A History Through Blood

Leo assisted the fatigued surgeon out of her blood-caked apron before passing the contagion covered cloth to the waiting familiar, who proceeded to cleanse the stained apron in the pre-prepared herb infused boiling water. Once clear of the feted clothing, Victoria gave William a small courteous bow and properly introduced herself. “Thank you for your patience. Hopefully I have not kept you too long.” Internally William was conflicted; he had found a vampire which was currently living along side humanity without consequence. This particular monster clearly acted differently and without the seemingly pathologically violent desires which were typical of her cursed ilk. However, his doctrine called for the immediate destruction of any daemons or dark beasts upon discovery.

Be it curiosity of the deviant’s psyche or sympathy with her seemingly altruistic actions, William now considered the wild idea of possibly capturing her alive. If this vampire had enough moral character he reasoned, bringing her in alive might prove inordinately valuable. At the very least having a clean autopsy might yield interesting results on top of whatever information they could extract. The Church would most certainly kill her, but they might gleam valuable information from the accursed medicine woman. The realisation of the existence of a peaceful outcome formed in his mind, as it appeared that the vampire was in some ways agreeable. Before he could allow himself to attempt this act of madness, determining her true nature was of the upmost importance. He doubted combat would yield any semblance of her honor, or lack thereof, as his typical honor code may not align with the vampire’s.

The imprecise art of information gathering was not in William’s skill set. While he could wield a variety of deadly weapons, his charisma was not as sharply honed. Many in the church agreed that William was a fine judge of moral character, but he knew when he was outclassed in the social field. Knowing the disadvantageous position he held, William accepted that his only chance of assessing her true nature was via idle conversation. William, in his inexperience, grasped onto the first seemingly neutral topic he could find: his subject’s liquid filled mug. “I did not know that vampires could consume anything other than blood.” Victoria’s visage seemed to relax a little, even if there was little change in her neutral expression.

“We are able to consume more than just blood. The problem with more traditional foods is that they are inefficient.” She reached over plucked a nearby weed from the ground, and presenting the plant to William for examination. “While many humans might try to subsist on this form of plant, it yields less nourishment than other plants available. However, other creatures, such as rabbit or deer, are able to subsist on these weeds without issue.” She casually threw the uprooted plant behind her as she continued. “Your typical food is like this weed to my kind; from a substantive standpoint vampires get almost nothing out of it. While I can potentially survive off a thimble of blood, I would need something like a small feast to equate that. It is a waste of resources to consume frequent feasts when more efficient options exist.” William was not quite sure he fully understood the explanation, but he was able grasp the core concepts which she conveyed. Victoria continued in her methodical tone “There are some vampires that over consume, usually to increase their own power as opposed to a genuine need for survival.” After taking a sip of her drink she added: “However, we still need to drink water and similar fluids, as our bodies still require it to perform functions, such as sweat.”

The civil small talk continued quietly as to not disturb Beatrice. Victoria, probably due to the fatigue of practising medicine, did not contribute as much as William would’ve liked. It seemed that, unlike Victoria, her familiar still had energy to spare and happily joined in on the conversation. Between Leo’s exaggerations and the familiar’s more simplistic phrasing, they had a workable conversation from the more basic elements of vampirism to broader topics of trade and medicine. He had discovered that the familiar’s name was Rose and she seemed to act as Victoria’s personal assistant, whether that meant being her eyes or being an extra pair of hands. From what he could gather from the exploratory conversations, Victoria preferred modest life which did not draw attention to herself.

As the last embers of the campfire died down, he decided to end the civilities before his morality began to shift. “I believe I’ve heard enough.” William put on his official voice as to differentiate this from the former conversation. “Under the command of almighty God, you will submit yourself to his righteous judgment, lest I carry out his wrath.” William saw this as the final test of character, judging her actions in the face of his lord. Would she attempt to flee out of cowardice like a lowly rat? Beg and plea some grubby wretch to the feet of a noble lord? Or attempt some final fight out of desperation?

She gave her answer immediately and with no hesitation or emotion; “I submit.” She then extended her arms to be bound, or otherwise incapacitated. William was not sure how genuine her submission was, but he did internally sigh in relief that it did not escalate. William would later reflect that if this were in a different situation, her actions would be seen as similar to various pacifistic martyrs, sacrificing themselves for whatever their self-proclaimed noble cause championed. Leo watched on silently as his partner remained stationary, standing expectantly and waiting to be subdued. William reached behind his back, to a series of small packs to remove a length of blessed rope as to bind her arms.

Upon contact with the purified rope the vampire started to weaken, showing obvious difficulty to remain standing. Once her wrists were completely bound, the familiar who had been peacefully observing suddenly disappeared into her shadow unable to maintain her physical form. Leo observed his partner who was now mostly helpless and quickly realised something. Turning to William he asked: “How will you bring her in? She does not look fit to travel and I reckon we are weeks away from a major town.” Whether or not it was intentional, Victoria could no longer remain standing of her own accord and collapsed onto some nearby creates in turn knocking over a small box of trinkets, startling Beatrice awake in the process.

William was not sure if he could remember any records of the church taking in a heretical creature alive unless it was the express goal of some overly zealous hierarch. It was far more common to simply burn the mangled corpses, denying any opportunistic soul the use of the corpse for whatever malicious purpose they held. William could carry Victoria several long miles to a church by himself, but it would leave him exposed to many threats which dwelled on the twisted roads. He had so far been lucky enough to avoid the various bandits and feral animals which wandered the countryside.

William generally disliked any requisition policy, as he saw his job as to protect humanity from magical threats and not forcefully take from the people whom he protected. Whether or not it was strictly true, both Victoria and Leo claimed that the wagon, and the wealth of goods contained with-in, were Leo’s. Many of Williams comrades would have simply confiscated the vampire’s wagon, despite ownership, under the guise of securing evidence of her evil nature. The caravan, regardless of whatever complicit actions they had taken, was not worth any intrusive disruption which would only serve to hinder his mission. He mused over this problem, feeling the pressure of Beatrice’s sour glare. The crippled girl had fallen over Victoria and had begun to protectively hug the now feeble vampire.

Leo had been watching the scene with some degree of amusement, piecing together what William had been thinking and proposed a workable solution. As he “was not an accomplice of the vampire” and as free merchant he was happy to take on temporary laborers to assist with his travels. William could join him as hired labor until he arrived at his destination. William considered this highly suspicious deal and found it too convenient, a simple and uncomplicated solution which was agreeable to both parties.

“I don’t like this” proclaimed William in an outburst of frustration. “You are far too accommodating in this situation. What game are you playing?” “If my former hired assistant gave herself up willingly, who I am to deny her choice? Her ideas are lost on me most of the time.” Leo’s tone hinted at defeat as if to say he was simply mirroring her actions. William shot an irritated glance towards Victoria, who lay in Beatrice’s arms with a strained look on her face portraying obvious discomfort. William gave up fighting against the easy option presented to him, the decision could be changed later and currently it was the best option for his chosen path. At least until he reached the next town, where he might procure a less questionable method of transport.

He pried his captive from the protective arms of Beatrice, proceeding to sling the now helpless vampire over his shoulder. William, with Leo and Beatrice in tow, made his way through the camp past the judgmental looks from the assortment of onlookers. This was an eventuality, regardless of whether her partners in trade accepted the outcome. Unsure of the precise travelling routes and estimated time frames, he sought council and consultation from the elderly patriarch. Upon seeing him with his prize, Edward had half mockingly congratulated himself on his “brave and life-threatening capture of the menacing vampire.”

Edward’s caravan ferried the assorted merchandise from the northern half of the country to the southern half under the direction of the Carpenter Trading Guild, with a few minor lone or affiliate merchants joining them for protection. Estimations indicated a journey spanning around 20 nights before they would reach the next major town, including the minor stop overs at several towns which lay directly on their route. William quickly learned how best to predict peak spikes of activity and adjust his routine accordingly, so that he could return quickly to watch over his prisoner. As part of the agreement, for lack of a better term, Leo had hired William as an assistant during his trip. He earned his food while doing whatever manual labor was assigned to him. Usually, it involved manual labor and guard duty, with which Victoria cooperated as she tried to perform whatever meagre tasks she could manage whilst hindered by her restraints.

With-in hours of her capture, many of the members of the caravan attempted to weasel her freedom or services from his captive. While some offered donations for medical care, other members were more aggressive. Due to Victoria’s vampirism, she had to seal herself within a barrel during daylight hours to avoid the sun’s rays. The bolder members of the caravan attempted to steal William's captive from his cart, only to be thwarted by the very captive they were attempting to rescue. Victoria had somehow acquired a noisy bell, which she rang during the ill-fated attempts at kidnapping at the slightest hint of unusual disturbance.

The multiple attempts to access Victoria forced William to reconsider his plans, though he suspected that Victoria had foreseen this outcome and had planned accordingly. While William was relatively lenient with his captive, he did not like the idea that she was toying with him. Every action he or those around him took seemed to have been accounted for or factored into the way she carried herself. William's instincts told him that despite her confinement, Victoria had no intention to passively accept whatever punishment was given to her. His sense of duty would not allow him to negotiate directly with Victoria, he already felt like he was losing despite being ahead in terms of his mission. Due to William's lack of charisma, he could only see his temporary employer as someone he could fairly negotiate with. Leo was a straightforward man, preferring to keep things simple and wasn’t a fan of verbal jousting as it were.

Leo’s wagon was positioned near the back of the caravan, on some days causing them to find themselves assigned with the rear guard. William used the relative down time to attempt to negotiate with his employer. Leo quickly saw what this was, skipping the formalities which went into deal making. “Let’s cut the crap and save us some time. I know you want some of the merchants off your back and figure I am the best person to speak with. So, what are you willing to offer?” William, thankful for the rather straight-forward approach, opted to go for a simple deal aimed at appeasing those who bothered him. “While I think I will regret it, would the other members accept short periods each night where she can tend to the sick or wounded under my supervision?” Leo pondered the offering, “I think we can work with that; I will spread the word around.” William, despite his best efforts to hide it, was surprised at the ease of the bargaining. “Why does everything seem so one-sided with you guys? I feel like you are using me for some nefarious goal.” Leo simply chuckled, “As long as Victoria allows it, I have no intention to intervene. From what she has said, Victoria felt that annoying you would put her in a worse position.”

After shaking on the agreement William knocked on Victoria’s Barrel, loudly stating: “I don’t know what you are playing at, but I am putting some rules down on this.” The lack of any response, lead him to continue, correctly assuming she was listening. “Rose is to stay in your shadow, no drinking blood from your patients and you must stay insight of me at all times.” Victoria gave no response, but William was sure that his message was received and accepted. Whatever moral code this abnormality held, she seemed to value any agreements she or her associates made.