Canaan Club - 25. Chapter 25

“Feel the bird. Be the bird,” Joe murmured as he mimicked a monk in the midst of meditation, hovering five feet over his seat in the Adam Society common room.

Rafe, levitating right across from him, snorted. “That’s shit’s so stupid. I’d rather be an eagle.”

“Bro, I’d rather be an alkonost than anything.”

“No, you’d rather date an alkonost.”

Joe shrugged shamelessly. “I mean, they’re usually cute.”

“It’s a bird with a woman’s head,” the blond balked at him. “It’s still a bird, through and through.”

“Expand your horizons, man,” the noirette responded with a wink, making the Hermes superhuman shake his head in disgust.

Andre, sitting in the chair between them and doing homework, giggled at their silly banter. The only one absent was Daeran, who chose to take up sleep early. A smart decision since in the next nine or so hours, they were going to be beating and getting beaten the crap out of and by their opponent in a tourney. However, the omé was on his way to becoming a diligent student and decided to do some last-minute check-ups on his work, allowing Rafe and Joe to shoehorn in some meditation time.

The young wolf’s ear’s then suddenly twitched, and his head spun over to the window behind Joe. “Do you guys hear that?”

“Well, whatever it is, it’s probably a million miles away if you can make something out, so no,” Rafe said as he lowered himself to his seat. “What does it sound like?”

Andre dropped his pencil and stood up, shrugging as he trudged toward the window. “I dunno. It’s just…”

Joe and Rafe followed him, standing tall behind the omé as they gazed out into the darkness of the campus. Their backward was thick with trees, the same three-pronged, cherry ones the blond and wolf saw during their orientation, which they’ve learned were called Trident rubies. Even in the dark of night, they somehow glistened like glowing, menacing eyes in a sea of black.

Just then, something darted past the trees, the ruffling of leaves resounding throughout the quiet night.

“You saw that?” Andre whispered.

Rafe nodded, his eyes narrowing. “Now that I got.”

“Same here,” Joe spoke. “Were those people, or are those the bed bugs coming to bite us?”

“Anybody feeling tired right now? ‘Cause I’m not, and I’m very bored. Let’s do some investigating.”

As expected, Andre seemed pensive. “Should we? What if it’s just someone on their way back home?”

Rafe placed his hands on the omé’s shoulders and squeezed gently in reassurance. “Then, let’s give them a good scare and lecture them on being home by curfew. Come on.”

That was all it took to convince him, and Joe made sure to switch the common room lights off as the blond slid the windowpane up so the three could climb out. Rafe’s arms were wrapped around Andre’s midsection, carrying him out while the young wolf scanned the area carefully.

“Over here,” he pointed toward an assortment of white, cracked pillars randomly arranged into a semicircle, half-encompassing a small clearing that led to a river.

Rafe remembered visiting that place during Alien Gardening class once. It was some sort of reflection zone some earth fae like to frequent. But the figures that they spotted were doing anything but contemplating life. Before they were spotted, the trio descended behind one of the pillars, which were a lot bigger up close.

Peeking as subtly and silently as they could, they viewed the sight before them.

“What the fuck?” Rafe mumbled so low it was almost inaudible, but Andre’s hitch in breath told him that he was feeling the same.

Joe could only gape.

“Hold still, baby,” a familiar brawny, blond fohawk leech cradled a blissed-out brunette female in his arms as he lowered his mouth toward her thin, bruised-up neck.

The only response he got was a squeaky moan.

The situation was similar for the other three couples, razor fangs biting and sharp tongues licking at the side of their necks, another girl and two other boys being used as midnight snacks. They were blood bags. Most likely voluntary judging by the first confrontation with Deyja.

Though, the neonate undead didn’t seem to be present this time.

But what was really sick was the clear age difference between the bloodsuckers and their victims.

“So, when are we moving forward with all this?” another vampire questioned lazily as he and his practically comatose blood bag leaned against a pillar, arm wrapped around the smaller male’s drooping shoulders. “Feeding is nice and all, but I’ve been told it’s leading somewhere.”

The next leech was so recognizable that it made Rafe cringe. Caid, the crazy, blood-hungry freak that had an unhealthy interest in the blond superhuman, wiped his mouth of crimson and shot an annoyed look at the other who asked, a tight grasp on the sleeping girl he just took a bite out of.

“Don’t get all uppity now. Haven’t you ever heard of the more the merrier? With this kind of bonus work, we’ll be unstoppable by the time it’s time to take over this joint.”

“Well, don’t say that out loud,” the last one said her piece as she caressed the sloppily-grinning, first-year boy in her arms. “Who knows who might be walking by on a nightly stroll and happens to overhear you?”

“Oh, please. We’re the things that go bump in the night. They’d do well to hold their tongue, or I’ll just bite it out,” Caid nicked his blood bag with a fang, a sinister grin on his pale face.

“Fucking disgusting,” Rafe hissed as he reluctantly watched.

Underneath him, Andre rolled his shoulders uncomfortably. Joe had to look away for a second. What a sickening sight. The blond had half a mind to activate his lasers and behead the gang of predators in an instant.

When the vampires ceased their conversation and went back to feeding, the moaning and rubbing began to pick up. Andre was the first to call it quits, as he slowly turned around and signaled the others to start walking away.

The superhumans were immediately in agreement. If they intervened, it’ll only make things worse, and they already had a jackass gamma wolf and his buddies to deal with. Deyja and her crew…

There was something even darker about them. Not something worth getting tangled up in at the moment-

Crrk!

The three paused. And so did the group behind them in the middle of getting hot and heavy. Rafe and Joe were confused, but Andre looked panicked. His foot was trembling, and under his sneaker were the remains of a dead leaf, having stepped on it when he turned.

“The fuck was that?”

“Did I call it or not?”

“Don’t panic,” Caid’s voice boomed over their concerns, not sounding perturbed in the slightest. In fact, there was a tinge of excitement laced in his smooth voice. “It’s probably just a nightly jogger. Let’s see if we can get them to… join us in our feat. You two stay here with the blood bags.”

“Shit, guys!” Joe sibilated as he saw Caid and the big, blond vampire begin to move forward, leaving behind their befuddled victims with the other two.

“Come out, come out wherever you are! We won’t bite too hard if you play nice.”

Hearing that frightening, feigned friendliness kicked Rafe into action. He caught Joe’s eye and silently pointed up into the sky, which the latter instantly understood and nodded. Andre was still frozen in place when the Hermes superhuman wrapped his right arm around his midsection. Rafe’s limbs were long, being as tall as he was for his age, so his hand practically reached entirely across the omé’s stomach.

Andre himself felt it flip when his best friend pulled him tight against his side. He had never had a problem being so close to the blond, but this close was just…

“Grab onto me, dude.”

That snapped the wolf out of his trance. “Oh, right!”

The young wolf draped his arm over Rafe’s back, feeling the strong muscles there flex before they began to hover.

Meanwhile, Caid and his friend were closing in on them. “Here’s C-”

But the three were quickly off-ground.

Joe whooped as they soared back high into the air, going past their dorm and across campus. “Smell ya later, gators!”

Rafe chuckled at that, but he didn’t turn around to taunt them. Even if he wanted to, he didn’t want those leeches to get a good look at his face. Instead, he lowered his gaze down at Andre. The warm, nocturnal wind blew his wolf friend’s curly afro out of his face, revealing a flushed face, squinted eyes, and a nervous but giddy smile.

“Feels great, doesn’t it?”

“Y-Yeah,” the omé nodded, grasping the superhuman with both arms now, which brought their heads a bit closer. “Totally. How do you fly with this much wind blowing in your face, though?”

Rafe shrugged. “You get used to it.”

He had been too excited not to make use of it after tryouts.

“Traffic exists on every level of the atmosphere, boys, so watch out for those night birds that like to pop out of nowhere,” Joe exclaimed even as he flew close to them.

“Speaking from experience?” Rafe grinned.

“Ran into a tree once. Owls bite fucking hard, man. Even if you are a superhuman.”

They glided for a little longer before it was finally time to touch ground, landing in between two edifices.

“Where are we?” Andre asked as he slowly detached himself from Rafe.

On one side was a two-story cottage house, surrounded in a mirth of artificial grass and species-representative flags. And on the other was a small stone building with cone pinnacles at the edges of the roof and a bell tower just at the back. Its architecture resembled that of a miniature castle.

“It’s the Phantamo clubhouse,” Joe pointed at the cottage before looking over at the other place. “Right next to the chapel. There’s no mistaking those DNA pillars. My family practically migrates to one every Sunday.”

“You guys are religious?” Andre asked.

“In a way. It’s a long explanation, bro.”

Rafe already knew the story. He snorted out a laugh. “Tell me about it-”

Before he could finish, a long, drawn-out moan resounded from the stained-glass windows. There was a wooden side door right next to them, beckoning the trio to let themselves in and find out what just made that noise.

“I’m guessing everyone heard that,” the omé said as he stared right at it.

“Yup,” Rafe pursed his lips, subconsciously stepping in front of Andre protectively. “And it came from the chapel.”

“And how likely is it for a chapel to be haunted again?” Joe walked up to one of the windows and tried to peer into it, hoping to see the culprit with a barrier between them.

“Haunted? Nah. Isn’t it filled with holy spirits and shit like that? They’re probably a bunch of ghosts for peace.”

“Only one way to find out.”

Another groan resounded, but unlike the heated breaths emanating from the vampires and their blood bags, this one was croaky. More akin to a whimper.

“I-I think someone’s hurt,” Andre frowned in concern.

Rafe blew out a breath. “And nobody in that clubhouse next to it can hear?”

Of course, the young wolf couldn’t resist leaving someone in need of aid even if that person was a piece of shit. All the uneasiness was trumped by worry as he stepped toward the door.

“Damn,” the blond shook his head and hurriedly followed after his friend.

The second Andre opened the door, a cold gust of air rushed out, making him and Joe shiver. The inside was just as eerie as the outside. The place was polished, the pews recently cleaned and gleaming and the candles lit and providing the only light in the room.

“It’s chilly in here, bro!” Joe rubbed his arms furiously. “Which means that there’s definitely a few lost souls lingering around.”

But Rafe and Andre weren’t paying attention. Their disturbed gazes were set on the shape at the altar.

“Oh, fucking hell,” the blond superhuman scowled.

A seemingly semi-conscious Zoel was sprawled on his side, his back to the first-years as red liquid oozed across the back of his neck and into his dark, shredded shirt. It was as if he had a fight with a bear and lost, leaving him to die in the coldness of the chapel.

“We just can’t help but run into this asshole, can we?” Rafe sneered at the body.

“Yeah, but he’s usually more of a… sober jerk, I guess,” Joe tiptoed closer to the guy and spotted the near-empty alcoholic glass bottle slipping from his twitching fingers.

“I don’t smell any alcohol on him. Not that I want to be.”

Andre leaned closer. “What’s he saying?”

They all quieted to listen as the gamma’s mouth moved.

“I-I’m tryin’. I’m, uh, trying my best for… you…”

“To be a dumb bastard?” the Hermes superhuman finished. “I think you’ve already succeeded with flying colors, dude.”

“Blood,” Andre sniffed. “He’s bleeding.”

“What? Where?” Joe knelt and searched for the original wound, but it was as if Zoel accidentally spilled a harmless glass of punch.

“It had to come from his neck. It’s bleeding pretty badly. I knew I smelled something earlier back outside, but I thought it was just some… odor of the night.”

“I’m trying, I’m trying…” Zoel continued to mumble incoherently.

“Well, now that we know…” Rafe leisurely spun around but came face-to-face with Andre’s anxious pout.

A face he could never resist.

“We… we should probably help him.”

“You can’t think that,” the blond wanted to scream. “After everything he’s done? Fuck him! Let him bleed out. The fuck was he doing here in the first place?”

“I don’t see a wound or anything. It’s just blood. That’s werewolf healing for ya, right?” Joe shrugged, and Rafe gave the omé a look as if what his fellow superhuman backed him up.

“Yeah, he’s a schmuck, but…” a genuinely sad expression overcame the young wolf’s face, conflicted with their decisions.

This altruistic, little…

Rafe groaned. Andre couldn’t help but be a good person, but if anything, he cared a lot more about Andre keeping his innocents than some petty revenge against their enemy.

“That conscience of yours is gonna get you hurt one day, man. Fine. But I’m taking a hundred showers to get rid of his stench, so prepare for cold water.”

That made Andre snicker, which was a balm to Rafe’s soul. “Maybe it’ll get him to lay off a little. Kill ‘em with kindness, you know?”

“More like annoying them with chumminess.”

“Time for a little heave-ho,” Joe stated before he and Rafe picked the blitzed wolf up, the former grabbing his arms and the latter holding his legs with one arm.

They hurried out of the chapel, traveling across campus until they finally found the Abellon clubhouse, this one a literal bronze mansion with a fountain in the front and an archway that spelled out their club name on the curve for all to see. It was an impressive sight, but they were cut short of ogling it when one of its resident members started shaking in their grasp.

“Wha… wuh th’ fug…” Zoel’s head sluggishly spun from right to left, somehow recognizing who had him above ground. “You… three again…?”

“Shut the hell up and conk out, moron,” Rafe spat. “This is a one-time thing.”

“I don’t… I don’t… wanna…” he fussed, trembling even harder.

“Oh, fuck this. Give him here.”

Without any care, Rafe impatiently wrenched Zoel’s upper half away from Joe, mindful enough to avoid the drying blood, and tossed him toward the archway, causing the gamma to blow out a big breath like he was socked in the gut.

“There,” the blond wiped his hands down his sweatpants. “Our good deed is done for the day. Now to wait for punishment tomorrow.”

The asshole was certainly not going to thank them for escorting him home.

“A neck bite,” Andre spoke as they walked away, leaving Zoel to mumble drunkenly. “That could only be…”

“Those leeches. Just another blood bag, but this time, it’s appropriate. I hope they drain him dry.”

“Things are getting even weirder around here,” Joe stretched his arms as he pondered aloud.

A mystery was brewing up in Ironward, begging to be solved. And Rafe had a feeling that if they made it through tryouts, those secrets would start revealing themselves on their own.