“Come quickly, we’re under attack!” an unknown Immortal yelled to the warriors assembled in front of him. “The vampires have descended upon us. We must defeat them. Follow me!”
“Hurrah!” they all cried and surged forward behind the leader. One hundred Immortal warriors had answered the call for help that the leader had sent out.
Late at night as the moon was sitting high in the sky, the vampire army had taken the form of a light grey fog, descending upon the land of the immortals to begin their slaughter.
“Damian, come quickly. We cannot defeat them! Something has happened to make them our equal in strength. There are too many,” James communicated to his brother Damian with urgency and confusion.
“What has happened brother? It's not possible that they are as strong as us.”
“I don’t know but it’s true…our only chance of survival is with an army of immortal men but even then I don’t know if we can defeat them…they have already taken half the village.”
“We are coming from the south and will be there in five minutes. Do what you can little brother.”
What has happened? Damian wondered.
Five minutes later they emerged into the chaos. The scene before him sent a chill through his very soul. Blood was spilled everywhere. The lifeless corpses of men, women and children were scattered on the ground. The earth was crying out in pain. He could feel it.
I must warn her to take cover where she is, Damian thought. I couldn’t bear it if she was destroyed too.
He sent her the news via the way of their kind. “Our village is under attack from the vampires. You must stay where you are. Take cover and let no one find you. I could not bear it if I lost you my love.”
His soul mate replied, “I will my love, please come back to me when you can.”
“I promise you that I will come back,” Damian promised then broke the connection. She curled into a ball beside the fire that he had built for her in their house before leaving.
It lay within the mountains and was well concealed from the world. She would be safe, but she couldn’t shake the feeling her warrior would not come back to her, as promised.
Back in the midst of the chaos, Damian screamed to his men, “Attack!”
His heart was breaking at the loss he felt. He would make the vampires pay for this.
Damian steered his trusty steed into the throng and began beheading as many vampires as he could. They could burn the corpses later. This would be enough to stop them, for the time being.
There were so many of them, and James was right. They were stronger than usual. It wasn’t making sense, something very bad had happened.
The immortals had taken it for granted they could keep the vampires under control, and had grown complacent. Now the evil ones turned it against them.
He surged forward when he caught sight of his brother in the middle of a vampire circle. He was surrounded with no way out. Damian blocked out the screams of terror from the immortals, the sound of metal clanging against metal and the laughter of pure evil and victory from the vampires. James was the only person in his focus.
He held his sword high in the air as he galloped forward and took out one of the vampires to make a hole in the circle, then threw his other sword towards James at a speed that the vampires couldn’t even see. In less than a second James had caught the sword and sliced a vampire’s head off. Together they fought off every vampire in the circle. They had always made a great team on and off the battlefield.
The air was filled with the smell of evil and death. It stung his nose to breathe the tainted scent. He needed fresh clean air, but he had to help his men.
Damian took in the sight before him again. His men had killed all but a few remaining vampires, but as with any battle, a few good men of his own had been lost, but at least they had died with honor, protecting their people.
Damian had been blessed with an analytical mind that made him a brilliant leader. He could make battle plans in a second and revise them just as quickly. His natural charm and charisma also inspired his men.
“What the hell happened tonight? Why are they as strong as us and how did they get into the village unnoticed?” he asked James, who was still mounted on his magnificent black Arabian stallion.
“It’s our blood,” James said. “They drank the blood of an Immortal, and by pure accident discovered it made them our equal.”
“How do you know?”
“They’re vampires,” he said with sarcasm. “They had to boast about what had happened.”
“Idiots…At least they took the hard work out of guessing.”
“Our village has been destroyed. Women, children and men have been lost tonight,” James said with vehemence. “And for what? Nothing! We were so complacent in thinking that we were unbeatable. Those evil creatures just sauntered on in and killed half the village.”
“I know this little brother.” Damian laid a hand on James’ shoulder. “Our people will never be the same again. We must learn from this and take precautions to ensure this never happens again.”
James let out a humour less laugh. “It should never have happened in the first place.”
“How did they get in without being detected?” Damian asked.
“It appeared a light fog was settling over the village. The next thing I saw was the fog transformed into an army of vampires. It was just pure luck I was on the balcony when it happened.”
Damian scratched his chin in thought, “It appears there is a lot we don’t know about the vampires.”
“Obviously…”
“Tomorrow we will start on a plan to rid the world of their evil stench, as we should have done in the first place, but tonight we must see to the needs of every Immortal left and begin to put this place back together,” Damian said.
“It will be a long time, if ever, before our kind can heal from this abomination.”
“I know,” Damian sighed.
Seated on their stallions, James and Damian looked over the carnage before them. They both felt defeated and heartbroken over what had happened tonight.
James turned to his big brother. “Where do we begin?”
“Let’s see to the wounded,” Damian said. “I will order my men to start torching the vampire corpses and digging graves for all the people we have lost tonight.”
“Perhaps we will have need for the prophecy girl after all,” James said reflectively. “I never really understood what the prophecy was about until tonight.”
“Before tonight we wouldn’t have needed her. Now I only pray that we can find her when she is born,” Damian said with conviction. They both knew it would be like finding a needle in a haystack, but he also knew that if the prophecy had been written, somehow they would find her.
“We should have been prepared for such an attack, and put in place measures against this kind of thing happening,” James said angrily.
“Hindsight little brother, hindsight.”
With heavy hearts, they started to see to their respective tasks.
Alessandra awoke from her sleep, and stretched out like a cat, on the warm comfortable day bed. The rain was belting against the cover surrounding the terrace, and she could hear thunder, in the distance. The sky was an ominous dark grey with flashing lightning bolts that lit up the sky. She couldn’t help but be in awe of the power of the storm. Mother Nature was a force to be reckoned with. Despite the severity of the weather, it somehow relaxed her. She pulled the quilt back up to her shoulders and watched the display overhead. It wasn’t long before she drifted back into another sleep, full of more dreams.
Damian needed some time alone to reflect on what had happened. He would be of little use to anyone if he didn’t get his head straight. He walked along a path in the forest that was a few meters from the edge of the village. He was surrounded by trees that seemed as tall as the sky. The path was well worn from years of people walking along it. A clearing was up ahead. He stopped and leaned against a tree looking out to the mountains that enc
ircled his homeland. It was a place of unspoiled beauty.
The stream to his left was trickling along its course. The sound of running water and the surrounding beauty revived him. Damian turned to go back when he caught the smell of evil. Whirling around, he came face to face with Vincent.
“So nice of you to stop by and say hello, Damian,” he said, his lips smirking with victory.
“So nice of you to stop by and kill half my people,” Damian shot back.
Damian tried to keep his cool. If Vincent had drunk an Immortal’s blood tonight, he would be almost unstoppable.
“My pleasure Damian,” he drawled. “You see I just couldn’t help myself…You immortals think you’re so undefeatable. It was too hard to resist showing you all that you…aren’t,” he said laughing.
Damian had heard enough. He flew into a rage and threw a fireball straight at Vincent’s heart, but the evil creature moved at the last second, and it hit his arm.
“Really?” Vincent asked. “I’m disappointed. That was such a predictable move.”
Damian glared at him, but Vincent just laughed again.
“Oh if looks could kill my boy. I believe I shall have fun with you.”
What does that mean?
Before Damian knew what was happening, two vampires jumped at him, one from either side, and held him down.
“James, help me. Clearing…Vincent…”
“Brother I’m coming. Help is on the way.”
There was no time to reply before he felt a blast of sunlight explode behind his eye, and the darkness surrounded him.
“Let’s go. We got what we came for,” Vincent said to his minions.
The two vampires picked up Damian’s limp body and ran faster than a blur. It was only a matter of time before help showed up for the fallen warrior, and they needed to get far away before that happened.
Mere moments after the trio of vampires departed, James arrived in the clearing. He knew it was too late. There was no-one to be seen for miles.
An eerie voice floated on the breeze towards him.
“You’re too late James. Your beloved brother is dead…at my hands.”
James fell to his knees and screamed with heartache and devastation at the loss of his beloved brother. Tonight had been difficult for anyone to handle but this as well was just too much to bear. He felt like his world had shattered into a thousand tiny pieces, and he would never be whole again.
“Damian! Damian, answer me damn it! Please tell me he is lying…”
There was no answer of course. If Damian was alive, he would’ve answered. James stayed there on his knees, consumed with grief, wondering how this could have happened.
Alessandra awoke again. How long have I been asleep? She wondered.
The rain was still pelting down, the thunder still roaring and the lightning still putting on a dazzling show, but it appeared closer than before and it was a whole lot darker now.
Someone had been in while Ally was sleeping and lit candles all around her, creating a soft warm glow, so she wouldn’t awake in darkness. Feeling like there was something important that she needed to remember, Ally took a moment to clear her mind that was foggy from sleep.
“What was it?” she muttered softly.
Then it hit her. The dreams…
Were they real? They felt real.
Ally decided it was time for her to go find everyone – James, in particular. She wanted to ask him about her dreams.
James was in his study behind the large mahogany desk. Henry, his friend and servant was seated in front of him in a large wingback chair.
“I don’t know if I did the right thing, old friend,” he said.
“James, you did what you had to.”
He sighed and put his head in hands. This had all been so much for her to absorb. He felt her mind ready to shut down on itself as she took it all in.
The guilt weighed heavily on his heart. It was so strong that it was almost a physical presence in the room that Henry could see.
“Cheer up, James; she’ll come around. Have you seen the way she looks at you?”
James looked up and cocked his head to the side, almost resembling Coco, who was seated on an overstuffed dog bed beside him. “With fear and resentment? Then yes, I have seen those looks.”
“No lad, look deeper,” Henry instructed. “You are so consumed with guilt and concern for the girl that you aren’t looking past the surface.”
James grinned. “Well my dear oracle. Enlighten me. What is it that you see?”
“Sophie is right, you know. You really are a knucklehead sometimes,” Henry said cheekily. “I’m not an oracle, but I do have eyes. You have access to her mind lad, and I’m sitting here telling you that there is something more than you can see. What part of that doesn’t make sense?”
“Careful old man, not many people could call me a knucklehead and live to tell the tale.” The humorous expression on James’ face betrayed his threatening words.
Henry’s eyes filled with mirth. This was more like the James he knew, laughing and making jokes, not moping around and feeling sorry for himself.
“This isn’t something that will fix itself over night you know, James.” He paused, “You have been an immortal for life. This is all new to her. Give her time and let her adjust, and she will thank you for it.”
“I know your right old friend. I just can’t help wanting to make things better for her.” He got up out of his chair and walked to the window to gaze out at the storm. “In my attempts to fix things, I seem to have made the situation worse.”
“That is one of the things that she will come to love about you James. You just want to make it easier for her and that is a noble cause. Giving her time and space, but not too much, is the best thing you can do for her.”
“Sound advice. Thank you,” said James. “You never did answer my question though, what do you see?”
“I see a frightened woman who has lost control of her life. I also see a very strong and very capable young woman who will get through this and be all the better for it. The part you really want to hear though is I see a woman who is fighting like hell against the attraction she feels for you. When you aren’t looking, she looks at you, and I see the tension melt out of her body. Her eyes light up when you look at her. She breathes a little quicker when you are around. She will fight it but in the end, love will conquer all, it always does…” He winked at James.
“I didn’t know you were such a romantic, Henry.”
“Oh I am lad, but don’t tell Sophie,” he said with a wink.
“Your secret is safe with me.”
“She is melting with each moment but a bit of romance would help your case,” Henry suggested.
“What do you suggest?” James asked.
“She is quite taken with Scotland, so might I suggest you take her riding and show her some of this wild countryside of ours. Let her see that life here can be magical, not just doom and gloom. You need to lighten the mood a bit. Let her get to know you.”
“What a spectacular idea. I’ll take her tomorrow, but there’s something special I want to organize for her before we go.” James felt a ray of hope surging through him. He had felt like he was thrashing around and failing miserably where Alessandra was concerned, but now maybe he could turn things around. “Henry since you appear to have a grasp on the female race, and apparently I am a caveman, could I ask you a question?”
“A caveman!” Henry said with a knowing look. “Adele?”
“Yes, actually. How did you know?”
“She reminds me a lot of my Sophie, and that is something she would say.” Henry chuckled again.
James rolled his eyes and moved to lean against the desk.
“Why is it that one minute Ally is insulting me, and acting like she hates me, then just an hour ago we end up sharing a passionate kiss?”
“Ah the confusion that enters our lives once we invite women in,” Henry said. “Well it’s like this. She pretends
she hates you because she is trying to fight it, but then her heart overrules her mind, and she gives in to her true desires.”
“Mmmm that makes sense in a roundabout way,” James said looking slightly bewildered.
“Women,” Henry snorted. “We can’t live with them and can’t live without them.”
“Maybe I really am a caveman?” James wondered aloud.
Henry replied, “Don’t feel too bad. We all are at some point.”
“Thank you, Henry, for all your advice. You’re a true friend.” James walked over and clasped his arms around Henry in the traditional manly way of showing affection.
“As are you James. Now quit yapping to me and go make that girl fall head over heels for you,” Henry said as he was leaving the room with Coco right behind him.
James needed time to think about all he and Henry had discussed. He moved away from the desk and walked over to the cream lounge in front of the roaring warm fireplace. He watched the flames dance in front of his eyes, and he lost himself in thoughts of Alessandra in his arms.