Blood Dancer - Part 4

Brigid tried to push her way through the crowd. She simply had to identify who was using dark magic in the town. The sisters in the coven would be able to help her but she had to know exactly what she was dealing with. Several people she knew stopped her and hugged her in celebration at the team's late equaliser. She tried her best to be polite and not show any of the uneasiness she was feeling

She had lived in Lincoln Lake for years after retiring from the active witchcraft scene. A youth of magical experiment and active operations against dark magicians and dangerously untrained amateur sorcerers had left her jaded and exhausted. It had been a fun, hedonistic, action packed lifestyle with non of the undead and demonic dangers of other parts of the world but eventually she had wanted a quieter life and so became an English teacher in a small Massachusetts town.

Since then nothing even remotely magical had occurred apart from her minor spell-casting. From a rival for a job promotion who became unexpectedly sick on the morning of their interview or an object of lust who unexpectedly decided to ask her out right through to things like a neighbour suddenly deciding that they liked classical music rather than loud death metal at 1am. Magic had been a constant in her life but now she was facing something unknown in her own back yard.

As she made her way around the field Beth and Wilma were jumping for joy and Kate was smiling warmly. She had enjoyed her little intervention, it was amusing how the humans got caught up in their sporting contests without ever realising they were merely a sop to their more bloodthirsty natural instincts. It was the same all over the world. humans were either fighting or finding some form of confrontation.

Beth was being slightly more tactile with Kate with each passing day as was Wilma. Kate was amused by how infatuated the women were becoming but despite her infinite superiority to the two homo-sapiens she found herself liking the women and the other in their circle. Many vampyres and aristocratic ones in particular were utterly contemptuous of mankind and saw them merely as pets, tools to be used and a source of food. Despite being utterly ruthless and as bloodthirsty as any of her special Kate had always had a more complex relationship with the planet 2nd ranked species. She was utterly amoral but still found merit in them. They had capacity to please and entertain and in some cases delight but she never lost site of their complete and utter inferiority. She wondered if human farmers ever become attached to their livestock. Certainly some vampyres did form an attachment to their humans.

Beth was literally jumping for joy as Kate mused over this deep, deep philosophical topic. "You must come round to our house, we will have a real post-game barbecue party" she said to everyone, she turned to Kate with a look of hope "Will you join us?"

Kate smiled, it was all so easy "Oh Beth, I'd love to" then she noticed she'd said the word "barbecue" staying out in the sun would be torment for her. She needed to bath and recuperate after 90 minutes spent in those harmful ultraviolet rays "...would it be okay if I went home first to freshen up"

Beth was overjoyed at this news. She was delighted to have this interesting European visitor as her guest, she quickly wrote down her address and Kate made her apologies. As she was descending the steps to leave she encountered Carl making his was towards his mother. Stacey was in tow although there was no closeness in their body language "Too bad Stacey" thought Kate "I am sure you are a nice girl but there is no way you are getting your hands on Carl before me". She paused briefly to congratulate Carl. The young man was utterly overjoyed that Kate had seen his big moment. He had spent most of the week fantasising about the sultry European and was extremely grateful that his mom & Reverend Wilma had invited her along.

Kate finally made it to her car with it's tinted windows and breathed a sigh. The pain was nothing but as the hours ticked along it built and built. She would apply a special salve to her skin once she returned to her new home. After composing herself and turning the air-conditioning up to full she pulled away

Just as Kate was leaving Brigid made it round to where Reverend Wilma and her group of friends was standing. She didn't not approach as she had always been suspicious of the clergy and she had never been particularly friendly with Reverend Wilma. Further to that she had been on the end of Beth Langberg's fury over the grades she had given her son the previous year. She discreetly took a seat in the stand a few rows above them and watched to see if she could work out what was going on. There was certainly no hint of magic now so what was going on.

She scanned the crowd. Carl, the hero of the hour, his doting mom, the local pastor, various friends...she noted Stacey towards the rear of the group. She noted terse exchanges between Carl and Stacey and an obvious look of disappointment. It was clear there was something between them. She seemed to remember Carl and Stacey being an item at school. Had they broken up? Why would she be there if that was the case. In her experience young adolescents were the most likely to be playing around with the 'craft. She decided to keep a close eye on Stacey going forward.

Thirty minutes after she'd left the soccer field Kate arrived at the home she had recently bought. She had employed a team of humans to convert it to her specifications. Vital amongst her requirements was a large basement. Fortunately this on had an underground level almost the size of the entire property. It could only be reached by a coded entry system and was shielded by all manner of secrecy spells. Kate typed in the code and descended into her lair. In the very back room was a series of cages. Each contained a human male. These were the people who had set up Kate's special genealogy websites and procured her property in the area. They were the only people who knew of her plans and activities and she had them all imprisoned. Kept alive and sanitary by the automated systems they themselves had helped to install. Then Kate had betrayed them, this was unheard of. She had always been generous and rewarding with her human staff but this was simply too important.

She opened the cage and calmed the mind of the human sitting dejected within its confines. She beckoned to him and he crawled out dutifully. He was fully naked and utterly pliant....like a lamb to the slaughter. Literally.

Kate walked around him savouring her prey. This one was one of the computer technicians who had constructed the intricate system to detect anyone with the correct ancestry. She smiled slightly. Certainly not a prime specimen but rich and life-giving blood. She ran her hands over his shoulders and he shivered with lust but again made no movement.

Kate gently tilted his head to the right and her fangs extended, her eyes went black as night. She grabbed him and sunk her teeth into his neck, they easily pierced the soft skin and then the muscle underneath. Her jaws clamped together and she ripped open his throat spraying blood across the room. It surged and pulsed into Kate's mouth and she gulped down pint after pint after pint of the rich bright red arterial blood.

He didn't even scream.