Forbidden Fangs

Chapter 6

She'd been dreaming she was back in the forest, crouched at Erik's side, sneaking toward the bright light. They'd been frozen in that moment for what felt like forever, when something harsh and familiar lanced through Kylie's mind.

Come to me.

She awakened with a start and sat up straight, eyes bulging in disbelief. A tall man stood in the doorway to the kitchen… and yet, he did not seem like any man she'd ever seen. He wore a jet black suit made of some rubbery material that was somehow silent when he moved. His skin was pale, and his hair and eyes matched his clothing. He had high cheekbones and a strong, shaven chin. He was smiling.

Come to me.

Somehow Kylie knew it was this man's voice; she had heard it before, in the forest clearing. He had been there. Had he killed Erik? There was a brown smudge on the bottom of his chin that looked like it might be dried blood.

Come to me. The thought pushed through her subconscious again.

“No,” Kylie breathed, gripping her blanket tightly and curling her knees toward her chest. She hugged herself and shook her head. She wanted to fill her lungs and scream for help, but the terror that gripped her barely allowed her to draw breath. “No,” she whispered again, fighting to make more noise.

“How is this possible?” The tall man demanded in a thick, flowing accent, the likes of which Kylie had never heard. “Who are you? What are you?” He took a slow step toward her, and then another. “No matter.” He said. A shadowy frown creased his face. “For Wythiria.” He stepped toward her again. Kylie shrank back against the headboard, her legs and lungs frozen in terror, refusing to respond.

The tearing sound of shattered wood burst through the apartment from the entryway. Light spilled in from the hall as the door banged loosely on its hinges. Furious footsteps crossed the kitchen, and then a man appeared in the doorway behind the intruder.

“Leave her be, otherworlder!” The newcomer growled, and leaped on the black-clad man's back. His arms laced around the intruder's neck, torquing his head up and back, and the otherworlder stumbled back into the kitchen. A tremendous crash echoed through the unit, and Kylie could only assume the duo had careened into the dish-strewn oven. Finally her legs responded to her commands. She climbed out of bed, tugging down on the hem of her T-shirt so it covered her slender black panties, and scooted to the doorway.

Light from the hallway filled the kitchen. The table had been knocked over, and the men crouched on either side of it, recovering from their fall. The second man was dressed in a pair of coveralls that looked freshly pressed, and unzipped the front of his uniform as he straightened. He looked like a maintenance man, at least until he pulled a big ugly gun out of his pocket.

Shllling! The not-a-maintenance man pressed a button on his weapon and a blade extended from beneath the barrel like some kind of switch-bayonet. Kylie had only seen such a weapon in video games before. The whole thing was made of a dark metal that gleamed dully in the pool of yellow light.

“Stay back,” the man with the gunblade hissed at Kylie. “This creature would as soon kill you as look at you.” He levelled his weapon at the first intruder. “Get the f**k out of here, vampire, or I'll blow your head off.”

The vampire - vampire?! - raised his hands defensively and backed toward the hall, but then his movements became a blur. He kicked one of the fallen wooden chairs up into his hands and swung it in a short upward arc, almost knocking the gunblade out of the smaller man's hand. The guy in the coveralls seemed to anticipate the attack though, recoiling to avoid the blow and lashing out with a strike of his own. The tip of his bayonet grazed the vampire's shoulder, leaving a gash in that strange rubbery suit that opened the pale flesh beneath. A few drops of dark, blackish blood spilled onto the tile floor. The otherworlder hissed and clapped a hand over the wound, backing away from the razor-edged weapon.

“You cannot stop what is coming, slayer.” The vampire said in his strangely smooth accent. “Your world will be forfeit for the insolence of your kind.”

“Not if I kill you first,” the man in the coveralls growled. His eyes kept flicking between his enemy and his weapon, as though he were weighing the potential ramifications of firing a gun in a small residential building.

“Who are you?” Kylie gasped at both of them at once, wishing she could find the air to scream for help. Shock consumed her mind. She was still shaken from witnessing Erik's death, and confused by the circumstances surrounding it. Now this… she'd been worried she was becoming paranoid about aliens. And the man in the coveralls had called the tall intruder otherworlder. But he had also called him a vampire. Aliens. Vampires. Vampire aliens? Kylie's mind whirled and she sat down suddenly on the cool floor, too dizzy to stand. Surprisingly, both of the men seemed to forget their fight, turning toward her in concern.

“I am Luchaver,” the tall pale man said through his thick accent. His tone became soft. “I feel I came to this world to meet you, Kylie.”

“Don't listen to him!” Coveralls called, taking another swipe with his gunblade. The vampire flowed effortlessly backwards, out of range. “His mind will cast a spell on you.”

“He's already tried…” Kylie breathed. That's what the push inside her mind had felt like. An unexplained invasion, almost certainly supernatural. More than anything she'd seen or heard, that feeling made Kylie believe.

“Kylie?” A familiar voice called from the hallway. It was her neighbor, Joe. He lived in the next unit with his wife. He must have heard the racket and come to investigate. “Kylie, do I need to call the police? Your door is off its hinges.”

The vampire Luchaver looked over his shoulder at the open doorway, and then back at Kylie and the slayer. He hissed again, and then looked upwards and vanished in the blink of an eye.

The man in the maintenance uniform rushed to her side, folding the bayonet back within his gunblade and tucking the fearsome weapon inside his coveralls. He grasped Kylie's forearms gently and pulled her to her feet.

“My name is Logan Alluvian,” he whispered quickly, “and I'm here to help you. But for now, I need you to trust me and follow my lead.”

Footsteps echoed through the doorway as Joe approached down the hall.