Beethoven - Scourge of Vampires [ONC 2022]

6

6

Beethoven grinned, bouncing the baton as though conducting an orchestra, unruffled by Bernhard's embarrassment at the Maestro's nakedness. Bernhard collapsed onto the floorboards, sitting against the bed that he had kicked, and laid the sabre across his thighs. He ran a hand through his hair and then waved it towards the pile of dust in the corridor.

"You knew this would happen, didn't you?" His eyes avoided the Maestro as much as he could. "You saw the figure downstairs. Yet you still left me alone to do unconscionable things with those women."

"Well, I wasn't certain, eh? It was a possibility." Beethoven strode into the room, to the broken shutter on the window, and looked out. "But, you were fine. I knew you could handle it."

Bernhard slammed his hand upon the floorboards beside him. He didn't know why he was here. The great composer had spirited him away and now Bernhard had found himself battling creatures of nightmare while Beethoven fulfilled his base desires. He didn't want this. He lived in a world without this madness and wanted no part of it.

A crash came from the window and he turned to see the Maestro bending over, his backside pointed towards Bernhard as he picked up the wrecked shutter that had fallen to the floor. With a grimace, Bernhard turned away. This was not how he expected a man such as Beethoven to behave. He expected better of such a personage.

"At the very least, put some clothes on." He turned his head as Beethoven came to crouch beside him, hands checking Bernhard's throat. "Use that damned scarf, or something, for the love of God. And stop touching me, I am not injured."

"I can't use the scarf. I have ... an inflammatory infection." Beethoven stood, his hand rising to the scarf at his throat. A sadness passed over his face, but it did not last long. Replaced by that mischievous grin once more. "Well, you weren't bitten. That's a good thing, eh? Oh, you might want to shake out the bed covers. Vampire dust itches something chronic."

Bernhard saw, from the corner of his eye, Beethoven moving back to the door and the corridor outside. Despite his embarrassment at the great man's nakedness, Bernhard pushed himself to his feet and moved to the doorway, looking out as Beethoven strode back down the corridor.

"You're going back to those women?" He glanced both ways down the corridor, but the commotion hadn't seemed to have brought any attention. "What if more of those vile demons come?"

"What? Nah. That lot were just chancers. Random passers-by that happened to find me. Us. You'll be fine. Get some sleep. We have a long way to go yet." The Maestro twirled the hazel baton in his fingers, then drummed it against the wall as he walked. "And I'm going back to those lovely ladies because they are lovely ladies, eh? Night."

With that, Beethoven flung open a door and held his arms out to the side, presenting himself and his nakedness for all to see within the room. With a lusty growl, he jumped into the room and the door slammed behind him. Then, all Bernhard could hear were the excited squeals and laughter. Pretending to retch, he pulled the door to his own room closed, silencing most of that noise. But not all.

He gazed around the room. At the bed, pushed out of position. The broken window shutter that Beethoven had tossed onto the bed. And at the dust of the vampires he had killed, the remains of their clothing in piles upon the bed and the floor. He felt sickened by it all. Still, he moved the bed back into place and considered laying back down, but he felt far too awake for that.

Instead, he picked up the chair from beside the bed and sat it before the door, facing the now open window. Then he dressed before sitting on that chair, his hand gripping the hilt of his sabre. He sat, watching the window without moving, for long hours. Once or twice, he felt his eyelids flicker, but he fought against his weariness. He had no intention of sleeping again. No matter what Beethoven said, Bernhard expected a dozen more vampires to come crashing into the room at any second.