Secret Fire

~Chapter 30~

Senn Pov.

I feel my stomach churn as I walk up the stairs slowly, it's as if my brain is telling me the slower I walk up these stairs the better chance I have of not dying. But I know that's not true... I walk into the room, trying to walk as quiet as possible so that even I can't hear my own footsteps.

"Hello Senn, I've been waiting for you." Ingressus suddenly addresses and turns towards me, smiling but not in a good way that says 'welcome' it's in a bad way that says 'you're in trouble' "Please, take a seat."

He gestures to the bench and I shift uncomfortably.

"I'd prefer not to..." I manage only to receive a harsh glare from him, his vermillion eyes digging into me like knives. 

"Sit. Down." He hisses firmly, I quickly walk over and sit down on a bench nervousness pulsing through me. Ingressus sits down across from me, leaning back against the couch and watching me. "You know the ability of having venom in your fangs is a trait that no vampires other than those born in my family have, it's a very powerful thing to have, it makes it much easier to eat our prey without struggle."

"I gulp and pull a pillow to my chest, he stares for a minute before brushing it off and grabbing a cleaner beside the couch he's on picking at his fangs for a minute and getting the scum off of them. He's going to eat me he wouldn't clean his fangs if he wasn't! He licks his fangs for a minute allowing the light from the torches to reflect off of them then he glances at me, his gaze digging into me for a minute before he tilts his head slightly, amused.

"Do I... frighten you?" He questions slowly and I hug the pillow tighter, gripping it and holding my breath for a minute then finally mustering my courage and nodding smally. He chuckles then stands up and walks towards me, standing close to me.

"Good, that is how it should be. A little fear commands obedience... and I fully trust that you will be obedient." He smirks and flicks his tail slightly. "You're so naïve. I notice a lot of things, your determination to save that Sendaris girl was very... intense... you could say, for a child at least. Young Lovers are so dumb..."

"You don't know that!" I hiss and shirk away as he bares his fangs.

"I do...because I was one, I was young and fell in love with a girl and tried every day of my time with her to not bite her and I never did until later, I did end up marrying." He growls. "But I was never in a war with this girl, some love makes you weak, you're more vulnerable when you love someone and you're more at risk because then you feel like you need to protect two people at once, much like what you experienced, it was heart wrenching, really." 

"You're talking about Addy." I manage.

"Yes," He says, smiling smugly. "My wife."

I stay quiet fearing that I've already said too much. He pulls back a bit and goes back over to his couch and sits down, watching me.

"Almrak and Delthalus have taken the time to talk to you, tell you of your heritage, yes?" He asks and raises his eyebrows.

"Yes..." I manage and start looking around out of insist as the memory of what Delthalus said echoes in my head 'oh he will devour you!' It was an unsettling assurance that just makes me more nervous and I am almost positive I am radiating fear right now.

"And do you have any... questions about anything...?" He asks and watches me again as I shift closer to the fire to get warmth.

"Why am I not a vampire...?" I manage, they never answered that question so I'm hoping he will. Ingressus tilts his head as if pondering.

"Well being a half-blood you are not sealed to the fate of being a vampire at a young age, only pure blooded Voltaris are bound to that fate, it is only when blood of another enters your body through your mouth that those genes are triggered like your brothers, then from there your body will learn to adapt, like your brothers when they got teeth they got long fangs because blood entered their body before any other substance, while you got away from that fate which is why where your fangs are supposed to be it is flat." He explains and I just stare still processing the answer as I relax a bit. 

"Which brings me to another question that I plan to answer myself, is your blood appetizing?'."

I feel my breath get caught in my throat as he stands up and walks towards me slowly, flicking his tail back and forth then grabbing me, he smirks a bit then tilts my head slightly giving him a clear way to my neck, he leans down and bites me surprisingly gentler than Delthalus bit me, which doesn't make sense other than the fact that Delthalus probably hates my guts. The Deathsinger pulls away from my neck and wipes his mouth off as I watch him with a fearful expression as he smirks.

"Yes, it is." He walks back to his end of the room then sets a plate on the table, a plate of food. "Help yourself and ask whatever questions you wish."

"Where's Addy?" I ask and start nibbling on a biscuit. He laughs loudly and shows his blood-stained fangs.

"And why would I tell you that?" He purrs and I stop nibbling on the biscuit.

"Uhm, I just want to see her..." I manage again he just chuckles and shakes his head a bit. 

"Next question, anything you want except where my wife is." He says and takes a biscuit, eating it in one bite, which just shows how powerful a vampire's mouth is, it's clearly used for more than just swallowing blood.

"Are you going to have a child with her?" I ask.

"I literally just said you can ask about anything but that." He says dully but shakes his head a bit. "Yes we already tried and we're just waiting to go to the medic until tomorrow to see if she is pregnant, anything else you want to ask?"

"Where did the venom gene come from in your family?" I ask.

"It started with my great great great grandfather when he got a sort of... disease that caused him to have killing venom in his fangs, and he passed it on to my great great grandfather and he passed it on to my great grandmother and she passed it onto my grandfather, and he passed it onto my father and my father passed it onto me. It's actually a helpful ability so that the prey never knows that the venom is in them because it fades to the color of the blood." He explains and watches me again.

"Is it toxic to vampires?" I ask and watch his expression, his vermillion eyes are just calm and settling and unsettling at the same time, he still has perfect hair, and he's muscular, everything I want to be to impress Ria, no wonder he got Addy to marry him, he's exactly what I want to be except for the bad things he's done.

"No, it's perfectly edible to vampires, we have to eat something, and it just sweetens the blood for us." He says and rests his hand on his chest for a minute.

"Where am I going to stay here?" I ask, I know he's going to make me stay so I might as well find out where,"

"In the same area as your brothers and I will initiate you tomorrow, I can give you something that will activate the vampire traits if you want." he offers and watches me. I widen my eyes a bit fearful but pondering at the same time, I could be more like my brothers, vampires, drinking blood, why do I want that? 

"I'll think about the vampire thing." I manage and Ingressus gestures to the door.

"Very well I will come to your area later tomorrow, remember my offer Senn. You may leave."

I walk away down the stairs slowly at first then walk faster until I'm out of sight stopping and rubbing my bitten neck bitterly, he did bite me hard... and it hurts.