Chapter 59 : The Escalation

Veronica stood motionless outside the cabin. Her eyes were fixed on Rakiza, but her expression indicated that she was not thinking.
Rakiza's eyes were filled with tears as she watched her mother.
In the small living room, Theo drew Rakiza back and clasped her hands in front of him. He was writhing in agony.
"Look at me, Rakiza. That woman outside is no longer your mother. "Understand?" Theo reminded her.
"She was staring at me, Theo." Her gaze was vacant. But... maybe I could still help her.
"We can't help your mother, Rakiza. She's now a vampire. And a strong possibility was that she was being controlled by vampires. This is one of their ruses. They will torture their enemies by using their loved ones.
"And you should not be carried away by your emotions. "
Rakiza could feel her heart shattered by longing and guilt over losing her mother. But there was a glimmer of hope hidden deep within. "Perhaps there's a way to assist my mother."
"Stop it, Rakiza. Pay attention to saving your life. "
"But I can't leave my mother like that, Theo."
"She's bait." Theo stated. "Ignore her."
"What? How could I have ignored my mother, Theo? If you can do that to your mother, I can't. Some things you could do that I couldn't. So, bear with me. " She then returned her gaze to the window and noticed that her mother had vanished from where she had been standing only moments before. She was terrified. "She's gone, Theo! She's gone! "
"Calm down, Rakiza."
"I can't come down until I talk to my mother."
"Dead people don't speak with sense!"
Rakiza was taken aback by Theo's stern voice. She locked her gaze on him.
"Please, logic is more important this time than hoping your mother is okay." Your mother is not doing well. What you believe is tantamount to punching the moon."
"What if I could find a cure for vampirism, Theo?"
Rakiza's words astounded Theo. It was a fantastic idea, but it was impossible to realize.
"Rakiza?" A woman's soothing voice was calling for Rakiza.
"Who was it?" Rakiza wondered.
"Come out of that cabin, Rakiza," said a female voice from outside.
Rakiza leaped into the window and peered once more. Veronica, her mother, was getting closer to the cabin's door, and she was now on the porch. "Mom?"
"Help me, Rakiza," Veronica said coldly.
Rakiza noticed her mother standing in front of the door like a statue.
Veronica's face was as white as snow. She called once more. "Rakiza."
"I'm just here at the window, Mom."
"Help me, Rakiza. Open the door," Veronica said, not hearing Rakiza's voice. She didn't even take a side step. She couldn't hear anything.
"Open the door, my dear."
"Don't listen to her, Rakiza."
"She knew who I was, Theo."
"But she wasn't looking at you, Rakiza." Theo said, "She was still facing the door. Someone is dictating to her. Making her move and talk. "
Rakiza sobbed as she watched her mother. "I'm here at the window, Mother. There's a small gap here. Talk to me through this hole, mother," she said in between sobs. "Mom, what happened to you?"
Veronica moved and came to a halt in front of the main entrance. "Rakiza?" Veronica whispered.
Rakiza said, "I'm a few steps on your left, mom."
"Rakiza, be careful," Theo said emphatically, "don't let your mother in."
Veronica had already turned to face the window. She became more visible as she approached. "Rakiza?"
"What happened to you, Mom?"
"They..." they"She tried to recall what had happened to her. "Come out here, Rakiza. I can't go inside; please open the door for me."
"I'm afraid I can't, Mom."
Veronica almost whispered, "Come out, let's go home."
"Home is here, Mom," Rakiza said, touching her mother's hand.
"No, Rakiza, the home is far away from here."
Rakiza's heart sank in despair when her mother begged, with her eyes expressionless.
"Let me in, my daughter." She touched the window and jolted with pain and screamed. "What did you do, Rakiza?!"
Rakiza was shocked at her mother’s sudden anger.
"The wolfsbane venom works," Theo said frantically. "This made the vampires stop banging on the door and the walls. We have to add more extract more juice from wolfsbane, Rakiza. "
"But it would hurt my mother."
"I'll do it. Tell your mother to stay away from the window," Theo said, as he was about to go to the kitchen for more wolfsbane juice.
"Don’t do it, Theo." Rakiza stopped him.
"And why not?"
"It will hurt you. Wolfsbane could hurt you as well as the vampires, remember? "
"But if I don't do it, who will?"
Rakiza was already perplexed about what she was going to do. And she chose to side with Theo and said, "I'll do it."
Theo stunned.
Rakiza dashed to the kitchen to get more wolfsbane juice and wiped the window with it. She assumed her mother had already left the area, but Veronica's angry voice echoed.
"Open the door, Rakiza!" she screamed angrily.
Rakiza and Theo were taken aback by what they heard.
"Open the door! Let me in! " Veronica yelled again. She was still clutching her fists on the porch. "Open the door and come with me, Rakiza!"
"I'm sorry, Mom. I can't let you in. Stay with me, Mom. I'll find a cure for your disease." Rakiza leaned against the wall as she spoke with her mother. She couldn't bear to look at Veronica now that she was a complete vampire. As a result, her hatred for vampires began to boil over. She reasoned. *I'll kill you all.*
Then Veronica screamed again, this time in agony.
Theo quickly returned his gaze to the window, surprised by what he saw. "Oh no."
Rakiza was concerned by Theo's reaction. "What happened to my mother, Theo? Why did she scream? " She moved to the window.
Theo blocked her path.
"What's the matter, Theo? Let me see my mother," she insisted, walking to the window. And what she saw astounded her.
A large man was choking her mother's neck. Veronica struggled to free herself from the big man's grasp. The man lifted Veronica into the air with his right hand, making her look like a kite dangling in the air.
"Would you surrender or I'd kill your mother?" yelled the big man.
Rakiza was shivered by the man's brutality, and she dashed to the door to open it.
"No! " Theo yelled, yanking Rakiza away from the door.
"Leave me alone, Theo; I'm not going to let her hurt my mother," she pleaded.
"I'm sorry, Rakiza, but I have to protect you. If you surrender, there's no guarantee they'll release your mother; if they capture you, there's a good chance they'll drain your blood until you die, and everything will collapse with you, your mother, and the world. "
Rakiza was perplexed. If the prophecy was true, she was faced with a huge responsibility.
"Think about the next generation of your and my worlds, Rakiza. You are our only hope of survival. That is the prophecy. You've seen how cruel the vampires were to us. They wished to annihilate our species. They desired to rule the world. "
Rakiza gritted her teeth. calculating what should be done. And she realized that Theo was correct. If she surrenders, the vampires will be successful in their quest to rule the entire world.
"Impulsiveness can sometimes lead to disaster, Rakiza. We must carefully plan our next move. " Theo stated.
Veronica screamed in agony once more. Rakiza simply closed her eyes and clenched her jaws. She was in too much emotional pain to listen to her mother. Tears streamed down her cheeks. She felt trapped in a decision that compelled her to choose only one. Then, in her anguish, she yelled angrily. "They will all die!"
"We have to make it until morning. That is the only way you can exact your mother's revenge."
"I'll find a cure," she muttered.
"You should think that way."
Veronica screamed once more. Rakiza was tempted to peer through the window once more.
"I'll give you one more shot. If you want to keep your mother alive, surrender! " The leader told Rakiza.
Rakiza knew she had to make a decision, a critical decision. She had to know the truth about herself. And why do the vampires want to take her away? And what made them so certain she was the cure? "I need to know."
Rakiza's words shocked Theo. "Wait, what?"
"I'm curious about myself." She turned to Theo, "What do the vampires really want to take away from me?"
Theo already knew what Rakiza was thinking. "No."
"If I'm truly the cure, Theo, only vampires will reap the benefit of this. And I can treat my mother." She quickly took the hammer and slammed it hard on the door's lock.
"Don't do this, Rakiza!" Theo drew her away, but Rakiza turned around and punched Theo in the chest, causing him to collapse on the floor in agony.
Rakiza was surprised by her rage. She couldn't control her rage. It must go off. She then slammed the door again, and it opened.
"No!" yelled Theo.
Rakiza kicked the door wide open and stepped outside the cabin to find her mother and kill any vampires that came her way.
"No, Rakiza, no!" screamed Theo.
"Here I am; take me!" She screamed angrily, tightening and wielding her sword.
Rakiza was looking at the leader, who was holding his mother's neck. "Get her!"
Rakiza was attacked without hesitation by a pair of vampires wielding swords. Theo's wolf appeared out of nowhere to protect her.
"No, Theo!" exclaimed Rakiza.
But the fight escalated, and Theo was still a skilled fighter as a wolf. He was able to slash his enemies with his claws. Rakiza realized that Theo needed her assistance. She drew her sword and began slashing the enemy. They fought back-to-back. Rakiza swung the sword at every vampire in sight, and Theo bit the necks of every vampire that got nearer when suddenly Theo's wolf was struck by a spear. It caused him to crash to the ground.
"No!" Rakiza cried. "Theo!"
Another spear had struck Theo, and then something wrapped around Rakiza's legs and entangled them, causing her to fall to the ground. "Theo!" she yelled as she was thrown with a bolas weapon, followed by a hit to her head that curled her in so much pain.
But still, she tried to open her eyes and saw Theo being hauled away by some of the vampires. They would murder him. She thought and cried. And then everything went hazy, then black.
Then there was a dream. Rakiza saw herself in an armor suit once more. She was dying and gasping for air. Everywhere she turned, there was fighting. Vampires vs. werewolves: Theo's wolf had been slashed to death. And then her vision began to blur and she was in the dark again. But she could still hear her voice whispering, "Please don't kill Theo." Oh no. "Theo, I'm so sorry."