The Vampire Queen

Unsinkable Ladies

    I fly at just below the speed of sound. I try not to cross the barrier anywhere except for over open ocean. Sometimes, when I feel really bored or just downright funny, I’ll do a few barrel rolls and slow down to confuse some random ignorants. I try not to. That’d just be working against myself and my mission the keep the Alliance from letting ignorants know we exist.

    It takes me about seven hours to get from my palace to New York City. I rather detest the city, but I am forced to land about halfway between Albany and New York City due to the large amount of ignorants in the cities. I land on an abandoned stretch of highway.

    From here, I have no choice but to either run or get a cab. If I run, I’ll get there in about ten minutes. As I’ll be too fast for an ignorant to see me, I know I won’t be seen.

    If I get a cab, it’ll take me about three hours to get to the Empire State Building and I’ll have made myself an hour late for the meeting. The choice is obvious, is it not? I run.

    I over-do myself, and arrive two minutes ahead of schedule. The City is smelly, disgusting, and those so-called “gangsters” try to mug me as soon as I stop running. They just remember seeing me stop. It wasn’t hard to beat them up. I surprised them by outrunning all their bullets. One of them screamed “Matrix!” in an embarrassingly high-pitched voice. Honestly, the gangsters from the 20’s didn’t run from me. Not a single one. They all tried to win me, actually. Three succeeded, but I just had them for dinner.

    Oh, I am a vampire, you know. We drink blood. It tastes like red wine to me, sometimes like vodka when I’m in a less-than-elegant mood. But only ever the most expensive, top-notch wine and vodka.

    I go into the Empire State Building. It’s seen a lot of action. When I read those teen novels that seem to involve a lot of Ancient Greek gods and how the seat of power is here and all, I decided that the Empire State Building is a symbol of power for most people in the world. When the Freedom Tower is done being built, I’m moving into that.

    I run into an old friend in the lobby of the Empire State Building.

    “Darling!” I hear the voice behind me. I turn. I stare. “I haven’t seen you in nearly forty years!” The plump vampire behind attracts stares. I don’t even look thirty, let alone old enough to “not see someone in forty years”. I put my finger to my lips. Of course, the Unsinkable Molly Brown doesn’t quiet down. “Oh, darling. You’re like some sugar plum. You’re sweet, but only for a bit.” She chuckles at her joke she hasn’t said yet. “And you’re long past over-ripe!” She laughs, I don’t.

“Oh, lighten up.” She slaps my shoulder. “I’ve known you for almost a century, you know. And you know what?” She asks me. “You’ve never smiled. I don’t know if vampires are supposed to not smile, or if you just get stiff after all these millenium of not doing anything but drinking blood and ruling the world.” She shakes her head. “Well, come on. The Princess won’t wait forever.” She looks at my expression. “Oh, darling! I’ve been alive for nearly two centuries,” she cries. “I wouldn’t be alive if I didn’t know what was happening! You just have to pay the right people.” She pauses, tilts her head, then says “or know the right people. Good connections, that’s it.”

I shake my head, then take her hand and walk to the elevator. “Come on, I’m sure Imogen won’t mind another person along for the ride.” I sigh. “I just hope she’s in a good mood.” Maggie chuckles. “A very good mood.” I scowl at her. She just laughs again.

“Oh, I hope you don’t mind, but I invited an old friend of yours. A very old friend.” Maggie tells me on our way to the elevator. We enter and I digest what she said.