May 2008

Chapter 218Sliver of Darkness

Khuna and Valerie greeted me with a smile when they saw the warm blush on my cheek. I knew they hadn't been watching, but their smiles told me they did feel something had happened. Of course, they didn't need to ask, just smile.

Now I had a clear head, but was just lacking a plan.

"I have plan." Valerie's calm voice cut through my thoughts.

I blinked. "You do?"

Valerie looked at me with a fake look of disappointment in her eyes. "What, you think I can't think up any plans?"

I laughed. "I'm sorry, go ahead."

Khuna quietly giggled while Valerie continued. "Well... To be honest, I've thought about doing something about them a lot of times, when Kryss was still alive. But one of the major problem is that they are all men and, especially Kryss, physically stronger than us. So we chose to hide and flee rather than confront them."

She took a deep breath. "Of course, that didn't stop me from thinking up various possibilities. And one of them might actually be very useful for us now, especially considering you're much stronger than them individually now. At least, I think Kryss was the strongest."

I nodded, but then shook my head. "That might not be true. Kryss was their mental superior as well. He had this... presence which made people follow him from the little I've seen. I'm actually expecting there to be some Vampires in his group that are physically stronger, just not as smart."

Valerie stopped for a moment and thought. "You're right, we have to take that possibility into account. It won't change my plan though."

"So tell us already."

Valerie nodded. "Well... The thing is, they are probably only expecting one of us. It used to be Khuna, but now, Amy, it's you that they want. And your straight will only make it easier for us to execute my idea. You were captured around the old train station, right?"

I nodded.

"That's where they'll be, or close to there. Amy, the idea is that you'll fight them, seriously. Someo f them need to be hurt as they need to get real angry. But, and this is important, they will probably have a trap for you if they're really waiting for you. So try and get them outside on your terms. Don't go anywhere inside."

"Go on, I don't know anything yet."

Valerie took a deep breath. "Well... Khuna and I know of one of the safe houses that is a little different from the rest. It's actually quite dangerous there since it was abandoned, mostly dry wood and a stone roof, it could easily go up in flames. It's one of the reasons why we don't use it anymore. If Khuna and I took some gasoline and lighters, we could make it an inferno at a moment's notice."

I swallowed. "Isn't that cruel?"

She sighed. "Well... that's the problem really. The only two ways we know how to kill someone is sun and fire. And the sun burns slower than fire itself. So, although they would have a lot of pain, which they richly deserve, by the way, it would last the shortest and they would be gone forever."

I hesitated. "I'm not sure I would be able to get through with that... I've never really killed on purpose."

Khuna looked at me as if she wanted to say something, but didn't. She looked quietly at Valerie, who nodded at her. "Amy, please help us with this. Part of me wants the whole history with Kryss erased, so I can't say this isn't part revenge. But most importantly, we can't let murderers walk the streets freely. And, which makes it even worse, it's not just one of them needing blood. It's a group. Together they could tear apart schools if they got crazy enough."

I hung my head. "You're right..."

And she was... But was I strong enough to go through with this whole plan? First it involved me picking a fight with them on purpose. The last time I was fueled by anger, wanting to solve all of these problems. But I might just have made them worse, much worse. After they saw me save that girl, their retaliation had be more horrible than anything I'd ever seen. But strangely enough I wasn't disgusted.

That scared me most of all.

It wasn't that I liked it, but I could somehow put myself in their position and imagine why they'd done it, or how. My mind would imagine the slashes, the tears, the grabs. Like a movie playing in my head. Part of me wanted to think it wasn't me, but the blood that made these images in my head. Together with the images of me tearing each of them limb from limb.

But I knew it wasn't.

The blood hadn't just made the good parts in me stronger. My dark parts, my grim fantasies, my horrible dreams. They had always been part of me. Enjoying to see others hurt, the glee of their blood flowing freely. It was part of all of us, just not on the surface.

I almost wished I wasn't as aware of it sometimes. But I guess with the awareness I had of my light, the darkness came as well.

The plan was good...

I hoped I didn't make it too good.