The pain was excruciating. That was all I could remember. Those memories, the ones of who I was before, were too hazy to make out. I searched for them. I knew they were there. But there was too much room of my new self that I had to fill. Petty human memories meant nothing now.
I opened my eyes. The tiny movement felt wrong. At first I was still, then sprung to my feet in a half-crouch. Where was I? There was only a single candle burning, just a stub now. I was parched as well. More than parched, in fact. This burning in my throat was more than it should be.
Then I was at the door. It's wood was raw. My hand shot out in a disconcertingly swift way. I should have caught on to that, but I was still confused. The wood splintered at my touch. I stared in shock.
What the hell was going on? It was hardwood. Sturdy too, though it was of a basic model. More gingerly I nudged open the door. It swung open, hinges shrieking as they clung to the frame. My heart should be pounding, I realized. I paused, unmoving, waiting for the sound to reach my ears. But it never came.
Complete realization hit me like a wave.
I knew who I was now.
Small memories, the most recent it seemed, came back to me. They were still dull, the colours and sounds less known to me than they were now. I could see each shade of gray in the stone walls, the little dust motes that floated through the air. I could actually SEE.
With that, I shot forward. The wind bent with me, stirring up a cloud of leaves. I remembered where I was. Italy. 1880. Shortly after, much too soon, I stopped. A statue at the door of a new room.
A sudden torrent of anger washed over me. I had no control of myself as the scent reached me. Blood, boiling under tenderly soft skin...
I left the building in ruins. Pale, bloodless bodies strewn carelessly over chunks of fortress. At the corner of my eye I saw the pale blur, but I did nothing as the vampire fell into step beside me.
"I knew you were special," he murmured. "That is why I changed you, don't you understand?"
"I understand perfectly."
My voice. Too perfect, too beautiful. Delicate chimes on a soft breeze, intertwined with the song of a small bird. The monster beside me smiled.
"Of course. The others are waiting for us. Let's not make them impatient, shall we?"
Of course.