It was the end of another busy night at Slow Boy's, and the last of the patrons were filing out the door. With the music stopped and the lights turned on brightly, the club looked like a completely different place than it had only a few minutes earlier. The ever-dependable Coker was leading the staff in cleaning up the glass-covered tables.

There was one table that they did not touch. While there were plenty of glasses in need of bussing, none of them were willing to come near the table until it was unoccupied. This was Blade's table, as he had announced a few days ago, and he spent every night putting down some of the strongest liquor that Slow Boy could serve up.

"The liquor ain't doing anything for the pain," Blade muttered. "Can't make me forget what I did, what I had to do. Killing the spitting image of my mother, but not her, a stinking vamp duplicate made by that white-haired monster Frost." He pushed away the last glass, making it join with the dozen or so empty glasses at the end of table.

{Blade destroyed the vampire duplicate of his mother last issue}

"Blade," Slow Boy called from behind the bar. "Why don't you go on back to the apartment? You've had enough, and I can't serve you anything more tonight." There was a towel thrown over the tavern owner's shoulder that he was using to wipe up spills along the bar.

"I don't want any more," Blade sighed. He stretched out his arms across the table and laid his head down on them. "I don't know what I want anymore." He knew that he should be out hunting vampires, but he could not get the thoughts of the vampire duplicate of his mother out of his mind. His senses had to be sharp and his thoughts had to be clear if he wanted to go out hunting. "Distraction means you end up under a bloodsucker's fangs," he thought.

Slow Boy frowned at the sight of Blade. Just about every night since the incident, the vampire-slayer had come into the club and started pounding the drinks. At first it was after doing some slaying, but Blade's time was becoming more devoted to being in this place rather than being out hunting the undead.

Not that Slow Boy cared about the money. He was letting Blade stay at his flat as well as letting the vampire-slayer drink for free. It was the least that he could do considering the good that Blade had done as well as the pain that he had suffered, not just recently, but all of his life. He could not stand to see Blade self-destruct, though.

"Slow Boy," Coker called out. "We got some visitors."

Slow Boy's eyes turned from the sorry sight of Blade towards the main entrance. Coker was standing there, in his white tuxedo, next to a finely dressed couple. They both had badges displayed.

"Now what you Bobbies want?" Slow Boy exclaimed. "I'm closed. I'm not serving after hours. All of me permits are in order."

"I'm sure everything is in order here," the man replied. He was a tall, lanky fellow. Not nearly as young as his female companion, he appeared to be in his mid-fifties. There were streaks of gray in the hair on the sides of his head, the rest being quite devoid of hair. A thick mustache rested above his top lift. "I'm Inspector Chelm," he said and then pointed to his associate. "And this is Inspector Fraser."

Kate Fraser smiled and then closed her eyes. Her psychometric powers were picking up a familiar sensation. "I think he's here, or at least has been recently."

Slow Boy impatiently took the towel off of one shoulder and draped it over the other. "You mind telling me what this is all about?"

"We're looking for Blade. I know that he used to frequent this place in the old days," Chelm explained. "We have reports that he's back in England."

"What do you want with Blade?" Slow Boy inquired. He knew that these two could not be vampires. Nobody at the club would have invited them in, the staff knew the rules, though not all of them necessarily knew why they were in place.

"We were hoping that we could gain his assistance on an important matter," Chelm replied.

Turning towards the darkened corner where Blade was huddled, Slow Boy called out. "Up and at 'em, Blade. You got visitors."

Blade's head slowly rose from the table. He adjusted his goggled and cautiously turned around. At first he thought he might be hallucinating from the alcohol, but then he realized that he would never hallucinate about them. "OK, maybe the Fraser bird," he thought coyly.

"Blade," Chelm said as he walked towards the corner.

Straightening his leather jacket as he rose to his feet, Blade answered. "Chelm and Fraser, my two favorite coppers in Londontown. You got Dai there somewhere, too?"

"Commander Thomas is not here, and he would probably be unhappy that we're here to see you," Fraser remarked.

"Yeah," Blade replied. "Me and Dai never did see eye-to-eye, even though me killing vamps was a righteous act."

{Blade and Dai sparred in Marvel Preview #3}

Chelm looked around. "Blade! A little caution perhaps?"

"Huh?" Blade snorted. "It ain't a problem, Chelm. Slow Boy knows all about bloodsuckers, so it ain't like I'm letting the black cat out of the bag."

"Very well," Chelm said. "Still, we can't have the public knowing that there really are vampires. It would cause widespread panic."

"Assuming that the public would even believe us," Fraser remarked. "However, with the way things have been getting much more sinister as of late, perhaps the public would believe it."

Blade rolled his eyes. "I don't think you blokes came here to discuss …" His voice changed to a mocking intellectual style. "The implications of the knowledge of vampires upon the public psyche … or something like that."

"Quite," Chelm answered. "Vampire activity has been on the rise as of late, and we think it is connected with some mysterious disappearances."

Blade motioned with his hand. "Come on and have a seat." He turned back towards the table. "I have a feeling this is going to take a while. Slow Boy, could I get some coffee, hot and black?"

Chelm and Fraser informed Blade that Scotland Yard had authorized the reformation of Vampire-Squad a few months ago. The organisation was made up of Chelm, Fraser, and a few other hand-picked operatives to deal with the re-emerging vampire menace. In the few weeks since the Vampire-Squad's revival, they had managed to track down a vampire serial-killer who went by the name "Mack the Knife".

"Now we have another string of vampire-related crimes," Chelm said as he sipped his tea.

"Like what? Other than bloodsucking?" Blade replied forcefully.

"A number of prominent citizens have disappeared, only to reappear days later, dead from the bite of a vampire," Fraser explained.

"So some vamp is enjoying them for a while before trashing them," Blade sighed. "What the big deal?"

"Well, there's more." Chelm rubbed his chin nervously. "The vampire bites aren't the only marks on the body. There are signs of other mutilation. All of the victims are men, and it seems that someone is interested in their … seed, so to speak."

Blade's eyes opened wide. "You mean the vamp is taking their … privates, too."

"Yes," Fraser nodded. "I've tried using my psychic powers on the bodies of the deceased, but I can't get any clear picture of their attackers or what happened to them after they were taken."

"We've kept this kidnappings and mutilations out of the press up til now," Chelm said. "However, we can't continue to that indefinitely. Sooner or later, it will be noticed that these prominent men are disappearing in numbers."

"So it looks like we got a bloodsucker with some kind of strange fetish, don't it," Blade exclaimed.

"Apparently," Chelm agreed. "Though what the vampire's true motive could be is unknown."

"Don't know, don't care," Blade responded eagerly. "I'll just stake the bloodsucker. All right, I'm in. You gonna give me some kind of badge, make me a Vampire-Squad deputy?"

Fraser shrugged. "I don't think Commander Thomas would be warm to that idea. What we can promise is that we'll protect you in case any legal … difficulties arise."

"Good enough," Blade said as he got to his feet. "Oh, and remember to tell Dai something next time you see him. Tell him he can bite me, no pun intended."

For the next few nights, Blade was out on the streets hunting instead of being slouched over in Slow Boy's drinking. While he felt he really should be devoting his slaying-time towards tracking down Frost once and for all, he figured that going after this fetish-vampire would be an easier job, something to pass the time until he felt ready to go after one of the 'big boys' once again. He figured this fetish-vampire would be easier prey.

Along with Chelm and Fraser, Blade hunted throughout the dark and fog-shrouded streets of London. It had been some time since Blade had last hunted here, but some things never changed. He still remembered all of the streets and alleyways like the back of his hand. The vampires still tended to hang out in the same alleys and abandoned buildings, much to their demise. Blade found a lot of newborn vampires during the search. It did not take much to dispose of them. Chelm and Fraser pitched in with their revolvers loaded with silver bullets, but it was Blade's teak daggers that were doing most of the slaying.

"Well, we're certainly making a dent in London's undead population," Blade remarked wryly. "Not that anybody really keeps a bloodsucker census, except maybe Bible John and the Cathari."

"The Cathari?" Fraser inquired. "Are they some kind of vampire family?"

"The Cathari?" Blade laughed. "You been reading too many books. Vampires don't hang out in clans. The Cathari are a bunch of religious nuts, but they're sometimes useful in the fight against the bloodsuckers." No need for Chelm and Fraser to know more about the Cathari, Blade figured.

The trio were sitting down at a covered bus stop. Blade checked his watch. "Not too long until sunrise. What say we call it a night?"

"Of course," Chelm nodded. "Besides, we're running a little low on silver bullets."

"Waitasecond! You hear that?" Blade quickly sprang to his feet. He had a teak dagger in each hand.

Fraser got up as well. "I don't hear anything, but I sense something."

Chelm quickly re-loaded his revolver with the few bullets he had left. "Right then. What's going on?"

"Over there!" Blade pointed towards some dark shapes, highlighted by the glare of the full moon. "Bats, of the bloodsucker kind! Duck!" As he said it, a trio of vampire bats swooped down and tore at the hunters with the claws. Blade's warning allowed them to avoid being sliced by the vampires.

The vampires landed a few yards behind them and resumed their humanoid shape. "The word among the undead is that you're trying to track down the vampires responsible for the kidnappings."

"You got that right, jack," Blade retorted. "And you're probably gonna tell us that it's you. Well, you're either brave or stupid for telling us and being here so close to sun-up."

"We do serve the Lady, and we are not stupid," the vampire replied. "We just wanted to tell you that you are not simply hunting us, but we are hunting you, too. The night is no longer safe for your kind."

"Funny, I thought that was my line," Blade chuckled. "So consider us warned. You gonna try to take us now. Vampires a whole heck of a lot tougher have tried, and I'm still here."

"Your time will come, slayer," the vampire growled.

"Now hold on," Chelm piped up. "What makes you think we're going to let you leave? You're vampires, and I'm charged to eliminate you." He leveled his revolver at the lead vampire.

"Your bullets can do nothing against mist." With that the three vampires transformed into a gaseous state and began to drift upwards. Chelm fired, but the shot went straight through the hazy mist.

"Kate!" Chelm cried. "G-grenade."

Fraser's hand went into her purse. When it emerged, she had a small canister in hand. She tossed the canister at the mist. Upon striking the ground, the canister exploded, spewing out yellow smoke. The smoke mixed with the mist. The other two vampires rose above the mist and flew away in bat-form, but the leader transformed back into humanoid shape and crashed to the ground. He coughed and writhed upon the pavement.

Blade looked towards Chelm. "What the freak was that G-grenade?"

"G for garlic. One of Quincy Harker's old inventions," Chelm smiled devilishly. "Come on, let's drag him out of the garlic before it does him any serious harm."

Blade plugged his nose as he and Chelm drifted into the yellow smoke. They grabbed the vampire by the arms and dragged him from the pervasive garlic cloud. They propped him up against the bench and waited for the garlic's effects to wear off.

"Now you will tell us about your Lady," Chelm swung his revolver in the vampire's face.

"I'll tell you nothing," the vampire responded defiantly.

Blade's hand darted around and grabbed the vampire's collar. "Now look, you stinking bloodsucker. You ain't getting out of here. It's almost sunrise, and you're gonna burn. Either that, or I'm gonna stake you. Now I really don't care which, and neither of these London's Finest is gonna do anything to stop me. You're dead, you ain't got any rights." He released his hold. "Now, if you tell us what you know, I'll let you choose which way you check out, being merciful and all that. You clam up, and I'll make sure you go out as painfully as possible. I don't need much of a reason to make a vampire suffer, what with all the pain your bloodsucking kind has given me."

The vampire looked into Blade's eyes. He saw nothing but grim determination there. He knew Blade was serious. "All right, all right. Let the sun take me after I tell you. I'd like to see it one more time."

"Fine, now give," Blade said impatiently.

"We're working in Mayfair. The Lady is using the kidnapped men in order to breed the ideal son," the vampire sputtered.

"Who is the Lady?" Fraser demanded.

"Lady Marguerite D'Alescio."

"What?" Fraser said.

"D'Alescio!" Blade exclaimed. "Another somebody I owe!" His right hand was a blur as it drove a teak dagger through the vampire's heart. His left hand moved only slightly slower as it decapitated the revenant.

{Blade struggled with the Lady in the original run of Vampire Tales and Marvel Preview #3}

"I thought you were going to let the vampire die with the sun?" Chelm asked.

"Promises to stinking bloodsuckers don't mean squat," Blade grumbled. "I remember where D'Alescio lives. Come on."

While driving towards Mayfair, Blade and Fraser explained their previous encounter with Lady Marguerite D'Alescio. She had been a willing servant of Dracula, and though human she had built a group of vampires called 'The Legion' to further Dracula's ends. They had framed Blade for the murder of young girl, and they had almost tricked Blade into slaying his girlfriend Safron in the mistaken thought that she had been turned. By the end of the adventure. Fraser had collected enough evidence to clear Blade, but there was not enough evidence to charge D'Alescio.

"I'm guessing she's gotta be still human, if you can call her that," Blade noted dryly. "Vamps don't have babies."

"We're here," Chelm announced as he stopped the car a few doors down from the townhouse.

"Well, what are you gonna do?" Blade asked. "Me, I'm going through the front door. You chaps probably need a warrant or something."

"Vampire-Squad has been invested with wide latitude in the undertaking of our duties." Chelm looked to Fraser. "I would consider that late vampire to be a reliable source, wouldn't you, Inspector Fraser?"

"Most definitely, Inspector Chelm," Fraser agreed with a smile.

"That's all we need, then." Chelm opened the door and got out.

The trio walked up the wooden steps to the door. Chelm reached out and pressed the doorbell. A few seconds later, a maid opened the door.

"Excuse me," the maid said with an annoyed tone. "Do you know time it is? You'll disturb Lady Marguerite."

"It's time to end Lady Marguerite's operation," Blade muttered. "Show her the badge and let's get cracking."

As soon as Chelm and Fraser showed their badges, Blade pushed the maid aside and marched into the townhouse. "Where's the door to the basement? I'm sure she's got her stuff set up there."

"Now see here!" the maid exclaimed. " What is the meaning of this? Lady Marguerite is a respectable woman."

"Lady Marguerite is a despicable woman," Blade countered. "Now are you gonna tell me, or do I have to starting marring the décor?" He pulled out a teak dagger and held its point against the wall.

"Second door on the left," the maid said nervously.

"Thank you." Chelm tipped his hat to the maid and then drew his pistol. Fraser did the same and they followed Blade to the basement door.

When the trio reached the cold basement, even their hardened sensibilities were shocked by the scene arrayed before them. There was a collection of naked men chained to the walls. They appeared weak and only barely alive. One of the men was on an operating table. A woman with a surgical mask and gown hovered over the body. Her hands were poised with stainless steel surgical instruments over the man's nether regions.

"Lady Marguerite, I presume," Blade finally said.

The woman looked up and tore her mask off, revealing the middle-aged beauty of Lady Marguerite. "Blade!"

"You got that right, baby. This here operating theater of pain is closed," Blade announced. "What the hell are you doing here? Can't find a good man at the country club?"

Lady Marguerite put down the surgical tools and unbuttoned the operating gown. She now stood before them in a sleek black dress, revealing her still enticing figure. "I can't be bothered to go through wasteful courting rituals. I have no need for a man, only for that which he can supply."

"But where's the vampire angle in all of this? Are they just your goons and as payment you give 'em the men when you're done with them," Blade asked.

"Ignorant savage," Lady Marguerite said with disdain. "They are the minions of my new master. Dracula abandoned me, but I have found a much more worthy master. With his skills, he has made it possible for me, despite my years, to conceive. He has supplied me with the knowledge to create the ideal son. These simpletons provided the seed, but my master provided the tools to ascertain that I would produce only the genetically strongest son."

Lady Marguerite began to walk around as if she were delivering a soliloquy, as if Blade, Chelm, and Fraser were merely an audience and not intruders. "Then, when the time to bear my son comes, he will take me. He will transform me into one of the undead, and that will transform my son into a living weapon that he will wield. My son will not be undead, but he will be powerful, immune to the powers of the undead. My master will mold him into the perfect soldier to battle against those who would claim the title of Lord of Vampires."

The scene Lady Marguerite sounded all-too-familiar to Blade. "Let me guess, this master of yours is a certain white-haired bloodsucker who goes by the name of Deacon Frost?"

"Yes," D'Alescio replied. "Deacon Frost. He is the true future of the vampire race."

"He ain't the future, Frost is history when I see him next," Blade shot back.

"Never. Vampires! Attack!" Lady Marguerite demanded. A number of vampires came rushing from the next room. Though the sun had risen outside, not an ounce of sunlight reached this walled basement. While their powers were weakened during the daytime, they still would prove a threat to the normal opponent.

Blade, Chelm, and Fraser were not normal opponents, however. They all had fought many times against far greater numbers at the peak of their supernatural powers. The mere handful of weakened revenants could not last long against their vampire-slaying skills. Nor did they. In a matter of moments, they were all disabled, either by dagger or silver bullet.

Chelm and Fraser inspected the bodies, making sure that each had actually been incapacitated. Blade meanwhile walked towards Lady Marguerite.

"It seems that you have defeated me once again, Blade," D'Alescio remarked. "However, it matters not. I am already with child now. I was merely looking if a second son could be spawned. She smirked. "I know you, Blade. You will not kill me nor my unborn child."

Blade's fingers tensed. His could feel his rage burning inside of him. Just once, just this once, he wanted to forget his pledge to only destroy vampires. His mother had died at the bite of a vampire, and now this woman wanted to bear a son in order to changed by a vampire bite. "Damn you, Lady. I wish I could, I really wish I could. You're a monster, I could almost make an exception, but your baby hasn't done anything yet. But if he does, I'll cut him down."

"If that possible day comes," Chelm interrupted. He leveled his revolver at the madwoman. "Lady Marguerite will be spending quite a long time behind bars. I doubt Deacon Frost will be able to get to her while she gives birth in prison."

"This time we have more than enough evidence to convict you," Fraser stepped towards Lady Marguerite and slapped a pair of handcuffs around her wrists. "I'm sure that the families of these poor men, not to mention those of Josie Harper, will be happy that you're going to rot in jail."

Chelm put his hand on the still tensed Blade. "Let it go, Blade. We've won."

Blade's head spun around quickly. "Are you sure? I've been trying to nail Frost for years now. What if I don't within the next nine months? He could sneak into the clink and bite her."

"Wherever they send her, I'll make sure some people from Vampire-Squad are on hand. They won't let any undead get to her once she goes into labor. You can count on that."

"You know what?" Blade smiled and his body finally relaxed. "I trust you to do that. But if I have my way, Frost is going to be dust long before that."

"You know what?" Chelm replied. "I trust you to do that."

NEXT ISSUE : "Stalker of Night" - Blade has hunted more than vampires in his life. Now some of those other creatures of the night are looking to even the score.

BITING REMARKS

This marks the first appearance of Inspector Chelm and Kate Fraser at MDL. I re-introduced them back in the Vampire Tales Annual over at MV1. Look for these two Vampire-Squad members to help Blade while he's over in England.

Bob Gansler
29-Feb-00