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of the
cabin and knock out the rest of this tour. If anyone asks, you just
asked a ton of weird questions about your new powers and about
taking guard shifts and raids or whatnot. We’ll be the only ones
who know how much you drained; no need for any alarm, it was only
due to the lack of meals. Let’s go outside all happy and you two
can compare fang-size or whatever.”
    The sad little puppy beamed so much I checked
for a wagging tail.
    Not a bad view.
    After a cursory tour of the camp, our trio
ambled over to the gate to initiate Daemon’s vampire practice – he
referred to it as bloodsucker boot camp. I placed items Cal
instructed me to pick up on the ground just outside of the gate.
There was a candle, a steel rod, and some arrows placed in a
straight line.
    I sat on the ground nearby with my hand on
the grip of my sword; I took no chances, even with a sentry
watching from the gate and two vampires to protect me.
    Watching Cal attempt to instruct Daemon in
the finer points of being Undead became a great source of amusement
in the coming months. I have to assume that the elder vampire had
never brought across anyone who asked so many questions. It
reminded me of a t-ball coach dealing with a child who keeps asking
why he should hit the ball, instead of just grab the ball and run.
His experience as an Under-Commander in the Roman Legion was
evident in the way Caelinus initiated the training.
    “Primarily you will be learning the
following: flying, glamour – also referred to as mind control - and
how to control both your feeding and your strength. As you
progress, I will also assess any secondary powers you may develop
over time. This would be skills such as telepathy, animal control,
telekinesis, and in rare cases shape shifting or pyrokinesis –
control of fire.”
    Daemon raised his hand, cutting short his
teacher’s spiel.
    “So can I get X-ray vision and invincibility
like Superman?”
    The elder answered in a soft tone.
    “No, this is not a comic book. While it is
difficult to kill one of our kind, we are not invincible; we merely
heal at an accelerated rate so long as we have fed enough. We will
still be injured and the pain is likewise quite vivid. As I was
saying…”
    “But are there Werewolves or Leprechauns or
Dragons out there too, because I still haven’t seen any. Creepy
pulse-less guys doing leper impressions, yes, but none of the cool
entities.”
    Cal pinched the bridge of his nose as he
spoke, aggravation coloring his voice.
    “Again no. This is reality; there are only
humans and vampires, no radioactive superheroes or aliens or
magical beasts. Just us.”
    Before I had time to think I blurted,
    “And the zombies, don’t forget they’re real,
too.”
    He glared at me, eyes shimmering a bright
green with scarlet flecks.
    “Yes, and the Dead. Thank you for
reminding me .”
    The fledgling chortled as I shrank back on my
seat; the phrase ‘seen-but-not-heard’ resounded sharply in my head.
When Cal looked for the source of the muffled laugh, he saw a hand
again in the air; it fell as soon as eye contact was made.
    “How are you so sure that those other beings
don’t exist? I mean, I never believed vampires were real until I
became one, and I’m sure you didn’t think the dead could rise until
they started chomping on people. Why discount the possibility of
other paranormals?”
    Cal. Lost. It.
    “WE ARE DIFFERENT! We’re not magical fairy
tale creatures, despite what we may have let the idiot masses
conclude for centuries. We are legitimate, flesh and blood people.
We think and feel and have a history and a culture; those others
are just imaginary figments.”
    It felt like I was watching a car plow
towards a wall at eighty-eight miles per hour; someone was
definitely going to have a bad night.
    “But we used to be human, so how did we get
changed? I remember what was done, I just don’t know why it worked
if not for some kind of magic. If magic allows our existence, then
other