Vlad

A young looking man with pale skin, long black hair with a single white streak traveling along the side and over his left ear, rests his well manicured hands on the arms of a black velvet chair. He turns only slightly to the left to catch you curiously staring at his long and slender fingers as they drum a bored repetitious tune. As you look up into his eyes, you are instantly swayed! He motions for you to sit across from him. Naturally you can't resist and do as instructed. Then you notice that his eyes are an odd mix of black cornea, red iris and white pin-prick pupils. His angular jaw seems relaxed as the strange gentleman smiles at you. "Do you know who I am?" He asks. You can not reply, simply shaking your head was all you could muster. His eyes begin to become radiant as he leans forward to whisper in your ear, "would you like to hear of my beginnings in the world?" Nervous and a little frightened, you involuntarily nod. He beckons for a waitress, whispers something to her and motions her away. A few seconds later she returns with a large pitcher of your favorite drink. Then he licks his lips, smiles and begins his tale:

"As it has always been, so shall it always be." These were the first words to fall upon my ears as I began my new life as a creature of darkness. My master, Mazzikin, brought me into this world for a singular goal: to reign terror upon humanity. Unfortunately for him, I had other plans (as I often did, even when I was alive). I began my pathetically short human existence as a child of a poor family. I was the sixth born son of the sixth born son. My father, a ruthless mercenary, marked me for death the day I was born. The mystics told him I would be his undoing, and he in turn would be mine. I believe their exact words were "the son will destroy the father and the father would cleanse the son". In those days "cleansed" usually meant death. It was a simpler time, with barely a million humans inhabiting the world. As my infancy turned to childhood, and again to adolescence, my father on repeated occasions attempted to end me through "training" accidents where he used weapons and I did not. Time and time again, he tried and failed, though I carried the scars of his misdeeds, still I lived on.

Then on the eve of my proving period, where I was to become a man in the eyes of our tribe, one of the dark mystics crept into our camp and secreted me away. He told me of my destiny with Mazzikin, but I refused to believe. I slew the mystic without hesitation or fear of reprisal, for the best assassin in all the land had trained me from early childhood. Unknown to me, an essence passed into me from the mystic, and thus everything he had told me would happen was set in motion. I began seeing horrifying images of a plague that would eventually ravage the earth and "bleed" it dry.

These images were of humanity and their rise to dominance in the world of creatures. They possessed an unique ability to collectively "will" something into extinction, if they couldn't destroy it outright. By simply turning their minds and hearts away from any specific group of targets and make others do the same, these humans were able to eliminate their competition for the seat of authority in the world of men. It started simply enough with ignoring the dragons, and soon the dragons became fewer and fewer till only legends, told as fairy tales, existed in their place. The same was done to the elves and trolls and other "demihumans" as they were deemed.

Of course, I am getting ahead of myself. Most of this didn't begin to happen till after I met Mazzikin. It was on the fullest point in the cycle of the moon, while my mind was constantly being plagued by these images. These images were so horrific, I couldn't bear to close my eyes, let alone sleep. We all know what happens when one does not sleep for a period of time. I was slowly being driven mad! I was out for a stroll, hoping to be cut down by my father's next attempt. Instead, I saw a stranger on the outskirts of our territory. He turned away from me and vanished. I, in a mad attempt to prove my mind wasn't giving way, raced towards his last known location.

It was like he was playing with me, each time I turned a bend or made it over a hill, he was just over the next hill or bend. Yet the whole time, he appeared to be walking. Finally, I gave in to my madness and began screaming like a wild beast, unleashing my inner rage. He continued to elude me, driving what was left of my humanity further into the pits of delirium. It wasn't until I reached the highest hill before the great mountain pass, that I caught up to him. There the moon showed its full radiance and judgmental glare. Out of nowhere in particular, Mazzikin appeared behind me. He softly placed one hand on my shoulder and just like that, the madness was erased from me. Half astonished, half bewildered I fell to my knees and, for the first time in my pathetic existence as a human, I wept like a scared child.

He knelt beside me and whispered "There there child of mine, no harm will come to you. I am here to bring you into the world as you should be!" Like a bolt of lightening, everything became so vividly clear. The mystics were only half right, "the father will cleanse the son". In an instant the father of hatred and darkness, of all things disreputable and disturbing, took my mortal life away. As the world grew dim, I distinctly remember thinking "those damned mystics got it wrong!" Then there was darkness, a bitter cold and a void so vast that nothing could ever fill it........then, LIFE! Ah it was like being born all over again, only there was no pain, no tears, just the hunger.

The hunger for more life! My sight returned to me in a haze of blood and guts amid screaming, tortured cries. I instinctively surveyed the land about me and to my amazement; I was in my tribe's camp! Bodies strewn across the landscape like leaves in autumn and there before me, sniveling like a infant, my mortal father! Blind rage and a hunger that could not be denied had set in when I was reborn into this world. The words of my real father echoed in my mind "As it has always been, so shall it always be."

A moment more and my mortal ties were severed with ravenous claws and fangs, like some wild out of control beast. I reveled in it, I bathed in their blood and various juices which flowed like a waterfall. I was satisfied, for the moment at least. Then my master called to me and hid me from the dawn. Through the next millennium, my master taught me how to control my thirst, taught me how to hunt, and most importantly; taught me how to continue to exist! This was his undoing and the second part or rather the first part of the mystics prophecy came to pass.

During an eclipse, my master's only time of weakness, I slew him and drained him of everything he had, liquids, essence, everything. His last words still haunt me today: "thank you child, now you can roam this rock and watch as humanity corrupts it and destroys it and themselves!" It took another millennium or so before his words began to ring true. Try as I did, I could not extinguish these vermin, for what then would I eat? These humans had already ceased the existence of all others aside from beasts and I'll not lower myself to devouring beasts unless it is the only way to survive. So I go out each night, when I'm hungry, and "snack" on a few humans here and there, usually not enough to leave a trail. Then it is back to my eternal wandering and everlasting education of the cosmos.

As the last few words echo through your mind, you blink repeatedly as if trying to wake from a dream or nightmare and the stranger was gone. Then you turn toward the window to notice that sun is beginning to rise.