Craving Temptation: Love Of A Vampire

...Zachariah The Vampire Hunter...

Becoming a Vampire Hunter was not a life I chose; it is one of those things that you just shut up and accept. But what I did not expect was becoming one so soon myself. The story goes like this. My dear late father went on a hunt out of town; he was tracking a rogue Vampire that is acting very similar to what this one is doing. The Vampire created havoc as far as he went, leaving a string of deaths that were becoming hard to explain to law enforcement.

So the stubborn man he was, did not ask for the help as he was supposed to have done. He set off into a nearby city hunting this monster, but the Vampire was always one step ahead. Now, this frustrated him to a point where he became obsessed. He stayed away for days on end; he only returned to check on me but never stayed longer than two days at a time. Then the Vampire made his way into London. The need to catch him became the only thing that drove his body through a day.

He was tired and worn down; he was not even a fragment of the man he was before. He was cold and numb; he was not the father that I loved. Then one night, he finally narrowed his location down to a small warehouse on the outskirts of town. Once again, he refused to ask or even take someone's offer to help. That night when he set his foot out the door, I knew that it would be the last time that I shall ever see him again.

And as expected, he never came back home again. I never heard from him and then came to the sad realization that he is dead. It took me weeks to get myself together and let the Society know. I was not ready to step up and become a Vampire Hunter. My dad had been preparing me all my life, but he never prepared me for what I should do with a life I did not choose.

That brings me here, hunting the same evil that killed my father. Is this the Vampire that took my father's life? Well, Sebastian and I shall soon find out when this monster speaks again.

"Did not think you would still be around Sebastian."

"Did not expect you to be alive after all these years."

And that is when it strikes me, this voice does sound very familiar, and as then Vampiresteps out into the light.

"Father!"

...Sebastian...

What a reunion, but wait for a second, what a twist in events. What ever are we going to do now? I do not foresee this Hunter allowing us to kill his father, who has become the very thing that he so passionately destroyed. I might not like this boy, but my heart does hurt for him. The fact is that we cannot let this Vampire live; there is no way to tame a beast that has blood lust as strongly as this.

Now, who shall be talking sense into him? I sure hope that they do not expect me to be the one. This pesky Hunter might just take my beloved, who is yet to say whom she chooses, but now is not the right time to worry about that. My next question to the Hunter shall define what shall happen in the next few minutes.

So I talk to Zachariah underneath my breath, although the Vampire will still hear what is being said.

"Zachariah, do you wish to be alone?"

"Why on earth would I need time alone with my father?"

"You know that we cannot let him go. He shall only carry on doing as he does. If we place him in the dungeon, he shall face a long and painful death."

"There must be another way I can teach him to control his hunger."

"I am afraid blood lust cannot be controlled or cured. Your father has broken the Vampire code, and with that comes consequences."

"Fuck your Vampire code. This is my father! Don't dare come and tell me what to do. First, you take the woman I love, and now you want to take my father too."

Well, if his cursing did not piss me off, then the fact that he claims that I took Anastasia from him, well, that is making me goddamn furious. He can be thankful we are even allowing him to speak to his father. If he so much as blink in the wrong way to me, I shall slap that disrespecting face for him. My patience is up; this Vampire is dying; I do not care who it is.

So with much surprise, Zachariah steps up to his father, Josiah, with what can be clearly seen as a heavy heart. Fully trusting him, we all back off and stand to the side as we see him taking his dagger and stand his ground, ready to take his father down in battle.

But the next thing we see is Josiah, taking off between the buildings, and far off, he disappears in the alley. The anger that was boiling just a few moments ago has consumed me.

"Are you completely insane! You have no idea what you have done!"

"He is my father!"

"No, Zachariah, he is a monster."

"But is that not what you are?"

"I do not slaughter people!"

"You still kill innocent people."

"For godsakes, I hope for your sake; he does not kill someone else."

With that, we cautiously set off after him into the alley he has disappeared into. And to our horror, we need not wait long for some woman's screams to come traveling down towards us. There is a new set of determination on the Windchaser brother's faces. This goes against everything they stand for; our Vampire Hunter has just broken their vows. I am afraid that might have their own set of repercussions later on.

So as we approach the corner of the street, we need to go down; Connor tosses two wood stakes at Anastasia and me.

"I want him as dead as they come, and believe me, the next asshole that lets him get away is going to wish he were just as dead."

As we approach the woman that he has attacked, we find her lifeless. He has sliced her head completely off. She is lying in an ever-growing puddle of blood; her long blond hair is staining red. Which brings the question, what does he turn into when he is mad for only one Vampire to possess the claws to do as he did. I am afraid to say that only but a few hours earlier, I battled one, and one of us nearly died.

And as I look over at Anastasia, I am so thankful that she has not been able to read my mind. But Ethan does not share the same desire, not to mention the reality of our situation.

"It seems our dear Josiah is able to transform into an Ancient Vampire."

Anastasia is immediately ripped from any thoughts that she was wrapped into.

"What? You got to be kidding me. Not again. This is not happening. I am not getting involved in this fight."

"My beloved, I do not wish for you to get involved. Leave this to Ethan and Connor. As for that one, well, he is pretty useless."

Then we hear another scream; it sounds as if it is coming from up ahead. We make haste, hoping that we will be able to save his victim. But we are shocked beyond tomorrow as we find a gaping hole in his chest. Josiah is, in fact, an Ancient, and he has just pierced his claws through the poor girl's chest and ripped her heart out.

It is in complete silence that we make our way into the next alley then the next after that. We lurk in the shadows and move so slow that the eye would not even notice our presence. It has gone quiet; there have been no screams for a while now. But we know that we should not feel assured, for there is no way that he would be stopping now. This has just become a game, and believe me; he shall play it well.

But nothing goes unnoticed by Connor, as he starts to question the very thing that Anastasia said.

"So what do you mean not again. Have you guys battled an Ancient before?"

"I might as well not even try to lie to you persistent ass. We might have had an incident where my beloved turned into an Ancient."

"Well, which one is it? You might of, or you had?"

"Some circumstances led to Anastasia turning."

"Man, you must have pissed her off bad."

"I am afraid it was repeatedly."

"Well, best, you do not do it again. You do know that once you turn into one that there is no going back. You rage her; she goes go all monkey-shit again."

His words hit harder than that stake he is holding in his hand. What have I done? Thank god she has not been listening as she is lost in conversation with Ethan. But one question begs.

"Does she turn into a normal Vampire?"

"Yes, of course, she only becomes an Ancient out of rage. So best you pick your towel up after you had a shower."

"This is a Hunter thing, that wisecrack mouth. At least you don't let a Vampire getaway."

"Treat the woman right, and you won't have a problem."

"Well, talking about a problem, do you think this man will be able to kill his dad?"

"I am afraid not, so be prepared for anything."

And prepared should we be, for just as we thought things have gone silent, we hear the tormented screams of a man coming from two alleys away. So with absolute haste, we run to save this man, but we do realize that we shall not find him alive by the time we get there.

As we come down the south side of the dark and deserted street, there is not a single noise to be heard. Then as we approach the body lying at our feet, we realize that the man is not in one piece. Josiah has torn his arms straight from his body. It is the most grotesque sight I have ever seen.

But it does not end there; next to him, there is a small child; I do not guess him any older than about fourteen. I cannot see what he has done, but the boy is lying dead and holding onto his father's leg. Fury sets over my heart; in all my Vampire years, I have never touched a human so young. And as I look over to Anastasia, she kneels down, and deep darkness settles over her face. I have seen this expression before.

I turn to Ethan, that is standing next to his brother. The anger is burning deep into their eyes. And as I speak, my voice is trembling from the fear of what is going to unfold.

"Boys, we have a problem."

Ethan looks over to Zachariah, thinking that I am referring to him.

"No, Ethan, my beloved. She has that same look as what she had just before she tried to kill me."

Then out of nowhere, Josiah appears; he has been waiting for us. He has caught us off-guard and cornered us in a dead-end. He has taken the form of his Ancient, he is untouchable, but if you get a hit in, then you better make it count.

As he corners us even further into the wall, I watch in horror as Anastasia turns into her Ancient. But she seems a lot more elegant, well apart from the claws and frightening fangs, I would say that she is damn gorgeous. Then she shockingly turns to speak to me.

"Sebastian, this is the most inappropriate time to get aroused."

"But..."

I am ripped out of the moment as Josiah launches at her. In an instant, he has her around the throat, and my world stops.

"Anastasia."

Then Zachariah gets torn back to reality as Anastasia takes grip around his father's throat.

"Father!"

We all stand in shock as he utters his father's name. Then Anastasia tosses Josiah'sbody like a handkerchief to the floor. She stands above him, preparing to claw at his throat, but unexpectedly he kicks her from underneath her feet. She falls with a loud thud flat on her back, but she rises faster than Josiah can move. She then drives his body into the wall. She goes to claw at his face, but he pushes her back.

Then they tumble to the ground; they throw each other back and forth against the filthy alley walls. And just as the one thinks they have got the upper hand, the next draw their claws and take a jab. It is horrific and damn right frightening as they go at each other. But then they both raise to their feet to start over again. Anastasia can not last any longer fighting like this. I look at Connor and nod at him.

"You take Josiah, and I shall get Anastasia safely away."

But then Zachariah shouts for us to stop.

"I shall end this."

We watch in horror as he firsts point his stake towards Anastasia, and then he points it at his father, then back to Anastasia again.

And then...