A Moonlit Night - The Complete Saga (6 page)

The door smashed against the wall, sending
both Steven and Emily to their feet as they rushed out the front
door.

“Oh my…god,” said Steven, at a loss of words.
He couldn’t believe his eyes, and failed to find anything suitable
to say. “…Fuck me.”

At the edge of the property, hundreds of
sickly men and women circled the area. Even under the night sky,
Emily could see their bright red eyes, staring the three of them
down. Like rabid wolves, they hunted their prey.

Tyler looked back at the two of them, and
said, “Does anyone want to tell me what the hell we are looking
at?”

Chapter Six

“You might want to come out of the house
now!” roared Simeon, as the ghouls surrounded the house.

Remembering her mistake the last time she met
Simeon, Emily ordered the group back into the house.

“They’ve cut the phone lines,” said Steven,
attempting to dial the phone. “I don’t understand. Who are these
people?”

“They are the men that attacked me,” said
Emily, emotionless and in shock. “They’ve come to finish what
they’ve started—.”

“I swear to everything that is good and
holy,” Simeon shouted from outside. “I will burn this house to the
ground if you will not come outside!”

“What the hell did you see, Emily?” Tyler
asked, slamming his fist down on the kitchen counter. “Damn it,
Emily; Jules is still out there somewhere!”

“This isn’t her fault, Tyler!” said Steven,
rising in defense of his sister. “She never asked for any of
this!”

“You can’t possibly
still
be ignoring
me?” asked Simeon, getting louder. “I didn’t want to have to do
this!”

The three of them waited for any signs of
attack, unsure if surrender was even an option.

The doorbell rang, sending shivers down their
spines. Simeon was at the door.

“I think you should come out,” said Simeon,
as he rang the doorbell again. “Julia thinks you should come out,
too.”

Emily and Steven looked at one another in
shock, but Tyler was already out of his chair and rushing to the
door.

“No!” Emily screamed. “Tyler, please don’t
go!”

It was too late, as Tyler had opened the
door. He stared down the large vampire, afraid to move any
further.

Simeon had a hand firmly around the throat of
Julia. Leering at Emily, he said, “If you had of come outside when
I had asked, this would not be happening to your friend!”

Simeon bared his fangs, and sunk his teeth
deep into the neck of Julia. She screamed up in pain as the blood
poured down her neck.

Withering in agony, Emily could only stand
by, as she watched her friend collapse to the ground.

“You animal!” screamed Tyler, as she charged
Simeon. “I’ll kill you—!”

“Please come back, Tyler!” Emily
screamed.

Tyler couldn’t hear Emily’s pleas for him to
stop. All he could think about was the woman he loved, being
attacked in front of him. He leaped at Simeon, hoping to throw him
to the ground.

“Not today,” said Simeon, lifting his head
from Julia’s neck and catching Tyler with his free hand.

Tyler looked on in shock, as Simeon hurtled
him back into the house. He smashed against a table, dropping to
the floor.

Tyler lay conscious on the floor, while
Simeon finished his meal.

Simeon raised his head, and withdrew his
fangs. Licking the blood off his lips, he looked back at Emily, as
said, “Refuse me again…and I
will
burn this house to the
ground.”

Chapter Seven

Emily and Steven stood out on the porch,
brother and sister against an army.

The ghouls howled in the night, as they
stared intently at their prey. They had waited a lifetime for this
moment, and wished to savor every moment.

“What do you want from me?” asked Emily,
clenching her fists. “What did I ever do to you?”

The ghouls cackled in unison, and the ground
beneath them trembled from their ferocity.

“My dear, I see that Xander told you
nothing,” smirked Simeon, slowly walking up the steps of the porch.
“I can’t say that I blame him.”

“You called me a summoner, before,” Emily
said. “What were you talking about?”

“That is a very long story,” said Simeon, now
feet away from Emily. “In short…your race was once considered gods
among men. You walked the world, sharing your powers with the
people of the land, and they worshipped you for it.”

Steven tried to stand in between the two, but
a touch on the shoulder from Emily brought him back. They looked at
each other, their somber expressions saying more than words ever
could.

“They were gods that give back to their
worshippers; could there be anything more preposterous?” Simeon
asked. “That simply would not work for us, so we replaced you as
the true gods!”

Emily listened, in horror, as Simeon
recounted the details on how the vampires systematically destroyed
every summoner in existence, except Emily.

“You monster!” screamed Emily, desperately
trying to call forth the energy from a few nights ago. “Did you
kill my mother, too?”

“Why don’t you ask your boyfriend, Xander?”
Simeon inquired. “After all, he was there.”

“Lies!” Emily yelled. “You only deal in
deceit and lies; my mother was right about you!”

“What a good lesson to learn,” Simeon
grinned. “Too bad it will be your last—.”

“Attack!” yelled a voice from the trees.
“Kill them all!”

Dozens of men emerged from the trees, rapidly
advancing on the small junkie army. They were skillful, and well
trained, as the cut down the addicts with ease.

Emily and Steven watched on in amazement, as
the battle raged less than twenty feet away. It was dark out, but
the red eyes of both parties could be seen a mile away, like
hundreds of firefly’s dancing in the night sky.

“Emily, get back!” shouted Steven, as a ghoul
jumped up to the porch, and charged them.

Steven pushed Emily aside, and took the brunt
force of the attack. The ghoul threw him to the ground, clawing at
him from above.

“Steven!” screamed Emily, as she tried to
pull the ghoul off. “Get off him, you vile monster—!”

“Watch out, Emily!” bellowed Tyler, running
out of the house brandishing a pitching wedge. “Take this, you
monster!”

Tyler struck the ghoul in the back, and when
it didn’t back off, he struck again.

The ghoul cried in anguish, as he crumbled to
the floor. Coughing up blood, it looked up towards his master, who
wasn’t moving to save him.

Steven crawled out from underneath the ghoul,
and Tyler helped him to his feet. He grabbed the club from Tyler,
and took a swing for himself.

The ghoul wailed in pain as it rolled off the
deck onto the battlefield. By now, their numbers had dropped
drastically, as the small group of well-trained opponents sliced
through them quickly and efficiently.

Simeon smiled, as the carnage ensued all
around the simple cottage home. He should have been furious, but
the thought of this insurrection coming so close to victory amused
him. After all, he thought, they were only junkies and
newly-trained ghouls.

He raised his fist towards the three of them,
ready to make his strike. He stared Emily down, and said, “I’ve
been thinking about this moment for a very long time—.”

“I warned you, I would be back,” said Xander,
grabbing Simeon’s arm. “Tonight, my maker, this ends!”

Simeon winched in pain as Xander’s gloves
torn into his flesh. He tried to force him off, but the
silver-lined gloves drastically lowered his strength.

“I will have your head for this!” screamed
Simeon, gathering enough strength to send Xander back a few feet.
“You and everyone you’ve ever cared about will burn!”

“Get back in the house!” growled Xander, as
Emily ushered her friends back into the house. “This is between
Simeon and me. We must do this alone.”

“I have prepared for this moment for a long
time,” said Xander, clenching his fists. “I may not be as powerful
as you, but I am a
hell
of a lot smarter.”

“Prepare all you want,” Simeon snarled. “I’m
going to rip off your arms and beat you with those damned
gloves!”

Chapter Eight

Simeon charged forward, without concern for
his own wellbeing. The silver burned through his skin as he
manhandled Xander to the floor. His fury shook the very floor
beneath them as they battled on the porch.

“You knew that I wouldn’t let this
insurrection go unpunished!” shouted Simeon as he thrashed at the
kneeling Xander. “After I kill you, the rest of your clan will
suffer, as traitors to our kind! I can assure you…the Council of
Elders will have them endure decades of torture, until they finally
die…alone and afraid.”

Xander screamed in agony, his thunderous
voice rattling the windows of the old country home. He raised
himself, and wrapped his arms around the waist of Simeon. Thrusting
with all his might, he took the much older vampire down to the
floor.

“You will never get away with this!” yelled
Xander, as he lashed out at Simeon. “The balance must be kept!”

Xander grabbed the head of Simeon, and began
to squeeze. The silver set Simeon’s retinas ablaze as he dug his
nails deeper into the once-mighty vampire’s eye sockets.

Writhing in agony, Simeon kicked and screamed
as the pain overwhelmed him. He flailed his arms around, eventually
finding the forearms of his target.

Simeon ripped Xander’s hands away, and with a
swift knee to the sternum, sent Xander crashing to the ground.

Xander picked himself up quickly, but looking
back he noticed Simeon had done the same.

The flames still raged in Simeon’s eyes, as
he stared Xander down. He was too proud to show any signs of
weakness, and laughed maniacally, saying, “You remember that little
whore, in Toronto?”

“Of course I do,” stated Xander, trying to
remain calm. “You made me watch, as you killed the only woman I
ever loved in the afterlife.”

Xander wasn’t going to let Simeon control
him; he wasn’t going to let his emotions conquer him. A clear mind
is what he needed, and he remained focused on the task at hand.

“Ah…yes, and what was her name?” asked
Simeon, as the flames slowly burnt out.

“Cynthia,” said Xander, beginning to feel his
mind go cloudy, and his feelings overwhelm him. “Her name was
Cynthia.”

“That’s right!” Simeon smirked, his eyes now
healing rapidly. “She was a lovely woman, so full of life and
energy. Until you entered her life, that is.”

“Are you done?” Xander inquired. “You haven’t
controlled me for 100 years; and I’m not going let you start
again.”

“The Council of Elders controls all
vampires!” Simeon yelled. “You think you can escape our wrath? We
allowed you to live your life, as long as you never interfered with
our plans. Now that you have, we will finally be able to put you
down, like the dog that you are. You may have talent, but you lack
the heart of a true warrior!”

Simeon charged, tearing through the porch as
he rapidly advanced on Xander. The two collided in mid air, as they
were launched off the porch. They crashed against the ground in a
thunderous boom, rolling around the battlefield as they clawed at
each other.

On the ground beside them, ghouls still
fought one another for control. Xander’s well-trained men seemed to
be gaining the upper hand, as they sliced through their
opponents.

“You’re losing the battle,” Xander grinned as
they rolled around on the grass. “That’s what you get for turning
your ghouls into addicts. You will never learn. For as strong as
you may be, that is your biggest weakness. You are destined to
repeat the same mistakes; I want you to know that I pity you.”

“Your ghouls mean nothing to me!” Simeon
screamed. “I could kill a hundred before I break a sweat!”

Simeon mounted Xander, pinning him to the
ground, and began stripping the flesh from Xander’s face with his
powerful hands.

“You will never get away with this!” yelled
Xander, as the nails tore through his skin. “Someone will
eventually find you, and finish what I’ve started.”

“500 years, and you’re still just as thick as
ever,” said Simeon, his hands wrapping around Xander’s throat.
“After tonight, there will be no one around to stop us.”

Simeon picked himself up, and with his hand
still clutching Xander’s throat, dragged him back up the porch.

Xander was battered and broken as he dropped
to the porch floor. The blood poured down him, staining the bright
blue porch underneath him. He could barely see, as Simeon knelt
down beside him.

“And now, you will watch her die,” Simeon
said. “You are too weak to save the one you care for…just like
Cynthia.”

Xander struggled, desperately trying to
escape Simeon’s grip. However, as he tried to fight back, he could
feel the energy drain from his body. Everything was starting to go
dark.

Chapter Nine

“Cynthia!” shouted Xander, walking through
the front door. “I’m home!”

Xander hung up his coat, took off his hat,
and closed the door behind him. He was living in a townhouse that
the two of them rented, in downtown Toronto.

The year was 1965, and the two of them found
themselves without a care in the world.

“Honey, are you home?” asked Xander, checking
in the kitchen. “…Honey?”

She had to be home, he thought, as the door
had been unlocked. Nothing seemed to be disturbed, or missing, so
he quickly ruled out the possibility of a burglary.

Xander walked up the stairs, hoping to find
Cynthia in the bedroom.

“Good evening,” said Simeon, as Xander opened
the bedroom door. “It’s about time you arrived. Cynthia and I were
getting ever so…bored.”

“What the hell are you doing here?” Xander
asked, clenching his fists. “Get away from her!”