Karin Fan Fiction ❯ Karin's Wedding ❯ Chapter 22

Chapter 22

 

As plans were being made, Jean-Claude took Ryuu aside, and had a word with him. “Ryuu, before we go into this, I need to ask you about where you stand with Teresa,” said Jean-Claude.

“I despise her,” he said, “and yet, there is something inside that wants to connect to her.”

“What do you mean?”

“You see, she was not my mother, yet, what entered into me when I sinned was her child. That is what she wants.”

“Why does she then claim all vampires as her children?”

“Because I was the first, and made everything else, she claims them.”

“Was it you, or what resides in you?”

“I'm not sure—maybe both.”

“Does that spirit reside in all vampires?”

“No, because what is now is so distant from what was that there is no way that it could be so.”

“Why is that?”

“It almost seems that what is vampire has tried to purify itself. The creation of the pure bloods through my will, and not that spirit, was almost an act of defiance to that spirit. I hoped that it could create a great enough rift to fight the status quo.”

“It looks like you have succeeded to some extent.”

“Well, there is a greater goal in that, and for me.”

“How so?”

“I'm talking about salvation for our kind.”

Jean-Claude thought about it for a moment, and tried to recall something that he had heard ages ago as a fairy tale, but he was not sure that it could ever come to anything. Then he thought about the twins, and he took a chance. He then told Ryuu all of what Bear Fang had told him, and Ryuu's eyes lit up. Then tears began to flow hot and heavy. “Jean-Claude,” said Ryuu, “What do you know of the Golconda?”

“That was the term I was thinking of!” said Jean-Claude as he snapped his fingers.

“Do you realize that your children have become this?” said Ryuu.

Jean-Claude looked at him in amazement, and Jean-Claude said, “Is that what Teresa fears?”

“Not exactly,” said Ryuu, “But let me fill you in on this state of being.”

They sat down as Ryuu spun his tale, “Not long after I was marked, God told me that the only way out of this state was to achieve Golconda, which means `a treasure filled mine.' For a vampire, this is indeed the case. For me, this meant being able to purge out of my system that which Teresa used to corrupt me—her own evil spawn. How I do that, well, I've tried for centuries, and I have yet to achieve this. As the centuries passed, I did all I could to try to get our kind to achieve this, yet, because none of us have achieved this, it has become a myth and a fairy tale, if it is even spoken of anymore. Even I have disparaged at gaining this state.”

“What would this state be like?” asked Jean-Claude.

“Imagine, if you will,” said Ryuu, “a state of vampiric being, where one only needs to feed once a month, if that, where one would never go into bloodlust, and have the ability to use blood far beyond what even I can now. Imagine a state where the beast within is chained away forever, and never has any rulership over the vampire. This is the state of which I speak, and the state that your children have achieved.”

“How could this have happened?” asked Jean-Claude in amazement.

“It's simple,” said Ryuu, “Your children came to be out of a miracle. They came to be outside the means of a vampire, in that, they came from those who should not have been able to make offspring, by the means of a blood that is out of Teresa's control, and are thus free of my taint. Teresa cannot control them no matter what she does. She figures that it is best to be rid of them before they become something far greater, and before they realize who and what they are. They could lead all vampires to be able to either become this way, or have their offspring this way. The new fount of psyche was also not supposed to be, but she is. Her blood could cause future offspring to be free of the taint, because, if they came to be by that blood, then they are also free from Teresa. For me to achieve this would be to destroy her only true offspring, and thus, she could lose us all. In fact, this leads me to something about you of which you may not be aware.”

“You have my attention,” said Jean-Claude, “Please go on.”

“The reason why you are so powerful for a dhampir,” said Ryuu, “is because you, by the part of you that his human, have become a child of the Almighty by His Son. This also was not supposed to happen. However, because you did, THE Blood removed that taint. This is why she cannot control you, and she has another reason to fear you. Because of your freedom from my taint, it could not cohere with whatever may be in your wife, if anything, and thus, my taint could not be passed to them. If you were a pure blood, it could be said that you have already achieved Golconda. Yet, that is only for pure bloods, and yet, some of that has rubbed off on you. Because you have the best of both worlds, and because of the lack of the taint, you have become far more powerful than what you thought was possible. Your children could make our kind acceptable, and then they could achieve that for which you have prayed.”

Jean-Claude sat there stunned. Everything he had ever hoped for lie in his two children and all because he decided to have faith in God that it could happen. He then said, “What about you, Ryuu? Could she still corrupt you?”

“That is a possibility,” he answered, “and that is why it may not be advisable for me to be at the mock wedding that you are planning.”

“Why is that?”

“She would commandeer me, and then counterattack your plans.”

“We could use your expertise.”

“Leave that to your children. They may be able to act instinctively. Besides, I do believe that there is a good area in the woods near a Shinto shrine. They are sensitive to movements in the supernatural, and they would make a great barometer.”

“What do I do?”

“Let your foot soldiers handle the bokor, and you should be the one to deal with her, because she cannot control you.”

Jean-Claude let that sink in, because he wanted to take the time to formulate how to entrap, and then stop, the actions of their foes.

 

As they went back inside, planning was going on. Chiyuki and Bear Fang were consulting one another, and Bear Fang said, “Chiyuki has brought up a great point, and it concerns your twins.”

“I fear that if they get near Teresa,” said Chiyuki, “she could end up controlling them, not knowing how to defend her attacks.”

“Ryuu assures me that this is not possible,” said Jean-Claude, “They do not possess the taint that befell him when he fell. He even suggests that they come, because they may be able to help in things.”

“While I trust the patriarch here,” said Bear Fang, “I still feel concerned that she may kidnap them and kill them outright.”

“They could be the useful rouge factor as well,” said Jean-Claude, “And, oddly enough, there may be something to this. This may seem odd to say, but, I would rather they die than be left to flounder, never knowing what they are, or what they could do. Right now, it's all or nothing.”

“That's not exactly wise, Jean-san,” said Chiyuki, “because so much hope rides on them. Nevertheless, know this: because you and your Clan have provided more hope for me than I ever could have hoped, I swear my fealty to you, to protect those children no matter what, even at the cost of my life. Behold your handmaiden.”

Jean-Claude watched her bow, and he was amused how things looked. He remembered times in the Bible where men had tried to offer worship to mortal men, and they all refused the gesture, lest it be though by God that they rob Him of that which only He deserves. Thus, he said, “I accept your kind gesture, but, stand to thy feet, and see thou doest it not, for I am as thou, and am no God. Standeth thou by my side as my peer and equal, and together we shall smite the enemy upon the cheek.”

Karin, to be cute, added, “Forgetest thou not thy jawbone of the ass!”

That got a large laugh, and Ai moved in close to Ryuu. “Do they stand a chance?”

“Do we have a choice?” asked Ryuu, “If they fail, all is lost.”

 

In the meantime, ideas were being kicked about. Chief War Bat said, “One thing is for sure, it needs to be open air.”

“You sayin' you wanna catch `em out in the open?” asked Old Jim.

“Being out in the open would be best,” said the chief, “because we will have more mobility for the fight. We may even be able to divide them in the woods, and take out any numbers advantage they may have.”

“Where do you have in mind,” said Clarice.

They looked at an old map of the forest outside of Tokyo, they found a Shinto shrine there, and it was still in operation. They found a cleared area in the midst of the forest not a mile from that shrine, and it looked like the perfect spot for the wedding. Bear Fang then said, “It would be good to see what kind of help we could get from the shrine, because they are psychic barometers, and if something evil tried to move in, they could give us that moment of time we need to act.”

“The whole of the Clan will be there,” said Jean-Claude, “because we are going to need all the help we can get.”

They examined the area, looking for defendable points, escape routes, areas into which to push the battle, and formulated a five point contingency plan: wait for the enemy to attack, strike from all directions—front and back, eliminate the bokor, rally at the shrine, prepare for attack against Teresa, and anything she might have in reserve. When Yuriya protested about the twins, he reminded her that the safest place for the both of them would be in the best-defended area, and that would be the mock wedding. Besides, they would be the best bait. It would be the best thing to draw out the entirety of the foe at once, and if not kill them all, and then weaken them for a later blow. Chiyuki looked at the plan, and said, “You don't have any idea how powerful she is, do you?”

“She does not frighten me…” Jean-Claude tried to say, but Chiyuki put a hand on his mouth, and said, “You know she cannot hurt you, so knowing how powerful she is, is meaningless to you! However, for those who do not possess the kind of faith that you do would have problems. She could speak a word, and evaporate all that were in front of her.”

Jean-Claude thought for a moment, and said, “If it should come to contact with her, and it should be that I cannot be there, then I will take some precautions. For security reasons, I'll let you know what they are when the time comes. However, no matter how hopeless things are, we cannot give up hope that all will be well.”

As they spoke, everyone began to focus on the conversation, and Jean-Claude took the opportunity to instill more confidence in them. He said, “Let me share a story from World War II that might help you understand my optimism.”

Everyone listened as he explained, “During the Battle of the Bulge, the Germans were trying one last counter offensive against the allied line. Because of poor weather conditions, air support was impossible, and the Germans seemed to be getting the upper hand. At one point, the 101st Airborne Division of the United States was completely surrounded, and the Germans were prepared to slaughter the lot of them. However, the German commander, Generalleutnant Heinrich Freiherr von Lüttwitz, feeling `sympathetic,' sent in a colonel, under a flag of truce, with an offer for surrender. The letter stated that the Americans had fought with honor, and it would sully that honor if he were to try to defend against insurmountable odds, allowing the senseless loss of life for men could have the chance to see their families once again after the war. They should surrender, and preserve that honor; otherwise, the Germans would annihilate the entire division with no thought for prisoners. When General McAuliffe heard that, he exclaimed, `Nuts!' After turning to other pressing issues, his staff reminded him that the Germans expected a response. One officer (Harry W. O. Kinnard, then a Lieutenant Colonel) recommended that McAuliffe's initial reply would be `tough to beat'. Thus, McAuliffe wrote on the paper delivered to the Germans: `NUTS!' When the German colonel read this, he asked the colonel escorting him to the German line what that meant. He said to the German officer, `It means that they are not surrendering, and, in fact, what it means is `Go to Hell!' That, the German officer understood. McAuliffe never gave up hope. In fact, that night, General Patton asked his chaplain to pray that the sun come out, that the counteroffensive could commence, and put an end to the advance. This was done, and the sun indeed did come out. When this happened, the American and British air forces attacked with relish, and without resistance, because the Luftwaffe was strapped for fuel to fight them. A hole was opened, and the 101st escaped, and the German assault was turned back. I know how many of you feel about the sun, but on that day, I would think that any vampires in Europe at that time should be grateful for what was called `The Day the Sun Came Out.' I say all of that to say this: in the words of Winston Churchill, `never, never, NEVER give up!' Too much rides on this. Again, to echo Churchill, we shall fight them at the wedding, we shall fight them in Tokyo, we shall fight them on the streets, on the beaches, and on the landing grounds. We shall fight them in the city, and we shall fight them in the country, to defend the dream, no matter what the cost may be. We shall never surrender! We must believe we shall prevail, or all is lost. Even if the dream were to last a thousand years after the night we shall fight, vampires shall look back on that night and say that it was our finest hour.”

At that point, everyone—human, vampire, or otherwise—felt a swelling in their chest. With Jean-Claude's leadership, and his mentors there, how could they fail? His mentors then said for Jean-Claude to call in the Clan for a meeting the next night, because they needed some training on what they may have to do.

 

As things were breaking up into socializing, Karin watched her niece and nephew playing with the seven, (and attempting to keep their distance from Elda,) and watched as Jean-Claude was catching up with the seven, but keeping an eye on the children. She pondered the words that she had heard, and yet wondered if they had hope. She said, “Bro, can I have a word with you?”

He excused himself, and Karin took him to a corner of the room, still in sight of the twins. “Jean-Claude, is this wise?”

“Hey, there is no way they could resist!” said Jean-Claude.

“Well, isn't this putting too much on one action?” she reasoned.

“It is better that we catch them now before they really do build strength,” said Jean-Claude, “I can think of no other way.”

They both stood there as Karin continued to watch the twins. She then looked at Jean-Claude, and said, “How did it get this way. I mean, why the differences and the fighting? Why can't two people that love each other just do that, and not worry about what people think?”

Jean-Claude laughed, and said, “I, and all real thinkers throughout history have asked that question for ages, and they still do not have an answer. It has to go back to one slight or another, fear, (and you know how I define that,) stupidity, greed, which caused hatred and that hatred was passed down the generations. I will tell you this, though, that, at some point of the passing down, whatever reasons for the hatred had long been forgotten. People were taught to hate, because that was all they knew. This is key: being taught. Look at those two, and then remember a time before you and Anjou had awoken. If you two had been put into a day care with other children of other races, do you think that those kids would turn you away?”

She thought, and said, “Well, the only equivalent that I can think of is my time in elementary school.”

“Did you look like, or act like a vampire at all?” asked Jean-Claude?

“Not at all—the only difference is that I look European. I am Japanese by birth nation, but I am French by blood.”

“Did that matter to the other kids?”

“Oh, of course not!”

“Why not?”

“I don't know.”

“Karin,” said Jean-Claude, “If your children end up dhampirs, there are still some vampires that will hate them. They nurse old grudges against people and things that had nothing to do with the original wrong. Truly, if they were truly able to exact revenge, that still would not be enough for them, and it would never bring peace. However, if your children and theirs mixed and played together, all each one would see is another child, and nothing more. Children don't see humans and vampires, colors, nations, races, and so forth, they see playmates. Hate is not something they learn, or is instinctive, hate is taught. The adults, who just cannot let hatred go, teach it. Their hate taints the children, and because they are children, they will echo the hate for the rest of their lives, not even knowing why. The Book of Proverbs states, `Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he shall not depart from it.'

The greatest hope we have now for our cause is if we teach our children not to hate, but to love. If we can do that, half the battle is won. To echo Martin Luther King, I seek for a day when our children will not be judged by the color of their skin—or in our case, the length of their canines—but by the content of their character. Each sentient creature, whatever they are, is an individual with feelings, needs, wants, desires, and dreams. Some would have killed Yuriya or me because they would have considered our births as `sterile' dhampirs to be inconvenient. Let me tell you, when anyone—human or vampire—places value of life on convenience, then we are in trouble. Yuriya, because of old vampire bigotry, should not have been. However, here she is, and I believe that it was because of divine influence. She told me what happened with the Brownlicks. She was treated like a sub-creature. However, because they thought themselves elite creatures, they found it easy. They never considered what it would be like if circumstances were reversed. She is a beautiful woman who would admit to her mistakes, and to allowing herself to be manipulated, just so she could survive. She would not have ever come close to her past betrayals if she had just been allowed to live in peace. She has feelings, needs, wants, dreams, and so on, just like anyone else. No matter what she is, she is a person, just like everyone else. They treated her like that because they subconsciously feared that they had been wrong in their attitude all this time, and their treatment of her was an attempt to stave off guilt. It was that hate and a lust for power that caused them to try to do what they wanted to you. See what hate does? Yet, if we learn to love, we will teach our children well, and they will not hate. Maybe then we can see true change. Until that time, we must declare to they who will not change to either one do so, or just get out of the way, because their ways are the ways of the past. I have to alter this a bit, considering who we speak about, but they need either to join us in the moonlight, or become extinct, as the world passes them by. Always remember, Karin, that what children grow into is a direct reflection of what we taught them; and if they seek to kill us, or push us aside, we only have ourselves to blame.”

When he had finished his lesson, he then realized that all the action had stopped, and everyone was listening to him. He had not noticed that his voice had raised enough to catch people's attention, and they were intently listening to the teaching. The response was applause from young and old, human and vampire, all in one accord. Friar Antonio then said, “As long as there are people like you on the earth, there is hope, and there is hope for all this. Stay strong, and may the Lord be with you.”

“…and also be with you, friar,” responded Jean-Claude.