I bustled Molly into Seline's sanctum as the alarm kept wailing. "Sit in the centre of the circle."
"Huh?"
"Molly?" I stared her deep in the eyes, not for the first time wishing I had access to my Crucibles so some of my vampiric powers could be used to subdue her mind. "I am trying to sift through my memories to cast a Ritual. With this circle, if I get any part of this wrong, your soul will be ripped from your body and sent to the depths of Hell. Do you want that?"
"No!"
"Then, sit! And be silent, Renfield."
"Yes, Master!"
"Silent!"
"Eep!"
She sat heavily on her rump and gazed up at me like a kicked dog. I didn't like the look in her eyes, but time was a more unkind master than I.
Pressing my fingers to my temples, I dove into the murky sea of broken glass that was my memory. Fragments of Rituals merged together.
Rituals formed by mastery over the Five Magics.
Necromancy.
Blood Magic.
Thaumaturgy.
Sophomancy.
Alchemy.
So many moments splintered across time. I rifled through them, hissing as I fumbled for what I was searching for. I knew it was there. Somewhere in the dark.
All I needed was a glimpse.
And then…
There!
I had no time to consider the words which flowed from my lips as I knelt before Seline's circle while Molly quivered in the centre of it. I knew if I paused, the memory would slip through my grasp.
I had to ride it like a rowboat in a storm.
Words of Power in a garbled tongue even the ancients thought was forgotten. A tongue pieced together from fragments of papyrus and stone. This forgotten language promised the secrets of life and death if only you could decipher their meaning.
My jaw ached as I worked my mouth around sounds the human tongue struggled to speak. For this language was not a language of men.
It was a language from somewhere else.
Somewhere distant.
Somewhere lost to time.
As the string of words poured out of me, I felt the magic build. I felt it rising up from the bowels of the earth. I felt it raining down from the endless skies. And I felt it squeezing my soul from the unfathomable void.
The world twisted around me as Molly began to scream. Purple light flared, glowing intensely as the spell neared completion.
Frantically, I snatched at my memories, desperately pulling them together as I flung the Words of Power at the circle. I roared the names of Elder beings as magic shrieked around me like a hurricane of souls.
I had no time to think.
No time to ponder.
One stumbled consonant. One poorly pronounced vowel.
And everything would rip apart. With this much magic, I would most like blast the room apart and take Molly with it.
Her eyes were wide as the magic swirled around the circle, plucking at her clothes. Not that there was much to pluck.
The frightened girl had pulled herself up into a ball and the little skirt wasn't hiding anything anymore. I was instantly educated on what a g-string was. Cursing her for the distraction, I snapped my eyes shut and howled the final wretched syllables.
There was a sound.
Like a heavy click of two mountains tapping each other.
A rush of light.
And then silence.
When I opened my eyes again, Molly was surrounded by a pale violet nimbus which formed a wall around Seline's circle. Calmly, I reached out and tapped the nimbus. A spark spat loose, dancing across the floor into oblivion.
Mouth open, she gawped at the barrier in awe. "Master? Is this… Magic?"
I felt the ripples of magic as it thrummed through my body.
Grimacing, I nodded. "It's a weak circle, so the barrier will not last long. But it would take someone with some knowledge of sorcery to bring it down. Do not step outside of the circle, Molly. Under no circumstances. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Master !"
I felt a wave of dizziness slip through me, and I leaned on the cane, the heavy steel head clutched tightly. "You will be safe there. Even simple mind control won't affect you."
"What about you, Master?"
"It's not me who requires protection," I chuckled. "Our visitors, on the other hand…"
I turned away, striding out of the apartment and into the hall. The lights had switched from bright white to thick red which made the walls seem made of blood. I looked up and down the hall. The elevator lights were blinking.
I wasn't sure what that meant, but assumed it was not working.
Heading towards a door at the end of the hall, I kicked it open and stepped into the red-drenched stairwell. Below me, a series of mad hoots and jeers rang between the loud wailing shrieks of the alarm.
Looking over the rail, I saw at least a dozen figures racing up towards me. Some broke off, darting through doors on different levels. They were searching.
Searching for me?
"Renfields!" A thin reedy voice called. "Renfields, come out to play!"
I squinted down at the shadows. "Hmph."
How dare they show such discourtesy in my home.
Suddenly, a burst of gunfire drew the dark figures away and they streamed through a door several floors below.
Growling a curse, I started the hard task of descending to their level.
I moved as quickly as I could. But I wasn't fast. I hadn't yet fed tonight, and my blood reserves were running low. In another life, I would have dived off the stairs and floated down.
I rounded the stairs, hearing more gunshots.
As I limped past a door, it burst open and a young man dressed in black stepped out, aiming a gun at me. His clothes were odd. Hina had shown me photos of modern soldiers and their tactical armour.
This was much like them, but a mix of modern and old weaponry. Like, another gun on his hip and a line of stakes strapped across his chest.
"I knew it," he cackled. "I knew there was someone up there! Didn't expect a dusty old bastard like you, though."
"Old?" I guessed I was. I probably looked like it. My hair was still grey.
"Who are you, then? Eh? You ain't a Renfield. More's the pity. I was hoping to get one all to myself. I hear Renfields can be… frisky."
More gunfire, and some screams.
"Mortals," I said, leaning on my cane. This was a surprise. I had expected vampires. "Why are you in my tower? Who sent you?"
"I'm the one asking the questions," he growled, lifting the gun to aim at my head. "Tell me your name."
"My name will have no meaning to you," I told him.
"Name!"
"Dracula," I said, pulling my lips back to reveal my fangs. "I am Count Dracula."
"No." His face drained of colour. "It can't be. It can't be you!"
"You've invaded my home," I said, approaching slowly. "I have ways to deal with invaders."
"Kyle!" He shrieked, pulling the trigger.
I lashed out with the cane, smashing the wooden shaft against the barrel of his gun and sending the bullets screaming into the wall. Chips of concrete spat at us both.
He dropped the gun, his hands scrambling to tug a stake loose from the sheath on his chest.
But I charged into him, my shoulder slamming into his chest.
He'd set himself for the impact. But there was no way he expected my strength to be as strong as it was. He'd seen an old frail man. A weak vampire, perhaps.
None of which was a great threat.
That was his mistake. One I took gleeful advantage of as I slammed him into the wall. His head cracked against the concrete. Dazed, he croaked again; "Kyle!"
His fingers managed to squeeze around the stake, but I gently took him by the wrists. "Tch," I leered down at him. "It's much too late for that."
I fed on him.
My stomach gorging on his blood.
Fresh and filled with the oily slickness of his adrenaline. The taste of it sparked something in my Bloodline. I could feel the ropey veins trembling in my flesh as the new blood pumped into them. An uncomfortable warmth spread through my body, causing me to sway unsteadily on my feet.
The mortals I had been draining had mostly been sedated or unconscious.
This one, though.
He was alive and filled with the intoxicating flavour of survival.
When he slumped in my grip, I dropped his corpse and pressed a finger to my mouth. Bringing it away I stared at the blood. Why was this affecting me all of a sudden?
My memories revealed I had always revelled in blood gained in battle.
Fear and terror also changed the flavour.
But this was different. This was something important.
What was it?
"You bastard!" Someone screamed. I lifted my head, still absorbed by my thoughts. Another man in combat gear. Red hair. Blue eyes. Horror carved into his face. "You killed Ken!"
"Hmm?" I took a step towards him.
"Bastard!"
The muzzle flash strobed brightly within the red hall as bullets drilled into my chest and shoulders.
Dozens of them.
The impacts staggered me, and I felt one clip through my jaw. Coughing in pain, I lifted my arms against the barrage. My blood spattered across the walls in wild arcs.
My blood.
I stared at it, feeling hot wet warmth running down my body, as shock left me reeling drunkenly on my feet. "Impossible!"
I was bleeding.