Chapter 3

“Angela, bring me three lambs please” Aslet asked his daughter. Angela nodded her head and walked off towards the stairs. Aslet waited until he could no longer see his daughter to continue, “I know you don’t want to return to your normal body, but we are going to need your help.”

“I know what I must do” Ezrai sighed.” I only hesitate because I’m afraid I will become a monster again. Even within this cat body I feel the urge to kill, just because it helps calms me. Killing calms me! Aslet, don’t you understand?”

“I do understand Ezzy. I-“

 “Don’t call me that!” Ezrai interrupted. His fur stood up straight, and his ivory fangs reflected the light. Aslet looked into Ezrai’s eyes and could see killing intent gleam in his eyes.

“I’ve known you for a hundred years, and I know what haunts you. You aren’t the monster that you think you are. I trust you” Aslet continued. Aslet knelt down and smoothed down Ezrai’s fur. Angela returned with two lambs. The lambs bleated, tried to walk away, but the ropes around their necks wouldn’t let them escape.

“Why do we need these anyway?” Angela asked.

“Because,” Ezrai winked “when I get my body back, I’ll be hungry.” Aslet led them into a summoning room similar to the one Angela used before. Ezrai walked into the magical circle and lay down. His tail playfully rose and fell before his eyes, as he watched Aslet cast a spell.

“Ezrai I need your blood on the magic circle” Aslet told him. Ezrai made one of his claws come out and slowly scratched a deep line into his paw. Blood welled up at the wound and began to flow down his paw. Ezrai placed his paw over the magic circle, and watched the blood drop onto the circle. Ezrai walked around the circle, letting his blood drop into the grooves of the magic circle, carved into the floor. As the last drop of blood completed the magic circle it flared to light, giving the whole room a red glow.

“Angela, I don’t want you to watch so please leave” Ezrai asked.

“No, I won’t leave” she replied.

“Damn it woman. Why are you always so” Ezrai started.

Aslet, pleased with his work began to cast the spell that would nullify the polymorph spell on Ezrai, which had transformed Ezrai into the form of a cat. Aslet let the magical words form into his mind and roll off his tongue. Aslet’s hands moved from small circles to larger ones, his voice fluxed from normal to grow deeper and inhuman. Ezrai screamed, he felt like his body was being ripped apart. His bones grew, his tail itched as it began to shrink and dissipate. His cat ears grew smaller until they were human ears, His body became muscular, sleek blue black fur became chocolate colored skin, and his paws became big muscular hands. Aslet finished the spell with an arcane flourish.

“Angela, leave the lambs and leave” Aslet ordered.

Angela let go of the lambs and asked, “How will he get to them if he is in the circle?”

“Don’t worry I’ll release the circle when we are out” Aslet told her. Aslet led her out of the room, closed, and locked the door behind them.

“Dad, why did we leave in such a hurry?” Angela asked.

“Well my little angel” Aslet began. “Ezrai is a dhampir or half vampire. He has the strengths of vampires but none of their weaknesses, except one. He thirsts for blood like they all do. The polymorph spell I casted on him years ago took away his thirst for blood, but now that he has returned to his normal body, a hundred years of blood thirst racks his body.”

 Ezrai stayed curled up like a ball. His screams were loud and primal. The shadows in the room began to dance wildly. It was if the shadows rejoiced in his release. Aslet and Angela watched as the torches light flickered as if light itself began to be snuffed out of the room.

“Well I remember you teaching me about the undead. How some need to feed to survive and how some live off the energy that causes them to walk after death, but this” Angela pointed towards the dark observing glass that served as a window into the room, “is different anything I’ve read in the magic books.”

“Yes, that’s what attracted me to him. If he had just been an average dhampir, I would have destroyed him” Aslet replied. Aslet dropped the magic of the circle. Once the magic circle stopped glowing red, Ezrai’s body disappeared.

“What the” Angela began, but the bleating of the lambs caught her attention. Angela gasped as she watched Ezrai tear into the lamb. Ezrai stood, holding the lamb up in his powerfully muscular arms while his fangs were deep in its neck. The lamb kicked and tried to bleat, but the dhampir’s teeth were tightly clamped on its windpipe.  Slowly its lifeblood left it and flowed into Ezrai. Angela had to stop herself from jumping back when she saw him staring at her. “Those eyes! It’s like he is staring through me.” Ezrai’s silver eyes captured her.  His eye color fluctuated between red and silver. It was like his body hadn’t decided what color they liked best. Angela heard her father speaking, but his words were drowned out. She slowly began walking towards the door that led to him. Her heart told her that she loved him, that she wanted to be by his side always, but her mind screamed run in the opposite direction as fast as possible. She opened the door and walked inside.

“Angela” her father screamed. Shadows jumped up covering the doorway and blocking Aslet’s vision, or would had if it wasn’t for his golden eyes that saw through everything. Angela continued walking towards Ezrai. The shadows in the room reached out for her, gingerly touching her like she was a lover. Angela grew more aware of the shadows. The floor of the room between her and Ezrai were the only things not covered in shadow. The room grew more ominous the farther she walked in. Shadow covered the ground behind her, blocking her only exit. The lamb bleated, she could smell its fear as the shadows wrapped around it, holding it in place. Ezrai dropped the lamb’s lifeless body to the floor.  This was the first time she got a good look at him. Ezrai stood before her shirtless with only briefs keeping him from being totally naked. Angela found him handsome even though she would never tell him that. His features was strong, his hair was short, yet cropped up in little spikes. He was tall. She reached out with her right hand, slid her hand from his neck to his chest. “His body feels like a mass of muscles.” Her eyes traveled lower.”Hmmm maybe he isn’t all just talk.” Blood flowed down on top of her hands. Her eyes came back up to see him looking into hers. The hard edge in his eyes was still there. It was if his eyes were the gateway to see who he truly was. Something inside of her wanted him to take her, to release his primal urges on her body. The second lamb bleated in a shrill voice. Ezrai broke eye contact with her. He walked over to the second lamb and fed. Angela stood, watching the scene with a weird detachment. Ezrai drained this one dry as well and moved to the next one. Ezrai smiled, showing his large fangs to her. Ezrai began to feed on the last one. Angela’s mind screamed run! Her feet wouldn’t move though.”Whatever had brought me in here is weakening” she thought.

“What are you?” Angela murmured. She struggled to even speak. Ezrai fed until the all the lamb’s blood laid either on the floor or in him. Ezrai stood and for the first time Angela noticed the tattoo on his back. The tattoo consisted of four swords in an X formation. The bottoms of the pommels were red colored half crescents, and the swords were as dark as the shadows in the room. Two of the sword points stopped at his shoulders, while the other two stopped at his hip.  Ezrai laughed, stopping her from studying his tattoo in more detail.

“I’m a monster remember” Ezrai told her. His voice held no joy even though he laughed. He turned and faced her finally. His eyes still fluctuated and she felt the pull at her heard again. Her hands involuntarily reached out for him again. Ezrai couldn’t stifle his laugh. “I remember a time when you denied me over and over. Now that I have my human body back, you can’t keep your hands off me.”

“Shut up! I can’t control my body” Angela yelled. The shadows covered the entire floor except for the remaining floor under them, leaving a small circle of light in the darkness.

“Why don’t you ever listen?” Ezrai whispered. “Look at my hands,” Ezrai held his hands up before her. Angela noticed his hands shook violently. Actually, upon further inspection his whole body wouldn’t stop.

“What is-“she began

“I’m hungry! I haven’t tasted blood in a hundred years. I’m not like you or your dad” Ezrai yelled. His eyes stayed transfixed at red. He moved closer. Angela wanted to step back, but she was afraid. The shadows were still while he fed before, but now they seemed alive. It was as if his emotions and the shadows were one. The lights grew dimmer and dimmer. The shadows masking his face, his red eyes hungrily looking at her, caused a fear to well up in Angela that she had never felt before. Angela closed her eyes and screamed. When she opened her eyes the room was back to normal. Ezrai stood in front of her, and his expression was a mix of shame, anger, and fear. Ezrai’s eyes were silver now with a red line outline. The hard edge was gone now. Only softness remained, like the look he gave her when he was trapped in his cat formed.

Aslet walked inside the room and said “Angela leave us now.” Angela looked into Ezrai’s eyes one more time and left, but not before she noticed a ritualistic styled dagger in his hands. “Close the door behind you” Aslet called out. Angela closed the door and watched as her father cut at his own arms. He clenched his hands in a fist; the pressure caused the blood to roll down his arms.

“Feed, the magic that flows through my veins should fill you up faster than feeding on ten people.” Aslet told him.

“What if I get addicted to your blood, and want to continue feeding until you are dry?” Ezrai asked. He walked towards Aslet, and held his mouth to his bleeding arms.

“You didn’t feed on my daughter even though you could have. You released your hold on the shadows, allowing me to enter the room” Aslet commented.

“Pshhh my shadows couldn’t have stopped you if you truly wanted to enter.”

“True, but if it makes you feel better then I’ll tell you. If you try to drain me dry, I’ll destroy you in such a way, that there will be no part of you left” Aslet replied.

Author's Note

Sorry I've been gone for a while. Let me know if ya like or hate

Reviews

[Tina Kline]

I enjoyed this a lot, you did good on the dialogue, very realistic.