I spent many a happy, blissful year with her. Never leaving her side, always there for her as she was for me. We were so happy. I wanted it to last forever. Forever is a long time. I should know.
We had made plans for a baby and where we would live together in peaceful happiness. We would have had a horse ranch and a few dogs, living out in the country side far from any other person.
But all that was stolen from me when I was shocked awake and learned that my life and my love was nothing more than a dream. When I opened my eyes I saw a shaddowey laboratory. I was strapped to a table, tubes, pipes, wires, and machines hooked up to my body. Weakily, I looked around. From the shadows came a small group of vampires. One, a dark skinned massive man with a deep voice, asked me, "Count Vladimir Dracula?"
"Yes?" I responded, my unused voice cracking.
"It's him! My name is Tan. We're going to get you out of here."
one of the two women came up to me to release the straps that held me down, removed the tubes and wires, then helped me dress. She introduced herself as Canna then helped me to my feet and held me up in my weakened state.
"Where are we? What's going on?" I asked, confused.
Tan replied, "This isn't the time OR place for this. We must leave now."
Canna softly called to a lanky male, "Katanna, let me feed him."
He responded by tossing her a bag of blood. Seeing this floating red orb coming towards me brought my hunger swiftly and I snatched it out of the air, before she had a chance of getting near it, and sank my fangs into it, draining it as I sank to my knees in delight.
After I finished my quick snack I, now more energized, rose to my feet and silently nodded that I was stronger. Tan acnoledged, "Let's move!" swiftly we ran out and through the maze-like halls when something caught my attention, so I stoped. There. In an office I saw…her picture… "My love…" I walked up to it, in the dark and picked it up off the desk. The frame and glass were broken and fell away as I removed the photograph. Dropping the debris, I gazed upon the picture with longing and heartfelt lonliness for her love once more. It was then that Canna came in and called for me. "Dracula! Come on! we have no time! What are you doing?! Come on! she's dead! Let's go!"
I put the picture in a pocket and raced with Canna to catch up with the other three and finally were admitted to the rainey outdoor via a hole in the wall, freshly blasted through. As we ran through what seemed to be a garbage depository, I looked to what was London and saw it in total ruins. The building I was in was really a molten heap. Apparently my captures had seriously wanted me safe. The rubble and the ruin were undesiferable from each other. There was no Big Ben and no London bridge. We came upon a flying ship and around it were beast-like grey people…
Tan cursed, "Abo's! well it looks like we'll have our work cut out for us!" the four vampires unsheathed and unholstered their weapons, ready to fire and defend. The beasts spotted us and approached on all fours, but then stopped, unsure, then ran away. The team looked at me puzzled then proceeded to the ship and entered. There, Tan and Katanna took the controls and flew us swiftly away while Canna and the other woman, Seln fed me and cleaned me up.
"What were those? They reminded me of a kind of werewolf." I said.
Canna responded, "Abos… Abominations. Half werewolf, half vampire."
"What??!" I have her a shocked look. "Why would vampires and werewolves even tolerate each other, let alone have children together?"
Seln, the other woman, added, "where there's love there is a way."
"True…" I took out the photograph and gazed upon it, her beauty unsermounted, her kindness in her smile, the happiness in her eyes…
"Who is that?" Canna asked.
Seln responded in a monotonous tone, "I heard about her. She was the enslaver's wife."
I snapped my head to her and snapped, surprised, "What?! what do you mean?!"
"the enslaver was the one who led humans into the Era of Study; a period of time where werevolves and vampires and the like were hunted down, once discovered were real, for study and experiments."
"My word…"
Canna asked then, "who was she to you, Dracula?"
"she was my lover." I said turning back, looking down at the picture in my hand.
"Oh I see!" Tan escalimed from the cockpit having heard. "They used her image and personality to keep his lordship pasified while they used him for their tests. It's sorta like mind control, only pleasurable for the victim and reaps the benefits for the manipulators."
"mmm. That she truly was…pleasurable." I said to myself, softly.
"Hey." I felt the hand of Seln on my shoulder. "it wasn't real. Non of it was. maybe you should let me have that…" she went for the picture and I brought it out of her reach. "No. please…it's the last thing I have to happiness…now…"
Katanna spoke up from the co-poilet's seat, "Hey! You just wait until we reach VaeHaven! It'll know yer socks off!"
I didn't understand at the time what he meant, but I certainly did when we reached it. I looked down through a window into a great valley, cut off from the rest of the world, to see endless forest, crystal clear rivers and lakes and waterfalls, open fields and the patchwork of farms and lights through the trees.
"Well, your lordship? Welcome to VaeHaven!" Tan said. I continued to gaze out in wonder as we landed in the designated field. We walked out and not only was I overwhelmed by the beauty, but the crowd of other vampires that formed to greet, what I thought, my saviors. I was wrong. It was all for me.
Tan walked up to me and said, "welcome home, your highness."
"this can't be. How is this possible??!" I asked bewildered.
Canna answered, "hey! When ya got the need ya get the job done!"
Seln added, "we needed a safe haven, so made this place from scratch."
Katanna slung an unwanted arm around Seln and added, "Ain't too shabby, eh?"
Seln walked away from Katanna and came up to me. "You must rest now. You were terribly drained when we found you."
Tan commented, "quite right, Seln. Come, Count and behold your new kingdom."
We walked down from the ship to the droves of vampires who reached out to graze their fingertip on me as I walked past. I saw their faces, glowing with happiness to see me. never in my lifetime had I thought this possible. A place where vampires could live like people and be happy and not hunted.
Tan and the others led me to the palace. A grand white marble one, designed in the old fassion with highly decorative patterns. And then it struck me…when I saw the crest aboive the doorway…this was MY design! I suddenly rememberd, centuries ago having actually made plans for a new castle! And here it stood. It was beautiful. I doubt any other castle in history could compare to the beauty of my creation.
We stepped through the grand doors into the grand foyer, made of the same marble, just as I wrote in my plans. If this really was accurate I would know where they were taking me. I started without them, towards the curving stairs at the far end. I took the right set up, past the landing and up the next flight to the second story, the team following behind me. up to the third story we walked and there at the top of the stairs, facing the front of the building here the white and gold vines and flowers on the doors that led to my sleeping chambers. After walking to the doors and resting my hand on the brass handle I turned to the group and said, "thank you…I never thought my dream would become a reality. But…however did you find the plans?"
"Eh…during the E.O.T.W. war, our ancestors fled to your castle and saved everything…"
"E.O.T.W.?"
"End Of The World War."
"Are you telling me…." I opened the door to see all my old belongings!!
"your castle was destroyed by our enemies, but long after it was emptied. Now please, your majesty, you must feed and rest."
I bowed my head, "good evening to you all." And I entered my chambers to see a feast fit for a vampire king. Ravenous, I dashed over and barely sitting I fed upon the delicacies. After a good gorging I found my old coffin at the far end, at the front. Gladly, I walked to it, the area around it decorated in homecoming. I walked up the stairs to the platform where my coffin laid. Black and red roses lined the perimeter and I smelled their perfume as I opened the cascit's lid, stepped in, laid down and shut myself in. there I rested until I was at full strength once again.
I awoke at a new night's dusk and proceeded out of my coffin and down to the glass door next to it, outside to the marble balcony. As I watched the colors in the sky darken then vanish all together I took in the beauty of the area. The territory that the vampires aquired was substancial and very rich. The moist fall air gave hint to the coming of the falling leaves.
As the people of the land started awakening I went inside to dress into something more to my style than the clothes that Canna dressed me in whenever it was that they rescued me. To the walk-in closet I found not only my old wardrobe, but an extensive addiotn to it. I picked out the night's outfit and after a much needed bath, redressed myself.
I was fasuning the cufflinks to my shirt when Tan knocked on my door. "Yes?" I answered. He opened the door and peered in.
"good evening your highness. Are you ready for your appearance to the towns people?"
I was just fetching my cape when I answered, "yes. what is this evening's agendas?"
"basically…just getting to know the people."
"I have an addition to that idea."
"Oh? Um.. I mean, yes, your highness."
I turned to Tan and said, "you see? Acting like that to authority is enough for imprisonment."
Tan seemed disturbed by what I said. He bowed his head in shame and respect, "Yes, your highness…"
"I will be lenient until the rules are understood, however. I know this place is not used to the way I run things."
"yes sir. However, we have obtained order using your ideals that were read from your writings. There is no thievery or lying here."
"Excellent. That's one thing less to take care of."
"your highness, the towns folk are awaiting you in the foyer."
"I will be there soon."
"Very well."
Tan left the room and as I awaited him to descend all the stairs to the bottom floor I took out her picture and ran my clawed finger along the outline of her face, remembering it's feel. My attention snapped to when Tan was out of my way. I put the picture away and transported to the landing balcony.
Attention was brought to me as I looked to my subjects. They all got to their knees in deep respect and from the crowd I spotted familiar faces, surprisingly.
"I am very pleased to see that the vampire race has survived so well. I must congradulate you on your survival, enginuity, this castle, and your attention to my writings. I must admit that I had no conceiving of these times, but you have done well for yourselves. rise, my children of the night, and let me see your faces."
I saw infants, children of all ages, their parents, their elders, and those ancient faces, like me. I was so filled with the warmth of happiness to see vampires living as humans as a community. The style of dress ranged greatly from the clothing of warriors, to punks, to the home life throughout the ages of time. The diversity was overwhelming. As were the numbers. There had to be near a million in my foyer. How did they manage to feed themselves in such great numbers?
Transporting myself to their level, I walked through the droves of vampires to greet some old friends. "Morigan! How have you been? Time has aged you."
"Aye, m' lord. The war twasn't kind…"
"we need to catch up on old times, my old friend,"
"Aye, m' lord."
As I walked to my other friends I knew I remembered that they were once the lords of their own provinces. Morigan was of the Ireland provence. Yu was from the orient provence. Baal, from Canaan. Belus from Greece. Kali, from India. Marduk from Babalon. Svarog, from Russia. Zipacna from the Americas. And I, Vladimir Dracula. Some say there was a tenth, but those were only myths and ledgends. It was said that our father, the first vampire, the most powerful of us all came from a world so unlike our own that it would be unconscievable to understand.
It was thent hat a young boy came up to me, his mother chasing after him, baby in her arms. The boy stopped and looked up at me as I gazed back down.
"now that you're here, are you going to find the humans??" he asked, innocemtly.
Perplexed I furrowed my brows trying to understand as his mother came up and pressed her son to her skirt. "Please, my lord, forgive him. he's just a young boy. His father told him stories last night…"
"it is forgiven…" I kneeled down to the boy and said, "but you need to remember respect for your elders and for your king. Such outburst like that are unwanted and can end in unpleasantries…understand?"
"yes, sir… I'm sorry, sir." He replied.
"Good lad." I rose and Tan called out, "this evening's meal is ready."
I knew that the dining hall, a great extensive room, just opposite the front doors was large enough for the population of VaeHaven, so I led the way and proceeded to the farthest end where my seat awaited me.
My people were all seated and our feast was before us. While we had our meal I quietly asked Tan, sitting next to me about it. "how have you all survived for so long, Tan? What was that boy talking about 'finding the humans'?"
"oh. Well, you see, your highness…there are no humans… they were killed off in the eotw war."
"All??!! How do you survive?" I asked quietly.
"thanks to genetics and mass cloning and cross breeding and the like…we actually have managed to make blood without the aid of any living being."
"you mean this is manufactured??!!"
"…yes sire…"
I sat back and stared at my bowl of synthetic blood. I thought I was going to give it back…the thought of drinking blood that didn't come from man sickened me.
No humans…how sad and lonely the world must be… A world without my lovely queen to be…
"your magesty? Are you alright?" Tan asked my quietly, and concerned.
My attention snapped to reality and I looked at him. "Yes."
"you haven't eaten much. Is it to your liking?"
I paused a long time, just staring at my meal. It looked so real…and yet it wasn't. "it will have to do."
"I beg your eternal forgivnes, my lord. I know it isn't the real thing, that you are used to."
"Have no worries, Tan. I didn't know it from the real thing until you told me."
"thank you, my lord."
"who are the scientists that have engineered this, though?"
"they are our own people. They work in the market. They are also attending here, if you care to speak with them."
"thank you, no. I will leave them to their meal."
Bored I watched the people feast and how they neither enjoyed nor disliked the food. It was as if the sustenance was just a meal, just something to do. It was boring. No…panaz. It was then that I looked around the room and I found my old victrola! I got up and started walking towards it. my records were there too surprisingly! I looked through them and found a nice one and put it on.
I could tell that the towns people behind me to watching, baffled and curious. I cued the player to start and walked back to my seat. As I sat the music came on. it was an allegro, fast playing with a beat. It put a smile on my face to hear it again.
Tan then asked me, "What is this, my lord?"
"Music. You do know what music is, don't you?"
"eh, yes sir. What I mean is…what kind of music is this?"
"Is Rock and Roll dead to this world?"
I heard whispers and mermers around the room. they were obviously clueless. It was thent hat I looked to Canna. "Would you care to dance, my dear?"
"Eh…" she paused, unsure. "Yes sir." She got up and came over to me and it was then that I showed off my moves