I shot up with a start, scared and covered in sweat. I had to bite back a curse as my brain felt like it rattled in my head from my abrupt movements. I was a little bit confused, but that was mainly because I could not remember passing out.
I took a look around my unfamiliar surroundings and felt my unease grow. My first thought at that moment was where the hell was Nisi, I desperately hoped she was not found out by any of the guard. Though there was not much they could do to her since she was a gnome and an original inhabitant of the caves, but still I felt anxious for her safety.
But my current surroundings had a hint of familiarity. It was a wide room, at a glance it looked like it could hold almost a hundred to a hundred and fifty people at a time. There were this huge humanoid plastic figures spread all over the room, they looked like practice dummies, but made from more sophisticated materials than I've ever seen. Of course it can't be said I have seen much, I was an amnesiac vampire in an underground prison…..I was completely clueless about a lot of things.
All of a sudden the room was filled with a lot of people, there were a variety of races, but not exotic as I knew Shearath was, instinctually I knew what I was looking at was not Shearath, this was earth. And this place was a dojo.
The people in the room were now practicing different styles and forms of martial arts on the dummies, they were making a variety of moves that looked really cool and extravagant, but I knew one hit from them and I would probably end up with broken bones, Vampire physique aside of course.
But what really spooked me, was the fact that none of them could see me, I was walking around them, screaming, but it was as if I was not there, like I was nothing more than a spirit, a ghost. I gulped in fear, and as if to confirm my theory, a woman walked right through me, scaring the living....err dead? hell out of me, so much so that I fell down on my ass with shock.
Why was I dead, was I not in a mine just a few seconds ago, was I so weak that just swinging a pick would send me straight to the afterlife, but this did not look like the afterlife. It looked real, like I was here, but at the same time I was not.
I could not help the fear that overcame me as I began to worry for Nisi and Teluna, what would those kids do without me, I might have only known them for about two weeks, but I had made a connection with them, I did not consider them family, at least I don't think I do yet, but I felt responsible for them, like I had to shield them from the terrible existence and suffering that comes with living in the pit.
They already have it so hard living on their own, but now that there was a chance for that to change, this happened to me. I never realized at that moment, that as far as death was concerned, I was not afraid for myself, but for the people who I left behind. I had to admit, I had it bad, this hero syndrome was something else entirely.
I got back up to my feet, dead or not, I could not just sit there looking pathetic, people looked up to me, well living people but that was besides the point. I moved around the dojo, entertaining myself by jumping through the bodies of the practicing students. When I got bored of doing that, I started copying their movements, though it mostly ended up with me falling comically on the ground or punching myself in the face. Half the time I was laughing at my silly moves, at others I was crying through the pain I was inflicting myself.
But weren't ghost unable to feel anything, i was supposed to be immune to any form of stimulus by now, but it seems death was not as simple as other people said. When I got tired again, I discovered something about this place, everything had been happening in repeat, and I have been so busy with my antics that I didn't notice that everything around me has been stuck in a loop, repeating moments the span of five minutes.
You would think being dead was spooky, but this scared me so much I felt a chill down to the depths of my bones. Was this what my afterlife was supposed to be like, stuck living in the same few moments over and over again. Somehow the horror of this, struck me far worse than finding out I was dead, or that I left Nisi and Teluna behind and defenseless, unable to defend themselves from any body that would try to do them harm.( Of course I was not super strong, but I liked to believe I could deter any body from causing us trouble, I'm a famous hero after all.)
The chill that encompassed me, almost made me give in to the urge of curling up in a fetal position while I broke under the pressure of an inevitable panic attack. But then the loop started again, and my attention was drawn immediately to the woman who had previously walked through my body.
I couldn't see her face, or to be more precise I could see her face but I didn't know what she looked like. It was strange, but no matter how much I looked at her, I couldn't get an impression of her face. It was like looking at a blank slate, it was then I realized, that it was the same for every other person in dojo, I had just chosen not to notice since I was trying to play my problems away by jumping around.
But one thing still stuck out, out of everybody fighting, she was the only one moving around. It was safe to say I followed her. Was that a wise thing to do….….probably not, but what else was there for me to do. She walked till she came to the edge of the dojo where a young boy, about the age of fourteen or thirteen was practicing. He was blond, and I knew he had blue eyes and a pink scar beneath his left eye. I did not know how, but this features of his where clear as day to me, but nothing else could be gleamed from him. He was just as blank as the rest of the people in the dojo, then I heard the woman speak, I heard her call a name.
"Kael!" I shot up with a jolt, coughing a bit and wincing at the pounding headache I was feeling right behind my eyes.
I looked up and there was Nisi, all grey skinned and red eyed. She had been crying from what I could see, and it must not have been a pretty sight. She jumped into my arms, then started the waterworks again. I was still in shock at the sudden turn of events, but I was able to understand that what I had seen was most probably a dream, a rather strange and vivid dream as nothing I saw made any sense. But before I delve into all that, what happened to me in the first place?. At this point I would really love to know what had happened to have gotten me into that dream in the first place.
"What happened to me?" I asked with a voice parched with thirst. I could feel that itch behind my throat again, but I knew that if I should open my mouth again, I would probably sink my fangs into Nisi who was still weeping in my arms.
I felt my self shudder, and then suddenly my hunger bubbled up from the depths of my stomach. My fangs ached and my breaths became labored, almost as if I had run a thousand mile marathon. Before I could do something I would most probably regret for the rest of my life, a bottle of blood was shoved into my hands, by spectators I didn't notice until now. I had questions, but I was hungry, which meant those could wait for now.
I unscrewed the cap from the bottle and took a big gulp from it. My tongue exploded and my nostrils enlarged as I was assaulted by a variety of flavors and scents. It was amazing, it could not be compared to what I have been drinking since I woke up a vampire, this was something else entirely. As I was chugging it down like my life depended on it, I heard somebody tell me to take it easy, but I replied with a growl that surprised even myself. But the person only replied with a chuckle that sounded like sonic booms to my ears.
I was on cloud nine, whatever the hell a cloud nine was. This feeling was all encompassing and fulfilling, I felt a strength of unknown origins seep into my blood and bones as fire began to burn in the pit of my stomach. This was an all time high for me, and frankly I didn't want it to stop, but all good things must come to an end.
I finished the whole bottle in less than thirty seconds, as soon as I noticed it was empty I let out a bestial hiss that spooked the people around me. I felt as if my mind was clouded, and I was stuck in a haze of unending but rapidly fading pleasure. Everything was buzzing, and it. Was. Awesome.
"I don't think he was ready for a cocktail Xaseah." I heard somebody say with a mirthful tone.
His voice was not loud, but it was enough to snap me out of my drunken state. To be honest I was not really happy about that, but whatever that cocktail was I wanted more of it. Damn it scratched an itch I didn't know I had.
"What the hell is a cocktail?" I asked as I got up from the ground to look at the people who were just speaking a few moments ago.
It was a man and a woman, they were both vampires, but from the looks of things, they seem to be variants. The man had skin a deep shade of blue, there were gills at the side of his neck that flapped open and close every time he breathed.
He looked like a humanoid shark as his nose was long, thick and pulled close to his face. His eyes were a bright shade of purple that gave of his rank almost immediately. He was two ranks above me, a Nosferatu vampire.
The woman on the other hand could only be described as exotic, her skin was a deep shade of black, yep I'm sure I'm seeing things correctly.
Her skin was as black as charcoal, and it was dotted with tiny silver birthmarks, her ears were long and came to a pointy end, she was a dark elf, or was it night elf. Not to be mistaken as the same species, but they are two very different types of elves. But at the moment I had no way to identify one or the other. Her eyes were purple too, but my eyes were somewhere else.
They were huge, massive, humongous, gigantic, extraordinary, might.....
"Are you looking at my breast Oh great lion of Shearath, do you like what you see?" she asked with a teasing smirk on her face.
"Well I…..it was.... I have….. I mean... no.....but yes….Ahh" I think I had lost my mind. Her straight forwardness had completely thrown me off my game. Thankfully I was dead, and dark skinned. If I was light skinned, I was sure my entire body would have been a deep shade of tomato red, I was completely embarrassed. Who the hell are this guys.
"I don't think it's a good idea to tease a great hero Xaseah, we might get in trouble again." The blue skinned vampire admonished while trying but failing to hide his nightmare inducing grin. Seriously that guy had a mouth filled with razor sharp teeth, he gave another meaning to the word saw.
I had to change the topic fast, pervert was not a good title to be stamped on the reputation a hero as great as I am.....err was.
"What's a cocktail, and who in Michael Jackson's name are you guys." I asked with whatever was left of my dignity.
"Who's Michael Jackson?" Nisi asked suddenly.
I turned to her to answer, only to realize I had no idea myself. It just slipped out of my mouth. A name I did not recognize, yet it seemed so familiar. It reminded me of the name Rhea that I have been writing unconsciously for the last few days.
Suddenly I lost my enthusiasm as the scope of every strange event that had happened to me in the past few hours came crashing down onto my distracted mind. But before I could make sense of what had happened the two vampires in front of me decided to introduced their selves.
"Esteemed lord Kael, this lowly servant of yours is named Bob and this is….."
"Seriously? Your name is Bob. I thought it would have been something cooler like Revan, Lenorik, Maseleo or Van Damme, but in the end your parents named you Bob. Was there a lack of names when you were born."
I asked that question with the best possible intentions, but it only took me five seconds to realize how rude I had been. Of course it had nothing to do with the bulging vein at the side of Bob's temple, I had no idea how that just came spilling out of my mouth. I was shocked I could even say something like that, what the hell was happening to me today. Thankfully the woman came to the rescue, and just kept on speaking like nothing had even happened.
"My name is Xaseah, and a cocktail is a mixture of blood from different beasts, and a little something extra on the side."
"Something Extra?" Nisi asked with her head tilted in contemplation.
"Yes, it could be anything really. The blood of the rat folk, werewolves,....gnomes. But the one he just drank should have a drop or two of human blood. I bet you can't get that taste out of your mouth can you?"
I did not want to admit it, but she was right. There was just this tang, sour, and sharp sweet taste at the back of my throat. It was what I could taste the most out of all the flavors that burst open in my mouth, and yet a few minutes later after all the other flavors had faded, this one taste still remained. The taste of a human.