Gothos (Dark Season VI) Read online

  “I was trying to work out why you brought me to Gothos,” I say. “And now I realise... You brought me here to kill me, didn't you?”

  Slowly, he shakes his head. He steps closer.

  “But you're going to kill me one day, aren't you?” I ask.

  He's standing right in front of me now, just inches away. And slowly, he nods.

  “You are?” I say. “Well... when the time comes... if the time comes... I'll still fight. You know that, right? When it comes down to it, if it's you versus me, I'll fight you all the way. And if I have to kill you, and if I can kill you, then I will. Do you understand that?”

  He nods again, and then he leans in and kisses me slowly on the lips. I let him, and then I start kissing him too, and for what seems like eternity we stand in that bare room, delicately kissing and then, finally, allowing our tongues to touch as the kiss becomes something more, something more passionate. As he puts a hand on the side of my neck, part of me wonders if this is the prelude to him biting me. I imagine the feel of his teeth sliding into my skin. But no bite comes. We just kiss, and kiss, and kiss.

  Slowly, he pushes the dress down until I'm bare-chested, and he runs his hands over my breasts. This is the moment I've been waiting for, even if at times I wasn't sure it was what I wanted. As he gets the dress down to my hips, he simply rips the fabric so that it slides down over my hips, and his thumb catches the sides of my underwear and pulls everything down. I step out of the dress and I'm completely naked in front of him, and we're still kissing.

  Eventually we go over to the bed, and I start to peel his clothes away until he, too is completely naked. He has such a perfect body, I can't stop running my hands over his chest. We get onto the bed and he gets on top of me, and he starts to kiss down my neck and onto my chest, sucking on a nipple as, finally, I feel his penis slide inside me. As he slowly starts to make love to me, I reach up to his face with my hands and stare deep into his eyes as he stares back at me.

  I've been waiting so long for this, and it feels wonderful. I wrap my legs around him and reach my hands down to his ass as it rises and falls. The most amazing thing is that for the first time ever, it doesn't hurt to have a guy inside me. I've only ever had sex – or tried to have sex – with two guys before, and both times it was agony and we had to stop. With Patrick, though, it feels perfect and right, and all I'm experiencing is pure pleasure building up through my entire body.

  He starts making love to me faster and harder, and my whole body starts to tense. I can't help but let out a little moan, which is kind of embarrassing but who cares? I kiss him hard and deep, as passionately as I've ever kissed anyone, and I start to feel his rhythm increasing as he starts kissing my neck again.

  And finally it happens.

  As I cum, I pull him as tight against my body as possible, and I feel him reaching his climax too. I gasp as a wave of pure ecstasy jolts through me, and then I un-tense my body and try to catch my breath. I keep him held tight against me as I listen to his rapid breathing as we both reach our orgasms at exactly the same moment, lovers trapped in one moment of time.

  14.

  Well this is fun to watch. Even in my damaged, bruised and bleeding state, I can still get off on watching two people having sex on a bed in my spare room. Especially when one of them’s the vampire who destroyed my home, and the other is a hot girl who I'll be killing later. Okay, sure, this whole situation is a little fucked up, but you get used to fucked up things happening around Gothos. Seriously, if this is the most fucked up thing that happens today, we're all getting off pretty light.

  Once they have both 'finished', so to speak, I don't hang about for the pillow talk. I head out of the room and back down the corridor. When I get to the top of the stairs, I find the three maids are halfway up already. They're walking slowly, still adjusting to their new bodies. They're not dangerous at the moment, but their time will come. Soon, they will learn how to walk properly, and how to coordinate their powers. Then, finally, these gods will get to burn out in a manner befitting their legendary status.

  I walk down the stairs, and when I get to the hallway I find The Lock is waiting for me.

  “Is it done?” he asks.

  I nod.

  He laughs. “For a moment, I thought it might not happen”.

  “It was always going to happen,” I reply. “The vampire knows what is to come”.

  “And what about them?” The Lock asks, indicating the three unsteady gods slowly making their way upstairs. “How long before they break?”

  I shrug. “I don't really care,” I say. “I'm out of here anyway. I'll just get what I want from the girl, then I'll be gone from Gothos forever. It should be rather enjoyable to explore the gardens now that they're safe”.

  “You can't kill the girl,” says The Lock. “She needs to live a little longer”.

  But he's wrong, and he knows it. The basic part of the prophecy has now been fulfilled. Sure, it would be symbolic to let her live a little while more, so that Patrick can tear her to shreds in a fit of rage. But I can just as easily kill her tonight, and everything will more or less happen as required.

  “Will he ever say it?” I ask. “Will he ever say the word that brings back the other vampires?”

  The Lock glances at the grandfather clock in the corner. “Of course he won't,” he says. “He detests all other vampires. He will go to his grave without ever risking seeing another”.

  “And he knows nothing of our friend Mr. Tarmey?” I ask.

  “Nothing,” says The Lock. “Tarmey remains sealed in a room made of lead, and he's quite insane”.

  This is the best news I've heard for a long time. I have been planning all of this for so long, it's almost impossible to believe it's all coming together. I have tested the vampire and the girl for months. I gathered together an assortment of creatures to send to attack them, and each one failed. I released the last of the Sentinels, I drove the wolves from their kingdom, I set loose the Tenderling King, I planted the seed that became Martin Keller, I even loosened Deck from his chains, although Deck simply ran rather than attempting to confront the vampire. Finally, after I sent Keller to kill Vincent, the vampire chose to come back to me of his own free will, and he brought the girl with him.

  “I have no further need of you,” I say to The Lock. “You have opened all the doors that I needed you to open”.

  The Lock sighs. “Is it time?”

  “You won't fight, will you?” I ask.

  “No,” he says. “But will you at least do one thing for me? Will you make it a quick, painless death?”

  I think about this for a moment. “Sorry,” I say. “It's not up to me. You know I can't fight the urges”.

  He nods, accepting his fate, and he turns as he hears my mother walking up behind him.

  “You'd better go with mother,” I say, and he does. I'm sure they'll be very happy together, though I hope she at least toys with him for a while first. I like it when she plays with her food.

  15.

  “I didn't think...” I start to say, but I don't know how to finish the sentence. “I mean, I thought...” I look at his face, and for once I feel as if I understand what he's thinking as he looks back at me with an expression of genuine tenderness. “I wasn't sure,” I say finally, “if that was what you wanted”.

  He opens his mouth, and for a moment I'm absolutely convinced that he's about to say something. I wait, wondering what his first word to me will be, what his voice will sound like, but finally he closes his mouth and I see the tenderness recede from his face, replaced by his usual inscrutability.

  Slowly, he slides his penis out of me and roll off my body. I have no idea what to do, so I just stay where I am, flat on my back and naked, and still out of breath. Patrick is sitting on the side of the bed, with his back to me.

  “I'm sorry I ran,” I say. “I thought you wanted to kill me”. I wait for him to say something, but of course he remains silent. “I kinda still do think that, but...”
<
br />   Before I can finish, he stands up and starts getting dressed.

  “Where are you going?” I ask, but I don't really expect a reply.

  I get up and grab the clothes I changed out of earlier, pulling them on. “Can we get out of here?” I ask. “Seriously, I don't like it here. I just want to go home. Can we go back to your place and talk?”

  He looks at me.

  “Well... I'll talk,” I say. “You can listen and nod and shake your head and stuff. Is that okay?”

  He just stares at me.

  “Maybe you can write stuff down,” I say. “Like a diary, so I know what you're thinking. Maybe?”

  He frowns.

  “No?”

  He frowns more.

  “You don't have a blog, do you? Twitter?”

  He tilts his head, like a dog.

  From somewhere else in the house, there's a terrible sound, as if the building itself is screaming as it's ripped apart.

  “What was that?” I ask. “No, wait. Don't tell me. Just let's get out of here, okay?”

  He shakes his head and heads to the door, then he comes back, kisses me quickly, and leaves the room. I follow, but as soon as I get out into the corridor I see the problem: Jessica and the two other maids are at the top of the stairs, and Patrick is standing in front of them.

  “Let me in,” says Jessica calmly. She and the other two are staring at Patrick. There's something deathly about the way they're standing there, as if they're possessed by some other force.

  “They're angry!” shouts a voice from behind me. I turn to find Astley standing there. He seems to have completely recovered from the injuries he sustained earlier, and he's holding a little suitcase. “They're getting more powerful by the minute, and they're here to get what they want. I can sympathise. I'm here to get what I want too. I suppose we all are, really”. He looks at me. “Except you. You're just here because you were dragged along for an easy fuck”.

  “Patrick...” I say.

  “He's not listening to you,” Astley says. “He got what he wanted. The grinding on the bed. That's all he was after. It's all he was ever after. You're just a vessel for his seed”.

  I turn to him.

  “You thought he loved you?” Astley asks, laughing. “That's cute. Sorry, little girl, but he's a typical man. You fulfilled a role for him. He just needed a quick fuck before facing down his old demons. And... Well, I hate to be the one to break it to you but... what he really needed was for a child to be conceived within the walls of Gothos”.

  I turn to look at Patrick, just as he glances at me.

  “That's why we're here...” I whisper. “That's why you brought me here...” I walk over to him. “Is that true? Did you bring me here just to sleep with me? Am I...” I look down at my belly.

  “There is a prophecy,” says Astley calmly. “A child conceived on the grounds of Gothos will be the first of a completely new race, a race that will ultimately destroy the last vampire. Well, that's not the whole prophecy, but I'll let you find out the rest a little later on, hey?” He grins.

  “Let me in,” says Jessica, stepping towards Patrick.

  “Ladies,” says Astley, addressing the maids. “This is the last vampire. You remember? He's the one who destroyed all of you. Now you're the only three gods left. I kept you alive for this moment. Feast on him. Take your revenge”.

  I can't handle this, but there's nowhere to run. In one direction, there's Patrick and the maids; in the other direction, there's Astley. In desperation, I turn, grab the handle of the nearest door and run into the room, pulling the door shut behind me. But as son as the door is closed, I realise that there's something very strange about this room. It's completely dark, but I can feel something strange on my face, like... a light breeze. It's as if I'm outside. And I can hear voices nearby, though soon they're drowned out by the sound of something whistling towards me. I look up just as something explodes in the sky above me. In the light, I can see where I am: a World War One trench in the middle of the night, with soldiers all around me.

  16.

  I put the key into the lock, turn it, take the key out and watch it burn in the palm of my hand. There. Now she's locked away until I choose to release her. If I choose to release her... if she survives more than a couple of minutes. Yes, I know that my original plan was to kill her slowly and chew on her bones, but sometimes you have to go with the flow if a better idea comes along.

  Further along the corridor, Patrick and the maids are watching each other closely. The maids aren't strong enough to attack yet, they're still getting used to their new bodies. I was hoping they would have longer to prepare for this confrontation, which is now going to be woefully one-sided. But gods have terrible egos, and these three obviously thought they would be able to handle anything the vampire threw at them.

  “You know who I am, don't you?” I say to Patrick.

  He turns to me, and it's clear that he understands everything.

  “All I need now,” I say, “is for you to die. Look at me. I've been trapped here at Gothos for centuries, a ghost who can't leave the grounds. When you killed all the vampires, you left many ghosts like me. And we want to return. We want to live and breathe again. You see them, I know that. They're all around you, hoping to steal your body so that they, not you, can be the last vampire. The difference is, I'm the only one who decided to actually do something about it”.

  I step towards him. “Aren't you tired? Why carry the burden of being the last vampire, when you can allow yourself to die and I can take your place? I can be the last vampire. If the prophecy insists that there must be one last vampire on Earth at all times, that doesn't mean it has to be you. Let me be what you are, and you can stay here at Gothos forever as a ghost”.

  “Let me in,” say all three maids simultaneously, but Patrick is ignoring them now. He knows that I'm the real challenge here, the real threat. Plus, I've locked his girlfriend in a room with the First World War, and he'd probably like to get her out.

  “You know the rules,” I say. “All you have to do is say the word, and you will be relieved of your duties as the last vampire. Duties that I will take up and honour”. I step right up to him. “Say the word. You know what it is. I know what it is. Say it and be free”.

  His lips move a little, as if he's considering the possibility. In his eyes, I see doubt.

  “You have done everything,” I say. “More than everything! You have carried this burden for so long. You have conceived a child with the human, as you were required to do. You have returned to Gothos, as you were required to do. But you know what comes next. You know what you will be required to do soon. And you know that you can abdicate all responsibility, become a ghost here, and let me take your place in the world”.

  He stares at me, saying nothing.

  “Do it!” I scream at him. “Say it!”

  Nothing.

  I push him back against the wall. “SAY IT! I CAN'T LIVE HERE IN THIS HOUSE ANY MORE! ALL THESE PEOPLE ARE CRAZY!” I slam my fist against his chest. “RELEASE ME!”

  He pushes me away. I see from his eyes that the moment of doubt has passed. He seems utterly determined now, as if he knows exactly what he's going to do. And I can tell that he has no intention of allowing me to take his place as the last vampire.

  “Fine,” I say. “But know this: even if you are able to save your precious little girlfriend, the prophecy is cast in stone. There is no escape. Eventually, you will have to kill her. But if you choose to step aside now, I can take on the mantle of responsibility. I can kill her for you, and you won't have to look into her eyes as she realises what you have done to her. Would that not be a kindness, in the end? To spare her from that? If you feel anything for her, let me be the one who kills her, instead of you”. I pause, waiting for him to respond. “Say the damn word”.

  But as I look at him, I realise he'll never surrender to me. He'll never give in. So I turn to the maids. “He's yours,” I say. “You've waited long enough to have your
revenge against the vampire who destroyed your species. I know you're weak, but the three of you together should be strong enough to destroy him”. I walk to the door. “As for me, I've finally found a way out of here. A door to the past, straight into the heart of the most devastating period in human history. It took me years to bring this door to me, but now that I have it, I might as well use it”.

  And with that, I unlock the door, step through, and leave Gothos forever. I am free, and I have won.

  17.

  The explosion doesn't just knock me off my feet. It throws me several meters into the air, and I slam into a mud wall, falling to the ground as lumps of wood fall all around me. The air is thick with dust, so much so that when I try to breathe in, I just end up coughing.

  “Hand?” says a voice from nearby.

  I roll onto my back, look up and see Astley standing over me.

  “You look like you need some help,” he says.

  Ignoring his offered hand, I get to my feet. I walk past him, trying to find the door back to Gothos.

  “That's not the way back,” Astley says. “I'm afraid you'll just have to wait. But... Oh, wait,” he adds, with an expression of mock concern. “What will you do about your baby?”

  “I'm not pregnant,” I say.

  “We'll see,” he says, smiling. “Well, look, I'd love to hang around, but I have a plan to get moving so I'll just kill you and be on my way”.

  “How are we here?” I ask, looking around. “We're still in Gothos, aren't we?”

  He shakes his head. “We're in France,” he says. “World War One. Don't they teach you kids anything in school these days?”

  There's a deep rumbling sound in the sky.

  “Gothos is a house filled with pain,” he continues. “A house filled with tragedy and horror. Eventually, after centuries of torment, the house itself could no longer contain all the trauma, so it created a link to the one place that it felt might understand how it was feeling”. He smiles. “It's a real old fairytale, eh?”