Chapter Seven.
Vincent stood staring at the sibling vampires for a few seconds before he finally broke the strained hush between the three of them.
“Well? What do you have to say to me?” he demanded, his head rapidly switching between Caleb and Lilith’s faces.
“You never said he’d met Straud!” Lilith exploded suddenly at Caleb.
“Well, to be fair, Lilith,” Caleb began timidly, “I didn’t exactly know that either until tonight when I just so happened to see Vincent leaving Straud’s mansion. I was heading that way myself when I noticed him leaving. When Vincent fell over in the storm I figured that was my chance to meet him... officially... so I - ... so I took it. It just means my ‘conversation’ with Straud will have to wait, unfortunately.”
Frustrated by the siblings, Vincent violently growled in the back of his throat.
“Praise the Watcher! Will somebody please tell me what’s going on?” he cried whilst forcefully stomping his foot.
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Caleb turned to face Vincent, his grey eyes were brimmed with nervous excitement.
“Please, Vincent,” he implored, “trust me and stay right where you are,” he motioned Vincent to not move, “I have to get some things for you. I’ll just be a moment.”
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“Wait, Caleb!” shouted Lilith as her brother turned to leave, “how in SimNation did he meet Straud and not get turned?! No human Sim alive has ever managed that!”
“That’s why Vincent’s special, Lilith!” Caleb responded over his shoulder, “he’s the key to all our problems but only if we can convince him to help us.”
She nodded thoughtfully as he vanished through an archway.
Confused and exhausted, Vincent did as he was told and waited for Caleb’s return. He didn’t have the energy to try and put up a fight any more. He just wanted to sleep, wake up refreshed in the morning and realise the last few hours had all been a very surreal fever dream.
“If you could follow me, please, Vincent. It’s just this way,” Caleb gestured towards the dining room upon his return.
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Horror crashed over Vincent like waves on a stormy Sulani shoreline. Utterly astounded and speechless at what Caleb had brought to show him he stood frozen in place.
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“I was worried you’d have that reaction,” Caleb admitted, “but I can explain everything. Just hear us out, won’t you? Please?”
“Wh-what is this, Caleb?” Vincent could feel his plasma pressure rising for the second time that evening.
“Please sit,” he pointed towards the nearest chair, “I’ll try to explain it the best I can but since you’ve already had the ‘pleasure’ of meeting Straud this might be a lot easier for us.”
“This better be good, vampire,” Vincent snarled at him as he crossed over to the nearest chair.
Caleb gave his sister a small, nervous grin before joining Vincent at the table. She sighed emphatically and sat down between them.
“Why do you have all that?” demanded Vincent, his voice straining, “how do you have all that?”
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In front of Caleb was an assortment of crime scene evidence; records, statements, evidence bags filled with fingerprints and swabs. Vincent’s eyes landed on the crime scene photographs nearest to Caleb. It depicted a female Sim wearing a dark blue SMPD uniform, lying in a pile of trash with two small, distinctive holes on the left side of her neck; undoubtedly the work of a vampire.
It was Officer Caliente’s crime scene photo.
“H-how?” Vincent faltered, his voice cracking in disbelief, “where did you get this? We... we never had time... the Reaper. It - it was too late. Caleb, how do you have all this?” Vincent’s head swirled with anger and confusion.
“Um... well,” Caleb nervously began.
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“For the love of the Watcher! Explain it to him, Caleb! Now!” snapped Lilith.
“Right. You’re right,” he took a long, deep breath and exhaled sharply before speaking again, “there is enough evidence here to help you put Straud away for Officer Caliente’s murder. All of this evidence here, in front of me, can prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that he killed her. Thanks to our... assistance, you now have the evidence to prove it, Vincent.”
The corner of Vincent’s mouth twitched into a smile as he pictured Straud’s inevitable arrest.
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“He absolutely did it but something tells me you already knew that. After all, you have met him and have seen first hand what he is capable of and how he loves to show off...” Caleb trailed off, unsure of his next words, “although, as you’re also probably aware, there’s one... tiny problem with doing things your way.”
Vincent’s face fell when he realised the point Caleb was trying to make.
“He can vanish into thin air,” Vincent suddenly shot to his feet, clenched his jaw and hit the table with his fist in frustration, “so, somehow you’ve managed to find all of this evidence just to prove to me that standard police protocol won’t work on Straud?”
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“Basically, yeah, that sounds about right. You’re dealing with someone that isn’t a human Sim, Vincent. There isn’t a police force that could catch him nor a cell that could hold him anywhere in SimNation,” said Lilith dispiritedly, “he’s incredibly powerful and none of your human Sim tactics will ever work on him. No matter how much evidence there is against him, he’ll always be one step ahead of you,” she sighed in hopeless resignation.
“Right,” Vincent gave one sharp nod of his head, “but surely there must be something out there that can stop him? Another vampire, perhaps?”
The siblings exchanged worried glances.
“Straud is... special. He’s the only Grand Master vampire in SimNation which means he’s practically invincible,” Caleb’s voice was heavy with despondence, “he’s managed to overpower every vampire that has dared to challenge him. It will take a lot to get rid of him.”
“Straud’s my sire. I know him better than Caleb does and believe me when I say he’s one tough opponent,” Lilith piped up, “according to the Encyclopedia Vampirica, to successfully kill a Grand Master there needs to be another Grand Master vampire in existence at the same time. The only way that can happen is if they’re stronger than Straud; both physically and mentally,” Lilith let out a snort of derision, “but, so far, finding that vampire has been... impossible. Trust us, we’ve tried. It seems like no vampire Sim will ever outmatch him and I truly believe there never will be one,” she added sadly.
“In addition, they also need to have a sire and offspring relationship. In other words, turned into a vampire by Straud himself. Obviously, this limits our candidates even further. Right, Lilith?” Caleb scanned his sister’s face as he awaited her confirmation.
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She gave a curt nod towards him and then turned her attention to the Simadder Cherry Sap bottle in front of her and stared longingly at it.
“Yeah, technically I am his offspring but there’s no way in SimNation that I am a match for him. I maybe stronger than most vampires I know but not him. No way!”
Vincent thoughtfully considered for a moment before responding.
“You still haven’t answered my question though, Caleb,” said Vincent curtly, “how did you get the crime scene evidence?”
Caleb shifted in his seat and exhaled slowly before giving his answer.
“Vampires move incredibly fast, Vincent. We managed to sneak in to the SMPD, collect what was needed and get out without being detected by any human Sims. Lilith used her powers on you and your colleagues to wipe your memories before the Grim Reaper showed up. Straud was sloppy and he got really greedy which meant there was plenty of evidence to gather.”
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“How did you know he’d kill her, though?” Vincent’s eyes narrowed in suspicion, “he told me it never normally happens and he seemed pretty surprised when I informed him she was dead.”
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“Straud’s right about that, it’s not normal to kill a human Sim whilst feeding from them. We didn’t know for sure that he would kill her when we followed him there but he’s getting more restless and paranoid by the day; his desperate need for plasma and power is causing him to lose his grip on reality. We’re always on standby to clean up his messes nowadays and I feel it was, unfortunately, bound to happen one day. Straud’s recklessness is a huge concern and his behaviour is putting everyone at risk. I trust you’ve heard all about his crazy conspiracy, yeah?” Lilith drawled in her deep, gravelly voice.
Vincent nodded, “it seems pretty far-fetched to me, to be honest.”
“You’re right to think that, Vincent,” agreed Caleb, “I think every vampire alive knows about Vladislaus Straud’s supposed ‘prophecy’. It is, of course, a load of dead cowplant. There is no prophecy and there is certainly no evil set on destroying SimNation. Straud is just crazy and it’s as simple as that. He’s using this two hundred year old ‘prophecy’ as an excuse to create evil minions that can do his dirty work for him and to wreak as much havoc amongst SimNation as he possibly can. That’s his true plan.”
Vincent felt relieved to know that he wasn’t the only one who had doubts about Straud’s sanity. He was quiet a moment when he suddenly remembered something he overheard Caleb say earlier.
“What sacrifices are you making? What exactly are you having to give up?”
Caleb squirmed uncomfortably in his seat, his defined features morphed into awkwardness and embarrassment.
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“Be honest, brother. Don’t be shy and tell Vincent everything,” said Lilith encouragingly.
Caleb cleared his throat, rolled his shoulders and popped his knuckles.
“Lilith, myself and a few other vampires are what are know as devout ‘plasmapackers’. We only drink from plasma packs and refuse to drink directly from human Sims. We find it wholly unethical and completely immoral. Once upon a time we used to be human Sims, too, you know?”
Vincent was reminded suddenly of the ‘Vampire Teen’ from months ago - could she have been the one supplying Caleb and Lilith their plasma packs? It was certainly a possibility.
“OK. So, what you’re saying is, you’re like vampire vegetarians?” verified Vincent with a hint of amusement in his voice.
“Precisely,” Caleb smiled at Vincent in approval, “we are part of a secret vampire organisation wholly dedicated to rescuing and retraining Straud’s Fledgling vampire army. We are determined to stop them from bringing more human Sims to Straud so he can inevitably turn them into more vampires for his army.”
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“See,” Vincent drew air through his lips, “you’ve confused me now, Caleb. If you don’t drink from human Sims then what were doing drinking from me in the middle of the night?” Vincent’s tone turned sour as he stared fearlessly at Caleb.
Another wave of guilt washed over Caleb’s features as his stormy grey eyes widened.
“We’ve been having to... forgo our principles recently in order to have a chance of defeating Straud,” interjected Lilith as she inspected her nails, “it’s not ideal but when needs must, I guess,” she shrugged at Vincent.
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“’Forgo your principles’?” Vincent raised a questioning brow at the two vampires.
“In order for a vampire’s powers to be at their peak performance a vampire must drink pure, fresh, human Sim plasma directly from the source. Obviously, our lifestyle choices mean that our powers are no match for Straud’s as they aren’t as powerful as they should be. We quickly realised that our radical diet change was probably, in all honesty, incredibly naive... Straud’s been feeding off Sims for over two hundred years whereas we’ve been doing it for considerably less,” Caleb cast his gaze downwards and sighed, “still, we were willing to try anything and everything if it meant we could put a stop to his evil, heinous plans.”
“So you drank from myself and Watcher knows how many other human Sims on the off-chance it might help to defeat Straud?”
“That’s correct,” Caleb gave Vincent a small smile, “I’m sorry but we didn’t know what else to do. You also had to sacrifice something for this worthy cause and I sincerely apologize for how it happened.”
“Why am I so special to Straud? Why is it so important that he didn’t feed off me and-?”
“Wait, wait! Back up there, Vince,” Lilith interjected, “not only did he not turn you but now you’re saying he didn’t even drink from you?” she turned to Caleb who was wearing an equally astonished expression, “did you know that?” she asked him, voice cracking in excitement.
“No, I didn’t! I just assumed he would since we are talking about Straud here. I figured he wouldn’t be able to control himself, as per usual. It’s probably because he’s seen something in you that he can use to his advantage, Vincent. He probably didn’t feed off you because he wants to remain on your good side for some reason but, honestly, I have no clue why he didn’t drink from you. Who knows what his reasons are for anything, anyway. He’s crazy, remember?”
Vincent stroked his chin thoughtfully, “he told me I have the qualities that would make an excellent vampire and he practically offered to turn me. He also said something about seeking another vampire that could potentially replace him should anything happen to him because of this apparent ‘evil’ that’s meant to be coming any day now.”
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“Again, he’s not wrong... you would make an excellent vampire. Loner with zero friends. Check. Smart. Check. No family. Big check. Anything else? Oh, yeah! You can be pretty attractively intimidating at times,” Lilith said as a sly and slightly flirtatious grin crawled across her face.
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Caleb overlooked his sister’s flirting as he was lost in thought. After a few seconds he suddenly blurted out, “I want you to take Straud’s offer, Vincent!”
“What?” Exclaimed a horrified Vincent.
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Lilith whipped her head around to face her brother, her purple eyes wide with shock.
“Earn Straud’s trust and get him to turn you into a vampire. Report everything back to us and help us put a stop to his tyranny once and for all,” Caleb’s eyes searched Vincent’s face wildly for any sign of hope.
“You want me to go undercover? As a vampire?” asked Vincent incredulously.
“I know it’s big what I’m asking of you but you’re the key here. You’ve got a unique relationship with Straud that I’ve never seen before. Like Lilith said earlier, no human Sim has ever just sat down and had a ‘nice chat’ with him. I don’t think even his offspring get that privilege! I’ve had my eye on you for awhile now, Vincent, but I never dreamed it would end up like this. As a vampire you can manipulate Straud and it will make it easier for you to get closer to him.”
“Huh? No kidding,” Vincent shook his head, “you’re asking me to give up my mortality, Caleb! To forever walk this planet as... as one of Straud’s offspring,” he shuddered and wrinkled his nose in disgust at the thought.
“I understand that, really I do, but with our guidance and training there will be no more innocent human Sims disappearing off of SimNation’s streets. By helping us and making this sacrifice everyone in SimNation will be safe from Straud. What do you say, Vincent? Will you join us to finally defeat Straud?”
“What’s the Simoleans for, Caleb?” Vincent tilted his chin towards the stack of Simoleans near Lilith.
“Um... back up,” Caleb supplied nervously, “in case things went really wrong...”
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Vincent felt nauseated as he gazed upon their anxious and expectant faces. Vincent could hardly believe that Caleb was prepared to bribe an officer of the law in order to get what he wanted. What was SimNation coming to?
“I have to leave now. Good night,” he said flatly as he rose from the dining table.
“Think about it, Vincent! I’ll be waiting for your answer!” Caleb shouted to Vincent’s retreating back as he stormed out of the house.
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