Our town was a peaceful one, till
Something had attacked the others
Without more rhyme or reason than
To suck blood. Our gray grandmothers

Occasionally tried to speak,
Since this plague had happened before.
But they never gave the details,
Lest they witness what they abhor.

After all, speaking of evil
Increases its demonic force.
I feared to encounter this fiend,
Since our whispers but did endorse

It all the more. A cat followed
Me with its nocturnal eyes
Now accustomed to harsh daylight.
Its gaze my hackles did apprise;

I looked at it, and it at me.
I fingered the stakes in my pouch
And went to the cemetery,
Hoping that the beast didn’t crouch

Behind a tombstone that would mark
The site of my undying death.
The chill, autumnal, rustling wind
Was no match for my raspy breath.

A raven came to spy on me;
It cocked its head this way and that.
I searched among the sepulchres,
And it watched me from where it sat.

I searched vainly through the graveyard,
But found no holes nor sunken plots.
Unsatisfied, I was glad to
Leave, for the day only allots

A sliver of the sun’s haven
To guard us from wretched vampires.
When night falls, it seems we are just
Lying on our funeral biers.

How many men had been taken
By this ghoul of ill-repute?
There must have been at least twenty
In three weeks, or I’ll kiss a newt.

It was hard to say what was worse,
Finding their cold, pallid bodies—
As empty of their life force as
Water in a Saudi wadi—

Or having to desecrate friends
To control the vile contagion.
By Jove, they’d not rise up more, e’en
By the Pope who raised up Trajan.

An owl watched me from my rooftop.
“Fie on you, you traitorous knave!”
I yelled at it anxiously. Why
Couldn’t the animals behave?

What force makes them watch over me,
As if I were a peace of meat?
Why’s this owl out during the day?
Would he eat the roof’s mustard seeds?

It’s a shame I had no woman,
For I could use her kindly smiles
To comfort me in these dark times
Burgeoning with dark wicks and wiles.

I locked my windows and doors tight,
And hid behind my drawn curtains.
Something told me not to worry;
Something told me death was certain.

I knelt to pray like I’d never
Done before, though I’d gone to mass.
Time stood still, but when I arose
I saw that an hour did pass.

I looked around. I was prepared
As I’d be without the Last Rites.
I settled into my bed dressed,
Wanting the peace of prior nights.

Somehow I managed to drift off
Into dream’s hallucinations.
I awoke, startled to have slept.
I’m covered in condensation.

I want to roll back into dreams,
But what is drawing back my shades?
There’s no one there that I can see,
But something’s moving my brocades.

A cloud must have freed the moonlight,
For gray tones showed a smiling shape.
I could tell she was a woman,
She was exposed from knee to nape.

She hovered outside my window,
Her gaze easily hypnotized.
I never thought death was so pretty,
Needless to say, I am surprised.

She materialized within;
The windows were still locked, it seemed.
Her feet never touched the floor.
She approached, but I never screamed.

She was a plump and healthy dame,
Did rouge make her cheeks so rosy?
The mirror cast no reflection.
“Mind if I make myself cozy?”

She asked with a sultry voice
That overpowered my senses.
She had made it to my bedside,
Past strands of garlic defenses.

She pulled back my navy covers;
She was still in complete control.
She bent to kiss with her small fangs.
Would this Succubus steal my soul?

My mortal mind was mortified,
My heart welcomed the abduction.
I don’t know how I defeated
The Empusa’s sweet seduction.

My hand darted ‘neath my pillow,
And the stake’s service it impressed.
I plunged it into her bosom;
She staggered back clutching her chest.

I sprang out of bed poised to run:
She gave me a becoming pout.
Any second she would collapse;
She smiled at me and pulled it out.

Then, she licked the blood from the stake,
And how enticing were those lips.
She cast it aside violently,
And came after me on healthy hips.

I trembled lighting a match, and
Dropped it to set off my next trap.
I would not die without a fight;
I almost went due to mishap.

The oil ignited on the floor,
And its flamy passion licked me.
I moved. Surely the light’d kill her.
Then, something came flying at me.

What horror do I recognize?
It is the raven that I saw
Watching in the cemetery.
A banshee’s shriek was as its caw,

For I knew it was this demon
Who’d just performed transmigration.
‘She goes out by day! Light’s useless!’
I thought in sad meditation.

I fled into the rose garden
By paranoia transplanted.
Surely with such difficulty,
This horror would have recanted.

But she’d set her eyes upon me,
And pursued with perseverance.
She changed from raven to cat form,
And claws extended she did prance

Straight through my little rose garden,
Which should have warded her away.
They must not be the right species.
Didn’t I see this cat today?

The cat gave a knowing wink and
Began bathing its silky fur.
It changed back into the soulless
Huntswoman, though she still did purr.

She took one more step toward me,
And I knew that I’d soon be dead
If I tarried any longer.
I gathered my respect and fled.

I ran across the river’s bridge,
Thinking to have some respite.
But I saw her form crossing too,
Through the mists of the night.

She seemed like she enjoyed the hunt.
I marvelled, since the water flowed.
No one opened their doors to help.
They feared more the more I bellowed.

They feared they’d be victimized, too.
They knew what made me so afraid.
I sprinted on the cobblestones.
It seemed that only God could aid.

I hoped He was in a good mood,
That He wasn’t sawing lumber
So He’d hear my supplications.
But then He sleeps not nor slumbers.

This had better not be the night
In which He decided to try.
I glanced back at my predator
Who’d changed into an owl to fly.

She’s been stalking me all day long;
I’m sure then she’ll stalk me all night.
Night saw the prey and predator,
And they were both engaged in flight.

Reaching the cathedral at last,
I yell, “This is dedicated!”
I knew she couldn’t enter in.
I’d never appreciated

Holy ground so much until now.
Is she tugging there at the door?
She has profaned its sanctity!
I cause Holy Water to soar

Through the air and it drenches her.
The moments pass by like a dream.
She’s clutching at her face wildly,
And as she screams I look for steam.

I saw none but heard her crying.
Then, I saw she was mocking me.
Not even Holy Water helps!
I dashed to grab a rosary.

As I turned to wield my weapon,
She laughed. Her hands slipped round my throat.
I knew that shortly I would be
An offering to make her bloat.

“Did you really think that would work?”
She asked lifting me in the air.
Below me candles burn to saints
Who could not answer my last prayer.

The giant crucifix’s crown
Of thorns is equal with my head.
She looks at me and smiles sweetly.
“No one needs to mourn for the dead,”

She said, and the words gave me chills.
“For the living are who suffer.”
“Please, release me,” I cried. But she
Decided to hold me rougher.

“Do you now believe in folklore
You deigned since you believe in God?”
Her lips were close to mine. I shook,
But I somehow managed to nod.

“I have tried everything,” I said
Trying to stall this revenant
From feasting. “How can I beat you?”
“The answer simply is, ‘You can’t.'”

I saw slumping priests in stained glass
Alcoves watching me in their death.
I was paralyzed by horror;
My neck could feel her vampire breath.