I wrote this back in high school, about four years ago. I lost most of the prologue and cannot find the 1st chapter, but the beginning is still fairly well intact. Sorry for the cut-off for those of you who end up liking it. Critique is encouraged!
Into the Darkness - Prologue
1
This tale does not begin "once upon a time" nor does it start with "a dark and stormy night". It begins in a dark Victorian manor, of which a pair of dark lovers have just purchased. The woman, Syrena Drucillia Snaythe, with a rounded, pregnant abdomen, stood beside her mysterious, blood-lusting husband, Drayculus Gordain Snaythe. He is a proud man with long ebony hair and stubs of a fine beard protruding proudly from his chin. His mate, her own long blond hair flowing in the the drifting breeze, had her thin, pointed fingers loosely interlaced with his as they stood before their beast of a house. Windows glowed eerily like the eyes of a jungle cat in the night. A yew mouth stood in front, threatening to swallow their very souls. However, the couple is quite unaffected by this sinister abode, for the Snaythes had committed atrocities that would make World War Two seem as innocent as a child's playground.
Drayculus' lips curved into a solemn smirk, his fingers moving from his lover's hand to the bulge that perked robustly from beneath her breasts. Their unborn child was already to the final stages of maturity, and they were expecting its arrival any day now. The sudden change in Syrena's appearance had called for a last minute expansion of her dark handfasting gown. They had both dressed in ebony and crimson that day, for the gloomy couple had stains deep within their souls, and they didn't feel that robes of purity were fit for their joining.
2
Drayculus had been born to a dark witch; the foulest line of blood to ever call themselves wiccan. But his family was powerful. Whether it was the invoking of a sudden illness upon a small town, or causing seas to rage and the ground to shake, the magick that flowed in his mother's blood was ancient and had long since been forgotten outside of her family. Though, one must understand the difference between black magick and Satanism. Though both sadistic and cruel, the origins of Satanism came as a religious protest from a group of wiccans who were outraged at the church for turning their god into the Christian version of the devil. Some wiccans of that time felt that if the Catholic church would turn their god into the embodiment of evil, then thats what they would become. Another point one must realize, is that not all wiccans turned evil, nor is there an overpowering population of Satanists in the world. In fact, black magick is, in origin, the opposite of white magick as that it is offensive rather than defensive.
So the boy was born to a Dark mother and a father who had deserted them shortly after the birth, leaving the woman to raise the child alone. At first, she thought the child to be worthless, a burden; she would use him in a sacrifice when he came of age. That chance, however, never presented itself to her.
She'd taught the young boy the secrets of her family. Ancient spells and powerful toxins were always within his grasp. He even learned the fate of his grandparents, who'd taken a great loss because of their Dark ways. His grandfather had placed a curse on an unfriendly village and when the surviving population learned of him, they were quick to set him on a makeshift trial, the judge being a middle-aged farmer whose wife had resentfully died in childbirth. After the trial had begun, there was no hope for the grandfather; his verdict, death by fire. On a late night, the townspeople set out to the square and viciously tied the old man to a wooden stake. It was set ablaze and the people looked on in awe as the man's voice rose from beneath his screams. He vowed to take revenge on the judge and his family, setting a curse on the farmer's son that would kill him slowly by disease. The old farmer died of grief soon after his son.
Drayculus' grandmother was left to tend to her daughter alone, her hatred and agony growing by the days. In spite and anger towards he husband's executioners, she worked to develop her daughter into a powerful witch, a dark witch, teaching the child every curse, toxic potion, and Dark spell she could. After her mother's death, the young witch was left to toil as she pleased, to continue and improve her research. She wanted an heir, so she took to looking for a mate. The young woman found an attractive, rich lawyer who she placed under a love spell. But it backfired. The man broke her charm soon after the birth of her son and left as soon as he could, leaving her alone.
When young Drayculus grew into adolescence, he developed an appetite for women. His mother cared nothing of what he did with his time, so he was free to plunder the brothels of London; giving all of his depression and anger in each pound he paid. One night, he met a lonely looking prostitute standing timidly beneath the light of a dimming street lamp. He'd asked her for her services and she agreed with a shy nod of her head. The girl was the daughter of a struggling artist in the slums of London and, without her father's knowledge, divulged in her midnight occupations to earn a bit of money for their food.
As the young man indulged in his spoiled temptation, something awoke within him, urging him to bite through the jugular of the shy girl beneath him. It was a moment before he heard her screams and noticed the metallic taste of blood running down his throat. He panicked at first, but then the beast in him craved more and, before he knew it, he was attached back onto her throat, sucking all that he could out of his fading service, the warmth of her blood flowing into his mouth and pooling into his stomach.
That night, Drayculus Snaythe learned the true meaning of his hated life, the true feeling of power, and how easily it can slip through your hands like the blood pouring from the prostitute's throat.
3
Syrena Drucillia Snaythe began her life as the daughter of a Catholic priest. Her mother died when she was very young, and her father blamed a "demon" inside of Syrena, telling her that it had taken over her and killed her mother. He sent her to an Abbey where she could learn the ways of the Lord, and destroy the demon within her.
Other than her change of residence, life went on fairly normal for the young woman. Until one day, she met a boy lurking around the Abbey. Instead of fetching one of the nuns, she felt a strange curiosity towards the young man. She would follow him around, making it seem as though she did not yet know he was there. However, one time, she slipped up, and the boy noticed her looking straight towards him. He ran off in a panic, but soon returned the next day.
They met in a grotto near the Abbey and introduced themselves to each other. The boy was Redden Furly, the son of a butcher in town. He asked young Syrena out to town, but she declined at first, saying that she should stay close to the Abbey. But soon, curiosity over took her once more and she met up with him again, this time, accepting his proposal.
Once in town, Syrena was free to explore the streets with her new friend. The walked to groceries, bakeries, dress shops, antique stores, until finally, they walked into the butcher's shop for Syrena to meet the young man's father.
All went well for a while until Redden brought her to the back of the shop; to the freezer. He showed her the different cuts of meat, and it made her slightly uncomfortable so she asked to leave. However, the boy had different plans, and kept her against the back wall. In a panic, she fought against him. Before she knew it, he was screaming, trying to get away; she was holding him back, clawing into his flesh, staring in horror as the blood poured down the front of her new dress, and hands.
This shock did not last long, for a new one came shortly after. She began to drink the warm blood still pooling from the boy's dying form. She drank and drank until the butcher came into the back to check on them. In a panicked jolt, she picked up the closest thing to her, a large butchers knife, and stabbed the man, not wanting anyone to know of what she had done.