Dark Matters

Chapter 17: Long December nights

It was December and the city was covered in snow. It was a more recent development. Lace told Dracula that he was quite fond of snow in Winter, especially during Christmas. He had used the already disrupted climate and his magic talents to take control of the climate in his city. Vladislaus wasn’t all that surprised when Kara told him that the song, the mage whistled quite often, was called “Dreaming of a white Christmas” or something like that.

A seemingly unfitting attitude for a man who had sold his soul to the devil, but the Count realised that Lace wasn’t about to let anyone tell him what he had to do. The mage lived by his own rules and it would not surprise the vampire the least bit, if the devil himself was to show up and order Lace to stop celebrating the enemy’s feast only to hear the mage reply with a “no”.

Even though his host happened to like Christmas the Count was sure it was not for its Christian message of love, understanding and all the other nonsense he hated. The mage had said something about liking the atmosphere, the lights all over the city and the presents. Being the sole dictator of this city Lace was getting hundreds of them. Everybody wanted to be on his good side and this was must take opportunity for everyone.

It wasn’t Lace’s strange behaviour that occupied the Count’s thoughts the most. It was how happy and content Lace seemed to be. The mage might not walk around with an open smile, but there was a certain peacefulness and calmness about him Vladislaus envied utterly. For most of his undead existence the vampire had felt bitter and hateful. Nothing had really amused him for long.

Mortals had just been playthings for him and of course food. No denying that he hadn’t enjoyed playing them, moving them like pieces in a chess play or hunting them down like rabbits. But even this had become boring after a fashion. Maybe deep down he really had wanted to end it all, but so much had changed now.

Before he met Lace the Count had always assumed that this emptiness was caused by the loss of his soul. It had been a natural explanation to feel that much rage and hate towards almost anyone, the joy from making someone suffer and all the other deeds that seemed befitting of a man without soul or conscience.

There was no doubt on the vampire’s mind that Lace actually did the same and sold his soul to devil, but at the same time the Count was sure that Lace emotional life had not suffered one bit from it. The mage still took pleasure from the littlest things, he was kind after a fashion and he even possessed a strange sense of fairness. He always treated all of his dancers with respect and was generous to anyone who was serving him loyally and with competence.

It made Vladislaus wonder if maybe love was the only emotion that required a soul. Because no matter how found he had been of his brides or how much he began to enjoy the company of certain individuals in this strange place that particular emotion seemed gone forever.

But those other new found emotions were certainly helping in passing the time. Due to the pre-Christmas activities, the city was buzzing with more parties and meetings than ever. Jasmine, the dancer he had chosen to entertain him would otherwise probably become a boring nuisance already. His past brides had always possessed a certain something that had kept him intrigued enough to chance him.

Jasmine had very little going for her, she was beautiful, elegant and not a bad lover either, but she was utterly witless. Her jealousy towards Sonja was poisoning Jasmine’s thoughts more and more. Because even with all the extra attention she received at his side, the blonde dancer was still more popular.

Somehow she was stuck with the idea that Dracula intended to make her the most famous dancer of them all. So it did not strike her as odd that they were always frequenting social get-togethers were Sonja was also attending. Jasmine had not realised that the vampire cared little about their social agendas. He had his own goals and she was just there to provide him with extra information and naturally for his private entertainment.

When all that Christmas nonsense had started the count realised that Alicia was too focused on her studies to care about anything at all. If she actually attended a festivity it was because Lace wished it, but otherwise she had no interest in contact with others. She was always short worded and down right hostile towards him.

So Vladislaus knew he had to change his approach towards Alicia. Sonja was being her roommate and only real human contact the most promising way to start. Once he had one of the roommates under his spell, the other would have to follow. But approaching Sonja wasn’t that easy, either. She was attracted to him, but unfortunately easily enough sidetracked by her ever-growing circle of admirers.

Occasionally the urge to rip out a few throats was surfacing, but he was learning to keep himself at bay. In this town he had to play by Lace’s rules. In fact the count was beginning to find some thrill in the challenge. It was just his lack of patience he had yet to learn to handle.

Just as things seemed to look up, an unforeseen incident spoiled his plans and antagonised Sonja against him. It all began on the eve of the 18th at a party in the Casino. Jasmine verbally attacked her rival in a manner that sounded almost as if he had been behind it. Something about her lack of real relationships and some things one of the lamias called “psycho talk”.

Sonja was more than a little bit upset and stormed out before he could say anything. If Jasmine hadn’t technically been Lace’s property he would sucked her dry right on the spot. Maybe in this case the mage would have understood, but in the end dumping her in front of all those people was probably a lot meaner.

The next day he got up early, meaning in the afternoon, and headed straight into the upper lounge on the 63rd floor where the security senior staff often gathered. It was always interesting to listen to the conversation Lace’s elite had in here. Especially because the members were humans as well as creatures of the night. Like the lamias or Parker, the werewolf, his personal nemesis.

Tamineh, one of the security chiefs for the lower levels of the building, was telling Kara, the other lamia, about Sonja and Alicia having a terrible fight earlier this day. Apparently it has become so bad that Sonja had moved in with her two male dancer friends who resided in a part of the building which was under Tamineh’s jurisdiction.

Kara asked if she knew the reason behind their argument and the mortal woman hinted that she believed that Sonja might have made pass on her roommate, after being so shock up by Jasmine’s insults toward her person.

Dracula was not sure what to think about this, he needed more information, and maybe this provided to be the opportune moment to go and get Sonja into his bed. Knowing that Sonja spend a lot of her free time in the library, he assumed that she would now choose a time at which Alicia wasn’t around.

The blonde dancer made herself rare for the next two days, but at the 21st he caught up with her in the library. The Count noticed immediately that she was unusually gloomy.

“From the look on your face, I dare say, what I heard is true.”

The young woman looked at him in an not too enthusiastic way, before turning her eyes back to the bookshelf.

“Oh, and what is it, that you heard?” Sonja said.

Obviously she had been bothered by the topic a lot, or she just didn’t want to talk about it at all. Anyway she was not frustrated but crushed and radiated little of her flamboyant charm. In fact had Vladislaus been a halfway considerate person, he might have noticed that the young woman needed a hug more than anything else. Trying the harmless approach he just said:

“Only that you had a fight with your friend that was so bad you moved out.”

With much more determination in her eyes, she turned and replied: “Oh, really? Not that I nearly raped Alicia in the bathtub, that we fought and she threw me out of the apartment?”

Vladislaus blinked, Sonja did not seemed to be the forceful type to him. He never thought she would do something like that.

“How interesting,” he replied.

“Starting to believe your own press?” she snapped back at him, before she grabbed a book and tried to walk past him. Grabbing her shoulder’s he forced her to face him again.

“Wait a moment – what are you talking about ?”

“I’m talking about your girlfriend – Jasmine – spreading these lies all over the building, now let me go.”

“No, I won’t”, he said taking the book from her with one hand and forcing her to sit on the nearest bench with the other one. Much to the Count’s liking, she did not argued back and listened, even though she did not had the kindest expression on her face.

“She is not my girl-friend and I’m certainly not interested in spreading rumours about you”, he told her firmly.

“Well, I don’t care what you call her,” she said.

“Oh, I think you do!” Dracula teased her and came intimately close to her face.

“I’m actually not in the mood for a dumb - I do, I don’t exchange - so believe what you will,” Sonja snapped back.

Her eyes went back and forth from left to right, as if she was just waiting for the best moment to dive out of his way. But Vladislaus did not notice. The blood that rushed through the veins of her bare neck and shoulder were just too inviting. Distracted for a moment, he peeked down her pullover that hid her breasts and the beating heart underneath them. Using that opportunity, she slid a bit aside, but the Count stopped her simply by touching her cheek.

Somewhat between him looking down at her and her looking up to him, a sudden urge overcame Dracula and he bent down and kissed Sonja. And if this had just been what she was waiting for, the dancer melted right into this kiss. There was something playful and teasing about the way she used her tongue that reminded him so much of Aleera that he expected Sonja to bite his tongue any given moment.

Totally drawn into the moment, they lost track of events when their hands explored each others bodies. Vaguely the Count realised that he bend further down placing her on the small bench. As he finally had broken off the contact between his lips and her skin, he heard a high pitched scream.

Looking up in the direction of the disturbance he saw a panic ridden teenage girl who as he now realised had caught him with bared fangs leaning over a semi-conscious Sonja. The dancer who was lying on the bench with her head hanging over the edge the neck exposed opened her eyes slowly. He backed up a bit, but nonetheless she realised what had been going on.

Quickly she dove away and as Dracula was used to giving his pray a the opportunity to run away he did not bother to stop her. It was only as she was gone around the bookstore, that he realised his ability to materialize anywhere within a given space had suffered slightly. Thinking about it he realised that I wouldn’t do him much good anyway.

The mood of the moment was gone, with the object of his desire fleeing and the intruding girl had already caused others to come and see what was going. The Count felt so angry about it anyway, that it would be best for him to avoid talking, yet alone getting that intimate with anyone. The inability to really do as he pleased, his powers being so utterly dependant on what he was getting from Lace as special bonuses and this tip-tap game with the dancers all of it came up.

The girls should have been his long ago. Instead he had been wasting time with the second best selection and second guesses, trying to be polite and charming to get to what he wanted. Where he should have been able to just rip the information right from people’s mind and take what he wanted just by grabbing it .

Given that Alicia, Sonja and Madira, too, would have been his brides long ago. Because they would have been his choices as those three where by far the most intriguing one’s. Madira because she was the most beautiful and talking to her, he realised she had spirit and sensuality not unlike Verona used to have. While Sonja possessed this overabundance in lust and passion. The vampire had no idea if she would last long, but he had to make her his.

And Alicia’s reminded him more than everything of Anna Valerious. Given she was much smarter and more focused, but just like his distant relative, she was in denial about her needs. Craving physical intimacy was something even the Count admitted having and felt he should be the one to teach her that lesson.

And it seemed only force would accomplish this and force was the only option he definitely not had. Not with a mage of seemingly limitless power and a werewolf as chief of his security. At least the spectators fled quickly as soon as they saw the angry vampire with his glowing eyes and extended fangs. Slowly the vampire regained his self-control.

Driven by instinct and the feeling of mortal danger Sonja had went straight toward the elevators. Being alone and safe in the small cabin descending to the lower floors, she wasn’t about to calm down. The dancer leaned against the cabin wall and kept breathing in and out. Danger and men had always worked like an aphrodisiac on her and right now she was aroused as she hadn’t been in a long, long time.

Back then that one night had been the most intensive and haunting experience of her life and she yearned to feel so again. All the sex since then had been almost meaningless, it had helped past the time, made her feel relaxed for a while, but it had been only a substitute. Still, as much as she wanted to turn back and just let happen what ever would, it wasn’t able to overcome her sense of fear.

She had know herself for month that all that time having sex for relaxing purposes had only been a substitute for what was really lacking. This had been close, too close, being more intensive than her early one night-stands, it rivalled a sensation she had felt a year ago, for one night and she was tempted to head back to the count.

But while she was still trying to resist, the answer to an unspoken prayer walked right into the cabin as it stopped a few levels below. Sonja hadn’t seen the guard before, but the uniform spoke for itself and the body language and look of the men did the rest. He was from the outside patrol, which meant he was reasonably safe, while he also had something wild and dangerous about him. Yearning as she was, Sonja needed about seven words and seven seconds to put the elevator on stop. After the guard got more heat than he could actually handle.

Meanwhile Dracula was summoned by Lace, who painfully as the occasion already was, had the Lady Rain with him. Not sure whether he could handle any lecturing or warnings from the mage about the recent events, he kept silent.

“Oh, dear Count, why so gloomy?” the annoying woman addressed him.

“I guess, he discovered the disadvantages of having foreplay in a public place,” Lace said dry and with a smirk. “Also in fact, I have to admit I am to blame. Since I asked a certain young person to invite the Count to our little meeting.”

Vladislaus couldn’t help but smile at the mage’s way of handling the situation. The vampire bet that his host knew exactly what was bugging him and elegantly he avoided any confrontation. It was just the question if there really had been a meeting before or after the incident in the library. He wouldn’t put it past Lace to let him feel who was in charge and then acting like he was the most generous person under the pale moonlight.

“And who was the lucky tramp?” Sanguina asked with open jealously.

“I don’t know, whom it was Lace sent down, but I can assure you, I am much more concerned about poor, unlucky Sonja, who I had to let go so abruptly.”

What Lace could do, he could do as well. Normally he had ripped out anybody’s throat who would dare to call one of his future brides a tramp, a slut or any other depreciating term, but if he had learnt one thing; it was that sometimes killing was too quick and easy. Since it was one of those occasions where Lace really laughed, namely about Lady Rain’s chin dropping in disbelief, the Count felt quite successful.

“Oh don’t worry about her”, the fat woman replied angry, “She always finds someone to tend to her needs.”

“You mean so unlike you?”

“How dare you!” she yelled. “Lace, did you hear what he just said? Will you let him insult your guests like that?”

“Well, you brought up the topic and I most certainly can’t blame the Count for being so honest ...”, Lace replied coolly. “Not to mention that as long as you continue to insult my apprentice’s best friend, you can hardly blame anyone for insulting you.”

Sanguina seemed quiet upset, her hands trembled and suddenly the glass in her hand broke under the pressure. She barely seemed to take notice of the shards stuck in her hand.

“Oh, well, if that is so, then you won’t see me again until you come to your senses and show a bit more respect towards my person!”

With that, she dropped the rest of the glass and walked out of the room, her head held up very high.

“Does she really think we care?” Dracula said to Lace.

“That is for me to know and you to find out,” Lace answered mysteriously and crouched down. Fetching a transparent plastic bag from his dinner jacket, he picked up a few of the blood-covered glass shards. Bagged them and then put them on the nearest table.

“Oh, I will!” The count said, also he was dying to know what was going on with that strange woman and her pathetic displays, he decided not to give the mage the satisfaction of asking again. “But for now, why don’t you tell me what is was you wanted me to see about.”

“Right, I was wondering if you might consider doing me a favour – there is a certain agent of the Masked One at large. Definitely capable of magic, who is able to overcome my magic protection fields and has tried to break in to this building already two times. Both on occasions, when I wasn’t in town, I only sensed the intrusion after I came back.”

“So you want to leave town, while I keep an open eye.”

“That is the plan, I do want a word or two with the intruder, but afterwards, I’m sure you benefit very much from the person’s blood.”

“Speaking of blood,” Vladislaus said. “Any success with finding a cure?”

The mage shook his head. “No, but then there are ample beings that haven’t gone through the test yet. In the meantime, see it as the test of patience. One of the few virtues worth having.”

The vampire thought that this was easy to say by someone in charge who literally controlled everything around him, but he wasn’t going to complain, instead he asked: “Did I heard right, you still referred to Alicia and Sonja as best friends?”

“Actually they more like sisters, and then again not, some relationships can’t be pressured into a definition. A little argument couldn’t separate those two.”

“I heard Sonja moved out, that sounds pretty serious to me.”

“That was about time,” Lace explained as he sat down o the nearest sofa. “It should have been done a year ago. Both are too different to actually be able to live that closely together.”

“Why did they move in together in the first place?” Vladislaus inquired sensing that finally he might have the chance to get more information.

“I guess, it would only be fair to tell you, shall I send for drinks first?”

“No, thanks,” the Count choose his place opposite of the mage.

“Fine, were do I begin? I think you already know that Sonja was born in a covenant and that her mother died giving birth to her,” he began.

“No, I didn’t.” Vladislaus began to wonder how much of Jasmine’s info had been true at all.

“Well, she wasn’t very popular, the nuns who raised her treated her quite rottenly, saying her mother was the spawn of the devil. I analysed her blood several times, I could not find anything demonic in her blood, but I did find something supernatural that I can’t account for.”

“So when Alicia came, she found a friend for the first time. And Alicia being loyal above anything else, began to rely on her, too. You might have already noticed, that Alicia isn’t very much into inter human relationships or with any other being for that matter. But Sonja got to her, she was the one insisting to come here in the first place. Alicia might not admit it, but she needs Sonja, which is why always watch out for her.”

“So what was the argument really about?”

“Unlike Alicia, Sonja is a very sensual person, she needs more than just platonic love. So while she helped Alicia with her hair – she kissed her quite intimately in a non sisterly way. Quite the shock for Alicia, I’m afraid and Sonja felt so horrible for trespassing her needs into their mostly harmonic relationship that she decided to move out and give Alicia some space. Realising that Sonja was actually leaving, Alicia panicked at the thought of being alone and I guess what ever she yelled down the hallway, it let to a lot of interesting rumours.”

“So that leaves your apprentice truly alone ...” Dracula said and thought about the wondrous opportunity this situation provided.

“I’m afraid, you will discover that Alicia will be just as disinterested in you as she always was.”

“Given the chance I could melt her right away,” the Count told Lace unable to understand why he wouldn’t let him handle this in a more forceful way. It was not normal denying oneself the most basics needs, so how could Lace stand by watching his apprentice go to waste?

“Trust me, Count, I wouldn’t mind, if you could, but the thing is, Alicia doesn’t care about sex in the first place, so having behaved as allure as you have done from the start, she cares little about you, too.”

Vladislaus shook his head, he knew how to wake deep hidden and buried longings. Even in such hard case like Anna Valerious. His ancestress had never shown any sign of sexual interest herself. Focused on revenge she had barely taken notice of Gabriel as man. The gypsy princess had been so reluctant at first, but still remembered the moment when Aleera had brought her in. Cursing and vowing to destroy him Anna had defied him and placing his lips upon hers, Dracula had felt her defying him with every inch of her body.

But after he had blanked out all her reasoning it became pretty obvious what the little princess really wanted. She would have made a good bride with all that adversary fire and long buried passion burning inside of her. He wondered how he had managed to resist her as he was dressing her for the party. Her breasts had been so soft and warm under his hands and she had moaned so sweetly before he had gotten a hold of himself.

Why had he resisted anyway? Gabriel had been totally unaware that the other guests had been vampires, he still would have come for her and the vampire smiled thinking about how dumb his old friend would have looked if the Anna he had snatched from his side would have already been a bride.

Alicia was reminding him so much of Anna. Both spent more time defying pleasures than pursuing them and remembering how she had danced he knew if he only would have enough free space, he could crack that shell. Probably exactly what the mage did not wanted to happen.

“I see you don’t believe me, but know this, Alicia needs to trust someone before there is any chance for a closer relationship and I just can’t imagine her trusting you. Especially if you keep pushing too hard and in all the wrong directions.”

“I have kept my distances from her, I have taken great effort not too push.”

“But you have been constantly around her, openly paraded Jasmine, flirted constantly with others – not things that will change her opinion about you.”

“What kind of opinion has she about me?” Vladislaus wondered.

“I’d rather not quote, but as I already said she is quite opposed to the idea of having sex in general and since you have made it very clear that you like to sleep with her, she thinks of you less than favourably.”

Lace stood up. “You got to thank the Crusaders for that. I can’t imagine how awful it must have been for her, to listen to detailed descriptions of men talking about how they raped her mother.” He poured himself a drink at the bar. “She needs that revenge, if only to realise that losing her mother wasn’t the only thing that they took from her. So if you hope to impress her – I advise you look for a Crusader with burn marks on his left hand, close to six feet tall and about fifty years old, blond with steel blue eyes, who is in very good shape.”

Dracula appreciated the hint. “I will do that, but first I think I catch the little intruder for you.”

Vladislaus wasn’t sure what exactly to think about all that. Was Lace trying him to show who was the boss while keeping him at bay with promises or was he just keeping his city tidy and wanted to help him fit in? Or maybe it was little of both, something else he needed to find out. And what was it about Lady Rain, that he wasn’t seeing? Was she just considered a honoured guest because Lace needed someone with a cruel mind to think up horrible punishments? But somehow Dracula felt that wasn’t the answer.

Still he learnt enough and used it. Not that he fully understood what exactly Alicia’s problem was. Worst he began doubting for the first time that he could actually offer the woman much aside from slaying her enemies and making her one happy bride, and maybe not even the last thing. Thinking about it that had actually be the charm of his brides, he needed not be anything and could take as he pleased and never give more than what he got back. Now it seemed to be about reliability and trust. Vladislaus had never asked himself if he was either. After his pact with the devil he had lacked any kind of goals, aside from his hatred for the world that caused him to come up with all kinds of schemes.

So after, he had literally sent Jasmine away in shame at the next party, making it obvious how much he disapproved about her spreading certain rumours, he found himself quite some time alone. Especially since obviously Sonja had found some distraction or so Alicia told him rather frustrated, about her having yet another affair with some guy, who had left some rather nasty bruises on her. Which was obviously the reason why the dancer kept his identity a secret and she was smart enough to meet only during daylight hours.

But since Lace prepared to leave town for two days, which he announced by promising his citizens some big Christmas gifts in form of donations towards public institutions, he had not time to seek her out and confront her about what in the devil’s name she was thinking. He really began to appreciate his old brides, women in this time seemed either be boring and unattractive or crazy and undecided.