Chapter 18
For once, Viria got to relax. She had the rest of the next day to herself. But before she could go to sleep, she had to hold a meeting.
“I found the main base,” she announced once everyone was settled. The morbid silence that followed made even Dahlia uncomfortable and she burst out in the most heartbreaking wail anyone had ever heard.
“Sorry, little one,” she apologized to Dahlia, even though the child could understand nothing. “Nina, stay. Just calm her down, no one is bothered.”
Nina tried to soothe Dahlia down and it didn’t take long before the baby was quiet and cooing for her father. Viria continued on, “It was far off from the ghoul’s place, but that’s what I extracted from the victim ghoul. It’s most likely they are working on building more bases to revive their delegations.”
“How fast do you suppose they can work?” Kevin asked.
“Pretty fast, I’d say,” she replied, “because these guys basically get ahold of run down places and shift equipment there easily. I guess what we need are teams to follow and hinder them. Launch constant attacks until we’re ready to attack them. These guys don’t know where they are.”
“What about what I told you?” Ivanna asked.
“I’ll definitely go to look into it tomorrow.”
“We’ll do it,” Tina said. “You need sleep, food, and medicine.”
“I mean, I could definitely use it, but then I’d be restless all day.”
“Medicine,” Fae stressed.
“Yeah, all right, I’ll be okay, I guess?”
“Just get some rest before taking on the world,” Ivanna said. “Depend on us a little, will you?”
“Yeah right.” Viria scoffed.
“I’ll seriously put you in a coma one day.”
“Coma? That’s no good.” She rolled her eyes. “I’ll be stuck with nightmares. Kill me instead.”
Blake whistled lowly that dripped with sarcasm and Viria stuck her tongue out at him. Despite her being downright depressing, she was also being very playful.
Tina laughed. “Can you, like…decide between your mood?”
“Look, man, I took some of my meds, so this is bound to happen,” Viria said with a defensive raise of her hand. “Not asking for this, trust me.”
The mood at the table lightened up. The shifters had been communicating solely within themselves, but the High Council managed to draw them into their talks. It seemed like a good day. It had been a while since they’d sat down to eat without discussing the next attack that needed to take place.
That evening, Viria was certainly restless. She moved around constantly. She wasn’t used to the concept of properly relaxing yet. So, Mitch introduced her to a game of cards and she was absolutely fascinated. Mitch was wondering if he made a mistake because although she was a beginner, she didn’t lose once again him in the five matches they’d come to play.
“This is ridiculous,” Mitch said in frustration as he threw his cards on the ground toward Viria, who was a laughing mess. He had activated sharing his dark energy again and it was good to see her in a good mood. She had the widest smile, and it was absolutely gorgeous.
“Oh, c’mon, don’t give up yet.” She poked his arm and gathered the cards to hand them over. “Or you could teach me something else.”
He thought about it and something clicked, “I think I know your kind of game. You can play it on your own if ever on your own. Heard of Sudoku?”
“Never.” She grinned. She was sat crossed legged with her back straight and shoulders squared, holding onto her ankles as she waited for him to continue. And he had the most uncontrollable urge to kiss her.
You shouldn’t, he reminded himself. You can’t.
Brushing his feelings off, he asked for a pencil and notebook. He drew out a small grid and explained the basics.
“Oooh, I like this,” she nodded furiously, “Lez get more from the internet.”
He was flabbergasted when she pulled up a nine block grid at level medium from a website. But by now he was done underestimating her. She wasn’t just someone who absorbed and retained information, she was a downright genius. Viria was done with the grid right as he’d filled it almost half way.
“This makes me think too much,” she said, “but it’s a good thinking. Healthy thinking!”
“I am in utter awe with how much you love using your brain,” he said. “How do you do that?”
“I guess it’s all I’ve ever really had before,” she said. “So I’m accustomed and conditioned into it?”
“Like?” he asked.
“Well,” she started, “I lived a pretty decent life until I was nine. I accidentally killed my bully because I wasn’t aware I was a witch. No one really understood what had happened and there was no proof of his dying at my hands, but everyone assumed and it took a toll on my parents. They abandoned me and moved away, so I lived with the animals in the woods. Didn’t talk much, so I had plenty of time to think. I just got used to it from there and learned a lot from animals. I can hear and smell the enemy before I see them. I can fight blind because most attacks were in the dark. Other stuff I find pretty cool so, yeah, I’m awesome. Anyway, wow, I’m rambling. So, I coincidentally ended up by my life tree when I was abandoned and it taught me a lot through dreams and collective consciousness. I practiced in meditation and real life. Ever since Ivanna found me and brought me here, I would do nothing besides read and train. I read a lot. All the time. Anything I can get my hands on. Enough about me, though. Tell me about you!”
“Ah, well, there’s nothing much to know about me, but I’m regaining a lot of my memories,” he said. “I had a really good life, I’d say. My parents were rich and extremely loving. I had the coolest older brother and I just couldn’t get enough attention from him. I was the nerd who glowed up and instantly got popular in my second year of high school. I got a girlfriend and she was a pretty sweet thing, but we fought a lot. We hardly had anything in common except music. And she was…I don’t know, just kinda crazy, really. So we had a fall-out at a party and I was drinking it all away. Then I drove and ran into a tree. Dead on impact. Trees are assholes.”
He laughed and so did Viria. “How do you feel about being resurrected, though?”
Mitch gave it a good thought. “It’s kind of painful, to be honest. It was, at least. Then I started losing feelings and all and became dead and numb, but being lifeless isn’t exactly fun. It’s like a punishment, really. It’s a lot better now that I’m around you. I mean, I dunno, it’s good to have you around. And with this whole evolution thing I’m going through, it makes it all the more better I guess. At least I’m not alone and have something to look forward to now. You can’t commit suicide when already dead.”
Viria laughed. “True. But hey, now that you almost look alive, you could try going back.”
he sighed. “Nah, I’d be breaking the code of conduct.”
“What’s the punishment again?”
“Actual death.”
“Yikes.”
“I know.” He laughed. “But it’s not like I want to go back and see them, anyway. They’d keep me with them and I wouldn’t be able to be a proper ghoul. Also, I have checked on them before and they’ve somewhat moved on. It wouldn’t be fair to just go back like that and create emotional havoc.”
“I kinda get that, I guess,” she said, “but you’re happy now, right?”
“Satisfied, yes,” he agreed. “Where do I sleep, by the way? Mind you, I work well when I bury myself.”
“You could go into the garden,” she suggested. “You don’t specifically need a cemetery, do you?”
“Well, that’s where dark energy is most,” he explained, “so yeah.”
“There’s one right behind the HQ just a little way down. It holds the bodies of all that served here,” she said, “If you need to now then I can drop you off there.”
“Yeah, I think you need to sleep, too.”
“Nah, I’ll be playing Sudoku.” She grinned and he groaned.
“I made a mistake.”
Ivanna stood outside Viria’s office listening to it all. She knew Viria wouldn’t do anything of the sort that everyone was concerned of, but it surprised her to listen to her so happy and cheerful. And she felt the most absurd thing she ever could in that situation. Jealousy. Absolute, pure jealousy. Why couldn’t she make Viria as happy as he did? She’d been with her longer. She literally found little Viria at ten and nurtured her to this day.
She backed away as soon as the door opened.
“Oh, hey,” she said, “I was just coming in to check up on you.”
“We know you were eavesdropping, Ivanna.” She chuckled. “How stupid do you think I am?”
Ivanna rolled her eyes and followed after her and Mitch. “Where you guys going?”
“Mitch needs a graveyard to sleep in,” Viria explained. “Good place to process dark energy.”
“Ahh,” she said, not understanding it at all. But it made sense for a ghoul to want to sleep in a graveyard, “Mitch, you don’t look very dead, though.”
“I’m evolving, actually,” he said. “I was pretty decayed before I met Viria. Now I’m a lot better. I still have a little jaw to work on,” and he turned around and pointed to a small hole on his face, “I’ll be completely okay once that happens.”
“How did you injured your jaw, though?”
“Got into a car crash and died, so the broken glass from the windshield cut through.”
Ivanna fell silent as her face morphed into what could only be perceived as disturbed. Mitch laughed. “It wasn’t painful, I promise. I was already dead.”
“Interesting.”
They climbed down the steps and walked in silence as Viria hummed a tune Ivanna had never heard. She didn’t think Viria listened to music. She wasn’t too keen on using her ears as she was using her eyes. But with all the pauses and switching of tones, she realized it was something Viria was making up on her own. The fact that Viria was humming was enough to surprise her, though.
“Did something happen, Viria?” she asked.
“Nope,” she said. “Why?”
“You seem really happy.”
“Oh!” she cried out. “Mitch taught me this card game and how to play Sudoku. It’s fun!”
Ivanna didn’t know games could make her so happy, but she didn’t have much of a childhood anyway to have played much in the first place.
“She beat me every time,” Mitch grumbled and Viria laughed.
“Oh, c’mon, you’re not really angry about that.”
“Eh, I’ve just simply lost the hang of it,” he said. “I’ll beat you next time we play it.”
“Try me, son.”
“Don’t make me.”
And they started to insult each other as they walked out the door and to the back of the building. Ivanna was in absolute awe of the interaction. And she didn’t feel as jealous anymore when she came to understand the dynamics of it. Viria head led her whole life purely around adults. The only one she had close to her age was her mate, Tyler, that she’d cut off her bond from. Mitch seemed around her age, if not a little older. She wondered if Mitch could even age when dead.
“Mitch, do ghouls age?” she asked.
“The dark energy lets them, yes,” he said. “The more ghouls practice it the stronger they get so old age doesn’t affect them. They do decay more, though. It’s just me who it working oppositely on.”
They get to the graveyard and the girls bid him good night. He waved and enters the cemetery. He chose a spot near the gate and willed the ground to break away. He hopped in and the ground swallowed him up.
With that done, Viria and Ivanna leave for their own beauty sleep.
“You think it’s okay for him to be with the bacteria and all since he’s pretty much growing his skin back?” Ivanna asked, and Viria froze for a moment. But she started to walk again.
“The dark energy will probably keep them away.”
“I guess so.”