The Wanderer

two: unexpected

Akire was hunched under the shade of the tree. She huddled under her coat and envisioned the stones in front of her. 

“I’ve not forgotten, Ottosan. I trained everyday even after your death. I am stronger, faster and hopefully, wiser when it comes to battle.”

She heard nothing but the rustling of the wind. She suddenly wished she had candles or fruits to offer. But it was futile to waste food. Whatever human food she carried, she gave to the children she passed by on her wanderings. She did not need any of it to survive. In fact, the years of wandering with Haito had made her almost forget what food is.

“Onasan, I am here to say goodbye. I might not be able to come back once I truly find this Charles Atkins. But don’t worry, I will see you in the after life. Wait for me, okay Ouiji? I don’t know if monsters like me have a place where you are right now but please, put in a good word for me. So that I may see you again.”

She shifted to the last rock to her right. Akito was under that mound. He was the only sure body that she had buried there.

“Kito, I am sorry. I did not mean to kill you or drink your blood. I know you know that. I love you- perhaps more than I cared to admit when we were together. But, you should know that you are the only guy I have loved since I was a child. I-”

A rustling sound made her stop talking. It came from the dojo. She could envision the outside but since she hadn’t ventured in yet, she was not sure what else was there.

Stupid! She chastised herself for not checking out the surroundings. She had gone far and wide since leaving Europe, looking for Charles and all those times, she had been very careful.

She encountered a lot of peril but she also made a few treasured friends –all of them taught her how to be stronger, faster and a lethal killer. Now, a few minutes into an emotional moment, she had let her guard down right away.

She tugged her jacket closer in an attempt to cover her entire face before she ventured towards the dojo. 

The good side of the building was not really that habitable. One wall was standing up, the one facing the gate with a doorframe and a window that had shredded shades.

The area was a little dark since most of the partitions inside were still erect, except the left wing that had a huge gaping hole and burned down sides.

She sniffed. That was unusual, she did not smell decaying flesh when she came in. Or maybe she got confused with what’s present and what’s in her memory.

She approached the inside of dojo with caution. She could not smell wolf or any other creature. She knew however that there was a corpse inside.

The wild beating of a small heart got her attention. Could it be? The monster in her growled, blood was near. She had not really eaten for days.

“Hello?”

A soft voice called. It sounded like it came from the corner on the inside.

“Hello? Are you the angel coming to take my momma away?”

Akire realized that it was a human child. She tapped her katana on the floor and the vibrations showed her the scene inside the other half of the dojo.

A child, about 7 or 8 years old, was huddled in the corner. Apparently, he or she was guarding over a woman’s body that was wrapped in a blanket, like she was sleeping.

Akire sniffed, the woman had been dead for two days. She grimaced and then turned to the corner where the child’s movement sent vibrations.

“Who are you? How long have you been staying here?” She asked, trying to keep the growl from her voice. Her hunger was fighting back. The monster wanted to drink the child’s blood!

“My momma and I came here through a ship. I-We was told it was safe here. Safe from monsters.” The child replied.

Akire could now tell that the child was a young boy. He was deathly afraid but he was trying his best not to show it. Unfortunately, his beating heart gave him away.

“Are you the angel? Will you take us home now?” He asked again. “I cannot stay awake anymore. I don’t want monsters to come and take my momma away.”

“Monsters?”

The little guy nodded. “Yes, they run past the gate, last night. I kept very still so that they will not see me or hear me. Momma taught me this.”

Akire maintained her distance. She did not trust herself enough to not bite the little guy. She was not sure either if werewolves bit him. But the stench of the dead woman was enough to cover the living smell of the kid. Maybe that was why he was alive. 

There was no scent of wolf blood in the child but still, he could have been bitten and the transition did not manifest yet. 

“Are you hurt? Did anything bite you?”

The child sniffed and Akire saw him shake his head. She closed her eyes and drifted forward, controlling her instincts and her hunger.

She reached the corner of the dojo and looked down. The child remarked on her blindness but she shushed him. She needed to take the corpse out before it would totally rot and give the kid some disease.

The child cried and tried to push her away but he was helpless. Akire carried the body and swiftly relocated it outside the gaping hole.

“What are you doing? What are you going to do?”

The child screamed as Akire opened a small vial, threw it on the blanket that covered the dead body. With one hand, she tossed the liquid and with the other, she held the little boy’s arm.

She returned the vial in one of her jacket pockets and retrieved a matchbook. She let go of the child to quickly light a match and as soon as she tossed the lighted tip towards the body, she returned to gripping his arm.

She listened as the fire consumed the body and the child was wailing to the heavens. The darkness before her was illuminated with flickers or whites, yellows and reds.

She did not comfort the kid; this was the way of the world now. He needed to see this to be strong.

“Listen, your mothere is gone now. You have to learn to fend for your self. Do you have anybody else to live with?”

The boy started shaking her head then he stopped. He sniffed, ran back to the corner to get a small backpack. He rummaged and came back to her, holding a piece of paper.

“Here! Papa lives here! I know because momma and I look for him!”

Akire could not see the things written on the paper. She looked expectantly at the little boy; his face had this hopeful look. Tear-streaked and sooty, he did not look half as bad as the rest of the little ones she had seen or passed by on the streets during her journey.

“Momma says that papa is king. She calls me her little prince.”

Akire sighed. She was trying hard to concentrate on what the little boy was saying but his blood was too potent and fresh, it was distracting her. The cattle she encountered outside town have not sated the hunger in her.

She stepped back, leaving the kid with a hopeful expression, his hands stretched, holding a piece of paper.

She did not need any responsibility right now. She was on a mission that was both dangerous and tedious. It would not be good for the kid to be traveling around with a vampire.

She turned to leave but then she remembered Ouiji. If her younger brother were looking down from heaven, he would probably be angry with her. 

She sighed. Perhaps it was best if she would just leave the kid alone. When night comes, surely some monster other than her would come and save him from the misery of living in these times.

Yet, could she allow this to happen? Will her conscience make her take quick steps away from the child?

“I cannot read what’s on the paper. But, maybe I can take you to someone from the town who will be willing to take you, wherever you want.”

She did not know if there would be anyone who would do that for free. She was almost out of coins. 

“Why can’t you take me there?”

Akire whirled around the face the boy, her fangs bared. “Because I am a vampire little boy. I am one of the monsters you are afraid of. Do you want me to eat you?”

The boy cowered, trembling; he slowly backed away form Akire. He whimpered but he held his head high. Then, after a split second of intense silence, the little guy sprinted towards her and hugged her waist.

“Then kill me so that I can be with momma! I want my momma! I want to be beside her!”

He was wailing now. Shouting the same words. Akire was shocked, unable to move. For the first time since her turning, a human has actually flung himself at her. The little guy was asking for a death warrant but still, it was pleasantly surprising.

Akire tried her best to soothe the little boy. She knew that she was going to have to take a short side trip and see which of the good vampires or people in town would be willing to take the boy home.

“I cannot kill you and I will not drink your blood. But, I will help you find somebody who can take you to your father. What is your name?”

The boy sniffled and wiped his nose on her jacket. Akire grimaced and tugged him away from her. She held him at arms length, crouched in front of him and asked about him.

“I’m Sam but my mom calls me Sammy or Little Prince.”

Akire nodded and straightened up. She sighed again and extended her hand forward. “I’m not calling you prince. Come Sam, when’s the last time you ate?”

The little boy told her that he had food in his bag. He pulled out a bag of chips, a pack of chocolate and bottled water.

Akire nodded. She might as well take shelter inside the dojo to block the sun and its sweltering heat. She sniffed and tasted the air, it was almost past noon, and soon she’ll be able to move more freely.

She listened as the Sam ate without making any noise. The years of running must have taught the child how to be quiet. Sometimes, silence was the best weapon when creeping past monsters preoccupied with things like feasting.

The boy stopped, looked down at his chocolate and offered some to Akire. She shook her head. Human food only made her sick. Instead, she scooted closer to the wall and closed her eyes.

“How come you are here?”

Akire sighed. She just wanted some peace and quiet. She kept very still and ignored the question. She thought it was working until she felt the little boy creep closer.

She hissed. She could taste the warmth of his blood in her mouth; hear the soft thudding of his heart. He was no longer frightened but he was still wary.

“Are you trying to get killed, Sam?”

“B-but, you just said you would not kill me!”

“I’m starting to regret it…” She muttered. 

That made Sam very still and then she heard a sniff. Great! He was going to cry again! 

Oh give him a break, Akire! She could almost hear Haito chiding her and then crooning over the young boy. The guy just lost his mother after all. He had nobody except a father who can be found through a piece of map that she could not read.

“I used to live here…”

The boy hiccuped. “What happened? Did you kill your parents?”

Akire frowned. “No! Of course not!”

“I’m sorry. Momma always told me I had a mouth on me.” He replied. “I never understood what it meant but she always says that when I say something I shouldn’t be saying… What’s your name?”

Akire almost smiled. The little boy was starting to warm up and relax. It could be the chocolate. She told him her name.

“Are those your family, buried by the tree? I figured the stones showed there were people underneath.”

“Yes. My parents and brother are buried there with my best friend. The monsters raided our dojo a couple of years ago.”

“Why didn’t they kill you?”

“This one monster turned me into a vampire. I’m not sure why he did not kill me…Stop asking these questions! Do you want to have nightmares?”

“Hmm… Sometimes I think my nightmares are better than what is out there. Were you blind since you became alive?”

Akire sighed and looked down at the boy. The body heat, pumping of his blood and the occasional sniffling painted her an almost clear vision of who was in front of her.

“My hair is yellow, my eyes are blue and I have a small scar under my eyebrow. It’s shaped of a star!” Sam described himself to Akire who just let him talk. He wasn’t really a bad kid.

Unfortunately, her stomach was not agreeing with her. She needed to feed. She thought about the nearest refugee camp near the dojo. Maybe she could slip out for a while and drink from the sick.

“Listen, I need to fee- er… eat..” She hesitated.

The little boy scooted away from her in one swift motion. His heartbeat was racing and his eyes were wide.

“Are you going to eat me or kill somebody else?” He stammered.

Akira shook her head and stood up. She looked down at the boy before tugging her hood back up to cover her face.

“I don’t eat children and I don’t kill people to drink their blood. You don’t have to worry about your safety. I promise I will not drink your blood…” She turned around and then added. “However, if you prove to be a difficult little bugger, I will gladly break my promise and use you as a blood bank. So, you stay hidden here while I go out for a little while.”

She hesitated and then pulled out a small dagger from her coat. She placed it on the floor.

“I will not be long. If trouble comes, take the dagger and your bag and run far from here. I will find you.”

Sam crawled forward and grabbed the knife. “B-but, what if you decide to not go after me? What if the monsters are too fast? Will you-“

“Sam!” Akire’s voice sounded like a c***k of lightning. The boy stopped and stared. “Listen. You are a big boy, a prince even! You have to learn to fight. Don’t worry, I promise, I will get you somewhere safe and I will help you reach your father. But for now, I really, really need to feed or else I might not be able to stop and I’ll feed on you!”

“Well, if you don’t want to kill the human, maybe you can hand him to us. We’re a little bit hungry.” 

Akire spun around and found three vampires entering the dojo. She was so distracted with Sam that she did not hear them come close. She quickly blocked the boy from their view.

“This boy is mine. I don’t want any trouble.” She calmly replied to the three men in long jackets just like hers.

“Seeing as there is only one of you and three of us, I think you don’t have the rights to stake claim. Besides, you’re blind –you can’t do anything to hurt us.”

Akire was used to small gangs just like these trio. She had met and battled with a few of their kind in her travels. They were not masters, more like low class vampires as their sires were just regular humans turned by underlings and not by ancient ones.

“Leave now and there will be no trouble!” Akire wished she really had eaten before heading to the dojo. She felt a little bit weak but dispatching these three losers should not require that much energy. She felt the Katana vibrate, excited to feel action again.

“No, I think we’ll stay and feast!” She heard the rustling of the coat just before the vampire on the left side of the leader move. She grinned and raised her fist just in time. 

The vampire met her fist and he flew all the way out of the dojo. The jacket flapped opened and she heard him scream as daylight finished him off.

“Really, you guys should know better than fight a blind vampire in broad daylight.”

She moved an inch and grabbed Sam by the arm. She tucked him to her side, making sure that the other two did not have a chance to grab him and use him as bait.

The other two vampires advanced and Akire listened with her ears. She was sure that the vampire who was silent was the strongest. The one who talked a lot was the decoy, a follower.

She shifted and put the boy behind her so that she could have both hands free. The little guy was trembling but she was proud that he was not sniveling. 

“Stay close.” She whispered. His grip on her jacket told her he understood. In fact, she had the feeling that Sam knew exactly what to do because of experience.

The vampire nearest her lunged and she quickly sidestepped even before he moved. She brought her foot up just in time for the vampire to run into it. 

He grunted and fell to the floor. She moved closer and delivered another blow to the creature’s back. He howled in pain.

She turned around just in time to catch the other vampire by the neck. He tried to lunge at her throat while she was distracted with the other one.

She gripped the other vampire’s neck but he was strong. He was able to break free and had enough time to lash out at her. 

Akire felt her hood fall back and the vampire’s nails scraped through her face. Her blood started oozing out. Great! She was hungry and the wound was not healing fast enough since she lacked blood.

“You’ll pay for that!” She hissed. She backed into the corner so that Sam was wedged between her and the wall. If any of the vampires advanced, she would be able to handle them face to face with nobody getting past her.

She unsheathed her katana blade and it hummed. No more playing around. She was starting to feel a little bit woozy. 

She could hear Haito chastising her about feeding and not missing a meal. She would probably say, “Do you want what happened the last time you went on a diet, to happen again?”

Akire shook her head. No, she did not want that to happen again. It was something she had willed her mind to blot out. Ever since that night, she was even more determined to feed on human blood with discipline.

The vampire she put to the ground was already getting up. The sword in her hand hummed like a well-tuned instrument. She had to be more precise than usual because she did not have enough strength to risk a mistake. Not when Sam was going to be in danger.

If she lost Sam to these two thugs, it would feel like she failed Ouiji again. She would not dishonor her little brother that way. 

“Come and claim the little boy, then!”

She hissed, baring her fangs. The leader of the trio signaled the recently risen vampire and he lunged forward.

Akire slashed her weapon calmly upwards, twisted her wrist a little bit and found her mark.

The cut was nice and clean; she did not even move an inch. She just relished the sound of her blade slicing through the chest of her opponent; going upward to the neck and with the flick of her wrist, she beheaded the guy.

“So it’s true… The rumors circling around the vampire circles of a blind wandering creature are real. With a special blade that can cut through anything, even vampire tough skin”

“What do you mean?”

The stronger vampire, the one who slashed her face, laughed. He stopped advancing long enough to give her small talk.

“It seems like Charles Atkins has been expecting you for a very long time. Frankly, I don’t care about silly things like that. Except, I had always been curious about a vampire killing her own kind and not killing humans.”

Akire snorted. “You talk as if you have never been human! What do you know of Charles Atkins? Where is he?”

The vampire chuckled. “All I know is that he has his minions on a lookout for a blind, wandering vampire. Just my luck that I stumbled upon you in this filthy place. I bet there’s a reward for your head.”

“Tell me where I can find Atkins and I’ll spare your life!” Rage cursed through Akire’s veins. No wonder she could not find Charles! He always knew when she was getting too close. He was one step ahead of her.

The vampire laughed and pulled out knives of his own. He laughed, juggling the two daggers from each hand. He feinted to the left but Akire was able to read his vibrations.

She raised her Katana just in time to block the speeding dagger. Unfortunately, her wooziness made her move slower than usual and the second dagger managed to fine itself in between her should blade.

She gasped and fell on her knees. Damn it! She was able to move sideways as the other vampire lunged again for her throat. She found herself on her back, her Katana flung to the ground in front of Sam’s feet.

She gritted her teeth and used her hands to push the vampires face away from her neck. She needed to take the fight away from Sam so that he could escape.

She rolled to her side, taking the vampire with her. Both of them hissed as sunlight, seeping in between the broken beams, touched their exposed skins.

The sear of the sunlight hit her face and the back of the head of the other vampire. He howled and was able to fling himself backward towards the partition that offered a small shadow.

Akire hissed as the sunlight burned her slow healing scar on the face. She stumbled and was able to roll away.

She got to her feet, wobbling. She was in pain but her senses were all alert, ready for the villain’s next movement. She heard her Katana slide towards her just as the vampire sidestepped the streaming sunlight and lunge again.

She knelt to the ground, grabbed the blade and swiped upward into a wide arc. She smiled in satisfaction as she heard bones crunch as her sword rang true.

Yes, her Katana had been reinforced with silver and platinum steel. She realized that silver was not only deadly to werewolves but also strong enough to slice through vampire skin, which was stone hard but not entirely invulnerable. Platinum helped make it even sturdier.

She listened as the upper torso of the vampire fell just under one of the sunlit area of the dojo and it burst into flames.

Once she knew for sure that he was ash, she slumped forward and grabbed the hilt of the dagger. Apparently, his was also reinforced.

Too bad she could not get him to talk. She would have gotten something about Charles Atkins. 

“Are you all right?”

She remembered Sam. She wanted to make sure he was okay but he sounded so far away. She strained with her ears but suddenly; a black shadow was closing in on her.

She tried to stand up but she could not move. She could hear him calling her name. She tried to stay awake. Ouiji! I’m fine! I’m here! 

She felt the sun burning her skin as she stumbled forward. For a split second she thought she was going to die but before she could scream in pain, everything went black.