Chapter 18
1207 Words
I opened the door and was instantly overwhelmed by the space and amount of brightness that greeted me. A massive building big enough to house a basketball gym. A huge domed roof rose 30 meters from the ground, slightly tinted glass ceiling reflecting the clear blue sky overhead. From the sun's location, I could tell it's somewhere past noon. The grey walls surrounding the circular space are frigid and dark, coated in old smoke and thickened dust. Brittle aluminum pipes snaked from the ground up to the air vents. An impressionist pattern of red and black paint splattered over one corner of the wall like a bloody mural, sprayed over by a graffiti of the words "Halfblood Haven." Rusty old vehicle parts and machines stacked on the opposite corner, probably remains of what this warehouse used to be.
There were a lot of people inside, probably no more than a hundred. Some are walking, others are facing mechanical stuff, cartwheeling or fixing guns. Some threw me uninterested glances, others didn't pay attention at all. But I could hear all their chatter. In my head, it surged inside my brain like pests, amplified on the inside. My forehead ached, unable to control the voices convulsing on my neurons. I tried to stop them but the more I resist, they more they get worse.
"Oh hi, you're awake!" A tap on my shoulder brought me silence. The anime-haired dude peeked out from a black car beside me which I recognized to be Jessy's convertible. He gave me one quick wink and got out of the car. He gave me a high five as if we've known each other for years. "Welcome to the club, Peter!" He grinned. I calmed myself down, finally free of the voices in my head. "Surely, you remember my name. Don't you?"
"I. . ." I actually don't. I think it was something related to color. Was it white? Red? Grey? Uh, purple? "Uh, Grey?" I guessed.
His face dropped. "Oh, you don't. It's Blue. Don't worry, that happens all the time. If I don't have the most silly name people tend to forget."
I didn't know if I'm supposed to feel bad for it but I did. "Uh, what is this place?"
"Oh, it's more of like a hideout for halfbloods like us," he said, donning back his cheerful face. He really reminds me of an anime character. This dude could've been a cosplayer. "It's our safe spot. No Valerious has ever found this place. This is a fortress."
"Valerious?" I asked.
"The vampires who are after us. That's what they're called. It's their coven. There are a lot of them spread out across the globe but the ones in Cavaldon is a clan called the Valerious. They've been hunting people like us for thousands of years." He told me as if the subject is something every halfblood should know and I'm stupid because I don't.
"I don't understand. If halfbloods are half-vampires. Why would they want to kill them?"
"Because there is a prophecy stated a hundred years ago that the end of vampires is in the hands of a halfblood."
Blue and I both turned around and saw the caramel-haired girl from last night. Her eyes were crackling as if there's electricity in them. Lips painted in sweet pink, hair tied-up in a ponytail and draped in a red cape, she looked like Little Red Riding Hood. That is without the hood on.
"Oh Elle, hi!" Blue approached her and gave her a cheery high five which the girl ignored and faced me instead. "Peter, right? I'm Electra, it's nice to meet you."
I stared at her palm infront of me and noticed the tiny sparks that shoots out of it. I wonder if could get electricuted if I ever touch her. This girl is a living electricity. The vision of her last night toasting vampires to death sent a tiny wave of shock near my neck. I could really use some of her powers during electric power interruptions, which happens quite often in the place where I live. Electra seems to read my thoughts. She grinned.
"Don't worry. It won't hurt."
I grabbed her palm and felt a mild electric shock, making me back away in panic. Electra walked away chuckling.
"Don't mind her. She's kinda crazy sometimes but that one's nice." Blue smiled at me as I keep shaking my hand, as if it'll calm my electricuted nerves down. "Come on, I'll show you around."
"So everyone here have some kind of powers?" Blue led the way for me, passing through groups of halfbloods having their own errands.
"Oh yeah, that's a halfblood thing. You see Electra has electricity powers. I have ice. Serio over there can become invisible and Leila there can penetrate through walls." He pointed at a small, dark-skinned teen disappearing from one corner and appearing on the other and a chubby brunnette girl hopping on the ground and sinking herself on the cement. "We get our powers from our dominant vampire blood, usually from our parents or ancestors. Vampires usually have unique special abilities that enables them to do a lot of things. Besides the usual regeneration and super senses, each one has a specified ability that makes one extra powerful. That's why halfbloods have them too. The only thing that differs us from real vampires beside our human blood is that we don't subsist on blood. Eating regular human food when you're a vampire is a death sentence but when you're a halfblood you can do both."
I stopped following him, stunned. "What do you mean can do both?"
"We can both eat human food or drink human blood. You're diet, you're choice." He laughed.
I didn't found this funny. Blue seemed to notice. He turned back and grabbed me by the hem of my shirt. "Don't worry. No halfblood here has tried to subsist on blood so chill out."
We continued walking until we reach an indoor greenhouse. Rows and rows of plants lined the greenhouse. Pots with all sorts of herbs, trays and seedlings filled with flowers I have never seen in my entire life. Delicate round white petals the size of a dime. Leaves mint green in color and smells of lavender perfume.
"That's Wilflower, helps in regeneration. Allows us to develop more blood within seconds," Blue explained.
"Oh, so that's what Jessy gave me earlier." I plucked one flower and played it with my fingertips. "It smells like s**t but I did feel better."
"Jessy? Who's Jessy?"
"Uh, the girl you're with the whole time? The owner of the black convertible?"
By the end of my sentence, three people entered the greenhouse from the other door opposite of us.
"There! That's Jessy, right?"
I point at one of the newcomers. Jessy was wearing a black tank top, black ripped jeans and a pair of black boots. Standing beside her is the dude I saw one time at her house-the dark haired dude. He was the same guy from last night-Jared, if I remember it right. The third guy is quite older, wearing lab googles and a white lab gown.
"Jessy?" Blue laughed. "That's no Jessy. That's Hannah."
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To be continued
- Writer
