Chapter 103: The house of cards crumbles

Having just escaped the clutches of fledglings, I take the time to have a break. Mind tired from all the babysitting. No one ever said raising vampires was such a pain. Sending a letter to Cassie, to which she replies quickly. Simply asking if I could visit. With acceptance in reply, I am off.

Finding myself at her door in moments. I knock with my normal crisp tone. It doesn’t take long before I hear the familiar scuttling of feet behind the door. It opens to a casually dressed Cassie. Her blond hair in a bun, loose-fitting clothes over her. Green eyes graze over me in curiosity.

“Hey, how are you? come in.” She says while turning towards her sofa. I follow, closing the door behind me. Sitting by her side.

“Bit late today.” Said in a light tone.

“I am currently restricted to night time at the moment, a current project.”

“What kind of project involves only working at night?”

Words stuck in my throat, “Screw it, vampirism.” I say to myself and then to her.

She blinks before looking deeply into my eyes. “You do look a little pale; I thought they were a myth.”

“They were; I resurrected them.”

“Assuming you're telling the truth and not messing with me.” She says, looking at me with mental calculations known only to her. “Why would you resurrect an ancient monster, much less become one.”

“They aren’t monsters, and I did it because I was asked to.”

She laughs slightly, “Who would ask you to resurrect them? That sounds crazy.” Holding her belly jokingly.

“You… wouldn’t believe me,” I say with a tinge of embarrassment. Cheeks reddening even through my pale skin.

She looks at me with a more serious face. “Wait, you're not joking.” Sitting up straight as a wooden spike.

“No…” Tapping suddenly quickening.

“Show me your fangs!” Piercing gaze unnerving me.

“Do I have to?”

“Now!” I shrink back at her tone.

I slowly open my mouth. Revealing 4 fangs. My other 4 fangs appear during my advanced transformation. Courtesy of Lilith I can't figure out if it’s a good or bad thing.

Looking at Cassie with broiling anxiety in my chest. “Please don’t react badly, please.” I pray internally. She sits back, a look of contemplation on her face.

“Who told you?”

Didn’t expect that; I expected running, shouting, and fear of death.

“A God.”

“Tell you what, instead of going down that rabbit hole. Tell me why I shouldn’t run right now.”

“Well, I have sat next to you this entire time without hurting you.”

She nods slightly, “next.” Tapping the table with my fingers,

“I made sure only good souls became vampires to stop the mass slaughter and allow the weak a second chance.”

“Elaborate.” She says in a softer tone. My tapping slowing slightly.

I feel slightly short of breath. Weird, given I don’t need to breathe. “People who are crippled, unable to walk, good souls who are trapped in their flesh. Also, people who want the power to save rather than kill.”

She falls back, deep into her sofa. “This is crazy.” She says with an absent look on her face.

“I have something I can add. It will either make it better or worse.” Tensing slightly as I ponder over my words.

“Spit it out.” She says with a quiet whisper.

“I have a human body too; I can switch between them.”

“Aeternum, who the fuck are you!?”

“What?”

“I put most things out of mind. Allowing the bliss of ignorance to allow me to enjoy your company. But weird stuff surrounds you, so I ask again. Who the fuck are you? A prince of a foreign kingdom?” Her hands gripping the fabric of the sofa with great force.

Startled at her forthrightness. “If I come clean, can you save judgment until I am finished?” Biting my lip to distract myself from my emotions.

“Well, I have nothing better to do.” She says while throwing her hands up. Sitting back, putting some reading glasses on, and peering through me. “I am all ears.”

“Why do you need glasses to listen?”

She looks down in thought for a moment, the slightest bloom of red on her cheeks. “It doesn’t matter; spit out your story.”

“Fine, I am not from this world. I was born on a world called Earth…”

I spoke for over an hour, telling her what happened to me. I then used the following hour to tell her every detail of earth I could possibly think of.

“So, this Hitler guy, he really hated...”

“The jews?”

“Yes, and he ended up killing so many, we tell of it until this day.”

“We didn’t have magic or a crafting table.”

“What, how did you survive in a world without magic and not get eaten.”

“We didn’t have eldritch monsters, just large carnivores. Completely different playing field compared to here.”

“Can you tell me more about the space race?”

“Sure, you have 2 groups. The US and Russia, both very competitive. They agreed on a goal, the moon. All rushing towards…”

“Some thought it was fake, but basic analysis of light reveals people are full of it.”

“So, why did people still think the earth was flat, with a giant easily accessible bubble of information, everyone could access.”

“Unlimited information is useless if you're stupid.” That got a chuckle from Cassie.

“Why haven’t you told anyone, and why me?” Her tone finally normal, to my great relief.

“Well, because… I was scared.” Voice stuttering in nervousness. “I was scared even telling you. I am scared even admitting it. But I want to build something with you; I can't do it on a lie.” Feeling my eyes get watery.

“Okay.” She says in her caring and sweet voice.

We sit there in appreciable silence. No words needed.

I look over at her pretty face, contorted in concentration. Brows raised slightly with focused eyes. I can only pray she takes all this well. I didn’t come here today expecting to spill the beans.

I didn’t realize how much pressure was behind the emotional dam.

My heart light as a feather, the pressure released like a balloon taut with air popped with a needle. After a very long while, she speaks to me.

“Aeternum.” She says with a sigh trailing the name. “I will give you your chance. But no more lies.”

“Technically, they weren’t lie…”

“Or pedantic.” She interjects. An evil smile covering her face, one I dare not cross.

“Okay,” I say with both joy and relief.

We share an intimate hug. Her thoughts unknown to me, her emotions a mystery.

Yet, I know what I feel; I feel a radiant joy spreading through me. A storm of relief washing away my lingering anxiety; I am happy.

The hug didn’t last nearly as long as I would have liked. Parting in sadness. “Go head home; I will see you tomorrow.” She speaks. A tone telling me I ‘will’ see her tomorrow; no arguments.

“Okay, good night,” I say, sharing the quickest of kisses. I head home; emotions a tangled web of confusion. Finding myself inside my castle; I head to bed. Switching to a more human form before falling into a deep slumber. I have a date tomorrow afternoon, or an interrogation. Not sure which yet.

Just like a blink, I was awake, and it was morning. Finding the sun painful to look at. Having spent so much time as a vampire might have been a bad idea.

My thoughts were interrupted by a loud rumbling. It took me a moment to realize it was my stomach. “Complaining already?” I say with a laugh. Heading to my kitchen without incident. Instead of traps, Sling and Chic follow me to the kitchen. I play with them for a short time before heading into the white room.

Quickly preparing some jam on toast. Serving some to both my pets. They happily eat the meal. Sitting on my lap afterward. Chic sending waves of affection mentally in thanks.

Gently stroking their thorax while throwing a ball for Sling. Who eats it, wobbles back over, and then throws it up into my hand? Gross, but I will put up with it for Sling. If Chics' mind is foreign, Sling’s mind would be positively alien. A strange body type, different senses, a whole lot of difference. I imagine with so much difference, they think differently too… if they can think. “I think they can?” I say with a chuckle.

Otherwise, Sling would try and eat me; Which they don’t, suffocate, maybe? Kill, no. I say just as they jump on my shoulder. Nearly suffocating me then and there. Wrangling the slippery slime off my head. They jiggle away quickly after being thrown. “Trouble maker,” I say with a smile. Standing up. “Still a little hungry.”

“What should I eat?” I need something filling. “Boiled egg it is.” Omlet another day, for now, I have some boiled eggs. Making them a dash overcooked, a shame. Yet, with some salt, they were great. Eating a large number of boiled eggs. Saving the extra for sandwich filler.

With a full stomach, I head into town. Sun shining, I find the bright light peaceful. Not as painful as this morning, still potent but easier to stand under. Spotting some familiar faces among the crowd, I politely say hello to each of them. Giving them all a small moment of my time. I have nothing to this morning anyway. Well, technically, I could be working on my cult, but that would cost me the day.

So, with joyful glee, I skip across town. Face smiling, energy beaming, and mood soaring.”

I take some time to find a large tree. Setting up a platform, I settle into a comfortable chair. Removing my now expanded art supplies. Oil paints of every variety, a huge array of brushes. A massive canvas and a few other small slices of life items.

Closing my eyes, I attempt to fall into a peaceful state. Mind settling slightly; before I begin to paint. Using a thin brush, I paint large black cartoonish lines in mimicry of the buildings. Creating outlines of every large building and notable structure.

Filling in the outlines bit by bit. Wooden buildings with carved windows. Stone buildings with theIr mat grey walls. Large details I can spot from my vantage spot. Horse-drawn carriages pulled by horses and the odd person. Black figures in the shape of the person. Only people who stood still, so I could gather that little bit from each of them.

I focused a lot of time on the sky. A baby blue with candy floss like clouds. I added a few birds, black figures dotting the sky. The occasional tree sprouts through the monotony of grey from the town; it breaks up the landscape.

Having spent many hours on the painting, it slowly came into clarity. It’s not a masterpiece, not by a long shot. Too large a painting for too little detail. But that’s fine, it was the process not the result.

Enjoying my terrible painting, I carefully place it into my bag of holding. Packing up my art supplies with considerable care. Hopping down from my perch to see a familiar figure flicker in a shadow – a scared enderman. His eyes meeting mine for moments before he was gone. “He hasn’t forgotten.”

Fighting the end is going to be… troublesome. Especially if this guy holds a grudge for so long. Maybe if I heal him, he will go away. I can't put it off forever, but I will damn well try.

Walking down the cobbled path, moss growing between cracks in the ground. I quickly find a food vendor selling some kind of honey bread. I didn’t really care what it was, only that it was sweet and I was hungry. So, without a second thought, I eat far too many calories. Saving a few for Cassie. Women love sweets normally. I hope she shares this trait.