~Author's note: Right finally a new chapter, this one is longer than the
others and hopefully I'll update soon, depends really on uni work and
stuff, my timetable is quite packed, full of 9am lectures :-s Anyway hope
you all like this latest installment and please, please, please review. You
review me, and I'll review you, hehe. On with the story
****************************************************************************
We must have been quite a sight, walking along the streets after dark, carrying various weapons. Stakes were pretty easy to conceal in a pocket, but larger things like crossbows and axes had proved to be a bit of a problem.
Luckily for us, the Jellicles and Pollicles of the town had denial down to a fine art, and any hapless citizen that happened to scurry across our path no doubt had the ability to convince him or herself that nothing out of the ordinary was going on at all.
As for the police, I had applied for a permit to deal in antique weapons, so persuading them that we were on our way to an antiques show was never out of the question.
It seems like a lot of hassle just for a few axes and crossbows, but I preferred the risk of being seen with the weapons than that of fighting without. Most of our little tribe just didn't have the strength to face up to a vampire without a bit of help of the weapon variety. They weren't like me. I had the strength while they had the chance to ignore it like so many others have. I would have given anything to be able to switch places with them. Unfortunately, I had no such chance, for I was a fighter of the vampires and demons. I was a Lutador.
We were getting closer, the fur on the back of my neck stood to attention as the presence of the undead could be sensed. Ignoring the gentle throbbing in my paw I gripped my axe tightly. It was now or never.
"Alonzo, you and Plato come with me; we need to find out how many vampires we're dealing with. The rest of you stay here; don't come in unless you hear us shout for help."
I noticed Tugger looked a bit put out at having to stay put. Well, tough luck my friend, maybe you should keep your attitude in check for a change.
Taking a deep breath I stealthily lowered myself into the sewer. It always had to be the sewers with vamps, didn't it? Such dark, disgusting places. If I ever had to jump into another sewer again it would be too soon. Although, as I glanced around the tunnels I had to admit I saw the advantages of the sewer system for the vampires. It was perfect for getting around during the daylight hours without danger of being fried to a crisp by good old Mr. Sunshine.
For some reason, the general public seems to have this strange idea that vampires sleep in coffins all day, a belief only backed up by cheesy horror movies, and the occasional novel. Believe me if that were the case it would make my job ten times easier, go and find a vampire's coffin and then drive a stake through its heart while it sleeps. It seems to work in those movies but in reality it would be extremely difficult to catch a vampire napping, unless of course that vampire is new to this world.
New vampires, or fledglings as they are often referred to, don't often have the sense or cunning that older vampires possess. Don't get me wrong, there are those that do and they are the ones that live to become powerful, ancient vampires. It's survival of the fittest, creating a greater race of vampires by simply killing off those too weak or too reckless to be of any use. Good for the vampires, less so for us, these older vampires are more difficult to kill, and are much more dangerous than your average vampire on the street. They know all the tricks to staying alive and have most likely faced Lutadors in the past and emerged victorious. These are the ones you have to be careful with, always on your guard, because if you're not, then you could end up just another vampires boastful story of a defeated Lutador.
Alonzo and Plato dropped to the ground besides me. One was black and white, the other a mixture of colours. They were both two of the best fighters I had.
"All clear?" Alonzo asked glancing around the tunnel quickly.
"Seems so," I grimaced, "Probably all at the banquet."
Even though I was almost certain in my assumption, my senses, normal and otherwise were all working overtime on the short journey to the nest. It wouldn't do for us to be ambushed when we were so close to saving those kits. This was the vampire's territory and in these dark tunnels the hunter can quickly become the hunted if one doesn't know the sewer system well enough.
My ears pricked up as I heard whimpers of fear and the idle chatter of the vampires waiting to start the feast. Closer and closer I crept until I saw them; ten or so minions and their sire; the infamous Adrastos. When I said earlier that the ancient vampires are the ones to look out for, Adrastos was one of those I had in mind. He was over 500 years old and very powerful. I had faced him before in a fierce fight and had barely escaped with my life. Quietly I hissed at Alonzo,
"It's Adrastos and about ten vamps. Go get the others, I'll stay here."
Alonzo had an odd expression on his face,
"Don't do anything stupid," he warned me.
"I'll be fine, don't worry," I said, not quite succeeding at hiding my annoyance that he thought I would go looking for death now. If I wanted to do that they would most likely find me in the Pollicle area of the town with a juicy steak tied round my throat, "You two just get everyone else here in time to save those kits."
Reluctantly, they dashed off back down the tunnels leaving me, their 'suicidal' leader to watch the vampires.
Huddled in a corner was 'lunch', two toms and two queens, who looked to be barely out of kittenhood. Judging from their appearance, they were most likely runaways. Their fear hung heavy in the air, intoxicating the vampires. Unlike most mortals I could also smell its sweet chalky scent. To me, it was just another painful reminder that I had been chosen, my destiny already mapped out.
A hush descended upon the vampires as Adrastos made his way to the victims. Unlike most vampire masters he didn't rule his minions by fear but by awe. Indeed, even as I watched from the shadows I couldn't help but feel drawn to this vampire as I had so many times in my previous encounters with him. Even the hostages were soothed as he walked towards them. Adrastos was a vampire ancient and powerful enough to have mastered the technique of putting someone under his thrall and as he beckoned to one of the children she went to him, to her death.
"This is the night, let their sweet blood feed our hunger," Adrastos spoke quietly as he reached for the queen, ready to sink his teeth into her neck.
I strained my hearing for any sound of the rest of the rescue party but only silence greeted my ears.
"Just great," I muttered.
These kits were going to be eaten unless I could hold the vamps off long enough for the others to get here.
"Here goes nothing," I thought, forcing Alonzo's earlier warning out of my head.
Grabbing my axe I jumped out and swung it, quickly dusting two of the vamps.
"Hello Adrastos, hope I'm not interrupting anything," I said calmly as all eyes turned to me, "I suggest you drop the girl."
Adrastos smiled, "She's just a morsel, a mere appetiser," he let go of her, "But I believe you are the main course."
"I hope you don't mind food that fights back," I took a step closer, knowing that this was a vampire not to underestimate. In his long lifetime he had killed 9 Lutadors, I didn't care to become the tenth.
One of the minions became restless and dived at me, I turned in time to lessen the force behind his attack but not fast enough to stop it completely. I rolled on to my back, pulling the vampire with me and used my legs to propel him into the air, then flipped back on to my feet, hearing a thud as the vampire landed.
The vampire's attack had failed to injure me but it had been successful in another sense, my axe now lay halfway across the room with no chance of me being able to retrieve it, I pulled out a stake from my pocket.
"You didn't tell me your vamps were restless," I raised my eyebrow disapprovingly.
"What? And spoil the fun?" Adrastos smirked.
I let myself glance down the sewer tunnels, still no sign of the others. A grimace momentarily slipped across my face and I took up fighting stance again without attacking. I wasn't about to enter into a fight when I could stall until my reinforcements arrived. If I died before help had arrived those kits would die too.
In accordance with the luck I'd been having of late, Adrastos noticed my reluctance to start the ball rolling,
"Hmm, a Lutador who doesn't wish to fight vampires, now there's a new one," Adrastos sneered and came closer beckoning me towards him in a threatening gesture, "Well how about it Lutador? Or can I call you number ten?"
I hissed involuntarily, but still stood my ground. Until Adrastos pulled one of the kits, a rust coloured queen, towards him roughly, that is. Now it was necessary for me to act, I approached Adrastos with my stake at the ready.
"Let's finish this," I said calmly.
Though the ancient one's face remained perfectly still, I could see his smirk deep within his eyes, Adrastos had found my weak spot and he knew it.
"Well, maybe I think that you've already had your chance, after all, this young girl is far more...entertaining."
That's when one of the young toms, who had become enraged beyond the point of fear, threw himself at the vampire kicking and punching in an attempt to free the young queen. Adrastos easily sent him into a wall, while I took this opportunity to launch an attack; the young queen was released almost immediately and ran back to her fellow captives, whimpering.
Following a left hook I dived forwards to plunge the stake into the master vampire's heart. It didn't even get close enough to break his cold, dead flesh. He managed to grab my wrist, pulling the stake away from my paw and backhanded me across the face.
The wall almost seemed to come up and run into my back, rather than the obvious solution that I had gone flying into it. Obvious solutions don't seem to occur to you when glowing stars are dancing the can-can around your head. I struggled back to my paws but Adrastos already loomed before me, his expression gloating as he plunged my own stake into my gut.
The pain was momentary, disappearing as quickly as it had come. Dizziness soon followed and dark spots coloured my vision. My mouth opened, gulping in air in a fish like motion, a vague attempt to fight against the drowsiness that was washing over me.
"Say good night Lutador," Adrastos whispered in my ear.
****************************************************************************
We must have been quite a sight, walking along the streets after dark, carrying various weapons. Stakes were pretty easy to conceal in a pocket, but larger things like crossbows and axes had proved to be a bit of a problem.
Luckily for us, the Jellicles and Pollicles of the town had denial down to a fine art, and any hapless citizen that happened to scurry across our path no doubt had the ability to convince him or herself that nothing out of the ordinary was going on at all.
As for the police, I had applied for a permit to deal in antique weapons, so persuading them that we were on our way to an antiques show was never out of the question.
It seems like a lot of hassle just for a few axes and crossbows, but I preferred the risk of being seen with the weapons than that of fighting without. Most of our little tribe just didn't have the strength to face up to a vampire without a bit of help of the weapon variety. They weren't like me. I had the strength while they had the chance to ignore it like so many others have. I would have given anything to be able to switch places with them. Unfortunately, I had no such chance, for I was a fighter of the vampires and demons. I was a Lutador.
We were getting closer, the fur on the back of my neck stood to attention as the presence of the undead could be sensed. Ignoring the gentle throbbing in my paw I gripped my axe tightly. It was now or never.
"Alonzo, you and Plato come with me; we need to find out how many vampires we're dealing with. The rest of you stay here; don't come in unless you hear us shout for help."
I noticed Tugger looked a bit put out at having to stay put. Well, tough luck my friend, maybe you should keep your attitude in check for a change.
Taking a deep breath I stealthily lowered myself into the sewer. It always had to be the sewers with vamps, didn't it? Such dark, disgusting places. If I ever had to jump into another sewer again it would be too soon. Although, as I glanced around the tunnels I had to admit I saw the advantages of the sewer system for the vampires. It was perfect for getting around during the daylight hours without danger of being fried to a crisp by good old Mr. Sunshine.
For some reason, the general public seems to have this strange idea that vampires sleep in coffins all day, a belief only backed up by cheesy horror movies, and the occasional novel. Believe me if that were the case it would make my job ten times easier, go and find a vampire's coffin and then drive a stake through its heart while it sleeps. It seems to work in those movies but in reality it would be extremely difficult to catch a vampire napping, unless of course that vampire is new to this world.
New vampires, or fledglings as they are often referred to, don't often have the sense or cunning that older vampires possess. Don't get me wrong, there are those that do and they are the ones that live to become powerful, ancient vampires. It's survival of the fittest, creating a greater race of vampires by simply killing off those too weak or too reckless to be of any use. Good for the vampires, less so for us, these older vampires are more difficult to kill, and are much more dangerous than your average vampire on the street. They know all the tricks to staying alive and have most likely faced Lutadors in the past and emerged victorious. These are the ones you have to be careful with, always on your guard, because if you're not, then you could end up just another vampires boastful story of a defeated Lutador.
Alonzo and Plato dropped to the ground besides me. One was black and white, the other a mixture of colours. They were both two of the best fighters I had.
"All clear?" Alonzo asked glancing around the tunnel quickly.
"Seems so," I grimaced, "Probably all at the banquet."
Even though I was almost certain in my assumption, my senses, normal and otherwise were all working overtime on the short journey to the nest. It wouldn't do for us to be ambushed when we were so close to saving those kits. This was the vampire's territory and in these dark tunnels the hunter can quickly become the hunted if one doesn't know the sewer system well enough.
My ears pricked up as I heard whimpers of fear and the idle chatter of the vampires waiting to start the feast. Closer and closer I crept until I saw them; ten or so minions and their sire; the infamous Adrastos. When I said earlier that the ancient vampires are the ones to look out for, Adrastos was one of those I had in mind. He was over 500 years old and very powerful. I had faced him before in a fierce fight and had barely escaped with my life. Quietly I hissed at Alonzo,
"It's Adrastos and about ten vamps. Go get the others, I'll stay here."
Alonzo had an odd expression on his face,
"Don't do anything stupid," he warned me.
"I'll be fine, don't worry," I said, not quite succeeding at hiding my annoyance that he thought I would go looking for death now. If I wanted to do that they would most likely find me in the Pollicle area of the town with a juicy steak tied round my throat, "You two just get everyone else here in time to save those kits."
Reluctantly, they dashed off back down the tunnels leaving me, their 'suicidal' leader to watch the vampires.
Huddled in a corner was 'lunch', two toms and two queens, who looked to be barely out of kittenhood. Judging from their appearance, they were most likely runaways. Their fear hung heavy in the air, intoxicating the vampires. Unlike most mortals I could also smell its sweet chalky scent. To me, it was just another painful reminder that I had been chosen, my destiny already mapped out.
A hush descended upon the vampires as Adrastos made his way to the victims. Unlike most vampire masters he didn't rule his minions by fear but by awe. Indeed, even as I watched from the shadows I couldn't help but feel drawn to this vampire as I had so many times in my previous encounters with him. Even the hostages were soothed as he walked towards them. Adrastos was a vampire ancient and powerful enough to have mastered the technique of putting someone under his thrall and as he beckoned to one of the children she went to him, to her death.
"This is the night, let their sweet blood feed our hunger," Adrastos spoke quietly as he reached for the queen, ready to sink his teeth into her neck.
I strained my hearing for any sound of the rest of the rescue party but only silence greeted my ears.
"Just great," I muttered.
These kits were going to be eaten unless I could hold the vamps off long enough for the others to get here.
"Here goes nothing," I thought, forcing Alonzo's earlier warning out of my head.
Grabbing my axe I jumped out and swung it, quickly dusting two of the vamps.
"Hello Adrastos, hope I'm not interrupting anything," I said calmly as all eyes turned to me, "I suggest you drop the girl."
Adrastos smiled, "She's just a morsel, a mere appetiser," he let go of her, "But I believe you are the main course."
"I hope you don't mind food that fights back," I took a step closer, knowing that this was a vampire not to underestimate. In his long lifetime he had killed 9 Lutadors, I didn't care to become the tenth.
One of the minions became restless and dived at me, I turned in time to lessen the force behind his attack but not fast enough to stop it completely. I rolled on to my back, pulling the vampire with me and used my legs to propel him into the air, then flipped back on to my feet, hearing a thud as the vampire landed.
The vampire's attack had failed to injure me but it had been successful in another sense, my axe now lay halfway across the room with no chance of me being able to retrieve it, I pulled out a stake from my pocket.
"You didn't tell me your vamps were restless," I raised my eyebrow disapprovingly.
"What? And spoil the fun?" Adrastos smirked.
I let myself glance down the sewer tunnels, still no sign of the others. A grimace momentarily slipped across my face and I took up fighting stance again without attacking. I wasn't about to enter into a fight when I could stall until my reinforcements arrived. If I died before help had arrived those kits would die too.
In accordance with the luck I'd been having of late, Adrastos noticed my reluctance to start the ball rolling,
"Hmm, a Lutador who doesn't wish to fight vampires, now there's a new one," Adrastos sneered and came closer beckoning me towards him in a threatening gesture, "Well how about it Lutador? Or can I call you number ten?"
I hissed involuntarily, but still stood my ground. Until Adrastos pulled one of the kits, a rust coloured queen, towards him roughly, that is. Now it was necessary for me to act, I approached Adrastos with my stake at the ready.
"Let's finish this," I said calmly.
Though the ancient one's face remained perfectly still, I could see his smirk deep within his eyes, Adrastos had found my weak spot and he knew it.
"Well, maybe I think that you've already had your chance, after all, this young girl is far more...entertaining."
That's when one of the young toms, who had become enraged beyond the point of fear, threw himself at the vampire kicking and punching in an attempt to free the young queen. Adrastos easily sent him into a wall, while I took this opportunity to launch an attack; the young queen was released almost immediately and ran back to her fellow captives, whimpering.
Following a left hook I dived forwards to plunge the stake into the master vampire's heart. It didn't even get close enough to break his cold, dead flesh. He managed to grab my wrist, pulling the stake away from my paw and backhanded me across the face.
The wall almost seemed to come up and run into my back, rather than the obvious solution that I had gone flying into it. Obvious solutions don't seem to occur to you when glowing stars are dancing the can-can around your head. I struggled back to my paws but Adrastos already loomed before me, his expression gloating as he plunged my own stake into my gut.
The pain was momentary, disappearing as quickly as it had come. Dizziness soon followed and dark spots coloured my vision. My mouth opened, gulping in air in a fish like motion, a vague attempt to fight against the drowsiness that was washing over me.
"Say good night Lutador," Adrastos whispered in my ear.