Blood of Eternity

Rare Blood

I play with the golden key in my hands. Inside of me is a maelstrom of conflicting emotions that even the deepest vampiric instincts can't suppress: worry, hope, fear, and hunger. What happens here will decide what happens to everyone I love: Roman, Dmitri, Taran, Leah, and more.

The cry of a hawk catches my attention, thousands of feet above me. I can see it's feathers ruffle in the only breeze over the dead plains. Below me, I can hear the quiet squeak of bats in the cave system. Most of them flew out for food but some stayed behind. Hopefully they will guide us through the system and to our destination.

A sudden tug in my chest warns me that my sire has arrived, Charles and Skylar in tow.

"Olivvia," he says and does something he never has before, he pulls me into a bone crushing hug. I smile against his shoulder; I must finally be growing on him.

"Are you ready?" I ask. Not just Dmitri, but Charles and Skylar. They could still back out, they could still walk away, and not have to deal with the consequences of what Marie started.

"Lead the way," Charles replies, his face set in determination.

"As long as you go first." Skylar's answer is bitter and angry but nothing less then I'd expect since she snapped at me a few days ago. Dmitri snorts and walks ahead of me, effectively putting himself in danger.

When I try to run ahead of me, he pulls me back. "I am your sire and it is my duty to take care of you."

"No it's not. Skylar's right. I brought people I love into danger, now step aside."

"Then we walk together or not at all." Dmitri's words surprise me. I never thought he'd ever put himself at risk for me. Maybe my near death experience put some love back into his heart?

So into darkness we descend. The cave's overhang entrance blocks out any light the moon may have lent us; it wouldn't have mattered, though, the black stone would have absorbed any light that escaped the entrance. Despite the lack of light, all four us could see perfectly through our enhanced eyes. Skylar's and I's eyes glow like flashlights, bats cower under their wings or flutter back to the ceiling at our passing.

Then Dmitri holds out his gloved arm. A ripple passes through the remaining bats until one of the small creatures lands upside down on my sire's outstretched limb.

"Show us the way," he commands.

It flutters its small wings and shoots down one of the side tunnels. It is a mad dash to keep up with the creature. We have to run on the ground while it avoids everything by flying a feet above us and using echolocation. Skylar and I easily shoot ahead of the boys but have issues avoiding the stalagmites. They catch on our clothes and cut our skin as we jump over the barriers. The cuts heal easily but the hunger wells up every time I lose a drop of blood. If there was a single human down here, they would be dead by now; I don't think I could control the hunger if it was on my life right now.

Then we hit a dead end right after the abrupt end of the stalagmites.

"What the he-"

"Language!" Charles exclaims as he reaches us. Skylar rolls her eyes but complies.

"The vault has to be down here," Dmitri thinks aloud. "It can't just dead end."

I walk up the wall where the bat hangs above us. Beginning on the right, I run my fingers across the uneven stone in a line. Then a section pushes in with a small click. It slides back in and through the small hole I see another hallway.

"That was easy to solve," I reflect, turning back to wait for the wall to open.

"Liv move!" Skylar screams.