Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Tomas Remembers Ancient Tortures... 10/30/31

One night he found a ruined house, a rather large house, probably a manor of some sort once belonging to an old land grant dynasty. Tomas liked exploring such structures. They reminded him of times past. This one dated from the seventeenth century, to the age of The Lord Protector (William Penn's title) himself. Our vampire friend came over with him, you know. Although he did take pains to hide his unusual condition while on board, some curious members of the crew were still able to learn things.I believe he devoured two or three of them. But they were seamen of the roughest sort and easily replaceable by the press gangs of the day. 

He slept in a large, oaken chest more akin to coffin than luggage, down in the deepest part of the hold, surrounded by cold round stones brought on board to add weight and counteract the inherent instability of the craft. Sometimes an inquisitive sailor slid down to look around. 'Feel around' would be more apt, since they were forbidden candles, lanterns or any type of flame produced illumination. And they'd hear moans coming from the chest. Horrid sounds  taken as the presence of an Earth-bound spirit sealed within. 

But Tomas was just dreaming, as life-eaters often do, reliving a past when torture was a game... a much appreciated entertainment, staged by royals, nobles, or ecclesiastic types for the macabre delight and fearsome edification of the unwashed masses.... Imagine... sealed in a chest not much bigger than a casket. There was no opening and closing of the lid, there couldn't be. It was sealed shut. But that doesn't mean he didn't get out. Tomas' ability to sublimate through various forms of matter was already well developed. In some stories they say the chest was lead, but  it couldn't be, for he wouldn't have been able to pass through that, though solid English oak was something else. 

That's how he dispatched the curious seamen. That's how he ate them, or at least their blood. The first one came down into the dark with an ax, determined to breech his temporary tomb. But with the first strike our vampire broke free, moving through the specially hardened wood as you or I might walk through mist. And in that darkness he grabbed him. But there could be no killing on board, not vampire style anyway. For that would result in the cold, blue flame and although surrounding materials are usually not effected by it, one never knows. Vampires rarely take chances. Then he sublimated again, out through the stout, thick hull (also good English oak) and into the open sea, proceeding through the brine til the ship seemed little more than a toy floating on a silver tinged, nighttime sea. The soon to be victim gasped for air, as they bobbed among the waves. He'd yell. He cursed and he died out there in the frigid water, as a nosferatu (they all knew that word) pierced his throat and swallowed up his blood. Did the blue flame still happen? Yes, it always does. Every drained husk ignites and burns away. Some on board may have seen a phosphorescence out there in the dark. But maybe not. When it was done Tomas moved back, passing through the hull and into his box. 

But what did Tomas find in that old, stone ruin, mentioned up above? What fearsome remnant lingered there hidden and forgotten in the deepest cellar? He found bones and they were glazed in a dull, metallic skin.... a 'banana man' plunged in molten lead, hotter than the surface of Venus, just like London costermongers did with that new, yellow delicacy from the tropics, only they used molten chocolate, an equally novel delicacy, instead.

And the bones began to speak...

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link ~> WANDER THROUGH WHAT WE GOT IN OUR CELLARS ... Twitter ~>@wilkravitz ... please share your COMMENTS. thank you.