Aloeia looked out from her castle onto the ocean ahead. Her flaming red hair blew across her slim beautiful face as the cool breeze swept through the arched windows of her bedroom. She was the princess of Vampyra, the last standing castle of the vampires , theirs being the only surviving coven after a ruthless war waged by the humans and witches in tandem wiped out ninety percent of the vampire race. Her bright golden eyes were pained and a tear escaped her left eye down to her porcelain cheeks as she remembered her father , the chief vampire warlord Dimitrus The Invincible of Vampyra , fallen vulnerable and perished to fatal injuries inflicted in battle.
Aloeia was now the ruling princess , a beacon of hope to the last few remaining vampires who cowered in fear and looked up to her for protection and guidance. She couldn't let them down. She couldn't let her father down , who had been a powerful and yet compassionate ruler of the vampires.
"How long have you been standing there, Ali?"Aloeia was startled by her mother's calm yet distinct voice. She looked at her mother , who too had porcelain skin , beautiful golden eyes and flaming red hair with a few strands of grey, which reflected not age but wisdom acquired over the years , for vampires never aged like humans and they had a much larger lifespan.
"It's nothing, mother. Why are you up now ?, there's still time for the sun to set, you look pale . Please , rest a little longer."
"Don't worry about me, sweet child. How are you faring ? It still seems yesterday , you walked with your father across the meadows behind the castle, the curious pig-tailed chirpy child and yet today you stand with the responsibility of the coven on your young shoulders. Fate has played a cruel joke on us , child. Stay strong, remember whose daughter you are , remember where you come from, remember whose invincible soul and will you carry , my child."
Aloeia's otherwise mild and demure mother, Elicia was overcome by a raw bitterness and her mouth filled with the taste of blood as she remembered the ruthless humans with their high-end weapons alongside the witches of Gorlem, waging the power of the Tree of Life, raged war against the vampires and mercilessly reduced them to just a handful of Vampyra 's last residents driving them into their towering castle as if to imprison them , never to be let out, never to breathe the air outside again.
"Don't grieve , mother , I, Aloeia of the house of Vampyra, daughter of Dimitrus the Invincible, solemnly swear to avenge our race, our coven , every last vampire down to the last Vampyrian fallen in war. My people, I will make it right" Aloeia thought to herself as the sun finally prepared to set across the horizon.
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" How's the young master doing ? " Ephraim whispered to the grand mage, Lorenthal of Gorlem.
Far across the ocean from Vampyra , crossing the Mountains of Chad , lay Gorlem, the stronghold of the witches, the Tree of Life standing tall and wide in the centre towering over all of Gorlem. The young master was Kilbert, the son of Argus The Phantom, the witch king of Gorlem , lord over all the lands the witches , warlocks and mages held dear to them. Kilbert had been grievously wounded in the Holy War against the vampires waged by the humans and witches combined, and the precious prince of the the magical world lay almost dying in his castle room , oblivious to the world outside.
"What is it, medic? Tell me , will Kilbert live?", Ephraim , uncle to Kilbert and the general of Gorlem's army , implored yet again .
"The situation is grave , I have given Master Kilbert the potion extracted by the humans from the Humuncula stone, let's leave it to time now", Lorenthal , the grand mage remarked rather nonchalantly. For Ephraim, the overprotective uncle, this just wasn't good enough. Yet out of respect for the mage 's wisdom and experience Ephraim bowed curtly and showed himself out ,without even a glance inside Kilbert's room , without even checking up on his beloved nephew.
What was the point? It was he who had promised his brother Argus he would keep Kilbert safe, yet when the boy, all of just seventeen years old had shown promise and eagerly wanted to join the fight, it was Ephraim who had literally pushed the boy to his near-death against Dimitrus the Invincible, by far the most powerful vampire history had seen , or even witches or humans had seen. " It's good luck the bastard 's dead ", muttered Ephraim in anguish , his thoughts still hovering over his gravely injured nephew. Overcome by raw emotion , Ephraim kept whispering to himself , as he kept walking. "The last of those bloodsuckers won't see the next spring , I swear , I will ravage their lands and cut down every single one of those monsters.To the death , for Gorlem and all of humanity, to hell with those abominations" Ephraim's thoughts became increasingly violent as he kept muttering and grunting as he walked all the way to the top floor of Gorlem Tower, where his chambers were.
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Stella, the personal attendant of Aloeia, the princess of Vampyra, was human , but the vampires had never made her feel like an outsider. Dimitrus the Invincible had found her abandoned twenty years ago even when Aloeia wasn't born. Stella was , what he would like to call her , " my practice kid" , not as an insult but rather fondly , and Stella followed him around like a lost puppy, she looked up to her pseudo-dad. Dimitrus was quite the father figure and when little Aloeia came along , Stella more than readily assumed the role of a sister , friend, guide and even personal attendant when destiny ruthlessly took away Dimitrus leaving the young Aloeia crown - princess.
It pained her to see her younger sibling hunched and worried about present circumstances.
"What's on your mind, Ali? Talk to me, you know you can tell me anything." Stella reassured the young princess to which the latter flashed her a rather sad and weary smile . Aloeia stared at her lanky , mousy haired elder sister , she had an olive complexion, dark brown eyes , filled with innocence and wonder .Stella had been with her forever , she was received well by the vampires , no one shuddered or considered her a pariah just because she was human and vampires were at war with witches and humans , no vampire dared lay a hand on her or wanted a taste of her blood , they respected Dimitrus and his choice way too much, even now that he was gone.
"It's nothing , Sissy, I miss Father, I so wish he were here .", Aloeia wept again , her tears rolling down Stella's rather drab looking dark brown gown. She could not hold back her tears either, at Ali's pain.
"I miss him too, we all do. This unfortunate hour is upon us , May he guide us in spirit . We need to be be in control and plan our counter-attack strategy." Stella was determined too , all set to bring about the downfall of the humans and witches. Those buggers needed to be taught a lesson, and fast too. Nothing else mattered. It mattered not if she was pitched against her own kind , the vampires were the only family she had ever known even when her own race disowned her. Yes, yes, they had to be brought under the vampires' feet . Human , witch , warlock , mage, everyone had to surrender and beg the vampires for mercy.
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Agatha was lost in thought , she still could not get over how the humans and witches brought down the feared elite vampire Dimitrus the Invincible . " Invincible? Invincible ? More like Dimitrus the Very Very Dead " Agatha laughed in her head at her own sick joke. She was the humans' trump card, a tough nut to crack, literally the most feared and valued warrior the humans had. Agatha was an orphan , raised herself in the streets of Helferton. When you have to fend for yourself day in , day out as a kid , there is very little you cannot do. And for Agatha she had seen misery , struggle , survival , she had seen the ugly side of life , at the tender age of just nineteen , she felt like forty years of age She was an epitome of the Grand Oracle of the witches, filled to the brim with experience, wisdom and lessons learnt. Unlike the vampires and witches who had vast lands with a lot of greenery and lush meadows and tall towers for their revered rulers, humans had a cluster of small, shady cities , like Helferton , one of the dirtiest and poorest anyone had ever seen. The leaders sat atop tall metallic moving castles which they called home and they used them to keep vigil over the few cities they had to call their own , near the lands of Gorlem.
"Now, now, don't you look smug. Still thinking about Dimitrus 's demise?" The words came from Fiona , of Echert. Contrary to Helferton , Echert was a better and richer town and most of the population was rather well learned. You hardly found poor , illiterate people in Echert. But when it came to war you would find the hardiest and toughest soldiers, like Agatha , from Helferton or Nomace, the two of the poorest human cities.
Nevertheless Agatha stretched herself and yawned." Of course Fiona, doesn't the fall excite you, imagine if we could over throw the vampires and end the race , Vampyra in all its glory would be ours , no more stinky cities , more space to breathe free, finally we experience what living life king-size means, all the agony and humiliation, our ancestors losing to the bloodsuckers. We get what is ours, what was always meant to be ours." Fiona couldn't help but get excited , she always loved that passionate look in Agatha's eyes. Ever since she had known and met Agatha she had been in love with her, so this freedom and acquiring Vampyra , what would it mean for the two of them ? Could they finally have their small cosy place , surrounded by a grove of trees , close to the cliffs looking over the ocean, they would quietly sit holding hands , and then look into the horizon.
"What are you thinking, love? I know that look, you're dreaming about our cosy home, looking at the sunset over the ocean , aren't you?" Agatha gently cupped Fiona's face in her right palm. Agatha was lean , rough looking, due to years of fighting and fending for herself . Fiona on the other hand was plumper, more radiant and comparatively delicate , even though she had proven her mettle enough in the Holy War against the vampires. But clearly she was the wife in the relation. In Helferton , people weren't kind to homosexuals, they called them degenerates , scum of the earth . It was better in Echert , people could be a little more accepting , but it was still a rather sorry state and a hush hush affair amongst humans if anyone came off as gay or bisexual. But the duo still dreamed of a better future , hoping a win and claiming Vampyra might bring in better days and a rather far fetched wish that due to the contribution in the war they would be left alone in peace to make a life of their own.
Fiona planted a deep , passionate kiss on Agatha's dry hard lips , she was mostly focused on strategy and action , a true warrior , she had no time for chapstick like Fiona did , but Fiona didn't mind. She knew the immense responsibility her warrior lover had, dry lips and unkempt hair were the least of her worries. How she wished all this would end soon.
She only wished a life where she and Agatha could actually live free far away from all this and finally look ahead into the horizon.
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