Diaemus a Vampire

By A.A. Mercer

An Aztec sacrifice is interrupted by an earthquake and the young boy finds himself face-to-face with a demon who saves his life. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: A.A. Mercer
• Release date: May 14, 2019
• ISBN: 9781393989486

A.A. Mercer

A. A. Mercer has written mystery, horror and thriller books. he likes to spend his time meeting fans and signing autographs in Tucson Arizona, 

Book preview

1.

Guatemala, 1862

The blood ritual was about to begin, the sacrifice was held atop the altar in the center of the city. The air was dry and the young boy who stood near Namacuix and Tlamacazui could see the entire village from where he stood, he wasn’t sure if he could see his tiny home and his parents who had allowed him to be the sacrifice to the gods of harvest and life. Hands grabbed him and held him to the alter, blood and flesh were embedded in the stone from the last few sacrifices. They had hoped this would be the last, rain hadn’t come to the land in days and Namacuix wasn’t sure what the gods wanted from them, did they want the village dead? How many more souls did the gods want before rain would come and crops would grow?

A priest held his blood-stained dagger up for the crowds below to see, his white hair hung from a long braid decorated with small animal bones and bright feathers he looked up into the cool night as he held the dagger, his cool brown eyes peered down into the chosen ones face with something akin to compassion. I will end you quickly. He said in their language. The blade looked like a silver sliver in the darkness as the priest raised it up and the crowd below chanted to the gods.

The moon rose full behind the Aztec altar and all eyes were on the bare-chested man lying on the slab, strong arms held him down. Diaemus wasn’t going to fight them, he had been chosen to be sacrificed and taken to his god his eyes stared up at the night sky awaiting the gods to take him as they did the others.

Diaemus watched the blade held in the priest’s hand. He had just cleansed it and held it up for everyone in the crowd to see.

Diaemus could smell the blood coming from the stone beneath him, he could hear the chanting below and knew the priest was giving his final blessing as he brought the knife down.

As Diaemus watched the night sky waiting to be taken to god he felt something beneath him, the ground began to tremble the trees shook and a confused look fell upon the faces of everyone. Diaemus felt the stone slab move beneath him, his hands reached behind him to steady the slab as it moved, he didn’t know what to do as the priest suddenly disappeared from his view and the stone began to slide from the alter.

Screams filled the night as the altar began to break open. The sound of thunder filled the air as the screams continued.

He tried hanging on to the slab as best as he could but sweat was making him lose his grip and for a moment wondered if he had been killed and this was the tunnel to the afterlife.

Pain in his fingers made him realize he wasn’t on his way to the afterlife and he was still alive. A crack opened in the altar and the stone opened.

Diaemus began to move from the altar as he felt something beneath him give- the stone fell away, and he began to fall. He fell into the darkness as the sounds of the people outside were muffled by the altar. He thought he was falling forever.

The priest unnerved and confused stepped away from the hole in front of him when he fell back, the stone beneath him gave out and chanting suddenly became screams as the priest lost his footing and fell backwards striking his head with the stone steps behind him his last breath lost to the night, the chief watched as the priest fell to the stone steps, he tried to run but slipped on the blood beneath his feet and fell. The sounds of the villagers filled the air as the sky darkened and a feeling of dread fell around the tribe. 

The temple began to shake sending bits of rock and loose stone down upon the city.

Screams of fear and confusion filled the night as an aftershock followed, meanwhile the moon stood out above the chaos like a silent god draped in red.

Diaemus felt something hard and sharp strike his head and arms as he fell, and the darkness swallowed him whole as his world disappeared.

When the earthquake was over the city was in ruin, bodies which were trapped beneath stone and rock were left behind when the leaders decided to leave the city.

A few hundred stayed behind. The drought continued and soon no one lived in the village anymore.

2.

The ground split the altar in half swallowing up Diaemus. He thought he was sent to the underworld where the blood god waited. Diaemus found himself in the dark, sharp rock and bones beneath his body blood from dozens of punctures begun to stain the bones and rock beneath his body. He opened his eyes and saw something in the darkness, it moved like a snake and in the shallow moonlight he could see something else, something human moving through the dim light. He cried out but the figure didn’t speak or move toward him.

The more he moved the more he was pierced, and more blood flowed, his voice cracked as he spoke. Is someone there, can you help me.

Por favor, Ayudame. His voice was weak, and he wondered if he was imagining someone in the cave with him. As he moved, he felt pain across his back and in his right arm.

He reached for a tall stone, his fingers clawed at it as he tried to move and free himself.

Does anyone hear me? he heard a weak echo from the darkness, as he gripped the rock and pulled, his thin fingers slipped from the rock as pain tore through him.

Every attempt at movement caused stabbing pain and he could smell blood in the air, his eyes travelled up to the hole above him and he could see the light from the moon draped in blood. Papa? he tried shouting, but his voice was weak, and he could feel something wet beneath him. His legs were in an odd angle and wondered if one of them were broken.

Am I dead? he asked, he had to be no one was looking into the hole where he fell. His pain felt real, the cave began to spin, and the darkness enveloped him as something in the shadows began to move.

He assumed it was bats, they were plentiful here. Why don’t they see me? he asked, Don’t let me die here.

Don’t fear little one. It was a voice from the dark. It was gentile and soft. A slight accent was heard, and he felt joy at knowing he would be rescued from the hole.

I am here, the voice answered from the dark.

Diaemus saw something move in the deep shadows, it was large.

I’m trapped, can you help me?

Deep green and red scales glinted from the light of the moon. It stayed in the darkness, watching the young man as he lay on a pile of old, animal and human bones and jagged rock.

Diaemus tried to make out who was down in the hole with him, Who are you? he asked as he tried moving again, he had hoped to see ropes and his family helping the rescuers save him.

Diaemus saw it, it coiled itself in a far corner making sure the human couldn’t tell what he was. But he could see it, the light was just enough to help him see scales as big as his head. Each one was overlapping the next and a pair of human arms were attached to what would have been shoulders if it had been human.

The flesh on the arms had narrow scales running down each arm leading to thin hands with thin claws. 

I am a god I am what your people have been worshiping for many moons. It said with a slight hiss to its voice, each word was from his language. It could see the concern in the young man and attempted a reassuring tone.

The young man saw his face, a narrow skull with deep-set green eyes which were surrounded by light scales instead of hair and flesh.

You aren’t dead yet; I can save you. It said.

How? he asked the scaled creature. I will taste your blood and you will be as a god.

Diaemus wanted to live but the pain was too much when he moved. He looked up into the deep dark sky and began to feel a chill. Bitter cold, he had never felt so cold.

I can save you, but you must decide now before it is too late, I cannot bring you back from total death. The voice was quiet and soft, contradicting the savage form in front of him.

Okay. I want to live. I want to see my village again. He said. He couldn’t move and wondered if the rest of the village knew about this god in the temple?

A sudden movement from the dark scared Diaemus but the pain was too great to endure anymore he wondered if this was death.

He closed his eyes and accepted whatever the god wanted to give, he felt something strike out and hit him in the collarbone and his world vanished.

In a moment which stood still, Diaemus could feel the whole jungle, every tree, bush, every animal which moved in the deepest darkness.

He felt them all he could hear the jaguar moving in the trees stalking the rabbit. he could feel the ants crawling along the ground searching for materials for their hive. He could hear the blood of hundreds above him running for shelter and praying to their god for salvation.

I can feel the world. he whispered as he opened his eyes and saw the crack where he fell.

The earthquake had disturbed the rock and stone and he fell from the sacrificial slab and into the cavern beneath it. The whole world seemed so small now. 

Something slid away from him as he began to stand on unsteady legs. He looked toward the darkness and saw a large snake, bigger than anything he had ever seen. Its green-gold scales were turning brown. Diaemus watched as the creature coiled into a dark corner and watched him. Diaemus saw human arms, the skin was mottled with grey-green scales and the long fingers looked frail.

It moved into the dim light and Diaemus saw its face, it was almost human. Hairless, deep-set eyes and a mouth full of teeth like a snake. I have given my immortality to you. I have lived for thousands of your years and have decided this is it for me. It said in a slow tone.

You will remember me eventually but for now you will sleep.

Diaemus felt tired as he looked into the green eyes of the creature and wondered if it was going to kill him eat him. He didn’t want to know as he watched the creature find a place in the darkness and curled up as he would for sleep. Diaemus slowly drifted off and found the concerns of those above him not important and he closed his eyes and dreamt of a time millions of years ago where a creature had ruled the underworld.

For centuries it was one of hundreds from a place like this one, one by one they fought and died off.

He hid among the fallen and waited for the those who survived the battles to leave.

He found a way to this world and hid in the underground tunnels beneath the desert cities, alone.

The only one left of his kind. Now he was gone too.

3.

The morning sun woke him as he lay in the hole on top of the scattered bones of animals and human parts, he could barely remember what had happened the night before.

The sun made his skin feel warm, a sensation of ants crawling across his bare skin made him flinch, and when he went back into the shadows, he felt better than he had in a long time.

He crawled out of the hole and braved the mid-morning sun as he stepped out and climbed to the top of the hill, it was what was left of the temple.

When he got to the top he looked out to the sea and saw a ship, three small boats were making their way to the shore.

He watched as men he had never seen before marching through his city, wearing silver helmets and wearing metal covering on their chest and arms.

He watched the men in armor for a while. Their armor gleamed in the sunlight as they began working their way through the jungle chopping away at trees and limbs.

Members of their group gathered the freshly cut tree limbs and began putting them in piles.

4. 

A young man named Roland had been assigned as lookout. The Conquistadors had expected to find people living here. Roland had been on ship for months and had wanted excitement he joined the navy to see fighting and conquest but so far all he found was work, hard, miserable work.

Roland tapped his thin fingers on the wooden pallets he was told to stack up, but he saw something in the jungle, someone was watching them.

Roland looked behind him to see if he were being watched, the captain would discipline him again if he were caught away from his post, so he slipped out of his boots and began to walk into the jungle, his bare feet didn’t make a sound