SHADOWS OF THE NIGHT 2/26/08—3/2/08
The shadows of the night whispered their way through the eerie night. The thin moon lit the darkness with its pale light. The silhouette trees kept bowing in the fierce wind, which sounded like invisible wolves howling in the night. Ephemeral creatures fluttered in the air, and fierce beasts lurked the ground. I sat on the bare forest floor, my knees drawn tightly up to my chin, shivering in the cold night air. I debated what to do. I couldn't go back; I would die. I couldn't stay in the woods; I would die. The only thing I could do was to make my way through the forest, hoping to find some sort of shelter. I stood up, shivering violently. Making my way through the crazed foliage, I finally reached the main road, a dirt path wide enough for little more than a single horse-drawn carriage. As I walked down the side of the path, I heard the sound of approaching horse hooves. I continued on, ignoring the impending company. The noise got louder now, probably only a few feet behind me.
"Who goes there?" a voice called out. I heard the horses slow down. I continued walking, ignoring the call.
"I say again, who goes there in this night of all nights?" I continued ignoring and continued walking. I heard the horses stop now, neighing softly. A soft thud sounded behind me, and two hands grabbed my shoulders. I was spun around, and met the face of an incredibly frightening man. He looked to be in his mid-forties. He too peered into my face, an odd look being painted across his brutally pale skin. He gave a slight jump and gasped. His eyes grew wide and his face grew even paler. Just as suddenly as his expression changed, it reverted back to its former calm expression.
"This is no night for a young lady to be outside in the cold without any lodgings." I shrugged, struggling to release myself from his grip. His clasp on my shoulder grew tighter.
"Let me go," I hissed, straining desperately to escape from him. My mind flashed scenes of midnight murders and the drunken damned. I shivered, terrified at who, and what, this man was.
"I can't let you go, young lady, it won't be right of me to do that. My conscience would plague me for leaving you out in the cold. Come with me. I provide you with shelter" he said, as he pulled me firmly, yet gently, to his carriage. He wrapped his arm around my waist and hoisted me atop the carriage, stepping up directly after me. Keeping his arm wrapped strongly around me, he raised his whip and the carriage lurched forward. The man sat perfectly silently, staring straight ahead, his eyes piercing the darkness. Suddenly he spoke up.
"What's your name?" he asked, without even looking at me. I stared at him for several minutes before finally answering.
"Beth." He nodded and fell back into his lack of conversation.
"Why are you here?" he then asked.
"This is something I'd rather not divulge."
He smiled faintly and nodded his head.
"Who are you, might I ask?" I questioned. "And where are we going?"
He looked at me now, his grip around me getting slightly tighter. "I am called Lord-. I am taking you to my castle—the Chateau de -."
My forehead wrinkled as I thought of what he said. The information sounded vaguely familiar, as if some strange memory was tugging on the strings of my mind, trying to push themselves into a more conscious realm. He spoke again before the thoughts could find themselves out of the prison confines of my subconscious.
"Where do you come from?" he asked. "What village do you call your home?"
"Again, I do not wish to divulge such information right now."
"Very well then," he answered, his lips twitching, as if he were trying to suppress a smile. Lightning suddenly lit up the black sky. Thunder whipped its harsh voice through the air, and I had to suppress a scream from the sheer force from the impending storm.
"We're almost at our destination." Lord-informed me, taking a crude road to the left. We galloped up the road, making our way up a hill. At the top domineered a magnificent castle of gothic architecture. We finally stopped before a small shed, the wind screaming fiercely. Lord- lifted me out of the carriage and ushered me to the door of the castle. I looked back and saw a pale figure come out of the shed to care of the horses and carriage. We reached the front of the chateau. We were standing in front of a magnificent castle of gothic architecture. Black stone steps adorned the front of the building, white marble lions guarding either side. The stairs led up to a narrow stone porch. The massive stone door, really two doors standing vertically next to each other, was of solid wood. Te knocker was a massive golden lion's head with a ruby in its mouth and emeralds as its eyes. A golden ring hung from its open lower jaw. Above the door was a massive stone wall. Exactly in the center of the wall shone a complicated star-shaped stained glass window. The star was defined by golden bars which shone brilliantly in the intermittent flashes of lightning. A huge black dome topped the wall. The chateau extended 4oo feet on either side of the door and its wall. Flying buttresses supported the black-stoned wall. Massive gothic towers adorned wither end of the building. Windows lavished the walls in equal intervals, alternating between stained glass and transparent ones. The windows were al pointed arches, outlined with gold-and-black mosaic. The result was absolutely stunning, even in the darkness. The grounds were bordered by a ten-foot tall steel fence, decorated with stunning intricacies. Beautiful ancient tress dotted the land; small streams ran their course through attractive wooded areas. The manor stood on a lot of several hundred acres. It was unimaginable paradise, a castle in the heavens of your wildest dreams. The atmosphere, though, was one of gloom and darkness. Even in the brightest sunshine, I thought that the castle would still impress one as being gloomy and too domineering. Lord- produced a stunningly golden skeleton key topped with a ruby from his pocket, inserting it in the front door's keyhole. He gestured that I should walk in. I looked at him, calculating my odds of escaping. The night was coal dark now; no stars pierced its eerie eyes through the sky's lightless canvas. I had no idea where I was; and chances were that he could grab me quite easily if I tried to run away. I sighed and walked in. Lord-followed closely behind me and slammed the door shut behind him. Flaming torches lined the walls. The walls themselves were smooth and impeccably clean. Portraits of stern-looming faces glared at me, as id they were angry that I had intruded upon their territory. Knights in shining armor stood at equal intervals against the walls, bearing swords and maces in their steel hands. The ceiling was painted gold, and was a network of black ribbed vaults. Beautiful archaic chandeliers hung down from the ceiling, bearing flickering white candles. The atmosphere was an eerie and mysterious one. Shadows lurked at corners, and I shivered at what the shadows could be hinting at. Lord-placed his arm in the center of my back and pushed me forward, and through a small door at the end of the hall. He ushered me into a room lined with books and human skulls. A mahogany desk sat in the exact center of the room, facing a magnificently glowing fireplace. Papers and books and inkstands were strewn across the desk's surface. A human skull sat at the one corner, its back to me. An old butler stood at the farthest corner of the room away from me. Lord-spoke to him, "Take Beth to the guest room. She is to be taken care of." The butler bowed and came toward me. "Follow me, please," he said, and walked out of the room. I followed. He led me out into the main hall I had just gone through. At the one side was a narrow staircase I hadn't noticed before. A small black curtain hung in front of it and the butler held it aside for me. I followed him up the staircase, a cold, dark flight. Its walls were of old stone, the steps of black rock. There was no railway and I feared I might fall as we curled up into higher levels of the castle. At intervals, a small, dark hallway would extend from the stairway, but we continued pat them and walked on. The butler stopped do suddenly that I nearly walked into his back. He pulled out a skeleton key and inserted it into a hole in the wall. A clicking noise sounded through the hall and the wall rotated 180 degrees. He turned around to me and beckoned that I should follow him. I succumbed to his command. He walked through the new gap and led me down a torch-lined hall. The wall behind us closed with a sound of a rock being slid across another rock. The panic grew in me as we continued down the hall. We made several turns, and finally, we reached a small wooden door. He ushered me through this door, and I found myself in a bedroom.
"This will be your room from now on," the butler informed me.
"From now on? What do you mean? I'm not to live here!"
"I have just told you what I have been commanded." He returned, and turned around to leave the room. I stood alone in the center of the room, staring out the bay window opposite me. An eye to a large wood, the window was adorned with an elegant window seat of red velvet. The bed was a large canopy one, deep red and gold, on the west side. The carpet was pure white, three inches thick. On the east side of the room was a large walk-in closet. Clothing—female clothing—hung from the rails and shoes decorated the shelves. I thumbed through the clothing and found them to be my size and to my liking. I panicked, wondering this fact was coincidental or planned. At the corner closest to the window and opposite the bed were three steps leading down to a small door. I went over to it and shakily turned the door's knob. I pushed the door open and took one hesitant step into the room. It was a small library of about 1000 books. Opposite the door across the room was a small fireplace of white marble. A fire glowed within it. A glass rectangular table stood several feet away from it, in the center of the room. A black leather sofa sat at either side of the table, another sat in front of the table, its back facing me. To the west were French doors leading out to a balcony. On the east side was a row of three shelves of books standing at equal intervals of each other. At the corners were small doors. One led into a bathroom, and other led into a hall of doors on both sides. I went through this door and started trying the doors. They were all locked. Looking through the keyholes, I saw that they were all covered with a piece of dark plastic, so that it was impossible to view the interiors of these rooms. I sighed after I had tried all the doors, and walked back to the bedroom. I started and took a step backwards. Lord-was standing before me, a strange scowl on his face.
"Is everything ok?' he asked of me. I nodded.
"Good. Your meals will all be brought to your room here. You may walk about the castle grounds, but you are never to go into the woods. You will die if you do." I nodded, unable to speak.
"If you need anything, request me of the butler. This place is now your home. You can't escape, and your family is dead. If you leave, you will die their death." At that, he turned around and walked out the door, leaving me standing in shock.
"How did he know my family was dead?' I fell to the ground and sat there, hugging my knees tightly to myself while the tears raged down in violent torrents. I fell asleep crying on the floor, and awoke to pale sunshine brushing my tears off my face. I got up, my neck stiff from my strange sleeping position. I saw a food tray on the dresser table, and sat down to eat the simple food. When I finished, I remembered Lord-saying that I could traverse the castle grounds. If so, there might be a way to escape my room. I walked to the main door and tried it. it creaked slowly open, the dark hall opening wide its gaping mouth. I stepped forward and made my way down the hall. After making several turns, I came to a wooden door, I turned the knob and pushed it open. I found myself outside in a small rose garden. The sheer beauty of the place made me gasp. Red roses crawled upon the white marble walls enclosing the garden. A white marble angel graced the center of the garden, clear water shooting gracefully out of its mouth. Rose bushes of a variety of colors perfumed the air with a sweet, delicate fragrance. I looked up at the sky, watching white clouds dance across its light blue canvas. A small dove flew across the sky, and I followed it with my eyes until it disappeared. The wind blew its soft, warm breath across my face, carrying to my nose the delicate scent of rose and earth.
"How do you do?" asked a velvet voice close to my ear. I started and jumped back. A young pale man stood before me, his mouth pulled back into a polite smile, pearly white teeth shining brilliantly. His eyes were icy blue, piercing me with its stare. His black curly hair contrasted starkly against his pale skin. His lips were full and bright red, his nose was small and straight. He stood at least six feet, his athletic figure implied by his thin maroon jacket and cream-colored dress pants.
"O-okay,: I stammered in response to his question.
"That is good to hear,' he replied conversationally back. "I see you have found yourself in my garden,' he then said.
"S-sorry," I stammered, stepping backwards to the door.
"That's quite all right," he chuckled. "I don't mind. I believe you have already met my father, Lord-?" I nodded in affirmation.
"I am Wilhelm, Will for short.'
"Beth," I whispered back. He smiled and handed me a red rose. I hadn't seen where he had gotten the rose from; it seemed to have appeared out of thin air. I hesitantly took the rose from his hand and smelled it. Its sweet scent relaxed me, succumbed me into a state of complete calmness. As I was admiring the flower, I pricked my finger on one of its thorns. A small bead of blood erupted from the wound and dripped down my finger. I saw Will lunge forward and grab my finger. He stood statue still, holding my finger to his face. He seemed as if he were debating a course of action. He finally sighed and let go of my hand. He pulled out of white tissue from his pocket and handed it to me. I wrapped it around my cut and watched the blood seep through it. I suddenly felt faint and felt myself drop to the ground. Warm, strong hands picked me up and carried me somewhere. I saw darkness flash across my eyes, and I lost consciousness.
I awoke in my bedroom, night burning brightly outside my window, many small candles flickering inside the room. I saw a shadow come toward me form the library door. I recognized him. Will. He seemed hesitant to come near me, as if he feared me. He looked so fragile, so vulnerable. My finger throbbed where I had pricked it on the rose's thorns. I felt acid course through my veins, and my throat burned violently. I was extremely thirsty and gasped for water. Will brought a cup to me and held it close to my lips. I drank it down quickly, becoming thirstier with each drop of water that touched my tongue. He brought another cup to me, holding it to my mouth so I could drink. He looked ore confident now, no longer hesitant. His hand smelled very appealing to me, vaguely sweet and metallic. My throat burned more violently. I coughed suddenly, spewing water out of my water. He put his warm hand on my forehead and pushed me back into my bed.
"Careful," he commanded, a worried look shadowing across his face.
"I'm so…thirsty," I gasped, looking up into his eyes of ice.
"I know," he answered, a smile slowly being brushed across his face. He smelled so appealing, so…delicious. My mouth watered at his strange fragrance.
"Drink my blood," he then said, a strange, determined look coming into his face. I blinked in confusion. "Make me one of the immortal damned," he yelled, pushing his face close to mine. He breathed on me, his smell enticing and tempting me further. He brought his neck close to my mouth and shoved his flesh through my teeth. His blood shot up, covering my lips with crimson fluid. It covered my teeth and tongue, giving my mouth a metallic taste. I began drinking hungrily, becoming crazed as I grew intoxicated on his wine. He pulled back finally, a satisfied look on his face.
"I have become one of the damned now. My father didn't want to change me; he was afraid I would grow stronger than him. And… he needed a constant source." He pulled back his head and laughed darkly. His blood dripped down my mouth and I stared at him.
"Come," he said, grabbing my hand and pulling me out of the bed. "Let us go destroy my father."