Prologue

The metallic screech of iron upon iron resounded off the dull cream walls, making the petite dark-haired beauty jump. Her eyes glistened with fresh tears as she watched the imposing green door scream closed, sealing out the light and leaving her in total darkness. She could hear the guard sniggering as she scraped the key in the lock and moved on to her next cell.
Why did Momma bring me here?

She wondered to herself, sinking to the cold stone floor and plaiting her fingers in her lap. She mulled over all the mischief she had gotten up to in the past few days, but nothing was bad enough to constitute being set to prison. She only wished she had pleaded with her Momma more, said how sorry she was for being bad.
They had had to sedate the girl to get her to release her tight grip on her mother's neck, but she still managed to kick and bite anyone that came near her for a good half hour.
"I won't talk to Bertie anymore!" The girl had cried, burying her face in her mother's neck. "I won't, I promise!"
With a look of disgust etched on her face, her mother wrenched the sobbing girl off of her and handed her over to the doctor. Without even so much as a backward glance, her mother spun on her heel and marched away from the asylum, inwardly glad that she'd finally gotten rid of the child that caused so many ill rumours to plague her family.
And so here she was, deemed mentally insane and condemned to live out a life of hazy, drug-induced calm.

Chapter I

Electricty hummed in the air as the doctors readied the shock therapy machine. Alice had gone through this many times before, but she still couldn't help but struggle just a little as she was forced into the leather stretcher and bound by her wrists and ankles in coarse restraints.
A plastic paddle was pushed into her mouth, and she bit down on it instinctively, just as she had been doing for fifteen years.
A metal arch was lowered over her head, pressing hard on each temple. She clenched her fists as she heard the doctors fiddling with the dials.
"Ready," said Doctor Bates, nodding at the other doctor.
Alice clamped her eyes shut as a surge of electricity ravaged her body, making every fibre of her being scream out in agony. She convulsed violently on the stretcher, and if it weren't for the restraints, she would have fallen off entirely.
A single tear forced its way out of her dark lashes and down her cheek, dropping onto the sweat-slicked leather beneath.
Finally the pain abated, and Alice let herself open one eye, observing the doctors.
"Again," said Doctor Bates, increasing the power on the dial.

***

Alice had eventually fallen unconscious, the pain of being electrocuted alive too much for her body to handle. When she finally came to she was in her cell, slivers of saliva still coating her chin and cheeks.
She shakily sat up in her bed, peering out the barred window behind her.
She wondered what it would be like to be free, to not have to undergo shock therapy... To not have Bertie always on her shoulder.
Oh how she wanted to see her Momma again, despite the fact the woman had never shown Alice an iota of affection in her entire life. In fact, she'd always felt somewhat shunned by her mother, who was so appalled by the visions that Bertie gave her.
She wondered what her sister, Cynthia, would look like now, how the years had aged her. She would sometimes imagine that she was

Cynthia, like she was a sane projection of herself... A mirror image. In Cynthia's mask, Alice would go to school, play hop-scotch with friends, and of course kiss boys.
But Bertie never showed her visions of Cynthia any more, or even of her mother. She supposed it was because she hadn't seen either of them in so long, but it was still something she bitterly missed.
There was a sharp knock at Alice's door, and she shuffled over to the peep-hole to see who it was.
It was one of the female guards, Miss Toohey.
"Doctor Bates would like to see you in his office," she grunted, unlocking Alice's cell and shackling her wrists.
She marched Alice along the desolate hallway, jabbing her in the ribs whenever her pace slowed.
Alice had hoped the other inmates wouldn't notice her presence, but as usual she was disappointed.
Witch, Jezebel, Satan-Worshipper.

Their hissed taunts echoed in the air around her, making her stomach lurch. They jeered at her as she passed, sticking their filthy hands out between the bars and grasping for her face. Some spat at her as she approached, but by now Bertie was pretty good at telling her when it was coming, and she always knew just when to duck. Of course, that only incensed them further.
They finally left the cell-block, and passed into an immaculate court-yard.
Alice could see the janitor working on the hedges, and she smiled at him as she walked by. But of course he didn't smile back; he didn't even lift his head. He never did, mind you. His gaze was always rooted to the ground, never daring to venture further up.
But Alice knew it wasn't because the janitor didn't like her; in fact, she was quite good friends with him. His name was Alexander, and he would spend most nights outside her cell, telling her stories of his life spent in Russia.
Doctor Bates' office backed onto the court-yard, so that he could always have a splendid view. They entered through the back entrance, as it was always open on fine days such as this one.
"Ah, Alice, how nice to see you've recovered."
Doctor Bates smiled warmly at Alice, but she merely grimaced in return. She could never feel amicable towards a man that put her through so much agony on a weekly-basis.
Doctor Bates indicated for Alice to sit, and she did so without protest. The guard dissolved into the corner, watching Alice with hawk-like eyes.
"So, have you had any visits from, 'Bertie' today, Alice?" Doctor Bates asked, his thin lips peeling away from his stained yellow teeth.
"Nothing out of the ordinary," Alice shrugged, keeping her gaze steadily locked with the plush mahogany carpet beneath her feet.
"Do elaborate."
"Bertie shows me plain things now, boring things." Alice bit her lip. "He shows me things like what we'll have for dinner, or how many doses of shock therapy I'll be getting."
"Has his appearances slowed at all?"
"No."
Doctor Bates frowned, and scribbled something on his notepad.
"I suppose that means we'll have to increase the electrical frequency," the Doctor mused, almost talking to himself.
Alice's heart sank.

Chapter II

The moon slid behind a silver slice of cloud, plunging the graveyard into inky shadow.
Alexander Petrovich picked at his fingernail idly, resting against a tombstone. Far away in the distance a lonely owl hooted, making him jump.
"Oh Alexander, you're far too flighty for your own good."
James stepped out from behind a willow tree, smirking. His abnormally white teeth glinted in the muted moon-light.
Alexander clambered to his feet, hastily smoothing out his overalls as James approached.
"What did you want to see me for?" Alexander asked, feeling uneasy about seeing his former coven member once more.
"I'm just worried about you is all," James drawled, his blonde hair falling over his eyes as he tilted his head in Alexander's direction. "Working with humans... It isn't natural."
"I like my job," Alexander protested, looking defiant.
"What, working as a janitor? Cleaning up the filth and waste of the humans you should be drinking from?"
"I like to be around humans, simple as that. As a janitor it's easier for me to disguise who I am... What

I am."
"Why should you have to disguise anything? Return to the coven, Alexander, we miss you."
"I'm not interested, James. I'm happy where I am."
James narrowed his eyes at his old friend, instantly suspicious.
"What's her name?"
"I don't know what you're talking about."
Alexander fought off a rush of panic.
"Don't be coy, Alexander. Tell me what her name is."
"Don't be absurd."
"Oh, don't you worry. I will

find out what's keeping you at that godforsaken asylum. Just you wait."
Alexander opened his mouth to protest, but James was already gone, the long grass swaying violently in his wake.

***

Alice woke up to the sound of hushed whispers. The air was still heavy with night, and she pulled herself out of bed, thoroughly confused.
"Who's there?" She whispered back, creeping towards the door.
"It's Alexander, of course."
Alice felt a surge of relief, and she hurried over to the door.
"I stayed up for hours waiting for you, where have you been?"
"Long story," Alexander said, his voice pained. "Here."
He opened the small latch in the middle of the door and passed Alice a soft bundle. She opened it greedily, her eyes sparkling with delight as she saw a slice of almond cake in her palm.
"Oh Alexander, this is my favourite!" She cried, breaking off a piece and putting it into her mouth.
"I know," he smiled, watching he savour every bite.
Alexander seemed to have a way of knowing all of Alice's favourites; he knew exactly which Mozart piece she loved the most, her preferred shade of purple. And yet she could never remember having telling him.
"Did you get into any trouble tonight?" Alice said, rather suddenly. Bertie was whispering in her ear, about something dangerous. Or some one

...
"No? What makes you ask that?"
"I just had a feeling," Alice said, nonchalant. But Bertie's whispering was becoming ever more insistent.
"Anyway, I better get going," Alexander said, climbing to his feet. "I can hear the guard coming."
"Bye Alexander," Alice smiled. "And thanks for the cake!"
She too climbed to her feet, and tip-toed over to the window. She hungrily ate another piece of cake, and peered out into the cold night.
For a moment she thought she saw a pale figure standing in the court-yard below, but just as she peered out to get a better look, the shape was gone.

Chapter III

Alifeless girl was sprawled at James' feet, her face contorted with the few remaining remnants of fear that had plagued her last moments. Usually James liked to seduce his victims, but he simply hadn't had the time. He'd plucked the girl off the street at random, his hunger so consuming he could barely afford to stalk her beforehand. If his carelessness had caused him to be seen, he didn't care. He wouldn't be in this godforsaken town much longer.
He took off through the forest, his movements a whispered blur across the dead leaves and twigs on the ground.
James hadn't planned on feeding that night, but as soon as he caught a whiff of that girl in the asylum, he knew he wouldn't be able to contain himself otherwise.
So that's

why Alexander was so eager to work as a janitor there; he was infatuated with this human girl. To be fair, James could see why. She was elegantly beautiful, but seemed oblivious to it. But it wasn't just her looks that made James fill with awe. It was her scent.
James came to a stop outside the asylum, and peered up at the girl's window. She was gone, of course; it was almost daylight now, and surely soon she would rouse. James would have to keep himself hidden while he waited, but as soon as night cloaked the earth, he'd begin his hunt.
James scampered up a nearby pine tree, nestling into the crook of the two highest branches and waited.

***

Alice was having difficulty staying calm. All around her, the room was filled with whispers. Malicious whispers. It wasn't Bertie that filled her mind with the hushed words; it was the other inmates.
"Is she really a witch?

" A curious newcomer would ask, narrowing her eyes at the back of Alice's head.
"Oh for sure,

" Someone would respond, their words laced with venom. "Y'know, not even her own mother could stand to be around her. She dumped her here first chance she got, she did.

"
Alice winced.
She could remember the day her mother brought her here so clearly, but she refused to believe it was real. She didn't want to believe her mother didn't love her, or didn't want her. She couldn't.
Alice swirled her fork in her uneaten pool of mashed potato, sighing miserably. At least today she didn't have to face electric shock therapy, that much was certain. But she hated eating lunch in the cafeteria, with these animals. She wasn't insane like them, no way. She just had her Bertie.
Alexander caught the corner of her eye, and she waved happily at him. She saw him smile beneath the shadow of his broad garden hat, but he didn't raise his face to acknowledge her greeting.
Alice didn't know what she'd do without Alexander; he was her reason for being, for staying upbeat in times of sadness. He was like the last ounce of sanity tethering her to reality.
Her plate was snatched away from before her, and she snapped her head up in alarm.
"Lunch's over," Guard Toohey snapped, scraping Alice's stale food into the bin. "Now get back to your cell."

***

It was a cloudless night, and the moon was full. Alice could never sleep when the moon was so bright; it set her room alight with its blue fingers that stretched across her face, prising her eyes open.
She rolled over in bed and pulled the scratchy woollen blanket over her shoulders. She tried to cover her eyes with her hands, but still the light of the moon penetrated beneath.
Eventually she slipped into a restless doze, locked in the void between sleeping and waking.
A sharp noise yanked her eyes open, and she froze. Had she been dreaming? She couldn't be sure?
She rolled over again, rubbing the fatigue from her eyes. When she opened them again, she gasped.
Before her stood the most beautiful creature she had ever seen; his alabaster skin was radiant in the striking glow of the moon, and his crimson eyes danced with glee as he leered at her.
" W - Who are you?" She breathed, a large lump forming in her throat and lodging there.
"Me? Why, I'm James," he smiled, brushing his blonde locks of hair from his face. "Forgive me, I assumed Alexander would have told you about me by now."
His voice sounded like a bell chime, and it left Alice speechless. A heady, sweet scent filled the room, and Alice felt herself intoxicated by this strange... Thing, before her. She knew he couldn't be a man. She just didn't know what he was.
A noise sounded in the corridor, a noise that seemed so quiet to Alice, but made James tense up.
"Alice, are you awake?" Alexander's voice seeped through the slit in Alice's door.
James snarled.
"It's too late, Alexander. She's mine."
Before Alice could respond, James had pulled her out of bed and slung her over his shoulder. She could just make out the bent and twisted bars on the window before they were both plunging from it, the wind slapping at her face as they tumbled through the air.
She opened her mouth to scream, but the force of hitting the ground knocked the air from her lungs.
James took off running into the forest without a backward glance.

***

His hands were like ice against Alice's fragile neck.
"This won't hurt a bit, I promise," James soothed, his lips pulling away from his startlingly-white teeth. They were dripping with some form of liquid as he leaned in, wrapping his mouth around Alice's supple flesh.
James' fangs hadn't even grazed Alice's skin when he was ripped away from her, disappearing into the darkness.
Alice's heart was pounding in her head, making her dizzy. She knew James meant her harm, but she was so enamoured with his very presence that she couldn't bear to fight against him.
She peered out into the night, searching every crevice for James. A pained howl ripped through the air, and Alice's stomach lurched.
She longed to call out for someone, anyone, but it was like she was rooted to the spot, unable to move a muscle.
James came hurtling out of the distance once more, his face rippling with rage. He pulled Alice roughly to her feet, holding her in front of him like a shield.
"Let her go," a voice said, emerging from the darkness. "She has nothing to do with you."
"Oh doesn't she?" James remarked, snorting. "She's only the reason why my fellow coven-brother abandoned me."
"It's not like that."
"Oh really? Please, tell me what it's like."
A shape stepped out from the shadows, its fists clenched. With a gasp, Alice realised it was Alexander.
"Don't hurt her," Alexander begged, his eyebrows knitted. "She's done nothing wrong."
James let out a brute burst of laughter, but did not respond.
Alexander continued toward him, extending an open palm out towards James. He stepped into a tendril of moonlight, and his crimson eyes caught aflame.
Alice recoiled. Alexander's the same thing as James?

She asked herself, panic rising. Surely not.

Without a word, James wrapped his cold fingers around Alice's neck, and craned it up towards his face. Alice's heartbeat accelerated, and fledgling tears made themselves known.
"Please... Don't," Alice whispered, her voice choked by the force of James' fingers on her throat.
"Shh," James cooed, placing a spare fingertip to her quivering lips. "I'll be g-"
Without a word, Alexander threw himself at James, pinning him to the ground and knocking Alice out of his grasp.
They grappled together on the dew-laden grass, biting at each other's hands and arms.
Alice clambered to her hands and feet, and began to crawl into the awaiting forest, a cold sweat breaking out on her face.
She heard someone snarl, followed by a loud thud.
In an instant, James was at Alice's side. He pushed down on her back with his foot, pressing her into the soil.
"Now where do you think you're

going?" He asked, kneeling beside Alice's shivering body. "Let's get this over with, shall we?"
James raised Alice's wrist to his mouth, grinning as he did so. Alice desperately tried to pull away from him, but it was like fighting against an iron vise.
James' mouth opened wide, his teeth glinting. He let them rest against Alice's pulse for just a moment, and then he sunk them deep into her flesh, causing an animalistic scream to rip its way from Alice's mouth.
She pounded at his shoulders with the palms of her hands, but it was like hitting a brick wall. Alice could feel her blood being sucked from her, but was powerless to stop it.
A marble fist came flying into Alice's peripheral vision, and impacted with James' cheek with a loud crack. He fell away from Alice's wrist, which was now gushing torrents of blood.
As soon as James was off of her, the pain of his bite was replaced by a searing, all-encompassing heat. It surged through her veins like an inferno, consuming anything and everything in its path.
"I - I'm on fire!" Alice shrieked, clawing at her skin with her fingernails. "Put it out

!"
But she was ignored.
Through her blurred and hazy vision, Alice could make out Alexander pummelling James with a flurry of fist-falls. James was growling, and kicking Alexander with his back legs. It was like watching two lions battle.
Battle to the death.
The flames became too much, and Alice screamed once more, clutching fistfuls of grass between her hands.
Alexander jerked his head up at the sound of Alice's cries, giving James just enough time to make his attack. In the blink of an eye, James had wrapped his arms around Alexander's neck, and twisted until he felt it rip in two.

Chapter IV

The night was ablaze with flame, making the sky glow orange and red. Sparks danced and flickered on the air, before gently fading and falling to the ground. It all seemed so peaceful when compared to the violence it represented.
At the centre of the bonfire lay the fragments of Alexander's body, which was now all but ash.
Once James had realised that Alice's blood was tainted with venom, he'd fled. He wasn't interested in nursing a changeling, and there was a part of him that hoped she'd eventually be claimed by the fire he'd left Alexander in.
But she wasn't.
By morning, all that remained of the once furious inferno were a few scattered embers, which emitted tendrils of smoke that weaved up into the great, blue yonder.
Sprawled beside it was Alice, who was still writhing with pain. By now her screams had ceased, but they had persisted throughout most of the night.
The flames were never-ending, and licked against every vein, every fibre of her body. She prayed aloud for Death to claim her, but it never did.
She rasped for help, hoping that someone nearby would help, but with a surge of despair she realised she was in the middle of nowhere. She was surrounded on all sides by trees, which swayed and contorted in her hazy vision.
By that evening, the fire was starting to recede from her arms and legs, but it still raged in her chest with a concentrated intensity.
Following hot on its heels was a heat in the centre of her throat, but it was more than just that; it was thirst. An aching, desperate thirst.
The flames continued to retreat from her extremities, but for every inch it was extinguished there, the heat turned up in her chest and throat. It was as if there was an internal battle raging, a battle that consisted of ice, and fire. And so far, the fire was winning.
Finally her arms and legs were completely free. Deep down, Alice knew that something was changing

inside herself, she just didn't know what. Hunger was gone, as was fatigue. All that remained was the fire, and that all-encompassing thirst.
Alice desperately wanted to open her eyes, to see that she wasn't trapped in the very pits of Hell itself, but every time she tried, her chest exploded in a fury of fire that made her scream louder than she had in her entire life.
Her cries echoed around the forest, scattering birds from the trees and making deer gallop off into the distance.
She sounded like a wounded animal, a wounded animal that was fiercely resisting death.
Suddenly her heart took off, at the pace of a jack-hammer. It felt like it was trying to break out of her ribs, flee the body that was threatening to burn it whole. Alice pawed at her chest, trying to aid its escape. She ground her elbows and knees into the ground as she writhed, covering herself in dirt and debris. The fire in her heart was hotter than ever, hotter than the sun it seemed. Her heart was putting up a furious fight against the invading flames, but eventually, it lost. With a whimpering splutter, her heart beat once, twice, and then stopped altogether. With it, Alice's pants ceased, and her entire body was washed with a sublime silence.

***

Alice was dead, she was sure of it. There was no way she could still be living when she had no pulse, no breathing. Surely.

She eased herself into sitting position, taking a moment to register everything that was around her.
Everything was so sharply defined, like she'd been living in a fog her entire life and it had finally cleared.
She could hear the beating of an eagle's wings as it soared through the air, miles above her head.
She could smell the release of pollen as a honey bee tip-toed around the petals of a flower on the other side of the clearing.
There were so many new colours, new smells, new sensations; so many, in fact, that she didn't even have a name for them all.
A breath of wind whispered past her, bringing with it even more scents. On that breeze came the most tantalising aroma she had ever experienced; it was intoxicating, heady. It was beckoning for her, and she needed it more than she'd ever needed anything else before.
This foreign scent ignited the burning in her throat once more, making her splutter with shock. It was persistent, insistent. It needed

to be quenched, but Alice had no idea how she could do that. She suspected that the seducing scent had something to do with the answer, and she took after it, desperate to come to the root of this mystery.
At first, it felt alien to use her legs, like she'd never walked before this day. They trembled under the introduced weight of her body, before melting into comfort and aching to be stretched out. Alice obliged, tearing through the forest like a streak of colour. Despite her speed, her eyes could make out every defined vein on branch's leaf as it brushed passed her face, every splinter in a tree's bark. Her feet threw up plumes of forest stench, and she filled her lungs with it, an action that had once been so familiar once which was now so strange.
As the scent Alice followed intensified, came with it a dull, rhythmic thumping that resounded inside her mind and drove her crazy with thirst. It grew louder and louder with each passing moment, until, finally, Alice came to the source of the noise.
It was a deer, grazing in a patch of grass bathed in a single ray of sunlight. It didn't even raise its head as she approached; her movements were so fluid and elegant that she barely even touched the ground.
She could smell the scent so clearly now, knew that the only thing that kept her away from that intoxicating aroma was the skin that encased the deer's flesh.
And then, her instincts just took over.
She lunged at the deer, an action that would have been undetectable to human eyes. The impact of her knees on its ribs shattered them, splintering its lungs. With a wheezing submission, the deer gave into death.
Alice sunk her teeth into the deer's fur, sending up a wave of gurgling crimson liquid. She drank it hungrily, sighing blissfully as the blood gushed down her throat and soothed the flames there.
After just a few moments, the deer was spent, the entirety of its blood completely drained from its lifeless body. Alice let the corpse fall to the floor with a thud, and the realisation of what she had just done hit her like a wall of bricks.
She had just killed a deer, drunk its blood. Did that make her a... Vampire

?
It was almost too much to accept. She wasn't evil, she wasn't a monster. She didn't want to kill people, as vampires so infamously did.
Without warning, Alice was assaulted by a violent pang of white light, which made her entire body freeze. The blinding light eventually gave way to something else, almost like she was seeing through her eyes but her sight was muted, hazy. What she saw was a blond man, with intense crimson eyes that blazed with fury and betrayal. Something stirred deep within her when she saw this man, almost like longing. She could see this man needed help, needed to be freed from the emotional prison he was in, and Alice knew she was the one that must rescue him.
As soon as it had come, the vision released her, leaving her stunned and gaping for breath. In her former life, Bertie had showed her these visions, but they had never been so crystal clear. In her human life, Bertie had merely whispered in her ear. But now, she could see

everything, know

everything. It was almost as though Bertie was now inside her, a part of her.
Without further adieu, Alice went off in search of the man from her vision, desperation to meet him consuming her whole.

Impressum

Texte: Copyrighted to Jay Mirano, 2011
Tag der Veröffentlichung: 19.05.2011

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