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ong, long ago, not long after the world first began, in a land that exists now not even in stories, there lived a group of nomads. The nomads were an intelligent and peaceful people, with a kind and generous monarchy. The head of the monarchy were the king and queen, and they had a small son, who was much beloved among the people. The nomads lived happily for many years, but one day they came to a place that was occupied by something much older and fouler than mankind- An evil race of creatures, whose name has long been forgotten.
One night, the nomad’s camp was raided by the creatures, and when they emerged from the chaos, they found that the thing most precious to them had been taken- their beloved prince. Enraged, the nomads followed after the creatures, only to find that they had misjudged their numbers fatally. A war ensued, one that lasted for many, many years, and one that no being, human or otherwise, would emerge from alive. Least of all a young and forever changed prince.
Too many years to count later, a reclusive and eccentric billionaire living in Renaissance Italy became infatuated with a young brilliant painter, and the second vampire in the world was created.
When a ship of vampires crossed the Atlantic and first settled in America, the world was changed forever, and when a beautiful female vampire gave birth to the child of a man in a richly decorated room where pale men in black suits stood by the walls and whispered amongst each other, the thing that was a vampire would never be the same.
And when a young doctor with ash-blonde hair, and wide black sunglasses stepped off a plane in London and hailed a cab to the train station, a vampire named Blade was thinking about the consequences of actions, and a young woman with a stake tucked into her belt was thinking about something that she had seen in the garden of a mansion as a child, and slowly convincing herself that it wasn’t what she had seen at all, because it was easier than considering the alternative.
This thing came with the original page layout and Blade has demanded that I keep it because it amuses him. Anyway, this is the Kama story. It shall be long and epic. Maybe.
July 2nd, 1985, Southern USA
“I want to show you something Maria. But you have to promise not to tell anyone.”
“Okay.”
“I’ve never shown anyone else before. I could get in trouble. You have to promise.”
“Okay, Kama. I promise. What is it?”
Maria leaned impatiently over, strawberry waves of hair falling loosely around her round, five-year old face. Kama was standing in front of her, his small slender hands clasped together, as if hiding something, his curly blonde hair flyaway and his blue eyes wide and serious. He said nothing.
“Come on, Kama.” Wheedled Maria, “I promise I won’t tell anyone, ever. Show me what you’ve got.”
“It’s not something I have, Maria.” Said Kama in his ‘grown up voice’ that always served to annoy her, “It’s something I am.”
He backed away from her slowly heading towards the tall stone wall of the garden. It was midday, and the sun beat strong and hot over the grounds of the Caraway Mansion. Kama was flinching slightly from its light. He had always been sensitive to bright lights.
Kama’s back hit the wall, and he stopped and turned around. It took Maria a few moments to realize that he was finding a grip on the wall, placing his feet solidly on the ground below, and wriggling his small hands into the cracks in the brick wall.
“Kama, no!” she gasped, “My Momma says we’re not allowed to climb the wall! She says it’s dangerous!” This had never stopped Maria, of course, but Kama had never gone near the wall. He never did anything dangerous, just watched from afar with a keen eye, as if he were judging how well Maria could climb, how high she could jump.
“Maria!” His back was to her, his hands clenched against the wall, his knees bent and his small frame ready- ready for something. Maria didn’t know what.
“I need you to watch.” He said, “I need you to watch very closely.”
Maria nodded, forgetting for a moment, that she was behind him, the sun was beating in her eyes, and bouncing brilliantly off Kama’s blonde head. She stared for a moment, dazzled, and then Kama jumped.
He jumped higher than she had ever seen anyone jump before, except maybe on tv, and in a few seconds he had reached the top of the wall, and was standing there, staring at her. Maria stared, her mouth open in shock. Then Kama jumped again, and she lost sight of him, and then he was behind her, and she was whirling around, a delighted squeal dying on her lips as she saw the look on his face.
“Maria, it’s not funny. This is serious, you understand?” He grabbed her shoulders and suddenly she was afraid of him- afraid of the strength in his hands as they dug into her shoulders, and afraid of the wild, fierce look on his face. He shook her lightly, and repeated, “You understand?”
She nodded, dumbstruck, and then gulped, “Yes, Kama, I understand. I won’t tell nobody, ever. I promise.”
Kama made her pinky swear, and then they went off to play in the sandbox behind the house.
Three days later, Maria’s mother died. Kama’s father hired a new housekeeper to live in the little house next to the garden, and Maria went to live with her father in England. She and Kama cried when she left, and for a long time, they never saw each other again.
March 18th, 2008, Russia
It was stupid, thought Maria. Stupid to believe anything that she thought she had seen as a child. She could have dreamed the entire episode. It could have been a detailed fantasy that she and Kama had come up with that had somehow wormed itself into actual memory. How else could she explain what she thought she had seen- a six-year old boy displaying abilities that were less acute, but still bestly attributed to a vampire child.
It had been day, she reminded herself firmly. She remembered nothing more clearly than the blinding rays of the sun that day, it’s scorching heat on her back, on Kama. Why was she even thinking about this? It had been over twenty years since she’d seen the boy, twenty years since she had been to America, twenty years since she had spoken with an American voice…
And what did she have to show for it now? Here she was, sitting in a dingy old hotel room, in a tiny village whose name she could barely pronounce, never mind speak the bloody language, chasing something that she was pretty sure hadn’t even come this way, but here she was anyway, because she didn’t have any other bloody leads.
What do I have to show for it? She thought, falling backwards onto the patchwork quilt and staring up at the brown wooden ceiling. Well, I’ve killed a few vampires.
More than a few. She had lost count around her seventeenth birthday. She remembered the latest one she had killed- A big, bloated thing, more animal than human anymore. She doubted that the Mortali’s would have been able to control something like that. They’d probably kill thank her for killing it, if she gave them the chance.
The Mortali’s. The organized and ruthless society of vampires, led by Mortali himself. It was perfectly well-known that the society was based in England. It was finding them that was the problem. And the reason that Maria was all the way up in Russia, following an expelled vampire with a death threat on it’s head, in hopes of capturing one of their own, and forcing information out of it.
Her father had always said Find the nest and you scatter the colony, but Maria wanted to do much more than just scatter the vampires. If she had her way, every vampire on the planet would be on its back with a stake in it’s heart. She planned to hunt them to extinction for what they had done to her, to her father.
She was jolted out of her brooding by a knock on the door. Without waiting for an answer, the door opened, and a large woman appeared, shuffling slightly and fiddling with her apron.
“Miss.” She said in heavily accented English, “They find man in village. Very sick. Like you say. You say I tell you. I take you to him, yes?”
Maria was off the bed in an instant. “Yes.” She said quickly, “Yes, please take me to him now.”
The woman nodded, and disappeared from the doorway. Maria paused only to grab her bag, and then was after her.
The woman led Maria through the small village, down a back alley, and into a small, crowded room. To the side lay a bed, and the object of the crowding. A man lay on a bed, asleep, or perhaps worse. Bent over him was another man, this one with a hat, and a long coat. He was inspecting the body, and appeared to be a doctor.
Maria pushed her way forward, until she was standing next to the doctor, and looking down at the man. The victim. It was obvious. The pale face, sunken eyes, and there- she reached forward to touch the two small puncture wounds on the man’s neck. There was an audible murmur from the surrounding crowd. A few women made cross motions across their breasts. The doctor drew back, tucking a stethoscope into his jacket. Maria caught a glimpse of a young, pale face. Blue eyes.
“Net.” he said to the woman standing next to him, “He won’t live.”
The last statement was in English, and seemed somehow directed at Maria. The man stared at her for a few moments, then shifted away, and passed through the crowd towards the door. Instinctively, Maria followed him.
Outside it was sunny, dazzling after the darkness of the crowded hut. The doctor was leaning against the wall, his head down. Large sunglasses obscured his face. The sun was warm, but it did little in this harsh climate, and Maria had forgotten her jacket. She shivered slightly and leaned against the wall as well, although on the opposite side of the door from the man.
“Did you know him?” The question surprised Maria. The English was perfect, unaffected, American. Perhaps a bit southern, even.
Maria paused, unsure of how to answer. She didn’t know this American, and she didn’t trust him.
“Did you?” she replied, instinctively offensive.
The man shook his head. “I’m afraid not. I’ve been tracking his murderer.”
“Really?” Maria proceeded cautiously. She didn’t know how much this young doctor knew about what he was hunting, what he was getting himself into. “Are you a cop?”
The man seemed to find this amusing. “No.” he said, with a quick grin, “I’m just… trying to find some answers.”
“Well you won’t find any here. You’d best stay out of things, if you don’t know what you’re dealing with.” Maria had no idea why she was giving this American advice. What was it to her if he got his blood drained? Another lead, that was all.
She turned to leave, but the man stopped her. His grip was surprisingly firm on her bare arm. “Wait,” he said, “Do I know you?”
Maria spared a glance at his face as he slipped the glasses off. She had a moment of recognition, as if he was some actor she had seen in a movie long ago. His face was certainly memorable, and he looked more like a movie star than a doctor. With his pale, aristocratic features, and wide blue eyes, he looked much too young to be a doctor. He couldn’t be much older than Maria herself. But she didn’t know him.
“No.” she said quickly, “I don’t think so.”
The man seemed unconvinced. He stared at her for several seconds, his blue eyes boring into hers, and his grip on her arm firm, but not uncomfortable. For a moment he looked as if he was going to speak, but then he released her arm, and turned his gaze away.
“Well then.” He said at last, slipping his large glasses over his eyes once again, “What do you know about all this?”
Maria was instantly on the offensive again. What did he think gave him the right to pry into anything, foolish adventure-seeker that he was? “Enough.” She said sharply.
“You’re not being very helpful.” He replied, but it was an observation, not a retort.
“Why should I be? If I was going to be helpful I’d tell you to get the hell out of here before you get hurt, but you don’t seem like the type to listen.”
“No.” he said, “I’m not. So why don’t you tell me what you know, instead?”
“I told you, enough to track down this… killer and dispose of him. So don’t you worry your pretty little head about that.”
“I don’t want to dispose of him.” Said the man, “I want to talk to him.”
Maria snorted, “Then you’re even stupider than I though, if you think he’s going to stop long enough to talk to you before drinking…” She stopped. She hadn’t meant to imply that he was a vampire. Despite her occupation, she wasn’t fond of people treating her like she was crazy. The man didn’t seem to come to that conclusion though. On the contrary her comment seemed to intrigue him further. He leaned forward slightly.
“So you think it is a vampire, then.” He said seriously.
Maria sighed. This conversation definitely wasn’t going to be ending anytime soon if the young doctor had anything to do about it, and she was cold. Besides that now that she was talking to him, she was starting to feel that there definitely was something familiar about him, besides his accent.
“Look,” she said finally, “Why don’t you come back to my hotel, and we’ll talk there.”
The man nodded, and then extended a gloved hand to her. “My name’s Kama. He said, Kama Moore. What’s yours?”
December 31st, 1999, New York
“Kama! Oy, Kama!” The sound came from outside the thin dorm room door, and was familiar, if exasperating, “You can’t stay here all night studying, buddy! It’s the New Year! The turn of the century! All that jazz! You have to come partying with us!”
“Yeah, comeon, Kama,” the voice was female this time, sweet but commanding, “It’s semester turn around, there’s nothing to study! Come and have some fun!”
Kama stretched and went to the door. Opening it he announced firmly, “It’s not the turn of the century, you dolts, that’s next year. Also, I’m doing correspondence, if you guys were really my friends, you’d know that.” It was said jokingly, but in all seriousness, with every intention of closing the door directly after but he didn’t. Several of his friends stood crowded outside the door, all dressed up and ready to go out to party. Angel was there, her brown hair tied up playfully, and a killer black dress wrapped around her tiny frame. She smiled up at him and winked, obviously, as a direct reply to his ogling.
Derek jumped on him a moment later, grabbing him by the shoulders and dragging him out into the hallway.
“Come on Kama.” He said, “When you’re an old successful doctor with a beautiful wife and like, what, 10 kids? You’re gonna wanna look back at this night and think Yes sir, I got wasted with my friends and did not spend the night studying something that I had the rest of my life to learn. Right? Right?”
“Yeah…” said Kama, “Sure.” He didn’t bother to mention that Derek’s argument was pointless because the sight of Angel in her black dress had been plenty enough already to convince him to come.
Angel was drunk, and dancing with Kama, her arms flung casually in the air and her hips gyrating carelessly. Kama was torn between his determination to not take advantage of her in her inebriated state, and the desire to place his hands on her waist.
He hadn’t let himself get close to anyone in a long time, not since high school, when relationships were shallow and mystery was accepted. But a real relationship, trust, possibly love… Kama wasn’t sure he was ready for it. Would ever be. There was too much about himself that he didn’t know. Didn’t trust.
Still, it was a new year, as Derek had said- a new millennium. Maybe things could be different. Maybe if he allowed himself to put his arms around this beautiful girls waist, and touch his lips to hers, maybe it would be alright. Maybe a dark monster wouldn’t jump out of the night and drag him away by his legs and whisper to him be wary of who you get close to. Always remember that you’re different, Kama…
Kama shook his head, and backed up a bit. Feeling slightly intoxicated himself, he looked around for a source of water, and saw nothing but beer. Kama had never been drunk, thinking it would not be a wise choice to test himself like that, although he had a feeling that alcohol might have little to do with him. He stepped away from Angel, figuring she would be safe enough on the dance floor, and headed towards the French doors.
Outside on the balcony it was cooler, with only a few people enjoying the view, or else each other. The New York air lay heavy on the city, blurring the lights which faded out to the horizon. A siren pierced the ambient noise of the city, and Kama leaned on the railing, thinking about his life. When you’re old, with a beautiful wife, and ten kids… He had to laugh at that. More like when you’re old and live alone, working nights and trying to distance yourself from the rest of the world so that you don’t have to hide the fact that you’re different…
A sound diverted Kama from his self-admitted pity party, and he looked up to see a dark figure beckoning to him from the escape ladder that led to the roof. Closer expection revealed the figure to be Derek, grinning widely and furiously beckoning him.
Kama laughed and shook his head, but Derek was insistent. Finally Kama shook his head and jumped nimbly up onto the ladder, following his friend up to the roof. He deliberately made his movements awkward and he slid around the top of the ladder and jumped down onto the roof with his friend.
“Okay, Derek.” He said warily, but with a slight buzzed feeling from being so high up, “You got me to your party and now you got me on the roof, what are you going to do with me now?”
“Come on man, you know I don’t swing that way.” Laughed Derek and pulled a couple of beers out of his pack, “I just wanted to celebrate the New Year with my best buddy, who came all the way to the big apple with little old me. And you know, at the risk of sounding sappy, I wanted to thank you, for believing in me and all that.” He handed Kama a beer, and they sat for a few moments, enjoying the night air. “Well, also,” added Derek as an afterthought, “If you ever need any help, like, you know, if you want me to hook you up with Angel or anything…”
Kama laughed, and took his first ever sip of beer.
Suddenly, from below came a bloodcurdling scream, followed by several others. Kama jumped up and ran to the railing, sliding down the ladder faster than he even knew he could and burst into the apartment.
A girl in black lay on the floor, her legs and arms moving spastically, her brown hair flung wildly around her on the carpet and her eyes dull and shiny. The crowd stood in a circle around her, giving her a wide birth, but Kama ran to her on the floor, holding her struggling limbs down and trying vainly to get a response from her. His medical training came to him, but floated across the back of his head, unable to calm him to give him the answer he was looking for. A seizure, she was having a seizure and her head was bleeding, oh god she’d hit her head on the floor…
Finally the struggling stopped, and Angel’s head body fell limply to the floor. Kama hardly recognized the tears that fell from his eyes as he tried vainly to find a pulse, to revive her, pressing his lips to hers, but not in the way he had always imagined as the crowd stood around and watched helplessly, and someone called 911, and the sirens came closer and engulfed him and bored into his soul like a stake into his very being and ripping him apart. Then there was silence.
