"Frozen Windows II" by Meghan Engele (Apocalypse)

Chapter 2:

Amber.

He remembered the previous time a being was located and looked after. He remembered the wait for the age of maturity, and he remembered even clearer, the day he had been assigned to retrieve her, the half-vampire Amber.

It had been a cold night, cooler then it had been in a long time, nearly forty years. He could see his breath more clearly then the gravel road or the maples on either side of the road. The slow plodding steps of the quarter horses were all that made a sound in that night over three hundred years ago. A fog had risen in the last hour of his journey. It had been quite unnatural, quite suspicious, given his task.

Amber had to be moved to a manor out in the country with friends of the leading clan, in order to keep her and the knowledge of her existence out of the reach of the rebellion clans. If they simply just knew where she was, the results for the clan could be disastrous; a war could break out and kill their already dwindling population. He snorted; the rebellion clans would kill them all if they had the chance. The ruling clan couldn't risk having Amber exposed, moved into a highly populated area, or even spoken about among them. Vampire and human spies were everywhere nowadays, and they had been before, not to mention there other problem. Vampires from every clan were being killed for over-feeding, they, he, was hunted by the humans. If the humans had the capacity to know what power Amber had, far fewer of them would be left in existence, far fewer indeed.

"Darien, we are coming upon the house with…" The vampire held his tongue, there was no need for him to finish his sentence. He didn't even turn from the horses he was guiding.

If anything, Darien decided, his driver was tenser about this then he was already. In reality, he had little to worry about. He had retrieved the previous half-vampire, a male, and it went smoothly. Of course, he had chosen to pursue being human, not wanting to become the demons the early Christians had cut them out to be. That was why he was here, retrieving Amber. His man hadn't gone on any of the missions regarding vampire secrecy, much less ones including the beings. He was reeking of fear, yet of anticipation as well. Only very, few were even considered for this type of task, it didn't matter to Darien if he went alone, but he knew the power of the half-vampire too well already.

Darien gazed off into the fog, just as thick, if not more thick then it had been before. The vampire, being a great enthusiast of learning, knew a bad omen when he saw one. The chill in his being told him that this had to be worse.

"Someone is coming." Darien breathed into the other vampires' ear "Marc, stop the horses." Marc made no move to stop the horses, but once Darien slid off the cart, they stopped obediently, snorting at this delay.

"Sir we are not to stop." Darien glared a warning to Marc; he knew his orders better then those who wrote them. They were, don't wait, don't stop, and don't get close. This was a loophole though, something was coming, a great force. "What is it?" Marc inquired.

Darien held a finger out to Marc, and closed his eyes. It was like nothing he had ever felt before, and power like no other was approaching. The very essence of power and the will to use it is what it seemed to be. It could only be Amber; there was no other explanation.

"Amber, but why? Marc, turn it around." Marc looked incredulously at him, as if Darien was completely insane. "Now!" Darien growled, there was far too much incompetence from this one lately. He would have to mention him to the High Seat for training.

Marc snapped into obedience and guided the horses into a u-turn on the road.

"Be ready to leave." Darien warned.

It was getting closer, whatever it was, Amber, was almost here. The consistent fall of horses' hooves pounded the earth. He could hear her now. Heavy breathing of the horses waiting beside him, and the horse approaching meant only one thing.

Suddenly, through the mist burst a black shimmering stallion, on his back a beautiful woman in a red dress, with a black necklace. It was Amber, but she was gone now. She looked at him like she knew something, knew he was a vampire, and what was chasing her,

Four vampires stepped out of the fog before him. They were of the rebel clans, and they knew about Amber.

"It is beyond us to lie to our own, vampire of the ruling clan, and retriever of the beings. Neither of us wills she serve, neither will she turn to the humans. Amber is beyond our reach, and yours as well." The vampire left with a bow back into the fog with the others.

They wouldn't try to kill him, or Marc. He knew him, an old friend, and one that wouldn't lie if he had the chance. Now, he had to report back, daylight would come soon, and he had no time to retrieve Amber, not anymore. She was so beautiful, and elusive.

For years, he had tried to catch her. For years, he had failed. In light of these events, he wasn't killed. Instead, he was allowed to live, only to find every being, retrieve every being, and train every being to come to there side regardless of their choice to become human. He thought he was lucky, but soon he realized that the chain would never end, they would keep coming, and he would live forever.



*



When she woke up, her sight was hazy, blurred so much that she couldn't make out anything other than color. Everything was dark though. After a minute or so, her sight began to focus, despite her inability to move.

All she remembered was storming outside into the rain, and screaming her lungs out. Then the vampire from the ballroom came and knelt before her. She was exhausted, and fell limp on the ground. It was funny though she didn't feel wet.

Aillen shot up. She was in a dimly lit room with wooden walls that had a smooth dark stone above them with darker swirls. All the windows were draped with a heavy dark material. If there were any light, Aillen had the feelings that none would penetrate the curtains. She was in a soft bed, but it wasn't her own, and it seemed as if she had just been placed on it. Still, she wore the dress, and it still was as magnificent as ever.

A click at the door grasped her full attention. In came Mrs. Cady, but she didn't see Aillen anywhere.

"Aillen, I have a different dress for you." She said somewhat slowly, without closing the door behind her.

Aillen watched her maid wander into the room.

"Who are you?" She finally asked, appearing out of the shadows behind the door.

Mrs. Cady didn't even make a move to look at her. She was scared, Aillen realized, but why.

"I am your maid, now…"

"Wrong answer Cady. You know what I mean. The vampires, who are you to them? An ally, a protector, food?" She wasn't at all polite. The last bit she said was dripping with malice.

Aillen stood unmoving as her maid turned ever so slowly. It was almost sickening to find that Cady was a horrible actress.

"Why Miss Aillen, I have no idea what you mean."

Aillen flashed across the room. Her maid was on the floor before she could stop herself.

"That was by far the most incorrect reply,"

For a second she regarded her maid. Was she a friend, or just tomorrow's appetizer?

"Or do I have it completely wrong?"

Aillen crept out of the room. The halls were luxurious; a soft material lined the walls with a solid dark wood beneath. Pictures of people, no, vampires lined the walls. Portraits of women, men, and family pictures. Beneath them, all were dates.

Curiosity made her stop at one of a woman, one she had seen shortly at a ball. She was with the vampire who had spoken to her in her room. Her face was straight, stern, and unforgiving; her posture was erect, almost like stone. Below it read:



Akira Daenaros

1632-1652



Aillen pondered the dates. They were probably to mark when any human was turned into a vampire. The rest was scratched off. Aillen spun on her heel. The portrait of the vampire she spoke with in her room stared at her with unmoving eyes. He seemed no different then how she had seen him before. Only in the portrait, he was more proper, and didn't look like a leather loving biker. Aillen grinned to herself. He didn't look that bad, for a vampire.

Quick short footsteps to her right caught her off guards. There was nowhere to hide, only the door to her room, so she just moved to the next picture. In addition, they were coming, why go to them and waste the energy. Moreover, this picture caught her eye more then any portrait could.

There was a battle, vampire fighting with every sort of weapon. They were killing each other. A red sun was rising, and what looked like an army was arriving. Amidst it all was a woman in a red dress, her red dress, the one she was wearing, and the black stone necklace. It was pulsing light, so powerful that it hid her face. Such detail…

"We have only begun to decipher the meaning of it you know."

Aillen shot up, not out of fear though. She was leaning so far into the painting that she was close to losing her balance.

"It's a battle." Aillen said simply, avoiding the vampires' gaze effortlessly.

"It is a special battle. Now, come, we have much to talk about." He wasn't forceful in the least. Aillen assumed that he didn't want to make her angry as he had before. He was trying to be careful, too careful.

"I can talk here." Aillen looked him in the eye noticing only that he had changed his clothes. Now, he was wearing a black loose-buttoned shirt, which tucked into his black jeans. "What do you want to talk to me about?"

The vampire seemed taken off guard, if only for a second. What was he anxious about? Was he scared of her, or could there be others who would listen in on there conversation?

"I can't afford to let any information find its way into prying minds, Aillen. I still must speak to you though, you have some decisions to make, and some learning to do." He replied smoothly, somehow getting his point across and keeping it there.

"How do I know you won't use me?"

"I will not."

"Prove it."

"I can't if you will not follow me!"

Aillen remained unmoved; he had a point, a small one. It would have to do though; perhaps there was something to be had here. The vampires' eyes flared with impatience.

"You need some help." She stated sarcastically after a moment of looking at him.

"You blew my help out of a mansion."

"He deserved it." Aillen said simply, with a smile.

"He is still unconscious."

"I still don't know your name."

The vampire opened his mouth, and then shut it as quickly as it fell.

"Stop changing the subject then."

"Well then tell me your name." Aillen looked at him, her eyes calm and serene, yet amused. She held a grin on her fae trained to keep from laughter.

"Will you come?"

"Will you tell me your name?" It was the same thing as yes, but she really didn't care if he knew that or not.

"Darien."

"That's better." Aillen said, sounding, if only slightly like a mother who's kid just mouthed off at her then began talking politely after she tuned him in.

Darien just looked expectant.

"Okay, to reply your next repetitive question, I will follow you. Then I will talk to you about whatever the hell you want to talk about, okay?"

"That sounds promising." Darien replied, as he turned to go back the way he came.

"What's promising?" Aillen mumbled. "Hey, wait up. You don't think I could get a pair on jeans and a t-shirt do you?"

Darien didn't look back when he spoke.

"I had your wardrobe brought from you grandparents mansion. There is a room set up for you the way we are going. After I speak with you, we will go there. Do not ask any more question until we reach the," He stalled. "Room."

Aillen grinned, and directed her attention to the paintings. These ones had long descriptions beneath them, where there were scratch marks on the other two.

Soon, Darien stopped at a set of double doors. There was a beautiful wooden bench vertical to them, with a light built into the wall that lit the area dimly.

Darien walked into the room, and closed the doors behind Aillen. He drew a delicate key from his pocket and locked to door. The lock and key looked fickle, but it sounded like the lock itself ran through the entire door. There would be no getting out of it, not easily anyway.

She turned from the door to face the room. A vast library faced her, four rows of books the reached all the way up to the ceiling which was more then twenty feet high, and reaching so far to the left and the right that she couldn't see because there were no candles. Straight ahead, there was a fair sized wooden desk, with a computer and working light. Behind the desk were windows that reached higher then the bookshelves, and curved the top to create a massive window. Outside, it was dark, there were no stars out, and no moon for that matter either. There were thick curtains tied to either side of the window that went all the way to the top. Again, Aillen had the feelings that no light what so ever could penetrate the thick fabric.

"The library. It is said that every book that has been written is here, including those of our past, and the humans, down to the last detail possible for each chronicler."

Aillen just stared. Never had she seen such a plethora of books. In fact, the word plethora seemed to be an understatement of how many books lined the shelves in this one room.

"Come sit down."

"How many are there?"

Darien popped a comical glance at her. "Why not take a guess." It wasn't a question, or a suggestion, but Aillen got the feeling that she would be very incorrect.

Aillen whistled. "200000."

"For every shelf there are about that many. In total there are over a million." He replied, amused at her clearly poor estimate.

Still drowning in the library itself, Aillen barely heard him. There were over a million books in here. With them were so much knowledge, and so much to learn. Myths and legends, to fact, and it were all in this room.

Suddenly a little alarm clock in her mind chimed urgently. She wasn't here to marvel at books a century old, she was here because…because Darien had brought her here.

"What do you have to talk to me about?" Aillen demanded suddenly.

The vampire glided around the desk, and sat down. Aillen suppressed her bubbling anger with difficulty. She didn't know why she was angered, because the only thing in her mind was Darien not replying to her. Aillen sat in the chair facing the windows, and stared blankly at Darien, hoping he wouldn't say something stupid that would break her calmness.

"I will be very blunt with you, Aillen. You are a half vampire, the only one to come into existence in 317 years. Your guardians, and every other being in their mansion is our ally; our guardians when we cannot go." He smiled subtly, but didn't stop. "The ruling clan, my clan, has been searching for the half vampires since they existed. We helped them adjust to either aspect of themselves. The two aspects are human, and vampire. If any of your kind were to choose to become human, we would teach them how to forget the vampire half of them. If they choose to ally with the vampires," He paused uncertainly. "We teach them everything we know."

Darien didn't emphasize the word 'everything' so she likely wouldn't have to worry about hunting her next meal. Aillen shivered at the thought, she was thinking about killing. It was this place, this vampire, and this entire situation.

Aillen struggled to keep herself under control. It was difficult. She couldn't concentrate on anything. Thoughts flashed in her mind. Confusion swallowed reality, and anger engulfed confusion. Darien became a mere shadow in her mind, behind a veil of darkness. Then, that was all there was, darkness, and darkness' pains. She was falling; deep down into her until she could see nothing, the essence of what is not.



*



Aillen stood up, her limbs were numbed, and her hair was stiff and frosty. Every move she made sounded like a thundering echo that couldn't be heard. It sounded every time as if it was a thousand miles away.

Where am I?

Strangely enough, Aillen's thought echoed towards her through the darkness. She didn't notice. To her, this was as natural as speaking, here.

Then the thoughts came back, flooding, coming through the darkness like screens before her. Aillen studied them absently, and without interest. She had seen them all before, somewhere.

Walking on through the screens, she heard voices. They were indecipherable, but she didn't care either way. The voices whispered to her, then seemed to merge into one. This one she could understand.

Aillen?

She barely heard it.

Aillen?

It was such a familiar sound.

Aillen?

Aillen stopped suddenly, she knew who it was.

AILLEN!



*



"Aillen answer me." Darien shook Aillen frantically, he didn't know why this was happening.

Perhaps she was past the age. He banished that thought. A being was never found past the age, if they had been, then it went smoothly or the vampire in charge of the situation had kept the situation hushed. This wasn't good though. He could tell.

Aillen bolted upright, nearly sending Darien backwards across the library. She panted hard, but to Darien, this was something different.

When he felt the previous being Amber, there was power, such that had never before existed. Now, he felt it in Aillen, something ancient, something elusive, but powerful. He could only stare at her, and hope she wouldn't run, for he stood no chance if she did. Amber had killed eight vampires at once before she took her horse and rode. No, he would be no match for Aillen either, or the power pulsing from her.

"I know what it means. I know what they are. I know who she is." Aillen muttered absently between breathes.

Darien paced around her, making an effortless effort, which he didn't need to remain perfectly silent. She didn't stop saying that, not once. What could she be talking about? Why did she faint like that in the first place? He walked around her, afraid to go near her until she muttered herself to exhaustion.



*



When she woke, Aillen was in the same room. It was dark, almost black save the candles scattered on whatever they could be. Aillen didn't need them though, she could see just fine, even better without them.

Then, she remembered it, the screens, the voices, and then finally 'her' voice. Whatever else happened she didn't really remember, but she knew what they were now.

The screens,

"My memories."

The voices,

"All of them speaking to me."

The woman's voice,

"Amber."

Aillen didn't know where the name came from or how. The voice spoke to her, but she vaguely remembered what it said.

The door shot open, it was Darien. The thoughts, the memories, they flooded into her. All of them were hostile to him for one reason or another. Aillen buried them with difficulty; she needed to hold onto reality. If she went asleep again, she may not wake. Darien may be her only key to getting answers. Even getting answers would take time though.

"You didn't tell me about your maid." It wasn't a question; it was a demand for explanation. He was asking for one, but not literally.

"You didn't ask about her until now." Aillen stated, groggily forcing herself off the bed, trying not to snap from the pressure the memories were giving her. They all hated him.

Darien didn't budge.

"I need to take you to see someone, without delay." Aillen rolled her head around to look at the vampire. She was weak, and he knew it. "I can't help you with that." He said with way too much care in his voice. Then a look of shock came over him, and he balled his fists. "First, I must have your answer. Will you follow…"

"Vampire." Aillen breathed.

"Yes I know I am…"

Darien flew to the other side of the room. He was stuck to the wall about a foot up. The memories were still buried, but the voices didn't stand incompetence.

"Vampire. I will pursue the way of the vampire." Irritably, Aillen let Darien fall to the ground. It was difficult; so far, she controlled them, the memories, and all the others.

Darien was shocked, appalled, and even more frightened. Such power, and now, she was in the hands of the ruling clan. Now, he could be free, if the next step fell into place perfectly.

"There is no turning around now. You will find a change of clothes in the closet. Don't leave one item of what you have on now, on, take it all off and be ready quickly." Darien left the room quickly, and closed the door.

Aillen stood with difficulty, and hobbled over to the closet. She had just thrown Darien across the room! The thought, she ignored as soon as it entered her mind. She had to change.

Inside the closet, there were many dresses. There was a sleek black one with sparkles for parties. Ones like hers for balls, simple ones for just being around, and strange fancy ones as well for something equally awkward. After a moment of looking at each one, Aillen found what she was looking for, anything but a dress.

She had found a pair of black leather pants, a black skintight t-shirt, and a jacket that went down past her knees to match the pants. Below it, were a pair of high heeled, knee high boots. All of it fit nicely, nothing was too big or too small. The boots made her another two inches taller.

Then Aillen went into the bathroom. It wasn't fancy or anything, just decent. There were assortments of makeup scattered throughout the room. She located them all before even considering looking at herself in the mirror. When she did look it the mirror, she found that her mascara and eyeliner had long since been washed away. Aillen shrugged and hastily ran the liquid black eyeliner along her eyelids, then applied the mascara. Before she left, Aillen took a brush to her hair, but soon became frustrated.

"Fine then, be a pain. I have better things to do with you, and my time." Aillen found a pain of scissors and snipped her hair of in long cuts about shoulder length.

"That's better." She said, running the brush through her hair.

Aillen heard her door open leading to the main room. This Darien was in a very big hurry. Perhaps she had taken enough of his time already that he wouldn't say that she had to wear a dress. Aillen smiled as she made for the door, he couldn't make her do anything. The voices told her so. They whispered to her about power, but who's, they wouldn't reveal.