Vampire World (27 page)
I remained by
the door as Brett and Mr. FreeCut dug into the kitchen cupboard that was
stacked with weapons from the cache. They didn’t ask questions. Meanwhile,
Senator Bloodhunt seemed confused as he took hold of a couple of stakes handed
to him by Brett.
Clutching two of the stakes
from my belt, I looked out through the peep hole again.
“They’re gone,” I whispered.
Brett was holding a stake gun
in one hand and a silver blade in the other. Mr. FreeCut was also wielding a
knife, together with a bottle of holy water.
“Where did they go?” Brett
asked.
The strained silence was
shattered by a loud bang coming from the rear of the house. A zinging sound followed.
It was a sound I'd become very familiar with recently.
“Duck!” I screamed.
A stake fired down the
hallway and rammed into the kitchen wall, barely missing Mr. FreeCut’s head.
Two vampires rushed into the
kitchen, the first wielding two long blades, the second armed with a stake gun.
The first invader swung a blade at Senator BloodHunt, cutting him on the arm.
He was about to chop the arm right off when Mr. FreeCut chucked the bottle of
holy water at him. This broke on impact, and the water burned through his chest
like acid. I attempted to stab the invader in the heart with a stake, just in
case the holy water didn’t finish him off completely, but I was violently
smacked down onto the floor by the second vampire.
Grinning, he aimed his gun
tight against my neck, puncturing the skin. Just as he was about to fire, I saw
the glint of a steel blade swinging in Brett's hand. In one sweet movement he
lopped the enemy's arm clean off just above the elbow. The limb and the gun
both thumped onto the floor. Blood instantly gushed out of my attacker's
ravaged stump. I mean REALLY gushed. No vampire could survive that much loss of
blood. With time only for one horrified glance at his severed limb, he fell
down dead beside it.
Shaking, I looked over at the
other vampire; he was nothing but a gory mess. The holy water had burned right
through his mid-section, effectively cutting him into two pieces.
We anticipated more invaders
rushing in. But for now, all was quiet. Taking advantage of this, I tended to
the senator's bleeding arm. Fortunately, the wound was superficial and the
Bloodstop ointment sealed it up in no time at all.
“Are you sure you’re telling
me everything?” I grilled him.
He was too traumatized to
answer. Not that there was time to worry about that. The action restarted with
the sound of glass shattering in one of the back rooms. This was followed by
footfalls and whispering voices.
“Oh hell,” Mr. FreeCut
griped.
With a stake gun in my hand,
I charged down the hallway with Brett and Mr. FreeCut close behind. The voices
stopped. Then we heard a peculiar spraying noise.
All
of a sudden I couldn’t move any further. The smell of whatever they were
spraying hit me like a bomb. A yellow mist, like a death gas, filtered out from
my bedroom into the hallway. My skin began to turn green, a ghastly burning
sensation invaded my mouth, and I could barely breathe.
I caught a glimpse of what
was happening in my bedroom. Two vampires wearing gas masks were spraying
garlic all over the room from a machine on wheels with a hose attached. They
were contaminating everything.
Mr. FreeCut gagged. His skin
was also turning a menacing green color. With all the energy he could muster,
he pointed to the front door. “We….got….to….get….out!” he moaned.
Oh, Ernie! I quickly picked
up the lovable skinless creature. He was heavier than I thought and his horn
gouged painfully into my chest. I didn’t care. I had to save him!
We frantically dashed back
down the hallway in the direction of the front door. Heavy footsteps followed
us.
“SPRAY THEM!” a vampire
shouted as we neared the living room.
I glanced back and saw the
angry vamps coming after us, aiming their hoses. If they sprayed us, we were
doomed. And if I died now, I guess it was my time to go. But I didn’t want to
go.
Gasping, we reached the open
front door. Brett, Senator BloodHunt, Mr. FreeCut and I all plowed through into
the open air.
Outside, four masked vampires
were standing in the front garden aiming stake guns directly at us. “Duck!” one
of them hollered.
We all hit the grass,
anticipating either a flying stake or a suffocating cloud of garlic at any
moment. But neither happened. Instead, I heard the swish of stakes whizzing
over our heads.
Looking behind me, I was
astonished to see the stakes had scored direct hits on the evil hearts of our
pursuers. I breathed a sigh of relief. They now lay lifeless on the porch,
their deathly green skin encased in a coating of garlic that had leaked from
the hoses draped over their decaying bodies.
I focused on the group of
masked vampires that had rescued me yet again.
“Martin!” I yelled, releasing
my hold on a flustered but fine Ernie. “Tell them who you are. Tell them what
you know about TriFang.”
He didn’t answer, which
infuriated me. I'd had enough. Enough lies. Enough confusion. Enough bull crap.
“Take off your mask,” I
demanded. But he didn’t. He turned the other way.
“MARTIN!”
Losing control I ran forward,
determined to yank his mask off. But his friends pulled me away and I stumbled
over. With the help of a smoke bomb, all four of them then instantly vanished.
Tired and exasperated, I
pulled up a chunk of grass and threw it in the air. “Why do they play this game
with me?” I yelled at Mr. FreeCut and Brett who were helping me up. I noticed
their faces were already returning to a more normal color.
“You could always sit this
game out,” Senator BloodHunt suggested.
This only pissed me off even
more. “No, I won’t,” I snapped.
“He’s just concerned for your
safety, Janice,” Mr FreeCut chipped in. “And so am I.”
I was silenced with guilt.
But that didn’t make it any easier to swallow.
“Now you know what you’re
dealing with,” the senator said. “TriFang has been around for a long time, and
its members are chosen most of all on their ability to keep the secrets they
learn. Everything is based around the special blood you spoke of, which only
TriFangers are allowed to drink. Their members are everywhere, secretly
infecting almost every organization, club or group, whether they be good or
bad, and regardless of what they contribute to society.”
He took a deep breath. “In
fact, several members of our government are TriFangers.”
“Well, that’s another good
reason not to back down then,” I said. “I ain’t gonna be taken advantage of.”
“In that case, you’re going
to need all the help you can get,” the senator sniped.
Mr. FreeCut gazed sadly at
his house. He took a few steps forward, but his skin suddenly started turning
green and flaky again. He looked like he was close to fainting. We rushed over
to help him and it hit us too - gut-wrenching garlic fumes, like bitter poison
to the soul.
Brett and Senator BloodHunt
pulled Mr. FreeCut back before it was too late. He coughed and gagged, but
eventually his skin returned to normal.
It was then that Senator
BloodHunt delivered the bad news. “This house needs to be condemned. There is
just too much garlic inside.”
Both Mr. FreeCut and I tried
to argue with him. But when a strong breeze began to spread the garlic smell,
it became clear that no vampire would be capable of cleaning and restoring our
precious home.
A single tear fell from Mr.
FreeCut’s right eye. All the memories...gone. The relaxing, enjoyable moments
of sitting on a couch and watching a violent vampire flick...gone. In fact,
everything that had been good was now gone, replaced only by the fear of
homelessness.
Great! Just freakin great! It
was all my fault. If I hadn't gotten involved with my stupid messenger and
tangled with TriFang, Mr. FreeCut would never have lost his home. I'd brought
the evil into his house. I was such a bitch.
The guilt continued to pile
up on me as we sat on an uncomfortable bed in a gloomy and cold hotel room.
Though not really alone, I felt totally isolated, even when Brett put his arm
around me and Ernie licked my face with his cold tongue.
Trying to be optimistic, Mr.
FreeCut told me it was not my fault. He could sense the dread inside of me.
“Look,” he said. “Sometimes when bad things happen, you just need to get your
mind off of them. You know the fireball tournament is tomorrow night, right?
I'd love to see you competing in that.”
Oh, my gosh, he was right.
How could I forget? The tournament! Yes! I was going to win and use the money
to build Mr. FreeCut a mansion. Yes!
Brett noticed my sudden
perkiness. “I’ve got to go practice, like now,” I said, smiling.
I called Kate. She said she’d
be glad to meet up at the practice facility. I also tried to call Marsha and
April, but got no answer. I hadn’t heard from them in days, which gave me a bad
feeling.
“Let’s all go together,” Mr.
FreeCut said. “It’s safer to travel in a group. Anyway, there's nothing I’d
rather be doing than spending time with the people I love and watching my baby
girl kick some bloody ass.”
We made it to the practice
facility and practiced our hearts out, forgetting all about the damn trouble
for a short while.
The night I'd
been waiting for was finally here.
Mr. FreeCut, Brett and I
arrived at the sprawling fireball tournament parking lot. Bustling with cars of
all types, it seemed like the whole of Vampire World was turning out for the
occasion. I'd anticipated an incredible stadium rising above me, yet there was
nothing - a sharp reminder that all the action would be taking place
underground.
I gazed around, my excitement
growing as I saw crowds of vampires descending.
“Looks like this is where
we'll have to split up,” Mr. FreeCut said after arriving at an exceptionally
wide and busy escalator. “Spectators enter on this one. Competitors go down on
that one over there.”
He pointed to a smaller
escalator not too far away that was far less busy.
I gave him one last hug
before the games began. My attempt to win the tournament was no longer about
me, money or prestige. It was about Mr. FreeCut. If I won, I’d be able to buy
him a mansion. And the leftovers? Well, that could proudly go to me.
Brett and I went down the
players' escalator. As we dropped, our eyes adjusted to the dramatic darkness.
The ride down felt like it
was going to last forever. In some ways I was reminded of the descent into
TriFang’s underground party. But this was so much better than being locked
inside a car with Rob. I squeezed Brett’s hand, my mind flashing back to the
awful things Rob had done to him. I hoped I’d get to play Rob and defeat his
sour ass in front of the entire country.
We finally arrived and set
off down a narrow hallway with a low ceiling. Soon, cheers from thousands of
vampire spectators could be heard. I knew we must be getting near, though I was
yet to catch a glimpse of what I anticipated was going to be a spectacular
playing field.
Brett and I pulled out our
vampire training cards and waited in a long line of players eager to begin
pounding the ball. There was no official uniform. However, most of the
contestants, including Brett and myself, wore comfortable scarlet tennis shoes,
jeans and loose shirts. Some of the girls flaunted scantily tight clothing, I
guess to show off their goods in front of the world.
After a long wait we met a
vampire referee dressed in black. He carefully scanned our cards to make sure
we were official players. Once he was satisfied, he handed Brett a blinking 3-D
emerald skull pin. I was given a red one.
We were instructed to place
the pins on our shirts to show which qualifying group we'd been placed in. I
learned that the four qualifying champions then duked it out in the final
showdown to win the ten thousand Carns.
We came to a long, black
tunnel.
“This is it,” Brett said.
“Let’s go.”
We dashed through the tunnel
and emerged into....
The incredible view took my
breath away. No matter what I might have been expecting, this surpassed it. The
square-shaped, dungeon-like arena was absolutely massive, rising up perhaps
fifty stories. Way, way above me, the blood-red ceiling was shrouded in a deep
mist. Giant stalactite-like spikes hung down, while attached to a long chain
was a colossal skull, probably the ugliest and at the same time coolest thing
I’d ever seen in Vampire World. Illuminated scoreboards were attached to this.
The massive roar generated by
tens of thousands of passionate vampires reverberated hard against my ears,
scrambling my brain a little. And the amazing thing was, half the seats were
still empty. It was hard to imagine what the full fury of the sound would be
like when all of the thirsty vampires eventually left the blood concessions and
returned to their seats.
Spread out before us were
perhaps fifteen squares, all occupied with players fighting for their fireball
tournament lives. They were smacking the ball around at lightning speed.
Amidst the player’s screams
of triumph and heartbreak, I asked an official where Brett and I should report
to. He checked our twinkling badges and directed us over to different playing
areas. We gave each other a kiss for luck before parting.
Before I headed to my area, I
spotted something quite impressive - the champion square. The glow-in-the-dark
granite block sat high in the air thanks to a telescopic pole that jutted up
from the floor. I gazed up at it, but couldn’t see its top. I assumed it was
going to be pretty damn wild up there. That is, if I made it. And I must. I
freaking must.
I stepped onto my first
fireball square knowing I was going to kick ass. I could tell that these novice
players were badly unprepared and no match for all the degrees of sweat and
practice I'd put into preparing for this tournament. Plus, I didn’t have to
worry about the square moving or freaky holographic images attacking me. Those
challenges would come later.
As predicted, I kicked butt
on the first round. The rapidly increasing crowd got behind me and began
cheering me on as I took each player out. I smiled and waved confidently back
to them, wanting to make a name for myself. The rows and rows of vertically
stacked, screaming vampires were intimidating, but also vitalizing.
I got psyched up for one more
round of this before moving on to the more daunting second level of
competition.
In my next game I was forced
to battle against someone very familiar - April. Dressed to impress, her
beautiful hair and sparkling tats almost made me want to let her beat me.
Obviously I couldn’t do that, but as a ref prepared to throw the fireball onto
the main square I waved to her and she waved back. I knew she didn’t hate me
any more, if she ever did. But I still had to beat her. I had to win.
The ball was pitched into the
air and thrown in my direction. I slammed it across into the square of the girl
on my right and got her out with ease. Then a burly young man knocked it over
the bright flames back into my space. He hit it too slowly though, allowing me
plenty of time to counter. I hammered it back at him with such speed that he
didn't even see it coming and missed entirely.
Now it was just April and I
knocking the ball back and forth over the flames. I didn’t want to get her out,
but I was getting tired and very hot, so it was time to release my full fury.
After the tenth time of hitting it to her, I spiked it with extra force over
the flames and into her square. She was too slow getting to the ball and only
managed to nudge it with her hand. It rolled into the flames and burned to a
crisp. The crowd roared.
“Good job,” April said.
Then, out of nowhere, she hit
me with a dirty look that shocked the crap out of me. “How dare you go against
TriFang?” she snapped. “How stupid of you.”
All I could do was smile. I
didn’t know how else to react. Then I turned away and ran into Kate and Brett.
“I’m done,” Brett said. He
hugged me. “Looks like it’s up to you, babe.”
Poor Kate wasn’t taking her
elimination as easy as Brett and was crying. I tried to comfort her; I knew she
had worked her ass off at practicing. I thought of April and realized I had one
less friend thanks to TriFang. But I couldn’t let it get me down.
Kate eventually calmed down.
At least she was still loyal.
“You go kick some ass,” she
said. “And I’m sure you’ll share some of the prize money with me, right?”
I laughed. Of course I would.
She was like my best friend. How could I not?
I was now prepared to move
onto the rotating squares. But before I took flight, I had the misfortune to
bump into Rob. He was dressed in a tight sleeveless leather vest designed to
show off his muscles and hideous tats. He reeked of human blood.
“You’re doing better than I
thought you would,” he said, smirking. “Enjoy it while you can, 'cos pretty
soon I’m gonna be the one to ruin your little bloodsucking fantasy of winning.”
I slapped him with a dirty
look, but he only laughed crazily. His special blood may have given him extra
energy and a physical advantage, but I knew I was now a far more skillful
player than that worm would ever be.
I did very well with the
rising and falling platforms. My long hours of practice had made me used to
their motions, unlike the other players who regularly tumbled off their squares
whenever I pounded the ball into their space. Not only was I victorious in the
first round, but the second as well. I had played myself right into the final.
I smirked as I got my
wish.
Both Rob and I were in the
final.
Hopefully we would be going
head to head. That was just how I wanted it.
I held my breath while
watching the champion square lower. Thunderous applause came from the crowd as
we four finalists waited for it to arrive. Rob snickered at me. Kristy, a very
fit girl dressed all in red, didn't even look in my direction. A buff brute
named Chris with a necklace of skulls wrapped around his neck, also kept his
eyes away. Obviously Kristy and Chris were focused on winning, while Rob was
simply set on humiliating me. I guess I was just too womanly for him, so he had
nothing better to do than hate me. Oh well, that was too bad. I was gonna nail
him.
With the champion square now
level with the ground, we stepped on and took up our positions. Each of our
individual squares were separated by thin red lines. I couldn’t believe I was a
freakin finalist with the eyes of almost everyone in Vampire World on me.
Slowly the square rose again.
The view of the audience wrapped around us was breathtaking, even though the
cave-like darkness made it difficult to distinguish individual faces most of
the time. However, bright scarlet flashes from the many cameras in use did
momentarily illuminate small sections of those watching.
We were still rising and I
was now too scared to look down. Heights had never been my friend, but I
couldn’t let it get the best of me. Rob kept laughing. I knew he was going to
be a big challenge.
Bam! The square suddenly
stopped rising. I breathed a sigh of relief and forced myself to glance down.
Whoa. We were perhaps three hundred feet in the air. Far below me I could see
large blood-red nets ready to catch us if we fell. There were also ambulances
on spot.
We were ordered to get set.
The crowd began chanting the countdown.
“Five….four….three…two….one….”