Dark Angel: Book of Souls

Black Rose

Chains made of silver and covered in a deadly blend of blessed water, garlic, and herbs were wrapped around my wrists and ankles. I sat in shackles upon a cold, cement floor. So much for hospitable people. I suppose it’s an obvious reaction when you’re suspected of being a vampire…even though you aren’t. But what else could I expect? This was the church after all…

            “Hello? Samuel Black! Get me out of these chains! Now!” I screamed out. There was nothing. No noise or shadows under the door. “Please?” I murmured.

            I saw a shadow block out the ray of light under the door. Then a blinding, white light flooded the room. The door clicked open and Sam walked in. He shut the door, dimmed the light and walked over to me. Each cautious footstep, every breath, was more defined as the seconds ticked by.

            “Sam, I’m not a vampire. Please understand that. I’m something, something else. I’m immortal, invincible. There must be books somewhere. Sam, I wont hurt you. I never tried to hurt that girl. I don’t know what happened… Please, Samuel Black, believe me.” I was begging now, and I could see the remorse behind his glistening eyes.

            “Listen to me carefully, I am not a priest. I am a member of a special organization called the Order of the Veil. Now, my rank in the Veil is a Shadower. I find potentials, people like you, and figure out what they are. Then I put them under protection of the Veil. Now you are a special case. You’re right. Cicero is not a vampire. He is one of the Ancients. You and he are a very old race of mystic being. You’re true identity only he can tell you, as If I mutter the name so much as breathlessly, they will try to find you.” Samuel looked at me and smiled. “Ever, I am not what I seem to be. Would you mind me being in my true form?”

            “No, I would actually prefer knowing you. Samuel, tell me more about this ‘Order’.” I had so many questions running through my mind it was impossible to figure out what I wanted to know.

            I wasn’t paying attention when I saw Sam spread his arms out sideways; he flattened his hands and then tightened them as best he could. I watched the change in awe. His skin turned white, pure white. And then a black design almost like a tattoo covered his entire body. It looked almost like roots, and they crawled up his neck, not touching his face. They were only on the tops of his hands and his shoulders, over all of his back and legs. None on his chest. His eyes became a blue deeper than the ocean, and cracked with fierce grey. Sam’s hair grew past his shoulders and curled almost magically, turning ash black. The priest robes he had been wearing earlier transformed into only loose black pants. A black, hooded cloak fell to the floor. I watched as his canines elongated and grew pointy. Then all at once he turned into a shadow. Then once again solidified.

            “Ah, much better. I suppose it’s only fair to warn you that most of us in our true forms are frightening. You however are lucky. In your true form you look the same, but you have another form, that of a monster. The girl you killed, she was actually a Shade. The cop, he was a Murmur. The Shade was sent by our enemies, she was to kill you; however you got to her first. Obviously you must have dealt with Shades before as the only way to kill one is to drain all of its blood. A Murmur is a being who can tell you something, anything and make it into a memory, they also take memories away. I have been sheltering you for a reason. Your dreams, they mean something. I need you to go to sleep. I want to put you in a coma. You should be able to contact Cicero. We need to free him.” Sam’s voice changed as well as his body, the once husky voice had grown deep and melodic, and it was comforting.

            “How do I shift my form?” I replied, I wanted to, badly. My skin was starting to feel like a cage.

            “Well for starters, try changing into your true form. You have the ability to look however you please. But your true form is unique,”