sunsetter

The news was unsettling as it spread around the mansion. Phone calls were quick to be made, emails were suddenly sent out, and every ounce of help the Altolusso group could get was being scrounged for. Viktor was bad news—and the army he had amassed only added to the trouble. With the numbers they had in Paris now, there would be hardly a fight to give. Recruitment was necessary, and everyone was out doing just that. The call to action had come.

The hybrid’s rented SUV was slow as it moved along the rugged dirt road. He had long dreamed of visiting the Black Forest of Germany—but he never thought this would be how he wound up in the dense woodlands. It was whispers and rumors that had forced him onto the plane to make the trip, mentions of a small band of hybrids hiding out far away from the chaos of war. Part of Eric felt guilty about coming to them to ask them to join in a fight that they had tried so desperately to stay out of, but it wasn’t enough to make him turn the vehicle around and go back to Paris empty handed. Lives were at stake, and he’d play every card he had to ensure Viktor’s army wouldn’t obliterate them.

The moon hung high in the sky, specks of silver managing to penetrate the canopy above as the black SUV came to a stop. The road had ended, and he’d have to make the rest of the trek on foot. Slipping out into the cool, night air, the hybrid zipped up his jacket and descended into the forest. The rugged map he had tucked into his jacket was rough, but eventually ( after a couple hours of searching in the dark ), his destination came into view. If he hadn’t know what to look for, the opening would have never been seen. Vines, roots, and branches covered most of the cave opening that was no more than a few feet around. He had to give them credit—it was a good hideout.

The approach was cautious, footsteps light as he pushed his way through the entrance. The cave opened up larger than Eric originally imagined it would. Immediately, he noticed there were signs that people had been there for a while as he shown his flashlight around. A handful of old cushions were pressed up against the wall with blankets messily piled on top. Water bottles, some still full, were scattered around the floor. Books were spread around on an old coffee table with pieces of paper sticking out from beneath them. Moving slowly to the table, Eric crouched down, fingers tugging one of the pages out from under the books. It was a child’s drawing made of red and blue crayon depicting what looked like a massive family linked by entwined hands. A smile began to creep onto his face, mind recalling how many similar drawings he use to have plastered on his refrigerator back in Chicago.

A scuffling sound from the back of the cave had Eric’s eyes raising immediately, flashlight shining toward the noise as the drawing was left on the table. Carefully, the hybrid rose to his feet, light staying focused on the part of the cave that seemed to branch off. For a moment, he didn’t move and simply listened for a few seconds. Nothing. With a brow furrowed in curiosity, he approached slowly to peer around the protruding cave wall that blocked his line of vision. There, tucked away in another section that branched off from the main room, were nearly two dozen people tucked in the back. A handful of women, men, and even a young girl stared back at him with wide eyes and fear etched on their faces. One of the women held a gun, firmly aimed at Eric. “Go—we don’t want any trouble here,” she called out, her accent thick with her demand.

Immediately, Eric’s hands were up and he gave his head a shake. “I’m not here to hurt you—I just want to talk.” He was quiet as he spoke, taking another small step out from behind the rocks. Briefly, his eyes tore away from the woman who was seemingly in charge, and they settled upon the faces of those behind him. Some looked scared, others angry, and he could only begin to wonder who they thought Eric was. “That’s what the last one said.” The words had Eric looking back to their leader. There were so many questions he could have asked—so many things he wanted to understand about the hybrids who were huddled together. But this was not the time for that. Eric shook his head gently, brow softening as he lowered his flashlight a little. “Look. I’ve come a long way to find you—people like me...” Eric’s words had silence lingering in the air for longer than he liked, but finally, the woman’s gun lowered slightly, and she spoke words that had Eric letting out a soft breath. “You’re one of us?”

The next few minutes were tense, but crucial. Eric shared with them who he was, what he was, and where he had come from. It seemed, for now, they had lowered their guard just enough for Eric not to get mauled. But the mention of Altolusso—and the current standing of the truce—had many of the other hybrids looking at each other with concern, and intrigue. With too many eyes watching, and one too many young ears listening, the talk between the hybrid leader, Akimana, and Eric was moved out of the back room and just outside of the cave entrance.

“What I’m going to ask you—I’m not doing it lightly. If we didn’t need your help, I wouldn’t be here.” Eric’s words already had the woman tensing, but he wouldn’t let up. The more hybrids they had on their side, the better. “An army is coming—and Viktor is leading it. He was to exterminate all lycans—and all the vampires who were part of the truce. He has numbers—we don’t. That’s why we need you.” Eric shut up, giving the woman a moment to let everything settle in. The other hybrid was visibly shaken, hands running over her thick hair as she began to pace back and forth. “So Viktor has risen?”

Eric frowned, head dipping into a nod. “He has—and he’s holding on to everything this truce has tried to stop. All we want is peace, and that’s the furthest thing from his mind. If we don’t stop him, everything will be destroyed. Lycans, some vampires—even us.” The woman was no longer looking at Eric as his words fell, her own gaze settled on the ground that she paced on. It was clear she was deep in thought, weighing the options, and figuring out what would be best for those she was trying so hard to protect. “We have wanted no part in this war for years. Why else do you think we’ve resorted to living in rags in a cave? Viktor’s fight is not with us—” There was a bite to Akimana’s words, a fire being lit that hadn’t been present before.

The former police officer wouldn’t even begin to try and pretend he understood what they had been through. He didn’t know what it was like to have to hide who he was, to have to live in seclusion without running water just to stay safe. This life he had, this hybrid life, was one he had only been living for a matter of weeks. A lifetime of being called abominations was what the others had endured. Eric was quiet for a moment, hands slipping deep into the pockets of his jacket before he finally spoke. “You might be safe now, but you know Viktor will find you. If I found you—he’ll be close behind the moment he finishes with Altolusso. The fight may not be on your doorstep now--but it will be in time. You’re sitting ducks if you stay. Don’t you see? You don’t have to hide anymore and force yourselves to live like this. That kid in there can’t grow up in a cave. There’s a place for you—a home for all of you. But it won’t be there much longer unless we have your help.”

The woman was quiet, her eyes finally lifting to stare at Eric as he reminded her of the inevitable. She knew he was right. Viktor would come for them regardless of whether or not they stood by those in Altolusso. “—I can’t risk their lives for something that might happen. What if we lose? What if we all die for nothing?” It was clear in the way her voice nearly cracked that the woman cared deeply for each of the others huddled in that cave. She was a devoted leader, and Eric couldn’t help but to already have a certain amount of respect forming for her. The male took a step close to her, hands slipping from within his jacket. “There’s no way I can promise that all of you will survive—but trust me when I say it won’t be for nothing. Viktor is out there right now planning to destroy an entire species. It’s genocide. And when he’s finished with the lycans, we’re next. We either fight now to defend ourselves, or we sit back and let Viktor walk all over us. I don’t know about you, but I’d rather die trying to make the world better for everyone, than die cowering in the back of a cave.” It was a low blow perhaps, and for a moment, the tensing of the woman’s jaw had Eric expecting a solid punch to the face.

Genocide. The single word had Akimana’s anger rising, mind flashing to all the unsettling images in her mind. It was an act she was too familiar with. It had ravaged her Rwandan home, and corrupted the new one she had claimed in Germany many years before. The memory of bodies stacked upon each other had her jaw relaxing after a moment, and her face softening. Instead of lashing out at Eric, the leader lifted her chin up a little, and gave him a single nod. “—I’ll talk with the others. Stay here.” The order was followed without a fuss, and Eric settled himself on a fallen tree not far from the entrance. Thumbs were nervously rubbing at the palms of his hands, as his worries about the group deciding not to join were running high. A few minutes turned into an hour, but eventually, the leader returned and slipped her way out of the cave. But she wasn’t alone. Another hybrid followed, and another…and another. There was a chill creeping over Eric’s skin as they all emerged, even the little girl clinging to the hand of one of the women.

The leader stepped to Eric, hesitating a moment as she looked at the hybrid group before her eyes settled on him. “You’ve come a long way to talk to us. Your determination is respected.” She paused—a pause that had the hybrid feeling as if he already knew the disappointing answer. He was ready for it—to be told that he would have to fight without them—that there would be no more hybrids aiding them. But she spoke again, and Eric held his breath. “You and I both know the world will never accept our kind—there’s no way it’ll ever happen. We’ve held on for a long time—centuries for some of us lucky ones. If there’s one thing we’ve learned to do—it’s survive, even if it means we hide in a cave.”

Eric’s lips parted to protest, but he was cut off when the leader rose a hand to hush his rebuttal. “But—there will be a time when we can’t hold on anymore. Viktor isn’t going to be the cause of that. We’ll help you—we’ll fight with you if it means there’s a chance to end this war. I’ll do what I can to get in contact with some old friends who can help. Come morning, we’ll be ready to go. You can stay with us tonight.” The words left the leader’s mouth with a hint of a smile, and Eric’s own was quick to form. Extending a hand out, there was a firm grasp shared with the other hybrid. “Thank you. We’ll make Viktor regret ever waking.”

The group dismissed, but a few lingered to talk with Eric. A man came to pat him on the back, and question him on current events. A woman stuck around to ask how many other hybrids he had found, and if there were any more from where he came. It was in the midst of speaking with the woman that he felt a tug on his left hand. Looking down, small fingers were wrapped around it, and the youngest hybrid was seeking his attention. The conversation with the woman was halted as Eric turned to crouch down to eye level. “Hey there,” he welcomed as he beamed. The little girl didn’t speak, but let a sheepish grin form as she handed him a sheet of paper. Taking it in his free hand, Eric’s eyes fell upon the drawing that he had found earlier—only this time, there was a new figure added to the end of the long chain.

For a moment, he could feel a stinging in his eyes as he looked from the drawing to the little girl. “You’re quite the artist, huh? Can I keep it?” The girl’s nod was fast, and her smile seemed to widen at his approval. Before he could even fold the paper up, the child was tugging at his hand again, this time pulling him toward the cave. The woman whom he had previously been speaking with was heard chuckling behind him. “She likes you,” she pointed out, and Eric couldn’t help but to let his own little laugh out. “Yeah—I’ve always been pretty good with kids.” Another tug came, and Eric wouldn’t keep his new friend waiting too long. He let her lead him back inside to spend the night in the cave the hybrids had called their home, and prepare for the journey back.

Come morning, there would be more hybrids on their way to Paris.