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written, directed, and unlived by Santiago and Louis
Louis
I did not rest well that morning...over and over it played in my mind, the words he had
said...such contempt behind them...but why did it bother me so?...
When dusk fell once more and I made my way outside to begin the task I set out to do, I
knew the moment I opened my door and looked down at the body that lay on the steps,
the cause for it being there...but I understood not the reasoning behind it...or...perhaps I
did...
It took little time to dispose of it, and as I watched the last bit of it disappear beneath the
surface, my questioning resumed...what message was he giving me?...what had I
awakened in him that I could not see?...I felt the familiar dread come over me once
again...knowing not if it was misplaced...
Setting off to the financial institution which held a rather large portion of my funds, I
asked immediately to speak to chief executive officer.
"But I can help you Mr. de Pointe du Lac..."
“No...” I said with a shake of my head:: it has to be him...
When he sat himself at his desk in his office, and I stood before the large window, peering
out with my arms folded over my chest, his voice broke the deafening silence.
"Are you sure of this?" I nodded without looking to him. Yes. I could tell without seeing,
that his eyes widened. "But Sir..this is...millions..." I nodded again. I know... "Monsieur
de Pointe du Lac...surely you can't mean t---”
Cutting him off abruptly, I replied rather harshly. “Just do it.”
"I understand the venture you have planned...but to...this is so much"
I turned my head from the window to look at him. “Have you ever had to atone for
anything Mr. Gleason?”
"Why yes, of course...bu---”
I cut him off a second time as I moved away from the window, placing my hands on his
desk, leaning towards him, eyes meeting his. “This is my redemption.”
"Sir I understand that...but...but placing this...individual...as the primary on the
account...with such a substantial sum of money for him to have access to freely..its just---"
“Yours is not to question...it is my money...and I can choose to do with it as I wish.”
When I left, I had the necessary paperwork in hand...I spent the next two night's reliving
continously what he had said to me...the second part proved almost as difficult, but not
quite...
On the third night, I purchased the property, wrote out the check, and had the deed in
hand by eight o'clock...it still surprised me, after all this time, how everything was driven
by money alone...but tonight, I was glad it was...
I made my way back to Santiago's dwelling...his servant looked at me strangely, but let me
in without hesitation...I walked to him slowly and held out to him all that I had in my
hand.
“It is taken care of...all you need to do now is sign for the account...and once they have
your signature on file...the money is yours to do with as you please...and don't
worry...there is plenty at your disposal...I made sure of that...
“There is one thing I have to ask you...” I paused, staring at him intently. “Would you care
to tell me just what that little...gift...meant...that you left on my doorstep three night's
ago?”
Santiago
I ignored the question completely, taking the check and deed from him and beaming at
them. I tried not to let my surprise show on my face, for the amount was far greater than I
expected. Hell, I had half expected him not to return at all even though I'd been waiting...
been waiting...
"Excellent, excellent," I said, more to the check than to him. "But you know," I looked
into his eyes at last. He was still awaiting the answer to his question but I had in mind a
different path to lead him down. Why talk of corpses? Corpses that resembled the person
who stood before me... "I am going to need...an assistant of sorts... Until I can acquire
some new recruits, at least."
I was, obviously, going to have to make some fledglings to run the place. Can't have a
Theatre of the Vampires without vampires...and Lestat's chums weren't going to be
forming a line to sign up. Keeping Louis around might insure that Lestat didn't pick off my
new "kids."
And...all right, admit it. I wanted to keep him around. I wanted to avenge myself on him,
to keep my hatred alive so that I could after I achieved my goals. I wanted to squash out
the tsunami of emotion that arose inside me at the very sight of those green, green eyes
filled with genuine remorse.
"You," I said, smiling nastily, "Will make yourself available at my beck and call. You'll run
my errands, jump through my hoops, carry my books, and bury my bodies."
I let the last three words sink in for a second, my eyes boring in to his, then turned my
back on him dismissively.
"And one last thing," I said over my shoulder. "You'll have to act in the theatre. Meet me
there in one hour."
I should have known, before I even asked the question, that I would not receive an
answer...And yet, I had felt compelled to ask it anyway...I watched the satisfaction he
gained at having what he had requested, within his own hands...Sudden apprehension filled
me, though it seemed not warranted...not yet...
But minutes later, the very reason for such an emotion became clear...He almost reminded
me of Lestat in that instant...The words he said...The tone in which he spoke them...I lived
it each night, being at my maker's beck and call...Now he, expected the same...
But it was what he said at the end of those words that struck me...His eyes still held mine
a moment longer...and in that time, my own expressed a panic...And then he turned from
me, telling me to meet him at the theatre in an hour's time...My mind however, still
lingered on what he had said before.
“Bury the bodies?...but I...”
I did not finish...Had I not said that I would do anything I could?...Of course I had...and
anything meant anything.
“I will be there...” I turned on my heel and left without saying another word...
An hour later I stood in front of the theatre, my eyes scanning the building with
intensity...Memories came flooding back as I recalled the one of before...Each event
passing before me as though it were only yesterday... I began to tremble as I remembered every detail explicitly...finding myself wrapping my
arms around my own body for some false sense of comfort...And all I could do was stand
there and stare as each picture in my mind, seemed to surround me.
I couldn't suppress a certain...dare I say, joviality, as I went to the assigned meeting. He
would be there...of his own free will. It still struck me as bizarre, and suspicious, that he
was so desperate to humble himself before me, but I had never been one to look a gift
horse in the mouth.
Of course, what had that done for the Trojans? And myself, for that matter.
Do not forget Paris, I reminded myself. Although I really did not believe he had the
strength and cunning to contemplate such an elaborate ruse as to recreate my downfall
(with perhaps the intent to separate me from my head as he thought he had done
previously) I had better not let the possibility slip out of sight. Do not allow
compassion...or attraction...to blind you, Santiago. Rebuild the theatre for yourself...not
for revenge.
Revenge, had I still not let go of the desire?
The theatre was located at Jackson Square, on the corner of Chartres and St. Peter, next
to the museums and, of course, St. Louis Cathedral. It was called, at the moment (as it
was about to be renamed by yours truly), Le Petit Theatre de Vieux Carre, and presented
small, offbeat productions on a regular basis. It was also rumored to be haunted,
particularly by a group of the ghosts of children.
Maybe his little Claudia would show I up, I thought, smirking as I crossed Royal Street
and turned the corner onto St. Peter. It was late, and although I could hear the cries of
debauchery from Bourbon Street coming from the other direction, there were very few
people in or near Jackson Square.
I saw him standing there, staring up at the small building, his arms wrapped around
himself, looking timid and forlorn...and completely vulnerable. Oh, if he had been human,
I'd have been unable to resist him. He appeared lost in thought, and at once I wondered
what he was thinking. In the next second, this irritated me, that I should care what he was
thinking.
I moved silently up beside him and flung my arm about his shoulders as if we were the best
of friends.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" I murmured in his ear. I waved my other arm in the direction of the
building in a broad gesture. "Just think of what horrific pleasures await. Now, lets go in
and inspect the place. Have you the keys?"
Easily startled in the state of mind I was in, I reacted strongly as my body jerked from the
sudden unexpected touch he placed upon my shoulders. “Beautiful...” I repeated solemnly.
“I suppose it is...”
Reaching into the pocket of my pants, I produced a set of keys, making the motion of first
offering them to him, but then turning myself to the door, heading towards it and fumbling
with the keys as I unlocked it...
The clicking sounded and I pushed it open slowly, pausing before I entered cautiously...I
took but a few steps before I stopped, my eyes scanning the surroundings...
I began to see why he had believed this to be the perfect place...of course it was...after all,
why wouldn't it be?...so much like the original...even in its more modern structure...it
seemed strange being here, but even moreso being here with him...on these terms...
Two bitter enemies who had come to a sort of truce, embarking on a venture that would
now bound them together forever in some small way...
I turned to Santiago, facing him fully and staring at him a moment in silence,
contemplating all that would take place from this point on...purposely pushing to the back
of my mind the disposal of bodies I was expected to make.
“So here we are...” I stated flatly, “Where it all began...well...in a strange proxy sort of
way anyway...And you wish for me to be one of the actors...I believe that, of anything you
have said, will be something I can do easily enough...”
I laughed delightedly at his words. He thought he would find it easy to be an actor in Le
Theatre des Vampires? Ah, but perhaps his memory of the shows we had created in those
revered days had dimmed.
No matter, he would soon learn.
A hunger for blood rose within me at the very thought. I licked my lips almost
subconsciously.
"Come with me, Louis."
I slipped my arm through his and drew him down the hall into the main theatre, and from
there to the stage, leading him up to stand in the center.
"This will be the trap...and to us, they will come by the thousands." I let go of his arm and
walked around him in a slow circle as I spoke. "Death will tread the boards once...more." I
stood beside him, almost whispering in his ear. "Blood will run freely...and this time...there
will be...no...disaster..."
I drew back, stepped away, watching him for a moment.
I stood still, moving only my head as he circled around me...His words, though I showed it
not, causing me heavied distress...No disaster echoed in my mind long after he had said it...knowing full well to what it referred...but what he had said first, Blood will run freely
is what brought me the greatest torment...
I stared out over the empty seats...soon they would be filled with unsuspecting
patrons...How tragic it will be...and so much suffering...
Could I really go through with all of this?...I had no choice...I would see it through its
conclusion, whatever that may be::
“In the hour before I arrived here...” I began quietly as I looked over to him, “I started to
think on where we could acquire the actors...I believe Paris would be fitting...being that it
was there where the original theatre was...and what better way to duplicate, than to have
French actors?...I'd imagine that there would be at least some of our kind that would wish
to be a part of this...and if not, I am most certain you could persuade them...”
"I am indeed, very persuasive," I said. "And....French actors...hmm... Quite an idea. But to
travel to Paris to acquire them might be rather tedious."
I walked around him in a slow circle, not taking my eyes from him as I did so.
"Besides, we need not start off with vampires, you know."
I stopped behind him, then moved close quickly so that I could speak directly into his ear.
It was calculated to startle him, I suppose, but I had always enjoyed spooking others.
"Every being in this theatre will be under my control. They will be my fledglings."
I paused.
"My new fledglings. Shall we start slowly? Tomorrow night, you must find six mortals and
lure them here. Male, female -- it doesn't matter, though I suppose they ought to be
somewhat...attractive... Yet they should also be docile...obediant...perhaps even eager.
Bring them at midnight."
I move around to face him once more, but I did kept the distance between us close.
"You understand, Louis?"
Why must he behave in such a fashion, I wondered...each step seemed deliberate...like a
predator stalking its prey...I was certain he knew it unnerved me...but just as certain that
he would not care that it did...I could feel the continued stare even as he walked behind
me, but I did not turn...remaining as I was, where I stood...It was only when he stepped
forward abruptly, that I almost jumped...an instant reaction to a fear that he would do me
harm...how foolish I was...knowing he would not...at least not yet...
His control...yes...that they would be...he would guarantee it so...Six he had said...and I
was to bring them...Oh how he must enjoy this...knowing how dreadfully hard it was for
me to do such a thing...I loathed my own existance...and here he was...asking, no,
demanding, that I lure others, so that he could bring them into this miserable life...
When he had finished and stood before me yet again, my gaze met his briefly before I
looked to the floor beneath us...My answer came softly as I lightly nodded. “Yes.......I
understand...I will do as you ask...and tomorrow night...you shall have your puppets...”
The last word spoken in quiet sarcasm.
"Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!"
I laughed, and my laughter sounded more harsh and sarcastic than his words.
"Surely you knew what you were getting into when you offered yourself up to Death," I
said. It was a statement and not a question. I moved close and touched his hair lightly,
curled it around my fingers. "It's very ironic, isn't it? The path you chose for 'atonement'
will only add to your sins...your...precious...guilt..."
And before he could blink I had moved away from him, sitting away on the edge of the
stage, looking up at him with a smile.
"All the world's a stage," I said, laughing again. "And what a part you shall play."
I leapt to my feet. "Tomorrow night. Midnight. This room. Six mortals."
And then I was gone, with only the sound of my laughter ringing in the air behind me.
I turned to look at him, seeing the smile that played on his face...He did not give me
choice to answer, but was gone a moment after he spoke his final word...I stood there for
a long while, going over in my mind what it was he expected me to do...A task that would,
and yet not, be easy...I left there that night in turmoil...How true his words of The path
you chose for 'atonement' will only add to your sins...your...precious...guilt were...I was
already feeling that guilt now...
The next night fell, and I set out to do what he had instructed, with hesitancy...But it did
not take long before I had the six mortals he required...Three men and three women...All
beautiful in their own right...And so willing...The thought sickened me...
I explained to each, that they were to meet me at the theatre at half past eleven, giving any
that should arrive late, to be there before the clock struck midnight...
Not one of them did however, come any later than the designated time...Eager to
"audition" for a role they would never leave...
I took them to the inside stage area, then requested that they all seat themselves in the
front row...As I, with no surprise to me, anxiously paced across the floor of the stage
itself, awaiting Santiago's arrival...Knowing and dreading what was to take place this
night.
I stepped silently into the auditorium. They did not hear my arrival -- the six humans,
chatting softly amongst themselves and Louis, the pain of his guilty secret written all over
his beautiful face as he paced the stage.
I stood for a moment, watching him move back and forth as gracefully as a big cat, with a
presence he was completely unaware of. Such things I had in store for that one.
And strangely...I wondered briefly how he would look without that expression of pain, of
guilt. It was such a part of him, it always had been, even back in the old days. I
wondered...if he had ever known...happiness.
Happiness? I must be losing my mind. I couldn't remember what happiness was myself,
and why on earth would I be concerned with Louis'?
I cleared my throat and every face in the room turned towards me. I smiled, my famous,
wicked expression, and strutted down the aisle towards the stage. I leapt lightly up beside
Louis and threw an arm around him as if we were best of friends, though my gaze fell
upon the six vessels who were waiting to be filled by Death.
"Ah, my lovely ones! Welcome, to Le Theatre des Vampires!" I cried. "You are about to
embark on the most incredible experience of your existances. Now! I need a
volunteer...you! Young lady. And the gentleman next to you, come on up here. It is your
time..."
Eagerly the pair hurried up to the stage, and it was all I could do not to laugh. I bowed
mockingly to the young lady, and took her hand and kissed it, causing her to blush and to
titter a little bit. I then gave her a push which appeared to be playful towards Louis, who
would be forced to catch her or allow her to fall off of the stage. She was the most
beautiful of the group...which was why she was being saved for last. I looked at Louis and
spoke without speaking, so that he could hear me inside his mind, but the mortals could
not.
Hold on to her. Do not let her go, no matter what transpires with the others.
Then, I turned to the young man. He smiled at me, so innocent, so unsuspecting...
This was business, not play, not a performance, and so I dispensed with the pleasantries. I
flew at him with inhuman speed, evincing gasps from the four who remained seated.
Before he knew what hit him, my fangs were in his throat, and I drank deeply. A trickle of
red flowed from my lips down his shirt while the others watched in stunned silence. Their
shock was almost palpable. My victim let out a sound that was half groan, half gurgle and
began sliding to his knees. I slid down with him, taking his life into myself.
When I had drained him to the point of death, when I could hear the rhythm of his heart
beginning to slow, I threw my head back. My lips dripped with crimson and I licked them
almost delicately. With my own fangs I ripped a gash open in my wrist and shoved it into
his mouth, savoring the pain I caused myself, which abated far too quickly.
"Drink from me and live forever!" I shouted hoarsely. It was hard to get that line out
without laughing, but at a time like this, a little melodrama just seemed...well...necessary.
And my victim...no, my new fledgling...drank. His desire to live drove him, I suppose, and
he greedily lapped at my arm, growing stronger as he changed.
Eventually, I pushed him away and he rolled across the stage, his body twisting and
convulsing. He screamed and shrieked while he died....and then he lay still. I squatted on
the stage, still holding my wrist, even though my self-inflicted wound had already healed. I
looked from him to the four who still sat in the front row. They had been stunned into
silence. One woman had her hand to her mouth, her wide blue eyes filled with tears. I
slowly rose to my feet and turned to look at the man who lay upon the stage.
Suddenly he sat up, and he looked at me with a new understanding. He smiled, then
carefully, slowly, in the manner of one who has been ill and is still weak, brought himself
to his knees. He crawled over to me and sat at my feet, as close as he could without
touching me. He looked over at Louis...and the girl...yes, the girl...with longing in his
eyes. His fledgling hunger was already beginning.
He looked up at me... "Master," he said.
I reached down and stroked his hair. "Good...you know your place already, my child.
And...everything you desire...will be yours."
Together the both of us looked back at our little mortal audience, and suddenly they all
burst into applause.
The sound of his arrival, though I knew not exactly when that might have truly been,
startled me into the present...I stopped in my steps and looked to him, making no motion
to move away as he came upon the stage...
It began then...I could feel every part of me tense as he called the first two up...now would
be the moment I had wished would never be...
I, of course, caught the young woman he had pushed in my direction, my hands fastening
around her arms as I held her in place before me...the guilt came into play again as I
listened to Santiago's words, and I found myself whispering, “I'm sorry...so very sorry for
this...” but I didn't even know if she heard me...her attention seemingly on what lay before
us...
My breath locked, eyes growing wide as he took the young man so viciously...I glanced
over to the ones who remained seated, seeing the look of shock in their expressions, but
yet, no one dared move...my attention then turned back to the young woman whom I held
so tightly against me, pondering then whether or not to release her, to tell her to run, to
leave this place and forget she ever set foot here...but I knew, that if I attempted such a
thing, his wrath would turn on me...
The deed had been done, and now his offering would come...I felt myself cringe at the
words he spoke, having heard them from one so familiar to me before...
The scene was horrific to me as I watched the man drink from him so eagerly...it was just
a matter of time now...yes...just a matter of time...
Moments later, his transformation was complete...new eyes fixed on the mortals in the
front row...those same eyes turning to me then, and to the young woman in my grasp...
“No...” I whispered, “I cannot do this...” But no sooner had I uttered those words when
the applause sounded...I looked in confusion over to the tiny crowd...not understanding at
first why it was taking place...but then it sunk in...they believed this to be part of the
show...an act performed to entertain them...could they not see the horror of it?...were they
truly so naive?...
“My God...they think this is a game...” I whispered a third time...but she heard me then,
for her head snapped back to me, eyes registering sudden panic...my gaze met hers and she
began to struggle. “No...no please...don't fight...it will only make it worse for you...” The
color drained from her face as she stared back at me.
"This is real?...Monsieur Louis?...this is real?"
I did not know how to answer her, but had I tried to veil it with words of falsity, she
would surely see through them anyway...my expression alone giving away the truth.
Yes, mademoiselle...” I responded miserably. “I'm afraid it is very real...”
I lifted my eyes from her and shifted them towards Santiago...so pleased he looked in his
accomplishment...one had now been made...five others remained...but I was already
overridden with the guilt in having lured them to this place...the nightmare had only just
begun.
I bowed to my little audience, unable to hold back laughter from bubbling over my lips. It
echoed throughout the small theatre, and the firstmade, my eager new fledgling, closed his
eyes as if the sound brought him to ecstasy.
I glanced over at Louis as if I had a need for his approval...or at very least, a need to see
his face stamped with horror over the drama which had only just commenced. The first act
had been played...there were several more to go on this night.
He was suitably horrified, as was the girl he held. Why was she not applauding with the
others? My eyes met his, and narrowed.
What have you said to her?
Trembling in his grip, she looked tenderly young and innocent. She was a true beauty and
the sight of her terror was enough to drive my hunger to an aching pitch. I looked directly
into her eyes and smiled somewhat harshly. Too bad she would not be mine to taste.
With one final, warning glance at Louis, I spun back to the remaining humans.
"You!" I pointed a long, white finger at the girl with the blue eyes, the one who had wept
at my performance. "Come to me...come to meet your Death..."
She stood shakily, a small case of stage fright perhaps, looking at me with an awe reserved
for celebrities...and vampires. I tried to tame my expression to a gentle smile, and opened
my arms wide to her.
She ran to me, nearly tripping in her haste to join me on the stage. I wrapped her into my
embrace, inhaling deeply the clean, mortal scent of her. She clung to me, warm and
anxious. I stroked her long brown hair, savoring its silky feel. Then I twisted it about my
hand and drew her head back so I could look into those blue eyes.
"Mister Santiago--" she whispered, hardly moving her mouth. This surprised me so much I
almost let go of her.
"Just Santiago."
"Santiago--"
"Yes, my dear?"
"I'm not sure how to play this. I'm so bad at improv-- But, I do, really want the part, and...
Well, I need to know, what's my motivation?"
"Why...this is your death scene, my sweet. Put your heart into it."
I bit into her throat. She immediately began to scream and yell and moan as well as to
struggle in my arms--and I regretted my flippant words. Did I really want to keep this
melodramatic broad around?
Then again, perhaps her screams were real. I did not go out of my way to show her any
mercy, to lessen her pain, to allow her to enjoy her transformation. The more she
screamed, the harder I chewed into her. When she was all but dead, I dropped her onto
the stage. She fell with a pleasing thunk.
I looked down at her, then at the diminishing audience, both of whom seemed perplexed.
"Shall she live...or die? Shall Death be merciful?"
"Mercy!" shouted one of the remaining men.
"Yes, show mercy!" added the last girl. But they still thought it was play.
"Aha, my friends...the question is now...is it more merciful to save her...or to let her die?"
I shouted, gesturing to the dying woman on the stage.
There was a thunderous moment of silence, then, the girl who Louis still held said quietly,
"Let her die."
I knew then, that he had given her the truth, and I turned to give him a searing look. But I
would deal with him later.
I knelt down as lightly as a cat, once more ripped open my wrist, and once more bestowed
the Dark Gift. When the blue-eyed girl revived, she looked at me in confusion, aware that
she had changed but not quite sure into what.
"Mind your Sister," I told my first fledgling, and he took her hand to lead her aside so I
could deal with the other four mortals.
One and two, the next man, the next woman, and these mortals came willingly. A tension
began to grow in the air, as it began to become clear to them that they were signing a
contract with the devil. The woman with the red hair was positively giddy over what she
had become. And she looked at me with a certain lust and admiration...I knew she would
be my favorite of this new brood.
One man remained, along with the beautiful girl in Louis' arms. He stood up nervously.
"You know, Mr. Santiago--"
"Just...Santiago," I said. "Or you may call me Master." My four new fledglings laughed.
"Yeah. Well, I don't think I'm cut out for this gig, so, if it's all the same to you, I'm going
to split."
"Oh, but it's not all the same to me," I said. I turned to my four. "Bring him to me."
He took a step backwards, knocking into his seat and nearly falling over. My fledglings
leapt, crawled and slithered from the stage, testing their preternatural strength.
The mortal turned tail and began to run, but he was easily cornered.
Easily captured.
They carried him to me, held him down while I turned him. I assigned my firstmade to
watch over him. Those made vampire against their will were sometimes...angry...with their
makers.
And then, only the most beautiful girl remained. I turned towards Louis...
"Are you ready, my lovely?" I asked her. Clearly, she could see that there was no escape,
as the others were already at my command. I held out a hand to her, gesturing to Louis to
bring her to me.
I averted my gaze as Santiago looked to me that second time, realizing the mistake I had
made in letting the young woman hear me...he would remember this, I'm sure...even if still
yet, he was not entirely certain I had given the secret away...
Oh but that time came soon enough...
Silence ran through the auditorium...he had asked the question, the girl I held,
answered...her response giving clear indication to what she knew to be true...words can
not describe what I felt as he looked to me once more...I would come to pay for this...
he had taken them all, save for the one I had in my grasp...but now it was to be her
turn...no I whispered within my tortured mind as he beckoned me to bring her
forth...though it was more a plea rather than outright defiance...was it not enough that I
had brought them all to meet a fate worse than death?...now he expected me to hand her
forth, without hesitation...I could not...
She apparently sensed that struggle too...for it was then that she turned to me, seeking
help in one responsible that placed her in this situation to begin with...I could not take the
look of terror in her eyes...nor the way her tiny form trembled in my hands...squeezing my
eyes tightly shut, my pleading began again in a whisper, “please...no...”
Her hands clutched at my shirt, my eyes sprang back open.
"Please monsieur Louis...save me...save me..."
A thousand years could pass and I would never forget the first time I heard another make
that same desperate plea...save me...save me...save me...it rang through my mind like a
cancer...eating away at every cell...
The suffering inside was so clearly evident as I stared at her almost disbelievingly at
hearing those words...now it was I who tried to wrench myself away from the hold she
had of me, and still she clung, sinking to her knees, her hands holding tightly to the fabric
of my shirt, stretching it with her as she fell...eyes filled with tears staring wildly up at
me...my god how much this seemed like a slip back in time...only then the monster calling
for a victim had been a golden one...
“I have to do this...” I answered her in a tone laced with despondence. “Have to...”
I closed my eyes and pulled her up to me, the screams she produced as she fought against
me, almost more than I could bear...but I held tightly, dragging her over to where
Santiago stood...my own tears now invading me as they welled.
“Here...” I whispered, opening them slowly again to look to him, bitterness and pain
sounding as I spoke. “Here is your final puppet...”
"You never make things easy on yourself, do you?" I remarked to Louis as he dragged the
screaming, pleading girl over to me. "She's going to suffer, now...and it's all your fault."
It was hard not to laugh, and I certainly couldn't conceal my smile. I looked at the girl,
who was really a mess. Her lovely face was smeared with her tears, her terror widening
her eyes and her nostrils, like an animal.
"My poor child, you are begging the wrong creature for help," I said spitefully to her. She
clung to Louis with both hands, and although he had hauled her close to me, his arms were
still around her. "I am his Master...just as I am Master to these others..." I gestured to my
new fledglings, "And just as I am your Master."
"No...no..." she whimpered.
"Yes, yes..." I paused. She continued crying and Louis continued looking as tortured as
usual. "Aren't you going to beg me for mercy?" I asked.
"You-- you don't have any," she gasped.
I laughed. "Oh, my dear...you have read me all wrong. If you don't want to be
here...you're free to go."
She looked at me disbelievingly...well, I couldn't blame her for that.
"What?" she whispered. I put my hand out to touch her soft, warm cheek. She shrunk
back from my touch, and I quickly withdrew.
"Louis, let go of her. She can go." I waved my hand towards the steps of the stage.
Slowly, she began to back away from Louis towards them...and then she began to run for
the exit of the theatre.
I turned back towards my fledglings. "My little ones...you must be hungry."
I nodded towards the girl.
Laughing and howling, the pack flew from the stage, moving almost as one. Even the one
who had been turned against his will could not resist the call of blood. What a marvelous
crew they would make for my theatre! The five of them descended upon her, chasing her
down a row, until the cornered her in the far aisle. She knew she was trapped...knew she
had been decieved.
She looked over at me, I caught one glimpse of that pale, frightened face, the accusing
eyes, and underneath it...the resignment...
And then they swarmed over her like a mob of locusts. I could hear them ripping hungrily
into her flesh, saw bits of clothing flying out as it was torn from her, heard her screaming
and screaming...
...until abruptly, the screaming stopped, and all that could be heard was a chorus of
slurping and sucking noises as my five baby vampires drained every ounce of blood from
their first kill.
“No...God no...” I whispered helplessly, knowing what was about to unfold...A moment
later they descended upon her...I reached up with both hands, gripping onto my hair as I
turned away...But even as I squeezed my eyes tightly shut, closing myself to the vision I
had just seen, I could not block out the sounds of her screaming...
“Stop...stop...”I said over and over again, trying desperately to drown it all out...Then it
ended, the only sounds heard were their feasting...It sickened me as I listened, clamping
my hands over my ears...Such a futile gesture it was, for I still heard every slurp made...
I turned suddenly to Santiago, both anger and pain etched into my features...forgetting for
the moment just how careful I needed to be with him, “Damn you!...And you try to say it
is my fault that she suffers now!...did suffer...It would have been kinder for you to do to
her as you did with the rest!...She was an innocent!...far less deserving than any of the
others!...Most certainly did not deserve to die!...”
I stormed from that stage, hurrying up the center aisle as they continued their taking...One
by one, I pulled them from her, tossing each one aside, the blood still dripping from their
lips.
“That is enough!” I shouted, the anger clearly written in eyes that had gone from deep
emerald to blazing fury, “There is no more blood left to take!”
All stared at me as though in shock before their gazes shifted to their new Master in
question...unable to comprehend the behavior of this seemingly irrational young
vampire...But I did not care...the anger and suffering was engulfing me...How was I to do
this?...To watch night after night the death of another mortal in the name of
"entertainment"?
My laughter echoed through the small theatre as Louis leapt from the stage to do his
battle.
My lips curved into a half smile as I watched him. I wondered if he would kill them, my
new brood. He could easily have snapped their weak little necks, for they were hardly
more than human, just fledglings.
"He's right!" I cried to them. "There is no more left to take, my little ones...from her. But
there will be others...many others...every night from now...until eternity. And now...it is
close to dawn. You must hide yourselves. And tomorrow at midnight, return here
for...rehearsal.
"You and you." I pointed out the first made and the redhaired woman. "You will take the
corpse. It must not be found."
I waited for them to leave...and when they had gone, each backing away from Louis with a
certain fear that I found both amusing, and promising, dragging the corpse of the girl with
them, I looked at Louis.
With inhuman speed I moved from the stage to within an inch of him. We were about the
same height, so I found myself gazing directly into those emerald eyes, still burning with
emotion.
"Such an interesting reaction, my dear Monsieur de Pointe du Lac," I said. "Would it
really have been kinder to make her as we are now? To make her a murderer, when she
did not want to be one? The others...perhaps they were tricked...or forced... But how
quickly they accepted. How quickly they were willing to trade their mortality for
fame...for fortune and glory."
I leaned close to him. "You and I both know...she would never have accepted it. And you
and I both know the way it is with our kind. Mortals die. To think I only allowed them one
kill split between the five of them...was that not considerate of your sensibilities?"
I straightened and clapped him good-naturedly on the shoulder. "Now, enough. Our work
is through for the night. Tomorrow at midnight I shall put them through their paces--and
you as well, dear boy, for you are to act as well! Rehearsal shall take place for three weeks
time, I think. And then...opening night."
I stared at him hatefully, the anger refusing to subside. “I am finished!” I whispered
harshly as I leaned towards him. “I will not be a part of something so despicable that will
bring death to those so innocent! Do what you will with the money I have made available
to you...but I am through!” I turned from him then, the palms of my hands pressing against
the heavy doors forcefully to push them open...
But then I stopped, resting my forehead in between those hands which remained against
the doors, eyes closing tightly in realization that if I were to indeed follow through with
this, I would be the one to meet my death...
Reluctantly, I turned back towards him, the anguish so clearly seen in the expression of my
face...My usual manner returning as that rage finally began to melt away, replacing itself
with only misery once again, I bowed my head as I spoke, words barely able to be heard.
“I will be here by midnight...I will do each rehearsal that you require...I shall be there
opening night...Everything you wish, I shall do...”
Without waiting for him to answer, I hurried from the theatre before I had to listen to the
triumphant laughter I was certain would follow...And I waited, waited for that next night
to fall, painfully aware of all that would take place from now on...
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