Shadow Secrets

[ambrosia]

Shadow Secrets


because everyone has something to hide





[setting:]


The night is stormy–dark. The moon is hidden, and all that's left is the twinkling of the stars, but those are blocked by the heavy clouds. The wind howls, and it sounds almost human, like the wailing of someone in deep despair. The winds are picking up, whipping the leaves from the trees and hurling raindrops down upon the ground.

 

[ambrosia]

Serena stumbled. She hated pain–hated it–whether it was hers or someone else's. The sounds of the slow approaches of footsteps haunted her; she thought she'd lost them, the Shadowdancers, but she wasn't sure. Her black hair was in tangles from the fight and from running through the forest. She knew this mountain had a popular campsite; that's why she had been there, originally. Green eyes darted about, squinting through the darkness and the rain pouring down. There was nothing to see.


She made slowly sat down under a tall oak tree. Her clothes were in tatters, and there was a deep slash in her left leg that made it difficult to move. Her arm was broken, if she was not mistaken, and there were countless other cuts. Serena put her hand over the gash. She would have to bind it or weaken to a point where she would most likely die of starvation. She ripped a strip of cloth from the bottom of her shirt, her first aid kit was somewhere lost in the forest, and tied it around her leg. It would have to do. She sighed painfully and leaned back against the tree hoping that she wouldn't open her eyes to see her attackers.

 

[protectorofthebooty]

Alex murmured under her breath as she quickly scratched down a note in a small book. It was her second day out and so far nothing of interest had happened. She couldn't help but think the reports had been nothing more than imaginings. Snapping the book shut she tucked it away and set out once more.


The day was cool and quiet. Despite Alex's muffled steps very few birds sang except to titter for an all clear. Alex frowned, her hand held close to the blade hidden away in her gear. She stopped and looked around. It was then that she noticed a shoulder peeking out from behind an oak. Cautiously she moved forward until she saw the bloody body of a camper.


"Jesus! Are you alright?" She fell to her knees, first aid pack already in hand.

 

[ambrosia]

Serena flinched at the loud voice. Who was this person? Her eyes flickered open. It wasn't a Shadowdancer, thank the gods of fate. Serena made an attempt to sit up a little straighter, wincing as she put pressure on her broken arm. "I'm..." She knew she couldn't say "fine." Serena swallowed eying the person who had just appeared. Her system was still in gear to fight for her life, but she knew she was severely weakened. "Attacked," she muttered wondering if she could pull this off as a wild animal attack. The gash wasn't a knife cut; it might work.


"Thanks for the help," she added after a moment. "I guess I shouldn't have tried camping out alone." Serena made an attempt at a smile. Act friendly, but watch your back, she reminded herself. Serena knew she would have to think quickly to explain all her injuries, and why her campsite was so far away; but after living for a couple centuries on the run, she was well-practiced.

 

[protectorofthebooty]

"What attacked you?" Alex asked setting about cleaning and bandaging as best as she could.


'Broken bones too. Shit, I can't bring her to a hospital...'


The camping grounds were quite an attraction, it should be easy enough to find someone to bring the woman down. But an animal attack would clear out the grounds. Bringing her to the rangers would do the same. No people would mean the local rodents would also clear out.


"My camp is about a quarter mile away. If we go now I can get you to a hospital before dark." Alex moved to help the woman up.

 

[ambrosia]

"Something big," Serena replied. Her voice was constricted by pain; the cleaning was painful. "I didn't really see. It attacked quickly, and I was knocked down."


Serena hoped her story was easily believable. Her mind was clouded by pain, and she wondered vaguely if there had been poison in one of the scratches she received.


"Let's go then–I'm not sure how well I'll be able to walk." Serena leaned on the other woman heavily, dearly hoping that the Shadowdancers were far away and not about to attack; they wouldn't care if there was a witness–they'd kill her, too. Serena tried not to stumble as they made their way over uneven ground. Her leg could hardly bear weight.

 

[protectorofthebooty]

"You got lucky then." Alex took the woman's weight easily as they slowly made they're way back to camp. "Must have been a black bear. There are a few around here, but they're generally pretty evasive. Probably had cubs."


'Bear my ass. Lucky she didn't get a good look though she's proof enough to start a Hunt.'


"Name's Alex. Glad I found you before you passed out. You're heavy enough just leaning on me." she grinned at the woman, a teasing gleam in her eye.

 

[ambrosia]

"Yeah, guess I did." Serena wished it had been a bear. A bear would have been easy to deal with or just evade, even if it did have cubs. Shadowdancers were not black bears though.


"Serena." She returned a slightly strained smile. "Oi, you're not supposed to tell a lady she's heavy!" She rolled her eyes. "Anyway, are we almost there yet? You might end up carrying me if it's much farther," she added lightly.

 

[protectorofthebooty]

"Muscle is heavier than fat." Alex assured, patting Serene's shoulder gently, "And yeah, it's just a little bit further."


The forest had gone completely silent save for Serene's clumsy steps. A wind blew, rustling the leaves, bringing with the light smell of rain. Overhead the sun had slunk back behind grey clouds. Already the air had begun to cool, promising cold rain. Not that mountain rain was ever warm.


"There it is, just around those bushes." Alex's camp was small, consisting of only a tent and a hole lined by rocks for a fire. The tent had a waterproof tarp stretched over it in case of days like today. A spruce loomed over the site, creating some semblance of cover. A raspberry bush wrapped half way around the site mostly shielding it from view.


"I know it's kind of shady. I'm a... photographer. Got some equipment that I'd rather not lose." Alex grinned crookedly as she helped Serene maneuver around the raspberry bush and onto a split log in front of the pit. Straightening back she disappeared into the tent.

 

[ambrosia]

Serena was glad when she was told it was only a bit further. She really wasn't sure how well this would heal; well, she would probably have scars, but at least she wanted full-function back. Scars, she could live with–there were already plenty laced in pale lines across her skin. She knew some vampires in tales had remarkable healing, but Serena was fairly human in that aspect. Her strength was greater than a humans, yes, but she could still bleed.


The wind that started only helped to worsen her mood. She was in pain, and now cold. Serena nearly tripped a few more times as they made their way towards Alex' campsite. Serena didn't have much thought to spare for the set-up of the camp. At another time, she might've noticed that Alex paused before saying she was a photographer, but Serena was preoccupied with her pain. She sat down gingerly putting as much weight as possible on her good arm and leg.


When Alex had disappeared, Serena was alert and attentive enough to notice that they were in a very secluded spot. Her mind wandered to who Alex was. Probably some human. She would have to find a way to leave within a few days, otherwise, she wouldn't be able to control her thirst. It had already been a few days since she had fed (on one of the other lone campers in the forest.) That was before the Shadowdancers caught up with her. And in her weakened state, she wished she could get proper sustenance, and it didn't feel right to feed on the person who had probably saved her life.


Her forehead creased as she thought. It had been a while since she had lived in close proximity to a human. In general, she stayed in fairly rural areas or at the edges of a town. Sometimes she would pose as a tourist or a traveler, just to have an excuse to go into the city. Now, though, she would have to be careful with this human around, at least, until she gained enough strength back to run far, far away.

 

[protectorofthebooty]

Inside the tent Alex hastily gathered the essentials for the trip back down the mountain. She was suddenly glad that she had parked the jeep relatively close. They would only half to cover half a mile of cross-country terrain before they hit the road down to the sleepy town at the mountain base. While she threw things together she pulled out a satellite phone and dialed a quick number. The phone rang only once before it was answered.


"Sightings confirmed." she said in a hushed tone not waiting for a greeting, "I have a wounded civilian that got jumped by a loner. She didn't get a good look so I'm taking her down to the hospital. Let the others know and send someone to collect my stuff."


Snapping the phone shut again she stepped out of the tent, a bottle of water and a bottle of painkillers in hand.


"Here, don't take more than three, two should do it, but that's up to you." she handed both bottles to the woman in front of her. After she took them Alex set about tidying up the camp, kicking dirt into the pit and pulling brush and other debris up and over the tent. "My jeep isn't too far from here. The town itself is about an hour away, unless you don't mind a little speeding. Do you have health insurance?"

 

[ambrosia]

As Serena sat on the log, she could hear Alex's voice in the tent. Her senses were superior to a human's, but not by too much, and she couldn't tell what Alex was saying. Had Serena been wrong to trust this other woman? Or was she just letting someone know there had been an animal attack? As she was thinking, she twirled a lock of hair around her finger; it was habit she'd picked up from her mother.


She turned when Alex came back out of the tent. She eyed the pills almost suspiciously, but tried to convert her expression to something neutral. The thing was–sometimes meds work, sometimes they didn't. Serena was a vampire, after all, and as such, her constitution differed from a human's in a few significant ways (e.g. vampires don't age once they turn about 20-25.) Cautiously, Serena threw back two of the pills with a little bit of water–they could drink things that weren't blood, and it was fine, but eating food was a no-no. Through the years, Serena had gotten a sense of what made her sick, and what didn't. The water would be fine by itself, and if she was lucky, the painkiller might actually help.


"Thanks," Serena said placing the water and the bottle of medicine off to the side. Her eyes followed Alex as the other cleaned up camp. "Health insurance…" Serena thought hesitated. She tried to have as few records of her existence, even under different names, and so did not have health insurance. "No, not at the moment. My boss isn't nice enough to give me that." She hoped the added detail would add to the seeming validity of the statement.


"Speeding's fine with me, too, by the way." She added lightly.