Oikakeru Yume

Author’s Note: Like all the rest of the people that are populating this story, Alex Hendricks is a fictional character. Yes, he is an amalgam of people I have actually known, but no, he is not named after any of them because none of them deserve to be immortalized in one of my stories. I DO NOT share his views or ideas. He was made up specifically for this story and now that his chapter has been completed and his existence has been noted, he has been duly washed from my brain. I hope to never be bothered by him again. WARNING: This chapter is DEFINITELY not for the squeamish! If you have a problem with swearing, blood (why are you reading a story about a vampire, first of all?), rape and a host of other distasteful things, don’t read any further. Menumorout’s destruction was sedate compared to this.


June


In spite of Hide’s increasing popularity among the vampires, there were still those who despised him. The older vampires who’d followed Menumorout continued to meet in secret, airing their disgruntled complaints to one another and planning Hide’s demise. They thirsted for the old days, when Menumorout’s word was law and vampires secretly ruled the world. Hide’s ideas were placing humans and vampires on a level playing field and the old vampires detested that. They were vastly superior to humans, so why should they be forced to stoop to the human’s level. After all, the only things humans were good for was… food.

After much plotting and planning, they were finally ready to hatch their scheme to destroy Hide. They would be utilizing an extremely unlikely weapon in this endeavor; Alex Hendricks. Somehow, they’d found the means to bring him back from the grave for the “be all, end all” of bloody rampages. The old vampires found it utterly amusing to use Taki’s father as their witless pawn, turning the soulless man into a vicious killing machine. Fortunately for them, it was not a far stretch. Where Hide’s transformation had been a constant struggle, Alex Hendricks’ was a natural progression.

They set Hendricks loose in the city with a single purpose… kill; which the vicious creature was only too happy to do. He’d been a soldier, after all, trained in combat, though he hadn’t seen any during his tours of duty. He’d joined the military to fight in the first place, so it was extremely aggravating to him that there were no fights for him to take part in the entire time he was enlisted. The mean streak in him was a mile wide and not being able to take his bad attitude out on an enemy only made him take the anger home with him. Which is where there domestic abuse came in.

Hendricks cut a swath through Downtown Tokyo a mile wide, leaving masses of horribly mangled corpses in his wake. Hide knew it was a vampire right away, from the descriptions of the bodies on the news. He tried frantically to get his people to find the murderer, but Hendricks was too well-protected, too shielded by the older vampires for Hide’s people to touch. They couldn’t even figure out who he was.

Taki figured it out before Hide, even though he didn’t have all of the details. “It’s Menumorout’s vamps,” he told Hide one night, as they sat watching the newscast.

“How can you tell?” Hide asked.

“Because… they’re not yours, right?”

Hide shook his head. He would have known if it had been his vampires. They would have been caught and dealt with by now.

“Well, if they’re not yours… who else is there?” Taki could be so annoyingly logical at times, but Hide was angry with himself for not being able to see it sooner.

“What should we do?”

“Well, since we don’t know how many of them are involved… I’d say a round-up is in order.”

Hide cringed. “That’s going to piss a lot of them off.”

Taki shrugged nonchalantly. “They’ll get over it. If they want to put an end to all of this hostility and prove their innocence and loyalty to you, they’ll cooperate. Otherwise, you can let your vamps deal with them.”

There were still minor outbreaks between the factions, with Hide’s younger vampires overpowering the older ones through Hide’s organization of them and by their sheer numbers. The younger vampires still outnumbered the old ones about ten-to-one. Now, when something happened between the two groups, it was always Hide’s vampires who came out victorious.
Of course, the trouble was always instigated by the older vampires anyway.

After a few sessions with his core group of vampires, a message was sent out that all of Menumorout’s followers were requested to appear before the master vampire by a certain date and time. If the message was ignored, Hide’s vampires would be sent out to find them and bring them in. Hide wanted to avoid any more in-fighting, so he worded the message as a request instead of an order. But he’d been right; it still pissed off the older vampires.

None of them responded. The date and time he’d appointed quickly approached, without a single appearance. “Well...“ Taki snorted, “at least, now you have your answer. Those bastards are the ones behind this killing spree.”

“NOW what do we do? How do we stop this?”

Before Taki could give him an answer, there came a knock on the door. It was a delivery man with a registered envelope for Hide. Taki signed for it and brought it in the house. “It’s for you,” he said, handing the envelope to Hide. Curiously, Hide ripped the side open, pulling out a single sheet of paper, from the older vampires. The vampires asked Hide to meet with them to broker a deal between the two sides. Concentrating, Hide tried to sense what they were REALLY thinking, but their thoughts were too veiled. The creatures had been vampires for far too long to allow anyone, not even the new master to read them.

Hide was a bit apprehensive at first. It didn’t feel right to him, but Taki thought it was just the opportunity Hide needed to deal with this mess. What upset Hide immensely was the fact that the message had arrived on their doorstep. “I didn’t want anyone to know where we lived,” he growled.

It took Taki nearly an hour to calm him after that. “How did you think you were going to keep it a secret?” he asked. “It’s not like we’re invisible. At least it was just a message and not a whole troop of vamps. You gotta give them credit for THAT, at least.”

“This is our home, our SANCTUARY. I didn’t want anyone knowing about it.” Hide argued.

Placing a calming hand on the vampire’s shoulder, Taki replied, “It’s okay, Hide. WE’LL be okay. Just go and meet with them. See what they want. This thing with the ‘vampire killer’ is making headlines around the world and that’s not good. You should know that. Talk to them and get them to stop whatever it is they’re doing.”

“I have a bad felling about this, Taki.”

“Yeah, well, these aren’t exactly pillars of the community you’re going to talk to, but this has to be done.”

“You’ll stay here?” Hide asked, glancing at Taki.

A shocked expression was all the answer he needed, though a terse, “Hell, no!” came with it.

Hide flashed a lopsided grin at a now pissed off Taki. He’d only been messing with the younger man. He knew that wherever he went Taki would follow. It had been the younger man’s decree from the very beginning and Hide had felt Taki’s wrath at not allowing him to keep his word on more than one occasion. Hide had learned the hard way that Taki meant to be at his side for EVERYTHING, the good and the bad. The vampire would never cross that line again.

Seeing Hide’s smile, Taki smacked the side of the vampire’s head. “Quit doing that, will ya?” he huffed.

“I just like watching your reaction.”

Taki snorted, “Yeah… you’re just waiting for me to drag you out to the garden again.”

The memory of that particular transgression caused a delicious shiver to race up Hide’s spine. If only they had time. Licking his lips, he replied, shakily, “Maybe later.”

The younger man eyed him, a slow grin spreading across his face. “We’ll see…”

The meet was set for the next night, at a place of the older vampires’ choosing. Hide called his own vampires, explained the situation and told them to be on the lookout, but anymore than that was impossible to say. He didn’t know what to expect and he didn’t want to jeopardize whatever fragile balance they may have with the older vampires.

Hide spent the next day in restless anticipation. Taki tried unsuccessfully to calm him, but not even the soothing ministrations of his lover could settle his nerves. Finally, dusk fell and they prepared to leave.

Taking a deep breath, Taki stared at his reflection in the mirror. He hoped the meeting they were about to attend would put an end to all of the fighting. The constant struggle within the vampire community was taking its toll on Hide and, in turn, making Taki himself a very irritable boy. Now, with that vampire serial killer on the loose, well… that shit had to stop. All of the crap going on needed to be resolved and it needed to be resolved NOW. Pulling on the leather jacket Hide had given him the day they’d gone shopping in Shibuya; Taki took a deep breath and stepped through the door. Hide was waiting in the living room. “You ready,” he asked.

The vampire nodded.

They were to meet in a building not far from where Taki had been taken when the vampires had kidnapped him. That building was long gone, having burned down immediately after Hide’s rescue of Taki. The spot had been flattened and another building was already under construction where the first one had stood. The drive to Shinjuku was tolerable, but once they arrived at their appointed destination, both men began to get an uneasy feeling. Glancing at Hide, Taki murmured, “You feel it too, huh?”

Hide nodded, surveying their surroundings for anything suspicious. “It’s a trap.”

Taki licked his lips. “Yeah, I got that.”

“Now what?” Hide glanced at the angry set to Taki’s jaw and knew the answer before Taki could verbalize it.

“We go in.”

“You’re sure?”

Stepping ahead of the vampire, Taki replied, “Never been more.”

They made their way through the side entrance as they had been instructed to do, quickly finding the stairwell and heading down, toward the lower levels of the structure. They reached the basement, a cavernous, partially lit area that seemed to go on forever. Taki’s flesh crawled as he analyzed the area. Shelves and file cabinets were stacked haphazardly all across the space, with piles of boxes surrounding them. Most of the room fell into shadow, providing numerous opportunities for someone to be hiding. He was about to take another step forward when Hide’s firm grip on his arm stopped him. Turning toward his friend, Taki found him staring off to the left, at a massive bookshelf stacked high with books and papers.

Suddenly, a maniacal laugh rang out and Taki swayed back, instantly recognizing the sound. He hit the cabinet behind him with a thump, dragging Hide with him as the vampire’s hand was still wrapped around his forearm.

“Taki? What…” Hide began, as Taki’s eyes widened in fear.

“It can’t be,” Taki whispered. “It’s impossible.” He pulled Hide into a crouch behind the cabinets.

“What? What’s going on?”

The laugh rang out again, louder this time and Taki shuddered.

“It’s him.”

Hide was trying to decipher Taki’s cryptic phrases, but found it impossible. “Who is it? Taki… talk to me.”

Taki’s eyes rolled in Hide’s direction, but as he opened his mouth to speak, another voice called out. “Aren’t you glad to see me, boy? It’s been a long time. Ain’t you got nothin’ to say to your old man?”

It was Hide’s turn to be shocked. “Alex? It’s your FATHER?” he asked Taki, who nodded. Hide’s mind whirred, trying to figure out how this could have transpired. He’d only had one encounter with Taki’s father, so his memory of the man was fuzzy, at best. But, Alex Hendricks was dead and he had been for months. It was impossible for him to be there. Well, considering he was a vampire fighting against other vampires… maybe not impossible… but inconceivable. Somehow Menumorout’s vampires had found a way to bring Alex Hendricks back from the grave. Bastards! He could sense Taki’s fear, the first time he could ever remember feeling it and it made his blood boil. Hide’s rage increased exponentially with every taunt and jibe out of Hendricks’ mouth. Taki’s mind warred with itself, recognizing the voice of his father then arguing that it was impossible since Alex Hendricks was dead. He struggled, trying to break free from his fear. He couldn’t let it own him; he was stronger than that. Plus, Hide needed him.

The thought of Hide was what it took, Taki’s head snapping up and the foggy look clearing from his face. Nothing and no one was going to prevent him from helping Hide; not even his apparently reanimated father.

Alex’s voice surrounded them, ringing out from every corner of the room, making it impossible to pinpoint his location. Frustrated with the game, Hide stood. Taki caught the blur of movement before Hide did, the younger man throwing himself in front of his friend before Alex could reach Hide.

Clawed fingers wrapped around his arm as he rained blows on the murderous vampire’s body. He knew they would be ineffective as far as injuring Alex, but maybe they would buy Hide some time to come up with a plan to deal with the vampire.

Grabbing Taki’s jacket by the collar, Alex lifted him off the ground. “Out of my way, you little punk,” he screamed in anger.

Twisting to free himself, Taki managed to jab a knee into Alex’s ribcage, sending the vampire reeling, dropping the young man to the floor. But, instead of backing away, like any normal person might have done, Taki charged forward, determined to bring the vampire down, once and for all. His big mistake.

Wheeling round, Alex struck out, his clawed fingers raking across the leather jacket as though it were silk, sending fragments of leather sailing through the air. Taki touched his hand to his chest, feeling something wet and warm. When he looked down, he realized that he was bleeding from four long jagged slices. Heaving a frustrated sigh, he sank to his knees, swaying, growing dizzy from the rapid loss of blood. Turning to look at Hide, their eyes locked just moments before he fell prone onto the blood-spattered wood flooring.

“Taki!” Hide screamed.

The thing that made Hide particularly unique among vampires was the fact that when he was turned, his body DIDN’T die. He thought it had. Menumorout and his minions thought it had. They were all wrong.

According to ancient legend, Hide was a “pure” vampire, one of an extremely rare breed who possessed a pure heart when he was turned, thus enabling him to retain many of his human characteristics, unlike the majority of vampires whose intentions were evil from the offset. Particular senses and functions had been heightened when Hide was turned, while others slowed to a near dormancy. It was this fact that made his quest to become fully human again actually quite viable.

The different reactions he had been experiencing, such as sweat and real tears were his tissues and organs resuming their normal functions as opposed to some sort of miracle that was bringing him back to life. Menumorout and his legions had ALL missed the first and most obvious tell-tale sign of Hide’s humanity…his allergic reaction to human blood. Had his body ceased to function, there would have been no such reaction.

In the end, he already WAS a human; he’d never ceased BEING one, though with eyesight, strength and agility FAR greater than those of an average person. These vampiric traits remained with him because after living 115 years as a vampire, his body had grown accustomed to having these particular abilities. Taki had been right, so many months ago, when he said that Hide had the best of both worlds. Hide truly did. Though, because he’d spent a hundred years shunning what he’d become, Hide had never truly experienced the extent of his powers, choosing to ignore them instead of letting curiosity get the better of him. He was only now coming to realize everything he could do.

This uniqueness was the main reason why the vampires who had followed Menumorout had been trying to destroy him. The master vampire had thought that they would acquire a valuable ally when they made Hide one of their own; until the day Menumorout decided to step down and leave it all to the young “heir”. The master vampire had sensed something special about Hide when the boy was still a child fending for himself on the streets of Nagasaki, but Menumorout contented himself to bide his time, watching Hide until he was of an age where he would be at his peak; when he turned 23-year’s-old. Unfortunately, the vampires soon had to face bitter disappointment when Hide developed the aversion to human blood. None of Menumorout’s brood were familiar with the ancient legends of the Orient, thus were unaware that this particular ailment held great significance.

Compounding their indignation, the young vampire actually had the gall to attempt to become human again. They had hoped that in light of everything that had happened to him, he would choose death, but Hide was too idealistic. He even managed to find a doctor to aid him in his senseless quest… a complication Menumorout hadn’t anticipated. Certainly, it was a simple matter to eliminate the doctor, but the young vampire provided to be a greater challenge than they had given him credit for. He’d fought them off at every encounter then disappeared entirely. They knew he still existed, they could sense his presence, but they never knew exactly where he’d gone until he broke his self-imposed exile for yet another human being… this time a young human who proved to be most useful. The boy, himself, was nothing more than a nuisance, but his father… now THERE was a vast, untapped power source. Just the idea was delicious to Menumorout’s minions; turn the boy’s father and use HIM to destroy the obstinate young vampire and his little human plaything.

It was a blow to the older vampires when Menumorout had finally faced Hide… and lost. Menumorout was the master vampire and had been for millennia. They thought him incapable of defeat. Yet, here came the “heir” Menumorout had so carefully selected and the young upstart not only destroyed the master, but drained him, drawing all of Menumorout’s power and knowledge into his own body. HE was the new master vampire and the old vampires were incensed.

But, they were the elders… the oldest of the vampires, those who had followed Menumorout around the globe for centuries. They were more powerful than any other vampires in existence. Their distaste for Hide was overwhelming. That he finally had to expose himself when he’d confronted Menumorout had played right into their plans for him. They hadn’t THOUGHT Menumorout could be defeated, but they’d come up with a strategy in the event that the unthinkable happened. Which is how, on that day, a messenger arrived on Hide and Taki’s doorstep, bearing an invitation to mediate a truce between the young vampires and the old; a truce which was never intended to happen; in a building where a familiar face from the past awaited his opportunity to bring about their ultimate vengeance.

The vampire, Alex, flew to Taki’s limp form, snatching it off the floor and hurling it into a wall. The impact was accented by a sharp exhalation of breath from Taki, followed by a low moan. Alex reached for him again, but was stopped short this time by a large gust of wind. Wind? In the basement of an office building?

One of the more significant powers Hide had originally possessed was the ability to control the elements. Earth, wind, water, fire; he could command them all. All he had to do was concentrate. Fearing for Taki’s life he’d called forth a gust of wind so strong that it picked Alex Hendricks up and threw him into a bank of file cabinets. Shaken, the vampire struggled to his feet

“You!” Alex screamed, one craggy finger pointing accusingly at Hide. “You’re the little prick that keeps interfering with my family.”

“They’ve never been your family,” Hide hissed in response.

“I hear you’re fucking my son… oh wait, you let the little faggot fuck you! What the hell ARE you? You’re no man and you sure as hell aren’t a vampire.”

Teal eyes regarded the other vampire coldly. “I’m more of both than you’ll ever be.”

Launching himself across the wooden floor, Alex flew at Hide, fangs bared. Ready for the attack, Hide turned, subtly avoiding it. Hissing in anger, Alex lunged again. This time, Hide swept beneath him, snagging his legs and tumbling him to the floor. A moan came from the corner of the room, distracting Hide for a moment. “No, Taki… don’t wake up now,” he thought, worriedly, as Alex’s clawed fingers wrapped around one slender ankle, sending Hide flying toward the opposite wall. The concussive impact with the wall made him woozy for a second, just enough time for Alex to mount another attack.

Sharp claws raked his arms as the other vampire tried to get a handhold on Hide. Then, Taki sat up, distracting both vampires. Both men dashed to the swaying form on the floor in a race to see who would get there first. Hide won, forcing his body between Alex’s and Taki’s. Alex roared in frustration, infuriated to be outmaneuvered time and time again by this abomination that dared to call itself a vampire.

“So you’re fast… big deal. Bet you don’t move as quick after you’ve taken it up the ass, though, do you, pretty boy?” Alex spat. “At least the boy got something from his old man. I used to fuck his mama ‘til she couldn’t walk either… and she loved it.”

Hide could feel the rage escalating within him. ”Now you’re just talking to HEAR yourself talk, old man.”

“You should ‘a been a girl, pretty boy. With that hair and your coloring…I’d ‘a fucked you. What the hell you see in the boy, anyway? Gotta be the dick, ‘cause he sure as hell ain’t got anything else going for him.”

“Shut up,” Hide hissed, trembling with fury.

“What, am I getting to you? Are you getting mad? Why? Did I hurt your sissy little feelings?

Reaching for the man’s throat, Hide hissed, “Enough!”

Alex laughed; the sound rough and grating, like fingernails on chalkboard. “Wrong move, pretty boy.” Spinning to one side, he avoided Hide’s hand, grabbing the top of the young man’s arm and using his momentum to propel him directly into the wall.

This time, Hide swore he saw stars. Blinking several times, he tried to clear his vision. It was blurry. Touching fingertips to his forehead, they came away wet… with blood.

“Hah! You’re bleeding!” Alex crowed triumphantly. “I told them there was no way you were a vampire.” One beefy hand wrapped around his throat, nearly crushing his windpipe. Hide gasped for air, flailing as the other vampire lifted him easily off the ground. Alex’s strength was immeasurable. Menumorout’s vampires had endowed him with every bit of power they could in the hopes that he would succeed where they had failed so many times before. “You bleed real nice, pretty boy,” he chuckled, shaking Hide like a dog shakes a chew-toy.

Suddenly, as his vision began to dim, he found himself dropped to the ground as Alex yelped. Through the blood clouding his sight Hide could see Taki wrestling with the monster that used to be his father. Blood soaked through Taki’s clothing as the vampire made short work of the young man, a single clawed hand raking across his sternum and ripping his body open with surgical precision. “Taki!” Hide screamed; reaching for his friend, afraid he was too late. Through the major lacerations and huge patches of blood, Taki managed a weak smile and slid something across the floor toward Hide.

Just then, Alex pounced, pinning Hide down, fangs gnashing like a wild animal. “I’m going to rip your throat out, pretty boy. I’m gonna rip your throat open and suck out everything that makes you, you. I’m gonna take your knowledge, I’m gonna take your power and then I’m gonna take your life. Those stupid vamps think they can control me. Hah! No one tells me what to do. Once I get rid of you, I’LL be the master vampire and I’ll be able to do anythin’ I want, including eliminating anythin’ that gets in my way.” Alex paused in his delusional ranting to lean down and sniff at Hide’s hair like an animal. “You smell nice, pretty boy.”

Hide struggled, but he was pinned down by the weight of Alex’s body, the other vampire straddled over him, grinding his hips lewdly against Hide’s stomach. A hand reached back to slide over one of his pant legs, then settle at his crotch, squeezing painfully.

“You’re awful pretty for a boy. Maybe I oughta try you out for myself; see just what it is that’s got the boy all hot and bothered for you. Just gotta pretend you’re a girl seeing as how I ain’t no faggot.” The hand that had been exploring now worked at the buckle of Hide’s belt as the young vampire redoubled his struggles. “Shouldn’t be too hard on account ‘a you’re just so damn pretty.”

Laughing hysterically, Alex loosened his hold on Hide just long enough to flip him onto his stomach, before pouncing on him once again. The young vampire was frantic now, fighting to get loose as Alex’s hand returned, cupping the firm globes of Hide buttocks through the fabric of his pants. Alex let out a low whistle. “Nice ass,” he commented, kneading the reluctant flesh.

Suddenly, Alex changed positions, moving so quickly that Hide barely had time to realize it. Now, he was perched on Hide’s back, both knees digging into Hide’s spine as one hand tangled itself in Hide’s hair and the other wormed its way down the back of Hide’s pants. Hide’s arms flailed and his legs kicked, until a single sharp, gnarled digit came across his clenched opening and forced its way inside. The young vampire screamed, the tearing pain flooding his senses, strength returning to his body. He bucked upward, sending Alex sprawling.

“Guess fun time’s over,” the other vampire drawled, humorlessly. “Too bad. That ass felt damn fine… so hot and tight. Oh well, guess I just gotta kill you instead. Maybe I’ll fuck you after that, before you go all cold and stiff.” Alex paused, thinking. “Aww… can’t do that, can I? After I kill you, you’ll be dust. Can’t fuck dust now can I?”

Hide couldn’t concentrate. He took too long trying to shake the horror and revulsion of Alex’s violation. He’d barely managed to turn around when the murderous vampire was on him again. “I’m gonna kill ya, pretty boy. Then I’m going to finish off that worthless spawn of mine.” He laughed again, cruelly. “I’ve got a whole list of names. I’m going to have some REAL fun when I’m through with the two of you. But,” he leaned in close enough for Hide to flinch away from his fetid breath, “… first things first.”

“Hide…” the sound of Taki’s voice cut through his panic. “The stick, Hide.”

The tips of Alex’s fangs pierced the tender flesh of Hide’s throat, sending him wrenching backwards, his head impacting with the wooden floor. Stunned, he could only lay there as Alex’s jaws clamped shut, teeth tearing through his skin like rice paper. Pain seared though him. As his life poured out through the gaping wound, Hide thought he heard Taki’s voice.

“Hide…” It WAS Taki. Then he remembered where he was, what he was doing. He had to protect Taki. “The stick, Hide.”

Reaching around blindly, Hide’s hand wrapped around the stick Taki had slid across the floor.
Swinging his arm around, he thrust it upwards as Alex bellowed in his ear, fangs ripping out of his throat excruciatingly. Blood poured down his hand, gushing out of the hole in Alex’s chest, as the vampire reeled away from him. “Taki,” Hide cried, crawling over to his fallen lover’s side, wrapping himself around the other man’s body to shield him from any further harm. Taki’s eyes opened and a small grin played at the corners of his mouth. He whispered something, but Hide couldn’t hear it over Alex’s shrill screams.

Clawing frantically at the piece of wood protruding from his chest, the vampire began to fall apart, pieces of him breaking away like chips off a stone as his body shriveled in on itself. Body parts rained down; a finger here, an ear there. When the skin peeled back from his skull, one of Alex’s eyes rolled out of its socket, hitting the floor with a squishy thud before drying up and vanishing completely. Soon, the screaming creature no longer resembled a human, just an undulating mass of bone and tissue. With a final shriek cut short by the disintegration of his vocal cords, Alex vanished in an explosion of dust and Hide could finally hear what Taki had been trying to say to him, “Told you that stick would come in handy someday.”

Hide had enough strength to grunt, before he collapsed heavily across Taki’s body. “Hide!” Taki screamed, panicked. His hands clutched at the vampire’s shirt, pushing the limp form off him. Sitting up painfully, Taki shook Hide’s body. Hide’s throat was practically torn out and Taki could feel the bile rising from his stomach. He fought for control. There was so much blood that it coated the vampire from head to toe and Taki couldn’t tell which of them it was from. Placing a trembling hand over Hide’s nose and mouth, he felt a slight stirring. Breath! Hide was alive!

Frantic, Taki wracked his brain, but he could only come up with one, completely crazy idea. He was certain Hide wouldn’t approve of it, but he didn’t care. He wasn’t about to let the man he loved die over a stupid code of personal ethics. He caressed Hide’s cheek gently before prying the cold lips apart. Leaning over the prone form, Taki pressed his lips to Hide’s, dipping his tongue into Hide’s mouth, seeking the vampire’s fangs. Then, he impaled the tender body part on one sharp enamel point, blood gushing from the wound and down Hide’s throat. Several moments passed, breathlessly, before Hide sputtered, pushing Taki away from him.

“What…”

“Hide… you HAVE to drink.” Taki pleaded, trying to sit the vampire up, pulling the mostly limp body to lean against the wall.

Hide shook his head, eyes still closed, grimacing at the pain caused by moving into a sitting position. Apparently, Taki hadn’t been conscious enough to witness Hide’s violation. “Good,” he thought, shifting his weight from side to side to avoid putting too much pressure on the torn flesh.
He could feel himself slipping away.

“Damn it, Hide! You promised! You promised me you wouldn’t leave me alone!”

The teal eyes opened then, full of pain and regret. “I’m sorry, Taki.”

“Liar!” Taki raged, his heart shredding into a million pieces. It wasn’t supposed to end like this. Grabbing the vampire by the shoulders he shook the other man with what little strength he had left. “Damn it! Hide, look at me!”

Pain-filled eyes tried to focus, but it was so hard. Hide concentrated, managing to lift one hand to caress Taki’s cheek. “I’m sorry,” he whispered.

Slapping the hand away, Taki seethed, “You are NOT dying on me, Hide! Either you do this on your own or I’ll slit my own wrist and shove it down your throat! Right now, I don’t give a damn! But you are NOT going to die!”

Somehow, through the fog that filled his consciousness, Hide heard him. The mist clouding his vision drifted apart, leaving him staring at the anxious face of his lover. “Taki…”

“I’m here, Hide. What do I do? I don’t know what to do.”

Hide gathered the frantic man into his arms, pulling him tight against his chest, ignoring the pain radiating out from his backside. “Are you sure?” he asked.

“Just do it!” Taki’s agonized voice sobbed.

The flesh along Taki’s throat was like butter, so soft that his fangs slid in with no resistance whatsoever. A gush of blood greeted him and he drank, deeply. He could feel the warmth spreading throughout his body, his strength returning. All of the damage he had sustained during the fight with Alex had already begun to repair itself. A sense of euphoria filled him with each gulp. Through his reverie, he heard Taki sigh, his own body going limp in Hide’s arms. Panic took over as Hide flicked the tip of his tongue over the puncture wounds, sealing them. “Taki!” he pleaded, shaking the limp form gently.

There was no response. Taki had lost so much blood from his injuries alone. And now…

“What have I done?” Hide worried. “Taki, please…”

A small smile played at the corners of the other man’s mouth, as a weak hand rose to brush damp and tangled red hair out of Hide’s eyes. “We sure make a pair, don’t we?” he joked.

Breathing a shaky sigh of relief, Hide clutched Taki to his chest, trembling.

“Hide, you’re crushing me.” Taki muttered into his collarbone.

Loosening his grip, just a little, Hide whimpered, “I was so scared.”

Taki chuckled, pulling his arms out of Hide’s overwhelming embrace to encircle the vampire’s neck. “You’re not losing me THAT easily, dude.” He felt Hide’s tears dripping onto his shoulder and he gave the vampire a squeeze. “Enough, Hide. It’s over.” Struggling to stand, he offered his hand to his friend and lover. “Let’s go home.”

“They won’t stop,” Hide sighed, in matter-of -fact fashion.

“I know,” Taki replied. “But, they won’t win, either.”

Hide turned to look at him.

“We have something they NEVER will. We have each other. The old vamps just want to eliminate you because you’re unique. You’re not like them. You’re better. They don’t understand you so they’re threatened by you. THAT’S why they hate you. And me…” he paused. “Well, I’m just plain freakin’ scary.”

“Then we really ARE two of a kind, huh?” Hide asked in a low chuckle.

“Made for each other.” Taki replied, tugging Hide into his arms and claiming his mouth with a mind-bending kiss.

While they were accurate in surmising that the attacks against them wouldn’t stop, the implication of what they’d already accomplished was more far-reaching than they’d anticipated.

Hide truly WAS the master vampire. His was the final word among the leagues of vampires. Once he had accustomed everyone, including himself to that fact, there would be no more jumping at shadows for him and Taki.

Word about the older vampires’ plot and subsequent attack spread through the vampire world like wildfire. The vampires who’d planned the attack tried to escape, but were unsuccessful; hunted down and caught by the younger vampires and brought before Hide for judgment. As much as it pained him to do it, and after much discussion with Taki and his core group of younger vampires, Hide had them taken out and left to face the dawn. Destroyed. It was unanimously decided that ridding themselves of those particular vampires would solidify Hide’s position as master vampire as well as eliminate the main group of dissidents wanting to kill him.

Hide was the only one of his group who didn’t agree, but allowed his decision to be swayed by argument. His thought was if they killed the older vampires, wouldn’t that make Hide and the younger vampires no better than the old ones? Wouldn’t that make THEM killers as well? The deciding factor was Taki’s extremely vocal threat to hunt down the older vamps and kill them himself, which incited the younger ones into joining him. Hide was afraid that if he didn’t solve the problem immediately, Taki would turn vigilante, taking a number of the younger vampires with him.

Judgment was rendered and the sentence was carried out the next morning. Hide continued to believe he’d made the wrong decision until one of the older vampires passed in front of him on his way outdoors. Hide looked at the old vampire, sadly, remorse filling every cell of his body, when the creature caught his gaze and hissed, “Don’t give me that pitiful look, boy. Menumorout was wrong when he chose you. You’re no leader… you’re a curse. You’re an abomination and you deserve to be dead. My only regret is that we failed. You and that damn human pet of yours… you BOTH should be dead.”

Hide’s blood ran cold at the vampire’s words, his mind traveling back to a time when a similar sentiment had been shouted at a nine-year-old boy. All feelings of guilt evaporated as he signaled for the rest of the vampires to proceed outside. Many of the younger vamps were now impervious to sunlight, at least for short periods of time thanks to Hide’s formula, so these vampires were the ones to lead the older ones out. The older vampires found Hide’s idea of reclaiming his humanity repulsive and refused to touch the formula, leaving them still vulnerable to sunlight. As the first rays of dawn broke over the horizon, Hide felt Taki’s arm slide around his waist. He leaned back against the solid expanse of Taki’s chest, drawing on his friend’s strength to get him through the ordeal.

Slivers of sunlight began hitting the makeshift circle of vampires, the younger ones reveling in the light and warmth while the older ones screamed in agony. Taki’s hand tightened over Hide’s hip as the vampire’s body swayed against him. It was over in a matter of minutes, though it felt more like an eternity to Hide. As the sun’s rays streamed across them, one by one the older vampires burst into flames and vanished into puffs of grey ash. Trembling, Hide reached for Taki’s hand, but stopped as he looked around the crowd, scanning the eager faces of his younger vampires. Pulling himself together, he nodded to his vampires, then turned and headed back into the building, Taki shadowing him with a look of amusement on his face.

“I know it doesn’t feel like it right now, but you did the right thing,” Taki would tell him later as they were soaking in the furo, Hide settled in Taki’s lap with the young man’s arms wrapped around his chest.

Hide didn’t reply. He just leaned back; tucking his head into the hollow created by Taki’s neck and shoulder and sighed. Taki’s arms drew him tighter as he felt soft kisses being pressed into his hair. “Aishiteru, Hide,” the vow was whispered into his ear. Hide smiled; his body finally relaxing for the first time all day. His mind drifted off, carried away by the lilting sound of Taki’s voice whispering endearments. In his mind he had a vision the two of them, in a different time and a different place, but it was still the two of them. The image changed to another time and place, but again it was still the two of them. He’d had this dream before. His smile growing wider, Hide finally comprehended what the vision seemed to be telling him. They had been together in the past and, though time had separated them on countless occasions, they never failed to find each other again. They were meant to be together; he and Taki. They always had been… and they always would be.

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Lying amongst the clutter of ancient scrolls filling the Archaeology Department of Beijing University, there was one that contained an ancient prophecy regarding a blood-drinker. Hide and Taki, along with most of the known world, were unaware of this ancient text, but it detailed the lives of six different champions from the past, three blood-drinkers and their three “companions”, who appeared to unite the human world and that of the vampires.

Legend had it that whenever vampires overstepped their authority and tried to take over the human world, a creature would be created who had not only the power of a vampire, but all of the capabilities of a human being. Essentially, he would be more “meta-human’ than supernatural. His companion would be born human but would also be endowed with the gift of foresight. He (or she) would be able to sense things normal people couldn’t, thus giving the prophesized vampire an advantage in any situation. The companion would also be attributed with a very unique blood type; the only one in all existence. The prophesized vampire would be able to find sustenance from the companion’s blood and no other. The companion’s blood contained the necessary properties to allow the prophesized vampire to maintain his dual nature of vampire and human thus making the companion absolutely essential to the vampire’s existence. A prophesized vampire who never found his companion would remain a vampire, but would lose his human traits and would never be able to achieve his destiny. While it was possible for a prophesized vampire to survive without his companion, the fact that he could never drink another human’s blood would mean he would have to live off the blood of animals to survive. As in Hide’s case, even the animals he was able to drink from was severely limited.

Other than aiding the prophesized vampire achieve his destiny, every companion also served other purposes as well, such as advising and training. Perhaps, in the rare event that the human’s resilience was stronger than that of the vampire’s, the companion might also serve as a protector.

According to the scroll, of the three known companions, the single attribute they all shared was the fact that they had all been women. In the span of time when they had been companions, two had been killed by rival vampires and one had simply disappeared along with the vampire she watched over, neither of them ever to be heard from again. There were rumors that the woman companion bore a child with the vampire, but the claims were never substantiated and thus remained nothing more than rumors.

The names of the companions were never documented and other than the scroll, all record of their existence had been lost to time. All that remained of them was a rough sketch of a mon, what was assumed to be the final companion’s family crest; a circle containing a single komori, or bat. It was unknown whether the crest actually belonged only to the final companion. Because there was only one mon documented on the scroll, historians theorized that it might have belonged to the family whose bloodline bore ALL of the companions.

A handwritten note included with the scroll carried the question of what might have happened if the companion were ever turned into a vampire. Why didn’t the prophesized vampire just turn their companion into a vampire to increase both of their chances of survival? It was a logical query, but, oddly, there were no records of that ever happening. Two companions had been killed and one had simply vanished. If there had been others over the centuries, no written record of them had survived the test of time.

It had been hundreds of years and the story on the scroll had passed into legend, with no evidence of the phenomena ever happening again. The scroll itself had been unearthed in an archaeological dig in an obscure corner of China and had been passed through numerous hands before finally finding its way to the Archaeology Department of Beijing University. Translations of the pictures and written language dated the ancient text back to roughly the twelfth century, shortly after family crests first came into general use in Japan.

So it was that Hide and Taki WERE made for each other, in ways they could never even imagine. And while everyone who knew him considered Taki to be unique, little did they know that he was unique even among the unique! He was the first male companion, ever, and the first to be the alpha prime. He was also the first to take such a direct role in his prophesized vampire’s destiny. Fortunately, it was Taki’s outgoingness that allowed Hide to accomplish what he had been destined to do, unite the vampires and humans once again.

With their prophesized destinies fulfilled, maybe now they could get on with the rest of their lives.


~End of Chapter Eleven~