Summary: You awaken in the middle of the night to a terrifying sight—a creature crouched over you, its leathery, long-clawed hand pressed over your mouth. It’s here to return you to your so-called “rightful master”...the vile and tenacious Silas Lovell. Fortunately, Beaumont arrives just in time, and springs to your defense. Together, you fight off the creature…and in the aftermath, the truth about the nature of your unique blood finally comes to light.

Characters:

• GHOUL - Servant of Vampire Lord Lovell. Sent by its master to abduct the Listener.
• ZACHARIAH BEAUMONT - Vampire; head of the Beaumont Clan. Kind and humble. Believes that humans should not be enslaved, and that vampires should only subsist off donated blood. Lovell’s biggest rival, and a thorn in his side.

CW: attempted kidnapping, physical violence & stabbing, threats, character death, curse words, consensual hypnosis

Usage:

• OK to record & monetize, as long as you give me credit in the video/audio description as the scriptwriter! I would also love to listen to the recording when it’s done–please send me the link on Reddit! Paywalling is okay; however, if you paywall, you must make it possible for me to listen to the finished product.
• Gender-flipping and small tweaks are okay, but no large edits are permitted.
• Feel free to use music or insert sound effects if you’d like. Any sound effects given are suggestions–use at your discretion. *Sound effects in bold, set apart by asterisks\*
• Any dialogue or reactions given by the Listener are purely for the benefit of the VA, to help them feel like they have something to respond to while they’re acting. Listener reactions in italics.
• Please let me know if you have any questions!

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\Optional sound effects—creepy music; a window creaking open; inhuman breathing/growling\**

GHOUL: Hello, there, my pretty.

\Sound effect–Ghoul covering the Listener’s mouth\**

GHOUL: Now—be silent. That’s better…wouldn’t want anyone spoiling our fun. Mmm…I can see why Master took a shine to you. Such a sweet, sweet smell…he’ll be so glad to have you back.

GHOUL: Yes; that’s right, my pretty. Our Master grows lonely without you. It's time for you to come home…home, to your true Master. Now, be a good little human, and keep still.

GHOUL: Mmm…\debating with itself** No…Master said no; your blood was his alone…he would be most displeased…but oh…that smell….\slurp** I can’t resist…just a little taste...

\Sound effect—Beaumont suddenly appears. With a roar of rage, he grabs the Ghoul, hurling it across the room. Smashing sounds; objects breaking\**

BEAUMONT: Nightingale, RUN!

GHOUL: Oh, look; it’s the little lord, come to defend his stolen goods.

BEAUMONT: \rage** I’ll give you one chance, creature. Get the hell out, unless you want me to rip that hideous head right off your shoulders!...

GHOUL: \laughs** My master sends his regards. He will reward me…I’ll bring him your corpse, along with his pet!

\Sound effects—fighting; crashing and breaking of wood; yells and grunts from both the Ghoul and Beaumont. Eventually, we hear Beaumont’s cry of pain, and another crash, as he is pinned down by the Ghoul\**

GHOUL: Yes…say goodnight, little lord!

\Sound effect—stabbing. The Ghoul’s sentence cuts off in a gurgle. A few seconds of choking and groaning, followed by a thump as the Ghoul’s body hits the floor\**

BEAUMONT: \breathing hard** Nightingale! Oh, my Nightingale–-by the Lady—are you alright!? Are you hurt!?

The Listener shakes their head, trembling.

BEAUMONT: That awful stench—I should’ve known what it was the instant we smelled it. I’m so sorry. \rage** Lovell…that bastard! I knew he’d try something, but sending a *ghoul…*I didn’t think even he’d resort to that. But you…you saved me. You took him down! How did you—?

He looks down and sees a broken piece of a chair leg protruding from the Ghoul’s back.

BEAUMONT: A broken piece of wood. A makeshift stake!... \looking at the Listener; voice full of wonder** So it’s true. By our Lady of Night…you have Hunter’s Blood.

“What???”

BEAUMONT: You’re trembling, Nightingale. You need to sit down. Here—\scoops her up in his arms** Let’s get you over to the bed. I promise, I’ll explain everything in a moment.

Beaumont carries her to the bed, and sets her down gently.

BEAUMONT: There you go. \deep sigh** I suspected this, but without sampling your blood, I couldn’t be sure…until now. No one can kill an undead except another undead, and Hunters. If you killed a Ghoul, then that must mean you’re a Hunter.

“What do you mean!? What are Hunters!?”

BEAUMONT: Do you remember the legend of our Lady of Night? How she was granted one wish by the Council, in recompense for them murdering her lover, Vasile? The story goes that Lady Lilith used her wish to empower the human race, giving certain humans the ability to destroy the undead. Those humans came to be known as Hunters. Their blood smells sweeter than the rest—supposedly, this was part of Lilith’s curse upon the undead, in order to lure them towards the very people who would be their end. But Hunters have become incredibly rare. As far as I know, there haven’t been any in over a century…except for you.

“What the hell!? Why didn’t you tell me!?”

BEAUMONT: I know; I should have told you. I’m sorry…I wanted to be sure, but I wasn’t sure how to confirm it without either drinking from you, or putting you in danger.

“How long have you known what I am?”

BEAUMONT: How long have I known? To be honest…I suspected it as soon as I first caught your scent, back at the Auction House. Once I smelled your blood, and realized what you were…I couldn’t let you fall into the wrong hands. If Lovell had gotten you, it would all have been over.

“Wait—is THAT why you bought me? To—to use as some kind of weapon!?”

BEAUMONT: Wait, what!? Is that why I bought you, to use you as some kind of weapon against him? No! No, I didn’t—I mean, I wasn’t thinking about it like that, but… \ashamed** I…I suppose I’d be lying if I said the thought hadn’t crossed my mind. I’m so sorry. It’s just…when I saw you, for a few moments, I had hope. We vampires are bound by endless layers of traditions and laws and magic—if we kill another vampire, it can have consequences for generations. But Hunters are beyond our laws. They help keep the balance, when we can’t. And when I saw how brave you were, I thought…I thought, if you could take down Lovell, we might finally be able to end blood slavery for good. \shakes his head** But I—I realize now it was a ridiculous idea. It was immediately clear you didn’t even know what you were, and either way, I could never ask you to willingly put yourself in that kind of danger. I’m so sorry…you must feel like I’ve been using you, and you’re not wrong. I just wanted to bring hope back to this sh*tty world…but that’s not an excuse. You have every right to be angry at me. Just please know that I’ll still protect you, all the same. I’ll figure out another way to try and—

“Zach.”

BEAUMONT: Hmm?

“Let’s do it.”

BEAUMONT: Wait, what?

“I want to do it. Let’s fight that bastard.”

BEAUMONT: \disbelief** You want to fight against Lovell!? Nightingale, I—I don’t think that’s a good idea.

Oh, come on! You just said—

BEAUMONT: Yes, yes; I know; I just gave that whole speech! But you have no idea—it would be dangerous. Incredibly dangerous. From what I’ve read, most Hunters of old trained for years before they even attempted to take down a simple zombie, let alone a vampire lord! \soft, tender** Please, Nightingale…I don’t want you to get hurt. Everything I've said about you…your courage, your fiery spirit, your incredible kindness…the way you bring light into this dark, sh*tty world…those things aren’t determined by blood. They’re just…you. You’re incredible, Nightingale. Hunter Blood or not, I’ve never known anyone quite like you.

The Listener takes his hand, squeezing.

BEAUMONT: Your hands are so warm. I, er…I forgot what I was going to say.

“It’s okay. Let’s stop talking about this for right now. It’s not good to plan when you can’t think straight.”

BEAUMONT: You’re right…after what happened, we both need to rest. I’ll take care of the creature. And then I’m not leaving your side. I’ll stay with you while you sleep.

“Well, you’re welcome to stay with me, but I don’t think I’ll be sleeping for awhile. The nightmares…”

BEAUMONT: You’re not sure how you’ll possibly sleep after that? I don’t blame you. \has a sudden idea** Unless…

“What is it?”

BEAUMONT: \hesitant** Well…I have an idea, but I don’t know if it’s something you’d be comfortable with. Are you familiar with hypnosis?

The Listener stiffens. “Hypnosis?”

BEAUMONT: Yes. Putting someone in a trance, sometimes sending them to sleep.

“A trance? Like what Lovell used on me?”

BEAUMONT: Oh, sh*t, he used it on you? \grimace** Yeah…it can be used for compulsion, but it’s actually intended for relaxing people. If our donors are relaxed, the feeding process isn’t nearly as painful…sometimes they even enjoy it. But, that aside…if you want, I could try to hypnotize you, to help put you to sleep. I completely understand if you’re not comfortable with that, though, especially if Lovell used the dirty kind on you already.

“No—let’s try it.”

BEAUMONT: Yes? Are you sure?

The Listener nods.

BEAUMONT: Okay. Here; settle yourself back on the pillows; get comfortable. Alright. \soft, slow, gentle** Now…just relax, and look into my eyes. Good…keep looking. That’s it. Focus on my eyes, and the sound of my voice. \Optional sound effect—slight reverb to Beaumont’s words\** Feel your breathing slow, your body sinking into the mattress. Let your thoughts drift away, as you sink down, deeper and deeper. That’s it. Just sink…sink…good. As you sink deeper and deeper into my eyes…your own eyes are getting heavy. It’s getting harder and harder to keep them open, as they get heavier and heavier. Just let them close…it’s okay. Just close your eyes, and sink down into sleep. Deep, dreamless sleep. That’s it…sleep, my Nightingale. \Optional sound effect—words fading out\** Sleep…sleep…sleep.