A/N: Now…the cliff-hanger blues shall end!
Friedrich was just trying to enjoy some art when he heard his daughter. It was very high pitched, light and full of blood curdling terror. Her shriek made everyone's hair stand on end as the shrill girl scream continued.
He pulled out his sword and ran towards the scream. Dulcinia stood with her hands clutching her face, fearing for her darling, the Prince's betrothed and smitten with fear. For after her shriek ended, there was a dark, deep cackle, vile laughter ringing throughout the stone building.
Panting, he ran and ran with fear making his heart beat and beat faster, and the laughter getting louder and louder as he went through the halls. It was getting darker as he passed galleries of questionable criteria and darker sorts, with less fire and light to replace the lack of windows.
"Dad!" His son Henry ran by him, coming from a still-life gallery. He too was frightened for he knew it was his sister in trouble.
"Get back! There might be a dangerous criminal…don't come with me!" He showed his glittering rapier and his son however did not wish to leave as the evil laughing and sobbing sister was heard louder.
"I'm going to protect her! Dad, She's my sister!" Henry yelled back.
Friedrich scowled, but he didn't have time to yell at him to get back.
They had just turned the corner of the hallways to look in the Gallery of the Macabre.
There was red smoke, plague he knew around. A man stood tall and evil with a skull face, dark lips and red hair with a hat. His boney hands had Virginia in his arms, where in her blue dress she was kicking and screaming, sobbing with some sort of maddening look in her eyes.
Now she remembered. Now she was in his clutches, his eyes closed as he nuzzled her crying child face.
"There there my darling…you're with me now…shhh…" He purred, softly seeming to mock the emotion of comfort. His hands held her like she was a soft china doll. She was limp and terrified obviously to her wits end.
Henry was still with fear. He had never seen something to terrible, something so evil…something so unearthly, ever in his young life.
As for Lucinda's foster father…he had seen him before. He tried to engage in combat with him, he always tried in his battles and raids to heal and fight the demons of the far countryside. But now his daughter was in the creature's arms, as a tool and such for evil…for it was The Red Death.
The Red Death had always been after her in her dreams, but never anything like this. He was going to collect her sooner…but now, he had her. He had an innocent little girl against his vile demon body. He was trying to comfort her, a beast, a creature of hell that was hugging his daughter!
"LET HER GO!" Friedrich was angry. Rage, utter rage and the urge to protect his charge was pumping through his veins.
The creature, the God of Blood many called him raised his head with glaring red eyes. He stared, stared deep at the general with Virginia sobbing in his arms.
The Red Death had no right to take that child away with him.
"You are a fool. I will take her to my home where she will be raised and kept well, and be used for my ultimate victory. Until then, you must either live or die. Get out." The thing gave a velvety voice. He sounded somewhat young…somewhat old…or neither.
"Let…her…go." He growled again.
"No." He hissed this time.
Immediately without rational thinking, he jumped as he slashed his sword. Running as fast as he could he leaped and steadied his sword, slashing at the face of the skulled monster!
It roared, rearing back in the mist and cape as the sword only by inches would have sliced his face. Immediately Friedrich with his warrior training pulled Virginia out of his arms.
Henry blinked a few times as his father landed on his feet, coughing form the mist and carried his crying daughter out and away, running with the roaring Red Death behind him.
"RUN!" He yelled.
Henry got the hint. He was running as fast as his young boy legs could. Friedrich was behind him with Virginia in a daze of madness and hopefully temporary insanity.
Already most of the people in the galleries were gone, all outside running to their carriages fleeing the evil. Troops had been notified but would take 10 minutes or so to get there or less.
Henry and Friedrich were panting, finally going past the galleries and light to out the doors. They bolted down the steps three at a time. Henry stole a glance at his sister clinging to his father's back.
Her eyes were wide open and seemed to be in a state of mental shock. Tears streamed from her face. He heard her whimpering loudly like her mind was in some sort of tragic pain. Friedrich was with a contorted look of concern on his face as they ran.
The doors blasted open behind them. The Red Death, shrouded with red smoke and his tall stature stood at the top of the stairs as Friedrich and Henry caught their breath at the bottom.
It was afternoon soon going into evening. Perhaps 60 people or more was outside from the art museum and the markets and shops around the highway road.
Not one of them seen the plague in all his glory. They had never expected to see a god in their midst.
"So you see me at last…if only Prospero was here to have his knickers shake…" The crowd nearest to him heard him whisper.
He gave a bow as the crowd was motionless, staring at the fiend who dared appear in the midst of their city! They only knew that the plague was far away, killing villages as nobles piled and stored their wealth and food.
"Good afternoon, citizens of the scourge. I am the new god, The Red Death. I have come here particularly to do a few things. One, to steal the Prince's betrothed. The other, to show you how ruthless, powerful, and unmerciful I really am to the ignorant in this city. People, I give you till her 18th birthday if she should escape from my grasp today to spare yourself future suffering by killing yourselves and your fellow man."
They were all stupidities. Kill them? All humankind kill themselves? He, the unstoppable demon or whatever he was, for they still refused to call him a god, end their own lives?
Friedrich had enough. His daughter needed to be safe and go to a hospital.
He took off running towards his carriage. Inside were Dulcinia and Henry, already jumped in. Friedrich tossed Virginia to his wife, holding her as he leaped unto the seat and pulled the reins.
The carriage was one of the fastest, most streamlined ever built. It took off in no time down the walled paved highway. Virginia heard the loud sounds of the slick metal wheels on the concrete, and the clatter of the horse's hooves.
There hadn't been much time to think clearly except of terror. Except of hidden memories suppressed by the priest's herbs and hypnotism. Except for those memories to unfold. Except to be held, touched, close to the hot, warm body of the being of her fears that held her tenderly and spoke with a soft velvet tone. Who had no heartbeat at all but blood coursed through his veins.
Blood was his elixir. Blood was his excitement, his tasteful dish he drank. He smelled of it, his breath was rank with decay yet he looked beautiful and evil. He looked like a man with a skull mask, and fine, red clothing that seemed to possess a life of their own. A life of artful macabre to commit horrors and evil.
The dark of the carriage drowned out the sounds of outside. Her mind was closing to listen only to her memory of voices and her racing heartbeat. She never knew she was adopted and that her family was not her own. She was a peasant and was born a peasant, and the figment of fear, the plague of her mind in the dark of night was this being.
That certain being just ran his claws into the carriage, latching onto the upholstery and wood. The inhabitants inside all screamed, watching as another was thrust through and gripping tightly. The carriage wobbled with its new weight, as The Red Death tried to drag it down.
Friedrich turned to look, gasping in horror that the fiend had grabbed the carriage! It clawed up to the top of the vehicle, crouched and on all fours like an animal, it's hands in human and talons sticking out of it's boots. It snarled, it's hair red and wild whipping in the wind along with it's dark red cape, cravart and black feathered hat.
There was no such beast known. A beast that had the shape of a man with wild fire eyes.
"Pull over." It hissed.
"Henry…come out here…" Friedrich cooley replied. Certainly he realized perhaps a demon in the shape of a man would have some negotiable qualities.
Henry, already terrified slipped through the small door, which was conviently sized for a young 11 year old boy to the driving seat, looking up puzzled but brave for a child.
"Dad? What's going on?" He whimpered.
"Just hold the reins and keep on driving no matter what!" His father yelled. Friedrich clambered unto the top of the carriage pulling out his sword. The green emeralds on the sword glittered in the light as he steadied himself. They were passing by homes and business fast, and the highway of the city was clean and swift so there were no bumps or disturbances.
"Then you shall die and your children and wife will die in the accident." The beast reared up to its legs and ripped it's claws from the ceiling. The hand looked lethal with glittering red nails.
Immediately it swiped at him, the lips and jaw opening to reveal fangs and painted lips, and the finery clothes mocked him as a human being. He wasn't. Friedrich could clearly tell…that perhaps it was a demon in a man's form!
The sword parried the Red Death's blow. However he felt incredible strength behind the stroke and bent down on one knee. From his position The Red Death threw blow after blow, slashing and scratching to cut him down. But Friedrich prevailed, keeping his strong steel sword defending himself. Sparks came from the talons as they struck steel, and Friedrich was getting his arm tired. The Red Death was strong, inhumanly strong.
Henry did not dare look back as his father fought the demon. It tried to take his sister and now the best he could do was keep the carriage moving. It was going out of the city on the road towards the army base. He looked out on the horizon over the gray road and walls, seeing the bridge just ahead.
Then he saw part of it was closed. Half of it was broken, not even there. Rope and wooden posts blocked off the road and the sides. Already the carriage was swerving with each blow. The roof wouldn't last long.
Friedrich tried standing up to atleast strike at him, but The Red Death kept striking down at him. The general was no match for this demon.
"DIE!" friedrich snarled. His hat flew off form his sweaty head, his ponytail ragged and showing his long hair free in the wind.
The Red Death was unscathed. Instead he looked down through the gashes through the carriage.
He smiled down at Virginia, who stared up at him.
"Look out your window." He whispered.
Friedrich looked down at his daughter; she turned away with tears to the window.
The general made a mistake. While he looked down, he was grappled by The Red Death who in turn leaped off the carriage.
Dulcinia screamed as the carriage lost one of it's wheels, skidding to stop as Virginia did nothing but stare out the window over the horizon. The horses whinnied as they stopped, Henry yelling "Woah!" and Dulcinia gasping and hyperventilating on the floor of the carriage.
Virginia stared out the window.
The carriage was away from the edge of the precipice by about a few feet. There, she saw in the light of the sunset The Red Death, floating out into the air with a roaring kicking Friedrich.
He looked like a red bird. A dark red bird with a cape and fog around him, as he glided…
…as he dropped her foster father down to the ground…
And just floated away, gliding in a descent laughing…laughing loud and high…laughing in a way that would chill blood.
It chilled hers. She heard a crash as her father broke his back, head and limbs on some metal and stone pillars.
The laughing ended as now, The Red Death was gone. The air was still with only a breeze that stirred some stone dust around the slabs of concrete and wire.
Slowly with fear she opened the door. The carriage was on a slant, having lost a front wheel. She slipped out, and slowly padded to the wooden planks.
She passed them, and now stood at the edge. The crumbling concrete edge spilled over perhaps 30, 40 feet over a river. The river was not that long or thick, moving it's way through the gorge to supply water to the lakes and river and population here.
But there was construction supplies, carriages, lumber and stone, steel poles and suck to build the other half of the bridge. It was on the river bank.
And on the long, tall stone pillars was a broken bleeding body.
General Friedrich. Foster father. Beloved warrior. Crusader against the Red Death.
He was dropped by that great bird to his death, at the cost of saving his beloved daughter's life.
A crowd had gathered adding noise and cries as they peered over the edge nearby.
Troops and caverly moved closer, roping off the crowds. The poor, beggars, rich, middle-class, merchants, butchers…they all followed the chase to here to see the winner.
The Red Death was still alive.
Virginia fell to her little knees. There seemed a great burden on her. Now the world would not know she was a peasant child…but she would be without a father.
A cost to her memories. Perhaps, she thought, he would return soon, that fiend that ruined my life to come and take me away.
Parchment flew into her face from the wind. Taking it from her face, she read the fancy script in blood.
Dearest Virginia;
You may not know why I need you with me yet…but all will be explained when I shall take you. You will now serve an even better purpose on your 18th birthday and the other events planned for you on that date. You must surely, and I pray that you will, study and know about the monarchy and your culture. It will all die on that day.
But there will be a new world with you in it.
I shall not harm you. The plague will never touch you, my rose, but it will touch your family. I will try to collect you again on your 14th birthday, but if you resist I shall kill someone dear to you. If you again resist when I come on your 16th, someone else will die.
But I know, my darling rose, that on your 18th I shall be successful. You will be mine no matter what. My blood will be your blood, and the blood will become ours.
I warn you that your spirit to fight will grow stronger and stronger every year. But you must understand that you will also weaken in your mind. Now that I have fully been implemented in your mind, each visit you will fall more and utterly in terror…or love…with me.
Be prepared to fight or surrender. You and humanity cannot fight against me and win. If you were a wise woman, regardless of being the daughter of a general or the soon to be Princess, the most logical thing to do would be to come into me arms…and see the world.
I am not evil.
Fear me. I want you to fear me. Because I can be dangerous. But I also want you to love me.
With deepest affection,
R.
Rolling it up, she tucked it into her pocket. Dulcinia, her mother picked her up and hugged her close. It seemed she felt numb, felt like she couldn't feel anything outside or inside. She could barely hear her mothers sobs into her hair, or the pain at her second father dead, or her brother's cries as he looked down at his broken body…the crowds surprise and wailing, the mourning bugles…the fear that gripped her senses at her predicament.
The Red death loved her.
She couldn't feel love. She felt she would never feel love again.
A/N: How lovely. Her father was MURDERED. Now maybe more of her family and friends might die. Wow guys, is this a great morbid story or what? ; Hehheh…bloodshed.
Read and review my beloveds! Which…my beloveds are ForeverACharmedOne and one review from Sakura2811. COME ON PEOPLES! REVIEW MORE DARN IT.
Shoys.