For all three of my fans out there -- and you know who you are -- I just wanted to let you know that The Shadow Zone is back. The first story in the series, Taking Julia, came out a couple of years ago and I heard a lot of good things from the three of you. LOL I'm working on the second story now which will continue the central plot of the human cult destroying humanity -- aka those who occupy the zone. You might remember that the werewolves think once the human race dies out, the vampires will hunt them and they want the secret to immortality that the human cult has discovered. The vampires want to stop the human cult and restore some sort of balance to this post disaster world.
This is the story of Maddox, an old vampire like Rick from the first story, who's in love with a human woman -- a prostitute who's in danger from a werewolf soldier who will stop at nothing to acquire the human cult's dark secret...
There is a free story at A Cheeky Changeling -- the ezine of Changeling Press - called Fragile that will give you a taste of this story.
http://changelingpress.com/ezine/encounters.phpHere too is an excerpt. I hope you like it:
Earth 2070
“You’re quiet.”
Maddox followed Rick through the ornate door of his friend’s mansion, stopping at his friend’s words. It wasn’t an accusation so much as it was concern he recognized in Rick’s voice.
“I know.” Why deny the truth. “I’ve had a lot on my mind.”
“I’m very grateful to you.” Rick’s dark eyes met his, his Spanish accent thicker as it always was when he conveyed any sort of emotion. And that was rare. Maddox had always found it an endearing trait. “I asked a lot of you. You stayed here, guarded my home, and held the wolves at bay. I really shouldn’t ask you to stay and help me protect Julia now.”
Maddox smirked at him.
“You’re saying you owe me?” he wanted to clarify.
Rick grinned, rolling his eyes.
“I’m trying to have a moment here.”
“But you just said, in so many words, that you owe me,” Maddox pointed out.
“I’ll never hear the end of that, will I?” Rick laughed.
“No, probably not.” Maddox clapped a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “I’m glad to do it. Besides, I don’t think the wolves will be after Julia so ardently even when they do realize she’s here. As the Elders mentioned at the meeting, they’re hitting the zone harder now. They’re convinced that if she somehow managed to unearth the humans’ secret, they surely can. She’ll just be a back up plan now. Think about it. It makes sense.”
The Shadow Zone. They called it the zone for short. The world of humans had been devastated, they’d thought, by war and disease. Their kind, the vampires, had watched in amazement as the world of humans came apart in less than fifty years.
It wasn’t until later that they’d discovered that there was something else going on at the center of the fragile creatures’ world. Something dark and sinister. They’d found a way to unnaturally prolong life using black magic. They sucked the will out of the victims among their own kind as surely as the vampires drained the lifeblood from their prey. The victims of the cult, that’s the only world that could really be used to define it, lived. Yet the experience left them emotionless drones, robbed of their free will. Easy to control.
To Maddox, it was ten times worse than being a vampire. Better to just die than be robbed of a happy, meaningful existence, right? Besides, vampires fed because they had to do so in order to survive. The humans of this cult didn’t have to do what they did to their victims to survive. They did it out of a selfish need to prolong their own life, to preserve their youth and vitality. The end results was nearly the same as his kind except that they could opt out of it at any time – just stop participating in the cult’s rituals. He wasn’t sure of any consequences they faced in doing so, but they had a choice. Something his kind didn’t. Once you were a vampire, you were dead. There was no opting out of that.
Well, he knew one consequence they faced. Neither the cult members or their victims seemed to be able to produce offspring after their experiences. They were left barren. Considering that the cult encompassed more than half of the remaining human population, it was easy to do the math and realize that they’d run out of victims soon.
Then there were the damned werewolves. Julia’s kind. They thought the cult was some great secret to their salvation. Their view of the picture was distorted. They were worried about the vampires when they should be worried about the dangerous human cult. With the human population dwindling, the stupid mongrels were convinced the vampires would hunt them – not stopping once to think that his kind was smarter than that. They’d come up with a back up plan that would eliminate the need to take life, human or otherwise, for their sustenance. It was unsatisfying and gross to Maddox – the idea of drinking cloned blood – but there it was. They’d survive.
The werewolves decided at some point that they needed to be immortal too. Just because a few idiot vampires, there were some in every crowd, picked off a few of them, they believed themselves in danger of being wiped out by them. They wanted to the human secret, the cult’s secret, not realizing that they should be running like hell from it. They were convinced it would give them a chance at growing their population, offer them protection from extinction.
Couldn’t the wolves see that they were the humans’ next target? The vampires wouldn’t be susceptible to the human rituals obviously.
But werewolves were living beings. And the humans hoped to harness their strength. They’d proved that when they’d captured Julia – his friend’s werewolf lover.
“Do you think they’re right?” Rick asked, his expression thoughtful.
Maddox knew his mind-reading friend had been following the line of his thoughts. They’d just come from a meeting with the council of Elders. Rick usually wasn’t quick to agree with anything they said. Hell, he thought his friend often defied them to entertain himself. Maddox had been certain when he learned about Julia that Rick only used her to piss them off.
When he’d discovered his friend was clearly in love with the mongrel, he’d been genuinely surprised.
“That’s my beloved you’re thinking about,” Rick’s voice was gentle but held a note of warning.
“Sorry.” He’d have to remember to curve his pet names for the werewolves. “Old habits and all that.”
Rick chuckled.
“Well?”
“Do I think that they’re right? In having us try to save the do—wolves?” Maddox shrugged. “I can argue both sides of that one. On the one hand, I want to leave them to fend for themselves. If they’re too stupid to have been in the zone as many times as they have been and know what they do know and not be afraid? I say let the humans have them.”
Rick nodded.
“But, the one thing they brought up worries me. If they gain control of the wolves…”
“That could be a problem.” Rick closed the door behind them, walking around Maddox to the enormous window that offered a view of the perfect landscape of his estate. “We have the strength to handle their population now and then some. But if the humans grew that population, controlled it …”
That wasn’t where Maddox was going with it.
“What?” Rick cocked a sable brow at him.
“I’m not so worried about that. If the humans are left barren after they do whatever it is they do in their little rituals, don’t you think the wolves would suffer the same fate?”
“I don’t know. What were you thinking?”
Rick hadn’t been able to pick that out of his head? Interesting. He must have been distracted and Maddox knew why. He could smell her approaching.
“I was thinking about something they took from Julia while she was there,” Maddox explained. “Wonder what they are doing with that?”
Her ovum. Depending on their remaining scientific capabilities, they could be learning all kinds of secrets about the wolves. They could making plans…
“Hello, beautiful.” Rick was lost to him as the flame-haired one in her human form sauntered into the room to join them.
Maddox had to admit for a werewolf female, she was extremely attractive. Slender but curvy with a beautiful face and penetrating eyes that seemed to be able to see through any façade or defense one could consider putting up.
Maddox didn’t even try. He enjoyed annoying her too much.
For the moment she didn’t even notice he was in the same world as she took Rick in her arms and kissed him in a very promising way. He didn’t mean to stare at them. He could imagine a kiss like that. Only it wasn’t Julia he saw. No, he saw a pale beauty with wispy blonde hair and eyes the color of rare amethyst…
“Hello, Maddox.” Julia’s eyes flashed at him when she noticed he stood there. “Are your bags packed yet?”
“I’d started packing,” he began, letting the sarcasm bleed into his words. “I left the one bag right next to your dog dish. But it seems Rick wishes for me to remain a while longer yet. So I’ll move it back to my room right away. I wouldn’t want to keep you from the table scraps.”
“Arrogant asshole.” She glared at him, then at Rick.
Rick’s glance seemed to say, thanks. Not in a nice way.
“What do you mean he’s staying here longer?” Julia’s temper was riled now.
Maddox would let Rick explain it. It was his decision after all. His crafty friend could probably go out in the zone as the Elders wanted and keep Julia safe. Yet he knew how much the female really meant to his friend. So he’d help him ensure her safety. Rick would stay close to home. Maddox would work the zone.
It was an assignment he wanted for a few reasons. One of them, the one he dwelled on most often, was tiny, human, and blonde.
“Have fun,” he said casually as if he weren’t leaving what was gearing up to be a big fight from the look of both Rick and Julia, and made his way back out of the mansion.
More soon...
Isy
Posts
