“You’re getting older by the day, Professor,” Alucard’s voice ebbed from the darkness, announcing the creature’s presence even before he could be seen.
Abraham did not raise his head. Having lived with this creature for nearly three decades, he knew the vampire’s tricks and games all too well by now. Releasing a heavy sigh, Abraham shifted in his chair, half lidded eyes watching the fire’s dance.
“I’m not too old to put your face into the dirt when it pleases me, demon” he answered in his own, quiet voice, folding his hands across his abdomen as he enjoyed the fire’s warmth.
A chuckle answered him, and he could feel the vampire’s presence just behind him as the creature manifested itself, resting ungloved hands upon the sides of the chair to let the tips of his claws dance in Abraham’s peripheral vision.
“Perhaps you could many years ago, but not anymore. The bane of humanity has caught up with you, dear Master. Not even the great Abraham Van Helsing can hope to escape age.”
Abraham closed his eyes, breathing slowly as he enjoyed the fire’s warmth and ignored the drop in temperature that always came with Alucard. He felt more than heard the vampire move, stepping around his chair to stand before the fire, casting a dark shadow across the old man’s form to block both the light and heat of the fire. A frown pressed into the human’s lips, coaxing more wrinkles from aged flesh.
“Vampire,” he stated in a warning tone. Opening his eyes to settle a piercing gaze upon the creature. Old or not, his eyes still shone bright with the spark of life and power of will. “Remember your place.”
Alucard raised one sleek black eyebrow, tilting his head to the side as he observed his former master’s weariness. “For how much longer?”
The words struck a chord within him, Abraham’s frown deepening as his eyes gazed past the vampire and into the flames. It was true. He could feel Death slowly approaching from the distance. Abraham felt old, tired, and weak, as if he had worked all his life and would now die with nothing. He was concerned his son had the type of discipline and will to command the organization or the vampire.
“Kneel,” Abraham commanded, refocusing his eyes upon the grinning creature.
Gracefully, Alucard slid to his knees at the human’s feet, bowing his head low as his hair swept around him. So well trained was this defeated enemy. So well contained and obedient. Abraham’s eyes remained locked upon the kneeling vampire, enjoying the feeling of power once more. So long as this beast still obeyed his command, he would not die weak and empty.
Would his son be able to carry on control of the vampire? Would his will be strong enough? Even then, what of his son’s children, and their children, and on it would go? Chains only required one weak link to snap. How many years until Dracula was released upon the world once more? Would there be power enough to take him down again, perhaps defeat him permanently?
Abraham narrowed his eyes, dwelling upon years of memories. “Down,” he continued, resting a heel upon the creature’s bowed head, lightly pressing downward.
The vampire offered no resistance, shifting his body to press his forehead into the library carpet, palms pressed to the ground at either side of his chest. How long? Abraham relaxed within his chair, keeping the heel of his boot upon Alucard’s head. How long had it taken him to train the vampire to obey such commands? Years of work, funds spent to secure unorthodox tools and materials, and the creature’s own stalwart will. Would his son, his son’s children, their children, and the far future generations understand and appreciate his sacrifice?
His son treated Alucard as some kind of oversized domesticated dog. A family pet who could never turn or attack, who never thought of anything other than the family’s secured safety. His son would raise a child within this house, side by side with this demon. He would trust Alucard to guard a babe without ever knowing or understanding this vampire had fed upon the blood of such babes, torn their tiny bodies into tatters with the very teeth he hid so easily behind a charming, obedient smile.
“You will not escape your bonds so easily, vampire. I will personally see to your continued internship here long after I’m gone, if I have to seal you in your cage below with my final breath.”
Alucard’s response was a soft chuckle, the grinding of rocks upon a night’s breeze. The creature shifted slightly, his upper body pressing against the light pressure of Abraham’s boot as if attempting to rise. “You will hold no domain or power as a ghost. No more than your memory,” the vampire hissed softly into the floor.
Abraham could feel the vampire testing him, tempting him, like any other demon he was dangling promises and trickery. Sliding his boot from the creature’s head, Abraham straightened in his chair, leaning over his legs to press the fingers of one hand into Alucard’s nape. The beast’s hair moved, slithering around his fingers like soft serpents, licking and entwining about his digits. Abraham quickly located the vampire’s collar, a thin circle of iron and leather wrapped silver.
Hooking his fingers around the collar, Abraham pulled, pleased to realize his muscles did not shake or twitch in his age. He could feel the vibration in Alucard’s throat moments before the sound of a soft growl surfaced. Offering no resistance, Alucard allowed himself to be pulled up and forward, shifting to move his lean body closer to the chair.
“Silence,” the old man growled in response to the vampire’s unrest. “Look well into my eyes, demon, and tell me again I will not have dominion over you after I pass from this world. My seal will hold you long after even my family line perishes from this earth. It will accept a new master, on and on until your last life and you fail to rise from dust.”
Caught by the hated collar, Alucard locked eyes with his master. To any other human, such an occurrence would be fatal, for it was well known among hunters to meet the gaze of a vampire would bring destruction. Abraham did so for many reasons, but first and foremost was to drill into the grey matter of his captive that he was not afraid nor concerned by the monster. He was the master, the alpha of this house, and would not be challenged by this creature.
Abraham watched the vampire’s pupils expand then contract, narrowing to thin, reptilian lines. Vampires communicated much with body language, vocal and subvocal sounds. While they often pretended to behave as humans, they were very separate, just very good at blending and copying. Abraham had spent a great deal of time studying the vampire communication methods, and had learned to read his pet rather well when he did not speak. Intense narrowing of the pupils in a dim lit area was a very sure sign of, among other things, fear.
Alucard, likewise, read victory in the eyes of his master, an irritated frown crossing his features as he began to tug back on the man’s grasp. “When you pass from this world,” he hissed, lips quivering as he bared flashes of fangs among his words. “You will leave knowing your spawn will perish by my will, and their blood will sing within my veins. Your ghost can haunt all it desires, a memory cannot stop me. With your death, so comes the death of those who understand your thrice cursed seal. I will find a way to remove it, make no mistake.”
Narrowing his eyes, Abraham tightened his grip on the vampire’s collar. “Feeling brave tonight, Alucard? Think you smell death looming over my shoulder so you’ve come to mock and threaten in hopes of what? That I won’t meet your challenge?”
The vampire had heard that tone in his master’s voice many times, the hidden anger that guaranteed swift punishment for any transgression and demanded absolute obedience. Perhaps it had not been a wise choice to hound after Abraham this night. Alucard released air from his lungs in a soft hiss, eyes jumping to capture a quick glance of the doorway, his escape.
The motion was not lost on Abraham, who pulled Alucard closer, fingers curling in a firm grasp upon the collar. “You’re not going anywhere, vampire,” he growled.
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