Questions And Answers

"Vampire?" Aurik repeated curiously. Now that the word had been spoken he was able to remember that this was the name of the creatures he had heard about when he was a child, the creatures of fantasy that drank blood and had strange powers.

"Yes, a vampire. You probably don't believe me... It shouldn't be too much of a leap though, right? You must have heard a story or two at some point in life." Horace didn't seem at all surprised by Aurik's scepticism and continued to try convincing him on the matter.

"All myths and legends are based on something true, the same can be said for vampires. The stories say we are bloodthirsty, mindless monsters that terrorize villages and drink the blood of the innocent. While we do drink blood, I can guarantee that we aren't mindless and we aren't going around terrorizing people."

Aurik noticed how Horace seemed annoyed by the fact that vampires, or himself as he claims, are perceived this way. It felt strange listening to a grown man claim to be some kind of mythical creature but Aurik felt like it was more plausible than anything he could come up with to explain everything.

"Alright, lets say I believe you." Aurik suddenly said. "You said myths are based on truth, so if vampires are seen as mindless monsters who attack people then there should be a reason for that."

A defeated smile spread across Horace's face, he had expected this question but it still made him feel bitter to answer it.

"Yes, you're right. There was a period in history, roughly 400 years ago, where vampires behaved like the monsters the stories claim us to be. All I'll say is that it's in the past and we should be focusing on the present." Horace wiped the bitterness from his face and looked at Aurik with seriousness.

Aurik wanted to know more about the past Horace just spoke of but he felt like it was finally time to get some answers about himself and didn't want to waste the opportunity.

"How did I become a vampire?"

"You drank the blood of a vampire at the same time as he drank yours. Quite the coincidence really... Although you weren't technically a vampire just because of that."

Aurik frowned in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Well, after exchanging blood you don't become a vampire immediately, you become what we call a fledgling. It's like the halfway point between human and vampire and only after a fledgling drinks human blood do they officially become a vampire." Horace was answering without any hesitation and spoke with complete confidence, which helped Aurik trust his words more easily.

"What would have happened if I didn't drink any blood? Would I have just died?" Aurik asked before adding in his mind. 'The thirst was so bad I wouldn't be surprised.'

"If you had held off for another day you would have gone back to being human again. No harm, no foul!" Horace lifted his hands in a sort of shrugging gesture and smiled.

'Just one more day and I would have gone back to how I used to be... It's a good thing I gave in then. I hated my life before all this anyway...' Aurik clenched his fist tightly for a moment before he took a deep breath and asked another question.

"You keep saying 'us' and using collective words when you talk about vampires. Does that mean you have some kind of group?"

"Most people would probably be too distracted to notice something like that, seems you're adjusting well. To answer your question though..."

Aurik listened with bated breath. If they operated in a group then they likely had some amount of power in the country, or at least the city, and if that was the case then he might be able to achieve a goal that he had given up on years ago.

"We have an entire society that functions separately from that of the humans. We have our own hierarchy and rules and although we are forced to live in the same world as the humans we try to avoid them as much as possible. We can't buy things without money, for example, so we are forced to operate our businesses in the city just like the humans do." Horace had a hint of excitement in his voice as he explained.

A smile started to appear on Aurik's face and got bigger the more he listened. The second the explanation was finished he asked another question.

"Then does that mean you control parts of the city!? Like how gangs have areas that other gangs can't operate in?" Aurik was also getting excited now and the smile on his face showed how much he was anticipating the answer.

"Yes. Well actually no. I mean... we control parts of the city but it's not like we're gang members! Only the Therians would do something like that."

"Therians?" Aurik asked. "What's a Therian? Are they like us?" Aurik's questions seemed to hit a nerve as Horace suddenly shouted indignantly.

"No! Definitely not! We are nothing like-" Horace forced himself to stop and took a deep breath. "Just forget about them for now, you'll figure it all out as you go anyways. Just don't compare us and them in front of others again or they might not be able to control themselves like I did."

'Control yourself? You looked like you were ready to punch me in the face!' Aurik silently grumbled in his mind before moving on to his next question.

"Can vampires really turn into bats? The stories I heard always mentioned something like that, or maybe it was rats..."

This question seemed to surprise Horace slightly. "Not all of us can do the same things. I can turn into a bat and a rat, but whether you can do that remains to be seen. The one who turned you couldn't do that so you probably won't be able to either, but don't feel disheartened by it, you'll probably be able to do what he could."

"So it's like an inherited thing? Then what could he-"

"Looks like we'll have to continue later." Horace cut Aurik off as he peered out the window. "We've arrived."