11 cont
‘I’m heading back to the temple’ she said.
‘I’ll be back tomorrow, we need to look into these tunnels again just better armed and more carefully’. She turned and left walking back through the streets alone she kept her hand on the crossbow pistol on her belt, just in case. As she headed up Hope Street she heard her name called out behind her, she turned to see Scath jogged towards her.
‘Hello’ he said ‘mind if I walk with you?’She looked sceptically at him and turned and began to walk.
‘I thought you were going to the university’ Dúlra asked.
‘I’m on my way there now. I had to stop a crime from happening’ he replied.
‘You mean you just killed and fed off someone’ Dúlra said.
‘Well yes', he replied. 'But the poor woman that was about to be murdered and her family are probably happy that I did kill them though. Had I been one of the watch men they’d have been taken away imprisoned and hanged for the crime. Where’s the difference in what I do? Since I actually have a royal permit to do kill criminals it’s not illegal’.
‘Your motivations are questionable. Are you being motivated by the prevention of crime or are you being motivated by your unnatural urges and requirement for sustenance? Inherently you are an abomination that goes against everything that I hold dear. I appreciate that you saved my life, I appreciate that you saved Marion’s body and I appreciate that you became this on the kings orders hundreds of years ago but he didn’t think of the long term effects of having a vampire as the hero of a nation’.
‘You considered me a hero and couldn’t wait to meet me until you realised that I was a vampire. Given some of the evil that I have seen over the centuries as a watchman for this kingdom then I feel that I may have lost my soul but I have not sold it to someone or something that can hold sway over me. I am bound to this kingdom not any master other than that’ he answered. They walked on debating the relative merits of what Scath had done against the nature of what he had become until they stood between the university and the temple. ‘Do you want to come in and see what happened to those bodies?’ Scath offered
‘I may as well since I’m here' she replied. They walked through the front arch of the university and across the grounds to the anatomy buildings. They walked in and into the mortuary that the bodies had been stored in. Two of the corpses had dark elf crossbow bolts embedded in their chests the third however the third was almost completely drained of blood. On her throat were the tell tale puncture marks of a vampire killing. Scath shook his head.
‘When I see this I can see why you are so passionate about what you do. This is Nessa. The one that was mentioned in the meeting earlier. She was pretty innocent, though she could handle herself in a fight. This was done out of malice at us. She didn’t deserve this’. A tear rolled down his cheek. Dúlra looked at this monster and saw a real outpouring of emotion.
‘Were the two of you close?’ she asked gently.
‘She was my great, great, great, great, great granddaughter. I introduced her to the Society. The hardest thing that I’ve had to deal with over the years is watching my family get old and die. She was very brave. I didn’t want her involved in any of this but she insisted that she wanted to be involved’.
‘Do you have many members of your family you still speak to?’ Dúlra asked
‘Not really, I only had the one daughter when I became a vampire and, as I’m sure you’re aware, we lack ability in that area so never had any more children. That was the only line.’ he answered. ‘Do you want to go to the buttery and get a drink? I’d like to be around life’. Seeing genuine anguish Dúlra nodded and they walked out of the door. They walked back through the grounds and down the side of the steps to the buttery tavern. They walked in and a guard looked at them. He smiled at Scath and stepped out of the way to allow them to enter.
They walked through the doors into a large room with low arched ceilings. The lighting level was very low and was supplied by candles on tables. In the centre of the room was a large square bar with a barman at each end. There were tables all around the walls of the room populated by students and professors alike enjoying ale and chatting. As they walked through many people stood up and bowed slightly and said ‘Dean’. They found a table in the corner and a server came over to them. She was a young woman and she moved around the tables carrying a tray like she had done this a million times.
‘Usual Dean?’ she asked
‘Please Karen. What would you like to drink, Dúlra?’ He asked turning to her.
‘Red wine please’ she replied. The girl walked off to get their drinks and they sat quietly watching the life of the bar.
‘So, what’s involved in being the Dean?’ Dúlra asked.
‘It’s more of an honorific than a practical title. Technically I have to deal with disciplinary matters. Infringements by the students of the rules. It has the advantage that anything out of the ordinary passes over my desk’. He answered.
‘Ah I see the advantage for the society’ Dúlra acknowledged.
They sat like there for hours, discussing the world and their views on it. Finally, Dúlra stood up and drained her glass.
‘I’d best get some rest’ she said reaching for her coat. They walked out of the buttery together and across the grounds.
‘I’m still not convinced about what you became’ she said. ‘And I will be watching you for any sign of betrayal or evil, but for now you’re ok’.
She walked out the front gate of the university and crossed the road to the temple. She headed to her quarters and went to bed her mind spinning with conflict between the genuinely decent person that Scath seems to be fighting with the fact that he is a vampire and against everything she has believed up to this point. She fell into a fitful sleep.
‘I’ll be back tomorrow, we need to look into these tunnels again just better armed and more carefully’. She turned and left walking back through the streets alone she kept her hand on the crossbow pistol on her belt, just in case. As she headed up Hope Street she heard her name called out behind her, she turned to see Scath jogged towards her.
‘Hello’ he said ‘mind if I walk with you?’She looked sceptically at him and turned and began to walk.
‘I thought you were going to the university’ Dúlra asked.
‘I’m on my way there now. I had to stop a crime from happening’ he replied.
‘You mean you just killed and fed off someone’ Dúlra said.
‘Well yes', he replied. 'But the poor woman that was about to be murdered and her family are probably happy that I did kill them though. Had I been one of the watch men they’d have been taken away imprisoned and hanged for the crime. Where’s the difference in what I do? Since I actually have a royal permit to do kill criminals it’s not illegal’.
‘Your motivations are questionable. Are you being motivated by the prevention of crime or are you being motivated by your unnatural urges and requirement for sustenance? Inherently you are an abomination that goes against everything that I hold dear. I appreciate that you saved my life, I appreciate that you saved Marion’s body and I appreciate that you became this on the kings orders hundreds of years ago but he didn’t think of the long term effects of having a vampire as the hero of a nation’.
‘You considered me a hero and couldn’t wait to meet me until you realised that I was a vampire. Given some of the evil that I have seen over the centuries as a watchman for this kingdom then I feel that I may have lost my soul but I have not sold it to someone or something that can hold sway over me. I am bound to this kingdom not any master other than that’ he answered. They walked on debating the relative merits of what Scath had done against the nature of what he had become until they stood between the university and the temple. ‘Do you want to come in and see what happened to those bodies?’ Scath offered
‘I may as well since I’m here' she replied. They walked through the front arch of the university and across the grounds to the anatomy buildings. They walked in and into the mortuary that the bodies had been stored in. Two of the corpses had dark elf crossbow bolts embedded in their chests the third however the third was almost completely drained of blood. On her throat were the tell tale puncture marks of a vampire killing. Scath shook his head.
‘When I see this I can see why you are so passionate about what you do. This is Nessa. The one that was mentioned in the meeting earlier. She was pretty innocent, though she could handle herself in a fight. This was done out of malice at us. She didn’t deserve this’. A tear rolled down his cheek. Dúlra looked at this monster and saw a real outpouring of emotion.
‘Were the two of you close?’ she asked gently.
‘She was my great, great, great, great, great granddaughter. I introduced her to the Society. The hardest thing that I’ve had to deal with over the years is watching my family get old and die. She was very brave. I didn’t want her involved in any of this but she insisted that she wanted to be involved’.
‘Do you have many members of your family you still speak to?’ Dúlra asked
‘Not really, I only had the one daughter when I became a vampire and, as I’m sure you’re aware, we lack ability in that area so never had any more children. That was the only line.’ he answered. ‘Do you want to go to the buttery and get a drink? I’d like to be around life’. Seeing genuine anguish Dúlra nodded and they walked out of the door. They walked back through the grounds and down the side of the steps to the buttery tavern. They walked in and a guard looked at them. He smiled at Scath and stepped out of the way to allow them to enter.
They walked through the doors into a large room with low arched ceilings. The lighting level was very low and was supplied by candles on tables. In the centre of the room was a large square bar with a barman at each end. There were tables all around the walls of the room populated by students and professors alike enjoying ale and chatting. As they walked through many people stood up and bowed slightly and said ‘Dean’. They found a table in the corner and a server came over to them. She was a young woman and she moved around the tables carrying a tray like she had done this a million times.
‘Usual Dean?’ she asked
‘Please Karen. What would you like to drink, Dúlra?’ He asked turning to her.
‘Red wine please’ she replied. The girl walked off to get their drinks and they sat quietly watching the life of the bar.
‘So, what’s involved in being the Dean?’ Dúlra asked.
‘It’s more of an honorific than a practical title. Technically I have to deal with disciplinary matters. Infringements by the students of the rules. It has the advantage that anything out of the ordinary passes over my desk’. He answered.
‘Ah I see the advantage for the society’ Dúlra acknowledged.
They sat like there for hours, discussing the world and their views on it. Finally, Dúlra stood up and drained her glass.
‘I’d best get some rest’ she said reaching for her coat. They walked out of the buttery together and across the grounds.
‘I’m still not convinced about what you became’ she said. ‘And I will be watching you for any sign of betrayal or evil, but for now you’re ok’.
She walked out the front gate of the university and crossed the road to the temple. She headed to her quarters and went to bed her mind spinning with conflict between the genuinely decent person that Scath seems to be fighting with the fact that he is a vampire and against everything she has believed up to this point. She fell into a fitful sleep.