Page 12 of Vameer

The warm, rich taste of chocolate slides across my tongue.

My head throbs.

My jaw. My bones.

I blink.

Was that…?

Did my heart…?

Did I really see… her?

Lying in my cave, I inhale the scent of… apples.

My eyes roll back. And my throat works as I swallow the single drop of melted chocolate.

And the combination crackles to life inside me.

My gravito electrifies.

And my power fills the cave, pressing against the walls until the mountain rattles.

My heart beats rapidly inside my rib cage, and I force my eyes open.

I look for her.

But then my spine arches off the altar.

Over the rumble of the mountain, I can hear my joints creak.

And I smile as my heels slip off the end of the stone slab.

I’m getting taller.

The leather of my sandals cracks.

I’m getting bigger.

My fingers tremble as I hurry to loosen the belt around my waist before it snaps.

The pants beneath my robe shred around my thighs.

And I open my mouth as the ache in my jaw flips to ecstasy.

My fangs lengthen.

I press my tongue to the tip, feeling them as they get longer. And sharper.

Then the pressure in my skull releases as my horns grow. Longer. Sharper.

Chips of rock fall from the ceiling.

Something heavy falls outside the door.

Gold coins rattle in my pocket.

I fill my lungs with the delicious fruit scent still clinging to the air.