Craving

Surprising Encounter

Nothing moved in the deep shadows as he walkedalong the street just before midnight. He was alone as usual, but something wasnot right, there was some strange presence in the cold, night air. He could notsee or hear anything apart from the distant cries of hunting owls, and closermoaning of the never-stopping wind. Nevertheless he sensed something, justbeyond the possibility of understanding. Shy moon had hidden her pale facebehind the accumulating clouds, when something appeared in the thick darkness,surrounding him like a veil.

A sudden thrill ran through his body, a feelingalmost forgotten during the years of immortality. It was not cold, that he hasnot been able to feel for many ages past. And now he trembled though he couldnot find any reason for it. After some terrible minutes the fear passed,leaving only an unexplainable memory. As he strode on, aware of every ratrunning in search of food, every cat hunting for unexpecting pray, he could notfind the source of the recent experience. Time passed, the dawn was closing on,and he also had to find some creature to feed on its blood, unless he was goingto starve during the coming day.

Luck was not on his side this night, the streetswere as empty as pharaoh's robbed tomb. Not even a milkman or a prostitute wasin sight. He bit his lip as the thirst became greater. He had to drink. Rightin this moment he saw her. She seemed the most beautiful human being he hadever seen. She was strolling, obviously not thinking of a thousand possibledangers awaiting a young girl alone at four in the morning. It was something hecould not understand, but on the other hand he was far too hungry to thinkreasonably. He approached her like a shadow, not aware that her movement was assilent as his own. For a second he stood right behind her, smelling the sweet perfumeof her shampoo. He gently bowed his head to reach her swan like neck, almostwishing that he did not have to rip open the velvet skin.

She turned to face him. In her deep, black eyesthere was no fear nor surprise. Unlike in his own, which must have shown howstunned he was. For the first time in his too long existence he had met acreature resistant to his hypnotic powers. He knew she smiled gently, althoughhe could not see her lips in the obscurity of the backyard they stood in. Shewas no human, of that he was sure. But what was she then, for she was not avampire like himself. Less likely she was a ghoul, for they always smelt ofdead bodies, no matter how much perfume they used to hide their odor. Shetouched his cheek and gazed at him attentively. She was warm as if she was aliving thing, but something told him it was otherwise. Not a word was spokenfor so much time that it felt like hours.

At last she embraced him and at that moment heknew her real nature. Immortal Huntress, the one that could never be beaten nordestroyed. The legends of her circled among the creatures of the night, neverbelieved and never denied. The rumor had it, she was the only creature of thenight able to walk in the burning rays of the sun. Her prey were the vampires,whose blood did not carry the stamp of life, which appeared too potent in humankind. The Immortal Huntress kept the balance between light and darkness, alwaysimpartial to either of sides.

He was doomed and he realized it as her suddenlyuncovered snow white fangs cut right into his body, opening his veins, in whichran stolen blood. He did not try to resist, fascinated like a bird staring atthe steady swinging of a poisonous snake. She drank gently, sucking slowly thelife giving crimson liquid. Her right hand played with his long dark hair whilethe left held him tight around the waist. He could understand her ecstasy, heknew the feeling but too well. He was weakening but she did not let him fall.The world started to dance before his eyes, the sun was about to rise and thehuntress was about to finish her feast. She did not intend to kill him afterall, of course if you could speak of killing someone that has been dead forages. She kissed him and he fainted. As he sank into oblivion, he was almostcertain that he would never wake up, considering the near dawn, which wouldbring the abundance of lethal sunlight.

"The legend turned out to be only partly true.You could survive the meeting with the unholy huntress." - Thought the vampirecoming to his senses in a dark room well hidden from the rays of sun, not faraway from the place of the feral encounter. He never met her again, but healways kept her in his memory, though he never knew what she really was.