Chasing Daylight
An Angel vignette.
WARNING: This story contains violence and blood-letting.
SPOILER ALERT: Contains
general spoilers for Angel the series.
DISCLAIMER: Joss
Whedon, 20th Century Fox, Mutant Enemy, and/or the WB Television Network own
these characters. I've just borrowed them for this story. No copyright
infringement is intended or inferred.
His world swims and he struggles to stay conscious. He's weak from loss of
blood, and everything takes on the surreal quality of a dream. The body pressed
against his relaxes a little, the mouth slowing its frantic suction. His throat
is numb now; the wound gives little pain. His brain feels numb, too. He feels a
sense of detachment as he shoves the vampire away. He hears it curse as it
loses its footing, but he's already bolting for the door.
The dream is a
nightmare now, his brain shrieking commands faster than his legs can respond.
He's moving, moving, but the door seems as far away as ever. He hears a snarl
and knows the thing is coming after him. Then suddenly he's at the door. The
nightmarish feeling lifts as it opens and he's outside. The vampire is right
behind him, clutching at his jacket. Fingertips close on the fabric, but he wrenches
himself free.
He hurtles forward,
unable to stop the momentum that sends him rolling into the alley. He tries to
get to his feet, to his knees, but his body isn't working any more. Exhaustion
takes the sting out of defeat. He goes limp, waiting for the end, hoping it
will be quick. The sun on his skin is strangely comforting.
Nothing happens. His
heart gives a wild lurch, as he dares to hope the thing has gone. Finally he
gathers the courage to look up. It hasn't left. It isn't going anywhere. His weary
brain screams 'Why? Why?' The thought is drowned in the thumping of his heart
as it churns on too much adrenalin and not enough blood. Then he realizes, and
wishes he had the strength to roll over and kiss the ground of his sunny
sanctuary.
The shadows have
lengthened. He wonders if he's passed out for a while. He's not sure. He knows
he mustn't sleep, mustn't give in to the siren call of exhaustion. The vampire
is closer now, too close. He tries to move his sluggish body, and relief washes
over him when he manages to drag himself further into the light. Cruel gold
eyes track his movements from the shadows. It's getting late. He tries to keep
moving, but he knows he's running out of light, out of time. It becomes a race
to see which moves faster, the shadows or the man.
The roar of a car
engine sounds strange in this deserted neighborhood. He feels another sickening
surge of hope as the car drives by the end of the alley. He tries to wave an
arm, but it's a feeble attempt. His cry for help comes out in a cracked but
incongruously strong voice. The vehicle slows. Its tinted windows hide its
occupants, and he can't be sure if they've heard him, whether they'll stop. The
car continues, disappears behind the building where a childhood superstition
suddenly came to life.
Now it's all too much
for him. That was his last chance, his only chance. The sun is nearly down, the
dying light turning to blood. He relaxes onto the tarmac for the last time. He
closes his eyes, and gives himself up to the hovering darkness. The vampire
moves closer, hungry for the aborted kill. Its mouth is a sharp red grin. The
grin turns to shock as the point of a stake bursts through its chest. A certain emptiness blankets its features as
they turn to dust. The man lying on the tarmac sees none of this.
He will wake in a
hospital bed, weak but alive. No one will be certain how he was brought to the
emergency department. The doctors will explain about the blood loss, tell him
that he must have been attacked by some animal. They won't ask awkward
questions. They've seen enough to know that they won't like the answers. He'll
be happy enough with this. He'll probably wish that he could believe their
comforting lies. But he'll go out and buy a crucifix and never go anywhere
without it. For a while, he may not go out at all once it gets dark. And every
time he goes to church, he'll thank God for the guardian angel who must have
saved his life.