“Wake now.”
The voice cut through the fog of his mind. Memories slowly trickling back from where they had been pushed aside like rubbish littering the paved roads of cities. An eye opened, then another… And Sarkhan looked into eyes devoid of caring. Eyes which had seen the afterlife and come back.
The eyes of Va’lis.
There was no place to hide. So when you have no place to hide, what do you do? You hide in plain sight.
The Razele twins sought to trick and deceive the best tricksters of the land — the Fae of Ilshenar. Using illusions or perhaps even the Form Shift Gift, they managed to conceal their true identities and posed for members of the Fae. The Fae of Ilshenar are ruled by the one they call the Fae Lord Oaks and his devious bride, the Forest Queen Silvani. Surely, it wouldn’t take too much convincing to on their part to have the Fae fight against vampires; not knowing they are aiding and abetting vampire criminals themselves. They would not listen to reason, there would not be any bargain or compromise from Lord Oaks — it was war they wanted.
It’s war they will get.
I do not think anyone will be prepared to see just how powerful I truly am. After over 2000 years of this life, whatever life it may be, there is little I have not yet mastered. My favorite of which is my Fire Gift; the spontaneous internal combustion of any living, or undead, creature that has blood running through its veins. I plan to use it liberally. And just for the record… Pandora has this gift mastered as well. The two of us together, finally together, are pretty damn near unstoppable.
It was time.
Time for the assault on the Lich, deep within the Abyss. Pandora was there. I…We… were certain of it. Marius and myself had glimpsed the place within my traitorous childes blood, but who knows how long ago that knowledge came to him. But still, we were certain.
It had only been a few days after my revival, and here I was throwing myself into a battle yet again. Typical. Pandora. . . Only for you would I do this.
The gift that I had acquired for Va’lis was Davian Pasteur. We had had him extradited to Vamp’s Lair from our fortress in Night Island off the coast of the Keys in Florida back on Earth. He was not told of our plans to resurrect his former master, so obviously when Va’lis Razele walked in the door of our prison floor, the shocked look on his face was genuine. He knew he would meet his end.
Davian backed up against the wall as his master stepped forward… the fear in him palpitated throughout the room. Excitement seemed to grab a hold of Merida, Va’lis other progeny, while Isonu looked indifferent. Amroth looked like he was holding back from doing the job himself. Once Va’lis grabbed Davian by the throat and lifted him into the wall, indenting the concrete hecatolite wall behind Davian with his rage and strength, I knew it was over for him.
Well it has come to this.
I am afraid of what the future will hold for our kind and our anonymity should this get out. However, it is a risk I am willing to take.
After Vandion revealed to us that the body found in the Blood Dungeon as we searched for clues to the whereabouts of the others was a half-breed with clear signs of mind-control magic, it quickly came together for all of us. These other progeny of Va’lis are now working with the ancients that took Pandora. Somehow, their focus has changed from acquisition of the Divine Parents to whatever information these rogue vampires gave them… something of more definite power. Isonu says it could only mean one thing: The Blackrock Sword.
Cherry Spy and Kagome’s find in the Blood Dungeon while they looked for the whereabouts of the so-called others was dropped off at my office for extensive detail. The request coming from our sovereign, Marius de Romanus, I put myself to quick work.
My initial suspicions were correct, the body was indeed that of a half-breed. Half-vampire, half-human. Looked to be a white female in her mid-thirties, auburn hair and green eyes. The body showed signs that it had been beaten, tortured. My initial conclusion to the cause of death had been blunt force trauma to the back of the head. I put the time of death at 3 days ago, somewhere between 1 and 2 in the morning.
We gathered at the Tavern to talk about our excursion. I was late. It seems that trying to find adequate progeny in this land is proving to be a difficult task. I have been lurking about, surveying the land, trying to find someone that might be worth the journey. I know Marius has tasked us with expanding our family; he’s eager for fresh new blood. As a guardian, I must comply… but that’s really a pain in my arse and taking away from my daily beautification routine. Thus, I am late.
A service is scheduled for the interment of Saralyn de Romanus on August 23rd, at 9 o’clock in the eve’ by the Eastern skies at our city’s Church of the Sun.
A short service, officiated by Amroth Plinius, will begin shortly after followed by a private moment with the de Romanus family. The extended family is asked to sign the guest book provided at the entrance and then move to the Reprieve for Resting Souls graveyard, next to the Church.
Funerary attire is required.
Today was a tough day. Having to tell my surviving daughter, Brelynn that her sister was killed was not easy. Oh how I wish my Pandora was here to properly console her, I feel unequipped. It was a devastating blow. From the note left with …. well… *tries to hold back tears* … its clear that they want to have possession of Those Who Must Be Kept, but for what purpose. Caring for them has been our family’s dynasty; our most vigilant charge. The word “return” was thrown out there. Could it be that these bastards that hold my beloved and killed my daughter are the ancients that kept them before me? Perhaps.