Charlie Swan: Vampire Hunter

9

As it turned out, a burning sword did work against vampires. Getting the sword was difficult to say the least. Apparently, getting a sword that can burn is a lot harder than it sounds. And it even sounds pretty hard. For some unknown reason Forks had three blacksmiths and I went around to each of them asking about the cost and logistics of a burning sword. All three looked at me like I was insane. To be fair, a burning sword was the thing of fairy tales and not something you'd normally ask someone for. I had briefly considered trying to make a working lightsaber, but decided I didn't have the skills. As soon as I have a weapon that works, I promise I'll get on it. 

The second blacksmith finally agreed to work with me. We designed a sword with a hollow hilt and grooved edges that allowed oil to slide wooden the length of the sword. When lit with a match or lighter, the whole sword was quickly engulfed in flames and became warm. There was a lighting device in the hilt, but because of how close it was to the guard I preferred to use a match instead in the beginning. The guard started as a shield of thicker metal and then curved out into thinner spirals. It managed to keep the heat from the sword to a bearable degree, even when it was left ignited for longer periods of time. 

The blade itself was kind of what you would expect from a sword. It was wall balanced and about three feet long. The blacksmith had made it out of a dark metal, so when lit it didn't blacken or char. The darkness of the meal was for appearances but I wasn't complaining. The sword was straight, no curves, and came to a sharp point at the end. There was a groove down the center of the blade for the oil, but no inscriptions or anything running along the solid metal of the outsides. I may be living with vampires and werewolves, but this is not Lord of the Rings. 

The sword took about three weeks for the blacksmith to finish, and I used that time to learn how to wield the thing once I got it. I started with a wooden sword to get used to the feel and weight and to start learning some very basic techniques. You Tube came in very helpful. Who knew there was so much on sword fighting on the internet? 

By the time I got the fire sword, I could manage its weight and still complete many of the maneuvers that I'd been working on. I would by no means say I was a master, but I also wasn't the worst sword fighter ever. What I really needed what a teacher and partner to learn form Fighting a tree is one thing, fighting a vampire is quite another. And I didn't even now if the sword would be enough to kill one. 

I didn't find any one, but as the weeks wore on I could feel my skill growing. Cuts were more purposeful, hits harder, and I finally mastered the lighter in the hilt so I could light to sword in one swift motion rather than using a lighter or match. 

I didn't see the Cullens again in this time. I was spending al the time that I wasn't at work practicing or sleeping, and didn't have much time to dwell on them or the werewolves.

 I was going home from an exhausting day work when I saw something pale running the forest next to me. I kept going. I t was one of the Cullens and I just wanted to get home and sleep. I was almost there when the vampire came running out of the woods and jumped in front of my car, hand out stretched. I slammed on the breaks but was going to fast to avoid hitting the figure in front of me. The arm she had out stretched, it was Esme I'm pretty sure,  stopped the car completely. I stared in shock at the figure before me, and grabbed the sword I had thrown next to me in the passenger seat just in case. It was finally time to see if the sword would work, and if it didn't things looked bad for me.