"Good morning! I am Robert, and you are?" I asked rounding the corner so he could see me.
"Fuck you, I don't know who you are nor do I care. You will die, that is all I know." He was a bit testy, maybe he wasn’t really a dusk person.
"Now now, no need to be rude. You don't appear to be doing to well and I noticed a small supply of blood over there. That would require me to want to give it to you, being rude won't help that."
He looked perplexed "Your not going to kill me?"
"Oh I didn't say that, but I haven't said I would either. You’re currently alive, and I am guessing in some discomfort." Another one of them was stirring now, its is age then. This one felt close to the master, short a hundred years or so. "If you don't wish to have a simple conversation I could decide to end you and hope for her to be more chatty?"
"No!" The fear creeping into his voice. "My name is Thadeus, I am master here."
"Were." I corrected casually, walking to the cooler and removing a pouch of blood “Am I right in assuming this is a viable food source for you?"
"Yes please." He was being very polite now, too nice I could already sense his motive.
"I will release one arm, make no mistake here. I am fully fed and not beyond killing you. I prefer not to because I want information and your probably the best source, but do not test me." I bent a piece of rebar so he could move an arm, and handed him the pouch.
"I have no intentions of testing you, I realize I am out matched." He took the pouch and immediately drained it.
"So, pretend I am clueless and know nothing of our kind". I spit those last two words out of my mouth like they where a curse. "Tell me about us."
"What?" He looked genuinely shocked and confused.
"I don't know anything, I mean I know the basics we are stronger then humans. Age effect our strength between one another, same with the other attributes. The nuances are missing, like how did I sense you? Or you I"
"Ummmm…" He stammered a bit trying to understand what I was saying. "We just do, I could tell you where a challenge before you moved, though I admit to underestimating you considerably."
"But how?" I demanded
"I don't know how it works, truthfully. The idea that has been generally accepted is that its some sort or predatory instinct, a natural occurrence. If you start with the idea that we are more animal at times then human, then you can follow the logic that certain instincts are just there. A shark doesn't ask why it knows how to hunt, it just does."
"That makes some sense, I would imagine that is your third I am sensing?" The other vampire was fully awake now, but struggling with her bonds. I knew there was no way she could move them but I could feel her hunger rising. Hers was madness, she would have to eat before we could talk. Retrieving another pouch of blood, with better accuracy then I would have expected threw it directly into her mouth. She punctured it and drank deeply, it didn't fill her up but at least it settled her down. "Relax and hang out for a bit, I may have questions for you. Feel free to add to the conversation if you have anything worthwhile to add."
"What are your plans for us?" Thadeus asked
"I am not sure yet honestly. Right now I need knowledge." I answered with at least partial honesty. I knew they would die here, as food if I continued to hang out here, pragmatism at its finest. The monster was learning fast, no qualms in that thought at all. "Are you asking for them or for you?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean do you actually give a fuck about any of them? Where you politely asking for all but genuinely concerned for yourself?"
"Her and myself, honestly. The rest of them aren’t that close to me. Maybe Travis," He looked around, all but his third were still unconscious. He looked at the one who had cut me. "he is a solid guard and has always been loyal, though a bit arrogant sometimes. The rest are easily replaceable. She has grown to be my second, despite her being third in power I trust her."
"I will say here and now, that so long as you answer my questions, I will not kill the three of you." I could keep that promise, mostly. "I will likely feed on the others, does that disturb you?"
"Only in the sense that it is against our laws, but I don't think you care about that. It’s not like I truly have some moral issue with it." He looked at me carefully before continuing. "Will you leave us here to starve?"
"No, I won't do that either." He was smart, age and wisdom I guess
"I don't know that I believe you, but I don't see a choice."
"True," I smiled, probably a bit theatrical but. “now introduce me to your second here?"
"Cynthia, met Robert our um host it seems." He managed to say it with just the right amount of asshole, nice skill to have.
"Please to met you.” She purred, it really was disturbing the way she said it. "I would greet you with a hug but..." she shrugged her shoulders as much as she could.
"The pleasure is mine, I do apologize for the confinement but I have a feeling that hug would end in your death and I am not sure I want that yet." Turning from her to Thadeus again "Now tell me about the hierarchy, I have seen reference to a council?"
"Before my time, but the story goes that they tried to kill Carnifex and the Justicar. That was the end of the council."
"The two of them killed them all?"
"Actually in most stories say just Carnifex did."
"I don't see him mentioned anywhere in this?" I hefted the bible pointedly.
"No, and no one knows where he came from, some think he is a lost child of Cain, we aren't even sure what he is honestly. Justicar we know is a 2nd descendent of Cain, but Carnifex just showed up with The Justicar and that was that."
"Odd, I am guessing no one questions him on it?"
"No, you try not to ever see either of them." He nervously laughed.
"So according to this I am the 3rd strongest vampire alive. Is that accurate?"
"What?!?!" He stammered. "Are you saying the Justicar is your creator?"
"Yup, I was an accountant a few days ago, with a family."
"I ummmm I mean we had heard stories from long long ago about him creating one here or there, some sort of game he plays, but I always doubted them." He looked truly scared now.
"Game?" I demanded, the anger was obvious in my tone.
"Yes, they are only stories. No one alive knows if they are true, they say he would create one and then set it on a path of destruction. Either dying that first night in ignorance or sorrow, others died hunting him but along the way killing large numbers out of sheer anger. This was centuries ago though, before we regulated ourselves. We have never known if they are accurate because we control our population by choice now."
"Could be I am his version of a plague?"
"Well, yes." He looked truly afraid now. "Though I can't fathom a reason he would do this. Of course you maybe a fluke too. I know he has to hire humans to do his mundane things. We all do, managing money and property requires daytime activity. With him moving all the time he doesn't have a permanent set up. He is a bit mad sometimes, maybe he hoped you would die, or wanted you to have to choose."
"Interesting, we had concluded our business relationship, but 5 years ago he promised me this. I didn't know what he meant then, or even know this was what he was offering me. A commitment, a promise in some twisted way." Another one was waking up, I casually tossed them a bag repeating the same thing I had for his third. This was Travis, the fighter. I would definitely be interested in talking to him. "What is this rule of threes?"
"Well you have to feed on three humans to attain your full power" he answered simply
"Humans specifically?"
"Yes to be fully turned" He looked thoughtfully at me "but once upon a time, before the law forbidding us from feeding on one another it used to happen. You have to feed on more then three of us. Honestly you may have upped your power already if the rumors are true. I don't know and your 100 steps above me in power just by creation, so I couldn't say for sure. I can be sure that the rule of 3 is absolute, I have seen that."
"Know anything about these humans hunting you?" I had been wondering, deciding maybe I don’t need to tell him I hadn’t feed on three yet.
"Trivial, they can only manage the weakest of us, some left over long forgotten part of the church." He chuckled mirthlessly. "They take one occasionally we just view it as a favor. If a hunter falls to prey, they weren't a hunter"
"Fools!" Travis commented spitting out the empty bag.
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
"Oh?" I asked liking him despite myself. He hadn't waited to speak, and didn't seem afraid. "You have thoughts on these fools I am guessing?"
"They are fools," He looked very sure of this, "uninformed fools, I was one. Trust me they are clueless. They think they are some holy warriors, but the church long ago forgot about them. They stumble on one of us now and again out of luck, mostly they die. Occasionally they get real lucky and stumble on a youngling, kill it then brag to one another. Mostly they die, or end up like me."
"Travis," Cynthia said "I asked you that night I caught you. Would you rather die or become one of us, you had a choice."
"Yeah sure you ‘asked.’ Bullshit!" He snapped back.
"You better mind the way..." Thadeus started to say before he was cut off.
"Or what?" Travis interrupted the old master. "You’ll kill me? I don't think thats my fucking concern right now your highness, so excuse my fucking rudeness"
"He has you there Thadeus!" Laughing as I said it, they all glared at me. Except Travis he looked almost humored by all this.
Over the next few days I read a lot of his books, had several question and answer sessions. Discovering that we had no issues with garlic, crosses or holy water. Stakes or anything really that pierces our heart and remains there does the weird paralyze thing. Of course the sun, that was certain death. We did regenerate quickly as long as we were well feed. I kept the three of them alive but not full for sure. Gradually I fed on the others, Thadeus didn't seem to notice really, Cynthia found it disgusting. Travis thought it was amazing, I remember his reaction to it the first time.
"What the fucking hell?!?!?!" Travis exclaimed
"Oh I am sorry are you offended?" I asked
"No, I mean yes but no." He looked really annoyed "They told me we couldn't feed on one another."
"Yes, its a rule." Thadeus explained
"You didn't say fucking rule, you said we could not. That it was poison, that it would not sustain us." Travis seemed really annoyed, I found this all very interesting.
"He did?" I asked "This May come as a shock but they lied, I haven't even fed on three humans and have lived quit well on a strict diet of vampire." The monster in me was becoming a smart ass. “At least two masters and lairs to be honest, well almost three”
"Well damn, what they fuck else did you lie about?" Now he was sulking.
“Wait you haven’t fed on three?” Thadeus asked, you could hear the disbelief in his voice.
"Oh Travis don't be dramatic.” Cynthia said in that purring voice "He tells you it wont work to remove the temptation of it, so there are no accidents. If he had told you it was possible, you would have tried it wouldn't you? Of course you would have, you where hunting us when I found you. Then he would have had to kill you."
"Yes, Cynthia." Travis seemed completely cowed. Wait what the fuck happened? I studied him a little harder, he seemed almost in a trance.
“Answer me Robert!” Thadeus still having trouble remembering he was trapped in a wall and not in charge, old habits I guess.
"In a minute Thadeus, Cynthia what the hell did you just do?" I asked
"What do you mean?" Cynthia purred at me, and I could feel it, just on the edge of my mind. This feeling that it was all okay, I didn't need to ask anymore questions. I could trust her. It was just barely a nagging sensation though. I moved fast, grabbing her chin, with somewhere just short of jaw shattering strength.
"Explain, and if you try that again, I will eat you tongue!" I didn't know if I could actually eat her tongue, but it seemed to get my point across.
"..i i its a talent." She stammered through clenched jaw, relaxing my grip slightly so she could speak. "A talent I have, we don't know how one gets it, but it has limited effect. On those I create its almost absolute, but I can use it on others, sometimes its stronger then others."
"Try it on me again, and it will be your last attempt. As a matter of fact, don't use it again in my presence even on Travis." I commanded, as a after thought I asked looking at Thadeus. "Is that why he values you, or is that what makes him value you?"
"No it doesn't work on him, yes I tried. He had a reaction very much like yours, but more painful.” She physically winced at the memory. “I am the only one he has in the lair that can do it. Its useful especially with younglings, when they first start to turn it can be rough to control them, I can do it even when they are full of blood lust."
"Interesting, any other of these talents you know of?" I asked all of them, mostly Thadeus though, he would have more knowledge.
"Some minor stories of mental powers weave through our history, nothing documented. In the past masters killed them outright because they where a threat, now we know how to use them and understand the limits. We are still very careful about it." Thadeus answered. "I have heard rumors of shapeshifting and occasionally someone like Cynthia but she is the first I have ever met."
"I hate that shit." Travis commented, still a bit out of it but better. "So annoying."
"I bet." I laughed at Travis, then turning back to Thadeus. "Since she is the first you know, I am guessing it's rare?"
"Very," he replied "and I don't advertise that I have her. The Justicar doesn't like them, and most other masters don't trust them. Unless they are theirs of course."
"Of course," I was chuckling this time, "it could be unsettling."
"No shit." Travis laughed with me, I was really beginning to like him.
“You haven’t fed on three?” Thadeus must have taken note of my negative reaction to Cynthia’s behavior and tempered his tone to a request rather then a demand.
“No I haven’t only two.” Doing my best to hide the pain that admission caused. I told him the truth. “Only those two and as far as I can tell no ill effects.”
“That can’t be, or rather its not what you think.” Thadeus seemed so lost in thought he forgot about the whole capture thing. “I mean of course you have all the power you want by birth, but your still not fully developed it takes three feedings to be fully empowered and I don’t know of anyone who has made it long on only two.”
“What do you mean by made it long?” raising my eyebrows as I asked
“Well usually they loose it to the beast, it costs them their sanity, or as much sanity as we have. See we all have the hunger and if we go to long it will always win, I am sure you have noticed this?”
“Yes.” I answered flatly.
“Well the third feeding is the finial step in control, it is the leash so to speak on the hunger. One old myth I read, I can’t remember where, the bite is death. The first feeding is death of our self and birth of the beast, the second is the birth of our powers, and third is the leash to control the beast. That maybe over simplified but the idea appears to be accurate. In the studies I have read without the third feeding you should be a raving beast who just wantonly kills everything in their path.”
“And yet here I stand?” I asked smiling. “Maybe its an age thing?”
“Yes, it could be but I doubt it? When we create a new member here its a very rigid method designed to cause as little stress as possible.” He continued to explain. “They are brought here untouched, three people are taken and locked in The Sun chamber, the creator and the one being created enter the room and the turning begins. As soon as they choose to drink from their creator they are released to feed. If the drink all three they are released and accepted as part of the lair, if not they burn at dawn. I know other lairs are not as formal as that but everyone is done that way to some degree or another.”
“Wait if thats how it is done than why are the younglings so weak?” I don’t know why that popped in my head first of all the questions I had but it did.
“Even fully turned it still takes time, younglings have all their powers but no clue how to use them.” He said simply.
“But when I turned I was in full control immediately.”
“Thats doubtful, you where probably so powerful it seemed that way, but if you compare then to now you will see the difference. You had the powers, but your just now beginning to understand them, true?” He asked
“I suppose there is some accuracy in that.” I answered simply. “I hadn’t really thought about it too much but Yes I am in more control now then I was then.”
“As time passes you will get better control of them, but that doesn’t change the battle within you, eventually the beast will win if you don’t finish the cycle.” He stated flatly. “I am not sure it benefits me to tell you all this, but I feel like you should know because if the beasts wins in you? Only the Justicar and Carnifex have the power to stop you. Make no mistake kill me or not, they can kill you. One on one you might stand against the Justicar for a few minutes, but in the end he would kill you. He will not fight you alone.”
“And Carnifex?” I wondered
“Faster and with less time, you maybe his equal in age if the rumors are true. That isn’t it though, he was born and bred a warrior. I can see that every time him moves, that is a man who has known war and battle his whole life.” Thadeus had this absolute certainty in his voice, it made me wonder if my quest was hopeless. “I have known warriors and soldier, Carnifax is the absolute warrior. He would fight you with honor if given the option, but he will kill you as surely as you can kill me. ESPECIALLY if your not in full control of the beast.”
Eventually I was out of questions, most of what they said did not make me happy but that wasn’t the goal. Between him and the books I had learned that one of the oldest masters was the Richmond master, conveniently he was also a friend of The Justicar. So I was going back to the beginning, back home. This didn’t feel like a home coming at all, I looked at it with dread and fear. What if Thadeus was right and I lost in RVA? What if I killed more people I knew? Pushing the concerns aside, time to start planning.
W.W. Pool it seemed was not only the Master of Richmond, but was the only survivor of the Council. He was old even to Thadeus, whose only guess at his age was that he had heard him tell stories about Christ. Like "so I was having a beer with Jesus" stories. Even at that Thadeus assured me I could take him, if I was in control and took some time to train. Take him and his guard, all 10 of them? To quote Thadeus "you can but it will hurt, A Lot. It wouldn’t be my choice, not even with your power” and I could see he was serious.
W.W. Pool wasn't his real name of course, he had changed that often enough through out his existence but I knew that name. It seems funny now, but I had heard stories about him in Richmond. He was known as the Richmond vampire even in urban legend, I even remembered seeing his tomb at Hollywood Cemetery. It’s not far down the road after you come in the gate. A sealed mausoleum, surrounded by stories of broken windows and doors being pushed open from the inside. The stories always stuck in my head, its funny that the stories about him being a vampire existed. He was a bookkeeper according to what I could learn about him. I had done some research in college about local urban legends. It was even funnier now, considering how it had all worked out. I can picture his tomb, I think 1842 to 1913, that seems right. At first I actually struggled to believe it because if he was a legend, wasn't that public knowledge? "Friend of the Justicar" was Thadeus's only answer when I asked. In the end I believed Thadeus about Pool, after all I had already known it was his city.
There where four of them left, him, Cynthia and Travis and a fairly healthy one, maybe 50 years old. His name was Earl, yup every time I say it the Dixie Chicks play in my head. I needed to talk to Earl, because maybe Earl didn't have to die, well not right now anyway, fucking Dixie Chicks...
"So Earl, how would you like to get out of here and have some black eyed peas, I promise they wont taste funny?" I couldn’t help myself.
"Huh?" He looked confused, considering I hadn't spoken to him before I am pretty sure he thought he was food, sadly he missed the joke.
"How would you like to leave? Move to a different city? I am told this does happen sometimes." It was rare but it did happen.
"Sure," he hesitated "but why me?"
"I need you to go to Richmond, deliver a message for me. I think the other two would be less likely to do it? Your young enough that the Richmond master would accept you, not old enough to be any threat to him."
"Hmmmm" he seemed to be thinking about it "you might be right. I am still not sure I can trust you to let me leave, sure your not just looking for sport?"
"Not my style," I assured him "I prefer the easy life."
"Considering my choices, Richmond sounds perfect."
"Great, can you make it there in one night?"
"No, it would be two I don't move that fast."
"Okay two days then." I agreed. "You leave tomorrow, just tell them I am coming a week from today. Make me sound scary okay?"
"That won't be hard, you fucking are." He laughed nervously, since we hadn't talked before so he wasn't sure how I would take it. I decided not to mention the black eyed peas again. Laughing I tossed him a blood bag, the sun had just set and I had something to do. I spent an hour or so reading, and left the lair.