Created (Book 1 of the Created) (40 page)

I heard the
Three
roar to life
behind me. I turned and stumbled to the pavement. The wolf bared his teeth and
moved in for revenge. The soldiers were yards away now, but not close enough to
save me. Weak, I was ready to accept my fate after I collapsed back to the road
when there was a grunt and then a whimper. Before I could look up, the wolf
landed at my feet. Spent, confused and in need of fresh blood to help deal with
the wounds that would not stop bleeding, I looked through half closed eyes as I
was about to succumb to the wounds inflicted by the wolf. I saw enough to make
out the fact that Veronica was leaning over me.
 

My head was splitting when I awoke. Lying on my side, I was
greeted with a view of the fading rays of the afternoon sun dancing through the
sliding glass door of my bedroom. I rubbed my eyes as I rolled onto my back. I
felt the healing wound on my side sting as it parted. Searching my body, I felt
more wrappings. My touch seemed numb. Even the smallest cut given to me by the
Seventeen was bandaged and causing me considerable discomfort. The coverings
felt wet and the odor being emitted was much worse than the pain. Rubbing at
the bandage, I became aware that I was not alone. Someone was standing behind
the door to the bedroom. The vitals were hard to detect in my weakened state,
but I believed the person to be human.

Painfully I called, "Come in or go away."

The door opened slowly. The form was hazy.
The silhouette broken.
I rubbed at my eyes again as the
person drew closer to my bed. My mind had to be playing tricks on me or maybe
Veronica was with her ability to disguise herself. There was a failure in me to
detect a smell other than the stench emanating from the reminders of the
Seventeen. The Seventeen that looked a lot like Liam. At the moment, I tried to
block out the mental image as I struggled to determine if my guest was real.

The visitor lay down on the bed beside me. "Hi,"
She said.

The voice was hers or it could be a hallucination caused by
the injuries. I thought hard as I fought through the haze that was my mind.
Trying to get face to face with her was too painful and tiring.

"Be still," She said. "You will hurt yourself
more if the wounds reopen and the infection doesn't go away."

Turning my head to the side to see her face as clearly as I
could, I asked, "
Sunnie
?"

She giggled, "Yes."

"How did you...How did you get onto the base and into
my house for that matter? I don't understand."

"Your friends Darby and Logan brought me here with permission
from a nice gentleman named Mr. Smith. They said you had been asking for me for
days. They thought maybe if I was here you would wake up finally," She
answered.

I knew I had to look hideous. "I am sorry you have to
see me this way. How long have I been here?"

Sunnie
rubbed my head. "You
were in the hospital for a week then here another couple of days." She
started crying. "I have been so worried about you."

She tenderly kissed my cheek spilling some of her tears upon
my skin.

"I have missed you too," I replied as the
throbbing in my head worsened. I knew what I needed, but I dare not let
Sunnie
know I needed blood. I was going to fight through
the thirst.

"I wish you had awakened sooner. Darby is about to come
get me to escort me off the base. Part of the rules for my being here
stipulated that I had to leave before the sun fully set," She sighed.

"I wish I had awakened sooner too. What have they told
you?" I asked as I found her hand.

"Darby just said that there was an accident and that
you were badly burned."
Sunnie
replied.

I was glad that they hadn't told her the truth, though it
did surprise me that she had been allowed to come to Velma to see me almost
dead.

"You need to go. It is getting late, and Darby is
terrible with time, so you might want to speed her up. I would hate to lose the
opportunity for you to come back."

Sunnie
smiled then kissed my lips
tenderly. "Now that you are awake, I am afraid that I can't come back. So,
I hope to see you at school soon"

"Maybe."
I said trying to
be funny, though from the expression on her face she appeared to have taken it
wrong. I attempted to explain myself without looking like a jackass. "What
day is this?"
 

Sunnie
sounded confused as she
answered, "Thursday."

"What I meant was if I was well enough by Monday. Right
now I feel awful," I hoped she understood.

"I hope so too. Don't forget we still have a date for
the Back to School Bash. It is next weekend. I would hate to have to find
another date, so you had better get well and soon." A small smirk framed
her face.

I hated to tell her the truth that I wasn't allowed to
attend school functions, so I didn't. "If it kills me we will be there. I
promise." She had no clue to how close that statement was to being actual
fact.

She rose from the bed. "Do you need anything before I
go?"

Jokingly I said, "Another kiss."

Sunnie
knelt across the bed and
gave me a warm kiss to the forehead.
"Just in case that
will have to do until next weekend then."

Sunnie
bounced from the bed.
"Bye. I hope to see you soon."

With that, she was gone from my house. I heard her shutting
the front door. Her footsteps quickly disappeared.

"Hello Veronica. She is gone," I said scornfully.

The sliding glass door opened and closed as I wiped at my
eyes.

"Better I see," Veronica said.

I stared at the ceiling. "Somewhat I suppose. The
wounds are seeping and are aching in the worst way possible."

"The Seventeen can transmit the virus through either a
bite or through glands located behind each claw. A single scratch and you
become infected," She replied.

I sarcastically responded, "I haven't even got the
vampire thing down yet."
  

She took my flippant comment and brushed it aside,
"Don't worry the virus affects us differently than humans. The virus is
toxic to us with a high enough dosage, but the pressing condition that you have
is due to how it attacks the virus within us. The scratches you received are
examples of that. The virus breaks down our natural ability to heal and defend
ourselves. The wounds you received have been infected for days. When coupled
with the loss of blood, you went into a deep catatonic state as your body
fought the wolf virus. The doctors on base poured through one hundred units of
blood trying to keep you with us. After four days of your body soaking up the
blood you returned to normal, except for staying within a sleep state. The
doctors and scientists on base said studying the effects on you was worth years
of research."

"I am glad I could help, but being near death is
something I don't want to experience again for a while.
Now
two things.
Thank you for saving me from the Three, and where the hell
were Logan and you?" I asked.

Her hair changed to a darker shade of black then to a
chestnut color as she thought through her answer. "The attack in the field
on Logan's group was a lure. It was meant to pull him away and in turn ensure
our pursuit. Then when the Three attacked you in the woods, and we were
separated, I continued tracking the other two. I knew that one wasn't a match
for you, or least I hoped not. Pushing deeper into the woods, the scent went in
all directions. Finally, I ran into Logan three miles away who was also as
engaged in the futile search. It wasn't until we found blood rubbed along the
trees that we realized that it was an attempt to lure us away from you, so we
doubled back."

I had more questions. I thought I would press Veronica to
determine if she knew more. "Did you see the body? I killed Liam in the
Pit. What was he doing being turned loose to wreak havoc on the people we were
created to protect?"

Veronica sat down on the edge of my bed putting her head in
her hands. "Ethan, I don't know what he was doing there, and I was never
told where the body originated. I was only informed that we had a rogue wolf
and that forces within the Farm had freed the three wolves. My father is doing
an in-depth investigation to determine the culprit."

I knew that I couldn't trust her even though she swore to me
that she loved me. Veronica had a family and family interests to protect. I was
only weeks old and she was centuries old. She had much more practice at the art
of deception.

I studied her as she looked away. Veronica was perfect. She
was far more perfect than the other vampires that I knew. The weeks that I had
known her, I had looked upon her with fondness and resentment. Two feelings
that I realized would always be there for her.

She said I had been created for her. An imperfect boy
created for a goddess. I could not imagine being allowed to touch her flesh,
yet I had. Though we had known each other for weeks I had never studied her in
any detail. It was as if I was seeing her for the first time. There was an
attractiveness past beauty with her that lay in the purity of her genetic
bloodline.
The same bloodline that had been given to me
artificially.
How I could not want her more tore me up inside.

"Ethan about what I told you and did the other night.
You know why I did that don't you, and that the secrets I share with you must
stay secret, right?" She quietly asked.

"I know what you said and I forgive you for what
happened. I was weak. You are beautiful and amazing, and I was weak. Damn weak.
I guess in my heart I know that I should have been stronger no matter what
power you used over me, but it can never happen again. I belong to someone else
and that won't change. You and I have a bond that means the world to me and
always will, but no one can be created for another. We are individuals whether
human, wolf or vampire."

Veronica bent and kissed me on the cheek. There was a
stabbing pain in my side. Looking down I saw her withdraw a large needle from
my wound. "What have you done?" I asked as the room began to shutter
and spin.

"You haven't figured out a tenth of how powerful you
and I are. It is a pity that everyone tried so hard to cover up the fact that
you were chosen, but from the first night in the woods, I knew that you were
the one. The one made for me. Veronica was for making you into the ultimate
warrior for both human and vampire kind. The other vampires all knew the truth
and wanted to ignore it. You were the God amongst them. The new technology had
finally created a new race of vampire capable of siring a legion of others, but
you have made this difficult by choosing to rebel against those that have made
you. We are so close to a new dawn of evolution. A new day is so close.
A day when our race can reproduce once again without a need for a
virus.
It has been centuries since we have had real blood born vampires
walking with us. The original rulers of the night will once again return to the
earth."

The room was fading in and out. I thought I witnessed a
zombie medical staff entering the room with a gurney.

Veronica's voice still carried in my ears, but it was
somehow different and strange. "Others have warned you not to stray. My
poor dear Veronica has practically thrown herself at you to keep you from
betraying us. Initially, I thought it was okay, but there are too many secrets.
I realize my dreams have been answered and we are too close to risk our future
because of the useless emotion of love. All of my plan must stay hidden until
the time is right. Therefore, I cannot and will not stand by as you jeopardize
this gift that has been given to you so you can chase after a human whore. The
cocktail inserted into your wound must be burning throughout your body by now.
By injecting it directly into your wound the pain should be intensified a
hundred fold."

She was right. The pain was unbearable. The worst I had
experience as a vampire, but there was something much worse happening. My mind
was a jumble, but through it all I had the strange sensation this was not
Veronica. The words, meaning and context was all wrong. My body was rigid as
the zombies strapped me to a gurney. As the world began to blacken, I had a
nightmare where Veronica morphed into a grinning devilish Mathias.

The warehouse style setting seemed vaguely familiar. The
cavernous room was black except for a single spotlight over head the shone
brightly into my eyes. Using my senses, I realized that I was not alone. There
was a single form at the foot of the bed to which I was restrained. The figure
remained in the shadows, lurking just outside the extent of my vision as the
drugs that I had been administered wore off.

Looking around the room, I noticed the room was fairly
stark. There were a series of large machines nearby, but other than those, it
was empty. Against the far wall there was a large window and door. Through the
window, I could see glowing multicolor lights shining dimly through reinforced
glass. Through the walls could be heard the sounds of other creations
communicating a message of desired freedom while more hungered to feast upon
their weaker cohabitants. It was all part of the plan to manufacture the new
generation of super soldier or was it. There was something gnawing at me that
tried to remind me what Veronica, or had it truly been Mathias, said to me.
Could it all have been a dream brought on by the injuries sustained in the
fight?

If Mathias was an original, then he too might have the
ability to manipulate sounds, smells or appearance. There have been hints that
Veronica on some level had those same abilities. She had altered her hair and
her scent. If Mathias is an elder vampire, his powers could be unimaginable.