-+Requiem+-

-+Chapter Three+-

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When I next awoke I found myself in bed with the golden man behind me. I wasn’t sure just how I knew it was him but the scent of him was so strong that it couldn’t be anyone else. It was rather odd that I could even smell his scent so distinctly but it was happening and there was nothing I could do to stop it. In either case it was both comforting and disturbing at the same time.

His arm was draped over my bare waist as well and after shifting for a moment I realized that I was, in fact, naked. I could feel the touch of fabric against my back and that’s about the only thing that kept me from completely freaking out. Why the hell would he strip me naked? Pervert…

Moving slowly, so as not to awaken him, I managed to slip out of his grasp and out from under the blankets that were only halfway covering me to begin with. They were this hideous yellow color with big red flowers pasted all over them and I wondered just where the hell they had taken me. Who the hell has these sheets…?

Climbing out of bed I looked around the room and noticed how similar it was to the Mayfield Inn in my hometown of Mayfield. I was probably in a hotel then, or at least something similar to that, and upon remembrance of my state of undress I attempted to find something to cover myself with only to find that my clothes were no where in sight and that there was no way to get one of the sheets or something from the bed without waking up the golden man. When I realized he might have slept on top of the sheets just for this purpose I cursed him and yet I couldn’t bring myself to run away from him.

It wasn’t just that I had no where to go and no one else to help me, but there was just this connection I had with him that made me want him near me at all times. I didn’t like the connection at all but I didn’t feel like there was anything I could do about it either.

There was also another scent coming from the next room that was different from the golden man and yet still had his scent mixed in with theirs. I peeked around the door that strangely connected this room and the next and found the purple haired boy from before strewn across the bed with the sheets and blankets in total disarray. He wasn’t making a sound and I was pretty sure he was still asleep.

The black haired boy, on the other hand, was no where in sight. The other bed, that I assumed had been his, was already made in a way that made it seem like he hadn’t slept in it at all. Perhaps he hadn’t but I was still curious as to where he was now.

The jingling of the door handle then caught my attention and it was as though I could hear ever ridge of the key sliding into the lock as it turned and opened. Seeing someone coming in I hid halfway behind the door and stared at them as they entered. It was just the black haired boy but still I didn’t move and froze along with him once our eyes met.

He looked a little hassled, with his hair slightly out of place, but his expression was blank. I couldn’t tell what he was thinking about but his voice was calm and gentle when he spoke to me. “These are for you.”

He indicated towards the bags he was carrying and then balanced them on his hip as he shut the door and placed the key on top of the dresser. Taking out a white shirt he handed the rest to me and I hesitated before taking it from him. Inside were more clothes and I was grateful to him for getting them for me but I wasn’t sure why he was being so nice to me in the first place.

He moved towards me to enter the room and I side stepped him in order to get out of his way. It wasn’t as though I was scared of him, but there was just something about him that told me he could be dangerous when he wanted to be. It was the same with the other two as well and it made me wonder just who these people were and what they wanted from me.

“I’ll take care of Arkaia. You should go and clean up.” The name sounded familiar but I couldn’t remember who that was. Holding the bags in front of me I shifted nervously, uncomfortable with being naked, and debated whether I should just ask him or hide in the bathroom until I was dressed. When he looked back at me I was spurred into action and spluttered out an answer before I could stop myself.

“Arkaia?” He stared at me for a moment before gesturing to the golden man. At least now I had a name to call him but I still didn’t know about the other two. I wanted to ask about that as well but I was becoming nervous under the black haired boy’s stare and started moving towards the bathroom instead when his voice stopped me.

“Do you remember anything?” I remembered the question from last night, or what I assumed had been last night, and tried to ignore everything else they had told me. I didn’t remember anything more than what I had before and told him so. He paused for a minute before he continued, as though he was debating about what to tell me, and once he spoke I sincerely wished he hadn’t.

“Arkaia is our Sire, our Master, and he is the one who made us into vampires. Yes, vampires do exist, and although you don’t remember it Arkaia turned you last night.” I stared at him like he was crazy, which he probably was, but his expression didn’t change. “A human will be missed and hunted but a vampire will not. What happened to your family involved powerful magic of which those who are hunting you will not allow to escape, but they will be looking for a human.”

“You’re joking, right?” I wanted to run off and hide in the bathroom but first I really needed to know if I had to lock myself in there and somehow try to escape. Being taken along with a bunch of crazy people just wasn’t something I was ready or willing to deal with right now.

“No.” Coming closer to me I clutched the bag and used it to cover myself as I watched him nervously. Strangely enough, even though he might be crazy, I wanted him to be even closer to me, to touch me. I didn’t know why that was but it creeped me out a bit and I found myself watching his hands obsessively more than anything else.

Standing in front of me he brought his finger to his lips and deliberately showed me his filed down canines before biting down and drawing blood. Even before I saw it the scent of it reached my nose and I inhaled deeply, taking it in. My eyes focused in on the red and it was as though I could see every detail of it as my gums started to ache.

I was obsessed with that little bit of blood and had to mentally restrain myself from going after it as the black haired boy brought it closer to me. He said nothing as I fought with myself and I was grateful for that when I finally broke down and licked the blood off of his finger. I couldn’t believe I had done it, but I had, and in my staring I realized that the wound he had inflicted upon himself had already healed and I just couldn’t get my mind around that.

It wasn’t possible, was it? I couldn’t possibly be a vampire but I didn’t remember what had happened and it was starting to get to me. The hellhounds and whatever else my father had summoned had disillusioned me about the existence of magic, but I never thought that someone, that something, could actually change my species. I’ve heard the myths and legends but I didn’t think it could actually happen to me.

I didn’t want to believe him but there was no denying that I had an obsession and a taste for blood that hadn’t been there before. Running my tongue over my teeth I felt the sharpness of my canines as they nearly cut into me. Those were not my normal teeth.

Gripping the bag tightly, I eyed the boy before darting around him and locking myself in the bathroom. Once inside I immediately looked into the mirror and for the moment ignored my hair as I checked my teeth. They were just like the boy’s had been, sharp and pointed, and the smell of his blood still haunted me.

Holding onto the edge of the sink I looked up into my eyes and froze. They were blood red, the same as my hair, and no matter how hard I tried I couldn’t look away. How could my hair and eyes change color? Was it some sort of vampire thing? Did that mean I really believed that I was a vampire?

“That wasn’t very nice, Infirite.” It was the voice of the golden man and although they were in the next room it sounded as though they were right next to me. Infirite. His name is Infirite. I don’t know why but I clung to this thought and tried to block everything else.

“I knew you were awake, Master. Why did you leave me to handle this?” Except for the stress on the word ‘master’ he didn’t change his tone from the one he had used with me.

“Because, pet, you’re so much better with words than I am.” Arkaia teased him and I could practically feel Infirite’s annoyance. There was a shuffling before he continued. “Crimson needs someone else to turn to, rather than just having me.”

“And what, I’m not good enough?!” The voice was new to me and I automatically tensed up before remembering the child in the next room, though if they were really vampires then he might not actually be a child at all.

“I wouldn’t be so bold as to introduce you to him just yet.”

“And just what’s that supposed to mean?!” I turned on the shower to drown them out, though it didn’t help very much, and focused on the sound of the water so I wouldn’t have to hear them.

My family was dead, my eyes and hair were the color of blood, and I was supposedly a vampire. Whatever else they had to tell me I didn’t want to hear about it right now. This was already too much for me to handle.

Sliding down against the wall, I sat there in the bathtub and let the hot water run over me. It stung my skin but not enough to distract me from my emotion distress and I sincerely wished that none of this had ever happened. Why…?

Maybe if I sat here long enough it would be able to wash the blood off of me.

Hours later, I didn’t know how long, I finally forced myself to emerge from the bathroom. There were no windows inside and even if there was I was too emotionally exhausted to even try and escape right now. The vampires would probably catch me if I did anyway.

I was numb about that subject. I didn’t want to think about it but I knew I would have to eventually. And if I really was a vampire then I had a better chance of survival if I stuck with the people who knew about it and were the same, though that also meant staying with the man who had turned me.

“How are you feeling?” How did he think I was feeling? The blood hadn’t come off and I wasn’t sure if it ever would. I didn’t bother responding to him.

“Bring him in here—I wanna see him!” It was the child’s voice calling from the other room. Infirite looked at me before disappearing passed the doorway and returning with the child in his arms. Once again my eyes were drawn to the bandages on his legs and I wondered what had happened to him.

“This is Ikuma, my childer and nephew.” Once again I didn’t say anything but they didn’t seem to be too bothered by that. I vaguely noticed Arkaia was wearing the shirt Infirite had taken out earlier and was glad that my clothing was black instead of white.

“Well, you certainly clean up nicely.” Ikuma teased but I didn’t bother responding to him either. He looked a little disappointed by that but didn’t push me further. The others then exchanged looks and were probably silently discussing what to do with me but I didn’t really care.

“What happened to your legs?” I was focusing on them to distract me. Maybe someone else’s problems could distract me from my own.

“They were burned in the fire—I kicked the door in!” He grinned at me as though it didn’t matter that he had been injured. The mentioning of the fire reminded me of what Infirite had told me and I looked away from them. Is the fire that Ikuma was injured in the same one that destroyed my home?

“Anyway, we should really get going!” Out of the corner of my eye I saw him bouncing in Infirite’s arms and annoying the black haired boy. After a moment or two of dealing with this he dumped Ikuma onto the bed and stalked back into the other room, ignoring the protests that followed.

Arkaia ignored his nephew as well and stood next to me, wrapping his arm around my waist and supporting me. I didn’t want him to touch me but I just didn’t care enough to stop him. There was a part of me that wanted to be near him anyway.

He kissed my temple before letting me go and following Infirite into the next room. Ikuma was left on the bed alone and was scowling, unable to follow them or do anything on his own. It made me pity him but I was still mostly numb about everything going on around me. He was whining at the others and without even thinking about it I picked him up and took him with me.

He gave me a startled yelp as I did so but didn’t protest, automatically clinging to me as though I would drop him. I was used to carrying Scarlet around and Ikuma was about the same age and weight so it didn’t bother me. Somewhere in my mind I knew I was acting a little strange but I just couldn’t bring myself to care. Holding Ikuma, in a way, was like holding Scarlet.

I brought him into the next room, where he wanted to go, and the others looked at me strangely for it. I shifted uncomfortably under their gaze and looked away. Ikuma then leaned closer until he was using my shoulder for support. I didn’t mind it.

“At least someone appreciates me.” Infirite looked slightly relieved but intrigued at the same time. Arkaia, on the other hand, gave me a small smile for it and looked like he would do more but stopped upon seeing my apprehension. I wasn’t afraid of him but I didn’t want him to touch me either.

Thankfully he moved on though and few moments later we were moving out the door. If asked, I couldn’t tell anyone what had happened in these passed few minutes—my mind being elsewhere—but before I knew it we were in the lobby of the hotel. I wanted to stay trapped in my mind, back in the fog where I didn’t have to think, but the sights around me quickly disallowed for that to happen.

There was a huge stained glass window above the entrance doors and as I looked at it the picture it portrayed seemed to take on a life of its own. The woman—a girl with long flowing hair and billowing robes—was hovering above the ‘ground’, twisting this way and that while opening her mouth into a silent scream. She wasn’t being tortured as far as I could tell but there was still something about it that made me want to shiver.

“Banshee.” I glanced at Ikuma and noticed he was referring to the stained glass window. “They foresee death and howl when it’s coming.” What a lovely picture for a hotel lobby…

Infirite and Arkaia were at the front counter and all around them were creatures, the likes of which I have never seen before, and I couldn’t help but stare at them. There were people, demons probably, who had horns growing out of their temples and the sides of their heads. Some of them even had tails and talons and I could see every detail of them down to the very fibers of their hair.

My senses were heightened to places I never even thought they could go and for some of them I wasn’t sure if I liked it or not. A man with goat legs trotted by—a faun—and with him came a foul stench that made me want to cover my nose and never breathe again. I stopped myself though, because I didn’t want to attract attention to myself, but apparently that didn’t much matter.

I could see and hear people muttering about me from various places; though they made it a point not to look at me, and it was starting to make me nervous. They mentioned someone called ‘Magnicus’ and a ‘blood count.’ I had no idea what it was about but I had the feeling that I wouldn’t like whatever it was when I found out.

A few moments later and Arkaia was back by my side and I felt a sense of relief that I didn’t understand. It was unclear as to why, but I felt that he would protect me, and he did. One glare from him and the mutterers fell silent. There was still tension in the air but at least now I didn’t feel like I was under a microscope.

“Let’s get out of here.” He led me towards the door and I let him, wanting to ask him questions but also wanting to wait until we were outside. Infirite was following behind me, making a sort of barricade around me, and I found myself slightly distracted by it. I was still attracted to him.

“Who are ‘Magnicus’ and this ‘blood count’?” Arkaia glanced back at me with an unreadable expression before turning back around and continuing walking. I thought that he wouldn’t answer me for a moment and was almost startled when he started speaking.

“Magnicus is the god of blood. He is considered the highest god among vampires, demon, and blood children. Blood children are descendants of Magnicus and retain some of his powers, such as the ability to conduct blood magic. Very rarely is there a blood count or countess because of the circumstance of which they are ‘reborn.’ It is through violence and tragedy that they come into being and they are considered a sort of prophet to Magnicus. These counts and countesses have very distinct features that they didn’t have before their rebirth.” He paused for a moment to let that sink in before continuing.

“They all have eyes and hair the color of blood.” I froze for a moment and tightened my grip on Ikuma. I had heard strangers first mention Magnicus so there was no way Arkaia could have just made that up to mess with me, and I wasn’t paranoid enough to think that everyone else was in on it, so there was really no option but to accept that explanation as truth.

“They think I’m a blood count?” I didn’t want all this attention cast upon me, not after everything that had happened, and the thought of everyone knowing that a ‘tragedy’ had occurred to me was almost enough to make me lose it. I wasn’t anyone special, certainly not a blood count, and I didn’t want anyone putting me on a pedestal just because of the freakish nature of my hair and eyes.

“Yes, and you are one, but I won’t allow them to pressure you.” It made sense that way; why they were taking care of me. If blood counts, in whatever weird blood religion they had, were so revered then it made sense that they would want to use me. I didn’t like the thought of being used but it was better than not knowing what their motives were.

“No one’s allowed to acknowledge you without Arky’s permission. It’s so you don’t get all corrupted.” Ikuma winked at me and then scowled at my unkempt wet hair before trying to tame it. Scarlet had done the same thing while he had been alive; I looked away from him.

I wanted to be invisible, unacknowledged like Ikuma had said, but I was apprehensive about being ignored. What if I needed help? Would they just walk on and ignore me if they didn’t have Arkaia’s permission? It made me even more dependent on the three of them and I didn’t like it at all.

Looking out around me I noticed that there was a large marketplace off to the left and that we were getting closer to it as we went. It must have been the place Infirite had bought my clothes and I was grateful that I hadn’t had to go with him. There were so many creatures there; of races I couldn’t even differentiate and the shock from seeing them all was slowly starting to creep into my system.

I jumped when a hand was placed on my back and looked around to see Infirite standing behind me. He gave me a gentle push and only then did I realize that I had stopped. Arkaia was watching me as well and I ducked my head before continuing after him. Although not many of them were whispering or staring at me this time I could still feel their fixated attention and wanted nothing more than to get the hell away from there.

“Where are you taking me?” It could be to a floating island in the sky for as real as everything seemed to me lately. I was beginning to wonder if I wasn’t just crazy and that none of this was real.

“To St. Hallows, one of the capitals.” Arkaia wasn’t exactly forthcoming, but then again he was scanning the surroundings like some sort of bird of prey looking for a mouse. I guess he had to protect his ‘asset’ then. Just what will they try and use me for anyway?

“Magic is placed upon humans to keep them from thinking about the capitals or the laws they create for them. It would create panic and fear if they learned that creatures such as us existed.” Infirite was the one who elaborated, and it sounded like he had learned this through experience. It made me wonder just what kind of dealings he had had with humans in the past.

“Infirite is a cambion; a half incubus, which means he used to be half human as well.” That made sense then. It was terrifying enough having the hellhounds around but if there was a demon child, who was actually born in the village, I don’t know how people would react to that. It wouldn’t be good though, and I wondered about the circumstances of Infirite’s childhood.

“Ikuma.” I could hear the warning in his voice and it made the hair stand up on the back of my neck. Infirite was powerful, there was no doubt about that, but he was calm and collected. There was no reason for me to be scared of him, and I wasn’t, but still, hearing the power in his voice was enough to make me stand at attention.

“Enough, you two.” A growl came from Arkaia but he didn’t even bother to look back. It must happen quite often, the two of them arguing, and it made me wonder just what I’d have to deal with.

A few minutes later we started moving away from the market place and towards a barn a good distance away. An up-right walking lizard-man then appeared, leading a large black warhorse behind him, and I couldn’t help but stare at him as well. His skin was tough and scaly and he even had a tail protruding behind him.

“Troglodyte.” Infirites muttered near my ear. He was standing close behind me but I didn’t mind it like I did with Arkaia. I wanted to be even closer to him but when I tried Ikuma yanked on my hair. It didn’t hurt but it was enough to get my attention as he spoke into my mind in a way that seemed vaguely familiar.

“I told you; he’s a cambion. You keep rubbing up against him you’re going to end up fornicating right here out in the open!” I stared at him incredulously for a moment for even thinking such a thing before remembering exactly what a cambion was. He was half incubus and that incubus side of him was probably what I was attracted to; It was also probably what could make me ‘fornicate right here out in the open,’ as Ikuma so vividly put it.

“What you lot want?” Thankfully I could use the lizard-man to distract me from those thoughts and focused on his weird way of speech. It obviously wasn’t a very intelligent creature and probably had to be controlled by someone or it’d never survive in a business.

“We need Nightmares for our journey; four of them to be prepared immediately.” Arkaia ignored the creature’s mental status and demanded things as though he were a born nobleman. Perhaps he was too.

“Two left, that all. Mountain trip, no more.” One of the lizard-man’s eyes was staring straight at Arkaia while the other wandered off, looking at something no one else could see. I was fascinated with how the thing could even speak at all, let alone stand up, and for once I was glad that I wasn’t facing the thing alone.

“Fine.” Arkaia argued out a price, using monetary names I didn’t know, and soon the lizard-man was walking off with the Nightmare in tow. Standing closer to it now I could see just how huge it was, probably between seven and ten feet tall, and wondered if I could even get on such a thing. It wasn’t even a normal warhorse, as far as I could tell, and its eyes were completely black with no whites showing.

“They’re called Nightmares; undead warhorses who are much faster, stronger, and more intelligent that normal ones.” I was grateful that Infirite was here to explain things to me but I was still trying to ignore him. My attraction to him was one thing, but being induced to jump him just because he’s a cambion, was another.

Arkaia called to him and thankfully he let me be, going to help him load up the horses since the troglodyte was too slow. I would have helped, if only to take my mind off things, but with Ikuma as injured as he was I couldn’t just put him down. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to either.

The others didn’t expect it of me though and I half-way listened to Ikuma as he chatted about one thing or another until the others were done. It’s not that I didn’t want to listen to him; it’s just that I already had so much to think about that if any more came into play I may just explode.

I started paying attention again when the Nightmares were brought over to us and I reluctantly gave Ikuma up to Infirite as he came to collect him from me. Arkaia pulled me close to him and helped me climb on, showing me how to do so without making a complete fool of myself, and I gripped the saddle horn as soon as I was up there. He climbed up after me and adjusted the stirrups to his length as he settled in before wrapping an arm around me tightly, the other holding the reins and the top of the saddle horn above my hands.

“It will take us a few days to get to the capital. It would do you some good to get some sleep while we travel.” It was Arkaia’s voice in my head this time and I was starting to not bother questioning how they did it. Maybe it was a vampire thing or something.

Although I didn’t like Arkaia touching me I still found his scent comforting and, because I had no other choice in the matter, I allowed myself to lean back against him and take in his support. He was treating me like I was precious, and maybe I was in some twisted sense of the word, and although I knew it was false I let it happen anyway. I wanted comfort, and even with my initial resistance I would take it where I could get it.

“Sleep.” I felt my eyelids growing heavier but I didn’t think anything more about it. I didn’t want to be awake anyway and if he wanted to drag me into the blissful sanctity of sleep, then so be it.

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Author’s Note: I’ve added in some new stuffs, like the whole blood god thing, so those of you who are rereading this aren’t completely bored. It’ll also help out a future plot point as well.

Anglemay: Thanks for the review and your continued support. <3