Authors: Tony Ruggiero
“But they fear us. They will not let us share the world with them,” said Ishma.
“Over time,” Dimitri began, “one becomes an expert at blending into society. No one will bother you as long as you don’t disturb the natural order of the world and as long as you have money to buy their silence.”
“You make it sound so easy,” she said wistfully.
“It is, if you can control your anger. Josip could not control his anger and we were discovered because of it. If he had stayed away from your father, we would still be living in our own country just as we have been for the past hundred years, living freely in the country, at our leisure.”
“And what of my life and Crema’s? Will I ever know a husband’s touch? Will we ever become women?”
“I don’t think so,” Dimitri said softly. “As far as I know, you remain the same as you are when you are changed, for as long as you live.”
“And what of others like us? Will we live alone?”
“We have never known any of our kind except the one that created us and now you. That doesn’t mean that others do not exist—we have just not met any. The one that changed me, his name was Alexander, and he told me that our kind is solitary. But I’m not sure if that is accurate or something was different about us, my group. After we were changed, we stayed together.”
“And this Alexander, where is he now?” she asked.
“Dead. He died a long time ago,” Dimitri said as he remembered that night.
They had inadvertently run into a German patrol during WWII, and were forced to fight. During the battle, an explosive round had blown Alexander apart so badly there was no chance for reconstitution even with their amazing recovery abilities. Dimitri remembered killing the Germans in a wild frenzy of hate. He himself had tortured the man who had killed Alexander, slowly tearing him apart limb by limb. Dimitri remembered how he had enjoyed watching the man suffer. The thought tore at him, he had taken revenge and enjoyed it—he had never thought about it that way before. Now he wondered if he was different from Josip—consumed by nothing else but the killing of someone. The thought troubled him momentarily. His anger and rage for revenge had ended that night. He had not let it consume him, he had not continued on killing for the sake of killing.
“You miss him,” Ishma said. “This Alexander—I can hear the loss in your voice.”
“Yes. He was a good man,” agreed Dimitri. “He taught us how to survive, but more importantly, he told us how to live for a purpose, to explore our own lives in the world. He believed that we occupied a place here, just as the humans. He believed that in a way, we are God’s children. God created man and man created us. An interesting controversy to ponder, is it not?”
“So we have a long life, without the joys of humankind. It seems like a harsh trade.”
Dimitri thought she was already sounding older or smarter then her age. She was a very thoughtful young woman.
“It does seem harsh,” he said, “there are many sacrifices, but there are many pleasures that only we can enjoy. We can live an almost normal life, if we are careful.”
“A normal life,” she said sarcastically.
“Yes Ishma—a normal life. There is more to living than what you see in the daylight or than what you eat. If we can live without causing harm to others, are we not worthy? Because we are different, are we to be denied our existence? These are the things I want you to think about.”
“Will the rest of the world ever accept us?”
“Perhaps, in time. When the myths and legends change or have been forgotten and when their television and movies move on to other topics. People will forget. But until then we live in our own way with our own kind. You are part of our family, if you want to be.”
“Family?”
“Yes. It will not be like the family you had—but it is a family nonetheless. We do not allow harm to come to one another and we do not cause harm to come to the family. You cannot jeopardize the family in order to satisfy your own wants or desires.”
“Is this our only choice? To stay with you?”
“No. Perhaps later you may choose to go off on your own, but for now, I insist you stay with us. By rescuing you we have placed ourselves in harms way. If you were to leave and be captured again—you might reveal that we are alive. You must stay with us until we have devised a way to safely leave the area. You also need to learn how to survive here in this country. Things are much more complicated here. After a time, if all goes well, you can leave us if you so desire.”
Ishma didn’t answer. Instead she seemed to settle into her own thoughts. Dimitri understood. It was a lot to digest, a lot to try and understand. He remembered his own confusion when Alexander had told him of what awaited him in his new life.
“I…don’t know how to feel?” she said as if she knew that Dimitri had been thinking about his own confusion. “I hate what I am, because it has taken so much from me. I want to be like I was, but I can’t, but I do not want to die either. And how do I make Crema understand all of this? She’s so young.”
“Think about it for a while. It is not something that you immediately understand, I know I didn’t. As for Crema, I would suggest just telling her the basics for now. As she understands, you can tell her more.”
The sounds of Andre, Iliga, and Crema returning diverted their attention away from what they had been discussing.
“It is all clear,” Andre said.
“They have a lot of books,” Crema said as she came alongside of Ishma. “I found this one on the shelf,” she said as she handed it to Ishma to see. “I think it’s a scary story, but I think I can read it, do you think so Ishma?”
Dimitri watched as Ishma smiled at Crema’s enthusiasm. However, he saw Ishma’s expression change when her eyes ran over the cover of the book reading the title.
Dimitri looked at the book to see which one the girl had chosen and why Ishma’s expression had changed so. After he read the title, he too was surprised at her choice; it was Bram Stoker’s
Dracula
.
“We’ll see,” Ishma said. “This might be a little difficult for you to understand. When we get back, we’ll look together and see if we can find another one. Okay?” Ishma asked as she laid the book on the bed.
“Okay,” Crema agreed.
“Let us go then,” Dimitri said. “We will feed and then return back here so we can plan our escape.”
As they filed out of the underground room, Dimitri left last. He turned toward the bed and picked up the book. He felt the smooth leather cover sliding in his grip. He thought about the irony of Crema’s choice. He opened it up and read the words that his eyes came to:
“My revenge is just begun! I spread it over centuries, and time is on my side. Your girls are mine already; and through them you and others shall yet be mine…”
He closed the book and opened a drawer in one of the cabinets. “Not if I have anything to do with it,” he said as he placed the book inside the drawer and closed it. Then he left the shelter and went to join the rest.
Author’s Note
The nice thing about writing a sequel is that you have the opportunity to take something people enjoyed, in this case,
Team of Darkness
or
Operation Immortal Servitude
, and then ask that all encompassing question: “What would make it even better?”
Well, I received some suggestions from readers and tried my best to add as many of those ideas into the second book of the series. So, now imagine that the book in your hands has a big fat ribbon and bow on it and my little voice pops into your head and says: “Here you are—enjoy.” And if I didn’t get your idea into this one, don’t worry; there are still two more books to go. So if you feel the urge, write me at [email protected] and share those ideas.
When you get that creepy feeling, you know: the one where you think someone is watching you. Or when you read an article in the paper and you get that suspicion that there is more to it or that perhaps there is some cover up of a conspiracy—just say thanks Tony.
Happy Reading.
Tony Ruggiero
April 2008
Operation:
Face the Fear
Book III
From the Declassified files of the Team of Darkness
Commander John Reese investigates an abandoned Naval base which he suspects is somehow connected to his search for the two missing young vampires, Ishma and Crema. He is under very close scrutiny by his military chain of command, as well as the suspicious government organization, known only as the Agency. Reese is not completely sure what the Agency involvement is in all of this is, but they have made it clear that they want the little vampires and if they do not get them—Reese will pay the price. Meanwhile, Reese is covertly joined by the Team of Darkness vampires who are looking to him to help them escape back to Kosovo with their extended family. The investigation of the old compound leads Reese and the vampires into a confrontation with personnel from the Agency, and reveals some of Christina’s secrets.
Back in Norfolk, an undercover operation by one of the SEAL teams discovers the hideout of the missing vampires and they recapture the girls. Reese and Dimitri team up to once again rescue the girls from the high security compound while hiding the existence of the Team of Darkness vampires which Reese supposedly killed over a year ago.
Operation:
Endgame
Book IV
From the Declassified files of the Team of Darkness
Navy Commander John Reese refuses to work for the Agency, as they search for other vampires to be used as assassins for the American government. He again leaves the Navy in the hopes of pursuing his teaching career, but soon discovers that he is being watched very closely. Although he believes that he has secreted enough information away to keep the Agency off his back, he soon discovers that there are several ways that a person can brought to heel. Maneuvered into working for the Agency, Reese returns to Europe intent on leading the Agency on a wild goose chase, while he tries to figure out some way to stop them, without getting himself killed in the process. Eventually he returns to the Balkans and finds the vampires that he has been searching for. Although he believes that he has successfully hidden from the Agency, he is wrong. They have discovered his whereabouts and are determined to kill him and the vampires. Backed into a corner, Reese is forced to make the greatest decision of his life.
He will either face his greatest fear or his death. Either way his dilemma will finally be over.
About the Author
Tony Ruggiero has been publishing fiction since 1998. His science fiction, fantasy, and horror stories and novels have appeared in both print and electronic mediums. His published novels include:
Operation Immortal Servitude
. The US military has developed a new weapon to be added to its arsenal—the creatures known as vampires. Tony uses his Navy experience to write this dark fantasy thriller about vampires being used by the Navy SEAL’s. Ground breaking and fast paced, the novel is a characteristic mixture of the vampire lore of Anne Rice and the clandestine secrets of the military found in Tom Clancy novels. The concept has led to a series of books to be released in 2006 through 2009: The Team of Darkness declassified files. Book I:
Operation Immortal Servitude,
Book II
: Operation Save the Innocent,
Book III
: Operation Face the Fear
and Book IV:
Operation Endgame
.
Alien Deception.
Tony’s space opera series begins with
Alien Deception.
Thought you knew how the political system worked? Remember, nothing is as it appears. Your whole life you think you understand who and what you are and then one day you learn that it is all a lie. So what do you do? You have lunch with the leading candidate for President of the United States…you and your alien friends. The series ends with
Alien Revelation
. Death has many meanings. For some it is an end while for others it is a beginning. Yet, for one human/alien hybrid, it is a way to have one final chance to try and save his home, the planet Earth, a son he has never seen, and to find an enemy that just won’t stay dead.
Tony is also a contributing author to The Fantasy Writers’ Companion from Dragon Moon Press. The Companion picks up where The Complete Guide to Writing Fantasy leaves off. The Fantasy Writers’ Companion takes on more advanced topics of writing, such as incorporating horror, incorporating mystery, developing a story in your favorite RPG universe, and exploring alternative cultures for world building. Tony’s contribution is a Chapter on the effective use of horror in fantasy. Other collaborative work includes The Writers for Relief Anthology I and II, No Longer Dreams Anthology and Breach the Hull.
Tony retired from the United States Navy in 2001 after twenty-three years of service. He currently resides in Portsmouth, Virginia. While continuing to write, Tony teaches at Old Dominion University, Saint Leo University, and Tidewater Community College in Norfolk, VA.
Please visit his webpage at www.tonyruggiero.com or you can write to Tony by sending email to [email protected]