An Unexpected Encounter

From the perspective of Brandon Vanity.

Tonight I had no intention of sleeping. My real interest for walking alone was to go see the Missouri Botanical Garden for the first time. I wondered what the garden would be like, since all the grounds keepers had abandoned the garden 20 years ago.

I stood at the entrance to the Missouri Botanical Garden unknowing of what lay ahead. The air was crisp, chilly even. I delved into my pants' left pocket. I felt the unnatural warmth of the Flame Orb and my whole body tingled. Suddenly the air didn't seem so cold, as if the Flame Orb lended me its heat.

There were 79 acres of gardens and three conservatories to check out. I couldn't possibly see everything the Missouri Botanical Garden offered in just one night. So I decided just to take a stroll through each of the international gardens. The moon was exceptionally bright, so it was a wonderful night to stay out and view all the exotic flora the Missouri Botanical Garden offered. There were literally thousands of different plants all around growing without human intervention. I spent nearly an hour at each and every international garden.

When I reached my final destination, the Japanese Garden, I found a number of different species of flowers in bloom. I was most attracted to the many different species of vibrant azaleas of white, pink, and red, which all seemed to greet me as if I was an old friend. Countless voices rushed through my head, and, at first, I thought either I was crazy, or there were people hiding among the plants and whispering to me. But, no, the voices in my head were real. The azaleas had noticed my appreciation for them, and they all responded with phrases like "thank you" and "much appreciated", among several other greetings and praises. I was floored. I was in disbelief. How could plants communicate with me, or with anyone? Or was I the odd one out? Was I the one with the telepathic ability? A host of azaleas responded with "yeah" and "most definitely", as well as "you're special". I was astounded, astonished. I pondered how I could have such an unnatural ability. Have I had the ability to read minds since I became a vampire and I just now learned how to use my unique ability? That seemed like a logical explanation. I grinned in wonder at all the responses from the azaleas. The neutral white azaleas mostly complimented me, the showy pink azaleas mostly humored me with their inside jokes, and the bright red azaleas surprisingly responded with dislike for me.

Then came the chaos. The various subspecies of azaleas began feuding with each other. The tension between the three subspecies was high. The feuding became downright brutal, so much so that I couldn't stay. I had to leave. I was burdened with thousands of voices in my head that all blended into a constant, blaring roar. I ran away, it was the simplest option. I ran as fast as my feet could carry me. I could care less that I could communicate with a bunch of flowering plants. I obviously didn't know how to control my telepathic ability. I didn't know how to stop the thoughts from pouring into my conscience. If I'm going to use my telepathy properly, I've no choice but to practice more. A lot more.

I found a spot relatively clear of plants, as clear of plants as possible in a botanical garden, and I knelt down on a stone path. I sighed, then I huffed. As I stared up at the stars, I felt like I was in a strange, surreal dream, and, yet, the voices continued, this time the voices came from all manner of plants. My head throbbed. I started to sweat and hyperventilate. I panicked--I couldn't escape the plants--they were everywhere. I never had a panic attack before, I thought, but what I was experiencing definitely felt like one. I tried to control my breathing, but it was to no avail.

"Fuck." I repeated it over and over. All I could think to do was lay back on the hard surface of the stone path and close my eyes, so I did.

A few minutes passed. I waited until the voices ceased, then I opened my eyes and I returned to my feet. I thought for a moment that I understood how telepathy worked, and then I realized if I didn't concentrate on any plants, then I wouldn't hear their thoughts.

I began to ponder. If I could hear the thoughts of plants, wouldn't I also be able to hear the thoughts of any living creature? The idea did seem plausible. Oh boy, wait till I tell Chase and Jeriah.

All of a sudden telepathy didn't intimidate me anymore. Even more, telepathy seemed like an extraordinary strength instead of a terrible weakness. I could potentially read the mind of any living creature at will, a power unfathomable in the hands of evil-doers.

As I pondered I caught a glimpse of a woman, a human, in the corner of my eye, as she walked another path. Weird. I wouldn't expect to find someone else walking the Missouri Botanical Garden, at night, at the same time as me. Why not use my newfound ability on this female passerby?

The female was glaring down at an array of flowers with her back to me. She had bright orange hair and she was tall and slim. I read the woman's mind who was unaware of my presence. Her thoughts were filled with sadness. She was mourning her late father on the one year anniversary of his death. She had an older sister that she traveled with, yes, but other than her, this woman had no family. I couldn't glean any other information from the woman by reading her thoughts. If I wanted to know more, I had to speak with her. So I gathered the courage to walk up to the woman and greet her.

I walked over to the woman as her back was still turned. I tapped her shoulder.

Frightened, the woman quickly spun around and backed away, tears streaming down her face. "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

I told the woman the truth. "I'm Brandon. Brandon Vanity. I came here because I've never been here before and I wanted to visit. I'm not from around here. Sorry to sneak up on you, but I couldn't think of a better way to get your attention."

"Oh, okay. I'm Phoenix. Phoenix Faircrest. It's nice to meet you. I would've never thought I would see anyone else here at this hour. Are you here alone?"

Again, I spoke the truth. "I have a couple of friends that I travel with, but they're currently over in East St. Louis while I'm over here enjoying the scenery. It's not quite as spectacular as what I had seen in an old magazine, but it's still a magical place."

"Oh, so you're a plant enthusiast too?"

"Yeah. Actually, I got into gardening a few years ago. When I saw pictures of this botanical garden in an old and dusty magazine, I just knew I had to visit someday. And here I am, visiting. What are you doing here?"

"Me and my sister have been traveling together, just barely scraping by, making it from one day to the next. Me and my sis, Angeline, we're from the Myrtle Beach area. We've been traveling west ever since our dad died a year ago today. We decided to keep traveling west until we found a place to call home. If you haven't already guessed, we haven't found that certain place, yet."

I nodded, absorbing all the information. "My two friends and I are traveling west as well, but first we're heading to Chicago."

"Why Chicago?"

I stared off into the distance, my mind nearly blank. I thought for a moment, then I answered, "We are going to try to meet up with some people that we met the other day. These people helped us out of a terrible situation. If you had been here just a day ago you would know why."

"What happened?"

"There was this gang of vampires called the Flesheaters. They were terrorizing the locals. They were too dangerous. They tortured me to near death, and they killed people I was close to. I helped the Prometheans across the river kill the Flesheaters' leader, Orrus. There's still a handful of these Flesheaters left, but, under their new leader, Micah, Orrus' brother, I have no doubt in my mind that they won't be bothering anymore humans, or vampires."

"Wait. So. Are you… a vampire?" Phoenix began to back away, and she delved into her small black faux leather purse, rummaging for something, something I didn't want to find out.

"Before you do anything drastic. I want you to know I'm not like those Flesheaters. Me and my friends are the good kind of vampires. If you can believe that."

"The good kind? How is that? How are any vampires good?"

I endeavored to formulate an appropriate response. "There are good vampires, trust me. It's true: All vampires need to drink blood to survive. But I wouldn't kill any human for their blood. I wouldn't force any human to give me their blood, either. Neither would my friends."

Phoenix stopped rummaging through her purse and gazed into my eyes. "You promise you and your friends are good people?"

"Yes. One-hundred percent, yes."

"Good to hear."

There was an awkward silence, so I decided to break it with a question. "I know you just met me. But would you and your sister object to coming back with me to Promethean Territory for just this night? I think it would be safer for the both of you. Right now you're both in the Vampyr Empire. It's a lawless land out here. It's very dangerous for humans to be here without any kind of protection."

Phoenix considered my offer. "I'm willing to see about this 'Promethean Territory'. But my sister has to agree, and she is hard to convince. She isn't a fan of vampires. But she may be willing to listen to me."

"Where is your sister?"

"Oh, uh… she stayed behind in an abandoned gas station a few blocks from here. I guess you could come with me."

"Sure. I can do that."

Phoenix smiled joyfully in response, her aqua blue eyes seemingly glowing. All of a sudden it felt as if there were a dozen butterflies all fluttering in my stomach. I smiled back at Phoenix, attracted to her in more ways than one.

Phoenix and I both walked together, leaving the botanical garden. We headed straight for the abandoned gas station that she had mentioned. I was very optimistic for the future as we walked together--I wasn't sure why.

The night dragged on.