“You are the prophesying vampyre. I have heard tell of you far and wide. Will you tell me my fortune?”
“You must pay,” said the vampyre. His chest rose out of habit, but he hadn’t needed to breathe in a long time.
“Of course,” said the dark man. He dropped his satchel with a clang, pushed back his sleeve, and thrust his arm forward unafraid.
The vampyre looked delighted. Two in one night. No doubt, he would feel better than he had in decades. He nearly drooled through the open maw of his cheek. “Splendid,” he rasped. He lifted his one arm and grasped the wrist. The vampyre’s fingers were cold but the man didn’t flinch. And when the creature bent his head to bite and suck upon the mysterious man’s flesh, the man watched the transaction curiously, rather than with dread.
The vampyre lifted his head, licking the blood off his face as he had done from the previous man before him. This, too, the man watched with curiosity.
The vampyre sighed contentedly. “I haven’t supped this well in many a day. Go ahead. Ask your question, my friend.”
“I need to know,” said the man rolling his sleeve back down, “if the daemon Eurynomos still walks the earth from his home in Gehenna and if he will destroy me.”
The vampyre stared hard at the man. “A daemon?”
“Look to my future, old man. I need to know.”
The vampyre slowly nodded. He tilted up his chin, his eyes rolled back, and he closed them. “Mmmm,” he moaned. “You…it is difficult. Hard to see. I see Gehenna’s gates…but they are closed. The daemon…no, he cannot touch you. Something has blocked it. He cannot touch you. You walk away from him.” He opened his eyes again and stared at the man with something like fear in them. “He cannot touch you and you walk away.”
“That’s all I wanted to know.” He bent down and opened his satchel. From it he grabbed a two-edged battle axe. The vampyre watched him curiously, until the man took the handle in both hands, cocked his arms back, and swung. The vampyre’s head sliced cleanly from his neck, spun in the air for a moment, before landing with a thud to the now gory grass at the foot of the crypt. Both head and body began to melt into black ichor and became part of the dew.
The man wiped the blades off on the grass and stuffed it back into his satchel. He turned his head and listened to the night. A gear turned and a piston whooshed as his jaw rose into a smile.
“Leopold Kazsmer…you’re next!”
To be continued in… CLOCKWORK GYPSY
Author’s Afterword
WRITING ABOUT ANOTHER time, even one so similar to our own, comes with its own drawbacks. The language, for one. It isn’t complicated like Elizabethan English, or archaic like Middle English. In fact, closer to contemporary is harder. Idioms become tricky business. Did they use that phrase in quite that way back then? Well, that’s what the Oxford English Dictionary is for.
But there are also terms that one must use that aren’t politically correct today. Let’s look at a few:
Oriental. Today, we would use the term “Asian” to mean eastern Asian descent. But back in Imperial Britain’s day, it meant, well, anyone with any sort of Asian characteristics. It also referred to certain Arabic peoples (Oriental rug, for instance) but that branch had its own share of other derogatory terms. It’s used here because it is accurate to the time period, and although we are steeped in fantasy, steampunk doesn’t mean we need diverge too much from actual Victorian mores and sensibilities.
Gypsy. I know most people don’t look upon this as a racial slur but it is. The proper term is Romani or Roma. Thought to be descended from Egyptians, many Romani didn’t disabuse the gadjo or non-Romani of that perception. They actually began in India and moved across eastern Europe and the United States, gathering different DNA along the way. Romani people come from all parts of Europe, not just Hungary. Other offensive terms one might encounter are Traveller and Pikey.
Pickaninny. Not a good term today at all. Though in an earlier day, mid-nineteenth century, it referred to the children of black descent. A definite racial slur.
Saloop. It’s a hot drink made with sassafras. Very popular in Victorian times.
Daemon vs Demon. Sometimes interchangeable, but more accurately, “daemon” refers to good creatures, while “demon” means evil. They are pronounced the same.
Steampunk. A lot of folks have wondered what this term means. More commonly, it refers to a subgenre of science fiction and fantasy inspired by the aesthetic of the steam-powered era. It also incorporates alternate history (as we have here with Prince Albert surviving his brush with death and the presence of steam-powered airships throughout London.) Technology is strictly steam-powered, even advanced technology, inspired by the works of H.G. Wells and Jules Verne, steampunk masters though they didn’t know it.
I have always been fascinated by this time period of magicians, where séances and the investigation into the next world compelled and enthralled, and science was still crossed with a certain level of mysticism, where maybe magic was a real possibility. I think this book and these characters have been percolating in my mind for a very long time and I was glad I finally had the opportunity to bring them to life.
THE DAEMON DEVICE is the first in a trilogy of books about Leopold Kazsmer, the Great Enchanter. If you liked the book, please review it. You can find out more about my books—including my medieval mysteries and paranormal romances—as well as sign up for my newsletters at JeriWesterson.com and BookeoftheHidden.com.
About the Author
JERI WESTERSON is the author of the critically acclaimed Crispin Guest Medieval Noir mysteries. She also writes historical novels and several paranormal series. An award-winning author, her medieval mysteries were also nominated thirteen times for national mystery awards, from the Agatha to the Shamus. Jeri lives in Menifee, CA, mother to a gray cat, a laconic tortoise, and many, many bees. See more at EnchanterChronicles.com, JeriWesterson.com or BookeoftheHidden.com for more.
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