Page 10 of Volik

The path intersects with another, and I take the sharp turn, heading toward the edge of campus.

Maybe I’ve been cursed.

I know people don’t usually use the word magic when they talk about vampires, but from the reports I’ve read as an adult, and the fairy tales I read as a child, what’s a better name for it?

Incredible strength and speed.

Crazy long lifespans.

Ability to heal over and over again.

Every sense performing at a superhero level…

As a journalist, I’ve written stories about Alts, usually centered around some specific event I was hired to cover.

But I’ve also done my due diligence on background research.

And the history of Alt-human interaction that has been credibly confirmed… is dark.

And not because of them. Because of us.

Shortly after The Reveal, when alternate evolutionary outcomes walked out of the woods one day as a group and made themselves known, governments around the world did their best to take them. They kidnapped them and locked them up under the guise of safety.

It was never a believable story, even for the staunchest political supporters. But imprisonment wasn’t the only crime the authorities were committing. There were rumors of medical experimentation.

Testing limits.

Torture.

There were also rumors of Alts that could turn into animals, then back into human form. Others that could change the shape of the earth beneath their feet. Rumors that no one can confirm. Except there are a few photos from the day of The Reveal, and some of them looked like normal people. No horns. Eyes that weren’t all black. So they weren’t vampires. And there were other photos… of claw marks through metal doors, mounds of dirt where none should be.

All that just gives more questions than answers. But the fact that we still refer to vampires under the umbrella of Alts tells me there’s more out there. More we don’t know.

But along with being highly classified, most of the overall information gathered during those dark days was spotty and unfinished.

Because the operations didn’t go well. For the governments.

It became very clear that we humans didn’t understand our position on the food chain.

We thought we were at the top.

And that assumption was very, very wrong.

Because while we were trying to figure out how to kill them, they proved proficient in killing us.

The payback was swift. Silent. And when authorities went to investigate why their communications weren’t working, they discovered the answer.

No one was left to reply.

In all the dark sites around the world, not a single heart was left beating. And all the holding cells were open and empty. The public has never been given any real information about what happened, but the leaked photos showed empty facilities, leaving us to assume the rest.

The kidnappings, the experiments, the swift end, all took place over a very short span of time and is referred to as The Trials. Named for the inhumane medical trials and the subsequent courtroom trials, where people in charge, who hadn’t been disappeared, were sentenced for crimes against humanity.

After that, an agreement was made. We leave the Alts in peace; they don’t wipe us from existence.

It was also made clear that we, governments/countries, aren’t allowed to bring egregious harm against one another, or else the Alts will get involved.

Our own government tested that resolve. Once. Committing violence where it shouldn’t have.