Dracula - My side of things(Martha Austin) Prologue

Dracula: I didn’t do anything wrong…not much anyway. Fine a few people have gone missing and never returned, and yes that was down to me, but I’ve got to live to! Anyway, I didn’t deserve what I got. That night scarred me for life, well, scarred me for death. For I am Vladimir Dracula IV. The greatest vampire that ever lived…sort of.

Renfield: The tension in the clearing that night was unbelievable. Everyone was buzzing and none more than me. I was 21, it was my first hunt, I was going to be a man. No longer would I be ‘little Renfield junior.’ No. Now I would be Renfield the man! I sauntered up to a crowd of big, bushy-bearded men. I grass crunched under my proud feet and the wind whistled past my head. The heat of the crackling fire warmed the back of my neck. The sparks danced and flung themselves out of the fire as if in celebration of my presence. I felt on top of the world. I was brilliant. I was amazing. I was SENSATIONAL!!! Little did I know of what was ahead of me. As I bragged to my friends about my shiny new stake, my chances of life were slipping away like sand through my fingers.

Dracula:I was just going to have a quiet night in. read a book, watch the tele, you know the sort of thing. It all started around 7 O’clock. I was half way through my tea (Beef and pork with a side of lamb if you were interested) when I heard an almighty crash at the door. Naturally, I went to answer it. I smoothed down my hair and dusted off my jacket. I don’t have many visitors you see, and I was keen to make a good impression. Anyway, I arrived at the big, old, oak door and heaved it open with a loud creak. I squinted into the moonlit gloom, trying to see who had knocked. To my surprise I saw a fluffy, white lamb tied to a rock with a coarse rope. I love lamb so decides to go and ‘investigate’ it. I stepped forward cautiously into the looming darkness of the outside. I reached out and rested a hand on the lamb’s pulsing neck. I was just about to put the little thing out of its misery when I heard an almighty shout from behind me. I whipped around to see who dared to enter my domain, but something dropped from the sky on top of me. A net. I flailed this way and that trying to find and escape from my criss-cross prison. I saw angry, moonlit faces staring menacingly at me from all directions. Many brandished stakes, others with spears while others had flaming torches. I knew I had to get away. My life depended on it. I closed my eyes and summoned all my strength. I began to squeak, I felt my legs shrink under me and my ears grow into big cones. Huge stretches of skin emerged from under my arms and attached themselves to my sides. Then I felt myself shrink, fold away into a smaller body.

Renfield: I’d never seen anything like it! I was there, right at the front of the group, brandishing my spear, ready to take the plunge and end the beast’s life once and for all when it...changed. I don’t know how he did it, but from what I saw, his legs just folded up under him and massive flaps of skin sprung from under his arms and fastened themselves to his sides. It must surely have been which craft! The next thing I see isn’t a tall, dark, slender man, but a small, squeaking, black bat sitting in his place! With a tremendous screech, it took off and flew away into the empty darkness. Cries of desperation and anger sprang from mob as we jumped up and hurtled after the small shape that was quickly disappearing into the night. As I ran I felt a sudden pang of fear. If turning into a bat was simply a means of escape, then what was this beast capable of when it was angry? Horrific pictures of mangled bodies filled my mind, flesh and skin hanging in ribbons of bloody, torn faces. In my horror filled haste I tripped over a log and was sent tumbling to the hillside floor. I was the youngest and the smallest of the group. Vile creatures like that always go for the weakest ones. I was snapped from my thoughts when a rough hand grabbed my shoulder.
“C’mon lad! This is no time for a rest!”
A new serge of adrenaline rushed through me. I wasn’t a ‘lad’. Not for much longer anyway. I was going to catch the beast and I was going to kill it!

Dracula:I felt as free as a bird (or a bat!) as I soared through the sky. Small bugs and bits of leaves whizzed past my small, furry face. My wings beat up and down against the icy cold air. I could hear the wind’s whistle playing in my ear and I could see the wispy clouds around me. I felt safe. The clouds were protecting me from the harshness of the world beyond. I knew it wouldn’t last for long. I couldn’t fly for ever. I decided to head for the village’s fire, then on to the forest, it was safer there than anywhere else those barbarians could reach!

Renfiled: I saw the creature dip in and out of the cloud lined sky above me. Suddenly it swooped. Down, down, down until it reached the village clearing. He fell onto the dusty floor and for a moment I lost all sight of him. My eyes whizzed back and forth across the village, trying to catch a glimpse of it. I imagined he was behind me. Poised, ready to strike. I heard a rustle. My heart stopped, I whizzed around. Nothing. Just a startled rabbit rushing to the warm safety of it’s hole. I wished I was that rabbit. Safe, cosy and not threatened with a possible unknown death. I was again yanked from my thoughts when I saw a small shape, silhouetted by the burning fire. It was him. The creature shuffled forward and swiftly transformed back into a man, hunched over as if sheltering from a strong wind. The figure straitened up, took a few large strides forward then broke into an agile run. All of us brave, noble hunters were broken from our almost hypnotised gazes by a fierce battle cry from up ahead. In an enraged fury, our chief was racing down the steep hill. We followed suit. The chase was on.

Dracula: The burning fire warmed the back of my neck as I transformed into my rightful human form. Before dashing off, I glanced up at the hill. They were still there, following me. Wow, they were determined! I strode forward and flew into the woods as if my life depended on it, which it most probably did! I felt the rising fear creep up my spine. Like water coming to the boil, my fear was building up, threatening to engulf my entire body. I reached the forest at long last and flung myself behind a tree, collapsing against the solid old trunk. It felt so strong, so protective. I panted for air, dragging rasping breaths of sharp air into my dry lungs. As I gathered physical energy, my mind was already racing, imagining all my possible fates, most rather…unsavoury. The majority of the included stakes and blood. Not that I mind blood, on the contrary, I love it…just not my own. The distant cries and shouts were drawing nearer and nearer. The closest only a few hundred meters off now. I clung onto the tree and dragged myself up. I glanced around the forest. There were only really two ways I could go, both looked equally menacing. I decided to take the left one. I darted forward and slid snake-like through the branches covering the path. One fell over with a thundering crunch. Bellows from outside the forest came through the trees,
“Come on! Hurry up!”
“Hey, I think I heard something in there!”
“WHHHHOOOOOO!!! I LOVE a good hunt!”
Other more reserved voices also slipped through the branches,
“Oh I do hope we find him.”
“Really? I don’t. I don’t fancy dying much you see”
“Oh yeah. Me neither! Maybe we can pretend he’s in your hut.”
“Nahh, then they’ll smash my nice new table. That reminds me, are you still coming over for tea in Friday?”
“If we survive this, yeah! Why Not!”
I spotted a small stone, laying peacefully on the ground. I bent down and grasped it. This stone would be my way out! I pulled my arm back past my head, aimed somewhere in the distance and lobbed the stone as hard as I could far, far away from me, so they’d all run off after that. Or at least that’s whet I hoped to do. Due to my awful air, the stone hit one of the branches of the tree in front of me, causing several birds to wake up and take flight. One of these birds, a bit dazed from its rude awakening, managed to fly directly into the branch opposite. It landed with a load thud on the forest floor, followed by the branch it crashed into, which in turn managed to smash every branch on the way down. All in all, my distraction device had managed to draw more attention to me than I’d had all year put together! Slowly, I turned around to check beyond the forest. 20 pairs of glistening eyes stared back at me. I met eyes with one particular man who had a small bead of sweat running down his face and a particularly crazed look in his eye.
“Oh dear.” I said “This doesn’t look very good for me, does it?”
The men looked bewildered at each other, clearly wondering why I hadn’t savagely killed half of them yet. I took my chance and shot through the forest like a race dog after a rabbit. My arms flailed out in front of me, knocking bits of wig and leaves in all directions. Suddenly I stumbled forward into a clearing. The rest of the surrounding trees were tightly woven together, as if they were purposefully trying to block my escape. Seconds later, angry, red faced men poured into the clearing. 5, 10, 20. Most of them had acquired various scratched from their amble through the woods and one man had a stream of blood pouring from his obviously broken nose and bits of snapped of branch poking out from in his nostrils. Another man flittered around him, looking very guilty indeed. As the men closed in, I backed away towards the solid edge of the clearing. I was trapped. I could feel the blood pulsing though my veins. My heart felt as if it was about to beat out of my chest. My eyes were wide with terror. Suddenly I felt the spiny, thorny, stinting of the trees pocking into my back. It felt as if they were trying to reach into my body and rip my very heart out. I turned and brushed a few away, but when I looked back,, I could see a savage, raging, almost inhuman like face, only inches away from mine. He raised something above his head. I couldn’t tell what it was until it was silhouetted by the moon. A stake. I knew now I was going to die. Tonight was my night. I closed my eyes, ready to face death.

Renfield: We had finally made it. He was cornered. We all huddled around him, hunched over, in a perfect position to kill. Everyone turned to look at me. Tonight was my night. I stepped forward, ready to kill. As I held the glistening stake above my head I looked down at the man I was about to kill. He looked up and me, his eyes wide with fear. It didn’t feel right. Was I really going to kill him here, now? Someone kicked me in the back of my leg.
“Get on with it lad.” They hissed.
“C’mon, this is what you’ve been waiting for!” I told myself.
Yes, this IS what I’d been waiting for. I straitened my arms that had gone limp over my head. The man below me closed his eyes.
“Yes! Prepare to die!” I thought to myself.
I looked up to the stake in my hands and plunged it down with all my strength. My hands went rushing through the air, practically whistling as they went. As I did so, I felt a rush a of air beside me, and felt an empty presence at my side. Forgetting completely about the task in hand, I slowly turned around to see a slick, smooth, smiling white face at my side. We all stared, nobody knew what to do. The creature raised it’s arms and a dreadful hissing sound erupted from it’s slightly open mouth. We all turned and fled through the narrow whole from which we had entered the clearing. We tried to at least. As I lunged after my friends a firm, bony hand grabbed my around my waist and dragged me back. I screamed and shouted for help, but no one came.
“Please, please! Help me!” I begged the last man disappearing through the hole. He glanced back, gave an apologetic look and fled without a single word. I continued flailing and screaming, when a second hand grasped across my chest. I knew there was nothing could do. The creature manoeuvred himself towards the gap in the trees, dragging me along with it. When he was satisfied that his body was blocking the gap enough so I couldn’t escape, he released his grip on me, letting me fall to his feet. I jerked up and stumbled backwards, as far away from his af I could get. A crule smile lit up his face. I didn’t know what he had planed for me, but I knew I wouldn’t like it! I pressed my back up against the thorny wall of my forest prison. I could feel the spines pressing into my back as if they were trying to rip my very heart out. I felt sure I was the only one to ever have suffered this feeling. The man opposite me spread his arms and began slowly pacing forward. Like before, huge flaps of skin erupted from his arms and fastened themselves to his sides. However, this was it as far as a transformation was concerned. His clocked arms grew wider and wider until they reached both ends of the clearing. With an air of power and control, he sauntered forward, closing in, cutting of the light. When he was only a meter or so away from me, he folded his arms in, around my back. They felt soft, and protecting compared to the thorny spines of the branches. I looked up and met his gaze. It was surprisingly calm and gentle. I felt safe. I had forgotten the pervious events of the evening. Everything seemed forgiven now.
“Sleep” The man said. I obediently obliged.

Epilogue

Dracula: I told you I didn’t do much wrong! And I didn’t do much wrong after that either. The villagers never bothered me again. I kept Renfield, and he looked after me, and in the future, he would look after my son, Vladimir Vand help him through his share of troubles. But that’s another story.

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