I leaped over the fence to the graveyard and walked up to the carriage.
Marcus came running up to me.
“Sir, they say Niccolie has been dead for about a week.” He said
hurrying in to the driver seat.
A week, I must have been out for a long time. I got in a looked
at the map I was given. It was hand sketched and had the north east west
compass at one side and an X mark for were the cave was. The area I was
to scout was a wide plain area with a road that lead in to the forest that
lead to my home town going south. When I was a vampire slayer we would
use these trails to avoided an ambush. The common roads were often swarming
with vampires that attacked travelers and trade caravans. A present time
vampire only popped up at random in this area and you had a greater chance
of getting attacked by a lone werewolf then a vampire, or so we thought,
but the areas to the north and west had a much greater vampire problem.
They had taken over those areas and most slayers left their family here
the safest place form the vampires. But we felt it necessary to eradicate
the vampire scourge, to our oath to William the Just, and so far we have
managed to keep them far from the more powerful cities of Nosgoth. William
the Just would have been proud. But now that I am on the inside I see why
there were so few vampire attacked corpse, they must have disposed of the
corpse before we had the chance to discover it. The ones I killed
were only 1 remote location, like the northern hinterlands and the far
west mountains. This I thought must had been a distraction so that
they could breed in these better more populated areas. A very cleaver strategy
and I guess once the vampires have gathered enough of their kind they would
wage a war and truly take down humanity. I did not know how right was.
The carriage stopped and Marcus told me we were here.
I stepped out; the sun still had the sizzling effect. I walked out
in to the sun and rapped the hood and cloak around me. I sat down on a
mall hill over looking the field; I looked about the field, the sun made
me squint my eyes, which did not help my search. I pulled out the map and
the strange invention that Zephon called “binoculars”. I put the
map on my lap and looked out across the field with the binoculars, they
were amazing the doubled my sight so I could see every thing in view. I
scanned across the field with them, nothing.
I sat there for what seemed like forever just scanning the field
for any thing unnatural. Finally then on the woods at the far end of the
plain were it turned in to heavy tree growth, I saw a glint.
I put the binoculars to my eye, then out of the forest one… two…three…five
six!! Six of them, they trotted out in their silver armor and white
horses. They were going out to battle, their spears long and sharp, buckled
next to them like flag polls.
I marked on the map were I saw them. Then I told Marcus to meet
up with me near white wood town, the place I assumed they were headed,
if I did not return it meant I was killed or captured.
Then I followed them by foot, I took me all day I scurried across
the country side after them, always dodging behind brush to hide myself
from their view.
I had tracked them from the field to eight or nine miles up;
it was obvious they were headed to white wood. But something I was not
expecting came up; my hunger had grown during the time of following them.
At first I did not notice it, but that pain had come, and my mouth grew
dry and hungry for blood. It was getting dark by the time I got to white
wood, the pain in my stomach seemed to me to be a cramped organ.
Bearded the pain and walked in to the town. I searched the town for Marcus,
which I found by the stables giving the horses food. A vampire hunter suddenly
walked their horse into the stable. I looked at Marcus who looked
at me in the same fashion.
I jerked my head to the left toward the carriage and he quickly got
in to the drivers seat. I jumped into the back and we were off slowly at
first as we exited the town and sped off as we past the gates
Chapter four
We were riding full speed until the houses gave out. Then we just maintained
as trot till we got to the cave. Zephon was waiting out front.
“At first I thought you failed me.” He said as I got out.
I handed him the map, and then the binoculars. He had a wine bottle
of blood, which he gave to me.
“Good,” he said to me then he turned to Marcus. “Change the horses
we must leave to the city”
“The city?” I asked as Marcus changed the horses
“The city is were most of our people are, you know the places we have
‘infested’ as you may recall”
Yes, the places were the population was almost all vampires,
the places they controlled.
“So, you say this is not you true home”
“No, this is a base some place we can stay when we are traveling,
or a place we can stay to research the surrounding area, it’s like a undercover
colony. You see my point”
I nodded as Marcus put another pair of horses in the rheas
Siphoned got in and I followed two other vampires traveled on
horses back behind us.
For a long time it was quiet, then finally zephon broke the silence.
“So what do you think about being a vampire?” he asked
“It’s is interesting and depressing”
"Still not used to it? You will come along eventually you see
it is just how you like your vampire life.”
“Explain to me about the rules of being a vampire” I asked just
to change the subject.
“Well, there are no rules, just what we would most likely suggest
for your and our safety”
“What’s that”?
“Well, would like it that if you plan on feeding that you kill
the food source rather then let it live, and make sure you get rid of the
body, we would not want a whole town searching the country side for us,
just because they found a body with holes in it’s neck, or because a servant
girl claimed she was bitten.”
“What if we don’t want to kill the food source”?
“Well, you run a risk for every one vampire that is in the area.
Like I would not do that here, they think the vampires are way over in
the north and east. We can walk around freely with out having a whole bunch
of people running around screaming ‘vampire’ at every person that walks
in to your town”
“What about me, my death was a cause of vampires, why have they
not scanned the country side for you”
“You, were not killed by vampire my friend, you were killed by
a band of robbers, they took your money and your fishing stuff, then burned
your body, which could not be truly Identified, except for the weddding
ring that you wore.”
I looked a my hand to find my ring was indeed gone
“And what about my daughter?”
“She speaks profanities, her daddy was killed by a vampire,
but everyone knows vampires aren’t here. They are in the north and east
and they certainly don’t play with fire.”
I sat back, crossed my arms and went cold, I was erased, I was
no longer who I was, and no one even knew my true fate.
“So why did you need me, certainty not for tracing slayers because
I once was one.”
“Have you herd of the vampire Kain?”
“I have herd rumors, he’s supposed to be some kind of king vampire”
“That he is, kain is my father, like I am yours, he was the last
vampire after the execution of Vorador, me made six other vampire to help
him build an army and take out the humans. Six, Raziel, he owns the clan
to the west I believe you have fought some battles with his children, Turel,
to the north, I am sure you know him. Dumah, you have not had the opportunity
to fight one of his before, Rahab, you also don’t know him, then me, you
are of me, the zephonim, then finally Malchiah who you also don’t know.
As you see I am the second to the last born, as you could probably guess
I lack recognition, even after I have managed to make all my lieutenants
out of past great vampire hunters, but my father still ignores me, then
I saw you, and the brutal things you have done. If I had someone that would
represent me at a meeting like you, knowing what you have done in the past
they would recognize me as…” he said waiting for a answer
“…A very brutal, and dangerous person”
“Yes, and that is what my father would like to see. Someone who can
push his weight around and show no fear”
“But, there is a big thick line between being and having. Having
me as a representative doesn’t make you any better or worse, it just makes
you less scared to show up at meetings”
Zephon seemed to go dead silent; he sat back in his seat and
let out a deep sigh
“All my life as a vampire I have been ignored, like I was the
trouble maker of the family, like I would amount to no good. Raziel always
got attention, Turel and Dumah too. Rahab was not ignored, but neither
had he recognition, he was just respected. And Melchiah, Melchiah got kains
pity and was always watched on. I was ignored, like I was not important,
just there. I never got an order that would bring recognition or glory;
I guess I just try to hard to prove myself. And often making bad mistakes
along the way.”
He made another sigh.
“And I guess it made me weak, I no longer have the power to
stand on my own feet any more”
“Doesn’t mean you can’t get any stronger”
He looked up at me.
“I can tell that you will make one fine lieutenant, Niccolie,
a friend to.”
“Maybe, but I don’t think I will ever forgive you for what you
have done”
“I don’t expect to be forgiven, you must have loved your daughter
a great deal to take on such a horrible fate.”
“I love her more then anything else, even myself,”
“That kind of love is the strongest, it can never be broken,
even if you are of some other creature.” He looked out the window.
”It is going to be a long ride, we will get there a couple hours till
morning and rest there till tomorrow night were we will travel back.”
“What exactly are we head there for?”
“To supply you, we will get you some slaves to take care of your
base, that place in which we have left will be in your control as soon
as you feel you can run it.”
“I will be in charge of that hole in the ground?”
“Yes, that ‘hole in the ground’ will be the place that you will
live at and dispatch orders from. You will tell the vampires that are there
what to do and you will spy on the vampire slayers trails and give me information
on every thing that happens there, until you come to a meeting were I may
give you special orders.”
“So I will run it, like a house hold”
“Yes, and like a base of operations too, it will be all yours.
But you need to pick slaves to do the household work, and if you want a
personal slave to do special jobs or just have for company. Then you will
pick some, men to work you operation,”
“What is my operation?”
“To track and follow the vampire slayers and were they are going
and also to keep the people in the towns around your area secure as in
they think it’s impossible to find a vampire within a hundred miles, I
want the people of this land to walk out in to the night without a worry
of being attacked. In other words you don’t exist”
“And how do I do all that?”
“Well, don’t kill your food in your land go and have men bring it to
you, or have a good stock pile of slaves that can be used for blood. And
always if accused of being a vampire make up a really good lie, most of
the people think that vampires will burn up in sun light, instantly to
over a period of time. So just flip off your hood and say you’re not a
vampire. That works the best”
"Hum…I actually think that people would not believe I am alive
if I did that. I am probably a historical figure by now”
“Well then change your look or don’t go out.”
“I won’t change my look, I will forget who I a…” I paused to
rephrase my words “…who I was.”
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