The Broken Heart
The next month passed quickly for Aeneas and with no word of Bethany. He knew he should go to talk to her, but something was holding him back. Part of it was the fact that he was wrong about her. Still he could not believe that he had mistaken her for the one. All his preternatural wisdom could not help him with that.
After another lonely hunt he decided it was time to go to her. Just to spite Daniel he wouldn�t tell her to stop what she was doing. How he loved torturing the dead.
The wind swept over him through the skies, and for the first time in centuries he truly regretted being what he was. His skin had turned hard and lost almost all feeling. He couldn�t even feel the cold of the wind.
He reached his destination within hours. The village was quiet and the only light shone from the window of a house near the church. He assumed this was the house of the priest, so he flew right into the window. The priest just looked up and then back down at his book. Bethany had obviously accustomed him to this.
�You won�t find her here,� he said closing the book.
�Where is she?�
The priest sighed and looked up into Aeneas� shinning eyes.
�I suppose you haven�t heard then.�
�Listen, the last person who teased me like this wound up dead. Please, do get to the point.�
�Right. She is dead.�
�I�m sorry, what?�
�The villagers killed her. They found out that she and I were having an adulterous affair and took apt action. First they tried killing her as if she was a mere mortal, and of course that didn�t work. You know Bethany, she wasn�t about to sit around and let someone else try to take power over her. She attacked them. It was then that they learned what she truly was. They first tried stringing garlic throughout the town. No luck. Then they tried driving a wooden stake through her heart, but as you know, these are all superstitions. Then they somehow managed to take her captive and ran her out into the daylight.�
�And what did you do to try and help her?!� Aeneas screamed an inch from his face.
�I tried doing everything within my power! Why would they listen to the one who had fallen in love with her?! Oh dear, I truly am sorry. I don�t mean to lose my temper, but I have been under an immense amount of stress lately. She told me you would come.�
�Why would she do that?�
�It was the night before they took her into the day. I sat outside the jail cell and we spoke through the barred window. I know what you�re thinking, why wouldn�t she break out with her incredible strength? I am not all that sure that she wanted to. She was quite the tortured soul. Anyway, she told me that you would come some day to hear of her. She told me what you looked like, in great detail. She also told me to tell you that she is sorry. She never meant to hurt you like you must be hurting.�
Aeneas lowered his head and sat down in the chair adjacent the priest.
�You do realize that I�m going to kill them all, right?� he asked.
�Of course. I would have myself if it weren�t for the whole wrath of God thing. Although I�m sure the whole sex deal didn�t exactly put me on his good side.�
�You�re too hard on yourself. Besides, there is no God. Not one that cares, anyway.�
�You can say what you will but nothing shall change my faith.�
�Then you condemn yourself to a life of prudence. Take it from me, I know the one which you Catholics think is God, and trust me, he doesn�t care what you or your kind do on this Earth anymore. You all go to the underworld anyhow. There are no more gods to redeem you. There is no heaven anymore.�
�My faith stands strong.�
�Then so be it. Now if you�ll excuse me, there is a massacre I must attend to.�
�What about me?�
�What about you?�
�Are you� Are you going to kill me?�
�No. Bethany saw something in you. I trust her judgment, so you shall live. But take my advice and leave the priesthood. Live what life you have.�
He left the small house through the front door and surveyed the village. Small wooden cottages lined the 300 yard dirt street. All the people were asleep in their comfortable beds, but they wouldn�t be for long. He let out a bellowing roar and one by one the lights candles flickered on. Men stepped out of the houses with knifes and swords in hand.
�You are the ones who killed my beloved Bethany. You shall pay for the horrors which you have instilled! Come and meet your death!�
The men charged forward and he twisted their necks, threw them against the trees, and ripped open their necks so every ounce of blood poured forth. There were screams inside from the women running to get their children. Aeneas walked to the houses with intentions to kill each of them. A hand went on his shoulder, stopping him from moving forward. He turned and saw the priest.
�Do not kill the women and children.�
�Nothing escapes the wrath of a monster.�
�You�re no monster and you know it. Somewhere in there lives the compassion of a caring man.�
�That man died two thousand years ago,� he said jerking his arm away. �If you don�t want to see it then leave. I do what I want and no priest worshiping a false god is going to stop me.�
The priest hesitated for a moment and ran in the opposite direction. Aeneas turned on his heel and went to each of the houses, killing everything in sight. As is which each of his killing sprees, no one escaped his wrath. They would pay for taking his love away.
The next years were filled with more pain than he had ever felt before. To not have her yet know she was ok left him able to live. Knowing that she was dead and he could never have her back was more than he could bear. Different vampires stopped by occasionally to give their condolences. Even over the millions of miles on the planet they could feel his pain.
He found a distant cabin in the hills of Spain and stayed there, secluded, feeding on animals who wandered by. Without someone to share eternity with, he was nothing. He didn�t even want to go on. But deep down he knew that another would come along; the woman he was promised so many years ago.
The night was abnormally quiet. The crickets barely made a sound, probably because most of them had left from the threat of a new predator. The owls did not hoot; the wolves did not howl. Aeneas sat in front of the fire, staring into the flames. His ears perked when he heard the thoughts of another vampire rapidly approaching. He opened the window and saw back down in front of the fire. A pair of feet made a loud noise as they came into contact with the wood.
�Aeneas, I come with news from England.�
�England. How I loathe that dreadful country.�
�This news you should wish to hear. It is of that priest which stole your beloved Bethany�s heart.�
He turned around in preparation to listen intently to what the vampire was about to say.
�He has joined a monastery on the outskirts of the country. He brags of how he bed evil and fooled her former lover. He says that he was the reason she was put to death; says that he �accidentally� let it slip in a sermon. I don�t know of many other priests, but I am willing to bet that those things don�t just slip out. He also brags about how he fooled the devil with the powers to read his mind; says he was far more clever than the creature.�
Aeneas� blood went hot and he stood up.
�Where is this place?� he growled.
�I know. I shall take you there.�
The monastery was cluttered with monks walking in every which direction. Aeneas grabbed one of them by the necks.
�Where is the one who claims to have bed evil and beaten the devil?� he growled.
He shakily raised his hand and pointed left. Aeneas pushed him out of the way and stomped in that direction. The other vampire was at his side.
�What are you going to do to him?�
�The exact thing he did to my love: kill him.�
He heard the thoughts of the one he was after and burst the door into tiny shards of wood with his fist. The priest jumped back and crouched against the wall in fear. Aeneas wasted no time and soon had him dangling with only Aeneas� hand on his neck keeping him up.
�I hear you�ve been doing some mighty boasting on my and Bethany�s part. Is this true?�
He did not answer.
�Is this true?!� he screamed pushing his hand harder against his throat.
�Y-yes,� he said with all the breath which was left in him.
Aeneas loosened his grip and he fell to the floor gasping for air.
�What makes you think that you outsmarted me? Is it because I could not see the lies you told me? I am not infallible. But did you honestly think that I would never find out?�
�I-I am truly sorry. I knew not of what I have done. Something took over me and made me do those things.�
�And what would that thing be?�
�The devil.�
�Lies! There is no devil and there is no God!�
He lunged at the priest�s throat and gashed it open, letting blood splash onto the walls and floor. A small amount he saved for himself. He greedily drank what was left, having so long been without the blood of a human. His vision went red and soon he was going room to room, killing all who would answer their doors. The vampire by his side tried to stop him, but had no affect. Never had Aeneas been so enraged. He did not stop until every living soul had been sent to the underworld. No one made a fool of the god Aeneas. No one would live who took his name as a mockery. The vampire had long since left the place of such bloodshed. Not even the boldest of vampires could have stood the sight. He would go on and tell the world of the horror which was Aeneas. He would spread the word that nothing would be done to set off this beast. No one would again tempt him and bring about his wrath. He would never be hurt again.