Billy Kravitz' vampire wonderland: The Book of Sarah

A manic Tomas rambles on in English (but with the cadences of Medieval Spanish, or Old Vahmperigo) as the Philadelphia Night-Folk confront dangers one dark autumn evening two years ago.... You know, you can take 'The Tomas Walk' through Center City, Philadelphia. Every place we mention here is real. And we did not start 'The Tomas Walk.' Those familiar with the tale did that on their own......Please read. and when you reach the bottom, keep going and click on a newer, or older post and wander...Billy Kravitz' vampire wonderland: The Book of Sarah: It is me this time. It is Tomas, I am deeply depressed. Even those new pairs of spectacularly fitting jeans I purchased on Walnut Street fai...

Billy Kravitz' vampire wonderland: The Book of Sarah

Please click on this passage providing insight to how things were done among the ancient vampirisi~~~~Billy Kravitz' vampire wonderland: The Book of Sarah: Things like this were common practice among the vampirisi in the old days ~~~ This is not fiction. I am not supposed to say it, but I have ...

TOMAS TELLS ABOUT WHEN THINGS WENT MEDIEVAL ON HIM REAL FAST

Annie has a new thing. She jumps around the house, 'singing' into the cardboard tube from a roll of paper towels. Says she wants to be in the Olympics. Don't know what event. Just wants to be in it. Oh, and the song she sings is the theme song from the Olympics ~~~~ dum DUM ta dum dum dum dum... Tum da da dum..da da DUM...ta da dum tum DUMMM. She says that 's the words. Edith says they ain't never gonna let no vampire child be in no Olympics. But Annie says they let worse monstrosities than her in it. She got pictures from an old National Geographic. Edith say they just big boned East German women what got experimented on. 'Sides, they extinct now. Don't make 'em no more...... Annie get angry. She grab Edith's fat arm and start biting it. But that Piney, witchy-woman know what to do. She make that skinny gals teeth fall out. Then she laugh and laugh and laugh. Know it gone take her two nights a grow 'em back. Annie cry. Start kickin'. Edith grab the new dog, that little Avi and say she gone throw him down the garbage disposal. But she won't never do that, 'cause she love him like she love coconut-custard pie.... Annie don't know, though, so she shut up. Take her copy a some tabloid 'bout lady in California who tell fortune by feelin'  strange folk's asses. Edith say that not possible. Annie tell her to go to hell. Annie say she gone be ass-feeler in a Olympics. Win a gold medal too.

Tomas and Sarah back home, so they shut up. They got bags full a puppy chow for little Yorkie and a couple 'cute' sweaters. Edith put it away. Annie go downstairs to watch Chealsea Handler or somethin'. She say she like them foul-mouthed, white girl shows, 'cause that what she is. That her other  new thing now. Ev'rybody on TV is white, or black, or Chinese. She ask Sarah if they taste different. Sarah say that not nice. She worry 'bout that girl...... Little ghost boy in a cellar not like Chelsea Handler. He keep makin' TV fritz out, so they compromise and watch doctah doin' tittie-fixin'  somewhere else...

Tomas take Sarah and go out back. That they quiet talkin' place. Set in them big lounge chairs, cover up wit' them Afghanistan blankets. Look up at the stars and communicate. She like when they communicate, which mostly mean she like when he tell whole lot a crap 'bout hisself..........

This what he tell tonight....

She'd cut me in my sleep, Lydia, I mean and try to lick up the blood. But you know how fast that stops. You know how rapidly it congeals. She'd get some. I don't know how much. I could have tried to read her mind, but truthfully, I didn't want to have that type of intimacy with her anymore. So I took to sleeping with the Circassian women. They were so much more obliging. Perhaps because I owned them. I don't think the vampire part entered into it........ Sarah just looks at him..... Well, I don't. - he says. 

Sarah quietly asks - So you didn't really love her. All those words.... her beauty.... the moonlight.... that first sight of her....were what, just words?..... He exhales - I just didn't want to be alone. It was still all so new to me, being a life-eater, I mean. And I thought she'd make it better.

Did you think that about the others? And, and those times with the 'mole girls,' down in the unused subway tunnels, what, was that the same thing? - she said. 

Tomas didn't answer. They watched the silent lights from a high flying plane, or perhaps a satellite progress across the sky, til it vanished behind an adjacent brick wall. Then he said - Panic filled the city. People scrambled into boats going up river toward Nubian lands, or even farther on to the Ethiopian Empire. True, the Empire was Orthodox Christian, yet not as xenophobic as most in those days..... Then he paused and considered....... 'Those days?' Are we really so much better now?....... He inhaled and went on - The Mamaluk Garrison (already a growing force in the east) set naphtha bombs all about the city, preparing to blow it up. Remember that movie we watched, 'Empire of The Sun,' when the British people were fleeing Shang Hai before the Japanese? Well that's what it was like. The Trinitarians took no prisoners. Every soul was butchered, even the little children. You know, it's odd they think of that as a religious war. Religion had nothing to do with it. The reverent people stayed at home, or were used as 'cannon fodder' if they came at all. The wealth of the east was the thing. And Europe was just too cold.

I waited til dark and raced toward Ben Ezra (the synagogue) eager to see what the elders would do. Most were going overland to the coast. You could find a ship there, sail down the Red Sea and go up to Persia. You know Persia was ... the most liberal country in those days.... They really were. So that's what I did......

Did you take Lydia? - asked Sarah....... No, - said Tomas. But I left her half the wealth and all the slaves.

What happened to her? - said Sarah...... Word reached me in Susa that she made it to Byzantium - he said.... And in that city she found someone to 'burden' her.

So she became a vampire after all - said Sarah.

Yes - he whispered. But then he said no more.

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Billy Kravitz' vampire wonderland: How Sarah Lost Her Family~~~

Billy Kravitz' vampire wonderland: How Sarah Lost Her Family~~~: Some insights into Sarah's early life, first appearing two years ago, but never even read...  Please click on this. Do that tiny bit of magic and make the tale appear...

FUSTAT BEFORE THE DESTRUCTION.. TOMAS WALKS THE EGYPTIAN CAPITAL

Please excuse any minor inaccuracies. Time moves much differently for me. Centuries are as decades and years fly by like hours. But this is the truth, as far as I can recall.

The Egyptian Capital of Fustat was a splendid place, filled with wondrous ateliers producing all manner of coveted luxuries. Caravans funneled exotic commodities from all parts of the world. And though Trinitarian Crusaders held court in Jerusalem, the Egyptian citadel was safe... for a time. 

We wandered the souks at evening time, purchasing fine silks and lustrous satins from the Hindustani merchants. I even met a Han Chinese for the first time in my life. Wonderful fellow. Lydia was completely besotted with his porcelain. We bought service for twelve. And even I used it for certain spicy, hot toddies at times. Alcohol agrees with vampire stomachs. Don't ask me why. It just does. 

I made friends with a sexton at Ben Ezra, the venerable old synagogue even Trinatarian scholars know. And he helped us find a house. The Franks would have called it a petit palace. You see, vampires accrue wealth quite rapidly, especially when we prey on the wicked. Six moons after arriving I had two casks of precious stones and three hundred talents of gold. Needless to say, the capital was freed from many a ruthless soul. We bought servants too, Circassians, or remnants of the Radiant Alans when we could get them. So fine the features. So stately. So alluring. Our receptions grew famous. We hobb-nobbed with everyone, Muslims, Jews from the Iraqi congregation, even the Karaites. 

Life was good. Lydia asked me to set the burden upon her, but I refused, believing it to be not a capricious thing, but something brought on by calamity, or impending death. That's how it came to me, after all. But we made love on the roof. It was cool there, especially during the summer months. Few slept indoors, save the gnats and sharp-toothed rodents. Soft, fresh sheets draped thickly cushioned couches. And one or two discreet Berber slaves fanned us with large, intricately made, folding contraptions brought all the way from the cities of The Han.Like what Spanish ladies carry to this day, but much, much grander in scale. 

I made the acquaintance of the great Maimonidies, an Andalucian refugee, like myself. In his case, the great theologian fled from fundamentalist North African elements at court. Since Fustat had few like that, he soon rose to high estate advising The House of Saladin and treating their sundry ills. For he was also a learned physician and well versed in scientific arts.

The years ran passed. Lydia, though still well preserved by priceless unguents from realms quite far away, still managed to age. And she grew to hate me for allowing that to happen. Now most illustrious men of the city knew of my burden. Alchemy was a respected art in these parts. People were open minded. Needless to say, the occasional tiny blood gifts bestowed upon ailing nobles and poxed young sons made all things right. But the lower classes and certain members of the clergy (all strains being alike in this) did not. And Lydia planned to denounce  me. Did she say it? Well, not to me. But she made plans. Oh, I could have killed her. Few would have questioned her absence. That's how domestic problems were handled in those times. Kitchen fires you know. Gotta look out for them crazy braziers. But I promised her father, so I did not.

Though I drugged her wine (itself a form of semi-contraband) and she spent her time cloistered in the harem, attended by loyal servants and her three most trusted eunuchs.

But greater problems arose. For the Trinitarian armies in Judea-Palestina were on the march... and one city in Egypt had already been put to the sword. It's streets ran red with blood.

Some fled north to the Turks in Anatolia. Others made for Bedouin camps to the west. But we stayed. Who could leave such opulence? 

Ah, many a would-be refugee was slain for love of a rug...

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Billy Kravitz' vampire wonderland: The Book of Sarah

Billy Kravitz' vampire wonderland: The Book of Sarah: I make myself known to her now. She does not fully understand just what I am. But she is open to new things. I suppose that comes from being...FROM A TIME WHEN SARAH WAS STILL MORTAL AND TOMAS HER DASHING SAVIOR.....

TOMAS LOVES LYDIA ...VAMPIRE ANGST IN THE MIDDLE AGES

The next night they stayed home. Edith made hot toddies. Annie forced Conrad  to take her to Foot Locker, so she can get these shoes she wants for The Revels. But I don't think too many of the vampirisi there are gonna be worried about sneakers, though. She'll learn. 

Sarah grabbed two thick afghans and they went out back. The small yard was snug and private. High, brick walls blocked the neighbors. Most properties on the street were like boutique professional offices, or trendy shops, so there really weren't very many potential Gladys Kravitz'. Tomas liked the quiet. They stretched out on chaise lounges, covered up and relaxed. 

The male vampirino gazed up and said - The big, still, white one is Jupiter. Imagine, manta ray people fill the oceans of Europa, yet no one down here knows.... Save for 'us' of course. ....... Did you ever have a love affair with them? - asked Sarah...... Don't be funny - he said. Do you want to hear more?....... She just looked at him and he knew that she did.

Lydia had a pet, a small creature. They kept it hidden, but she showed it to me one night. Rather like a human it was, but somewhat like a tiny ape-man too. Her father thought it the product of a coupling between a human and some outlandish being from beyond the River Sambation. The body was covered with short, glossy hair. The feet were human-like. The man-parts human, as well. A rabbity tale decorated the fundament. But the face was almost completely human... a bridged nose... a fine jawline.... and neat, little, swept back ears. The hair looked like what people now would call a buzz-cut. She called him 'Nudo.' It was short for something or other. I don't remember the full name. Some have tried mixing human and chimpanzee. This one seemed smaller, though. And I don't know what he was. He could say a few words.... mostly 'berry' or 'drink' or 'scratch' or 'kiss'. And he voided his bowels in a little celadon cup. 

But one night he died. So sad. So small. So strange. The alchemist thought it a stroke. I was there when he opened the body..... This is what a man looks like - he said. Have you ever seen the like?....... I knew he was trying to feel me out. Wanted to know if I was 'noble' or 'noxious.' If I fed like a beast, or drank discretely...... For some of the noxious breed, you know, actually tear a body to shreds. And granted, even we do so on rare occasions. But only on rare occasions...... So I told him I had not..... He seemed relieved. For some form of necromancy predicted his demise and he knew the validity of it. Churchmen in the town sought his death. And even rabbis of the Jewish quarter agreed..... 'Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live' it says. And that Bible verse has been the bane of many unusual folk. He tried to keep it hidden. His work, I mean. By modern standards all quite simple. The man sought a compass, for God's sake, a simple device to aid mariners. Yet these benighted souls knew none of it. ..... I did, for the Moors of Spain had many such things... And some showed up in other lands as well. But people there thought them cursed. 

He knew I loved his daughter. She had naught but him. And he asked me to guard her after. I said that I would. She loved me too... And he knew it. So two nights hence he read the words. I told him of my Hebrew faith. He was Christian, though belonging to the remnants of an obscure sect known as Arians. Please don't think I refer to the satanic interpretation extent during the Last Great War. For this was not that, but a slight variation (to me anyway) of the Nicene Creed. So the words intertwined and we were wed. I wrote her ketubah (marriage license-like record kept by the wife) myself. 

Rabbi Tam was in town, grandson to the self-same Rashi I was to study with only  a few years ago. So I sublimated into his bed chamber one night and asked him to bless our union. He thought me but a dream.... and he did.

Two moons later, my alchemist father-in-law met death in the arms of an iron maiden. They sealed him in and locked it tight, piercing him through in a most grievous manner. I did try to save him. I did pass into his cell, offering to spirit him away whilst there was time. But he refused. For the prophesy required his end.... or that of his daughter. 

They burned his body and gave her the ashes. But we were able to save two old tomes before they came and carted the rest away. I believe the remainder of his collection rests in the Vatican Archives.... That's what I heard. 

Lydia cried. She missed him. So I purchased some vellum and drew his likeness. Vampires have a good eye for such things. She thought it quite miraculous. Not at all like the flat, dead, stern medieval representations one saw in old codices. I believe she still has it.

One month later we boarded a wide, low ship and left. It was new, so rats were still in short supply. Obviously, I spent my days below deck due to a 'strange illness'... a chronic indisposition. That sufficed. Few were brave enough to interfere.  Not in those primitive and superstitious times. And two weeks later we disembarked at Fostat (Old Cairo). Such a place it was back then. Much different from anything the Frankish (old Hebrew & Arabic term for European culture) world had to offer. Imagine running water, clean, tiled hospitals with sedatives and anti-microbials. And souks filled with treasures from 'round the globe. 

For a while we were happy. I know I said I'd tell you more about the love we shared. But the soul sees what the soul sees.....

Tomorrow I'll conjure more.

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