This book is about looking into mortality knowing that around every corner death could be waiting. Its about enjoying your short time here not worring about the petty things. It is also about the first six chapters of Cain The First drop The first vampire from his own perspective as he was given the ultimate punishment to feed only of blood and eat of only ash. How Lucifer tricks him and how the rest of the vampire population came into being. How without the story of Cain and Abel none of the other tales you have been told would even exist. I hope you enjoy and are looking forward to the rest of the novel coming out soon Dennis Beggs
Twisted Peace Colors Hidden in Shadow
Plus the first six chapters of Cain The First DropBy Dennis BeggsAuthorHouse
Copyright © 2011 Dennis Beggs
All right reserved.ISBN: 978-1-4567-6074-8Chapter One
I am Cain and my story is as old as time. Biblical, as you might say. I am a vampire, although I was not always this way. I had a normal life just like yours once. I was a farmer who loved the fields, the way the breeze tickled the crops. Night and day, I would work them. They were all I had. Well, them and my brother Abel. Abel worked with the animals. He loved the animals just as much as I loved the fields. Often I would help him take care of his flock.
One day I was tilling, and Abel came to me with one of his animals. It was a small horse. He said it was a gift to help me in the fields. I should have taken it, especially knowing what I do now, but I denied the gift. "My fields are small, Brother, and I love to work the land myself."
He looked at me for a while and replied, "You need company out here, don't you? Don't you get lonely out here? All day long you stand in these fields."
"Listen to the wind, Brother. Can you hear it whisper as it runs through the wheat?"
He stood quietly for a moment. "All I hear is this horse breathing on my shoulder."
I smiled at him and laughed. "Exactly!" I told him, as I patted him on his shoulder.
"Okay, then, you go ahead and listen to your whispering fields, just don't start whispering back. And bring some vegetables in tonight for dinner." He started to walk away, then turned and said, "Don't bring any vegetables that whisper." He turned back and continued to walk away.
That is how it was all the time; we got along great. We ate well. Abel provided the meat, and I brought the fruits and vegetables. I had relatively small fields, but there were many, and I grew anything I could. Once I had thirty small fields, which turned out to be a little much, both for me and the cellar. I hated to see things spoil, especially my back. So I learned to keep it at about fifteen fields, including my fruits and berries. I also learned to dry things and put them in leather bags that my brother made me. He was always helping me out.
Together, we built two barns and a nursery for all of Abel's animals. His flock, like my fields, continued to grow. We would joke around quite often, working through the whole day without really knowing where the time went. We would always stop to watch the sunset. Every dusk was a wonder. The sky would explode in reds and golds. It wasn't out of the ordinary for us to lie on the ground and watch the whole thing without saying a word.
Other times we would talk, about normal things, I guess: our dreams and plans for the future. Abel would talk most of the time; he had a lot more to say. Often he talked about his animals. He had close bonds with all of them. It seemed like they were his children. He had names for them all; it was hard to keep up, really. Not to mention the way he talked about all the things each animal did all day, like they were human.
"You spend too much time with those animals. Listen to yourself carry on," I often said.
"You're just jealous, your corn just stands around," he said, imitating my plants with a stupid expression painted on his face.
Like I said, life wasn't boring. There was hardly a dull moment. I would have to tell him frequently to get his children out of my fields–mainly his chickens and ducks. I would yell and scream. The chickens didn't like it, but the ducks! Every time I turned my back, they would charge me, sneak attack. Sometimes I would catch myself playing with them, kind of red light, green light, because every time I turned and faced them, they would stop like they weren't up to anything. During times of boredom, it was fun, but I never let Abel know: he would never have let me live it down.
Truth be told, I had animals of my own. I quite enjoyed the birds' company, and when I stood still enough, deer would just about come up to me. In fact, I knew all the wild animals and even watched them bring up their children. I watched them grow up and bring up their own families. My brother didn't know that, either; like I said, he would never have let me live it down.
We spent a lot of time together since we didn't have to leave our fields much. There was not a lot of need to go to town except for building material or clothes; everything else we provided ourselves. My crops fed his animals, and in return I had all the fertilizer I needed. When we needed money, we would sell our extras. People said I had the best crops around. Even Abel's animals were well taken care of, not like a lot of the other animals in the market. We loved what we did, and there was a harmony to it, poetic really. Not like a lot of others who had more than they could take good care of, undernourished and sickly animals and crops. That's why, when we wanted to sell, there were instantaneous results.
I remember that we would wait sometimes until we heard how everyone was fed up with the quality of the items in the market. Then we would announce that we had extra, and people would bombard our farm. We really got a kick out of it sometimes.
Sure, we had regulars that we would take care of. There were the elders of the town, some widowed, others just up in years. Abel would often watch them; that was sometimes top conversation during our sunset watch. He really wanted to find a mate to grow old with, someone other than me. It's not like he didn't try or anything, but he was too involved with his animals. He said that it would happen when it was time. Abel was like that; he had a strong belief in things like karma and fate, which were other common conversation pieces of his.
Abel was a strong man in very good shape. He was a little shorter than me but just as strong. All farmers are, really; it's hard work. Weather, animals, or crops, it takes its toll on you. Sure, you learn how to make your jobs easier on yourself, but even then it is physically demanding.
Every time I went to hoe my fields, it seemed there were rocks. I collected them for our building purposes. In fact, I lined our cellar with them, and most of our house was covered in stone. It made a much stronger home than just having wood. Also, it made me very strong. That was good; I liked the fact that when Abel got squirrely, I could easily take him down.
He was okay with the fact that I was a little stronger than him, although he still tried wrestling around, using the element of surprise. Little did he know that his ducks had helped me learn to judge how close something was behind me. Plus, my hearing was great; I knew every sound in my surroundings, and Abel was not a very quiet person. I would almost hear him think of trying to sneak up on me. I would just keep on working, pretending that I had no idea of his even being there.
Once he was pursuing me after a long rain. As usual, I heard him the moment he entered the field. Earlier, I had noticed a pretty big mud puddle, so I wandered over, looking at the ears of corn, placing myself right in front of the puddle. Abel stood there, waiting for the perfect moment. I turned slightly. He was sure that he was undiscovered when really I was just placing him in my peripheral vision. I noticed him smile; he really thought that he had me. I looked down to see an ear of corn that had been half-eaten by a deer. I bent to pick it from the stalk, keeping Abel in my sight. Thinking that he was finally going to surprise me, he bounced, then lunged at me...
