AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He raised his head. “For the longest time, I tried to find another way to get to you. I went to Solomonarul, the werewolf, the nymphs, but no one had an answer for me. I knew there were other traveling stones, but they were lost to time or hidden far beyond my knowledge. Then at my most desperate of times, someone approached me. They knew of a way to become immortal, and I accepted it. One thing the person didn’t tell me was once I chose this path, I would never be able to time-travel.”
“You sealed your fate.” I gasped.
“Not only. The fate of unnatural beings does not embed in the cloth of time. The Other Realm can always change its history separately from The Ordinary one and cannot influence matters of history. We are the shadows of the world. Some believe in us, and some don’t. Few have seen us, and even less understood what they saw.”
“So, after you transformed, even if you found another stone, you wouldn’t have been able to time-travel?”
He nodded, keeping a somber demeanor.
“Did you find another stone?” I asked.
“I found one in the hands of someone I trusted. But it didn’t matter anymore. Their betrayal didn’t change the outcome. I had to live throughout a good part of history to reach you. But it was worth it. I finally have you in front of me. My princess, my goddess, my wife.” He clutched both hands.
The number of questions swirling in my mind made me dizzy. Still, I had to find out more. “How was it to live throughout so many historical events?”
“At first, I was delighted. Even with the rocky start of becoming a vampire, I relished in the idea that I would experience firsthand everything you told me about the future. Unfortunately, the good parts were scarce, and the hardships were endless. I’ve seen more death and suffering than I wish to divulge. I watched my family die one by one. I’ve seen His Majesty go through numerous betrayals and an unjust murder….”
“Wait. Did His Majesty find out about your transformation?”
“After I turned into a vampire, I was at my weakest. I struggled to find acceptance from either Realms until I reached the castle. His Majesty took mercy on me and let me live. He ordered me to be confined in the prison under Chindia Tower. No one knew what to do with whatever meek powers I had gained. They have never seen anyone become astrigoiwhile still alive. Then Sultan Mehmed II attacked our lands.”
“Did you help him during the war?”
“No.” He smiled with a sad tinge. “His Majesty would never let an unnatural being help him in his battle of freeing his nation. Plus, I was too weak to fight. You see, I wasn’t the only one to become avampyralong the years. There were many before me. But I was the only one to survive. When one first becomes a vampire, they are easily killed. Vulnerable like a fawn, I became a target hunted by other creatures in The Other Realm. The potential of becoming the strongest being in the Realm triggered great rebuttals. His Majesty saved my life unknowingly by imprisoning me in The Ordinary Realm. Few unnatural beings would risk entering his castle. I got released only afterward when his greatest plan took place. And once again, His Majesty inadvertently helped me by providing many slain soldiers. For even I didn’t know that to become a vampire, I needed to drink a massive amount of human blood in one go. Thus, after draining all their blood, I gained my powers.”
“So the person in all those defamatory pamphlets about Vlad the Impaler eating and drinking next to his victims were you?”
“Trust me, I did not look as refined as His Majesty’s portrayal in that pamphlet. But yes. I was the one they saw drinking blood. The fact that they assumed His Majesty was the vampire turned my life for the better. It helped me assimilate into society far easier from then on. His Majesty lived but a few more years before being murdered in his bed by unscrupulous nobles. While I had to live a long life and, in such instances, anonymity becomes your friend.”
“So in some convoluted way you are the hero I admired.”
“The human version of your hero will always remain His Majesty Vlad III. I’m his myth. At least, that’s what humanity deems me to be.”
“Then Bram Stocker’s book and all those other books about vampires are about you? The cape, the fangs, the dreadful castle?”
“I dropped the cape a few decades ago,” he said and laughed.
“You did?” I gasped.
“I jest. Humans need patterns. If they needed to imagine a vampire as a crude, aggressive being while I could enjoy my life in peace, then why not? Stereotypes have a certain role in society. It may garner a bad or good reputation, but I used it to my advantage.” He took another sip from his champagne glass and began cutting his steak.
“If you only need blood to live, how can you drink or eat?” I asked.
“I noticed early on that humans felt intimidated when I didn’t eat with them at the table. They foolishly assumed sharing food was meant to be a form of trust. Regular food or drinks don’t hurt me. Few things do. My body simply dissipates anything I ingest. I cannot feel their taste or absorb any of their nutrients. The only way I can taste steak is by feeding on a human who just had one. I can taste burgers and fries too.” He raised a brow and smiled mischievously.
“Are you going to feed on me?” My eyes widened.
“You are cute when you behave so humanly,” he said. “The only thing I need from you is you: Princess Petra, my wife, the sole reason for me being here. Not for you to become my feeding station. Of those, I have plenty.”
“Wait. But what if you didn’t decide to become a vampire? Would history change? Would those historical pamphlets never be made? And would Bram Stoker never write his novel?”
“Not quite. Both His Majesty and Bram Stocker’s fates were sealed. His Majesty’s was sealed the moment he stepped the second time on the Wallachian throne, and Stoker’s fate was sealed when he decided to write his book. Maybe not the same book, but a similar story, nonetheless. You must understand that once a fate is sealed, one can only rearrange minor details. One can die an easy or brutal death, but his fate would still lead them to a certain death at a specific moment in time based on their previous choices.”
After Gabriel instilled in me a good amount of existential dread, I realized we were in a public place. I glanced at all the people in the restaurant, unsure of what they had already heard. “Isn’t it dangerous to talk about this subject in a public restaurant?” I whispered.
“Look closely. All these people, including the servers, are entranced. One of the perks of being the strongest of my kind,” he said as he leaned back on his chair.
Indeed, even though they all behaved normally, upon further inspection, I noticed everyone had a blank stare and moved slower than usual.
