Akeldama

"Regan!" Iyana squealed in joy at the sight of her human friend. Knowing if it wasn't for her, there would have been deaths involved.

"Iyana! I love it when you do that song," Regan said, hugging her friend close. "Iyana, I'd like for you to meet my new friend, Prince Conner, Conner this is Iyana."

"Prince? When did we get a Prince?" Iyana whispered to Regan in a joking light. She knew all about the Queen; their blood ties her to the Queen; however weak her blood was, there was a connection. Not even her sire told her about there being a Prince of their people.

"You got turned in the mid-thirties, didn't you?" Regan inquired, looking at Iyana.

"Yes, you know that," Iyana stated, greeting Conner as she eyed him.

"Well, Conner here has been asleep for... how long were you asleep for?" Regan asked, knowing he hadn't spoken of the length he spent in his slumber.

"A hundred years," Conner stated factually.

"But... the longest my master has slept to leap frog through time was twenty years," Iyana said in startlement.

"It wasn't voluntary, I assure you," Conner replied in a dark tone.

Iyana was never a part of the kingdom. Her sire was a rebel which made her a rebel. There were no set boundaries between the two sides. To do so would invite human involvement, something they all took seriously. It was the reason the clubs were made. So that even rebel vampires could feed in safety without exposing their kind to the world of man.

"So, Prince, what do you think of this new world you've stepped into?" Iyana asked in a flirtatious tone as she smirked at him. It wasn't hard for her to sense the man's age. Her sire had taught her how to use her blood arts when he brought her into this life.

"Honestly, I prefer the gas lamps to the ones that line the roadways now. They were much easier on our eyes," Conner said in a friendly manner. Trying not to draw attention to the 'R' she had stamped on her left cheek.

"Hmm, have to agree, they are softer on our eyes. So I take it you have seen your fair share of centuries?" Iyana asked, getting in her question before she had to go back onto the stage.

"I've seen a few," Conner mused, sensing Giovani's blood within her. Noting how she peered back to the stage.

"I have to head back, Regan; you have to come back when you can, and bring your friend, I promise, I won't be performing then. It was nice to meet you, Prince Conner," Iyana said in a graceful bow.

"And you, lady Iyana, please do give my regards to Giovani," Conner stated, taking Iyana aback.

Iyana's tongue grew still as her mind couldn't fathom how her sire and Conner shared a connection. So lost, she had made her way through the crowd back to the stage without realizing it.

"Conner, just who is Giovani?" Regan asked; she had never seen her friend like that before.

"A very wise man I met in the sixteen hundreds," Conner stated with a friendly smile on his lips. "Now come walk with me and tell me about the contraption that had that moving screen of Mary's."

"You mean her Sidekick?" Regan asked, leading him off to a more quieter place to talk.

*******

"Regan, I know I have no right or business asking this of you only meeting each other a little over an hour ago. Yet, I must. Are you alright?" Conner asked in a concerned voice. Watching how Regan leaned back against the circular sofa's center rest and pulled her feet up onto the cushion. Watching how the tips of her strawberry blonde hair teased her thighs when she did so.

"You sure you want to hear about my troubles? When you have your own?" Regan spoke, slyly telling him she could see it.

"Yes, even then," Conner nodded. "I see," he said in an even tone as his jaw muscles clenched when she told him what had been happening in her life.

"But that's all about to change?!" Regan said in determination.

"Oh?"

"Mmmhmm, Mary, she's the kindest vampire I know to us, donors, I mean. Mary took us on when I knew she didn't have to. Maybe she remembers what's it like to be human and not an all-powerful vampire," Regan sighed, pressing her right cheek on her thigh as she peered at him. "So, can I ask, what happened?"

"A story like that isn't fitting for a lady to hear when we're having a lovely evening," Conner stated as shadows of the past played along his face.

"Can't shake that 'lady' part, huh?" Regan teased. "Not that I mind, it's nice to be called that. Still, I'd like to hear it if you want to speak about it." She sat there horrified as he told her how he had been imprisoned for the past hundred years. "She sounded like she was a very special person," she said in a caring tone as she lightly laid a hand on his right forearm. "I do hope wherever they are, they have tasted the sun."

Conner could only smile wickedly at that. He couldn't divulge his plans to her, not with so many ears listening. No. What he was bringing to his mother's doorstep was something she couldn't see coming.

******

"Mary, would you mind diverting our evening just a tad bit to escort this charming lady home for the evening," Conner said, laying on the charm as he lightly stroked the back of Regan's left hand as he held it in his right.

"You don't have to," Regan stammered, getting very flushed in the face. She's never been so enamored in her entire life.

"But my dear, a gentleman always escorts the lady home," Conner said with the savoir faire of a man who has lived for countless years.

"That sounds wonderful, Conner," Mary said, lightly touching his left arm. So very pleased the two of them got along. While they were away, she used the time to lay out her plan to Mathew and Dole. She had known they were saving for a bigger apartment. With the space she had in her old one, she knew the three of them would have their own space and space for their work and provide a safe haven for Regan while she heals. They were shocked at first; of course, Regan hid what was happening to her quite well. So it wasn't a surprise to her that the two of them didn't know. Once they knew the extent of Regan's troubles, they didn't hesitate to jump in to help her.

"You're absolutely sure?" Regan asked in a mix of stunned and awed. Seeing the two of them nodding when her quivering eyes stared up at them. She has been so scared of walking to Mary's apartment. Not that she hasn't done so before, yet after her boyfriend's last trip, she was scared to be around him. Hence why she was so excited to finally be out from that money pit. There were only a few personal things she wanted from that apartment; if it only meant those were the only things she could get, then she would be happy with that. She could buy new clothes and everything else with the money she had been saving for the day she ran.

"I hope you two gentlemen have a safe trip..."

"Drive," Regan corrected when Conner spoke before departing.

"Home, I look forward to hearing about this 'computer code' you have spoken of. It sounds              like a conversation I might find enlightening," Conner spoke in a friendly tone as he held out his hand.

"Sure, I don't mind," Dole said, sharing a shrug with Mathew as he shook Conner's offered hand.

"Now, Regan, tell me, what exactly is a Beanie baby?" Conner's voice trailed after them with Mary on his arm and Regan walking on his other side as they headed towards the exit.

******

"Now, all you have to do is worry about food; the utilities will always be paid, so you don't have to worry about power or water."

"Wait. You must pay for your own water?!" Conner gasped at the thought. Water was like blood to them. "This must be some fiendish plan of my mother's," he hissed when Mary nodded. Looking confusingly at the two of them when they giggled.

"Man, how weird is it that in only a hundred years, our language changed so much. Can you speak something say from the 11^th century?" Regan asked in a pleading gesture. "What was that?!" she gasped, noting how Mary was stunned too.

"Old French, it died out in the 14^th century about a decade before the war," Conner offered, noticing how Mary was looking at him to elaborate.

"How about I show you to your new bedroom," Mary said, running her hand down the back of Regan's arm. "I'll only be a moment, Conner," she whispered as she passed him.

"Take all the time you need, Lady Harland," Conner bowed slightly, slyly glancing at the molding of the door, knowing it was wide enough to impart a token of his thanks to her for her wisdom that night.

"Okay, has he been talking like that ever since he's been awake?" Regan asked, checking out the bed as Mary stood there watching her.

"More or less."

"He's cute, though," Regan said, smiling impishly at her friend. "If he keeps calling me a lady," posing in a dignified air, "I might just have to date him, if you strike out that is." Laughing as she dodged the pillow Mary threw at her head. She would always be grateful to Mary. Knowing she would have to flee town soon if Mary hadn't offered this to her. She was trying not to tear up at the joy of not having to leave her friends, human and vampire alike.

"Tomorrow. Do you want me to come with you or...?" Mary asked, sitting down next to her.

"I kind of wanted to do it during the day, so I know if he's tailing me or not, but..."

"Yeah, Mathew and Dole are good guys; just when it comes to this sort of thing, muscles are needed," Mary said to which Regan nodded along. "Wait?!

"What's wrong?" Regan asked worriedly, watching how frantic Mary was digging for her phone.

"Nothing, I just need to check something," Mary muttered, looking up when sun set was for tomorrow. Getting up from the bed, hearing Regan following after as she walked towards the door. "Conner..." Her words left her lips as she stared unblinkingly at the same molding of the door she has peered at for the past eighty years unchanged, until now. "Prince Conner, just what gave you the idea that you could deface my property without my permission?!" Mary snapped, seeing how that genuinely startled him.

"No, you're right, forgive my brashness, Lady Harland. I should have asked before defacing your home. That was unbecoming of me, as the elder here. May I explain myself, Lady Harland?"

Regan has never seen another vampire cross that line like Conner has done since she knew how obsessed they tend to get if there's a scratch on their coffins. However, from the look on Mary's face, she would guess it was a tad more serious than that.

"What could be so impromptus you would carve vampiric script into the molding of my door?" Mary huffed, crossing her arms beneath her 40B breasts.

"I do apologize for my actions, yet due to lady Regan's kindness she showed me tonight, I thought I leave her a token of my gratitude."

"Me?" Regan asked, very confused.

"I'm sure you can clarify what you mean by that, your highness," Mary said, staring Conner down.

"You remember when I told you about blood arts," seeing Mary nod, "well, in the war, our human cohorts would use that," pointing to the door, "to call for help if or when their homes were invaded. So since I can't be here every second, I thought if this was in place, it would offer her a measure of safety. Although it isn't complete, it's missing one ingredient," Conner said, looking right at Regan. "May I have your permission to continue?"

"You may, as your penance to me, you can teach me all about blood arts," Mary stated in a firm nod.

"Of course, Lady Harland. Please, I promise this won't hurt," Conner stated, holding out his hand to Regan.

"Me? But... I'm just me," Regan stammered in unease. Not used to any person dead or alive taking an interest in her that she didn't know well.

"And yet you are in need, and a gentleman never leaves a lady in duress," Conner said with a coy smile.

"Okay," Regan said bashfully as she slipped her hand into his.

"Now, you'll only feel a prick, nothing more than that, I assure you," Conner stated, trying to put her at ease. "Do you know the vampiric word for help?" he asked as he quickly jabbed his figure nail into the tip of Regan's index finger. "Speak it when or if something breaks in, and I will come," Conner stated when she nodded, smearing her bloody fingertip over the script that he had carved into the wood of the molding with his fingernails.

Regan tried not to grow moist as she stared into those pale blue eyes as she felt him sucking on her finger, nor was she going to show him how she trembled when he ran his tongue along the wound. Using his saliva to seal the wound, it acted as a glue until the body could heal it. It was the reason no one has ever found bite marks on victims of vampire attacks that the public mistakes for strange random homicides.

"And all I have to do is speak that word, and poof, you'll just appear?" Regan asked, using her hands to give depth to her words.

"In a manner of speaking, yes," Conner stated with a firm nod.

"Conner, before I got sidetracked, I was going to ask you; how long can you stand sunlight?" Mary asked, taking Regan by surprise.

"Wait, what?!" Regan stammered. "Is that possible?" she asked, looking between the two of them.

"It is if you live to be old enough, then the sun won't be away for the humans to kill you, only decapitation," Conner said, running his finger along his neck to mimic the act. "A few hours before and after the sun rises and sets. Why do you ask?" Looking curiously at Mary when he spoke those words.

"I was wondering if you would be so kind to escort Regan here, back to her old apartment so she can collect her belongings she has left behind. This way, I know she'll be safe if the man is still there when she goes over," Mary stated, resting her left hand on Regan's back.

"I see, then I shall be here at four o'clock on the 'morrow afternoon," Conner said with a bow. He might be in a new era. However, to his mind, it could use some grace, for lack of a better word, at least to him, he thought it did.

"But, won't that like kill you?" Regan asked; she didn't want anyone getting hurt because of her.

"No," Conner replied with a shake of his head. Turning when there came a knock on the door behind him, his eyes following Mary as she walked past him to answer it.

"Ah, Dole, glad that you came, now I won't worry about her being alone for the night," Mary spoke in a warm tone as she opened it further to let him in.

"Yeah, thought I could, you know, keep an eye out while Mathew moves in, then we'll swap," Dole said, a little embarrassed as he rubbed the back of his head as he crossed the threshold.

"Good, a gentleman, should stay with the innocent damsel and see that she's unmolested by fiends in the night," Conner said in a regal tone, causing Regan's face to burn brightly.

"Right, okay," Dole uttered in a trailing off voice, shooting Regan a look as if to say: 'Can you believe this guy?'

"Well, Conner and I should be going," hugging Regan then getting one in from Dole, "you keep her safe, you hear?" Mary whispered into Dole's left ear, feeling him nodding against her shoulder.

"Thank you again, Mary, Conner feel free to drop in whenever," Regan said with a warm smile before she shut the door.

Chapter Five

"Dude, how in the world did you get here?!" Mathew exclaimed as Conner stood out in the hallway of Mary's old apartment building.

"I ran really, really fast," Conner replied in a smartass retort.

"But it's broad daylight?!"

"So? You think the sun affects me?" Conner intoned, tilting his head to the side. "Now, are you going to invite me in, or shall I go through this?" he asked, holding up Mathew's wallet. A wicked gleam danced in his eyes as Mathew patted his back pockets.

"How did you do that; you didn't even move?!" Mathew asked, his hands fumbling to catch his wallet that Conner tossed up into the air as he entered the apartment.

"I moved; you just didn't see," Conner stated matter-of-factly. "What... is that?" he asked, mystified at the sight of Mathew's laptop he and Regan had been using to watch some shows on due to there not being a TV in the apartment.

"This, my friend, is the modern age," Mathew said proudly of the computer he had built himself.

"Fascinating," Conner mused as he bent down to examine it. "Why is there a still image of what appears to be a woman of the cartoon variety on this..." Arching an eyebrow when it appeared that his fingertip made a ripple; like it was water, yet not. Conner was highly confused, to say the least.

"Don't, you'll ruin the screen," Mathew said, removing Conner's hand.

"My apologies," Conner said with a slight bow. "So, tell me, young Mathew, what exactly is this contraption?"

"This is my laptop, the computer that I built," Mathew supplied when he heard Regan moving around in her bedroom. "To what we are watching, it's anime, Japanese cartoons."

"Really, you know Japanese?" Conner asked in a curious tone.

"No... but it has English subtitles," Mathew stated, pointing at them.

"I see. May I partake in this... anime as you call it alongside you?" Conner asked in a polite tone.

"Sure, knock yourself out," Mathew said, gesturing to the spot next to him. "Although, you might find it insulting," he warned.

"Oh? How so?" Conner asked, watching how Mathew moved his finger around the touch pad.

"It's Hellsing. It's a show about vampires," Mathew offered.

"I see. Does Man still use us to scare you, humans?"

"No, the age of being scared to sleep by tales of the undead are long over," Mathew mused, leaning back after hitting the play button on his VLC player. Watching Conner's facial expressions as he watched the show. He did get a little worried when Conner got a rather wicked look on his face when it got to the blood part.

"Truly fascinating, and you write the language these..." waving to Mathew's laptop, "use?" Conner asked, peering over at the man.

"Dole and I work as offsite programmers, so we deal with a lot of computer code. Would offer to show you, but my station is still at the other place. It's going to take time breaking it down and moving it across the city," Mathew said, sighing as he rubbed the back of his neck. The only thing he hated about this was the move, especially in New York City.

"You must show me this code, when you're settled in, of course," Conner stated, turning his head towards Regan's bedroom as he heard her near the door itself.

"Sure," Mathew nodded.

"Thank you for the conversation, young Mathew," Conner said, getting to his feet when Regan stepped out of her room. "We must watch more of this... anime of yours."

"Don't you go getting him hooked on that tentacle hentai porn you watch?!" Regan intoned with a pointed look at her friend.

"Hentai? Porn?" Conner looked between the two as he tried to make sense of the words.

"I'll tell you on the way there; you sure you're okay with coming with me?" Regan asked as Conner walked out the front door.

"Of course, I gave you my word; I seldomly go back on it," Conner said, offering her his arm out of habit.

"You know no one does this anymore?" Regan spoke, yet it didn't stop her from looping her arm around his. It did make her feel kind of special, given how her love life has been like.

"Maybe it's time to bring back the old ways. From what I have read and listened to, the world has fallen apart compared to a hundred years ago."

"But wasn't it easier back then to be... well, you?" Regan asked as they stood in front of the elevator after pressing the call button.

"Heavens no, back then man was more closely knitted together. More observant if someone went missing or later found dead. Which, as you can imagine, led to the populous becoming mad with hysteria. It's why we have rules. Rules that protect us from you. I lived through one war with your kind; I'm not all that eager to do so again," Conner said as he and Regan stepped into the cab of the elevator. "Now, tell me, lady Regan, what does 'Dude' mean?" he asked, peering over at her as the doors rolled closed.