instantly.

Moira's eyes went cold, staring off to one side. Her head slumped down.

Lucretia's hand held Moira's bleeding heart. “For Silveretta.”

The world grew dark. The demon was gone. Moira had passed.

* * * *

Orhn woke to an empty room. The candles that once lit the room were long burnt out. There were no signs of conflict, nothing was out of place. There was nothing that told of Lucretia's tergiversation. Orhn felt alone. It was morning. He knew that Moira and Lucretia had to sleep during the daylight hours, but Orhn wanted to see Moira. He had a dream that she had left to see her family in Ireland. It was gnawing at him.

The door opened abruptly. It was Yugo. “Orhn, you're up.”

“Have you seen Moira?” Orhn asked Yugo.

“No, both of them were still gone when I got up as well.” Yugo explained.

“Wait, you know where they went? Did they at least leave together?” Orhn stood up, worried about Moira.