“Don’t say that,” Lana cried. “You survived and you’re a great person.”
I looked at her stricken face, framed by hair that always had a green tinge despite all the peroxide we poured on it. “It’s true though. Those of us that survived became monsters, ones that need to prey on humans to live. I can be the most awesome person in the world, but it doesn’t make what I do for survival right.” I turned from her and resumed my retelling of a story that never fully left my thoughts. “In the first group, only some of the boys survived, but the demon gene turned them into vampires.”
Gene shook his head sadly. “Humans can be so foolish. They have sowed the seeds of their own destruction. This is not good news. I must ask, what powers did your vampires inherit? I wonder if the splicing of the DNA might have made them weaker than those born to the curse.”
I looked at him sharply? Born as vampires? There was so much I needed to learn. Especially if I was to survive, for despite the loss of my humanity, I longed to live. I answered Gene’s question. “Keep in mind, my knowledge is from years ago when we were no better than caged animals. The boys might have expanded their powers since. Not your classic Count Dracula’s, my brothers in the institution became a highly intelligent, extremely powerful, psychically gifted bunch with an unfortunate penchant for human blood.”
“That’s a species wide trait,” Gene said nodding his head while Simon just stood facing the wall, his forehead touching the brick. “Go on.”
“I’ll start with the tests the scientists did following the legends. The idiots brought crosses and holy water to work. Forget the Catholic drama, vampires, or at least the lab created ones, don’t care about that shit. They do drink blood, and tests revealed that their special diet is what makes them sensitive to the sun, so they go out only at night. The scientists, fascinated with what they created, ran them through live simulations to see what a vampire was truly capable of, and how to best kill them.”
Gene dropped his head in his hands and shook. “Oh, that must have made the fledglings happy. Let me guess what worked? A stake in the heart which, I might add, kills pretty much everything along with decapitation, chopping the body to pieces and fire.”
I nodded my head as he itemized the tortures inflicted upon my departed brothers. “They killed quite a few before they stopped. What fascinated them though was their healing rate-most wounds mortal for a human healed quickly. And they could even regenerate limbs after a time. The scientists wanted to harness that ability for humanity.”
“And as a vampire ages, his healing abilities increase as does his imperviousness,” said Simon, finally adding to the discussion, his face a stoic mask. But his eyes blazed and when they looked at me, I felt comforted by the warmth still evident in them.
“That I didn’t know. Keep in mind, the ones I knew were only a couple of years old. One interesting thing was the fact that they didn’t like to drink the blood of people who imbibed large amounts of garlic or hot spice. Apparently they taste bad.”
“Curry is famous for repelling blood suckers as well. Did they have the power to mesmerize with their gaze?”
“I don’t know. They might have, but I never heard of it.” I tried to recall if the vamps who’d attacked me outside the club had tried, but in all honestly, I couldn’t remember.
Simon moved back to rejoin us, but instead of sitting across from me, he slid onto the couch beside me and with some titillating manhandling, placed me in his lap. I snuggled into his embrace, a huge relief off my chest as I realized abomination or not, he still liked me.
“Tell us of the second group. The ones injected with the angels’ blood,” Gene urged.
“Group two, injected with the angel blood, died more than they survived, and in even greater proportion than those who got the demonic stuff. Those that lived through the convulsions became incubi and succubi. They fed off people’s emotions and auras. Like the vamps, they were hard to kill, but healed more slowly and could walk in daylight.”
“Sexuality is increased in them as the pleasure and intensity of sex allows them to connect with their partner thus making the feeding more enjoyable and powerful. You said there were fewer of these creations?”
“Maybe a half dozen if they all escaped when I did.”
“And now we come to you, one with both sides, light and dark. How many like you did they create?”
“Ah, yes, the third group if you count one member as still making a group. Lucky me, I got dosed with both strains of the DNA. As you both guessed, I’ve got a vampire side, but I am not affected by sunlight. I heal quickly and I’m strong. There might be more powers, but I’m not crazy about the blood lust thing so I don’t encourage it.”
“You don’t need to feed regularly?” Gene asked leaning forward.
“Oh, maybe once a week or so I’ve got to use the fangs and feed the hunger. A few ounces and I’m good.” I didn’t mention that my victims never even knew what bit them, for I tended to take my blood from an intimate area while feeding my succubus side. Overcome with lust, they never even noticed.
“That’s amazing. Natural born vamps, especially young ones, must feed daily and more than once.”
“My brothers could usually go a few days at a time,” I said with a shrug of incomprehension.
“What about your succubus needs?”
“Again, I give that part of me a good feed about once a week, but the club makes it easy to supplement in between. The sexual energy is so thick it’s like I’m bathing in it and it keeps me from going all nympho.” Lap dances worked especially well because of the light skin-to-skin contact.
“Amazing,” Gene said. Simon’s response was to tighten his arms around me. His hug reassured me, but even more awesome-to me at least-was the fact that my science experiment existence hadn’t made him run. On the contrary, evidence of his interest poked at my backside insistently.
“I don’t know if I’d call it amazing. I mean, I’m thankful that they wiped my Leukemia out, but I can never forgive them for taking my parents away and taking my humanity.” Although, had they given me the choice, I admit I would have taken life at any cost. And honestly, once I’d escaped, life ended up not sucking too bad even if I sucked people.
“So how did you escape?”
“They underestimated us.” At the remembrance, I grinned ferally. “My brothers destroyed them and set the place on fire.” The place was a leveled wasteland of debris, which I was thankful for. I hoped the records of the experiments and our existence were wiped in the conflagration. It was enough I had the Legion of Hell possibly after me, I didn’t need the government, too. “In the confusion, I escaped and ran. Eventually, I stopped running and found work that appealed to my succubus needs.”
“And met other freaks who let her know she wasn’t alone,” Lana piped in, squeezing my hand.
I smiled at her. “You’re not a freak. You’re just different, like me.”
Lana grinned back and gave a happy trill. “So knowing she’s an experiment, does it make her more or less in danger from the demons?”
Gene spread his hands and shrugged. “Yes and no. And it’s not just the demons who might come after her. Heaven’s angels may very well decide to eliminate her, too.”
“I thought God’s rule was thou shall not kill,” I grumbled.
“Humans,” Gene corrected. “Anything else is fair game. And keep in mind that the position of God and Devil is an elected one. The rules change depending on who’s in power. But, don’t lose hope. Not everyone believes the etching means an end of everything. There is a group who believes the words signal a new beginning, one where the division between Heaven and Hell is removed and the lines drawn between good and evil scuffed.”
I frowned. “Um, is it me or does opening Hell up sound like a bad idea?”
Gene grinned. “Maybe, but we won’t know until it happens, will we?”
I wanted to growl at him for being so nonchalant, but I couldn’t maintain my scowl. How could I when I’d divulged my dirty secret and not scared them away?
Gene stood. “You’ve given us much to ponder on. I need to report what you’ve told me to those who would see you live. You should be safe. Demons, like vampires, are bound to public places or locations they’ve been invited to. So be sure to not allow anyone to enter whom you don’t already know.”
“What about angels?”
Simon rumbled behind me. “By killing the demon, we have hopefully eliminated the threat of your discovery. And even if the demons do know, they’re not exactly on talking terms with the Army of Light.”
“And might I add,” said Gene with his characteristic mischievous smile. “That the angels never do anything
