03

A DROP OF HUMAN BLOOD

Chapter Two: A Drop of Human Blood

Kitee, North Karelia, Finland

A drop of human blood...Tarja smiled at Sebastiaan. "Let's do it."

Sebastiaan eyes got wide. "You want to do it, now?" His voice sounded shaky with each word and his eyes were wide. "Why now?"

Tarja started back toward the apartment building. "Why not now? This is has gone on for far too long. We just have to get the chest open and if a drop of human blood is the key, then so be it." She kept marching, not even bothering to look over her to see if Sebastiaan was coming.

There was still something off about him. The way he was handling everything and is first reaction to the idea of human blood just did not seem right. The fact that he was now dragging his feet and trying to slow her down just made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. She didn't think he was evil so to say, maybe...There was just something about him that had been creeping her out lately.

She reached the bottom of the steps. Sebastiaan must have cleared all the snow before he came down. She took them two at a time. Well, if he wasn't going to help anymore than Raakel could probably do it.

"You really need to think this one through," Sebastiaan called from behind her. "You're acting to fast!"

Tarja turned from her spot at the top of the steps. "I have thought it through. We need answers and you think the chest has them, so here we go. It really is as simple as that."

Sebastiaan sighed. "No, it's not. This is old magic, magic that is far older than any human. We need to sit down and analyze it, think about all of our options."

Tarja looked him up and down. "Haven't you already done that? You wouldn't have brought it up if you weren't sure."

He looked defeated. "Look, Tarja, I'm just saying that it may not be for the best. There will be other options."

She narrowed her eyes. "You really don't think that. That's why you've been locking yourself up, studying everything under the sun. You really don't think there is another way."

Sebastiaan looked everywhere else but at her eyes. "Tarja, this is more than a drop of human blood. It could keep asking us for more and more blood until we have no choice but to kill someone." His eyes finally found hers. "You don't strike me as the type to kill another human."

"I'm not," Tarja said slowly. "We don't really know if it is going to come to that or if blood is what it actually wants."

Sebastiaan sighed. "I know that, but is it really worth the risk. Just stop and think about it."

Tarja felt her eyes narrow even further. Why was he trying to stop this? It was just adding to the her theory about him being in the league with Ajatar. The more she was around him, the more she really felt like it was a complete possibly.

Okay, time to take to a different direction. "Look, Sebastiaan, I really do hate to see all of your hard work go to waste. You're spent forever looking into this and have lost much in the process, why stop now?" Tarja asked.

Sebastiaan shifted his weight around. "Okay," he finally said, drawing the word out. "We can do it, only if you promise to stop if it ends up taking enough blood to kill someone."

Tarja nodded. "You know, you really are starting to take this whole leadership thing very seriously." She stepped around him. How had he gotten in front of her? "I really do like it. I always did kind of wonder why Aleksander was the leader instead of you?"

Sebastiaan roughly grabbed her arm. The movement was so jerky that Tarja found herself grabbing for her gun. They both stared at each other with wide eyes before relaxing.

"So, how is Aleksander?" Sebastiaan slowly asked. "He keeps telling me he's fine and everything and that I shouldn't worry."

Tarja kept staring down at where he had grabbed her. "Um, he does seem stronger to me, but I don't think he's fine." Her eyes darted away. "Look, what you said earlier about the Arctic, do you think it's true?"

If he noticed anything about her change of subject, he didn't say anything. "I think it is probably our best bet. Not too many people live up there or venture there. The witches and wizards aren't exactly the most social of us, so it does make sense. It would also explain why so many of them are on the run around here."

"And here I thought we were going to find everything in the church," Tarja muttered.

Sebastiaan smiled.

"Are you ready for the blood?" Tarja asked.

He nodded.

"Okay, let's go get bloody."

Once inside the flat, Tarja quickly looked around. No one else was in sight. She did kind of expect Kendra to be lingering, but they all must either be in bed or back with Aleksander. Sebastiaan slowly closed the door behind him as a blast of winter air shook the flat.

"Okay, where do you want to do this?" Tarja asked once Sebastiaan had joined her.

"I have the chest in our room, but we probably shouldn't do it in there." He twisted his hands nervously. "Aleksander will ask too many questions."

"That's probably true." She paused. "Do you think you can get it without him asking too many questions and bring it out here?"

Sebastiaan shrugged. "If he's asleep, then yes. If not, then I'm not so sure. Hopefully, Raakel has been feeding him a potion to make him sleep."

"Go and get it." Tarja headed into the small kitchen. "I'll take care of setting everything up in here."

She watched him leave the room. Okay, she needed a knife. This flat had plenty of knives, the key was finding one that did not cause someone to bleed out the moment you used it. She knew they had a smaller one that they used to peel fruit. She dug around in the drawer until she found it.

Sebastiaan came in with the chest, which he sat down on the table. "He's asleep. Raakel is staring out the window, but I don't think she noticed me and I didn't see Kendra or Vuokko."

Tarja nodded, looking at the chest. It really was a small thing and kind of odd looking. A pattern of different and rather odd designs snaked across it, covering every bit of it. There was no lock, so it really did look like that all you had to do was just flip the lid open.

Sebastiaan looked at the small knife in Tarja's hand. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

Tarja nodded. Gripping the knife tightly in her right hand, she ran it along the meaty part of her left palm. Holding it over the chest, she let it drip down onto the lid, each drop hit the lid with a slight ping.

Sebastiaan gently pulled her arm away. "I think that's enough."

They both stared at the box, but nothing happened.

She looked at him. "Maybe it needs more."

He shook his head. "No, we shouldn't give it more than it already has." He looked closer at it, trying to open the chest, but it wouldn't. "You said that you didn't want to kill someone and going any further my very well have us on that course."

"Well, how else are we going to get it open?"

"Blood is necessary for life. It is something that helps keep living, breathing things alive. It keeps us awake. It keeps us bound to this earth."

Tarja looked at Sebastiaan. "What did you just say?"

"I didn't say anything." His eyes narrowed. "I think it came from the chest."

Tarja moved closer to the now silent chest. "It's not doing it anymore. I know it just wasn't all in my head." She looked back up at him. "Did you hear it too?"

Sebastiaan nodded. "Yeah and I do really think it came from the chest."

Tarja stared at it, willing it say something again. She was pretty sure that she had either read or heard those words from somewhere before.

The blood on top of the chest was slowly starting to sink into whatever the material was on top. The patterns just seemed to hold it for a few minutes, before letting to drain down into the inside. It was really kind of a creepy and disturbing thing to watch, but neither one of them could seem to manage to look away. Soon, the top of the chest looked as if it hadn't been touched.

"Well, that was a waste of time." Tarja looked down at palm. "And I'm not bleeding anymore." She shook her head. "Maybe it does actually need a lot of blood."

The chest began to shake, sending little jets of light into the air. Tarja and Sebastiaan both jumped back. It began to shake so hard that Tarja feared it would jump right off the table.

"It runs through our veins. It pumps our hearts. It makes who we are possible. It is what adds colour to our world. It is what makes us unique. Like DNA, no two people's blood is the same. Each of us has a different, a unique flavor. The sweeter the blood the better.

For me, blood is how I live. Sure, I can go without it, but the longer I go the more dangerous I become. The longer I go, the more feisty I become. The longer I go, the more die.

After five thousand years, I've killed a lot of people. I've had a lot of practice on killing them. These days, I am careful about my kills. I try to avoid them. Sometimes, I just have to.

People are too nosy these days.

He was stalking me. I hate it when people watch my every movement. He was spying on me, invading my privacy. Sure, I didn't have to kill him, but he just knew too much.

Killing is messy.

Killing is easy.

Death is easier yet.

His mind had to become one of a zombie's. His mind had to become one of the dead. He had to drop dead.

I couldn't let him leave a path. There couldn't be trail about me. No one was to know.

I've been awake for many centuries. I'm walking history.

To some I'm the walking dead.

To others I'm a science project.

To the rest I'm just downright dangerous.

And to others who have wronged me, watch your back.

No, I'm not soulless.

No, I'm not the walking dead.

Nevertheless, you should fear me. I am not a cut, little stray you find while wondering around the park. If you found me while wondering around the park, you're probably no longer with us.

Unless you're a zombie.

The dead don't come back from death. People don't die and rise from the grave. It doesn't work like that. It may in the movies, but not in real life. So, just forget about everything you know.

I'm lost in time. Time doesn't matter to me. Time for me is something that never runs out. My tank of time is never out of gas.

Get the picture?

There's no stalling your death. It's going to happen. If you annoy me, I'll just have to kill you faster.

If I let you kiss my bruises, not that I have any, it'll be fake. I'm just letting you go blindly into death.

Sweet, sweet death.

Normally, I have control.

Normally, I'm not a killer.

Lately, people have been finding out too much.

Lately, people are starting to tick me off.

I own you. I own your soul. I own everything that you do.

I'm waiting, just waiting, for you to break. I'm just waiting for you to realize what I am.

I'll watch you sleep, maybe even hold you.

I'll remember your face for all eternity. I may not remember this night, but I'll remember you. I'll remember how zombie like you were when I approached you. Like a zombie, you gave into me so easily. Like a zombie, with me you were just floating through existence.

Unlike you, some people try to push me to my death. Some people like to see how far I'll go before I lay done dead.

Except, I won't lie down die.

I shall never die.

So, if you wrong me, I will hurt you down.

So, if you wrong me, death is waiting for you.

So, if you wrong me, you will soon be with your Maker.

Don't say I didn't warn you.

Do you know what I am?

Do I still have you guessing?

Do you fear me?

Those who have wronged me so be terrified. However, the rest of you have nothing to fear. You are in no danger. Chances are I may have told you what I was and you didn't believe me.

Or you just chose to ignore it…

It all goes back to what I told you in the beginning. Blood is necessary for life. It is something that helps keep living, breathing things alive. It keeps us awake. It keeps us bound to this earth.

Yes, I am living. I have never experienced death. I have never felt its peacefulness.

Yes, I have a heartbeat. I breathe like living things. I can walk in the sun's rays like anything else on this earth.

Unlike most thing on this earth, I don't die easily. It is possible for me to die, but it is very unlikely.

And difficult."

Tarja stared as the chest remained open once it stopped speaking. "Well, that was interesting." For some reason she could not wipe the smile off her face. "I guess you were wrong. It doesn't need more than a drop of human blood."

Sebastiaan just nodded, staring at the box. "There's Runes."

Tarja frowned, looking closer. Sure enough, there was a series of complicated looking Runes. She could translate basic Runes, but this was far beyond her level. "Well, do you know anyone who can read these?"

Sebastiaan shrugged. "I could try, but it's not going to be easy."

Tarja nodded. "Okay, well, we're further along than we were earlier. Yeah, this is good."

"I think it's got more secrets than we first thought," Sebastiaan was muttering, more to himself than anything. "We may never find them all out, but it is a start. We are actually one step closer to defeating her."

Tarja smiled. "So, you think it can be done?"

Sebastiaan jerked his head up. "Oh, yes, I think it is completely possible. It's not going to be easy, but it can be done."

Tarja felt her smile widen. "The easy way is boring." She clapped her hands. "Shall we get to work?"