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Warning: This one is a lot more detailed and violent than the last. Please proceed with caution. Other than that, enjoy the conclusion of "Sunny Days, a fiction"!
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I could feel the darkness in the very core of my soul when I woke up. In all the time I had been a vampire, I could never remember feeling cold. Or hot, for that matter. As it was, I didn't feel much of anything. But that night I woke up and felt like I had been in a freezer all night. With a grunt I lifted the casket lid. Princess and her goon were already up and moving around. I felt silly, like I had overslept the morning after a slumber party. Two men who looked like serial killer body guards entered the room and gave me a look like I should vanish for a bit. So of course, I did. I wandered out and toward the windows. The view was lost on me because I didn't have appreciation for much of anything anymore. Had I been alive on the other hand, I'm sure I would have been spell bound. The skyline spread out from the window like a black carpet with a thousand lights of so many different colors. Greens, red and yellows twinkled on the street, orange white and red zoomed by at seemingly impossible speeds. I sighed and leaned my head against the glass. How many of these people had seen the sun sink slowly behind the world and hadn't stopped to look at it? Funny, I don't remember seeing a sunset so distinctly since I had died. Suddenly a thought occurred to me. Why had I slept so late, and why wasn't I dying of Thirst? I heard a shuffling noise and turned to see a woman coming toward me that I had not seen the previous night.
"Hello," she purred, her throaty voice like something out of a man's wettest dream. She extended a very white and fine hand. "I'm Bella." I took her hand and kissed the knuckle softly.
"Indeed you are bella," I said, smiling at her. Her hair was a streaky blond, her eyes a faintly glowing green. She was an elder, but just barely. She wore a gold colored dress and slippers that seemed to be woven with thread made of real gold. It probably was. Her name was Italian for beautiful woman. Her appearance was traffic-stopping, there was no doubt. But I sensed something cold and resigned within her. I wasn't strong or old enough to read her mind, and I bet she was thankful for that. I could feel her probing around in my skull, like a soft and silk yet firm and thick worm sliding around and in and out of my brain. I smiled faintly, knowing that she wouldn't find anything. I had learned early on how to blank my mind, so that my own desires and fears could not be used against me. Out of the corner of my eye, Princess and her followers began to walk to the big stereotypical desk. Bella indicated that I should head that way as well, and she followed me.
Princess made herself comfortable as every undead in the room gathered around her desk like hopeful children at Christmas time. She leafed through a few papers and began inquiring her soldiers on her land, stocks and other business deals. I quickly tuned her out and went back to staring out the window. I tried to remember what a skyline had looked like with the sun shining down on it. The windows catching the rays and throwing them off, that I could remember. If I thought really hard, I could remember all of the electrical lights dimming in the presence of the sunlight as if bowing to a God. A smile graced the corners of my lips. The sun as a God. A God that I had betrayed by being embraced into this life. A God that could very easily kill me, if I let it. My smile edged into a frown. A sunrise and a sunny day... I felt like an addict. Driven by the one thing that could so easily, quickly and mercilessly destroy me. The sun shining through the trees at the ranch I had spent my childhood summers at. The grass turning brown and the dirt becoming heavy clay as the sun baked it... suddenly I didn't feel so bad. The sun was a great bringer, and a destroyer, and I wasn't the only one. A violent shake brought me back to the night sky and Princess' chamber.
"Come before me," she stated, obviously aggravated that I hadn't heard her the first time. The creep behind me shoved me forward to her chair. I cringed, hating to be bullied so. Less than three feet from her chair I was forced to my knees. I hissed at the jerk and he got ready to hit me, but Princess stopped him with an elaborate wave of her hand. She moved the chair on it's rollers so that she was directly in front of me. With a soft and almost sexual smile she stroked my cheek. "I know what you've done," she whispered. "You can't be forgiven unless you swear yourself to me." She pulled away and ran a hand through my hair. "I don't want to have to kill you," she purred. My stomach started to curl. Her delicate fingers grabbed my chin and held me in a death grip. "I will have your allegiance, or I will have your life." She smiled beatifically at me and motioned me away. Mr. Creep hauled me to my feet and lead me off.
"You will go with some of our younger childer and feed. You will be brought back here after wards, and you will have an answer." I looked at him like he was nuts and started to giggle a little. He growled deeply and pushed me into the elevator. A button was already selected, and down I went. Back into the lobby from the previous night. A group of what appeared to be college students were milling about in the entrance. Getting closer I could smell the death on them. They were all about my age, death-wise. A big burly jock moved to the head of the group and turned to yell at me.
"Hey, newbie, get over here! We're leaving!" Fine, the leader I guess. The crowd moved out into the night, laughing and conversing as if they would get up tomorrow morning and everything would be alright. I knew better, and it saddened me. After a brief walk we stopped at a club that was throbbing with life. A quick sniff of the air told me that except for this posse, everyone was a live, normal human being. The leader and three girls with him cleared the entrance. My sadness grew deeper... we were going to feed here, and nobody inside would be any the wiser. My stomach twisted upon the curl put their earlier. Like cattle to the slaughter. The group split up and set themselves at strategic places, most of them on the dance floor. The air was thick and vibrating with the waves of trance and techno music. I would have stopped to enjoy it myself if I could have. But all of my senses were keen on the undead in the room. As they began to weave their invisible charms of deception and illusion, my vision began to swim. The room began to spin around me as the shadows grew thicker, and the voices were steeped with need. Horny, hungry, alone... they all seemed to blend and whirl together in the twirling lights like something drug-induced. I covered my face with my hands. It was too much. Far too much. I uncovered them but the swirling had only gotten worse. In the corner, a woman was being devoured from her wrist, throat and abdomen. But in a blink, all I saw was a shadow. At the bar, a man was sobbing as his throat was mutilated. A blink, and the stools were empty. With my vampire senses I saw bleeding, I heard screaming and could smell the blood flow. But I knew the other patrons were oblivious to it all. Everyone just kept having a good old time as bodies were unceremoniously getting thrown out the back door. These were my people. This is how the elite of my kind chose to spend their nights, lying to humans, completely confusing them and then tearing them apart. My heart was heavy in my chest, and my jaw ached like mad from clenching. I couldn't take it anymore. I ran out the front door and into the street. I ran into an alley half a block away and collapsed on the ground. If I could cry, if I could weep oceans of tears I would. But that right had been stolen from me, as had my life. I was supposed to be one of those cattle. At one time, I was. And now I was on the winning side, watching the slaughter. What was I supposed to feel? What was normal vampire emotion in this situation, and why, oh why didn't I feel it? I looked through the space between the buildings and up into heaven. This must be my curse of the sun. I missed my life and knew that I could never get it back. This was my punishment for escaping death and becoming this... this... thing. This abomination of the Gods. I covered my face with my hands again, resting them on my bent knees. I felt the weight of my crime on my shoulders so distinctly then that I begged for release. A voice broke my thoughts.
"Life's hard, ain't it?" A homeless man pushed a cart with nearly locked wheels in front of him, heaped with junk. His clothes were tattered and trashed. His face wore a sad look and a beard, both of them having been there for many years. I jumped to my feet and was instantly upon him.
"Yeah, it is." And I bit. I tore his throat viciously. I took all of my frustration out on that poor man and drank him dry. My head cleared quite a bit after a few moments. I looked back at the club and saw the vampires leaving. I jogged over to them, forcing a smile.
"Hey, why did you leave? You missed an excellent party!" They all laughed and I shrugged, pushing harder for that smile to remain.
"I decided that it just wasn't my scene. Too crowded." They all gave me strange looks but most of them shrugged it off.
"Whatever. Let's get back." I nodded and followed, casting my eyes back over my shoulder toward the alley. At least one of us gets some peace tonight old man, consider yourself fortunate.
The desk was covered with activity and Princess gathered with what had to be her legal and real estate staff. They all looked like they made millions everyday from the blood, sweat and tears of the other man. And from their smiles, they loved it. I shuddered and walked back to the window, again casting my eyes over the streets and buildings. So many lives nestled in those small spaces, and so many of them were happy. Content in what they knew to be life, even if they didn't know much. I leaned my arm on the glass and let out a deep breath, even though I didn't take one. I felt a soft hand on my shoulder. I turned to see Bella's confused face.
"I hate it," I whispered. I hoped she knew what I was talking about, because I didn't want to elaborate. Thankfully she nodded.
"I do too. I want so much to end this," she indicated the room behind us with a slight hand motion. I smiled faintly at her, a genuine smile. A ridiculous answer came to me then, but I knew it was the right answer. How to end my curse, and how to end this silliness.
"So, let's end it." I turned to Bella and winked. Her face went from calm to aghast, and then she smiled.
"You are foolish, but..." she glanced around the room. "You may be right."
"I am right," I said, walking toward the group gathering at the desk again. "And I will show you." I swallowed hard, tasting the last remnants of blood on my tongue. It steeled my resolve. Bella and Creepy moved to stand behind me as I moved to stand in the middle of the far side of the desk. "I have your answer," I toned solemnly. The whispers and mutters went silent as Princess turned to regard me with a malevolent smile.
"Well then, I hope you have chosen wisely. It would be such a shame to waste such a beautiful face." I fought the feeling in my stomach and tensed.
"I want to be free." I turned to Creepy, straightening my hand into a flat palm, finger all together and slammed it with all my might into the space under his ribcage. Princess' eyes grew dark, and I felt Bella move from behind me to intercept another of the goons. Creepy's eyes grew dark as I drove my hand up into his body, tearing everything through. I felt his heart pass my knife-like fingernails and split. Blood began to flow in torrents down my arm. As soon as I heard his belated death rattle, I moved on. It seemed all but a few of Princess' people had fled, afraid to get caught in the crossfire. One common misconception about my people is that they are brave. Quite the opposite is true. Self-preservation is paramount when you are no longer alive. I had stopped caring. I just wanted out. Bella was tearing through cronies like she had been lying in wait for half of forever to kill them. I could almost believe she had been. I worked my way toward her. I killed, and I killed, and I killed some more. My quest for freedom was unending. I fought, I clawed, I tore and I bit. Everything on and about me got soaked in blood. I felt exhilarated as I threw the body of Princess' beloved consort to the side, missing half his spine which I tossed after him. I was driven by hatred, and revenge. I wanted out. I wanted out so badly that I was willing to do anything. I was doing anything and everything. Puddles of blood, screams in pain. I missed it all. All I caught was the sound of my prison falling down around me, leaving me whole and intact. After what seemed like months, the screaming stopped. Bella and I smiled at each other as we advanced on the only one left, Princess. Bella moved up behind her and I came from the front. Princess was so astounded that all of her other safeguards had fallen that it didn't take anything to catch her. She came to terms with what had happened quickly however, and turned on Bella. Bella's scream of agony tore at me like a dull sword blade before falling silent. She collapsed on herself, her face peaceful. Princess tossed the heart she had so deftly removed onto her desk and wheeled on me. In a flash I was on her, holding her with a strength I had never known. Not even when I killed Master. She twisted and I held.
"You like killing your superiors, don't you?" She gasped as I clamped a hand on her neck, bringing it close to my face.
"I kill for my freedom." She twisted violently, causing her own arm to break. She sucked in a breath and glared at me. I met her eyes and stared at her with a dead calm. Her eyes flicked left to right, watching mine. "By killing you, by drinking your blood, I will be free of the sun's curse." She gave me a horrible look, confusion, fear and contempt all thrown in together that did not make a tasty mix. "Free me," I whispered. I yanked hard, pulling her throat to my face, and drank. I drank her in long hard pulls, inciting moans and whimpers from her. She was dying fast. She tried to beg, but it only came out at breathy half-syllables. A very long seeming span of time passed before I dropped what was left of her on the ground. I turned to survey the scene. Bodies lay in their own blood everywhere. Part of bodies lay on every surface. Bella's face looked blissfully peaceful, and I smiled. I fell heavily to my knees. One vampire's freedom had cost so much. Was everyone else free now too? Had all of those creatures that had met their end here gone somewhere nice? I didn't know. All I knew was that I was too exhausted to do anything but watch the new colors in the sky broaden and widen. Purples, oranges and pinks I hadn't seen in what felt like eternity danced smoothly across the canvas of creation. For the second time that night, I knew that if I could have cried, I would have. A soft glow grew from the west, and I turned to face it. I felt Princess' chair behind me and used what little energy I had left to pull myself up with it. The sun, the God that I had fought so hard to free myself from, was quickly approaching. I stood in awe of the majesty that I had missed for so long. I licked my lips and ignored the tingly burn dancing across my skin. A minute later, it went deeper. Pain tore through my brain like screaming razor blades, but I ignored it. I simply held onto Princess' chair, braced against the desk, and watched. I had seen beauty in so many forms in my life, but there had been nothing compared to this. The burning grew more incessant, and I fell back down. I placed my hand on the glass hoping it would be cool but instead found it to be burning as well. The sun God was taking vengeance on us all. All around me torn vampire bodies became faintly smoking ash. I knew what was happening, and could no longer do anything to stop it. At long last, the sun showed me His face. I smiled faintly, the last bit of earthly energy leaving my body. "Hi," I whispered before falling backward. The burning accelerated, and I knew that in just a few moments, I would be ash.
"I bet today is going to be a beautiful sunny day," I thought. And then, there was only silence.
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