Anageropoulos(4)

Paul could still remember setting the university building on fire to cover up the tracks of his rebirth.
Then he and Nansy ran...
Even now, after two years, he was still haunted by nightmares about what he had done that night.
He could never forgive himself.
But that was his cross and he would carry it alone.

The training, his training, was tough.
For two full months Nansy trained him and prepared him for the life he had in front of him.
He was an immortal now, a vampire, a creature of the night but even they had rules and even they could die.
First he had to learn how to hunt.
Sure he could easily avoid drinking blood for many nights and it was a myth that he needed to kill humans in order to satisfy his needs .
Sure he could sustain himself with only animal blood for a long time.
But if he did, his inner beast, the same beast that made him murder his friends that night would take control again and then he would commit far greater crimes.
No, he had to drink almost every night but only a small amount of someone's blood so both he and the victim would be ok.
Humans tend to overcome a small blood loss and the bite, the KISS as she had told him, offered them great pleasure. He himself had felt it already.
Even them, vampires, could get pleasure from the KISS of another vampire.
But that was too risky, vampire blood was like a drug for other vampires. And what about humans?
Well vampiric blood ingested by a human, even in the smallest amount could make him addicted to it and bind him to the vampire's will.
This was the way the servants, "Ghouls" were created.
Many legends were false but one was certainly true: Sun could kill a vampire.
So they needed servants to do their bidding during the day, when they would rest awaiting for the next night.
-Garlic?
-No, she told him, garlic can make you smell bad but it can't kill you.
-Holy water and churches?
-Ha-ha, holy water might burn you only if the bearer truly believes and as for churches most of them are just  nicely painted buildings of old.
-Guns?
-Well even a vampire can remain standing only for so long while getting shot at.
-What about swords?
Swords were her favorite! Cut limbs would grow back given the time but a severing one's head was a sure way to send a vampire back to his grave, forever.
-Diseases?
Nope, but he could infect others if he was the carrier of one so hygiene was a priority to most of them.
Could he ever die then?
Not by old age, he was immortal. As long as he kept feeding, he would never die from the passing of time.
But there was a point at which even they could die.  Usually that would happen if they sustained massive damage.
It wasn't that easy but it could happen.
-So what do we fear?
-Two things young one, she told him. First one needs to uphold some virtues, some values if you'd like, or else your inner beast would gain control and you will become a monster caring to only feed and kill. No one wants to spend an eternity like this. Second thing is "the sleep", which is much like the one we have during the day but this sleeping state can last for years, even decades, and in the case of older vampires for even centuries.
-Why is that sleep so bad?
-Why? Are you really asking me why? What's the point of being immortal if you are to spend an eternity sleeping? First of all you'll miss all the wonderful things happening to the world and second while sleeping you are defenseless, lost in a comatose state. Even if you wake up at some point, you could lose your mind and go crazy with all the changes that have happened around you. You see the world moves on, everyday, even if you don't notice it. Are these reasons enough for you?
This wasn't his training, no.
This was just part of the few conversations he and Nansy would have minutes before sunrise...