CHAPTER 23: THE ORIGIN

'*We had all but scattered across the earth, but father hunted us down one by one. And then, there were only a few of us left. My sister and I stayed with mother, we were the youngest in the family. A few were hiding elsewhere. I believe father came for us last*.



*When he found us, we were surviving on the blood of lizards and snakes. All the other creatures had all but been consumed. We were weak, father would have no problem finishing us off. But father loved mother the most. She was his first love*.



“*Kill me, but spare our children,” mother begged. She knew the end had come for her*.



*Father looked into mother’s eyes. Gone were the once beautiful bright eyes, and in its place were dull yellow ones. Where was the woman he once kne*w?



*Father wept. He wept for every life that he had taken, in his hands were the blood of his children. Why did it have to come to this?*



*We were no match for father. He was far more powerful than all of us combined, so we closed our eyes, waiting for the final blow.*



*So you can imagine our surprise when father said, “I will let these two live.*”



*He meant my sister and I. We huddled closer and pulled mother into our embrace, not wanting to leave her*.



*Mother pried our fingers away and tried to smile. Trembling, she said, “Go. I will be alright. Everything will be alright.” I could see grief and fear in her eyes, and yet there seemed to be a glimmer of hope in them too. Perhaps father would let her live*?



*My sister got up and I followed suit. We bowed to mother and started to run. We ran, faster than the wind could take us and headed to the mountains that lied ahead. Above, thunder began to roar and lightning flashed across the dessert*.



*That was the last time I saw father and mother. Once we reached a safe haven, I refused to look back, but my sister did. She had peeked out from behind the boulder. Because we were from the beginning, our eyes are very sensitive, as is our sight. Our senses have only grown more acute as we aged*.



*My sister would tell me later that she saw father call upon the gateway to the abyss. An ability HeSham bestowed upon him. A portal opened, it was a deep, immeasurable space and from within, demons and beings like the one mother had met tried to make their way out. Their tongues stretched out, curling and licking at the raindrops that fell to the ground*.



*Father was strong, for he alone stopped them all from charging out. Sister said mother could see us still and gave us a silent nod before stepping into the gateway, she did not put up a fight. Father then closed his eyes and raised his hands to the sky. As he did, he started to chant and his body turned into golden rays of shimmering light. He was so bright the demons had to retreat back into the abyss. There and then, father took a step forward, into the portal and in a blinding flash of light, the gateway disappeared.*



*The rain stopped and the dark clouds parted, giving way to the glory of the sun. Father had chosen to join mother and sacrifice himself by sealing the gateway with his very soul.’*



In a flash, the vampire was back in his seat, stroking Celine’s tresses.



Tom was taken aback, it would take some time to get used to seeing someone move so fast.



“But you and your sister survived. Doesn’t that mean your father broke his promise to God?”



The vampire nodded thoughtfully, “Perhaps, perhaps not.”



“What do you mean?” Suzanne finally spoke.



“HaShem, or God as your nerdy boyfriend called him merely wanted the world to be cleansed of darkness.”



Tom was offended, “I’m not nerdy,” he grumbled.



The vampire ignored him and continued, “My sister and I survived, yes, but we have largely remained quiet over the past few thousand years. Sure we may have made a vampire or two but the chaos and carnage that has plagued humanity’s history is none of our doing.”



The vampire paused, Tom and Suzanne knew what he was about to say next. He turned to them, eyes boring into their minds once again, “All the wars, the deaths, the pain, it is all so unnecessary. You humans crave power so much that it blinds you to the point of no return.”



Suddenly things started to become crystal clear for Suzanne. She had a dreaded feeling she knew the reason for the black mark.



“Humanity will destroy itself, body and soul before it will learn a simple lesson,” Tom whispered.



The vampire leaned back and clapped his hands, laughing, “A Dan Wells quote! See? I told you, your boyfriend’s a nerd.”



Tom ignored him this time. Suzanne sat straight and placed her hand over Tom’s. She needed to feel his warmth.



“Are you saying we are the reason for the black mist’s existence?” she asked, her tone serious and deadly.



“Yes,” the vampire answered simply, “You people are your own worst nightmare.”



At his words, Suzanne’s mind went back to the dream she had earlier on. Tom did not take the accusation lightly, his hands clenched under Suzanne’s.



The vampire proceeded to explain, “All the seven deadly sins that humanity is guilty of; lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy and pride have somehow created a splinter to the gates of hell. The black mist is but the beginning.”



“Technically, you are a part that damnation,” Tom retaliated.



The vampire covered his mouth in mock surprise, “Touche…but like I said before, my kind and I played no part in this. Look, I am here to offer my aid. I am not your enemy.”



Suzanne took a deep breath, she had feared this all along but she had to ask. Her lips quivered as she opened her mouth, “Where does the mark on my hand fit in?”



The vampire looked at Suzanne as if trying to size her up. Suzanne looked so small and petite, he did not understand why it had to be her.



*It is unfair to you*, the vampire thought.



“Do you know that locks are never manufactured without a key? Similarly, God never gives problems without solutions,” the vampire hardened his voice, “I have seen the mark before, once, a long time ago.”



There was a long silence between them and Suzanne could feel her heart beating faster.



“You see, the mark you have on your hand is exactly like the one on my father’s when he closed the gateway to the abyss. You, Suzanne Summers,” the vampire paused, “You are the key to humanity’s survival.”