Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ Necrofiend: Blood Moon ❯ Chapter Two ( Chapter 2 )

Blood Moon
-Original Work-
Warning: yaoi, yuri, graphic violence and gore, supernatural creatures, OC POV, etc

Special Thanks to: Kelsea, aka Rose_Fury, for volunteering to be my beta! Your help is and will always be appreciated. <33

* * *
Chapter Two

THE REST OF my night was spent explaining to two distraught parents why I wasn’t allowed to animate their murdered daughter’s body. If anything bad could come of animating the dead other than the overflow of energies, which was it. The corpse of a murder victim for whatever reason still retained the emotional panic that the person died with and thus couldn’t be controlled. That panic could easily be turned toward the person animating the body or bystanders. It could also be turned to rage as well, sending the zombie tearing in a straight line to where their murderer stayed. The latter seems a lot more effective but not by much. Let’s not forget that zombies enjoy eating live flesh.

The meeting finally ended with the father of the girl gripping the front of my jacket. I stared calmly at him raising my hands at in that ‘don’t-shoot-the-messenger’ manner as he jerked me close to his face. At some point his eyes had been green but were now brown and bloodshot from tears.

“I wish I could help but there’s nothing I can do, sir.” I said calmly. Inside I was cursing Nagumi ten ways to Hell. What was so hard about screening the clients she sent to me? What was so fun about making me look like the bad guy when I was honestly there to help as much as I could?

“You wishing anything won’t bring my daughter back!” The man, Mr. Astryd, stated vehemently. I found myself nodding.

“I’m well aware of that…but how many daughters do you think will die should I raise yours? She was murdered...animating her body is too dangerous.” I kept the explanation short and my tone soft. I glanced over to his wife. She was just as grief stricken but seemed to be the more rational of the two.

“I can’t put others in danger. This is something the police must take care of.”

She nodded and placed a hand on her husband’s shoulder. “He honestly can’t help us…if he could, he would.” Her gaze went to me as if to confirm her words. Despite my expression being carefully blank, something she saw made her nod. “Let him go, Henry.”
The vise-like grip on my jacket and shirt loosened. I could almost hear the creaking sound of his muscles uncoiling. He straightened, expression strained.

“I’m sorry….we….she was our only daughter.” Now that he wasn’t screaming, his voice sounded tired. I took a moment to think before I placed a hand on his shoulder. Though he was taller than me, it wasn’t so big of a difference that it was awkward. I gave his shoulder a squeeze and could have sworn if it wasn’t for the fact that I was a guy, he would have crumpled then and there. Pride be damned.

“They’ll find who did it.” He said. I’d read over the police report and they had more than enough evidence and witnesses to pin two people.

“In the meantime….rest. I’m sorry for your loss.” With that said, I released his shoulder and carefully began gathering the papers atop the pile of clutter. I slipped them carefully into the folder they’d come in and handed them back to Mr. Astryd. He nodded and winced as if the movement hurt. Face downcast, his wife wrapped her arm around his as they turned to leave. Even with their backs turned to me, I knew she was crying, though quietly. I sent a prayer up that they would find their daughter’s murderer without a hitch. In the meantime, I had to leave.

I pressed a finger to the button on my desk. The voice that answered was none other than Gertrude. She was about the only person I liked here, even with her little mosquito voice. But then again, my liking her fed into the rumor that I could only get along with nonhumans. After all, everyone knew that Gertrude was a vampire.

“Yes, Mr. Tiaz?”

“I’m going to be leaving. Could you clock me out?” I asked. As I spoke, I reached for a picture frame that had tipped forward. As I righted it, I couldn't help but smile warmly as I looked over my brothers. They were all a shade or two lighter than me, having taken after my father’s side of the family. Like him, all their hair was black and while their eyes varied from that dark brown you swore was black and the same forest green as mine. All handsome Brazilian men…until you got to me. A wry smirk formed on my face as I took note how very dark my complexion was compared to theirs and how much my red hair stood out in comparison. Literally the redheaded stepchild…minus the step. While my brothers took after our father’s Japanese characteristics, I had gotten almost all of my genes from our Brazilian mother. Quite the weird combination but I think it worked.

“Of course. Have a good night, dear.”

I looked from the picture to the icon as if I could see Gertrude’s face.
“Thanks. You too.” I said lightly. I left the office then and was immediately approached by none other than….Katherine. I held back a piteous groan as she beamed at me and tried for a smile myself. It couldn’t have been that bad of an attempt because she never faltered.

“So, I didn’t get a date or time earlier. If you’re not busy, can we go out tonight?” She made it a question but her face said she hadn’t wanted to. I took in a slow breath and thought damn hard about what I was about to say. Over the years I had found that some women took ‘no’ in any form as ‘I really don’t want to’. Even though I really didn’t want to, I wasn’t too quick to say so.

“Ah…I wish I could,” I started and already I could see her face starting to lose its brightness. “, but Nagumi just gave me this new case. I have to go all the way to Arizona tomorrow by helicopter.” The scoff that followed the statement was real. The hand I ran over my face to the back of my neck was a fake nervous ‘I’m sorry’ gesture.

“How about when I come back? Whatever place you want to go to.” That seemed to help my situation. She perked up immediately like a cat having its back stroked.

“A-alright. I’ll see you then.” She all but chirped and began walking away. And just like in those silly high school movies with the popular guy, she tried to do it backwards and bumped into the water dispenser. I stood for a moment watching in amusement as she stammered and blushed trying to keep the thing from tipping. She spared me an embarrassed glance then was gone. I frowned a bit. On a normal day Jacobs wasn’t that clumsy. I shrugged it off.

“Ah fuck…” I muttered and made my way to the elevator. I’d gotten back to the ground floor and almost to the automatic doors before someone managed to catch up with me. It was Raven. He’d gone home to change into a pair of khaki slacks and a blue t-shirt. Over the t-shirt was a gray blazer that had a blue tint to it, giving him a perfect balance between professional and casual. I grinned as he slung an arm over my shoulder with a bright smile. If it wasn’t for the fact that he had the trademark slanted, almond-shaped brown-black eyes, pale skin and fine-strand black hair of an asian man, we could have passed for brothers. We were of the same height and the similar build. His face had long ago crossed the line from boyish into handsome but I never truly dwelt on it. Our relationship was purely brotherly, not that we didn’t experiment , it just ended up being far too awkward.

“What’s up?”

“Nothing much….look, I’m sorry about the whole…dropping the chicken thing…” He said looking every bit of sheepish. I chuckled and shook my head. I hadn’t been mad then, I wouldn’t be now. Chicken blood, all blood, eventually came out of clothing if you washed it in time.

“So what assignment did the dragon give you this time?” He asked.

I shrugged lightly. “She’s sending me to check out a burial ground in Arizona that someone’s trying to dig up. I don’t know exactly why they need an animator there though. Guess I’ll find out once I get there.” I answered as I slowed to allow him through the door first. He went without hesitation and I followed. The sky outside was what I was used to seeing nowadays; a pinky-orange just above the horizon that eventually bled into an almost midnight blue.

“So…any restrictions on whom you can bring with you?” The question made me pause. I looked over to him with a single raised eyebrow. It didn’t take me seeing him to know that he’d have that pleading look on his face. We both knew I wouldn’t say no. After all, Raven was in the same field as I was. The only difference was I had been doing this for six out of the twenty-two years I had been alive. He’d only been doing it two years which made him a trainee, my trainee.

“The helicopter’s supposed to be picking me up. When and where, I don’t know. Just be over my house as soon as possible.” I answered. The grin on his face couldn’t have stretched any bigger. Before I knew it, I had five foot nine inches worth of over-excited male hugging me. I grunted, instinctively wrapping an arm around his waist. It wasn’t his usual behavior. When one of the guards cleared their throat from inside the building, Raven released me quickly and sheepishly.

“Thanks, Thiago….should I bring…extra stuff?”

I caught the meaning behind the question simply by watching his eyes dart across the scenery. Remember that job outside of Necrofiend Inc? That job consists of executing vampires; I'm a vampire hunter if you will though I’m pretty much powerless past vaguely sensing where they were. It was my job to hunt down and kill any big bad bloodsucker who felt that they didn’t have to abide by the rules set on their kind. With the government currently working on a bill that would make them citizens with their own special set of rules, I needed a permit or probable cause to kill any of them. Regardless I was still required to tote around a case full of crucifixes, holy water and stakes. The more modern day ammo was my doing. Flinging water around didn’t always work nor did crosses. Being a good shot was what kept me alive so far. Thus the Browning that never left my side.

“Yeah, I don’t see how it could hurt.” I nodded. He mirrored the motion then turned to go to his car. I stood where I was and made sure he got there before going to my own. He’d call me later to make sure that I got to my apartment safely while at the same time assuring me that he’d reached his home unscathed.

Thankfully, the drive home wasn’t anything out of the usual. There was no traffic at four o’clock in the morning and very little cops out to make sure you sat at the traffic lights. I had entered and parked inside of the Independence Square lot within minutes and was soon making my way upstairs. I could only hope I’d get a few hours of sleep before this helicopter came looking for me. If not, they’d be dealing with me both cranky and terrified.

The apartment complex’s courts weren’t much to look at. Each one was painted a light bluish-grey with a black roof. Uniform and boring really, but convenient in location. I made my way to the very last court and climbed the stairs to the second floor. Fortunately no one else had moved next door yet. Entering my apartment, I flipped on the lights of my fairly empty living room. The floor was light beige and the walls as white as the day I’d moved in. No pictures were hung and the only place to sit was the beat up couch Xavier had sworn was mine. I had meant to get it steam cleaned a while ago but had yet to get it done. I moved through the room slowly stripping off my jacket as I went. I turned left and went into my bedroom. There were two other bedrooms, untouched. Last was the bathroom. It was one of those bathrooms they claimed was a full bathroom yet lacked in the size department. It was almost like they’d allowed just enough room to fit the bathtub, toilet, sink and a tiny linen closet in. Disappointing, but it suited my needs. I dropped to my bed and bounced a few times. In the end, my legs hung over the edge of the bed with my toes just barely touching the carpet, thanks to the lack of a proper frame. Before long, I was out cold.

To Be Continued….

Author’s Notes: I’m taking a much slower pace with this version of Blood Moon. That way all the information and plot developing doesn’t seem lumped in one chapter. I personally like how it’s explained that he’s an animator in the first chapter and in this one he explains his job as a vampire hunter. But of course, your opinions are what I’m looking for. Let me know what you think. If there is anyone out there that maybe want to offer a character to play a part in this story, feel free to email me so we can discuss it. J

*** Quick note: It’s been bought to my attention that Talim is not a traditional masculine name. Therefore I’ll be changing it to something else. Simple as that? Nope. You, as the readers, can send me feedback on whether to keep his name changed or change it back. This isn’t a ploy to get you to review. You could post just your vote and no feedback for the story itself and it’ll still count.