Legacy of Blood (2 page)

“It is lonely... wandering this Earth alone,” he said quietly.  “At first, I only desired you for your ties to the Day Walkers.  But, as time passed, you began to fascinate me.  Granted, you still need to be broken, but with a little work, you will be spectacular.  The first thing we should adjust is that mouth of yours, though.  Your defiance will only cause my anger.  You are to be submissive to me in all matters.”

“Submission is not in my nature,” I bit out through gritted teeth.  What I really wanted to do was rip his eyeballs out, but I held my temper.  I needed answers first…then I’d kill him.

“Oh, it will be,
Nisiqtu
,” he chuckled.  “When you awaken, you will experience love for me and it will be overwhelming to you at first.  You will immediately want to please me in all things, above all else.  You will see, my precious.  I told you that one day you would not despise me.”

I gritted my teeth and closed my eyes as I took a deep breath.  I silently prayed for patience.  I was going to kill him before I got my answers, I was sure of it.

Amun chuckled as he heard my thoughts.  “
Sittu
,
Damu
,” he said gently as he stilled and faced me.  He lightly stroked my hair and I fought the urge to scream.  “I will answer your questions.” We began walking again and he bent down to pick a flower as he continued.  “When you were in my captivity, I will admit, you were not supposed to live.  I had planned to have Martin drain you when we no longer needed you to lure in the Day Walkers.  The situation changed, though.  I decided to use you as my failsafe since you were extremely close with them.  It was the perfect plan, really.  Should they escape me, you would eventually evolve into what I am and destroy them for me.  Phase two of my plan is almost complete.  Soon you will awaken and you will accomplish what you are designed to do.”

I shook my head in shock and denial.  “You can’t make me hurt them.  I won’t do it.  I won’t, Amun.”

“You will,” he said simply as he turned and gently inserted the stem of the scarlet wildflower into the hair above my ear.  “I command it and you are driven to obey me.  You will see…when you awaken, you will have no choice.”

“I’ll just kill myself,” I whispered to myself.

“You cannot, my precious,” he sighed.  “My essence is within you.  I am a part of you and you a part of me.  Since I do not wish to die, neither will you.  I know this is hard to understand right now, but you will be content with me.  You will not only be my child, but I intend to make you my mate…my wife.  Ankida was the last mate I had and that was thousands of years ago.  It is time I moved on and who better to do it with.  You are beautiful, fierce, and you will give me your undying loyalty.  We will rule this world together,
Nisiqtu
, and we will begin with Archer’s death.”

“I don’t want to be your wife!” I yelled, trying to jerk my arm back from his.  “I’ll never be yours.  I hate you and I always will.  Nothing you say or do to me will change that.”

Amun flashed to grab both of my arms above the elbows and he held me tightly.  His grip was strong and I whimpered in pain.  “You will love me!” he growled, his eyes turning black with anger.  “You will be my mate and you will submit to me completely!  You have no choice.  I am within you.  My soul is intertwining with yours as we speak.”

“No,” I cried, hot tears finally sliding down my cheeks.  “How?”

Amun pulled me to his chest and cradled my head.  My body was rigid with fear and anger, but a part of me relished his touch.  It was everything I could do not to lean into him.

“When you were chained in the underground tomb, I shared a part of myself with you,” he explained gently as he stroked my hair.  “I blew my essence into you; shared my very soul.  I combined a part of it with yours.  I did not think it would take as long as it did, though.  It took you a full month before you entered the final stage of the transformation process.”

He BLEW his essence into me?  Shared his soul with me? 
I immediately thought back to my time in the basement, picking through my memories to find when that event took place.  The only thing I could come up with was the dream I had where Amun blew a thick smoke the color of desert sand into my lungs.  I remembered the horrible, Acid-like pain I felt and I swallowed hard as I grabbed my throat
.  It wasn’t a dream?

“Yes, precious,” Amun smiled.  “I see you remember now.  I have been waiting rather impatiently for the moment where my essence would finally overtake your own, causing you to either die in your sleep or for you to be injured enough to spark the catalyst of your rebirth.  I have never shared my essence with anyone before, truth be told, I did not know how long it would take. My son before you was given my blood. 

Your rebirth is the first of its kind, Skye.  You are not merely my daughter…you are a part of me.  The anger, the rage you have been feeling?  That was me.  When you attempted to kill me in your dream, I beheld your full potential.  Your murderous rage was breathtaking.  You are very beautiful, Skye.  You will become my partner in war and my lover in bed.  We will have our revenge and then make love atop the carnage we leave behind.”

I jerked out of his arms and ran as fast as I could away from him.

“There is nowhere for you to go,” he laughed directly behind me.  “You are in a dream state I control.”

I didn’t care what he said; I just knew I had to get away from him…away from the godless creature he was turning me into. 

Suddenly, I was tackled from behind and I went sprawling on the ground as a rush of air left my lungs.  I rolled over and began kicking and punching wildly at Amun.

“
Damu
, stop!” he yelled, the black abyss swallowing the whites of his eyes again.  “Stop defying me!  You will be mine, do you hear me?  You will be mine!”

A few seconds later, he had me in complete submission.  His hands were holding mine over my head and he had his lower body covering my legs, keeping them immobile. 

“Please,” I began to cry.  “Please, just kill me.”  The words I spoke sparked some memory within me and I swallowed my sob with difficulty.  “W-Wait.  I-I asked Archer to kill me.  He-He drained me…I felt it.  How am I dreaming of you if I’m supposed to be dead?  The dead don’t dream, do they?”

Amun smiled sinisterly.  “The Day Walker was most likely too late.  My essence has gradually been changing you over the course of weeks.  Even if he drained you, I doubt you would completely die.  He would have to decapitate, dismember, burn you completely and scatter the ashes to the four corners of the Earth to make sure you did not rise again.  It is very hard to kill us,
Nisiqtu
.  We are stronger, faster, smarter, and deadlier than them.”

“Please, Amun.  I don’t want to be like you.  I don’t want to be a vampire at all,” I pleaded desperately as my tears fell anew.

“Child,” he said gently, even though his eyes were still black with anger.  “You and I are not vampires.  Vampires were created when I turned my son using my blood.  You were not given my blood; you were given a part of my soul.”

My face started to tingle as I looked up at Amun.  “What do you mean you aren’t a vampire?  What are you then?”

Amun’s eyes got wide as he looked down at me.  His hands scrambled to grab onto me and I realized he wasn’t holding me anymore.

“What is this?!” he roared angrily, his eyes frantic. 

I looked down and saw that my body was rapidly fading.  I gazed up at Amun questioningly as the dream started to melt.

“Something is interfering!” he yelled, his voice teeming with rage as he desperately tried to capture me.  “No!  No! 
Nisiqtu
!  I will come for you!”

July 15, 2012

I awoke with a jolt as I gasped deeply, desperate for air; my slow heart beat echoing loudly all around me.  When I finally managed a deep enough breath, I was surprised to find that the air was thick, stale, and tasted heavily of dirt.  I slowly moved my hands off my chest, down to my sides, and was startled when they hit something solid.

“What the…” I whispered in confusion as I opened my eyes.

I was a little disorientated at first, but it passed quickly.  There was no light, but I was still able to see my surroundings perfectly.  I appeared to be laying down in a tight enclosure of some sort.  I took a deep breath in again, through my nose this time, and was immediately bombarded with an assortment of aromas.  I smelled the rich aroma of wood all around me, the earthy, musky scent of dirt, Drakkar Noir and leather, and the sharp, coppery, heart-stopping smell of blood.

I bolted upright at that last scent, my mouth immediately watering as a deep, painful hunger enveloped me, and I immediately hit my head.  The
thunking
sound my head made against the wood ceiling above me echoed loudly throughout my enclosure as I reached up and rubbed the sore spot on my forehead.

“Ouch…” I mumbled as I lay back down.  I reached my hands up and felt the ceiling of my cell.  I pushed lightly against it, testing it, and was shocked when it flew off and clattered loudly against the floor.

“Damn,” I whispered, surprised as I looked down at my hands. 
Did I do that?
 

Fresh, clean, cool and slightly damp air hit my lungs and I sat up.  The room was brightly lit with an array of candles.  I shielded my sensitive eyes and gazed around.  I had no idea where I was; I had never seen this room before.  It was made up of cement brick walls, no windows, and no visible decorations aside from the candles and a lone wooden chair. I looked down at my sides and noticed that I seemed to be lying in a box of some sort.

Gingerly, I got up on my knees, climbed out of the box, and stood beside it.  To my horror, I saw that my former enclosure wasn’t just a normal box; it was a slender wooden coffin with a dirt floor that was elevated off the ground using two antique, carved wooden saw horses.

A…coffin?
  “Oh, God…I’m dead.  Am I dead?” I panicked as my hands fearfully roamed my body, checking to see if I was tangible or incorporeal. 
I FEEL solid.
  I glanced down at my clothes and was surprised to see I was still wearing my work out gear.  The biggest surprise was the crusted film of dried blood covering most of my body. 
Ew…

My eyes zeroed in on the dried blood around my fingernails and I brought them to my nose and took a deep whiff.  I was immediately hit with the strong, sharp, tangy, delectable scent of blood again and fought the urge to suck the crusty life-force from my fingers and hands as fierce hunger pains wracked my body. 
What the hell is wrong with me?
I silently wondered, my eyes wide with fear, as I stared at my hands, backing away from the coffin.

Something made a sound behind me and I spun around in surprise, an involuntary feral growl emanated deep in my throat.  My mind instantly clouded over and the only things I felt were anger and fear. 

“Woah,” someone whispered gently as he put his hands up submissively in front of him.  “It is okay, Skye.  I’m not going to hurt you.”

This person was instantly an enemy and I was ready to attack if need be.  I curiously sniffed at the familiar air between us before the person took another step toward me.  I immediately crouched down, my body going on the defensive, as I hissed fiercely in warning.

“Skye,” the man whispered.  “It’s Archer.  I’m not going to hurt you, love.  I heard you moving around and came to see how you were feeling.”

Archer?
  I tilted my head to the left and right as I studied the man in front of me. 
Archer…
 The word meant nothing to me.  Hunger pains coursed through me anew and I whimpered slightly.  I sniffed at him again and determined he wasn’t food.  He didn’t smell appetizing to me; he didn’t smell as good as the blood on my hands had smelled.  I brought my fingers to my mouth again and shamelessly sucked on my index finger.  It tasted horrible, old, stale, and cold.  I cringed at the taste and instantly spit it out.

“Are you okay?” Archer asked cautiously.  “I know this is confusing for you, but I will explain everything.  Just talk to me.  Tell me you’re okay.  Do you remember me?  What’s my name, Skye?”

His words drew my attention away from my hand and I stared at the man in front of me again.  I studied him closely as I sniffed the air between us once more.  Something about him was very familiar and I thought hard.  I closed my eyes as fuzzy images suddenly flashed before me. 
“I’ll never hurt you again, Skye.”

“Archer,” I plucked from my mind in a low growl as I opened my eyes.  I stood out of my defensive stance as my body calmed and my muscles relaxed somewhat.  I somehow knew him on a deep level and I slowly, bravely inched my way up to him as I studied his ruggedly handsome face.  I took in his arctic blue eyes, days old stubble, rumpled dress shirt and slacks, and messy brown hair with amazing visual clarity.  I traced the line of his jaw and the curve of his lips gently with one bloody finger as I stared; each tiny, enhanced detail seemingly new to me.  I quickly leaned in and buried my face in the hollow of his neck, causing his body to stiffen cautiously, as I took a deep breath in.  He smelled like whiskey, leather, the sun and musky cologne.

“Drakkar Noir,” I rasped involuntarily before I took a step back.  The visions of my memories suddenly made sense to me as the weird, confusing fog began to lift.  “Archer?” I asked, my voice losing the growl and returning to normal.