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The Bloodletters (novel): Difference between revisions
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In a dream that is ''almost'' a memory, where [[the Corsair (The Bloodletters)|the Corsair]] and [[the Monk (The Bloodletters)|the Monk]] are fishing together, the Monk explains how [[the Homeworld|their Homeworld]]'s [[binary system]] is almost certainly something [[Rassilon|He-of-Many-Epithets]] engineered as a weapon against the [[vampire]]s: the peculiar day-night cycle whereby "the region in darkness shrinks like an iris and closes like a fist" creates specific frequencies in the spectrum of the stars, an interference pattern that causes even day-walking vampires to burn on the Homeworld. After stating that this all goes to show that "when it comes to vampires, our people do not mess around", the dream-Monk wakes the Corsair up by throwing their dream-self into the water. | In a dream that is ''almost'' a memory, where [[the Corsair (The Bloodletters)|the Corsair]] and [[the Monk (The Bloodletters)|the Monk]] are fishing together, the Monk explains how [[the Homeworld|their Homeworld]]'s [[binary system]] is almost certainly something [[Rassilon|He-of-Many-Epithets]] engineered as a weapon against the [[vampire]]s: the peculiar day-night cycle whereby "the region in darkness shrinks like an iris and closes like a fist" creates specific frequencies in the spectrum of the stars, an interference pattern that causes even day-walking vampires to burn on the Homeworld. After stating that this all goes to show that "when it comes to vampires, our people do not mess around", the dream-Monk wakes the Corsair up by throwing their dream-self into the water. | ||
He wakes up to find an irritated [[Garglespike]] going through his pockets and becoming frustrated with the [[Dimensional transcendentalism|unlikely amounts]] of random items, from slingshots to [[ | He wakes up to find an irritated [[Garglespike]] going through his pockets and becoming frustrated with the [[Dimensional transcendentalism|unlikely amounts]] of random items, from slingshots to [[toilet roll]]s, that she is pulling out. When she briefly unshrinks a book-shaped pin on her jacket into [[Isari Revised Dictionary 1978|a real dictionary]] and back again, wanting to cross-reference something, the Corsair realises that she is a practitioner of [[acumancy]], and an incredibly advanced one at that. He proposes to surrender, simply asking Garglespike to release Venn unharmed. She is willing to do so, since it is not in her habit to kill villagers, but the blue vampire, [[Antrenor]], has other ideas, and demands some other snack in exchange if he can't kill Venn — either some of Garglespike's secret stash, or the Corsair, with the latter option becoming the focus when Garglespike mysteriously states that Antrenor "wouldn't like" the blood from her stash. | ||
However, when Venn spits in Antrenor's face to try and delay him killing the Corsair, his spit inexplicably melts through Antrenor's eye. Taking his chance, the Corsair leaps to his feet and stakes the vampire using a stick torn from a nearby tree. Garglespike seems strangely unconcerned, and merely uses one of her pins to create a lifelike illusion of a normal forest clearing to disguise the mess and her stash from the other vampires when they come here looking for Antrenor. She then transforms another one of her pins into a literal [[firebird (The Bloodletters)|firebird]] to attack the Corsair, even as the [[Kamreth]] vampires fly in from the village. While trying to down the flying opponents, the Corsair and Venn managed to wrap Garglespike and the Kamreth in rings of the toilet paper she removed from the Corsair's pockets earlier — which seems ineffectual until they lure the firebird in the entrapped vampires' direction, and they find themselves set ablaze. | However, when Venn spits in Antrenor's face to try and delay him killing the Corsair, his spit inexplicably melts through Antrenor's eye. Taking his chance, the Corsair leaps to his feet and stakes the vampire using a stick torn from a nearby tree. Garglespike seems strangely unconcerned, and merely uses one of her pins to create a lifelike illusion of a normal forest clearing to disguise the mess and her stash from the other vampires when they come here looking for Antrenor. She then transforms another one of her pins into a literal [[firebird (The Bloodletters)|firebird]] to attack the Corsair, even as the [[Kamreth]] vampires fly in from the village. While trying to down the flying opponents, the Corsair and Venn managed to wrap Garglespike and the Kamreth in rings of the toilet paper she removed from the Corsair's pockets earlier — which seems ineffectual until they lure the firebird in the entrapped vampires' direction, and they find themselves set ablaze. | ||
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However, this isn't enough to down Garglespike, who emerges unscathed and also proves immune an electric attack from the Corsair's [[trellwand]]. Pulling out one of her trump-cards, she activates a portable sunset pin, which creates a dome of night-time one hundred metres high, returning their full powers to herself and the other vampires who escaped the fire. With the Corsair's guidance, Venn still manages to down another vampire, a [[Mobur]], by setting a box of sanitary wipes also drawn from the Corsair's pockets on fire and turning it into a makeshift [[Molotov cocktail]]. As the portable sunlight ends, the Corsair finally realises the truth: the water Garglespike gives the donors after hours, before drawing more of their blood for her personal stash, is holy water, meaning the supply of blood she's building up is laced with the stuff. The whole thing is a plot to create poison, in his favourte flavour, with which to assassinate the [[vampire]] [[king]] [[Zadok]], against whom Garglespike bears some kind of grudge. This disturbs the Corsair, as Zadok's death was meant to be a recorded historical event which he seems to have averted, or at least delayed, but it's too late to back down. | However, this isn't enough to down Garglespike, who emerges unscathed and also proves immune an electric attack from the Corsair's [[trellwand]]. Pulling out one of her trump-cards, she activates a portable sunset pin, which creates a dome of night-time one hundred metres high, returning their full powers to herself and the other vampires who escaped the fire. With the Corsair's guidance, Venn still manages to down another vampire, a [[Mobur]], by setting a box of sanitary wipes also drawn from the Corsair's pockets on fire and turning it into a makeshift [[Molotov cocktail]]. As the portable sunlight ends, the Corsair finally realises the truth: the water Garglespike gives the donors after hours, before drawing more of their blood for her personal stash, is holy water, meaning the supply of blood she's building up is laced with the stuff. The whole thing is a plot to create poison, in his favourte flavour, with which to assassinate the [[vampire]] [[king]] [[Zadok]], against whom Garglespike bears some kind of grudge. This disturbs the Corsair, as Zadok's death was meant to be a recorded historical event which he seems to have averted, or at least delayed, but it's too late to back down. | ||
Eventually, the Corsair manages to pin her against a tree with his blade, which he snaps in half and "seals" using the anti-vampire charm he took from the dead Caxtarid, ensuring she cannot easily remove the blade and free herself. Although they know she will eventually free herself, they run away. With the [[time tide]] coming in, the Corsair is on the verge of departing again. After one last tender moment with Venn, the tide is ready, and he departs, reflecting on whether this adventure (which cost him his trellwand, though he did keep one of Garglespike's magic pins for his trouble) was worth it. | Eventually, the Corsair manages to pin her against a tree with his blade, which he snaps in half and "seals" using the anti-vampire charm he took from the dead Caxtarid, ensuring she cannot easily remove the blade and free herself. Although they know she will eventually free herself, they run away. With the [[time tide]] coming in, the Corsair is on the verge of departing again. After one last tender moment with Venn, the tide is ready, and he departs, reflecting on whether this adventure (which cost him his trellwand, though he did keep one of Garglespike's magic pins for his trouble) was worth it. | ||
== Characters == | == Characters == | ||
