Come out of the Shade

I believed all creatures on Earth had a purpose in life. None of which were meant to be slayed to extinction no matter the damage some of their kind had caused. Growing up in a small town in London, most people feared the creatures of the night. As a child, my mother spoke of stories about these creatures who feed on the blood of the innocent; blood of children, blood of mothers and fathers and the blood of the elderly. Every night I heard the people of the town chanting and the screams of someone in pain. The smell of burning flesh lingering in the air and the laughter that followed from the people in the town.

I soon learned as I got older to never trust these creatures; to never befriend them. I was taught to kill them before they killed me but why? They only killed to survive just like we killed animals to survive. We killed each other in war so what's the difference? You could say we were just like them. There were people that believed what I thought but speaking against the council was frowned upon. We were never allowed to speak our minds so I kept to myself. Not once did I voice my opinion about these creatures of the night, the creatures we would soon call vampires.

Years went by and more vampires were killed as the children of my generation grew up. Soon it seemed like no one thought vampires had a heart. Perhaps there were vampires that were kind and wanted nothing but peace but no one gave them a chance. My parents passed away when I was the age of twenty-six and left me the family bakery in my care. My sisters moved on and I left alone but I was content with my life. Another few years passed and I had learned so much in life but vampires were still being killed and hunted. I wanted to change that.

~~~

Darkness was still upon us when I was woken from the sound of yelling town’s people outside my window. It sickened me to know they celebrated the capturing of another vampire. How could you celebrate the killing of another creature? I could never take a part of these events even when my friends tried convincing me to attend. The shouting and singing went on and I stayed awake knowing I wouldn't be able to sleep because of what was going on outside my home.

"Oi' Thomas!" a familiar voice shouted my name from below. He is not what I wanted to hear this time of the morning. Frowning, I threw the sheets off of me, got out of bed and grabbed a shirt from the floor.

"Give me a moment. I'll be down in a bit, Benjamin." I picked up the candle on my desk and made my way downstairs to the front door. "I have told you multiple times and the answer will always be no." I groaned as I opened the door to see my friend, Benjamin, smiling at me.

"It's actually a shame to be honest. The creature from hell they captured is a young girl, beautiful she is." he said, disappointed. I let Benjamin in and lead him to the kitchen where I poured him a cup of water.

"How old do you think she is?" I asked, curiously and handed him his drink. Of all the vampires that have been caught all were older men and women. I've never heard of a young vampire being caught. Seeing that they're less experienced, they would be watched over by an older vampire.

"I'd say about seventeen. Perhaps a bit older but you have to remember they live a long time so she could have been seventeen for a hundred years." He took a quick drink and say down at the table, running his hand through his hair. He was right but older vampires would be more experienced and know better. "You sure you don't want to take a look at her? She's being held captive in a cage down the street." I shook my head.

"I'll have no part in this. I thought I told you this before." I replied, walking over to the window and looking out at the people still marching by. "How can people allow this to happen?"

"Oh come now, Thomas. Please don't tell me you feel sorry for this creature. If one caught you in an alley it wouldn't even give you a chance to scream."

"How would you know? We never give them a chance to speak. Did they give her a chance to speak? No, they probably knocked her out cold, to torture her first. We're no better then they are." Benjamin frowned. "It’s the truth."

"Why do you care for vampires so much? The only thing they have done around here is caused us pain." I laughed. We have caused them pain as well. We kill their kind every week and for what? "You know what, I'll leave you alone. If you need me I'll be down the street helping prepare the stake for the morning." In frustration, Benjamin knocked the chair he sat in over and stormed out room. I chuckled when I heard the door slam door.

"What happened to you, Ben? You use to think this was all wrong as well." I whispered. Then something clicked in my mind. When will this ever stop? Someone has to stop this before it gets out of hand and to bring peace between the two beings. I have to free the girl.

What are you thinking, Thomas? Going against the whole town can end in death---your death but I can't just allow this to go on. This girl could have been forced to be turned so why take her life for someone else's mistakes. Searching around the kitchen, I found a small knife that easily fit in my pocket. My plan is to wait around until everyone heads home and then set the girl free. I pray that she does not attack me but it’s not about me. Slipping on my jacket, I headed outside and made my way to the small cage that held the young vampire.

Benjamin was right. She looked no more then seventeen more or so twenty and she was beautiful. She had blonde hair that hung just below her shoulders and those bright blue eyes were stunning. "You will rot in Hell, demon child." an elderly woman shouted, throwing a rock at the cage. "Burn!" The girl deserved none of this. She can't help it that she was a vampire.

I stayed hidden behind a small shed until the crowded disappeared and the streets were quiet. Sprinting to the cage, I quickly started picking the lock. My sudden actions scared the girl and she began whimpering and tried moving away from me. "No, don't be afraid. I'm here to free you." I whispered, looking around.

"How can I trust you?" she hissed.

"If you want to live you have to trust me. Do you have somewhere to hide for the time being?" I asked, still trying to pick at the lock. It wasn't easy as I thought it would be.

"Outside the forest, there's a small house where my family and I live. Why are you doing this?" I gave her a small smile and continued picking the lock until I heard a faint click. Opening the cage door, I held out my hand.

"Come on, I promise I won't hurt you but we must move quickly before someone notices us. You can trust me." I said, reassuring that I meant no harm. The girl looked at my hand and then me before placing hers into mine. "Thank you, now quickly." I helped her from the cage and we ran into the forest. I didn't exactly know where I was going but I knew she did. I followed her for I don't know how long until she stopped. "Why did we st----"

"Don't say another word." she whispered, looking around. The air grew cold and a shiver went down my spine. "What is your name?"

"Thomas." I replied, taking a step closer to the girl. "And yours?"

"Faye. Thomas, you mean me no harm, right?" I nodded. "Father, he means us no harm. He helped me escape. Please do no hurt him." Out the corner of my eyes I noticed a dark shadow and I went completely pale. I screwed up. What was I thinking? I should have known they would kill if not the people of the town.

"Are you sure? This could be some sort of trap. You lead him right to our home. What if you were followed by his people?" the elder vampire shouted angrily.

"Sir, I wasn't followed. This was all my doing. I am not like the others from my town. Unlike them, I believe killing your kind is sickening." Explaining this whole situation wasn't easy especially when you were within feet of a vampire that could've been alive for more then a hundred years.

"I believe him father. Please don't kill him." Faye pleaded. Her father glared at me and then sighed.

"If I don't kill him then you know what I must do." he whispered, as he looked back over to me. What did he mean? I saved his daughter's life and my reward is death. He can't be serious.

"Please sir, I won't tell anyone of your where about. No one even knows I helped Faye escape. You can't just kill me for saving her life." Begging wasn't my kind of thing but it was the only way to save my life.

"I will not kill you, Thomas. This is a reward and to know you won't go behind are backs and tell. I'm going to make you one of us." I shook my head. "Then death it will be." I couldn't be a vampire. What about my sisters? The bakery my parents left behind for me to tend to. What about my future? While everyone I know will grow old and die, I will still be here looking young and living forever. The thought about of all of this caused tears.

"But I have a life." I mumbled, dropping to my knees. "I don't want to be alone." Faye kneeled in front of me and hooked her fingers under my chin, lifting my head up.

"You won't be alone, Thomas. All vampires are family and we can help you create a new life. Trust us." she said softly, brushing my hair to the side and placing a kiss upon my forehead. "Go ahead father." Faye helped me stand and her father took her place.

"Will it hurt?" I asked.

"Only for a moment but you'll feel much better when you wake. Now close your eyes my son and take your last breath." I did as I was told and closed my eyes. That was my last human memory.