Vampunk
sʇɐq ןooɔ ǝɥʇ ɥʇıʍ ƃuıƃuɐɥ
It was yet another rainy evening, with the forecast seeing no end to the dreary weather. The torrential heavenly spill never failing to cloud the minds of people, young and old alike. With the gray sky and the cold rain heralding the transitory time between the winter with its many days of festivity and the coming of spring, when life would bloom anew.
But for some people this was a time of mourning, of tragedy. As they would no longer be able to witness the coming of a new season where nature would awaken and herald its presence with green trees and beautiful flowers.
No, for some life ended just on the verge of another cycle beginning, just for tears of loss to pool in the streets, joining the never-ending streams of rainwater.
It was a time where accidents seemed to become more frequent and oh so many young lives ended before they could even start.
Life extinguished when there was so much more to live for....
But humans have to come to terms with the inevitability of death sooner or later. And so the traces of these lives were being erased from the face of the city. Funeral arrangements were being made, unresolved medical issues were put to rest, families dried their tears as they said their last goodbyes and then government databases were updated to reflect yet another citizen that would no longer tread among their fellow humans.
Wiped from the databases as the city went on, mourning them only for a moment before resuming its hectic life...
But somewhere, on this fateful night, something stirs, for there is something sinister running through the vein-like alleys and severs of this city's beating heart....
And somewhere, in a cold morgue, the last employees finish up another day's work. Leaving the underground facility devoid of life. A room filled with people but not a single beating heart as the last lights dim, leaving the chambers illuminated by a cool, sterile glow.
But despite of the underlying creeping sensation a nightly morgue would invoke, there was not a more peaceful place to be in the city.
With the streets being filled with humans hurrying home to their loved ones, with cars speeding across wet concrete and the distant roaring of police and ambulance sirens.
Maybe someone who thought saving a few seconds to arrive at their destination faster would soon join this growing club of husks....
But something is different this night.
Maybe it is the chilly stream of air surging through the empty morgue.
Or is it the contents of the cold metal drawers that serve as makeshift coffins for those within?
The most likely answer though, would be the scratching sound of a loose floor tile being pushed aside and the ensuing tapping of wet boots on the sterile floor.
Step after step they would make their way around the morgue, skittering across the cold stone to some song's rhythm before the entire room fell silent like a crypt, literally.
A few moments later the sound would resume, but instead of a playful, dancing tapping, the heavy boots would slowly approach one of the drawers.
Stiff fingers flicking over the files so carelessly left by some intern.
An intrigued hum.
A chuckle.
And almost as fast as the silence was broken, the intruder seemed to vanish, letting the dead rest...
For the few minutes they could still differentiate between life and death.
Because on this night, they would come to realize that not everything is what it seems and that there is more to this city than those rotting in the graveyards and those working themselves into an untimely grave.
For just once, they would rise unbound by society and the rules of nature.
And there would be someone to greet them once they had awoken from a dreamless sleep...
But for some people this was a time of mourning, of tragedy. As they would no longer be able to witness the coming of a new season where nature would awaken and herald its presence with green trees and beautiful flowers.
No, for some life ended just on the verge of another cycle beginning, just for tears of loss to pool in the streets, joining the never-ending streams of rainwater.
It was a time where accidents seemed to become more frequent and oh so many young lives ended before they could even start.
Life extinguished when there was so much more to live for....
But humans have to come to terms with the inevitability of death sooner or later. And so the traces of these lives were being erased from the face of the city. Funeral arrangements were being made, unresolved medical issues were put to rest, families dried their tears as they said their last goodbyes and then government databases were updated to reflect yet another citizen that would no longer tread among their fellow humans.
Wiped from the databases as the city went on, mourning them only for a moment before resuming its hectic life...
But somewhere, on this fateful night, something stirs, for there is something sinister running through the vein-like alleys and severs of this city's beating heart....
____________________________________________
And somewhere, in a cold morgue, the last employees finish up another day's work. Leaving the underground facility devoid of life. A room filled with people but not a single beating heart as the last lights dim, leaving the chambers illuminated by a cool, sterile glow.
But despite of the underlying creeping sensation a nightly morgue would invoke, there was not a more peaceful place to be in the city.
With the streets being filled with humans hurrying home to their loved ones, with cars speeding across wet concrete and the distant roaring of police and ambulance sirens.
Maybe someone who thought saving a few seconds to arrive at their destination faster would soon join this growing club of husks....
But something is different this night.
Maybe it is the chilly stream of air surging through the empty morgue.
Or is it the contents of the cold metal drawers that serve as makeshift coffins for those within?
The most likely answer though, would be the scratching sound of a loose floor tile being pushed aside and the ensuing tapping of wet boots on the sterile floor.
Step after step they would make their way around the morgue, skittering across the cold stone to some song's rhythm before the entire room fell silent like a crypt, literally.
A few moments later the sound would resume, but instead of a playful, dancing tapping, the heavy boots would slowly approach one of the drawers.
Stiff fingers flicking over the files so carelessly left by some intern.
An intrigued hum.
A chuckle.
And almost as fast as the silence was broken, the intruder seemed to vanish, letting the dead rest...
For the few minutes they could still differentiate between life and death.
Because on this night, they would come to realize that not everything is what it seems and that there is more to this city than those rotting in the graveyards and those working themselves into an untimely grave.
For just once, they would rise unbound by society and the rules of nature.
And there would be someone to greet them once they had awoken from a dreamless sleep...
