SWORDS AND ROSES

Act II: Beautiful Toy

Emilie was left alone by Walter. With nowhere to go, she had not choice but to follow the stairs. As she walked down the long, stone staircase, the sound of gushing waterfalls caught her ears, and the smell of damp soil prompted her to look about, but the light from the torches and mere human sight alone could not help her discern her surroundings. Until she got to the end of the stairs. A massive garden-like area greeted her, surrounded by waterfalls. Pillars were standing on each end of the room, some intact, some dilapidated. Gathering up her skirts, the young lady took a step closer, until she was taken aback at what she saw.

A young man sat in the middle of the place, cradling what seemed to be a human head. A sword floated above his open hand as he hummed a sort of lullaby to himself. He was a gorgeous young man, with his pale skin and icy blue eyes. His ivory locks fell halfway to his back, and the hem of his purple robes were torn. Despite his angelic feaetures, Emilie already had the feeling that he was indeed a vampire. The one in the room…is just like me. Walter's words rang in her head. But Emilie found it hard to believe. She stepped closer so she could see the young man clearly. His eyes were unfocused, as if in a dream. He seemed so…childlike. Working in the field of medicine, she knew it was not a good sign to be with an insane person, but she defied that right now. She was ordered to take care of him. And it looked that the pallor of his complexion indicated that he had suffered some illness hen he was still human. She placed a hand on his shoulder, and the young man immediately looked up at her, his icy blue optics boring into her green ones. But he smiled. "Would you like to play?" he said, handing her the severed head. Emilie returned his question with a smile of her own. "I would love to, but not right now." she answered, to which the man frowned. "Someone asked me to take care of you… And I'll start doing that right now. That head you're holding… How'd you get that?" "Someone tried to hurt me…" he answered. "I thought...he wanted to play with me too. But he tried to hurt me…and I had to protect myself. Then, I took his head out and made it my toy, so we could play." The very thought of the young man decapitating some unfortunate soul made Emilie shudder clandestinely. "You know that the head is already will not last much longer." Emilie said. Joachim threw the head away and simply folded his arms in disappointment. "So you don't want to play with me?" he said. "Well, that's okay. We can save that for later. By the way, what's your name?" "Oh, I'm Emilie. Emilie Forschart. I'm a nurse down the village." she answered. "And you, what's your name?" "I'm Joachim. Joachim Armster." he answered. "Now that the introductions are over, I'll show you my toy collection." He got up and took Emilie by the hand, who was surprised at this change of pace. The two walked towards the waterfalls, and Joachim flicked his hand. The waterfalls separated, revealing a secret chamber protected by a single gem. He pressed the gem lightly and the door opened, revealing what looked to be just a simple room, altough without a bed and a desk. The walls were filled with impaled human heads. Some fresh, some rotting. Other body parts, such as torsos and limbs hung on the ceiling. The smell of rot and decay nearly made Emilie fall, but Joachim caught her. "Impressive isn't it?" he said. "Look at all my lovely toys! You know, those people actually wanted to play with me… But I enjoyed myself a little too much…" He smiled at her, but that smile was of the Devil's. Emilie's green eyes grew wide with horror. "Oh my Lord…" she whispered. "These poor people…" Joachim chuckled. "Don't worry. They enjoyed as much as I did. All that crying and screaming…" he said. "They were so happy!" This boy's definition of happiness are actually sounds of pain, Emilie thought. She turned and was about to leave, but Joachim blocked her way. "Where are you going?" he asked, a frown on his face. "Um, I do not mean to offend you, but I cannot stay in this room. I can't take much more of the death I see here…" Emilie said. "I'm sorry Joachim, but I will have a word with Walter about this." With a roar, the pale vampire screamed "No!" and the door to the chamber shut itself, locking the two inside. "You're not leaving, are you?" he said. "You can't go! I've been so alone down here… You can't go…" Joachim approached the trembling girl, who pulled back. The icy blue eyes shone with an eerie shade of red. Joachim had never encountered a human until now, and his thirst was nagging at him. Emilie fumbled for the dagger she kept at the small pouch hanging from the back of her dress. God watch over me, she thought as she pulled it out. And as any blood mage did, she slashed her palm, letting the blood flow onto her arm. Using her finger, she drew a glyoh on the stone floor that resembled a Celtic cross, and she chanted a Latin phrase. It was a ward for demons, but it was not enough to restrain the hungry vampire. Although the ward's magic caused tentacle-like things to erupt from its lines to snatch Joachim and drag him to God-knows-where, it was not working this time, for his power was greater, and Emilie had not used her blood magic in such a long time, therefore Joachim simply stepped over the ward, his very presence disspelling it, and grabbed Emilie close to him.

Despite the man's thin frame, Emilie was shocked by his strength. Perhaps an attribute of being a vampire, but nevertheless, she struggled from his grasp. Joachim kept a firm hold as he brushed away her blonde locks from her neck. The complex network of veins carrying her blood was truly a sight for him to behold. The sound of her blood flowing alone was intoxicating music to his ears, and the scent of her skin drove him to the edge. "Get away! Get away!" Emilie said, trying to shove him away, but to no avail. The vampire's grip was clearly rivalling a steel clamp, and without further hesitation, he bore his fangs. Not to her neck, but in her shoulders. Emilie's cries of pain bounced from one wall to the other in the chamber, but no one except Joachim could hear her. Although the blood did not flow much to her shoulders, Joachim still reveled in its salty, steely taste. The color returned to his cheeks as Emilie slowly shuddered beneath his grasp. He cannot let his plaything die very easily, therefore he stopped feeding (much to his chagrin) and set her down on the floor. He sat beside her, his lips still covered in her blood, as he wiped it clean with the back of a pale hand, and licked it. Mmm, so tasty, he thought. She will definitely make a good plaything for me…

From his throne room, Walter observed the events. He grinned wickedly at the sight of Joachim nearly draining Emilie. Resting his elbow on the throne's arm rest, and his cheek on his closed hand, Walter waited avidly for more events. Soon, some foolish man will come and attempt to take you, he thought as his smile broadened. But of course, you cannot. And you will serve as my entertainment for all eternity. Back at the small chamber in the waterfalls, Emilie stirred as she tried to get up. Clearly, she was still light-headed because of the blood loss, and was surprised to see Joachim sitting by her side, humming the same lullaby. He looked down with a pleasant smile as she got to her feet with difficulty. "I'm glad you're up." he said. "You looked dead… But I can't let my plaything die…" He frowned at the thought, so he also got up and helped Emilie walk. There wasa block of stone that she could sit on, so he led her there.

"You…" Emilie said, dazed. "What did you do…to me?" "I got hungry…" Joachim said. "And there's only one thing that can satisfy me when I'm hungry." He pointed to the puncture marks on her shoulder. Apparently, the fabric was torn by Joachim's fangs. Emilie's hand quickly flew to the wound. The holes were small, but the wound throbbed angrily. Blood still escaped, but Joachim didn't mind it. He was full, for the time. He began to walk around, and soon, he stopped in front of the collection of heads hmounted on his wall, and with only his telepathy, took one out. The head was fresh, only dead for more than a day. It had belonged to a young man of around twenty, with curly dark hair and brown eyes, frozen open in death. "I liked this guys." Joachim said. "But he was not so kind to me. He called me monster… And I showed him what a monster is really like." He smiled at the trembling girl, revealing his white fangs, a bit bloodstained from feeding. "You know, he wasn't the best playmate… Neither of these heads were… They don't respond, unlike you. You're the best playmate I ever had…" Scared at the fact the guy can literally kill her, Emilie feigned her fear by smiling back. "Um, thank you very much. We've only just met and you're treating me like we've known each other for so long. Thank you." she said through trembling lips. Joachim mounted the head back and approached Emilie. HE chuckled. "You're welcome." he answered. "And you're the most beautiful toy ever…" With a light kiss on the cheek, Joachim went out of the chamber, Emilie following suit, still rubbing the area were he kissed her.