Chapter 57: Human Urges

June 1999

On one of those last nights before the gathering, Rachel and I were on our way to the gym and planned to go to the range after that. As we were heading up the stairs that evening, we looked up to see the familiar face of a blonde, blue-eyed woman at the top of the stairs. Clad in dark red-velvet robes, adorned with jewels, she smiled at both of us as we came up the stairs. Tayla asked if we could talk that night, instead of training. I was more than happy to oblige, as I had already done my roadwork earlier.

Rachel sensed that Tayla wanted another private chat, so she declined the invitation with Tayla’s permission. Rachel’s jealousy, if she had any, was well controlled. Perhaps she felt that this was all necessary, and that it would soon be over. After I took a quick shower, Tayla and I met again for another of our fireside chats in the library.

Just as it had happened on our first night together, she sat in her favorite chair, glancing with fierce eyes at the fireplace, which as before, erupted into flames. Again, Mortis appeared with the usual coffee service. As he prepared our cups, she fidgeted with the beautiful hair she always sported, twirling it between her sleek fingers. I could tell she had fed, but her expression was one of sadness. Something was troubling her, and she knew that I noticed.

“Yes,” she said, “I do feel sad. My time is short, and I have forgotten many things of my mortal days that I know I should have taken the time to appreciate. It seems the more time you have; the more you seem to waste. It is a curse on a vampire that all their experiences of many centuries, perhaps millennia, begin to blend as such that it is difficult to pick out a memory. I cannot remember the last sunset, or the last sunrise I ever saw. I cannot remember the warmth of sunlight on my face, or the look of joy on my mother’s face. Not even the coldness of my father’s expression. There are many experiences that I have never faced, which I suppose most mortals experience at least once in their lives. I already told you about those. Nevertheless, I still have a few yet to experience that most mortals and vampires alike will never have to face. Committing murder upon those who are kin to you, and those whom I have brought into this kind of existence makes me incredibly sad!”

Her voice was cracking, as it turned from her usual smoky allure to a barely audible whisper. Tears began to flow down her face. The tears from a vampire are not cold. They are hot, as they are the only physical manifestation of their sadness and loneliness.

Tayla asked me that when the time came, could God ever forgive her for committing such a sin. I could only smile, as I knew I was finally able to give a definite answer to her question. However, as I began to speak that answer, I failed to notice that she was losing her grip on the demon half of her personality.

Before I could react, Tayla exploded with the demon inside her. She bolted from her chair, and throwing herself across the room, landed with loud thud. As she turned to face me, her expression turned to one of horror. The eyes changed color to one of red, and her face became ashen. As she opened her mouth, a loud hiss came from it as fangs dropped from the roof of her mouth. Her tongue became long and protruded from her mouth past her chin. As the tongue wagged below her chin, it dripped with putrid spittle of pale yellow. Her complexion turned to the brownish black of a reptilian monster, as I knew I faced the demon within her. She dropped her robes of velvet as bulging muscles expanded and appendages began to sprout from her back. Black wings of leathery skin stretched between each strutting joint out to a wingspan of about eight feet. I looked upon a fallen angel, a demon. This creature was the most horrible thing I had ever laid eyes on. I was petrified with fear and it knew it.

The room filled with the awful smell of necrotic flesh. Darkness filled the room as the fire went out of the hearth. The room quickly became icy cold. The creature began to approach me, but then stopped short. It roared as if asserting itself to me, letting me know of its intent to destroy me. It screamed like a banshee, curdling my blood with panic trying to penetrate my space but there were other angels in the room, and these were not fallen ones.

Then, a bright light filled the room, as did another, and then another, until four bright pillars of light illuminated the library. The brilliance-clad angels of God moved to surround the demonic being. It moaned and struggled, but to no avail, as the powerful creature was subdued. I picked up the robes of velvet and covered the creature as the angels bound the demon.

Finally, underneath the robes emerged the familiar head of a beautiful woman I had come to know and respect. She struggled to get to her feet, as she clutched her robes to cover her nakedness.

“This would not be a good time for Rachel to walk in,” I thought.

Tayla quickly dressed in her robes in front of me. I was surprised at the speed at which she did it. Only a few seconds, and she was back to being dressed, beautiful, and groomed. The fire resumed in the fireplace. “Oh, Malcolm, my dear Malcolm! I am so sorry! Can you ever forgive me? I would never knowingly hurt you! Oh, I hate this existence! When will this ever end?” She clenched her fists, bringing them up to her temples.

I spoke to her in a gentle voice. “The answer to both of your questions is an emphatic yes! God can forgive you, and I forgive you. As always, I have trusted my Lord to protect me from that demon, and he was faithful to uphold his promise to me. It wasn’t you threatening to destroy me. We both know it was the demon. Demons are my enemy as well as yours. Soon, we will be rid of this demon.”

“Yes, soon I can bid this half of me a final farewell. I trust that you know the way to do this. Is there a chance that we may fail? Before you answer, I want you to know, that should you fail to separate the evil half of me, my request is that you destroy me. To do this, you must separate my head from my shoulders. Then remove my ring, take it up into the sunlight and place it next to Rascha’s ring upon the sundial. My power is tied to the ring and this symbolic act will end it all, for both clans. Promise me that you will carry out my wishes. Please Malcolm! This is not just for me, but also for mortal men everywhere. You are the one, my champion, to carry out my last decree. Make me proud, my dear friend!”