Bloodlines

Chapter 21: The Big Reveal

The trio could barely sleep that night. The dungeon was cold from the frosty weather outside, and they had not even been given a bed. Yet, it was more due to the onslaught of thoughts and emotions keeping them up. They all had so many questions, a familiar feeling.

"So.... That is your brother?" Aliyah asked tentatively. Sylvia nodded her head solemnly. All three were sat in their respective cells, with bars separating them that reached to the ceiling.

"Yep. That's my brother," she sighed. Darian have her a soft touch on the shoulder.

"You couldn't have known," he said. Sylvia just looked down, her knees near her face and head hung between them.

"I could have stayed, I chose to run," she said. That night, she had assumed that Tony was right behind her, that he was tailing her and would make it out. But she had never looked back, never checked on him.

"If you didn't run, you might have ended up same as him, ending your family line for good," Darian said. It was the worst fate of a hunter family, to be the last of your line. Worst still would be the last of your line AND an undead vampire. Darian was right, but Sylvia still felt guilt.

"Is there a way to bring him back?" She asked, not wanting to get her hopes up but still thinking wistfully about the possibility. Darian shook his head.

"Not that anyone has heard of. There aren't even rumours of how to bring someone back," he said. He too was feeling the weight of the situation, he had known Tony when they were younger, with Darian being the same age however often got along with Sylvia better. Still, he was shocked to learn that Tony had been turned.

"What about elves? Do they know anything about vampire conversion?" Sylvia asked, directed at Aliyah. He shook his head sadly.

"Elves stick to themselves for the most part, I am sorry to say. In fact this is my first encounter with a vampire," he said. Sylvia sighed, she knew it was no use, but it was worth a shot. Darian nudged her with his elbow.

"Is it weird I find him kinda hot?" He asked with a smirk and a wink. Sylvia gasped and gave him a playful smack on the shoulder. The three laughed, a much nicer sound than when the vampires had been laughing there not too long ago.

"Even though he's a vampire, he's still my brother and I do still love him," Sylvia said sadly. The three sat in silence for a bit, knowing that sleep would evade them for the rest of the night. It was Aliyah who broke the silence.

"Can I tell you both something?" He asked carefully. Sylvia and Darian looked to him. He seemed very nervous, his hands fiddling with a piece of straw he had found on the ground, eyes transfixed on it to avoid looking at the hunters.

"Yeah of course, anything," Darian said. They had already been through so much as a group, and had bonded over the short time they had been together. It was only fair they share their thoughts and emotions with one another.

"All my life I have been told I am a boy. From the moment I was born I have been called him, he, man, boy, but all these names..... They do not feel right," he said, toying with the straw further. Sylvia could see his face was flushed, and Aliyah bowed his head further, trying to hide his head between his knees. He felt his heart in his throat.

"What do you mean?" Sylvia asked, poking further. Aliyah sighed, sitting upright and turning to face the two. He propped his head up with one hand, elbow balancing on his knee while the other hand lie at his side. Even though he was facing them, he couldn't quite bring himself to look them in the eye.

"I mean I do not think I am a boy. I have always been told I am a boy, but I do not feel like that is me," he explained. To Sylvia and Darian, it sounded like he was just repeating the same thing over and over, but they were starting to understand how they felt.