I Was Once Human

Chapter II - A Present Past, Part III

Wayland left Jesse to die in that hallway, his task was done, Jesse lies lifeless with a knife through his heart, now he could focus on reviving his son, he met Alcides in the chamber

Alcides approached Wayland, "if it isn't Count Wayland, how may I help you today sir?"

"I'm here for my son, I thought you promised not to harm him?" Wayland then lifted his hand, slowly closing his fist, Alcides could be seen having trouble breathing

He started coughing and held his neck, "He was feral... he-ACK... he even... killed the woman he loved."

"Yes he was, but that is how it goes, after that he will be able to control his bloodlust, you impatient idiot!" He closes his hands even more

"P-Please... I'll do whatever you want... I promise!" Pleaded Alcides, two guards approached Wayland, he turned around to glance them, their eyes turned green and they returned to their post

"So... anything, huh?" He opened his fist, Alcides fell to the ground inhaling for air that he desperately needed, Wayland continued, "Make sure any beast race that could be more superior than a vampire be tested extensively, the data your gather is up to you, but ensure none may surpass the skills of a vampire, if you fail... then your punishment awaits at the duke's hands."

Alcides stood up, "What about this one?" He asked, whilst pointing at Riley, which is already shackled to the slab down below, "You do know that if any harm comes to her, Edmond wouldn't be happy."

"Just lie to him, he doesn't even know that she has 9 lives, just make sure she doesn't meet him on her next resurrection." Replied Wayland, "So where is his body anyway?"

"It should be somewhere in the morgue."

"You have a morgue here?" Asked Wayland in surprise

"There has to be a place to store bodies if anything goes wrong, it only makes sense to have one in a place like this." Replied Alcides

Just before he left, he heard Riley call out to him for help, he could only turn around and leave her to her fate, he could hear her screaming as the tests begin, whatever the scientists are doing to her, he shook his head and left the room to go to the morgue.

On his way there, he saw a scientist dragging the body of Jesse into the morgue, he went inside, and asked if he could take Edmond's body with him, the scientist looked in confusion, and denied his request, so he tried to control his mind, but it's too crowded with thoughts and ideas, he sighed... how could he revive him without his body? He went outside of the morgue, and thought for a while, he couldn't possibly kill an innocent man without orders, that would be against the vampire code, so he went back to his car, and drove back to the realm of The Sanguine Imperium.

When he arrived at the castle, the duke was already waiting for him atop the throne, "Count Wayland... back so soon?"

"I could not get to Edmond, my apologies Duke of Sanguine Imperium." Said Wayland, as he bowed to the duke

"You do know I saw everything that happened, don't you?" Said the duke as he stood up from the throne, and slowly walked to Wayland, "Perhaps you will have to do this with another method."

"Wait... you mean we can revive him without his body?" Wayland asked, while looking at the duke slowly walking towards him

"Here... go to the chapel, shatter this at the center, and shout the name of who you want revived." The duke pulled out a necklace, with a winged skull as its centerpiece, he gave him the necklace and sent him off to the chapel.

He arrived to the long-abandoned chapel, the pews were dusty, and in the floor pattern seems to centralize in the middle, he stood and raised his hand, holding the necklace in his hands, he slammed it into the floor as hard as he could, it shattered and blasted a surge of energy while shooting out a pillar of dark purple light to the sky, he was getting pulled into the middle of the light, he felt his soul being torn apart to the blast, he held on to one of the pews to hold himself from getting pulled in. When the dark purple light finally stopped shooting out of the shattered fragments of the necklace, things finally calmed down, he could finally stand properly, he looked around for Edmond, nothing seems to have changed, he couldn't seem to find him, he saw a strange purple smoke emitted from the palm of his hands, he tried to do his magic, but nothing seems to work, he realized he's been betrayed

"FAAATHHEEEEEER!" Shouted Wayland in anger, he stormed out of the chapel and walked into the throne room.

Meanwhile... Jesse finally woke up, he was laying on the floor of a dark empty room, the knife is still stabbed in him, he tried to pull it out again, but even just by holding it he could feel an immense amount of pain throughout his body, he looked around to see if he could notice any defining features, a light shines down in the middle of the room, and a chair is situated right underneath this foreboding sight, with candles surrounding it, he felt his heart sank, but when he approached the chair, he saw Edmond holding what seems to be a human heart, Jesse started to tremble in fear, "Edmond? I'm sorry for what I did to you, I didn't know what came over me, forgive me... please." Edmond didn't say a word, he held the heart tighter, and blood began to spill from it, Jesse felt an incredible amount of pain, different from what he's experienced all his life, coming from his heart, he screamed in pain and fell to his knees, when he moved his hands to grip it, he felt nothing... he looked to see a gaping hole at where his heart should be, he looked back at Edmond to see him sucking the blood out of the heart, his vision began to blur, Jesse coughed and blood dripped out of his mouth, he fell to the floor, feeling this mind-shattering pain, but he couldn't do anything

"Edmond... I'm... sorry."

an ominous cold air breezes past him, darkening his vision, he let out one last breath, before seeing a flash of light pass by him, he was somewhere else, he was in a completely white void this time. He looked around, but when he looked below him, he saw his body, as it bleeds in the same dark room, all alone

Edmond approached the body, and looked up back at him, he said "Jesse, I thought you trusted me, I thought I could trust you, but you are still human at heart, that's why you killed me, it's true what Alcides told about you, your self-importance is far too dangerous to be left roaming the world."

Edmond left his body alone, Jesse looked in terror, is this really it? Can he not see the world again? He knelt down and cried in regret.

But someone came to him and held him in his shoulder, he looked to see who it is, and a face more beautiful than anything he's seen before stand there before him, the face of his fiancée

"Sarren? Wait... did you... die too?" asked Jesse, wiping his tears off his eyes, and standing up to hug her

"I was in a car crash, I'm so sorry Jesse, I should have been there for you." As she rested her head on Jesse's shoulder

"No, it was me who should have been there for you, I should have come with Edmond to look for you." Jesse objected, "I never should have left home."

They hugged each other for what seemed to be an eternity, the warmth that he hasn't felt since he left his home, something he'd wished to embrace for as long as possible, the warm embrace of his past was enough to send him to tears again, Sarren comforted him, and took him to a building resembling his home, Sarren laid him on his bed, and tucked him in to sleep, she kissed him, and left the room.

Riley however, was not so fortunate, her tail was melted off by acid, one of her fangs pulled out, and her rib cage hurts, she sat in the subject cell, trying to figure out of ways to escape, she heard someone walking towards her cell, she hid her tools, and pretended to sleep in her bed

The person opened the door

"Meus Amor... not has a single day has passed without me thinking of you..."