Sui Generis – 13

 

Mag didn't stop running until a stitch in his side forced him to. He bent over, hands on his knees, trying to ease the pain and catch his breath.

He's crazy! Fedor did something to his head, his mind, twisted it, twisted him. But why? And why would Brand believe such insanity? Vampires, dhampir… they don't exist. It's impossible. But… but he believes what he said. He thinks he is one.

Mag straightened, looking around, and saw he was close to a small pocket park. There was a bench and he went over to it, sitting. Leaning back, he stared up at the slowly darkening sky. 

What would make Fedor do that to him? What would it gain him? Does he run some Satanic cult that worships blood and… and vampires?

Mag vaguely remembered reading about a cult—in New Orleans he thought. The worshipers—if they could be called that—would kidnap children, kill them, and drain their blood. Then they'd drink it, thinking it gave them supernatural powers. Was that what Brand had gotten involved in? 

No. He's too smart to even begin to believe such things. At least the man I knew before Fedor got his hands on him was. Yeah, sometimes Brand acted—strangely. We'd be somewhere, hanging out after dark, panhandling or just settling down in a safe place to sleep, and suddenly he'd jump to his feet and take off with no warning. But he always had an explanation when he came back. 'I thought I saw someone I used to know' or, 'Saw someone bothering so-and-so and I figured she needed help'. It was logical, even if I didn't see what he said he did. But that was just Brand. Never quite relaxed, even when he was sleeping.

"Mind if I join you?"

Mag turned quickly to see a tall, dark-haired, bearded man standing a few feet away, a smile on his face.

"Yeah, I do," Mag replied sharply. "I'm not looking for… company."

The man nodded. "Didn't figure you were but I think I might be able to help you with what's bothering you."

Mag snorted. "The only thing bothering me right now is you, so go find someone else who might be interested in what you're offering."

Laughing, the man replied, "I'm not offering sex. It's not my thing. However, as I said, I might be able to help you believe the unbelievable, I suppose."

Mag was on his feet seconds later. "Who the hell are you and how did you know I… I said that to… to…?"

"To Brand? I was, I'll admit it, eavesdropping. He needs help if he's going to find and defeat Fedor. I'm offering it."

"By feeding into Brand's fantasies? And how do you know about them." Mag tensed suddenly, backing away. "You're part of it, aren't you? You're part of some cult Fedor runs—the one that messed with Brand's head." He kept walking backwards, looking for some way to get past the man and make a run to safety.

The man didn't move, although he kept his gaze locked on Mag. "It's not a cult. Trust me on that. Brand is someone special, as he tried to explain to you. Fedor knew that, which is why he captured him. Why he—" the man spread his hands, "—why he experimented on him."

Uncertain, Mag stopped moving away. "Who are you then and how do you know about that—and Brand?"

"My name is Antton Ochoa. I am, to put it bluntly, a bitter enemy of Fedor's."

Mag shook his head, feeling almost amused for a brief moment. "So I'm supposed to think that the enemy of my enemy is my friend."

"What could it hurt?"

"Me, and more importantly Brand, if it turns out you're not what you say you are. For all I know, you could be working for Fedor and this is just another step in the game of terror he's playing."

"I could be, but I'm not," Antton replied quietly. "What Fedor did to Brand—what he's done to others—has brought a death-sentence down on him. There is one problem however. He knows this and had gone to ground."

"Not hardly. Brand saw him, on the Fourth, and he's been to where we live at least twice since then."

"True, he is out there from time to time. He desperately wants Brand back, but I think he wants him so traumatized when it happens that Brand will do whatever Fedor tells him to. That's something that didn't happen the first time, obviously, since Brand managed to escape his clutches. We need to find out where he was being held when that happened."

"Brand doesn't know."

"Alas, I'm not surprised. I'm sure Fedor put some block on his mind so he wouldn't, just in case."

"Hypnotized him?"

"In a way." Antton sat down, asking, "Will you join me?"

Hesitantly, Mag did. "Are you… will you tell me what's going on?"