For the uninitiated: “Daughters of Darkness” is a conversation between my neophyte self and a centuries-old immortal discussing (what else?) living forever on blood in the dark. Nancy hates that I keep doing this, yet she keeps agreeing to it… go figure.
Nancy: What forsaken place have you dragged me to this time?
Janiss: It’s called “The Empty Glass…”
N: As it says on the front. I can read, Janiss. Why here?
J: Just to change it up a little, plus they’re open past midnight.
N: Lucky us. There’s no karaoke, is there? I’ve murdered for less.
J: Oooh, such a tough Vampire! No, just “open mic night.”
N: It’s awfully small and too few exits.
J: It’s intimate. Are you already plotting your escape?
N: That depends on what the next singer-songwriter is about to inflict upon us.
The bartender brings the drinks we’ll barely touch.
N: (showing interest) What’s yours?
J: Woodchuck hard cider.
N: (dabs her finger in my pint glass and touches it to her tongue) Fruity. Barely alcoholic.
J: As if that made any difference.
N: Let’s get this over with. What’s the topic?
J: Vampire bloggers…
N: You’re not still commenting on that “mother succubus” blog, are you?
J: (smiling) Juliette’s blog, yes. “Musing’s of a modern Vampire mom.”
N: She’s not a real Vampire.
J: (shrugs) You don’t know that.
N: You have to have children to be a mom.
J: You had kids and you’re a Vampire, so what?
N: I gave birth before I was turned. Dead things don’t grow inside of dead things.
J: And yet two corpses are sitting at a table in the state capital of West “By God” Virginia pretending to drink while listening to… whatever that song is.
N: It sounds vaguely like the Ramones.
J: (gasps) You’ve heard the Ramones?
N: (trying not to smirk) I saw them live in Cleveland. They were touring with Iggy Pop. Late seventies. “Blitzkrieg Bop” sounds better when they perform it in person.
J: I’ve… got nothing.
N: So back to your living dead mom…
J: I like her. She’s sweet. She’s the kind of Vampire I try to be.
N: You mean a pretend Vampire?
J: “Character is what you are in the dark.” It’s a blog and she’s a writer. She tells cool stories, like her “Vlad’s Diary” series. And she takes care of her elders, even when they’re a bit confused about things now and then.
N: They’re Vampires too?
J: Of course.
N: Look, I know it’s fun to blur the lines like Stoker and Rice playing with the whole out-and-proud bit, but we survive upon mortal human blood. No matter how entertained people are by the idea of it, blood drinkers aren’t going to suddenly become acceptable, even if the Japanese invent TruBlood. I also don’t need to remind you how outnumbered we are.
J: It’s a spycraft thing. If people are watching for someone trying to not to be seen, don’t. Juliette’s sincere, and I like her idea of a Vampire family. Confidence works. If you look like you belong, no one thinks twice about it.
N: (smiling) I can’t remember ever being so naïve, and that’s coming from someone who remembers everything.
J: I still don’t see the harm. I work the night shift —
N: Which you don’t have to.
J: — and I’m very good at drawing blood.
N: Wink-wink, nudge-nudge. So why are you dredging this up again?
Continue reading “Undead @ The Empty Glass”
I’m going to admit to you that Vampires have crushes like anyone else. Have you seen movies and television? 
“Preacher” is one of them. If you’re not familiar with this AMC show — spoiler! — Cassidy’s a Vampire but not the main character. While we’re shown he’s capable of blood-raging violence, most of the time he just wants to be left alone with his substance abuse. He’s a predator who avoids killing because of both the complications it brings — bodies don’t hide themselves — as a well as personal code of who deserves his wrath.
The Vampires I know were made, not born. We are not a race. Some sought it, some accepted it, and some had it inflicted upon them. It can’t be undone, but we can choose what we do with it.
Life is precious; believe me, I get that — read: I’m a Vampire — but you cannot fully appreciate what you have until you’ve lost the ability to choose for yourself. History is littered with the casualties of loss of choice — both slavery and genocide in the extreme — often because those in power use it against those who needs their help the most. With the open global communication of today, it’s hard to sweep these kinds of activities under the carpet… we can see you, and we’re not putting up with it.
I’ve mentioned before that immortals require a place to rest, one with a bed of earth and deep enough to be completely interred. It doesn’t require being covered, but a sense of safety is paramount; if you’ve seen any of those movies where the fools disturbing a Vampire at rest during the day realize we’re not actually sleeping, you’ve got the right bloody idea.
Ah, modern conveniences to the rescue! Of course Vampires can see in extreme low-light conditions, but a reading light never hurts — nor does a back-lit video screen with an in-crypt high-speed wireless connection and a charging cradle. Finish a book, interact on social media, do some light shopping, or binge-watch a season on Netflix. When Vampires were cursed to spend their days confined to a crypt, I’ll bet the culprits never suspected science would supersede magic.
This brings us back to controlling an election cycle. Sure, maybe mention to the new small-town mayor that the Blood Bank doesn’t need new surveillance cameras (which is ridiculous because Vampires couldn’t use any of that blood, but that’s a different story) or to declare an “abandoned” century-old mansion on the edge of town a state landmark to ensure it’s never torn down and must be maintained by the city. Neat ideas, sure, but on a larger scale, problems ensue…
I used to read my mom’s old paperback romance books: Danielle Steel novels. What’s wrong with falling for a renowned heart-transplant surgeon these days? Maybe what I remember are the heroines: “a glamorous, well-to-do young writer,” or “a beautiful young journalist.” Yes, there’s a pattern here — only the young get to fall in love ’cause those are the rules — but when you don’t have to worry about money, you can concentrate on everything else you want out of life without consequence (insert sarcastic laugh here).
That said, if you come at me with the intent to harm myself or my charges, I will end you. Maybe I’ll give you a chance to turn your ass around and maybe I won’t. There are plenty of ways I can kill you, some faster than others and I have quite the imagination. Oh, that’s against the law? The last time I checked, there weren’t any Mountain State politicians exactly pandering to the Vampire Vote, so when you cross my threshold, consider anything that happens to you justified — not to mention we have a really great cleaning crew on staff.
Cedarcrest Sanctum 