Read The Huntress: Becoming a Huntress Online
Authors: Mihaela Gheorghe
The Huntress: Becoming a Huntress (6 page)
“Indeed, my dear, the bracelets are splendid. You are lucky that you found them. You keep it that way! I just hope that the good luck won’t leave you at one point.”
Her whole body gives me to understand that she had understood the hidden threat. I let her arm. The trace of my fingers is very clear on her dark skin.
Then, she totally surprises me.
“Well, if you love so much my bracelets, choose one that you like. Either one you like. I’ll give it to you as a gift.”
I don't understand her so affable attitude, and something like an alarm bell starts to ring in my head. But, how Nikos is also here, and my hesitation, puzzles him, I fake an interest in her jewels, and I choose a black and silver bracelet.
“Are you sure you can get rid of this beauty?”
Cassiopia shook her head with a prettily that surprises me even more.
“Of course I am. I assure you that it makes me happy to give you any of these bracelets.”
I look with circumspection from the bracelet at her.
“Come on, Patricia,” says Nikos, “take it! It's the first time that one of our kind is so open and friendly with you. I am glad, Cassiopia, to see that you're friendly with Patricia. There are too many who aren’t.”
Cassiopia looks at him with adoration, excited by the appreciation in his voice. This is annoying me, because I know for sure that there is something hidden in her apparently so disinterested gesture.
“Well,” I say, putting my glass on the windowsill of the terrace, “I’m getting out of here. I’ve got some work to do.”
Everyone knows what it means for me having something to do. It means that I have some vampires to kill.
“And after you finish your work, will you come back for another drink?”
Nikos ' interest causes other palpitations in Cassiopia’s chest, and I feel satisfied. I'm almost tempted to answer ‘Yes’. Almost.
“No, I don't think so. I shall withdraw in my lair. Now, if you’ll, excuse me. Please, give my respects to the High Priest, okay? See you!”
I place a hand on the terrace railing and I make a jump.
When I referred to "my lair", I literally referred to as a lair. Because a lair is, indeed. A place made of lead plates, on the other side of the Lake. It is impossible for any creature to take my smell, or to track me down, if they don’t know exactly where I live. I don't have anything inside, but a bed. And not because I really need a bed to rest. But I do have times when I voluntarily fall asleep, only for the sake of dreaming about the
My senses begin to burn at the unmistakable smell of that race. My venom explodes in my mouth. My canines sunk in my lower lip, instantly. Every organ, every muscle I flex, starts to burn. Just like my eyes. I feel them before I see them. I'm in the wharf area, where my smell wanes altogether. I know that they look for me just how am I looking for them. Though my smell is much harder to detect. There are five of them. With the passage of time, I noticed that they are becoming better trained, better fighters, more prepared. But for me… they are never too good, never-never too prepared.
Even though there are five vampires, two women and three men, even if they are obviously well trained, they have no chance against me. I took the cylinder, at the same time removing myself away the scabbard, jumping into the attack. I stick it in the skull of one of them, powerfully. The dry sound I hear fills me with joy. I push on the button for the ultraviolet rays, and the body of the vampire is split in half, after which it turns to ashes. I counter a hit that I feel coming from my left side, of one of the women. Is the blonde, very white in the face. Her eyes are blood red, as well as her lips. I twist her wrist as in a grip vice. When she’s trying to hit me with her other hand, I catch and twist that wrist too. I see her grimacing when my claws are cutting her skin and hurting her flesh. I look into her bloody eyes for a split second before I apply her a head shot, then I hit her with a knee in her stomach. She falls a few meters back. The pontoon is dust under her, and she falls into the water altogether. The other three are attacking me all at once, in order to give time for the wounded one to recover. I use the back of the cylinder. They act like ultraviolet lasers. Then all becomes instinct and speed. I hit them, and they hit me back. However, my shots are more powerful, tougher. The wounds that I cause with pride and satisfaction are deeper. My flesh shall recover faster than theirs, precisely because of that. I notice that I chopped off the head of one of them. Before his head touching the ground, his body is turned to ashes. The female vampire from the water joins the remaining ones. I hear nothing but growls and snarls. I feel a pain like a burn on my arm. I realize that one of them bit me. My lips are widening in a thin smile. If they would only know that I am almost immune to their venom… I'm not invincible. I'm just very determined, very controlled, very well trained, and infinitely more accurate. And frankly, my advantage is that I don't believe I have any weaknesses. Yes.. My weak point is incidentally my advantage: my thirst to kill all these monsters. While piercing the chest of one of them with the right hand claws, heating myself with his flesh and blood, I bite the neck of another one, almost decapitating him in half. It is sufficient, however, as with my remaining free hand to pull it. It's as if I yank a toy from a child’s hand. I am now face to face with the blonde vampire woman.
“What sort of creature you are?”
I've heard this question from many others.
"We all hate you!"
Cassiopia’s voice resounds in my ears.
“We, as pure hunters, we refer to you as a separate entity from us, just how you refer to us as being different than you are.”
Nikos’s voice resounds in my ears.
“I am what I am.” I respond. And it doesn’t matter.”
I'm sick of keeping apologizing for my blood. Yes, I am what I am. Maybe I'm a Hunter. Or maybe I'm not. Maybe I'm a third vampire. Or maybe not. Human-I long ago ceased to be, even though I still have atoms of one of them in my blood. So really, I am what I am. But whatever I am, my purpose is to eradicate the vampire disease race. The same thing that the Hunters’ Order wants. So maybe I am a hunter after all.
Although a kill her very quickly, now that I remained single, I'm not hungry. I'm not touching the flesh of any of them.
I go into the water. I'm heading to my lair, that’s on the other side, into the Woods, hidden by the rich vegetation. The bite on my arm burns me really bad. Although it's not killing me, the vampire venom is attacking my system until it is absorbed. My gaze films over, and I can feel dizziness coming over me. My breath becomes heavier and I move increasingly harder. My reflexes are semi paralyzed. This condition will pass within two hours, because it isn’t the first time when this is happening to me. If for a pure Hunter, the vampire venom is fatal, I assimilate it within two hours, as I could see in my previous experiences.
Once I am in the den, I collapse on the simple bed. I am very sick, and my sight had almost completely disappeared. It is very well that I shall recover myself in two hours.
“This is easier that I actually thought…”
A laughter…
An unpleasant smell, unbearable... And a known odor....
I am almost completely paralyzed, but what I have left in my senses warns me that I am in imminent danger. Nearly blind, I nevertheless realize that around me, there are foreign, threatening presences. Although I can hardly move, my mind is awake. I know that if I don't react in any way, it's as if I would sign the sentence from my own death. I know that the total lack of response will be pure suicide. And with all this... How could I react? How could I fight back? And how could I, at the same time, not to react at all? The first enemy bends above me... I am no less surprised than the others of my own jump. Through the thick fog that is all that I can see, I distinguish eight silhouettes. However, I fail to realize what is nonetheless familiar… a shape... Or maybe a flavor... Something... And how did they find me?
I fail to exterminate more than three vampires. That’s all that I could kill. It’s all that I have been given to kill. And when you think that there are so many of them that will still remain... When you consider that there are so many of them out there to be killed...When one of those breaks my neck, I out an involuntary painful sound. And I could still recover myself. Only if he would not break my throat. My own blood muddies my face when thick vein bursts with it. It surprises me the smell of my blood. It's not pungent like that of vampires. It's not too tasteless, like that of hunters. I don't smell any of rust, as that of humans. My blood has a sweet smell, almost vanilla. My body is laying on the floor, doubled over. My head is almost detached from the rest of my body. A black mist envelops me. Strange, I always thought I'd see the end in sight when I'll be on death row. But perhaps that is a specific expression of humans. Someone with the same familiar scent leans near me, and as if I am touched on my arm. I hear a click when something is loosen from around my wrist, then a familiar voice in the dark which says like in a bad dream.
“You didn't just think you're the only one who bears weapons as jewelry, did you?....”
Cassiopia?!
Then, another voice.
“Our understanding ends here. You are free to go. However, if our roads will cross again, we will not forgive you.”
“Don’t you worry. Nor will I – you.”
Then another laughter…
My breath is becoming increasingly rare. My heart rate has decreased considerably, until it no longer felt at all.
It's not strange that my only regret is that I haven't lived enough to exterminate the vampire race?
And then, I feel my pulse very, very ...very ...slow ...and...
Tick-tick-tick-tick-tick...
Tick-tick-tick-...tick...
Tick-tick-...tick...
Tick-...tick...
Tick....
....
...
...
...
Tick...
...
...
...
Tick...
...
...
...
„Come on, you can do it... I know you can!”
Tick...
„Stay with me!... No! No!...Ouch!”
...
...
...
„You are too strong to give up! Come on, stay with me! Can you hear me? Stay with me! Follow my voice! That’s it! Good girl!”
Tick...
...
...
...
„Damn! ...Where this all blood still comes out from you? The jugular has escaped me again! Look how I mess myself because of you! So you might as well help me with something more than with a small heart beat once in a while, ok?”
Tick...
„That’s it! I can't figure out what kind of animal are you yet, but your blood smells fabulous...”
...
...
...
„Come on, now, I wanted it to be a compliment! If I wanted to get my teeth into you, I had already done it so far!...”
Tick...
„There you go! It's better this way...”
...
...
...
„I better won’t rejoice before I’m sure of something, right? I shall give time to your body to recover now, ok?”
Tick...
„You are safe here. I shall guard you, don't worry! Those who have attacked you are pretty damn sure they have killed... Even I wonder that you have resisted until now... Anyway, I must go out to shrink somehow that smell of yours, that practically screams ‚Hey, here I am!’ And I'm not sure that I can cope with too many of them! But I’ll be back very quickly, don’t you worry!”
...
...
...
„I came back pretty quickly, didn’t I? Isn’t that what I’ve said?”
...
...
...
„Don’t tell me that you went off! I would be really pissed! Especially after how much effort we both put in! Lol! Or maybe I have something in my ears and can’t hear your heart beats!... Better make it classic, and put my ear on your breast!...Let’s see...”
...
...
...
„Nothing! Come on, girl, even a small flickering of your chest would be just fine right now!... And if I hear it, I promise not to make any more jokes about your poor heartbeats...”
....
Tick...
„Phew, finally! A promise is a promise! I'm going to keep my mouth...Hey, don't stop again!”
Now and then I hear something like a tingle. Slightly irritating, rather than really annoying. Then it's totally peace. A quiet cold, otherwise. The tingle comes with unimaginable pain, with burns in my neck, quite unbearable. So unbearable, that I prefer a thousand times more of that silence of ice, where I no longer feel anything, especially burns and pain. But whenever I think I’ll finally be left alone in this icy silence, I hear again this tingle that doesn’t allow me to rest.
I don't know how much time passed, but my hearing is as good as before.
„Get to look at these strong and regular beatings! That’s very cool! I knew that you are a survivor! Well done, girl!”
I know that the tingle is the voice of this irritating woman. Although I can’t still smell it, I can’t still see her, her voice sounds like this woman is always up to something, especially if frolics are involved. At the same time, I realize that she is not quite an ordinary woman. She is somebody who knows for sure that I am not a human being, but a strange creature. As sure I am that she is a kind of a creature, because a merely human being could not have kept me alive. To be honest, in fact, she had not only kept me alive, but basically she brought me back to life. And she did everything possible and impossible to maintain me in this state. Indeed, my heart beat very fast, especially because I'm not used to depend so much on somebody else, and due to the fact that the only sense that works now is that of my hearing. That's not just as perfect as it used to be because, although I can hear many inaudible sounds, I realize that I do not hear this woman's heart. Or rather, very, very slowly. I feel then how she opens my mouth, and she trusts in my mouth something that feels like raw meat. It is a heck of a taste. In fact, the meat that I’d eat right now is...
„I should be grateful if you'd keep away your imagination from my plates.” I hear her lively voice again.
Perhaps my venom fell out of my mouth uncontrollably, when I thought of a vampire. A very old, almost unknown feeling, invades me. It looks very well with uneasiness The woman wipes my mouth like I am some sort of a toddler, and then she continues to feed me.
„I know that's not quite a delicacy, but what I’m giving you here is what I eat for myself. You just get used in time.”
Again, my thought leads me to think about the taste of a vampire. I hear a high-pitched sound, such as pile on metal. Then I hear the noise of my sharp claws when they came through my nails.
„Wow! Look at those fangs! I wonder how can I make you a manicure on those little claws of yours...”
That voice that has no face yet, makes me feel embarrassed, again.
„Can’t you just do something with these deadly weapons-? I don't have any solution for this... and frankly, I would not want to accidentally cut myself into them while I must feed you...”
Deliberately, I try to create another mental image, and slowly, slowly, my fangs and claws withdrew. Although the taste of food is not pretty good, I realize with some surprise that I feel satiated. At least for now. Because I get hungry in a fairly short time. But not the hunger itself is the problem. Like usual, I am used with hunger. I don't know why I feel and know this, how that hunger is a very well known thing to me, but this is it. I can very clearly feel and hear her presence, like she is all around me. She moves with great speed, kinda like a...
„Now don't get upset, and don’t jump, okay? I’m going to look at your wound. I will not do to you any harm, okay? If I wanted to hurt you I would have already done it, or I would not bother to bring you here and to take care of you...”
Her tone is gentle, joking, but easily scared at the same time. Not necessarily scared, but more nervous. She does something in the area of my neck, and I slightly jerk when I feel this strong, burning pain, as if my neck would have been boiled, on the outside, and on the inside, at the same time.
„Oh, shit!” She says, in her own and colorful way to speak. „Although it still looks pretty bad, I assure you the wound is much better. At least we know now that your hearing is back! I hope that your other senses will return, too. Although it would be good for them to come back with time...”
Her last words sounded as if they were uttered more as for herself.
I do not have the notion of time, so I cannot appreciate how much time has passed since my hearing is back. All I am aware of is that since then, it seems to me that this woman is speaking continuously, without ceasing. And because she keeps cluttering, I can't figure out when it is day and when it's night. So I realize that she is not sleeping. At all. She needs no rest, as if she is...
My fingers involuntarily tear, with a noise that imperceptible for human ears.
„Don’t tell me! You motor function is restoring!! Hey, but that's a wonderful thing!”
As from nowhere, the woman appears next to me, like a very light breeze. She probably moves with great speed, as I've already noticed. She touches me on my hands. Her skin is very cold. Through my head, a terrible image passes. I deliberately cast it. The very short moment of straining, if you can even call it short moment, goes unnoticed, fortunately, by the female. Because I have also noticed that she sees the smallest details. Nothing escapes her. But my fleeting postures.
„Come on, you try to move. Can you move altogether?”
After a few quite hesitant tries, I realize that I'm moving from all the fibers of my body. I would probably move with the same celerity and speed if I had the visual sense restored, too. Or maybe not. However, I realize that I'm not at my peak capability.
„That will certainly be a change for the better, now that I don’t have to feed you by myself. You do understand, right? If there weren’t for those your fangs of yours who can appear without you even give me a fair warning before... And I must tell you that I care for my hands enough to not want to see them riddled with your powerful canines, adding the fact that these hands are also attached to my entire nice body....”
Her joyful teasing makes me feel quite uncomfortable, again. I do not remember such a feeling, but as with hunger, something in me tells me that I had this feeling before, that, even if very, very long time ago.
While I consciously shovel the food into my mouth, the taste like cardboard of the dish makes me ask.
„And what is this crap, after all?”
It passes a full second of silence before the woman starts screaming.
„Haaaaaaay, that is so cooooool! You can talk!”
Honestly, I just now realized that my mind was spoken aloud.
„You can really speak! That is so great!”
I feel the airflow around me, a sign that she moves again very quickly around me. I would like to ask her a question, but I'm afraid of her answer. Not now. I'm not ready yet.
„That is so great! You are almost yourself again!”
Her joy is obviously heartfelt. I can't imagine why. I am a foreign to her, and maybe I really am..
„I am glad from the bottom of my soul that your voice has also returned! Now I can talk to you about my troubled love life, and tell me what you think!”
She is so serious and enthusiastic in what she says, that I do what I haven’t done for so long, that I even forgot how to do it: I laugh. It's a rusty, rumbling laugh, but it's nevertheless a laugh. I am so amazed to hear myself laughing, that I suddenly stop.
„Yap,” the female voice then says, seeming slightly pissed, „I didn’t think either that my love life is something to be laughed at.”
This time, my laugh comes out easier, more spontaneous, even if just as rumbling.
„You're not really friend with common sense, right?” she asks me.
With my ultra-fine hearing, even if I don't see it, I hear, however, as she pulls out her tongue at me.
I laugh for the third time. Her laughter, more melodious, simpler, more natural, mixed with mine.
„My name is Slim.” she tells me.
She does not have a voice who invites making confidences. Maybe if it were so, I would not have responded. She is just a natural, spontaneous, warm, open being.
„I'm Patricia.”
Then I add, as a creature who has remembered something long ago forgotten.
„But I always liked to be told Pat.”
I don't know where that comes from, but it's a certainty anyway. I feel that I have always preferred to be told Pat.
As if the woman nods.
„Anyway, I think it suits you better.”
She grabs my hand with hers. It's as cold as I felt it the first time. But my body temperature is as cold. It's a pretty gratifying sign that my instincts don’t dominate me.
„Probably, it would have been preferable to introduce myself at the beginning,” she says, „but I have not considered it appropriate giving the circumstances. I had far more important things to do. And anyway, I wanted you to know that you are safe here with me... I didn't want you to be preoccupied, and I had to take care of you...”
I imagined the woman delicately shrugging. I almost don't remember when someone was so much concerned about my safety, since someone has taken care of me... Kyrya... No! I toughened myself up, immediately. I should no longer fall into the same trap, the trap of affection because, at the time that everything is fine, suddenly, something, or someone, will come up ne to take that happiness away from me! The thought of my dead creators that passes through my head, sends through my veins the same huge wave of hate against the vampires’ race. And suddenly, my body temperature rises up to the boiling point, my mouth is invaded by venom, and my canines sunk in my lower lip. My nails become sharp claws. I feel another stream of air. She just made a jump backwards, that's clear.
„To understand that this is not exactly the best time for me to look at your wound, and change your bandage...” she says with a voice as friendly, but cautious.
I get embarrassed, again. What does this woman make out of me, by making me feel the most inappropriate feelings? I tighten myself to regain my control, though it's the hardest thing to do. With a short jingle, my canines are withdrawn, as the tide of venom in my mouth. My body temperature drops sharply. As my claws. I no longer represent the slightest danger.
„Sorry.” I apologize, as though these words rub the sandpaper on my throats.
„Don’t be.” She says with an understanding that humbles me even more. „It's understandable. I wonder that you could refrain yourself for so long.”