Chapter 1: THE ACCIDENT
Her body lay limp on the wet, bloody ground. There were very slim chances of her surviving. I was the only one left standing in the dark, mysterious alleyway. I wondered if it was a good idea to fight this vampire or not. I stared at the dead body. Then I stared at the predator. Anger pumped through my veins. The parasite lunged at me, targeting for my heart. That was it; I was on the ground. I couldn’t feel my legs. I could see white sharp vampire fangs sinking into my neck and I could see venom oozing out onto the ground, then I saw a bright light and at that moment, I shut my heavy eyelids.
“Riley!” I could hear a familiar voice.
I blinked a couple of times before opening my eyes to see an unfamiliar looking guy about my age, standing over me.
“Who are you and what happened?” I asked apprehensively, observing the abnormally peculiar room.
“I am Sethius. We are your new friends. We saved you from a vampire attack.”
I scanned the room, still not sure if I was just suffering from a concussion. My eyes stopped on my dead friend. Except instead of being a pale silhouette fading into the shadows as if she was a couple of hours ago, she was standing proud and tall surrounded by the other bizarre people. There was something strange, something a little bit different about her. Her eyes were blood red. She caught my eye. For a moment, we just stared at each other like we had never met.
What did they do to my friend?
“What is wrong with Francesca?” I asked Sethius who was standing closest to me.
He said, “We turned her into a vampire, in fact, you are the only human in this room.”
I gasped. The truth dawned on me. My friend was a monster.
“It was the only way to save her!”
I couldn’t believe it. I was the only normal person in this room.
“Why didn’t you change me into a vampire?” I asked frustrated as I tried to sit up.
I stared into Sethius’s bright red eyes.
“We thought you would freak even more than you are now and besides, you weren’t injured badly like your friend over there.” He replied nodding in her direction. I could sense something strange was going on between them. Franny looked at Sethius and Sethius looked at Franny. A dopey smile crept onto Sethius’s face. Oh no! Sethius likes Franny! I sincerely hoped that it was a one-way relationship. I raised a bandaged hand and slapped him.
“Sethius, what is going to happen to me since I am not going to become a vampire?” I asked fearfully.
I half expected him to say that he would feast on my blood for dinner and gladwrap me so I would still be fresh for breakfast the next day. I relaxed a little when he didn’t exactly meet those guidelines.
“If you really want to, I could turn you into a vampire.” He pointed out.
I nodded excitedly.
“When?” I asked him.
“Now, if you want.” He answered still gazing into my friend’s unnaturally red eyes.
I nodded. He tore his eyes away from Franny, gnashed his razor sharp fangs a couple of times and aimed for my neck. I squeezed my eyes shut, not daring to look. He inserted his teeth. Agony pumped through my veins. This reminded me of the attack, except this time it was me in discomfort. At least I wasn’t dying. I tried to stay optimistic and confident but the pain was intense and was getting more so as time ticked on. Hours past. I didn’t feel any different by the time I had finished screaming. I just felt exhausted
I fell into a deep sleep and when I awoke, the first thing I thought of was, I am a vampire.
“Riley.” I could hear Sethius’s voice.
I could feel his hot breath on my face, as he stood over me careful not to disturb the last sleep I would ever have. The first feelings I had were a mixture of exhaustion, hunger, and thirstiness.
“Sethius, I am really hungry and thirsty!” I gasped as if I couldn’t breathe without putting something in my mouth.
He poured me a glass with something red in it. I skulled it anyway. The taste of rusting metal stained my teeth.
“Is this blood?” I asked cautiously though I was glad to drink something.
He nodded and grinned. I smiled back awkwardly as I tried not to think about who’s blood it was.
“Relax, it is the only thing we can eat or drink so get used to it. Plus it is your blood!”
“It’s MY blood?” I echoed as I tried not to throw up.