The Egyptian Brothers
The Egyptian Brothers
By: Emmanuel Barraza
1751
I come home in the eve of night and I try to sleep after a long night of working in the plantation that my Big Daddy owned. I can’t get the feeling that I’m still being watched by someone. But, I still try to sleep.
“BOO!”
“Ah!”
“Oh come on Adrian, you got scared by that little sound?”
“Sure as hell did, Ryan! I’d best not catch you doing that again or I might have to hog tie you.”
“I guess I still have my childish spirit in me somewhere. What about you Adrian? Ha! So will I see you down stairs for supper brother?”
“I’ll be down in a few seconds.”
I had forgotten all about my hunger while working and now I was feeling famished. I go down stairs and I see my Momma is fixing dinner. She is making her famous beef gumbo that my brother and I love. I sit down right next to Ryan, since that is what we twin brothers do usually. We start talking about the news that had been spreading in our quaint city that we call Rockville, Maryland. There had been slaughter reports of people and disappearing relatives of other people close to our plantation and we have been preparing a way to save ourselves and Momma, since Big Daddy died after all we can’t do anything about him.
“Oh, Adrian, you’re back already? How was out there hon?”
“It was brutal Momma. The sun beat down on me and the slaves in the cotton field. I kinda’ feel sorry for them. So how was your day?”
“The usual at the bar, crowded, stuffy, and full of drunks. I earned four dollars today.”
“That’s incredible! We might even someday save enough for the trip back to Mexico.”
“Maybe, Adrian, maybe. So how was school Ryan?”
“I got moved up a grade and I might be able to finish Yale this year.”
“Wow! This calls for a celebration.”
Momma brings over some of her best bottles of wine and we dine with it and play music for the great news that Ryan brought to the table. Hours pass by and we all go to sleep in our rooms. I finally get in my bed and sleep like an angel.
1751
I wake up suddenly, and I hear voices outside my room and I go see who it is. I spot my brother through the crack of my door, speaking to a dark figure and I try to see more of the person but I can’t make him out. I hear the two speaking as softly as possible but I can hear them clearly.
“You have to leave right now, Crucio. I can’t let you do this to me or my brother. So leave.”
“You know I can’t do that Ryan. I have to do this. You killed one of my kind and well this is payback. I won’t kill you two. I’ll just sire the both of you.”
“No, you can’t. Please don’t do this to my brother. Leave him out of it.”
“Why should I?”
“He is not the one who killed one of your people; I did so leave him out of it.”
“Hmmmmm, alright. I’ll let him off. But if you try to do anything crazy like say for instance kill me, I will have my people kill your family. Deal?”
“Deal.”
The dark figure named Crucio starts to close in on Ryan. He starts to tilt Ryan’s head and sink his teeth in Ryan’s neck. I step out of my room and I jump at the dark figure to try to stop him.
“Ah!!!”
I fall on top of him and was successful in doing so. But, the man I saw in below me was as the pale as the moon and was as skinny as a twig. How can he pose a threat to my brother? But, as I soon find out, the man lifted me up with one arm and threw me out of the house and onto the porch.
“Adrian! What are you doing Crucio? I told you not to harm him!”
Ryan runs outside to see how I am doing. Crucio just walks outside casually andwithout a care. He clears his throat and says this to Ryan.
“So are you going to go through with it? You know I don’t have that much time with me right now.”
“The deal is still on Crucio! Why did you do this to him? He is not even breathing! Can you turn him into whatever it is that you were gonna’ do to me?”
“Probably, but why do you want to do this to him when you just said that you don’t want him to be one?”
Ryan waits a while to answer and responds in a sorrowful tone.
“I just don’t want to lose him. So will you do it?”
“Alright, I’ll do it.”
“Change Adrian first, just so he doesn’t die.”
Ryan picks me up and hands me over Crucio. And you might be asking how do I know all of this, well I’m still conscious and I can feel, hear, and see everything all around me! Crucio holds me in one arm and tilts my head in the same way he did for my brother. He bites into my neck and I feel this great pain, it’s not the bite, but it was the power of the sucking that he had to do to get some blood out of my neck! I never felt anything like it. I soon fell out of consciousness and…
“Adrian, wake up! It’s all over.”
“Ryan? I just had the strangest dream. I dreamt that you and I were changed into some things and we had to get bitten in the neck in order to transform.”
I pass my hand over my neck and I find to indentations right where I had Crucio bite me in my dream!
“Adrian, it wasn’t a dream. We’re really living this moment.”
“This can’t be happening to me! Why did you let him do this to me!?”
“I didn’t want to lose my brother. You have to see it in my perspective also Adrian. And if you’re wondering what we have been turned into, we’re Lacree.”
“What!?!?”
“It’s a vampire crossed with a shape shifter. Look I’ll explain to you what we are later on. Right now we have to flee to Reston, Virginia and stay low for the time being. Now let’s go.”
“What about momma? We can’t leave her.”
“I already took care of her. I told her that we have been chosen to go over to Europe for a special assignment. She is going to live with Tio Rene and Tia Viviana. So now I’m telling you that we have to leave immediately. So let’s get our things packed.”
I just stood there with a gawked look on my face. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. One second, my life was intact, later; my whole world was changed by a bite. Ryan just stood there also, waiting for my response to the instructions I was supposed to follow.
“Well Adrian? Are you going to get ready or not? We have no time to waste.”
I stayed quiet for quite some time until I came to my senses and replied……
“Ok, let’s get ready.”
“I’m glad you made that decision. Let’s start gathering our belongings and we’ll be on our way.”
It took a while for us to gather everything that we needed so as to leave for Reston. It was probably around 9:30p.m. When we left the plantation that Ryan and I grew up on. The good thing about the trip is that we don’t live that far from Reston, and we were also going on foot. On the way to Reston, Ryan was explaining to me that we were to meet with Crucio. He said that we were going to be taught how to hunt for ourselves, since we are creatures of the night. And also figure out what forms we both could take form of since a Lacree is also shape shifter. And some other stuff that Crucio is supposed teach us.
“Do you think that we will get there in the morning, Adrian?”
“Well I reckon that we will. With the time we’re making, I think we might make it there before noon. So don’t you worry a thing little brother.”
“Look! I’m only ten minutes younger than you so don’t even start.”
“I was just joshing with you. Don’t get all maniacal about it.”
Well now we were 7/8 of the way to Reston and we were anxious as to when we see Crucio. I still despised the beast but I cannot do anything about it. I am now what I was and I cannot change it.
RESTON, VIRGINIA
The sign said in big, bold letters. We had finally arrived at our destination. And we were in high spirits. We took our time to look for Crucio. And we sometimes got sidetracked by the stores all around us. We had not seen any sign of the mysterious Crucio.
“Are you sure that we were to meet him here Ryan? I mean you could have got the wrong information.”
“He wrote it down Adrian. Here, take a look at this.”
Ryan took out a piece of parchment paper and showed it to me. And there it was in plain writing RESTON, VIRGINIA. But we hadn’t seen any sign of him.
“Hello Rivera Brothers, did you miss me?
We both jumped and hollered at the same time.
“Did I scare you that much? If you get scared that easily, you two might not even last a month in the world alone. But with my help, you two will get that out of your systems.”
My brother and I were scared out of our wits. We had no idea that Crucio was going to meet up with us in such a scary way. Anyways, the three of us discussed about the way he was going to teach us the way to live for ourselves in the world since we were turned into creatures of the night. He said that since we were half vampire, we did not need as much blood as a regular vampire needs. We only have to feed three times a week, as for a vampire, they need to feed two times each day! Our eyes will turn to black and we will have this incredible power within us. It is brute force and also mental force.
“Oh, and I almost forgot to ask you boys, did you feast on blood yet?”
“No we haven’t,” I answered.
“You haven’t? Well let me take where there is great blood.”
Crucio took us too a remote place in Reston and showed us inside to an abandoned manor. There were dozens and dozens of people inside. All of which what were seemed to be kissing on each others necks.
“Did you take us here to find whores,” Ryan asked.
“Look closer, these people are not kissing. They are feasting on blood.”
I was astonished to see how many of our kind was here. Or so I think that these people were also Lacree. But I guess they were since Crucio took us here.
“Now let me take you to the backroom so I can let you two take your pick of victims.”
Crucio said this with a cruel, cold smile at the end. I didn’t want to protest to the ways of the Lacree but I can’t do anything. I didn’t want to kill anyone in the process but I guess that my brother and I have to do this.
We arrived in the room and there were two young women and they look as they have been brutally beaten. I wonder who could’ve done this. Were these the girls that we were to feast on?
“Ok boys take your pick and begin to feast on them. But, here is an example if you need one. Colima, can you come in please?”
A young woman by the age of probably no more than 16, comes into the room in rags. She is very dirty and has this traumatic look to her face. She goes toward Crucio and bends her neck back. There are incisions everywhere on her neck. She is probably an example that Crucio uses from time to time to show his new fledglings, which are his new victims who become Lacrees. Crucio lowers his head and places his lips on the Colima’s neck, he kisses it and caresses it. And at last bites into it! The room fills with the scent of blood and it entices me. She does not squeal nor flinch from the pain. Ryan gasps at the look of this horror. But I am the one who is interested in what he was doing. I was actually enjoying in what he was doing!
“Now you two, do as I do and bend they’re necks back and bite into the accused witch’s neck.”
My brother starts off and I begin after him. Feed freely. I recognized Crucio’s voice in my mind. He smiled at my brother and at me and I caught a glimpse of his fang while he was smiling.
I lost all ideas of sin and murder then.
I lost all that had once made me Adrian.
I turned into the demon inside of me, whose prayer had become a babble.
I fed.
I tasted her life as it flowed into me. This human’s blood was thick and hot, boiling with pure life and energy. It wet my parched mouth.
Flashes of thought came to me, too fast for me to realize at first they were not my own. After a moment I gained more control and discovered they were from my victim. I saw a laughing human child. It called to its mother to show her a flower. I saw a dinner cooking in a hearth. I saw a wedding. I saw morning services. My mind focused on this last image.
I could see this woman’s mind clearly, and she was innocent of any form of witchcraft. This thought, more than any other, caused a complete change in me. This woman had been sent here to die as a witch, and she was innocent of the crime. Why had her own people accused her? How many more of the accused were innocent?
I tried to draw back away quickly, but I mowed as if under water. It was so tempting to drink for just a moment more, and a moment more, than that, and just for a moment more…
I began to hear her heart stop and felt the flow of blood slowing, even as she died, it was hard to stop feeding. My vision returned as her vision faded, and I looked at the innocent woman, now pale as chalk and empty of blood.
Beside me, my brother had dropped his victim right about the time I had. We were both horrified. Not the idea of killing but, the idea that these girls were innocent of their crimes of witchcraft. Humanity as we knew it was over for us. We were both unable to draw away as innocent girls died, even though we could have saved their lives.
“I see you two have seen the error of the ways humans have done. Well get over it. Killing is easy but it’ll get easier over time. You won’t have to always kill people. Like Colima, she is my fledgling, like you two. I use her time from time just to feed when I don’t have an intense hunger for blood.”
My brother stepped forward towards Crucio and said this.
“No.”
“You are a predator now, Ryan, and survival is the rule of the predator’s world!”
“I will not be a killer!”
“You will,” Crucio said, walking behind us. We turned to keep him in our view. He sounded so sure, and Ryan felt so unsure. “You are above the humans now, Ryan, above most of our kind. Will you let them rule you because that is how the humans taught you?”
He did not answer, because he could not do so without agreeing with him.
“The law of the jungle says ‘Be strong or be dominated’, the law of our world says ‘Be strong or be killed’. Now, if you are done arguing with me, I will take you to your people and introduce you to them.”
Again, my brother did not answer. I myself was ready to lash out at Crucio and cut his throat for talking to my brother like that. But, if I did, I would’ve caused some commotion and the other Lacrees outside would’ve killed and my brother and me.
We were introduced to many of Crucio’s fledglings and his sister’s, Abrenica, who is also a Lacree, fledglings. They were all in a comforting mood. They welcomed us into their world with ease.
“You all are brothers and sisters now, so get along.”
1983
Centuries have passed by since our encounter with Crucio. He taught all he new about the outside world of hunting, and how to use our abilities. I myself learned faster than my brother. But, I and my brother became stronger with brute force and we also became stronger with our mental abilities. We could both bring ourselves to our home with our mind. We could also use our minds to find out if someone else is in our presence and also reach inside their mind to see if they are a threat. We can use our aura to surround the victim and lash out with that energy and kill our enemy. We could find out information by just looking into his/her mind. Those of my line are strongest with our minds.
And like he said, our eyes turned black a few days after our death. Our skin turned to an icy pale, and in a mirror we can see our reflections. We do not sleep in coffins, but in beds like everyone else. We find ourselves sleeping during the day, not because the sun burns, which doesn’t, but because we hunt during the night where the humans are helpless during that time of the day. Holy water and crosses do not bother us – indeed, we have been to Christian services since we died, though we no longer look for solace in religion.
I wear a silver ring with a garnet stone, and my brother wears a silver chain with an up-side down cross chained to it. The silver does not burn us also. If I do encounter some injury like a cut or a slice of my skin off by normal human metal, like steel and silver, we heal rapidly.
These are the many lies about our kind. There is no disease on Earth that our kind can catch, and almost no poison that affects us. The last thing I have to explain is the shape shifting part. Shape shifters are simply people that can turn into one specific animal. I myself chose the Peregrine Falcon as the animal to change into. I just love the way it cries out when it is about attack its victim. My brother on the other hand chose to be a King Cobra. He is a natural enemy of my creature but we have learned to control our beast ways and travel together in flight.
A lot has changed over the years, since 1751. There are all sorts of transportation, like automobiles, subways, and planes. My brother and I live in New York City. We wanted to see how it was different back 1763. When we got there it was nothing like how it was right now. And well we decided to live for the rest of our lives. Ryan and I haven’t always got along with each other so we purchased different houses. But, not too far away from each other. We keep in touch from time to time. But since we hunt together, we get all the time to talk to each other.
Anyways, let me give you a tour inside my humble abode. Or should I call it, my apartment. Inside are all the necessities I need in life, no pun intended. I have a kitchen, when I want to make my favorite dishes. One bathroom, one bedroom, one living room, and I have windows; I cover them with black, silk curtains to shield the light from my eyes when I sleep. My bed spreads are burgundy and crimson.
I am 255 years old but I look 23 years old. I primarily wear colors like dark blues, reds, purples, and of course black. I never liked to wear light colors; on the other hand, my brother loves to wear black only.
We both have jobs, if you are asking how we obtain clothes and our homes. I work as a high school teacher and my brother as a teacher also. Or should I say professor at NYC.
We do not fraternize with the humans, for if we do, the humans will find out that we do not age so we do not care for friends that much; in exception for others like us. But there have been accounts I have let out my secret to those I befriended in the past and in the present. Like my next door neighbor. I saved him one day from an enemy of mine, while I was hunting and he happened to see me feeding on a guy at the time and he pleaded me to help him and he promised to never release my secret. And well he is the only human friend I have. He invites me over to his house at times but not all the time. My brother despises the human race but always tolerates it. He sometimes feels cheated out on life but he has to live like me. He just gets mad at the thought that the humans take advantage of living a normal life.
Well that’s all I can say for right now since I am going to find my primary victim for the night. I put on my usual colors when I go out, red and black. I wear a red, silk shirt and a pair black pants. So until next time, this is me bidding you good-bye.
1983
I simply bring myself away with the ability that only my kind and some other beings have – the ability to change to pure energy, pure ether, for the instant it takes to travel in that form to another place. It takes me only a thought and I arrive in less than a second.
I automatically shield my aura as I appear in the alley, not wishing to announce presence to my victim. I seek him out and I find him. He is sitting lonely at the curve of Broadway and some other street. I sneak behind him and I grab him. I fold his arms back and I holler…
“BOO!”
“Damn you Adrian! You scared me!”
“Yea, I finally did after all this time. Well enough of this. Why did you call me to meet you here?”
“I have to show you something.”
I have never seen Ryan this worried before. Sure he doesn’t show it in his voice but his face shows great fear in something. He takes me into Central Park and takes me to a secluded place that no human can see but only of my kind see. It is a whole different plane from the human one. In here, many creatures live in it. I choose not to live in it, nor does my brother since we do not wish to live in a world with our own kind. (We have our reasons but I will explain later.) He then now leads me into the house of Crucio! ‘What are we doing here?’ I wonder. I see someone lying on a couch and I come close to the side of the person or creature. This creature is shaking furiously. I uncover the creature and I see that it is Crucio! He is badly wounded and has beatings everywhere.
“Ryan, what happened to him?!”
Ryan hesitates to answer but tells me.
“He was attacked by a . . . . . . Quixel. He was at the club, Sangre Oscura. He happened to be attracted to the Quixel, and he started to feed on her. He had no idea that she was a Quixel and so he was attacked after that. Now he is deeply poisoned now.”
The Quixels are witches and/or vampire hunters. (It can be used as a synonym for witch or vampire hunter.) Yes they do exist; even humans hunt our kind. There has only been one account of Quixel appearing at the club. And that has been over 50 years ago. The former owner of the club was murdered by Quixel who was a vampire hunter. The Quixel witches appear almost identical to humans. If one can read auras, their auras feel the same. Their heartbeats and auras feel the same. They breathe. They need to eat, just as humans do. Their blood tastes just like a human’s.
However, they are not human in the least. Like vampires, Quixel witches are immortal. They do age, slowly, and their blood
is poison to our kind. Crucio fed off too much and is going to die. But it is strange still that he is not healed yet. He is badly wounded by cuts, from a blade forged by magic probably. I can’t believe he is dying. He also has bruises all over his back and chest. He is bleeding from the ears and his nose.
“How did the Quixel enter the club undetected?”
“I have no idea.”
Crucio stays still for a couple of seconds and tries to talk.
“Boys? Is that you?”
“Crucio stay still.”
“Yea, I and Ryan will take care of you now. Just rest for now.”
“Boys, I need you to call my sister by using your minds. It is time for me to leave the world and return to paradise.”
“I knew this might happen.”
A figure says in the distance. He is hiding in the shadows of Crucio’s home and he comes out to show his face. It was Lucas. He is the blood brother of Crucio also. But he isn’t talk about much by Crucio or Abrenica. Supposedly he tried to kill their blood mother and well he was exiled out of the line and some others say that he just wants to be left alone and never spoken to. But, why come now when Crucio is dying?
“Lucas? What are you doing here my brother? I thought you were on that quest to find yourself. What happened?”
Crucio stopped right there, trying to not waste much energy.
“I sensed that you were in grave pain. You do know that we are still blood-bonded, don’t you?”
“Yes, I do. But, I didn’t think that you would come all the way here just to see me pass away.”
“Well you guessed wrong. Well hello boys, how are you doing?”
We did not answer him and never did. We had no respect for him at all. So why bother answering?
“Oh well, don’t answer. Hello Abrenica. When did you arrive?”
I and my brother turn around swiftly and we see that Abrenica is sitting in a chair right behind us.
“Not too long, Lucas. So you came back, why?”
“I came to bid good-bye to Crucio if you don’t mind.”
“As in matter in fact, I do. For 700 years we did not hear from you and you suddenly appear out of the blue just to say a few words to our blood-brother, I find that hard to believe. What do you really want?”
“Look, Abrenica, I know we had our differences in the past, but don’t you lash out at me right now. And I do want something out of this, now that you mention it.”
Abrenica rushes toward Lucas and pins him against the wall. She pulls out her knife and holds it against Lucas’ neck.
“What is it that you want?”
Lucas pushes Abrenica off and goes toward Crucio. He bends down on his knees and he…
1983
“Crucio, I am pleading for your forgiveness. I wish to have your forgiveness little brother. I can’t bear to live in the world knowing that I still have faults in my soul, for the terrible things I did to you. Can you do that for me?”
Crucio opens his eyes slowly and says…
“I forgive you my brother. Now I must leave you and Abrenica to go forth into paradise. Ryan? Adrian? Please come here.”
We both step forward and address Crucio’s command. We also kneel down to our knees.
“Now, I want you boys to take my blood and become stronger from it. I do not want to hear any objections, so just do it.”
Crucio tilts his head back and I begin first to feed on my blood-father. Vampire blood is far stronger than human blood. His blood tastes like white wine, only thicker and far more potent, and I feel giddy when I pull away again, wiping blood from my lips. The wound on his throat does not heal. My brother then goes and takes his share of the blood. And Crucio dies ………
“Crucio, Crucio?! Please wake up! Don’t you dare do this to me now!”
Abrenica was crying for her fallen brother, while Lucas was tacit. I and my brother were also quiet. There was nothing to say.
My brother and I left Abrenica her alone. We thought it was appropriate for her to stay at her brother’s side for right now.
“Oh my goddess. That was so horrible, Adrian.”
“I know. Who could’ve thought that Crucio would not be able to know if there was a Quixel in the area?”
“You know very well that they are not even simple for the first vampire of our kind to detect if there is a Quixel in the area. It’s not his fault. Damn all of those Quixels, damn them to hell!”
“You know what, I have an idea. Do you want to know what it is?”
“Yea, sure.”
“Seeing Abrenica in that mood reminded of the relationship we both have. And I want to remember it for all time.”
“So what is your point?”
“Look, you know how we have always been interested by the symbols of the Egyptians?”
“Uh huh.”
“Well I propose that we put our favorite symbols on our bodies. Look there is a great tattoo parlor down the street, why don’t we get tattoos so we can always be reminded of our connections between each other? How about it?”
Ryan stayed for the time being and well he said yes in response.
“Alright then, let’s go.”
This time we both change into our forms and I carry Ryan in my claws. We arrive at the front door of the parlor with no one in site noticing us shape shifting. We enter the parlor and we ask for some assistance. We are directed to the back of the parlor and are seated in two leather chairs.
“Adrian?”
“Yes, Ryan?”
“What are you going to choose for your tattoo?”
“More like tattoos. I’m getting one on my back and on my chest. The one on my chest is going to be my full name and on my back will be a big picture of the Ankh.”
“Well I’m just going to get a big picture of the evil eye on my back.”
“Nice.”
“I know.”
My brother said this with such cockiness. He’s always been like that, while I have been calm but a smart ass at times.
The tattoo guy came over and started to do his stuff. The way he did our tattoos did not hurt us at all. Normally, humans would be in pain but my brother rarely experience from such small needles.
When the guy was finished, my brother and I decided that we needed to satisfy our appetite for right now. So we took over the guys mind and we fed on him. We were so full after that. I know you might think this, that how horrible we are after witnessing our blood father die and killing him. But my brother and I grew out of feelings with the thing that happened to my former fiancé…
“So this is it? We bare these tattoos forever?”
“I guess so. I mean, that was my idea after all. You know what; for now on, we are going to be known as the Egyptian Brothers.”
“Yea! And every time we feed, we leave our marks upon them. So they remember which line they belong to and who they belong to.”
“That’s a great idea. So do you want to part from here?”
“Well I got work in the morning. So I’ll see you tomorrow?”
“Yea, sure. Bye, Ryan.”
“Bye, Adrian.”
