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“So, you are the one they call Dracula,” a deep and husky voice spoke behind him. Vlad turned to lay his eyes upon a striking male. Large and broad, his eyes glowed gold in the dim light. Vlad tilted his head a bit, knowing him to be an old and powerful vampire by his presence alone.
A smile crossed Vlad’s face. “So are you,” he answered.
The stranger smiled, showing his own fangs. “Indeed.” He stepped forward, offering his hand. “Drake.”
“Vlad.” He grabbed hold of Drake’s forearm as he did the same in turn, feeling an incredible amount of warmth rather than the cold often associated with their kind. Well, what vampires had become rather.
“A good view of the city,” Drake commented, nodding his head off towards the vast metropolis. Indeed, the cliffside Vlad had positioned himself on gave him the perfect viewpoint. “I take it you have heard what is coming.”
“Who hasn’t?”
“Yet you do not run.”
“I’m too old to let a virus worry me.” His grin turned into a little smirk, not having completely lost his cockiness as the years passed him by. “And these… abominations could use a good culling anyway.”
“I could not have said it better.” Drake’s cadence of speech spoke of the regal bearing he came from, the confidence of a being centuries upon centuries old.
“Would you care to join me?” Vlad offered. He wouldn’t have tried to stop the other vampire if he’d wanted to stay but that was no reason not to be polite. From one King to another it was just common courtesy. Drake inclined his head in thanks, settling on the grass beside Vlad when he sat, legs dangling over the edge of the cliff while Vlad chose to fold his underneath of him.
It was the Daystar virus that was coming, the one created by a group of hunters. From what Vlad had learned of it through the grapevine it was rather ingenious. Of course it was proving deadly to the vampire menace, the new breed that were a shadow of their former glory, that were confined to the darkness. The virus was little more than a nuisance to ancient vampires such as Vlad, those that could walk in the sun. It hadn’t even done more to Drake than render him unconscious for a short time and he had received the full dose.
“You have been traveling ahead of the cloud,” Vlad noted.
Daystar was spreading on the wind. The scientists among their kind had noted it was starting to dissipate and would unfortunately not spread outside the Americas. Rumor had it that the King of vampires himself, the father of them all, had ordered it replicated for dispersal in other areas however. Clearly Drake held no love for what his people had become either.
“I have.” Drake didn’t offer further explanation, nor did he deny his personal interest in doing so. Vlad had long ago learned when to pick his battles, along with his words.
They sat there in companionable silence, gazing into the pre-dawn city, before Drake inquired, “Why is it they use that name? Dracula?”
Vlad’s lips quirked. “Has no one informed you of Bram Stoker my Lord?”
“That name has been mentioned, yes.” Vlad could hear the approval in Drake’s voice, clearly appreciating the respectful way he addressed him.
“My name is Vlad Dracul,” he explained. “And in his fated novel Stoker named me Dracula. It was then forever associated as being the name of the first vampire.” He smirked over at Drake. “Though we both know that is hardly true.”
“It would explain why the hunters referred to me as such,” Drake noted. “I do not like this… moniker.” He met Vlad’s own color-changing eyes. “Although I suppose you do not approve of yours as well, Vlad the Impaler.”
Vlad scoffed, looking away. “Not particularly,” he admitted, not bothering to ask how Drake knew him. It was something he’d come to expect from his fellow ancients, and thus Drake of all people having heard of him and his exploits was not a surprise. “I am not ashamed of what I have done,” he clarified after a moment. “I would do it again a thousand times over to protect my people.”
“A true warrior,” Drake commented. “A true King.” Vlad nodded his thanks. After a few more minutes spent in silence he mentioned, “I would have liked to seen you fight these Turks.” There was a little smile on his lips as he added, “To fight at your side.”
“Aye,” Vlad agreed softly, the hint of a smile crossing his face as well, “I would have liked that.” To see a fellow warrior in battle would have been a treat. Perhaps things would have turned out differently as well. But no, there was no point in dwelling on what could have been- it was a lesson he had learned long ago.
“What of this story?” Drake inquired. “This Dracula .”
Vlad laughed softly at that, shaking his head. “I was in London at the time and caught the attention of a young novelist.”
“Stoker.”
“The very same.” Vlad leaned back on his hands, looking over at Drake. “He was very interested in who I was… and so I told him.”
“You must have trusted this human quite a bit.” In Drake’s time humans knew of their existence. They lived in peace with one another. However that changed as time went on, fewer and fewer humans knowing of their second nature. Only those that served a vampire master knew the truth. They were far different to the “familiars” his children had collected in this modern age.
“I should.” Vlad’s smile had teeth. “He’s my childe.”
Drake chuckled at that, a deep, rich sound that was incredibly honest. He reached out then, hand resting lightly on Vlad’s. “And you allowed him to write this story?”
Vlad shrugged, still grinning as his fingers tangled with Drake’s casually. “He is very talented and I had not the heart to stop him. It was mostly a tale of fiction besides. Though there was plenty of truth to back it.”
“Indeed? Now I am most curious…” Drake moved over, adjusting them so his legs caged the other vampire in.
Vlad wasn’t put off by the intimate contact, well used to it. It was part of their nature to be so affectionate with each other. He had his share of lovers both human and vampire over the centuries, however it was his fellow vampires that he felt most connected with. As such, Vlad sighed, settling back into Drake’s arms easily.
“You’ve read the book?” Vlad asked in clear amusement.
Drake chuckled softly, snuggling against his back and nuzzling at Vlad’s neck. “I have been told the story. It is an interesting tale to be sure.”
“Not as interesting as the actual events,” Vlad assured. The truth behind Bram’s telling was quite the tale unto itself.
“It sounds like an adventure,” Drake noted.
“It was indeed,” Vlad agreed, craning his neck to look at Drake who smiled at him in turn.
“I would very much like to hear it.”
Vlad smiled himself, settling back against Drake once more. The ancient vampire hooked his chin over Vlad’s shoulder, arms wrapped low around his torso. “Well, it all started when I met this man, Van Helsing…”
/End
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