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The night was Thrawn’s domain. The ground shined upon by the bright moon was his. The sky beneath his leathery wings, was his space. Everything, once the sunlight had disappeared, belong to him and his kind. It was his privilege, and his curse. A realm he could only see half the day, never to experience the warmth of the sun upon his pale blue skin. Never to enjoy the light dancing through the leaves in a warm summer breeze. He was a monster, a beast, a taker of lives, and the payment for his crimes was his banishment from the sun.
So he soared across the night sky, his sky. The form of a large bat his chariot, leading him onto the next warm body, filled with luscious crimson that had his fangs glistening in the moonlight for the sheer anticipation of feasting. He was not a greedy eater, more often than not he never took so much that his victim could not still rise come morning. There was no sense in consuming all of an individual and losing one more meal source. Living Humans could make more blood, dead ones could not.
Unfortunately, many of his fellow kin did not share his belief. They preferred to bleed a human of every last drop. To fill their stomachs to the brink of bursting just for the satisfaction of death. He did what he could to reign those ones in, but Vampires can be very independent and coarse to being told what to do.
His inability to keep them in check was why he soared so far looking for his nightly meals. Too much activity in one area could garner the attention of hunters, ones whose goals was to wipe beings like Thrawn off the face of the Earth. There was no sense prodding at a sleeping bear when it could be so easily avoided. A sleeping bear need not know what goes on around it as it slumbers, so long as noise is kept at a minimum.
So two towns over from his manner in the densest part of the woods, he flew, his eyes already set on one man in particular. A Human farmer that he’d run into while perusing the city some days earlier under the protection of his hood and glasses. He was still in the prime of his youth, strong and seemingly very intelligent. Thrawn had found him discussing numbers and accounting with a local shopkeeper, trying to revolutionize his business in the course of an afternoon. He also came off as extremely friendly, having no problem talking with Thrawn despite his odd appearance and choice of clothing.
While the personality and intelligence of a Human did not impact the taste or nutrition of their blood, Thrawn always found it beneficial to know these things about a person he fed from. As well, he received a higher satisfaction from feeding from them than from a typical dimwitted person which were commonplace with Humans. Very few sparked intrigue in Thrawn, and it was these Human’s in particular he sought out.
Amid their talking, Eli had provided the name and location of his family’s farm, on which he worked, making it simple to find the man in the night. He flew over the land, seeing the stretching crops prepared for harvest any day now, and the decently sized farmhouse laying in the center of it all. Eli’s family must be doing well for himself, intelligence and skill seem to have brought them wealth as well.
He gave another quick circle before diving lower for a closer look and hesitated. Once near the house, he smelt the all familiar stench of over saturated crimson blood in wood, dirt, flesh. The scent of death is what hit him, making his hunger rise and his wariness flow in. Death on a farm at night was never a good sign. He did not smell animal’s blood, it was distinctly Human, and the way it wafted in the air made him think only of a massacre.
He circled again, twisting and turning in the air, scanning the sky for any signs of rivals or other predators. Seeing none, he finally finished his decent. He started on the top floors, scanning through the windows for signs of life, or where life had been. The first few rooms there was nothing, but the third, he found none other than Eli Vanto, sleeping peacefully in his bed beside the open window. The rise and fall of his chest as well as his heartbeat in Thrawn's ears confirming he was in fact alive. For how much longer was unclear. He moved on, scanning the rest of the top floor before moving down to the base floor.
Here, the stench got stronger. He passed by the kitchen and saw nothing but red. The floors, counters, walls, were all splattered with crimson, blood coated the room, and trails lead from there into the living room. The next window, he saw a corpse, face down in the center of the room, having crawled their way there in a desperate struggle for survival. Eli’s mother, who clearly lost out against the clock now lay there, body still cooling.
The trail continued from there, onward to the ajar front door. Coming around to the front he found the body of Eli’s father as well, he on his back, eyes wide, staring into the abyss, his throat and chest clawed open, the wound jagged and raw, but distinctly missing the amount of blood carnage his mother was coated in. Thrawn knew these signs, this motive, the method. A Vampire had come here before him, and enacted out this predatory slaughter, and he knew which one.
Pryce. She was known for being cruel and destructive with Humans, and a knack for only listening to Thrawn when it suited her. She would tear through households, laying a scene of utter destruction, letting the women bleed out while she mauled and fed from the men. But her tell tale sign was survivors, she always left one member of a family alive, usually the children, to suffer a grief unknown to most Humans. No doubt she thralled Eli to sleep peacefully through the sounds of his parents murders so that come morning, he will discover them dead and he the only one left. Thrawn had witnessed innocent people be sent to prison under accusations for the murder he knew Pryce to commit. For some reason, he did not want that same fate to befall Eli.
A rage simmered in Thrawn’s gut, the desire to rip put the foolish, cruel, woman’s throat rising. But he steeled himself, never one to be overwhelmed by his emotions. He shifted forms, landing softly on his two feet, blue skin pale under the moonlight and the red eyes of hunger glowing brightly. He touched a hand to Eli’s father, his skin still warm, Pryce had been here not long ago, could still be in the area, but he could not sense her presence, a useful trick he had being the ruler over all Vampires in this area.
He moved on from the man, it was too late for either of them. In his attempt to escape Pryce he’d left the door open, or she had, when mutilating his esophagus. While Vampires needed to be invited into a home, an open door or window was an open invitation. He continued into the house, coming up beside Eli’s mother next. He examined her body, in her final resting position, seeing her head tilted to the side, lifeless eyes transfixed on one point specifically. He followed and found a toppled over family portrait, of herself, Eli, and his father. Her last image, her last thoughts were of her family.
That pulled at Thrawn’s long dead heart, remembering a time he himself had a family. A brother, who was now gone from this world where Thrawn remained. Was Thrass’ last thoughts before death of him, would Thrawn’s be of Thrass? Would their souls intertwine once again at the end of eternity. He could not know, and the thoughts were turning his mood sour. He moved on.
The kitchen was no different from within as being seen from outside. Blood coated every surface, still warm and dripping down the walls, pooling in enticing puddles on the floor. Clearly it was here Pryce slit the woman’s throat, her blood spraying all across the room before she collapsed and drug herself into the living room. Curiously, the staircase was here, the one leading up to the next floor, where Eli slept, and it seemed his mother avidly avoided the stairs, instead crawling away from them. Then her husband, who was on his feet up until making it just out of the door did the same. He could have retreated upstairs, awoken his son, gathered his weapons, instead they avoided going upstairs and made for the door.
They were protecting Eli, he realized. Leading their killer away hoping they wouldn’t then turn their murderous gaze onto their adult son. It was commendable, that they risked their own survival to ensure the life of their only child. Humans truly were amazing creatures, so many squabbled and wallowed in their own idiocy like mindless mice, livestock that deserved to be slaughtered. But then so many other proved themselves to be above the lot, to be selfless, living for others and helping people rather than using them as legs up in the world. Of course Vampires like Pryce had to take what few astounding Humans from this world.
Swallowing the bitter taste in the back of his throat, he moved upstairs, seeking out the last living Vanto in the home. He had assumed Pryce had thralled Eli before, now he was certain of it. Even as the wind howled outside, the floorboards creaked as Thrawn explicitly pressed upon them, there wasn’t even a shuffle from the man’s bedroom. If it weren’t for the fact that he could hear his heartbeat, Thrawn might have assumed he had died as well. He entered the man’s room, and saw him lying in bed, flat on his back, completely unmoved from where Thrawn had seen him last. The window beside him left wide open, no doubt where Pyrce had made her entrance.
The poor man, an orphan without knowing it yet. He felt a bubbled of pity in his chest, approaching the Human who slept so soundly. So innocent, so smart, so undeserving. He encroached on him, looming over his sleeping form, seeing his chest rise, hearing the thumping of life blood through his body, the flow sounding like a roaring river to Thrawn who was desperate for just a drop. His sleep shirt had a collar that hung low, exposing his sweet neck, the brown skin completely unmarred from any blemish or injury. Thrawn wanted to sink his teeth into the meat of it, tear his mark into his man, and drink his essence like a man lost in a desert does as he finds a well. Before he realized it, he was leaning over the man, one arm on either side of his chest, his mouth inching closer and closer to his neck, hearing the pulse there as if it was between his own ears. A tongue snaked past his lips, licking gently right over his jugular, feeling the beat against the muscle in a way that drove his instincts mad.
He pulled away just as quickly as he had descended. No, he could not drink from this man, he needed his strength. His life had changed in the course of a night, and he could not deal with them when low on blood. Fighting down his hunger, despite the ache in his fangs as they longed to sink into flesh, he pulled away entirely from the man, and shifted his form once more.
Back as a bat, he fluttered around the Human, squeaking and bouncing off the walls, making as much noise as he could to rouse him from his induced slumber. Pryce’s magic could not even contend with his own, and in enough time, Eli began to move. Shifting in bed, face screwing up in discomfort as he groaned in distress. Slowly his eyes opened, and he caught sight of what he thought was just a wild bat loose in his home.
“Hey!” He screamed, bolting upright in his bed and watching as Thrawn fluttered over his head. “Go on, shoo, get!” He ripped the covers off his legs and jumped to his feet, waving his arms around wildly. Thrawn moved back towards the open bedroom door trying to get Eli to follow him.
“Ah-no! Don’t go wakin’ Mom and Dad you little…” He groaned hurrying after Thrawn who glided down the steps into the blood soaked kitchen. He landed on a counter top along the wall, resting his wings and waited for the poor Human to discover his parents. The sight wasn’t pretty.
Eli stomped down onto the floor from the staircase and froze in his spot, body going rigid, face draining of color, and Thrawn could hear his heart nearly stop in his rib cage. He stared around at the kitchen, wide eyes taking in the blood, the carnage. His hands shook, all thoughts of the loose bat forgotten in his mind.
“M-Mom? Dad?” He called into the dead house. Nothing answered him. With shaking legs he stumbled through the kitchen, pausing again in the doorway. His hand that held the door frame had turned nearly white with the force that he used to clutch it, his other hand grabbed at the shirt over his heart and clenched tight. “NO!” The wail tore through the Human’s throat, filled with such pure raw emotion that it hurt Thrawn’s ears and pulled at deep memories of a time when his own heart had beat in his chest.
Eli scrambled into the living room, and Thrawn took off again, following to observe the poor man. He’d fallen to his knees, amid the blood of his own mother, letting it soak his trousers, and shakily pressed and pulled on her body, as if she would just roll over and wake up. She wasn’t going to. Fat tears rolled down his cheeks as he mumbled through his quivering lips. Every child must eventually bury their parents, but a child is never meant to find their parents torn apart and murdered in the living room.
He heard Eli’s voice crack one final time before he broke. He collapsed on his mother’s back, sobbing loudly, and pulling at the fabric of her shirt as if he could pull her into his own soul and revive her. The whole scene felt so surreal, so familiar to him, so much so he couldn't stop himself from flying over to Eli, landing delicately on his shoulder. The Human barely flinched, but turned his head to look up at him.
“What happened?” He begged for answers through his tears, as if a bat could provide them. Luckily for him, this one could. He changed forms again, being sure to leave the only contact between them as his hand, crouched down beside the Human. Eli’s watery eyes widened watching what he thought was just an animal take the form of a humanoid, and as Thrawn finished his transformation, those eyes had turned sharp.
“Did you do this?!” Eli barked, batting away Thrawn’s hand, a protective hand laid over his mother’s corpse. Thrawn shook his head slowly, holding his hands up in defence.
“I did not, but I know who did.” Was his answer, which did nothing to subdue Eli’s anger.
“You’re a Vampire, I know the stories!” He hissed. “You’re here just to eat us all, huh.” His hand curled into a fist, and Thrawn prepared for the Human to swing it.
“I am, and I did not. I came here to feed on you, yes, however your parents fell victim to another of my kind.”
“You came here to kill me!”
“To feed form you, like drinking from a lake, I take what I need, but there would still be plenty left. My kin, she has taken all she needs and more, to sate her thirst and her malice. I promise you, no death was meant to come by your family.”
“H-How can I trust your word, you’re a monster!”
Thrawn sat back, looking over the grieving man before him. He’d already been thralled once tonight, and while there were no adverse side effects to the act, Thrawn disliked using his magic to sway the minds of Humans unless he absolutely had to. He met Eli’s eyes, allowing the glow to grow and puncture into the black irises of the Human, and transmitted a feeling of calm and sincerity. Eli thankfully stared back, not realizing what Thrawn was doing, and slowly all his muscles began to relax.
“I speak the truth.” He said into Eli’s trance before pulling back and leaving his mind free of influence again. The Human wavered slightly tears still falling from his eyes, and his fist unfurled. He sees the truth.
“Who did this.” Eli whispered, gaze falling back to his mother’s body. “Tell me who, I want to send whatever demonic hell spawn did this back to the pit it crawled from.” His voice dropped, dripping with pure disdain.
“A Human such as you cannot take on a Vampire as ancient as her. Apologies Eli Nerero Vanto, there is nothing you, a Human, can do.” There was a lapse of silence and Eli’s head fell lower.
“Would you mind, leaving me? Just for some minutes with my parents? I...I want to speak with you, if I may.” Thrawn nodded, standing to his full height, towering over the Human.
“Perhaps I may. If I remain, I will be under the moonlight.” Eli didn’t answer, and Thrawn left through the door, floating over Eli’s father, to offer some respect.
He wasn’t sure why he was doing any of this. He should have just taken his meal and moved on, leave the business of Human’s and death to them and go about his own night. But something about Eli had struck him, and everything about the emotions and feelings he saw on the Human’s face had his own heart stirring, as if it wished to beat once again. The look in his eyes, reminded him of the look he would see in his own eyes, before he lost his reflection, the broken nature, the burning fire of desire to get revenge. Eli reminded him of himself, and because of that he stayed, under the moonlight alone in the grass.
Eli came to him, maybe an hour later, Thrawn having watched the moon move across the sky. He looked beaten, eyes tired, puffy, red rimmed from tears. His clothes splattered in blood from his parents, his knuckles bleeding, as if he’d punched something hard enough to cut. Thrawn stayed put, watching Eli wander over to him, his entire body exhausted, but his spirit burning so brightly inside him that Thrawn couldn’t help but smile.
“I want you to turn me.” Were the first words from his mouth as he stopped beside Thrawn. He expected this outcome, and even still, the assuredness was a surprise.
“You ask an immortal solution to a mortal problem.” Thrawn replied, having this speech prepared.
“You said a Human couldn’t kill the thing that did this. A Vampire could.”
“Becoming the undead means death, Eli. It is not a curse given out lightly.”
“I’m already dead. If I live like you or die at the hands of my own kind for something I didn’t do, or even ran and died in the eyes of my people, it doesn’t matter. If I can choose how I die, I might as well take that bitch down with me.”
Thrawn smiled, Eli’s eyes aflame with determination. A lack of fear, of uncertainty. He knew what he wanted, how to get it, and ready to face the consequences. He impressed Thrawn, reminded him of himself, and knew that unlike his kin, Eli could turn out to be just like him if given the chance.
“Why would I help you?”
“Because you know how I feel. I see it in your eyes, the recognition, the sadness, you’ve faced a similar suffering, I can tell. You lead me to my parents, you want to help.” Well, wasn’t that a surprise. A Human that could read him as well as he could read himself. Interesting. Thrawn moved in a sudden flicker of motion, coming face to face with the Human, nose to nose, eyes locked together.
“Are you prepared to face an eternal curse? One where you live for millennia, without a heartbeat, never to feel the warmth of the sun without burning, to forgo the sweet taste of foods, and only live on the metallic life blood of Humans such as you currently are? Is this an existence you wish, an immortal struggle all for the goal of ending a single undead life? Do you wish to become a monster such as me?”
Under Thrawn’s gaze, Eli did not waver, he did not flinch, never pulled back. His eyes hard as stone stared back into those of Thrawn, his chin held high, his breath steady, his heart beat constant. He glared up at the ancient Vampire, the fire behind his irises burning so brightly they almost appeared to glow as Thrawn’s did. He took a step back, not one of retreat, but rather of necessity, reaching for his bloodied night shirt, and pulled it over his head, flinging it to the ground in one swift motion. Standing bare chested under the pale moonlight, for Thrawn to take in the sight.
“I’m not afraid. I know what will become of me, and that’s fine. If people stand by as atrocities are committed, they may as well have taken part. This thing took my family, I’ll take it’s life, Satan can have my soul.” He spread out his arms, angling his head up, exposing all of himself to Thrawn, his most vital areas, open for any attack. His neck on display, along with the salvation that lie within those veins. Thrawn smiled at him.
“I believe I am going to like you.” He took a step forward, making the distance back Eli had gained, snaking his arm around the man’s head, grabbing at the soft brown hair, pulling his head to the side. His other hand caressed up Eli’s chest, moving up to rub at his throat. “This is going to hurt.” He whispered, leaning down to run a nose along his jugular, almost smelling the sweet blood within. “This is your final chance.”
“Do it.” Eli commanded, and so Thrawn bit.
Eli’s body went rigid, flinching at the contact, a stuttering gasp escaping past his lips. Involuntarily, he reached out for Thrawn, hands digging into the fabric of his coat while the Vampire drew out the very thing that made him alive. He drank hungrily and greedily, not allowing a single drop to escape his lips, letting the sweet metallic taste coat his tongue and his throat, feeling the hunger abate every moment he swallowed another mouth full. Eli was tense beneath him, but as he was drained, his muscles relaxed more and more, the life was leaving him, transferring its way into Thrawn, Eli was dying in his arms, and his last look at a world where he breathed, where he ate, where he aged, where he lived, would be of the starry sky.
Eli’s breath became ragged and shallow, his body having gone limp in Thrawn’s arms. He was on the brink, the very edge of life and death, on his way through the veil. This was the only time in which a Vampire could be born of the ashes of man. Thrawn pulled away from Eli’s neck, blood dripping past his lips and down his chin. He felt stronger, more powerful, he felt as alive as an undead monster could feel. He took Eli, unmoving save for the weak rise and fall of his chest, and lay him on the soft ground. The timing was key, where he needed to trap Eli between the worlds of living and dead, just before passing, but just after death.
Thrawn brought his own wrist to his mouth, biting into the delicate flesh there, his blood pooling from the clean slice his fang made. Looking into Eli’s eyes, he saw the life in them fade, the vibrant brown dulling more and more and more, and just before the last breath would leave his lungs, Thrawn brought his bleeding wrist to the man’s lips, forcing his cursed blood to enter his system.
Eli Vanto the man was dead, and from him, Eli Vanto the Vampire was spawned.