Redemption Ch. 01

I am working on the continuing parts of Wolfblood but ideas and writing never quite go as one plans. Admittedly, it's taking longer than I expected but I am working on it. In the meantime, this is one of those ideas that occurred to me and I have decided to keep it here while I work out a few more chapters. It's darker than Wolfblood and won't be so fluffy but I like it and I hope you will too. Without further ado, I give you Redemption.

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The rain fell down in thin sheets of drizzle, giving the world a softer and more tranquil appearance as the bustling in the small town died down and the cars reduced on the roads. A calm fell over the streets and Jacob watched silently from his apartment high above, knowing that no matter the appearance of the world, it still lay rotten to the core. Long and hard years over the centuries had shown him that no matter how thickly society sugar-coated itself with the functions and charities, the decay still continued deep beneath the surface. The humans themselves had learned to ignore it and for a while, it seemed like they had evolved, becoming more keen with each passing year, forcing his kind to adapt and set up an assembly to enforce rules that ensured that they survived. Rules that didn't sit too well with many of their kind and had eventually led to a massacre of the opposers in the previous century.

Jacob took one last look at the city and turned away from the small balcony he'd been standing on, moving quickly through the clean apartment to grab his jacket and car keys. There were few personal items in the rooms and that's how he liked it, for everything to remain pristine and impersonal; there really wasn't any place he belonged to. The parasitic life he'd been sired to almost half a millennium ago had made sure of that. On days like these, when the world did not seem so cruel and the pain he'd suffered at the hands of his own kind had diminished, he liked to remind himself that they had dragged him into this life and had promptly abandoned him thereafter. It would be a fatal mistake to start feeling hopeful about his species. In the slums of 16^th century England, the family he'd so faithfully served had dumped him and left him to die of the Plague, thus leaving him to the mercy of the creatures that would later find him. Perhaps the plague would have been a better fate...no; no, death was never a better fate.

He closed the door to his apartment and headed through the corridors to the elevator. It was a standard building and he'd been impressed when he'd moved in 3 years ago, having easily believed, like many others, that Africa had little to offer in the way of comfort. There he was however, in Burundi, a small country on the eastern side of the continent and enjoying himself. It was a far cry from the life he'd been living while still on The Council and that was the reason he'd decided to move there, for while they'd never think to look for him in Eastern Africa, he still had the very basics that made life interesting for him and he blended in with the locals. His dark skin and quick adaptation to the different cultures and accents of the world helped him stay unremarkable in the small country and thus safe. For all effective purposes, he was a normal looking guy, not too tall at exactly 6 feet, and having a lean frame that spoke of athleticism more than body-building, add to that his short black hair and bland brown eyes and no one could pick him out of a crowd. That's the way he liked it. The elevator came to a stop in the basement and he headed towards his car, eager to get away from the building.

Vampires, the humans called them and while he found the term in use at the time he'd been sired to the cursed life, it was used more frequently with each passing decade. It probably had something to do with the portrayal of bloodsuckers that was becoming disgustingly popular in the media, but he preferred that to the demonic-looking illustrations artists had used in the past, striking dread in the hearts of the populace and so making quality blood, untainted by fear, that much harder to find. Then again, perhaps that had been a problem only he had encountered for no one had taught him how to seduce and lure humans telepathically. He'd had to teach himself that and had shattered quite a few minds before he'd found a way to drift along with the human mind's thoughts, placing his own suggestions there unnoticed. It was that very ability that had made him so coveted to The Council for not even their best could work a mind quite like he could.

It was a short drive to his favorite café and he parked the car, eager to walk in and have the thick aroma of coffee override every other scent in the air, thus enabling him to suppress his craving for blood. His life had settled into quite a simple routine, have a blood meal once a day at 4am, before anyone in the apartment building was up to feel the spike in his aura, and suppress it until the very next meal. While Jacob needed blood to survive, he was not addicted to it for unlike food to humans, blood to vampires increased the hunger for it; one could never quite have enough. In the situations where the human scents became too much for his control, he'd head over to the café, have his fill of coffee and reestablish his equilibrium. Safe to say, he was at the café a lot but it wouldn't do to feed often for as a vampire feeds, everything it is becomes unveiled including its true nature, calling out to any other vampire within the area. Jacob couldn't afford to be found.

He pushed open the café door and took a deep breath, smiling as the rich aromas of the various coffee beans mixed and wafted towards him. Coffee and alcohol were really the only two drinks he could stomach and even at that, there was a limit to what he could take before his body rejected the contents and expelled them. Jacob walked over to his usual secluded spot, vaguely noticing a few familiar faces scattered over the mostly empty café and he sat down, making eye contact with a waitress before glancing outside the window next to him to see that the drizzle was not letting up. He ordered his usual, a long black, plain and direct with no additives and no cookies along to sweeten it further. His order came back pretty quickly and he took a sip, reveling in the rich flavor, as he absentmindedly scanned the room.

In the three years he'd spent in Burundi, he'd come across exactly five others of his kind that he could identify. They were making no effort to suppress their auras and he had sensed them from miles away before they ever crossed his path, though not intentionally. Jacob himself had sought them out, wanting to know if they were Council affiliated, as slim as the chances were and getting relieved every time he found they weren't. If he was discovered, he'd be sure that any vampire The Council sent to collect him would not be easily detected and that's why he stuck to specific rules. The idea that The Council would attempt to recover him even after he'd left, having served the time with them that he'd sworn he would, infuriated him. His skill was singular and thus valuable to them but it was his, nonetheless and the arrogant dogs had not taught him a single thing. No, instead, a lone vampire had played with and tortured him for days after he was left for dead by the family that had owned him...the only family he'd ever known. He'd finally been sired and abandoned, left alone to the agony that was his brain adapting to his heightened senses and the raging bloodlust that came with it. It had been months before he could finally venture out in public without worrying that he'd rip some unsuspecting human to shreds, his remorse powerful after every feeding, especially when it was a child.

Jacob shifted uncomfortably, alarm rising sharply as he realized that the painful memories were affecting him as intensely as they always did, the deep anger making the control on his aura slip. His hold on the coffee cup tightened as he bowed his head in concentration, the control still slipping steadily as he fought to gain a handle on it, knowing that he couldn't risk his aura broadcasting in such an open space. He lost the fight and his aura was released, making him swear in frustration and as a result, drawing the attention of the few people in the café. He could see the surprise in their eyes and smell the acrid scent of their sudden fear as something in them overcame their logic, convincing them that despite what they were seeing, he was to be feared; a predator. The reaction was always the same and he'd grown tired of it; the confusion and fear mixing as the humans reacted instinctively to the vampire aura without understanding why.

He sighed and breathed deeply, readying himself to reestablish control before anyone picked up on his true nature only to stop short, his breath coming out in a startled exhale. What the devil was that?

"It can't be," he muttered, unaware that he'd said it out loud as his eyes scanned the room and landed on brown ones that were looking at him in curiosity, making his heart start pounding in his chest.

Suppressing the urge to swear again, he efficiently grabbed tight control of his emotions and curbed the flow of his aura, noticing the sighs of relief echo around the room as it was cut off. But now that he had seen her, scented her, he couldn't get the image out of his head and her natural fragrance came to him, drowning out the smell of coffee and blood and filling him with its heady hues. Suddenly eager to get away from the café and from those expressive brown eyes set in a beautiful face with a slender nose and full lips, he stood up and began to walk towards the door before he remembered to go back and drop some money on the table. He wasn't waiting for change; he had to get away from there as fast as he could, his mind reasoned, but everything in him wanted to stay. His footsteps slowed slightly as he came towards her table, wanting to just move right past it and managing for a few steps before he came to a sudden stop, his heart hammering in his chest.

It was madness, he reasoned, this was not real and must be some sort of trick set up by The Council or whatever dark magic had originally formed creatures like him. Vampires did not have souls; they did not and so couldn't have soul-mates. But there she was, seated at the table right behind him, her mere presence undoing every belief he'd ever had on the subject. Humans sometimes found people they belonged to and this was common too for supernatural creatures, but for more than 500 years, he'd thought the existence of mates a mere myth, tuning out any arguments his friends had put forward about their own but there he was, suddenly unable to move past the woman his very being recognized. He should stay away from her, move right along and forget she existed, but he knew he couldn't, would never forget her. He doubted he could even stay away from her, knowing that all it would take would be a single slip of his aura and his instincts would take over and hunt her down in near madness. Perhaps he could try and-

"Uh...excuse me...are you alright?"

The voice cut through his thoughts and a tingle went down his spine as the sound. Good God, he was acting like some lovesick teenager. It would be prudent to turn around, assure her that everything was quite alright indeed and move right along, but that would not do; he'd be quite impressed if he could voice anything with the way his heart seemed to be stuck in his throat.

Clearing his throat however, Jacob went with his instincts and turned around, fighting the urge to just let go of his control and sink his teeth into her, to taste of her.

"Yes, yes indeed," was what he said instead and gave a small smile, moving slowly towards her table. "I was just wondering if you would be open to me buying you a cup of coffee."

"Oh," she responded, her lips forming a perfect circle and making him instantly think of them wrapped around his hardness. The thought surprised him and self a jolt straight through his lower regions. "You certainly seemed to consider that for quite a while."

Jacob smiled in amusement at the cheeky response and found that he would actually like to stay very much and talk. Her local accent and clear voice were a pleasant blend, adding to the fact that her scent was quite tantalizing, he wanted to stay very much, indeed.

"Any man would find himself momentarily speechless while considering what to say to a lady as exquisite as you are," he responded, trying to regulate his breathing, resisting the deep inhalations he was tempted to take as her scent danced around him.

He reached for the single unoccupied chair opposite her at the small table and paused to look at her in question, waiting to see if she'd reject his offer. For her part, the dark skinned beauty looked him up and down in what he knew she thought to be a discreet assessment before she smiled slightly and nodded once, silently telling him that he could take the seat.

Jacob felt his pulse quicken as a peculiar sensation settled in the pit of his stomach; he felt like a teenager once more, trying to learn how to speak to girls without biting his tongue. True to the sensation, his mouth had gone quite dry and he returned her smile before reaching for the hand nearest to him and leaning down to press a light kiss at the back of it. It was only proper to do so, he reasoned and he definitely wasn't doing it just because he couldn't think of anything charming to say to her. The gesture itself would be enough to indicate his enchantment with her, no matter how the current generation of humans considered it too sappy or too forward; their customs too, would fade with time.

She had a dainty hand; slender fingers tipped with light pink nails and a delicate looking wrist that had a small gold bracelet adorning it. Never before had he been so entranced with the hands of a woman. Jacob felt he was losing his mind and fought mentally to stop whatever romanticisms were filling it so he could think clearly. The dainty hand in his stiffened slightly and he wondered if perhaps he'd let his thoughts wander too long and what was supposed to be a charming gesture had simply just become awkward. Moving quickly, he dipped his head to plant his lips on her hand and that's when he felt it.

The unmistakable whisper of the air above him as something very thin and very sharp cut through it; something like a blade.

Instantly, all his senses sharpened, time slowing down and the buzz in the café being phased out in his mind as the adrenaline rushed through his system, unlocking whatever control he had put in place before and unleashing his vampiric aura, letting his attacker know with certainty who and what he was dealing with. Moving faster than most human eyes could follow, he kicked his right leg sharply behind, aiming for his attacker's midriff and felt satisfaction flow through him as a faint grunt filled the air and a crash followed soon after. He quickly turned around to assess his opponent, placing himself between the woman he'd just met and the assailant.

As if the entire café had come to life, the noise rushed back to him as the few customers and employees working that evening felt the menacing aura coming off of him, took in the man who'd been kicked into a table, and decided it was time to get out of the building as quickly as possible. The Council however, for he knew the moment he set eyes on the attacker dressed in black and wielding their trademarked swords that it was them, were frighteningly efficient at taking care of human witnesses. Just as he thought it, he caught sight of one of their mind-sages standing outside the glass door of the café, eyes closed in concentration.

Jacob rushed towards him, the scream of 'no' not fully formed on his lips as every muscle in his powerful body strained with the speed he was pushing himself at so he could reach the sage before he shattered the minds of the innocent humans in the small shop. He was stopped before he could reach the door however, as a force slammed into him sending him falling towards the ground and the soft whisper flitted through the air again as a blade was adjusted and he saw the attacker aim it, ready to decapitate him.

He had been distracted and for a second, his survival had meant less to him than that of the humans around him. It was all for naught however as he felt the energy fill the room, its hum in the air almost palpable, and all the humans collapsed to the floor as one, their minds instantly shattered. Indeed, for a second, he felt the will to fight leave him as he looked around the room and the significance of what had just happened hit him. It was his fault that these people were now mindless zombies, alive but only barely; if he had maintained proper control of his aura, if he hadn't chosen that particular café, if he hadn't delayed leaving it because he'd found his mate.

His mate!

Another wave of adrenaline washed through him and Jacob shifted quickly, managing to dodge the blade of the sword as it came down towards his throat. He looked up at his assailant, taking in the steel eyes of a killer set in a youthful face of a boy who had no doubt been sired before he even turned 18. It was the way of The Council, to get them while they were still young and train them to be assassins before they were disposed of themselves. This one must have survived for a long time though, Jacob noted, for even with the small scuffle they'd had, the boy still maintained good control of his aura. So good in fact, Jacob had not sensed him before his blade had come down.

Jacob concentrated his energy in a single punch that he sent with high speed to the diaphragm of the assassin as his blade came down, managing to hear a crack as the impact dislodged the hold the boy had on him enough for Jacob to kick him off. Standing up, he did a quick scan on the room, relief filling him at first as his eyes met those brown ones that had captivated him earlier, before confusion took its place and then rage.

He'd been played.

Realization flowed through him with such speed, he felt the breath leave his lungs. As quickly as it had hit him, the attraction to the dark-skinned local girl left him, leaving wrath in its place as he recognized the woman for what she was: a sorceress. She had to be to have enchanted him the way she did and while all the humans were now mindless, there she stood, untouched by the crass telepathy the mind-sages practiced. How could he have been so gullible; he knew soul-mates did not exist and yet there he-

A searing pain filled him suddenly, radiating through his body from his abdomen and making him cry out in agony as he looked down to find blood filling his shirt from the point at which a blade was sticking out of it. He leaned forward, sliding himself off the blade and collapsing to one of his knees, knowing the pain would take a while to subside as the wound healed, but that was quite enough of his carelessness.

Mastering whatever strength he had, Jacob drew himself to his feet with a groan, even as the pain increased to inimitable levels, and turned around to see the assassin doing exactly the same, hand around his chest where he'd been punched earlier. They rushed at each other, Jacob ducking as the kid swung the sword at his throat and throwing out a fist that landed at the exact same spot he'd punched earlier. The assassin screamed out in pain and lifted his knee to catch Jacob in the face but his hands were there in time to block the blow. That knee came up again in quick succession, catching him unawares and sending pain radiating through his jaw as he reached for the sword, managing to grasp it at the hilt and twisting it sharply to try and get it out the grasp of the assassin. It came loose, surprisingly enough and Jacob managed to throw it away as the kid lunged at him.