I’m probably a bad person for hoping whoever has been dealing with the sanguidaes all these years doesn’t make an appearance. It’s incredibly selfish, and I’ll never admit to it out loud. I just fear if I stay here dwelling over my mystery animai I will truly go insane.
“Yildiz?” I hear Beste call, pulling me from my thoughts.
“Hmm?” I ask, standing and turning towards her, her stunning coquelicot aura with its gold glittering hue shining around her.
“You seem a little distracted,” she observes.
“I have a few things on my mind, but it won’t interfere with the mission, I promise,” I say sincerely.
“That’s good.” I can hear the smile in her voice as she wraps her arm around me, her delightful scent of warm sugar and fresh rain enveloping me, “Let’s go get dressed and then grab our toys,” she says with excitement.
I chuckle, “Still calling weapons ‘toys’ huh?”
“They are to me,” she says with a grin in her voice.
We each go our separate ways, with me returning to my room to shower and change. I feel like dressing for the occasion, so I opt for black leggings, black knee-high boots, a sheer black long-sleeve top and a short black leather jacket. Since I have all my clothes sectioned off and organised by colour, there’s brail marking each section of clothing, so I know which colour is where. My sister Nuray, however, once thought it would be funny to mix everything up. She found it most amusing when I came down for breakfast looking like the rainbow threw up on me. I got her back though.
Once I pull my braids up into a ponytail, I put my phone in my pocket and make my way to our armoury. I can already hear Beste inside, excitedly rummaging through the ‘toys’. She’s a quirky one, but I do love her enthusiasm for… well, everything.
“Look at you! You look like Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” she jokes, “Wait, Buffy was white… that would make you Kendra the Vampire Slayer!” she exclaims, clearly proud of her pop culture reference.
“Firstly, Kendra was killed, so I find that unsettling. Secondly, if we were going for accuracy then it would be Yildiz the Sanguidae Slayer,” I grin.
“That doesn’t remotely sound as appealing. Certainly don’t see it being picked up for a first season,” she says in mock seriousness. I roll my eyes. Beste loves supernatural-based films and television shows. She loves seeing how far removed from reality they are and is waiting for the day someone gets it right, though we hope that never happens.
“What have you gathered so far?” I ask, walking over to her.
“I have opted for some bloodstone throwing stars and some bloodroot grenades,” she answers proudly.
“No cadmium?”
“Feels excessive. I should do fine with just what I’ve selected,” she says as she pats what I assume is a pouch attached to her hip. “What will you choose?”
I walk along the wall, knowing exactly what I’m after, and proceed to take a katana down from the wall. Traditionally, katanas are forged using Tamahagane, but this particular sword is forged using bloodstone, a specific gemstone that upon contact, can weaken any sanguidae. It’s also the only substance that can kill them. To successfully kill a sanguidae one must cut out their heart using bloodstone, as it stops the heart from regenerating.
I pull the blade from its scabbard and run my thumb against the blade, testing its sharpness by the amount of pressure I feel against the pad of my thumb. If I were a sanguidae – or almost any other being for that matter – the blade would have sliced right through my flesh. We put great time and effort into perfecting and maintaining the weapons we use, and this one is no exception. Once satisfied, I place it back into the scabbard and strap it to my back.
“You always choose a katana, no matter what being we fight. I should have known you’d choose it again,” she says playfully.
“I love katanas. The history and craftsmanship that goes into them, especially ours, given we don’t use traditional materials. I’ve always admired the reverence the Japanese had for their art form. Not many weapons in history are so revered to almost develop a life of their own,” I say with admiration.
“Well, you are an expert on the subject. How many years did you spend in Japan mastering the art? I forget.”
“A couple decades. And it was worth every minute,” I grin.
“Is that all you’re taking?” Beste asks in disapproval.
“No,” I say, sticking my tongue at her, making her chuckle.
I move to a different area and proceed to grab a belt, that I strap around my hips, and then grab two cadmium daggers from the wall and attach them to the belt. Between the two of us, we now have every substance that can harm or kill a sanguidae. Beste’s grenades contain bloodroot, which is a flower. We dry and pulverise it into a powdered form and add it to grenades for quick use. Bloodroot won’t kill them, but it will hurt like hell. Even a little amount can cause them enough burning pain to knock them off their feet.
Then there’s cadmium, which is a metal similar to zinc and mercury. Cadmium to a sanguidae is no different than silver to a mutolupus and equally as painful. When confronting those who have potentially committed a crime, I prefer to use the less lethal substances against them first. Our goal is never to kill but to subdue and bring to justice. In the case of sanguidaes, many don’t even understand what they are or that their condition can be controlled. It’s not fair to kill or punish them for something that isn’t their fault, so the protocol is always to subdue, assess and then only kill if absolutely necessary. We don’t take pleasure in taking lives and only do it as a last resort.
“Ready to go?” she asks.
“That seems to be everything, so I would say yes.”
We exit the armoury and make our way outside. Once we step outside we’re greeted by the sound and smell of the waves of the Mediterranean sea. The air is warm yet refreshing as the wind brushes against my skin. The castle we call home is known as the Kartheca and is concealed by our mother’s magic. It resides high up on a cliff on Iç Ada, an islet found in Turkey. The only time the Kartheca is easy to access is during the Autumnal Equinox when we have our resident makkares open portals allowing supernaturals from around the world to enter our halls for the Autumnal Ball; a tradition that not only brings all the species together under peaceful circumstances but provides them with a chance to meet their soulmates.
And now I have stupidly put the thought of my own animai back in my head. The Autumnal Ball isn’t until September, and we’re currently in July. Am I going to have to wait another two months to find my animai? Assuming they’d even attend the ball. This is starting to feel like some gender swap version of Cinderella, only I’m trying to find the person who belongs to the scent I caught instead of whose sweaty foot belongs to the stinky shoe they left behind.
“Yildiz? Where did you go just now?” Beste asks.
I shake away the ridiculous train of thoughts I got swept in and give her a reassuring smile. “My thoughts just got a little carried away. The sooner we get going, the sooner I can focus.”
I hear the sound of feet running in our direction, and soon I see Aulen – one of our resident makkares – barrelling out of the Kartheca, her scarlet red aura with a dusting of French violet around the edges, surrounding her frame.
“Sorry I’m late, hope you weren’t waiting long,” she pants, attempting to catch her breath.
“Someone’s out of shape,” Beste teases. The breeze wafts Aulen’s charcoal and sage scent in my direction and along with it another familiar scent. Vanilla and lavender.
“Surprised another workout with Nuray didn’t improve your stamina. Or did she wear you out?” I smirk. It’s well known that Aulen and our sister Nuray fornicate whenever the mood strikes them.
“I hate all you beings with your superior noses. It’s incredibly annoying. For the record, as you can no doubt scent, we didn’t get to that part yet. I was called to open a portal for you,” she huffs, folding her arms indignantly, making us snigger.
“Our deepest apologies,” Beste says with a bow.
“I could be in the middle of a mind-blowing orgasm right now if not for the two of you,” she hisses.
“We’ll be sure to tell the sanguidaes we encounter how inconsiderate they were to give you a case of coitus interruptus,” I tease.
“Oh, ha ha.”
I watch as the French violet in her aura intensifies as she throws her arms out in front of her, the purple of her aura travelling down her arms and flowing out from her fingertips and forming an oval shape a few feet in front of her. As the purple hue of her aura dies down, she drops her arms to her sides, but the purple oval remains visible to my unseeing eyes, indicating the portal is fully operational. I may not see everything this world has to offer, but what I do see is full of beauty I cannot put into words.
“There, your portal is done. Now jump through it so I can close it and get back to what I was doing,” she urges.
“Enjoy your day, Aulen,” Beste chuckles as she steps through the portal.
“Try not to pull anything,” I tease, stepping through the portal just as her arm reaches out to swat me. At least some people are having some fun around here. Though all of this does prove one thing true; animais are a terrible distraction. Here’s hoping this mission provides the reprieve I seek.
“We’re definitely dealing with a sept,” muses Beste. “Six I’d say, based on the scents I’m picking up. Not counting the decomposing bodies,” I say solemnly. Sanguidae scents are much like everyone else’s, but theirs has a distinct metallic undertone that defines them from other species. We’ve only been in Auckland for thirty minutes, and we’ve already stumbled on another pile of bodies. There has been no attempt to hide the bodies from the public, they’ve just been mutilated and discarded. Left here to rot like trash. I know a blood craze can rob a sanguidae of their humanity, but I’m starting to believe that’s not the case. If even one, let alone all six were in the middle of a craze the body count would be much higher, and given how close we are to people, we’d more than likely hear screaming and a city fleeing in fear. “There’s something else I’m noticing,” says Beste. “What’s that?” “I can see why the authorities assumed an animal did this. These poor humans were savagely att
I take off, continuing to follow the trail and it’s not long before the scents begin to get stronger. As the scents get stronger I begin to pick up the sound of people conversing. I slow down my approach as their words become clearer, and it becomes obvious I’ve found the people I’m looking for. I sniff around, assessing my surroundings; smelling the trees around me. I click my tongue to discern how far away they are and walk over to what sounds like the nearest tree. It feels large and sturdy. I make quick work climbing up high into the tree top calculating how high I am as I climb so I can calculate how far the drop will be, then perch myself on a branch. From here I can easily spot the group of sanguidae I’m after. They’re a short distance away, all six of them. Each one illuminated by their different coloured auras, but each aura is outlined by a hue of blood red – common in the auras of sanguidaes. They’re laughing and enjoying themselves despite the fact they just murdered innoce
My body has become a livewire, every synapse firing at hyperspeed sending my senses into overdrive. My body feels hot and flushed as if I’ve been basking in the sun for hours. My heart has picked up speed and my mouth is salivating. My body is in such a state of overload I can’t move. I’m completely frozen, as a thousand questions race through my mind. Now that I am in close proximity to his scent, I can pick up the metallic undertone in his scent, but far more intense than what I’ve scented before.My animai is a sanguidae?! Why is he here? Why did he stop me? And how in the name of the Gods did his body shatter my sword?! I might have killed him! I have so much I want to ask I don’t know where to begin.“Not her,” comes his deep and warm voice that elicits a shiver from me.“What?” I whisper, trying to process that fact I’ve finally heard his voice and what he meant by what he said. I take what’s left of my katana and place it back in its scabbard.“I can’t let you hurt her, and as
An animai. A fucking animai. Has Zarseti lost her fucking mind?! How is that even remotely possible? This was meant to be a simple retrieval; how did this all happen? I had sensed the newly made sanguidae as soon as they turned. As the first, I am connected to each and every one, so I can feel when another comes into being. A fact that shames and disgusts me to my core. They had someone guiding them, so I didn’t interfere right away, but once I knew their supposed leader was as dumb as a doornail with the traits of a serial killer, I knew I had to step in. For thousands of years, I’ve managed to get to them before the Delegation could, but for once they beat me to it, but I never could have expected things to turn out this way. The moment I appeared; her scent overtook me. It nearly threw thousands of years of self-control out the window. Her scent was the most glorious thing I’ve ever smelt in my entire existence. She smelled of warm vanilla and orchids fresh on the vine at the pea
I disappear only to reappear in front of a large white double door. With no effort on my part, I push my arms in front of me blasting the doors open as my hands connect with the wood. I storm through the pristine 14,000 sqft villa of all white, turquoise, and deep blue accents with marble floors. I pass the living area, pass the kitchen and storm right out to the backyard. I step out into the oceanfront oasis seeking my target. I make my way through the white stone paths that divide the many swimming areas, proceed past the palm trees and up the stone steps until I get to the pool at the far end. As I reach the top platform, I look down into the clear turquoise waters at the woman I seek, her 7’1” curvaceous frame lazily floating on the water’s surface. Her fuchsia hair sprawled out around her and her white bikini clinging to her bronze skin. “Is there a reason why someone who can pop in wherever he likes, felt the need to break down my front door?” she casually asks, her eyes remain
After Beste and I returned to the Kartheca we debriefed our sisters on what had happened regarding the venator and sanguidae. I was sure to explain to my sisters about meeting the very first sanguidae and how he has been the one behind the disappearances all these years. That definitely got them all hyped up. I left out the part about him being my animai though. Omitting the truth is as close as we can get to lying and I am giving it my all these days. As soon as the formalities of the job are out of the way, I excuse myself and return my weapons to the armoury, being sure to clean them before putting them away. Except for the katana which is now just a handle with the remnants of a broken blade protruding from the handle. I then rush to my room, close the door, and take in a deep breath. “MOTHER! Mother, please. I need to speak to you. I don’t wish to question the gift you’ve given me, but I need to understand what’s going on. I need your help,” I beg as I sit down on my bed. I los
It’s taken a couple of days, but I’ve finally gotten the newborns settled at the safe house. It’s a 36,000-square-foot house I acquired in Sweden, so they’ve got plenty of room to wander and avoid each other if they have to. They’re struggling with their hunger but it’s to be expected. They’re at least willing to learn control. Either way, taking care of them is definitely keeping me distracted from thinking about a certain gold-glittery mocha-skinned beauty. For thousands of years taking care of newborns was an obligation, now it’s a welcome interference. While the newborns are doing well, the only person not adjusting – or trying to adjust – is Simon. He picks a fight with everyone and tries to act dominant. Which might go over better if it weren’t for how clueless he is. I’ve been meaning to have a chat with his maker and find out just what the fuck happened, but none of them were in a state for me to leave. They can’t kill each other, but they sure can inflict a lot of injuries on
I toss for the umpteenth time as sleep continues to elude me. Every time I close my eyes all I see are those liquid golden orbs staring back at me with so much disappointment. As if one God cursing me wasn’t enough, now another has cursed me in some belief she’s helping me. Is it a wonder so many on earth cuss out the Gods on the regular? It’s been two agonisingly torturous weeks since I met Yildiz. I thought each day I kept distance between us it would get easier, but boy was I fucking wrong. Her scent plagues my memories and at night I swear I can still hear the rhythm of her heart beating in my ears. Her blood still calls out to me like a siren’s song and I’m this close to shoving wax in my ears and tying myself to something to stop myself from being lured to it. I turn onto my back and stare at the ceiling hating where my thoughts are going. I told myself I would stay away, I intended to keep that promise, but I’m going out of my mind. Maybe if I could just see her for a moment o