Trembling With Fear 10-1-23

Decisions, by Chris McAuley

October 30st, 1916 

Through the haze of the mists which covered the trenches, the vampire stalked.

This was a covert operation which had been directed by the self-styled Empress herself. Using her senses, she moved through the shattered mounds of earth and wood. The place had been recently mortared, weaving through the splintered obstructions with practiced grace and ease. Her target had been sent to this place with certain dispatches. These documents could halt an offensive which potentially could kill thousands of soldiers.

Since Dracula, the Vampire Lord had been travelling the globe following his masters’ dark designs, his niece Carmilla had taken over the Vampire Court. She had deposed any pretender or usurper with astonishing violence. Until those moments, it had been an unwritten rule that none of their kind should harm another. They all equally bore the mark of the Worm and in that, they were kindred, reborn to a new purpose.

She had been known as Joanne once, at times she had to force herself to remember that fact and anything related to her previous life. She was remade into her mistresses’ image, terrible and cruel. Carmilla’s taste for sadism had overflowed in her veins at the moment her throat had been punctured.

Glancing casually at the strewn remains of the young men who had been caught in the blasts, she felt a form of pity. Death should at least mean something, not an indiscriminate act but something deliberate and with purpose. One soldier, lay face down in the mud. Half his body had been torn off by the impact. Chunks of flesh and bone were imperfectly ripped from his form. With a curiosity, borne of natural morbidity, the vampire assassin reached down and turned his body over. The young face, still handsome and without the burden of meaningful experience gazed sightlessly at her. Mud covered his face, as well as his slicked dark hair and his mouth. The vampire, having drunk in this scene of death and satisfied, dropped the body back into the mud, taking care to turn his face towards the velvet sky.

‘Let the boy see the stars when they come at night’ she thought.

Moving forward, she heard the sound of movement. A slow and cautious pace just ahead of her. Her keen hearing picked up the sound of panting and exertion. Perhaps her prey had been wounded, that would be disappointing, she enjoyed a fight and the shedding of her own blood as much as that of others. Discerning that the movement was coming towards her, she stopped. She would take her quarry by surprise. The shock of seeing a woman in a Captain’s uniform would be enough for that.

The slumping figure rounded the corner. The disheveled uniform marked him as a private and a dispatcher. He had been wounded but not critically, his eyes reflected the same blankness which she had seen in the dead body lying in the mud. This soldier was older, but not by much. A pawn in a coward’s war, where old men playing general threw children at each other.  

The dispatcher registered her and as expected, he faltered in his step. He recognized the authority of the uniform but surely it shouldn’t be a woman standing in it?

The vampire cut him off before he could speak.

“Private, I have been sent by command to take control over the documentation General Alderson gave to you.” Her voice was authoritative, every instinct in the soldier’s mind urged him to pass her the documents in his pack. After all, the pack was heavy and at least this would make it lighter. His foot hurt like hell and the ringing in his ears made it hard to discern what the captain was saying.

“I’m sorry sir, I can’t do that. I must return these documents for further instructions to the General.” He slumped a little lower as he added. “Everyone is dead here sir. There is no command left and I must halt the attack for the Germans know of it. It would be a massacre.”

The vampire licked her lips, both at the thought of the death of thousands and the pleasure her mistress would surely have when the news was delivered to her. It was important to her plans to not only destabilize the human nations but also to shed as much blood on the Earth as possible. She moved forward towards the dispatcher, choosing to give up the pretense of her supposed commission.

“Boy, I am not going to lie to you. I am going to rip your throat out and take those papers from you.” At this she opened her mouth and revealed her extended canines.

To her admiration, the boy soldier brought his rifle to bear. She could see the struggle in that action but also the determination.

“I have my orders and my duty and I will not give you these dispatches.”

The vampire moved with incredible speed, knocking the rifle from his hands. She placed her gloved fingers around the dispatcher’s throat. The boy struggled to breathe with the iron grip squeezing his airways. His face changed to a mottled purple and he could feel his bowels threatening to give way.

The vampire considered her options. This boy could prove useful, as a thrall he could intercept the messages for her. This would negate unnecessary field operations.

“I admire your courage and for that I will give you a choice. I have need of someone who will intercept messages on my behalf. They would ensure they do not reach their destination. It is an easy position and if you agree I would then spare your life.”

The solider was rapidly losing consciousness. Fear beset his mind, but through fog-like thoughts, he knew he would be saving his life at the cost of others. His dispatches had won victories and had saved countless of his comrades and friends. Then there was his brother George, positioned at the front. An unreceived message could get him killed and destroy their mother.

Whispering through his burning and constricted throat. He uttered a final curse at the creature tormenting him.

 “Go to Hell.”

The vampire wasted no time on second chances, she pulled the boy towards her and ripped out his throat with her teeth. She chewed through his flesh enjoying the gurgling sound of his death rattle as his vital, crimson fluids splattered her face and stolen uniform.

After several minutes and having gorged herself on the boy’s blood, she bent towards the shoulder bag and set about her work.