A History Through Blood

The mismatched pair, hampered by the slow and tedious steps of his guide, walked towards the outskirts of the makeshift camp. While traversing to the outer edges of the encampment, the two engaged in what could be considered idle conversation. Occasionally William had to assist her over some particularly rough patches of dirt, where Beatrice’s walking aids could not find purchase on the damp ground. William would often glimpse her eyes darting towards his apparel and quickly averting her gaze. Attempts at civil conversation were often cut short by the awkward atmosphere generated by the mutually acknowledged taboo subject. This unspoken tenant resulted in Beatrice’s answers often being cut short, ending their conversation at an uncomfortable stall.

William decided to accelerate a little as to block her path, so he could find out what was troubling this poor girl’s mind. William had seen similar behavior from guilty souls burdened with a heavy conscience and silenced by various forms of intimidation. His large frame now blocked her path, bending down to meet her gaze directly. “Listen child, I am not your enemy. I swore an oath to protect humanity from demons that threaten us. Please tell me, what scares you?” Despite William’s attempt as condolence, Beatrice’s composure only seemed to get worse. “What… what are you going to do to her? ... Victoria, I mean.” “If she is a vampire, I am honor bound to prevent her from causing any more suffering onto the world than she already has.” “What if… what if she isn’t causing suffering?” William paused, mentally reviewing all of his encounters with supernatural beings. As of yet he had not encountered a vampire, or any supernatural creature, who wasn’t an active threat to humanity. “I would be highly skeptical of any vampire who claimed to be peaceful.” Beatrice’s expression fell, losing all hope from this conversation. She simply struggled around him with little protest from William, allowing her to proceed sensing that any further protest would be fruitless.

Despite the intended destination being somewhat separated from the main area of the camp, there were a handful people in various states of sickness or injury sitting on the handful of crates which lay strewn around the wagon. They were quietly discussing various topics whilst waiting for something, or specifically someone. William guessed that there were around 3-4 people lined up for actual treatment whereas others kept them company in the cold night air. At the end of the line of diseased folk was a woman, sitting hunched over one of the stricken men. The woman was examining and cleaning a rather nasty gash on the grime-covered individual’s forearm.

William struggled to make out the woman’s appearance, due to her apron with long sleeves which protected her from whatever bodily fluids were secreted from her patients. Her mouth was hidden behind a cloth mask and her thin white gloves were adorned with splashes of both dirt and blood. From his vantage point he could make out long black hair which was tied behind her head in a loose ponytail. The pale moonlight exposed her deep red eyes, shining whenever she glanced away from her task. This was indeed the vampire he was looking for, though this one was more restrained and less hostile than others which had fallen before him. He quietly thanked Beatrice for guiding him and walked towards his target, much to the annoyance of those waiting in the haphazard line.

Despite the wave of silence which descended on the line of waiting patients, the vampire just continued to sit on her box transfixed on her procedure whilst engaging with her patient in idle chatter. William towered over the girl as she continued to attend the open wound in front of her. Silence fell on the conversation from the awaiting injured, broken only by the minute noises that emanated from the doctor’s surgical movements. Seeing no response from the doctor before him, he glanced around at the staring crowd before placing his hand on her shoulder. “Excuse me.”

She slowly rose from her make-shift chair as so she was standing upright, using the back of her contaminated glove to remove the cloth which obscured her mouth. She was a lot taller than William had initially thought, though her perceived size may have been due to her posture when treating her patient, hunched forward in an uncomfortable manor. “Good Evening, my name is Victoria. I believe that you are looking for me.” Her tone was measured and direct, akin to the more medically orientated clergy who were dealing with uncooperative souls.

William had never been addressed like this by a vampire before; any prior encounters had devolved into overzealous taunts and dying curses upon discovering his prey’s true nature. William felt less violence and malice emanating from the woman standing before him, at least compared to the disgruntled presences of the agitated crowd of onlookers. “You summoned me?” William asked, a mix of apprehension and curiosity. “Yes, I didn’t think it was wise to have you disturbing the others in the caravan.” She had a similar mentality as Edward, seeming to at least value her associates with some measure of value or importance. William could hear the murmuring from the patients behind him; it was far from pleasant.

“Are you the vampire known as Victoria?” “Among other things, yes. Currently, however, I am a wandering doctor treating an injured patient.” She indicated towards the bloodied arm of the patient, which she had been in the process middle of cleaning. Dirt covered specks surrounded the wound held in place by the blood-caked remains, except for the area which had already been tended to. “Is this your work?” “It depends on what you mean. The wound was caused by either incompetence or disrepair, the treatment of the wound is my work.” The patient took this as his queue to speak up, “Was carryin’ a box of tools an’ it slipped. Knife went through me arm. Can you quit buggin’ the good doctor when she’s cleanin’ me arm?” A chorus of murmureddisgruntlement emanated from the line which preceded the current patient. “You might not believe this, but I am a reasonable soul.” Victoria started, “Might I suggest a deferment of sorts. I have four odd patients remaining, would you like to observe my treatment of my patients and proceed from there?”

She was definitely an abnormal person, not just due to her vampirism. She did not give off the air typical of that of a woman either, she didn’t hide away in the side-lines nor allow others to dictate her freedoms. Was this attitude or an air of confidence because of her Vampirism or something else entirely? Such matters as actions could be dealt with at a later time, though he could feel his internal view of her shift minutely with every second spent in her presence. “Fine.” Remarked William, “But, should I see you harm a patient I will intervene.” This warning was seemingly brushed off by the doctor, replying only with: “Then I have nothing to worry about.” She then returned to her previous patient, proceeding to clean the wound with hot water.

William took residence on a nearby barrel, watching hawk-like at every movement and incision. Beatrice took a seat next to him, gaining enough confidence to provide a casual commentary on the various patients and their ailments. As he watched the doctor, he began to understand why the reports about her were so vague. From his experience she held arguably more skill than many of the doctors that he had encountered. Furthermore, she also accepted a variety of different payment methods, such as: blood, coin or barter. The alternative payments were welcomed by the poorer clientele whose material wealth was either lacking or not in the form of coins. The lower cast peasants saw this as a welcome payment method as they seldom had more than the leftover crop which sustained them during the harsh winter months. He also understood reluctance of the grateful populace to incriminate themselves, which certainly further muddied the already vague reports. If not for the request for blood, it was quite possible that she could’ve passed as human if she had chosen to.

What intrigued William most; was the method used to draw the blood from her patients. She made a shallow cut with a silver blade on the limb or torso of her client. Using the little groove in the blade she collected a small amount in a small vessel, the size of a thimble, before covering the incision to allow for healing. She then placed the blade into hot water, presumably to clean it. William had dealt with vampires before and did not like dealing with their zombie-like thralls. However, it seemed that this method of consumption did not create the horrid thralls, much to his relief.

She finished with her current patient and politely asked “Now that I have finished with that patient, am I free to treat the next one?” William silently debated this in his head, opting to allow her to continue treating the remaining few who required medical attention. His nod signaled her to continue, much to the approval of the others in line. The next patient moved up and started complaining about some stomach issue. Victoria began to interview the man, trying to isolate the cause of his discomfort. William began to feel a sense of familiarity, his sub-conscious reminded him of countless visits to the infirmary after completing a bloody mission, waiting for his turn before which ever matron would attend to his injuries. William had already begun to internally humanise his target; she didn’t act like the monster that she ultimately was. In terms of deeds, Victoria seemingly contributed more towards the preservation and furtherance of humanity than some of the pompous self-righteous noblemen which he had crossed paths with.

He turned to Beatrice, “How long have you known this Victoria?” Beatrice suddenly felt the interrogation shifting its focus towards her, “I’ve known her for a while.” He realised he had pushed her a little much, “Look child, I simply want information. This whole mess goes against every lesson I had; I suspect there is something more at play.” She seemed to relax, but remained in a startled state of intense caution. The resulting sentences were broken up by nervous twitches or abrupt cession of thought. “I’ve known her for… about five or so winters… Back when she was human. We were friends… traded small things and talked when the caravans went by her town... You know?... When she eventually left her home… I found… found her working at a warehouse last summer and well… a vampire. She never really spoke of it.” “Did she change at all?” “Not really… She became a little more withdrawn and a little more cautious…” William’s expression shifted as a stray eyebrow raised in apprehension. He allowed the conversation to end with that line of questioning, reverting back to his previous observant state allowing the panicky maiden to calm down. Going by her singular account, she had only recently become a vampire with-in the past year or so.

William continued his observation as Victoria treated her final patient, who was suffering from acute back pain, a liability from his work that demanded he carry heavy loads and ride on rough roads. She had removed her gloves as to massage the area, gauging the tension and inflammation in his lower back. From the darkness a young cloaked girl, perhaps twelve or so years old, approached Victoria carrying a basket containing a variety of mysterious herbs. Whatever William’s initial reaction was suddenly changed when he noticed her golden eyes, which shone in the moonlight. The golden eyes were one of the few known indicators of vampiric familiars. Most of the recorded vampires with familiars were immensely powerful, which begged the question: What was a fledgling vampire doing with a familiar?

The girl approached her master, who gently patted her on the head before returning her attention to the patient. The familiar then started preparing a paste from the herbs, presumably to apply to his back. Victoria seemed to use the familiar as an assistant, augmenting her own medical skill or using her to perform tasks which did not require her full attention. They communicated wordlessly, trading equipment or alms without consultation. At this time Beatrice was drowsily falling asleep on William’s shoulder, occasionally startling awake at the sound of any sudden disturbance. The familiar collected a blanket from her wagon and carefully covered William’s guide before proceeding to disappear off into the camp. He decided against following her, instead keeping his eyes fixed on the abnormality before him.

Any curiosity he had about her disappearance was short lived as she was quick to return, bearing several plates of roasted meat. The familiar was accompanied by a large man who was carrying four mugs filled with some kind of strong-smelling drink. The man appeared to be a seasoned traveler, his battered figure and experienced stance indicated he had a history of what probably amounted to mercenary work or banditry. The pair set the food and drink down by William, the new comer handed William a plate and a mug before sitting down on top of a crate which had been placed by one of the previous visitors. The man extended a hand “You look like you’ve had a rough few weeks, the food and drink is on her.” He gestured towards Victoria, who was giving some final advice to her patient which would in all likelihood be ignored. William’s look of apprehension towards the simple meal before him betrayed his distrustful thoughts. The man simply shrugged, taking a piece of what seemed to be rabbit from his plate. “More for me then.”

The man’s name apparently was Leo, who evidently an accomplice of Victoria that she had picked up on one of her travels. They watched as the last patient waved good-bye, before slowly wandering back to the main camp. The vampire, now free of patients, took a mouthful of drink and turned her full attention to William. “Now what can the doctor do for you?” she asked with a tired smile.