visions of blood and bones

As long as Alia could remember, the first word that truly stuck with her was a warning by her parents. “Never go over to section 1. Stay away from the Bishops." Her parents had warned with a grave expression as a wild-eyed Alia had nodded obediently. Seven-year-old Alia had wanted to ask “why” but hadn’t gotten any answers till she turned twelve and her mother had sat her down along with her twin brother, Alex on a cold January morning and explained the blood feud between their family and the Bishops. The only takeaway Alia had gotten from that conversation then was that it was dangerous to leave their section. As she grew older though, she understood more. Alia could still remember little details from that morning, like how the raindrops sounded on the roof as her mother narrated their history and how Alex had looked so small curled up next to their mom because he didn’t want to be alone. Now, seven years later, Alia couldn’t believe she was going against all that as she rounded on the bend that led to section 8 and the Bishop’s sprawling mansion. She cursed Alex for making her do this. Alia was just starting to feel at home at her best friend Luke’s party when she’d gotten a message telling her that her brother had left with the other guys for section one ON A STUPID DARE! Luke had wanted to let their parents know immediately but Alia had pleaded with him to give her a chance to fish out her idiotic sibling. She shuddered thinking of her parents learning about this. This was the one rule that her father never played with. The blood feud had started with the first patriarchs, Nigel Bishop and William Emerson, Alia’s great-grandfather and one of the first vampires. Back when the plague that decimated most of the human race and transformed the survivors into blood-draining creatures with inhuman abilities existed. The plague left the survivors with a mild tolerance for the sun, extraordinary speed and strength and a thirst for blood that was only curbed by animals in the absence of humans, but it also made them vulnerable to silver bark, which was the only substance that was lethal to them. The patriarchs were one of the first to survive the plague and helped guide the other survivors, creating a nation that thrived. All was well until the betrayal. The two patriarchs, who were as close as brothers, were suddenly divided. An enmity that ended with Nigel Bishop dead at the hands of William Emerson, as history told it. A killing that led to the division of a once great nation into three sections, with section one led by the Bishops and their supporters who had since sworn vengeance on every generation of William Emerson and section two led by the Emerson and their allies. The third section consisted of people who wanted peace, who didn’t want to pick a side in the killings and preferred to live off on their own. That is, until the Bishops invaded them and claimed their section as their own. Proof that the Bishops were nothing but tyrants. Alia had thought ruefully. Both sides have since suffered massive losses as a result of the feud, which was why their father kept on hammering the warning in their heads. But apparently enough hammering hadn’t been done on Alex, who should have known better than to go looking for trouble. Alia gritted her teeth as she stood surveying the opulent structure belonging to the Bishops. It was a known fact that the succeeding generation of the Bishops had prospered immensely since the betrayal of manufacturing silver bark-tipped weapons which they used to fortify their people and made them a force to be reckoned with, as evidenced by the towering spires ringed around the section that she picked her way carefully past. Now standing before the building, she couldn’t help but marvel at the imposing edifice with its marble columns and porticoes. The whole building was illuminated that it shone like a beacon from afar. Alia spied a water fountain situated at the center. Dusk had fallen and night was fast approaching. The very air had the metallic feeling that indicated a storm was coming. Alia edged closer, scanning her surroundings for guards. She spotted two people chatting obliviously next to the fountain. Alia was fairly confident she could take them both and in one fluid movement scaled the fence and hid behind a row of bushes closer to the fountain. Their conversation filtered over to her as she crouched lower to avoid being spotted. She crept closer as she heard them say “I’m starving”. One of them said “When was your last feeding?” The other one asked. “Last week”. “Hold on. When Pete and Marcus take over. We can go hunting”. The first one promised. No sooner had they finished their conversation when Alia struck, snapping the first one’s neck before he even knew what was happening. The second one drew his blade and pounced. Adrenaline surged through her, bringing out her fangs as she sidestepped smoothly, dancing out of reach of the lethal blade. He was fast, but she was faster. Alia feinted to the left, and he took the bait. She kicked the weapon so hard from his hands it went flying through the bush. She lunged to tackle him, and they rolled over the ground. He elbowed Alia out of the way and was on top of her in an instant, smacking her head so hard on the ground she saw stars. Thunder rumbled overhead, and the first droplets came through increasing in tempo. Dazed, she could sense him moving towards his sword. She needed to end this quickly before the storm met her. She forced herself upwards, blinking to clear her vision. He was almost to his sword, bending down to pick up his weapon when she moved. The first skill her father had taught them had been how to move with the wind so quietly and quickly that opponent wouldn’t notice until it was too late. He had made them practice on animals and even rodents until they perfected it. Before the guard could turn, she was upon him with a well-placed kick that sent him tumbling a good feet away. She snatched the weapon away with the same motion and, before he could rise, brought it down in one fluid arc, impaling him with it. She was drenched now as she moved quickly towards the entrance, eyes scanning for her brother. Dimly, she noticed the exotic paintings hanging from the wall and the leather sofas that circled the sitting room. She followed the sitting room opening into a hallway, pausing to listen and check doors after door, but Alex was in none of them. She came upon a black steel door and was halfway through opening it when she sensed a presence and a force knocked her to the ground pinning her and a blade was to her throat before she could even attempt anything. “Move an inch and I will gut you from ear to ear.” Came a husky voice and Alia followed the voice to its owner, looking up to see a pale face glaring at her with hair so dark it could only be described as inky-black. He had thick eyebrows and an aquiline nose with a chiseled jaw that she’d only seen in picture books depicting images of Greek gods. She was mortified to find out that she found him attractive even in her current situation. “Now I’m going to ask you this only once.” He spoke. “Who are you?” “My name is Alia Emerson.” She forced out. “I’m looking for my brother, Alex Emerson.” Shock briefly registered his features, but before he could speak, a voice interrupted them. “Raemian!”. The voice barked heading towards them. She saw his face harden, and he was off her in an instant, pulling her up in the same motion. “Stay quiet”. He whispered softly before pushing her into the nearest room and closed the door just as the figure rounded the corner. “Will you explain to me why two of my guards are lying dead outside?” He calmly uttered and Alia sucked in a breath, recognizing the voice that belonged to the current patriarch of Section One, Lance Bishop. She felt the tension in the air as she heard Raemian say in the same measured tone. “We have a break-in. I was sweeping the house for intruders when you came in”. Alia looked around the room, spotting a solitary window. She didn’t know why Raemian did what he did, but she wasn’t about to wait for the other shoe to drop. She slid it open softly just as she heard Lance say, “Secure the perimeter, don’t let anyone out of this building." A couple of guards ran past as she gauged the drop and, when she was sure they were out of sight, jumped landing in a crouch and took off in a run heading for the fence. It was obvious Alex wasn’t there and as soon as she found him, she was going to strangle her brother. She heard a couple of shouts behind her, but she didn’t look back. She leaped, pulling herself up and over the fence in the same motion. She didn’t stop running till she was safely back in Sector 2.