“Precisely. However, it’s not a total failure, just a setback. I’ll have to keep my insects on the back burner for now.”
Maryl resumed walking with Clayton and Desiree being forced to move forward.
“You’re insane, Maryl! Why go through all this trouble?” Clayton fumed.
Maryl suddenly stopped and zipped to Clayton. “Why?” She smacked Clayton across the face again. “Because of you!” She raised her arms in disgust. “You and your high almighty A and B blood types and your superiority complex!”
“Just because we’re stronger than the O’s doesn’t mean I think we’re superior!”
“That’s where you’re wrong, Clayton! I can provide example after example where you exercised your might in the name of self-defense!”
“And I can say the same about you too! O negatives and O positives comprise almost half the population of the eight blood types! You simply outnumber us in proportion.”
“Semantics,” Maryl said as she continued walking.
“I know it’s all about the interpretation, that’s my point, Maryl,” Clayton said with mounting irritation.
“Enough talk! I want to show you and Desiree something which will make you quiver in fear and realize my O negatives will become the dominant species of vampires!”
Maryl and her ensemble came to a door on their left and opened it. The room was enormous, Clayton thought as he entered.
“I can see by the expression on your face you were not expecting what you see displayed on the tables,” Maryl said with delight.
“Are these… weapons, Maryl?” Clayton asked in shock.
“Yes,” Maryl said as she approached the nearest table.
Clayton quickly counted fifty feet long rectangular tables. On each table, there were weapons of all kinds. Some were simple, like a crossbow with arrows and guns. Others were more complicated. Then he looked at several towering canisters in the back.
“This is where you make the powder?” Clayton asked dumbfounded.
“Yes, the large containers in the back are where the powders are mixed with my secret ingredients, and then stored in the area to your right.”
Clayton and Desiree turned to their right and saw over a half dozen different color pouches on pallets.
Clayton veered from the pallets and looked at Maryl. “And what are your secret ingredients? Why don’t you tell us since I know you’re planning on killing Desiree and me?”
Maryl tapped her finger on her lips for a few seconds. “Why not? Come with me. There’s an anteroom beyond the huge cylinders that feed into it.”
She led them to a wall behind the canisters.
“I don’t see a door handle, Maryl,” Clayton said with amusement.
“You don’t need a door handle to have a door, Clayton,” Maryl said as she pushed on the wall. An opening emerged.
When the group entered the door that led to a vast warehouse, all noise the employees made stopped several seconds before resuming.
“We’ll stop right here,” Maryl said with a slight hint of nervousness.
Desiree noticed a red tape going horizontal. “Why? Does it have to do with the red tape?” she asked.
“Yes. We don’t go any further than right here. This area behind the red tape is the safety zone.”
Clayton noticed there were over a hundred humans working at different sections. They were not wearing any protective gear. Some gulped for breath as they labored without complaint. Still, others had blood dripping down their bodies, but it was hard to tell where the blood had come from because a lot of it was caked on them.
Clayton couldn’t do anything to save the humans. He couldn’t even save himself or Desiree. He addressed Desiree’s question. “The red tape is there because Desiree, Maryl is using humans to make the powders.” He looked at Maryl. “I presume the pitiful humans here are of the Fellowship Of The Fangs?”
Maryl nodded, and Clayton continued. “Vampires can’t get close, or they will start displaying symptoms,” Clayton said with a tight frown. He looked around in puzzlement. “Maryl, I can understand why I can’t go any further because of my blood type, but what about you, Desiree, and your security guards that are O negative? The powders shouldn’t affect you, and there shouldn’t be a safety zone that you seem to adhere to so strictly.”
Maryl was quiet for a second. “Let’s just say I have had to take certain precautions in case of an uprising within my ranks.”
The implications were staggering. “You… you are making powder for O negatives too?” Clayton asked in genuine shock.
“Don’t act surprised, Clayton. With significant responsibilities comes enormous sacrifices.”
“You keep this up, Maryl, and you’ll be the only vampire left on this planet,” Desiree said in disgust.
“I don’t expect you or Clayton to understand because you’re not forward thinkers! Come, let’s go,” Maryl said as she reached for the wall.
“I thought you were going to tell me the secret ingredients?” Clayton said as he placed his hand on Maryl’s shoulder.
The guards tackled Clayton to the ground. Clayton put up his hands in surrender. “For three hundred years, this location and your ingredients have been a closely guarded secret. I simply must know,” Clayton said as he was dragged back on his feet.
“Fine!” She shouted. Maryl walked to the red line. “Do you see the conveyor belts that are transporting the clear boxes of gray powder?”
“Yes,” Clayton said.
“That is the original powder.”
“What is it a mixture of?” Clayton asked in bewilderment. To think that was the powder that killed his family three centuries ago, Clayton thought in anger.
“I had tried many different compounds for two hundred years before I perfected it and used it at the purge of 1751. But in the beginning, nothing could penetrate the invulnerable skin of all eight blood types. Then there were some major battles between my blood type and all the other types, except for Ray Greenwell and his O positives, who would often aid my side.”
“Until you killed him too,” Clayton remarked.
“Yes, a shame really because he was a great ally to have, but alas, he was power-hungry too.” She thought a moment before
