Dark Matters

Chapter Six: Casino Infernale

The whole 57th floor was Lace's personal sector. Only a handful of people had ever seen it and there were rooms were nobody else had set foot in since the mage had moved in. One of the not so private parts consisted of a large hall that Lace used for improving his fighting and athletic skills. Something he only did for the fun of it, for he did not really need it. The mage had not sold his soul for just one empty wish fulfilled.

For now he was in his lab, another room that had at least frequently visitors from his more trusted staff. Some of the equipment came from the height of science, while other things were antiques from the dawn of time. A great part of the afternoon he had spent looking at the samples and the report from Dr. Heller. Part of it spoke for a vampire. He had found detailed information in the "Book of Arcane Sicknesses and Conditions" which he had filched from the ruins of Vatican City a year after its destruction.

Still he could not believe that a vampire strong enough to survive the destruction of Dracula was having such a weak effect on it's victims. It would not even have been necessary to create that much damage in killing them, for Lace doubted that any of the victims would have turned into vampires. He was just testing how high on the energy spectrum the blood-sample from one of the victims would rate as his door bell rang. Checking the next monitor he saw that it was Parker and dropped the energy barrier to let him in.

"The Nightcrawlers still haven't returned," his chief of security reported.

"They are probably dead - just make sure that Bale does not get picky tomorrow," Lace replied casually.

Parker was not exactly happy about this reply, but he had expected something of that sort. "Well, I think he can cope with that. Shall I order Kara to return?"

Lace nodded and decided to spend the rest of the day in the library - after all, there might be some information hidden there on a few older vampires Dracula had created before his end.

So the black man knew that he had fulfilled his duty and was dismissed. After all, he had better things to do with the big Halloween Party coming up tomorrow evening. It was a security-nightmare.

Although his boss and most of the other beings around him did not care about people dying like flies, Parker could not help but feel responsible for those poor souls. If it was his choice, he would be doing something about it. People had a right to live.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dracula found it very strange that he had not seen a single vehicle for transportation. Maybe horses were gone as well - all in all he only sensed rats and had not seen a single animal apart from them. Those automatic vehicles all moved by gas and even he knew how rare oil was in recent days. Dracula really liked to see a car, as the images from the ghoul's mind were rather intriguing.

The casino was not hard to find. The Count had retrieved the basic location from Rufus' mind and the flashing lights made sure he did not miss it. There were red orange lights displaying the word Infernale and above it in blue was the word Casino. The building itself was not more than four stories, but there was light shining out of all the windows. His eyes began to hurt from all that brightness.

There were flower beds left and right of the path leading to the gate in the surrounding wall to the main entrance. Two bouncers stood guard besides the white broad stairs that lead to it. Dracula passed them unquestioned. The light inside was even worse. 'What would I give for some cosy torchlight and a dim dungeon,' he thought.

The entrance hall was huge corridor. On either side were personnel ready to offer their services. He saw a couple of people passing through. A girl and a boy both in her twenties were obviously trading their money for plastic chips. So that was what the employees on the right side were there for. The man he approached wore a silly silk cap that was tied by a leather strap under his chin. A fancy uniform of the same fabric covered the upper part of his body. He sat in one of several small cabinets like a bank teller.

Dracula traded everything he had into these little plastic chips. Including the three he already had, he had now a total of 237 in chips. Since he had no need for his coat being hung up he ignored the girls on the left side and went straight into the next room.

For the vampire it was quite a shock, as that was even brighter and noisier. The place was huge and everywhere was people, machines were blinking, squealing, beeping. Crowds were gathered around tables that he could only see for they blocked the heat signature form the people on the other side. It was the ultimate chaos. He stood in the room a bit lost as a strangely dressed woman approached him.

She was wearing the same uniform as the other employees out front, including the cap, with the only difference that her sleeves were cut open, but on purpose. Slender arms were poking out. Dracula saw that the dress was meant to be that way only because of the neat sewing on her wrists. The rest of the clothing that covered her upper part was skin-tight. Still her breasts were standing up as if she was actually wearing a corset. Her lower part was almost naked. The red uniform was kind of closed between her legs, so it covered her backside and her front, and the rest of the legs seemed to be naked. Only when looking closer, Vladislaus realised that they were covered by some sort of skin-coloured very, very thin fabric. It was quite an appetising outfit. It was her voice that stopped him from staring.

"Good evening, Sir, you look a bit lost, first time you are visiting us?" the girl asked.

It could not hurt to tell the truth that he felt quite unfamiliar with most of what he saw here. In fact he had not gambled since his transformation. And he doubted that the games were the same as in his time. There simply had never been any sense in gambling for him - he could always take what he wanted to have. Yet he had the feeling that if he found the right game, he could make this place work for him. But for that he needed to know the rules of all the games.

"My first casino visit ever. I got bored lately and thought I might try and see if it brings a bit diversion."

That seemed the right way to put his being new without sounding to weak. The whole experience was anyway degrading. What good was the destruction of the world without him being there to enjoy it? Especially when it left him in such an uncomfortable situation?

"Well then, Sir, allow me to show you around," the girl said friendly and gestured him towards the tables.

He got a brief version of every available game in the great hall. For most he had no interest: Although he was strong enough to affect the ball in the Roulette, he was not crafty enough to move it smoothly enough. It would be a bit suspicious when he was to win after the ball had jumped around against the laws of gravity and landed on the chamber with the number he had put his money on. This was no good at the moment.

Those games lacked the possibility to get his powers to work for him. Especially since the house itself was too often included, and those dealers were very strong willed. After they had finished the tour of the great hall, the girl asked whether she could do anything else for him. Which he declined and so she turned around looking for someone else to help.

Dracula walked past the tables that he thought might be worth trying, even though he had thought that this was going to be a bit easier. In the end he sat down at a free chair at the Black Jack table. At least the dealer here had something that would make loosing not a total loss. The woman was gorgeous, although she was the only one so far whose mind was closed off completely. He had looked in various heads. Most of the people here really thought they could win using a system.

Here it was just luck, for the dealer had no options and was taking the cards out of the mixing machine. His eyes observed the woman's hand which handed him his cards after he had placed his bet. She had a seven and he eighteen, so he did not ask for another card. The man to his right was snickering for he had twenty, the plain woman with the black hair busted and the old hag at the end hit 21 with her third card.

Luckily the dealer busted also and he won another twenty. Feeling lucky he placed. And lost them in the next round for the dealer hit twenty points with several cards and that was more than his seventeen. Everyone else lost also. She just pouted and had a playful look on her face as she removed his chip. Unable to resist, he placed 100 as his next bet. And he was lucky. Next bet was 200, and again he was lucky.

Now he was the one to smile and she just shrugged her delicate shoulders. It was a real shame that the table covered the rest of her figure, for what he saw so far was very appealing. Besides her extraordinary beauty there was something in her blood that called to him. 'Maybe,' he thought smiling viciously, 'I can buy her when I win enough.' He placed 300 on the table and hung with his eyes upon her wrist were her pulse was beating calmly and yet tempting.

"Hit me", he said and realised that he had not fourteen but eighteen. As the three showed up, his neighbour fell almost from his chair in laughter. "Boy, you are one lucky guy!"

Dracula looked a bit taken about the padding on the back that accompanied the statement. Next thing he heard was the dealer, saying with a sweet voice: "Want to take bigger risks?"

"Why not?" he said and put all 800 on the table. Being careful was not his strong side, but after all he had lived in the knowledge that he was invincible and everlasting for centuries. He had to show her and regretted it immediately. 'Too impulsive.'

He stared at her hands passing out the new cards. Now it was the vampires turn to gloat as he received now one and a half the sum he had bet extra. Despite not being so lucky the others seemed to enjoy his success as well, especially the hag. 'Did she blink her eye at me?' If he still had had a stomach it would probably have turned upside down.

"If that goes on, your luck will cost me my job," the dealer said, kidding, for he was nowhere near the real high rolling, but still there was something about him, she could sense.

"He, pal, do you do that often?" he was asked by his neighbour, while the plain woman left her place.

"Actually it is my first time, I thought it might be entertaining, but it still is rather boring," he said with a cold expression, so he could hide his anger that this primitive man not only had touched him, but called him 'pal'.

"Really? Maybe I could interest you in a round of poker?" the man said. "By the way, the name is Claude."

"Poker?" Dracula asked for he had not heard about that game from the employee who had showed him around.

"Oh, that's a great game, you get five cards, either the best combination wins, or the guy with the best bluff", his new acquaintance explained.

"Sirs, please bet, or leave", the bewitching dealer said.

Dracula moved his 1200 stack forward and returned back to listening to the other man explaining poker. He gave the girl a faint smile as she had to pay him again. "I think it sounds far more interesting", Dracula smiled. 'Especially because I will know when you are bluffing.'

They left the table and Claude lead him to another employee behind the information desk. "Hiya, sweetie, are there any open poker rounds?"

The man, who looked even more ridiculous with the red silk hat, pressed a few buttons and told them that room number twenty-eight had only four players who would probably most grateful for more money entering the game. Dracula could see Claude rubbing his hands in his mind thinking that he had found an easy victim. Feeling again like he was actually the predator, the vampire left the great hall with dark and happy thoughts.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Mr. Logan, Sir?" Ready asked.

The Casino manager looked up to his assistant who was holding a phone in her hand covering the lower part with the other one.

"What is it?" He hated being bothered when looking through the books.

"Security wants you to drop by - they have an interesting phenomenon and need your advice."

"Tell them I am on my way!"

Scraping his heavy chair over the floor he rose from his desk and walked to the door. Ready informed the security staff and continued with her work. There was a lot aggravation in the room for debts left behind thanks to the Mad Hatter'sTeahouse massacre and Logan was the pest ever since.

The security room was only down the corridor and Logan could tell that not everyone was happy that Foldon, his head of security, had called him down here. He approached the monitor Foldon was standing next to.

"So what is it?" There was no question that there would be a reprimand when it was not important enough.

"See for yourself, Sir," his employee stated.

Logan observed for a while; but did not saw anything and growled angrily: "Is that some kind of joke?"

"Please, the player on the most left chair."

"There is no player on …," Logan began and stopped. "Who of the girls is it?"

"It's not on of the Lamias - it is a man - never saw him before," Foldon reported. "Could it be?"

"Most likely. Good work, I shall inform Lace that we have him," he said, picking up the phone.

"Eh - sir, that was a recording," Foldon said, stepping back.

"What?" Logan yelled and then he saw that the man on the next seat rose. He kept talking to the thin air besides him and since the other chair had moved as well, the 'invisible' stranger must have got up and was now accompanying him.

"For now see that you locate him without drawing special attention to you," he ordered and then dialled up Lace's number.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lace was sitting in the dining room of his personal story. His guest for the evening was Lady Rain. The woman was inquiring him about the stranger with the outmost endurance.

"Sanguina, you are way too curious, wait and see! Mysteries unravel themselves faster than you might think," Lace said calmly enjoying his omelette.

"How can you be so calm? Haven't we already lost a great deal of servants in the last bloody rampage? If you are convinced that he is a vampire, you should get him here as fast as possible and explain him the rules!"

"My dear, not we lost, I lost," the mage stated and his tone was that of a teacher lecturing a know-it-all student. "Besides, his presence is rather intriguing, he must be fairly old to have survived the demise of Dracula."

"It makes him dangerous, don't you have enough trouble with the masked one?" Sanguina took another bit from her fish.

"Why so worried? It's not like I can't handle any threat, or do you think my so called 'archenemy' would dare to face me in person?" Lace had again put up his soft almost not recognisable smile. "I can handle him and the stranger - besides, he might prove to be a valuable ally."

Lady Rain hesitated for a moment, before she forced herself to smile: "Since when do you need allies?"

"That is a pitiful person who attends to just what he needs," the mage replied and took another sip from his wine. "Oh, don't be concerned - there is no danger for your comfortable little life."

That upset her a bit and she was quietly emptying her glass until she came up with another question: "So what about the surviving witch, why can't I judge her?"

"Dear, don't you think you've had enough fun in the past days? And I", he put great emphasis on the I, "gave you the right to judge people, but not when it comes to political issues, so I really wonder why you are bringing this up."

"I just like to see her properly punished."

"Do not worry, I'll take care of it personally," Lace told her amused.

The Lady smiled and was about to reply something when one of the servants stepped in with a telephone on a silver tray. "Sir, Mr. Logan from the Casino."

"Oh, well", said the mage and put his fork aside. "Logan, what is it? - It's quite normal. - Yes, he is a vampire. - You don't say, Logan, accept it. - Just invite him to the Lounge, don't do anything else or unfriendly - Do I make myself clear? - Find a reason, but don't alert him!"

Lace sighed, he hated being surrounded by these underlings. No matter how well-trained they were in everyday life - as soon as they dealt with him they became stumbling, incapable school-boys. "So my dear," Lace turned his attention back to his guest, "let's talk about something less business oriented."