Bite Me Forever

Chapter 8: Deep Underground

"You are going to get hungry real soon." He said, standing up. "You must wait here for me. I'll go out and fetch someone for you to feed on."

My eyes peeled open in astonishment. Did he just say he wanted to leave me all alone in that creepy chamber?

"What? You can't leave me here." I protested.

"Well, I can't take you along with me either. It's extremely dangerous."

"I don't care," I hissed. He sucked in a deep breath and took some steps away from me.

His nose flared in annoyance and I knew that I had pissed him off again. Still, I didn't care. I wouldn't stay back alone.

"You can be mad for all I care. I won't be left alone in this place with no idea of when you'll return."

"What do you want me to do then? Take you along?"

"Well, that seems like a better idea," I reiterated.

"Fine. You have two options. Stay here where you'll be safe and wait until I return or come with me to Babel, an underground city infested with vampires, and risk being detected and killed by the others. Is that what you want?"

I inhaled sharply and weighed my options. Sure, a city full of vampires didn't sound promising but he could be exaggerating to stop me from going. If I followed him, he would be sure to protect me from danger, I hoped. But if I stayed by myself in this place, I felt like I'd go crazy. I feared that he would simply abandon me there. And even if he had the intention to return, what if something were to happen to him? Would I die here from hunger and thirst, all alone in the darkness of this chamber?

"You can't leave me here after everything I've gone through. I'll go with you. And I won't take no for an answer." I spoke confidently, without a hint of fear in my voice, even though I was terrified inside.

He stood up taller and nodded in agreement. I couldn't tell what was going through his mind but his eyes were focused on me and it seemed like he was lost in thought. I could sense that something was weighing heavy on him. Perhaps he felt remorseful. I shifted uncomfortably and tried to ignore his stares but they were like needles, pricking my skin and making me really uncomfortable.

"You'll have to stay hidden. Do not forget that," he warned.

I had put on a brave face, but my insides twisted with fear. I was afraid that I wouldn't know what to do. This was all new to me. I hadn't quite gotten used to the idea that I was a vampire now and my whole life had changed. However, I knew that I couldn't let Viktor leave me by myself. I was too afraid to stay on my own but I couldn't admit that to him.

"Come," he beckoned, leading me to a big, old, magnificent door that was hidden behind a curtain on the left of the chamber. The heavy-looking door was made of solid oak and carved with ancient symbols.

He took one of the torches and handed it to me. He explained that he could see in the dark but that it might take some time for my eyes to adjust. I didn't give it much thought as he pushed the door open and led me to a corridor with peculiar, intricate symbols adorning its walls. It smelled of blood and for some reason, it made my nostrils flare.

***

We walked for a while, the passageway seeming unending. The walls were lofty and covered in symbols. I walked close to Viktor, the blood-stained symbols making the hair on the back of my neck stand on end. I wasn't sure what they meant but I had a hunch that they weren't good. There was a smell of excrement and death, of things long-dead and long-forgotten. The stench of mould and decay. I tried not to breathe through my nose. From the silence that filled the passageway, I could tell that we were alone. The tunnels were undoubtedly creepy but there were no threats anywhere near. Viktor was exaggerating after all.