In a country of strife and political instability, this Slayer must decide exactly what best to do with her powers. 

Empowered Youth

Lublin, Poland, 1970

   She knew the man was watching her; she could just feel it.  As Myenka’s feet crunched along the snow covered pavement, she glanced slightly to her left around the headscarf she was pulling tightly to her face; he was still there.  The man had been following her for almost five minutes now, and she was beginning to feel agitated.  What did he want? she thought as she crossed an adjoining road.  The city street was bustling with people and she had to concentrate on not slipping on the icy pavement.  Perhaps he was from the government, Myenka thought, starting to panic; what if he knew where she was going?

    She couldn’t let him follow her any longer if that was the case, and turned off into an alleyway filled with rubbish and stray cats.  She hid in a doorway and closed her eyes, listening for the slightest noise at the alley’s entrance to signal the man’s presence.  “Come on,” she whispered to herself under her breath, “I don’t have time for this.”

   Sure enough though, not a minute passed before the sound of foot-falls filled the top end of the alleyway.  They faltered; he was probably looking round in the afternoon gloom for her, thought Myenka.  The crunch of boots on ice started slowly once again, and in a moment or two the man passed by Myenka’s hiding place.  He was in his early twenties she guessed, well built with soft brown hair curling round the nape of his neck and quite expensive looking clothes.  Myenka jumped out from her shadow in the doorway and the man spun around in surprise. 

   “Why are you following me?” the girl demanded, her fists raised.  The man’s look of surprise quickly fell away with a slight smile and a look of…relief? Myenka didn’t know quite what to make of the reaction, so just kept her stance and expression firm, waiting for him to respond. 

   He removed his gloved hands from his pockets.  “You are Myenka Krustov - yes?” The young girl couldn’t help but let her expression betray herself. 

   “How do you know my name?” she blurted out, her fists still held in front of her, ready to swipe at him if he came any closer. 

   He laughed.  “I know a great deal more about you than that,” he said to her.  “I know, for example, you are sixteen years old, you live at home with your parents; your mother, who’s lame, your father, who works in the canning factory near your house, and one brother, a student at the University.  You go to the Grechnev School in the South East quadrant of the city and you are allergic to fish.”  He tilted his head at her.  “Am I right?”

   Myenka was more than just a little upset at how much this man seemed to know about her life; she was almost certain now he was a government agent, or at the very least a policeman.  She resigned herself to a fight.  “If you’re going to arrest me, then do it,” she snapped, “otherwise, I’m not going to answer any of your questions.” 

   The odd look of relief appeared on the man’s face again; it was starting to annoy Myenka.  “I am not here to…prosecute you Miss Krustov,” he said in what Myenka was starting to notice was a rather strange accent, “I am here to help you - my name is James O’Hare, but most people call me Jimmy.”  He offered his hand for her to shake.  She looked at it sceptically before taking it briefly, then stepping sharply away once more. 

   “Thank you - but I don’t think I need any help…Jimmy,” she said slowly, repeating the unfamiliar name he had told her. 

   Jimmy raised his eyebrows.  “Do you ever have strange dreams Miss Krustov?”

   Something tightened uncomfortably in the pit of Myenka’s stomach.  “I have many dreams Mr O’Hare,” she replied evasively, “I can’t remember all of them off hand though - sorry,” she added with mock sincerity. 

   Jimmy shook his head.  “These are very specific dreams though,” he pressed, “about girls of all ages and nationalities, fighting creatures you may say that are not of this Earth.  A girl on a pirate ship perhaps? Or in an imperial Japanese court - a princess, a slave?”

   Myenka didn’t even notice her fists had fallen by her sides, or that her breathing had become very light causing her to feel slightly dizzy.  “I have dreamt of a ship in warm waters - with a black sail and a girl with - with red hair,” she told him, “and others…some in times of war…some dressed as men - all fighting creatures with inhuman teeth and…monsters.”  She wrung her hands.  “But I have never told anyone before except my brother - how could you know?”

   “Because they are not just dreams Myenka,” said Jimmy kindly, taking a step forward that Myenka did not retreat from.  “They are memories.  These girls were all known as the Vampire Slayer; one girl in all the world chosen to fight the forces of the undead with supernatural abilities bestowed upon her by great powers above.”  He smiled at her again.  “The dreams are a message for you, a helping hand to prepare you for what is to come.”

   Myenka frowned.  “And what would that be,” she asked, “what is to come?”

   “Your destiny,” replied Jimmy, “I went to your home with the hope of explaining this to you, and when you weren’t there followed your mother’s directions here.  Myenka Krustov, you are now the Vampire Slayer of our time, and I have been sent here to train you.”

   Myenka stared at the man in total disbelief for a good moment or so.  She went to speak, found she had no words, reconsidered, then said to him in a clear and confident voice;

   “You are completely, and utterly…crazy.  I’m leaving now.” And with that she turned on her heals and walked back onto the street. 

   “Myenka!” called the man, and ran after her.  “Please don’t walk away,” he implored, matching her step.  “I know this must be a great shock to you; normally we like to find the girls before they are called to be the Slayer so as to have time to prepare them, but it doesn’t always work that way, and we just have to do the best we can.”

   Myenka folded her arms and carried on walking.  “Who are ‘we’,” she asked, changing the subject slightly. 

   “‘We’ are The Watcher’s Council, of London, England.  Watchers are the men and sometimes women who are sent to train the girls for their time as Slayers.”

   “So…you are my Watcher?” clarified Myenka, buying into the concept momentarily. 

   “Yes,” said Jimmy with a smile, “I am here to look after you now you are the chosen one.  I have to say - I’m a little relieved now I’ve found you - you seem to have a great deal of character about you, some of the girls I’ve read about were hopeless-”

   “Hang on - I’m not saying I believe you yet,” interrupted Myenka as she turned a corner, heading towards the Lublin University. 

   Jimmy put his hands back in his pockets.  “Haven’t you found yourself to be awfully gifted at sporting activities Myenka?” he asked.  “Running, aiming - general stamina?  Have you ever felt a chill down your spine and realized there was something wrong about someone in a crowd, simply by looking at them?”

   Myenka looked sideways at the man with the strange accent.  “Perhaps,” she said, not wanting to admit he was completely right about all he was saying.  “But you are expecting me to believe that…well, that vampires truly exist?  And that I am the only one in the world with powers to stop them?”

   “Well - not the only one in the strictest sense of the word - we have many agents across the globe - girls with the potential to become the Slayer once the current girl has been defeated, but yes - you are the only one with the true power, and yes vampires do exist - along with many other creatures of the night that you will soon learn about.”

   Myenka walked on in silence for a minute or two; it was a lot to think about.  Was she really special? I mean, she thought, every child likes to imagine themselves as special, having the ability to defend themselves - especially in a country like Poland - but was it really true for her? Did she have the power to change the world?

   “What are you thinking?” asked Jimmy, concerned, pulling at his caramel suede jacket.  Myenka wasn’t too sure how to reply.

   “I’m not sure really,” she said, rather open endedly.  After a moment or two she decided to ask something that had been bothering her.  “Where is your accent from?” she enquired, “you said you were from England, but-”

   “Ah - no,” interrupted Jimmy, “the Council’s in London, but I’m from Belfast in Northern Ireland.”

   “Your Polish is incredible,” assured Myenka.  She toyed for an idea of accepting what had been said for a moment, and on deciding she would, at least for the time being, asked a further question.  “If you didn’t know I was the Slayer until I had been…chosen - how is it you are able to speak my language? I can’t imagine many people can where you come from.”

   Jimmy laughed.  “You are very perceptive,” he told her, “and quite right.  The truth is we only discovered you were the Slayer a week or so ago, and a new Watcher had to be dispatched immediately, as it was not one of the girls in training who had been called - all of them have Watchers already.  I was the best man for the job, but I didn’t have a word of Polish to my name…so, a friend of mine performed a little spell and kind of taught me the language in a matter of minutes so I could talk it without actually knowing it - clever hey?”

   Myenka looked at him, slightly perturbed.  “A spell…as in…a witch?”

   “A warlock actually, but yeah, you’ve got the general idea,” he told her. 

   Myenka shook her head as they reached the doors she wanted into the University.  “I think you’d better come inside and tell me some more,” she said, and let him walk in front of her, before allowing the door to swing shut behind them. 

***

   They were making their way down a dimly lit set of stairs.  A faint rumble of discourse could be heard, gradually getting louder the further they went down, until eventually the two found themselves in a small auditorium, mainly filled with students.  Of those in the little basement theatre, there was only one person standing apart from Myenka and Jimmy; a girl in her early twenties who looked as if she was in charge of the situation.  She spotted the young girl and her friend as soon as they walked through the doors at the back left hand side of the hall, and made straight towards them. 

   “You’re…Igorin’s sister, aren’t you?”

   The young girl nodded.  “And this is my friend, Mr…” she blanked, having forgotten his unusual name. 

   “Jimmy O’Hare,” he supplied on queue, offering his hand to the student, “pleased to meet you.”  She shook it curtly. 

   “Please take your seats,” she addressed to Myenka, “the show will begin shortly.”  And with one final look, she turned and walked behind the curtain. 

   Myenka and Jimmy did as they were told.  As soon as she sat down, Myenka turned to the man from Ireland.  “This is a theatre production my brother and his friends have been working on,” she informed him, her eyes shining in anticipation.  “The work they do is very important - it’s the only way they have of protesting against everything that’s going on in our country - you know, the government and everything.  There isn’t much talking in it, but I think you’ll like it any way.”

   Jimmy open his mouth to respond, but the lights dimmed further and the first few bars of some discordant music drifted through the auditorium over the seats.  He closed his mouth once more and decided it could wait.  This girl was obviously captivated by the whole affair, and as soon as her brother stepped on stage, she pointed him out in earnest.  He was obviously a great inspiration to her, noted Jimmy for future reference. 

   He divided his time during the performance, which was only about forty minutes in length, between occasionally watching the action onstage (a great deal of chanting and expressionist dancing), but mostly watching his new charge as she stared on, oblivious to the rest of the world.  As soon as it was over, and the dozen or so performers had taken their bows, she leapt from her seat and dashed over to where her brother was waiting to talk to her.

   “That was amazing!” she enthused, “you were fantastic, I watched you the whole time.”

  The young man smiled.  “That’s great,” he assured her, “I want to hear you thoughts on all of it - I’ve got some tidying to do, but we can chat later - yeah?” She nodded and smiled, completely ignoring Jimmy as he stood not three feet behind her.  Her brother though had spotted the unfamiliar face.  “I don’t think we’ve met,” he said tactfully, offering his hand.

   “No we haven’t,” replied Jimmy, offering his back.  The two shook as Myenka took in a breath, shocked that she had forgotten the Irish man entirely. 

   “Sorry!” she cried, still excited from the performance, “this is Jimmy O’Hare, my…err-”

   “New teacher,” he supplied for a second time, not missing a beat.  “Myenka told me about the work you had been doing and I had to come see for myself - very impressive I have to say.”

   “Oh,” said her brother, nodding uncertainly.  “Okay then, well I’m Igorin - her brother.  I’m glad you enjoyed the show, but Myenka really shouldn’t just be telling just anyone about what we do here, it’s kind of a secret.”  He flashed her a frown, to which she bit her lip, unsure of what to say.  She wanted to assure him that she would never do such a thing, but then that would prove wrong what Jimmy had just said, and then what would they do?

   Jimmy, however, was quick to put matters straight.  “Oh no - I assure you she was the epitome of discretion.  I’ll walk her home now, if that’s alright by you?”

   The boy considered.  “That would be a big help, actually - I’ve got a lot to sort out here.”  He gave his sister a hug as the other performers said goodbye to their own friends and began making their way backstage once more.  He then turned to Jimmy.  “You’re to see she gets home in one piece.”

   It was just a little more than a veiled threat. 

   “I wouldn’t dream of anything else,” Jimmy reassured him. 

***

   Myenka talked of little else but the performance on their way from the University.  She talked about what all the various elements were supposed to represent, assuming the Irish man had understood next to nothing about it.  Igorin had explained to her that the form of theatre they were developing was very different to conventional European theatre, and the girl felt the need to educate her new watcher in the subject.  She also talked at length about the other performances the students had done previously, and what it would mean if they were ever to get caught by the officials. 

  She was just explaining that they didn’t use speech so much, as that would be far easier to get accused of being political and controversial rather than the movement, when she looked at her surroundings. 

   “This isn’t the way home!” she cried, “where are we?”

   Jimmy smiled at her finally paying attention to what was going on.  “I feel I might need to add perception to the list of skills you need to work on,” he said playfully, “this way then.”  He indicated a path off away from the lit street.  Myenka looked at him sceptically, then walked the way he was pointing. 

   It was only a dozen or so feet before she realized where she was heading.  “This is a graveyard!” she cried, alarmed. 

   “Well - where else did you expect to find vampires?” was all Jimmy said in reply. 

***

   The new slayer had been sitting on the tombstone for almost an hour, fiddling with the wooden stake that had been placed firmly in her grasp and listening to what Jimmy had to say about killing vampires.  It was particularly dark in the centre of the plot where they were sitting, and as he began to explain to her about werewolves and other, more common demons, Myenka couldn’t help but feel her mind begin to wonder off into the night. 

   What Jimmy was saying was that a great deal of power had been bestowed upon her; for fighting the scourge of the undead, naturally, but maybe she would be able to put it to other use as well. 

   “Did you understand why they did the play?” she asked Jimmy suddenly, interrupting him mid sentence.  He looked puzzled for a minute, off balance after loosing his train of thought. 

   “Well…yes - I guess,” he replied, “but that’s not really-”

   “It’s just, it must be hard for you to understand.  Igorin told me that places like England live very differently to places like Poland - you don’t have to live with a government you hate - that oppresses the masses.”  She was only half aware of repeating her brother’s own words, parrot fashion.  “What they do - in the theatre - it’s the only real way of expressing your opinion without getting thrown in jail.”

   Jimmy looked at her with an expression she couldn’t read for a moment or two, then carefully closed the book he was reading from.  “I am fully aware that your government is a communist one that is not of your country’s choosing, and living in Northern Ireland, I am more than just familiar with the concept of living with a ruling power that you don’t always get on with, but I’m a little uncertain as to what that has to do with vampires and their kin?”

   Myenka blushed slightly.  “I - I was just thinking-”

   “I feel it is my duty as your watcher,” interrupted Jimmy, “to inform you at this juncture that is against all rules for a slayer to bring any harm to a human unless there is some supernatural involvement - you are not the Law, merely an instrument of the Council.”  He peered at his wrist watch in the dim light.  “It’s late - I think we should leave it for tonight.  I hope we have better luck introducing you to the undead tomorrow night.”  And with that, they packed up their belongings, and began walking towards the area where Myenka lived.  They parted at her door, and the girl was left to ponder what her watcher had told her as she made her way to bed. 

***

   Over the next week or so, Myenka, who had still not seen a real vampire, and her new Watcher trained hard.  Her time was divided between physical training and book learning, but in all honesty, her attention wasn’t really on either.  Igorin was fuming because there was a politician, a man named Rominoff who was allegedly the Education Minister, and he was coming to visit the University on Friday.  All Myenka had heard for the past few days was about the audacity of it all, and how dare he - he’s not welcome here, and he’d better watch out or something nasty might happen to him when he wasn’t looking.  The last comment was the one that had gripped Myenka in particular; the notion that someone should do something. 

   Which was why, at ten o’clock at night on the Thursday evening, Myenka Krustov was to be found climbing silently from her bedroom window and making her way towards the air hanger across the other side of the city, trusty stake in hand. 

   There was an unnatural chill in the air; far more brisk and still than usual.  Her breath tumbled from her mouth as smoke as she crept without a sound along the back alleyways that would take her to the Minister’s private plane when it landed.  Her heart thumped with apprehension at what she was planning to do; if she succeeded it would be a brilliant victory for the people of Poland.  Her people. 

   There was a noise behind her that made her stop in her tracks at the end of the alley; was someone following her? She listened intently, looking into the darkness all around her; but whatever had made the noise (if indeed there had been anything at all) had stopped now.  Just as she decided that she must have imagined the noise, someone jumped out in front of her and grabbed her by her shoulders. 

   “Igorin!” she gasped and flung his arms off herself.  “What on Earth are you doing here?!”

   He looked wild.  He grabbed her once again and pushed her into the alley wall.  “Just…what do you think you’re doing?” he hissed in a desperate whisper.  “This is madness, you’re going to get yourself killed!”

  Myenka looked back at him in shock.  “How did you know-”

   “That you’re planning to kill the Minister?”  She nodded reluctantly; he shook his head, exasperated, and moved her further down the alley. 

   “You’re new friend, Jimmy, paid a visit to the house tonight - looking for you.  When we both discovered you to be gone I insisted he tell me everything that’s been going on - why you’ve been spending so much time together all of a sudden.  He reasoned that you and I were extremely close so it would be okay to tell me.  I tell you, it was a tall tale to be sure, but then he spoke of your dreams - the strange ones of the girls - and I knew he was telling the truth.  Once he’d convinced me of the abilities you have, I realized that the minister was arriving tonight, and I’d spoken about nothing else to you this whole week about how much better off we’d all be if he was gone.  I put two and two together, added the fact that I know you so damn well, and concluded that you must be here, about to do the most stupid thing of your life.”

   He said all this very fast, probably so his sister wouldn’t have time to interrupt, and at the end was a little out of breath.  Myenka, on the other hand, was hurt and rather cross. 

   “I can do this!” she hissed back at him, “you’re right, the world will be better off without him, so why shouldn’t I do it?”

   Igorin sighed.  “Just because you can do something, doesn’t mean you should.”  He took her by the shoulders again and looked into her eyes.  “If you…assassinate this Rominoff character - you’ll be no better than they are.  Myenka - you have a gift.  It’s your job to use it wisely.”

   The young girl hung her head as her brother’s words made sense.  He pulled he into a firm hug.  “I appreciate what you tried to do though - we both do.”

   She looked up.  “You mean-”

   “Jimmy’s the one who drove me here - he’s waiting by the hanger entrance.  He’s pretty mad, don’t get me wrong, but I think he likes that you have spirit.”

   Myenka smiled and nodded again, and the two prepared to walk back to the car and away from the airport, when there was a thud behind them, followed by a rather disconcerting snarl.  Myenka spun on her heals, as did her brother. 

   “Ah,” she said, “I guess there was something following behind me after all.” And she grabbed her stake, ready to face her very first vampire. 

   The beast growled, it’s face contorted and teeth elongated.  “A Slayer,” he said, rather politely, “how unusual.  A pity I’m going to kill you so soon after your calling - don’t you agree?”  With that, he rushed forward, attacking Myenka where she stood.  The young girl pushed her helpless brother aside and kicked the creature, just like Jimmy had taught her.  The vampire was flung backwards, but regained his balance quickly to make another attack, slamming Myenka’s face with his fists.  She gave as good as she got though, and after only a minute or two’s sparring, grabbed her stake from where it had fallen on the ground and plunged it into the monster’s chest.  She marvelled between deep and steady breaths as he turned to dust before her very eyes. 

   Igorin stood up, eyes wide.  “That was a vampire?” he said after a moment or two. 

   “Yes,” said Myenka, pocketing the stake and stepping away from the dust as it blew away into the night. 

   “I guess you really are the Chosen One then,” was all he said. 

The End