Lingerdog's World

I guess I need to come up with a name for this story at some point.


It wasn’t always like this, there was a time when we were feared and respected, now all we have is fear, and for good reason.
His name was Steiger. He was evil to his core. In his day non-vampires knew of us, were open to us, and we coexisted rather peaceably for the most part. When we had to feed on a human we always fed on one from the tribes that didn’t believe in us.
When Steiger was born the number of non-believers were dwindling to nothing. Steiger seeing what was happening told anyone that would listen of the coming catastrophe. He said that eventually the people would realize what was happening and demand it stop before all of them were dead. When we didn’t stop, because we couldn’t, the people and any that allied with them would rebel and wipe us out.
The council of ten warned him of his heresy, and the consequences if he did not maintain his silence going forward. He was causing the very tensions he had warned of.
Steiger was of the Draco tribe, a particularly violent tribe already, Steiger quickly rose through the ranks with his blood thirsty nature in the hunts.
Once he was named commander of the Draco legion all was lost for our people. He over through the council by force naming himself leader of the new oligarchy. Daily raids were made against the towns, blood running in the streets at night.
Hiding did no good for the houndmen had been taken captive and put to work early in Steiger’s campaign. Their keen sense of smell was unmatched in the entire world and with a hell rider holding the chain, it was only a matter of time before all were found and killed, or enslaved.
Steiger showed no mercy throughout his conquest of the land, but in his old age started to soften to the young female humans. He always kept two or three around as pets. The humans learning of this began to offer their own children as sacrifice to keep their town safe.
The humans were building a resistance, knowing of Steiger’s weakness, but as of yet having no leader or clear way to exploit the weakness.
Steiger had entered the town of Noth, and saw in the field a girl he wanted. She was maybe two years old, and Stegier knew he needed her as his pet. He dismounted from his hellbeast, a cross between a horse and a lion, and vicious.
Steiger approached the girl, and called softly for her to come to him. Seeing him in the evening light as nothing more than a strange man calling for her, she ran for her house calling for her father.
Baer Wilson was her father, and he was a sun hardened man from days spent working in his field. He only had two possessions to his name, a white kerchief his wife had passed to him on her death bed, and a claw from a hellbeast he had found dead in his field one morning.
He didn’t know what had killed it, nor what had removed it from his field before the next mornings light, he only knew that it held warmth even on the coldest nights, and was sharper than any blade he had ever known.
He had strapped it onto his walking stick and used it as a scythe to cut a path wherever he needed.
At the cry of his daughter he stood and grabbed it from the table where it rested. She shouldn’t be in any danger, it wasn’t full dark so no vampires should be out yet, but even so he moved outside with his scythe in hand.
Looking up the hill to where his daughter was now racing towards him and over her head, he saw the problem, Steiger. Unlike most vampires, Steiger had feasted on enough humans to be very powerful, and relished in showing his strength by going out before full dark.
Thinking not of himself, Baer raced toward Steiger swinging his scythe over his head. He raced passed his daughter and in closing the steps between he and Steiger, he swung slicing Steiger across the face, peeling his cheek down to his jaw bone.
Steiger stopped, shocked at his vulnerability, at the fact he was bleeding.
He spoke then to Baer saying, “Do you value your life, if so give me your daughter and I will forgive your transgression against me.”
Baer turned and saw she was safely in the house before answering, “You will never get my daughter while I am alive.”
Steiger laughed in derision, “you really think you can stop me, I have destroyed countries, rid hillsides of inhabitants, obliterated villages, and you think you, one man, can stop me?”
“If you think it’s so easy, why have you stopped, if you can take me, then take me!”
Baer swung again cutting into his throat.
Steiger collapsed in the field. Baer bent and cut the head from Steiger’s body. His hellbeast was gone, loosed from the spell it had been under as soon as Steiger died.
He took the head inside and placed it on the table as he stoked the fire, the only sure way to permanently kill a vampire was to destroy the head by fire. Even now the eyes were moving about staring at him, the mouth moved, but without lungs for air, and vocal chords, no words came forth. Baer prodded the fire until it was roaring. He turned to retrieve the head and saw his daughter poking her finger towards the head.
“No,” he screamed, but it was too late, Steigers head had bitten her on the back of the hand, and was holding on as her blood coursed into it’s mouth and out onto the table.
Grabbing his scythe he cut the head in half to release her from the head’s hold.
But it was to late, her skin was turning pale already as her blood ran out onto the floor.
He threw the head into the fire, and lifted his daughter to throw her into the fire as well, to spare her the life coming to her, but couldn’t do it. He carried her into her room, and then locked the door. The change would be coming, and she would be hungry until she was old enough to control it.
Grabbing his scythe he saddled up his mare and rode. Not a safe thing to do at night, but he had someone to go and talk to, the only person that could help.
Is story would be spread far and wide, of how he killed the mighty Steiger, about the weapon he used. Many more would show up at his house in the weeks to come, they had found their leader, and with Steiger gone, the vampires would be pushed back into the deepest recesses of the night, nearly to extinction under the leadership of Baer.
But where he went on this night, none ever knew, for he went to the castle of the council of ten, to the only two surviving vampires from the council. Ower, an old vampire who had seen many things and Franscesca.
He told her of what had happened and together they went back to his house.
Franscesca entered the room without trepidation and found the girl hiding in the corner, angry and hungry.
“I brought this for you,” she said, tossing a rabbit on the floor at her feet.
The child grabbed it and hungrily bit into it before it could hop away.
“Do you know who I am,” she asked.
The child still suckling of the rabbit shook her head no.
“Honey, I’m your mother.”
At this the girl stopped eating and stared.
“I was turned shortly after your birth, and I’ve missed you so much, My name is Franscesca, but you can call me mom if you want, but we have to go, I need to take you to the nursery right away so they can keep you fed, do you understand?”
“Yes mommy.”
“Okay, what do you want me to call you?”
“Abigail.” Was her reply.