Fan Fiction ❯ October Wind ❯ October Wind ( One-Shot )

October Wind

The crisp October wind stirs my soul as crimson, amber, and beige colored leaves leap to a silent death from the safety of the tree that bore them. The sky is a cool gray painted over lightly with a subtle cadet blue and purple. I sit on the brittle grass; the wind blowing freely through my raven colored hair. I gaze down at my clothes and notice that my skin has paled to contrast my black attire.

My canine teeth seem longer, more protruding as I watch a bird fly overhead. The wind still blows, stirring the leaves on the trees as if warning them of the impending danger. The wind itself is blowing stronger as if it too was being affected by my metamorphosis. I gaze at my hand, once firm and pink, now pale and slender with long claws protruding from my fingertips and raise it to my mouth. I gently run a finger over my teeth. A pair of sharp pointed fangs reside where my canine teeth once rested.

Slowly I stand, becoming aware that my body has become more slender, more graceful. I lay a hand on a nearby tree, aware of its flaking bark as I stare at the cottages below. I am hungry, I realize as I take a step forward. But what I crave, I do not know. I am aware of voices below, however, as I make my descent off the hill and wonder what their reaction to me will be. Their voices grow louder as I near them, as well as a rhythmic thumping sound. I cautiously inch forward, wondering what the thumping noise is. Louder and louder their voices grow and I sense that they are near me. I walk past a tree whose branches look like a network of skeletal phalanges as I draw myself nearer to the voices. The voices belong to men, I am sure of it now as I reach the edge of the forest.

Yes, they are men but I had forgotten how voices carry on the October wind. They are about thirty feet away from me, not as close as I had thought, and they seem to be kicking some sort of ball around. I take a step forward and notice a small ravine separating the landscape. Being extremely careful, I cross it, taking care to avoid a small house sitting near the opposite edge of the ravine.

I glance up and notice an inn not far from where I am standing. I start to walk towards it, cringing at the war cries that the group of men is uttering. From the safety of a tree, I watch their antics, wondering about the purpose of a ball that they seem to enjoy kicking around. Shaking my head, I continue on my trek to the inn. I could figure out their antics later for what I needed now was rest.

Strange, though, for after my change I did not feel the least bit tired. I did, however, still feel the hunger for something that I could not name. I am at the inn now and after a few stairs climb; I am at the door. I peer inside the frost-covered glass but the innkeeper seems to be out. I place a hand on the doorknob. Strangely enough it opens as a small squirrel, obviously terrified by my appearance, scurries up a tree.

My boots make a loud thumping noise as I walk through the inn, which seems to imply that I am the only one inside. Careful inspection of the vacant rooms confirms my belief. The wind is brisker as I step out of the inn. I meet a villager on my way to a pub adjacent to the inn and suddenly realize what I am hungry for.

I crave blood. I smile warmly at a pair of lovely young girls who are walking my way, resisting the urge to feast upon their young necks. I stand outside the pub, staring at a trio of strange rectangular boxes who are advertising some nauseating cola and turn away in disgust and head for the entrance of the pub, hoping to satisfy my cravings inside.

I stare at the villagers, watching in amazement at their strange antics. Alien music is coming from a box in a corner as I press myself against the wall, a feeling of terror filling my soul. I notice the first villager that I had met outside the inn walk into the pub and assume that she's the innkeeper for she seems to be in charge. For some unknown reason, she's split us up into groups. I gaze at the women in my group; their tender necks seem to be begging for my fangs. There are two other men in my group and I wonder if they are going to be an obstacle to me. I give them a second glance and then suddenly, I'm in another group. Now we're all back together again. What kind of spell is this innkeeper weaving over all of us?

We're outside now, walking back to the pub. I wish I knew when I could ditch this group and go on a prowl. The night is dark, which is perfect for lurking. I think I'll go out later tonight on my search for blood. Blood, that wonderful crimson liquid! How I wish to taste that life essence of humans! My bony face feels the cold blast of air as I step out side, but only for a second, for we are being called back to the pub.

Reluctantly, I reenter its feeling of warmth causing a chill within my heart. All these people! I shudder violently for now I find their antics repulsive. The fickle innkeeper has thrown the group outside once again and now I sit on a wooden bench with the calming sound of running water at my back. I listen to the voices of the people as a plan forms in my mind. This night, when they're all asleep. That is when I will begin my hunt. The wind violently rustles the leaves as if trying to warn the humans of impending doom.

Too bad they won't listen to the wind, though. For they are only mortals and mortals cannot understand the language of the wind. It is true that I was once like them but since the eternal being has awoken in my soul, I have found myself disliking them more and more with every waking moment.

I shrug my shoulders, aware of the cold around me but incapable of feeling it. Strange that as my awareness of life grows more and more, I become less and less sensitive of emotions. The night has finally come; I realize and stand up, preparing myself for my hunt. I take a quick glance at the mirror and realize that my eye color has changes from blue to a deep burgundy. My reflection has somewhat phased out as I turn away from the mirror.

I step out of the room and walk down the hall, my boots echo in the building as I stop at a room where a young blonde girl lies sleeping soundly on the bed. Silently, I walk into the room and bend over her sleeping figure. I pull the blanket off of her body and mover her silken hair away from her neck.

My mouth opens wide as saliva trickles down my fangs as I bring my face closer to her neck. She gasps softly as her crimson life essence flows into my mouth. I lick my lips, savoring the intoxicating warm ambrosia in my mouth as her breaths become shallow until finally, she stops breathing altogether. Slowly turning from her corpse, I allow myself a satisfied smile for my hunger has been relinquished.

It is nearing dawn, I realize as I step out of the inn and I suddenly have the desire to flee from the rising sun. I do not know why, but the sun strikes fear in my heart. It is true that I have changed a lot during the past forty-eight hours, but I am not sure why the shining round orb of light frightens me so. I see the first rays of sunlight stream upward from the horizon as I run down a path towards a small shack.

I thrust open the door of the shack and step inside. The interior seems to give away the shack's former life as a tool shed as I shut the door behind me. I push a few wooden crates in front of the door to insure that the sunlight doesn't creep into my hiding place. I brush the dust off of my black cloak as I sit down on the cold, hard ground. I feel weary, I realize as I rest my back against the wooden frame of the shed. My eyes slowly shut as I find myself drifting towards some sort of oblivion. The eternal being within my soul needs rest…

***

It is night once more when I finally open my eyes. I stand up and stretch noticing that the shed has become even more dilapidated during my sleep. A few field mice scurry into the shadows as I walk towards the door. The crates, in their rotted state have become easier to move and I push them to the opposite side of the shed. I lay a hand on the handle of the door and thrust it open. The night air has become frigid as I step outside the shed and gaze at my surroundings. The village seems to have grown, I notice as I take a step forward. Metal monsters zoom past me on some sort of road and I jump back. How long had I been asleep? What changes had happened during my rest?

Carefully, I take a step forward. The ground feels hard an alien underneath my feet. My eyes dart cautiously back and forth as I walk across the gray colored ground with yellow lines separating the ground into two symmetrical parts. What did the yellow lines mean? I wondered as I stepped onto an elongated slab of rock. No, it wasn't rock for I could see nothing that could characterize it as a rock. It was hard like a rock, yet the surface was light gray and porous. I bent over to get a better view of this strange substance and noticed that it was made up of tiny rocks.

An nerve-wracking honk blared from behind me like some wounded duck and I spun around only to find that one of those metal monsters had pulled up along side me and a human leaned out from within its stomach. I cringed in disgust at the sight, but the human seemed to be perfectly content with riding inside the stomach of a monster on wheels.

"Lose something buddy?" the human, a man in his early twenties asked in a strange accent and I shook my head.

"I am new to this town. Please tell me what I am standing on?" I ask, aware that my voice sounds foreign in my current surroundings.

"Are you some kind of nut? That's concrete. Say, you're not one of the guys from the haunted house up the street are you?"

"Haunted house?"

"I love that makeup job. Very spooky. You look like a real vamp."

"I am…"

"Hey, why don't you let me take you up to the house? I was heading there myself. That is, if you don't mind."

Not knowing how to handle the situation, I nod my head and say thank you. The human gestures for me to come around the monster and I do so, slightly cringing at the sound of its growling. I glance at the creature's arm, which is uncommonly short and silver in color and notice a small button where the arm is connected to the rest of the body.

"Go on and open the door. It's not going to bite ya. Jeez, you're a really good actor. Had me convinced that you were a real vamp there," the human said as I pressed the button and pulled on the arm. The creature's side became dislocated as I stared in horror as its leather-covered interior. The human motioned for me to sit down and, not wanting to anger him, complied with his request.

"So how old are you?" the human asked as I put the creature's dislocated side back into place.

"Twenty two," I replied and grabbed onto the creature's inside as the human pulled a stick, slammed his foot onto the bottom of the creature, and moved us forward.

"Sorry about that. This car's got a touchy accelerator. We'll be at the house in no time. So, what's your name?"

"Neal."

"Hmm. Never heard a name like that before. You from out of the country someplace?"

"No. I live here."

"Funny. I've never heard that name before. Doesn't really matter though. This city is constantly growing. I can't keep up with the names of every one. Here we are," the human said as he stopped the monster that he called a car. He took a jagged metallic object out of the creature's stomach and opened what he called a door and stepped out onto the concrete.

"I thank you for the trip. It was…unique," I said as I walked around the car.

"Hey, no problem. There's the house."

He pointed to a building with no windows and a line of humans waiting to enter. He gestured for me to follow him and I complied for I was new in these strange surroundings and did not want to anger the inhabitants. We walked around the building to another door and the human knocked three times. The door opened and a hideous creature that looked as if it had risen from the grave stared at us. I resisted the urge to express the fear that gripped my immortal soul as the creature took off its head to reveal a human trapped inside its decomposing body.

"Hey Joe, I found one of your guys down the street by the bookstore. I love the makeup job that you did on him. He looks very realistic. Especially around the teeth. If I didn't know that you were doing the haunted house, I'd swear that those vamp teeth he's got on were real," the human that I had come with said and the other human, Joe laughed.

" I don't remember seeing this one before. He must be one of the new guys. All right, come on kid. We need to get you set up. We're opening soon," Joe said and motioned for me to step through the door.

I walked through the doorway and instantly, I was transported into Hell. Decrepit beings and desolate buildings surrounded me as Joe ushered me to a room where an image of a castle sat. My cold eyes gazed at it in wonder, for it reminded me of a castle that I had resided in once so long ago. A figure steps forward and I gaze at him in wonder. The man standing before me is dressed in a black suit and a flowing black cape with a red velvet lining. His hair is shiny black and he gives me a big grin. I notice his long, pointed incisors and wonder what part of the country he is from for I have never seen a vampire that is dressed in such a manner before.

"Mike, this kid will be working with you in the Transylvania Room. Show him the ropes will ya?" Joe asked and Mike nodded his head.

"Of course. Give me a second to take these teeth out. My mouth needs a rest anyway," Mike said and I watched him take his teeth out. I watched in horror for I had never heard of any vampire that could take his teeth out before now. Then, I understood. It was only a human pretending to be a vampire. Well, if he desired immortality that much, I surely could give it to him. My taste preference is the blood from a young female, but in this case, I could make an exception.

I waited for the one called Joe to leave the room, then walked over to Mike, who was placing his teeth into a wooden box. He stopped when he felt my presence behind him and turned around. He gazed into my cold eyes for a second, then took a step backward.

"I like your makeup job. Where did you get those contact lenses? They add that extra little bit to your costume," he said and I smiled, my fangs dripped with saliva.

"I can make your wish for immortality come true," I said as I slowly walked towards him. The human's eyes grew wide as he suddenly realized that I was not wearing a costume and froze his mind too frightened to come up with a plan of action. I turned my head sideways and opened my mouth; my fangs glistening like two ivory knitting needles. Easily my incisors slid into the human's flesh as the human let out an ear-splitting scream of terror.

His blood warms my soul as I drink greedily from his neck. I hear the sound of footsteps and quickly end my meal. I slide the now lifeless figure of Mike under the table and cover him with his cloak. I turn around just as Joe enters the room. He looks at the fresh blood that is running down the corners of my mouth and nods his head.

"Very good. I like that extra touch. Where's Mike?" he asked and I shrug my shoulders. "No matter. We're opening in five minutes. Think you can handle this room by yourself?"

"Yes," I reply and Joe grins.

"Good. After tonight, let's get together and discuss your pay. Scare them good."

I watch him leave, then walk over to Mike's corpse. I pull the sheet off of his body and notice that his skin has become withered and dry. He could not handle the gift of immortality, I conclude as I cover him with the cloak. Very few humans could, which is why I usually limited my gift of immortality to those that I deemed worthy. This human, however, was not worthy. He was only masquerading as a vampire. He didn't want to live as one. Even vampires make mistakes, I conclude as I prepare myself for the customers that the human Joe had mentioned.

The door was thrust open and a horde of humans came in, some wearing horrific clothes. I watched for a moment as things dropped from the ceiling and screams echoed the room, then I noticed a young woman standing near the door. She is so beautiful and I know that she must have beautiful blood. Silently I walk towards her, taking in her beautiful slender body and long, wavy black hair. I reach out to grab her when I hear a scream of pure terror. I turn around and notice a young girl staring at the dead body of Mike with the cape in her hand.

"He's dead!" she screamed. "He's really dead!"

The house comes to a grinding halt as the lights are switched on. Bright blinding lights that reminds me of the accursed sun. I shrink from my prey, franticly searching for some shadows that I can duck into. The human called Joe burst into the room and ran over to Mike's corpse. He gazed at two telltale punctures in the side of the dead man's neck and turned to face the horrified audience.

"I know you're out there you devil!" he cried and the customers cringed in fear. "There is a vampire amongst you. A real vampire! Drag him out of the shadows and drive a wooden steak through his black heart!"

Fearfully, I start to make my way towards the door, my back flat against the ghoulish-looking walls. Joe pulls out something that looks like a torch and turns it on. I watch him for a second, then continue on my trek towards the door. Some unseen fabric snags my foot and I shake my foot, hoping to get it free. My movements do not go unnoticed, however, for a young man glances in my direction and for a brief second, our gazes were locked. His gaze softened for a moment showing that he felt…sympathy? I turned my head away and worked on freeing my foot. Finally, the fabric gave up as if it knew that its struggle with me was not worth its time. I continued my run for the door, watching the humans search the Transylvania Room.

"Tear the place apart! He mustn't escape! Has any one seen him yet?" Joe inquired and I glance at the young man who had gazed at me. He reminded me of myself, I realized, as I stood plastered against the wall.

Once, long ago, I was like him. Once I was a normal human. Once I could enjoy the simple human pleasures, but then the eternal being within my soul awoke and took over. What had I done to awaken the being? I had done nothing, I realized as I continued my run for the door. It was the October wind that had played a part in my metamorphosis. It was the wind that had awoken the demon within me. It was also the wind that had awoken me from my death-like slumber.

Finally, I reached the door and thrust it open! The cold October wind blasts across my face as my hands were immobilized as Joe walked up to me carrying a wooden stake in his hand. He stood in front of me, his blue eyes blazing with rage as he raised the death stake.

"Your time is at an end, demon," Joe hissed venomously and I screamed an ungodly scream as I felt the stake pierce my heart. What a cruel an October wind is, I realize as my body falls limp onto the floor.