Song Recommendation: Cage the Elephant -Cigarette Daydreams
seven.
Eryn.
"That was way too fucking risky," Arlo shook his head, "firstly, I can't believe that you couldn't pick up on her being a merperson."
I stared at Marina as she spoke to her friends in front of the bar. My bartender and long-time friend, Arlo, was chastising me for taking Marina home with me. I didn't notice she was a mermaid. I would've picked up on her scent. She and all her friends. The second that they walked into the club I would've known.
How did I not know?
"And now the Seattle clan vampires come over? What a mess." Arlo muttered, taking clean glasses and putting them under the shelves.
They'd been trying to get me to join their clan since now there's a new quaestor for Seattle. Quaestors were vampires that were appointed to an area that oversaw every vampire in their territory. Many vampires joined clans because of safety in numbers.
I had my fair share of clans and I was better off by myself. Sybil wasn't involved in vampire politics. So, neither was I. She would always tell me vampires in large numbers started to become violent after a while. Vampires had a god complex, so imagine a room full of every who had a god complex. It never ended well.
I still thought that was the same, drifting in between cities from time to time. For a couple of hundred years, it will be Seattle. I liked to be a part of everything at some point in my life. Perhaps someone will see me in photos and find a connection between who I was. I mostly kept away from human life, but things like the club I owned was something that I couldn't give up. I needed to see humans grow, how they change. It's something that's amused me. Some approached me and I tried not to encourage it. Other nights, I felt daring.
Seattle's new quaestor, Lucinda Adams-Price, was a woman that I had no intention of being affiliated with. She was uncaring and wasn't teaching her vampires to stay under the radar. When it was time to clean up their sloppy mistakes, it was a small band-aid fix. If they kept at it, they would draw the attention of the Demon Consul.
As a human, she was a widow. Some say that she killed her husband in order to get married off to his brother who had more riches. While she was having another man in her bed, he turned her in hopes of her killing her husband. He was an influential man with many enemies. When she was turned, she tried hiding what she was from him, but he eventually found out when he caught her sucking the blood of some maid in their bathroom. She might've killed the maid, but the Demon Consul likes to think that she didn't. I know for sure she did. She was appointed high quaestor in France for a couple of hundred years, which was a pretty prestigious position according to what Sybil would say.
After her France years, she went to New York during the 20s which I was where I was at that time. We had a brief interaction at some point. What many didn't know was that she held an underground vampire trafficking ring for young vampires. She turned a whole group of women that lived in a mansion of hers.
She asked me to be her ally but I was teetering on the edge of a point in life where I lost in my own carnal desires. I was too blood drunk to even interact with anyone but my own whims. Ultimately, she got caught and I think I dodged a bullet there.
No one wanted to draw the attention of the Demon Consul. Vampires were mostly good at staying under the radar, only because the Consul had bigger fish to fry. I didn't want to be the reason for the Consul to drop in and suddenly wipe us out. They weren't averse to wiping out races of supernaturals; one's that usually would reside in the levels of Hell. Earth-dwelling supernaturals were mere flies to them.
"Eryn," a familiar voice called, pulling me back into reality.
I looked down and saw Marina standing in front of me. Her blue eyes intently met mine, naivete flowing from them. "Thanks for last night."
I nodded, not trusting myself to say anything. Especially with Arlo standing right there. I was nervous he would try to do something. It wasn't every day a mermaid was in your midst like this.
I studied Marina's friends keenly and wondered if they were all mermaids. I'm pretty sure they were, mermaids tended to stay in groups. It was what made it so easy to hunt them, I suppose.
"Goodbye, Marina," I replied, taking in every part of her. I knew she asked me to help her with her sister, but it was nearly impossible to even figure out anything about her. Especially if it happened several years ago. Vampires tend to move around a lot.
"You are going to help me with what I asked, right?" Marina's blue eyes turned into slits as she looked at me. Her gaze looked at me for a little bit too long as if she was making sure I wasn't going anywhere. She felt as if she was going to lose me. I could see that in her eyes, perhaps some sort of ability of hers.
"I'll look into it as best as I can. I'll always be here," I returned, keeping myself uninterested. I couldn't get close to her. It was already too dangerous. I didn't use those silver injections often. I had many more kept away under my bed, but I couldn't start using them again. I would try to use them to curb the cravings and instead it'll backfire on me.
"Don't lie to me, you said you would," Mari's eye began to water.
She must've been close to her sister if she felt this way. I nodded, knowing that I was getting myself into something I shouldn't. "I know, if I said I would, then I'm going to do it."
That seemed to satisfy her because she wrapped her arms around my waist and rested her head on my chest. I hugged her back slowly and she pulled away, regrouping with her friends and leaving.
I watched her as she left, seeing the stray curls in her half bun bounce with every step. I didn't get to twirl them in the way I wanted. Hell, with twirling, I wanted to wrap my fist in them and yank it as I fucked her with—
Turning around before she hit the doorway, she turned and held my gaze, "I'll be around," she called, standing at the doorway for a short moment. Then she left, having the last word. There was an edge to her words and for a brief second, I felt a tingle of fear flow through me.
I let out a breath I didn't think I was holding.
"Wow, Eryn I'm shocked that you could do it," Arlo shook his head, cleaning the bar countertop.
I frowned and turned to him. Arlo was a short man with brown frosted tips and a crazy face tattoo. The words nosferatu lined the side of his temple, something that I knew he would soon regret later in life. I'm still waiting for him to regret it. "What do you mean?"
"You had a mermaid in your loft? Do you really think that I'm gonna believe you didn't feed on her?" Arlo chuckled, "your compulsion must be really good."
"I didn't feed on her, Arlo," I answered through clenched teeth. I gawked at him for a moment, noticing that the bags under his eyes that were usually present weren't there. Something was off.
Arlo tsked, "What a lost opportunity--"
With the speed that only vampires could muster, I darted over the bar and hurled Arlo against the wall of alcohol behind him. I held him by his neck, a sign of dominance that Sybil used to use a lot on me.
"Are you clean?" I whispered, sniffing near his mouth for the sweet scent of blood. I felt as if I were mirroring Sybil. Mermaid's blood smelled extremely sweet like fresh-baked pastries; she would say. I would tell her that human blood smelt like that too, but it wasn't as strong nor as sweet. She never told me it tasted like it too.
I picked up on human blood, pushing down the craving for it. Hunger was crawling around in my insides, begging to be sated. My fangs lengthened, aching and craving the sustenance it needed most.
"Sybil was weak," Arlo hissed, bringing up our sire.
I slammed him back onto the wall. He winced, the wall cracking behind him. "You're weak! You let it control you!"
Arlo threw me back with a strength that only came from having human blood. I tumbled over the bar and slid, crashing into chairs and tables. The sound of my head thumping against the floor was almost laughable.
However, the force of me landing took away my breath. I got up slowly, feeling my face itch. My eyes were most likely red at this point, since my vision became sharper and my hearing more acute.
"Let what control us? Eryn, this is our nature. We are on top of the food chain when it comes to humanity. We should be living like kings and queens just as before! The old you would've never let those mermaids go," Arlo said in disgust, "you're soft just like Sybil."
The tension was palpable in the air, low hisses rumbling in the back of our throats.
"Because we lose people that we love! The more we take, the more that gets taken from us. Is that what you want? A world where we are fighting for peace? Do you really think the Demon Consul will just let us walk away?" I shook my head, trying to settle myself down, "I don't want to live fighting for my life every day."
"When it came to fighting you didn't. Instead, you locked yourself up in that coffin of yours! You were so powerful before, everyone feared you. Now, look at you, just an empty shell of what you used to be," Arlo leaped over the counter and stood in front of me. His eyes were wild and there was something else in them I couldn't quite place.
"I locked myself up to keep everyone else safe. I feared myself. Of what I did, of what I became. That wasn't who I was, that wasn't what Sybil pictured for us," Flashes of the monster I used to be splayed across my mind. Images of me covered in blood and my victims cowering under me replayed like a broken record. I was a monster, and when you were feared you were also alone. I grew tired of being alone.
"Sybil is dead! There is no what she pictured for us anymore. We have to do what's best for ourselves now," Arlo launched himself at me, throwing me onto the ground. I fell with a force that should've been enough to knock me out if I was human.
I tried to toss him off, but he was too strong. The difference in power was apparent when it came to human and animal blood. "That doesn't mean we don't practice what she practiced. She wanted us to stay together."
Arlo pushed past my grip, his sharpened fingernails scratching my face. He yanked his hand back and impaled his fingers into my chest. I gasped and arched forward, frantically clawing at his hand. We rolled around on the ground, landing hard blows to each other. I coughed and sputtered blood, still feeling weak from this morning. The silver was plausibly still in my system, preventing me from throwing him off.
His hands pushed more into my chest, and I could feel him grasping at my heart. Arlo was trying to kill me. He used his body weight to keep me pinned to the floor.
"Arlo," I begged, "please don't."
"Join me, sister," While one hand was puncturing my chest, the other one reached into his jacket and pulled out a vial. I already knew what that was.
I turned my head wildly, desperately trying to pull away from him. He was going to force human blood down my throat. I wanted to scream and to kick him off, but I couldn't.
I was too weak.
He popped open the cap with his mouth and was gripping my jaw to force my mouth open. He kept my head in place, pouring the blood over my lips. I fought hard, using my legs to try and kick him off. I screamed out in frustration, blood seeping into my mouth. The taste of it was electrifying. Even just a small amount made me shudder. I wanted—no needed more.
I imagined biting into a human, getting to hold their warm body. I could only envision sinking my fangs into their neck, the sweet thick blood coming out of their jugular as I sucked it into my mouth in large gulps.
With a displaced scream, Arlo froze in front of me, his body seizing and growing limp on top of me. That was just enough to yank me back into reality.
Arlo's eyes were open, staring at me with a horrified expression on his face.
Marina shoved him off me, her eyes wide with concern as she looked me over. "Did he hurt you?"
I turned to her and snapped at her, my fangs lengthening further. She froze in her tracks and put her hand out towards me hesitantly. "Eryn, did he hurt you?"
Marina... had just, saved me? I was breathing in and out of my mouth, my chest heaving up and down deliberately. Every task I did took so much out of me. I rooted my feet onto the ground, trying my best not to allow myself to bite into her sun-kissed neck.
She helped me up and I saw there were the syringes I kept at my apartment in Arlo's back. "You took that from my place?" I asked, swallowing. My fangs overproduced a liquid that put our victims in a state of bliss. I kept swallowing trying to curb the need to sink my fangs into something.
Marina looked guilty as she studied Arlo. "Yes."
I took her in my arms and hugged her tight, forgetting that I had an open wound. Her neck was so close, and her blood was so sweet. I could just open my mouth and embed my fangs into her soft succulent sink.
A low hiss came out from my throat and I thrust her away from me. The movement made my chest hurt. Gawking down, blood was darkening my grey sweater.
"Marina, what the fuck was that?" Flynn shouted as he and Marina's friends came barreling into the club.
She turned to them, panic set into her eyes. Sydney walked forward, "Mari, step away from her!"
I cast my gaze up at Sydney and saw the horrified expression she wore on her face. Understanding crept into me as I watched Flynn and Sydney run towards Marina. Everything seemed to be going in slow motion, with Sydney shoving Marina behind her and backing up. Flynn stepped towards me, something shiny glimmering in his hand.
Marina screamed, fighting Sydney and Ally, who was holding her back.
I couldn't move. It felt like I was stuck in place, nothing able to get me out of the shock I was in. Wrapping my mind around how Marina saved me and how Arlo lost his mind, was throwing me back into the memories I tried so hard to repress.
Different people, similar situation.
"I command you to stop!" Marina bellowed, watching as Flynn turned around to her and dropped his blade instantly. She broke through Ally and Sydney, running over to me and putting herself in between Flynn and me.
"Marina, what the fuck are you doing?" Flynn snapped, trying to pull her back.
"Let go of me! Eryn isn't hurting me!" Marina pressed her back against me. Protecting me. She was protecting me.
"Look at her eyes, she's a bloodsucker!" Sydney screeched, stepping forward.
"She isn't like them!" She pleaded.
"Oh, like this guy over here?" Flynn pointed to Arlo, who wasn't there anymore.
He wasn't there anymore...
I snapped myself out of my stupor. "Where is he?"
"Where is Ally?" Sydney turned and glanced around.
"You should really keep an eye on your friends, you know," a voice called from the upstairs balcony.
Ally was in his grip, his hand covering her mouth. The look in her eyes was all too familiar. Pure horror was plastered onto her face, and at that moment I hated what I was.
"Arlo!" I hollered, "Stop! This isn't what we are."
"It isn't what you are," Arlo hissed, pulled Ally's hair back and exposing her neck.
The girls screamed while Flynn started to run up the stairs. He wouldn't be fast enough to get to them. I cursed and sped past them, feeling the wound in my chest open wider.
I knew as I ascended the steps even I wasn't fast enough. As I made it to the top, Ally dropped to the floor with a deafening thud.
Arlo stood there, blood dripping from his chin and mouth. "Ooh, Eryn, you know you want a taste. It's in your nature."
I stared at Ally's body on the ground. Her neck was exposed and there was still blood flowing freely from it. The scent of it was intoxicating, causing pangs of hunger to stab me. I could fix that if I just— "No," I grated, stalking forward.
Flynn pushed past me and hovered over Ally. I stopped myself from stepping any closer.
Arlo looked at Ally and then at me before he vanished. I knew exactly what he was doing. Leaving me along with mermaids all around me, having a taste of human blood.
He was setting me up.
I could feel the vampire trying to take over in the back of my mind. Bloodlust was near, the only thing holding me back was the thought of Marina. She couldn't see me like this. I proved to her that not all vampires were the same. I couldn't go back on that. Don't breathe. Don't breathe.
Don't bre—
Marina brushed her hand against mine. "Eryn?"
I flinched, turning to her slowly, my blood rushing in my ears. She gave me a concerned look as if she knew how close I was to the edge. Marina gave my hand a reassuring squeeze, even while tears were freely flowing down her cheeks.
Sydney's wails pierced into my trance. I slowly look at Flynn and Sydney trying to keep Ally alive. Her heartbeat was still there, faint, but alive. I could save her.
I would save her.
I stalked forward, raising my wrist to my mouth. Flynn stood up and put his hand on my chest. "What are you doing?"
I bit into my wrist, the metallic taste of it flooding my mouth. "I'm saving her life."
Sydney pulled on Flynn's arm. "Her blood can heal her."
"It could also kill her! What if she dies and turns?" Flynn reasoned.
I crouched in front of Ally, averting my eyes from her wound. "Do you want me to save her or not?"
Marina sat next to me. "Do it. I can't lose her."
I pressed my wrist to Ally's mouth, hoping she would open her mouth and take my blood. "C'mon," I muttered, pressing my wrist tighter, "she needs to drink it."
"She's not drinking it! Make her drink it," Sydney sat next to me and lifted Ally's head closer.
I turned my gaze over to Mari. I'm sure she understood what was to happen next. I pulled my arm away and Sydney grabbed it, looking at me. "What are you doing!?"
"She's not taking my blood. Her heartbeat is barely there anymore. Do you want her alive no matter what?" I asked both of them.
Marina nodded. "There's no time, she can be like you."
Flynn grabbed Ally's limp wrist. "Turning her into a vampire?"
"She's dying and won't take my blood. Becoming a sire is no easy thing for me, but I'll try to help her as best as I can. I don't drink human blood. I don't drink from mermaids. Let me save her," I pleaded, exposing her neck, "For the sake of Marina."
Flynn got up and marched away. "Do what you will. She's dead either way."
Sydney sobbed at Flynn's words. "Flynn!" she screamed. Sydney glanced at me. "Will she be the same?"
Marina looked at me for a moment. I didn't say a word, but she turned and clutched Sydney's hands, turning Sydney's attention away from me. "She will. Eryn will make sure of it. Please let her do this. We can't lose Ally."
Sydney nodded.
I took a deep breath, bracing myself for what was to come. I was in over my head, sucking the blood of a mermaid? I could lose control and kill them all. I didn't have any silver on me. "Once I get a taste, I don't know what's going to happen to me. You need to take her down to the basement of the warehouse." I reached into my pocket and handed my keys to Marina, "lock me in here."
In a darker part of me, I felt like I was trying to turn her just to taste her. It took more words to convince myself that I wasn't than to convince myself I was.
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