Darkness Within - chapter 9 Outpourings of a compulsive writer

November 22nd, 2006 at 5:45 pm I thought vampires were created by other vampires?
Dream laughed. If that was the only way to make a vampire, where did the first vampire come from?

There are many ways to turn a human into a monster, Samantha.
What does this have to do with Bess? Sam asked, trying to get off the subject.

You said she was being possessed in an unusual way.
Oh, she is. You see, very few humans are willing to accept being turned.

Their nature is against it, and they reject the demon that s trying to change them. Bess is a typical human, and so would normally be immune to a vampire assault. She would reject it, and it would die.

However, your milk contains exactly the type of evil spiritual essence a vampire requires, and Bess drank the milk. So she s in a very unusual state: The first vampire you gave birth to, the demon implanted in Bess. She didn t reject it, because of your influence.

But she didn t accept it, because she s not evil. So the vampire is in an unstable state: It can t grow and devour Bess from within, but it won t die from starvation either. It s able to control Bess in many ways, though, and so long as she s feeding off you, she will continue to be mostly a vampire.

But she can survive in the sunlight and she can t stop feeding on you.
Sam shivered at the implication. So even if the demon dies, Bess will still keep me prisoner?

Yes. And keep you lactating, too. Bess doesn t want to, but the vampire in control of her does.

And eventually, the vampire will grow strong enough to consume Bess and become a full, true vampire. She ll be lost forever then.
So what do I do?

Sam asked helplessly.
Dream looked at her steadily. That s what I brought you here for.

In exchange for you performing a service for me, I can offer you the possibility, if not the certainty, of freedom.
How?
If you can stay free of the demon until dawn, he will be destroyed, Dream explained.

There is nowhere on Earth that he can find shelter from daylight, other than within you. All you have to do is keep him out until sunrise, and he ll be gone forever.
But he can always find me!

Sam protested.
Yes, he can. But he s not at the farm right now.

He s getting his newest child to a new human host. You have a head start.
He ll catch me again, Sam said with dismal certainty.

I know he will.
Not necessarily, Dream argued. Tell me, what do you know of a vampire s vulnerabilities?

They re killed by sunlight. . .

They don t like garlic. . .

they can t enter a house uninvited. . .

What about water? Dream prompted. Understanding dawned on Sam.

They can t cross running water! If he s got the same limit, I can get away from him! I just have to reach a river
He does have that limit, Dream said.

But do you know of any rivers nearby?
No, Sam said, hope fading. I don t know the area at all.

But you do know of one place where there s running water, Dream reminded her. It s how you arrived there.
Sam frowned for a moment.

Then: The sea! The ocean itself! If I can swim out to sea, I ll be beyond his reach!

Then that just leaves. . .

how do I get free of his leash? And will I have the energy, when I wake up?
I will give you the vitality to be able to run, Dream said, and break the leash.

Then I could do it, Sam marvelled. I could escape! And if I stay free a few days, Bess will become human again, and there ll be no risk of being recaptured ever again!

That s right. And all in exchange for one little service, Dream told her.
Good.

Then here is the task, Dream told her. You see my necklace?
Sam hadn t noticed it, but there was a small, dazzlingly-cut violet gemstone hanging from a thin golden chain on the Queen s neck.

It was beautiful.
This is not just a jewel, Dream explained. It s a magical object that grants its wearer certain power over dreams.

Its power has caused some upset in the Dreamworld, so I want it removed. If I could put it in the waking world, then it would be safe: Its power extends only to dreams. I want you to transport it there.

How? Do I just put it on and it ll come with me?
Don t be foolish, Dream said impatiently.

I told you, there is a gateway to a spiritual realm within your body. You must place the necklace into that realm, and it will be transported through you to the waking world.
Sam blinked in surprise at the idea.

But she had said she would do anything, after all. . .

How do I find the realm? she asked resolutely.
There is a gateway leading to it in the realm of nightmares, Dream told her.

I created it earlier. She gestured at the wall, and a doorway appeared, leading to a spiral staircase. Just go down there and put the necklace though the black doorway.

Then you can return to the waking world, and make your escape.
Alright, I ll do it, Sam said. Give me the necklace.

Dream slowly raised her hands to the necklace. So slowly she appeared almost reluctant to part with it. But she undid the clasp and held the necklace out to Sam.

You promise I ll escape? Sam asked as she took the necklace.
No, Dream reminded her, eyeing the necklace almost nervously.

I only promise that you CAN escape. It s up to you to make sure you DO.
I suppose that s going to have to be enough, Sam said resolutely.

If I can, then I will. She walked over to the door. I just go down these stairs and put the necklace through a doorway?

It s that simple?
Yes, Dream said, her eyes still fixed upon the necklace. Nightmares may try to distract you, but you re under my protection.

Ignore them, for they cannot touch you. As soon as the necklace is through, you will wake up. The sooner it s done, the more time you have to run.

Then I will go now, Sam said firmly. Thank you, Goddess, for your aid. I am most grateful.

Of course, Dream said. Now go, Samantha. Go!

She sounded quite emotional, and Samantha was nervous for some reason she couldn t quite understand. Hurriedly, she dropped a curtsy, and then turned and ran down the stairs.
Dream watched her go, a tear slowly leaking from one eye.

Go, she whispered again. Before I loose my resolve and call back the necklace that contains all my power.
Sam, beyond hearing, nevertheless obeyed and continued to run down the stairs.

At one point, she began to feel out of breath, until she reminded herself there was no air in dreams. She ran at full speed down the seemingly endless staircase, and the gleaming white stone became duller as she went down, slowly transitioning from marble to quartz, from quartz to chalk, from chalk to dull grey rock, and from grey to deep, dank black. As the staircase became dark and oppressive around her, Samantha arrived in the realm of nightmares.

A doorway was before her, but, frightened by the atmosphere of gloom and malevolence, she was almost too scared to step through it. Then she reminded herself of the horror that awaited her upon waking if she didn t hurry, and strode into the nightmares almost unconcerned.
The path was gritty, and there were black fields on either side, covered with some ebony weed.

The sky above was dark, and there were no stars in it. It was cold, and the wind was icy. Sam shivered as she hurried along.

Where was the door?
A creature leapt out of nowhere onto the path. It was vaguely human, but hideously ugly and deformed.

It stretched its arms towards her, and moaned hungrily. Sam leapt backwards, and almost turned and ran. But the necklace in her hand reminded her of her task, and she checked her impulse to flee.

She had to go on!
She considered stepping off the path and walking around, but instinctively knew she must stay on the path. Dream s words came back to her: Ignore them, for they cannot touch you.

She took a deep breath, and forced herself to walk right into the arms of the thing. It vanished.
Heartened, Sam continued forwards.

The sound of a woman crying came to her, and she automatically turned towards it. She saw Bess, sobbing as a tiny, fanged infant pulled on strings tied around her arms and legs, forcing her to move against her will.
Please, miss, she cried out, get this thing off me!

Help me, miss!
Sam took a half-step towards her. Then she caught herself, and steeled herself to turn away.

Even if this WAS really Bess, she would be free if Sam succeeded. And if she failed, then they were both done for. She forced herself to walk on, her eyes fixed on the path.

She ignored all further sounds, and continued along the way until it broadened. Then she looked up, and saw what she had come for: A sphere, blacker than even the world of nightmares, hung in the air in front of her. There was a small golden door on its side, with a violet gemstone set in its centre.

This must be it, Sam thought. That s the Queen s colour, it seems. She reached out to the little door, and pulled it open.

The darkness it lead to was, if anything, darker than the outside of the sphere. Not wanting to think too much about what she was doing, she threw the necklace through and shut the door quickly behind it.
The gem in the door flared into incandescence.

Samantha awoke. She was on all fours, in her stable. But, for the first time, she was truly wide-awake.

Thank you, Goddess, she thought in gratitude. Then she stood, stiffly, her legs complaining at the unaccustomed position. The leash around her neck was still firmly affixed.

She tugged at it, but it would not come free. Alarmed, she pulled harder. It must come off, she thought frantically, She promised it would!

But it wouldn t budge.
Despairing, Sam looked wildly around the room. Was there something, some tool that could help her?

Her eyes were caught by a gleam on the floor. A necklace with a violet gemstone.
It came through!

Sam realised. She bent and picked it up. As she took it into her hand, the jewel flared with light for a moment, and her neck burned with heat.

Then the leash collapsed into dust, and she was free.
Delighted, but more terrified of capture than ever, Sam wasted no more time. Naked, without a possession in the world other than a necklace, she darted out of the stable.

It was still dark outside, the half-full moon giving scant illumination. How long have I got? she wondered, as she tried furiously to remember the path that had brought her to the farm.

How long?
She located what she was fairly sure was the right path, and began to jog along it. Having learnt her lesson from the previous time, she didn t run madly along, but jogged slowly and easily, gradually picking up the pace as her muscles warmed up.

As she ran, she was trying to work out the numbers in her head. It had taken them all day to walk from the sea to the farm, but she had been walking and exhausted from being very heavily pregnant. Now she was running, and not weighted down.

If she could continue to run the whole time, it was surely only a couple of hours away?
She was panting and slowing down when she reached the village. Her heart rose at the sight of it though: It was the same village that she had passed through on the way to the farm, she was sure.

That meant she was going the right way. She stopped at the well to drink and splash herself with the cold water. Then she walked up the hill and broke into a jog again.

More time passed. Exhaustion became sudden agony as her body seemed suddenly to loose all strength. She had heard her father s messengers sometimes talk about the Wall , something that happened to runners when they neared exhaustion.

She nearly gave up in agony, but her knowledge that this was the only chance of escape she would ever have kept her on her feet. She remembered those messengers saying that the Wall could be beaten, that a runner could keep going in spite of it, and she made herself keep running.
She could see through gaps in the trees that the sky was beginning to lighten in the east.

Dawn could not be far away. And she was still free! Without warning, she burst through a gap between two trees, and saw before her a pebbled beach, leading down to the grey, cold sea.

It seemed to her the most beautiful sight she had ever seen.
But the pink sky warned of dawn, and she knew the demon would be determined to catch her before then. More afraid now than at any point in her run, she scrambled down the slippery slope and, terror forcing her agonizingly tired limbs to continue working, hurried to the edge of the sea.

An inhuman roar of fury behind her made her stop and turn. The demon had just emerged from the trees, and was leaping down the beach towards her, its arms and legs elongating as it came.
Sam plunged into the icy water and floundered forward into swimming depth.

The demon could not enter the water, but if she wasn t far enough away, those long arms could reach in and drag her out of it. The instant she was in deep enough, she threw herself forward, cursing the waves that threatened to wash her back to shore. She kicked and thrust with her arms, forcing herself against the waves and tide, swimming as fast as she could away from the shore and the monster that was drawing ever nearer.

It reached the edge of the sea, and Sam saw with utter despair that she had failed: She was not far enough from the shore. The demon could still reach her. A sob of terror escaped her, and seawater flooded into her open mouth, making her choke and gag.

Fighting to breathe, she ceased her swimming, and the demon laughed as its hands reached for her.
But as she sank, the waves that had kept her from getting further out suddenly became her ally, as she was caught by an undertow. She was dragged under the water, and the demon missed.

And when she surfaced, spluttering and choking desperately for air, she was further away from the shore. Too far for the demon to reach. Weakly, with the last of her strength, she dived downwards again, and found the undertow.

It caught her again, and pulled her along, bumping across the pebbled seabed at surprising speed. She surfaced for the second time, and the demon was screaming at her, screaming in a fury that no human could ever match that she had escaped, and that he was doomed.
Then the undertow that had saved her caught her one final time, and she was dragged beneath the surface again.

The cold water numbed her aching body, and she could not struggle free again. Her vision grew dim, and, desperate to breathe, she opened her mouth and inhaled seawater. She retched and coughed as the fluid entered her lungs, choking out the last of her air in the paroxysms.

Then, filled with a sudden, unexpected peace, she gave up, and sank into blackness.