A Moonlit Night Saga: Episodes 1 - 4 (9 page)

She grabbed hold of Jason, and the two of
them hopped out of the windshield, and down to the mucky forest
ground.

The pouring rain made it difficult for them
to see, but a bolt of lightning lit up the night sky, revealing
dozens more vampires, all licking their lips in anticipation.

“I said, stay back!” yelled Amanda, holding
Jason’s hand tightly. “You know what I am capable of—!”

“My dear summoner,” interrupted Simeon,
stepping out from the shadows. “We’re all prepared to die for our
cause. Are you?”

“I have lived for over four thousand years,
vampire,” stated Amanda, as a white light engulfed her eyes. “I’ve
been prepared to die for longer then you’ve been dead.”

“Fair enough,” Simeon smirked, as he signaled
for the others to advance.

“I want you to know, that I love you very
much,” said Jason, tightening his grip on his wife’s hand.

“In four thousand years, I never imagined I
would love someone as much as I love you,” Amanda replied. “You
gave me our children, and my only hope is that they grow up,
healthy and happy. Maybe now…they will have that chance.”

“No!” shouted Xander, dropping down from the
trees in front of the couple. “You shall not harm them!”

The vampires stopped there advance, uncertain
what to make of the situation. They paused, looking up towards
their leader for guidance.

“What are you doing, Xander?” asked Simeon,
motioning for the vampires to check the area. “You’ve never openly
defied the council before. What game are you playing?”

Amanda knew she had little time, and used
this time to channel as much energy as she could manage. The power
was nearly tearing her apart, as she tried to conceal the energy
from the surrounding vampires. She would be lucky to get one
chance, and needed to take advantage of the situation.

“I’m playing no games, my old master,” said
Xander, strolling towards Simeon. “You have no idea what this woman
means to the world; you never did. You seek to destroy what you do
not understand. I pity you.”

“You pity me?
You
pity
me
?”
Simeon asked, bellowing in laughter. “If you stand in my way, I
will have your head—!”

Amanda threw her hands into the air, as a
swirling white light enveloped her from above. The light lit up the
forest, revealing a hundred more vampires, hidden in the
shadows.

She shook violently as the light burned
through her entire body; the power overwhelmed her as she collapsed
to the ground.

“Amanda!” screamed Jason, dropping to his
knees. “Are you okay? What happened?”

Jason ran his fingers through her hair, as he
looked down upon his fallen wife. She was still alive, but barely.
Whatever she did, it consumed almost all the energy she had
left.

“It’s okay, Jason,” Amanda said softly,
slowly drifting away. “It needed to be done.”

“What needed to be done?” asked Jason,
desperately trying to awaken Amanda. “I don’t understand!”

It was no use, as Amanda was now unconscious
on the ground. Jason sobbed, his tears mixing with the rain as it
continued to pour down on them.

“It’s just you against an army,” said Simeon,
staring Xander down. “Do you really want to risk everything, for
this
woman?”

Xander growled, remembering the last time
Simeon had taken someone in front of him. This time, he was going
to make a stand, however feeble it may be.

Simeon charged towards Xander, knocking him
back with a blow to the chest.

Xander flew back, smashing into a large pine
tree. He hit the ground, but before he could pick himself up,
several vampires jumped him.

He struggled against their combined might, as
they held him in place.

“I am doing this for your own wellbeing,”
said Simeon, looking down upon Xander. “You will thank me for this,
one day.”

The vampires continued to subdue Xander’s
rage as the others swarmed the couple. All he could hear was the
sound of Jason screaming as they stripped him of his flesh, as they
consumed the summoner and her husband.

“After two thousand years,” Simeon smirked.
“We are finally the true gods of this world! There is no one that
can stop us now!”

The rest of the vampires cackled under the
moonlit night. Believing they had killed the last summoner, they
looked up into the sky as the blood ran down their monstrous
faces.

Chapter Eight

“I’m sorry…I never knew,” said Emily, tearing
up at Xander’s story. “I was so willing to believe the worst in
you.”

Xander’s lips may have smiled, but his eyes
were filled with sorrow. He looked at Emily, and said, “Your
parents left you that night, so that the vampires searching for her
would not harm your brother and you. She left you that night to
save your life.”

“Why didn’t they come after me?” Emily asked,
crossing her arms. “If my mother was a summoner, shouldn’t they
know I would be one as well? What about my brother?”

Xander slowly walked up the porch steps, and
said, “Summoners do not breed. She gave up her powers, so that you
may one day finish what she started.”

“What do you mean?” Emily asked. “What was
she involved in?”

“We don’t have any time to discuss the
matter,” said Xander, reaching for Emily’s hand. “They are almost
here, we don’t have much time.”

“Who is almost here?” Emily asked, slowly
reaching towards Xander. “You’re not making sense—.”

“I’ve got you now!” shouted Samuel, leaping
out from the side of the house.

Before Xander had any time to react, Samuel
threw a silver net in his direction, sending him to the floor,
burning and in agony.

“No!” screamed Emily, pleading for Samuel to
stop. “I’m sorry! I’ve made a terrible mistake!”

Xander gazed up towards Emily with a look
both sadness and regret. His skin burned underneath the silver net,
which he was unable to lift.

“You’ve killed a lot of people, Alexander
Franson,” said Samuel, drawing his sword. “I’m here to bring you to
justice.”

Xander growled in rage as the silver melted
down to his bones. His ferocity shook the floorboards as Samuel
closed in on him.

“Please don’t kill him,” said Emily,
clutching at Samuel’s coat. “I made an awful mistake; I don’t want
to help you anymore!”

“Don’t worry, Emily, he’s not going to be
killing anyone,” said Xander, franticly trying to escape from the
silver deathtrap.

“Oh, you’re sure of that, are you?” inquired
Samuel, dragging the tip of his blade along the porch. “I’ve killed
several vampires; I don’t see why you’re any different.”

“…And I’ve killed hundreds of vampire
hunters,” Xander snarled. “But that’s not what I meant.”

“Please!” Emily shrieked, running over to
stand between them. “You can’t do this!”

Emily held out his hands in defiance, trying
her best to hold up Samuel’s advance. She pressed her hands against
his rock-hard chest, as she begged him to stop.

“How can you say that, after seeing the torn
up bodies left in his wake?” asked Samuel, pausing his advance.

“I didn’t kill those people, you fool!”
yelled Xander, writhing in pain.

“If you didn’t, do you want to tell me who
did?” asked Samuel, pushing Emily aside.

Xander looked back towards the driveway, and
said, “Them.”

Samuel tried to look through the shadowed
driveway, but blackness overcame the area, and he found himself
unable to see what Xander was talking about.

Suddenly, the sounds of several monstrous
beasts snarling could be heard; and they were rapidly getting
louder.

Through the darkness, he could see three
demonic wolves dart towards them, their large fangs glistening
under the moonlight as they came closer and closer.

“Let me free!” shouted Xander, clawing at the
net in a frenzy of blood and sweat. “Let me go, or we’re all going
to die!”

The End

Council of Elders

A Moonlit Night Saga: Episode Four

Chapter One

She walked down the alleyway, under the mask
of the night sky. Her long brown hair blew in the cold breeze as
she continued down the dark corridor.

She passed by a homeless man, coughing up
blood as he tried to nestle into his damp cardboard. She stopped,
turning towards the sickly old man as she licked her lips.

“T—take a picture,” the homeless man choked.
“…It’ll last longer.”

She smiled, kneeling down in front of the
man. She stared into his eyes, and said, “I think I’ve found
exactly what I’m looking for.”

“A psychotic, old, war vet?” the homeless man
asked. “That’s what you’ve been looking for?”

“Well no,” she said, shaking her head. “Those
are all just bonuses…you could say.”

“Get out of here, lady,” said the homeless
man, turning over in his cardboard box.

“Is that how you treat a lady?” she asked.
“No wonder you’re homeless.”

“Buzz off!” shouted the homeless man, turning
back to face him as he tried to push her back.

She grabbed hold of his arm, and tightened
her grip as the man tried to desperately shake himself free.

“Who…are you?” the homeless man asked,
clenching his teeth.

“My name is Amata Gemeti,” she said, barring
her fangs. “…And I want you.”

“W—what for?” the homeless man asked,
trembling in fear.

“For an army,” Amata said, as she grabbed the
man’s head, and sunk her teeth into his neck.

The destitute man screamed in pain as Amata
consumed his very essence. Blood splattered against the stone
walls, as the life drained from his body.

“Ah!” screeched Amata, as she pulled herself
away from his cold, dead body. “I love my second life.”

Chapter Two

“Get in the house!” shouted Samuel, holding
Emily back as she tried to run over to Xander, still trapped
underneath the silver-lined net. It was burning through his skin
and down to the bones; in mere minutes there would be nothing left
of him.

Emily desperately wanted to save Xander, but
the werewolves were barreling down on them, snarling as they licked
their twisted lips in anticipation. She looked Xander, and said,
“But, I can help—.”

“Now!” yelled Xander, growling in anger. His
eyes were bloodshot, but Emily could see the seriousness in his
eyes, and she soon found herself running back towards the
house.

Three werewolves had descended upon Samuel,
circling around him as they stalked their formidable prey. They
were large, standing at least eight feet tall on their hind legs;
but on all fours they were faster and more agile, as they stayed
out of Samuel’s line of sight, sneaking around in the corner of his
eyes.

He watched Emily slam the front door shut,
and returned his gaze towards the werewolves. Reaching into his
long coat, he unclasped his sword and brandished it in defiance.
The cold steel glistened in the moonlight, catching glimpses of
beady red eyes and frothing fangs in the sword’s reflection.

The first wolf made his move, parting from
the pack as he dashed towards Samuel. He lunged at the vampire
hunter, barring his sharp teeth as he went for Samuel’s neck.

The steel hooked the wolf’s mouth, cutting a
yawning path down the side of his body. Blood poured from of the
creature as it dropped to the floor, writhing in pain as it died a
quick and gruesome death.

Samuel looked up at the two other wolves,
both of them in shock and disbelief that their pack mate had been
so easily defeated. They howled in rage, their piercing cries
reaching out to the mountains and beyond.

Xander could smell his own flesh sizzle as
the silver burned through his skin. The pain was excruciating,
enough to take down a lesser vampire, but Xander fought through the
agony, unwilling to give his aggressors the satisfaction of his
defeat.

He could feel the fire smoldering his lips,
melting them away slowly, as he grit his teeth and clenched his
hands into the dirt.

Samuel sliced sideways with his sword,
narrowly missing one of the werewolves. The other pounced at him
from behind, but he was able to avoid the attack, rolling to his
side as he parried the blow.

The first wolf sprang forward, chasing Samuel
down as he rolled on the ground. Catching him by surprise, the wolf
snapped at his sword, sending it sliding across the grass. Inching
towards his face, the wolf was desperately held at bay by Samuel as
he stared it down eye to eye.

With one hand on the throat of the roaring
werewolf, Samuel ran his free hand down his leg, hoping to find his
concealed dagger.

“Not today,” said Samuel, drawing a crude
dagger from his pants.

The wolf howled in anguish as Samuel stuck
him in the gut with the rugged blade. He arched his back and howled
to the moon, crying out for his pack as the blood drained from
him.

This distraction gave Samuel enough time to
throw the werewolf off him, and quickly pick himself up. He growled
back at the remaining wolf as it circled around him. Slowly, he
picked up his sword, not once letting the monster out of his
sight.

“You caught me off guard,” smirked Samuel,
his sword pointed towards the werewolf as they circled each
other.

Samuel looked over towards Xander, now almost
completely ablaze, still trying to lift himself from underneath the
silver net. He didn’t know if he could trust the mysterious
vampire, but he reluctantly came to the conclusion that he could
use the vampire’s assistance. He knew that werewolves rarely travel
without their pack, and if these wolves found them, the rest
wouldn’t be far behind.

He also knew that getting to Xander was an
entirely different issue, as the werewolf would attack the moment
he took his eyes off the menacing creature. They were at a
standstill, both waiting for the other to make the first move.