Two paths

[Author's note: the story is basically pure horror from here on in this branch.]

Diana, Jessica and Miko [see here] sit around a table at the mansion. Diana pours a glass of blood for each of them from a crystal pitcher.

Miko takes a sip and closes her eyes. "Mmmm, amazing Diana" she says, drinking more.

"A new formulation I've been tinkering with. I'm glad you like it" Diana says proudly.

Jessica takes a sip; it is indeed delicious. Full bodied and thick. Almost as good as from the vein.

"Ladies, I want to discuss the particulars of our mission tomorrow night" Diana says, after sipping from her glass. "We will be abducting a bus carrying a college cheerleading team, returning from a competition. About thirty humans in all."

"Won't people notice something that...brazen?" Jessica asks, concerned. She feels herself becoming aroused at the thought of feasting on a dozen cheerleaders.

Diana smiles. "Elizabeth's assets in the media and law enforcement will push the story that the bus crashed and caught fire. We'll place the burned vehicle to support the story. The cattle will be ours, though."

"I am going to drain them all" Miko says excitedly.

"No, Miko, we have orders from Elizabeth" Diana says firmly. "As we have grown our network of hybrids, we need a steadier supply of fresh blood for them. We are going to operationalize our first blood factory!" Diana says triumphantly.

Jessica smiles. Over the last few weeks she had worked with Diana to set up to machinery at the warehouse. The "iron maidens" for exsanguinating the livestock quickly. The "milking" machines for draining the sleeping humans slowly. This is one of the first steps in our revolution, in our transformation of Earth from a human to a vampire society!

"The males are to be exsanguinated immediately. Elizabeth's orders. The females... Most will go to the milking machines. They'll supply us with blood for years. Elizabeth said that we can have fun with the rest of them" Diana says wickedly. Miko grins, clinking her glass with Jessica's.

Jessica is alone in her bedroom. She sits naked in bed, reading a novel. A passed out human lies on the floor, Jessica's meal from earlier. There is a knock at the door.

"Come in" Jessica says, looking up.

A waif-like human thrall steps in.

"Sorry to disturb you, Mistress Jessica" the girl says, looking down. "Mistress Carmilla [see here] asked to see you in her chambers" the girl says, and then quickly turns and exits.

What does Carmilla want? Jessica wonders. Jessica throws on a silk robe and goes to Carmilla's room.

Jessica knocks on Carmilla's door, and enters. The lovely Carmilla is in bed with her human companion, Laura. They are nude. Jessica is mildly disgusted that Carmilla keeps a human companion. Between Carmilla and Laura lays another human girl, that Jessica doesn't recognize. She sees streaks of blood on the girl's naked breasts.

"Jessica, I wanted you to meet my new companion, Grace. She'll be joining me and Laura." Carmilla says. Grace is a petite fair brunette, with nice round breasts and slim legs. She is young and beautiful. Grace and Laura are facing each other, lazily kissing, as Carmilla runs her fingertips over their bodies.

"Surely you didn't summon me to discuss your new pet" Jessica says neutrally. Jessica has developed a mild dislike for Carmilla over the past months. Carmilla never pushes too hard in front of Elizabeth, but her opposition to Elizabeth's plans are well known to the other vampiresses. It is a bit of a mystery to Jessica why Elizabeth tolerates this, but admits that she can't really understand the three hundred year relationship that Carmilla and Elizabeth share.

"No" Carmilla begins, "I wanted to discuss tomorrow night. Come lay with us on the bed, though."

Jessica's robe falls off of her shoulders, to the floor, and she climbs on to the spacious bed, laying behind Laura. The human warmth feels nice. Jessica has the urge to drain Laura right in front of Carmilla. She chuckles to herself and the thought passes.

"What about tomorrow night?" Jessica says coyly.

"The blood factory" Carmilla says sternly.

"Yes. Isn't it grand? Would you like to come, to see this milestone in our race's history?" Jessica teases.

"Jessica: what you are doing with Diana is wrong. You know that." Carmilla says, her eyes focused on Jessica.

Jessica looks away, feeling a pang of shame in her gut. Carmilla's longevity has given her undeniable gravitas. Jessica regains her composure, and meets Carmilla's stare.

"It's not wrong. We are the superior species" Jessica says proudly.

"It is wrong. You are laying the groundwork for Elizabeth to kill billions of humans. All of those lives, for what? So that her hybrids can drink stale blood out of a bottle? So that we can all toast Elizabeth's megalomania" Carmilla spits.

"Why do you care? They are only humans. Livestock" Jessica says dismissively.

"You were human not that long ago" Carmilla says patronizingly. "Have you forgotten all the people you cared about? Your friends, your family? You really want to see all of them turned into comatose blood bags? Think of the achievements of human society: art, music, science, mathematics, literature, architecture...do you really think a vampire society is capable of taking up that torch? Do you think a vampire will be able to pull herself away from the constant orgy of blood that Elizabeth promises to write a symphony? Derive a theorem? Give me a break" Carmilla says derisively.

"Don't throw my recent humanity in my face, Carmilla. I'm a vampire now" Jessica says. Carmilla nods sarcastically, her brow furrowed in mock concern. "We can have the humans create art after the transition, why not?" Jessica says unconvincingly. It sounds weak even to her.

"If you feel so strongly about being the humans' champion, why not go to Elizabeth? Why mope around and bitch to me on the sidelines?" Jessica spits.

It is Carmilla's turn to look away. "I...I have" she says softly. "She's become crueler than ever before. She likes you, though, she trusts you. I was hoping I could convince you, and you'd be able to nudge her" Carmilla explains, the pain evident in her voice. "Elizabeth tolerates me, but she doesn't listen to me anymore" Carmilla says, a tear running from her eye.

"Jessica, please, I beg you. Think about the path you are on. If this is what you really want, I won't bother you again. If it's not, come talk to me" Carmilla says.

Jessica gets off the bed, and retrieves her robe. She walks towards the door, and Carmilla says "Jessica, we don't rise as monsters. We choose to become monsters." Jessica pauses briefly, before leaving the room.

She returns to her own chambers, her mind a torrent of emotions. She feels anger and resentment towards Carmilla, that hypocritical bitch. She also feels intense guilt and shame, feelings she hasn't felt in weeks. Though she tries, she can't deny that Carmilla has created doubt for her. Her counterarguments about superiority feel thin to her. She spots the human blood **** on the floor. Jessica just wants to dull the emotions, at least for a bit. She kneels on the floor next to the sleeping girl and bites into her throat. Warm blood pulses into her mouth, over her tongue. The guilt, the anger, the shame are washed away as she swallows the warm blood. Jessica sucks forcefully from the artery, and the girl is drained completely. Jessica lies back on the floor, next to the girl, and catches her breath, running her fingertips across her lips.