Issue #172 : Shifting Perspectives

 

Richard leaned back in the chair and put a warm cloth on his forehead.

“So what are we dealing with here?” he asked. “The crucifix didn’t work. The silver didn’t work. Evidently the origin flames don’t work either. Knives and fire don’t work. What are we dealing with?”

Jacob shifted in his chair. “Well, wherever this vampire came from, we don’t—”

“It isn’t a vampire.”

“What?”

“This isn’t a vampire. I’ve seen some variations from the original strain before, but nothing like this. Whatever we’re hunting, whatever is hunting us, I’ve never seen the likes of it before.”

“Brett, are you there?” Jacob called out.

The open laptop sprung to life and the Internet browser opened into a generic dialogue box.

I’m here. Have you found anything out?

“No, we’re still talking this over. Have you had time to check out the church? If this isn’t a vampire we’re looking for? That could explain why it would be able to hide out on sacred ground.”

I was there just before I came here. There’ s no one there. The building looks all boarded up so it must be abandoned.

“And you’re positive that he was there?” Richard asked, joining in on the conversation.

I told you, I knew exactly where he was, I was able to track him until now.

“Why not now?” Jacob asked.

His coat was where I planted the tracking loop and it was destroyed in the fire. I have no idea where he is now.

“So what do we do?” Jacob asked, turning back to Richard.

“There’s only one thing we can do,” Richard remarked. “There’s no way we’ll be able to find anything concrete about this thing. We have to draw it out and have faith that in the moment, we’ll figure out what we need to do in order to bring it down.”

“Do you really think that’s going to happen?”

Richard shook his head. “I have no idea. Frankly, I’d probably give us slightly lower than even odds. It’s troubling that he’s impervious to origin flames. I’ve never seen that before and I only have one option that is more powerful than that.” He glanced at the case at his feet, the case that almost never left his sight. Staring at the digital keypad, he reached down to start entering the code for entry. Jacob lunged forward and grabbed his arm.

“We aren’t ready for that yet.”

Richard looked up and met his friend’s gaze. “Ready or no, this is the only option remaining to us. We’ll take this with us and head for the church. My suspicions are that this thing will find us there in due course. Brett, we’ll need you to be nearby.”

Take the laptop with you and make sure you take the mobile hot spot as well. Just leave me in a corner and I’ll help however I can.

Jacob reached down and closed the computer, tucking it under his arm as Richard took the elongated dagger from the case, inserting it carefully into the sheath under his trench coat.

“I’ve never actually seen it before,” Jacob said as Richard tied his coat shut.

“Few have. Only the highest members of the order have ever been allowed to carry it. A weapon forged from the bones of Adam and Eve comes at a high price and its value cannot be stated highly enough. Its worth to us is clear, however. If it fails to kill this beast, our lives will be the price we pay for the miscalculation. We have never had a subject as dangerous as this. See to it that you don’t forget that.”

Jacob nodded and they left the hotel room, not bothering to close the door behind them as they stepped into Richard’s car under the newly sprinkling rain.

“How far away is the church?” Richard asked as he eased out into traffic.

“From where we are it’s about fifteen miles. Take route ten to the south and it gets us most of the way there. Just watch for the exit sign with all the ads on it wiped clean.”

Richlard glanced over at him in question.

“The town isn’t really there anymore. Just a few families still hanging on. Most of the area around there was appropriated for commercial development that’s still pending.”

They drove on in silence, taking what comfort they could from the sound of the rain falling above them. Richard tried to clear his mind, to not think of these as their last waning moments before a crushing and painful end.

The church looked like it had no right being in one piece and for a moment, Richard thought that it was actually swaying in the breeze. As they stepped out, just over the rain, they could hear the sound of wood struggling under stress. It reminded him of the months he had spent in the bowels of various trans-Atlantic sailing vessels, trying to avoid detection by the crew. It brought to mind the thought, and not for the first time that this was somehow more personal than just one random monster taking on a grudge for them. He was starting to think that he had encountered this thing at some point and was forgetting the proper context.

If that was the case however, things would be made clear in due course. All that was left was to move forward and hope that they could hold true, finding victory somehow piled underneath the steaming mass of defeat.

Richard had seen churches of all shapes and sizes, going back hundreds of years. As he stepped into this one, all he could feel was the weight of life which had passed through and ended in this place. The building felt dead to him, frail remnants of life, scattered and left behind.

Jacob placed the computer in the corner and opened it. Returning to join Richard at the center of the room, he checked to make sure his time-piece was where he would need it. A cool breeze flowed past them and for a brief moment, Richard saw his own breath coming out of in spurts of mist. He sneaked his fingers into his shirt, seeking out the handle of the knife in this, the most crucial of moments.

The doors and most of the wall around them splintered as it exploded inward. Their attacker strode in slowly, arms held out, electricity and wisps of flame crackling from its fingers.

This time, it would be for real.