The Test
The living room blurred around me, and I felt the Council and Duke disappear from sight. My eyes fluttered shut as the world spun and shook, and I felt sick. Suddenly, the world calmed down and I was able to open my eyes again.
I was in a bright room with no furniture, the floors and ceiling painted white, and no windows. There was a door in the room, although the door had no doorknob so I couldn’t get out. Something was telling me that the point wasn’t to leave the room, whatever the Council had planned was going to happen in this room...and soon.
I sat down on the cool linoleum floors, my back against the wall. My ears were listening for any noises in my surroundings and my eyes were glued to the door, waiting for it to move even an inch. Waiting for whatever was supposed to walk in with a fear that turned my blood cold as it rushed through my veins.
Hours passed and my eyelids started to droop closed. Maybe I wasn’t so right about this soon thing. For all I knew, this was only a prison for me to stay in and rot for all eternity. The most I could do was sit here and watch as it all faded away to nothing, watch as my world crumbled.
A noise shook me from my thoughts, and I watched with apprehension as the door creaked open. I felt sweat gather on my hands, and I bit my cheek roughly. Thoughts flew through my head like a tornado, threatening to tear it apart. Who was coming in? What was about to happen? Should I be scared? Or should I just act like I don’t notice anything happening?
My thoughts slammed to a stop, when the person in question walked in. A smell, the smell, slithered slowly up my nose. A musky, rotting, death-like smell. Without a doubt I knew it was a vampire. But why would they send a vampire in here? What would that accomplish?
“Tammy, so glad to see you again my darling,” His voice, one I had before so loved, crawled on my skin like a million tiny spiders. This couldn’t be happening. It couldn’t be! Not him....not the one person I actually cared about now. The one person I loved. Why, of everyone in the world, would they pick him? It doesn’t make sense!
I fell to the ground, clawing at my heart as though it was ripping out. It can’t be! It can’t be! Bright red tears dropped to the ground, and my face twisted in agony. I couldn’t even try to kid myself. There was no mistaking the voice, even covered in layers of coldness. Layers of death. I could never mistake his voice, the one I had come to love in the last couple weeks.
Duke, the Duke I had just seen as a perfectly healthy Amatores, was now a vampire.
---
“Oh Tammy, don’t cry. Just know that I love it much more like this! It is like I had fallen asleep on all things I had used to love, and have now woken up again! I feel so different, so much more alive. You understand, don’t you?” No emotion flickered across Dukes face as he spoke, and I felt my stomach cramp.
“No. Duke this isn’t you. The real Duke is somewhere in this world, floating as a soul. I don’t-I don’t know what convinced him to let go to the Red in the last couple hours...but something did. You are not Duke. You-you’re a monster. A true vampire. Nothing more.” I forced the words out of my mouth, each word feeling like a tear in my heart. Duke looked at me with pursed lips, and then closed his eyes slowly.
“I have never liked playing with my food. That did not change with my transformation to a vampire. So playing with you is just furthering my hunger, but what am I to do? I would much rather enjoy you slowly, then take you all at once.” Duke smiled, his fangs sliding out menacingly.
He ran towards me at full speed, eyes blazing a crimson red.
I felt the world slow around me, Red creeping into my vision. I watched as Duke flew through the air towards me, and moved swiftly aside. A cracking noise came from behind me, the sound almost vibrating in the cold air. I turned to see the wall in which he had crashed had small cracks encompassing it in the shape of Dukes body. I followed the wall down watching as Duke peeled himself off the wall, blood dripping into a small puddle below him. The smell permeated the air, crawling down my throat and giving the Red fuel to burn.
It smelled like chocolate, brilliant, luscious chocolate, calling to me. A shiver went down my spine as my fangs popped out, and my tongue flickered out to lick my lips slowly at the thought of tasting Dukes blood. My body filled with a desire, a need, to have his blood. It was like an ache that spread from head to toe, making it harder and harder to keep control of myself.
“C’mere Duke...” I murmured, my eyes locked onto the puddle of blood that was glistening and sparkling against the clean floors like diamonds.
“I am here,” he snarled, and I gasped as he grabbed me from behind. Immediately my arms and legs lashed out at him, the control I was trying so hard to hold onto slipping like putty in my hand. I had to make my body calm down, had to keep my control steady. And I had to do it before Duke could strike and take my blood. Because I can’t control myself when the Red hits, and I knew deep within me that this time since this would’ve been Dukes second violation of my blood...I wouldn’t let him get out of the fight alive. The Red in me was one evil bitch.
The world turned fuzzy around me, and I felt myself start to detach from my body. I felt myself start to surrender to time, so the Red could take over. But this time, I would not surrender willingly. If I killed this Duke...then there was no chance that the real Duke could return to his body. No chance I could save him.
“I hope you have begun to say your goodbyes,” Duke said in a hiss, his words scratching at my ears and making the world grow even fuzzier. I felt a stirring in my stomach, and closed my eyes. I had to find a way to get control, and I had to find it now. Or else...Who knew what might happen? Suddenly, it came to me.
I envisioned by brain as a house, each room a different area that needed to be explored for whatever treasures laid within. One room shone the brightest, and I ran towards it. The light bathed over me, the warmth like the summer sun, surrounding me with a soft glow. I walked into the room, heart filled to the brim with hope, only to see nothing more than a golden brick wall. It stood in the middle of the room, blocking off any route around it. There was honestly, no visible way to get around the wall.
‘Hurry, you do not have much time. Duke is about to bite.’ voice was soft, gliding into the room gracefully beside me. There was no body to the voice, only sparkling rainbow-colored swirls that appeared as she spoke. The voice sounded familiar, although I knew trying to place it would just take up more time that I did not have. I needed to hurry. I could feel myself detaching from my body, the Red itching to take over. The Beast tearing at my chest with its need.
‘Do you know how I could get around the wall?’ heart beat heavily against my chest as I asked Her the question, my teeth biting down softly atop my lips.
‘I can only tell you this. You are in your mind; anything is possible in your mind. And maybe, to get past the wall...you do not have to go around it.’ room blurred for moment, a sure sign that time was running out. That the Beast, the Red, was taking over.
If I did not have to go around it though, then do what? Go through it? ’Anything is possible in your mind...’ words returned to me, making me ponder as I stared at the thick wall. Maybe if I...the thought crammed itself into my mind, and I felt assurance as I closed my eyes.
I imagined the wall, the thick golden wall, crumbling to a fine yellow dust in front of me. I forced my will into the thought, knowing that if this did not work then all was lost.
My lips curled into a smile at the satisfying sound of the wall crumbling to pieces around me. It had worked! The-the voice had been right!
“Why are you s-s-smiling?” Duke asked, a hiss escaping his voice as my eyes snapped open. I looked around in confusion, my eyes unfocusing as I noticed the air, or rather, what was in the air. Small particles of what looked like fuzz crowded the small space I was standing in, glowing a bright white light as they floated leisurely in the air. “I said, why are you smiling?” My eyes focused again, the particles immediately disappearing from view as I looked at
Duke.
“I wasn’t.” My voice sounded scratchy to my ears, and my vision wavered. I held onto my soul, not ready for it to leave just yet. My eyes slowly rose to look into Dukes, and I felt a wave of sadness. There was no trace of humanity in them, just anger and hate. He leaned forward, his fangs lying menacingly atop his lips, and smiled cruelly.
“You dare lie to me? Well you are lucky I am quite hungry, if not you would have gone through a painful death that would indeed take centuries to complete.” Duke brushed his fangs against my neck, and I flinched away.
“Duke, stop. I know you’re somewhere, floating around and having the time of your life, but you need to come back. Now.” My voice was hard, and once again my vision unfocused. The fuzz once again came into view, hovering harmlessly in place, and I lifted my hand to try and swat one by my hand away. Instead of moving away though, the fuzz sunk into my skin. It felt like a bolt of energy running throughout my bloodstream, filling my body with power.
“Your Duke is no more, I am now Duke, and I think it would greatly benefit you to quiet.” My vision refocused itself, taking in the sharp features of Dukes face. The flawlessness, the beauty, and the red eyes. The red eyes that did not belong there.
“I do not agree,” I snapped, my voice cold. I pulled the energy that the fuzz had given me out of my body, feeling apart from myself. “I think it would greatly benefit you though, if you slept. Now.” My command weaved itself within the energy, and I watched as it zoomed into Dukes body. It looked like a stream of navy blue ribbon, stretching from me to Duke.
A wave of dizziness hit me and I swayed slowly, but I continued to stare at Duke. The blue ribbon was still there, and I saw colors of gold weaved within it. Dukes’ eyes glazed over, but he did not fall asleep as I had demanded and so I put the rest of the Energy into the stream, yelling, “I said sleep!”
I watched as Duke crumpled to the floor, his eyes moving rapidly left and right. Another wave of dizziness hit me, and I laid my hand on the cold wall. My heart beat slowed and I slid down to the floor. My eyes fluttered shut, my head lolling forward as it became too heavy a load to hold, and my last words being, “Duke...I need to get to Duke,” before I felt myself drifting off and my soul detached from my body.
---
I floated, my soul moving as if attached to a string. The world passed in a slow blur, my mind free of all worry and pain. Thoughts floated freely as I drifted, wandering in and out of my brain. Excitement thrummed throughout my soul as I felt it. He was near, waiting for me to join him! Waiting for me to join his wander around the world, forever in peace.
‘No.’ voice, Her voice, came suddenly and without warning, shocking me enough to stop in my tracks. ’You have already forgotten the reason that you’ve detached. Not to wander forever with Duke, although that is most definitely a choice, but to save him. To bring him back to his body.’
Just as quickly as the voice had come, it was gone, and the memories slammed into my head. Duke. Vampires. Amatores Sanguinis. Everything from before floated and swirled as the memories surfaced themselves. I had to convince Duke to come back, and I had to go back too. If my body woke up without me in it...who knew what would terror and destruction would happen.
The only thing I was sure of was that, without my soul in it, the Beast would take over and my body would wake up Red. Not a vampire, because to be a vampire I’d have to had fully given up and that would never happen...at least for now...but I would wake Red, and I would wake thirsty.
I shook myself from the gloomy thoughts as I noticed that I’d begun moving again, this time extremely fast. With the pace I was going, it only took minutes before I finally saw him.
He was sitting on a chestnut colored bench, willow trees surrounding him as he looked out on a beautiful crystal lake. His face was full of pure happiness, and my heart felt heavy as I realized how he would soon have to return to the chaos that was life. Slowly, as if alerted of my presence, Duke turned his head towards me. As soon as our eyes connected it was like an explosion within me. All thoughts that didn’t have to do with Duke were pushed aside, and I ran towards him.
“My love!” he yelled, his arms outstretched towards me, “My love you have finally come!” We kissed, our lips molding perfectly into one another as our souls went afire with love. I never wanted to leave Dukes arms, our souls were meant for one another. “I love you,” Duke murmured against my lips, sending a shiver of pleasure down my spine. “I love you so, so much.”
I forced myself away from his lips, the pain of being apart like a tear to my chest. “Duke, we have to go back. We-we can’t stay here and let the Red take our bodies. I just know that if we let that happen, something bad…something really bad, would happen.” My voice was husky, the passion from just seconds ago still burning throughout me.
Duke nodded slowly, not saying a word, and entwined his thin fingers in mine. Slowly we flew back home, our bodies tight against one another the whole way, both our thoughts only focused on each other. I guess that is why we did not notice how we weren’t going in the direction that I had at least come from. We were going an entirely different way.
We arrived in front of our bodies, and detached from each other’s hands. I winked at Duke, before grabbing my bodies hand and letting my soul sink in. The last thing I saw before fully sinking into my body, was Duke smiling sweetly as he sunk into his own body.