Intergrating Demons

After four hours of various tests Michael was told to come back the following week, Wednesday morning. So Michael decided to go home. As he rolled through the streets of Seaford toward Chyngton he thought about what Liz had said, in fact he hadn’t stopped thinking about what Liz had said. Liz had left him filled with worry, anger, fear and a variety of other feelings, none of them positive.
He turned a corner along the normal path he went home and, as he went past an alleyway, heard someone whispering over to him.
“Michael!” It was Jacob.
Michael stopped for a moment “Jacob?” he looked around.
“Over here!”
Michael turned his head in the direction of the voice and saw Jacob leaning out the mouth of the alleyway.
“Come here, quick!”
Michael rolled over and saw Jacob in full view; his clothes were covered in blood as were his hands, he had a sword at each side, each was also soaked in blood. On his back he wore a fully packed backpack.
“What the hell happened to you, Jacob?”
Jacob looked at him disappointedly, “You told them where I was.”
Michael was confused “Was I not supposed to?”
Jacob sighed “I’ve been hiding from the Elite Guard for years.”
“What? Why?”
He looked at Michael with sorrow “I was going to explain everything but now I won’t have time. Soon they’ll find four dead members of the Elite Guard in the training ground and they’ll come for me.” he looked at Michael and paused “I have to leave Michael. I’m just glad I managed to tell you before I went.”
Michael was saddened but curious “What were you going to explain to me? Where are you going?”
Jacob looked away for a moment and paused “It’s... I can’t tell you yet. It isn’t time.”
“But when will you be able to tell me?” Michael was now more concerned about when he’d see Jacob again.
“I don’t know but I will see you again. In the mean time, get in the Elite!” he paused and shut his eyes for a moment, when he opened them they were tearing, he reached out and hugged Michael “Goodbye.”
Michael shared the embrace “Goodbye.”
After a few seconds of hugging they stopped and Jacob looked Michael right in the eyes and said “I have to go before I’m spotted.” and he turned and walked off down the alley. As Michael left Jacob called back “Michael!” he waited for Michael to turn back “Whatever you do, do not let that necklace leave your side.” then he turned, adjusted his backpack and left.
Michael wasn’t connecting Liz’s words to Jacobs. In fact for the first time in over four hours Liz was nowhere in his mind, Michael was too depressed for the time being to care if he was human, vampire, living or half-living. Jacob was Michael’s only real friend in the colony.
And now he was gone.

When Michael finally got home, after he was done staring emptily into the alleyway he’d last seen Jacob, he went and laid down on his sofa, not bothering to turn on the radio. He lay there for a while thinking of how alone he now was and, after an hour or so, drifted off into sleep.