“Relax,” Alex said, already knowing that the people were apprehensive, “I won’t bite and neither will they. I trust my life with these men, all of them, man or vampire! And I suggestyou do the same.” That was the usual Alexander they knew; a dynamic, charismatic leader who would “suggest” rather than dictate. Alex had a way with people and with words.
“Let me introduce you to those you don’t know,” Richard added. He presented each vampire, one by one. Each one of them gave a bow, or a smile, or a wave. As he finished he said, “And of course there is the infamous Nikolas Gareng, Dante Varenkoff, and Liam Tios. But more of them later.”
To say it was awkward would have been an understatement. The backup units wanted to celebrate with their friends, and celebrate they would, but they had not expected vampires to be amongst them.
When the Generals came to greet the survivors, they warmly embraced the Rebels like old friends. Seeing this, the new soldiers thawed a bit. After saluting the Generals, they tended to those who were wounded and escorted them to the hospital.
The second tanker with John and the others inside arrived. As it landed, there was a new burst of cheering. Alex watched the newly arrived mega-ship with wonder and curiosity. The whole vibe of celebration had got to him and put his worries to the back of his mind. John came out, then Nikolas, and the other two Rebels followed by the soldiers.
“Uncle John,” Alex called out as soon as he saw him. He wanted to unleash his thoughts, but he knew now was not the time. He simply hugged him and said, “I know about Grandma.”
“Alex,” Nikolas shouted, as he finished chatting with one of the Generals, “You were brilliant out there, I heard!”
“Thanks!” Alex said and embraced Nikolas. They seemed rejuvenated by the buzzing energy.
“What? Who told you about Grandma?” John asked, perplexed.
“No one.” Alex smiled. “I knew it; intuition I guess.”
“But how? This change is so sudden.” John faced Nikolas and the others.
“We’ll talk about it, old friend. We have lots to talk about,” Nikolas said with a wide smile. “But for now; let us enjoy this day.”
“Wait, I almost forgot,” John said, noticing the physical change in Nikolas due to the blood that he had lost. “Where’s Daniel?”
“I told him to wait. I don’t think the people are ready. Let everything calm down and we will introduce him.”
“What? He’s here?” Alex said, while the other Rebels and Richard looked at the four in amazement and confusion. He turned to Nikolas for an explanation, but instead Dante spoke:
“Alex, he has decided to join us.”
Alex’s face reddened with anger. “I don’t like the look of it. I know that he’s your son, but he’s an Imperial vampire. He’s the president of that Regime for God’s sake!”
“What do you have in mind?” John asked.
Alex furrowed his brow as he thought. Everyone circled around him, waiting for his response. He sighed, “I’m not so sure about him. He just gives me a bad feeling. I know that he betrayed the Regime, but that doesn’t really mean anything.” He shook his head. “I think we better handle him with care.”
“And what would you suggest?” Nick said. He was not angry, but a little worried. “Should we keep him as a prisoner for the time being?”
“Yes.” Alex said, “Keep him as a prisoner of war. We’ll have to test him.”
“So then bind him,” John said gruffly. “Richard, take these,” he handed him a pair of silver handcuffs, “and put them on him.”
Richard did as he was told and went quietly. Nick flinched as he passed and remained silent.
As the third tanker flew into the Hangar and slowly landed, John turned to see which one it was. “The Vatican,” was all he said and ran to it, hungry for news.
Michio, Chang, and Evan came out, with grief-stricken faces. John knew at once what had occurred. “Well,” he said, “Did it work?”
Evan nodded. “We have the holodrives with us.”
“And the enemy?”
“Destroyed,” Michio said, “All of them, along with the library.”
John nodded, “Where’s Ranjit,” he asked, guessing what had happened by the look on their faces. The reserve soldiers talked among themselves, curious to know where their pals were. Then, the electromagnetically levitating coffin came out of the tanker with the soldiers following it. Ranjit was inside, with his sword on top of him. The men looked on in horror and complete surprise. “What happened?” John asked, controlling his grief.
“He went alone into the forest, to pray I suppose, and a vamp stabbed him in the heart.”
“You were supposed to stick together,” said John, a little angry. “What about the frequency?”
“I shut it off. The vamps were down, unable to move.”
“Well it doesn’t seem like it, does it?”
Suddenly, there was an explosion from the entrance of John’s tanker. Richard fell towards Dante who was closest to the ship. Blood covered Richard’s face.
Daniel flew out with an aura of red and black electricity around him. His hair flew in all directions as if he was a madman, and he rocketed into the air. His face darkened and his eyes turned the bloodiest of red.
“Oh, cousin!” Daniel shrieked at Alex. He stuck out his tongue and taunted him like a demon.
“I can’t fight him,” Alex said, as Nikolas pushed him forward.
“Neither can I; how do you expect me to kill my own son?”
Reluctantly, Alex materialized his sword. It glistened with blue electric sparks, brighter than ever before. Everyone stared at it with their mouths open in awe. Daniel materialized his own sword. It crackled with black and crimson electricity, more dangerous and daring.
“I want you, Falsifier!” Daniel said, his eyes glistening with blood, his face now more demonic than ever. His eyebrows slanted angrily and his cheekbones heightened. His nose grew much longer than before. The chin and ears were sharply pointed. He seemed to have spawned from hell.
The crowd backed away, giving space to the two challengers.
“Don’t do this, Daniel,” Alex said calmly, as he walked closer to him. A faint aura surrounded Alex. Daniel’s aura was the same color as his sword and was constantly increasing in size and intensity. The closer he tried to walk, the farther away Daniel moved. He was afraid. “You don’t need to fight; we don’t have to resolve it this way.” Just then, he felt as if a hammer had struck him right on top of the head. He fell to the floor in pain.
Daniel laughed, “What’s the matter, Falsifier?”
“Uncle John, it’s grandma; she’s dying!” He groped at his chest and began to shake uncontrollably.
Just then, John got a message on his nanophone. Andrew appeared on the hologram in front of him and said, “Sir, Dr. Wallace is on the line. He says your mother’s having an attack.”
“I’ll be there!” John said and looked back at Alex. He wanted to help his nephew but something told him he would be fine. “Make sure no one gets close to them,” he said to Richard and Nikolas. “I will not have any more deaths today!” He left.
Alex closed his eyes. He saw his grandmother. Her eyes were closed but he could feel her heart beating fast. She was suffering.
Daniel, looking at his father and the rest, gave them a bitter smile, showing his large fangs. He flung his sword towards Alex. But Alex backed away just in time. He grabbed the sword by its handle before it went back to its master and he threw it at Daniel. Daniel laughed and gloated and didn’t sense the danger. His own sword plunged into his body and he groaned in agony.
I have to stop this,thought Alex. I need to control this power before it kills me, before it takes over and kills everyone.He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and cleared his mind. He opened his eyes slowly and exhaled. Then he smiled at his impaled enemy. Daniel pulled the sword out of himself and rushed towards Alex. Before Daniel could attack, Alex disappeared, teleported behind him, and threw a blue fiery energy ball at him, knocking him to the floor.