The Blank Book

Tre had taken one look at the privy and declared he didn't have to go anymore. After that episode, he seemed to have lost his appetite for a bit, but then drank a great number of beers. At one point Trubane remarked, "Yah are lucky yah made so much money otherwise yah wouldn't have been able to get even half as many beers as yah are having!"

Billie drank quite a few too, but not as many. Mike felt sort of left out, but found it entertaining to watch his two friends so slammed. Billie was starting to spin around on his chair shouting, "Weeeeeeeeee!" Tre meanwhile was talking to his beer, Bob. Suddenly he started to sing drunkenly and slurring quite a bit, "Bob the beer! Something, something, something. Bob the beer! Something, something, something."

Mike wondered how many beers he had had so far.

Tre looked a bit to the right of Mike and waved, "Hello Mike, hello other Mike." He stared at Mike for a second before shouting really loudly, "Ahhhhhhhh! Flying, hairy monster cabbage!" Then he passed out.

The room was silent for a second. Then Billie Joe broke the silence by giggling. The rest of the room started to come alive again.

"Billie Joe, why don't we go to our room now? I think you've had enough drinks," Mike said.

"Fine," Billie Joe pouted like a four year-old.

Mike slung Tre over his shoulder, quite easily actually, and they headed to their room. Trubane would take care of the dogs for the night. They climbed the stairs and went into their room. There were two small beds on one wall with a bedside table and a cot in one corner.

Mike set Tre down on the cot while Billie stood in the doorway.

"I can not see." He said shortly, slurring it so Mike could hardly tell what he had said.

He hadn't noticed that the only light came from some faint torches in the hall. He grabbed an oil lamp from off the bedside table and brought it over to Billie since he didn't know how too light it.

"Here, light this," Mike handed Billie the lamp.

"Okey-dokey then," Billie grabbed the lamp. He pointed a finger at it and a small flame came from it and lit the lamp. "Yay! I can see now! I lurv you man!" He strode into the room, wobbling a bit.

Mike stopped him, "Let me take that lamp before you burn the inn down."

Billie handed it over and Mike set it down on the table. Billie immediately got into the bed closest to him and fell asleep. Mike put out the light and got into the other bed. For some reason he felt that something really bad was going to happen. He fell into a troubled sleep.

***

Mike woke up to the feeling of a liquid going down his throat. His eyes snapped open and he saw a pale man pouring it into his mouth. The man opened his mouth in surprise and Mike saw fangs. He grabbed the vampire's wrist and knocked him away. He was alarmed to see there was at least a dozen other vampires in the room, among them one with dark circles around gray eyes. The vampire stood in the doorway and for some reason, he scared the living hell out of Mike.

"Hello, Michael. I did not expect you to awaken," the vampire said in a voice that sounded like nails scratching a chalkboard and like evil if it ever had a sound. "I guess I should introduce myself since you will soon be working for me. I am Lord Veldenbarr."
Mike's mouth dropped open. He was speechless. Here was the most feared guy in Surtomb standing in the doorway of the room he was staying in and he was in bed, surrounded by vampires, one of which had just poured a liquid down his throat. He finally found his voice and tried to wake Billie and Tre up. The vampire that had poured the liquid down his throat silenced him by punching him in the face. Mike gasped.

"You should not wake your two friends up, otherwise I will tell my servants here to kill them, and believe me, even with their added powers they will still be no match to four vampires each." Lord Veldenbarr sneered. He saw Mike's look of surprise on his face and continued, "Well of course I know all about you and your friend's powers, even the fact that you come from the 'Other World'. I am the one who planted the book there so you would find it. And the lady's voice you heard, that was my personal assistant's... "

A vampire who had stood at his right shoulder stepped forward. "'Hello heroes. You have been chosen to save the Kingdom of Surtomb.'" She mimicked. She was tall, but not quite as tall as Lord Veldenbarr. She seemed feline and like a deadly predator ready to strike out at any moment.

"Sorry to cut the introductions and explaining short," Lord Veldenbarr said, "but I have important things to be doing and cannot stay any longer. Good-night, Michael."

"Wha-?" Mike was cut short by the vampire standing nearest him knocking him over the head. He passed out.