Cognata: A Vampire Romance (12 page)

Me.

Was I to become some great messiah for the blood drinkers? The thought sickened me. All messiahs were marked by martyrdom and sacrifices. I was not a sacrificial type. I had care only for myself, especially after Aristide - I felt some sick need to become cold. Still, it didn't resonate in me that I'd have to suffer the same fate as Halona did before - but what was I really missing from this great picture?

Yes, fragments of ancient history can easily become lost and distorted and by now, the Cognati order grew far more... shall we say, political. As time passed, it would only grow in its stupidity and I was to become the center of it all? Some puppet for a charade? What was it that I was really missing?

I needed to know more...

"Are there other clans? Other societies?" I asked.

"Other families, yes." Sergio waltzed over to me with a sly smile, "Kindred. Our lines are connected - yours the Halonic, mine the Hunter and of course, there are more."

I turned to Sergio with a newfound confidence, "Tell me more. I want to know of The Hunters. I want to know more! Tell me of the others."

His eyes shot into mine with a deep appreciation for the scholarly need. He turned to the wall, slightly caressing it with his fingertips; trailing downwards as if he were replaying his own ancient memory - "The Hunters were once considered the guardians to our kind. The dark gift passed onto us manifested itself in the form of shapeshifting."

"Shapeshifting?" I wasn't familiar with the term back then, being used for a humanoid creature.

"By means of our power, we can manifest our forms into something more. That appearance you saw me in before - the Wolf, is just one to the many forms I can inhabit for my survival." Sergio moved to my side and I must confess, I was looking at him with new eyes. I felt no apprehension for him, only a newfound curiosity of his capabilities.

"The Hunters have long been forgotten. Cast out of a failing order - deemed unnecessary for the Halonic Society which has undoubtedly become the most powerful of the clans. The other clans, Ibis, Strigoy and the Agnates have all drifted far from ancient Halonic ideals. They've replaced the image of her with their own idols and their own purposes. Our once capable kind has diminished into political idiocy."

Sergio slowly walked away from the inscriptions, leading me to another part of the crypt. This time he showed me a crack in the ceiling, leading to, perhaps, another tomb waiting.

"My, how the Cognati have fallen." He solemnly added with a bitter taste in his mouth.

As I moved to his side like a modest student, I could not help but wonder what my role in this whole theatric was to be - "What am I?" I asked from the deepest chains in my heart. The subtle influence of my tone caught the rugged shapeshifter's attention, enough to provide me with a casual glance, that of an olden teacher.

"What does any of this... have to do with me?" I rephrased the question carefully.

"You're the new Halona. I could smell you for long before you even wandered into the woods." He flatly stated as if he'd already known all along

"I can't be." I quickly retorted. Truth be told, I wanted nothing to do with the lineage. I was determined to prove it to be a mistake.

"Still you run, even after you learn?"

"I don't want to be some sort of dark, blood drinker savior. The very thought of it disgusts me. It's no different than the icons ignorant humans paint to flaunt holy reverence. I want nothing to do with anything of that sort. I am not holy. I am nothing."

"Whatever you wish to classify yourself as in this lifetime is entirely based upon your will and your will alone. But do not be fooled. You and I both know you are of this lineage, Misty White. And those men after you will stop at nothing till you belong to them."

"They'd chain their goddess?" I had to wonder if I were to be some kind of sacrifice

"Maybe." Sergio looked back to the ceiling, "You are not as powerful as Halona and since her time, many of our kindred have risen to unspeakable capabilities. I would imagine they would use you as a holy icon to further their own agenda."

"What is their agenda?"

"Who even knows by now?"

Sergio gently extended his arm to me and as he did, I noticed what appeared to be bat-like wings forming on his back. He was shapeshifting yet again, right in front of my eyes. He was now a winged creature.

"Are you ready to move on?" He asked.

I placed my hand in his and he carefully pulled me closer. He looked to the ceiling once more and that was indeed, our next destination. I felt the wind rush around me as he extended his wings in a grim yet beautiful manner. Then Sergio flapped his wings and we soared into the air.

Interlude VI

Samuel Speaks, 2017

It's the eve of Alexia's last day. I woke up early because I wanted to make the day special, so I decided to order some groceries the previous day to make some homemade breakfast. Alexia is an excellent cook, but I was determined to outdo her and really and truly, this is just part of the special day I've planned out.

What's going through my mind?
I'll keep it real simple -
How do I stop the unstoppable?

Alexia constantly kept reminding me
not to try anything
. Don't try to protect her, don't try to be a hero, just enjoy the time with her. Right, sure. Why not? No, actually, not - 'why not'! Can you imagine what it is like to know your lover, your friend, your other half is going to die and you cannot do a thing about it?

It just didn't make sense to me. Alexia is dangerously smart. I'm not the type to sit around and let whatever happen, whenever it wants to happen. I like to push my own influence. If I can't change something, at least I can try and try my hardest and if it still fails then? I can say I tried. Me not having any chance of trying is what is driving me fucking insane.

Yeah, it caused a fight. The other night I couldn't take it. I let her know just how much bullshit this whole thing is and I accused her of trying to find the easy way to slip out. It's a legit thought to carry over. I didn't know if she was saying that she'd die just because she got sick of me but when I look into her eyes, when I feel her skin and listen to the coos of her soft voice, I realize how insecure I'm being.

Tell you the truth, I'd rather her be sick of me than dying tomorrow.

Tell you the truth, I'd rather her live a peaceful life. If that means cutting me out of the picture, then it is what it is.

That journal told me the story of not a vampire but a woman who had to confront her destiny. No matter how far she tried to run, it always came back to confront her. Alexia had only shown me bits and pieces of her journal. Lots of pages were missing. There could be more I don't know of. What I do know is that there is a vampiric society in the shadows, governing and controlling most of society as we know it and Alexia over here, was and still is, the key to somehow stopping it.

And stopping it will cost her, well... her own life.

At this point I've already seen enough. I saw Alexia's specialized extracts for blood drinking. They were like small, dense, cylindrical capsules that she'd pour into a drink. I've seen her fangs, and as sexy as they are, they are real. She can read my mind any time she wants to and she can move objects with just a thought. No doubt, she has some kind of power going on and I still feel like she's been suppressing most of it.

There must be a way to help her. If she can't find it, I will.

"Morning love." Alexia calls out from the shadows.

I turn around immediately to see her, giving a warm smile.

"Hey." The breakfast is barely prepared. I only have the basic ingredients out - some sweet peppers, some mushrooms, eggs, bread, cheese. Nothing complete.

"How'd you sleep?" I try to keep my attention on the service I'm offering.

"Good, good... " Alexia seems off. It looks like she is trying to keep a smile on, over just letting it happen. I know better than to bring up the subject again. At least not directly, it won't do me any good at this point. We'll just argue about it and she'll end up telling me to 'stay out of it'. I give her a smile and go back to the cooking.

"I think I'm just about done reading through that journal." I say while juggling the cheese and eggs, swashing them together in a bowl.

"Are you?" She wondered.

"Yeah?" I give her a quick glance wondering if I've been missing something, "Unless I'm missing something? It'll make a good story."

"I'm sure it will and yes, you are missing something."

This is a good time to set the cooking aside just for a second. Another surprise may be on the way. I sit next to her cocking my eyebrow, telling her to spit it out. There are these few crumpled pages she slips on the table. I'd never seen them before. She must have kept them hidden.

"These the missing pieces?" I ask

"Sure." She tells me.

I start looking through them, sorting them out - what not, then I have to ask, "What happened after Sergio took you to that crypt?"

These new pages aren't in chronological order and some of the events look like they happened well after Sergio. I'm still curious to know of his fate. Aristide didn't have the luxury of making it out alive and Sergio, well, did he too find such shitty luck being around her? I think it's important to think on this kind of stuff. Then again, I could be overthinking it.

"He took me to some other ruins in the nearby forest. Showed me more of my kind's history. I stayed with him for months. He became something along the lines of a father to me."

"Did he teach you how to shapeshift?"

"No... " I finally got her to smile, "It wasn't in my intent to master all his gifts although he did teach me some things. I wanted to know more about my kind and the role I had to play in the charade. After some time, Sergio and I parted ways. I left him in the forest and he wanted me to go back. He wanted me to confront what I was running from."

"Did you?"

"Not immediately. I had to go out searching for more of my kin. I needed to know more about them from firsthand experience. That was when I decided it'd be best to carry on what Aristide promised me - travel the world and so, I did."

I fold my arms locked in thought wondering where she'd go next. Alexia sighs briefly then goes on to flutter her eyes and give me another smile, although I can tell it's faint. She's nervous. I've never seen her so uneasy before.

"What you're about to read changed me... forever." Her hands cup mine, asking me for my trust. "Remember, whatever happened - happened. It's not who I am now."

Why is she telling me this now?

I reach for the letters and take a deep breath. These look older, as if she wrote them down first, then went back to complete her journal in the 30s. The way the ink looks on the paper, I'd say significantly older.

Whatever I'm about to read, I'm not sure if I am ready.

Glyphs and Families

Memoir of a Blood Drinker,

by Alexia Phokaina

Writing about your life's story seems like a simple task until you start unveiling the cruddy skeletons in the closet. The night's darkness, and the shadows it casts upon the alleyways would be the easiest place to flee to. To run to. To hide and cast away all your pains, all your worries and most importantly... all your shame. I need to get this out. If it's the last bit the world is to know me by, if by chance, someone actually finds this - then know that none of it was a lie and in the end, I have no regrets for giving my heart to the ones I loved.

I had been traveling the seas for hundreds of years since the time of my teacher, The Wolf. And while my Maker inspired the initial bloodthirst, I discovered a new thirst to sate through my travels, in seeking out knowledge. I was hungry for change. The signs were everywhere, from the dry, ancient sands and dense jungles of Africa, to the rebirth of science in renaissance Italy, where I made some of my fondest travel memories. All across Europe, through the kingdoms of France and the spiritual successor to my now fallen homeland, the Holy Roman Empire, to the Kingdoms of England and Spain, constantly caught up in their petty squabbles.

Through the rise of colonization, I even travelled to the New World, discovering even more wonders to add to the list of everything I had witnessed through the ages. Cultures, people, places, traditions, all left their impression in me, and I tried to experience as much of it as I could, trying to find the traces of Halona's influence on mankind. I even joined maritime expeditions to the harsh, cold, unforgiving frozen seas of the North Pole where I found even more ancient footsteps of my previous incarnation from a time long, long gone. At one point I started forgetting the countries I'd been traveling to and fro. Every place and every new culture started blending together as I focused on identifying the age old influences of Halona and her star people on mankind. All that mattered was connecting this intricate puzzle which I had no doubt, I was the key to fulfilling.

Yes, I'd accepted the fate that I was the reincarnation of an ancient blood-drinking goddess and yet that was only the beginning. One by one I discovered all the bloodlines. The clans around the world had become their own people. There were the conservatives, no doubt - The Halonic Society, the Cognati who acted as the ambassadors for our kind and yes, I would soon return to them out of obligation. They were still the ones who directly carried on Halona's lineage. My role in the whole charade was to correct their corruption. That is why I wanted to see and feel, know and hear my other kin. If I were to return to the order, I'd do so with the wisdom of all aspects of my people.

The Agnates clans - A collective of nomad nightwalkers that refused to live in shadow. They were mainly located in the regions of France and England. Outwardly, beautiful and pale, noble artists that indulged in beautifying their surroundings and inwardly - stark raving mad, vicious bloodsuckers that casually indulged in raping and pillaging whatever town they set foot in next.

They had little care for their victims and their hunger was not only satisfied by blood, but from bondage and domination. Traits they would spoil me with, for as long as I stayed with them. They had little care for the political events of our kin. Their concern was directed toward making sure we controlled the world from the shadows; allowing us to do as we pleased and so, they had moderate support for what the Halonic Society was doing, though they'd never go out of their way to save it. As long as they stayed out of the dominant Cognati's way, they were safe and that was a living they were satisfied with.