Vikram and the Vampire

Vikram and the Vampire is Richard Francis Burton's adaptation of the 'Baital Pachisi' - a collection of folk-tales from India. One of the oldest revisions of the text is to be found in an eleventh century work of Sanskrit called the Kathasaritsagara. Translated many times, Burton's is probably the best known English version. The tale is about the King Vikrama, who makes a promise to a sorcerer that he will capture a spirit. This process involves answering the riddles of the spirit, and if the King fails, he also fails to capture it. Finally, the spirit agrees to be taken, but along the way, tells the King of the sorcerer's true plans - which involve killing the King, gaining control over the spirit, and ruling the world.