Halloween Quest: David's Story
Ouch. This is painfully long. Almost two in one. But my voice must be heard! I wanted a complete prologue for that game (which I bet none of you have heard of except those who come for the FanFic Contest).
Rated PG for scary moments some sensuality, and like, three swear words
I am David. I made decent pay, it got myself and my family by. I was an honest man, with an honest wife. I loved my two sons. But I have done terrible things, horrible things. This is why, why I have done them. This is my story of woe.
It was a quiet night, the night my second son was to be born. I had to work, and now I was rushing to the hospital. I needed to be there, he was to be my son. The highway was clogged, so I was taking a shortcut on a back road few used or knew about. Silent, dead air surrounded me as I went fifty on a thirty speed road, caring less as long as I could get to my son. But the silent darkness was overbearing, with a certain edge to it. I was being lulled to sleep in my hurry. My head nodded.
Something darted in front of the car. I slammed on the brakes and twisted the wheel. The car skidded on the unpaved gravel. I lost control. I didn't even have time to scream before the car thudded off the road and slammed into a tree. But instead of flying out the windshield, I was stopped by the seatbelt. It bit into my shoulder and waist as my body was compelled forward. Momentum decided that it would let me off with a smack on the dashboard.
I don't know how long I was out, but it was still dark outside when I came to. The horn was blaring from constant pressure. My head throbbed painfully from the noise. I tried to lift my body. That sent waves of pain through my head. I moaned, but managed to sit up. The horn stopped, but didn't stop ringing in my ears. I tried to lift my hand to my head, to check the damage. I faintly touched it and convulsed, I had touched bone.
I fumbled for the door handle, I had to get out of this death trap. The door swung open with a click. I began to get out and was stopped my the seatbelt. A gasp of annoyance as I undid myself from the seatbelt and stepped out of the car. I stumbled a few steps, head about ready to burst, but then I looked back. The front end was damaged beyond repair, that car would never be used again. I turned away.
I didn't know what to do or where I was even going, just down the road, just down the road there might be something that will help me. I walked on, slipping on gravel and tripping almost every step. Luckily I never fell, if I did I might have never rose again. No other cars passed, I was completely alone.
Or so it seemed.
After maybe one, ten, or sixty minutes, I heard a crunch of feet on gravel. It took me another minute to think, no, those weren't my feet, those were someone else's. But from where? My sense of direction was shot, I couldn't tell where the footsteps were coming from, neither in front nor behind. I stopped, the footsteps continued.
"H-hello?" I called, my voice shockingly small and weak, "Is someone there?"
No one answered, but the footsteps continued.
Catchk. Catchk. Catchk. Catchk. A regular, slow beat against the dirt and gravel road.
"Hello? Hello?" I asked again.
Catchk. Catchk. Catchk. Silence. Only the thumping of my heart was heard to me. I started to walk again, then froze.
A cold, cold hand was on my face, caressing my right cheek.
"My, my," said a voice as icy as it's hand, " what do we have here?" The hand moved back and played with my hair, "All alone here at night, how lucky for me."
I was scared stiff, I was even shocked at my self when I muttered, "Wh-who are…?" I wasn't able to finish, I was cut off by it's soft laugh.
"Who am I?" the hand grabbed my hair while another hand tightened left arm. I cried out in pain as it's long nails dug into my skin. My had was jerked suddenly to the right, making my head throb and pound. But that was the least of my problems as fangs sunk into my exposed neck. He didn't have to suck, it gushed right into him. All my blood pumped out of my neck and into his gullet. After a minute that took and hour, he stopped. I was dry, bloodless, and limp. He released his death grip and laughed that dark, quiet laugh of his.
"Does that answer your question, David?"
One last shock before I hit the ground.
"Doctor, he's coming to," sang the voice. I couldn't open my eyes, they were like lead, sewn shut almost. Where was I? Hell? No, that voice sounded soft and lovely, almost like Martha's, like my wife's. I forced my eyes to open. It was dim, it was still before dawn.
It wasn't her, wasn't Martha, it was a nurse. But she was moving away and the doctor loomed over me in his white coat.
"Wh-what happened?" I asked through parched lips, I was incredibly thirsty. The door clicked shut, the nurse had left.
"You got in a car accident, David," the doctor said, "That is your name, right?"
Car accident? I had forgotten all about that! My hand shot to my neck.
"Please," the doctor said, "refrain from movement, David"
"B-but," I muttered, lips cracking, "my neck…blood…are there…?"
"No, there are no wounds on your neck, or at all. You are lucky, only a concussion got to you."
What was he saying? There was a hole in my head, a big hole that I felt bone on…My hand dashed top my head, there was nothing there either…what had happened? Did I have a nightmare? In a concussion? Not likely, what had happened? I sat up.
"David, you might knock yourself out again, please, lie down."
I jumped out of bed, no pain, none at all. I was perfectly fine. Again, what had happened? "My son is being born, I have to go see him, please doctor?"
"Lie down until we know your alright, you can see your son later" the doctor touched me, I changed.
I wish I could say I blacked out again. I wish I could say that I had no idea what I was doing, that some invisible force took over my body and I watched helplessly, but that's not how it was. I wanted to with all my mind, no resistance at all.
I turned on him, eyes wide. He saw something in there and backed away, but I advanced. I had to fulfill this thirst, and he was the best one around. He ran into a wall. I grinned a wide, bloodthirsty smile.
"Ah, good doctor," I said in a snide voice that was a twisted version of my own, "Try and stop me, eh?" I grabbed both his arms, "Ha, too bad for you." I dug my teeth into his neck.
Luscious red blood squirted between my teeth and down my throat. I gulped it all down. It was what I was thirsty for, that beautiful red blood, I made sure to drink it all. I drank the doctor dry and let him fall to the floor. I stepped back and changed again.
I was in a panic. What had I done?! I had killed a man, his blood was on my lips, between my teeth, in my stomach.
I ran out of the room at a speed no human could match. I ran right into a hospital bathroom. Straight for the sink to wash off my hands. I turned on the water and saw…there was no blood on my hands. I wiped my mouth. Looked at my clothes. Blood had gone everywhere, but there was none to be seen. I had absorbed it all. It lay still warm inside of me. I grasped my gut, all warm right here.
I glanced up at the mirror, dreading what I'd see.
Nothing was there, nothing at all.
I threw up, but no blood came with it, it all remained inside of me, refusing to come out. I wiped off my face. Was it safe to still see Martha? To see either son? What if I did the same thing? What if I drained them of blood just to fill my lust?
I kneeled before my pool of sick, and thought, I had to see him, I had to see my son, raise him, just a little, then I would leave.
It took me a while to find the right room, It took till after dawn. Everyone was frantic around the hospital when the found the doctor's body, and I was stopped and searched several times. But when I finally found the room, I sighed in relief Martha was there and the baby was asleep in her arms. She looked up from her child.
"David!" she exclaimed, "You finally made it!"
"Yeah," I said softly, "Sorry I'm late, but I had a really bad night."
"When you didn't come I thought that killer got you, the one who got that doctor," she said softly, then smiled, "But here you are! I knew you'd make it, eventually.
"David, this is Maxwell," she raised up our baby a little, "Max, this is your daddy." Max kept sleeping peacefully. He was so little, with a shock of brown hair on his head.
"That's two sons without my hair color," I smiled. My son, Max. Maybe I could stay forever. I pushed this night's memories away for now and just sat with my family. I needed the peace.
Sadly, peace does not last long. I could tell when the possession would come and I would get out of the house immediately so I wouldn't put any of them in danger. Years passed, Max grew, but he was still to young to have his father leave. That night I had no choice.
We were having a dinner party that night, and I couldn't leave, even though the thirst was rising in me. So I suffered and tried to resist. I was able to last most of the night. When they were all gone I tried to slip out through the kitchen, but Martha caught me.
"Where are you going, David?" she smiled, "Trying to escape doing dishes? You were sweating all through dinner!"
"No, I uh…" I fumbled with my words, trying to come up with an excuse, "Forgot to do something at work, I have to go back and do it."
"That won't work, David, come help me with these dishes."
"Isn't that Josh's job?" I whined. I didn't want to be here when I snapped.
"Oh, dear, I need to talk to you anyway."
She grabbed me by the arm, and I changed, like so many kills before.
"Talk?" I said, "Why not talk with our bodies?" I dragged her to the floor and started kissing her madly.
"Mph, dear?!" she gasped as I stuck my tongue in her mouth.
"Mmmm, come on baby, don't resist it," I said as I got my hands busy on her breasts.
"David!" she gasped, then she bitch-slapped me.
The hand stung on my face. She scrambled out from underneath me.
I stroked my face, "Ow, that hurt, you whore!" I shot up, "Now you-"
A frying pan slammed into my face.
I crumple to the floor, my senses regained, the thirst only gone temporarily.
"Martha…" I uttered, "I can't stay anymore."
She panted, hands gripping the frying pan, "What the hell was that?!"
"I never told you, what happened that night, the night Max was born…"
She paused in her breathing.
"I'm a vampire, I've killed again and again, now I have to leave. I can't put any of you in danger any more."
She didn't say anything, and I left. I stumbled out of the kitchen and into the hallway. A packet of freshly developed Polaroids were sitting on the side table. I picked them up and flipped through until I found the picture I wanted Josh and Max by the pond, and me in the background with no reflection.
I took nothing else with me, this was all I needed, so I never lost myself to despair, my two sons were growing up, happily as possible. Wither that be true or not, that was the one lie I'd hold onto as I walked right out the door.
End