Desire To Kill (#1 in The Hybrid Wars series)

Chapter 2 ~ Elders

© 2013 by Authorninja. All rights reserved. 

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Chapter 2 ~ Elders

"Blaire!" Charlotte was shouting after me, her English accent rang through my ears.

"Blaire, wait!" She repeated and reached for my arm.

"What?" I snapped, jerking my arm away from her grasp. "Are you going to give me another lecture?" I turned to face my friend. We were on our way home, and I had told Charlotte everything.

She sighed, rolling her almond-shaped grey eyes. "Blaire, stop being so dramatic." I stared at her as she flipped her long copper curls behind her shoulder. I scoffed and carried on walking.

"Okay, I know it may have been a mistake but he deserved it," I began, deciding I should at least try to argue my case. "I saw him torture those humans." I paused for a second and then added, "He didn't seem to be a part of the rebellion."

"You don't know that for sure, boss," she countered, fighting to make a point.

"I know, I know." A sigh escaped my lips. "I acted impulsively, but trust me, he was one of the worst leeches I'd ever seen. I'm telling you, Charlotte, he didn't give those humans any mercy." I shuddered slightly at the memory. It wasn't the first time I'd seen such a sight. One could even say I was used to it by now, but even so, I would never just stand by and accept it.

I looked back at her. "Keep all of this between the two of us, okay?" And then under my breath, I muttered, "The last thing I need is to have the Elders on my back." But even as I said it, I knew that I was going to tell them anyway. I just needed to leave out a few details—like how I hadn't bother to question him.

She nodded in understanding. "I get it. You've had enough stress as it is, Blaire. I won't cause you more trouble." And with that she walked away, probably headed to the forest to shift into her animal form. I gave a sigh, wishing I could do the same.

Out of everyone on the team, Charlotte was the one I was closest to; I considered her a best friend—when we were off duty, anyway. I was close with the other two members as well, but I'd trusted Charlotte ever since I was little, and that was probably why she would be the only one on the team to know that I hadn't questioned the Vampire.

It's not as if we weren't permitted to kill the Vampires; but with rumours of an upcoming rebellion flying around, we were ordered to question as many Vampires as we could before doing the killing. If that didn't work, we were instructed to bring them to the Base, a place that was basically our home.

My mind replayed the events in the torture chamber. How I had walked into a dark room that appeared to be a mere shed, but I could smell human blood being spilt from miles away. How I had known perfectly well what was going on behind those doors before I went in. I saw how the humans were chained by their feet to the walls as I entered, sobbing for mercy—his mercy. Only one of them was moving, resting in his arms. The other four looked drained and sick with blood painted across their necks. I knew I was too late to save them, but I wasn't going to let him get away with it.

Vampires were the most gruesome of all creatures. They had next to no pity for humans and even less for shapeshifters. The rivalry between vampires and shapeshifters had gone over for years. I had no idea how definite it actually was, but throughout history there weren't any times where the two groups agreed.

We called them leeches because of their sole reason of existence—blood sucking. They sucked blood and that was about the only thing they did. They were toxic, killing life everywhere they went.

I sighed, shaking the memory out of my thoughts, and called the Elder's House. Rachel, the office manager picked up, which didn't surprise me, as she was the one who always answered the calls.

"Hello?" I heard her serious voice say. She was the ears for the Elders, and was vitally important, unlike the usual mortal secretary. She knew all the secrets of the Hybrid world, despite being a human. Although there were few humans who knew about us, she was one of select who could be trusted. She came from a long family line of humans who had helped shifters throughout their entire lifetime. Rachel was practically raised in order to help us.

"Rachel, it's Blaire," I said.

"Hello, Blue Blood. What is your update?" she inquired.

I hated it when people called me Blue Blood. I sighed, but didn't mention it. "Another Vampire killed. It's name was Peter Slanderer."

She stifled a gasp. "Slanderer? You killed off one of the Vampire Elders?"

I could see why she was surprised. The act of killing an Elder held too much meaning—it could cause a war. Elders—which both Shifters and Vampires had—were considered the highest of people among the community. They were the strongest of their kind; which was why it was so shocking how easily I could kill Peter. Leeches, like us, were a hierarchy.

"Yeah," I replied blankly. "He was the nephew of the Emperor of the leeches, Thomas Slanderer. He's the son of the second-in-charge. He had a torture chamber back in Churchwood. He seemed to have picked a nice, quiet spot to kill off some humans, too." I hoped she couldn't tell that I was seething with anger.

"Did you get any information?" She whispered, and I knew what she meant. Anyone who was a shifter, or had any relations to our kind, likely knew of the uprising that had been foreseen.

"No," I replied solemnly. "He didn't seem to know about it, and personally, I think that if he had any involvement with the uprising, he wouldn't have been feasting in some little town. He would've been in their Headquarters, planning the next attack. I'm not completely sure if any of the Vampires even know about the uprising that they will create." I was being truthful. It all seemed a little ironic that the shifters knew of the war before the leeches.

The line filled with static as she sighed. "It's bound to happen. The Lady herself foresaw it." Her voice got quieter as she spoke, and I could sense her fear. Even though she was a human, she had been present when the Lady foresaw the prophecy. No human should ever be present when the Lady revealed a prophecy. It was a frightening sight.

I waited for her to speak some more, but she remained silent, probably reliving the memory of that moment. I snapped her back. "Rachel, just tell the Elders that I'm trying my best."

She cleared her throat. "I have more to tell you. The council has debated. They decided that it would be wisest to hit the leeches at their core. It's the only way they see to avoid the war."

My mouth dropped at this proposition. "You're not saying what I think you're saying."

"Indeed I am," she confirmed. "The council will send you more information soon. I sincerely hope your troop can accomplish this." Rachel had a hint of doubt in her voice at the end, which annoyed me. I huffed out a "fine," ending the conversation, and hung up. I wasn't in the mood to have an argument with a human over the phone.

I walked slowly, my mind swirling with thoughts, but as I reached the forest, I started to run, rushing to get to the Base.

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(A/N)

Dedicated to Alyx for the amazing trailer on the top