Half Blood Rising

I was running, panting for air. Someone was after me. It was getting dark, and I was lost in the dark alleys of London, parts I'd never been to. My father had always warned me not to wander off my usual route, and now I realised he was right.

Fear dug its claws inside me. I hid behind a dumpster, panicking, trying to breathe in and out. These men were after me and I had no idea why. I'd never seen them before.

I was soaked with rain and sweat. Consciously I started counting the amount of money I had in my wallet. There wasn't much there at all, but maybe these men wanted it. Maybe they thought I was someone who had rich parents.

"Where the hell did she go, Nicodemus?" a deep voice asked. I peered around the dumpster. The man who I was looking at was tall and blond. He didn't seem to be affected by the rain; it appeared as though he had an invisible umbrella above him. I stared at both of them with my jaw wide open. His skin was shining, it almost seemed like it was radiating. I made the sign of the cross over my chest, shaking with cold and fear at the same time.

"She was just here; she can't be far," the other man said. "Are you sure she's the right test subject? Humans are weak, and this one has a family. They will start searching for her at some point." He looked ordinary; the rainwater was soaking him.

"Humans, test subject, what the hell were they talking about?" I whispered to myself.

"Jaymin is the perfect test subject and her distant relative was fae. We will transport her to Eastern Europe afterwards where no one knows her, but her blood needs to be infected first," the blond guy said, revealing his white teeth. I couldn't see his face fully, only his pointed chin. He was turned to the side, wearing a dark coat.

My stomach contracted with fear. I had to call someone, maybe the police, but they would never believe me. It looked like these men didn't want any money from me, but something else. Only my sister believed in these kinds of things. She was eleven.

I managed to dig the phone out of my pocket, but my fingers were so numb from cold. I waited for them to walk away, but they were just standing there, like they knew I was nearby. My thoughts began racing. Recently I'd started having dreams, nightmares where I talked to dead people, because they could understand me so well.

"This has never been done before, it's against all the rules," the other man, Nicodemus said, scratching his chin.

"It's the only way for me to get rid of the High Council, and I'm the only person capable of going through with this experiment," the blond man said, and something glinted in his mouth. I rubbed my eyes, trying to see it more clearly. No, it was impossible. They couldn't have been fangs ....

I pulled away from his neck, thrown backwards by an invisible energy inside the room. I must have hit the wall, because now the world around me was spinning out of control. His blood tasted incredible: it was sweet, delightful, rich, and it filled me with energy. With every sip, I'd only wanted more. I'd never tasted anything like it—and these memories. It was my past-it had to be. There couldn't have been any other explanation. Lachlan's blood made me see who I truly was-my previous life. Was it a skill he was hiding from Oldman, or maybe something he was unaware of?

He stood several meters away from me, taking long pulls of air, and his normally pale cheeks were infused with colour. The deep wound on his arm was gone, and there were obvious signs around his crotch area that he'd enjoyed our moment. He had a full-blown erection and he was staring at me with hunger in his eyes. I exhaled sharply, trying to gather my thoughts, touching my face, and trying to understand what the hell just happened here.

My mind was in havoc. I needed some air; his energy was overwhelming.

"Don't worry, hen, your reaction was inevitable. Your vampire nature made this happen," he said, but his voice was hoarse, almost unrecognisable. "I think we should keep this between us. For now, this session is over." I wanted to look him in the eye and ask what exactly caused that flashback. At the same time, I had a feeling he wouldn't know what I was talking about.

Then, he was gone before I could ask him anything. I could finally breathe. The heat was slowly leaving my body, but I was still turned on-overwhelmed by this unexpected bloodlust. I wanted him. It was difficult for me to admit it, but Lachlan had become the first vampire I'd ever desired. The other creatures were right; the taste of vampire blood was better than anything I'd ever tasted, addictive, silky, and arousing. I'd never felt more satisfied. My sex was still throbbing with the need of wanting to be close to him. My imagination was going wild, planting images of him on top of me.

Maybe he ran away because he saw it, too, the past-my past? Had I just been an experiment for some group of ancient vampires?

I didn't understand, but even Oldman said she had sensed fae magic, or at least strong magic in my energy. As a human girl in my previous life, I had a family: my dad and a sister. Maybe that was the main reason why I was able to speak English and never truly bothered with learning Ukrainian. At least I was beginning to get some answers.

However, another, more important question was burning my insides-why Lachlan? Why him? This was what I needed to find out. Either way, I hated his guts and I could never feel anything beyond that fatal attraction. I could move past it, but first, I needed to know more.

***

"Why are you smoking those?" I asked Marco the next day. He was standing outside the entrance to the academy, smoking what appeared to be human cigarettes and he seemed to be enjoying it, too. I didn't sleep well that night, still thinking about what had happened between me and Lachlan. On top of that, I kept re-dreaming that memory. It only left me frustrated and angry that I couldn't remember anything else. "Because it's an addiction. I add magic to it, so I don't stink like most humans, besides women like it. There is always one who smokes," he answered, then he winked at a few female students who'd just walked inside the building. Two shifters giggled, staring at him with amusement and interest.

"Oldman said you don't age, so you must have lived for a long time, but you still have an accent?" I enquired, thinking that it was bizarre. I didn't know why, but I wanted to build a rapport with him and the rest of the team. Marco seemed more approachable than the others.

"I like remembering where I'm from, and women enjoy when I whisper to them in my mother tongue," he said playfully.

I caught a waft of his cologne as I stood next to him. It was very strong. He acted like he was born in this century, but deep down I suspected he'd experienced more than anyone here. Most fae were mortal, only certain castes had the ability to live forever. I didn't know the reason behind it. His next question threw me off a bit. "What about you, rogue girl? What's your story?"

"There is none, I'm just an ordinary half-vamp with no recollection of who I was before that," I answered honestly. He tossed his cigarette to the ground and smashed it with his boot. He was reading me with his fae eyes, and I needed to learn how to close my mind.

"You're strong and sensitive-your energy is exposing you, so there is always a story," he said. "I embrace this new modern world, but I miss living in the seventeen hundreds. Back then, women were more adventurous than they are now. I have many tales to tell, Jaymin."

I laughed a little, thinking he was right about me, although no one had ever said I was self-conscious about my sensitivity. That was interesting. Marco was an asset; his knowledge and experience couldn't be replaced. I suspected he was much older than Lachlan.

A tall blond Ukrainian student peered through the door, and Marco began saying something in Italian and walking towards her. Her cheeks went red instantly as she gave me a nervous glance. Then he embraced her waist and kissed her, not caring that he was blocking the exit.

I thought he was handsome, but to me, he was probably good company and nothing else besides, I couldn't compete with all the women he was with. This little chat made me feel like I was normal, like I was part of the group and the academy. After Marco and his girl vanished around the corner, I went back inside. It was the first day of lectures, and I was looking forward to diving into my studies.

The following morning, Karina walked with me to our classes. I needed to get used to my new life, to the schedule and all these new rules. Everyone in our group was there, too, and surprisingly, I found I was fitting in. It was a new feeling for me.

Karina liked to talk a lot, so by the second day, I knew more about her than I wanted to. She was bubbly, funny, and genuinely wanted to get to know me. It was going to take me a little while to trust her like Melody.

Every time I saw Lachlan in class, I would continue to get flashbacks from the same memory. He didn't pay much attention to me, and there had been no mark on his neck. He must have healed it or hid it from Ramona. Either way, I really had to get over this absurd crush. There was no way I could afford to lose control like that again, but his blood had left its mark on me. I kept craving it.

There were around twenty students in each class or lecture. Oldman and Karina had been right; all the classes were interesting and there was a lot of things we had to memorise. We had history of supernatural breeds, magical potions, spells and charms, defence classes, and a few others I'd only seen on the list. There was also an option to improve your English language skills and study a bit of literature. I was always up for that.

In my vampire existence, I'd never gone to any sort of school, but I'd spent a lot of time in the library. I knew how to do research.

On day three, I overslept, and for the first time, I was running late for my lecture of spells and charms. Karina had gone to the gym at seven a.m., and I didn't have a fancy phone with an alarm.

That day I flew from my room, half-panicking, holding several books underneath my arm. It turned out that the probation period included everyone new in the group. I rushed through the empty corridors and noticed a few lonely students-mostly fae-were running late, too. It took me another ten minutes to find the right auditorium. My heart was thumping loudly inside my chest. I stood in front of the long wooden door, wondering if I should go in, anyway. I always hated bringing any kind of attention to myself.

I took a deep breath and told myself that this couldn't be any worse than tracking a creature that didn't deserve to live.

A couple minutes later, I finally opened the door and walked into a full class. There were more than fifty students in there, more than I expected. All heads turned my way, and suddenly, I could feel my face going instantly red-this was embarrassing. Someone laughed, and I knew it was Ramona. Damn it, this was bad, and the lecturer appeared displeased. I saw a bundle of pink hair, so I headed in Karina's direction, keeping my head down.

"You're late. Not many students show up to charm class late," the instructor said. I was about halfway down the aisle, and my legs suddenly felt like they were made of rubber. He was quite tall, lean, and appeared to be fae. Also, he looked very young for a lecturer. I figured he could have only been somewhere in his mid-thirties.

"I'm sorry," I mumbled, telling myself to breathe. Under any other circumstances, I would have told him to get lost, but I had to watch myself right now. This academy had given me a new life.

He was handsome, and it seemed like one of his parents might have been from the Middle East, with his longish tar-black hair, thick eyebrows, and close-cropped beard. There was a lot of magic present in the room, I felt it soaking through me like an invisible coat and then making its way through my veins. My breath caught in my chest for a moment, and I couldn't move. Everyone was still staring.

"What's your name? I'd like to know the name of the student who doesn't know how to follow simple rules of Moonlight Academy. I believe you had your evaluation with Principal Oldman, correct?" He continued to scold me like I was a little child. I began to wonder if I'd walked into the right class. He approached me, and a wave of his strong cologne drifted up my nose-it was intense.

"Jaymin Donovan, and no I don't own a fancy watch. I came here with nothing," I told him, folding my arms over my chest. He was trying to break my wards. I could feel an intense pulling sensation inside my head, like someone was trying to suck out bits of my brain. It was him; I just didn't know how to tell for sure, but he had to be the one who was using a charm against me.

"I will not tolerate interruption, so find your seat, Miss Donovan, and remain quiet," he snapped, sounding annoyed. "You have missed a lot already." The pull was gone in an instant. Warmth spread through my entire body, it was blissful, and it almost felt like when I was drinking from ....

I glanced in the direction of Lachlan, but he seemed to be reading something from his book. However, Ramona was staring, and her eyes were gleaming with energy.

"Come on, what are you waiting for?" someone hissed at me, and then I realised it was Karina. She managed to pull me into the seat next to her. Anger flashed through me. I wanted to punch him, but instead, told myself to keep on breathing. The professor's name was on the book in front of me, and when I glanced back, he was still watching me.

A jolt of energy passed down my spine, and the tingling stopped a moment later. Ripley went to the door and someone handed him a leash with a young-looking Labrador. The dog was jumping around, trying to lick the professor. He appeared to be a pup, he couldn't have been very old at all. The whole class seemed confused. Karina shrugged her shoulders.

"Today you're going to learn the effects of one of the most important charms, and it's best if I demonstrate it on a test subject. This is Mally," Ripley announced, sounding pleased with himself. I began flipping through the pages of the book in front of me, until I came to the part where Karina's was opened to.

It was a Chimera charm. I'd heard about this sort of magic before, and I knew it was only used for special circumstances, like life-threatening situations. It was extremely advanced dark magic that required precision and concentration. Some believed that only pure breeds were able to ever fully learn how to perform it properly.

"This is one of the charms all students are required to learn in order to prepare for the Elite trials. Most of you won't understand its true meaning, and that's why today, I've decided to show you exactly what to expect if you're ever required to use it." Ripley smiled, and patted Mally on the head, while the dog licked his hand.

"Crap, I hope he's not planning to hurt the poor doggie," Karina whispered, clasping her hand over her mouth. Well, I didn't want to be the one to tell her that that was exactly what Ripley intended to do with Mally.0000